At Home in Wyoming

Settling Things

On a cold and windy day in Cody, horses keep warm by keeping their backs to the wind...while a lama hunkers down out of the breeze.  We have quite a few lamas around here...not sure why, because they are not native to the area...and I have it on good authority that they spit!

Have you given any thought about where you are going to spend eternity?  Are you one of those people that own a Bible, but it has been gathering dust on the bookshelf for years?  Do you intend to get right with God someday...somewhere in the future?

My friend, at some point all of our somedays come to an end.  The time to come to terms with your maker is NOW.

Toward that end, I heard an excellent sermon by Charles Stanley this weekend from In Touch Ministries, and found that you can pull this sermon (and many, many others) up on your computer.  When you get to their webpage at  http://www.intouch.org, click on "Broadcasts" and then click on "This Week on TV".  The title of the sermon is "Investing in Eternity".  If you read this post at a different time and another sermon pulls up, go back to "Broadcasts" and click on "Video Archives", and look for the sermon by title.

So many things in life distract us, but settling things with God is the most important thing of all!  DLB

 

 

So What Bugs You?

On the outskirts of Cody, on the road that leads straight to Yellowstone Park, is a picture of the first of two tunnels under and through Rattlesnake Mountain.  On the other side of the tunnels is the dam at Buffalo Bill Reservoir.

I read somewhere in a magazine about a woman that reviewed her life every six months.  She would decide what was working in her life, and if something wasn't working...well, she changed it if she could.

I thought that was a pretty good idea, and decided that it is really not the big things in life that bug me as much as the little daily things...and one of the things that I really wanted to change was...grocery shopping at WALMART! 

Now I know that this may sound funny to the rest of you that live in big areas with lots of stores, but in Cody you can only buy groceries at Walmart and Albertsons.  Albertsons is way too expensive for me...but I hate shopping at Walmart.  For one thing it is just too darn big...and since they rearranged everything I can't find what I am looking for.  And to top it off, they have these Walmart TV's that play some kind of boom chuka music with a beat that just jars my nerves.  Top that off with vast hordes of people, and well...you get the picture.  Grocery shopping at Walmart was something that I dreaded and decided that it just wasn't working for me.

So today I had the bright idea that I would begin to do my grocery shopping at a grocery store in Powell, which is a smaller town about 22 miles from here.  For some reason I picked today, when it was 5 degrees, to do this, and talked my husband into going with me.  We went to the grocery store in Powell, and it was QUIET.  And the people were friendly...I ran into lots of people that I knew.  It was warm and downright cozy and I patted myself on my back because I FINALLY found the solution to my Walmart problem...until I began to notice that the groceries that I was putting into my cart were running about 75 cents to a dollar more per item than they cost at Walmart.  Bacon was $1.50 more for the same brand I bought in Cody.  My cart was about 1/4 full when I finally figured out that I can't afford to buy my groceries in Powell, and had to put everything back and listen to my husband say, "I told you so."

We headed back to Cody, and I did my grocery shopping at Walmart...and I decided that while atmosphere is important, so is paying my electric bill...so Walmart it is.

BUT...at least I considered what wasn't working for me, and I wasn't so frustrated when I shopped there today because I know now that there is no reasonable alternative.  I decided that I will just shop there early in the morning, when it is quieter and I can think. 

So my day wasn't a total waste of time...I got to have lunch with my husband in Powell, and learned that 'cozy' has a higher price that in this case I wasn't willing to pay.  But I felt good that at least I confronted something that bugged me.

So what's bugging you these days?  Is there something, maybe some little thing that you could change to put a little bit more joy in your daily life?  Maybe the cold and quiet days of January are a good time to rethink some of the little things in your life.

See you at Walmart!  DLB

 

 

Toward A Brighter January!

Once all of the Christmas decorations are packed away, the house looks so bare...so I decided to try to find a cheap way to spruce things up to carry me through January.  Above is a garage sale urn of some sort, stuffed with florist foam that I poked lilac branches (spray painted white) into, and then hung some snowflakes that I found at a local florist from their 75% off Christmas bin...Presto!  A cheap snowflake tree...January looks brighter already!  DLB

 

 

A Matter of the Heart

One thing that I really like about creating dried flower arrangements (like this one on my bedroom mantel) is that each bud is a memory.  The peonies are from my friend Shirley's garden, which I plucked for a friend's daughter's wedding.  The lilacs are from the 100 year old bushes that line my yard, and the roses are from a bouquet from my husband.  Better than a scrapbook for memories!

Morning Dear!  Morning Honey!

One of my favorite episodes of Andy Griffith tells a story of a couple that fought all the time.  Andy decided that they argued because they had gotten into the habit of not watching their speech with each other...so he had them come down to the Sheriff's office each morning to practice being nice.  He had them say 'Morning, Dear' and the other would answer 'Morning Honey'.  In the beginning they just spit the words out through clenched teeth...so Andy had them practice the tone with which they talked to each other.

Over Christmas I had an occasion to visit a married couple that I had known from their courting days.  I remembered the loving way that they spoke to each other then, and I was shocked by the way that they spoke to each other now.  This is a couple that truly love each other, but their previous loving conversation was reduced to terse words and bickering.  I started paying attention to the day to day conversation between my husband and myself, and was startled to find that the same bad conversational habits might be said for us.

Where is Andy Griffith when you need him?

I started pondering the old cliche, and wondered if familiarity really did breed contempt.  So I got out my Bible, and found that it had quite a few things to say about speech.  Luke 6:45 reads,

"A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh."

Matthew 15:18 states,

"But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man."

In other words, the words out of your mouth come straight from your heart!  But how can that be when you love the recipient of our words...if your heart loves this person, how do you explain this short and terse conversation?  If your heart is loving toward this person, then why aren't your words?

It came to me that while the words DO reflect the state of your heart, they don't necessarily reflect your feeling for the RECIPIENT of the words.  For example, I had the flu for the past few weeks.  Two episodes of the flu, one right after the other.  I was annoyed and frustrated...after all, I had things to do.  It just wasn't a convenient time for me to be sick!  I was mad clean through about it, and I am sure that my conversation to my husband reflected what was in my heart, but not my feeling toward my husband.  Poor guy, he was forced to put up with my bad humor.

So, what to do about all of this?  In Proverbs 4:23 I am cautioned to...

"Keep thy heart in all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life."

It would behoove me to daily, probably hourly, to check the condition of my heart.  If I am angry, if I am feeling sorry for myself, if I am annoyed...if I overcommited and am feeling stressed...I need to confess those things before God.  I need to pray like the Psalmist did in Psalm 19:14,

"Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer."

Then, and only then, will the peace that passes all understanding flood my heart, and out of that my words to my loved ones will truly reflect the state of my heart.  DLB

 

Recovered!

Around the corner from my house there was a herd of mule deer...I tried to take a picture of them, but my memory card in my camera was full...so I hurriedly tried to delete, and as I was doing that all the deer but one went over the hill out of my sight.  The one that was left actually walked right toward me, but lost interest because I was fiddling around with my camera.  With one last look of disdain for me, she left and joined her family below the hill.

I think I am on the road to recovery...finally!  I got over the sniffles, sore throat and achy flu, only to be knocked down with a stomach virus right after that!  Isn't that against the rules?  If not, there should be a rule that at least a month should pass before another virus is allowed to come into your body and knock you flat!  But I got up this morning, drank a big cup of coffee, and everything seems fine...so I guess I am recovered!  Time to pick up the reins of my life again...so I will be back to blogging this week.  Thanks for your patience!  DLB

 

Still Alive...Just Not Well!

 Christmas tree graveyard...After Christmas, we can dump our trees here.  I think, but am not sure, that the Lion's Club mulches it for you, and you can go back later and get a bag of mulch for your garden...

All during the Christmas holidays I watched while everyone around me dropped like flies with the flu.  I kept expecting it, but Christmas came and went and I was fine. 

However, this week it was my turn, and I am down with the sniffles, aches, pains, chills...and a crushing fatigue.  I have tried several times to continue my little series on speech...but I am under the influence of cold medicine and my writing is as clear as mud. 

So, please bear with me while I do the chicken soup thing...and I will be back as soon as I can!  DLB

Watch What You Say

A table perfectly set for a snowman's luncheon!  We had about a half a foot of snow last weekend, but there is not much left of it now.  We had high winds and warm temperatures...but I glanced at the mountains a few minutes ago and saw snow clouds moving in...

I had occasion to spend some time over the holidays with a couple that I knew years ago when they were dating.  Happily married now...I was shocked at the way that they talked to each other.  Not that they were mean to each other or yelled or anything, but their speech, their tone...was sort of scathing and disrespectful.  Maybe it was more apparent to me because I remember the way that they USED to talk to each other.

So I started listening to the way that my husband spoke to me, and the way that I answered back.  And I didn't like what I was speaking/hearing.  It came to me that speech, and tone of speech, can set the tone of the day, the matter at hand, the family...and the marriage.  In other words, the way that we talk to each other is a BIG DEAL.

I started looking up Bible verses dealing with the tongue, and God had a lot to say about the way that we speak to each other.  On my next couple of blogs, I am going to share what I found out!  But today, let me leave you with this...

"Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man."  (Colossians 4:6)

Can you say that your speech is always with grace, and seasoned with salt?  Me neither, far from it.  So let's explore together on Saturday some of what God's Word has to say on the matter...DLB   

 

A Time To Clean

We were surprised this morning to see about four inches of snow that fell last night...coating my bare lilac branches with what looks like bunches of white cotton balls...now I am so glad that I haven't packed up the Christmas decorations yet...I love looking at the outside wreaths heavy with snow.

Reindeer adorning the kitchen fireplace (which is actually an old mantel that I scavenged...and put a space heater in to help deal with kitchen drafts) that are about to say 'good-bye' until next Christmas...the storage box awaits them!

 

 I am not an organized person.  Let me amend that, I am the LEAST organized person that I know!  So come the start of a new year, I trot out my new datebook, and try to start sketching out a framework for the new year.

While I was doing that, I thought I would share with you an idea about Spring cleaning that worked for me.  If you are an organized homemaker, just tune this one out.  I am speaking to those of you that get easily sidetracked...

When I married and moved to Wyoming, we lived in a tiny little town of about 400 people (mostly my husband's relatives).  Almost all were farmer's wives...and all kept house in a very traditional way.  Each spring their houses were turned inside out...carpets were vacuumed, curtains were washed, walls were scrubbed, furniture was shampooed, windows were washed...well, you get the picture.  The men were better off staying in the barn for those few weeks...spring cleaning was done with an almost religious fever!

And I tried that...but it seemed silly to me to have a house not comfortable to live in for weeks at a time...plus cleaning in Spring, right before you open the windows for the summer for all the dirt to blow in was sort of a waste of time.  I tried doing Fall cleaning...but it collided with harvesting the garden, so that didn't work.  I went to the Library and actually got books about setting up housekeeping and your whole life with 3x5 cards...until my husband noticed that I spent all my time making cards and no time left to clean!  Finally, I stumbled on a routine that worked for me

When I get my datebook the first of every year, I write down which room/rooms I will clean each month.  For instance, January is the downstairs bathroom and the mudroom, February is the dining room, and so on.  Some rooms are tiny and I can do two in one month.  The kitchen I always schedule two months for because I have to wipe out the shelves, etc.  Then, during the month as I do my regular housecleaning, I sort of divide up the deep cleaning chores.  One week I may take down the curtains and wash the windows, another week shampoo the carpet or wash the walls...whatever needs done in that one room during that one month.  I try to schedule the rooms that need the most work during the slower months...I will not tackle the living room during the busy holiday season, or the month we plant or harvest the garden, for example. 

I have tried all the complicated ways, but for an unorganized homemaker like me...this simple way works the best!  DLB

 

 

Is a Vacation a Waste of Money?

Happy New Year Everybody!  It was a snowy day in Cody on New Year's Day...although the above picture was taken a few days ago.  If you see the pine trees that look a little sickly, that would be the disease that has been killing pine trees up and down the North Fork, making it a tinderbox that caught fire and burned many acres this past summer.  We are planning on spending a few days of vacation at Shoshone Lodge this June, but before I started hoarding every extra cent we decided to drive up and make sure that the area around the lodge was not burnt to a crisp!  I was relieved to see that the area was just as beautiful as the last time that we stayed there, so the vacation is on!  

The nice thing about planning a vacation within 50 miles of where you live, is that you can put money into something other than gas.  Because if we had to drive a lot, we would only have the money to camp.  I love camping but as I am getting older, sleeping in a damp tent is not as thrilling as it used to be.  And with all the grizzly bears around here I get a little nervous every time I hear a twig crunch in the night.  I sleep better in a little cabin with a soft bed, and something harder than a tent wall between me and the grizzlies!

I think that vacations are important.  In our fast paced frantic culture, it is good for our health to slow down a little.  But since the economy is tanking...many of us are rethinking vacation plans.  We decided that instead of canceling our vacation we will stay close to home, saving gas money, and getting a cabin with a little stove and refrigerator so that we won't have to eat out.  And we won't go into debt for our vacation.  We have a little envelope, and every extra dollar that we can save by giving up something else...goes into the envelope.  How much we save will determine how many days we get to spend at the Lodge. 

I guess what I am trying to say is that memories are important too, and as Edith Schaeffer says must be put into the budget.  And sometimes the inexpensive vacations are the most fun!  A cold wintery day in January may be the best time to sit down and consider how you want to budget for your memories!  DLB