a 14 hour road trip

David just gave us a call. He said that they would be in sight of Indianapolis any minute now.

Erika has declared Lucy well......she ate all of the meat out of her roast beef sandwich at Arbys.

There were no more unfortunate incidents in the van.

Surely God heard our prayers and has been merciful to the weary travelers.

Bubba and I took a bike ride a little bit earlier. We saw two deer, two real bluebirds (my favorite bird), and a turtle crossing the road.

God manifests His love and care for us in so many ways.

My heart is full of thankfulness just now. cathy

i opened a window for her

Maude was spending a lot of time in the guest room after her family left this morning.

While cleaning, I opened a window for her.

Then I placed my chair next to the window for her to sit on. (there is a ridge in the window sill)

She sat for a long time and looked longingly out of the window.

It will be a while before she sees them again. I kinda feel sorry for her.

David just called. They were in Atlanta on Cleveland Ave. and Lucy had just thrown up all over the van. She inherited her mom's bad bug. Let's all pray that she will feel better and they will be able to continue their trip home.

my little shadow

Tomorrow they have to go home. The week seems to have flown by.

They will leave very early in the morning and drive all the way to Indianapolis, Indiana, where the other set of grandparents live.

I will be very sad to lose my little shadow.

Lucy likes to be with me during the whole getting ready process in the morning..........from shower to lipstick she is there. If I brush my hair, she brushes hers. Whatever make-up I apply she gets the same put on her lovely little face. I let her play with my jewelry (things I don't wear anymore), and put on my shoes. She lathers my lotion on herself and me. She asks what everything is and what it does. I let her play in the basin with the water running.

Not to leave out little Harry, but he is a guy and he doesn't care that much about things in a ladies boudoir. He is good for hugs and kisses and great big smiles. He likes for me to hold him in the standing position and never stop. He is very strong and will be walking soon, I think. I like to take him outside and enjoy with him the great wide sky, the cool breezes, and the joy of being in the grass.

They will live here soon. My mind can't fathom that.

From the beginning of David's life, I prayed for him that God would use him in His good work on this earth. When God took him far away for seminary and then on to Chicago, I would remember my prayers and resign myself that he would always live far away, maybe even abroad.

God in His mercy had given me the grace to let him go and actually be happy and glad for him wherever he went. Along the way he met Erika, and was blessed with Lucy and Harry.

Now they are coming back home. Praise be to God for the wonder of it all.

Psalm 115:14 & 15 "May the Lord give you increase, you and your children." May you be blessed of the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth."

I'm praying for four now instead of just one. You have a great task ahead.

I love you all....mom

sleep like a baby

Harry's eyes are so beautiful. He is happy all of the time.

Having a snack with grammy.

Lucy dressed for church.

Our lawn party.

This book is our absolute favorite to read. It is short and it has rhythm.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Not much to say on this beautiful Sunday evening.

I just washed Lucy's dirty feet, read four books, and kissed her goodnight. Harry went to bed a little before her. Both are snuggled in. David and Erika left earlier to have an outing together. She is much better, thankfully. They are hoping to be able to salvage the next two days.

We all went to church together this morning.

A reason to read God's word daily:

"He who gives attention to the word shall find good, and blessed is he who trusts in the Lord." Proverbs 16:20

God keeps His promises ya'll. If you want to find good give attention to God's word every day.

Hope you sleep like a baby tonight....c

lucy let loose

Lindsey Jacobs with her first cousins once removed, Harry and Lucy.

Lucy let loose with the watering hose.

Some times things don't always work out like you plan. Erika has been sick almost since

they arrived in Savannah on Wednesday. A stomach bug has taken away her will to live. She is better today and we are thankful.

We have all rested this afternoon. David is playing a round of golf with his friend Jason and Harry and Lucy just got up from their naps. The excitement begins all over again!

David and his family are moving to Savannah to start a church. There is a great need in this area for what we like to call sound biblical teaching. This has been a call on David's heart for quite a while.

