A Poem for Mom's Birthday

Songs For My Mother: Her Hands

by Anna Hempstead Branch

My mother's hands are cool and fair,

They can do anything.

Delicate memories hide them there

Like flowers in the spring.

When I was small and could not sleep,

She used to come to me,

And with my cheek upon her hand

How sure my rest would be.

For everything she ever touched

Of beautiful or fine,

Their memories living in her hands

Would warm that sleep of mine.

Her hands remembered how they played

One time in meadow streams,

And all the flickering song and shade
Of water took my dreams.

Swift through her haunted fingers pass

Memories of garden things;

I dipped my face in flowers and grass

And sounds of hidden wings.

One time she touched the cloud that kissed

Brown pastures bleak and far;

I leaned my cheek into a mist

And thought I was a star.

All this was very long ago

And I am grown;but yet

The hand that lured my slumber so

I never can forget.

For still when drowsiness comes on

It seems so soft and cool,

Shaped happily beneath my cheek,

Hollow and beautiful.

Happy birthday, Mom!

I love you so much and am so thankful God gave me You!
I know how much you love poems and I can find so many beautiful ones that I know you'd love but remember that time when your neighbor cut down the tree in his front yard and you were so mad that you sent him the Tree poem anonymously!
That was so funny!
And what about you trying to get Dad interested in all the poetry stuff and he just doesn't get it! You can't figure out how anyone on this earth couldn't appreciate poetry! 
Ha, ha! At least I can sympathize with you a little bit!  I am so glad you introduced poetry to me all those years ago! It's just another gift to enjoy!
Maybe you can write a poem for your birthday-maybe about your little trip to Saugatuck!
Again, remember how much you are loved!

Trees
by Joyce Kilmer

I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is pressed
Against the earth's sweet-flowing breast;

A tree that looks at God all day.
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;

Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

An Easter Wish

I know it's been awhile since I've written. 
For a while I thought maybe it's already been written somewhere else.
Do I have anything worth sharing that hasn't already been said?
Deep in my heart I feel a tug to continue writing on this bit of space.
Maybe some tiny word will bring a bit of light to someone's heart!
Maybe.
I am willing, though slow I am. (tiny sigh)

But my heart feels happy!
Easter is here!
Such a beautiful story God has written with the blood of His precious Son!

Our little home school had each child read aloud an Easter poem.
Michael Hague's Family Easter Treasury is a beautiful book with beautiful illustrations and wonderful stories and poems of Easter.

Here are a few we read:

An Easter Wish
Anonymous

May the glad dawn
of Easter morn
Bring joy to thee.

May the calm eve
Of Easter leave
A peace divine with thee.

May Easter night
On thine heart write,
O Christ, I live for thee.


Easter's Coming
Aileen Fisher

Through the sunshine,
through the shadow,
down the hillside, 
down the meadow.
little streams
run bright and merry,
bursting with the news
they carry,
singing, shouting,
laughing, humming,
"Easter's coming,
Easter's coming!"


The Gospel According to St. Matthew 28:1-6:

 In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.  
And behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it.
His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow:
And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men.
And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.
He is not here: for he is risen, as he said.  Come, see the place where the Lord lay.

May your hearts be filled with hope and happiness this Easter!

Happy Birthday, America!

America, the Beautiful

O beautiful for spacious skies
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea.

O beautiful for heroes proved
In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved
And mercy more than life!
America! America! May God thy gold refine,
Till all success be nobleness,
And ev'ry gain divine.

O beautiful for patriot dream
That sees, beyond the years,
Thine alabaster cities gleam-
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea.
                                        -Katherine Lee Bates

In the duty of nations, as well as of men, to own 
their dependence upon the overruling power of
God and to recognize the sublime truth announced
in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history,
that those nations only are blessed whose God is
the Lord.
                                       -Abraham Lincoln

Hold fast to the Bible as the sheet anchor of your
liberties; write its precepts on your heart and
practice them in your lives. To the influence of this 
Book we are indebted for the progress made, and
to this we must look as our guide in the future.
                                      -Ulysses S. Grant

The God who gave us life gave us liberty at the
same time.
                                     -Thomas Jefferson

My Country, 'Tis of Thee

My country, 'tis of Thee,
Sweet land of liberty
Of thee I sing;
Land where my fathers died,
Land of the pilgrim's pride,
From every mountain side
Let freedom ring.

