In Memory

Yesterday our church family lost another of our members. "Murr", as she was fondly known, went to be with our Lord yesterday afternoon. She was just a few weeks shy of her 92nd birthday. She was the oldest member of our church.
Her passing was not unexpected, but still, when the time comes, it's a blow to all who knew and loved her. We will have her Homegoing service on Thursday. She will be missed.

(Murr - center)

"DUH!!!"

I'm so mad at myself. Today was Hubby's annual Pastor's Prayer Breakfast, for which I do all the cooking and decorating. I did have help from another lady, who made the gravy 'cause I don't do gravy! lol Anyhow, I had decorated in a black and white motif and tried to make it as "manly" as possible. I thought I did a pretty good job. I put my brand new camera in my purse so that I could take pics of everything, and guess what I forgot to do? That's right, big DUH!!! I completely forgot all about taking pictures until everything was cleaned up and we were about ready to leave for home. I could just kick myself. I was going to not only take pics of the decor for next week's Tablescape Thursday, but I was also going to take pics of the food for next week's Foodie Friday! How could I have done such a dumb thing! Well, I was just in "Do" mode to get everything cooked and on the table, and then once I got the food served, I sat down in exhaustion and never gave pictures a single thought. O well, what can I say. Next time, huh?
O, and trying to chase down Miss Cali Cat to give her the meds today was almost as much of an ordeal as yesterday, trying to catch her to go to the vet's office. One down, one more to go...for today. Then it's the same routine twice a day for at least the next 6 days. O JOY in the morning! :=)

It's A Tazmanian She-Devil!

Oh. My. Goodness! Just came back from the Vet's office with Miss Cali Cat. She has been having a swollen bottom lip and not acting like herself. This cat seriously NEVER let's us pick her up, so it's hard to know when something is actually wrong with her. But the last few days, I've been picking her up, totally against her will, and that's how I noticed her mouth. All red and looked like she had some sort of infection in her gum. So off to the doc's office we went.
As soon as I started trying to pick her up, she ran and hid under the couch. When hubby tried to shoo her out, she ran into our bedroom and under the armoir. Okay, I thought. Now I can catch her. NOT HAPPENING!!! I was laying in the floor so I could reach under the armoir, and I was able to grab her by the nape of her neck. But, I could NOT pull her out of there. She dug her claws into the carpet and was NOT going to come out. I grabbed her by the front legs, and she managed to fight her way loose from me and ran back into the livingroom and under the couch again. With Hubby helping, we finally managed to get her to go into the hallway, where she actually sat still long enough for Hubby to pick her up. He brought her into the diningroom, where I had the carrier setting on the table, awaiting her "arrival". Hubby shoved her inside, and before he could get his arm out and I could shut the door, THAT DARN CAT managed to turn herself around and run out of that carrier. Not more than 2 seconds, man. It was so fast that I didn't even realize what had happened, until Hubby was trying to grab her, as half of her body was hanging off the table. I grabbed at her and he grabbed at her, and all the while she was like a tazmanian "she"-devil, flopping all around. She clawed Hubby all over one hand and arm and brought blood. She managed to wrangle free and again, ran down the hallway. This time she hid under a china cabinet at the end of the hallway, and while I pulled her out, AGAIN, Hubby came with the carrier. As soon as I got hold of her, we shoved her in the carrier and slammed the door shut before she could escape again.
After it was all over with, I started to think about how this whole scenerio must have looked, and I started laughing hysterically! Then we were both so worn out and out of breath, that we had to take a minute or two to regroup ourselves before we could load her into the car and go to the doctor's office.
O, and once we got there, the doc had to practically pry her out of the carrier with a crowbar, just to examine her.
So he says she has some kind of infection, probably from getting her mouth hung up on something, either inside or out. He gave her a shot, and now I have to give her antibiotics two times a day until it's all gone. The doctor said to me, "Sqeeze the medicine into the dropper and 'gently' squeeze it out into her mouth". O, yeah, easy for him to say. She's quiet for him. For me, she's a tazmanian she-devil, I tell ya! O, and could I have a tranquilizer for her before I have to give her the meds every day? Thanks, doc!
And, here's a pic of the little "angel":

