Birthday wisdom & various photobombs & selfies

April 30, 2015April 30, 2015 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

It was my birthday. My Daddy called to say he wanted to take me out. Well, you don’t have to tell me twice. We selected a restaurant. Then me & some of my other peeps met up with him. You should know everything we do revolves around eating. I don’t know if that’s a Southern thing or we just like to make sure we are doing our part to keep farmers in business.

There was this girl who was supposed to be taking birthday snapshots. However, sometimes she was taking pictures of herself. Which is ok. Because she is really pretty.

Then, there was this cutie. I don’t know what she was doing. Just entertaining herself with selfies I suppose.

Pure

Entertainment

There were some pictures of me & my honey by the lake. Hey, who is that standing on the picnic table?? What’s the big idea??

Here is another picture of us. Wait, do you see the little girl sticking out from behind my honey? She’s waving. This is what happens when you have silly kids. You will never have another good picture again.

That is unless you can get them both in the picture at the same time. Don’t they look like angels?

Then here we are again. Still trying to get a good picture. Not that ya’ll care, but the wind was blowing like a tornado was coming through. My hair was everywhere.

Here’s this guy again. Miss Neenee says she loves him a lot.

Pretty sure he loves them a lot, too.

He is always in the mood to give advice. I was telling EA that night that I had found a way for her to save her money & have $2 million by the time she retired. In which Daddy advised her:

“Don’t save your money. When you get that age, you won’t feel like doing anything. Do everything you want to do, while you are young. While you can. Anyways, $2 million dollars won’t be that much by the time you retire anyway.”

I think he was trying to get across to her this:

James 4:14 whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.

Life is short at best. We should make sure we take care of our problems the best we can & be ready always. I also think he was trying to make sure she understood money & earthly possessions are not important. They will all deteriorate in time.

Matthew 6:19- 21 says

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; ²⁰but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Daddy has always made it clear what the Bible says about what is important. I’m glad he takes the time to tell my kids about these life lessons. Pretty thankful for my Daddy. We laugh a lot when we are together. Sometimes so much it’s hard to get our picture. And by the way, this is one of my favorites right now:

I hope you have had a great week. It humbles me to know how blessed beyond measure I am. Count your blessings. They are everywhere! Until next time, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

6 things to help you get rid of worry for good

April 16, 2015April 16, 2015 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

I hope this finds everyone doing well. We have been having some rain. And too, I have found a new way to waste my time. I have been watching too many tornado videos online. Have you seen the one of the guy on the interstate that is like right there at a tornado? I mean he could have probably reached out & touched the thing?? It was the one in Rochelle, IL last week.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5wNwn6MF6I

TOO MUCH for me. I am confident when I say, if my Mama Boyce were here today, in the times of youtube tornado videos, well, let’s just say she probably would not let me watch them. She was terrified of tornadoes. She & my family were in a tornado one time & to say they lost everything is an understatement. We stayed with my grandparents, during the day while Mama & Daddy were at work. Also, we were there after we got off the school bus. And every moment in between, if we wished. We lived right beside them. Since that awful event, every time it thundered, we were at the storm house. Peanut butter & crackers & a water jar in hand, we would make the walk to the edge of the yard to the storm house. My Papa Clyde would go in ahead of us & scare out any mice, rats, snakes, lizards, or whatever had set up shop since our last visit. Spiders & cobwebs were expected. However, since we were not a bunch of barbarians, my Papa Clyde would run out all of the before mentioned like it was his job. If for some reason we were not at their house, she was on the phone calling. Wanting to know when we were going to be at the storm house. This was a serious deal with her & everybody had just better go along with it. She was a worrier. She loved all of us & worried we would not make it to safety in time. However, we don’t have to live in a land of fear & what if’s.

