Friday's Fave Five #154

Hi Everyone!  Thanks for excusing me my lack of a post last week.  I didn't have my computer because I was on holidays and I was unplugging.  I borrowed hubby's laptop but couldn't get to my buttons or anything.  Oh well.  It still looked like a great number of you carried it for me and played along.  Thanks for that!

Like I said, last week we were on vacation.  In the beautiful, sunny, wine country of Okanagon.  So beautiful. I've got my heart thinking I'd love to retire there.  Better start saving my shekels.  But anyway, in that vein my faves are going to be about the vacation.

1.  Family Time all wrapped up in a getaway.  I'm so thankful to still go on a holiday with this great bunch of people who have my heart.

I'm under no illusions that this is a great blessing.  The chance to get away as a whole family is something I greatly appreciate.  I know many "kids" 21 and 19, and sometimes even 16, don't want to go with Mom and Dad on a holiday.  My kids still want to be with us and for that, I am so thankful.


2.  Guts.  Yes, the guts to knock this little activity off my bucket list.

 I've been wanting to do it for, about 28 years.  And I finally did.

It was worth the wait.  And I'd do it again in a minute.  So smooth and peaceful and not scary at all.

3.  Fruit in Abundance.  One thing that makes the Okanagan valley so amazing is all the fruit orchards.  Miles and miles of them.  Fruit stands everywhere.  And what we really enjoy doing together is picking our own fruit.  This time we picked peaches.  There is nothing like fruit that you picked yourself.  Fun and yummy.

4.  Mountains and being in the midst of them.  Though the drive home was an 11 hour affair done in one stint, it took us through the amazing Canadian Rocky Mountains.  There are breathtaking.  They are big, and rocky and majestic.  I just can't stop taking pictures of them.  Even though I'm doing in a car that's whipping on down the highway.

5.  Relax Time.  Plenty of down time.  Swimming in the motel pool.  Reading in the pool chairs.  Sitting on several of the many beaches in the Okanagan Valley.  Reading on my towel.  Swimming in the lakes. Reading in the car.   Eating more cherries than any sane person would do at any time except on vacation in the orchards.  Trying new restaurants.  Taking walks.  Exploring streams.  Sitting in the hot springs.  Sigh.  One week was not near enough.  But I'm so thankful for that one week!

Our family doesn't go on a big getaway every year but I'm so thankful this was one year that we did.  What were your favorites from this last week?  Share in a post and don't forget to link on up so we can visit.  If you're new, please read the guidelines first and then jump right in and join us!

I Need More Vacation

As you can tell, I stepped away from the computer for this last week.  And instead of doing so much of this

I was doing a bit of this:

Just a tad of this:

Some of this:

A bunch of this:

And a whole lotta this:

but I was most thrilled with doing this:  

Yes, that's really me up there.  Let me show you:

Tis me on the left.  
Anyway, now I just want to do this:

I need a vacation to recover from the vacation.

Friday's Fave Five #153

Hi everyone!  I don't have my regular computer but yes, you are at Friday's Fave Five.  Please join in as we look over our weeks and look for our blessings and share five of them.  I'm not able to stay on this computer so I won't be playing along this week but please don't let that deter you from posting, linking and visiting.  I'll have my own computer back next week.  And maybe I'll be able to pop by and visit you this weekend.

Book Tour ~ Tombstones and Banana Trees

"Tombstones and Banana Trees - A True Story of Revolutionary Forgiveness" by Medad Birungi with Craig Borlase


Publisher's Summary:

“My story changed beyond all recognition.  Everything that was made ugly by pain and anger was turned to beauty by one simple, revolutionary thing—forgiveness.”  Medad Birungi was once a boy who begged to die by the side of the road, a teenager angry enough to kill, a man broken and searching, yet today he is a testimony to God’s transforming power.  In his life story, Tombstones and Banana Trees: A True Story of Revolutionary Forgiveness, Birungi charts his outrageous journey through suffering, abuse, despair and revenge to unexpected forgiveness and healing. 

