You Sure We Aren't in the 70's?

Our adult children get a good laugh out of my husband and my expressions of time.  My husband can say, "oh I used to do that," which in our adult children's time clock would mean in the last few years, whereas, in my husband's  time clock it might mean 20 to 30 plus years ago. Hubby and I  might say, "oh that was just a while back.", which to our adult children would mean last week, while we might be referring to sometime in the last decade or two.

So as I strolled through the movie theater with Benjamin on our way to see Cars 2  I was stopped in my tracks.  There was a very familiar movie.  My mind raced back in time to my first viewing of this classic.

No wonder I can get so scattered brain when it comes to time....I mean,

  what was old is now new again.

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The Three Musketeers

I think this was  the first movie I saw without my parents, but with peers.  I was in Jr High and I went with a group of girls and boys.  That group of friends and I all turned 50 this year.

1973

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Three Musketeers.....2011
This is the movie that stopped me in my tracks and sent me time traveling.

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Now this changed everyone's hair style!!  1976 to 1981

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Charlies' Angels 2011


Now this is just one television re-make and one movie re-make....I haven't even started to mention music and clothes.

So next time I think I have traveled back in time...it isn't because I am showing signs of dementia  or menopausal brain fog, but for some reason our society is taking us back.  I can't complain, even if I don't like the re-makes, the memories of that time period are treasures.

You you ever experience Deja Vue or time travel also?

Living in a Understanding Way

Designing Women - show in 1986 - 1993

I have these hormonal moments at different times that bring about the ready to flee instinct.  I guess that is better than the fight instinct.  I am glad I know the source and these too will pass away.

So on Friday I woke up and said, "this isn't a good day!"  My husband heard the despair in my voice and the frustrations of not being able to overcome these feelings.  My husband's marriage verse is

Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered. I Peter 3:7

Hubby was also leaving for an out-of-town trip leaving me behind with a continuously talking, energetic five-year-old and a teenage boy who needed to be ready for a mission trip by Sunday.  He gently knew what would lift my spirits and re-energize me....besides it was on sale.

He jumped in the car to save the day and run to the 40% off sale at.....................have you guessed yet?  What would be on your list?

To Sherwin Williams he fled to purchase four gallons of paint!  He knows what energizes his wife.  Now I am sure that didn't top most of your list or even make your list, but that is the uniqueness of knowing one's wife.

Oh Friday I painted the family room, the first coat of my kitchen baek-splash and the 1/2 bath.
Saturday I painted the walls in my exciting new sunny, cheerful and energetic kitchen.  Later I re-arranged the furniture in the den and hung new sun-giving blinds.

The flee hormones just left and went sailing away as I created.  My energy level went through the roof as I changed my environment.  The excitement of a completed project kept me up until 10:30...when I normally hit the bed by 10:00.  Then I plopped down on the couch, turned on the TV to unwind, flipped through the channels and there was Designing Women....I just had to laugh.

Wise husband left for his trip with a happy wife taking care of the home front.


HERE IS MY HANDIWORK OVER THE WEEKEND! Sorry all you photographers...I am not one.

• Repaint all the gold walls - the wall to the kitchen is in Accessible Beige, other walls Grand Canyon Tan

Finished Project in Family Room - Still no staging...and pictures still missing

Okay...just boring plain paint...but it did change the atmosphere and at 40% off,
Now here is where the fun came in.  Half bath was painted a green...which I also had 11 years ago in our home....but now time to go!

I wanted to continue to use the pictures that had been stored in boxes for three years...so I had to find a way to combine both.  I took the paint from the Family Room and painted all the walls....this pulls both rooms together.  Then I grabbed a old friend....a stencil!

I Love It....Husband Invested Well!!

Now I am off to finish more painting the kitchen....it is my fun room...I will probably post hints before it is ALL finished.

Happy Painting!!  Then off to the sewing Room!  

Am I Being Seduced?

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se·duce  (s-ds, -dys)

tr.v. se·duced, se·duc·ing, se·duc·es

1. To lead away from duty, accepted principles, or proper conduct. See Synonyms at lure.

2. To induce to engage in sex.

3.

a. To entice or beguile into a desired state or position.

b. To win over; attract.

