Grateful Daily

A friend of mine has a photo blog that she does *each day* called Grateful Daily. This is such a wonderful idea. She posts the greatest picutes...like running water or her kids or her dog. I LOVE looking at all the photos she takes and reading about her life and family. She has such great ideas (and is a great inspiration to me)...a few of which I have copied. Like...making these great cupcakes (although I've only made them once and I'm sure they weren't near as good as hers)... or getting Christmas books to wrap and read each day of December (although I've only ordered 5 or so to start)...or writing a blog each day...(which as we all know is lucky to get written once a month). And I hope she realizes that even though we rarely get to talk I do keep up with her posts and enjoy them so much.

I love the idea of "grateful daily". But I know I'll never get the camera out and I'll never keep up with posting each day. So...as I sit here about to fall asleep on my laptop...I thought I would at least list a few things that I am so grateful for each daily.

My wonderful family - there are members of my family right now going through such a horrible and painful experience and I just want them to know that I am grateful for them being in my life and I pray that they find their answers...the ones that God wants for them. (It occurs to me that they don't actually read - or probably know - about my blog...but that is OK. I'll talk to God about it and let Him handle it.)

My husband -- isn't it easy sometimes to get caught up with life and forget what a joy being together can be?

My beautiful daughter -- each day I look at her and am amazed at how she's changed and grown. I'm not sure how I will handle the next 20 years. There are times I want her to stay exactly like she is today...and then of course I want her to grow and change. It is the most wonderful experience getting to watch her.

Those are just a few things that I am grateful for daily. There are many, many more. My hope is that everyone can remember to be grateful daily.

Wishing you all a blessed Christmas season.
~Yvette~

Thanksgiving

As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches this week, I wanted to take some time to point out some things that I am thankful for and to also include some specific prayer requests...

I hope and pray that everyone has a great Thanksgiving holiday and that God will meet them where they are and bring them peace.

Things that I am thankful for...
...God and the sacrafice of His Son - Jesus Christ
...my husband and his friendship
...my beautiful daughter
...my family who is always there for each other
...my friends who are there even though we may not talk often
...this country we live in and the solders who protect us
...my job in these uncertain times
...so many other things I can't name individually here.

People that I'm praying for...
...my husband and daughter
...my brother and his wife and their kids
...my friend's brother who is undergoing treatment for cancer (and all his family)
...my family
...my friends
...myself and my spiritual journey
...and again so many other people that I can't name individually here.


May God Bless You This Thanksgiving

The GREATER Debate

So, a few of us at work have started a Bible study. We've started reading Mark. I've never done such a study before but it is turning into a great experience. It has gotten me back into my Bible and back in communication with God. How great is that?

So a little about our group. One Catholic, one becoming a Catholic, two Church of Christ (one brand new), and me (non-denominational Christian, raised Methodist, somewhat Baptist -- still new in my walk). A pretty good mix with a variety of beliefs.

One such difference in our group is the question..can you lose your salvation? Everyone but me feels you can. Although I've been a Christian for a number of years I'm still what I would consider new to the Word. So I've begun studying the different views on how we are saved and what the Bible says about salvation. I'm currently reading Eternal Salvation by Dr. Stanley...whose point is we cannot lose our salvation. It is an interesting study (which led me on a side study of Bible translations) but I'm still not done yet.

This is one of those topics that I'm not sure either side could sway the other to their side. It has been an interesting study and I'm still reading and researching. If you check my blog and have an opinion or belief I'd love to hear from you.

Also, in my studies I've found the following which is great for comparing different Bible translations and the meaning of words.

The NET Bible

Search for a Bible passage...then when you find the passage you are looking for, click the link (for example Matthew 7:13) and you will get all the Bible transalations for the selected passage on one page. Very nice for comparison.

Eternal Security by Charles Stanley

The Great Debate

How disappointing. I was really hoping last night's debate would be exciting as it was a Townhall approach. Wrong!!! Boring boring boring. And they said the same things they've been saying - with the exception of McCain's plan to buyout home mortgages. Makes me wish we'd gone ahead and bought a new bigger house! (Horrible plan by the way.) And those questions were horrible. I have a hard time believing that the questions asked by the people in the audience were really their questions. They could barely get the questions out. I had hoped to hear some hard questions for both candidates. Not the case.

Well - my vote hasn't changed but I do hope McCain/Palin can step it up and give us something to talk about in the next month.

Some interesting points made yesterday by Boortz...check it out here.

