Happy 238th Birthday U.S. Marines!

Today is the 238th Birthday of the United States Marine Corps!  Please take a moment to pray for the safety of not only our Marines, but every brave and honorable member of our U.S. Military.

As a proud mom-ma, I especially covet prayers for my son, my Marine. He is currently stationed stateside. 

Turn up your speakers!!! 

Encouraging My Son at Bootcamp

My son as been at boot camp for six weeks now.  When I got his first letter telling me that he misses us and was homesick and a few other things I search the Bible for a verse on strength.  I found this one:


 It is God who arms me with strength

    and keeps my way secure.

He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;
    he causes me to stand on the heights.
He trains my hands for battle;
    my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
You make your saving help my shield,
    and your right hand sustains me;
    your help has made me great.
You provide a broad path for my feet,
    so that my ankles do not give way.

~Psalm 18: 32-36 (NIV)

I printed it out on nice linen cream colored card stock atop a watermark of the American flag with the Marines' Eagle, Globe, and Anchor.  I glued it to this nice Marines red scrapbook paper and then on black card stock.  It looked really nice.

After I sent it I thought it would be a good thing to send him one each week.  Last week was:

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

~Ephesians 6:13-18 (NIV)

This week was:

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.

~Deuteronomy 31:6 (NIV)

I wanted verses that would be of help to him now as well as later when he is overseas facing danger and battle.  I hope that they are an encouragement to him.  I am so proud of my son and the man he is!

Thank you, Lord, for giving me such an amazing son.  
Thank you for giving me the privilege to raise him.  
I hope that I did my job well in Your eyes.
Keep him safe in his days to come.
Give him courage and strength.
Always let him feel you with him.
And when he feels fear or challenge or loneliness or sadness or desperation, be especially close.
Amen

Going Away and A Little Bit of Mischief

We had our son’s going away party Saturday. My best friend of over 30 years made his cake.  It was wonderful to have so many people there to support him. Even people who weren’t able to attend sent cards. One of the children who was there made a huge card for him telling him by taping 8 pieces of paper together. She colored it and wrote in the inside of proud of him she was and that she would be praying for him. One of the little boys painstakingly colored several pages from his coloring book for him. It was so sweet!


After we left the restaurant, my mom and lifelong best friend and her family, came back to our house. There was just a little bit of mischief going on when people weren’t looking…

What my best friend encouraged my mother to do to my bathroom...

What my best friend and I did to my mother's car ...

What I did to my best friend's car the next morning while she was still sleeping ...

My Son's Going Away Party and My 1st Quilt of Valor Quilt

This morning I completed the handmade invitations to my son's going away party.  He starts Marines bootcamp on February 11th so we are having a little party for him with a few of his friends and a few adults who have watched him grow up over the last several years.  It will be about 25 people.  I'm really having fun doing this for him and I think he's eating it up.  He is the kind of person who needs people to make a fuss over him, but you can tell this he likes.  I am so proud of my son and the decision he has made to serve our country.  Of course I have water works off and on, but that's okay.  I'm a momma!

On another note, there is an organization called Quilts of Valor Foundation that makes quilts for our military and our veterans.  "The mission of the Quilts of Valor Foundation is to cover all combat service members and veterans touched by war with comforting and healing Quilts of Valor."  It's really neat.  They have donated 80,298 quilts since November of 2003.  I came across their site just before Christmas.  This is what they do: Someone purchases the fabric and makes the topper.  They keep a journal of what is going on in their life and the work on the quilt as they go along.  Then they send the journal and the topper to another person who donates the batting and backing for the quilt and then quilts it.  Then the quilt and journal gets sent back to the first person who puts on the binding and attaches a label on the back.  A presentation case is made for the quilt and the quilt is sent for presenation.  They say the for the men and women who recieve them, the journal is as precious as the quilt itself.  I KNEW I had to do this! 

I also knew that my first one needed to be for a very special person because it would be my first quilt.

Yesterday I purchased some fabric for my first Q of V quilt.  I'm giving it to my friend's brother who is getting a medical discharge from the Army after fifteen years.  He has been through so much and I wanted to give him something to let him know that there are those who really appreciate the sacrifices he has made.  I found the above quilt posted online.  I think it is really neat and his sister said he would love it.    When mine is done, I'll be sure to post a picture.