In the Good Ol' Summertime

Hey there, Hi there, Ho there!

Seems like the right kind of greeting for the 58th Birthday of Disneyland! Everyday is a day that I'm wishing I were in Disneyland. Today, in fact, I'm wearing a shirt from my most recent trip in April. It tends to give me an extra smile for the people I see all day.

Well, it's been a loooooooooooooong time since I popped onto "The Adventures of Sparkle Girl" blog.  The last time I was here, I decided I didn't know anything about blogging, so I wasn't qualified to be a blogger. 

I'm older and wiser now.  I still don't know anything about blogging, but don't really care if I know what I'm doing.  It's a great outlet for me to be a little creative without getting out my fabric scraps, glue, buttons, and other "crafty" items.  So, like it or not.... I'm back. 

A lot has changed since I was here, and I'm not even going to give you a list.  However, I will tell you what has NOT changed. I still love weekend getaways with my husband of 5 years! I still love antiques, rusty old things, old books with red covers, taking photos, being crafty, and my dear friends. 

The heat has been awful this summer, but the last two days have been tolerable, with a nice breeze at night that lasts 'til morning. <<>>.  Pure delight.  It's going to crank up to 108 again this weekend, so we are outta here! I've got a lot to do before we go, so I guess I'll say "see ya real soon" as that famous Mouse would say.

Stay cool, be kind, and
May your day be filled with Sparkle, from the inside out!

Baffled

I Peter 2:11-12
"Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among them that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us."

When was the last time you caused a good eyebrow raise from someone you know? Do you handle yourself in such a way that others are baffled by your behaviour? Now, I'm not talking about dancing on a table top during a Cinco de Mayo party, or "signalling" with a certain finger when you get cut off in traffic. Rather, are your actions toward others so different than what our society is accustomed to that your friends or co-workers don't understand you at all?

It seems like displaying kindnesses and acting as Christ would want me to has caused some confusion for those around me this week. Oddly enough, both circumstances have to do with my attitude toward my former husband. You know, even though I was badly hurt by the events that led to our divorce nearly 10 years ago, I try to treat him with a fair amount of courtesy and kindness. Together we are trying to navigate the parenting of our 3 teenage children, see each other several times a week, and attend sporting events, school functions and more with our kiddos.

Well, last week he broke his ankle at a family church event with our kids. A few days later, I heard him and his wife discussing that they might need to rent a wheelchair for him to use at work since he was supposed to keep the weight off of his foot. I knew my boss owned a good wheelchair that was just collecting dust in our office, so I asked her if I could borrow it for awhile. When she wanted to know why, I told her it was for my ex husband, who had broken his ankle. She was speechless. She was stunned. All I could think at this point was, "Yep, that's Jesus... not me!" Only through the love that Christ shows me on a daily basis, could I begin to find the grace to try and be helpful to my kids' dad.

Then there was the trip to the local ice cream palace. Yep, it's really called "Brock's Ice Cream Palace". Literally cool, huh? So I took my wonderful husband and my steppies, Thomas and Megan, to Brock's for a treat last week. While we were there, I picked up a half gallon of Cookies and Cream. When we got back into the car, Kevin asked me what the half gallon of ice cream was for and I told him that I was going to take it by the kids' dad's house as a get well token for his broken ankle. Again silence. I even got a raised eyebrow and funny look. "Why?"
It almost gave me a chuckle. So the question I turn to you is "Why not?".

Aren't these examples of what true forgiveness is about? Have we forgotten that we are called to stand out in this world? To be different... to make waves with our positive behaviour... to baffle those around us with our grace, kindness, love, generosity, patience, and faith? I encourage you to get on with the confusion. Let people ask you "Why". And when they do, give them THE ANSWER! Speak the truth and let them hear the transforming good news of JESUS!

May your day be filled with Sparkle, from the inside out!

Now that I've got you alone...

Two years ago tonight, while dining at Ruby Tuesday, my dear Kevin took me by the hand and said, "Now that I've got you alone... Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

Little did he know that I had a sneaking suspicion as to why we were meeting at the same restaurant where we held our first "meeting" almost a year before. Just before dinner I had purchased a sign at a party supply store that said "Just Engaged!" He may have been the one doing the asking, but I was already one step ahead of him.

