chilly/chili/chile

I LOVE this cooler weather! Autumn and winter are definitely my favorite seasons. I love to awaken each morning to cold dew and frost on the grass. The hues of red, yellow, and orange in the trees are absolutely breathtaking. It makes walking the dog in the morning so much more enjoyable!
Kirk & I will be joining my dad for a trip down to Mississippi to visit my mom's family this weekend. My grandmother's brother and sister-in-law, Uncle Davis & Aunt Jean, are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this Saturday. We're looking forward to a lovely drive and, of course, our usual stop at the White Trolley Cafe for a slugburger. mmmmmmm....

R I P

December 2005 - October 2007

So ... the unthinkable occurred this weekend. I washed and dried Kirk's iPod. I know, I know .. you must be thinking "How on earth could she have done this?!?!" I ALWAYS check all of our pants pockets when I'm sorting the clothes, but I just never thought to check inside the breast pocket of his dress shirt. When we heard a clunking noise coming from the dryer, I immediately asked him, "Do you know where your iPod is?" It was at that moment that the feeling of dread overwhelmed us both. We retrieved it from the dryer and attempted to get it to come back on. It did appear that the screen was functioning again momentarily, but alas, it is dead. I must say that Kirk handled it very well. He's so understanding and patient. I love those attributes, and I love him! I think you can guess what's on the top of his Christmas list now.

nice weekend !

Well, I finally managed to initiate Kirk into the Horner family camping tradition this weekend. It was wonderful. We met my parents down at the Greasy Creek site in the Parksville Campground. It's become one of our favorite camping spots. We even brought along the dog, but I dont know if we'll do that again. She didn't exactly enjoy being on the leash the entire time. The temperatures were great during the day, but at night that windy 40 degree chill hit hard inside the tent. Next time we'll bring more blankets, but overall, we really enjoyed ourselves.

One of the major highlights of our trip was that Mom was finally able to teach me how to crochet! I've been wanting to learn for a while, so I was thankful that she sat by the campfire with me and shared her impressive skills. I've already started on a little afghan since we got home. It's great fun!

Yesterday, Kirk & I sang a duet at church. One of his all-time favorite songs is "The Old Gospel Ship" so, we sang it together. There were so many people who came to us after service with lots of compliments and big grins on their faces. They were so pleased that we had pulled out such a classic hymn to sing. It made us feel great.

Yesterday afternoon, we were treated to an enormous Mexican feast provided by our moms. They had both prepared various dishes that morning for Sunday dinner. When we discovered what they each had made, we decided to have them join their forces for us to all eat together. It was great! The menu consisted of beef & bean burritos, chicken enchiladas, spanish rice, black bean tortilla soup, homemade salsa & guacamole, and chocolate cake with ice cream for dessert. Needless to say, it was fantastic!

work, work, work

I'll just completely avoid the subject of how long it's been since I blogged and move right on into the celebration of Kirk's new job! He is now an apprentice electrician. He's really been enjoying learning this new trade. He should be able to complete his certification/licensure within 1 year. We are thrilled that he works the same schedule as me during the days with weekends off as well. Not to mention the wages are much more competitive. It's great!

Speaking of work, we are absolutely addicted to "The Office" (the U.S. version). I know the original British version is cleverly hilarious too, but we just relate so much more to the other. We've been getting seasons of it from Netflix.

We were scheduled to go camping this weekend, but the weather forecast is not looking favorable at all [insert thundershowers here]. We'll probably just postpone until next weekend. Maybe by then the temperatures will have dropped a little more into the autumn range and some colorful leaves might be peeking out from the forests.

Well, that's all for now. Maybe it won't be several months before I blog again!

accent

What American accent do you have? Your Result: The Midland   "You have a Midland accent" is just another way of saying "you don't have an accent." You probably are from the Midland (Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and Missouri) but then for all we know you could be from Florida or Charleston or one of those big southern cities like Atlanta or Dallas. You have a good voice for TV and radio.
The South
The West
Philadelphia
Boston
The Inland North
North Central
The Northeast
What American accent do you have? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

too long

Well, you know it's been too long since your last post when it takes a couple tries to remember your password to log on to your blog. But I digress ... life is such a fascinating journey. I feel like no matter what my circumstances each day when I awake, I am excited about seeing what that day is going to have in store for me. The bumps, bruises, twists, and turns all have some new appeal to me that they didn't have before. I am blessed.

Kirk is the absolute most wonderful husband in the universe. He makes me feel joy and satisfaction in ways I didn't know were possible. Our voracious appetites for more of our Abba Father in our lives recently has drawn us even closer to each other. It's so cool!

Easter is so exciting. I'd love to participate in an egg hunt. I remember how excited I used to be when Mom would let us boil eggs and dip them in the food coloring. The odor was very distinct, and not exactly pleasant, but it was so much fun! Maybe Kirk & I will make some and hide a bunch out in the yard, then go crazy hunting them!

Above all else, may we be grateful to God for a Saviour who died and arose for us all.

bird

I went to the grocery store this week to pick up a few items and decided to stop by the deli to purchase some delicious cajun roast beef for sandwiches. While I was waiting for them to slice the meat, I glanced down to the floor and standing right next to me was a little bird. His head was turned up toward the large case full of gourmet cheeses as if he were contemplating which one to buy. His tiny feet then clumsily scampered on the cold tile floor over to the cake display at the bakery to admire the luscious cakes. Then he used his wings to flutter away toward the produce section. It made me smile.

I was instantly reminded of a line from a favorite movie of mine where the female character describes observing a butterfly on the subway who gets on and off the train as if it actually had a conscious purpose and desired destination for its movements. Sometimes I wonder if God looks down upon us like little birds or butterflies. We flutter around incessantly searching for "something," some destination or place where we think we should be, when really we need to be relying more heavily upon Him to be guiding our tiny footsteps across the face of this planet we call home. It is my prayer today that the mind of Christ will be so alive within me that I feel His hand gently directing my delicate little "wings" along this journey called life.