Day 75/ 366

Working on a long stocking cap to donate to MorningStar Mission for someone less fortunate than myself!

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Be Grateful Challenge~ March 2012

March 2012

6th~ true friends; my pillow; the wind; my house; my job; Grant at 'H and R Block' in Sears in Joliet

7th~ my son's hugs; my daughter's smile; my customers; coffee; washing machine; 55F in the morning; Avon being delivered; bookkeeper at home office being consistently friendly; kind words from coworkers; God; my salvation; Lady Pat; an unexpected opportunity; Michael visiting our church for Bible study; Eme and Idara; a young lady being good at Bible study so she can join us in Sunday school; my church home and how welcome every visitor feels!

8th~ morning snuggles with Matt; silly waving; rain; a light breeze; text from a friend; coffee; 'left-over omelette's'; toothpaste; my clothesline not blowing away/ getting twisted in knots; Jinn being there to answer my Avon questions; an unexpected opportunity; Matt's friend from school being at McDonald's playland

9th~ a long chat with Jinn (love you); peaceful day; love of God; happy son; my freedom; being free through submission (or trying to); firewood; a reality check; a helpful state employee; Biblical truths I can stand on; Avon and the hope it brings; choir practice; Lady Pat's friendship; 2nd Ave Apostolic Church; my bed and pillow; Pooh to snuggle

10th~ a sunny morning; Matt's sillies; caramel frappe; refocusing on people/ things that really matter; hearing Matt read proverbs 10 and explain how it applies to his life, then watching his behavior change; a poke from a friend; my daughter being kind; the beginnings of a new plan; Matt cooking me Sloppy Joe's from scratch for lunch; a lot of spring cleaning getting done; finding the right program for our Sunday school kids to sponsor a child :)

11th~ supportive adults at church; Sunday school kids picking a child to sponsor and truly embracing what that means; a good long hug from Lady Pat; quiet afternoon at home; Matt chatting with Antone

12th~ peaceful day at work; true friends; Boy Scout meeting and maybe making friends there; early to bed

13th~ being able to call off work when I am sick; sleeping until 11:00am; Matt making me breakfast in bed; Matt and I snuggling and blowing our noses together all day; Matt being such a good boy; nice conversation with Nancy at Will County Code Enforcement~ she's so sweet :)

14th~ sunny morning; sparrow on the empty chicken run; daffodils blooming; 2 newspapers at the end of the drive; coffee; breakfast; Matt being so sweet;  real friends; Dr. Carpenter at JFK; Livingsocial Deals; an apple in my fridge at work; cup of hot green tea with real honey;    

Joy Dare~ March 2012

1) 3 gifts at 3:00pm~ peace; a kind word from a friend; fire wood from a friend

2) 3 gifts green~ daffodils; Avon money; peas

3) 3 gifts wore~ bandana; cuddle duds; humility

4) 3 gifts hard to give thanks for~ unexplained blessings; child early to bed; chickens in a happy home

5) 3 gifts found~ a true friend; a caring solid leader; strength

6) a gift bent, a gift broken and a gift beautiful~ fence; financial plans; freshly made bed

7) 3 gifts in the kitchen~ hot coffee; green tea with honey; my church family

8) 3 gifts loud~ Jeep radio playing 104.7 WBGL; wind around my office window; McDonald's Playland w/ Matt to catch up paperwork :)
9) 3 gifts carved~ doubt from my heart; firewood; the hill my house is on
10) 3 gifts in Christ~ a kind word from Lady Pat; Matt reading Proverbs 10 to me; World Vision
11) 3 gifts read~ Sunday school homework; Bible; 'Have a New Kid by Friday' 
12) a gift in wind, in water, in white~ warm breeze; laundry done; socks mated
13) 3 gifts round~ Matt cooking homemade 'egg mcmuffins'; God's never-ending love for us; coffee pot 
14) 3 gifts found in silence~ peaceful neighborhood this morning; my office (where I'm not allowed to talk); focus on my family's future
15) 3 gifts given away~
16) 3 hard Eucharistoes~
17) a gift turned,a gift folded, a gift hung~
18) 3 gifts red~
19) 3 gifts eaten~
20) 3 gifts that made you laugh~
21) a gift salty, a gift sweet, a gift just right~
22) 3 gifts found in His Word~
23) 3 gifts found in women today~
24) 3 gifts spoken~
25) a gift sung,a gift written, a gift painted~
26) 3 gifts almost gone~
27) 3 gifts redeemed~
28) 3 gifts entwined~
29) 3 gifts of His promises~
30) 3 gifts uncovered~
31) a gift heard, a gift held, a gift hoped for~

