Thursday, April 28, 2016

Another Year



Hello Sweet Friends
And Thank You for stopping by today

Sitting in my living room this evening
Watching the trees sway in the breeze outside
It has been such a beautiful day here
In the desert southwest

Playing outside with my littlest K today
What a treat and blessing Thursday's have become

Yesterday was Administrative Professional's Day
Our office changed it up several years ago
For us it was Staff Appreciation Day

Over the past few years
I have taken this opportunity to create a
Little something for each of our employees
I Love sharing 'happies' with our staff


Shopping at Hobby Lobby
Is Never a Chore
Neither is playing at my dining room table

Straws, paperclips, and other fun items
Are simple to put together
And always help me create
A fun gift to give


This year
A Bouquet of 'restaurant' Gift Cards


Adding a few breakfast items
Makes for a fun little Thank You


My employer also tries to make it a special day for me as well
And I'm grateful


Red Roses and the most fragrant Lilies ever

Yes My Friends
Another Year
Another Staff Appreciation Day
Another Blessing

Praying for you
Believing for Great Blessings
In Your Life
How has God spoken to you this week?


Sunday, April 24, 2016

Some Thank You's



Hi Sweet Friends

Thank you for stopping by today
You always bless my heart
I'm praying you are well and
Have enjoyed a Beautifully Blessed Weekend

Today I wanted to share a few Thank You's

First
I want to thank so many of you who have prayed
Over the past few weeks and even months
For some of my friends and my own family

Prayer is so very powerful
And I am grateful to know
That God hears our prayers

"Before they call I will answer;
While they are still speaking I will hear"
Says the Lord."
Isaiah 65:24

So Thank YOU for praying

I'd like to also Thank my blog friend Noreen


She blogs over at 

She was away for a little trip
But didn't say where she was going
I guessed where she was and who she was visiting
Noreen so sweetly sent me a few gifts
From her trip


You can Never go wrong
Sending me something with a 'beachy' theme


I LOVE it all
AND ...
This little item is what has started my New Collection


Val - Noreen's friend
Who lives on one of the Islands and blogs at
Was so very sweet to send me a piece of sea glass
To go along with Noreen's package

Hence, I have a new collection ...
Well, sort of
I want to have a collection
I guess you need 3 of something to call it a collection
So, I'm on the Hunt
Sea Glass - My newest Obsession *SMILE*
Thank you Noreen and Val


Finally
I want to Thank Stephanie
Who blogs over at 

While participating in her 8th Tea Cup Exchange
I happily sent a second package
To a sweet lady who didn't receive hers
I surely didn't do it to receive a gift
However, Stephanie is so very kind
She sent a really sweet package


I promise I have not even opened the chocolate YET...
But will soon
I Love the cookbook and have been perusing it this past week
The chicken pot holder is just my colors
And super fun
Thank you Stephanie for blessing my home

Again, thank you for your prayers
For stopping by and leaving such encouraging comments

I would Love to pray for you this week
If you or someone you know has a need
I would be honored if you left me a comment
Or sent a PM so I can pray for that need this week
It is My Greatest Privilege

May you be Blessed with Joy



Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Spring 2016 Tea Cup Exchange


Hi Sweet Friends

I am so excited to share about participating
In my first Tea Cup Exchange
Hosted by The Enchanting Roses' Stephanie

I was honored to send off two packages of fun items

For Deanna (who does not have a blog)
I sent off some sweet raspberry colored items
Her birthday is in January and her nickname is Duchess
I found a perfect tea cup
It's a January birthday month cup
And the pattern is Duchess
I couldn't have come up with anything more perfect
I added several tins of tea
A doily, note pad and raspberry dark chocolate
It was a super fun package to put together
I hope she is enjoying it



The second sweet lady I sent a package to
Was Sophia (who doesn't have a blog either)
I heard that blue was a favorite color of hers
I found this fun blue tea cup/saucer that I almost kept - LOL
I also found a sweet little tea napkin with blue embroidery
Coloring book, colored pencils and a bit of chocolate
Again, I hope she is enjoying her package



Now from the my wonderful new friend Deb
I received the greatest package

She must have checked out my blog
And learned some fun things about me


Of course, the card is perfect
If you know anything about me
You KNOW I LOVE the Beach
So anything beachy is for me


Deb stuck with a blue color theme
Filled my new and beautiful tea cup with sweet chocolate


She added in her package
A coloring book - beach themed with colored pencils
A beachy note pad and a Great star fish


When I opened the package
I was giddy and jumping around


It could not have been a more perfect package


Thank you Debby
For putting together a package that truly touched my heart

Thank you Stephanie
For hosting such a fun exchange
I will be back

And Now
Thanks to my friend Noreen
I have started a 'sea glass' collection
The only problem is
I only have 1 piece
And I don't live by the sea
If you have any extra pieces of sea glass laying around
You can private message me for my address ...

