A sweet gift from Italy!

In  one of my post ” Act of gratefulness”  I told about an old lady who  went to the store, walked one kilometer with a walker and in a cold weather just to buy me a bouquet of roses as a gift for my 50th birthday. And in the card she said that I will get more later, I just have to wait patiently. And I said that she does not need to buy me a gift coz she is already a gift from God to me.


                                   This is the flower that she gave me.


Anyway this sweet lady won a free trip to Italy and when she came back, she gave me this mask as a gift and souvenier from Italy!



In the card she wrote Italian greetings to me which I don’t understand. Hi, hi. But the thought was there.


And then I have to try the mask to show her how I look like with the mask.

 


Do I look like  a cat woman to you?


 Anyway the elders suggested that I should wear the mask when I welcome my husband home from ombord the ship. Problem is I don’t know what kind of attire will go with the mask…but they have a lots of suggestions 🙂


And not only that, before she leave I asked her if she can take some pictures so that I can see her trip to Italy. She had no camera, but I said that we have one that she can borrow. Sadly, I forgot to give the camera to her before she leaves.

But this sweet lady really touched my heart. There was a photographer there and also a person who was videotaping the trip. And she bought a film of the trip so that I can see her/them and places they visited in Italy.  And today, we watched the film together with the other elders and traveled to Italy with her. We admired her for what she had done, coz it was not easy for her to do that, coz she can’t go without a help from a walker.

 

This is a walker!


I really appreaciate this lady. She is only 64 years old, but a stroke made her less movable. It was really tough for her because before she got the stroke, she worked as a diplomat and had travelled  many countries and speaks many languages. That made me think how fragile a human life is.  Anyway, she comes out of it and take life as it is. Because anything can happen, but we must live one day at a time.


It reminds me of God’s words: Don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of it’s own. ( Matthew 6: 34)


I am so  thankful for all the people who God sends into my path to show that although life can be tough, there is also joy. These sweet tokens of gifts made me very happy and thankful and feel loved. 


So my goal in life: Be a blessing and you will be blessed!

 

 

                Me and my homemade clown say hello to everybody.

 

Ironing the wrinkels!

Sharing from my English boll: joysnotepad.blogspot.com

                                                                                                                                                               source: google images


Ironing clothes! It is a task that I do once  a week,  although it was not necessary.  I don’t like wearing un-ironed clothes. He. he. But here in Norway, it is not a priority for the people.


Anyway, I was ironing the clothes one day, and when I saw how the wrinkles disappeared and the surface became smooth, something  just puffed up in my mind that this piece of clothing was just like my life.

 

My body and soul were wrinkled from the heartaches, sufferings, shame and sin that has been a part of my life ever since I was born.  I did not have any confidence, I was pitying myself for my fate, hating people who mistreated me, bittered of God whom I thought dit not love me.  

 

 

 

This was how I looked  like 25 years ago  when my life was just a mess and miserable!

 

But, one day everything changed!  My older sister invited me to a place where God’s love being preached and  people who worships God gathered. Then my life suddenly turned around. I felt that the burdens from my shoulder has been lifted up, my heart suddenly been filled with such gratefulness for God who was  just really waiting for me to surrender my life unto Him. So that He can transforms me, build my life and change my circumstances. For the first time in my life, I really felt His presence. My  knees were shakened and tears flowed from my eyes.  Not tears because of sorrow, but tears of joy. Coz that time, I discovered  the source of life, peace, love and blessings. I found out that God loves me and He can  forgive all my sins and make my life worth living.


And now after years, God had really changed me into a person He created me to be. Joyful, just like my name, blessed so I can be a blessing,  forgiving just like he has forgiven me and sharing God’s love, like He had showed me His love through all the years. He had been faithful to supply all my needs, back me up when I needed support, lifted me up when I was down, given me hope when everything was hopeless and litted a light for me when I was sorrounded with darkness. He really was and is an amazing God. For me, life without God, is no life at all!

 

And this is how I look now, 25 years later! I was 50 years old in this picture!

 

What about you? Have you found what you  are looking for in life? Wanna share it with me? God can iron the wrinkles in your life too! He did it for me:)


” Thought for the day” 

Age wrinkles the body, quitting wrinkles the soul” Douglas Mac Arthur


So don’t give up. God is not giving us up 🙂 


JOY


Forbindelse!

 

Forbindelse. .
Takk Jesus for at linjen din er alltid åpen for oss.

Du kan skille stemmene våre fra hverandre og hører hvert eneste hjertesukk.

Gi oss forståelse av dybden og bredden av din kjærlighet ,

særlig når vi føler oss uelsket, er i nød eller lider.

Takk for at vi kan søke beskyttelse hos deg.

Du sørger for de behovene som gagner oss hver dag.

