july 4 ~ 2012

Always have loved this picture.

Gus, 

who was born in Ethiopia,

proudly displays his American flag

with Lucy & Harry.

Selling houses,

 Buying houses, 

Getting houses ready to move into.

Probably going through 

one of the busiest times of our lives.

Looks like Dad's house may sell this weekend.

What a blessing.

We offered that one "For Sale by Owner."

Never did anything

 but put out two signs and commit it to daily prayer.

Still no "official" contract though.

So,

we'll see.

Seems as if Estelle's new house is almost ready to be inhabited.

She and I have been busy picking out

beautiful things.....

We always throw in a lunch

which gives us time to talk and catch up.

Estelle,

I just love how it has turned out.

Bubba and I are probably going to sign a contract on a house

on Monday or Tuesday.

I will post a picture as soon as I can legitimately announce it to be ours.

Until then,

I will just say,

It is beautiful and hand-picked for us.

More on that in the next few weeks.

In the meantime.....

I'll be resting this weekend.

cathy

just saying.....

More today than yesterday.

To be loved is a precious gift....

never take it for granted.

red, white, and blueberries

I love to eat blueberries....

keep them in the fridge to munch on during the day.

They are very good,

healthy,

filled with good things for the body.

I googled the ten best foods to eat and here they are...

apples

almonds

broccoli

blueberries

oily fish

leafy green veggies

sweet potatoes

wheat germ

avocados

&

oatmeal.

 Thought I would share this....

Just as the Bible nourishes our soul,

eating the right food

goes a long way to keeping us healthy.

Has anybody noticed what is happening in our country?

Today the Supreme Court

 approved a bill 

that moves us one step closer 

to destroying the family unit as God designed it to be.

Disregarding the Bible,

choosing what seems right in their own eyes,

giving in

rather than standing firm in the truth....

the people who govern our country

 take us merrily down the path of destruction.

Read Romans one...

It explains this situation clearly,

in black and white,

so that we are without excuse.

"take time to coast"

A friend just sent this to me.

I love it!

She knows how much I adore all things ocean.

What makes it even more special is that she

saw this and thought of me.

Make Waves!!!!

one of a kind

I was with my cousin Trish yesterday.

We were having lunch on Bull street at the

Butterhead Cafe

on our way to spend the afternoon at the beach.

She said to me,

"I have something to show you."

Out of her purse she pulled this picture.

It is the only picture known to be in existence

of the playhouse on 35th Street.

The place where Lucinda Futrelle and I spent our childhood,

raising our baby dolls.

Every once in a while I get blown away.

When I saw this picture yesterday,

I was blown away.

Thank you dear Trish for blessing my heart.

Now, on to the picture.

Lou is that you in the striped shirt?

It has to be you!

Focus just on the house for a minute.

Dad got it from the railroad yard.

It was a storage house along the tracks.

It was painted white with green trim.

It even had a mailbox.

Look at the people......

Lou, or someone I don't remember is in the doorway with me.

That's Trish sitting on the poured concrete front porch,

and that is Frankie coming in the door.

That's me, the tall one standing in the doorway.

(I was always taller than everybody else.

I must have been eight years old.

From there I say this...

It looks like a house in shantytown.

Moma's clothes are hanging on the clothesline.

Looks like we were cooking on the porch...

landscaping was sorely needed.

Looks like some excavating was going on.

I see underpanties and a diaper.

My jewel box is in the front yard.

But...as mistress of the house, I was on top of the world,

I wouldn't take anything for this picture.

Memories are made of this!

memories for the birthday girl

Here is Amanda....age 4.

She is snuggling with her much loved Nana

while wearing a cone happy birthday hat.

Seemingly filled with apprehension and being comforted.

This picture was taken in 1980.

Some of you will recognize some inheritance pieces.

Thankfully,

the olive green sofa is long gone,

but Teri,

there is your antique ~ marble topped table.

And the lamp.

Who got the lamp?

I cannot remember.

Below you will see some birthday cakes

that need to be remembered.

Hope your birthday is going on and on Amanda.

