Wednesday This and That...

 Tea Time with the Cardinals...

This afternoon Mr.  and Mrs. Cardinal were quite active at the bird feeder, preparing for the cold weather that is coming up tomorrow night.  

As Mrs. Cardinal flew down to the "Tea Time" feeder, I decided it was time for me to have a cup of tea as well, to take the chill off of the afternoon.  

I enjoyed watching the birds flying back and forth to the feeder while I sipped my tea and relaxed a bit from my labors.

 

Mr. Cardinal wanted to see what Mrs. Cardinal was finding so interesting...

They were certainly a beautiful bright spot of color against the drab backdrop of the wintry landscape and DRY Still Waters Pond.  Hopefully the rain that is scheduled to usher in the cold front will bring us some much needed rain. We keep hoping and praying!

So what kind of exciting things do You do on a dreary winter day when it's too chilly/windy to go outside and "play"?  

Well...some people play with soldiers and have battles...

It's been a long standing tradition that my hubby's brother would give him a bag full of soldiers for Christmas...and at some point there would be a major battlefield set up and "Daddy and the boys" would play "war".  However, we forgot to do it while they were here the other day, so someone was anxious to try out his new soldiers, but he needed someone to be the "enemy', so I was elected.

Nerf "dart" guns serve very well for the purpose.  And for a few wild and crazy moments, we shot our weapons across the battlefield at each other and then tallied up our losses.  I think in the long run, hubby won this battle, but I'm still getting used to the rules of the game. We may have to have another round soon.

This very very short video doesn't really show much because I was trying to aim my weapon and shoot my camera , or was it the other way around...oh yeah, aim my camera and shoot my weapon at the same time! Either way, it was fun.  But we are looking forward to the kids coming back over so they can have a real battle! Stay tuned...

Oops, I just checked and the video didn't work after all, so nevermind! It was too short to show much anyway!

Oh, and why does his brother give him these soldiers every year? Because he remembers his big brother playing with soldiers and setting up battlefields for all of his young childhood years, and it's one of those fun brother memories that brings back thoughts of happy times as kids.  Actually, I think his brother needs to come over and play!!! It's too bad they live 2 hours away!! We have to remember that for the next time they are together!

Now, on another note, with the colder weather coming this weekend, getting down below freezing they say, I am getting more concerned about Blackie being outside all night, even though he seems to be fine, but this is going to be colder than we've seen yet...and so because he isn't really ready to become a full time inside cat and roam freely throughout the house at night, we thought we might try something else. I saw this at Walmart today and decided to buy it and give it a try:

 

I set it up on the back porch for a few minutes so he could see it and to see what he would do with it. He went right inside and explored for a minute, but of course I did not zip it shut, so he didn't feel trapped inside.

He had fun exploring his new "tent".

I also brought it back inside and he did come inside and look at it again, but I don't want to scare him off from it so right now we are just letting him come inside occasionally and look it over, and then tomorrow night I will attempt to get him to come inside and then zip it up for the night. One question I have...do cats need to use the litter box during the night?  I'm thinking not. I don't want to put a litter box inside this with him...what do you think, those of you who have more experience than I do with cats? I would appreciate your thoughts on this, especially if you have dealt with outside cats coming inside. Thank you. You all have been such good helpers with good ideas. 

Meanwhile, I've been wanting some really good fresh juicy Florida grapefruit for a while. You'd think living in Florida it would be easy to find, but no it isn't.  Florida really doesn't grow as much citrus as it used to when I was growing up here, and it's getting harder and harder to find, especially as far north in the state as we live.  But I did manage to find some at Walmart, and yes! It had a sticker on it saying it was from Ft. Pierce, FL., so I know it's got to be good! (We actually used to live in Ft. Pierce, and that is where my husband first served as a Pastor of a small church many many many years ago!!)

Normally I usually only eat one half of a grapefruit at a time, and save the other half for the next day. But this tasted SO good to me, I ate the whole thing at one sitting! LOL.