Here are some ways to take worries out of our lives:

Give them to the Lord. Straight out of the shoot, let the Lord handle everything. I Peter 5:7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
Pray. We should not do anything without talking to the Lord about it. All day long. All night long. The Lord never gets tired of hearing from you. I Thessalonians 5:17 pray without ceasing,
Forget about it. Time thinking about the negative, robs us of time to enjoy the good things in life. I can’t help but sing the Frozen song in my head when I think of this one. Just “Let It Go”. Philippians 3:13-14 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Remember we cannot control all situations. The devil is on his game looking for whoever he can to cause trouble with. Don’t play the blame game & think you could have done something differently to deter a situation. Sometimes you just can’t. I Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
Be thankful. Who has time to worry if you are using that time wisely? We should be thanking the Lord for the good things in our lives, on a regular basis. There is ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS something to be thankful for.Psalms 100:4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
Trust the Lord. Proverbs 3: 5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;In all your ways acknowledge Him,And He shall direct^[a] your paths.

The sun is finally poking it’s head out, this afternoon. I am very glad to see it. Speaking of someone poking their head out, last weekend Mr. Sweetie Pants came to spend the night. His dad picked him up on Saturday. He went non-stop the whole time he was at the house. When asked by his grandfather to please quit pulling the cords on the blinds on the living room window, he reassuredly replied,

“It’s ok Pap. I know what I’m doing.” Well, he is 3 years old you know.

Much of the time he was there was spent with him reassuring us he knew how to do things, him actually going ahead with what he was doing, & then blaming Miss Neenee with it all. And ya’ll after he left I was one worn out Grand! The next day, just in time for lunch, here he comes back. He runs back to the bedroom where I am. He pokes his head around the corner of the door & says,

“Grand, I’m back.”

I would not trade these days for nothing. But for now I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

George Strait on my Pandora. It’s the little things.

photo credits: http://www.gitacoaching.blogspot.com, http://www.lovethispic.com

Learning to trust & can I get a marshmallow peep?

April 2, 2015April 2, 2015 / kstrick7 / 2 Comments

I can remember when I was little, if I was scared, I would run & hide behind my mama. This was mostly when I had maybe perhaps done something to my brother. He would chase me & I knew, if I could find mama, I would be ok. I can remember her saying to him,

” You have to be good to her. She’s the baby. You have to show her how a big brother acts.”

(This was promptly followed by me poking my head out from behind her sticking my tongue out at him.) And oh MY word ya’ll, if that hasn’t been a reality check for ME in life. Because, you know what? People aren’t always nice to me. And they really don’t care if I’m the baby or not. But my sweet mama used this tactic to try to get us to behave. I can remember her having to stand in between me & my brother & I would hold on to her just as tight as I could. I always trusted her & whatever I did, if I could get to mama, she would take care of me. No matter if I were right, wrong, or indifferent. I had that wonderful, special trust.

Do you ever have troubles? Sometimes problems arise from a wrong choice or decision that you’ve made. At other times, you don’t really have to be responsible for any of it & here it comes. Either way, problems in life are just plain unwanted. What makes an incredible difference in bad situations? How you handle it. We can be afraid, angry, disappointed, or have a multitude of emotions. We might start to ask God, “Why me? Why us? Why this?”However, we can trust, in the middle of all the heartache, that:

1. The Lord will not leave you. Hebrews 13:5 Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”(NKJV)

2. The Lord will take care of you. I Peter 5:7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. Things may not be exactly like you think they ought to be. However, there are times the Lord takes care of us in a way we don’t understand. Matthew 11:28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. If we only go to Him & trust Him, He will help us, period. He will NOT leave us hanging out to dry.

3. The Lord will turn tragedy into blessings. One of the worst things that has ever happened to me is my mama’s sickness & untimely death. I will Never. Get. Over. It. But you know what? God has blessed our family with deeper love for each other. He sent people to help us through our hard times. We always had someone we could depend on, around us. He has caused me to appreciate life & to remember the wonderful example my mama left for us. I realize that for 30 years, I had a precious mama. Some people don’t have that. Some folks have never known their mother or don’t have a Christian mother. I was very fortunate to have had that. I can pass along those qualities to my children & family. I have a hope that I will be with her again one day. Until then, I have got to keep on keepin’ on.

