Going to Grandma’s house…in my mind.

November 2009
My Grandma, Lillian Pauline C... is a very special lady. At 82 she’s seen a lot, yet she’s so young at heart. She’s always ready to go, do, see, and enjoy. This has been a extremely rough week for her. She was sick and we thought having a stroke. After a trip to the ER it was determined she has Glioblastoma, an incurable brain cancer…WHAT?? How can my healthy little Gramma be that sick?
Grandma’s house is always clean, but always cluttered. She loves ’stuff’…old magazines she saves for ideas, clothes she bought for a good deal and plans to remake to fit her, dishes and household items. She must own 20 sets of dishes, yet she can never pass up on buying a few more.
As you go in to her meticulously neat living room to sit on her formal furniture you’re greeted with her piano that we have gathered around and sang many a song with her…”I dropped my dolly in the dirt”, “Happy Birthday”, and too many hymns to recount. She inspired each of her grandchildren to want to play, even if we never learned how.
Next we go into the kitchen where she’s always ready to feed you. It doesn’t really matter if you ate recently, at Grandma’s you must need something to snack on. She’s a great cook….banana nut bread -without the nuts for my kids… Grilled cheese sandwiches scraped back to light brown-the only thing I ever saw grandma burn. She cans pears each year, makes homemade pie crusts, wonderful potato salad, giblet gravy, and anything else she puts her mind to.
Next to the kitchen is her den, this is where she really lives. Her sewing machine is on a little homemade wooden table built by my Grandpa. Clothes hang in the doorway, ironing board ready to press new hems. Her recliner has a small maple end table with her reading glasses, magazines, nail clippers, and some outdated (ie stinky!) lotion she keeps close by. In one corner you’ll find her desk with all her paperwork, her dining table with birthday cards ready to be sent, and her record player with records about whatever topic she hopes to learn now.
Grandma is a LEARNER. She is always on the lookout for school books at thrift stores. She loves to teach the grandkids to write. She is always working on learning a foreign language. When I was little she would make me ask for my snacks in Spanish hoping that I would learn the language.
Right off the den is her back patio filled with old metal chairs that she’s owned for every one of my 35 years. They are rusty, paint peeling rockers that are made to last a lifetime. In the yard are all her garden tools and her compost pile where she faithfully dumps her scraps hoping to improve her soil. She has a little shed built by grandpa to store all her fabric and other ’stuff’ in. In the corner of the yard is her old pear tree that she picks each year to can her jalapeño pears.
Back in the house, Grandma has three bedrooms filled with fluffy beds, flannel quilts that she has made, eyelet lace trimmed pillow cases, and white bedspreads that no one would dare to sit on. She has clothes and shoes filling every closet and then some! In the back corner bedroom she keeps Granny’s dolls as a reminder of her mother who’s been gone for 13 years now.
Finally her bathroom, decorated in seafoam green and peach always has the little decorative ’shell’ shaped soaps that you don’t really use. The counter holds all her makeup, combs, and prickly curlers that she rolls her Saturday night curls on. If you looked closely you could probably find a few rag strips left over from rolling up one of her granddaughters

(or great-grands) hair with beautiful ringlet curls.

I’m sure it’s evident that I carry a fond spot for Grandma and her house. She has been such an inspiration of what a Titus 2 Woman should be. She encourages, prays, and teaches those around her. I thank the LORD that He blessed me with my Grandma C.... ***Update...it's now February 2010 and Grandma has finished Radiation and Chemotherapy. Our family is still praising God for his faithfulness in sustaining grandma's life.

Trials, Tribulations, and Praises all rolled together!

This has been a week to remember…a week to be thankful for…a week to praise the Lord for HIS goodness. He’s provided safety to our family, reminding us once again that HE is in control and loves us!!

