southern hills ramblings

occupy

2012-01-12T00:30:00.000-05:00

This was a post I intended to publish in the days preceding Christmas.
Those days were a blur, as I prepared for our trek up north.

It seems that the 'Word of the Year' for 2011 was 'Occupy'. As in occupy Wall Street, occupy Chicago, occupy Oakland, occupy, occupy, occupy.

When I hear the word 'occupy', I always think of the parable Jesus told in Luke 19:13 - the parable of the ten minas (coins, pounds). Ten servants . Ten minas. and these instructions:

And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.

Other translations use these words in place of occupy: "invest this money" or 'Invest this money until I come back.' or 'Put this money to work,' he said, 'until I come back.'.

In this context, occupy didn't mean stage a sit-in in various parks around the country. And it isn't really about money.

Occupy meant get busy. Until the Master returns.

I would love to reclaim the word 'occupy'. I would love for the word to mean - get busy - Jesus is coming back!

I've been pondering this word a lot lately. It has so much rich meaning for me; so many possibilities. So many things I would like to do for the Kingdom. More time in the Word, more time reaching out to others, less time on the computer, less time managing the stuff in my life, more time ridding myself of excess baggage - whether it be stuff or unnecessary activities, so there is more time available for what God has called and gifted me to do.

Reading list

2012-01-11T00:30:00.000-05:00

Random picture of a cute chihuahua we took care of last fall.
This is her 'whatchu talkin' 'bout Willis' look.

In a nod to New Year's resolutions, I've been going through a few paper piles that have developed here and there lately. I try to keep clutter free surfaces, when possible but sometimes my desk is the recipient of those 'oops, my piano student will be here in five minutes, gotta put this mail somewhere' decisions.

The really nice thing about this is that at times I find some wonderful surprises. Late last fall, I was searching for a particular piece of paper, one I knew I would not have thrown away. Imagine my delight when I found it at the bottom of the pile on my desk.

It is a Suggested Reading List by Elisabeth Elliot. Elisabeth Elliot, sadly, is no longer in the public eye, but her no nonsense teaching of Scripture, her life example and her writings continue to inspire me.

The list is long. I've read some and would like to read all the recommendations, but that is too daunting a task for one year.

Blackmore: Lorna Doone

Bonhoeffer, Dietrich: The Cost of Discipleship

Brother Lawrence: Practicing the Presence of GOD

Bunyan: Pilgrim's Progress

Carmichael, Amy: Gold Cord: If; His Thoughts Said; His Father Said; anything else you can get your hands on of hers!

Chesteron, G.K. Orthodoxy; Everlasting Man

Dinesen, Isak: Out of Africa; Babbet's Feast; and many more short stories

Dostoevsky: Crime and Punishment; Brother's Karamazov

Fenelon: Spiritual Letters to Women

Guardini, Romano: The LordHerman, E. Creative Prayer

Hopkins, Gerard Manly: poetry - "God's Grandeur;" "The Leaden Echo;" The Golden Echo"

Kuhn, Isobel: In the Arena; By Searching

Lewis, C.S.: multiple titles

MacDonald, George: Sir Gibbie or any of his novels

O'Connor, Flannery: Mystery and Manners; short stories

Rutherford, Samuel: Letters

Sayers, Dorothy: Unpopular Opinions; The Mind of the Creator

Smith, Hannah Whitall: The Christian's Secret of a Happy Life

Thompson, Francis: "The Hound of Heaven: (poem)

Tolstoy: Anna Karenina; War and Peace

Trotter, Lilias: Parables of the Cross; Parables of the Christlife

Underhill, Evelyn: multiple titles

Undset, Sigrid: Kristin Lavransdatter

Vann, Gerald: The Son's Course: The Divine Pity

How about you? What are you reading? Have you read any of the above? What is your favorite book?

mountain majesty

2012-01-10T00:30:00.000-05:00

Don't hate me, but this view is a quick 15 minute walk from our home.
Particularly spectacular when the day is clear and the mountains are snowcapped.

I'm a little late to the party here, but I have noticed that various bloggers around the web are either recapping the past year or reporting on their reading list for the current year. I'll do both; one today, one tomorrow.

2011:

January. I flew back to the Northwoods, privileged to be singing with my 'old' (teehee) trio. Lots of friends were are the retreat and it was a wonderful time.

February. We learned late January that our daughter-in-love's mother Eileen was not going to survive her fight with cancer. She wanted Pat to officiate over her memorial service. We flew up to the Chicago area the last few days of January and came home to meet with Eileen and plan her service.

Two weeks later we flew back up to Chicago to celebrate her life.

May. We drove up to Chicagoland for Harvest University. We had every intention of being part of a church plant in our county. We stayed at Nate and Michelle's; Daniel attended Harvest U with us. It was a marvelous time. After Harvest U, we drove to Iowa to see Jon, Kristi and the grands.

June. Jon went on a mission trip to New Orleans, y'all. I flew to Iowa to hang out with Kristi and the grands (then only two) while he was gone. We learned that our church plant was going to be moving two counties north of us and we determined that we would not be able to continue to be involved with such a great distance. We were sad. My sisters came to visit. I was glad.

July and August were beastly hot. Beastly hot. Too hot to do anything outdoors. We sat by the window and watched our garden wilt. A trip to the end of the driveway for the mail resulted in major sweatiness.
I think we had something like 75+ days last summer over 90. Not as hot as Texas, but plenty hot for these Northwoods transplants. Too hot to fish, Pat learned to navigate the new waters of Medicare.
We learned that our church plant was going to be moving two counties north of us and we determined that we would not be able to continue to be involved with such a great distance. We were sad. My sisters came to visit during the summer. I was glad.

September. A new granddaughter. I hopped in an airplane again (5th time in 2011) to welcome our precious third grandchild, Lainey. We also got a new roof (no where near as exciting as a new grand!).

October and November were filled with sewing. And piano lessons. Oh, and gall bladder surgery.

December. One more trip up to Chicagoland. My 7th trip to see kids and grands. We drove without incident and had an absolutely fantastic time.

As I look over the year I am simply amazed. There is no way, on our income, that we should have been able to afford all those trips up north, let alone the deductible on our new roof and my gall bladder surgery.

And yet we did. Because of God's abundant, yet, mysterious provision.

He can make breathtaking mountains (and views), He can provide abundantly more than we ask or imagine.

We are so grateful.

men who multitask

2012-01-09T00:30:00.000-05:00

This is not a great picture of our three sons, but I love it for several reasons.

We seldom get to see the three of them gathered in one place anymore.
They are playing Carcasonne together - with a lot of playful banter being exchanged.
While they are playing a board game, Nate and Jon are also playing Words with Friends on their smart phones. Either Daniel doesn't have a smart phone or they haven't invited him to play. 20 years ago, he would have tattled on them, but he seems to be able to fend for himself now.

As I've mentioned, we had such a great time at Christmas. We gave the boys each a DVD that we had converted from some VHS tapes we had of their childhood.

I don't think I have ever seen the three of them or my daughters-in-love laugh so hard. Jon even fell on the floor overcome with laughter. Somone snorted they were laughing so hard (that was quite possibly me).

Ah, good times. Good times.

I loved those days when they were all at home underfoot. But we can't go back, can we? Only in our memories.

I stopped several times during our gathering and reminded myself, that, these, these, are the days that will in the future be - the good old days. We make special memories every time we are together. Not because we do anything fancy, but because we make an effort to spend time together and love on each other. And tease. And play.

Three little grands underfoot and in arms, laughing, yelling, crying, sleeping, falling and yes, snorting. We will remember these good old days.

Grandma and Grandpa were the first ones to head for home, having the most distance to cover. But before we left, we sat in the car for a moment, with tears in our eyes, and yes, running down our cheeks, rejoicing in what we had experienced. So sad to be leaving, but so grateful for our precious, wonderful family.

Nathan said he thought the driveway looked a little wet after we left.

couched in frugal terms

2012-01-03T00:30:00.000-05:00

In October 2011, I discussed with my sweet d-i-l Kristi, what I might get the grandkids for Christmas. She had somel ideas for me.

Three year old Josh has one of these (only in blue):

He loves it. So does 18 month old Sadie.

Sharing is hard work when you are 3 and 1. A good thing to learn, but hard.

So, I went to Malwart and got one of these. Upon getting it home, I realized it was a piece of junk and I needed to return it. Before returning it though, I measured it. Grandma had an idea.

I went to our local upholstery shop. The door was wide open and when I entered, the proprietor apologized for the smell. The smell of stale cigarette smoke hit me like a ton of bricks, but that was not what he was talking about. 'Yeah," he said, "we've been having problems with sewer gas here."

Well, the smoke was so bad that it overpowered whatever sewer gas there was. I could not buy upholstery foam for my grands in such a place.

So, on a hunch, I stopped at our local bedding store and asked if they had any foam. The salesman said, "Why yes, I do."

He gave me two bags of core samples. I offered to pay. He declined.

Perfect.

I deconstructed the samples (which in their former life looked like this:

And reshaped them to resemble the couch I had measured.

Not quite right.

There, finally, I had the shape and measurements I wanted. I hot glued the pieces to death.
Note to self, buy more glue sticks.

And then duct-taped all the seams.

Then, I remeasured all the flat surfaces and raided my small but mighty fabric stash. Perfect - fabric that makes it look like a granny couch (I almost stitched some doilies on the back and armrests, but figured with 3 grands 3 and under they wouldn't last long).

Here is Sadie sitting on her little couch. She is not picking her nose, but chewing on her doll's bottle.
See doll in a headlock between her knees.

And here are all three grands sitting comfortably on the couch (I'm not sure 3 month old Lainey is comfortable, but she wasn't complaining), mesmerized by Veggie Tales. When they get back home, Josh will reclaim the Elmo chair as his very own. Before we know it Lainey will be crawling up the Grandma made couch to sit next to her big sis.

I love it when a plan comes together!

Foam $0
Fabric purchased on sale a few years ago for $2/yd.
Seeing my grandkids snuggled together? Priceless!

family Christmas

2012-01-02T00:30:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year!

I did not intend for such a long time to pass before I posted here. The month of December was busy with sewing, wrapping, baking and fudge making. It was great fun preparing for Christmas - we were heading to northern Illinois to meet all the kids and grands. The only missing person was Daniel's fiance, Laura.

We went to a wonderful Christmas Eve service at Harvest Bible Chapel in Elgin, IL. I cried. They had a beautiful song - complete with singers from all over the world on the video screen. The message was moving; but what really did me in was having Pat singing next to me, Jon singing behind me and Nathan singing on the other side. Surround sound from my guys (Daniel had responsibilities at his church and couldn't join us until Christmas night).

Here are a few snapshots of our time together:

Nate cuddling with 3 month old Lainey -click on the picture to see the look in her eyes. "Who is that man?"

Lainey sleeping in Grandpa's arms.

Josh and Sadie sitting on a couch I made for the girls (I made Josh's pj pants too - they are very wide - wish he lived close enough for frequent fittings!)

A thoughtful Sadie (sorry Sades - didn't mean to cut off the top of your head!) modeling the blouse I made for her.

Kudo, Nate and Michelle's long suffering dog. She is not a fan of little kids, but quietly and peacefully moped in various corners of the house until we left.

The uncles with the nieces. From left to right: Sadie, Nathan, Lainey, and Daniel.

Sitting on the little couch I made watching Larry Boy. This reminded me of Mystery Science Theatre 3000. Anybody ever see that?

Three on a couch watching Veggie Tales. Mesmerized.

Jon, Kristi and the kids.

I failed to get any pictures of Nate and Michelle together. Also none of the whole family (somebody was always napping, crying, or running to the store it seemed). The ten of us were only together for 36 hours once Daniel arrived, but it was a very blessed 36 hours.

So very thankful for our family!

Hope you and yours had a wonderful Christmas and that 2012 will be a year filled with blessings!

glow

2011-12-06T00:30:00.000-05:00

Thunder rumbling in the distance brought sleep to an end early this morning. The predicted 100 % 'chance' of rain is here.

A wonderful, delicious, gloomy day.

The Christmas lights glowing here and there about the house are dispelling the gloom and propelling me to 'Grandma's Workshop' (aka the dining room) where a few unfinished projects await.

I'm humming "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" and meditating on the words. Particularly: 'disperse the gloomy clouds of night, and death's dark shadows put to flight.'.

The Christmas tree- evergreen- reminds me of everlasting life in Christ.
The tree lights remind me that He is the Light of the world.

My hands will be busy, while I'm praying that all will come to know Christ, the Light of the world, as their Savior.

stocking stockings

2011-12-02T00:30:00.000-05:00

Done, done and done. Just need to be filled!

more sewing for Sadie

2011-12-01T10:36:00.000-05:00


What to do when no computer is available?

I think I'll sew for the grands.....!

November's end

2011-11-30T10:19:00.001-05:00

this Christmas cactus was a gift from my sister Suzi, in 2008

Pat's work computer is on dial-up. My camera is not on speaking terms with it.

My computer is not on speaking terms with dial-up. So, in order to upload photos to the 'cloud', I must go to the local coffee shop (a hardship, I know).

Now, Pat's computer has a 'trojan virus'. No workee.

This morning, I could not check email, blogs, facebook etc. at home.

It is amazing how much real work I got done. Before I left for the coffee shop, anyway.

Hmmmm....

frugalista-ing

2011-11-28T00:30:00.000-05:00

"As soon as you get close enough to them to try to help them, you're introducing this host of competing values and creating desires in them that they didn't have before," Wallace says. "They begin to forget how to hunt traditionally; they want shotguns, they want shotgun shells, blankets, all sorts of stuff. Right now, as they are, they can live in the jungle completely free of the world's money, economy and thrive quite well."

(bold-mine)

A story about an unreached tribe. Those studying them do not wish to sully the tribe with 21st century's values and diseases.

how to wake up one morning and realize you have been married for 38 years

2011-11-23T00:30:00.000-05:00

the view from our bedroom window from April until mid-November - what a blessing!

Today is our 38th wedding anniversary. We married when I was 19. That means I have been married twice as long as I was not married.

I have mentioned this before, but it bears repeating. The smartest thing Pat and I ever did as an engaged couple was memorize I Corinthians 13.

1 If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.

4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

These powerful Words of Life have derailed misunderstandings, arguments and selfishness. Do you realize how many things you need to leave unsaid if you choose to be patient or kind?

I would recommend that every engaged couple memorize I Corinthians 13.

And if you are already married?

Memorize I Corinthians 13!

As I was preparing Thanksgiving things in the kitchen yesterday I heard a snippet of a broadcast on the Christian radio station. They spoke of 'old love'. I had not heard the context of that phrase, but from what followed I took it to mean - steady, stable, lasting love.

You know, like 'old money' Rockefeller, Getty, Vanderbilt.

Permanent.