And yes, I am on a statin drug, and I know it says not to eat grapefruit with statins, but that means don't eat it at the same time as when you take your medicine, at least that's what I have heard and believe. So I ate the grapefruit in the evening and I take my meds in the morning. I have not suffered any ill effects and if had to choose between the two, I'd much prefer the grapefruit!! LOL.

Tomorrow I will be at the dentist for several hours, having the other side of my mouth deep cleaned and then the root canal done and a temporary crown put on. They said I will be there for at least 3 hours. And I doubt I will feel any too perky when I come home and the numbness wears off, so I don't expect to do much tomorrow.  Hopefully I will be back to normal on Friday...and on Saturday I am looking forward to seeing "Your Friend from Florida", Terri Dorsaneo, as she comes passing through here on her way back home from a whirlwind trip to Georgia and back! We will have lunch and a nice little visit before she has to head on down the road another two or three hours to her home.  

I am borrowing this photo from her recent post, which I think I have a copy of already but can't find it now so I am copying it from her blog. This was when she and her dear hubby Joe came by to visit us way back in 2017, when we lived in our previous home...and obviously it was right around Christmas! We have met a few times since then in person as well, but this was the first time, and I am so thankful that we got to meet her dear Joe. He was truly a very sweet and friendly man, and he and my hubby enjoyed visiting with one another.  He is greatly missed.

Well, folks, that's all for now. I will update you on everything that happens in the next few days in my next post. 

Now here is some good food for thought for today from Philippians 4:4-7, 19.

"4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!

5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.

6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, 

with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 

7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, 

will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

"19 And my God shall supply all your need 

according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus."

Be Blessed, my friends!!

Wednesday Treasures

 

It's been a busy week. I'm sorry I've been a bit awol here in blogland.  Just a lot going on, and it's been hot! Too hot to think too hard I guess! LOL.

We did take a walk a couple of times...and I had to take a picture of this crape myrtle blossom, growing on a skinny little branch of what used to be a bigger tree probably back in the day in someone's yard in the old historic section of town where the highway went through and took away their houses...You know I just love to see how life goes on in one way or another...

And this morning we had an occasion to go into the "big city" of Palatka, which is about 15 miles from us. (Not really a BIG city, but bigger than where we live). Palatka is known for its many murals painted on the sides of the old store buildings in their historic section of town.  I happened upon this mural, and wanted to share it with you:

This mural is of a Cattle Drive to Paynes Prairie, circa 1930.

 Here's a brief summary of the history of the cattle drives to Paynes Prairie:

"Paynes Prairie, now Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park, has a history of cattle drives dating back to the Spanish era and continuing through the Civil War. Specifically, Confederate cattle drives would stop there to fatten up cattle before moving them north towards the Georgia border. The prairie's landscape, with its vast open spaces and proximity to transportation routes, made it a strategic location for cattlemen. "

Link to more about the Murals in Palatka, FL.  There are so many, and they are all so interesting. I still haven't seen them all in person, but this link will show you what is there.

It's been so hot this week, the kitties have been finding different places to rest in the shade...Not sure that's much cooler, but Sunshine seems to like laying there under the tarp that covers the lawn tractor.

Some of you may have already seen these pictures on Facebook this week, but I'll share them again for those who haven't...One early morning Mr. Cardinal came calling at the bird feeder...I know many believe that when a Cardinal visits it's like having a visit from someone who's gone on to heaven.  I don't know if that's true or not, but I do love to see them, and they do always make me think of those who have gone on before us.. Always a comforting sight and thought.

Of course our "porch kitties", Blackie and Sunshine, are totally oblivious to the Cardinal just a few feet away from them.  That's a good thing, really!  Look at Sunshine...he's definitely enjoying his "catnap".

Mr. Cardinal seems to be oblivious to the cats as well...

Oh to be able to be so relaxed...

I guess you can tell I didn't get much done that morning!

But perhaps the kitties have the best idea for a hot summer day...

Mr.Cardinal seems to think so.

Isaiah 26:3

You will keep him in perfect peace,
Whose mind is stayed on You,
Because he trusts in You.

