A Thankful Heart

My heart is swelling with love!  Thank you to all the family who made this past weekend so special, you all showed me love by creating a wonderful celebration of my 50 years here on earth.  From the Palm Springs girls getaway to the Italian themed party and get together of family and friends, it was so much fun and greatly appreciated!

To my all my sistas, step sista, goddaughter, sister law, daughter law, daughter, mom and step mom - you guys really made PS fun; just hanging out with you all was wonderful.  And, from all the yummy food, games, to the wine, drinks and piano bar, thanks so much.

A special thanks to Robbie and Joe for putting up their house once again for a BUNCH of people to gather and have a good time, you certainly showed your serving heart!  The food was amazing, the fire and cigar bar were so cool, as was the tiramisu, coffee and biscotti bar!  You guys really pulled together so much of the things I love to do - how thoughtful you all are!  


Kayla Lynn, I am so glad that you flew in (you rock star) to celebrate with me!  And I am glad we got to share the eve with the limo and piano bar!

And, to Otto, the love of my life who knows me so well - I wish you were feeling better, but thank you so much for all you did to make this weekend so special for me!  And to Leanna and Jared and the grandkids - you guys are so awesome, just seeing you this weekend makes me miss you guys all the more!

To mom and dad I appreciate you  and the examples that you set for me as a child, how to have fun and enjoy life, you are why I am who I am!

J and Corynn, you are amazing - you two really pulled it off and you know how to have a good time and share it!

Scot, Tree, Tina, Tony and Paula thanks for being there and celebrating with me too - it is amazing  how our family has grown and evolved over the years and I feel that as we get older we have become so much closer and I am looking forward to celebrating you as you all reach milestones like this in the future!

It was so good to see my cousins and great friends who've all been a very special part of my life and who have shared in some awesome memories too, this is just icing on the cake!


As our family continues to grow and change, I know that it will be a challenge to get us all together and to spend meaningful quality time with everyone!  So, I am so grateful that we were all able to do it this last weekend.  I am sorry I didn't get to spend as much time visiting and catching up with all of you, but just know that I felt so much love from all of you in spite of that.


No matter how far apart we are though, I need to remember to thank God for you every day and cherish these times that we do have together!  Thank you all so much!

Love ~~ The Way The Truth and The Life

Love is in the air!  Otto asked me last week what I wanted to do for Valentine's Day this year, and after thinking about it for, oh maybe 2 seconds I told him I wanted to go camping and take the boat out.  Two things I LOVE to do with the man I LOVE. 

Okay, so today on my way to work I heard this new song by Newworldson on klove (positive and encouraging music) and the first words are... "You say love is just a word, just four letters in a row" and then later in the song.... "But if love became a man, if the word had flesh and bone. Would you recognize His face, if He came to bring you home."

Before I go on, some of you may already know this, but I am a big fan of music.  It is an inspiration and a coping mechanism that I have been able to use throughout my life.  I really get into the music and listen to the lyrics, especially if they are about something I may be struggling with or need direction, and it helps me get through some tough times.

Now, back to Otto's valentine question.  If you notice in my response to him I used the word love twice, once to describe something I take pleasure in, camping and boating, and second to describe an affection for my husband. 
But this song talks about a different kind of love, one that is 'flesh and bone'.  An actual being that is love, and that love being hope and a lifeline.  God sent His only son to be love to the world.  And folks, a lot of the time we miss this love.  We forget that we can reach out to this love at any time or place, and that the love that Jesus has for us is available 24/7 whenever we need it! 

Just talking about it reminds me of another song "looking for love in all the wrong places", haven't we all done that?  Yep, guilty as charged!

I really like this song because it reminds me that Jesus is love, and that we won't find the love we need from other people, places or things, not the kind He has and is for us.  He will be there and we are never alone, there is no love here on earth that will satisfy the kind of love Jesus is.  And, just like the song describes, "just like a hand that's waiting for you.  And if you believe in this I promise that you won't be alone."

"There is a way, the truth and the life, and the way."

Love Your Brother

“If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.”
1 John 4:20-21

Here's my brother Tony - I love you!  Okay, so God isn't talking about my 'blood' brother, but all my brothers - I get it now.....
BTW, cute pic Tony!

