Happy belated Father’s Day & distractions

June 18, 2014June 18, 2014 / kstrick7 / 1 Comment

I hope all of you fathers out there had a wonderful day on Sunday. I did not forget you. I was just, well distracted. But first let me say I love my Daddy & I did visit him Sunday. This year, I visited him at his house. Not at the Mississippi Department of Corrections. It used to kinda be a running joke. If someone asked me, “Did you get to see your Dad on Father’s Day?” I would reply very solemnly, “Yes, he seemed to be doing well. You know he’s at the correctional facility, now.” Lots of times, I would get startled looks. Then again, those who knew us well enough, knew he was just at work. He has since retired & I do not have to go through a guarded chain link, barbed wire laden gate to make my Father’s Day visit. Coincidently, my daddy is a preacher. Even though he is in his late 60s, he still sees it his responsibility to keep the gospel spread about. He was filling in for a friend, on Sunday, at a local congregation. Like a good minister he spent his Sunday afternoon studying the Bible & taking a little rest. Me & Miss Neenee went over after our church service Sunday night. We took him supper & visited for a bit. He was full of his usual entertaining conversation. As I sat at the kitchen table talking to him, I felt very blest to be there with him. Very blest to have been raised by a preaching daddy & praying mama. Very blest to have had a present daddy. One that was there & was involved with me & my brother growing up. He did a miraculous & above and beyond job taking care of my mama when she got sick. I have nothing bad to say about my daddy. Nothing. At. All. Go ahead. Try to make me say something. Nope. Won’t do it. He has the qualities the Bible talks about.
A Father’s Integrity
I Chronicles 29:17
17 I know also, my God, that You test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all these things; and now with joy I have seen Your people, who are present here to offer willingly to You. (NKJV)
A Father’s Courage
Joshua 1:9
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
A Father’s Compassion
Psalm 103:13
13 As a father pities his children,
So the LORD pities those who fear Him.(NKJV)

A Father’s Legacy
Proverbs 23:24
24 The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice,
And he who begets a wise child will delight in him. (NKJV)
A Father’s Wisdom
Proverbs 4:11-13, NIV
“I guide you
in the way of wisdom
and lead you along straight paths.
When you walk,
your steps will not be hampered;
when you run,
you will not stumble.
Hold on to instruction,
do not let it go;
guard it well,
for it is your life.”

A Father’s Love
I Corinthians 13:4-8
4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8 Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.

I hope everyone has had a great week, so far. I so hope you did not mind my Father’s Day post being a teeny tiny bit late. Oh yeah, that distraction I was talking about- a FULL weekend with my sweeties! It was grand. But for now, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

Credits: voices.yahoo.com

What I know about raising kids & why it’s good to have a strong will

May 13, 2014May 13, 2014 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Me & my partner in (raising kids) crime

There are few fields I am an expert in. One thing I do have experience in, possibly not an expert in, is raising kids. The Lord blessed me with 5 kids. Three are my step kids. At this point in my life & theirs, we don’t even really like to acknowledge they are not my own. Reason being is that I see no difference in them & my own two. Strange how years of being right there for everything makes me feel like we are more blood than not. My last baby did tie all the kids together with having a sister. I pity the person that refers to her as their half sister. They will tell you, real quick she is their real sister. Nothing half about none of that. People rave at the resemblance of me & my two step daughters. We just laugh quietly to ourselves, hardly ever admitting we were bound by anything else other than genetics. My husband & I have been married for 15 years this year. So, we have all put our time in, together, to make this blended family what it is today. The youngest, which will be 20 her birthday, had just turned 5 when I became her step mama. She doesn’t remember when me & her daddy were not together. Along with my son, for years, we had 4 kids like stair steps. It does not seem like that long ago, that they were in kindergarten, 1^st grade, 2^nd grade, & 3^rd grade. Now, I have grandbabies. Time stops for no one. Have times always been candy canes & fluffy clouds? No. Have I learned something about kids during this time? You bet your bottom dollar. That is why I feel so strongly about young people & the direction some of them are taking today.

I watched parts of an episode on Dr. Phil last week. It was a teenage girl, that is from a nearby town. Evidently, she was reeking havoc on her mom. She smoked dope, drank, was actively having sex with a boy over 18, kicked her mama’s windshield out of her car, shoplifted, & various other things, that I may have not caught. Dr. Phil was trying to counsel her. He asked her why she shoplifted. She said it was the people she was with & that if her mama had of given her money, she would not have had to. Come to find out her mama had given her $800 for clothes & she spent it all. Now, let’s stop right there. My 19 year old, knows this girl.

She said, “Who gives their kid $800 to spend on clothes?”

