Southern Baptists across the country are collecting Buckets of Hope for the people of Haiti. The following is a list of what you need for each bucket:

1 ~ 5 gallon plastic bucket with handle and form-fitting lid
2 ~ 5 pound bags long grain enriched rice
1 ~ 48 ounce plastic bottle cooking oil
2 ~ 2 pound bags dry black beans (can substitute with red beans)
1 ~ 5 pound bag of all-purpose flour (not self-rising)
1 ~ 20 ounce cylinder container of granulated white sugar (coffee service size)
2 ~ 1 pound boxes of spaghetti noodles
1 ~ 2 pound 8 ounce (40 oz) plastic jar of smooth peanut butter
1 ~ 2 gallon plastic ziplock storage bag (used to wrap the bottle of cooking oil)

Please DO NOT substitute any items on the list. These items can be purchased at your local grocer for less than $30 and will feed a Haitian family for a week!

It would also be very appreciated if you would add $10 to the bucket to help pay for shipping costs.

Watch a video about the Buckets of Hope here.

Download Buckets of Hope pdf flyer with instructions/photos for packing your buckets here.

If you are in North Carolina, and want to find out more about the drop off points, you can check this list for your local Associations phone number. Each Baptist Association will be able to confirm their own deadlines for the Buckets of Hope ministry.

Sallie

Our family took a trip to visit Fort Macon in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina this past weekend. Mike and the boys had been previously but Victoria and I had not.

My favorite areas were the kitchen (wondering if I should try the recipes for 50 men for a Wednesday night supper one week...LOL), and the arched doorways in the barracks rooms. I also loved the texture of the old bricks and stucco. I have to admit to being a bit freaked out by the Commander's Quarters but I won't ruin the surprise and tell you why ;-)

You can learn more about Fort Macon at the North Carolina State Parks website: http://www.ncparks.gov/Visit/parks/foma/main.php

Please enjoy the pics at our family photo album: 
http://www.mikeandsallie.com/fort_macon_nc/

Sallie

Flowers brighten up any space you put them in, even all the dark nooks and crannies of your home! We trimmed the stems off of these lovely roses and put them in a pint jar (hung up by a simply crafted wire hanger) on our coat rack immediately inside our front door. You passed by them while coming in the door, going out the door, and even going upstairs. I worried a bit at first about water from the jar splashing out but it never did. And I smiled a lot when this jar of flowers was hanging by our front door; I think I'll go buy some more today!!

Sallie

February is always a special month for my husband and I. We first met 20 years ago and he moved more than 900 miles to live close to me on Valentines Day of 1991 (and we were married by May, in case you were wondering). He gave me a yellow rose then and they are now my favorite color rose and a tradition for us. I almost always know what I'm getting for Valentines and I wouldn't have it any other way :-) One of these days, when we own our own home,  I plan to have bush after bush of them! 

We've also developed another tradition over the almost 19 years we've been married: letter-writing. It wasn't one we planned to develop but with as many deployments as Mike has had, as well as having lived in separate cities when we first became "a couple", it became a natural thing for us to do! I literally have letters and cards spanning 5 or more years worth of deployments packed up in boxes. I also have over a year of emails from deployments saved. I just can't seem to let go of them because their words mean so much to me. I enjoy getting the stacks of envelopes out, untying the strings, and reading through so many endearing words. They remind me of how strong our love really is. For one deployment, Mike even left notes hidden around our house for me to find. I found them in my Bible at church, in the bottom of the flour bin, in the dresser drawer, under the coffee filters, and so many other places. Love notes have always been a part of our life!

Knowing how much his written words have meant to me over the years, Mike recently bought me a new journal. This is a different kind of journal though. It is for me but he is the one doing all the writing! Mike is writing small love notes in it for me daily.  This is one of the sweetest gifts I have ever been given!! I find myself on pins and needles every evening waiting for him to finish up his thoughts for the day. I also find myself needing to find two quiet times a day -- one for God and Bible study, and one for sweet written words from my husband :-)

Do you have any specials gifts that mean more to you than others? What made them so special? I'd love for you to share in the comments!

Sallie

I shoulda been putting a picture up today for Wordless Wednesday, and I coulda put up a great one of our neighborhood Marine kids at play with their line-up of bright yellow nerf guns on a cloudy day, and I woulda except that someone *whom shall rename nameless* has misplaced my camera cord needed to get said picture from camera to computer to blog. Like I said, shoulda, coulda, woulda...

Instead, I guess I'll share some favorite blogs/posts with you. They've all made me smile exactly when I needed it... like after being frustrated for not finding the aforementioned cord...but, I digress...

Completely Coastal: Stunning Shadow Box Displays -- BTW, I'm making one of these with my printer tray shadow box and oodles of shells today!! http://www.completely-coastal.com/2010/01/stunning-shadow-display-boxes.html

The Shabby Chic Cottage: Ticket to Paris -- easy stamped burlap tag to add to your decor:  http://www.theshabbychiccottage.net/2010/01/transformation-thursday-ticket-to-paris.html

A Soft Place to Land: Decorating w/ Children -- been there... done that...oh, wait, I'm still doing that...and still like this, too :-) http://asoftplace.net/2010/01/decorating-with-children/

Little Red House: Mosaic Monday -- she does a Mosaic photo meme every Monday and with all our blustery, rainy days lately I was happy to see all these beautiful flowers this week: http://dearlittleredhouse.blogspot.com/2010/01/mosaic-monday-its-my-birthday.html

Miss Mustard Seed's Creative Blog -- sometimes after reading/watching her easy tutorials I think I might actually be able to do that... or at least Victoria could do it for me... LOL:  http://www.missmustardseed.blogspot.com/ 

Stuff Christians Like -- this blog always makes me think! http://stuffchristianslike.net/

Muthering Heights: When Enough is Enough...a great list of questions to ask ourselves when (or before) facing over-commitment: http://www.mutheringheights.com/2010/01/when-enough-is-enough.html

I will do my best to find my computer camera cord sometime today so I can share my fun photo with ya soon. Until then, I hope you find as much enjoyment at the above sites as I have. Be blessed!!

Sallie