Category: Fun and Just Because

Everyday fun, fun facts, and other stories to get to know about me

Fun and Just Because

Two Chicks and a Challenger

The Carpenter’s Daughter

I’ve mentioned before that GREAT friends are a rare commodity. I’m extremely blessed to have a few in my life. Some I consider like family.

Yesterday was a much needed day after the “feeling sorry for myself” hissy fit. Nothing that a day of retail therapy and a cool car couldn’t fix. I’ve mentioned my friend Lynn before. We met under stressful circumstances, however God puts people in our lives for a reason. When I think of her friendship I’m reminded of Philippians 1;3 “Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God.”

Jesus felt the same way about his Disciples. They were like family to him. These are the people he went to even in his time of trouble when he was hunted down in the Garden of Gethsemane. Even then Jesus loved them all to the end.

I’m by no means comparing myself to Jesus nor my friends to his disciples. However, I think with anyone it’s important in life to surround yourself with people who love you and support you through thick and thin. They become extended family.

So what does this have to do with a cool car? Yes my BFF treated herself to her dream car and like any good friend I enjoyed being the Thelma to her Louise yesterday. We drove around Pennsylvania Amish country and even grabbed some lunch. I assure however no crimes were committed! Lol 😂

Many people have hundreds if not thousands of “friends” on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. I can assure most of them are NOT your friends. They are acquaintances. People there merely because you bumped into them at some point in your life. The Bible tells us that he “chose” his 12. John 15:16-“Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.”

With that, I leave you with this thought:

“An acquaintance merely enjoys your company, a fair-weather companion flatters when all is well, a true friend has your best interests at heart and the pluck to tell you what you need to hear.” E.A. Bucchianeri

Heavenly Father I praise you every day for the blessings you have given me. I pray that everyone comes to know you and love you, and take you as their own personal friend. Amen

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Fun and Just Because

When you feel sorry for yourself!

The Carpenter’s Daughter

Happy Mother’s Day again everyone! Over all today was a very nice day. I got to see my Mom, Grandma, along with two of my sisters and Aunts and Uncle. My morning didn’t start the greatest because I decided to feel sorry for myself.

As a Mom, we do a lot. We cook, clean, make sure everyone else is where they need to go and make sure they have what they need. I’m not perfect by any means. Sometimes my house looks like tornado hit it, depending on what irons I have in the fire. I work from home now doing various consulting services, which is feast or famine. Currently it’s famine unfortunately, but I keep on keeping on. I don’t sleep well at night because my mind is constantly churning. I have a lot on my mind. We also decided mid year to take our youngest son out of public school and put him in a Charter School. This was for various reasons, but it’s been stressful. I’m constantly harassing him to do homework or sign in for class. Somedays I feel like another job was added to my resume that I didn’t anticipate. As a Mom, I’ll do what it takes to make sure he succeeds. My reward? He sent the sweetest text today telling me how much he appreciates what I do. (SCORE!!!)

Why did I feel sorry for myself? The devil decided to come visit and poke around inside my head. Taunting me to think negatively. To the point I snapped out and ended up going alone to visit my family. I had a headache by the time I arrived and to top it off, I needed gas and stopped at a local convenience store. I grabbed a soda can out of the car to throw it away and instead splashed it all over my top. 😡. Par for the course right!

I got in the car and started to cry. Do you ever feel like you just need to cry? This probably exasperated my headache. I tried playing some music and it helped a little. Instead I prayed. I asked the Lord to please help me clear my head and help me with my negativity. I enjoyed my visit with my family and had to rush out because I was summoned home for a cooked meal waiting for me. WHAT???

I decided to play some of my favorite Christian Rock songs on the way home. This included Casting Crowns, Ryan Stevenson, Chris Tomlin. Zach Willams. By the time I got home I was singing along like a crazy lady. Not caring who was watching. I even played some songs that made me tear up. I felt good!!!! It was what I needed.

I am truly blessed to have my life and family that I have. It’s completely stressful at times and I guess I’m allowed to have my moments at times. We all have them. Maybe today I just needed that “me” time. Even if it was a short time to and from my destination.

Happy Mother’s Day and I hope all of enjoyed the day in your own way.

Jodie

Fun and Just Because

What is a Mother?

The Carpenter’s Daughter

Tomorrow is Mother’s Day. Whether you are one or have one, tomorrow is a day to celebrate the most important woman in our life.

Celebrations of Mothers can be traced back to Greeks and Roman’s who held festivals in honor of the mother goddesses Rhea and Cybele, but the clearest modern precedent for Mother’s Day is the early Christian festival known as “Mothering Sunday.”. This was more a tradition in the United Kingdom when people would return to their mother church, then around the 30’s and 40’s it turned more secular with children giving their mothers flowers and gifts.

