Life is Good!!!

Got my hook in the water

my toes on the shore

Life is good today

So turtles go away!!

This was my version of the Zac Brown Bands song, Toes, yesterday as I was fishing. I pretended to be fishing for about two hours. I finally realized that I was catching more sun rays than fish. I caught zero fish, but landed one little fighting mad turtle. They are such a nuisance when you are trying to fish.

My big catch!!!

It has been a great week this week. I have been fishing, and getting a little sun at the same time. Ebay is still in high gear, which means that I am making money. I have been shopping several times. Going to perform on Saturday at my friend Kelly's church for their mother/daughter banquet. Got another call to book me. Going today to met my friend Cheryl at Tripps for lunch. Mark has been home all week, and I have enjoyed that. Right now as I type there is some remodeling going on at our little house...we are getting new windows installed. So over all life as been good this week. I can't complain. I have read 3 books this week and got to pretty much do what I wanted to do. Oh yea!!! Life is good today!!

Clothes Happy!!!

I know that I probably shouldn't be running around and shopping, but I have been; so just shoot me. LOL I found myself at Belk's this week on the red dot sale. Man was it fantastic!!! 5 shirts for only $7.98 each (and these were summer shirts, what's up with that?)and a pair of capris that were on sale for $12.99. Plus I picked up a pair of earrings for the low price of $4.70 and an orange handbag for $9.98, now to find something to match the handbag. Gosh, life is full of decisions...LOL. It was a great day at Belk's for me. I usually never find that much on sale for me. I have worked hard this year on my Ebay and decided to treat myself to some dressy summer clothes. Last year I was in limbo during the summer and wore mostly tee shirts and shorts. I really needed these clothes...I keep telling myself that all day long. Then later on this week, I hit Peebles. I have a 15% off my entire purchase coupon. I found a pair of iridescent rhinestone sandals for $7.49 after the coupon along with a white pheasant shirt that I needed to go with some black and white capris. I went last week to Peebles and bought a dressy handbag to take last Saturday. 3 handbags with me and none dressy. I hit a great sale and with a coupon, I was able to get a handbag for less than $12. I am just a sucker for a sale and a coupon. I love Peeble's coupons because they are for regular, sale or clearance items. Now I need to go and buy some new hangers to hang everything up. It has been a great week so far. Mark has been home, because their equipment is broke and in the shop. I went fishing one day, but nothing was biting. Talked with Kelly to make sure I know exactly what to do and when to arrive on Saturday. Got another call to book me on May 22nd for a Relay For Life event. Went treasure hunting today and found me a Hawaiian shirt and a polka dot pair of shorts that looks like a skirt. I paired it with the white pheasant shirt (it is khaki with white polka dots) and it looked fantastic. I also never find me any clothes at thrift store, but both things looked like new. I spent a whole $2.50 on both items. Now you can see why I am clothes happy today!!

So Blessed!!!

Yesterday I was scheduled to perform my comedy routine at White's Memorial Baptist Church in Frankinville. It was an all day Ladies Conference that was just grand. Cheryl Gilmore did her teapot ministry, which is an amazing ministry that she does. She has different teapots and she relates them to scripture and women in the bible. Sylvia Pusser also spoke, she did her testimony and how the cross changed her life. At the end she gave us an index card with a hole punched in the corner. We were to write down a prayer request or a burden that wasn't allowing us to move on and then hang in on the cross. It was such a freeing experience. I just loved this conference. Instead of being someone who brought joy and laughter to others, I was deeply ministered to yesterday. I just fell in love with Gaye and Donna, the pastor and associate pastor wives, they were so nice and loving. This church reminded me of the church we pastored up in Columbus, Midway Baptist. There was an incredible spirit in this church. Ladies were going to the altar with their burdens and others were coming up behind them to pray for them. It was just unbelievable. It has been a long time since I had experienced the moving of the spirit with such power as I did yesterday. The ladies of the church did a fantastic job of putting on an elegant lunch complete with tea cups that we got to take home (guess what you are getting for Mother's Day, Mom??). It was just a wonderful time with fellow Christian ladies as we laughed and cried together. I just want to say THANK YOU to ladies of that church for inviting me to speak at their conference, and to say thanks to Patty Chriscoe who got the ball rolling on this ministry. We never know what God has in store for us, when we allow Him to use us for His glory.

White's Memorial Baptist Church in Frankinville, NC.

It was a wonderful experience being a part of their Ladies Conference

Out of Bread???

