A Not-So-Subtle Message From God

Sometimes God speaks to us in subtle ways. Other times he whacks us over the head. Last night was one of those times. If you read my post yesterday, you know that my husband and our dear friend were in a boating accident during a fishing tournament yesterday morning - Father's Day morning. They are lucky to be alive. Actually, there was no luck in it at all, for God was in control the whole time. And boy did He let us know it last night!

On Saturday I found a book at a yard sale that I thought Rich might like. It's a devotional called "Pathways to His Presence" by Charles Stanley. Turns out Rich really likes Charles Stanley and listens to him on talk radio all the time. He was really excited when I gave it to him. Like most devotionals, this one has the date at the top of each page. Rich opened it on Saturday night and asked me if I thought he should start at the beginning or go to June 20th. I told him I thought it made more sense to start with June 20th.

Rich and I rarely go to bed at the same time, he's a night owl, I am not. I like my sleep and am usually under the covers by 10:00. Well, last night was one of those rare nights when we went to bed at the same time. I guess Rich was so drained, mentally and physically, from the events of the day that he just wanted to crash early. He reached for his devotional, turned to the page that said June 21, and here is what he read:

The Reward of Faith

But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid."

"Jesus had sent His disciples on ahead to Bethsaida. They had crossed the Sea of Galilee with trepidation. As skilled fishermen, they could tell that the cool air on their faces preceded a storm front. The volatile air currents would soon clash and a violent tempest would erupt - something they had learned to dread.
In the dead of night, the torrents of rain started. Even with their seasoned experience, the tossing seas and whipping winds were daunting. Just when it seemed as if they would die, a ghostly figure approached their boat by walking on the water."

It goes on to say that Matthew 14:27 reports that Jesus told them not to be afraid, that 'faith is to believe what you do not yet see; the reward for this faith is to see what you believe.' You may not understand how God will deliver you, but you can be sure that He will.

"Take courage! Believe that He will calm the raging storm surrounding you, and you will witness the clouds breaking apart."

I have never believed in coincidences. I believe that things happen for a reason. It was no coincidence that Rich read this devotional last night. Our dear friend is not a Christian. I believe that God put this on Rich so that he may use this as a way to show his friend that God was in control this Father's Day and every day. Please pray for Rich that he may be a disciple of Jesus as he delivers this important message in a way that may bring our friend closer to God and show him what great blessings God has in store for him.

Lastly, thank you for all of your comments of caring and concern. It is so great to know that there are so many of you out there who care.

A Father's Day To Remember!

This morning, at 7:00, my husband and his friend were in a fishing tournament when a strong wind overcame them and their boat capsized. They were in the water for a while before being rescued. My husband had to be taken to the hospital and treated for hypothermia. Everything in the boat was lost, but we are just so grateful that they are alive. My father is a retired ship Captain. He worked on a ship for over 35 years for the Corps of Engineers, and I asked him on a scale of 1 to 10 how lucky were they.....he said 9. What a Fathers Day it could've been.

Unfortunately, Rich had our good camera with him on the boat (you know, to capture a picture of the 15 lb. bass he was going to catch!). So I no longer have a camera to post pictures. Boo hoo. But believe me, I am counting my blessings tonite.

Have a great week everyone!
Kim

It's A Cloche Party!!!!

Couldn't pass up the chance to join in the fun of this delightful party hosted by the delightful Marty over at A Stroll Through Life (hi Marty!). I cheated a little bit here as I don't have a true cloche, but I came pretty cloche, er close. I've also included my assortment of apothecary jars and I think even a glass thingamajiggy. Hey it's a party and I never pass up an invitation to a party, especially on Friday nite!

This is where I cheated a little bit. This isn't a real cloche per se, it's one of those cheese dome things that I got at Goodwill to try to pass it off as a cloche.


Yeah, I still have the bird's nest out. I know it's a little too Springy and we're already somewhat into Summer (okay, not technically), but I think I'll keep it out a bit longer.

These apothecary jars I've shown before - they are on my dresser in my Master Bedroom.





Another one in my Master Bath. Hubs and I will be tackling this room next and I think I'm gonna go for a coastal theme in here.


This is that thingamajiggy I was talkin about. It's on hubs' nightstand.

Fake flowers compliments of Walmart.

This huge jar I got at Home Goods and I like it on my Dining Room table. I'll change it out for the seasons. Can't you see gold balls in here for Christmas???


And finally my kitchen. I know this has been overused on HGTV, but I like it anyway!


Thanks for hosting this fun party Marty (yeah, it rhymes). And for forcing me to dust my glass.

I'm Ga-Ga for Garage Sales!!

Just call me Lady GaGa. I love this time of year. Every Thursday, I plop myself down in front of my competer with my D 'n D coffee and a piece of blank paper. My fingers don't even wait for the signal from my brain, and peter is so smart, all he needs is for fingers to plug in "cr". Within seconds I come face to face with what I like to call, the Top Ten List. And believe me, there is nothing Sarah Palin would find offensive about this list. With props to Craigslist, I now have a complete guide to garage/moving/estate sales within a who-knows-how-many-miles radius complete with pictures and lists of items to be sold. Craigslist has revolutionized the world of garage sales so that now, in no time at all, I can map out my Top Ten route and not have to waste my time stopping at driveways filled with "Baby Items" (no more use for that!) or "Exercise Equipment" (I belong to a gym). And thanks to my BFF's handy dandy GPS, we no longer have to worry about getting lost or wasting gas. It just doesn't get any better than that! Unless you count finding some diamonds in the ruff! So without further ado, or incessant babbling, here are some of my diamonds of the past few weeks.

I met the most charming lady at a church rummage sale who was selling the most amazing vintage treasures straight out of her '55 Ford Fairlane. She had adorable antique dolls and toys, jewelry and bags, but I fell in love with these candleholders the minute I laid eyes on them. She sold them to me for $5 for the pair.

