The Light is a Bit Brighter

There are NINE of these notebooks that are 4-5 inches thick with all the info for PandaJOY's case. They are mostly about the birth parents. We have read them and are consulting tomorrow morning with our caseworker about all we learned. Tuesday we have an official one hour visit with PandaJOY in her foster home with the caseworker. On Friday we have an official one hour visit in OUR home with the caseworker. On Saturday she gets to spend the night and we take her back to the foster home on Sunday and..........cautiously optimistic DRUMROLLL..........she SHOULD be placed in our home on February 8th. I say that with baited breath because we all know how set dates are not actually SET with this system until the day is done. Yes, you can be happy for us, but we aren't celebrating until PandaJOY is HOME with us. Once that happens then the next long leg of the journey starts, but at least she will be WITH us.

Hallelujah!

No words can thank you all enough for your love, prayers and support......especially from those of you whom I have never met in person. What a blessing.

Nothing Really

Wouldn't it be nice for me to actually write WORDS on this blog? Have something great to say?

Sorry.

Not right now.

I do enjoy posting pics on my 365 Blog, however.

Stay tuned. Things concerning PandaJOY ARE in the works.

A huge....HUGE....HUGE file (two office boxes full) is coming our way this week for us to read through. THEN there are a few more steps and THEN we will have our girl home where she belongs.

NONE of this makes any sense, but we just keep walking through it hoping for value to be revealed in the end.

We DO see a light at the end of this horrifically long tunnel.

Celebrating 40

::click to enlarge collage::

Cannot say enough about my super blessed, fun, fabulous and MUCH NEEDED weekend with my college best friends.

We have been friends for over 20 years and though we all live our own lives apart from each other we are bonded forever. We all attended our local community college for two years, but IN those two years we jam-packed a lifetime of memories together.

I have already made 10 pages of collages from the weekend! It was just one of those times when everything seemed to be right and worked out. I'm sure you know those kinds of plans are rare. We actually couldn't ever seem to get a date for the weekend to work out and even this past weekend was a last ditch effort and it unfolded better than we could have planned originally. Sweet.

I have several very close friends and love them dearly. I know I am blessed with precious friendships. I might lack in many areas of my life, but I am one blessed girl with great friends. These four chickadees....well, I just can't put into words. All friendships are different and meet different needs in my life as well as me for my friends'. It is a blessed thing to have a group that is so tight that no matter if we don't talk for-EVER it seems at times, we are bonded and dearly love each other....quirks and all. These three are the ones who knew me before I was a minister's wife. Smile.

The weekend is over. Reality is back. Time to go grocery shopping. How blessed I am!

Creative Bug

Sometimes the internet can be addictive, a bummer, bad news, the land of comparison, negative, blah, blah, blah. At other times.....it's downright FUN and GREAT and CREATIVE and INSPIRING and AWESOME.

This is one such time of greatness.

There is this blogger that I have fallen head-over-heels for because of her fabulous wit that reminds me so much of me and she loves messing around with her camera like me and she has little freckles....like me. Yeah, I pretty much just said I have fabulous wit. Well, if you know me in real life or have read this blog for anytime (other than this past year of dreary-ho-hum-posts) you would probably agree. Unless you just think I'm a dork in which case....you're right. Anyhoo---I luuuuuuuhhhhve this chic's style. She had a post about making signs and I tried it out today. I bought the poor little outcast "Happy Holidays" wooden boxes above for $1.79 each marked down from $5.99, painted them, followed the way LMM made her letters and I actually came out with some cute gifts.

Gifts for whom? (or who?----I can't ever remember when to WHOM and when to WHO)

This weekend I am planning to spend celebrating my 40th Birthday....(I know, I know my birthday was in September, the other three girls are spring babies).....with my three college BFFs. Does community college really count as college? Well, it did to us. We enjoyed two years there and then all went our separate ways. (Sic 'em Bears.....that's Baylor for you non-Texans). I hope all goes as planned and we have a great time comparing wrinkles this weekend.

I will fill the boxes with a few goodies, tie them up with black tulle and be full of joy upon delivery and quite proud of myself for just jumping in doing it. I must admit I was worried when I had to start painting the letters. Way, way harder than I thought. I used a really, really fine tip paintbrush just like LMM said and it. was. not. easy. Once I roughed up the paint with sandpaper to "age" it, they really looked sorta cute. Grin.

::click on collage to enlarge::

Last of December Daily

::click on collage to enlarge::

Here is the tail end of the month for my December Daily scrapbook. The rest of the month can be found at this post.