Recently, my wise husband and I were discussing a situation in which we are very closely involved and affected by.  I was expressing my disbelief that the person involved couldn't see what was happening.  Surely, their discernment had just gone out the window. Where were the foundations that had been given?  It was as plain as the nose on my face, along with others, that the person was making a wrong decision.

As I continued to express very animatedly how I felt over the choices, my husband in his grey-haired wisdom, summed it up in very few words.  Now aren't men just like that...a few words?

"That is why they call it seduction.  The person doesn't see the seduction, so they are seduced."

Wow!...they are blinded by what is right in front of them.  Their judgement has been altered.

How often am I seduced?  Not the picture we as women might envision of a partially dressed female coming onto an innocent man, but the subtle seduction that can come in many forms.

The enemy will not try to seduce me with an affair or getting drunk, but he is more likely to try to seduce me with the idea of security.  Can I be seduced  in my spiritual walk to feel I have arrived at the right theology or form of worship?  Can I be seduced to bite from the American Dream of success?  I am sure the list could fill a page.   

 Satan seduced Eve, then Eve seduced Adam in the garden, to take the forbidden fruit.  Since then, we have all had to put up our guard against seduction.  Our prayer for this person and for ourselves is that we will have our blinders taken off to reveal the seduction that is presenting itself right before our eyes.  If a woman and a man who walked daily with God, experiencing intimacy beyond our experience can fall....so can I. Then Jesus came to be my advocate.

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Hebrews 2:18

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁸ Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested.

Come On In - You are Welcome

What happens when you pin up a decorative mind for three years then give her the keys to her cage....she goes flipping design crazy.

Well welcome to our new temporary home.  As I extend my decorating wings again I have decided...why not?

Objectives in this project -

• Design to my own taste, not a magazine or trend
• Have fun, it is temporary and will be changing before the end of the decade
• Do all of it in the cheapest fashion and still look good
• Do all of it as fast as possible....making this new dwelling feel like ours faster

As Mary said, "who paints a front door beige?"  So the front door needed attention, inviting you in to join our lives. (Mary is a wonderful artist and shares her work and spiritual wisdom on her blog)

Notice my paint swatches on the side of the door.

Hubby wanted a red door...He got a red door!

Now does that shout out "WE ARE HERE! Come on in!"

Next problem.  I was use to a lot of sunshine...I mean a lot of sunlight, to the point of fading my furniture.  Oh well, live and learn.  Along with the sunlight were very high ceilings.  So when we visited this house it had small windows and lower ceiling, knocking out the sunshine.  Then the walls were painted with a warm gold, a color I had used in my own house 13 years ago, when the walls were flooded with light.  As I walked in, the combination made me feel  like I was walking into a cave...not good.

Solution - Make the ceiling feel higher and the room feel like it contains more light - without spending a lot of money.

PAINT

Here are pictures of what you would see when you entered the door...excuse the mess we didn't clean up.

The gold was painted on all the walls going up the stairs and all over the adjoining family room.

Well the saying "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend"....I am going to have diamonds!

The large diamonds give you the sense that the ceiling is higher.  The lighter color brings light into the room.

The remaining walls will continue to be in gold.  The hotel vertical blinds will be replaced with economical faux wood 2" blinds in white.  There will be valances across the windows mounted at the ceiling to extend the ceiling height visible.  The undersized light fixture will be replaced with a "treasured-find-deal" in oil bronzed, to fill the large expanse table.(shown here without extensions) The gold mirror will be bronzed. Yes, knobs are missing on the dresser which holds all my table linens...I am will be finding some jewelry (knobs)  to adorn the 60-plus-year-old family dresser.  All our art work that was stored for three years came out of their boxes for our enjoyment.  Yea! pictures on the walls!!!

