A Warm Thought on a Cool Day...

I coordinate a blog for a new community garden and created this image for that site. It's been so pretty this week, sunny and it the 70s. Today, it is a cool, cloudy day and it seems a good sentiment to share here too!

Richly Blessed

I've always said I was rich because of the wonderful people God gives me for friends. I have several that I've known since I was a child. One of the exciting things about our upcoming wedding is the blending of lives and the ability to introduce friends from different aspects of our lives to each other. Yesterday was a prelude to what is to come. I have two girlfriends as my honor attendants and they met for the first time yesterday (our waiter who took the photo is very tall, and was not tipsy, depsite what the quality of the photo would imply). Lina (on the right) I've known for 30 years this summer! Lisa, (far left) I met in college and we've been close every since. My Mom is there and she has been my rock through the years. There are many other wonderful people participating and attending the wedding and I just look so forward to the day of celebration with God as our foremost witness and all of these wonderful people joining in! I got a beautiful wedding dress, but, since my honor attendants and scripture reader are so beautiful, I'm thinking I may need to get a dress with flashing neon lights so people will not spend the whole ceremony looking at them. I adore these girls...we've shared so much of life together! And they love me too.

Love Lost, Love Found

When I got in from church today, I unlocked the door so Dave could just let himself in when he arrived. I was in the kitchen and heard the door open twice. Instinct kicked in, and I knew Maggie must have ran out the door and he'd gone after her. Sure enough, I went out, and he was down the street looking for her. She's a beagle and when outside, the nose just takes over! My heart stopped when I realized no one knew where she was. One neighbor guessed that maybe she'd gone through his yard to the alley. So I took off running in my dress and boots calling out to her. Dave took off the other direction. A lady on the street behind me had just seen her. Fortunately, this nightmare only lasted a few minutes. Another neighbor a few doors down had found her in his garage, staring adoringly at their refrigerator, wagging her tail. His wife had taken her and placed her in my house while Dave and I were frantically looking for her.

I like to think she has a good life here. Lots of love, doggie treats, and as you can see from this photo made in December, full furniture privileges. But, a beagle will forever be a 2-year old, never thinking to look before crossing streets, or to remember she's not allowed to go off by herself. Tonite, she just wanted to lie on both Dave and me as we sat together on the couch watching TV. She is love. And I am thankful she is safe and home!

Sexy Back?

There is a 20-something pop icon with a hit on the charts where he sings he's bringing sexy back. I'm not sure what he's talking about. As you can see from the photo, Dave is very sexy and he never left.

(He's also very humble and private, so I may be in trouble for this post!)

Lady

I really love all kinds of music. The past few years, I've had a chance to see Little River Band at a local festival. They are still so good. Tonite, I found this video; it's really great and I wanted to share it!

Enjoy a talented guy's version of Lady, by Little River Band...his inspiration for this video was missing his own lady.

Sometimes Life Moves Fast!

Dave and I planned to elope. Then we decided to have a small ceremony. But we needed to stay with our original date because of some things with Dave's career. So...I find myself planning a wedding in 3 weeks! My life has definitely picked up a few RPMs!

It has been so cool to watch God at work! He's opened doors that amaze me! From the beautiful ceremony location (the original person who had booked my date months ago, had called just 2 days earlier and asked to move their event to a new date), to the help from friends, to front row parking at the mall when I was on a tight time schedule...big and little the blessings are all around.

But the greatest of the blessings is Dave! He told me early on he knew he could marry me. More than a year later, I have learned what it is like to be loved unconditionally. I always dreamed of that, but never experienced it. He loves God so much and it is evident in how he treats me. He is really smart, can build/fix anything, not to mention he is really handsome with awesome blue eyes! He is very inspiring to me!

A Perfect Day

Don't you love it when a day unfolds with wonderful unexpected surprises? Yesterday was a day like that for me.

After church, Dave and I spent time outdoors. We had nothing planned, but finally after all the clouds, cold, rain, ice, and snow, we had a warm and sunny day that beckoned us outside. We planted seeds for tomatoes and jalapeno peppers; we're going to have a little garden this year! We also worked in the yard, then went to a nearby nature preserve for a walk.

Later we stopped by a friend's place. He had invited us over, but didn't tell us, or his family, that we'd all be there. These are amazing people in my life. We met over 30 years ago. They are all originally from Colombia and some of my favorite people on this planet. My friend's aunt instantly recognized me, although she hasn't seen me in 31 years. When we all saw each other, it was such a rush of memories, emotions, hugs, and everyone talking at once!

I met my friend and his sister when they were still living in Miami, just visiting his Aunt, Uncle, and cousins for the summer. There were 5 of us, Lina, Orlando, Donnie, Jerry, and me. That magical summer before any of us were old enough to work; the next year, we all had jobs. But that summer, we lived all day at the pool, and at night on the front porch of one of our homes talking until our parents all called us in. This summer, it will be 30 years ago that we met. And the friendships that began when we were so young, have lasted 3 decades now. Some friends come into our lives for a season. Others, become such an integral part, with a watermark on our heart. I know that we all share a love for God, and each other. We are all such big fans of each other; and always have been. There is something remarkable about friendships like this and I feel so blessed to have such amazing people in my life. It was a really special day!

What kind of wonderful surprises transformed an ordinary day in your life to one of such excitement, joy, and warmth?

GROUNDHOG DAY!

Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow today, which, according to German folklore, means folks can expect an early spring instead of six more weeks of winter.

I read this on news.yahoo.com: Since 1886, Phil has seen his shadow 96 times, hasn't seen it 15 times and there are no records for nine years, according to the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club. The last time Phil failed to see his shadow was in 1999.

C'MON SPRING!

YOUR GROUNDHOG DAY
Does life ever feel like the same song, just a different tune? That you are somehow caught on ‘the hampster wheel’ of life, repeating the same drudgery day-after-day? Do relationships always end in disappointment? The diet always fails. The weight never comes off. You never get around to getting the credit cards paid off. There just never seems to be enough time for daily quiet times with God. Or to serve others. Sigh! Oft-repeated trials can be discouraging.

In the 1993 classic movie, Groundhog Day, Phil Connors (Bill Murray) finds himself living the same day everyday. Like many people caught up in the trappings of this life, Phil is a bit self-centered. But as he is forced to repeat the same day, every day, he learns something valuable along the way. While neither his day, nor circumstances change, he has the power within to change Phil…and how he handles the circumstances. As a result, he begins to change and makes a difference in the lives of others.

There’s a little Phil Connors in most of us. But the good news is that God loves us too much to leave us the way we are. He gave us the gift of eternal life through Jesus, and the gift of the Holy Spirit to indwell in us. The Holy Spirit prompts and nudges us to make wise decisions and not repeat the mistakes of our past. Being sensitive to His leading, He steers us off the hamster wheel and onto the righteous pathway of abundant and joyful living in Christ.

It’s been said that doing something for 30 days will make it become a habitual action. This is the plan I set out for my 2007: What is it that you want to change in your life? Commit to working on that one change for 30 days. Ask God to help you be disciplined. To provide you with wisdom, insight, and strength to be successful as you seek to honor God with your life. You have the power within; the Holy Spirit is your greatest fan and wants to see you succeed. He is motivated by His unfailing love for you. Renew your hope. Step forward in faith. Believe you will succeed with the help of a loving God.