Hey Friends!

To all my faithful bloggy friends out there, I'm back! I've been away tending to a sick household, myself included. And of course, there's been the holidays, and my night as a back up singer for Elvis...(details on that later.) I hope everyone is enjoying this festive holiday season. I have a post on the Advent season that I'll be posting later on today. Miss y'all! Hope to visit and catch up very soon! ~Blessings!

Six Degrees of ...

You remember that trivia game popular back in the 90's, Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon? Well, I had one of those really weird It's a Small World After All moments this last week. I have a really great friend, Heidi, here in Ohio. We are in Bible study together, our kids are in play group together, her father-in-law is the pastor of my church. We're connected, to say the least.

Well, She knows how much I love to blog, and she was telling me about a friend of hers, in Mississippi, Jenny, who has a blog that she wanted me to check out. She also knows I'm from Mississippi, and I still have lots of friends and family there. Imagine my surprise, when I click on to visit her friend's blog and find that she is good friends with my sister, Demetria. Not only that, we have several other friends in common. She attends the same church that we used to attend when we lived there. She is also in Sunday school with my sister, as well as, Suzanne and her husband Tommy (whom, were we were once in Sunday school with,) and Ashley and Kurt. Kurt is a dear friend of ours from our med school days in KC, MO. He and Hugh are also distantly related through Hugh and Demetria's step-dad, Neal, by marriage. And Kurt married Ashley, who is the daughter of the man who was our very first pastor, as a married couple. Ashley and I have never met in person, but I feel like we know one another, after corresponding over the past year. I also have another bloggy friend, Christy, who was a member of the same church, up until recently this year, when her family relocated to an area in northern Mississippi, where Kurt is originally from and where we still have family.

Have I confused everyone completely? ~But, I mean WOW! Is that not weird. She's my sister's, cousin's and friend's -friend three states removed. Now that's southern, y'all! (hee-hee!) No really, it is bizarre to think how we're all connected in one gigantic circle. Anyway, I had to share! Hope all is well out and about in Bloggy land. ~Blessings!

Happy Veteran's Day

I am re-posting a post from last year's Veteran's Day celebration. Today is very dear to my heart for many reasons. I'm proud and grateful to be an American. I love this country and the principles on which it was built. I still believe in them, wholeheartedly. FREEDOM, EQUALITY, LIFE, LIBERTY, AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS. But most of all, this day reminds me of my daddy. I love him, and I miss him. Today is a great day I set aside to honor his memory.


Melvin John Scott, Army Veteran of WWII and the Korean Conflict


His burial flag and army photo.


My Daddy!


Veteran's Day is set aside as a time when we reflect on and honor the heroism of those who have served and given their lives in the service of our great country. It is a time to share with them our gratitude for our freedom! So today,I am honoring the remembrance of my favorite veteran, my daddy. He was a proud American. He believed the Bible, in his family, and in the United States of America. He proudly displayed the flag outside our home every Veteran's Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, and 4th of July! Last night, I was thinking back to when I was in college. My mom sent me a newspaper clipping of my dad attending a Veteran's Day ceremony. He stood among a hundred or so other veterans proudly with his hand on his heart. I still have that article, and will keep it to show my children years from now when they are old enough to understand who he was and what he did for this country. I hope that everyone who reads this today will stop to give thanks for these men and women (past and present.) Thank a veteran, if you know one. Pray for a soldier that is serving our country, and don't let this day pass without thanking God, with true gratitude in your heart, for the freedom with which we have blessed!

Fun Little quiz!

Quiz...

You Are a Katharine!

You are a Katharine -- "I am happy and open to new things"

Katharines are energetic, lively, and optimistic. They want to contribute to the world.

How to Get Along with Me

• * Give me companionship, affection, and freedom.


• * Engage with me in stimulating conversation and laughter.


• * Appreciate my grand visions and listen to my stories.


• * Don't try to change my style. Accept me the way I am.


• * Be responsible for youself. I dislike clingy or needy people.


• * Don't tell me what to do.

What I Like About Being a Katharine

• * being optimistic and not letting life's troubles get me down


• * being spontaneous and free-spirited


• * being outspoken and outrageous. It's part of the fun.


• * being generous and trying to make the world a better place


• * having the guts to take risks and to try exciting adventures


• * having such varied interests and abilities

What's Hard About Being a Katharine

• * not having enough time to do all the things I want


• * not completing things I start


• * not being able to profit from the benefits that come from specializing; not making a commitment to a career


• * having a tendency to be ungrounded; getting lost in plans or fantasies


• * feeling confined when I'm in a one-to-one relationship

Katharines as Children Often

• * are action oriented and adventuresome


• * drum up excitement


• * prefer being with other children to being alone


• * finesse their way around adults


• * dream of the freedom they'll have when they grow up

Katharines as Parents

• * are often enthusiastic and generous


• * want their children to be exposed to many adventures in life


• * may be too busy with their own activities to be attentive

Take Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz at HelloQuizzy

Monday Morning with the Lord

My sweet friend, Kimberly over at A Planting of the Lord is setting aside a time for prayer and fasting this week, for herself and other mothers. She is asking the Lord to restore her confidence, her joy and contentment in her mothering. She loves her girls very much, but has been under attack in this area. I know several mothers who are also struggling on the spiritual battle field in this area.

