Monday, December 28, 2020

Happy Monday!!!

#StoryOfMyLife!!!
#NewYearsGoals
AHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!!!


♥Mary Frances :)

Friday, December 25, 2020

a GIft of Chivalry!!!

CHIVALRY!!!
Chivalry it's the ultimate gift every girl wants right? Chivalry, like CPR, has been romanticized into something it really is not. (If you think CPR is romantic, you've NEVERRR taken a CPR class before! Because the possibility of someone barfing in your mouth and breaking their chest bones, is not in anyway romantic unless your a total phsyco...jus sayin!!;) Females so often put chivalry into the category of  being treated like a princess. The man ALWAYS has to open the door for her and the car door for her too, even when just running errands! He pumps the gas for her! He does this and that etc... 
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While I don't mind, and do think its polite and  courteous for anyone, male OR female, to hold the door for the person behind them, if someone happens to NOT hold the door for me, my world is NOT turned upside down, because I KNOW HOW TO OPEN A DOOR!!! I know how to pump gas!!! I know how to pull out my own chair!!! If I can lift something, that needs to be moved, I just do!!! BUUUUUUT I don't know how to change a tire or fix pretty much anything! To me, chivalry is not pampering and spoiling someone and allowing for laziness, but more about putting others before oneself. 
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According to the 10 commandments of chivalry, the closest thing to what we consider chivalry today, is the third commandment: Thou shall respect all weaknesses, and shalt constitute thyself the defender of them. Its to protect and defend the weaker and the poor. Chivalry can not be summed up in opening a door for a pretty girl or giving her his jacket because she is cold. To me, chivalry is a matter of a man's character and the integrity in his heart, what he does or how he treats someone, when no one else is looking. To me,  chivalry is NOT defined by a man's actions alone.
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A chivalrous man doesn't do something for someone because it  appeals to him, he does it because it's right! He doesn't do it to be romantic, he does it because it is needed! He doesn't do it to seek a females approval, to woo her or earn brownie points, he does it because he is an honorable man.  To me, the ultimate example of chivalry;  is doing for someone, what they can not do for themselves.
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When I think of chivalry, I specifically think of an incident that I witnessed one day at a Circle K gas station near my house. It happened on a hot summer day here in Phoenix Arizona. I walked in to buy a drink and as I walked towards the soda fountain, I saw an elderly lady standing there getting herself a soda. As I got closer to her, I noticed that she was very poorly kept. Her clothes were ragged and worn, her hair in a disarray, she wreaked of sweat, body odor, urine and just plain filth. As I got closer to her, I realized from the wet brown marks going down her pants that she had an accident, not making it to the toilet. There was nothing attractive or appealing about this scrawny, wrinkled old woman as she quietly, slowly, hobbled over to the line to pay for her drink. 
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However, as she began to make her way to the back of the line, standing right  behind me, a young man in the front of the line stepped out and said with the utmost respect, "Ma'am, you can go in front of me!" The lady hesitated not sure of what to do. So unsure of being treated with kindness and respect, after all who was she, that any young man would offer for her to go in front of him in line. She wasn't pretty and young, but the young man courteously compelled her like she was royalty, to come stand in front of him in line. 
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I watched, as that poor, elderly woman hobbled to the front of the line and paid for her drink. When she was done paying, she turned to that young man, and with tears in her eyes she thanked him! "Bless you, she said to him, BLESS YOU!" Then she hobbled out the door to her bike filled with many bags holding her all her stuff.  Who knows when the last time it had been, that the neighborhood bag lady had been shown respect, but it was done by a young man that I then watched walk out the door and headed to the bus stop to wait for the bus. I'm not normally checking out the guy waiting at a bus stop, but in that moment, I couldn't help but admire him. It doesn't take a rich or educated man to be chivalrous, because chivalry is a matter of character and the integrity in ones heart.
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And as I thought about all this that happened, I couldn't help but think that what this young man had done, was exactly what our savior did for us. God, our creator, put aside the splendor of heaven,  humbled  himself, clothed himself in flesh and came to this earth to sacrifice himself for us. And he didn't just do this for when we were at our best, when we looked good and smelled nice. He came to us while we were in our own filth and waste. When we were a mess, and wreaked of havoc, while we were wallowing in the vomit of our mistakes and failures of life, clothed in nothing but the the destructive rags of or own sins, he put us before himself and Christ died for us. He took our place in death when we were NOTHING, when it looked like we would never amount to anything, that's when Christ sacrificed himself for us.
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You don't need to look any further for chivalry, because God gave us the ultimate gift of chivalry when he came to this earth as a little baby, to do for us, what we could NEVER do for ourselves!!! A perfect God, the King of Kings,  ransomed and redeemed us, sinners, failures, messed up humans, from eternal death in hell. 
WE SERVE A CHIVALROUS GOD!!!
"But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)
♥Mary Frances :)