Yesterday I found myself with lots of morning errands to run, and no time to get my orders out in the morning as usual. After quickly completing all my morning task, I came home to start packing Ebay orders. Mark was off yesterday, and suggested that I pick up some lunch and bring home. No problem. After going to the post office, I called in Mark's order at a local restaurant. I had my mouth set on a sub. I bounced into Subway ready to place my order. Instead of getting my roast beef on Italian herb and cheese bread. I am greeted with, "we're out of bread." Okay, I am no genius but that is essential to making a sub...you have got to have bread!!! This was 1:10 in the afternoon and these employees had let the bread run out? How hard is it to realize that the bread that we have is getting low, so we might need to pop some more in the oven??? Then it hit me...no bread, no customers equals no work. They very happily told me that they were out of bread, I might add, and went on chatting and giggling. This is the third time this has happened to me in the last 2 months at this Subway. The poor owners who are paying their salary as they stand around watching bread bake is going in the hole. No bread means no subs, which means they aren't making a dime (people don't come to Subway to get just a drink or chips) while that bread bakes, but they are paying inefficient employees whose carelessness and disregard to detail gets paid for nothing. I am not sure how long it takes to bake the bread nor do I have any idea how many customers were turned away. You would think that in this bad economy when jobs are so hard to find, that people would value the one that they have?? I guess not because they very cheerfully shouted, "we're out of bread"!!!

Where Have I Been?

I have gotten several messages on Facebook asking Where have you been lately? Well, I have been on Ebay. Not only are the seeds in high gear, I also got a shipment of neck ties in this week. I try to sell more things than seeds on there. Seeds are only a seasonal item. The neck ties are just in time for Father's Day. They are religious ties that are around $20 or more at the Christian bookstore, but I sell them for $6.99 each on Ebay. I have been so busy on Ebay, that I haven't even had time to blog, which I am full of ideas on different subjects. My business has been booming lately, and it takes time to fill and pack orders, then make sure that your inventory is listed. So, where have I been? Why on Ebay of course.

Click on the underlined words and come and check me out on Ebay. There might be something that you just can't live without.

Comedy Shoes!!!

I find myself with two comedy performances back to back the next 2 weekends. I have a certain color scheme that I like to wear when perform. Black and white. The reason for this is the fact that I have more flashy clothes in black and white than any other color. Not a genius reasoning on that one. Upon inspection I saw that my spring and summer shoes that I wear looks like they might break...oh no!! That meant only one thing...GO SHOE SHOPPING!!! I guess one pair might have been enough, but I decided to go for 3 pair that could be worn dressy or not dressy. A girl has to be functional as well. While I like to look good, comfort plays a big part in choosing a shoe. I am standing in front of an audience for at least 45 minutes. I need my feet to be comfortable and able to walk around without stumbling...so no high heels for me. I chose a nice low heel black sandal, a wedge flip flop with silver sequins and a pair of silver flip flops with rhinestones. The last 2 pair are for some not so fancy performances that I have coming up. I can't imagine doing a performance at the beach in high heels. Anyway, the problem is solved about my comedy shoes. I will make sure that I stick an extra pair in my bag just in case something happens.

My new selection of comedy shoes!!

Below is the flier that was distributed to alert people of the Women's Conference at White's Memorial Baptist Church. I will be performing there on Saturday along with Cheryl Gilmore and Sylvia Pusser. We did a conference together back last August and I had a blast with these two.

Spring Ladies Conference
Whites Memorial Baptist Church
2930 Whites Memorial Road
Franklinville, NC
336-672-2388
April 24th, 2010 10am – 4pm

It is our privilege to host the Spring Ladies Conference and would be honored with your attendance. Please join us for a time of uplifting speakers, fun games, prizes and more.

Special Speakers include:
Cheryl Gilmore – Have you ever wondered what a teapot and the Bible have in common??? Well, Cheryl did. She began collecting teapots 2 years ago and will come prepared to share with us just how teapots relate to women of the Bible

Tracy Garner – Do you often struggle with the lighter side of Christianity? Do you wonder if God really has a humorous side? Well, look no further. Tracey Garner, a pastor’s wife for 17 years, has just what you need. Come prepared to laugh.

Dr Sylvia Pusser – An inspiring Christian speaker with a heart for our Savior. She has a passion for women and missions. A lifelong educator, Dr. Pusser has traveled the US training and consulting.

