Friday Foto Friends

 Oh my goodness! Friday is almost over and here I am just sitting down to try to write something to you. I might have mentioned a few days ago that this week was going to be busy, and so I didn't know how much I'd be able to communicate here throughout the week...and I was right about that! It has been busy, but all in such wonderful ways!  If you're a Facebook friend, you may have already seen some of these pictures I'm going to share with you, but there are also some new ones from today that are brand new.  So you might want to get a glass of iced tea or a cup of coffee and pull up a comfortable rocking chair and let's visit a while, shall we?

We'll start out with yesterday (Thursday), which was just so very special.  Since our "kids" are unable to spend Mother's Day with me due to work schedules, etc., Benton and Rose said they would like to take us over to the beach and then out to lunch yesterday.  So we left fairly early in the day, which, BTW, was a very HOT 93+ day, but thankfully there was a nice breeze.  We arrived at Crescent Beach around 10:00 a.m., which is just south of St. Augustine a little ways, and about an hour's drive from where we live. I will let the pictures speak for themselves:

Our first view of the ocean:

Flowers and grasses along the way on the sand dunes, all a necessary part of the protection from beach erosion...

My first step into the "cool" ocean waters....it really did feel wonderful!

Turn on your sound for a little "beach therapy"....

No, I wasn't wearing long pants...they were capris, but I ended up having to roll them up when the tide started coming in while we were walking in the water.

The "Three Musketeers" LOL.   All in serious need of some suntan! LOL.  (That's why you can't see my legs above!)

Oh, here's some cuties:

And this doggy was enjoying playing frisbee in the surf...

More birds:

And finally I managed to get some birds diving into the surf:

And no trip to the beach would be complete without seeing "Jaws"!  Thankfully not the real deal!

After we finished our walk on the beach it was getting time for lunch, so we headed down A1A highway, which skirts along the coastline through sleepy little communities along the way...well...I take that back...there's NOTHING sleepy along the beach anymore...except for these houses out on the shoreline, who are actually abandoned since the last hurricane that came through here. The beach erosion was so bad that it washed away their property, and the houses now stand empty and will be torn down because there's no way to fix the problem:

And there's actually no road left to get to them, so that's the bigger issue. It was all washed away.

Finally we arrived in what used to be a sleepy little beach town, "Flagler Beach", but no more. There are houses, condos, RV parks, hotels, cottages, etc., EVERYWHERE.  

These pictures are actually at the Flager Beach pier, which was washed away in the hurricane. They are still trying to repair it...but guess what...hurricane season starts again next month! I'm not so sure it's worth all the money they are spending to try and replace it...

But it is historical...actually I remember this pier and little beach front communityfrom over 60 years ago, when one of my school friends invited me and another friend to spend the weekend with her and her mother at their family's beach cottage! We were about 14, and we had the time of our lives! Oh, not to mention the cute boys who showed up with surf boards and tried to teach us to surf! Can't say that we learned all that much in the short time we were there, but it was fun trying...and did I say the boys were cute? When you're 14, even 14 year old boys look cute to you! LOL. 

I tried to figure out where the family cottage was, but the place has grown up so much since then there's no way I could figure it out. I just know it was within walking distance of this pier.

Finally we reached our destination of a place to eat. They were very few and far between, but this one sounded promising:

And it was in this hotel building where that porch is:

And this was the view across the street:

And THIS was my best view:

And next to me was my sweet daughter in love Rose:

And across from us her sweet hubby and my son Benton:

And here I was...as you can tell, I was quite windblown! Did I mention it was breezy? But that breeze felt wonderful since it was in the 90's.

Our food was really good...I had the grilled salmon and cole slaw...

And some seafood/clam chowder, which was really tasty:

It was a perfect way to spend an early Mother's Day!

Oh, we saw this BBQ place on the way over to the beach, and thought the sign was pretty funny:

And the party wasn't over yet. Last evening after we got home and (we took a nap, hence the bed head look), the kids came over and brought me this lovely planter that Benton made. It has some marigolds and a vinca plant in it, and I'm going to put it outside near my vegetable garden to help ward off the bugs.

Speaking of which, I didn't tell you that it has been raining this evening! Here's the current look at Still Waters Pond, which is damp on the top, but still has a LONG way to go before it will actually have water in it. However, there's rain predicted all weekend, so we are hoping and praying that it really gets down to business!

My vegetable garden is happy:

So now for Part 2 of the current activities going on.  Today was our church Ladies' May Fellowship Luncheon, where we invite ladies from other churches in our community and have a guest speaker and a nice luncheon.  It was really a lovely day, with about 65 women in attendance, which is a LOT for our little church. We had a soup and salad buffet, and it was really good.

Here's a smattering of pictures from the day:

Here's the table where I was sitting...(can you find me? LOL)

LOTS Of FOOD!!

Our ladies in worship and praise...

Our two youngest ladies!

A beautiful cake!

Our theme song was "Shine Jesus, Shine".