For at du kan lindre smertene som plager oss

med dine forfriskende ord og nærvær.

Takk for at hos deg finner vi fred….

JOY

Connection!

 

Connections. ..
Father, do not let us get tired of holding on to your rope, so that when we slipped, you can pull us up again. We need your guidance and strength Lord as we continue our journey to the top. 
Thank you because we can put our trust in your grip. Those who put their trust in you will never put to shame. 
Thank you for showing us the way and for leading us to the path of life. Let us follow your footsteps so that we won’t get lost. 
Thank you for revealing to us the truth by your words and deeds. 
Thank you for being our Savior and we can put our trust in you all day long. For your mercy last forever.

 

JOY

Bulgaria!

Sharing from my English blog: joysnotepad.blogspot.com.

One summer my family agreed to spend our vacation in Bulgaria. This time in Varna!

 

 

 

 

 Airport in Bulgaria. Just waiting for our luggage.

 

 

We stayed on this hotel. It has a swimming pool for the guests. Nice and clean, but those who worked there were not so polite. 

 

We arrived at the  hotel past midnight, hungry and thirsty, met by a  receptionist who was not friendly at all. We asked her where we can buy drinking water and food, and she just told us to go outside, walked ca 500 meter where we can find another hotel who was open past midnight and selling something to eat. But to go out past midnight in a dark and unknown place was not so easy for us. But we were so thirsty and hungry, so off we went. And I just prayed while we were walking, asking God for protection. And we indeed found the hotel and found something to eat. 

Next morning, we passed by the reception and say good morning to those who worked there. Or else they would not say a word. What a difference! 

We spent a vacation in the Philippines in 2004 and my husband was so impressed of the hotel employees that  were so polite. Always smiling and greeting us good day and opening the door for us everytime we passed by. Well,  there is difference in culture. And maybe it is tiring for the employees also to say hello to every guest  whole the day. So, I understand them. 


Anyway we were there to enjoy, so here we are roaming around!

 My daughter just had to go to all the shopping stall. Looking for something to buy. She thought that we had a bag full of money. But she was wrong, coz his daddy is not a millionaire. But we had  follow her anyhow. Lucky that she didn’t find much that she liked. Good for us and our wallets. 


 

 

 

 

 The hotel is only one kilometer away  from the beach, restaurants and shopping area. So it was a nice walking distance for us. But sometimes, we took this train to roam around, when our feets needed rest.

 

 

 Enjoying the ride:)

 

Stopped by in many different places!

 

 

 

Since we were on vacation there, we didn’t cook our food in the hotel. We tried different restaurants. They do serve big portions meal for very low prices. And they have also welcome drinks, but since me and my daughter does not drink alcohol beverage, my husband drinked them all. 

 

 

Bulgaria by night! Don’t judge us! We just took picture outside the casino. 

 

 

Like I said, it was cheaper there, so we went to the beauty shop for hair treatment.

 

 

Time for entertainment! Fiesta Bulgaria. A bus pick us from the hotel so we can see  a showcase of Bulgaria’s specialties.

 

 

A few of them. It was a very long program, so the result….

Before and after!

 

 

 

At last my husband found his long lost friend. The pirate:)

 

 

But me, I preferred  to wait for my chicken barbeque. The smell reminds me of my homecountry. 

 

It was very nice in Bulgaria, but there is no place like home…………………………………………………………!

 

Bulgaria in 2007

 

 

JOY

Stormy and freezing cold, but still thankful!

 

Hei, bloggvenner! Stormer det hos dere ogspå? I hvert fall, her i Trøndelag har det vært storm i snart en uke nå. Og vinden tar pusten fra meg hver gang jeg er ut i noen sekunder. Ut av huset, inn i bilen og til jobben. Ut på tur! Nei! Det ble bare trening i  trening kjeller for de ansatte på sykehjemmet der jeg jobber. Snart skal jeg trene  med vaskemoppen.

Man kan bli deprimert av dette været og glemmer at vi har mye å være takknemlig for. Lysten til bare gjemme seg under dyna på en lørdagsmorgen er fristende. Men plikten kaller.

For å komme ut av tristheten, måtte jeg prøve å finne noe å glede meg over.


Som disse blomstene som jeg fikk forrige torsdag som er fortsatt i blomst.

 

 

 

 

 

for denne orkideen

 

 Amarelius blomster


 

 

 

Minner om middagen jeg fikk hos svigermor sist tirsdag. kylling filet innpakket me bacon, ris og salat.

 

 

  Forskjellige bærsorter  med mye krem som dessert. Hmm. Deilig!

 

For å være litt sunt hjem hos meg! Kalkun filet med salat.

 

 

Wok: Kalkun lever og hjerte med grønnsaker

 

For disse frukt muffins som jeg har klart å bake til de eldre på aktivitetsenteret, som de likte så godt.