That is what we have. Old love. Vintage. The years have added a wonderful patina. Glowing, burnished, rich. The sharp edges have been smoothed. The path has been windy -but always travelled hand in hand. Following GOD as He enables us.

Love you Patrick.

38 more years?

Yes, please.
~~~~~

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

I'll be back on Monday, LORD willing, to share some exciting news (exciting even though it is not a new grandbaby type news).

roses every morning!

grand's gifts

2011-11-21T00:30:00.000-05:00

The ad for ToysRStuff was in the Sunday newspaper a few weeks ago. A BIG catalog. I carefully searched through the pages for something I might buy for the grandchildren.

I only found one thing in that whole catalog that I might perhaps pick up for three year old Josh, but it was so unremarkable that I have since forgotten what it was.

Same thing with the KMort ad. And don't get me started on MalWart.

Thought on gifts for grands:

Parent approved - we don't want to go against Jon and Kristi's wishes or values in what we buy for their children
Safe - age appropriate, spiritually appropriate, and not recalled, not something that will hurt them
Gifts that do not compromise our Christian values
Promotes creativity when possible. I would much rather give them a package of marker or crayons and some paper or a box of dress-up clothes than the cutest, most up-to-date whatsit that will simply sit on the shelf.
Whenever possible - not something made in China
Whenever possible - something handmade by me or someone on etsy or from our local fair trade store
Books are always a good idea
Preferably not plastic (exception: Legos).

Those are just a few guidelines that come to mind - I'd be interested in hearing any that you have.

As they grow older I would rather spend money buying experiences - trips, lessons, shared experiences. Kristi has already told Josh that someday Grandma will take him camping. But he is a bit young for that now. In a few years, LORD willing, Josh and Grandma will take the tent and head to the woods for a few days.

In the meantime, I'm still hunting for gifts. Kristi gave me a few ideas and I came up with one on my own. This little peasant blouse for Sadie (fabric -detail above-Mary Englebreit for Moda purchased a few years ago). It is such a sweet little blouse, I would love to have one for myself, except it would look like a maternity top and that is not the look I'm going for.

If you have really mad skilz (and a mad skilz saw) you can make one of these like our friend Tonia and her husband Mike did.

Talented folks. I have my eye on another gift for Sadie, but instead of buying it, I just might try my hand and making it by hand.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for you comments on my last post. It seemed to resonate with a lot of you (comments and emails). I cross posted it on a forum I infrequently frequent and got lots of comments. One person suggested that 'everyone' copy it and send it to their Congressperson.

Interesting. Many seem to think that corporate CEO's as well as Congress type peeps have no clue how those of us down here in the trenches live.

Maybe we should take a straw poll. How many on our Congressional officials have ever darned socks? Could this be a new criteria for electability?

~~~~~~

It was a productive weekend here. I roasted our front porch pumpkins and pureed the flesh. It is all frozen in two cup portions - a pumpkin pie's worth in each bag. I made a few loaves of bread. After cooling the loaves, I sliced and cubed them and the cubes are drying in the oven. The oven was still warm from making one of the desserts for Thanksgiving Day. And...I've already sauteed the celery and onions for the stuffing (or do you say dressing?).

A little bit of preparation each day makes for a much more enjoyable Thanksgiving feast.

(Oh, and please don't show this post to Sadie. I want her to be surprised.)

got money?

2011-11-17T07:24:00.001-05:00

If I were the type to scream at the television (I'm not), I would have been screaming at the television last night.

This past week, I've been systematically taking the socks from my sock drawer and darning them. Some had small holes, some just had worn spots that I stitched over to prevent holes. Does anyone else darn socks these days?

I'm darning socks as the CEO's of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are on the screen before a congressional subcommittee justifying giving (and taking) millions of dollars in bonuses on the heels of accepting billions of dollars of bail out money.

I'm darning socks.

The past few months, we have had to do some extra belt tightening.

A new roof due to hail damage. Deductible $1000
A new me, sans gall bladder. Deductible $5000.
Our property tax bill - up 20%.

Unusual expenses.

And groceries? I'm sure you have felt the pinch too.

I do a dozens of things a day that most 'normal' people (I place myself firmly outside of the category of 'normal') don't do, just to save a few pennies here and there.

I darn socks.
I mend unmentionables.
I mend everything.
My 'Sunday' shoes are polished regularly and have lasted me several (10?) or so years.
I save the water from the faucet while I wait for it to heat up for my shower - this is usually about two gallons which I use to water the garden in summer and flush the toilet in winter.
I save butter wrappers to grease pans when I bake. I think I've only bought about 2 cans of P*m in my life.
I cook from scratch.
I save chicken bones or turkey carcasses to make broth.
I dry our clothes on a drying rack - rarely use our electric dryer.
Because I air dry our clothes, they last much longer and I don't need to buy as many clothes (I currently have fewer than 35 articles of clothing, not counting unmentionables).
I use a combination of baking soda and cornstarch in place of deodorant.
I garden.
I don't turn down things other people offer me (zucchini from the neighbors for example).
I wash and re-use foil.

To name a few.

I do all this and more because, yes, I am a card carrying tightwad, but more importantly because I believe that GOD has called me to be a good steward of all that He has given me. It makes me cringe to waste any of it.

I've been praying Proverbs 3:5 and 6 the last week or so as I have been anticipating the bills coming in.

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

In all your ways acknowledge Him and He make straight your paths."

Yesterday was a break through day. I had laid all the bills out before Pat and showed him all the anticipated income. For this month, we will be fine and will not have to take anything out of retirement funds. It was close, very, very close. But we have enough.

We rejoiced in GOD's provision and thanked Him for His amazing love for us. All the penny saving things I do cannot begin to account for His provision for us. It truly comes from His hand.

So last night, after watching the news I realized that though the stone-faced CEO's have more money than I do, they cannot possibly have a more grateful heart or a more contented smile on their faces.

Am I a millionaire? Not even close. But I am rich beyond measure.

And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Phillipians 4:19

Simple? Yes. Easy? Not necessarily.

2011-11-14T08:51:00.001-05:00

Yesterday's sermon was right on the money.

As I have mentioned, Pat and I are trying to discern what to do with our lives at this stage of the game.

Yesterday's sermon was about finding God's purpose for our lives.

Turns out it is simple - obeying God's word.

To obey God's word, one must know it. To know it, one must read it and study it.

This takes time. So while it is simple, it is not necessarily easy.

This morning my Bible study (we are studying Colossians in my ladies' Bible study) took me to I Thessalonians 5:16-18:

"Be joyful always. Pray continually.

Give thanks in all circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

That really boils it down to its essence, doesn't it?

Let me re-state the verses:

Be joyful always.

Pray continually.

Give thanks in all circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

or another way:

Be joyful always.

Pray continually.

Give thanks in all circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

See? Simple.

what we are going to do when we grow up and Chocolate Nut Bars

2011-11-10T08:10:00.000-05:00

We invited our newest neighbors over last night. For a little bit of dessert and some planning..

They moved in a few months ago and we connected right away. You know how it is when you meet someone and you feel like you've known them for a long time? That.

Starting next week, we will be having a neighborhood Bible study. With this couple and hopefully several others. I am very excited about this opportunity and can't wait to see what GOD will do. Now we know what we are going to do when we grow up. :)

Please pray that GOD would draw the people He wants to have in this study and that we would be faithful in proclaiming His Word.

We will be meeting for a meal, delving into the Word together and perhaps even singing. I know a very cute worship leader we could invite (see above - doesn't he look like he's been doing that all his life?).

~~~~~~
The recipe for chocolate nut bars? Coming right up.

This recipe comes from my second oldest cookbook, a 1943 edition of Woman's Home Companion Cook Book (the prices on Ebay range from $45 -$165!). It too, tells you how to singe, draw and quarter a chicken; syrup is spelled sirup and ground beef is referred to as 'hamburg'. Unless you are talking about a beef patty, then it is hamburger.

The editor expresses shock that 'even' a husband used a recipe in a previous edition of the book, but disappointingly, there are no recipes for squirrel or possum. I'll have to rely on my other cookbook for those delicacies.

However, I'd rather eat these bars that squirrel or possum. You?

Chocolate Nut Bars

1 C. Flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/8 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1/3 C. shortening

1 C. Brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 C. chopped walnuts or pecans

1 C. chocolate chips

Combine first four ingredients, set aside. Cream shortening; add brown sugar gradually and mix thoroughly. Add the egg. Add vanilla, chopped nuts, and chocolate chips.

Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture. Spread the dough evenly into a greased and floured square pan 8x8x2. Bake in a moderate oven at 350 for about 30 minutes or until browned.

When cool cut into bars and dust with confectioner's sugar.

randomly thinking random thoughts

2011-11-09T07:56:00.000-05:00

turtle basking on a rock on a fall afternoon

Does this ever happen to you? You are walking or driving or sitting and a random thought pops into your head. This morning's random thought came straight out of the '70's.:

But Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man
That he didn't, didn't already have

Okay.

That snippet of lyrics brought this Scripture passage to mind:

His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness
through our knowledge of Him who called us by his own glory and goodness.
II Peter 1:3

The Tin Man had everything he needed - Oz didn't give him anything.

In contrast, we have everything we need to live godly lives. It was given to us by GOD and we discover it by knowing Him.

Pat and I are doing some evaluating. What should we be doing with our lives? What does GOD want us to do? We have had several changes over the last few years - moving, retirement, more grandchildren, several church changes (that is a l-o-n-g post for another day) surgery, the economic impact of the current economy.

We could allow those changes to be daunting.

But we 'pay no attention to that man behind the curtain'. We are not made of tin. We don't pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps.

Instead we focus on knowing HIM. He has given us everything we need for life and godliness and called us by His own glory and goodness. He loved us and sent His Son and if that isn't enough (and it is) He provides us with everything, everything, everything we need for life and godliness.

My random thoughts? Not so random at the moment. I'm filled with gratitude at GOD's great love and provision.
I searched the dark recesses of my mind and could not come up with the rest of the song or the artist. Google is my friend. Written in 1974, the song is Tin Man by America. (Grammar much?)

the proof is in the pudding

2011-11-08T01:00:00.000-05:00

                                                                  photo: wikipedia

I mentioned yesterday that the cookbook I'm using does not tell you to buy 3 pound bags (or these days 2.5 pounds) of chicken breasts. Such a thing probably didn't exist. More often than not, it instructs you to drawand singe your chicken, which means you go out in the back yard, ketch yerself a chicken, whack its head off then plucke and butcher it.

A lot of folks would probably go hungry if they had to get their food like this.

No microwave recipes in this cookbook either. However there are lots of recipes for pickling, as well as preserving your food through dehydrating, salting and canning. And ground beef? It is called 'hamburg'.

I did make the bread pudding last night. Yum.

Recipes like this were probably developed by homemakers with a surplus of eggs and milk. Add some stale bread and a handful of dried fruit and you've got yourself a nice treat.

Old-Fashioned Bread Pudding (old-fashioned in 1940, that is)
1 1/2 C. diced stale bread                                            1/2 C. sugar
3 C. milk, scalded                                                        1/4 tsp. salt
2 eggs, beaten                                                              1/2 tsp. cinnamon
                                 1/2 C. raisins, nuts or coconut

Soak bread in milk in greased baking dish. Combine eggs, sugar, salt and cinnamon; stir into bread mixture; add raisins and set in pan of hot water. Bake in moderate oven (350) for 45-50 minutes or until knife comes out clean when inserted in center.

As per the recipes reccomendation and because I can get away with it now that I am gall bladder-less, I made a hard sauce to accompany the bread pudding.

Hard Sauce

1/3 C. butter
1 C. powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 T. cream (I used half and half)

Cream butter until soft; gradually beat in sugar, then cream and vanilla, beating until fluffy.

I spread this sauce (the consistency is more like a stiff frosting) over the bread pudding.

(The photo on top? Bread pudding is beige and does not look very appetizing. Looks can be deceiving.)

This stuff will stick to your ribs. And probably your hips too, so eat in moderation - but enjoy every lip smacking bite.

And if you live in the Northwoods - Trig's has an acceptable bread pudding (with craisins!) from time to time. In fact, since I am not there to buy it any more, they will probably have more than enough for y'all.

Enjoy!

hearing voices

2011-11-07T00:30:00.000-05:00

During my childhood, Chicken Chow Mein came from a can. And I liked it.

It never occurred to me to make it from scratch until I decided to actually put my many cookbooks to use and try out new recipes at least once a week.

I decided to go way back in time and use the oldest cookbook first. Chicken was on sale so I baked several pounds of chicken and cut the meat off the bones.

The bones were then thrown into the stock pot along with some celery, onions and carrots. It is simmering away as I write this and soon I will have a half gallon or so of chicken stock which will be frozen in two cup portions.

The chicken meat has also been frozen in two cup portions, except for what I used for Chicken Chow Mein.

Before I share the recipe, I have to say that this is one fascinating cookbook. It was written in 1940. The Great Depression was over, but still a very vivid memory.

Food rationing had begun in Great Britain.
The movie Pinocchio was released.
Elmer Fudd m-m-m-ade his f-f-first appearance.
Winston Churchill told the House of Commons, "I have nothing to offer you but blood, toil, tears, and sweat."

The very first McDonald's opened.
More 1940 events can be viewed here.

This cookbook has no recipes for 'boneless, skinless chicken breasts' . Recipes for creamed veggies or meat begin with a white sauce, not a can of soup.

I decided not to try the recipes for Possum, squirrel, or pickled cockscomb, though it is nice to know I have them if times get tough.

I love reading cookbooks and this one is no exception.
Here is the recipe, which has been pronounced delicious by the man of the house.

1 C. celery strips                                              2 tsp.soy sauce
1 small onion, sliced                                          1/2 C. sliced mushrooms
1 green pepper, finely sliced                               2 C. shredded cooked chicken
2 C. Chicken stock                                           1 tsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. salt                                                          2 T. water (I used about 1 tsp.)
1 can Chinese noodles

Cook celery, onion and green pepper in stock 20 minutes; add salt, soy sauce, mushrooms, chicken and cornstarch mixed with water and cook 10 minutes stirring until thickened. Serve on crisp noodles; garnish top with slices of breast meat if desired. Yield: 6 portions.

The cookbook is America's Cook Book compiled by New York Herald Tribune Home Institute .

The next recipe I have my eye on?  Bread pudding. Love bread pudding. I'll let you know how that turns out.
~~~~~

We spent a little bit of time walking down memory lane this weekend. Pat hooked up Mom and Dad's VCR to our TV. We watched VHS tapes of a 12 year old Jon singing a solo (so sweet) a 15 year old Nate acting (with confidence) as well as a tape of Pat's folks, cousin and two of his uncles.

So wonderful to hear those voices and see those precious loved ones.

It has been a long time.

enough part 3

2011-11-04T08:20:00.000-04:00

Thanks for bearing with me on my journey of counting paper clips, needles, pins, glue bottles etc.

