Tagged...AGAIN!

Well, we've been tagged again!! This time by the Bessinger family. We are supposed to find ten books and post the fifth sentence on page fifty-six...without posting the title! Your job: to figure out what the ten books are! LOL. On a comforting note we are to supply five hints to help you out!


So here goes.



1) The materials for the raft were scanty and weak, and when Captain Francis with three companions got fairly out of the bay the raft sank so deeply in the water that they were completely standing in the sea.




2) Their dress was very smart, their manners very civil, they were delighted with the house and in raptures with the furniture, and they happened to be so dotingly fond of children that Lady Middleton's good opinion was engaged before they had an been hour at the park.




3) He ate in silence, busily filling the big emptiness inside him, while Father and Mother talked.




4) Most of the time I spend on my knees I am either stupid; feeling nothing at all, or else my head is full of what I was doing before I began to pray, or what I am going to do as soon as I get through.




5) "I am Queen, 'tis true but I begin to be tired of it, I think I would like to be pope next."




6)"I suppose so," Mrs. Paget went on with her bread cutting.




7) Here and there, on elevated platforms, or even on the top of a pile of tubs, were friars occupied in haranguing the soldiers, and in inspiring them with enthusiasm for the cause upon which they were embarked.




8) For truth is in this proverb, and no lie, men say well thus: it's always he that's well nigh.







9) Yet if he could have helped, he would not have done it; but he had not the discretion either to stop his ears nor to know from whence those blasphemies came.







10) Yatsar describes the action of a potter forming a vessel for a particular purpose.



Hints:
1) All those who participated in the commands study should reconize one of these!

2) The acronym of our beloved state should give you a hint of one of the authors.

3) Think 'Austen' girls!

4) Dig into your libraries. A few of these books were written quite a while ago.

5) Famous pioneers!


Well that's all folks!! Now here's who I'm tagging:

The Smiths

The Antonians

The Sanders

The Parishs


God bless,
Angela

A white Christmas after all!

Daddy had this great idea last year for the perfect Christmas picture for us in South Georgia. Unfortunately, we did not get it done last year before they picked all the "snow," but we got it this year:



Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas!

God bless,
Angela

Tagged!! :)

Hello folks! Well, we have been tagged by the Morton clan. The requirements: to post 7 interesting facts about our family.

So here goes:



1) Everyday speech around the Hagen house includes alliterations, TLA’s (three-letter-acronyms), and rhymes. We are always immensely amused at ourselves, often laughing so hard that we start choking. T.J., the only serious person in our family, tries to hide the fact that he is amused by pulling at his mustache so as to hide his mouth. Unfortunately, this only makes us all laugh harder. –BTW using TLA’s is a hereditary condition passed down from my grandfather, so we do have some excuse for our sometimes undignified hilarity. LOL.





2) Mumsie’s family, that is, the Beville family, can trace their family line all the way back to the time of William the conqueror, approx. 1066 A.D. The Beville family came to Virginia in the early 1670’s and settled near Jamestown. Their descendents still own the original land granted to them at that time. Essex, Virginia is named after Essex Beville.





3) Our family is descended on Daddy’s side from the Norwegian Vikings, hence the preposterous height and size of almost every male member of our family. To state it more plainly: don’t mess with us!! :)





4) We REALLY do say ‘Woohoo’ everyday before family worship.
For those of ya’ll that have never been to church at our house this statement would obviously leave you in the dark. I will enlighten you.


Every morning Daddy says:
“This is the day that the LORD has made”
and the proper response is:
“Let us rejoice and be glad in it, WOOHOO!! (really, really, REALLY loud)





5) We love chocolate!! (Woohoo!)





6) As a family we have traveled to several states like Oregon, Nevada, Texas, and Arizona. We had a lot of fun traveling together. And trust me, there is nothing like tent camping in the snow with your family in the middle of nowhere. Nothing.





7) We are probably the only people who ever answered the phone to hear: “Oh, ya’ll weren’t supposed to be home!"

