Merry Christmas Everyone...

A Great Opportunity...

Do you enjoy reading?  I love to read and enjoy books by several Christian Authors.  One of my favorites is Janette Oke.  A couple of the brilliant authors have had the opportunity to expand their stories to a bigger audience…the movie screen.

One of those great series is “When Calls the Heart” by Janette Oke.  Have you ever started watching a series on TV and enjoy it so much you wish you could see it again?  Are you a #Heartie? Here is a wonderful opportunity for all you ‘#Hearties.’ 

Here is your chance to preorder the When Calls the Heart Season 3 DVD Set.  This set contains the film version and also the TV episode versions of the 3^rd season.  Included in the Season 3 Collectors’ Set are 3 bonus discs.  Behind the scenes footage and interviews are included on Disc 8.  Disc 9 shows special footage from the #Hearties gathering in Vancouver January 2016.  As a special treat Disc 10 is a When Calls The Heart trivia game for those devoted fans. This set is scheduled for release on October 11, 2016.

There is a bonus for anyone preordering the Season 3 Collectors Set from FishFlix.com, you will receive the Season 1 Episodes set free.  If you already have it perhaps it would make a great Christmas gift. What a wonderful way to share your love for this series. 

Remember to check out FishFlix.com for your Christian Movies.  They have quite an assortment available and run specials all the time.  Right now anyone who leaves a review of Season 3 on this page and then sends an email verifying the nickname used on your review will be entered in a drawing on September 1, 2016. The lucky winner will receive a $100 gift card to FishFlix.com.  

Don’t miss out on the fun!

until next time...nel

DVD Review: 94 FEET

I was given the opportunity to review the 94 Feet DVD here on my blog. This DVD has a great story line and is easy to relate to.

The small town of St. Michaels is facing a downfall that so many small towns have faced. Cutbacks on every corner, businesses closing their doors, all of that is causing the attitude of the townspeople to deteriorate.  Then a devastating tragedy occurs and those same townspeople realize the only thing they have left is their faith, their faith in God.

Even the men trapped 94 feet under the surface turn to their faith in God sharing with the non-believers, helping to reaffirm their faith and giving their hearts to Jesus.

MY OPINION:  This is a great Christian DVD showing how our faith and God’s grace can help us through the hard times.  At times the story was a little slow but the emotion was still there. I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to watch a good clean movie.

The 94 Feet DVD along with other Christian DVDs are available at FishFlix.com.

Don’t miss your chance to receive a $5.00 coupon to FishFlix.com by joining their email list.  You can join by visiting www.fishflix.com/5gift or texting 5-Gift to 44222.  Drop by you will like what you see.

FishFlix.com provided me with a complimentary copy of the DVD. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Until next time…nel

Leaving a Legacy

The ‘Random House Webster’s College Dictionary defines Legacy as:

1. (in a will) a gift of property, esp. personal property, as money; bequest.
2. anything handed down from the past, as from an ancestor or predecessor

In this post I am going to look at the 2^nd part of this definition.  I think this relates to how you lived your life, what was important to you.  I believe the legacy my mom and dad left was:  always work hard and love your spouse no matter what.  Family is important.  Remember everyone has feelings.

Have you ever thought about what kind of legacy you will leave?  So many people worry about leaving money or material things, such as land, antiques, vehicles, etc.  But is that really important?  Sure if you are able to do that, it is wonderful, however there are so many things that are more important.

I guess what really made me think about it was a couple of funerals I attended.  One was a year or so ago and there were only a handful of people there and 2 flower arrangements.  I have to say it broke my heart, but I thought about the person and I fully understood the situation.  She was a handful and did not really have a pleasant disposition.  I personally had no problems with her but others not so much.

Recently I attended my 2nd cousin's funeral.  I personally had only seen her a handful of times but oh my I knew what kind of person she was by the legacy she left.  There were over 300 at the visitation and standing room only at the service.  (The chapel seated approx 300 people.) The flowers, oh, they were so beautiful!  You could hear sniffles throughout the room, Karla was only 48 years old and had lost her battle with cancer, but you could feel the love, and the love she had for her Lord.  She was interested in starting a Bible Study at her home just a week or two before she passed on.  Yes, family especially her close family will miss her deeply, but without a doubt they will see her again, if they are right with the Lord. She loved life, but more importantly she loved the Lord!  Even though I had not seen Karla since we were kids, I feel like I knew her.  What a legacy she has left...And that my friends is the kind of legacy I hope to leave!

