BOOK GIVE-AWAY OPPORTUNITY

March 30, 2011 11:58 PM 0

One of my very favorite artist/authors is having a give-away on her blog, and I wanted to be sure you all knew about the chance to enter!

Go here to read all about it.  Her name is Karla Dornacher and I have a “link” to her in my blog sidebar as well.  Her art is whimsical and fun and she loves the Lord.  The book below is one of my favorites…

Her writing speaks to me of the simple joys of life, and always always blesses.

Check it out, okay?

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For Grandmothers & Grandmothers Yet-to-Be

March 24, 2011 11:25 PM 8
For all Grandmothers, whatever your “Grandma name”…
“Grammy, Mimi, Gramma, Gran, Nana, Grandma, Mamu, Granny, Mimmie, Mawmaw, Grandmother, Big Mama, Nanny, Memama, Gigi, and of course, my sweet friend Bibby!“

I began this blog almost 3 years ago anticipating the JOY of becoming a first-time grandmother; hence,Gran Jan’s JOY. My very first post was entitled  “The Waiting Room” as I journaled about this new season in my life. I came across these “grandmother” quotes recently and wanted to share them. (I apologize if perchance you are the author, please reply and I will give due credit.)   

I suspect many of you young women probably never think much about becoming grandmothers. I honestly didn’t when I was your age. However, I can surely testify to you first-hand that aside from the precious love of Jesus Christ…it is the most wonderfully sweet and delightful pure love, and I am smitten with these three grandbabies of mine:

JACKSON, ZEKE, MADIE RUTH
Here are the “Grandma Quotes:”
 Grandmas are moms with lots of frosting…
What a bargain grandchildren are! I give them my loose change,
and they give me a million dollars’ worth of pleasure.
JACKSON
Grandmothers are just antique little girls.
 
 Perfect love sometimes does not come until the first grandchild.

GRAN JAN HOLDS EZEKIEL (“Zeke”) FOR THE FIRST TIME…8-17-2008
 A grandmother is a babysitter who watches the children instead
of the television…on purpose.

When a baby is born, so is a grandmother…


Becoming a grandmother is wonderful.
One moment you’re just a mother…
the next you are all-wise and prehistoric.

A grandmother is a mother who has a second chance…
God’s best “do-over!”

 When grandmothers enter the door, discipline flies out the window.


Just about the time a woman thinks her work is done she becomes a grandmother…

Grandma always made you feel she had been waiting just to see you
 and now her day was complete!
 Grandmas never run out of hugs or cookies.
  Grandmas hold our tiny hands for just a little while, but our hearts forever.

It is as grandmothers that our mothers come into the fullness of their grace...

JACKSON

My grandkids believe I’m the oldest thing in the world.
And after two or three hours with them, I believe it, too!

 If becoming a grandmother was only a matter of choice,
I should advise every one of you straight away to become one.

MISS MADIE RUTH
Grandchildren are God’s way of compensating us for growing old.
An hour with your grandchildren can make you feel young again.

 The best baby-sitters, of course, are the grandparents.
I wish I had the energy that my grandchildren have, if just to keep up with them.
Grandmother-grandchild relationships are simple:
grandmas are short on criticism and long on love…
nobody can do for little children what grandparents do.
 Grandmother – a wonderful mother with lots of practice.
A grandparent is old on the outside but young on the inside.

  One of the sweetest handclasps is that of a new
grandbaby around the finger of a grandmother.
It’s amazing how grandparents seem so young once you become one.
 
 If your baby is beautiful and perfect, never cries or fusses,
sleeps on schedule and burps on demand,
an angel all the time, you’re the grandma.
 Grandparents are similar to a piece of string – handy to have
around and easily wrapped around the fingers of their grandchildren.
Grandchildren don’t make a man feel old;
it’s the knowledge that he’s married to a grandmother…
I LOVE YOU, “POP!”
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1,000 GIFTS, #99 to #110

March 22, 2011 12:54 AM 3
MULTITUDE MONDAYS
This sweet discipline of counting the gifts of grace is precious and priceless. Thank you for indulging me as I once again list graces of the past week. Yes, as Ann Voskamp says, all is grace…

