Have You Ever??

Okay so I seen this over at Tammy's Times and thought I would do it too, I usually don't do these sorta things but it looked fun. Your supposed to copy the list and the highlight the ones you have done. I think I managed 38 out of 99, I better get busy!

Feel free to jump on board, can't wait to read your's!

1. Started your own blog

2. Slept under the stars

3. Played in a band

4. Visited Hawaii

5. Watched a meteor shower

6. Given more than you can afford to charity

7. Been to Disneyland/world

8. Climbed a mountain

9. Held a praying mantis

10. Sang/played a solo

11. Bungee jumped

12. Visited Paris

13. Watched a lightning storm at sea

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch

15. Adopted a child

16. Had food poisoning

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty

18. Grown your own vegetables

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France

20. Slept on an overnight train

21. Had a pillow fight

22. Hitch hiked

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill

24. Built a snow fort - with my kiddos

25. Held a lamb

26. Gone skinny dipping - with girls when I was a kid

27. Run a Marathon

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice

29. Seen a total eclipse

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset

31. Hit a home run

32. Been on a cruise

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors

35. Seen an Amish community

36. Taught yourself a new language

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person

39. Gone rock climbing

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David

41. Sung karaoke

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant

44. Visited Africa

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight

46. Been transported in an ambulance

47. Had your portrait painted

48. Gone deep sea fishing

49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling

52. Kissed in the rain

53. Played in the mud

54. Gone to a drive-in theater

55. Been in a movie

56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business

58. Taken a martial arts class

59. Visited Russia

60. Served at a soup kitchen

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies

62. Gone whale watching

63. Gotten flowers for no reason

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma

65. Gone sky diving

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp

67. Bounced a check

68. Flown in a helicopter

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial

71. Eaten Caviar

72. Pieced a quilt

73. Stood in Times Square

74. Toured the Everglades

75. Been fired from a job

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London

77. Broken a bone

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person

80. Published a book

81. Visited the Vatican

82. Bought a brand new car

83. Walked in Jerusalem

84. Had your picture in the newspaper

85. Read the entire Bible

86. Visited the White House

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating

88. Had chickenpox

89. Saved someone’s life

90. Sat on a jury

91. Met someone famous

92. Joined a book club

93. Lost a loved one

94. Made a baby

95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake

97. Been involved in a law suit

98. Owned a cell phone

99. Been stung by a bee

So I'm Sitting....

...in the van on the way to soul-winning feeling pretty down. After talking with my best friend for a little while and her filling me in on all the happenings and conferences in the states I really began to feel sorry for myself. All I could think about it how life is always the same in Croatia and how we're missing out on all the fun and fellowship in the states. Missing out on seeing our sweet nieces Madison and Kaitlyn growing up. Just missing family.

We have been in Croatia going on 9 years all alone, waiting for someone to come. Loneliness is one of the hardest things to deal with, isolation, it's really indescribable until you have felt it, really felt it for years and years.

Anyhow, there I was sitting in the van, almost in tears, dreading going into town to pass out tracts when I hear Hannah (11 years old, our youngest) singing in the back seat. She sings, "My house is full but my field is empty, who will go and work for me today...it seems my children all want to stay around my table, no one wants to work in my field, no one wants to work in my field. " Suddenly it was like God was speaking to me, this was His field, this was the place to be working, not sitting around His table enjoying His goods in the states. It was profound! He really spoke to me and helped me through a difficult night.

Anyhow, I'm not in tears anymore, still a bit lonely but comforted. He is so good to speak directly to us when we need Him.

I'm thankful that He called us to Croatia, it's sometimes hard but He's worth it!!

Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few;
Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.
Matthew 9:38-38 KJV

Missionary Pecan Pie

I found this wonderful pecan pie recipe that takes no corn syrup. I called it "Missionary Pecan Pie" because it doesn't take corn syrup and corn syrup is most times almost impossible to find. Anyhow it had rave reviews and they said it was even better than pecan pie with corn syrup. Oh yea and if you don't like pecan pie...Bless your heart, I'll pray for you to get it right!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup chopped pecans

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, beat eggs until foamy, and stir in melted butter. Stir in the brown sugar, white sugar and the flour; mix well. Last add the milk, vanilla and nuts.
3. Pour into an unbaked 9-in pie shell. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes at 400 degrees, then reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until done.

***Thanks Arlene, I'm a little blond underneath all this brown hair. No offense to you blondies out there!

A Day at the Market

Last Saturday Johnny and another man from church sat up at the local flea market passing out tracts and witnessing. I decided to join them although later in the morning, no reason getting up too early. Another lady from the church showed up and she and I went to rummage through the stuff. It was a great day and lots of people we're there with their junk.

I think we did pretty well and found some really fun stuff.



I found these who fun brown thinggys. I think the first one is a mug and the second, I dunno, maybe a bud vase? I don't know by I paid a quarter for them, not a bad deal!
The we found this lady who had lots of old sewing stuff. She had this ribbon which is typically European and it was only a dollar for about 100 years and maybe more. My friend and I halved it and this was my half.

She also had this great red ribbon, traditional style and also a huge amount for $1.

Around the next car we found this cute little pitcher and handleless mugs. I love them but....after I got them home I noticed a very earthy smell in all of them. A clay or dirt sort of smell, not nasty dirty but very earthy so I don't know how well they'll work for drinking purposes, but maybe some cute flowers. Hmmm....
I found this nice little plate ready to hang and you know what's cool. It was made in our city the year I was born, cool huh?
This little orange gem is my favorite. I love the twisty handle and the weight of the thing. It's great, don't know what to do with it but for a quarter, I couldn't pass it up.
Oh yea and some more stitching stiff, this is a roll of black bias tape, it's about 3" wide. Can you image how much there is on that roll? I don't know what I'm gonna do with it all but something. Oh yea and it was $1.

Lastly I say this carved wooden tray leaning against a cardboard box and asked how much. The older gentleman told me that if it was worth so much because it was hand carved. I said really, he said yea and then he said it was carved by a man in Ljepoglava, and town in Croatia. I said really, then my friend elbowed me and asked me if I knew about Ljepoglava. I looked at her and asked, what about it. " It's a prison town", so apparently is was carved by a prisoner in that town. So again I asked him how much, the carving was so nice, rustic but pretty intricate, he wanted 30 kuna for it, which is about 6 dollars. I thought about it and finally decided to get it. I don't usually pay $6 for anything that I'm not immediately going to use but I really liked this.

It's nice that it's been made into a tray, covered in glass it could be used for anything. I love it!


Here are a couple close-ups of the tray, did I say I loved it?

When we came to Croatia we sold or gave-away everything that we had in the states. I brought nothing in way of things other than clothing and so on that we had before. So everything we have in our home is very new, 8 years old or younger so I have been looking for older things to give the home a warmer, aged feeling. Now if I can just figure out how to put all these things together.