The sign

The sign above in my banner...it's real...and it's really at my home....

It's right by my front door....
And, it greets all who come to our home....

And...lately...it's been welcoming a LOT...and you know what....I Love it!

I Love that our home has been filled with family....
That extra leaves have been added to the table...that there has been an abundance of food placed upon it...that it has been encircled by faces I Love...the sound of plates being filled....laughter being shared...and most of all LIFE HAPPENING!

When I think about a home...and I think about all that God gives us....Over & over again I keep feeling that  is His plan for me & us is that we take time to share our home and what we have with others....whether it be our own extended families, great friends, a neighbor....or even a new acquaintance....I believe our HOMES & TABLES are meant to be SHARED!  Unfortunately...I'm not that good at making my beliefs ring true...I'm not as good at inviting others over as I should be...why???  Maybe it's because often our life seems to be spinning out of control...maybe it's because my Mr. isn't home much...maybe it's because I'm a clutter queen and always feel like my home is too messy...maybe, maybe, maybe.....But, I so want our home and table to give & receive more....which really = simply inviting others to share a meal with us!
And...this last weekend, as I sat around our table, watching, listening, looking, & feeling....I just knew it was Right....it just made me happy!    So what's happening at your table???  Is it being filled with Love & laughter???  Are others feeling blessed by your abundance???  Are hands being held in a circle of prayer??? 

I always wonder when I go into antique stores and see a table...what happened around it...what did the families talk about, how did they make their living, what meals were served, and stories told???  Does that table have a legacy???

Hmmmm....imagine that...a table leaving a legacy???  I hope one day mine does just that....and I'm hoping for more and more moments of my table being encircled in Love.   Sweet Blessings!

P.S. And, if you're ever in my neighborhood feel free to stop in and pull up a chair at our table  :D

Welcome...

Welcome Spring Vacation!!!

I'm so excited you are here....
Will you bring Sunshine & fun outside???
Will you be filled with relaxin' & just chillin'???
Will you bring extra time to catch up???
Will you bring days filled with making changes???
Mmmmm....I wonder what you will hold???  And, I'm so looking forward to seeing what it is....if I could make a wish list...it would look a little like this  :D

* Time to reconnect with GOOD friends....
* Deciding to LET GO of some things in my closet....
* Creating my husband his OWN workspace in the Office...OKAY...the truth is..I really need to make it HIS!
* Time with my family...sharing meals, conversations, and loving on each other more...
* Taking time to write notes of encouragement to those on my heart...
* Spending time each day...just soaking in ALL of HIS GIFTS that surround me....
* Opening my Eyes to REALLY SEE Spring happening all around ...
* Giving Thanks over & OVER & O V E R again  :D

That's my hope for the week....so, Mr. Spring Vacation, what'd you think...can you make it happen???
Wishing everyone wherever you may be the BEST week ahead...may it be filled with ALL those you Love, and a Joy of the earth coming alive, the promise of newness ahead...and many, many Sweet blessings!  
P.S.  I'm still watching and waiting for that new baby calf...maybe Spring Vacation will bring that sweet new gift?!?!?

Waiting....

Waiting & watching...
                     Watching & waiting....

It's been a LONG time since I've been doing just that "watching & waiting"....
Wonder what I'm watching & waiting for....
Well we had 3 late bloomers this year  (3 of our Mama's that aren't on our FALL calving schedule)...For the past few years we have calved in the late Summer/Early Fall...when all our cows are on their summer pasture.  So, the most I usually get to see is the calf on the ground after it's born...oh, I can monitor it all...check on them every day and know it will happen soon....BUT, somehow when they are...
                      RIGHT OUTSIDE MY KITCHEN WINDOW...
and I see them up close and personal twice a day as I feed them...it seems like it takes them FOREVER to have their babies!  They are all huge, and when they walk, they just simply waddle...when they lay down, they stretch all the way out on their sides and look like they've ingested the hugest beach ball I've ever seen...Oh, I know the signs...and one of the Mama's #709....her milk is definitely coming in.....and still...it's apparently just not time!

