Two more days...

Ok, it's crunch time - I'm getting ready for all this to be over with - year end stuff at work. I'm about to pull my hair out. Everything is due out and in by the end of January, so after tomorrow I can breathe again. Just wanted to check in and tell you I haven't disappeared. I will be back.

I thought I'd show you a funny picture that I had on my work computer. Talk about red-neck. The kid on the right is my #2 son Josh. The fun thing that he's into right now is bow-fishing at the Sabine river bottom. They don't care what kind of fish they shoot, they just like to shoot. I guess it's fun to get your spotlight and go out at night on the river bottom with the varmints, snakes, mosquitos, etc (gators?) in your flatbottom boat and shoot carp and gar and other assorted trash fish. Of course we always have to bring them home and get our picture made with our trophies. Josh said you never know who or what you're going to see on the river bottom. Scares me - I don't like him going, but he's grown and what can I say... He said one night, they felt like they were in the movie "Deliverance" - they saw some dark dangerous lookin guys out there on the river and decided it was time to skeedaddle (I'm sure at night, any stranger looks dark and dangerous - who knows, Josh and his friend may look dark and dangerous at night...). Good move... told you it'd been better if me and my clan had been born back 100 years ago - lotsa redneck runs through our veins on both sides. Much to the chagrin of my Princess (and sometimes embarrassment) she'd rather be more classy I suppose. Another example - when my #1 son Adam was at A&M and several of them sharing a house, the window treatments in the living room were 100's of Skoal cans stacked up in geometric designs to cover the windows and they had a huge screen TV with about 8 recliners all pointed towards the TV - very classy. That's it. ................. Is it possible to be classy and redneck at the same time??????????????????????????? Later - Vickie

Good morning to you! It is a good morning because I'm here, and the Lord is good! I am making progress getting my year-end junk done at work. My dear hubby came with me last evening for 3 hours to my office and piddled on his laptop while I got some things done. How sweet is that! I have so many interruptions during the day sometimes I can't seem to stay on track.

Well, I'm going to do something that I should have done long ago. When I first started blogging back in Nov., Vee from A Haven for Vee tagged me. I'm supposed to tell 7 things about myself and tag 7 more people. Now I'm not going to tag anybody right now, because I don't know 7 people very well yet - I know a few of you. I may do the tagging later. But I have been thinking about telling you 7 things about myself that you may or may not want to know - here goes:

1. I have been married for 30 years in July 08 to my highschool sweetheart. We met when we were 16 in English class. I knew right away I wanted that goodlooking redneck FFA boy. I got his attention by drawing a beautiful horse picture (he was really INTO horses and cows & his family had both) and "accidently" dropping it next to his desk. He was hooked - he just didn't know it yet. The rest is history. (also that same English teacher and our Spanish teacher taught 2 of our kids in THEIR highschool! how wierd is that)

2. I lost my bikini bathing suit bottoms on our honeymoon in Hawaii- I was going up to the beach from the water, and a huge wave crashed upon me from behind and sucked me back out taking my bottoms with it - almost, they were down around my ankles, and I was trying my best to crawl and chase the water as it washed back out so I could drown myself from the shame (and pull up my bottoms)!!!! DH of only a few days died laughing!
3. When I was 4, my neighbor's son across the street hit me in the face with a brick breaking my nose and causing me to have stitches (I threw something at him first). The next day, I had my 4th birthday party televised on our local TV station with Princess Mary and all my friends, with my nose swollen and stitched up. I remember how bad it hurt!(and looked)

4. My husband, me, and my 3 kids all went to the same pre-school. Also, we all had the same pediatricians!
You can tell we've been in this town a long time...

5. My husband and I have lived in College Station (we are all big Aggies) and Austin and Dallas besides our hometown. We couldn't wait to leave home and then couldn't wait to get back. Our oldest son went to A&M, too, was in the Corps of Cadets, in the Fightin' Texas Aggie Band (played bass horn) WHOOP, and we still go back for games and other functions. LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT!!! We liked Austin - so much to do there, kinda laid back, different kinds of artsy free people there (right up my alley), and we liked Dallas, but are glad that we didn't have to raise our kids there.

6. I always thought I would have made a good hippie. Just a little too young at the time, the hippie movement was about gone by my teens, but now I'm glad I didn't go there. But I still like the idea of being artsy and free and different and march to the beat of one's own drum and all that jazz....

