rainy days and mondays...

or so the song goes....

today was actually a really beautiful day. it rained, which isn't always fun, but the view of the weather from my house was truly beautiful! The clouds hovered over Massanutten, and when they lifted all you could see were the beautiful colors that remained on the trees. unfortunately my camera doesn't do well with lots of moisture in the air, so, no pictures, however, just imagine a beautiful mountain covered by fluffy clouds and then beautiful colors in a clear sky later on in the day.

if only words could express the beauty that surrounds us...

One of my dear friends came over for a late breakfast this morning. we had so much fun catching up with things! she's the most recent (after me) to get engaged of my group of High school friends...and we're also (distantly) related!!

i don't have many friends...and the few i do have i rarely get to see, and there is a smaller few who i consider friends- but i think i'm being a bit generous when i call them friends.

but Kim, my friend, is a true friend. she's there for me, i called her at one point when i was at a very low place, and she sat on the phone with me while i cried and talked my way into a paper bag and got stuck, and prayed with me for help to get out of that paper bag...

i only hope that she knows i'm there for her whenever she needs me to be.

i know that i am truly blessed, because i do have people that love me...i couldn't even begin to name them all, but thank you! I know you are reading, and you know who you are.

God is good. hm...yes in deed.

marriage retreat pictures

okay....these are pictures of the beach and of a stop my husband and i made: Horton Vineyard. Gorgeous!

Horton Vineyard

There is an "H" in the stone!


























































Early Sunday morning the sun shone onto the ocean. it had been dark and rainy, cloudy and cold all weekend, then suddenly the suns beautiful rays came shining through!

fall!!!

I do not consider myself artistic, however, i like to play. i have a cheap camera and a cheap program on my cheap computer. i have never really spent money on something that i would consider a hobby, so, maybe that's why i don't consider photography a hobby. maybe one day....my friends...maybe one day.

here are some pictures i took and played around with. This tree is in what i consider my front yard, but really it is in my only yard....renters....

marriage retreat

Over the weekend, Jacob and i went to VA Beach with other couples from the church network to attend a marriage retreat. Pastor Tony has said that this is just a reason to get away for the weekend, and the main thing was to have fun. He and his wife, Kathy, made us promise...no arguing. we promised, and for the most part, kept it.

I came away blessed. Jacob came away with something else, and i hope to let him blog about it on our other blog, if he chooses to.

it was a very simple retreat. we gathered in a small conference room on the first level of the hotel, pulled down a screen, and Pastor Tony and/or Kathy hit play. (it was a DVD series.)

from my understanding, all of the videos can be found on www.marriagetoday.org. His name was Jimmy and his wife was Karen. I can't remember their last names, but i also have yet to visit the website.

one of the things Jimmy said in one of the sessions was that divorce and adultery runs together. His point was how to divorce-proof and adultery-proof your marriage. typically, i don't believe you can sum life up in twelve steps, but that isn't what this was about. the whole point in divorce-proofing and adultery-proofing your marriage was put family first; let me be more specific...put your spouse first. period. i am not going to go too much further in this because it isn't MY message, but it is his message, and i have no desire to take credit for learning something that he had to learn the hard way and nearly experienced a divorce or separation for it.

however, i have been thinking about that statement..."Divorce and adultery runs together."

to expand: he said that if your support group or friends or family are supportive of an affair or divorce, then you are more likely to end up experiencing a divorce or affair.

i really wonder if that's how it is with not just divorce or adultery, but other sins as well. let's say sexual sin. a man who is ashamed of his pornography addiction goes to his friends for prayer and help, yet finds that his friends take part in habitual pornography. he feels though that it still is bad, yet, kind of feels some sense of satisfaction and affirmation. he isn't the only one who struggles. maybe this isn't THAT bad....?

now, i used that example, b/c that is an example he used often....men and pornography. i really don't have an example that is a GOOD example for women, but, here's how i look at it:

it just has to be something that as a follower of Christ one knows he/she should not be taking part in this. it also has to be something that is definitely not of God and therefore is a sin. Then this sin should be shared with a few close knit friends primarily to seek help and prayer but then receives a response of shame..."yeah. i'm in the same boat. can we help each other?"

while this plea seems honorable, i wonder if it's harmful. i mean, we don't want to lie to our brothers and sister in the Lord, by not telling them that we struggle with the same sin, but at the same time...are we damaging them even more by telling them that we struggle?

i dunno...maybe i'm overthinking this, but i sincerely hope that i do not cause my sisters in Christ more damage by sharing with them.

