Crawford Clan

So part of the family is in Scotland this week and so I thought it would be neat to post the Crawford Clan crest in honor of that. Also a picture of the Crawford tartan. It's neat to read up on the different clans and the history. Notice on the crest the cross between the antlers. I should've known there'd be some kind of wildlife in the crest; I thought it might be a duck!! (For those of you that know my hubby is an avid hunter.)

Just talked to the family and they can see Edinburgh Castle from their hotel. Wow!!

The meaning of the words on the crest are: "I will give you safety by strength."

Big, Fat Piece of Steak to Chew On

Today's church service was awesome! Our pastor preached on understanding the "fear of the Lord". It was so powerful. There are so many scriptures referring to the fear of the Lord, but do we really know what it actually means? He went into alot of the scriptural references and basically came up with the definition of the fear of the Lord being: "To respect with the audacity to obey". Respect carries the idea of willingness to do something even when we disagree. Our children show respect when they obey us even when they may not agree with us. Has God not done enough for us to earn our respect? We looked at some men in the Bible that feared and respected God despite their circumstances. Noah - respected God enough to obey despite the abuse and humiliation of his neighbors. Abraham - had the nerve to kill his only son in order to obey God. Isaiah - God asked him to preach to the people naked. Ezekiel - God asked him to lay on his side for one year to demonstrate the burden of sin caused by Israel. Hosea - God asked him to marry a prostitute. They all obeyed God and He showed Himself mighty to each of them. Do I have the nerve to obey God? Because if I don't obey Him, there will be consequences to my disobedience, just as there were for the children of Israel. Everytime I disobey God I am making a statement to Him that I do not fear Him. Disobedience really shows just what kind of regard we have for God. Alot of meat to chew on there. I pray that God would continue to soften my heart to the point of truly fearing Him.

I Love Bargains!!

I'm an avowed bargain-hunter and am always looking for ways to save $$. Dave Ramsey would be proud. Anyway, I found a great site that lists new deals on a daily basis that are available on-line and sometimes in a particular store, etc... It's called Dealcatcher and you can find alot of techno kind of stuff for computers, Ipods, digital cameras, video games, plus food and restaurant coupons, clothing, furniture, etc.. I visit this site daily and have found several worthy offerings. Enjoy!!

One of the Greatest Lucy Moments

Lucy has ruined William Holden's lunch at a popular restaurant and so now needs to disguise herself when he comes to visit Ricky at the apartment. Watch what happens. This is truly great humor!!

More Birthday Merriment

Well, it's not my birthday anymore but we're still celebrating at our house. Actually our oldest daughter turned 21 today. Wow, I really can't believe that, but it is true. 21 years ago right at this moment, she was being a "real pain" to me. Ha! I am so thankful for her, though; she is a blessing to all of our family and I know that God has great things in store for her future. We celebrated at her favorite restaurant, Olive Garden, today after church. She is also going to Scotland next week with my husband on a trip that she has been looking forward to for months. God is gracious to give us children; He says in His Word that children are a gift from Him. I feel very blessed to have been lavished with the gift of three precious children.

Kidnapped

Well, today I turned the BIG 5 - 0!! It is really hard to believe that I am a half a century young, or 2 score and 10 years or 25 times 2 or however you might want to say it. I can't believe that I'm 50 because I feel as if I just turned 30 but that's okay. I don't mind celebrating birthdays because the alternative is not so good!! Today I was blessed to be "kidnapped" by two of my dear friends whom I have been celebrating birthdays with for about 10 years. They met me this morning at a little cafe in our town and told me that they had the whole day planned for me. We drove to another little quaint town and did some antique shopping, ate lunch and did some more shopping. Then went and got a frozen coffee at another cute shop and did some more talking and then went to have cake and ice cream at some more friends houses. To top it all off, I got to ride home in a convertible. I felt very special and enjoyed it immensely and if I had known that turning 50 was going to be this fun, I would've done it sooner!! It has been an awesome day and I feel so blessed to have such good friends to share a special day with.

Don't Wake Baby!!

Sorry I can't be on the computer much today, I don't want to wake the baby. I'll get back to my posting soon!!

