Friday

Friday mornings are always "donuts with the daughters". It may not be a healthy tradition, but we like it that way. This morning we did our regular donut routine and dropped the oldest off at school. After that Lil' Darlin "S" asked me: "Why did God make this whole big world?". I answered (not very well), "to give us somewhere to live and to make us happy". Then I asked her what she thought and she said: "I think it's boo-ti-ful". Needless to say, it's been a good Friday.

The List

During my walk today I listened to a podcast of Terri Gross interviewing Rosanne Cash. Many of you know that my dad loved Johnny Cash, so our house has a certain familiarity with his music. I believe he is a musical genius and his voice is like no other. When Rosanne was eighteen, she went out on tour with her dad. She had just finished high school, was interested in a music career and wanted to spend some time with her father clean and sober. One day they were discussing music and when Rosanne was not familiar with some of the country songs he spoke of, her dad got a little worried. Later that day he gave her a sheet of paper with his list of "100 Essential Country Songs". She said it best when she noted that he didn't just give her a list of songs, he gave her a little part of himself.

Every person that walks through our life has a gift to offer. Sometimes we don't realize what that is until they are gone. I always knew my dad was special, but after he died I realized his gift of generousity, sincerity, trustworthiness and utmost love had left a void in my heart. When you are so used to someone's goodness surrounding you, it is really hard when it is suddenly gone. It takes time, but now I am more able to see that goodness in other people because of my dad's gift of himself. O.K., so maybe I am rambling. I tend to do that. Oh, by the way, Rosanne Cash just recorded ten of those songs on an album entitled 'The List'....check it out.

CJane

CJane makes my heart sing!!! Read this post.

Monday Blues

I am pretty darn sure that God knew what he was doing when he made me. He knows what is best for me. But sometimes I wonder how he thought leaving that cleaning gene out of my bodily composition would get me by on days like this. Does he really like to see me suffer so, or is he just waiting for me to make peace with this missing link. Maybe once I make peace and succomb to this cluttered, messy house of mine things will change. Pastor Steven did say yesterday that you can not be forgiven of your sins until your lips have confessed them. So here I am, I surrender whole-heartedly to my non-cleaning ways. One favor, can my forgiveness include just a small sprinkling of that clean gene...my husband would be forever grateful.

Energy

I'm not talking about that particular thing that my body lacks a lot of the time. I'm speaking of what Merriam-Webster defines as: a usually positive spiritual force. When I was watching NieNie on Oprah, they spoke about the warm, calming energy that Stephanie's home gives off. It got me thinking...what is the energy in my home? I wonder what people feel when they enter our home, is it welcoming, loving? I know our home is filled with love, but it also has its fair share of chaos too. With four girls, the only calm our house experiences is while we all sleep. I am thankful that I have become more aware of how our attitude towards living can radiate to so many. I want people to feel warm and at home when they enter our doors and I intend to make it happen.

Give.Me.Faith.

At church we recently finished a series called Give.Me.Faith. The music team wrote this song to go along with the series and it really is awesome. It pretty much speaks for itself.

Give Me Faith [Acoustic] from Elevation Worship on Vimeo.

I Love Him So...

Yesterday I had the pleasure of spending a morning out with my main man. I love it when we have the chance to do that...runnning errands, shopping, eating lunch. And he's just so nice. Of course, he's nice to me. But, when we're out, he is so kind to other people! He addresses everyone he comes across and asks how they are and wishes them a good day. I feel so proud to be married to this handsome tattooed guy. We were at a store making a purchase and chatting up the lady behind the counter...I was too busy with all the chatter that I didn't pay attention to how much she charged me for our items. On the way out of the store I looked at the receipt and realized she had majorly undercharged me. Without a thought, T went back in and paid her the extra amount. What a guy, his momma should be proud.

Old photo by the way