Remember,

only you can make the magic happen.

(It's a mother's duty)

happy birthday amanda

Best and sweetest daughter in the world!!!

Today I will write from your 

baby book

exactly what you did on your first birthday.

I do love you!

I am honored & blessed to be your mom.

"Amanda celebrated her first birthday in 

Wichita Falls, Texas.

Daddy was attending a three month school

at Sheppard Air Force Base.

She wore her white pinafore dress for her birthday.

(We must always be dressed to the nines!)

She also wore 

her brand new white walking shoes,

a gift from her mommy and daddy.

She had a beautiful pink and blue birthday cake.

We had a party with mommy and daddy and David.

We had gaily decorated presents

and hanging balloons.

Amanda got long distance calls from her

Gi and Papa,

and 

Nana and Estelle.

It was a nice birthday even though we were so far away from home.

Amanda could not walk by herself at one year.

She could paddle her feet and go under the water in the apartment swimming pool.

She had eight teeth.

She is mommy and daddy's little angel!"

Love how you started!

Love how you are now!

Just love you!

one more post @ forgiveness

Near & dear to my heart

is the story

of God's gift of forgiveness to His children.

In the Old testament God's people

had to bring an animal sacrifice to atone for their sins.

"The best that such sacrifices could accomplish 

was to set aside the consequences of former acts of sin.  

They could not remove the sinfulness of man or change his character.

But now,

 through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, 

we are experiencing,

 not the bypassing of the consequences of sin,

 but the remission,

the removal of sin itself,

 i.e.,

 its guilt and power.

There is a transformation which occurs in the sinner.  

It is not only his sins that are dealt with,

 but he, himself.

He becomes sanctified

through the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus

once and for all.

What Jesus did through His blood 

was to lift our sins away from us.

He did not just wink at them.

He changed our character in making us just,

people who inherently recognize 

God's rights upon them.

Through justification in Christ,

man regains the image he formally had with God 

before his fall

as a result of disobedience."

Every once in a while I read and recognize something that is profound...

that blows me away.  

This is one of those passages.

*Everything in the parenthesis was copied directly from the study notes of my

New American Standard Hebrew/Greek Study Bible.

"Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not take into account."

Romans 4:8

one year and one half year

That's how long

Cornerstone Church of Savannah

has existed.

Why would you want to come to

Cornerstone Church?

We meet in a gym,

surrounded by red and blue exercise balls

and a whole row of exercise bikes.

Full length mirrors cover the walls.

The room temperature is kept at a notch above freezing.

We are a rag tag group of believers.....

some of us were there when the church began,

others have found us on the internet,

others by word of mouth.

In the corner of the room on Sunday mornings at ten o'clock

you will find a coffee pot full of steaming coffee

and a little something sweet to eat.

Children abound,

and they keep coming.

The nursery is full and booming.

Nothing beautiful in our surroundings,

but we are so thankful 

that God has provided a place for us to meet together.

What is true.....

the church is not the building we meet in,

the church is the people...

people in whom Jesus Christ is reigning in their hearts.

People who are hungry to hear the word of God proclaimed

clearly,

and in a way that they can understand,

equipping them to go out and live their faith in the world.

So then....

why would you want to come to

Cornerstone Church of Savannah?

What is our purpose....

Making the truth of God's word beautiful,

lovely,

sought after,

 as if it were bread for a starving man.

Causing us to leap for joy at the hearing

and to go home 

and desire to read it 

and study it 

and share it with others,

because it is the best thing in our lives here on this earth.

God's word is preeminent and everything else follows after.

"I am writing these things to you,

hoping to come to you before long;

but in case I am delayed,

I write so that you may know 

how one ought to conduct Himself in the household of God,

which is the church of the living God, 

the pillar 

and support of the truth."

I Timothy 3: 14 & 15

a moment, a look ~ says it all

He was in bed with the flu,

sick as a dog,

when Bubba approached him for my hand.

He didn't take it very well...

I think he thought I would be his

little girl forever.

But no...

there was a whole life ahead for me 

and I had to go,

 had to walk down that aisle,

had to take the hand 

of the one who had asked me to be his.

