Home Again/Tale of Two Wolves

Made it home yesterday and all-in-all I'd call our vacation....interesting. :P It seemed to be the vacation for various ailments (these included migraines, stomach issues, allergic reactions to the bed, toddler puking, and bad sunburn) and there was high tide a lot of the time so we weren't in the water as often as usual. But we visited Boardwalks and ate a ton of junk-fudge, icecream, pizza, candy and popcorn- (bleh....kind of regretting that. not a normal routine for us), played in an arcade, bought trinkets for ourselves and people back home and did a lot of relaxing. I had a few books to go through, one about True Cat Stories, and Chicken soup book about True Dog Stories, and when we visited a fancy bookstore I finally bought; "Four; A Divergent Collection." XD Yay!! And I also purchased 2 bumper-magnets for my car. One saying; "My friends are crazy but I love them" and the other "I love my rescue dog." And my sister got a Hermit Crab, which she named "Neil."

Now to get to the more serious part. This quote caught my eye today, so I thought I'd share.

An old man told his grandson; "My son, there is a battle between two wolves inside us all. One is Evil. It is anger, jealousy, greed, inferiority, lies and ego. The other is Good. It is joy, love,  hope, peace, humility, kindness, empathy, and truth." The boy thought about it and asked; "Grandfather, which wolf wins?" The old man quietly replied; "The one you feed."

How true this is. The Bible warns us against those evil qualities, telling us that the latter is what God loves, and the former He hates. Because we are sinful we are going to want to feed the Evil wolf when God commands us to starve him. Ask Him to help you want to feed the Good wolf instead.

^"Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law." ~Galatians 5:20-23 KJV

Start of our Vacation

Ok, now that I have a possible minute, I'll tell you how our Beach Vacation is going so far. ;) We left on Friday, and stayed in a Hotel partway, visiting a small Historical Museum, and seeing a few creepy Southern Bugs. And 3 Hotel cats. ;P We ate at a nifty little Café, called the Blue Moon, and I ended up trying some interesting appetizers along with a really yummy burger.


(This is a Stone Fly. They spend most of their lives in the water as larvae and then emerge a few years later as adults.)


(This is one of the appetizers. Toasted Baguette Bread with sliced apples and cheese. Hunger Games food! lol. Sadly, it is overrated. It's pretty though!)


We made good time getting here (the drive was pretty dreary thanks to all the rain), arriving just in time to be let into out Beach House, which is only a minute or so walk from the Ocean. The place is quite roomy, sleeping 12 people! All us "kids" are in the Basement, with a bed for each and a TV, so we're having fun camping out. The place is big, so we have played Hide-n-Seek twice now. :) 


(here we are enjoying a nice game of "Clue")

We went down to the Ocean this morning for a walk and it is WINDY. The windiest I've ever seen it here. Needless to say, not too many people were in the water. And by the time we got back, my bun had fallen out and my hair needed a good brush through.



(The waves were pretty wicked!)

So now we've finished lunch and are figuring out what to do next. Probably going on a hunt for Health Food Stores and Herb Shops because, among a few other things, we forgot our massive bag of Supplements. :)

Ice Bucket Challenge: Pro's and Con's.

Ok, so we've been hearing about this Challenge for a while now, and I finally just discovered what it's all about. A friend nominated me today and I reluctantly complied, letting my brother douse me in cold water. :P However, I'd like to point out a few things about the organization, ALS.

Do not donate money to them. While raising awareness for a disease is fine, giving money to people who support Stem Cell research using Aborted Babies is very wrong.

Here is a link to an article standing against ALS's use of Stem Cell Research.
http://blogs.answersingenesis.org/blogs/georgia-purdom/2014/08/20/pouring-cold-water-on-the-als-ice-bucket-challenge/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+GeorgiaPurdom+%28Dr.+Georgia+Purdom%27s+Blog%29

Before you donate money to any organization, please check them out and make sure they are not using questionable methods in the name of a greater good. The end does NOT always justify the means. 

