Just Read the Lyrics......

Read the lyrics to this familiar carol.....forget the tune for a minute, just read the lyrics......

I Heard the Bells
on Christmas Day

by Hen­ry W. Long­fel­low, 1864

I heard the bells
on Christmas day

Their old familiar
carols play,

And wild and sweet
the words repeat

Of peace on earth,
good will to men.

And thought how,
as the day had come,

The belfries of all
Christendom

Had rolled along
the unbroken song

Of peace on earth,
good will to men.

Till ringing,
singing on its way

The world revolved
from night to day,

A voice, a chime,
a chant sublime

Of peace on earth,
good will to men.

And in despair
I bowed my head

"There is no peace
on earth," I said,

"For hate is strong
and mocks the song

Of peace on earth,
good will to men.

Then pealed the bells
more loud and deep:

"God is not dead,
nor doth He sleep;

The wrong shall fail,
the right prevail

Of peace on earth,
good will to men.

 

This song is really speaking to me today.....D is getting worse......don't know why, don't know where or if the decline will stop.  When he wrote this, Longfellow had just received news that his son had been killed.  I can see his whole grief process.....and yet he comes back to, "God is not dead, nor doth He sleep; The wrong shall fail, the right prevail of peace on earth, good will to men."  I guess the part that is REALLY shouting to me today is, "God is not dead, nor doth He sleep"....He's NOT dead, He's NOT sleeping, He's in control, and I have to trust that, "the wrong shall fail, the right prevail".  In other words, I need to have faith.  Longfellow didn't have some crystal ball that told him that everything would be alright, he DID have the Word of God, and he DID trust that the promises are true, and he DID know that God is who He says He is, despite our circumstances.  I know that too.....really, I do.  I guess I just need to be reminded when I'm wondering.........when I'm weary of this road that seems to stretch on forever, full of obstacles I'm just too tired to climb over anymore.  I know that He's with me when I'm just too weary to go on.  Seems to be a theme today.  Weariness.  I wish I had some sage, well spoken blurb to spout, but I don't.  I'm walking along with just enough light for the step I'm on, trusting that He knows the way and He has my back.   That's pretty much it from here......

Blessings to you and yours.......

Merry Christmas!!

Only Because of Jesus,

anne

Things I Never Thought I'd Hear Myself Say........

 UNTIL I HAD A BOY..............

 


 Caught in the Act.....





Busted!!!!  (For the record, the t-shirt was a gift from a very funny dear friend of  mine....ok, Mary, you've been immortalized on the blog..... lol! :-)


Ok, now that you see just a taste of what kind of cheeky wee monkey he is,  some things I never in a million years thought would come out of my mouth.........



"No, Samuel, Woody doesn't want to walk in the poop, neither does Bob!!"  (Said while trying to change a very poopy nappy....)

"Yayyyyyy!!  Sir Samuel of Poopsalot has slain the evil cricket with his sword!!" 


"Let's go through this again, I am NOT Rapunzel, nor a jungle gym, and my hair is NOT your own personal leverage system!"

"Dude, the high chair tray is NOT your own personal surf board...."


"Ewwwwww!  Oh come on Samuel, stop licking the floor!!"


"Son, everything is NOT a football......"

"Son, dancing on the table is something you save for drunken college parties that I want to know nothing about......."  (that one was said out of earshot of any of the other kids.....:-)

"Sam, ladies don't view whacking as form of affection, pretty soon your cuteness factor will wear off and they WILL whack you back.......somehow, then, I don't think you'll think is so funny...."

I could go on......raising this boy is funny, challenging (he's full into the serious temper tantrum stage), and most of the time, just plain fun!  I'm sure I have more of these.....do any of you have some?  Boys are such a blast!  May your weekend be blessed....

Only Because of Jesus,

anne

When You Give a Sam a Haircut......

I know, I know, I'm really drawing it out between posts, but, life is extremely busy right now with some home renovations going on, (more on that later) living in limbo while trying to use this opportunity to clean out a bunch of junk.  So, I thought, I'd start things off by showing you the magnificent oaks in our front garden.  I just looovveee autumn, I think maybe I've said that before, but it bears repeating.  Fall ROCKS!!! 
Chaos indoors, but all I have to do is look outside my front door, and I see this....






Isn't it spectacular????  I mean really......gorgeous!!!!  It just feeds my soul. 

     Now, with that stunning start, what, you ask, could I possibly follow with that would top that?  True, but, what that shot is with awe factor, the following shots are with awwwwwwww factor....... 

     Sam got his first haircut last month.  I was trying to save $$$  that we don't have, by doing it myself.  Well, a wiggly 20 month old boy, coupled with Mum used to trimming folks willing to sit still equals, well, a haircut just like Daddy's!! 
      Here's the before.....




