Another one of my weird ideas!

Well, that is the way that I presented it to my husband. He said something to the effect of aren't they all!

I decided to turn gardening upside down, but after looking at the $20---75 planters that they sell on the internet, I decided to make my own. I came across this site that shows how to make one out of store bought objects but that just didn't do it for my frugal side....so.....I decided to use those wonderful plastic buckets that I get with the kitty litter and food. Yes, I try to buy things in paper bags that can be composted, but the TidyCats Small Spaces litter comes in either a bucket or a jug. I have tried other litters, but that Small Spaces litter is the best! It is even better than regular TidyCats...I don't know what the difference is, but I digress.....

Here are some photos of my upside down cherry tomato plants. I should have painted the buckets before planting them, but I will get around to that later...


This is the bucket laying on the side with the tomato plant fed through the hole in the bottom of the bucket. The news paper is used to prevent the soil from fallling out the hole.


My Bonnie tomato plants say to bury 80% of the plant which I have never done before, but am doing it this year. This is supposed to help the tomato have a deeper, stronger root system since the stem will put out roots if it is planted. That is why you see green in the bucket there.


The twine was used to replace the handle which would have made the bucket hang crooked on the hook that we had.



This one shows the plant sticking out of the hole!

Here they are hanging up! I planted oregano seeds in one and basil seeds in the other. I'm hoping that this will serve as "living mulch" to prevent moisture loss.

Don't take moldy bread!

Then the men of Israel took some of their provisions; but they did not ask the counsel of the Lord. Joshua 9:14

At Bible study this week, we were reading Joshua chapter nine when this verse jumped out at me. Joshua is an account of the children of Israel’s trip into the Promised Land, and the battles that they had to fight to take the land. Now, I would think that if God had brought my family out of Egypt, allowed us to cross the Red Sea on dry land, fed us manna, gave us water from a rock twice, led us by a pillar of clouds and fire or one of the other 32 miracles of Moses, I would have faith in God to spare, but then again we so easily forget the provisions that God provides for us. In the story of Joshua, the children of Israel fight mighty battles with God’s help then fall into sin. God forgives them or tells Joshua to stone the sinner as in the case of Achan (Joshua 7).

In Joshua chapter 9, the men of one of the neighboring cities, Gibeon a city that Joshua has been told to destroy, came to Joshua in disguise and asked for a treaty. The men of Gibeon lied to Joshua and told them that they came from far away. They showed Joshua moldy bread and said it was fresh when they left for their journey. They showed Joshua their worn out shoes and clothes and begged for mercy.

Joshua and the other men of Israel took the bread and agreed upon the treaty; but they didn’t seek God’s counsel. They forgot to pray! They accepted the word of these men; they looked at the evidence and made a life altering decision.

How often do we take moldy bread for evidence and accept it as fact? Do we believe the lies that the world tells us and bring the enemy into our camp? Do we forget the promises of God?

As you face the challenges of life today, are you seeking the counsel of the Lord or are you falling for the lies that the world tells you? Is someone feeding you moldy bread? Remember the miracles of your forefathers and seek God’s counsel. He will lead you to the Promised Land.

Seems like yesterday....random thoughs...

Well, my baby is a little girl! Today is her second birthday! Happy Birthday Ellie!

It does seem like yesterday that I was bringing her home from the hospital, that I was waking up several times a night to feed her. She has grown from this helpless creature that required hours of care a day into a little tornado that can destroy a clean room in a moment's notice.

I have a quote from a very wise woman, Elizabeth Stone, that says, "Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body." This is so true! As I watch my little one become more independent each day, I wonder how I will survive when she wants to borrow the car or walks across the stage in her cap and gown. Thankfully those days are far ahead of us! One day, she will be holding a child of her own and wonder those same things.

As I was passing David's Bridal the other day, is struck me that as young, single woman, I used to imagine myself in those beautiful gowns. Now I'm a mom and it isn't me in the window anymore...it is my daughter's future self looking back at me in the mannequins.

Happy Birthday, Ellie! We love you more than you can ever imagine!

Happy Resurrection Sunday!

"Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here. He has risen!" Luke 24: 5-6

Praise the Lord!!!

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

"Butter! I want butter!"

Well it is official! Ellie is speaking in complete sentences. This was one of her first. We were eating supper when my little one exclaimed, "Butter! I want butter!" She is definately my child. I love butter too, although I have stopped sticking my finger in the butter dish.

