Finally

Finally the digging will begin! It takes forever to get everything approved so a new building can be built. We building a new ministry building at our church. It'll house the pastor's offices and Kara's, a conference room, teen department, Club 56, etc.

See that big smile on Pastor Dave's face? The digger's have arrived!

I had to take a picture of the side of the truck bringing the heavy equipment... I Know the Future... Jesus Wins!

They have tree stumps to dig out first and then the trench for the water and sewer lines. Monday, they'll start digging the basement! Yeah!!!

Thank You, Lord, for all the plans okayed and permits given. It was a long wait. You are In Control. I praise You.

Ouch,owe

I've had a pain in my leg for a while now. I haven't known what it was until last week when it became almost unbearable.
We were at family camp where I walk everywhere. It's a large camp and there are horse and wagons so folks don't have to walk...When the drivers ask if I want a ride I simply reply, "No thanks, I need the exercise."
Jerry saw me limping and said I would have to stop walking and ride to where ever I went. He made me rest and keep my leg up.
Jessica, my RN daughter-in-law, asked me what my problem was and told her my pain went from my hip down my leg to my foot. It almost felt like an electric shock! She said it sounds like sciatic nerve. Kelby, our paramedic friend, agreed with her.
Staying off of it helped quite a bit. I looked it up on the Internet and it described it to a T! Sciatic Nerve. I can live normally but I can't lift, pull, tug, push, strain, climb, run, etc.
Yesterday I decided to change the furniture in the living room. Oh boy, I lifted, pulled, tugged, pushed, strained, and climbed. The only thing I didn't do was run.
Am I ever in pain today. I forgot all about what it said I shouldn't do. Jerry is rather up-set with me. So today he's helping me finish up what I had left to do.

Lord, I praise You because You are my Healer. Please touch my sciatic nerve and help it to stop hurting. Help me to be more cautious in my old age. I forget I'm not young any more. I love You and I praise You.

Journal

It's time for some more journaling.

We had a very good nine days at family camp. It was exciting to be there for Pastor Scott's ordination as an Elder. He has such potential. We're fortunate to have him as one of our assistant pastors. I hope we can keep him, but I know he'll be in demand now.

Our Bible Study leader was the best ever! Dr. Jeff Johnson. I wish he would have been the speaker in the evening as well. He's outstanding, so personable, so down to earth, so knowledgeable, so interesting. If you ever get a chance to hear him, you'll understand what I mean.

I started out walking to all the different places I wanted to go to. The horse and wagon drivers would ask me if I wanted a ride and I would always answer, "No thanks, I need the exercise!" About half way through the week my right leg began to hurt really badly. It felt like an electric shock going right down my leg. Oh no...sciatic nerve. I stopped walking and kept my leg up when sitting so it did improve but...

There is a lake on the grounds and it's been greatly improved so that it's a wonderful place to spend the afternoon with kids. My granddaughters had so much fun. The weather was just right. There are life guards but I still insisted they go with adults in charge. I went with them or they were invited to go with families of friends.

Family camp is such a great experience...but some folks are so disrespectful of rules, of just plain, common sense! Some things I'm talking about are: kids on bikes, drivers, ignoring signs, walkers, etc.

Bikers: Camp is a great place for kids to ride their bikes. Some kids learn to ride a bike there! But...some kids ride out on the road: in front of cars, without looking. They just dart out. It's amazing there aren't more accidents.

Drivers: The speed limit is 10 MPH and it really needs to be that slow because of all the kids, walkers, and bikers. Some roads are one way but some folks tend to ignore signs, think they own the road, and don't obey the speed limit.

Walkers: It's a good place to walk and get exercise, but walkers need to be respectful of drivers and go to the side to let cars and bikes go by.

Horses: A great feature of family camp are the Belgium horses pulling wagons to give folks rides for pleasure and rides to the auditorium for services. Some people have no respect...they follow too closely to the wagons; some cars try to hurry to get ahead of the horses; some pull out in front of them; you get the picture. This year there was an accident. A biker pulled out in front of the horses, they were spooked, one tried going one way, the other one tried going the other way... a tree stopped them! Several folks fell or nearly fell out of the wagon. One woman went to the hospital by ambulance. She wasn't hurt as badly as was feared, thank the Lord. I hope we can keep our horses and wagons but if people aren't more respectful of them...I wonder.

