A delightful cool evening filled with beautiful children and their families at the First Baptist Plainview First Kids Fest. Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

We certainly are blessed!!!

We had so much fun. All of the pictures are my favorites, but here are a few.

Fresh Find: Fun miniature branding iron for your grill master.

This is a sweet vintage photo of the Wall brothers, Clinton the oldest and Bert the younger. It is not a very clear photo, but they have been friends for a long time!

Fresh Find: Fun Star Wars lightsaber toothbrushes.

We trekked to Lubbock for a Fall Music Festival. Our Miss J is entering their band program. They start with the recorder. She has graduated to the flute. They use kid-sized instruments called Nuvo, something like this.

Miss J and her friend played a recorder duet. We are very proud of her. She did an amazing job and we loved her "flapper" costume!!!

Miss B had a fun time, too.

Fresh Find: Fun cut & sew puppets or you can get a pot holder. Fun!

In thinking about saying Amen, I decided to look into the meaning again.

Amen is a word that came to English from Latin, which got it from Greek, which got it from Aramaic, which got it from Hebrew and they say that technically, Aramaic may have had it anyway, before it became the standard language of the Jewish people a few centuries before the time of Christ. Honestly, I don't know. I wasn't there and I have not done a language study. I'm just curious what we think we are saying when we say, Amen.

When one says "amen" in response to a prayer, it serves as an affirmation of agreement with the content of the prayer. 

So be it.

Amen=I believe it will be so.

Faith can be born only after hearing God speaking to us first. Only then can we say, “Amen."

Just my little thought for the day.

Fresh Find: This is a fun floor sofa.

Concrete. It is made up of sand, rock, cement, and water. I wonder what each of this 'concrete' family represents in that mixture?

A fun day at the park with perfect weather!

Fresh Find: I love this concrete tape dispenser. How cool!

How are any of my friends 70? My brother would have been 70 in September. He was seven years older than me. A few of his friends are my friends, too. They are turning 70! Wowza. My dad died when he was 71. Of course, that is young by today's standard of life expectancy. Every year that I get closer to seventy, I have a new appreciation for birthdays!!!

Tonight we celebrated 70 years of Danny Andrews. This is many years of greatness that God has allowed us to enjoy wrapped up in one special guy. We wish him many more!!!

Fresh Find: I'm finding this geometric stitch art on wood very interesting!

Regrets, we all have them. Sometimes they are our fault, and other times they just happen, and we get caught in the situation. I'm not gonna lie. I often am moving forward like a bull in a china closet just trying to get out. Growing up I was the one who always got in trouble, got blamed or caught. I was mischievous to say the least. I was on my own most of the day because both my parents worked retail. It is a miracle that I survived, right? But, I did.

Something only one other person can attest to, and something I truly regret and have apologized for, is the stabbing of my friend with a broken blade pocket knife. I can still see the knife and the gash in his skin. Our parents were in the kitchen playing Yahtzee or dominoes. We were in the garage playing. Neither Skeeter or I can remember the conversation leading up to me jumping off the ladder with the knife in hand and his hand going up and the knife hitting his palm, but it happened.

I remember running to the bathroom to get something to clean it and close it up. In the rushing, our parents realized something was up.  To me, they saved Skeeter's life! I have always felt so bad about that incident. We tease about it now. Today I asked to see a picture.

We both agree that I was a good kid. I know I did not mean for this to happen. I'm not sure why I had my mother's weed digging knife in my hand playing with it, but I did so I take full blame. I'm forgiven. I learned my lesson. God is good because I have been able to apologize for what happened and Skeeterforgave me and my childhood friend and I can laugh about it now...well, he makes fun of me, and I sort of laugh. HA!

Fresh Find: Comfy looking suede leather bootie!

In September of 2006, four Theta Delphin friends traveled to Los Angeles. Oh, the laughs. Here are a few pictures I took of the area and of our fun time.

Fresh Find: If I had a small pet, I would have this in my car!

This evening a '73 classmate and friend, Belinda, was looking up someone in our junior high annual.  She was talking about what others had written in hers. It got me to thinking. I was never asked to sign anyone's annual. I remember that. I'm sure I signed a few because I happened to be there. If you find that I signed your annual, you should be excited!!! It would sell on eBay for big bucks!!! Oddly enough, I have a few notes in my Estacado junior high annuals. I got them out to refresh my memory. Here are a few...

To a great friend. Stay the way you are. Good luck in everything.

To Phyllis, you're a real nut.

To Phyllis, You're one of my best friends, and I like you a lot. Good luck with the following years.

