Happy weekend to all! I know some of you will be getting together with family for an early Christmas. Enjoy! Don't mind that I'm just now decking the halls ... After my unexpectedly extended Thanksgiving trip, I've found some time to play this week ... just a little. Oh, it's nice to be home! Some of you long-time readers may remember seeing this handpainted tablecloth in a post a couple of Christmases ago. I picked it up in a thrift store in Brazil. You can read about it HERE if you wish. The tablecloth was my inspiration this week as I put up a little tabletop tree ... and played in the dishes. I'll show you the entire tablescape soon, but right now, here's a peek. I've never used a turquoise, hot pink, and ... Keep Reading...
Strolling Through A Legacy
Hello my friends! I hope you're all having a wonderful week so far and enjoying this Christmas season. Renaissance Man and I are still trying to figure out how three whole weeks have passed since we headed west to Texas for Thanksgiving ... and now find ourselves smack dab in the middle of Christmas without having even lifted a finger to deck the halls. We arrived back home this afternoon ... finally ... but I have one more post in me to follow the last several. Thank you for allowing me to record the journey ... and for praying us through it. * * * * * Way back in 1855, one of Renaissance Man's ancestors donated land for a church and adjoining cemetery. The property is a significant part of the history ... Keep Reading...
The New Ornament
I bought a new Christmas ornament this week. If you've been following my recent posts, especially the last one, you probably know why. A bell ... with soft, cheerful colors ... perfectly reflects the personality that was my mother-in-law. Does the hidden interior surprise you? The ornament was added ... in memory of our loved one ... to one of the many Christmas wreaths lining the hallways of the hospice facility where we spent the past ten days. For many families ... yours? ... grief is simply a part of this holiday season. The wonderful chaplains here at the Hospice of East Texas offer suggestions for getting through the holidays. Perhaps you ... or someone you know ... can benefit ... Keep Reading...
Life’s Path: Final Steps
Outside these doors are brick paths. They're made up of memories and "final words" to loved ones who were served by the Hospice of East Texas. Yes. We're still here ... Husbands Wives Parents Grandparents Siblings Children I suspect there are stories being told to this day ... ... and personalities remembered. When it's my time to go, I already know my destination ... so I don't want to choose the path of most resistance. Instead, I want to be gracious and choose to move forward into my future. It's the way I've always tried to live ... and how I pray I'll die. Jesus said, "In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to ... Keep Reading...
PEACE: Behind the Scenes at Christmastime …
We're still here ... HomePlace at The Hospice of East Texas. I've never experienced anything quite like it ... On the outside, it's a 28-bed, red brick building, serenely set off the highway. On the inside, it's a haven for families waiting for a loved one to die. When I entered its doors for the first time a week ago, I quickly noticed how starkly different it was from the hospital I'd just departed. The warm-colored walls. The carpeted hallways. The beautiful wreaths lining the corridors; each bedecked with one-of-a-kind ornaments representing a wide variety of personalities. The primary concern at HomePlace is for the comfort of the dying ... and their families. The peacefulness of the chapel, ... Keep Reading...
The Package
I do love a pretty package! You, too? I also love pretty pics of packages, but phone camera pics are the best I can do right now. I know you'll understand. If you're a regular visitor here at My Place to Yours and you've read my last couple of posts, then you know that we went to Texas for Thanksgiving ... and stayed when Renaissance Man's 92-year-old mother broke her hip badly enough to require surgery. She has declined in health ever since. Last Tuesday we moved her to a wonderful hospice facility where I've seen some amazing examples of creative caring. I'll tell you about them sometime, but right now, I want to thank all of you sweet friends who have prayed or sent texts and emails to check on our family. ... Keep Reading...
The Eleventh Hour … What Does It Look Like?
I Skyped with Little Man yesterday. It was obvious our family's three-year-old has made the switch from Thanksgiving mode to Christmas. Imagine that! Renaissance Man and I, on the other hand, though surrounded by Christmas decorations, are living in limbo. We moved his mother to a hospice facility yesterday ... and pray she goes quickly. It would be such a blessing. It's interesting what the Eleventh Hour looks like for different people. My mother-in-law, Frances, is a Christian, spent most of her adult life as a pastor's wife, and for many years has given every indication of being afraid to die. She lived her life doing "the right things" -- perhaps in fear of what God might do to her if she didn't. She's long been a legalistic, "Bible ... Keep Reading...
Tis the Season …
How I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Ours was delightful, but I must admit that there were some sobering moments. Interestingly enough, I used the words and pictures below to end my last post ... written as I was riding in the car on the way to my parents' home in Texas. You may have seen them. I chose the pictures because it's Autumn ... moving toward Winter ... but the seasonal aspect has become even more poignant over the past week as I find myself in my own Autumn of life. I am thankful for the consistency of the cycle of life ... and the seasons ... ... and whatever lies ahead. In everything ... in all circumstances ... give thanks. I Thessalonians 5:18 My parents, thank God, are in very good health ... Keep Reading...