Rules and Signs: Camp is well designed and when the rules are followed all goes well. Some of the roads are one way, and need to be. There are signs, although I think there need to be more signs to make it clearer. But there are folks who just plain ignore the signs! They act like because this is a camp it doesn't matter how they drive. Wrong! It does matter and most drive safely but it only takes a few to make it unsafe.

Well, this is kind of negative but these are some of the frustrations that go along with camping at a camp with several hundred people.

So family camp is over for another year. I have wonderful memories, along with my frustrations, and can't wait til next year.

Lord, I Praise You. Thank You for family camp, formerly known as camp meeting. It's a wonderful tradition that's been going on for many, many years. Thank You for bringing it to my life. Please help folks to be more respectful of rules. Help camp to be a safe and wonderful place for families.

Relatives

I like to take my camera with me where ever I go because I never know when a good picture is going to be available. (My cell phone doesn't have a camea.) Yesterday I took it to church.

Nephew Kurt, Melissa, AJ, Olivia, and Isabella were here visiting Kurt's mom. They looked so nice I asked if I could take their picture. Marion, my sister-in-law, is Kurt's mom. There is an interesting tidbit here. Marion's granddaughter, Isabella, and my granddaughter, Isabella, were born in the same year, a few months apart, and of course they have the same last name! This makes it very interesting for Miss Wilma, when they both happen to come to visit on the same weekend! Two Isabella ------'s in the same Sunday School class!!!

Lord, thank You for relatives. Thank You for Kurt, Melissa, AJ, Olivia, and Isabella. Bless them with Your Presence.

Family Camp 2010

We love going to family camp and have been going practically all of our lives!

Our friends, Bob and Judy, with daughter Marge's dogs! Aren't they cute? The dogs, I mean!
Dogs are allowed at camp now, but no barking and no messes!

This is our young friend, Andrew, who went to the goodwill store and bought this mismatched outfit! He was really funny and wore it around for about a day and a half. Another guy went with him and also bought some new duds!

Our good friend, Kelby, is the paramedic every year.

Kelby is taking Elmise and Armon for a ride! It was a big thrill for them!

Five great kids from my church: Alex, Brad, Christina, Teri, and Kyle.

Sydney and Bella were with us this year. They slept in a tent beside our camper. It worked great. Their bags are between them, which separated their beds.

Sydney is sitting here smiling. You can see our set-up. We put their tent under our awning, in case it rained, and right out side our door, in case they needed to come in, during the night. It rained only twice during the whole week. Our set-up worked well for all of us. Sydney and Bella made friends and had a busy, happy week.

Heavenly Father, family camp is a big part of our lives every summer. Thank You for being there with us.

Family Camp

Family camp, formerly known as camp meeting, is a wonderful tradition. One I wouldn't give up for anything. It goes clear back to my childhood and is one of my favorite memories. I practically grew up on the Iowa camp ground!

Here is our good friend, Penn, picking up the garbage! He's even doing it with a smile!
I'm so good at putting pictures in backwards! It seems to be a talent of mine!


I added this picture because you can see Penn wasn't just posing, he actually was the garbage man that day!

Two friends, Harold and Martha, (not a couple) visiting at the pot luck dinner on Sunday.

A tradition we have is a pot luck dinner, of all the folks from our city, on the first Sunday of camp. This year 71 folks were counted! Here is Tim, Dave, Sidney, Dee, Tim, Jerry, Bella, Harold, Mary, and Naomi.

Another view so you can see some of the good food! Harold, Johnathon, Linda, Dave, Naomi, Kelby.

Our Assistant Pastor Scott, being ordained as an Elder in the Free Methodist Church. In the picture is Pastor Dave, retired former pastor Gordon, retired missionary Wilma, retired pastor Dale, Emma and Scott. We're very proud of Pastor Scott.

