Good Will Finds

Just thought I'd share with y'all my thrifty bargains I found yesterday at Good Will. I must say I really enjoy going early in the morning......when things are all neat & tidy & there's hardly anyone there. Sure makes for nicer shopping.Just a little pair of capris.....love these for the warmer weather.

Cute little knitted top......I figured this could go with a skirt or pants whichever. Very light & airy for the warmer months.

I found this skirt kind of with graduation in mind......

Here's a close-up of the print.

This one I had in mind for Easter. Goes perfectly with a cute little scoop-necked black top I already have.

And last, but not least.....this nifty little pair of black leather sandals. All of this for $17 & some change. Now, that's my kind of shopping!! All the clothing items were $3.50 & the shoes were $2.50.

Phantom of the Opera

What an amazing finish to the 2010-2011 theater season! Ashley & I went to see 'Phantom of the Opera' last night at LU & it did not disappoint!the marquee in front of the theater

We weren't allowed to take photos during the performance....but I snagged this one from Google......'Masquerade'.

We WERE allowed to take pictures during their curtain call. Ashley took these, but it was just too dark in there for a point & shoot camera....but at least we got some to remember our night with.

Field Trip

Ashley & I went on a 'field trip' today. We met Maw, Sarah, Anna & Daniel at Good Will in Madison Heights. We found a couple of little custard-sized bowls.....two Third Day cds.....& a couple of books. (I'll get some pics of our finds to post later.) From there we stopped at Anderson' Country Store.....we call it the Amish Store. They sell all kinds of fresh produce/flowers/plants & all kinds of seasonings/spices, etc. AND they have a cool Amish buggy that sits out front. ;-)After that, we headed on back to Amherst to go to our favorite little antique-y stores there.

And just around the corner is the other antique shop......Lou's Antique's. Check out this cool old Doctor's examination chair. Reminded me of the Johnny Depp movie......Sweeney Todd!

Daniel liked this cool chicken out front & wanted me to take his picture with it! Is that just not the cutest little face?!

After all our shopping, everyone was hot & thirsty & ready for a treat at McDonal's. A nice ending to a really nice afternoon. I love outing like this. They really don't cost much at all & it's so cool to spend time with family. Came home & had a supper of fresh Crappie that the boys had caught. Fried & blackened. Yum! Now, everyone is outside tilling & getting some taters planted. Also, Michael & Clay are planting our fruit trees in our newly mowed 'orchard'. It's so pretty out there.....especially in the evening like this. LOVE this time of year!!

But Will He Conquer 'My Death'?

I was just sitting here this morning thinking about Chris' car & praying for wisdom about what needed to be done & then I read this awesome devotional from Proverbs 31 Ministries.

************************************

'Jesus showed me He is the Conqueror of all death: (even the death of car) here in this world & forever. God answered my question & prayer with a resounding 'YES!' Yes He can & will conquer my death. I don't have to wait for eternal life to experience my own resurrection of the heart. And neither do you.

Dear Lord, I praise you today for your power over all death--both physical & emotional--here on earth & for eternity. Thank you for caring about the loss in my life & bringing your resurrection power into my everyday problems. I give you my grief & pain & ask for your healing touch to bring new life. In Jesus' name, Amen.'

2 Corinthians 4: 15-18

'For all things are for your sakes, that the abundandt grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God. For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding & eternal weight of glory. While we look not at the things which are seen, but the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.'

********************

Don't these just look yummy? They really were delish! Made-from-scratch carrot muffins with cream cheese frosting topped with toasted coconut. Ashley fixed these up as a little Easter treat for our library ladies. I love to see her 'doing' for others! These ladies are sure going to miss her this fall when she goes off to college. ;-)

Marvelous Monday

Psalms 18 : 1-2~

I will love thee, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer: my God, my strength, in whom I will trust: my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.

It was so pretty outside today. This is the view from under my favorite Dogwood tree. Peaches decided to pose on some of the logs that the boys still need to split.

Everything is just so GREEN & beautiful right now... just look at all the Dogwoods dotted along the creek bank across the field there.

'Up Close & Personal' with Peaches. He's just SO lovey......so lovey that he's almost a pain in the butt! He's not content to lay NEXT to you or UNDER your chair, maybe......NO, he wants to be right up in your lap......or in your face, as the case may be.

As one of my hooky friends recently posted......'I'm on the edge' now! I've begun the edging of my Granny Stripe blanket. Just had to give you a little sneak peek. Will do a full-fledged 'Lucy Ta-Da Post' when I'm done.

While I enjoyed sitting under my tree reading today, the kids took Rocky for a walk to the creek. He had a blast playing in the water & all, but by the time he got back, he was bushed & ready for a nap.

I keep forgetting to take pics of our suppers. But I DID remember tonight & Ashley was apalled that I would take pics tonight of all nights. Heaven forbid that I took pictures of 'boxed' mac & cheese & 'canned' biscuits......never mind the fact that we had nice grilled pork chops, garden green beans & baked potatoes. Oh well......I never claimed to be Betty Crocker.

Two layouts that I finished today. The first one is just some of the banners that I took pictures of on campus........Liberty is celebrating 40 years of training champions for Christ this year. What an awesome year for Chris to be graduating!

Pictures of Rocky when we went to NC back in March. He's such a sweet little puppy!

Good Will finds

Just now getting around to snapping a few pics of our Friday Good Will finds.Ashley found this adorable little sweater top for $3. Alli also had a cute little Old Navy cotton sweater but realized it had two holes in it, so we left that one. I'm teaching them how to REALLY look things over & check them out before just buying. Gotta check things like zippers & what-not. Buttons can always be replaced & a pulled seam can be fixed, but a HOLE is another story. Anyway......those were some of our Homeschool lessons for that day. ;-) Thrifting 101!