On another Note, I'd like to say Happy Birthday to my Riding Instructor. XD

Dog 101

Ok, time to talk about a favorite subject of mine: Dogs. :P They are such popular pets, and we love 'em to death, but I do notice a few things people don't do. So I'm just going to touch on a few subjects important to owning a Dog.

1. Training:

I see a lot of dogs who's owners don't take the time to train them to behave. While I know this can be a very long, and sometimes frustrating process, it is necessary to owning a dog. Dogs need to learn not to jump, to stay in their own yards, how to walk on a leash and behave with other dogs, at the very least. When they aren't taught these things, it can lead to a host of problems, which are not safe for anyone involved. Dogs who pull on the leash can hurt whoever is walking them, not to mention, it's very bad manners. Dogs who jump can knock people over, plus it is a behavior that can lead to different problems later on. Dogs who don't stay in their yards can cause trouble in their neighborhoods, get hit by a car, or get lost forever. Not to mention, some neighbors can get testy and resort to what they will call "defending their yards" using BB Guns, sling shots or calling Animal Control. There are tons of resources available t help you train your dog, so make good use of them. It may take you a while to finds the methods that will work for you, but in the end it's worth it. And if your dog develops severe behavioral issues, like aggression, territorial behavior, etc. please don't ignore them or isolate them. Try to solve the problem, even if it means contacting Trainers.
I suggest every dog learn the following:
Come
Sit
Stay
Lie down
Getting off the furniture when asked, and not getting on unless invited
Staying out of the room when the family is eating meals
Heeling on a leash (not just walking nicely, heeling)
Waiting to go in and out of doorways
Drop it
Yard boundaries
Proper Socialization with people/others pets

2. Exercise:

This is a really big problem that I see. People own dogs, but they often don't give them the proper exercise. Dogs need things to do, especially breeds who were made to work. Collies for example, were bred to herd sheep, so if they don't get exercise, they are going to resort to barking, chewing, and a host of other behaviors. Research the breed of dog who own, and figure out what it was made to do, then adjust his exercise schedule accordingly. Of course, not all of us own sheep/cows, or need hunting dogs or guard dogs. But there are other ways to drain our dog's energy. Building an at-home agility course is fairly inexpensive and fun for both you and your dog, and gives him mental and physical stimulation. Long walks are also helpful, and not just once every so often. Every day at least is best. You can buy your dog a backpack to carry on walks and load it with water bottles for the appropriate weight. Bike riding is also an option. And if you have a treadmill, don't hesitate to train your dog to run on it! All you need is a leash and some food. And of course the good old game of fetch the ball, and there are some great puzzle toys you can purchase for them while you're not home. So, what are you waiting for? Get out there and have some fun!

My Dog is a Boxer/Jack Russell mix, and he's really hyper. I've got the makings of an Agility Course in my yard, he has a backpack we take on walks, and he has a favorite toy he likes to chase. If I had a treadmill, I'd use that too. :D And we have a lot of fun, sometimes I even have him pull the two year od around in his wagon. He's not the most enthusiastic agility dog in the world, but he's learning. XD

It may take some time, but learn to really know your dog so you can take advantage of what makes him tick and make him healthier and happier.

Bible Verses and Birthday Wishes.

I'd like to say a big Happy Birthday! to Anya Becca, who has a Birthday this week! XD Hope you have a good one!


"And He said to him, "'YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND." ~Matthew 22; 37

Whom-or what-shall I fear?

A girl I know is starting the above Project and so I thought I would touch on the subject myself and share. :)

This is to those who are struggling with any challenges in life, no matter what they are. If you feel like you can't keep going, that nothing is going right, know that you aren't alone. Even if there is no one left to hold you, stand by you, or help you, God is always, always watching.

There are so many examples in the Bible, of people going through hardship, trials, and suffering, but they were never left to deal with it on their own. God was there, holding them in His hand, working things out in His providence. Think of the Psalmist, who frequently cries to God, asking Him why he seems to be hiding His face, and ignoring David in His suffering. He pours out his heart to God, telling Him his troubles and asking Him to show His mercy. And then, he writes Psalms of how God is good to him and how his loving kindness endures forever. How God never forsook him.