Free Admission, but a love offering will be received. A light lunch will be provided. Also, we would like to extend to you the opportunity to help The Baptist Children’s Home of North Carolina by donating non-perishable food items. We will be collecting these the day of the conference.

RSVP: Please call 336-672-2388 if you or your church would like to attend. This will help us to plan for the lunch that will be served.

Weekend Chaos!!

A few months back or so, I blog about never finishing a projects and not accomplishing much. Well, this weekend was the grand slam championship of getting things done. We decided to go home on Thursday afternoon instead of Friday morning, so we could have an extra day to do everything. Boy, that was a smart idea. We stopped and picked up pizza for supper on Thursday and just rested up that night as we planned our attack. When we got home, my daddy had mowed most of our yard...THANKS!!! That was our biggest project to do this weekend. My first order of business as usual is where am I going to eat the next day? I mean you have to get your priorities right. Jimbo's sounded great and it was near to a lot of places I was going to go shopping.

Friday morning found us at Jimbo's for breakfast. I had the super omelet, which is shrimp, tomatoes and feta cheese. It was delicious. We ate lunch there on Monday as well. First time we had eaten anything except breakfast there. We got fried chicken, 3 vegetables and bread for $6.95....not a bad deal.

After our delicious breakfast, we headed to Old Time Pottery where I completed one thing on my to do list. I bought new cushions for my wicker furniture. I mean the other cushions looked like pancake city they were so flat. Not a bad deal either 4 cushions for under $40. Next time, I need to paint the wicker furniture. Then it was to the bank and oh...we forgot it was time to get Mark's blood checked. Then over to the farm supply where I bought tons of flowers and forgot that we were in the short van and it was full of cushions already. That made it real cozy in the van.

These are some of the flowers I bought. I plant geraniums in pots and place them in my flower bed. I also bought 12 trays of impatiens to plant as a border. It was not difficult to tell that not everything was going to get planted on Saturday. That day found me at Burgaw Milling buying potting soil, and then back home to plant my little heart out. I saved 12 trays of bordering flowers to plant on Monday. I always buy lots and never realize that you have to plant what you buy....oh well!! Yard work is never ending.

After buying the potting soil on Saturday, I set off to plant everything. Well, those were my intentions anyway. I still needed to treat my fire ant hills since there was no rain fore casted and poison ivy was taking over in some places, so out came the round up. I sprayed everything that looked like poison ivy and everything that looked like it might like to be poison ivy...in other words, everything got sprayed. Mark did all the mowing and the trim work. Finally everything was looking good and not like a jungle. I opened my big mouth this weekend and said that I would cook since we had so much to do. NOT SMART!!! I did simple things like wings, salad, asparagus and lots of things bought at Costco's on Friday. Lots of laundry to do and a bag of receipts and papers to be shredded. I also brought a ton of things back home that I now had to find a place for now. No more room in my shoe rack...does that mean that I can't buy anymore shoes? I didn't think so. LOL

Wisteria that borders our road. I think that it is just beautiful.

An up close look at those gorgeous flowers.

It took some time this weekend to finally get everything done that we set out to do. It is amazing how fast those few days at home can fly by. The inside of the house I tried to keep clean so we wouldn't have to do much before we left. All plants were planted, fire ants treated and the poison ivy sprayed. I even weeded my flower bed. It was just chaos this weekend trying to get things done, plus let me add that it was a great weekend on Ebay; so I was constantly sending invoices to my customers and answering questions. I even read 4 books this weekend. Lots accomplished, but lots awaited us as we hit the road to Moore County. I arrived to over 60 Ebay orders that needed to be packed, not to mention all my inventory that needs to be listed. I hit the ground running, and then really worked my Postmaster today. I might need to bake them some more cookies. Mark got a call from an old friend needing someone to drive their log truck while their driver takes chemo. So Mark left out this morning to go a drive a log truck. We ended a busy weekend to pick up on an even busier week.

Keep on truckin' Mark!!!

Roots!!!