We Are Not Alone

I think sometimes it is very easy to think we are alone. Particularly when we are having issues or feeling down or things are not going our way. I get caught up in those thoughts myself a lot. I read this post today and thought it was great. You should check it out to.

Thinking God is Far Away.

We...I...must remember that as children of God...I will not ever walk alone.

~Yvette~

"Where Tradegy Confronts Eternity"

Hi all. I haven't blogged in forever. I've been busy with work, Jessica, and life as usual. A lot has been going on. Most recently I attended my 20th high school reunion that was wonderful. I'm so glad I went and was able to visit with so many old friends. But - that is not the topic of this blog. This blog is about the book The Shack by William P. Young. My mom recently invited me to attend one of the book club sessions that she goes to. The book this month is The Shack. I download the unabridged version from Audible.com and began listening on our morning commute. I don't want to give away the book - but you MUST get it and read it. It was wonderful. I've just received my paper copy in the mail so that I can read through it again. While this book is obviously fiction - I think it could be a pretty accurate description of God. Here's a quote from the back...

"THE SHACK is the most absorbing work of fiction I've read in many years. My wife and I laughed, cried, and repented of our own lack of faith along the way. THE SHACK will leave you craving for the presence of God." - Michael W. Smith, recording artist

That sums it up. Reading this book, or rather, listening to this book has given me a renewed desire to seek God. I think it would be excellent for those old and new in their faith as well as those seeking.

Check it out. Let me know if you read it and what your thoughts are.

A Hint of Fall

I am outside watching Jessica play on her new swing set and play in her new sandbox enjoying the little hint of fall. The fact that it's 69 degrees right now instead of 80 in August is wonderful. If I had it my way the temp would never get over 72. In fact - it could be 5 to 10 degrees cooler and it would be fine with me. I love the fall and winter. Spring is ok but only goes to show summer is coming. And I don't like the heat at all.

So, we'll sit outside this morning until the temperature rises and we are forced back inside to the cool air-conditioned air.

I hope everyone gets to enjoy this little break for a bit this morning.

Tonight is my 20th high school class reunion. I'm sure I'll have much to blog about tomorrow. I'm so looking forward to seeing people I haven't seen in the last 10 to 20 years and catching up with everyone. Hopefully this will spur us on to keep in touch more than once every 20 years.

~Yvette~

Adoption & Happy Birthday's

Today is my birth-mother's birthday. Happy Birthday Debby! I hope it is a blessed and wonderful one.

Debby and I met in person about 15 years ago. It was a strange process for me to decide to find her and then finding her and meeting her. (I should blog on that whole thing another time.) We keep in touch - but not as much as we should. It has been a wonderful experience finding her and getting to know her and more about my birth family. I was also able to meet much of Debby's family - including my birth-grandmother - before she (birth-grandmother) passed away.

On that note - here is a poem that I found growing up and always felt that it described my situation perfectly. I shared this with Debby when I met her. And each time I read it -- it still brings tears to my eyes.


Legacy of an Adopted Child
Once there were two women who never knew each other.
One you do not remember, the other you call mother.
Two different lives, shaped to make your one...
One became your guiding star, the other became your sun.

The first gave you life and the second taught you to live it.
The first gave you a need for love, and the second was there to give it.
One gave you a nationality, the other gave you a name.
One gave you a seed of talent, the other gave you an aim.
One gave you emotions, the other calmed your fears.
One saw your first sweet smile, the other dried your tears.
One gave you up...it was all that she could do.
The other prayed for a child and God led her striaght to you.

And now you ask me, through your fears,
the age old question unanswered throughout the years...
Heredity or environment...which are you the product of?
Neither, my darling, neither...
Just two different kinds of love.

--Author Unknown--

Excellent and Funny Post

I haven't blogged in a while. All the great topics I thought of the night I created my blog have suddenly disappeared. But, I still read my friend's blogs.

A while back a friend referred to another blog. I took a look and am now addicted. I've added it to the "My Blogs" section on my blog and check it out each day. THIS guys writes a lot of blogs. This one was particularly good and you should check it out.

Stuff Christians Like: #347. Using faith as "God" currency."


He also has an interesting ongoing topic about tattoos and is currently holding a contest. I say interesting because I waited until a few years ago to get a tattoo even though I had wanted one long before it was "cool" to get one. I like mine a lot and have thought about another one. I'll have to take another 10 to 15 years to decide like I did the first time. The Kanji symbol means "Happiness."




So I've been scanning more blogs while sitting on a conference call and this one made me LOL. There have been several - but this is great.

