Confessions: I wasn't even there when it happened!

It's been such a busy fall that blogging has fallen by the wayside. I will get back to it. Soon. I promise!

In the meantime, please allow me to tell you what I have not been up to lately. I have not been taking golf lessons from Elin Nordegren, wife of Tiger Woods.

Bud was helping a friend move into a new apartment. He had his arms loaded with boxes, tripped on curb and took a direct header into a stucco column. Knocked himself silly, literally. In his words, "The column won." You think?!

And just for the record... I wasn't even there when it happened.

So, what haven't you been up to lately???

Fall to Keep and Give

Thankfully, central Texas has finally experienced a reprieve from the 100+ degree days that we thought would never end. With this drop in temperatures comes a longing for the fall days I enjoyed when we lived in the Midwest. I've pulled out my fall decor, started burning my spicy scented candles, and have begun cooking my favorite cool weather recipes.

One of my favorite recipes is pumpkin bread. I found this recipe years ago and love it because it's not only delicious, but the recipe makes three loaves of bread - one to keep and two to give away to neighbors and friends.

I keep a supply of new, cotton tea towels on hand that I use to wrap up the still-warm bread for delivery. (Ikea sells these towels for less than fifty cents a piece! If you don't have an Ikea near you, you can also pick them up at the dollar store.) Or, if the bread can't be delivered warm from the oven, I wrap it in plastic wrap and then tie it with raffia or a pretty fall colored ribbon.

Pumpkin Bread

2 2/3 cups sugar

2/3 cup butter flavored shortening

1 can (16 oz.) pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)

2/3 cup water

4 eggs

3 1/3 cup all-purpose flour

2 teasp. baking soda

1 1/2 teasp. salt

1 1/2 teasp. ground cinnamon

1/2 teasp. ground nutmeg

2 teasp. vanilla

1/2 teasp. baking powder
1 cup coarsely chopped nuts (I prefer pecans)

1 cup raisins

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottoms only of 3 loaf pans, 8 1/2 X 4 1/2 X 2 1/2 inches.

Mix sugar and shortening in mixing bowl. Stir in pumpkin, water, eggs and vanilla. Mix until well blended. Mix in flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and baking powder. Stir in nuts and raisins. Pour evenly into three pans. Bake until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 60-70 minutes; cool in pan 5 minutes. Loosen sides of loaves from pans; remove from pans. Cool completely before slicing.

Notes:

• Nuts and raisins are optional.
• Other "extras," such as chocolate chips or dried cranberries, may be added.
• Extra rich touch: Pour half the batter into the three pans. Drop small chunks of cream cheese on top of the batter in the pans. Add remaining batter to the three pans and bake as directed.
• I have a heavy-duty stand mixer that I use to prepare this recipe. I doubt that a hand mixer could handle the volume and consistency of this batter.

This recipe works for me! For more Works For Me Wednesday ideas, visit We Are THAT Family.

Sabbath Blessings

Before the mountains were born,
before you gave birth to the earth and the world,
from beginning to end,
you are God.
Psalm 90:2 (NLT)

9/11 - Never Forget

"Will it happen again?"

"Would they do it today since it's September 11th again?"

Wow.

How do I answer these questions with the honesty my teens deserve? We've talked about this subject a lot lately.

Our conclusion?

The best way to make sure it never happens again is to never forget that it happened in the first place.

30 years and counting!

Exactly 30 years ago on this day, we met.

I'll apologize to you romantics right now... because I'm not talking about my Prince Charming.

Nope... I'm talking about my best friend, Stephanie. I've told you about her before and bored many of you to tears with stories of our adventures. Indulge me on this special day and let me tell you again about our story.

Stephanie and I met on the first day of 9th grade. We rode the same bus and were the two "new kids" in a very, very small private school, which meant "blending in" was not possible. Maybe we became friends out of that desperate situation. (Hey, it was high school and we were girls - that makes it a desperate situation!) Or, maybe it was because we just truly liked each other. Either way, I believe God intended for the paths of our lives to cross and we've been best friends ever since.

