24 HOURS WITH NO CONSEQUENCES...

Ok, here's the scenario...If you could do anything for a 24 hour period and there would be no consequences what would it be....Now, I 've given this a lot of thought lately and here's what I'd do...I'd wake up early so I wouldn't waste one minute...I'd pull on my old blue jeans, throw on my sneakers and burn my bra---hey, no consequences right??? forget about it!!!!.Now of course I would have to include all those around me in this as well. I mean, I am not a selfish person....I would send Jim on an all expenses paid hunting trip to Colorado or Alaska on his private plane that I would have purchased..he, of course could take Steve, Kim's husband with him. Now, for you Kim, I would walk into Steve's work and quit his job for him----don't panic, Kim, at least for 24 hours, there are no consequences. don't wurrryyyyy about it!~OH, and I'd buy you that cute little house you saw in the city just for securtiy purposes..haha...In 24 hours, I'd have my mobile home, please don't gasp here, Connie, moved to your front yard right next to your pond at Casa de Belmont..Don't worry its not tacky and its not tin...you could say its the maids quarters.hahaha except a queen lives there......Hey, look at the bright side of it, I'd be right there...Ahh, still more time....I'd buy a home for Steve and Amy and hey, why not a few kids as well...I'm WAITING--- to be a grandma....Now here's the good part, I'd go to one of those hypnotist so i could loose weight..I wouldn't have to worry about what they'd get "out of me" cuz there are no consequences,,,who cares right??????? I would eat ice cream, brownies and not fudge all day long, cuz , say it with me----'THERE'S NO CONSEQUENCES'.....really, it couldn't get much better...well, it could,, i'd run to Hobby Lobby and tie about 10 carts together and throw in all sorts of scrapbook and stamping stuff and I'd fill those carts to the brim...all because i could...ahhhhhhhhhhh, oh no, its almost midnight, i'm about to turn back into the queen and my mobile home is back in Harlingen, my stomache really hurts and I'm bloated.ughhh....what??? you mean i had to come back?????

PURGING.....

Wow, who would know how much 2 people can accumulate over the years...I have been purging the drawers, closets and tossing just about anything thats not nailed or glued down lately...Whereas I love decorating and all my country and primitive "stuff" I am liking the dusting a lot less these days...Now, I hate to admit this....In my hall, sits, well stacked are thin boxes of laminate flooring I got over 2 years ago...yes, 2 years ago..they are out of the way, thats why I've been able to live with them there that long....dirtball, go ahead and say it...i have!!!! Anyway, the goal is to get the stuff down before November1...why that shouldn't be a problem should it??? well, in order to do this we have to rearrange the furniture..Jim bought me a beautiful oak shrunk for my 23 birthday in Belgium years ago, notice I said I was 23, and it is going to house our tv in our bedroom. So we are rearranging the house....in between all of this, I have decided I want to redo the kitchen...that all started with a piece of antique ceiling tin connie gave me...Jim says , thanks Connie....(between you and me, he didn't say it with the niceness he normally does, but you are still getting "the bag" anyway!!!,,a wink goes here)haha!!! So back to the purging...Oh my flying spaghetti monsters...I have filled up another 4 bags tonight..not the white ones that go in the kitchen, those big, black monster ones for yardwork (thats another blog!!!) Where does this junk come from???? Well, I have to admit we are all collectors here, but bless his heart, Jim feels its his duty as an American to pick up every pamphlet, magazine and newspaper that has "free" on it..I won't even tell you what he does with his highlighter with these things....hahaha!!!! Now I am reclaiming part of the walk in closet in our bathroom...Jim has slowly, but surely moved me out of there???? What's with that??? Has he overlooked my tiara at some point??? It was a slow process but I did notice..I just let him hang "my things" in the closet in my "crop room" though most is fold up stuff...thank you Jim for letting me still have my drawers...anyway, my goal is to be through every closet but that one by Friday..thats how I will spend my day off...all that military junk and his "collections" are coming out....I have plans...and while I am at it, I am going to help him say good-bye to a few of his things he has had a hard time letting go of....Now, what's up with size 34 pants, sorry, Jim but its been a while since you've seen that size!!!!Those are gone..Shoes, come on, some of these went out in the 80's, platforms, please!!!..just cuz you bought them in Europe, doesn't make them a collectable or heirloom.....Knives, one of Jim's collections...we have every size knife you can imagine from the smallest of pocket knives to the full blown swords(he thinks I didn't notice that he snuck a few in with my Delft pieces in the curio, I did, they're coming out)..he's always wanted to own his own business so he's getting to----he's going to be learning ebay...they're outta here....now poor Jim you say...don't feel sorry for Jim, he's got these things in every drawer , nook and cranny in this house....Now i have been going through my things also, but remember, as I tell him, my things are what make our house a home, plain and simple....no discussion!!!! right???? There was a time I'd say its the knives or me, but at this point i'm not sure I would win out, so I won't give that ultimatum, I'll just do it all myself....hahaha..oh well, so the purge continues.....