John 16:22 Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.(NKJV)

The Lord is always working behind the scenes for us. We just have to trust in Him. We readily accept good from Him. As a part of life, sometimes we will have to accept bad, too.

Job 2:10 Shall we indeed accept good from God & shall we not accept adversity?(NKJV)

Life goes on. Even in awful circumstances. It’s ok to grieve the loss of a loved one, to get down & depressed about an erring child, or to feel like no one has any idea what you are going through. Those are human feelings. We just can’t unpack our bags & live in the land of desperation. There are times we get stuck going through the struggles of life. Just like a big ol’ tractor pullin’ a truck out of the ditch, the Lord can send people to help. Let them. I have said it once & will say it again & again. Folks, we are all in this big ol’ mess called LIFE together. We have to depend on each other. I hope you are at a point in your life you have finally relented to this fact. It makes things so much easier knowing you have people, who care about you. Isn’t it wonderful to know we don’t have to go through trials alone? We always have the Lord there with us. He can do things for us no one else can. We just have to simply trust. Is there a struggle in your life today? Pray about it. Seek others to help you. Look to the Lord for comfort.

The psalmist David said in Psalms 56:3 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. (NKJV)

I’m not saying your problems will vanish overnight. I am saying you will be able to bear whatever it is, until things are better. You will find peace of mind. Only if you are willing to trust. God’s love never fails. We must give Him a chance to show us that. Whenever I am facing something hard in life, I have to remind myself, there’s someone out there who has a worse situation than I do. There’s always something to be thankful for. Maybe it’s that things aren’t as bad as they could be. No matter what, I have to be thankful for a loving God I can depend on. It’s hard to see the other side of trials sometimes. We just have to remember to slow down & take things day by day & trust the Lord to take care of us. In times like those, we don’t know what we need. We have to let the Lord handle our needs. He’s good at that. Just like the trust that my mama was going to make everything all better, God can do the same thing. Even bigger & better. Promise.

I am so glad you came by to visit me today. Goodness gracious, I about got too serious & heavy hearted with all of this. But sometimes it’s just that way, ya know? This Sunday is Easter. I sure hope you have your Easter frocks ready for church. My grandbaby girl is going to look so sweet. If you see her, you will be tempted to eat her with a spoon. I would discourage any of that. She has a tad of a mother hen for a mama. My Miss Neenee is ready all but the shoes. We will be getting those this week. Oh the fun! The kids & grandkids will be coming over after church. We will be dying eggs, hiding eggs, running around chasing kids, eating good food, & oh the Easter candy. There is nothing that suits me more than a marshmallow peep. Until then, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

photo credits: graphicsfairy, pinterest

The time I thought I was wrong & how ’bout them single digit temperatures???

February 19, 2015February 19, 2015 / kstrick7 / 1 Comment

The other day Miss Neenee posed this question:

“Mama, how long have you been out of school?”

I did my best mental math guess & said quickly,

“25 years.”

“Wow,” she said. And then our morning carried on with other scurrying around, trying to get ready, so that I could get her to school on time so that she wouldn’t thus again, be the only 5^th grader to ever have detention in the history of 5^th grade detention for being late. (Which is at the top of my list in my book of

“Things In Life That Are CLEARLY Ridiculous.”

Giving elementary school students detention for something they OBVIOUSLY have no control over is down right awful. What kind of people do that stuff to little kids? At no time has an elementary student, who does not live within walking distance to a school, EVER been able to get themselves to school. In my neck of the woods, someone either gets them ready & puts them on a bus or drives them in a vehicle.

SPOILER ALERT to ALL PRINCIPALS, ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS & ANYONE WHO HAS AUTHORITY TO MAKE RULES & HAS HATE FOR LATE PEOPLE:

Kids cannot drive themselves to school.

