Saturday, August 7, 2010

Chatting Me

Good Early Saturday Morning to you from right here in East Texas.....Thought I would share some of our Summer Heat with you this morning!  It is so HOT outside and we really need some rain. Grab yourself a good ol' cup of coffee and join me on the porch and LET"S DO SOME TALKING.....

First of all, I am so thankful that our city well #4 is fixed and working...We were not able to water outside this week and my plants were beginning to suffer!  I love to water my plants and to see them so thirsty was painful.....

I got up very early yesterday morning and got all spiffed up.  Had to make a trip to get my DL renewed.  Wanted to make sure that my picture was going to be decent...The last one that I had made was awful...One of those pictures that you don't want anybody to see!  DUH...you know how often we all have to dig out our license to be seen by all kinds of strangers.  And, it's not like I just had that picture for three or four years.  NO, I was good enough that they let me renew them online and for that reason, I have had the same picture for eight years.  A person can change a whole lot in eight years.  Can't you just hear the thoughts of a salesperson when they look at you and then look at your DL picture?

Then....I was thrilled...My personalized license plates came in...YEP, I now have my red bug with        SHUG*6       on the front and the back....I must say, I love how they turned out...

Do you need to grab another cup of coffee?

I made this simple but oh so good pie yesterday....
If you need a QUICK dessert, then try this one...



Two 8 oz. packages of cream cheese / softened



Add a 16 oz container of cool-whip
and blend until smooth



Add 3/4 cup of Powdered Sugar
Blend well



Divide evenly into Two Ready made Graham
cracker crust pie plates

And YUM, YUM



Add any fruit topping of your choice.....

This is almost too simple!

*****

Carson's Birthday Party was a lot of fun last night...
We were honored to get to go see Mr. Chucky Cheese himself!




Carson was thrilled...Some of the other kids
gave him all of their tickets and you wouldn't
believe this huge bag that he had.  Because he was the birthday guy, he got to get inside the ticket blaster.  You step inside and this huge gush of air is swirling all around you.  You get to grab as many coupons as you can.  Carson was stuffing them in pockets and down his shirt.  I think he was able to catch enough coupons  that  they  amounted to a little over 1000 tickets....How nice was that?

*****

Gonna be a slow, kinda laid back weekend around here.  Too Hot
to do anything.   Looking forward to next weekend...
We are going to make a trip with several of our friends down to
Lafayette, Louisiana.  Can't wait to enjoy some good Cajun food, do a
little shopping and just have fun with friends.

Well, that's the happenings around here.  Hope you will stop back by this week to visit me.  Got some great things coming up like classic cars, phones and a few surprises.....

Shug...........

Enjoyed your visit....Hope you have a safe and happy weekend!

Friday, August 6, 2010

The Solid Rock


The World is full of Anxiety....

Doctor's offices are full, Pharmacist are filling prescription after prescription of antidepressants, and all kinds of books are being sold on the topics of how to make your life better.

Our World is full of Anxiety....We have the threat of terrorism, fear of climate change, sickness, fear of the government, financial stress, fear of losing jobs, and fear of all the evil in the world. 

One thing that we must keep focused on is that "Christ is Hope."
We must remember that God is with us...He will not leave us or forsake us.  He is our strength and He will guide us.

If I am fighting His plans for my life, I am not Trusting Him!

We have the choice of Trusting Him or living in constant fear and anxiety.
Which will you choose?

My Hope is Built on Nothing Less
Than Jesus' Blood and Righteousness
I dare not trust the sweetest frame
But wholly lean on Jesus' name.

When darkness seems to hide His lovely face
I rest on His unchanging grace
In every high and stormy gale
My anchor holds within the veil.

On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand
All other ground is sinking sand..


Shug......

Trust God today.  His Mercies endure Forever!

Thursday, August 5, 2010

A chuckle a Day!


I have a place to go with this story of mine, so sit back and take it all in....
I promise you will be in stitches when I am through...

As I mentioned earlier this week, Trista, Tucker, Tori and I drove to Dallas to take Tucker to Children's for his Check-up this week. 

