About Me

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I LOVE to design and to paint whimsical items that will put a smile on your face. Each day I share my simple life with you as I try to encourage, to inspire and sometimes JUST to make you smile as I recount my life growing up on a dairy farm! I've never had many material items in my life, BUT I have been blessed beyond words with love and encouragement from WONDERFUL Parents who instilled in me WHAT was important. I have had EVERYTHING that I needed and WAY too much of what I wanted. I am slowly learning to be a better person each day through my interactions with my friends on Facebook. Some day I hope to be as good as people seem to THINK I am! I am BLESSED! Welcome to my little corner of the world...Please stop by and visit often!
Showing posts with label Blessings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Blessings. Show all posts

Friday, September 15, 2017

Peaches and Milk



I don't like milk.

Well, unless it has something good added to it! 

Yep, strange for someone raised on a dairy farm.

...AND, my mother was allergic to dairy foods.

The good news is Daddy ate enough cheese and ice cream to keep us all in business. 

In the line of true confessions, I don't care for breakfast.

I never have.




I do not eat eggs.

Ok, so that is not true.

I do eat eggs as long as I can't taste or smell them. Throw in enough cheese and onions, cook it crispy, and I will eat an omelet or a quiche. 

I have gagged over cleaning one too many iron skillets after eggs were cooked--eeeeeewwwwww...



I was the brat, who followed my Daddy like a puppy,  and sat at the table between my parents until their deaths.



I remember sitting around the breakfast table each morning with my family, as a young child. Mother said there were few meals that something wasn't spilled, and often, it wasn't one of the kids!  Remember, we had 3 people past 80 the first few years of my life.

As we got older, it became a joke that as soon as the blessing was offered, somebody always jumped up to get something! 




Daddy always had the same breakfast --2 eggs (fried with a runny middle---ick, or scrambled), 2 pieces of toast, covered in White Karo Syrup, and cut into 9 squares, 2 pieces of sausage, bacon or ham, and coffee.



I have shared this before, but it is as vivid a memory as it gets. I remember watching Daddy perfectly cutting his toast into those 9 squares, and this one particular morning, I asked him to cut my toast. 




I remember my eyes growing big in horror as he reached across me with that egg-yellow-laced fork to cut my toast! I watched in unbelief as those egg drippings were now on MY toast, and tears flowed uncontrollably. 



I remember the sternness of Daddy telling me to stop crying and to eat. I remember thinking that I would stop crying, but eat it, I would NOT.  Yes, Daddy got an extra piece of toast that morning.

Of all the things that I remember, I wonder why this is etched in my mind.



Maybe, this was the foundation of my not liking breakfast. A celebration of all things EGG is a bit much for me. LOL

Mother, long ago, gave up on trying to force me to get up earlier than I needed to stare at food I didn't want to eat. 

We would get breakfast bars, granola, or anything that we could grab and go. Breakfast became only for special occassions--that wasn't a bad thing. It helped reassure me of the specialness of gathering around a table to share breakfast. I LOVED going to Shoney's breakfast bar with Mother and Daddy. 

Any time we traveled, Daddy planned a stop at Cracker Barrel for breakfast. I never minded so much getting up a bit earlier for that.




My favorite breakfast, as of late, is Yogurt with granola. Of course, it comes later in the day. 😊

Yesterday, I thought I would try to use the rest of my milk I had bought for potato soup, before the milk spoiled, so I got a bowl of granola. As I sat down for my afternoon snack, I eyed my last peach, big as a softball, and too expensive to let spoil  ($2.98/lb), so I grabbed it and chopped it into my cereal. 



Mercy,  me, those food memories. 

I was transported back to my childhood years of eating fresh peaches with milk/sugar over them or blackberries with milk/sugar! 

WOW!!

I can't adequately express my gratitude for being raised in a home that smelled of freshly baked goods...for being blessed with fresh out-of-the-garden veggies...for the joy of growing up around a table with family and friends...for being taught that all good gifts come down from the Father of Lights...for learning to always bless the hands that prepared a meal, our food to nourish our bodies, and our health to God's service.

To God, be all glory, honor and Praise! 