The logistics of carrying out this plan are to the secular or human mind "craziness." They will be leaving a good job, a thriving ministry, a lovely home, and lots of dear friends.

This trip is for the purpose of finding a job to support them while they are in the planning stages of building this ministry.

God has provided a home for them. They will be living in Estelle's house recently vacated by Nana and Aunt Dottie. This is a rich blessing and a good start.

I would ask for prayer for them as they embark on this walk of faith. We pray that God would go before them and make their pathway straight. That He would lead and guide them as very important decisions are made, and that He would provide His comfort and peace as they leave the known and comfortable and head out into unknown venues.

II Timothy 4:2-5 "Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires;

and will turn away their ears from the truth, and will turn aside to myths.

But you, be sober in all things, endure hardships, and do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry."

These verses describe what David has been called to do.

circle of love

David snapped this picture of Lucy at the breakfast table yesterday morning.....

Erika is better.....

will blog later....c

she is here

Maude, my new boarder and grandcat, has arrived.

She traveled in a very small cat carrier. The trip was hard on her. I won't go into any details.

She is sniffing everything, trying to determine her territory.

We don't know where her hiding/rest place is yet. I think she is glad of that.

Her litter is upstairs in the bathroom......her food in the laundry room.

She shows a tenative acceptance.

She meows a lot.....she is trying to tell her story.

I think she is beautiful. She hasn't revealed her feelings for me yet.

Erika is sick in the bed. I snuck in here quietly to get off a blog.

She sleeps.....I write. Maybe there'll be more later.

she is on her way

I mentioned earlier that David, Erika, Lucy, and Harry are coming for a visit this week.

Even as we speak David and his dad are having a very loud discussion on whether they should take I75 or I64 out of Louisville. I always wonder why some men talk so loudly when they get on the phone, but that's a different blog.

In the car with them is their cat Maude.

You say.....why is the cat coming on such a long journey? The answer is that last week David called me (not his dad) and convinced me that we would be honored to have Maude live with us for the next four months. The last thing I remember telling him was that I would talk to Bubba and get back to him. How we got from that point to Maudes imminent arrival is beyond me.

I thought I was done with cats. No cat could ever take "my girls" place in my heart. The days of cat litter, hairballs, cat hair, and guilt for leaving without them was over for good....or so I thought.

Tomorrow, just after lunch, Maude will arrive in all her glory. She will win me over as she looks with adoring eyes at her "substitute mistress." I will grow to love her and then have to give her back......but that's okay. That's the way it is with grandmothers of cats.

I finished the book "Dead Heat" just now. It left me breathless and numb. The ending was totally unexpected. It was a page turner to say the least.

Because this was the last book in a series of five I will go to Amazon and order the first four immediately.

I share with you today the flowers above. I guess by now you know I love fresh flowers. The pink in these daisys is amazing. The little green vase belonged to my great grandmother, Shelley Crosby. I can still see her face in my mind even though she died many years ago.

I am awed by the beautiful things that God gives us to enjoy. Just seeing these flowers is proof of our awesome God's existence. No one on this earth can make a flower, only God can do that work. I praise Him this evening for His bountiful blessings to all of us.

Watching the sunset........cathy

"come outside and calm your soul'

I gave this book to Bubba for his birthday on Saturday. He was done with it last night and he handed it to me to read. I must say that I cannot put it down.

Yesterday and today were designated "rest days" for me by my husband. My Chicago babies are coming on Wednesday and he wants me to be in good shape for their visit. So what is my activity of choice? Reading this book (and sleeping a little bit).

As of right now I have read 136 pages and I will be reading on into this night. The book is fiction. It was written by Joel C. Rosenburg. The Washington Times says it this way, ".....his novels seem to be ripped from the headlines ---next years headlines."

Joel is a Christian and writes from that perspective intertwining prophecy from Scripture into his books. This one is chilling and fascinating. You may want to consider this read.

I have taken to riding my bike around and about in the late evening. It is relaxing and interesting. Sometimes I stop and tour houses that are built and not sold. A few of them have gone into foreclosure.......brand new beautiful homes. This is a sure sign of the times we are living in.

