Happy Birthday To My College Sweetheart

Steve - you have never given me cause to wonder about your love and devotion to me.


...and by the way, you have a great smile

Berry Picking Season

Look at the pretty sky, this farm is called Blue Sky Blueberry Farm.


I picked the biggest ones I could find, but most all of them were big and delicious.

I put one on a penny and one on a nickle to help you see how plump these beauties are. I'll only need a few for each blueberry pancake or muffin (but I like more than a few in them). Enough for fruit salads until Easter.


The bushes were so full and ripe you constantly heard all the little thump sounds as berries just fell of the bushes. I didn't know whether to pick the bushes or pick them off the ground,


Stevie and I got to the red raspberry field at Grandma's Berry Patch just as they were dwindling out but managed a few pints, the black raspberries were already gone. The blackberries and blueberries are still going good for a couple more weeks.

A few days later to Garwood orchards for blackberries, the blackberries at Grandma's were a little sweeter.


You can tell Stevie wasn't too happy to be there. The days we picked were extremely hot, so we didn't stay long. the hottest day was 95f but heat index of 105.


After we eat a bunch I freeze them on sheet pans and bag them to use throughout the year.

Being Content Doesn't Come Easily

When our heart breaks because our plans are shattered, peace can only come from trusting that the One who created our life is controlling it for His own magnificent plans. His ways are much higher than our ways. This has always been hard for me, because I tend to be a bit controlling, Each time He breaks our plans we can try to go it alone or save time and get on the path He is preparing for us.

 This song is about Romanian hymnist and pianist, Nicolae Moldoveanu. He served 5 yrs for his Christian faith. While in prison and without pen and paper, he composed over 360 hymns. He's credited with 8000 songs, they are still sung throughout Romania today.




verses on being content, at peace:
2Co 12:10 Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.
Php 4:11 Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am
Heb 13:5 Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, "I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU,"

lyrics to Break my Plans:
The praise songs of a nation flowed from his hands
and in a world of dark repression he made a stand
they told him to be silent and led him away
ten years was the sentence, a prisoner of faith
as he waited for God's timing another winter chilled the air
and as he thought of his own family he was filed with despair
so he cried out for justice "was there any other way?"
but then he gave it all to Jesus as he began to pray

"break my plans, shape my heart, take my will to where you are.
Move my mind through your Word, til all that I am
lives to love you, Lord."

I know I'm called to suffer and to take up my cross
but sometimes I grow so fearful when I count the cost
still my heart wants to follow and to walk in Your ways
to be counted with the faithful, Lord guide me today.

with all my heart, my strength and my soul,
I will love you God, so use my life and take complete control.

"break my plans, shape my heart, take my will to where you are.
Move my mind through your Word, til all that I am
lives to love you, Lord."

Romanian hymnist and pianist, Nicolae Moldoveanu, served 5 yrs for his Christian faith. While in prison and without pen and paper, he composed over 360 hymns. He's credited with 8000 songs, they are still sung throughout Romania today.

Michigan Visit

Stevie and I went to visit family for a few days near the Detroit area. I picked up a few Buddy's pizza to bring home in the cooler. Then decided to bring home a couple more so dad loaned me his cooler too.


When dad and Stevie went to pick up the extra ones he took a photo of Stevie in front of the building. Then a guy waiting for his take-out volunteered to take a photo of them together.


My mom is a Chaplain at a medical care facility. She organizes church services for the patients 3x a week with various pastors and others who can sing and teach. When they forget to show up sometimes she has to fill in for them, which makes her a little nervous, but doesn't want to let them or the Lord down so she does her best.


The preacher she had scheduled this time was also a great singer. And guess what? He grew up next door to me. I've known him since we were little, but I hadn't seen him since I went to college and moved away. We wouldn't have recognized each other on the street. I was good friends with his sister, so it was good to catch up for a few minutes.


It was also good to see my sister and niece who always make an effort to come over while I'm there. My brother has now moved out of state. I miss them all.

The flower tree "snake" that my parents make every year is always beautiful to see. It is so much work that each time they wonder if it will be the last year they can do it.

Poor Baby!

My mom has a Quaker parrot named Carmen who fell and broke her leg. The vet put a cast on, so she has a difficult time getting around on the bottom of her cage.

Carmen would usually be on mom's shoulder a lot during the day, but since she can't stand now mom made her a sling to sit in so she can still ride along.

It's made from cutting a nylon knee-hi so it can be tied around mom's neck, and making a hole for each foot and tail so she won't slip out the bottom.

It's so funny to see.

Puzzling Time

On our most recent ladies night we decided to work a puzzle before dinner (pizza) and then our usual card games.

We've become used to half focusing on the movie playing in the next room where Stevie is sitting close by.
He is half watching the movie and half trying to interact with us, because Pat and Linda like to tease him, and they know he so enjoys it.

