Dallas Snow

We had inclement weather today and here's the proof! I tried to get Joe excited about playing in the snow, but he clearly is not impressed.

1st Baby Page!

Last night I did the first page for the baby or pregnancy book. I'm doing this digitally, so have already done this picture twice and am liable to do it several more times as I want it to be perfect! This subject - first grandbaby - is very important to me - LOL!

I'm not sure at this point if I am a big fan of digital scrapbooking or not. I will say that it was kind of nice to sit at my desk and do this page and when finished I had no cleanup at all to do. Even if I decide to do this album "non-digitally" I think I'll also do one digital just for the practice.

Gratitudes
1. For the first time I'm glad I'm home from work right now as "the weather outside is frightful" and I'm glad I don't have to drive in it.
2. I'm very thankful for my great surgeon and his staff. I go this afternoon to get the rest of the stitches out.
3. Happy that I have a warm, cuddly cat that slept on me and kept me warm last night!

~ Elizabeth

Unless the Lord builds the home they labor in vain who build it. - Psalm 127:1

Sunrise....

I followed this link from somebody's blog and discovered that I am Sunrise. I don't know how accurate the description is, but I do know that I most definitely am a morning person and really enjoy the opportunity to witness a sunrise.

You Are Sunrise

You enjoy living a slow, fulfilling life. You enjoy living every moment, no matter how ordinary.You are a person of reflection and meditation. You start and end every day by looking inward. Caring and giving, you enjoy making people happy. You're often cooking for friends or buying them gifts.All in all, you know how to love life for what it is - not for how it should be.

What Time Of Day Are You?

Early Morning Contentment

Doesn't this scene look comfortable and inviting? My morning didn't start out this way though. The last few days I've been in a bit of a funk because of my arm still being in a sling and it's really holding me back from the things I want to be doing. But during my Bible and prayer time this morning I was struck with the realization that even though I can't do some things and I'm still not able to drive, I am so very blessed. I did make it through surgery. The surgery was successful. I only have the use of one arm right now, but this will pass - and so many people do not have the luxury of saying that. I was very humbled by what the Lord was telling me.

And since Monday has always been my favorite day of the week, it just seemed fitting to start fresh with my renewed attitude and joy. It is so comforting to know that when we are hurting we can turn to the Lord and get our focus back and our feet headed in the right direction again.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight." - Proverbs 3:5-6

Sometimes it can be difficult to humble ourselves and ask for help and forgiveness. I find this to be especially true of women in the regard that we tend to be "fixers" and want to make things better. And when I think of the many things the Lord has to take care of it can almost feel trivial to ask for His help. But that is so what He wants us to do. The contentment I felt this morning after prayer and Bible reading was enormous.

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened." - Matthew 7:7-8

Gratitudes
1. Having the Holy Bible readily available in our country to turn to when we have questions.
2. Early morning quiet time.
3. Beautiful fall leaves and gentle, cool breezes.

~ Elizabeth

"Gratitude is born in hearts that take time to count up past mercies." - Charles Edward Jefferson

Thanksgiving Meal

With all the grandbaby excitement I forgot to say much about our Thanksgiving meal! This is the table before we ate. James and Loni have a very beautiful dining room table and we enjoyed being able to sit there. The candlelit centerpiece Loni made herself and it was so pretty and the candle smelled just right. The platter under the turkey is a milk glass platter from my grandmother - it was perfect!

I also took a picture of our meal as we were unloading it from the box. We ordered it from a local grocery store this year and it was very good! In addition to the box of food they also gave us a 12 pound turkey, so all we had to do was bring it all home and heat it up. I am just so thankful that we were able to be together on Thanksgiving and that is by far the most important thing. Well, that and finding out I'm going to be a Grandma - LOL!

Gratitudes
1. Never having to worry about where our next meal will come from.
2. The abundance of love in our family.
3. Being healthy enough to enjoy time together.

~ Elizabeth

An Amazing Thanksgiving

Yesterday became a Thanksgiving that I will always remember. We got to James and Loni's house and hadn't been there probably even fifteen minutes when James said they had an announcement to make - Loni is pregnant! There was stunned silence for a moment, then I started blubbering and hugging and everybody was laughing and talking at once. WOW - I'm gonna be a grandma! :)

We stopped messing with food long enough to go in and call both great grandmas to tell them the news - and we all just kept grinning.

Our meal was quite a success and very good. Certainly was easy to find things to say we're thankful for! Oh and Lynne' is so tickled to be an aunt. She says that she's going to be the "cool aunt that always has gum" - LOL!