For those of ya’ll who has never heard (or heard of) one of our answering machine messages, I’ll have to explain. Usually, Daddy will take a song and, keeping the tune, change all the words to fit our family, and then records it on the phone. Complete strangers have called us because somebody we know told them about it!!
Here’s an old one:
Properly sung in a very low, bluesy voice.

The phone, the phone,
can’t come to the phone.
Can’t take your call ‘cause there’s nobody home.
There’s nobody here to talk to you now,
so leave us a message, make it silly somehow!
Just leave us your message when you hear the beep,
we’ll call you right back, and that’s a promise we’ll keep.
The phone, the phone,
can’t come to the phone.
Can’t take your callallallalll…’cause theirs nobody hooooooommmee.





Well that’s all for now folks. Sorry Adeline, I couldn’t come up with 7 other people to tag. But here’s a few.

Campana family

Frost family

Parish family

Slaughter family

And anyone else who wants to join in the fun!! :)

Rules are as follows:

1) Link the person who tagged you and post the rules on your blog.
2) List 7 interesting facts about you/your family.
3) Tag 7 other people and include links to their blogs.
4) Let each person know they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Ya’ll come back now.
God bless,
Angela

Happy Thanksgiving!

We all have so much to be thankful to God for. I was reading this morning in Deuteronomy 8 where the Lord reminded the Israelites to remember Him. It is so easy when everything is going our way and when everything is good to forget the Lord and think that we could do it ourselves. As it says, "when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God." Remember to thank God, the Creator of all things, for all of the things that He has blessed you with.

And for a little Thanksgiving fun, click here.

This Thanksgiving, be blessed and be a blessing!
-by Mr. Larry

Amazing Grace...

How would you like to live next to this house?



Check out this cool video a friend sent me: Be sure to turn on and turn up your speakers.

- Mr. Larry

Is Obama Qualified?

Today is Election Day. Here is something very, very important you need to know about before you go to the polling place. You may be voting for an unqualified canidate for President. My Dad read an e-mail he got Sunday night that there is a case that has been brought to the U.S. Supreme Court that Democratic Presidental Canidate Barak Hussein Obama is not qualified to be President. A Democratic lawyer has been speculating that Obama has not shown his birth certificate. He is maintaining that Obama was not born in the U.S. One of the qualifications to be President as stated in the Constitution: Article II-Section I:



"No one except a natural born Citizen, ...shall be eligible for President;"



This hasn't been reported by the media because the media is pulling for Obama for one thing. The Democrat Party, especially Hillary Clinton, has been silent on this issue for another.



If the Court decides that Obama is not qualified and wins the election, this could lead to an ugly situation that may affect every U.S. Citizen.

- by T.J.

Cat-astrophe

Mrs. Christine was going to be doing some work on the computer yesterday. I came inside from my office outside and she was sitting on the couch looking a little down. I said "what's wrong?" She said that she couldn't do what she needed to do on the computer because something was going on with the printer. I asked if there was an error message or something. She said "there is something on the printer, you need to go see about it..."

El Gato Blanco decided that the printer was a great place for a nap on a rainy day.

- by Mr. Larry

Tribute to a hero...

Last night, my dear Uncle Mickey went home to meet his Creator. He is one of my biggest heroes. Uncle Mickey was a distinguished gentleman and a wonderful example of a loving husband to his wife, my dear Aunt Amy. Here is Uncle Mickey holding his grandson Michael Paul several years ago. Just a few days before leaving this world, Uncle Mickey's second great-grandson would be born to Michael Paul's wife.

Uncle Mickey was one of those World War II veterans who landed on Omaha Beach and marched across Europe to liberate it from the Nazis. When he published his memoirs in 1999, he held a small party at his house for us in his family. He showed some of the artifacts and memorabilia he has from his tours of Europe and Korea. One of my favorite was a Nazi flag that they took down from Beethoven's house as they marched across Europe.

