TGIF! A Winter Friday in Texas!

Good Morning!  It's a downright chilly day here in the Lone Star State.  I tried blanketing up and doing my 40 Days out on the back porch this morning.  However, when my fingers froze up and I couldn't hold my pen, I decided it was time to head inside and put a log on the fire.  Michael brought me a cup of coffee, Sadie plunked herself down at my feet and I am feeling much, much better!

Speaking of my 40 Days ... it's going well & I am finding that it is good to start my day with positiveness and prayer.  My 40 minutes usually gives way to at least an hour but that's because I am also doing my Daily Walk Bible reading (today 2 Peter  1-3) and a chapter a day in THE POWER OF PRAYING FOR YOUR ADULT CHILDREN.  I am learning so much ... I feel like I am back in college!  If you don't think you can have a dialog with God, believe me, you can!  As I journaled I had so many questions and He led me to Psalm 139 ...

"How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!  How vast is the sum of them!" ~~ Psalm 139:17

Countdown to Christmas continues ... hasn't this year flown by?  I know that as a child I thought that Christmas took so long to get there.  My brother and I would impatiently wait for mom and dad to get home from work so that we could get going to my Aunt Sis's and Uncle Cloyde's.  Their house was filled with people and presents under the tree came way out onto the floor.  Funny, I remember one Christmas ... they had gotten a new TV and we watched Bonanza.  Wow! As children we were in pig heaven!!  The women were in the kitchen stirring the Oyster Stew and Chili, the men were "smoking" and my cousins and I were dancing with the joyousness of Christmas Eve.  It was a time where there was a cease fire in family arguments and we all enjoyed just being family ... for better or worse! 

My father loved Christmas and creating an outdoor wonderland.  He won many General Electric awards.  He would spend many hours using a jig saw cutting out Christmas characters and outlining them as well as the house in lights.  We had a 2 story house when he first started decorating and one year made a rocket with Santa on it to put on top of the house.  That was the talk of the town!  My mother wasn't as gung ho on decorating but did like her silver tinsel tree with red balls on it.  I got the Christmas gene and that gene has been passed on to my children.  I guess you could call us Christmas decor enthusiasts!!  I watched HGTV the other night when some designers decorated 3 "stars" homes for the holidays.  I guess the houses were pretty BUT to me Christmas is about the touch that is totally personal not about perfection.  Just like when I was a child, I enjoy playing with my treasures to create my own wonderland...

It is quiet here today except for Sadie taking her toys outside then bringing them inside ... she is so funny...  If you've ever watched any Christmas videos on Barney, President Bush's Scottie you will get an idea of the antics of the Scottish Terrier - they are wonderfully loyal and too smart for their own good!

Our dogren bring joy to our lives all year round ... Our Pomeranian, Khelsea, is more like a cat -- she prefers her den under the bed and sleeps most of the time now.  We keep her comfortable and cater to her whims as she ages.  Sadie, well, Sadie is a class act.  She's beautiful, strong and a hunter.  She's also stubborn and wants things "her way."  Toby is the house clown ... as a Yorkie-Poodle mix, he's a mess but a good mess.  Michael says we should have named him Velcro because he sticks to us wherever we go.  He drives Khelsea and Sadie crazy but they politely tolerate him unless he is sticking his nose in their food bowls!

As I was praying this morning, one thing that really stuck out was the value of relationships.  We all need good people around us who strengthen us and contribute to the quality of our lives.  Our relationships are many ... friends, coworkers, siblings, parents, children ...  I look back and see how valuable each of these friendships were and today, I realize how important they are to keeping my outlook alive and positive.  By nature, I have always been kind, friendly and accepting to everyone.  It has been at the times that I thought I could handle relationships with people who are a little more worldly (especially those disguised as Christians) that I got into the most trouble.  In this culture where there is so much evil influence, it is hard to know a person's true character.  Time...time...holds the key.  We live in a microwave society where self-indulgence has given way to a country in trouble, families in trouble and a waning of the family values that once were so important.  As a relationship coach, I learned as much as the advice I gave.  It was always important for me to let my clients know that my advice would be Christian-based.  When it came to affairs of the heart good sense went out the door and people would find themselves back in situations where they were comfortable even if those relationships were bad for them.  Dr. Romance dried many a tear and well as attended many a wedding.  Ah yes...relationships!!

"...learn to put aside your own desires so that you will become patient and godly, gladly letting God have his way with you.  This will make possible the next step, which is for you to enjoy other people and to like then, and finally you will grow to  love them deeply."~~2 Peter 1:6-7

Hamilton Elf and I wish you a very special Friday ... it's Trade Days weekend which means there are treasures to be found and delicious treats to be tasted!  The weekend is always a time of surprises and I think this one will be no exception!!

It's December 17, 2010 and Christmas is just around the corner.  Always remember you are loved and prayed for ... YA YOU!!

Giving you a big YE HAW ... have a boot skootin' day!!