Edible pics?

Look closely at these pictures. They are made totally out of edible food.


(Click on images to enlarge.)

Oh poor me....

I'll be light on the blogging for a few days. Since Wednesday I've been fighting the cough/fever/awful feeling. I have an appt at the doctor's today so hopefully he will have something for me!

This and that....

My days have been full. I am finding I have little time to blog with wedding preparations in full gear, dance lessons on a weekly basis, and four Bible studies going on. Two of those are not as in depth as the other two. But still very interesting. Rich discussions! Last week I looked around the Thursday night group, studying each face, and just marveled that a group of men and women desired to get together and discuss spiritual things. Actually, to delight in learning from God's Word.

We are taking Waltz lessons on Wednesday evening with Sarah's parents and another couple who are friends of ours. Pilot Dad and I were quite pleased with ourselves because we "felt" much smoother, more graceful, more like we knew what we were doing. Now, whether we looked that way is another story! LOL! When this class is over we will be taking a new class called the Swing. Then we are done with our dance classes!

Our weather has been lulling us into believing spring has arrived. Temps in the mid to upper 50ºF with a rain shower every once in awhile. However, we know that on average we receive another 9+ inches of snow. Grrrr. And, this weekend may be the time for more snow. It certainly will be cold enough.

I have found a dress for the wedding but I am still looking to see if I find one I like better. I'll be glad when the dress buying is finished.

I'm still going to the gym every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I'm seeing progress with a few pounds lost but, more importantly inches are being lost. I am feeling better and actually look forward to going and working out. So far, by maintaining my 3x a week I have avoided flaring up my knees and hips! For this I praise the Lord!

I do believe I have caught this awful virus which is going around our area. The main symptom seems to be this terrible hacking cough which is pretty non-stop. The problem with this is I never know if it is my asthma/allergy flaring up or its the virus. I'm calling my allergist this morning when they open to see if I can get some heavy duty cough syrup. I am willing to hack all day, as needed, as long as I can get rested by sleeping uninterrupted during the night! ;)

God is so wonderful! It is such a pleasure to awaken now and hear the birds chirping out our window. They know spring is just around the corner! This morning I beat the birds up since I was coughing. I slipped out of bed so as not to disturb Pilot Dad. It won't be long till they are at the feeder, or sitting in the trees calling to each other.

Well, I'm going to see if I can go back to sleep for a little bit. I'm going to be at the gym by 9:30 but there is still a good hour and half before that alarm clock goes off. :)

For Mom's everywhere....

I'm invisible.

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?' Obviously not. No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all.

I'm invisible.

Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?

Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please.'

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again.

She's going ... she's going .... she's gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself as I looked down at my out-of-style dress; it was the only thing I could find that was clean. My unwashed hair was pulled up in a banana clip and I was afraid I could actually smell peanut butter in it. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.' It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: 'With admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.'

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work:

* No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names.

* These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished.

* They made great sacrifices and expected no credit.

* The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.'

And the workman replied, 'Because God sees.'

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become.'

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, 'You're gonna love it there.'

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot see if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

author unknown

It's getting near tax time....

Did you ever notice: When you put the 2 words “The” and “IRS” together it spells “Theirs?”

Resurrection and Purpose!

"For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep, and was laid among his fathers and underwent decay" (Acts 13:36).

I came across the above verse the other day during my Bible study. There is something exciting knowing you have "purpose." The word "purpose" in the Greek is boule,"will, project, intention, as the result of reflection; counsel, decree, aim, or estimation, as it denotes deliberation and reflection. Boule as the first stage of inward 'deliberation'....thought...Secondly, boule denotes the final result of inner deliberation." In other words, God puts intention, and reflection, and inward deliberation into my purpose. And your purpose. Jesus thinks on me! Nothing we endure, face, experience (such as a sifting season) has been haphazard. It has been determined and thought upon before it was ever given to us.

In fact, what we experience/go through is critical in accomplishing our purpose. Just like Christ, in the Garden, asked for "this cup" to be taken away, if it was the Father's will. It was critical for Christ to go through with the Cross. No one else could accomplish what He alone could accomplish. The same for you and me. What we experience is something unique for you and me. No one else will be used in the exact same purpose as you or me. So what we go through is critical.

Another example is seen in Luke 22:31-32, "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers." The first "you" (permission to sift you like wheat) is plural. You see, Satan asked for all the disciples to sift. But the second "you" is singular, meant for Peter. Peter was the one Christ allowed to be sifted. It was critical for Peter to go through that experience, not his brothers, so he could fulfill his purpose with his brothers: to strengthen his brothers.

I am extremely excited about this season in my life. All that I went through during the last year and a half was critical for me to experience. God will use it in my purpose. Right now I feel like I am going through a tremendous growth period and I know our Eternal God has a purpose for me as a direct result of what I have just emerged.

After such a long time of "endurance" where I awoke each morning...erm...sometimes each afternoon, where I struggled with seeing the joy of the day, I am now waking up early in the morning (early? 7-8 am :) with eager anticipation for my day to begin. I have a general gist of what my day will entail but there are so many "fill in-betweens" which I have no idea how the Lord will use them. It's those little moments which cause me excitement!

Joy and effectiveness may seem to pause for a while as grief takes its course, but those of us who allow our broken hearts to be bound by Christ will experience them again. My Savior is the God of resurrection life!! Granted, my life will never be the same, but that is okay. Christ enables me to pick up and begin living a new life, a more compassionate life, a wiser life, a more productive life, an even better life! Some people will say it is impossible and it is, without Christ!

The USS New York

USS New York

It was built with 24 tons of scrap steel from the World Trade Center .

It is the fifth in a new class of warship - designed for missions that include special operations against terrorists. It will carry a crew of 360 sailors and 700 combat-ready Marines to be delivered ashore by helicopters and assault craft.

Steel from the World Trade Center was melted down in a foundry in Amite, LA to cast the ship's bow section. When it was poured into the molds on Sept 9, 2003, 'those big rough steelworkers treated it with total reverence,' recalled Navy Capt. Kevin Wensing, who was there. 'It was a spiritual moment for everybody there.'

Junior Chavers, foundry operations manager, said that when the trade center steel first arrived, he touched it with his hand and the 'hair on my neck stood up.' 'It had a big meaning to it for all of us,' he said. 'They knocked us down. They can't keep us down. We're going to be back.'

The ship's motto? 'Never Forget'

His concern for us....

We, as adopted children of God, matter more to God than any human being does to another human being. We need to read and reread what He has told us about His concern for us:

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, thought the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging" (Psalm 46:1-3).

"The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who see you. Sing praises to the LORD, enthroned in Zion; proclaim among the nations what He has done" (Psalm 9:9-11).

"Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and He saved them from their distress. He brought them out of darkness and the deepest gloom and broke away their chains. Let them give thanks to the LORD for His unfailing love and His wonderful deeds for men!...Whoever is wise, let him heed these things and consider the great love of the LORD" (Psalm 107:13-15, 43).

'"But let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight," declares the LORD" (Jeremiah 9:24).

Musings for today....

We have been dealing with progressively worse smog in our area this past week, which fortunately, is being cleared out of our valley due to our snowstorm going on right now. All this pollution led to me thinking how insiduously pollution begins and then grows bigger.

It is hard not to become infected with some sort of breathing problems, when surrounded by terribly polluted air. Likewise, it is difficult not to become infected with some sort of thinking problem, when surrounded by terribly polluted ideas. One thing leads to another. There is no stopping place when a person cuts loose from an absolute base.