Take a Princess to McDonald's

Good Monday morning!

On Friday, I wrote about a "surprise" we were going to have in our Sunday morning service. Oh, my goodness! It was so wonderful. First, we had a testimony from a woman who lost her husband to liver cancer seven years ago this coming May. Mike and I have known Jackie since she and Andrew and their two children moved to Gardendale many years ago. Andrew was an amazing man. He was "life and energy" personified. And Jackie is truly an amazing woman. The entire service had to do with becoming an overcomer. "For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world -- our faith. And who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?" 1 John 5:4-5.
After Jackie's sweet, emotional testimony and tribute to Andrew, Pastor Kevin preached a short sermon from Revelation 12.

The end of the service was then person after person and family after family standing up with simply made signs telling the many things they had overcome with the help of God. Loved ones who are already in Heaven, drug abuse, abortion, gambling addiction, cancer, pornography, miscarriages, illnesses, depression... the list goes on and on and on. Some people I had never met before (our church is very large). Some people I knew, but had no idea they had struggled and overcome such adversities. Some people I knew very well, and their courage and willingness to stand in front of over one to three thousand people over the course of three services was mind boggling.

Jackie's eloquent words and the dozens of other people who gave their testimonies simply by holding a sign with their struggle written on the front... and then turning the sign around to tell how God had helped them OVERCOME their sorrows, burdens, illnesses and so much more is truly something I will never, ever forget. (Overcoming is not the same thing as "getting over" losing someone or forgetting about your addiction or not mourning a loss. Overcoming is deciding daily not to let Satan beat you down and letting your losses, addictions or problems overcome you, thus making you an ineffective witness for Christ. Overcoming what the "world" throws at you is something you do with God's daily help.) I don't think anyone in today's service will ever forget it... I know I won't.

We serve an awesome God!

The Showcase Pic this morning is of daffodils. Last Sunday we had snow. This Sunday we have spring. Alabama is a crazy state!

Right now, the Gallery Pic is my collection of scrapbooks. It's about ten short of holding all of them, so I'm going to have to get a new bookshelf. I've been scrapbooking for 16 years now, and I love it. It is one of the hobbies in my life that has never grown old. And as the kids have gotten older and our family has changed, they are priceless to me. All the memories. All the fun. I believe scrapbooking is so much more than just a "hobby."

The title says "I'll Explain on Friday..." which means I have another little challenge for all of us. This one is easy. You don't even have to write anything down. You can do it all "mentally." But my scrapbooks are part of next week's challenge, so you can be guessing what that one is all about.

Moments Matter

Okay. Everyone get ONE piece of paper and ONE pencil ready to go. Tonight before your head hits the pillow write ONE moment that really stood out today. ONE moment that made Monday, March 9 a day worth being alive. It doesn't have to be huge. It doesn't have to be "special." In fact, it can be quite ordinary. A pretty spring day. An uninterrupted cup of your favorite coffee or tea. Curling up and watching Dora the Explorer for 30 minutes with your three year-old. What will it be? I'll share my "Monday Moment" in the morning.

100th Post Contest Rules

Tomorrow will be my 100th post on the blog. I began October 16, 2008 and have thoroughly enjoyed every minute. I've met a few new friends. I have gotten to talk to some old friends. I've gotten new ideas and feedback. My only hope is the blog will keep growing, and I will continue to "meet" new people and learn about their families and traditions.

Three of my favorite things in the world are SCRAPBOOKING, new RESTAURANTS and MAGAZINES. To enter the contest, comment directly on the blog or send me an e-mail with your ONE word choice of those three things. (SCRAPBOOKING, RESTAURANTS, MAGAZINES.) You will have from 12:01 Tuesday morning until midnight Tuesday. One entry per person. I will combine the comments from the blog AND the e-mails in chronological order. I will then divide the total number of entries by my favorite number (which you don't know yet). For example, if I have 21 entries and my favorite number is 7, I will divide 7 into 21 and get the number 3. The third person to comment will be the winner. (By the way, my favorite number is not 7.)

Is that confusing? It makes sense to me, but I learned a long time ago things that make sense to me do not necessarily make sense to the rest of the population. SIMPLY PUT -- LEAVE A ONE WORD ENTRY. If you pick SCRAPBOOKING and you win, you will receive scrapbook supplies. If you pick RESTAURANT and you win, you will receive a gift certificate to a restaurant. If you pick MAGAZINES and you win, you will receive two new magazines. Again, it's going to be a $10 to $15 prize, but it will be fun and it will be FREE.

As shown by the Gallery, our weekend was extremely quiet. Mike and I had a very nice date Friday night. Austin had his audition Saturday. (We won't know anything until sometime in April.) Instead of pool, we played Pictionary... Roxie and I won by one square. (How do you draw Dick Cheney? Anyone? Anyone?)

