The Saga of THE SANDALS

Gather 'round, my little Fashionistas, gather 'round.

Today you will hear the tale of the cutest shoe ever to leave a foot print. It is the legend of THE SANDALS.

I first heard about them a long, long time ago on Big Mama's own blog. She posted a link one innocent Fashion Friday which showed a picture of THE SANDALS. I followed the link and beheld the footwear vision for the first time. My heart skipped a beat. Perfect footwear can do that to me.

(DANGER!DANGER! DO NOT CLICK ON LINKS PROVIDED ON BIG MAMA'S FASHION FRIDAY'S POSTS!)


I knew they belonged to me.

In my closet.

On my feet.

In my coffin when my husband sees how much I spent.


I do believe they may cost the same as a week's worth of groceries.




Knowing this was abhorrent in His sight, I asked for the Lord to deliver me from this evil temptation as I clicked on that Nordstrom site as quickly as I could.


The Lord did not deliver me.



Nordstrom's did just a few days later.


All I could do was hope my husband would not notice or care about the price once he beheld their beauty.


But he did notice and he did care. And I thought I was going to end up, buried in the new garden out back. I would have, too.



If his package from Cabela's hadn't arrived and saved my worthless life.


Now I can wear THE SANDALS to my heart's content, eliciting admiring sighs as we walk on by.

Even though they are not from Cabela's, and not come in Mossy Oak camouflaged, Rod is now very fond of THE SANDALS.



They are cute. They are comfortable. They will go with everything,like this outfit, all Spring long and coast into Summer. Did I mention they are cute and comfortable? They are. I love them. And I am not angry at Big Mama anymore. Not even a little bit.

Click back here to see what loverly bloggers are wearing this spring. Thanks, Big Mama, for throwing this Fiesta and for, well, you know, THE SANDALS.

If I knew you were coming

That's right; I'd bake a cake. So I did. Even though you are not actually coming. Here is the cake , in all it's glorious, highly-caloric scrumptiousness. It only takes two days to make and three years of strenuous cardio to work off. Perfect. It is called "Put the Lime in the Coconut Cake" . I wish I would have made it this weekend instead as Ashley, Josiah's girlfriend, is coming up because he is in a wedding. And needed a date. :-) So, hurray! We get to visit with our favorite Idaho/Utah girl.

Feel free to stop by for a bite of cake if you are nearby, as Rod and I are determined to eat it for every meal until it is gone or Jesus comes back. One more reason to pray for His quick return.

Spring is trying to emerge here, so that means Rod and I rush out and buy all the fruit trees and bushes and vegetable seeds and plants we can find. Even though it is 20 degrees in the morning and we'll likely murder anything we plant. Here is Rod planting the newest members of the family, Blu-ray and Duke, both types of blueberries.

Yes, this is, in fact, snow on the ground. But we are from hardy peasant stock and digging deep holes in frozen ground doesn't deter us. (by "us" I mean Rod. Just so we're square.)

Speaking of Rod, I was absolutely delighted yesterday when he received a package from Cabela's, the Outdoorman's Valhalla. It contained a backpack, camouflage, of course. It is comfortably padded, and has a place to carry water and drink from it. Kinda like a giant sippy cup. It is camouflage(the importance of this feature cannot be overstated) which goes with everything and it says "Cabela's" on it in big letters just in case the odd mule deer can read, or the other hunters need to stop their stalking and rush to Nebraska and pick up one of these babies.

Well.

The price tag was $109.00. WAY more than "THE SANDALS."

I'm just sayin'.

Needless to say, I am doing the happy dance, wearing THE SANDALS.

My Joy. It knows no bounds.

So. What can make me so happy, you ask?

Is it the snow that is falling and turning everything white again, even though it is SPRING and flowers should be blooming and I should be BBQing, not cooking navy bean soup with ham in an attempt to warm us up?

(This, my friends, is a fine example of a run on sentence.And I think I'll leave it be. I'm just that happy.)

No, it is not the snow.

Could it be because Lila is taking a doggy nap on the love seat, the same love seat that she is FORBIDDEN from ever sleeping, resting or snoozing on, let alone getting up on AT ALL? And she climbed up there when I went to go get the mail as if I wouldn't notice when I came back in. She is cat-like in her utter lack of guilt.

No, that is not why I am joyful, although taking the picture and showing Rod her complete lack of concern for punishment will be fun.

