A NEW TITLE

Hi, everyone! Yes, you are on the blog that used to be "LORI'S BLOG!" I hope you noticed the new title today! For many days, I've been pondering changing the name of my blog. I wanted to include something unique and catchy since so many of the wonderful blogs I follow have cute, descriptive names.

I finally landed on "FILIGREE FROM FIELDS AND FENCES" in a moment of inspiration during one of my recent walks. Please let me explain. As you know, "FIELDS AND FENCES" will now be the title of my first book series with the addition of the sequels. Ok, you may say, but what about "Filigree?" I am a very complex person, enjoying a number of unusual artistic pursuits in needlework and etc. I have always loved filigree in jewelry. Filigree is an object of lacelike complexity. So much of my life is wrapped around the arts of lacemaking, needlework, design. I love intricate designs in clothing, furniture, dishes, and so forth. It seemed that "filigree" would describe my writing as well and therefore be appropriate to the many varied thoughts that intertwine on my blog posts. So, "FILIGREE FROM FIELDS AND FENCES" sort of describes the country thoughts that I post. I hope you like it!

Hopefully by tomorrow, I'll have more interesting pictures to post of the "green dress" progress!

As Christians we can be so thankful that in Jesus our "title" has changed. Once sinners, we are now born again with a new identity! Isn't that wonderful?! Ponder this verse from 2 Corinthians 5:21..."For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." Isn't that great news? My identity has totally changed since I became a Christian. Now I can be identified with the righteousness of God because of being "in Him," a follower of Jesus! Jesus is righteous and His sacrifice covers me! What a great transfer! So today to announce the new blog title, I wanted to encourage my friends to think about what Jesus will do for you--give you a new title! Blessings, LORI

THANKSGIVING CELEBRATION

Lace on the line, linens on the lawn, our Thanksgiving celebration is history for another year! We all got together to celebrate Thanksgiving on Saturday. After dinner I washed the tablecloth and linen napkins. It was a really nice, sunny, breezy day for drying! As you know I love to dry white linen on the grass--a great natural whitening process!

Mark 9:3 His clothes became shining, exceedingly white like snow, such as no launderer on earth can whiten them.

Revelation 1:5"...to Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood.
Isn't it great to know that our sins can be forgiven and we can be washed as white as snow by the blood of Jesus?!

The center picture is our dining room table all set for dinner.

Do you like the looks of those pies? We are a pie-baking family. Clint's grandma was quite a pie baking lady and we love to still use her old recipes. The two cream pies, chocolate and butterscotch, were from her recipes! The chocolate is always the first to go! Blessings, LORI

WELCOME TO MY SEWING ROOM!

SHE IS NOT AFRAID OF SNOW FOR HER HOUSEHOLD, FOR ALL HER HOUSEHOLD IS CLOTHED WITH SCARLET. Proverbs 31:21

Carrie worked diligently for the rest of the afternoon putting the finishing touches on her new green velveteen dress she was making for winter. from "The Fields of May"


(Take a look at the pictures at the bottom of the page to see what I did on my Thanksgiving day!)


Welcome to my sewing room! Today I started a dress I've had in my 'design mind' for quite some time--ever since I wrote "The Fields of May," to be exact. I have wanted to make myself a dress similar to the one Carrie wore to the Christmas banquet in the book. Here is my attempt. This first picture is my dressmaker's dummy modeling the finished bodice over her "regular dress!"

The second picture is of the bodice back under construction. My main sewing machine sits by the window. It's great that I can look out while working. It keeps me from feeling closed in. Mom found this wonderful old machine for about $25 at Goodwill. It is green and matches the room!

In the third picture you can see the pattern laid out on the fabric waiting to be cut. I re-drew the pattern altering both the size and the style. Tricky, indeed. So far all is well. I cut the bodice pieces apart and added a "princess line" that the pattern didn't have plus a rounded hemline in the back bodice.

The final picture is the pattern that I made with muslin test pieces. Last summer I got a nice, large piece of muslin at a garage sale for 50cents. I knew right then that it would serve me well as a cheap piece of cloth for practice garmetns. The first muslin I made last night didn't fit right and so I had to re-draw the pattern today. Thankfully I have a huge roll of newsprint paper that I use for such things.

