I was born in Milton, Florida August 22, 1985 after Jack in November 3, 1983. Since then I have lived in several places in Georgia mainly on the Northeast side. I am the second oldest of nine children to Rocky and Debbie Howland. Gabe was born 1987, Sarah 1990, Michael 1993, Laura 1995, Hannah 1996, Marjory 1998, and Alaina 2003. On May 12, 2007 I was married to Nathan, the love of my life. We have two cats and want a third one day. For now we are blessed and are enjoying life where we are.
Currently I have been knitting baby hats just for fun and maybe for Etsy. They are a lot of fun and easy to whip up in no time. Here is one I created as my "couch-potato, no-brainer" pattern. This one in particular can have the brim folded up to fit an infant's head and taken down and stretched to fit as the baby grows. For a cute alternative, add stripes every few rows or do the brim only (ribbing section) in an alternative color.
Yarn: small amount of fingering weight yarn(I used Caron Simply Soft) Needle size: US 8 5.00mm straight needles
Pattern: Cast on 54 stitches. K1 P1 ribbing for 2 inches in height (aprox. 10 rows) SS (stockinette stitch*) for 4 1/2 inches (aprox. 20 rows) decrease rows: row 1: (P1, p2tog) across to end row 2 K across row 3: p2tog across row 4: k2tog across and break off yarn
draw yarn through all stitches on the needle and pull off the needle. Pull tight and sew down the seam. Weave in ends.
*stockinette stitch explanation: row 1: k all sts across row 2: p all sts across repeat rows 1 and 2
Since Nathan got the job at The Tech Place and has been working three hours extra per day, we have run into loopholes in our system. First thing is dinner time. We have to eat at 8:05 on the dot. That is when he gets home. Our second loophole. Groceries. By 8:00, Nathan gets off work. Five minutes later he is home, changes into casual attire and eats dinner before settling down for the night. No more grocery shopping at 5:30 with him.
Today I decided to go walk to the store for a change. I hadn't done that in nearly two years. It is a half mile walk round from our apartment to the ghetto Ingles (store #14) and back. I had a small shopping list anyway, so I thought, "why not?" Getting to the grocery store was no problem. Getting back is all uphill. Still no problem. The problem was that I needed another tote bag to bundle all my bags together. I ran into the Dollar General and bought a second market bag and readjusted my items for the trip home and shouted blessings to the lady who helped me find the bag.
At the beginning of the road leading to our driveway, I stopped to catch my breath, drink some water, and prayed, "Lord give me strength and help me home." Like I always do. Not too long after that, two cops pulled off the side of the road. One in front of me and one behind. Great, what did I do now?!?
I paused and the lady in one of the cars got out walked toward me and said "someone called asking if you needed a ride home." The only problem here was they asked me too late. I was in front of our apartment.
"Oh they were sweet" I exclaimed with a smile, "But that is my home. I made it!!" Did I look that pathetic while walking home? I bet I looked funny. I had two market bags and an Ingles sack and my shoulders may have been sagging. Who was it that called? I thank God the person calling was a sensitive and ever so kind person. I tear up right now just thinking about them and the kindness they showed me. I will never know who, but I thank God for them and pray He shows them mercy and kindness. Somehow I wish I could meet them and thanked them.
God did help me and was watching out for me for sure!! My prayer was answered. I did make it home and I now have a story to tell. How often does a street walker get pulled over by two cops?
This morning I awoke to Nathan dragging me across and out of the bed by my ankles, like normal, with no more than a brief, "Dorry-it's-time-to-get-up" warning. I grumble and moan, like usual, because I do not want to get up. I try really hard this time to hold onto the bed covers and pillow and "will" myself into being stronger than Nathan for once. To no avail. He gets me to my feet and pushes me down that long and everlasting hall to take care of business. The cats are already waiting for me in the bathroom, like always, with Copper on the sink and Scrabble pacing in front of the toilet, meowing. I smile weakly. Their job is to force me into giving them both their morning affection during my most inconvenient time. It is their version of a wake up call.
Dragging myself into the kitchen, I spot Nathan scooping aromatic coffee grounds into his French press. I wish for once that I could have caffeine this morning, as is my desire each morn. Nathan leaves the room calling orders to me that are not necessary, because I do them each morning anyway. Still, I nod and mumble a sleepy "ok." With that, I wait for the kettle to sing before filling his little French press.
