Talents...

Use the talents you possess, for the trees would be silent if no birds sang except the best.

-unknown

Wow!

I know I have talked about this blog, and this girl, and this ministry a lot, but have you read her latest post?? I am SO inspired and speechless! This is the kind of faith I want and long to have once again, and I also want to hear from God like this, and see Him showing up in my life in this manner. It is incredible. I am so convicted. In our society it is WAY too easy to get distracted by t.v., computers, cell phones, texting, shopping, etc., etc...and we just don't hear the voice of God. I am seriously rethinking about all that is getting in the way of me hearing from God in this manner, and I will be making some gradual adjustments in the near future. I've become way too comfortable...and way too complacent. God can and will show up in any of our lives like this, if we will just take the time to spend with HIM, talk to him in prayer, and ask. May you be challenged as well...

Blesssings!!!

Sunshine, and fun!

I love this picture, it looks just like my two girls! Today is a beautiful, sunny day, and I plan on taking the girls outside to enjoy it! We have been so busy with homeschooling activities. Last week we attended a fun valentines exchange just for homeschoolers. The lady in charge encorporated God's love into the event. It was full of games, prizes, crafting and snacks. Lots of fun for the little ones! This week we are attending an event at a concert hall where homeschoolers are able to perform-a night of the arts. There will be lots of music, drama, and art work to see, I am sure. I hope to have Miranda participate next year. We also have our co-op tomorrow that is always intersting, and next week we will have our monthly country studies gathering, where we will have a potluck, and the kids will present their projects. This month we have been studying the country of Hungary...I have learned so much about this country as well, homeschooling has been great for me too! Now, I am dreaming of a trip to Hungary!

Miranda has turned into quite the avid reader already. The other day I mentioned that we would be going to the library, and I was a bit startled by her loud squeal, and leaps of joy around the room! I had no idea going to the library was such a fun event for her!! She literally loves books, and she is reading so well for her age. I love to watch her learn and grow!

Miss Lilyann continues to thrive! She is talking up a storm, and last night when I picked her up from her Puggles Awana class she was able to tell me about something that happened! She said, "Mama, LeeLeeAnn, puh, ky, ky!" Translation; "Lilyann got pushed, and cried". Apparently some little boys were running and accidentally pushed her over. Poor baby. She really wanted sympathy for it, because she continued to repeat this to me!

Well, it is time to start school for the day! Blessings!

Sweet Valentines Blessings to you!

Wishing you all a day of love, and laughter with family and friends!

Candles, crafts, quilts, and more...

I have found several sites, and places to get candles recently, and I want to say thanks to those of you who contacted me with links to your favorite candles. I am in a creative mood, and I have so many projects hanging out just waiting for me to work on. I really love the cinnamon roll candles, and I think I am going to try my hand at making some. I also love, love, love, ETSY, and have found some wonderful handmade soy candles there as well.

About ten years ago, I used to do a lot of crafting, and I sold them at a local craft show. It was so much fun. I am really missing that creative side of myself, and I need to get back into it. I might just open my own little shop online, or ETSY shop in the near future!

I have put my quilt on the back burner, but will be picking it up again this week. I will also be starting some sewing projects with Miranda, and we will be doing more knitting today. There is always so much to do! Jeff has been hard at work with some household projects, and he has left over wood, so I think I will make some block signs, and wood signs. I love them! I also want to work on making some prim Annie dolls, but I first need to meet with my step mom, who is going to help me with the clothes. She is also going to help Miranda make some clothes for her American girl doll.

I am also looking ahead toward spring which will be here before we know it. We are going to fix up the chicken coop and order some chicks. This winter has been hard on our chickens and we lost some. I will do an update on our farm critters soon. For now, it's off to the craft room...

Come see the Elk...a fieldtrip!

One wonderful thing about homeschooling is you can take off 0n a field trip at any given moment. Last week we hopped in the car with some good friends and went to an Elk feeding station to view the Elk as they came down out of the hills to be fed hay. There are thousands of them. We also saw bald eagles flying around the area.

They are magnificent creatures. We were able to take a tour on the back of a big truck. We drove out into the middle of them. A couple of other trucks drive around and drop hay for them. We learned a lot about them, where they originally came from, when they have babies, etc.

There are lots of other stuffed wild animals to view inside of the building there. Here's Miranda feeding the coyote...he. he.

Miranda and Kyle. They have so much fun playing together. They enjoyed the hands on kids section as you can see.

After watching all the elk get fed, the kids were hungry too! Picnicing in the back of the car is always a treat for kids! We had so much fun! We are ready for more field trips!

What is she??

Here is our cute little puppy that Santa brought for Christmas. Isn't she sweet? Oh so adorable with those little droopy ears.

Wait! What is this?? Honestly, one day, about a month later, we woke up to a different dog. One ear was up, and one down. Then the next morning...both ears were completely up, and this is the final result! Cute little Mitten with the BIG ears!

She's very playful, and she will run back to her bed when we tell her to. This is good, but we still don't have her totally housetrained, we just aren't that good with dogs...I hope to figure it out soon though!

She is very cute, smart, and we are starting to get used to her big ears and all! She is fitting in well. Lilyann is not happy with her, though. We ask her every day if she likes the puppy, and her response is always a resounding "NO!!".

I really don't think she's the Llasa Apso, Yorkie mix Santa was told she was, do you? I'm thinking she looks more like a cross between a Jack Russell Terrier and a Chihuaua...but I don't know much about dogs at all, what do you think?

Meet my friend...

I would like to introduce you to a very special friend of mine who is now blogging! Her name is Jaime, and you can find her here . I am so excited that she is blogging now, because I can keep up with her life a little better. I live on the west coast, she lives on the east coast, so we don't get to see each other often. Jaime is one of those amazing people I like to talk about on my blog. When she was in her very early twenties, she adopted an older boy with a significant trauma history. As some of you know, we did the same thing, only I was in my late twenties and not single. Later, Jaime adopted two more boys! Adopting kids like this is oftentimes a very scary thing, and there were so many times during our journey of raising our son that I needed help. God sent Jaime into my life at that point, and she helped me through some very rough times. I thank God for her daily, and I am constantly amazed at what she is doing in her life, making such a huge difference, in the lives of her boys, boys that many people would never consider adopting. Boys with issues, past trauma of all kinds, baggage, behaviors and more. She is an inspiration, and I am honored to introduce her to you all.

The Journey

If you have not read the latest blog post from The Journey, I encourage you to read it here
I am still amazed by what this young woman is doing and how God is at work in her life, and ministry.
I think we are all on a journey of sorts, and it is nice to see someone writing down their experiences, so we are able to see that, yes, God is still at work today and in BIG ways. Sometimes we have to go through hard things, but in the end, the Lord was there, and is there, working in ways we cannot see until it is clearly revealed to us.
I am so blessed by what I am reading.