It's nice to have a Christian support system.
When you're with those who have the same values you feel comfortable discussing what is going on your lives. You know they understand what you are feeling, and will have the kind of advice or encouragement you can really use. You can rely on them for good clean fun and meaningful relationships. When we have a conflict, God has instilled in us the desire to reconcile because we are part of His body.
Part of our maturity comes from being accountable for our failings. When we don't have that warmth from each other we are like a lone coal, our spiritual life grows cold.

Happy 57th Anniversary

...to my mom & dad.

I was their 3rd anniversary present, on the longest day of the year. When I was little it always felt like a festive week with 4 celebrations, cause it was just after Father's day and my mom's birthday was 2 days after mine.

My mom always had a party every year for each of us kids' birthdays, she didn't have a very happy childhood. I always thought that was the norm for everyone until one year a friend commented on how cool that was.

So, now that I look back on it, their anniversary never overshadowed my day, isn't that just like good parents.

They would still go out to dinner and a show, or a weekend getaway. When I turned 12 they went on a week long trip and mom sent my cake (she was a cake decorator) with me to stay at my grandma's, where we watched the moon landing.

Spider Bite

Be careful. I thought I was, didn't even see a spider, or realized that I was bit. Saw this hours after coming inside from cleaning our pool cover.

The next day it started getting hard, itchy and a little purple. The ER doc said it really looked like it was from some kind of spider.

20 hours in the Hospital. IV of 2 antibiotics, steroid and morphine.

DO NOT WAIT.
I was told if the swelling area gets bigger than 2" diameter, seek help.

Mine ended up being 6" while I was in ER.

An Overdue Visit

Since my good friend Bonnie lives further away now that we've moved, our visits are further apart too. But it is always so refreshing to finally enjoy the fellowship of a friend that you don't see very often.


That meant that Stevie also got to visit with Shawn for a few hours and play some Wii while his mom & I got caught up and walk around to see the changes we've made in the yard.


Stevie looks angry because he doesn't like me to take his picture. If someone else does it that's fine, but not mom. I think he also did not want Shawn to go home.

Black Squirrel

I woke up one day last week to see a black squirrel feeding under our bird feeders.

Unlike some people, I was thrilled to see a squirrel of any kind. We've only had one (a red one) when we first moved in a year and a half ago, but he only stayed for a couple of months, and no sign of one since, so i had a bag of corn cobs sitting around until I threw it out a month ago.
I enjoy seeing them forage around, but I might feel differently if there were more than a few and they destroyed the bird feeders. I've read that black squirrels aren't very common and are more territorial than others, but I will welcome it if that's all I can get.

He was eating the oilers and peanuts that is in the weatherproof feeder I just put up. It fell off it's hook and spilled out the top.

This weatherproof feeder is designed to not let blowing snow or rain get into the holes. It has a slit all the way around the bottom for the birds to pick out the food under a shield. I got it on-line.
I didn't tighten the top hook enough and when the wind blew it around it came undone. It would be better if it had a swivel hook so the wind couldn't unscrew it. I don't like the wasted food after it rains or the holes get covered with snow and gets the food wet and clogged, so I splurged on this one since I really enjoy keeping the wide varieties of birds around.

River Of Life - Second Post

I've had a few friends ask me how to make it from a previous post so I got the instructions from mom and dad for putting together the tree snake that they like to call the "river of life".

On your tree, measure where you want it to go, plus a few extra inches. Get that length of landscape fabric (not punctured plastic) and chicken wire with 2" holes. cut the fabric to the circumference that you want, maybe 2-2 1/2' around is easier to manage for your first time. Lay the chicken wire down flat and the fabric on top of it. Use hot glue or a strong waterproof adhesive along the edges of the fabric to connect the sides to make a long sack. Also seal up one end, that will be the bottom. Fill the sack with perlite planting mix (perlite, shredded coconut shell & peat moss) or other LIGHTWEIGHT planting mix. Lay this "snake" back on the chicken wire and wrap the wire around it. This will keep the flowers in place once they start getting bigger. Pinch the wire tightly closed at each end. *Do not cut the chicken wire width-wise because it become like a Chinese finger trap and not hang right, just overlap when you wrap it around the fabric snake.

You should now have a long snake of chicken-wire-wrapped landscape fabric, filled with lightweight planting medium. Gather top of the snake's chicken wire together to make a wire "rope" then make a loop out of it to hang it from. Get on a ladder and position this on the tree, secure the top of the wire loop to the tree with a large screw or nail or tie around a low limb with strong wire.

Now poke small holes in the fabric (through the 2" chicken wire holes) wherever you want to place an impatiens plant. these don't have to be real close together because ea plants will get big enough to fill in about a 6" area. make sure to get the roots well within the soil.