I am sitting here in my in laws house as I type this blog. They have been married for 62 years and have lived in the same house for 60 years. Talk about putting down roots!! Mark knows no other home growing up but this one, isn't that wonderful and amazing at the same time. He tells me stories of how he played in these woods when he was little. As we take walks in woods he points out areas where he played as a boy. It fascinates me as he tells about making forts and riding the "horse tree". He has lots of memories from his childhood there.
Mark and I have been married for almost 18 years and we have lived in 7 different places. That is the life of a pastor though. I have always loved moving and getting to know a new area, but the older I get the more I like the idea of putting down some roots. A place that when you look out across your yard, your mind floods with memories from the past. Honestly, there are places and times in my life that I can't remember. I think this is due to the fact that I haven't consistently lived in the same place. I can see a picture of some place and memories will start flooding my mind of times spent at that particular house. My mom and dad still live at the same place they did when I started the first grade. Things have changed...trees cut down, out buildings added and new neighbors. Nothing stays the same anymore. I know some people have to move because of jobs, but people move at the drop of hat now days. I am not just talking about people in their 20's and 30's. I am talking about people in their 50's and 60's. They leave family houses where they spent a lifetime making memories and where their children grew up. They leave those for bigger and newer houses. Roots are destroyed and childhood memories are just that...memories. No more looking out and seeing the big tree that you climbed up in and fell out of during your 3rd grade year. No more walking in the living room and visions of Christmas' past fill your mind. Memories of the past can be comforting. We once knew a lady that after her husband died, she just had to move. She told me that the house held too many memories, and if felt like they were strangling her. Everyone tried to talk her out of it. Her husband had only been gone a few months, and the memories that were now too painful would one day be comforting to her. She didn't heed any one's advice and moved. I do think she regretted moving after a while. There were no memories at her new house to comfort her when she was really missing her husband. I don't think there is anything wrong in saying this is where we have lived our whole married life...our children were born and grew up here. I would love to say those words, instead I have scrapbooks filled with pictures of places we use to live. If you have roots that run deep and can look at anything around you and precious memories fill your mind of days past, then I would say that you are truly blessed.

Busy Bee!!!

That's me...The Busy Bee this week!!!

This week has found me busy as bee with things to do and working. I have had tons of Ebay orders to fill, but I don't mind that means that I am making some money in life. I have been amazed again this year at the price people will pay for seeds. Seeds are not that plentiful this year, so we are kind of on rations. Can only get so many and then you can't order anymore. I have found sunflowers doing better than any other seed that I have this year. We sell 4 varieties of sunflowers: Russian Mammoth, Black Oil, Lemon Queen and Autumn Beauty. They all do well especially the black oil. I have already sent to Hawaii and Puerto Rico this year. Texas and Florida are where most of my customers are located, but Ohio and Pennsylvania is a close second. The seed business has been taking a lot of my time, but I have managed to squeeze a little fun in this week as well.

Monday I met my friend, Rebecca Chriscoe, for lunch and a movie. We had a great time chatting over lunch. It was a little tissue time for me during the movie. We saw "The Last Song". It is Nicholas Sparks' latest book done into a movie. I thought it was great....better than the book.

Rebecca and I had so much fun chatting over our meal. We will have to get together more often. It was such a fun day.

We started off with plans to meet at 195 for lunch. Only 195 is closed on Monday. We decided on the Olive Garden....one of my favorites. I ordered the seafood Alfredo, which I had never had before. It has shrimp and scallops in it...very delicious. I was good...no calamari. I can't believe that I resisted the temptation to order a big old platter full.

We went to see The Last Song. I was not disappointed one bit either. It was better than the book in this regard...none of the extra filler nonsense in the movie. I thought there was too much incidents in the book that didn't make or break the story line. That was all left out of the movie. Some were disappointed that Miley Cyrus played Ronnie, but I thought she did an excellent job. She is an excellent crier, very believable. I have never watched or seen her as Hannah Montana, so I had no preconceived notions about her. I have heard her sing, and while I think she has a great voice...I think she has incredible acting abilities.

Lilly is actually getting groomed as I type this blog. Poor little thing was suppose to get groomed 2 weeks ago, but I had to cancel for some reason. She looks like a little rag dog. We started using a mobile groomers, that my friend Teresa Black recommended. It is called Canine Divine. Sandy, the groomer, is the best. Lilly took to her the first time she came out, and Lilly doesn't like most people. She does a great job on her, and it saves me time from going to and from a groomers.
Canine Divine is a mobile grooming service. I love that I don't have to drag her somewhere and leave her for hours. She is a nervous little dog, and this way she is not too traumatized. Thanks Teresa for recommending their services.

This is Lilly's before picture. She dunks her whole head in the water bowl for some unknown reason. We think she is trying to baptize herself, but we are not sure. LOL

Doesn't our little Boo Boo clean up well. I think she looks so cute. Sandy does an awesome job on her. For a dog that doesn't go outside, she sure gets messy in between grooming times.

Yard Finds!!!

