OBX

Last month, Clint and I enjoyed our trip to the OBX to spot the flamingos.

We saw the silhouette of them but that was about all even with binoculars.

They were on the north end of the Inlet Bridge about 1/4 a mile out from the dunes. It was easy to spot their location due to the photographers that were set up on the dunes. 

Flamingos are big birds! Seeing some of the same behavior as I do in geese, I would not want to "tango" with one of them. I wonder if they will bond like geese do and favor the people they see as part of their flock.

For several about a decade, we went to the OBX every year and sometimes twice a year but always during the off-season. We don't do touristy, trafficky, or crowds well We were surprised at how much it has grown since our last visit. It's so sad to see what is happening to what used to be a special place.

We have a natural beach much closer to home, and that is where we get our beach fix now. There is no development near it, so it is a pretty and serene place to unwind. It is very rare there is ever anyone else there. We are thankful a large family/homeschooling-friendly local shared insider knowledge with us when we were still relatively new to the area. The few who know about it do not talk about it hoping it spares the beautiful natural beach from being damaged.

When in the OBX, we always go to Austin Fish Company for crabs or crab cakes.
We also visit Sam and Omies for breakfast.
We were a little late for Austin's this time but we stopped in to say hello. Then we headed to Sam and Omie's for a crab cake dinner.

Caleb and Elora

Make every effort

Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit,

binding yourselves together with peace.

Ephesians 4:3

Scenes from Genesis in the Creation Museum

Found an Old Letter

I wrote this letter to Amanda in 1995.
She was about a year old, and I was around 27 years old.

I recently found it and gave it to her.

Clint's New Toys

Bethany and Jeremy

As part of his gift to her for her birthday,
Jeremy took Bethany to the Ice Cream Museum in Chicago.

A Reason to Rejoice!

I shared an anonymous prayer request on the blog for this situation when the worst of it was happening. One of my friends who confided in me about abuse issues in her marriage who eventually divorced (and was abused even more by him and a group of people) has been dating a wonderful man for a year or so now. 

They slipped off together and got married today! 

I am so very happy for you, Lynda! 

I have not stopped smiling or thanking the Lord since I found out!

Home Canned Pie Pumpkin

From the pumpkins Mack gave us,
we have 14-quart jars of home-canned pie pumpkins.

I did not grow much of a garden this year, because I was away from home so much. God sent me some produce to put away for my family anyway.

How I left them/How she found them

I have a feeling Orange knocked some off. He does that. :-)

Storm Prep for Ophelia

Emily, Hannah, and I lifted Amanda's mower in case Amanda had flooding from Ophelia. I didn't think she would, but I also don't take chances with high-dollar items whether mine or someone else's. This mower is brand new. You can see the owner's manual still hanging on it. We prepped four houses for the storm in one morning. We were very busy! The boat landings near us flooded into the roads, but that was the worst of it. We were never stuck at home. Amanda was because she left her fancy hybrid car at another home.

Angel Windows

The Angel Windows Trail is in the Daniel Boone National Forest in the Red River Gorge Geological Area.

begin to do something now

 "Let each one of us, if we have done nothing for Christ,
begin to do something now."
-Charles Spurgeon

Worth more than gold to me

I do not cry easily or frequently, but this made me cry.

What an honor it is to know that Clint and I were able to minister to this beautiful soul in her last weeks.

I do not share things we do like this often. This time I am because...

To be honest, I did not think the few items we sent Mary Ann were much of a gift. Her daughter had confided in me about her very aggressive cancer, so I wanted to reach out to Mary Ann to give her love and support. I wondered about the appropriateness of the gifts and if I should even send the gifts and card at all.

I almost didn't send them.

I almost missed out on blessing this precious woman.

Her daughter told us she kept the blanket with her until she was no longer here.

She died with the blanket I almost didn't send.

I am so thankful God nudged me to go ahead and "do the thing." Isn't He good to us?

The Lord took that little bit and made it "enough" to show His love and our love to Mary Ann. I am thankful to Him for working it out the way He did. I am also humbled He would work to let us know how much she liked the gifts and the card. 

Being the woman she was, she sent us a card in return, but this picture is priceless to my heart. It is the encouragement I so need right now at this time in my life. God is so very good to us!

I have printed out the picture to keep in my home to remind myself to ignore my insecurities and hesitations and reach out to people more with God's love for them.

Don't just think about reaching out or doing something nice for someone, put actions to your thoughts. You might not know it matters, but it does. 