Sunday

Sanitizing the Plunger

Ew! Yuck! Yes, here I am cleaning the bathroom~ oh, what fun. But, actually, I don't mind as it looks so pretty when I'm finished! I want to show you what I've found to sanitize my plunger. A cheap, simple trick. I've taken one of those plastic ice cream buckets like they sell at Aldis and filled it about 1/2 full with Mr. Clean with febreeze and water. My plunger soaks in this between uses. The bucket of Mr. Clean acts as air freshener and my plunger stays clean!

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Day 74/ 366

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Day 74/ 366

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Day 72/ 366

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Day 71/ 366

For our wall at Sunday School!

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Caring for Others

Hi! Welcome back! Wow! Today was a red-letter day for our Sunday School class! Our children took a major step and are now foster parents to Meuni in Mwingi, Kenya. How awesome is that?!?! Each child is to purpose $2/ month toward sponsorship~ very easy. And... this weeks' homework assignment? Do some research on Kenya... and... Write a letter to Meuni!

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Day 71/ 366

Dinner from church~ yummy!!!

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Be Grateful Challenge~ March 2012

March 2012

6th~ true friends; my pillow; the wind; my house; my job; Grant at 'H and R Block' in Sears in Joliet

7th~ my son's hugs; my daughter's smile; my customers; coffee; washing machine; 55F in the morning; Avon being delivered; bookkeeper at home office being consistently friendly; kind words from coworkers; God; my salvation; Lady Pat; an unexpected opportunity; Michael visiting our church for Bible study; Eme and Idara; a young lady being good at Bible study so she can join us in Sunday school; my church home and how welcome every visitor feels!

8th~ morning snuggles with Matt; silly waving; rain; a light breeze; text from a friend; coffee; 'left-over omelette's'; toothpaste; my clothesline not blowing away/ getting twisted in knots; Jinn being there to answer my Avon questions; an unexpected opportunity; Matt's friend from school being at McDonald's playland

9th~ a long chat with Jinn (love you); peaceful day; love of God; happy son; my freedom; being free through submission (or trying to); firewood; a reality check; a helpful state employee; Biblical truths I can stand on; Avon and the hope it brings; choir practice; Lady Pat's friendship; 2nd Ave Apostolic Church; my bed and pillow; Pooh to snuggle 

10th~ a sunny morning; Matt's sillies; caramel frappe; refocusing on people/ things that really matter; hearing Matt read proverbs 10 and explain how it applies to his life, then watching his behavior change; a poke from a friend; my daughter being kind; the beginnings of a new plan; Matt cooking me Sloppy Joe's from scratch for lunch;

Joy Dare~ March 2012

1) 3 gifts at 3:00pm~ peace; a kind word from a friend; fire wood from a friend

2) 3 gifts green~ daffodils; Avon money; peas

3) 3 gifts wore~ bandana; cuddle duds; humility

4) 3 gifts hard to give thanks for~ unexplained blessings; child early to bed; chickens in a happy home

5) 3 gifts found~ a true friend; a caring solid leader; strength

6) a gift bent, a gift broken and a gift beautiful~ fence; financial plans; freshly made bed

7) 3 gifts in the kitchen~ hot coffee; green tea with honey; my church family

8) 3 gifts loud~ Jeep radio playing 104.7 WBGL; wind around my office window; McDonald's Playland w/ Matt to catch up paperwork :)
9) 3 gifts carved~ doubt from my heart; firewood; the hill my house is on
10) 3 gifts in Christ~ a kind word from Lady Pat; Matt reading Proverbs 10 to me;
11) 3 gifts read~
12) a gift in wind, in water, in white~
13) 3 gifts round~
14) 3 gifts found in silence~
15) 3 gifts given away~
16) 3 hard Eucharistoes~
17) a gift turned,a gift folded, a gift hung~
18) 3 gifts red~
19) 3 gifts eaten~
20) 3 gifts that made you laugh~
21) a gift salty, a gift sweet, a gift just right~
22) 3 gifts found in His Word~
23) 3 gifts found in women today~
24) 3 gifts spoken~
25) a gift sung,a gift written, a gift painted~
26) 3 gifts almost gone~
27) 3 gifts redeemed~
28) 3 gifts entwined~
29) 3 gifts of His promises~
30) 3 gifts uncovered~
31) a gift heard, a gift held, a gift hoped for~

Day 60/ 366

Life is good!

