Merry Christmas!

Just wanted to post a quick Merry Christmas (13 minutes left of the day!) in my "bloggy" world. :)
All for now,
Tricia

Facing My Giants

Tonight my little family watched the movie Facing the Giants. It's one of the typical feel-good movies that at first glance may seem predictable and syrupy. I'm sure for many viewers, it begs the question, "Does God really care about whether we win or lose a football game?" For me, I suppose the question would be more like, "Does God really care...period?"

The last few months, hubby and I have had to face some pretty big giants ourselves. On September 27, we found out John's fulltime days at his company were numbered. Exactly the same week, we realized our car, "Ethel," needed a new transmission, costing roughly $2,000. For the past two months, we have cranked out the resumes, spent hours online for a job, any job; we have driven only to and from school, church and the store because the car shakes so badly, it rattles our teeth; and we have spent a lot of time on our knees, trying to believe, but not always succeeding.

I am proud of us that we have not given up, and for the most part are facing each day with new resolve. We've not turned on each other or cursed God.

But then, it's not really about us.

For a long time I've wished I had a better faith and to know, deep down in my gut, nothing is impossible with God--coincidentally, the mantra of the football team in the movie. I'm realizing that there is a reason Jesus said time and time again, the reason He came to earth was to "bring glory to His Father."

Up till now, have I really, truly cared about that? I don't think so. But I'm starting to get it. I realize that God may or may not provide a decent job for John. He may or may not allow us to continue to stay in the DFW area, where my beloved parents are, as I long to be near to them. But I desire to love Him anyway. I desire to follow Him, even if I don't understand His views or ways.

I've been fighting true surrender all along. But I can fight Him no longer. I will remember the words of Christ:

"So I wouldn't get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap. Satan's angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty. At first I didn't think of it as a gift... and then He told me, 'My grace is enough, it's all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness.' Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap, and began appreciating the gift...Now...I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become" (2 Corinthians 12:8-10 The Message).

Oh, and the answer to that question?

Yeah, He cares. And He specializes in the impossible.

What giants are you facing today?

A little nuts

I gave this card to Hannah's teacher. I wrote "Nuts about you," under the squirrel. I thought it turned out really cute. The pattern (as are all other cards I've stitched) is by Form-A-Lines.

Thanksgiving handmade cards

Love is in the air collage

I've been missing playing with photos (while my computer was in the shop), so I decided it was time to create a new photo collage. For fun, I included the original photograph for you to compare with the finished collage.

I took the original shot after Hannah had spent the day at her school's fall fair, where she had her hair dyed with temporary pink and blue highlights! And the little stuffed chick is a beanie baby she won at the fair. (Notice the big "kiss" on her cheek. She made her daddy's heart stop a moment when she gleefully announced that a "big boy" had kissed her!) That was one happy girlie!

Enjoy!

From this:

To this:

Still my little girl...

Don't let the "tough girl" picture fool you: this girlie is as sweet as they come! Case in point:

~ When her class was still doing ITBS testing this year, she giddily reported, "We're still getting yummy snacks! Goldfish and grape juice!" even though testing was done for the week. I'm glad she gets excited over little things like "kid" snacks.

~ When asked during a game what age she'd like to be and why, she said, "Sixteen. Because I would like to drive a car." That's my red-blooded American tween! ha!

~ During her prayers, she still prays for "everybody in the world." That's her standard. But they're getting deeper. She recently prayed for some friends who are having trouble in school: "Help them to be on the right path to You, Jesus, so they make sure to get to heaven." And last but not least, during mealtimes, she still prays for our pets, Sonny and Jacky. She's a faithful pet-owner!

~ When asked why in the world she didn't tell someone she was feeling so sick until she got home from school: "I had no strength," she said. "I didn't even have the strength to tell Mrs. Solomon, to go up to her desk. I felt so chilled and when I felt my skin I was so hot. I just laid my little head down because I couldn't do anything else."

~ When asked, during a game, what would be the title of a book she'd write: How I Survived the Last Days. She's very interested in end time events according to the Bible.

* * *

In other news, this past Thursday I gave a presentation to Hannah's class on Boundaries: When you should say "no." It went really well! I told them that many people--family, friends, teachers--will have expectations of us in life. And that it's really important that we ask ourselves every now and then, "Is this a reasonable or unreasonable expectation of me?" If it's not, they should have the right and the responsibility to tell people in their lives. That they don't *have* to say yes to everything, especially something that might get them into trouble.

I had an activity with balloons, another one with cups of water, and yet another that involved Indian Wrestling! ha! They seemed enjoy it. The only downside was that I realized too late that I did not have enough balloons to go around for them to take home. Note to self: bring enough for each kid next time! ha! I feel badly about it enough to go buy another bag and have Hannah hand them out sometime in the next few weeks.

One girl had the expression of losing her bestest friend when I said all the balloons were given out! But Hannah came to the rescue! My little helper, clasping the balloon I'd given her, gently wiped the spittle off the balloon she'd been blowing on and offered hers to the girl. What a trooper! And you know what? The other girl, looking mortally offended at the still-wet-from-Hannah's-mouth balloon, shrugged her shoulders, took the balloon and marched triumphantly away. I decided to ignore any squeamish thoughts inside me that screamed of "Germs! You shouldn't share Germs!" and, gently squeezing my daughter's shoulder, declared it a DAY.

An old jalopy

An old "jalopy." Isn't that a fun word?? Anyway, here's a card I stitched for my uncle, who owns a truly antique car (Model-A? Model-T? can't remember which one). I believe it's the same one my grandpa and grandma used to go on their honeymoon around 1930 or 31.

I used a rich, deep turqoise thread for the main body of the vehicle, in addition to the black varigated thread for the tires. Hope you enjoy!

All for now,

Tricia