Just one little question...with hopefully a BIG answer...

With only a few days to go to 2009, I pose you this one little question;

What kind of influence will you be?

We all have the power to influence someone for good. God has placed us all within a realm or social circle, and yes, even within our own families that have the need to be influenced for God and godly things. No matter where we are, there is always someone watching. If we are living a Righteous-in-His-sight life, then those who see and witness it will be influenced towards change in their own life. (I'm not telling you to go preach down Aunt Alice's throat, that is not the answer! :))

I'm not really big on New Year's Resolutions that are set unrealistically and usually forgotten before the month ends, but I am big on change. Self-reflection, self-motivation and self-improvement! Setting goals is good...very good. Follow-through is even better. In whatever goals you set for yourself this year, be sure that they are reachable and realistic, then ask yourself what kind of influence can you be in it and to whom. Take the opportunity to share with your kids one of the things you've decided to change in your life and why. For example: If you've decided to make a life-style change in your eating habits (can you tell that I am a food nut?), you could take it a step further and explain to your kids why you've decided to make such a change, that it will improve your energy, your health, your over-all well being, your attitude and moods, and add years to your life. By doing this, it could influence them to be an encouragement and support to you, to eat healthier and to try new foods, and influence them to make healthier choices as well, all of which are all very positive changes.

Remember that some of those who are always watching are: our kids, our parents, our coworkers, our friends, our family, but most importantly, our Jesus. Out of these who watch and see, the most influencial are our children, so be encouraged and get creative!! For Homework: I would like for each of you to share a comment on this post with some of your own ideas of how you plan to influence those around you in 2009!

~Janice~ :)

In case you were wondering....

In case you've been wondering what I've been up to since you've practically not heard from me the past few weeks due to my hectic schedule, the past few days have finally been 'aahhhhh, relaxing!' Just like the seal you see in this picture! I know that by next week my life will take a wonderful spin and the 'calgon time' will come to an end so I'm trying to live it up and enjoy this week while it last. I hope you can find time to do the same. No matter how hectic life is, I've learned how important it is to treasure these times. There will always be dishes that need washed, laundry to be done, errands to run, office work, etc, etc, etc....but for right now - it can wait...find those little moments to refresh, sit back, smell the coffee and enjoy this life that's been given to you. Love a lot, laugh a lot and ENJOY!!

Smiles,

Tracee, sigh :)

Everything Matters

Hello my awesome friends! Yes, I am alive - thanks to Janice, if it weren't for her this blog would've been awfully quiet the past week. Put it this way, it's been mighty crazy in my neck of the woods with in-laws in town, a 2 day trip to Nashville, Christmas church events, etc...I just couldn't squeeze in the time to even think much less write. I couldn't wait for this past Tuesday to arrive because I finally was able to sleep in! Wow, how awesome it was too! ; )

So, here it is Christmas Eve and I'm sitting here in my apron feeling like a real chef...haha! I'm baking and enjoying spending time with my daughter as she helps me whip up some fun goodies for the holidays.

After talking with my sister that lives in Florida and telling her about the amazing blessings from God with the wild provisions He's performed for us this Christmas season, she said something that struck me and it was - "Everything matters to Jesus." How absolutely true! When it comes to us, His children, everything matters - everything we love, everything we long for, everything we dream of, everything we do every single day - It ALL matters to Him. That totally rocks! I love my Jesus.

I hope that you have a BEAUTIFUL Christmas - no matter what season you are in right now, know that EVERYTHING MATTERS to Jesus - live it up and rejoice - because Jesus really is the reason for this gorgeous season.

Lots of hugs and kisses,

Tracee, amazed

You never know who's watching...

All last week, my entire focus was on our annual trip to Florida for Christmas. I have to admit that in the 8 Christmas' that I have had with my husband's side of the family, the one thing that has remained constant is the stress involved with the party my brother-in-law and sister-in-law host every year. On a side note, you know how people say, "Discover the gifts that God has given you and excel at them."? - Planning/Organizing big family parties is not one of their gifts, but they do try! I have found myself thrown in the middle at times and stressed to the gills! I have found myself mentally preparing for days before I get there. See, I am a planner and an organizer, not to mention a chef, but it is their party and as much as I would love to come in and take over to reduce the stress I feel, but also in the atmosphere, I can't. I'm sure you can empathize with me. This year, I let go. (aren't you proud!!)

I can't tell you how hard it was for me. I can't tell you how freeing it felt. I can't tell you how much better I feel (physically and mentally). It is one of those things that can't be put into words, only experience. So what did I do instead, you ask? I spent the day with my kids! It was wonderful! Later in the day, I watched my 2 year old nephew and got him to take a good nap, (effortlessly too, I might add - a miracle - and the first one witnessed that night!).

By the time the party started, I was in charge of my kids, my 2 year old nephew, and his soon-to-be 1 year old twin sisters! It was great! We had fun and I told my sister-in-law that this is my new thing! Every year, I will help by taking her youngest three (she has 5), and my kids somewhere while they prepare for the party.

The party started and I continued to watch out for kids as they were passed from one adult to the next while my sibling-in-laws hosted the party. Little did I know that I was being watched all night long by my elders. You never know who is watching you and when. As I reflected on the night, there were times of correction, discipline, praise and obedience required from my nieces and nephews. I remember that I was being myself and that it was easy to do the right thing and react correctly - I have no regrets. I also remember that as we live righteously for God, that others will see without us saying a word to them. It is part of our testimony. It becomes a part of us, "of our new man (woman) in Christ, old things (reactions, words, attitudes, etc.) are put away, all things become new." How many others have watched and seen our reactions, actions and heard our words or seen our attitudes?

Later that night, I received compliments from those elders, and the next day, one of them made the point to call ME, at my mother-in-law's house to tell me what an impression that I made on her. I am thankful! You never know who is watching! Live righteously before the Lord first, then (effortlessly,) it becomes a testimony to all men.

~Janice~ Living this life for Christ! In ALL Areas!

What Comes Around Goes Around

One day a man saw a old lady, stranded on the side of the road, but even in the dim light of day, he could see she needed help. So he pulled up in front of her Mercedes and got out. His Pontiac was still sputtering when he approached her.
Even with the smile on his face, she was worried. No one had stopped to help for the last hour or so. Was he going to hurt her? He didn't look safe; he looked poor and hungry.

He could see that she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He knew how she felt. It was that chill which only fear can put in you.

He said, 'I'm here to help you, ma'am. Why don't you wait in the car where it's warm? By the way, my name is Bryan Anderson.'

Well, all she had was a flat tire,
but for an old lady, that was bad enough. Bryan crawled under the car looking for a place to put the jack, skinning his knuckles a time or two. Soon he was able to change the tire. But he had to get dirty and his hands hurt.

As he was tightening up the lug nuts, she rolled down the window and began to talk to him. She told him that she was from St. Louis and was only just passing through. She couldn't thank him enough for coming to her aid.

Bryan just smiled as he closed her trunk. The lady asked how much she owed him. Any amount would have been all right with her. She already imagined all the awful things that could have happened had he not stopped.
Bryan never thought twice about being paid.
This was not a job to him. This was helping someone in need, and God knows there were plenty, who had given him a hand in the past. He had lived his whole life that way, and it never occurred to him to act any other way.

He told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she saw someone who needed help, she could give that person the assistance they needed, and Bryan added, 'And think of me.'

He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a cold and depressing day, but he felt good as he headed for home, disappearing into the twilight.

A few miles down the road the lady saw a small cafe. She went in to grab a bite to eat, and take the chill off before she made the last leg of her trip home. It was a dingy look ing restaurant. Outside were two old gas pumps. The whole scene was unfamiliar to her. The waitress came over and brought a clean towel to wipe her wet hair. She had a sweet smile, one that even being on her
feet for the whole day couldn't erase. The lady noticed the waitress was nearly eight months pregnant, but she never let the strain and aches change her attitude. The old lady wondered how someone who had so little could be so giving to a stranger. Then she remembered Bryan .

After the lady finished her meal, she paid with a hundred dollar bill. The waitress quickly went to get change for her hundred dollar bill, but the old lady had slipped right out the door. She was gone by the time the waitress came back. The waitress wondered where the lady could be. Then she noticed something written on the napkin.