Thus having to be at the mercy of people who can drive & will drive them to school. Who may perhaps have a time management issue or a morning disability. Believe me people when I say mornings are hard. They just are & I declare that there is a real disease or virus or something that hits some people every morning. The symptoms of this non-fatal sickness is irritability, being disoriented, the ability to not be able to control how many times you hit snooze, & lateness. If you haven’t ever heard of it, well, now you have. You are welcome. It’s not really catching. However, for those of us that suffer from it, getting out of bed may be the worst thing that has happened to us all day. For me, this is not something new. I have been this way my entire life. Even though I know & hope I will be able to wake up daily. Still. Hard. Stuff. Don’t judge me. Just know this is the world I live in.)

Ahem! You can’t see me, but I am now stepping down off of my soap box.

To the story at hand: After I got to work, I got to thinking about it. Wait a minute. There’s no way I could be out of school for 25 years. I thought about it again. I’ve only been out of school 15 years.

Oh my WORD. (Which is evidently something I say too much because my grandson has started saying it, to my daughter’s dismay.)

I have given incorrect information to my sweet daughter, who unbeknownst will work this into every conversation she has, because 25 years is like 100 years to an 11 year old. How could I have been THAT wrong?

So, for the best part of my day, I could not get it off my mind how my wrong date of high school graduation was being put out there for everybody to know. I mean seriously. I would have to correct this as soon as I could. I thought about having a fake emergency so that I could ask the school secretary to get Miss Neenee out of class, to call me before too much damage was done. But I didn’t.

Then, it happened. Later on in the day, it occurred to me they make these where I come from.

I could just recap my accurateness of my tenure out of high school. So, 2015 minus 1990 equals…

Well, you know the rest. It was a pretty big shock to me, too. Not that I haven’t attended my 20^th year class reunion, well a few years ago. That never crossed my mind AT ALL. So, it ends up, I was not wrong at all. I am old & most days can pretty much vouch for feeling it, as well.

Is forgetfulness a bad thing? Not really. As I get older, I tend to forget how much I am wronged. I forget how to be angry all the time. I forget to let things weigh on my mind. I forget to be judgmental. (Thank you Lord, for letting me get past that one.)

The Hebrew writer said Jesus is good at forgetting, too.

Hebrews 8:12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” (NKJV)

The psalmist said in

Psalms 103: 12 As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us. (NKJV)

Thank goodness the Lord is a good forgetter. That works out real well for me.

I hope you are having a wonderful week. It has been COLD here in northeast Mississippi. Pretty sure somebody left the freezer door open outside last night. It was a blustery 12 degrees at my house this morning. No Southerner is really prepared for that. Bring on spring is all I can say. Until then, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

Raising a peacemaker & this is what my Thanksgiving looked like

December 4, 2014December 4, 2014 / kstrick7 / 1 Comment

The other day, I got a phone call from the school. It was my Miss Neenee. She began telling me she was in the nurse’s office. (Which from my experience, has never turned out good.)

She said she had been hit by a boy in P.E. They were playing basketball. They were both going up to catch the ball. The boy slammed into her, to get the ball. Then, the ball hit her in the face. All of that commotion broke her glasses & left a cut on her eyebrow.

She started by telling me,

“Mama, I’m in the nurse’s office. I cut my eye playing ball & broke my glasses.”

“You cut your eye? Your eyeball?” I was just a smidge panicked.

“No, the outside close to my eyebrow. And it’s bleeding.” She said.

“It’s bleeding???” Now, full blown anxiety & confusion has set in. And apparently, I sounded too frantic, because the nurse got on the phone.

The kind nurse reassured me she was not bleeding profusely. That she took a lick on the eye & her glasses were broken. She put the Miss back on the phone. I asked her did she need to be picked up & she did not.

After we got home, I asked her, “Who was this boy & what did you do when you got hit?”

Well, first she cried. Then, she went to the nurse’s office (accompanied by one of her besties, no less).

“What happened with the little boy?” I pressed.

“He kept saying he was sorry & he said he would buy me some new glasses.” She said

“Well, what did you do to him?” I quizzed.

