Westwoods

Don't worry, I haven't totally lost my mind.  Just saying what's current in my little world... Snoopy has a hard life... He still gets roughly kissed by Shaunti each and every day.  When she's gone to school he mopes.  Here, he is in avoidance mode.  He's ticked that I cleaned the living room and piled cushions on his favorite spot.  He keeps looking over trying to decide if its worth the effort of jumping on the heap.  He decided it was better to walk out to the kitchen and think about it.  He's wondering when the mad cleaner woman will chill and go leave him alone to contemplate his complicated life.  Please come visit with me.  I finally dusted after you don't want to know how long.  Maybe back in August?  It cleaned up nice...             What I strive to do each day...  If you prefer we could sit here with a cup of hot cider and talk about nothing... That's fun too. M...

Today I sat in a dentist office and traveled to the Caribbean, Asia, and all over Europe.  Of course I was reading T&L magazine, but it is so well written with beautiful pictures and information about these places that one can imagine themselves actually there.  In France and Italy the prices for a simple, clean room cost about five hundred dollars or is  euros a more accurate term?  If I ever do get to go to Paris and see the sights I think I should plan on hiking and starving. Surely, I could afford a little french bread and some cheeses to sustain me for my journey. I think of all the places I've been.  Puerto Rico with all its beautiful sandy beaches and green, blue sea. The lighthouses, palm trees, and humidity all give the feel of truly tropical awayness.  The throngs of people on the small island have a way of bringing you back to reality around the time you begin to savor the moistness landing heavily on your skin. Chile, South America, One ...

  My kind of fall decor... Geraniums that want to continue in the place of mums.  Our front porch is not finished but we have a very nice start. White pumpkins are speaking to me right now.  So much classier for giving thanks dontcha know... We signed papers for the start of our Oxford house sale yesterday.  Pray to the Lord above everything goes through this time... Here is the lampshade I said would be a nuisance to cover in burlap.  It was too. Some would say it looked best before the redo.  It definitely shed a lot more light.  Aren't I punny? I cut strips of this very thick burlap I found at the thrift store, then glued it one by one round and round.  I started at the top and made my way down, leaving the raw edges for a rustic bend on things. It's rustic all right.  Last thing was to paint a big fat H on the front.  I had a stencil, which after using, discovered they were supposed to be spooky stencils for Hallowe...

            Shaunti told me yesterday, while we were watching a very sad movie and I was crying silent tears, that she was trying to collect her tears in an old pop bottle.  My question was why? And then, I was reminded there is verse about that in the Bible and told her so.  She was amazed and wanted to know where.  She also was wondering what the bottle in heaven looked like and how many each person had.  I told her I probably have about three big ones by now with all the crying I do. Tears.  Why do some of us cry more easily?  Are we weaker?  Are we really [those of us who cry] any more compassionate?  Are all tears good?  Can tears be bad?  Why is there shame in tears? Why do we try to hide them?  Why do they make the people who don't cry easily uncomfortable? Here is what I've found out about tears:  Some of us cry more easily because we just do.  All of us are born with three basi...

I've always had sisters so I don't know what life is like without them.  I am smack in the middle of five girls in my family. The two older than I, are at the beginning of our family of nine. I was only five when my oldest sister married and the few weekends she was home from her "big girl job" in the city somewhere in Michigan, I didn't value her bossing around at all.  I remember flat out telling her, while she was washing dishes, and I was drying them, that I liked her better when she was away.  Please understand, I was only about four at the time.  My other older sister left when I was ten to go teach school in Virginia.  I was impressed with the crocodile tears I found floating down my cheeks while we watched her airplane take off.  I still remember the airline, TWA, that she flew with this eventful day of my life.  That was the first I felt the pain of separation with a sister.  I suspect now, I was more concerned who would be giving me gu...

We have been hearing a lot about the need to pray. Also the need to ask other people to pray for us and with us about particular things.  Not only all that, but to pray constantly. I stated to a friend after prayer meeting last night that it feels wrong to ask people to pray for "our own messes" . She says that is why we should ask for help in prayer for our messes.  It humbles us.  She had a point.   So, we humbly ask for help in this mess we have.  Pray that God would send a buyer for this beautiful house on Oxford Rd.  We want to pay our debts and honor God better with our finances.  Pray however God shows you we need prayer, for we are well aware we are needy.  We need your help.    The copper bar....The one thing that is throwing people off from buying.  We would replace it if we could afford it.   We loved it but it's falling off the edges.  We did it for ourselves and learned we would do it again, only ...

     Words... I love them.  I love reading them and using them.  I sometimes get mad at them.  They follow me constantly. I am never free of them.       Growing up, words were my best friends.  They were always there when I needed them.  They never let me down.  They filled any boring minute and flowed out of my mouth freely and randomly.  Then, I believed everything I thought and said.  I didn't think about if my words benefited those who listened.  Words at that time were for my usage and enjoyment.      Much later in life, after dating, marriage, and birthing babies, I began to see that my words were not effectual in making my husband feel loved and respected.  Nor did I hear my children being blessed and affirmed by my usage of words. Have you ever had to correct your children verbally on the way to school and then after dropping them at the door, all you hear on the trip home is th...