I'm almost done, I promise, and there was a purpose and perhaps a lesson in all this.

After reading this blog post, I thought perhaps the writer was referring to his mother (that would be me) when he said, "However, I haven’t felt like I’ve had anything to say as of late…at least nothing that is worth blogging about (not that that ever stops other bloggers)." {bold letters-mine}

He has a point, sometimes I blog about things that are of no value whatsoever, but this week, I have been processing the minutiae of my life. How did I get all this stuff? Why do I still have it? How should I best use it?

Today, I look to my kitchen. I have 4 sets of dishes (all gifts or inherited), 4 sets of flatware (we only bought one set used, the rest were gifts or inherited), enough glasses to stock a bar (not that we would) and more coffee mugs that most barristas have. And a big punch bowl with 50 cups ( I got this at a garage sale over 30 years ago for $5!).

I have 30-ish cookbooks. Most were gifts or inherited.
~~~~~~~

GOD has promised us life - abundant life.

I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. John 10:10b - the words of Jesus.

He has also given His followers spiritual gifts - gifts to use for His glory in building the body of Christ.

He has provided me with an abundance of stuff in several different areas. It makes sense to me that I should use these 'gifts' (not spiritual, but physical) to bless others. They are not mine to hoard and keep to myself.

I talked to some gals at Bible study yesterday. They make lap quilts for those who are sick and suffering. I will be giving them yarn and embroidery floss for tying these quilts.

The dishes and the cookbooks? I want to 'practice hospitality',
Romans 12:13 says:
Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

I can do a much better job in this area. And I will.

Also, I plan to try out at least one new recipe every week and share it here with you.

I am so blessed to have enough - and so much more than enough...I have an abundance.

Hold me accountable won't you? Watch and pray with me as we reach out to neighbors and friends.

We have exciting news to share - the best news - that GOD loved us and sent His Son. We will use paper clips and needles and thread and home cooking and whatever means we can to give this marvelous news to our neighbors.

enough part 2

2011-11-03T06:19:00.002-04:00

Whether it started a few weeks ago, when I looked for jingle bells to finish the Christmas stockings I made, or a few days ago as I emptied a shoe box of Operation Christmas Child, I decided I must get the minutiae of my life organized.

No jingle bells were to be found - in either my gift wrap box or the one Christmas box I knew would have them - though I had this nagging feeling that I had just purchased some last year.

The shoe box held a disparate collection of bits and bobs of things - a garter (?), broken jewelry, a die, bobby pins, ribbons, halfway decent jewelry, empty jewelry boxes, a golf tee (?), sewing notions.

After throwing away the useless things, I took the sewing notions to my sewing basket.

If I thought I had enough office supplies to last the rest of my life, whether I live three more years or thirty, I certainly have enough sewing notions to last the rest of my life.

Dozens of needles (embroidery, quilting, tapestry needlepoint carpet making, canvas sewing-because you never know when you might need to make a boat cover), hundreds of pins, seam rippers (2), scissors (2), rotary cutters (2), spools of thread (a few dozen) and about one hundred skeins of embroidery floss, 6 embroidery hoops and a partridge in a pear tree. I do not take full responsibility for all the floss; this collection contains not only mine, but Mom's and Grandma's. Not to mention hooks and eyes, snaps, and various lengths of bias tape and seam binding.

I have three sewing baskets* (I didn't buy any of them), 5 pincushions (I didn't buy any of them), enough yardage for four projects. That is one area I have control over - I know my finely honed propensity for procrastination, so I only purchase the fabric I need for current projects - no stash here. Oh, and enough fabric scraps to make two or three quilts.

Again, I am both embarrassed and amazed at all the stuff I have in the sewing department.

Need anything monogrammed or embroidered? I'm your girl. Thankfully my niece Emilee wants to learn to embroider and hopefully in the future I can teach Sadie and Lainey to stitch.

Taking up sewing? Don't buy anything - call me first. I have a notion that I have more than enough notions to supply all of us.

* One of my sewing baskets contained 'dog tags' for my husband and brother-in-law. These were made pre-1958,when they were young boys, according to the address listed on them. How they got in my sewing basket, I don't know - but I'm guessing they weren't there until after my mother-in-law's death in 2004. Regardless, I obviously need to clean out my sewing basket more often.

enough part 1

2011-11-02T08:30:00.001-04:00

Before we know it, it will be Thanksgiving. I thought I would spend the month of November contemplating the many blessings God has bestowed upon me.

Starting with paper clips.

Now, this is not what I am most thankful for, not by a long shot. But for a former public school teacher, former homeschooler, Sunday school teacher and once in a while office administrator - office and school supplies are my drug of choice.

To open the desk drawer and see that there are enough paper clips, pens, pencils, colored pencils, markers, scissors, staples, glue, paper and envelopes to last my life time (thanks in part to my late mother-in-law and our inheriting her accumulation of office goods), both embarrasses and pleases me.

I will never have to buy any of the above for the rest of my life. Need any office supplies? Please call me first.

I have more than enough.

keyed up

2011-10-28T00:30:00.000-04:00

I currently have 9 piano students (1 more to start in a week or so).

This week, one cancelled and two rescheduled their lessons.

Two failed to show up (and failed to notify me that they were not coming).

One of the re-scheduled ones came 30 minutes earlier than scheduled.

One mom texted and asked if her daughter could come 30 minutes early and sit and do homework so the mom could run some errands.

Most of the moms communicate with me through texts, so I have a record at my fingertips of any changes in lessons - as well as my calendar on my phone. I try to be flexible and accommodating, because I know there will be days when the rescheduling will be due to last minute changes on my calendar (like the time Dad decided to go unconscious with hypoglycemia just as one of my students arrived for her lesson ~smile~).

I love my students. I love their moms.

I want to sit down and have a talk with each and every one of the sweet, harried, over-scheduled moms.

This is what I would say:

"You don't have to do it all. It is not necessary for you to schedule your kids to within an inch of their lives.
Pick the things that are most important. Spend the most amount of time (and money) on those activities that give the greatest and longest return."

Here is what we did. We pretty much said yes to any church activity - whether it be a weekly, monthly or annual (retreat-type). I have zero regrets about doing this. All of the boys are still actively connected to their churches. Two are youth pastors, the third not only attends church weekly, but goes to a weekly men's prayer/study meeting as well as a small group.

Regarding sports...after a very brief foray into pre-little league stuff, we decided that they boys would focus on one sport. For all three of them it became soccer. We ran around like crazy with soccer games and practices from August - November, but then the season was done. Then we could resume family suppers together each evening.

The boys also played basketball every Monday night at church with their dad and other men from church and the community. Add to this biking, fishing, running, golfing.....things they could do for the rest of their lives - they led busy (but not crazy busy) active lives.

They each had piano lessons early on but did not stick with them (and I think they have all lived to regret that, but I will not say 'I told you so' ~smile~). Guitars in various shapes and sizes became their musical instruments of choice and they all still play (and sing! which warms this mama's heart no end).

I will not argue against team sports because I think they have some value - teamwork, cooperation, gracious winning and losing, discipline to name a few- but I think one can gain this benefit without having to be involved in a team sport during every season of the year.

Sports injuries in children are on the rise because of extended and back to back sports seasons.

I feel a great responsibility to be the best piano teacher I can be - within the limit of my abilities.

I also feel a great responsibility to care for their moms.

Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.

Titus 2:3-5

As the mothers express their frustrations regarding their schedules with me, I gently let them know that they can hop off the merry-go-round. A few of them have listened to me as I have given them 'permission' to do what they know in their hearts is best for their family.

My goal is to sit down with each one of them for a relaxing cup of tea. To encourage them and help them to take the long view of their children's extra-curricular activities.

One of the benefits of old age is the privilege of gaining perspective. Some of things we think are so important when are children are little turn out to not matter so much at all.

If you are a young mom and are reading this post, you are probably tired of older women telling you to enjoy your kids while they are young. Enjoying them does not mean you need to enroll them in every activity under the sun and speed from one practice to another only slowing down to pick up supper at the fast food window.

Cancel some of that stuff. Pack a picnic lunch, play frisbee at the park with your kids and read them stories afterwards. Or build a fort in the living room and have supper there every once in a while. Slow down, stay out of the car, turn the cell and the 'puter off and 'be' with your kids.

You won't regret it.

free fall

2011-10-26T00:30:00.000-04:00

We stopped and talked to one of our neighbors the other day, I asked about his garden - 'Were those pumpkins, I saw?'

Yep. pumpkins. And two days later he was on our front steps dropping off some of his bounty.

See the one on the top step? On one side it is dark green, on the other light greenish/orange (see picture below). I believe it is a pumpkin cross pollinated with a winter squash. Or vice versa. Pretty cool either way. And so kind of our neighbor to be so generous and thoughtful.

The pumpkins will stay on the front steps until the first frost approaches and then I will bring them in and bake them. After the flesh in pureed it will be frozen in two cup batches and over the next month or two made into pumpkins pies and bars.

We have not had a frost yet, but it did get down to 37 degrees the other night which was low enough to turn my basil into little black shriveled up leaves. This was my second crop, but I shoulda harvested it earlier. Live and learn.

Some other friends went to an apple farm and brought us about 20 pounds of apples. They would not let us pay for them either. After tonight's supper of chili, we will enjoy a warm serving of apple betty.

~~~~~~

If you need a break from the sewing machine, but like to have a little handwork to stitch on in the evenings, good ol' Martha has a bunch of cute cross-stitch ideas. Be sure to look at all the pages!

sugar and spice

2011-10-24T00:30:00.000-04:00

As the days speed toward Christmas, I've been thinking about what to make. Especially for my beautiful little granddaughters.

After raising three sons...what a joy it is to contemplate sewing pink, feminine ruffly things!

Here are some web ideas that have caught my attention:

First, and this is less a gift idea than a 'what a good way to give out-grown -clothes-new-life' - a clever turning of a too short tee shirt and a skirt into a dress. Directions and pictures are here and here.

The second of those two ideas takes a man's thrifted tee shirt and uses it as a skirt to the too short tee top. My granddaughters are very blessed to have a daddy who is a youth pastor and one of the perks of the job is a never ending supply of tee shirts.

This is a sweet, simple little dress. It is made along the lines of a pillow case dress - only not made out of a pillow case.

If you want to make a pillow case dress (and they are very easy and cute so you should) just google 'pillow case dress tutorial' and you will get more instructions than you can shake a stick at.

These are cute too. For summer. For winter, in corduroy with a tee or turtleneck underneath?

Here are some tutorials for both boys's and girls' clothing. Cute stuff. Even swimming suits!

These are French patterns, but they sure are cute, n'est ce pas?

Lots and lots of cute patterns and fabrics at this spot.

I know there is an almost endless wealth of sewing information out there on the world wide internets. :)Perusing these sites should keep us busy for a while. But don't linger too long - order up some fabric and patterns and fire up the sewing machine. Christmas is only 62 days away!

Do you have any favorite sewing sites?

(Oh, here's one more.)

(Kristi, if you are reading this, let me know which ones you like best!)

normal?

2011-10-21T08:28:00.000-04:00

I continue to be so very grateful for my quick healing from this surgery. The gals at Bible study were astonished to see how well I was doing. I was surprised that they were surprised - because they had been praying for me, as had many of you. Thank you! And thanks to GOD!

I've been walking my normal three miles now and feel very much back to my old self. We'll see what my doctor says today on my follow up visit.

The weather has been very changeable this week. It must be fall. Nearly perfect over the weekend. Stormy and windy the past few days and cold this morning.

Time to do some fall baking and cooking. Muffins, breads, apple crisps, soups, stews - if I get permission from my doc to resume normalish eating habits.

We have been enjoying greens from our garden - romaine, bibb, romaine, arugula, kale. Tomorrow night we go to a potluck with some friends, so I'm feeling artistic and will probably make a BIG salad along these lines. Might as well make it pretty in addition to nourishing and tasty!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

notable visitors

2011-10-19T08:11:00.001-04:00

Sunday evening, the doorbell rang. I was very surprised to see one of my piano students and her mother.

They came bearing gifts: a homemade bag full of chex mix and the lap blanket pictured above. Isn't that a perfect gift for a piano teacher? They called it a 'prayer blanket' - a 36" by 48" rectangle of fleece, enhanced with musical symbols, fringed and tied on the edges.

And bound with prayer. Such a thoughtful gift! I used it last evening as I sat and stitched binding on the Christmas stockings. The temperature has dropped about 25 degrees in the last 12 hours and this lap blanket was a welcome addition.

The change of weather brought heavy rains - raining cats and dogs, one might say . But things are much worse in Zanesville, Ohio where several dozen lions, tigers, bears and wolves, OH MY, have escaped from a game preserve.

Praying for the safety of the people in that area. It is a terrible situation.

~~~~~
Yesterday, while Pat was out fishing (and catching!) I was able to get quite a bit of work done. The stockings are finished except for some final embellishments of ribbon and bells. I think the bells are packed up with the Christmas decorations and I am not quite ready to pull those out yet.

One of mom's blouses needed a button hole, a project which I can put off almost indefinitely, but I got right to it and had it all done in about 20 minutes (why do I procrastinate on jobs that really don't take all that long - am I the only one that does that?).

I spent some time plotting my next sewing project. Perhaps these sweet dresses for the granddaughters.
Done up in flannel and worn over long sleeve onesies and warm tights?

I also made some banana muffins (which will really hit the spot on this cold, rainy day - I think with a cup of hot chocolate, hmmm?) and spent some time working on my blog. You will notice some additional links - places I periodically check for inspiration and instruction.

Hope you find them helpful!

healing and stitches

2011-10-17T00:30:00.000-04:00

Prior to my surgery, the nurse told me to drink lots of water the day before the surgery. "It will greatly aid in healing." she said.

What she failed to mention, and what I should have known being 2 score and 17 years old, was that the intake of water would also make an impact before surgery. As in 3, yes, 3 trips to the little girl's room in the half hour before I would be wheeled into the operating room.

I'm sure I was a sight. IV bag in right hand, left hand firmly clutching the back side of my hospital gown closed while scurrying down the hall.

However, the waterworks worked and my healing has gone smashingly well. Friday, the day after surgery, I walked about 1/4 mile. Saturday, 1 mile, and Sunday over 2. I really feel great and am so thankful to GOD for His healing.

(By the way, thanks for praying for our neighbor, Ray.

He is home now, but not doing cartwheels just yet.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I have been stitching over the past few days as well, and have now finished embroidering/quilting three stocking fronts. Hopefully I can show you the finished products at the end of the week.

It is nice to have some handwork to do when there is not much else to do. No lifting anything over 20 pounds, no bending over...that leaves out moving furniture and scrubbing floors. Not that those are my favorite activities anyway.

Quilting it is:

One stocking is for our newest granddaughter, Lainey. The other two are a surprise, so I'll not spoil it here in case the intended recipients are reading this.

The stitches are only in the stockings. They used no stitches on me. I am dermabonded together. Purple dermabond at that.

This week things should get back to normal. Many of my piano students were on fall break last week, but all should be back this next week. I will be getting a new student today and another next week.

I'm working on my Christmas list and a few projects around here as well as a few challenges I'll share with you later in the week.

Hope your week is off to a great start!
~~~~
Oh, and the new look to my blog? Total accident. If you are on blogger and start fiddling around with Dynamic Vision make sure you have backed-up your original blog.

