Delight and Wonder.....

Sometimes, a girl just needs a day to herself. 

A day to let her body rest, but more importantly, a day to let her mind rest.

You know, get away from the world, the office, the emails, the iPhone, the grocery store, the cleaning, and all the projects you have started.  

Everything. 

Away from it all.....

Today has been one of those days. 

I woke up, at the river, without any help from the alarm clock. 

That, alone, is heaven on earth. 

The Hubby was at work, Haley was at work and Kylee was at school. 

That left just me, myself and I. 

I sat on the dock, read a little, did my morning devotion, looked at the lesson for next week's group study, and then took the jetski out for a bit. 

(My mind did have to work just a little trying to figure out how to get one jetski off the lift without letting the other one off, but that's a whole different blog post.) 

Now back to this post.....

There's just something about being on the open water that gets me every time. 

I can't explain it. 

Today, there were no other boats or jet skis out. 

The water was smooth, like glass. 

It was quiet, except for the sound of my own jetski. 

The wind blowing through my hair. 

As I look around and see those white, puffy clouds, and an occasional bird or fish, it's like I'm 6 years old again and seeing it all for the first time. 

I'm enthralled by my surroundings, His Creation. 

I really am. 

Enthralled..... 

That's a big word for a girl such as myself from Alabama. 

What exactly does it mean? 

It means "filled with delight and wonder."

I am, literally, enthralled. 

I am filled with delight and wonder. 

Every. Single. Time. 

No, I can't explain it, but it is good and was much needed today. 

Sure, I had plenty of things to do. 

But, my body and my mind needed a day. 

Sometimes, you just have to admit it and enjoy it. 

There is no where else I would rather have been today than in my little corner of His beautiful, giant world. 

I have to confess, Mondays like this aren't too bad. 

Nope, not bad, at all. 

Love you MUCH! 

=],

Gracie

Sunshine and Dynamite.....

Happy Birthday, America!

Should have said that yesterday. 

Well, I did, just not on here. 

Judging by the arsenal of fireworks currently going off outside, our neighbors aren't finished celebrating. 

I expect to hear dynamite soon. 

It will make the 3rd night in a row. 

No, I'm not kidding. 

The first night, I was SOUND asleep when it went off. 

It sounded just like it was right outside. 

You wanna know why? Because it was. 

Last night, I was awake, reading, when it went off. 

I swear, I thought somebody had ran into our pier, or our jetskis had fallen out of the lift. 

Why would one want to blow up dynamite? I have no idea. 

Despite the dynamite, it has been a great weekend around The Nest. 

We spent America's birthday on the 

water. 

Lots of sunshine, blue skies, and beautiful sunsets. 

Last night, we rode with friends on their boat to watch our city's firework celebration. 

We had a great time and the fireworks were awesome!

There's just something about being on the water, whether it's during the day or night, that makes everything better. 

Watching fireworks is no different. 

I'm thankful we are blessed with this treasure, called the river, in our backyard, and I am even more thankful for family and good friends to share it with. 

I hope you were able to celebrate America's birthday with those you love, doing what you love, Blog Friends. 

Love you MUCH,

=],

Gracie 

Happy Mother's Day.....

I do realize, even though Mother's Day brings me joy, it is a painful reminder to some of what can't be, what was, or what is missing from their lives. 

I remember, all too well, all the Mother's Days I spent trying, without success, to get pregnant.

It hurt. 

Deeply. 

I am blessed to still have my Mom. 

She is the strongest woman I know. 

I can honestly say, there has never been a time she didn't put me first. 

If I couldn't go somewhere, she suddenly didn't want to go anymore. 

If there was only one piece of pie, magically, she wasn't hungry anymore.

Funny how that works, isn't it?

Through her example, I learned what being a Mom was all about. 

I now understand the sleepless nights, 

pacing the floors, and worrying over, 

what seemed to me at the time, nothing. 

I understand the relief hearing the car pull in the driveway brings. 

I understand loving another person more than you love yourself, and being willing to take on the devil himself for them. 

I understand how your heart can 

literally beat inside another's chest.

I understand unconditional love, and love beyond measure.

I understand love so deep you would be willing to lay down your own life. 