I mentioned a couple of blogs ago about the return of Jesus. We are to be watching diligently for His imminent return. We are to be preparing because when He actually appears it will be too late. We let so many things distract us, don't we.

I read this verse this morning; Paul speaks to the Corinthians and to us:

"But I am afraid, lest as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds should be led astray from the simplicity and purpose of devotion to Christ." II Corinthians 11:3

Let's purpose in our hearts and minds to seek Christ every day in His word and in prayer.

A single-minded, simple devotion to Him.

Someone once said, "Come outside and calm your soul."

Do it.....take a deep breath and let the cares of the world go their way. We are waiting for the King to come. Nothing else really matters but that one single event.

the bird house

Early this morning while I was sitting in my chair reading my Bible I had an unexpected visitor.

A little brown sparrow flew right in the open door and made himself at home.

For just a brief moment he was an amusement to me and then he started flinging himself at the screens in the open windows.

Bubba was upstairs reading, and not wanting to disturb him I started making my own plans for the little bird's rescue. Immediately I thought........broom. I will guide him out with a little nudge from the bristles.

Didn't work! He started flying all through the house. There was no other recourse now but to disturb Bubba. He came down, grabbed a dirty towel, and started his attemps to catch him with same. No luck! Finally I opened the front door and he flew straight out in a couple of minutes.

After this craziness subsided I settled back down to read some more.

Within five minutes a mocking bird flew in, landed on the table, took one look at me, and flew back out.

No bird had ever come into our house before this day.

They can't be begging me to feed them because I have provided a whole feeder full (pictured above) which they have yet to touch.

Maybe they got word that I looked funny and they were coming in to see for themselves.

Matthew 10: 29-31 "Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. therefore do not fear; you are of more value than many sparrows."

My little visitor this morning reminded me of this verse and God's care for all of us.

from cathyc

it was a great party

Here is Bubba opening a gift

I gave Bubba a bike for his birthday. This is Robbie riding it

Here is our table laden with food

We honored Aunt Dottie on her 89th birthday. she loved the good food.

Leave it to me to malfunction the pictures. All of them came out in black and white.

Those are shrimp on the table. We had a low country boil.

Everything was perfect.....love c

tired moma

Company is coming in tonight.

Robbie and Mary Ann will be arriving soon.

I have worked all day to get the house clean and ready. My absolute worst job is to clean the floors. I always put it off until I can't put it off any longer. Today was the day it had to be done.

For some reason I have to get on my hands and knees to do this job. Nothing else works for me. So, I let it get really bad and then I torture myself. Please contact me if you have devised a better way.

We are gathering to celebrate Aunt Dottie's 89th birthday on Saturday. Bubba and Robbie will be celebrating their birthdays as well. Our little grandson Jake will be celebrating his third birthday tomorrow, but he will be far away in Virginia. We will miss him.

I love to entertain and hopefully this will be a fun time for all.

On an entirely different note, Bubba is reading a book that J.C. Ryle wrote about the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Mr. Ryle makes the point in the first chapter that we don't think on this truth often enough.

As a matter of fact most of us never think about it at all as we live our busy lives.

But Jesus is literally coming back to this earth in the same way that He left it after His resurrection. That is the promise He gave us. His return will be sudden. There will be no preliminary fanfare to tell us to get ready. Our time to prepare is now, while we are living our life on this earth.

How would we live our lives differently if we were to dwell on the assurance that His appearing could happen at any moment.

Would you be ready? Ponder this question.

Please contact me if you have any doubts as to your readiness. When Jesus returns it will be too late.

"Now is the time - today is the day of salvation!

caring about your soul.....cathy

the mystery gift

Sorry if I offended anyone with my previous blog this morning. I have been thinking about doing that for a while. There was much concern among some closest to me that I was confronting a "blog stalker." Others thought it was downright "rude." It was meant in fun.....truly.

The pictures tonight are courtesy of Bubba. He made me pose sitting under the umbrella. I've been working all day and I protested, but he insisted.