I wanna run but i don't know how...

I was listening to the local radio station when this song by Bebo Norman came on. usually, i like Bebo Norman. he has never really touched my life by his music, which means nothing because i tend to not listen to this particular radio station. however, this song that they've been playing like crazy (because they do that...play a song to death), i feel like i just heard it for the first time. now, i'm constantly listening to this song, curtesy of free.napster.com.

http://play.napster.com/track/25140866

The song is called "Pull Me Out."

"Tell me now, when does this start feeling
like I understand everything I’m dealing with
first I was young, now it’s all just happening.
And what about the way I said that
made you turn around and shake your head
like I don’t even know what I’m asking for

This could be all about just letting go
or this could be all about just holding on

I can’t get my feet off of the ground
I wanna run but I don’t know how
can You reach down here and pull me out, can you pull me out, yeah
I wanna scream but there’s no sound
I wanna fly to you somehow
can you reach me here and pull me out, can you pull me out

remember when I was young and hungry,
I could take it in, without much money,
I had nothing at all but dreams and time to kill
and now I feel like I’m treading water
and I’m hardly real - I’m just trying harder
to make my way on the earth by standing still

this could be all about just letting go
or this could be all about just holding on

I can’t get my feet off of the ground
I wanna run but I don’t know how
Can you reach down here and pull me out, can you pull me out, yeah
I wanna scream but there’s no sound
I wanna fly to you somehow
Can you reach me here and pull me out, can you pull me out

not a moment too soon You will be my rescue
but tell me how long will it take?

I can’t get my feet off of the ground
I wanna run but I don’t know how
can you reach down here and pull me out, can you pull me out
I can’t get my feet off of the ground
I wanna run but I don’t know how
Can you reach down here and pull me out, can you pull me out, yeah
I wanna scream but there’s no sound
I wanna fly to you somehow
can you reach me here and pull me out – can you pull me out
can you pull me out? can you reach down and pull me out?"

The reason this song speaks to me is that the bridge is just where i am right now: "This could all be about letting go, or this could be all about holding on."

The chorus screams what i've been screaming:
"i can't get my feet off of the ground. i wanna run but i don't know how. can you reach down here and pull me out, can you pull me out?"

just the fact that Bebo Norman sings this part twice (can you pull me out, can you pull me out, yeah) screams how i've been feeling!

Can you pull me out, Lord....LORD! Please! CAN YOU PULL ME OUT?!?!

I know that God is capable of doing so much, including pulling me out of this situation. but the sheer fact that he hasn't says that he is doing something different. And since i KNOW God's character, i know that it isn't worse than what i am in now. For we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his will (Romans 8:28).

and in this. we are more than conquerers.

i hurt...:o\

an update on my back....

this past wednesday, October 8, i pulled some muscles in my back at work unloading the cafe shipment.

wednesday, i spent the afternoon and evening home in pain. I got up and made jacob some dinner, and made myself a little something about 2 hours later.

thursday, i went to work, but was sent home after 12:30 and spent that day in pain on the couch, with a heating pad and some tylenol.

friday, i went to the doctor where i got some muscle relaxers, and was told to take it easy.

yesterday, (saturday), i spent most of the day (after i got home from work at 11:30) on the couch and asleep from the relaxers, until jacob and i went to his grandmothers to visit some family in from out of town.

today, i'm staying home and sleeping. jacob invited a bunch of people over, so i'm hoping to be up and ready to watch some football by the time they come over.

i'm in pain, and the muscle relaxers just kinda dull the pain.

ugh. i hurt....:o\

Honey's Rum Cake

Ever since I entered into the Dobscha Family as an outsider, there has been ONE thing that EVERYONE raves about: Honey's Rum Cake.

Honey is Jacob's Great Grandmother. She has most of her recipies from scratch and are her own concoctions. She is a dear old lady, and when we asked her for her recipe, gave it freely. however, this is a family recipe, so i cannot divulge this recipe.

However, her giving the recipe to me was not only special, but very intimidating. Honey's Rum Cake is Jacob's favorite. it could be the one thing that he may be close to coveting. he ALWAYS looks for it when we go over there.

it is, however, a very easy recipe and actually kinda fun to make.

and when i made it, it came out PERFECTLY!

so...in the life of a new wife, this is one victory, encouragement, and blessing to me!