She was amazed & perplexed at this. She said this because, brace yourself , we did not give our kids wardrobe money. It’s not that we hated our kids, or that we did not want them to be able to go out & buy whatever their hearts desired. I felt it my duty, as a mother, to be a part of the clothes buying process. Have you seen some of the stuff these girls wear these days, in the name of trends & fashion? Between me & their grandmother, we made it our job to keep them in modest clothing. Today, as young ladies, my two oldest daughters dress appropriately. Why? Perhaps because as teenagers, they had to pass by their Daddy’s recliner, as they made their way out the door. He would stop them in an instant & send them back to their room to cover up whatever it was that needed it. Now, did they stay covered up after they left the house? I don’t know because I wasn’t always with them. However, they knew what the right thing was.

I will give you my best shot at telling you what I believe is going on with some of these young kids, these days. Why the rebellion & the acting out some kids do in the name of trying to get attention? First off, many parents do not want to parent. They want to be their kid’s friend. Why you may ask? Because parenting done right, is hard. It’s exhausting & tiring & a headache. Sometimes you feel like you are fighting a battle. Who wants to fight a battle, if you don’t have to? You have to have a lot of self confidence & conviction in you to stand up to a 16 year old boy, who is already a head taller than you. And to tell him, in no uncertain terms he is NOT taking your car out, because he made the bad choice to not study & make a less than stellar grades on his report card. No matter how much he wants to huff & puff, he ain’t blowin’ my house down. (Whew! I think this just got personal.) All that strong will, I have always had, would be mush if I did not use it for the good of my kids. Many parents today are afraid of making their teenage kids mad. You know what? I was never inclined to “pacify” my kids. They knew how I felt & what I believed to be right, good, bad or indifferent. Sometimes, you could cut the tension with a knife. But I was never miserable in my own house.

Thus the passive parenting begins. The path of least resistance. A parent has to have their stuff together, to pass that along to a child. So many parents are off chasing a rabbit. They, themselves are not growing up. They are still partaking in things of the world that is not good. Parents of children are on drugs, taking alcohol to the extreme, involved in unhealthy relationships & barely able to take care of their own basic needs. A person has to be serious about this parenting thing or you are setting yourself up for disaster with your kids. Kids are very monkey see, monkey do. It they don’t see the mama & daddy monkey with it together, chances are, they are going to follow suit. If the mama & daddy aren’t going to church & don’t care about the Lord, don’t be surprised that the kids aren’t going to be that interested either. And who’s to blame there? Not the kids.

Now, saying all of that, can you do your very best to do everything within your power for the good of you kids & your kids still turn from the way? Well yeah. Kids are free moral agents. They have a mind of their own. You & your household is not their only influence. Does that release you of your responsibility of doing your part to raise a child to not be a menace to society? I think not. It’s our whole duty to give it our best shot. You can’t make me believe that even the ones that go astray don’t have the solid seed of the Lord planted deep down in their soul. We have to pray that they will come back. We must stay on the straight & narrow path ourselves. Some good advice my aunt gave me-

“Your kids ain’t ever gonna do exactly like you think they should.”

(so quit with the wringing of the hands & worrying.)

& another wise woman said,

“You can’t let your kids run your house.”

Oh how true. I am not going to live in a house where everything revolves around the kids. I love my kids more than life itself. Too much to let them go out in the world with the false sense of believing they are so special they are not responsible for their actions. Letting them live in a kingdom, in which they rule, is a recipe for disaster. Especially the reality check they will get when they step out on their own in the world & realize they are not the center of the universe.

My Daddy told me one time when I went to him for advice about kids,

“Do you think you are better than God? Look at Adam & Eve. Even God had problems with His kids.”

So, don’t beat yourself up too bad, when kids get on the wrong path. Pray & let God handle it.

Here is what Solomon said about raising kids- (remember when God was handing out wisdom, He gave Solomon an extra helping of wisdom – just because he asked for it.)

Proverbs 22:6 – Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it. (NKJV)

Proverbs 22:15 – Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of correction will drive it far from him. (NKJV)

Proverbs 23:13 – Do not withhold correction from a child, For if you beat him with a rod, he will not die.

Proverbs 29:15 – The rod and rebuke give wisdom, But a child left to himself brings shame to his mother.

Just to clarify- these last verses have things about beating with a rod. I don’t believe in child abuse. I don’t think that’s what King Solomon was saying. I do believe in getting a child’s attention when they do wrong. Whether it takes a belt or time out. Each child is different. One of my sons would not straighten up until my husband got his belt out. My youngest daughter, I believe we could have beat her to death & she would have still been doing what we told her not to. She got lots of time outs. That’s what worked on her. The main thing is correction & consistency.

Granted my kids are not perfect. I was not a perfect parent. I did faithfully take them to church & involve them in lots of church activities. They are all Christians, they work, & provide for themselves & their families. They are God-fearing. I just don’t know if I could ask for anything more. I am proud of each & every one of them. And we still have Miss Neenee at home with us. There is still time for improvement!

