Tuesday’s Display Chain ~ LOVE

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” I Corinthians 13:4-8   
 
I couldn’t begin to talk about love without first acknowledging the love of my Heavenly Father – because He is love!  He gave us the example of how we should love.  As I seek to follow Him, my desire is to show His love to the people in my life.  

  
Pictured above is my husband’s grandmother’s Bible.  When she died a note was found inside that said she wanted him to have her bible – I’m sure that she saw in him even as a little boy the godly man he was to become.

The second greatest love in my life is my husband, Adolph, who truly is my best friend.  In 1969 my family moved to Eastman, Georgia, and I went to work in one of the local factories.  I was planning to attend a Design Institute in the fall to study Interior Design and needed to work to help with expenses.  But my plans soon changed.  One day at work a good looking guy kept driving by on a forklift and I began to flirt with him.  I said to the girl I was working with, “This is the man I am going to marry.”  And she said, “He is my brother-in-law, would you like for me to introduce you?”  Well of course!!!  We went out that weekend and were inseparable from then on.  Three months later we were married – at the young ages of 18 and 19.  Did we know what loves was at that age?  Certainly not – but we grew up together and grew into love.  This year we will celebrate our 42nd anniversary. 


Here I am with the love of my life just before we ran/walked a 5K last month.  Not only does he support me in what I do – he often joins me.

The next greatest love in my life is my family.  We were blessed with three children – two daughters and a son – and then, as they married my heart expanded to embrace three more loves.  We are so proud of all of our children and the wonderful adults they have become.  In 1991 our daughter blessed us with our first granddaughter.  My heart overflowed with love  and this little girl stole my heart.  As each additional grandchild came along I fell in love all over again.   They truly are a delight!


Here are all nine of our grandchildren with me on my birthday in September.

Lest anyone thinks we have the perfect marriage or the perfect family, let me assure you we do not.  There have been ups and downs and trials and triumphs, but love covers it all!

Well, that is it for me.  When I think of love my heart always goes to God, my precious husband, and my family.  I do have many other joys and delights in my life but none can compare with these.  

“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” I Corinthians 13:13  

(This week's Display theme was "LOVE".  Be sure to visit 1890 Gable House Musings and check out all of this week's participants.)

May you be blessed with love,
Sue

WHERE DOES THE TIME GO? * A 5K & A COUPLE OF ANTIQUE FAIRS

I THOUGHT that once the busyness of the holidays had past, and Christmas décor was all put away, that I would have more time to post.  But I find that more than three weeks have passed since my last post and it seems like the time is just flying by.

I ADMIRE those of you who post and comment regularly – many of you while working outside the home, crafting for an online business, and some even with children at home.  HOW DO YOU DO IT?  I babysit (play with) our 2 year old grandson weekdays, and as much as I enjoy our time together I am often too tired to do much else once he has gone home.  In addition to babysitting Caleb, we have eight other grandchildren who are in and out frequently – wouldn’t have it any other way!  Three of our grandchildren play soccer - so that means lots of soccer games to attend.  I also participate in a Bible Study and am a Mentor for MOPS – activities that are a joy to give my time to.  Some evenings I like to read other blogs and try to leave comments, but it is hard for me to keep up with all of you.  I had intended to participate in the Tuesday Display Chains hosted by Misi, but I just have not had time to take pictures and get them posted.  For those of you who have not visited Misi’s blog, 1890 Gable House Musings, stop over and check out some of the past Tuesday Display Chains – you will be inspired!

THANK YOU TO MY FOLLOWERS – thank you to my new followers and thank you to those of you who have journeyed with me for a while.  When I find that I have a new follower I try to visit your blog, if you have one, and become a follower too – but I’m sure I have missed someone along the way.  SO, if you are following me and find that I am not following you, please email me and I will take care of that right away.  I had no idea when I started this blog, just five short months ago, that I would make so many friends – but I have been inspired, encouraged, and blessed beyond what I ever dreamed possible!  I appreciate each and everyone of you! 

I PARTICIPATED IN MY FIRST 5K (as a walker) on January 15th.  The purpose of the race was to raise funds for a school in Haiti.  I began training the week after Thanksgiving, thinking I would only do this race, since it was for a good cause – but I am hooked.  I found myself looking forward to training and looking for more races to participate in.  My husband is now on board and we will participate in a race together on Saturday.  I still have a hard time believing that I got off the couch and did it, but here I am crossing the finish line!



I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO ATTEND a couple of Antique Fairs recently.  My DH took me to the Renniger’s Extravaganza on January 16th.  It was the first time we had gone on a Sunday – it is a weekend long event – and it was not as good of a day as we have experienced in the past, on Saturdays.  Many of the dealers had left Saturday night, so there was not as much to see .  And it seemed that many of the ones who stayed had priced their goods on the high side – at least the prices were too high for my budget.  Then, yesterday we went to Arcadia for their monthly Antique Street Fair - it was a cold day for Central Florida and I think that kinda curbed my desire to shop.  I did find a few goodies at both fairs though.

At Renniger’s Extravaganza I got:

A couple of small heart molds, a heart cookie cutter, and a small heart shaped wooden bowl.


A small crockery jug - the one on the left.


And three wooden mashers.  (I guess I now have a collection.)  I displayed them on top of the Rolling Pin/Bowl Holder that I won from Firecracker Kid Primitives.
  

At Arcadia’s Antique Street Fair I got:

Several small tin items to add to my baker’s cabinet display – the box with lid, measuring cup, handled biscuit cutter, shaker, nutmeg grater, and cocoa container.


A candle sconce – I had a couple like this years ago and wished I had kept them.  I have been looking for replacements and found this one – at a good price too!


And a book with a blue cover – for my blue room.


ABOUT MY BLUE ROOM – I had a lot of blue in our previous home and when we moved to this house (almost eight years ago) I thought I was tired of blue and did not use it at all in this home.  This fall I took some quilts to sell at a Street Fair that I participated in – and as the day progressed I kept looking at one of the quilts and thinking I don’t want to let that one go.  So I brought it home, spread it on the bed in one of the guest rooms, and fell in love with it.  The problem was that it didn’t go with anything else in the room.  Since then I have slowly been collecting blue and brown items for a room makeover.  Hopefully I will be able to share my makeover soon, but until then here is a teaser – a portion of the quilt that started my desire to do a room makeover.
Wishing you all a blessed week and all the time you need to accomplish your heart's desires,

Sue