I found these little corning ware dishes for .45 each. Just the perfect size to heat something up in!

Panda & Peaches just HAD to get in the shot. It's like they were wondering where in the world is the food that should be in these nice little dishes! LOL

*************

I also found 3 paperback books.....well actually 4....one was for Ashley. I always go for the paperback ones because they are only .75 as opposed to $1 for hardback ones. Cheapo, I know! Ashley got 'The Two Towers' to go with her LOTR collection. And I got A Gift of Grace by Amy Clipston, A Man of His Word & An Honest Love both by Kathleen Fuller.

Eli, Eli, Oh......

I lifted this LO from the April 2011 issue of Scrapbooks, etc. magazine. The title grabbed me first & made me immediately think about these most recent pics I had of Eli. So cute & just perfect for photos of Eli.

I Scrapped!

I have been on a roll with my crocheting here recently & just hadn't been in the scrappy mood.....at least not until this past week. I actually got TWO layouts done today. It was a lovely rainy day.....couldn't do anything outside, so yep.....you guessed it........I stuck in season 7 of NCIS & scrapped this afternoon.As you can see.....I still haven't quite finished scrapping Christmas pics. I've done everything now except Christmas evening at Maw's house. This one above.....I just love! Don't they all look so happy! That was taken at our Homeschool Christmas party at Maw's house. My DUMB scanner.......yep, I get so mad at it sometimes!! It will cut off a side or a bottom or whatever. Doesn't matter that all my pages are the same size. I just get tired of fiddling & re-scanning so.........the above LO is centered in real life....use your imagination. That was just the random snapshots you get on Christmas morning while everyone is opening gifts. They don't always turn out great, but hey......it's the memories that count, right?!

Again....my scanner cut off that left-hand side. Sigh! This was our big family Christmas dinner held at Mari's house this year. The night after Christmas. Love that picture of Uncle Johnny & Dale!

A little more recent here......the day Rocky got to take his cone off!

Snapshots from around our yard last month when everything was first starting to bud.

And yet again.....another LO with the top edge totally cut off. The brown paper is scalloped all the way around & mounted on white card stock. Just a quick picture that I took one day to show Ashley C. how big her little 'Peachey-Man' was getting. He still needs a good home. Hint!Hint!

Friday's Adventures

First of all, Clay & the boys headed off to Smith Mt. Lake for another day of Crappie fishing. They decided that since it was grocery day for the girls & I that they would just take Rocky with them instead of leaving him home alone all day long. Of course we (us girls....girls are good at worrying, right?) were worried about him being on the boat & what if he fell in or got sunburned or got snagged with a fish hook....... Anyway, we were at Chickfila having brunch with everyone & Clay called just to tell me that everything was going fine.....Rocky was being so good.....and totally enjoying himself........and 'OMG, HE JUST JUMPED IN THE LAKE!!'......and his phone died. Everyone at the table was freaking out while I tried calling him back. Seems that they were just trolling along & Rocky was leaning near the edge watching the lapping water & just up & jumped right in. He swam out a tad & then came back. Jon had their big fish net ready to scoop him up. He was fine & dandy though.......just a little chilly after his dip. But evidentally that cured his curiosity because he didn't pull that stunt again all the rest of the day. Clay snapped this pic with his cell phone while they were zipping down the lake! Looks like he's totally having a blast!!**********************

So, like I said....while the boys were off fishing, the girls & I had our usual Friday Doings to do......brunch with evryone (Maw, Sarah, Ella & most all our kids), errands, groceries, etc. Plus today we had all been invited to Ashley Cates' senior group recital after lunch. Wow.....what an amazing time! These kids are so awesome......so talented......and the love of Jesus just shines through as they sing/perform/worship.

Ashley Cates

Chris' room-mate, Matt Hurst

************************

I tell ya, I was just overwhelmed with thankfulness as I watched this performance yesterday. If you could've just been there to see these kids' faces....to just experience the 'feeling' in that room......to watch them as they performed.......and I watched the faces of others around the room that were just there observing/supporting, like us.....& everyone......I mean everyone was praising & singing along. I was so thankful that Chris has been able to be a part of this these last three years.....so thankful for the awesome room-mates & friends that he's made.....and so thankful to think that Ashley is going to have this same opportunity come this fall......it was almost more than this 'Mama's Heart' could stand yesterday. God is SO good!!

Jon's 16th BD- part 2

Here's the card I made for Jon...used some OLD scraps of 'Rock N Roll' paper & borrowed Ashely's stamps for all the other goodness. Birthday gifts this morning.....

Jon's 16 year old morning look.... Cinnamon buns are a birthday breakfast tradition around here

Aunt Linda made this awesome birthday cake for Jon. She really out-did herself this time! She said she wanted to make it extra-special since it was his 16th BD.

One of Jon's BD requests was for a new wallet. He also teasingly said he wanted Alli to be in all his pictures with him today & of course she ran away squealing. I didn't realize til tonight that she was there after all.......peeking from behind the back door.

Check out the cool Grover shirt.....better hide that one from Uncle Johnny! LOL

Birthday supper consisted of fried chicken, mashed potatoes, baked beans, steamed broccoli & biscuits........Jon's request. Then, after supper we lit the candles & sang Happy Birthday......again!

Love that I caught Michael showing off his true colors........such a goof!

******************

I worked on my Granny Stripe some this afternoon & then decided it was time to take it upstairs & lay it out on my bed & see just how much more I had left to do.

I think I'm getting pretty darn close to being done......three maybe four more stripes & then I can start work on the edging.