7. And last of all, my sister Lisa is my very best friend in the whole world. I have one sister - we fought like cats growing up, 3 years apart. My mom used to think we actually hated one another, but no - she knows me better than anyone and she still loves me (and vise versa).

Ok, there you have it - my usual too-wordy, too much information self. I'm sure there's other wierd things about me, but that's all I could come up with for today. I will do the tag thing some other time as I get to know some of you more. Plus, I hate to tag people that I know have just been tagged. Thanks to Vee for thinking of me, cuz she wanted me to get my feet wet! Blessings - Vickie

Good morning people - I finally got some photos of some of the items that our friends gave me when his mom passed away. First is the beautiful cake plates - they are just alike but the top one is a little smaller and I can stack them. They are so pretty - don't know the maker or the year, but I'm sure they are vintage. His mom was in her 90's when she passed.
Second photo is some of the hand-painted china from Bavaria & Austria. They are beautiful. These were my 3 favorites. I have 7 that he gave me. The one in the middle came with a tiered candy dish (or for whatever) and a tea pitcher, all hand done. The roses are exquisite especially on the one on the left with the bright colors. They almost glisten with dew-drops. I'm going to hang them in my cottage when I decide where to arrange paintings, etc., on the wall. I added another china cabinet - an old hard rock maple Pennsylvania House reproduction from way back - probably in the 30's or 40's - it belonged to the family. I'll have to get a photo of it when I get everything arranged. Can't decide whether to paint it or not. It's nice and am putting it in my living room with vintage plates. My mom is giving me her Blue Willow dishes that she got when she got married - my grandmother bought them with Gold Bond or Green Stamps. My folks have been married 53 years so that tells ya how old they are.

WHAT IS THIS NEXT ITEM!!! I need help. I bought this at an estate sale back in the summer. I've done all the research that I can. I know it's some kind of Toby pitcher. It stands about 10" tall and about 11-12" wide and his hat is the lid. It is some kind of pottery or ceramic. I know that it was purchased in England about 20-25 years ago. Could be just some kind of decorator pottery? It has no marks on the bottom - nothing. I only paid $10 for it. I've been collecting neat pitchers, didn't know I was, but I have been having my eye out for them. I also ran across an "Old Sleepy Eye" pitcher - it's blue/white also, and I did some research on it, too and found out it's worth about $85-$100. I saw some in Round Top for $200-$300, but I know they were way-overpriced. I think I paid about $10 for that one, too. SHoulda had a picture of it, but maybe some other time.

That's all for the day - if you know of anyone who can help me with this pitcher, let me know. I guess I could investigate some of the antique places here in my town and see if anyone knows about this Toby pitcher.

We had an electrical storm last weekend at the farm and it knocked out the telephone service and my DSL. Did I have a surge protector hooked up to them? No - dumb me. I knew I needed to get one, but have been putting it off. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE ALL YOUR ELECTRONICS PROTECTED!!! This wasn't the first time. We've had a computer knocked out before by lightning (& it DID have a surge protector). Anyway, I'm getting off the subject. I finally was able to get service people out there yesterday and got those repaired. Luckily, we only had our laptop with us at the farm that weekend, and so it was not hooked up at the time!

Well, I hope everyone is doing okay - I've been major busy this week and have not had much time for blogging. Wish I could have a little more hyper-energy like Margo the Robolady. She manages to work, blog, keep house, take care of family, AND do all her projects and look great while doing it! Whew - she makes me tired, but wish I could do it, too...

It promises to be a busy weekend. #2 son is moving back home for awhile. Princess is already griping about sharing the bathroom again. She leaves all her fu-fu stuff out and he leaves towels & underwear on the floor. I try to stay out of there. They are reponsible for cleaning up after themselves. I quit doing that a long time ago!

It's supposed to rain - and I hope they can get everything moved back home from his apartment without getting it wet! He's had a month to do this, but of course waits until the last minute.