    The weather has been so nice the last couple days..I keep begging her to just have her baby...but, now as the wind is coming up and the weatherman says rain for the next few days...now, I think she's going to have that baby anytime!!!   Yet another mystery I've yet to understand...why they always seem to have their babies on the worst, coldest, wettest weather days????

So, there you have it....I'm playing the waiting game...and I'm not doing it very patiently...and just like before when all the cows use to calve at home...I know she'll do it when she's good & ready and when I'm NOT looking!!!  :)

Hope everyone has a GREAT weekend....with lots of watching & no waiting  :)  Most of all, that His patience surrounds you...and your eyes are lenses into this amazing world He has made!  Sweet blessings!

Cheering....

Rah, Rah, Rah....Go, fight, win...

Give me a P....A....T...what does that spell....

Cheering....when I was in grade school  I always wanted to be a cheerleader...I know , REALLY???  But, somehow I thought it would be fun to wear the cute little skirts, have pom-poms to swish and yell out cheers to those hard-working players!  But, I was way toooo shy in high school to ever actually even try out...I know, I know...me shy...well, it's true I was SO shy & quiet  (& really a wall-flower  :D) until I hit college!!!

Being a cheerleader really is all about being encouraging, uplifting, an untiring support system, a team player...all while getting to say really fun made up words and chants!  Well, lately, I've been thinking a LOT about being a cheerleader again....not in the same sense as when I was 12....but, still thinking of how I can still be a cheerleader everyday if I want! 

HOW???

Well, first and foremost....I'm feeling over & over again God calling me to be my husband's cheerleader...to be the one that says....WAY TO GO....GREAT JOB...GO PAT.....Not just with my words, but with my actions, the tone of my voice, the way I respond to him.  Somehow, I think I'm much better at cheering others on than him.  And, when I think about it...who really needs that more from me...the world Or my husband????  He works so hard for us...is such a great provider, and yet, somehow it seems he usually doesn't get the best from me???  I don't know why that is....maybe it's because he gets the REAL me..(the one that does have grumpy moments, the one that sometimes has a way of saying "that's not going to work" to his ideas...the one that likes to be in control of things at home....).  BUT...

What IF...the REAL me he gets is the one that encourages, uplifts, supports, nurtures, dreams with him???
What IF....I become the one that is his biggest Fan???
The P..A...T... Cheerleader...???

Well, I'm on a mission right now to give that a try....
Starting March 1st, I decided that every. single. day this month I would make a point of telling him things I Love, admire, adore, and am so proud of him for.....just 5 little sentences....5 little chances each day to cheer his heart on....because my Mr. is gone most of the week...I just send him an email with my list of 5 admiration's.....nothing else said, or mentioned later...just the email sent . (period).

I'm hoping the list and the words will bring extra love and joy to his heart and day....and the clincher is...as I take time each day to write down words from my heart...my heart is being refreshed, renewed, and filled to overflowing with LOVE & joy too...I'm actually seeing the man I Love through different eyes....and, being reminded over & over again why I fell in Love with him 26 years ago on that Eastern Oregon State College campus  :)

We are on day 7 in March and # 35 on my list  :)

So, what about you??? Who are you being a cheerleader for....who is God placing upon your heart to stand up and cheer on???  Being a Cheerleader REALLY is ...F...U....N!!!     So give me a S..W..E..E..T... B...L...E...S...S...I...N...G...S!!!

Country Livin'

Country Livin'....that's what I'm living....in the Country..surrounded by all that it offers...

*Neighbors that look out for one another...
*Earth filled with rows & rows of crops...a farmer's way of life...their income
*The sounds of dogs barking, roosters crowing, cows mooing...an occassional whinny...
*Mornings that start with seeing the sunrise and chores waiting to be done...
*Evenings filled with warm sunsets as once again chores are done and another day sets...
*Air filled with the sweet smells of country livin'  (okay, sometimes the aromas aren't that sweet  :D)

Country Livin' also can offer an adventure or two from time to time....and that's what today brought...