99. A surprise gift from my sweet husband just for me. Yes, this is a garden TILLER!  I have wanted one for a long time to support my gardening passion.  It is the perfect size for me to use.
100. The SUPERMOON of this past Saturday night! Beth Moore posted this picture on Twitter and it was absolutely the BEST picture of the night.  What a great Creator God! I kept going outside every few minutes to enjoy God’s handiwork.
101. A swing for my littlest grandboy…Jackson. My son and his wife were “testing it out” prior to hanging it outside. They are sure enjoying this little boy. Guess what? He has 2 grandmothers, 4 great-grandmothers, 2 grandfathers, and 2 great-grandfathers! 
102. My husband grilled porkchops for us all this past Saturday – great weather and a delicious meal with the family.
103. Zeke drove his John Deere tractor next door to make a special delivery of buttermilk to my father, his Papaw. He LOVES this tractor!  
104. This double rainbow appeared as the family was leaving the cemetery after the burial of two sisters who died last week. It was seen for miles and miles…this is in my front yard. Thank God for His precious promises. We are still praying for the Sullivent family in their grief.
105.Today is my Mom’s birthday, I am so thankful for her life. She is a strong woman from a generation of self-sacrificing women, a good wife and mother. She took care of my sisters and I while my Dad was in Vietnam; gone for 13 months at a time on two occasions – all this before the days of Skype and email and internet…a strong woman of faith. I love her! Happy Birthday Mom! 
106. My daughter-in-law sent me this picture of Madie Ruth via text last week.  This little girl has won our hearts! She and Zeke have 2 grandmothers, 2 great-grandmothers, 2 grandfathers and 2 greatgrandfathers. Blessed indeed.
107. My favorite Easter candy…Starburst Jelly Beans! I am not a fan of chocolate (truly). But I love jelly beans 🙂 These are sitting on my desk at work. They are “hard to get into” which is a good thing…because did I mention they are my favorite? 
108. A conversation this past Wednesday night after Bible study with long-time friends that lingered long. Cindy, Jean, Joy…thank you! Pure therapy for our hearts and souls. God be praised!
109. A letter in the mail from each of the children we sponsor through Compassion International. The joy of seeing that “letter from your sponsored child” envelope in my mailbox is overwhelming.
110. The joy of the truth of 2 Corinthians 12:9 settling over my heart and soul last night after a message by Dr. Ron Lynch (guest preacher at my church yesterday) gave me such hope. Our God is Greater!
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you,
for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses,
so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
(2 Corinthians 12:9)

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1,000 GIFTS, #80 to #98

March 15, 2011 1:28 AM 4
MULTITUDE MONDAYS
80. Back to Bible study with my Wednesday night girls, I love them so much!
81. A homemade Chocolate Cobbler. Go HERE for my posted recipe and pictures.
82. Time in my garden with glorious warm weather on Saturday and Sunday.
                             Texas Sweet Onions!                         Daffodils!
83. Joining my friend Travis Cottrell by becoming a backer on his new worship project.
84. Assurance that Jesus Christ is the Solid Rock, even during times of devastation in our world. 
85. Thankful for Samaritan’s Purse and their gifts to help the people in Japan suffering intensely after the earthquake and tsunami.
86. Enough hair for my 10-month old granddaughter Madie Ruth to have a real ponytail.
87. The opportunity to pray with some of my co-workers this week. We are asking God to give His grace to a family in the death of two young sisters in a car accident…they were headed home from church and the weather was so stormy. 
88. Singing with our Praise Team this past Sunday morning…”Jesus Messiah” by Chris Tomlin and “I Bless Your Name” by Selah. Awesome worship.
89. Thankful that my Dad is continuing to recover well from back surgery 5 weeks ago.
90. Good conversations with my sons this week. I love them with all my heart. We are friends.
91. Calls, emails, and cards of encouragement from friends at church who know that the past months have been extremely difficult in ministry. God is doing a mighty work in our church…things are better than ever and we praise His Holy Name. Our God is Greater.
92. Helping my husband move these two cows to the pasture behind our house…I am not a cowgirl, but I had a blast! That’s Helen on the left, and Thelma Lou on the right…

 93. A new devotional book Reliving the Passion as I prepare my heart for Easter…

94. Continuing to memorize scripture with lots of friends on the SSMT…Siesta Scripture Memory Team!
95. Going to “Sonic” last night after church with dear friends Jack & Lanie and sitting outside at the picnic tables until way past our bedtime 🙂  Laughing like teenagers.
96. Enjoying these violet violas while they last…because when the warm weather cometh they will not be happy! (I like cooler weather too.)

97.  The sacred echo of this verse in my heart… James 4:14
Whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow.
For what is your life?
 It is even a vapor that appears for a little time
and then vanishes away.
98. Which is exactly why I rejoice in the simple JOY of counting to 1,000…FOR ALL IS GRACE.
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Test

March 11, 2011 6:40 PM 0

This is a test post to check for colors 🙂  Holly

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1,000 GIFTS, #65 to #79

March 8, 2011 1:31 AM 4

Multitude Mondays – Marching Toward 1,000 Gifts in March

65.  Snowpeas and red potatoes peaking up through the soil in my garden.  This is a picture of the snowpeas taken with my Blackberry phone…I can’t wait until they start climbing the trellis.

