Our Baby is TEN!

I SHOULD have a picture of our beautiful 10 year old daughter on her birthday. We always have the camera with us. Well, we USUALLY do. Since I was in charge of pies, pies and more pies, I thought Phil would grab the camera. I even thought I saw it in his hand when he got in the van, so I didn't ask about it. I should have! I think my dad took some pictures, but he hasn't sent them to us yet. So...I guess these pictures will have to do.

Natalie came into this world the day after Thanksgiving, November 27th, 1998. She wasn't due for three more weeks. She's always been in a hurry! She was the skinniest baby we'd ever seen, but as this picture of her around 3 months shows, she didn't take long to catch up!



She's always been our fun loving child. She's the one who keeps us laughing, when she isn't causing our hair to turn gray way too rapidly. EVERYTHING must be done NOW and she MUST know all the details. In her mind, that is. My dad has been called Boss-Boss, my dear niece, Boss Junior, so Natalie is Baby Boss!



Natalie has long had an affection for most animals. Pigs were her first obsession. She then switched to loving dogs. You know how some people start to look like their pets? We don't have one, but I think she's taken to the neighbors' dogs.



Natalie loves to help cook, or really bake. She has come to several Pampered Chef shows and helped me. Here she is one year in full gear.


Natalie is a beautiful girl whose heart becomes sweeter each year. When she isn't being competitive (I would not put it past her to run for some kind of office one day, just so she could win), she is VERY helpful. She has to take on the role of Big Sister at times because of Bethany's Asperger Syndrome and social delays. Natalie has been working towards being a teenager for a long time, it seems! When I joke with her that I'll let her drive somewhere this time, she gladly accepts! LOL! Hopefully we'll have some birthday pictures to share with you soon. She definitely gives us another reason to be thankful each day of the year!

Happy Thanksgiving!

A very Happy Thanksgiving to my 2 or 3 readers! LOL!

Some of my friends have been reading my running commentary on preparing for a gluten free Thanksgiving. Here is a glimpse of what it takes for me to enjoy Thanksgiving the way that everyone else does (food wise). I am in charge of pies every year, so I have some regular stuff to make as well.

*Make Bread from scratch to make stuffing
*Cut bread into cubes & dry out in oven
*Make gluten free pie crust (4)
*Make cream of mushroom soup from scratch (canned isn't gf)
*Make fried onion rings like the yummy ones in the can for green bean casserole
*Make pecan tassies with gf flour
*make apple & pumpkin pies gf
*Make regular apple, pecan, pumpkin & Lemon pies (Natalie requested Lemon for her Birthday Pie)
*Make gf dinner rolls from scratch (they shriveled as the cooled; very odd)
*Make dressing using dried cubes
*Realize at 10:30 pm on Wed. night that you forgot part of the ingredients in the gf apple pie.
*Decide it's too late to make green bean casserole b/c you spent the past 2 days making all this other food. It can be mixed together in the morning.

That's all for pies, rolls & dressing! Mom makes the turkey & gravy (gf for me), mashed potatoes & that yummy gluten-filled dressing that I can't eat any more. She is so good & always checks the turkey to be sure it's GF for me. MIL makes a fruit salad. I can eat that! Her sweet potatoes have flour in them, so I can't eat those. I really don't care much for sweet potatoes, so that's okay. My SIL often brings these yummy cheese puffs that I now can't eat. I have made them gf & they are still pretty good that way! Not on the menu this year. SIL's mom brings peach cobbler. I'm not sure what else folks are taking.

The pecan pie isn't for T-day, but for my dad AFTER everyone leaves. I owed him one! He cracks all the pecans & I do the baking.

I hope your day is stress free & full of blessings! We have so much for which to give thanks to the Lord!

Food, glorious food!

This summer we saw a stage production of the musical "Oliver!" based on the Charles Dickens book Oliver Twist. We've since obtained a DVD of the full-length movie. I remember seeing it when I was young and it is fun introducing these classics to my children. The music and dancing is fun. The story, is, of course, full of very sad pieces of history. My children are stuck with a teacher for a mom even when we watch movies!

