GV GEMS

During the first market crash that affected our income, in 1983, our very comfortable retirement account also began to crash. In a few short years, it was gone! Our financial investors tried to correct the down-fall, but their efforts were not rewarded. We found ourselves retired, but with NO retirement income! Our Social Security was yet a couple of years away.

We cried a bit. We hurt a lot. We envied others who had NOT fallen with the market.

But slowly - and with much prayer - we began to crawl back up to ground level. We researched and plotted and made some major adjustments in our lifestyle.

We put our home up for sale, and we found we could do without several luxuries. We KNEW that God wants His kids to prosper, so we also researched scripture - and accepted His counsel.

V found a position for which he was qualified from his background in management and energy. He told them up front that he preferred part-time, so they accomodated him with five hours a day, four days a week. Nice! He's been with them over ten years now, and this position has been a great blessing!

But I wanted to stay home and make money by writing or selling from home. I wrote two books and a host of other writing projects, but no real income. Someone suggested eBay. I knew an eBayer who was making a good living selling small items. She gave me several hours of instruction - and I launched my first items for sale.

My first item sold for many times its worth, and I was excited. That was several years ago, and though I sell fewer items these days, I still love the eBay business.

You CAN find something to do from home. A lady in our town has one garage sale per month. She endeavors to have fresh and interesting items at each sale. She also offers a few refreshments to entice her customers.

If you can write letters, answer phones, do surveys, make sales calls or compose a newsletter, someone out there needs you!

You have a gifting, a forte', a skill that someone needs! Be creative! Stir the juices! Explore the possibilities! In today's computer world, your potential is virtually unlimited!

There are dozens, perhaps hundreds of ways to make money outside a regular job.

We have been involved in a few of them - and made good money. If you enjoy hosting parties and receiving gifts, then host such a party. But if you want to make money on your own terms and in your own time, one of these companies may be just right for you.

MODEST FASHION & LINGERIE
Diviine Modestee

BEAUTY, SKIN CARE
Mary Kay Cosmetics
BeautiControl
Aloette Skin Care & Cosmetics
Jafra
Sensaria Natural BodyCare
Avon
Mineral Girlz Mineral Makeup
Ultra International eStore
JD Premium Products
Suzanne
Zermat Internacional
Jordan Essentials
Color Me Beautiful

HOME DECOR
Signature Homestyles (formerly Homemakers Idea)
Home and Garden Party
At Home America
Thiry-One Gifts
Longaberger Baskets
Lillian Vernon
Uppercase Living
Taste of Home Entertaining

CANDLES & GOOD SCENTS
Mia Bella Candles
CandleLite
Scentsy

JEWELRY & PURSES
Jewels by Park Lane
Latasia's Fine Fashion Jewelry
Zedora Italian Charms & Jewelry
Lia Sophia Jewelry
Purse Party
Sarah Coventry Jewelry
Disciples Cross
Making Jewelry Fun
Jolica Bead Beautiful
F & K - Frank and Kahn
Stella & Dot
AuraStella

FOR KIDS
Discovery Toys Learning is an Art
Simply Fun Noah's Ark Animal Workshop
Baby Crazy Stuffed With Fluff
I See Me Personalized Children's Books

FOR PETS
ShurePets

FOODS
Gourmet to Go
JD Premium Products
Tealightful Treasures®
SUZANNE
Watkins International
The Traveling Vineyard
Jerky Direct
Wild Tree Herbs
WineShop At Home
Two Sisters Gourmet
Dove Chocolate Discoveries

HEALTH PRODUCTS
JD Premium Products Melaleuca
FreeLife International
The Goji Juice Company ViaViente
Belly Buster Diet Plexus Pink

KITCHEN, COOKING, STORAGE
Tupperware
Pampered Chef
Taste of Home Entertaining Tomboy Tools

SCRAPBOOKING, ETC.
Top Line Creations Heritage Makers
P.S. I Love You
PhotoMax

Here are some others, especially good for work-at-home-moms:
The-Mommy-Place - The PREMIER online site for work at home moms, stay at home moms and working moms.

The WAHM Shack - We offer WAHMs Free and Low Cost Advertising, Exclusive Direct Sales Directory Listings

Christian WAHMs - A place to come for support and options for WAHMs.

Heritage Makers - Digital Storybooking

Your Perfect Party Shop - We have themed Party Packs for all types of Parties and Events. From the comfort of your home you can order exactly what you want without having to travel to several stores.

Noevir Anti-Aging Skin Care Products - Janice Markley, Independent Consultant for Noevir, offers natural anti-aging skin care products and nutritional supplements by Noevir. Start your own work-at-home business with Noevir! No animal testing. Free samples available.