Sunday, December 20, 2020

Happy Sunday!!!!

Annnnnnnd MAY we never forget that JESUS
Is the reason for the season!!!
My brother told me about a really nice song by the Ball brothers that I want to share with you all, I think it truly sums up what the Christmas season is truly ALL ABOUT!!!

It's not just about the manger Where the baby lay It's not all about the angels
who sing for him that day It's not just about the shepherds Or the bright and shining star It's not all about the wisemen Who travelled from afar
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It's about the cross It's about my sin It's about how Jesus came to be born once, So that we could be born again It's about the stone That was rolled away So that you and I could have real life someday It's about the cross It's about the cross
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It's not all about the good things In this life I've done Its not all about the treasures Or the trophies that I've won Its not about the righteousness That I've find within Its about His precious bloodThat save me from my sin
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The beginning of the story is wonderful and great But it's the ending that can save you and that's why we celebrate It's about the cross It's about my sin, It's about how Jesus came to be born once So that we could be born again It's about God's love
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Nailed to a tree, It's about every drop of blood that flowed from Him when it should have been me It's about the stone That was rolled away So that you and I could have real life someday So that you and I could have real life someday It's about the cross.
It's about the cross!!!
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I LOOOOOOVE this song!! It truly sums it ALL up!!!

Mary Frances :)

Thursday, December 17, 2020

Merry Mary Moments!!!

Soooooooo after the hiking shoe fiasco, I finally found the perfect crossbody duffle bag for my sis to take on trips!!! She had told me she really wanted one like mine, BUUUUUUT in her style!!! I found THE PERFECT ONE on of course, AMAZON!!! It was striped with floral, kinda has a Kate-Spadish look to it without the Kate-Spade Price!!! LOL 
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Weeeeeeeeeeellllll I told my niece I wanted her to wrap it for me and then I hid it REALLY GOOD, so my sister would NOT be able to find it!!!!! 
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FAST FORWARD TO CHRISTMAS EVE!!!
I'm in my room, MY CLEAN ROOM, getting all my Christmas presents together for the next day and I can NOT find the duffle bag I got for my sister!!! I'm looking all through my closet and literally tore my once clean room apart, till it looked like a tornado had swept through it!!!! 
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I couldn't believe it...
Hid her present so good, 
EVEN I couldn't find it!!!
I was literally FREAKING OUT!!! WHERE IN THE WORLD HAD I PUT IT!?!?!?! At that moment, my sister and MJ came home and tell them that I can't find my present for T!!! So MJ just looks at me, and she says, it's in the living room... 
WRAPPED!!! 
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I was like, WHAAAAAT??? How did it get wrapped??? She's like, YOU told ME to wrap it, SO I DID!!!! I was like, OOOOOH, I told you that?! I thought I had hid it!!! 
OOOOOOOOOOPS!!!
Classic Merry MARY Moment!!! ;)
♥Mary Frances :)

Wednesday, December 16, 2020

Needed Hiking shoes!!!!!

