Friday Fave Five - 11/4/11

It's been too long since I've linked up with Susanne's Friday Fave Five. I always enjoy reading other people's lists but I have not done my own in quite some time. But I am going to try to join in again and intentionally state five things that I am so very thankful for:





1) Tuesday was my birthday and I gave myself the birthday gift of not going to work that day. Instead I spent the entire day in my sewing room working on Christmas gifts. It was like medicine for my soul I'm telling you! What a gift to spend the whole day with fabric and thread and sissors and patterns. It doesn't get much better than that!



2) Watching the weather turn from summer to fall, literally over night. Our leaves were still green and firmly attached to the trees last week and this week they are brown and blowing all over the place! Nature is fascinating and the God who created it all - even more so!



3) For my birthday my sweet family pitched in together and bought me a new recliner/rocker for my very own! And it is leather! Never have I had a chair so nice. It is so comfortable and the perfect chair to sit in during the evenings as I knit or read.



4) I have traveled quite a bit this last month and one thing that was impressed upon me is how thankful I am for the place that I live. It is peaceful and spacious. It is a good place to be.

5) Clearance sales. Last spring I was in a department store and found a rack of sweaters for $4! I bought a few and just this week it has been cold enough to wear them. They are warm, snuggly and really pretty. I love getting a good deal!

If you would like to participate in Friday Fave Five, click over to Living to Tell the Story and share what has been special to you this week.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

When I was a young mother I wanted nothing more than to be a stay at home mom. But when you marry a student, a studying-for-the-ministry student at that, the odds of being a single income family are slim. Very slim indeed. And so for the most part it never really worked out for me to be a stay at home mom. We were creative in my income earning endeavors. I worked nights. I had an in-home crafting business. I worked days and worked my hours around my husbands hours so in all those years we only had a daycare provider for just a few months. Mostly, as Dr. Laura used to say - my husband and I were our kids parents. But in my heart of hearts, I didn't want to go to work - I just wanted to be a mom. And I always said if I couldn't be a stay at home mom then someday, SOMEDAY I was going to be a stay at home grandmother.

I never realized how prophetic those words would become.

The last 12 years I have been working at the university that all of my daughters have attended and graduated from. Since Jess will be graduating in May it has made me realize that I now have some options.

And who doesn't like options?

My two daughters, who are working mama's, have realized I have options as well. And they have begged politely asked me to quit my job and help them take care of their babies since they have to work outside the home for this season in time. How I wish I could have had my mother looking out for my babies in those early years - it would have been so comforting to me.

The whole thought of having such an important role in my grandbabies lives fills me with joy and wonderment and in some ways I feel as though "the years the locusts have eaten are being restored to me". Not in the sense that I get to be a mother again, but that I get to enjoy this newest season of my life to the fullest in a way that will be most fulfilling and satisfying to me. I see it as a gift. An opportunity to invest myself completely in the lives of four little ones who have so many gifts and abilities and possibilities to offer our world. They are so amazing!

So, mid-January I will be hanging up my "Career woman" hat for good (I can't believe I am typing those words!) and putting on my Grandmother hat - on a 40 hour a week basis! I am so happy about this.

Do I expect it to be easy? No

Do I expect to be exhausted? Yes

Do I worry if I can do a good enough job? Yes

Have a wondered what I am getting myself into? A little

But overall, I have a peace about it. I have so many plans and ideas I can't wait to try out. I am putting together a little pre-school program for my 3 year olds and am working out a structured schedule to keep every day. I am a strong proponent of stucture and believe with four little ones it will be the key to success! I look so forward to being in their little lives so much of the time. This just feels like a natural progression for me and I couldn't be more thrilled about it.

The future is looking very, very happy to me!

This and That

I have no idea where October has gone. September either for that matter. And the scary thing is that soon we will be turning the page to November and then Christmas is all but upon us. Yikes, I am not ready.

After a very enjoyable summer I am not at all ready to think about winter. Fall is usually my very favorite season of the year but this year all it makes me think of is winter - and I'm just not ready to face it. And we don't even have hard winters. But I'm not ready to give up dinners on the patio, fresh air through screen doors and even mowing the lawn. We have started the fireplace the last couple of mornings as we read our Bibles and drink our coffee. But the afternoons are lovely and we especially appreciate taking our walks in the late afternoon.

I have been a bit of a travel bug lately. In one month I have taken three trips: a work trip to San Diego, a work trip with my husband to the mountains, and I just returned from a week in New York City and Washington DC, the highlight of the trip being that I was able to spend three whole days with my NYC daughter. We had such a great time together and she loved showing off her city. My mother and sister went along so we had a real girls week together - it was so much fun. I have vowed however, never to return to Washington DC unless my husband goes with me. He loves history as much as I and it was impossible to enjoy everything fully knowing how much he would have loved it as well. I read the book "Killing Lincoln" and finished it just in time to tour Ford's Theater. The book is a fascinating read and it was perfect to read it at just the same time I visited the sites. I highly recommend it - the writing is superb and you feel like you are actually there observing all the events of that terrible night.