Ah yes, "perfect peace!"...something we are learning about...when our mind is on the Lord, and when we put our complete trust in Him, we can be at perfect peace.  When we allow the cares of this world and our fears for the unknown to get to us,  we get anxious and afraid.  But GOD! 

Remember this old hymn..."What A Friend We Have in Jesus"...

1 

What a Friend we have in Jesus,

All our sins and griefs to bear!

What a privilege to carry

Everything to God in prayer!

O what peace we often forfeit,

O what needless pain we bear,

All because we do not carry

Everything to God in prayer!

2

Have we trials and temptations?

Is there trouble anywhere?

We should never be discouraged,

Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Can we find a friend so faithful

Who will all our sorrows share?

Jesus knows our every weakness,

Take it to the Lord in prayer.

3

Are we weak and heavy-laden,

Cumbered with a load of care?

Precious Savior, still our refuge—

Take it to the Lord in prayer;

Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?

Take it to the Lord in prayer;

In His arms He’ll take and shield thee,

Thou wilt find a solace there.

Amen.

We've been going through a lot of waiting and trusting and praying these past several months, while hubby has been dealing with some mystery illness and total exhaustion.  We've been to different kinds of doctors and had several kinds of tests...and still there haven't been any real answers.  Tomorrow morning he goes for more lab work to rule out some other possibilities...but here's the "good news"...

Yesterday he met with a neurologist (finally!).  After the Doctor looked over all the test results that have been done over the past few months, and also after asking my hubby many questions about how he feels, etc.,  finally my husband asked the doctor if he believes that he has any neurological disease? And the doctor said, based on what he sees, he does not believe that he does. However, he wants to run a few more blood tests to rule out some things, so that is why we go tomorrow, but he said he really doesn't believe they will show anything significant.  

Now, personally, I am a little frustrated with that answer only because we still don't know what's going on.  But the doctor reassured us that he doesn't see anything life threatening or serious.  It could be a kind of "chronic fatigue" situation, but there really isn't a whole lot that can be done for that.  However, to hubby, this news was great! It relieved his mind so much that I have noticed a new spring in his step...and tonight he even went to the church board meeting (where he is the chairman), and I thought he was planning to resign from his position because of his illness, but instead he rejoiced that God has given him the strength and desire to keep going. He was like his "old self" again,  and it was like witnessing a miracle of God right before our eyes!  So I want to stop and give thanks to the Lord for what He has done...because I know it was God who did that!   Praise God from Whom ALL blessings flow!!

And so I will leave you with those words of hope and thankfulness for tonight. There's some other things going on, but I will save that for another post as I am tired tonight. It's been another long, hot day, but, oh! It did finally rain! We had a good little thunderstorm and rain this afternoon, so that is something else to be thankful for!

I like this translation of Philippians 4:19...

Philippians 4:19  New Living Translation

"19 And this same God who takes care of me 

will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, 

which have been given to us in Christ Jesus."

Amen!!

Good night dear friends!

Sunday Evening Meditation

Psalm 25:1-5

1 To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.

2 O my God, I trust in You;

Let me not be ashamed;

Let not my enemies triumph over me.

3 Indeed, let no one who waits on You be ashamed;

Let those be ashamed who deal treacherously without cause.

4 "Show me Your ways, O Lord;

Teach me Your paths.

5 Lead me in Your truth and teach me,

For You are the God of my salvation;

On You I wait all the day."

I thought you'd enjoy seeing that we not only have Bluebirds here on Still Waters Pond, but we also have "red-birds", a.k.a. the Northern Cardinal, and in this case, the male Cardinal. His mate is around there somewhere, but she didn't make it into the pictures.  This male just seemed to be waiting and watching and perhaps listening for God's instructions. "On You I wait all the day."  A good lesson for us today from God's Word.  Be patient and wait on the Lord for instruction...follow God's leading and teachings and you will not go astray!