I hope you like my sewing room. It used to be JT's bedroom before he got married and moved out! As you can see, I turned it into what looks like a Victorian ladies' dress shop. He was horrified at first that I made it so feminine! I got very inexpensive wallpaper and border then added all the antiques. Notice the really ornate lamp behind the dummy? They were a gift that was given to me. I love them. There are two and they have dimmer switches. They are absolutely gorgeous when lit. The black chair by the sewing maching was a family heirloom brought from Pennsylvania with some of my family that first settled in Michigan. My grandma gave it to me when I was just a teen. The fan behind the dressmaker's dummy is from an auction as well as the antique wedding picture. Our old dining room table serves as my cutting table. Today being Thanksgiving, one thing I'm thankful for is my very adequate sewing room. It hasn't always been this way and I really appreciate a whole room for fabric pursuits!!!! Hope you had a great holiday, Blessings, LORI

BLESSED BREADMAKING!

BLESSED SHALL BE YOUR BASKET AND YOUR KNEADING BOWL Deuteronomy 28:5"She was putting the finishing touches on a green salad when the oven timer went off, alerting her that the dinner rolls were done. She opened the oven door and peered in at the pans of crusty, golden buns looking like amber bubbles, their beckoning aroma wafting through the cherry kitchen. She removed the pans from the oven and set them on the counter to cool. She rubbed a generous portion of butter over the tops and let its golden sweetness drip down over their sides." from "The Fields of May"

How are you doing today? I guess you can easily see how I spent my day! Of course, that wasn't all. The breadmaking occurred between laundry, interneting, and cleaning. These rolls are for our Thanksgiving celebration. I'll freeze them until our get-together on Saturday. I've used this recipe for years. We made probably about 500 of them for JT and Kori's wedding a few years ago. Talk about a job! They are made from oatmeal and are a family favorite. Today I accidentally doubled the batch and now we'll have plenty to spare! Oh, well!

Did you notice the verse I included at the top of today's post? I like this and the many other blessing verses listed in Deuteronomy. It reminds me that my homemaking is blessed by God. This week while you are cleaning, cooking, baking, and preparing for Thanksgiving, Christian ladies, remember that your efforts are blessed by God! Read the entire chapter I cited and learn all about the many blessings you can enjoy. Deuteronomy is full of little nuggets of exciting truth and wonderful gems for the Bible student. (I guess that's true of all scripture, right?)

I guess there's nothing more rewarding for a Titus 2 woman (I like to think I qualify!) than breadmaking! I used to do much more of it than I do now, but I still enjoy the results! We promptly used some of the rolls for our supper, knowing there were too many for the upcoming dinner! Awww!!!

As well as breadmaking, I prepared to enjoy another of my biblical-woman style hobbies today--sewing. I was thrilled to finally get a piece of pinwale corduroy in hunter green yesterday--at half price nonetheless! I've been wanting to design a dress that appeared in "The Fields of May." It is Carrie's Christmas dress that she wore to the Blooming Hills Christmas Banquet in an early chapter of the book. I will wear it when I do speaking engagements from now on as a further promotional for the book if it turns out well. Because I am doing some "design" work to make it unique, there is always the chance that it will flop! I sure hope not! I am trying to have it done to wear for an upcoming Christmas banquet I am invited to. Today I washed the fabric to prepare it for cutting. Will feature the results later--good or bad! Stay tuned, Blessings, LORI

EMMA'S SOCKS AND SCRIPTURAL ENCOURAGEMENTS

Matthew 11:2-6 (Please read this selection)

Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: The blind see and the lame walk; the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. (Vs. 4-5)

Here's a picture of Emma's new socks! I just finished them last night. This picture is taken on my grandma's old ironing board. It sits up in what I call my "living room" in the upstairs dormer. I have little china doll dishes, a toy iron, Grandma's real old iron, lots of antique shirt collars and various other antique items displayed there. Do you like the little socks? I was really pleased with them. The pattern was from a really old book.

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I hope you took time to read the entire Bible selection that I noted today. I was reading in Matthew this morning when this passage really struck me. I was contemplating and praying about some pretty big things this morning and asking for direction. In this passage I found some interesting encouragement. John was imprisoned and facing death for his righteous stance. I'm sure he was wanting to make sure that he had perceived and discerned the Lord's commission correctly. He sent some of his disciples to ask Jesus if He was the promised one. It is surprising that Jesus did not give him a direct "yes" or "no" answer. Did you notice that? Instead Jesus listed the things that were going on in His ministry. He told the disciples to report that back to John.

