Is Anyone Normal????

Some of the ladies from our quilting group at church made a trip to Frances' Fabric Shop in downtown Graham last Tuesday. We sold cookbooks as a fund raiser and of course we had money in our account and it was burning a hole in our pocket. (Just kidding) Anyway we decided to go to the fabric store and buy material to make more prayer quilts for the people that need one and this is a great time to buy during the clearance sale. If you haven't been to Frances' store you need to make the trip to Graham, it is well worth it. There is also a little gift shop there called "The Vineyard" and we always have to stop there also. I always find something I can't live without and of course Tuesday was no exception. As we were looking around I found a coffee mug that I felt instant repoire with so to speak and I knew the girlfriend that was there with me would feel the same. I got it off the shelf to show to her and although we laughed it brought tears to her eyes just the same because it rings so true with the both of us.

We laughed at the saying on the cup but at the top of the cup around the rim it says, "This above all to thine own self be true." Even though it seemed funny to us, it applied so well that I had to buy us both one. When I brought it home I showed it to my husband and he said, "We all feel that way 99% of the time." I was really surprised he felt that way, then I showed it to my oldest son and he said, "Boy is that the truth."

After I thought about it for a few days I came to the conclusion that there probably really isn't a norm for all of us. There is what we term normal behavior and bizarre behavior but God never really made us to be cookie cutters of each other. Look at all the different kinds of flowers, grasses, trees, fish, animals, colors, landscapes and the list could go on and on, that he created. Each of us has our own special DNA, none of us were created the same. We were created in his image to be like Him, not like one another, so what we consider to be normal exhausts us in trying to maintain. With that being said, I think I will learn to relax more about what feels normal to me and thank God that we weren't all made exactly the same but we can have the assurance that he loves us all the same.

But isn't this just the coolest mug? : )

In-laws

Many couples have today what is called blended families, therefore you have a lot of in-laws, especially if you remain friends with the old ones, which is a rarity I'll admit. My first set of in-laws came to my second wedding and we stayed in touch for many years but don't really visit any longer. I was married to their son for 21 years so it was hard to break those ties with them. I remarried, his dad had passed away before I knew any of them and I inherited 1 mother-in- law and 4 sisters-in-law, don't stay in touch with any of them. I now have a new set of in-laws ( I have had them about 8 yrs now) and have 2 new brothers-in law and 1 sister-in-law. None of us are very close. I think it had to do with the age we all were when Monty and I married, or maybe we just don't have anything in common and we are all too old to want to work at getting to know one another any better.

Anyway, when you re-marry you inherit kids and your kids inherit step parents. This was never God's plan and probably why it doesn't work out too well for most of us. Ours were all grown when we married, and we never realized how hard it would be to handle problems as they came and come up with our children/step-children. The problems ebb and flow of course, as someone told me once, a storm never lasts forever, but sometimes it seems like they are neverending.

(This was Jesus' birthday party)

I do have a real bright spot though that I would like to mention in this blog. I have two sons and I have one daughter-in-law. She is probably the only one I will ever have. She and my son have been married for 12 years and she still doesn't get us. I think we all drive her crazy. We all (me and my boys) tend to say or talk about whatever we are thinking about and she happens to be a very private individual. We have never worn her down and I don't think are likely to at this stage of the game. My daughter in law has step parents and of course my son has step parents. The statistics are not in their favor for them to stay together. Hopefully in this case they will prove the statistics wrong. They both love the Lord and are teaching their boys about Him, bringing them up in a Christian home so they are headed in the right direction. She has been the one that inspired me to start a blog, because I love reading hers. If she doesn't share all her thoughts out loud she shares some very beautiful ones on her blog. She and my son are polar opposites (except they both have red hair) but as she has become the mother of my grandchildren, I can relate to her more than I have been able to in the past and want her to know that I appreciate all her help in the blogging world (she showed me how to add pictures along with my blogs instead of beside them) and in copying pictures and adding wallpaper. I appreciate her hard work in rearing our grandsons. I remember how exhausting it can be and how hard it seems sometimes. Parenting is such hard work and I applaud them both but I especially want her to know how much I appreciate her taking the time to teach her boys about Jesus and his birth and what Christmas is all about. I know marriage is hard at the stage of life they are in right now, especially with the added stress of having a child that needs extra attention and all that encompasses, but she seems to take it all in stride. She takes beautiful photographs and documents the boys lives and the little things they do that I don't get to see and shares it all with those of us that aren't with them all the time. I loved helping her decorate her tree at Christmas and love the photos she took of my house (hers are so much better than mine). I applaud her talent and just want her to know I love and appreciate her. So glad you are my daughter-in-law!

New Year, New Post

I have really been amazed at how long it has been since I blogged. I have missed it. This is therapeutic for me. I am alone in the house today. Don't get me wrong, if you have read my blog in the past you know I do enjoy the company of my husband and after many days of being alone, I get really tired of the monotony, BUT, I haven't been alone in a very long time and I must admit it is nice to just be alone with my thoughts and have the time to reflect on this past year.

Many changes have occurred in my life or maybe my attitude toward life. Everything did not turn out the way I would have planned it for my children or grandchildren but I have come to a peace in my soul that there is a God that has his hand all over my life and He knows what is best for me. I have learned in 2010 there are some things you must relinquish, they are not battles for you to fight they are the Lord's.

I am ever thankful for all the good things in my life and the Lord has been especially gracious this year. He has provided work and everything we have needed plus some things we just wanted. I am thankful for health and we have rediscovered the truth that if you are healthy you are blessed beyond measure. I am especially thankful for a healthy mind AND a healthy body and the abilities to take care of myself. I am so thankful for a warm, safe and pleasant place to live. I am thankful for family, precious grandchildren and for friendship. Of course the list could go on and on and on. I hope in 2011 when I have a tendency to grumble about this or that, that I will remember how wrong that attitude is and that I will change it immediately. Life is too short to be gripy and I pray I remember that also.

The Lord has been good to us in 2010, not just because we had a good year, because God is good all the time, no matter what. Happy New Year to you. I pray you have a blessed 2011.