my blessed life

Well, after hearing so much about this book lately, I have finally read it. It is definitely worth the read! Even though this is a work of fiction, the author shares some deep spiritual truths, I thought. Reading his thoughts on God and his relationship to mankind definitely challenged my religious *box*--in a good way! The cover of the book says: Mackenzie Allen Philips' youngest daughter, Missy, has been abducted during a family vacation and evidence that she may have been brutally murdered is found in an abandoned shack deep in the Oregon wilderness. Four years later in the midst of his Great Sadness, Mack receives a suspicious note, apparently from God, inviting him back to that shack for a weekend. Against his better judgment he arrives as the shack on a wintry afternoon and walk back into his darkest nightmare. What he finds there will change Mack's world forever. In a world where religion seems to grow increasingly irrelevant The Shack wrestles with the timeless quest...

We are getting ready for a little family getaway, so it may be a few days before I get a chance to post again. But I'll be back very soon! In the meantime scroll down to the next post and check out Vince's latest video. Have a blessed weekend!

OK, once again I'm shamelessly promoting my hubby's videos. He's in the semi-finals for the Klondike Bar contest. If you'd like to help him (us) out, you can: go to www.klondikecontest.com register for free give his video an awesome rating! Hope you enjoy it!

Just thought I'd pass along some links to some recent posts that might be helpful for newer bloggers (like ME). These have some awesome tips for us all. ~ BooMama shares some of what she talked about at SheSpeaks here . ~The gals over at Blissfully Domestic help you narrow down the focus of your blog. I've also found Blogging Basics 101 to be very helpful when I've had questions about blogging. Have a blessed day!

This past weekend I took a little overnight trip to Memphis with four of the ladies who work with me in the youth department at church. It was strictly all play and no work! It's been a long time since I've done anything like that. Since none of us had ever really spent any time in Memphis before, we were totally the dorky tourists. It was quite funny! First off, we hit Beale Street which is famous for its jazz music. at Hard Rock Cafe on Beale Street (I'm in pink) We had fun checking out the rock star stuff at HRC and then strolling down the street a little. It was mostly just a lot of free-flowing beer (which is not my scene at all) and some trashy tourists shops. There was some great live music going in lots of little spots though and some cool music history. But when we saw the horse and carriage rides, we had to do that. It was so much fun! Our driver took us all over the downtown area for some great sights. Along with some awesome historical sights we even saw the bu...

Well, it's going to be a busy one this week. Last week the menus really helped me out and I definitely got creative with the leftovers and cleaned out my fridge without much waste (yeah!). This week I'm going to have more fun since the leftovers are out of the way. Monday: grilled chicken breasts, salad, veggie Tuesday: grilled burgers & fries (I think I'll try Betsy's Hawaiian burgers ) Wednesday: (meal at church) Thursday: small group (Italian night--I'll be making homemade pizza ) Friday: youth luau party (teryaki chicken, sesame almond salad , rice, grilled pineapple) If you're in need of some dinner plan inspiration, head over to Laura's at I'm an Organizing Junkie and check out about a zillion menu plans!

Reese & Heather over at Kicking it in Crazyville have this fun weekend thing going called *Know & Tell* Friday. I've been enjoying reading their posts on this for the past few weeks, and this week I thought I'd finally join in the fun. ~Which is your favorite season? Why? Well, I really do love having all four seasons, it just makes the year so interesting, but if I had to choose one it would be Fall. Maybe it's because my birthday is in the fall or the weather is so lovely or the trees are so beautiful, but I really do LOVE Fall. ~Are you a bikini or one piece gal? Do the same rules apply to your daughter, if you have one? I have not worn a bikini since I was 4 years old--and things will stay that way! I do actually wear a 2-piece, although it wears like a 1-piece. It's a tankini that has a skirt bottom (read: good coverage!) My daughter has 1-pieces and 2-pieces, but this will probably be the last summer for her to wear bikinis--only 1-pieces and tankinis fr...

