Back in Business

I'm happy to report that our DVR is now replaced and working! The new one came via UPS tonight and I just finished getting it set up and activated. So no need for concern anymore, I'm back to my T.V. watching convenience! American Idol, Project Runway and Oprah will not go unviewed this week by me!! Isn't it amazing what thrills me???

Winter Retreat Recap...

Well, we are home now, recovering from another weekend retreat with our junior highers. It always amazes me just how EXHAUSTED we are the day after one of our retreats! When we got home last night, we didn't feel that badly, but today we are dragging to say the least. But, we are totally grateful to each have the day off today so that we can re-group and get ready for another week. Our retreat began on Friday night with the obligatory 3 hour bus ride north, to camp, where upon arrival all students seem to get a burst of energy and excitement that they can hardly contain. It's as if they realize, as a group, that it's Friday night, school is over, they're away from home, and Mom and Dad are nowhere around! The bliss that overtakes them must be tremendous because all of the sudden we have tons of hyper, wild students raring to go at midnight! Our poor cabin leaders seem to get virtually no sleep that first night because they all have students that just can't calm down and go to sleeep! We see lots of tired eyes on Saturday morning...

This year, I avoided the Friday night chaos and I came up early Saturday morning to join the group. We had a student who was unable to make it to the registration on Friday night, so I met her early Saturday morning and drove her up myself. I kind of hated to miss Friday night, but then I remembered what I was missing and I had no problem getting a great night of sleep in my own bed instead! We had gorgeous weather all weekend and the camp went very well. We had a speaker who was great and our staff did a fantastic job of putting everything together. Our theme was "dirty jobs" after the popular tv show on the discovery channel with Mike Rowe. Scott challenged the kids to recognize how the Lord can clean us up from all the dirtiness around us and how we have countless opportunities to do some "dirty jobs" by serving others around us. It was a timely challenge that helped kick of our service month in March and it seemed to really grip alot of kids. It's such a blessing to do these retreats with both a paid and volunteer staff. We could not do it without them! And this weekend, we REALLY needed them...

One of the things offered at this camp was an indoor skate park, which I admit, did make me nervous. Naturally, there was a good reason for that, as we had one of our students take a good fall and break his leg! A first for us...we've had other hospital trips for ear infections, nasty bites, etc., but this was the first broken bone we've had and the first surgery as well. After calling his Mom and looking at his leg, Travis and I took him to the hospital and stayed with him as we learned that he broke his tibia and that he would need surgery, that night! So Saturday, we were in the ER for 5 hours, trying to keep him calm and waiting for his Mom to get there so they could transfer him to a bigger hospital and move him into surgery. We felt so bad for him, as he was in obvious pain, but he was one brave kid and he did great with all the info and trauma being thrown at him. Needless to say, we were very thankful for our staff to keep everything running without the other kids really missing a beat. But God was also so good to David. As we returned to camp, we prayed for David as a large group around 9:20 Saturday night, as we knew he was facing surgery in a few minutes with the prospect of 2-4 pins being placed in his left leg. At 9:30, he went into surgery and at 10:15 his doctor came out and told his Mom that they were done and they never had to even do the surgery as they were able to just manipulate the bone back into place and cast him while he was under. Praise the Lord! We were thrilled for him and so glad for a great picture to share with our group about the Lord's grace for David and the importance of our role as prayer warriors for him! So, all that drama aside, it was great weekend and we were very happy with how everything went. Praise God! Here are some pictures...evidence of another action-packed retreat under our belt!

Travis was happy to see me when I got there on Saturday...this is in our room at the cabin we shared with some of the other staff...don't ya love the "woods motif" in the background?

I thought this little chapel was so cute and especially on this morning...it was so beautiful with the snow kissed trees around it.

One of many gross crowd breakers...these kids were trying to push the banana they ate out of their mouths, through the nylon over their head! Totally gross and impossible to do...they loved it!!

DVR Despair...

Ok, I'm trying not to have heart palpitations, but it's been a sad evening at the Armstrongs because we've just "lost" our DVR, due to a failed hard drive. We came home last night after church, anxiously ready to watch American Idol and see how the girls did, but when I turned on the T.V., there was a screen that said "a FATAL error has occurred, your DVR cannot be accessed at this time"...never a good sign. After talking to customer service, it was determined that our hard drive failed and we would need to have the box replaced, as it was broken beyond repair. We're kind of sad about losing it...we love that thing and we had stuff on there that we hadn't watched yet...bummer. You never appreciate something until it's gone, right? It's now constantly making a pathetic "clicking" noise, which customer service said was its "death cry."