This Saturday I found my self going to few yard sales over in Whispering Pines. There were lots of yard sales in Pinehurst, but I didn't have time to go over and check those out this weekend. I love going to yard sales to see what fantastic finds that other people are just giving away. I did pretty well at the 2 sales that I stopped at this weekend.

Jean pocketbook for $1. I have been wanting one of these since I wear lots of jeans and denim capri's.

A bun warmer for .50. My in laws has one of these and they keep biscuits in theirs. This will keep any kind of bread from drying out and you just warm it up on the stove.
2 patriotic porch decorations for .10 each. A CD and a book for .10 each.

Sterling silver hook earrings for .25. After sanitizing them and polishing them with a silver cloth, they look great.

A great pair of summer shoes, that had never been worn for $1.

I found this little wire container for .25 to hold my nail polish in. I have one at home that holds my lipstick. They are a neat trick...made for the bathroom, but they work great to hold make up.

3 book for .10 each. One is a cookbook that has some great recipes and the other is a Southern Living gardening book. I love Debbie Macomber and I haven't read this book yet.

I didn't do too bad this weekend, I spent a whole $3.70 for all that I bought. I also found a garment bag that matches my weekend luggage for $1.50 at the Whispering Pines Thrift store on Friday. Thrift stores and yard sales sure helps your money go farther. I love buying books at sales, because I just read them and pass them a long. It wasn't the biggest yard sale run that I have done, but I was happy with my yard finds.

Friends!!!

I once thought that when you became friends with someone, you would stay friends forever. True and false. I don't think you lose your friendship completely, but the relationship changes. You see all this BFF from high school kids and some of that will stay true and some won't. Facebook is guilty for this subject. I have reconnected with people from high school and all the places we have lived. I have also found friends that I didn't know before Facebook. We meet people all the time. I have 4 friends on Facebook that are a result of Ebay and 2 friends on there that I have met through my other friends on Facebook. I met one friend through her blog and getting to know her through her writing. People come and go in our lives and our degree of closeness changes, most of the time. I had a best friend in high school whom I spent all my free time with back then. She married and I married...I moved away..20 years past. We found each other on Facebook, and while we are still friends, the closest we once shared is gone. That is to be expected. I have also found that you aren't meant to be friends with someone forever, but it is nice to have friends that stick around. I know that God sends you some friends when you really need someone, and they are there for a season, and the time that we need them. I am friends with people now that I went to in high school with, but barely knew back then. There is a difference in being friends at 16 and at 39. Some have grown into an adult that I don't recognize or can't identify with now. I mean, I am not the same person I was at 16. Friends grow up and start their adult life with their own mind and ideas. Sometimes that makes you closer to someone and sometimes that drives a wedge between you. For example if your whole life is a party and the bar scenes, chances are we are not going to be bosom buddies. We have no common interest. Then I have 2 friends that I have known all my life. We don't always talk, but when we do it is like we have never been apart. These are my BFF. Thanks Karon and Barbara for always being there through the years. Friends are people who love you inspite of your faults and failures. They see you as the person you really are...they see your heart. I hope that everyone has at least one good friend and if you have two or more really good friends, then you are truly blessed.

Easter Continued at Middle Cross

It took us a while to find a church where actual preaching was taking place on Easter Sunday. Most churches were do cantata, which there is nothing wrong with that, but Christmas and Easter should be the pastor's time in the pulpit. How many jokes have you heard about C & E (Christmas and Easter) Christians? Yet those two major days in the Christians life those people are only hearing the choir sing a medley of songs. Not that songs and music don't have their place in our worship service, but not the whole service on those days. The crucifixion and Resurrection is the basis of our salvation and we are not going to let the pastor preach because we have always done a cantata? I think every pastor in America should have been behind the pulpit preaching today. This is the one and only day that some people find themselves at church all year long, and they hear singing. Personally, cantata aren't my thing. One church I practiced for 2 months with the choir to sing, then got sick and couldn't sing. I was in the audience the day of the cantata and couldn't even understand the words they were singing...and I knew the songs. This is the reason that Charles Stanley and others have the words floating down at the bottom of your television screen. Enough of my preaching on subject of preaching vs. singing on Easter.

