Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Adelynn Rose Turns 10


Happy Birthday Adelynn

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

Happy Birthday Jared

Happy Birthday Kyle and Lynnette


Our youngest granddaughter, Adelynn Rose, turned 10 yesterday! Isn't she a sweetie?We had her party here at Grandma's house on Saturday.

We also celebrated her cousin Jared's, who recently turned 19, (he is such a talented pianst, piano teacher, and aspiring film score composer, who composes brilliantly, and is just a great blessing to our lives.

Her Uncle Kyle's, and Aunt Lynnette's birthdays were celebrated too,...and they are both past the age where they would probably want me to mention it! (Tee Hee) But they are still young enough,... and don't ya think they look great? They both are such fun and they enjoy life with their 6 kids, who keep them young.

Jared's actual birthday was September 12th, and Kyle and Lynnette's are both in the first week of Oct. I want to wish all of them a wonderful year ahead,...a year that is filled with God's Abundant Blessings!

Monday, September 28, 2009

"On The Road Again"...Our trip to Santa Fe, New Mexico



You can click on pictures to enlarge and then hit the back arrow to return to original size






















I just thought I would post a few pictures of our Santa Fe, New Mexico trip that we took last week. Our trip was bittersweet because we were supposed to meet our friends Max and Toni there,(they live in Arizona), but Max was recently diagnosed with lung cancer and he had to start treatments. We were so sorry that they couldn't make it, but they insisted we go ahead and make the trip. So you can see why we would be missing them. Each year for the past several years we have met up with them in the fall and we have had such a good time. Last year we went to Gatlinburg, Tennesee and North Carolina with them and it was so much fun. We are praying for them, that the treatments will help and we certainly pray for God's strength and His peace during this time.

The pictures are just some random shots along the way and while we were in New Mexico. We stayed right by the Plaza and we enjoyed walking around it and shopping, and we even took our lunch one day and ate it in the park in the center of the square while we watched the many people strolling through the Plaza. The weather was great most of the time with temps in the 70's but it did cool down a lot in the evenings, and it also rained a couple of times. The skies were so blue and the clouds were so white and fluffy most of the time! I didn't capture the beauty of that bright blue sky in my pictures, but it was one of the things that I really enjoyed. The altitude was over 7,000 feet, so maybe that had something to do with it??? I don't know, but it was amazing.

I went out to a golf course with John while he was practicing and I sat there enjoying the view, and thinking about all of the Indian and Mexican people that we had seen and I was thinking about their culture and of all of the beautiful artwork and crafts they display. There are several museums in the area where we were staying and oh so much beautiful jewelry that they make. (I really had to practice self control, because I love jewelry). I did buy a little raku pot, and a basket, and a pair of earrings for my daughter, and a shawl for myself. And a few other little things. But everything was very expensive! There were a lot of homeless people and several of them approached John for money. He gave them some in the name of Jesus. I love that man of mine! Everything we have belongs to God anyway, and if He prompts us to give,...who are we to say no?

God certainly did make a variety of landscapes in this world and even just in the United States! With us living here in the flatlands of Kansas, we sure enjoyed the mountain scenery. We went to Los Alamos where they made the atom bomb and it sits up on a plateau so there was a lovely view up that way. We ate lunch there in a
50's diner. We were going to go to a monument up there and tour some caves, but it started raining. But even still we did enjoy the ride, and we got to see where John's uncle had worked when he was a security guard back in the 50's and 60's.

On the way back home we stopped in a town called Shamrock, Texas, and we took a picture of an old gas station there that was the model for the station in the movie "Cars"! It was charming. There are lots of old, quaint,buildings along the route that we took, because it was the old Route 66. My husband is into all of the nostalgia from the 50's and he loves to listen to the oldies music,..I guess it all takes him back to the happy times from his youth. So I guess you could say,..."he got his kicks on route 66". {{smile}} The route was also what they used when they filmed the movie, "Wild Hogs". I can see why they filmed it there, because of the wide open spaces! We did see a lot of people on motorcycles enjoying the nice weather out there.

I took a lot of the pictures from the car while we were on the road, so they aren't of the best quality, but you can see a little of what we saw the week we were there. Thanks for letting me share. Have a great week ahead!