I understand praying to take pain and 

sickness away, and being willing to take it yourself. 

I love you, Mom. 

There aren't enough words in the English language to describe what you mean to me. 

I know now there were hard days and hard times, yet, you never let me know it. 

You taught me so many things about life and about being a woman. 

Not only did you teach me there were real life Princesses, you taught me it was ok to be one myself. 

You taught me I could do anything I put my mind to. 

You taught me I could be anything I wanted to be and what I always wanted to be was you. 

You taught me to love passionately and forgive freely, though, I'm still working on the forgiving freely part. 

You taught me the importance of Family. 

You taught me to hug, and not be afraid of human touch. 

You taught me to say, "I love you" 

and just how important those words really are.

You taught me the value of hard work, and a good name. 

You taught me to be a Leader and not a follower. 

You taught me plain talk is easily understood. 

You taught me to speak my mind and that my opinion is valuable. 

You taught me responsibility and accountability.

You taught me how important it is to keep your word. 

You taught me to laugh and enjoy life. 

You taught me it was ok to cry. 

You taught me to adapt to change. 

You taught me to take chances. 

You taught me it was ok to fail. 

You taught me it felt great to win.

You taught me how to lose with grace and dignity. 

You taught me beauty is on the inside. 

You taught me to be nice to others. 

You taught me to give of myself.

You taught me to stand up for what 

I believe in, even if it means standing alone. 

Above all, you taught me about Jesus and His Love. 

You taught me He has a plan for my life.

You taught me His timing is perfect. 

You taught me to pray and read my Bible. 

You taught me to carry my kids to church, never send them. 

You taught me to take notes in Church. 

You taught me to sing. 

You taught me to never be ashamed of 

Christ and the work He has done in my life.

You have taught me all this and so much more.

I'm proud to call you Mom. 

I hope I can be half the Mom to my girls, you have been to me. 

I love you MUCH, Always & Forever!

=],

I'm Sorry, Not Sorry.....

Simply put, I am in awe of God's Creation and His Handiwork. 

Like, l'm not even kidding. 

Sunset.....

Sunrise.....

The Sky.....

Clouds.....

The Sun.....

Rain.....

Water.....

Flowers.....

Fields.....

You name it, I. Love. It. ALL. 

It all goes back to having a window seat the first time I flew and seeing the world from 36,000 feet. 

It amazes me to think God, who made Heaven and Earth, and placed each one of those white, billowy clouds in the sky, created me and is madly in love with me. 

My mind can't totally comprehend that. 

Combine that, with my love for taking pictures, and you have quite an obsession, I mean, passion.

 

It's the kind of passion that will make a girl stop in the middle of wherever she is, at any given moment, and take a picture, or two, or ten.

 

I can't really explain it; can't put it into words. 

I think we get so use to seeing things everyday that we forget to appreciate them. 

We become desensitized to their beauty and splendor. 

I never want to lose the wonder of His creation. 

So, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Blog Friends, I'm sorry, but not sorry, for my endless pictures.

 

I really can't help myself.

 

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.  ~Psalms 19:1 (NIV)

Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you. ~Jeremiah 32:17 (NIV) 

13 

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalms 139:13-14 (NIV)

Have a wonderful weekend, Blog Friends!  

Love you MUCH!

=],

Gracie

The Healer.....

I've had several people ask me if the recent trials in my family have caused me to question my faith. 

My answer is this.....

No. 

It doesn't. 

In fact, it makes my faith stronger. 

I wrote this post in 2010 and it is still appropriate for today.....

http://mygraciern.blogspot.com/2010/10/dont-be-afraid-just-believe.html?m=1

I can focus on the hurt or The Healer. 

I choose The Healer. 

Satan doesn't like that. 

He would rather I move my attention from The Healer, where it belongs, and focus on the hurt. 

In doing that, he would successfully rob me of joy, hope, and a peace that passes ALL understanding. 

Does my heart hurt? Absolutely

Do I wish I could take it all away? Of course

But, do I question God's love? Never

Do I question His faithfulness? Never 

His mercies are new every morning. 

His strength is made perfect in weakness. 

He never changes. 

Love you MUCH!

=],

Gracie