Have a Blessed Christmas!

from Jesus Daily

 

Merry Christmas to all our loved ones!

 

I was looking for a Christmas picture, and even saved one, but Jesus wanted me to share this with you.  In His hands is the most precious gift of all, if you will receive it, eternal life.  Forever with Him, in eternity.  Forgiveness and Love, Peace and Contentment, Forever!  Just receive it!

 

Forgive us dear ones for not writing this month, it has been busy.  On December 15th we lost our brother in law.  Daniel Ray Martinez Sr. is now celebrating his first Christmas in heaven.  We celebrated his funeral on Friday and had a chance to minister and love our extended family.  Please keep the Martinez family in your prayers.

 

Then last night, we made a sad trip to the Vet and sent our Spice puppy to the Lord for safe keeping.  She was almost 16 years old!  Such a loving a giving companion to the very end. She is now on our porch in heaven waiting for us.

 

Such is the circle of life.  But praise God we will see them again!

 

My question to you this Christmas is have you put Jesus in your heart?  Will we see you there on the streets of heaven?  We are praying that all of you have.  For that gift of forgivness and Eternal Life is THE BEST gift of Christmas.  It is what Jesus came to earth to do.  To save us and defeat Satan, death, hell the the grave.

 

We have all our children here and are so blessed. That is what Ma and Pa love about Christmas, to spend them with family.   And...

 

from God Vine.

 

To worship our Lord.  We are headed to Christmas eve service, in the beautiful snow God has sent us today.  It is beautiful!

 

May you all have a Blessed Christmas, filled with Love and Joy.

We send our love to all,

Ma and Pa

 

 



Random Acts of Kindness.

This week there was a very special picture that was making it's way around the internet.

 

This is officer Lawrence De Primo, who works the beat around Times Square.  He encountered this homeless man, and rather than ignoring him... like many have already done... he disappears for a bit and returns with a pair of boots and socks, and is here helping the man put them on.  This  picture was taken on a phone by a random passing person.

 

That my friend is a Random Act of Kindness... or as a favorite pastor of mine says... Being the Lord's hands and feet... Jesus with skin on.

 

As we are starting the Christmas season, I too want to remember the real meaning of Christmas with some Random acts of kindness. How about you?

 

I found an awesome site on Random Acts of Kindness, and they have some very touching stories, and great ideas of what you might do for others.  No, you do not have to spend money.... look around and see what you can do.

 

*Open a door for someone with their hands full.

*Call or drop by an elderly friends house, and spend time talking with them.

*Tell someone that you appreciate how special they are, they may not know how much of a difference they have made in your life.

 

This site has some awesome ideas that will get you going.  It only takes a minute to care... You can do this. 

 

Be on the look out for more RAOK, and share with us what you see... or what you have done.

 

 

On the look out... Ma and Pa

Be strong and courageous !

Stressed?

 

Just a reminder from our Lord...

 

Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world!

 

Relax... God's in control.

 

Hugs, Ma and Pa

Homemade Cleaning Wipes

This particular homemade cleaning product is my personal favorite!  I saw the recipe on One Good Thing by Jillee awhile back and I have been making my version ever since. 

 

My ingredients for the wipes are almost like Jillee's but I add more ammonia.

 

1C water

1/4 C rubbing alcohol

2 Tab. Dawn

1/4 C ammonia

 

I like the lemon ammonia when I can find it. Usually I make 2 recipes of this for my container, so that I have plenty of cleaning liquid. 

 

 

 I cut 2 tee shirts up, 5"x7" each and have the rags handy to put in my container. 

 

 

There is about 8 or more in the container right now, but I will go through those in a good cleaning day, so when I do, there is plenty of liquid left and I add more rags. 

 

What do I use them for? 

 

*Anything you would use a Clorox wipe for.

*Cleaning counter tops.

*Kitchens.

*Bathrooms.

*Walls.

 

Jillee suggested using them with a swifter floor cleaner to scrub the floor.  I was not happy with that result, I instead get on my hands and knees and clean my tile floors - remember I live in a mobile home, and do not have alot of area to clean. However I just ordered some microfiber clothes that are the size of wash clothes that I think might work... they will scrub better.  I will still use this recipe with them.

 

So, if I have a few minutes to clean, I will always have a "wipe" in my hand cleaning something.  The wipes are then placed in the washer and cleaned with the next load, so you do not have to have tons of wipes available.

