25 Days of Christmas

On November 30, 2009, I spent a couple hours making a cute little Christmas Mini Album with the sole purpose being that I would take a picture everyday in December, days 1-25. Somewhere along Dec. 10th I realized that I had not taken even one picture. I thought about just taking a whole bunch of pics and just putting them in the album anyway. I mean really-who would know! But I couldn't.
So here it is, December 1st again. Wow, how time flies. The good thing is the mini Christmas album is still here, just waiting to be filled with 25 days of Christmas photos. And once I dust it off it'll be good-as-new!

Remember the reason for the season, and Shine.

Imitation: The greatest form of flattery

Fresh Grounded Faith 2010 Women's Conference at Second Baptist Church of Springfield

What a weekend-it was fantabulous!

Devony and I attended Fresh Grounded Faith at Second Baptist Church in Springfield. Oh, it was so good. I absolutely love, love, LOVE Jennifer Rothschild. She so sweet and true. She's truly an inspiration to me.

Jennifer Rothschild

During the conference Jennifer mentioned that if ever you're in a situation and you don't really know how to handle it or feel a little out of you league, that's it's OK to imitate someone you admire and respect. She told of a story where always before she was just a helper at these conferences but this one time she was more in charge of things, more involved. She didn't realize it until right before it got started, everyone gathered around and someone said, "OK Jennifer!" And she was thinking Ok Jennifer, what? Then she realized they wanted her to lead in prayer, to take charge and be the leader. She was overwhelmed and didn't know what to do or say, she had never been in that situation. So she quickly thought to herself, "What would my good friend Beth Moore do?" Jennifer then acted, thought and talked like she assumed Beth would in that situation. She got her strength from what she knew of Beth Moore's character.

So it's OK to imitate someone that you look up to from time to time. We learn from others examples. And I look up to Jennifer. It's alright, go ahead, call me a copy-cat. In this case, it's something I'm proud of. 
Did I get pictures of this super-wonderful event. No. (gasp) I guess I was to excited to remember my camera. Not sure how that can be, with me being a scrapbooker and all. I take pictures of everything-normally. I had to borrow photos from the Fresh Grounded Faith Facebook page. I don't think they will mind. :)

Thanks Jennifer-you help me to Shine.

Love What is True

Good Morning and happy Friday. It's so cold, but the sun is out and that always makes me happy. I'm feeling a little giddy this morning for no apparent reason, so who knows what I may post. My giddiness may be due to lack of sleep-I got woke up at 2a.m. from my crazy dog, ferociously barking at something. I didn't go back to sleep, but I did watch a little TV. My Wife and Kids is a really cute show, and I found out from the History Channel that we have aliens living in our oceans.
Michael Buble love, love... Love him has a new song out called Hollywood. It's message is about people selling out. He sings,
If you get to California,
save a piece of gold for me.
If it's the only thing you save,
then I'll bet you'll never wave when I watch you on tv.
Have you ever sold out? guilty  Is gold and the world what you live for? been there, done that 
John 17: 15-17 Be in the world, not of it. (paraphrasing credits go to Angela)
I want to save more than material things and meaningless relationships, I want to save me and others from and eternity of doom. So how do we do that: we love. It's just that simple.
At the end of the song he sings,
Keep loving what is true and the world will come to you, 
you can find it in yourself.
Love. That's what's true.
We Shine when we love, there's no disguising it.

Swings

We've been twice and I've said the same thing both times, "Want to know what's fun but completely insane-The Barn Swings in Ozark!"
Last year I attemped to swing from one, albeit the small one, but this year I was smarter, I stayed on the ground the entire time and took pictures.

Keep Shining!

Happy Pumpkins

Halloween is such a fun time of year. Devony and I had
a good time drawing our Jack-O-Lantern faces. She took a
picture of them and sent it to all her friends along with the
message, Vote For Your Favorite Pumpkin. Hers won. (it's the big one)
I can't wait to cut them out this weekend.


Be happy, Shine and smile big like our pumpkins.
(I know- that was really cheesy)

An a-'MAIZE'-ing Fun Time

Have you ever been to the Verona Corn Maize? Yes?Well, that's what I figured. Almost everyone has been to this place but us. And after visiting it this weekend, we know why. It's a blast!

We took the kids and my parents (Doug says my parents are like American Express: We never leave home without them) to the maze Saturday night. That place really draws a crowd. There were people lined up to get in the whole time.

$$$ Doug and my dad are already talking about how they can plant a corn maze in my back yard and convert our home into a haunted house for next year ;)

On the way down there, Doug and my mom devised a plan to help us find each other should we get lost. They decided to use bird calls. Doug would yell out "Ca-Caww! Ca-Caww!" and my mother would reply "Hoo-Hoo-Hoooo! Hoo-Hoo-Hooo!". So lost or not, we and everyone else in the maze got to hear that allllll through the corn. At one point even the workers joined in. One of them hollered out, "Hey, why don't you guys come up here on the bridge, you can hoot all want up here." Once my mom got up there she lost her balance and fell into one of the guys almost knocking him off the platform. Fortunately they thought she was adorable (my mother looks, sounds and acts just like Betty White) and found it funny and commented, They didn't need him anyway, and the guy she almost killed said he thought she was trying to grab his knee and flirt with him.

We went through the second half of the maze after dark. I warned my mom not to go because it's spooked after dark. My mother has never been through a haunted house in her life so she had no idea what she was in for. Halfway through she got so scared that the 'corn cops' radioed ahead and described our group and told them not to scare us. They even walked with us til we got out. Probably so they wouldn't have to deal with us anymore.

Then on the way home we stopped at Braum's, and just as my mom took a drink of her hot chocolate Doug said something funny and my mother spewed it all over me, my white coat and my ice cream cone. I swear, I can't take that woman anywhere!

I am so grateful for my family. Together we Shine.

We're Batty

October in my opinion is the most beautiful month out of the entire year. Changes start happening so fast it's hard to keep up with them. One day the leaves are green, the next they're yellow, then orange, then red. One day it's hot and the next day it's not. And the hours of daylight become fewer and fewer.

   

I'm starting to get a little spoiled to all the warm weather we keep having this autumn, and decided today better be the day we spend outside having fun and putting up some Halloween decorations, (I just had to make those bats flying up the side of the house like I see every year in all the October magazines) and taking wacky pictures.  It could very well be our last warm weekend of the season. But I assure you, it will not be our last weekend of wacky fun.

 Have fun and Shine no matter what!

Darn it! I just realized we forgot the spiderwebs.