How about you, what kind of Legacy do you want to leave?  Do you have a personal relationship with Jesus?

'But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.'   Matthew 6:20-21

until next time...nel

Listening...

I am a firm believer 'Everything Happens For A Reason.' Sometimes if we step back and look at the situation we realize what it is, other times not so much.  I know without a doubt, God watches over everything I do, He carries me so many times when I am dragging.
This week, plans were totally thrown out the window.  We had planned to leave for Arkansas today.  Last Wednesday on the way home from church our car started acting up, kinda coughing, did not want to go up a hill, wasn't sure if we were going to make it home.  I quickly put the phone away and started talking to my Lord.  'Please let us make it home,' would you believe it never acted up again.  I told Stan we needed to get it to the mechanic and let him check it out.
So the next morning we took it over and left it, even though he said he probably couldn't get to it until today.  It never acted up or even hesitated Thursday morning, but of course I had already had a conversation with the Lord, told Him I needed His help once again, and that I would give him all the honor and praise for it. Once again he answered prayer.  We were able to pick up our car today, the fuel filter was stopped up.  The mechanic said he had used a 25 p.s.i. air hose and blew into the filter, no air would come through it.  He said the car should not of been running at all, that the filter was completely stopped up.  I wish I would of been with them, I would of let him know it was answered prayer, that the Man upstairs was taking care of it for me.  I am so glad that it messed up when it did and we were not on the road traveling. And it was only a $35 fix.  Arkansas bound this Friday. Thank you Jesus!

You know sometimes He does things to get our attention, I am one of those He has to hit up side of the head.  Usually before we go to Arkansas, I am running around trying to get things done, going crazy, not relaxing until I am ready.  This weekend has been so peaceful without the car, and we have accomplished so much in the yard.  Projects that we had been wanting to do but never seemed to have time.  We are not finished but we are well on our way.  Even got my little red wagon seeded with flowers, now praying they will come up!  
Life is so good and sometimes we need to listen to our Heavenly Father and just slow down and enjoy it! 

Thank you Jesus!  Do you know Him?

'Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.'    Revelation 3:20

until next time...nel

Gone, But Not Forgotten...

Today my head wanted to pick up the phone and place a call or an email but my heart knew I couldn't do that anymore.  Today is Jane's Birthday and I always gave her a hard time because she had caught up with me...but I couldn't this year.  You know sometimes you meet someone and you just hit it off right away, and no matter what happens, and believe me stuff happens, you can always pick up where you left off.  That is a true friend, that is what Jane and I were.  I have so many memories flooding my mind today and yes I have wiped tears a time or two, but such good memories!
When we were in grade school I remember being sent home sick from school. I stayed after school at her house because my mom worked, so of course that is where I went when I was sick.  I was laying on the couch when she got home and she serenaded me with her black flute thing, you know the one all kids used to learn how to play.  That is true friendship!  :)
I also remember the day we moved to Northlake and left Schiller Park.  We were both so upset, I remember my Aunt Mae telling me if you are really friends you will always be friends no matter the distance between you, and she was right. Northlake was not that far but it seemed like the other side of the world.
We spent quite a bit of time together even after moving, she used to love spending the weekend at my house, or camping with the family.  
I remember being so excited for her when she married and when she had her kids, she always wanted a big family.

It is sad when you think about it we all get so busy with our own lives and we think, I need to call her tomorrow, but unfortunately tomorrow doesn't come as soon as it should.  Or you make plans, then something happens and you can't keep them.  
The week before she passed we chatted about my mom's chocolate gravy and how she loved it.  I told her I had a recipe, not mom's of course cause she never used a recipe, but it was close.  And I was supposed to send it to her, she wanted her kids and grandkids to experience one of her favorite things when she was growing up, but I did not get it sent in time...  
We do not know when it is our time...  Tomorrow is not promised us.  So make sure you tell your loved ones and friends, anyone special in your life how much they mean to you and how much you love them, because we never know...

Happy Birthday in Heaven Jane! R.I.P until we meet again!

until next time...nel

Who Do You Call On...

Do you ever wonder where time goes or how things happen so quickly?  I have experienced both of those things lately.  In fact one of them last Thursday.

