MY HUMBLE ABODE. . .

There's nothing so wonderful as a long holiday season. Thanksgiving blending into the Christmas and New Year season. Although I am thankful everyday, the remembrance seems to intensify itself during the Thanksgiving and Christmas Season.

It has been a busy time for my family. On December 6, 2008, my son was married to a wonderful young woman. They are both deserving of each other. December 12, 2008, my son graduated from ECU with honors from the Masters Degree Program. A week later he landed a full time job. The Lord has shown so much favor to this new couple and has made me one proud parent.

My Father was able to have all of his children together with him for Christmas and I could see the satisfaction in his eyes while we were interacting and catching up with what has been going on in our lives since seeing each other during the Thanksgiving Holiday.

My Husband spoiled me for Christmas and I him. Although it has been rocky around here, God has allowed the peace to move over our home and prompting both of us to learn how to be appreciative of each other. Sometimes in the mist of problems, I have forgotten that I have to give as well as take in this relationship, I have to trust God in his decisions for us, and realize that it's no longer just me that I have to live with and answer to (LOL). I stop praying that God change my husband. I pray now for God to change me. Sometimes I think that I am right in everything I do. When the Lord shows you yourself (who we really are) it is not often a pretty picture (LOL). I began to realize that when we pray for the Lord to change ourselves, He is also changing the other person.

Well we now have a new addition to the family. I gave my husband a cinnamon colored Chow Chow for Christmas. It's a female. My Poodle doesn't like the new addition. It has been chaos in the house between the two of them. Both wanting to control the territory (LOL). Morgan is old and irritable. Amber is a puppy full of play. It was so quiet in the house yesterday and when we peeked in on the two they were laying out next to each other sleep. I couldn't believe it (LOL). She's a beautiful dog. Although my husband was excited about his other gifts, he was more excited about Amber.

Until the next time. . .and remembering always that Jesus is the reason for the season (and every day of our lives). Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year!

Vee

JUST A RANDOM THOUGHT. . .

Today. . . surfing through the net, I noticed a few things. Some things obvious, but never clicked inside my head and some things that are not obvious.

I never understood why people would ware glasses that resembled the eyes of a fly to camouflage themselves. Everyone knows that they are on the net. Wearing fly shades don't disguise you. It only serves to make you look ridiculous. The most obvious and simple solution is to not get on any site or just don't put a pic up at all lol lol.

I accepted a friendship from an individual on a popular networking site. Big mistake. He downloads a pic of his private area for the whole world to see, but he has pics of his children on his page. I sent a note and said you have school age teens that you joyously have on your page. You place a pic of your face on the page and then a couple of pics of your private area. I then asked him does he know for sure if his teens are surfing this particular site. lol lol. I then deleted him from my friends page.

Funny. . . His private member wasn't the best I've ever seen nor was the size impressive. I wonder what glasses he's using. lol lol. Then we have woman. . . young and old (real old) with the most obscene sexually explicit names for their screen names. Children and grandchildren's pic plastered on the page, and of all things pics of their private parts hanging out for the world to see. As women are we realizing that we make ourselves our own victim? Whatever happen to the words "respect yourself" or "to gain respect you have to first respect yourself"?

What if you finally get a date from someone from these sites. Do you honestly believe that the night will end without him making a move on you without him believing that this is what you want? Who wants a woman that everyone knows how the goods look before the purchase? I know that we as women are just as anxious to try the goods (like men) before purchase, but come on. . there's a more finesse way to obtaining what we want. We do not have to dive to the bottom of any ocean to get it.

I understand that we as women have to do things to make ourselves attractive, but what about the plane old fashion way? I'm referring to real Christian Woman. There are some women who are just plain old nasty lol lol. No amount of cleaning up will help them. It will have to be a clean up of the mind to do that. A transformation of the mind through Christ (smile). I am also talking about real Christian Men. There are also some men that are just plain nasty and they need a transformation of their minds also. If you are a Christian Woman and Christian Man who does this stuff,THEN SHAME ON YOU!

So. . . . in a nut shell . . . . Let's clean it up. That will give you the power to pick, choose, and refuse anyone that you want to. Ephesians 4:20 says you have that right.

