Till Tuesday

Time for my Monday computer break, see you all on Tuesday!!!

Ella And The Elephants

This week was Ella's birthday, and she is five years old now! Here she is standing in front of her cake, getting so grown up looking, but still as sweet and tender-hearted as ever! All other pictures after the cake are from different times in the past. For my new followers, Ella is the little girl we have been helping care for almost since she was born, she is like a granddaughter to us.. Anne Marie, who is on this blog frequently also, is our granddaughter.

Elephants have brains very similar to human brains, and they are really smart. They can play, mimic, express grief, and use tools.You know that old saying that an elephant never forgets? Well, that is true!! Elephants have very good memories, they will remember people who have mistreated them years layer, and hold a grudge. How wonderful that God doesn't hold a grudge when we misbehave! Unlike the elephant, he not only forgives our sins, but FORGETS them!!


"For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."
Hebrews 8:12


"For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us."
Psalm 103:11,12

Mug Shots

Well, what have we here? We were out driving and came up behind this man on a bike...with lots of mugs strapped to his back! What the...? So we  stalked  followed him at a safe distance for awhile, but got no clues. Got any ideas? Here are a few of my favorite mugs. The last picture is a mug stack I just brought home tonight, 20% off at Pier 1!


Mugs and cups have been found carved from bone dating back to the stone age. The first ever coffee shop was in Constantinople in 1475. In 1748, Britain banned coffee, and coffee mugs, leading to black market mugs!! I think this must be the most famous cup of all:


"Taking the cup and thanking God, he gave it to them. "Drink this, all of you. This is my blood, God's new covenant poured out for many people for the forgiveness of sins. I'll not be drinking wine from this cup again until that new day when I'll drink with you in the kingdom of my Father."
Matthew 26:27,29

Holding On And Letting Go

In an old fashioned baby carriage

Mom and me. I was not happy that day, scared of the camera!

At Work

Her Church Picture

My son and my mom

Getting an infusion at the Cancer Center

My mom passed away four years ago; if she had lived she would be 84 today. At seven, she got severe asthma and had to spend a lot of her time in  hospitals and oxygen tents, nearly dying, but holding on. She was never to return to school. Yet from the age of sixteen, she worked all her life. She got many awards. For the last twenty years before she retired at sixty five, she held onto two full time jobs, working sixteen hours a day with no days off. When she was over sixty, she was mugged. She held onto her purse for dear life while the mugger dragged her. When she finally lost her battle with cancer, the doctors removed all her tubes and I.V.'s, and she held on much longer than most, almost two weeks. Her greatest lesson to me was holding on, yet this time she had to let go, and so did I. There is a time to hold on and a time to let go, and for me, letting go is the hardest.


"Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away."
Matthew 24:35


"By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you."
1 Cor. 15:2

Tiger, Tiger

Tiger, tiger burning bright
In the forests of the night
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?


When the stars threw down their spears
And watered heaven with their tears
Did He smile His work to see?
Did he who made the lamb make thee?
Excerpt from William Blake's "Tiger"


One Tiger Lily was all I saw, as we drove past. One Tiger Lily in a front yard that was otherwise covered with ivy. The sun was directed at it.


There is a legend that says a hermit once saved the life of a wounded tiger. In the afterlife, the tiger became a Tiger Lily, and he spread his flowers everywhere searching for the hermit, who had died. He followed him even after death. We can follow one who died, but did not remain dead. He died to give us eternal life, and all we have to do is follow...


'My sheep recognize my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them real and eternal life. they are protected from the Destroyer for good. No one can steal them from out of my hand."
John 10:27,28

Window Washer Seeking Employment

Who needs a good window washer? Her wages are not much, she will work for just a few chocolates and some stuffed animals. And she will bring her own cleaning supplies, which consist of one green squirt frog. O.K. I confess, this is our granddaughter Anne Marie, and ours are the only windows that she will be washing. That is because we have the cool green squirt frog. Uh oh, in the last picture she has him aimed at Phil; good thing he is on the other side of the door! We ourselves can be washed so clean that we actually become brand new, not just old and cleaned up.  When we come to God sincerely, we are never too dirty.


"I'll pour pure water over you and scrub you clean. I'll give you a new heart, put a new spirit in you. I'll remove the stone heart from your body and replace it with a heart that's God-willed, not self-willed. I'll put my spirit in you and make it possible for you to do what I tell you and live by my commands."
Ezekiel 36: 25,27

We have a winner!! Butterfly Award

I have a winner for the Vera Bradley purse! I put all your names in this basket, mixed them up and drew one without looking. The winner is Ruth Hiebert of RUTH'S PHOTO BLOG.  
Congratulations to my friend Ruth! Check out her blog, she posts wonderful nature photos! To the rest of you, don't despair, I plan on having many more giveaways!

Shanda, from A PAUSE ON THE PATH, gave me this Butterfly Award! Thank you, Shanda! To accept it, I have to:
1. Refer back to the person who gave me the award
2. Answer the questions below
3. Pass it on

Questions

Name you favorite color

Teal

Name your favorite song

Have too many

Name your favorite dessert

ice-cream

What wizzes you off?
People being mean

When you're upset, you
Talk about it

Your favorite pet
Cats

Black or white?
White

Your biggest fear
Again, too many


Best Feature
Haven't a clue!


Everyday attitude
Servanthood

What is perfection?
Jesus

Guilty pleasure
Purses, shopping

I'm passing this blog award on to:
Shug at MY STEPS OF FAITH