YES
It's true
I kind of LOVE the BEACH

Blessings to you All
And Thank you for Stopping By


Linking with
The Enchanting Rose



Sunday, April 17, 2016

Exhaustion ... A Good Thing



Hello Sweet Friends

There truly is a Good kind of Exhaustion
It's when you've physically worked hard
See Results
And, at the end of the day,
You can close your eyes with a smile on your face

Last week was Rough
A flood in the house
Lots of hours / days with plumbers in and out
Frustrations and Confrontations

I was exhausted
But it was Not a good exhaustion
It was stress filled and emotional

BUT GOD...

Friday evening I met a few friends
At Radiant Church in Surprise
And enjoyed a wonderful night of laughter
And even a few 'healthy' tears


A cheerful heart does good like medicine
Proverbs 17:22a

We enjoyed the humor of Anita Renfroe
And the ministry of Connie Marquart
It was a Blessed Night

Saturday I spent the morning with my mom
We visited and then I went and got her groceries
As well as bought her prescriptions

Saturday afternoon I took Matthew
To do our own grocery shopping and a few other errands
He need a chair for his room
After hitting all of the stores we stopped at Goodwill
And found the perfect chair for just $10 - YAY


My bottle brush bushes are bursting with blooms
I am really enjoying them this year

Today was Filled
This morning I cleaned up the front yard
Let's just say that the plumbers left a big mess
That needed to be tended to (not by them)
I also pulled weeds and watered my Vincas

5 loads of laundry have been washed, dried and put away

2 bathrooms have been cleaned from top to bottom
That's what needs to be done after a flood :(

The pool is completely drained and ready
For me to clean it and all of the filters and such next weekend
I made dinner and now I am ready to close my eyes
Put my head on my pillow with a smile on my face

Lots done
Many check marks on my list
And happily starting a new list
With NEW items to do

Feeling Exhausted
Feeling Happy
Feeling Accomplished
Feeling Blessed

God IS Good

Blessings to you as we begin a new week
Filled with opportunities to Smile
Live and Find Joy in the little things




Thursday, April 14, 2016

Perspective



Hello Sweet Friends

It seems the days fly by faster
Than I am able to keep up
The past week has been stress~filled
To Say The Least

In fact
Since September 21, 2015
I have lived an overwhelmed and emotional
Roller Coaster of a Life

I really want NEED to get off this ride
But it doesn't seem to stop
Long enough for me to jump off
And I'm feeling the pressure 
I continue to covet your prayers

However
Today, as I was watching my youngest little K play
I was able to glean a bit of perspective

This sweet little Miss K~Baby
Had every single toy out of the toy box
She was enjoying the most wonderful play time
No electronics, only her imagination

What looked like a messy LR to me
Was a delightful play place for her

Perspective


So often in life a new chapter awaits.
You ride off into the sunset and discover it's the sunrise.
~Robert Brault
http://rbrault.blogspot.com

Perspective

With eyes wide open
I am looking toward my sunrise!
CEC

Blessings to you
For a Brand New Day




Thursday, April 7, 2016

Caption This



Hi Sweet Friends

Because sometimes
Busy leads to this


What's Your Caption?



Sunday, April 3, 2016

Busy In Pictures



Hi Sweet Friends
Thank you for stopping by

As you may have guessed from my last post
It's been a rough and sad week
For several people I know and love

Today
I thought I'd just share ways
That I have managed to stay busy
And keep my mind and heart from feeling sad

Are you ready?


1. I packed up and put away all of my Easter décor


2. I changed the headlights on my car
Well,
After my oldest son helped me realize that I was trying to change the wrong one
And after he changed the right one
I watched - LOL
But, at least I purchased the right one :)


3. I had to have my water heater replaced
AGAIN!!


After only 18 months
The thing fried itself up
And a new one needed to be installed
Unfortunately, I had to pay AGAIN!! :(


4. I am in the process of draining the pool
The color is not beautiful or inviting
And now that my backyard neighbor cut down his tree
I can finally clean the pool
And hopefully it will stay clean Forever!!


5. I got Many Loads of laundry washed, dried, and put away
YAY!!


6. Yard Work and


More Yard Work


7. I got another bag of clothing ready to give away
That always makes me happy


8. And - Really
There are some pretty spots in my yard
I'm working hard to get more pretties happening around here
Instead of so many spots like this:


Busy does help keep my mind from
Going places it should not go
And, it helps make a new week feel less stressful

Praying for my friends
Praying that God has blessed your weekend
And praying that you see HIM
As you head into Monday

Blessings!