Evening reading

 Listening to my boys reading to each other 

 #love wind down time

It's a great feeling

 AMAZING! It's a great feeling waking up to the sunshine...waking up period!

Enjoy an amazing day!

Moring garden walking

 This morning's "garden walk" with God was so beautiful. Now to hang out in the Word for a bit and begin this wonderful day. GOOD morning!!

Cranes on the move

 So after careful investigation, my son and I confirmed that the hundreds of birds we saw flying in a migratory pattern this afternoon were indeed cranes. COOL! (He was right, they didn't honk

)

Keep good company

 Yesterday was a struggle for me, but am I ever SO grateful for ALL my sisters who walk with me, pray for me and encourage me along the way.

Here is to another great day that I have never seen before or will again! What a great gift. GOOD MORNING!

Good or something better

 Did I mention that yesterday was not just a good day, it was a GREAT DAY!! I ready for more of the same or BETTER! GOOD MORNING!

Digging out the big roots

Shovel? Check. Somewhere to dig? Check. Good planting soil? Add to my list. Seeds to plant? Add to my list.

Well, I got started anyhow. I found a spot to dig in our backyard to turn our kitchen scraps into compost and I started to dig. On Earth day, first thing in the morning before my hubby was out of bed I set out. I found some big roots as I was digging that confirmed that there once was an established tree near by (and the big circular "dent" in the grass also gave a clue), but I broke up the roots and continued to dig. I love gardening and although I may not be a professional botanist or agricultural guru, but it brings me great peace and reflection.

As I reflect on the big roots that I had been digging out, I was thinking how we can sometimes have big roots grow in our lives and hearts. Some roots can come from habits or behaviours we want to change. We grew that tree, it bore its own fruit, we didn't like the fruit it produced in our lives, so we cut it down. But the roots are still there. We need to dig out the old roots so we can plant a new tree. We need to replace the habits we want to change with new habits....habits that we wish to keep.

I am... wonderfully made

 "For you created my inmost being;

you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful,

I know that full well.

My frame was not hidden from you

when I was made in the secret place.

When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

your eyes saw my unformed body.

All the days ordained for me

were written in your book

before one of them came to be.

How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!

How vast is the sum of them!

Were I to count them,

they would outnumber the grains of sand.

When I awake,

I am still with you. " Psalm 139

Like diamonds

 Good morning!! We are all multi-faceted. Make sure to polish each facet so you can shine bright and help to be a light to others.

Ebb and flow of thoughts

 Our thoughts are like making waves in the bathtub or dropping a pebble in a puddle...one splash moves the waves away from you, but they eventually come back.

"So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets." - Matthew 7:12

Spring cleaning 2012

 Let the SPRING CLEANING BEGIN!!

Today is a purge day!! My body started its own process and I decided to go along in other areas of my life. Focusing on balancing need and attachment, love versus like, encouraging over discouraging, and fixing the things that need some care.

Still a good morning

 Okay, here it goes...GOOD MORNING!!! Well, I had a thought that I wanted to share, but by the time I got around to the good morning, I rearranged furniture, dusted, threw a bunch of stuff out, and then made it here. When it comes back to me, I will share, but until then...

When you plant a seed...

 When you plant a seed...

With Earth Day approaching (Sunday, April 22, 2012), my thoughts have been on seeds and planting them in the garden. I love knowing that a little seed will respond quickly to the right nourishment....warmth, water, fertile soil, and light.  There is so much life in these seeds as they first sprout...full of energy and potential. This past week I have been soaking my almonds before eating them and one thing I noticed...these almonds have not sprouted like ones I have soaked in the past.  When I looked up information on this, I discovered that now, many of the raw almonds that available to buy in stores are actually pasteurized.  At that point, they can no longer grow.....a dead seed they become.  I was quite disappointed to find this out, but also it has inspired me to go one step deeper in the seeds that I eat.  Here is the story that I thought of after I found this information...

 