The worship service at Middle Cross Baptist Church was just beautiful. There was praise and worship music, a special solo by Marks cousin, Phyllis Taylor. Which was just a beautiful song. The choir sang "Because He Lives", which is led by Mark's cousin, Melissa McKenzie and David preached a wonderful sermon. His sermon was taken from Acts 1 starting with verse one. He preached on "Unfailing Proof of a Resurrected Lord", if I have my title correct. One thing he said was how Christ revealed himself at least 11 times to people after he was resurrected. One time to a crowd of 500 people. I am sure that made some doubters of Christ turn to believers that day. I thought about this as he preached, wouldn't we as Christians be more effective if a dying world really saw the resurrected Christ in us?? This is what I mean, we play church and good Christian on Sunday...we say and do all the right things at church, then act like the devil Mon-Sat. Is there no wonder we don't reach the lost. We can't be one thing at church and something different at home and work. I often wonder when people say I can't get my spouse to come to church, I have been praying for them for 25 years...I often wonder how their testimony is at home. Does their spouse see a difference in them or someone who is just all talk at church, you can't reach them if they don't see some evidence of a living Lord living inside you. Just a thought. I am sure you can tell from this blog and those in the past, that evidently I have ran across some "so called Christians" in my life. I have seen people just bash and try to destroy fellow Christians, and it has made me stand offish, leery and down right non trust worthy when you say you are a Christian. I guess I am like Thomas....I want some proof. Don't tell me that you are a Christian, let me see it in your words, actions, the way you conduct yourself outside the church setting. Well, I guess I am preaching again instead of telling you about the great service I went too. David did a wonderful job, and it made me want to preach my two cents worth today as well. Middle Cross is a nice church with wonderful people there. We have known David and Sherry (the pastor and wife) for over 20 years. They are just down home people who love the Lord without compromise. David preaches the Word with no apologizes. You ought to visit them some Sunday. You will be glad you did. Happy Easter 2010 to all who reads this.

Middle Cross Baptist Church located on Lucas Rd in West End, NC.

Rev. David Reynolds, Pastor

Easter!!!

Today we celebrate Easter, the day that Christ arose and defeated death, hell and the grave. A whole week that has been a reminder of just how much Christ loved us. He loved us enough to be beaten, to be mocked and scorned, to be spat upon and to be nailed on an old rugged cross. I have never really grasped the harsh cruelty that He encountered until The Passion of Christ came out several years back. I am sure that even that movie didn't depict all that Christ went through for me and for you. I don't know if I really can wrap my mind around just what He went through so that I might be saved from my sins. I never fully understood that part either, until I was 22 years old. I thought I had made a decision for Christ at an early age, so when doubts filled my mind; I dismissed them as satan attacking me. It was while at our first church, that I realized that I was sinner bound for a devil's hell. Which by the way, is a real place. People can joke and not believe it, but it is just as real as heaven. Funny that even the most non religious person I know still wants to go to heaven. During our first church, I realized that if I drew my last breath that night, that when I opened my eyes in eternity I would be seeing flames. I talked with Mark, who led me through the sinners prayer. There in our parsonage living room in Richmond County I gave my heart to Christ. I felt different...lighter. A burden had been lifted. My dad baptized me several weeks later. Had it not been for the cross and the shedding of blood, that would not have been possible. I see people who have crosses in their yards this time of the year with flowers all over them, but there was nothing pretty about the cross. It was stained with a loving Savior's blood that He willingly shed for all mankind. He loves us so much and we regard Him with so little. I am guilty of being too busy to give Him the time He deserves. We all are!!! Don't play self righteous when faced with this question about yourself. We all fall short in our devotion and sacrifice to Him. I sometimes think preacher's and their families are more guilty of this that any. While we are busy planning church calendars and going to functions and meetings....just how important are those things in sight of eternity? Churches keep their pastors hopping(more or less at their beck and call) and trying to keep some scared about job security that they lose sight of the real reason that they are in the ministry. To help a dying world find a saving Savior. He is not here...He has risen...giving us an anticipation of His return.

Three wooden crosses. The King of Kings hung between two thieves and died for me and you. His blood ran down that cross that day, and that saving blood is still flowing for sinners today. All you have to do is just Ask Him into your heart , Believe on Him and Confess your sins. Easy as ABC!! We are the ones who complicate salvation.

The Place of the Skull.

Hallelujah!!! An empty tomb. "I can face uncertain days, because my Savior Lives". I have seen lots of church signs this week saying, "It takes a Risen Savior to save a dying world."