God Bless
Vee

FALL IS IN THE AIR. . .

I smell it. . . the crisp tingle of fall has touched some of our mornings. I've noticed the leaves changing slowly and the air is full of the coming attraction: FALL!

I love it, I long for it, and I revel in the fall and winter months that are heading our way. I declare a joyous time this Fall and Winter allowing the old things to pass away and the Spring to bring my new birth.

Thank You Lord for lessons learned, trials that come, and the wisdom that anoints our heads when we reach our rainbows!

Vee

CAN WE ALL LEARN. . . ?

My favorite saying is that we are never to old to learn. Lately. . .I've been taught more lessons than I can remember learning in my 48 years. I am turning 49 on July 14th and within the last 6 months, my lessons about life and love has taken me to greater heights, new found respect for others, and understanding that we as humans are not a like in our thinking as we think we are.

We can say things a thousand times claiming to understand the philosophy behind our own statements, but do we truly understand what our phrases or words entail?

I often say "all I can do is to let go and let God!" (Smile) I've learn to truly do that now. It hurts to loose control of any situation, but I am understanding more and more each day that I have never had control of any situation. God has always had the control. Once I realized that. . .life's burdens have lifted from me and my happiness is finally coming back.

I decree in my life happiness. I have no control on what people say or think. I am only responsible for my own actions and all the repercussions (good or bad) that may result from my own actions.

I am not in control of my own destiny. When I received Christ in my life, my destiny that was ordain from the beginning is what is set forth before me.

My husband and I are one. Compromising is a great resolution for any problems that we can not come to any agreement about.

Last but first and far most in my heart. . .God is my pilot and I the co-pilot.

Vee

IT'S HARD WORK. . . .

I desire to be in the mist of a cool breeze with the ocean spray cooling me. I asked my husband if we could get away to The Coastal Carolinas for an up and coming weekend. It would be so wonderful. I have a need to smell the water and the clean air.

Have anyone ever noticed that it is normally the people who don't know how to swim that loves the water (smile)? Well I'm one of those people. I love water, but I can't swim a lick:). With the gas prices soaring, we've decided to cancel some of our trips for the Summer, but there are 3 major ones that are on our list. I am so glad that one of them will be the coastal area.

My Father is doing so well. I sure hope that he will be able to come home sooner than I have expected. I know that he will be glad because he talks about it often. The Lord is more than wonderful. There have been rocky waters, but things could have been worse and I have no complaints. Often when we complain, we see and / or hear conversations of other people's lives that make our complaints so trivial. . . . so I am learning to stop my complaining and thank the Lord regardless of my situations. Just give all my troubles to him and move on.

Besides. . .We often bring things on ourselves by not listening and harking to the voice of God. I'm learning that things are never that much greener on the other side:). We often want to imagine that it is, but it's not especially where the Lord is concerned. Sometimes I say to myself that my husband has all the elements of what I prayed for except this or except that. . . .but when I stop to really analyze his exceptions, I see that I am stronger in that particular area and my husband is stronger in my weaker areas. So I am going to stop trying to portray the Mz. Perfect:) and just work on my own short comings. . .

God Bless You!
Vee

ALL IS WELL WITH THEE!

It has been a very eventful month thus far. I've hit the road a few times with my husband. I met one of my sister-n-laws. She's wonderful. I was nervous for no reason at all. We did two days in Virgina. Beautiful! It was green with flowers blooming everywhere. The weather was nice and mild. We stayed at the new Holiday Inn there and it was wonderful. We shopped at the stores in Fashion Square and just enjoyed the sites. On the way home, we stopped off in Smithfield and did some shopping also. Planning a few out of town jaunts for next month that I am looking so forward to. Nothing elaborate. Just some extra quality time and fun.

Morgan (my dog) is not all mine anymore. She's grown quite fond of Eddie and listens more to him than me. He's got her spoiled also. I don't mind. She still loves me (smile).