Together we've been through high school, college, boyfriends, break ups, engagements and weddings, trying to have babies, having babies, raising families... and all the highs and lows of life. We know each other intimately and love each other deeply. We started using the acronym "YBFA&F" (Your Best Friend Always & Forever) somewhere along the way and still use it even now to close letters and emails. It's even been engraved on jewelry. Apparently our hearts beat on the same frequency as it is uncanny how many times we'll be thinking of the other, only to have the phone ring and hear a voice on the other end of the line saying, "Hey, you - you've been on my mind!"

Today, I am celebrating my BFA&F and thanking God for the very special blessing of our friendship. I love you, Steph!

In honor of today, tell me about your best girl friend. Who is she? How did you meet? How long have you been friends?

Confessions: Something to think about.

"You cannot legislate the poor into freedom by legislating the industrious out of it. You don't multiply wealth by dividing it. Government cannot give anything to anybody that it doesn't first take from somebody else. Whenever somebody receives something without working for it, somebody else has to work for it without receiving. The worst thing that can happen to a nation is for half of the people to get the idea they don't have to work because somebody else will work for them, and the other half to get the idea that it does no good to work because they don't get to enjoy the fruit of their labor."

(Ten Secrets for a Successful Family by Dr. Adrian Rogers, 1996, p. 138)

The sun is setting on summer...

We are making some changes...

Trading late nights for scheduled bed times.

Giving up sleeping in for early morning alarms.

Exchanging bathing suits for school clothes.

Replacing free time with studying.

Swapping outings with friends for classes with teachers.

Docking the boat and riding the bus.

But, we're also looking forward to...

Seeing school friends we haven't seen all summer.

A regular routine.

Football games with fabulous halftime shows.

Cheerleading competitions in a new division.

Band and drumline competitions.

Dance recitals and drama events.

Visits from guests and family over the next few months.

And especially...

Cooler weather. Some rain. (Please, Lord... any day now. Please?!)

School starts tomorrow!!!

19 years and counting!

It's hard to believe that another year has passed since I wrote this post last year. A lot has happened in that one year...

We watched our favorite vacation spot be destroyed.

We survived wild pigs and skunks.

Kat became a teenager - she's been rehearsing this role for years, you know!

We entered the world of competitive cheer. Texas-style, no less!

We retained the title of "Parents of a member of the best drumline in Texas" - outdoors and indoors!

Mom retired, which allowed her and Dad to spend the holidays and beyond with us.

We lost Granny - grief and relief.

History was made with the inauguration of our 44th president - on my 44th birthday.

We created more family memories on the boat.

Kat went away for her first church camp.

We added another driver to the family.

Burrito experienced his first mission trip.

We experienced it all in this nineteenth year. Together. I wouldn't want to live this life we have or share these experiences with anyone else. I love you!

Happy 19th anniversary, Bud!

Confessions: I'm livin' it!

"You can't write about life if you aren't out there livin' it!"

Well, dear readers (all three of you)...

I can assure you I've been out there livin' it. One of these days soon, I'll start blogging about it again, too.

So, what have we been up to this summer?

So glad you asked!

• Band camps
• Cheer camps
• Church camp (This was the first year for Kat!)
• A newly licensed driver in the family (It's a strange feeling to see my car being driven away by my oldest with the youngest riding shotgun!)
• A girl friend (Burrito's, that is! Not Bud's, I don't let him have one anymore!)
• A family vacation at the coast (Galveston... *sigh*)
• A mission trip
• A trip to Ohio to visit my side of the family
• All day at an amusement park
• A quick visit with a best friend
• Swimming at the neighborhood pool
• Sonic runs for late night ice cream
• At-home movie nights
• Most recently, the ramp up for the impending school year (Sadly, two weeks from today!)