You’re Invited!
Hi, all! This is a quick invitation for all of you who live near me ... Remember when I told you about Displaying the Wares at a women's luncheon last Spring? It was my first "big push" toward downsizing my overflowing shop inventory. Then, a couple of months later, I shared pics from my big Porch Sale benefiting Hope Unlimited for Children ... and told you that what was left over was headed to auction. Well, the auction house has finally worked my huge stash of stuff into their sale schedule, and everything will find its new home FRIDAY NIGHT. I can't tell you how nice it was to get those boxes out of my garage although I'll admit to a few brief moments of wistful goodbyes. If you live ... Keep Reading...
A Theme of Gratitude
Happy Thanksgiving, my friends! Even if you're not here in the U.S. celebrating Thanksgiving with the rest of us, I'm thinking of you today ... and thankful that you stopped by. Gratitude is the theme of the day. Quite honestly, ever since reading Ann Voskamp's One Thousand Gifts, gratitude has been my (always try to) focus every day. If you aren't familiar with Ann, do yourself a favor and check her out. Really ... do yourself a favor. As I share with you pictures I've taken during this Autumn season, I'll also share a few of the things I'm most grateful for this year. I hope you'll leave a comment and tell me what's on your gratitude list. This pansy was photographed on a whim and texted to Little Man ... because ... Keep Reading...
Creative Caring … WATCH FOR IT!
Welcome to My Place to Yours this Thanksgiving week! I hope it's a great week for you whether you're busy with the hustle-bustle of preparing your home for guests, fighting holiday traffic, or looking forward to a few quiet days of relaxation. I realize your time is at a premium this week, so I'll just share with you a few quick examples of creative caring I've noticed lately. Some have links. Read as much (or as little) as you like ... Hurricane Sandy response: Some of you posted on your blogs or sent me emails telling how you weathered the storm. There were many examples of neighbors helping neighbors ... phone charging, clothes washing, meal cooking, tear sharing, "being there" for each other. Then ... Keep Reading...
A COLLISION … and Thanksgiving
It happened five years ago ... only two months before Thanksgiving. Renaissance Man and I experienced a collision from which we've never really recovered. I pray we never do. We made our first trip to Brazil. The comfortable life of a college administration career we'd been living for 17 years had recently been turned upside down, and we felt God leading us in a different direction ... but we were still reeling from the sudden changes. What we thought was a world of increased opportunity and hospitality had turned overnight into one of shock and searching. COLLISION What now? In Brazil, we saw poverty beyond anything either of us had seen in Mexico, our closest point of comparison. We heard story after story of ... Keep Reading...
Some days …
Not long ago, Little Man and I counted these while riding in the car. FUN A short time later ... this bumper sticker Some days you're the top dog. Some days you're the hydrant. FUNNY I hope today's a "top dog"day for you! Happy weekend ... from My Place to Yours ... Keep Reading...
Second Time’s a Charm … I hope!
Another Sally List project accomplished... What's a Sally List? Read about it HERE. I told you HERE that Renaissance Man and I had a date to spend Friday night at an auction. I even invited you to tag along! Well, as I begin this post, I'm sitting at the auction. I've been watching treasures that once graced my spaces now finding their new owners. What an interesting peek into my emotions I'm getting! At the moment, they're selling rusty old tools, so it's a good time to tune out the prattle of the auctioneer for a few minutes ... As I look around the room, I see items from my past spread before me. A mobile of three ducks that was on my wish list many Christmases ago when I had a country kitchen. (Thanks, Mom and Dad! ... Keep Reading...
Festival of Tables History: I NEED YOUR HELP!
The history of the "tablescape event." How it all started ... and where. It's something I'd love to know! You, too? I've decided to try to put a few of the puzzle pieces together ... but first I have to find them. PLEASE HELP! Here's how ... Think about your earliest tablescape event memory. Any event you know of ... even if you didn't participate. Please leave a comment -- or send an email w/ Tablescape History in the subject line -- and answer these questions as thoroughly as you can. (I'll include my answers so you'll have an example. Date of the event (approx. 1997) Location of the event (Emmanuel Baptist Church in Alexandria, Louisiana) Who hosted it? (civic group, church group, etc.) (church) Was ... Keep Reading...
ARE YOU PROGRESSIVE?
We all want progress, but if you're on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road; in that case, the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive. – C. S. Lewis This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’ Jeremiah 6:16 My friends ... what will we say? What voice will we Americans have on Election Day? Please don't think no one is listening. Your voice matters. Speak up! IF my people, who are called by My Name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from ... Keep Reading...
