Reading--Under the Tuscan Sun

The above pic has nothing to do with what I am reading--I just love this pic I took this past weekend (read on the posts listed below).....

But I have started reading Under the Tuscan Sun and I am enjoying it. I think what she says about moving to another place is true: "You have to churn somewhat when the roof covering your head is at stake, since to sell is to walk away from a cluster of memories and to buy is to choose where the future will take place. And the place, never neutral of course, will cast its influence." I find that just visiting a place also does this to me. When I visit old cemeteries, churches, homes, towns, etc I see life from a different perspective. It always reinforces the brevity of my own life and the connectedness we have with those in the past---gives me a different concept of time, and eternity.

I also like this quote: "But I keep remembering that anytime I've stepped in my own footprints again, I haven't felt renewed." --I guess I feel more challenged to think when I step out into a new area---or read a new book----it is kind of like stepping out of my own footsteps. However it is also neat to find something that expresses where I am stepping and where I am in my life!!

A 1,000 year tree in McClellanville, SC

We had a good explore today in McClellanville, Sc. We saw a huge evergreen oak that is about 1,000 years old---so beautiful! You can click on some of the pictures to enlarge ;-)

This picture above is of my oldest son--home from Seattle for the Christmas Holiday sitting on this tree!

My two sons in a pose ;-)

We ate at the TW GRAHAM and CO restaurant--it was delicious--sweet potato fries, fresh shrimp and ice tea--plus a crab chowder--yummmmmmy --It was nice spending the day with the boys and exploring towns we have often gone by on our way to Charleston. There were some pleasant surprises ! See below for more pics!

An Episcopal Church in McClellanville, SC

Outing to Plantersville SC

We went to Plantersville, Sc and saw some beautiful homes. Then we came across this old Episcopal church (the info is below) --what a pleasant surprise!

Faith in the value and meaning of life

Like this quote on life by Henri J.M. Nouwen from his book called the Wounded Healer---

"But for a man with a deep-rooted faith in the value and meaning of life, every experience holds a new promise, every encounter carries a new insight, and every event brings a new message. But these promises, insights, and messages have to be discovered and made visible."

Also this:

"For hope makes it possible to look beyond the fulfillment of urgent wishes and pressing desires and offers a vision beyond human suffering and even death........Leadership therefore is not called Christian because it is permeated with optimism against all the odds of life, but because it is grounded in the historic Chirst-event which is understood as a definitive breach in the deterministic chain of human trial and error, and as a dramatic affirmation that there is light on the other side of darkness"

Lazy

It is nice to have a lazy day---which is what I am doing. Sitting and talking with the boys--reflecting some on life and pulling out an Agatha Christie book that I have not read or read when I was so young that I have forgotten it!! Nice gray or grey day (spell check says both are correct!) --so a great day for reflection and mysteries.

I found this recipe from http://peascorner.blogspot.com/ (on Dec 7th I think 2007) -These are easy to do and very pretty and gluten free!! YES!!! I will post the recipe on my recipe blog at http://nannykimsrecipes.blogspot.com/

Tree cross

This is a picture of our tree cross we put up in our other living room. I like the clear ornaments on it; the pendants are from an old chandelier that crashed to the floor one day. My youngest son is home from college and he and I decorated Christmas cookies tonight. The rest of the gang is coming tomorrow and Sunday. So a full house! ;-) (for some reason it is underlining everything I write!!

My baby doll

Well for some reason this picture uploaded twice---but isn't she a little doll baby with her bow!!From this picture it is hard to tell that she likes to walk on piano keys, eat boogers, and play in toilet water! What a demure little lass!!!
Here she is in her new apron reading her Gideons Bible---you would think she was the ultimate in propriety. You just can never tell can you? lol

Presence

I thank the Lord for times of the blessing of His felt presence......for demonstrations of His work in people's lives. Again and again I have seen so much suffering, so much struggle in the lives of those around me--in church, family, community........yet life has a rich beauty to it. Again and again I see spiritual battles, spiritual growth, sometimes spiritual loss; again and again I have seen prayer changing things in surprising ways---ways I would not have expected or anticipated, perhaps in ways I have questioned and yet beauty has come out of it. The spiritual side of life is a blessing in its rich sustaining surprises----I do see in suffering a deepness in life that is hard to express......sometimes it seems like a song is threading itself into a soul (can't really put down what I mean!). I thank God for all Christ went through on earth and for the way he suffered---you know I never thought of being really thankful for this---I always thought of asking Him to forgive us that He had to endure the suffering. But I am thankful for what He went through because he has been touched with infirmities and suffering and it makes Him such a great high priest, one that can empathize with my weaknesses; what an amazing God to be willing to stoop to such a lowly life for me; what love and now .......now He ministers to me in every aspect of my life. What a blessed presence.