Last evening I thought I would outsmart the Sand Hill Crane couple and go way around the shore of Still Waters Pond to where I could see their nesting place and wait for them to land for the evening.  They usually fly in around sunset and land on this little scrap of marshy floating island, (see below) where they will spend the night and also where they are building their nest for this spring.  

As I stood on the shore...this close to the water's edge! Yes, if I lost my balance I would be in that water!...

I looked around and across to where our house is and our shoreline, and what do I see?  Mr. and Mrs. Sand Hill Crane had landed on our shoreline, and they were enjoying taking their time and finding things to eat in the weeds along the shore!

So I stood there on the other side (I zoomed in for these pictures) and waited patiently for them to get tired of eating there and fly on over to their nest...

They seemed to be enjoying a leisurely stroll along the shore, and they were in no hurry at all to get back to their nest!

Meanwhile, I'm standing over there waiting and it's getting kind of chilly...I had run out of the house without a sweater thinking it was still warm out since it had been quite warm during the afternoon...

But no, they were in no hurry.  I took these next pictures with my cell phone, so I couldn't zoom in as well, but I liked the way the sunlight was changing the colors as it was setting in the west beside me.

I almost think they knew I was over there watching them, and therefore they weren't going to fly over that way as long as a strange human with a camera was there waiting for them!

Finally I gave up and decided to head back to the house before it got dark.

I didn't take another picture, but when I got back around to the house to go in the back door, they saw me and came right up on the shore into our yard and waited for me to go inside and get them some birdseed! Yes! That's what they were waiting for, the stinkers! LOL.  So I threw them out some seed and they were very grateful and stayed there and ate it until it was too dark for me to even think about going back outside to see where they would go next. Besides, it wouldn't have shown up in a photo anyway!  But perhaps I did what I was supposed to do.

Psalm 145:14-19

14 "The Lord upholds all who fall,

And raises up all who are bowed down.

15 The eyes of all look expectantly to You,

And You give them their food in due season.

16 You open Your hand

And satisfy the desire of every living thing.

17 The Lord is righteous in all His ways,

Gracious in all His works.

18 The Lord is near to all who call upon Him,

To all who call upon Him in truth.

19 He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;

He also will hear their cry and save them."

No, I am not trying to say that I am taking the place of God for these birds. But perhaps I am doing what God wants me to do for them.  Perhaps I am His ambassador here for these creatures of His creation. Or maybe it is simply an example to us of how God cares for us.  When we fall down or are feeling sad or blue or in a difficult situation, we can rely on God to provide for us.  "The Lord is near to all who call upon Him...and He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him; He also will hear their cry and save them."    If God provides food for the creatures of the earth, how much more will He provide for us, His beloved children who are calling upon Him in truth, and who are looking expectantly to Him for help in time of need?  Yes, as surely as we take care of our own, even sometimes in exasperation because our own don't always perform the way we want them to...yet because of love we take care of them...God also cares for us, even when we don't always perform the way He wants us to...because He loves us.   He will "hear their cry and save them."   Amen!

Now just for laughs as I close this out for the night, this afternoon I looked out the window here in my "Room with a View", and saw "Blackie" the neighborhood cat sitting on a little container on the back porch that has an old rug on top of it...just sitting there giving himself a bath and then relaxing and looking around like he owned the place.

I had to chuckle, because everytime I look out on the porch, Blackie has chosen a different place to sit! We have three wicker chairs, and he goes from one to the next and back again, depending upon his mood I guess. I told my hubby he reminds me of Goldilocks, trying out each chair and then the "bed" to find the one that is "just right".  

And speaking of beds that are just right...I guess it's time to say good night!

Isaiah 26:3  NKJV

3 You will keep him in perfect peace,

Whose mind is stayed on You,

Because he trusts in You.

Happy Blogging Sisters Day!