Here it comes.....



Wait for it......


Wait for it.............


Ta DA!!!!!!




He looks like such a little boy now....sniff.....sniff......I know he IS a little boy, but, the baby boy is passing into memory.......sniff......oh heck, who am I kidding ???  He just looks adorable!!! 

He's also been spotted doing this lately.......






He fights sleep for sooo long and then just gives in and leans over the first convenient spot, and conks out.....too cute, ok, and too funny!!!









It would appear to be that time of day again.....may your day be blessed.....and your dreams be sweet....


Only Because of Jesus,

anne

Mmmmmm.... Fall

 

Elly when she was 3.  My friend Valerie, awesome photographer chic, took this......I love how she captured Elly being herself....

Wow, has it been that long already?  I haven't been here in over a month, and I have sooo much to say and so little time!  I'll be posting before and after pictures soon, so be on the look out, and that's all I'm gonna say about that.... :-)  I did find a couple of pictures of Elly and Maddy that my awesome photographer chic friend took when they were much smaller.....where has the time gone.....the following two were taken at our church's Reformation Day party....loads of fun!!  



Maddy was 5 (she's now 13) and she was a magical monarch butterfly that year, this is one of my favorite shots of her....



Elly was 3 (she's now 10) and she was the little lion with her blankie, too cute for words!!!




     Today, I'm baking my first loaf of pumpkin bread of the season.  As a lover of pumpkin anything, our family recipe for pumpkin bread is the best I've ever tasted!! (Not that I'm at all biased or anything........lol!) I made some changes a few years ago, and the kids couldn't even taste the difference, so we kept em'.  I reduced the sugar by 1 cup, and used applesauce instead of the cup of oil, white whole wheat flour instead of white flour,  and, since we like our pumpkin bread spicy, I upped the spices a bit.  Yummmm, with a cup of pumpkin spice coffee, it's the epitome of fall yumminess!!!



"Healthy" Pumpkin Bread

3 1/2 c white whole wheat flour (I like King Arthur or Trader Joe's)
2 t baking soda
2 c succanat or sugar
1 c water
4 eggs or 1 cup egg beaters (for the 2pt per slice calculation, use egg beaters, but it turns out yummy either way :-)
1 c unsweetened applesauce
1 can pumpkin (around 1 3/4 - 2 cups of pumpkin puree)
1 t cloves
1 t nutmeg
1 t allspice
Dash of ground ginger
2 t cinnamon
1 c chopped nuts (optional)


Mix dry ingredients, add wet ingredients and mix well ( all in one bowl).  Pour batter into two loaf pans that have been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.  Bake at 350 F for around 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Remove from pans immediately, and place on rack to cool.  Can be served warm with butter, or we just like it plain.  Somtimes we even have it for breakfast with cream cheese.  Enjoy!!!  (for those of you on Weight Watchers, the recipe has been run through the points calculator, and it's 2 points per slice of a 10 slice loaf...just fyi :-) 


 




     I just love pulling out my great grandmother's mixing bowl, and making the same recipes I imagine she would've made, this unassuming bowl is one of my dearest possessions.  I love the feel of it, the weight of it , even the color of it.  I remember using it when I was a kid, and my Mum and I mixing this recipe, using this bowl.  Amazing that.  Now, I'm doing the same with my daughters, my little sous chefs, always wanting to help, to stir, to create......just like their Mama.....and their Nana.......generations of women creating for their families, making home.....well....home.  



 








    Autumn is my absolute favorite season.....I plan to rock it out this year!!  May your lovely autumn day be blessed....


Only Because of Jesus,


anne





 

Found this.......Quote of the Day

"A woman's heart should be so lost in God, that a man has to seek Him to find her."

Found this on Humble Pie's header.......love it!!!

May your day be blessed.....

Only Because of Jesus,

anne

photo taken from google images

Quote of the Day

"Be yourself.......everyone else is already taken......."

                                                                -- Oscar Wilde

Nuf said....


May your day be blessed.....


Only Because of Jesus,

anne


Photo taken from Google Images

Quote of the Day

“Our sanctification does not depend as much on changing our activities as it does on doing them for God rather than for ourselves.” 

                                                           --Brother Lawrence

Amen......Amen.


May your day be blessed...

Only Because of Jesus,

anne

Quote of the Day

"What you do in your house is worth as much as if you did it up in heaven for our Lord God. We should accustom ourselves to think of our position and work as sacred and well-pleasing to God, not on account of the position and work, but on account of the word and faith from which the obedience and the work flow."
                                           --Martin Luther

    

Makes ya think....anyhow... Bethany Hudson of The Apple Cider Mill has some really interesting things to say about this here
it makes me think of all that I do, I should be doing as to the Lord,  and out of obedience to Him, not because it makes me or my family or anybody else happy, though, oddly enough, it does.....