Friday, September 25, 2009

Frustration

Why did I add a buffalo picture to my post today? Well I think this old buffalo was frustrated as we all slowed down and took pictures of him as he was walking down the road. I think he was just trying to get where he was going! That's how I felt when I was having trouble with my computer,...I just wanted it to work so that I could get where I was wanting to go! It was such a FRUSTRATION!!! But I did have fun writing this poem, and it kind of helped me to put it all into perspective!


Frustration

As I sit at my computer I cannot find a connection
And it is a source of anger and it brings to me frustration

How can I read my email, or check Facebook, or my blog
When this stupid old computer sits here like a sleeping dog!

I’ve tried everything I know of to get this old dog on its feet
But I haven’t found the answer, so I’m ending in defeat

I guess I’m writing this here poem to vent, and simply bide my time
Till my hubby can wake up and get his honey back online

Connectivity is low!… It kept saying as I clicked
So I gave up in frustration, guess I know when I am licked

Do other people have this problem? Or is it only me?
I wish I knew the answers, and could find what the problem be!

But I’m kinda having fun putting my frustration into words
It’s a therapy of sorts,…cuz I’m no computer nerd

I could really use the “Geek Squad”, if I had the 80 bucks
I won’t see that little beetle bug and to that I just say,…shucks!

It wasn’t very long ago that I didn’t have this laptop
But now that I am into it I find that I can’t stop

Can’t stop clicking, can’t stop scrolling, can’t stop typing, reading, rolling
Someone help me, I’m addicted!….. (Hey this poem is really growing)

Ok, I will stop now,… I really need to get a grip
I will stop my whining and complaining and have a stiff upper lip

Thanks for listening to my story,… it helped me just to vent
Vent about all my frustration,…and about how my morning went

You should try this kind of therapy next time you feel frustration
Either that or to the funny farm,…I’ll meet you at the station! (:>)

Linda Hogeland September 2009

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Five Words...and how they relate to me






My friend Teresa over at... Grammy Girlfriend ... did a post called Five Words, where she gives you five random words and has you relate them to you and your life. I thought it would be fun so I left her a comment and my email address in her comment box and she sent me my five words. If you want to play, just click on "Grammy Girlfriend" above and then read her five words and leave a comment with your email address. Then she will email you five words just for you. Make a post with them and share them with Teresa and all of us. Have Fun!


Five Words…and how they relate to me:
Support
Travel
World
Cold
Harvest



1. Support: I could not manage my day to day life without the support of my God, my wonderful husband, my beautiful daughters, their spouses, my grandkids, other family members, my special friends, pastor and church family. And in turn I am more than happy to help support each of them in any way possible.

A three legged table cannot stand on its own without support. In that condition it is useless. I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful support system in my life. The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 4:12 …that “a threefold cord is not easily broken”, and that reminds me of the strength and support I find in my… faith, family, and friends. I am certainly blessed!

2. Travel: For most of my life I was not a well traveled person. But in the last 5 years since my husband retired we have had some adventures. The biggest adventure in our travels was when we spent 4 weeks in England. We flew into London and rented a vehicle and drove down to the Poole area and stayed a week with John’s mother’s cousins that live there. They were gracious hosts and they took us sight seeing. We went in the early spring and it was pretty chilly at times, but we bundled up and also drank lots of hot tea and sat by the fireplaces to warm up! Cousin Vic took us on a ferry and we went over to France to do some shopping one day and then back again. So, I guess I can say I have been to France too; however, it was a very brief visit.

We went to stay in the Stocksbridge area where my husband was born during the war, and it is also where his mother grew up. We stayed in the Inn where they had their wedding reception. That was fun to explore the area and learn more about Mom’s childhood and young adult life there. We went to the cemetery where his grandpa was buried and took pictures of his large Celtic cross headstone. They bury several family members in one plot stacked on top of each other because it saves space, so his first wife who died before him and their infant daughter were all together.

We visited Windsor Castle and many other castles on our trip and several museums. We saw where Winston Churchill was born. We took a boat ride on the Thames River. We visited with other friends that live there and explored Barnwell and other towns and did more shopping. We rode on trains and the underground and in Taxis, but we also did a lot of walking. We also saw lots of countryside, grazing sheep, stacked rock walls, and beautiful flowers that were just coming up and blooming. I loved all of the well manicured grounds on the estates and castles.

We went to Piccadilly Square on market day, and we also saw the London Marathon runners, Big Ben, the London Eye, and all the landmarks around London. We saw the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace, and we saw where the Queen Mother lived. We saw where Princess Diana and Prince Charles had lived and they had a display of some of her beautiful outfits.

We walked on the pier in Brighton and toured a palace there. It was amazing. We toured a ship building business where they let us tour several million dollar yachts, and they were unbelievable! I could go on and on. We did quite a bit in the 4 weeks that we were there. And I have just written down what popped into my memory, so it is all out of order and there is so much that I have left out.

I enjoy all of our trips around the states too. Last year we went to Tennessee and North Carolina and I had never been that far east. We went to the Biltmore Estates, and I loved seeing that. On the way home we went to Graceland and saw where Elvis lived and toured the museums as well as the house and grounds. And we recently returned from New Mexico where we spent a week in Santa Fe. So since I have left out a whole lot of other places I have been, I guess I do travel quite a bit these days, and we are loving it.

3. World: I am just a little pebble of sand in this vast world. I love all that the Lord created in this world. I am in awe of its beauty. Yet I remember the words of a hymn that says “This World Is Not My Home, …I’m just a passing through…my treasures are laid up…somewhere beyond the blue”. And I am reminded that the Lord has even better things in store for those that believe in Him. Can you even imagine something even better than the awesome beauty of nature in this world? Yet I believe it is true, heaven will be even better. Just to see God will be wonderful, let alone the mansions of precious stones he has prepared for us.

4. Cold: I don’t like to be cold, and I don’t like to have a cold, so maybe I can relate to an ice cold refreshing drink on a hot summer day. I love to put a little pineapple juice in a tall class with ice and then fill it with 7-up. It makes a cold tasty punch, and I really enjoy it. And if I am making it for a crowd I might put it in a punch bowl and add some vanilla ice cream. Now that’s something cold I can relate to.


5. Harvest: I am a city girl from California and I never lived on a farm. I have never harvested anything. I remember “Harvest Gold” appliances! Ha! Does that count for anything? Seriously though it does remind me of the Bible when it says the fields are white with harvest,…when the Lord is saying He needs workers to bring it in. I do want to be a worker for the Lord and to be a part of His harvest. Maybe I have been a seed planter more than a harvester, but I do love sharing the Lord with people, and love telling them of all He has done for me.

Monday, September 21, 2009

Meet Him in the Morning

The Riggs Family Blog
is hosting a blog hop and you are supposed to say why someone should read and follow your blog. I thought I would join in today and say that I would hope that when people read my blog they would be encouraged in the Lord.

Sometimes I write poetry, and other times I share things about my family and how God has helped us. Like when my middle daughter lost 3 of her children, and how God helped us and comforted us so that we could help to comfort others.

Other times I just write about the joys of life and how much I enjoy them with my dear husband, family, friends, and church friends.
Blogging can be a ministry and a place to find people who need love, care, and prayers.

Join in today by clicking on The Riggs Family Blog above to link your post if you have something positive to share.






Meet Him in the Morning

As I rise and greet the morning, there is stillness in the air
Sounds of silence all around me, before the day is filled with care

In those quiet, gentle moments, I feel God’s presence, and His call
As He lifts the veil of darkness, I before Him bow in awe

It’s as though there is no other in this vast, still, quiet place
Only me and my dear Savior, as I meet Him face to face

“Hear my words” He sweetly prompts me, so I turn to Psalms and read
There’s a beauty in each stanza, I pray the words, and on them feed

What a way to start my morning, I wish I did this everyday
Greeting Him, I let Him lead me, feeling prompted, I then pray

Oh the closeness and the splendor, oh the love I feel Him give
“Come with me, my dear daughter and I will teach you how to live”

In the night He gives us slumber, yes He gives His beloved sleep
But in the morning, oh the riches He will share when Him we greet
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Why do we rise and hurry through the rituals of our same routine?
Why don’t we stop and see the Savior, meet with Him, and riches glean?