When you go in to the clinic, they have all kinds of things for the kids to do while they are waiting to see the doctors. 
Tori and Tucker were having fun doing a little art work.
And here, the art teacher in Trista is coming out.

Then it was time for them to draw Tucker's blood....

Here is Tucker waiting in the exam room.


did you notice his sun shades....It was very hot outside and the Sun was shining very brightly...

As we start to leave the clinic, I look over at Trista and guess what I see?

Do you all remember my raisen?  Do you remember how much you laughed at me?

WELL.....

As I glanced over at Trista, I burst out laughing...I guess she thought I was laughing at myself (because sometimes I do) Evidently she wanted to take a souvenir with her when she left the hospital....


No Joke....A bandaid was stuck to her glasses...she didn't notice it when she put them on and she didn't notice it while she was wearing them.....
She had no clue...I am always taking pictures, so I guess she assumed I was taking random pictures...We just let her wear it for a while, at least until I couldn't keep my composure any longer.....What could I do, but Laugh!!



See, I am not the only crazy one in this family, and she is probably going to be upset with me when she reads this blog.....

I know it sounds unreal....but the truth is the truth..

Like Mother, Like Daughter!!

Shug......

A good laugh never hurts anyone!!


Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Mountains and Valleys


Even when you live with genuine Faith, you cannot have mountains without the valleys! 

This was a topic in our Church Evangel this past week.  When I looked at it, I knew that this was a topic that I needed to blog about. 

It is so very easy for us to say we have Faith when we are on top of the mountain.  We have confidence and we are able to speak boldly to others.  Sometimes we are guilty of taking credit for the happenings in our lives.  We even go so far as to give others advice on what they should or shouldn't do. 

However, when we start to slide down that mountain or we suddenly find ourselves stuck right down in the middle of a valley, we seem to forget about the good advise that we once shared with others.  This is when we usually find ourselves calling out to God. 

God knows our true Faith.    He also knows the weakness that allows us to fall from time to time.  It is great to live on top of a mountain.  The view is beautiful and life is at it's best.  This is a place where we all would like to stay.  The only problem is that we take our eyes off of God and forget that He is the one in control.  We try to live life without him.  We then start to live in the world and not for GOD. 

Every single trial that we go through, teaches us something.  His test are not given to us to cause discouragement, but to help us grow spiritually.  By trusting God, we are able to take another step forward  in our Faith.  We can rest assured that God has already prepared a way for us when we are deep down in the valley...

This is why, even with Faith, that we can not live on the mountain without going through a valley.  We need these valley's to keep us focused.  By being focused, we are able to help others that might be living in a valley right now...

I love the Song...."The God on the Mountain is Still God in the Valley."

Life is easy when you're up on the mountain
And you've got peace of mind like you've never known
But things change when you're down in the valley
Don't lose Hope for you're never alone.


You talk of faith when you're up on the mountain
But talk comes so easy when life's at its best
Now it's down in the valley of trials and temptations
That's where your faith is really put to the test


The God on the Mountain is Still God in the Valley
When things of wrong, He'll make them right
And the God of the good times is still God of the Bad times
And the God of the day is still God of the night!


We need to learn to rejoice when we are on top of the mountain and we need to learn to rejoice when we are in the valley. 

Shug........
Yesterday God helped me.  Today He'll do the same.  How long will this continue.  Forever, Praise His name.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Two Amateur's

Happy Tuesday Morning to you!

Thought I'd share some of the simple designs that Tori and I worked on this past weekend...Every little girl needs to be styling when school starts..

Tori and I made a little trip to Hobby Lobby last week and she was able to find the exact items she needed to accessorize her outfits!

Here are some of the items we purchased.......



We were able to find all kinds of things on the Spare Parts wall....



Items used to make the bottle cap necklace......



                       Items used for the bracelet...You can use all
                         different sizes of ribbon....Your choice..


These are the items used to make the initial Bracelet....

And, below are the end results...





Bracelet ties around wrist....Cute



So Easy!!


