Oh...the weather outside is frightful...but I love it!  It was a cold, dreary, rainy, gray day today and we loaded the kids and my parents in the cars and off to Pigeon Forge we went. The Tanger outlets down there are just awesome and they had a lot of really good deals.

Tonight, I'm working on my Christmas cards and waiting for Mike and Louie to get back with the new lights for the Christmas tree. We got a real one this year!! I've been wanting to get a real tree since we moved to Tennessee 6-years ago. Actually, we'll be here 6-years on Christmas Eve.  I can't believe it's been that long.

In my last post, I was venting my frustration over my fellow "Christian's" who aren't....well...very Christian. I've decided I'm going to do a lot more than vent! I'm going to start changing myself in hopes that those around me will maybe do the same. Is there any other way to enact change in others? I'm also going to refuse to work with those who really aren't in ministry to minister and when they ask me why, I'm going to be honest, afterall... I am not worried about offending them but offending my Heavenly Father by NOT saying anything. What they do with it, is up to them.

Today, while I was out shopping in the crowds of people, which by the way, makes it very hard to believe there is a recession going on, I smiled at everyone. There were a few rude people out there but I defused their meaness with a big ole' smile straight from my heart... It worked.

There is no doubt that people can be awfully crabby during the holiday's. This should be a time of good cheer and good will towards each other but instead we let the commercialism turn us into something that we really shouldn't be. It sure does defeat the whole purpose and meaning of Christmas. 

I hope you'll be the one person in the crowd who will spread the true spirit of Christmas with a friendly smile or a kind word. ONLY good can come from that and at the very least, you'll feel better about yourself.

Merry Christmas and Happy Shopping!

        

I recently made the decision to let go of some of my commercial client's. Not because I don't need the money. Heck, all work is welcome these days and I'm thankful for the work the Lord has kept me in since the economy took a dive.

No, I realized that many of the people I was serving were not really serving God. Oh, they say they are. But the deeper I got into the projects I was hired for, the more I realized that some of my collegues really aren't in "it" for God anymore. . They claim to be in ministry and to be spreading the "Message" for God's kingdom but a closer look revealed the fact that quite a few people in ministry have replaced the Cross with themselves or rather their "ministry". They've taken the focus off of The One they claim to serve while striving for another book sale or speaking engagement. Jesus is no longer preeminant in their work, he is merely a name used to get ahead. The ministry has become the idol.

I've sat back and watched so many ministry leaders overwork themselves, oversell themselves, neglect their most precious priorities (family) merely to "promote" their ministry i.e. themselves. They're off traveling the world promoting and speaking, selling and signing; but when they don't see the desired return they become angry and resentuful, they panic and wonder why they can't achieve the numbers they hoped for. A visit to many ministry websites will introduce you to the person who founded the ministry and all the details about them, this is often the first thing people see when they visit. It's only upon reading a mission statement or a bio that you can learn what the ministry is really about. It appears the goal is to let visitors know all about them their books and their achievements and in most cases, where you can hear them speak in upcoming months. A tool that can be used to reach the masses with the message is instead used to make a sale. Buy the book or book the speaker and you can hear the message too!

Now some of you reading this might say "She's just jealous becuase she isn't getting as many requests for speaking or she probably isn't selling many books". If I were a public speaker, I'd agree and if my books didn't sell themselves, I would say that it could appear a little envy crept in, but I look at my ministry a different way. What I'm sharing here is a message I felt inspired in my heart to share. He puts the books I've written in the hands of those who need them. I don't worry about the numbers, the message gets where it needs to go because He sees to it. He has sustained this ministry for over 10-years. I go about His business and He goes about mine.

When I look at many ministries, they've become like big business. We have boards and committees, CEO's, CFO's, Director's of this and of that. We have marketing strategy and a budget and even non-profits.  Ministry in this day and age has become too complicated for the minister let alone the people the message was orginally meant for.  If someone should happen to come into the organization with a God inspired message or idea, they have to clear the board of directors before they are given permission OR the opportunity to share that divine message. Of course, the egos behind some ministries prevent that from happening altogether becuase afterall, the founder of the ministry is the boss and it is THEIR ministry. Yikes! Where is Jesus in all of this?