Brown Bag Party - 50% commissions, DOUBLE hostess benefits (20% of retail party sales in FREE product)! Romance products, lingerie, spa line, lotions, bachelorette party supplies & more! Classy & Sassy!

Shaklee - Shaklee has awesome cleaning supplies that are organic and is very environmentally safe. If you suffer from Asthma and/or Allergies... ..then don't let the toxins from other cleaning agents cause you an asthma or allergy attack. Shaklee has some awesome Special Get Clean Packs on Special right now (where you can join FREE)

Keeping The Romance - Become a Pink Diva. Start earning 30% Commission, 5% Commission on your downlines,

AND HERE IS A LIST OF A DIRECTORY OF THOSE COMPANIES

Aloette
At Home America
AuraStella
Avon
Baby Crazy
BeautiControl
Belly Buster Diet
Candle Lite
Color Me Beautiful
Disciples Cross
Discovery Toys
Diviine Modestee
Dove Chocolate Discoveries
Essence of Romance
For Your Pleasure
Fuller Brush
Gourmet to Go
Heritage Makers
Home & Garden Party
It Works Marketing
Jafra
JD Premium Products
Jewels by Park Lane
Jolica
Jordan Essentials
Just For You Parties
Latasia Jewelry
Lia Sophia Jewelry
Mia Bella Candles
Michele Baratta Jewelry
Noah's Ark Animal Workshop
Pampered Chef
Party Gals
Passion Parties
Plexus Pink
Purse Party
Sarah Coventry Jewelry
Scentsy
Shaklee
Signature Homestyles
Suzanne
Tealightful Treasures
The Traveling Vineyard
Thirty-One Gifts
Tupperware Products
Two Sisters Gourmet
Ultimate Nights
ViaViente
Warm Spirit
Watkins
Wine Shop at Home
Zermat Internacional

DON'T WORRY!
Loosen up, enjoy today - and don't fret about tomorrow!

BE POSITIVE
Having a negative attitude will drive away the happiest person! It's just as easy to be positive - but it takes practice. Like the old saying, look at the glass half full, not half empty! And count your blessings. That, too, is old-fashioned, but it puts things in perspective.

HAVE A HAPPY HOME!
Smile often! Joke a lot! Make things light! Play the Pollyanna game and find just one thing good about the things and people around you. When anger, jealousy, sadness, loneliness, lust and all the other bad stuff rises up in you, snuff them out instantly. Refuse! When anger comes, remember to pick your battles - and anger will often leave! When jealousy comes, knock that green-eyed monster in the head! Just refuse! Find one tiny good thing in that person you are made at or jealous of! If you can't, then they just aren't worth your time anyway! Don't waste your emotions on them! Put up happy colors and funny pictures in your home. Clean it up! Make it smell good! Let in some light. A clean home is a whole lot happier than a dirty one! But overall, smile often! Even if nobody else responds, your smiles will still make you feel better!!

TRUST IN YOURSELF!
There are many, many good things inside of you. Make a list of them. Also make a list of the bad things in you. Tear the bad list in pieces and throw it away - and realize you can change the bad in you that easily! Then return to the good list, and begin concentrating on your qualities. You will find that they will increase and multiply!

WANT A BLESSED MARRIAGE?
It should work as God planned: the two should become one. How do you do that? You aim to please your mate, and not yourself. If each of you will aim to please your mate over your own pleasure, then you BOTH will have a happy marriage!

JOY IS ALWAYS POSSIBLE!
No matter the outer conditions, you can think yourself happy inside your heart! Think on happy things. Picture nice things you enjoy - family, animals, nature. Remember good times or funny stories or noble deeds. Make yourself concentrate on these things.

RAISING CHILDREN
Recently, one of our sons asked how harsh he should treat his teenager when the teen shows signs of rebellion. We told him that he must use discipline, but he must never do anything to make his son hate him. If you don't hate the child, you can prevent them from hating you. You will make mistakes, but if you're loving and honest with your kids, you'll do just fine! We've made a lot of mistakes with our five children, but thankfully, they grew up to be wonderful people - and not one even mildly dislikes us! Now, that's something!

PRAY TOGETHER
The statistics will wow you, when you see the percentages of good relationships among families who pray together! Enough said!

CLICK ON ANOTHER OF MY LENS, WHICH FOCUSES ON AN EASY GUIDE FOR BEGINNERS ON eBAY.

Sell-On-eBay-Today

If you've ever wanted to sell on eBay, this set of tips and do's and don't's will make it easy. You'll be selling items in no time!