Here in our little area of Alabama known as *The Shoals* is a treasure built by Frank Lloyd Wright. The Rosenbaum House, finished in 1940, is one of Wright's Usonian houses. The Rosenbaum family lived in it until 1999 when they sold it to the city of Florence and now you can tour it. I've been wanting to do this ever since we moved here two years ago. Unfortunately , I still haven't been able to; however, last week when my husband's sister and her husband were here he was able to take them. It had been a busy morning and I really needed to stay home so Mr. B could nap--and of course the nap won out! But Vince took some great pics and told me all about it (which only makes me want to see it more!). So I thought I would share a little with you about it. The Rosenbaum House the kitchen (enlarged in 1948) Wright did not believe in putting lots of things in your home. He was into efficiency: not much closet space, tiny kitchens, lots of built in storage and the doorways ...

Well, today wraps up the Spring Reading Thing challenge over at Callapidder Days . If you participated, how'd you do? I did pretty fair on my list . I had 11 books and I actually got 8 of them read. There were a few that I just didn't get around to and a few more that weren't on the list that I read anyway. I did get reviews done on all of the ones I read that were on my original list. If you're wondering about a certain book, you can most likely find a review on this list (there are over 400 reviews from the challenge!). This was the first time that I've participated in one of Katrina's challenges and it was good, fun accountablility. Hopefully she'll have another challenge for us this Fall. I still have quite a little stack beside my nightstand that I'm working on. The Shack, by William P. Young(currently reading) Educating the Wholehearted Child, by Clay & Sally Clarkson (currently reading) The Frazzled Female, by Cindi Wood (currently reading...

Well, one of my favorite bloggers, The Nester , is have a little bloggy carnival thing celebrating the fact that It Doesn't Have To Be Perfect To Be Beautiful (otherwise known as IDHTBPTBB). She has challenged us to show the imperfect side of our lives (you know, the ones that we don't usually post pics of) and celebrate it! This has actually be sort of on my mind lately anyway. I tend to be a *bit* of a neat freak and a *little* retentive about stuff and I'm sure I drive my family crazy-ha! Now, while I'm not going to stop trying to teach my kiddos good habits concerning picking up their toys, I am trying to be more postive about it. Even when I want to scream after realizing that you can't even see the carpet in the family room, I stop to remember WHY its such a mess. Its because I have been blessed incredibly with two precious children! If there were no mess, that would most likely mean that there were no children in my life. So, with that in mind, the mess is ...

Well, its late in the day, but I've decided that its time to get back in the saddle again! I've been missing my menu plans. So here's what's cookin' for this week: Monday: roast, carrots, potatoes, asparagus (leftovers) Tuesday: BBQ stuffed potatoes (made with leftover bbq ribs & chicken) Wednesday: taco salad (made from the Mexican night leftovers) Thursday : Osaka's Japanese Steakhouse with the college ministry Friday/Saturday: dining in Memphis with some girlfriends! As you can see I've got a fridge full of leftovers from the past few days that I need to get creative with. So if you have any other great ideas for these leftovers, feel free to leave me a comment with all the details! Oh--and don't forget to check out more great menu ideas over at I'm An Organizing Junkie . ~~~~~ Last night at our youth service we had a time of appreciation for our youth coaches who volunteer so faithfully every week and go above and beyond the call of duty...

God calls each generation to pass down spiritual truth to the next. Dennis Rainey Happy Father's Day to my wonderful hubby! I'm so proud of him. He is a godly father, leading our children in the paths of righteousness. May you have a great day, Honey!!

I've been hearing about this book for a while now. At first the title threw me off, I thought it was a novel or something. However, it is a book about *repainting the Christian faith*. What the author, Rob Bell, is saying by that is simply digging in and "asking the difficult questions of what it means to be a Christian here and now, in this place, in this time". This book really spoke to me--I plan to read it again very soon and ponder it some more (even the endnotes are awesome!). Rob Bell's writing is very transparent and challenging. He digs deep into the history and foundations of the Christian faith, making our faith even more relevant for today. So if you'd like to get real with your faith and ask yourself some soul-searching questions, this would be a wonderful book to read. I highly recommend it. It makes you (*gasp*) THINK!! I'll leave you with what Rob Bell says on the back cover: We have to test everything. I thank God for anybody anywhere who is ...

Happy 40th Anniversary, Mom & Dad! What a wonderful example you have both been to me through the years. I'm praying that you have a fantastic anniversary trip this week! Can't wait to hear all about England and Scotland!