Mary Ann showed love and grace everywhere she went. She was a Proverbs 14:1 wise woman who knew how to forgive and keep her family together through many hurts, disappointments, ups, and downs. She built up her family and made them strong with God's love and grace. What an example she leaves for us to follow! What a legacy of faith and love she has left behind! 

It brings great comfort and joy to my heart to know I will see her in eternity. Have I told you how good God is?

There isn't anything special or good about Wendy, but the God who saved her is overwhelming with His love. You don't want to miss out on the relationship you can have with Him.

Thank you to those who were praying with us for her. Please pray for the comfort of her family. My love to all!

Sky Bridge

You can walk onto the arch, pass over it, go down and view it from underneath.

That's as wide as it is! There is a decent drop on either side.

The Sky Bridge Trail is in the Daniel Boone National Forest in the Red River Gorge Geological Area. There are signs warning about the risk of falling along the trail. This is a beautiful area. I'd like to sit and watch the sunrise and sunset from this arch.

Double A instead of AAA this time.

I took this picture trying to make sure I had the right keys to take to Caleb. He locked himself and his girlfriend out of his car, so he asked me to find his spare set of keys in his truck. Then Clint and I took them to him at Home Depot. Double A instead of Triple A (sbell) this time.

Princess Arch

"Mom, we found a bear cave with furniture and pretended we were dinner."

The hike to Princess Arch is in the Daniel Boone National Forest in the Red River Gorge Geological area. I highly recommend doing the hike. When wet, the rocks can be very slippery, so wear good hiking boots. There are signs along the trail warning about the risks of falling. Not only can you walk across the arch, but you can get under it and walk down both sides of it where you will find caves and other interesting rock features. It is a very beautiful area. If I go back, I will take lunch, do the hike in the morning, and take my time exploring the area.

80 Quarts Butternut and Snacks

just a few of the seeds before I added seasoning

After the work was done, we put up 80 quarts of butternut squash which will probably last us two to three years. I held some of the butternut and other squashes/pumpkins/gourds back to roast in the oven. 

I like to slice the butternuts in half from top to bottom, open the halves, sprinkle salt and pepper, and add a little butter. Then, I roast them in the oven until they are tender.

We also saved the seeds from all of the pumpkins and butternut squash. I saved a few for planting. The rest, we will eat. Not only are they edible, they are nutritional. They will make nice healthy snacks.

The thin peelings from where we peeled the butternut were dehydrated for winter chicken feed. The pulp was given to our hogs and ducks. I love it when there is nothing wasted.

Hannah, Joshua, Emily

Busch Gardens

Sam's Club, You Can Do Better Than This

I ordered 16 of the Butterfield Farms Roast Beef from Sam's Club to keep on hand for hiking/camping, etc. They are sold in packages of four. They shipped 14 (!!!!) of them inside one box that arrived busted open. The other two were sent in a separate box. LOL!

Then, some of the top cans were busted and the beef was spread all over the box. It had been warm, so the smell was atrocious! Ugh! The whole house stunk. I cleaned off the cans that were still sealed. Many of them were dented which is not good either.

We called Sams. They told us we had to send the opened cans back to them. Clint requested a mailer. They said they would have their boss call us back. No one called. That was about ten days ago.

Then we called again to follow up. They told us we had the product too long to make a complaint, so tough luck. We explained we HAD called within their timeframe (which we had only just heard about during the previous call) but they failed to call us. They said someone would call us back. How does Costco and BJs treat their customers when there is an issue like this? I am thinking about changing memberships.

It's been another five days without hearing from them like the promised.

I hope to avoid this situation in the future by making orders of two at a time until I get the quantity I need.

Cans are being made thinner and thinner. I have read numerous people complaining that pop-top lids like this are failing during air pressure changes.

I figured I'd share and try to at least save someone from losses if possible.

#SamsClub #BJs #Costco

Inside the Creation Museum 2

For size comparison, Hannah's hand is a the top of the frame.

Fools Despise

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;

Fools despise wisdom and instruction. 

Proverbs 1:7

A hot and tired Joshua made a friend

The heat index on this day was 103. Joshua was hot and tired from a long day at work. When he came home, he came to see me where I was working outside. As Joshua made his way to me, a tree frog jumped on his arm and then onto his forehead. Joshua announced himself with "Mom, I have made a friend."

I think she likes Caleb :-)

Inside the Creation Museum

Adam names the animals.

the gift of Eve

"This is a result of running around naked and taking baths together," I said out loud in the museum.
People laughed.
Well, most of them. :-)

Cain standing over the corpse of Abel.

I believe this was a depiction of Noah.