And guess what? I have pictures of most of the fun. Oh, yes... I have plans to share them.

Stick around... (please???)

Cleaning Day

I should be cleaning the house. But it's much more fun to be cleaning up the photos on my hard drive. I mean, who wouldn't rather look at this:

(Fall 2000)

Or this:

(Winter 2000)

Or this:

Or this:

Instead of this:

Or this:

So, what are you doing this fine Monday?

It rained today...

Thank you, Lord...

"I know the greatness of the Lord—
that our Lord is greater than any other god.

The Lord does whatever pleases him
throughout all heaven and earth,
and on the seas and in their depths.

He causes the clouds to rise over the whole earth.
He sends the lightning with the rain
and releases the wind from his storehouses."

(Psalm 135:5-7 NLT)

Break Time!!!

They're Baaack!!!

Burrito and the team arrived back at our church at 6:15 this evening. Everyone is happy but tired. That hasn't slowed Burrito's mouth down any - he's been talking non-stop and we're enjoying hearing about his week in Alabama.

And, I'm thinking we're all going to sleep so well tonight!

Thank you, again, for praying for Burrito and the team. After he settles back into the real world, I'll have him share some of his week with you.

Good night!

World Changers: Final Work Day

Thank you to all of you who have been praying for Burrito and the team this week as they have worked and ministered in Birmingham.

The end is in sight... today is their last work day! They will work throughout the day to complete all projects. Then, they plan to clean up, pack up, have dinner and hit the road for the first leg of their trip home. They will be staying at the same church in Mississippi that hosted their overnight stop on the trip to Alabama. Saturday will be the long driving day as they complete their trip. Hopefully, they'll be home in time to have a late dinner with their families.

I'll continue to update the Twitter messages on my sidebar as I receive them.

World Changers: Work Day #2

For someone who just two weeks ago was scoffing at the need for texting...

(And we won't even discuss my derogatory comments about all those Twitter-crazed people...)

I have to confess that my cell phone is staying close to me these last few days. Today, the phone stayed very quiet. All. Day. Long. (Okay, not all day - I did finally receive the first of two text messages at dinner time tonight.)

The mom in me just kept muttering the mantra, "No news is good news. No text is good news"

And it was! Our kids are hard at work in Birmingham and finding lots of opportunities to share their skills along with Christ's love.

Tomorrow afternoon was to have included some downtime for our students. They have fun and educational activities planned for them including a tour of the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. Because rain is forecast for later in the week, they will postpone their afternoon break until Thursday and will work through tomorrow.

Thank you to all of you who have sent E-Couragrams to Burrito. Your note is somewhere on the walls pictured in this photo - just waiting to be picked up and read. If you'd still like to send one (or another one!), the E-Couragrams can be sent through Thursday evening by clicking on this link: Birmingham, AL E-Couragram!

World Changers: Work Day #1

This is the entire Birmingham team. The team is comprised of 310 participants from twelve churches, coming from eight different states including Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Florida and Mississippi. The participants are divided into 31 crews consisting of 10-14 people. These 31 crews will be working on 26 houses this week throughout the Birmingham area.

Can you see Burrito? No?? That's okay, even these mother's eyes can't find him.

The last I heard, they were experiencing a rain delay. Hopefully, that didn't last beyond this morning and they are hard at work this afternoon. (Update: They made it to their worksites at 9:30 AM and the rain held off all day!)

If you'd like, you can still send Burrito a note of encouragement using this link: Birmingham, AL E-Couragram! The E-Couragrams will be open through Thursday.

I'll post more of their Twitter updates on my sidebar as I receive them. Thank you for your prayers!

Wait A Minute, Mr. Postman...

Want to send Burrito a note of encouragement? Follow the directions in the Twitter message on my side bar or follow this link: Birmingham, AL E-Couragram!

Resistance Is Futile!

Twitter.