My hubby and I love to go to Estate Sales.  We love looking at the houses while sifting through the items.  I always wonder about the people who had lived there, you can tell a lot about them by the items in the sale.  Last Thursday we went to one a couple miles from the house.  Oh my at the items, she was a baker, Wilton cake pans galore.  But I believe they also maybe set up tables somewhere like at a flea market.  The house was full!  We love going and finding things to resell on E bay.  Found some good deals at this one and a few little odds and ends for ourselves.

When we were ready to check out we had to go out the backdoor down the steps to the garage.  I had my hands full, 3 bundles of little metal and plastic cars and trucks (Silas only has girl stuff at the Appleton house to play with), and a salt and pepper shaker set in a flat box.  So I had that in my left hand and was holding on to the railing with my right hand, I could not see where I was going. I got to the end of the railing and just assumed the stairs were finished, but guess what? (And we all know what assuming does...) There was one more step and of course when I stepped out I caught the edge of the step and down I went. It happened so quickly, I remember saying: "Oh Lord, Help!"

I hit full force on my knees and my chest with those items in my hand.  It wasn't pretty. I hit hard, it knocked the breath out of me and I rolled over on my back.  Of course I scared everyone to death and they ran over and started asking me if I was ok and if they could help me up.  I told them I just needed to lie there a minute and catch my breath.  I should of told them what I really was doing.  I was praying "Lord, please do not let anything be broke! Please Lord!"  I sat up then got on my knees and raised myself up on a chair that they brought over.  I sat there for a few minutes, moving parts and seeing if I was hurting anywhere.  I am proud to say I did not break anything, not even the salt and pepper shaker.  Thank you Jesus!   Bruised, yes I have several bruises, my left hand and pinky is the worse.  Bruises on the knees and arms and a scrape on my chest from the metal truck.  A little sore here and there but I am okay!

The swelling has gone down considerably, my hand is pretty much a lite shade of purple, the pictures do not show all of it.  I am so glad that I thought to take my wedding rings off right away.  But I am so glad that nothing was broke.  Thank you Jesus!

I guess my real reason for sharing this is to reinforce how quickly things can happen.  I am so glad that I know Whom to cry out to when things happen!  He is there when we need Him! 

Think about it what is the first thing out of your mouth when you find yourself in a predicament?  Something to think about huh?

'God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.'   Psalm 46:1

until next time...nel

One Of These Days...

     My heart is saddened today.  Just found out a special man, Manuel James left this world on January 16^th.   I am sad but at the same time ecstatic because I know he is no longer hurting, because I know where he is!

     We attended the same church for several years here in Springfield, unfortunately things happen, and his wife and him left the church.  The last few years he has been in a rest home in Arkansas.  We did stop and see him last spring and what a joy it was.

     We hit it off right away because he was originally from Arkansas, so our conversation usually included something about Arkansas.  He grew up in Rush, close to Yellville. 

     He reminded me so much of the only grandpa I ever knew – Dolan Church. 

He was so friendly, loved his overalls, and the stories he could tell. 96 years worth of stories!  But more than anything he loved the Lord!  He will be missed and yes I have wiped a few tears, I will cherish the wonderful memories,  but what a reunion it will be…one of these days!

until next time...nel

Hodgepodge 253...

1.. Share a winter memory from your childhood. 

Gosh... I was about 4 or 5 and we lived at the farm in Roselle, IL.  I remember it snowed all night and the next morning, my brother Tom told me to go look out the front door at the snow.  I ran to the door and opened it and there was nothing but snow.  It had drifted on to the porch and totally covered the door.  It scared me to death and of course my dear brother egged it on by telling me we were trapped alive.  Dad mad him help him go out the back door and shovel around to the front and clean the drift off the porch.  He was always doing things like that to me.

2. What was on your blog this time last year? (Besides the Hodgepodge of course!) If you weren't blogging, what in the world were you doing with all that free time? 
I shared a song, and a post on Thankful Thursday's, and of course the Hodgepodge.  Actually last January I did better posting that this January.  It has been a busy month!

3. Ellen Goodman is quoted as saying, 'We spend January 1 walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives...not looking for flaws, but for potential.' 

Do you see more flaws or more potential in your life at the start of a new year? Have you done anything specific this month to address either one? Does the new year truly begin for you on January 1, or is there some other month of the year that feels like a fresh start and new beginning?
I really haven't thought about it.  I am more in tune when Spring starts, then I start looking for changes that need to be made.  Spring always reminds me of new beginnings!

