Monday, December 31, 2007

Happy New Year!


Another Year for Thee

Another year is dawning!
Dear Master, let it be,
In working or in waiting
Another year with Thee!

Another year of leaning
Upon Thy loving breast
Of even deeper trusting,
Of quiet, happy rest.

Another year of mercies,
Of faithfulness and grace;
Another year of gladness,
In the shining of Thy face.

Another year of progress,
Another year of praise;
Another year of proving
Thy presence "all the days."

Another year of service,
Of witness to Thy love;
Another year of training
For holier work above.

Another year is dawning!
Dear Master, let it be,
On earth, or else in heaven,
Another year for Thee!

Compiled by Dale Crowley
(But don't know where we found it!)


Monday, December 10, 2007

Our 9th Annual Christmas Pig Pickin'

Sorry I have not posted this week.
We've been very busy preparing for this special event at church!
Saturday we went to the church early to decorate...






Then after a few extra erands, we went home to start cooking for it...


My friend spent the night Friday and Saturday night
so she could help prepare for the Pig Pickin'.
We decided to make a cute snowman cake
from out of my Taste of Home Baking Book.
It took us two days to make...



While we worked on it,
mom sat on the floor and braided the challah bread...


Then finally, it was finished...




The Pig Pickin' was a lot of fun!
I brought along my guitar and violin again.
Pastor and I are going to play 'Silent Night'
next Sunday on the violin and guitar.
(He'll be playing my guitar.)
So we practiced for that
and I practiced a violin/piano offeratory duet
for when I play my violin at church this Wednesday
with our pastor's wife.
We'll be playing "The First Noel".

Well as you can see, we've been very busy.
I hope to post again sometime soon.


"Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth;
and break forth into singing, O mountains:
for the LORD hath comforted his people,
and will have mercy upon his afflicted."
Isaiah 49:14

Monday, November 26, 2007

Through Trials and Suffering...


"To every thing there is a season,
and a time to every
purpose
under the heaven...
A time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;"
Ecclesiastes 3:1,4


As life goes on, we all experience

different seasons in our lives.
As these verses say, life isn't just

'woopty doo' and all fun;
there will be times of

hard trials and sufferings.
Though we have no option

of if we want the trial or not,
we do have, basically, 2 choices:

§ To turn from the Lord,become discouraged
or even bitter;
§ Or to draw closer to Him than we've ever been before.


And, as with all things, there are

consequences with which we choose.
If we say we've had enough, throw up our hands,
and are 'through with living for God',

then we've made the obvious foolish choice
and will reap the consequences.
We will no longer be able to experience the joy
and peacefulness of our salvation;
we break our Heavenly Father's heart,
as well as others' around us.

So then maybe we should just pretend
it's not really happening or hurting us,
and we decide to take it as "nothing".
We just keep it in the back of our minds
and
try, half-heartedly, to 'trust in the Lord',
because it really might work out after all.
Oh yes! This seems to work!
But suddenly, I don't seem to get the same feeling
when I pray or am in God's Word.
Why does God seem so far away?
Well, just because we think we've dealt with something
or 'pushed it aside', doesn't mean it isn't there.
Satan will always try to creep in where he can and say,
'You can't handle this! It's too hard!'
But let's remember:

"I can do all things through Christ
which strengtheneth me."
Philippians 4:13
The fact is, we can do nothing on our own.

When a soilder would get wounded from an arrow in battle,
he could either leave it in and 'deal with the pain' or remove it.
If he leaves it in, it will cause an infection and he'll end up dying:
but removing it would be so painful!
Plus, he couldn't do it on his own...
he might not remove it all the way or he may cause more damage.
He has to trust an experienced one to remove it for him.

Well, we can't just leave that 'arrow' in and 'deal with it'
or 'tough it out'; that will ruin us.

We cannot trust in our own knowledge of the matter.
We need to trust in a much Higher and experienced One
to lift the load, rather than try to do it ourselves.

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart;
and lean not unto thine own understanding." Proverbs 3:5

We must fall on our knees and cry out to God
that we simply cannot handle a situation on our own.
Yes, it can really hurt sometimes to let something go,
especially if it, at the time, seems dear to us go.
But completley give it all over to the Lord
and He'll not only free you from your heavy burden!...
He'll bandage the wound, pick you up, hold your hand,
heal you, and see you through.
He'll never let go!

"Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee:
he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved."
Psalms 55:22


"For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand,
saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee."
Isaiah 41:13


He promises never to leave us or forsake us,
no matter how hard times will get.
What a friend we have in Jesus!

The purpose of trials is to grow us more like Him
and to bring us closer to Him.
If we missed that, then we'll certainly feel
our suffering was in vain (and it will be in that case).
But,
"And we know that all things work
together for good to them that love God..."
Romans 8:28


If we hearken unto God and turn to Him,
then He will grow us and draw us closer to Him.
And any trial is worth that, really.

As the beginning verses say,
there is a time for everthing.
Our trials will not last forever, praise God!
"...weeping may endure for a night,
but joy cometh in the morning." Psalm 30:5
When we pour out our heart to the Lord,
He will give us that peace and joy we've been thirsting for.

And something that really helps me to keep going...
"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time
are not worthy to be compared with the glory
which shall be revealed in us."
Romans 8:18


The hardness at which we suffer down here
is not even worthy to be compared with
the greatness and glory that awaits us in heaven!
To think that one day I will see Jesus face-to-face
and hold His nail-scarred hand as we walk
down streets of gold together:
that's enough to make one shout
"Amen and glory to God!" 100 times a day or more!
The One who was always there,
Who carries us through the deep waters,
Who we can tell everything to, pouring our hearts out,
and Who cares and understands like no one else,
is waiting to greet us over in Gloryland...
where no more sorrow is!
Praise God!


(graphic from allposters.com)

Saturday, November 24, 2007

A Weekend Review...

Busy, busy, busy!
There are so many times I want to post,
but I always find something else I need to do.
This week was especially busy with Thanksgiving.
I thought I'd share at least 10 things I'm very thankful for...

1. The wonderful gift of salvation!!!
2. A great family and church friends.
3. The privilege of audience with the King of Kings.
4. The freedom to worship the Lord and to homeschool.
5. The strength Christ gives me to face the battles.
6. The victory He gives in those battles.
7. The trials He has given me to grow me.
8. The grand piano He's giving us in church!
9. The ability to play various musical instruments.
10. Jesus' sweet fellowship,

always being there to hold my hand,
and His faithfulness of never letting go or failing me.



Wednesday evening we had a fellowship
after the church service and giving testimonies.
I made a cake for the occaision...




I also brought along my guitar and violin,
so after the service I played
while the children gathered around to sing...



I, also, played the violin while the men were moving the piano out
for the new grand piano that I mentioned we're getting!

Thursday we had a family Thanksgiving dinner...



We had ham, mashed potatoes, oreo fluff, and various other goodies.
Then afterwards, we set up the Christmas tree.
This, being a major bird lover, is my favorite ornament!



Yesterday I sewed my Christmas dress for our family photos.
Mom made hers and is now working on the girls' as I type...



Today we had some old friends visit,
which was a blessing.
I decided to give myself the day off from schoolwork
Thursday and Friday, so I'll probably catch up some today.
I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!

Friday, November 16, 2007

Mathematical Musings and More...

Sorry I haven't posted all week.
I've been, as they say, 'cracking down'
on doing a lot of schoolwork.
And we've had various other things during the week.
But I was so thrilled when we returned from grocery shopping
last night to find a package for me at the door!
It was my math that I was waiting for...






I used Teaching Textbooks a few years ago for Algebra 2,
and liking the method, I wanted their pre-cal as well.
Now this particular subject was NOT my first choice,
(I'd have rather taken Algebra 2 again!)
but it was this or Geometry!!!!!
So naturally, I picked the calculus,
which will help me in Advanced Chemistry anyway.



Speaking of Chemistry, we went to the library yesterevening
and I went to my favorite section (can you guess??)... science!
I found a whole shelf of chemistry books and had a hard time choosing.
Since the books were so big and thick, I just got two.
One is all about Physical Chemistry,
and the other is Chemical Bonding... my two favorite branches!