I understood this to be an encouragement for John to look at the evidence and not just a report of what someone answered. I wonder if we sometimes are waiting for God to give us a sign or a word when we really need to look at the circumstances surrounding a situation. I have studied for years in the Bible and love the topic of "hearing God." I once taught a very extensive series of Sunday school lessons on the subject. One of the ways we hear and discern God's will for decisions is by the circumstances. This is not the only way or always the case, but it is one way that often happens to move us in a certain direction. It's as if Jesus was urging John to see the evidences, the results and let them speak for themselves. Also John was very much in tune with the Holy Spirit in a way that most others of his day were not. His ministry was incredible and unusual for his time. (Matthew 11:11) Jesus knew that there was coming a time for His followers when being led by the Spirit and not His personal physical presence and voice would be the norm. I believe He knew that John could already be trusted to discern the signs of the times and the deity of Jesus by the evidences and the Holy Spirit's prompting. After all John would have known from what Jesus pointed to (healings, etc.,) that this lined up with prophetic scriptures. I am sure John was well-versed in the word.

These are great thoughts to ponder as you think about how you personally make decisions and how you hear from God.

Yesterday I took "A Sturdy Fence" to the publishers! This book is a bit different than the first. The theme is similar, but with much more conflict. It still has the country flavor and simple innocence of "The Fields of May," though. Hooray! In only a short bit of time we should have a finished book to make available to readers! I started the polishing on book 3 last evening. I am feeling really good about all that!

Today is a really pretty day here and I plan to go do some winterizing on my garden before we lose this sunshine. Have a great weekend, Blessings, LORI

MORE PICTURES OF TENNESSEE

Finally, here are the rest of the pictures we promised you from Tennessee! I am a fan of "sign pictures. And of course, these signs are advertising some of my favorite things---turnip greens! Only in the south!


Here's a picture of an old barn displaying the signs that I remember so well from my first few trips to the south. I love it!

Here I am with my new spinning wheel. This quaint old barn is on the property of the place where we stay in Tennessee. Isn't it lovely? We had just come home from church and decided to take a picture of the spinning wheel on this pretty day.

Doesn't this swing and pastoral setting seem to be inviting you to relax and enjoy the late fall day? This picture was taken out near the barn where I sat spinning. This pretty pond is full of giant catfish!

Here's a picture of the famous Carnton plantation near Franklin. The story of this home coincides with the story of the battle at the Carter House in town. I posted a picture a while ago of the Carter House cat, General Cheatham, remember? The stones you see in the picture are part of a large Confederate cemetery on the grounds. The house was used for a hopsital during the battle of Franklin. The wounded were brought here and they were put in every bed, chair, couch and all the floors throughout the house awaiting operations. The surgeons worked in front of windows using doors from the rooms placed upon barrels for operating tables. The surgeries went on non-stop for 2 days. The lady of the house graciously donated all but one room for the medical needs of the moment. Some bestselling books have recently been written about her and the dedication she had to keeping the graves and information about the men buried here. As I listened to her story, I wondered how many people nowadays would have the strength of character to allow their home to be completely taken over with bleeding bodies, ruining furniture and leaving permanent stained reminders of the carnage in the floors, then spend the rest of their lives caring for the memories of the victims. Surely these few hours of battle changed the lives of this particular family forever. You can't erase those kinds of scenes from memory. The bodies of four Confederate generals were placed on the front porch for the people to pay their respects as they passed by. Such tragedy. May we all learn lessons from those gone before us.

Just one of the very beautiful roadside scenes we photographed and enjoyed during our trip. The fall color was breathtaking.

Here is a sight we never see up north. This is a tobacco barn with the year's harvest drying inside.


BLESS THE LORD O MY SOUL, AND ALL THAT IS WITHIN ME BLESS HIS HOLY NAME! Psalm 103:1

This is one of my favorite passages of scripture--Psalm 103. It speaks of the complete redemption that was secured for me by Christ. I often pray these scriptures when sickness is threatening. I command my body to line up with the words of this scripture and "bless the Lord" by remaining healthy and operating properly, since "ALL that is within me," is supposed to be a blessing to His holy name!

I hope you're having a great week and enjoyed these pics. I have been quite busy with follow-up on my mom's surgery--dr.'s appointments and such. She had a little set-back and so I'd appreciate your continued prayers.