I am so glad you stopped by to visit with me today. Sorry if I got on a bit of a tangent. I do hope you took something positive away from all this. Don’t take raising kids lightly! When they are grown, you will be glad you put the time in! I hope you have a great rest of the week. This weekend I will be doing a 5k at Woodall Mountain. Pray for me that I don’t pass out. 🙂 Until then, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

My kids & kids in law (minus my son)

Happy Mother’s Day & why Mother’s Day is hard

May 9, 2014May 9, 2014 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Sunday is Mother’s Day. I hope you have made plans to honor mothers this weekend. For some people, Mother’s Day can be a hard day. This week a friend shared with me how he dreaded Mother’s Day every year. He counted up & said his mama had passed away some 30 years ago. Still the sting of Mother’s Day is ever present, for him. I understand what my friend is saying. My mama passed away almost 12 years ago. At any time, on any day, I would give anything to see her just one last time. Mother’s Day is a reminder, my mama is not here for me to celebrate her. My mother-in-law was just like a mother to me. She is also deceased. She was such a terrific person, smart, and strong. I miss her so much. My two grandmothers were important in my life, as well. They molded me into the person I am today. There is no way I could ever stand idly by as weather got bad. My Mama Boyce taught us that caution is the best cure to uncertainty. And that’s with anything in life. She was a careful planner when it came to things. Because you just never know when something might happen. You need to be prepared. My Mamaw taught me that love is the most important thing in the world. She loved me & her other grandchildren like there was no tomorrow. Each one of us held a special place in her heart. You can ask any of my cousins about our Mamaw. They will be glad to tell you how she had the talent of making people feel loved. Like they were the most important thing in the world to her. She knew how to treat people. Salt of the earth, she was.

Just like my friend, I have had years that were really hard on Mother’s Day. However, I do have kids & it’s hard to be sad when they are standing there bearing gifts & smiles in my honor! Here the past few years I have tried to do a better job of having a kinder attitude toward Mother’s Day. However, in the end, it’s all still the same, I miss my mama, my mother-in-law, & my sweet grandmothers.

One thing that is comforting is that these wonderful ladies were God fearing, Christian women. Let’s look to the things the Bible says a Godly mother is:

Proverbs 31:10 Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.

v.25 Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come.

²⁶She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness.

²⁷She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness.

²⁸Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her.

²⁹Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all.

³⁰Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised.

³¹Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates.

Recently, another friend was sharing some things her grandmother had said to her. It was kind and thoughtful words that only a grandmother can impart. I told her there was no love like that of a grandmother or mother. If you have a mother, grandmother, special aunt, or friend still living, please make an effort to acknowledge them on this special day. I know they will love you for it! It will be a special Mother’s Day for my daughter, because it is her first Mother’s Day. Don’t forget to remember those wonderful mothers who have already passed away & their children- who may not love this day. Your compassion toward those folks are what makes you precious!

I hope you are having a wonderful week. Skies are going to be cloudy & rainy this weekend in our neck of the woods. That will give me some time to catch up on some things in the house. I hope you have a terrific Mother’s Day! However, I have to go for now, because I should be washing clothes.

photo credit: homeliving.blogspot.com, sew country chick

Easter fun

April 22, 2014April 22, 2014 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Easter can get pretty crazy at my house. Oh we do the usual stuff. We go to church & just like every Sunday, celebrate the death, burial, & resurrection of Jesus. Then, we come home & eat a bountiful lunch. Our family comes over & we hide & hunt Easter eggs. This year, I don’t know if it’s because I did too much hiding & hunting Easter eggs, but Lord have mercy, I got out of my car at work Monday & I was sore! It’s because of all the crazy activities at my house. I just know it. Or it may or may not have been all of the peanut butter fudge I ate. The jury’s still out on that one.

First, we dipped all kinds of low fat, low calorie goodness (not really) out of these bowls & partook of it.

Second, we posed for some pictures. Here is my sweet niece & daughter.

My pretty Miss Neenee.

My handsome nephew, Daddy, niece, & Miss Neenee

Me, Daddy, & my brother

My precious sister-in-law & me

Then, we went on to the egg hunt. That involved a few more people.

Mr. Sweetie Pants & Miss Neenee counting the eggs.

Mr. Sweetie Pants hunting the eggs. See that red wagon? He pulled that thing around & would not stop for a second for Grand to get a picture. That was about the jist of the day. There was more people at my house, who were camera dodging folks. But that’s ok. I will get them next time around. When they aren’t looking, of course.

I am so glad you stopped by so that I could share some of our Easter fun with you. Hope you had a wonderful Easter weekend! As for me, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

Remembering Tawanna

December 11, 2013December 10, 2013 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Photo credit sevennine Marc Hodges

It has taken me a few days to get my thoughts together on how I want to do this post. Our family had a dear cousin to pass away unexpectedly, about two weeks ago. She was in a car accident. She was taken to the nearest trauma hospital, where she fought to live. But then, God had other plans. One of my favorite reminders right now is this:

God’s power to restore is stronger than Satan’s power to destroy.

