It's the Little Things...

1.  Getting that doctor visit behind me this morning!


2.  Watching two episodes in a row of my all time favorite western series: "The Big Valley".


3.  Listening to my dog snore at my feet.


4.  Sitting at my desk with the assurance of God's grace and forgiveness.


5.  Having a husband who works hard for us.


6.  Remembering the wonderful time with family recently at my nephew's wedding in Georgia.


7.  Realizing my tummy is growling because of hunger;  but I'm so blessed to have a stocked    fridge and pantry.


8.  Listening to my son as he chats with a friend.


9.  Feeling the cool air from the air conditioning!


10.  Looking forward to celebrating my daddy's 78th birthday tomorrow!

My "one word" for 2014

OK ~ So many of your are choosing ONE WORD to define what you are going to be working on in your personal lives for this new year. I've chosen my word!! Are you ready for it??? ORGANIZED!! This is the year I'm going to do it! I'm going to get everything in my life organized!! Isn't that wonderful?  :)  It has been a lofty goal of mine to have everything labeled, stored, sorted, and displayed in an amazing presentation. I am so ready to tackle my office and file drawers first! I'm giddy with anticipation y'all!!! Now if I wasn't so sleepy, I'd get my hands on some washi tape and my labeler and start by reconfiguring my filing cabinet! Man, I sure hope I can sleep tonight and not let the anticipation of sorting through paper work tomorrow keep me awake with heightened anticipation.  :)

Goodbye 2013

As the New Year approaches, I rejoice in all that we have learned and gained in 2013. Was it all pleasant? No, of course not;  but it was all for a higher purpose! I believe each member of the Rios Family has become a better human being because of the various experiences we have encountered along the way this past year.

Some of the good: My son Josh was promoted to a management position at Bern’s Steak House and with that promotion came a substantial raise! Shane celebrated his 16th birthday this year! He has scored well on all tests and has gained much work experience and job skills in the construction/carpentry field ~ thanks to various jobs with his Uncle Johnny. Oh, and he won the UGLY SWEATER contest at his youth group party! I'm so proud! LOL In June, Agustin completed his first year with Cantina Laredo and has established strong relationships with many of the regular customers and with many leaders of our community. He has enjoyed having only a 10 minute commute to and from work this past year!  I have overcome malignant cancer and many other health issues. I (We) praise God for HIS goodness to us all!

Have a safe and happy New Year’s Eve. We, the Rios family, plan to Par---tay!!! 
What are some of your plans?

Here are a few photos of our December, 2013.
Shane’s 16th Birthday party!

Agustin and I enjoying a night at Sea World, Orlando.
 

My parents at our house on Christmas Day.
Mom continues to recuperate from her knee replacement surgery.


Our family on Christmas Day.


Some yummies made by Shane and I.


To see a short slideshow I made with "Smilebox", just click the link below.

http://www.smilebox.com/playBlog/4d7a6b794f4463794f54413d0d0a&blogview=true

As we head into 2014, let me encourage you to consider this wise counsel from God’s Word, Proverbs 3:5&6 which says: “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways, acknowledge HIM, and HE shall direct thy paths.”

So I Wasn't As Committed As I Thought I Was!

Ummm, blushing here! I started this month off determined to capture a photo a day, correlated with the list of ideas furnished by Amy at TheIdeaRoom but instead, I got ... oh shall we say,

 

DISTRACTED?? 

I think I will end the month with her prompt - "FALL IS..."

 

So here we go! To me FALL IS...decorating with rich, warm colors

and having friends over for meals!

I have been productive this month and feeling happy about my health and accomplishments. Just last week, I sequestered myself in our church building Monday - Friday, working 10 hour days. Our church homecoming was this Sunday and I wanted to spiffy up our church facilities best as possible. I started with the nursery on that first day and finished up the week by painting bookshelves in our supply room. I warned everyone to stay far away from me that week unless they wanted to be Bleached, Scrubbed with Murphy's Oil Soap, Painted, or Waxed!!! Around 8:30 or 9:00 each night, I'd walk over to my parents home to eat a late supper,

bathe, and sleep. 

 

Being able to work hard physically is a big deal for me! You see, about 6 months ago, I would NOT have been able to help my church in this capacity. My health was so poor and my pain was very intense. I am so thankful for God's guidance to great doctors, new treatments, and new medicines;  but I am most grateful for praying friends and answered prayers!

 

I so enjoyed my week working at church. I still have many things I want to accomplish there in the buildings, but this week I think I should concentrate on my own home! I only saw Shane, Agustin, and my Delilah once during the entire week!!!

