Starbucks Coffee, Potty Training, And Anything Else I Can Think Of

I know you probably won't believe this, but I've only had Starbucs coffee
once before
in my intire life. I was in Morristown, NJ training with my guide dog George
at The
Seeing Eye. George the dog is dead now, but back then, he led me in to
Starbucks
where I sat for a while and drank a cup. Today, though, i am enjoying my own
cup
made by me. Here's how it happened.
The Starbucks truck either dropped a load or wrecked or something, because
the intire
load was damaged and they were giving it away. My hubby brought me a dented
can for
free. I keep it stored in the freezer and use it sparingly, but oh, is it
good! I
got to laughing when I thought of what my grandmother would say if I told
her how
much it would cost to buy a can this size from Amazon. I guess when you grow
up during
or right after the Great Depression, $24 for a can of coffee is a little
silly. Anyhow,
though, for now mine is free. :)
So, what on earth do you do with a three-year-old who wants to wear diapers
instead
of panties? She knows there are still some diapers in the drawer, and when I
tell
her she is too big for them, she says, "No, I'm still a little baby."
"But," I say, "if you pee in the potty, you can have some chocolate.
Besides, don't
you want to be a big girl like your sissy?"
"No," she says, her lip all out and tears filling her eyes.
Guess I'll have to throw those diapers away and have her watch me do it. I
sure hope
she is broken of them, soon. Afording them is not an option, anymore.
I tell you what, asking God for patience did not turn out like I thought it
would.
i asked Him to make me abetter person, patient and kind like it says in
Galatians
5, and you know what He did? He gave me children, that's what. lol This road
of mothering
is a hard, steep climb upward. There are sharp rocks that dig in to my hands
and
feet, heartaches that make me want to cry, mud that makes me slide backward
so that
I keep repeting the same mistakes over and over again. And yet, along the
way, there
are such joys that I could have never imagined. I mean, sometimes, when I
stop to
rest on one of those bolders, I get to laughing so hard that tears come to
my eyes.
Once in a while, I stop and look back over the way I've come, an i can
hardly believe
it. For sure and for certain, I am not the same Shannon who said "I do" ten
years
ago. How can something be so difficult and wonderful, all at the same time?
For instance, this potty training business. I absolutely can't stand finding
that
she has wet her pants or done something else. I mean, I want to yell and
scream.
I hate touching it, and yet, how else is a blind woman supposed to know how
bad the
mess is if she doesn't touch it? But, the same child who will not make potty
training
easy on either one of us, wraps her sweet, little arms around my neck and
says, "I
love you, Mommy." The very same five-year-old who interrupts me everytime I
open
my mouth to have a private talk with someone, said in her prayers the other
night,
"And, Lord, please help everybody that they know you before it's too late."
Yesterday, I was watching a video from our church. My five-year-old, Faith
was singing
with me in the video, and I tell you, I got such a blessing, tears came to
my eyes.
Y'all want to know what God wants for you and your children? He wants you to
instill
in them a deep love for Him...that's all. Because, see, if you do that,
everything
else will fall in to place. It isn't about what we as parents can give them.
It's
all about what we can show them.
God has worked a miracle in my life, y'all. In fact, He's still working on
me to
make me what I ought to be. I'm serious. i am a better person because I am a
mother.
I am a better person, because I am a wife. I am not the girl I used to be.
I'm not
even the woman I used to be, but someone new, someone that would not be, if
it were
not for the grace of God.
Totally off subject...I have an iPhone. Did y'all know that? Anyway, I love
it. With
sighted assistance, I can even take videos and pictures with it. I can also
listen
to music, get a call, talk then go back to listening to music, all with a
touch of
a finger. I recorded a little video of my girls with my Papaw here at my
house, and
here's the link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kNuSSVF8Kg
My mamaw is whispering in the background, and the other voice in the
background besides
mine, is the voice on my phone.
Well, I have clothes to fold and put away, a couple of rug rats to bathe and
get
ready to go down the road. My daughter is getting her glasses today, Lord
willing,
and there's some grocery shopping to do. I'm also hoping to cheat and eat
out a bit,
but we'll have to check the finances, first. Sorry for not blogging often,
but I'm
trying to get back in to the swing of things, and I'm working on a very
contraversial
post about obedience that I'll post, soon. Until next time, keep safe, pray
without
ceasing, and remember to smile 'cause God loves you so very much!

It's CHRISTmas!