I am simply blessed to create~charlotte♡





Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Whacky Wednesday



It is Whacky Wednesday!!



I can’t think of a single thing that is Whacky, but I haven’t posted on a Wednesday in a while, so I thought it was time.






It has been a beautiful week in Middle Tennessee.



We sure could use some rain, but I am thankful for the nice weather to play with Charcoal.




I have laughed with him as we played fetch.  He has sniffed and sniffed and sniffed…



On Sunday morning at 3 am, we were out “sniffing” and he decided that perhaps he should answer the call of nature before bedtime.






He sniffed for the perfect spot…did the circle dance of his people, when he stepped on a stick (he had left there earlier in the day), and jumped straight up and promptly went to another spot a few yards away!






I laughed as he gave me the stink eye.



Fast forward 12 hours, and we are outside again after a nice sleep.






I sat down on the steps to reach for a stick to start our game of Fetch, when he dropped the big stick he had left (as he most always does) close to the step on my TOE!






I am pretty certain it was dropped in retaliation of my laughing at him.



He doesn’t forget!



We play fetch, quite often in the dark.  He usually brings me back the stick I threw!  I find that funny.






It has been a long hot summer, and Charcoal had no desire to play outside or to stay for long, and I had to force him to go potty.  It made me sad.



The mosquitoes and fleas were awful, so I didn’t complain, But it did worry me that he didn’t want to play.






As soon as the weather changed, my boy was back to himself, as if the long, hot summer was a dream.



Tonight, he brought his FIRST stick to “HIS PILE” for the first time in a long time.






The other day, while he was “fetching”, I reached over to “HIS PILE” to see if I could break some more of the big limbs into smaller ones.  He came FLYING back and yanked those sticks out of my hands and returned them to “HIS PILE”.  He isn’t very kind in grabbing them back.  He will take them out of my “fetching” pile and put them into “HIS PILE”.



Oh, what a silly bundle of love he is!  A bit possessive, but that is ok.






As I was sending a message to a friend, I told her that I MUST go to the store because I only had: a can of refried beans, one can of Garbanzo beans, 2 cans of crushed pineapple, spaghetti noodles, a package of yellow rice, a serving of ham, a serving of shrimp, four packages of frozen veggies.  I snickered as she said to add the ham to the spaghetti.  No, that is for the pizza crust I forgot to mention!  LOL…





As I went to prepare my meal for the day, I decided to cook the shrimp and I thought the yellow rice would be really good.  Yellow rice is just about one of my most favorite things to eat with just about anything!  As it was cooking, I wished that I had some black beans to go with it.  I remembered the can of Garbanzo beans (yep, organic), so I drained them and heated them.  As I was waiting for all of this to heat/cook, I glanced over to see 3 tomatoes that I had pulled out to eat before they ruined.  I remembered that I had some sweet onions~~another staple that is most always in my house.





I chopped the tomatoes, and the onion, placed the yellow rice and Garbanzo beans on the plate and mixed them together for an amazingly wonderful tasting salad!!





As I looked at the bounty that I found after my few moments of “wondering” what was left to eat, shame over took me. I had a feast!  Oh, how many people would LONG to have the “scarce” pantry I thought was incapable of nourishing my body and definitely not satisfying my hunger.





Once again, God kept His promise~~He prepared a feast in the presence of mine enemies...

The enemies of fear, frustration, doubt, and hunger were shown WHO was the BOSS!



“Bless this food to the nourishment of my body and my health to YOUR service.  In the name of Jesus Christ, Your Son and my Lord, Amen.”





Thank You, God…Have I mentioned how blessed I am…~charlotte♡



My favorite rice salad made with yellow rice! 
The veggie salad above it is yummy, too! 

Sunday, May 15, 2016

Serendipity Sunday



I am really enjoying this new Blog schedule I have set for myself…



I like the subjects each day to give me variety~~Serendipity Sunday, Technique Tuesday, Whacky Wednesday, Tutorial Thursday, Food Friday, and Saturday Smorgasbord.