I was born in Fort Smith, Arkansas I've lived in three different states besides Arkansas My adolescent years were spent in Ohio I went to college in Missouri Now I live in Alabama I've also lived in two other countries I celebrated my first birthday in Jamaica The summer I was sixteen I lived in South Africa Blue is probably my very favorite color: all shades! Blue & white is a favorite combination, too Reading is my favorite pastime My favorite thing to read is a good mystery When I was a girl I wanted to be Nancy Drew when I grew up Or maybe Trixie Belden I'm also a bit of a magazine junkie and I love to read aloud to my kiddos I played with barbies until I was in 7 th grade Paperdolls , too--they were the best! I kept my favorite ones I got my first camera (a Holly Hobby one) when I was 4 I have 43 full photo albums + some scrapbooks I'm obsessive about always dating my photos on the back And having them all in order Much to my husband's chagrin, I hate star...

Hello! Hope everyone is having a great week. Ours is going great, just very busy. Vince's sister and her husband are here visiting for a few days and we are having a great time with them. So we're off to do some shopping, sightseeing and swimming...I'll be back soon. Oh--and it looks like my big 100th post is coming up and I've been working on the *big list* for you.

Today my little man turns *3*. I can hardly believe it! We've had a lot of fun this weekend celebrating his big day. My parents came down from Arkansas and we had a few of his little friends over for a *dinosaur party* yesterday. Of course, you can't have too many "organized" activities with little ones, but I have to give my husband props for creating an awesome game that they all enjoyed. He downloaded a template of a stegasauras from the web and used his *hot knife* to create a dinosaur puzzle out of foam. (He loves to create with foam!). Here's what it looked like: Pretty cool, huh? And here is the birthday boy putting in a piece of the puzzle: We hid the pieces around the yard (Easter-egg-hunt style) and the kiddos ran around, found them and filled in the gaps on the dino. Next we had dinosaur cupcakes: I had a hard time finding dinosaur things--I guess it's not the year for them. However, my sister had gotten Mr. B a package of all these little dinosaurs...

A letter from a far-away friend brings a smile to my face and joy to my heart all day long!

The Pioneer Woman is cooking up some yummy-looking crash hot potatoes that I've got to try. I love potatoes baked with olive oil!! Learn how to recycle your kiddos' artwork with this project at Secret Agent Josephine . I can't wait to try this--I'm drowning in my children's artwork! I'm feeling good about my health after reading that blogging is good for you over at Blissfully Domestic ! Blissfully Domestic also has some great ideas for getting rid of your *stuff* at a yard sale . I'm getting ready to have one with some girlfriends next weekend, so I need all the tips I can get! And, finally, a wonderfully inspiring post by Sally Clarkson about seizing the special moments with your children. This is stuff to apply everyday!! And now I'm off to Hobby Lobby to do some birthday party preparation! Have a wonderful day!

He's done it again! Vince's most recent YouTube contest entry has made it to the Top 20 for Ford's Sync This Contest! Whoo Hoo!! You can go here , type Leadrunner in the contest search box and his video will pull up (you can also just scroll down and look for Leadrunner in the favorites box--it's #4). Then vote for it (*Thumbs Up* please) once a day until the end of the contest which is June 4th. We would really appreciate your votes. Hope you enjoy it!

Well, I'd planned to do a *weekend recap* post, but now it's Tuesday and, well, the weekend is a distant memory. I really thought things were going to slow down a little when summer came-- what was I thinking ?!? Those lazy hazy days of summer are so over for me apparently. I did have a great time this past weekend visiting with my friend Nancy. We've actually gotten to see each other twice this year. Usually its once every few years or so. She was visiting her parents, who live in my state, so we met at a park in a centrally-located city and enjoyed some time visiting and letting our children play together. Our daughters are probably a lot like we were playing together at those ages. Now...I'm busy planning my son's birthday party for this weekend, getting ready for my parents to come this weekend, getting ready for my sister-in-law and her hubby to come next week, and training my replacement as the nursery director at our church. I'm really glad to be wrappi...

"One sure way to lose another woman's friendship is to try to improve her flower arrangements." Marcelene Cox **Don' t worry, this isn't a threatening statement. I just think this quote is hilarious!