 

The cost is so small... and everything feels, smells, and looks so clean...  Give it a try!

 

Happily scrubbing..

Ma and Pa

 



Eye Opening Book!

Just stopping by to share with you something awesome.

 

Rarely do I get to read anymore... just too busy.  I love to read, but the book has to be a real page turner, and dear to my heart.
 

 

 

This book is.  It is a narrative book that you will not be able to put down.  It will also open your eyes to what truly has been happening to America. And it is based on fact!

 

Let me know what you think.. and enjoy your blessed Christmas season ahead!

 

Hugs, Ma and Pa

New goals!

From Positive Inspirational Quotes :)

 

Greetings from beautiful Colorado!  Ma and Pa are still here, just very much on the go.

About the end of October we picked the last of our tomatoes... and we had a BIG Batch of green ones to care for.

Some of you may not know how that might be done... other than making a bunch of relish or "Chow-chow", which Jim and I really did not want to do. So, we wrapped them in newspaper... and stored them in boxes.

We are now checking them every few days and are canning them as they are ripe.  We put up 12 quarts today!

 

Our frugal goals seem to be rubbing off on our girls as well.  Julie and Micah took their pumpkins they had outside as decorations that were not carved and cooked them off, and now they have plenty of pumpkin pie material for the holidays.  Enough for 20 pies!  Wow!

 

And... what about the title?  New goals?  Well, Jim and I have decided to go house hunting.  We still have the ability to use Jim's VA loan, and checked into it and have been approved!!  So we are now looking.  The major "must have" is a 2 car attached garage that will not actually be used as a garage but our rock shop creation center.  We are preparing for retirement and need a much bigger area to work in.... and a bit bigger home would be great!  So, we will keep you all posted.... can't wait!

 

Looking to the future with a new perspective!

 

Hugs, Ma and Pa

 

 

Hurricane Sandy.

This storm is so big.... 

But not too big for God!

 

 Let your light shine.
 

Lord Jesus, be with each person out there in the path of this storm. Protect them and guide them, and show them YOUR strength.

May each person seek your face and rest in you.

 

Thank you and praise you Lord for your miracles about to happen!

 

Ma and Pa

Halloween special.

www.tsmcv.org

 

We thought this was precious, and thought we would share!

 

Hugs, Ma and Pa

 



New homemade Laundry cleaning line up.

We have been on the run again.  But am stopping finally to share some thoughts as we go into a new season.

 

I have 4 days off in a row so we are taking advantage of it and catching up on things we needed to be doing.

 

First on the schedule is "mucking" out the house that has been neglected because we have been busy. 

 

As you know I am a fan of natural home made cleaners, when they work and they are not a big hassle to make up to use.  I have posted some of the ones I have used for you to see.  But I have since made some modifications, so I thought I would catch you up on the changes.  I am very happy with them.

Mama hug you babies!

From Face Book

We are so sad here in Colorado. 

 Another angel has been abducted and killed.

 

Jessica Ridgeway.  Read her story here.

 

Please be in prayer for her family and friends, and pray with us that they catch the evil one that has done this.  Westminster is just around the corner from where our family in Northglenn,Colorado live.  We cannot imagine loosing a baby this way.  Lord cradle the family in your loving arms for us who can't right now.

www.lifelovequotesandsayings.com 

 

Praying,

Ma and Pa

Uncle Sam needs YOU!

Just stopping by to remind you....

 

 

 

 

 

We only have a few days left to register to vote!

 

Please remind all your friends how important this election is to America, and thanks for all you do as you go!

 

Hugs, Ma and Pa



Fall Roundup!

 

From Facebook today.

 

 

 

As we are getting closer and closer to our election, I thought I would share this from Facebook today.  No matter what candidate you are for, If we follow this scripture, we are on the right path! 

 

We are so very busy right now.  We are short of people at work so I am working overtime. Also Pa and I are trying to get our garden all finished up. We actually are running out of canning jars and will need to get more...and next chore is trying to find room in our tiny trailer for all the finished can goods... Lol.  We praise God for his bounty and are so thankful.

 

Fall also brings something very near and dear to this Ma and Pa's heart.  Band shows and competition!  When our girls were in high school we were in the stand yelling and screaming for our girls during their shows. We were band parents, chaperoning the band on trips and so on... great memories!