4. Who's an athlete you admire or respect and why?
 To tell you the truth there is no one.  I am not a big sports fan...I know un-American.  But it bothers me that athletes make so much money and so many people get so excited about them and look up to them, but the One Who did more for them than anyone else- a lot of people do not even acknowledge.  Sad Situation!  Thank you Jesus!

5. Do you like cream in your coffee? Whipped cream on your pumpkin pie? Cream cheese on a bagel? Sour cream on a baked potato? Cream of wheat for breakfast? Have you ever had a scone with clotted cream? Of all the creamy foods mentioned, which one sounds most appealing to you right this very minute?
I am not a coffee drinker, have to have whipped cream on the pumpkin pie, cream cheese on the bagel, sour cream on the baked potato, the rest not so much!   An ice cream sundae with whipped cream, a little chocolate and a few nuts, yep that sounds good! I know that is not on the list but it is my answers...

6. Where were you last kept waiting for 'hours on end'? Or for what felt like hours on end? How well did you cope?
Gee, I can't remember.  I am a pretty patient person so it takes a lot for me to feel like I have been waiting forever.

7. Believe it or not, when next week's Hodgepodge rolls around it will be February.Huh?!? Bid adieu here to January in seven words or less.
Farewell January, you were good to us!

8.  Insert your own random thought here.
As you can tell from the last answer January was a fun month.  We flew to Salt Lake City UT for a week.  We had a fabulous time.  Stan's granddaughter got married. And as an added bonus his great granddaughter was blessed at church.  One of his daughters lives there and his other daughter Donna and her hubby flew in from Iowa.  We had a wonderful time!  It was so good to spend time with his family!  Here are a few pictures.

Beautiful!

Stanley and his great granddaughter Hailey Renee.

4 Generations 

Happy Dad and His two daughters & Hailey

The Happy Couple!

Hailey Renee in her beautiful dress

How can anyone not believe in God?

 Have a great week!

until next time...nel

Happy Birthday Dad!

It is hard to believe it has been 18 years today since Dad went to Heaven. Tomorrow he would of been 98 years old. Sometimes it feels like yesterday.

He was very quiet and laid back unless you made him mad or crossed his path. I don’t remember ever getting a spanking from my Daddy, I do remember asking for him to just spank me. The spankings wouldn’t of hurt near as long as those lectures did. One of my fondest memories is when we lived at the farm; he would get up before daylight to go to work. And mom always made him breakfast and I would get up and eat with him. He would drink his coffee and I would drink my iced tea and we would enjoy our breakfast. After I was older, teen years, when he would get home from work we would sit at the picnic table while mom would fix supper. He would always ask me how my day was, if anything exciting happened. 

He loved his family more than life, he may not of said it, but he showed it. He worked hard his whole life right up until he couldn’t work anymore. Then he took over the household chores while mom continued to work.

After mom retired, they moved back to Arkansas, and they were inseparable, when you seen one of them the other was close by. They enjoyed several years just running the roads, enjoying the outdoors with Aunt Maxine and Uncle Doyle. They loved to go eat pizza at Ken’s Pizza in Russellville with Dad’s niece and Mom’s nephew, Bonnie & Franklin. They watched Janice for me while I worked and I remember one particular day. When I walked in there was my Dad in his rocking chair with Janice in his lap. He was reading to her, something I never remembered him doing. Then as we got ready to leave she reached up and hugged him and kissed him on the cheek and told him she loved him, his reply was “I love you too!” So many wonderful memories. 

Then Dad got sicker and eventually had to go to the nursing home. He had Senile Dementia and did not know what he was doing, leaving bruises on Mom’s arms at times. It is an awful disease, a painful disease. Mom was at the nursing home everyday as long as she was able…that is love! I remember stopping by after work or on Saturday morning and Mom would ask him, ‘Olan, do you know who that is?’ And you could see the confusion on his face, I would always pipe up and say, ‘Of course he does, I am his favorite daughter.’ And usually after a few moments he would chuckle and say, ‘only because you are the only one I have.’ Even during the hardest of times there are still good memories.

Hug your Dad a little tighter tonight for me…cause I sure am missing mine!

until next time...nel

Mom & Dad probably right around 1939

James, Dad, Nel

Tom, Nel, Mom & Dad at farmhouse

Dad

Nel, Dad, Mom - Kathy's Apt.

Mom & Dad at Nursing Home

until next time...nel

Happy New Year!

until next time...nel