Last year, I just couldn't figure out a really cool gift to give my sister for Christmas!!! Well she came to me one day after shopping Christmas sales and says, she needed new hiking shoes...sooooo blah, blah, blah!!! I didn't bother listening to the rest of what she said!!! I pulled up Amazon prime app on my phone and ordered her some hiking shoes!!! and VOILA!!! like magic, my Christmas present dilema was solved!
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The next day I was walking through her room and see a BRAND new pair of hiking shoes in her room!!! I was liiiiiiiike seriously T, you just HAD to go get a new pair of hiking shoes??? You just COULDN'T WAIT till AFTER CHRISTMAS???
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She's just like, what are you talking about??? I'm like, THE HIKING SHOES!!! After you told me yesterday that you NEEDED a new pair of hiking shoes, I ORDERED YOU SOME FROM AMAZON!!!!
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She's like, WERE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME YESTERDAY??? I told you I got some yesterday!!! I'm like, NOOOOOO, you said you NEEDED NEW hiking shoes, so I ordered you some! She's like, NO, I said i had needed new hiking shoes, SO I GOT SOME!!! I was like...OOOOOOOOOH!!!!
It was a very 

MERRY MARY MOMENT!!!!
♥Mary Frances :)

Monday, December 14, 2020

Merry Mary Moments

Last year, during the Christmas season, I had A LOT of  hilarious moments!!! Sooooooo this year, I decided this year, to start a new tradition of blog posts called...
 MERRY MARY MOMENTS!!!
Maryness happens-Bringing you cheer!!!
Enjoy!!!
♥Mary Frances :)

Tuesday, December 8, 2020

MORE Blessed to give!!! (2017 Repost!)

So this past Wednesday night I decided to do Christmas gifts with my class at church due to the fact that we have stuff going on til Christmas and may not get to it again until AFTER Christmas which ended up being the case last year!!! 
Sooooooooo before they opened their presents, I did a little lesson about it being, MORE BLESSED to give that to receive! First I had all the kids say ONE THING that they REALLY wanted for Christmas! Of course this was REALLy easy for them to come up with, then I had them all try to think of ONE REALLY NICE THING that they wanted to give to someone that year, and LO AND BEHOLD this was A LOT harder for them to come up with!!! LOL
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Weeeeeeelllll anyway, you NEVER know what all the kids take from your lessons right??? So this past Sunday, I was talking to Sam and Janelle, my friends and parent's to one of my students, MaKensie, and we got on the subject of Christmas presents and they were like, OH we have to tell you this story about Kensie, what she got from your lesson on Wenedsday night.
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Bro. Sam said that she has REALLY been wanting to get a puppy, REALLY BAD and that's ALL she has been asking for, for Christmas. He said after thinking about it they were like, ok they already have one dog, Bronco, its just not going to work out this year. So they had told her you know Kensie it's just not going work out this year, etc...
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Come later that week, after Wednesday night, Sam said that Kensie came to him and was like, You know dadlet me tell you something about what we learned in class Wednesday night! We learned that it is MORE BLESSED to GIVE than to receive. I was like, AWWWWWWWWW!!! She got it!!! She got my lesson...I'm having a TOTAL PROUD TEACHER MOMENT!!! Sam just laughs...
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Then he continues the story, He says that Kensie says, So I was thinking about OLD BRONCO out there in the back yard, ALL BY HIMSELF, and I was thinking, WE SHOULD GIVE HIM A PUPPY FOR CHRISTMAS so he has someone to play with!!!! 
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I was like, WOOOOOOOOOOWWW!!! They said they were laughing so hard about it!!! I was laughing when they told me!!! I have to say, that was SOME PRETTY SMART THINKING KENSIE!!! Actually, come to think about it, I do remember her saying after class that she thought she REALLY wanted to get something for her dog this year, cuz she NEVER had before!!! BAHAHAAAAA!!!
STILL A PRETTY PROUD TEACH MOMENT FOR ME!!!! 
#Ilovemykiddos


♥Mary Frances :)

Monday, December 7, 2020

IF MY MOM was Rudolph!!!