Today we all went to the Pumpkin Patch! I have been looking forward to doing this all year. There is a local farm that hosts a spectacular family/kid friendly event every year and it is so awesome. There are rides, activities, a petting zoo, pony rides, concessions and we always end the day riding a hay wagon out to the pumpkin field to pick out a pumpkin. This is a family tradition for sure!

At the time we took this photo a little barrel train was trucking by and as you can see it captured the kids attention!

I finally put my fall decorations out - they are my favorite but with all my traveling this year I haven't found a minute to spare. I love the colors and warm, cozy feeling they provide. Lots of candles and pumpkins and fall flowers make for a comfortable, pleasant home.

After much discussion my husband and I made a decision to downsize a bit. My husband had a large and very fancy diesel pick-up truck that he really enjoyed. And although we could afford it, we began to discuss the wisdom in having something we didn't really need and wondered if it was a wise way to use our resources. The upkeep and maintenance of the vehicle was quite large - just changing the oil was an enormous amount of money. We had to keep a separate savings account to save money for when we needed to buy new tires for it. As we talked about it we began to realize that just because we could have something so nice it didn't mean we should. So he sold it and with the money we paid off the loan and bought a smaller, simpler pick-up. It is in very nice condition, it is very comfortable and it looks nice. It will be much less expensive to maintain and best of all it is not a diesel - a real perk to both of us. Neither of us liked the noise or ride of the big fancy truck. We feel like we have made a very smart decision and when you consider the payment, insurance and maintenance money we are saving we have actually given ourselves a very nice raise. A real blessing came in that we sold it to a SouthWest airline pilot. In addition to the price he paid he also gave us 8 free airline tickets to fly anywhere SouthWest flies. We also discovered they plan to start flying to Hawaii just in time for our 35th wedding anniversary! You can guess how two of the tickets will be used! We are feeling like we made a very wise decision and we couldn't be happier with our older, simpler vehicle.

My knitting needles have been working overtime as I have begun making Christmas gifts. We are having mostly a handmade Christmas this year. I am knitting sock monkey hats for all by grandbabies and also a special scarf for my mother-in-law. It is one that I have already made for myself and she loved it and asked me to make her one. I also have a couple of secret projects going.

Right now I am watching Boise State playing Air Force on the blue turf. I'm trying hard not to be jealous that my son-in-law is actually there! What a perfect fall afternoon to be at a game. And we are watching the World Series with great interest. My husband grew up in the St. Louis area and has been a Cardinal's fan all his life. So we are cheering them on and it has been quite fun. Go Card's!!!

Well, that about sums about the comings and goings around here. Enjoy the weekend and give thanks for all the blessings He bestows!

No Words Needed

What Have I Been Up To?

As the days of summer quickly fade into days of autumn, I find myself thinking of cozy, comforting things. It's not that we aren't still having 90 degree plus days, it's just that the evenings cool off so nicely and we wake up to 45 or 50 degree weather in the mornings. There is a definite crispness in the air. Even 90 degrees in the shade is pleasant and sweet. Although I am not ready to let go of summer yet, and I am praying for a long, warm fall, it is a natural turning of nature and it makes me yearn for apple crips and crunchy leaves. So it has been somewhat of a natural occurance that I have been spending time in my sewing room working on things made of flannel and muslin and quilting thread. Things that will turn into Christmas gifts and Christmas ornaments. I have never started this early before and I am excited about my plans. I would love to share them here - but I can't. Secrets, you know.

And the best part about fall is that football is here again! We got together and enjoyed the first Boise State game as a family - all except for my son-in-law Brad, who actually got to go to Atlanta and BE at the game. Lucky dog! But we had a great time as you can see:

They are all just so scrumptious! We were all dressed in our BSU gear - it was so much fun!

(I'm sorry these pictures are so small. We are currently without a camera and it makes me so sad. These were taken with my phone.)

All football fans everywhere probably have heard of the Boise State conundrum. We keep winning and winning and winning. We have such an awesome team. Our quarterback, Kellen Moore is a fine young man of integrity and he is just so darned talented. Our Coach Pete is beloved and admired by everyone and he gets many, many offers to coach bigger schools. But he loves Boise and his family loves Boise and thankfully it sounds like he is ours for some time. But even though we keep winning and have moved to a bit of a bigger conference, ' we still don't get no respect'. When we won Georgia this last weekend (our first SEC win) we hear the same old excuse: we don't have strength of schedule, we couldn't play big schools every week. Blah, blah, blah. How we would love to - we just can't find anybody willing to play us. So we will keep on doing what Coach Pete says, just keep doing the right things and good things will happen to us.

So with working and sewing and knitting and cooking and grandbabies and reading and football - well, now you know what I've been busy with. One thing I haven't been busy with is blogging and it is perplexing to me. There was a time when I blogged several times a week - it seems I just had so much to say. I still love blogs and read them often. But my words, well, it seems harder and harder to capture, them, formulate them and put them down on a computer screen. I'm not giving up though. I don't even know if anybody reads anymore - but that's okay. Life goes on. I will still check in from time to time to put memories and thoughts down that I can refer to again. Life is good and full and happy. Just the way it should be.

