Precious Stones

The tiny stones in these old glass bottles are more precious by far than any rubies, diamonds, or pearls. These old glass bottles contain tiny stones of wisdom, strength, and hope. This is their story. My grandpa would gather the eggs each day from the barn, and he would be to get each one so as not to be wasteful, and it didn't matter what nook or cranny near or far, he'd find the very last egg. He was a strong willed man, and would not admit that at his age he shouldn't be climbing. As he climbed up to the barn loft he lost his footing and fell backwards out of the loft. After awhile, realizing he couldn't make it to the house, he crawled to the fence row. Every car that passed he tried to get their attention by waving. Finally about 2 hours later a car stopped. The man ran up to the house to call an ambulance. After sometime, the paramedics finally got inside the gate to him, grandpa's horse was bucking and pawing at them. In his horse mind, he was protecting my grandpa. It turned out grandpa had a badly broken hip. In his late 70's this was a dangerous break. After surgery and a long recovery, my grandpa was back on his feet. He knew he would have to exercise and take care of himself if he was ever to gain his strength back. Years later, I found shelves overstuffed with big bottles, little bottles, fat ones and skinny ones. Each bottle filled to the top with tiny stones. There was probably up to 70 bottles or more. I asked about these bottles filled with tiny pebbles. My grandpa began to explain to me how everyday he walked the edge of the creek bed, and every step or two he'd bend to pick up two or three tiny stones. He went on to explain how that was his way of exercising, strengthening his hip and the muscles that had grown weak. It may not have seemed like such a great feat, had there not been soooo many bottles filled with so many of these tiny stones. What I seen was wisdom, strength, and hope for the future. Each one of my family members have their own bottle of precious stones. When I look at mine, I see the strong loving hands of my grandpa. The heart of a man that held on to hope. And the simple wisdom, that made all the difference.

Rain Rain Go Away

I sure wish the rain would go away and some sweet Spring Sunshine would come. It's another dreary lazy day outside! Where are you Spring?

Mom's Coverlet

My mother has woven threads of love, strength, strong traditions and faithfulness that has knit our family together with ties that can never be broken. She is a strong, confident, and beautiful woman, and my best friend. She is very creative and I am sooooo proud of this coverlet that she crafted on her loom. The pattern is unbelievably gorgeous. I just can't say enough about it, and the picture really doesn't do it justice. Now, if I could just be patient enough to let her teach me.

THE SPINDLE AND THE GREAT WHEEL

I watched as the little spindle whirled and whirled, the soft cloud like wool spun into an elegant thread. Maybe to later be knit into a pair of warm socks or woolen mittens. The wooden spindle was as thin as a pencil, with a small round wheel on one end and a tiny eye hook on the end of that, a marvelous little contraption. Not a complicated little piece at all. Just kind of plain but effective, simple but skillful, small but very capable.

Next to the spindle set a great wheel. It stood ever so tall over the little spindle. It was grand. Almost princely, noble. I was waiting, very still, to see what this magnificent creation could do. Patiently I watched as the young woman spun the broad wheel with her hand. The wheel began to spin. It spun gracefully, around and around. The young woman held in her hand the same cloud like wool fiber. The same elegant thread began to flow through her fingers. I was amazed! It took every stately inch of the great wheel, to do the work of one small spindle. In this big world, we may sometimes feel as small and inappropriate as the simple wooden spindle. But no matter our stature, God can use us to move mountains. Matthew 21:21 Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. Luke 17:6 And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you.
And just like the well known story of David and Goliath, stature did not matter. 1Samuel 17:33 And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth. 17:45 Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. 17:49 And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth. 17:50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David. You see, David, small as he was, overcame the giant. With the Lord of hosts by his side, he used a stone to do what others needed a sword and elaborate battle attire to achieve.

Donations Drawing GIVEAWAY

I am Team Captain of our Relay For Life team "The Handmaiden's". My sister and I joined Relay For Life last year right after Mom passed away. It has been a very hard road and I still miss my mother sooo much. She was diagnosed with lung cancer and 5 weeks later she was gone. She was an amazing woman and my best friend. The photo's above were taken only days apart, and she passed away only a few days after these pictures were taken. My Mom and Dad still have a beautiful relationship, even though she's gone. We speak of her every day, and celebrate her life. We are accepting donations for our Relay For Life event, handmade item's for our Relay event auction, or an item donation of your choosing or monetary donations. After donating we will have a drawing and the winner will win an item or items from our Antique Store at "Ye Olde Homeplace". We greatly appreciate your help. You can reach my personal page by clicking the Relay For Life button on the left of this page or copy and paste this web address http://main.acsevents.org/goto/iloveyoumom and our team page with this web address http://main.acsevents.org/goto/sallymaepolly Please hurry!!! Relay is just around the corner! If you don't know what Relay For Life is you can read more about it on my Relay page. You can give monetary donations thru this link also, or email me for my address for item donations. Make all checks payable to the American Cancer Society. Thanks in advance for your help!!! Blessings to you all!

Spring in the Air

What a wonderful time of year. We're having a hint of Springtime. I can't wait to see and hear Spring all around. Such a time of renewal it offers us. Pray for us as we begin our fundraising for our Relay For Life event. Our team name is "The Handmaidens". We have a lot of good fundraising ideas we're throwing around. If you have any good ideas feel free to share them with me here! Thanks so much!!!

My Sweet Grandson

Meet my sweety-pie! He's 4 months old now. He's absolutely beautiful!!! He has such a personality. He's a tiny one but starting to grow now. He loves to talk to us and laughs all the time. What a gift from God our little ones are. My daughter was upset because my Mom had passed away only two weeks before we found out about the baby coming, Mom would have been thrilled. But I believe she knows. Our cousin told my daughter, "Your Mama had to go to heaven to pick out your sweet little bundle." I believe she did see this little gift before we received him. She is with God now, so she sees things thru His eyes and God said "I knew you before you were even formed in the womb." Therefore, Mom knows him too. Isn't that wonderful!