Zombie-like, I shuffle my feet across the kitchen floor making breakfast preparations. I pause to stretch my arms and arch my back. All of a sudden breakfast is on the table with Nathan is in his seat across from me looking like an angel of morning-time, with his coffee mug full and steamy and a broad smile I want to smack off his face. Somehow I cannot recall the steps we took to get to this point. And as normal, I fold my right hand into his left while he blesses our breakfast, provided for us from above. We eat, transfer the dishes to the sink, and then sit at the table once more. The climax of each morning.
He lifts our Bible from the kitchen dresser and flips it open to the bookmarked location in Hebrews. Today's verses were of our Great High Priest in chapter four. What a burden that was!! I listen carefully, taking in as much as I can for morning time. All the while, Scrabble is pushing herself at my feet and legs, yearning for more attention and Copper sits proper like watching us. We talk a little about the verses while clearing up the kitchen and preparing for our day.
It is a beautiful morning, an untainted day, and lovely altogether. Life is good. Nearly forgetting to check the news online, I pull out my laptop and discover Obama's bill passed, however unconstitutional. I find myself very calm at the moment of discovery. I know it will no ruin my day. Life is still good, because God is still in charge of our world and His justice will prevail. Nothing happens in life that God did not already know would happen. This is a comfort. He knew that last night's bill would pass. He has plans already. I would never have voted for it, yet I know this has happened because of the sinfulness of men and that God will work through it all for good for those who love Him (Romans 8:28). Our part in life as His children is to remain faithful to Him. All we can do is pray and continue on our journey.
I hope and pray all who read this is having a blessed day and that you will go about your days while enjoying your little routines in life like I do. God Bless you!
While working on my math homework, a friend of mine was passing through the student lounge. I waved to him and shouted, "How are you?"
"Doing great, beautiful day out, I love the sun being out! Well I am heading out to eat, food is great!"
I proclaimed, "yes it is!" to which he replied, "I get to eat three meals a day. God is good!" And with that he pushed opened the door and left the building. I had to smile to myself and think, this is the second day someone has proclaimed a simple truth about God to me.
In a small way I am encouraged to speak up on anything that can proclaim God's majesty and not feel ashamed. I am finding out more and more that there are more people out there who stand for the truth.
Yesterday, I went to school to take a Geography test.
After the test, while waiting outside the library for the transit and munching on mixed nuts a young fellow in his twenties stepped out of his car onto the sidewalk and stopped at the entrance. He looked at me and asked, "Did you hear the birds?"
I was taken aback. I never have guys his age ask me that question. Taking him for a flirt, but not knowing how else to respond I say, "yes, they are pretty aren't they?" I did notice they were singing more often since the warmer weather came. Surely he is just an observant and flirtatious male; can he see my rings?
"Do you know what they are telling you?" I nearly laughed at this one and I am sure I looked a bit confused, yet I had to ask him out of curiosity,
"What are they saying?" Here goes; he surely must be wanting to ask for my number in the strangest way possible or tell me, through the birds, that I am pretty or something.
"They say, 'God is watching over you.' "
Of all the things strangers have said to me, this one tops them all!!!
"Yes He is!" I agreed, smiling.
He continued walking toward the library and said to me "I thought you might like to know that."
"Thanks." I had to reply, still smiling. It is a simple message and true enough. God's birds are evidence of His watch-care as the Bible tells us. And He is watching over us. I could find no fault in His message.
After he entered the library, I turned back to watching for my bus and laughed a little. God does work in mysterious ways, as we often tell ourselves. But does He work in the most bizarre ways too? My day had been going fairly well up to that point. But still I needed the encouragement and reminder that it was going well because of Him, how often we forget His hand in our lives especially when things are going the best. Nathan and I had just discussed this during our morning devotional.
I do not believe I will ever forget this young man...
