The Shack

Jerry and I finished reading The Shack this morning...a few minutes ago. Wow!!! Some of you made comments, when I said we had started reading this book, that you couldn't wait to read my comments and reactions to it. Well, I can't write out my comments about it here because I don't want to spoil it for someone who hasn't read it yet. So if anyone wants to discuss it with me, send me an e-mail and we can 'talk' about it that way.
Heavenly Father, Thank You for being my Father, Abba Father, Daddy, Papa. Thank You for loving me with unconditional love. Thank You for books that make me stop and think and take time to reevaluate my life and my relationship with You.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Megan! I can't believe you're a teenager now! You are so beautiful! Last year we were down for your birthday and I made a cake for you. I wish we could be with you today. I hope your brothers and sister treat you like a princess today! I wonder what is planned for you... I'm sure it'll be special. I wish you a happy, happy birthday. I love you, Megan.
Thank You, Lord, for Megan. She's so pretty. Please keep Your Hand upon her as she's entering her teen years. Help her to know she is special in Your Sight. Give her a good day today. I love her so much and You love her even more!

Feeling bad

I feel so bad. Will writing about it help? I let my son down today. I didn't mean to. Is it my age? I guess I could use that as an excuse. I don't know. He asked me for a simple favor today. He was called in for ski patrol. Our granddaughter would be coming home on the bus at three. Would I go over about 2:55 to be there when her bus arrived to explain why he wasn't home? She's old enough to stay alone but she just needed to know why he was gone and where he was. Sure, I could do that (I've done it before), no problem. Well, I checked the clock at 1:10, 2:15, 2:35...when 2:55 came, it never crossed my mind! What happened? I don't know. I just feel so bad about letting him down. She's fine, I'm the one who is not. I should have written it down. I must do that more. Write it down.
Lord, You know how badly I'm feeling right now. Please help me to forgive myself. Help me to be more careful in the future and to write things down so I don't forget. Help my children to be patient and understanding and to not give up on me.

2008 Firefighter of the Year!

Congratulations, Ryan!

Meet our grand-nephew, Ryan, and his new son, Joey. There's a reason why I'm introducing them to you. Ryan was just honored as the 2008 Firefighter of the Year! Picture #1 shows Ryan waving at me in the Memorial Day Parade. You can barely see him but he's there! There were actually two firefighter's honored in the paper but I don't know the other one and he's not related anyway. There's a good article in our daily newspaper about them today. There is also an official photo of Ryan in his uniform...looks impressive! This is the latest picture I have of him, taken last October at a birthday party for Betty, Jerry's sister and Ryan's grandma. Congratulations, Ryan!

Thank You, Lord, for our firefighter's. Thank You for Ryan. Please watch over him and keep him safe as he works to keep us safe.

Questions to Answer

This is a list of questions sent to me by a blogging friend, Trish, of Nana's Living the Dream. I've tried to answer honestly.

1) I know you have been married nearly fifty years, how did you meet your husband?

Back in '58 work was slow. I had just returned home from college for the summer with the promise of a job. But then I was told not to report for work for at least two weeks. My parents were leaving on a speaking tour for my dad (he was a preacher) so I went with them. The end of the trip was to a camp in Michigan where my dad was the special speaker. The very first night of that camp I was introduced to Jerry. Camp ended but our romance didn't! I transferred to a college in Michigan...we were married the next year, five days after graduation! The rest is history! I will add here that after almost 50 years we are still in love!

2) You sound like a great cook. What is your favorite meal to serve company? Please give details.

I love having company for dinner and always try to make it a special time of visiting and eating delicious food with our guests. I think my favorite meal to serve is breakfast...Puff Pancakes with Sausage and Peaches. My mother served this to my older brother and me during a visit to them and then gave her recipe to me. I'm not really a morning person but for this I go all out. A special two-tone juice, fruit bowl, puff pancakes with sausage and peaches, cinnamon rolls, and coffee. It's very special. I cherish it and love serving it to friends.

3) Please tell us all the places you've lived. Where was your favorite? Why?

I have lived in so many places. I never lived in one house longer than 3 years until I got married! I started out living in Iowa,38-46 and 50-57, that's my home state. I also lived in Oklahoma,46-48; Illinois, 49-50; Indiana - summers of 56-58; South Dakota, 55-58 and Michigan, 58-09. I love Iowa, I feel very at home there. I only lived in Oklahoma for two years but they were, maybe, my favorite two years. I was in 2nd and 3rd grades. I had so much fun with my best friend, Molly. We were in the same rooms in school, went to the same church, our mother's were best friends, we were like two peas in a pod. Life was hard back in the 40's but I have so many wonderful memories of those two years in Oklahoma. I've lived in Michigan now for 51 years. I love Michigan so perhaps it's now my favorite. We raised our family here. Jerry and I are in retirement now and enjoying our life together.