“Umm, nothing. He said he was sorry. A bunch.” She replied.

Really? No big throw down? No show down amongst the 5^th & 6^th grader P.E. students? If it had of been me, I would have probably had to smack some heads. You can’t push somebody around & get by with it. Then, I thought about what Jesus said, in His sermon on the mount:

Matthew 5:9

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. (ESV)

Matthew 5:38-39

³⁸“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ ³⁹But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. (ESV)

By Miss Neenee just letting it go, she became a peacemaker, like Jesus is talking about there in verse 9. She passed on the opportunity to retaliate. She turned the other cheek. Perhaps I could learn a lesson here. Maybe we all could. Keep your temper & anger in check. It’s what Jesus would want us to do.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We most certainly did. I was off work for 4 days. Out of those 4 days I saw my kids & grandkids every day. That’s a lot of happiness for me. I even got to keep my grandbabies for some of that time. Fun was had by all. I hope you have a wonderful week. As for me, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

Some Thanksgiving highlights:

My Daddy & sister in law

Me & my big brother

Jay-Dub & Livie – sweetest nephew & niece ever

Daddy & Livie

Livie & Miss Neenee

Thanksgiving breakfast sorta agrees with us.

Star of the show- brined, smoked & ready to eat. Best. turkey. ever.

Some of the Thanksgiving dinner. The rest continued around on the other side of the counter. Whew! We were full!

Here’s some Thanksgiving kids. Coincidentally, they do not like turkey. However, are stuffing their little faces with the “chicken” we had.

Two of my sweet boys

When you can’t find the butterflies for the Elefun game, you try to make other things fly out of his nose.

Like cups or guns….

And here was the guilty culprit! Look at that sweet face. Now, how many times do you think he gets in trouble at Grand & Pap's? If you said none, you were right.

And here was the guilty culprit! Look at that Mr. Sweetie Pants! Now, how many times do you think he gets in trouble at Grand & Pap’s? If you said none, you were right.

photo credit: pinterest

Kindness from a 5th grader & why is it Thanksgiving already?

November 17, 2014November 17, 2014 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

The other morning, while my Miss Neenee was eating breakfast, she posed a question to me.

“Mama, if you have $17 how much more do you need for it to be $25?”

Seriously, I don’t need this kind of stuff that early in the morning. But, I tried. I looked around for my phone. I obviously needed to consult my calculator. My calculator doesn’t care how simple the math problems are. My calculator respects the fact I need math help. But, my phone was still plugged up, back in my bedroom. So, I had to take drastic measures. I figured it out in my head. Which really made for a bad morning & by the way, made my head hurt.

I said,

“Probably about $8. Why? Who needs $25?”

Then, she begins to explain that she didn’t think a boy, in her class at school, had enough money to go on a field trip with everyone. She said her & her bestie decided they would try to help pay for him to go. She said the money had to be turned in by tomorrow. So, today they were going to figure out how much money they had between them.

My heart melted right there over the ham sandwiches I was making. You know, 5^th grade has been hard, so far. They are changing classes & have different teachers all throughout the day. The kids are getting more responsibilities. The kids are maturing. They are a bit dramatic & wearing their sassy pants for sure. I worry & want Miss Neenee to keep her head on straight. Be her own person & not get caught up with all the goings on around her. But somehow, she always comes around with her kind heart.

The apostle Paul instructed the church at Ephesus in

Ephesians 4:31-32

³²And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. (NKJV)

Miss Neenee & her friend are definitely working on having the Fruit of the Spirit:

Galatians 5:22-23

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. (NKJV)

I just pray she can keep a pure heart. Kids will be kids. I am not a perfect parent. However, I believe the main ingredient in the recipe of raising kids is this:

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)

That means I have some responsibility to my kids. I have to keep my own heart clean.