Our fathers' God to Thee,
Author of liberty,
To Thee we sing;
Long may our land be bright
With freedom's holy light;
Protect us by Thy might,
Great God our King.
                                    -Samuel Francis Smith
                         
God bless America!
In God we trust!
May freedom ring!
God bless you all!
Happy Birthday, America!

Today's Journal Entry and Letter to God

May 31, 2014-Mom's 70th birthday!

Daily devotion from Devotional Daily: Peace by Sarah Young-from Jesus Calling 

2 Thessalonians 3;16, Job 22:2 

(I get a devotional sent to my inbox from Devotional Daily and today's entry was from Sarah Young's Jesus Calling book- I read it and following our my own thoughts.)

My thoughts and letter to God:

 

Transform my mind so I think with Your perspective, Lord!

Dear Lord, I don't want my mind to be filled with my own scheming thoughts. Fill me with your thoughts! I want you to control my thinking today! You are my Hope and My Salvation, overflowing with great plans for my day! I invite you into my body, mind and soul! Fill all who live here and all who touch our lives with your Holy Presence and Peace!

Thank you for this beautiful day!

Thank you for joy!

Thank you for Mom and bless her birthday today with Your loving gifts!

How great thou art! May our hearts be full of praise for You all this day!

Amen, In Jesus Name!

Notes to myself:

Look for todays gifts-they abound!

Enjoy God's food, enjoy the people gracing my life!

Enjoy God's Presence!

O Happy Day!

Broken Chairs

I'm sighing.
It seems like every other day I find something broken around this house.
A broken toy, basket, dish.
A broken vintage chair.
No one seems to know how any of these things broke.
It's a mystery!
I cried about the chair.
I'm sighing.
Aren't we supposed to take care of the things God gave us?
I'm wondering if we have too many 'things' and we just don't care anymore.
What's the big deal?
Just get a new one!
I think we DO have too many things and you all know how I am trying to simplify by having less stuff.
After I found the broken chair, I threatened to get rid of EVERYTHING!
All the 'extras'.
Why have anything if we won't take care of it.
It just doesn't make sense.
Oh, and I know some darling little children who are probably eagerly awaiting the Christmas gift RECIEVING season.
WE DON'T NEED ANYTHING!
We can't even take care of the things we do have!
Sighing, sighing.
But today is Veteran's Day!
I had the kids attention at the breakfast table.
Listen, children, about those who gave so much to defend our country and fight for freedom.
Your own Grandpa and Uncle.
And countless others I could name.
And what about the ultimate sacrifice of forever freedom in Heaven someday.
Jesus didn't even have a home to call His own and we can't even be thankful for the chair we get to lounge on every day!
We are making an attitude change.
When I cried about the chair it was more for our attitudes and how we are so flippant sometimes with the things God has entrusted us with than just the hole in the chair.
We have been given so much that I wonder if we even realize just HOW MUCH!
We are taking too much for granted.
I want a thankful heart and a desire to take the focus off of ME and onto others.
And I want to truly be thankful for ALL THINGS.
I don't want to be crying over broken chairs.
So today we started 51 Days of Giving!
51 days from today, Veteran's Day, until the end of the year we will focus on giving, not getting.
Giving, because we are given so much.
Giving, because we truly want to be thankful.
We went to the library and found books and VeggieTale's DVD's about giving and one book, of course, about Veteran's Day.