Not bad for two Amateur Jewelry Makers....

We must have spent hours in the store.  We saw all kinds of things that would make some really cute (little girl jewelry)

We have much more to make, and are hoping to be able to share these ideas with you soon......

If you happen to see a little blondish-brown, long-haired girl running around with lots of bracelets on both wrist and about ten necklaces around her neck, then you will know you have seen our Tori!



Shug.......

Children help us rediscover the joy, excitement, and mystery of the world we live in!

Monday, August 2, 2010

Howdy Ya'll

Howdy Ya'll.......this is a good Monday morning filled with lots of things going on today....I'm so glad you stopped in to visit.


We now have a grandson in High School and today is his first day of FOOTBALL practice.  Tyler has been waiting a very long time to play HS football.  It is exciting for him and it is also very exciting for his dad.  Ty is a football coach and what dad (especially a coach) is not super excited to see their son play football. 

Tyler is a great guy with lots going for him.  He loves sports of all kinds and is full of energy.  He also is an Honor Student and is very involved in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.   He also is a pretty good comedian!  I guess that's enough bragging from this Shug! ????

Not only is it the first day of practice for Tyler, but Taylor has to to be there at 6:30 too.  Taylor is a TRAINER for the team and she works very hard throughout the season.  This job demands a lot of grueling hours.  Sometimes 6:00 in the morning until late in the afternoon.  I am very proud of both of them. 

Let's see....besides the happenings of football practice, Trista, Tucker and myself will be heading to Dallas...It is CHECK-UP time again for Tucker.
Praying for all of his blood work to come back great and trusting that this check-up will be the best.  He looks good and seems to feel good, so we are expecting a very good report.  This is usually a full day, driving a couple of hours, waiting on blood test results, seeing the doctor, and another couple of hours drive home.    Tucker doesn't mind, because he knows he gets to come back by the BASS PRO SHOP.  This boy loves everything in that store.

How could I forget about Tori!  She will be going with us to Dallas as well.
She will be full of energy and ready to do a little doctoring herself.  You can count on that!

I sure love these kids!

Will miss my other three today...Carson, Trey and Mylee.  They are on my love list too.  Super Great Kids!

Shug....

Well, that's all Folks....for today...See ya tomorrow!
Gotta beat that traffic!

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Unrecognized Faces

Aging is a fact of life......

Went to the doctor this week with my dad.  He will be 80 this coming December and it seems that he is beginning to show signs of having some dementia.

It is very sad to watch someone you love, have so much difficulty in their thinking.   Recognizing faces, but not quite being able to remember names.  The saddest part is seeing his face when he is trying so hard to remember.  This makes my heart so very heavy.

The doctor wanted to visit with us and explain what happens in the human mind when dementia sets in.  She made one illustration that was easy to understand and it was very interesting.

She related the human mind to a big juicy orange.  After an orange is picked, there are certain things that begin to happen. 
Some oranges stay plump, with a bright color, and when peeled, they are sweet and juicy. 

Other oranges begin to dry up and the skin starts to turn brown.
They become hard and very difficult to peel..

These two oranges were picked the very same day, but just from different trees.

Our minds act in the same way.  To start with, the good orange may have been picked from a tree that was very healthy and was given great care throughout it's growing stages.   The other orange may have come from a tree that was not taken care of as well and perhaps was not watered as much as the first tree.

Our brains act in the same way...Some have genes that show no signs of dementia, while others have family members with genes that go way back in time showing signs.

It is super important for us to keep our bodies as healthy as possible.  We need to stay hydrated at all times and we need to try to live our lives as stress free as possible.  Even if you do have family members with dementia and you know that you have those genes, you still can help your situation by staying healthy. 

I am thankful for the visit with the doctor because she helped us realize some things that we (the family) can do to help keep his mind active.  This is just the beginning and with our help he can still live a full life filled with happiness. 

Blessings to my dad and to all of you that might have aging parents.

Shug.............

We must slow down and take one day at a time.  

Sunday Thinking

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