You like-a da soap, eh!?

One of my dogs, Brontë, has developed a strange fascination for soap!
I was getting ready in the bathroom one day, when she started sniffing & sniffing & sniffing.
She put her paws up on the side of the tub & was stretching her neck like E.T. trying to reach something. I realized it was the soap dish on the far side of the tub.
When I brought it closer to her, just to see what she'd do, she started to LICK IT! Ugh!
Since then, whenever she comes into the bathroom & smells the soap, she tries to get at it. She won't go so far as to get into the tub, though.
In the other bathroom, she sniffs & sniffs at the cabinet where I keep them... even scratches at it. It's quite funny.
Here's a photo of her:

Bravery...

My best friend, Edye's son, John was deployed to Iraq today. He spends the next month in Ft. Hood, then ships overseas directly after Christmas. John is an amazing young man. His mother & family are SO proud... as am I, his other mother (right John? wink-wink).

Please pray for the safety of PFC John White. Thank you.

The video below is a brief story about the 211th Regional Support Group (John's group) ... following the ridiculously intrusive local commercial:

Nina...

This woman's music destroys me... stripped down & bare, emotions raw, exposed... I cry.





Both performances taken from "Live at Ronnie Scott's" (1986 - DVD) feature Nina Simone delivering an intense emotional performance at the legendary Ronnie Scott's in Soho, London on November 17, 1985.

Incomparable! RIP Nina Simone.

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

— Lt.-Col. John McCrae
Canadian Military

I've got the blues...

Blueberries, that is!

I was THRILLED when I saw this in my local supermarket this week:

See that label? These berries come from my home... the Okanagan Valley in Beautiful B.C. (British Columbia)!
What a treat. A little bit of home.


A real treat for me is my 2 favourite fruits - blueberries & raspberries - mixed in a small bowl with some fresh cream poured overtop.
Quite simply, HEAVEN! :)

Yummy!

BAF Beach Baptisms!

The day started out a stormy one! Who could have known that it would turn out so nice?

On my way to church, torrential downpours along with a National Weather Service alert had me second-guessing if I should turn around & seek the shelter of my cozy little home. But I pressed on.

At church, people were crowded under the eaves of our beautiful building, all waiting to make a mad dash for the car. I used my BAF greeter's shirt to shelter me, after which it was soaked to the core & truthfully did not offer much shelter during my sprint from the car to the church. Warm coffee & a crowded atrium greeted me as I entered, my jeans & T-shirt soaked through.
When a woman asked me if the beach baptisms were still on, I gave a dubious reply... but Bill Sr. corrected me & said we were still on. At the end of service, Bil & Paul confirmed this by stating that the island hadn't gotten ANY rain & we were still on!

So, out to the beach we went! It turned out to be a lovely afternoon & we had a surprisingly great turnout!

Just as we are made new in Christ when we are baptized, the Lord cleared away the old (storm clouds) & made way for His will to be done... & made CC just a few people closer to being the hardest place to go to hell from (to quote Bil)!

PhotoHunt: Wrinkled

While I know you loathe copycats, tnchick, I had to share my babies after you shared yours (Zoey)! :)
How about wrinkled x 4 !!!??? They're awesome doggies & I can't imagine not having them. A handful, yes... Worth it? Everyday!

This PhotoHunt theme is the perfect title for my blog today... Life has been a series of wrinkles lately!
The latest? The home air conditioner went out today! Not cool (no pun intended) with the humidity we get here. I was resting off a migraine, thinking it was only me that was feeling warm... perhaps fighting a fever. Then I noticed others in the house were as lethargic as me. Hmmm...

I got up to check the thermostat. 84 degrees! Something is definitely wrong. I could hear the fan still plugging away. I listened out back & could hear the A/C unit fan still whirring too. At the urging of some male wisdom, I checked the lines & the one that is supposed to be cool... wasn't! Oh great. A service call on the weekend isn't gonna be cheap...