Otherwise you will lose your sidebar and if you are on dial-up it will take you more time than I care to spend right now to put things back the way they were.

Unless you like it this way?

Edited to add: I think I may have fixed it. Yay/

grateful

2011-10-14T08:52:00.001-04:00

4:45 a.m. the alarm went off. My surgery was scheduled for 7:30, but we had to be at the surgery center at 6:30. I had some extra time to sit and read Psalm 139:

"For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.

I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

Your works are wonderful,

I know that full well.

My frame was not hidden from You

When I was made in the secret place.

When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

Your eyes saw my unformed body.

All the days ordained for me

were written in Your book

before one of them came to be." vs. 13-16

and

"Search me O God, and know my heart;

test me and know my anxious thoughts.

See if there is any offensive way in me,

and lead me in the way everlasting.

vs. 23-24

Several people asked me if I was nervous. I was not. God gave His peace that passes understanding.

As if those verses were not comforting enough (and they were!), Pat had turned on the radio, set to the Christian station.

This song played, I song which has given me great comfort over the years:

O Love That Will Not Let Me Go

1. O Love that will not let me go,

I rest my weary soul in thee;

I give thee back the life I owe,

That in thine ocean depths its flow

May richer, fuller be.

2. O light that followest all my way,

I yield my flickering torch to thee;

My heart restores its borrowed ray,

That in thy sunshine’s blaze its day

May brighter, fairer be.

3. O Joy that seekest me through pain,

I cannot close my heart to thee;

I trace the rainbow through the rain,

And feel the promise is not vain,

That morn shall tearless be.

4. O Cross that liftest up my head,

I dare not ask to fly from thee;

I lay in dust life’s glory dead,

And from the ground there blossoms red

Life that shall endless be.

(It was a gorgeous arrangement of this old hymn by the Gaither Vocal Band. Loved!)

Then, a song which Pat enjoys (I do to, but I think it is a particular favorite of his):

Oh, Lord, You have been good.

Oh Lord, You have been good

You have been faithful to all generations

Oh Lord, Your steadfast love and tender mercy

have been our salvation

Sufficiently encouraged by the songs, we went to the car. Pat grabbed my hand and prayed for what was to come.

I had my surgery done at a surgery center, not a hospital. This place is very efficient, and they have much less incidence of infection because there aren't any sick people here.

We got there at 6:30 and were home by 11. That includes stopping at the pharmacy for pain pills (which I have not needed Praise the LORD!) and a 45 minute trip each way.

I slept off and on yesterday and still slept great last night. No pain to speak off. No spicy or greasy foods yet, but I don't think chocolate fits into either of those categories, do you?

I'm so grateful to GOD.

Thanks for your prayers friends!

Please pray for our neighbor Ray. He had gall bladder surgery the day before I did (at a hospital) and is still not home. He should be home today. He is 82.

fat free food fest finally finishing

2011-10-12T00:30:00.000-04:00

I am jumping for joy now that I have come to my last day of fat free eating.

Actually, eating fat free hasn't been so bad. There are plenty of dietary aids out there to keep folks like me who have a lot of gall(stones) fed without too much hardship.

No fat, no dairy, no meat (I was allowed minuscule portions of broiled chicken). Tomorrow, my stone laden gallbladder will be removed. (My 81 year old neighbor is having his removed today - must be something in the water...).

Pat has offered to get me a bucket of fried chicken for a post surgery celebration.. I declined, much preferring a piece of fudge or other chocolate (like the birthday cake I had to forgo).

I've lost several pounds and become much more mindful of my food choices.

Here is my typical menu:
Breakfast: oatmeal with fresh or dried fruit (no milk) or fat free toast with a thin spreading of jam and a banana
Lunch: Wasa crackers with mustard, lettuce, cucumbers, sprout, peppers and relish or vegetable soup
Supper: Plain baked potato or vegetarian chili accompanied by salad and veggies.
Snacks: fat free fig newtons, fat free pretzels, fruit or sliced veggies.
Beverages: tea or water

I plan to continue eating mindfully (at least until I make fudge for our family Christmas gathering). Shedding some unnecessary pounds is a good thing - especially since I have hypothyroidism which makes it very difficult to lose weight.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it. :)

on grandmothering

2011-10-11T06:54:00.000-04:00

. There is a rather silly local commercial that plays once in a while in which a woman of my age (or beyond) talks about her son's children. When another woman in the commercial refers to her as a grandmother, she reacts in horror.

If you have read my blog for any length of time, you know that I love being a grandmother. I don't deny it, I embrace it.

How could one not like watching the next generation hiding God's Word in their hearts. Josh is in AWANA Cubbies and has already memorized a few verses in the last month.

Most notably: "God loved us and sent His Son."

One evening I told him it was time to go to bed. He expressed disappointment, but I told him since it was dark outside, it was time. He ran to the window to verify and said,

"God loved us and sent His moon."

(three year olds do not understand homonyms I find)

If there is a camera in the room - there is Joshua. This was to be a picture of Grandma and Sadie, who were dressed alike for the day (mint green tee shirts, black pants). Before Daddy could snap the shot, Josh scooted a kitchen chair so he would also be included.

And as the song says, "How sweet to hold, a newborn baby..." Holding your child's child instantly transports you back almost thirty years in time. I have more pounds, more gray hairs and more wrinkles but also hopefully more wisdom.

These pre-school days fly by and there is so much teaching, training, loving and enjoying to be done. It is hard for a sleep-deprived mommy and daddy to understand this, but kids - it is true. So true.

Lainey, what will the world be like when you are my age? What will you be like?

This is the picture without Josh. Sadie is a little sweetie. At 15 months, she communicates very well. Not necessarily with words but with sweetness and love. As Jon was dropping me off at the airport, I climbed into the back seat to kiss Josh and Sadie good-bye. Josh was excited for me - You ride in Grandma's airplane? he asks. (did y'all know I own a regional jet? - not). Sadie received her hug and kiss and words of affirmation and love. Her little 15 month old eyes welled up with tears and her little 15 month old lower lip began to quiver. She seemed to understand that I was going away.

Josh tickles my funny bone, Sadie tugs at my heart strings. Lainey - all of ten days old has kept me on my knees. She is almost at the right levels for bilirubin. I'm currently making a quilted Christmas stocking for her and each stitch represents a lot of love and prayers.

It is a marvelous responsibility to be a grandma. One I cherish and though a thousand miles separate us, these three are on my heart and in my prayers every moment.

May they all come to know and serve Christ with all their hearts, with all their souls, with all their mind and with all their strength.

birthday surprises

2011-10-10T00:00:00.000-04:00

My very sweet, future daughter-in-law sent me a note. In it she wished me a Happy Birthday and said, 'I hoped you feel loved on your birthday - because you are!'

Isn't that a lovely sentiment to express? And boy, howdy, did/do I ever feel loved. Jon and Kristi gave me some wonderful books by Elisabeth Elliot. My favorite author!

Daniel gave me some warm Nordic socks for the upcoming winter months (and they came on time!).

The folks gave me some cash ( a girl can never be too old to enjoy cash for her birthday!).

My sweet hubby brought me this beautiful bouquet (the night before my birthday):

And as if that wasn't enough, he also gave me a single long-stemmed rose. Love.

The maillady honked the horn in the driveway on the morning of my birthday. She handed me a box which contained this spectacular array of lilies and carnations (from Nate and Michelle):

Later in the afternoon, while I was up in the big city for a pre-op appointment (do I know how to celebrate or what?), UPS dropped off these gorgeous roses from Lori and Richard:

And for the grand finale, moments after we arrived home from the doctor, Fed Ex pulled into the driveway with this miniature rose bush from Suzi and Tim. Every year Suzi sends me one of these for my birthday. I enjoy them in the house for a while, then plant them in the garden. They come back every year.

When the bouquets are beginning to show signs of drooping, I will dry the flowers and keep them for projects later on...specifically at Christmas time. In years past, I have wired dried roses into my Christmas garlands for a very Victorian look. Scroll down to the bottom of this post to see a picture.

The vases will be kept for future bouquets from the garden. I like to have a couple of vases on hand, but when I collect too many I can take them into my local florist for some free flowers!

So, Laura. Do I feel loved on my birthday? You betcha!

Thanks so much to my wonderful family for making 57 feel like a walk in the park. Or should I say 'flower garden'?

A week in photos

2011-10-04T12:35:00.001-04:00

Meeting our sweet Lainey for the first time.

Sweet dreams, precious!

Big brother is momentarily enthralled. Shortly after this photo, he was off investigating all the cool equipment, bells, whistles and wires in the room.

Oooohhhh

Wouldn't you want to come home from the hospital dressed like this?

Grandma, Josh and Sadie were rear-ended on their way home from the hospital. No one was hurt. Grandma is soooooo thankful!

Boo. Jaundice. Lainey is our little glow bug, wearing a bili-blanket.

Brother and sister in the back yard.

Wheeeeee!

Lainey bug is back in the hospital (sad) as her bilirubin levels are still too high. They are coming home though and we hope to get her home tonight! Unfortunately for Grandma - I fly home tomorrow!

She's here!

2011-09-29T15:02:00.003-04:00

Our beautiful, healthy girl! 8 pounds 15 ounces 20 inches born at 11:20 a.m. on September 29, 2011.

I'll post pictures as soon as I'm able to wrestle my camera away from her daddy.

We are pretty busy giving thanks to GOD. I'm taking big brother and sister to meet her later this afternoon. That should be a fun party!

grinnin' granny

2011-09-27T03:00:00.000-04:00

I'm leaving early tomorrow morning to go see these little loves:

one year old Sadie,
practicing to be a flower girl in Uncle Daniel and soon to be Aunt Laura's wedding

three year old Josh wearing his AWANA Cubbie vest

You should hear him say his verse!

Grandbaby #3 is scheduled to be born on Thursday morning. I'll keep you posted!

grandma's got a brand new bag

2011-09-26T06:14:00.001-04:00

We extended our busy week of appointments last week. While I was off getting my mammogram (kudos to this place, I was in and out in 9 minutes!), Mom and Dad were taking their very sick puppy - the lovely KimmeeSue to the vet. Diagnosis: pancreatitis. Dad has to make rice and chicken for KS every day while she recovers. No commercial dog food.
While I was out and about, Pat spotted an oil leak on our garage floor. He made an appointment for our car at the local fix-it place. We took it in on Friday morning and by 5 p.m. on Friday, it was still not fixed (pinion seal). We spent the weekend without a car. We only have one.
This is not as bad as it sounds. I was able to work ahead on my Bible study homework (I don't want to take the bulky notebook on my trip) and get the garage cleaned and piece three Christmas stockings - in addition to the usual.
With no car, we 'went' to church online and listened to the sermon at Jon and Kristi's church. I also listened to Erwin Lutzer's sermon about the prodigal son. Both sermons were very, very good.
The diet continues to go well. I feel fine and am not hungry. I've probably lost about 5 pounds, though I haven't stepped on a scale yet.
Remember me mentioning that Wasa crispbread would taste really good with cream cheese? They have recipes on their website and yes, some of them do suggest using cream cheese. But one recipe recommended using mustard on the crispbread, so I tried that. Crispbread, mustard, romaine lettuce, topped with pickle relish and cucumber slices. It was pretty good! That is now my standard lunch fare.
I also made some soup with chicken boullion, onion, potatoes, green beans and corn. I was out of celery, but that would have made a nice addition. Oh, and I threw in a handful of barley. Tasty and filling soup.
I think I will try this recipe. sounds hearty and flavorful (of course, I will leave out the cheese). Arrgh! I read the recipe yesterday and now cannot find it on Tonia's blog. But it was simple enough to remember: 2 cans black beans, 2 cans corn, 1 big bottle of salsa. Combine and heat. Topped with shredded cheese (or in my case....not).
We are getting a new roof. On our three and a half year old house. We had damage during the hail storm back in April or May and it needs replacing. The new shingles are sitting on our driveway and the roofers are scheduled to arrive today or tomorrow. I hope they can pound in rhythm with my piano students. Should be a noisy few days here.
Oh, that bag in the photo on top? I finished that up the other day. One of my dear sweet commenters mentioned that she had a 'bag malfunction'. She thought she might mend it with duct tape until she could bring it down for me to mend on the sewing machine. Well, lest she be spotted on campus with a less than professorial looking tote, I thought I would sew up something a little classier (yet fun). It will be popped in the mail as soon as we get our car back.
When the boys were little they would count down by how many 'sleeps' were left until a big event. For me, two more sleeps until I go see our grands - three more sleeps until I meet our new granddaughter!

the new diet

2011-09-23T08:22:00.002-04:00

How does one eliminate fat from one's diet?

One eats oatmeal and blueberries for breakfast. No milk, no added sweetener.

One goes to the grocery store and loads up on fruits and veggies.

Here is a sample lunch plate. Cucumber and carrot medallions (doesn't that sound fancier? medallions instead of slices?) and yummy black grapes. Seriously delicious. By the way, this is a dessert size plate and I couldn't even eat half of what is on it.

Supper? Colorful pepper slices, delicious Brussel sprouts (That thunk just heard? That was my brother passing out in shock that someone he is related to thinks Brussel sprouts are tasty. That boy could sit at the dinner table for hours after facing down one dreaded Brussel sprout. ~smile~) and a half a baked potato too heavily seasoned with Mrs. Dash's seasoning. Won't make that mistake again. I couldn't eat all of this either.

So far, I don't feel too deprived. I made a brief foray into the health food store yesterday and picked up some Wasa crispbread (which really would taste like something if I could slather it with cream cheese) and an over-priced package of Fig Newmans. The Fig Newmans are really good. Not chocolate, but still good.

Three days into the diet, I've not cheated nor been tempted to cheat. Still motivated. In five days I'll be with Jon and Kristi and the kids and in six, LORD willing, I'll be holding that new little granddaughter!

the week in review

2011-09-21T08:30:00.001-04:00

Aren't they adorable?

We found some pictures of Mom when she was a little girl. It is uncanny how much Emilee resembles her grandma at that age. Beautiful blue eyes and blonde wavy hair. And full of personality as you can see from this picture:

On to the week in review:

September 14: Visit Dad's opthamologist to see if Dad needs a shot to slow the progression of macular degeneration. This is a good check-up; no shot (in the eye-yikes!) necessary. We go every 4-6 weeks.