One of my favorite scriptures is

Job 2:10 Shall we accept good from God & shall we not accept adversity?

We accepted the precious time with her that God gave us. We must learn to accept the finality of her being gone. With these things in mind, I wanted to write a post in hopes to pay tribute to a wonderful soul.

The first memories I have of her are when I was about 13-14 years old. She is a cousin by marriage. At the time, though, it was at a friend’s house that I became acquainted with her. The first time I saw her, she was sitting at their kitchen bar, smoking a cigarette (which was the norm in our world back then) talking, & laughing. There was a little blond headed girl, of hers, that was running around the house. It would not take long to know she doted on that pretty little lass. She was funny, outspoken, & always a work of art to be around. In the next few years, she became more of a shining beacon in my life. While I was in my teen years, I spent a lot of time with her. Even though she was 7 years older than me, we never really noticed. She was always there with a listening ear. I had my fair share of boyfriend problems (like any teenage girl). She was there to listen & to plot their demise. It was also a delicate time for me with my family, as well. This was the same time my mama was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. Anything that my dear friend ran across, about this unknowing disease, she would pass along to me. She would always write notes on the news articles, letting me know, no matter what, I was loved.

I will never forget her helping me one time, get ready for prom. My mama was in the hospital. I was telling her how I did not know what I was going to do. I had never been to the prom before. I had a dress, but that was as far as I had gotten. She put her arm around me & told me not to worry, that we would take care of it. The day of the prom, she did my make-up, my hair, my nails, & made sure I looked presentable for the occasion. It wasn’t so much the make-up on my face or hairspray in my hair that I remember. It was how I felt. She made me feel like I was important, loved, & cared for. She always had a way of making others just feel that way. I remember her husband coming home from work & of course being so sweet. Making over me before he turned all his attention to the little blonde haired girl. I don’t really ever recall my friend saying she wanted to be embedded in people’s minds. But she was. She was the kind of person that makes marks on people’s lives. An unconscious unspoken effort to make you feel loved & to remember Tawanna had been there. And you did & we have.

She was crazy about her daughter. I remember one summer, I wanted to take her to the park to play. My friend thought that was a lovely idea. First, though, I had to prove I was a fit driver. With my friend in the passenger seat, I made several trips around town, cautiously attending to all laws of the road. After that day, she deemed me worthy to transport her little darling. To the park I went with the little blonde headed girl!

My friend was always happy & smiling. And when she wasn’t happy & smiling, well, you knew the why, who, what, & when of all of it. She wasn’t much to hold back. She never tried to be something she wasn’t. She had a light heartedness about her. Someone you don’t easily forget. She had her own ways of thinking. She did not look at things in the same way that most of us do. She was different. How boring would the world be if we were all alike? She was educated. She held a degree from the University of Mississippi. That was nothing to brush to the side. She had a brilliant mind. She was adventurous & gypsy at heart. There is a whole other story of who she was, if my husband were to be writing this. Growing up, she was his best friend. He knew the intents of her heart. They were good. Sometimes. From what I am told, together, they were a force to be reckoned with. In her defense, his intentions were not always good either! As they got older, it did not matter how long in between times he had seen or talked to her. When they met back up, it was like they picked right up where they left off. Kindred spirits.

It may seem cliché that this song written by Paul Simon came to mind with the passing of her from this life. She was too young to go. Only 48 years old. She was a beautiful & loyal friend to many. I read through this song & it seemed fitting. We all need a bridge over troubled water, from time to time. It’s part of our walk here. Even still, some things about her life may have not been so pretty. She had her struggles. Don’t we all? Sometimes life is hard for no reason at all. I have found in life, you can dwell on the good or the bad. I choose good. In her true form, she was exceptionally good. When you read over these lines, take a minute to let the words sink in.

Bridge Over Troubled Water

When you’re weary, feeling small
When tears are in your eyes
I will dry them all

I’m on your side
Oh when times get rough
And friends just can’t be found

Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down

When you’re down and out
When you’re on the street
When evening falls so hard, I will comfort you

I’ll take your part
Oh, when darkness comes
And pain is all around

Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind

Sail on silver girl, sail on by
Your time has come to shine
All your dreams are on their way
See how they shine

Oh, if you need a friend
I’m sailing right behind

Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind

Songwriter
SIMON, PAUL

Knowing Tawanna was like being on a ride. Sometimes it was tumultuous & scary. Sometimes it was laughing from your belly, having the time of your lives. Sometimes it was wondering what was coming up next. But no matter what, at the end of the day I always knew she loved me & her family. Even though the ride was full of twists, turns & jolts of lightning, we can all say we were better for having bought a ticket.

