Faithful Friend Ministry's documentary video is FINALLY here! Check it out:
Blogger and I haven't been getting along. Two posts are written and sitting there in the list, but they will. not. publish. I copied and pasted them, deleted them, reposted, and they simply will not publish.
So I decided it was a good time to take a bloggy break seeing how I couldn't, you know, POST anything.
Hmmmmmph.
Then my little friend Suze told me in very clear terms that it is time for a new post.
I sat down to write about one of the 11,000 things in my head, and nothing would come. It's Blogger's fault. I'm sure of that.
Tomorrow is Father's Day. It isn't just ANY Father's Day, but the one right after my daddy has had some scary health issues. I was reminded once again that my least favorite sight in the world is someone I love in a hospital bed. However, Dad never lost his sense of humor, and he did keep us all entertained. Thankfully, he is doing well now, and all the scary stuff is behind us. God is good. And so is my daddy.
So tomorrow, we're gonna get together as a family and celebrate him and remember the good times we've shared while we're making new memories. We'll laugh a lot, and there will certainly be some pictures taken. Of course there will be presents. And hugs. Lots and lots of hugs.
Studly got to spend three days with his dad in South Texas this week. At almost 87, my father-in-love is going strong. Every Father's Day with him is a gift, as it is with my dad. If you're able, reach out to your own dad and tell him how much he is loved. Don't let it go unsaid.
To all you dads out there, Happy Father's Day!!
To MY dad... I love you dearly and SO glad God chose YOU to be my daddy.
Wow.
See what I did there?
Nice work, Jenn.
Sat down to grumble about Blogger and ended up making myself grateful for my two wonderful fathers!
Okay, Blogger. I forgive you.
I absolutely LOVE this picture of Studly Man. Such a cowboy! I think this was when he still lived in Peru and his dad's job on a zillion acres owned by W.R. Grace permitted access to ponies. I love his little outfit, his saddle oxfords, and the way his two-gallon hat sits back on his head.
Cute back then.
Still cute today.
His hat is bigger. His pony has been replaced by a Faithful Friend, and his toy six-shooter is now a real pistola.
Oh, yeah. And he grew a beard.
Happy birthday, Studly. Although you're officially a double-nickle senior citizen, you'll always have that little boy charm that warms my heart.
I love you.
Days later, and I'm still marveling at both the handiwork of God and how well my little camera captured it!
The colors: some bold, some pale.
The frills: some delicate, some strong.
The blooms: all breathtaking, all proof of the Creator's endless imagination.
In our yard in Virginia, my mom grew some of the most beautiful iris flowers I've ever seen. I've always loved them. So elegant. So delicate. So lovely.
Studly and I took a Sunday drive this afternoon.
To see beautiful iris flowers.
Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Luke 12:27
Seven years ago today, I married my best friend.
Since then, life has been crazy and fun and full of surprises and adventures. Most of them have been wonderful; a few have been difficult. All of them have been easier because we've had each other.
As in years past, Studly Man and I enjoyed hosting the family and our dear friend, Ben, at Casa de Castro for our Easter celebration. And as usual, I had fun planning and preparing and getting everything ready. I absolutely LOVE the colors of Spring and the colors of Easter; they represent a renewing, a return to life, and they bring me joy.
For the centerpiece on the kitchen table (where the snacks were laid out for those youngsters - okay, for all of us - to graze on before the big meal), I wanted something cheerful and bright and fun. I found a beautiful bouquet of 20 tulips in lavender, pink, yellow, and salmon. Gorgeous! Made my heart sing!
I put them in a nesting vase and anchored it with jelly beans. I ran out of jelly beans, and was ready to go get some more to finish my lovely design, but Studly said I couldn't spend more money on more candy that no one would eat. He said no one would notice if the jelly beans filled the vase or only went half way. Ya know what? He was right! No one even noticed the vase had ANY jelly beans in it! So we saved $2.99.
But the tulips were still gorgeous.
I had these cute little egg stands, and I also had an assortment of cute little eggs. I put them together, and voila! Cute little stands with eggs! The stands are in various colors, and they made fun little accents.
I was pleased with how they turned out. I was also pleased that Cammie's was blue, Rachel's was orange, and Megan's was purple. Those things matter, ya know!The Gregorian calendar says today is April 6. That's 17 full days after the beginning of Spring. More than two weeks! The vernal equinox marks the end of Winter and the beginning of Spring.