On Saturday morning our boys were in a 4 wheeler accident. While riding two separate vehicles they ran into each other. They both were thrown off but praise be to God only Joe was mildly injured. He cut his knee pretty deeply, although a small hole. Now we just watch for infection. Josh was not hurt at all. Bryan our neighbor, also thrown off, is bruised, but otherwise fine. Josh said “I remember that mom said people are killed on these all the time”. I hope that a lesson was learned from this experience…

Next on Saturday evening we got a call from my sister in law saying that our Grandma couldn't be located. She’d been going to meet friends for the weekend, but never arrived. The police were notified and a ‘Silver Alert’ was issued.

After 26 hours missing, she was located in Enid OK. A few days later the story of her journey was shared with us. We are still praising God for HIS protection. She had gotten lost while driving and wrecked her car about 7 PM. She hydroplaned into a field of abandoned cars and junk. She left her car, crawling to the road only to not be able to locate it. She then couldn't find her car and ended up spending the night in an abandoned car~ wet, muddy, and cold. The next morning she spotted her car and started to crawl back to it. Finally, a farmer came to check his cows and heard her yelling for help. An ambulance was called and she was taken to an area hospital where her son later picked her up from. The car was totaled and she is sore and bruised, but we all know it could have been MUCH WORSE!!

Pour on the blessings…

God has been convicting me once again of my speech, the looseness of my lips when answering. Often in my quiet times I will read that a wise person is filled with discretion. They will control their tongue. They will be kind when they speak. I often struggle because I want to be truthful, but when the truth is not always honoring what do you share? I pray often for the Lord to help me remember that I can tell truth, but that doesn’t mean I have to tell ‘all the details’.

In the book of James 3:9-11 we are reminded “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring?”

This morning my heart was grumbling. I was thinking all the things I wanted to change in those that I love. Conviction stepped in and I was burdened that I need to share what I’m thankful for TODAY about each of those people. 

 ~My beloved woke early and cooked a wonderful breakfast, but even went further to make me my own omelet with extra peppers and onions added in! For a man that hates onions and peppers, he must really love me!!

~Kim sent me an email saying “I really love you mamma”

~Josh blessed our family by playing melodious music during school giving us some peacefulness in a time of chaos.

~Joe cooked us a wonderful snack last night…homemade lemon bars from a cookbook and this afternoon…oatmeal, chocolate chip, peanut butter cookies.

~Mrs K has mastered her math speed drill, speeding up from 10 minutes to less than 5 today.

~Miss M loves school and I had to limit her to 6 pages a day, but when she’s done she takes her little sister and niece to play together while the rest of us work.

~Miss A loudly asked ‘Please sharpen it’ when her pencil lead broke. My ‘little baby/toddler’ has now grown up to be a child. She’s so tiny and sweet! Where did my baby go?

~Leelee, with her cute curly brown hair and beautiful smile said ‘wan cookie!’ and then waited with her mouth open expectantly for a bite of Joe’s specialty.

As I look back over this day, how can I afford to be grumpy or complain? I might just miss out on all the blessings God has for me in the form of my family. Pour on the blessings…

Waist Not, Want Not (spelled correctly!)

Yesterday was an exciting day for Miss K. Our dear friend Hattie arrived with scissors in hand to trim Miss K’s hair. It’s been 5 years since her last haircut other then bangs.WOW…her waist length hair is now a much more manageable length. She looks so cute! I am so blessed by Miss K and her sweet heart. May her sweet smile bring joy to your heart!

Summertime Fun

Summertime is gone…we start school in just a week. Where did the time go? I had intended to post about our fun Forth of July party with the E Family. I wanted to write about the trips we took to Big Sandy Tx, Camp Classen in the Arbuckles, and Great Wolf Lodge in Tx. I intended to keep you updated on how the fence/farm projects are progressing. It seems all that was so long ago. Here’s a few photos of our “Summertime Fun!”
~~~A VISIT TO MY BROTHER LYNN’S HOUSE~~~ We stopped on the way to Big Sandy and borrowed Lynn’s travel trailer. His generosity made life so much easier for this trip!!


