What fun I've been having!  Saturday my husband finished hauling all our junk off to the dump.  Yep, even stuff that he's been "saving" for a lot of years!  He finally realized that things don't save well out in the wind, rain, and sun.

After he got the utility trailer emptied we went to a wholesale nursery near here and bought shade trees (5), bushes (12), other plants, and a rose tree.  So, we dug holes and planted planted planted.

I finished off the bushes on Monday.  I had to put drip lines to them and added some more drip lines to an area on my patio that doesn't have it's own water source.

I learned a valuable lesson on Monday that I will pass on to you.  I'm sure you've heard the warning before, but maybe you didn't take it 100% seriously.  I sure didn't.  When they tell you never to put a rake down with the tines pointing up.... never means NEVER! 

I was finishing up with planting the bushes and was done with the rake.  I leaned it against a fence about ten feet away from where I was cleaning up my mess.  I had a wheelbarrow full of dirt that I needed to go dump somewhere else.  I decided I could put a little more dirt around the bushes I had planted.  I scooped up a shovel full of dirt and headed in the direction of where I had laid the rake... forgetting that I had laid it there.

Guess what happened!  OUCH OUCH OUCH!!  Boy oh boy, that rake handle hit me right above my right eye.  Yowzer, did that hurt!  It still hurts.  I've got a large black and blue lump on my forehead.  It hurt worse than when my husband dropped the light fixture on my head a couple of months ago.  It even hurts when I raise my eyebrow!

Want to try it?  It's a real treat.  #1 Stand next to rake, #2 step hard on rake, #3 go get an ice pack for the lump on your head

Yesterday I worked on a brochure for our church and ended up working on it almost all day long.  I hadn't planned on working on it that long, but sometimes I get motivated to finish something I start before I move on to something else.  Plus, I have a tendency toward perfectionism and wanted to have it as nice as possible before I handed the sample over to my pastors.

Speaking of my perfectionism, God has helped me to put things in perspective.  He has helped me to ease up on some things so that I am not running myself ragged.  I had an especially hard time when I had a portion of something to do and the other people involved didn't step up to the plate.  I would end up doing it all and resenting the fact that I didn't get cooperation.

Now, instead of jumping in and doing things, I pray about them first.  Sometimes God just wants me to share what I see rather than do it.  I like that.  It's easier on me and it's in God's will.  It becomes a win-win situation!

Somebody signed my guestbook with a rebuke.  My first instinct was to delete it.  Then I decided to pray about it first. This person wrote, "Kay, may you learn the truth about Gods holy Sabbath day. The seventh- day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God. He rested on that day and blessed it. It is the only commandment that He said to "remember". It was set forth from the creation of the world. God bless and please study to show yourself approved. He holds us accountable for what we know, and I must share this with you. Thanks and please study."

I'm not sure whether they were rebuking me for not having any Bible studies about this topic or for not "remembering" the Sabbath.  So, I asked God about it. 

God reminded me that I was not under the laws as laid out in the Old Testament.  He reminded me of what Jesus said, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."  (Matthew 22:37-39)  I examined whether things done on the Sabbath affected my love for God and they don't.

I was also reminded of a scripture God brought to my attention in Acts 15:28-29 where the apostles were telling some Gentiles in Antioch, "For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things; that ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well."

So, God was telling me that I was not to be concerned about what was written to me.  As always, I will remain open to what God wants to show me.  If He should decide some other time that I should teach about the Sabbath or that He wants me to do something differently on the Sabbath then I will listen to Him.

Now, does this mean that what He showed me applies to everyone else as well?  Not necessarily.  I have seen where God requires different things from different people.  That's one reason I have to make sure what He wants me to teach here at the Clarion Call.  Just because He teaches me something doesn't always mean I should pass it on to you.

So, Animil, since you didn't give me an email address, here is your response.

Whoa!  Hold the horses!  Is this??  Could it be??  Pinch me so I know I'm not dreaming!  I'm getting this online and it is MONDAY!  Wow!  Ouch, ouch!!  I tried to pat myself on the back and hurt myself.

The bump on my head is much better.  It is still tender.

You're not going to believe this.  I almost stepped on the rake again.  This time I figured I was being safety conscious and stood the rake upright against a six foot fence.  I was smoothing out a pile of dirt to make way for a horseshoe pit.  I had a space of about six inches against that fence that I was not smoothing since we had placed railroad ties at the base of it.  I was pushing the dirt up to the tie.  I put the rake up on the railroad tie figuring I wouldn't be walking there.  The tines were only slightly raised.  Well, slightly raised is plenty. 

