cheese, quilts, and reading

As you read in my last post, I wasn't feeling very well in the first part of the week. The second part of the week, my cold got better, but then I ate some cheese, and I've been feeling very sluggish because of it. This is what happens when I crave something that is "legal" on my diet, but still doesn't sit well with me. I take a few bites anyway - and then suffer.

For three days.

The question is: Will I ever learn?

The answer is: Probably not! :))

But in other (good!) news ... Next week is Thanksgiving, and not long after that, it'll be time to start getting things ready for Christmas! Ashlee and Daniel are coming and will be here three or four days. I'm so excited I might just wet my pants stay away from forbidden food that makes me feel awful.

We plan to go see the new Narnia movie, Voyage of the Dawn Treader while they're here. Can you believe I've never read the Narnia series?

Biggest crime for a reader, I know. However - in celebration of the new movie coming out, I'm going to read as much of the series as possible. 

How 'bout you? Are you doing anything special to celebrate the Holiday Season? Leave a comment and tell us about it! Or - tell me what you're reading and whether you would recommend it. I'm always on the lookout for great books!

One more bit of good news before I go. I finally finished Jessie's Coca-Cola quilt!! This is the good part about being down with an illness. You tend to get a lot of hand sewing done. :)

I could have wrapped it up and given it to her for Christmas, but since it's been hanging on the stairwell for three years (cough, cough!), I didn't figure it would be much of a surprise.

Next post, I'll show you her reaction to (finally) getting the quilt.

 

P.S. I chose Coca-Cola because 1.) She likes Coke! And 2.) Her bedroom is decorated in Coca-Cola garb. Her bed cover is red, and her sheets are black. Her curtains are also black, so it goes well with what she's put together. Not sure how we coordinated so well ... I guess we're just awesome like that. 

*rolls eyes

the fall of a sparrow

Matthew 10:29-31 

Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.

As Andrew and I took a walk around the block today, I was doing what I normally do - my head hung low, oblivious to everything going on around me. It's a bad habit I've formed. A wise person would walk with their head high, enjoying the weather, the trees, the beautiful mountainous scenery that I've been blessed to have outside my front door. But alas, I choose to hone in on my dingy tennis shoes.

I was chatting to Andrew about the next school year, discussing which classes he would like to take outside of homeschooling when I noticed an odd looking form lying on the sidewalk. At first I thought it was a child's toy. But the closer I got, I realized it was a bird. A baby bird, too small and young to have grown any feathers ... and lifeless. His gray, limp body, topped with a bright yellow beak lay sprawled out before me in a pathetic, twisted manner. It was then that I lifted my head, in search of the mama.

No sign of her.

I'm sure the bird was snuggled safely in its nest in the nearby tree, along with siblings, their mother hovering over them ... and then BAM! Spring Prairie wind, and snow (yes, I said snow!), and freezing temperatures out of nowhere came rushing in, catching the mama off guard.

While there was nothing I could do for the bird, I contemplated scooping it up, and giving it a proper burial. Instead, I continued walking, and rounded the next corner. As I put one foot in front of the other, I thought, God knows about that bird. Not one sparrow falls without Him knowing about it, and that sparrow is no exception.  

It dawned on me at that moment that, although I cared about that bird and especially its mama, God cared more. I think that bird was a pretty special bird. But God loved that sparrow more than I could. He created it!

He also created me ... and His word tells me that I am of more value than that sparrow. In fact, I am of more value than many sparrows. If that bird had any feathers, I'm sure God knows exactly how many. Just as He knows how many hairs are on my head. This is no small feat, folks. The hairs on my head are constantly changing in number. I find them everywhere in the house, the car, my purse. I shed like a chemo patient. But God knows exactly how many are still attached. At all times. Simply because He cares even about the little details of my life. Including whether I stumble across a fallen bird that reaffirms His love for me.

If that won't make a person hold their head high, I don't know what will.

~Brenda

Thankful for What Was

I woke up on Thanksgiving morning, and a very unexpected homesickness wafted over me. I missed my Grandma. I missed my Mom, and my brothers. I missed the awesome family get together's that always took place at Grandma Brown's. A place where I never once felt unwelcome, unfed, unloved. Memories of her apple pie, and ability to make a home flooded my mind, and I was well on my way to a miserable day if I let myself continue.

Then I received a short email from Jeanine. In it, she stated, "Make a choice for a good day!"

I determined to do just that, and as you can see ... it turned out quite well!! Here are a few of my favorite moments, kids, and loved ones in the world.

So, although I was homesick for what was, I also became aware of the tremendous blessings that I have here and now, close to me. There's nothing better than piling into one house, all of us together, kids swarming about, everyone laughing, feasting, and just being together.

More than that, I decided that it was not such a bad thing to be missing what was. Many people never experience the joy and love and togetherness of a family like I had growing up. Is it not better to have had it at one time, even though it is now gone?

I think so.

And so, this Thanksgiving, I am thankful for what was ... and what is. How God has enriched my life with close family, extended family, and the love that permeates my heart each time we are priveledged to once again be together!

I hope all y'all had a wonderful time of thanks with your loved ones, whether in years past, or yesterday.

~Brenda

I hold it true, whate'er befall;
I feel it, when I sorrow most;
'Tis better to have loved and lost
Than never to have loved at all.

From Alfred Lord Tennyson's poem In Memoriam:27, 1850: