The Christmas Story (adorably told by children)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

The Greatest Gift

"The Greatest Gift" is a 1943 short story written by Philip Van Doren Stern which became the basis for the film It's a Wonderful Life.

It's a Wonderful Life (Colorized Version)



Link to It's a Wonderful Life (Original Version)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQoXV6oCzsQ 

The Greatest Gift Coca-Cola ad.



The Greatest Gift Of All - Kenny and Dolly



But the truly Greatest Gift Ever is:

Birth of Jesus - Explanation for children

http://www.storyit.com/Bible/christmas1.htm

Christmas Shopping

Tis the season ... and the rush is on. Black Friday, Cyber Monday; All the toy commercials. Some of us love it and some of us hate it, but most all of us do it. Are you a Wal-martian?

Veteran's Day

Trying to Move Forward

I have difficulty blogging these days. I don't seem to be able to think about anything but the loss of my husband. I go to work every day and I do the things that one does during the process of a day but I just don't seem to be moving forward. Everyone says it takes time, but it's been 3 weeks tomorrow since his funeral and I feel like I'm standing still. I can't believe the holidays are almost here. I feel like life is passing me by.

If there are any great bloggers out there with helpful advice, I'm all ears.

Also, I'm going to have to do something to earn extra income or get a second job. Is it possible to make decent money blogging? I'd love to hear how! Please feel free to comment or email me.

Friday Funnies

Friday Funnies

Friday Funnies

I buried my husband today. He passed away October 16, 2011. It was a long 17 days to his death and another 4 long days since. He died the day before I was to have the make the big decision. He was being kept alive by machines. The thing everyone dreads. Most people who are faced with that decision have a person with no brain activity. I had a husband with a strong heart and a mind that understood and could answer questions when they back off the sedation. Thank God for his mercy to me and his decision to take him without any intervention from me.


A friend sent me a "sick sense of humor" cartoon when it was over. It was one of those things that you were so tired of crying that you just had to laugh kind of thing. Here's the cartoon she sent.

Difficult Times

I have not abandoned my blog. My husband has been critically injured and is in ICU in an out-of-state hospital. I just won't be blogging for a while.

Friday Funnies

Some people are like slinkies; not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.

Freebee Friday

Watch full episodes of Power Rangers Samurai on Nickelodeon HERE

Download a free episode of "Sid the Science Kid" from Amazon

here

Some good halloween project/craft ideas HERE

COUPONS  The Common Sense With Money Blog offers a free downloadable couponing instructional HERE

Amazon offers an MP3 album of Traditional Hymns. Dowload the entire free album or scroll down on the page and listen to samples or download just the individual songs that you want HERE

The Grave of Trahlyta - A Cherokee Indian Princess

Trahlyta is the name of a princess of Cherokee legend. She lived in the North Georgia Mountains near Dahlonega. It is said that Trahlyta drank from a nearby Fountain of Youth and never grew old was of unimaginable beauty. A Cherokee warrior called Wahsega courted her, but Trahlyta rejected his attentions. This angered Wahsega and he kidnapped her. He kept her a prisoner in an unknown place away from her home in the mountains. Trahlyta grew more and more homesick but the warrior showed no concern and she grew weaker each day. Crying tears of pure gold as she lay dying, Trahlyta asked to be buried in the mountain paradise from which she had come. "Strangers, as they pass by, may drop a stone on my grave and they too shall be young and happy, as I once was." she said, "What they wish for shall be theirs."

The historical marker at her grave reads, "custom arose among the Indians and later the Whites to drop stones, one for each passerby, on her grave for good fortune." Today there is a pile of stones standing at about five feet high. You'd be surprised at how many Georgia natives pass it by and never pay any attention to it. They don't even know it's there.

Trahlyta's "fountain of youth" is now known as Porter Springs, the site of her home is known as Cedar Mountain, and her final resting place is called Stonepile Gap. The magic springs, named Porter Springs, is 3/4 miles northeast of Trahlyta's grave.

Trahlyta's Grave Marker (This is what it actually says)
 
This site of stones marks the grave of a Cherokee princess, Trahlyta. According to legend, her tribe, living on Cedar Mountain, north of here, knew the secret of the magic springs of eternal youth from the Witch of Cedar Mountain.

Trahlyta, kidnapped by a rejected suitor, Wahsega, was taken far away and lost her beauty. As she was dying, Wahsega promised to bury her here near her home and the magic springs. Custom arose among the Indians and later the Whites to drop stones, one for each passerby, on her grave for good fortune. The magic springs, now known as Porter Springs, lie 3/4 miles northeast of here.

Supposedly, on two different occasions, the Highway Department has attempted to move the grave during road construction. Both times at least one person died in an accident while moving the pile. The stone grave is still in the same place today that it always has been. Porter Springs, in the late 1800's and early 1900's, was site of a health spa. It is said that people came from all over the world to sit in and drink the water. The hotel burned down in the early 1900's, but the springs still run at the foot of the mountain.

I don't why the springs weren't named after her, but there is a Trahlyta Lake and a Trahlyta Falls.


Video of the Grave



The Legend in Story and Song

Remembering 9/11

Ten Years Later

I don't think anyone old enough to understand what was happening on that horrible day will ever forget it in their lifetime. Sometimes, I want to forget and sometimes, I want to remember. Nevertheless, it happened and I pray it never happens again.

To commemerate that day a wonderful screensaver has been created. Be prepared... You will relive all the emotion all over again with sight and sound.

Ten years later, it is just as powerful to the humans senses.

View the still shots HERE

Download the screensaver HERE

I can vouch personally for its safety. I love the screensavers on this site and I have them all. I've never had a problem with them. I did, however, download them from their original site. Apparently, they are no longer downloadable from there.

Friday Freebees

Get a free Yankee candle through September 11, 2011 http://www.yankeecandle.com/assets/email/sep08b1g1/coupon_b1g1September.html

 
Join the My Cold Stone Club today and get TWO CREATIONS™ FOR THE PRICE OF ONE plus:

    Regular emails with exclusive member-only coupons and a sneak peek of new products and promotions
    A BUY ONE GET ONE CREATION coupon delivered to your email inbox for your birthday
    Opportunities to receive fantastic prizes throughout the year http://www.coldstonecreamery.com/mycsc/index.html

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Here's an interesting site for receiving free stuff on a regular basis. I'm seriously thinking of trying this one out myself, starting with the free monthly paper towels. http://www.getitforfreeonline.com/

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Sign up for the Extreme Couponing 101 Free Ebook and learn how to save money. http://www.commonsensewithmoney.com/extreme-couponing-101-free-ebook/

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Hurry to enter this American Doll Giveaway. Contest ends September 15, 2011. http://withlovetoshare.blogspot.com/2011/08/to-help-us-raise-money-toward-paying.html

Behind The Mask Project

I'm a little late, I suppose, but I just recently found out about the Behind The Mask Project. I thought it was pretty cool, so I'm posting it just in case there any other "late comers" to see it like me.



Wikipedia defines the project as this:

As the single release officially announced, a music video for this song was also announced to be released worldwide.[21] On February 28, 2011, a project for this song's music video titled "Behind the Mask Project" was announced: "the Estate of Michael Jackson and Sony Music will provide everyone who likes music an opportunity to help create online a unique groundbreaking music video for the single 'Behind the Mask'." All the world can use a simple online tool to take part in making the music video since March 7, 2011.[28] On March 30, 2011, a 17-second video of what Sony Music had been doing with some of the thousands of submissions for the "Behind the Mask Project" was released.[29] On April 29, 2011, another video teaser for the project was released on michaeljackson.com, and it is announced that the final day to submit for the Behind the Mask Project is Tuesday May 3, 2011.[30] On June 6, 2011 was published the official trailer announcing when the final video would be published. On June 14, 2011 the official and final video was posted on the official Michael Jackson`s channel on YouTube, but only accessible on the King of Pop's page on social networking site Facebook.[31] A day after, the video was classified and is now more widely available. This video has become in the most international, multi-collaborative of all times.[citation needed] In the 1600 clips that compose it can be seen people from the Sahara to the main cities of the world, through the Taj Mahal and the Arctic Circle.[citation needed] The clip is currently[when?] under evaluation for inclusion in the Guinness Book of World Records as the music video with the largest audience of participants.

Read the entire article at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Behind_the_Mask_%28song%29

Visit the Behind The Mask Website at http://behindthemask.michaeljackson.com/

It looks like everybody had a good time doing. It's certainly fun to watch.

Head Lice

The kids have all gone back to school and with that comes close contact with others bringing colds and parasites. Yep! September is Head Lice Prevention month.