One of the songs we love from this musical is "Food, Glorious Food." We actually noticed a different version of this song in one of the Ice Age movies! With Thanksgiving and Christmas approaching, I've got food on my brain. Oh, who am I kidding. Being a Pampered Chef consultant and having to eat "special" food with no gluten, food is always on my mind! I thought I'd share a few of my favorite recipes for this time of year. Enjoy!

Pecan Tassies (The Pampered Chef)

This one makes up wonderfully as a Gluten Free Recipe! Just substitute in any GF flour blend. I've even made it with Bob's Red Mill mix, which has bean flours in it (I don't like it in most foods), and it was delicious. Even my gluten eating friends & family couldn't tell it was Gluten free!

Ingredients:

Tart Shells

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened

3 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 cup all-purpose flour

Filling

2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup pecan halves, finely chopped

Powdered sugar (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. For tart shells, beat butter and cream cheese in Classic Batter Bowl until well blended. Add flour; mix until a soft dough forms.
2. Using Small Scoop, shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place balls of dough into ungreased cups of Deluxe Mini-Muffin Pan. Dip Mini-Tart Shaper in flour; press into dough with even pressure until dough rises slightly above rim of pan.
3. For filling, place butter in Small Batter Bowl; microwave on HIGH 30 seconds or until melted. Stir in brown sugar, egg and vanilla. Finely chop pecans using Food Chopper; add to batter bowl and mix well.
4. Using Small Scoop, fill each tart shell with level scoop of filling (do not overfill). Bake 20-25 minutes or until light golden brown. Remove from oven; cool in pan 3 minutes. Remove from pan to Stackable Cooling Rack; cool completely. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired.

Yield: 24 tarts

This next one is one I made when I'd only been a Pampered Chef consultant a few months & my dad, who doesn't like pumpkin pie, liked this.

The Pampered Chef Pumpkin Lattice Pastry

1 package (15 ounces) refrigerated pie crusts (2 crusts)

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon pecan halves, divided

1 egg

2 tablespoons sugar

1 can (15 ounces) solid pack pumpkin

1 container (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed, divided

1 package (3.4 ounces) cheesecake instant pudding and pie filling

1 teaspoon Pantry Cinnamon Plus Spice Blend

Additional pecan halves (optional)

1.Preheat oven to 375ºF. Let pie crusts stand at room temperature 15 minutes. Lightly sprinkle Large Round Stone with flour. Gently unfold one pie crust onto center of baking stone. Lightly brush with water using Pastry Brush. Using Food Chopper, finely chop 1/4 cup of the pecans; sprinkle evenly over crust. Unfold second crust and place over first crust, matching edges and pressing to seal. Using Baker's Roller, roll crusts out together to edge of baking stone. Fold edges of crust 1/2 inch toward center, forming an even border; press to seal seam.

2.Using smooth end of pastry tool, form a decorative fluted edge; prick entire surface of crust. In Small Batter Bowl, lightly beat egg and brush over crust. Place sugar in Flour/Sugar Shaker; sprinkle evenly over crust. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to Stackable Cooling Rack. Cool 15 minutes. Carefully slide crust onto Round Platter; cool completely.

3.Meanwhile, for filling, combine pumpkin, half of the whipped topping, pudding mix and spice blend in Classic Batter Bowl; whisk until smooth using Stainless Steel Whisk (mixture will be thick). Using Large Spreader, spread filling evenly over crust.

4.Attach closed star tip to Easy Accent Decorator; fill with remaining whipped topping. Pipe 3 horizontal rows of topping across surface of filling, followed by 3 diagonal rows, forming a lattice pattern. Pipe a decorative border along edge of filling. Using Deluxe Cheese Grater, grate remaining pecans over topping. If desired, arrange additional pecan halves around edge of pastry. Cut into wedges using Chef's Knife. Serve using Slice 'N Serve®.

Yield: 12 servings or 20 sample servings

Nutrients per serving: Calories 290, Total Fat 15 g, Saturated Fat 8 g, Cholesterol 25 mg, Carbohydrate 34 g, Protein 3 g, Sodium 250 mg, Fiber 2 g

Cook's Tip: Pumpkin pie spice can be substituted for the Cinnamon Plus™ Spice Blend, if desired.

