2 Days Down, One To Go

Today will be day 3 down at Artprize with Ama and PopPop. Who would have thought that the kids and I would love Artprize this much. Last year I was unable to get down to see it, although my kids went with Kevin's parents for an afternoon.

When we started the week downtown, my Mother-In-Law and I discussed how long we thought the kids would last. I guess last year they made it about 2 hours. How much difference a year makes.

Monday I think we were down there for 3.5hrs. Tuesday was 5/6hrs and we will see how long we last today. It has been great fun though, interesting to see what each of the kids like and what they don't like. I do have to say some people have a very interesting idea of art. I wish I took a picture of one "art piece" that was basically women's slips hanging on a rope. Mom and I didn't know that we created art every time we hung our clothes out to dry. Who knows... maybe next year I can win $250,000 by hanging Kev's undies on a clothesline.... Hmmmm, need to think more on that.

One of the pieces is a huge card that people can sign their names on. The artist had a marker on the end of a 20ft pole that you could use to sign your name on the top of the card. Thankfully he signed all of our names, cuz I just don't think I could have done it.

Can you pick out our names??

Alright, off to get ready for another fun day with my family more pictures to follow, I have a lot of them!

Blessings!

Crazy Busy

This has been and is going to continue to be a crazy week. I haven't had a moment at home to do all the daily household activities, but this week that is OK. I am behind on my cleaning, my laundry, I haven't gone grocery shopping in probably a month, and yes, I am behind on my packing for our next trip, but again, that is OK.

My only regret is that I haven't had much time for blogging. In the quiet hours of the evening, I have found myself trying to get done what didn't get done during the day, plus my hubby has been busy working on my computer which is a good thing because it means he has work. So, I am stealing a moment this morning before all the kids are up and we have to race off to clean someone else's home and run a bunch of errands to quick say "Hi". Hopefully I can share with you some of the wonderful things the kids and I have been up to in posts in the next day or so before I am again gone enjoying God's beautiful creation.

As I leave to go run the race of today, let me share a moment that I captured of quiet pondering.

Blessings!!

I Stand In Awe

I want to start by saying "Thank You" to all of you who have commented, sent emails, or told me in person how the last post touched them. It's slightly embarrassing and very humbling that what I write can and does have such an impact on others. I can say that what I write comes totally from God, so thank you Jesus for this very unexpected gift of writing.

I want to also share with you two small and beautiful gifts of nature that God placed on this earth for us to enjoy. I have been intrigued with hummingbirds for as long as I can remember. The little wings that flap so fast you can barely see them, and up until July, I had no idea that a hummingbird had legs, because I had only seen them in flight. But they do and now I know!

Have you ever looked really close at Queen Anne's Lace? How delicate and intricate the flower? The imagination of our Creator when he was speaking all of this into being... it just amazes me. I know many start to sneeze when they see the little white flowers, but since I don't have that problem, I soak them up. In Roman's (1:20) it talks about how God placed invisible qualities, His divine nature, so that you wouldn't need to hear about God to know that there is a God. It is my humble opinion that Hummingbirds and Queen Anne's Lace are just two ways that you can know that there is a God without ever hearing his name. Because really.. how could an explosion or any other "force" besides God create such beauty?!

I stand in awe....

The Kiss

He kisses her hand, he rubs her arm, tells her how beautiful her skin is as she quietly lays in bed. He sits and holds her hand and tells us how he couldn't have picked a better wife. He cherishes the time he has left with her.

Her mind is still sharp, but her body is just too weak. "Heaven's waiting room" is where she says she is... and she is happy to be there. She is just waiting to see her Savior.

Sitting watching and listening, I am caught with tears in my eyes. Blinking to try to keep them back. It's hard... hard to watch someone slip away slowly. It is hard to watch her husband sitting next to her tell us of her ups and downs. All the while lovingly holding her hand. How many years have those hands held on to each other?

I am sure that marriage wasn't always a walk in the park for them. Raising their children wasn't always picture perfect. They have lived through some very dark times, but through it all they held hands, weaving a legacy for their children and their children's children and now their great-grand children. They have never strayed from the Truths that they know and God has blessed them richly because of it.