Birungi grew up with a violent father in the war-torn country of Uganda in the 1960’s.  His childhood was scarred by extreme poverty, cruel suffering and unbearable sorrow that few of us can even imagine.  Yet from that trauma came the lessons that we can all appreciate: the impoverishment of life without Christ, the redemption of the cross and the revolutionary power of forgiveness.  His story deals in nothing less than pure, God-given transformation.  Tombstones and Banana Trees has the dual quality of being both uniquely individual yet universally relevant, holding together the grandest of themes and the most intimate of testimonies.  Birungi’s life is so comprehensively renewed that any reader sharing in his journey will feel the impact.  Trough his story of healing, Birungi calls readers to find healing for their own emotional scars.

My Thoughts:

To describe this book in one word, the word would be "Powerful".  If we could all take to heart, the message of revolutionary forgiveness that the author is relating through his own personal story, it would change the world.  I won't lie, the parts of his childhood that were filled with emotional and physical abuse are at times hard to read but the author continually weaves a theme through it that offers hope.  He doesn't offer a "pat" solution saying it is easy and instantaneous, he shows how hard forgiveness is, and how it is a daily, moment by moment choice.  But he also shows that if we continuously make that choice and move into revolutionary forgiveness, it can allow God to move in the most horrid and unimaginable of situations and bring beauty and change and celebration.  I highly recommend this read. 

I was given this book free David c. Cook for an honest review.  My thoughts and opinions are my own.

You can purchase Tombstones and Banana Trees here.

Photo Hunter ~ One

Today's theme for PhotoHunter is "One"

One Lonely Little Flower

Friday's Fave Five #151

Hi everyone.  How was your week?  Are you ready to look back over it, good or tough, and look for those blessings that might have brightened your days, that lifted you up or made you smile?  Or just those things that got you through the day?  Then just let's get right to it!


My five favorites in no particular order:

1.  Giveaways.  I love, love, love giveaways.  Love to win them and I love to give away.  And what do you know?  Last week I had a little ol' giveaway to celebrate my 150 Friday's Fave Five post.  With help from Random.Org here are the winners of the Starbuck's cards:

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

12
11

Timestamp: 2011-08-12 04:07:30 UTC

Congrats Karen and Nikkipolani .  Email me your snail mail addresses and I'll get those out to you.  Enjoy a favorite drink on me to celebrate.  I think I'll join you and give the Iced Peppermint White Chocolate mocha a try.

2.  This gosh darn cute dog.  I know I posted this during the week, but for those of you who don't come here except for FFF, I just have to show you my dog loving the Crazy Daisy.  He cracked us right up.

If perchance you want to see all his antics, the whole post is here.

3.  Colorful Salad.  At my hubby's staff bbq they had an incredible salad that just burst with color and flavor.   It had broccoli, red grapes, cherry tomatoes, orange cauliflower and purple cauliflower with a simple mayo, vinegar, sugar dressing.  Yes you read that right.  Orange and purple cauliflower.  Apparently there was also lime green too but they didn't buy that one.  The cauliflower tasted the same as white but boy, it was full of color and just made you want a big plate full.


4.  Continuing decluttering.  Even though my yard sale is over and done with, the mood to continue to declutter is continuing on.  But I'm not going to save up for another yard sale.  That in itself made clutter, just contained clutter.  I'm loving the open spaces on the storage room shelves and the floor space giving me access to said shelves.  Nope, stuff is either going straight out the door to the garbage can, or into the donation box.  I sorta can't believe how many times I've got purging and decluttering on my FFF's this year but I think I've been bitten by the bug.


5.  Quick replacement.  One of my kiddos in my dayhome is leaving at the end of the month.  When a space is empty that means I get less of a paycheck.  I was very thankful that the empty spot is already filled and I don't have to worry about it.  Even though I have been doing this for so many years the pressure of interviews and getting that spot filled so that my pay isn't cut is really stressful.  I'm so thankful for the relatively easy process this time around.


What were your favorites this week?  Do a post and join us on the Mr. Linky.  Then grab a coffee and visit around.  Half the fun is getting to know the wonderful participants of FFF.  