I've resisted it. Truly I have. And it hasn't been hard since I didn't have a texting plan on my cell phone until last week.

I mean, really...

Do I need to be texted when my neighbor finds a great buy on toilet paper? When my friend from church decides to boil eggs for her salad? Do I need to know that a fellow PTA mom is up from her afternoon nap?

Ummm... no! I'm blissful in my ignorance, thank you very much!

Until this morning.

Unexpectedly, an event in my life made me dash home, jump on the computer and set up a Twitter account. I'll bet you're thinking, "Wow, it must really be something special!"

And you'd be right!

This morning, I dropped Burrito off at our church where he and 30 other students and 9 adults loaded up in three vans to head to Birmingham, Alabama.

Once there, they are partnering with World Changers for five days on projects that include painting, roofing, building and repairing decks and doors, and yard work, as well as walking the neighborhoods and sharing Christ with those they meet.

So what about this event made me run home and set up a Twitter account?

All cell phones have been left at home during this trip, cutting off communication with our kids. And that's okay. I understand that they need to be immersed in what they are doing. Set apart so that God is able to stretch them beyond what they think they can accomplish. All without the security net of being able to "phone home."

Just before the last kisses where planted and the final wave given, our youth pastor announced that they had set up a Twitter account to keep us all up-to-date on what was happening while they are traveling and working. (I may or may not have actually heard angels singing at that moment.)

Would you join me in praying for Burrito, the team, their projects, and the people they encounter?

I'll be posting their Twitter updates on my sidebar as they are sent. This way, you will also know what is going on and can pray appropriately for them.

Confessions: How do you do it?

I am doing something a little different this year in my quiet time. I am reading the Bible through - which I've done before in various ways - but this time in chronological order in the New Living Translation. It has been awesome! The New Testament flows pretty easily as it's organized in most versions of the Bible, but the Old Testament can seem rather disjointed in its typical ordering. It's been so satisfying to read it this way and to enjoy the flow of it.

I'm especially appreciative of reading the Psalms as they fall into the events. The Psalms are always great to read, but even more so when you have a fresh understanding of the events that inspired them.

Because of reading the Bible this way, I really cannot skip a day's reading. It would be kind of like studying U.S. history starting in the colonial days and then jumping into the current events without knowing what happened in between! It's been a really good external motivator to keep up with my reading. On the rare occasion that I have missed a day, I double up - usually by trying to find two times in the day to read.

So, how do you do it? Cover to cover? The "flip and point" method? By genre?

Sabbath Blessings

"And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect." (Romans 12:1-2 NLT)

An update coming soon...

You won't believe what's been cooking around here - lots of good stuff. Come back later and I'll tell you all about it. There will even be pictures!

Happy Father's Day!

I love you, Dad! XO

A Follow-Up To My Backyard Friends

Remember this little guy?

Since this is a family blog, I declined to show you the photographic proof of his "maleness" in my previous post.

But, then some of you looked for the proof.

I do have the proof... in case you were wondering.

The End.

My Backyard Friends

This little guy visits my backyard every day.


He's a cute little guy - and yes, it's obvious he is a guy! He gets into everything in the yard including my bird feeder. So, despite the fact that I keep the squirrel feeder well-stocked, I've discovered that he'll leave his feathered friends' food alone if I scatter a little seed on the ground.

Look at those little paws. No wonder he can get into mischief!

The birds aren't afraid of him and sometimes they flutter down from their feeder to help gobble up the seeds on the ground. (See the Cardinal behind the rock?)

Here's a better look...

This bad boy is quite mean to the other birds - he'll even run off my doves that are twice his size. But, he's fun to watch in the birdbath!

And then there's this wild critter...

Max is none too happy to share the yard with the rest of them.

And the answer is...

This...

is the inside of this...

And is the new instrument being played by this happy boy...

Who used to play this...

Signed,

One very proud percussion mom

What is it???

Can you guess?