a big pot of fresh lavender...

....to finish out the month of January.

By the way,

this pot of beauty just smells divine.

Yes, I buy flowers for myself.

I love them.

I am getting so excited thinking about all of my favorites

that I plan to plant in my yard this spring.

I want roses,

and hydrangeas,

and geraniums among others.

I just can't wait to make it beautiful.

We were old to get this house,

I know that,

but it truly does make us so happy.

I thank God for this huge blessing every day.

I study the way the sunlight comes in through the back windows.

 I just stand and stare

 at the grass and the trees in the backyard,

thinking and planning the way I want it to look.

The moon tonight took my breath away.

It was a ghost of a thing,

huge,

just hanging in the western sky...

a mere sliver of what it will be,

but O so awe inspiring.

I know the One who made it and hung it there.

I know His Son too,

the One who died so that I could be made whole again.

So thankful to know His grace and mercy tonight.

snow on the beach

I have a very dear friend whom I have never met or talked to.

She found my blog soon after I started writing

and we have become friends.

She and I keep up with each other on facebook

and are similar in so many ways.

She has a beautiful family

and two of the most beautiful grandbabies

 I have ever seen.

She lives far away, but near the beach.

She loves all things ocean 

as much as I do.

Today she went to the beach to take pictures of the snow.

I thought I would share this with all of you.

Snow on the beach just doesn't seem right,

but isn't it exquisite?

I would love to be right there in all of that beauty.

I know that my love of God's world is a gift from Him.

Tonight I am thankful for beauty....

and friends 

if only in heart.

we got ice....

....but not that much.

If you look closely 

you can see the little baby icicles 

hanging 

on the deck at the condo.

The storm Leon 

passed us by with slightly a nod 

and turned his full fury on 

Atlanta, 

who missed its call by miles

and ushered in a highway nightmare

 that could have easily been avoided.

We rode to the beach this afternoon

to receive the new sofa.

All roads were dry and the bridges were graveled and ready.

Schools closed again tomorrow,

better to be safe than sorry.

All that to say....

in my mind winter is over.

I'm taking down the snowmen,

 and putting away the snowmen dishes,

and the fake snow,

and all things white and fluffy.

Time to look forward to spring and longer days and warmer weather.

cc

still waiting for the snow...

.....but oh what a wonderful day!!

I just love

 "stay at home" days,

especially if they are gray and rainy,

filled with anticipation 

of snow in all of its glory.

So fun looking at my friends in Atlanta

enjoying the fun

of an unexpected blessing of white.

They say ours will arrive about 2:00 in the morning....

I'll miss it for sure,

but what a day tomorrow will be....

I'll wake up to a winter wonderland.

But probably not.

That's why we live in Savannah,

right here by the ocean,

that keeps everything warm enough.

The real fun of snow is the anticipation anyway.

That's alright too, because our new sofa for the condo

is being delivered to the beach tomorrow.

If it ices over, that may not happen.

We and the delivery truck may not be able to cross over the 

Lazaretto.

The above picture is one of Bubba's favorites.

That's me with a horse somewhere in Colorado.

I really think

 that rather than being a Colonel,

he would have liked to own a ranch out west

and been a cowboy.

I would have rode horses all day

and grown our own food.

Kinda hard to fathom, though.

Maybe this is Estes Park...

I know we went horseback riding there.

tomorrow it will snow?

Here are some of the significant and only snow events in my life.....

 Our house in Fayetteville, GA.

Somewhere in Colorado

and

Many years ago in Savannah.

(did I really need the umbrella?)

Looks like we will get some kind of frozen stuff over the next few days,

just not sure whether it will be ice or snow or sleet.

I'll take whatever God sends our way,

and then,

I'll be done with winter thank you.

Cold weather is not my thing.

Today I worked in the yard all afternoon.

It was 72 degrees.

I stripped down to a short sleeved shirt and sandals...

now that is what I like.

Amanda and her family are basking in eighty degree days

down in Palm Beach Gardens.

Maybe next year we will "winter" there.

So glad that Bubba and I have been so healthy.

Neither of us has been sick at all.

So many people have been really sick and we are thankful

to Mark Hollingsworth.

Silver really works!!!

Did you know that God has a treasury of snow?

"Have you seen the treasury of snow.

or have you seen the treasury of hail?

Job 38:22

also...

"He gives snow like wool,

He scatters the frost like ashes.....

who can stand before His cold?

Psalm 147: 16&17

Oh well, we'll see what God sends our way.

it might snow in savannah....

on Tuesday.

I am so excited for the minute possibility.

Just the thought of seeing some snow makes me happy.