Anyway, sometimes it is hard to love our brothers and sisters because of the behavior they display, or the way they look or think, which may be different than us.   In living my life for Christ, I must include all my brothers and sisters, but how can I reach out, what should I do, how can I show love when there are so many people in need?

I am reminded of this story.

Once a man was walking along a beach. The sun was shining and it was a beautiful day. Off in the distance he could see a person going back and forth between the surf's edge and and the beach. Back and forth this person went. As the man approached he could see that there were hundreds of starfish stranded on the sand as the result of the natural action of the tide.
The man was stuck by the the apparent futility of the task. There were far too many starfish. Many of them were sure to perish. As he approached the person continued the task of picking up starfish one by one and throwing them into the surf.
As he came up to the person he said, "You must be crazy. There are thousands of miles of beach covered with starfish. You can't possibly make a difference." The person looked at the man. He then stooped down and pick up one more starfish and threw it back into the ocean. He turned back to the man and said, "It sure made a difference to that one!"

Maybe I can't make a difference in a ton of lives, but I can try and make a difference in the lives whose paths I cross daily - and to those that are closest to me.  I can adjust my attitude and behavior to reflect God's love and not be cross or unhappy.  I can smile and let the little things go and enjoy life and the company of others.  I can give my clothes to the homeless, I can help out someone on the street by giving them a buck or two.  There is plenty I can do, and if I help just one person, if I make just one person smile than I believe I am loving my brother!

Bible Babes

We celebrated the season and end of our  current study with a 'spirit-filled' potluck (no lists or sign-ups, just bring whatever the spirit moves you to) and gift exchange at Margie's house.  Much to our delight, what a wonderful surprise it was when after dinner, Margie sat at the piano and Mary pulled out her violin and began to play Christmas music!  What a blessing these two women were that night, encouraging us to join in and sing carols. They played beautifully, with no practice together at all!  We definitely gave them a standing O at the end!

Faith, Hope and Love (Fede, Speranza, Amore)

Three things will last forever--faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love ~ Corinthians 13:13

J recently got a tattoo of these three words in Italian, on his inner bicep - a tribute to his heritage, I guess, but more importantly a commitment to the words.. faith, hope and love.  Three very strong words, pulled from Corinthians, with meaning so deep and passionate.  Webster defines them:

faith - the obligation of loyalty or fidelity to a person, promise, engagement, etc.

hope - to believe, desire, or trust

love - a profoundly tender, passionate affection for another person

In Corinthians, Jesus is telling us that the greatest of these is love, a profoundly tender, passionate affection for another person. The others are evident and not to be taken lightly, but love is the most important because it is an action, something we do outwardly for another.  We have faith and hope, but we need to give love.

How can we do this?  Well, as you may have read in an earlier post, I am on a journey to please God.  I want to love my brothers and sisters as Jesus did - all of them.  He didn't command us only to love those that treat us well, dress nicely and are in our close-knit circle of friends. Our love is great enough for those close to us, and those we may not want to get close to.  We need to share our love with all our neighbors alike, the poorly dressed woman at the market, or the driver in the car in front of us going 60 on the freeway, the neighbor and their barking dog!


In reflecting on the words, faith, hope and love I am inspired to have faith in others, to hope for the best and to love all of God's children, unconditionally.

Some Pics

Christmas Eve at our cousin Sandi and Blaine's, all the kid cousins - Our good friends at the Cardinal game - Jason with his 'T-shirt" quilt I made him - Hiking Estrella Mountain    

Christmas Eve at Sandi and Blaine's, love this pic of all the girls laughing during the picture taking. and then on the flip side, the guys (way too serious!) 

New Year - New You

Welcome Twenty-10!

I guess this is how we will address the new year!  I heard it on the news, read it on other blogs so here's to 2010!

What is new about you this year? 1 John 3:22 says...." and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.

This year I want to try and please God; what a concept, living my life for Him and not for me.  To do what pleases Him and not me will definitely be a challenge, but I think I am up for it! What about you?  What changes will you make this year in your life?