His Precious Gems... Part 2

I'm not sure who, if anyone checks out this blog anymore.  But, if you are one of those faithful family members, friends, or just some random person, be sure to stop by the continuation of this blog.  Here's the link....http://hispreciousgems02.blogspot.com/

Stop by when you can and be sure to leave a comment!

Let's play a little game, shall we.

I started a new blog because this account is out of space for me to add pictures. (and we all know how much I love to post pictures). 
Leave me a comment (or text, email, ask in person, send smoke signals, something), no one else will see it, (I promise) and I will give you the link to the new blog.  I am interested in seeing who still looks at this.  Hope to hear from you soon!

The girls with their aunt on the james river.
Shea

~*~I enabled my mobile posting and just wanted to try it out.  It works!  Surely this means I will post more often as my phone has become so much more than a phone for me!  ~*~

The Girlz of the Fam

30 Days of training girls to be homemakers

Homemaking for Girls~ 30 Days

"Homemaking. Such a simple word for such a complex job. How does one go about making a home?


There’s cooking and cleaning, of course. But there’s so much more to it, isn’t there? And as we begin to teach our daughters, it can be confusing and overwhelming.

Maybe, like so many of the moms I’ve heard from, no one ever taught you how to run a home. Maybe you’ve figured it all out via trial and error, and — thanks be to God — it’s going okay. Sure, there’s been bumps and bruises along the way, but you’re on the way.

But we want more for our daughters. We don’t want them to fumble their way through the first few years of marriage, and learn the hard way. We want to teach them as they grow under our care… to cook, to clean. To love God’s Word. To practice hospitality. To respect their husbands.

For 30 Days in May, we’ll be doing just that here at Homegrown Mom."

I just found this website on a 30 day challenge, so to speak, in May in training our daughters.  I'm a little late in finding it for the month of May, but am excited to try it out for the summer.  I will keep you updated on how it goes. 
 
http://homegrownmom.com/homemaking-for-girls-30-days

14 years of Marriage

and still going strong

I love you hunnie  <3

Precious Niece

My precious little niece turns one this week.

Obviously, in her first year of life, she's discovered that she doesn't like the feel of grass.  This may change in time, but it's cute to see that little face look up to Mommy as if to say, "Help, get me off this prickly stuff!" 

Lyme Disease is on the Rampage in Virginia

http://www.wtvr.com/news/wtvr-tick-problems-100517,0,6031502.story

I took our 11 lb. yorkie-poo to the vet earlier this month for her annual shots and vaccinations.  One of the tests they ran is for Lyme Disease.  Rosie tested positive.  :o/  The vet didn't seem too worried and prescribed her some medication to take over the course of 30 days.

We came home and upon researching Lyme Disease in dogs, I had several questions answered on why she had acted the way she has been which is depressed.  While some dogs show no outward evidence, some of the symptoms that a dog might experience is loss of appetite, arthritis, lameness, and depression. Other symptoms include:

 •Reluctance to move or a stiff, painful gait

•Swollen joints that are warm to the touch

•Pain in the legs or throughout the body

•Fever, fatigue and swollen lymph nodes

So, that explained why she would not eat and laid in her crate day in and day out.  I even made it a point to take her out for more walks to try to get her out of her funk.  Little did I know that probably caused her pain.  Poor doggie.
She was on the medication for a solid week before showing any signs of improvement.  She spent a couple of days with some energy but then went back to her depressed mode.  Two weeks after being diagnosed and started on her medication, she awoke in obvious pain.  She would not get up and if she did, she whole body shook as she limped across the kitchen to get a fallen piece of food.  Her appetite was back somewhat but she was in so much pain that I called the vet and asked to bring her back in. 
They took extras to find that the Lyme disease settled in her right shoulder joint.  They upped her dose to twice a day for 30 days and put her on a 5 day prescription of pain pills.  Instantly, my Rosie is back to herself, however, she has been excused from 6 weeks of limited physical activity with no walks.  Now that she has gained her energy back, I am wondering how I am to keep her sane without going stir crazy.  
$300 in one month on vet bills... All because of a tick.  I urge you to check your pets, children and yourself for tick on a daily basis.  It's an easy prevention that could have costly and painful consequences if going untreated.

Picasa Overload

It has been brought to my attention that I have too many high quality pictures on my blogs.  It all started when Rebecca wanted to change the header on her blog.  It wouldn't let me due to the fact that I was out of space on Picasa.  What?!?!  How could that be?
I had just put up a post of old pictures I found while deleting pictures on my pc--I am running out of memory on that too :o/  Time for a new computer, hmm? (wink) 
I love putting pictures on here!  Now, come the consequences...  (BTW, I deteted that post of old pictures, too, to try to make more room for others.)
In trying to figure out how to reduce my 99.4% filled to capacity Picasa Web album; which holds all of blogger's pictures; I found out that on this blog alone, His Precious Gems, I have a total of 2,686 pictures on here.  Wow, that is a lot of pictures over the years.  That does not include Rebecca, Emily, or my homeschooling blogs. 
I deleted a few pictures, but obviously not too many as it will delete them off my blog.  I realized that the problem is that my pictures are too big in size.  To reduce the size to put them on here is a great inconvenience. 
I painstakingly took the time to resize all the pictures from the post on the girls Awana Awards.  It makes the pictures look grainy and distorted.  However, I am down to 97.14 % full.  A tiny bit better than 99%, I'd say.
I do not want to start another blog under another username to get more space...  I refuse to pay for the memory on Picasa...  I think that once I get to capacity again, I will have no other choice but to start another blog.  Be on the lookout for when that happens.

Mysteries of Motherhood

Mysteries of Motherhood

by Reb Bradley

Mother's hearing

She does not hear the car alarm, the neighbor's music, or the noise of playing children,

But from the other end of the house, in the middle of the night, she will hear a child's slightest whimper

Mother's mind

She may not comprehend how to use the VCR or the computer,

But she understands a child's heart whenever it hurts.

Mother's Strength

She may be too weak and exhausted to carry groceries in from the car,

But she is strong enough to intimidate any who threaten her children.

Mother's memory

She may not remember where she put her keys or the reason she walked into a room,

But she never forgets the wonderful things her children do and say.

Mother's clothes

Her clothes aren't so perfect – they're stained by baby's burps and last month's lasagna,

But each stain is a badge of love and service equal to any won by a soldier.

Mother's hands

All she sees are the lines and wrinkles in her hands, and longs for their youthful appearance,

But she forgets their wear speaks of love, devotion, and sacrifice.

Mother's shape

She sighs and moans when she cannot fit into the clothes of her youth,

But her shape and stretch marks are like battle scars which say, "Kids, you were worth it!"

Mother's eyes

The mirror tells her that her eyes lack sparkle,

But the bags and fatigue betray love that burns bright all night long.

Mother's career

She is haunted sometimes by what she could have been,

But she equips generations and shapes the world's future.

Mother's trust

She doesn't trust enough to let you near the strange dog or to climb to the tip top branch,

But she believes in you when you are discouraged and full of self doubt.

Mother's significance

She regrets her failures, mourns her anger, and dreads she is warping her children's psyches,

But she so tightly bonds her children to her heart that they will grow up, but not away.