Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Jealous of a Drag Queen??


My daughter and I love M.A.C. cosmetics. We both could spend all day at the counter sampling colors and having tons o' fun. This weekend when we were doing our usual, ohhh, awww,  Aja asked the clerk if she had to make an appointment to have someone do an eye make over. He told her just to have a seat and he'd be happy to do it. Watching a make-up artist is like watching an artist. He brushed, stroked and blended until she had Kim Kardashian eyes.... Of course I took pictures of the process.....
The next day was my turn, except I don't know who Kim Kardashian is so I was like "Just surprise me!" Come to find out Mr. Make-up man was a Drag Queen... Drag Queen, not Drama Queen. He is also an artist and that is what lead him to being a make-up artist/Drag Queen. Actually, it's a little more like which came first, the chicken or the egg, but either way he is what he is and I am not being politically incorrect because he more or less volunteered this information. Chicken, egg, or egg, chicken doesn't make any difference to me because if you want something done right go to someone who knows how to do it and he does good eyes.... Period. I was just a little put out

when I looked at the photo my cousin snapped of the process and then me with Mr. Make-up Man aka Drag Queen, Josie Du'Coll. It's pretty sad when both the male version of a make-up artist and the female Drag Queen are both a heck of a lot prettier than you are.... That's just sad :-( He is pretty as a man even prettier as a woman which is so unfair to those of us who are just... Vanilla ice cream with no sprinkles on top.




Is it totally wrong to be jealous that a Drag Queen? Still, made for a very interesting make-over and boy did our eyes look great!

Josie Du'coll

Monday, March 26, 2012

The Story of Christ in the Face of a Child



My two oldest children got back from a mission trip to Haiti last week. Seth, my oldest son, took his first mission trip when he was 15. Going to Mexico was a life changing experience for him. He was bitten by the mission bug and has gone on a mission trip every year since. This was Aja's first mission trip. Being in the Navy has made her a well seasoned traveler, but a mission trip to a Haitian orphanage is a different experience. The stories they came back with are such a joy to listen to, but nothing tells the story of Christ like the face of a child.



He captured her heart. Brought to the orphanage just days before they arrived, he was so malnourished he didn't have the strength to cry. Through those with a love for missions, this child went from being passed from stranger to stranger, into the arms of loving adults who will nurture not only his body but his soul. When you give to missions, your money is used to help children like this become all that Christ created them to be.




Kirby is deaf. Funding has been raised for him to receive a hearing implant.
Hopefully he will be coming to the U.S. soon for his surgery





This is the Future of Haiti

These bright faces are the future of Haiti

"Jesus saith unto them, come and dine" John 21:12

Ecclesiastes 4:9
Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour.

Deuteronomy 28:47
Because thou servedst not the LORD thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things;




Psalm 37:7
Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him:







Psalm 122:1
I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD.


Headed to school

"He ain't heavy, he's my brother"


No longer alone











Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.


Let's Make it a Habit

I had a fabulous weekend filled with loved ones, shopping, delicious nibbles and lots and lots of laughing. It was a girlie girl weekend getaway with my cousin. True, we only live about an hour away from each other, but family, school and life in general has gotten in the way of us getting to spend as much time as we would like together. We've always stayed in touch, just not as in touch as we'd like. We've been getting into trouble together since I was in diapers; nothing major since we were both "good girls", but silly little things like blowing up our Aunt's travel trailer with her in it, gifting our Aunt with a fake birthday cake, and posting "Red Ants for Sale" on the highway pointing to our house. Mischievious pranks to keep things from getting too boring when we were having "family get-it-togethers". As we prepared to call it a day the other night she said... "JJ, do you realize this has been the first time we've been alone together for any length of time since the night before I got married?" Seems like life has kept us from our scheming for 30 years now... Bummer. We talked until our voices gave out and vowed to make it a yearly habit. That's a habit I'll be happy to have. Had a great time Doe and love you to the moon and back.... "We are family!" and I don't just say that about everyone.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

How May I Help You???