In this extra-simple guide, we relate many of our own experiences, and give you a bird's-eye view of eBay in order to make it easy for you to get started!

If you want to see the items I have listed on eBay, go to "Buy" then "advanced search". On the left you will see "find a member". Type in my member name: iamblessedtobless

For many years, V has kept a legal pad (notebook will work) of each month's bills. We have purchased beautifully bound leather journals, but he keeps returning to the simple legal pad.

(We prefer not to pay our bills on-line. By the notebook method, we keep the monthly bills and totals together and see them in better order. However, you can still use this method of record-keeping, even if you do pay on-line.)

At the top of the page, put the month and year. List each company you owe monthly and the amount. As you pay the bill, check it off. As the last one is paid, sub-total. At the bottom of the page, list separately your gifts and your medical bills. Pay those and total the full amount. This will give you an accounting of each month.

Next month, copy the monthly companies and your monthly gifts from this sheet. You will only need to fill in the new amount for each bill. At the end of 12 months, tear off January through December, staple together and store away with your tax information. (These total sheets will help you more quickly prepare your next year's taxes.)

This ultra-easy system has facilitated us in gaining great credit, plus we are down to one debt though our savings crashed with the stock market. We think it was one step that helped us save money and pay off smaller debts while whittling larger ones.

Try it for awhile - but keep it simple!

You have a superman on the inside of you! You've heard the psychiatric lingo that you need to "get in touch with yourself". Well, we think you need to get in touch with your own inner superman. God has put marvelous things inside of you!

You can do wonderful, off the chart things - over and above anything you have thought in the past! You can do incredible things, if you will only believe in yourself!

You have a "superman" shield that is the pure truth about yourself. With God, you can do everything; you can do ANYTHING! Don't let circumstances stop you! Take up the SUPER that is in you and begin again! You can conquer all the things that try to defeat you! Don't give up! You can WIN!

*I think myself happy.
The Apostle Paul
*No man is happy who does not think himself so.
Publilius Syrus
*You're happiest while you're making the greatest contribution.
Robert F. Kennedy
*When one door of happiness closes, another opens, but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one that has been opened for us.
Helen Keller
*People with many interests live, not only longest, but happiest.
George Matthew Allen
*Happiness depends more on the inward disposition of mind than on outward circumstances.
Benjamin Franklin
*Happiness depends upon ourselves.
Aristotle

MAKING CHORES EASIER
If you're having trouble with daily chores, pick 3 or 4 easy things you can do daily - things that make you feel better about your home. What I choose takes about 20-30 minutes. I make my bed. I load the dishwasher. I wash one load of clothes. I do one other household task. It may be to clean one bathroom; water the plants, clean one ceiling fan, or throw away junk in the refrigerator. Do at least ONE extra task each day.

LEMON JUICE IS A GREAT NATURAL GIFT!
Use lemon juice on your face to lighten freckles and tighten pores. Rub a half lemon on heels and elbows to lighten, soften and remove dead skin. Lemon juice will take odors of onion and garlic from your hands, dishes, sink. Rub lemon and salt into stains on white cloth. It will remove most of them. A half lemon will remove ice from your windshield and grime from your mirrors.

SAME WITH VINEGAR AND BAKING SODA
Both vinegar and baking soda are common household items that have many uses - and they are cheap! You can use vinegar and water solution to clean your floors, windows, bathrooms, ceramic tile, remove mold, deoderize refrigerator, sink drains and rooms of smoke. Straight vinegar cleans toilet bowls and glass windows & doors better than anything, but it will also clean your eye-glasses, mirrors, china & crystal, It cleans stains from clothing, coffee pots, microwave and removes soap scum in dishwasher, shower doors and tile. Also use vinegar as a pick-me-up for veggies (vinegar, salt and ice water); and as a bug spray, use around your cabinet base and around the outside doors.

Stir baking soda in a small amount of water and clean sinks, tile, floors, baths. For deoderizer, sprinkle dry soda on shoes, dogs, garbage can, mop, drains, refrigerator, litter box. For cleaner, sprinkle dry soda on kitchen & bath fixtures, white shoes, appliances outdoor grills, oil spots, Use it in your vaccuum cleaner (or sprinkle on carpet, then vaccuum); in your laundry, (it's great for freshening soured clothes left in the washer), or in your dishwasher for glasses that glisten. As a healer, sprinkle dry or mix with a bit of water and apply to bites, canker sores, skin irritations and poison ivy. Clean your toothbrushes, whiten your teeth, use as an exfoliate, and even as a personal deoderant! For heartburn, mix a couple of tablespoons with water and drink. Baking soda will clean your whitewall tires and chrome. (Polish chrome with soft dry cloth.)