I know many people have a chocolate sheet cake (or sheath cake) recipe that is the "best" but MY MOM'S is THE BEST! LOL! Note how this can be changed up for Christmas.

Mammaw’s Chocolate Sheet Cake

For a GF version, I use a mix of half sweet rice flour & half corn starch or tapioca starch. All white starches with a powdery feel (not gritty).

Sift: 2c. sugar, 2 c. flour, 1 t. baking soda, and 2 t. cinnamon in a large bowl.

Put: ¼ # margarine (1 stick), ½ c. shortening, 4 T cocoa and 1 c. water into a pan. Melt margarine and cocoa. Bring to a rapid boil over low to medium heat (not high, it will burn), stirring frequently. This will take a while. Pour over the dry ingredients and mix.

Add: ½ c. buttermilk (OR mix 1 T. lemon juice plus milk to make ½ c. let this sit for awhile or put in micro for 20 sec. to sour), 2 beaten eggs and 1 t. vanilla.

Grease a cookie sheet (jelly roll pan, one with edges) 11”x16”. Pour in batter. Bake at 400° for 20 min.

Meanwhile make frosting:

Fudge Icing:

Over low heat bring to a boil:

¼ # margarine (1 stick)

4 T. cocoa

6 T. milk (1/3 c)

Add: 1 box (1#--3 ¾ c. ) powdered sugar, 1 t. vanilla and ½ c. nuts (optional) (for a variety at Christmas you can omit nuts & after pouring on icing sprinkle w/ crushed candy canes)

Mix well. Pour on cake while still warm. (Most cakes say wait til it cools, but this one is different).

BRRRRRRRRRR!

Baby, it's cold outside! Just had to share this exciting news! No snow, but it's fun to pretend!

Praise God for extended warranties!

We have a new battery tonight & it only cost us the gas money for Phil to come from work to get us & take us back to install a new battery. It was still under warranty! YEA!!! We are thanking God for that!

I've got a new tire & a new battery. Surely that's all we need to have replaced right now!

Until later!

It's Tuesday

Fair warning: My friends & family who voted for our new president-elect may not see some of the humor in this. Just sayin'. I'm saying it lightheartedly, and hope you take it that way!

In my little online group called the "Travelin' Dork Sisters" (we all like to make cards and/or scrapbook pages or other paper things with stamps; we also all happen to be dorky and proud of that! LOL!), we have found that Tuesday is, well, Tuesday. My dork sisters know what I mean. Tuesday is Murphy's law day. If anything can go wrong, it will. Take last Tuesday, Nov. 4th, 2008, for example. MY candidate lost the presidential election. Yep, it was a Tuesday.

This Tuesday had a series of unfortunate events leading up to today's events. Sort of. About 2 weeks ago we had to replace a tire on the van. Cha-ching (that's the sound of an old cash register ringing up our total bill). We had a tire on the Buick Regal (our 1995 Regal, which is less than regal these days---much like the prince & the pauper, it has now switched places with royalty to live amongst the commoners) that had been in need of replacement for some time. One of my friends saw me driving the car one day with the tire extremely low on air & told me I needed to get it fixed. When I still had not done so a couple of weeks later she said if I didn't take it she was going to take it in to get it done! That's a good friend! On Friday last week, Natalie & I experienced a lumpy bumpy ride like nothing we'd ever felt. She had a drink holder with several sodas in it and they were sloshing like we were on the high seas. I had to drive it once on Sunday. Yesterday we chugged our way to Wal-Mart to have it replaced. Cha-ching.

Today is Tuesday. That is our homeschool co-op day. You may remember that I was the nut mom for our Girl Scout troop. Today was "money due" day. That meant being sure to find the moms, get the money, count the money, add all the money, double check the money, etc. Thankfully the GS leader has done a LOT of work with this nut sale, and she willingly took care of the last few bits of money that needed to be turned in. Phew! I was also in charge of the GS lesson today----making cupcakes from scratch, trying new foods, and learning to set a table properly. I was adding checks & cash by hand (remember back in the old days before calculators?) WHILE doing these lessons. Well, not the cupcake making. We did THAT BEFORE class because there is one kitchen & there is a class in there the same time as GS, AND we found out another class needed the oven. OY! So, I was adding money, teaching a class, and getting cupcakes out of the oven at the same time. I also missed a class I needed to co-teach (thanks to the other teachers for going forth without me!). During that time, my friend, who had been concerned about my tire, was told that SHE had a flat tire. So, she had to take it in to have her tire fixed. Except, when they were fixing that one tire, they found that her front 2 tires were bald on the inside, so she had to get THOSE replaced. Cha-ching for her, or should I say for THEM.