Sweet blonde headed girl- I read something in one of your Facebook posts that hit home with me. You were telling people what they could do to honor your mother. You said,

“Words mean a lot to me.”

That statement was a defining moment for me. Words mean a lot to me, too. That’s why I get so up in the air, disgruntled when people use them loosely. I have a big tendency to take things to heart. I know you do, too. If I hear words, good or bad, whether they are said with meaning or not, that’s a big deal to me. I take words very seriously. I hope as you have read this, you know I mean these words. I loved your mama. She always held a special place in my heart & always will.

Thank you for stopping by today & helping me pay respects to our cousin. I had the blonde headed girl read this before I posted it. She told me something that made my heart happy. She said her mama did not get to go to her own prom , because she was expecting her. I am so thankful I got to spend that time with her fixing me up for my prom. It just makes it more special. I pray you have a blessed day. If you get a chance, please say a prayer for our cousin’s daughter & family. I know they all would be grateful. I have to be going now, because I should be washing clothes.

30 Days of Gratitude

December 4, 2013December 4, 2013 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Day 17

Slug burgers & fried pickles

I am thankful for slug burgers & fried pickles. If you don’t know what a slug burger is, well, you must not be from the South. We eat these with pride. It is so delectable & tasty we have a festival in town honoring the Slug Burger. Read about that here.

Day 18

Sirius on my car

I am thankful for Sirius Radio on my car. I don’t know what Miss Neenee EVER did without Radio Disney. When my older girls ride with me, they say, “Do we have to listen to Radio Disney the whole time?” No sweetie, we don’t, but remember sometimes you have to sacrifice to make others happy.

Day 19

Bone in pork loin

I am thankful that when I see something like this, I can get excited because I know I have someone at home that can make this goo-ood! Thursday night grilled goes on all year round. My sweetie is always cooking up something tasty. Ain’t none of us lacking in the eatin’ good department.

Day 20

Tutti Fruitti crew

I am thankful for Tutti Frutti frozen yogurt. I really think I could live off of frozen yogurt. It becomes a major staple in my diet from time to time. I think I will come up with a frozen yogurt diet. I could start my morning off with coffee flavored yogurt, lunch could be tutti fruitti flavor, for supper it could be salted pretzel caramel flavor with red velvet cake flavor for dessert. Why am I still working a desk job when I have such incredible diet ideas?? I mean the dieting/weight loss industry is a multimillion dollar thing. Oh wait, I know. Because they don’t need my yogurt help. Serves me right.

Day 21

I am thankful for mud on this tire. This mud is from a little ride we took on our property. I am glad we are blessed by being landowners. And I am glad for the mud ridin’ we get to do there!

Day 22I am so thankful for my sweet daughters. You cannot make me believe there are any better kids anywhere. I just don’t know what I would do without them!

Day 23

I am so thankful for these two ladies. This is day 23 of being thankful & on November 23rd, my Mama would have been 67 years old. This is a picture of her & my Mamaw (her mama). This is how I like to remember both of them. My Mama passed away in 2002. She was a wonderful mother & Christian woman. She was loving & kind to everyone. She taught me so much. I miss both of them more than words can say. I am so blessed to have had their examples in my life.

Day 24

I am so thankful for my brother, of whom I affectionately refer to as Bud. He is such a great person, handsome & charismatic. He is a fantastic Dad & husband. He got a lot of maternal instincts from my Mama. He’s a good cook, will clean, & when my niece was little, he fixed her hair for school every day. He takes care of his family & is very loyal. He’s a good planner & organizer. He’s sweet & considerate. He’s the type of person you always want on your team. He always has my back. He is the reason Mama & Daddy had me. They wanted another child as precious as him. I am the reason they did not have any more kids. (True story)

Day 25I am very thankful for this young man with my Daddy. He is my nephew. He is such a kind, sweet spirited boy. He takes after my brother. He always makes time to talk to me. He is very athletic & handsome. He is funny & smart, as well. Before he left my house, the last time, he made everyone well aware that he was the tallest person at our house. That’s ok little nephew. You will always be a sweetie pie to me.

Day 26I am very thankful for my sweet niece. She is officially taller than me…. sad sigh 😦 She is beautiful, talented, funny & smart. She always returns my texts. She is the Snapchat queen. She is tall like my Mama was. She always makes me feel special. She makes me proud to be her aunt.

Day 27I am so thankful for Mr. Sweetie Pants’ ability to keep gum in his mouth. He knows I keep gum in my purse. He always tries to get as much gum out of me as he can. Here’s how the conversation went:

“Grand, I wantgum.”

“I just gave you gum.”

“Grand, I wantgumnow.”

“You still have gum in your mouth, let me see it.”

And there it was.

Day 28I am thankful for my family. This is my brother, his wife, & my Daddy. I love these people to pieces. They are worth getting up early on my day off & cooking breakfast for.

