We are mid-way into November and the normal “Brrrrrrr!” most of our local hometown residents should be exclaiming is no where in sight. (Yet!) But the traditional hustle-bustle of preparing for the Winter Season is everywhere! Snow-stakes are being installed and Christmas lights hung (ready for the annual Thanksgiving Day lighting,) and you can find bags of Snow Salt in every hardware store displayed proudly at the check-out counters.
November for me is an annual cleaning of closets, office-folders & such. It is an opportunity to de-clutter and begin the preparation for starting a New Year with a clean slate! So yesterday found me going through my office folder labeled “TO DO,” which contained scribbled messages of ‘this & that’ stuff I hoped TO DO during the course of this past year. I was happy with the small amount of remaining projects needing completion before the hustle-bustle of the holidays rolled in: one more crocheted wedding blanket to complete for a very special December Wedding, a shepherd & sheep yard project that’s been swirl-twirling through my creative mind, and organizing a….well, sshhhhh– I cannot say because…it’s a secret!
And there was one little note, scratchily-scribbled on a piece of bubble-gum pink paper reminding me to make a visit to our local Catholic Gift Shop for a gift Dan & I hoped to donate to a special organization.
I hope they have what we wanted!
When I stopped in to the Catholic Shop today I had no idea that not only would I be able to toss the TO DO note in the waste-basket once I made the necessary purchase, but with the twinkling of a surprise I also happily discovered I could cross off an item from my Bucket List to boot! Alas, God had heard a spoken desire I’d made many moons ago!
Lo & behold with every person I came upon within the shop they personally greeted me by name! Who’d have thunk that this would be the place that “EVERYBODY KNOWS MY NAME…AND THEY’RE ALWAYS GLAD I CAME!”God is so funny how he wraps up our wishes sometimes, isn’t he? He knew I’d hoped for & needed a place that felt like a homecoming...and He delivered in a way I hadn’t quite expected but deliver it He did in a far better way! (I guess God was keeping a secret too!)
And so began my 3hugs&blessings for the Week:
Crossing off item #14 on my Bucket List, Have a special place where “everybody knows my name. And they’re always glad I came!”
Finding a delightful spot to host a special bridal shower for our daughter.
The peace & strength that has enveloped me by focusing only on what lies ahead! “Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Philipines 3:13-14
(All that’s left now is to make a fresh new folder…TO DO it all!!)
hugs n’ may you find 3 bubble-gum pink surprise blessings too!
“In those days there appeared in Israel men who were breakers of the law, and they seduced many people, saying: “Let us go and make an alliance with the Gentiles all around us; since we separated from them, many evils have come upon us.” The proposal was agreeable; some from among the people promptly went to the king, and he authorized them to introduce the way of living of the Gentiles. Thereupon they built a gymnasium in Jerusalem according to the Gentile custom.” 1 Maccabees 1
Tomorrow night is the 49th Annual CMA Awards held in the United States and I hope Cuppycake and I will be able to spend a little time watching some of our favorite artists take home a few well-deserved awards! (Not to mention listen to some really great performances and oogle’ over the fabulous fashion styling!) And whether MY favorites are honored or not, it is always nice to watch people recognized for their hard-work! Admittedly, I’m one of those individuals who would rather have ‘participation awards’ for everyone, but I do appreciate & admire the talents of others and am excited for their achievements.
And since the CMA Awards are so huge and will be followed by millions of viewers I have decided to hide among their many accomplishments by taking the opportunity to say thank you to some very special followers who have recognized me with a few blogging awards. (Imagine my surprise when I was notified!) I now know what the performers mean when they stand there on stage, award in hand, and cannot come up with the “right words” to thank their voting audience. I admire so very much the fellow-bloggers who have nominated me that I am giddy-with-excitement to humbly say, “Thank you!” I fear I’ve been holding on to accepting them out of ‘cyber-stage-fright’ but I truly do want to thank them properly. There are a few important steps to walk through in accepting these honors in an appropriate way; however, I have condensed the process in fear of ‘running off the cyber-stage’ before I become tippity-tap-typeset-tied & fumble the words!!
