Joy

Thankful thought of the day - Today I am thankful for Joy

There was a song we used to sing in VBS when I was a little girl. It went:

I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart. Where? Down in my heart.

How many times do we let life get in the way and steal our joy? We should always be filled with joy no matter what we are going through. We have so many things in our life that bring us joy and we shouldn't ever let anything take our joy away. What are some of the things that bring me joy?

My husbands smile and the way his eyes light up when I walk in the room.

The laughter of my grandchildren.

Listening to my grandchildren having conversations among themselves.

Talking with my children.

Holidays.

Saturday morning calls with Mom to catch up on our week.

Visiting with my family.

Having out of town guests.

Singing in the choir.

Working in Children's Church

Sermons.

Baking.

Shopping.

Sunday drives on beautiful spring days.

Setting in the sun at the beach.

Reading.

Bubble baths.

Pizza with a side order of M & M's.

A Milky Way

A tall glass of Pepsi loaded with ice.

A really good hot dog.

Planting flowers and watching them grow.

The smell of jasmine and gardenia.

Sunrises and sunsets.

My life.

Thankful thought of the day - Today I'm thankful for traditions.

In my house, we have many family traditions for the holidays. Certain decor that each family has used over the years; certain foods that are a "must" for snacking.

I am so thankful for traditions. For it is traditions that bond families together and make the holiday so special. Here are just a few of the traditions we have had over the years.

My Mamaw Eden, my mom and myself always put out our poinsettias as the first decoration of the Christmas season. When I first got married and Mamaw was still alive, there was always a race to see who got theirs out first. We never put them out until we were ready to decorate completely and we never put them out until after Thanksgiving. I never won. Mom or Mamaw always beat me to it. Over the years, we have used the fake plastic ones from the 5 & 10 stores. We graduated to silk ones where those became the rave. We even put out real ones on occasion. But to us, Christmas was not here until the poinsettias were in the living room.

I haven't done one of these in years, but I'm going to try to get one made this year. We would get together and Dad would drill our holes and we would decorate our yule logs. We would put felt on the bottom to protect the furniture. We each decorated ours to our own taste, using greenery, ribbons and various Christmas floral picks.

This is one of my traditions. Somewhere in my house, I have to have pine cones. It's not Christmas without some decoration using pine cones. I like to use real ones. Sometimes I paint the tips with glue and dip them in glitter. Sometimes I spray paint them and sometimes I just leave them plain. I usually place them in some type of dish or bowl. Sometime I weave ribbon through the bowl and sometimes I place pine boughs in with them. But either way, I have to do pine cones at Christmas. I'm in search of some this year. We do not have pine trees so I have to call on friends and family to see if I can get some.

It's just not Christmas without my tree being a mish-mash of memories. The first ornaments that go on our tree are the old glass ornaments that belonged to hubby's Granny Keefer. When she passed away, his grandfather gave them to us and they have decorated our tree ever since. They have their own special box and are each wrapped in soft cotton to prevent breakage. They are placed on with great care and high enough that the grandbabies can't reach.

Papaw is a train buff. He has always been fascinated with them and has passed his infatuation down to the grandchildren. They all love trains and love when he lets them hold some of his old trains. About 8 years ago, we purchased this Hallmark snow globe. You wind it up to play a Christmas Song and the trains moves around the track. The grandkids are spell bound. It's one of those special moments when he holds the globe and winds it for the first time each Christmas. They all gather around him and stand in awe as the train moves around. 

I don't have this style anymore, but growing up, we used to always decorate our windows with these electric candles. Some years the bulbs were green, sometimes red, and sometimes blue. Over the years, I changed to those you just twist on that are battery powered. But I still love the tradition of a candle in the window.

Another family tradition is a Christmas tablecloth. I scour the stores every year looking for the perfect one to fit the mood of my decorations that year. Some years, I'm in to the Santa theme and go with a red style tablecloth. Some years I use all my snowmen stuff and go back to a blue with snowflakes tablecloth. Whatever the mood, me and Mom always have a Christmas tablecloth for the holidays.