One of my favorite songs to hear around Easter or anytime was done by Squire Parsons some years back called Morning Light. A guy at school named Jamie Ellis could just tear this song up...made goose bumps rise on your arms when he sang. I can only imagine seeing your Son die, and feeling the heart break and grief only a mother can feel at the loss of a child and then going to the tomb 3 days later and finding him not there. A panic feeling probably arose in her heart at first, but then pure joy and delight must have filled Mary's heart as she realized that He had risen. Grave clothes neatly folded indicating His return. That return might not be that far off.

Verse 1:
As the evening sun set o’re Jerusalem
Satan’s forces celebrated victory
But their laughter turned to fear
Their celebration turned to fright
After what Satan saw in the morning light

Chorus 1:
He saw angels robed in white
The stone rolled away
And the grave clothes neatly folded
In the place where Jesus lay
They Satan knew it was all over
He had lost the fight
After what he saw in the morning light

Verse 2:
Her eyes were swollen from all the tears she’d cried
And she wondered if her broken heart would ever mend
But as she looked into the tomb
Her hope came into sight
After what Mary saw in the morning light

Chorus 2:
She saw angels robed in white
The stone rolled away
And the grave clothes neatly folded
In the place where Jesus lay
They Mary knew it was all over
Everything would be all right
When she saw that empty tomb in the morning light
And some day it will be all over
Everything will be all right
Oh, it’ll be all right
Hear a shout ringing out
See graves burst open wide
See Jesus face to face
In the morning light, morning light

Got Caught!!!

I went yesterday to Southern States and purchased myself a new Zebco 33 rod and reel, hooks, weights and all the things I needed to land a big one. I came back home and quickly set to work getting my rod and reel ready to catch some fish. I purchased what I thought were purple worms...turned out to be purple lizards. I gave them a try anyway. I got a couple of strikes with them, but couldn't never hook one. Then I decided to go to a cork and some bait. Earlier this week, I had no luck on the bait I was using, so I changed. I got a piece of raw bacon....like I said before these fish are feed scraps, so they love people food.

Back at the fishing hole after having no luck earlier this week.

This small big mouth bass pulled the cork down under the water time I got it in and the line set. I now had the fishing fever....he only weighed 1 1/2 lbs. I do catch and release, so all fish went back to their home.

Not 5 minutes later, I was pulling this beauty in as well. I was so excited that I almost dropped my reel. He weighed a little over 2 lbs.

This one fought a little harder....and I got so tired that I forgot to weigh him.

By the time I hooked this one, I was beside myself with excitement He weighed just a hair under 4 lbs. And boy did he put up a fight. Had to fix my reel after struggling with him over 5 minutes.

Look at that big mouth on him!!!

As much a fight as those bass put up, they don't compare to a bream. A bream fights like you have a whale on your line. I just knew I had the granddaddy of all bass, and this is what I finally pulled up. LOL

This nice size bream put up just as big a fight as the first one. I often wonder if I am catching the same fish over and over since I release them right away. But I think this is a different one...he had no fear in his eyes, more like shock...I got caught??? LOL

Then my nemesis comes and finally finds my hook!!!

You can see my bait in his mouth (the white stuff). I quit after this, because he broke my line, and I was tired of fixing it. I got him all the way up on the bank and he tried to bite me, broke the line and went back in the water with my hook still in his mouth. I didn't even get a chance to get it out.

As you can see people food does work. My secret bait today was raw bacon. It sticks on a hook like cement and the fish love it. My new rod worked wonders today. I am so glad that I went and bought me one. I love to fish, but refuse to fish with someone who won't bait their own hook or take their fish off the line. There's nothing like getting caught up in fishing fever.

Mama's Kitchen

Have you ever been somewhere to eat, and it was so good that you just had to tell others about the place? Well, that is how I feel about Mama's Kitchen located on Union Church Rd in Vass. Not only is the food great, but the staff is wonderful. Such effort taken with the tiniest details to make sure your dining experience there is grand. They have unbelievable low prices. I love whole flounder and you can get it there for $8.95, that is for a small plate...which is one whole flounder (and the flounder is not small at all). The large whole flounder plate is $11.95, but it is 2 whole flounders. That is a great price if 2 people wanted to share. I have started getting the fried chicken. It has the crispiest skin and is so moist. You can get a 2 piece plate (any 2 pieces you want, even 2 breast) for $5.50 or get the 4 piece plate(still any 4 pieces you want) for $6.95. You can share this plate, and eat so cheap. We love eating there....go give it a try one night.

Mama's Kitchen is more than seafood!!!

Mama's Kitchen is so delicious. Located on Union Church Rd in Vass.