As I look back on my life, there is a memory that I cherish and hold dear to my heart. The moments when, as a child, Mom would take me to bed, whisper with me, and end the day in prayer. We never called it "tucking in" as most did. It was the moment Mom would "pray with me." No night was complete unless Mom kneeled at my bedside to pray. It was a security thing for me, at first. After her prayer was finished, she would hug me tight and kiss me. Then before she would leave the room, I would call to her, "I love you Mom" while she replied, "love you too!" "Goodnight, Mom!" "Goodnight!" And yet I still wanted more of her before sleep came. I never wanted her to leave my room. Was there a way I could stall her from leaving the room? "I love you!" I would say quickly and she would poke her head back in the room with that sweet smile and soft reply, "I love you too!" To my regret, she would leave again and for the last time I would say, "Goodnight, mom, I love you!" But it would be too late and she would reply from the hallway, her words reverberating off the high ceiling and walls from the front entrance.
If Mom was busy and told us to go get in bed she would never need to forget to pray; we always reminded her. Though I do not remember any of her prayers, I know they meant a lot. Whenever I had a nightmare and awoke crying, she would be there to tell me about God and that I needed to trust Him. Before leaving me, after I was calmed down, she would pray one last time and my night was complete. I remember one night, after another nightmare. Mom whispering to me that I was not alone, God was with me always. I recalled the words of a song by Judy Rogers about God being like the wind and how I couldn't see it. Often Mom would sing it softly to help sooth me of my fears.
My mother is a very precious woman. Caring, sweet, beautiful, and best of all, comforting. My favorite memories of her when I was ages two to six years old were those blessed moments she spent with me by my bed. She was always there for me when I needed her most. Never a day went by without her songs, stories, meals, and best of all, the bedtime prayers. After leaving one bedroom, she would move to the next room to pray with my brothers. I hated the departure, but I knew she would be there the next night to tuck me in. Later, when I was older, I prayed by myself. I grew up and missed out on the times when Mom would put me to bed. For with the moments before bedtime she also would tell us about Jesus and his dying on the cross and how we needed to believe in him. I still remember telling Mom, "but I do believe in Jesus; I know he died for me." I don't remember when Mom stopped praying with me before bedtime; the transition is lost in my memory, but I know that those were beautiful times I hope never to forget.
I was richly blessed by my mother and our bedtimes prayers. Most children get bedtime stories before going to sleep and a kiss on the forehead, but I would never have desired that over her prayers. My life, as it is now, may never have been the same if it hadn't been for those precious moments with Mom before sleep. God used those times in my life. They were a gift. If the Lord sees fit to provide children in our life, I plan on continuing the legacy of bedtime prayers.
Thank you Mom, for sharing those times with me. They meant and still mean a lot to me. I love you more for the beautiful "tucking in" experience you gave me during my childhood. That was the true love of a mother. When all other items you put on a back burner to be with me.
On Monday, I found myself itching for change! Not the money that jingles in your pocket, but the term referring to an event or idea that makes life or home different. Since moving into the Henson apartment we have been enjoying space and being able to sprawl out and breathe. The reason I wanted change was because of one room that isn't breathable or livable, at least not to me. The place Nathan spends most of his time while I am busy doing homework or kitchen work. The guest room/office/laundry room. Yes the three are one!
I have tried time and again to make the place cozy, bright, and welcoming. Yet each time I enter that room to get Nathan for breakfast or dinner or to spend time with him, I find myself claustrophobic and raring to get out of the "dark hole" as I have begun to think of it. I feel that I have accomplished the transformation of "dark hole" into "home." These are just a few snapshots of this feat.
I feel like it is now a new place, all bright and cheery. I still have some work to do, like hanging pictures in place and organizing the shelves better, but here is what I have completed so far.
So first thing was that I moved the small shelf from this corner
to here.
The following is the way it looked before this moved. Well...there is a bit of a someone in the way, but you see what this wall looked like before :-)
Next I moved this shelf to over....
There.
I then put this in the entrance to the guest room/laundry/ office.
And where the dresser used to be, is now the above! This is what I did just for my cozy corner where many hours will be spent reading aloud to Nathan! He is probably more excited about this than I am.
At nights he craves our reading time. I did not like being in the guest room because it was dark, plain, and cramped. Not to mention I had no real space to read that was comfy. To read aloud in "his room" while he was at his desk, involved a ten minute struggle with the trundle bed in order to be relaxed enough to enjoy reading. The effort was too much for me and reading time became dreaded. I just couldn't bear the thought of him alone! The thought makes me feel lachrymose and depressed just imagining how lonely it would be having your own spouse not want to spend every opportune moment together all because of a silly discomfort!
