Happy Thanksgiving from Us!

This Thanksgiving Poem was written in the forty's by Marian Douglas

A GOOD THANKSGIVING

Said Old Gentleman Gay, "On a Thanksgiving Day
If you want a good time, then give something away."

So he sent a fat turkey to Shoemaker Price
And the shoemaker said, "What a big bird" How nice!
And, since such a good dinner's before me, I ought
To give poor Widow Lee the small chicken I bought."

"This fine chicken, oh see?" said the pleased Widow Lee,
"And the kindness that sent it, how precious to me?
I would like to make someone happy as I--
I'll give Washerwoman Biddy my big pumpkin pie."

"And oh sure!" Biddy said. "Tis the queen of all pies!
Just to look at its yellow face gladdens my eyes!
Now it's my turn, I think; and a sweet ginger cake
For the motherless Finnigan children I'll bake."

"A sweet cake all our own! Tis too good to be true!"
Said the Finnigan children, Rose, Denny and Hugh;
"It smells sweet of spice and we'll carry a slice
To poor little lame Jake, who has nothing that's nice."

"Oh what a bootiful, bootiful, bootiful cake!
And so such a big slice! I will save all the crumbs
And will give 'em to each little sparrow that comes!"
And the sparrows they twittered, as if they would say:

Like Old Gentleman Gay, "On Thanksgiving Day,
If you want a good time, then give something away!

Abby-babs turns 7 !!

Yesterday was Abby's 7th birthday!!! She wanted more than anything to have Joel and I all to herself for a little shoppin'. So Mom and Dad watched the other 4 kiddos and we left for parts unknown to Abbs. She knew she had a surprise waiting for her, she just didn't know where we were goin' and to see her squirm with glee in the van with anticipation made me want to drive in circles just to enjoy that a wee bit longer. We went after dinner and just as we were cleaning up from dinner she hugged my neck and whispered in my ear, "Mom, thanks for having me." I just squeezed her and wished I could record that sweet comment to play back to myself on long days.


So we went to the mall and let her go to Build-A-Bear and pick out an animal to stuff, fluff and dress. The people waiting behind me were eating up the way we were talking to Abby and taking pictures, and there is just something inside me that makes me have to tell other people, when I am out with only one kiddo, that I have 4 more children at home. Weird I know, okay so maybe I like the OOO's and WOW's alright. Abb picked out a bunny and while she was at the computer filling in the information for "Emaly's" birth certificate I took off my earings and put them in the ears of this bunny. Once we left the store we told Abbs to check Emaly over and see if she noticed anything different. She noticed in like a milisecond...totally my daughter, and guessed immediately that we were going to allow her to get her ears pierced. So to Claire's we went!


Once we got Abbs in the chair she immediately became a nervous wreck and had to go to the bathroom...again MY daughter all the way... but we made her wait and watched as she struggled between being afraid and yet wanting to get earings so badly. It. Was. Cute.


It was a good time out with just Abbs. She is precious to me and I wouldn't trade my tree-climbin', Math dislikin', deep-thinkin' sweetie for anything in this world. Happy Birthday Abby!!!

A Labor of Love

A great, big, wonderful thanks to all those dorm girls who helped me with a small "payback" to our Dorm Mom whom is battling cancer at present. Much love, prayers and tears have been put into this scrapbook, and letters, cards and pictures have come from across the US and beyond. Some from Pennsylvania, Iowa, Mexico, Mongolia, and even Russia....... all to express their appreciation for someone "investing" their life in them.





Galatians 6:10 says, "As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith." and Romans 15: 1&2 tell us, "We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification." I don't think you could ever be too thankful, to anyone, for anything, nor do I think you should underestimate what the Lord can do in your own heart, when you seek to be an encouragement to someone in need. Thank you, old friends, for reaching beyond your own comfort zone to show appreciation to someone who needs to hear it at this moment.

Life's Checklist

Things to do:

1. Hold a live lobster.......


Ummm...... CHECK!

2. Get a good pic with my fwend of all fwends Kristyn.



CHECK CHECK! (Aww....love ya!)

Interesting Thought

I came across this article in today's news and thought that I would share it. I believe it helps to remind us that,

1. God has everything under control.
2. Mankind brings alot of heartache upon himself.
3. The Lords return is imminent.
   
4. "Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people."

Take a read and let us know what you think.

Report: U.S. Dominance and Influence Predicted to Fade

Alarming government report predicts environmental catastrophe, threat of nuclear war and the decline of America as the dominant global power by 2025.

FOXNews.com

Friday, November 21, 2008

The next two decades will see a world living with the daily threat of nuclear war, environmental catastrophe and the decline of America as the dominant global power, according to a frighteningly bleak assessment by the U.S. intelligence community.

"The world of the near future will be subject to an increased likelihood of conflict over resources, including food and water, and will be haunted by the persistence of rogue states and terrorist groups with greater access to nuclear weapons," said the report by the National Intelligence Council.

The analysts said that the report had been prepared in time for Barack Obama's entry into the Oval office on January 20, where he will be faced with some of the greatest challenges of any newly-elected president.

"The likelihood that nuclear weapons will be used will increase with expanded access to technology and a widening range of options for limited strikes," the 121-page assessment said.