Phyllis, To one of the sweetest and cutest girls I know. Good luck always.

Phyllis, You are awfully nice and cute to be so short. I'm sure you will go far.

To Phyllis, a real nice short girl a little shorter than me.

To a very sweet girl.

Phyllis, you're sweet sometimes.

To Phyllis Diller, You are the nicest short girl.

Shortest nicest girl.

Phyllis, You are one of the neatest girls I know.

To a very pretty red-head and a good friend. Hope you always have good luck.

Phyllis, You're one of the sweetest girls I know, but you know I don't know very many girls. You understand? You've been real neat, and I've had a lot of fun knowing you these last few years. Now, I'm just taking up space. Ha! I always miss your sweet smile and your cute smile. Don't change ever or you'll never get those blue jeans, and I mean it! Stay the same, and you'll get them eventually. All my love.

Phyllis, You're a very sweet girl, and I hope we will be friends for years to come.

To a girl I hope to see next year at P.H.S.

Shorty, Stay little. Keep that smile and wonderful personality, and you'll go a long way in life.

Phyll (is)  Keep that darling sense of humor and great personality, and you'll go far. You already have.

To a good ole pal that I've had a lot of fun with.

Phyllis, You are a very cute girl. You just wouldn't look right without red hair.

Phyllis, It's been a great pleasure knowing you this year. I hope we always have a great friendship.

To the cutest girl who ever walked the earth. Stanley S. Nosepicker

To a really good friend. Best of luck in China.

To a dadgum goofy little girl who is cute and nice and has a good personality. Just stay the same.

Phyllis, It's been fun knowing you. Thanks for the pencils in math.

Phyllis, To the sweetest and longest friend. It's been great knowing you these past nine years. Boy, that's a long time, but I enjoy it with you. I hope we never move away from each other. Remember our fights? (Oh boy) You're a great little girl. Love ya a bunch.

I did not realize that my being short was such a conversation starter. I was 5' 3," but I only weighed maybe 85 pounds in junior high. Reading the words others wrote reminds me that I have pretty much stayed the same person since I was six and asked Jesus into my heart. Oh goodness yes, I have fallen short in some decisions I have made, and I'm sure that I still will, but always in my heart has been Jesus to guide me.

It may sound like I had great friends and I think I really did have a fun school experience with those I was around, but once the school day was done, I was pretty much done. I thrived in my bedroom with my door closed to recharge. I never felt like I fit in but it was who I was, and no one else's fault. I loved everyone. I loved life. I just preferred to live it according to Phyllis. It has worked well for me. God is gracious unto me. Amen

I have remembered that annual writings are seriously superficial. I mean, look at these pictures! Cute? Pretty? Hahaha! I do wish I had that shift in the first picture but that bow in the second one is about as big as I was!!!

1967-1968

1968-1969

Fresh Find: I like the look of this earphones stand. Nice.

I have lived my whole life with a "mask" of not understanding who I was but knowing to whom I belong. It is my faith in Jesus Christ that allows me to survive each day and embrace in joyful song the next one. The "mask" I wear is not seen by others. It hides the face of Aspergers. You will never know what I feel or what I go through just to make it through the moments, but it is the desire of my heart that what you see is the joy of the Lord. 

Five years ago, give or take a few months, I had my mother's estate sale. I had gone through her home with my brother, and we had taken what we felt drawn to. One day at the sale, I saw my mother's cancer radiation mask in a pile to be purchased. I had to let it go. I asked myself how I missed seeing it. It was very personal to me. It was purchased. It was a classmate and longtime friend who bought it. Fast forward to a few weeks ago. I contacted her and asked if she still had it. She did and had never done the art piece she had thought she would. She asked if I wanted it and I said, please. She brought it by today. This is the kind of friends that God has blessed me with. The people that have big hearts. Thank you, MK.

We all have our own "masks" that hide parts of our lives from others. Mathew 7:16 says, You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? It is important to realize that no matter what our "mask" might be covering or protecting us from, we must stand firm in our faith fruits. 2 Timothy 2:17 says, That the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work. I can do nothing without Him. He equips me as he calls me. I trust when I step out that He alone is my foundation. 

You may think it odd that this mask kept tugging at my heart. I asked God, what do you want to show me through getting this mask back? I took my mother to every radiation treatment and doctors appointment, and this was molded to her face. It is personal to me, but it's more than that. It is a story of faith to be able to share His word in this little message.

Have a great week!!!

Fresh Find: Keep Calm & Trust God encouragement cards!