After putting the food away and starting the dishwasher we all headed to nearby trails to walk and enjoy the beautiful day, along with the dogs. The picture of James, Loni and Xena will be titled "Day One" as this is the first day we knew about the baby! Xena was so full of energy the entire day and she really did enjoy the walk. The funniest part was when we walked on a little bridge over a creek and they took her down to the water. This little pup is a NUT and loves to splash around! Joe went down to the creek with Lynne' (and don't their coordinating outfits look nice!!!), but all he did was walk through it a little bit.

Then when we got back to the house Loni got out the karaoke machine and we had a blast! And much to my chagrin I learned just how badly I carry a tune. ;) Ah well, still very much fun!

Gratitudes
1. Obvious one here - that my first grandchild is on the way!
2. My family of five all get along so well and we enjoy being together so much.
3. Lots of rest today to speed the healing along - I must get this shoulder healed so I can start knitting baby things!

~ Elizabeth

"The decision to have a child is to accept that your heart will forever walk about outside your body." - Unknown

Sense of Smell

I love the quiet, early mornings. I'm sitting in the living room watching the sun stretch its rays over the horizon, Joe is in position at the window watching the world go by and Meeko is laying in the middle of the room bathing. I've finished my shower and am enjoying my first cup of coffee and am suddenly transported back in time to the lake with my parents. You see, when shopping for shampoo recently I saw that Suave has coconut scent and I quickly snatched it up. So my coconut shower first sent me down memory lane and now my coffee clinched the deal. For my darling daughter-in-law introduced me to Coffeemate's coconut creamer and it is oh so good.

In addition to loving the taste of all things coconut, the smell is definitely a memory inducer for me (isn't it funny how smells can bring back memories almost as fast as a picture?). Coconut paints a vivid picture in my mind of going to the lake with mom and dad as a preteen. We'd hop in the boat and I'd start slathering on Coppertone's Tanning Oil, which had the most wonderful coconut scent. I'm not even sure if there's such a thing as tanning oil anymore as I spend my "tanning" dollars looking for the highest SPF product available, but back when I used this I don't think anybody knew about skin cancer - or if they did we surely didn't know about the link to sun yet. Anyway, back to the boat (!), and off we'd go across the lake at full throttle to the islands. Daddy would find the perfect spot for us and drop anchor. Mom and I would gather the gear necessary for our afternoon - a tire innertube, floppy hat, can of Pepsi and a papback novel. Into the lake we dropped, then got in position on top of the innertube and we'd wrap our toes/feet around the anchor rope to keep from floating out to "sea". We would bob along contentedly for as long as daddy would put up with it, usually the entire afternoon. It really was a perfect afternoon.

And that's what comes to mind when I smell coconut. About the only thing I need now is to find out if Yankee Candle has a coconut candle and then I'd be set!

Gratitudes
1. The early morning peace of the breaking day.
2. The ability to smell wonderful scents and be able to remember good times growing up.
3. Having a friend to call when I need a ride to the doctor (stitches out this afternoon hopefully!) and she actually sounded happy to oblige!

~ Elizabeth

always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. - Ephesians 5:20

A Brief Sojourn

Okay, I can see by my posts that too much time alone is leading to me getting WAY too deap and serious! LOL!!!

What do you get when you put together an Elizabeth on pain meds (I did just do my exercises people!), picked up by a wacky friend, stop at the Starbucks inside Barnes and Noble (where I learned that even though it says Starbucks it's actually a Barnes and Noble Cafe that serves Starbucks, therefore they do not accept Starbucks gift cards - figure that one out!) where we each got a Venti Peppermint Mocha, buzz by the magazine rack for the newest Interweave Knits and Rachel Ray and a cozy seat in front of the knitting books? Oh my....lots of laughter! So many of the patterns would look awesome on my daughter, but on me? Not so much. This was just too much fun!

I did make an observation about myself tonight that was funny at the time and now I'm not so sure. We were looking at the mugs at Starbucks and there was a pink thermos-like thing that I said reminded me of a flask. She showed me how it's apparently one of the latest and greatest things out there for the in crowd. I just sighed and remarked that the more I hear this sort of thing that I will surely be assimilated soon and must own one! Very sad, but true - I admit to being a follower. Though I will say that sometimes by the time I give in it's no longer cool to like whatever it was!