~~~~CAMP CLASSEN - MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND~~~~
We visited Camp Classen with our dear friends the S family. We've been friends for 12 years. We met on a Memorial Day weekend camp out with our church and have been the best of friends ever since.
My favorite picture was of My Beloved and Jason jumping rope with the kids.
~~Joe and Kylie were babies on that first trip!






~~~~INDEPENDANCE DAY 2009 - E family COOKOUT~~~~
We had 10 families represented, lots of grandparents, and too many children for me to count! What a fun and blessed day to share with our friends. It ended with a massive thunderstorm that took the place of the fireworks.






~~~~GREAT WOLF LODGE, TX~~~~
Great Wolf is an indoor water park attached to the hotel. Everything you need is right there including Pizza Hut and an ice cream store.
Our family went to Great Wolf for a fun ‘quick’ get away. We were very blessed that our dear friend Dee came along to help me watch the little girls swim. The big guys swam all day, while we ladies hung out in the wading pool. That night after I put the littles to bed, Daddy and the boys enticed Dee to ride the big rides with them…I hear they had a lot of fun!




~~~We celebrated 3 Birthdays…Miss M’s 4th, Daddy’s 36th, and Leelee’s 1st~~
~~~OUR FARM PROGRESS~~~
The ditch work is done, done, and redone…hopefully DONE this time. Every time the county got the ditches redone, the massive rains we've received have washed them out. We've gotten a new driveway about 3 times this year. My beloved is happily welding away. He’s made corner braces, H braces, and our entry gate, in addition to our corral system. The boys are following behind him and painting everything black. It’s looking really sharp! Next, My beloved and the boys will be running the fencing. What a relief it will be to have a good strong fence in place again.
We sold ‘Candy’ our horse this week. Josh decided that owning a horse wasn't really a priority for him as the main caregiver. We were glad to free that pasture up again and get rid of the expense of feeding her. Hopefully she went to a good home where she will be loved.
Well that catches me up on the summer….hope you enjoyed yours.

Simplicity…a way to save money

I read a suggestion this week of a way to save money. Every time you’re tempted to spend a dollar here or there, put that money in an envelope instead and then evaluate at the end of the month if you really want to spend all the money you saved. While that’s a neat concept it does have its balance.
I often will ‘save’ money when I’m willing to spend a little. Just this week I was at Walmart and they had little girls ‘crock’ type shoes marked $7.50 a pair, while just last month in Ardmore I got them on clearance for $1 a pair. I quickly found a worker in the shoe department to check the prices. She assured me they were $7.50 and that they had none for $1, I asked her to please just check. Boy, was she surprised to find them all on clearance for $1 each. I promptly bought 3 pairs, 1 for Miss A and two for Leelee to grow into. This will save me $22+ later this summer when both little ones need new shoes. Last fall, I also found shorts sets for Leelee’s first birthday ~cute as can be~ for $2 each. Now she’ll get multiple outfits instead of just one.
Other ways our family is working to save money is by having a garden, keeping chickens both for our own eggs and some to sell, using cloth diapers, and hanging our clothes on a clothes line to dry. A dear friend of mine, Nikki from www.IntegrityDiapers.com helped me get started with the cloth. I've been so intimidated with using cloth, yet she walked me through it and it truly has been an easy switch. The only time we do disposables now is when leaving home once or twice a week.