I plan to write more this afternoon.

Lucy is sick

and I am going to sit with her 

so that Erika 

can go to church.

Until later...

cathy

3:30 on Sunday afternoon.....

The forecast now says

 snow mixing with sleet on Tuesday and

ICE on Wednesday.

Could it be a snow day or two for 

sunny Savannah?

I hope to get a picture

of our new house in a snow setting.

Our precious Lucy,

with puppy,

sitting in front of my curio cabinet.

One of the joys of moving into this house

has been finding things that had been lost to me.

These are some original Disney ceramic characters

from the 1970's.

I found Tigger first, and then set out on a quest to find the rest. 

After locating and unwrapping,

I set them all out on the dresser.

When Lucy saw them for the first time she gasped,

Grammy, where did you get these?

She was overwhelmed.

We studied them and determined some that were missing.

We will look for the missing ones next time we

go to Disney.

I got her to help me place them in the curio.

Above is her finished work.

I love Lucy!

david's very cold birthday celebration

at Harbor Town,

Hilton Head.

The temps never got out of the forties,

but we managed to have a good time outside.

Forty years old...

four children!

Four must be your lucky number!

happy birthday david....

He had a head full of hair

and a rather big head.

We had no idea what to do with him.

Somehow he turned out alright.

That was forty years ago today.

Bubba had deposited me at my parent's house

and headed off to work.

He didn't stay there long.

David was born on

January 23, 1974,

at the St. Joseph's Hospital in 

Savannah, Georgia,

at 10:35 pm.

He weighed almost nine pounds

and was perfect.

He was a gift to us from God.

I wrote this to you my friend Loucinda

and it is in the book you made for me.....

"Thought the whole month of January was going to pass

 and I wouldn't have my baby.

 but the sweet thing finally came. 

Can't even describe how great it is to at long last be a mother."

Thankful today for David and Erika

Lucy, Harry, Archie, and Gus...

For all you have become,

for all that is yet to be.

mom

tybee lighthouse ~ tybee beach

"Fear not for I am with you;

Be not dismayed for I am your God.

I will strengthen you,

I will uphold you with 

My righteous right hand."

Isaiah 41:10

a bull and his horns

This is the one and only time I have ever sat on a bull.

His name was Shiloh

and he was gentle as a lamb.

don't let those huge horns fool you,

he wouldn't hurt a flea.

Bubba and I were in Fort Worth,Texas,

 at a comptrollers conference.

That was back when we traveled somewhere different every week.

I think that's why I love to stay home so much now.

On a more serious note,

I am thankful for God's word tonight.

How often I find in my daily reading,

just the wisdom and insight 

 I need at that very moment.

Our God is faithful.

He keeps all of His promises.

My downfall is not trusting as I should.

Knowing full well the character of the God I worship...

all of His attributes and the wonders He has done,

Why do I faint and fall into unbelief?

God knows my heart,

He made me and He knows

 "when I sit down and when I stand up."

He has a plan...

His plan will come to fruition in His timing

and I must wait 

and trust Him for the outcome.

"And we know 

that all things work together for good

 to those who love God, 

who are the called according to His purpose." 

 Romans 6:28

archie & minnie mouse

I love this picture for so many reasons.

First of all Archie's eyes..

Asian eyes...

different eyes for me to study and learn.

Lucy in the background..

the expression on her face.

She is wearing a Minnie Mouse shirt.

Lastly,

I want to always remember

Archie running around the house with Minnie Mouse

calling her Mickey Mouse.

He speaks no English, 

but he knows his Disney characters already.

This made me laugh...

This morning in church Archie saw me,

did a little jump,

and then stood on his head and did a

 perfect somersault

landing solidly on his little feet.

I was amazed!

Go Archie go...

you are getting it!

I love you!

look at those smiles

I know...

I haven't written in a while.

You know....

every once in a while I need a break.

Bubba and I took a little trip.

You know...

sometimes it does you good to get away for a couple of days.

Thank goodness for 

"free nights in hotel points,"

because traveling is SO expensive....

a rich person's paradise.

We spent some time with some very dear friends

from our

"living in Atlanta years" ~

1990 until 2007.

Loved living there...miss it a lot at times.

There is nothing like fellowship

with dear friends who love the Lord,

who share their hearts and their struggles

and how God is working in their lives through

past hardships.

I for one was refreshed in God's word,

assured that the trials I am enduring are common to man,

and reminded that there is much hope

 in repentance and forgiveness.

Sometimes,

God brings hard things into our lives to teach us His truth, 

to strengthen our faith,

and to spur us on to good works.

Returned home last night...

there is nothing that compares to home.