Gratitudes
1. Simple pleasure of drinking Starbucks at Barnes and Noble with a friend.
2. Coming home to my cozy,welcoming home with a smiling husband, daughter and golden retriever waiting for me.
3. The abundance of foods to choose from in common grocery stores in our country.

Thanksgiving

As we approach Thanksgiving this year it will be quite a bit different than our usual. I'm not able to go on a long trip, so I called James and Loni yesterday and asked if they would mind having the holiday at their house. And since I can't do much at all to help with cooking we will be ordering one of the premade meals from a local grocery store and adding a couple of favorite dishes to the meal.

I'm really excited about this and truly looking forward to it. We enjoy going over there and of course Joe will go with us as well. It will be fun to watch the two dogs and the grandcats interact. And the five of us always enjoy playing cards and games together.

Even though it seems that most of the time people fear change, I think this year will be good.

~ Elizabeth

Day of the Dawns

Today was a day of several disappointments for me. None of them are really worth mentioning by themselves, but by the end of the day I have to admit that I was on my last nerve. Luckily though, the Lord had some intervention in mind for me.

First came a phone call from a friend who was on her way over with dinner (now I also need to mention here that I had received other dinners from friends after my surgery that were just as appreciated and the only reason I haven't mentioned them before now was my not feeling well). So when I got off the phone this afternoon I was filled with a sense of warmth. Not only was she providing a meal for us, but she was also providing some of her time and love when I was sorely needing it. She stopped by, loved on Joe a bit, chatted and shared hugs with me and she was off.

Keith and I enjoyed dinner and talking, then I brought the mail in. I saw a letter from the mortgage company informing me about an insurance problem. I tried calling, but of course the offices had already closed. I went to my desk and started one handedly slinging papers around while looking for the needed letter. AHAH!!! I triumphantly stomped into the living room clutching the proof and started ranting to Keith about the injustice of it all. He sat quietly until I ran out of steam and then remarked that I was getting way too upset over this and needed to calm down! Honestly, I think I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up at this!

Thankfully, the phone rang right at this moment and a friendly voice said "Hey what are you doing?" Bless her heart, I proceeded to tell my friend just exactly what I was doing. She calmly asked if I wanted her to bring me a Starbucks and it hit me that I really was losing it. I quieted down a bit and asked if she had a spare half hour and could she pick me up and TAKE ME instead? Of course she did!

When I got in her car we both just laughed and she pointed out that I was going stir crazy from being cooped up for this week after surgery. We got our Peppermint Mochas and sat on the sofa in Starbucks and just chatted a bit. She got out her knitting bag and worked on a sock (I've seen a sock on 2 circs now and the lightbulb went off!!!) and more chatting. Amazing that a large caffeine drink actually seemed to have a calming effect on me!

We got back to my house and she gifted me with a charming set of three Christmas blocks she'd made at her church last night (picture tomorrow). Then she came in to love on Joe, say hi to Keith and look at my knitting stuff.

Truly both of these friends were angels to me at a time when I sorely needed it. And the most amazing thing about these encounters? They are BOTH named Dawn! Coincidence??? I think not!

~ Elizabeth

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it. - Hebrews 13:2

Beautiful Fall

I don't remember a fall as beautiful as this one for many years. Normally we change from very hot and trees full of leaves to our mild winter temperatures and all the leaves on the ground - seemingly overnight. But this year we've beem treated to a veritable riot of colors.

I've heard explanations having to do with the temperature and amount of rainfall. But I believe it is a sign of God's great love to give us this gift of beauty. For to look at the splendid colors on display truly is a gift, as long as we slow our busy lives down enough to see and appreciate it.

As an aside - the surgery went well and I am in an immobilizer sling for four weeks, which translates to one handed typing. :)

~ Elizabeth

The rarest Autumn morning,
of leaves set all ablaze.
The mildest touch of sunlight,
amid the Autumn haze.
The booted feet of daybreak,
falling to the ground,
The cool clear air a stirring,
God's poetry profound.
- Unknown

Cross Stitch

A quick little post to show that I really am doing a little bit of crafting, even with my bum shoulder!. :) Tonight I'm planning on some serious tv watching and cross stitching, so hopefully more to share tomorrow.

Dallas Mavericks!

Last night was again a ton of fun! A friend gave me tickets to the Dallas Mavericks basketball game and this is the first time Keith and I had ever gone to an NBA game. When I got the tickets I don't think I realized just how good they were though and we were more than pleasantly surprised. These were platinum tickets, which came with their own parking garage and special entrance into the arena! We then showed our tickets to the attendant, who directed us to the "private" escalator and up we went to the platinum level, where we were seated and the wait staff came over to take our order! I swear we were like kids in a candy store - LOL!