She also sold me this vintage embroidered bag for $4.


Of course, I couldn't resist these books. I can't seem to get enough these days. I got the whole set for $1.


I had no idea what I was going to do with this silver hammered tray, but I had to have it - $1.
I think it will look great with a few candles of varying height on my coffee table. But for now its a base for my fern.


Couldn't believe someone was selling this brand new lamp with shade for $11. I saw it at target for $30 and that was just for the base! I love this and for now it is being used in the play room.


This pretty topiary was only a quarter and I already spray painted the base. Can you guess what color?? Yup, Heirloom White. Is there anyone who hasn't used that color yet? LOVE IT!!


The other side of the ticket on this baby said "rare". There's no better way to catch my attention than with that one little word. Can you say "EBAY"?? Paid $1


A sweet little old lady sold me this vintage needlepoint bag for $4. It's a Verde and I love it!! I found an old match inside - I wonder what interesting stories come with that bag......


I've been accumulating junk jewelry for my little shadow, but I decided to keep these rings for myself. They were only fifty cents apiece.


Many of you have a version of this cabbage. I already used it to serve whipped cream at my brunch last week. It was fifty cents.


Now I'm lost on this one. I just saw it and thought it was interesting. It's a Geisha Liqour Bottle. I know this because there's a piece of the cork on the bottom and it smells like liqour. The back is stamped V-something, Italy. Anybody?



So those are just some of the things that made the cut into my trunk over the past few weeks. Thrift Stores and Goodwill are on the back burner for now as I bask in the sun and the glory that is Garage Sale-ing.

I will now leave you with one final thought. Don't be afraid, when you see that sticker that says $5, to put on your P-P-P-P-P-P-P-P-Poker Face and say, "will you take $3?"

Thrifty Thursday!

This post is way overdue - I acquired most of these things several yard sales ago - AND I am fashionably (or not) late for Leigh's party over at Tales From Bloggeritaville (Hi Leigh!!). Oh well, as they say, better late than never.

Scored a couple of cookbooks for a couple of dollars each. Not bad. They looked like they were never used. Maybe the previous owners are like me and only use books for decoration. Ha! No, I have big plans for these - especially the slow-cooker one, as I have a newfound love for my crockpot. Does anyone else have phases like this??



I've been getting lots of candles lately - brand new - even Yankee, for one dollar!!! Why do people get rid of these?? I love candles!


Love this coffee urn. Someone was selling this in a moving sale. It's an old silver electric coffee percolator. She gave it to me for $2 because it is missing the cord. I figure I can find me one of these somewhere! If not, it looks good just sitting out on my buffet, but I'm not gonna give up. Anyone out there have any ideas???




My youngest daughter Amy has been tagging along recently on my treasure hunts. She loves finding bargains (looks like Dad, but has Mom's DNA). She has been making out like a bandit. It would take all day to post her yardsale finds, but you can just use your imagination here - beach balls, barbies, junk jewelry, board games - you get the picture. But these I thought were worth showing. This tea cart was $2 and well worth it - the coffee pot even makes a noise when you "pour". How cute is that?



This vintage white wicker baby carraige was $5 and a perfect place to store the two dolls I scored for fifty cents each! They even had the tags still on them!!


Amy's room is done in white wicker furniture, so the baby carraige looks right at home.

Well these next two have to be my favorite finds. I was thrilled to find a new men's 100% cashmere scarf for $1 and double-dog thrilled when I saw a women's sage colored cashmere pashmina right next to it! Also $1.




Last, I found this Lia Sophia necklace and quickly scooped it up for $5. As Gloria would say (Happy To Be), I did my little happy dance over this one!!!



So that's it for me. Now I'm gonna look at all the other great finds over at Leigh's party. Hey, don't forget to go check it out!

Tablescape Thursday Dollar Store Style!!!

This is only my second time participating in this fun event hosted by Susan (hi Susan!) over at Between Naps on the Porch. I was going to do a post on my Dollar Tree finds, and decided to incorporate them into a tablescape so I could party with the other t-scapers out there. So, as the name suggests, this is a tablescape made up of Dollar Store finds - nothin fancy here, just a casual setting for one. Why just one?? Well, me forgots to go back to the DS to get more placemats. I picked up one of each, just to see if I liked them with every intention of going back to get more. Never happened. Do ya think they're still there???

I just liked all of the colors in these placemats and they all seemed to coordinate. What's more, they went with the colors in my kitchen.


These dishes did NOT come from the DS - no siree! I splurged big time on these babies. Can you say, WalMart??? In my defense, these are just my everyday dishes. Years ago when I first got engaged, I registered at Macy's for my pretty everyday Pfaltzgraf dishes with all the matching serving pieces like a good little Bride-to-Be. Well guess what? They did not stand the test of time. Within a few years, besides being sick of the pattern (Garden Party) they were falling apart - chips and cracks galore, and they were supposed to be dishwasher safe! So, this time, I deciced to go plain and simple. Notice I did not say "cheap". Walmart? Yes. Cheap? Not so much. But I love them and they are much more durable than those fancy-shmancy Pfalzgraf ones.



The napkin rings I got at Goodwill for a buck. Thought they were cute and who can't use animal print napkin rings?? Imagine someone getting rid of those!!!!!! Hey, they look great in my drawer.



Aren't these just the cutest prints? I couldn't resist!



I found a use for just about all of them too. The others I'll put in a basket and fill it with chips for informal gatherings.

On the toaster oven:


On the oven:


And my favorite - as a valance!


So there you have it, my very modest but very colorful tablescape for one. Hope you all have a great day and now go check out all the other beautiful tablescapes at Susan's wonderful blog.