Some of my favorite family traditions are the sweets. We have a wonderful recipe for peanut butter balls passed down from Mamaw Eden. Mamaw and Mom would make them every year and they always gave us a tin with some in it. Now that Mamaw's gone, we don't get them as much. One year I decided to make them myself. Oh my gosh! Nobody ever told me how long it took or how MANY it makes. 

Mom has the great recipe for chocolate candy. I call it candy not fudge, because it sets up hard and doesn't have to be refrigerated. One of  my greatest achievements was when I actually made it and it turned out right. It is one of those "beat it until it almost sets up". I always got too impatient and ended up with a chocolaty syrupy sugary concoction that was not edible. But I learned to be patient and now I can make it just fine. This is my all time favorite candy.

That's just some of my favorite family traditions. I'm sure your family has some of its own. To my blogging friends, I would love to see what some of your traditions are. I think it is nice to learn the different things that bring a smile to our faces.

Good Morning Monday

Thankful thought of the day - I actually have two thankful thoughts for today. I did not post one yesterday since I did my memorial to Marshall. So I'll post both today. Yesterday, I was thankful for Sundays; thankful that God provided us with a day to rest and relax and that He even instructed us to do that. Today, I am thankful for peace.

As many of you know, my favorite bible verse is Psalm 46:10 - Be still and know that I am God....

When I saw this quote above, it just strengthened my belief in the importance of this verse. He is our calm in the midst of a storm. He whispers sweet peace to my soul. When things go wrong around us and we feel those little "panic attacks" rising within, if we will just let Him take control, things will be much more peaceful.

There are times in my life where I start getting rattled and let the little things build up to the point where I just feel frazzled. It's at those times, when I take a deep breath, close my eyes, look toward the Father and gently whisper "Help." It is at those times, in the midst of the storms when I most feel His hand guiding me and His arms protecting me as He guides me to shore. He doesn't always make the storms disappear, but He always allows me to find peace in them until things look up. The McKamey's sing a song that says it all......Sometimes He calms the storms and sometimes He calms me.

May you all have a peaceful Monday.

We are Marshall

At 7:35 pm on November 14, 1970, an aircraft crashed into a hill just short of the Tri-State Airport, killing all 75 people on board. The plane was carrying 37 members of the Marshall University Thundering Herd football squad, eight members of the coaching staff, 25 boosters, four flight crew members, and one employee of the charter company. The team was returning home after a 17–14 loss against the East Carolina Pirates in Greenville, North Carolina. At the time, Marshall's athletic teams rarely traveled by plane, with most away games within easy driving distance of the campus. The team had originally planned to cancel the flight, but changed plans and chartered the Southern Airways DC-9.

Many things touch our lives in many ways over the years. But I will never forget a dark November night 40 years ago today. One of our cousins was spending the night like they usually did. We were setting in the floor playing bingo and daddy was watching TV. They interrupted the normally scheduled programming to tell that a plane had crashed at the Tri-State Airport carrying  the team, coaches and boosters of the 1970 Thundering Herd football team, killing everyone on board.

The Tri-State Airport was nestled snugly in the hills of Kenova. No one liked to fly in there because of the surrounding hills and difficult landing strip. The television showed horrific photos of fire being fought as it licked the trees and hillside surrounding the wreckage.

The area was in a state of shock. Marshall fans love their football. To lose the entire team including the coaches, was a monumental devastation. The loss of so many young lives was just to hard to understand.

Some wanted to shut down the football program completely. Some wanted to continue on in support of the memory of those who died.

Over the years, the football program grew and Marshall University once again became the unstoppable Thundering Herd. Documentaries have been done. Movies have been made. Many articles and blogs have been written. But when it all is said and done, 75 people lost their lives that day and a town was changed.

I had the privilege this past spring to visit Huntington. I drove down through campus and noted the changes made over the years. The games are no longer played at the old Huntington East High School field. Memorials stand as a reminder to those who have gone on before.

I went out to the cemetery to pay my respects to those souls that were lost that day. It was an emotional time, bringing back many memories from that night all those years ago. As I stood there looking at their gravesides and reading their names, it made me realize WE ARE MARSHALL and we always will be.

