Its a boy!! and show and tell

This is what I got for my hubby for V. Day--isn't it cute. it is from http://vintagesockmonkey.blogspot.com/ --her son made it--it is adorable and my husband said he was so impressed by its craftsmanship. I have more pics on my monkey blog at http://monkeybusiness-nannykim.blogspot.com/

It is show and tell at http://kellishouse.blogspot.com/ So I had to show this even though I posted part of this earlier.

These are the first of bigger pictures of my grandson--he will hopefully be born in July!!

I am excited--he even looks like he is smiling.

no to leaven, yes to salt

I was reading in my devotions a passage in Leviticus and wondered the reasons for no leaven and no honey in the grain burnt offering, but there was to be a salted" (see Lev 2:11-13]

I knew the symbolism of leaven and salt in the New Testament---and the NT gets much of its symbolism from the Old. So I checked one source and found it interesting:


"11. ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in any offering of the Lord - Nothing sweet or sour was to be offered. In the warm climates of the East leavened bread soon spoils, and hence it was regarded as the emblem of hypocrisy or corruption. Some, however, think that the prohibition was that leaven and honey were used in the idolatrous rites of the heathen.
12. the oblation of the first-fruits - voluntary offerings made by individuals out of their increase, and leaven and honey might be used with these (Leviticus 23:17; Numbers 15:20). Though presented at the altar, they were not consumed, but assigned by God for the use of the priests.
13. every . . . meat offering shalt thou season with salt - The same reasons which led to the prohibition of leaven, recommended the use of salt - if the one soon putrefies, the other possesses a strongly preservative property, and hence it became an emblem of incorruption and purity, as well as of a perpetual covenant - a perfect reconciliation and lasting friendship. No injunction in the whole law was more sacredly observed than this application of salt; for besides other uses of it that will be noticed elsewhere, it had a typical meaning referred to by our Lord concerning the effect of the Gospel on those who embrace it (Mark 9:49, 50); as when plentifully applied it preserves meat from spoiling, so will the Gospel keep men from being corrupted by sin. And as salt was indispensable to render sacrifices acceptable to God, so the Gospel, brought home to the hearts of men by the Holy Ghost, is indispensably requisite to their offering up of themselves as living sacrifices [BROWN].""

I love the picture it gives of needing incorruption, no hypocriasy, and the fact that the Gospel acts as a preservative to maintain or keep us from the incorruption of sin. Numbers 18:19 refers to a covenant of salt--symbolizing the covenant between God and Israel---probably because salt signifies perpetual or eternal since it is indestructible by fire and a preserving agent. COOOOL

Its a boy

Well--here he is---my daughter is having a boy.

Saturday fun

This weekend my daughter and family arrived. It was a beautiful weekend with temperatures in the 60's and sunny sunshine ;-) . My granddaughter loved washing rocks in the fountain and then dropping them in---she did this at every opportunity. We went on a walk to the park by the river and she had a ball!

After much play we took a scenic stroll on the riverwalk.

The Panies were so pretty!

Of course there was more rock dropping , but this time sweetgum balls (from the trees) were used!

Then we had lunch on the river--we ate outside at the Sidewheeler Restaurant. I love their sweetpotato chips! This is my daughter --you can't tell she is pregnant , can you!

Here is a view from the restauant--so relaxing and they have water that drips off the roof to create a nice sound.

Here my granddaughter is having her first try at lemons--this was quite funny as you see in the next two pics.

For dessert we stopped at the coffee bar and ordered some great shakes--I prefer the mocha shakes---espresso, icecream, chocolate, whip cream and chocolate syrup!

On the way back home ---the result was one tired, but happy camper .

Simplifying in details

This is the book I want: Simplify Your Space: Create Order and Reduce Stress by Marcia Ramsland . This one gives the details of how to do it!!! The other book I am reading gives more on the generalities and principles. This one will help with the details---I have put it on my Amazon wish list. Also this place

http://thesimplewife.typepad.com/the_simple_wife/free-stuff.html gives some ABC's of simple living by the author of the general book on simple living. Then this blog http://breathoflifeministries.blogspot.com/ has some help on her sidebar on living simply. Have a nice weekend, ya'll--my granddaughter is here and the day is brilliantly sunny!!

Happy I Love you Day (and show and tell)

It is show and tell at Kelli's http://kellishouse.blogspot.com/ These photo's of my pictures didn't come out too well because of the reflection in the house at this time in the morning. I love coffee and there is something about these 2 pictures I love--they were advertisements and they always cheer me and make me happy to look at them .....just thinking about coffee makes me happy!


In the book called Living Simply there was an idea I liked!! It was called:

" Happy I love you Day".

It is a celebration that "happens whenever you want. The other great thing is that it's always a surprise."

"The things we do for 'Happy I love You' Day are generally pretty ordinary; they're things you've probably done yourself at one time or another. The difference is that in our family, we've given it a name and turned it into a tradition.......................It doesn't have to be something big or expensive or elaborate. You can take just about anything and make it special and fun---it becomes special because it's something your family does together."

Some examples she gives is a surprise Slurppee being delivered at work from her hubby, playing cards on Fri, watching cartoons on Sat. morning, reading a book together, taking a walk after supper--etc.

What I love is you don't have to have a Valentine's Day to celebrate--or a birthday--you can do it any day!

Let me know if you have any ideas!!! ps--The wall color came out wrong in these pics--weird--the room is a very cheerful yellow!!! strange----eeery things are happening!

Happiness

My granddaughter's face expresses how I feel; but not about her lamb! ... How I feel about the Lamb of God. We had the service that starts the lent season. I love this time of the year. In the book on "Living Simply" she says to celebrate "the story, not the stuff." That is what I love to try to do!

Tonight was so wonderful. I love the focus of this time of the year. " Bless the Lord who forgives all our sins!" This is a time for reflection, and for focusing on Christ's sufferings and on our need to repent. (not that we don't think about this always--but it is an extra focusing). The Ashes are from the powdered ashes of the burnt palms from last year's Palm Sunday.

I like this quote by someone named Guardini (I know nothing about him--but I like the quote)-

".....all this flourishing life, turns to a little ash, a handful of dry dust which every breeze scatters this way and that. All this brilliant color all this sensitive, breathing life, falls into pale, feeble, dead earth, and less than earth, into ashes. It is the same with ourselves. We look into an opened grave and shiver: a few bones, a handful of ash-grey dust.
Remember man
that dust thou art
and unto dust shalt thou return.

Ashes signify man's overthrow by time. Our own swift passage, ours and not someone else's, ours, mine. When at the beginning of Lent the priest takes the burnt residue of the green branches of the last Palm Sunday and inscribes with it on my forehead the sign of the cross it is to remind me of my death."

I attended 2 different memorial services this weekend. One on Saturday and one on Sunday--so a fresh reminder that we all face death. These 2 services had much joy in the sorrow, because they were both believers. One who had lived long in the Lord and the other who had come to know the Lord through his illness. It helps me to think about my own death, because it makes me think about how I should be living today. How I want to live now. Soon I will be in glory and what glory; how then should I live now? Oh, the need to "lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely , and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God." (Heb 12:1b-2) amen