There is a season

I love summer.

I love having most of my children at home with not many things required of them.

I love being able to spend from 1:30 til 10:30 watching The Gilmore Girls with Kaitlin and Marisa. We just did this one day but it was so much fun. The Gilmore Girls is definitely for girls and we try to watch when all the boys are not at home. When they are home they make comments and then we have to send them out of the room.

I love have spur -of -the moment times when we can just get up and go without having to get back at a certain time.

I love being able to sit and visit after a meal and not having someone having to rush away to get back to class.

I love all the laughing that happens when these three get tickled.

I love going to Charlotte's as many times as I can find people to go with me. I think I have been four times this summer. Charlotte's is restaurant in Keo, AR which is about 45 minutes from me. They have wonderful desserts, great hamburgers and sandwiches and in the summer only this FABULOUS fruit plate that also comes with chicken salad and two cheese biscuits. My mouth is watering. When you sit down at Charlotte's you first check the dessert board- Charlotte and her husband make them every morning and when they are gone, they are gone. I have had Italian Creme Cake and Strawberry Cake so far this summer. KimT orders her Carmel Pie when she makes our reservations so she is assured to have a piece. If you need me to go with you to Charlotte's, just let me know. I have the gift of eating at Charlotte's. I'll even teach you some Arkansas history along the way.

I love to see Marisa and Kaitlin reading books for pleasure.

I love it when we are all in the same room for longer than 10 minutes.

I love going shopping with my girls and being able to just look and look as long as we want. ( Carl , please notice that I didn't say-just buy and buy as long as we want) :)

I love the relaxed attitude at home because of the lack of dead lines.

I know that summer will be over on the 16th of August. I know that I may never have another summer with these three home. Next summer may be different with different jobs and responsibilities. So I am breathing deep and savoring and going with the flow. And I am thankful, so very thankful for this time with these great, young adults who like being with me. I am blest.

One to Japan and Another to Africa

I have two friends that have just embarked on oversea adventures. Alyssa is in Japan teaching and Heather is a nurse on a Mercy Ship in Africa. They both have blogs to document this new part of their lives. You may enjoy them too.

What have you been reading?

Marisa has a TBR shelf in her room. She has several books on it. She asked me if I had a TBR shelf and almost fainted when I showed her mine. I realized I needed to get to reading.

Return to Sullivans Island by Dorothea Benton Frank

Couldn't put it down. I have even been rereading sections so I can roll her verbiage off my tongue. Will give high recommendation.

Last Light over Carolina by Mary Alice Monroe

Good. Glad I read it. Will recommend. Good story on forgiveness and not holding grudges.

Savannah from Savannah by Denise Hildreth

Very good. Some of the funniest lines I have ever read- I laughed out loud. Marisa has this on her TBR list now. I plan to ask for her other books for Christmas

Dune Road by Jane Green

I enjoyed Beach House by the same author. Dune Road had a few more, shall we say 'colorful Metaphors', than I am used to reading. It was a good book but not one I can give to just any one to enjoy. It has a good story and I had to find out how it ended.

Fixer Upper by Mary Kay Andrews

Couldn't put it down. It grabbed me from the beginning. I like her writing style. Marisa is now reading this.

If you want to borrow one of these just let me know! If you have read a good one let me know, I've moved a few off my TBR shelf and it looks empty.

Mama loved Red!

My Mama loved Red Skelton. Today is his birthday. Here at Semicolon is a wonderful skit that show what a patriot he was. Happy Birthday Red!

She went to Parkway Automotive

Has your Check Engine Light ever come on in your car? My friend, Cara, recently had her's come on. I was blest by her calmly being without her car for about a day and a half while it was being fixed.

I need to be prepared for when it happens to me. Are you prepared?

Socialized medicine not for our Congressmen but for you and me!

Please read what Michelle Malkin has to say about your and my Congressman not having to enroll in the socialized medicine program that is going in front of Congress.

House Resolution 615 would require them too.

Please call your Representatives and Senators.

books about books

The Read-Aloud Handbook and Honey for a Child's Heart are two books that helped me as I looked for books to read to my children and books to encourage them to read.

Even if you don't have children at home, these websites and books by the authors will help you in shopping for books for gifts that you give.

Also, I believe a good book is a good book no matter what age the book is written for. Who knows , you may find a book that you loved as a child or missed as a child and need to read it now.

Pictures of our Forever Family

We had breakfast this morning with Dave, Mona, Ryan, Neal, and Cara. Dave is the brother of our friend Dan.

We had never met Dave and Mona til this morning. Their daughter, Cara, just moved to our city and she knew no one. Dan sent me an email from Kenya, a few weeks ago and gave me a heads up about Cara moving here. Dan and his family are missionaries in Africa. We have had a wonderful time getting to know Cara. She fits right into our family. She loves to joke around, has lots of stories, and loves family.

Mona and Dave wanted to meet us and say thanks for loving on their daughter. I told them that it has been our pleasure. I have had it modeled for me, so well, how to include others in your home and heart.

Dan and his wife, Lynda, opened their home and hearts to us for the three years they lived in LR. Most Sunday we spent with them. We drove an hour to church and they let us stay with them between church services in the morning and evening. It has been great to be able to help take care of Dan's niece. Often great things are done for us and we are not able to say thanks enough or even be able to repay in a small way. Here I have a chance to, by loving on Cara.

