It has been a while

It has been a while since I last posted on this blog.  Life has been busy. I have gotten married, bought a house, lost a brother and this past summer my mother-in-love.  Through it all God has been faithful.  I may not always be faithful to Him, but He is faithful to me.
Today I was reading in Ezekiel about how God does not like to see man die in their sin.  Yet, because He has given man a free will to choose Him or not to choose Him, there are times He has to watch a man die in his own sin.  I know it breaks His heart, because it breaks my heart when I see someone make a choice I know will not benefit them.  Why do we purposely choose to do things that hurt us? It is almost like we think that we are invincible.  We are not!
I want to choose Jesus above all else.  Do I do it all the time? No! Sometimes I let my flesh rule the day and in the end I am frustrated and unsatisfied.  Yet, when I choose Jesus, He fills me with His peace and His joy and I am satisfied.  When will I learn to choose him always? Not just when I feel like it, but ALWAYS!
Well, that is is for today.  I choose Jesus! Will you?
Blessings!

Wedding Blessings

This past Saturday I attended the wedding of a good friend, actually two good friends (Lisa Mufford and Jim Logul. In attending the wedding, I was a witness to the covenant made between a man and a woman before God.
As a witness, it is my responsibility to help Lisa & Jim keep the covenant they made to one another to keep their marriage as long as they both shall live. Too many times people who attend a wedding forget their responsibility. They figure if the couple runs into problems it is not their responsibility to help. How wrong that thinking is! We are to hold the couple accountable to their vows. Marriage is not a contract that can be broken. We are to come along side and pray for them, encourage them and even sometimes confront them. I believe if witnesses took their responsibility a bit more seriously then their would be less divorce and stronger marriages.
Well, the wedding ceremony was beautiful and I was glad I was able to attend. The reception was a simple affair. I was glad Scott & I had the opportunity to spend a little time with friends. After all was said and done it was a bit taxing on my leg. I was tired by the time Scott brought me home a couple hours later.
Yesterday I was able to witness my youngest brother, Daniel, get water baptized. What an amazing experience. He was one of 16 people who publicly proclaimed Jesus truly is Lord of their lives. The evening was full of much joy and tears. Tears of JOY!!!!!!!! Praise the Lord!
Until next time!
Blessings to you!~~~~

It's been awhile

Yes, I know it has been a while since I have blogged. Life gets busy and I don't take the time to sit down and write. Well, now I have come to a bit of a stand still. My body decided I was not taking enough down time and put me down. Last week Monday I ended up in the hospital with cellulitus in my lower right leg. What started out as a fever in the early hours of the morning, ended up with me making an extended stay at Millard Fillmore Suburban hospital for a week.
I am home now on more extended leave until my doctor says it will be okay to resume working. So for now I am sitting in a recliner with my leg up and trying not to fall asleep. The leg is healing Praise the Lord! It just needs to not swell up when I am down on it for more than 2o minutes.
Life has been good! Scott & I have been dating/courting for 7 months this Saturday. We are very similar in our likes and dislikes. He encourages me just as much as I encourage him. I love spending time with him. I have met many of his friends and so far they like me. His family loves me just as much as my family loves him. I believe we compliment one another. :)
Right now he is excited that the Buffalo Sabres are in the playoffs. Tomorrow is the first game and you can be sure to find him in front of the TV watching the game. He loves anything to do with hockey. He especially likes cheering on the local players. He becomes very animated. I am glad I enjoy watching hockey. We watched a girl's game a couple weeks back and had the best time.
Well, right now I am a bit tired. I will sign off for now. I will try to write more often but I am not promising anything.
Until next time!
Blessings to you!~~~

Rain & Fire

It once again has been a while since I have blogged anything. Life has been a bit busy but it has been good.
This past weekend I held my annual bonfire at my parent's home. I was hoping for a rain free Saturday night but the rain came along with 80 of my friends and family. Yes, you read that right, 80 people came out to the house on Saturday. I was thankful for the six tents I either owned or borrowed plus the fact that I live in a big house.
The evening(aside from the rain) consisted of lots of good food, two bonfires, laughter among friends, me having to change 2 times because I got soaked, dominoes, and just good fellowship. I was also able to meet the family of my boyfriend, Scott. What an evening! Everyone had a great time at least that is what I continue to hear.
Today I went to the dentist to get my wisdom tooth pulled. He loaded me up with Novocaine and pulled as best as he could to no avail. My tooth decided it did not want to come out. So now in November I will be going to an oral surgeon. Yeah Rah! At this point the novocaine is wearing off & I have taken ibeprophen to ease the pain in my jaw.
That is all for now! God is Good and He is still in control!
Blessings~~

Pool Party

Last Sunday a good friend of mine hosted a pool party at her house. Between the hours of 12pm to 2pm it looked like we were not going to be able to go swimming. We had torrential downpours. Thankfully around 2:30 the rain stopped and the sun came out. God provided a perfect afternoon for friends to be in a pool.
Kim had about 20 people over to her house. Everyone got in the pool. Some of us were doing summer saults, hand stands, diving, water bombs, or just plain relaxing on a raft. The water cooled everyone off, especially because it ended up being a hot afternoon.
Another part of the afternoon included Mark Weber & some to the women giving us a singing performance. All who participated have wonderful voices, so it was nice to listen. There were some funny moments when I was trying to take candid photos but Mark would not be candid. He kept making sure he was in the photo. Oh, well! I tried to get candid shots!
Kim provided dinner for everyone with others bringing snacks or desserts to share. What a blessing it was to have good fellowship and food. Kim also invited a couple from her church to come and share the Word with us.
The whole afternoon was enjoyable. Thanks Kim for your hospitality!

