A New Adventure for Lily and for our family!

We took a little ride today to someplace special.  Mommie said she knew we were getting close when she saw the lighthouse in the distance!

Some of you may recognize this lighthouse as the one in St. Augustine, Florida.

Isn't it beautiful?

When we stopped the car at our destination, there it was right over my shoulder!

And then we walked up to the door of this place, this store, and guess who was there to greet us?

My big brother Benton!

I asked him, "How did you get here too?"  And he said, "Because this is our store now!!"

"What???," I said.  "How did that happen?"

He said "Because when God closes a door, He opens a window!"  (Well, he didn't really say that, but Mommie just thought of it now and thought it would go well here because that's the name of her other blog, "Closed Doors, Open Windows".  She said sometimes God closes one door to open up another door or "window" of opportunity that is even better than before.)

And so we went inside to look around and see what my big brother and my big sister (Auntie Rose) have done!  Actually, the store was already in existence, but another lady owned it and had to move away and so because my brother and Auntie Rose already were selling some of their specially made items in that store and doing very well there, they decided to take over the store when it came available.

Mommie said God made it possible for them to do this through a series of miracles and blessings and it is all very exciting.

So here are some of the beautiful things they sell in their store, which by the way is named

"Dixie Cottage". (If you have a Facebook account, you can click on that link and see more about their store there).

My brother Ben and Auntie Rose refurbish old furniture and also build some custom pieces of furniture to sell in this store.  (Refurbish is a big word Mommie told me, which means to make something like new again, to restore it and give it a new life and purpose.  Mommie said that's what Jesus does for us when we let Him come into our heart and make us brand new.)

 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

2 Corinthians 5:17

They find these old things and they look really old and ugly, but then they sand off the old scratches and bumps and stains, and cover it with new paint and make it look beautiful again.

They also sell paints there so you can paint you own old furniture if you want.

They also have pretty knicknacks and things to make your house look pretty.

You could also come and sit on 

"The Porch" and "Sit, Relax, and Gossip", although Mommie said gossip is not a good idea...just talk and visit and laugh.  LOL.

"Be Our Guest"

Oh, look who I found working in the storage room!  Auntie Sherrie came today to help clean and get things better organized.  Auntie Rose is still working part time at her other job, so she couldn't come today, but she will be there every day she can be and hopefully full time sometime soon.

Looky at this neat pillow.  I like what it says:

"Family is everything"

This looks like a nice little spot to sit down and have a cup of tea...

This neat old "Butler's Desk" is behind the counter. I don't know if they want to sell it or not because they use it and it is an antique, but isn't it neat?

This little sign sits on top of it, and I think it is a good message to anyone thinking about making a change or doing something special...instead of being afraid to try something new...

"be afraid not to try"

My brother Benton and sister Auntie Rose were kind of afraid to try and do this, but they prayed to God and asked Him to guide them, and He showed them the way.  And so far He has been blessing this new adventure very wonderfully.  Mommie said that sometimes we might miss out on special blessings because we are too afraid to even try.  But when we put our faith in God, He will not lead us astray, and He will show us the way.  That doesn't mean you won't have to work hard or that everything will be easy, but He will help you and give you the wisdom and strength you need to do what needs to be done.

I think those are "oyster shells" on those plates, although Mommie said they are replicas made out of ceramics.  She said oyster shells are kind of ugly in the wild, but when you find one, you might be blessed to discover a beautiful and valuable pearl inside. But first you have search for it and have faith to believe and also to open the shell and see what God may have in store for you. 

Matthew7:7-11

7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!

This little sign says

"It is rain that grows flowers, not thunder".

Perhaps good things happen through the gentle rain of God's grace and blessings.

Yes, I think my brother Benton and my Auntie Rose feel like what this verse says:

Oh, and by the way, that cute little birdie above came from their store! Isn't it cute? She's wearing her spring bonnet.

It was a very fun visit to Dixie Cottage today. And afterwards Mommie and Daddy and I went to eat lunch at this place:

It was yummy!

Yes, I'd would say 

"The Lord has done great things for ALL of US, 

and we are filled with joy!"

Until next time,

God bless you all and be filled with joy!

Love,

Lily Grace

Oh, Mommie wanted me to show you how all of the amaryllis flowers are blooming now!

Aren't they beautiful???

God is so good!!

 

Friday Foto Friends with Lily Grace

Good Morning Friday Foto Friends!  I have some fun "fotos" to show you today!

Mommie and Daddy needed to go to the city to do some shopping yesterday, and so on the way we passed this little cattle ranch place, and I cried out, "Oh Look, Daddy! The cows are where we can see them! Can we stop please and look at them?"  And my Daddy is so sweet, he actually pulled off the road and stopped so Mommie and I could get out and get a closer look!