Watching Grandpa and Grandma walk these last days together can only be described as beautiful. The love that you see on Grandpa's face towards his wife is beyond words.

A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm all the days of her life.

Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all. Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate. (portions of Proverbs 31)

I can just imagine.....

She is standing at the door and knocking, Jesus opens the door and welcomes her home. He calls her by name and says "June, well done good and faithful servant." He hugs her and tells her there is someone that wants to see her. He steps aside and up walks her son. "Mom, I have been waiting..." what a day that will be.

Missing, Praying...

Sounds kind of weird, but I have really missed blogging. Being gone for so long, it's like I haven't had a chance to catch up with my best friend. Can't wait to get back home for more than a few hours and write the things of my heart.

But today as I run off again, I am praying. Praying my mind and my heart are united with my Savior. There are just some days that it is really hard to believe that God has the best planned for me and today is one of them. Can't explain it more than that, but I am trusting my God to bring me back to the place of peace.

Blessings!

Horses, Long Hair, 1800's... pretty random...

Oh Goodness it's been busy around here. So much to do and so little time to do it. Just got back from an incredibly fun weekend camping with friends (pictures to come) and are on the brink of leaving again for another round of camping adventures. Having a hard time catching my breath, but loving every minute of the loads of friends and family time we have been having the last month.

Sadly I am still blogging about our June camping trip, the beginning of summer, and here it is the end of summer but our camping is only half over! Yippy, cuz I LOVE fall camping!!

On one of our walks around Ionia we wandered over to the horse camping area. The lots are huge and grassy and beautiful, but they have no electric, no bathrooms, and a wheel-barrel for "waste". Now if I had a horse, you might be able to talk me into camping over there, but since the closest thing to a horse is Romeo, I have no reason to "rough it" with out electricity.

While we were walking through the horse camp sites, we came upon a young couple with two horses. The young lady asked the kids if they wanted to see one of the horses, and proceeded to walk one of them up to the kids to pet. The kids asked lots of questions and she answered lots of questions. I asked her what she did for a living and it came as no surprise that she is a 2nd grade teacher.

Micah, petted the horse for just a short time, Tyler didn't even want to go by it, but Jilli...

She is like her Momma, she couldn't get enough of the horse.

It made her day.

That leads me to the "if only". This past weekend, our friends and I were talking about living in the 1800's and they all thought that I would be able to live back then (as long as I had long hair), and If I lived back then, then I would more than likely have at least one horse, and my kids could grow up living in the time of simplicity. D..R..E..A..M.... but a good one. I would love to live back then without the technology of today, without the busyness that just consumes our lives which is really very meaningless. Instead of blogging I would be out in the yard picking out our dinner from the chickens that are running around, the kids would be milking the cow so we would have milk to drink and Kevin would still be building with wood, but without the nail gun:-)

The closest think we get to that, is camping, and that is not very close since we camp in the Taj with all the comforts of home. Oh well, the good thing is, that at the very least, my friends all believe that I could live without the comforts of home, as long as I have long hair. So, I am growing my hair out until I decide (next month) that I want it short again. Since I am not living in the 1800's might as well live it up with short hair!

Blessings!!

Beautiful Breezes

What a beautiful day today was.

Big white puffy clouds mixed with a sea of blue.

Soft breezes blowing through my house.

A perfect day for reading in the hammock, or sitting on the deck having a great conversation with an old friend.

The kind of day that you wish would replay over and over.

In my mind this is the day that God perfected. I am so happy that I could enjoy today.

I am blessed...

Sessions School House

I love all things old. I love history (even though I failed my Civil War class in 9th grade...that's a whole other story). I love all old buildings. I try to imagine myself back in the period of time when the building was at it's pinnacle. So when we found this great little school house, it was love at first sight.

This is Sessions School House. Built in 1847 it is the oldest cobble-stone building in Michigan. It was built on Alonzo Sessions property, hence the name Sessions School house.

Alonzo Sessions had a hard life in his early years. He was born to a poor family in New York. He was a good student and ended up being a teacher for a few years before he left his native state, to walk on foot to Michigan. His interesting life leaves me wishing that I had known him. He had 13 children with his wife Celia, all of whom he wanted to have a good education. That is why he built a school house on his property. He was a very stern man, but one who commanded respect. He was said to be a pessimist in the measure of men's characters and motives. He was an honest man, a man who's views did not waver. He farmed 800 acres and became a very wealthy man. At his death he was survived by his wife and 7 of his 13 kids. There is so much more to this man that I wish I could write about.