We've already taken a hit with our first grader so her preschooler brother got it too. The buzz cut took care of his but hers is another story.

When my girls were little, they got it too. The oldest only once. That was my first experience. I was furious about bugs being on my child. I had no treatment for it and no experience with it. I don't recall me or my sisters ever getting it.

I washed her hair with Head & Shoulders shampoo, leaving it in fully thickly lathered for 10 minutes. I rinsed her hair and took the cat's flea comb and went through every single strand of hair. That got it all and she never had it again.

My second daughter got it from both school and day care. We used an over the counter shampoo that I cannot remember the name of, but I never see it anymore either. It's a shame because 1 treatment is all it took. Today's products aren't as good. I, personally, don't know anyone who had used RID and didn't have the lice come back.

We bought this from Walgreen's. The ratings are high and so are our hopes! I would have thought the chemicals in the pool would have killed them on my granddaughter but they didn't. They kill every other bug that gets in the pool.

For more information on head lice and treatment, go to www.headlice.org. Make sure you read all the FAQ.

Some very old-fashioned head lice treatments are:

1. To saturate your child's hair with kerosene and put the child in an empty tub for 10 minutes (a safe place). Then shampoo and comb out.

2. Saturate your hair with mayonnaise; cover the hair with plastic so the mayo doesn't "dry". Comb each strand of hair with a nit comb. Wash thoroughly. Today you can accomplish near the same with a thick coating of hair conditioner. This loosens the nits from the hair and enables you to more thoroughly comb them out.

3. I found this one on yahoo answers:

Homemade Head Lice Shampoo

2 tablespoons Tea Tree Oil

6 ounces Dawn Dish Liquid (Dawn ONLY)

2 ounces white vinegar

Mix the ingredients in a large squeeze bottle, such as an empty dish soap bottle. Use as regular shampoo, leave in hair for 5 minutes before rinsing. Use hair conditioner to detangle hair before combing with a lice-comb.

•Put on clean clothing after treatment.

•Comb dead and any live lice out of the hair.

•Use a Head Lice and nit Comb to remove nits and lice from the hair.

•Check and comb, and remove nits and lice from the hair every 2-3 days.

•Repeat the treatment within 7 to 10 days.

•Recheck for 2 to 3 weeks until all lice and nits are gone.

4. Essential Oil in a Carrier Oil

Essential oils effectively kill head lice, but they are very potent and should not be used undiluted on the skin or scalp. Dilute essential oils in a carrier oil such as olive oil. Two essential oils that work best for head lice are neem oil, which comes from the neem tree that grows in India, and tea tree oil, that comes from a tree native to Australia. Both are available at health food or natural food stores.

Add one teaspoon of neem oil or tea tree oil to a cup of carrier oil and mix thoroughly. Coat the hair and scalp with the oil, cover with a shower cap or plastic wrap and leave on for 2-3 hours. Then wash the hair with shampoo. While it is still wet, comb the hair thoroughly with a fine-toothed metal lice comb or flea comb to remove the nits and dead lice.

5. Vinegar and Listerine

Wet the hair thoroughly with white vinegar, cover with a shower cap, and leave on for 1-2 hours. Rinse with warm water, and then saturate the hair with Listerine mouth wash. Cover and leave on for an additional 1-2 hours. Then wash with shampoo and comb out with a lice comb. This treatment can be combined with the oil or mayonnaise treatments for particularly bad cases of head lice.

6. Lice are believed by some to be repelled by Coconut. You can try using a coconut scented shampoo.

*some of these remedies were found on associated content.

Waiting for the Sand Man

My husband is out-of-town and this is the second night in a row the sand man has passed me by. So, I'm looking for a lullaby..... Blind Boys, please sing me to sleep!

Jigsaw Sunday

School has started and summer is winding down. For my grandchildren, it is necessary to take life into a different direction other than playing in the park and swimming in the pool. If I don't, the winter months will be more difficult than they have to be. Heading off that cabin fever by introducing indoor activity is a necessity. At (almost) 4 and 6 1/2, jigsaw seemed the way to go (after an hour in the pool). Let's just make it a Spongebob Sunday!

Notice how the leaves are falling onto the deck. It's starting to look like fall and they can't wait for apple season and halloween and Thanksgiving!

The American Alligator by Mason Nieman

I am very pleased to share this guest post with my readers. Mason Nieman is a young man who has a love for alligators and knows quite a lot about them. I am honored that he is willing to share his knowledge with us.