 

 

 Mer å være glad. Nettopp heklet ferdig disse gryteklutene som selges på aktivitetsenteret. Inntekten går til de eldre. 

 

 

Grønn farge

 

Blå ( denne heklet jeg for å gi som gave til noen på Filippinene)

 

 

 Holder på å strikke en kjerring. Hun skal være en vinbærer! Jeg må tove henne først!

 

 

 

 Nå er jeg faktisk glad for å ta fatt på nytt storm eller ikke storm!

Hva med deg? Har du hatt en fin uke?


JOY

 

 

Tårene våre..

Tårene våre…

Takk for at du er interessert i tårene våre Gud. Du teller hver dråpe av dem. Du vet hvor det kommer fra. Fra et fortvilt hjerte. Du rekkert en hånd , tørker tårene og lar oss få den trøsten vi trenger. Takk for din omsorg og at ingen som kan skille oss fra din kjærlighet…

Joy

Beauty in Makati city: Philippines

Sharing from my English blog: joysnotepad.blogspot.com.

Continuation of  the highlights of our trip to the Philippines.

 

This in Makati area where we stayed in the Philippines in 2004.

 

 

 

The City of Makati (pronounced /məˈkɑːtɪ/ mə-kah-tee; Filipino: Makati), in the Philippines, is one of the 17 cities that make up Metro Manila, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. Makati is the financial center of the Philippines and one of the major financial, commercial and economic hubs in Asia[citation needed]. As the host of various embassies, it is also an important center for international affairs.

Makati is noted for its highly cosmopolitan culture, also being a major cultural and entertainment hub in Metro Manila. Many expatriates live and work in the city. Makati is home to many first-class shopping malls, such as Ayala Center and Rockwell Center, top hotels like The Peninsula Manila, the Shangri-La Hotel Makati and the Intercontinental Hotel Manila, and the tallest buildings in the Philippines like PBCom Tower, G.T. International Tower.

 

Source: Wikepedia

 

And this is my youngest daughter enjoying the heat of the sun and the beautiful garden in Makati area.

 

She wanted to be tanned!

But the sun was too hot, so now she seeks shadow from  the surroundings trees!

 

 

For me who was alreay tanned, I seeked places where the sun was not too sharp. 

 

 

My husband did not mind the heat of the sun. He needed to have tan color too . he he

 

In was in October month, but the malls were already decorated with Christmas decors! Christmas starts earlier here than Norway.

 

 

Makati by night!

 

Makati is really a beautiful city whether at night or day!

 

“Thought for the day”

Do not be wise in your own eyes, fear the Lord and shun evil.

This will be health to your body and nourishment to your bones. ( Pro. 3:7-8)

 

The secret of good health!

 

 

JOY

The highlights of our visit to the Philippines!

Sharing from my English blog: Joysnotepad.blogspot.com

Memories..year 2004. After visiting the some of our nearest relative, we went to Corregidor Island.

Corregidor Island. It was the Former Japanese and US Military Base during the second world war. 


 

My three daughters. We are on the way to Corrigedor Island by ferry boat. 

 

 

 

I don’t know what you call this type of transportation. It was like  a passenger bus to me. We rode this one for sightseeing. 

This place is a museum. 

 

 

 

Picture taking outside. The nice weather was with us!

 

Outside the restaurant where we had eaten our lunch. My youngest daughter wondered what kind of animal was on the tree…..

 

 

 

It was really a bonding day for my three daughters.

 

 

 Their brother  was at work!


“Thought for the day”


“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto thy own understanding, in all thy ways acknowledged Him and He shall direct thy path. “

Proverbs 3: 5-6

  

Gode minner: Lillehammer

 

When our youngest daughter was still a baby, we just stayed at home and did not spend any vacation outside our home. But when she reached the age of three, we found out that we can already do it, because then she can enjoy the trip. Da vår ynste barn var baby, vi valgte å ikke reise noen steder pga. hun var for ung til å kose seg 

 

And this is our first trip to Lillehammer one summer many years ago.. 

 

Norway is known for trolls and I thought it will be  nice to  have a picture together with the troll. But my daughter was so afraid, as you can see in the picture.

 

 

 

 

 

 

She did not want to look at at troll at all:(

 

 

But enjoyed riding this man made cow:)

 

 

 

.                                               This is also a man made cow.

 

 

And these well known people were made of wax.

 

 

In this place, children were allowed to drive without a license. He he. So she did drive at the age of three:)

 

At last she found a playmate 🙂

 

 

Picture taking with her mother:)

 

 

And her mother again 🙂

 

 

This time she wanted to be alone in the picture.

 

 

But where was the father? Here he was at the children’s playground. He was still young at heart 🙂

 

 

Then its coffee and ice cream time after the trip:)

JOY