a peek

YLCF is hosting their blog carnival again; this year is "A Peek Into Your Week" theme. I plan on joining the crowd, so I will be working on a nice edited blog for it! :-P

No, really. It is fun to read everyone's posts and meet new blogging peeps.

big little blessings

Cori had a doc visit yesterday, Juliana is 7 1/2 pounds and will gain another 1/2 pound every week until her birth, so that should put her around 9 pounds at birth in 3 weeks. She is healthy and doing well. Have mercy and bless them, Jesus. We depend on you, Lord, to keep both Cori and JM safe and sound.

A childhood song has been running in my head all day today, based on Isaiah 40:1. "He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, And carry them in His bosom, And gently lead those who are with young." 

rain and baby showers

So yesterday was Cori's (and Juliana Mae's!!!) baby shower. The ladies at Warrington Worship Center prepared a delicious spread, I took goodies from the bakery, and Sarah made an adorable pink and purple giraffe cake and chocolate iced cupcakes. The punch was a ginger ale & lime sherbet concoction...yum!

There were quite a few ladies and children there (I forgot to get a head count). I know it blessed Cori to have everyone come. Not only were the church ladies there, but Cori's violin students and their mamas, and some of our family friends as well.

I got there a little before 1 pm and set up my bakery sweets. I saw that we needed some more decorations, so I had Tricia prep pink and purple balloons to attach to the chairs all around the room. Then back to the house to get dressed and to Walmart for flowers and cards. I was 10 minutes late so I missed the three games, but I arrived before everyone else in the fam. We are a mess! :-P

I had the responsibilities of cutting the cake and recording the gifts. JM got some really practical things (i.e. diapers, wipies, a wipie warmer, diaper pail, a giant frog bathtub toy scoop from Alice S, an essential oils compendium from Debra W, a safety gate from MaeMae, a bouncer from Nanny, sleepers, a stereo from Aunt Tricia, an "A-B-C Song" playing giraffe from me, onesies, socks, caps, bibs, sleeper sets), as well as cute and fun stuff too (crocheted baby blanket, receiving blankets, 1st Christmas bear, and Madame Alexander "My First Huggums" babydoll). And these are only the ones that I remember, so there were more. The WWC ladies helped us load the gifts into the van, and Sarah and I unpacked and sorted all the gifts, since Cori is so far along now that everything is difficult for her to do. Juliana now has a trunk full of natural diapers and wipies!!! :-D

On Friday afternoon, I hosted the CIAS Operation Christmas Child packing party. We had 12 or so kids to come, and we packed 9 boxes! I have always wanted to participate in OCC, but never had the chance to, so, I had a joyful time shopping at Walmart & $ Tree for boy and girl stuff for my boxes! :-)

And today I am working on organizing my team's research and inserting it all into the Autism power point that I have done for our presentation. I also have to grade students' papers from my writing classes. And it's raining (acorns and real rain!). :-)

meaty quotes to ponder

Better to love God and die unknown, than to love the world and be a hero.
Better to be content with poverty, than to die a slave to wealth.
Better to have taken some risks and lost, than to have done nothing and succeeded at it.
~Erwin Lutzer

God whispers to us in our pleasures,
speaks in our conscience,
but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.  
~C.S. Lewis

The only freedom that man ever has is when he becomes a slave to Jesus Christ.
~R.C. Sproul

There is never any peace for those who resist God.  
~François Fénélon

I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use.  
~Galileo Galilei

It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ!  
~Patrick Henry

Only he who believes is obedient,.. only he who is obedient believes.  
~Dietrich Bonhoeffer

If you do not worship God seven days a week, you do not worship Him on one day a week. There is no such thing known in heaven as Sunday worship unless it is accompanied by Monday worship and Tuesday worship and so on.  
~A.W. Tozer

bibliophilia

I was struck today, after teaching two writing classes (grades 7-12), that so few of them are reading anything other than schoolwork. I am having them begin Writing Journals this week, starting with four entries per week, and I gave them simple blog-style prompts to help them get going. One was, "I am reading..." When I asked that question in class, only about 5 of the 35 raised their hands and gave me the title of a book they were reading.