Use both - equal parts of vinegar and soda - poured one after the other down a drain, will unclog most drains. You can also use both products, one after the other, on heavy stains and on carpet stains - especially from animals. Don't mix the two, because they can become a bit explosive, if you remember your school science projects.

POTTING PLANTS
When you pot a plant, put in more soil than you need, because it will settle. It's a good idea to add even more soil within the first week and water well. (And I always try to add a bit of broken clay pot. I don't know why, but it helps the plants thrive.

QUICK SNACK FOR REGULARITY
A quick snack that will give you protein and keep you regular is this: a couple of tablespoons of peanut butter and a little fruit such as a handful of raisins or grapes or half a banana.

DELICIOUS MEAL FOR TEENS (AND THEIR PARENTS!)
A great meal for teens - my own concoction many, many years ago - is to brown one pound of hamburger meat. Add a bit of onion if you like it. Drain the meat and add two cans of pork and beans and 1/3 to 1/2 cup of barbecue sauce. Cook it until it is fairly brown. It's delicious!

GET BACK TO GOOD HEALTH
V says the remedy for surviving two heart attacks and skin cancer on his ear (which required plastic surgery) is that you don't take yourself too seriously - and that you allow these set-backs to drive you to living healthier! He is back to drinking more water, taking more vitamins, walking over a mile a day at 6 a.m. and getting a bit more sleep. He says, "Start with simple things and add to them."

TAKE THE BURN OUT OF POTS AND PANS
If you have cast iron pots that have stuff burned in them, take them and a short pole to a campsite where you can hold the pot over a small fire. The fire will burn out the charred food. Or, if the pot is stainless steel, pour vinegar to the level where the burned food has left a mark on the side. Leave it several days and it will be much easier to clean with a plastic scrubber.

CHECK THE CABLES
Another tip from V: If your battery seems sluggish or your car won't start, check the two battery cables (one has a negative sign, the other has a positive sign) to see if there is corrosion on them. If you can see corrosion, loosen (you may have to jiggle it loose) and clean only one cable at a time, use a wire brush to clean it, and finish cleaning with an old cloth and some baking soda. It may be necessary to also use a knife to clean the inside of the band. Replace it, then clean the other one and re-connect. Some of the modern batteries have connections on the side or are turned on their side, rather than having top connections. There are also commercial sprays you can use to clean these terminals.

GRANDMA'S AGE

A little boy asked his grandmother how old she was.
"I'm 39 and holding," she replied.
"Well, then, how old would you be if you let go?"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GOD IS LIKE:

Allstate: You're in good hands.
Alka-Seltzer: Try him, you'll like Him
Tide: He gets the stains out that others leave behind.
Sears: He has everything.
A Ford: He's got a better idea.
Hallmark Cards: He cared enough to send the very best.
Bayer Asprin: He works miracles.
Delta: He's ready when you are.
Alberto Vo-5: He holds through all kinds of weather.
Coke: He's the real thing.
The US Post Office: Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor hail will keep Him from His appointed rounds.
Scotch Tape: You can't see Him, but you know He's there.
Dial Soap: Aren't you glad you've got Him? Don't you wish everybody did?
General Electric: He brings good things to life.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE IDIOTIC YUPPIE

A well-off yuppie opened the door of his BMW, when a car suddenly came by, hit his door, ripping it off completely. When the police arrived on the scene, the yuppie was complaining bitterly about damage to his precious BMW. "Officer, look what they've done to my Beeeemer!!!" he cried.

"You yuppies are SO materialistic, you make me sick!!!" retorted the officer. "You're so worried about your stupid BMW, you haven't noticed that your left arm was ripped off!!!"

"Oh, NOOOOOO!!!!...", shrieked the yuppie, finally noticing the bloody left shoulder where his arm once was,

"Where's my ROLEX????!!!!!"

*********************************************************************************************************
OVERWORKED

For a couple years I've been blaming it on lack of sleep or too much pressure from my job, but I've found the real reason that I am always tired is because I'm overworked.
*The population of this country is 237 million. 104 million are retired. That leaves 133 million to do the work.
*There are 85 million in school, which leaves 48 million to do the work.
*Of this there are 29 million employed by the federal government, leaving 19 million to do the work.
*2.8 million are in the Armed Forces, which leaves 16.2 million to do the work.
*Some 14,800,000 people work for State and City Governments. That leaves 1.4 million to do the work.
*At any given time there are 188,000 people in hospitals, leaving 1,212,000 to do the work.
*Given that there are 1,211,998 people in prisons, that leaves just two people to do the work, you and me.

