Fingerprint Friday: Giving Hearts & Gardens Found

By Ginny (MAD21)

I haven't been around the online world very much the last few weeks. I got involved in a project that I had originally scheduled to be just for one ten-hour day with about 20 people. It turned into six days over two and a half weeks, 320+ man-hours, and about 40-50 teens and adults.

I have an amazing mother-in-law (MIL). She is imperfect, just like the rest of us, but she has a heart of gold. She has spent most of her life serving her family and the people at our church. Aside from a few really great teens who have been able to help me out occasionally over the last seven years, she has been my only help as a parent. Pretty much any time I've needed a babysitter whether I had an appointment or just needed a few hours to regain my sanity, my MIL was, and is still, nearly always available to watch them for me. For those of you who can relate to my situation, you can understand my desire to do something to bless her.

Her yard is a haven to a ton of butterflies!My MIL has always been an avid gardener. So you can imagine what her yard has always looked like. Anywhere there could be a flowerbed, there was one, even now. The problem is that she is getting older (she's 88) and can't tend to them anymore. Over the last several years, they have all just become so overwhelmed with weeds and overgrown bushes, that there was very little "flower" in the bed. To say everything was overgrown is a gross understatement. If you live on the east coast you know that if you leave any piece of ground untended for more than a week or so, there is something growing. So you can imagine leaving it unattended for a few years!

More than two years ago I wanted to organize a day when I could get a group over to her house to get things cleaned up. But then she had some health issues and I spent more than a year driving her to all of her appointments and doing her shopping. But things have been much better for her for the last 6-8 months and she's driving (locally) again, so there has been more time to focus on other things. I decided late spring that we really, REALLY needed to get the yard worked on this year. But even I didn't realize how big that project would become. It took on a life of it's own.

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Tasty Bites: Strawberry Poppy Seed and Chicken Salad a la Panera

By Beth V

I recently visited Panera  and ordered their Strawberry Poppy Seed and Chicken salad. It was so delicious! I loved all of the varieties of fruit and I decided that I must recreate it at home so I could enjoy it any time! My version is slightly different than Panera’s, but this salad is loaded with flavor and great texture and nutrition. This salad is like a green salad combined with a fruit salad and the chicken and almonds add amazing taste and crunch, not to mention protein.

Start by layering a platter, or plate if making an individual portion, with baby spinach leaves.  The platter allows the perfect greens to toppings ratio and everything gets nicely coated with dressing. It solves the problem of toppings falling to the bottom of the bowl, or greens at the bottom of the bowl being untouched by dressing. Panera uses Romaine lettuce, but I love using spinach leaves because they require no chopping, they taste great and they have so much more nutritional value than almost any other type of lettuce. Next, add a sprinkling of very thin slices of red onion.

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God Says... "I will direct your steps."

By Peter Pollock

When was the last time you had no idea what to do or which path to choose?

I asked when was the last time, because we've all been there. Each and every one of us. Many times.

It's something which affects all of us and we all deal with it differently but it can cause stress, sleeplessness, worry, strained relationships and can even make you sick.

Whether you're a child who is being pushed into doing something you know is wrong or an adult having to make decisions which will affect not only you but your whole family, it's always stressful.

Even Jesus had this problem once or twice.

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Time For God

By Pat

I admit that it's easy for me to allow my days to sometimes jump into action without having my quiet time with God first. Sometimes it's not my fault, but more often it is. I allow myself to become caught up in the day without first reading devotionals and having a nice, quiet chat with God, and then I find myself in the next day or two (or sometimes more...) trying to "catch up" by reading all the days I missed at the same time. But sadly, I can't catch up. What I have done in reality is to skip what should have been a priority, and in so doing, missed out on beginning my day with a word from God which may have been meant for me at just the right time. I cannot catch up on that.

When Nehemiah wanted to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, he never made one decision, never took one step, without first consulting God. His success was due to the fact that he put God first. He sought him continually and God rewarded that devotion by leading Nehemiah from start to finish. If Nehemiah had not made God's word his priority throughout the project, perhaps there would have been a different ending to the book!

If you skip breakfast, you can't eat it simultaneously with lunch. It's too much. Shoving it all in at once just doesn't work. Eating meals at their proper time keeps us balanced, just as daily devotions and time with God keep us focused. If God gets the best of our day, He'll be more present in the rest of our day!

"The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him." (Lamentations 3:25)

Pat is a good friend who is passionate about her faith and her family. She works from home supporting a family business, and loves to read, write and garden when she can, and spends every spare moment with her grandkids.

One Word At A Time: Swings

By Ginny (MAD21)

If you were ever around me as a kid, you would know that anytime we were near a playground there was one place you could almost always find me... on the swings. Watching my own children over the last several years, I've wondered if it's genetic. They are like most kids running around going down the slides, or jumping over the bouncy bridge, etc. But almost always, both of my girls revert back to the swings.

When my oldest was a toddler and we went to the playground, we would spend almost the entire time with me pushing her on the swings. It was your purest joy (both for me and her!). She still prefers swinging over most things. Her swing of choice? The regular swing. My youngest, however, prefers the tire swing. Which should show the difference between the two. One enjoys things as they are, the other wants more excitement. This is my scary future you see before you. Haha!

One of my fondest memories as a child was going on the long five-hour drive to visit my aunt and uncle. They were so good to me. They were some of my favorite people. One of the things I loved about going to visit them at their house was the giant oak tree outside their house. It always had a tire swing on it. I loved the tree... and the swing.

I've often wondered why we love to swing. What is it about it that brings so much joy. Like rocking in a chair, sky diving, hang-gliding, repelling, or riding in a boat, I wonder if it's a small sense of freedom. The closest we'll ever feel to flying. Whatever it is, I hope I never grow up so much I forget how much joy such a simple thing can bring.

This post is a participant in a blog carnival over at Peter Pollock's place.
After you finish here, be sure to go and check out what everyone else wrote on: Swings