This giving thing is going to be fun!
I think it's the perfect antidote for my broken chair!
The kids and I brainstormed for ways to give (and there's no need to stop after 51 days!)
1) Give thanks to God-give Him our hearts.
2) Use kind words.
3) Call a veteran to give thanks.
4) Tell someone about Jesus.
5) Make bookmarks and leave them in the library.
6) Leave coupons in the grocery store.
7) Invite someone new over for a meal or dessert.
8) Visit someone new.
9) Rake a neighbors leaves or shovel their sidewalk.
10) Send someone a 'thinking of you' card.
11) Decorate lunch bags for Meals on Wheels recipients.
12) Visit a nursing home to pass out treats and sing songs.
13) Bring treats to the fire and police stations.
14) Leave a kind note for the postal carrier.
15) Fill shoeboxes for Samaritan's Purse.
16) Donate to Toys for Tot's.
17) Pick a name off the Giving Tree at the local library and buy a gift for a recipient in need.
18) Give a favorite book to someone you know who'll enjoy it.
19) Make a special craft with a special child.
20) Call an old friend.
21) Give a dollar to a child for no reason
22) Give hugs and kisses.
23) Send an encouraging note to a minister or teacher.

Maybe you will want to join us in our giving quest. Just start where you are and
please feel free to share any ideas you have for the encouragement of all of us to give during this beautiful thankful season!

My Super Simple Health & Fitness Plan

I am trying to not be so preoccupied with health and fitness.
I do not want it to take precedent over more important things like spending time on building relationships, especially with God and those He gave us to love.
I still think it is so important, though, to try to keep our bodies as a temple, feeding it good, God-given food, drinking pure water and keeping it in good shape so we can enjoy the life God gave us and to perhaps even be a helper in His plans.

So, here is my plan:
1) I get up early so I can 'hem' my day in prayer and read a little scripture (this is the number one thing that has helped me with my day!) while sipping on warm lemon water.  This takes anywhere from 15 minutes to 45 minutes depending on how early I get up. (I unload the dishwasher while my water heats up.)
2) I then put on my tennis shoes and start the laundry and immediately start exercising while the laundry is going.
I workout anywhere from 20-45 minutes depending on how much time I have. I do not stress about it at all. Whatever works is good enough but I never NOT do it. I exercise every day, but I make it easy by doing it early in the morning right in my own home in between household activities, which is usually when it is still dark outside, before kids get up.
Here is my workout schedule:
Monday, Wednesday, Friday:
Total body workout-alternating strength moves with cardio
My current workout, though you can make up your own, alternating strength with cardio.
Jump rope 100-200 rotations
push-ups
jump rope 100 rotations
assisted pull ups
jump rope 100 rotations
bicep curls
run stairs 5 flights
triceps dips
jump rope 100 rotations
kettle bell swings
REPEAT 2-3 times depending on how much time I have.
End with 200 jump rope rotations, cool down, stretch
You could just do jumping jacks alternating between push-ups, squats and tricep dips.
SO SIMPLE! NO EXCUSES!

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday:
cardio and abs or glutes
5 minutes jumping rope
5 minutes running stairs
alternating for 20-30 minutes
5-10 minutes abs or glutes exercises
cool down and stretch
Again, SO SIMPLE but very effective!

Sunday: 15 minutes of yoga and maybe a leisure walk with hubby. Nothing serious.

3) I drink a protein shake with ground flaxseed added mixed with water after every workout. I use All-natural Body Logix protein powder 'decadent chocolate' found at Meijer.

4)  Shower time: I dry skin brush before every shower using a natural bristle skin brush found at health stores, using long firm strokes starting from feet and brushing upwards towards the heart.
I take a shower using baking soda water (1 tablespoon per cup of water pre-mixed in a water bottle) for my face, body and hair; rinse, and then I use apple cider vinegar water (1/4 cup per 1 cup of water pre-mixed in water bottle) for hair conditioner and face toner; rinse.
I keep a large bag of baking soda and 1 gallon apple cider vinegar under my bathroom sink for refills.
Honestly, my skin and hair is SO soft!
And, really, it is just so simple, and cheap, too!
I towel dry and use coconut oil on my face, neck and entire body.
Now I'm glowing! Yes, I keep a jar of coconut oil under my sink!
Teenage daughters and hubby are saying how great my skin looks and it is super cheap and no yucky ingredients!
Super simple!