Keep your eyes on Israel.

 http://www.israelimages.com/

 

We have been watching small news articles and prophecies... here and there talking about the goings on in Israel and the Gulf right now.  Although you will not see much of this on the evening news.
 

http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/U-S-S-John-F-Kennedy-CVA-67/209954174149

Reminds me of 40 years ago when Jim's carrier the USS John F. Kennedy rushed across the ocean in a few hours because of the first Libyan crisis.  Many of our young men are headed there now!

 

Prophecy News Watch had this on the 18th. Many warships in the Strait of Hormuz, on maneuvers.
 

My dear friend Marijo with My Incredible Lord, reports 2 different sources are reporting major activity in Israel right now,  like never before.

 

Also Kim Clement, had a prophecy recently that is very eye opening regarding Israel.  He and his ministry team are heading back there in October to minister to the faithful.

Bottom line, it is time to be praying for Israel, and America and our allies.  Please be aware and watching.  God will be there protecting Israel, and I pray that America will be too.

 

HTC Sense

 

Please join us in prayer!

 

Ma and Pa

 

God is painting Colorado beautiful again.

On the road again enjoying our pretty state...we left home in the afternoon, headed to see family up in the mountains.  Coming up over Cochetopa Pass in a rain storm, and 

 we turn around and look to see how God lit up the sky...real close to a favorite camping place of ours.  We stopped the car and just sat in awe~

 



 

Running further into Monte Vista for a good nights sleep.  

 

Next day we find God had been busy painting everything beautiful for us to enjoy.

 

We went to the Lynch family reunion at Wagon Wheel Gap area between Southfork and Creede Colorado.  Our dear niece Katie and husband Leland have been working on a beautiful home there now for 20 years.  They finished it this summer and could think of no better way of celebrating than with family.  Isn't it beautiful?

 

 

We all enjoyed getting together again.  It was decided after Jim and siblings lost their 2nd sister and father, that they would make every effort of getting together yearly as long as they could.

 

 

The Lynch kids.

 

 

All the guys, in-laws and out-laws.

 

And the gals.

 

Besides getting together we went and saw the sights.

 

Big horn sheep... this in only a small part of the herd!  We have never seen this many in one place before.

 

 South creek falls....

 

and North creek falls.

 

And on the way home.....

Another beautiful treat... Thank you Lord!

 

Enjoying God's beauty. Hope you are too!

 

Ma and Pa

 







Best place to stay in Ouray, Colorado.

We were recently blessed with a very special gift.  Jim's cousin Terry presented us with a 2 night stay at a Bed and Breakfast in Ouray.  Pa Jim's birthday was Aug 24th so we decided to get away sometime close to there.  We were way overdo on needing to get away for awhile.

 

This is the 1898 House Bed and Breakfast.  It sits at 322 Main Street in Ouray.

 

The house has been totally restored and is beautiful.  These windows came from a church in England and are over 100 years old.

 



 

Here is the view to the dining room.

 

 Lee and Kathy Bates are the owners.

 

You simply must make this the place to stay when you go to Ouray, they are wonderful!

 

When we were there we rested.... and went to a few places.

 

 Visited a one of the biggest Silver mines nearby.

 

Ate at the O'Brien's Pub.  Awesome food, and great service.  Found something new we never tried before... battered deep fried dill pickles... to die for... nummy!  Ate here twice, because we loved it so much.

 

Rested on the upper deck outside our bedroom and enjoyed this view early in the morning.

We also so enjoyed the hummingbirds.  As we were on that upper deck they were at the porch area at the many feeders, and they would dive bomb each other and then come and hover near us checking us out... especially since Jim had a red jacket on.

Went to the Museum which was in the old miners hospital. 3 stories of awesome exhibits.  We confirmed how old we were when we caught ourselves saying.... we have this... or Mom had this.  LOL.  Here is a beautiful quilt that is over 100 years old.  I love the crazy patchwork pattern.

 

 

You never know what you will see on the street of Ouray.



 I had just told Jim if he wanted something special for his birthday here, he was to buy it and these guys drove by :).

 

Then when we were on our way to the museum we saw these two guys making themselves at home in someone's yard.

 

 

 

Our last breakfast with Lee and Kathy was on Jim's birthday and they had a surprise of a cherry coffee cake for him with a candle in it! 

 

Not only did we have a great time, we made some good friends too in Lee and Kathy.  Stop by their web site, and reserve your time next summer. View the little tour their grand-daughters give you of Ouray too.  You will be really glad you did!  We will be back.