346-worship-leaders-that-add-word-and


~Yvette~

Getting Older

I'll be 38 years old at 12:28 A.M. on Saturday July 12th. I'm not sure how I feel about that. There are days when I feel really old and tired. And there are days when I feel like I'm still 18. (If only I had that 18 year old body back!)

I remember very, very clearly the day I turned 25. For some reason that birthday was the worse. I was working from home with not too much to do on a 5 ache farm. I kept wandering outside to talk to the animals. I think I cried most of the day. Probably because my life was not at the point where I thought it would be at that age. I thought I'd have 2 kids and being busy living happily ever after. Didn't quite turn out that way. I believed what the people I worked with had told me...don't blink cause you'll be 30, then 35, then 40 before you know it. And here I am...2 years shy of 40. OMG - can I really be 38 years old?

It's so amazing how life just happens. That reminds me a few songs...both by Kenny Chesney actually - "Don't Blink" and "The Good Stuff". -- link to lyrics in case you don't know the songs. (I really like Kenny Chesney!)

From "Don't Blink"...

Don't blink...Just like that you're six years old and you take a nap and you wake up
and you're twenty-five and your high school sweetheart becomes your wife...

Don't blink...You just might miss your babies growing like mine did
Turning into moms and dads next thing you know your better half
Of fifty years is there in bed
And you'll pray that God takes you instead
Trust me friend a hundred years goes faster than you think
So don't blink

I feel just like that...I blinked...I was 18 laying out on Stone Mountain with Brandi and Paul...I was 23 and looking forward to being married...I was 27 and starting over again...I was 30...I was 35...and now...38. I guess the next time I blink I'll be watching Jess walk down the aisle. I hope time slows down between now and then so I can savour every minute of her life. :-)

I wonder if I could get myself nominated for 10 Years Younger and What Not to Wear all before the reunion on August 9th? HA! I am looking forward to my own "makeover" as my birthday present to myself. (Bye, bye grey hair!)

So all that to say....

Happy Birthday to Me...
Happy Birthday to Me...

Hey...this would be a perfect time to make more cupcakes...

I go back...

With my 20 year high school reunion coming up I've done a bit of thinking about the past and high school. Getting back in touch with old friends has been wonderful and I can't wait to see everyone. There is a song by Kenny Chesney called "I Go Back" that sums it up well...

"I go back to the smell of an old gym floor
The taste of salt on the Carolina shore
After graduation and drinkin goodbye to friends
And I go back to watchin summer fade to fall
Growin up too fast and I do recall
Wishin time would stop right in its tracks
Everytime I hear that song, I go back, I go back"

"We all have a song that somehow stamped our lives
Takes us to another place and time".

I love this song. It is so true and hearing it brings back a flood of songs that remind me of specific time periods, events, or people in my past. That one line ..."We all have a song that somehow stamped our lives"...is perfect. If you've never heard the song I recommend looking it up and listening at least once. Of course - the fact that I listen to the 80's station on satellite radio also helps bring back a ton of memories. I love it when they play a song I've forgotten I knew and forgotten I loved. Here are a just few songs that get me everytime I hear them (in no particular order)...

Crazy for You - Madonna

Paradise City - Guns n Roses

I will never forget driving down Memorial Drive with my friend Brandi. This song came on and she broke into the best head banging I've ever seen. :-)

Anything by the Violent Femmes

Alive and Kicking - Simple Minds

Somebody - Depche Mode

Photograph - Def Leppard

Every Breath You Take - The Police

The whole "Records" album from Foreigner

The one year I was able to go to Panama City for spring break this was the album to play. I can't hear it now without thoughts of that trip (some good, some bad) coming back.

Another Brick in The Wall - Pink Floyd

In elementary school we use to do something called "Sing for your lunch." Basically each class would pick a song and sing it at the front of the auditorium/lunch room before being "allowed" to eat that day. In the 5th grade (I believe) our class picked Another Brink in the Wall. Now back in the 5th grade I had no idea what this song was. Obviously the teacher who "approved" this selection didn't know the song either - or read the words that she copied for the whole class to learn. I will never forget Billy McBride running across the stage with a play guitar and "playing" along with the guitar solo. I'm pretty sure the teacher probably got in trouble. Every time I hear that song now I think of Billy and all of us standing on the stage singing "we don't need no education...".

The list goes on and on and I'll probably keep updating as I hear more of them. Please post some of your favorites too....

Still not blogging...

Well - I'm still here...and I read my friend's blogs each day - but I still haven't writen anything new. Maybe tomorrow.

