Have a Heart!

Here are our Cookie of the Month

offerings for Em's teachers this month.

Do middle-school teachers ever get thanked enough?

Hopefully they will

fit nicely into these...

Greener Grass

A deep and lengthy conversation with a friend

seeking balance and fulfillment

ended with this phrase:

The grass isn't greener anywhere else...

This

is

my

grass.

Enough said.

Add your own emphasis.

Enjoy yours...

Beginnings New

Timothy 4:12

Let no man despise thy youth;

but be thou an example of the believers, in word,

in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.

WORD

CONVERSATION

CHARITY

SPIRIT

FAITH

PURITY

Here is the Church and Here is the Steeple, Open the doors...

I love spending two evenings

a week in the

Sanctuary

of this

lovely building.

Metropolitan Memorial United Methodist Church

The colors behind the altar are the

most beautiful shades of lavendar.

The stained-glass windows are magnificent.

The choir rehearsals are postively angelic!

Whimsey

Artcraft

This perpetual calendar just made me smile :)

These are the words around the inner border...

The Secret to Life is Enjoying the Passage of Time

Make the Time Sweet

Grow a Garden

Follow Your Heart

Seize the Day

Relish the Night

Cherish Family

Celebrate

Accept Change

Live Life to the Fullest

Look Up

Dream

I fancied it yesterday and remembered it today when thinking about

Men are that they might have joy...

Savage Mill

Savage Mill

One-of-a-kind shops and

artists housed in an historic textile mill.

Fun Shops

Outstanding Purchases

Great Company

Yummy Lunch

Beautiful Weather

Life is Good!

Books

It's Not About the Book

Book Group

This month we read:

The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest

to Become the Smartest Person in the World

by

A.J. Jacobs

so fun I stayed up way past my bedtime...

Cast List

Apparently these are the pictures that I was supposed to post...

Apparently the mom is always the last to know!

Following in the footsteps of:

Bernadette Peters

and

Kristin Chenoweth

Emily has been cast as...

Lily St. Regis (After the hotel!)

All the more exciting because that is the role she wanted?!

Question Mark ?

What could that possible be about...?

Maybe you should ask my sis...

Mrs. Gibbs

Our Town by Thornton Wilder

Mrs. Julia Hersey Gibbs:

Dr. Gibbs’ wife, who represents a typical housewife

in the first two acts; in the final act,

she is seen as a spirit. (http://www.cliffnotes.com/)

Posted belatedly (performed in Dec/08) in honor of another

audition today for the school musical - Annie

Break a leg...

Fish, Anyone?

Today I gave each of my seminary students a small bag of goldfish. We are finishing the Gospels in the New Testament and were discussing John 21 - when the apostles return to fishing after the resurrection of the Savior. They have fished all night and have caught nothing. The Savior tells them to cast their net on the right side of the ship and it fills with fish - to the point that they are surprised that it doesn't break.

After eating with them, the Savior teaches a powerful lesson. He asks Peter, "Lovest thou me, more than these?". Peter assures him that he does. Jesus tells him to "Feed my Sheep". Jesus repeats the question three times (perhaps as a reminder of the way that Peter was given three opportunities only days before to claim allegiance to the Savior). Finally, "grieved", Peter answers, "Yea Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus replies, "Feed my Sheep".

We will spend time discussing the "feed my sheep" part of the conversation as we move into Acts, but today I wanted them to focus on "lovest thou me, more than these"? The tag I put on the fish turned the question around - Lovest thou these more than me?

What are the these/fish in our lives?

What do we love?

Where do we spend our time?

Does the way we spend our time reflect what we say is important to us?

What do we love more than the Savior as evidenced by the

things we do and the way we spend our time?

In Seminary you are never quite sure if they are "getting it". Today I got it and am grateful.

Floats

How do we celebrate

Super Bowl Sunday?

Chips and Dips?

Chicken Wings?

Pizza?

No - Rootbeer Floats!

What I Have Been Doing

This is what I have been doing all week.

click here

While it snowed and iced over

(and while the laundry and dishes piled up and the seminary attendance

letters went unwritten, and mail went unanswered)

I enjoyed the warm memories of

Scandinavia,

Russia,

Estonia

and

Lithuania...

Teacher Appreciation

January Cookie of the Month

Snowball Pecan Sandies

A New Tradition
Thanks, Cristin

January 29th

Happy,

Happy Birthday,

Alicia Dear!

January 28th

I prefer my ice in a glass with Diet Coke

not on our driveway

that never gets any sun...

Day 2 - No school!

January 27th

Fact: The district website says

decisions regarding school closings will be made by 5:00 am

Another Fact: Just because school (and by association seminary)

hasn't been cancelled by the disctrict by 5:10 am doesn't mean it

won't be by 5:13 am ....