There were tears in her eyes when she read what the lady wrote: 'You don't owe me anything. I have
been there too. Somebody once helped me out, the way I'm helping you. If you really want to pay me back, here is what you do: Do not let this chain of love end with you.'

Under the napkin were four more $100 bills.

Well, there were tables to clear, sugar bowls to fill, and people to serve, but the waitress made it through another day. That night when she got home from work and climbed into bed, she was thinking about the money and what the lady had written. How could the lady have known how much she and her husband needed it? With the baby due next month, it was going to be hard....

She knew how worried her husband was, and as he lay sleeping next to her, she gave him a soft kiss and whispered soft and low, 'Everything's going to be all right. I love you, Bryan Anderson.'

There is an old saying 'What goes around comes around.' Shine your light brightly this Christmas season!

Love, Tracee - alive and still kicking after a crazy week! ;)

A moment in time...

"We do not remember days, we remember moments." ~Cesare Pavere



As moms, daughters, wives and women, let us remember this Christmas season to make moments - special moments with those we love, and even with those we don't know. Let us strive to make as many moments as we can, for we are not promised tomorrow and these moments are the ones we will cherish forever. What kind of moments do you want to create? What kind of moments are you projecting now? Are they moments of busiedness, rushing, of stress? Are you taking the time to listen to your children read you a story, or show you an accomplished assignment? Are you able to touch someone else's life and change their world in one moment of kindness? What kind of path are you laying for your kids, your family, your friends? What will they remember the most about you? Are you creating moments that they will want to remember? How about those in your community?



"Father, help us to take EACH moment that you have graciously given to us and make them into wonderful memories, for these are the true treasures of heaven. ~Amen"



~Janice~ Loving every moment of this wonderful Journey!

Things Aren't What They Always Appear

WALKING THE DOG



A WOMAN was flying from Seattle to San Francisco. Unexpectedly, the plane was diverted to Sacramento along the way. The flight attendant explained that there would be a delay, and if the passengers wanted to get off the aircraft the plane would re-board in 50 minutes.

Everybody got off the plane except one lady who was blind. The man had noticed her as he walked by and could tell the lady was blind because her Seeing Eye dog lay quietly underneath the seats in front of her throughout the entire flight.

He could also tell she had flown this very flight before because the pilot approached her, and calling her by name, said, 'Kathy, we are in Sacramento for almost an hour. Would you like to get off and stretch your legs?' The blind lady replied, 'No thanks, but maybe Buddy would like to stretch his legs.'

Picture this:

All the people in the gate area came to a complete standstill when they looked up and saw the pilot walk off the plane with a Seeing Eye dog!

The pilot was even wearing sunglasses. People scattered. They not only tried to change planes, but they were trying to change airlines!

True story... Have a superb day and remember...

THINGS AREN'T ALWAYS AS THEY APPEAR

Tracee, loving life

My Agenda...HIS AGENDA!!!

About this time of year, we all do it, we start "meeting" ourselves to death. A meeting here, a party there, there is so much to do, we have to schedule time to pea, let alone go shopping, holiday baking or wrapping! I was just telling my husband last night how crazy this week has been, and to make matters worse, it is NOT at ALL how I planned it! AGGGHHH!!! My kids have been sick, we've had an emergency trip to the dentist (not to mention the unexpected cost), late nights, my husband has been working late, and last, but not least, I have been trying to get ready for a catering event for our church and I'm not ready!! Even this morning, I don't even have the time to wait for a computer that seems to have a bad case of the sleepy's! And don't get me started on devotional time....More like speed reading! Then I wonder, What did I just read?

WHOA! STOP! What is this? What are we doing? My agenda doesn't even have time for the most important One in my life? How messed up is that when this time of the year is all about Him in the first place?...............It's time to stop this Christmas sleigh and get off! When we start feeling like our calendars and agendas control us, it's time to throw them out the window!

How many of us have an agenda for our finances, our schedules, our personal lives, or even have an agenda for our ministries? And then we struggle to make them work, and work our way. When will we realize that WE are in GOD'S agenda and NOT the other way around? In all actuality, He wants us to throw our agenda, our plans, for our lives away and truely, and fully rely on Him to Reveal His agenda to us, for us. The question now remains, Will We Let Him?

The first step, surprisingly, is backward. Lay your planner/calendar down and slowly back away to look at the big Christmas picture. Christmas is not designed to make us overworked and overwhelmed. It should stay focused on the birth of our Savior. It surprises me that when we do this simple act of reflection, how easily and effortlessly everything else FALLS into place! Try it! Put your God to the test! (I double-dog dare you! lol)

In Romans 11:6, God's word says, "And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work." Some of you may read that and say, HUH? Let me explain...Grace is that which God does in and through you that you cannot do of your own ability. Works is that which you do on your own and of your own ability. Therefore, grace and works cannot exist together because if something is done of grace, it cannot be done from works and visa versa. Works = headache. It is us, working out our own agendas, our own plans, our own ideas. If that which you are trying to do is bringing you frustration, getting your priorities out of order, just not working, then pray about it and ask God if that thing is really what you need to be putting your time and energy into. If it is, ask God for the GRACE to work it out for you, lay down your ideas of making it work and let God take care of it. You would not believe how much of a stress-reducer this is.

So, this Christmas, I challenge you to take a closer look at your calendar. The deeper challenge is this, see if you can cut one thing (if not two or three,) off your calendar from every week for the rest of the year. Use this new-found free time to seek God and ask Him to reveal HIS agenda for you and your family for the up-coming year.

Living by grace ~ Janice~

Christmas Lights

I finally got my Christmas tree up this past Saturday. For me, I was late as we usually get the tree up the week of Thanksgiving or before. Why so early? Because by the time December gets here the calendar has a mind of it's own. Ever feel like the calendar controls your life? haha!

I was working on the house, cleaning, getting ready for all the parties coming up here and was finally ready to tackle the tree - that's when I remembered that I threw away all my lights last year because almost daily, a section of lights would burn out so by the time Christmas was over, I don't believe we had a full strand of working lights on the tree!

I really wasn't in the mood to head out and get more lights. The weather was nasty - snowing, turning into ice on the roads, cold, and I didn't feel like putting my face on to head out - yes, I am one of those that has to put my face on before I head out thanks to acne attacks in my late 20's and still going as I am 29 and gracefully holding. lol!

I finally just decided to grin and bear and headed out after cleaning a good 1/2 inch of snow and ice or more off my car. I headed to Lowe's since my hubby needed salt for the morning. I slipped and slid all the way there and if you can believe it or not, I stayed at Lowe's for probably 2 hours! For starters, they had all their Christmas stuff on clearance 50%. So, knowing me, I had to search every item they had left to see if their were any goodies. Most of it was picked over but I found ONE beautiful ornament. Okay, now remember, I'm there for lights and salt but it probably took me 40 minutes to actually get to the light section! haha!

After I arrived to the light section, well, you guessed it. I had one conversation after another with myself on which lights I wanted. I actually had options because of that sale instead of usually just grabbing the cheapest lights available. So, there went about 30 minutes...I actually had finally made my decision, lights in the cart, walking away when I halted - thought, thought a little more, talked to myself outloud, had people loooking at me strangely, I politely smiled, talked a little more and finally, put those lights away and grabbed the $4.00 lights (the one's I had were $10.00 big lightbulb kind...the kind I'd love to have). Why, you might ask? Because they simply didn't have enough of the big bulbs I wanted - I'm a red girl...I like my tree dancing with red, well, they only had 100 big bulb lights...4 boxes...I could just see my tree starving for color and looking quite anorexic with barely any lights, so I picked up the 'typical' lights I always get and got 500 lights..all that work just to pick what I always get! Go me!

Okay, so I'm done with the Christmas shopping when I decide it's time to get lights for my kitchen - and yes, you can imagine that took probably another 45 minutes, a few conversations with myself, and phone call to my sister in Florida, a couple more changes after I had the lights in my cart, a phone call to my husband, pacing up and down one aisle after another - but I have to admit....I eventually made my decision and hopefully today I'll get to see what those lights look like in my kitchen - well, that is after I get the right kind of lightbulbs as I FORGOT to get them even though they were staring me right in the face that night at Lowe's.