 If you read my last post HERE, you will know that today was a special day in "blogland" for some of us very blessed bloggers!  Today I went to meet up with three other dear blogging friends for lunch, and discovered that we had a bonus blessing of one more precious blogger added to our group!  Many of you may not know Cheryl, from Sunlit Pathway, because she hasn't been doing quite as much blogging lately due to having had some major health concerns in the past year or so, but what a surprise to find her there at Bob Evans with Terri and the rest of the ladies when I arrived!  Cheryl had just recently arrived in Florida to visit family, who just happen to live not too far from Terri, and so Terri made arrangements for Cheryl to join us today! What a blessing indeed!  And so here we are:

Our waitress was very kind to take our picture!  We are l to r front row: Cheryl, Terri, (Your Friend From Florida), back row: Yours truly, Linda, (Just Simply Linda), and Barbara, (My Journal Memories).  While we enjoyed a delicious lunch at Bob Evans, we shared with each other why we ever decided to write a blog anyway.  We each had different reasons and beginnings. Some have been  blogging for over 20 years! I think I had the most recent beginning, in 2010!  I'd never even heard of a blog before then! 

I don't think any of us had any clue how far reaching our blogs would ever be, but God knew, and He had a plan for each of us in doing this...maybe not the same plan for each of us, but a plan that would bless us and teach us and make us a blessing to others in the process. I believe He has accomplished that for each one of us...

Jeremiah 29:11 NIV tells us:

11 "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

HERE is a link to my very first blog post, written in February of 2010.  My blog has gone through a lot of metamorphosis over these past 15 years...moving with the ebb and flow of my life experiences...the joys and sorrows, highs and lows, and even through three different home locations! Thankfully the blog is portable and goes with you wherever you go, as long as you have access to the internet and don't make any false moves that accidentally delete the blog. I know some have done that, and had to start all over. I pray that never happens to me...there are too many precious memories tucked inside these pages. I've tried to save them over the years, but that has become too cumbersome for me to keep up with, so I just pray nothing happens. Maybe someday I will get busy and try to back up more of them and print them off, but it takes a lot of work to do it. 

The best part about blogging to me is all the wonderful friends I've made along the way, like these lovely ladies. I wish I could meet each and everyone of my blogging friends in person. There are so many that we have shared so much of our lives with each other...and some I would just love to give a big hug to in person someday.  If you are ever passing through Florida please let me know and if there is any way possible to arrange it, it would be so wonderful to meet you. Not too many people pass through the little town where I live...we are kind of off the beaten path of where most people like to go in Florida...and I am limited in how far I can travel away from home, but if there's a way, we will try to make it happen.  Anyway, meeting up with these wonderful women today was truly a blessing for each of us! I thank each one for going the "extra mile" to be there! It was a lot of fun and good fellowship too!

When I got back home I noticed that the bird feeder favored by most of our birds was empty, so I refilled it, and soon the Cardinals and Titmice and Chickadees were having a feast and waving their wings to say thank you. I only managed to get pictures of the Cardinals, but here's what I saw:

Mrs. Cardinal was waiting her turn in the Holly Tree:

They are storing up food for another night with a freeze warning!

And thankfully, I also noticed when I got home that all of the Christmas boxes were finally put away, and the house is back to its normal self...

(hmmm, I should probably turn that blanket around so the bear and moose and elk aren't standing upside down! LOL. It is correct on the other side that we look at on the front of the couch, but not on the back where you walk in the door and see it! Oh well...this isn't a magazine photo shoot! Just my blog, tellin' it like it is! We aren't striving for perfection here...just comfy and cozy!

And the Christmas totes are all safely stacked away in the shed until next year! Yay! Thank you to our son Benton and Hubby for taking care of this today before they went out to lunch and had a good hamburger at our local "True Grits" restaurant.

And so I close this today with a thankful heart, full of joy and blessing...letting the memories of the day and the smiles on the faces flood my heart. It was a wonderful time, and I am so thankful that God made it possible for me to participate.

Time to close for today friends. 

Some words of wisdom from God's Word...

2 Samuel 22:29-31

“29 For You are my lamp, O Lord;

The Lord shall enlighten my darkness.

30 For by You I can run against a troop;

By my God I can leap over a wall.

31 As for God, His way is perfect;

The word of the Lord is proven;

He is a shield to all who trust in Him."

Amen.