No better time than in the morning, before the hassles of our day
I urge you to embrace Him early, let Him speak, and to Him pray

Then go on to make the coffee, have your breakfast, watch the news
Wash your face, or take your shower, don your clothes, and tie your shoes

But don’t miss out on special blessings that the quiet morning brings
Unwrap them, and be thankful for them, they will cause your heart to sing

I promise that you won’t be sorry that you spent that time with Him
Meet Him in the Morning and you’ll want to do it... time and time, and time again!

Linda Hogeland ~~~ September 2009

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Memories Of Our First House Together


What we looked like when our life started together. This picture was taken in the backyard of our first house.

You can click on the picture to enlarge it. Our girls were teens in this picture, but when we got married they were 9, 8, and 4

And this is what we look like today

(No pictures of our first house scanned into this computer,...sorry)

This week for "So We Don't Forget", Lynnette wants us to write about the first house we had after we were married. So I will tell you about the house we lived in 33 years ago. It was in Littleton, Colorado on a quiet little culdesac called S. Ash Circle. It was an olive green ranch style home, and it was all on one level with a full unfinished basement.

I had been married for 9 years previous to this marriage, and so I brought to my marriage with John, three little daughters who were in need of a loving father, and a secure home life. A few years later he adopted them as his own, and he has been a wonderful father to them, and they love him very much.

I loved that 3 bedroom house,...our first home together, at the end of the culdesac. It had a small front yard and a huge stacked- rock- terraced fenced backyard with a hill off to one side. The kids spent many happy hours playing in that nice backyard. It was a lot of yard work for John and he worked hard to keep it nice. My job was dragging the hose and sprinkler all around to water it all and keep it green, and that kept me busy. The kids loved playing in the sprinklers in the summer time and they liked to hold the hose to water the trees and flowers for me.

We would bring a blanket outside in the evenings and sit on that hill in our backyard and look at the stars while the girls would do somersaults down the little hill. We could also see the lights of Denver in the distance, and it was a nice view.

We had friendly neighbors, and since there were only about 8 houses on that culdesac we all got together on several occasions, and even had a block party now and then.
John and I actually got married in that house and had a huge reception with family, neighbors and friends, so this is another reason I remember it fondly.

I threw John a surprise birthday party in that house the first year we were married and I had it planned that all of the friends and neighbors gathered at a certain time and then walked up to our house together and rang the bell and I sent John to answer the door and they all yelled surprise when he came to the door. He was totally shocked. I had goodies and a cake stashed away and the neighbors brought gifts and it was loads of fun. He was 31 that year, and I was 26.

Being from Southern California where it never snowed, I didn't know how to scoop snow off of the driveway, so our next door neighbor took pity on me one day and did it for me as I watched and learned how it was done correctly. The kids and I built many a snowman in that yard in our house in Colorado, and there were always neighbor kids there to help.

That street wasn't a busy one since it was a circle and the girls could safely ride their bikes and also skate on the sidewalks and I could keep and eye on them from the living room window. I could also watch them walk to the bus stop at the end of the street in the mornings and watch them get safely on the bus and then off again in the afternoon.

When it was too cold to play outside my little girls would play in the basement. The youngest could ride her tricycle down there and the older two girls had a big rug to put the toy box on and they would spend hours playing and building houses and tents with the couch cushions off of the couch we also had down there. Speaking of that couch,...John said I should tell you of the time we put that heavy hide-a-bed sofa down there in the basement the night before we got new living room furniture. It was late and he had forgotten to ask a guy neighbor to help him, so he was trying to move it downstairs by himself. Well, the stairs went straight down, and the sofa was so heavy he was afraid it would just slide down the stairs too quickly and smash him against the cement block wall, so he tied me to the end of the sofa and I was at the top of the stairs trying to be a counter balance and lean backwards so the sofa wouldn't move too quickly down the stairs. Well, it may sound good in theory, but I was afraid I would just end up flying down the stairs with the sofa bed and I started crying. So John yelled up from the bottom of the stairs, "Just wiggle out of the ropes and forget it!", and he managed it all by himself. Even though that isn't a fun memory for me, the new furniture that came the next morning was!