Of course I said yes, and couldn't stop grinning from ear to ear. And two years later, I still have the same grin plastered to my face every time I look at him. Ok, so not every time... but 99% of the time! Like tonight. He had told me last week that he had ordered me something from ebay, and I sneakily talked him into letting me open it tonight. It was one of the best gifts I've ever received... a 1976 "Happy Days" board game just like the original one I loved in 1976!

I have to tell you... I was madly in love with "Happy Days". Not with Fonzie, or Richie or even Potsie (although how funny that I am now married to a guy who was nicknamed Pottsey in high school!) but I loved the show itself. Everything about it. Mrs. Cunningham's perfect hair and outfits, bratty Joanie, and of course Pinky Tuscadero. Naturally, I played my board game all of the time with my neighborhood friends. It was the first thing I would suggest when we were hanging out at my house. "Wanna play Happy Days?" And I always got the blue marker (to match my eyes).

So, this weekend when we take a little getaway trip to San Francisco to celebrate our anniversary on the 30th (yep... we were only engaged for 11 days!) I am packing the Happy Days game along. I think it will make a great addition to a picnic or lazy afternoon in the park. What a fun way to make new memories together and for me to share something so nostalgic to me, with someone who means the world to me!

May your day be filled with Sparkle, from the inside out!

The Best Laid Plans

I am a planner. I like to plan gatherings, outings, and make to do lists. I love my little pocket calendar, and cooking up a scheme to do something fun. It seems like at this time every year, I am working on big plans. In 2008, I was knee deep in planning my wedding and reception. Last year, all five our children were taking big trips all over the globe at different points throughout the summer. This year, our oldest is graduating from Yuba City High School and going to college in the fall in addition to our first ever family road trip to Ohio and Indiana to visit my husband's family.

Yesterday I began jotting down all of the unfinished projects or things that needed to be done by the end of the summer. I almost flipped out. The list covered the front and back of a sheet of paper. On the list were several reminders of lists that needed to be made. I am a very visual person, so just having the items down on paper and out of my brain is a big help. But now I have to do something with these lists. So where do I start? At the top? The most urgent? The easiest? I guess a little of all of them. I have already marked off and rid myself of six items from my list. What a great feeling!

Do you know who else is a planner? My gracious Lord Jesus is a planner too! He has a master plan of salvation that leads to a forever life of fellowship with Him once this life on earth is through. It's not just a "Plan B" plan either! It's the whole reason we were created in the first place. He has been working on all of the arrangements with tender loving care since before time began. Can you imagine anything other than perfection with all of that effort invested? I can hardly wait for the celebrations to begin when He calls me Home.

Until then, though, He hardly leaves us without a plan for our time here on earth. My favorite verse in the Word is Jeremiah 29:11. In fact, I have an inspired tattoo to remind me that I am not alone here...

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

So, no matter what challenges you are facing, HE is ready, willing, and able to show you the plans He has delicately laid out for you. They are great plans because He loves you and wants to show you just how much!

May your day be filled with Sparkle, from the inside out!

Disney Music Makes Me Smile

My friend Angel is amused by me. Whenever I start singing a verse from a Disney song, she stops, smiles and I can see her relax before my very eyes. She thinks it's fun that I know so many songs from the world of Disney, both old and new. Sometimes she asks me to sing her one when she is having a rough day and she is quick to remind me that her "friend Penny knows ALL the Disney songs and she sings them out loud when she goes to Disneyland." This is true. Angel and I have been to "Our Land" several times together and I do sing them... loudly and proudly when I am there.

This love of Disney music started when I was really young. My mom was the secretary for our church, so I spent a lot of time playing in the Sunday School classrooms which also doubled as rooms for the small private school our church operated. One of the teachers had a great collection of Disney soundtrack records that she allowed me to play, and play them I did! Every day during the long summer months, I played album after album while I acted out scenes and sang at the top of my lungs. I knew every beat, every skip and scratch of the record, and inflection of voice... and still do. In those classrooms I was Mary Poppins, Snow White, and Cinderella singing with the little birdies.