The photo below was recently taken of Mason with some of his gator friends. I understand that one or two took a smack to the nose to insure they kept their distance. Mason is obviously a courageous fellow. I sure wouldn't do it.

Mason is sharing the following with us:

The American alligator is a reptile that belongs to the group of reptiles known as crocodilians.

They eat a variety of things. While they are babies they eat mostly small insects, small fish, and small invertebrates.

As they get bigger they eat larger prey like turtles, birds, deer, snakes, even bears, panthers, and sometimes cows to even the occasional person.

They live in slow moving streams, creeks, wetlands, lakes, ponds, marshes and sometimes in the ocean and in canals and rivers and sometimes even in our backyards.

When they are babies, they are no more than a foot long but they grow bigger with the females reaching about 10 feet long and males anywhere from 14 to 20 feet long.

They rarely attack humans unless provoked or if a female is defending her nest.  The everglades is probably the only place you will see alligators and crocodiles living together. They live in many states from Florida and Georgia to the Carolinas, Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas and sometimes in Mexico and South America. Alligators communicate in many ways. They hiss if they're irritated and bellow in the mating season to attract mates.

If you are to be attacked by an alligator, pray it doesn't have a good grip on you but here are ways to get out of an attack. If your arm is stuck inside its mouth, find the tongue and dislodge it if you can. It will take on water and should let go because it may drown or you can jab it in the eyes as hard as you can and it should let go.

White Alligators

Albino Gator with pink eyes

There are two types: albino and leucistic. The obvious way to tell them apart is the eye. The albinos have pink eyes while the leucistics have blue eyes.  Another way is the the skin. Albinos have no pigment while leucistics do. Also, the leucistic animal is basically a regular american alligator with white skin and blue eyes and they are stronger than albinos.

leucistic white gator with blue eyes

Chinese Gator

The chinese alligator is the american alligator's cousin and as its name implies, although it only lives in china in the yangtze river. It grows only to 6 feet at most. They burrow in caves. American alligators will do this often when it gets too cold and they are also known as keeper of the wetlands because when it gets dry they make gator holes. Other animals benefit from them as well as the alligator. The american alligator can jump for every foot that it is long; so a 12 foot alligator can jump 12 feet out of the water.

Thank you, Mason, for sharing your pictures, knowledge and enthusiasm!

Outdoor Creatures

While camping near the ocean on the Alabama/Florida coast, we had some interesting encounters with nature.

Rattle snake a camper found underneath his RV

A blue crab a teenager captured off the boat docks

Does This Look Dark Blonde To You?

 

What a mistake! It's no different than "light" brown! My husband hates it. I was advised to use baby shampoo to make it fade. I hope it works!

Summertime Ocean Treasures

Two of my grandchildren are on vacation. They went to see the sea and swim in the ocean and play on the beach and to seek special treasures.

Searching for Treasure

The innocence and joy of childhood is a treasure in itself.  I am so glad my little ones are experiencing the beauty and wonder that God has created for them to enjoy!

Celebrating the Find

They are obviously pleased with the haul and proud to show off their good fortune from the day's adventure and hard work!

(Kind of reminds you of "She sells sea shells down by the seashore". These days you'd get arrested for soliciting or not having a vendor's permit or a business license. Kind of like the kids selling lemonade and getting shut down.)

Kid's Hiking Sticks

I have been contemplating making hiking sticks for my grandchildren 6 and 3 to use when we go camping. I'm torn between making them or buying them. Finding the right stick to make one from can be difficult sometimes, especially when you are looking for two.

I found someone else had made one HERE.

Then, I found THIS.

I really like the idea of the homemade whistle attached. We could still probably draw the ruler on it. I like that idea too. At this point, I'm undecided, but thought I'd share just in case anyone found it to be beneficial to them.

An American Celebration

July is America's month. We celebrate our independence day every year on July 4th... Parties, Parades, Cookouts and Festivals.

To be an American is to be proud and to be free. We celebrate our pride and freedom and the many blessings that God has granted us.

For anyone who was born an American, or who have become an American or even those who are just visiting America or thinking of visiting, here are a few sites that offer fun, facts and history about our great country.