Just thought I'd share with you what I'm reading right now. In addition to the Bible, I am reading a history of the 19th Michigan Infantry to learn more about my Gr. Gr. Grandpa's unit in the Civil War. Still working on Emma's socks and finishing the final read-through of "A Sturdy Fence." Later this week, it will be out of my hands and into the realm of publishing! Hooray! Blessings, LORI

A MICHIGAN NOVEMBER

GIRLS DRESSED TO KILL (Deer, that is)!


Welcome to November in Michigan! The opening day of the deer hunting season (gun season) fell on a Sunday this year. Instead of having the annual deer camp yesterday, our cousins hosted the event today. This is a picture of my husband's cousin, Gloria, on the left, our daughter, Rhiannon in the middle, and Abby, another cousin on the right. Don't they look cute? I am the only girl in our immediate family that doesn't hunt. Even my daughter in law got a license last year. But since she's 8 months pregnant, she is not hunting this year. We all gathered for the Deer Camp festivities in Gloria and Charlie's very comfortable pole building, complete with woodstove and bulletin boards of former hunting successes. We had a huge carry-in meal of delicious foods and lots of fun and fellowship around the table. Someone brought a venison noodle casserole that was scrumptious! I am not a venison fan, but this was enough to make me want to can some if we get a deer. Venison will be welcome to many Michigan families, especially this year. Our state is hard hit with the economic downturn, more so than many other places and this year's hunt will help many families stretch an already strained food budget.

Instead of hunting, I prefer to stay home and knit the warm items that the hunters need. Clint talked me into knitting and felting a sweater for him a few years ago. It was designed specifically for hunting. I chose a green/black wool and made a huge oversized sweater. It has a front placket with antler horn buttons. I felted it to a perfect fit for him and am still amazed that it turned out right! Felted wool is virtually element-proof! He says it's one of his best hunting garments for the very cold days.

I was thinking today about November as I took my walk. I used to really love this time of year, but for the past couple of years we have had kind of "trying" Novembers. There's been sickness and other things to deal with. I began to dread the early darkness of the time change and the increased indoor time that I used to love so much. I was reminded to try to enjoy the particular beauty of the season for what it is instead of complaining and dreading the soon-coming winter.

November in Michigan is pretty in a unique way. The sight of a faded red barn against the deep blue-gray, cloudy skies is like something from a painting. Scenes like that are abundant in my home area. Rustling cornfields and brown leaves add to the picture. The colors of nature this time of year always remind me of hand-dyed wool! The whole landscape reminds me of my favorite hobbies! It makes me want to knit. By the way, I started a pair of self-striping socks for Emma last night and they are going together rapidly. So cute and so tiny!

I got the privilege of hanging out a freshly washed load of sheets today. The cold air and stiff breeze will make them smell wonderful! This is a blessing of country life.

I received a phone call today from a friend who just finished reading "The Fields of May." She was urging me to let her know as soon as "A Sturdy Fence," and it's sequel are out. Another cousin mentioned to me today that she finished the book as well and loved it. I was thrilled. Especially since I plan to get the manuscript for "A Sturdy Fence" over to the publishers before this week is out! That was a real boost!

Today I am thanking God for the little November blessings that we enjoy. More spiritual insights and thoughts coming soon! Blessings, LORI

THOUGHTS FROM EXODUS

And Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid, Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever."

Exodus 14:13

I wanted to write a few lines since I haven't posted anything for most of the week! Isn't this a great verse? I have this one underlined in my Bible for encouragement. The Israelites were just beginning to learn about the character of the God to whom they were trusting their lives! Their backs were against the wall, so to speak. There they stood, finally out of the slavery of their former home and yet pursued by their taskmasters. The Red Sea was on one side and the pursuing Egyptian army on the other. (I encourage you to read several chapters both before and after this verse to get the whole story!)

Moses assures them to avoid fear, stand still, and watch what God will do. Moses puts all the burden of their "salvation" on God, encouraging them that they just have to rest in His provision. How often do we try to take on the roles that only God can occupy in our lives? We try to run ahead and see to all the details when in reality we are just supposed to stand still and see God accomplish our deliverance. I am so guilty of that so often. Learning to rest in the wonderful character and power of our God is a lifelong endeavor. With each new day, each new trial, each new circumstance, we have an opportunity to cast our cares on God and watch Him deliver us.

