my Mother's BOOK!

YAY MOM!

I'm excited to read it through. I'm proud of my mom. She's an author!

Okay, so those of you that don't know: you've GOT to get a copy of this book. It's about all the many traits of God that we can praise him for. If I'm correct there are 31 chapters in the book, so you can go through it each day of the month. (like how some people go through the book of Proverbs).
It'll be a book that will encourage you, lift your spirit, get your mind & emotions off of all that's going wrong in your life, and help you focus on the many reasons we have to praise God -- simply for who he is. And through doing that, you will find amazing things happen because you're living by principle and trusting God while you praise him. GET THE BOOK!
here's how:
pleasantwordbooks.com .... direct link to the book here .... Amazon.com .... my mom's website joythornton.org

..side note, my mom is also an amazing pianist and hopefully will get an album out of her "tickling the keys" ;)

skunked

Skunk Funk Forces Iowa Family From Home

Homeowner Says Insurance Won't Cover Damage

DES MOINES, Iowa -- An Albia family was chased out of their home Saturday by a cloud of four-legged foulness.

A skunk sprayed its scent on the home's dryer vent and an air conditioner.

"It's not something you can see," said Arndt-Johnston.

The homeowners are finding out it's no laughing matter. After three days of airing out the house, it still reeks of skunk.

"This was a big male skunk. It wasn't a cute, little, 'let's-pet-him' skunk," said homeowner Mary Arndt-Johnston.

The smell instantly got drawn into the house.

"We were out of there within 10 minutes. It was that bad. You could not stay there," she said.

She said it was worse than smelling a skunk while driving on the highway.

"This was like a million times that. This is like parking over one that's still going," she said.

Arndt-Johnston's son said the oil from the skunk is on everything, and if they pick up something up that has been sprayed on, they have to wash their hands and clothes.

Arndt-Johnston said the sofas have to be burned and that their items such as DVDs and books might smell forever.

"I still have that taste in my mouth, even now," she said.

Their headaches got worse Monday morning.

"I kind of feel like we got skunked twice -- by the four-legged one and then by the insurance company," she said.

Arndt-Johnston's homeowner's policy won't cover the cleaning bill.

"You can't get rid of that smell. It doesn't just go away," she said.

They said that they will be airing out the house, cleaning and repainting for weeks.

"I'm starting at the beginning and I don't know how long it's going to take," she said.

The Johnstons have been living in a hotel since Saturday.

They have been cleaning their clothes several times at a coin-operated laundry facility.

Since their insurance isn't covering anything, some friends have set up a fund to help the Johnstons at People's State Bank in Albia.

Proverbs 6:16-19

There are six things the Lord hates—
no, seven things he detests:
haughty eyes,
a lying tongue,
hands that kill the innocent,
a heart that plots evil,
feet that race to do wrong,
a false witness who pours out lies,
a person who sows discord in a family.

(there are very few places in the Bible when it mentions what God hates, so this really means something. what you do find a lot thru the Bible is "God is Love" & a lot more love stuff. so if you're reading this & haven't read a whole lot of the Bible, just know this is a rare occurance, which means we should take notice.)

a poem

a wait poem my Grandma emailed to me, I thought was good.

countries around the world

and I hope to visit many many more!

kid too young

this boy looks way too young to be driving, yeah? he was definitely driving like he was trying to show off: gunned it at the light, switching lanes... where are the parents? whose car is this?

cute kid sayings

LOT'S WIFE:
The Sunday School teacher was describing how Lot's wife looked back and
turned into a pillar of salt, when little Jason interrupted, "My Mommy looked back once, while she was driving," he announced triumphantly, "and she turned into a telephone pole!"

GOOD SAMARITAN:
A Sunday school teacher was telling her class the story of the Good
Samaritan. She asked the class, "If you saw a person lying on the
roadside, all wounded and bleeding, what would you do?"
A thoughtful little girl broke the hushed silence, "I think I'd throw up."

DID NOAH FISH?
A Sunday school teacher asked, "Johnny, do you think Noah did a lot of
fishing when he was on the Ark?"
"No," replied Johnny. "How could he, with just two worms."

THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD:
A Sunday School teacher decided to have her young class memorize one
of the most quoted passages in the Bible; Psalm 23. She gave the youngsters
a month to learn the chapter. Little Rick was excited about the task -- but, he just couldn't remember the Psalm. After much practice, he could barely get past the first line. On the day that the kids were scheduled to recite Psalm 23 in front of the congregation, Ricky was so nervous. When it was his turn, he stepped up to the microphone and said proudly, "The Lord is my Shepherd, and that's all I need to know."

TIME TO PRAY
A pastor asked a little boy if he said his prayers every night.
"Yes, sir," the boy replied.
"And, do you always say them in the morning, too?" the pastor asked.
"No sir," the boy replied. "I ain't scared in the daytime."

ALL MEN / ALL GIRLS?
When my daughter, Kelli, said her bedtime prayers, she would bless every
family member, every friend, and every animal (current and past).
For several weeks, after we had finished the nightly prayer, Kelli would say,
"And all girls." As this soon became part of her nightly routine, to include
this at the end, my curiosity got the best of me and I asked her,
"Kelli, Why do you always add the part about all girls?"
Her response, "Because we always finish our prayers by saying 'All Men'!"

SAY A PRAYER
Little Johnny and his family were having Sunday dinner at his Grandmother's
house. Everyone was seated around the table as the food was being served.
When Little Johnny received his plate, he started eating right away.
"Johnny! Please wait until we say our prayer." Said his mother
"I don't have to," The boy replied.
"Of course, you do," his mother insisted. "We say a prayer before eating, at our house."
"That's our house," Johnny explained. "But this is Grandma's house and she knows how to cook!

Shaq's Big Challenge

So I’ve watched “Shaq’s Big Challenge” to conquer childhood obesity. I think it’s awesome. It’s on ABC Tues nights @ 8c.

I get my exercise just watching— b/c I'm laughing so much. Shaq seems so laid back and funny. He is such a big guy! Hilarious—his piece of “black people don’t know lyrics to songs” and when he walks thru a doorway, as he ducks he smacks his hand on the top of the door post and then holds his hand to his head like he hit his head. Funny guy. I guess it would be neat to meet him someday.

One of the boys is Walter. I feel bad for him. The doctor put it well: he has an infantile personality (or something like that). Plus the poor kid’s dad doesn’t talk very good about him while he is around him. I think the dad is embarrassed and insecure, and it shows by how he talks about his son.

Man, I can’t believe the weight of these kids. I’m 26 and they weigh more than me! The heaviest of them is 14 yrs old and 285 lbs. Wow. I just sincerely hope these kids kick their bad habits and begin a healthy lifestyle of eating and exercising. I’m so glad that my mom always prepared healthy meals for us growing up. Thanks ma!

But this is motivating me to get out and run and do push-ups and stuff.

Here’s a link to “about the kids”

Jackie Chan "war"

I heard this song on the radio yesterday & I had only known of it from this movie (Rush Hour) that I had seen on TV awhile ago. I prefer Jackie Chan's version, it's cute.
*now understand that I am in NO way stating a pessimistic view of war. all i'm saying is watching Jackie Chan sing this in this movie is so funny.