Coffee Talk 4.29.11

Good morning, ladies!

I have some OUTSTANDING baked oatmeal to share if you are interested and LOADS of Easter candy. I would love someone to take that off my hands because I REALLY need to get it out of the house.

I only have a moment this morning. I am administering standardized testing with our home school tutorial this morning so I have to zip out of here in a minute. I am a little bitter, however, that someone had the horrible planning to schedule this on the same day as the Royal Wedding. I'm gonna miss the kiss, people! It just isn't the same on the DVR! C'mon, Will and Kate, kiss already!

Seriously, though, it has been a LONG week here in the south. We were under severe weather advisories most of the week and spent much of it in our bathroom under the stairs or at our church in the "dungeon". Many areas around here were without power, many lost lots of trees and many had trees in houses, on fences, etc. One family in our church even had about 1/3 of their roof blown off! However, the relatively mild damage we have had here is nothing compared to the devastation of the areas south of us, Alabama and Georgia, who have been absolutely devastated by storm damage. My heart hurts so much for all of those people and my prayers go out to them constantly. It seems like so little for towns that are leveled, but we serve a powerful God who was not surprised by the storms and is fully able to hold those precious people under His wings and get them through this tragedy! How grateful I am to have that hope and knowledge and I pray all of my dear Company Girls do too!

Okay, I have to run...duty calls! Be sure to check Home Sanctuary for more Coffee Talk!

P.S. THEY JUST KISSED! I saw it! Woohoo!

Coffee Talk 4.15.11

Good Morning Ladies,

It is EARLY here, too early. I got up to have my quiet time only to be interrupted by the tornado sirens. The kids are, of course all now up, and (this is where I get bitter) the storm just got here about 5 minutes ago...after the sirens STOPPED! I know we need to be cautious and all, but really...HOLD OFF ON THE SIRENS UNTIL THE STORM ACTUALLY GETS HERE! I am trying to make lemonade out of the lemons, though and we are going to go ahead and start school...maybe we can be done by lunch today!

Anyway, a house full of kids already up and going means not much time to post so here are the high points of the week:

1. Dancer's fashion show went great. She was so sweet. She got a few "treats" that day. We bought her a pair of shoes to go with the outfit she modeled and after it was over Daddy let her get the outfit and another shirt. Nana bought her a pair of flip flops and then we went to Sonic for drinks. When we got in the car she exclaimed..."This is the best day of my life!"

2. B.B. shot his first turkey of the year...quite a humdinger!

3. The rest of the week has just been the regular school, work and tornado sirens! Ya gotta love Spring in West Tennessee! Tigerteen downloaded some pictures for me off my phone so here are a couple that belonged a few weeks ago...I like to keep you guessing!

This is Spring Break when Dancer and her friend helped make cupcakes. If you are wondering about the scarves...they were playing dress up! These babies were chocolate filled chocolate cupcakes.. I would like to say they were delicious...but they LOOKED pretty!

And here is Tigerteen and his friend-girl (isn't she a cutie!)celebrating his birthday at Nana's house...you may notice that Tigertot felt the need to get in on the action.

Well, I am totally aware of how dull this post is, but since we are all up and going, we might as well get school done so I am off to "encourage" our academics! That is code, by the way, for telling them to get off the phones and ipods and get busy already!

By the way, I have to do a little devotion thing in my Bible Study this week. I know it is silly, but I am super nervous about it and have no idea what to talk about so if you think about it, please say a little prayer that it will just be all about God and He will be glorified and speak through me! Thanks!

Have a great weekend and be sure to check out some far more interesting Coffee Talk at Home Sanctuary.

Coffee Talk 4.8.11

Good Morning! Hope everyone is doing well. I have a couple of lovely treats to entice you with. Both are from this website which I have spent WAY too much time on this week. I cannot tell you how much money I could spend at the grocery store trying all these recipes! Anyway, I can offer you some date squares that are A. MAZ. ING. I could eat my weight in them! The others are strawberry oat squares. Admittedly, not quite as amazing. I did a little tweaking with the recipe...I probably should have left it alone! Not horrible, though. I was looking for a recipe to replace processed cereal bars...this isn't it, at least not in this form!