Then there is Job, who lost everything dear to him, and he still praised and worshipped God.

Gideon, who was hopelessly outnumbered, and had to put his complete faith in God to give them the victory.

Abraham, who left the only home he had ever known, to go where God had told him.

All the martyrs, who never lost faith in God, even when their very lives were being threatened, whether by burning, beheading, or some other torture their enemies thought up for them.

These are only a few of the many people who trusted God to do what was best for them, and to get them through the trials set before them.

God promises us that even in our darkest hours, he will not abandon us. That He will always go before us. That things are never out of His control.

"Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them; for the Lord thy God, it is He that goes with you. He will not fail you, or forsake you...fear not neither be dismayed." `Deuteronomy 31: 6, 8c 

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose." ~Romans 8:28


God promises this to us. And He tells us to trust Him to keep that promise. Is trusting God hard? Absolutely. But He never promised us our paths would be easy. In fact, He tells us the opposite. But, we have something that others do not.

"What shall we say then to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?....For I am convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ our Lord." ~Romans 8:31, 38-38.

When we think about it, we really have no cause for worry, because we know that even though this life is hard, we have Eternal Life with God. Forever and ever, we will be filled with peace, and joy, no more tears, and no more pain. That is to give us comfort. That is to give us the strength to say; "I can keep going, I will not let this trial defeat me, because I have God on my side, who is in control of all things. A God who knows when the sparrows fall, and he knows what is best for me. He will never abandon me." 

Are we going to stumble? Yes. Are we going to ask why things are how they are? Yes. But we should never let those things pull us under. We should let God pull us up. Because he commands us to trust.

"Trust and obey, there is no other way, to be happy in Jesus, than to trust and obey." ~Old Hymn

I like what Paul says in 1 Cor. 1:3-4

"Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus, Father of all mercies and the God of all comfort. Who comforts us in all our tribulation that we may be able to comfort them which are troubled, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted by God."

Our enduring our suffering is a testimony to others. It is part of our witness, and it helps us to grow in our faith, so that we are able to help others when they are suffering, and grow ever closer to God.

Take comfort in this and much more, so we will be able to say:

"The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?"~Psalm 27:1

Nothing but the blood of Jesus

What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
What can make me whole again?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Oh! precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow;
No other fount I know,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

This is all my hope and peace,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
This is all my righteousness,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Oh! precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow;
No other fount I know,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Glory! Glory! This I sing
Nothing but the blood of Jesus,
All my praise for this I bring
Nothing but the blood of Jesus

Oh! precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow;
No other fount I know,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Today

Well, today was a pretty good day. Not super boring, but not super exciting.
My little sister got a new bike for her birthday.
My friend came over and we went for a walk.
I baked cookies and burned some of them.
I watched an episode of Airwolf. (yes!).
And I now have to deal with trying to get out cat over his jealousy/depression. He disappeared for 3 days, and we finally found him intentionally avoiding us and I think his problem is that he is miffed at the 3 new cats hanging around, so now I have him kenneled away from the others and am giving him Bach Remedies to get him over his fit. Now we have to find the 3 new cats somewhere to go. *sigh*
And now I am going to post this because I cut the tip of my finger and it hurts to type. :)

Christian Persecution.

I watched a news report today, on the Christians being killed by the Muslims, and so I thought today my post should be about that.

First things first, prayers are needed desperately for them, for strength and courage, and for the end of the persecution.

Think about it a moment: right now, as we sit here, laughing with family, safe in our beds, children are being beheaded, men being shot, and women and girls being raped, and forcibly taken as wives. They are given an ultimatum; convert to Islam, or die.

It's a horrible thought isn't it?

Let's thank God that we are not going through the same, and he is taking care of us, even when things seem bad for us. Those Christians are trusting God. They aren't compromising their beliefs. If they can do it, so can we.