I'm trying not to think of all the shows that DIDN'T get recorded today that I would be watching right now if they did! Who knew a hard drive could fail all by itself, without us even being home or watching something? Now we have to wait 5 business days for UPS to bring us our new box...isn't that a bummer? Fortunately we are gone this weekend on our winter retreat, however, Sunday night is Oscar night and I LOVE to watch the red carpet coverage. I would have recorded it, as we won't be home yet to see it live, and watched it with such excitement, but I'm going to have to re-adjust my plans and miss it...oh the tragedy of it all! Oh well, I suppose this is a good reminder that perhaps we watch too much T.V. I'm just wondering why it had to happen during the finale week of Project Runway??? How will I cope without knowing who won and what their collections looked like??? Here's hoping my UPS man shows up before Wednesday next week! Otherwise, I'll be searching for someone with a DVR to record it for me!

The Way to My Man's Heart...

So tonight we are having some friends over for dinner and I decided to make a roast, because I have some potatoes and an onion I want to use, before they expire. As I was grocery shopping on my way home from work, I was having all these flashbacks from 5 years ago, when Travis and I were just dating and I was quickly figuring out the things that made him happy...things like playing golf together, going to see a movie, walking on the beach at sunset, coffee dates at Starbucks, reading dates at Borders, and Dinner dates in my apartment. My Mom wisely suggested that I cook for Travis, very early on in our relationship and I swear to you, that was the first thing that drew him to me! He was fascinated by my cooking, which wasn't all that impressive by the way, but to a bachelor, it must have seemed like a dream come true! I cooked 3 or 4 nights of the week for us...can you belive that? We weren't even engaged yet, just dating!! I was living by the old addage, "the way to a man's heart is through his stomach" and I must say, he had it made in the shade in those days!

Of all the things I made for Travis, one dish was an instant hit and the dish he would say even today, is his favorite...it was a pot roast. I had never made one before, until I lived in Naples, but my Mom suggested it and coached me through it on the phone while I was grocery shopping and while I was making it. Pretty daunting for a 22 year old I thought! I cannot tell you the number of roasts I made while we were dating! Let's just say, I bought more meat that year than a family of 4 would normally go through! He LOVED it when I made a roast and eventually I was making one almost weekly...oh the work I went to, to win his heart!! So today as I was strolling the aisles, working through my list, I thought back to those days and I found my heart smiling. I love that memory. Clearly those roasts were worth it! I'm now 4.5 years as Mrs. Travis Armstrong...not too bad for the price of meat and potatoes! Anyway, I've since heard from many friends over the years, that a roast is one thing they have never tried or have never succeeded at. I can take no credit for knowing how to do this the first time without the help of my Mom, but I've now made so many that I would almost consider myself an expert at it! So here's my recipe for a No-Fail Amazing Pot Roast...if you need some inspiration this week in your kitchen, here you go!

Stephanie's No-Fail Pot Roast

Oven Roast, 2-5 lbs, depending on the number of people, I'm using 2.8lbs, which will easily feed 4-6 adults
(I like "Top or Bottom Round Roasts" or "Rump Roasts", I've learned to ask the meat counter guy what he thinks is a good cut for a tender, slow roast)

4-5 Baking Potatoes, peeled and cut in large chunks
1 bag of Carrots, peeled and cut
1 yellow onion, peeled and cut in chunks
1 head of cabbage, peel back the outer layers and cut in chunks...I know, I don't even like cabbage, but you MUST put it in there for the flavor it adds! I've done it without the cabbage and it just isn't as flavorful. I don't know why, but it makes a big difference.
2 packets of Lipton Beefy Onion Soup Mix...this may be my secret ingredient! It gives the meat tremendous flavor! You can use regular onion soup mix, but I like the bold flavor from the beefy onion kind.
3-4 cups of water

The MOST IMPORTANT thing to do, is brown your meat. Heat 3-4 T of veg. oil in a pan, and brown the roast on each side for several minutes. This seals in the juices and makes the meat more tender. Don't skip this step, even if you make it in a crock pot. After you brown it, stab it with a fork on both sides to tenderize it.

I make my roasts 2 ways.