After this we took the Girl Scouts to a nursing home for Veterans Day. The cadettes (the older girls) were doing the flag ceremony. It was such a beautiful event. The girls presented the flag, then we all said the pledge (I almost laughed when the girl said to stand for the pledge b/c so many can't stand; thankfully the lady there said "or sit if you can't stand"). There were some readings by one of the workers there (coordinator of some type) and the VFW president. Then our girls handed out cards & thanked the veterans for their service. We sang some patriotic songs. The piano player is 92 and legally blind. I talked to her after the service & it was so wonderful to hear her talk and hear her play. She played music from all the branches but Coast Guard (because they didn't know the CG song). People stood when their branch song was played, whether they were in that branch or the spouse/family of that branch. When they listed the vets, they told what they did, and it was so cool to see the women that had worked as WAC's during WW2! There were also women who'd been in the Red Cross & USO. The lady speaking said, "I know why you volunteered there. It's where you met all those young good looking servicemen." Even in their 80's & 90's this gave the ladies a giggle!

Near the end, the girls were asked to take some time to visit with the person to whom they'd given the card. Even the Juniors who had tagged along, and 2 boy scouts (their mom is the cadette leader) got to hand out cards and visit with someone. Bethany was reluctant to do ANYTHING, so one of the other girls who seems much older, but is really just 1 1/2 years older, took her under her wing. This girl's younger sister & Natalie are "BFF's" (best friends forever), so both my girls spend time at their house. It meant so much to me for her to do this for Bethany & not show any signs of "having to help her" at all. When she talked to the veteran, she pulled Bethany up there & told the man, "This is Bethany. She's a little shy." I had heard the man Natalie talked to speaking earlier & realized he was very clear headed (his mind), and saw her with him. She's been around "old people" (to her) in their 70's & probably 80's from being around her grandparents a lot, but usually they are well-bodied folks with clear minds. Natalie did a great job talking to the people. As we left one lady said to her, "You are a sweet little girl." We teased our Natalie on the way out about being called "sweet," but she can be VERY sweet and gentle.

During the event, at one point the VFW man got choked up, which made me get choked up. At least until someone who couldn't hear yelled out, "I can't hear a thing he's saying!" Then the coordinator lady got choked up reading something, and I got teary. But, what did me in is when I saw the girl who was with Bethany talking to this old man and hugging him, then she was crying & crying because it was so special. She's not a girl who cries a lot. In fact, I have NEVER seen her cry. I was already teary about her helping Bethany & when I saw her cry, I just couldn't help but cry. She said he started crying & told her he wasn't sad, just moved. He said, "You've made me smile from cheek to cheek," and he gave her a sweet kiss on the cheek. Later we learned that he almost died not long ago, which made this even more sweet. Then they passed out cookies to the residents and visited with more of them. I heard some of the girls say how much they enjoyed doing this. I think they saw how special it was to these people and they wanted to help. I was so proud of our girls.

Well, all the warm fuzzies came to an end and Tuesday reared its head again (the nerve!) when we got outside. My friend had new tires. I have a new tire. Surely we would just get in the car & go home. Nope. My car would not start. We found someone with jumper cables & tried charging it. Nope. Nothing. Nada. Nil. So, we loaded up the girls & me into her car and headed over here. Mind you, this didn't happen near our house, but a good 25 minute drive away. We left the car parked at the nursing home. OH! I forgot the best part. Have you ever looked at the engine in a 95 Buick Regal? The battery isn't on top. It is hidden beneath the washer fluid reservoir. It's dark out & 3 women could not find the battery. We've all jumped cars before & know what a battery looks like. I called Phil & found out that you don't attach it to the battery, but a separate little connector thingy (I'm NOT the mechanic in the family).