It's necessary to sell a certain amount of books and to book so many speaking events to cover the budget and  many ministry leaders/authors/speakers will stop at nothing to accomplish that. Then we wonder why Christian's aren't being taken seriously. We're reflecting this corporate image with all the trimmings and wondering why no one wants to hear what we have to say. So many ministry leaders have made their ministry their idol. They've forgotten the basics and don't remember the reasons God chose them to serve Him with the experiences, accomplishments, time in the valley and the victory of making it to the high places. The focus is on sales and dollars.  As a Christian web developer, this isn't what I signed up for and I have to say, working for some Christian ministries can be somewhat frustrating.  You would think that you'd be treated kinder, with patience and respect; but that's not always the case.  Some ministry leaders are demanding and difficult and if they didn't make it a point ot advertise their Christianity, I's swear they weren't.

One of the things that got my attention was women in ministry attaching the term "Diva" to their name or ministry. I hate to tell you ladies, but the word Diva, and ministry, don't go together and you can't be a servant of The Most High if your a Diva. Look up the definition of Diva. That's not a God inspired title. It may attract the buyer, but again, where is Jesus in this? Does He fit in only when it looks good on the cover or in the logo?

I believe that when God blesses us with the responsibility of a ministry message, He expects us to steward not only our finances, but our time, and our ambition. When the ministry focus is on the person and not the Saviour, there is no ministry. Why would the Lord bless that?

I've heard so many ministry leaders wonder out loud why they aren't bringing in the revenue they were once bringing in and the economy is certainly a factor, but I ask you this, is your ministry about you the messenger, or is Jesus still the center?  Give your ministry back to God, serve it the way He would have you and then watch the blessings appear. Go about HIS business and He will SURELY go about YOURS!

I truley hope my message tonight doesn't offend anyone. When I prayed about this, I realized that I'm more concerned about offending The Lord than my Christian brethren. I pray that if you're reading this and you're in ministry you'll examine your heart and be sure that your focus isn't on you, your books, or your next speaking gig; but on the Savioir. If you recognize yourself in anything I've said, I pray you can go back to the basics and surrender the ministry God blessed you with to HIM and then TRUST He will sustain you and lead you right where He needs you to be.

With Love,

Shell

        

Woot! Woot! FALL IS OFFICIALLY HERE!!! 

This is my absolute FAVORITE time of the year!! Although it's still early for change of leaves, there is no doubt, fall is upon us. The evening air is crisp and the aroma of burning wood wafts about reminding me that one of the most special times of year is here. I used to follow form and wait until October to start putting out my autumn decor; but when we moved to Tennessee I decided that I wasn't going to miss one single second of this spectacular season.  Now, I start putting my fall decorations out on the first day of Autumn which fell on the 22nd of September this year!

Each year our family has a little ritual where we go to Petals, a local nursery, and we pick our pumpkins, gourds, corn stalks, orange ribbon, tons of mums, and bales of hay to decorate our property. I have a nice collection of scarecrows and tons of sunflowers and other accessories to decorate with. We decorate the yard and around the house inside and out. I'll take pictures this year and post them for everyone to see.  Every time I walk outside or pull up to the house I get that warm fuzzy feeling.

Autumn is one of the best times for family traditions. So many people are focused on what they don't have that they fail to realize all the good things they do have. It may not be possible to take that annual trip to Disney World or a cruise to the Bahama's, but there is plenty you can do!  For instance, find a local or even not so local orchard near where you live, load the family in a car or two and head out for a DAYcation!  Pack a cooler with sandwiches and sodas and snacks and spend the day enjoying the FREE things around you.

Even if you think this is boring, TRY IT! I used to think it would be sooooo boring to ride around in the car all day looking at leaves. That was, until I did it! Now, it's a MUCH anticipated annual tradition in our family.  Take some time to let yourself really dream about what your perfect one day vacation would be and be realistic. You know you can't fly to Italy for a day so focus on the things around you that you CAN do! 

One of my fellow police wife friends recently told me that she wanted to make her husbands upcoming days off really special.  As a police wife, I could understand her intentions. Our men work five, six, sometime seven or more days under tremendous pressure and stress.  When they do it get time off, us ladies try to make it good for them while still keeping them engaged in the family and the things that need to be done around the house.