#1-
If I have all day, then I make it in the crock pot on low and let it cook for 8 hours. I put the cabbage and potatoes on the bottom, then the meat, and then I just surround the meat with all the other stuff, sprinkling everything with the onion soup mix, and adding the water at the end. You can adjust the amount of water based on how deep or shallow your crock pot is. I like about half of the pot to be filled, so that nothing burns and everything simmers in juices while it cooks. Just keep your eye on it and decide.

#2-
My favorite way to make a roast, is in the oven. I ALWAYS use Reynolds oven bags to do this. The large size works great. I put the potatoes in the four corners of the bag, some cabbage on the bottom(peal off some big "layers" to creat a bed for the meat), the meat in the middle, and the carrots, chunks of onion, and chunks of cabbage surrounding everything. After it's all in there, I sprinkle everything with soup mix and then add my water. Again, I like everything to be sitting in water, so those juices help marinate all of it. Poke a few holes in the bag after you close it, so it can vent, and then you're good to go! If you're in a hurry, (2.5-3 hours) then put your oven at 475. If you have 4 hours, I usually set it at 375-400. Just watch it and adjust the temp based on when you need to eat! You can't really burn it if you've put enough water in there, but if it's too dry, then it will burn.

I take the juices, along with those instant brown gravy packets, to make some gravy.

Let me know if you try it. I know you'll love it! Now I'm not suggesting manipulation, but if you need a little something from your man, this might be the tool to help you get it!! This pot roast, (along with my charming personality, beautiful good looks, and wonderful sense of humor-right??), got me the rock on my finger!!

"*G*L*A*M*O*R*O*U*S*"

I believe it's Fergie who sings the song entitled, "Glamorous", of which I'm NOT endorsing, just simply referencing. As Travis and I were spending our Sunday afternoon together, one word kept running through my mind...yep, "Glamorous." Now that may seem a bit prideful or perhaps presumptuous, but you must know what we were doing that prompted that song to enter my mind and thus convince me to take some pictures, so as to forever remember this "Glamorous" day!

When we decided 3 (almost 4) years ago to get a dog, we were starstruck with the idea of a sweet little puppy, who would always greet us with excitement and pure adoration, every time we came home. We imagined playing with the little bundle of energy, going on walks through the park with it, and spending the time painstakingly training this dog, so that with just the sheer tone of our voices, we could get him/her to obey us. Of course we did our homework and we researched which breed would most likely fit the lifestyle we had and would be a great fit with kids someday. Naturally we were led right to the golden retriever and after months of deliberation, we were sold. With great joy and excitement, we found the perfect breeder and thus, the perfect puppy...Ryley! Now, without hesitation, I would say that he is just what we imagined and more. He is a wonderful dog and as you know, we are crazy about him...just thrilled in fact that he's part of our family. However, there have been a few snags along the way that have stopped us in our tracks and made us wonder, "so, why did we want a dog so badly?" Nothing, I repeat Nothing, would ever make us want to get rid of him...we truly love that dog, but today, we spent the afternoon doing only what dog owners would appreciate and what non-dog owners could not understand or fathom...and let me tell you, it was a far cry from anything that would be described as "Glamorous."

When we purchased our condo last year, we were thrilled to have the large lawn behind and around our building, solely for Ryley's sake. There are woods right behind us, surrounding a big lake, and walking paths that are perfect for dogs and people. It's so nice to take Ryley outside, all year long, and to have a large area where he can just run and play. We chose our condo because it was one of the few that allowed big dogs and because there were no "rules" we'd have to follow regarding our care of him. There are a few other pets in the building, but he is the biggest dog here...by far. Everyone we have encountered here is taken with Ryley and is so nice to him and to us. He's often referred to as that "nice, big dog" in fact! We love living here and we love the neighbors that we have. We've tried extremely hard to be very sensitive to everyone else living here, trying to keep Ryley from running up to anyone or from being loud when we play with him. Fortunately he isn't a "barker" so we don't have that to worry about, but there is one thing that he does that is a constant concern of ours and frankly something we never thought about when were we "dog-shopping" 4 years ago...He poops. Now, when I say "poop" I mean he leaves his very own "steaming-deposits" at least twice a day, outside. We of course knew dogs did this, but we severely underestimated the sheer size of poop an 80lb dog could produce. Without going into detail, let's just say it's quite sizeable. So thus, our dilemna. We live in a condo, with other people, who share the same grassy area with us. During the warmer months, Ryley "goes" in the woods and you never see the evidence, but when it's winter and the ground is covered in white, the evidence of Ryley is EVERYWHERE! As Travis put it, like a "minefield of poop!" Again, We LOVE where we live and we DO NOT want to offend anyone or be a burden to our neighbors, so something had to be done. Due to some sunshine and some warmer days of late (FINALLY!!), we felt we must act quickly as with each warm day, more and more poop seems to appear...can you believe I'm blogging about this??

