A.M. & P.M.

This was the view in back of our house this morning. Remember I told you yesterday that this might happen?!!

It is pretty though, isn't it?

And since the accumulation was not much more than this, we did not have any power lines break or any tree branches fall. I thought these trees in the front side yard were interesting. See the one on the left. It still has some green leaves. In the middle near the back is a magnolia tree. Then there is one to the right with dead brown leaves. The colors were pretty against the snow.

Speaking of color, how do you like this bush with red leaves?

Here is is close-up.

The best part about this snow is it didn't stick to the roads because it was not cold enough. That is the best kind of winter weather to have - - - the beauty but not the inconvenience. Since we could travel with no difficulty, we left to complete some business we started yesterday. It was time to make a purchase since it was ten years ago a similar sale was made. That's a big hint. Do you know what we bought?

A 2009 Hyundai Sonata. It has 33,000 miles on it - - - broken in for us. It is supposed to get 40 mpg on the highway. Didn't they shine it up nice for us? When I took the picture, I thought there was dirt or a dent on the front passenger door but realized it is a reflection of the leaves in the driveway. Our salesman was a very nice Christian man - - shared his testimony with us. The head of their service department is also a Christian. The reason we went there to start with is our son-in-law's dad works in the service department. He and and also the internet give this car high ratings - - and our son-in-law owns a Sonata and loves his.

We had a very good car-buying experience. There was no high pressure selling from our salesman. Bill basically told him, "We are here to buy a car. I'll tell you what we want. You tell me what you've got. I know what I want to pay. If I like the deal, I'll buy it and if not, then I'll look elsewhere. I'm not here to play a game or wheel and deal. I'm here to talk straight." Long story short is we had a VERY GOOD experience at Gray Epperson Hyundai and would highly recommend them to others! Let us know if you want our salesman's name. At some point - - - - - we will need a second vehicle to replace our '94 Concorde. We will go back to them to look for a small to mid-size truck - - - - but it is not in the budget yet. - - - - - And notice the trees and the ground - - - no more snow! It was gone after lunch. That's generally the beauty of living in the South!

Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Psalm 51:7b

Snow

I love reading your posts each night and am so sorry that I only seem to get to mine on the weekend. Speaking of weekends, ours has snow in the forecast. Many people are happy. I could live without it. We have 100% chance with accumulation up to an inch but hopefully if we do get any, it will melt since the temperature is getting up to 41°. However, there will be a NNW wind of 10 - 20 mph so that will keep it colder. The problem with snow in our area is our subdivision won't get the roads cleared and we live at the top of a shady hill. Oftentimes when snow is predicted for our area, it will hit the mountains near Chattanooga and get diverted - - so we will not get too excited or apprehensive until we wake up in the morning.

We do have a funny story in our family history about being awakened early one morning. It was probably early winter of 1993. About 4 a.m., our 4th grade daughter woke us up saying, "The dog sees something outside and won't stop barking." We were more than a little bit spooked. So here we go sneaking toward the kitchen and peering around the bedroom door frame to try and see what was going on. We could see the dog was sitting on the floor looking out the glass double doors - - - - barking like crazy at something he did not think should be out there - - - - - - - big white snowflakes falling from the sky! He wasn't a year old yet and it was the first time he had ever seen snow. We were relieved and also amused to see the perplexed look on his face. Somewhere in our albums, there are pictures of him trying to catch snowballs. He loved the snow as much or more than a child.

Back to the present time - - if it doesn't snow and the roads are clear tomorrow, I will have a good picture to post sometime Saturday.

He giveth snow like wool. Psalm 147:16a

Thanksgiving Weekend

As wonderful as our Thanksgiving celebration was, these last two days have been even better. Why? Because we have had no schedule - - no set places to be. And how have we used it? Relaxing and decluttering. How do we all manage to collect so much stuff? Bill has been decluttering the yard. He is gaining ground on eradicating piles of leaves. There are still a few on the trees but the trees are close to bare. His relaxation has been lots of football. - - - seems like there were two games yesterday and two today . . . . can you guess that the sport holds no interest for me? All I see are persons abusing their bodies by running into others. Then I feel the arthritis they will suffer later in life due to their injuries.

