Mimi Mine

HAPPY NEW YEAR !  May the coming New Year 2016 be one filled with whatever makes you happy!

Hope Continually This is an excerpt from a Prayer for the New Year by Dr. Billy Graham fom 2008. His prayer is still so very relevant to the upcoming year of 2016: "  We each have our hopes and expectations for the year that is ahead of us—but You alone know what it holds for us, and only You can give us the strength and the wisdom we will need to meet its challenges. So help us to humbly put our hands into Your hand, and to trust You and to seek Your will for our lives during this coming year."  To read this prayer in its entirety you can go  here  to read his stirring and poignant words.  Summer Magic  is an old Disney movie . The movie, in my opinion, has a great sound track, with some beautiful singing by Burl Ives, the color is gorgeous and it has a cast of outstanding actors. The story line of the movie evolves around a Widow named Mrs. Carey and her children. The family has fallen on hard times after the untimely demise of Mr. Carey. They find themselves living in

You might have heard the saying "If you play with fire, you might get burned." For the most part,  it is probably a good idea to heed that warning. There may be at least one exception to that, when it is okay (sort of) to heat things up a little. Now, don't go thinking I am encouraging people to go around starting fires all over the place because that is certainly NOT what this post is about. What I am referring to is an arts and crafts technique known as pyrography. Simply put,  pyrography is the technique of using a heated tool called a pen with accessories(points) to write or draw on wood or leather. From some of the things I have read, fire writing has been around since fire was first discovered. In today's world, we can just plug up to electricity and burn away. Years ago, I dabbled in pyrography to decorate dried gourds for use as birdhouses, bowls and so on.  I "played with fire" for a while, then put that aside for some time and occupied myself wi

At this time of year, with the all the hustle and bustle and rushing about, may we be reminded to focus on the real reason for Christmas. It is a time to remember that God, the Maker of Heaven and Earth, loves us so much that He sent his only begotten son in the form of an infant, Jesus Christ, down to Earth to dwell among us and give us hope for salvation from our sins. He knew that this tiny babe would grow into a man who would suffer on a cross. He would shed his very blood and die upon that very cross. God's son Jesus loved the people of the world enough to die for those undeserving sinners. He paid the price to cover sin long ago and, yes, even for our sins today and for all generations to come. I believe that Jesus Christ is the light, the truth and the only way to life everlasting with God the Father in  Paradise.  It is as simple as that. The words are just as relevant today as when they were first written in Luke 2: 1-20. You can find the story  here . Jesus Christ i

A fellow blogger is giving away to a beautiful collection of embroidary from her shop. To enter to win you can click on the link provided here  Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe: The Tenth Day of Christmas give-away : and leave a comment on her blog.                                                                                            

I know everyone is getting into the Christmas spirit and I am too, but I have been meaning to share with you the photos I took as we strolled through Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee a few weeks ago. The Dollywood annual Gospel & Harvest Celebration was taking place and the park is always decorated beautifully during the festival. The decorations there this fall were just simply adorable. The jewel tones of fall colors are my favorite of all the seasons and the gourd and pumpkin theme they had going on was delightful! Dollywood is a family friendly theme park and many of the decorations were certainly reflective of family times together. Pumpkin families, that is! This family of pumpkins have set up a stand to display some other pumpkins who, it would appear, are not yet part of a family but might hope to be. Did you happen to notice the little fellow swinging from the tree up on the left of the picture? Dollywood Gospel & Harvest Celebration 2015 Here

Everybody knows that we love to spend a little time at A.J. Bush & Company's General Merchandise and Bush's Family Cafe when we head up to the Great Smoky Mountains. I have posted about it in the past here   and here  our visit last month was no exception. We left home later than we had anticipated and heavy traffic caused us to arrive later than anticipated at the Bush properties. It was late afternoon when we arrived and, alas, we did not have time to catch a meal at the cafe. We did manage a tour of the museum and store. We walked straight on back toward A.J. Bush & Co. General Merchandise and Bush Factory Museum. We toured the museum first because we always enjoy going through there. We missed visiting last Fall and, near the end of the tour, we noticed they had changed the area where they offer to take photos of folks who visit them. Believe it or not, the picture is free of charge! Guests are photographed in a larger area now, so it accomodates more people in t

My husband and I stole away for a few days over the long Labor Day weekend to celebrate my birthday. Walt Disney World is one of our favorite places to go and we have celebrated birthdays for many of our family members there over the years, but this was the first time I have had the pleasure of celebrating my birthday in the parks. What fun it was! We arrived on Thursday evening at our favorite of Disney Vacation Club resorts. It also happens to be our D.V.C. home resort! Disney's Boardwalk Inn and Villas Lobby at Disney's Boardwalk Inn and Villas Upon entering our studio, I noticed Mickey had been around and left a birthday balloon and a card for me. Our celebration was off to a great start! My Birthday Celebration at Disney's Boardwalk Inn and Villas/ After our bags arrived in our room, it was still early enough to take one of the Walt Disney World transport buses to spend a couple of hours at  Disney's Magic Kingdom. One of the things we love about sta