They are calling for 2 to 4 inches of snow to fall before the day is over,
and I have birthday shopping to do. My baby was born 3 years ago today. Wow!
Hard to believe, but there you have it. I saw a 2 month old baby last night
and heard her cry. i couldn't help but smile, thinking to myself, "I love
babies' cries, especially when they aren't going home with me." :)

So, with the empending birthday shopping to do, I hoppped...not really...out
of bed this morning and turned on the trusty laptop. First, I checked the
weather to see when this snow is supposed to hit us. last night they were
saying it wasn't supposed to come until noon or after noon. However, now
they are saying late morning to early afternoon. So, it would behoove me to
keep an eye out and get our shopping done as early as possible.

While checking email on the trusty laptop, I found a message in my inbox
from Education World. I get newsletters from them, periodically, and mostly,
I enjoy them. I am new to home schooling, and while I don't use a lot of
their ideas, I do use some. I like to have a general idea what my
kindergartener would be doing if she were in public school. As you can
imagine, this month's newsletter dealt with the holiday season, and that is
what I am going to blog about today.

To teach young children about the different holidays celebrated in December,
they gave craft ideas. My favorite, of course, was the trees made of
pinecones. I might even try it. The second craft idea was Hanukkah cookies.
The third was candle-like things to celebrate a Hindu holiday I had never
heard of called Diwali, which is a celebration of lights. The last idea was
to make fruits out of paper, because Kwanzaa is a celebration of the first
fruits of a harvest. A shame they are not interested in celebrating the
firstfruits of the resurrection.

Forget, for just a minute that this blog is called "OldTime Christian". Ok?
Now, using this email from Education World as a guideline, they forgot a
faith. They gave craft ideas to teach about Kwanzaa, Diwali, Hanukkah and...
xmas. Yes, you heard me, xmas. The craft idea was to make little trees out
of pinecones. They did not call them Christmas trees, either, just trees.
So, i will say it again, they forgot a faith. They forgot CHRISTmas.

Now, remember what this blog is called, "OldTime Christian". HOW DARE THEY
LEAVE OUT THE REASON FOR THE SEASON! If Americans weren't celebrating
Christ's birthday, first, then there would not be a holiday to wrap peagan
beliefs around.

Now, I know peagans celebrated around December 25 long before Christianity
came along. I've done my research. So, if you are peagan and want to dance
naked in the streets like some did, go ahead. I won't stop you, but don't
you stop me from celebrating the birth of my LORD. Don't mess with my Bible,
my belief in Jesus, my right to celebrate how I wish. The constitution gives
me the right to practice any religion I choose, as long as it isn't
infringing on someone else, and infringing on someone else is what this
world is doing.

When I was in elementary school, I had a teacher who is Jewish. She taught
us about Hanukkah and the menorah. She brought a dradle to school and taught
us to play. However, she did not tell us that she didn't want to hear about
our Christmas celebrations. In fact, she arranged a trip to a local church
each year and asked me to sing, "Away In A Manger" along with the organist's
accompaniment. Looking back, I wonder if there was conviction going on
there. Out of the mouths of babes and all that. In saying that, one year she
took us to visit her synagogue to meet the Rabbi. Never once did anyone try
to convert anyone else. Nor, did anyone put another down for their beliefs.
It has always stuck in my mind, and I still have a healthy respect for Mrs.
Kanner.

Now, I'm not saying that you can't celebrate your holiday this December.
What I am saying, is let me celebrate mine. If you are going to teach
children about Kwanzaa, Diwali, and Hanukkah, teach them also about the
birth of Jesus Christ.

I have to say, though, I am so glad we are home schooling. Teaching my
children that there are other beliefs is one thing, but forgetting to teach
about Jesus Christ, is a mistake I will not make. He is the focus in our
house! AMEN? Jesus is the reason for the season around here. In fact, He is
the reason for Christmas, Easter and every other day of the year. Quite
possibly there won't be $1000 spent for gifts in our home, but we have
Jesus. We probably don't have the place decorated as beautifully as the
neighbors, in fact I know we do not, but do they have the Master living in
their hearts? you tell me, what is more important.

You talk about peace on earth and good will toward men, but do you realize
there is no peace without God? Do you realize that you wouldn't even be
alive to talk about it, if God had not created you, not knitted you together
in your mother's womb?

So to end this entry, it is not precipitating out there yet, so I would
appreciate your prayers that it waits until our shopping is finished. To
those who celebrate it, have a Merry Christmas. And, to those who do not,
may your celebrations be filled with conviction to serve God and His son
Jesus, and may you not rest until you call upon His name. You think that's a
little harsh? Well, you're reading something written by an OldTime
Christian. What do you expect?