Grandma Names - Revisited

I have been a grandmother now for just over three years. What a fun and joyful ride it has been. You always hear about how wonderful it is going to be, but sweet mercy, there is no understanding it until you experience it.

Back in 2008 when we were expecting our first grandboy, Tyler, I was mulling over what I wanted my grandma "name" to be. In my nearly 500 posts of blogging it has been my most searched and most read post. I still get emails asking me what name I went with.

I'm not suprised that this is such a popular topic. It is very serious. The grandma name you choose will be yours the rest of your life and it holds much love, significance and reverence when it crosses a little ones lips. It is a connection of hearts - one heart with just a few beats and the other with lots more mileage. It is a name that thrills you like nothing else the first time you hear it and indeed, every time after.

I knew I didn't want to have the traditional name "grandma". My grandchildren have many grandparents in their lives - blood and adopted. I wanted a name no one else would have and would set me apart so there would never be any confusion about who I was. Some people suggested I just go with Grandma Robin - which would work but I just didn't feel comfortable with having my grandchildren using my first name. Too formal I guess. Some folks told me to let my grandson pick my name out - nope, too impatient for that.

I ended up choosing "Mia". To me it sounded close to mama - my favorite name ever. It also was short and simple. I love the way it sounds. It is unique and special and everything I wanted. My husband is Poppa - although Ava Claire calls him Poppy more often than not. We are Poppa and Mia and we love feeling the sweet, close connection those special names imply.

I was a bit taken aback at the strong feelings people have about grandparent names. Some people just tell you to your face that it is "stupid" to have a name other than grandma or grandpa. Really? Some people refuse to use your grandparent name - that's okay. Other people love it and totally get it. Most often those are the people who can't wait to be grandparents. My grandkids are at the age where they are learning that grandparents are the parents of their parents and it's so fun to watch the confusion turn to understanding in their little minds. There is not a single doubt that they know us as their grandparents.

Here is a fun little quiz to help you decide what your grandma name should be. Click here and take the quiz and then let me know what it said. It's a good thing to start pondering this most special name early - and it's really the only time in your life you get to choose your own name!

Summer Daze

I don't think I could possibly love summer more than I already do. Dark doesn't come until after 10 p.m. and the days still aren't long enough to do all I want to do. The hobbies and activities of short, cold days are put aside and gardening, walking, enjoying the patio, filling the pool for the grandbabies, and watching the grass grow fills their place. Flowers, freshly mowed grass and hungry little goldfinches flitting around their feeder soothes my soul in ways nothing else can. I find myself occasionally thinking ahead to the cold and it makes me anxious so I cast those thoughts aside and decide to deal with them later. It's much to nice outside to let anything discourage me.

Our summer has been lovely. At first I didn't think it would ever get here. We had the coolest, wettest spring and early June - very un-desert like. But around the first of July it began to warm up and it has been perfect ever since. Since we enjoy all our free time in the back yard, we re-designed the front yard beds to be shrub only and moved all the flowers that require care to the back yard. It makes much more sense. The front yard maintains itself and I can be weeding and watering in the back where everyone else is usually congregated. It is also much more private and I have been known to be out watering in my nightgown with cup of coffee in hand. Pure bliss!

We took a wonderful two week vacation. We took a road trip and traveled across Idaho, Montana, the Dakota's and Wyoming. So much fun history to discover. So much beauty. There was a spot in South Dakota where I looked to the east and saw endless prairie, (I am such a prairie girl at heart), but when I looked to the west I saw hills and pine trees. I told my husband this would be the perfect spot to live because we would both be able to see what we love the most. Two weeks in a small car together with our little dog Willow was so much fun and at the end when we pulled in the driveway we looked at each other and said, "We should just back up and do that all over again." I think that's a sure sign it was a good vacation.

The babies are growing faster than the weeds. Tyler turned three years old. He is full of mischief, still thinks his poppa is the best thing ever, loves any sport and he totally melts my heart. His little brother Aiden is going to be one next month. He is the happiest little boy ever and in all the ways is brother is boisterous and loud he is observant and sweet. They got to go on a summer trip to San Diego and they loved the beach. Is there anything cuter than babies on a beach?













Sweet Ava Claire is my sweet and only little granddaughter. She often says to me "You are my GrandMudder". I say "Yes, and your are my granddaughter." She smiles and says, "I love you GrandMudder." And then my heart just turns into a puddle of mush and I give her anything she wants! LOL! I LOVE this picture of her - she was upset because she couldn't have any candy. Someone said "I would never give her candy if she looked like that"!


And sweet Ryan is already 4 months old. He has the biggest smile and the most beautiful eyes. He is at the age that he wants to do so much that his little body can't do yet so he gets frustrated. What a joy he is and he loves his big sister so much.




So, you see, life has been very good this summer. Lots of family time and traveling time and good old rest for the soul time. I'll be more regular at blogging again when the leaves begin to fall and the breeze turns cold. Until then know that I am good and well and enjoying all the gifts that God has given me!

