Anyone there?

I am having a creative block right now and receiving not a single comment is so discouraging. Just in case someone is reading this, I am only taking a short break until there are more things I want to learn, right now I am enjoying being me and my family more and trying to give God my best.

Arrogance

I have been trying my best to walk in the way of the Lord lately. I want to live a Godly life and do what He tells me. I have been doing it my way for 36 years and it has got me into boat loads of trouble.
I am totally an "all or nothing" person and I get caught up in things and tend to have a hard time with moderation. Yesterday morning I woke up, went to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. I realized I have a sore throat and a headache-I am getting sick. I never get sick- I said that on Facebook a few days ago. Why am I sick? And just as I was done thinking those thoughts God told me I was being self righteous and arrogant-that is why.
I need to check myself and learn a little humility and walk in gratitude.  Yes I have been working hard not to do the wrong things and do the right things but I need to remember how much I had to lean on God to get where I am. I need to remember that my strength comes from Him and I didn't do this all by myself.
Then a show came on yesterday at 8am "Enjoying Everyday Life" with Joyce Meyer. She was teaching people from India about God and how he sent Jesus and how He loves us no matter what and we don't have to work work work to be good enough for Him. He loves us just the way we are.  I cried the entire show. It was what I needed to hear when I needed to hear it.

All about trees.

Trees.  Not interesting for most women but for me, I love trees, I paint and draw them. I want to look out my window and go for a walk and see a tree and know what kind of tree it is.  It has always been an interest of mine and lead me the other night at dusk all the way down to the end of my driveway looking for a poplar leaf- I found it.

There are many types and species of trees and here I have only scratched the surface.  There are 2 main types of trees: Deciduous and Evergreen. Deciduous trees are those lovely trees all the people from the city come and take over our state to stare at.  They have leaves which change to vibrant colors in the Fall then to brown and then fall off.  Evergreen trees are those who have needle like foliage and stay green all year round losing only a few needles at a time.

I have come up with some of the most common trees that grow in our state (New Hampshire)

DECIDUOUS


Sugar maple tree:

Various Maple leaves:

White Ash:

White Ash leaves:

White Poplar Tree:

Poplar Leaves:

Northern Red Oak Tree:

Various Oak Tree Leaves:

American Beech Tree:

White Birch which is also New Hampshire's state tree!:

White Birch Tree Leaf:

The following 2 trees are both Apple Trees, the 1st is a Snow Drift Crab Apple Tree:

 Snow drift Crab Apple Tree in full flowering bloom:

Cortland Apple Tree:

And in case you didn't know what a Cortland Apple looks like:

EVERGREEN TREES


Eastern White Pine:

Eastern White Pine Needles:

Scotch Pine Tree:

Scotch Pine Tree Needles:

Blue Spruce Tree:

Blue Spruce Tree Needles:

Balsam Fir Tree (commonly our Christmas tree):

Balsam Fir Tree Needles we have all seen at least 20 times.


White Fir Tree (which grows to 100 ft tall):

White Fir Tree Needles:

Eastern Hemlock Tree:

Eastern Hemlock Tree Needles:

White Cedar Tree:

The White Cedar likes a wet growing environment. And here is a picture of their foliage:

Dawn Redwood Tree:

Dawn Redwood Tree Needles:

There are many, many more things I would like to know-like best growing conditions for each tree, where it was 1st found and much more- but for now-my brain is very tired :)

Water: how much and why.

During my research, I realized that it seems not 1 university or study can agree on how much water we really need.  In one study it said everyone should drink 8- 8oz glasses of water per day. Another one suggest that if you take your weight and divide it by 2- that's how many oz you should drink. Example: if you are 150 pounds you should drink 75 ounces of water per day.  And the study that I am choosing to follow (The Institute of Medicine) says that men need to drink 3 liters- about 13 cups and women need to drink 2.2 liters- about 9 cups per day. If you are doing mild exercise then you should increase your water intake to about 1.5 to 2.5 additional cups per day and if the weather is hot or you are exercising for more than 30 minutes you need to add at least 3 more cups.

Another thing, if you are pregnant or nursing, you should drink 10 to 13 glasses of water per day (not counting the water you need if it is hot or you are exercising)

It really just comes down to this: if you are drinking enough water, your urine should be colorless and odorless.

What can happen if you don't drink enough water?


If you are not drinking enough water you may experience 1 or more of the following:

-thirst
-loss of appetite
-dry skin
-skin flushing
-dark urine
-dry mouth
-tiredness
-weakness
-chills
-head rushes

If you are dehydrated for extended periods of time you may experience:

-increased heart rate
-increased respirations
-decreased sweating
-decrease in urine output
-increase in body temp
-extreme fatigue
-muscle cramps
-headaches
-stomach aches
-tingling in 1 or more of the following- arms, hands, legs and feet

Benefits of drinking enough water-


-Drinking enough water gets rid of toxic substances you take in.
-It protects your urinary tract from infection and the development of stones.
-It helps prevent Gall Bladder stones.
-It increases your internal fluids and promotes a healthy blood flow throughout the body.  Which prevents the obstruction of your arteries-which causes heart attack and stroke.
-It opens up your pores and helps to prevent the growth of bacteria which causes acne.
-It gives you a healthy complexion and keeps your skin hydrated (less lotion in the winter :)
-Keeps your stool soft.

All about Coyotes.

The Coyote is also known as the American Jackal or Prairie Wolf and is a cousin of the Gray Wolf.  It has 19 subspecies with 16 in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Sexual maturity is reached by 12 months. Coyotes birth anywhere from 1 to 19 pups per litter- the average number being 6.  They birth so many pups because 50 to 70% of them do not reach adult hood.
By the age of 35 days old, pups are weaned from their mothers and are feed regurgitated food by both parents.  Male pups leave the den between 6 and 9 months and females usually stay with their parents and form a pack.

The life span of the Coyote is generally 10 to 15 years and up to 18 years in captivity.