Of course, in saying that, we must also realize there is a time for us to act on His word and do the things He asks. We don't always just sit back and assume God will do everything. This is part of discerning what to do, and when to do it. There is a learning process where we discover how to rest in what He will do. The wonderful promise at the end of the verse is that they would see their enemies no more forever! It is truly a victorious occasion when we know that the various things in life that are "Red Seas" to us are once and for all behind us. Gaining victory over the things that plague us or challenge us is sweet indeed!

I hope this encourages you. Thanks for praying for our family this week. Mom got through surgery fine and we brought her home today. We are believing for a quick recovery that will see her up to her usual energetic self in record time. She had wonderful care and was attended by at least one very nice Christian nurse. It is always comforting to meet other believers when you are in challenging situations.

I tried to get a picture on here today, but the computer woudln't cooperate. I have one from the August trip to Tennessee that I want to post but will try again tomorrow. The busy week accounts for us not being able to get to a different computer to post the rest of the vacation pictures. Blessings, LORI

AN ENCOURAGING SCRIPTURE VERSE

HE BRINGS OUT THOSE WHO ARE BOUND INTO PROSPERITY; BUT THE REBELLIOUS DWELL IN A DRY LAND. PSALM 68:6
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We are having a busy week here at the Zehr house. I so much wanted to post the rest of my Tennessee pictures for you to see, but we had trouble yesterday with getting the rest on the computer. Today my daughter woke up feeling under the weather and was not able to go to the library with me to try posting them again. She is fighting a sore throat and chills. I also ended up taking my mom to visit a surgeon on the spur of the moment when I discovered she was feeling sick again this morning. This resulted in us getting a surgery scheduled for her some days before we anticipated. Later this week she is scheduled for surgery and that means that the picutres may be a few days later than I intended with all that's going on.

But in the meantime, I was reading my Bible, going through several of the scriptures that I had underlined, when I happened upon several that were specifically encouraging along the lines of economic prosperity. They are certainly timely words for this day and age and the current economic conditions that threaten folks.

Notice in the verse above, Psalm 68:6, that the Bible declares that the Lord brings out those who are bound or trapped by something. Sometimes when economic adversity threatens, you can feel like you have no way out. Maybe you have a house that you need to sell, but it remains unsold. If you could you would move where there are better jobs, but you don't have the money to make a move. Maybe you have a job, but conditions in the job are not as good as you'd like but lack of education or whatever prevents you from moving forward. Possibly you are in debt and feel "bound" by the feeling that it is overwhelming. Maybe like so many right now, you simply need a job and there are none to be found. Whatever it is, these kinds of things make a person feel hopeless. The scripture declares good news to us that the Lord brings His people out of this condition of hopelessness and into PROSPERITY!! Isn't that a great promise to stand on? He is working for my prosperity even if it looks impossible and hopeless on the "earth-end" of things.

Take heart in this scripture today. Let is minister hope and courage to you. Believe for better days. Until I can post more trip details, Blessings, LORI

Here are a few pictures from our Tennessee trip. This first one is "General Cheatham." He is the resident cat at the Carter House in Franklin. A major battle of the Civil War took place in the backyard of this home. Bullet holes are still abundant and visible in the wood siding on the backporch--right above the 'General!' Dr. Dobson had the story of this battle on his radio program some time ago. The place was fascinating. Our tour guide was a Christian and he was very knowledgeable.
This is a really "scary" picture" of me having a bad hair day! I was posing by the old fashioned soda fountain at an old drugstore in Cross Plains, TN. We had a Coke made the old way. The girl pumped the syrup into a cup, added carbonated water and stirred! Wow! What a wonderful old fashioned experience.

See me on the porch above? don't I look short? What a beautiful old mansion. This is Rippavilla. We had toured the home on our last trip. Several Confederate generals met there to strategize before the battle. This historic home is just outside Spring Hill. There is a family cemetery and beautiful gardens on the grounds. The next picture is me eating traditional southern food at the Loveless Cafe near Nashville. It is an old motel that was turned into a restaurant and gift shops. They serve wonderful food. I was eating sweet potato fries and you can see I had okra and turnip greens still on my plate!

This last picture is of my Great, Great Grandfather's grave in the New Albany national cemetery, New Albany, Indiana. This town is on the Ohio river just over into Indiana. My grandfather enlisted in January 1864 and died July 2, 1864 while walking home from the war. We don't know many more details, except that a son was born into the family after he left for war and he never saw the boy. We have my grandpa's picture in uniform and are trying diligently to locate more information about him. We suspect he died of disease because grandparents always said he had been a prisoner of war. We are unsure.