Well, gotta run & get busy - have a good rest of the week. I'll check back with you - blessing to you all- Vickie

Medical Missions- Parral, Chihuahua, MX

Since I mentioned missions in a recent blog, and looked at my paintings in the West Texas-Chihuahuan desert, it made me want to tell you about our medical mission trips. Our church takes a medical mission trip to Hidalgo del Parral, Chihuahua (the first photo), every August and I usually always go. I love to go on these trips. We are helping support a couple of Mexican preachers down there and they are growing two different Churches of Christ in the town of Parral. And they ARE growing. We have two dentists, several nurses, and a couple of native Mexican doctors and eyeglasses that we caravan down there and spend a week at one of the community centers and try to help as many people as we can in that week. It is exhausting work, but the most rewarding thing I've ever done. We have a couple of folks with us that are fluent or native hispanics that go with us, and a couple more including me that can get by and help out with translation. They always hold a revival meeting and invite the people who come to the clinic to their services and try to get them to set up Bible studies the week after. It's a great outreach to the poor communities they live in and we usually have 500-600 patients come through the clinic in a week's time. Some of the church member ladies fix lunch for us every single day and we go eat in one of their homes in shifts during the lunch hour. This next photo is me with some of the church ladies.

There are lots of Tarahumara Indians down there, too, who do not speak Spanish, but some other Indian dialect. This next photo is a little Indian lady and her granddaughter. The older lady came to find some glasses. Her granddaughter did not know exactly how old she was, but she knew she was over 100. The Indians are generally very small people, too. I work with the eyeglasses. The people down there sometimes have not been able to see well all their lives. And the greatest blessing for me is to see their faces light up when we are able to fit them with a pair of used glasses (from the Lions Clubs of America). The sun is so bright and the town of Parral is in the mountains and the people usually have some kind of granulation on their eyes as they age. There are also young people with terrible vision and their eyes water all the time. They have lots of eye issues down there for the lack of medical care and poverty.

A couple of special instances always stand out to me and bring tears to my eyes. The first time I went down there, a little old tiny lady came through and I was talking to her. She had not been able to sew or read her Bible in years. They do alot of sewing and handwork. She had such a sweet spirit about her and she waited very patiently while I looked for her some reading glasses. (The prescriptions are marked on the glasses but we still have to do lots of looking). We tried several pairs and when at last we came upon exactly what she needed, her eyes lit up and a huge smile came on her face and she had tears streaming down her wrinkled brown cheeks. She kept repeating over and over "Gracias, muchas gracias, que Dios te bendiga" (may God bless you). She came around the counter where I was standing and reached up as high as she could and grabbed me around the neck and hugged me tight. And I hugged her back, too. She was so sweet. And I was crying, too, to think that something that you and I take for granted (like running down to the Dollar Store and buying a $5 pair of reading glasses) could mean so much to her!!!!!! ANother little old lady this past summer sat quietly while I was looking for her glasses, whispering soft little prayers to God for Him to help me find her a pair of glasses. Over and over she prayed and even held her hands up in supplication and when I finally found them and she tried them on she hugged me and blessed me and thanked God. WHO IS GETTING THE BLESSING HERE???? me!

The poverty, the dirt, the smells, the illness, the unwashed bodies and all the other icky stuff that you might run into on a mission trip just melts away when there is God's love in your heart. These people deep in the heart of Mexico are precious - even the unchurched ones. Sure there is crime, just like everywhere. But I have found that these native peoples are kind and giving - they will literally give you anything they have. And they are so unencumbered by worldly "things" there, that they are truly thankful for what they have and what they are given. This is the great teaching and great blessing for me. Lord willing, I'll be able to go on many more of these trips. This past summer, Princess was able to go with me. She was a great hit with the kids! I think it touched her, too. She has said for several years now that she would like to do some kind of foreign missions - don't know if that will every materialize, but we don't know what God has in store for her. I was just so pleased that she's thinking along those lines. I think she has a soft spot for helping others. I don't know what direction that will take, but time will tell. She had a good time on the trip, as one of the preachers' daughters took Princess and a couple of other young people out to show them the town of Parral and they had ice cream, etc. It was a great trip!