He wanted me to pose a question about one of the items in the pictures above. It has been a long time being utilized partly because we have been houseless for two years. It has now been erected and is in full use.

Who recognizes it as a gift to me long ago?

Also notice my "squirrel proof bird feeder." The first post that we put it on was bent double the next morning. Bubba said I put thirty pounds of feed in it and "what did I expect?" Yesterday I bought a heavy duty post. He used the post hold digger and put it three feet in the ground this time. It should now withstand a lot of feed and a lot of visitors. I hope so.

Another one of those heavenly days.

Psalm 71: 17&18 "O God, thou hast taught me from my youth; and I still declare Thy wondrous deeds. And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Thy strength to this generation, Thy power to all who are to come."

King David wrote these words to "all who are to come." That's us folks.

Have a lovely evening................................c

a question

Whatcha looking for?





Just wanted to know....more later....c

a gardening day

It is one of those days..........I don't want it to end. It is has been the most perfect of days.

Mild, windows open, working outside.

I went to the nursery today and got some plants for planting. They are so pretty.

I thought I would share them with you.

God made all things beautiful and it is a blessing to my soul.

a day to honor mothers

It feels strange to me not to have my mother today.

I am glad to be able to honor her still with my thoughts and memories.

I have been going through some old photos this week and many of them picture her in her healthier days. That is how I like to remember her. She was funny, she was a great cook, she liked to dress stylishly and she loved my babies. She was a great mom.....

I cherish the time spent with her in the nursing home as well. She kept her humor until the end. She loved for me to read the Bible to her and pray with her. Mostly we would sit and look out the window and have quiet talks of mother - daughter things.

I got to watch her take her last breath and I rejoiced as her spirit went to be with our Lord Jesus. She went joyfully and peacefully and because of her example I will never be afraid of dying.

I say to my daughters Amanda and Erika.......God bless both of you in your role of mother today. You who struggle so hard......you who discipline until you are emotionally drained and crying yourself. You both are doing an amazing job with my favorite little people....Jake, Lucy, Eli, and Harry. Your diligent work with these babies is evident when we have them. Keep the faith!

"Raise them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord and when they are old they will not depart from it."

Today Mitch offered himself up to be my surrogate son as neither of my children live close to me. Thanks so much. The food was delicious and the fellowship was great. It was good to be with you and Rita and Estelle and Irvin. As always it is fun to be with the pups and Ginger. They are great entertainers.

It is a blessing to have a mother and to be a mother. It is also a blessing to know that your mother is safely with the Lord when she leaves you here.

Blessings to all of you mothers out there....

the finished project

This is it. It is finally finished. My three dollar chair is beautiful!

Bubba ended up doing the painting for me as I am not much with a paintbrush.

The color that I chose was cocoa by Devine designs. The colors in this line are amazing.

I found the "Vintage blue" ribbon at a store downtown. I so much like ribbons and bows and any thing feminine, but I don't want to go over the top.

Please let me know what you think...ribbon or no ribbon?

I know not to mention my "ailments" but I have to share this funny with you anyway.

This past week I developed a fever blister on my bottom lip. It quickly grew to the size of a cantaloupe, well almost.

I have never had one of these and I was amazed by it. I gave my magnifying mirror a permanent spot on the vanity and watched it get bigger and bigger. I felt like it was taking over my face.

A couple of days ago when I was getting ready to take my shower I looked down on my stomach and noticed a large ring. It was flaming red and its circumference was the size of the mouth of a glass. I thought, "Oh my goodness, some strange virus has overtaken my body."

Bubba was called in to consult and he said it looked like I had pressed something that size to my stomach and caused the indentation.

Thinking back a couple of hours I remembered that my black spray paint can had busted and I was was trying to fix it. I must have pressed the can into my stomach for a long time.

In a couple of hours the huge circle started fading and disappeared.

After many swabs of hydrogen peroxide and L lysine cream the blister is going away too.