Another fun trick my dear friend Tamy taught me is to make very economical little girl dresses with the T-shirts that are $3.50 at Walmart and a ½ yard of matching fabric. I made the cutest little 4 of July dresses for the neighbors’ twin girls birthday this coming week… I hope she enjoys them as much as I do for our girls. I even went so far as to take undershirts and scrap fabric and make new nightgowns. I had an old eyelet dust ruffle in my donate box when I realized it had LOTS of fabric already hemmed and ready to make pretty gowns with!
Our family also relies heavily upon and appreciates greatly the hand~me~downs we get for the kids. It’s so fun to sort through a box wondering what the Lord will provide you with next. The girls love knowing where their ‘new clothes’ came from. They often will say… ‘Nikki gave me this dress’ or ‘Sissy shared with me and I’ll get to share with Miss A next’. What a joy to know they appreciate each thing they have and don’t feel slighted that they weren't the first owners.
I've always enjoyed the challenge of being thrifty, but moving to the country has given new opportunities to practice it, while taking away the most obvious ones like thrift stores and garage sales. I can’t see driving 30 miles to save a little at a garage sale.
Have a thrifty week…

A Tribute to my Grandma D…

Scrapbook albums have made a tremendous impact on the life of my
family. Over the last 14 years I’ve completed 60 plus albums for friends
and family. I’ve done wedding albums, baby albums, family albums, and
special event albums. Each and everyone was received with thankfulness
that someone took the time to preserve their life history for others to
share. Out of all the albums I’ve done though, one touched my life so
deeply and is now one of my most cherished belongings.
My grandma, Doris  was such a blessing in my life. She loved me dearly and everything she did reflected that. When her only child, my dad, was killed at the young age of 25, she grieved deeply. In many ways that gave her more time to invest in my life.
Grandma had a hard life. She married at just 15 to a much older man of 25, my grandpa. He was quickly drafted into the army and sent to Japan in WWII. Grandma moved home to live with her parents and 7 brothers and sisters. She worked selling shoes in downtown Oklahoma City, riding the bus to work every day. She saved every penny grandpa sent home and when he returned they had enough to purchase a small home debt free.


Doris was very industrious, always trying to save a dime. She sewed clothes for herself and her sisters and later their children. She would find furniture on the side of the road, bring it home and upholster it making it look brand new. She loved garage sales, clearances, and anything that was a bargain. She took care to make her belongings last, valuing each one and using it to it’s fullest potential  The one thing she did not value was the photos of her life. They were painful reminders of how hard she had to work and the trials she’d been through. When I started album making she gave me the photos, frequently commenting “I don’t know why you’re interested in those old pictures”. I, on the other hand, was enthralled! I loved seeing how elegant she looked as a newly married bride or how tiny she was while expecting my daddy. Those photos held the key to so much of our family history and a view to who grandma was.
In grandma’s later years her health begin to fail. My grandpa developed Alzheimer and grandma faithfully took care of him. Once again, she was sacrificing so they could have what they needed. Once I became an adult they began to view me as ‘their child’. They adored my beloved and he adored them. When their health got where they could no longer care for themselves, they moved in with us. We did doctors appointments, late night chats, medicines, hygiene, and eventually funeral arrangements for Grandpa.
All that time grandma stayed strong even with her failing health.
You never heard her complain. A few months before her 75 birthday I was
inspired to share with her how she had touched so many others in her
life. I sent a letter to family and friends asking that they send a letter, pictures, and card to me in honor of Doris’ life. I then compiled them in an album to surprise her with. On the day I gave it to her she cried, “This is the best gift I've ever received”. She kept looking through it exclaiming how wonderful it was. I think that album changed Grandma’s life that day. It showed her that her family cared deeply for her…that her friends cherished knowing her…that she made a difference in someone’s life.
In the album are pictures spanning her life. In the back I added letters and photos that were sent from friends and family including:
A thank you letter from her younger sister for helping to sew her wedding
dress.
A special remembrance that she always had cookies and a TV for her baby
brother to watch (when most didn't)
A letter my daddy had written to her when he was 10 and photo of him.
Hand prints of the great-grandchildren and hand written letters.
A birthday card from her Sunday School Class that she had signed herself.
They passed the card around and everyone signed it, but she didn't know who it was for!

Grandma passed away in 2003 and I received her life book back.
It now holds a special place on my shelf to remember my grandma by.
Memories…memories…memories, each so sweet and filled with
smiles and tears. Thank you for letting me share about my grandma!