Here is our whole group



getting ready to jump
jumping!It makes me think of the song from Girl Scouts that Mrs Lauderdale taught me " Make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other is gold."

Way to go John and Nikola

Happy Birthday John Calvin. I thought this was a very good article on him and what all I can learn from him.

Also of note is today is Nikola Tesla birthday. Who is that you may be saying? He is the reason you were able to have some electricity this morning.

He would 153 today as opposed to John Calvin who would 500 today.

If you are a fan of Google, they are honoring Tesla today. His patents and theoretical work formed the basis of modern alternating current (AC) electric power systems including polyphase power distribution systems and the AC motor, which helped usher in the Second Industrial Revolution. Sounds like I know what I'm talking about...yeah right, I googled all that.

This post is for Willy, Andrew, and Carl, the electrical engineers in my life, that also know who John Calvin is.

Hooray for Engineers and Theologians!

Different Priorities

I love to read!

Not all people understand this.

My children had an AWANA event one Saturday, when we lived in PB. Carl and I volunteered to drive our children and some of their friends-two brothers and their sister- to the event. Their parents, (what makes this even more shocking is they were homeschooled), had some errands to run in LR and would be gone the whole time of the said AWANA event. I would have called this women, who I can't think of her name at the moment, my friend.

Said AWANA event was cancelled! Now I had 6 children, on a rainy Saturday, for the whole day in my house. This was before cel phones, so we couldn't call them, not that we would have. And, you know, what the heck, my children enjoyed these kids so we all went back to our house for the day.

It was in the spring. I had pulled all the clothes out of the attic and was in the process of 'what still fits', 'what needs to be given away', 'what can a younger brother or sister possible wear next year'. In addition to the piles I normally have around my house, I had even more. The children never noticed. We watched Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, played board games, played with the crash dummies, had a big snack, etc and the day flew by.

Said 'Can't think of her name' and her husband came at the end of the day to collect their children. When they walked into my house the first words out of her mouth were and I quote" On Monday, why don't you drop your children off at my house for awhile, so you can clean your house"

I just laughed.

I should of taken her up on it. Would she ever have known what I really did? Probably, I don't have a good poker face. I still remember thinking, Who would use a day without children to clean your house? I said " If you watch my children on Monday, I doubt I'll clean my house, I'll get my book and read all day"

She informed me in no uncertain terms that she would not watch my children for me to read. I pointed out that I hadn't asked her to watch my children in the first place. We smiled and parted ways.

Now, lest you feel the need to call the heath department on me, I have had folks say that they enjoy being in my home because it is lived in and that makes them feel comfortable.

But I do surely love to read and now most of my piles are of books

One of the blogs on my blog roll is Reading to Know. I love her book reviews and have come to trust that she and I have to same view on books so if she recommends one, I usually enjoy it too. Here are Part I and Part II of an article she wrote on Reading as a Ministry. I hadn't thought of it that way before but I do have lots of folks that come to me for suggestions of what they can read or to borrow books for beach trips (hey Monica, were they good?) or ask me what they can give as a gift to a reader.

So if Said AWANA mama ( I did just remember her name) and I had the above interaction now, I might say, Sure you can watch my children and I'll get ready for some ministry work!

I bet Ralph is dancing.

Yesterday the world mourned the loss of the King of Pop. I did not. I did my part when growing up of listening and buying records of Michael Jackson but when he was arrested for child abuse or whatever it was, I got disgusted and lost interest in him.

Yesterday the world lost a great man. My friend, who sits behind me in church, Ralph, is now rejoicing in heaven with Jesus. He was in his early 80's. He had been in the hospital for about 4 weeks. On Tuesday morning, after his precious wife, Elizabeth, who he loved well, spent the night by his side, he was welcomed into heaven with the shouts and fanfare of the saints that have gone on before him. He is no longer in pain and can get on with work of Heaven.

I feel sorry for the children of Michael Jackson. As strange as their life was, the loss of any kind is hard. I also feel sorry for them because they do not know, without a doubt, that they will see Michael Jackson again.

Elizabeth knows she will see Ralph again and although the pain she feels now seems to her, I can only guess, as unbearable, she does have hope. She knows that her Savior is walking beside her and she knows where Ralph is, without a doubt.

I do pray for the children of Michael Jackson. I pray that they will come to know Jesus who will give them hope. I pray for their growing up years and what their lives will be like as people may want them for who their daddy was, not for who they are.

I am praying for Elizabeth. Half of her is not here today. In marriage, I do believe that the 'two shall become one'. She will have to learn to live with this gapping hole in her heart and life. But I know that Elizabeth will probably pick me up more than I'll do that for her and she will have an even more incredible testimony of the love of Jesus.

The entire world will not note the loss of Ralph like our little corner of humanity does but Heaven is. And eternity is what matters.

Happy 4th of July!

Here is our picture for today.
Here are Carl and Marisa cooking our supper. It was wonderful.
Two goofballs that I found in the kitchen.
Our Red, White and Blue dish for supper. My girls ate fruit- amazing.
Last year we were at the beach with all of Carl's family. What a blast. Here are some pictures.

Here is a glow-stick picture made by all the cousins

Here is our crew. Since this picture we have added two great-grands and a wife-Esther for cousin Alex.

Jumping cousins
cousins
I hope you had a great day.

I never knew

Kaitlin and Marisa threw us a surprise anniversary party at KimT's house. What fun. Pictures are on Kaitlin's blog.