Ten Things I Love About Fall

10. Mowing and yard work cease

9. The air feels crisp

8. Leaves turning beautiful shades of orange, red, brown and gold

7. Snuggling under a quilt and drinking hot cocoa

6. Gaining one extra hour of sleep

5. The hint of winter in the air

4. The sun has a special golden hue upon rising and setting

3. The attentive ant hurrying to and fro

2. The smell of fall in the air

1. Stepping on fallen leaves and listening to them crunch

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.

The Makings of A Good Mother?

At a very early age, like any little girl I loved baby dolls. Every Christmas morning, with stars in my eyes I would gently cradle my new baby that Santa had brought, and rock it so lovingly. My baby would be dressed in frills; hair styled beautifully and had that ‘New Christmas Baby’ smell. There was nothing as wonderful as a baby.

I would rock, feed and change my baby constantly. And I loved it unconditionally. My baby and I would play church, never missing a service. I would teach my baby to sit quietly, sing and pray. My baby and I did everything together.

My babies never had names, but that didn’t see to matter I loved them all. As soon as possible when my new baby arrived I would give it a bath; whether she needed it or not and even if she was cloth. I would wash her hair, being very careful not to get soap in her eyes. It was funny but all of my babies had the same hair style, stick-um-up straight, and they were beautiful.

Once I decided my baby needed a hair cut. I carefully placed her on my lap. I began cutting her hair so carefully. When I finished she looked like she had had a round of chemo. I loved my baby all the more.

After I was married I had 4 children. I was amazed that I could wash their hair and it would actually style or if I gave them that Chemo look, their hair really would grew back. If the early years were any indication of what kind of mother I would be, then you would have to know that I loved my babies wonderfully, unconditionally and beautifully.

Psalms 34:11 Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

The "THINGS" You Do For Love!

I’ve always been a stay at home mom and now that the kids are gone a stay at home wife. I have enjoyed every minute of it and lavished in the luxuries; even though the luxuries included many hazards some being the little people that lived with me. Being shunned by our American society for choosing this option often toyed with my self-worth; but keeping my focus of the prize helped me to retain my goals.






Finding the time and energy to keep the fires of love stroked in our marriage was often a challenge. So I began do little things to get Daryl’s attention.

Daryl worked long hard hours as an A/C Journeyman and would often come home and retire to the bath where he would sleep for hours. Once I snuck into the bathroom and poured yellow cake coloring in his water. When he awoke some time later he called to me, “Monalea!” I took several deep breathes to try and stifle the smile on my face as I entered the bathroom. “Yes dear,” I responded with a half smirk on my face. “Monalea what did you do.” Amid peals of laughter I confessed. Dropping his head, he just shook it from side to side.

One morning as I prepared his lunch I left the cheese wrapper on his cheese. I knew he wouldn’t notice until he took a bite because he always ate his lunch in his work truck traveling from site to site. That afternoon I received a call from him. “Monalea, you forgot to take the wrapper off the cheese.” “No I didn’t” I replied. “You mean you left it on there on purpose?” Daryl asked surprised. “Why would you do that?” “Daryl I don’t want you to ever forget me.” “Believe me, I won’t” He said. Another time I left the rind on his bologna sandwich.

Late one night after getting the kids to bed, I slipped into the utility room and discarded all of my clothing and donned a trench coat. I slipped out the side door, went around to the front of the house and rang the door bell. As Daryl cautiously opened the front door I threw my coat open and yelled, “Surprise!” He grabbed my arm and yanked me through the front door “Are you crazy? Get in here!” I smiled…..He wouldn’t forget me!

Daryl came home a ‘little’ cranky one afternoon. He was changing his clothes and picked up a pair of shorts to change into. “Monalea, I asked you to sew the button on these shorts weeks ago and here they lay still without a button.” I gritted my teeth and smiled a crooked smile. I threaded the needle with pink thread and sewed on the button then proceeded to sew the fly closed on a pair of his underwear. I folded the underwear neatly and placed them back in the drawer, forgotten. A week passed and he went to the movies to see Hunt For Red October with a friend. After the 3 hour movie ended Daryl went to the men’s room. Much to his surprise he couldn’t get his fly opened. He tugged, pulled and finally a loud ‘rip’ was heard by everyone in the bathroom.

Proverbs 5:18 "May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth."

Vinegar Diaries

Dear Diary,

My cousin said taking 2 tablespoons of vinegar 3 times a day would be good for me. Today I measured out 2 tablespoons of vinegar in a small glass. Hum, 2 TBS doesn’t look like much. I notice a nice brown color. I can do this. I pick up the glass, put it to my lips. Down goes the liquid and there goes my breath. I’m gasping for breath, my eyes are crossed………………..I LIVE!



Dear Diary,

Day 2 I have a new plan. I slowly measure out my 2 (now very large) TBS of vinegar. This time I will add water and dilute it. I am strong, brave and full of courage. I can do this. The pep talk doesn’t last long. I’m choking and gasping for breath once more.

Dear Diary,

Day 3 Today’s plan is to pour the vile drink and gulp it down. Today’s plan is to take more than one dose. I am strong, brave and full of courage. I can do this. I heat water, I pour the 2 TBS of vinegar into a coffee mug, I add a TB of honey, and I add the now heated hot water. I set down to enjoy my hot mug on vinegar honey water. Blaaaaaaaaaa! Enjoy was a bad word.

I plan to go back to the original plan. Down 2 TBS of vinegar. No pep talk this time. I pour the vinegar into the small glass, I chug it down. This time my head only spins twice.






Diary, I’m not sure what the results are going to be from this……………but my husband snuggled up to me today and said, “Ya know, I wouldn’t mind having a big juice pickle.” Little does he know………...

FIRE, BOTTLE ROCKETS & CONFUSION

In the dark of the night lay a collection of limbs, trunks and logs piled together from various trees for a vast bonfire. When Daryl, the kids and I pulled up the fire was already going. Mike and Kara had invited us over to burn off the heaped up tree limbs. Over to one side lay a small fire where we could gather around, visit and enjoy the warmth.





We stood some distance from the large fire because of the intense heat it gave off. We discussed hell and how this fire didn’t come close to radiating the heat that hell would radiate. We were all in agreement that we didn’t want to go.






At one point Mike went to his truck and began to remove trash to put on our small fire, the kids joined in the search. Someone found a plastic coke bottle filled with water and tossed it into the fire. We all stood around with great anticipation waiting for the bottle to melt and the water to spill out. To our amazement, the water in the bottle began to boil and the plastic bottle remained in tacked. I took a stick and tried to turn the bottle in an upright position but instead it fell, lid down into the fire. We continued to watch the water boil in wonder.


Before anyone could react the lid melted on the bottle and the boiling water sent the bottle rocketing out of the fire at great speed. It whizzed pass Mike and slammed Daryl in the side of the face, knocking him around, scratching his glasses, cheek, ear and leaving a good size bump accompanied with a bruise on the side of his face. Daryl was dazed, confused and admitted to seeing stars. It would take the remainder of the evening to convince Daryl that my intentions were honorable.



Romans 7:15-20, 24-25, 8:1 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do--this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God--through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin. Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.