May your day be blessed....

Only Because of Jesus,

anne


PS Picture credits: Martin Luther and Homemaker from Google Images.                   

Is This Cool or What??

Ok, I know I've been away, and I'll explain about that later....promise!  But, in the meantime, I had to share this find on the Martha Stewart website from 2008 (yes, yet another example of how behind I perpetually am....sigh....) 

"What may appear at first glance to be an unconventional armoire is actually a set of bookcases attached along one side. Opened, it's a compact, self-contained, innovative crafts or office nook. Closed, it's far more decorative than any tidied-up desk, without the slightest hint of its contents.

Bookcase Armoire How-To

1. Same-size bookcases, painted to match, are joined along one side by long piano hinges. One case is affixed to the wall; the other is set on casters to swing out and expose the workstation. A vintage latch adds an ornate touch."

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Clever Office: Hidden Space and more decorating ideas, organizing tips, and homekeeping and cleaning solutions on marthastewart.com

 The possibilities are endless!  Modern or classic, funky or traditional or maybe a bit of both......what a fun idea!!!

May your day be blessed.....

Only Because of Jesus,

anne

It's A Two for One Deal....

My sister Merry and I decided on a two for one deal. I get to have my niece for a little over a week, and in return, or maybe as a security deposit, not sure on that one :-), I send two of our girls to Illinois with her.   So, Maddy and Clara left yesterday morning for their roadtrip 2010......the following blog is a story in pictures courtesy of Madeleine...........
































Clara happy as a clam to be at Aunt Merry and Uncle Philip's house, because, let's face it, Aunt Merry gives her chocolate milk whenever she asks for it!  I mean what's not to like?  Have fun girlies!!!!  Mommy misses you already, this will be much tougher on me than on you....... sniff......sniff......

May your day be blessed....

Only Because of Jesus,

anne

Ooookey Dokey Then......

 

Clara excitedly dashes up to tell me, and I quote, "In my world everyone is horses, and they eat rainbows and poop butterflies!"  Ooookey Dokey then.......not sure if I want to join her world.

 

I think in my world, all cleaning would magically be done (a la Mary Poppins), and one could eat chocolate



and chessescake, along with coffee of course without gaining weight.


 



Yeah, now that's a world I can get behind........I'm just sayin'.........

May the rest of your day be blessed....

Only Because of Jesus,

anne

Anybody else have these sorts of problems.......?

Maybe I'm like this turtle trying to be a shark....trying to organize this crew into their own chore charts and actually expecting them to do it !

 

 

a poem about responsibility

There was a most important job that needed to be done,
And no reason not to do it, there was absolutely none.
But in vital matters such as this, the thing you have to ask
Is who exactly will it be who'll carry out the task?

Anybody could have told you that everybody knew
That this was something somebody would surely have to do.
Nobody was unwilling; anybody had the ability.
But nobody believed that it was their responsibility.

It seemed to be a job that anybody could have done,
If anybody thought he was supposed to be the one.
But since everybody recognised that anybody could,
Everybody took for granted that somebody would.

But nobody told anybody that we are aware of,
That he would be in charge of seeing it was taken care of.
And nobody took it on himself to follow through,
And do what everybody thought that somebody would do.

When what everybody needed so did not get done at all,
Everybody was complaining that somebody dropped the ball.
Anybody then could see it was an awful crying shame,
And everybody looked around for somebody to blame.

Somebody should have done the job
And Everybody should have,
But in the end Nobody did
What Anybody could have.

          --  Charles Osgood

And so goes the chore chart wars in the land of B.  Hope y'all are having a fabulous holiday weekend!!!

May your day be blessed......

Only Because of Jesus,

anne

Photo by ruined21

Ouch!

     Ya know when you read a quote, and it hits you right between the eyes?  Then you read it slowly, again, just to make sure you really just read what you read, and it hits even harder the second time?  Good, me too.....now read this one, and be prepared........

"Resentment is like drinking poison, and hoping it will kill your enemies."

                                                                          -- Nelson Mandela

     Wow, so very true!!!  Ouch!!  I know, theoretically, I knew this, I mean, Jesus talks about such things!  But I'd never heard it put so succinctly, maybe God was speaking to me, ok, He was speaking to me....sometimes, He uses the strangest things to get my attention, and show me the ugliness that has built up in my soul, that I didn't even realize was there...stuff that only He can cleanse me of....
(I'm gonna be brutally honest, I'm gonna show you the picture version of this, possibly the worst picture ever taken of me, no makeup, and taken at an angle that shows every line, every wrinkle, every blemish, NOT for the squeamish..). 




If you haven't run away screaming, I'll ask....
Did it speak to you? The quote, I mean....  I'd love to hear your thoughts.......


