HAPPY ONE-DERLAND

This week, as we are literally enjoying a winter wonderland, we are invited to a one-derland Birthday party that I’m looking forward to!

On this your First Birthday, Lacey . . . I want you to know what a wonder it has been to watch you grow and learn! The process simply amazes me!

From helpless little babe to one discovering hands . . . learning to use them to pick up

. . . to point or to open cupboards

. . . to lift flaps and turn pages

or to copy older cousins.

From a little mind that communicated with silence or crying . . . now showing understanding with your smiles, giggles, nods and shakes.

From tiny wrinkled feet that now patter across the floor as you have learned to balance yourself and enjoy more freedom.

Dear Lacey Love . . .

You observe so much more than we imagine . . . and your eyes show it. They show love and delight for family, routines, being flipped, playing peek-a-boo, books, music and going for walks. We look forward to many more of these . . . along with shrieks of delight when you drive up our driveway. We wish you a very Happy Birthday!

Love, Papa and Grammy

You Just Never Know

We were watching Hawaii Five-O one night . . . the usual drama. In this episode a young lady in a travelling vehicle was locked up in a trunk and calling her brother from her cell. He told her to kick out the tail light . . . so she could see where she was going and tell him.

I asked, "Can you actually do that? . . . kick out the tail light?"

He figured, "Yes."

"That's a good thing to know." I replied in all seriousness.

He chuckled . . . like I would need to know this!

Well . . . you just never know. I thought it was worth knowing.

A Surprise Win

I don't know when it first happened that Menno Jeweler left comments on my blog. The name intrigued me and I had to see who it was. I found out that her name is Kathy, she designs and makes handcrafted jewelry and I have to say . . . she is a true gem, herself! I hope to meet her one day. Last Fall I voted on a beautiful necklace that she had submitted in a jeweler's contest. To my surprise, I received an email sometime later from a company called Vintaj Natural Brass, letting me know that I had won a draw . . . not the necklace, but something from this company. I had not realized that commenting would put my name into a draw. Now all I needed to do was to send in my mailing address.

The parcel arrived before Christmas!

In it was a card to congratulate me . . .

and two bags of jewelry . . . ready to assemble. Was I supposed to be a jeweler?

I laid out the pieces for the necklace . . .

and the earrings . . . kind of puzzled because there were no instructions . . . don't you need those . . . and some tools?

I feel a little bit at a loss here. I've noticed that, besides jewelry, Kathy can whip up some nice baking. It's not fair . . . she has instructions to follow . . .

but I have nothing . . . am I supposed to bend the pin?

How do I attach the loop? I will need some help, if I am to wear these. Good thing I know whom to ask.

Menno Jeweler has a blog, Artful Accents (on my sidebar) and I encourage you to check out her Etsy Shop sometime. She has just sold a lot of her jewelry for Christmas, so she will need a bit of time to catch up again . . . but keep checking.

A Surprise Gift

My sister gave me a random gift . . . not for Christmas . . . not for my Birthday . . . she had seen these dishes and got them for me.

I especially like this one . . . it's called a pasta dish, but very nice for dips. She mentioned that she had to get them because they had my name on them. I was somewhat surprised because I don't have anything blue in my house.

I turned over the plate and saw what she meant . . . you may need to click on the picture to see . . . sorry, I should have done a retake.

How sweet is that? She figured we may like to use them for dessert, knowing it's a nightly habit for us.

Last night my H came home from a business trip and dessert for two was waiting. For the recipe you can go to Mennonite girls can cook today.

Perceptions

One of the most satisfying elements of blogging has been to find a way to express my feelings about things I see around me. It has given me more reason to make the moments count, to find good in the mundane average day to day things and to appreciate the blessings that have been poured out on me.

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I love the fact that someday my grandchildren may look at the things we did and see my perspective on them as they were growing up. In these pages they will find some history, some things to laugh at, things I enjoy and more about my faith.
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For the reasons above, I could make it a private blog. However, I also have had reasons to keep it public. When I meet readers who tell me that they are encouraged by my posts, I feel blessed to be able to do that. I also feel a sense of unworthiness to be paid such a compliment, because I’m just a normal person who happens to have time to write.

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This brings me to that nagging question brought on by a recent comment. I feel somewhat like Anne of Green Gables in the scene where she has to apologize to Marilla after Marilla has said some nasty things to her. I wonder . . . how does a person judge someone by having seen them somewhere and then, on that basis, disclaim everything she has written for the past two years? I guess it can happen.

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I’ve looked in the mirror. What do I look like? It's just plain old me . . . getting older. My eyelids are starting to give me a serene look. I have a long nose - always wished for a cute one. Does my haircut make me look snobby? Would I look more approachable if I wore a messy ponytail? What is it that makes a person look like a “Yes” person or a “No” person . . . someone you can easily approach and work with . . . or someone who is difficult to know or get along with. How do I look to people who only see me and never interact with me?
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Maybe blogging has been a way for me to seem more outgoing. It’s a place where it does not matter if I can’t immediately find the right words, a place where I can delete and restate what I really want to say, without stumbling over my words. It’s a way of public speaking without having to get up in front.
Having said that, I easily forget that is exactly what I am doing and people are watching me. They may pass me in the grocery isle or in a church and see a woman who is oblivious to them, because I don’t even know that they know something about me.
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And so I have set myself up. I have a choice to make and I will choose to grow by it. I’m not a tough duck - letting the water slide over my wings type of gal, who will shove this kind of comment under the rug. I want to learn to put on a “yes” face for people I do not know and not allow my insecurities to come across as not having the time of day for them.

I will continue to be real in my posts without dwelling on the negative and bringing up trash. My wish is to speak of things that edify and shine a light on the path before us. May God help us to be quick to listen, slow to speak and especially slow to judge.

Prayer for the New Year

I was reading in the Old Testament how God led His people through the desert by a cloud.
“Whether the cloud stayed over the tabernacle for two days or a month or a year, the Israelites would remain in camp and not set out, but when it lifted, they would set out. At the Lords’ command they encamped and at the Lord’s command they set out.” Numbers 9: 22,23

Today we do not have a lit up cloud to guide our path . . . in fact, sometimes it may seem like clouds dim our view . . . but we have God’s written Word to light our way . . . and we have access to His leading through prayer.

It is my prayer that I will listen and hear God’s voice . . . as expressed in Psalm 25:4,5

“Show me your ways, O Lord,
teach me your paths:
guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my Savior
and my hope is in you all day long.

Remind me, dear Lord, that I can ask more often. I can ask before worrying or fretting . . . because you delight in giving to those who ask. And when you ask me to sit a while and wait . . . whether it be day a or two or a year or two, remind me that You see way ahead of me. I can trust your faithfulness.