new pictures

sun, sand, and tons of fun!!!

these are SOME of the pictures from our july beach vacation.we had ALOT of pics, so i will be posting a few at a time.

the pointer sisters,lola nice nighttime picme and my gang!!!!

i love this one of my daddy with the kids.... that is so special..

chris + dana =forever!!!!

canning and fishing

well, i promised pics of my canning project last week. i finally got them downloaded. i am very proud of the way my mother and grandmother taught me of the art of canning. it is part of my childhood that i remember and count it fond... i love to do any type of pickles, jams, jellies, preserves, butters,...you get the deal.our apples were very plentiful, and pretty too, i might add.

this was the finished product. i think it turned out pretty, and very tasty too... chris thinks it is delish.. i have made several rounds, and still plan to do more...

on thursday, we took the boat out for a day on the lake. it was a very hot, overcast day at first.. then, after lunch, the sun started to come out, and it became rather warm... i am sad to say that he beat me on thursday, he caught 3 fish. i did not catch a thing.. i did have several good bites, but did not catch anything...boo!!! i took this pic as soon as we got out on the water. this spot is where we usually where we catch a bunch of fish .we left the lake around 3 pm, and stopped for a great lunch/ supper... i had fried catfish fillet, ironic, i know... chris had a chopped bbq plate, and we had scrumptious pecan pie for dessert!!!! it was yummy!!!!

TIME WITH MOM

today,my mother and i went to run a few errands, and to visit some of our favorite stores in town.. we went to 2 stores, i got a new sweater, and skirt.. i was so happy.. we went to another store, and i bought a new pair of shoes for practically nothing!!!! they were pretty.. i bought a new dress the other day, for an upcoming trip we are going on, but it is too big, so a nice lady in our church, joann, is working on that for me.. also, let me tell you she does this with only 1 arm!!!! that is amazing to me!!! anyway, we had a great time, just me and her..and i cherish those times so much!!!!

we went for a nice lunch at applebee's, and while we were there, it came another downpour.. btw, we have gotten some much needed rain over the past few days,PRAISE THE LORD!!!!
we left there and came back home.. i took a nap, i was really sleepy!!!! i woke up just in time to get ready for church. it was a good day!!

TO BE A BLESSING

TONIGHT, AT WEDNESDAY NIGHT PRAYER SERVICE, THE PREACHER PREACHED ON BEING A BLESSING, AND HOW WE ARE BLESSED. IT REALLY TOUCHED MY HEART.AND MADE ME WANT TO BE USED MORE TO BE A BLESSING TO OTHERS..
I CAN THINK OF A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN SUCH A BLESSING TO ME , IN MY LIFE.IT IS REAL EASY TO THINK OF THESE PEOPLE, AND YET, YOU ALSO WONDER IF YOU HAVE BEEN A BLESSING IN THEIRS?? ALSO, YOU THINK OF YOUR EVERYDAY LIFE.. FOOD, CLOTHING , SHELTER, MONEY... ALL OF THESE THINGS WE HAVE BEEN BLESSED WITH.. WE THANK THE LORD FOR THAT....SOME PEOPLE HAVE TO ALWAYS HAVE MORE, AND ARE NEVER SATISFIED, AND THEY ALWAYS WANT BETTER THAN SOMEONE ELSE, AND JUST ARE NEVER CONTENT WITH WHAT THEY HAVE.. THOSE PEOPLE ARE THE MOST UNHAPPY..

WHEN I SING THE SONG, ''I'M BLESSED''.. I NEVER JUST WANT IT TO BE WORDS... I REALLY WANT TO LET OTHERS KNOW I HAVE BEEN BLESSED. SOMETIMES, I THINK ABOUT HOW BAD A PROBLEM OF MINE ''MIGHT'' BE, THEN, I SEE OTHERS WHO HAVE SO MANY MORE WORSE PROBLEMS... AND IT MAKES ME REALIZE HOW MUCH WORSE MY ''PROBLEM'' COULD BE.. I AM BLESSED..

MY PRAYER IS THAT I CAN BE A BLESSING TO OTHERS IN ''ALL'' THAT I DO AND SAY, AND TO SHOW OTHERS THAT I HAVE BEEN BLESSED!!!