Tablescape Thursday & Tea For Three

Susan, at Between Naps on the Porch, is hosting Tablescape Thursday. Go check out her great blog, and all the other wonderful tablescapes you can find there.
This is the tablescape I used when I had my two high-school friends over for tea. The dishes are Homer Laughlin "Chateau". I made the tablecloth and matching napkins from a remnant found at Joann's. The centerpiece is all silk, purchased for pennies also at Joann's.

Sharing Hearts - A Valentine Story

See, I promised I would eventually get up some photos taken with the new camera. This was our Women's Ministries Valentine's meeting last Saturday, Feb. 21, 2009. The pic of the food table is before the food is placed, but there was heart-shaped sandwiches, and heart-shaped cupcakes, pink salad, and pink and red candies, as well as lots of other goodies to eat. We exchanged valentine cards with one another, just like we used to do as kids in school...remember doing that? It was fun! Our theme for the month was "Sharing Hearts", and we shared our hearts with our Food Pantry by bringing in enough food to fill eight boxes of food that were given out to families on Sunday. Once again, our ladies are just so awesome, and they truly do give of themselves and "share their hearts" with each other, our church family, and with our community.

A Great Recipe

This was sent to me in an email. Thought it was a good recipe to share with everyone.
1. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile. It is the ultimate anti-depressant.

2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day. Talk to God about what is going on in your life.

3. When you wake up in the morning complete the following statement, 'My purpose is to enjoy life today. I am thankful for having God in my life.

4. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.

5. Drink green tea and plenty of water. Eat blueberries, wild Alaskan salmon, broccoli , almonds & walnuts.

6. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

7.. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip, energy vampires, issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.

8. Eat breakfast like a king , lunch like a prince and dinner like a
college kid with a maxed out charge card.

9. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

10. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

11. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

12. You are not so important that you have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

13. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.

14. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

15. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

16. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In five years, will this matter?'

17. Forgive everyone for everything.

18. What other people think of you is none of your business.

19. GOD heals everything - but you have to ask Him.

20. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

21. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick . Your friends will. Stay in touch!!!

22. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

23. Each night before you go to bed complete the following statements: I am thankful for all my blessings. Today I accomplished every thing i set out to do.

24. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.

25. When you are feeling down, start listing your many blessings. You'll be smiling before you know it.

I know, I know, I still haven't posted any pics taken with the new canera. I have been taking lots of them, though. The reason I haven't posted anything is because I still haven't put the new software on the computer. Tonight I did sit down and removed the software from the old camera. I probably didn't have to do that, but I didn't want to take any chances of the old conflicting with the new. Tomorrow I have to decorate for Saturday's women's meeting, and I'll be taking lots of pics of that, you can be sure. I'm going to do my best to get the new camera software loaded by the weekend, so that as soon as Saturday's meeting is over, I can come home and load all my pics into the computer. Then I'll be having lots of new blog fodder for your viewing pleasure. (I know, you're rolling your eyes back in your head right now, saying to yourself, "O brother, she really thinks people are interested in her stuff")
Brenda sent me over to this blog, which is hosting Tablescape Thursdays, and I already have a post, complete with pics (old ones) ready to go for next Thursday. I'll be joining in on that fun every week, and showing off my "flare" for setting a pretty table. I don't know what it is about me and dishes - I've always had this obsession with pretty dishes and setting a beautiful table. Decorating for our Women's Ministry meetings every month has given me the place to let my obsession run wild! And now, with Tablescape Thursdays, I can go double-duty wild with my obsession! Hooray!
Well, guess it's time to turn in for tonight. Pictures to follow VERY SOON, I promise. :-)