Well, today we have a homeschool park day.
My friend and I like to bring our violins to play while we're there.
And then, it's 'Friend Friday' for us!
And speaking of violins, I'll be playing my violin for church
sometime next month for the congregational singing.
And my friend's mom will be taking my place at the organ,
so we'll have a 3 person 'orchestra' for some Christmas carols!

Well, it's about time to leave.
I'll try to post again next week.
I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Friday Fun and Busy Baking...

As our usual Friday tradition,
our friends came over and we had a great time.
We had fun doing Bible study and fellowshipping.

Before I go further, I wanted to say "Thank you, Mom"
for the baking book she purchased for me!





Oooooh!
It was so thoughtful and sweet of her!

Perhaps you can guess what my friend and I did?
Oh yes! We spent 40 minuets drooling over the book
and then we had to make the hard choice of what to bake!
We decided on chocolate mint wafers... yum!



(these are NOT our wafers, unfortuneately,
these are from the book)
Thankfully, we had just enough mint extract!
So she started mixing the cookies
and I started making the sourdough pizzas

that we have every Friday...









We had a great time in the kitchen.
After the pizzas were done and the dough was chilled,
we sat together making shapes for the cookies.

Lots o' fun!

I've also been really busy crocheting gifts.
I'm finally almost finished with Mom's, but I can't

tell you until after Christmas because she reads my blog ;-)

I've also really been enjoying my Advanced Chemistry...




I've finally learned all there is to physical chemistry
(my favorite branch of chemistry!) and I love it!
Actually, the one who wrote my Advanced Chemistry
said that most chemists don't like physical chemistry
and have a difficult time comprehending it.
But I sure LOVE it!

Speaking of Chemistry,
we did one of my experiments together yesterday.
I dippped a Q-tip in colbat chloride solution
and wrote on a piece of blank paper.
You couldn't see it until I blow dried it,
and the solution was readable in blue...
(Please excuse the hideous faces mom caught us in!)



(Colbat Chloride is originally pink,
but I won't explain all the deatils in the experiment! ;-)
You can hardly see the writing in the picture, though.

The Lord's creation is SO wonderful and complex!
How can anyone believe this all happened by chance?
There is so much evidence of God in His complex creation!

Well, I hope everyone's had a great week!



"Therefore also now, saith the LORD,
turn ye even to me with all your heart,
and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:
And rend your heart, and not your garments,
and turn unto the LORD your God:
for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger,
and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil."
Joel 2:12&13

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Not I, But Christ...

Sunday morning, I sang a duet
with our assistant pastor's wife.
And the song we chose really spoke to my heart.
It was a good reminder that we can do nothing

on our own, and to give God the glory for the victory.
I loved singing the words
and the tune went so well with them.

I thought I'd share the song...


Not I, But Christ


Not I, but Christ be honored, loved, exalted.
Not I, but Christ be seen, be known, be heard.
Not I, but Christ in every look and action.
Not I, but Christ in every thought and word.


(Chorus)
Oh, to be saved from myself, dear Lord!
Oh, to be lost in Thee!
Oh, that it may be no more I, dear Lord,
but Christ that lives in me.

Not I, but Christ to gently soothe in sorrow.
Not I, but Christ to wipe the falling tear.
Not I, but Christ to lift the heavy burden.
Not I, but Christ to hush away all fear.

Christ, only Christ ere long will fill my vision.
Glory excelling soon, full soon I'll see.
Christ, only Christ my every wishful filling.
Christ, only Christ my all in all to be.

words by Mrs.A. A. Whiddington
music by Mac Lynch




"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live;
yet not I, but Christ liveth in me:
and the life which I now live in the flesh
I live by the faith of the Son of God,
who loved me, and gave himself for me."
Galatians 2:20

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Appointments, Baking, Chemistry, Dress, and Everything Fun!

Well, as you can, likely, tell by the title,
I've been very busy lately!
Yesterday we went over to our friends' house
and Stephani and I did our science experiments.
She's doing Apologia's General Science
and did the experiment with baking soda,
vinegar, a 2 liter bottle and balloon.
And I did an experiment with my elements!
I used the sodium ferrocyanide,
colbat chloride, ferric ammonium sulfate,
sodium carbonate, and something else I can't remember!
Anyway, LOTS of different colors! It was really neat!
(We didn't really get any good pictures)




Then we came home and I sewed a dress...