Many loved ones still remember that tragic night and many still relive it every November. The movie We ARE Marshall is not just another football movie. It is about a town and how it suffered a tremendous lost. It is about the lives that were changed forever that day. It is about a town torn apart that rebuilds to face a new era after experiencing a major devastation. It's not about football. It's about spirit and strength and community.

Today, my blog pays homage to those who lost their lives 40 years ago. May you each rest in peace.

The Christmas Tree Saga

I love Christmas trees. I have always liked the ones that our bigger than life. The ones that are so big you can't wrap your arms around them. I decorate the old fashion way. I have a mish-mash of ornaments - homemade, family heirlooms, glass balls, and Walmart specials. I love my colored flashing lights and my silver tinsel. And when all is said and done, it's not a Christmas tree until I add Candy Canes and cover it with those old-timey icicles.

It may not be politically correct to cover with a hodge podge of decorations.  So many trees nowadays are "themed" trees or color co-ordinated to match the decor of the room they grace. But not mine. My tree is the way we like it. It's the way we had trees when we were growing up and it's not Christmas without our traditional tree.

Welllll, this year, I decided I was going to break with tradition. I was going to downsize the tree. I was going to part with my 7 1/2' Prelit Matha Stewart and go to a small 6' Slimline tree. I posted my old tree for sale. I picked out the new one I want and picked out the lights that I'll use on it. I have everything all planned. It was going to be awesome having such a smaller tree to decorate. It would cut my tree trimming time in half. It wouldn't take up so much room in the living room. It was a great idea and I was very excited about it.......until yesterday.

I was reminiscing about Christmas's past; about the pleasure on the kids faces when they would get up and see the presents surrounding the tree. In my mind, I can see the pictures I take every year of the grandchildren gathering around the tree. I can see hubby and I reclined on the couch with the lights from the tree being the only lights in the room as we admired our Christmas tree in all her majesty.

Then it hit me. How can I change tradition? How I can break out of the mold of something that is a part of my entire being? I could picture the kids coming over for our family gathering. I could picture them gazing in shock at the the newly downsized tree. I could hear their shocked "MOM! What did you do to your tree?" and "But you ALWAYS have a big tree."

And then I knew. My big trees at Christmas are special to me. They hold a world of memories. I cannot imagine Christmas with a downsized tree. So after all my planning and excitement over changing trees, I'm not going to. I'm going to keep my Christmas the way I like Christmas and not make the change.

Feeding America

Thankful thought for the day - Today I am thankful for the food God provides for my table. Thankful for the fact that we have plenty to eat and many item to choose from.

One of my favorite charities is Feeding America. They offer many programs that you can participate in to help feed America. Check out their site http://feedingamerica.org/take-action.aspx and thank God for what he has given you by passing blessings on to those less fortunate.

Giveaway

Thankful thought of the day - Today I am thankful for friends.

.... We are common folk. We sit in the bleachers, eat at diners, change diapers and wear our favorite team's ball cap. Fans don't wave when we pass. Servants don't scurry when we come home. Chauffeurs don't drive our cars; butlers don't open our doors or draw our baths. Doormen don't greet us, and security doesn't protect us. We are regular folks. And we wonder: Does God use people like us? -- Max Lucado


Max Lucado believes we are all made to make a difference. This is a wonderful book about the common folk. The hillbillies and simple folks. The net casters and tax collectors. It is a story that is so inspiring. We are given a choice...an opportunity to make a big difference during a difficult time. It is an encouragement for us all to rock the world with hope.


I will be giving this hardback edition away. The drawing will be held one week from today on Friday, November 19th. To enter for the giveaway, simply follow any or all of the steps below. You will get one entry for each of the following you choose. Up to three entries per person.

1. If you are already a follower of my blog, you can simply leave a comment for one entry or if you are not a follower, sign up to become one and leave a comment.

2. If you are already one of my faithful followers and you have your own blog, you can get an additional entry by placing this link http://mamawsplace4.blogspot.com/2010/11/giveaway.html  
for others to see on your blog and leave me a comment that you have.

3. Send me an email to mamawsplace@gmail.com to be entered in the giveaway.

I will post the winner by 8:00 AM EST on Friday, November 19th. Cut off for entries will be at midnight on November 18th.