Spring has sprung with a mix of warm and cold days.One day last week, I woke to a warm morning, this morning there was frost on my husband’s car and it was downright chilly.
Spring is always a tough time for me, actually spring and fall.Why?Well… Spring fever kicks in during the early part of the year and Holiday fever kicks in at the end of the year.Each fever has me unsettled.
For example, today as I sat in my cubicle, trying to do my job, my mind was either in my sewing area or my writing area.I was not focused on work.
I get so antsy during this time that it takes all the self control I have to stay at work.I would like nothing more than to shut down my computer and say “Adios Compadres, it’s been nice working with you, but I have better things to do!”
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My goals this week
Mail off to mug rug package to swap partner, Michelle.
Work some more on my little afghan (has been put on back burner last few days)
I love the Lord. He is my strength, for without Him, I was nothing. But because of Him, I am alive!!
Let me begin by stating: I'm a child of God. But didn't start out that way, I was lost and going to Hell.
I was raised up in church, my dad was my pastor. Everyday there was talk of the Lord, reading of the Bible, and prayer. My mom and dad were and still are walking examples of living by faith.
I was a church member, walked the aisle, had been baptized, taught vacation bible school, and could tell you how to be saved...the whole nine yards. Anyone who knew me would have said "that's a good Christian girl", but all they were actually seeing was a dying sack of flesh and bone walking around, bound for Hell.
I can remember talking myself out of salvation and then turning away each time He called.
I married a Christian man who was and still is a daily example and he played a role in my eventually coming to know the Lord.
Before I met him, I lived a life of being in the bars every night - closing them down, or drinking otherwise, smoking like a freight train and cussing like a sailor (hung on to some of those things for awhile after meeting him), My husband would tell me "Sonia, ladies don't talk that way." I would reply "I'm no !@#%$! lady, I'm your wife." I had a bad temper (was nothing for me to hit a wall or kick a hole in one, I had a lot of resentment and anger inside & was as two-faced as they come; smiling on the outside but dying on the inside. Kind of tells what I was like to live with.
We didn't attend church regularly, partly because my husband worked weekends, and the rest was because I didn't want to go to church. I didn't want anything to do with church. When I was 29, I started reading the bible, to ease my mind and to appease my husband. My husband always encouraged me to go to church either with him when he was off work or go by myself when he was working. I see now, that I was searching.
Then one Sunday morning in the fall of 1996, I was watching a preacher on local TV, Dale Thompson and he asked a question I had heard my dad ask many times in his sermons. "If you were to die today, where would you spend eternity?" It was then, God decided to give me a glimpse of where I was heading. I believe if I had turned Him away at that point, I would still be lost today.
I want to tell you Hell is very real and is the most horrible, terrifying place anyone could imagine. There are no words that can truly describe it, and there is no picture that can truly depict it. I can tell you though, that I felt a fear to the very core of my soul when I realized where I was going to spend eternity.
Nothing compares to the fear I felt. Not even the fear I felt when my dad was having quadruple bypass surgery and we thought we were going to lose him, or when I found out my mom had a cancerous kidney (that was the same day 9-11 happened). None of that was remotely close to fear I felt when I realized what Hell was going to be like.
I literally begged the Lord to save my soul from an eternity in Hell. I begged Him to forgive me for denying Him all those times. I'm a proud woman and don't bow down to anyone, but that day, I let go of pride and begged for my life.
Well, the good news is I'm alive in Christ, a child of God! Hallelujah! The old hateful, angry, boozed up, smoking, foul mouthed woman I use to be is now gone, I am new in Christ!! If God can save a vile sinner like me, He can save you. There is nothing beyond His forgiveness if you just ask.
I like to think of Paul, remember he used to be Saul the persecutor of Christians, yet God loved him so much He knocked him off his horse, made him blind and woke him up! The persecutor became the preacher for God.
Let me begin by stating my poll had a glitch today and I had to reload it. So... the data that was there was lost.
I was able to view the results before I had to reinstall the application, so I will had them to the end result on the 17th. Keep your fingers crossed that it doesn't mess up again.
As promised here are the pictures of the other quilts that were seen on our shop hop.
Charlotte, Debbie and I left Paris around 7 a.m and headed toward Bentonville, AR. Charlotte drove and I was shotgun, so I was the GPS watchdog (squirrel!)... Debbie sat in the back enjoying the ride.
The color purple was my signal of where we (little blue flashing dot) should be. It seemed every time I took my eye off the "purple road" (squirrel!) we would no longer be on the road we were supposed to be on. We would be on a yellow road or no road at all, according to the GPS.