I like to think that this room will now become "our room" where we can spend precious times discussing politics, relishing moments of joy, laughing together, and just being in each others company. Though I meant the corner of the room to be for our reading time, I know it will be a multi-functional spot. As Pooh would call it, my "thotful spot."
There is something refreshing and exciting about the calm just before the snow; the anticipation of a few inches as you watch the weather channel's prediction the night before while curling both hands around a warm and soothing cup of coffee.
When in the morning, you glance out the kitchen window straining to see something in the black out there, adrenaline kicks in, you think you see a flake here and there falling. Could it be? You struggle to finish making breakfast for wanting only to give the window your undivided attention while wishing the visibility outside would improve. Will it snow today? you wonder as breakfast is on the table, prayers are lifted up before the Lord and plates squeak beneath the forks. If only the table were closer to the window to peer out in the dark in hope of a glimpse of white.
Finally after getting plates scraped and cleaning and silverware put up, you realize it is lighter than before, though still dark. Waltzing to the bedroom and opening up the bedside curtain, you see the street, the cars, and what's that? Is it possibly snow, or is it just rains. Focusing harder, you see what you had hoped for the night before. Soft small flakes sparkle before your eyes.
It turns a shade lighter outside and you know for sure there is no rain or sleet mixed in the snow, it is all snow!! When you call your husband to sit with you, he shares in this moment of gee. And yet you feel that he isn't truly drinking it in enough or feeling it just right so you get a poem about snow and read it. Still, the poem pales in comparison to how it truly is so you sigh and vow to station yourself by that window as long as you can and enjoy the moment while it is there. You are reminded that you are a minority in your town and wonder what it is about the snow that causes people to hate it. You lift a prayer of comfort for those people that they may see His glory among the snow they so strongly distaste.
Tomorrow the snow won't be the same as today. Today's flakes fall only once. Cherish these breathless moments of today knowing that God only gives you today for a short time. You hear this often, but does it truly sink in? Can you ever truly embrace the moments and really enjoy them as they are meant to be enjoyed?
Recently, I have had to find ways to save money and make money on a very low income and budget. I am trying to get into selling on etsy. I hope that I can make enough products and crochet/knit fast enough, but I pray that if this is what God wants me to do for a time being, that I will stick to it until I can get my drivers license and get a job elsewhere. If anyone has input or ideas on what else to make and sell on Etsy, I am open for opinions. I have posted all that I am selling currently on my etsy page I just created today. If anyone has any suggestions at all I greatly appreciate it. Please be in prayer for me as I try to commit myself to this.
To beginnings. The wonderful times in life to start something new. A new life, a new book, a new commitment. Plans that may never come true, but that are fun to plot anyway. For me, I start thinking about beginnings around Christmas time. How will life be like next year when Christmas rolls around again? What gifts will I make next time? I never know those answers but hold on to the thought that it will be joyous times no matter what. Family and friends will each be greeted with warm hugs and promises of prayers.
A few thoughts I have always pondered around Christmas times were : will I be driving next year at this time? Will I have met the man of my dreams and have promises of a marriage? and will my family still be together like this?
Already two of these questions are no longer ones I reminisce. I still am not driving this Christmas but it is most likely I will be by next year. I did meet my match and am married. And my family, since the last time I asked that question, had three family members leave the home within nearly a years time, including me. I never would have seen that coming and never would have imagined it, but still I couldn't help but know that we were growing up and moving on in life. If I could only have known and held on longer to those precious moments in life.
The questions I ask myself now have changed: Will I have a child, be expecting a child, or planning for one next year? Will we be living in a different apartment this time next year? and will I have completed a New Year's resolution I made from the begging of the new year? Most of the time I do not complete them or I just skip resolutions altogether. I do remember completing one once. I vowed to read over 21 books before my 21st birthday. I even have a list of the books I read that year. Other than that, no other resolutions I have made has ever been completed. Still I make resolutions. Just because I don't complete them, doesn't mean that I can't complete them. A teacher in high school once told me something I have never forgotten. "If you really want or like to do something, you make time for it." If I truly want to complete a resolution, I will make time for it. Where my treasure is, there also will my heart be. (Matthew 6:21)
I now no longer worry much about whether any of my questions I ponder or write down at the end of the year will come about next year. I pray for guidance and wisdom to carry out my duties for the next year and I know God will bring about His Providence just like every year.