Just a moment, a look,

but no words are needed.

You can see it on his face and on mine.

Loved you dad, then & now!

*That's my sister Teri getting ready to walk down the aisle.

daddy's hydrangeas

probably the last time I get to pick them....

:(

"For I am convinced that neither

death, 

nor life,

nor angels,

nor principalities,

nor things present,

nor things to come, 

nor powers,

nor height,

nor depth, 

nor any other created thing,

shall be able to separate me from the love of God,

which is in

Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8: 38 & 39

sunset over the savannah river

What does it mean to be forgiven?

Everything.

I was well into my forties

 before I finally understood what it means to be forgiven.

When God forgave me through the shed blood of Jesus Christ,

he put the sin nature that I was born with behind me,

never to be revived again.

He gave me a new heart...

the old sinful heart was replaced with a love of God and His word 

that I had never known before.

He helped me to understand my new relationship with Jesus.

It is a personal, one on one, relationship 

with the One who made me,

the One who fashioned me in my mother's womb,

the One who breathed life into me.

He knows me better than I know myself...

He knows what I think,

He knows my weaknesses and my strengths.

He knows I am frail,

He knows what I need.

I still sin, but He doesn't stop loving me.

When I sin I am grieved and ask His forgiveness...

I try to keep a clean slate.

This truth about sin changed my life.

It brought a freedom I had never known.

It can change your life too!

"As far as the east is from the west,

so far has He removed my sin from me."

Psalm 103:12

"I, even I, 

am He who blots out your sins for My own sake;

And I will not remember your sins."

Isaiah 43:25

I love the promises of these verses!!!

I am humbled before the mighty God who would do this for me.

cathy

i love summer

The Salt Life

is the absolute best!

Just had dinner overlooking the

 Herb River

at the place where it bends and turns back into itself.

Shrimp & Crab au gratin....

yumminess.

Watched the fish jump and the sea birds dive and get supper.

My hair in the picture is courtesy of the 

salt air.

"A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance."

Proverbs 15:13

*My merry heart is courtesy of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

i would be really remiss

if I never spoke about sin...

God created us to live in a perfect world,

in complete fellowship with Him

and all other created beings.

When sin entered this idyllic picture,

all of that perfection was diminished

 because sin

 has its terrible effects.

God, right from the beginning,

promised to send Jesus

into this world to 

make everything right again.

Those who put their complete trust

 in the work Jesus did on the cross

are forgiven of their sins

 and put back into a right relationship with God.

The above is the nutshell version.

I was reading Psalm 38 the other day.

It described a person who is caught up in their sin.

Interesting that many of the maladies we suffer in these days

are a result of sin that is "festering" in our souls.

Listen to some of the complaints......

"There is no soundness in my flesh,

There is no health in my bones,

My sins are gone over my head,

As a heavy burden they weigh too much for me."

"My wounds grow foul and fester because of my folly,

I am bent over and greatly bowed down.

I go mourning all day long,

For my loins are filled with burning."

"I am benumbed and badly crushed,

I groan because of the agitation of my heart,

My heart throbs,

My strength fails me.

And the light of my eyes, even that has gone from me.

"I am full of anxiety because of my sin."

Maybe its time to repent...

to turn from sin and accept Christ's forgiveness?

These are the last two verses in chapter 38....

""Do not forsake me, O Lord,

O my God do not be far from me;

Make haste to help me,

O Lord, my salvation."

Psalm 38: 21&22

"For I hope in Thee, O Lord;

Thou will answer me, O Lord, my God."

verse 15

leavings

the picture below is a 

"sand jake."

One thing I've learned...

this life is made up of leavings.

We are not here to stay a long time...

we are just passing through.

Every moment I can spend with those I love

is priceless...

Jake & Eli went home this morning.

I have a sad heart,

but the memories are strong

and,

I have the pictures on my blog to look at

 over and over again.

Thanks for this week boys,

for being a constant reminder of 

how incredibly blessed I am to be...

your grammy

boogie board brigade

I am going to let this picture speak

 a thousand words

 for me tonight because I am slap worn out.