Psalms 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. (NKJV)

Do I fail? Sure, but Jesus knows I am doing my best to remain faithful. (Revelation 2:10) That is what is important- remaining in a good standing with Jesus. My prayer is not only for my own children, but for your children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or any small children close to you. For them to understand the importance of being kind & loving a great God. We are all in this together. Whether you want to admit it or not. We are responsible for helping each other. That’s what the Lord would want.

Thank you so much for stopping by today. I love it when you take time to visit. We had some snow last night. Of course, we were all in a panic. This morning, by the time we made it out the door, there was none to be seen anywhere. On another note, has anyone told you next week is Thanksgiving?? As in, not this week, but next week? My sweetie and I have already been contemplating the turkey. This year, I’m afraid we may just out do ourselves. We shall see. I hope you have a great rest of the week. As for me, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

And don’t get me started about how I am tired of seeing Christmas trees up before Thanksgiving. I’m with the turkey on this one.

photo credits: pinterest, gadel.info,mysocalledjunkylife.blogspot.com,marionsmeeping.blogspot.com, afttimes.com

How I found Faith at the local Sonic & loving Bible study

October 1, 2014October 1, 2014 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Does anyone besides me live in the land of convenience? We schedule everything, to our leisure. My Mamaw used to wash clothes on Tuesdays. Every Tuesday, she would go out to the cellar & crank up that old washing machine. It was one of the old ones that had the wringer you put the clothes in. Similar to this one.

Now, I can load a ton of clothes in my high efficiency washer & schedule when I want it to wash. It can wash right then. Or I can schedule it for 3hours or 6 hours to commence to getting our clothes clean. Convenience. Then, there is my dishwasher. My Mamaw did not have a dishwasher. She hand washed everything that passed through her sink. Right then. There was ne’er a dirty dish in her sink. My dishwasher will allow you to schedule the washing of the china (which is actually Corelle), at 3 or 6 hours. What ever is best for me, is just fine with the dishwasher.

There are some things that we must not do out of convenience or leisure. Bible reading is one of them. Not saying reading the Bible in your leisure time is not a great way to spend your time. Just saying it should be a priority, not something you leave to do if you have time. Reading the Bible is a wonderful way of having your faith strengthened. Prayer is our avenue we use to talk to the Lord. And he wants to hear from us & what we have to say. The Bible is the Lord talking back to you. What kind of relationship would you have with someone if you were the one doing the talking all the time? You never took time to listen to what the other person had to say. That’s why I believe it is so important to make time to listen to the Lord daily. We should be hungry for his word. Not, something we just check off our daily list of to dos.

II Timothy 2:15

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (KJV)

II Peter 1:4

⁴by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

What kind of promises are these that Peter talks about? If we don’t read our Bibles, then, we won’t ever know.

Satan tries to

Limit your Bible Study

Because he knows your

Bible study will

Limit him

Melanie over at Only a Breath, has begun a faith series about reading the Bible. It starts today. Go on over & see what she has to share about Bible reading. I will be joining her for this wonderful series. I hope you will make a little time to be with us.

We had a funny thing happen to us Sunday night. We attended church at a sister church. The churches in our area sponsor Campaign for Christ. Which is like an area wide meeting or revival . The preacher spoke about faith. He spoke about how to have faith, having faith, & how faith works in our lives. It was a wonderful night. There was 1,013 folks in attendance. It was a great night. (Did I already say that?) We really enjoyed ourselves. Afterwards, Miss Neenee suggested we stop for ice cream. I placed our order & waited for the deliciousness to arrive. After awhile, the carhop came out to the car. Of course we were excited to see her. She came bearing sundaes! As I was handing the treats to my daughters, I noticed her name tag. You know what her name was? Faith. Coincidence? I think not.

I hope you all are having a wonderful week. My past weekend was full of little boys playing, rippin’ & rompin’. We made a trip to see the ducks & to the park. Even though there was a fare amount of ballin’ & squallin’ their eyes out when we were leaving. Fun was had by all. (Hey, sometimes little kids don’t want good times to end.) And by Monday, I was going to work to rest. Thank the Lord for sweet grandbabies. Amen. Until we go on more adventures, I have to be going, because I should be washing clothes.