Watch free U.S. History Videos
Fun With History HERE

American History Fun Facts
History Fun Facts HERE

Check your American history knowledge with some fun quizzes.
Check out the links to the right to read or obtain The Bill Of Rights, The Declaration of Independence and The U.S. Constitution.
Fun Trivia HERE

Pearls of Wisdom

Whoever wrote this should be ashamed (but it is funny)!

5 PEARLS OF WISDOM TO REMEMBER
 

1. Money cannot buy happiness but it’s more comfortable to cry in a Mercedes than it is on a bicycle.

2. Forgive your enemy but remember the jerk’s name..

3. Help a man when he is in trouble and he will remember you when he is in trouble again.

4. Many people are alive only because it’s illegal to shoot them.

5. Alcohol does not solve any problem, but then neither does milk

Season Confusion

I went to Dollar Tree yesterday to look at the summer pool items for kids and I was shocked! I looked at my phone to verify the date. Yep! It was July 13th. I understand a little Christmas in July to help cool things down and remind us that winter will come and the heat will subside and we have the holidays to look forward to, BUT ..... Halloween decorations and Thanksgiving decorations out for sale in July?

You know, I haven't even had my vacation yet! So, they were getting my vacation money! I just couldn't resist. I especially thought these little goblins were adorable. They will sit nicely on a shelf or mantle.

My grandchildren will think this one is funny stuck to window glass.

It's just all way too soon. It's the middle of the summer!

A Great Second Verse

I was so impressed with this man's voice and with the words to the second verse that I just wanted to share it. (Not Herman Cain but Lewis Schaeffer).

Listening to the Bible

I have been physically down for a little while now and not at my computer, so a little television and my mp3 player have been both my comfort and my pass time. I recently got a GoBible. It's more than your average cheapie mp3 player, but certainly a steal in comparison to an Ipod or a Zune. You can even listen to it on your car stereo.

You know, I haven't had it for very long and because of my injury, I've had time to really play with it. I love this thing! When I registered the product, I found that I could download a free audio book every month and there are other freebies you can get also. That surprised me. This player is 3 GB's so it has plenty of room for audio books and my favorite gospel music. I often listen to worship music as I contemplate the word that I just read/listened to.

You can easily download a free recorded version of the Bible from any number of websites and thank God for them. The word of God should be accessible to all. You cannot, however, get versions on devices that are this easy to use and this dramatic to listen to.

You can choose the book, the chapter and the verse you want to hear and even repeat it if you need to. No fast forwarding to search through looking for a certain scripture the way you have to on free versions. You can also book mark and start where you left off the next time you turn it on. If you accidentally leave it on pause or with the menu up, it will automatically turn off. I love that feature because I have a cell phone and children around and I get distracted a lot!


I'm very impressed with all the extras that come with this player. It has a holiday and events index and a story index of the well-known Bible stories. Just as many hard print Bibles do, it also has a Bible-in-a year plan.


Now, I wish I had gotten the Word of Promise version. It's a full-on audio drama with actual well-known actors and actresses. The KJV that I have is wonderful, though. It is much more gripping than any free versions I have listened to. It is read by Alexander Scourby. Although he died in 1985, his work obviously lives on. According to Wikipedia, Scourby was the first person to record the King James Bible on long play records in the 1950s. He originally narrated the Old and New Testament of the King James Version for the American Foundation for the Blind and it took over four years to complete, finishing in 1953.

The velvet bag that comes with it is beautiful, but I really need something I can clip on so I don't have to hold it in my hand or put it in a pocket. Also, I have small ears and can't wear the standard ear buds that come with it. When you have that problem, you also have a volume problem because the buds don't go far enough into the ear. Both issues are relatively easy to solve. I got a neoprene phone case, with clip, at the Dollar Tree (my favorite store) and a $3.95 pair of soft, "in ear" bud tips from MicroCenter and I'm good to go.

All-in-all, I must say I did good when I got this little toy. It's packed with features and monthly freebies that go on and on, long after the purchase. The site offers great support in itself and emails are answered quickly. I don't know about you but that sure goes a long way with me. I'd recommend this little gem to anyone and would be proud to give or receive it as a gift.

Check out GoBible for yourself at gobible.com

Strange Things In My Back Yard

This is not my husband's pet ant eater living on the cherry tree. It is an old, thick wisteria vine that we cut at the base of the tree years ago and now it's drying up and pulling away from the tree. Pretty weird, huh?

 

This is not a green snake. It is a green bean that came from my garden...a very long green bean.