Anyhoo, today's post will be brought to you in list form. Because I can!

1. Also from the above website, I had VOO for breakfast one day this week. Not bad. I stayed full for HOURS! I look forward to trying other variations...after I go to the grocery store. Which I am in DESPERATE need of doing.

2. I confess, I HATE exercising. There, I said it. I really want to like it. I really want to look forward to it. Instead, I have to force myself. Every. single. time. Aren't you supposed to start feeling so good you get excited about it? Isn't it supposed to become fun? I just don't like it. I don't.

3. It is that time of year again. Turkey season. The time of year I become a hunting widow. I don't really mind. Here are the first fruits of the season. Tigerfan and his daddy went Tuesday night and brought home these little babies! Now they (along with the boys) are itching for Saturday morning.
May I be honest? Can ANYTHING, other than hitting the road to go see my family, really be worth getting up at the horrific hours they get up at and the sitting by a tree without moving or talking? I just wonder...I don't get it!

4. Saturday, Dancer is having a big day! One of our local anchor stores in the mall is having kidfest and it includes a fashion show. We happened to be in the mall at just the right time a few weeks ago and they offer! She has been practicing her walk all week. Here she is on her birthday doing her model pose:

I must admit, her enthusiasm is contagious because I can hardly wait to take her and see her in action...and that is even knowing I have to take "The Hurricane" AKA Tigercub!

5. Speaking of Tigercub, his allergies are KILLING him. We will be making a little trip into town this morning to see the Dr. His little eyes are almost swollen shut and he is just miserable...and that is with daily Zyrtec, poor little guy!

6. We are ADORING pretty weather this week (although we can't actually go OUT in it because it sends poor Tigercub into sneezing fits), especially after my momma sent pictures Sunday of their snow...inches and inches of snow. In April. Thank heavens for Tennessee!

7. I could keep writing snippets forever, but my kids (and dog) need to eat and we have lots to do this morning. I look forward to visiting you this weekend! Hope everyone has a great one!

8. Oh, yeah, last one. I am a complete and total Home Sanctuary failure. I really WANT to do good. I held strong for TWO whole days this month. Yes, TWO. I have failed ever since. Someone help me!

9. Which reminds me...I saw an episode of Dr. Phil this week. (Not sure how that happened because I never watch that show...but it is what it is). Anyway, this girl was on and she wanted help because she was always yelling and screaming at her children. People, Dr. Phil reemed that poor girl over the coals. He was awful. I felt so sorry for her! I am not advocating screaming, and especially not cussing, at your children...but as a home schooling mom of four, I admit...I have done it. I have done it more than I care to admit. Were the things this momma did wrong? Of Course...but we are all sinners saved by grace. She was there for help. She knew the things she was doing were wrong and wanted tools to change it. What she got was a public lashing. She was told she was an abuser, she was told she was obese, she was just pulverized. I have not stopped thinking about her since. I wonder, has Dr. Phil ever been a stay at home parent? Has he ever gotten up at dark and worked until almost dawn with no appreciation, no help and little support? Has he spent hours cleaning a room only to walk back into it in ten minutes and find it utterly destroyed? Has he ever worked tirelessly on a healthy meal to have everyone at the table turn their noses up and ask for something else? What that poor girl needed was encouragement and tools to help her change. What she got was a message of more judgement, more condemnation, another message to join in with the voices in her head that she just wasn't good enough. I have prayed for her ever since. I hope that somehow, the voice of a loving and compassionate God can make its way to that girl's heart. I hope that somehow she receives the message that she is a beautiful girl, created in the image of God and she is loved. Her actions are sinful...so are mine. I am nothing but filthy rags...but Christ died for me WHILE I WAS STILL A SINNER! It is by HIS grace that I am clean, Praise HIM! Anyway, that is my little soap box...now I know why I don't watch Dr. Phil...maybe I should start a program called Dr. Star. Although, I am not actually a Dr. I'm working on a tagline...a program for the redeemed by the redeemed? Needs a little work...but then, so do I! :)

Have a great weekend, and don't forget to check out more Coffee Talk at Home Sanctuary!