Love This Picture

Here is a great picture I wanted to share. This picture was on the front cover of our church bulletin for last Sunday. While we were in Sunday School class a few people were like, "what's up with the cow?" It took me a minute to see it but after I did I thought, I gotta share this picture. Definitely a special cow. I know it's probably not real but I still think it is very cool!! Hope you enjoy!!

Lucy In Trouble - Part 3

Lucy stored all the beef that she couldn't sell in the new freezer, hoping Ricky wouldn't ever see it. But now Ricky wants to see the new freezer and she's got to stash the meat somewhere. Anyway, as usual, she's in trouble. And by the way, what happens to all the meat?

Lucy in Trouble - Part 2

Remember all that meat they bought? Well, now they are trying to unload it. Rock-a-bye Baby!!

Lucy in Trouble

Lucy buys a cow for the freezer and Ricky has one (a cow, that is). Stay tuned as I post the continuing saga.

Sharing the Victory

As a die-hard Braves fan, it's great to come across articles and information about players that are able to live their Christianity out and are not afraid to be who and where God has called them to be. Recently I came across an article and video interview of Jeff Francoeur, talented right fielder for the Braves. It's a great article and an inspiring interview of what keeps him grounded and focused. ENJOY!!

When is the last time you pandiculated?

Had a couple of my daughter's friends over last night for homemade pizza and then we played "Beyond Balderdash". If you haven't ever played this game you need to. The basic object is to write persuasive definitions that you think other people will choose. For example, everyone writes a definition for the word "carfax", including the person who has the real definition on cards included in the game. Then the person with the real definition reads all of them together and you have to pick which one you think is the real one; and you get points if someone thinks yours is the real one. Each time you change words, you change who will be reading, so everyone gets a fair chance to play and earn points. If no one guesses the real definition, the reader gets three points. It is a really fun game. By the way "carfax" means a place where four roads meet. Anyway, we had alot of fun with this game. One word that stuck with me is the word "pandiculate" which means to yawn and stretch.

Let me leave you with one. What is the definition for the word "itcheboo"? Let me know if you find out.

Oh well, that's about all for today. I am feeling the need to pandiculate, so I better go. Until next time....

Taken Off Guard

We recently, as a family, went to see a movie at the theater. We assumed it would be family friendly since the theme was very "innocent" but we were sadly mistaken. About 30 min. into the film, my husband and I were feeling very uncomfortable. We have always been pretty particular about what we let our children see, and even though they are getting old enough now to discern for themselves, we still have a young teenage son and don't think it wise to allow a lot of sensuality and sexual innuendo. This particular film was filled with alot of both early on. So, anyway, we made the tough decision to leave the theater. I made the mistake of not screening the film prior to seeing it; which is what we always do, but, again, I was going on the theme and history of these types of films.

There are two really good internet sites that do an awesome job of reviewing films and videos and you can look at them and get a play by play on just about anything released at the box office. The first site is Screen It and this is one that is very specific about all the elements of the movie; violence, language, sexuality and nudity, alcohol and tobacco use, etc.. and then they rate each movie at the end of the review on whether it is family friendly or not. This site will ask you at the beginning if you want to join for a fee to receive new reviews. You don't have to join to read reviews but be aware that new movies are not available for non-subscribers immediately and you have to wait a week or two for them to post. That is the plus side of joining, I guess. I am not a member but still use this site frequently for movies that have been out more than two weeks. The second site is Plugged In and it is a part of the Focus on the Family web site. It is not quite as specific as Screen It but it definitely gives you a very good idea of what you are going to see. I should've looked at this site before going to the movies this time. The reviewer definitely confirmed what we had seen and said there was quite a bit more of the same throughout the movie. He says that there are some great parts to the movie; action scenes, etc.. but, and I'm quoting, "we mustn't abandon a level-headed concern for the content". Oh well, we're out 25 bucks for a movie we didn't get to see, but wiser for it. And, we have had some really good discussions with our kids since then and gotten to hear their insight and feedback.

Celebrate Freedom

Happy Independence Day! Whom the Son has set free, is free indeed!