Winter Fun

Who needs the NHL when you can bring the ice home to you?

This is the project my husband has been working on for two weeks. We can wait to get out our skates for our first skate. He's been working on this rink every night into the wee hours of the night and it looks like we will be able to put it into use very soon.

This is ice brings back a lot of memories for me. The house we own is the house I grew up in and this is the first year that we can bring a part of my dad back onto this yard.
When I was young, my dad and uncle made an ice rink for us every winter. It was something we looked forward to every year, because we knew that people would start showing up and it ended up being a party every night. You know the saying, "If you build it, they will come." Well thats what happened with my dad's ice.
They built beautiful boards, 4 feet all around. Complete with lighting and was built to the full size of a professional ice rink. They had a big heating shack built with a wood stove inside. It was the ultimate haven for our family. So great that we would have sleep-overs in that shack.
The ice my husband is building, as I speak, is built in the exact same spot that my day had his ice. You can see the light's in the pictures above, the electrical cord that we used is the same one my dad used. We found it over grown and stuck in weeds when we started cleaning up the plot for the rink. You have to remember that this was from a long time ago. At least 20 years!
The heating shack is still there but we can't use it, seeing it's rotting away and we didn't build the rink nearly as big or fancy. But it means that world to me. It's a dream come true and a great place for our family to enjoy evening and weekends.

Decorating

I finally had a chance to sneak outside and get the front entrance decorated.
My husband and my father-in-law were such sweet hearts and built me a pergola this summer.

This was one big thing I was looking forward to.
A fresh garland to hang along the pergola for Christmas.
It feels so cozy and it adds a perfect touch to our country yard.

I made all my decorations out of ceder, pine branches. This is something I love to do, but it takes a lot of time.
I started the first weekend of December and I only finished now.


And of course, my dog, Cleo had to help too. She was my guard dog for all those "man eating squirrels."
(Have you heard of them, we have them all over our yard.)
Lol...

Whats little and whats BIG?

I was so hurt this last weekend. It wasn't because of some huge conflict that I had with a friend or an unexpected accident. It was the feeling of disrespect.
A person overstepping their boundaries after I has asked them not to. (Sounds like our kids, doesn't it?)
I talked about this with a close friend yesterday and I was shocked to see that he/she didn't understand where I was coming from and I couldn't understand where their thought pattern was going either.
This person was looking at how small these issues where and I was looking at the big impact these small issues were causing in my life.

The story of Adam and Eve struck me like a brick wall!
If you would only look at them eating the apple, you would look at that as a small thing. Wouldn't you? Just eating an apple is not all that big. We over look the "small" part of this story because we know the ending, It's "BIG" and we are living in a sinful world because of it.
How often do we look at what we are doing and justify it as something small. "There's no way that it could cause grief." But to the receiver, it does.
How often do we sneak around a person because we think they won't find out? How do you think that person would feel if they knew?
This situation has given me an opportunity to look at my life pattern, and I encourage you to take a look for yourself. Not just for yourself, but for the people around you.
Are we spending each moment out of our day seeking God and trying to please Him? Are we listening to what we are saying to others? Is it filled with gossip or deceit? Is it a loving conversation that wont hurt a person and will it show everyone you know respect?
It's not only what comes out of our mouths, lets take a closer look at our actions too.
I'm not saying this to fill anyone with shame.
I have seen myself do this a million times. But this weekend was the weekend that God showed me what it felt like to be the receiver. I promise all of you that it doesn't feel good, not even a "little."

December

December has snuck up be hind us, hasn't it?

I hope you can all enjoy your Christmas this year.
The excitement of putting up the tree and decorations, buy gifts for the people you love, baking cookies for company and my favorite, listening to Christmas music.
What are your favorite things about Christmas?