The law

ps 119:129 Your testimonies are wonderful;therefore my soul keeps them.130 The unfolding of your words gives light;it imparts understanding to the simple

For many years the law seemed like something negative--often in Christianity we see law as a negative thing and grace as a positive thing. Now grace is always positive!! But as I have been reflecting I have seen the rich beauty in the laws God has given---they truly are given for our good . When I have followed His instruction , life is much more beautiful (even in the trials), but when I have gone against His instruction ,all kinds of havoc have resulted!! I am reflecting back on my many years as a Christian as I say this---I became one when I was 16 and am now 54. As I look back on all of the years.....I see as never before, the beauty of his laws---they are meant to give us a freedom of living and He knows what things bring joy and wellness to our souls and lives. How beautiful are His commands.....I can say now!

comfort

Yes, Boots knows how to relax; unfortunately his peripheral vision seems to be going. He has caused several major accidents in the last few weeks! See below.

First my husband and I were sitting together on the couch having a nice cool drink when Boots attempted to jump up on the back of the couch. He hit my husband's arm and the entire , yes, the entire drink ended up on my husband's head and face. It was hilarious!! My husband had to sit very still with the drink running down as I ran for paper towels.

Next the cat was jumping from the window to the top of the chair you see him sitting in---when he did this he hit the wall lamp, which crashed to the floor breaking the bulb and the glass cover.

Last night he broke a little blue vase that has sat on the windowsill for years!!! What next, eh? and..........he looks so innocent ;-)

Monday morning blues?

Well-I was away for a relaxing weekend in Charleston, SC. We saw the festival of lights on James Island (beautiful), walked on the magnificent new bridge, and walked all over delighting in the old homes and gardens. We also had romantic candlelit dinners and quiet talks and times of reading books we brought and books we bought in Charleston. Now I am adjusting back to a normal Monday morning!!! I can not seem to get awake!!! The weather here is supposed to be in the 70's all week/ this is definitely weird.

Quote from one of Yancey's books I read this weekend: "Grace teaches us that God loves because of who God is, not because of who we are."

Thank Him for his grace. So thankful daily for this! it is good to examine our lives--to sit back and reflect on ,am I doing and being what Christ wants---am I following him and listening to him in my daily living. You know when you go away (even for a weekend) and then come back home it makes you come at your life as one coming from outside of your life--you kind of see your life and town and home as through a camera lens. Sometimes we are so involved in just living , we don't have time to access or think about our lives as viewed by Christ.....but, I guess that is why it is important to spend time daily with Him and listening to Him and His promptings.

I also like O'Driscoll's thoughts on Nicodemus and how it applies to me/us:

"Suppose that you have carved out your place in society, that you are secure in your lifestyle and in your view of the world. Then suppose you meet somebody who challenges every aspect of who you are, what you have done, and all you hope for............................Jesus has said many times to anyone who will listen that if we want even to glimpse the kingdom of heaven we have to rediscover the child within ourselves and look at reality through this child's eyes, recapturing what has been lost, things such as trust, love, innocence , a sense of boundless possibility.............But what do we mean by 'understand'? How much do any of us really understand the terrible and beautiful mysteries of Christian faith? Times without number, when we act on some principle of Christian faith, we do so without understanding. It is as if something moves us, guides, us, takes us, and we follow."

picture if from flikr--I have to get mine developed ;-)

Grand Announcement Show and Tell

These are the two pictures my daughter sent to our house to announce she was pregnant with a second child!! How fun ;-) (I am using this for my show and tell Friday taking place at http://kellishouse.blogspot.com/

ps if you go here http://shiningmaiden.blogspot.com/ you can hear a 20 second announcement made by the above child about the upcoming baby--so cute!

post office blues!!

I was mailing these two guys to some sick friends when lo and behold what should happen at the post office!!!!????? READ BELOW!!

