Oooooooooh!!

Aaaaaahhhhhhh!!!!

Wooooooooooooowwww!!

No, your calendar is not wrong. It's not the 4th of July.

Nor is it Chinese New Year.

But, it IS a special day for me today...

It's the ONE YEAR anniversary of my blog!!

My blog's 1 year birthday!!

I am celebrating today, a year of (& 365 posts celebrating!) ...

• God's amazing grace
• opening our eyes to see God's hand and HEART in the details of daily life
• learning to hear His whispers of love in the midst of a shouting world
• encouraging words and heart-felt comments left on my blog
• amazing people who have visited me here
• new friendships with cool people from around the world
• God's incredible faithfulness
• His unbelievable unrelenting inexplicable love for you and me!
• finding things in daily life for which to be grateful!

For all of this, and for all of you who have been here with me...

I am incredibly GRATEFUL!!

Thanks for joining me in this HEART ROCK LIFE!!

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. ~Ephesians 3:20-21

independence day

This morning, in celebration of Independence Day, I decided to read the words to several patriotic songs. So many of them are so very good--full of love for country and love for God! Contrary to what many liberal folks would have us to believe, our nation truly was built on the foundation of God Himself... and His principles. I was especially moved today by the last verse of the Star Spangled Banner, our national anthem. I had never heard this verse before...

The Star Spangled Banner (final verse)

~Francis Scott Key

O! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand

Between their loved home and the war's desolation!

Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land

Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.

Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,

And this be our motto: 'In God is our trust.'

And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave

O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Let us never forget to praise Him Who is the very Power that made our nation and has preserved it thus far! If we are to stand strong as a nation, we must continue to proclaim--"In God is our trust."

Dear Father... thank You for our country! Thank You for our freedoms! Thank You that in You we may place our trust!

God Bless America!!

happy birthday to ME!!

Yes, today is my birthday!! Normally, I wouldn't announce it so boldly, but hey, why not?!? : ) I'm not going to tell you how old I am, but I did have two kids last night convinced I was only 23! (I'll let you in on a secret... I'm NOT!) Then I told them I was 33. Of course, they thought I was OLD at that age...so, when I told them my real age, they were flabbergasted! They said they didn't believe I could be that old--I didn't seem like it (I'm sure it's my child-like enjoyment of the little things in life...not because I'm immature or anything!)... so, we agreed that I would stay at 33. : ) I'm ok with that.

I just wanted to share with you a couple of my blessings today...

This photo was sent to me this morning by a friend who saw this gas station sign all the way up in Redding, CA!! How DID they know it was my birthday today?!?!? I'm shocked but honored... and feeling very loved!

A Shakespeare quote I have liked and which I posted on my Facebook profile today: “There was a star danced, and under that was I born.” (from Much Ado About Nothing)

A good friend gave me a birthday card with a line she wrote which said:

"It was not under a dancing star, but Heaven's smile, that you were born."

Thank you, my friend... what joy that brings to my heart and my day!


And, you know how wonderful it is when you find a greeting card that actually says something so appropriate to the person-- so RIGHT for the one to whom you're sending it? Well, I received a birthday card from my mom (love you, Mom!), and on the front of the card it said:

"May the love of God and the beauty of nature fill your heart with joy and happiness."

How perfect is that for me?! It's what this whole blog is all about... and what I want my heart-rock-life to be about-- finding my heart filled with the joy and happiness of knowing and seeing the amazing love of God through the beauty of nature and the things of everyday life!

And, lastly for now... my two favorite birthday cards this year:

...this (above) from my friend Sean, age 9... [by the way, there is a "y" on the end of Happy but it was cut off by the scanner]. This also had a baggie of candies stapled to it and a Hershey's kiss taped on as well.

...this (below) from my friend Bryan, age 7...
(the piece of tape on the left was holding a mini slinky which refused to be scanned!)

And... to all of you, my blog friends, thank you for taking the time to read my blog and to leave me such lovely and encouraging comments! I appreciate you so very much--you bring joy to my heart!