One of the things we found most interesting is the difference in basketball and hockey games. Hockey games are famous for the player fights, but I gotta say that basketball in general has some really fired up fans, players and coaches. It was fast paced, loud and FUN! We will most definitely go again, though I doubt we'll be able to afford tickets in the same place.

And on the way to the game I-35 came to an absolute stop headed into downtown. Five lanes of traffic stopped behind some police cars parked across the highway. We quickly switched radio stations and discovered that President Bush had just landed at the airport and was on the way to another arena downtown, so I guess they were clearing the way for him. So far I think this might be the closest I've ever been to a President! :)

2 days until surgery and I can't wait. I am so ready to get this arm taken care of and start healing!

~ Elizabeth

My tongue will speak of your righteousness and of your praises all day long. - Psalm 35:28

Nascar Weekend

What an awesome weekend we just had! One of the things Keith and I love to do most in the world is go to the Nascar race and this weekend did not let us down. Because of traffic woes in the past, this year we went over to James and Loni's house Saturday afternoon for a slumber party. Had a great time with them and my precious grandpuppy. :)

Early Sunday morning we got on the road to Texas Motor Speedway. On the way a friend called and was already at the track. I of course had to give her a hard time and tell her that MY driver would beat HER driver in the race. Alas, her driver won and I did call later to congratulate her.....and eat a little bit of crow!

One of the best parts of this sort of thing is watching people. TMS is the largest Nascar venue and holds 200,000 people! With that said I will add that this race didn't have that many as I saw the two end sections of the back stretch had no people. Regardless, that's a lot of people. The photo above was a trailer on the midway for one of the most popular drivers, Will Farrell as Ricky Bobby! It really tickled us to watch people start laughing when they saw who was on the trailer.

The first few laps with the pace car featured Terry Labonte in his car and his son Justin driving the car that Terry won his first championship in! This race is Terry's last, so many a tribute was given.

We had great seats and even though Tony Stewart (admittedly one of my favorite drivers) beat Jr (our personal favorite), it was a great race.

We got home last night at almost 10:00 and were very pooped pups! And speaking of pups, Joe was very glad to see us as he did not get to go. He hardly ate while we were gone and Lynne' said he stayed in his crate and pouted the entire time! ;)

And only 3 days until surgery - woohoo!

Who's The Sweetest Boy???

This picture was taken last night. I was sitting in the chair in my bedroom doing some cross stitch and Joe fell asleep at the foot of my bed with two of his toys. :)

Yesterday was a fun day - a dear friend met me for a "pre-birthday" lunch! It's always fun to have lunch with friends and during the week can be especially nice as it reminds you that there is life outside your job. We had good food, lots and lots of talking and PRESENTS - LOL!

And since today is my birthday it's just really tough to get into the working frame of mind. Though I did think for a little bit that I was going to be getting a REALLY BIG PRESENT today. I was awakened at 4:00 by the strangest sound and I finally discovered that it was the refrigerator motor. So I sat and contemplated what color new refrigerator we'd be buying today! ;) Turns out Keith thinks it's a bearing and can be replaced, so thankfully no spur of the moment big purchase - WHEW!

~ Elizabeth

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. - 1 Corinthians 10:31

Pluggin' Along

Well there still is not a lot of typing or crafting or cleaning house or really much of anything right now and won't be for awhile. My shoulder is just really hurting quite a bit and it's hard to do things with only one arm. The good news though is that the surgery is scheduled in one week - woohoo! Sounds silly to be happy, but at least once the surgery is done the healing can begin and I can get my life back again. And I need to be fully healed before next summer's extreme sports begin again. ;)

In the meantime I did get a new cross stitch sampler started, though with the time change and lack of sunlight when I get home I haven't gotten a picture of it yet. It's actually a very simple piece by Shepherd's Bush that says Home Is Where You Are. Loved the colors in the kit and since one of our family mottos is "Wherever you go, there you are", well this just seemed to be a good fit.

And my fellow knitting friends have been keeping me busy sending links to some wonderful yarns, so I've been busy shopping for when I'm able to knit again. It's good to have friends. :)

~ Elizabeth

"There is always something you have to walk away from when you are walking toward the better thing." Joyce Meyer (with apologies if I got her quote a little bit off!)