I WANT TO PRAISE THE LORD TODAY FOR A GOOD REPORT FROM THE DOCTOR... MY GALLBLADDER IS FUNCTIONING PROPERLY, ALTHOUGH THEY STILL DO NOT KNOW WHY MY COLON IS ENLARGED.. MY PROBLEM COULD BE SO MUCH MORE WORSE, BUT IT IS NOT..
TOMMORROW, WE ARE GOING FISHING, I CAN NOT WAIT. WE HAVE NOT TOOK THE BOAT OUT, SINCE JULY.. IT WILL BE FUN.. I JUST HOPE I CATCH MORE FISH THAN CHRIS DOES..LOL,LOL!!! BE BLESSED THIS EVENING IS MY PRAYER FOR YOU, GOOD NIGHT!!

chocolate dunkers,yum

hello to all, i hope you are enjoying your weekend. we have had some joyful days... we were both off on friday. we ate a yummy, homemade breakfast with my mother, daddy, niece, and nephew on friday morning.we had a great day. we went to run some errands, and came home. we then did some things around home, and went for a late lunch/early supper. we enjoyed our time.. we have been really busy, and have not had a lot of time together lately...

last night, we attended a memorial service for another lady, who just passed away this week.. with cancer. that makes 3 people that have passed in the past 10 days, that attended my church.. it was such a sweet service, so sweet in fact, that 1 of her children, her oldest son, got saved... now, her wish was fullfilled.the greatest thing about all of this, is that she is no longer struggling to breathe, or no more cancer taking over her body...she is with her LORD!!!!!

we came home, and i finished up canning another round of my apple butter. it is so fun to make, and it always takes me back to my childhood......some things you never forget... oh, the memories,sniff, sniff........ anyway, tonight we ate pizza, oh so good... and for dessert, the new chocolate dunkers......yummy!!!!!!!!!!!! they were awesome, and great for that chocolate craving!!! time for a great night's rest!!!

just can it!!

i have been really too busy to even think about blogging lately. we went out saturday night to eat with some friends at church. we had a great time just talking and going over things for the upcoming sigma year. after supper, we came home to relax. sunday was a great day, both services. sunday night, we learned that a dear lady in our church had passed away. she had a battle with cancer, and her body was just wasting away.... she is in Heaven, though... and she is not suffering anymore...

monday, my mother took my sisters, niece, and i out for lunch. we had a great time with just ''the girls''... we just sat and talked and had a blast...eating. i had to work tuesday and wednesday.last night, i finished up a batch of my homemade apple butter. our apples are plentiful this year, and i am not letting them go to waste!!! last year, they did not produce all that well. we are making up for it this year. i canned 6 half pints last night, and plan to do more tommorrow. i am going to post pics tommorrow of the apple butter. well. time for some sleep.. i have a early appointment in the morning. have a blessed evening.

nice time off

bbq, bbq, bbq

i have had some time off... i am glad that i have had it. we went to a bbq place in a neighboring town the other night. it was new to us, we had never been there before. we pass it on the way to the lake.... we have said we were going to try it one day.. that day came friday night.we were running a little behind,and it was late before we left, but it was worth all the drive.chris had the chopped bbq plate, and i had the rib plate. i ordered potato salad... boy, am i glad i did.i am really ''spoiled'' on ann's potato salad. her's is hard to beat. this potato salad was awesome!!! on the way home, i caught this beautiful sunset!!! it was great to see.

saturday night, our church was invited to a youth rally at a neighboring church. they had a combined choir, and we got there in time to eat a meal. the visiting preacher was mr. lee davis. he was really good.. i had never heard him before.

today, i had to go to the doctor for some tests. i do not know any of the results yet.. pray for me that i will get a good report. have a great humpday!!!

beautiful crepe myrtles

today has been a beautiful day. our crepe myrtles are in full bloom, and they are gorgeous this year. they have grown so much over the past year, it is unreal. we both had the day off today. we spent the day at the pool, and then we went for a late lunch. we had some errands to run. it has been so hot here this week, and we have had some thunder today, and a little rain. we need rain so much, here!!!! the lakes around here are growing grass!!!