Book Tour ~ Clutter Rehab

"Clutter Rehab - 101 Tips and Tricks to Become an Organization Junkie and Love It" by Laura Wittmann


Publisher's Summary:  
With 101 quick and easy projects for organizing your kitchen, bathroom, closet and more, "Clutter Rehab" takes the stress out of home organizing.  As you painlessly tackle piles of toys, stacks of paper and over-spilling drawers, you'll discover how to make de-cluttering your home an addictive pleasure.

My Thoughts:

I was looking forward to getting this book from Laura Wittmann of I'm an Organizing Junkie, a blog that I read daily and that has motivated me in many areas.  Laura has taken her passion for simplifying life by removing the stress that clutter and chaos bring and compacted it into this little, easy to read book.  Chock full of great ideas in one tip per page format, it gives great ideas in simple to implement steps to get anyone well on their way to creating less clutter in their lives.  Even though I've been reading Laura's blog for years some great tips still jumped out at me in her book such as  Tip 54:  Setting your own clutter standards, Tip 40:  Purge clothing at the end of the season, not the beginning (a revolutionary idea to me and one that's going into practice at my house!), Tip 41:  11 tips for parting with your clothes, Tip 80:  Think about your habits and Tip 9:  Never leave a room empty-handed.  I love this little book and I'll be keeping it within easy reach for a quick reference.

I received this book free from Ulyssess Press for my review.  All opinions expressed are my honest thoughts.

You can purchase your own copy of Clutter Rehab at the following places:

I'm an Organizing Junkie
Amazon
Chapters Indigo
Ulyssess Press
Barnes & Noble

Crazy Meets the Daisy & the Dog

I thought summer was all about lazy, hazy, crazy days.  Days of soda and pretzels and beer.  Well, I don't know about the lazy, hazy, soda, pretzels and beer part, but the crazy has visited.  And this dog of ours made friends quite quickly.  

He has decided he likes the crazy daisy.

In fact, he looooves the crazy daisy.

He can get some serious air catching that water.

Yes, crazy definitely has found the dog this summer.

Is there any other kind of dog to have except one that keeps you amused with crazy?

Friday Fave Five #150

My goodness, friends.  Can you believe it is the 150th edition of Friday's Fave Five?  I can't wrap my mind around that!  Thank you to all who have blessed me with your participation whether you've stuck with this little meme from the very beginning or whether you are just recently joining in.  I've loved everyone of you participating.

So this week was a bit of a toughie for me.  I have been tired, folks.  All those late nights sitting up with my daughter are not quite as easy to get over as they were when I was a few years younger.  I've really been dragging.  but there is still favorites I can find!   In no particular order:


1.  Black Apricots.  Found them at Costco and they were yummy!  They mess with your brain because they are black and fuzzy on the outside, like an apricot,  and then inside they are smooth and juicy, like a plum.  And they taste like a bit of both.

2.   Hot dogs.  Yes, I know.  They are not healthy in the least,  and I probably do not want to know what goes into them, but once in a while they really hit the spot.  Especially on those days when I too tired to cook.  My favorite topping?  Cheeze Whiz and salsa.  And close behind is mustard, chopped onions and chopped tomatoes.  What's your favorite toppings?

3.  Iced Chai Tea Latte.  When it's hot out, who wants a hot tea or coffee when you're outside.  Did you know you can get any Starbucks hot coffee as an iced version?  I tried the Chai Tea Latte iced.  Yup, real cold and real good!

4.  Another yummy pizza from our favorite pizza place.  I've mentioned the various delicious pizzas we've tried before, some of them top competitors in International Pizza Challenges held each year in Las Vegas.    Our goal is to eat our way through their menu.  So every time we order, we select one we already know we like and then we try something new.  This time the sure thing was the Creamy Philly Cheesesteak pizza (absolutely delicious) and the new try was Teriyaki Steak which had teriyaki sauce, sesame seeds, seasoned steak, pineapple, green pepper, onion and cheddar.  I was a little bit leery but the guy on the phone suggested it when asked so I gave it a try.  Oh my goodness, it was good.

5. Long Weekends.  Love my long weekends.  I wish I could have one each week!  :v)  It was a gorgeous day and hubby and I did one of our favorite activities together, just me and him.  We went for a good long bike ride.  Then in the afternoon, I made bbq ribs with that wonderful sauce I mentioned last FFF.  All in all a very relaxing day.