ALL FOR THE CAUSE OF CHRIST

The Amish---they've always intrigued me. Jim took me on a trip to Amish country a couple of years ago before he left for Iraq. I was in awe at how they lived their lives. Life was simple yet hard (or at least to the modern American). Everything was black and white, and never has there been more evidence of this than the past week. Black and white, not gray, clearly black and white. The world was watching. Many were interested in the story of the five little girls that had been murdered in their one room shoolhouse by a neighbor. The news media was scurring around trying to get the story and to give us a clear picture into the Amish world. A peculiar world to many. They were living their lives in front of America clearly walking what they know to be true. This queit community did more for the cause of Christ in a few short days than many of us do in a lifetime. They lived out their beliefs in front of all of us. They lived out Corinthians 4 -----"Love is patient, Love is kind,It does not envy, it does not boast,It is not proud, It is not rude,It is not self-seeking,It is not easily angered,It keeps no record of wrongs.Love does not delight in evil,but rejoices with the truth.Love always protects, always trusts,always hopes, always perseveres.Love bears all things, believes all things,hopes all things, endures all things.Love never ends. LOVE NEAR FAILS.... This community showed the world what only we can do if we have Christ in our lives---we can forgive the unforgivable. This week America saw the face of God. They have clearly "got it"--none of what we do on earth is about us---it truly is all about Him...I know for myself that I am challenged by them to represent my God just little better, to be just a little more forgiving, and to show his love just a little more. If we all did this, wow, what a world we'd have!!!

THANK YOU, ANDI....

Now don't let her size fool you...she's about 38 inches tall and weighs in somewhere around 30 lbs....She's kinda a strawberry blonde and has a spark in her eyes that is very noticable!!!! In fact, let's just say its in both eyes!!! Who is this miniaure person???...Andi , of course...Now, I've heard about her (ok, braggings about her , is more like it!!!) for almost 2 years plus the nine months her mom carried her, from her "GRANDMA" Connie, and everything she's ever said about her is true and so much more...Look out world, you are going to know who Andi is..She will make her mark, trust me...she won't be living in our world, she'll be running it!!! She won't be just playing, she will be looking for adventure...Andi won't ever be driven anywhere, she'll be doing the driving, even if the wheels not attached to her hands and even at the very young age of two...She has her Moms beauty, her personality is definitely chipped off our Daddy, her need to constantly be moving around comes from you, Grandma Connie (its true!!) and I predict she'll be her Grandpa Randy's sidekick in about 1 year...yes, I can see it coming...I've seen the pictures and I''ve spent 6 or 7 hours with her, and she'll be driving Randy around in the mule on the family property.She won't be talking to those cute trees with faces at the casa, she'll be climbing them..She'll be herding the cows around, and probably leading her little cousin Adah on long walks at Casa de Belmont..They will get lost occassionally, but she'll never let anyone know she's sweating out anything..she'll be the one to inherit her grandpa's love of the outdoors, and dare i say she'll be his hunting buddy before your 1st grandson has a chance..(sorry Con, I call it like I see it!!!hahaha)..Randy, get ready, I promise, you'll be buying her, her first bebe gun in 3 years.....she's adorable, she's spunky (I like spunky), she's dainty with a tad of enough tomboyish in her to just make her cute, she's adventurous, and above all she's got that independence that will open up many doors for her.....Thank you Andi, for letting me spend your 2nd birthday with you...Connie's right, there can be nothing that matches being a grandparent...Now I know why your Grandma Connie and Grandpa Randy love you so much, they can't help it, even i fell under your spell.....You go girl!!!!!!

WELCOME HOME, JIM.....

I turned the corner into the arrival area of the airport and the first thing I see is a recognizable figure (no pun intended here). I'd recognize him anywhere!!!! It's been 29 years and I still get butterflies in my stomach when I see my Jim, especially after he's been gone awhile...a week is good ( just enough time to make me remember why i married him in the first place), anything more is way too long (sort of like, i realize how spoiled he's made he, and i love it, thank you very much!!!)...Jim's been away doing 2 weeks military duty and i hope this is it for awhile, but I doubt it...I'll enjoy him while I've got him....He came home and realized just how much he is needed ( I like to make him feel good you know)...the trash needed to be taken out, groceries needed to be bought(hey, he's the one who wants to go, don't look at me that way!!!), the water cooler was empty (uhh, HELLLOOOO,its too heavy for me and i'm a queen!!), and he realized that my talking to myself was not mentally healthy!!!!hahaha!!!!! After a quick how was your trip, how was life going here, he took me to lunch and a quick trip to Michaels...ahhh, an enabler to both my weaknesses...Now maybe thats part of the reason he still gives me butterflies!!!! Bad news for me was I had to go to work, good news for him---he got to go home and get prepared for the reintroduction of life at home...gotta love it!!!!!