Mr. Sweetie Pants blew out the candles on his Mickey Mouse cake like a boss

Mr. Sweetie Pants had a happy birthday!

Hang on boys ya’ll are gettin’ too close to the water!

Come up here & let me make your picture by this tree.

Now let’s get to sliding down the slide!

Preach it brother & what happens if you ask a truck driver to church

September 22, 2014September 22, 2014 / kstrick7 / 2 Comments

You know life has a funny way of doing things. Sometimes funny in a difficult way. Other times funny in a, “Wow! I wasn’t expecting that!” way. Whatever the way, God has a plan.

This morning, a guy I work with, came to my office. He told me about meeting a driver, that had come in for a load. He said yesterday, he had gone to a local eating establishment for breakfast. While there, he commenced to talking to a guy from out of town. He found out he was in town, because he was picking up a load at our company. After having breakfast together, the new found friends parted ways. As my co-worker walked to his truck, he thought, “I should have invited him to church.” So he turned back around & that’s just what he did.

The driver said, “I don’t have anything to wear.”

My co-worker kindly reassured him it really didn’t matter. He told him he would give him an hour & he would come back & pick him up. The driver agreed & in an hour, they were sitting in church together.

What was so remarkable about that situation is my co-worker was ready. He was presented an opportunity & he acted on it. What happens to a lot of us is we miss our times to present the Lord to people. I know I am at fault of the “I wish I had said this or I wish I had done that,” when it comes to sharing the Lord. And too, there are times we may do our daily Bible readings, go down our prayer list & pray, & may think- is this really doing any good? Well, yeah. We have to prepare ourselves for the times we run across someone who needs our help & encouragement. That’s how the Lord uses us for His will.

Mark 16:15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.

Jesus came across a Samaritan woman who needed encouragement & salvation. It was just a normal day for this Samaritan woman. That is until she met Jesus.

John 4: 7-9

A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” ⁸For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.

⁹Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.

¹⁰Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”

This lady was so intrigued. She wanted to hear more about this living water. When Jesus was finished talking to her, she told anyone who would listen to her about her time with the Lord.

How do we know where we will find someone to share the good news of Jesus Christ with? Standing in line at the grocery store? At the convenience store, where we get our gas? At the fast food restaurant where we eat breakfast on Sunday?? God is working. Whether we see it all the time or not. He’s there, making plans, making things happen, for plain, ordinary folks like you, me & other people. People that we may not even know, yet.

Which also brings me to share with you about to an awesome project, I am so excited to be a part of. Melanie over at Only a Breath has started a “Secret Sister” mission. You can read about it here.

What it is , is a way to strengthen & encourage others- like total complete strangers. It’s for ladies only, sorry fellas. We shared our addresses & we are given 2 ladies addresses. We send a handwritten note of encouragement & hope to that person at least once a month. I got my addresses yesterday & I can’t wait to send my “Secret Sisters” a note. This will be such a wonderful way to further the cause of Christ.

I am so proud of my friend for sharing Jesus. He truly blessed someone else,by his act of kindness. You just never know when you will get a chance to make a friend. Now you know what happens when you ask a truck driver to church. Sometimes they will go with you!

I hope you are having a blessed week. We had a busy weekend. Miss Neenee had a friend sleepover. Then, after church Sunday, I got to play with my grandbabies all day long! We had an area wide youth devotional at church Sunday night. There were 269 people in attendance. God is so good to us. Until next time, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

photo credits: courtneyaitken.BlogSpot.com & keepcalm-o-matic.comuk

Miss Neenee & her friend having a good time touring the local boxcar.

Some high priced fun. Which mainly involved some water, dirt, mud, buckets, & 8 handsome rounders

Some high priced fun. Which mainly involved some water, dirt, mud, buckets, & two handsome rounders

What would a weekend be without a good ol game of Chunk a Chicken?