As soon as I would notice this fact, I would state "We are off the purple road" and we would have to turn around. So we jigged and jagged a few times. I will say we did have about 4-5 shops we made it to without leaving the purple road.
We started with Sew A Stitch in Bentonville. There was a festival and a marathon going on, so that little town was hoppin'. We got our passports and had them stamped. We had to get the passports stamped at each shop and each shop made a quilt for the shop hop. The quilts were all of the same pattern but each one was different. I am showing the Shop Signs and the quilts they made for the hop tonight. I will post other pics tomorrow.
We managed to get all eight shops visited, ending with Mama's Log House in Huntington, AR. We drove over 330 miles round trip and this girl was exhausted by the end of the day but had a blast gettin' there. :)
So... here are some of the pics I took of our shop hop adventure.
Sew A Stitch - shop hop quilt
The Rabbits Lair - shop hop quilt
Country House Quilting - shop hop quilt
The Quilt Corner - shop hop quilt
Sager Creek Quilts - shop hop quilt
Just for fun Fabrics - shop hop quilt
Crooked Creek Quilts - shop hop quilt
Mama's Log House - shop hop quilt
I have a poll posted on the side, at the top. Please vote for the Best Shop Hop Quilt.
The poll will end in 2 weeks on 4/17/11. I will post the results then. Please share the news with your followers and ask them to vote too.
Well... I guess that's it for tonight. I wish you all a wonderful week ahead!
On my Google home page, I have a link to “Useless knowledge” and every time I open the page a new bit of info shows up. This morning Ben Franklin was the topic.
"Benjamin Franklin was the proud owner of the very first bathtub in the colonies."
Something we take for granted was a luxury back then.
Don’t you know he was the talk of the town?
Imagine…
“Sarah, did you know Ben Franklin has a tub he bathes in?” Abigail asked as she swept the floor.
“Yes, Lucy told me he brought from France. She said the copper gleams like the sun when she cleans it.”
Abigail stopped sweeping and said “I think I would like to see it. Do you think…?”
“Abigail!”
“Well, you know Lucy would let us see it, if we asked. We would just have to wait for him to be out the house.”
Sarah shook her head, “Abigail your curiosity is going to get you in trouble one of these days.”
“Perhaps, but I can’t imagine not being curious. Admit it; you’d like to see it too.”
“Hmm… perhaps,” Sarah said, smiling.
“What else did Lucy tell you?”
“She also told me it was a chore to fill the thing every time he wants a bath. It seems ol’ Ben likes to soak.”
“Really,”
“Yes, she tells me he will sit in that tub for hours, reading or writing. She says he stays in there so long he gets all wrinkly.” She chuckled “that’s more information than I needed.”
“Oh my…” giggling Abigail continued, “I will wonder if he is wrinkled the next time I see, I’m sure.”
Laughing they continued with their chores. ~Sonia R. Parham
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Sherbet
This is the mug rug I made this evening.
The colors remind me of sherbet, therefore the name. :)
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A DIFFERENCE IN MY WEEK
On Sunday evening a challenge was given to everyone, at church, to begin each day asking God to show us His way and to guarantee His presence with us.
I wake most mornings with a gospel song going through my mind or I wake praying, thanking God for another day. Often times, though I am rushed and don't get to spend the time I should in prayer and Bible study each day.
This week I took the challenge and asked God each day to show me His way and to guarantee His presence, and though I know He is with me continually, praying these two things made a difference for me this week.
The most evident difference was the way I dealt with my job. I am a Safety and Training Coordinator. I have been at my place of work for 22 years and am majorly burned out. Often times, my day starts out good but when I cross the threshold into the building, a dark cloud descends upon me.
However, this week has been different.
Starting out Monday, I prayed, "Father, show me Your ways, and guarantee Your presence with me" - I was able to show up to work with a better attitude and outlook.
Later in the week, there was a very tense day.
The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. I had people come to me from all levels of the company - management, support groups and production, venting about the situation. It was one of those cases where management is stressed and it trickles down through all the levels.
But, again because I placed my day totally in my Father's hands, I was able to offer words of encouragement and not let the stress get to me.
So if you need a little help... Ask God. Ask Him to show you His ways and to guarantee His presence in your life.
The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies. Psalm 18:2-3
but the individual I mentioned last night, that will be pranked and pranked often today... well he's been hovering in the office from time to time so we know he is up to something!
Hope your day is a good day and if you get pranked that it will be an enjoyable prank to you too. :)