I welcome a new beginning in life. New books to read, new adventures to overtake, new life to see, I do not know what life holds for me for the new year, but not knowing the moments to comes is the adventure of it all. To begin a new year is always exciting. It never feels different the with each passing day, month, and year, but in the end when all is reflected, there are differences I see in my past and there are changes that will happen in my future. And though I will still look back on the years past with sentiment, I will charge forward into my new years expecting new challenges and prospects to battle and overcome around each bend in the road.
For my new year's resolution, I plan to work harder at being organized with my time; something I struggle with daily. I also have made a smaller resolution. I know someone who always asks me a particular question each time I visit this individual. My answer is always "no." I want this answer to be "yes." But I do not want to accomplish it because of this person or what it means to the individual, but because it is truly something that I should be doing which is good for me and helped me in my past. I dropped it and have struggled picking it back up. Due to recent circumstances in my life I have a need to do my best at accomplishing this resolution for good and not just for this year, but many more years to come. I leave out the specifics for my own personal reasons. I merely write this down so that I won't forget and to have it here to ponder again at the end of this year.
Remember next time you want to complain about the rain to be thankful for having a car, a driver's license or someone to get you around town. Today I had a wonderful day at school, Nathan dropped me off around 7:50 at SCC and I was there until around 1:15. It happened to be someone's birthday today so he was giving out banana nut muffins that a teacher made for him. He must be a star student or something. I don't know. I happened to be starving as I had forgotten my granola bar I put out on the counter at home. I take this as a great blessing to prepare me for my journey home. I was weak before getting that muffin and knew that I would have a ways to go before getting home. It takes me over an hour from the time I get out of my last class to the time I can set foot at home where all my earthly comforts are. I trudged out of the building into a pouring rain, unprepared. I happened to forget my umbrella even with the knowledge of rain in the forecast for the day. Nice one, Dorry! Well I walked to the library to wait for the bus, wishing and praying I would happen to run into someone I knew. That didn't happen and it is probably best it didn't. I have been exposed to the swine flu, though I am not sick and won't know until it happens. The bus showed up, I got on board. The ride took 45 minutes of torture and time. I do not like the bus. It smells awful. I finally got off at the stop at main street and walked from downtown to home in the pouring rain. It didn't let up at all. Being a mountain town in a valley, pools of water gather by the sides of the streets in every direction and down every street. There is no avoiding them. I found myself heading in the direction of home, water soaking me in an instant and my feet buried in these pools and streams of water. My shoes are mostly material and completely porous. My socks, after two minutes of walking under the weather, were soaked. My feet grew numb pretty fast. By the time I got home, water was dripping off my hair, the tip of my nose, and was beaded up on my eyelashes. I secretly thanked God I do not have to depend on glasses in order to walk as that would have been a pain to have water streaking down the lenses. If it were summer time I would have welcomed this walk in the rain. It was cold today. The rain felt numbing, and there was no avoiding it. It felt like forever before I finally arrived home, soaked to the bone and shivering. One day I will own a light rain jacket and one day I know I will be a driver, but it seems when events like this happen to me, things could not get any better. I know we all have a hard time seeing the good in things like this especially during the moment it happens. I wanted so much to be angry at all those who drove past me at break neck speed splashing me with one of the many unavoidable puddles of water. I also wanted to be angry at those who had no sympathy while driving through the four way stop making me stand there for a long time just to find a moment to walk across the street. I know that these trials must happen to soften me and mold me to God's will. To see His purpose. It can be hard when it happens and I always want to try putting a smile on my face when it does. But it always happens unlike how I imagined it. It is always later that I see the rainbow among the clouds. I know see why it is important that we live near downtown while I am not a driver. I have so many things nearby. I can walk to my bank, my doctor, the hospital, the store where I sell water bottle carriers, the ice cream and pottery store to visit some dear friends, and also where I can go to pay our internet bills. I have walked there to get a card last minute, a Christmas present, a book, and knitting supplies. If I had had a mile to walk home or more, it would not have been possible to get home safely on a day like today. A long walk would have been harsh and sickness would have been the result. So please, next time you complain about the rain, remember what you have, even if it is very little. Your heart is beating and it is all because of God. Even those who hate him still have a beating heart. He still sustains them. I am alive! And all because of Him! Rain is the very least of my problems.