Here are the lyrics:

"Lord, the light of your love is shining

In the midst of the darkness, shining

Jesus, Light of the world, shine upon us

Set us free by the truth you now bring us

Shine on me, shine on me

Chorus:

Shine, Jesus, shine

Fill this land with the Father’s glory

Blaze, Spirit, blaze

Set our hearts on fire

Flow, river, flow

Flood the nations with grace and mercy

Send forth your word

Lord, and let there be light

Lord, I come to your awesome presence

From the shadows into your radiance

By the blood I may enter your brightness

Search me, try me, consume all my darkness

Shine on me, shine on me

(Chorus)

As we gaze on your kingly brightness

So our faces display your likeness

Ever changing from glory to glory

Mirrored here may our lives tell your story

Shine on me, shine on me

(Chorus)

Graham Kendrick

Copyright © 1987 Make Way Music,

www.grahamkendrick.co.uk

All in all it was a beautiful day, filled with the JOY of the Lord. The theme of the program was "Wildflowers of Joy, Growing in the Spirit".   We are the "wildflowers", planted by God  and filled with His Joy, as He leads us day by day in our walk with the Lord and as we "grow in the Spirit".  What a blessing to spend that time with our sisters in Christ!

Okay friends, I guess that should cover the past couple of days! Now I hope I can get caught up with the rest of you and see what you've been up to. Hopefully tomorrow I will be able to spend some time visiting with you.  Until then, 

"Shine, Jesus, shine

Fill this land with the Father’s glory

Blaze, Spirit, blaze

Set our hearts on fire

Flow, river, flow

Flood the nations with grace and mercy

Send forth your word

Lord, and let there be light"

Amen!

An Afternoon "Beside The Still Waters" Pond

After spending a very cozy night listening to the rain on the "tin roof" all night long, it was wonderful to be able to get outside in the afternoon and enjoy some of God's wonderful beauty "Beside The Still Waters" Pond...

It was a perfect time to rest 'beside the still waters', and let God "restore my soul". I hope you will enjoy the pictures I took as I rejoiced in this beautiful sunny afternoon.

Psalm 23

1 The Lord is my shepherd;

I shall not want.

2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside the still waters.

3 He restores my soul;

He leads me in the paths of righteousness

For His name’s sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil;

(see how many birds you can find in this picture. Look closely...and do you see the "runaway squirrel"? The Bluebirds have been dive-bombing him to keep him away from their nesting area!)

For You are with me;

Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;

You anoint my head with oil;

My cup runs over.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

All the days of my life;

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord

Forever.

Amen.

I was surprised to discover that we had a full moon when my hubby called to me to come and look out the front door with him.  Couldn't have a more perfect ending to a more perfect day "Beside The Still Waters" pond...

With all the turbulence in the world today, we need to make time to spend some time alone with the Lord, whether it be "Beside the Still Waters" or by taking a nice long country ride, or a walk along the beach or through the woods...or maybe just sitting in a favorite chair beside the window or next to the fire...no matter where you are...whether it is freezing cold with snow on the ground, or warm and sunny like it is here in our part of the country right now...take the time to be in prayer and meditate on God's Word. It will clear your mind and refresh your soul and bring peace into your heart. It's the best medicine anyone could ask for.  And it doesn't cost a dime.  Just a few moments of your time.

20 "My son, give attention to my words;

Incline your ear to my sayings.

21 Do not let them depart from your eyes;

Keep them in the midst of your heart;

22 For they are life to those who find them,

And health to all their flesh."

Proverbs 4:20-22

Praying for the Peace of Ukraine and Russia.  Praying for all the innocent victims of this brutal war.

Praying for our own country and our leaders. May they seek the Lord's wisdom in how they govern this vast nation with all it's great needs right now. May God protect our people and keep us from further danger and harm. Amen.

On a personal note, the next few days will be busy, so I may not get back around again until next week. Friday is our son Scott's birthday. "The Kids" will be over Friday night for supper and a little celebration.  So I'll be cake baking and cooking and doing some general housekeeping that is way behind...

Saturday morning our church has it's monthly Breakfast that is open to the public.  We always enjoy attending that and having a really great breakfast with some really sweet people!  And then of course Sunday is Sunday...and we have Sunday School at 8:30 and church at 10:00, and lunch out with friends afterwards. Oh, I never did post this past Sunday's service.  It was a great message from Matthew Chapter 4: 1-11, "Handling Temptation".  

If you wish to listen, here is the service. The choir is singing "Shine, Jesus, Shine" at the beginning of the video. I hope you enjoy it and sing along!

"Lord, the light of Your love is shining, in the midst of the darkness shining

Jesus, light of the world, shine upon us, set us free by the truth You now bring us

Shine on me, shine on me.

Shine, Jesus, Shine, fill this land with the Father’s glory

Blaze, Spirit, blaze, set our hearts on fire.

Flow, river flow, flood the nations with grace and mercy

Send forth Your Word, Lord, and let there be light.

Lord, I come to Your awesome presence, from the shadows into Your radiance

By the blood I may enter Your brightness

Search me, try me, consume all my darkness

Shine on me, shine on me.

Shine, Jesus, Shine, fill this land with the Father’s glory

Blaze, Spirit, blaze, set our hearts on fire.

Flow, river flow, flood the nations with grace and mercy

Send forth Your Word, Lord, and let there be light.

As we gaze on Your kingly brightness, so our faces display Your likeness

Ever changing from glory to glory

Mirrored here, may our lives tell Your story

Shine on me, shine on me.

Shine, Jesus, Shine, fill this land with the Father’s glory

Blaze, Spirit, blaze, set our hearts on fire.

Flow, river flow, flood the nations with grace and mercy

Send forth Your Word, Lord, and let there be light."

Okay, folks, I guess that's all for now! I'm still trying to get around and visit with you all. Thank you for your kind comments always!! Love you all!!

P.S. 3/17/2022:  Be sure to check out The Adventures of Lily Grace today for a special "Irish Adventure" in memory of our friend Toni Taddeo.  Happy St. Patrick's Day!