Divergent Talk

Ok, since today was not a particularly exciting day either, I thought I'd talk about "Divergent" a little bit. I bought the DVD today, so, I figured it was a good prompt. :)

The book and film differ quite a bit. I would have preferred they not change the things they did, and keep it truer to the book. I am a firm believer in; "If people liked the book, then it's good enough for the movie to follow suit." I think the actors were excellent, even though I had my doubts at first. Movie is pretty clean, there is one few-seconds long scene that I didn't care for, and it was not how the book went, but it can be skipped easily. There is gun violence and hand-to-hand combat, but that doesn't bother me. A bit of swearing too. Age range, I'd say 13+.

As a whole, I thoroughly enjoyed the Series, finishing each book in a matter of days. It has its flaws, but I can find a lot of good things in it as well, a rare thing I think with today's popular YA Novels. Veronica Roth's claims of being a Christian do show some in her work, and I was pleased with that, though there were some elements I did disagree with. The book has a bit more dirt, but no sex, though I did skip pages-the kissing got a bit heavy. Lot's of fighting, and some swearing. There was no justice concerning the bad guys at the end of the Series, and that for me was probably the biggest let down. The second being the ending was not what I was wanting and I am particular about my endings. :) I'd say the book age would be for me, 16+.

If any of my Blog Followers would like me to break down, bit by bit, the positive and negative elements I found in the Trilogy, I will gladly do so, just let me know by commenting!

Un-interesting Day

Well, I'm sorry to report that nothing of extreme interest has happened today. And I'm afraid my brain has been pretty dull too, so I won't have any posts like the one I did two days ago. Horse Lessons for today were cancelled, otherwise I would probably have a bit to say about that. :)

The only things worth noting are we went to feed my friend's horse this morning, (who, as it turns out, is particular about his apples. He spit out the three I brought him from our backyard tree, and ate the ones that came from the tree in his yard.), I drove us back home and came close to sideswiping another car, I watched two Dog Whisperer episodes, and that's about it.

Now I am sitting here, eating Chicken Wings and wondering why my dog is still barking after he has had his second round of exercise....maybe I should strap on his back pack and go for a walk....

Sunshine Award

 

Thanks a lot Ginny (http://spiritworkinginme.weebly.com/) for nominating me for the Sunshine Award! The rules are very easy:

1. Give 5 facts about yourself.
2. Nominate 5 other Bloggers
3. Answer the Blogger's Questions
4. Display the Sunshine Banner!

Here are the five facts about myself. :)

1. I have fallen off a horse a total of 6 times now.
2. I hate bridges over water. The freak me out.
3. I am pretty clutzy. :)
4. I won a photo contest as a kid.
5. I've been writing since I was 8

Now, here are my answers to Ginny's questions:

Q: Do you have a pet?
A. lol, I have 11 pets.

Q. What's your dream car?
A. Hmm....idk. There's a car I like, but I don't know what it's called. I think its some kind of Suzuki though.

Q. What's your favorite Genre to read and/or write?
A. I love reading Fantasy, but I will write anything.

Q. What's your favorite food?
A. Oh boy...that one is really hard, but I think it's gotta be icecream.

Q. What's your Hobby?
A. Horseback Riding, Writing, and training my dog.

Here are the questions for my Nominees.

1. Name one big thing you'd like to accomplish before you die.
2. Who's your favorite actor/actress?
3. What's your favorite type of music?.
4. What's your favorite color?
5. Are you a woodsy person or a city person?

I hereby Nominate:

Anya Becca: www.dangerous-crusader.blogspot.com
Sarah: www.theparadoxalwriter.blogspot.com
Cayden: www.theshatteredinkwell.weebly.com         
(and i'm out of nominees, sorry!) :D

Mr. Know-It-All?

Today I was happily watching an episode of the Dog Whisperer on my Computer. (I try to watch an episode as often as I can) This particular episode, he took you behind the scenes to show you how he evaluates a dog's body language and energy. Now, I know a bit about animals. Reading, watching, and "studying" if you will, about them has been my Hobby since I was a kid. So I'm not ignorant when it comes to teaching them, knowing how they operate, etc. However, watching Cesar makes me see how much I don't know.