Tired Grammy = early to bed

waiting for the storm

We have a tiny little condo down at Tybee Island.

It is situated on the third floor

at the very end of the building.

Guests who stay with us always comment on the view.

It looks out over the mouth of the 

Savannah River,

where the river meets up with the Atlantic Ocean.

At any time of the day you can see the huge ships

passing by on their way up to the port

of Savannah.

(one that passed by yesterday is pictured above)

The biggest delight here at this spot seems to

always be the dolphin sightings.

They cavort and play out there,

following the shrimp boats in and out of the ocean.

Our grandchildren adore this spot.

What a joy to watch them

 loving all the things about the beach that I love.

Having this condo is a blessing from the Lord.

It is my joy!

Most all of my beach pictures originate here,

or over at Hilton Head.

This afternoon we are waiting for the first

tropical storm of the new

hurricane season to visit.

Her name is Andrea.

An approaching storm in Savannah is always

a huge event.

We are thankful,

of course,

when the big, dangerous storms pass us by,

but,

a lot of rain, 

a little wind,

some powerful lightning and thunder,

brushing us quickly on her way up the beautiful coast,

now that is a delight.

Storm tonight ~ clearing tomorrow.

Good!

Back to the beach we go.

don't get your pants wet

Famous last words.....

"Jake,  don't get your pants wet."

Ever took an eight year old boy to the beach and told him that?

It is like telling the ocean 

not to crash it's waves up on the sand.

Jake & Eli are standing on a

"drift tree."

A big tree,

pulled up from it's roots and set adrift in the sea...

now half buried in the sand

providing a wonderful 

"picture point."

It is always interesting

 to see what a winter season brings to the shore.  :)

Jake and Eli are both in

"grammy's big tub."

The have on their swim goggles...

seeing how long they can stay underwater.

Lots of water is outside the tub....

need to go bathe them and get them out,

but...they are having so much fun.

"Whoever trusts in the Lord,

happy is he."

Proverbs 16:20

Hey Jake....

Be careful!  Don't let that alligator bite your hand!

ps....Eli is Jake's "sidekick" as they grow up so close together.

at the beach

Today was a very momentous occasion.

Our six year old Eli lost his first tooth.

It wasn't even loose yet.

After a tussle between Eli and Jake on our king size bed,

Eli found me, and proclaimed.....

very calmly,

"Grammy I lost my tooth."

Sure enough there was a gaping hole on the bottom right.

"Where is it" I asked, horrified.

"I don't know" was his reply.

"How did this happen," Eli?

"Well, I had Jake's shirt sleeve in my mouth

and when he pulled away, he pulled out my tooth."

Coming to the bed, I saw blood on the sheets.

Still no idea where the tooth was.

Moments later Eli found it on the other side of the bed.

Very minute, but he found it.

It is under his pillow right now.

I hope these old tooth fairies don't forget to give his reward.

I declare, the strangest things happen around here.

4 guys, a girl, grammy, and spiderman

Last evening we celebrated again.

This time Jake was the guest of honor.

Granddaddy made a huge pot of spaghetti,

well actually it was three pots full.

One pot has to be, according to Jake,

"spaghetti without fruit."

Spaghetti without fruit means

 that there can be absolutely no trace of any

 onion, celery, or bell pepper 

chopped up in the sauce.

The second pot is the good stuff, 

loaded with spices and lots of "fruit."

This pot is for people with "adult tastes."

The third pot,believe it or not, 

was full of meatballs.

Along with "David's famous salad" 

and french bread 

with "David's spiced butter," 

we feasted.

The main event of the party 

came after the Spiderman candle was blown out 

and the cake with the red and blue icing was consumed.....

Somehow the red icing got on the bottom of someone's foot.

Then,

that foot with the red icing

 proceeded to walk around on my white carpet

leaving several well placed red footprints.

This morning the footprints have faded to light pink

after being scrubbed with oxi-clean...

pretty huh?

Anyway,

its all about the party.

Sometimes red footprints on your white carpet

is just the price you have to pay.