66. New life on the farm, two baby calves, a new bull and a new heifer.

67. The Bradford pear trees are shouting the promise of springtime! This tree is in the parking lot at my office…and there are three of them in a row…so beautiful.

68.  Help with watering the Texas sweet onions by a sweet Georgia grandboy.

69. Saturday morning breakfast pancakes shaped like a chicken, a cow, and a pig.  These are from Williams Sonoma and my friend Beth Moore has the “Star Wars” pancake molds for her grandchildren.

70. Answered prayer so gloriously confirmed. There is nothing like it, nothing.
71. An email from a friend of 23 years – we are both coming out of a season of intense spiritual warfare and her wisdom and sweet friendship blessed me.
72. Knowing a scripture passage  by heart just when my husband needed it…
73. A grandboy who asked to be rocked before bedtime, and then wanted to hear “How Great Is Our God” sang by his Gran Jan.
74. Worship in church Sunday as we sang one of my favorite hymns “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” and hearing the glorious sound of the penny whistle played by my sweet friend, Joan.

75.  My favorite verse from “Come Thou Fount” is:
O to grace how great a debtor daily I’m constrained to be!
Let that grace now like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it, seal it for Thy courts above.
76. Listening to my husband read excerpts from Radical by David Platt. So hard yet so good.
77. A tweet this morning from Priscilla Shirer. I LOVE THIS YOUNG WOMAN!
78. My bookplate came in the mail from Ann Voskamp for the very book that has inspired all this counting of GRACE…that in itself is grace.
79. Focusing on the “whatevers” when my mind wants to be anxious…whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy. Philippians 4:8

Oh To Grace How Great a Debtor…

 
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1,000 GIFTS, #45 to #64

March 1, 2011 2:56 AM 6

Here I am again on another Multitude Monday and LOVING this delightful discipline of counting toward 1,000 gifts.

#45.  An awesome planning meeting on Tuesday night with my Women’s Ministry Leadership Team at the Olive Garden…good food, great fellowship, and hope of a glorious future as we serve the women in our church and community. I love you Cindy, Teresa, and Jennifer!
#46. Lunch with a sweet young woman that I love so much. We dined at “The Swanson” (a local restaurant in a downtown historical home) and encouraged each other as we’ve both been through some trials in our lives and church the past few months. God is so faithful.
#47. A great haircut from my sweet hairdresser, Brooke. Her shop is Salon Seven because she was born 7-7-77. Isn’t that the neatest thing? And she is a believer. And my son is her pastor. Love that.
#48. I attended a class by our local county extension agent entitled “Vegetable Gardening 101.”  I loved it and the teacher just happens to be a deacon from my church.  He did great.
#49. Sweet fellowship around great coffee with a great group of friends. Encouragement.
#50. As I type this it is thundering and the rain is coming down hard on my metal roof.

#51. Sharing fresh collard greens from my garden with a friend. She was so excited and told me Sunday at church that they were delicious. I love you, Denise!
#52. Attending a birthday party Saturday morning for a dear friend who is undergoing treatment for a brain tumor. She embraces life and shares Jesus everywhere she goes. Her mantra is “shine like a highlighter” and she does. There were close to 100 women that dropped by and the money tree had enough for 3 to 4 more months of insurance. My best friend planned the party…and she is an ovarian cancer survivor of one year. She gave out of the abundance of her own grateful heart. There was not a dry eye.
#53. Seeing the widow of our church’s pastor that served faithfully for 48 years before he passed away in 2005. We miss him so much and seeing her brought back wonderful memories. Precious woman of God.
#54. Saturday afternoon at a park with my youngest son and his wife and their 9 month old son, our grandson Jackson…followed up with pizza at their house. Good times.
#55. Awesome worship at church…great songs about the blood of Christ, beginning with the hymn “There is a Fountain,” and ending with a choir special entitled “Not Guilty.” Divine.
#56. Thankfulness for my Dad’s recovery from back surgery four weeks ago. He is doing well, much better than I anticipated he would. He is behaving!
#57. A tweet from my grown son…unsolicited and kind. He loves his momma’s cooking.
#58. The blessing to teach Sunday School to a group of women this past Sunday…just filling in for someone but I left with the blessing.
#59. Rice Krispy Treats made with Cocoa Krispies…thank you Pam!
#60. My grandboy Zeke is spending the night tonight…he is sleeping in the baby bed that his daddy slept in almost 30 years ago. He played with blocks and toys and hot wheels cars that his daddy and Uncle Jonathan played with as little boys. The legacy of children and grandchildren is my life’s joy.
#61. A kind deed from a co-worker today.
#62. My spring garden is growing…pictures soon of Snow Peas!
#63. Good news from two friends undergoing cancer treatment. Praying for you Beth and Mac.
#64. A letter on the way to Gloria, my Compassion child.
Good Night Sweet Peeps,
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