The Villain and the Cowgirl

Otherwise known as my kids. Aren't they adorable? They went to a Barn Dance and Caleb won "Best Villain" and Megan won "Best Cowgirl." (...and yes I totally "borrowed" this picture from Megan's Facebook. Isn't it great?)

We didn't even let them play with guns when they were little. Oh where did we go wrong? **SIGH**

I just love my kids! I can't wait to see them tomorrow!

Terrible Photography

When I choose pictures to put on my blog I usually pick out the best pictures I can. This time I thought I'd add a little variety. I found these "examples" of the photography skills in the family. And by skills, I mean a lack of...



Even if my son looks really goofy, I learned that it doesn't work very well to take a picture through the window .... at night .... with a flash.

Caleb took this picture of me on the cruise ship. Not only do I have a stupid look on my face, but I have a HUGE foot. (and notice the bruise on the arch of the foot - no idea where I got that!) I think that foot is bigger than your hand, Zach!

Um, I don't know.
Why was this picture taken.
Why was this picture SAVED?

Here is a freaky picture of Megan with two heads.
Hmmm...
(Ignore the strange person actually looking at the camera)





And here is previous strange person with horns.
Hmm... two headed and horned people.
This is a strange town we live in.




This is what happens when my son gets a hold of my camera. I just love his face.

Now this could be my favorite one. I must admit that I am the photographer on this one. What is it? Why it's the blue sky of Nantucket! I was actually trying to take a picture of a seagull in flight. I think I missed it. It's just off to the right... I think. Oops!

This is one of those self-portrait kind of pictures. I picked the person with the longest arm to take the picture. Didn't work so well. But we are all happy! You can barely see Pete in the corner and poor Megan is all squished! And what's with that face, Mr. Photographer?

God's Painting

Marriage is Cool

The other night I was sleeping quite soundly. Then I started having a dream. I don't remember a lot about it other than I was in a car with some other people. I was trying to drive, but I couldn't move. I got quite distraught. I guess I yelled out and next thing I knew Pete was waking me up and asking, "What do you mean you can't move? Are you dreaming?" I guess I said, "I can't move" in my sleep.

He hugged me and rubbed my back and calmed me down and I went back to sleep.

I love marriage.

Christmas Gift Idea

I'm thinking of getting this for my husband for Christmas. What do you think? Shh!!! Don't tell! ;)

Mondays...

Ever been in a Monday Funk? Me too...

Satisfy me in the morning with your unfailing love, that I may sing for joy and be glad all my days.

Megan's Shopping

Our daughter is trying to find a church home to fit into in the college town she has moved to. She thought she had found one, but decided she didn't think everything that was said from the pulpit was biblical, so she is looking some more. I think she is doing a terrific job of looking at churches through what the Bible says.

I came across this list when I was reading another blog. (I don't know the person, so I won't put a link here to her blog.)

Hallmarks of a Healthy Church

1) Stresses authority of Scripture, not special revelations

2) Leads by strong and gentle example, gentle encouragement

3) Teaches Godly relationship with larger society

4) Keeps the focus on Jesus, not on the leader

5) Maintains high standards of purity

6) No additional requirements for salvation

7) Allows members to hear from God for themselves

8) Teaches biblical principles allowing individuals to grow and make decisions for themselves

9) Fosters relationships with the larger community that are more than self-serving.

We are praying for wisdom for Megan as she makes this big decision on her own.

Iowa Countryside

I took this pictures when we were in Iowa recently and driving to my parent's house. The sky was full of dark clouds except along the horizon where the sun was shining through. The lighting was so cool I pulled out my camera to snap some pictures. I was happy that several turned out since we were zipping down the highway. (Well with-in the speed limit I'm sure! None of those auto-bahn speeds!) In the first one you can see the shadow of our car. I just love how the unharvested corn seems to glow in the sunlight.

Stayed Upon Jehovah Hearts Are Fully Blest

So we are now into the second week of November. Every year at this time I am taken back to the beginning of November 1991.

On Tuesday of that week, 20 month old Megan started acting sick. That morning Pete changed Megan's diaper and said it looked funny to him. The stuff (#2) in there was black. Didn't know what to think. My mom had come for a visit. I remember shopping and Megan throwing-up in the store. She didn't want much for supper that night.