Now, I'm sitting here on my sofa, watching my 500 lights sparkle on my Christmas tree and will get to witness my new lights (2 of them) in my kitchen/dining room later today as I figure out some kind of bribe to get my husband to put them up.

My little world is all lit up and even though it was an awful lot of hard work just picking out lights, it was worth the silly hours I spent picking them out. :)

Tracee, all lit up!
"Shine like the stars in the universe." Phil. 2:15

I Corinthians 13 for Moms...

The minute I read this in a book that I am reading, I thought of all of you and knew I had to post it...

'I can read bedtime stories till the cow jumps over the moon and sing "Ten Little Monkeys" until I want to call the doctor - but if I don't have love, I'm as annoying as a ringing phone.

I can chases a naked toddler through the house while cooking dinner and listening to voice mail, I can fix the best cookies and Kool-Aid in the neighborhood, and I can tell a sick child's temperature with one touch of my finger, but if I don't have love, I am nothing.

Love is patient while watching and praying by the front window when it's 30 minutes past curfew. Love is kind when my teen says, "I hate you!" It does not envy the neighbors' swimming pool or their brand-new minivan, but trusts the Lord to provide every need.

Love does not brag when other parents share their disappointments and insecurities and rejoices when other families succeed.

It doesn't boast, even when I've multitasked all day long and my husband can't do more than one thing at a time.

Love is not rude when my spouse innocently asks, "What have you done today?" It is not easily angered, even when my 15-year-old acts like the world revolves around her. It is not self-righteous when I remind my 17-year-old that he's going 83 in a 55-mph-zone, but rejoices in the truth.

Love trusts God to protect our children when we cannot. It preseveres through blue nail polish, burps and other bodily functions, rolled eyes, crossed arms, messy rooms and sleepovers.

Love never fails. But where there are memories of thousands of diaper changes and painful labors, they will fade away. Where there is talking back, it will (eventually) cease. (Please, Lord?) But when we get to heaven, our imperfect parenting will disappear. (Thank you, God!)

When we were children, we needed a parent to love and protect us. Now that we're parents ourselves, we have a heavenly Father who adores, shelters and holds us when we need to cry.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.'

I love how the writer took this passage and applied it to everyday moms like us to help us see clearly how we can share and experience love with our children and families today. I hope this blesses you like it did me. Have a wonderful Monday!
~Janice~

Man of the House

Tracee, this says it all!! lol!! Happy Weekend!!

How To Weigh Yourself CORRECTLY!

I finally figured it out how to weigh correctly!! Get the word out! Quick!

Tracee, now I'll start weighing myself!

Laughing at a Piece of Paper!!

I'm finding that life is richer when you enjoy the simpler things in life. I can't tell you how many times I've sat on Christmas morning watching my kid's unwrap their toys and end up finding the boxes the toys came in more fun to play with than the actual toy. As I was looking through my files to find something uplifting to put on today's blog, I found the most hilariously precious video taken of a baby boy finding pure delight in a piece of paper! His adorable and contagious laughter made me start laughing at something so simple. So, this Christmas season, sit back and enjoy - reflect and watch as this season entertains you the beautiful way it does - there's just something so beautiful and so simple about Christmas. It represents life, love and eternal life because of the amazing gift of Jesus. Tracee, loving the simple things in life and laughing at them!

Duct Tape

Have you ever wondered what some of the uses of duct tape were? (Actually, I hope you haven't or you have WAY too much time on your hands!!)

Well, today you will find out duct tape use #367 in the picture provided!! We now have a cure for the plumber who comes over to fix the kitchen sink!! What a relief!!

Too bad we couldn't use it in every area of our lives!! For example, removing your leg hair, waxing your eyebrows, taping someone's nostrils when they are snoring (I promise you I haven't tried this one before!!), put around your legs when you are running or even walking so they don't move (definitely gotta try this one!! Talk about a 2 for 1 deal - stop the shaking of your legs and hair removal all in one!), or the employee that won't be quiet - duct tape!

Believe it or not, I actually have a spiritual thought to all this duct tape talk! God said in I Peter 4:8 that we are to love each other DEEPLY, because love COVERS a multitude of sin. Just as we use duct tape to 'fix' things or even 'cover' up things...haha!....Remember that duct tape can be like love - it fixes things, it covers things up and it makes things beautiful again!! That's the power of love - it see's beyond sin to the beauty of a person's heart and that's one of the goals in life we need to aim for!! To love, no matter what!

Remember that you are loved today and that your deep love for each other covers a multitude of sin! What a fantabulicious blessing! God simply ROCKS!!

Enjoy and remember - LOVE!! It does your body good!!!

Tracee, gonna go find me some duct tape!

Obedience & Milk = What do they have in common?

(This is a longer blog – but stick with it – you'll be blessed!!) A young man had been to Wednesday Night Bible Study. The Pastor had shared about listening to God and obeying the Lord's voice. The young man couldn't help but wonder, 'Does God still speak to people?' After service, he went out with some friends for coffee and pie and they discussed the message. Several different ones talked about how God had led them in different ways. It was about ten o'clock when the young man started driving home. Sitting in his car, he just began to pray, 'God...If you still speak to people, speak to me. I will listen. I will do my best to obey.'

 

As he drove down the main street of his town, he had the strangest thought to stop and buy a gallon of milk. He shook his head and said out loud, 'God is that you?' He didn't get a reply and started on toward home. But again, the thought, 'buy a gallon of milk.' The young man thought about Samuel and how he didn't recognize the voice of God, and how little Samuel ran to Eli. 'Okay, God, in case that is you, I will buy the milk.' It didn't seem like too hard a test of obedience. He could always use the milk. He stopped and purchased the gallon of milk and started off toward home.

 

As he passed Seventh Street, he again felt the urge, 'Turn Down that street.' This is crazy he thought, and drove on past the intersection. Again, he felt that he should turn down Seventh Street. At the next intersection, he turned back and headed down Seventh. Half jokingly, he said out loud, 'Okay, God, I will.'

He drove several blocks, when suddenly, he felt like he should stop. He pulled over to the curb and looked around. He was in a semi-commercial area of town. It wasn't the best but it wasn't the worst of neighborhoods either. The businesses were closed and most of the houses looked dark like the people were already in bed.

 

Again, he sensed something, 'Go and give the milk to the people in the house across the street.' The young man looked at the house. It was dark and it looked like the people were either gone or they were already asleep. He started to open the door and then sat back in the car seat. 'Lord, this is insane. Those people are asleep and if I wake them up, they are going to be mad and I will look stupid.' Again, he felt like he should go and give the milk. Finally, he opened the door, 'Okay God, if this is you, I will go to the door and I will give them the milk. If you want me to look like a crazy person, okay. I want to be obedient. I guess that will count for something, but if they don't answer right away, I am out of here.'

 

He walked across the street and rang the bell. He could hear some noise inside. A man's voice yelled out, 'Who is it? What do you want?' Then the door

opened before the young man could get away. The man was standing there in his jeans and T-shirt. He looked like he just got out of bed. He had a strange look on

his face and he didn't seem too happy to have some stranger standing on his doorstep. 'What is it?' The young man thrust out the gallon of milk, 'Here, I brought this to you.' The man took the milk and rushed down a hallway.

 

Then from down the hall came a woman carrying the milk toward the kitchen. The man was following her holding a baby. The baby was crying. The man had tears streaming down his face. The man began speaking and half crying, 'We were just praying. We had some big bills this month and we ran out of money. We

didn't have any milk for our baby. I was just praying and asking God to show me how to get some milk.' His wife in the kitchen yelled out, 'I asked him to send

an Angel with some. Are you an Angel?'

 

The young man reached into his wallet and pulled out all the money he had on him and put in the man's hand. He turned and walked back toward his car and the tears were streaming down his face. He knew that God still answers prayers.