It gives me a reason to be better organized with my thoughts, and gives me a challenge to make what I want to say FIT somewhere~~rolf…there is no shutting me up simply because I have something I feel I want to share!!  Boundaries??!!  Pish Posh!



I admit, my favorite topic is Serendipity Sunday.



I LOVE that each week, I try really hard to notice that little unexpected blessing that I would tend to overlook if I wasn’t looking.  It has caused me to stop dwelling so hard on the WHAT AM I GOING TO DO TO FIX THIS moments that seem to overwhelm me as of late.  I NEED this reminder.



On Wednesday, May 13, I was so overcome with joy because the mower started.  I was doing my “thank you, Jesus” praises, when as I was doing a pass, I noticed that something felt strange, only to discover the big back tire is flat and the front right tire is questionable…sigh…BUT I am claiming the JOY and victory in the “it started” moments and somehow, I will find a way to get the tire repaired…WHY do places want money?  =(





As I stood at the mower in tears, remembering having to spend $100 that I couldn’t afford on a car tire just one week ago.  I gave myself another “talking too” and thought somehow, I can’t dwell on this.  I just have to find a way to fix it. 





I found great joy in watching Charcoal bark at the mower and my leaving it in his dog trot.  It is quite comical how that has thrown his world into such a downward spiral.  I decided we needed a change in location for a bit, so I walked to the field by the house that is waiting to be planted in soybeans.





WOW…I didn’t notice how beautiful the day was.  I had shared with my FB friends on my page about the storms of life and how beautiful it is after they pass, and sure enough…This had been the first storm-free day in the last 5 days, and just WOW!! Only a few light clouds on the edges of the sky…




As I walked, I noticed that some type of fruit had dropped in a particular spot, so I walked and sat at the edge of that, and curiosity started filling this ole cat.  I sat and pondered what I thought it was.

I was fascinated by all the colors in the dying weeds.  Look Mulberries!!


Meanwhile, I looked to see a bird soaring HIGH and then another, and another, and they got lower…HOLY MOLY, it is a buzzard and his friends and they think I am DEAD…I moved quickly to discourage them for fear of some ole buzzard setting a record for the biggest find in buzzard history!! 



I smiled as I remembered the day that Daddy had come home from the barn, where he cut wood for me, after spending a month in the hospital and months at home regaining his strength.  He came into the house grinning like a possum, when he told that he walked out of the barn to see 3 buzzards sitting on the top looking down at him.  He giggled and said, “You don’t get me, YET!”  My precious Poppa!!  I am certain not many girls remember their father with such love when they see an ugly buzzard!

Look at the colors in that one weed.


I quickly went inside to grab my phone to research the berries, and yep, Mulberries.  It was a huge tree and I thought back to my childhood of singing, “here we go round the Mulberry bush” and thought, good grief, we could collapse in exhaustion trying to circle this big tree! 



Charcoal continued his search for more sticks and more sniffing…Do you KNOW the joy of a black fur baby running full speed toward you at the joy of seeing you?  Ok, yes, there is that moment of “Slow down, boy. You will KILL me if you hit me going that fast!”  Rewards of scratching his back made the celebration more fun for him.  Gosh, his Naughtie Aunts sure did make my world a better place when they helped me and encouraged me to get him…Yes, well,  they could tolerate the sadness no longer of  my losing Roamie…LOL   I do tend to have a gift for “woe, is me.”



All of this and you are convinced that this was my serendipity moment. 



Yes, it was a glorious couple of hours, and I no longer cried when I looked at the mower…

Life is filled with DOXOLOGY MOMENTS


BUT the REAL serendipity moment of the week was on Thursday, discovering that a Cardinal had built a nest in the little peach tree outside of the window by the door!  NEVER have I seen a cardinal nesting.



Last year, it was a robin in the bell, and now, this year…just for me…a Cardinal in the peach tree (sung to the 12 days of Christmas…yep…I think there might be a design coming with this moment!)



May I tell you how much I would love to see into that nest?  AND how DIFFICULT it is to get a good picture?  And how much Charcoal does not want my attention on such a thing?  Can you spell spoiled?  Why, Yes, m’am, I can~~C H A R C O A L!!