4) What television star would you like to spend an afternoon with? What would you do for the afternoon if cost was no problem and you could just choose anything to do together?

O boy, this is tough. I think I might like to spend an afternoon with Ann Curry. I think a long walk through a park or along a shore, or hiking in the mountains (that's my favorite thing to do); just talking about life, our families, God. Just talking and laughing, enjoying each other for who we are.

5) Who influenced you the most in your life? Give the reasons why.

My parents influenced me the most. They became born again Christians when I was about two. Life was not easy, money was scarce, my dad traveled a lot. They were both totally committed to their personal relationship with the Lord. My parents were not perfect and made some mistakes in their child rearing (haven't we all?!) but they were loving and totally committed to each other and to Christ.

So there you have it, or should I say, me? If you'd like to be interviewed also, just send me an e-mail telling me so and I'll e-mail five questions to you. Copy and paste the questions into your blog and write out your answers. It's fun and simple. May I hear from you?

Heavenly Father, I thank You for life, for my life. It's not been perfect, but You are Mercy and Grace. Help me to live pleasing to You. Help others to see Christ in me.

Interesting...

Hmmmm! Last evening I discovered something about myself...did you know I'm old fashioned??? Okay, okay. We entertained our new assistant pastor and family last evening and had a really nice time. At the same time, I'm pondering some of our conversation today and even through most of the night! This is a young couple with two young girls, ages four and five. They thought our antiques are interesting and even told us about some of theirs. (They had an antique clock stolen!) For supper I fixed fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, corn, fruit salad, rolls, pineapple-upside-down cake. As we were eating I mentioned a change in kids appetites. When I was young, and even my kids, we all loved fried chicken. Kids today don't really care for it. (Ted, once told me, it's because kids today have chicken mc nuggets.) Last evening, the comment was made about being a 50's thing. Oh, so a meal like I fixed was a 50's meal! We all laughed about that. But that's an interesting thought. So our big dinner that I fix on Sunday's is a 50's thing?! Most of our friends do go out for dinner after church ; we come home and eat our dinner that's been in the oven all the time we're at church. So what do folks eat today? What kind of meals do people eat today? I really need to know...I don't want to live back in the dark ages. Well, change comes hard. The older I get, the harder it is to change.
Lord, help me to keep up with the world today. Help me to change with time but to keep my beliefs and to stand firm in my determination to follow Jesus.

Frustrations

Life gets interesting, doesn't it? I've been so frustrated with aol lately so I've made a switch. In the process I've lost some things on my blog! My count down to our 50th anniversary is the main thing I've lost. I've tried to get it back but with no luck so far. I'm going to keep trying though because I like it. I even lost my blog list for a while, but thankfully, I got it back!
Lord, please help me to be patient in this transition. I have so much to learn. Thank You for my computer and for my ability to use it, even though I'm very limited. Help me to be willing to keep learning.

Beautiful Orchids

These beautiful orchids belong to Joan. However, if I understand, the plant is now at Tracy's house and thriving. I couldn't resist showing how beautiful it is...especially since it was a gift to Joan from yours truly!

Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life...See how the lilies of the field (orchids) grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet, I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. Matthew 6:25a, 28b, 29

More Winter Beauty

We woke up again this morning to winter beauty. I asked Jerry how many winter pictures I could take! Then I decided to just focus on stark, bare limbs covered with snow. There is beauty everywhere if we just look for it.
I praise You, Lord, because You are Power and majesty.
He sends His command to the earth, His Word runs swiftly. He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes. He hurls down His hail like pebbles. Who can withstand His icy blast? He sends His Word and melts them; He stirs up His breezes, and waters flow. Psalm 147:15-18

Beautiful Mt Hood

This beautiful picture is of Mt Hood in Oregon. My sister, Lorraine, took this on her cell phone from an airplane! Wow! She sent it to me on my computer because I don't have a photo cell phone. I asked her permission to use it on my blog. So, thank you, Lorraine. It's such a good picture! I didn't know you were so tech savvy (my spell check said that's the way to spell it).

Lord, I praise You because You are the Creator.

Wizard of Oz

Yesterday I went to one of our middle schools to watch The Wizard of Oz. Three of the stars are friends of mine. The Tin Man is Alex, Leah is one of the dancers, and the Scarecrow is Emma. They were all so good! I'm just amazed at their acting and singing and dancing. This is Emma's third time to star in a play at school. She's very talented. I'm so proud to know these kids. Leah and Emma I had in Club 56 so I know them well. Alex, I've known for years, since he was a little kid. I had his older brother, Brad, in Club 56. Lord, thank You for my privelege of knowing these kids. It's so great to know that You have a plan for each of their lives. Please keep Your Hand upon them as they grow up. Help them to know that You love them.

Wordless Wednesday!

