Another Year

Time flies when you're having fun. Another year is here. Wow. In the final stretch for school and wondering what the next step is. Kinda wondering why I did it- but hey, it was a goal. Check that of my life list. That's a pretty good feeling. Not looking forward to the next step-Looking for a new job scares the you know what out of me- is this a good time to do it? The economy sucks!!!
Things are going pretty well at the church. I'm feeling a little stressed about it. I wonder how preachers' wives do it. Maybe they don't face the same challenges that preacher's S.O.'s do. I sure hope not! I wonder if the conflicts that I face there are normal? I get everything from comments about my relationship, to disrespect for anything and everything that I say or do. Makes me wonder what I'm doing, and why God wants me to do it. One of the best things about it has been the growth in faith I've experienced. I have come to realize that a.- God keeps you going when the going gets rough and b.when He wants you to do something He is consistent. Can't argue with God, ya' know.
Ok- more photos and art work to come. Gallery showing in April- talk about stress. But it's good stress. And I do have a new stress reliever- a new puppy- Mady. Well, it's really Steph's but I get to share. A chi- so small and cute. Once she wakes up I will take a photo and post it. She is so sweet.
Ok- until next time- whenever that might be-
Blessings and love, praise and glory,
TC

Happy 5th of July

Where has the summer gone? The 5th of July already. Wow. Ever want to slow down time? Another 4th come and gone. We didn't make it to the lake this year- the weather wasn't cooperating. But we did make it to the cemetery- and finally got to see Lori's headstone. It's lovely. I think she would appreciate the butterflies on it. They are so her.
Every time I go there with Steph we end up having a conversation about what I would want when I die for a funeral. She's not real thrilled with that conversation. Guess I need to write a will, otherwise I'll end up in some box in the ground. Not a pleasant thought for me.
Oh well, just wanted to say hi to anyone that reads this, and to post a photo from vacation. We watched the fireworks in DC last night on tv, it was an awesome show. Made me a little wistful. Reading's fireworks are tonight, and I'm going to try to get some good photos. So hopefully there will be some of those and of the garden popping up here soon.
Til next time- "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.Matthew 7:7-8

It's been a long time

Where has time gone? I swear (well, not really- usually when I do things like hit my thumb with a hammer...) that I was just on here. I guess I wasn't. Time flies when you're having fun- and even when you're not.

But I've been having fun- the good things first- school is over and (can you believe it?) I passed my math class with a high b. What a shock! I was doing some cleaning today and threw away the d--- math book. It felt so good! I never, ever throw away books- it's against everything I hold dear about the written word- but I had no problems tossing this one.

Life is going pretty well. Almost sounds boring. Church is good- we've started a community garden. It's so exciting to see all the little plants growing. I know, I'm so strange. Richard and I planted 50 baby tomato plants last weekend- and all week I've been worried that they aren't getting enough rain. It's kinda funny to see how I'm reacting to this gardening thing. I've always wanted a vegetable garden-even though I don't eat veggies as a rule- little did I know how much work it is. But it's for a good cause, and I'm getting a pretty good tan out of it-although Richard's will always be better than mine (haha).

Steph and I went to DC last month- hopefully I can post some of the photos we took on here. It was a great time. I love DC- probably my favorite place in the world. I had the best time just being with my daughter. It was truly a blessing. The photo is of a worship service that was being held on the mall the Saturday we were there- it was truly an awesome experience to see all the people spread across the mall, worshiping God. We didn't know it was going on, and just happened to stumble across it. I'm glad we did.

Tomorrow would have been Lori's 45 birthday, so this is a somewhat roug weekend for me. One full of memories of yesterdays' past and of things I won't get to share with her. For over 20 years we spent June 29 together, and July 4, both days just hanging out at the lake. While I know she is in a better place, I can't help but miss her. Sometimes I just want to hear her voice one more time, or share some deep female thing with her.
I guess it's times like these that I truly remember what faith is, what it means to hold on to something I can't see or prove. One step and one day at a time- Lord mostly just one minute at a time.
Til next time
Blessings,
TC

Snow Day!!

