Saturday, November 10, 2007

Gratitude Gala and Spotlight Saturday

Good Morning Everyone!! It's 5:30 in the morning and I'm wide awake. Stinkin' time change!
Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

Angie at ScrapnMomsMoments is hosting a Gratitude Gala (it started yesterday) and goes through today. I can't think of a better privilege than showing your gratitude for the blessings in your life. As you know each day I enter a Blessing for the Day. But today I'm going to take it one step further.

I need to share my gratitude for my parents. I hear the horror stories of childhood for some people all of the time. It truly makes me sick to hear of what they had to go through. My childhood could not have been any more fantastic than it was. I was surrounded by loving parents, great siblings and the most wonderful extended family known to man. When my father lay in the hospital with a ruptured bowel, we were almost certain he was going to be taken away from us. That was in January of 1992 and praise God, he's still with us. My sister wrote an article for the local paper about him. And she referred to the lessons in life that he taught his 3 children: Respect for God, Respect for Others and Respect for Oneself. My parents have been married for 46 years this past April and were (are) the greatest role models a child could have. May God continue to bless them with Good Health and Prosperity. I love you Mommy and Daddy!

Gratitude must also go to my blogging friends who have renewed a spiritual awakening in me. I used to joke that if it weren't for bad, I would have no luck at all. My mother hated that! But as I mature, I realize that my success in life has nothing to do with luck. The blessings in my life come from God alone. And when something doesn't work out the way I wanted, I now realize that God must have another plan for me. Everything happens in His time and I have to trust that His plan is far more perfect than mine. And I've come to appreciate the little things more: a warm house, a cool breeze, the smell of the ocean, the roar of a campfire, good-night kisses from my boys, the generosity of strangers and the familiarity of old friends. Praise God for all that you have for it all comes from Him. May His blessings continue to surround and uplift you!

Which brings me to Spotlight Saturday. I received such a warm response to my suggestion of spotlighting a blog that inspires me. And I would love it if you did the same. Share a blog that is special to you. Maybe it's the stories he or she shares. Maybe she has the best ideas for turning trash into treasure. Maybe it's simply the feeling you get when you visit. Please share with me the honor of Spotlight Saturday and allow others to experience what you have. I'm looking for a button to use, so if anyone knows of a good HTML coder...hint hint.

Today's spotlight is on All You Have to Give. The owner of the blog is Lori and I just adore her. She inspires me everyday. She is so earnest in her walk with God. You can't help but feel rejuvenated after reading the words she so eloquently puts down in writing. Not everyone can express themselves through writing. I know that I stumble and ramble and a lot times there is no cohesiveness to my posts. Lori never seems to have that problem. A good wife and mother and a true Christian at heart, I am blessed to have found this little piece of her. Please take a minute and read her story. I know that you will be blessed as well for having done so.

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at PhotobucketAnd one last thing (geez louise this is a long one today, huh) remember that today is the last day to enter my giveaway. We will draw a name tomorrow morning using the random number generator. I can't believe that I received 132 responses and there's no way I'm cutting up that many slips of paper. Be sure to check back tomorrow to see who the winner is and Good Luck everyone!

Blessing for the day: I'm blessed to have a friendship with my boys' biological mom. Our ability to put the past behind us and get along is a blessing to them. And that's all that matters.


36 comments:

Alison Gibbs said...

what a lovely post. Where would we be without family and friends.
Alison

Naturegirl said...

First of all your Christmas banner certainly puts me in the mood..just beautiful!
I unfortunately did NOT have such a wonderful childhood one that you speak of but I made sure that my 2 children did. Everthing I did not have they did..for that I am blessed and I am NOT referring to material things.
I too believe that we are all in God's hands and trust in him.
Your words are wonderful you expressed your feelings wonderfully!
I also feel much gratitude to the blogging friends I have acquired and in general feel inspired and motivated when I visit the so many wonderful caring hearts in Bloglandia. Have a blessed Sunday..I am glad that I somehow connected to your blog! hugs aNNa

Supermom said...

45 DAYS UNTIL CHRISTMAS?!?!?!???!

ACK! GOTTA RUN - SHOPPING TO DO

Mary said...

Hi Julie, Your family sounds so amazing! You are truly blessed! I'm a firm believer in putting my trust in the grace of God, -- your post today is wonderful. And don't you dare say that you are not a good writer -- you're a great writer, and I love visitng here every day!

Oh , and I love your Christmas banner!
xoxo,
Mary

Anonymous said...

Your banner is lovely. You are just having a good time, aren't you? Good for you. :) Have a lovely weekend.
Alexandra

FarmHouse Style said...

What a lovely tribute to your parents and the nurturing childhood they provided.

I also feel a strenthening of my faith through the connections I have made here in bloggityville.

You, my dear are a beautiful writer and you inspire me everyday:)

Love ya,
Rhonda

FarmHouse Style said...

Oh, I forgot, LOVE your new banner!!!

Rhonda

Unknown said...

Julie,

I love your Christmas banner. You know me, I'm the queen of changing my banner. There's just so many I want to put up and I can't wait to put up the ones I have for Christmas. Thanks for sharing some new blogs.

Kim -today's creative blog said...

I'll have to check out your store. That rooster lantern is cute!

Thanks for stopping by Creative Blogs!

Dena said...

Morning Julie,

Hop over when you get a chance - I have something for you on my blog. Hope you are having a fabulous Saturday! You are right, family is the best blessing we have :)

Hugs,
Dena

Debra from Bungalow said...