Roxie and I decided to go bathing suit shopping at Brookwood between church services. The only thing worse than bathing suit shopping for yourself, is shopping for your 12 year-old daughter who (in the last couple of years) has started having an opinion. (I miss the days when I would shop and put things on her bed and she would be soooo excited.) Those days are gone, but we have our "shopping deal." In every store, there is at least ONE thing we will both agree upon. The trick is finding it!

Instead of sharing a story today and tomorrow, I wanted to share a couple of "lists" I use with my family. (I bet you had no idea I was a list person, did you?) The list for today is very simple. It is my weekly list of things I try to accomplish for myself and my family during a seven-day period. I call it my Priority List. It helps me with balance in my life.

Devotion (5 times)
Dinner with family (5 times)
Exercise (5 times)
Scrapbook (5 pages)
Finish chore list (5 times)
Fun (1 thing just for me... shopping, eating with friends, date with Mikie, etc.)

Now, before you say anything, these are things I attempt. These are goals. For example, this is how my list looked last night AFTER I had completed my week.

Devotion (5 times) * * *
Dinner with family (5 times) * * *
Exercise (5 times) * * * *
Scrapbook (finish 5 pages) * *
Finish chore list (5 times) * (I came really close three other days... but no cigar!)
Fun (1 thing) * *

I can honestly say, I have never completed everything on the list in a seven-day period. I've come close once or twice, but I haven't made it... yet! I will say the closer I get to completing it, the better my week goes. If I'm doing my daily devotion, I'm closer to God. If I'm having dinner with my family on a regular basis (along with other activities), I'm closer to them. If I'm exercising on a regular basis, I feel better physically. If I scrapbook a page a day, I feel fulfilled creatively. If I finish my chore list four or five times a week, my house is under control. And if I plan a fun activity toward the end of the week, I have something to look forward to. This is my "balance." Your "balance" may be totally different.

If I don't make all my goals, it doesn't make me sad. It doesn't make me mad. I just write the new, clean, fresh-start list Monday morning and try, try again. My priorities are written down so I don't wake up Sunday morning and realize I didn't have a meal with my family, or I didn't exercise at all, etc., etc.

Everyone's weekly Priority List will probably have some different things on it, and that's great. People are in different seasons of their lives. If you have a new baby in your home, finishing your Chores (5 times) might be replaced with Getting a Bath (5 times). If you're not a scrapbooker, another hobby or activity could be put in that spot.

I know the Fun (1 thing) probably looks a little flimsy, but at this season in my life, that's where I am. If you have four children under five, you may not even have Fun on your list (even though it is important). You may be in "survival mode." (Been there... done that!)

This list has nothing to do with my Quarterly Family List. I'll post that one tomorrow.

Now for a little event that is sure to please.

Take a Princess to McDonald's

When Roxie was between two and five, she was in Disney Princess garb every single day. One evening, Roxie, along with two of her friends, dressed up as Sleeping Beauty, Jasmin and Belle. Plastic princess shoes... check. Matching princess tiaras... check. Matching wig (Jasmin only)... check.

I put the three Princesses in the car, and we drove to our local McDonald's. At this time in our lives, we were not attending high school football games. This particular night happened to be on a Friday night during a high school game. McDonald's was totally empty. I walked in with the Princesses and, of course, they wanted to be seated in the high seats. I went to the front to order their Happy Meals, and I stood for a second waiting for them to get the order ready.

"Ma'am. If you'll please sit down, we'll be bringing the Princesses' order to you shortly," the worker behind the cash register said.

"Oh, that's okay. It's not a big order. I can handle it," I responded, totally missing the cashier's meaning.

"No, ma'am. We will serve you AND the Princesses in just a moment. Please have a seat."

So I sat. And they did serve us. It was like a five-star restaurant for four year-olds. They even came back to check on drink refills and to make sure everything was to our liking. The girls were thrilled to be treated in such royal fashion, and I loved that the workers got into the spirit of the evening. They made a good night GREAT!

It was so successful, I even took Roxie and another dress-up buddy a few weeks later. We didn't have the same service (because there were other people in the restaurant), but it did nothing to spoil the mood of the little Princesses.

Oh, to be four and walk with your head held high in a tiara and plastic Princess shoes. Where does that confidence go?

And then to make the evening even MORE meaningful, we had a short devotion when we got home. The theme was simply "I know I am a princess, because my Father is King of Kings." Yes, sometimes even 47 year-old princesses need to be reminded of that little fact, don't we?

If you have a dress-up girl, grab a buddy (or a sister or a cousin), and head to your nearest McDonald's for dinner. Inexpensive, fun and unforgettable! Roxie still talks about it from time to time with a little smile on her face. (Once a princess, always a princess!)

I hope you have a glorious Monday. I hope you have a hundred moments to choose from tonight as you do your "homework." I hope you'll tune in tomorrow for a quick and easy crock pot supper (my favorite kind).

I'll talk to you Tuesday!