Report

Here's the latest report on Sydney. Last week she had a miserable test on her kidney's. It didn't look good. She had so many symptoms of a kidney infection. So many folks were praying for her and I thank you all. The test results are: normal! Today she had an ultra-sound done on her kidney's. I haven't heard yet how it came out but I'll report on that when I hear. So please keep praying.
I praise You, Heavenly Father, because You are our Healer. I thank You with all my heart for touching Sydney. Please continue to be with her. Keep her well and safe and trusting in You. Thank You for loving us.

Cake and Ice Cream!

Well, once again I have my photos in the wrong order. Sorry, Amy, next time I'll get it right! Rob and Jessica and Haleigh came over for birthday cake and ice cream.

Jerry with his cake and 73 candles. He's wearing his new shirt and corduroy pants that I gave him.

Haleigh carried the cake to him with the candles lit. We sang Happy Birthday to him. It's not a fancy cake at all. Late this afternoon he suggested I make a football cake for him! Had he said it yesterday or even this morning I could have made him a football cake. So...next year. Don't let me forget...a football cake for Jerry!

We went to Logan's for supper. We love their ribs. Well, they wouldn't seat us in the dining room! The girl said they were expecting a party of 90 so they weren't taking anyone else! She said we could go in the other side but we'd have at least a 20 minute wait. She said it with the tone of voice that said they really didn't care if we stayed or not! So we left and went to Applebee's. Jerry ordered ribs and I ordered fajitas. It was a very good supper. Jerry got a free dessert with two spoons! It was a double chocolate something and ice cream. It was sooo good! The waitressses also sang to him!

Jessica didn't get home from work until about 7:00 so then they were coming for birthday cake and ice cream! Oh, man. More dessert?!

Our pieces of cake were very small. They were also very good.

All five of our kids called or came to wish Jerry a happy birthday! Andrew and Katie also called to wish him a happy birthday. That was so good. My younger brother wrote him a very nice comment to my blog for his birthday. My older brother, my sister, and my mother all called him and wished him a happy birthday! That was very nice. It meant a lot to him. He also got some nice comments and e-mails from friends.

Lord, thank You for special birthdays, for family and friends to love and make us feel special and loved.
Most of all, I love You, Lord.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Jerry! This is my favorite recent picture of you. I can't believe we're both as old as we are! But we are...you're 73 today! I love you. Thank you for being the wonderful, supportive husband that you are. Did I tell you I love you? Have a happy, happy birthday! Did I mention I love you?

Thank You, Lord, for Jerry. He's a good husband and father and grandfather. Thank You for touching him during his times of serious illness. Please keep him well. I'd like to keep him around for a lot more years. Thank You, not only for his love for me, but also for his love and commitment to You. I love him, Lord, and You love him even more!

Back to school

Ted called last evening to tell us that Sydney went back to school yesterday afternoon for the first time. The plan was for her to go all day today if she felt strong enough this morning. He still has no results from her tests and she has another one on Tuesday, so please keep praying for her. She's on an antibiotic and it seems to be working.

Thank You, Lord, for touching Sydney. Please continue to touch her. Help her to know You love her and care for her. Thank You for helping the doctors in treating her.

Reading

Jerry and I are reading again. We've had a long break and it's good to be back. For those of you who've recommended The Shack by William Young...we're reading it. It was loaned to us by Joan, but before we got to it (we were still reading another book) she needed it back. Then I bought it for Ted for Christmas, even though I hadn't read it yet, I'd been told by enough folks that it's a good book to read, so I gave it to Ted. As he opened it a big smile came on his face and he said, "I just finished reading this! It's good, Mom, you should keep it and read it!" So...we're reading it. We've read the foreward and chapter one.

Lord, thank You for good books. Thank You for folks who write good books. Be with Jerry and me as we read together.

Winter Wonderland

Yesterday was so beautiful so I went out with my camera. As you can see I took several shots and then had to pick one for my Wordless Wednesday. Here are the others I took.

Lord, thank You for the beauty of winter.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Haleigh! I can't believe you're 12 years old! Almost a teenager... Can you believe it? I can't. I remember when you were born...I was there. Grandpa and I had just settled down for a long wait...when were told we had a beautiful tiny granddaughter! What an exciting day that was! We have lots of fun times together since you live right next door. I wish for you a very happy, happy birthday. I love you.
Lord, thank You for Haleigh. She's a beautiful girl. Please watch over her life. Help her to always live for You. I love her and You love her even more.

Wordless Wednesday

Symptons

The other day I wrote about Sydney (granddaughter) being sick. It turns out to be much more than a touch of stomach flu. As I look back over the days with her staying with us I see lots of symptoms but at the time I didn't see them as symptoms. She sometimes felt tired. She had had a bladder infection. She had a back ache. She didn't feel like staying all night with her cousin, Haleigh, one night! She didn't feel like eating. She just laid around a lot. She vomited... As I'm writing this, she is having tests done on her kidney's! Her temperature spiked yesterday so Ted took her to the doctor. Tests are being run for possible kidney infection! Please pray for her...