Day 29I am thankful for this sweet family. This is my son, daughter-in-law, & of course Mr. Sweetie pants. They all bring lots of smiles to our lives.

Day 30I am thankful for these two together. I just don’t know what I would do without her or him. She is like a little mama with him. He is a rambunctious, precious little boy. Together, they are a force to be reckoned with. Love. Every. Minute. Of. It.

Whew! Finished this 30 day challenge. I am so blessed & thankful for the fullness of my life. I hope you have enjoyed this little project I did. I am glad you stopped by to visit with me. I would love to stay longer, but I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

How to make it in a hard time

November 25, 2013November 25, 2013 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Sometimes when I have a problem, I let it take me over. It’s all I think about. I just can’t get it off my mind. I want to talk about it, whine about it, be a bit dramatic about it, contemplate “why me”, & so forth & so on. I walk around with a cloud over my head, tensed up, perhaps not very friendly, & then inside the pit of my stomach, it starts to burn. I begin to feel bad all over. I get to thinking nobody has had this bad of a situation EVER! Then, I hear a voice in the back of my head, (which is my mama, God rest her soul). She always would tell me,

“Get ahold of yourself.”

Now, what does that mean, you may ask? Well, my sweet southern mama had her fair share of problems. At what most of us call mid-life, she found out she had Multiple Sclerosis. For years, she fought this disease with such grace. She never relented or let on that she had given in to what life had set before her. She “got ahold” of herself & the life changing event & did not let it overtake her, as a person. It’s so funny. We respected her & loved her so much, that even being bedfast, she still told us all what to do. And we did it, because even though her body was weak, the fire the Lord put down in her was not. She showed us that even though you are right in the middle of a bad situation, it does not have to take ahold of you. Morals & character surface when troubles make themselves present. Let me tell you, my mama had strong Christian convictions & proved to us that living it was the only way to survive. She never held a pity party for long. She encouraged us to follow suit. No matter how out of sorts things got, with the MS, she showed us the Lord had a plan. She strongly believed He was the healer. She did what the doctors said, but in the end, she showed us God has the last say. The message was when you live for the Lord, no problem you have is too big for Him. There is nothing that you & Him can’t handle. No matter what happens it’s for the greater good. We may not see it right then. However, it’s God’s time, not ours.

There were some people in the Bible that thought they had problems. One that comes right to mind is Peter.

Peter denied Christ.

Jesus told him by the time the rooster crowed, he would deny Him three times. (Matthew 26:34) Peter thought that was crazy talk. Until it happened. Historically, it is said, the 3^rd time Peter denied Jesus, Peter looked across the way & locked eyes with the Lord. If that is true, can you imagine what a rush of shame must have come over him? After that he went out & wept bitterly. (Matthew 26:75) Not just a silent, tearful, moment, but bawlin’ his eyes out. Don’t you reckon Peter thought he had created himself a big problem? Poor Peter, I’m glad the story did not end there. Peter got through that awful experience & went on to serve the Lord with great eagerness. He did not let a tragedy paralyze him in the work Jesus needed him to do. He repented, “got ahold of himself” & went on. Thank goodness there is life after problems.

When Mama was sick, we thought we had problems. Big, huge, frightening problems that we did not know how to handle. But you know what happened? Every time we turned around, there was someone there willing to help. Sometimes it was someone sharing their story to let us know they had also been through a similar trial, so we would not feel like we were in this by ourselves. Sometimes it was a homemade cake or meal cooked. Sometimes it was a wonderful helper to relieve us & sit with Mama while we tended to other things. Sometimes it was a friend with a listening ear. In the whole ordeal with her, I never remember feeling like we were alone. It gave us a greater thankfulness & faith in humanity & how God works through people. It strengthened our faith in the Lord, as well. Would we have learned & appreciated all of this, had we not been through this experience? I’m going to say probably not. Was it a wonderful & beautiful thing? Well, if you would have asked me that back in the middle of all of it, I would have absolutely said no. Now, though, I see so many blessings that came out of it, I just can’t keep it to myself! In this storm of life that came our way, I want everyone to know how good God was to us.

Today, I hope you know if you are struggling with a problem, you are not alone. I am here to tell you everybody on the face of this Earth has a struggle. If someone says they don’t, don’t you believe them! We are here to help each other. If you stretch out your hand to help someone, you will be blessed for it, as well. Sometimes it can be hard to admit we have things in our lives that are not so great. However, when we open up, we find a whole lot of support from people, that we never would have imagined. As Christians, we are not told we won’t have problems. We are just given the tools to know how to handle them. What can you do to help someone? Start by smiling at someone today. That may just be all it takes to melt their heart & make their day more bearable.