5) After my shower, I get to dress in something other than workout clothes now that my early morning exercise and shower is done!
Yay! I was tired of always being in workout clothes! 
It's done for the day and now I can enjoy my other tasks without worrying about it!
Plus, I feel great and perfectly ready now to start the rest of my day with that out of the way!

6) I focus on drinking at least 3 quarts of water each day and getting veggies in at every meal.
Breakfast is usually 2 whole eggs with sautéed onions and some other veggie. Love it! I sprinkle a little Braggs liquid aminos on my eggs which is a lighter version of soy sauce!
I am currently eating a large veggie salad every day for lunch with homemade olive oil and apple cider vinegar dressing and protein-chicken, salmon, hardboiled eggs. Sometimes I add nuts and seeds and olives.
For dinner, I usually have some kind of meat, venison, chicken, salmon with vegetables and a salad with healthy fats like olives and homemade dressing.
I keep almonds in my purse in case I need a snack when I am out, sometimes dark chocolate is added!
I eat fresh veggies for snacks, also; cucumbers, radishes, broccoli.
I limit my dairy, fruit, grains, starchy carbs and sugar, though I do not cut them out completely.
I just feel so much more energetic when I limit these foods. Usually I limit them to 2 servings total per day.
I do eat dessert here and there but try to just have a taste instead of a whole piece if I feel I have eaten way too much of the limited foods during the week. Otherwise, I do eat the whole piece!
If things have gotten out of hand with the eating, (which they do), I cut out all limited foods for a few days.
This is KEY to keeping me in my skinny jeans, plus, I feel so much better and energetic!

7) I try to get outside for fresh air and sunshine every day and get to bed at a decent hour.

I hope this schedule of mine encourages you to have your own little schedule no matter where life finds you.

"Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." 3 John 2

Bless the Lord, O My Soul!

My heart gets troubled by many things.
The child who gets left out.
The child with constant headaches.
A messy house.
Not enough time in one day.
A never ending pile of laundry.
Worry for the college kids.
Sorrow over others grief,
Am I helping others enough?
Do my loved ones know I care?
Am I too busy with busy stuff and not spending enough time with 'needful' things?

I am learning to give up my little worries with the simple act of praising God.
Oh, and it is helping me let go of worrying.

I was fuming the other week at church, (of all places) when one of my children and a friend were obviously bypassed by the other kids of the same age.
They had the nerve to walk right past and sit at a different table even though there was plenty of room at that table!
Every single one. Probably about 10 others!
As I was saying, I was SO mad!
What little brats!
I could feel myself heating up.
OK, so I thought, I'm in church, singing these beautiful songs and yet, here I am, fuming at these kids.
Give it to God, I'm saying to myself. Or was it God saying it to me?
Find praise for Him!
Oh, Dear Lord, I praise your Holy Name. You are So Good. How great Thou art!
Immediately, my heart calmed down.
This child that I worried about fitting in is precious to God.
Everything doesn't have to be picture perfect in a worldly sense.
"I love this child. This child is so special to me" is what I heard when I decided to give God praise during that somewhat stressful time for this mother!
I felt a little sheepish then, of course, when I thought of how I automatically labeled those kids as brats. I mean, after all, they are precious to God, too! And some other mother's special child.
Though my heart just ached for this child of mine-a quieter child and not very outgoing, though friendly. Of course, I want my children to be accepted by their peers and they probably are, but that night it just didn't look right to me.
As I was giving praise to God, I realized that I was making a way bigger deal out of the situation than was needed.
Another friend came over and it ended being the three of them while the other10 squished around another table.
Praise the Lord! He gives everyone a friend!
God is Good!

Thank you, God, for these dishes I get to wash and the food you provide.
Thank you for this laundry and all our beautiful warm clothes.
Thank you for providing health providers for this child with headaches.
Thank you for a husband who fixes the washing machine and provides so adequately for our family.
Thank you for a home that I can lovingly clean and share with my family and others.
Thank you for providing us with a wonderful church family and people who love us.
Thank you for taking care of all our needs.
Thank you for loving me when I am unlovely.

"Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;
Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;"  Psalm 103:1-4

Amazing Grace, is all I can say!