When we got home, my friend was telling Phil about it & we all agree the engine design stinks. Then she told him all that happened with her car & said, "What's up with all this happening?" I joked about it all happening since Obama was elected. She wryly replied, "It's an Obama Nation." You have to say that really fast to see the humor.

She took the girls to her house to spend the night. We thought I'd be getting up early to deal with the battery in the a.m., but he wants to wait til after work. So, she has the girls & I am here. It must mean Tuesday is almost over.

All joking aside, when we got in the car, she had K-LOVE on, which plays Christian music (nationwide & on the web). There was a song on called, "Blessed be the Name" and the words playing were:
Every blessing you pour out I'll turn back to praise.
When the darkness closes in Lord, still I'm gonna say
Blessed be the name of the Lord, Blessed be your name,
Blessed be the name of the Lord, blessed be your glorious name.

Even on Tuesday, even when Murphy's law is in full swing, even when you just paid for a tire & now have to pay for a battery & you really were hoping to pay for some other things, even then we can say Blessed be the Name of the Lord. He's still on His throne. Now if He'll toss a little juice into my car, that would be icing on the cake!

Are we there yet?

We left San Antonio at 10:30 this morning to get to Lost Maples state natural area. It's less than a 2 hour drive according to mapquest. We were finally in the park & had our pass at 3:00! It was a VERY long day. We didn't get home til nearly 10 pm. I'll upload a couple of pics, but will save more info & pics for another day.

Isn't this cute?

Okay, so now I'm falling into the trap. I have to have a CUTE blog. Others have CUTE blogs. So I went to www.thecutestblogontheblock.com and found this one. Now I need to go find something cute for my craft blog!

My parents came to help clean today. Dad made a path through the garage. Mom & the girls spent the entire day in their room & as much as they dug through, it is STILL a huge mess. The living room is full of MORE boxes. We need to put in some used Entertainment Center shelves that Mom Garrison got for us, then unload all this onto the shelves.

Somehow, as I took everything off the shelves, including the TV, which is large, bulky & heavy (well, not really large, but for me to lift it was!). Somehow in doing so I broke the feed from the cable into the TV, so now Phil will have to figure out how to make that work. He does have the DVD player hooked back up to the TV & he & Natalie are watching the Tinkerbell movie. I wasn't impressed by the opening lines, but I need to see more to see what I think. One of our friends told us about the Red Box video rentals---it's one night, but only costs $1, so we tried it. We'll take this one back tomorrow. There is a machine at our convenience store at the front of our neighborhood, so it is, well, convenient! Bethany is spending the night with a friend, so she'll get to watch this another time. I want to get the American Girl Kit Kittredge movie next. We studied the Kit books last year at co-op, so it will be fun to see. Plus, the girl who plays Ruthie used to be our neighbor! We didn't know them other than to wave & say hi, but Phil had talked to her dad when they were moving to California to pursue her acting career. I guess it has paid off!

Tomorrow we'll head to Lost Maples to see REAL FALL COLORS!!! I can hardly wait! We finally have a touch of color on the Ornamental Pear Trees, which is nice, but not the rich colors of maples. I've never gone in the fall, so I'm excited! We were due to go when I was nearly due with Natalie, but it rained that weekend and we never got to go.

Off to fairy land now! Maybe I can find some fairy dust to sprinkle on my house to make it grow & get organized!

Hello

I really don't have anything new to blog about, but for the 3 readers I have, I thought I'd post something! LOL!

Today I went to the ENT. He looked up my nose & said it looks like the septoplasty I had done 9 years ago is still in good shape, but he is ordering a CT scan for me. I'll go back on the 20th for a follow-up. I wonder if they'll find anything in my head this time. I'm missing my brain, so it may show a big black void.

I dropped off some catalogs for a gal to do a Catalog show. I have 2 live shows this month! Yea! I love doing the Pampered Chef shows, but haven't been able to do tons b/c of illness & such this year.

My parents are coming over to help us clean & organize. Dad will work in the garage, Mom will help the girls with their clothes & mounds of STUFF in their room, and I will make a dent in the living room.