~Yvette~

What to Say?

So, when I decided to start blogging I thought it would be very easy to come up with topics on a daily basis. As you can see, I haven't blogged since Monday. I can't think of anything important to say this week for some reason. So, I decided to just start rambling and see what happens...

Rambling 1...
I spent 5 hours yesterday cleaning my house top to bottom. All of this was done in anticipation of a showing scheduled yesterday afternoon. Of course, whoever came to look at the house didn't even take one of the color flyers off the counter. But at least the house is spotless and will be much easier to maintain.

Rambling 2...
Conference calls. Why is it that just sitting on a conference call and listening to other people talk is so exhausting? I've had 4 or 5 one to two-hour conference calls all week long and I am so tired.

Rambling 3...
When I was on my extended maternity leave with my baby, I started making my own laundry soap as a way to save money and stay on budget. A friend of mine posted a link to a book called Clean House, Clean Planet and also talked about making her own cleaning supplies. So - my copy of the book arrived Monday and I was able to use my own, home-made cleaning products yesterday during my cleaning spree. It was wonderful. I still need to get some oils for fragrance...my floors were a bit vinegary smelling yesterday. If you are at all earth-conscious or budget-conscious then I would highly recommend checking out the book. Its really nice to know that what I'm cleaning the bathtub with won't hurt my daughter later when I put her in the tub! And it was fun to make my own products and then enjoy using them.

Rambling 4...
I need to lose 37 pounds. I had big plans. My 20th high school reunion is in August and I had planned to be slim again for that. However, I get started...loose 5 to 10 pounds...and then gain it back. Most of this weight is baby weight (yes - I know she's 2 now)... and part of it is just from gaining a bit at a time after getting married and quitting smoking. (August will be 4 years!!!!!!) Anyway - then I think about having another baby and what would be the point of loosing a bunch of weight to only gain it back again with another baby? So, at this point I'm thinking I'll just have another baby and then go on a diet to loose all the weight. Its such a battle and I don't seem to have the will power....the will power to NOT eat and the will power to drag myself to the gym each week. I told my husband that I have a gym membership just so I can carry the little tag on my keychain. *let's out long sigh...* You may wonder why I started rambling about this...well a while back I read something on WW regarding motivation. One person said that her WW leader gave them a paperclip for each pound they lost. So I got out the right number of paperclips and linked them all together and put them in two groups - pounds to loose and pounds lost. I look at this everyday on the wall in my office. The paperclips are not moving groups. In fact, I think I need to start back over...I may even need to add a few. :-( I have always been a small person...and I've never had to struggle with weight before. I'm not sure I like this getting older thing...

I guess that's it for Thursday afternoon ramblings...
~Yvette~

What to do when you don't know what to do...

That was the title of the sermon yesterday at church. And, as is the case most of the time - it was a message that I really needed to hear. Chris and I are talking about a few big decisions for our life and our family. I told him, "we just have to pray about these things." The struggle is making sure we hear God's message for us. So when we sat down and I saw the title I was like...wow how appropriate is this since we were just talking about it.

The sermon was based on Pslams 27. I would recommend reading the passage and studying the meaning with the following points from the sermon in mind:

1) Do I Know the Lord? (verses 1-3)
2) Do I Love the Lord? (verses 4-10)
3) Am I Listening to the Lord? (verses 11-14)

We were reminded that if we look to GOD (even in really tough times) we will be OK. 1 Corinthians 10:13 tells us "No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he'll never let you be pushed past your limit; he'll always be there to help you come through it." (The Message)

I think that's hard to remember sometimes. A lot of times when we get really frustrated and upset with circumstances it's easy to get caught up and blame God. Instead of looking to God to bring us through and make us stronger. It's Satan that wants us to worry and complain and loose sight of God.

So, all this to say that I have my answer now. Instead of just making decisions on our own and wondering if we are doing the right thing...I will focus on knowing God, loving God, and listening to God. Then I believe the answers and His will will be clearer to us. I'm sure at times we'll still have trouble discerning His will...but at least now I have clear steps to follow that will keep me going in the right direction.

~Yvette~

Budgets and Groceries...

I don't know about you but we always struggle with staying on budget. One of the big areas where we always go over is groceries. I've asked a few friends what they suggest and one thing I heard was - planning! Given my busy work schedule I've been having a hard time with that. But - I recently found the following site that I think will help a lot. This is pretty easy to use and very inexpensive so I wanted to share with all my family and friends.

http://e-mealz.com/

The have Weight Watcher options, vegetarian options, regular options, etc. And what I like is it is already planned out with a shopping list. Check it out and let me know if you want to join too as they do have a referral program and I would need to get a code.