September 15: Dad sees his endocrinologist. His numbers are all good. While he is there, I run up the road and have some routine annual lab work done. When I return, the nurse teaches me how to administer a shot to Dad when he is hypoglycemic (and unconscious).

September 16: Pat visits podiatrist. I accompany him, pick up some piano books for my students, we have a wonderful meal out at Cheddars. So much food that I took home enough for us to eat on Saturday.

September 18: Sunday around 5 p.m I feel vaguely uncomfortable. The pain in my abdomen increases and the pressure makes it hard to concentrate or get comfortable. Took a few baby aspirin in case it was a heart attack. Drank some ginger tea in case it is indigestion. Nothing helped and sleep did not come that night.

September 19: I'm still somewhat uncomfortable and exhausted. The phone rings at 9 a.m. The nurse practitioner has my lab results. "Your liver panels are very high. One is bad, the other not quite so bad. I've scheduled a liver ultrasound for you this afternoon at 3:15."

"What could be the problem?" I ask.

"Anything from gallstones to liver cancer." she replies.

"Oh." I say.

We trek up to the big city (45 minutes one way for all of the above appointments). The ultra sound reveals a gall bladder full of stones. When I ask the nurse practitioner if I can delay surgery until after I return from the birth of our third grandchild, she says that I'd better take my medical records with me, because I'm going to need them. We alert Jon and Kristi that I might not be able to come up (waaaahhhhh!).

September 20: Met with the surgeon. What a great guy! Seems to be a Christian. Said that going to be with the kids and grands was very important. As long as I DON'T EAT ANY FAT until my surgery I should be fine. I'm so excited I can fly up to see the kids and grands, not so excited about my new diet. No birthday cake for this girl this year. But, I am extremely motivated to follow my new diet. Surgery will be sometime after Oct. 10. I'm very thankful for God's protection and care.

September 21: Pat has an appointment today. He's been having ear pain for quite a while now.

September 22: I have a routine (I HOPE!) mammogram.

No doctor appointments on September 23 as far as I know.

So. That's my week. Looking back at this schedule I now realize why I failed to accomplish much. We spent a lot of time in the car or in the doctor's office this past week.

How was your week?

Emilee in stitches

2011-09-16T08:41:00.000-04:00

Take one very cute six year old niece.

Add one piece of white scrap fabric with a simple butterfly outline sketched out in disappearing ink.

Lay out pastel embroidery floss and let cute six year old niece pick out any colors she wants.

Teach her the running stitch and 'let 'er go'.

The result? Free entertainment for at least an hour and a skill for a lifetime.

Emilee wants to finish stitching this and make it into a pillow or a blanket the next time she comes down.

I see a lot of sewing in our future.

She's such a stitch.

Our hairipist

2011-09-12T08:57:00.001-04:00

We were blessed to have my brother and niece and nephew here for a few hours on Saturday.

The agenda?

Ethan needed a haircut.

See?

The before:

The shampooing of his shagginess

Ahhhh, that feels good:

pre-scissors

Harriet is not only our 'hairipist', she is also quite a 'cut-up' (hahahha).

post-scissors

Judy (below) is one of the gals who gets her hair 'done' at the same time Mom does. She has become a good friend, one time even taking Mom from the hair dresser's to Walmart when they learned that Dad had passed out there. (He was revived by paramedics - I met them there and brought both Mom and Dad home after the danger had passed).

Mom and Judy

We sure do appreciate these sweet ladies and love having friends and family come visit. When are you coming?

Cheap Thrills

2011-09-08T02:35:00.000-04:00

Last spring Pat and I were taking a walk around the block. Our neighbors were out, so being the neighborly sort, we stopped to chat with them. Turns out they were moving some landscaping rocks and maybe Pat could help? Pat did and if I recall correctly, paid for it with a sore back. It was a really big rock.

The neighbors were making a few changes in the yard and home and I noticed that they were removing a glass top table and chairs from the enclosed porch.

'If you ever decide to sell that table and chairs, let me know - that is just exactly what I was looking for for our back porch." says I.

We didn't hear anything more about it, until several weeks later when we returned from a trip up north. The table and chairs were piled up against the back door of our back porch.

I called the neighbor and asked how much we owed them and he said.....NOTHING! This beautiful, perfect table set was free to us! Hooray! We take care of their dogs when they are out of town and pick up their mail and do other neighborly things like move huge rocks - so this was their gift of thanks.

Needless to say we were/are thrilled.

Not only is this just what we were looking for, it turns out that having a glass top table can be quite handy. I was working on my dresser scarf turned lap quilt project and thought, 'if only I had a light box, I could trace the vines and leaves from the dresser scarf embroidery on the center of the scarf and quilt that pattern'.

Light boxes are not cheap and generally if I want to trace something I will tape it to a window.

However this scarf quilt is rather heavy for taping to windows.

However, if I laid it on my 'new' glass top table and put a lamp underneath, I can see just fine to trace the pattern I want. (I stacked the lamp on books to bring the light up close to the table.)

Here is the pattern I wanted to trace:

Here is the pattern traced and all ready to quilt:

Patrick decided to take an (unauthorized) picture of me, quilting. Clearly I should have been combing my hair instead.

Enough with the pictures~

I'm excited about this project. Thrifted unfinished dresser scarf completed with floss I had on hand, trimmed with patchwork squares from my limited stash. I had enough backing fabric on hand and I got the batting for 40% off. This little project is only costing a few bucks!

My goal is to have this done before I head north to meet my new granddaughter. Twenty more days!

3 weeks from Thursday

2011-09-06T10:38:00.003-04:00

I fly up to Iowa to wrap a brand new little girl into this pink fluffy chenille/flannel blanky.

Scrumptiousness!!

The fabric is whole cloth I bought from Hobby Lobby, so while I did not piece it myself, I did tie it and make the pink and white polka dotted binding myself (instructions for making your own binding found in Amy Karol's Bend the Rules Sewing).

Here is a tutorial for how to make your own bias tape, but I like Amy's way better.

I popped the blanket in the mail today, before the Post Office goes bankrupt and the nation's postal system collapses. :)

In other news (not as exciting as baby news, but happy news none the less): after a bone-dry August, we have been getting rain for two days straight. Over 6 inches so far and very welcome!

The Shadow of a Mighty Rock within a weary land...

2011-09-04T13:29:00.001-04:00

In anticipation of the arrival of my brother's family this afternoon, I scurried to the store before church (I usually avoid shopping on Sundays, but didn't plan very well this week - my bad).

The car radio was playing what will probably be a week-long memorial to September 11th. The stories are heart wrenching.

In addition to this of course, there are reports of floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, economic disaster.

Gloom, despair and agony.

Stations with 'all news, all the time' have become stations with 'all BAD news all the time'.

Personally, I try to keep up-beat and positive, but there are days when sadness overwhelms and tears are close at hand. Most of the sadness is due to the plight of others, as my little problems pale in comparison to others.

But when grief becomes a constant companion, the only remedy I recommend is a hearty concoction of time in the Word, in prayer and a dash of Christian music.

As I was test tasting the new (it is a keeper) recipe for baked beans and taking the blonde brownies out of the oven, this hymn came on the radio (not a news station):

Beneath the cross of Jesus, I fain would take my stand.

The shadow of a Mighty Rock, within a weary land,

A home within the wilderness, a rest along the way;

From the burning of the noon-tide heat and the burden of the day.

Just what I need - some time in the shadow of a Mighty Rock within this weary land.

summer summary

2011-08-31T09:26:00.013-04:00

There was sewing:

turning a thrifted dresser scarf into a lap quilt

a quilt for Lainey (due Sept. 29!)
need to confess - this was already pieced yardage that I'm tying and binding

a Christmas pillow

Time with family:

Mom and Dad are doing fairly well. It seems like we have visited various doctors quite a bit.
Alzheimer's continues to make inroads into Mom's brain, but she is still so very sweet. Dad has had a few diabetic episodes, but we carry on.

treasured visits with family

Pretty flowers:

I also enjoyed a week with Kristi, Josh and Sadie while Jon was on a mission trip to New Orleans.

Lots to tell, I'll pop back in here once or twice a week to chat with you. Hope you are all well!

summer daze

2011-05-31T06:50:00.003-04:00

It seems as though we have gone straight from spring to August. We are part way through a string of 90+ degree days. On days like these it is best to get out in the garden early as well as get any canning and baking done in the relative cool of the day.

I've decided to take yet another break from blogging. There are so many things I want to accomplish this summer: canning, gardening, sewing, reading, studying.

I am also working on getting our fledgling children's ministry off and running.

Maybe it is just me, but I sit down in front of the computer to check a thing or two and before I know it a half hour has passed. Or an hour! Gulp.
Life is too short and too precious to spend it looking at a screen (unless of course there are pictures of grandbabies on that screen :).

I may pop in every few weeks if there is something I must share. And if you need to check up on me, any comments left here at any time will show up on my gmail.

I love to blog and I love the interaction, but just need a few months to get some other stuff accomplished.

I'm also deactivating my facebook account for the summer, but will still be checking my gmail every day or so.

Anybody else want to unplug for the summer? Try it, I think you'll like it!

See you in September, LORD willing!

hail to the leaf

2011-05-27T07:14:00.002-04:00

We had a few moments of severe weather yesterday (nothing to complain about - especially compared to recent storms in other areas). Thankfully, we were at home and our one and only car was safely tucked in the garage. We know of many others who were not so fortunate.

The auto glass industry will be very busy over the next few weeks in our area.

Some of the leaves on our plants were shredded, but it doesn't appear that any were dealt a fatal blow.

The hailstorm lasted for a few minutes, it seemed, hail bouncing off the lawn like popcorn. I've never witnessed a hailstorm this severe.

Sorry for the blurry picture, but here is some of the biggest hail Pat found in the yard:

~~~~~~~

The local kids are out of school now. Hearing them in the evenings reminds me of my carefree childhood summers. I wonder if kids now have as much fun as we did.

This was floating around on facebook recently:

‎"My curfew was lightning bugs, mom didn't call my cell, she yelled my name, I played outside with friends, not online, If I didn't eat what my mom cooked then I didn't eat. Sanitizer didn't exist, but you COULD get your mouth washed out with soap. I rode a bike without a helmet, getting dirty was ok,… and neighbors cared as much as your parents did. Re-post if you drank water from a garden hose and survived"

~~~~~~

Pat and I picked two gallons of strawberries the other day (sweet!). I was planning to make jam yesterday, but was concerned about a power outage mid-jam session.

So today is the day I be jammin'.

Have a wonderful and safe weekend everyone!

tech no

2011-05-24T08:14:00.003-04:00

I'm in one of those 'get rid of technology' moods.

This happens quite often. :)

So, you can imagine that I really appreciated this post.

Your thoughts?

weather

2011-05-23T08:10:00.003-04:00

Last month tornadoes came close to my aunts and cousins (paternal side) in North Carolina.

Earlier this month my aunt and uncle and cousins (maternal side) spent the better part of a day sandbagging my aunt and uncles home to protect it from rising flood waters from the Ohio.

We spent a day without power as a result of several tornadoes touching down in our area a few weeks ago.

So when my sister Suzi called and left a message saying 'We are okay', I was not surprised to hear that her news was weather related. Suzi and Tim own a few homes and my niece and nephews live in two of these homes in North Minneapolis.

You can read more about the tornadoes that hit North Minneapolis here. The one death that has been reported was a man that lived two doors away from my nephew. The kids' friend Pete had just arrived at their house. He hadn't even gotten out of his car when this happened:

He was in the driver's seat and narrowly missed getting killed.

All of the trees in that yard are down.

We are so thankful that the kids are all safe.

Now the work begins. Today in Kansas and Missouri and Minneapolis, you will hear the sound of debris being chucked into dumpsters, tarps being nailed onto roofs and chain saws clearing downed trees. Add that to the cleanup work that continues in Alabama and Mississippi. Not to mention the flooding. And that is just in our country. Don't forget Japan and Haiti.

So many people without homes now. And on the flip side so many homes in various parts of the country in danger of being foreclosed upon.

Wouldn't it be nice if the two groups could come together? While I am waiting to rebuild my house, I could live in your house and pay rent to help keep you out of foreclosure?

Just a thought....

yesterday in the hood

2011-05-20T07:41:00.003-04:00

Down on his luck, he said.

Couldn't find a job, he said.

His little girl has leukemia and he can't afford her monthly treatments, he said.

Do you have any work I could do for you, he asked.

A few kind and generous neighbors gave him some cash. One emptied his five gallon gas can into the man's car.