When I became a mother, I found some Disney Sing-a-Long video tapes for my kids to watch and together we discovered quite a few obscure songs and fell in love with the classics all over again. They were timeless and wonderful and I loved them still. I picked up several different boxed CD sets and played them often. A couple of years ago I discovered a podcast on iTunes that plays the songs and sounds of the Disney Parks. "A Window to the Magic" showcases the sounds of the Disneyland rides as well as features all music episodes. I play them on my computer at work quite a bit, and have been known to announce to Angel that I am "now on the Jungle Cruise" or "walking down Main Street".

I can't visit the parks as often I like, due to time and finances, but I can take a virtual trip anytime by playing some of my favorite songs or pulling up a podcast and playing one of WTTM's "Where in the Park?" games where the host will quietly enter one of the Disneyland Parks and proceed to an attraction without announcing where he is going. If you listen carefully, you will know exactly where he is based on the music, fountains, ride sounds and more. I can get my fix for free and put a smile on my face for the rest of the day! The magic of Disney is truly magical...

May your day be filled with Sparkle ( and Disney Magic ) from the inside out!

"Those Were the Days"

I received my Netflix DVD in the mail with a treasure inside. The Season I disc of the "Scarecrow and Mrs. King" TV series from the 80's. It had been two decades since Lee Stetson and Amanda King had graced my screen and I was so excited! When I popped it into the DVD player and the theme song began, I still knew every beat and scene from the intro. Ahhhh... nothing like a jog down memory lane.

Over the years I have picked up sets of shows from my childhood ranging from "The Carol Burnett Show" to "Magnum, P.I." and relished in re-living them all over again. The cleaner jokes and language, fewer innuendos ( if any ), more modest clothes, and more interesting story lines are much more entertaining than the stuff that is broadcast during prime time today. In fact, I have a hard time even naming a handful of current sitcoms or dramas that are worth our time. "Reality TV" has overcome our society with it's sensationalized overtones and fake drama and we lose sight of what is really fun to watch.

What shows were your favorites? Did you like "The Brady Bunch" or "M*A*S*H"? Do you remember maybe even learning a lesson from the shows you enjoyed so much?
If you haven't watched an older program in awhile, I recommend that you pick up a DVD of an oldie but goodie or tune in on the web on sites like www.hulu.com or the like. Sit down, take a load of stress off by laughing outloud again with the characters of days past. It is really good for the soul and would be great to share with someone from today's generation. I know that my teenagers love my set of "Welcome Back Kotter" and will watch them fairly regularly. Now tell me that isn't something that brings a smile to my face ( and theirs)!
May your day be filled with Sparkle, from the inside out!

Grandma's China

My sweet Grandma Edith loved new dishes so I guess I come by it naturally. I would change my dishes out every 6 months if it weren't so expensive or wasteful. My mom says that quite often Grandma would go to the department store, find a set of china she really liked, go home and tell Grandpa, take him back to the store, and let him pay for the whole set. As my mom was telling our family this story yesterday at Easter Dinner, I couldn't resist chiming in to my husband that they were married for 56 years, so it must have been one of the secrets to their success!

Well, whether or not the shopping pattern had anything to do with their marital longevity, I love having some of Grandma's dishes in my home. I'm not really sure why we don't use them more often. I pulled them out of the hutch yesterday on a whim and there was just something wonderful about having our ham and dinner rolls on those sweet plates with the hand painted roses and silver trim. Everything seemed to taste better on the "nice dishes" and meal time was really enjoyable. Some people might say it isn't wise to let kids use such tableware, but why not? When will they ever learn to appreciate nice things if they aren't taught to? After all, the dishes are just things... things that will chip, break or become mismatched over time. Aren't they meant to be used, to be loved, and be a part of our special days and memories? I think they are.

Do you have special dishes or other family heirlooms that you forget to use and make a part of your family's memories? I know that once I started looking in my cupboards, I found a lot of things I don't use or appreciate anymore. Will you make an effort to incorporate them into your home and share with your children or grandchildren? Isn't that part of being a family? Sharing the stories of where things came from, the people that treasured them before us and passing on the legacy is so important for the younger generations to hear about.

What other legacy can you pass onto your children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews or other children that are special to you? Do they know YOUR story? Maybe you could share some trials and victories, funny stories, and blessings from your life with them. How about your journey of Faith? Do they know about your relationship with Jesus? What do you wish they knew about your faith? It's time to start sharing and passing on these special legacies with those we love... while we can.

May your day be filled with Sparkle, from the inside out!