I have so enjoyed you stopping by today. I hope you are getting that menu ready for your Thanksgiving dinner. We will be hosting another breakfast & dinner at our house, for our family & friends. There are 13 of us now (that just includes my husband, kids & their families) I just can’t put that off on somebody else to try & feed us! My brother & his family will be coming from a faraway land, 200 miles south of us, as well. Miss Neenee has only asked 241 times when her cousins will be getting here. I hope each & every one of you have a happy & healthy Thanksgiving holiday. As for me, I have to be going now, because I should be washing clothes.

Introducing a new resource for Multiple Sclerosis-Healthline

October 30, 2013 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Not everyone is blessed with good health.

There, saying that, I will say, at this moment, I am very fortunate to have good health. However, my mother was not so lucky. Somewhere around the age of 43, my Mama was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. When she found out, it was like a closet was open & all of this stuff came tumbling out. The variety of sicknesses she had throughout the past 20 years, finally made sense. She had bouts with chronic kidney infections, back problems, fatigue, tingling sensations, & weakness. Sometimes these things would put her in the hospital. Once she was diagnosed, it’s like a light went off. That’s what all those things were, over the years….. MS. Sadly, back in the 70s & 80s, there was not a lot known about MS. The day the neurologist told her she had MS, is seared in my mind. I was 15 years old & in the waiting room, with my grandmother, when Mama & Daddy came out the door of the doctor’s office. She was crying, which she did not normally do in front of people. Daddy was helping her along, because she was having an episode of this stuff & could not walk very well. She had some pamphlets & said the doctor told her she had MS. Good Lord, we didn’t know what that was or how to find out what it was. We had a medical book of sorts, that had symptoms in the front & diseases in the back. She found a short one page explanation about Multiple Sclerosis in it. Other than things in newspapers & magazines, that was all the information we had (and there wasn’t a whole lot of that.) Remember, this was long before the internet.

Thank the Lord for people like Maggie & her bunch at Healthline. Healthline is a wonderful resource to check symptoms, find information about specific illnesses, and share with others your journey of afflictions. This has a team of REAL doctors that “reviews every original article that contains medical information for accuracy, appropriateness of medical language, and proper characterization of the findings. An editor then edits the article for style, flow, punctuation, and readability. Finally, the story moves from editing to publishing, where it is converted to HTML and published to the site.” If I have a question, in the middle of the night, when I can’t talk to my doctor, this is the kind of place I would like to be. Healthline has a lot of different resources to offer folks. The website is not just for sicknesses, but also how to stay well. Most importantly, it has a wonderful section covering Multiple Sclerosis. My Mama lived 15 years, after she was diagnosed. I would have loved to have had access to this, when she was living. However, it is a terrific tool for us to use now. Early detection of Multiple Sclerosis is a great thing. It gives you so many more opportunities for treatment. Maggie contacted me & asked if I would be interested in adding Healthline as a resource on my blog. “Well, thank you, Maggie, I would be tickled to death.” I am going to put a link to this website to my side bar. That way, if you forget what the name of the awesome website is, you can always come to visit my blog & find it on my page.

I appreciate you stopping by today to hear about this newfound resource of mine. I believe we should take care of each other. If we can’t do that what good are we?? Jesus said Love thy neighbor as thyself (Mark 12:31) & I love ya’ll! That’s why I could not wait to pass this on to you. Hope you are having a good day. As for me, I have to be going, because I should be washing clothes.

What kind of Christian are you?

October 28, 2013 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Sometimes it’s necessary to step back & see what we have going on in our lives. We get so caught up in the hustle & bustle of life, that sometimes, we might lose sight of what our real purpose is. Sometimes we may just need to stop & ask,

“What kind of Christian am I?”

Do we try to follow God by doing our own thing? Do we go to church just whenever we get ready? (Hebrews 10: 25) Are we kind, whenever it strikes us, which is not very often? (I Cor. 13:4) Do we open our Bibles, anytime between Sunday & Wednesday night or Wednesday night & Sunday?(II Tim. 2:15) Are we praying….at all? (I Thess. 5:17) Are we judgmental of others?(Matt. 7:1) Listen to what Jesus has to say about doing things our own way-

John 10:1 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.

2. Do we do the bare minimum? Do we say, I show up for church on Sunday, that’s good enough, right? Well, what are you doing the other 6 days of the week? Do you look around & see what’s the very least you can get by with doing for the Lord & leave the rest for someone else to do? Let me ask you, did God send just anybody to die on the cross for our sins? No, He sent the very best He had. His own Son. God doesn’t hold back for us. He puts everything He has into all He gives us. He’s just awesome like that.

My Daddy has always said, “If you never learn to ~~like~~ LOVE the things of God, you will always be in a struggle. God does not hold anything from man that is not good for them. You have to learn to love what God gives us, only.”

Do we give back to God, the least we can get by with? When we learn to love the things of God, we won’t have any problem giving back to God with all our hearts. We will never be able to out give God. So, buckle down & give God your all!

