A Favorite Thankful Thursday Song

Engagement 

M & M Engaged

"Here Comes The Sun" by The Beatles

9/23/17

The Wedding Song

He is now to be among you at the calling of your hearts
Rest assured this troubadour is acting on His part
The union of your spirits here has caused Him to remain
For whenever two or more of you are gathered in His name
There is love, there is love

Well a man shall leave his mother, and a woman leave her home
They shall travel on to where the two shall be as one
As it was in the beginning is now until the end
A woman draws her life from man and gives it back again
And there is love, there is love

Well then what's to be the reason for becoming man and wife
Is it love that brings you here or love that gives you life
For if loving is the answer then who's the giving for
Do you believe in something that you've never seen before
Oh there's love, oh there's love

Oh, the marriage of your spirits here has caused Him to remain
For whenever two or more of you are gathered in His name
There is love, oh there's love

The emotions this song brings to the surface are overwhelming to me on so many levels. Today I am especially thankful to the One who is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. He remains.

"For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them."
-Matthew 18:20

These are the Days -Van Morrison

These are the days of the endless summer
These are the days, the time is now
There is no past, there's only future
There's only here, there's only now

Oh your smiling face, your gracious presence
The fires of spring are kindling bright
Oh the radiant heart and the song of glory
Crying freedom into night

These are the days by the sparkling river
His timely grace and our treasured find
This is the love of the one magician
Turned the water into wine

These are days of the endless dancing
And the long walks on the summer night
These are the days of the true romancing
When I'm holding you, oh, so tight

These are the days by the sparkling river
And His timely grace and the treasured find
This is the love of the one great magician
Turned the water into wine

These are the days now that we must savor
And we must enjoy as we can
These are the days that will last forever
You've got to hold them in your heart.

17.  His Presence is the best Present. It's such a gift that I'm noticing more and more is not received by all of His children.

"Holy Spirit" by Francesca Battistelli

There's nothing worth more

That could ever come close

No thing can compare 

You're my living hope

Your presence, Lord

I've tasted and seen

Of the sweetest of loves

Where my heart becomes free

And my shame is undune

Your presence, Lord

Holy Spirit, You are welcome here

Come flood this place and fill the atmosphere

Your glory, God, Is what my heart longs for

To be overcome by Your presence, Lord

Your presence, Lord

There's nothing worth more

That could ever come close

No thing can compare

You're my living hope

Your presence, Lord

I've tasted and seen

Of the sweetest of loves

Where my heart becomes free

And my shame is undone

Your presence, Lord

Let me become more aware of Your presence

Let me experience the glory of Your goodness


"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and and self-control. Against such things there is no law." -Galatians 5:22-23

xoxo

Gratitude List

1. Sitting around the kitchen table talking with my sisters for hours, and the memory of my mom doing the same thing with her sisters.
2. Grateful that I didn't have to go through some of the stuff they did.
3. That my youngest sister was able to come to town by herself, so we could have some uninterrupted time together.
4. The comment Naze said, that Meghan's room upstairs was so zen-like.
5. Having the house to myself for a long weekend while L. was in Vegas celebrating his 50th with Barney.
6. How beautiful our lawn looks in the Spring.
7. The hydrangeas that Rich & Reg shared with me from their garden and the fact that it's possible to split them and it won't take away from their plants, but add to mine.
8. Beating my brother and his best friend at golf the other day.
9. Home cooked meals, especially when someone else does the cooking. 
10. That any health concerns thus far have never been life or death for me, just annoyances.
11. The 3 "Wising Up" videos on being a good wife and mom that I watched and took notes.
12. The serum I bought to help with my wrinkles (haha).
13. The birthday celebration breakfast for Nancy.
14. The birthday lunch at the Tea House in Rochester for Paula.
15. Our new staff coordinator at BAH and all she is doing there.
16. That I still wouldn't want to live anywhere else than here... after 31 years.

"It is good to give thanks to the Lord, and to sing praises to Your name... to declare Your lovingkindness in the morning, and Your faithfulness every night." -Psalm 92:1-2

Proposals

A few weeks ago my co-workers and I were talking about our marriage proposals. They were all actually pretty funny and none of them were recorded on camera or video. They were NOT social media-worthy. (I would actually love to see a youtube video of any of them!) Did that mean they weren't as deep, meaningful or legitimate? I don't think so, although I have to admit that mine was a little embarrassing; and no, I'm not about to share it here. I think there is something missing today in a world where most everything is done for the whole world to see.