I used the Renaissance dress pattern's skirt
with my regular pattern's bodice, to make the skirt much fuller.
Mom has a matching one too.


We also had one of those ‘fun nights with the camera’!
Be prepared… ;o)











LOL!!!


And when I was blowing the leaves Saturday,
(I'm still out of breath from it! LOL)
I came across a cute little guy…



Remember!
‘The 15 minutes it takes you to read this post,
you could save 15% on car insurance!’
LOL!




Today I worked on some schoolwork and
we just arrived home a little while ago from shopping.
We bought LOTS of fabric and
will be busy with sewing for a while!
We also picked up something to take to a fellowship
after church tomorrow night.
I'll be baking lemon bars tonight, too! Mmmm!

Tomorrow I have a doctor appointment an hour away.
It's worth the drive for us, though,
because we get to eat at a favorite place while there!


I thought I’d share something that we got in the mail
(junk mail) for a coupon to eat at Arby’s…
The ad was kinda funny...





ROFLOL!

I hope everyone's week is going great so far.


"Who is like unto the LORD our God,
who dwelleth on high,
Who humbleth himself to behold
the things that are in heaven, and in the earth!"
Psalms 113:5&6

"How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God!
how great is the sum of them!"
Psalms 139:17

Friday, October 26, 2007

My Adventure To The Past...

Well, I'm back!
(Sorry it took me so long to post!)
I thought I'd share photos of our trip!

We arrived last Monday and had a blast.
On our way to my great aunt's,
we passed byLowe's Motor Speedway.
They had just had a race on Saturday

and we weren't allowed to go in the race track,
since they were cleaning up from Saturday's race.
But a nice security guard let us in and gave us a 'v.i.p.' tour!
And there were a few racers driving around, trying out their new tires!



It was neat! And loud.
Cars zooming by at 200 mph literally shook the ground!
But we did have fun.

After that, we went to my aunt's.
We had supper, fellowship, and I played my violin

outside on her front porch.

The next day, we got up early and went
to the Carolina Rennaissance Festival!
(Which was our main destination for this trip!)




Upon walking up to the gate,
we said hello to a lady playing the bagpipes!



(By the way, I made the cape the day before we left
to go along with my dress!)

The queen, princess, and prince gave us
a warm welcome, then a cannon fired and the gates opened.
We first went to watch two hilarious men perform a duel and more,
Don Juan and Miguel...



After that we walked around and did various other things.
It was really neat having people talk to me
in a Rennaissance style and always say, 'M'lady'!
I was able to practice my OldEnglish
and did a lot of curtsying!
We all really enjoyed a lady playing the celtic harp...



After more walking around and doing other things,
some special people arrived!
We got to meet the Brittany and her family at the festival!
Here we getting ready to watch the joust...



Will and his new friends...



Brittany and I...



It was a fun jousting tournament to watch!
Afterwards, we went to the petting zoo.
Then Brittany and I took our younger sisters
on the giant rocking horse...



After that we left and had dinner together.
On our way out, Brittany and I had our picture taken with...


.. Not quite our 'knight in shining armour'!


I really enjoyed meeting them!!!

On the day we left, we went to an ancestoral homesite:
the Hezekiah Alexander homesite and the Charolotte muesam.





We also had our picture taken with a statue of our
great great great.... etc...(grandfather) Hezekiah!



Too bad the house wasn't passed down through generations :(
The muesam had some great things in it too.
I especailly liked this old pianoforte...



It was a lot of fun as well.
Then we made it home just in time
to be about 5 minutes late for church!

Oh, before I close, I just thought I'd say...



LOL!
(Excuse the pirrahna plant thing,
I was attempting to make a rose for the first time
and obviously failed!)
I made the cake last night for us to eat today!
Sourdough pizza night with our friends, as usual! ;o)
Stephani and I practiced some violin and piano duets.
And earlier this morning, my family went to the dentist!!
I love them almost as much as I love the doctors!
Well, I hope you all have a great weekend!

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