Another Bird?

Power belongeth unto God -
Psalm 62:11

It was a long weekend. My grandma, Mimi, is failing. My sister Donna decided that she would make a visit to Mimi. She would drive from Ohio to Missouri.

My other sister, Katie, decided she would drive up from College Station. She asked me if I wanted to "ride" with her. So at 8pm Thursday night Avery and I drove to College Station. We arrived around midnight.

The next morning, my nephews woke us up bright and early with alarms blaring!! Our plan was to drive to Missouri. It took twelve hours and about six stops!!! We got to dad's house around 8pm.

The next day we went to the nursing home. It was just heartbreaking. Mimi is very frail and slightly unkempt. Her hair is straight. She no longer does her weekly appointment to get her hair done (even in the assisted living and nursing home she always had her hair done). She does not recognize us and seems sort of lost.

We pushed her wheelchair to her room and helped her get in bed. Donna fed her some soup for lunch. She settled in and seemed to rest. I sat on the bed with her and held her hands. I told her, "I love you." She said, "I love you too." That made the whole trip worth it. I knew she always loved me, but it was nice to hear it one last time.

When we went back to Dad's, I called Quentin. Since there is no reception for my cell phone, I had to go outside. As I was standing there talking to him I looked at the shrub next to me and guess what? There was a little bird sitting there watching me. It was a baby bird and he was nervous. He sat very still as I talked and then as I took some pictures.

I think that little bird was there to remind that God was near. Even in the most discouraging situation, God was right there by my side. The power belongs to God and He supports me during the good and the bad times.

Bird Watcher

“But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; - Job 12:7

People who know me very well know that I have a thing with birds. Not a bad thing like my sister, but a God thing. Well yesterday, it happened again, only this time it was not a Cardinal, but a Scissortail Flycatcher. I was walking out to my car from Quilt Group. All of a sudden a Scissortail Flycatcher flew near me. He landed on a branch and then looked at me. I thought I should take a picture, but when I got close he flew to a sign in the parking lot. I snapped one picture and then went on my merry way.

Well, later after Quilt Group was over, I loaded my car up and was getting ready to leave. Well here came that bird again. He got pretty close and just looked at me. Photo op! He flew to a Crepe Myrtle and taunted me. I thought, "I know I will get in my car, drive close to the bush and then snap his picture."

I ease my car close to the bush and he flies to another bush along the drive. I ease up next to the bush and this time he flies across the parking lot to a bush facing the convenience store. So, I follow him. Well, while I am trying to snap his picture, some guy across the street is walking around his trailer. He thinks I am taking his picture. Oh, yeah, big grin!!! Well that is just embarrassing. Finally the bird flies back to a Crepe Myrtle along the drive. So, I do a 360 in the parking lot and stalk him one more time.

He just sits there as a slowly get closer and closer. I took several shots. He even squawked at me. What is he trying to tell me?

The message in all of this is slow down, take some time, enjoy the beauty God has surrounded us with. God is here with us in each and every moment. He uses all sorts of things to remind us of that. What is God using to tell you that He is near?

You're Blessed

"You're blessed when you're content with just who you are - no more, no less. That's the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can't be bought." - The Message, Matthew 5:5

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. - Bible NIV, Matthew 5:5

A good friend sent me a note yesterday encouraging me to keep writing. I have to admit the last few posts on FB have not been my words, but words from Good Morning Lord, a FB devotion. It made me pause and think about why I have not been writing.

For Lent, I decided to read my devotion every day. You heard right, EVERY DAY!! I then vowed to post one or more of the messages on FB. I did it! I only missed a day or two. The result is that I got into a new habit of reading and sharing God's word.

The bad news is that with all my other obligations, I have let my writing slip. I have a graduating senior and am busy with all of that - senior parties, dinners, graduation quilts, booking rooms, etc. So, I have relegated my writing to the back seat. But what if God is trying to use me to help others? I have just pushed God to the back seat. Whoa, not a good idea!

I am blessed to have friends who encourage me to keep doing God's work even when I am busy. I am blessed because I am content with who I am. I am blessed because God is using me to help others. Isn't that what it is really about anyway?

Note: The butterfly picture is courtesy of androidzoom.com

Real Life versus your Virtual Life

Well the new big thing is Pinterest. I was reluctant to get sucked into another time consuming internet group. After seeing my girls "pinning" cool things to their bulletin boards though, I have to admit, I was intrigued.

So, I requested a logon. I waited 4 weeks to be admitted as part of this exclusive group. I got my logon and had to think of a user name?? What the heck!! So I used my number one hobby and the two initials of my first name coming up with quiltbe. It had a nice ring to it. Quilt and Be. I can quilt and I can Be.

I logged on and created a few bulletin boards. I have to admit, at first, I found it completely confusing. But after spending HOURS on it, I finally figured it out!!!

I now have 16 boards and 503 pins. Can you imagine a room with 16 large bulletin boards that will hold 503 thumb tacked images??? Neither can I.

As I traversed Pinterest, I decided this was great and everything, but what was the real point? What good does it do to have all of these interests and desires, if you are not going to do anything about it?