grandfather mountain

yesterday, we took a day trip to grandfather mountain. chris had never been there before. i had, as a small child, but did not remember it well. anyway, after a quick bite for breakfast and a trip to the bank, and also for gas, we were on our way.everything was great. we first went to the nature museum. it is all about endangered species, gems, and birds, and flowers. they also have eagle, bear, deer, and otter exhibits. the mountain is around 65 million years old. this eagle had just ate lunch. he was beautiful.
this is the highest swinging footbridge in america.you have a 360 degree view.
i love this view!!
once you cross the bridge, you can continue to go on out to some more rocks. it was adventurous and a little scary....if you don't have good balance like me.. chris loved the views.
these bears were so funny to watch.. the one on the left just looked dead at me and sat up like this. it was so cute..
this is us right before we crossed the bridge. first off, i am not real fond of bridges, much less swinging ones... lol......it was really something. that was the first time i had ever crossed it...but praise the LORD, I made it.. chris said i ran across it, i do not remember!!!
how can anybody not see GOD'S HAND at work??
this is us at the highest peak on the mountain. it was 77 degrees and the wind was blowing really fast and hard.. it was cool, but it made the bridge swing more...ugh!!!
i can not believe i actually stood still long enough on the bridge to take this pic, but i overcame a fear, and trusted the LORD to help me... we made it!!!!

i love hummingbirds... i have never seen as many at one time as i did this day..... there was a pine tree near about 5 feeders.. they were all in the tree, waiting their turn for a ''sweet drink.'' it was amazing!!!!!!! they sound like bees..
this otter posed real cute for chris..
oh yes, there he is.. how beautiful.. he was just sitting there resting.. it was awesome to watch him... and look, he is in velvet.... chris wanted him on our wall!!!

we had a wonderful time, and we ate a nice little lunch there in the snack shop before we drove on up to the bridge..then we visited the gift shop, and i picked up a few little, souvineirs, before we headed down the mountain. we went back through Little Switzerland.. it was a cute, little , quaint, town.. it had some little shops.. we went in the shops. we then drove back toward home. we stopped for a great , mexican, supper before going home. we were tired, but we had some nice, and much needed couple time ..

BAKED SKETTI

YESTERDAY, MY MAMA CALLED, AND WANTED ME TO SPEND THE DAY WITH HER.. I WANTED TO, IT HAD BEEN A FEW WEEKS SINCE WE HAD ANY TIME TOGETHER, JUST THE 2 OF US...

SHE CAME AND PICKED ME UP AROUND 1145 AM. WE WENT TO A FAVORITE STORE OF OURS..... WE SPENT ABOUT AN HOUR AND A HALF IN THIS ONE STORE... SHE LIKES TO LOOK AT EVERYTHING IN IT.. I AM NOT KIDDING... FINALLY, I TOLD HER I HAD TO LEAVE SOON, OR I WAS GOING TO BE SICK.. YOU SEE, IT WAS GOING ON 2 PM, AND I HAD NOT HAD ANYTHING TO EAT. MY STOMACH WAS KILLING ME..

WE FINALLY PURCHASED OUR MERCHANDISE, AND MADE IT TO WHERE SHE WANTED TO EAT LUNCH, O' CHARLEY'S... IT WAS SO GOOD.. I HAD SOMETHING NEW, PRETZEL COATED CHICKEN.. IT WAS GREAT. WE WENT TO ANOTHER NEARBY STORE, AND THEN MADE OUR WAY TOWARD HOME. AFTER A QUICK STOP FOR GAS, WE WERE ALMOST AT MY HOME.I WAS TRYING TO GET HOME, BECAUSE I WAS MAKING BAKED SPAGETTI FOR THE ''GUYS'' TONIGHT. WHEN I GOT TO THE F.D., CHRIS HAD ALREADY STARTED THE NOOODLES AND SOME OF THE SAUCE, WHEN IT WAS DONE, IT WAS SO PRETTY, AND GOOD... I JUST WISH I HAD NOT EATEN A LATE LUNCH, AND ALSO NOT ATE AS MUCH AS I DID!!! ANYWAY, I HAD A GREAT TIME.. WITH MOTHER, AND WITH CHRIS AND THE GUYS!!!! WE LOVE BAKED SKETTI!!!