Most police officers don't make much, this is the downside of public service but a creative police wife, heck, ANY wife can come up with good ideas. My friend told me that she went through the house, all the closets, gathered old kids cloths, etc. and had a one-day yard sale. She raised over $800!! She didn't tell her husband how well she did but instead, she planned a wonderful weekend and used the extra cash to pay some bills, he was surprised and more open to actually letting go for a day.  They loaded their kids and in-laws in the car and off they went to the country. They stopped at antique shops and a few roadside stands along the way. She packed a cooler with cheese and crackers, fried chicken strips, chips and drinks. She brought along a mini gas grill and they found a beautiful spot along a stream in the National Park where they grilled hot dogs. She said her husband had the best time and the rest of his time off he was like a different man.

This doesn't only apply to police families. It applies to ALL families. Where there is a will there is a way. Just becuase the economy is sour or you are out of a job doesn't mean you can't make priceless memories with your most prized posession, your family. When things do get better, you'll be able to look back and see how you made the best of a bad situation. This isn't a bad thing for the kids either.

I'll bet all of you can come up with some GREAT cheap or NO COST DAYcation ideas! Send them to me at babyBlu809@aol.com and I'll do a drawing. The winner will get a $25 cash gift in their PayPal account!! I can't wait to hear what you come up with!  

        

OK, my advice is to make sure you aren't drinking anything when you watch this video.  Wtach his shoes when he gets on the treadmill. I laughed so hard I had gingerale coming out of my nose.

This video was too funny not to share.
One small warning - do NOT go to the webaddress in the video... it's naughty; but this video was hysterical.

        

I can hardly believe it is already August. My son Louie, went back to school yesterday. He had his freshman orientation and today is a no-school day but tomorrow, school offically starts for everyone.  It's the MOST WONDERFUL time of the year!!!!! HEHEHEHE.....  for those of you out there who have teens, have raised teens and/or have survived raising teens, you know that back-to-school is a parents favorite time.  It was a long summer.

Cassie is going to be home schooled this year as we just feel like she needs a little protecting from herself at the moment. Please pray that my daughter will start to understand why we are the way we are and that God will penetrate her heart, take her focus of herself and help her want to be the best she can be. Like I said, it's been a long summer.

Last month, two of the stray cats that showed up at our house had kittens one day apart, and our Border Collie, Tootsie, had 7 puppies. We lost 4 of the seven. The three tiny survivors are growing fast! They are the cutest little things! All the kittens are growing and are having a ball running around on our 3-acres as well as the beautiful forest that surrounds us. We are actively looking for homes for all of them except 2. Next week we're taking them to the vet, 2 at a time to have them fixed. If anyone wants a kitten or a puppy - CALL ME! We'll keep them until we can find homes for them as I am against unloading them at the animal shelter that is already overloaded and putting DOZENS of sweet puppies and kitties down each week becuase they can't find homes. My heart breaks when I think about this, I love animals so much and if I had the resources I would rescue as many as I could.

On the health front - I am feeling better but still in a lot of pain most of the time. It seems I am not alone either, my good friend and client, Ann Brandt is dealing with a similar issue and underwent surgery and a long recovery in a facility for her back issues. Ann has a new eBook coming out in a few weeks for caregivers - Stay tuned for more info about the book and please, keep her and her wonderful husband George in prayer!

With fall approaching we are entering the busiest time of the year for ministry. We have TONS of projects in the works at WebTV4Women, Just4Ladies and Heartbreak University. Our fall enrollment for HeartbreakUniversity opens up in a few weeks and we are praying for a good response. I am REALLY excited about my new show Under the Willow Tree due to start broadcasting on WebTV4Women in a few weeks. You will come watch won't you!?!

I will have more exciting website news to share with you in a few days. So, stay tuned. And by the way, if you are a subscriber to my blog, I'd love to hear from you. I'd love to hear what's on your heart and mind and even talk about it here. Comment me or email me at BabyBlu809@aol.com and tell me how your summer has been.

        

I am so excited I can barely contain myself!

Most of you know that I am the founder/developer of the WebTV4Women.tv eTV Community. Well... I am going to create and broadcast my own show on the network!