Here is the room.  No tablescape at this time Debbie...I will have to do one soon and post after unpacking all those boxes of dishes.  I feel this room expresses my years of attempting a more formal look.  The chairs weren't bought with the table, they are chairs from my first dining table. My dream is to have eclectic chairs all around the table representing the different personalities of my children.  I plan to collect them from different sources.  Yes a formal table, but with a twist. The two parsons chairs are from when I had my own business and I upholstered them myself...they were finds from Salvation Army then I got a hold of them.  Yes, there could be some updating....but that isn't in the budget...so using what I have with joy.

To lighten up the stairway the walls were painted in Accessible Beige, with a picture hanging through the opening.  The large wall entering into the family room was also painted to reflect the light.

Here is the piano we had to find a room to fit...Rebecca and yes Lea, the bench can seat two.  It was my husband's mother's dream to give her children a grand piano...a true family treasure.

So welcome to the entry way and first room of our new dwelling.  There is more to come...some will be shocking.  My house tells my life story and I read it as I walk through.  It won't show up in the magazines or make for a number breaking blog, but it reminds me of the goodness of my God as I stroll through.  I hope you enjoy the tour as I guide you through in upcoming post.

Made to Be A Hero!

From an early age, my boys have all possessed the desire to be a hero.  Their imaginations might have been  stirred through the comic book characters of Batman, Spiderman and the likes that are now being re-born on the movie screens recently.  Others might be pulled into the hero mentality through the Lone Ranger or Matt Dillon.  Each male has this gene born in them to protect and defend.

Through the years, my five boys have all dressed up as a superheroes.  One was Bibleman with the Sword of the Spirit and the Shield of Faith.  Benjamin and I built him a Batman Cave (click to view) from our closet.  They would come to save the day through their play.

 Year 2000 - my 4th and 5th child in entry way of our home

Most grown men still want to be the hero for their families.  In a society that bashes males, it is hard for the men of today to be celebrated as doing anything right.  The shows on television always depict males as idiots...they are a source of laughter, not a source of pride.

In the last couple of years, my husband has been hit with some very hard life curve balls.  His worldly identity has been shaken...his spiritual identity stands strong.  As we have hashed through what we did and didn't do right, he would say, "I just wanted to be the hero!"  His heart for his family is undeniable, as life just didn't quite go according to his plans...but God's plans are still being worked out.

Yesterday, I needed a physical hero.  Our move had left me both tired, physically and emotionally.  I think I fought it emotionally on every turn.  I packed the house up and overloaded my brain.  As I was getting ready for a date, wanting to look nice for my hubby, I realized I couldn't find my jewelry.  I don't have much, but what I have was bought early in our marriage and possesses extreme sentimental value.  I had somehow overlooked where I had placed my small, treasured jewelry box.

Calling him in a panic, he just calmly replied, "we will find it, don't worry."  I put the worry aside for the wonderful evening...not wearing my piece of jewelry.  The next morning, anxiety had settled in as I frantically searched the house.  We called the movers who had moved a couple of our large furniture pieces, including the dresser where I last remembered putting the jewelry box.  No, they didn't have the drawer containing my precious jewelry.

I hate to say it...but I lost it.  I started crying.  Hopelessness set in.  I couldn't understand why I was losing one more thing, hadn't the last few years taken enough?  Was it so horrible that I still had these couple of pieces of jewelry?

Calmly and steadily, my husband continued searching, with encouraging words to "not go there and we would find it."  I stopped looking, the wind in my sails were gone and I collapsed on the couch.  When I finally gave up, (now isn't that always how it works), he shouted, "here it is, in the bottom of this box!"

My Hero!

He didn't correct me. He just held me as I cried over seeing my pieces.  As the memory of when he gave them to me so many years ago flooded back.  He forgave me for my meltdown saying, "you have been overloaded... it is fine!"

I met him at church last night and the first thing I said was, "thank you, you are my hero!"

I think our society might spend millions of dollars to see superheroes on the screen, but maybe we need to acknowledge the real heroes.   The ones who daily serve their families.  The ones who provide, even when they don't enjoy their jobs.  The ones who go to all their children's events and take time away from their own pleasure to serve as fathers and husbands.