 

About 11 years ago I found myself in a similar situation. Mark and I were Youth Pastor's in Stillwater, OK, and due to some medical circumstances that hit us that year, we were under intense financial stress. We had more going out financially then was coming in. We had made a commitment that I wasn't going to get an outside job when we started having children. That was a huge commitment but even through this difficult time, we stuck to it in faith believing that God was going to provide. We had 2 children at that time. I cannot even begin to tell you how faithful God was through this. This 'TIGHT' time lasted a solid year and I have to say, never once did our electricity ever get turned off, our car payment not get paid, or our Dr. bills not get paid. God performed miracle after miracle. One of those miracles was the obedience of a special woman, one who actually reads this blog. Here it was the beginning of the week, we had already received our paycheck for the next week but all that was left for groceries was $7.00. I went to Walmart and prayed to God to stretch that money and make it last for a week. I knew, truly, that I would only get a few days worth of hot dogs and mac and cheese. While I was at the store, I asked the Lord, "Jesus, I need someone to go to my house and bring me food." Little did I know that by the time I got home there was $100.00 worth of groceries sitting in my living room that someone from our church had dropped off. The items in those bags were even my favorite brands!!! For the next year, that same woman came to pick me up every other week and bought me groceries so that my family could eat. When that year was over, not only did we finally have enough money to start buying our own groceries again but our $22,000 in medical debt had been wiped 100% clean – that's another amazing story!!

This Christmas season – the greatest gift you can receive is to hear the voice of God – not only will it change your life forever but you never know who needs a gallon of milk and you are the answer to their prayers.

Tracee – more blessed than I could ever imagine!! Thank you Debbie!!

Mamagram Preparation...

I know that Breast Cancer Awareness is in October, but I couldn't pass up this JOKE...

How to prepare for a mamagram:

1. Lay on your side on the garage floor
2. Have your husband slowly put the car in reverse and slowly drive over your boob
3. Get up and go to the other side of the car
4. Repeat steps one and two.

Mamagram preparation; complete.

~Janice~

Back to Reality...

Tracee and I sincerely hope that you had as much fun as we did this week as we enjoyed our families. Unlike Tracee, I spent my black Friday like so many of the rest of Bristol did, SHOPPING!!! My mother and I started shopping on Black Friday about 4 years ago...laughing every year about how ridiculous it is to be shopping for underware at 4am to save a few bucks. But, I love and cherish this time that I have, just me and my mom. We rarely get these one on one moments and live for Black Friday now...
After staying up late Wednesday to cook a Thanksgiving feast for 9, getting up at the crack of dawn for Black Friday (without a nap), and getting up early again this morning to go with my husband to those stores holding over their sales, I AM POOPED!!! So, forgive me that this entry is very short, but I am sure that Tracee and I will be sharing our Thanksgiving stories with you over the next few days...Get ready to laugh your Thanksgiving dinner off!!!
We love you and pray for you daily!!
~Tracee and Janice~

Bye Bye Turkey Day – Hello Christmas

It's hard to believe that Thanksgiving is already over AND black Friday. Wow!! I spent my Black Friday getting a hair treatment on my hair to help with my frizzies. My hair feel as greasy as can be and there's nothing I can do about it until next Tuesday!!! But, I should be drop dead gorgeous after this!! Haha!

I have been in Florida this whole week visiting my family. It has been absolutely wonderful and hysterically funny. I have laughed so hard that I never even gained one ounce due to the workout I gave myself from laughing so much. I promise you I'll post our Thanksgiving Day video sometime but get ready to laugh your head off. Between my sister, my brother my mom, and myself, there was no shortage of comedians in the house.

Now, all wonderful things must come to an end and tomorrow I find myself getting in the car for a 12 hour day of traveling with my kiddo's. It's a good-bye I have to do every year but overall, I can't thank my Jesus enough for giving me the amazing family that I have been blessed with. We all have the liberties to be exactly who God made us and that's incredible! Even if my dad spends half of his time wondering where on earth we came from. J The beautiful thing about tomorrow is I get to see my super handsome husband who I left behind in the woods of Tennessee/Virginia as he hunted the wild wild East for deer. November has been so busy with traveling that we've only gotten to see each other a total of 14 days this month!! So, tomorrow is going to be wonderful to walk through the front door of my home and into his arms.

Off to hang with the fam one last time!!

See you when I get back to good ole' Tennessee….

Tracee….tired, fulfilled, loved, stuffed, and happy as a turkey!

Happy Thanksgiving Day!

May your stuffing be tasty
May your turkey plump,
May your potatoes and gravy
Have never a lump.
May your yams be delicious
And your pies take the prize,
And may your Thanksgiving dinner
Stay off your thighs!

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! 

Love, Tracee and Janice

The Virus I received this Weekend...

This is a copy of the Amish Virus Warning I received this weekend...I died laughing!!!

"Thou hast just received the Amish Virus.

Since we do not have electricity nor computers, thou art on the honor system.
Please delete all of thy files.

Thank thee"

Still laughing...Janice - Have a GREAT Monday!!!

Christmas Shopping

Ahh, the joys of Christmas shopping! I haven't really gotten a great start yet this year but I am working on it. I have had times where I've gotten it all done by the end of September and then times when it was days before Christmas before I was done. I came up with a great solution the other day that I think I'll do one year and that's simply get gift cards to all my kid's favorite stores and take them out the day after Christmas and let them get whatever they want. Time wise, I don't know if that would be good since the stores are busting after Christmas but then I could be onto something here. I can see myself now, sitting at a coffee shop in the mall, reading a book, enjoying myself while my kid's are stressing out about which toy, clothing item, earrings, or video game they want. Sounds like the perfect solution!!

I have to admit, though. I really do enjoy Christmas shopping. I love shopping period. It's fun – well, it's fun when there's money involved. When there's not it's quite a challenge. Haha! But, I do have some great advice…when you don't have money but you 'feel' like shopping…head over to Target, grab a cart and shop. Go through every aisle and enjoy yourself – put all those things you want in the basket, oh – don't forget to get the $1.50 soda and popcorn at the concession area to help make your shopping trip more enjoyable, or if you have $3/$4 to spare you can get a nice Starbucks coffee. So, you might be asking, "What do I do with the cart that's full when I'm done." You simply leave it in the last aisle of the store and walk away. You'll feel refreshed and had an enjoyable shopping experience and you'll walk away feeling good that you didn't spend all that money!! Haha! I confess, I did do that once or twice. Store camera's love me!! I was at the store and I had it loaded with stuff – all kinds of stuff…I ended up walking away from it all because I felt I went a little overboard so I just grabbed another cart and started all over and left saving myself a bundle and feeling quite happy.

When it comes down to it, it's the simple things in life that will bring you greater treasure than thinking you 'need' all the bigger things in life. Stuff is stuff!! It comes and goes with the times, but having those enjoyable times in life when you might only have $5.00 in your wallet…that's okay. Enjoy what you have and get what you need..but overall – enjoy those precious 'small' moments – whether you have loads to spend or nothing. Don't forget – when Jesus comes, you can't say, "Oh, just a minute, let me pack up my suitcase of all the 'stuff' I've collected through the years!" lol! But what matters most is what you've treasured up in heaven. Matthew 6:21 puts it beautifully: "Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be."

Life is what you make of it – if you choose stress, you'll get stress. If you choose to be miserable, you'll be miserable. If you choose love, you'll get love. If you choose fun, you'll have fun. If you seek treausures, you'll find treasures! Life is like Christmas shopping – you get what you shop for. Choose the enjoy the small moments that life gives you…and when in doubt…just walk away from you cart and start all over!!

Tracee….gotta get out of here and start shopping for treasures while convincing my kid's they don't need all this 'stuff!' lol!!!!

Top Ten...

Top Ten Things You Never Want to Find in the Center of Your Christmas Chocolates:

10. Microfilm wht schematics for the new Mach 937 stealth fighter

9. Magma

8. A fortune that reads "A distant relative will come for a lengthy visit."

7. Another chocolate, with another chocolate inside of that, and another chocolate inside of that, and another...

6. A slip of paper that starts with the words, "Your weight is..."

5. A clown that pops out to the tune of "Pop Goes the Weasel"

4. A worning label that reads "Not to be taken internally"

3. Legs of any kind, size, or shape

2. One of the evil Penguin's dehydrated henchmen (but if you dind one, Batman will know what to do)

1. An expiration date - especially if it refers to any time now considered "retro"

Enjoy your Holidays!!