The name of the show is going to be Under the Willow Tree. It's going to be a country living program. Initially, I was going to produce a program in the relationships category but for some reason my heart just wasn't moving me in that direction. Not only that, as the developer of the community I spend a tremendous amount of time well... developing.  It doesn't leave me much time for producing a show about relationships as the research is super extensive and time consuming.

Soooo.... I've decided to produce a show of what I love best... COUNTRY LIVING!!!

The show will be broadcast on the Lifestyles Channel and also on Family and Parenting as a big portion of what I write about is family. I may even do a cooking show or two, although, it is hard to hold a candle to Linda Evans Shepherd and Penny Carlevato on Cooking Up Wonders! They are great!

I'd love to hear you input on this new venture. Please, feel free to comment me and tell me what you'd like to see and won't you please stop by and check out the WebTV4Women.tv eTV Community? You won't be sorry!

Stay tuned for more exciting news! We have another MAJOR announcement yto make in the upcoming weeks!

Love you all and I can't wait to hear from you!

Shell

        

I can't remember where I found this but I thought all of you might like it.


When the Lord is going to do something special,
He allows us to see the difficulties first!

When He is going to do something REALLY MAGNIFICENT,
He allows it to appear impossible!

        

There is no doubt the economy has put a damper on vacation plans for many people. Us being some of them. Instead of taking an extensive and expensive vacation this year we opted for a "staycation". That's when you have time off from work i.e. vacation time, and instead of going to Disney or somewhere else equally expensive, you stay close to home.

We chose to spend the first few days of our family staycation working around the house. We re-mulched the flower beds, planted some flowers and finally got the garden ready for planting. We are having a late garden this year.  With Mike having to work crazy rotating shifts and my business being super busy (thank God) we could never get it plowed and weeded. We FINALLY got it ready for planting! The tomatos are in the ground!

The kids were pretty good sports about staying close to home. On 4th of July we had a fantastic barbeque and our neighbors from up the mountain came down to enjoy grilled chicken, BBQ skirt steak, brisket, and all the fixen's.  Then the fun began!

In keeping with tradition, we all got up early on Saturday morning, July 4th and went to the fireworks stand in town that we frequent every year. They have a buy-one-get-one-free special that we take advantage of.

We always pick our grande finale' first and this year they had especially good deals on those fireworks that light up the sky with big umbrella burts of color. We are a favorite amongst our neighbors for our fireowrks displays as they can be seen all over the mountain and from the mountains across from us. We can see the displays from all of ourfriends and neighbors as well as those across the mountains.  This year we got TWO Grande Finale's for the price of one and then a BUNCH of other cool stuff too!  Heck, if you going to literally light money on fire you might as well make it look good. So we got TWO Daisy Cutter finale's for the price of one.

We had roman candles, bottle rockets, all kinds of pretty colors of bursting spray thingy's and TWO Grande Finale's.  This year, Louie was old enough to help with the lighting of the fire works so the guys (Mike, Louie, and our neighbor Darrell) took to the driveway and began the display while us gals (Me, Cassie and our neighbor's wife, Sharon) sat on the deck and enjoyed the show.  Although it got a little loud, it was fantastic! Mike did a good job manning the grill and lighting the fireworks.  

It was close to 11 PM when we shot the last of them off but there were still people all over the mountain with plenty left! We get the best seat in the house and NO TRAFFIC!!  When it's all over, we clean up and go to bed! Ya just can't beat that!

The next day we packed up the car with coolers full of food and drink and headed to Douglas lake in Dandridge, for a day of boating fun. The weather held out for most of the day and the kids got to go tubing. We had a nice picinic and then at about 7'ish, the rain came and we headed home. We had another picinic at the kitchen table and then everyone went their own way to watch TV, play online, read, etc.

Mike and I cuddled up in bed and watched a few movies together and then after a long, full and blessed day, we fell asleep.  It was the perfect ending to a perfect staycation.

Here are some pictures of my guys havin fun. Is it any wonder why I consider them my greatest treasure.


Louie and Cassie in the tube.