60 Quick Baby Knits - A Review

I recently bought a copy of 60 Quick Baby Knits featuring Cascade 220 Superwash yarn. I thought it would be fun to share a review of this book.

60 Quick Baby Knits is exactly what the title implies. The book includes 60 patterns of baby items that can be knit fairly quickly and easily. Every pattern is photographed beautifully in high quality photos enabling the knitter to see the front and many times the back of each item. The quality of the photographs is very good - the stitch definition of each piece is clear and very visible.

I like the idea that every pattern in the book is knit up in Cascade 220 Superwash yarn. This is a quality wool yarn that has been treated so that it does not felt or shrink. It is machine washable and dryable which in my opinion, is very important if you are knitting something for a baby. Cascade 220 Superwash is available in many bright and fun colors and the price is very reasonable.

I paid $12 for my copy. Typically I don't buy pattern books because there is usually only one or two patterns I would be interested in actually knitting and I cannot justify the price of a whole book for that. However, there are about 25 patterns in this book that I would like to knit and probably about 10 that I will knit. That makes the price per pattern very reasonable.

The patterns are fun and some of them are just unique enough to grab my attention. I especially like the sheep hat which features the head and front legs of a sheep on the front of the hat and the tail and back legs on the back of the hat. There is also a sweet Ruffled Cloche flapper style hat that I can see on my little granddaughter. I also especially like the fact that there are several boy patterns that are clever, colorful and they look fun to knit. It is hard to find cute little boy knitting patterns and I have marked about 5 in this book alone that I can picture myself knitting for my little grandsons. Among those is a very cute cabled fisherman sweater and a tennis vest.

I also like that there are several blanket patterns in this book. I have knit a few blankets for my grandbabies and my daughters have become big fans of knitted baby blankets. They are soft, warm, and they stretch and wrap around baby in a very snuggle-y fashion. Baby blankets knit up fairly quickly, especially with a worsted weight yarn. They make great gifts for those special babies in your life. This book contains patterns for baby blankets that have unique shapes - not just the typical square or rectangle blanket.

This book means what it says when it says Baby knits. Most patterns only go up to a size 18 months and a couple are written up to 24 months. I would have liked it to up to toddler sizes but it does not. If I were a more confident knitter I could try revising the patterns - but I am not there yet!

Overall, this book was well worth it's money. Each pattern is rated easy, intermediate, or experienced and the back of the book contains a small legend of abbreviations and stitch diagrams. The information is not extensive by any means. There is an 8 inch ruler on the back cover which I think is very handy.

This book can be purchased at Amazon or Barnes and Noble. Go ahead and get a copy - I think you will find a lot of useful and fun patterns for your knitting pleasure.

Cleaning House

So the plan for today was that I was going to get some yardwork done. I needed to clean up my flower beds and finally plant some flowers. Our weather has been so bi-polar this year. We have had so much wind and rain and even snow. It's been very strange. So I was all set to weed and hoe and clean up and then finally plant a couple of tomato plants and some multi-colored flowers.

And then Ava Claire showed up. And she had other plans. She was playing in the playhouse and I was pulling weeds and it wasn't too long before she wanted me to help her do a little spring cleaning.

"Mia, wanna' help me clean!" Well of course I do sweet girl~




So I brought out some warm, soapy water and we got busy washing the kitchen down and cleaning up all the dishes.



While we washed dishes Ava said things like "So how is your day going Mia?" And "My day is going good Mia." She is such a big talker!

When we got it all clean we sat down for tea and sandwiches.


My flower beds didn't look much better at the end of the day but there is always tomorrow. And I must say I have never enjoyed doing the dishes more!

Hello Again, Hello

So what have I been up to lately???

Being a grandmother to my four little sweeties! I love being with them - they are growing so fast.

Lots and lots of knitting. I am working on my first adult sized sweater right now. I have more projects in mind than I will ever be able to complete. I love that!

We just finished One Thousand Gifts in our Ladies' Bible Study. As I have mentioned, that book has had a profound impact on my life. I have grown so much through it.

I had a wonderful, unexpected visit from my daughter Tara over Mother's Day weekend. Our family was able to get away to the mountains for a couple of days and it was so wonderful.


Mostly I have just been taking life a day at a time. Marking off events and responsibilities and appointments as they come and go, planning our summer vacation, waiting for the weather to warm up for more than two days in a row and generally just trying to slow the days down.

It's good to be back.

Happy Birthday Ryan Craig!

My fourth grandbaby, my third grandson. I already love him to the moon and back. God has blessed our family yet again. We are happy, happy, happy. . . . .

This Lent Thing

Ah, this lent thing.

It's hard.

Really hard.

I keep slipping. I forget. I get frustrated. I have even had someone close to me laugh at me for doing it. "What? We don't practice lent. What in the world? Why are you doing that? I guess next you are going to have a black X on your forehead." When I tried to explain - "cricket's chirping". While I know the words were not meant to wound, I allowed them to slice clean and deep. It hurt.