National ID

I am baffled by this news.

I shouldn't be because right there in Revelation it says these things will happen. I just did a Bible Study last semester on the end times. No one can "figure it all out", but we can be wise, alert and aware.

PandaPop mentioned this to me last night. It greatly disturbed me even through the night. There was a dooming sense of having no way around the thing.

You can read the blurb for yourself by clicking Fox News. Please come back and give me your thoughts. If you know anything about Revelation you know that the world is to try and make a one-world-currency. The mark. It will be needed for all transactions. You don't take it, you don't survive without it. Simple economics. The Bible doesn't say the exact words of "one world currency", but there is ample evidence that this will take place under the rule of the Antichrist.

Do not attack me and say that I am saying Obama is the Antichrist. I am saying no such thing. I am just looking at what he is proposing and what the Bible says. I know Who wins in the end. The here and now, however is the freaky part.

Think about it for a minute. WHAT IF....the government took over the internet and said you cannot BE on the internet without a national ID number? No ordering, no blogging, no email, no FB, no online banking or bill paying, no nothin'.

We aren't just talking about social networking, which is a fun luxury and sometimes quite beneficial in who we are as a people. We are talking about how you cannot function in a society that is internet based....if you are not on the internet.

PP said there is no way he'd do it.

How would you live day to day?

Would I still be a photographer? All my work displays, proofs, advertising is online.

Would I stay in touch with oodles of friends? FB and this blog keeps me connected like never before.

Would I ever be informed of ANYthing? I do so much surfing and find out tons online.

Would I resort to growing vegetables in my backyard? making my own clothes?

Would we turn into the true Jesus-freaks of society (as opposed to the ones we already are now)? By not taking the ID, we'd be the outcasts......even among most other Christians who would take the number thinking it was harmless.

We can shrug this off and say, "It'll never happen", but think about it for a minute. I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on this either here in the comments or on FB.

Whether you are a Believer or not, what say you?

So Easily Deceived

::click on collage to enlarge::

Look closely at this collage.

Two pictures are staged and lovely and nicely lit and give a sense of....."awe, wow--I really like oranges" or "gee, I bet she is going to cook up something spectacular with all those gadgets".

Now glance.....no, look deeply at the other two photos. Yes, the animal ones.

These pictures depict the REALITY of my life. The deaf doggie on the bed where he is NOT supposed to be, but has so sweetly made his home there (the last safe refuge for Miao....now overtaken). The other pic is quite another story.

I am standing in the kitchen overlooking a bar into the living room. How is PandaDoggie up so high you ask? Oh, he is STANDING on the back of the couch.

Reality.

His vibrating collar has to be off for a few days due to a gaping hole in his neck from it and this is the level obedience he exhibits.

Don't judge. You know you have something in your life, too that just makes you cringe.

His only saving grace is that he is darn sweet and quite beautiful.

This whole post is to, yet again remind MYSELF that the photos I see on other blogs (or my own for that matter) ARE NOT REALITY most of the time. I. must. stop. thinking. others. have. it. together. and I am a inch worm.

Have a blessed real-life-honest-to-goodness weekend!

The Red Gun

Sometimes I'll post some of my 365 pics on here. Today is such a day. Check out the blurb over on the other site. Link to the top right....

Christmas Card Mini Photo Shoots 2010

I added several galleries on The Cotton Crop Photography gallery site (click The Collection) that were from Christmas Card Photo Shoots. I did not open them up to the public before Christmas so that each person could surprise friends and family with their photos for Christmas instead of finding them online.

It was such a RUSH to get cards in the mail with the photos I had taken on them!!

I am looking forward to some great learning and shoots this winter, spring, summer and fall. I have SO much to learn, but I by God's grace, I think I've done quite a lot in my first year at this gig. What a blast it has been!

Watwood Gallery
Ryan Gallery
Reed Gallery
Ledbetter Gallery
Jensen Gallery
Jackson Gallery
Higgins Gallery
Golsch Gallery
Dodridge Gallery
Bain Gallery

Robertson Gallery

First 365 Post!

OK!!!! I just started my 365 Blog posts and I am so pumped to do something each day rather it is inspired, super fun or just plain old mundane. I won't always post about on THIS blog so always check the 365 link over to the right for the latest.

I hope to have some new collages coming soon on here and more WORDS to types this year. I know 2010 was filled with mostly photos and my words went out the window. I'll try to do better. ; )

Happy New Year!!!