Joplin, MO Tornado Relief

I spent the last week in Joplin, MO volunteering with Samaritan's Purse Disaster Response Team.  I did this because 1.) I couldn't stop the tears every time I saw photos or reports of the devastation from the F5, 200mph tornado that damaged or destroyed over 7,000 homes & businesses, killed over 140 people and left almost 1/3 of Joplin in ruins on May 22 and 2.) Samaritan's Purse is one of the most highly respected and well run christian ministries (started & run by Franklin Graham) that we've supported for many years.  When I heard their plea for volunteers on the radio, I just couldn't ignore it.

(Businesses along Rangeline Rd)

So I, along with my daughter and her friend, packed our bags in the car and headed north to see how we could help.  The news reports and online photos did nothing to prepare us for what we encountered when we exited the highway and drove down Rangline Rd into the "war" zone.  I call it that because as far as the eye could see, it truly looked like this part of town had been bombed...repeatedly.  It broke our hearts to see for our own eyes what the news reports as the single deadliest tornado in record keeping history.  Knowing many victims had been in those miles and miles of rubble that were once homes and businesses and hundreds of flipped and smashed vehicles was very overwhelmingly heartbreaking. 

(a former neighborhood - this landscape went on for miles - the twister left a path of destruction

almost a mile wide and over 12 miles long.)

We spent the week helping homeowners find any valuable items from the rubble we could and clearing debris and down trees from homes that were still livable...but the most valuable thing we where able to do is to love on them...talking to them, praying for them, hugging them and letting them know that God loves them and so do many, many people across the country.

(Our team)

(at a job site)

(Other job sites)

(Taking a lunch break-free food was provided by churches &

relief organizations to victims & relief workers.)

The reason I'm sharing this is to ask you to please remember them in your prayers and if possible please volunteer or give to organizations like samaritanspurse.org , Operation Blessing at ob.org or the Red Cross who have all also provided help for the Alabama & North Carolina tornado victims & are still in Joplin...and will probably be for quite awhile...it surely will take years to rise from these ashes...but with God all things are possible.

(A few of the relief organizations helping in Joplin.)

As with every blessing we try to give away, we receive back many more blessings in return...the most significant one I received was a renewed gratitude and reminder of the most important thing in life...the value of family, friends and the sanctity & brevity of human life.

and

God Bless You & Keep You Always.

Funny Sightings

Driving through Destin on a bright sunny day we took a double take when we came up behind this guy...

Wow, talk about creative advertising!  Definitely got our attention!

Then we stopped in Seaside while on a bike ride and just had to take a picture of this cute little biker dude...

This little guy just made our day!. 

Since then we've actually seen him riding down Hwy 98 with his biker daddy,lol.

Sunday Beach Walk

As ice and snow grips the midwest and northern part of the country (sorry y'all), we were blessed this morning to a beautiful Florida sunshiny day.  Temps only reached about 55 degrees but it made for a simply gorgeous winter day compared to all the winters we spent in Ohio and Alaska. 
It was a day that just begged us to come out and enjoy it...so we did!

After watching a great sermon this morning online by our beloved ex-pastor from Christian Life Center in Dayton, Pastor Stan Tharp, (because after visiting numerous churches here, sadly, we still haven't found a church home) we headed out to walk the beach and soak in the sunshine and healthy ions...thank you Lord!!

We started out at one of our favorite spots, Pier Park...great place to stroll with cute shops, yummy restaurants, nice landscaping & best of all...no ice!

We met this friendly fellow (part wolf & part Malamute) Kayzer, and his person, Nancy, out enjoying the beautiful Florida sunshine also.

Pansies in February...gotta love it.

At the end of Pier Park is one of our favorite fish places, Hook'd. 

One reason is the great fish tacos made with fresh caught Mahi-Mahi.  The other reason...

...is the incredible view right on the beach! (And no, that beautiful white stuff is not snow, it's the gorgeous white powder soft quartz sand found only along the emerald coast of Florida.)

Really gotta love it!

After walking the beach for a little while, we got hungry and ended up at another one of our favorite places...

Whether in Ohio or Florida, Panera Bread has become a comfortable place to de-stress with their relaxed, peaceful atmoshpere and tasty fresh made breads, pasteries, salads and sandwiches.  One of our favorite dishes is their Asian Sesame Chicken salad...

Yum...so good and highly recommended.

What a wonderfully blessed day.  Thank you Jesus!

"This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it"

Psalm 118:24

p.s Go Packers!!!!

Best Ever Blueberry Muffins



The grocery store had a great sale on fresh blueberries so I went looking for a good muffin recipe...and found one!  It's called "To Die for Blueberry Muffins" and it definitely lives up to it's name!!! Yum!!  I can honestly say it's the best muffin recipe I've ever found.  If you wanna give it a try, just follow this link to Allrecipes.com...

http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/To-Die-For-Blueberry-Muffins/Detail.aspx

To make them a bit healthier I adjusted the recipe by subbing half the sugar with half Truvia (Splenda will work also) sweetener, 1/2cup whole wheat flour plus the 1 cup white flour, walnut oil, sea salt, then adding an extra egg for protein and chopped walnuts...note: I did have to cook them a bit longer to compensate for the whole wheat flour & extra egg.  They were not only yummy but also more filling. 

As Rachel would say, "Yummo!!"  Happy Baking!