This person was right. Our church background had not observed lent in the past. We are not a liturgical church. But lately, in my quest for renewal, I have had such a strong desire to draw closer to God and what I understood of Lent seemed like a good way to do that. I wanted to deny myself of something to remind me of what He gave for me. I wanted to enter into a sacred commitment that would cause me to depend on Him more. I wanted to do something that required more than what I normally give. I wasn't really sure what to expect.

But I know I didn't expect I would fail so soon.

I failed on the second day. What I had given up, what I had determined to sacrifice for 40 days, what I had promised to deny myself of in order to draw closer to God, well, I forgot. I forgot. On the second day I forgot all about it.

As I have been reading through my Bible in a year plan, I have spent the last several weeks in Leviticus and Numbers. Boring. Slow, Redundant. Legalism to the nth degree. So many laws to keep. So many rules. So much blood. So much sacrifice. So many harsh consequences for sin - intentional sin and unintentional sin. The Israelite people weren't allowed to forget the law. Many times as I have read the daily scripture allotment (without skipping any words), I have thought to myself: I am so glad I didn't live back then. I am so glad I don't have to try to keep all those rules. I couldn't do it. Are you kidding? I now know that by day two in the wilderness I would most likely have already been struck dead.

And that was when I realized that is precisely the point. I can't do it. I can't keep the law perfectly. Nobody can. We need a Savior. We need grace. We need the sacrificial Lamb that takes away all the sin in the world. We need an advocate, One who willingly paid the price of all the sin, all the wrong, all the forgetting. He did it for me. I am off the hook. I am saved by grace and grace alone! I am not going to be judged because I forgot a law. I don't have to keep a tally of all the rules. My relationship with Jesus is all I need. What a sweet relief! What a debt of gratitude I owe.

Practicing Lent is teaching me how inadequate I am and how adequate He is. It is teaching me how much Jesus loves me.

Oh this Lent thing. It is hard.

But it is good.

Checkin' In

Just checkin' in to say all is well.

I am. . . . .

. . . . enjoying the lent season. Not coming from a liturgical background, I am studying and delighting in the reach meaning of all the symbolism. Loving it!

. . . . knitting, knitting, knitting. I truly am obsessed:

. . . . longing for summer. I would just as soon skip spring. It is bipolar.

. . . . still memorizing scripture. This time is Hebrews 12:2. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. Who for the joy set before Him, endured the cross, scorning its shame and sat down on the right hand of the throne of God. I am so humbled knowing that I was that joy. And so were you.

. . . . Reading and studying One Thousand Gifts. I cannot say enough about this book and what it is doing in my heart. Saying too much would only minimize it. You need to read it. Getting a library copy will not do. This is a book that requires highlighting and underlining and commenting. Trust me.

. . . .Amazed at how long and deep my prayer list is. It seems like suddenly there is crisis and hardship all around me. I am praying, praying praying for my dear friends and loved ones.

. . . . Loving my sweet grandbabies. What a gift and a blessing they are. Tyler and Ava Claire are now 2 1/2 and continue to be the best of friends. I love how much they are talking. Spending time with them is such a privilege and a blessing. Sweet Aiden is 6 months and is the happiest little baby ever. He snuggles and cuddles and smiles all the time.

. . . . Waiting patiently for our little Ryan Craig to arrive on the scene. His mama is sooooo tired and weary. He is due on the 21st and I cannot wait to hold him in my arms. Of course I have been working on some special things just for him:

. . . . Trying to get back into the habit of walking. Cold and nasty weather invaded my routine and why oh why is it so hard to get back into a good habit?

. . . . Wondering how high the price of gas is going to get. I drive a 'fer piece to work, and folks, this is getting just a bit ridiculous!

. . . .I dug my guitar out of my closet and have very sore fingers as I practice some chords over and over again. I am not musically inclined, and although I have had some music lessons I will never be good enough to perform for anyone. Except maybe my grandbabies :)

. . . . Hoping to work out in the yard tomorrow. The weather is supposed to be nice and I think it will be amazing to rake and clean and get ready for planting!

That's just a bit of what I have been up to. Happy Weekend!

Prayer

This morning I woke up in a fetal position, words flowing through my mind. Somewhere in the place between sleep and awake I knew I was praying. As words and phrases began to make sense I became conscious that I was deep in prayer for someone I love. I opened my eyes and I felt so awed that God is so approachable even in sleep. I had gone to bed with someone heavy on my heart and my heart was taking its' burden to the only Place it knew to go. I wondered how long I had prayed.

Sunday morning in the worship service I was so blessed during our corporate prayer time as children of all ages spontaneously went forward to pray at our church altars. Children. I love being a part of a church that allows children to sense God's presence in the service. No one prompted them. No one encouraged them. They simply wanted or needed to talk to God. So they did. Many of them. One young boy laid his hand on his friends shoulder. Tears fell. My own. And I felt His presence. I read this morning in my daily Bible reading that Jesus wants the children to come to Him. He wants them. They want Him.

Jesus loves me, this I know.

To love a God who loves us so intensely takes my breath away sometimes.

San Diego

So last week I got to do something I don't normally do. My daughter has been planning a trip to southern California to attend her BFF's baby shower. She planned to take her two little boys along. So I did what any normal grandchild lovin' grandmother would do. I volunteered to go and be the nanny! It took her approximately 2.2 seconds to take me up on the offer.

