Michigan Family Pre-Christmas Visit

We took a few days to run up to Michigan to visit my family a few days before Christmas since Steve managed to actually get this time for one of his vacation weeks..

Besides my parents, this also included seeing my brother, sister, niece and her husband.

We don't often get to see them around the holidays so it was a special treat.

Mom's Nursing Home Christmas Party

The Alzheimer's unit sponsored a Christmas dinner for clients and their family.


There was plenty of food and gifts, songs, and cute children to give the clients lots of joy.


Barb, Stevie and I had a memorable time with mom. As for mom, she forgot about it the next day,


It was worth seeing the joy on her face, because she thought it was all for her birthday, which is 2 weeks later.

Being the good hostess, she had to play the social butterfly and visit each client and visitor to ask them if they were having a good time.

Thanksgiving 2010

Deliverance and Josh invited us downstairs to their place for Thanksgiving dinner, and Josh's brother Chris was there too.

It is the first year they have their own completed kitchen. I welcomed it gladly, since it would mean a lot less cleaning up for me.

I decided to try a recipe I found on line for sausage stuffed mushroom caps. They went over very well.

Deliverance's chipotle-augratin potatoes are always a big hit, as well as her sweet potato casserole with pecan praline topping, and pumpkin cheesecake.
Sooo easy to partake in the traditional Thanksgiving over-indulging.


It was also too difficult to choose just one of the yummy desserts, so I allowed Stevie to have a sample of each one. His favorite course.

Survival of the Fittest Flower

Petunias are pretty hearty. When I forget to water my flowers for a few days in a heat wave, most of them don't survive, but after a while my petunias will make a comeback.


When I don't dead-head them they tend to loose all thier leaves and die back, but if I cut them back short they may take a month but will come back to their former glory.

Our first real snow that stuck around for a few days before the weather warmed up again, snuffed out my other flowers for the rest of the year, but this amazing pot of petunias don't seem to be phased a bit.

Nursing Home Halloween Party

If Steve's mom leaves the Alzheimer's unit someone has to be with her.
Her unit was having a little celebration but more fun was to be had where the singer and visiting children were.

So Steve, Stevie and I helped mom attend the party in the larger common dining room.

She loved watching the little ones go trick-or-treating from table to table where the patients could give them something from the bowls of candy on each table, and then watch them dance to the songs the visiting singer sang throughout the hour.


She wanted to hang on to the cat ear headband I made for her costume. The aids said she played with it for days, putting them on her as well as any client who would let her put it on them.

9th Anniversary

So proud of our kids Deliverance and Josh. (and Stevie too of course, but it's not his anniversary)

They have been through a lot of hardship and experienced a lot of blessings packed into the 9 short years they have been husband and wife.
A lot more than Steve and I probably ever have.

The Lord has blessed us by giving us them.

Stephen's 27th

Of course he had to have a double fudge cake with chocolate ice cream.

He asked for balloons and streamers this time.



He still gets a kick out of the trick candles that re-light themselves.







Enough super soaker water guns to have a war.





Power Ranger multi-function weapon.






Deliverance & Josh took him to see the play Pinocchio.

Brookfield Zoo With Friends

I haven't been to one of the Chicago zoo's for many years, so when my friends Linda and Pat wanted somewhere to go together that's what we decided on.


A zoo is about the only place you can get a good look at God's wonderful creations that live in other parts of the world that we will probably never experience. I don't like animals to be caged, but these all had nice habitats to roam around in.

Despite it being a scorcher of a day, we had a good time seeing as much as we could before the heat would stop us. So we cheated and took the trolley around a lot of the areas and then picked out a few areas to take a closer look at, including the dolphin show.

While we ate a late lunch in the shade, the younger of the 4 of us, Stevie and Linda, went to a couple of the exhibits that Pat and I weren't up to pushing ourselves to, before we made the trek out to the car and head home before rush hour.

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