According to http://www.history.com “. The origins of Mother’s Day as celebrated in the United States date back to the 19th century. In the years before the Civil War, Ann Reeves Jarvis of West Virginia helped start “Mothers’ Day Work Clubs” to teach local women how to properly care for their children. These clubs later became a unifying force in a region of the country still divided over the Civil War. In 1868 Jarvis organized “Mothers’ Friendship Day,” at which mothers gathered with former Union and Confederate soldiers to promote reconciliation.” and, “Another precursor to Mother’s Day came from the abolitionist and suffragette Julia Ward Howe. In 1870 Howe wrote the “Mother’s Day Proclamation,” a call to action that asked mothers to unite in promoting world peace. In 1873 Howe campaigned for a “Mother’s Peace Day” to be celebrated every June 2.”

According to the Bible there are 8 blessed Mothers: Eve, Sarah wife of Abraham, Rebekah wife of Isaac, Jochebed, mother of Moses, Hannah, mother of the prophet Samuel, Bathsheba wife of David, Elizabeth mother of John the Baptist, Mary Mother of Jesus. We’ll have to do a Bible study on the ladies we haven’t done already.

My Mom is the oldest of six children. I’m the second oldest child of 4 girls. I found my oldest sister by ancestry dna. Unfortunately my Dad didn’t know he had a daughter before he died. My Mom is an amazing woman who loves our new sister as we do. (No cheating was involved fyi-lol). Mom made sure my sisters and I knew and loved the Lord. We attended Sunday School and church services. I loved vacation Bible school, which I think Mom did too because she had some quiet time while we were gone lol. She is a breast cancer survivor and now is fighting COPD. I pray daily that the Lord puts his healing hands on her to make it better. Recently a study has started where STEM cells are being used to reverse some of the damage. Unfortunately the treatments are $7,000 😳. I continue to look into more research, trials and information. I know we will find something with God’s help.

I hope that you have amazing memories of the important women in your life. Happy Mother’s Day!

Proverbs 31:28–29: “Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: ‘Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.'”

Fun and Just Because

Will work for goats 🐐

The Carpenter’s Daughter

If you’ve never owned or been around goats, I have to apologize at what you’re missing. These little creatures are like dogs with bundles of personality. You can’t spend time with them and have a bad mood.

When we decided to look into buying goats, it started with wanting 2. You have to have 2 because they are herd animals and they’ll be lonely. No a dog or other animal doesn’t exactly cut it. We decided on a Nigerian dwarf. Well then the boys got involved and we ended up with the Nigerian I wanted and 2 Boer goats. Dash, Buzz and Woody. Well poor Dash was odd man out because the Boers were brothers. So we did what any responsible, goat lover would do and called the breeder to get Dash’s brother Thumper. Shhh, we’re only supposed to have 2 goats. I said Heah, my goats have goats lol.

Unfortunately we lost Buzz. We aren’t sure what happened and neither was the vet. We did everything right. Sadly he passed away in my Son Sean’s arms on the way to the vet.

The 3 we have are happy and continues to bring us joy. What brings you joy?

Each day we should wake up with a thankful heart. Matthew 6:34 tells us, “don’t worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will take care of itself”. Each day is a gift and we should appreciate the gift in the moment. Tomorrow is never guaranteed. I urge you to find 10 things each day you’re thankful for and see if you notice a difference in your attitude.

Give your cares to God. Let him hold you. There’s another song by Casting Crowns that has gotten me through a lot. https://youtu.be/yutmTFtalKs

Please enjoy!

Father, thank you for today. Thank you for all that I have. The people who love me, people who support me, and those that don’t. I pray for kindness and forgiveness of those who speak unkind words and that they can find healing and joy. Thank you for loving me. Amen

Fun and Just Because

Is cheaper insurance worth the risk?

The Carpenter’s Daughter

We all see the TV ads taunting us with cheaper auto insurance rates. However, you might not be getting what you think you’re paying for. In the end, we all want the same thing. I want my car fixed back to like it was prior to the accident, you want your car fixed back to the way it was and we all want our injuries paid for if any were sustained. This doesn’t include any other property damages that might have occurred during the course of the accident. (the telephone pole you need to pay to replace, a fence you took out when you hit it)

Let’s take a look at the required minimum insurance limits that the state of Pennsylvania requires: (according to https://www.insurance.pa.gov/Documents/auto_guide.pdf)

  • Bodily injury liability coverage: $15,000 per person, $30,000 per accident
  • Property damage liability coverage: $5,000
  • Uninsured motorist coverage: $15,000 per person, $30,000 per accident*
  • Underinsured motorist coverage: $15,000 per person, $30,000 per accident*
  • First party benefits medical payments: $5,000

*Note: In Pennsylvania you may request to reject the uninsured and underinsured motorist coverages.