So today, on our most "Glamorous" of days, we bundled up, plastic bag and shovel in hand, and we spent at least an hour, picking up pile after pile of...poop. All because we got a dog. Whom we love. Who poops....alot. To those who have dogs, thank you for your sympathy. To those who do not, I'm sorry you had to read this. Keep this in mind if you ever decide to get one.


The Mighty "Pooper" himself...Ryley


The Pooper-Scooper...be afraid, be very afraid


The Pooper-Scooper Bag Holder...quite an honor


The Poop Patrol...in all our glory!

Happy (Belated) Valentine's Day!

Hope your Valentine's Day was a fun one! We had a quiet Valentine's Day at home, which was great, considering we are both sick with sinus infections! We were (are) quite the pair....nothing says "romance" like blowing your nose, coughing repeatedly, and sniffling all night! This year seemed like a good year to stay "in" rather than go out. So, we had a nice meal, I picked up some great dessert from a place I really love, and we watched a movie. Although we were both sick, it was exactly the kind of night we needed. We're both on antibiotics now and slowly on the mend, but this cold weather isn't helping. I'm starting to become very sick of snow and freezing temperatures. I remember this setting in at about this time last year. I really do love winter and lots of things about it, but after 3 months of it, I'm desperately longing for Spring! At least it's sunny out today and I think it's supposed to be a balmy 30 degrees!! That sounds like Heaven compared to the negatives we've been living in!

We both just realized that Monday is President's Day and that means Travis will be home! I love weekends like this...we have almost nothing going on and several days to sleep in. We're going to need the rest because next weekend we'll be "up north" with our junior highers on our annual winter retreat...this marks the anniversary of our first event at Grace...this will be our third winter retreat. I can hardly believe it. Where has the time gone? We're both looking forward to it...there will be lots of outdoor games, drinking hot cocoa, and sitting by the fire. But for now, we are happily holed up inside and enjoying the peace and quiet. Hope your weekend is off to a great start!

40 Days of Spiritual Discovery...starts tomorrow!

There are some things that our Church does, that I really love. One of the things we do is a 40 day, Church-wide Bible study that leads us into the Easter season. Last year I participated, but I was late starting and I wasn't as disciplined as I wanted to be. This year I am committing to seeing it through and I thought I would share it with you, if you're looking for a fresh quiet-time idea.

The name of our study is "The Name Above Every Name" and for 40 days we will be studying 40 different names of God. It begins tomorrow, Wednesday, February 13 and concludes on Easter Sunday, March 23. I bought my book at our bookstore on Sunday, but the best part is that you can do it along with me because you can download the whole thing on our church website for free! Our Pastors and staff members wrote each daily devotion and they've included discussion and journal questions to use also if you want. Travis wrote 3 of them, so of course I have some extra motivation to get to his! You'll find instructions and explanations of why they chose this topic and why they structured it in this way...40 days is a significant amount of time in the Bible...we see several important seasons of people seeking the Lord for 40 days. There are ideas about how to do this or what you might want to consider doing alongside it (i.e.-fasting), so if you're interested at all, then do it with me! I will be blogging about it as the Lord prompts me and shows me things about Him. I'm pretty excited to do this, as I anticipate it impacting my Easter season in a new way.

So, if you want to join me, you can click on the link below for Grace Church and you'll find the 40 days banner on the home page. Click on it for the downloadable version and make sure you have plenty of paper in your printer! If you need a little refresher in your quiet time, I hope you'll walk through these 40 days with me...God NEVER ceases to show up when we seek him!

"You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord..." Jeremiah 29:13-14

www.atgrace.com

A "Jammies and Jesus" Day and a High School Reunion of sorts!

What a great day it's been for me...as you know, it's Monday, my favorite day and I am spending it just how I want to...in my jammies, with Jesus. I got that phrase from my sweet friend Karen, when I read her caring bridge journal today. She said that's what she's doing today and ironically it was exactly what I'm doing too! Only thanks to her, now I have a name for it! So I've been reading, journaling, working on my Bible study and dreaming. All from the comfort of our bed while staying in my pajamas. I'm on my second cup of coffee and I have my new favorite candle burning. It's -8 out today, so I'm very happy to be cozy inside. And Travis comes home tonight, which is also great. He's had a wonderful time, but I'm ready to get him back. I count that a great blessing in my life...to sincerely love my husband and miss his company when he's not home. I can't imagine life without him. He is truly my best friend and he brings my heart so much joy. Also, he keeps my life interesting. There aren't any dull days with Travis!! So I can't wait until tonight, when his plane lands, but until then...it's back to my "Jammies and Jesus" day!