An Additional Fact: it would never hurt to check the website

one more time before you leave 5:40 ...

Lesson learned!

Do you like my snow broom?

January 26th

...back at the check-in desk...

It must be Monday!

ccw

January 25th

Falling in love again with Erica Wheeler. First heard her on NPR in '96 when we lived in CA. We instantly fell in love with a song titled "Maryland County Road" long before we knew the next roads we traveled would be Maryland county roads. I hear a little of Craig and the girls every time I hear it.

Erica Wheeler

listen to Maryland County Road

and

The Harvest

and

Goodnight Moon,

and

Sober Harley Guys,

and

Colorado Town,

well...

I think you get it...

listen

to

them

all...

Kindness triumphs!

The details aren't as important as the fact

that it took place. A problem was solved, people smiled at one another

and for just a moment, in spite of the cold,

everything felt warm.

I want to be kind to everyone for that is right you see...

January 23rd

This is a Christmas tree ornament that

I'm planning to keep out all-year round!

It is a reminder of the Caring Cousin gift exchange that

purchased a lamb through Heifer International this year.

I'm proud of our children for their willingness

to forgo gifts in exchange for doing something for someone else.

Can't wait to see where their gifts go next year!

Heifer International

Sheep - from a great etsy shop

January 22nd

Our Disneyland pictures are out

of our cameras/computer

and into our hands!

Fabulous

Fast

Fun

Colors/pages are just like they were on-line.

I only wish the small books (9x6) could

be ordered with a hard cover.

Send me a quick email if you want to see all of it

and I will send you an invite through scrapblog.com

(check your spam if you don't see the invite soon).

January 21st

fingerless gloves:

brown/pink - taken by E

black/burgundy - given to C

fall colors - for a friend's daughter

where are mine?

love my new knitting project bag - thanks wb!

January 20th

It is (CELEBRATION)(SQUARED)

at our house today!

Miss Em is 14 and

President Obama is #44

...congratulations to both!

January 19th

...speaking of "official"

Our first "official" snow

as viewed from the front porch.

January 18th

I love my ezpass

I love Cara
I didn't love using my ezpass
to take Cara back to school
Christmas break is officially-officially over now...
(interesting reflection in rearview mirror of me taking the picture)

January 17th

????k??n C????w??d ?ic????a??

Don't use it often but it save me on occasion!

?

January 16th

I need help...

I think I might have a problem...

My name is Lisa and I am addicted to scrapblog.com

January 15th

I'm having too much fun...

scrapblog.com

January 14th

The Other Book Group for January

Gilead by Marilynne Robinson

I'm not the only fan - see who else lists it under favorite books...

?

January 13th

Sadly I must report that

Christmas is officially over...

January 12th

Favorite Foto

from

The Holidays!

three daughters-three smiles-three books-three friends

ccw

January 11th

Does this fall into the category of

"never eat anything bigger than your head"?

walkers shortbread

because if it's not scottish ...

January 10th

Hope
Hope is the thing with feathers

That perches in the soul,

And sings the tune--without the words,

And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;

And sore must be the storm

That could abash the little bird

That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chillest land,

And on the strangest sea;

Yet, never, in extremity,

It asked a crumb of me

Emily Dickinson

January 9th

I don't donate because of the free stuff although I must admit the cold diet coke certainly sweetens (without adding calories I might add) the deal. I credit my dad with this lifelong habit.

I remember three things about tagging along with him when he donated:

1) He always teased the phlebotomist that they only

got one chance to hit a vein.

2) He always said taking the bandage off later was

more painful than the needle-stick.

3) When they asked if he was going to be doing

anything strenuous afterward he always laughed and said,

"Just going home!"

January 8th

Confession:

We go to Krispy Kreme

after we have been to our dentist

whose office is

next door.

doughnuts and no cavities

win-win-win

January 7th

10

for a

Dollar

berwick offray outlet/hagerstown md

January 6th

Fingerless

finery

finally

finished:

No more cold hands!

wonderful yarn - easy pattern

January 5th

Really, what more is there to say...?

January 4th

Never goodbye...

always - See you soon!

Is it too soon to start counting the days?

January 3rd

Taboo: ta⋅boo
1. proscribed by society as improper or unacceptable.
2. family fun at which the girls always trounce the parents.

Trounce: trouns

1. to beat severely; thrash.
2. to punish.
3. to defeat decisively.

Long gone are the days that we let them win on purpose....

January 2nd

Incredible: dinner and company

Niwano Hana

January 1st

Blogging

definitely opens up an entirely new world. It is an opportunity to

keep in touch

with old and new friends. It is a chance to

share

creative thoughts and ideas. It is a place to

support, cajole, challenge and

inspire.

However, at the end of the day no matter how much we think we know

about someone from reading their blog it is

JUST A GLIMPSE...