The other day, I caught Ellie, Cali and Snowball on the table taking turns at the stick of butter in the dish. We now keep the butter dish on the kitchen cabinet where she can't get it and closed where the cats can't get into it. Life is grand!!!

More Scrapbook pages!

Daddy's Gotcha!

The other morning, my daughter and I were awakened by one of the cats climbing in the mini blinds in the window above my bed. I tried to get him out of the blinds without waking EG, but when I pulled him, he dug his claws into the window sill and down came them mini blinds on top of my little one's head. Out popped the cat bearing claws and scratching EG's eye. EG started screaming! "Shhhhh! It's ok. Mommy's here. Mommy's here," I comforted her not realizing that she had a bleeding gash on her eyelid. I picked her up to survey the damage. Poor baby had a four inch scratch in her eye. She is fine now and her wound is healing, but it got me thinking about the comfort of a parent's arms. Whenever my little one wakes in the night, my husband or I will go pick her up and whisper those comforting words, "Mommy's gotcha." or "Daddy's gotcha." Sometimes as an adult when the whole world seems to be against me, I long for the comfort that can only come from a parent's loving embrace. Then I remember, I have a loving Heavenly Father that is always near. When you need the love remember these facts:

1.You Are God's Child - John 1:12-13
"Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God - children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. (NIV Bible)
2. God Loves You - 1 John 3:1
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called the children of God! And that is what we are! (NIV Bible)
3. You Have The Assurance Of Eternal Life - John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (NIV Bible)
4. He Put His Holy Spirit In You - 2 Corinthians 1:21-21 "Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit guaranteeing what is to come.
5. You Can Talk Directly To God - Matthew 7:7-11
"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" (NIV Bible)
6. Nothing Will Ever Separate You From His Love - Romans 8:38
"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Daddy's Gotcha!!!

Grace, Grace, God's Grace!

Grace, Grace, God’s Grace! Grace that is greater than all our sins!
It really is an amazing thing, isn’t it? That the same God who made the Heavens and the Earth cares enough about me to send His only son to die for me. That even though I fail Him daily, He still loves me and wants what is best for me. It amazes me that when I pray His Holy Spirit speaks for me even when I don’t know what I need to pray.
The Bible says we are justified by grace. (Titus 3:7) Meaning that we are made righteous, not because of what we do, but because of what He has done for us. As Christians, we are the ONLY religion in which our salvation is based on grace. Every other religion is works based. Romans 11:6 tells us that our salvation comes from God’s Grace and not our works. We can’t earn it; grace is a gift from God.
In our Bible study, we have been studying about Joshua leading the children of Israel into the Promised Land. I was confused. Where is God’s Grace in the dealing with the people in each of these different cities? Why would God tell the children of Israel to destroy everything and everyone in the city of Jericho? Where was the grace for the people of Jericho? Then there was Rahab. She received God’s Grace, because she believed. In Joshua 2:11, Rahab proclaimed that the God of Israel was the God of the Heaven’s and Earth. She got it when everyone else in Jericho choose to fight. Rahab asked for grace! And Grace is what she received not only for herself, but for her entire family. Have you asked for God’s Grace today? He wants to give it to you.

Marvelous Grace of our loving Lord, Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt, Yonder on Calvary’s mount outpoured, There where the blood of the Lamb was spilt . . . Grace, Grace, God’s Grace, Grace that is greater than all our sins!

Gold Edges

Some of my fondest memories are of times spent sitting with my dad by his side as he taught me truths from the Bible. Once while we were sitting together with his worn Bible in his lap, I was fiddling with the pages. I was always intrigued by the gold edges on the pages. I would spread them out so they no longer shined then lined them back up, admiring the shiny gold edges. Dad asked me if I knew why they put gold on the edges of Bibles.

"It's pretty?" I responded.

"Nope," he said, "It is to remind you of the importance of being part of a church."

He explained that when the pages were separate, they weren't as shiny as when they were close together. Like Christians need the fellowship of other Christians to be at our best, the gold edges on the pages of our Bible don't shine as brightly without their "brother and sister" pages. Now, I know that his reason is probably something he made up, but for a young, impressionable, little girl, it was an object lesson than I have never forgotten.

People joke about the "Bedside Baptists" who attend "The Chapel of the Tube". Recently, major television news shows have focused on "internet churches" and propose that in the future churches will be online and people won't want to leave their homes to worship God. But television evangelists and Christian chat rooms will never be an adequate substitute for a church body. Christians need other Christians. We need to worship together. We need to fellowship with one another. We need to hold one another accountable.

Christians truly shine when we are with other Christians!