Another option we do quite often is The Dinner A'Fair. You make 12 meals in 2 hours. The cost is a bit more than it would be if you did all the shopping - but you don't have to do all the shopping. That makes it very nice. The big issue then is just remember to lay out the meals. :-) This is also a fun "girls" night. If you are interested in that - let me know and we could plan a girl's night out.

If you have other helpful tips for staying on the grocery budget - please post and share. I can use all the help I can get.

Also - we heard about the e-Mealz site while listening to Dave Ramsey. If you aren't familiar with him - I would recommend checking out his site too. We are very much on our way to getting gazelle intense with our debt reduction plan!

http://www.daveramsey.com


~Yvette~

Keeping my mouth shut...

You know the saying... "If you don't have anything nice to say then just keep your mouth shut." So - I started this very long topic and then deleted it...as I have nothing nice to say at the moment. I'll just recap the issues at hand...and you'll get the picture.

1) Purse AND car stolen from Mr. Cue's on Chamblee Tucker July of 2006. Car was found 4 days later trashed, burned, wrecked, etc. (Granted - my fault for taking my purse into a bar and not chaining it to my person.)

2) New navigation system install in Expedition months later. Drove to dinner at Discover Mills mall that night. Returned to car at 9:30 and the whole unit had been ripped out of the car.

3) Dash Express (GPS) unit purchased for truck 3 weeks ago. Driver-side door busted in and unit stolen last night IN OUR DRIVEWAY. (Again, our fault for assume our stuff would be safe in our car in our driveway.)

My husband said to me, "I guess I just don't get to keep nice things."

At this point - I'm usually just happy to see the cars in the driveway when I go out each morning. But it's getting to be ridiculous.

Chill-Ville...

Tonight is a women's Bible study at church called Chill-Ville. Several Sunday's ago we saw the pastor and his wife at lunch after church and she mentioned this event to us. I was excited because it wasn't an ongoing lesson - where if you missed one you felt a little behind. So, Chris is going to watch Jessica tonight and I'm going to go. I had wanted to make sure that my friend was going too...but now I've decided I'm going to go anyway. (I'm actually a bit shy in groups when I don't know anyone and am always nervous about going to this type of event by myself.) But I know too that once I get there I will enjoy it and learn a lot.

My hope is that I can get more involved in church and have attending church become the norm instead of the exception. It seems I always let life get in the way. Or I'm constantly telling myself - we'll start next week - there's too much going on this weekend. Or, we'll be out of town the next weekend so we'll start after that. I know that should not be my attitude and that I need to put God and my faith first. I know that during the times in my life when that was the case - everything was better. Not always easier...but easier to handle. And I was happier. I guess the question for me now is...how do you get that back when it feels like its an eternity away? I hope I'm making the first steps by going to church more regularly and starting this women's Bible group/night.

~Yvette~

Finally the Cupcakes...

In addition to being inspired to start my own blog based on Heather's daily blogging... I also finally broke down yesterday and made some cupcakes. Heather is obsessed with cupcakes and is always talking about them in her posts. She puts up wonderful pictures of the ones she makes and they make my mouth water just looking at them. After weeks of reading about her cupcakes I couldn't resist any longer. I looked up the recipe she mentioned, bought the ingrediants, got one new muffin pan, and for the first time ever made the batter and the icing from scratch. Well...all I can say is Yummy. However, I cooked them a bit too long and the icing is not quite the right consistency. I think I'll just have to make more and continue to perfect them as I practice. The icing is basically pure sugar - which is a bit too much for me. I'll have to see if I can find some alternate recipes for a frosting not so rich. They are better today than they were last night as the icing has "set."

Getting ready to make the cupcakes with a great assistant...



The first attempt at completely home-made cupcakes...



And finally...what makes all the mess worth while...

The very first blog...

Well...I've always thought of keeping a journal and have even given it a try from time to time. Being as I'm on the computer all the time - I've also thought of an electronic version. So I've been inspired by reading some of my friend's blogs (Heather and Yazmin) and have finally decided to give it a try. I'm not sure I'll be able to post daily as I see she does - but I'm going to try. It will probably be boring thoughts that will be of no interest to anyone else - but I'll be able to say I'm finally doing some journaling.

I'm sure some of my topics in the future will be related to being a wife and a mother; as well as being a stuggling Christian. There will probably be some other topics regarding friends, family, work, hobbies, and other every day stuff.