My relaxation has come from reading - - - as much as I have wanted. I am about to finish the New Testament within the ninety day challenge given by one of our pastors - - about 3 months ago! I had fallen behind but this weekend gave me time to catch up. It has been good to stay immersed in this project and to be reminded continually of God's love for us but also how our lives are to reflect that in our behavior toward others.

My projects have included rearranging and clearing a spare room. It now holds a project table that was on sale at Ace Hardware this past week. The table is a 6 ft hard white plastic that can be folded in half when not in use. It even has a handle to make transporting easier. It is just like the one my son-in-law let me borrow a couple of weeks ago. They knew how much I liked it and found the sale for me. Ace is great for rain checks - - - at least the one in our town is. They call you when your item comes in and save it in a room not on the sales floor. The first project it held for me this weekend was sorting through a couple of boxes. It is so much easier to do stuff like that sitting down in a chair rather than on the floor.

All of us worked a few minutes this afternoon in our garage. Now there is more room and either Goodwill or Habitat for Humanity have some contributions coming their way. So do the trash pick-up people!

Another project that gets done in bits and pieces is typing out my recipes for a notebook. Also, I am putting menu choices in an Excel file. There are columns for types of foods - - like meats, salads, etc. Hopefully when we are wondering, "What's for supper tonight?", this will give us some different ideas.

Speaking of food, do you ever visit recipe websites? On www.pacefoods.com they have a recipe for Sweet & Spicy Barbecued Brisket. We had it for lunch today. It was quite tasty - - reminded me more of a Swiss Steak. Perhaps that is because we only use mild salsa. It a recipe I would repeat again. We will probably use the leftovers in quesadillas or maybe even some soup.

Now it is time to get the little bit of ironing done for the week. I have a movie to watch while doing that. I'll talk to you next weekend unless I find a spare minute this week.

The Lord is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation; He is my God, and I will praise Him. Exodus 15:2a NKJ
God is my strength, God is my song, and, yes! God is my salvation. this is the kind of God I have and I'm telling the world! Exodus 15:2a MSG

On Top of the Mountain

We had a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving celebration yesterday "on top of the mountain at our younger daughter's & husband's home. She has much better pictures of the view than I have posted here. This is the view from their front porch. I think the camera was on close-up because that house is not really that close. Getting to their home normally takes just under an hour from our home but as I mentioned on November 13, the rock slide has turned that trip into 2 hours. As the saying goes, "you can't hardly get there from here." We took two different routes. On the trip there, we went north to Sweetwater and then south. The trip took us through the Cherokee National Forest, passing through places like Coker Creek, Tellico Plains, Turtletown and Ducktown. The curves you see on the roads on the map are deceptively mild compared to the actual journey. If you are prone to carsickness and riding in the front seat usually cures that; you still need to consider taking a Dramamine before traveling that route. However, it is a GORGEOUS drive. If you were having a leisurely day, I would definitely recommend it. Returning home took us through Georgia and then back up to Cleveland - - through Blue Ridge, Ellijay, and Chatsworth. The difference was only 8 miles. The time was about the same but the roads home were much straighter and a lot of divided four lanes. I am glad our kids are only having to travel this trip twice a week since they are staying in town with his parents.

If you have looked at our daughter's post, you already saw these decorations. My husband and I had taken a picture of ourselves in front of this tree last year so I wanted to repeat it. We weren't the only ones in attendance. Josh's parents, sister and husband, our older daughter, an uncle and his wife, maternal grandmother, and paternal grandfather were all there for a DELICIOUS dinner of fried turkey, ham, and all the traditional side dishes. Since our parents have all died, we are blessed to get to join Josh's family for holidays. I've said it before. We not only gained a wonderful son but another extended family who have become friends.