That Wednesday morning I was getting ready for Community Bible Study. I would have stayed home, but I was scheduled to share about what the study had meant to me and what Caleb had gotten out of the children's program. Megan was so lethargic that morning she just wanted to sit in my lap. Not a normal thing for a 20 month old. I called and made an appointment at the pediatrician's for after Bible Study. My mom agreed to stay home with Megan and would meet us at the doctor's office.

So Caleb and I went to Bible study. We met my mom and Megan at the pediatrician's office as planned.

When I described Megan's symptoms, including the funky colored diaper, the doctor quickly ordered a couple of tests, including a blood work-up. That blood work showed that Megan had lost a large amount of blood. She was immediately referred to a Pediatric Gastroenterology specialist at the university hospital. I remember being hesitant to call Pete because he was having a very busy day at work installing a whole new phone system throughout the whole plant. The receptionist just looked at me and sternly told me to call him.

So my mom took Caleb home to feed him lunch and I went to the hospital with Megan and Pete met us there.

The next three days were a blur of tests. Endoscopy, colonascopy, Mekel's scan and a series of x-rays. All with inconclusive or negative answers. Followed by tears and kicking the wall out of frustration.

I spent the first night in the hospital in the hospital with her. They gave her a couple of units of blood. It was such a blessing to see her pink up and become more alert. The night nurse played peek-a-boo with her and she giggled. What music that was to my ears!

The second night Pete spent with her. When I was home I tried to catch up on laundry. I went into Megan's room to get her dirty clothes and fell apart. I sat in the rocking chair and cried. Caleb (who was 4) came in, crawled into my lap, and starting crying too.

I remember: hearing her cry "get down!" when she was having an IV put in; Megan screaming every time someone new walked in the room; crying as she feel asleep in my arms from the anesthesia given her for one of the tests; clinging to my husband; dear friends coming to see us and them crying as they prayed for Megan; going for a walk with Megan in the halls of the hospital and her getting excited at the babies; God speaking peace to me. (see below)

We were discharged from the hospital that Saturday morning. The doctor thought she had some sort of a massive internal bleed that had originated in the small bowel. The black #2 in her diaper was probably blood. She probably lost about half her blood. Praise God it has never happened again and she is healthy.

Here is a picture of sweet little Megan the day after she came home from the hospital. You can see the mark on her hand from an IV.



It was an agonizing week. God spoke to me in a couple of really clear ways. One was the first Bible verse that Caleb memorized at age three:

Hebrews 13:6 The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.

It was an assurance of God's presence.

Another way God spoke to me was this hymn:

Like a river glorious is God’s perfect peace,
Over all victorious, in its bright increase;
Perfect, yet it floweth fuller every day,
Perfect, yet it groweth deeper all the way.

Stayed upon Jehovah, hearts are fully blest
Finding, as He promised, perfect peace and rest.

Hidden in the hollow of His blessed hand,
Never foe can follow, never traitor stand;
Not a surge of worry, not a shade of care,
Not a blast of hurry touch the spirit there.

Stayed upon Jehovah, hearts are fully blest
Finding, as He promised, perfect peace and rest.

Every joy or trial falleth from above,
Traced upon our dial by the Sun of Love;
We may trust Him fully all for us to do;
They who trust Him wholly find Him wholly true.

Stayed upon Jehovah, hearts are fully blest
Finding, as He promised, perfect peace and rest.

Every time we sing this song I end in a puddle of tears. Megan even chose it last summer for a worship service that she played the piano for. I was a mess by the end. And every time we hear that song Pete and I are ever thankful for sparing Megan's life and the blessing she is to this family.


Seventeen years later... me and my girl. She's a beauty.

Lesson of the Day

When you live in Minnesota and it's the 11th of November, pay attention to the weather before you head out to the grocery store.

32 degrees and sleet definitely call for a coat and socks.

Lesson learned (the hard way).

You'd never know this is my 8th winter here.

::SIGH::

How to Tackle (Avoid) My Least Favorite Household Chore

I thought I would share how I get my favorite **cough**cough** household job done. That job would be ironing. So here is how my day went yesterday:

1. Tell my husband Sunday night that I hope to get the ironing done on Monday. He is impressed with the fact that I hoped to get it done.