I got a wonderful message this morning that just started my day off so sweetly. A classmate of mine from high school, sent me a message on facebook that was so great to read. She and I haven't seen each other or talked since we graduated...our lives took different turns and we lost touch, but I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE facebook for this very reason...we reconnected! I've had that happen with lots of my classmates and the greatest part about it is to see so many of my high school friends who are walking with Jesus, some happily married and having kids, and most thriving in the lives God has chosen for them. That blesses my heart tremendously and reminds me of one of the privileges of going to a Christian school. One the surface we are all very different and lead extremely different lives, but because of our bond in Christ, we can pick up where we left off and praise the Lord for what He's doing!! So, if you are one of my high school friends, will you leave a comment on here so we can all hear from each other?? This year marks our 10 year reunion (which makes me want to scream that we are THAT old!!) and I don't know if we'll get together in person or not, but I love that so many of us are reuniting via the internet. Maybe that will be the reunion vehicle of the future? Anyway, I love all my high school friends and I'm hoping to hear from some of you! If you haven't tried facebook, I recommend it! It's a totally fun way to find old friends and keep up with them...also, if you're in any kind of student ministry, it's a TREMENDOUS way to minister to students...it's a great window into their lives. Anyway, have a super Monday, I am!

My Heart is Full

I'm sitting here mindlessly tonight, weary from a busy weekend, missing my husband and completely overwhelmed with the Lord's tender care for me. Travis is in Albuquerque, NM and will be home tomorrow night...he got to spend a much deserved weekend, celebrating his Mom's 60th birthday with his siblings. My parents and sister came on Thursday night and spent the weekend with me. It was a fun, relaxing couple of days and as quickly as it came, it went.

Tonight I went to our monthly prayer/worship service, which I LOVE, as it always draws me to the Lord and blesses my heart to be in corporate prayer with the body of Christ. It is sooooo cold outside tonight(-7 degrees with a -35 windchill)and it was so tempting to stay home, but I knew I needed to go and as always, I'm so glad I did. I don't like to go to "church stuff" alone, but I hate to miss Fresh Encounter services, so I went anyway and the Lord put me right where He wanted me. I sat next to a precious couple, who we've just gotten to know in the last few months, and as the night wore on, this friend shared some things on her heart that the Lord wanted me to hear. She is very poised to share in the sufferings of the road we've walked with infertility and loss and she just looked at me and covered me in truth that I've been longing for. I love the Lord for that. I didn't even know how much I needed to be encouraged until she started sharing with me and pouring out her wisdom from her own journey. It felt like water from the word washing over me and I left with newfound peace and a fresh touch from the Lord. My heart feels full tonight and the memories and realities of where we've been are weighing heavily on my emotions. I sense a good cry coming on...

But, I am brimming with hope, choosing to trust and longing for more grace as I walk this road. Tonight I'm resting in Psalm 62:5-8...

"Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honor depend on God; He is my mighty rock, my refuge. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge."

The New Armstrong "Fleet!"

I have to tell you, I've been waiting to blog about this for awhile, and today I finally get my chance! Since you responded so strongly to our tale of endless car troubles, I know you'll appreciate our new story of what the Lord has done for us just as much as we do!! We are never more in awe of the Lord than when we see him work so specifically in our life, meeting our needs so faithfully. Although we fail Him and often lose sight of His hand on our lives, He does not lose sight of us and He continually chooses to bless us after we have sought His wisdom and His will for us and walked in obedience after Him. Some people think that cars are of no importance to the Lord, and it's true, they are little more than a bucket of nuts and bolts in his eyes. However, cars are to us, a definite need and He cares GREATLY about the things that we need and the anxiety on our hearts over them. I really believe that He delights in meeting our needs and even in blessing us beyond what we dreamed was possible! I have been reminded of that truth in Matthew 7:9-11

"Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then , though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in Heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!"