So, I decided to step out of my virtual box and into my real box. I ordered the Jessica Simpson shoes I had been coveting on Pinterest. Yes they were expensive, yes, I am old, but I did it anyway.

I have to say though, I might have been spurred on by my teenage daughter who said, "Mom, your virtual world does not intersect with your real world" or something to that effect. I was appalled!!!

Well, that was all I needed to get me going. I bought some royal blue skinny jeans while shopping with my daughter. The sales girl, a mere teenager herself, told my daughter, "Your mom looks freaking awesome!" NOTE: this is not me in the photo below!!!

I have started a new goal. At least one day every week I will integrate my virtual life into my real life.

So I wore the Jessica Simpson shoes to a funeral on Thursday!!! I did get the worst blisters ever though!!!! I wore the skinny jeans all day last Friday. I wore my awesome hat from Carmel, California with an old crinkle skirt and crochet vest this week.

I am all about being real. I do not want to have this really cool image on Pinterest and then be this dowdy old lady in real life. So I am stepping up my game!!! How about you?

One Thousand Gifts - A Beginning

It is never too late to start being thankful. As I reviewed some of my favorite blogs tonight, I saw a few tools to help me be more thankful. Ann Voscamp, as usual, is amazing. I added her app to my phone tonight.

I often think of the words she said in her book. Being thankful at all times. It is so difficult when your child is angry. So difficult when I am sad. So difficult when things do not go the way I want. But even in those moments, I reach out to God and ask for help. Help to be thankful, right here, right now.

And so my list begins.
1. My wonderful Lord who sustains me at all times through all things.
2. My beautiful sweet girls.
3. My wonderful husband, who worked to help me become a stay at home mom and still insists that I do not need to work.
4. My gift of quilting.
5. My good health.
6. My siblings.
7. My dad and stepmom, Sue.
8. The moon coming up over the pool in the backyard.
9. Toenails painted red.
10. $42/yard fabric on sale for $4/yard.
11. Tango meowing at me when I ask her, "Where is your toy?"
12. Just Dance on the XBox.
13. Teenagers at my house - eating, sleeping, talking, swimming, playing video games, being.

To be continued...

Less or More

A thought struck me this morning.

I recently heard an acquaintance talking about their Christmas break. She and her husband had decided to do a scaled down version of Christmas this year. They would buy each child a large gift valued at about $200 dollars. They would not provide other gifts at Christmas. In the spring, they would take a trip together as part of their Christmas gift.

Christmas night, the husband put the children to bed. When he came back into the living room. He told the wife that the children were mad at her. She could not believe it and blew up at him. "Those kids are so selfish!" she said. I was shocked. Who is the selfish one in this picture?

Then I heard of another similar incident. A young boy had his birthday. For his birthday, he got an $8 toy and a pair of $20 shorts. He was still out on Christmas break and spent the entire day of his birthday in the car with his dad running errands. He did get to eat out that evening and got a birthday cake, but it made me wonder, is that the best his parents can do?

Flash back to our Christmas. We spent way too much on gifts. This year, since we have teenage girls it was harder to find things they really wanted. Some clothes, some boots and shoes, some Apple accessories, a movie, $200 gift cards. We know it is over the top, but this is our last year with both of the girls living at home. Our oldest will move to college in August.

It made wonder, which is the best way to approach it? Is the "less is more" approach really better? Or does it instill the thought in the child's head that they really do not matter? Do the children wonder why the parents can afford lots of new things for themselves, but they only got one or two gifts?

Does "more, more, more" really send a better message? Does this make the children spoiled? Does this make them expect too much, and then when they don't get it, they are really disappointed?

I think both things are true. The "less" approach can weigh on the kid's mind and maybe even their heart. But I think the "more" approach can set the stage for future disappointments. Now knowing this, why do we still choose the "more" approach? I want my kids to know they are loved. I want my kids to know they are worth the effort. I want my kids to understand that giving to others is more important than giving to themselves.

I personally don't believe more is better. In this instance, I have to make an exception though. More is better when demonstrating to my kids that they are important, loved, and worth the extra effort.   

Bittersweet

Well, we have come to the end of 2011 and the beginning of 2012.

On Christmas Eve, we went to the Candlelight Service and then spent the evening with our good friends at their traditional get together. The kids are all older now, so the excitement level at opening presents is less. The thankfulness for the gifts is a little more though! Two of the kids are out of college, one is in college, two will graduate from high school this year and the other three still have several years to go. We are older now. Wiser? I hope so, but I am not sure.

It is bittersweet. The kids laugh. We all do. But in the back of my mind I wonder how long will our little get togethers on Christmas Eve really last? College, marriage, grandkids. Change will inevitably come. I am not ready for it yet. However, I know that God will help me when the time comes.

It is not that I do not want them to grow up, I do. I want them to have great careers, great marriages, strong Christian lives. But the moments of all of us sleeping under the same roof will end and that makes me a little sad.

My goal this year is to enjoy EVERY moment. Avery will graduate and move off to college. Ashlyn will become a senior in high school. Life is moving on. I am so thankful for the years we have had and the things we have shared. As things change, I ask God to help me adjust, help me embrace this with all that I am. Help me to see the positive and dwell in the possibilities of the future.

Happy New Year. Blessing to you and yours.
Beth