My God daughter is graduating from North Carolina Central University in May. She's graduating a year early. My son will graduate from East Carolina's Masters Degree Program and soon to be daughter-n-law will be graduating from FTCC's RN Program this summer. I have 3 graduations to attend so far this summer. I'm very proud of all of them. They've worked their behinds off and it is paying off quite well.

God has been doing some major things in my family's life this year. My sister will be doing her first sermon next month. My father has improved greatly. It is so hard to believe that this man in the worst condition in November - February. All Praises belong to God. My brother is doing well also. Moving up the ladder in his job and enjoying his family too.

Enough about me. Tell me about you. I know that God has been just as good to you and I would love to hear all about it. Drop me a line and share your testimony with me.

God Bless You Always
Vee

THE QUIET STORMS. . .

I've been exceptionally quiet these last few days. Thoughts have been running so rampant in my head. Sometimes I wish that I can make time stand still or relive a certain day in my life. My guess is that we must savior the moments in our lives with fond memories and pictures to help us along in our journeys on this earth.

I've often wonder what my life will be like in 10 years. Will I accomplish all that I had planned by that time? Will I be more wiser and not so naive? Will 10 years show softly on my features or will my features look worn from 10 years of hardship? I guess everyone thinks along those lines at some time or another. I don't dwell on it. I think about it when I'm in one of my pensive moods (lol).

I am discovering many things about my husband. He's a good man. . . .not perfect, but neither am I. We have so much fun together and this man reads me well. I don't have to say much of what I'm thinking (lol). I wonder will it always be this good between us? We've had some disagreements, but we compromise and I like that. We've had some major issues come upon us, but we have survived them. I wanted to run and throw in the towel early, but I'm hanging in there, because I love him.

I've learned that sometimes couples come together for different reasons and somewhere in the madness fortunes happen upon you. You grow to love each other with much respect and appreciation. The very things that you thought won't work is working itself out, because you let go, let God, and gave things a chance.

We create our own QUIET STORMS in our lives. The waters are always calmer when God is in the mist.

God Bless
Vee

BREATHTAKINGLY BEAUTIFUL . . .

BEAUTY COMES IN SO MANY DEGREES!

FROM THE HEART. . .

March was very eventful for my family and I. Good things arose and along with the good the bad has to surface its ugly head now and again, but I Praise God for it all because at the end He has been faithful to keep things at a steady pace.

I am still getting use to this marriage thing. I've learned that you can still maintain your own individuality and still be inseparable at the same time. Neither one of us have been married before, so we are both learning and determined to make this union work. Most importantly allowing God to work with the both of us with the key ingredients that are required.

We are totally different in so many ways, but have so much in common. My husband is a quiet man. One of those people who walks softly, says little, but he's a lot like E. F. Hutton. Every since we've known each other he has been like that. Although he's quiet, you can feel his presence in a room full of people. He wares a great sexy smile, but you never know what he's thinking lol. Sometimes I have to say to him "lets hear it" and laugh because I read his signals so well lol. I know when he's peeved or curious about something.

TO MY HUSBAND:

I love the fact that you said to me "I can only promise to give you the best of me." You never promised me the sunshine every day, money flowing like a river or perfection. In fact, you didn't promise to give the best of you every day lol (you know how I love word play). There's no way that anyone is capable of doing that, but I've seen you at your best, your worst and I know your past. Most importantly I've asked God to show me your heart. I love the fact that we have maintained the friendship with the love. I never made a promise to you because at the time I didn't know how. Today I can do it. I promise to give you the best of me because you have seen the very same things about me. I will continue to try and allow God to lead me in everything concerning you, me, us, and we. Forgive me for taking so long to tell you that I love you. You understood, you never pressed me, or question me about my feelings for you. You allowed me to move at my own pace.

Thank You for Being You. . .
I Love You. . .
Veronica Bailey

DESIRES. . .

I have discovered that there are more than 101 things that I desire to do before sleeping OR resting (as some folk prefer it to be said). Most of my desires are simple ones. I have never made a request from God that I consider to be outrages. I believe that God only blesses you in your ability in life. Why would I ask him to bless me with a week long trip to the Virgin Islands and I don't have income to go? Sure I do understand that we are not to limit God. I also know that He could touch someone to pay for my trip, but come on. . .has the word reality ever set in anyones mind? Besides, I don't get off with the bill man calling me to remind me of a bill I owe when I spent it on a trip that I could not afford.