Thank You, Lord, for the wonderful tradition of family camp. We always feel You there among us.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Jessica! Time flies when you're having fun...and with your family increased by two, you are definitely having fun! Oh I know, it's not all fun...it's work. You've got a beautiful smile! I'm amazed at the patience you have, that your whole family has. I'm very proud of you. I hope you have a wonderful day today. Happy Birthday!

Heavenly Father, thank You for Jessica. She's a sweet daughter-in-law. She's a very busy wife and mother. Please keep her close to you. Guide her, protect her, bless her with Your Presence. I love her and You love her even more.

Butterfly

I saw this beautiful butterfly on a Butterfly Bush, outside our administrative assistance's office window, at our church. It was the first one she had seen on the bush! I ran out to my car, to get my camera, and then to the north side of the church. I was sure the butterfly would be gone... but no, he was still there. He even sat right there so I got this shot. I'm proud of it.

Lord, I praise You because You are the Creator.

Journal

I'll just journal for a bit here. I've lost my car keys! We think the last time I drove was Saturday afternoon. I had to come home with them. Today I had to borrow Jerry's. I've looked all over and checked pockets...no where.

Today I worked with my former computer teacher...teaching her! She wants to become a blogger. We had a good time together for about three hours! I don't know if she learned anything but we had a good time!

Jerry had a doctor appointment, I went with him so I'd know first hand what the doctor said. He was being checked for diabetes and...no, he doesn't have it. He bruises so easily so the doctor changed some meds, also his tiredness may be caused by some meds. We're both feeling better about him. The spot on his face will be checked soon. We love our doctor.

Today I logged onto a site of the Historical Free Methodist Church site...imagine my surprise when I saw my family in a picture with former Bishop Marston! I've seen the picture before, in fact it's even in a book but I didn't expect to see it again all these years later. It was taken in 1974, I think. Here's the web site, in case you'd like to look it up.
http://marston.freemethodistchurch.org/_pdfs/SummerFall2010.pdf Our whole family is there but some are hard to see unless you know what you're looking for. Jerry shows very well! He's the young man, I'm standing beside him holding Robby (you can only see part of me.) Timmy is standing by Jerry, he shows up very well. The bottom 3/4 of Christy shows, not her face. Part of Teddy's face shows, he wearing glasses. Pammy's dark hair shows, that's all of her. There is another woman and a boy but I don't know who they are. But there we are, we were all listening to Bishop Marston telling something about the history of our church, even our kids were listening!

I'm already working on the next newsletter. The last one came out yesterday! I try to keep up-to-date on news happenings. I've had about three items come to my attention already. Some big changes are in the works as far as distribution. I'm not at liberty to disclose the changes yet but it's going to be helpful to me. I was greatly encouraged after talking with my pastor concerning the newsletter.

I had a night mare last night... Jerry woke me up...he said I was crying! Strange...

I have new glasses! Dr Johnson said I hadn't been in since 2004! No wonder I was having problems seeing! So now I can read small words and numbers again...like crossword puzzles!

Heavenly Father, I praise You because You are All Knowing and You Care for me. You are Love. Please forgive me for taking You for granted. Thank You for the good doctor appointment Jerry had. Thank You for my new glasses. Please help me find my keys. You know where they are, so please help me find them. Please help me with the newsletter. Help me to keep it up-to-date and relevant and interesting. Help me with all the technical aspects of writing a newsletter. Thank You for the help my writer brother, Richard, gives me. Help him to be patient with me! I love You, Lord.

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday, Gene! This picture of you looking so happy is at the reception of your son, Andrew! My grandson! So this is the latest photo I have of you. You're a very good son-in-law to me. I believe you and Pam are in Wisconsin having a little get-away. I'm sure you're having a good time and a deserving good time. I wish for you a very happy birthday.

Lord, thank You for Gene. He's a very good son-in-law. Please guide him, watch over him, keep him healthy and safe. I love him, Lord, and You love him even more.

Same Ages

It's interesting to have grandchildren the same age. However, that doesn't mean they are the same in developing, in likes, in size, in abilities, etc.