I was just getting out of the shower (I had spent the morning just relaxing and taking it easy..because it's my day off and it's nice once in awhile to NOT have to be in a hurry  !!!)  When I hear a LOUD knock at the door..."Who could it be"....I quickly hurried to get dressed and went to the kitchen to look out the window and see if there was still a vehicle there....No car....but as I looked out I saw the neighbor's horse standing straight across the road munching on the green-ness popping up!  I open the front door to see if the neighbors are in sight and were the one's knocking...needing help...no ONE in sight...but, I do see a car I don't recognize turning down their driveway...my assumption that it was the nice person trying to find who the lone horse belonged too.....I grab my farming coat, my hair still wet and tucked in the towel, head out to grab the halter that hangs on the fence next to our horse pens and head toward the road to see if I can catch Kilo...who happens to have lived in the neighboring pasture the whole 18  years we've lived in our house!!  (I don't really think of myself as a horse whisperer...or even a horse-girl...but, I do know how to put a halter on one if I need too  :D!)
    I get close to him, trying to make sure he stays off the busy country road that goes by our house....of course he is lovin' the green bites and just keeps walking ahead of me....I back off...as a car is approaching...the same car I had seen head down then neighbors driveway.  By now, Kilo is starting to think of crossing the road....the car heads him off and he crosses to the ditch road that runs behind our place....the neighbors behind us have many horses...the sweet lady stops and asks if it is my horse..and I tell her "Nope" it's my neighbors...she was worried and had been the one that had stopped and knocked...I asked if she had a cell phone so I could try to call my neighbors while Kilo was safe from the road, he still wasn't in a place to stay.  She handed me her phone, no answer...then, I called the neighbor (who happens to be my hay man too  :D)  No answer as he was on his 4-wheeler feeding his own horses...then, the lady offered to give me a ride over to his place....what a sweet, sweet, caring lady!  Once there, the neighbor's Mrs. came out to help...we thanked the "angel in disguise" introduced ourselves, and went our seperate ways.....Thankfully, the Mrs. had some grain and we were able to entice Kilo to us....I haltered him and we were off ...heading back to his own pasture...  Of course, that meant walking along the road (did I mention cars drive WAY TO FAST on it...) and, I wasn't sure how well Kilo would lead for me...so, you know I was praying for NO traffic until I got him home...and you know what...God is so good..there wasn't one single car that came along the whole 10 minutes it took me to get him home!!!!   And...just as I closed the pasture gate...help showed up!!!  It was ALL good...

And, it simply does feel GOOD to be able to help my neighbors...because one tooooo many times they've been there to help me!  So, country livin'...IT is a GREAT thing!  And, it's also so heart-warming to know there are still people out there willing to help a stranger (or strange animal that is  :D)!!!

Another Friday filled with fun...and ending with many Sweet blessings!  Wishing everyone a weekend that is filled with HIS GOODNESS and a chance to see the Good in this World we live in!  Sweet blessings!

Welcome March!

Welcome March!  So, so glad you are here....and so excited to see what you will bring....

~ Hoping for some Sunshine & seeing the new life it brings to the earth
~Looking forward to longer days of light
~And, still patiently waiting for my 3 late bloomers to have their baby calves  :D
~JDiscovering over & over again at God's timing

 My Day 1 of  March was filled ....

*filled with text messages sharing Good  GREAT news!
*Pizza & spiritual conversations
* A 3 year old that wanted to spit...literally spit..and so she did in the garbage until she was tired of it  :D
* Another 3 year old who's teddy beat couldn't keep it's pants up (gotta love those Build-a-Bears!!!)
*Coming home to find my Mr. cooking up some Tenderloin Steaks..Mmmmm....left-overs for me tomorrow :D
*Celebrating a co-worker's birthday
*fixing my right back blinker...all.by.myself  :D
*breathing deep....listening close....and finding Jesus more & more

Wishing each of YOU a March filled with wonder & amazement...and the gifts of watching the earth come alive again, of new life happening all around....and smiles that just make your hearts happy!  Sweet blessings!