BUT, I would not risk hurting that location by dragging a ladder to it, or by cutting any of the protective branches…it is not my intent to destroy nature, so I will just watch each day to see the birdie parents making their nest a home…I welcome this family to my little corner of the world.

You can see the orange of the bill right in the middle of the picture...Where's Wilma instead of Waldo!!  LOL

Oh, my sweet Lord, HOW did I get so blessed while others long to have a safe home?  I am absolutely floored by the amount of Mercy, Grace, Forgiveness and LOVE shown to me daily!  HOW can I not Praise YOU!!



Please forgive me for my moments of weakness and yes, there are things I need, but You keep showing me how you provide, so I will wait and I KNOW my needs will be met at just the exact moment and not one bit sooner or later.  THANK YOU for loving me…



Thank you for all of the UNEXPECTED and UNDESERVED moments of Joy…YOU have my heart and I will do my best to be better…I will honor my trust in You, by pushing FEAR from my life…it is really tough, but you know that.  You promised ME that if I will trust, You WILL provide and I am claiming it. Amen…


Thank you, all my friends for joining me in my journey as I stumble and fall, and then rise to have some pretty good moments, only to stumble again…but THIS is my life…it is REAL and I cannot thank you enough for loving me through my trip down these winding roads, and for laughing at me when YOU KNOW I should have taken the other road.  I’m stubborn like that.



I wish you MANY serendipity moments this week…you sometimes have to look for them…I am simply blessed to create~~charlotte





GIVEAWAY

I would like to GIVE AWAY this 5x7 painting I completed and shared on Tutorial Thursday.  I am blown away at the LIKES, kind comments and over 400 page views I had for the day on that post…YOWZERS.



I will draw a winning name on my Daddy’s 93rd Birthday…I try to do something thoughtful on those special days that make me sad, so May 24th, it will be…a drawing to someone who enters.  The drawing will be open to everyone, no matter where you live.



To enter: Answer this question: 
What is one of your favorite Serendipity moments, EVER…



I know, some of you HATE to share yourselves in public, but come on now, take a deep breath.  Answer on this blog, or I will make a PINNED POST (those on your phones, you will have to look for the pinned post at the top) on my facebook page ROMA LAND WOODCRAFTS.  Just my way to spread the love that was so freely given to me by my daddy…



Sunday, May 8, 2016

Serendipity Sunday



I’m not going to lie…



There are days that I wish away…



Days I don’t want to remember…



Day I wish didn’t exist…



BUT then, I think that sometimes, no matter how painful it may seem, we NEED to experience these days.  That is how we grow.







Days that are meant to be Celebrations with family, well, I dread them.  I dread the well wishes from those who mean only joy, who say, “have fun with your family.”  It cuts to the core, because being an orphan, even at 53, isn’t fun…HOW DARE we have days that are not FUN…sigh…



Yes, I laugh at me…I laugh at my ignorance…I laugh at how silly I am to wish away ANY day of my life, because we all know, that something good can be found in EVERY situation, IF we are looking for it.





As I sat on the back porch waiting for Charcoal to decide if he wanted to bring back the stick, or if he was content to sniff where HE had just peed (ok, sometimes, I do wonder how bright he is…), a beautiful yellow and black butterfly flew by…flying up and down, round and round on the wind…



Those who have paid any attention to my writings, know, that the butterfly was special to my Mother, and she never (on purpose) left the house without a butterfly pinned to her left shoulder.  People who knew my mother, knew this about her.






In just a few moments more, a black butterfly flew by and danced for a moment as I watched, and again, thought of my Mother…and it was dressed in black.  Mother’s favorite clothes were most always black and white.

 


When I came in the house, I pulled out a new roll of paper towels. I always buy the select-a-size in white, BUT as I pulled out the roll, plastered all over the paper towel were butterflies!!



NOW, this is where the discussion of coincidence comes into play.



Again, those who KNOW me and have read my words, KNOW that I was raised by a Mother who did not believe in coincidence.  She and I had many conversations about this, and I would look at her when a football player, who happened to just be standing on the field in a bizarre location, caught a ball that was knocked from the hands of the intended receiver~~how can that NOT be coincidence?  She and I would laugh as I said, “well, sometimes, I would rather be lucky than good!”  We understood each other about this and embraced the fact that we could have such a conversation.