What’s new around our farm?

~Miss K learned to ride a bike without training wheels this week at Conference.
~Miss A can say cracker.
~My Beloved got a welder to finish the Corrals.
~Joe has to have toe surgery on Monday, May 11.
~Miss M celebrates a birthday this week!
~Josh is preparing to start Drivers Ed.
~I got an early MOM’s day gift of a rotary cutter and HUGE mat.
Our family just returned from the annual ATI Homeschooling conference. We were incredibly blessed! I’ll try to share more of what we learned…maybe you’ll see a difference in our family.

A biased opinion of myself…

I’ve enjoyed counting my blessings one by one as I’ve told you more about each person in our family. I’m down to just telling you more about me.
First, I’m a child of God. I gave my life to the Lord at the age of 8, but didn’t really understand the concept of living my whole life in obedience to HIM until I was 19. That’s not to say it’s not still a daily struggle, just that now I know I have to make a conscious thought to live for HIM.
Second, I’m a wife to my Beloved. My greatest desire is to be a blessing to him. Just as Adam was given Eve to be a helpmeet, I believe that the Lord gave me to my Beloved and it is my joy to fill this position.
Third, I’m a mother and MeMe to all the precious children that the Lord has sent our way. One song that means a lot to me is “When Momma prays” by Randy Travis. I often think that’s what I’d like my children to remember about me…I was a momma that prayed for them.
Fourth, I’m a woman filled with many complex desires, goals, and motivations. Perfectionism ranks high on my list, so the Lord allows me to be kept humble in my many failings. I greatly desire to be a planner, organized, and timely. I often have to settle for last minute, misplaced, and behind schedule.
As a child some of my favorite books were the “Love Comes Softly” series that were recently made into movies and “Little House on the Prairie”. These two series influenced my life by putting the desire for ‘homestead living’ in my heart. I enjoy an old quilt, fresh chicken eggs, homemade bread, and my wood slat rocking chair. A log cabin in the woods would be my dream playhouse decorated simply with a red checked oilcloth on the table, a glass oil lamp, and treadle sewing machine. Gardening, canning, gospel singing, fiddle and dulcimer music, and simplicity are all things that draw me ~or maybe the idea of them.
Since moving to our 80 acre farm three years ago I have learned that while I enjoy reading about many of those subjects, the doing of them is HARD! Gardens are hot, dirty, and have bugs! Animals are stubborn and they stink! While I still desire these things, it does put the romantic side of it into perspective.
I love to scrapbook, sew, and read. I enjoy creating things, but don’t often feel capable of doing the necessities. I can cook dessert, but struggle with meals. I can do my mending, but find it hard to fit in sewing. I want to write down my memories of the children, yet waste my time writing email.
My current favorite books are
“The Duggars: 20 and Counting” www.DuggarFamily.com
“Created to be his Helpmeet” and “To Train Up a Child” www.NoGreaterJoy.org

Life is so precious. Each moment we spend is one less we have to use wisely. My prayer for myself and you is that we ‘spend our days as a tale to be told’, always being a testimony for the Lord of His goodness.

Thanks for taking the time to read about our family…

Daddy’s Joy and evidence of his faith…

Miss A's name means ‘My Father’s Joy’. When she was born she was already named “Matthew Jacob” because we firmly believed a son would arrive. What a surprise we faced at her birth. She was tiny, early, had some other issues that we had to have ‘faith’ that God would keep her safe.
When she was 2 weeks old she contacted Staph and spent 3 days in the hospital taking IV antibiotics. Miss A struggled to grow for many months and even now is very petite. It still amazes us to see this little ‘midget’ as Daddy calls her, walk around talking and yet being the size our others were at 9 months. She’s a smarty who’s favorite word is becoming ‘cookie’…said like the cookie monster from Sesame Street. COOKIE, COOKIE, COOKIE!!
She loves baby dolls, playing with her daddy, brothers and sisters, and ‘MOMMEE!’ Each night at bed time as we bless her she will say the Lord’s blessing to us. The blessing is found in Numbers 6:23 “May the Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift his countenance upon you and give you His peace.” Miss A will yell peace at the end, and then she lies down and goes to sleep.
I pray that as she grows, she will listen to the Lord’s will for her life. I pray that she will learn to have a soft, sweet spirit and an obedient heart. I pray that she will come to know Jesus at an early age.