Presque Isle 2009

Yesterday, I traveled with friends to Presque Isle state park in Erie, PA. Considering it was the first really nice day of summer, it was a perfect day to hang out with friends on a beach. My day started out with a two hour tennis drill clinic at the Village Glen. I had a great time but boy was hot and tired when I finished. I was thankful that I could take a shower at a friend's house before I left for Presque Isle.
Jeff, Mark, Karla and I headed to PA around 10:45am. On the way we stopped at a Chick-Fil-A for lunch. Mark made us laugh with his antics about being one of Chick-Fil-A's number one fans. He made us all laugh with his photos and his purchase of 4 children's toys in that were cows with placard boards. Very Cute!
Well, when we finally got off the exit to Presque Isle it took us 45 minutes to drive 5 miles. There was some construction or an accident. It was very frustrating. We did finally arrive at the beach only to have a full parking lot. We did get in unload our belongings and then headed out to find a parking spot. It seemed like everyone and their neighbor decided it was a good day to head to the beach.
The afternoon consisted of relaxing on the sand, frolicking in the water, tubing off the back of a boat or jet skiing with a friend. Oh, yeah, there was also a lot of food, fun & fellowship. For me it was just fun to relax with friends. I had a couple great conversations with some new friends and old friends. I tried to take some photos to capture the day. Everyone who went seemed to have a great time.
The group stayed at the beach until right after sunset. The sunset was beautiful. God is such an Awesome God to bless us with such picturesque beauty.
Until next time!
Blessings to you~

Baby Showers & girlfriends

This past Saturday found me, along with my sisters and mom, at my best friend's baby shower. Her sister & sister-in-law put together a beautiful shower for Wendy. About 25 friends and family came together to bless Wendy & Nate with gifts for the arrival of their new baby girl.
The first gift opened was from Wendy's grandma, who passed away a couple years ago. She had given Wendy's mom a quilt to give Wendy when she had her first baby. The gift brought tears to Wendy's eyes. It was a precious gift, which will be cherished for a long time.
After the shower we all got together to take a few photos. There was a lot of laughter in trying to get six women to look at a camera.
Once the shower was over some of the girls went over to Jenn's house for an afternoon of relaxation. We were supposed to lounge around in her pool. That did not happen due to rain & the pool being cold. We sat around and chatted hoping to get to Jackie's later in the evening to go hot tubbing. Once again our plans had to be changed because of the rain.
Over all it was nice to hang with girlfriends.
Until next time!
Blessings to you~~

Winter in July

About a week ago, I went to a party at a new friend's home. She invited a large group of people out to enjoy the afternoon but only a handful came out for the afternoon/evening. The weather was chilly, not what was expected for a July evening.
Throughout the evening some of us played different games to keep us warm until the bonfire started. I played Bocce ball with a large group. Throwing a large ball at a small ball is an interesting experience. I came close to winning the point for my team a couple of times but in the end the other team had the better throwers.
I also tried to do cartwheels, hand stands and head stands. It has been a while. I did get up but let me tell you the next day I was very sore.
The evening ended with a nice bonfire and smores. Who could ask for anything better?
Well, until next time!
Blessings to you~~

Summer Life

Over the past couple of weeks the weather has not been as hot as some people would like it to be but for me I have enjoyed my summer. For one thing, it has been nice on the days/evenings I have needed it to be. Secondly, cool nights mean great sleeping.
Well, a couple of weeks ago a good friend of my rented a cottage up in Barker, NY. The second day she was there she invited a bunch of her friends to join her for an afternoon of food, fun, fellowship and relaxation. It was a beautiful day. The cottage was right next to Lake Ontario.
During the afternoon different games were played. Some people played a washer game, while others played Ladder golf. Later in the afternoon, a few of the kids and me went into the water. It was a bit cold. It took a little while to get Samantha out in the water. Ryan went right in and Brittany came in reluctantly. Once out in the water we all had a great time.
Dinner consisted of hamburgers, hot dogs and sausages, plus many different dishes that people brought to share. I had a plate that I proceeded to dump (accidentally of course), so I had to prepare a second one.
After dinner a I played hackey sack with Bill, Mark, Tim, Tyler & John. This time I actually did better. By the end of the evening I was extremely sore. Ugh!
Overall the day was a lot of fun. It always is when you are hanging out with friends.
Until next Time
Blessings to you!

Time with Jesus

I've just finished reading some of the blogs of a good friend. She has such a heart for the Lord that is shines through in her short blogs. I was blessed by the reminder that God is a Good God. He is a Jehovah Jireh, the God who provides. He is concerned about the little things in our life. He desires such a close intimate relationship with us that He is always gently calling our name.

The problem lies in the fact that sometimes we don't listen. We say we want to be close to Him, yet we shut our ears to hear His voice. We get side-tracked. Whether it be a good book, a talk with a friend, a good movie on TV or even doing a job for Him. We need to stop and see what is taking our attention from a Heavenly Father who loves us more than words can say.

In my own life, I've let expectations of others sidetrack me from seeing what He really wants for my life. Sometimes those unfulfilled expectations have caused tears. I do not want to put any expectations on my friends that would cause them to pull away from me. It is my desire to really be Jesus to those I come into contact. I find it challenging when the expectations get in the way. When I forget to spend time with Jesus, my life gets to focused on me. When my life is focused on me, I am miserable.

It is my hope that I truly can be more like Jesus, so that when others see me they see Him and not me. I truly want to be a reflection of His love.
Blessings to you,
Until next time~~