This young brown and white cow was very curious about us, and stood looking very curiously at me.

Some of the other cows also noticed and stood at attention looking at me as well...

I waved at the brown and white cow, and he/or she? kept really staring at me...

Daddy said we needed to get going, but I wanted to see the pretty wild flowers alongside the road first. Mommie said they are wild phlox...not fox, phlox! They are so pretty, but we didn't pick any. And then we got back in the car and were ready to go when all of a sudden the brown and white cow starting hurrying over toward the fence:

Here he comes, getting closer and closer:

Maybe he thought we had some food for him because he came right up to the fence. 

I was kind of glad we were safe in the car, because he was so close!

And then something really strange started happening.  All those other cows starting hurrying over to where the brown cow was! Look at those funny hump-back cows! I wonder if they are part camel? Mommie said no, they are something called "Brahma Bulls", and they don't look very happy.

That great big white humpy back cow went right over in front of Mr. Brown cow and got between him and the fence and kind of pushed him back away from the fence...

Then he kind of "herded" him around and got him going back away from the fence and into the direction of the other cows. Maybe he was the guardian bull and he was trying to protect the younger brown cow (he's a bull too, I think) from us people looking at him.

Mommie said that is kind of where we get the term "bully"...the bigger bull will push the younger bulls around when they don't like what they are doing.

Anyway, we stayed in the car with the window rolled down so we could see what was going on, but Mommie and Daddy said we were better off not being too close because these bulls were getting kind of "ag-gres-sive" and pushy.

So as we started to drive away they stood and watched us and made sure we weren't coming any closer.

And Mr. Brown bull wasn't anywhere near the fence anymore.  So all's well that ends well.  

Down the road a little further were some baby cows. I wanted to stop again and see them, but Daddy said not right then because we had things to do. He said maybe on the way home, but on the way home the baby cows and all the other cows had moved back to another pasture away from the road and we couldn't see them. So maybe next time!  But wasn't that exciting?  I thought so!!

So when we got home Mommie and I went out into the back yard to fill up the bird feeders and watch the birds for a while.  Someone told Mommie that if you stand outside the Bluebird house (not too close), and talk nicely to them a little while every day, they will get curious and come out and see you.

So Mommie and I stood a little ways away and talked to the bluebirds. We made up a little song that we sang to them over and over for a few minutes, and then Mommie said she thought the bluebirds weren't in the house but that they were in the trees waiting for us to leave so they could go back inside the house.

So we sat down in the chair and waited, and I talked to Bobby the Squirrel for a few minutes while we waited for the bluebirds to come back.

Sure enough, Mrs. Bluebird came flying back to the house with a mouth full of sticks and stuff for her nest. She does that a lot. I wonder how big that nest is,  and surely there must be some eggs in her nest by now?

We sat there still singing our little song to the bluebirds, and she stuck her head back out and looked at us and then she flew away again. She is a very busy Mrs. Bluebird. I hope she liked our song. Mommie said she needs to try and remember what it was today so we can sing it again, but because she just made it up she can't remember how it went today...so maybe we will have to make up a new song. Maybe I should write it down so Mommie won't forget it this time!

So now...back to St. Patrick's Day that is coming up and my need to wear something green:

Will this do?  Ha Ha! Mommie found this big green bowtie when they went to the Dollar Tree, and she said it would have to do for now until she can come up with something better. I think it is very pretty and sparkly, but it is a bit big for me.  But at least no one would dare pinch me if I wear this!

Mommie said it is time to decorate a little for  March, and so she wanted to bring out two of my new friends...they are old friends to Mommie. She has had these two lovely little girls since she was young, but actually not that long ago. Her Mommy (my Grandma Dorothea) gave them to her when she had already gotten big and married and had children already. Mommie said the one on the left is Miss Ireland, and the one on the right is Miss Scotland.  Mommie says that her Mommy was "Scotch-Irish", and so these two little girls would be from places where our ancestors came from! Since St. Patrick's Day is an Irish holiday, we thought they would be fun to enjoy for this month. I am glad they are already wearing green so they won't have to worry about getting pinched!

Mommie said when she was in the Dollar Tree she found these pretty "Prayer Cards", and they were so nice she bought some to give away too. There are 20 very lovely cards in the box, each one with a Bible verse that can also be said as a prayer. What a nice gift for a $1.00!

She also found that "grateful and blessed" sign at the Dollar Tree!  All for a dollar! 

And Mommie said "The Lord HAS done great things for (us), and we ARE filled with joy!"

I hope you have enJOYed this little story today and all my special pictures.

I can't wait to see YOUR "Friday Fotos" today.

Have a happy day, and be filled with JOY!

Love,

Lily Grace

xoxoxoxoxo