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Day 40/ 366

Sloppy Joes from scratch cooked by Matthew! I am blessed!!!

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Be Grateful Challenge

March 2012

6th~ true friends; my pillow; the wind; my house; my job; Grant at 'H and R Block' in Sears in Joliet

7th~ my son's hugs; my daughter's smile; my customers; coffee; washing machine; 55F in the morning; Avon being delivered; bookkeeper at home office being consistently friendly; kind words from coworkers; God; my salvation; Lady Pat; an unexpected opportunity; Michael visiting our church for Bible study; Eme and Idara; a young lady being good at Bible study so she can join us in Sunday school; my church home and how welcome every visitor feels!

8th~ morning snuggles with Matt; silly waving; rain; a light breeze; text from a friend; coffee; 'left-over omelette's'; toothpaste; my clothesline not blowing away/ getting twisted in knots; Jinn being there to answer my Avon questions; an unexpected opprtunity; Matt's friend from school being at McDonald's playland

9th~ a long chat with Jinn (love you); peaceful day; love of God; happy son; my freedom; being free through submission (or trying to); firewood; a reality check; a helpful state employee; Biblical truths I can stand on; Avon and the hope it brings;

Day 69/ 366

My Little-Sugar-Booger!

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Day 69/ 366

Yup! 'Left-over omelettes' again! Great way to use up left-overs! Have a yummy day!!!

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Day 69/ 366

All crashed out! Sweet dreams, my son!

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Being Useful to God

Hi! Welcome back.

Let me share our Sunday school homework with you:

Finding our usefulness to God and ways we each, even the smallest child, can bless our own church.

First I had each student make a list of the top seven things they are really good at~ the very first that come to mind.

Then I asked each child to, over the next week, make a list of how they can use these gifts to serve God and bless our church.

Here is my list:

Things I'm good at:

1) love children

2) love to knit

3) love to organize events

4) gardening

5) baking

6) singing

7) encouraging others

Here are ways I could use these gifts:

1) teaching Sunday school

2) knitting hats to sell for fundraising

3) planning out fundraisers and youth activities

4) helping to maintain flower beds around church/ starting a community garden for church members

5) baking Swedish tea rings for Sunday school fundraiser

6) being in choir

7) being an ear to listen, a shoulder to cry on, a hug and a trusted sister

I can't wait to see the children's lists Sunday! 

Day 68/ 366

My friend, Mike Walencik, brought me firewood today. Thank you, friend!!!

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Be Grateful Challenge

March 2012

6th~ true friends; my pillow; the wind; my house; my job; Grant at 'H and R Block' in Sears in Joliet

7th~ my son's hugs; my daughter's smile; my customers; coffee; washing machine; 55F in the morning; Avon being delivered; bookkeeper at home office being consistently friendly; kind words from coworkers; God; my salvation; Lady Pat; an unexpected opportunity; Michael visiting our church for Bible study; Eme and Idara; a young lady being good at Bible study so she can join us in Sunday school; my church home and how welcome every visitor feels!

8th~ morning snuggles with Matt; silly waving; rain; a light breeze; text from a friend; coffee; 'left-over omelette's'; toothpaste; my clothesline not blowing away/ getting twisted in knots; Jinn being there to answer my Avon questions; an unexpected opprtunity

Joy Dare~ March 2012

1) 3 gifts at 3:00pm~ peace; a kind word from a friend; fire wood from a friend

2) 3 gifts green~ daffodils; Avon money; peas

3) 3 gifts wore~ bandana; cuddle duds; humility

4) 3 gifts hard to give thanks for~ unexplained blessings; child early to bed; chickens in a happy home

5) 3 gifts found~ a true friend; a caring solid leader; strength

6) a gift bent, a gift broken and a gift beautiful~ fence; financial plans; freshly made bed