Anxiously waiting...Janice

Gobble, Gobble

My favorite time of the year is summer – I love heat and will take it any day over cold weather. You could probably call me a baby when it comes to cold weather because I simply don't like being cold. I can recall a time when I lived in Ireland which is a very cold country. Your heat stays on 24/7 365 days a year. You might get blessed and have 65 degree weather for no more than 2 weeks sometime between May and August but don't put all your eggs in that basket. We had moved from a house that didn't have working radiators to a house that did….after having lived in a cold house for 9 months I believe I went a little overboard on the heat because one night my husband came home and took one look at me. Of course, my face was radiantly red and I probably had sweat dripping down my brow – I was burning up and loving every minute of it because the heat had been on nonstop for hours. He said, "Sweetheart, don't you think the house is hot enough." I gleefully looked at him and said, "No! Doesn't it feel perfect in here?!" I wasn't about to turn the heat down for second no matter how hot I was. That's what shorts and a t-shirt are for. Lol!!

Now that you know my favorite season, my favorite holiday, though, happens to be in the dead of winter…well, actually, not the dead of winter but the early stages of winter even though around here in Tennessee I woke up to 17 degrees yesterday. So wrong!!! So, they call this fall! Haha! What is winter going to be like? Actually, my TN winters have been pretty calm – cold, yes, but not like Minnesota cold. Haha – I just had a revelation….I was born in Minnesota. Go figure!! I only lived there one year so my blood didn't have time to get use to frigid weather.

So, you ask, where on earth is this crazy woman going with all this cold/holiday talk? Lol! I don't have a clue myself. Haha! Actually, I do – Thanksgiving through Christmas is such a festive time of year and that's what I love about it. I get to see family I haven't seen in a year (we compare wrinkles and age spots) since we live all over the planet and get some extra special quality time with my own immediate family and I have to say…it's fantabulous. Of course, I get to warm up since the kids and I have started a Thanksgiving tradition of heading down to Florida to hang with my side of the family while Mark stays here and becomes a mountain man hunting for deer for 6 days straight. He loves it because he doesn't have to shower or shave! Haha! I've called myself a deer widow every Thanksgiving. So, whether it's just you, or you've got a bus load of family or more, I pray that you have the most beautiful holiday season this year. Don't worry about all the 'stuff' that takes place when families get together with all their lovely opinions….simply reflect on the beauty of your family – the positive things that you love like – hearing with my family: hearing my dad clear his throat (a habit he's done for years) – I can find him in a store just because of that one trademark, or my mom dancing around the kitchen with celery in her mouth singing Elvis songs as she entertains herself while cooking, or my sister constantly giggling from my silly forms of entertainment and then saying, "Does anyone need a starbucks?" Or, my brother-in-law with the t.v. remote permanently attached to his hand while he stays glued to football games, or my kids telling their Aunt, "So, when are you going to take us shopping? I brought my list." Or my oldest sister, the teacher, commenting across the room while I'm having a conversation with someone else saying, "Tracee, it's not her but she." She loves correcting people's grammar. Or, my brother trying to find someone to talk to about his hotrod car and how it goes 110 mph in 5 seconds, a story in which we've heard about every single year…haha! Yes, I have been the good sister and let him take me for a spin in that car at those warped speeds at least twice and I have to say – it's fast and quite scary. Make sure you wear a depends if you attempt this at home.

Alright, so I gave you some insight to my family gatherings and they are quite hilarious and extremely entertaining. Through the good and the quirky – I love my family and the precious times we have together. So, live it up – enjoy this holiday season and no matter whether you are in the state of plenty or the state of need – remember the awesome words of Paul…."no matter what state I am, I have learned to be content." Phil. 4:11-12

That is the joy secret to life…no matter what – be content and live it up!!

Gobble, gobble….Tracee

ATM Machine’s

MALE VS. FEMALE AT THE ATM MACHINE  

A new sign in the Bank Lobby reads:

'Please note that this Bank is installing new Drive-through ATM machines enabling customers to withdraw cash without leaving their vehicles.
Customers using this new facility are requested to use the procedures outlined below when accessing their accounts. After months of careful research,
MALE & FEMALE Procedures have been developed. Please follow the Appropriate steps for your gender..'

*******************************
MALE PROCEDURE:
1. Drive up to the cash machine.
2. Put down your car window.
3. Insert card into machine and enter PIN.
4. Enter amount of cash required and withdraw.
5. Retrieve card, cash and receipt.
6. Put window up.
7. Drive off.
******************************
FEMALE PROCEDURE:
1. Drive up to cash machine.
2. Reverse and back up the required
amount to align car window with the machine.
3. Set parking brake, put the window down.
4. Find handbag, remove all contents on
to passenger seat to locate card.
5. Tell person on cell phone you will call
them back and hang up.
6. Attempt to insert card into machine.
7. Open car door to allow easier access
to machine due to its excessive distance
from the car.
8. Insert card.
9. Re-insert card the right way.
10. Dig through handbag to find diary
with your PIN written on the inside
back page.
11. Enter PIN.
12. Press cancel and re-enter correct PIN.
13. Enter amount of cash required.
14. Check makeup in rear view mirror.
15. Retrieve cash and receipt..
16. Empty handbag again to locate wallet
and place cash inside.
17. Write debit amount in check register
and place receipt in back of checkbook.
18. Re-check makeup.
19. Drive forward 2 feet.
20. Reverse back to cash machine.
21. Retrieve card.
22. Re-empty hand bag, locate card holder,
and place card into the slot provided!
23. Give dirty look to irate male driver
waiting behind you.
24. Restart stalled engine and pull off.
25. Redial person on cell phone.
26. Drive for 2 to 3 miles.
27. Release Parking Brake.

Love, Live, Laugh!!

Tracee, the 'drive 2-3 miles and then remember to release her parking brake!' woman

The Pastries...Redeemed!

This weekend was a blast! Definately a much needed break before the holidays! Our church women's group packed up our bags and headed to the mountains of North Carolina! There were somewhere between 23 and 25 of us (I lost count, and they wouldn't all stand still for me to count!)

Saturday afternoon was our free time and of course, all but two of our ladies went SHOPPING!! (what else, right?) Well, there is the most yumma-delicious bakery in downtown Wayensville that we always stop at and they also serve lunch. Well, it just so happened that my group of thrift store shoppers, ran into for lunch, another group of our ladies who had been shopping the stores of downtown. One of these ladies, (Sandi, our Woman's Ministry leader), had purchased some pastries from the bakery for later and she was so excited about them!! (We took pictures...:))

As we left the bakery stuffed to the gills, we decided to walk it off and found ourselves at the Christian Book store, where we ran into the same ladies!! Coincidence? I don't think so, because the next 1/2 hour brought my group of ladies SOOOO much laughter and joy....:)

Sandi had laid her pastries down on a shelf before we got there and was continuing to shop the rest of the store. WE FOUND THEM...So, we decided to redeem them and take them to the house for her...but we didn't tell her! We just walked RIGHT out of the store with them...Giggling the whole way!!

We decided that we should hold them ransome and take pictures with her yummalicious pastries all the way downtown. We laughed so hard!! People were starring at us as we had our fun! That simple moment of silliness with my friends was priceless! It is a moment that we will all remember and a moment that bonded us for life. Some of us would never have done something like that, and yet for some of us, it is almost expected, but the point is, we bonded...I can still hear us laughing...yes, it is my friends that are now the voices in my head!! You should be so lucky!!! LOL

Our story ends with our last act of silliness, we wrapped Sandi's precious pastries up in Birthday paper and presented her with them at that night's meeting...I'm sure that she would have eventually remembered that she laid her precious pastries somewhere, and she would have eventually found them, BUT this was WAY more fun!!! LOL

Do something silly today...Laugh at yourself...(Don't worry, if your stomach hurts, it just means that it is working! And just think of all the calories you are burning excersizing your abs like that!! Sure does beat sit-ups!!) ~Janice~

Going Back To Work!