A Neighborly Surprise and "Catch Up" with the PHOTO A DAY challenge!

Okay, first the neighborly part:

If you ask me, I have one of the best neighbors ever! She is great about checking on me and keeping me up to date with things going on in the neighborhood. She even ventured out in one of our terrible storms this summer to drive me to a doctor’s appointment on the spur of the moment. (My other ride was late getting into town and I wasn’t allowed to drive due to recent surgery.)

She teaches 5th grade and has recently started this year's school term. I saw a cute little something in Cracker Barrel yesterday and she came to mind.


What about you? Have you done something nice for your neighbors recently?

I truly try to write nicely but my damaged wrists and fingers won't permit! :(

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Now the "catch up" part! I am determined to post a photo a day on my blog! I have been keeping up with this challenge on my other social media but have forgotten to post the photos here;  so if you really think you can't live another day without seeing my "photo a day" (sarcasm, yes), then feel free to find me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram so that you can view these amazing photos and make your world right again! ;)

 Day Six, Friday - a circle:

Actually, LOTS of CIRCLES!

(I'm having fun spray painting circular things for a fall craft project I'll be doing with my kiddos in Children's Church tomorrow!)

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Day Seven, Saturday - a pathway:

The pathway alongside our house.

Below is Amy's list in case you want to join in on

September's Photo A Day challenge!

Day One–Inspire

I’m playing along by posting a daily photograph describing the word or category prompt for that day at  #theidearoom on Instagram or at www.theidearoom.net.  If you would like to join in the fun, you can access the list and the guidelines by clicking on the link above to see what is next. It’s interesting to see what others have chosen to photograph for their daily entry.




For today's prompt, the word INSPIRE caused me to write about my Dad and Mom. My parents are an inspiration to me! Both of them are in their seventies and have many health issues; but nothing seems to stop them! My husband and I say they remind us of tenacious bulldogs, but in a good way!  By God’s grace, mom and dad both carry on serving Christ daily and remain flexible to serve others in a magnificent way. There is no way I could keep up with their schedules! Whew!

My dad is Senior Pastor at our church in Tampa. He counsels families and hurting folks almost on a daily basis. Not only is my Mom a full time Pastor’s wife, she continues to work an outside, full time job and several part time jobs. (She doesn’t consider the part time jobs work-just a way to help out friends.)

I love you mom and dad and appreciate your love for the Lord and your example of doing for others. I know it is HE who gives you both the strength to do all that you do.

Look Who Is Coming!

 

My hubby’s mom and one of his brothers are coming for a week long visit! Their plane lands at 4 p.m. Monday evening!!! This year, they’re coming to help us celebrate his BIG 50!!! We, umm I mean, he (my hubby)  is hoping his mama feels well enough to make some of her tamales while here!!! They are the best I've ever eaten. Honestly!

 

Here are a few photos of my husband with his mom and brother Elias when they flew up for his birthday in 2009. We had just feasted on tamales, beans, and rice which were accompanied with some of my mother in law's home made salsas! YUM! I can't wait!

 

 

Now on to some house keeping!  (literally, I still have two bathrooms to clean and a kitchen floor to scrub!) But I really need to get some housekeeping about my blog out of the way.

 

So ... two months ago, I bragged about how my blog would be seeing more action from me now that I'm experiencing better health these days. WELL.....OOPS! Sorry little blog! I suppose I've been feeling SO much better that I've been SO much busier than I had anticipated. It's great being able to get out of the house more for special events and socializing. Even running errands is a blessing to me! I'm so grateful for my praying friends who have interceded on my behalf!

 

Today was a wonderful day at church. My kiddos in Children's Church were in wonderful moods. After church, a bunch of us from church went to one of our favorite Chinese restaurants where we surprised a dear sister in Christ. Vera has lymphoma and is fighting her fourth round right now. She maintains her testimony for Christ and maintains a good attitude and a hope that God will use her through this illness to be a witness for HIM. She and her husband bless my heart beyond measure. They bought a huge van specifically to drive all or at least as many of their grandchildren as possible to church each week. Most are in my class. Even on days Vera is in horrific pain or very weak, she pushes on. Please remember she and her husband David in prayer. May they experience God's grace and power during these difficult days. Oh and our surprise party for her was a home run! We made her cry, so that's always good, right??  :)

Since I don’t think those bathrooms and that kitchen floor are going to scrub themselves,  I best sign out now. Y'all take care, ya' hear!