Never want to be too far away from the comforts of....

Here we are with all six of our grandchildren.

No more words needed.

Glad to be writing again,

cathy

snow daisies

These are all over the house right now.

In the kitchen,

the living room,

and even in our bath.

When I saw them in the store they just took my breath away.

Right in the middle of January,

they come to bless our days.

What is a house without flowers?

Much like a day without sunshine,

a week which only sees rain,

a month of tears.

January is an interesting month.

After the frenzy of the holidays, its charms are so welcomed.

A slower pace,

a warm home with a fire and a big comfy chair,

A chance to start over....

to plan new projects and set a few goals,

to clean and organize to my heart's content,

to sit on the back porch in my rocker in a ray of warm sunshine,

talking to a friend.

No rush to be anywhere,

just home where my heart resides so peacefully.

Thank you Lord for January.

I got a new hairdo today.

She chopped and chopped...

kinda cute, don't you think?

Lastly,

I saw this today...

It's why I love my home so much.....

"There is no more

 lovely,

 friendly, 

or charming

relationship,

communion,

or company

than a good marriage."

Martin Luther

You in the attic,

making room for our stuff....

I love you!!!

more memories from 2013

Lots of fun and happiness last year!

I am starting my eighth year of writing my blog.
I am nearing the 2000th post.
My O my....I never thought it would last this long.

Sometimes I think of closing it down,
but it brings me such joy that I think I will keep on writing.

Thank you for reading and encouraging me.
At best I have a rather extensive journal of the last eight years of my life, with pictures.
I love to be able to go back and read and see how much younger we all looked then.
Lots of hard times, but the good outweighs the bad by a landslide.

Again, thank you my faithful friends.
I love all of you!
cathy

frigid in savannah

Will be glad when the

"polar vortex"

slides back up to the North pole

where it belongs.

Bubba and I went down to the beach yesterday afternoon

to check on our condo.

All of the pipes were frozen,

the whole complex was without water into the units.

Our sweet handyman Carl 

had gone out and bought bottled water 

for all of the guests.

Our hope is that none of the frozen pipes will bust open,

causing serious damage.

We take the condo off of the market every January

 to refurbish and use for our own enjoyment.

Last year we replaced the queen mattress with a king,

 much to everyone's delight.

This year we have to buy a new sleeper sofa.

Going out the door is my white slip-covered beauty,

much to my dismay.

It is sagging to the floor and the sleeper part is almost unusable.

We will also be replacing the kitchen sink.

Every time I open the door of that condo

and see the view of the ocean,

I am reminded that God is in control of my life.

Even when the trials come in full force

and all seems hopeless,

He is still in control.

Just now, this morning, I read and meditated upon

Psalm 142.

It is comforting to know

that someone, thousands of years ago,

articulated the struggle of my heart this very day.

My prayer.....

"Bring my soul out of prison,

Let the righteous surround me.

That God will deal bountifully with me."

Psalm 142:7

I pray this for everyone I know as well.

this is for you grammy....

I love her!

This passage is one of my favorites.

It is about my God and His love for me...

and you too if you believe.

Enjoy....

"O Lord,

You have searched me and known me.

You know my sitting down

and my rising up.

You understand my thought afar off.

You comprehend my path

and my lying down,

and are acquainted with all my ways.

For there is not a word on my tongue,

but Behold, O Lord,

You know it altogether,

You have hedged me behind and before,

and laid Your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is to wonderful for me;

It is high,

I cannot attain it."

Psalm 139: 1-6

Who knows us like this but our God,

the one who formed us in our mother's womb.

I am okay knowing this.

Nothing in my life on this earth can destroy this knowledge in my heart.

The tears of the last few months 

will one day be dried forever never to be shed again.

okay...are you ready?

Here they are...

all six of them lined up according to birth order.

Oh wow...

they take up our whole sofa.

This was taken on New Year's Eve...

they were running a little on the wild side.

 Sparklers had been promised

 and you know about

fire and kids.

Henry & I couldn't be prouder.

These are all great kids with tremendous potential.

Talk about blessings!

Thank you God for these and any more to come!

2013 ~ looking back & thankful

I love my life...

I love my husband

and my children.

I  love all six of my grandchildren.

I love my new home.

A life richly blessed of the Lord

I would say.

Thank you Bubba!

You have given me so much...

so glad I get to share all of this with you!

"You belong to me ~ I belong to you...

You're my sweetheart"

fire~handling on New Years Eve

I had some setting on my camera last night

that made our sparklers look like works of art.

Thought you would enjoy...

This is the grand finale!

Happy New Year again!