Within a few hours this man and two others were arrested in the top loop of our subdivision. They were trying to break in to a home - the owners were not home at the time.

~~~~~

These are desperate times. Unemployment is high. Prices are high. And according to an area detective, drug prices are on the rise.

We are blessed with great neighbors. We have an unofficial neighborhood watch and believe you me, they are watching.

We know of two people in our area who have been robbed. They live a mile or two down the road from us. One is my piano student. The other is our insurance agent.

Thankfully our riches are in heaven, so there is very little on earth that man can do to us.

But still, we are keeping our eyes open.

categorically speaking

2011-05-18T08:19:00.003-04:00

My mind is running in a lot of different directions these days.

I'm still mentally processing all the information I gathered at the conference we attended last week. As director of children's ministries, I need to choose the curriculum for our fledgling church.

In one of the seminars we learned that there are three types of curricula:
1) Biblically based
2) Values based
3) Entertainment oriented.

Of course, I will be choosing the Biblically based kind and have narrowed it down to two possibilities:

1) Generations of Grace
2) Harvest Bible Chapel Children's Curriculum

I want to make this decision by the end of the month and begin recruiting teachers.

AND
Now that we know grandbaby #3 is a girl, I can start making a quilt for her.
I'm undecided between a patchwork type quilt or this one. Any advice? Particularly from the baby's mama?

ALSO
There is a wedding in our future. Daniel and Laura have set the date of March 31 of next year. While as the mother of the groom I have limited responsibilities, I am collecting ideas to make the rehearsal dinner fun and enjoyable. And I might try to lose 10-15 -pounds. :)

PLUS
The garden didn't weed itself while we were gone. Strawberries are now in season and I need to go pickin' and jammin'.

Lots of categories to concentrate on! What's on your mind these days?

home

2011-05-16T03:38:00.000-04:00

2, 150 miles.
3 handsome and talented sons
2 beautiful daughters-in-love
2 cute and fun grandchildren
4 different beds
5 amazing worship services
4 thought provoking workshops
1500 brothers and sisters in Christ

My head is stuffed full of knowledge. My heart is stuffed full of gratitude and love.

I'll gradually share info over the next few days, but for now - my house is full of dust bunnies and dirty laundry.

Much to contemplate, but for now, I'm missing these cuties:

These two really love each other!

pensive and still

such a little doll, with a sweet personality to match and a cheerio corsage

Did I tell you? Grandbaby #3 is a girl!

onward

2011-05-11T07:30:00.001-04:00

Wonderful times of worship.

Informative and motivational workshops.

Great time with Nathan and Michelle and Daniel (no pics...uncooperative subjects ~smile~).

Now onto to Jon and Kristi and the grands!

while I'm in class...

2011-05-09T01:39:00.001-04:00

please enjoy these pretty flowers:

We are currently at Nate and Michelle's enjoying their wonderful hospitality.

We are also taking classes at Harvest U.

Happy Birthday, Mom! Love you!

Happy Mother's Day....

2011-05-08T15:07:00.000-04:00

to my beautiful Mom!

journey

2011-05-06T01:15:00.001-04:00

Last year we headed up north the day the city of Nashville flooded. We barely made it through.

We are heading north again. Today's adventure? Well, we will be passing through Fort Campbell - where President Obama will be meeting with the Navy Seals who got bin Laden.

Shortly after that we will cross the Ohio River which is at flood stage and expected to crest today.

Earlier this week, Dad had an *ahem* episode. That's all I'll say about that, except to mention that my mom is a rock star and my hero.

All is well now, and several neighbors will be keeping a close watch on the folks. And if our neighbors are good at anything - it's watching. Wonderful people, but very good watchers. If Dad so much as hiccups, the 'hood will descend. lol

We would appreciate your prayers.

prep

2011-05-04T07:58:00.005-04:00

It was a week ago today that tornado after tornado after tornado devastated many towns here in the southeast.

Over three hundred lives lost; many more changed forever.

The weatherman started warning us of severe weather on Wednesday a few days earlier. We are weather watchers - especially since Pat is a fisherman. When he was a fishing guide, it was critical that he know what to 'expect' weather-wise.

Wednesday morning I ran a few errands and picked up a movie from redbox. Even if we lost power, I figured we could watch the DVD in the dark on my laptop. Pat had been at Malwart the previous day and replenished our supply of little propane bottles so we could either grill or cook on our camp stove or grill. I think he also topped off the gas tank in the car.

According to the noon news that day, storms had already begun to pummel Alabama. I charged the laptop and my cell phone. The crawl across the bottom of the screen mentioned that school would be closing at one. I texted my piano student's moms to see if they would like to have lessons earlier (so glad I did - the girls would have been here at the height of the first storm!).

I got our lanterns out, decided what to have for supper, we moved our back porch furniture and grill (just a small coleman camp grill) up close to the house.

I set a few chairs and some blankets and the battery powered radio in the laundry room. We were set.

If we still lived up north and were on a well, I would have filled buckets, pots and pans and pitchers full of water so we would have water for flushing, washing, cooking and drinking. Here, though we live out in the country, we are close enough to have city water.

We waited and the storm arrived as predicted. A few hours after the beginning the power flickered, then went out.

We listened to the radio, looked out the window and when the weather man said there were tornado warnings in our county (7 times), we sat in the laundry room for a spell.

We watched our movie (in and out of the laundry room. And made the best of things.

Everytime we have a storm, I learn a few things - things I should do differently or additionally.

After the storms were over, but while the power was still out, I went back to Malwart and bought and inverter. Now I could charge my cell phone and my laptop when necessary. I could even run the tv (it will power a 27" or less tv) and I could probably vacuum or iron if I wanted to (I didn't lol).

Now that we had the inverter and a bag of ice, we could have gone a few more days without power with no great inconvenience. But the power came back on shortly after these purchases.

Many towns in Alabama were without power and phone rendering credit and debit cards useless. It is always good to have cash (and change) on hand during situations like these. I could not make calls during the aftermath, but texts were sent and received without trouble.

Do you have any tips for emergency preparations? Do share!

The best preparation of all? Faith and trust in GOD. No matter what happens - we are in His hands.

When I am afraid,
I will put my trust in You.

Ps. 56:3

to go

2011-05-03T08:19:00.002-04:00

Spring hurtles on. We have gone from daffodils to tulips to lilacs to roses. Now the lavender is coming on strong. Plus, we have already eaten a whole row of radishes.

Life hurtles on as well. So much to do, so little time. I have several blog subjects churning in my mind, but no chance to sit and put pen to paper, so to speak.

The picture above, however, reminds me that I need to stop. And smell the roses.

Have a wonderful day everyone!

big day!

2011-04-29T06:54:00.004-04:00

Today is a day for celebrating!

Not because of this.

Or this.

But because of this:

Happy THIRD Birthday, Joshua! How did you get to be such a big boy so soon?

(note: if you think your kids grew up fast - wait until you have grandkids!)

See you very soon, Josh. Have a wonderful day! Love you lots and lots!

stormy

2011-04-28T14:31:00.003-04:00

They sent the school kids home at 1. I called my piano students and re-scheduled and cancel(l)ed.
were
The first storm hit at 3:30 ish. High winds, hail, thunder and lightning. Tornado warnings. This same pattern repeated itself another 6 times before 1 a.m.

We lost power at 7 p.m. ish. It is still not back on.

I'm sitting at our local wifi spot recharging our computer and phone (note to self - buy car chargers!!).

The photos from Alabama and Mississippi make me want to weep. A tornado touched down in our town (not sure where yet), but we were spared the devastation and death that hit south west of here.

Things I am for which I am thankful:
a fully charged laptop and a DVD to watch
a fully charged phone
a strong home
a camp stove (fried eggs this morning, cooked up on the back porch)
good lanterns
a protective husband
a GOD who loves me; regardless of what happens, I am safe

I have no idea when we will be up and running again. I'm so thankful I like camping!

not much, how 'bout you?

2011-04-27T07:57:00.002-04:00

You may have noticed.

I have been in a blogging funk lately. Thinking about quitting, deciding not to, back and forth.

Posts will be less frequent for the time being - a few times a week (and hopefully better quality than of late...).

For now, though, I'm thinking about visiting these adorables. Soon.
What is going on with all of you?

on a hill far away

2011-04-25T07:54:00.003-04:00

Up before dawn, we made our way over curvy roads higher and higher toward our destination. The eastern sky became lighter; then streaked with oranges and pinks.

When we arrived a table with a crisp white table cloth was set with a full wine goblet and a round loaf of artisan bread. The purple and white of the table were echoed in a lovely stand of lilac and white irises.

Quietly the participants arrived and set their lawn chairs up. The views from this spot are spectacular.

As the sun rose, various men of our group read passages from the gospels regarding the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Our pastor shared his thoughts on these passages, interspersed among the readings.

Then we each went up to the table, tore a piece of bread from the loaf and dipped it in the cup.

It was probably the most beautiful communion service I have ever attended.

After the service we visited for a while around a light breakfast, bagels, cream cheese and fruits..

We then departed for our nearest wifi hotspot. (Remember? We have dial-up at home.) The purpose was to watch Jon's church service - he was on the worship team. We got to see quite a bit of his left shoulder and occasionally his right hand as he played bass in the worship band.

But the highlight? At the end of the service, 4 people were baptized including one of the young men in the youth group. Andrew had asked that Jon baptize him.

Thanks to the wonders of technology, we were blessed to be able to see Jon perform his first baptism.

Our hearts were and are filled with gratitude.

To top off a lovely day, Mom and Dad came over for supper.

Today, the lilacs are in full bloom and the fragrance permeates our home.

And the blessings of God permeate our hearts.

Good Friday meditations

2011-04-22T02:00:00.000-04:00

O sacred Head, now wounded,
with grief and shame weighed down,
now scornfully surrounded
with thorns, thine only crown:
how pale thou art with anguish,
with sore abuse and scorn!
How does that visage languish
which once was bright as morn!

What thou, my Lord, has suffered
was all for sinners' gain;
mine, mine was the transgression,
but thine the deadly pain.
Lo, here I fall, my Savior!
'Tis I deserve thy place;
look on me with thy favor,
vouchsafe to me thy grace.

What language shall I borrow
to thank thee, dearest friend,
for this thy dying sorrow,
thy pity without end?
O make me thine forever;
and should I fainting be,
Lord, let me never, never
outlive my love for thee.

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities;

the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,

and by his wounds we are healed.

Isaiah 53:5

Tuesday tour - dining room

2011-04-19T01:08:00.001-04:00

Okay, you asked for it. Well, Becky did. A house tour.

I feel a little funny about this, but also know that I enjoy seeing other folks' homes and perhaps one or two of my two or three readers would enjoy seeing our home.

For the record, since I made it clear that you do not want to take fashion advice from me (and got not argument), I also want to make it clear that you do not want to take decorating advice from me.

Not a decorator. Which you will recognize immediately when I show you around the house.

I love old things, surround me with old family pieces with stories and history and I'm a happy girl. No shiny and new for me.

However, the biggest compliment a friend ever paid me on our home? It is so peaceful here they said.

That warmed my heart.

So, peace to all who enter here:

For most of our married life this glass case cabinet resided in my in-law's basement. When Pat and his brother were growing up, this was their natural history museum, housing bits of nature the boys would find and bring home.

It currently holds other treasures. The plant on top was given to me by my church family when I had a lumpectomy. It was benign and this plant testifies to God's goodness and graciousness to me as well as the love of a wonderful church.

The two chubby people to the right of the plant are tea light holders brought back from Peru by Daniel when he was on a mission trip there. (He may have said that they two chubby people reminded him of us, we most likely had an appropriate retort.)

This china dates back to the 1880's. We found it after my mother-in-law's death all wrapped up and safely stored in a trunk. I had not seen it before and thought it beautiful and worthy of display. These are some pieces that belonged to my Grandma. Actually, only the cookie jar did, I found the little teapots at an antique store and have been on the lookout for 'rooster and roses' dishes ever since. Fond memories of eating at Grandma's every summer. Fresh tomatoes, new potatoes, crisp cucumbers, and most especially corn on the cob, picked from the field, husked and de-silked on the front porch, popped in the pot of boiling water and enjoyed immensely at the table.
Some beautiful pottery made by my very talented brother-in-law.
This 'wardrobe' (if you are very imaginative you can step into Narnia through this door...) was purchased with birthday money at a friend's antique and quilt shop. Pat was guiding during this time, so my friend Mary and I hauled it up our deck stairs and placed it in the living room.

It holds my wedding china and miscellaneous other serving dishes.

On top of the wardrobe is Pat's (old- won't say how old~wink~) rocking horse. Sock monkeys and a stuffed clown are taking a little ride. The mailbox and the stacking rings were also Pat's; the Norwegian horses are newer (but almost 30 years old now...). And in this corner, three picnic baskets, two from garage sales, one from my mother-in-law's complete with matching plastic (early plastic) plates and cups. The quilts? I made the cat one for my mother-in-law. The top quilt was made by Leah S. Leah was born in 1891 and made this quilt when she was 10 or 12. She gave it to my mother-in-law in 1979.

So, there you have my dining room. Full of family treasures. Nothing that would be featured in Country Living or House Beautiful.

But it is ours, full of family history, collected and assembled over time. It makes me smile.

if you would be beautiful...

2011-04-18T01:19:00.000-04:00

our dogwood

I guess, I was a little ashamed of myself after Friday's blog post. Counting my clothes, really? People in Haiti would be thrilled to have as many clothes as I have. So would people living in shelters in northeast Japan - and some in the Raleigh NC area (thankful all our family members there are safe).

Since I am all about simplicity, by post was meant to inspire my readers to simplify - it greatly, well, simplifies your life! I love not having to agnozie over what to wear each day.

But I didn't mean to brag or sound callous.

The most important lessons about clothing and beauty, I learned from The Micky Mouse Club, my mother and God's Word. Not necessarily in that order.

Here is the lesson from the Mickey Mouse Club: (did anyone else ever see this?)

Beauty is as beauty does,

That's what wise men say.

If you would be beautiful,

Do this every day.

Help someone who's feeling blue,

Let kindness be your guide

For beauty isn't only looks,

Its what you've got inside

Wake up in the morning

And hop right out of bed.

You never will be beautiful

If you're a sleepyhead

From this blast from the past (seriously if you were born in the '50's or early'60's check out this link!)

Mom always encouraged me to focus on inner beauty - 'be beautiful on the inside, Cheri'. She modeled it as well.

And from God's Word:

Matthew 6:28-34

28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

and

Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. 4 Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. I Peter 3:3-4

Beauty. It has nothing to do with what is, or isn't in your closet.

one of our cherry blossoms

for Becky (and others)

2011-04-14T17:23:00.013-04:00

In the words of the Car Talk guys, Tom and Ray, I'm not a slave to fashion. So, be very careful about accepting and implementing my fashion advice. But since fellow blogger and friend (though we haven't met) Becky just got a new job (yay!) and has to get a new wardrobe, here are my thoughts on the matter (and a few links to show you that if I am completely off my rocker, at least I'm not alone).

Here is a list of the contents of my closet:

black skirt

black dress pants (2) one in better condition than the other

black exercise pants

jeans (1)

denim capris (2) one pair for going out in public, one for at home

khaki capris

black blouse (3/4 sleeve)

blue blouse (3/4 sleeve)

tan linen blouse (short sleeve)

mint green blouse (3/4 sleeve)

pink/tan/white striped blouse (3/4 sleeve)

white blouse (long sleeve)

white blouse (3/4 sleeve)

black tee

blue tee

mint colored dressy tee

white tee

stained tee (suitable for at home only)

black blazer

tan blazer

brown sweater

striped sweater in muted grays and blues

dark purple sweater

I also have two hoodies (one that is mostly ripped to shreds but is great for working outside in) and one gray turtleneck that I only wear for my early morning walks.

28 items including 5 things that are not suitable for wearing out in public. If I didn't work in the yard and garden, I'd really have a streamlined wardrobe!

Footwear includes: black boots, black slides (great with pants or skirts and comfortable as slippers) white sandals, black flip flops, and walking shoes. Oh, and a pair of worn out Crocs destined for this.

I'm not listing my unmentionables here, but rest assured there are enough to get me through the week and beyond.

This is what works for me. I do not work outside of the home, but if I did or if I were up in front in church, I would probably only add one skirt or dress and perhaps a pair of dressy khaki slacks.

Also, there is a new dress in my future when Daniel and Laura get married. :)

What works for you? Do you have lots and lots of clothes? Do you wear them all? Or could your wardrobe use some paring down? Please leave a comment - I'd love to know what your thoughts are?

Does a wardrobe a la Steve Jobs appeal?

Here are a few links to minimized wardrobes:

Living in Italy on what she packed in half a suitcase.

Seven steps to a minimalist wardrobe.

The minimalist wardrobe (aka the 10 item wardrobe).

and

How to manage your wardrobe with common sense.

Have fun perusing!

fine dining

2011-04-14T01:30:00.003-04:00

This home is the first we have owned that has ever had a 'formal' dining room. Not that there is anything formal about our family. As I cleaned and polished last week, I thought about each piece of furniture and its history. Specifically the dining room (love the early morning sun that shines into the room - especially when there is a cheerful bouquet on the table). Pat and I purchased the table and chairs at an antique show in the northwoods. Probably the first and last thing we ever bought at an antique show. We had shopped long and hard. Price was important, but I knew exactly what I wanted (rare for me). It was pricier than we would have liked, but when I consider all the wonderful meal times with family and friends that have occurred here, I have no regrets. Lots of funny stories told here and great conversations. My favorite memories? Three boys sitting around the table books and papers spread out before them as they worked independently, yet together on their homeschool assignments. Where did those years go? If you look very carefully there is a faint inscription on the table - not a swear word, but not a word that I allowed in the house. It often accompanied the name Beavis. It appeared on the table the same summer that Jon babysat a troubled young boy in our home. I always assumed the young man had put that graffiti on our table. I have learned lately (now that they can outrun me and are bigger than I am) that perhaps someone else was the culprit. Now the dining room is mostly quiet. But pretty. Someday I will give you a photo tour of the whole room. I like quiet. And pretty. But I loved sitting around that table when it was noisy and crowded and cluttered, even more.

flop? not!

2011-04-11T01:11:00.004-04:00

One would think, if one had invited many to attend an open house and no one showed up, it would be a flop. One would be wrong. Though none of our invited guests showed up - and in their defense, no one actually committed to coming, some had other engagements, others were just, well, non-committal- our pastor, his seminary buddy and our co-hosts were here. So the six of us sat in our (clean! yay!) living room and talked. Benjamin is an excellent 'question asker'. He asked about experiences we had with various traditions of partaking in the LORD's Supper. We discussed this for the better part of an hour. I love having discussions like this. Hearkens back to college days. How often do we take the time to sit with folks we fellowship with and talk about important things. It is fine to talk about the weather, the family, world events, the garden...but when we get down to talk about eternal things...well, that's what I'm talkin' about. And the other upside to the no shows? We are having a community open house in a few weeks. And those folks that didn't make it here Saturday night, may agree to come to that (especially since I have guilt working for me..teehee...) . ~~~~~ And in other completely unrelated news. How about this? Wow. I made this for my mother in law in the early '80's.

Tho' I'm not necessarily a cat person I love this quilt.

instead of blogging this week...

2011-04-09T06:01:00.003-04:00

c'mon in!

I've been:

mowing

weeding

trimming

polishing furniture

contacting folks

straightening things

dusting

washing floors

cleaning baseboards

planting

washing windows

polishing floors

baking

organizing

clutter busting

making a recycle/garbage run to the dump

Most of this I would have done anyway to give the house a good spring cleaning. But the motivation of our open house tonight spurred me on to get everything done this week.

We have invited over a dozen people and not one has committed to come. Strangely, this does not worry me in the least. GOD will bring the people HE wants and if no one comes, we will have a nice prayer and fellowship time with our co-hosts and pastor.

And we will have a very clean house.

Have a great weekend!

how one thing leads to another

2011-04-06T03:23:00.008-04:00

hoping the tulips hang on until our open house on Saturday

In the spirit of spring cleaning yesterday, I was following the advice of this blog post.

I spent a few hours applying Old English lemon oil to several pieces of antique furniture, including an ash table made by Pat's great-grandfather. Bringing the wood back to life and seeing the beautiful grain was very gratifying.

It also led to a trip into the past.

We have a lot of documentation of the life of Pat's great grandfather. The business he owned, the men he hired - including a couple of brothers - you may have heard of them - Wilbur and Orville Wright. Oscar was in the Wright place at the Wright time (har har) and got to witness history in the making. In fact, Pat's great grandfather was a pallbearer for Wilbur.

Once that piece was done, I moved on to a oak case with glass doors - once upon a time was a 'museum' for bits of nature that Pat and his brother collected. It currently holds various pieces of china and earthenware - some belonging to my grandmother, some to Pat's and some handsome pottery made by my brother-in-law. Still a museum of sorts.

The next furniture polished was a sturdy pine bookshelf. Pat's parents commissioned a Northwoods furniture maker to make this for us soon after Nathan was born.

One of the (unread by me) books on this shelf intrigued me. An old book, the copyright read 1899. The inscription was to Pat's maternal grandmother and was signed by Jessie Landis. Pat's grandmother would have been 8 when she received this book.

And that name Landis rang a bell. Jessie was ( I think) a daughter in law of Jacob Landis (see entry for March 6, 1862). Jacob served in the Union army during the Civil War. We have a 6 page letter dictated by him to Wilbur, his son ( I think) in 1923. This letter describes the battles he engaged in and the wounds he received. I will have to do some checking, but he is either Pat's great-great-grandfather or his great-great uncle.

After all the furniture was polished I sat down and read the book dedicated to Pat's grandmother The Birds' Xmas Carol by Kate Douglas Wiggin (the author of Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm). It is a sweet, sentimental story and a quick read. I'm sure Pat's grandmother enjoyed it very much.

With the furniture polished and the book read, the next job was grocery shopping, supper fixing and supper eating. After those tasks were accomplished my thoughts returned to Jacob Landis, our Civil War soldier. I dug his letter out of an antique dresser (also polished earlier) and decided to transcribe it. I can share it with you another day if you are interested.

I'm sure Jacob, who enlisted in 1861, never dreamed that a distant relative by marriage, 150 years later, would type his war musings into a Word document on such a thing as a computer. Or that you would google his name and find him on the web.

Interesting how one thing leads to another.

worship and work

2011-04-04T03:29:00.000-04:00

one of our favorite spring sights - and it is in our own yard!

We visited the neatest little church yesterday. Since our core group meets on Sunday afternoons, we are encouraged to visit other churches until our plant is launched in September (Have you looked at our website yet? Pat spent hours and hours and hours editing the text. He did a super job!)

This little church that we visited is just 4 minutes from our house. How did we not find this before? It was wonderful - great message - great music. And we were made to feel so welcome; by the time we left three different people had given me their phone number. And they know we are part of another church plant! This is how the church should work!

The joy from yesterday's meeting spills over into today. The sun is bright, the temperatures warm - 61 degrees before the sun came up and projected to reach the lower 80's. The wind is stiff and will be bringing in some severe storms later today.

But I thoroughly enjoyed sitting on the back porch reading in Hebrews this morning. Birds are singing, wind whistling and the tulips and the hyacinths pictured above are swaying in breeze.

We are hosting an open house for our church here on Saturday, so spring cleaning begins today. Windows will shine, cobwebs will be banished and clutter will vanish.

The windows are open and I'm ready to work!

grateful

2011-04-01T01:15:00.000-04:00

photo taken a few years ago when we visited Jimmy Carter's boyhood home

Down here in the south, I have noticed that folks use the word 'proud' a little differently. It doesn't always mean full of pride.

Instead it means happy or glad. "I'm proud to know you."

In that context, I'm proud to tell you that Jon arrived home in the wee hours of the morning after a 28+ hour trek home. Of course, that was nothing compared to the four days it took him to get there, but still.

I wish I could be a fly on the wall of their home this morning when Josh and Sadie wake up to find that daddy is home.

Many thanks to my sister, Suzi, who transported Jon to the airport and back and kept his car whilst he was gone.