My mom sent this to me and I about fell off the sofa laughing so hard. I can so remember the days of typewriters....just watch and see what I mean! haha!



Smiles,

Tracee

What To Do When You’re Bored

Okay, so we all have to make continual stops on a weekly basis to Walmart or Target. Sometimes life can feel a bit monotonous as you constantly need a new pair of socks, shampoo, toothpaste, food, etc. So, here's a list of some hilarious things to do to spice up your shopping adventures. I've actually tried some of them. I promise you, you'll crack up laughing if you attempt any of these and if you do, please let us know. Share the laughter!! And, if you are wondering where the spiritual relevance in all of this is, check out Proverbs 17:22. It says, "A happy heart is good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing, but a broken spirit dries up the bones." The power of laughter is life changing!! Give it a try!!

1. Get some boxes of Dulcolax and place them in people's carts when they aren't looking.
   
2. Set all the alarm clocks in the 'housewares' section to go off in 5 minute intervals.
   
3. Walk up to an employee and tell him/her with an official tone, "Code 7 in Health and Beauty" and see what happens.
   
4. Go to the Layaway section and ask to put a bag of M&M's on lay-a-way.
   
5. Move the 'Caution – Wet Floor' sign to a carpeted area.
   
6. Set up a tent in the camping department and tell other shoppers you'll invite them in if they'll bring pillows from the bedding department.
   
7. When a clerk asks if they can help you, begin to cry and respond: "Why can't you people just leave me alone?"
   
8. Look right into the security camera, use it as a mirror and pick your nose.
   
9. Dart around the store suspiciously while loudly humming the "Mission Impossible" song. (done that!)
   
10. Hide in a clothing rack and when people browse through, say, "Pick me! Pick me!" (gotta try this one!)
    
11. When an announcement comes over the speaker, assume the fetal position and scream, "No! No! It's the voices again!"
    
12. Go into a fitting roomfitting room and shut the door and wait a while, then yell very loudly, "There is no toilet paper in here!"
    

    
     

    Confession time: I'm still a Youth Pastor but back in the 90's, I would have all our girls over for a slumber party. One of the crazy things we'd do is dress up in outrageous outfits and head to Wal-Mart to pick up toilet paper to bless someone's house with. It was one of those trips that we were running around the store singing the "Mission Impossible" theme. I was dressed like a hunter with a paper sack over my head, another friend was wearing a bathing suit OVER her clothes, another girl was dressed like a Grandma, grey hair and all, another girl had a pair of my 2 year old sons Mickey Mouse underwear on her hair with pony tails coming through the leg parts, another girl was dressed in rain gear and carrying an umbrella that was open, and that's only to name a few of the hilarious outfits we put together. The responses from people's faces were absolutely hilarious to witness. The security camera's at the store were watching us like a hawk…you'd hear over the speaker system, "Camera one be in position…", pause, then, "Camera 7 position." Basically, wherever we went the camera people were 'watching' us. We meant no harm except deflating our images but it was worth the laughter and feeling of glee!! Debbie – if you are reading this, remember? J Oh how funny those days were. I have actually done this probably 5 times in the past 10 years and it's been quite an experience!!
    

    
     

    So, my challenge for today is this: Do something totally out of character and enjoy the laughter it gives you!! I promise you, it's like releasing a butterfly and will cause you to soar!!
    

    
     

    Love and laughter…nothing more beautiful…Tracee
    

  

A Funny Moment? What?

I admit that I have had quite the writer's block this week my friends!! Getting sick this week didn't help either! I was trying desperately to think of a funny story that I could tell you because Tracee is right...we were getting quite serious and intense there for a couple of entries and it is good to take a laughter break. I know I need it after this week!! (I don't know about you, but I am sure not in a laughter kind of place after being sick!)

Anyway, like I said, I was trying to resurface a funny story from my life, and I know they are in there, but my brain won't let me retrieve one!! HA! As I was reflecting on my life and all the joy in it, I realized that the most common joy moments that I have is with my husband, William. He tells me often that there is never a dull moment when I am around. I remind him, that is the very reason he married me. It didn't always used to be like that for me. I was married before - got married young and thought I knew best - thought I had found true love, but the Creator of Love was not the center of it, therefore, love, true love could not reside. There was a lot of sad moments, tearful moments in that marriage. However, I wouldn't trade those moments because they forced growth within me.

I am so thankful that God gave William to me. I was not looking, and in fact had made my peace within myself not to remarry. God had other plans and He was moving FAST! William and I were introduced by his pastor (that Sunday we were introduced was my first time visit to that church), in March of 2001...We married in that same church, by that same pastor in July of 2001. I haven't really stopped smiling since. Sure, we have had our moments, and I can count on one hand the number of actual fights that we have had, but the joy moments? I lost count...(I don't have that many fingers and toes!!)

Right now, this very moment, I may not be able to pin-point a specific story, but as I reflect, I know that there has been more laughter than tears because he allows me to be me. He sees things in me that I have yet to discover...the potential, the creativity, the ability, even the confidence. I know that I would not be where I am in life and accomplished the things that I have without William beside me encouraging me to step out, to stretch myself, to believe in myself.

Isn't that just like our Heavenly Father too? These characteristics that are revealed to me through my husband are God given, God inspired and God created. God reveals Himself to you through others. All you have to do is look around. What do you see? What do others see in you? Are you allowing the character of God be revealed through you?

Genesis 1:27 - "So God created people in his own image; God patterned them after himself; male and female he created them."

A New Discovery!

Alright, so hopefully my sister doesn't read this blog because she would die with what I'm about to write but I've discovered a new love and it's called Maxwell House. Haha! I had it this weekend and couldn't resist it…..so I bought some today. J There must be something wrong with me because I'm seeing a coffee blog taking over the past few days…maybe it's because my schedule is so wild this month that the only way I'm surviving is because of coffee…even though I had NONE today! Haha!

My husband has Christmas music playing and I have to admit, it adds to the holiday feeling that is soon coming. Along with my purchase of coffee, I started buying the fun holiday foods that we get like a huge case of IBC root beers, Welch's Fizzy Grape drinks, fun crackers and European style cookies, cheese, fun salamis…all those goodies that make the holiday's even yummier!

Okay, so you can see the randomness of this blog – aren't you gaining so much spiritual wisdom out of it! Haha! I'm sure Janice is going to jump in any minute and take over. Haha! So, let me leave you with something spiritual – TRY SOMETHING NEW! Like Maxwell House. If you are a person that always does the same ole' same ole' – let me dare you to do something or try something you've never tried or done before. Living for God is such an amazingly exciting adventure that our lives shouldn't be or get boring. But live it up to the fullest – He's called us to an abundant and full life – even in the middle of all the economic chaos. How beautiful that our lives aren't based on the physical circumstances of this world! So, live it up, find a new discovery this very week, you never know. It might become your next favorite thing, food or coffee! J

Off to find more adventures and try more coffee!!

Tracee, the converted Maxwell House drinker…

Speechless

I have to admit I am having a problem. Lol!! I'm speechless! I know that is so hard for many of you to imagine but it's true. I've been going and going like the energizer rabbit for the past week and I haven't even had a moment to pause and smell the coffee, well I actually did today – multiple times as it was what kept me alive and running today – coffee!! Haha! I don't recall drinking so much coffee in one day as I did today. I was actually at Target tonight and felt a magnetic pull towards the Starbucks that's inside Target. It was quite hilarious. I've rarely ever felt a pull like that for coffee even though I love it – but, since I didn't feel like spending $5.00, I passed, sadly!! I was desperately wishing my sister, Jocelyn, was around because she would've gotten me one. I've NEVER seen her resist a Starbucks. I'm sure she owns stock in it! Haha!