We are working on a plan for Natalie's birthday party. We have really outgrown parties at our house b/c the kids are so big now. We wanted to do bowling, but that cost $79.99 per lane, with 6 kids max! Not gonna happen this year. She handled it really well, which shows a lot of maturity on her part. In the past that would have caused her to throw a fit. We've asked my mom if we can go there, but it is in New Braunfels, which is about a 30 minute drive from my house. My niece may be in town & I might coordinate with her to do Arbonne facials on the girls (and let the moms see the products! See, Becky, I'm trying!).

Bethany told me tonight, when I told her about some Girl Scout activities, that she really doesn't want to do any of them. She said, "It's just too much. I just want to stay home & do stuff here." Then she said later, "I really liked being a Junior better. The sleepovers are okay, but all we do during cadettes is talk." I told her it may be b/c she's younger than most the girls. She said, "Yeah, and they are like mini-adults." That was kind of an odd assessment, I thought! But, she's not ready to grow up & wants to still be a kid. I guess that's okay & it's pretty normal for a child with Asperger Syndrome.

Gotta get to bed so I can be alert when we clean tomorrow....uh, I mean, later today!

Why are you downcast?

Psalm 42

1For the director of music. A maskil of the Sons of Korah.
As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O God.

2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?

3 My tears have been my food
day and night,
while men say to me all day long,
"Where is your God?"

4 These things I remember
as I pour out my soul:
how I used to go with the multitude,
leading the procession to the house of God,
with shouts of joy and thanksgiving
among the festive throng.

5 Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and 6 my God.
My soul is downcast within me;
therefore I will remember you
from the land of the Jordan,
the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar.

7 Deep calls to deep
in the roar of your waterfalls;
all your waves and breakers
have swept over me.

8 By day the LORD directs his love,
at night his song is with me—
a prayer to the God of my life.

9 I say to God my Rock,
"Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I go about mourning,
oppressed by the enemy?"

10 My bones suffer mortal agony
as my foes taunt me,
saying to me all day long,
"Where is your God?"

11 Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.

Psalm 43

1 Vindicate me, O God,
and plead my cause against an ungodly nation;
rescue me from deceitful and wicked men.

2 You are God my stronghold.
Why have you rejected me?
Why must I go about mourning,
oppressed by the enemy?

3 Send forth your light and your truth,
let them guide me;
let them bring me to your holy mountain,
to the place where you dwell.

4 Then will I go to the altar of God,
to God, my joy and my delight.
I will praise you with the harp,
O God, my God.

5 Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.

King David. Now THERE was a ruler I could have voted for! Well, in retrospect I could have voted for him. In his LATTER years I could have voted for him. In his early adult years, not so much. He was an adulterer, a man of many wives, a murderer, and refused to see his own evil until confronted. Yet, he is remembered as a man after God's own heart.

David has his "fair share" of enemies. He knew what it was like to live among men and women who did not have a heart for God, a heart for the Truth, a heart for what is right. And he knew what it was to be disappointed. Look at the words above in GREEN. He was downcast! He was saddened by what he saw around him.

I feel like David tonight. Well, not the part about adultery & murder, and goodness knows one husband is enough! LOL! But, I know the downcast feeling. And look at those words in BLUE. Plead my cause against an ungodly nation! Wow. Can anyone relate to this?

My candidate didn't win tonight's election. I really had hoped against hope that it would be a surprise victory. If you look at the electoral votes, it looks like a landslide victory. Yet, if you look at the popular vote, last I saw the tally was 48% to 52%. That's a very narrow margin. We are a country divided. I don't know Mr. Obama personally. I certainly will not be the one to call him "deceitful and wicked" without seeing him in action. But, I will say that my definition of deceitful & wicked and God's are quite different. In my human form, deceitful and wicked renders images of adulterers & murderers (hmmm, seems I mentioned that before). In GOD's eyes, according to His Word, not mine, we are ALL deceitful & wicked. We have ALL fallen short of His glory. So, in God's eyes, in my own flesh, without His help, I am deceitful and wicked, and John McCain and Sarah Palin are deceitful and wicked, and YES, in GOD's eyes Mr. Obama is deceitful and wicked. What I DO know is that God has a standard & I can't meet it on my own. I DO know that it is ONLY through HIS Word that any of us know what HE says is right & wrong. I can't meet His standards. Only with Jesus as my Savior working through me as the Holy Spirit can I even begin to do anything pleasing to Him.