A few years ago, they had to amputate one of his legs. When they did, they found that there was shrapnel in his leg from WWII. All of these years, he had been carrying around with him shrapnel from the war. There were some that told him he should make a fuss about it and he could be greatly compensated by the government. He didn't want any part of that. He was a career Army man and a proud patriot. He was a Purple Heart recipient, and had many other combat decorations and awards including the Silver Star and the Bronze Star. Like most of the veterans of his generation, he was a humble man who saw it simply as doing his duty. This nation needs more men like Uncle Mickey.

More photos from the mountains...

Here we are getting ready to board the Smoky Mountain Railroad in Bryson City, NC. It was a fun and wonderful scenic ride.


Here is my beautiful bride (a.k.a. Gorgeous) on the train.
Here is another picture of some gorgeous scenery with a gorgeous lady:


The trees are in the early stages of changing into their fall colors. It is something that we don't get too much of in South Georgia.

For the life of me, I cannot figure out how any rational, thinking, human being could honestly believe that all of this beauty and the rich and intricately balanced systems that work to produce it could be the result of a bunch of random accidents over billions of years. The beauty of creation shouts the glory of the Creator!

Here, Gorgeous stops to dip her feet in a cool mountain stream. The water temperature was about 46 degrees.

This is a sign at one of the peaks in Smoky Mountain National Park. It is kind of sad to see that we now have designated spots where you may exercise your constitutionally-protected rights. I guess this means that in the rest of the park, your First Amendment rights don't apply...
Here is a picture of Gorgeous in the gorge (Tallulah Gorge in Northern Georgia):

Retreat to the mountains...

This week, Gorgeous and I went off for a few days to the Smoky Mountains. The trees are starting to put on their fall colors, and it was a wonderful and beautiful time.

And speaking of beautiful...here's Gorgeous:

Here is a picture of the full moon coming up over the mountains. I did the best that I could with the photo, you really had to be there to see how beautiful it was. One of the most striking things was all of the beauty and diversity of God's wonderful creation. God surely put on an awesome display of His handiwork for us!

- Mr. Larry

The Practice of the Presence of God

Years ago, I read a short little book called "the Practice of the Presence of God." It was written over 300 years ago by a humble monk named Brother Lawrence. I was looking through it once again last night as I so desperately needed to feel His peace and presence. When T.J. asked me what I was reading, I told him the title of the book and that it was written by Brother Lawrence. He asked "you mean you wrote it?" No, I did not. But here is a link to it online for your enjoyment.

Be blessed and be a blessing! - Larry

On the beach

The Beach

"Ahh...what are rocks and mountains compared to waves and sand..."

We had a delightful trip to the beach a few weeks ago, (notice weeks, sorry ya'll I'm a little behind on posting) though without Mamma on the second trip it wasn't quite the same. Anyway here are some pictures from round two at the beach, I will try to get round one up soon (ever heard of putting the cart before the horse?)!

"The LORD has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes."

Psalm 118:23

Here is Angela Marie and Lola Marie enjoying a walk on the beach:

Lively bunch ain't we?

Angela is showing me (Larry) the perfect picture that she wants to take, with the wet sand, the dry sand, and the water foreground and background:

And here is Angela's perfect picture:

Beauty

Ahh...Ya'll I had the sheer delight of riding my Grandma's bike down the beach on this trip. Oh girls, if you've never done this...well, lets just say 'next time' and leave it at that. Just imagine for a moment: the waves splashing up under the wheels, the wind wipping through your hair, and ruffleing your white skirt (well, formerly white, now rather brown with sand), and...well you get the point.


It was just after T.J. 18th Birthday when we went, so it really was almost a late birthday trip. Happy Birthday dear Brother, we love you!

The Man himself I presume.

We also had a wonderful visit from my Dad's Aunt Dot, during which she gave me some lessons in swing danceing! Bring on the Glen Miller!!

Clapping ensues...

I'll try to post round 1 ASAP. Wishing everyone a wonderful week,

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing,

Daddy and Angela

Blessings for T.J.

We celebrated a wonderful blessing ceremony for T.J.'s 18th birthday. We began with words of wisdom including things that I had learned from my father and my grandmother.


I then also read and played an audio of blessings from other men that have had a significant impact on T.J.'s life as he was growing from a boy into a man.