This snake took about 5 flats of impatiens, but you need less if you are making a smaller and skinnier snake, which would be best to do if it is your first try. Check the moisture daily by poking your finger through some of the holes. If it gets dry the plants won't fill in good and you'll have bare fabric showing. On very hot days you will need to water extra. It's easier to lay a soaker hose or drip irrigation tubes on top of the snake and let the flowers cover it as they grow. you can cut the hose to the exact length of the snake so you can just attach a garden hose to it for a couple hrs when it needs moisture, (or most of the day during heat waves) and then disconnect it again, leaving the soaker hose in place. Because of gravity you may need to water the top portion of the snake more often, or only position the hose on the top half of the snake and let gravity bring the water down. The hose can be attached to the snake by using zip ties from Home Depot electrical section. Fasten it every foot or so.
My dad uses Rapid Grow with a hose attachment once a week to keep them nice and full.
This snake should last about 5 yrs, they just leave it in the tree over winter and put more plants in the same holes every year.
Any questions? just leave it in the comments.

I still haven't tried one yet myself, but am planning on making a round one to put around the base of a tree that nothing will grow under. I'm thinking this should work because it is a big ring of good soil that stays in place, and being on a flat surface easy to water and fertilize. We'll see.

He Rewards Trust With Peace

Take the words of this song to heart. I love how this hymn emphasizes God's sovereign ordering of our life. If we accept the honor of being His vehicles to carry out His magnificent plan we can have peace that our life is for a great purpose.






Only the one who created my life has determined my trials and my end, from Dan 5:23b, Ps 139:16, ex 4:11

He Orchestrates My Life - some favorite quotes on trust

The Chisel - Ron Dicianni
Trust isn't trust until it's the hardest thing to do.

"God cares more about our character than our comforts." Warren Wiersby - (from Jn 1:2-4, Mt. 16:24-26) - He cares more about who we are becoming than how we are feeling.

"Accustom yourself in everything that happens to recognize the hand and will of God. Whether it be a great wrong done to you or little offenses in daily life. Before you consider the person who did it, be still and remember, God allows me to come into this trouble to see if I will glorify Him in it. This trial was allowed by God and is His will concerning me, so let me submit to that. Then with the peace which this gives I will receive wisdom to know how to behave. With my eye turned from man to God, suffering wrong takes on a new dimension. Jesus saw beyond the temporal injustice and was satisfied to leave vindication in God's hands (Peter 2:23). Let the believer follow Christ's example in this. It will give him such rest and peace." Andrew Murray

"If the disciples had known that Jesus was watching them would they have been frightened of the storm? suppose you expected your boat to be swamped at any moment. If you saw Him watching you from some hilltop would you be afraid? He might mean for you to go to the bottom, you know. But would you mind going to the bottom with Him looking at you? Floating on the sea of your troubles, see's He not your little boat now tossed with the waves? You are now as safe in your troubles as the disciples were. If you would only ask what God would have you do, you would find your confidence growing."
"The ship will go where the wind will take it, for He made the wind as well as the ship."
George MacDonald - The Parrish Papers

"the waves and winds STILL know His name" hymn -Be Still My Soul

"We may make bad choices and have poor judgment, but the ultimate consequence is controlled by a God whose sovereignty nothing has power to limit." This is the meaning of "all -powerful" and I can have peace knowing my life belongs to Him.

Happy Ressurection Day

Also see one of my previous posts.

Some Good Down Syndrome Videos

Good Friday

April Fools Day

There doesn't seem to be any well documented facts about how this day became a day for foolishness, but many conjectures. One being the turn of the seasons creates a lightheartedness, causing people to be silly and wanting to play pranks. Another is that when the Gregorian calendar replaced the Julian calendar, New Years Day changed from April 1st to January 1st. The people who refused or didn't know of the change were called fools.
I talked a little about Spring Fever in a post from 2008. I don't know why people say that many hearts turn to love in Spring, but maybe for some this day is to tease those who become fools for love.

Americans condemn Obama's rudeness, reach out to Israel

I think he's trying to show his Muslim friends that he's more on their side. You tread on dangerous ground when you tread on Israel.





Americans condemn Obama's rudeness, reach out to Israel

God Is Still In Control

The future of our health care has just become scary, "But God......."

This is my Father's world. O let me ne'er forget
That though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet.

Socialized medicine has meant rationed care and lack of innovation. Small wonder Canadians are looking to the market...read more

I just heard on the news that so far 60 hospitals across the country scheduled to be built have been abandoned and many doctors are beginning to leave their profession.

There are so many similar stories.

Good Songs

I haven't posted in so long so I at least want to put up a song we sang at church