Happy birthday Daddy & sometimes you just need to get your own tractor

September 3, 2014September 3, 2014 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Over the weekend, we had a birthday lunch for my Daddy. He only turned 70 this year! That’s a lot of birthdays for a baby that was born with a hole in his heart.

Daddy & Livie

This picture of Daddy & my niece Livie is remarkable & amazing. Mostly, because Daddy just came from a several day long stay with Livie & Jaydub whilest my brother & wife were off on vacation. Remarkable & amazing because Livie will still sit beside him & smile! Let alone speak to him. I don’t think he was too hard on them.

Some of the girls

This is my eldest daughter, Ray, & Miss Neenee. You see my daughter’s eyes? She was supervising my brother, holding my sweet little granddaughter. Mother hen.

We a pizza eatin’ bunch.

Of course there was food. We always need a reason to get together to eat. Birthdays, holidays, Sunday after church, Thursday night grilled, any reason, really. Why? Because we are just that good at it. My nephew said the prayer & we chowed down.

“Grand can you see me?”

And then there was the entertainment. We had my 5 month old granddaughter, to pass around. There was lots of ooing & ahhing over her. My sister in law just says, “I will handle the baby.” And she does. Mr. Sweetie Pants sat in his seat for approximately 1.35 minutes while he shoved a few bites of pizza in his mouth. The rest of the time it was lots of him running, doing his superhero impressions, & me silently praying, thanking the Good Lord above we had our dining area to ourselves.

Ray & Mr. Sweetie Pants

Occasionally, Mr. Sweetie Pants would stop, just long enough for one of the girls to grab him & hold him.

Time for a birthday cupcake!

And once he stopped just long enough to grab a birthday cupcake. And to say, “What about now, Grand? Do you see me?” Yes I do. Now stop it.

Bud, Jaydub, & Livie

It seems like my niece & nephew were just the size of Mr. Sweetie Pants. Now, he is 16 & she is 13. Time quit flying!!

Happy birthday to my Daddy!

There were a few other camera dodgers that were there with us. We had a wonderful afternoon. Daddy left with another birthday under his belt & I left one tired Grand.

Kids on the lawn mowers at the local Lowe’s

No trip to town would be complete without a dash into the local Lowe’s. Look. Lawn mowers.

Mr. Sweetie Pants riding the “tractor”.

He was so excited to ride the “tractor”. So excited, that when his Pap strolled by, he wanted to be sure he was going to get to ride all by himself.

Mr. Sweetie Pants directing his Pap.

“Pap, your tractor is over there.” He does like to drive by his self, ya know?

Thank you for stopping by to see me today. I hope you are having a terrific week. With the holiday, we will have a short work week. Sign me up for some more of that! I have to be going now, because I should be washing clothes.

30 Days of Gratitude

November 21, 2013November 21, 2013 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Day 10 I am so very thankful for Sirius Radio on my desktop…..ahhh, we are somewhat best friends right now. Notice Elvis Radio playing…… “happy sigh” 🙂

Day 11I am thankful for these 2 sweeties & the memories we are making with Mr. Sweetie Pants. He loves driving the tractor with his Pap.

Day 12I am thankful every Thursday, I get chocolate left on my pillow by my sweetie. He has been doing this for quite sometime. He just needs to keep this up, because it really does make a girl happy.

Day 13I am thankful for this group of sweet girls that Miss Neenee loves. They are just what the doctor ordered, when it comes to wonderful friends. They are all very kind & well behaved.

Day 14I am thankful Miss Neenee has learned to drive the tractor. It’s about time. She is 10 for goodness sakes!

Day 15

I am certainly thankful for this patient Santa. This was Mr. Sweetie Pants 1st visit with Santa. Well, you see how it went. bless his heart. Once they were finished, we whisked the baby away. I turned to see Miss Neenee patting Santa on the back, apologizing for the situation. She’s such a little peacemaker.

Day 16I am thankful for this beautiful morning sky. Now really, how can you look at this & not know there is a Lord Jesus Christ in heaven? Things like this just make me feel all warm & fuzzy inside.