What are your favorites or blessings from your last week?  Help me celebrate 150 posts of FFF and join in this week.  If you have joined in I'll enter your name to win one of 2 Five Dollar gifts cards to Starbucks so that you can have a favorite drink, maybe even an iced chai tea latte,  on me.

Book Tour ~ The Daughter's Walk

"The Daughter's Walk" by Jane Kirkpatrick


In 1896, Helga Estby and her daughter, Clara, embark on a journey that would change the course of their lives and alter their family dynamics forever.   In order to save the family farm, Helga takes on a challenge by a team of sponsors to earn $10,000 by walking from Spokane, Washington to New York City within 7 months and with the condition they are to earn their own way,  wearing the new "Reform Dresses".  Being the mother of several children, the youngest younger than two, her Norwegian husband strongly disagrees with the venture, but Helga is determined, seeing it as a way out of foreclosure for her family.  Forcing her 18 year old daughter, Clara,  to quit her job and accompany her, she strikes out on an amazing journey that brings many hardships and dangers but also many joys.  Receiving shocking news on several fronts, the two return home after having been gone a year, having accomplished the walk, but also failing to collect the money when the sponsors don't pay up, facing criticism from both family and a community that is scandalized by what they did.  Criticism so harsh that it causes a rift within the family.  Forbidden to speak of the journey, Helga's spirit is crushed and she retreats into her everyday life, while Clara leaves her family to make her own way starting a rift that would last 20 years.

Based on the true story of these two women's lives, Jane Kirkpatrick writes a story filled with historical fact and weaves fictional story into it to fill in the unknown pieces.  I found the writing of the actual walk fascinating as was the suffragette movement, it's involvement in the women's walk and the reactions of the day to what many considered a shocking endeavor.  It was also fascinating to me to be drawn into the relationship between mother and daughter, their reactions to one another, and their understanding of one another as the journey progressed.   I was kept mesmerized throughout that part of the story.  The story did start to slow down for me in the middle, however, during all the explanations of the fur industry of the time, not something I'm particularly interested in.  However, the compelling emotional aspects of the characters and wondering if the rift would be healed kept me reading and I'm glad I did.  A must read at the end is the Author's Notes and Acknowledgements.  It fills in all the details of the historical facts and what parts were fiction.  It made the story come to life.  I'd recommend this story just for the study of what drives people, what makes us decide to do the things we do and for the fascinating true story of two women who went against the society norm in the hopes of bettering life for their family.

Thanks to Waterbrook Multnomah for providing a copy of this book for review.

You can purchase "The Daughter's Walk" here.

Back Tired But Filled to Overflowing

Can someone please tell me how after having 10 days off from work I can be totally exhausted by noon the first day back?  Oy!  This day really kicked me in the backside.  I could easily have had a nap at the same time as the babies in the dayhome.  I guess it could have be one or a combination of several things not the least of which are:

• my oldest was home for a week
• I spend every minute I can with her that she lets me when she's here
• which means I went to bed waaay too late every night for 10 days
• my hubby is a morning person
• he did not have 10 days off
• he still had to go to work each day
• translation:  I was still being woken up pretty much the same time as usual 'though he tried really hard to stay as quiet as possible
• my youngest was home after being gone for three weeks
• I was enjoying her company too
• my son went camping
• in bear country
• in a tent
• I was trying really hard not to worry and to keep certain scenarios from entering my mind and making a home in my thoughts

But I wouldn't have traded those late nights for anything.  One thing that is nice when my girl comes home is that she just wants to pretty much do nothing.  Her life is so busy that when she is here she really wants peace and rest.  I'm glad her home represents that for her.  I don't make any plans and we just play it by ear.  We spent a lot of time just chatting, reading side by side, soaking up the sun and watching a few episodes of favorite shows.  The only times we "did" anything was we took in Pirates of Caribbean 4, which neither of us had seen, browsed the farmer's market and we went to the lake on Saturday afternoon.  But that was pretty much of the same thing, vegging, reading, chatting, except in a different setting.

So today I'm wiped.  I'm off to bed early.  That is, as soon as I hear from her telling me she made it back safe and sound.