The laundry was down in the basement too, so I could keep and eye on the girls as they played. John had a big office desk down there with a phone jack and he would often sit there and pay bills and do work and make phone calls while I was doing laundry or ironing. On the other side he also had a huge workbench with his tools all hanging above it in another corner with a big light hanging over the workbench table. He always had some project going, or he was repairing something that needed fixed. Life was exciting for us back then just doing the everyday things and watching our girls play. I ironed everything back then, even John's handkerchiefs and I shined his shoes, and always had dinner ready when he came home. We never ate fast food, and we always ate as a family. John had a good job and I felt loved and protected and provided for, and I just wanted to be a good wife and mother.

Back to the house,...In California I never had a basement and so it felt like you got twice as much living space, and I really enjoyed the basement, even though it wasn't finished off. We also had a nice ping pong table that John's friends from work gave us as a wedding gift since they knew John was getting 3 kids along with a new bride! We all enjoyed playing ping pong, but none of us could ever beat John. He was an expert!

We got a little puppy soon after we got married and he was a Sheltie named Poco. He was a pure bred and his full name was,...Hogeland's El Poco Lobo. But after living with that crazy little doggie we soon said he should have been named El Poco Loco!

In our house we had white carpet in the living room, dining room, hall and 3 bedrooms, so John trained our little doggie to stay off of that carpet and only allowed him to go into the areas of the house that were tiled, and also the family room which had darker carpeting. That dog obeyed and would not go where he wasn't allowed, when we were home. But,... sometimes we would drive up into the driveway when we had been gone from the house for awhile and we would see Poco looking out the living room window! By the time we got inside the house he would be back in the rooms that he was allowed in and acting all innocent. 18 months later when we moved to a new house that we built we gave him full run of the house since he wasn't a puppy anymore and he was well trained.

Yes, we lived in our first house for 18 months and they were happy days for us. I liked so many things about it, like the moss rock fireplace in the family room that was just off of the kitchen and eating area. But since two of the girls had to share a room we decided to move to a 4 bedroom so each could have their own space, and as I said we built a new home. But we only lived in the new house 18 months too and then my husband changed jobs and came to work for Boeing here in Wichita, and we have been here for 30 years.

Two years ago we built a new home and we are enjoying it very much. It is a lot different than that first house in Colorado, and there are so many great things that I love here. But it has been fun thinking back to our first house together where love made us a family.

Thanks Lynnette for picking this topic today! And if any of you would like to join in, just write a post about your first house together and click on the button at the top and link up.

California Dreamin'

As summer draws to a close I am having memories of my summers in California when I was growing up. I decided to share this post again since I wrote it when I first started blogging and I didn't have any followers back then.

*Pictures by Lisa Matthis*

Just look at the beautiful colors of these sea creatures that our Creator placed in the ocean. How can anyone ever deny His majesty!!!! They made me want to write a little poem to add to my post.

**************************************
The Colors Of The Sea

As I gaze upon the creatures that adorn the ocean floor
I wonder at the majesty of the Creator I adore

How could one so great and powerful use such softness in the hues
Corals, pinks, and purples, aqua, and such pretty baby blues

It speaks to me of tenderness, and gentle, loving care
The Creator, Abba Father, showers on us everywhere

Oh what wonder! Oh what beauty in these colors of the sea
Can we grasp the great immenseness of His love for you and me?

If He made these little creatures with a purpose and a plan
How much deeper is His wisdom in making mortal man

How I ponder when I see them, these awesome colors of the sea
And I look forward to seeing Heaven, oh what glory it will be!

Linda ~~~Sept. 2009
******************************************




When I was a child I lived in Southern California, just about seven miles from the beach. Much of my childhood was spent playing at the beach or the bay. We would pack a lunch, grab a blanket or two, our colorful beach towels, suntan lotion, a transistor radio, etc. and we were off for a day of fun.

The pavement was always so hot, so my brother and I would wear our flip flops as we unpacked the car and hauled a cooler to the spot we would call our own, amongst a multitude of others who were also there for a day of pleasure.

I remember laying out in the warm sunshine listening to the ocean waves rolling back and forth and they would lull me to sleep. My mother would nudge me from time to time to tell me to turn over so I wouldn't get burned. We would take turns applying the Coppertone lotion to each other, and reapplying it as the day went on. Some of it smelled of coconuts and good enough to eat!