Soooo one day, while my mom was alive, her and I were doing some Christmas baking at her house. We're just mixin an stirring, listenening to Christmas music, havin a good sweet, mother/daughter time together. 
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All of the sudden, over the radio comes on the song Rudolph The Red Nosed Raindeer! I've always liked this song, you know, its just kind of happy and fun....WELLL...My mom is like, "YOU KNOW, I've NEVER understood this song!!!" [So i'm thinkin like oh great, here comes a lecture about how this song has NOTHING to do with the birth of Christ...(Which is TRUE...BUT...its still a fun favorite of mine)] so she is like, "I've NEVER understood this song" ...she pauses then continues... 
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"if I WERE Rudolph, her NYC accent kicks in like she never left 30 years ago, I would have just told THOSE OTHER Raindeers WHATS UP!!!" She's like waving flour in her hands, "I wouldn't of let them treat me like that!!! I just woulda let them know!!!" 
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AHAHAHAHAAA!  I was  laughing soooo hard! "I'm like, "MOM, I'm SURE YOU WOULD HAVE!!! I'm SURE YOU WOULD HAVE!!!" (You know, MY MAMMA AIN'T NO ONES DOOR MAT!!! Trust me!!! ;)
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Sooooooooo I saw this and thought...
IF my mom HAD BEEN RUDOLPH!!!
Those Deers are BLESSED, that MY MAMMA wasn't Rudolph...
THEY REALLY ARE!!! BAHAHAHA!!!
I seriousley have THE AWESOMEST MOM EVER!!!
♥Mary Frances :)

Saturday, December 5, 2020

Friday, December 4, 2020

12 Apostolic Days Of Christmas

I saw this post from 2010 and thought it was indeed time to repost an enjoy again
12 Apostolic Days Of Christmas
By JSC
On the twelfth day of Christmas 
my Apostolic friends gave to me...

12 cans of hairspray...



11 preachers preaching...


10 Bible studies...



9 potluck dinners...



8 packs of bobby pins...

7 days of fasting...


6 Gospel CDs...

5  looooooong skirts...


4 restaurant choices...


3 days of conference...

2 suits and ties...
0 Wedding Rings


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Annnnnnnnnnd a 
King James Holy Bible!!!

Does this sound like an Apostolic Christmas OR WHAT?!?!!?! HAHA!
MERRY CHRISTMAS my friends!!! :]
♥Mary Frances :)

Thursday, December 3, 2020

Grandpa's Cookies

Red and white dough twistedtogether, infused with peppermint flavoring and little pieces of peppermint candies- Grandpa’s Candy Cane Cookies. 
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Shortbread dough dipped in milk then rolled in sesame seeds, cooked until golden brown. Best served while still warm with hot chocolate- that’s Grandpa’s Sesame Seed Cookies. As one takes a bite of this next cookie their mouth will be filled with a variety of delightful goodness. This cookie is crusty on the outside and chewy on the inside. It is filled with the sweetness of almond paste and yet salty from the taste of pine nuts- these are Grandpa’s Pinoli Cookies. The all around favorite cookie is a 3-layered, Neapolitan-Italian-flag cookie. In between each layer is a filling of fruit preserves and topped with a thin layer of melted chocolate. Once the chocolate is hardened they are cut into tiny, bite-size squares. We simply call these- Grandpa’s Three-Colored Cookies...
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Every year, at the end of November, my Grandfather, Joseph Mangino, a retired New York City Policeman, would begin his holiday baking. Grandpa was a big man with broad shoulders, a loud booming voice, chubby cheeks a big smile and a twinkle in his eye. Everyone loved his baking and looked forward to it. Then one year everything began to change. .
“I don’t know Franny,” my grandpa says to his daughter who is my mom. “I don’t think I am going to be able to send cookies out to everyone this year.”

“Why not?” Asks my mom.
“I just don’t feel up to it,” he says with a sigh. “I don’t think I could get it all done.” I couldn’t imagine Christmas without Grandpa’s baking. It was a part of who he was and a part of what made Christmas.
“We’ll help you make them,” says my mom. “You can teach the girls. They need to learn anyways.” 

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So the baking lessons began…
The thing about Grandpa’s baking lessons was that it didn’t matter if you already knew how to bake. When you were in HIS kitchen, you did things HIS way! I remember standing in the kitchen one day after putting all of the dry ingredients in a bowl; I got out the hand mixture to blend it real well. I plugged it into the wall then stuck it into the bowl, which was on the kitchen counter.
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“Uh, uh,” said Grandpa. “Stick the bowl in the sink and then begin mixing i
t. This way if any of the flour comes out it will go in the sink.”
“Okay Grandpa,” I said. Next I got out the eggs and began cracking them into the bowl.