I called the dudes in... you know! The dudes! The ones that fix this kinda thing, since all my male wisdom was lacking any direct experience. The guy that came out showed up quickly, diagnosed the problem in a jiffy (the capacitor!) & had the part on his truck. Woohoo! It was fixed & back on in no time. Back in the house, I was NOT the only one excited by this!

I have to say, when the guy said it was the capacitor while walking to his truck, I shouted a big "PRAISE GOD!" I was elated, as I knew the cost that could have been quoted might have been more than 10 times what was spent this day. I guess I was not truly a believer though... not yet.  Once I came back in & sat down to check my emails... while the A/C unit was plugging away to get the house back down to a reasonable temperature... I read a blog post by my friend, Janel. Something in me broke... WOOSAH! And in a torrent of tears, RELIEF! I could FEEL that cool air blowing in with the Spirit of the Lord, saying "Cast all your anxiety on me, because I care for you.” (Peter 5:7) Without even realizing the tension I was carrying, it was released in 2 minutes of cleansing tears.

I did a search on what the Bible says about worry & anxiety. Here's what I came across:

1. Worrying Accomplishes Absolutely Nothing.
I don't know about you, but I don't have any time to waste these days. And worrying is a waste of very precious time. Worrying won't help you solve a problem or bring about a solution, so why waste your time and energy on it?

Matthew 6:27-29
Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don't work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. (NLT)

2. Worrying is Not Good for You.
Worrying is destructive to us in many ways. It becomes a mental burden that can even cause us to grow physically sick.

Proverbs 12:25
Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up. (NLT)
This is where Janel's blog hit home...

3. Worrying is the Opposite of Trusting God.
The energy that we spend worrying can be put to much better use in prayer. Here's a little formula to remember: Worry replaced by Prayer equals Trust.

Matthew 6:30
And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? (NLT)

Philippians 4:6-7
Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. (NLT)

4. Worrying Puts Your Focus in the Wrong Direction.
When we keep our eyes focused on God, we remember his love for us and we realize we truly have nothing to worry about. God has a wonderful plan for our lives, and part of that plan includes taking care of us. Even in the difficult times, when it seems like God doesn't care, we can put our trust in the Lord and focus on his kingdom. God will take care of our every need.

Matthew 6:25
That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life-whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn't life more than food, and your body more than clothing? (NLT)

Matthew 6:31-33
So don't worry about these things, saying, 'What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?' These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. (NLT)

(above article can be found at: http://christianity.about.com/od/whatdoesthebiblesay/qt/reasonnot2worry.htm)

And finally, this one's FOR my Dad, but also FROM my Dad. It's one of his favourite Bible passages. I read it, as I often do, but in different translations tonight & the one that called to me, especially in light of my "wrinkled" state of late, was from The Message:

Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good. Romans 8:26-28

I'm listening, Lord... Are you listening, Dad??? :)

JudahFest!

Judah Hoehne is an extraordinary man with an extraordinary vision ... a mission truly sent by God. You see, Judah has Duchenne's Muscular Dystrophy, which is a disease that is fatal and has no cure. The prognosis for someone with Duchenne's M.D. is a life to the age of 18. Judah is now 23! He gives all of the credit for his "long" life so far to his Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. He also says that without the Lord none of this could be possible. Judah justs wants to show the love of the Lord on a grand scale before his time on earth is done.

With that, Judah had a vision to bring a concert to Corpus Christi, Texas to reach the world for Christ. He shared his vision with others and was told to pray. He prayed, but did not know how to start something of this magnitude. This of course has changed! During a revival at Bay Area Fellowship, the Lord began to press his heart to pursue this idea once again. During the altar call, Pastor Bil Cornelius asked for those who wanted to freely give their lives to Christ & who wanted to do His will for their lives to come up to the front. Judah did not go up right away, but the feeling to go up front kept persisting. So he did what any respectable wheelchair bound person would do, he got his dad to wheel him up to the front.

