An Excellent Video To Help Us Think

How often do we say or do something and not realize how our delivery can affect how it is received? This video was emailed to me today, thanks Deb!

This is a video that was submitted in a contest by a 20-year old. The contest was titled "U @ 50" by AARP. Whatever you do, don't stop in the middle of it. I almost did and it would have left me terribly troubled at what I had just read and listened to.

JUST IN CASE ANY OF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS . . . . AND TO PROVE THAT HEAVENLY FATHER HAS A SENSE OF HUMOR!

Have I ever mentioned that I really made out like a bandit in the in-law department? One of my cute sisters-in-law, Charlotte, emailed this to me a while back and I just found it again while clearing out some of the hundreds of emails stored in my account.

To those of us who have children in our lives, whether they are our own, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or students... here is something to make you chuckle.

Whenever your children are out of control, you can take comfort from the thought that even God's omnipotence did not extend to His own children.

After creating heaven and earth, God created Adam and Eve.

And the first thing he said was ' DON'T !'
'Don 't what ? ' Adam replied.

'Don't eat the forbidden fruit.' God said.

'Forbidden fruit ? We have forbidden fruit ?

'Hey Eve..we have forbidden fruit ! '

' No Way ! '

'Yes way ! '

'Do NOT eat the fruit ! ' said God.

'Why ? ''Because I am your Father and I said so ! ' God replied, wondering why He hadn't stopped creation after making the elephants. A few minutes later, God saw His children having an apple break and He was ticked !

'Didn't I tell you not to eat the fruit? ' God asked.

'Uh huh,' Adam replied.

'Then why did you ? ' said the Father.

'I don't know,' said Eve.

'She started it! ' Adam said.

'Did not ! '

'Did too ! '

'DID NOT ! '

Having had it with the two of them, God's punishment was that Adam and Eve should have children of their own. Thus the

pattern was set and it has never changed.

(Now admit it, this is just how angelic all of our kids looked to us when we got them, whatever age they may have been. What a good way to trick us!)

If you have persistently and lovingly tried to give children wisdom and they haven't taken it, don't be hard on yourself.

If God had trouble raising children, what makes you think it would be a piece of cake for you ?

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT !

1. You spend the first two years of their life teaching them to walk and talk. Then you spend the next sixteen telling them to sit down and shut up.

2. Grandchildren are God's reward for not killing your own children.3. Mothers of teens now know why some animals eat their young.
4. Children seldom misquote you. In fact, they usually repeat word for word
what you shouldn't have said

5. The main purpose of holding children's parties is to remind yourself tha

t there are children more awful than your own

6. We childproofed our homes, but they are

still getting in.


ADVICE FOR THE DAY:

Be nice to your kids. They will choose your nursing home one day

AND FINALLY:

IF YOU HAVE A LOT OF TENSION AND YOU GET A HEADACHE, DO WHAT IT SAYS ON THE ASPIRIN BOTTLE:



'TAKE TWO ASPIRIN' AND 'KEEP AWAY FROM CHILDREN'!!!!!

So Here I Sit . . . . . . Like A Bump On A Log . . .

So, after lumping for the last 6 weeks, that seem much longer, the antibiotic appears to be making a difference. I have dealt with the side affects of that and maybe, just maybe, I will start up that hill in another couple of days. I sure hope so.

Jon started coughing the week before I did and is still coughing as well. So we have a pact to get tons of rest the next couple of days to try to finishing clearing lungs before he has his next long work days.

For those who have expressed a concern. Thanks and don't worry, I went to the Dr. yesterday and she has me on an antibiotic to get rid of the bronchitis and sinus infection.

I decided to not wait any longer than a month since I usually just cycle back and forth when these nasties hang on this long. I am also getting some blood work done to see if there is a reason for the chronic fatigue besides just plain old laziness, emphasis on old.

I have decided that I want to feel 50 again, funny isn't it? But when I turned 50 I got a big kick out of it, because so many get all bent out of shape at that birthday. Life was so good, that I decided it all went up hill from there. So I am taking steps to get back on the uphill.

Every Day "Miracles"

This morning I got up feeling the same as every day for the last few weeks . . . BLA_A_A_A_AH! I decided that I deserved a treat for just hanging in there and actually making a little progress on some of my cleaning out projects. A very long shower . . . oh did it feel good. As the hot water was running over my aching head, I got to thinking about how we all seem to take so many of our every day conveniences for granted. Do you ever think about how wonderful it is to have a hot water tank that has water running into it, being heated, as you drain it? Half hour, 45 minutes and the water is still hot. Wow! Picture trying to do this with water heated on top of the stove and dumped into a big tub. No comparison!

