Caught Him!

hehehehehehehe!!!! I surprised Meeko when I walked through the bedroom and saw him curled up and sleeping on........one of Keith's socks and one of Joe's toys! Silly goose - he always acts like he doesn't like Keith and Joe. Busted!

Uncluttered Foot Paths

This is the sky that greeted me Wednesday morning on the way to work. Of course things like this are never as spectacular in a picture as they are in real life, but I figure by seeing this picture on my blog perhaps it will remind me of the splendor of the sky and the feelings I had when I saw it. There is a very intense pink/orange color at the base of the clouds and the upper outline was a beautiful clear light. What an awesome God we have to show us such beauty!

I'll admit to being a wee bit awestruck by this vision and it set the tone for a good part of my morning that day. I seem to be getting a plethora of advice lately on my faith, both from real people and reading things online and it's not always good. How is it that everybody seems to be knocking so many things lately? Are we not of one faith? The pettiness is just too much sometimes and I was getting way too tense about it all. I have come to the conclusion, through much prayer, that I have given way too much "power" to other people that perhaps I shouldn't. The online people especially as I really don't know anything about them. But even the "real" people that seem bound and determined to change me to their vision of what I should be. I believe now that I will just let them talk, smile sweetly and let my Bible do my teaching. I also have an awesome pastor at church, a knowledgeable Sunday School teacher and a Bible study leader that can help to guide me. The path of my feet seems to be uncluttered again and all is right in my world. :)

~ Elizabeth

Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way. - Romans 14:13

Fall Swap Card

Just finished doing a card swap with some very talented ladies that I crop with. This card was my entry - our theme was "fall". The stamps are CTMH.

Think Pink Challenge Scarf

YAY - the fingers are starting to move better again! Now I have some catching up to do. :)

Last night at our knitting group we turned in our scarves for the Think Pink Challenge. This scarf is the Single Cable Scarf from the One Skein Book and is made from Blue Sky Alpaca - oh so soft! I'm very pleased with this scarf and will most definitely do it again. I also did a fuzzy, novelty yarn scarf. I think there are about ten scarves from our group and I can't wait to see the picture of all of them together!

And before we met at the coffee shop for knitting and such we first met at a Vietnamese restaurant for dinner. Really good and I'm glad I went with some "pro's" since I'd never had this cuisine before. Quite tasty and I hope we return!

We're Back!

We're back home from four blissful days at the lake! However, due to my love of extreme sports this post will be brief. Sunday afternoon Keith and I were riding the motorcycles "off road". I hit a rock and tumbled, landing on the rocks shoulder first with the motorcycle on top of me. At first I was unable to move my left hand or fingers at all, but after a short while got movement back in my fingers. We went to the doctor yesterday and nothing is broken, but I have very limited movement in my left arm and it is safely held in a lovely sling now. Typing one-handed is sloooowwww, so the rest of my stories and pictures will have to wait for a couple of days. :)

Faux Embossing and Bible Study

This week has certainly seemed like a hamster week. You know the kind - you run and run and run and it never seems like you get anywhere. I've even stayed home the last two nights from scheduled plans with friends and still can't seem to get it all done!

Last night after we ate dinner Keith had homework to do, so I sat in the room with him and finished this card that I had started last Saturday. The technique is Faux Dry Embossing and the leaves are just punched out of the same paper as the background. I'm quite pleased with it, though the scan makes the ribbon appear bumpy and it's not!

I went to the first meeting of my Ladies Bible Study on Monday night and really like it. But when I think of that and our new Sunday School class and the homework for both I start to hyperventilate. I love what we are studying in both these classes, but I just worry about having the time to get it done. Really I think I'm just going to have to learn to say "no" to some things and also eliminate some things from my schedule. I'm starting to get too tired and apparently it shows as friends and workmates have started asking if I feel ok since I look bad. Not really what a girl wants to hear - LOL!