I had smoothed the dirt to the level of the tie and stepped backwards onto it.  I hesitated slightly when I felt the tie under my foot.  Good thing because my foot was starting to tip the rake towards my head!

So, another moral this week (wait, it's the same one as last week):  When they tell you never to put a rake down with the tines pointing up.... never means NEVER!  (By tines pointing up, that means if the points are even slightly off the ground.)

I've got to quit confessing to doing dumb things.  You are going to think that I'm not a very smart person.  I need to redeem myself somehow.  Oh, I know!  Last week I remembered the formula for how to determine the circumference of a circle!!  I needed to know how big around the top of a 5" flower pot was.  I surprised myself! 

I'm not going to tell you that I used 2.14 for pi instead of 3.14, though.

My sons took me to dinner last night for Mother's Day.  Ever since they got older we don't do many things together.  It makes me sad.  My little birdies got strong wings and are able to fly around on their own.

 My husband took me to breakfast after church.  Mother's Day is the day that restaurants do their best business I've heard.  This particular place we went wasn't particularly crowded.  They had empty tables, but apparently forgot to get more of their employees to come to work. 

The tiny waiting area filled up within 20 minutes of our arrival.  The restaurant was not taking names but was depending on us to keep track of who was next!  That was bad because some people were getting a little grouchy thinking they were passed over.  However, most of us ended up chatting with each other which normally wouldn't happen if we just had to wait for our name to be called.

 At the time I was irritated with the restaurant.  Looking back, I see where strangers got an opportunity to get to meet each other.  I often wonder what it would be like to live in a smaller town where you see people you know all the time.  Around here you might run into someone you know, but not often. 

I went to visit my mom last week for a few days.  I only got two things done for her.  One did take all day, though.  She has a bunch of rocks and gravel that I pulled out and I put down some weed-inhibiting fabric and replaced the rocks.  Plus, along that same area I planted a ground cover to keep some dirt from flowing down onto her driveway when it rains. 

First I put down the weed fabric.  The instructions seem so simple.  Cut an "x" in the fabric and plant the plant through that hole.  HA!!  If I cut a big enough "x" to comfortably and easily stick the plant roots through then the fabric would do no good because it would be mostly holes.

I hope the ground cover I planted is tough enough to survive the abuse I gave it!  Plus, it was hard to get the roots buried properly just poking my fingers through the "x"'s.  (Or would that be "x's"?)  (Or would that be "x's?")  My punctuation knowledge seems to be missing the "x"-factor.  Or would that be "x-factor?"  Or would that be "x-factor"? 

I have another animal story to tell you about.  I have the most interesting animal encounters!  As a matter of fact, they are so interesting I decided to share them all with you.  My latest story is about a pigeon, but I just had to share about the turkey, the possums, the duck, the skunk, the dogs, the egret, and the peacock, too. 

Have I piqued your curiosity??  Ticked your fancy??  Aroused your interest??  Am I now testing your patience??  LOL!  Here's the animal stories.

I'm done, I'm done... I finished and I'm done!  (Picture me doing some kind of dance while singing that song.)  I finished putting all my potted plants and shrubbery on drips.  The growing things in the yard are now going to take less time to get watered!!  Oh, wait... I'm not done!  I still have to put some kind of temporary water supply to our new trees.  In a year or so their roots should hit the water line, but I'll have to provide water for them until then.  I am not sure how I am going to set up water for them.  I have to tie it in with my garden somehow.  Hmmm.....

OUCH!  Now my brain hurts from all that thinking. 

Did you get a chance to read my true animal stories last week?  The skunk and the turkey stores are the best ones.  However, I have a feeling that there will be more as time goes on.  If you missed them, here's the animal stories.

This week I have to clean my camper inside and out.  That is the one thing I really want to get done.  Usually I get it cleaned right after we return from a trip so it is ready for the next trip.  That was back when I was optimistic.  With my husband's schedule it is not possible to get away very often.  Whenever we go somewhere he says how we will have to do it more often, but then the reality of his schedule sets in.

Well, I will continue to remain optimistic.  I leave the camper on the truck all the time just in case...

Booo hooooo.... my son had to move my truck while I was gone to the store and he backed it into the garage.  He put scratches and dents on my camper on the back corner.  It didn't break through so it will still be weather-tight, but it looks ugly.  Booo hooooo