As I relaxed, my mind started wandering down memory lane, thinking about all the conveniences that I succumbed to over the years. Yes, succumbed. Silly me didn't think I would need all that stuff that cost money to buy, cost money to run, blah, blah, blah.

When we lived in Thatcher, Mariah was a baby and I was using cloth diapers. All I had was a clothes line, but boy were my diapers white! They also smelled great when I put them on my baby girl. One day when hanging them out on the line, my neighbor came out to do the same thing. Orpha was the cutest little thing, had known my mom and her family for years and so I loved talking to her. I asked her if there was anything quite as wonderful as an automatic washer. She laughed and said they were pretty wonderful. I was picturing myself washing those diapers on a scrub board, which she had used while growing up. When Jon & I got married, I refused to quit working until I had my own washer, so tired of laundromats! Orpha had a dryer, but still used her line a lot, so I figured I would also use mine and never bother with a dryer.

A year and half later when we moved to Northern Az in the winter, I found that the clothes froze on the line, but no problem, I washed diapers last thing each night, hung them on a rack over a heat vent and went to bed. The next morning I had to hang them on the line in the sun, or Rob, my new baby would break out. I still saw no reason for a dryer. I ironed everything any way. I know, insane . . . Then we moved to Holbrook . . . boy howdy, does it ever blow up there! The second time I had to cut some clothes off the line because the wind had tangle them so badly, I started to think, hmmm. A friend was getting rid of her dryer, I bought it for $50, bought the parts for $18. I had to cut something off the line one more time before Jon got enough time at home to install the dryer, but I sure enjoyed it! I had no idea how much time ironing was about to be saved, wonderful. I had just had Sarah and was getting busier every day. What's funny is that by that time, disposable diapers were an option, and I used those, but it still stayed very busy.

I still washed my dishes by hand. We had cess pool, not a septic tank, so didn't know how long it would be before we had a problem, might as well not run more water down the drain than we had to. Then I came across a portable dishwasher that someone wanted to sell, and decided, why not? That was a pain, rolling it around, so I raised the counter on one side of the sink, and installed that baby. What a woman . . . yeah, desperate! I really came to appreciate that silly thing and I did find that I could keep germs from spreading from one kid to the next by using it. So my transition from dish drainer to dishwasher was thoroughly enjoyed, though, I still seemed to have that sink full of dishes most of the time. The next summer when I was canning, I really loved it. My hands had thickened from milking goats and would no longer squeeze into the small mouth jars. Lucky Mariah got out of all that jar washing that I had to do when I was young!

Then of course, there is the porcelain wonder. This was mentioned by Orpha the day we were talking while hanging out clothes. If you are washing clothes with a wash board, you are also using the good old outhouse. She did love the closeness of the indoor plumbing, lack of smell and really loved it being handy at night or in bad weather. You never had to dig a new pit to move it when the old pit got full . . . there's an image you wanted, isn't it? I did appreciate this little luxury, however, when we had trouble with our well in Holbrook, several times, and couldn't flush without hauling water, I begged Jon for an out house that we used only when the well went down. I could never talk him into it. He's lucky I was running all over with the kids by that time or he just might have stepped into a big old pit in the dark or run into a strange new out building!

A Good, Though Small Beginning

Getting sick for the holidays seems to be either a bad habit or a crummy tradition that I would like to leave behind me. This year, it did have an up side, however. I lost a couple of pounds before Christmas, and this morning, I had lost a little more. I doubt that anyone even notices the little ticker down in my right hand column, but I am finally able to drop the number on it.

The only resolution that I ever seem to make, is to become a better me, mentally, spiritually, emotionally and of course physically. It often seems to start with the physical side.

I have found that when the physical appetites are conquered, it becomes easier to "conquer" or rather develop the other facets of oneself.

So here is to the New Year . . . and may it be a good one, in all the ways that we wish. May focus become a characteristic that is consistent, and may a loving Heavenly Father be sought when our own strength isn't enough. I know that He is eagerly waiting to hear from and strengthen us in all worthy endeavors that we seek.

Total Rip-Off . . . It's Just Too Good To Resist!

I have a little habit of going through blogs on my list, to check out blogs, like Brianna's Family's blogs. Today, I found the funniest quote on her aunt's blog. Some of us forget to wait until next week :>D

New Year’s Day – now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week we can begin paving hell with them as usual.

~ MARK TWAIN