 

 

Having fun in Colorado!

Ma and Pa

 



 

 

 

 



Thank you Lord!

We have so much to be thankful for!  How about you?

Our daughter Marilyn and grand daughters were in a car accident recently, but God protected them all.  They are fine. Then God provided enough money from their insurance to replace their car with a van... which they thought they would be looking at getting sometime soon, so it turned out well.

Our garden continues to produce, and Jim and I are busy picking and canning and trying to keep up.  We put up bread and butter pickles today. 

Aren't they pretty?  We looked all over for a recipe that we wanted and ended up making our own.  

Bread and Butter Pickles

16 cups of sliced medium (1/4 inch) pickling cucumbers.

2 red onions, thinly sliced.

1/2 cup kosher salt.

4 cups chopped ice.

5 cups cider vinegar.

5 cups sugar.

3/4 tsp. turmeric.

1/2 tsp. celery seeds.

1 Tab. mustard seeds.

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper (no seeds).

3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon.

3/4 tsp. ground all spice.

3/4 tsp. ground cloves.

Combine cucumbers, salt and onions and chopped ice in a large bowl.  Mix them up well. Cover with a plate and put a weight on it (we used a gallon of vinegar).   Let stand for 3 hours.

Drain completely after 3 hours.

In a big pot, combine vinegar, sugar, turmeric, celery seed and mustard seed, pepper, cinnamon, all spice, and cloves. Put on a burner on a medium heat, adding drained cucumbers, and onions.

Heat mixture, do not allow it to boil, but make sure it is good and hot.  Have your canning jars hot in the dishwasher, or you can put them in the oven for a few minutes so they are hot.  Also have your rings and lids boiling in water. Take the pot off the burner.

Transfer hot mixture to jars and seal.  As long as you have hot jars, mixture and lids, your jars should seal and be fine without doing a hot water bath.  Ours did, and this is how we do our dill pickles as well with hot brine.

If you prefer to do a hot water bath, leave them in for 10 minutes.

Made another pair of booties the last couple of days.  A co-worker La Shana is really close to having her little girl, so I got busy and made these.

These little felt booties are so much fun to make.  I got the pattern here on Pinterest.  However, I have made them smaller for newborn to 3 month size.  I made the ties by braiding three colors of 3 strands each embroidery thread.  Also added a fabric bottom to it.  As I make these booties I have discovered more things that I will change and do...next time...   Have more ideas for new ones down the road.

Wild fires are still going in the western states.  Our thoughts and prayers are with California, Oregon, Nevada, Washington and Idaho.  Many homes have been lost.  We have had smoke filtering into the valley from these fires the last few days, to where  you can hardly see the mountains today.  Thankfully Pa Jim has been doing alot better health wise, but smoke makes it hard to breath sometimes.  He seems to be doing ok though.. Thank you Jesus!

We are so thankful for all our  blessings... praying you have many to count as well!

Hugs, Ma and Pa





Blessing from John Hagee.

And this is our prayer for you today!

Love, Ma and Pa



Feeling the Heat.

          From Pet first health care.

Everyone is feeling the heat in the USA!  Us included, but thankfully we have finally had some rain showers.  Would love alot more but are thankful for what we have!

Praying for all,

Ma and Pa



Keeping busy in Colorado

We are in the middle of our busy time here.  The garden is coming on....and it is HOT outside, so must water alot.. and we have lots of birthdays in the summer. 

We got together for the July birthdays this last week. Marilyn and Michael and girls were here from Northglenn too, AND we had Mike and Tanya and baby Malakhi with us too.  Passed off the camera to Summer my amateur

photographer, she loves taking pictures.

 

Almost as much as she loves being an aunt!

Mike and Tanya are such a good Mom and Dad!

Lots of playing...

and eating.....







and snuggling!

This week it is back to busy work on my days off... so much needs done, and it keeps us on the go.

Had our first picking of green beans this year.  Gave away about 5 pounds, and have another 5  here to can.  We have begun to pick tomatoes and cucumbers and our eggplant is almost ready to pick.  We are eagerly watching our watermelon, we have 2 plants, and one is really putting on a show... and has several watermelons growing.

Our other show off is our hibiscus... these blossoms are 8 inches across!  They last for one day and die back, so you can see this bush is very busy!

We are busy and blessed here.... hope you are too!

Hugs, Ma and Pa