"You've Got Mail"

What is it with the anticipation of getting that next message from someone you like? 

Remember that movie, "You've Got Mail?"  This movie's theme is a classic.  Two people in love through the written word - email in this movie, letters in the Judy Garland classic, "In The Good Old Summertime."  Turns out for each of these, the two people actually disklike each other in person. One finds out the other is their secret message "love," ditches the face-to-face, and then proceeds to change the perception of the real-life relationship.  Sweet stuff. 

What intrigues me most is the joy in the anticipation of getting that next message.  I don't have the pleasure of one of those movie experiences, but I do enjoy anticipating a next message.  Here's something more to think about though...what if I had that much joyous anticipation in what God had to tell me?  What's HIS next message to me?   " <3 U no matter what, Conquered 4 u, Providing 4 U, Keep Going! Right w/U"  What's His next message to you?

Progress...not Perfection

So I was having a "morning."  You know.  You've had them.  You start out pretty optimistic, then all of a sudden you're in the midst of putting out fires you have no time for.  There goes the "plan."  There goes that few precious moments of actual accomplishment.  Needless to say, I was "off."  Which as a woman can happen on a regular basis - emotions, you know. 

At just the right time a friend calls me.  He had no idea I was in the mental place I was; however, he quickly found out!  But this is one friend who does not intimidate easily.  He proceeds to tell me a mantra to say..."Progress not Perfection."  This is not just for people that I am working with, but for myself. 

How often I forget that I can never be perfect.  No matter how hard I may strive for it, "we all fall short of the glory of God."  Even a transformation specialist needs to be reminded. It's ok to be a work in progress - because that's what we are!  There should be more fun in the construction of it...and the redecorating.  I prefer excellence over perfection.  I'll aim for balanced, joyful, content in all things, finding adventure around every corner, progressing to my fullest potential, and living life abundantly. 

So say it with me...Progress not Perfection, Progress not Perfection, Progress not Perfection...

Storm Warnings

We all have storms in our lives.  My life has been a whirlwind lately, in a good way.  But thre are still those times...

And in case you missed the excitement this morning...

The Greenhouse Effect.

I've been helping out a friend in his greenhouse the past few weeks.  I'm basically working for flowers, who doesn't love that! 
Well, this week the weather has been pretty stable.  So what happens when the sun comes out?  The greenhouse temperature goes from 80 to 100 degrees in less than 5 minutes.  It's amazing.  I love it for the most part.  It's like going to a sauna without paying or taking your clothes off.  The downside...I can't take my clothes off!  

When I can go into it looking somewhat presentable, but come out looking like a mowed over weed - dirt and all, it makes me appreciate running water and hot showers all the more.  Yesterday the temp started out in the 50s, I wore three layers of clothing to stay warm.  But then the sun came out.  I did manage to shed two layers.  Not to mention nine pounds since I've been helping out (changing the diet and being more active makes all the difference!).

The blessing of working in the greenhouse is that I get to use the flowers as a fundraiser for my Romania mission trip this fall.  I am taking orders and once I have a load then a delivery date and place will be set-up.  I'm listing the prices and some pictures here and I have an album set-up on facebook. 

Hostas = $6 ea











Hanging Baskets = $15 ea (purple, pink, blue wave, yellow, red million bells, and mixed baskets)

Flats = $15 ea ($1.50 per 3-pack) (begonias, impatients, marigolds, periwinkle, rose moss, TOMATO, green peppers, sweet banana peppers)

 

 Planters = $15 ea (geraniums, black-eyed susans - yellow & orange)

Geranium (single) = $4

Zinnia (single) = $3

Perrenials = $5 ea
--Coreopsis (yellow, red, pink), Gallardia (red, red/yellow), Butterfly bush (blue, red), pincushion flower, lavendar, Rose Mallow (pink, red), spike speedwell, tritoma, bee balm, cleome (spider plant)

Bark for Life!

I attended a very cool event today as the Premier Jewelry lady, Bark for Life! It's an American Cancer Relay for Life-type of event, only gone to the dogs.
This wasn't your ordinary walk for funds. There were vendors (me one of), the walking, speakers, rescue dog demonstration, and doggy contests: musical sit, favorite trick, and king & queen. Yes, king & queen! It was the coolest thing. I highly encourage you to participate if you are a dog lover. Bring your own or do like I'm going to do next time - borrow one!

And it was amazing how all these dogs came together and behaved so well! There were breeds of all kinds and sizes. Rescued dogs, carried dogs, cute-as-a-button dogs, all kinds! I'm including some pics here, but I will post the full album on facebook!

This is Diesel...I want one just like him!

Not sure this lady's name, she did win the Queen of the large dog category.  Must have been the pajamas that put her over the top.

First encounters

 The Collie is Merlin.  He won the musical sit AND King of the large dog category!

 This is Sandy and her owner Kelsey.  Kelsey rescued Sandy after seeing her being thrown from the 2nd Street Bridge.  Sandy happens to be part pit bull, but not once did she bear fangs today. Kelsey does animal rescue now. For more info:  www.savingsunnyinc.org. 

This is what I call the Pug Patrol.  Couldn't really get them all lined up at once.  There were about six there!

This little guy is up for adoption!  Contact www.savingsunnyinc.org!

Don't Just Count The Blessings, Enjoy Them!

I've been in a funk the past couple of weeks.  Ever been there?  Just not feeling like yourself, feels like there's a cloud hanging over everything?  I even had an anxiety attack, thought I was going to pass out at the greenhouse. In a flash I thought, " This is perfect, at least the flowers aer ready for my casket."  It was that bad in that moment.  Ever been there?
All I could do from there was rest and really try to not think.  This morning I reviewed my journal entry from last week and remembered something I learned about that morning.  It comes from this obscure little section in Luke 11 about a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace but loses everything to one stronger. Which would make sense the other one is stronger, duh. But there's also this phrase, "...he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides the spoils."  The strong guy trusted in his armor (and not the armor of God kind). 