Mason, Elmise, and Isabella are all eight years old! Mason and Isabella are only one week apart! Elmise is a few weeks older then they are! Each one is special is their own way.

Miller and Haleigh are both 13! Teenagers!!! Haleigh is actually six months older than Miller! Size isn't what matters. Miller is about an inch under six feet! They are each great kids, pleasant to be around, intelligent, goodlooking, fun loving, etc.

Lord, You are our Creator. You have made each one of us in our own ways. You care about each one. In the Psalms it says Your thoughts about each one are more than the grains of sand on the beach; more than the stars in the sky! You saw each one before birth! You have a plan for each one, but You never force anyone. Each one has a free will. I praise You because You are Love.

Ramdom Pictures of Family

These will be ramdom pictures of cousins and in-laws and siblings.


Most of the cousins had gone home but I decided to go to the tridge with these three for some energy users. The old swings, etc. have been replaced by the neatest slides. Here are Elmise, Bella, and Armon all coming down together. It was fun.

Sydney and Miller had some time together. It's good to get to know your cousins.

Armon and Megan, cousins.

Christy and Tim, siblings.

Miller is an interesting boy and I'm so glad for the time I got to have with him.

Lord, thank You for the few days we all had together. It was truly wonderful.

Tea Party

We decided to have another tea party. It's a time for the girls to get glamorous and they love that! I was so busy I missed their time of getting ready, but I know they all help each other with make up and hair.

I love this casual shot. They all look so happy. Clockwise: Bella 8, Sydney 11, Elmise 8, Haleigh 13, Megan 14.

Here we all are around the table with our Bone China cups and saucers. I served petite egg salad sandwiches, mini chocolate cake squares, and Apple Cinnamon tea. We read the book Reach For The Stars by Serge Bloch. It's a great book for young girls trying to grow up. We read it slowly with lots of discussion and good comments. Going around the table starting with: Elmise, Megan, Sydney, Haleigh, and Bella. I have wonderful granddaughters! I love each one of them in their own special ways.

Here they are all posing for the camera. In back: Haleigh & Megan. In front Elmise, Sydney, and Isabella. We were missing two granddaughters, the oldest, Annie; and the youngest, Maddie. Annie 15, was at home in Canada working at their camp, and Maddie, at age three, wasn't interested in a tea party!

Heavenly Father, You are our loving Father. Thank You for girls, big girls and little girls. Thank You for my granddaughters. Please watch over them as they grow up each in their own way. Please protect them from any kind of harm or danger. Help them to know You and to love You. I love each one of them so much and You love each one of them even more!

Four Square

It was really good to see all the grandkids playing together, no matter what their age. Here they're playing four square. I don't understand how it goes but they sure had fun.

Thank You, Lord, for fun times and memories.

Trimming Trees

When Ted came he was prepared to trim up some trees that badly needed trimming. This big pine tree has branches that hang over the house. Oops...used to hang over the house!

Ted is going up. All of my boys are so fearless! They didn't get that from me!

Wow, he's way up there.

Sydney doing some trimming work.

Lord, thank You for sons who are help us out in our later years. Thank You for keeping Ted safe as he climbed and then worked so high.

Working

When our kids come home it's not all fun and games! There are some jobs that Jerry and I can't do any more. We have very good kids to come home and pitch in.

Tim is washing the sky light windows for me! This one is in our sun room.

Look at the difference...this is embarrassing! Jerry won't let me climb up to wash them.

Please don't slip, Tim.

Tim is cleaning leaves off the sun room roof. They really collect here.

Tim is going up to wash the skylight on the top of the house. This was very dangerous. I appreciate this hard work so much. I can't possibly do it myself.

Moving the ladder. They worked so hard that day.

Jerry is holding the ladder while Tim washes the octagon window.

This window is too high for me to wash...inside or outside.

I took a picture from the inside out.

Tim washing our bedroom skylight.

Leaves got caught in the different angles of the roof.

The mess on the deck from the roof!

Heavenly Father, there is so much work to keeping a house up. Thank You for our kids who are willing to help us out where we can no longer do the work.