Man --I was ticked (;-))-or tickled or WHATEVER ;-)--the other day I went to the post office to mail an item. They wouldn't accept my cash because they had run out of change [and what kind of business has no change???] so I charged it. Today I went to the same clerk and he would not accept my credit card because I hadn't signed the back---I had written "photo id required"--he said the us postal service has a policy not to accept credit cards like that that were not signed. I pointed out he had accepted it the other day---his response was he didn't recall that!! He said he could debit my account!! I said no thanks, will you accept cash, and he did. This other guy here http://quaedam.wordpress.com/2007/12/01/usps-feel-good-policy-makes-it-easy-for-identity-thieves/#comment-70 has had the same problem and he signed his in front of the person with pencil ,"Donald Duck", and they didn't check it--and they accepted it----I should have just said that my name was "See photo id" and that it was my signature!! sheeese! What if I had just scribbled a signature that was illegible like so many do??? It is soooooo funny how the government makes rules that are really nonsensical---I mean ,I can go online and order the same postage for mailing and use my non signed card!! lol But I do not mean to complain--it just was ironic--funnily (my word) so!

Bookworms

Bookworms run in the family and the above little poo has joined! When she was only 10 months old she would pick one book after another for me to read. One day she wanted a particular book --a pop out book about Joseph. I got so tired of reading it that I hid it among 20 other books. What did she do? She got up and searched through all of the books until she found it and then handed it back to me!! LOVE IT!

Love this quote from Kierkegaard--this surely relates to Advent and the coming of Christ: "When it is a question of a sinner He does not merely stand still, open his arms and say, 'Come hither'; no, He stands there and waits, as the father of the lost son waited, rather He does not stand and wait, He goes forth to seek, as the shepherd sought the lost sheep, as the woman sought the lost coin. He goes--yet no, He has gone, but infinitely farther than any shepherd or any woman, He went, in sooth, the infinitely long way from being God to becoming man, and that way He went in search of sinners."

A quest and oreo girl

I love to sneak in pictures of my 14 month granddaughter--here she is carrying on the tradition of chocolate covered oreos on tree decorating day!! She also helped her daddy make pancakes!! She will be an awesome Cook!

I like this idea--of our life and our relationship with Christ being like a quest. It makes me think of Tolkein's Trilogy--how the hobbits learned so many things as they went on their quest.

Schweitzer: "He speaks to us the same words--follow thou me.....He commands, and to those who obey him he reveals himself in the toils, the conflicts, and the sufferings which they shall pass through in his fellowship; and , as an ineffable mystery, they shall learn in their own experience who he is."

Bonhoeffer asks a question--"Who is Jesus for us?"

O'Driscoll goes on to comment: "The question Who is Jesus Christ for us? cannot be answered merely by information. It is therefore, more than a question, more of a quest. When we find the answer to a question we get on with other things. But to have a quest is to possess the very thing that allows our lives to go on, that calls us to follow after it. Jesus Christ is not a question to be answered; rather he is a quest to be lived............."

Sunday reflections

Beth Moore has said , "The light of His glory invariably sheds light on our intense need for His grace.....we rarely discover any thing monumental about God without discovering something momentous about ourselves, with every revelation comes an invitation to adjust our lives to what we have seen."

Piper says, "And because sin is a belittling of the all-satisfying glory of God, the suffering that breaks its power is a severe mercy.....whatever makes us more and more able to enjoy making much of God is a mercy. For there is no greater joy than joy in the greatness of God. And if we must suffer to see this and savor it most deeply, then suffering is a mercy. and Christ's call to take up our cross and join him on the Calvary road is love."

Bonhoeffer--"The cross is not the terrible end to an otherwise God fearing and happy life, but it meets us at the beginning of our communion with Christ. When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die."

Piper: "If Christ is not made much of in our lives, they are wasted."

Schweitzer: "He speaks to us the same words--follow thou me.....He commands, and to those who obey him he reveals himself in the toils, the conflicts, and the sufferings which they shall pass through in his fellowship; and , as an ineffable mystery, they shall learn in their own experience who he is."

I Thank God for the richness of life in Him!!

Newest monkeys ;-)

The newest monke is the on to the right--I still can't make up my mind on her smile---the first picture is the smile she has on now.

This was the smile I did at first---not sure which I like