Fine, but then Jesus goes right into teaching about a man who had an unclean spirit.  The unclean spirit left the man.  The man tidied up, put everything in order. But then the unclean spirit comes back with seven others!  What's up with that?!  Didn't the guy think to lock the door, or did he have a welcome-vacancy sign hanging out?

This morning I learned more about that.  It's like cleaning the house. Everything gets put in its place, all neat and tidy. The dust is gone, clothes & dishes put away, space is created, all is well.  But then that also leave space to fill, so we fill it with more knick-knacks to dust, more papers to file, more junk we don't need.  Or even better, just buying a bigger house to fit all our stuff in.  There's more floor space, so why not fill it with furniture!  The big question here is, "What am I filling my space with?"  Well, the Sunday School answer is it should be Jesus.  But what in the world does that look like?

I've been given such an amazing opportunity of space the past couple years to really evaluate who I am.  I know whose I am, I know what I'm purposed to do, now...who am I beyond the foundation of being a child of God?  What am I filling my space with? 

I chatted with a friend this weekend about my funk.  What I took away from our conversation was to not just count my blessings, but enjoy them.  Me being the list making kind of person, I started a list of all the things I enjoy.  I filled a couple of pages in a short time. I learned something from that too, but that's another post for another day.  But if I make Jesus my focal point in my space, and fill the rest with things I enjoy - isn't that living life to an abundant level? To overflowing! Then I'm helping others live life abundantly too!

So I encourage you dear reader, fill your space with good and perfect gifts from above and your heart will overflow with joy!  Don't just count your blessings - enjoy them!

Easter for us all

This is a very holy weekend for so many of us.  It's the celebration of Jesus' death and victory over it. Yesterday was Good Friday. Good only because we know that Sunday's coming.  And regardless of what my days are like, this Truth is what we cling to as Christians. This is the hope we live by. The hope that is available to everyone.

Enjoy the message and music,

and Happy Easter everyone!

He's Alive!

I love my mommy!

Maestro here.

Who doesn't love a good cat-nap? 

I love to sleep with mom.  Even when she's working at her desk.  There's not enough room on the desk for me and the computer, so to the floor I go.  If I can fall asleep in mom's arms or her lap, her foot makes a great pillow.  Time for my nap, and I encourage you all to do the same. Take it from me, the world keeps spinning even when you don't.

Good Ol' Boys

When I was little, I used to watch The Dukes of Hazzard every Friday night with my grandma.  Dallas came on after that.  Wonder Woman, Different Strokes, Buck Rogers, Facts of Life, and so many others!  As an only child who spent a lot of time on my own, those early 80's shows became my world and part of my family.  What I didn't realize was how much I actually learned in the process. 

I've been enjoying reruns of the Dukes on CMT, and I STILL want a Dixie Jeep like Daisy had.  I have total respect for Uncle Jesse.  His wisdom, strength of character, and take-no-crap attitude is something I can admire in a leader.  The way he handled Bo, Luke, and Diasy, not forgetting Cooter & Enos & Roscoe & Boss Hogg & any others that came across his radar, was nothing short of greatness.  He was a prayin' man, good cook, and a gentleman to all.  A true patriarch. 

Sure, the show was predictable: Boss Hogg was always swindling, Roscoe fumbling, Enos stumbling, Cooter fixin' the cars, Daisy always beautiful & in trouble, Bo & Luke handsome & in trouble & chased. Shoot, the guys wore the same outfits every show!  There were car chases, General Lee's horn, and inevitably someone ended up in jail. But there was ALWAYS a happy ending!

We're getting ready to transform the preschool's environment at GCC.  My children's minister and I talked today and she was telling me how preschoolers need predictabilty - stability - in their environment.  And I immediately thought of the Dukes!  No wonder they stuck with me so much.  They provided the stability I needed as a child.  And now as an adult, it's welcome relief from the pace I keep. 

Don't underestimate the Dukes, and some of the other "classics."  The wisdom and examples set forth by some of those characters can totally transport you to happy place where men can be real men, women be strong & beautiful at the same time, people have values and it shows, and there's always a happy ending.

Finding my keys

Each day holds new surprises for me.  I'm surprised when my mind is all for getting out of bed doing the daily stuff and getting down to some real productive business-building work, but my body dictates otherwise keeping me on the couch for half the day.  That was my yesterday. I've been fighting with sinus crud for months now and there are days it wins.  And as much as I love reading the departed optimist's writings about thinking positive and it will be positive, Norman Vincent Peale couldn't have helped me yesterday.

So before I went to sleep last night I determined today would be different. There had to be something that would help keep me off the couch even if I felt bad. But what was the key to motivating me beyond myself into something great for the day.  Yeah, yeah - Jesus. Start the day with prayer and the Word and everything with be just peachy - if you believe that then you don't actually read anything Jesus says.  Life's not easy - SIMPLE, not easy.  And I do that pretty much every morning, and yet still landed on the couch.  That was my choice.  So what is the key for me to not make that choice of caving in to the comfortable?

I don't know about you, but that key for me is music.  Since I have a roommate, I'm limited in how I can express it sometimes - LOUD mixed with crazy dancing, but that's what good headphones are for.  I have a playlist for every mood and every season. I have a playlist that represents ME.  What I believe in, how I express myself, what I aspire to, and it's those songs that I go to when I need re-energized.  It's like magic. It's as if God had those songwriters create those songs just for me.  That's my key to motivation and re-energization.  What's your key?