“Uh, uh,” said Grandpa. You gotta get a separate bowl and crack each egg i
ndividually to make sure the egg is good. Otherwise if one egg is bad it will ruin the whole batter.”
“Okay Grandpa,” I said. I began rolling the cookies out and putting the lumps on the cookie sheets.
“Uh, uh,” said Grandpa. “Those cookies are way to big. Make them smaller.”
“Okay Grandpa,” I said with a sigh.
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When I would get something right Grandpa would nod his head in approval.
“Atta girl Maria, atta girl.” Then when I would take the cookies out of the oven and they were just right Grandpa would smile. “Beautiful, beautiful,” he would say taking a bite.
So became our tradition, each year at Christmas time, my mom, my sister and I would take turns on different days baking cookies with Grandpa.
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“You gotta get this right Mary” Grandpa said to me one year as I baked. “I might not be here next year to show you how to do it.” I was startled to hear him say this.
“Don’t say that.” I said looking up from what I was doing. I couldn’t imagine him not being here.
“Well you never know,” said Grandpa. “Everyone dies some time.”

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We all knew that Grandpa was getting weaker with each passing year. His body was deteriorating from Parkinson disease, but we didn’t want to think about it.
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Then one day it happened. Grandpa died. I remember sitting in his recliner in the living room watching as early in the morning two men from the mortuary came to take his body away. A soft blue blanket covered him as the men rolled his stretcher down the hallway, through his kitchen and out of his house. It took a while for the reality of the situation to really sink in. Grandpa was gone.
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However the things that he taught us still live on...
As Christmas time comes around my family and I begin our baking. It’s a family thing and my brother John has picked up the role of BOSSING everyone around now. Through the laughter and teasing of who broke the cookies and who cooked them too long, I remember Grandpa’s words to me;“You gotta get this right Mary, I might not be here next year.
“ Don’t worry Grandpa. I promise, I am going to get it right!”
I start mixing the ingredients in a bowl on the counter. Then I remember and put the bowl in the sink. I pull out a separate bowl for the eggs and hope the cookies aren’t too big. As I take the cookies from the oven, I know Grandpa would be smiling, nodding his head in approval, satisfied in knowing that his cookies are still being baked. If I listen closely as I take a bite of a cookie I think I hear Grandpa. “Atta girl Maria, atta girl.” I take another bite and savor the taste. “Beautiful, beautiful!”
♥Mary Frances :)

Wednesday, December 2, 2020

Guess who has to go potty??? (2016 repost)

YES, that's right my friends,
SANTA SNOOPY HAD TO GO!!!
Sooooo apparently, SOMEONE, I'm NOT going to mention a certain-five-year-old in our households name, BUT SOMEONE, felt the need for SANTA SNOOPY to go potty before night-night the other evening!!! Imagine, MY SURPRISE when I WENT into the bathroom!!! AHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!!!!
♥Mary Frances :)
P.S. I can't believe he's 9 now!!! And he is FUNNIER than everrrr!!!! 
Seriously, this kid will make you laugh your head off!!! 

Tuesday, December 1, 2020

SANTA!!!

Sooooooo it was literally THE CUTEST thing everrrr...
A few years ago...I just gotta remember it all over again!!! We went to a little kids Christmas play and as we were walking in, there was a group of people there for another show and OF COURSE little O just has to talk to everyone on our way into the theatre! Hi! I'm Odin, what's your name?
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 So he sees this husky, older gentleman, wearing khaki slacks and a plaid shirt and who just happened to have a white beard and he greets him as usual, "Hi, I'm Odin!" and the man says back to him, I'm Santa Clause!
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Odin just stops dead in his tracks, mouth agape, his WHOLE FACE JUST LIGHTS UP in sheer shock and joy! Then, without saying anything, he just walks over to the man and throws his arms around him in a HUGE ODIN HUG!!! 
The look on his face was liiiiiiiike NO WAY, I'M ACTUALLY MEETING SANTA!!! Everyone was laughing soooooooo hard and it completely made the man's night!!! It was literally THE CUUUUUTEST, FUNNIEST THING EVERRRRRR!!! Gotta love this kid, there's just no one quite like him!!! 
♥Mary Frances :)