Two particular Awards I actually received when I first began blogging:
I was Awarded The Versatile Blogger Award through Cherry at Cherita Story! I have enjoyed her youthful, spunky, writing voice and have missed her postings. She has not written since early 2015 but I do so very much hope-ity-hope she will return! Perhaps my ‘ping-back’ will inspire her to do so!
Another blogger who has not updated her site for quite a period of time, but was kind enough to award me The Liebster Award was, noplainjanie! I love, love, love the images, color, and cheerful personality she writes with & I do hope she too returns to her blog-space very soon!!
Last but not least one of my kindest followers, Anand from blabberwockying! Anand awarded me two separate honors! The Liebstser Award, the same Award as noplainjanie listed above, and also The Sunshine Blogger Award! I have loved discovering Anand’s bloggity-blog site as he has exposed my heart & my thoughts to many interesting aspects of living. He has a courageous spirit and cannot be outdone in his generosity! He is very affirming to fellow blog-writers and I look forward to reading his perspective on many topics.
When receiving an Award in cyber-world you are asked to do several things:
*Once you are nominated, make a post thanking and linking the person(s) who nominated you! *Include the Award sticker in the post too and be sure to answer the questions from your nominator(s)! *Nominate 5 -10 other bloggers who you feel are worthy of this award! *Lastly, COPY these rules in the post.
Because I have just now collected the courage to accept these Awards there is a plethora of questions to answer which have piled up from the three wonderful bloggers who nominated me! How I have chosen to handle my dilemma is to take an itty-bitty sampling of questions, (from each of the three,) to answer; so that I do not over-whelm anyone with data, yet hopefully keep it interesting for you while honoring my nominators! (Fingers-crossed!)
Why exactly do you write?
I have always journaled. I actually still have old Diaries from my youth and have journaled using various mediums throughout my lifetime. My blog is an opportunity for me to journal in cyber-space! It is a personal attempt to catalog my thoughts as I tippity-tap-type them off into the cyber-world!
Do you believe in miracles? If yes, have you ever seen one?
Yes! And yes! First and foremost I do believe the gift of life is not merely scientific…I believe life itself is a miracle. And that my life has been saved, sinner though I am, by a redeeming God is a miracle. Having said that…there have been two miracles thus far I have been witness to. While praying a Rosary on a silver-beaded Rosary my husband had custom made for me by a local woman as a Christmas gift…the beads turned from silver to gold in the course of prayer. This all took place after a pilgrimage to Medjugorje where this has been reported to have happened on multiple occasions. The prayer intention I had been praying for during this transformation to my Rosary indeed was eventually fulfilled. (The woman who made the Rosary for me verified in writing she used silver beads, while a local jewelry store verified their now gold composite. This evidence was turned in to the study of miracles at Medjugorje.) Lastly, I acquired a ‘healing cloth’ during our pilgrimage to Medjugorje, which I took to the hospital with me upon hearing our god-child was gravely ill. The dr’s at our local hospital gave permission for the cloth to be placed with her, amongst her wrappings, prior to her being air-flighted to a nearby Major Medical Hospital. Her survival has been said to be ‘miraculous.’
Which is your best memory?
Besides the marriage to my husband and birth of my children…reading my favorite childhood book, Island of the Blue Dolphin, while sitting in my favorite Chestnut tree in the side-yard of my childhood home.
Do you feel you are at peace with yourself?
Yes, profoundly…
Who is your guide, guru or counselor?
My Lord, my God, my Saviour!
What makes you feel very good?
When someone asks me to pray for them. Or values my opinion.
Which quality or habit in your life do you like the most about yourself?
My ability to listen.
What is your best quality?
My loyalty.
Which is more important, Heart or Brain?
Heart.
What are your two greatest quotes of all times?
“The truth is like a lion. It does not need defending. Set it free. It will defend itself.” St. Augustine
“It is good to have an end to journey toward, but it is the journey that matters in the end.” Ursula K. LeGuin
God is so funny how he wraps up our wishes sometimes, isn’t he? He knew I’d hoped for & needed a place that felt like a homecoming...and He delivered in a way I hadn’t quite expected but deliver it He did in a far better way! (I guess God was keeping a secret too!)
hugsnblessings 