 THE SEED OF HONESTY        A King was growing old and knew it was time to choose his successor. Instead of choosing one of his children, he invited a group of young people from his kingdom and told them, "It is soon time for me to step down and choose the next king. I have decided to choose one of you." The children were shocked, but the king continued, "I am going to give each one of you a seed today - one very special seed. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from   this seed. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next king."  One of the boys, named Liang, went home and excitedly told his mother the story. She helped him get a pot filled with soil, and he planted the seed and watered it carefully. Every day, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks, some of the other youths began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow. Liang kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew. Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still nothing. By now, others were talking about their plants, but Liang didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure. Six months went by   -- still nothing in Liang's pot.  He knew his seed had died. Everyone else had trees or flowers, but he had nothing. Liang didn't say anything to his friends, he just kept waiting for his seed to grow. A year finally went by and all the youths of the kingdom brought their plants to the king for inspection. Liang told his mother that he wasn't going to take an empty pot. But his mother asked him to be honest about what happened. Liang felt very uncomfortable, but he knew his mother was right. He took his empty pot to the palace. He was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other youths. They were beautiful -- in all shapes and sizes. Liang put his empty pot on the floor and many of the other children laughed at him.  When the king arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted the young people. Liang tried to hide in the back. "My, what great plants, trees, and flowers you have grown," said the king. "Today one of you will be appointed the next king!"  Suddenly the king spotted Liang at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered his guards   to bring him to the front. Liang was terrified. He thought, "The king knows I'm a failure! Maybe he will have me punished!"  When Liang got to the front, the king asked his name. "My name is Liang," he replied. All the kids were laughing and making fun of him. The king asked everyone to quiet down. He looked at Liang, and then announced to the crowd, "The name of your new king is Liang!"   Liang couldn't believe it. He couldn't even grow his seed, how could he be the new King?  Then the King said, "One year ago today, I gave everyone here a seed. I told you to take   the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds that would not grow. All of you, except Liang, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you. Liang was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new king!"

 

If you plant honesty, you will reap trust.

How I like to eat my almonds

 As I eat almonds, I am reminding myself that EACH almond is 20 calories. I packed the snack bags to about a handful each and that equals about 1000 calories. I would have to agree that they are calorie dense. So here are some tweaks for enjoying almonds...

Eat about 10 as a "part" of a quick snack (that's 200 calories. You can eat with some carrot sticks if you want the crunch and to feel fuller)

....tweak up...

Eat them raw, not roasted. (the oils go rancid and acidic, and roasting kills the enzymes too... they are naturally an alkaline snack)

....tweak up...

Soak your raw almonds first before eating them. (it's like beans, the seed coating contains "protectors" that you don't need to be eating and that inhibit proper digestion of the seed (and can cause gasiness)....soaking them allows the seed to release these "protectors" into the water...just like starting the sprouting process. Drain the water, rinse the almonds, and they will be more filling and easier for your body to digest)

Slept "in"!

 Good morning! Woohoo! Slept in to 6am!

Just eating a few almonds, reading about humility and miracles and off to enjoy a morning with the hubby

Enjoy your weekend!!

(And happy "non" birthday Mom! )

We are more

 Good morning! My heart goes out to those who assume I'm a young thug because I walk with confidence and wear a hoodie and a hat. There is so much more to the people we meet than an imposed negative stereotype.

Let the things of your life tell a story of courage instead of defeat ❤

 "Yeah, yeah, that's all sounds great, but....that's you, not me....you're always so positive....you have lots of energy.....you don't know what it's like"

Out of my love for others let me just share this.....You may have excuses for what you DON'T want to do in your life, but please if you ask me, and I share a bit of my life with you, please don't make excuses for what I have done in mine.

I have been places I never would have imagined, and experienced things I never dreamed, but I am blessed by it all and so are you.

Let us take courage and use it daily and "... encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today..." (Hebrews 3:13)

Let the things of your life tell a story of courage instead of defeat

There is a crust to get through dear butterfly

 "The cocoon of a caterpillar becomes the hard case that the butterfly must emerge through." ~ ESC

Thought....the verifiable truth grows deeper and is everlasting through each trial....but some beliefs we carry with us become crust that we must break through in order to embrace our growth and fulfill our purpose. When you experience suffering or are struggling, perhaps there is a crust you need to shed and leave behind or a truth that you need to embrace. Learn from struggle and strife and your emergence will be more graceful.

What am I taking on?

As Jesus took on the sins of the world as he hung on the cross....as the sins of the world were drawn to him like water to a sponge, he grew further and further away from God.....Imagine in all of a few hours that his greatest comfort grew into a dim faint star that flickered in the distance....The light that made everything clear and brought peace and understanding pulled away as the darkness he assumed came upon him.

Considering gifts....

 Good morning!

Considering gifts....

Imagine a present given to you with the best wrapping that you have ever seen. It was clearly an artist that had took the care to wrap this gift. It's beautiful to behold as it is. You gladly take the gift just based on the wrapping. But the giver didn't give you the gift wrap, the giver gave you the gift.

Opening our gifts means we are willing to receive what has been given to us. Do not just focus on the wrapping and forget to open the gift. ~ESC

More to come....

Snow day!

 I made a snow angel, a snowman, got in a great workout, shoveled some snow....it a BEautiful DAY!!

Who do you surround yourself with?

 ...as I reflect on the times I have shared with others, I am glad to know I have those in my life that I feel free to be around...safe with my thoughts and expressions, and that will build me up and encourage me to be my best.

Thank you

You can do it and you know it

 More encouragement from HALLS....."Vous pouvez le faire et vous le savez."....

To share what I see

 Okay....need to attach a camera to my head so I can share the sight of this BEAUTIFUL sunrise with you all. I LOVE the big, open skies here

GOOD MORNING!!