Here is Dad speaking a blessing over his son:




Then the dear brothers of our fellowship all added their own blessings and words of encouragement for T.J.:

Here, T.J.'s grandfather (from CountryMama's side of the family) blesses T.J.:


After the blessings and communion, we had a great time of feasting and fellowship:

Happy 4th of July!

As I enter this post, I pause to thank God that we do still live in a land where we can worship the Lord as we please (for the most part). We do enjoy freedoms here in this country that others in the world can only dream of.

We were watching a Moody Science video last night entitled "Empty Cities." The video highlighted several ancient civilizations that collapsed on themselves once they turned from moral living and embraced pagan things like child sacrifice and the pursuit of immoral self-pleasures. Surely, in this land where we now sacrifice children on the altar of "choice" and where we are told we have to be tolerant of "alternative lifestyles," we are not too far behind. Hopefully, as a nation, we will turn our hearts back to the God of the Bible, and repent of our sinfulness.

A good friend forwarded me this video that I have posted for your enjoyment. Yes, there still is hope for our nation. As a nation, we do tend to turn back to God in times of need. With cities now underwater as a result of flooding, and fires consuming large chunks of land out west, hopefully we will heed the wake-up call.

Home With a Range

by Mr. Larry...

Oh give me a home

where the chickens do roam,

and my dear,

and my children do play,

where often is heard, an encouraging word,
and the skies are not cloudy all day

(here comes the chorus, everybody sing along...)

Home, home with a range

where my dear and my children do play,

where often is heard, an encouraging word (whoo-hoo)

and the skies are not cloudy all day (although we could sure use the rain)!

The Dangers of Fresh Organic Salad - Part II

T.J. and I travelled to Tampa this week. The lovely and wonderful Mrs. Christine picked some fresh lettuce and stuff from the garden and packed us a bunch of food to take with us on the trip. When we sat down to dinner last night, T.J. found a little suprise in his salad...yes, another little green worm! This guy was packed into the bucket at around 7:30 am, and placed in a cooler all day as we journeyed in the morning, and then worked in the afternoon. Eleven hours later, when we were enjoying dinner, he was still alive and doing well. We set him free in a vacant lot next to the hotel.

Larry

Fun, Food, and Fellowship

Hey Ya'll,

We've had a delightfully busy week, Daddy was down in Orlando during the first part of the week and it was quite quiet, but once he got home the fun began! On Thursday the Hicks Family invited us over for supper. We had such a grand time, talking and laughing, tossing jokes and bags of corn back and forth. The Hicks showed us the wonderous art of Corn Holeing. Who would ever have thought that throwing socks filled with corn into holes in plywood would be so facinating! Unfortunately I have no pictures of this event, Boo hoo (as opposed to Whoo hoo). Thanks Hicks Family for your wonderful hospitality.

On Saturday night the Morton Clan invited us over for supper. With good food (fabulous Darth), great and encouraging conversation, and even a cute baby, who could possibly ask for more? I even got a chance to ride the infamous see-saw that Wesley built out of a light pole, fun fun fun. Thanks Morton Clan, we had a jolly good time I tell ya.

Silhouettes

"...twould be better if conversation..."

A gathering place of friends and a center of excitement: the computer!

Wesley, Rachel, and little Joseph came for supper too. Is'nt he just precious, he's gained a whole pound since he was born!

Mama, Baby, and Adoring Anties. Oh he's so cute you could just eat him with a spoon!

Adeline Grace

Dancing to Glen Miller music

More dancing . (I don't know how Dorothy does it, I'm sweating, and my face looks like a very ripe tomato, but as usual, she looks lovely.)

The Window

Dorthy was so fasinated and excited to discover that our feet look very similar. Can you guess who's is whose?

1 2 3 BYE!! To which we of course responded with 1 2 3 WHOO HOO!! (which they thought was hilarious)

Well that's all for now, tune in next time to see the International Tornament for Corn Holers, have you got the ITCH? (just kidding, I don't have pictures)

So blessings to all, and to all a good night,

Angela