I am not going to list 101 or more things that I desire. That's ridiculous. I may only list a few and as time go on add to the list when I blog at other times. My number one desire is to travel the states that I have never visited. I have a friend who drove long distant trucks and offered me to go with her one summer. I was not able to. I had surgery that summer. I beat myself up many times about that opportunity, but started looking at it in another perspective. It was not meant for me to go at that particular time. I was able to take the next best thing. She would call me and give me the most detailed descriptions of where she was and send me post cards of it. Her descriptions were so wonderful. Sometimes I could see myself traveling with her and seeing what she was describing to me.

I would love to have grandchildren. Little images of my family tree lol. They would be some spoiled grands. Grandma would make sure of that.

I desire to own a Black F150 Short Bed Double Cab (with an angel spray painted on the hood) and a Ninja Bike (black and purple with an angel spray painted on the sides). Awesome! I often close my eyes and see myself driving and riding them. My grandkids will get a kick out of riding with me.

I desire to stand on a mountain top and look down at green valleys with running streams, feel the wind blowing, and to look up at the beautiful skies. I saw a site like that from a plane and I have never forgotten how beautiful the site was. To see it from a mountain top would be wonderful.
These are just a few. Nothing elaborate. Just a few simple desires.

Enjoy your week and as I am learning to do. . .stop. . .take time to smell the roses.

Vee

CRAZINESS AND THE IN-BETWEEN

The Day Light Savings Time has my sleep pattern and my daily schedule somewhat unorganized. I have to try and adjust to it, because life does move on without me. I just want to be able to have some semblance of life in what I call a "little madness." I can smell the pollen in the air and my sinuses are starting to take a beating. With very little rain brewing, it will be hard to fight my allergies this year. Although I am complaining, I have to admit that we have had more glorious weather than we actually deserve.

I've been in the worse mood this week. I was trying to figure out why, but it's not hard to do that. It does not take a rocket scientist to know that women my age have hormonal issues (putting it lightly). I've been such a witch to say the least and yesterday my friend said very sweetly. . . "Baby, tell me what's wrong." How does a menopausal woman tell her man what the hell is wrong with her?! I can't explain it and I am sure that there are others in my situation that can't explain it either.

The funny thing is that when your man is in tune with you (in my case my crazy ass) . . . He already knows what's wrong and he will say and do all the right things to make it better. In my mind I was saying work your magic Baby and I can imagine that in his mind he was saying this woman is crazy as hell lol lol. But the most important thing is that I can be myself and don't have to pretend to be what I think he wants me to be. We were the greatest of friends for years and we have both seen the good and bad sides of each other and this "relationship" seems to be working.

The funny thing about it is that I never looked at him to be anything but my friend. We both told each other secrets, scold one another for stuff that was dead wrong, talked to each other about problems in our relationships with our mates, laughed at the craziness in the world, and most of all leaned on each other when times were hard. Not once did we look at each other as anything else but friends. To tell the truth. . . If I had known the brother was that good in the bedroom, I would have jumped on it years ago lol lol. Damn How Could I Have Missed That!!

My Dad is doing so much better. He's resting, and healing nicely. I sure hope to have him home soon with me soon. I'm looking forward to that.

My son shared some great news with me this weekend. He and his friend had been unofficially engaged and now it is official. He has a very beautiful and lovely fiancee'. They work very well together as a couple. They have been together for a long time working their way through school and their jobs. They feel that they are ready to do this thing. They're very responsible people and if they feel that it's time. . . then it's time. Not that it is up to me. . .but I could not have wanted a more beautiful and smart daughter-n-law. She's wonderful!

Love to everyone and God Bless You!
Vee

DISCLOSURE. . . .

Finding someone you want to be with is sometimes the hardest thing to do. I find that letting down my defenses and letting myself feel is a wonderful thing. I strongly believe that in all relationships you have to share some measure of yourself before it (the relationship) can evolve. One should never push or become manipulative in making it happen. Just let yourself move slowly through each day. . . an inch at a time.