Lord, You are our Healer. You are In Control and Sovereign. Please forgive me for not remembering this. I'm bringing to you my precious granddaughter, Sydney. Please be with her right now as I write this prayer. Be with the doctor, help him/her to know how to treat her. I know she's scared. Please help her to feel your presence. Be with Ted. Please give him the strength he needs right now. Help him to trust in You.

Quiet

Saturday morning and all is quiet. We had a surprise yesterday...Ted and his girls left yesterday about 10:00 AM. But something wasn't right with his car! It just didn't want to go! They barely got down the road when they turned around and came back! Ted and Jerry looked it all over, but you know cars today... So Ted ended up taking it to the garage where he bought the car (he bought here in our town) and they hooked it up to the computer to find out what was wrong. It was something to do with the transmission. I don't know very much about cars so I can't tell you much more than that. They went ahead and fixed it and Ted picked it up about 4:00. We all decided they should stay the night and leave this morning. So Bella and I played several games of Sorry (Sydney played one) and then Bella and I went to the store. Sydney was just lying around, not doing too much. I fixed a supper that Sydney asked for, chicken fingers over rice, but by the time we were ready to eat, she didn't feel like eating! I thought she must be feeling bad about not going home...wrong! By bed time she was feeling really sick and started throwing up! Boy, was I glad we didn't insist she eat supper. She had three bouts of vomiting before the night was over. I slept beside her in the lounge chair so I was right there if she needed me. She finally went to sleep and by this morning seemed better. So it was quite a different day and night we just had. They're gone now and Ted said he'll call when they get home.
Lord, I praise you because You are Sovereign. You are All Knowing. Thank You that the car needed help right away and not half way home. It was a blessing they were still on our road when the problem with the car started. Thank You for the garage being able to fix it right away. Thank You for being with Sydney and touching her body. Help her to continue to heal and for Bella and Ted to not pick it up, or Jerry and me either!

Comment's and Grandma's

I love to get comments by my readers. But reading them lately has left me a little disturbed. I've had a good week with my granddaughter's. We've done some fun and interesting activities. But, come on, all grandma's do fun things with their granddaughter's. Not the same things, maybe, but their own special times in their own ways. Because I'm a blogger you read about our fun and look at our pictures, but that doesn't make me any better than the next grandma. Perhaps I also need to write about the not-so-fun times...like when tempers flair, feelings get hurt, etc. Oh yes, we have those times too. But the good times far out number the bad times and it's more fun to write about the good times! So keep on reading and commenting but let's all be real.

Thank You, Lord, for friends who read my blog and then respond with a comment. Help me as I write blogs to always present a true picture, not a fantasy world of perfection. I love You, Lord. You see the whole picture and know the whole story and still You love me.

The Last Hurrah!

As usual I have the pictures in backwards...we were trying to think of what would happen in 2009...what we would like to have happen in 2009...

Sydney and Haleigh. It's fun to pretend.

Bella coming down the stairs modeling her creation!

Sydney coming down modeling her clothes from Haiti.

Sydney and Isabella are leaving today. It's hard to see them go but yet it's time. We've had a good time and done lots of different activities. Some things we wanted to do we didn't get to, like going sledding down the big hill. It rained and took our abundance of snow away. Yesterday we squeezed a tea party in between the girls going to see a movie with Haleigh and our New Year's Day supper. We'd been talking about having a tea party the whole time but didn't get to it until the last day! We decided to make this one a little different...a playing dress-up tea!

Lord, thank You for giving us imaginations. Help us to use them in good clean creative ways. Thank You for the time I've had with Sydney, Bella, and Haleigh. Help them to see You in me.

Happy New Year's Eve Party!

We had such a fun New Year's Eve party! My three girls and me! First we watched the movie on Hallmark channel. You can see them here totally engrossed. This was a pj party.

We had lots of snacks and drinks. They could eat whenever and whatever they wanted all through the party. That seemed to thrill them! Sydney and Haleigh are in this picture.

Here is Sydney and Bella. Hmmm, what shall I have?!

After the movie we made party hats! We could be as creative as we wanted. This is yours truly!

Miss Bella modeling her creation!

Sydney's is a crown for a princess! Haleigh's says Happy New Year! We used newspaper sailor hats as a base so we could keep them on our heads!
When we finished with our hats, we played games, like Who Am I?

Then came dancing! The following pics are random dance shots.

At midnight we watched the ball come down with Syd's and Bella's dad and wished everyone a happy new year! It was a night to remember!

Lord, we've had some very good times together. Thank You for my granddaughters.
Help me to always be an example of a child of The King.