What an incredible picture of God's unconditional love for His children. If we are capable of getting tickled when we give gifts of people, just think of how tickled the Lord gets too! I know the time I spend laboring over what to give someone, but it overwhelms me to think that the God of the Universe also spends time laboring over what He wants to give me. He is certainly not some kind of genie whose belly we rub and whom we make our lists of requests to. Genies represent some kind of entitlement. We have absolutely NO entitlement when it comes to the Lord. Every gift He chooses to give us is purely out of his grace and love for us. Just icing on the cake of salvation! We have been the recipients of some very good gifts from the Lord...here is the story of our most recent one(s)...

If you'll remember correctly, my nissan "died" in Iowa over Thanksgiving, leaving us with one car, the acura. Well, right before Christmas we received a phone call from a sweet couple from our Church who had heard about our search for another vehicle and who knew we were "stuck" in a very difficult price range...we needed something reliable for next to nothing. Not exactly easy to find or work with! They told us about a car they had, that they had driven for a few years and had recently decided to get rid of so they could upgrade to something bigger. We knew what car they were talking about and we got very excited because we knew it was not only reliable, but very nice. We were hoping that it would be close to our price range because we knew it would be infinately nicer that anything else we could afford and we really liked it. So, imagine our shock when they said if we wanted it, we could have it...FOR FREE!!! Can you believe it??? That was not an answer to our prayers...we were too dumb to ask the Lord for something free...this was an outright BLESSING from God's hand and a tangible demonstration of His love for us and his desire to meet a need that seemed so great in our eyes. I immediately burst into tears when Travis called me with the news and we gratefully accepted that gift from that sweet couple and we praised the Lord endlessly for what He did!! Little did we know that car would bless us again a month later after the acura was hit for the FOURTH time and we were once again facing more car drama.

Last weekend we decided that we had to get that acura off our hands as it was now dented in multiple areas, with a laundry list of problems, none greater than the driver's side door being stuck shut!! (you would have LOVED to see us drive that car...it looked like a clown's car when we pulled up somewhere and both climbed out the passenger side door!!) However, with everyday we kept it, the value was declining and we still owed money on our loan for it. Not the situation one hopes to be in with a car. We still had the "free" car, as well as my nissan (which we had fixed enough to get it back to Minnesota), and the acura. Our prayer was to somehow sell or trade both the acura and the nissan with the hopes of breaking even so that we could then purchase another car that was newer, bigger and more reliable. So, two weeks ago we shopped our sad vehicles around for awhile but the picture was looking grim. It seemed inevitable that we would be upside down and stuck with two "problem" cars. But once again, the Lord orchestrated a series of events in a way only He could and we found ourselves in the office of our friend, Jeff Stone with a great offer on the table for both cars and a new option to buy an SUV that we LOVED!!! So we did it! And I'm happy to say today that we are the proud owners of 2 very good gifts from the Lord...a Mitsibuishi Galant and a Mitsibuishi Montero Sport. We are so thrilled and so thankful for this major blessing in our lives...I cannot tell you the peace in our hearts knowing that the Lord provided for us in a big way and that we are no longer in a losing situation. Of course we are VERY realistic about the fact that they are just cars and at anytime something could happen....we are experts in that department....but we have seen the Lord be faithful to us and this whole thing just represents His never failing presence and love for us. Everytime I sit in either car, I am reminded of God's good gift to us and I am so thankful...He could have done a thousand other things, but the way He blessed us got several people involved in the process and gave us no other choice but to give Him the full GLORY for it!

"The Lord is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made. The Lord upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing...my mouth will speak in praise of the Lord. Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever!"
Psalm 145:17-21

I Love Craig's List!!

My Latest purchase, courtesy of Craig's List...a chaise lounge for our bedroom! I got a fantastic deal on it and after a long search, it fits that corner perfectly!


Of course I made a stop for new decorative pillows and a warm throw...can't you just picture me "lounging" on this and curled up in my new blanket???


Ryley always tries to get in the action when I start taking pictures! He sees the flash and he comes running...I think I've warped him! This is his "natural" pose!


We have been searching for a chair for "that corner" for such a long time...I love it! It's my new "prayer chair" for my quiet times with my Bible, my journal, and the Lord...and a cup of coffee of course.


Our bed...I think my love language may be spoken in pillows...what do you think? There are currently 11 on our bed, 9 on our couch, 7 on our guest bed, and 3 on our new chaise lounge...I have a very SWEET, TOLERANT, and PATIENT husband!!


The view from our door into our room...next up on our "list" of things to do, paint! I can take the white walls no longer!! I'm dying for color.