Another one of Louie and Cassie in the tube




My hero husband.... isn't he gorgeous? hehehe




So far this summer is turning out to be awesome. I thank God for every good thing He has given me! I look forward to the blessings we are showered with, appreciate them with all my heart  and I pray that I can be the person the Lord expects me to be and that I can always spend my life serving Him. Happy Summer everyone and GOD BLESS YOU BIG!!! I pray you recognize the blessings and appreciate them.

See you all soon!

Love,

Shell

        

What a wonderful and relaxing day today was.  Truly a day of rest and peace.

Mike is working afternoons, and Cassie is in Florida visiting her father (my ex-husband), so that just leaves Louie and I and all of our critters.  For the first time in a long time I slept in until almost 10 AM. This is totally unheard of for me but needless to say, I woke up late but it was good and I felt refreshed and rested.

Mike left for work around noon and Louie helped me with the housework. I actually took some time to work on my rag quilt today and was pretty proud of how far I've come with it. It is almost half finished!  This is the first major sewing project I've ever done and I am pretty impressed with the results. Even Mike complimented my progress and he knows how awful I am at sewing! This quilt is for Cassie. She picked the colors but I think she had some doubts about how far I would get with it. I am going to surprise her!

The secret to country living is to enjoy every moment of every day. Country living is a lot like living life according to a story book dream or even like the movie Steele Magnolias. At least that's how it is for me.  Every day I wake up and I look out my window at the amazing view. I instantly feel the pride rise up in me for what we have here. Not bad pride but good pride.

Before I moved to English Mountain we lived in Palm Beach, Florida. Don't get me wrong, Palm Beach is beautiful but it's congested and crowded and after a trip to Lima, OH with my husband to visit his mom before she passed, I was isnpired by the way his brother Pat and his wife Shelly and their 5-children lived and I realized that my dream for family had changed.

For the next 18-months I prayed daily that Mike would marry me and want the same. God was true to me. Mike married me and we found our heaven on earth here in Tennessee. It just doesn't get any better than this!  I've lived my dream here. I've baked apple pies, gardened, hiked our mountain, picked wild berries, planted fruit trees and even 2 willows. I've taken in stray animals and I have not just one country cat, but several who can usually be found lounging next to me wherever I am.

This is the place God put me to minister to the heartbroken and to encourage other police wives. This is the place where I was inspired to write and where I find my inspiration to continue writing and working for His kingdom.

There are so many people losing so much these days. Every day I receive dozens of prayer requests from men and women who are losing their homes, jobs, and even their families. So many people are so focused on what they are losing or what they have lost that they are failing to appreciate what they do have. Our greatest treasure is not our homes, or our stocks or even our savings, our greatest treasure is the people we love. The ones who make it possible to survive the bad times and give us a reason to celebrate the good times. There is nothing more valuable than your family.  If you're experiencing a loss right now, don't let the enemy fool you into thinking that it's so bad it can't be fixed. Instead, trust that God has a plan for you and He will bring you through this tough time into a place of blessings. Instead of being depressed or angry about what you have lost, focus on what you do have and if that consists of a family then pull them close to you and enjoy them. They are truly your greatest treasure and greatest blessing.

God is so good... life is good. I am truly blessed and I pray that no matter what you are going through you will find a way to see the blessings you DO have and nurture them.

I love you all!

Shell

        

Happy Father's Day!

I couldn't let this special day go by without recognition on my blog.  9-years ago the Lord blessed me with a wonderful man who not only loves me, he loves my kids.  These days, there are way too many single parent homes and many kids do not have the opportunity to honor their dads. I am SO THANKFUL that is not the case for us; but I do feel for those who are in that position.

Recently, my ex-husband and I were able to make peace with each other after 6 years of silence.  I feel good knowing that today, he too will receive a Happy Father's Day from our daughter and I pray that it blesses him. I thank God for guding me to do what was right in this situation, finally.

We're getting ready to take Mike out for a day of Father's Day Fun!  The kids gave him a special card this morning and now we'll take him out and spoil him a bit. For dinner, I'm going to make him a great BIG T-Bone steak and a lobster tail!  He is worth it!

I hope all of you that have a dad around will honor him today. For those who have lost your dad, I hope you will honor him for all he was to you when he was with you.

Have a blessed day!