I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. Psalm 121:1-2 KJV
I look up to the mountains; does my strength come from mountains? No, my strength comes from God, who made heaven, and earth, and mountains. Psalm 121:1-2 MSG

Holy Hair?

This weekend as we were talking to Mamaw, she asked my husband if he had been good enough this year to get any presents. He answered, "Of course."

She said, "Do I have to talk to Santa to be sure?"

Bill: "You can tell by looking at me that I have been good."

Mamaw: "What do you mean that I can tell by looking at you?"

Bill: "Look at my head. See how much hair is missing? My halo is rubbing it all off. When I was younger, it must have been a smaller halo because there was more hair. Every year I am missing more hair so I figure my halo is getting bigger. That means I am better this year than I was the years before- - right?"

What do you say to that? We just laughed.

The only other comments I will give you tonight are the instructions for Peachy Pork Picante - - another of our favorites. I don't think I have given you the recipe before because I searched all my previous blogs last week. This is so easy. Take one part Peach Preserves and 3 parts Salsa. For us, we use 1/2 cup preserves and a cup and a half of the salsa. Add (uncooked) cubed pork. Some people like to first coat the pork with taco seasoning but we like it without. Cover ingredients and cook on top of the stove 30 - 60 minutes. Serve over rice. We love this recipe but not everyone does so just try it as a side dish the first time.

The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, If it is found in the way of righteousness. Proverbs 16:31

Birthday Week

Yesterday was our "baby girl's" 26th birthday. Her party at her in-laws' home was held after Sunday morning worship services. We were invited to be part of their celebration. Lunch was a delicious potato bar. YUM! Today was also her first wedding anniversary so we took the top layer of the wedding cake that had been in our freezer this past year. We had triple wrapped it in Saran Wrap and then double wrapped it in aluminum foil. It held up quite well and was still delicious. It was a delicious and fun time!

Another fun birthday party this week was for a coworker and her husband. They were both born the same day and both turned fifty. What are the odds that not only would they share the same day but also the same year? Their daughter came into town to take them out to supper. Then she blindfolded them and brought them to a "secret" location where their friends and son were waiting to SURPRISE them. It was a great night for them. This couple is very active working with the youth in our church - - taking them on hikes, overnight camping, as well as many other fellowship activities.

They shall still bring forth fruit in old age. Psalm 92:14a

New Gift

This past Tuesday night we had our "Be Thankful for Library Workers" dinner at Oliver's. It was just as delicious and fun as we knew it would be. Twenty-eight were in attendance. The workers are treated to dinner to show how much their contribution to the ministry means to us. After they had been appreciated, they turned around and gave me an appreciation gift for being their leader. With their gift, I purchased this.

It came in this box which I thought was a very clever design. I think I told you I have been reading the New Testament in The Message. I have really enjoyed it. Our pastor uses the New King James Version so now I have the best of both worlds. If you feel like your quiet time is getting a bit routine or even stale, try reading your Scripture in another translation - - - or read it out loud - - - or write it. Then you would be like the kings of Israel in Deuteronomy 17:18 who were required by God to copy the word of the law (Scriptures) on a scroll when they first took the throne. It does give you a fresh perspective.

But back to our library workers. We are blessed and honored to work for our Lord in such a rewarding ministry. But it never feels like work. We enjoy each others company so much, it is more like getting together for fun each week. And while we're having "fun", we accomplish a LOT. We check-out an average of 2,000 books each month to persons from about sixty different congregations within a one hundred mile radius. Over the years the work hasn't changed much but our lives have - - - - from family members celebrating graduations, marriages, children, and grandchildren and of course, some deaths. It is wonderful when the persons you work with become your friends. Giving them one delicious dinner a year is a very small token for 52 weeks worth of work. However, the dinner is just icing on the cake because what we do is actually just a small token of appreciation to our Lord who has already done so much for us!

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. I Corinthians 15:58