~ Elizabeth

"I prayed for faith and thought that some day faith would come down and strike me like lightening. But faith did not seem to come. One day I read in the tenth chapter of Romans, 'Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.' I had up to this time closed my Bible and prayed for faith. I now opened my Bible and began to study, and faith has been growing ever since." - Dwight Lyman Moody

Weekend Report

Once again Keith just kind of shook his head at me over this photo. We were on our way to Home Depot and getting in the truck I noticed how pretty the crepe myrtles looked hanging over the fence, so off I went to get the camera. It rained a good portion of the day and the blooms looked so pretty with raindrops hanging off of them.

All in all we had a very nice weekend. Yesterday was the first time in a very long time that we did absolutely nothing and I have to admit that it was nice! I wasn't feeling great, so we just sort of hung out on the couch watching tv and enjoying the rain together. We did watch the nascar race, which gave me some quality knitting time, and Lynne' brought in the Blue Man Tour dvd for our evening's watching. When Keith switched to the Dallas Cowboy football game was about when I had enough of the couch!

I have been pretty good about doing the exercises on the big blue ball and still enjoying it. Now last night Joe was pretty revved up and thought it grand fun again, so while leaning back on the ball I had a golden retriever holding his tennis ball right in my face! Ah well, it's hard to get on to them when they are being so cute!

Saturday Keith had to work, so all of our best made plans for the weekend changed. This did give me the opportunity to head up to the scrapbook store and see a friend that was in town for the weekend. She moved to Omaha about a year ago, so it was good to see her again. We all had a nice visit and lunch together and it's always fun to catch up. Fun to see pictures of her son's first day of Kindergarten as well. He is just adorable and hard to believe he's getting that old.

~ Elizabeth

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. - Psalm 19:14

Knitting With Friends

What a great time we had Wednesday night at knitting! Started out the evening at a new to me Mexican restaurant - I think we had a table of 16! LOVED the food and company and then off we went to the coffee shop. Even the ride was good as I got to ride along with a friend that I haven't talked with in a while and it was good to catch up. Then...man oh man there were lots of ladies at the coffee shop! I found a table kind of tucked in the side and off we went talking, drinking lattes and knitting. Met some new to me gals and had a blast. The only down side to a group this large is that I never did get to talk to some ladies other than a smile and wave across the room. But all in all it was....Good Times.... :) And of course once again I forgot my camera.

The picture above is the dishcloth I finished during lunch on Wednesday for a basket we put together for the owner of the coffee shop. We were all to do dishcloths of our choice and then also some yarn and needles were donated, all arranged beautifully in a wicker basket. She was pretty surprised and that made it fun!

Blucky Dinner

Last night's dinner was supposed to be very healthy and we were feeling somewhat self-righteous about it. Smart Dogs, made from wheat and soy, were on the menu. I fired up the barbie and grilled them while Lynne' got out all the condiments and such. Our first clue that this might not be our favorite meal was when I got them out of the package and they felt funky. Lynne' came over, poked at them and said we should give them a chance. Well....ok. When I turned them on the grill and then got them off and put them on a plate I noticed a funny odor, but you just never know outside. But when I brought them in and we could really smell it we knew our dinner was in jeopardy! Again she said we should give them a chance - but maybe we should just fix up one so we can both taste it. Seemed reasonable so that's what we did. Ever the trooper Lynne' took the first bite, chewed, made a face and finished the bite. I decided it would be unfair for her to go it alone, so I also took a bite. After swallowing, I looked at her and we both made a face and she asked where I wanted to go and eat!!! We put it all in the garbage disposal and I even sliced up an apple to put down there to help eliminate the awful smell. (Joe loved the apple core by the way. I held it and he chewed on it like corn on the cob!) So note to self - don't try these again! And lest anybody worry, our dinner was fabulous after that - chinese buffet! LOL!

Great Balls of Fire!

In my ongoing quest to find fun ways to exercise, I bought a Pilates Core Ball last night at Ross. It was only 14.99 and had the ball, some straps on the sides and a dvd. I brought it home and aired it up - much to the delight of Joe! - and clicked on the dvd. Keith was sitting on the couch reading for school, so of course he had to give me his two cents on everything. ;)

I clicked on "Getting Started" and learned how I should have aired it up and attached the straps, so hit pause and got everything fixed up. OK, good to go, so now I started the "Warm Ups" on the dvd. Hmmm....I don't see the Happy Fun Ball anywhere on these warm ups, so let's hit fast forward and get to the good stuff. Keith started laughing at about this point and mentioned that surely the man on the video must not know what he was talking about on this warm up stuff. Yep, I agreed. Boring, boring, boring - more fast forward. Wow - the entire warm up portion was sans big blue ball! OK, enough of that, who really needs to warm up anyway?