~~~~~~

Have a super weekend everyone!

in good company

2011-03-31T01:53:00.000-04:00

It meant so much to us that Nancy and Lanny and their daughters and nieces would carve 2 hours out of their 13+ hour drive to sit and chat with us. We offered to meet them out at the interstate (only 15 miles from us), but they wanted to see us in our natural habitat. :) I fixed a simple brunch of grapes, fresh pineapple, apple bread, blueberry muffins and scrambled eggs garnished with shredded pepper jack cheese. A quick tour of the house and a delightful two hours of chatter followed. They are members of the church where Daniel serves and their home was Daniel's home away from home during his growing up years. They brought glowing reports of Daniel's ministry and this mama's heart welled up with gratitude to GOD. Our time was over before we knew it and I'm sure they would have lingered but had hours to go until they could sleep. They brought special Northwoods gifts - dried cranberries, maple syrup and award winning fudge from the local candy store in our hometown. Sweet gifts, but sweetest of all was time spent with wonderful friends.

busy hands

2011-03-29T10:08:00.008-04:00

There are so many wonderful craft blogs on the internet. A person could get lost in them and spend hours and hours gaining ideas and inspiration. But sometimes a person just needs to step away from the computer and get busy . This table runner is almost four feet long and took hours and hours and hours and hours to finish. I still need to back it, but may have to wait until Christmas fabrics return to the shelves to find the right one. It is not rumpled and lumpy in real life.

In comparison, these bibs for our Sadie Beth went super fast. And imho turned our super cute!

Sorry the pictures are so dark. It was a dreary day when I took the pics and I took them with my old camera.

My new camera is not on speaking terms with Pat's computer. My laptop is not on speaking terms with the internet here at home. So when I want to put up a quick post - the old camera it is.

Hope you have a great and productive day! Another rainy day at our house. I cut out a dress for Sadie yesterday and plan to get stitching today. Pictures soon!

tracing God's hand of faithfulness

2011-03-29T08:01:00.000-04:00

Jon is having an incredible experience in Czech. He is working there with two friends of ours. We have known Dave since 1978-he and Joyce moved to the Northwoods at the same time we did. We clicked right away - Joyce and I sang in a trio together for many years (including this past January). Dave and Pat went fishing together - a lot!- and have many stories to tell. Dave and Pat also established a tradition of going out for breakfast together the day after the birth of each of our collective 6 children to celebrate. So Dave and Pat went out to breakfast 28+ years ago to celebrate Jon's birth and now they are working side by side in Eastern Europe. Love that. Jon and Dave and others are there to continue working on a retreat center. Mel asked them to come. Mel was Jon and Nate's youth pastor. * He taught both the boys to play guitar (for which we are so grateful). Mel and his wife Amy are remarkable people, talented and completely dedicated to Jesus Christ. Their family, as missionaries to Czech Republic, have been given a remarkable, once in a lifetime experience. Their equally talented 15 year old son Noah, has been steadily advancing through the ranks of Czech Superstar - CR's equivalent to American Idol. You can read more about it and follow the links to see Noah sing at Dave's blog here. They have a national platform, for this time, to talk about their faith in Christ. I have read one or two articles which talk about Noah, the 'missionary superstar'. Amazing. Whether he wins it all or not - he has definitely made and impact and you can tell the judges are especially fond of him because he is 'different' 'special' and 'innocent'. Enough from me for today...lots to do. Later this week I will tell you about our church's new website and our visit on Sunday with our friends Nancy and Lanny. *Youth pastor Mel introduced Jon to the guitar, which Jon uses often in his chosen career path as youth and worship leader. Youth pastor Curt who came after Mel introduced Jon to his sister-in-law Kristi. Faithful readers will recognize that Kristi became Jon's wife. We are so grateful! We are so thankful for these two men and their impact on our boys' lives!

quick check in

2011-03-24T19:40:00.006-04:00

It has been a fun and busy week.

My sister and nephew were here all week. My brother and niece and nephew came down on Thursday for a few hours.

My nephew challenged me to a video game of the car-racing variety. Wanting to be a good aunt, I agreed to play. I knew he would win of course, since the last time I played a video game was probably 1992.

What I did not expect? That I would get car-sick. Yep. Nausea. Headache. Almost lost my supper.

No more video games for Aunt Cheri, who has handed in her title of cool aunt.

Emilee entertained us, as usual. Here she is taking a modest bow after her performance.

Don't you wish you could get away with wearing a tiara?
My relatives are a bunch of clowns (grandma started it!):

On a more serious note, an F3 tornado blew through our area Wednesday night. Mom, Dad and I passed through the damaged town of Greenback on our way to the Dr. yesterday. The destruction was amazing.

This happened about a mile north of my favorite quilt shop. Thankfully she suffered no damage. But she is reaching out to help those who lost their homes.

No one was killed and only two were injured which amazed us as we surveyed all the debris strewn from one side of the highway to the other.

We are thanking God.
~~~~~
Lots of other things going on here, but no time to tell...off to a ladies' tea this morning, a campfire and sing along tonight. We are expecting company for brunch tomorrow morning and then church tomorrow afternoon.

Have a great weekend everyone!

It's official!!!

2011-03-24T06:10:00.001-04:00

Daniel and Laura are engaged!

Plans are underway for a spring wedding in 2012 and we couldn't be more excited!

See? They are perfect for each other! :)

YAY!

2011-03-23T08:31:00.000-04:00

Jon and the team (finally!) made it to Czech yesterday.

Thank you LORD!

4 days later...

2011-03-22T08:34:00.002-04:00

...Jon is still not quite at his destination.

As I write this on Tuesday morning, he is flying from Prague to Krakow. Then a 2 hour drive back into Czech Republic.

I am sure that this experience - before the work even starts- has taught him patience and trust and helped him to bond with his team mates (I don't believe he knew them before this - but he really knows them now!).

You can follow their adventure here.

tracking

2011-03-21T08:25:00.003-04:00

Sorry for the silence this past week. The events in Japan and Libya and elsewhere occupied my mind and my prayers. I couldn't bring myself to blog about anything cheery while so many were suffering.

And so many continue to suffer. Our prayers are with them and our hearts are broken for their pain and loss.
~~~~~~~
So many thoughts to share, but I will limit today's post to a few bullet points because my sister and nephew are here and I want to go hang out with them.

Yesterday Nate and Michelle were headed west for spring break. Jon was headed east (as in Eastern Europe for a mission trip) and Daniel was headed back north toward home.
Nate and Michelle arrived at their destination with no apparent troubles.
Jon drove from Iowa to Minneapolis on Saturday. He stayed with my sister Suzi Saturday night and she transported him to the airport. His travel plans were to be: Mpls. to NYC to Prague to Krakow.
Jon's flight was delayed for a bit, but after a half hour or so they took off. However they didn't land at JFK, they were diverted to DesMoines. After leaving home 24 hours earlier, he arrived at his first (non)destination 30 miles from home!
They finally got a flight to JFK and arrived at about 2 a.m this morning. Their next flight out is not until this evening. Poor guy - he is already exhausted and he hasn't even left the country! Tonight he will fly to Amsterday then Prague then Krakow then a 2 hour flight back into Czech Republic. I'm tired just typing this!
Daniel is traveling back north toward home but we haven't heard from him and don't know if he made it back yet or not. He is with his lovely girlfriend Laura, so phoning or texting Mom and Dad is not a priority. ~smile~
I mowed the grass for the first time the other day. It was wonderful.
Daffodils are in bloom, pear trees are flowering and the redbuds are just starting. The weather has been lovely these past few days.
Blogging will be sporadic again this week as my priority is spending time with Lori and Richard. Hope you all have a good week!

2011-03-14T07:11:00.000-04:00

signs

2011-03-11T11:12:00.004-05:00

The pictures, which I'm sure most of you have seen by now, are horrific. A wall of water and debris carrying off and destroying everything in its path.