My favorite tree is a beautiful pink Magnolia…

Years ago I saw a beautiful tree with large pink blossoms in the yard of a farm we dreamed of buying. I often called it a tulip tree as the blooms look like large tulips sitting on a branch. As the Lord allowed that farm to sell to someone else, I went on the search for a tulip tree. I was so disappointed when I found a tree with large orange blooms…not my ‘tulip’ tree!! I eventually learned I was looking for a Magnolia tree.
One spring day the Lord added a new ‘flower’ to our family bouquet. Miss M was such a sweet addition. Miss M's hair is blond, staying light longer than any of our other children have. She has a sweet spirit and can’t stand conflict. You will often hear her reassuring me, ‘I love you mom’ anytime she thinks someone is upset. Miss M loves her siblings dearly and plays well with each of them. She generally has a sunny disposition and I often call her my sunshine girl.
I pray that Miss M will continue to have a sweet tender spirit before the Lord. I pray that as she grows she keeps the love for her family in her heart. I pray that she will come to know Jesus at an early age.

‘For this child I have prayed’…1 Samuel 27

Like Hannah in the Bible, our family prayed for a new baby. Miss K was a miraculous answer to that prayer! We prayed that our reversal surgery would be successful ~ almost a year to the day of the surgery, she arrived. We prayed for a safe, healthy pregnancy ~ this was the healthiest one yet! We prayed for a successful homebirth ~ Charliee Lacey, a wonderful midwife came to assist us. Kim prayed for a sister ~ Miss K is ALL girl, pink and frilly. God was so gracious to hear each prayer we uttered!!
Miss K is a server. She loves to work with Mommy. She enjoys making things pretty, always wanting to decorate the dinner table or use candles and crystal. Her favorite color is now purple as she recently allowed her little sister to take the ‘pink’ title. She loves her long brown hair and dress up clothes. Jewelry, babies, and cooking all suit her fancy. She enjoys playing ‘Little House on the Prairie’; even requesting a night cap like ‘Laura’ wears.
Miss K is learning to read and has the determination to do almost anything she puts her mind to. She learned to ride a bike with no training wheels this week all by herself! She recently requested outside chores to do on her own. Joshua quickly shared the dog and cat chores with her.
I pray that Miss K will grow to be a young woman who loves the Lord, serving him with her whole heart. I pray that her very life may be a testimony to others that HE does answer prayers.

My third born, my baby…

Joe was born third to this family. For six years he held the place of the baby of the family. We didn't plan to have more children so we cherished every moment of Joe’s ‘babyhood’.
Joe has always been so loving and cute. He was so ticklish that it didn't matter where you touched him, he was quickly giggling. Even today we still tickle him some, but since he now is taller than us we have to be careful if we start to wrestle!
Joe has an incredible spirit for accepting what’s given to him. He never balks over hand~me~down clothes or toys. He loves to clean (I don’t know why…I don’t think we’re a dirty family, cluttered yes, but dirty no!). You will often find him sweeping, doing the dishes, but alas he’s a real boy…he NEVER wants to do laundry!
Joe loves his dad with an unfailing love. I often accuse the two of them of still being attached at the umbilical cord. While he loves mom, we've hit that time in every boys life where ‘you’d rather die than let her know’. I often find Joe and Daddy taking each other on in the living room floor or in the kitchen or in the bedroom or the back yard…just about anywhere they are they’re being rowdy together.
Jojo, as he sometimes answers to, is a hard worker who enjoys working by himself outside. He’s good at math but often gets frustrated that he wasn't born knowing every concept…why take the time to learn it?
Miss A is one of his best friends and I am reminded what a good dad he’ll be when he has little ones. They take walks, rock, and share treats together. She loves her ‘Jojo’.
My prayer for Joe is that he stand firm always in the convictions he holds. I pray that he will continue to live for the Lord all the days of his life. I also pray that he will see and hear truth no matter how it’s disguised, measuring it up to God’s word and standards.