So on Wednesday evening we arrived at the airport. She and I, two little boys, a stroller, two carseats and four pieces of luggage. We were going to be gone for three days.

I wish I would have taken a picture - I'm sure we were quite the sight!

Anyway, we flew to San Diego. Let me just say that San Diego in February is quite delightful. I couldn't get over the green-ness of everything. Flowers were actually in full bloom in all the yards and landscaping. The weather was gorgeous.

I have always loved San Diego and I think somehow, someway, I really am a San Diego girl at heart. I just feel so happy there.

We stayed at Michelle's friends' house that was about a 4 block walk from the beach. So the next morning we loaded up the boys in the stroller, stopped at a Starbucks on the way, and headed to the water. Michelle sat with baby Aiden in the stroller and I took Tyler's hand to go explore the water. We kicked off our shoes, rolled up our pants and headed to the water. At first we just waded around in the waves getting used to it. Tyler was excited, yet a bit nervous. Suddenly out of nowhere a rogue wave came at us and knocked us both down. We were completely drenched! In my younger days as a mother I probably would have been a little uptight about it. Now we are all wet. What are we going to do now? The awesome thing about being a grandmother is you realize what is really important and what is not. We laughed and I thought "Oh well - isn't this what oceans are for?" And we played and we played and we played. Finally, I traded places with Michelle so she could enjoy her son playing in the ocean waves. It was such an awesome time.

We rinsed off and enjoyed breakfast in a little beachside cafe. What a perfect day. We had a great time and our three days flew by.

Another great thing that seemed to happen on this trip was regarding my struggle with flying. I did not take any medication. That wouldn't have made any sense as I was there to help with the kids. If I had medicated Michelle would have had three of us on her hands. I had nervous moments on the way there but overall did okay. On the way back we made three stops. On the third take-off, we were about half way in the flight when I realized we had taken off and I hadn't really noticed! I don't know if I was just so tired or if I am finally getting the hang of this - but I was elated! One thing I have learned is that knitting on the plane helps me tremendously.

Now that we are home, it has snowed, hailed and had wind that takes your breath away. Our three day get away is just a memory tucked away. I'm back to work and life's busy schedule. Summer seems a long way off.

San Diego - I'm coming back again, someday soon. I promise!

My Garden

I seated my patient as comfortably as possible in the hard, leather chair. She was elderly and long past nervousness in a dental office. I adjusted her head rest, gave her a pillow to snuggle into her middle and sat down to make small talk with her as we waited for the dentist to come in and begin the scheduled extraction.

We chatted and our conversation soon settled on her hobby of gardening. She told me of the many specimens of flowers she grew. "I love gardening", I told her, "I'm just not very good at it. I can't get flowers to grow."

She gazed at me for a minute and then in a non-accusing, matter of fact manner, she simply said,

"Well then, you don't really love gardening."

And our conversation was interrupted by the arrival of the doctor and we carried on with her scheduled dental work.

But her words stayed with me All these many years later her words have stayed with me. And I have to admit she was right. I love the idea of gardening. I love the results of gardening. I love the look of a beautiful garden. But the truth is

I don't love it enough to spend the hours of work and dedication it requires to have a stunningly beautiful garden.

That simple admonition has served me well over the years. Every time I consider a new hobby or adding a new routine to my life I ask myself how much I really think I am going to love it. Am I really ready to invest the time, the money, the dedication it will require. Most often the answer is no, not really.

Recently it has occurred to me that this same piece of advice pertains to my spiritual life as well. How much do I really want to be close to God? How much do I really long for His presence in my life? How serious am I about wanting to know Him more?

For many years my life verse has been Jeremiah 29:11. You probably can recite it by heart - everyone loves it. "For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord. Plans to prosper you, not to harm you. Plans to give you a hope and a future". It's a great promise and many times in my life I have depended on it like a life preserver on a crazy, wild ocean. There is a verse that follows it that we don't quote quite so often:

"When you seek me you will find me, when you seek me with all of your heart."

Last year I joined many others in choosing a word to live by for the year. I lamented that my word for the year failed miserably. For some reason I guess I thought I would just pick a word and the mantle of it would fall on me. Like gardening, I expected beautiful results with not much effort on my part.

This year I entered into the new year tired, discouraged and worn out. I felt a measure of general unhappiness and dissatisfaction that overshadowed my days. I kept thinking I needed a change in my life - a change in location, a change in job, a change in friends - just a change in something, anything. The word renew was constantly on my mind and in my heart. I wanted renewal in my life. I longed for it. I began to realize it wasn't really change I desired so desperately, it was renewal. And suddenly I knew in my spirit that I needed to concentrate on renewal this year. So I claimed the word as mine for 2011.

But this time I did it differently. I didn't just sit waiting for God to pour some renewal over my head because I had been so kind enough to ask for it. I chose instead, to be an active participant in this journey. I chose to seek him with all of my heart, the best way I knew how. I chose some new behaviors in my life.

