My computer is full of photos that were taken over the course of our summer travels.  Thousands of photos.   What a summer it was.  12 national parks!  Ken says we traveled over 10,000 miles and there are parts of my body that think he has underestimated.   We saw sights in New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Arizona.  The last photo I snapped was of Ken arriving home with our camper trailer in two after the axle broke in the panhandle of Texas- it almost made it home. Oh, and the air-conditioner went out so our drive from Colorado to Texas was, shall we say, hot.  It took a lot of prayer for this Oregon gal to have a good attitude in the heat.  I love my new travel tea mug! (more about that in a later post.)

The low point of our summer came just a few days into our travels.  We lost my sweet Anya to cancer that hit suddenly and very hard.  That was in May, and here it is September and I am still reduced to sobbing at times.  I miss the old girl who had been my constant companion for 10 years.

The highlight of our trip has to be when we were in Oregon.   Our youngest proposed to the love of his life and she said yes!   Our future daughter-in-love is a delightful addition to our family.  We just love her!!!!  Can you believe these two spent their summer traveling with us?  That was from mid-May to mid-July!  I guess she knows what kind of family she is marrying into.

Just a couple of new thoughts as I read through God's Word this year:
No Bit and Bridle for Me...I hope- What will it take to keep near to God?
Big Bang-Thinking about creation.

And for you quilter's:
Freebie Thursday- a couple of beautiful patterns and hints about an upcoming UFO challenge.

And just for fun:

A lovely little poem shared by Grammar Girl  “The Alphabet of Errors”  was written by Boston schoolgirls in 1921 and submitted to the The English Journal by Elizabeth M. Richardson.
It appears that each girl wrote a 4-line poem about an error that people make with a word that starts with a specific letter. 

Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!
Debra

Snow Day!  It has been cold this week in Texas.   Granted, I know some of you are much colder and have a lot more snow-but I will take what I can get.   
It is such a rare opportunity here to photograph birds in the snow so I had fun behind my camera.  I posted several of my shots on Facebook on the Tuning My Heart page.  (I do not know if the link will work for you, if not click on the facebook link on the right side of this webpage.)

My look at Psalm 119 continues:
Psalm 119:129-136
Psalm 119:137-144
Psalm 119:145-152

Freebie Thursday-It's all about Redwork this week on the Quilt Blog
Happy New Year:Part 3-the conclusion to my photo journey of our anniversary trip.

Preach the Word: Because It Makes the Ministry Dependent on God-I have been enjoying John MacArthur's series Preach the Word.  What he has to say is not just relevant to pastors, but for all of us.  This particular one struck me as I continue to consider the ministry of my life as a blogger.  "By contrast, a ministry that centers on the preaching of God’s Word is a ministry that is, by definition, wholly dependent on God. Rather than relying on gimmicks or ploys, it relies on God Himself for both its content and direction."

Judges Judging US-This is a great look at the book of Judges I saw it in a new light after reading this post by Jesse Johnson.  "Plainly and practically: the church is not defeated (or threatened) if a court case about marriage goes this way or that way. The church does not lose if there are, say…gay marriages at the Grammy’s, or if abortion is funded by tax dollars. Those things are sinful, obviously, and are signs of God’s judgment on our country. But the danger for the church is always compromise being allowed on the inside. We are not responsible for what happens in the world, but we are responsible for what happens in our heart and in our flocks. That is where defeat and danger are seen. We should lament the culture’s run into sin, but also understand that the real battlefield is not the culture war, but the war for the purity of our hearts, our homes, and our churches–culminating in evangelism. "

Dear Donald Miller-There is an interesting conversation going on in the blogosphere about whether Christians should attend church or not.  Many young people are looking for a way out of the inauthenticity they see in their local church.  The results have been very interesting and worthy of consideration by all of us.

Blessings!
Deb