Sunday Dose of Encouragement

Point to yourself and say this out loud:
"I'm somewhere in the future and I look even better than I do now! God loves me! I trust in you Lord."

For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

Saturday Dose of Encouragement

It's a delightful fall day here in Oklahoma. The fall colors are spectacular! *Smile*!
This is the day that the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it!

Wednesday Dose of Encouragement

God loves you with an everlasting love! He knows the number of hairs on your head (and the one's you lost-ha! :) He knows your name, your address, and your age. He knows your strengths, your weaknesses, your desires and your motives. He loves you regardless of circumstances and His love for you will never change. He knows what you have need of before you even ask it (have you sought Him today?). You are His child and He is a good Father!
Casting the whole of all your care on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. 1 Peter 5:7

Elliptical Machine and Tuesday Dose of Encouragement

Hello! Okay, I have a love/hate relationship with an elliptical machine at my gym. I get on it and truly despise the first 15 minutes of my workout. It's pure evil I tell you (ha! ha!)
As I slowly start to run, my mind wanders as to what else I could be doing. I could be getting more sleep, working, driving home, something other than the dreaded elliptical.
Somewhere 15 minutes into the workout a shift in my thinking happens. I start to sweat and I have ran a mile. So I say to myself, "15 more minutes and I'm done, keep going; you can do it." Then about 2 minutes later I'm telling myself, "are you kidding, just quit, go home."
But I am motivated. I will stay on that evil elliptical machine and git-r-done. At about minute 23 I'm covered in sweat and still have 7 more minutes to go. I'm more than halfway done and it's all down hill from there. "Keep going, keep going," I tell myself.
Then I hear the sound of what sounds like the angels singing, *beeeeeeep*. The elliptical goes into cool down mode, and the workout is over. Well at least for the elliptical machine. I still have to do the treadmill and the stationery bike, but we all like each other.
I did another 5 miles today. Yeah! Although, after I made it home, a little girl in my neighborhood came to my door selling chocolate. I bought 2-caramel chocolate bars. Oh well, it's for the *children*! Lol!
But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings of eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31

It's Monday and Dose of Encouragement

Good morning to you! Well, off to work! It's gonna be a great day! Ciao bella!
Anxiety in a man's heart weighs it down, but an encouraging word makes it glad.
Proverbs 12:25

Sunday Dose of Encouragement

Gorgeous! God is so Good! I have resurrection power flowing on the inside of me!

Saturday Dose of Encouragement

God loves me just the way I am! I am looking forward to a great day!

How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!

How vast is the sum of them!

Were I to count them, they would outnumber

all the grains of sand.

Psalm 139:17-18

Tuesday Dose of Encouragement

I love Snoopy! Have y'all been raking leaves yet? The bright side is it's good exercise. I stayed up late watching The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. I *love* old movies. It's a great rainy weather type movie. I ran 5 miles Monday evening. I think I'll take today off, but tomorrow I'll be back at it.
I am totally loving this blog. I haven't figured out all the gadgets yet, but I'll get there. Well, ciao for now!
Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. Psalm 42:5-6

It's Fall Y'all!

I woke up to a rainy Tuesday. This may sound weird, but I like rainy weather. It's a slow rain and chilly outside. The leaves are turning the most beautiful colors. It's fall y'all!

It's Monday, Four Thieves Oil/Vinegar, and Monday Dose of Encouragement

It's another chilly day here in Oklahoma. My days go by sooo fast. I do paperwork for uncontested court pleadings (divorce mostly) so I'm sure you can just guess what my Monday mornings are like! Lol!

There is a lot of *talk* about the H1N1 Virus (Swine Flu). There was a 15 year old that died last week in Tulsa from the virus. The flu season hasn't really even hit yet and already the doctor offices are full.

I make a concoction called the Four Thieves Oil. It comes from a most interesting factual story. History records that the four thieves were arrested for stealing from the homes of the many dead victims of the Black Death Plague that occured in Europe in 1628. Perfumers by day, and robbers by night, these men made a concoction of herbs and essential oils in a base of vinegar and would douse their bodies with this before they went out plundering.

At first the authorities did nothing, assuming that the foolish thieves would die of the plague. However, the robbers continued and people began to wonder why the robbers had not become ill and died. The authorities began to pursue the thieves for their crimes, but also to discover the secret of their immunity to the plague.

The four thieves were eventually caught and were condemned to be burned at the stake for their crimes. However, the King of France offered to mitigate their sentence if they would reveal their secret in how they had been avoiding death by the plague. The thieves told all all, revealing their secret bland of aromatic herbs steeped in vinegar. All four thieves were hung. Thus, the remedy did not fall into obscurity and has been used for centuries since to protect against contagion.

I made the oil and the vinegar back in March of this year. The vinegar takes about 2 months to make, because the herbs must be steeped in raw apple cider vinegar. People swear by this stuff. The oils and herbs used to make it are anti-bacterial. If you would like some of the oil I charge $6.00 for a small bottle (about 3oz). The vinegar takes longer to make (and smells really strong) but if you would like some just let me know.

I love to give others encouragement. The colors in this picture are so beautiful. I'm sure just around the corner there is a farmer's market stand with homemade breads and jellies! Can you smell the hickory wood burning in the air? Remember, you can do all things through Christ Jesus that strengthens you! Philippans 4:13

Have a great Monday!

Me Familia and Hot Chocolate=Love

Thanks Susan for joining my blog! She has a fabulous blog and the retro wedding pic of Mickey and her is sooo precious! It's a rather chilly October night here in Oklahoma. I think I will read a little before retiring and make me familia some hot chocolate. Yum!

My 1st Entry-It's a Go--Hello!

Hi y'all. This is my very first post! A friend at church suggested that I should have a blog. I took her advice and well here we are. I enjoy retro art, like the image above of Dick, Jane, and Sally. Remember them? I also enjoy decoupaging. I recently made a fabulous retro art water can. It was made with retro food labels and ads from the 1920's to the 1960's. I believe I found one that was from the late 1800's. I also *enjoy* making homemade bath and beauty goods. I will post lots of recipes here for y'all. They're really simple and make great gifts.
It's Sunday, and the weather outside is gray, chilly, and yeah good sleeping weather. Raymond and I went to Wagoner, OK yesterday and watched Jenna perform in her play for district competition. She was awarded 2nd best actor of the entire competition. She is so gifted and talented. Her portrayal of a young girl in an abusive relationship was intense. I wanted to go and mama-slam the young man who portrayed the abuser, (hey that's my baby!), but it's "just acting mom" as Jenna would say.
Later we drove to Chouteau, OK, and had dinner at the Dutch Pantry. It's an Amish Restaurant, and the food was delish! However, it's been years since I've eaten there, and the decor is sadly in need of updating. The curtains looked faded, and the walls definitely needed a fresh coat of paint (just sayin). I had the chicken and noodles and Raymond had 2 plates of everything (including dessert). Pops can't pass up a buffet. God love em'. Well I'm off to clean la casa and to get ready for the work day tomorrow. Mondays are always *interesting*!