The Book of Hebrews

You would think that if you wrote something as great as this you would put your signature on it.
I kinda like the idea that its an unknown author in the book of Hebrews. We don't have the opportunity to focus on anyone other then God Himself, and what He requires of us in our daily walk with Him.
What is said in this book is real and sometimes harsh. But it can be very rewarding when you understand it's message and try to live according to it instructions daily.
The world "Discipline" has become an unpopular word in our society, but according to Hebrews, discipline is necessary in our life. One of the most important areas for believers to have discipline is in their thought life, because every act is the product of thought. "Have your thoughts focused on Jesus." Hebrews 3:1
If we don't discipline ourselves in our thoughts, we could very likely turn away from Gods calling for us and be attracted to the things of the world. Every time that we are lead away from are calling, the works of God through our lives are delayed or even destroyed.
This makes me think about yesterday during our family devotion time. We read about the story of Eli and his wicked sons. (1Samuel 2:12-36) They weren't disciplined enough to think about what God really wanted from them. They were treating the Lords offering as worthless. But in their minds, it was something very little and they figured no one would notice. I in God's eye's it was very sinful. God then told Eli that because of this, his two son's will die on the same day and none of the men in his family will live to old age.
The words in chapter 25 are very harsh but also very true.
If one person sins against another, God will take care of him. However, when a person sins against the Lord, who will pray for him? (1 Samuel 3:25)

I have found for myself that I need my quiet time with God. The more I read in the Word and spend time listening to God, my calling becomes more clear. Reading Hebrews really helped me to see what God intends every believer to do. I encourage you to take the time to read through Hebrews and ask God where He wants you. I promise that it will take a lot of discipline to achieve these great goals that God has set for us, but with our minds set on Him, we can do anything.

Wedding Celebration

We got a picture with our handsome boy.

Jadden's Buddies, Brent (Grooms Man), Elmer (Groom), Stacey (Best Man) and Jadden ( Junior Best Man)

Elmer, Wanda and Jadden

Our Family.
We have finally become a family of Five.
You ask why I would you say that. Well, if you have read my post through out the last couple of years, you will have noticed that I had a teen pregnancy, and Elmer is Jadden's birth father.
We have gone through some very rocky moments, but all together it's been a Blessing.
Jadden has been the #1 reason we stuck it out and push through our selfish feelings. We decided shortly after Sheldon and I got married that we wanted this to work and Elmer was with us 100%. While Jadden was growing up, we were too. Funny, the way it sounds, but that's the truth. We were all very young at the time, but we were all leaning on God and He pulled us through.
Jadden has been able to grow up with his whole family surrounding him and supporting him through his life. He has a ton of people loving him and praying for him as he has been growing. And he seems to be doing great with it.
When he was very young, we told him that Elmer, Jadden and Sheldon and I are a family and it will stay that way all his life. Now we have a family of Five. I can't believe that I finally have women to hang out with. Our Christmas and any other event we celebrated together was me with three boys. Boys = sports! Not the greatest for me, but it worked.
Wanda is an amazing person. I love to see her strength and acceptance towards our family. She is very quiet, but she brings so much joy to all of our lives. Again, I feel so very Blessed as to how this has worked out. I know that we will be able to share our lives together and both be Blessed with a great relationship.
So that's my story. And I have to give God all the Glory! We couldn't have done it with out Him.

Ready for the BIG DAY!

My son has his first big moment of being a Best Man! Junior Best man, that is.

Brent (Grooms Man), Jadden (Junior Best Man) and Elmer (Groom)

Check him out! Mama is so proud!
It was very hard for me to release him out onto the bad roads. We had our first snow fall this night and the roads are covered with slush and ice seeing we had rain before the snow began.
They are traveling and hour away for pictures, so I'm praying for safety as I speak.

Elmer and Wanda (read the cake)
Last week of freedom (Fredom lol)
This is the lovely couple who is going to tie the knot tonight. I can't wait!

I'll have many pictures to share with you tomorrow.
I wish you all a Blessed day and safety for anyone who has to face the bad roads.