I must say I miss the thing. It was intriguing to watch.

change of heart

Ever so often in a believers life we come to the point when we realise that we must take stock of the things that are going on in our heart.

Many times we wait too long to do this and we find ourselves overloaded with the things of the world and distracted from the things of God.

This should be the Christian's ambition:

IICor. 5:9&10 "Therefore also we have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad."

We must persevere in the faith my likeminded believers and friends.

It is always easier to go the way of the world. That is our natural inclination. It is a battle to seek to please God, but we can win the war. One cannot be in the God's word every day without being convicted.

We cannot change our own hearts but we can cry out to God for mercy in our sin and in his grace He will change it for us.

with much love, cathy

squirrel proof bird feeder

Today I had to go into town to do some errands.

One of my stops was Home Depot to buy some black spray paint for a couple of projects.

I said to myself, "I won't need to get a buggy for that small item."

I don't understand why this happens but......there is never a time when I don't need a buggy. I went back outside and got one which I should have done in the first place.

Oh by the way, here in the deep south we call shopping carts "buggies."

My first stop was the cleaning project aisle. I fell for some wet wipe glass cleaner and a huge floor duster mop that I hope will help me to get control of the "dust bunnies" that live on these hardwood floors. I can't wait to try it out.

Next on to the paint aisle where I had to give some advice to some guys who were looking for a shutter color to match a really yellow house. He had chosen some kelly (irish) green spray paint. I went ahead and agreed with him that those two colors were perfect for each other while all the time thinking to myself that the whole scheme was hideous. He went on his way with his friend happily telling him that "a woman" liked his choice.

Oh what have I done to somebody's wife out there?

While in the paint aisle I picked up the black spray paint and a kit to make "new things look old with pewter." A must have!

Lastly I ended up in the bird feeder aisle. We have lots of birdies out here and I thought that I would like to feed them. I proceeded to study all of the troughs. The one I finally chose is squirrel proof. You can see it pictured above. After choosing "southern regional seed" I made my way to the outside and garden area. Thankfully I made it through without buying anything else.

When the check-out lady said $74.59 I almost fainted. That was some expensive spray paint.

If I just hadn't gone back for that "buggy."

a frozen cloth

Bubba sent me a license plate quiz this morning. There were 15 plates and I got 12 right for a score of 80%.

I love to look at license plates. Hardly a car passes that I don't look to see where it is from. There are so many tourists in Savannah that one can get fairly familiar with the different state tags.

I will send the address at the end of the blog....write and let me know how you do.

We have always traveled. When Amanda was six months old we set out for Denver, Colorado, a three day drive. On the third day we drove far into the night because we wanted to make it before 12:00 pm.....It was New Years Eve. I would hold a wet cloth out of the window, it would freeze solid because it was so cold, and we would use that to wipe our faces to keep ourselves awake.

Amanda then celebrated her one year birthday in Wichita Falls, Texas. Bubba had a three month school out there and we rented an apartment.

Our children were practically raised in Washington, DC. There was always a school that lasted for weeks and Bubba wanted us with him. Boy did we see the sights at our leisure. We would invite friends and relatives up and have such a good time.

Only now that Bubba has retired has that kind of traveling stopped. I loved every minute of it. It was special .....................time to be together and share all the joys of seeing this great country of ours as a family.

I am very content to be at home for a while. Our trips now are to see our children and grandchildren which is how it should be.

We are still saving for that one special trip together that we have never taken.

Why do I have a feeling that we won't be alone on that one either?

Remember to let me know how you do........Cathy

http://mentalfloss.com/quiz/quiz.php?q=209

"why didn't you write yesterday?"

This morning Amanda called and said, "Mom, why didn't you write yesterday?"

After contemplating her question for a minute or two I told her that I had writer's bloc. She was stunned! No really, I just didn't feel like writing yesterday. That happens every now and then....just nothing much comes.

Again, thank you for reading. It amazes me that I have a small following. People that check for my writings, that comment, that keep up with me via the e-mail.......what a blessing.

