Wordless Wednesday

10 Years

Today marks 10 years that my husband's life has been forever changed.  It marks the 10 year anniversary of the death of his soldier in Iraq.

PVT Jesse Mizener

 KIA Jan 7, 2004

(photo used with permission)

Every year on this day, Mike withdraws into himself.  Probably to live his nightmare and cope the only way he knows how.  Every year on this day, I make a special bracelet to be close to him.  This bracelet is only made once a year, and I don't charge for it.  The only thing is, it goes to someone in need.  Last year, my Remembrance Bracelet went to Jesse's sister.  

I do have to say, that having Jesse's brother as a friend has been helpful for Mike this year.  I figured as a wife, I wanted to do something to help him, so I contacted Jesse's brother.  At first, I was worried that Mike would be upset, but then they hit it off.  We've experienced the birth of Brians's daughter through his Facebook posts.  And, between our two families, we keep Jesse's memory alive.  

So, as usual, this year I will be taking nominations for the Remembrance Bracelet.  The person doesn't have to be a service member or family, but someone that has experienced loss and needs a little help.  This has been my way of HONORING Jesse every year. 

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

                                                                             Matthew 5:4

Evil

I've decided to build my vocabulary this year.  And, I figure I can share what I learn with you.  Therefore, I'm starting "Word Mastery Monday".  And my first word for this year is one that everyone has heard, and used.  I would even venture to say that SOME PEOPLE have used it over-zealously.  We're not going to say which people, because quite frankly, I have NO CLUE who said it.  But, this word...this simple little word, has caused me to lose one of the things that mean the most to me.  No, I'm not talking about MonsterBoy.  I won't say what that thing is, but it is very important to me.

This weeks word is EVIL.

The definition of EVIL is this: 1. Morally bad or wrong, wicked
                                         2. Causing ruin, injury, or pain; harmful
                                         3. Bad or malicious
                                         4. That which causes harm, misfortune, or destruction
(This and all future definitions will be coming from "The American Heritage College Dictionary" Fourth Edition)

Some synonyms for EVIL are: bad, hateful, destructive, malevolent, malicious and ugly

Some antonyms for EVIL are: decent, friendly, good, kind, virtuous, and upright

For my mommy's out there, I've created this word search for your little ones!  I hope you like it!

I'm going to also try to include a Bible Verse with each word.
Bible Verse:
To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled.  They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works.  They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.
                                                                                                      Titus 1:15-16

I will not go into my own thoughts on this subject.  I will only leave you to think about this for the week.
What are your thoughts on EVIL?  Do you think it is a word that is over used or one that we need to pay more attention to?  Please, leave a comment with your thoughts.

New Year, New Wardrobe...Almost?

With the New Year comes a lot of changes.  I'm starting school for one!! W00H0000!!  Another is that I have some pretty big Resolutions for the year.  

And, in looking at my closet and getting ready for school, I noticed something.  My wardrobe consists of mostly t-shirts.  And, I want to TRY to look a bit more professional for school.  So, I went shopping with the Belk gift card that I won. 

The other day, Mike took me to Belk to try to get me to feel better.  Retail therapy I guess you can say.

I didn't feel like buying much.  But, I did get a shirt for him and two shirts for me.  Here's the 2 shirts I got for myself.

Now, I wasn't paying attention to prices that day and figured I spent about $100.  But, when the total price came up it was only $54.97 with a savings of $99.22!!!  The purple shirt I liked because, well, it's PURPLE!  The white shirt is beautiful and matches a black shirt that I got at the beginning of December.  See, when I find stuff that I like, I usually buy the same thing in different colors.  Here's the two shirts together.

Today, I didn't plan on buying much.  Just some clothes for Monster.  But, when I went into Belk, they had restocked from the holiday shopping and there was a LOT of stuff on clearance.  Yes, I did get some clothes for Monster...that kid is growing so fast.  I got him two pair of jeans (with an adjustable waist) and two shirts.  They're going to look so good on him.

Then, we got a suit for Mike.  With him being in the upper level business classes, and both of us doing more community oriented activities, we needed to get him another suit, because just one won't do it anymore.

I can't wait to see how good he looks in this!!! And with Belk's prices, we paid less than $100 for both pieces.  It pays to keep an eye out for sales and coupons!!!!

Then, I visited the clearance racks in the Women's Department.  They had mostly long sleeve shirts on the regular racks, and I'm not into long sleeves much.  I found a bunch of shirts that I really liked, and the most expensive ones were these three that I got to match with the sweaters.

Each of these three shirts was actually less than $20 each!  That's a great price for them.  They will go with these sweaters and they will match just about all my pants and skirts.

Then I found these shirts, which, if you know me, yell "THE MARCI FACTOR".  They're unique and original.  They will match my other outfits, but that's not why I got these.  I LOVE the colors, and on the third one, the pattern.  

All three of these shirts will go great with the Lilla Rose Flexi of the Month, which is a Peacock.  I'm in love with it and can't wait to wear it. (Shameless plug here)

So, for all of the clothes that I got today, I SAVED more than I spent.  My total was $273.70 and my savings was $385.16!! This is why I love shopping at Belk!