Inside Out - Lisa Rugglesa thousand times I’ve failed, still your mercy remains

We finally celebrated Grandma Ruggles Birthday last week. We aren’t telling how old.

In good old Ruggles tradition, Brad made crepes for breakfast. Yummy! My girls always love it when Daddy makes the crepes. We filled them with apples, blackberries and whip cream.

Not healthy but delicious!

The girls couldn’t wait to give Grandma her presents.

We watched www.lifechurch.tv and then hung out and played with the girls.

Later in the afternoon we took Grandma and Grandpa out to dinner and did a little bit of shopping.

The girls have sure loved seeing their Grandma again!

and we had to try and get a couple family shots.

If you look at Brad’s blog, the pic he has is 3 years old. Pretty sad.

The girls couldn’t help but ham it up a bit for the camera.

We sure love our Grandma!  Happy Birthday!

I happen to think that I am married to one of the most amazing men alive! One of his talents happens to be in design.

Here is one of the shirts he designed.

If his design wins, this shirt will get printed and be available for purchase with all net proceeds going to Compassion International’s Global Food Crisis Fund. Brad won’t make any money from it, but it will help to bring food to many families in need.

The contest ends tomorrow, so be sure to vote today!

Emily is my Little Chef, she loves to work in the kitchen with me.

And while I enjoy the bonding we get from cooking together. It can be very messy.

Last week we made Minestrone Soup and here is what it looked like when we finished.

Sometimes I find myself thinking, is this really worth the mess? But then my heart responds with a loud YES!

It is worth having to completely scrub down the stove, step on food, mop the floor, trip over all the extra chairs and steps stools and have it take twice as long to complete dinner.

I’m able to spend precious time with Emily, teaching her something she loves! I know I will look back one day and wonder where the time went.

I can confidently say, I will not regret the messes made.

I’m thankful I’m able to spend precious time with my girls!

but I did need a little break from blogging. Writing has never been a strong point for me but I have really had fun with blogging.

This past week I found myself at a loss for what I would write. I couldn’t really come up with anything. Every morning I felt bad that I didn’t get a post up. So, I have decided that when my blog begins to feel like pressure and loses the fun, I will take a break. I will be back on Monday.

See you all then!

5 Benefits to Fasting

1. Fasting actually allows harmful toxins to be removed from your body
2. Fasting is one of the best way to get your body into a natural healing process
3. When fasting your body will actually decompose and burn those cells that are diseased, damaged or dead
4. Fasting 3 days a month can increase your life-span by 5 to 7 years
5. Weight Loss

(excerpt from “How to Feel Great all the Time” by Valerie Saxon)

I have had quite a few questions regarding fasting. If you are interested in knowing more there is an excellent book called. “How to Feel Great all the Time” by Valerie Saxon. I highly suggest this book before you start any fasting. She gives the benefits and how to do it safely.

Yesterday, I started riding Chloe to school on a bike. I figured, I will drop her off and continue on for some great exercise. About half way through the bike ride, I notice that the seat was getting extremely uncomfortable. Went home, complained a little bit and went on with my day.

Fast forward to this morning, I get on the bike and I can’t even sit on the thing. Who’s idea was it to come up with a sliver of a bike seat?

Seriously!

Did they look at the rear end of the human being before making them? We were not made to sit on this thing going over bumps and rough roads!

What were they thinking? There is no cushion. I know I have plenty of my own, but it isn’t enough!

Today, I biked for 25 mins. switching between standing up and having half a cheek on the seat. I found that was more comfortable.

As I was looking for a new seat (a big padded Grandma one) I found some interesting ones.

Who wants to sit on a dog. It would look like he is sniffing your hiney!

These two are cousins, the older one is my niece Lindsay and the younger, my little “sweet pea Emily.” They are both the second born in their family.

Lindsay was quite the little spit fire when she was a kid. She gave everyone a run for their money and at times got into lots of mischief! I also remember a bit of an ornery streak. Why does she give me hope? She gives me hope because my little Emily is a LOT like Lindsay use to be! There are days I shake my head and wonder what is in Em’s mind.

Lindsay came to spend 10 days with us and they were awesome! She is an amazing girl with dreams bigger than most people! She is spirited and determined to find out who she was created to be. She loves people, loves experiencing new things but is also comfortable in her own skin.

Emily will not be exactly like Lindsay. She will have her own journey and life. But, it is neat to see how a pesky little girl can develop into an amazing young woman!

Saturday morning Brad and I woke the girls up and went to the Farmers Market.

I love the Farmers Market! There are so many people milling around looking for their produce for the week. So much to choose from: home baked goods,local winery’s, herbs, fresh salsas, and butter spreads, the local creamery brings their cheese, milk and yogurt. It is amazing!

As I stand in line, most people are in a great mood and love to talk while waiting.

The corn from this stand was AMAZING! The best Brad and I have had this year. So sweet and delicious!

Did I mention they have lots of samples…..

and freshly made noodles….

and live music, usually folk or bluegrass which I don’t normally love, but it just fits the mood here….

and here we have the fresh vegi’s and yogurt we brought home…..

sweet pea Emily helping to wash and dry the tomatoes…..

What do you love about where you live?

We had a great time camping last weekend with Brad’s brother Jason and his wife April. April used to be a camp counselor and shared a recipe with us.

The kids loved it!

Cut a wedge out of a Banana and fill it with Peanut Butter.

Add small marshmallows and mini chocolate chips. Wrap in tin foil, put in the coals and let it cook 5-10 mins. Then enjoy a yummy banana treat.

Hmmmm….. What can I do to liven things up around here?

Look at me, aren’t I so adorable?

Then again, don’t you dare cross me…….

If you get to bored, I will turn into the class clown and things will get interesting!

Who you lookin at!

Aww shucks, I’m just messing with you all, seriously look at this face. So sweet!

THATS MY GIRL!!!