Speaking of eating,...going to the beach and swimming in the ocean and jumping the waves all day long would give us the biggest appetites! We'd unpack our sandwiches and potato chips which we usually ate with sandy hands, and wash them down with lemonade from our thermos, and it always tasted so good. Later in the day, the Good Humor ice cream truck would chime its way to the parking lot, and we'd beg mom to buy us a treat, and she always would. We'd make a big mess and get sticky as the ice cream melted faster than we could eat it, but it sure tasted good!

My brother would let me bury him in the sand, or we would build a sand castle or two. We would use our big toes and write our names in the damp sand along the shoreline, and then watch as it got erased each time the waters edge would reach it.

Once we watched from the shore as our mom and her friend and some others got rescued by a boat because a riptide, or undertow had pulled them a little too far out and they couldn't get back in on their own. I think it was then that I started thinking of the power that the ocean possessed. My mom would say that yes, the Lord held the ocean in its bounds as it moved back and forth, and I began to realize that God was in control and that He held the whole world in His hands. (And by the way,...I always loved that song!)

We'd take long walks and pick up seashells and dried up starfish and cart them home to add to our collections. We'd sort them from big to little and think about the creatures that used to live inside of them. We'd take them to show and tell at school, or glue the little ones to poster board and make a design or a mosaic out of them and give them to mom for a gift.

Lots of times we'd invite our friends to come with us to the beach and that added to the excitement. We'd splash each other and play tag, and toss a beach ball. It was so hard to run fast in the sand. It was no wonder that we would be exhausted when we got home. And as we'd take our showers we'd discover that we were red as lobsters no matter how much lotion we had used. Our shoulders and noses, and backs and just about every inch of us would be sensitive and uncomfortable for a few days until it would turn into a tan. Sometimes we would peel and sometimes we wouldn't. And as the summer wore on we were sporting enough of a tan that the burning wouldn't happen as much.

No matter how much we ate at the beach we would still be starving when we'd get home and a lot of times we'd barbeque hamburgers and hot dogs in the back yard and they would taste wonderful! Then we'd each get a huge piece of cold watermelon and it was so refreshing! My brother collected his watermelon seeds and buried some in the dirt in the yard and he actually got a watermelon or two to grow! That was exciting to watch as children,...especially for city kids that had not ever had a garden of their own.

Sometimes we'd go to the beach in the evening and build a fire and roast marshmallows. The moonlight on the water was so pretty. It would get chilly in the evenings so we would wear jeans and a sweater, but we still couldn't resist putting our feet in the water, so we'd roll up our pants and walk in the wet sand as the water receded, and then run towards the dry sand as the waves would come crashing back towards us. It would always end up catching us and getting us wet up to our knees,...or to our waists if we fell down! We giggled and shivered and would jump up and run towards the fire to warm up.

There was a pier on the beach and my little brother loved to walk up on the pier and talk to the fishermen who would sit on the bench and cast their lines over the side of the pier. I was always scared that he would fall in, so I'd grab the back of his shirt as he'd look over the edge. He was always brave, and I was always a nervous ninny.

Along the side of the pier there would often be fishing boats that would sell freshly caught fish. My mom would buy some and we would go home with it wrapped up in newspaper. I didn't like the smell that lingered around all of those boats and I never was fond of fresh fish. And I remember crunching on a fish bone or two that hadn't gotten removed before cooking, which was a bit unpleasant. We also tried abalone, which we dipped in a batter and fried and I did like that. And I also liked the fried shrimp that you could buy in the shops along the pier.

When I grew up and became a mother, I too would take my three girls to the beach, and we made some memories too. But when they were 9, 8, and 4 we moved to Colorado,...and there was no ocean to visit there. But it had a beauty all it's own,....glorious Mountains! And then a few years later we settled here in the Heartland.

Today the children are grown and they have children of their own. And here I sit in Kansas looking out my windows at the freshly fallen snow. And on this chilly morning, I find myself "California Dreamin' ". I think the snow is beautiful but I never have enjoyed playing in it like I did the ocean. Instead I find it enjoyable to sit inside by my fireplace and just gaze upon its beauty. I guess I'll always be a California girl at heart,...just transplanted in the Midwest! One who does a little California Dreamin' from time to time.