Who can stand against such a disaster? I'd like to think I'm prepared for run of the mill, ordinary calamities, but not for anything like what has happened in Japan.

As I sit and work on my stitching (which is mostly sitting in my lap because I cannot tear my eyes away from the images on the television), Matthew 24:7 comes to mind:

Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.

There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.

These are some of the signs of the end of the age.

And yet, we are not to fear.

Do not be anxious about anything,

but in everything by prayer and petition,

with thanksgiving,

present your requests to GOD.

And the peace of GOD,

which transcends all understanding,

will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians4:6-7

Peace in the midst of disaster? Only Christ can give that.

need inspiration?

2011-03-10T07:03:00.004-05:00

Go to a fantastic quilt show.

See lots of wonderful vendors.

Meet a real life author of a quilt book. As Peggy and I were admiring the best of show quilt (with our eyes bugged out and our jaws dropped open) the author of the book from which the quilter had chosen this particular pattern passed by.

'Oh, that's from my book!' she exclaimed.

That must have been a wonderful 'rush' for her.

I don't have the words to describe the beauty of the quilts we saw. Or the range of styles.

But it was fantastic.

I didn't spend a dime at any of the vendors, though I could have easily dropped hundreds of dollars (so many beautiful fabrics and projects).

For now, I have three works in progress and several yards of fabric (that I got a few weeks ago for $3 a yard - and it is the good stuff!). I must finish these projects before I buy anything new.

Must go....lots of stitching to do...

on church part 3

2011-03-09T06:50:00.004-05:00

Our church plant is still in the planning stage.

There are about 30 members in our core group. During this phase, core group members will be hosting Open Houses. We will invite family, friends, neighbors, co-workers to our homes to learn what Harvest is about and more importantly about Jesus Christ.

We will be hosting our Open House next month. I've already invited a few people and Pat has invited some guys from the gym.

We are pretty excited. Our official launch date is September 11.

Starting a new church entails lots of work. Pat has spent a few dozen hours of work on the text for the website (it is not up and running yet, but I'll post a link when the web designer has it finished). Pat is also the treasurer.

As of last Friday, I am the Children's ministry director. I'm reviewing curriculum right now - any suggestions?

And Becky, the daffodil's in yesterday's picture are not in our yard (ours are a few days away from blooming, although many in the area are in full bloom).

I took this photo at the state park two years ago. These flowers were growing alongside an old farmhouse. The farmhouse was long gone, though the foundation was still visible. And the daffodils planted by the farmer's wife many decades ago, still bring beauty today.

That is my prayer for our church. That the foundation, Jesus Christ, will always be visible. And that the planting we do today will be bringing forth fruit for decades to come.

on church part 2

2011-03-08T07:47:00.004-05:00

At the time my Bible study teacher approached us about a meeting for a church plant, we were fairly content at church #1. I was in choir; Pat was teaching our Sunday school class; we were both helping with the food pantry ministry.

Now, though, the wheels started turning. A new church? When we had attended church #2 (the one too far for significant involvement on our part), the pastor had approached us. When we mentioned where we lived he said, 'We've been praying about planting a church in that county.'

Hmmm. Now those words came back to our minds.

The group of people who were meeting and who had invited us to the planning meeting were primarily from church #3. They did not want to plant another church from that denomination because there were already plenty of that type in the county. We came hoping to promote a plant supported by church #2.

But God works, as they say, in mysterious ways.

The group had already done some leg work. They had learned of Harvest Bible Chapel and Pastor James MacDonald.

In 2000, Pastor James felt that the LORD was leading Harvest to plant churches. He thought he was stepping out in faith when he asked the LORD to bless them with 10 church plants in 10 years.

Little did he know...*

As our group met and prayed, it became apparent that we should be one of the Harvest plants.

Then some really cool things started happening.

the man in charge of the church plants came to visit and meet with us

turns out he knows some guys we know from Judson, including one of Nate's snowboarding buddies who is currently on staff with Harvest

he encouraged our core group to continue to meet in the afternoon or evenings and visit other churches on Sunday morning

Harvest would be sending us a pastor in February (he's here!)

when several members of our core group visitied church #2 (the one who wanted to plant a church in our county), the pastor and elders met with them after the service, prayed with them and gave them seed money for our plant

the children's ministry coordinator for the Harvest in Milwaukee contacted us. She is from this area and has been praying for years that GOD would start a Harvest plant here (and it turns out that one of the core group members knows her because his mother taught her in school)

Pat and I, as we studied Experiencing GOD again, and as Pat taught our Sunday school class, realized that GOD was calling us to be involved in this church plant

we shared this with the class last week and they have sent us out with their blessing (they are so cool - we were a little worried they might be upset)

Nate and Michelle attend Harvest; Jon and Kristi did too when they lived in Chicagoland

There are about 40,000 people in our county. Only about 7,000 of them attend church. That leaves us with a 'field white unto harvest' (Matthew 9:37-38) (or Harvest as the case may be....smile).

We are excited about the work ahead. About what GOD will do. More tomorrow....

*Harvest has planted well over 50 churches since the year 2000.

on church part 1

2011-03-07T07:07:00.004-05:00

love living in a 'neigh'borhood with horses and cows across the road

I have always loved going to church. Fond childhood memories of Sunday school, children's choir, vacation Bible school form much of who I am today.

Not going to church is not an option for me. Not because I have to go, but because I want to go.

Since moving down here we have attended three different churches. Church #1 had very nice people, good programs, but it didn't feel like 'home'. Church #2 was wonderful but too far away to be involved at any significant level. Church #3. Hmmm. We didn't stay there long, but returned to church #1.

Last fall, my Bible study teacher pulled me aside.

She, too, had gone to church #1, then church #2. But no longer.

'Would Pat and I be interested in becoming involved in a new church plant? There would be a meeting, would we like to come?' she asked.

Yes, we would.

more tomorrow...

in cent ive

2011-03-03T06:42:00.003-05:00

The sun is shining, the air feels a little warmer, the mountain bluets (ab0ve) are blooming in scattered clumps across the adjacent pasture.

Spring is in the air here. I potted some cheerful yellow pansies in burgundy pots and placed them on our front porch steps. They say 'welcome' to all who enter.

Thank you all for your congratulations on our news of another grandbaby. I am so excited!

"Sons are a heritage from othe LORD, children a reward from Him."

Psalm 127:3

~~~~~

Yesterday's errands took me to the dump and a few grocery stores. On the way to the dump, I decided to stop in at the gas station and fill up. We had about a half a tank of gas; I don't like to let it get lower than that. The price was $3.29. I cringed, but filled.

After I came back from the dump (maybe 15 minutes later), the price had climbed to $3.35. Glad I stopped before and not after! I know..it saved less than a dollar....but a dollar saved is a dollar earned. I thank GOD for prompting me to stop before and not after.

I'm sure you have noticed the prices climbing at the grocery store. Lettuce was $1.99 a head at the Save-a-lot, $1.48 at Ingles and $1.79 at our little fruit stand (just re-opened yesterday for the season - the owner warned me that prices had jumped).

So, instead of lettuce salads, we will be eating cole slaw. I bought a large head of cabbage for $.45 a pound. We have a little bit of lettuce left in the fridge. Once that is gone, we will wait until our garden lettuce comes in.

Generally speaking I try not to pay more than $1 per pound for veggies. I like to keep fruit under that price as well, but I will make certain exceptions. For the past 3 years, our little fruit stand has always had apples for $.89. Now they are $.99. Strawberries can be found at $2. a pound. That is about as high as I will go. I have bought some for smoothies and for my oatmeal (oatmeal is about the cheapest breakfast one can eat - and healthy!). I generally avoid the expensive strawberries and instead pig out on them when they are in season and I can pick and eat them fresh. Much better that way.

I try to not pay more than $2 a pound on meat - except for special occassions. This week London broil was on sale for $2.48 a pound. I did pick up a couple of packs of that. Marinated and grilled it is a delicious meal. Then I thinly cut the remainder which is great for sandwiches or fried in butter and garlic. Mmmmm.

Cheese? Once upon a time I would not pay more that $3 a pound. It is getting very hard to find it at that price. More often it inches closer to $4. Thankfully this week, I found some at $3 and bought several packages.

Boring? Not for me. I am easily entertained. I like the thrill of the hunt...trying to make Pat's hard earned income go a little further (or is it farther - I always get these mixed up!).

The motivation for saving? Purely selfish. I have a new grandbaby to welcome come September. Yippee!

good news

2011-02-28T07:20:00.003-05:00

From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets the name of the LORD is to be praised.

Psalm 113:3

I was instructed to keep this news under my hat a few weeks ago. But since 'certain people' blabbed it all over facebook over the weekend ~smile~I feel free to announce that:

Grandbaby #3 is due to be born in September!

So happy.

It is too soon to tell whether Josh and Sadie will have a baby brother or sister, but my fingers are itching to make a baby quilt as soon as we find out what kind!

Saturday sites

2011-02-26T08:15:00.002-05:00

Today there is a fabric sale at my favorite quilt shop (I did not see her commercial on the Super Bowl - it aired earlier in the day; but I did watch the Super Bowl with her and she was rooting for the Packers too!).

I'm gonna have to head up there (Mom, want go with?) cause I spotted this adorable little dress. Sigh. I've been working on a Christmas cross stitch forever now. Time for a little break from that so I can work on some Sadie-size dresses.

~~~~~~

What are gas prices like in your area? When we returned from Illinois on Sunday a gallon was$2.98. The next day $3.07 and the next $3.21. Yikes!

So, if you need some money saving inspiration check here and here.

~~~~~

Hope you have a great weekend. We have lots of little projects to attend to here. Enjoy!

Heigh* Ho Silver...and Away!

2011-02-25T07:13:00.005-05:00

The time had come.

We had gotten a lot of good years out of it (8 on our watch).

And a lot of good miles (120,000 on our watch).

The mini must be sold. *sob* Lots of good trips and great memories.

Pat listed it on Craig's list. The first call came within 60 SECONDS followed by 4 more in the next hour. We kept all their numbers in case the first people didn't work out. Then we deleted the listing so the phone would stop ringing.

We have sold many things on Craig's List. Our jeep, a desk, a piano, some fishing equipment....The secret to our success? Besides prayer? (main secret).

Pat is a genius with words and can sell you the shirt off your back.

He started the ad with 'Retired couple selling well-maintained 2000 Town and Country Van...'. Now, doesn't that make you feel safe? I'm not sure if he used the words 'gently driven' , but he could have (except for the years when Daniel was still home ~smile~).

The first couple came with cash in hand. Yay, cash! They felt so safe that they left their baby with me while they test drove the car. Who does that in this day and age - leaves their baby with a complete stranger? He sure was a cute little guy - four months old - big dimples. We had fun while Mom and Dad were out putting the mini through its paces.

Up until now, this young couple with four children had been going places in two cars. They were anxious to be able to fit their whole family in one car.

They bought it!

We had been shopping (correction- Pat had been shopping) for a new car for a l-o-n-g time. There are some pretty, shiny new cars with very attractive lease arrangements out there. We test drove, we pondered, we prayed. We almost bit the bullet.

But one day Pat realized that one place our brand new shiny car would frequent would be boat landings and fishing piers. Pat does not currently have a boat, so he fishes from the shore. The cars in these parking lots are not shiny and new. A shiny, new car is just begging to be 'keyed' at locations such as this.

In fact, the very next day, Pat was admiring a shiny, new Subaru parked outside the gym. A lady joined him and said, 'I'd be afraid to drive a car like that...I had a shiny new car once and it got keyed parked right outside the courthouse!'

Confirmation.

So, our 'new' car is not a 2011. Instead it is a 2000. But it has 100,000 fewer miles on it than our mini did. We procured it from a nice retired couple. It is well maintained and has been gently driven.

They are the kind of people you would feel comfortable leaving your babies with. In fact, we have.

Thanks, Mom and Dad!
~~~~~~~~~

*could also be spelled Hi. :)

I hesitate to mention this...

2011-02-24T07:12:00.002-05:00

but I got to play in the dirt yesterday. A beautiful day - temperatures in the 60's.

Don't worry Northwoods friends. The geese are flying your way and spring will arrive in your neck of the woods soon.

Yesterday was just a weeding day. But soon I'll be planting greens, peas, radishes and carrots.

In anticipation of this:

guest teacher

2011-02-23T08:06:00.003-05:00

We have a guest. The lovely KimmeeSue is staying with us while Mom and Dad have run off to play.

KimmeeSue is a daddy's girl. Most decidedly so. She loves to walk with Dad. She loves to be outside with Dad. She loves to play with Dad or just lay at his feet.

She tolerates us.

She will certainly walk with us when we walk, but during most of her stay, she is on the front porch looking toward the entrance of the subdivision watching for their return.

And so KimmeeSue teaches me. To walk with my Heavenly Father. To sit at His feet. To spend time with Him.

And eagerly await His Second Coming.

"Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness,

which the LORD, the righteous Judge,

will award to me on that day-and not only to me,

but also to all who have longed for His appearing. "

II Timothy 4:8

date night with Daddy

2011-02-22T04:20:00.001-05:00

Sadie is a lucky girl. Her daddy is not afraid to take an eight month old to a Father/ daughter banquet (course Sadie only got to eat sweet potatoes and peas...).

The theme was 'the 50's' and since Grandma is a product of the '50's she was conscripted to make a poodle skirt.

Since Grandma wasn't born yesterday...she didn't make a skirt. The felt required for a proper poodle skirt is not practical - or washable. Plus - this was a rush job. So she bought a cute ruffled skirt and appliqued a poodle and leash onto it.

Closer inspection reveals that Mommy found a cuter poodle applique (I found a big one at Malwart, but Mommy apparently found a right-sized one). Good job, Mommy!

Doesn't she look adorable ('yes' is the correct response). And happy!

And not to be outdone, big brother Josh is very 'GQ'.

Stylin'!

If only I'd known...

2011-02-21T10:48:00.002-05:00

There were so many things I learned about Eileen these past few weeks since her death. Things I wished I’d known sooner, things I would have discussed with her or done with her.

We have known Eileen for less than two years…meeting her a few months before the kids got married in July of 2009.

Pat did a wonderful job of officiating at Eileen’s service. He received many nice comments- some wondered if he is a pastor (he’s not). Pat was very well-prepared and GOD granted him freedom from back pain and clarity of thought during the message. It was very good.

About 250 people were in attendance; proof of Eileen’s impact on many lives. We learned about her sense of humor, her strength, her love of family.

And although I did not get to know Eileen as well as I wanted to, I see her character and her traits being carried on by my daughter-in-love Michelle. Michelle spoke briefly at her mother’s funeral. She was composed, warm, witty and wise. Her mother would have loved to have heard what she had to say.

I loved to hear what she had to say.

Thank you for your prayers for our family over these last several weeks.

We are so grateful.