My Hero carrying Batman, who had given out from a long day and scary ride at Seaworld...a mighty task when batman weighs 50 pounds.

How do you celebrate the hero in your life?  I am going to celebrate mine.

I Am Melting!!!!

We have had over three weeks of 100-plus degree weather.
Today was 108!  The heat index,(and yes, don't you just hate when they mention it... you start
to feel hotter right away) topped out at 115 degrees.

  Can YOU say HOT?

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Now add to this the fact that I am a 50-year-old woman...need I say more.  My A/C, and yes thanks for an A/C,  is working overtime.  Are the heat waves from the weather or me?

By the afternoon, I have zero energy... not good for someone who just moved into a house that needs my attention.  I think I will be painting from midnight to 3 am....oh well, I usually wake at 3 am anyway, might as well be productive.

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Now we can't even rely on our normal forms of cooling down!

Aren't calories from ice cream (which you eat to cool yourself down in 100-plus degree weather).... well, aren't they zero?

Now I don't think we had spring.  We went from snow, to missing all the spring temperatures, to August heat in June....where were the 80 and 90 degree days?

Are you melting, too?  I'm sending you a glass of Texas Sun Tea...poured over cubes of ice with lemon.
Praying for a break in our heat wave... and some RAIN!

Still in the Flight Plans

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Once, in a home school convention, I heard this story that has stuck with me through different seasons of life.

When a pilot charts his flight, he knows from where he is leaving and the final destination.  He is never worried if he gets off course through the flight.  It is rare for him to go from one point to another in a straight line. However, he still arrives at his final destination, even after course adjustments.  He might have to descend or rise to move through storms.  This allows the passengers a more comfortable ride, reducing turbulence.  He might even detour off the course to the far left or right in order to miss an oncoming storm or other planes.

The passengers never see these adjustments...most of the time they just ride in comfort.  If there is turbulence, they fasten their seat belts, put their trays up and prepare for the bumpy ride. Some may expel anxious stomachs in a bag, but overall, the change of course during the journey doesn't change the final destination.


The passengers are in the hands of the pilot.Some courageous hero pilots like Chesley Sullenberger III, who landed a plane into New York's Hudson River in order for the passengers to survive, might go off-destination for the ultimate good of the passengers.

google picture - clear blue skies!

If I am a Christian, and I am, then I know the one who is the pilot of my life journey. He knows the final destination and the arrival time.  My responsibility is to let Him do His job....not to storm the cockpit.  I might need to grab a bag at times, due to my own lack of trust, but I can also learn to enjoy the journey.  My pilot has my best interest in mind.  I will arrive on time at my final destination.

The anxiety of any flight is always relieved when the plane comes to a complete stop on the ground.  I never ask the pilot about the adjustments he had to make. Instead, I thank him for a job well done.

I think that is a word for me.  Thank you, Lord, for the job you are doing in my life.  I release my flight plan into your hands and take my first-class seat, which you purchased  for me on the cross, so I can  enjoy the journey. (another preaching-to-myself post)  I hope you are enjoying your ride, even through the course changes.

Are These Trends Good?

Recently, my reading eyes fell on some interesting headlines.  In a century where everyone is speaking of all our wonderful technology, how educated we are, how much we have achieved, these headlines led me to wonder if similar conversations surrounded the builders of the Tower of Babel.


Can any of these trends be stopped or slowed down?  No!!!, I am not asking to return to the days without technology and many of our conveniences. But, like anything, most developments come with a price.


This article brought tears to my eyes.

No Baby Boom (click to read full article) - I will leave this with a small comment, just remember I have six children and dream of a den full of grandchildren. This trend grieves me. Scriptures flood my mind on how this should grieve us all.


Could this headline be responsible for part of the No Baby Boom?

Full article - click Women are the New Men in this economy

I am not saying women cannot work...so don't suggest that. My son also agreed because of the fact his wife has been able to find a job faster than he has.  The stats mentioned in this article are mind-boggling.  Are reverse roles going to be good for our society?  