While Judah is still on this earth he wants to share his love for God on a grand scale. The term "JudahFest" is derived from from the Hebrew word "Judah" which means praise! All praise and glory goes to our awesome God!

JudahFest is a free concert to be held in Corpus Christi, TX on September 6th, 2008 at 6pm at Cole Park Amphitheater by the ocean.

The featured artists are: Dove award nominee Group 1 Crew, and Wavorly bringing their radio hit "Praise and Adore." Also, with special guests: White Wash and Ash.

The vision is to not only have a great concert, but to tell those who don't know Him about Christ, and to get them plugged into healthy local churches. This is the first of many outreaches to follow. We plan to put on many, many, more to include other musical artists and speakers.

JudahFest is a free concert, but the cost to put it on is not. Projected expenses are between $8,000 - $12,000. We are over halfway there already ... people are opening their hearts to help us share the Good News of Jesus Christ with all of Corpus Christi! With that said, we would love for you to prayerfully consider bringing Judah's dream to reality. If you would like to donate, please make any donations to:
JudahFest
P.O. Box 271058
Corpus Christi, TX 78427

Judah wants JudahFest to live out His legacy before the world, & as Pastor Bil says: "do our part in making Corpus Christi, Texas the hardest place to go to hell from!"

For more info, please visit the JudahFest sites:
http://www.myspace.com/JudahFest
http://www.judahfest.com (under construction)

Happy 141st Birthday, CANADA!!!

Well, who knew I'd be down here for another Canada Day? Not me! :)
I miss Canada, but never more than on Canada Day! My beautiful country really shines on this day.

One of my favourite things are the multitudes of tulips in Ottawa.


Next year I vow to spend this amazing day at Parliament Hill in Ottawa (the nation's capital), watching the flag raise,

the SnowBirds fly,
& the fireworks over the Parliament Buildings when night falls!





This Canada Day, although still in the US, the most memorable thing for me will be the doorbell ringing & a courier delivering a most important & anticipated envelope... & a symbol of my very Canadian citizenship... my passport!
I'd have to say, that was the ultimate in timing, wouldn't you???

So, to all my fellow Canadians, I wish you a HAPPY CANADA DAY! And to all the rest of you, please enjoy these videos of Canadian pride!

The Canadian anthem in English:


The Canadian anthem in French:


The flight of the SnowBirds!

PhotoHunt: Water

Christmas 2007 in Corpus Christi, TX

Yes, this was Christmas (well, perhaps the day after) on North Beach in CC.
The Lady Lex looks lovely on the left. You can also see my Mom & brother walking the beach. I'm sure the water was cold, but it was just another gorgeous winter day in Corpus Christi.

This is my first post since January... & thanks to my friend Crissy who spurred me to get back on. I hope to continue a tad more regularly again! :)

Remiss!

WOW!  Have I been negligent, or what?  It's been ages since I've posted anything!  I have plenty to post, just no time to do it.  I know family & friends are visiting my blog, expecting the Christmas updates I promised, to no avail!  I'm SORRY!!!  I will work on it.  It's been a frenzy with the holidays, having family visiting, home renovations, throwing a Christmas party, etc... But it's been a great time & worth all the blood, sweat, & tears!  (Proof, via pictures & posts to soon follow... really!)

Wait!  Hold on!  That's NO way to start the New Year!  Let me start again...

HAPPY NEW YEAR, everyone!

I hope you all had a wonderful 2007 & a great start to 2008 so far.  
My New Year's Day was bittersweet; having to drive my baby brother back to the airport in S.A.
to fly back to the Great White North (sigh!), but so wonderful that he was able to join us for Christmas!  
More on that to follow...

In the meantime, I really wanted to get the word out about the Women of Faith Conference coming up soon in San Antonio!  If you're interested, please let me or one of the other JANES leaders know.  If we get enough women together, we can get a group discount!

Click here to learn more!


Blessings!