Wait...could it be? Could I be so happy because THE SANDALS HAVE ARRIVED? (Yes, I WAS shouting there.) It is like when you meet certain celebrities in real life you say, oh my goodness,they are better looking in person than they are on America's Next Top Model CNN.

This phenomenon is true of THE SANDALS. Exquisite. Even with my winter white feet and slightly hairy big toes. And the wart on my baby toe? It must go away before THE SANDALS can be worn. Don't my feet sound frightening? And yet THE SANDALS can overcome all the sins of the foot. They are that good.

But no, that is not the reason for my joy, although it does boost my happiness levels to near record highs.

Before you ask, it is not the full cup of Starbucks Sulawesi in my favorite mug. But it does seem to warm my very soul.

No, these are all good things and contribute to my total happiness. But they are not the source.

I picked up my prayer journal this afternoon and read these words written yesterday concerning a tough situation I am battling at the jail. The words I used were, "bad, hopeless, and useless."

Today, I discovered that God had a plan the entire time. What Satan had no doubt meant for destruction and discouragement, God has used for good and for His glory.

I got to watch. The timing was perfection. The orchestration was flawless. It is absolutely astonishing to see how He cares for us.

Now I have more uphill battles at the jail to face, as we all do in our everyday lives.

But I know that all things work together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.

I just forget sometimes.

God is good all the time. All the time, God is good. Yeah.

(if you are praying, please pray for Jail time Wedneday night and Thursday night bible study at the prison. Your prayers are SO appreciated by everyone involved.)

Fluffy post/serious post..two posts in one!

I really do want to write a shallow, funny post, but serious subjects keep floating to the top instead. I guess that's just how it goes for now. But I'm sure I'll be back with things that are amusing soon.

Like how Rod, in planning a little camping trip to the lake yesterday, invited everyone.....to a cabin that sleeps 10. I believe he invited about two dozen too many.

Whoops.

Somebody let their enthusiasm for family get-to-gethers interfere with their basic math skills. Gotta love him. That's what I keep telling myself, over and over, as I make the obligatory phone calls with the proper conciliatory tone.

Actually, 99.9% of the time, it is no struggle to love Rod at all. He is just a big bundle of goofy goodness.

I, however, am a different story entirely. I'm positive that half of all Rod's prayer time must be spent in begging God to help him figure out HOW HE CAN LOVE SOMEONE WHO JUST SPENT $85.00 ON SANDALS. (Okay, to be honest, he doesn't know quite yet that I spent $85.00 on sandals, but he will eventually.When I tell him....at just the right time. Hopefully, he'll be awake. I'll keep you updated. In case you need to search for my body in our new garden area. I'm just saying.)

Okaaaaay. Switching gears. (Don't you like how I warn you, rather than just change subjects all willy-nilly , like I do in real-life conversation?)

Last night I went into prison and brought the DVD, Mel Gibson's "The Passion" in for the ladies. I did notice that over 100 women signed up to come in and watch, rather than the normal 30 or so that usually attend Prison Fellowship with us.(You'll be relieved to know that I was able to "woman up" and swallow my bitterness and envy that they don't all fight to get in the room when I am leading a lesson.....This is about JESUS, after all. And I hope you know I am so kidding. No envy. No bitterness. Amen)

Wow. Can I just say WOW. I am sitting here with my fingers poised over the keyboard wondering how I am going to communicate the total awesomeness of being there and sharing this story together.

Some of us prayed before hand. A couple ladies, not staying for the film came in when they saw the crowd and asked me to just pray with them. I was privileged.

We cried as Jesus was betrayed by his friend. We cried when Peter denied knowing him. We flinched and wept as Jesus was beat so unmercifully. The gal sitting next to me, weeping until her eyes were red and swollen, just rocked back and forth in her chair and whispered, "Thank-you, Jesus," each time he was struck.

All of the scenes when Jesus was with his mother were particularly difficult for these women who have little, if any contact with their own children.

When he was crucified, the entire roomful of prisoners, some believers, some not yet, were in tears.

The fact that he died for us, while were yet sinners, was not lost on this crowd. How obvious it was to all of us that he chose to die, that he loved us and forgave us, even as he was being tortured and killed.

It was a truly remarkable time, and although we were "cried out" and emotionally drained afterwards, we were also thoughtful and grateful.

Basically, we had us some church in the prison last night!

Have yourselves a wonderful Easter, everyone!!

"Behold,I am coming soon! My reward is with me and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.

I am the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End." Rev.22:12-13