(Remember, this is a re-post from last December,..no snow here yet!)

Friday, September 4, 2009

He Leadeth Me Beside Still Waters






This is our last full day here in Branson, Missouri, at "Still Waters Resort" as we leave tomorrow to go back to Kansas. We have had a great time here with our middle daughter Lynnette, her husband Kyle and their 6 kids. We have shared a huge 3 bedroom, 3 bath condo with a nice, fully equipped kitchen that also has a washer and dryer. It has a big table in a dining room, and it also has a living room with a fireplace and a TV over it with a VCR, DVD player and Cable TV. The kids have enjoyed watching the Disney Channel and we all have enjoyed some movies in the evenings as we relaxed after a busy day at Silver Dollar City. We fixed dinner in the crock pot a couple of times so that it would be ready when we came home tired, and that was great.

There is a nice size balcony off of the living room with a wonderful view of Table Rock Lake and the surrounding hills. Some of us have eaten out there, and done morning devotions, and the kids have enjoyed playing out there and watching the many geese as they waddle around below, searching for food and noisily honking! One morning the geese actually woke me up.

In the evenings we could sit there and watch the boaters coming back into the docks and as the veil of darkness settled we would listen to the sounds of nature and feel the peacefulness all around us. I think they named this place “Still Waters” for a good reason.

Even though it is quiet and peaceful here, that doesn't mean there isn't a lot going on. This is a wonderful place for families, and lots of things to do. Including a fun new pool that has a zero entry for the little ones to access safely and a pretty waterfall to play under. They have huge beds with pillows all around the pool so that people can lounge or even take a nap! I imagine they have waterproof material,…but I didn’t actually try one out, so I am not sure, but they looked inviting.

They have a little “Bayside Market” where you can buy food or order a light meal, or breakfast, and they also sell items you might need, and they also have bicycles you can check out and ride around the resort on. They have a nice little playground for small children too. And trails where you can take a walk. And down at the dock you can rent boats, paddle boats and little canoes.

My husband went fishing a couple of days but the fish weren’t cooperating,… but he has fun just being out there, and he spends those quiet moments with the Lord.

He and I drove into town and saw a show last night. We like John Tweed. (His real name is “Tweedle”). He has a four octave voice and is a very good entertainer. We have gone to that show before on previous visits to Branson, and we decided it was worth going back! His daughter Sarah Tweedle does a few numbers with him and she has a lovely voice. I bought one of her CD’s of Broadway tunes.

We all went to see the Titanic Museum one day and it was so interesting,…but also sad, as it told the stories of the many people who were aboard the ship. We spent a couple of hours there, but a person could stay twice that long and learn as much as they wanted to. They have re-created the grand stairway and many of the elegant elements that were inside of the ship.

My daughter has been taking the pictures and writing about our stay here, and posting it on her “Dancing Barefoot” blog, but I just wanted to add some of my input today. It is going to be hard to leave this beautiful place, but we are just thankful for this time we have had together in a place that makes us think of our Wonderful Creator.

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Our Niece's Wedding






Weddings always make me think of God, because He ordained this blessed event. And it is a beautiful earthly picture with a heavenly meaning. It is a symbol of how we are the bride and He is the bridegroom, when we accept Him as our Lord and Savior. We never have to worry about divorce, because He will never leave us nor forsake us! Isn't that a great comfort and a wonderful blessing?

The love that we see in the eyes of the couple when we attend a wedding also reminds me of the love our Lord has for us. He says that we are the "apple of His eye"!

When we love someone we want to spend our entire lives with them,...and we say we will love them for all eternity. This is the way our Lord loves us, and when He promises us eternity with Him, we can rest assured that it will happen.

Our niece was such a beautiful bride. We loved seeing her so happy and so much in love! She was surrounded by her friends and family on her special day,...by all of us who love her. We hope that Lilian and Shawn will live happily ever after,...and that the Love of Jesus will be in their marriage forever and always. This is our prayer for them.

They released butterflies into the sky during their wedding and it was so pretty to see them being set free to fly off together. Isn't God wonderful to give us a soul mate to share our lives with? Someone to flutter through life with us? We serve and awesome God! A God of Love!!!