Your blog needs to be spotlighted! Your warm personality comes thru in volumes in every post.
I think that as we get older it's clearer that we need to be thankful for the little things. Bless you! DebraK xoxo

Joyce said...

Dear Julie... good morning! I just wanted to say how much I enjoy your lovely blog, I am not sure if you got my email about it, but I did a post on my blog about your blog yesterday: HERE Thank you so much for sharing!

Cottage Contessa said...

Beautiful post Julie. Very sweet tribute to your parents, I loved that. I really like the idea of Spotlight Saturday. I'll have to keep that in mind for next weekend. Excellent suggestion! I also just wanted to thank you so very much for taking the time to visit me and leaving your very sweet comment. I'm honoured to be on your blog roll! Thanks sweetie! Hugs to you.
Amanda (aka Cottage Contessa)

Tammy said...

Man, I just love your blog...you are such an inspiration to me!

I've used the number generator in the past and it is right handy. The one I used refused to let me show which number was picked though so everyone just had to "trust" me.

Have a great day!

Emily said...

Spotlight Saturday sounds like a great idea!

That's amazing that your parents have been together for 46 years! Congrats to them! I'm so glad your dad is doing well.

What you were saying about the path- sometimes I have trouble with this. I THINK I'm supposed to go a certain way, and it doesn't work out, and I get really sad and disappointed. I know it wasn't meant to be...but it makes me so confused.

You're probably confused after that. Sorry. I saw 135 for your giveaway! Yeeeeaaaa!

Back Through Time said...

You posts always are so wonderful! Hope you are having a great weekend
Michelle

PAT said...

I've been doing last minute wedding work today!

I loved this post and your others, I caught up with, this afternoon!

I'm going to visit Lori, when I leave here.

Pat

Donna said...

Julie,
You are an amazing person and I love visiting your blog every day! Beautiful post!
Bless you.
Donna

Anonymous said...

Beautiful post Julie. I was blessed with a wonderful childhood too. Oh...and I think you write and express yourself beautifully. ~ Smiles ~ Lynn

Sondra said...

I love that you are in the Christmas spirit already! And that is one of my favorite songs also. I just keep coming to your blog to hear it. LOL
If it is not to late can you enter me in the drawing too? Thanks!

Sondra said...

Can you tell me how I can get music on my blog too? I am not very skilled at this. Thanks for your time.

Anonymous said...

I didnt get to have my "JULIE" fix this morning... and almost didnt get to have my coffee either... omgoodness! But it was for a good reason...
I finally got some help with moving a lot of the boxes that have been piled high since we moved in here... I am excited because I am almost finished with some Christmas projects for my website and I finally got some of the mess out of the way... One step at a time ...but its a great step...So I am thankful and blessed for getting help today

HUGS...BLESSINGS...LOVE

JO

Penny from Enjoying The Simple Things said...

Hi Julie,
Another wonderful post. I always enjoy coming here!
Penny
p.s. to learn more about Beautiful Shops, go to www.beautifulshops.com from there you can follow the links for info. I have been a member for about a year. It is a group of websites, that Debbie, the owner promotes. Ads are run in national magazines, etc...there is a fee and it depends on how much you want from the site...check it out.
P

Rose of Sharon said...

It sounds like you had a great childhood, that is wonderful! It is also wonderful how you are carrying on the tradition and giving your sons a great childhood!

Stop by my blog, I have a surprise for you!

:0) Sharon

BittersweetPunkin said...

I loved your post Julie...and I love you too...thanks for your sweet post on MY gratitude post.
Love,
Robin

Simply Stork said...

ahhhh gratitude...how lovely. I really enjoyed reading this post. Thank you so much for writing it:o)

~simply stork~

Justabeachkat said...

What a sweet post Julie. Families are a blessing.

I sure love coming here for visits.

Hugs!
Kat

Meggie said...

Such an early bird you are, Julie. What a lovely tribute to your parents. Family is so important. Have a wonderful weekend.

Anonymous said...

When you have time there is something for you at my place

BellaColle said...

Hugs to your parents!
What better place to be than in His hands!
your a true 'smile' on my heart!
hugs.

Sophie Honeysuckle said...

Julie-your posts are always so uplifting and inspiring, I enjoy every visit here! I didn't know that your clocks went back too!I'm still trying to adjust to the hour time difference! So are my cats!xx

Anonymous said...

You are not the least bit inarticulate. I love your posts and I certainly love that idea of walnuts. It's hard to get the kiddies to sleep on Christmas Eve here because it's midsummer and doesn't get dark until after nine.

I so enjoy listening to Bing when I visit your blog. He was my Dad's favourite singer and this will be my first Christmas without him.

Hugs,

Kate

kari and kijsa said...

Sweet, sweet friend....what a wonderful post...so much to be thankful for!! We are headed over to check out your friends blog!

Have a blessed weekend!
kari and kijsa

Terri Steffes said...

You have such a way with words. If I ever have the need to write a special letter, I am coming to you!

For some reason your music list covers up your post... am I doing something wrong?

Unknown said...

Love the Christmas banner, and your gratitude list is wonderful. I often think of the things in life that I am grateful for because there are so many blessings. It was very nice to read your list.

allie
www.mycozyhome.typepad.com

Bethany said...

Julie, between you and Alicia at Posie Gets Cozy, you both have inspired me in your marriages and especially you in your faith. I almost made a huge mistake. Huge. And then I realized what I have, with my family, and I chose to appreciate it and work at making my marriage something to treasure and not to take it for granted. Who would have thought that the little stories I read on these blogs would help direct a choice that is so big? You never know the effect that a few words will have on someone's life! Thanks!