So, here it is 9:30 at night and I'm finding my first break of the day! It was one of those days that started at 6:24a.m. and never ended. Ever had those days? But, I can say that it's been a beautiful day. What made the perfect topping on a delicious ice cream sundae was hanging with my kiddo's after school today. We went and did some shopping for a few hours and enjoyed some good ole' popcorn from Target and then back home to a wonderful supper my hubby and son made together while they stayed at home playing Risk. (BTW, my son beat his dad for the first time ever!!) I have to admit that ½ of our shopping was simply looking around as if we had all the time in the world. It's fun to watch your kid's sight shop – of course, every so many items you hear, "Mom, can we get this?" I could spend a month's salary in 2 days if I actually bought everything they asked for! Haha!

So, the day was crazy busy, so much so that I haven't even been able to think..haha! But, it was beautiful! I'm looking forward to another crazy Tuesday!! So far it's looking identical to today but I'm determined to make it like today – beautifully speechless! J

Tracee, speechless….

 

You know, I laughed when I read Tracee's post on the blog about not having a picture of herself at Fall Festival because I was thinking that I did. Then in the very next line, she made reference to me finding one...

Well, BABE! Here it is!! (Minus the Cheeta gloves, which are on the chair behind you!!)

We have so much fun together! I challenge each of you reading this blog to dig deeper with one or more of your friends. Be yourself. LAUGH!! Tracee and I have done just that and I cannot tell you the liberation that it brings to you! The joy! The freedom to be yourself! Friendships like these truely stand the test of time and each other!! HA!

Proverbs says in chapter 18 verse 24, "A man (or woman) who has friends must first be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother."

Go have a Joy moment with your BFF!! :)

Trust in what you don’t see….

After today's historical election…we all voted one way or another. What matters most is that no matter what person sits in the seat at the White House, my heart is so reassured and at peace because overall, God is in complete control. One thing I have learned as you look in the Old Testament, you will see that God works in amazing and sometimes quite strange ways! Who knows what God is up to – so instead of fearing or feeling afraid of the future – remember, our hope is not in man but in Christ and expect amazing things to happen for this country and in your life. Expect is another word for faith – have faith in the God who gave you life that He knows exactly what is going on right now at this very moment and His PLANS will come into play for His return…everyday just takes us one step closer to seeing Him face to face.

So….Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and HE will direct your path. Proverbs 3. God is in control!

Tracee, Eyes on Jesus

Surprise, Surprise!!

Yesterday I took my gorgeous hubby to the airport as he was heading to Dallas to visit his grandmother who is in the hospital undergoing hip replacement surgery. We were about 3 minutes away from the airport when Janice calls and said, "Hey, have you dropped Mark off at the airport yet?" I said we hadn't and then she went on to tell me that Senator McCain had just arrived at our airport for a rally! We were shocked. We don't live in a huge metropolis area so we were thrilled to know that he picked our Tri-Cities area as one of his last stops to make before he ends his campaign. I felt the speed of the car increase a bit as we hurried to get there in hopes of being able to witness what a presidential rally feels like. Had Janice not called us, we would've figure something was up because I had NEVER seen that many cars at the airport. They were everywhere – parked on the road, every nearby business, the entire airport parking lot was full.

We quickly parked the car, grabbed his suitcase, check him in and then asked, "Where is the rally?" It was on the airport property but it still was a good walk away…we quickly started heading that direction, excited and anxious! After an 8 minute walk that felt more like 25 minutes, we finally made it to the plane hangar where the rally was being held. We made it through security when I heard the main officer say, "This group is the last group we are letting in." I looked around and realized that he was talking about us!! I praised God that we got in!! I can't tell you what I felt the moment I walked into that rally. Excitement flooded my soul and how incredibly neat this amazing, unexpected opportunity to see McCain in person! Wow! What were the chances of that ever happening! Mark only stayed a moment because he had a plane to catch…we quickly said our good-byes and I remained to hear the remaining 12 minutes of his speech. What happened next amazed me….as he was rallying up the group with applause and motivation, my spiritual man inside of me was rallying up. It was actually quite overwhelming. Never had I sensed such a spiritual warring in my spirit as I did yesterday over a presidential election. I realized, and had realized for a while but yesterday it was all put into perspective at how much this presidential battle has been a war in the spirit between principalities – a battle that we can't see with our physical eyes. I couldn't contain that spiritual warring in my spirit so as he was rallying us up, I went to prayer – no one knew..they thought I was all excited about the speech..and truly I was but I was releasing my prayers to the Lord as a warrior in my shouts. It was amazing!! I was overwhelmed to tears! What a moving moment it was. It affected me the rest of the day. I felt my heart so near to the heart of God. One thing, though, that the Lord has continually been speaking to me is this: No matter what the outcome of today's election –there's one thing we can know and trust – that GOD IS IN CONTROL – He is the overcomer in this world – He holds this world in His hands. So, no matter what happens and where this countries state ends up, God is always in control and in the end, HE GETS WHAT HE WANTS!! I love it!! So, keep fighting spiritually and never forget – we aren't fighting a battle against flesh and blood but against spirits and principalities. Put on the full armor of God and change you world!!

Tracee, forever impacted

Character

Okay, so my bad…I failed to do six days last week on this blog. It's called L-I-F-E and Fall Festival all combined into one. How lovely! Haha! If I would've thought, I would put a picture of moi here for you of my 'cougar' impersonation from last Friday nights fall festival but I forgot to take a picture. I'm starting to think that that was a good thing to forget to do after coming home and getting another look in the mirrior! Haha! But, if I don't hush about it, I'm sure Janice will find a picture of me somewhere and post it since she seems to be the 'picture' queen. Haha!

Okay, so I started thinking about the word character because our Fall Festival was just a few days ago and boy, did we have some characters there! Haha! If you really think about it, there are a lot of 'characters' out there disguising themselves as other people. Me included! Why do we find it so much fun to dress up as someone else? I love it! What I love even more is the reaction of people responding to how you look. But, when the night is over, it all comes off and the real you pops back into reality. This is the 'you' that you can't hide, the you that everyone see's….but let's go even deeper. What about the 'you' that you keep inside of you beyond what everyone else see's. The 'you' that you might be afraid to let come out or are afraid of what people might think or say about 'you'. This is the 'you' that God wants you to be - The real character, the real you.

I'll never forget this day as long as I live – but back about 10 years ago, okay, forgive me, I mean, back 20 years ago, okay! 21 years ago, I was heading home to my dorm…I was in 11^th grade and lived in Kandern, Germany (I actually lived in Marzell – a little town outside of Kandern). I went to Black Forest Academy my last 2 years of H.S. – it was a boarding school. And yes, I LOVED IT LIKE CRAZY!! I was heading up the driveway to my dorm when one of the 'cool' senior guys was heading down the driveway heading back to his dorm across the street. Well, if you know me at all, you'll see that I've never been afraid to be me in all my craziness, so this particular day I was extremely chipper and who knows what on earth I was doing, or acting like but for some reason this 'cool' senior felt compelled to say to me as he walked by me, these exact words, "Tracee! You're weird!" I looked at him with pure delight, accepting the compliment and said, "Thank you!", and walked away. It never bothered me for a split second. Even though I know he meant it negatively, I took it in positively because I like me! It's okay that he didn't like me. If I let that one sentence affect me, imagine what kind of power it would've had over the rest of my life over that one statement!! Enough power to stop me from being who God created me to be?Absolutely not! I love the 'character' I am – no, I don't like the muffin tops I have hanging over my jeans or the thighs that argue with each other on a daily basis saying, "You get out of the way, no you get out of the way!", but yet, I still love me – all of me, the way I am, look, inside and out. If God wanted me to be someone else I would be but I'm not – so remove the 'characters' you try to be everyday and put on the real you – from the inside out and fall in love with YOU!! That's the YOU God created you to be, YOU are the CHARACTER He created and you NEVER have to be ashamed of YOU!!

In Genesis Chapter 1:26-28 it says that God made us in HIS image. Accept who you are, embrace it, set yourself free to discover the beauty of who you are, who He created you to be and begin to fly! You are safe in His wings…..safe enough to be the character called: YOU!