I was out of everything dinner like in my refrigerator last night and was planning on eating cereal as a last resort. We never go to the grocery store on Mondays because that is our night to go out to eat at the karaoke bar to support our local singer and friend Ray. Ok so we only eat an appetizer and drink lemonade and sweet tea, I don't know if this counts for "eating out." Anyway, so we usually eat cereal. Nathan told me he needed something warm to eat instead of cereal. I racked my brain and told him, "ok." Here is what I came up with:
Beef stock, broth or bouillon Two Carrots Sticks, peeled of outer ridges and chopped Two Red Potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1"cubes Two Celery Stalks, washed and diced and A bag of Raman Noodles, without the spices
Boil water and add beef stock etc. I used stock and no-sodium, no-msg-added bouillon package or two. The amount really doesn't matter. I use a package per cup of water and then add the stock or broth to give more volume depending on the amount of soup I make. add all vegetables and boil until the potatoes are soft. Add noodles and simmer for about thirty minutes before serving. It makes a lot of soup surprisingly. I would say that it would be enough if you have one to two of the above veggies per person. And one bag of the raman noodles per two people. This was a last minute "crazy plan" of mine made out of the bare essentials. I had no noodles so I used raman noodles. I will try it with egg noodles and cubes of beef in it next time. Hope you get to try this one!
Somehow between homework and house work I have found time to give a little bit of an update. Math has somehow become a monster for me, with so many complications! I can only dream of catching up already on my first week of school. I am not complaining though. This is what I wanted! A busier, fuller day in my life. General Psychology is fun and enjoyable. History is so far my favorite. Western Religions is frustrating when the book is written all politically correct, but I expected that much. I have yet to experience Expository Writing, but I welcome it wholeheartedly and with great anticipation. Yesterday was Nathan's thirtieth birthday. Lovely him decided to take ME to dinner. Fatz Cafe was our only choice since he got an email from the Fatz fan club saying that he gets a free Calabash chicken plate. Yummy. I got the free plate and he chose to get a $15 plate. We ate cheap for an outing. Being his birthday, I gave him a laser pointer though my cat knows it is hers! Tomorrow I have classes again, so I am off to bed! I'll try to update again soon! So much to say, so little time to do it! Ahhhh gotta love busy life!
I want to see how many people I can recruit to using swag bucks website as a search engine. All you have to do is click this link http://swagbucks.com/refer/Dorrylady sign up for free, use the search and you get swag bucks while you are using it to search. save up enough swag bucks and you can get free stuff. It is legit. No fees. Also if you order stuff through swag bucks you can earn more swag bucks. The more friends you have on swag bucks, the more you get. And when your friends and friends' friends gain swag bucks, you get swag bucks also. How cool is that? Instead of using google, you can be using swag bucks and searching online and earning just by searching. It is pretty neat.
Just give it a try! I figure if every day you search for a swag buck and get two or one per day that is 365+ swagbucks a year, and if you have friends who are searching and they were your referrals, that is multiplied by two or more. http://swagbucks.com/refer/Dorrylady it can't hurt to try.
You really don't know how much life is around you when you are at home until it isn't there. In my case it is my cats whom bring so much life in my dwelling. I am accustomed to being at home alone all day, but I didn't realize just how much I wasn't alone until we actually made the decision to leave our cats in Cashiers for an entire week. This was not an easy decision for me at all. There are times when I get frustrated with them for all the mischief and mayhem they display, but that is my preference over the silence I have been experiencing for two whole days now. Our house feels so dead right now. My reason for leaving them in Cashiers was merely to let the hairs settle and vacuum them up before my family comes to visit on Saturday. Dad is allergic to cat hairs. Is it worth not having the cats here a whole week in order to make my dad comfortable? Absolutely! But this doesn't mean I can't miss my cats something fierce. My constant companions aren't here by my side, the cat bowl is empty, the tub is empty of the small pool of water I have accustomed myself to seeing, I don't have a cat to snuggle with in bed. When I practice piano, Copper isn't there to walk up and down the keys! Where are those swishing tails to greet me when I enter the room they abide? where are those meows to greet me when I wake up in the morning? where are the claws that so lovingly scratch me to announce cuddle time? why won't they come when I call? Though today Nathan and I celebrate our second anniversary, it really isn't the same without cats to interrupt. Until I have children of my own, they are my kids and joy when I am alone all day. I do look forward with eager anticipation to bringing them back home again!
