Mocha Turtle

Sandstone Gardens (in Joplin) is my absolute favorite place.  The chicken tortilla soup is amazing, and the decor...even better.  I got a few things: a box turtle (he's concrete), a bird's nest with eggs, a big roll of burlap "ribbon", and a really big lantern! (it's about three feet tall, with glass in a wood frame, and it has an opening door!)  It's just beautiful. I have a picture, but it's on my phone and I forgot the USB connection wire to my computer (and..therefore the charger too!).  I'll get it up when I get back home.

Sandstone sells (and makes) tons of concrete, and then custom colors it for you.  It takes about 15-20 minutes to wait on it.  They have about 2000 designs, a catalog (that's pretty rough-looking!), and oh..it's just so fun to walk around and explore all the neat stuff!  I took my turtle the way he was (mocha dark), but you can have natural, aged, mahogany, green..it goes on and on.  It's neat that they can age them right there for you!  I found so many beautiful things today.  It gives me great ideas (lots of lanterns right now, birds' nests, birds, crowns, glass, tree branches, animals, fountains, architectural remnant lamps, each thing is more beautiful than the next, it just makes you want to go home to clean and decorate for the season! : )

My sweet friend, Tiffany finally had her baby today!  Bless her heart-she was in the hospital on Sunday, dilated to a 3, and 80% effaced, but they sent her home-even though her contractions were 3 minutes apart!  How do they know a baby is not imminent?  I mean..in the next 24 hours?

Her water broke at lunch today, and her husband hurried back from Van Buren to meet her at the hospital, and Veronica had her kids in the car outside!  (Poor Tiffany went in alone!)  What a day-and I'm so thankful that Veronica was there to take her to the hospital-that girl was listening to the Holy Spirit today-there's so much more, but suffice it to say she was really in tune with God's will.  I know God will bless her richly.

Angie and I are in Branson now (after our afternoon in Joplin!), and we'll be here until Sunday afternoon.  Lots of shopping, eating out, some relaxing, and we'll catch up with Dina and Sara while we are here!  (Our friends-the girls at Gymboree!  That's what happens when you continue shopping at the same place over and over and over, year after year! : )  What will we do when our girls are too big?  Ummm...cry?

Precious days with our friends are just that..priceless! : )