Thank you

to the Joes and Lillies who made this country what it is today. I pray there are many more Joes and Lillies out there today who remember and will fight for the America of this Joe and Lilly.

Planting done, weekend begun

The last of the shrubs went in. We are getting perennials on Sunday- not yet sure what bed they will go in. Until then, the planting is done and the weekend has officially begun.

Still busy working on lessons but hope to get back to posting next week. May stick to pretty things for awhile as I am hitting overload with this administration. Everyday there is something happening that is beyond belief. I have been using my FaceBook to rant. My friends are probably getting tired of it BUT I am in disbelief that there continue to be people blindly following this man.

Happy weekend!

Hypocrisy and a little digging

OH MY GOSH! This is a great example of hypocrisy! I resent this guy calling folks who speak against Obama as having had a mental breakdown and as unAmerican. I am not waiting for a call to violence nor is anyone I know. We are simply expressing outrage at the proposed changes to the country we know and love. Back to my point that I have raise all along- why, oh why was it ok to bash Bush but not ok to bash Obama. Hypocrisy I say and the vitriol is evident in the speaker's voice, not in any of the protests I have been a party to.


I have been getting my irritation out through digging.
We are putting in a bed filled with bird attracting shrubs. Will be adding perennials and others things in the spring. This was all grass so digging, adding top soil, planting and mulching has been an ongoing chore.

222 years ago today

39 brave men changed the course of our history by signing the U.S. Constitution. I am thankful for their willingness to stand proudly and do what was right. We need more brave men today.

The website for the Constitution Center in Philadelphia has some information you might be interested in, including a sample naturalization test.

Will catch up soon

I am teaching a class this semester that needs attention right now and have a few speaking engagements to get ready for. Unfortunatley it means that blogging is on a back burner right now. I will be back!

Perpetual Dependence

I had to go and find out more about Lloyd Marcus after hearing him sing at the DC tea party (previous post). I love his story! I too am convinced that giving people things is not the answer. Why do I say this? From personal experience. I have worked in shelters, with those on welfare and in childcare. His observations are so true! As hard as I tried with the best of intentions, I could make little impact on these folks and neither could others also working with these folks. In fact I watched the paid staff become like the clients in order to protect their government funded jobs! We are perpetuating welfare for generations. It is imperative that folks get out and work to earn what they have.

I remember training childcare staff in a center at a shelter. It was outfitted with equipment that was more beautiful than most of the other privately run centers in the county. It had been donated by a local retailer who was committed to better the shelter and community(and get a tax write off). Within months I watched the facility fall apart and look a mess. The idea of cleaning up after oneself and caring for equipment was foreign to this group- former shelter residents now in subsidized housing. They knew that someone else would give them more stuff when this got bad. I don't know about you but I am tired of throwing my money at people who choose not to work and perpetuating this attitude from one generation to the next.

I encourage you to listen to this man's story.

Wish I had been there!

September 11

Just the date sends a chill up my spine. I remember the feelings I had that day. I was at work when the attacks began. A co-worker was on the phone with her husband. Retired, he was at home watching the TV and saw the first plane hit. She told me and we assumed there was some really bad pilot in the air- had no idea it was a commercial airline. We alerted the others in the office and turned the radio on. We all moved to a conference room with a tv and were then told to close our office and go home as we were a government entity.

I can remember the drive home- talk about an extreme sense of nesting. I wanted everyone home where I could account for them. My husband was soon sent home as well as my sons. We had men working at our house (we were recovering from a fire!). They were soon in our family room watching tv. A knock at the door from the dry cleaner broke my focus. When we had the fire, I did not know that the clean up crew had taken all the clothes in the attic to the cleaners. We are talking hundreds of garments of mine (in sizes I will NEVER wear again). Here they were. All clean and on hangers! I did not know what to do so I had him put them on sofas, chairs, the floor, tables, everywhere! My husband ran to Walmart for clothing racks. The store was deserted. (I later found homes for all the clothing.)

I remember going to church that night as we all gathered in prayer. The America I knew and loved had suddenly changed. We went to a camping show that weekend and I remember feeling so dead inside. Nothing was exciting. I felt guilty for even thinking about something as frivolous as camping. I wanted to do something but did not know what. I had lived in NJ, 20 minutes from NYC, for many years. My friends there told me about people they knew who were lost in the towers or who were impacted directly. It was just all surreal.

Then the anger hit. My anger toward those terrorists, those animals, is still there. I simply cannot understand a culture that does not value life. I am surprised by how many Americans forget September 11, 2001. Sure, they know what happened that day and yet they have not changed. Tomorrow, September 12, I will gather in my town with those who do not forget what America used to be like. I pray that as a nation we never face another day like September 11. Yet I fear we will. Defense is on the back burner and we are forgetting who our enemies are.

Today I will remember those families who are missing a loved one who was lost that day. I will remember a country who pulled together and focused on the common good. A country that stood proud and saluted our flag with honor. I pray that we might find that passion for America again.

Dollar Tree

I just had to pull into the local Dollar Tree today after seeing the post at Joys of Home. I saw the goodies posted there and found many other neat things. I came home with the rosey ones pictured here. And yes Mom, I thought of you the entire time!!!

I am keeping my eye on this guy!

Nesting

The weather hasn't even turned colder and I am feeling that fall nesting urge.I made a few new signs and a basket for the front door and steps.


It was rather sad to cut down the sunflowers. Some of those stalks were pretty big! I got lots of big seed heads and have them placed around the yard at the feeders for the birds to enjoy. It seems like yesterday that I planted those seeds! A few small sunflowers are still hanging on. The hummingbirds are also hanging on! We are still filling all of the feeders as they are being visited all day long. I only count 4 at a time now but they are busy little things. I think they are filling up for their long trek south. We planted mums and since I could find no real pumpkins yet, put out some faux pumpkins.


The sink in this house was not my favorite. This is what it looked like when we first visited the house in December. (someday I will show the whole kitchen)
BEFORE - standard stainless sink

I was missing my sink that we had installed a few years back in our old house. Can you believe we saw it at Lowes for $100 off?? We did, and here it is NOW!

Our deck staining has been an ongoing project interrupted but we are determined to finish it today. I will post pictures when it is done. You can see some more changes folks are doing in and around their homes at Metamorphosis Monday! You can also see lots of before and after projects at Sanctuary Arts!

An inspiration

Joni Eareckson Tada has been an inspiration to me since I was a teen. I have read her books, enjoyed her music and appreciated her art. Her faith, despite her paralysis, has served as a reminder to me when I forget how blessed I am. I found these clips on YouTube that I thought I would share. If you have not heard of Joni, watch this interview with Larry King.