MARCH 9, yes, it's my birthday..

OH YES, IT'S MY BIRTHDAY.. (no I'm not ashamed of my age, I'm now 58 and thankful to God for each year of life HE has given me!)

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this picture is my sister Carole (in back) brother Timmy on Dad's lap.. Dad.. baby "me" on Mom's lap, Mom.. and brother Buck in front .... so this picture is 58 years old..

AND THIS WAS DAD AND ME ON MY FIRST BIRTHDAY.. "GUESS MOM WAS TAKING THE PHOTO" SO THIS PICTURE IS 57 YEARS OLD

**Interesting and very thoughtful message for all to read. * *This is special*

This story below is from Karen.. thanks girl, I surely enjoyed it.. hope you like the pictures I've added... love and prayers!

A successful business man was growing old and knew it was time to choose a successor to take over the business. Instead of choosing one of his Directors or his children, he decided to do something different. He called all the young executives in his company together. He said, "It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO. I have decided to choose one of you. " The young executives were Shocked, but the boss continued. "I am going to give each one of you a SEED today - one very special SEED. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here
one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given you. ****I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one **** I choose will be the next CEO." One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others, received a seed. He went home and excitedly, told his wife the story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed. Everyday, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow. Jim kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still nothing. By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure. Six months went by -- still nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing Jim didn't say anything to his colleagues, however, he just kept watering and fertilizing the soil - He so wanted the seed to grow. A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company brought their plants to the CEO for inspection. Jim told his wife that he wasn't going to take an empty pot. But she asked him to be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick to his stomach, it was going to be the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right. He took his empty pot to the board room. When Jim arrived, he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful - in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed, a few felt sorry for him!
When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives. Jim just tried to hide in the back. "My, what great plants, trees and flowers you have grown," said the CEO. "Today one of you will be appointed the next CEO!" All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered the Financial Director to bring him to the front. Jim was terrified.. He thought, "The CEO knows I'm a failure! Maybe he will have me fired!" When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed, Jim told him the story. The CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim, and then announced to the young executives, "Behold your next Chief Executive Officer! His name is Jim!" Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed. "How could he be the new CEO?" the others said. Then the CEO said, "One year ago today, I gave everyone in this room a seed. I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds; they were dead - it was not possible for them to grow. All of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you. Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief Executive Officer!"

If you plant honesty, you will reap trust If you plant goodness,you will reap friends If you plant humility, you will reap greatness If you plant perseverance, you will reap contentment If you plant consideration, you will reap perspective If you plant hard work, you will reap success If you plant forgiveness, you will reap reconciliation So, be careful what you plant now; it will determine what you will reap later. Think about this for a minute.*
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If I happened to show up on your door step crying, would you care? If
I called you and asked you to pick me up because something happened,
would you come? If I had one day left to live my life, would you be
part of that last day? If I needed a shoulder to cry on, would you give
me yours?
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Do you know what the relationship is between your two eyes? They blink together, they move together, they cry together, they see things together, and they sleep together, but they never see each other; that's what friendship is. Your aspiration is your motivation, your motivation is your belief , your belief is your peace, your peace is your target, your target is heaven, and life is like hard core torture without it! thanks again Karen.. I thought the above was ALL SPECIAL!
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SPEAKING OF FRIENDS.. I WANT TO THANK ALL OF MY FAMILY, MY FRIENDS, MY CO-WORKERS, MY 'FACEBOOK FRIENDS' AND EVERYONE WHO WISHED ME A HAPPY BIRTHDAY.. THANK YOU AND GOD BLESS EACH OF YOU.. THERE WERE VERY MANY AND I AM SO HUMBLED AND GRATEFUL! (and it wasn't just that it was birthday wishes, even though I appreciate that too, but .. it was just that you thought enough to take your time to send a card, or message of well wishes.. thanks and God bless) AND A VERY SPECIAL THANKS TO CHRIS, LILY, KAYLA AND ANNA (for the awesome gift) AND TO NATHAN AND NORMAN JR (for spending time with me this evening)... ALSO TO JEFF, NORMAN, LEISA AND ABIGAIL..AND KARLIE... I DEEPLY LOVE AND APPRECIATE EACH OF YOU
(ME ON MY FIRST BIRTHDAY, taken 57 years ago)

AND I WANT TO SAY THAT I AM THANKFUL TO GOD FOR EACH AND EVERY YEAR HE HAS GIVEN ME.. I DO APPRECIATE HIS LOVE, GRACE, AND FAITHFULNESS..

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THANKS TO MY HANDSOME GRANDSON FOR STILL WANTING TO SPEND WEEKENDS WITH US.. WE LOVE EACH OF YOU AND ALL OF YOU ARE SOOO SPECIAL!
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PROVERBS 17:6 Children's children are a crown to the aged ..
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NOW FOR JUST A LITTLE BIRTHDAY HUMOR.. HOPE YOU GET A CHUCKLE OUT OF IT..

God grant me the Senility to forget the people I never liked anyway, the good fortune to run into the ones I do, and the eyesight to tell the difference. Now that I am older, here's what I have discovered: I started out with nothing, & I still have most of it. My wild oats have turned into prunes and All Bran. I finally got my head together,now my body is falling apart. Funny, I don't remember being absent minded.. All reports are in; Life is now officially unfair. If all is not lost, where is it? It is easier to get older than it is to get wiser. Some days you're the dog; some days you're the hydrant. I wish the buck stopped here; I sure could use a few. It's not hard to meet expenses... they're everywhere. The only difference between a rut and a grave is the depth.These days I spend a lot of time thinking about the hereafter...I go somewhere to get something & then wonder what I'm here after! ========================================

PRAYING FOR YOU AND YOURS ALWAYS.. AND THANKFUL FOR EVERY DAY OF LIFE.. GOD IS GOOD! THANK YOU GOD FOR ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING, WE GIVE YOU THE PRAISE, HONOR AND GLORY IN ALL THINGS IN JESUS HOLY NAME, AMEN!