So, looking at these limits you need to ask yourself a few questions:

  • If I’m in a very serious accident and myself, a passenger, a pedestrian or occupants in another vehicle are injured is this enough to pay the bills that will be generated? I can tell you from my experience with my own doctor or hospital visits that the answer is no. $15,000 per person/$30,000 per accident is not going to go that far.

The next limit I’d like you to take a look at is the uninsured and underinsured motorist coverages. These limits are there for when someone either is “uninsured” as it states or “underinsured” meaning that the person at fault doesn’t have enough insurance so guess what? They will look to your policy to pay one of these coverages. So this is my first area that really upsets me because as a consumer, because the hard reality is you chose to save a buck, and now the true cost is being placed on me and other motorists to pay through our insurance.

Oh, and guess what happens next? If you said that the insurance companies raise their rates, you would be correct. Insurance companies make money by keeping claim costs low and revenue above the losses. This is called a “loss ratio”. You want to have a loss ratio of less than 1.00 (the lower the better) to operate at a profit. Over time, in order to correct these figures they need to increase not just your individual rates but the rates overall. Be mad at the insurance company if you want, but it’s part of doing business and without doing this they eventually would become insolvent (which that’s a whole other conversation). If you sell pizza and the company that you get cheese from increases the price of cheese, well you’re going to have to pass that increase onto the customer. Otherwise, you’ll operate at a loss. Right?! So while there are companies out there offering cheap coverage so you are legal seems like a brilliant idea, in the end it’s upsetting the balance of everyone paying their fair share.

Don’t get me wrong, I completely understand not everyone can afford high limits, extra coverage and the “rolls royce” of insurance policies. I just urge you to have a valuable conversation with a local, licensed insurance agent about your situation, concerns and a price you can afford. They may have options they can offer to you or suggestions that could help with the cost. Your local insurance agent is on your side to make sure that you are covered and educate you properly.

I am NOT a licensed insurance agent any longer, but have worked in insurance for over 26 plus years. I’m only speaking as one consumer to another to please educate yourself. If you wait to learn after an accident or incident, it could be too late and end up costing you more than thought. People don’t understand this, then get upset with the insurance companies for “not paying”. Unfortunately they are paying based on the coverage you decided to pay for at the time. Who’s fault is that? Educate yourselves and talk to your local insurance agent. If you don’t have one, get one…

Fun and Just Because

Learning doesn’t stop just because you graduated!

The Carpenter’s Daughter

I’ve been on a constant learner my entire life. First of all, I’ve always enjoyed learning. When I graduated High School, I immediately started working at Continental Insurance Co. In 1989, they were one of the largest Insurance companies around. I would have never imagined at the time, they would someday go out of business. When I started this first “official” job, I was hired as a BTSF (Business Team Support Function). In today’s terms that role is now an Underwriting Assistant. Underwriting Assistant sounds much more fancy. I must digress and say that as time went on, those of us who were “BTSF’s” decided to come up with our own acronyms what those initials stood for. (Bitches on the Second Floor, as that’s were we sat and Bullshit Secretaries that did typing & filing). So, yes we had some fun as well as worked hard. I did take my job seriously and knew immediately I wanted to become and underwriter someday. Through the years, I asked as many questions as I could, I became friends with senior staff, and took as many classes and seminars as I could. In the next several years and many position changes later, I eventually did become an Underwriter at two very well known Insurance Companies. I loved my job and loved learning even more. My career taught me management skills, time management, organizational skills, dealing with high level reports, due diligence and made me an overall rounded person. I still have these contacts to this day and many I consider friends. Being a constant learner, I embraced a change in my life that required me to find another career. I’m now well on my way to becoming Google Certified, learning all about the digital marketing world and putting all that prior knowledge and skills to use as I embark on this new chapter. I encourage you to be a life long learner….

Fun and Just Because

Goats, not just for the farm anymore!

The Carpenter’s Daughter

Years ago, you wouldn’t have seen a goat outside a farm, local petting zoo or state fair. Today, goats are gaining popularity outside of the farming sector and making their way into suburban neighborhoods as pets. Yes, you read correctly. Pets!

Goats don’t require a lot of area and they also are browsers and not grazers like horses. This means that contrary to what we’ve all been told, goats only trim the tops off of grass where a horse will pull grass down to the roots. People looking for healthier lifestyle’s are also turning to raising their own goats for goat milk which is giving people with normal milk allergies a new lease on life. The other areas people are using goats is for goat soap and other beauty products, goat yoga, therapy goats for those suffering with depressions, PTSD and other mood disorders.

Recently, my family and I purchased goats to welcome into our lives. While we are not raising our goats for milk, cheese, beauty products, or a petting zoo attraction, they are however giving love and comfort to my younger son who suffers from PTSD and other mood disorders as a result of a tragic life event. The effect has been amazing and all with the approval our local zoning officer.