Thank you for all that you are to me! I cannot thank you enough. You have been a splendid light and joy in my life. When you are there to wake me up in the mornings, I don't thank you because I don't know how. Grumbles are all that ensue and the only way I know how to respond. I am sorry that I don't thank you then, but I am thanking you now! Thanks for the roses you give to me on my birthdays and Valentine's Days. For the understanding you show when I am down and dreary. For the times when you have been there to cry with me. Thank you for the tickles and laughter. For reading together with me. Those times are my favorite! Thanks for all the smiles and goofy remarks to help me smile too. You have no idea how much they mean to me! Thank you for the late night cuddles and whispers when I can't fall asleep. And for taking time to understand and sort out my problems, even when the problems are silly ones to you; you know just how to make me feel better! Thank you for showing me how to think outside the box. That was the beginning of our adventures together! Though I may get angry or upset with you some days, it is wonderful that you understand me even still and will be right by my side at the end of the battle. Thank you ever so much for that! For the care you show when I have fallen, tripped, stubbed my toe, fallen again, slipped on nothing, etc., etc., I am truly grateful! Thank you for showing me I can laugh at my blunders and clumsy mistakes. Thank you for showing me that my mistakes don't have to be my worst enemy and nightmare. That I can either overcome them or live with them and move on in life. When you give me your undivided attention, and amaze me by it =), I am blessed and especially thankful for it. Even in times when I want to be right and you show me truth, though I may not at first admit I am wrong, I do thank you for giving me the time to come to my understanding of the truth. Thank you for your patience in listening to my constant chatter during one of my most blissful days. Thanks for knowing how to be romantic. And for scooping the kitty litter; it isn't a pleasant job! For holding hands with me in the grocery store even though you don't want to be there. Thank you for taking me grocery shopping. You have no idea how much I hate walking to the store to do the shopping! And for coming home to me everyday! There are many husbands today that aren't faithful and make up lies of where they need to be instead of home. You are not one of them! Thank you thank you thank you for your contentedness! It is an inspiration to me when I find little things here and there that I want or feel that I need. Thank you for going to work everyday, that we can have food, clothing, and a place to sleep. Though some days you wish you had a higher income to provide more, how much money you make isn't what creates the strong bond that we have in each other! And most of all I thank God for creating you! That you are who you are and that you aren't anybody else but you! That you are mine! The joy I have for you wells up in me and grows ever stronger by the moment. You are my knight in shining armor, my hero, my sweetheart, my prince charming, my first boyfriend, my dream come true, my best Christmas present of 2006, and most of all, my husband! Thank you for the best two years of marriage I had never thought I would live, but was given anyway! God gave you for me to be my other half and to complete me. And that is just what you are and do! No one else could do it better than you!
This morning around 6:40, Nathan helped me out of bed to get me started on breakfast. Nothing out of the ordinary. Just the simple routine I am used to by now. Also something that is ordinary is for me to be groggy and slow. My stomach decided to have a bit of aches and kinks in it this morning, causing me to be extra slow. Looking at the time, I discovered that the clock read 7:15 and the bread wasn't buttered. I called to Nathan to butter it for me while I cracked the eggs into the frying pan. Nathan usually leaves for work every morning around 7:35 or 7:40. Breakfast is usually on the table by 7:10 or 7:15 at the latest.
While we were working on breakfast, Scrabble showed up meowing louder than usual and seemingly begging for attention. Not a big surprise to us. Nathan finished buttering the bread and sat on the floor Indian style to give her the much needed attention. After standing up, Nathan chatted a bit with me and all the while, Scrabble meowed as if to say she wasn't ready for all that loving attention to end. We talked to her and looked at her while she proceeded to talk and meow back at us and again, very loud! This was a bit out of the ordinary. I told Nathan she probably wanted him to hold her on his shoulder and walk around patting her back like she likes it. Nathan didn't have time for that and breakfast was nearly ready. In the meantime Scrabble continued meowing and rubbing herself against my legs while I stood at the stove.