I honestly started not to blog this but.... Well you know how I am. Sunday my husband and I were working at the information desk at church. We feel so blessed to be a part of our church family. Although our church originated in a very small town, it has grown to become quite large. I believe part of that growth is a result of our leadership being motivated visionaries who are willing to take action so our church can be relevant to our society. Whatever we're doing seems to be working and things are ever changing, evolving within the church. A few months ago I blogged about the new "Giving Center" they put in the lobby of the church (next to the information desk)

 http://sweetlife4me-jp.blogspot.com/2011/10/technology-revolution-is-here.html 

I haven't used the new gadget, because I'm old school and I like the carbon copies of my checks. Sunday an elderly woman came to the desk to ask if I would help her use the giving machine. I gladly agreed, because spending money is my
spiritual gift. When it came time to type the dollar amount of the donation in, she typed in what I thought was a large amount. I was afraid that she wasn't taking into account the decimals and when I asked her, I was correct, she wanted to give a little less than she had typed in. When she got the right amount typed in she hit the donate button and the machine popped out a receipt. She grabbed me by the arm and said... "Wait, I have to do this four more times so will you stand here with me to make sure I get it right"  Well of course I will. Each donation she made was for the same amount but when she got to the fourth donation she grabbed my arm again and asked me.... "How much have I been giving each time?" I told her the amount of her donation and she hesitated (still holding me by the wrist) as she counted in her head. Then she said... "Oh, no that's not right, I just want to give" and she told me a much smaller amount" This is the part where my stomach jumps into my throat, because the amount she had been giving was considerably higher than what she had wished to give. I cancelled the last transaction for her and asked her if she needed the other three transactions cancelled on Monday when the banks opened, but she assured me that she had plenty of money to cover the donation and everything would be fine. On the outside I'm cool as a cucumber but on the inside I'm hyperventilating and beads of sweat are forming on my upper lip. In my world of small finances (with both me and my spouse working)an unexpected withdrawal that size would throw us out of whack for a while. I asked her several times if we needed to contact the office, but she continued to assure me that there was plenty of money in her account to cover the extra and she just wouldn't donate again for a couple of weeks. She thanked me for helping her and I went back to the desk all weak in the knees like when I come home from a really good shopping trip except this time I didn't have any new shoes. I keep thinking that the church office is going to call and ask me to work the "Giving Machine" every Sunday because our donations took a dramatic spike with my "help" and it looks like we can start the ground breaking for our new 4 million dollar youth center sooner than expected. (Just Kidding) No, I'm more than likely going to be put on doughnut patrol

Monday, March 19, 2012

More of a Hero

When I was in 1st or 2nd grade, I joined a softball team. I remember riding my bike to the school for practice and looked forward to the first game. My stomach twittered with butterflies when it came my turn to bat. To my own shock and awe, I hit the ball and sent it soaring. I ran to first as the coach waved me on toward second. I hit second base with a determined thud and looked up to see that everyone was going nuts. I misinterpreted their excitement, and hung my head as I began walking off the field. When I stepped off the base the place erupted and the second base girl tagged me out. I had given up on myself just a tad too early and was out of the game for real. This would have been a great opportunity for a coach or someone to put their arm around me afterwards and assure me that no mistake is fatal. That didn't happen, and I never went back. I bet I missed a lot of good games because the fear of failure kept me from playing.

"Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game!"
- -A Cinderella Story

When I had kids I did not want them to live with fear of failure.  I certainly don't need to worry about them not living their dreams. This week Aja and Seth are off on a mission trip to Haiti. Each of them have been to different countries, but never together. This will be their first mission trip together and the last trip before my son walks down the isle to start the adventure of marriage. They have stepped up to the plate to face their fears more than I could ever imagine. Each one is very different but with every step they take, they become more of a hero in my eyes.




Monday, March 12, 2012

Lean Cuisine

Money well spent @ Affair of the Heart
My husband complained that I hadn't posted anything lately. My muse has been on vacation and when that happens I'm museless which is way different but almost the same as being useless. So, here is my birthday post, did I mention I had a fantastic 29th birthday? Well I did! I had the most wonderful birthday this year. I spent my birthday weekend with my kids! The girls and I (that sounds so strangely weird and awesomely sweet) went to the Affair of the Heart,if you missed that post click here http://sweetlife4me-jp.blogspot.com/2012/02/creepy-dolls-affair-of-heart.html then we met up with the guys to fix dinner. After dinner and before the playing of cards, they made me cover my 
That's a miniture fire extinguisher in
his hand, he is set on go
eyes while they lit the candles on my cake (yes the fire department was on standby) and brought out my surprise gift. I opened my eyes to a set of brand spankin new pots and pans. Granted, this would not have excited me 20 years ago, but after being married for 30 years my pans were embarrassingly pathetic. Let me just say without appearing to be blonder than I pay to be.... Water boils much faster when the bottom of the pan actually comes in contact with the burner. You've guessed it,  we've been having boiled water for dinner, it's the new lean cuisine. Hey, don't judge me! :-)

The candles actually created a backdraft :-(

The weird look on my face is me trying to come
up with a wish that is politically, ethically,
morally, spiritually and nutritionally correct...
It took me a while