And then there is this acceptance thing. It's very important. There is no Mr. Perfect (lol). We all have our peculiar, undesirable, and habitual ways. If your spouse or significant other can deal with those things about you and you with them, then I know it's a good relationship. I have my peculiar, undesirable, and yes habitual ways. I can really be a world class "bitch" at times lol. It takes a very strong man to deal with me lol, but my friend deals with all my faults, never forgetting to tell me that my good qualities outweighs my bad ones (smile). I am not forgetting that he has his faults too, but the same is true on my end. His good qualities definitely outweighs his bad ones and that makes me want to hang in there a lot longer than I normally would.

I've always been sort of a flight risk when it comes to relationships. I am learning that my running is baggage for past experiences. You can't bring a lot of baggage into a new relationship lol. It reeks of a disaster waiting to happen. It's typically doomed before it gets started.

So I've asked myself time and again. . . .how do I discard all the baggage to at least give myself a chance to feel, a chance to trust, and to feel whole again? My only answer is that you can not discard every bit of discontent that is bagged up in your life in one day. It took a long time for me to store all the rubbish in my life into some suitcases to drag around with me and although it will not take as long to unpack, I find myself sifting through it's contents and unloading some articles to make my life a lot lighter in my journeys.

Unpacking trust is the hardest for me. . .and for most others too. I like most women (and men) unpack trust and place it back time and again wondering am I ready to use this one with that special someone? Some say that you can't love a person if you don't trust them. I beg to differ with that analogy. You can love a person with all your heart and not trust them. God says to love each other, but He also warns His children to trust no man. Hummmmmmmmmm? I think I have to keep trust packed for a good while and even then no man is worth me trusting 100%. I trust God to touch my man to do what is right toward me, but that is as far as it will go lol lol.

I have two of the most important elements on my list that I find difficult for the mortal man to do 100%. One is trusting each other and the other is keeping promises. I've learned the hard way about promising folks things. My motto is to tell you that I will do my best and the other is I am trustworthy to a certain extent. I am human. I do not purposely "screw" anyone, but I am prone to making mistakes and forgetting easily. I call this "Pivoting to the Right." We are all known to do that from time to time.

Well the morning is off and running. . . .leaving me behind and I've got a 101 things to do today.

God Bless And Until The Next Time . . . . .
Vee

I AM TRULY BLESSED. . . .

I am one to often reflect upon my life. It helps me to see if I've grown through the weeks, days, months, and years that I've been blessed to remain here. I've grown, but I've also allowed myself to be stuck in some not so pleasant places. I try not to dwell on the stuck places, because eventually as I grow . . . I learn to move on pass those obstacles.

This week alone I've learned the true word of acceptance, coming to terms with the inevitable, and rising from one plateau to prepare for the next. What helped me to come to those realizations was that I had a true "melt down" this week. After a long meeting with my father's doctors, I found myself on autopilot. I was there, but I wasn't. I moved through a gray haze that kept me from feeling anything. I was numb, but I was able to take care of some important things without thinking or feeling, BUT when I returned home, it was another story. The walls began to close in, I could not breath, and my mind flashed back to the meeting that I had earlier. It was if I was still sitting in the meeting with the doctors and I broke.

I consider myself a pretty strong Black Sista. I am not made of iron and I am not often shaken either, but this particular meeting shook me to the core. I'm blessed because the very one you would never imagine to be there for you often is. I am bless to have that. I don't take it for granted, but I have never acknowledge it either. Through all of his own hoopla, he's been there for me. It makes what I am going through less stressful, less alone, and with the help of God and him to do what I have to do each day for my father. I thank God for him.

"LORD I CAN NOT FORGET THE GRACE AND MERCY THAT YOU HAVE EXTENDED TO ME. MY HEART IS FILLED WITH LOVE AND GRATITUDE. I REALLY LOVE YOU LORD.YOU ARE MY GRACE MY DWELLING PLACE, MY PEACE, MY SWEET RELIEF."
Danita Champ

Love to all
Vee