Gluten Free Eeeeek!

So over this past year I've had some mysterious medical issues. In attempt to try to solve certain issues, my GI doctor recommended me to go on a gluten-free diet. For those of you that don't know, gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye and barley. Some people have certain conditions where their body can't process gluten and having even the slightest contact with it can make you violently ill. Gluten is in everything, from food to lotions to shampoos and conditioners, even instant tea.  It's what makes food taste GOOD!

Here is an example of a gluten free frozen dinner:

Looks terrible, right? This is actually one of the better looking g-free meals. Just so you know, those little chunks on the green spinach is cheese. Yep, that's right....cheese. Go ahead and look at the box again, I didn't believe it myself. Now, have a peek of what's on the inside:

Ah Ha ha! Oh the thoughts that went through my head when I pulled this out of the box. But, I'm a Christian lady and quickly corrected myself. Suddenly I wasn't so hungry-HA! But, I thought to myself, "It'll look better once it's cooked and ready to serve."

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right?

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I mean

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How bad could it be?!

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The answer is

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BAD

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VERY BAD:

Oy vey! All I can say is PRAISE THE LORD that I don't have to eat gluten free any longer!!!!

Just thought I'd share my little pointless blurb. Hope you're having a blessed week!

SNOW!

YeeeHaw!!

Now, THAT'S what I'm talkin' about! In my part of Texas, we almost never see snow. Although my blog title says, "SNOW!," the word ice is probably more truthful.

Here's the thing, if it falls out of the sky and leaves a white puddle, we call it snow around here. Even though 99%  of the time it's just ice. It's still fun as long as you don't have to drive through it. It seems like where I live, no one can handle any sort of precipitation while driving. Rain, sleet, snow....none of that. It causes a mass panic. Here's a pic of our "snow"

Surprise Gifts for the Girls

Here's the pics of the packages I put together for Tim's nieces along with pics of the card I made them. I've really been enjoying getting back in the swing of crafting!

Here's the front of their card:

 

And the inside:

 Here's a more detailed picture of the wrapped packages. I LOVE the way they look! I just wraped the boxes in hemp cording made for jewelry. I strung the hemp through one button hole until it was halfway in. Then I "cross-stitched" through all the holes then wrapped the cord around the box and knotted it in the back. I think it looks kinda charming.

Here's a close up view of those nail things I was telling you about. I originally had just a set of pink and a set of red, but, after some thinking I decided they needed something with a little more pizzazz. Since everything was already wrapped I just threw these in a Target sack and told Tim to give it to the girls after they open their boxes.

After Tim gave them to his nieces, his sister Facebooked me telling me how much the girls loved them...wahoo! Turns out that one absolutely loves owls and the other adores houndstooth. Boy did I get lucky!

Thank you, thank you, thank you pt. 2

Yesterday I got a letter in the mail at Tim's house from his nieces. It was a thank you note they wrote me for making their Christmas gifts from Tim. It was a pleasant surprise, and very sweet. On Sunday their family is going on a trip which will include a 12 (TWELVE!!) hour flight. WOW! That's a really, really long time to be stuck in one chair!

So, as something neat to do, I'm making each of them a little "anti-boredom" kit for Tim to take to them. It'll have these:

Have you heard of these?! They are AMAZING! You just peel off the decal thing, rub it on your nail and you're done. No dry time and no funky nail polish smell!

It'll also have a few manicure items. I'll wrap them each up and try to make it look cute. Hope they like them! If I can, I'll try to post some pics of what all I put in each package and then the final wrapped gifts.

Opposite Day!

So today is opposite day. I do these occasionally to prevent a funk from settling in. All day I do the opposite of my first instinct.


So today I did not stay in bed, I did wash my hair and I did not have cookie dough for breakfast.

I got up and went to my GI doctor, even though I don't like her very much.

I had a good attitude and smiled when I felt like crying.

I took a step back to look at the big picture rather than dwell on my "little crisis." 

Instead of letting my migraine drag me down, I claimed victory and am trying to funcion as best as possible.

And when I felt like complaining, I praised God out loud.

Today WILL be a great opposite day!

Goodbye, Dear Friend.

This past Tuesday afternoon, a man I've known my whole life went on to Glory. His name is Mike Salters and he will be dearly missed by so many people. Though he and his wife never had children, he still left quite a legacy.

Mike and Irene lived four doors down from me my whole life. I grew up in the all-American neighborhood. Everyone knows everyone else, every one waves at you when you drive by, and we always had block parties where everyone on the street would get together. We are all friends, and I love it.

Mike grew up in Michigan, and loved the cold weather.No matter what time of year it was, even in icy weather, he was always sitting in the garage watching his little tv and waving as you passed by. Growing up, I'd always go to see him and play with his dogs. It was nice, as a child, to have someone like Mike around. He'd tease all the neighborhood kids and cut up with us.

Last Wednesday he was rushed out of his home in an ambulance. A few days later he was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer that had spread to his bones. Two days later, God called him to come home. He'll certainly be missed. I'm just glad I had the honor of getting to have him in my life growing up.

Single White Female

Hi, my name is Marsha. I'm 26 years old, no children, never married and content!!! There isn't a week that goes by that people don't act surprised by my 'status.' Don't get me wrong the idea of marriage sounds fabulous, but is it the end of the world if it doesn't happen for me? Absolutely not! What's wrong with my age? I don't have to be married by a certain age and then start having children right after. I'd much rather wait on the man that God has in store for me. Besides, who says marriage is even in my future?

EVERY....and I mean every time I speak to my precious grandmother, she likes to remind me of my age and that I'm not getting any younger. Asking me, "Don't you want to get married?" It also gets suggested that they'd love more great-grandchildren...OY!

Of course I get lonely sometimes, but wouldn't it be much lonelier being married to the wrong person? Periods of loneliness can define us by the way we react to them. Do we whine and gripe to our friends about our life or do we draw even closer to God? Being single is a very special time in your life! It's when you get to spend your time the way you want to. Spending your money where you want to without needing to consult your spouse. It's when I get to watch whatever shows I want on tv. It's when you get to have all the blankets to yourself at night! It's when you get to have control of the remote!!!!

I see so often girls my age just freaking out that they haven't met, "the one," or that they aren't even dating anyone. I think we need to learn to be happy with whatever circumstances God has given us. Nothing escapes His attention. He's aware of every single emotion we have on a daily and even hourly basis. Every time I "freak out" about whatever circumstances may be getting to me at the moment, I can always picture God calmly reassuring me, "I've got this!" Because He does! I've given Him my entire life, I know it's in His hands...so why stress?! That would be doubting God!

I don't really know what the point of this blog is. Just something that's been on my mind and now I feel better by getting it out of my system.