And you're sitting at your computer reading these jokes!

FROM YOUR SPICE RACK, FOR YOUR HEALTH:

Thyme: 1 tsp. in 1/2 cup boiling water. Brew several minutes, then gargle the 'tea' for relief from sore throat and as cough expectorant. Thyme is noted for its germ-killing components.
Ginger: Great for tummy aches and cramps, gas, morning sickness, motion sickness. Make 'tea' from 1/2 tsp. ginger and 1/2 cup boiling water. Brew and drink. (Or buy the over-the-counter gel capsules!)
Cumin: Sprinkle over many of your foods such as rice, chili, meats, salads; Cumin has great life-giving qualities and is known for its medicinal classification as stimulant, carminative, and antimicrobial. Many also use it as diuretic and as a cancer prohibitive.
Cinnamon helps ease sniffles as well as diarrhea. Add to tea, milk, juice or coffee or make tea from 1/3 tsp. to cup of boiling water.
Cloves and cayenne relieve toothaches. Make a paste from either ground spice with a few drops of water and apply to the tooth (the potency of these spices would burn your gum if applied directly to it.)
Tea made from willow bark has been used since the Romans for curing headaches or other pains. Its ingredients, Salicylates, is known to us today as aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid).
Tea from sassafrass is known to help purify the blood. Poultices from this plant have been used to quicken healing of sores.
Aromas of rosemary and lavender have long been used to calm a patient and to relieve headaches.
Both garlic and onion have their places in relieving stuffy noses, bronchitis, sore toes and many other ailments.

FROM YOUR PANTRY, FOR YOUR GARDEN:

Many plants are known as natural insecticides:
Anise - use as bait for mice
Basil - flies & mosquitoes
Capsicum - ants
Chrysanthemum - as insecticide, repel aphids
Cloves - moth
Garlic, onion - mice, moles, beetles, aphids
Leeks, chives - certain flies; also improves general health of plants
Geraniums - use near rose beds, attracts beetles & stuns them
Marigold - repels beetles
Mint - ants, cabbage moth
Pennyroyal - flies & mosquitoes
Rosemary - beetles, cabbage moth
Tansy - beetles, ants, mosquitoes

1. Write down what you really want to do in life. (What is the one thing you hope to accomplish before you die? Bad or negative things don't count!)
2. Write down five good things you see in yourself. We know - you see mostly bad stuff. But pretend you do not know yourself. Be objective and find five positive things in you.
3. Write three goals for the year, three goals for this month and three positive things you can do this week. Next, write one thing you can do today to improve your life - then, with all your might, do it!
4. Write down three people you can name who have been successful.
5. Find 3 encouraging quotes and write them down.
6. Find 5 promises from the Bible and write them down.
7. Say aloud several times daily: I AM A WINNER! I WILL SUCCEED! WITH GOD, I WILL MAKE IT! WITH GOD, I CAN DO ANYTHING!
8. Say aloud many times daily: I AM GOOD BECAUSE GOD LOVES ME!

The Bible says, "Out of the abudance of the heart, the mouth speaks." (Luke 6:45). When we clear our minds of trash and when we fill our minds with good, our mouths begin to reflect that inner quality - BECAUSE you will speak what you are thinking!

How do you change your thoughts? You fill your mind with good things! Begin to listen to positive, uplifting people! Begin to focus on uplifting events! Begin to choose crowds that have a positive lifestyle. Begin to read of encouraging events, of people who do wonderful things, of heroes and preachers, inventors, artists and teachers, doctors and scholars who have initiated and instilled fine things into our lives.

How do you think good things? Read the Bible promises. Write them down. Meditate on them. Memorize them. Get them deep into your psyche.

Then daily, even several times daily, speak those verses forth. Find quotes from successful people you admire and repeat their wisdom.

Also, pray this prayer:

Dear Lord:

You are totally positive! I determine to be like You. I determine to think good things and to speak good things. I know that You love me, and that is more than sufficient. I will speak positive confessions.

I am a winner. I am a success. I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, because the Bible says You have made me to be so. I am made in Your image. Therefore, I can do all things through Christ!

Thank You, Lord, for giving me a plan for my life, for giving me certain talents and abilities, for causing me to bear fruits. Thank You, Lord, for putting Your love in my heart.

Please give me the strength and the wisdom to fulfill your purpose for my life. Help me overcome all obstacles and to stay focused on winning - for YOU!
In Jesus' Name, Amen!