Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow

This Thanksgiving prayer by Holley Gerth resonated so with my heart, that I wanted to share it:

Lord,
Even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like day,
for darkness is as light to you. Psalm 139:12

There is no circumstance not in your keeping,
no life not in your care.
We trust not because we understand
but because we know--
that you are good always,
faithful forever,
molding, making,
turning all in our lives
into something for your use.
So this Thansgiving we praise--
for life restored from near death,
for hope that carries our hearts along,
for love that holds us all together
even as we are held in your hands.
Amen.

Holiday Packages for the Troops

I had the honor of participating in a "Packing Party" for the troops today. What a great way to spend a Saturday morning! It was sponsored by the Sacramento Blue Star Moms and held at the Veteran's Hall. Lots of volunteers turned out to take their place in the assembly line and pack a box for a soldier. It was amazing to see the huge numbers of items that had been donated.

I was able to go through and pack about 10 boxes, and in the process I was able to visit with wonderful people--mostly moms with sons over in Iraq or Afghanistan. There were quite a few people from the community packing too, just wanting to help and be supportive. By 11:45AM there were 750 boxes packed, taped, addressed, and on their way to soldiers!

Noah's Ark--Completed Before the Rain!

Since I am working on my next quilt project, I thought I'd better post a couple pictures of the finished Noah's Ark quilt. It was fun to do and turned out cute. There are lots of interesting things to discover on the quilt if you look at it closely!

Our Little Pumpkin - Sydney! And Other October Happenings

Natalie had her heart set on dressing Sydney as a pumpkin for Halloween---and what do you know? We found a pumpkin suit (for a dog) on sale at Target. Natalie was elated.... Sydney, not so much.

Since Friday (Oct 30th) was a practice day for Natalie's gymnastics team, the coach said they could dress up and have a Fun Day. Deciding what to dress up as is one thing, but choosing a costume that will accommodate gymnastics is even more challenging! Natalie and a friend decided they would come as Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber from Veggie Tales. Natalie, the taller of the two, was Larry. After dying tights green (such a lovely shade, too---will be able to wear these with ALOT of other things....NOT) and finding a green T-shirt she was set. They had a really great afternoon practicing as their alter-egos.

Here's a flying cucumber for you:




Kristin went to a birthday party as a "Go-go Girl." (Wow, kinda scary knowing I once owned and wore white patend leather boots...what can I say, it was the early 70's!)



And when the girls heard about Eric and Chelsea having a pumpkin carving contest, they cornered me and said "We have never carved a pumpkin!" So, this year, they have officially, popped the top off, gotten elbow deep in pumpkin goo, and (sticking to your basic triangles with the knife) carved their first pumpkin. A milestone for their baby books!