Click here to read the report in full

The analysts draw attention to an already escalating nuclear arms race in the Middle East and anticipate that a growing number of rogue states will be prepared to share their destructive technology with terror groups.

"Over the next 15-20 years reactions to the decisions Iran makes about its nuclear program could cause a number of regional states to intensify these efforts and consider actively pursuing nuclear weapons," the report Global Trends 2025 said. "This will add a new and more dangerous dimension to what is likely to be increasing competition for influence within the region," it said.

The spread of nuclear capabilities will raise questions about the ability of weak states to safeguard them, it added. "If the number of nuclear-capable states increases, so will the number of countries potentially willing to provide nuclear assistance to other countries or to terrorists."

The report, a year in the making, said that global warming will aggravate the scarcity of water, food and energy resources. Citing a British study, it said that climate change could force up to 200 million people to migrate to more temperate zones. "Widening gaps in birth rates and wealth-to-poverty ratios, and the impact of climate change, could further exacerbate tensions," it said.

The report says the warming earth will extend Russia and Canada's growing season and ease their access to northern oil fields, strengthening their economies. But Russia's potential emergence as a world power may be clouded by lagging investment in its energy sector, persistent crime and government corruption, the report says.

"The international system will be almost unrecognizable by 2025, owing to the rise of emerging powers, a globalizing economy, a transfer of wealth from West to East, and the growing influence of non-state actors. Although the United States is likely to remain the single most powerful actor, the United States' relative strength -- even in the military realm -- will decline and US leverage will become more strained."

Global power will be multipolar with the rise of India and China, and the Korean peninsula will be unified in some form. Turning to the current financial situation, the analysts say that the financial crisis on Wall Street is the beginning of a global economic rebalancing.

The U.S. dollar's role as the major world currency will weaken to the point where it becomes a "first among equals."

"Strategic rivalries are most likely to revolve around trade, investments and technological innovation, but we cannot rule out a 19th-century-like scenario of arms races, territorial expansion and military rivalries." The report, based on a global survey of experts and trends, was more pessimistic about America's global status than previous outlooks prepared every four years. It said that outcomes will depend in part on the actions of political leaders. "The next 20 years of transition to a new system are fraught with risks," it said.

The analysts also give warning that the kind of organized crime plaguing Russia could eventually take over the government of an Eastern or Central European country, and that countries in Africa and South Asia may find themselves ungoverned, as states wither away under pressure from security threats and diminishing resources..

The intelligence community expects that terrorism would survive until 2025, but in slightly different form, suggesting that Al Qaeda's "terrorist wave" might be breaking up. "Al Qaeda's inability to attract broad-based support might cause it to decay sooner than people think," it said.

On a positive note it added that an alternative to oil might be in place by 2025.

Ode To Hubby

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

by Robert Frost


Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;

He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near

Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.

The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind a downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.

But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Isaac and Abb's are memorizing this poem just like their Dad did when he was young, and there is just something sweet about that. Just a reminder to stop and watch the fresh first snowfall in the midst of your busy day.

A MUST-READ

Please take a moment to visit a favorite site of mine today. The site is, www.audreycaroline.blogspot.com. Scroll to May 23rd and take a good long peek at the entry entitled, "The Past and The Pitcher." Make sure you mute the CCM and also take a few kleenex with you too.

7 things most people do not know about me.......

I was tagged in a friend's blog to write 7 things people do not know about me so here I am. Funny thing is, the more I thought about this post, the more I realized that the reason people do not know things about me is probably because I purposely do NOT tell them. AND I am probably not telling them for a good reason. Another funny thing is that the more you know me...the more you know that I am an open book, cry with everyone, laugh with everyone, tell everyone what I am struggling with, (Well those patient enough to listen that is..) and so really I do not have too many "undisclosed details" about myself. So read on and just pretend like you never knew k?


1. My favorite color is red. (Cranberry to be exact.)

2. I named two of my children off of Sarah Plain and Tall.

3. I have seriously thought of legally changing my middle name. (Mostly when I was in grade school.)

4. I come across much better on paper than in person, and I look better too!

5. I have more fond memories stored in my memory, that I pull from on a weekly basis, than the average person. And these memories are shared with a select few that I am permanently attached to because they have gone thru these things with me, and when I am with them we can just be together and enjoy ourselves because we have so much "history" together. We can begin talking about a memory and just end mid-sentence knowing that we are both re-living the memory in our minds. And two of these people are Tam and Patty.

6. I would like to have some published work before I die.

7. My favorite Bible Story is Jairus' meeting with the Lord and his daughter's healing.


Well there ya go.... somehow it seems to me that knowing more is really more like knowing less??? (smile)

Family Photo Essay

My College Sweetheart,

My dirty-face Anna-banana,

My mischievous Nazy,

My Abby-babs,

My Da-bed,

My soon-to-be New Brother-in-law Chris and his sweetie Diana,

My MIL-and-FIL,

My Preacher.

Remains of the Day

Mom tucking Isaac in with those wonderful warm Hospital blankets. The nurse gave Isaac a stuffed dog, which he affectionately named, "Fluffy."
Bless his heart, now who smiles for a picture right after getting his IV in????
The beginning of the "Amelia Bedelia Marathon.." (And sporting the duck slippers!)

One sore, brave boy headin' home!