7) 3 gifts in the kitchen~ hot coffee; green tea with honey; my church family

8) 3 gifts loud~ Jeep radio playing 104.7 WBGL; wind around my office window; McDonald's Playland w/ Matt to catch up paperwork  :)
9) 3 gifts carved~
10) 3 gifts in Christ~
11) 3 gifts read~
12) a gift in wind, in water, in white~
13) 3 gifts round~
14) 3 gifts found in silence~
15) 3 gifts given away~
16) 3 hard Eucharistoes~
17) a gift turned,a gift folded, a gift hung~
18) 3 gifts red~
19) 3 gifts eaten~
20) 3 gifts that made you laugh~
21) a gift salty, a gift sweet, a gift just right~
22) 3 gifts found in His Word~
23) 3 gifts found in women today~
24) 3 gifts spoken~
25) a gift sung,a gift written, a gift painted~
26) 3 gifts almost gone~
27) 3 gifts redeemed~
28) 3 gifts entwined~
29) 3 gifts of His promises~
30) 3 gifts uncovered~
31) a gift heard, a gift held, a gift hoped for~

Day 68/ 366

I would so love to see ferry boat rides between Joliet, Chicago and towns south some day! Think of the revenue that could be brought into Joliet, IL  with dockside stores and restaurants?

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Day 68/ 366

Oakwood Cemetery

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Day 68/ 366

Left-over omelette, strawberries and toast with mango jam~ Yummy for Matt! A full belly for ISAT testing. (He wouldn't eat the omelette)

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Day 67/ 366

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Joy Dare~ March 2012

1) 3 gifts at 3:00pm~ peace; a kind word from a friend; fire wood from a friend

2) 3 gifts green~ daffodils; Avon money; peas

3) 3 gifts wore~ bandana; cuddle duds; humility

4) 3 gifts hard to give thanks for~ unexplained blessings; child early to bed; chickens in a happy home

5) 3 gifts found~ a true friend; a caring solid leader; strength

6) a gift bent, a gift broken and a gift beautiful~ fence; financial plans; freshly made bed

7) 3 gifts in the kitchen~ hot coffee; green tea with honey; my church family

8) 3 gifts loud~
9) 3 gifts carved~
10) 3 gifts in Christ~
11) 3 gifts read~
12) a gift in wind, in water, in white~
13) 3 gifts round~
14) 3 gifts found in silence~
15) 3 gifts given away~
16) 3 hard Eucharistoes~
17) a gift turned,a gift folded, a gift hung~
18) 3 gifts red~
19) 3 gifts eaten~
20) 3 gifts that made you laugh~
21) a gift salty, a gift sweet, a gift just right~
22) 3 gifts found in His Word~
23) 3 gifts found in women today~
24) 3 gifts spoken~
25) a gift sung,a gift written, a gift painted~
26) 3 gifts almost gone~
27) 3 gifts redeemed~
28) 3 gifts entwined~
29) 3 gifts of His promises~
30) 3 gifts uncovered~
31) a gift heard, a gift held, a gift hoped for~

Be Grateful Challenge

Good morning! Isn't it such a lovely day?!
I wanted to take a quick minute to share a bit more about this challenge from my perspective...
This challenge is to look for the good in the bad. To find blessings in our adversities. There is no prize to win, except an improved attitude. I find myself fussing and complaining so often about all I don't have instead of truly appreciating all He has done for me and continues to do daily.
I cannot promise I will update daily, but I will try. I do not expect you to update daily~ prioritize. Follow His will for your day first, as I try to do. If you miss a day or a week, just pick up where you left off. I'll do the same.
((Hugs))
Be Blessed!!!

March 2012

6th~ true friends; my pillow; the wind; my house; my job; Grant at 'H and R Block' in Sears in Joliet

7th~ my son's hugs; my daughter's smile; my customers; coffee; washing machine; 55F in the morning; Avon being delivered; kind words form coworkers; God; my salvation; Lady Pat;

Day 67/ 366

A visit from the cutest grandson in the world!

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Day 67/ 366

Spring is here!!!

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Day 67/ 366

Onions are up and looking good! Time to divide these!!!

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Day 66/ 366

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Be Grateful Challenge

I've decided to post what I am grateful for each day, sometimes including photos.

I would love it if you would join me and will try to figure out how to add a linky so you can link-up!

March 2012

6th~ true friends; my pillow; the wind; my house; my job; 

Day 66/ 366

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Day 66/ 366

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When We Don't Prepare...

Look down... deeper.... Yup! It's empty! How does a normal person run out of coffee?! Seriously!? Well, when life runs fast forward at warp speed, as most of ours does, it's easy to let things get away from us. Simple things like an organized pantry or simply setting the almost empty coffee bin in the way so as to remember to buy more quickly. Based on the contents (lack thereof) of my coffee bins (yes, both are empty!), I need to get back on track~ Quick!

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