Saddening.

I know one thing. I never would have developed into the person I am today without the books and literary exposure that I had as a kid, teen, and young adult. Thanks, Mom and Dad, for making reading a large part of our lives and memories. Thanks for indulging us and investing in us with all those late nights of  harrowing Peretti stories, Narnia tales read in all the voices, and all the BJU mysteries we solved. They lit a fire in us, to learn and read and explore and imagine. I remember all the Christmases of opening boxes of books instead of heaping toys and gadgets.

We had enough toys to play with. The shelves in our house, of which there are still many, are full. And yet we still read and buy and read again. I find myself looking for "our" books online at used booksellers, getting ready for the next generation of little book lovers. CL already has the attention span of a sparrow for her reading time!

What a world these kids are missing! What a world.

payroll taxes & hershey's syrup

It's a headache that I dread once a month, and hate once a quarter. Well, the better part of  today was spent doing the 3rd quarter 941s. And, in reading all the materials that IRS sends, I discovered that there are three new things to do.

1. w-11s to be filled out for the fed gov's new HIRE employer incentives
2. i-9s to be filled out for the USCIS by all new employees who are employment eligible
3. All new hires have to be registered with the FL DOCF (to track/catch deadbeat parents not paying child support)

Yay. More paperwork to do. But it is done for now.

Enjoyed breakfast this morning with T & Mom at the new Hardees on Navy. Good coffee and conversation!

Taking a break with a tall glass of chocolate milk, then on to a big editing project that I have been putting off: combining both school handbooks into one and getting them printed. Meg is sleeping beside me (for now, anyway). I am listening to Chris's new CD again today. Good stuff. He needs to get some radio time and do worship gigs!!!

Yesterday, we went over to Cori's, and I cleaned her kitchen and then made the Thai coconut/lime soup that we planned. It was so delicious...even better than Siam Thai's version. I will def make that again!

I am on a period film kick right now; I stayed up waaaaay too long last night watching some Austen films and parts of another called "The Painted Veil." I would like to see an edited/cut version of the whole thing. It is set in China and is a story of forgiveness and pardon.

no more camera blues

I have been "afeared" that my beloved camera was on the fritz. I got it 4-5 years ago, and have since taken 10,000 pictures. Yes, you counted right. :-D Two weeks ago, it started to not save pics onto the memory card; it would take them, but not save them. I have a little dinky memory card that came with the camera, so I put it in this evening to see if it would save. In the process I accidentally dumped the batteries out and discovered....that one had been put in wrong! So the new 4GB card that I bought today at WM may go back to its little shelf. :-) Yay!!!

Today was "out with Mom" day. She has been asking me to go to Kirby with her regarding a vacuum cleaner barter with one of our families at school. I was dreading it; I LOVE to barter, but sometimes it is just awkward. But it all went splendidly, and Mr. Florian was a hoot! And a great help.

We met Trish for late lunch at Monterreys. Good guacamole! And the only sweet tea I am allowed this week. Alas, I am on a "trim down the sugar" diet.

Then it was on to Comfort Zone. It has been several years since I have invested in good Burks, so it was past time. I got black suede Arizonas, grey suede Arizonas (left), "antique dune" mules, and North Face flipflops (with arch support!!!). The older I get, the more I seem to need more expensive, better supportive shoes. So tomorrow morning, into the trash go all my cute little "hurt-my-feet" flip flops that I have worn to work.

Hasn't this weather been great!?! Before I went to bed last night, I let Meg out for the last time and sat on the deck for awhile, stargazing. Our back-yard neighbor has one of those bright street lights right near our pool, so it is not completely dark enough to see all the stars that I like to see. I did find Ursa Minor and what I think is part of Aquarius. What I would like to find is a good place nearby that is safe for stargazing; then I would have to actually memorize the constellations! :-P