I also DO know that according to my Bible, there are things that are an abomination to the Lord. One of those things is murdering innocent babies before they have a chance to live. I am unwaveringly pro-life and anti-abortion. I realize this is probably an unpopular thing to be, but I'm really not too concerned with winning the popular vote (even if I did, I'd need an electoral college to REALLY elect me). Another issue that God's Word is VERY clear about is sodomy. If God destroyed an entire city because men had traded natural desires for women in exchange for unnatural lusts for each other, there is little doubt in my mind that God's plan is for marriage to be between a man and a woman. I also believe that God gives parents the right to raise their kids and educate them in the best way they choose to do so.

Why is my soul downcast like David's tonight? Because I see in our president-elect a man who says a woman can choose to "abort" her baby if she wants to. He does not say "pro-abortion" but chooses the term "pro-choice." The truth is, if you think abortion is wrong, yet you say it's okay for a woman to have one, you are condoning it. If I said, "I think killing people with green eyes is wrong, but if someone wants to do it, that's his choice." If you view abortion as murder, then you cannot condone it in anyway. In my understanding, Mr. Obama has said in a debate that he thinks a woman should have that choice. I do not view that as him valuing the life of the child.

I will not go into detail about my 2nd point, that according to God's Word, marriage is to be between ONE man and ONE woman. Adultery, fornication, and homosexuality all fall outside of that guideline. We've all sinned, and many of us who are now Christians have likely sinned in this area. I believe that it is a slippery slope when we start promoting as normal what God calls sin.

Third, parental rights is near & dear to my heart, as is education. I am a teacher. I have taught in public schools, in private schools, in tutoring situations, to missionary kids, and am currently teaching my own children as we have chosen to educate them at home. I will expound on this another time, but I will say anyone who says we need to get ALL 3 year olds into early childhood education scares me. Perhaps it should be AVAILABLE to anyone, and not just lower income families. However, I pray it will not become mandatory. My kids are past that age, but to force parents to part with a 3 year old when they do not WANT to do so is a crime. This is a point I heard Obama make more than one time.

Yes, my soul is downcast, it is disturbed within me. But, like David, I know the solution. It is not to put my hope in men or women. It is not to be downtrodden because our president elect has views that differ so greatly from God's Word. The solution is to put my hope in HIM, my Savior and my God. He is still on His Throne. He has a purpose & a plan. Praise to Him who sets rulers over nations.

Commentators

I watched local news at noon & tonight at 5. It actually went for an hour, then CBS news was on at 6. I could only take a few minutes of Katie Courick. I have no idea if I spelled her name correctly, so forgive me if I misspelled it. I admire her strength in becoming a young widow with 2 girls to raise. I think she has really made a name for herself in reaching the level of journalism she has. However, some of her commentating is more like free political advertising. I told some friends I was so tired of the commentators on TV that I even turned off FOX news! It's bad when an ultra conservative turns off Fox! LOL!

Anyway, it reminded me of this joke I heard from my friend Janet (Brewer) Brown many years ago. I'm ad libbing as I can't recall EXACTLY how it went, but I have the main idea. Also, I updated the name in it. A prize winning Idaho potato married his sweetheart, a champion Russet. They had an offspring, Sweet Potato. Sweet Potato grew up & fell in love with Matt Lauer. Her parents said she was of blue ribbon stock, and in no way could she marry Matt Lauer. She was distraught and wanted to know WHY they felt this way. Dad explained, "I am a prize winning Idaho potato. Your mother is a champion Russet Potato. Matt Lauer, well, he's just a Common Tater." Bwahahahahaha!!!!!!

Day of Prayer

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14

Many are calling for today to be a day of prayer. Perhaps, if nothing else, this election has caused people to really evaluate what they believe & support. There is a great rift in our nation. We see the words of Scripture where Christ said that believing in Him would turn brother against brother and father against son. There is no RIGHTEOUS candidate. Only Christ Himself is righteous. But, God is big enough to work through whomever is chosen to be president of the USA. We need to pray for our land, for our citizens, for our children-----those born, and those yet to be born who are alive in their mothers' wombs.

No matter what happens, God is sovereign.