First of all, I chose to spend more time in His Word. Instead of just sporadic Bible reading I chose a regimented Bible In A Year program. I downloaded a translation that was new to me - The New Living Translation - on to my Kindle. I don't know if it's the Kindle, the fresh new translation or both - but this is working for me. I haven't missed a day and I look forward to each days reading.

Next, I joined Beth Moore's Siesta Scripture challenge. I have joined over 9000 other women in memorizing a new scripture every two weeks. My first scripture was easy to choose - I want to memorize scripture that helps me with the way I think and process things. I chose Phillipians 4:4-9. I focus on the verse that tells me to think about whatever things are true. My mind has a way of worrying about every single angle of an issue and then when that gets old, I venture into the land of "what if's". Things that aren't necessarily true. This scripture reminds me to stay centered on what is true. What is noble. What is right. What is right. What is pure. What is lovely. I love it! Memorization is not easy or fun for me. But like any other discipline it is good for me. My verse this time is perfect: "Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day." Oh yes I am!

I am participating in Bloom Book Club's book club and we are reading Ann Voskamp's book - One Thousand Gifts - A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are. This is a most remarkable book and I can tell you that I have been reading chapter one all week. I mean I have read chapter one every day this week. It is so beautifully written and so full of profound thoughts - I just keep re-reading it so that I don't miss out on anything. I'm not sure when I will make it to chapter two. I don't really care. I don't want to miss a word of the message God is sharing with me.

I know that God is speaking to me because everything I am reading, everything I am memorizing, everything I am hearing has the same message to me. Every single thing. And in this process, in this manner that I am seeking Him with my whole heart - guess what? He is keeping His promise and I am beginning to feel the lapping of Renewal on the edges of my heart. I am sensing His presence as I seek Him. I am tasting the salt of change in the air of the fresh breezes that have started rustling by me. I find myself holding my breath as I anticipate what this year is going to hold for God and me.

This spiritual gardening project I have taken on is going to harvest much different results than the garden in my back yard. I know this because I have made the conscious choice to LOVE it with everything in me. I desire His presence in my life so much that I am willing to do whatever it is I need to do to love Him with my whole heart. I'm not so naive as to believe I won't have to be dealing with some nasty insects and weeds along the way. But I am prepared. I am ready.

And I hope you check in along the way to see some beautiful bouquets.

Catching Up

Life has returned to it's normal, busy pace. I am deciding I like January. There is something to be said for routine, for days that are filled with the normal things of a regular life. Back to work, a new Bible Study at church, kids back in school and a home that has been undecorated and cleaned are all things that just feel good and comfortable.

I got a new "smart phone". I have been eligible for an upgrade for quite a long time and was waiting for my phone service to come out with the iP[hone]. But my battery would no longer hold a charge so I went in to the store a month ago to ask how much longer I would have to wait for the iP[hone}. "Oh", they said, "a long time". And they talked me into a phone that is really a computer - a smart phone. Then, as we all know now, the long time was given a date. February 10. Figures. But I love my new phone. It is smarter than I am! It has so many fun features and so many useful features. For instance, there is an app called Google Sky. You point the phone at the sky and it names the constellations! Amazing. It has a knitting counter on it, a bar-code scanner that you can use to scan a price on something in the store and it will tell you where you can buy the same item cheaper. My favorite feature is google calendar. I enter my appointments and every morning I get an email on my phone with my daily schedule! I absolutely love it. I have never been the kind of person to live by a calendar - mostly because I didn't want to carry one around with me. But I always have my phone and I am using the calendar every single day. I really love it! But my very favorite feature about my phone is - I CAN SEE THE NUMBERS!
That is so important when your eyes aren't as good as they used to be. And I also love that it is purple. And I love all the apps I have downloaded. I love that I read my Kindle books on it. I love that I can speak into it and it turns my words into texts. I love that I can listen to podcasts on it. Are you getting that I love my new phone? :)

I just realized that I never really blogged about Christmas. We did have some really sweet time with our kids and grandbabies. Let me just say that having two two-year olds at Christmas time is the sweetest. Here are a few pictures of our celebration.

These two have quite the fascination with their Poppa's cowboy hats. Actually, Tyler has the fascination but if he is wearing one then Ava Claire must have one too. They are the best of buddies.


I think because Tyler and Ava are so rambunctions, sweet Aiden gets left out of pictures! Here his is with cousin Kylar. Aiden has the sweetest personality and is the snuggliest little baby I have ever held. He smiles all. the. time.
This picture is of the cousins we had for Christmas this year. Our quiver is full! We do look forward to Ryan Craig being in the photo next year!


These are my girls plus one. Jess's roommate Lyndsey was with us for our Christmas this year. One of the best things about college is all the girls we get to adopt. They are modeling the neck warmers I knit for them for Christmas.

Here is a picture of me and Chuck and my brother and my sisterchick/sister-in-law.


And this is the ornament I made for my girls this year. I apologize for the poor picture. I need a new camera so bad. We all loved these sweet ornaments. They were easy peasy to make. I bought plastic balls and put some fake snow in the bottom. I cut some twigs from the bushes outside and placed a couple in each ball. Then I took a tweezer and pushed a small little cardinal into each ball with some hot glue to sit on the twig. Voila'! Very simple and very pretty.