I do love how a certain guy did something the old-fashioned way by asking us if he had our blessing before he asked her to be his wife. It was definitely a precious moment that I'm sure we'll never forget. And for the record, he asked her in private with no cameras rolling.

With happy tears rolling down our cheeks.
Love,
A.

Fifty-Five

As promised here's another post... ;)

It's been quite a week on a lot of levels, but I think I'll focus on the fact that I turned 55 this past Tuesday. I'm so blessed to have such a great family and friends who helped me celebrate. Having a birthday on Valentine's Day is kind of nice. Everyone always seems to be in a good mood and love is in the air. (Think: chocolate and flowers!) It's usually difficult to get dinner reservations, but we were lucky to get in to one of our favorite spots for an impromptu dinner with Patty and Tom.

Fifty-Five.

I'm thanking God for my health.  I really don't feel any different than I did when I was 25. Well, except when I look in the mirror and see my mom. (Smile lines of course!) I'm trying to embrace these wrinkles, especially on my neck. I know it sounds vain, but they really do bother me. I find myself telling total strangers to learn from my mistakes and put sunscreen on their neck as well as their face. I have to make a conscious effort to pretend I'm okay with the aging process. I know it could be way worse.

I am so fortunate to have my health and I do not take it for granted. I have already out-lived two of my siblings. (This just felt like the first time I heard the news. How could I have lost a sister at 43 and a brother at 52?)  Anyway, I can pretty much do anything I want to do physically.

But what about mentally? I like where I'm at on the inside and I'm pretty comfortable in my skin, although I still feel like a 12 year-old about some things. I can't seem to think of anything specific right now. Haha! Stay tuned next week! 

I don't really have any earth-shaking ideas about what I want to do to this next year that will make a difference. I'm hoping I can help my daughter plan her wedding. Is that shallow? Seriously though, I don't want to interfere but I want to be there for her if/when she needs me. I'm looking forward to this next stage of life, and being the best mother-in-law I can be. 

Let's see... what else? This is us (last Fall).  We are still trying to "get it." And... Isn't it weird how when a photo is taken we don't like it at the time until later when we look back and think, "I didn't look so bad back then?" Anyway, this was one of those times and it was taken on our road trip. We always enjoy getting away and making new memories. 

Here's to being more grateful this year and more appreciative for all of the gifts God has given me. Honestly, I do not take any of this amazing life for granted. I don't understand how mine can be so good when others have such a difficult time. 

All my love,

Angie 

xoxo

p.s. Thank you for sharing my birthday with me!

Goals

I was talking with my friend the other day when she so lovingly went with me to Detroit to check out a wedding venue for my daughter and her fiancé.  She treated me to a wonderful early birthday brunch afterwards. Kimberly is younger than me and inspires me whenever I'm around her. She's truly amazing! As we were talking over coffee and then driving home, she was telling me that there are not enough hours in the day for her to get the things done that she wants to get done. She has set some major goals for herself. As much as I wanted to relate with what she was saying I couldn't.

I was telling her how frustrated I've been with myself and my problem with wasting time on my phone looking at social media. She asked me a question that stopped me in my tracks: What hole am I trying to fill and is it serving me? Is it helping or hurting me? Am I using it to escape or hide from something? Am I growing and learning new things that will benefit me as a person? The answer is a great big... NO.

I've been in a rut. What has changed? Not a lot really, but I haven't been blogging... At. All. Why not? Because I don't have anything to say. Because who really cares about my silly life? I'm just like everyone else, going through life one day at a time. What's so special about me? In five, ten, or fifteen years who will really be interested in anything I have to share?

My friend helped me realize I have a block, and I am determined to get past it. I am committing to get back in the habit of writing. I believe it will be good for me. The truth is that whether I like it or not, I am ten steps behind someone else. Perhaps they are older and wiser than me and may have experienced some stuff I haven't yet; and at the same time I am ten steps ahead of someone else as far as what I've been through. Hopefully I have some wisdom I can share. I have learned some big lessons in my 55 years (this Tuesday) and maybe if I am open, vulnerable and risk sharing some of them, I may just be able to help one person.

Get ready to find some blog posts here.  My goal is to write at least one post per week. I have no idea what I will share. If I can't think of anything you may just see that I've written about how well I can clean an oven.

As always and hopefully with more Faith than ever,
Angie