Breakfast on the table, we ate quickly, Scrabble meowing the whole time, and pretended this was normal. After Nathan got ready for work, we exchanged goodbye hugs and kisses. Finally, I had the time to give her the special attention that I thought was all she wanted. I picked her up, cuddling her against my right shoulder and perceived that she was shaking! I realized something traumatic must have happened and patted her back while walking the length of the house. During the second lap, as I walked closer to one of our living room sofas, I noticed the quilt had fallen off the back of the sofa in the right hand corner. I remember thinking it must have been Nathan who did it, if he had been reading in that sofa, but it wasn't an ordinary reading spot for him. Scooping up my furry bundle in one hand, I tossed the corner of the quilt back into place and at the same time noticing our storm window behind the sofa was covered in cracks and missing a whole chunk of glass.
Scrabble leaped onto the sofa again and meowed loud. I gave her reassuring pats and strokes while trying to figure out how this happened.
The best I can figure out is this: Sunday night upon returning from Cashiers, we began opening up as many windows as we had wood support props. The last window we opened was the far right window behind that sofa. Later that night, before settling in bed for the night we lowered the inner window only and left the storm window as it was: the screen lowered and the glass pane that is on the outside of the screen, we kept up for when we wanted to open the window the next day.
Some time this morning, Scrabble was sitting in the window sill enjoying the morning breeze. Gravity had already been working on the window and the outer glass pane dropped to the down position, cracking the entire window pane while one huge chunk flew out of position and crashed on the pavement three stories below. This happened possibly while we were making breakfast, as I recall Scrabble racing into the kitchen meowing.
I imagine it happened while she was in the window because of the quilts state of array. I know for a fact that our cats do not race through the living room in the mornings and therefore it cannot be caused by the cats, but rather by gravity and it being an old window that often comes off its track sometimes when we raise and lower it. A heavy breeze may have caused it to fall off its track and plummet like it did.
Scrabble did get over it once she knew I had seen the window and reassured her it was ok. She has recovered well and is currently sleeping with Copper in the guest bed in safety. God is good to us and protected my cat from any harm. Through all this we got some extra giggles over Scrabbles behavior this morning and some extra cuddling time.
I bought myself a deal of a bread maker on Friday. Actually I left a check with my mother-in-law as Nathan and I were heading down to Ga to visit my family and former church for the weekend. And she paid the used furniture and houseware store for me and picked up my $30 clearance bread maker. Boy am I loving it!! I have used it nearly every day this week except Tuesday. Here you will see a picture of a roll I made using the bread maker to make the dough while I formed it into miniature herb bread loaves and baked it in the oven. Well, ok I lied, the picture is of me eating the roll. I wish I could have taken a picture of the first loaf I made. It had arms and a head!!! Not a pretty one, that's for sure! My second bread was a banana bread. Then today I made four pizza crusts using the machine to make the dough and afterward I made a lovely smelling maple oatmeal bread. I am told that there is a bread maker cookbook waiting for me in Cashiers! Originally, the cook book that I discovered with the bread maker was dropped off at the store by a lady claiming that it "was too much work!" Whatever! Well my mother-in-law came back without the book and I began to wonder. This week she went back and the lady didn't seem to recall saying that it came with the bread maker. My mother-in-law went to pay for it and the lady gave it to her. Maybe she remembered my enthusiasm over a simple bread maker? Maybe she just wanted to be nice and give it anyway? Who knows, but I am ecstatic over everything bread machines nowadays and will have to remember to thank her for the bread machine cookbook.
Tater tots!!! No totally! I promise it does! Last night I made pizzas and put pepperoni on Nathan's and tater tots on mine. I cut them up into small pieces, topped it all over the pizza, and cooked it. MMMmmmmmm. I loved it! Really you should all try it. It is like a breakfast, hash brown pizza. I even was brave this time and put pizza sauce on my pizza crust. I normally hate pizza sauce, but when I spread the sauce thinly over the pizza crust and topped it with lots of cheese I didn't have to taste thick sauce and was ok with it. But really, the tater tots on top were heavenly! Now go make pizza and get some tots, believe me, you will be impressed with the flavor!