So why is it supposed to get down to 28 degrees tonight? Unless I remember incorrectly, that's below freezing. And temperatures below freezing don't occur in Texas 17 days after the first day of Spring.
Wasn't there some big movie about the Earth having a fever and the giant threat that is global warning?
Guess Al wasted his money on that!
FREEZING!
In April!
My local nursery and the weathermen on every channel were kind enough to warn me to bring the plants in. So I did what any smart wife would do. I asked Studly to bring in the potted plants.
The bathroom has become a temporary greenhouse.
If they have to stay in there very long, it will be easy to water them. That Studly is genius. Pure genius!
This year's flavor was chocolate pecan. As in chocolate pecan pie.
I can taste it just typing those words.
On Saturday, I celebrated my birthday for the 31st time with my BFF, Burlene.* (Burlene is also known as Matilda on this blog. She's neither Burlene nor Matilda, but roll with it.) Thirty-one years we've been friends. Thirty-one birthdays celebrated together. (Well, 62 birthdays if you count hers.)
That's so strange.
'Cuz I'm only 29.
Oh, I kid.
She was there on my 16th birthday when her brother/my high school sweetheart surprised me with a lovely gift. I was no doubt wearing overalls with a tube top underneath and no shoes. And she loved me any way. We've celebrated in some unusual places in unconventional ways, but we've celebrated nonetheless.
This year, Burlene/Matilda took me (Juantela Wayne*) to my favorite tea room for lunch and some serious girl time, although there was no discussion of armpits this time.* It was a FABULOUS meal, and of course, we topped it off with pie. Chocolate pecan pie.
Girl talk with the BFF over lunch followed by pie, presents, and shopping. Is there anything better than that? I think not!
Thanks, Burlene, for a wonderful day. More importantly, thanks for being my forever friend through thick and thin, up and down, good times and tough times and everything in between. Thanks for loving me just the way I am and always seeing the good in me. Thank you for helping me see beauty and joy in the simplest of things and for reminding me of the value of laughter. Thank you for praying with and for me and sharing the challenges of ministry. Thank you for loving Jesus above all else. You are a treasure.
A friend loves at ALL times. Proverbs 17:17a
*LONGstanding funnies from the "Life's Funniest/Most Embarrassing Moments" annals.
I've been having a spat with Blogger.
A long spat.
Blogger won.
I think Blogger was simply jealous of all the time I've been spending with his rival, Facebook.
I had three posts written that Blogger flatly refused to publish. They're still sitting over there in the "draft" column.
Won't publish. No way. No how.
BUT....
the fine peeps at Blogger assure me the problem is fixed.
Except I still can't publish those posts.
If THIS one publishes... I'll see if I can cut and paste the others into new posts that can be published.
This blogging stuff is hard!!
Mr. Facebook isn't this contrary....
Because they're so sweet when they're sleeping....
BigDog was asleep on the portion of the ottoman not occupied by Studly's legs, and Little was asleep on said legs, almost nose to nose with his sister. Last week, my friend, Heather, celebrated her 30th birthday. Two of her lifelong friends, Amy and Amy, and I had a princess tea party for her.
I KNOW!
A) I have friends.
B) I have friends who are only 30.
Since we'd had such a fun time at Princess Betty's birthday party, Amy #2 and I decided we'd surprise Heather with the same idea. She's a ham as you will soon see, so we knew it would be a home run.
Here is Heather with Amy #1. 
Amy #1 won the prize for the longest drive to attend a princess tea party that day. She drove four hours to surprise Princess Heather. I didn't witness it personally, but rumor has it Heather did the ugly cry when she saw Amy #1. I love ugly cries.
And here's Heather with Amy #2 (my planning partner in crime)
And here she is with me. Do I look 17 years older than Heather? Why, yes. Yes, I do. 
And here are all the princesses together. Note that Cinderella, Belle and Sleeping Beauty joined the festivities. 
We had a blast. We laughed and we ate. We laughed some more. We ate some more. We talked about the Lord and what a difference He has made in all of our lives. We are princesses... we're daughters of the King! (All of us except Cinderella. Her tiara was prettier than ours, so we're not letting her play with us any more.)
Girl cracks me up. 
I hope the bride-to-be thought it was funny. And yes, I DID send the pictures into the Cake Wrecks blog.
I'm still laughing about that. It was a grand day, and I'm so glad to have been able to celebrate with my precious friends. God is good. Indeed, He is good. And so is red velvet armadillo cake.
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