2. Monday morning. Start laundry.

3. Check email and read blogs.

4. Watch "Gilmore Girls."

5. Get water ready for the iron.

6. Eat lunch.

7. Fold clean laundry.

8. Watch "One Life to Live."

9. Move pile of ironing from chair to bed.

10. Set up iPod to play in the bedroom.

11. Fold some more laundry.

12. Start listening to Michael W. Smith Worship.

13. Sing at the top of my lungs.

14. Set up ironing board.

15. Fill iron with water.

16. Plug iron in!

17. Force myself to iron for the whole Worship CD.

18. Take a break and watch another episode of "Gilmore Girls."

19. Back to the ironing.

20. Listen to Michael W. Smith Worship Again.

21. Husband calls to say he has a late meeting.

22. Still ironing.

23. On last shirt when husband calls to say he's on his way home.

24. Put everything away with 2 minutes to spare before husband walks in the door.

No wonder I hate ironing .... it takes me all day to get it done!

::Smile::

I am a master at avoiding the least favorite chore.

For Caleb

This was sent to Caleb's Facebook. I wanted to post it here in honor of him. It's a tribute to his favorite composer. John Williams. It made me laugh. Watch it!

Let's Start At The Very Beginning, A Very Good Place To Start...

I had a good week with my husband. A good first business trip.

On our way to see my parents we took a slight detour through the town where I was born. My parents lived in a little town called Montezuma. So little, in fact, there was no hospital. So they drove 25 miles to Grinnell for me to be born.

As we drove into town, my husband and I just followed those blue hospital signs and found the hospital I was born in. I think I have seen it only one other time in my life. There is a postcard picture of it in my baby book. This didn't look like the postcard, but the hospital has been added on to in the last forty**ahem**cough** some years.

This is where I took my first breath:

A few days before, while Pete was in meetings, I took myself on a little road trip to the little town of Montezuma. I only have a few memories of living there. (We moved away when I was four.) Some of my memories are from the home movies (8mm) my parents have. I also remember my Rocking Horse birthday cake when I was four, not liking to go down the basement steps because there were no backs on them, sitting on the giant gas tank in the yard. Here is the house I lived in with my family for the first four years of my life: (brace yourself)
Yuck. I think it looks horrible. My daughter's boyfriend says it looks like one of those places where illegal substances are made. I have a picture from when I was about 2 with my two sisters, my brother, my grandparents and me on the end of the porch. It looked so much better those forty**ahem**cough** some years ago.

When I drove through downtown and saw the town square, I remembered it being all decorated for Christmas and Santa Claus was set up in a little booth on one of the corners. Even then I remember my mom telling me that Santa was just some man dressed up.

Here is a picture of the church we went to. This is where, as a little tiny girl, I first began to hear about God and His love for me. It kind of struck me and I had to take a picture of it.

That was just the beginning of an amazing life with God.

Empty Nest Fun

I found a perk of having an empty nest.

I get to travel with my husband.

He actually doesn't travel much at all. When he told me a few weeks ago that he had to go to a plant in Iowa, I asked him if I could come along. It all worked out fine for me to do so. Last night we arrived at our hotel in Dutch Town, USA. I enjoyed looking around town today. Even visited a bakery and bought only ONE Dutch Letter -- well for today. :)

(A Dutch Letter is a yummy almond-flavored pastry.)

I drove to the town I lived in when I was born. I took some pictures of the (awful looking) house we lived in. I hope to take a few more pictures tomorrow and write about some of the memories I have from visiting here when the kids were 18 months old and 4 years old.

We will have a quick visit with my parents at the end of the week. It's quick because THEY are traipsing off to Florida. Hmph.

Well, I think I will head into town and see if I can find a place for supper. The husband has a business dinner tonight. It's okay, I don't mind eating alone if I have a good book. Let's see, maybe "el mexicano foodo?" :)

A Privilege

Tuesday is a big day in this country. I consider it a huge privilege to be able to vote for who I want and to have a say in how my country is run.

I try to remember to pray for those in leadership. Such a big job I would not want to have. While I am concerned with the direction our country is headed I remember what is said in the book of Daniel chapter 2 verse 21:

He changes times and seasons; He sets up kings and deposes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.

See that? It says that God sets up the kings and deposes them. He is in control of who is the leader and when that leader's time is up. So no matter who is elected president tomorrow, God is in control. He has a purpose.

Consider these verses from Isaiah 10:

1 Woe to those who make unjust laws,
to those who issue oppressive decrees,

2 to deprive the poor of their rights
and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people,
making widows their prey
and robbing the fatherless.

3 What will you do on the day of reckoning,
when disaster comes from afar?
To whom will you run for help?
Where will you leave your riches?

4 Nothing will remain but to cringe among the captives
or fall among the slain.
Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,
his hand is still upraised.