Anger, Irritation, Discontentment and Selfishness, Laziness, Anxiety and even Depression are some of the battles of the mind that we all fight, at some time or another, as mothers. The devil rages against us, because he knows what an important job we have in training up our little ones and instilling in them a love for the Lord. We can feel like we are fighting all of hell, sometimes. And indeed we are. Ephesians 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places]. That is why we are told to put on the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:13-18)
Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand
Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints--
And to guard our hearts and minds and to think on things which are True, Nobel, Right, Pure, Lovely, Admirable, and Praise worthy. (Philippians 4:8)
We are called to ....Cast down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:5)

The Lord knew what we would be up against in our day to day lives. Remember -He lived it. He walked here among us and fought the same temptations, but NEVER gave into them. And although we will never be perfect, as He was, until the day returns, we strive everyday to be more "Christ-like." So, I prayerfully joined Kimberley this morning to petition for every mother the Lord brought to my mind, myself included. I prayed that our love would be evident and overflow onto our children. I prayed for the Lord to restore a loving and tender heart within each of us. I asked Him to pour His grace over our actions and that His love and grace might be evident in our gentleness. -Lord, help us to live in this world, but not be of this world. Amen

I felt led to join Kimberly prayerfully in this, because it seems to be a reoccurring theme for many of my friends, lately. And I believe where the Lord tells us in His word...Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. (James 5:16) And in (1 Peter 4:8) Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. And (Matthew 18:20) For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

As, I prayed and fasted this morning, I asked the Lord to reveal to me what word He had for me in this area. I prayed the scripture from Hosea 10:12 Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord, until he comes and showers righteousness on you. Break up the ground of my heart, and remove anything that would hinder my growth in you oh Lord. And here is what He said....

If I am to be effective as a mother, friend and prayer warrior in this area, I am to be obedient to Him first and foremost. I must attend to my own house, first. I can not expect Him to help me in this area, if I am not doing what I know I should to help myself. Which all begins with preparation. I prepare to set out and have a successful day as a wife, mother and homemaker, by beginning in His word. If that means I have to rise a little earlier than I normally would to ensure that my attitude is in check and I am bathed in prayer, then that's what I need to do. I don't know about you, but I don't always wake up all bright and sunny. But, if I am to set the tone of my household and greet my children warmly each morning, then I need to shake the sleepiness off and prepare my heart, mind and attitude with prayer and scripture.

And then, I must attend to making sure my family gets off to a good start. I can not jump into my own selfish pursuits and fun things I want to get to in the day with out making sure their bellies are fed, and I have spent time reading a Bible story or scripture to them over breakfast, or even sung one of our little praise songs with them. (They need me to model and instill in them the importance of time with the Lord.) I need to make sure that my honey has clean clothes and towels laid out for him the night before. (This is something I have been slacking on and need to work on in order to help him have a good morning.) Instead of starting right away on house work, or my reading or computer time, I need to make sure I have spent adequate quality time with each of my children. There should be plenty of hugs and kisses, a book or two, and time for play time with them in the floor, before I brush them off to attend to things that need to be done, or that I want to get done. If I do these things first, I can cut down on some of the chaos and irritation. I have the power to set the tone, early on, for our day.

If this is an area close to your heart, I encourage you to join us, and set aside a time of prayer and fasting this week. I truly believe that together, we can be victorious. We can take back our homes and not only be the wives and mothers we want to be, but through preparing our hearts and minds, we can step closer each day in becoming the Biblical portrait of the women God calls each of us to be. I love you and I am praying for you all this week. ~Blessings my friends!

Some Of Our Fall Fun!

For Hugh's Birthday, we rode the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. We got to see the Fall foliage in all it's splendor. After the train ride, we rode around the Cuyahoga National Park and found Hale Farm and Village, and Heritage Farms. As you can see below, it was absolutely breath-taking.

Hale Farm and Village, a living history museum depicting mid-19th century life in the Western Reserve.Here comes the train.....All Aboard!
Heritage Farms. We went on a hayride, got lost in a corn maze, drank apple cider by the old stone fireplace in the barn, and watched the kids play in the "corn box." -So much fun!


A Day at White House Farms with our play group.Ann Grace and her friend Presley! Anna Grace is chasing Tippy, Ms. Anne's dog, around the yard.Hugh and I took the kids on our own make believe hayride through the neighborhood.Having us a little visit with Ms. Anne, our surrogate grandma, here in Ohio.Yes, that is Trey up in a tree. Lord, help me!-He has learned to climb trees!YEAH! -Here comes the parade!!! Anna Grace is enjoying a piece of candy as we watch the parade go by.
Front Yard Fun with our neighbors! They all had so much fun jumping in the leaves.

WEEeeeeeee!!! Halloween Fun! We had a costume party for our play group and went Trick-or-Treating !

Alice in Wonderland, Darth Vader, Pooh and Piglet, Dorthy and Buzz Lightyear!
All our little ladies, visiting with each other. Josie was a fuzzy pink bunny!
Bo is enjoying his cup cake!
Matt Foley dates ugly Betty! Our friends Glen and Kristie, who by far had the best costumes at the party! Aren't they a hoot?!?

Treat-Or Treat!


We met up with our neighbors as we were out trick-or-treating!
Oh, so tired, momma!

Hope you all had a Happy Halloween with your families too! God Bless!
I am so thankful for the precious memories made with my children, family and friends over the past few months. I hold them very dear to my heart, and treasure every moment. As we begin November, please join me and others in giving thanks each day, throughout this month. Leah at South Breeze Farm hosted this challenge last year, and it not only helped me to get to know her and other bloggy friends I've made along the way, but it really helped me get into the spirit of the holiday season. You can find my list over to the right, on my side bar, (I will be adding to it through out the month,) and a button that will take you to her blog, if you'd like to join in the fun. ~Blessings!