On to the exercise portion. First screen shows the ball, so I think I'll be ok now. Let me tell you - this is FUN! I'm rolling all over the place, Joe is all excited having a giant ball in the living room and mom down at his level, Keith is laughing....really what could be better? We get to the pose of the "Starfish" where you lay with the ball at the small of your back, hold on the straps with your arms out to the side and your legs out and hold it. Of course, sense of balance isn't one of my strong points, so I started rolling to the side in slow motion, with Joe right there to lick my nose!

The main reason for me buying this is for posture and tightening up my belly. I figure I'll sit on it while watching tv in the evenings. But now that I've discovered how much fun this thing is to roll around on, I am so there! :)

Motorcycle Rider Lessons

Things I've learned while sitting behind my beloved on a motorcycle:

1. Do not sneeze while riding lest your bobble headed helmet head knock into his!

2. Have faith in the abilities of the driver. Squeezing his mid-section with your fingernails will not make him stop any faster.

3. Learn the universal "hello" hand signal amongst motorcycle riders. It's ok to let loose of the death grip on your driver's mid-section in order to be friendly.

4. Wearing sandals while on a motorcycle is not only foolish, it lets your toes get very, very hot next to the engine.

5. Don't even try to keep your hair looking good under the helmet while riding. As soon as you get to your destination and remove the helmet the only thing anybody will see is sweaty helmet hair.

6. Scrunched up next to the driver with a death grip on his mid-section is not a good look for most overweight women. The handsome male driver in the hotrod next to you is not smiling at you for any reason other than you look funny.

7. Do not carry your cell phone in your pocket set on vibrate. Answering a phone while plummeting down the road at high rates of speed is not wise. Besides, how in the world would a person put it next to their ear with a helmet on?

I'm sure there's more, but that's all I've got off the top of my head tonight. ;)

Lazy Saturdays

And now time to bring it down a notch with the setting sun. I've had a lazy day today, slept in, talked on the phone with friends and did some housework. Keith got home from work and we both donned our helmets and rode the motorcycle to one of our favorite Mexican restaurants in a nearby 'burb. While I won't go so far as to say I enjoy riding the motorcycle, I no longer dislike it as much as I first did.

When we got back our first thought was to watch a movie on pay per view, but with one click of the remote we were reminded that there is a Nascar race tonight, so that's the winner (if you look closely you'll see the race on tv behind Joe). I'm off to get my knitting and watch a race with my beloved now. :)

Sweet Friday

What an amazing Friday I had! It was one of those days that started off well and was good to the very end....and let me add that the "end" of my Friday was actually very early Saturday morning!

The start of this wonderful day was early yesterday morning. I've been wrestling with some things in my life and as I started my prayers before my Bible time I just put it on the table for God, since I was unsure if the way I was handling it was right or not. Now, while I know that prayers are answered, I also know that sometimes we have to look to see those answers and that sometimes the answers are not necessarily what we want. But yesterday as I read through my daily reading I was led to a verse that was so exactly what I needed to hear that it brought me to tears - literally. It was such a humbling experience to me and was at the forefront of my thoughts during the entire day.

After work a friend picked me up to attend a crop and I told her about this and we had such a great conversation about it. I am so blessed with the friends I have and to be able to share things like this is so awesome. I know that I'm not conveying my thoughts adequately here, but it really was great! :)

We headed out to a fundraiser crop hosted by Turtle Girl Designs and of course had a wonderful time full of friends, laughter and even some tears. These two gals are truly God-given friends and the more I'm around them and see what they are doing the more I am just blown away by their drive, their talent and their love.