May your day be blessed....

Only Because of Jesus,

anne

PS 

Free at Last! Thank God Almighty, I'm Free at Last!!!!

 

Many nights without sleep yielded this.  It may not look like much, but it's a year's worth of school work (or at least many examples thereof) in date order, 4-3" binders full. The night before I didn't sleep at all.....yep, I am OCD......pretty pathetic really.  But......drumroll please.....the girls not only passed but got rave reviews for their portfolios!!!!!  After all that's happened with D's health and hospitalizations, doctor's appointments, physical therapy appointments, disrupting our normal school routine, I am soooo proud of them!!!!!  We still have some things to finish this summer, but, we finished most of it, and did well!!!  
Yayyyy!!!!  Free at last!!!!  (It's not only kids who are happy school is (mostly) over!!)



Kyri was a little incredulous that it was finally over for the year.....


Elly was exceptionally excited!!!  And a bit silly............

     After the portfolio review, I met my friend Diane for lunch.  I set that up because that way, no matter how the review went, I had something happy to look forward to afterward.  Clever, I know.  Well, actually, more mental health self preservation.........ok, back from that rabbit trail, my friend Diane has a lovely office that is almost as beautiful and elegant as she is.......the ladies she works with are lovely as well........



The above painting was painted by another mutual friend who's an amazing artist, who also happens to be named Dianne.  She paints the most exquisite paintings,  she gifted me with one, and it sits in a place of honor in our dining room.  I couldn't resist taking a pic of Diane's painting from Dianne!!!  Isn't it just lovely????


 
Her coffee and tea station, isn't it just fab???

Below, my friend Diane, and yes, I did cut myself out of that picture!  I had not slept at all the night before, just powder and a bit of lipstick and not even nicely dressed!  Are you kidding, next to Diane, well, the poor woman was  slumming being in a picture with me that day!  Good thing she's not like that, and went to lunch with me anyway!!! 




This is the gift she gave me.  I mean, look at this delicious leopard print, I was excited before I even opened it!!!







Then I DID open it, and it was a beautiful painted stone by a FABULOUS artist that also happens to be a mutual friend of ours.....is she talented or what????  This amazing woman also is an amazing photographer, and designs a line of amazing greeting cards!!!  Did I mention she's amazing?? I'd been wanting  one of her painted stones for awhile, and voila!  Thank you Diane!!!!!

We had a wonderful lunch, it was lovely to relax and chat without wee folk to interrupt.  I love them dearly, but occasionally, it's nice to have a complete, uninterrupted conversation.....bliss.............




As if this day wasn't good enough,  God just continued to pour out the blessings!!!  I got home, and a friend from church phoned, and offered us a pair of dressers, they no longer needed them, and were wondering if we could use them?  Oddly, enough, two of our dressers were on our last legs, perfect!!  I wasn't too worried what the dressers looked like, I can take just about anything and make it work with paint or refinishing.  I had no idea it would be like this!!!! This is the first dresser they brought, is it gorgeous or what????  I mean, let's just say, I'm not changin' a thing!!!!  Thank you Linda!!!





Oh, there's more!!!  God continues to pour more and more into the already overflowing blessing basket!!  Then I received a gorgeous package from the same friend that painted that gorgeous stone.  Her name is Sandi, and she just blows me away!!  I was excited before I even opened tha box!!!  Then I opened it , to find beautiful colorful tissue paper, and open that to find the beautifully wrapped packages above!!  Clara loved the ribbons so much, she had to wear one of them in her hair!!









This is the hand made envelope, I mean, the envelope,  was just gorgeous!!!  I think I'll frame it , and hang it near my desk....love it!!!










Dear Sandi, sent me several of her beautiful photography cards, and her amazing photography  book!!!  She and her dear husband John live on Cape Cod, and she takes the most breathtaking pictures of the beach, it just makes me feel as though I'm right there with her, a mental deep breath and ahhhhhhh  tension release.........







I am forever blessed by this dear soul!!!  Thank you Sandi,  you have blessed me(us) so greatly with this wonderful box of deliciousness!!!!!  I love it!!!!






To celebrate such a fabulous day, and the fabulous portfolio review, the kids and I went to Chick fil A for ice cream and play time for the younger ones in the play area (it was 98 degrees, the park was a big NO, ugh!).  They had a blast, but Clara insisted on wearing her pink princess rainboots.  Didn't matter that it was nasty hot, and humid (this IS after all Maryland....?:-), didn't matter that those boots have been through one too many sisters and are cracked in places, nope it had to be the those.  So we went with it,  I mean she's five, she can get away with pretty much anything in the fashion kingdom and still pull it off.....and all was well in the land of B.


May your day be blessed.....


Only Because of Jesus,


anne