3 . Do we do everything we can with excitement & knowing it is for the greater good? Or do we throw a hissy fit when somebody says something wrong or does something that just don’t sit quite right with us? Are we on fire for the Lord? Or are we just on fire with anger & resentment? You can’t express love if you are angry. When you help someone to the top of the hill, you can’t help but get closer yourself. That’s love, that’s putting others before yourself, that’s doing what God wants. The apostle Paul said in his letter to the church at Rome in

Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

Get excited by loving God’s will & doing what His word says, just because it’s the right thing to do.

So, I want you to not only ask yourself, “What kind of Christian am I?” but also, “What kind of Christian do I want to be?” Then, launch out in faith & be everything God wants you to be. I promise you, if you will make prayer a fierce warrior in your life & not a last resort, God will work in your life. Make sure you are praying for our leaders of this great country of ours, too. My Mama always said,

“If you can’t say anything nice about somebody, don’t say nothing.”

Don’t complain about our government leaders, be in prayer for them! Let God work in their lives, so that we can live, with God as the center of our country.

Thank you so much for coming by to visit with me today. I am so thankful and feel blessed that you want to come spend some time with me! As for me, I have to be going, because I should be washing clothes.

**Parts of this was from a lesson I listened to taught by Bro. Brad. Thank you Bro. Brad for always being a straight shooter.

Preparing For Winter in the South

October 1, 2013 / kstrick7 / 2 Comments

Fall is in the air, in northeast Mississippi. It seems just like yesterday, we were complaining about the hot, humid, weather. Now, it seems we may be getting a much needed break. This time of the year puts me in mind of my grandmother & preparation.

You see, as I was growing up, both sets of my grandparents planted & grew gardens. Me and my brother stayed with my Mama Boyce & Papa Clyde, (Daddy’s mama & daddy) while Mama & Daddy were at work. This meant after school & summers were spent, doing whatever it was we could get away with, at their house on Leedy Hill. Papa Clyde & Mama Boyce always had a big garden every summer. We affectionately referred to it as the truck patch. I never really knew why it was called a truck patch. It wasn’t even close to a truck. If anyone out there knows, please enlighten me. Anyways, we worked in the garden all summer long. We would get out in the hot morning sun & pick whatever it was that was in at the time. We picked purple hull peas, squash, tomatoes, okra, corn, cucumbers, butter beans, green beans, pretty much anything you could think of. Then, there were plums, apples, strawberries, mucadines, peaches, pears, all kinds of fruit trees, too. My brother can still tell you the exact whereabouts the pear tree was on the property. I’m sure because he picked up many a pears off the ground, before they ruined. Mama Boyce made sure little went to waste around there. We shelled peas & butter beans, snapped green beans, shucked corn, & basically helped to work up the vegetables, so that Mama Boyce could put them up. She canned & froze the vegetables. She made pickles out of the cucumbers & okra. She would call my Aunt Edna over to make jelly.

My Aunt Edna laughs & says, “Mama had a child for everything. If she needed something from town, she would call on Mary Helen. If she needed to go to the doctor, your Daddy took her. If she had to go to the hospital she wanted Tooter to help her. If she needed help when she got out of the hospital, she would call Nancy. If anyone was coming to visit or if the garden came in, she called me.” Looking back, summers were dedicated to preparing for winter. It was a canning, freezing frenzy of a time. Mama Boyce & Papa Clyde were determined we were going to have plenty to eat, while it was cold outside. We had a big family, so that was a lot of preparation. They most certainly knew the importance of working & not being lazy. The result, from the summer garden, was food in abundance all winter long. It was a matter of taking care of their own. Not haphazardly tossing caution to the wind, just sitting around waiting for someone else to provide for us. They realized things just did not happen. They taught us hard work & preparation is key to success & survival.

Proverbs 6:6 says Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:

7 Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler,

8 Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.

There is a method to the madness of an ant. It’s preparation. Just as my grandmother saw the importance of preparing for the winter. There was no rest for those few months. But, in the colder months, when our bellies were full of warm comfort foods, we understood why she insisted we be such worker ants. It’s easier to appreciate the bountiful harvest, once the hard work is over.

There is something else that’s being prepared right this minute. That’s our home in heaven.

John 14:1-3 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

²In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

³And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

I am so thankful for my preparing grandmother, but I am most thankful for my preparing Savior. What a blessing to know Jesus is making preparations for me to come be with Him. That makes me smile! I hope it makes you happy, too. His preparations for us as Christians, in the end, will make everything worthwhile. Just as my earthly grandmother was so thoughtful in her preparing for our needs, the Lord is thinking of us right now, while he prepares for us to be with Him for eternity. That should just make us feel really good. Like chocolate gravy & biscuits good.

I am so glad you came by to visit with me today. I always love when you stop by. I hope you are getting some good fall weather wherever you are. Enjoy the rest of your day! As for me, I have to be going, because I should be washing clothes.