The plant above is called "crown of thorns." Our friends gave us two of these plants several years ago and they are thriving. Bubba's brother kept them in his office and nurtured them during the winter that we were in Washington for which we are greatly appreciative.

The branches of these plants are covered with very hard thorns.

We were sitting on the porch eating dinner last night and we got into a discussion of how one would transplant these monsters to a larger pot (which needs to be done). My suggestion was to wrap it in a blanket. Bubba said if he transplanted them into a bigger container he would not be able to move them in for the winter. We decided they are just fine in the pots they are in.

It is so nice to plant things again. We worked on our containers this weekend, cleaning them and buying new soil. Soon I will have the joy of going to the nursery and choosing the plants to go in them. Not too much this year....just enough to have a little color.

The days are getting warmer and warmer. We are trying to see how long we can go without turning on the air conditioner. I love the fresh air blowing in the windows. As soon as the humidity comes, though, its all over. Savannah summers are almost unbearable.

As I read and write through the Psalms every day I stumble upon nuggets of truth that I have not previously underlined and I wonder why.........then I think, "This was meant for me today," May 5, 2008.

Psalm 69:13 "But as for me, my prayer is to Thee, O Lord, at an acceptable time; O God in the greatness of Thy lovingkindness, answer me with Thy saving truth."

Not give me what I want, or please do this or that. Not deliever me from my sickness or make me rich. Not make this happen or give me this...............

Look closely at what the psalmist David says:

"answer me with Thy saving truth."

Tell us what we need to hear, O Lord. In Your lovingkindness answer us with truth. The truth about You and Your Son Jesus Christ. Answer us with the truth of Your word.....Tell us what you want for us and enable us to be able to accept Your will.

Praise Him, Praise Him, all ye little children.

"giving no cause for offense"

Paul the apostle of Jesus Christ speaking to the Corinthians:

II Corinthians 2:3-10
"giving no cause for offense in anything in order that the ministry (of Jesus Christ) be not discredited, but in everything commending ourselves as servants of God,

in much endurance
in afflictions
in hardships
in distresses
in beating
in imprisonments
in tumults
in labors
in sleeplessness
in hunger
in purity
in knowledge
in patience
in kindness
in the Holy Spirit
in genuine love
in the word of truth
in the power of God
by the weapons of righteousness
for the right hand and the left
by glory and dishonor
by evil report and good report
regarded as deceivers and yet true
as unknown yet well-known
as dying yet behold we live
as punished yet not put to death
as sorrowful yet always rejoicing
as poor yet making many rich
as having nothing yet possessing all things

7:4 After all of this Paul says............"I am filled with comfort, I am overflowing with joy in all our afflictions."

This is evidence of a heart that is right with God.

Can we say in all of our tribulations that we are filled with comfort and overflowing with joy?

Never being perfect while still on this earth, but always striving toward this goal. Again I encourage all of us to seek Him daily in His word and in prayer.

my project

I need a chair for my new computer desk.

I set out today doing something I love to do....visiting used furniture shops.

I had checked all of my favorites to no avail.

I had given up hope when I went to a thrift store I had never been to before. There it was sitting on the sidewalk outside. I couldn't believe my eyes. My grandmother had some chairs like that. I dreaded to see the price.

Getting my glasses out I looked and was stunned. It was $5.00. It was covered with paint smudges, but that's an easy fix.

The store was cash only. I knew I only had $2.00 and some change. I went inside and the lady said I could have it for $3.00. It was close but I met her price.

I just showed it to Bubba. At first he got a bad look on his face, but when I told him I only paid $3.00 he was alright. I have been known to bring home what he and another member of his family have commonly referred to as a "pig in a poke" however that relates.

Now to decide on the right grade of sandpaper and the right color of paint. I will make it a masterpiece.

I still don't know if it is an antique or not, and no Amanda, it is not what I described to you this morning, but it is truly a rare find.

God is gracious......part of this life we live is just downright fun.

This is what He designed us for:

To love Him and to enjoy Him forever.

Thank You dear Lord for all of the blessings of life.

cc