This headline challenged me

Full article - here

The author challenges our thinking by implying how we gain so much more in our learning when we can't find all the answers.  When all the answers can't be found we allow our imagination to fill in the gaps.  Mysteries like Amelia Earnhardt and the Loch Ness monster come to mind.  We don't need all the answers.  Retrieving information in  seconds through our phone or computers rob us of our imagination and exploration.

The internet is ending our ability to pay attention and think 
critically -  Nicolas Carr

Here is an extensive article by Nicolas Carr on  his research...remember, you will have to pay attention. (click on highlighted)

Deep Distractions
ADD - now I really agree with this article....even my 27-year-old son said the same. Carr suggested that technology is bringing about limited attention spans.  He suggests cutting back on technology and allowing our brains to grow.  His research led him to see where he used to sit and enjoy reading a book. Now he would only stay still for a few minutes before he needed another distraction.

Both articles encouraged me to tame the technology monster in my own house.  I couldn't help but feel that when technology becomes an idol, then we allow true blessings to be taken away as well, like... children, quality time in true conversations and family time?
Are we that much different than those builders of Babel?
Just some mind-musing from Janette's Sage.

 "And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do." (Genesis 11:5-6)

Moved and Exhausted

• Three U-haul loads
• One truck and trailer (#1 son, with a servant's heart)
• One truck with movers for grand piano/master bedroom furniture (thanks to son #2 who provided this service)
• Three muscle brawny sons (#1, #2 and #4 - #3 was vacationing in Colorado, poor guy)
• One grey hair hubby (the love my life and put up with me through all this)
• Lost ten nails, bruised and calloused hands and knees
• 24 hour time schedule
• One true friend - one who gets in the trenches with you and allows you to climb out - Angie arrived to help me finish the packing and clean from top to bottom until late on Friday night
• One daughter-in-law making two meals and helping with unpacking kitchen
• One organized gifted mother helping one morning
• One daughter who shampooed the stairs 
• and
• 286 BOXES LATER (e-Mom wins the count - now I must say she had the advantage because she is boxing at the same time moving from Washington to Arizona, to her new empty-nest season of life, Lisa came in second, a fellow Dallas neighbor, a similar Texas mind)

The Wright Family is Moved

Thank you all for your prayers and wonderful words of encouragement through this unplanned change.  When I would get tired and discouraged I would read an email or comment and the load was lifted.  I loved the guessing and laughed as the number kept climbing.  I so wished it had of been under a hundred.  Now I am sure I will be purging more as I continue to unpack all these boxes.

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In May we found out we had no choice and we would be moving.  The needed and desired list for this move

1. Cheaper rent - we are still needing to get back on our feet after our financial collapse three years ago
2. A large enough house to house a grand piano and large master bedroom furniture - all treasured possessions
3. Desired a big enough dining room to hold our family 12 seat table for family meals
4. Desired a larger yard for Benjamin - move up from postage size yard to postage and half?
5. Desired neighborhood in the high school district for our son for the fall
6. Needed the house available the first of July
7. Needed old landlord to give us through June to find house

God Heard Our Prayers and Exceeded Them

• This house was the only house available that didn't require selling our furniture - Large Den/Large Dining Room
• Beyond My dreams - the largest Master Bedroom we have ever had - a true retreat
• Large Yard - garden beds at the back of yard - moved to 2 postage size lot - no longer can I see the neighbor iron in their house or hear them sneeze - YEA!! Room for Benjamin to play
• Lower rent
• Landlord said - Yes Decorate - and it needs a lot of TLC - we arrived to a very dirty house
• My Designer mind is going into overload with ideas
• In the right neighborhood for the high school for our son
• Feels like home - I think I will adjust faster than last time - I am learning
• Pressure from feeling like I was living in a glass house is gone  (we were not allowed to have backyard toys, decorate or anything other than live in house - even pictures on the walls were to be at a minimum, very restricted living for three years)

Summer will be spent - painting/settling in and calling this new dwelling home for a few more years.

Hugs to the greatest followers a blogger can have!!!

Be by to see you all soon....still recovering and unpacking.