Let me be clear.  I am pretty sure that those butterflies would have floated by, had I been paying attention or not, AND the reason I got home with butterfly covered paper towels happened because I was not paying attention at the store…BUT this is where I think that the events become part of a bigger plan, and you are more than welcome to disagree with me…



Mother also taught me that in life, I will always find what I am looking to find.






This has been an incredibly sad day for me.  It is a day that guilt overcomes my soul.  I wish I could have been a better daughter…no, I wish I had made more of an effort to be a better daughter.  I had moments of brilliance, she says, patting herself on the back, but when I needed to be compassionate, and loving, all I could see was the path my life had taken that I DID NOT choose.  What I failed to realize, is that Mother did not choose that path, either.  She did not want to be a burden to anyone.  She raised us to be strong, and all I could muster, was weakness and selfishness…so, try as I may, I can’t forgive myself…it is a daily struggle, again, that you each are probably getting sick of hearing about, but there is a part of me that KNOWS that I went through this to help someone else…maybe just one person, so I continue to write about it…






ANYWAY, pity party over for the moment…



The butterflies were a symbol very special to Mother.  I never see one that I don’t think of her and smile.  I recount how she loved without fault.  She was not ashamed of telling people, even complete strangers, that she loved them.  She had felt a calling as a young child to be a missionary.  A missionary she was~~right in her own little corner of the world.  Her mission was love and she lived her life as a reflection of God’s love…she smiled on days when all she wanted to do was to cry.  She was LOVE.



On this day where tears are flowing way more than they should, I was “visited” by butterflies.



On a day that I was searching to find some type of assurance that God understood my heartbreak and guilt, butterflies visited.





So, this is why I think me NOTICING the butterflies was no coincidence~~Because I was LOOKING for them.  I wanted a sign that somehow, Mother knew I did the best I could at the moment. 



We go through life, sometimes stubbing our toe on every rock, and blaming the stones for being in our way.  The same rocks have been in the same place all along, but when we happen to upturn one, we cry FOUL…




Things in our world may seem to never change, because, after a while, we stop noticing our surroundings.  For instance, when you plant flowers, you can’t wait to see them bloom, but often, once they bloom, we fail to stop and notice them after awhile, because we get used to them…we don’t look for the beauty, even though they are right there, right in front of us in all of their glory…we stop noticing…we even start to dread having planted them because we must water and weed...



ONLY when we decide to LOOK for the beauty, do we again, see it…



I bought the paper towels over a week ago, but how FUNNY that today, on Mother’s Day, I opened the package, without looking at them, and the one roll out of the 8 rolls that I pull out is covered in butterflies! 



How FUNNY that today, I saw 2 butterflies in the span of only moments, when I have seen only one butterfly this spring and it was weeks ago!



COINCIDENCE?  I think not! 



I found a symbol of something that was very special to me that specifically reminded me of Mother…I believe it was placed on this earth by a God who thinks of EVERYTHING for us…but we MUST do our part and look for it.



Miracles still happen.






God hasn’t changed…he still is I AM!



I am the one who must change…I must continue to look for what I wish to find…I am slowly learning that I am not such a bad person.  I have bad days, but I am doing my best to NOT be defined by them.  I am learning that I AM the one who must forgive myself.  God has already granted me forgiveness, so I MUST let it go and accept…let go of the guilt and move forward.  I have a mission…I have a path…each day is a new adventure and I WILL embrace the beautiful miracles that God has placed in this world…I WILL find what I seek…I will BLOOM, dadgummit! =)




I am so glad that Mother taught me about serendipity, because the 3 butterflies made Serendipity Sunday possible, and let me tell you, it hasn't been the best week of my life!  Thanks, God.  Thanks, Mother…Thank BOTH of you for always loving me JUST AS I AM, but who love me way too much to leave me that way.






I wish you a week filled with FINDING the good you seek~~Blessings to YOU…~charlotte