My ‘Second’ first born…

Josh is also a first born… son that is. He was greeted by a very happy Daddy, Mommy, and ‘big’ sister. His welcome to our family gift was a yellow rubber duck for the bath tub from Big Sissy. We still have that duck over 15 years later. Josh is a very easy person to get along with. He’s dependable and faithful in his work. He enjoys working and enjoys being challenged. He’s also very motivated. When he sets a goal, he does everything in his power to follow through and complete it.

He’s highly organized and you’ll rarely see him with a messy room. In fact, I had to give up asking him to clean it years ago. He was so neat it was becoming obsessive. Josh enjoys dressing neat and doesn't want to follow the trend of the day (for which we’re very grateful!!)
As far as around the farm, both Josh and his brother are indispensable. They work hard and can do a full days job, moving animals, doing fencing, stacking hay…just about whatever’s needed. They have been so blessed that Daddy is running our HVAC business from home so that they can spend every available moment working with him.
Josh is a real blessing in my life making most things easier. I pray that as he continues to take his place as a man in this world that the Lord would be his daily guidance. Also that he would keep a softened conscience and a desire to live his life in an honoring way showing good character in everything he does.

My Dear Husband and Best Friend…

David is such a blessing in my life. He’s smart, dependable, steady, and most of all he loves the Lord his God with all his heart. He’s a great father and provider. In all our years of marriage, I've never had to worry if he’d have a job or if he’d take care of us. He’s always found a way to provide for our needs with the Lord’s guidance.
He loves to hunt wildlife, providing most all our family’s meat for the year. He’s very mechanically smart, always being willing to try to fix anything. He enjoys watching movies with the guys…you know the action packed kind(!) I often think he loves work just as much. He can’t stand to just lie around. That’s why we moved to the farm I guess, there is ALWAYS a job needing to be done.


He’s motivated to set a goal and achieve it. Just watching him building on to our home is testimony to that. He did a beautiful job on the house trying to fulfill my every need in this addition. Even being patient when I would change the plan…or my mind…or the new plan.
He has a heart to train his children in the ‘nurture and admonition of the Lord’. The boys are frequently found in the floor wrestling with Daddy. The girls are all treated like daddy’s little princesses!
Even now as he’s begun the role of Grandpa or Poppy as I like to call him, he has a heart to share the gospel with our grand daughter. When she comes to visit you will find him walking and rocking her to sleep.
He trains our children to be hard workers and encourages them to enjoy their work. You’ll often find him helping out with the children’s homeschooling, especially the math!
My prayer for my beloved is that he will daily have time to reflect on what the Lord has blessed us with. That he will find joy in each project we undertake. That we may grow old together watching our dreams become realities.

In case you couldn't tell. I think my beloved is a pretty special guy. I hope you enjoyed learning more about him.

Learning more about Our Family…

My dearest, closest friend ever is my husband, David. We've been married going on 19 years this summer. We met in high school, quickly becoming inseparable. My Beloved has always had the qualities of trustworthiness and faithfulness and he earned a place in my heart early on in our friendship.
We married in the summer of 1990 and then started adding to our family right away. The Lord eventually blessed us with six beautiful children (so far!). Each one is so different yet so special. There is not a day that goes by that I don’t remember to thank the Lord for these blessings.
I want to start this blog out by giving you a look at what qualities I see in each of our family members, what makes them so special, and what my prayer for each is. As you read thru this may you be blessed to look for the qualities in your own family and thank the Lord for your blessings!