I have the day off today so I am off to get things done. My sewing room is calling me!

Ahhhhh!! Saturday!!!

Hardly anything thrills me more than waking up on a Saturday morning, knowing the day is a blank slate - ready to be written all over with the colored chalk of my choice. Examining my choices, I choose something - no, that's not good enough, yes! -that is something I have been longing to do - I mentally make my list of choices and plan out the day.

I suppose if I were a stay-at-home wife/mom/grandmother, I wouldn't appreciate Saturdays so much.

Here is my list for today:

Reading my Bible in a year portion.

Sewing some soft flannel into little blankets for our much anticipated grandson - Ryan Craig.

Finishing the knitting of my Happily Every After Fingerless Mitts.

Taking Jess, my knitting buddy, to the fabric store to choose some buttons to finish her knitting projects.

Watching On Moonlight Bay - a netflix dvd that has been sitting on the coffee table for 6 weeks. So glad there is no late fees with Netflix!

And I think that list will carry me through this day and bring me a measure of peace and fulfillment. These kind of days always rejuvenate me and make me, well, just happy. I guess the best word to use is - RENEWED.

Happy Saturday to you!

Welcome 2011!

See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? Isaiah 43:19


Welcome 2011! I have no idea what things you hold in store. I look at the fresh, blank pages of my new calendar and wonder what will be filled on them by this day next year. Life has taught me that there will most likely be some good things and some not-s0-good things. Today, I enter into your newness fearlessly, trusting the One who orders my days. I look forward to checking back here 365 days from now to see how far the Lord and I have come together. To wonder at His faithfulness and goodness. To see how he has RENEWED my heart.

Happy New Year!

2010- My Favorite Things

The week between Christmas and New Years has always been my most favorite week of the year. The hustle and bustle of Christmas is over but yet there is still a holiday feel. Not to mention after Christmas sales! I have the week off of work this year so that makes it even better!

Being on a mission to clean up all the holiday around the house (and this includes throwing away all the sugar!) I have been thinking about what 2011 holds in store. Much like a wrapped gift sitting under the tree, I like to shake it and examine it and try to figure out what could possibly be in it.

I watched The Sound of Music a couple of nights ago - how I love that movie. And I don't own it - that needs to change! There are about 5 movies that I will watch more than once and The Sound of Music is #1 on that list - I just love it! Anyway, I was enjoying the song "My Favorite Things" and I thought it would be fun to chronicle MY favorite things of 2010.

 This book had been recommended to me for quite some time and I kept putting it off. It didn't seem like "my kind" of book. How wrong I was. This book captivated me and all these months later I am still thinking about it. I didn't want to give the book back to it's owner. So imagine my delight when I found it FREE for my Kindle. It took 60 seconds to download it and now it's mine!

 Speaking of my Kindle - definitely qualifies as a favorite thing. I got my daughter one for Christmas this year and she loves it as much as I do. I can't believe how many free books I have downloaded - just that aspect alone has paid for my Kindle many times over. Still, it makes me sad that I can't loan my books to friends - and there will always be some books that I must have in paper copy.

 For our anniversary this year my husband and I stayed in a condo in the mountains for a week and it was pure heaven. You can read about it here if you like. What a special treat it was to get away together and have a blank agenda. This will definitely become a habit for us.

 In May, my husband and I began walking three miles a day. How I complained and resisted at first. But it became a time of the day we began to look forward to and enjoyed watching the seasons change on our little route. Walking is so much more enjoyable when you have someone to share in the pain with you.

 The Pumpkin Patch was so much fun! Can you believe this was my first trip to a Pumpkin Patch? What a fun day we had and the kids are still talking about it. On Christmas, sweet Ava Claire asked to go back to the Pumpkin Patch! This will definitely become a family tradition.

 Knitting! I really got into knitting this last year and I love, love, love it!

 Podcasts! Like this one, this one, and this one! They have added so much to my commute back and forth to work and home every day. I learn so much about yarn and technique and knitting. The Knit Wits is my favorite - I am seriously laughing out loud through each episode. This husband and wife team are hysterically funny - she is the knitter and he knows zilch about yarn or anything pertaining to it. You should try them out - you will love them!

 My third grandchild joined our family in 2010. Sweet Aiden Ryan is such a little joy. Over Christmas someone in our family mentioned he had never gotten to hold him because he was such a "hot commodity". Yep, it's true.

 I got a new cell phone this year and I love it. I had been needing to up grade for some time and I went with a smart phone. It has some really great features and a couple of my favorite are voice texting (I speak into the phone and it converts it to text), a bar code scanner (when shopping I can scan a bar code and my phone will tell me where I can find the item cheaper!), and the fact that the numbers are big enough for me to see! It also has a daily devotional app, I can read my Kindle books on my phone (not sure why I would need to) and every day I seem to learn more about it.

So that's it for today. Check back tomorrow for more of My Favorite Things from 2010.