Welcome to the blizzard! What a blast this has been- a foot of snow, a day off and fun with the kids. The only downside to this whole snow storm was the fact that this was just not sledding snow. What a bummer. But we shoveled- which really was fun- we went for a walk- which was kinda weird, walking down the middle of the street and not having to worry about getting hit- and we made snowmen and angels. Ok, well, it wasn't really a snowman, per say, more of a snow head- the snow just wouldn't roll right, or maybe it's that it wouldn't pack right- but he's cute.
It really was a gift- I know, that sounds strange, to think of this huge amount of snow as a gift- but it was. God is good. When you can live through something like this, and just enjoy spending the time with your family- well, that's a gift. All good things come from God.
Hope you're enjoying this. Maybe the best thing about it was there was NO political news on today- the blizzard was more important. Thanks be to God!
Blessings- enjoy the beauty and peace,
TC

Paradigms

Or maybe I should call this memories. I had an conversation recently that made me think of the memories we hold onto, that shape us and make us who we are today. Memories of things that happen that change our paradigms. Often those tend to be painful things to remember. Not sure why that is, but as I've thought about it today, I've come to the conclusion that change often doesn't happen without some type of pain. And not all pain is bad.

I found it interesting that this subject would come up. Why, you might ask? Well, over the past few weeks I've pondered certain things, among them the changes that growing older brings. Remember when you were younger, and certain things seemed so easy, or came pretty naturally? An example of this might be reading something- why is it as you grow older your arms need to grow longer- and that never happens?

I was thinking specifically about weight lose. It used to be so easy to lose weight for me. Maybe that was because I spent a good portion of my adulthood battling anorexia. Not that I would have classified it as a battle, it was something I embraced wholeheartedly. This sounds pretty sick- but I enjoyed being a stick. Not that I thought of myself as a stick- or saw myself as one. Oh no, when I looked into the mirror I saw someone who was so fat, so obese, so disgusting. As I look back on photos of that long period of my life I know now that this wasn't true.

It might sound strange, but somewhere in the middle of that mess that was my life God touched me for the first time. It was a life changing moment. And it was painful. I didn't want to change the way I was, because I didn't see what was wrong with it. But God showed me, opened my eyes to what I was doing to myself. Can you imagine looking in the mirror and really seeing yourself as who you are? It was a shock to me- the experience of not seeing the obese person I thought I was, and instead the rail thin, malnourished person I had become.

I wonder why God touches us at certain times? Are these the times when we're too weak to go on, or the times when we're too stubborn to really see what it is we need? As I look back, I wonder why He saved me from myself? What purpose would, will He have me serve? And while I'm asking questions- why is it that I just can't seem to embrace the methods that served me well in the past in weight lose? Hmmm, I wonder if that means I've changed?

'Til Next time,
Blessings,
TC

Weekends

Ever wonder where time goes? For years I worked every weekend, mostly on Sundays, and the just on Saturdays- so having a job that gives me every weekend off is great. I totally embraced being a "9 to 5" gal, and this weekend thing. But I've come to the conclusion that maybe I need a day off on Mondays to recover from the weekend. Wouldn't that be nice? Not that I'm a party animal, or anything like that- it's just that the time goes so fast- trying to get so much done.
One of my goals for 2008 has been to devote time to getting to know God better- might sound silly to some, but it's the truth. It's been a blessing to me to be able to spend time every morning reading the bible. I've found strength in the scriptures that surprised me. One of the things I've tried to do more and more is spend time in prayer- which was a stretch for me- I hold a paradigm close to my heart that says that I am too insignificant for God to listen to, so why would he listen to my prayers. It's been a definite growth lesson to see many of my prayers answered, and to hear the voice of God in the silence.
There really is something to the idea- being still and knowing God. Hope all is well with anyone who reads this.
Blessings,
TC

Trying this again

Ok, it didn't work the first time- so here I am again. Persistence is a good thing, right? Anyway, I'm pasting in a link- if you copy it it will take you to my video on godtube.com. ( another page to manage- haven't done anything with it yet?).

http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=47f21ee5e352cd36218b

Blessings,
Teri