More pics hopefully on the next post. Have a blessed day! LORI

A LITTLE REPORT

I'm taking time to give you a little update and explanation! I wanted to post pics of Tennessee, but Rhiannon tells me we must go use a different computer in order to do so since her mega pixels (do I have that right?) are set much higher and etc., You get the idea! So for a few days, bear with me, please.

If you can, please pray for us in the next few days. I took my mom to the e-room this morning at 6. She thinks she had a gall bladder attack. She had one a year ago and was scheduled for surgery when other complications set in preventing it. She's been fine ever since and so did no more about it. It's been a long, ongoing problem that crops up only occasionally. Kind of an annoyance and not a real big emergency. Still it's very hard on her and I have had a tendency in the past not to handle sickness in the family real well. I rarely ever get sick myself and the thought of visiting the hospitals and dr.'s offices is uncomfortable to me. I have fought worry alot in my life and this challenges me, though I have grown greatly over the years by feeding on the Word. I believe worry is a sin since Jesus warned us against it. I have tried diligently not to allow it to have a place in my life. This situation of a family member under the weather is one of things that will attempt to set worry off in my life. I would therefore, appreciate your prayers for our wisdom and discernment as a family and my ability to live in peace and confidence. I believe according to scripture we have been given all we need for life and godliness--that includes peace and wisdom. Therefore, I am just needing to learn to draw that out from the riches of Christ in me. (Read the first 3 chapters of Ephesians for an explanation of the great power that resides in the Christian!) That's where my friends who pray come in! If you pray for me, pray that I will walk in the will of the Lord and not in fear and worry through this and any other challenges.

I also would appreciate your prayers for the last few bits of work on the publishing of the sequel to "The Fields of May," which is "A Sturdy Fence." I have a few things to do that should have been done two weeks ago. It involves computer stuff that I don't completely understand. I am therefore, behind schedule. This new development of mom's possible surgery threatens to shove that further back. Please pray for things to fall into place with the speedy release of this book.

Our church bazaar yesterday went so well. Our total proceeds were up to nearly $4000. We are thrilled in such an economic downturn to have generated that much. It's all going to missions and that is a big blessing! I helped with the baked goods. We had more than we've ever had donated. We were absolutely flooded with homemade goodies! Also we had quilts, woven rugs, and many other handmade items to sell. Some of the food included, raised doughnuts, pies, fried pies, soups, biscuits and gravy, whole hog sausage, etc. Wonderful! This morning a teen ministry group was with us and church was followed with a fellowship dinner and a pastor appreciation session! We were presented with a cake and several folks brought cards and gifts. How lovely!

I appreciate so much that you take time to ready my posts. Til, I can tell more wonderful and interesting Tennessee news.....Blessings, LORI

EXCITING NEWS ITEMS COMING SOON!

We are back and safe! Had a wonderful trip where we felt the hand of the Lord just blessing our days the whole time we were gone. So many blessings it's hard to describe. Rhiannon is gone to town to get the photos turned into "frame-able art" so I can't post any right now, but I can hardly wait! Wow! Did we get some neat pics. I can't wait to share them. Maybe you will enjoy them as well.

The lady that owns the guest house where we stayed started reading "The Fields of May" while I was there and she said she was enjoying it. She commented over and over about the cover, saying she liked the picture so well. The one gal at the publisher's can be thanked for that--she's the graphic designer that put it together. Was exciting to be able to show my cousin the new cover for the sequel while we stayed with them in KY. She loved it too. Since she's a textbook saleslady, I think that's a nice compliment.

I am so full of cornbread, biscuits, turnip greens, and okra, that it's about coming out my ears--still I could eat more! Can't get enough of the South! I love the food, the people, the sights, the landscapes, the history. Fun, fun, fun! But we're glad to be home even though it means laundry and unpacking. Will post more details later! Blessings, LORI

A WONDERFUL VACATION!

ON THE WAY HOME FROM TENNESSEE!

I am on the last leg of my journey--Kentucky. A certain sadness went on as I left one of my favorite places in the nation! We plan to be home tomorrow after we visit the Creation Museum in the morning! Will report on this most amazing trip as soon as possible! The Lord blessed us richly every day! Blessings, LORI