Now let me tell you about Karla. She is 23 years, just graduated from college with a counseling degree and is going to continue her education to obtain some kind of master's degree. She was born with congenital scoliosis. They didn't know if she was going to live as she has had massive health problems. Now she stands about 4 ft nothing and her head is almost fused to her spine and she has pins in her back. She is the daughter of Ubaldo and Maria, the first preacher and his wife. I met them about 12-13 years ago when Karla was about 10 or 11. She has suffered many surgeries and they have to take her to Juarez to the Shriner's Hospital to obtain medical care. She has 2 older healthy brothers. She is beautiful, inside and out. Her paternal grandfather (who is not a Christian) told her parents that they needed to abandon her because she was so deformed. But of course, they couldn't do that. They have raised a sweet, capable, positive young lady with a sweet and gentle spirit and she already has her own patients - she loves to help young teenage girls and young ladies with their problems. She has overcome great odds in her young life, and has recently found out that she has no uterus. Now that's a great disappointment here in America, but imagine in Mexico where family and children are what defines a woman in the eyes of that community, imagine what Karla is going through. She is devastated and so are her parents. She even has a cute boyfriend right now and I think he wants to marry her, but she has not yet told him of her plight. I pray for her and her family. Her mother, Maria, and I have become friends, and Maria shares her problems with me about Karla. I think she is trying to be a strong and faithful example to the young church members and it is difficult for her to talk about problems with the other young Christian women, and so she shares with me. Here is a picture of Ubaldo, Maria, and me.

Well, that is all for now. This post got rather lengthy, sorry, didn't mean to. I can talk all night about Parral, and the goings on there. Slip in a quick prayer for Karla and her family. They have a tough battle to fight down there trying to bring the gospel to a pagan world. They are strong in the Lord, but they are human, too, and they need prayers for strength. Thanks - Vickie

Southwestern theme today

I'm back for a few minutes. Had a couple more paintings to show you. These next two pieces are some scenes that I did in the west Texas area of the Davis Mountains around Marfa. We travel to Parral, Chihuahua, nearly every summer for a medical mission trip there and we always stay in Marfa to break up our trip (it's a 2 day trip). It has it's own kind of beauty. It's hot and dry and arid, but it's beautiful and you can see 360 degrees of sky unless there's a little mountain in the way. It's lovely driving actually through Ft Davis (where we always eat supper), the mountains and you can see old mine shafts, and broken down rock dwellings, and huge centipedes, and occasionally wildlife - like antelope. We also go out to the Marfa lights at night and stand with all the other onlookers and try to figure out where they come from. They come and go and move around and it's really pretty eerie to watch them. They have built a nice little station there for you to walk around and observe from. But it's dark and you have to watch (or listen) for rattlesnakes (we have seen one...) Here's another view of the mountains. The terrain doesn't change much from Texas into Mexico. All you can see is just like this, a little mesquite, a little cedar from time to time, some joshua trees and cactus. I've also seen wild burros and have a few pictures of them. We stopped at one little Mexican rancher's place one time on the road between Texas and Parral to make a sandwich (since there's absolutely NOTHING between the border and the first real town for about 2 hours). A little mexican girl about 5 years old came down to where we were on her daddy's horse and asked us for something to eat. We gave her a sandwich, since it was obvious they didn't have much. In a few minutes, her older sister came down to get one, too. I have to tell you that mission work gets in your blood. I'm hooked. These Mexican people think we are bringing them the blessing, but the REAL blessing is for me. I will tell you more about our missions in another post, cuz once I get started, I can't quit.

This next piece and the last for today is at Bristol Falls, Colorado. I loved the way the sun was back-lighting the mountains and the falls were actually in shadow. I love backlit scenes. The sun just kisses the tops of objects and they fairly sparkle. We've travelled through this area several times and all my kids have gone with our church on the Wilderness Treks. They have groups where they carry all their food, clothing, and sleeping bags and tents - they pack it all in and hike up the mountains, have a mountain-top experience with the Lord and hike back down again - they even have to rapel. It was the hardest thing they've ever done, but with teamwork and God's Spirit, they make it and they are very proud of themselves and what they and God can do in their lives.

Ok, people, that's all for today. My Princess and I are meeting our dear friends for supper at Olive Garden tonight and I have to go get ready. My DH doesn't really like Italian (what's wrong with him) and so we find excuses to indulge ourselves at Olive Garden and CArino's. Can't decide which is my fave.

I AM making a dent in my office work - the year end stuff and tax stuff. I'm starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel, thank goodness. I'll be back. THanks for all your lovely comments and for visiting me. I love hearing from you! Vickie