For example; The two dogs he was working with fought all the time. He assessed that Dog #1 was very dominant and #2 was insecure. So, you would normally think that dog #1 would be the one triggering the fights right? Wrong.

As you watch he takes you back to the screens, and points out all the different body signs the dog's are exhibiting. #2 was triggering the fights with her sharp eye contact, erect ears, and tense body.

Then later, as he was working with #2 to calm her down and encourage surrender, when you think she is surrendering, she actually isn't. One of the more obvious things was how tense her legs were as she rolled onto her side and showed him her tummy (that is normally a submissive sign), indicating she was not relaxing. The other, was something I never would have seen had it not been pointed out. Her right eyebrow. On closer inspection, you see her right eyebrow arch and her wide eye roll to the side. And if her leg had relaxed, I would have thought she was surrendering and not even noticed the eye.

I guess my point is, there is always something you don't know. No mater how old you are, no matter how long you have been doing something, there is going to be at least one thing, you didn't know.

I think we tend to get cocky, eventually, with how much we do know, and we forget that sometimes we can still learn from other people. Even if it's something small, even if the other person is younger than us, or older than us. The Dog Whisperer, the guy who has lived his entire life with packs of dogs, and studied them his whole life, says he learns new things with each case he takes. The phrase; "You learn something new every day," is very true.

And actually, it makes sense that we aren't going to know everything about everything because we're finite creatures and the only one who knows EVERYTHING, is God, the one who made the world, and who made us.

So, I'll give you a little challenge. Learn new things, from new people, even if it's in an area you have a lot of experience in, or it's something you think might not work. Because you know what....you just might be wrong.

Proverbs 16:18 says; "Pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall."

Belonging to a Church

I've decided that on Sundays I'll be posting stuff like Bible Verses, Quotes, Hymns etc. So, religious stuff for sure on Sundays, randomness on weekdays. :)

Since today we added 4 new members to our Church, I thought this quote would be appropriate.

"There is no such thing as Solo Christianity. It is a sin not to be covenanted as a member of a particular Church. It is a sin not to be in submission to God's appointed overseers. If we are to grow and not remain unstable infants, we must be under the leadership of those God has given for this purpose." ~ R.C. Sproul

Day 2 of owning a Blog!

Ok, since I'm only on Day 2, I'm trying to decide exactly what I wanna write. :) My thingy says I've had 45 Blog views today, so that's cool. To anyone whom I don't know who is reading this, "Hello! Thanks for reading!" *shakes hand* And still trying to figure out some of the setting/functions and what-not, as my one friend would like me to set this up so she is notified by email when I update.....I'll get back to her on that one. ;)

I had a driving lesson this afternoon. My top speed has reached 35. Yay me. I drove on kind of a major road, with lines and a speed limit of 55. Scary. 3 cars flew around me in the passing zone and I did a pretty good job of holding the panic in. I was kind of like;

"Oh my, I'm on a not-back-road. I've never driven this fast. There are cars passing me! Don't swerve!" 

I had some rude guy in a truck ride my butt until he got to the passing zone and then flew around. I'm just a student driver people!!
Anyway.
The drive home was...iffy. I kinda almost drove off the bank, but, Mom and I are alive, so I'll count it as a good day. :)

Now to have a somewhat relaxing evening of feeding the animals, eating dinner, getting the children ready for Church, and watching a Dateline. *waves*

Introductory Post

Hi.:)
Ok, so Ria isn't my real name, but I'm not comfy with putting my real one out there, so this will do nicely. I decided to try my hand at Blogging, so we will see how this goes. ;)
Some things to know about me are:
I'm the oldest in my Family.
I am a Christian-Calvinist to be specific.
I am a Writer. (not Professional, though hopefully that will someday change. "Ninan", in case you were wondering, is the name of my Magical race in my Fantasy Novel)
I LOVE animals; Horses, Dogs, Cats...yep.
I am an Equestrian, English being my preferred Discipline. Yay Jumping!
This blog will be about anything that comes to my mind, so, I hope you enjoy reading!
(anyone think I say "so" too much....?)
~Ria