Tracee, the weird one

Yeast Rolls

I said this blog was about joy – so I thought I'd share with you one of the upteen million hilarious stories, jokes and videos I've been collecting in my funny file for over 6 years now. Over a 1000 to be exact! If you know me, laughing is literally one of my most favorite things to do. It's so contagious, so liberating and is like medicine to your heart. Okay, so what made me decide on this true and extremely funny story was I laughed so hard when I read it, again, that I had tears running down my cheeks. So, for today's blog – get ready to roar. With Thanksgiving just weeks away, this is one of the best Turkey Day Stories around…. Put down your coffee and make sure you are near a bathroom cuz this is F-U-N-N-Y!!    

CrazyTracee

Jasper and the Yeast Rolls


We have a fox terrier by the name of Jasper. He came to us in the summer of 2001 from the fox
terrier rescue program. For those of you who are not familiar with this type of adoption, imagine taking
in a 10 yr. old child whom you know nothing about and committing to doing your best to be a good
parent.

Like a child, the dog came with his own idiosyncrasies. He will only sleep on the bed, on
top of the covers, nuzzled as close to my face as he can get without actually performing a French kiss on
me. Lest you think this is a bad case of 'no discipline,' I should tell you that Perry and I
tried every means to break him of this habit including locking him in a separate bedroom for
several nights. The new door cost over $200. But I digress.


Five weeks ago we began remodeling our house. Although the cost of the project is downright
obnoxious, it is 20 yrs' overdue, AND it got me out of cooking Thanksgiving for family, extended family,
and a lot of friends that I like more than family most of the time. I was, however, assigned the task
of preparing 124 of my famous yeast dinner rolls for the two Thanksgiving feasts we did attend. I'm still
blaming the electrician for getting the new oven hooked up so quickly; the only appliance in the
whole stinkin' house that worked, thus the assignment.


I made the decision to cook the rolls on Wednesday evening to reheat on Thursday morning.
Since the kitchen was freshly painted you can imagine the odor. Not wanting the rolls to smell
like Sherwin Williams latex paint #586,I put the rolls on baking sheets and set them in the living
room to rise for 5 hours. After 3 hours, Perry and I decided to go out to eat, returning in about an
hour. An hour later the rolls were ready to go in the oven. It was 8:30pm.


When I went to the living room to retrieve the pans, much to my shock, one whole pan of 12
rolls was empty. I called out to Jasper and my worst nightmare became a reality. He literally wobbled
over to me. He looked like a combination of the Pillsbury dough boy and the Michelin Tire man
wrapped up in fur. He groaned when he walked. I promise you, even his cheeks were bloated.

I ran to the phone and called our vet. After a few seconds of uproarious laughter, he told me the
dog would probably be OK, however, I needed to give him Pepto Bismol every 2 hours for the rest of the
night. God only knows why I thought a dog would like Pepto Bismol any more than my kids did when they
were sick. Suffice to say that by the time we went to bed the dog was black, white and pink. He was so
bloated we had to lift him onto the bed for the night.


Naively thinking the dog would be all better by morning was very stupid on my part. We arose at
7:30 and as we always do first thing; put the dog out to relieve himself. Well, Jasper was as
drunk as a sailor on his first leave. He was running into walls, falling flat on his butt and most of the
time when he was walking his front half was going one direction and the other half was either dragging
the grass or headed 90 degrees in another direction. He couldn't lift his leg to pee, so he would just
walk and pee at the same time. When he ran down the small incline in our back yard he couldn't stop
himself and nearly ended up running into the fence. His pupils were dilated and he was as dizzy as a
loon.


I endured another few seconds of laughter from the vet (second call within 12 hours) before he
explained that the yeast had fermented in his belly and that he was indeed drunk. He assured me that,
not unlike most binges we humans go through, it would wear off after about 4 or 5 hours and to keep
giving him Pepto Bismol.

Afraid to leave him by himself in the house, Perry and I loaded him up and took him with us to my
sister's house for the first Thanksgiving meal of the day. My sister lives outside of Muskogee on a
ranch, (10 to 15 minute drive). Rolls firmly secured in the trunk (124 less 12) and drunk dog leaning
from the back seat onto the console of the car between Perry and I, we took off.


Now I know you probably don't believe that dogs burp, but believe me when I say that after
eating a tray of risen unbaked yeast rolls, DOGS WILL BURP. These burps were pure Old Charter. They
would have matched or beat any smell in a drunk tank at the police station. But that's not the worst of
it. Now he was beginning to pass gas and they smelled like baked rolls. God strike me dead if I am not
telling the truth! We endured this for the entire trip to Karee's, thankful she didn't live any
further away than she did.


Once Jasper was firmly placed in my sister's garage with the door locked, we finally sat down to
enjoy our first Thanksgiving meal of the day. The dog was the topic of conversation all morning long
and everyone made trips to the garage to witness my drunk dog, each returning with a tale of Jasper's
latest endeavor to walk without running into something.


Of course, as the old adage goes, "what goes in must come out" and Jasper was no exception.
Granted if it had been me that had eaten 12 risen, unbaked yeast rolls, you might as well have put a
concrete block up my behind, but alas a dog's digestive system is quite different from yours or
mine. I discovered this was a mixed blessing when we prepared to leave Karee's house. Having discovered
his "packages" on the garage floor, we loaded him up in the car so we could hose down the floor. This was
another naive decision on our part. The blast of water from the hose hit the poop on the floor and
the poop on the floor withstood the blast from the hose. It was like Portland cement beginning to set
up and cure. We finally tried to remove it with a shovel. I (obviously no one else was going to offer
their services) had to get on my hands and knees with a coarse brush to get the remnants off of the
floor.


And as if this wasn't degrading enough, Jasper in his drunken state had walked through the
poop and left paw prints all over the garage floor that had to be brushed too. Well, by this time the
dog was sobering up nicely so we took him home and dropped him off before we left for our second
Thanksgiving dinner at Perry's sister's house. I am happy to report that as of today (Monday) the dog is
back to normal both in size and temperament. He has had a bath and is no longer tricolor. None the worse
for wear I presume. I am also happy to report that just this evening I found 2 risen unbaked yeast
rolls hidden inside my closet door. It appears he must have come to his senses after eating 10 of them
but decided hiding 2 of them for later would not be a bad idea.


Now, I'm doing research on the computer as to "How to clean unbaked dough from the Carpet."

My Father's Eyes

I'm sure that you are familiar with Amy Grant's song entitled, "My Father's Eyes". That is the tune that continues to play in my head today, even as I write this! (it can be very annoying while you are trying to write something else!!)

As moms, we do things for our kids without question, without them asking, without complaining (most of the time), without getting something in return. Often it is the thankless jobs. And often I wonder, "Does no one else see this? Am I the only one in this house that can fold a towel or pick up a toy?" But I do it. I do it because I love my kids and know that they love me. Don't get me wrong, I am teaching my kids the lessons of chores and picking up after themselves - always keeping in mind that we are learning!!

Sometimes I get so caught up in the chores that I don't see what is right in front of me. My son, Jonathan helped me with that this week, even though he doesn't know it. He is not your typical boy. He is VERY compassionate, loving, sensitive (in a good way), and here recently, very thankful. Everyday that I have dropped him off for school this week, he has stopped and blown me kisses, waves goodbye and flashes one of those prize-winning smiles.

It blessed my socks off the first day, but I didn't get it. It blessed me again yesterday, but I still didn't get it. (see a pattern?) Today...I got it!! (God will keep putting things right in front of your nose until you get it) I put myself in my son's place and imagined myself as a young girl waving and blowing kisses to her Heavenly Father. WHOA!! I saw myself through My Father's Eyes. I decided today to thank my Heavenly Father for all the thankless jobs that He does for me, to blow Him kisses and bless HIS socks off!!

Ask the Lord today to help you see yourself through His eyes and as the song goes, 'Eyes that find the good in things when good cannot be found.' Sometimes we have to dig to find the good in ourselves, other times it is easy. I challenge you to dig deeper. Find the good, see yourself through your Father's eyes. You can start with this, we are ALL God's daughters and (as His word says,) as a precious jewel in His crown. Jewels are VALUABLE, they are RARE, and they are UNIQUE.

"The Lord their God will rescue his people, just as a shepherd rescues his sheep. They will sparkle in his land like jewels in a crown." Zechariah 9:16

Janice