And of course after being up very late I am never able to get right to sleep - too wound up I guess! This week has been a little difficult for me healthwise and I've been very run down. I'm hoping it's just "one of those things" and not a step towards another flare. But luckily today I have no plans at all and just plan to rest. Thank you Jesus for sleep!

Stamping a Card

Stamps used are from the Haute Couture set by Stampin Up.

Finally Friday!

This is a common sight around our home - lizards! Late Wednesday night our cat found one in the hall and was stalking it until we came along and took the lizard back outside. I saw this one out on our front porch and he graciously allowed me to take his picture. One thing about them is that they are FAST and very hard to catch! I remember when we first moved to Texas and the first time I saw one of these in my house it was quite traumatic. Over the years I've gotten pretty used to them and while it can still startle me to see them running inside, it's not terrifying anymore. ;)

Labor Day at The Lake

What a great weekend at the lake we had! James and Loni joined us with Xena the nut puppy. Joe really is not fond of her, mostly because of her untiring enthusiasm. I swear she never slowed down! And her favorite thing to do was to jump at Joe and nip at his ears until he finally got fed up with it and would growl at her. She'd stop for maybe five seconds, stare at him, jump around a bit and back at it.

On Sunday afternoon we all piled into the truck and went to a nearby beach to take the dogs swimming. The guys sat on chairs on the beach, but Loni and I headed into the water with both dogs. Poor Joe - Xena still was after him! He did figure out though that when the water was deep enough she had to put all her efforts into staying afloat, so he just turned his head and started walking out to the center of the lake! When he was deep enough that she didn't follow him he was perfectly happy. :)

Monday morning dawned cool and rainy, which we haven't seen in the longest time. Too bad it had to happen during a day off! So instead of playing in the lake we just stayed inside the cabin and got some of the games down. My favorite game of all time is Trouble - the Pop-o-matic game from my youth - and it was too much fun. Of course, it did help that I won, but then who's counting???

Saturday Yarn Crawl

Saturday morning, after getting lost on the way, I picked up a friend and we headed to Cafe Brazil for breakfast. Really glad we went there as it was new to me and very "eclectic", which is always fun. I now know that Snickers Latte is something I really love! Also had vegeterian tacos that yes I'd gladly have again.

After breakfast we met up with some more friends at a yarn shop in Dallas. From there we went to the Art District and visited another yarn shop that was tres cool. This one, The Shabby Sheep, is now my second favorite shop in the DFW area. The owner is super nice, she has great taste in yarns and there is a shop puppy!

The photo is Blue Sky Cotton and the beginnings of the Single Cable Scarf in the One Skein book. I'm knitting it for the Think Pink Challenge and we're mailing ours on 9/13, so I have a little bit of a time crunch, but I think I can get it done in time!

Friday Night Crop

I love our Friday night crops and this past Friday was no exception. There were five of us there and we laughed so much our cheeks were hurting. Still managed to make a Starbucks run, as is our custom. And at the end of the night a young gal came over and talked to us for a bit and gave us her info so that we can get in touch with her when next we crop. She asked if she could sit with us since we had so much fun. I guess we're getting groupies now. :)

Pictured is a card I made - stamps by The Angel Company.

Fishy Hospital Visits

WOW - these were great! Got home from work last night and Lynne' and I whipped up some fish tacos for the first time. A friend had told me how to make them and they are oh so easy: tilapia filets dredged in Jiffy corn muffin mix, fry in olive oil and that's it! We made our tacos with corn tortillas, provolone cheese, tartar sauce and shredded cabbage. Loved them and they will become a staple in our household now.

After we cleaned up the kitchen from dinner we ran up to Starbucks. Lynne's friends are all starting to hang out there and she's not a big coffee drinker, so I told her I'd help her find something she likes. Right now I'm lovin' the mocha frappucino's, so I ordered a venti and she tasted mine. BINGO - she was hooked! We split this one and now she knows what to order in the future.

After we got home Cristina picked me up and we went up to the hospital to visit Dawn. She looked so much better today - Praise the Lord! Such a helpless feeling to see a friend laying in a hospital bed. Luckily she is getting out today and starting physical therapy, so we expect her to be dancing around with us again soon.

~ Elizabeth

Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always. - 1 Chronicles 16:11