And, if memory serves me correctly, Texas can always secede from the nation and be a Republic again. tee-hee!

Happy Birthday Mom!!! Happy Reformation Day!!

Yes, I am a day late & a dollar short as always, but the BEST things about 10/31 have nothing to do with costumes & candy. 72 years ago on October 31st, a lady was struggling in childbirth. She had adopted a son and tried to adopt 2 more children, but they were taken back to the county where their birth mother lived per the new law. This lady, who had been unable to conceive a child, thought she was having an emotional breakdown. She went to the doctor and found out she was PREGNANT! Then, when it was time to deliver the baby, complications arose. She was in labor for much longer than was safe in those days. I suspect the baby was too far into the birth canal to perform a Caesarian birth. In a day when no one was allowed in the delivery room but the doctors and nurses (well, the patient, too), the doctor had allowed both the lady's mother and husband to come in. They were there to say goodbye to this woman, as it was suspected she was dying. The baby was surely dead after such a long time. The only way to save the lady's life was to reach in with forceps and pull the stillborn child out. They did pull out a baby girl, bruised, but very much alive! The lady recovered and went on to have 2 more children by birth. The lady was my Grammie and the baby was my mom. She's all grown up & has grandchildren who are grown. I think the doctors didn't know how big our God is!

Happy Birthday Mom!

This is another special day as it is the day in history when Martin Luther tacked his Theses to the door of a monastery (or church? memory is fading), calling for reform in the church and a return to Biblical Truth. At this hour I can't tell you much more than that! I can tell you that God is still a Mighty Fortress, as Luther penned so long ago. I can also tell you that God's Word is still alive, long after the men of that day have come & gone. So Happy Reformation Day!

Dressed to the Nines

What a fun show of costumes we had just in our own group of friends tonight who went trick or treating together. None of us like the scary costumes, or witches & ghosts, and we found we were obviously in the minority as most kids were dressed in very scary stuff. Adults were dressed up, too. Even in the store today I saw several women I HOPE were dressed up. I was kind of surprised at how dressing up for Halloween means wearing very short skirts, low cut tops and funky hose with high heels. Even the outfits for kids these days seem to push the "skimpy" look (there are other words I could use, but I will refrain). On our street, there are very few young kids, and only a handful of teens. There are little girls at the end of the street, and then across the street from them, and all these girls (including ours) are about the same ages, which is really nice. The kidless crew apparently turns Halloween into a street party. I intentionally had the kids do their trick or treating FIRST on that end of the street, as I was not sure what condition the adults might be in by the time we were nearing the end. As you can guess, this is NOT my favorite holiday at ALL. Apart from the dressing up, spending time with friends & candy that my kids share with me, I could totally do without this "event."

Our little group was quite fun. To start with Bethany was Cleopatra complete with black hair. It's not a wig, but her REAL hair sprayed black! And, yes, it really is warm enough to be dressed like this here! Where did fall go?


Next we had Nan Louise Carrington, a genuine Southern Belle (you might know her as Natalie). Gotta love the fish face picture!

Then the whole gang arrived & we got some cute shots. The little bitty one is 7, though she is tiny and about the size of a 5 year old. She is Phil's "pet" among all the girls. I think he would adopt her if her parents said it was okay! He saw her tonight, of course, then saw her picture & said, "She's so cute in that outfit. Of course, she's cute in anything." She comes from a beautiful family, but on the outside and most importantly, on the inside. Here, in addition to Cleopatra & Nan, we have a pirate, a Roman lady, a hippy, a genie, and Bob, the skeleton. Wonder if my skeleton is that pretty. LOL!


Finally, we have a lovely lady named Jackie. Her last name is O'Lantern, I do believe. ALL I did this year was cut the top off with my WONDERFUL Santuko Knife from Pampered Chef (shameless plug for the BEST Kitchen Tools in the world!). The girls dug out the seeds, carved the pumpkin, drew the features, and added the embellishments. Natalie---uh, I mean Nan---is the one who named her. In fact, we had no sooner put the pumpkin in the trunk when I heard Natalie asking, "What should we name her?" Who knew she could tell the difference in a male & female pumpkin! Without further adieu, here is the fair maiden Jackie.



Now, it is time to crawl into bed & crash! Good night!