This has become one of my favorite things to eat there...FRIED PICKLES!!! They are so delicious and not greasy. I love these, and most places theier pickles are too greasy to eat, but not at Mama's Kitchen.

My fried chicken plate. I got a breast and a leg this go round. It takes right at 20 minutes for it to cook when you order. It is made to order. If you don't want to wait, call ahead and order. That is what I do. I call and tell them that I will be dining in, but I want to put my order in for some good old fried chicken.

They have wonderful hush puppies there.

Mark got a small baby flounder plate which is $6.25, and it comes with 4 pieces of fish. They are so good.

The lady standing is Cathy. She has been our waitress everytime we've eaten there. After our first visit, we didn't have to tell her our drink order anymore. She automatically brings it to our table. She knows what we are going to order as well, except I keep changing my order each time. She is the best.

This is a great restaurant for the whole family to enjoy. Choose from grilled chicken, fried chicken, barbecue, seafood, fried pickles, oyster stew, chef salad, marinated chicken salad, hamburgers and lots lots more. They also have a country buffet from 11 am to 2 pm, but we have never been....I have been told how delicious the buffet is there. Well, I guess the pig-fest continues here on my blog. Tomorrow, I hope to show you more treasures that I found today.

Treasure Hunting Fish!!

This week found me heading outside in the beautiful sunshine to fish. I got my fishing gear together (a bottle of water, toasted corn and bait) and I was ready to catch a whooper. My bait started out being Hillshire Farm Little Smokies. After about an hour of nothing, I switched bait. I then went to rotisserie chicken skin. These fish are feed with kitchen scraps so they love people food....usually. I couldn't even catch a turtle!!! That is unusually too for the turtle not to bother you while you are fishing. I finally gave up on the fishing. I mean if my cork isn't going to bob up and down once in while...what is the use???

My fishing hole...the pond in the back yard. I almost whistled the "Andy Griffith Show" theme song as I was walking to the pond.

That is my poor little cork waiting for some action out on the water...but nothing!!!
Another view of my fishing hole, as I walked around the whole pond trying to find just the perfect spot. Big bass were jumping, but they didn't jump on my hook.
As you can see, I use a cane pole. I like this better than the rod and reel. I went to fish and my hook was broke. Started off having to fix my pole. Should have known it was going to be a rotten day for fishing. Not one bite!!!

After my fishing expedition was over, I took a quick shower and decided to go treasure hunting at my favorite thrift store, The Whispering Pines Thrift Store that is located on the Vass/Carthage Rd. I love this store. I haven't been in a while because I find more treasure than I have room for at home. Today I was looking for things to go outside that I might could redo or repaint, but found nothing. I did hit the jackpot though.

This was my jackpot load from treasure hunting. I spent a whole$2.25 for everything pictured. I just hate to pay retail sometimes.

I found 2 records that I thought we would like. We have a thing that does records, tapes, CD's and radio, so we buy records to listen to at times. One is Julie London. I got this because Mark and I love to watch Emergency (the show from the 70's), and she plays Nurse Dixie McCall on Emergency. She was known more for her singing than acting until she starred on that show. She was also married to Bobby Troup on that show who played Dr. Early in real life. Jerry Reed was the other record...I thought Mark would like this one. These were 25 cents each.

I found a very nice Vera Bradley clutch (5o cents)...guess where it is going? And I got Mark this very nice looking Jerry Garcia tie(25 cents).

A pair of Zephz tennis shoes. A whole 50 cents spent on these. These are actually cheer leading shoes when I googled them. LOL They retail for about $49.99. I think I will be able to get my 50 cents worth out of them.

A pair of Easy Spirit tennis shoes for me for the unbelievable price of 50 cents. I love finding tennis shoes at the thrift store. I don't feel bad when they wear out knowing that I don't have that much money invested in them.

I didn't find anything to go outside like pots or some small wicker pieces, but I don't think that I did bad. I know some people who think that shopping at a thrift store is beneath them, but who doesn't like to save money? Well, I know one person who once said that if they had to use a coupon to go out to eat, then they would stay home. I thought you big dummy...you don't want to save money?? How ignorant can one be? We had a friend to buy one of those attraction books for Wilmington, and we have used lots of coupons out of it. It allows you not only to save money, but also try new restaurants without paying full price. You might not like them, but this way you only paid for one meal. I try to save whenever I can. I don't have to have a pair of shoes right now, but when I wear my other ones out...I have not one but two pair for a whole buck.