i Ascribe

It's that time of year, the beginning of a new year, the end of the old.  I'm really feeling the breath of fresh air that comes with new possibilities.  Something about the marking off of the end of a calendar year makes us feel like we're able to wipe the slate clean and start over. As i listen to the Texans attempt to miraculously not lose their last game of the season, attempt to not lose their 13th game in a row, i imagine that everyone in the Texans organization has some serious ideas about what the new year needs to offer to them.  Well, we all do. The end of the year brings to mind failures to correct, goals to abandon, successes to build upon, and new ideas to embrace.  As a Christian, i appreciate the new year as a reminder that Jesus makes all things new, not just on January first, but "His mercies are new every morning."  And reviewing ourselves and our progress and our goals is always a good idea.  But i'd like to point out a Biblical pers...

Eternal Life I've got some thoughts rambling around in my head about celebrations and holidays and Christmas, and i don't really have them all formed and ready, so i'm just going to sort of let them spill out.  If you're into that kind of thing, keep reading. My recent thoughts on this subject were inspired by noticing what sort of things end up on the tops of Christmas trees.  I've seen snowmen and angels and Christmas trees (Christmas trees on top of Christmas trees is just funny!) and Santa Clauses and Mrs. Clauses and giant ribbon bows and some sort of squirrelly sparkly sticky uppy decoration that my cousin-in-law uses and teddy bears and stars......the list goes on. This is my niece and nephew's fingerprints. My husband reminds me from time to time, that i did not have an average childhood.  One of the aspects of my different-from-average childhood is that our home never housed a Christmas tree, at least not as far back as i can remember.  Th...

For more interesting signs like this one, please visit   http://deelol.homestead.com/yoursign.html .   I'm a sucker for a funny sign. I think about things.  Sometimes with a sarcastic slant. There's this commercial playing on t.v. lately...the only Subaru commercial i can't seem to find on YouTube...that i think is supposed to be about how Subaru drivers care about the environment and that sort of thing.  You've seen it, if you watch t.v., that is. Well, anyway, if you don't watch t.v., and you haven't seen it, i'll tell you that the only part of the commercial that really sticks with me (i'm not even sure it's Subaru - just mostly sure) is the end, when an adorable little girl with blonde curls, with the assistance of presumably her daddy, finishes planting a tiny pine tree in an established pine forest, and then they all run happy and satisfied back to their environmentally responsible Subaru, since they have (i imagine) replaced their ...

I was sitting on my couch just now, feeling ease and relief of the signs of fall weather, and i had two thoughts. 1.  "I need to tinkle." I know.  TMI.  But this is sort of a tell-all.  From that perspective, it's really just the right amount of I. 2.  "I think i'd like to write something." It has been a while since i really felt like writing something, so even though i have no idea what to say, here i am, writing. The quiet in my house is very loud to me. The normal quiet of the roaring air conditioner having been silenced by excellent whether, i now notice every tiny breath of a sound that i would generally never perceive, and i find this very distracting and peaceful at the same time.  Not peaceful enough for sleep though.  Last night, i put the air conditioner on "fan only," just so it would make that constant sound, so that i could sleep under it's roar.  I slept very well, thank you. This is the time of year marked by hummin...

This is my mom and dad.  Forty years ago, today. T his afternoon, my parents are being somewhat surprised with a party in their honor. Not just for forty years of staying married. But for forty years of serving God with their whole lives.  Just two people who love Jesus and work really hard to obey Him.  Those are my parents. I am so proud to come from such beautiful heritage. And look, they still love each other, probably more than ever.  And they're even more beautiful now than then.  I love those smiles! And they still stop what they're doing to answer the call.  ;)  This was a funny shot. Forty years is a very significant number to God.  Or at least it appears that way to me when i read the Bible. I am excited to see what God has in store for my parents in these next 40 years.  I don't have anything super significant to say about it.  I just want to honor my ...

but first, an explanation. I have a love for the format of a psalm.  I don't know what the literary prescribed format of a psalm is - or if there is such a prescription.  But i know what i have observed.  And that is that the psalms, as David wrote them, often appear in the form of complaints.  Long pity parties on how bad and unbearable the present circumstances overwhelm - is how many psalms begin.  The especially long and unbearable psalms continue with whining to God about how He has left then more and more fairly long and annoying lamentations on the hopelessness of everything ... and then.... the sun comes out. It's amazing. suddenly the psalmist realizes that God does live and that God has proven Himself enough times for the psalmist to know better than to do all this waling.  And in spite of all his circumstances, his heart is raised to worship God in faith and confidence that his faithful God will rescue him and cause him to triumph over ...

I am a sucker for projects that include mixing ingredients and letting them sit for days, weeks, or months so that they can become something different.  I'm not sure why that is.  But it is. Recently, my hubby had a friend over, and hubby was attempting to show the friend the recent improvements and remodeling that we have done, but he was entirely distracted.  "What is that?" he asked, pointing to these two jars that had faded from my notice, sitting quietly on my prize antique wash table. Since  my attempt at making my own apple cider vinegar was SO unsuccessful , i am very happy to announce success with these two, much less complicated projects. Successful Project #1:  Natural Citrus Spray Cleaner This one was pretty simple.  I saw it on Pinterest , and i started it a LONG time ago.  The directions say to let this mixture sit for two weeks.  But i mixed my mixture sometime before our fire on March 7, and i just put it in a...