I really wish this place was open so we could see the inside.

This next picture is my family trying to take a picture like they did back when this school was built. The clothes don't give us away or anything.....

Blessings!!

A Little of This and That

Women in her 30's, shoulder length wavy light brown hair. She deals with pain and takes pain meds. She has a white cat that doesn't know how to use a litter box (my opinion, that is one of the most disgusting things I can encounter), and the cat still has it's front claws. The women loves popcorn and peas. She hated to vacuum. Who is she??

I have said that when I clean a home, I get to know the homeowner better than their best friend. The above info is just a small sample of what I can learn about a person, even though I have never even met them.

Friday I walked into a condo that I had to clean for a local credit union. This property was a foreclosed home. This women wasn't overly dirty. I have seen worse, much worse. But there were still aspects of the home that left me speechless.

First, I don't understand allowing your cat to pee all over your home. There is another house that I clean that the cat in that home does the same thing. It is gross, nasty, smelly, disgusting...I could go on, but I won't. I don't know what you have to do to teach a cat to use the litter box, but have mercy, do something before it ruins your home.

Second, grab a vacuum, it does wonders for the cleanliness of a home. Especially if you own an animal. I know that I am extreme, but my vacuum usually comes out everyday. I have an animal, therefore there is hair and dander and dust, so love your home a little and vacuum.

Third, clean your tub drains. When you are washing your hair and it falls out and collects in the drain, throw it out. That is a great place for bacteria and germs to start growing, not to mention that your drain can't function properly. Cleaning hint.... When you take your shower, take your cleaning products with you and clean the shower while you are in it. The steam from your shower breaks up the soap scum and makes cleaning so much easier and faster!

When I leave my home, I always think about how I left it. Just tonight, Kev and I had to run out right after supper for a quick hour. My kitchen was a mess. I had just baked bread and cookies, my dishwasher was running, my sink was full of dirty dishes (I am a firm believer in the research that states it is cheaper to run your dishwasher than to wash dishes by hand...) I have stuff on my counters that I am in the process of packing for our vacation. The kids had toys out, it was a mess. When we got back, I found there had been a delivery on my dining room table. My mess was seen before I was able to clean it up. Yikes! So my house isn't perfect all the time, more often than not it isn't perfect, but I would hope that when it comes time to move from this home, the person who comes behind me to clean, will not be able to tell much more about me than.... she loved her vacuum and took care of her home. Just my random thoughts...

In Other news... The kids had there first karate testing this past Saturday and I look forward to showing some of those pictures. It was a long morning, but I was so proud of how well they all did. Also, my beautiful niece was baptized on Sunday. As always she was beautiful in her white gown that her Momma wore when she was baptized.

Can't wait to watch this little one grow.... but not too fast because I love this baby stage!

Thinking that's all for tonight, ready to hit the pillow, tomorrow is another busy exciting day!

Blessings!!

VBS

My kids look forward to it each year. We count down the days until it's time to go to VBS. Last year it was Tyler's first time and believe me when I say he did NOT want to be there without me. But he made it and everyday he did better and better and by the time the week of VBS rolled around this year, he full of excitement and brotherly knowledge for Jilli's first time.

It was a little heart wrenching leaving all three kids there this year, but a little exciting for me too. What would I do with all my time??!! Three hours everyday, is a lot of me time!

If I had any reservations as to how Jilli would do, they were completely eliminated when I took her to her teacher and she turned to me and said "hug and kiss?" I complied and then she said "bye Mom." That was it, no tears this year, just 'bye'.

Every year the church has a VBS program, so that all the parents can come and see what they have been learning. Last year when they had their program, Tyler just sat and didn't sing and do hand motions. This year he told us he would be different. He worked hard to learn the motions and the songs so that we could watch him at the program. We even made a big deal out of video taping him during the program.

You kind of have to look for Micah he is sitting next to his friend Matt.

Looking forward to next year!

Blessings!!