Mama did you know?...that the note you hastily wrote and attached to a baby gift 4 or 5 babies ago ..would mean so much to me?

Mama did you know?..that I would find that note tucked away years later...and the tears would flow.

Did you know..that I would tack it on my dining room wall, so I could see it every single day.

Your handwriting..I can hear your voice when I glance at it...how much you love my children- your grandbabies.

Your welcome.

And thank-you... for giving me life.

Till we meet again, at the glorious feet of our Savior.

I love you.

If you give a man a power drill...

Gabe had a week off from work. Sort of.

If you've ever read the children's book "If You Give A Mouse a Cookie"..

..the same thing happens when you give a man a power drill..

He does love to tear things apart..

(sorry for the sideways photo)

turned out to be a bit more than we had planned on doing for now..

and we kept finding more rotten wood..

there was no turnin back...

that tends to happen in old houses. Ours was built in 1919.

Ready for siding.

Soon ...we'll have a smaller porch and a new bedroom!

Life is precious..

Every..single..one...

http://theblessingofverity.com/

Sweet Katerina is finally an American citizen! She's finally with her forever family. Praise You, Jesus. Please Lord, rescue the other orphans from her former orphanage. Please give them LIFE, too.

Amen.

A box for Papa

My dad is still recovering from his surgery. He developed something called 'chemical meningitis' and is very weak. So he's staying at a nursing/rehabilitation center for a while. The kids have been praying for him every day. I haven't spoken to him on the phone for over a week..and can't get ahold of him (his hearing aids are not working properly, or his hearing has been damaged from the radiation). So, we decided to write him some letters and send him boxes of goodies! The kids are having fun finding things to put together. We bought some crossword puzzles in jumbo print, playing cards, baked some cookies and mini muffins...and lots of coloring pages. I don't know if dad will eat any of it, or even use the stuff we sent..but like I mentioned on the phone to my auntie..people who come by to visit can enjoy the goodies we sent :)

We mailed our first box to him today in a flat rate box. The postman said we saved over 6 dollars doing it that way. So we must've packed it well. We hope to send another box next week. I do hope it cheers him up a bit. I sure wish we could be there to visit him personally. We would be there every day or so if we could.

Thinking of dad stuck in bed is a hard thing to think about. I know it's even harder on him. He's a strong and independant man. He's definitely a 'manly' man. He drove log truck for most of my childhood..then he was a supervisor at a correctional facility. Not a job for 'softy' men. He took care of my mother till the moment she passed away...he was right by her side.

I pray that the Lord will give him strength, and that dad will accept help from the One who can help him through this.  If he can get strong, and have the small tumor removed from his lungs..his prognosis is excellent.

The earnest prayer of a righteous man has great power and wonderful results! (James 5:16)

Is anything too hard for the Lord? Genesis 18:14)

Now..what to put in the next box....:)

My quest for CLEAN

I have decided and am determined to get my house in order and form better habits with my time. In doing so, I'm taking a break from my favorite 'home on the net' (you all know who you are!) and am focusing my time on getting my 'list' done.

I will still be checking my email, the weather and some news..and post on the blog here and there.

My goals:
form a good habit of getting the Word read daily (my Bible, for those who don't know what the 'Word' is!)

finish putting together my homekeeping binder

form a 'maintenance plan' to keep up with the housework, especially those areas we avoid too regularly

organize and declutter my homeschool area. Too many papers, coloring books, schoolbooks. Some I will store away for later, when I do need them. For now..they don't need to be decorating my living room.

organize my kitchen and pantry..and repaint it!

organize our attic, before it gets terrible cold outside

clean the basement and laundry room. Get caught up w/ laundry..and get a system going in order to STAY caught up.

Get the children used to their new weekly assignment lists..keep them motivated to work on their own.

get my penpal letters written. Amy and Karen..your letters are coming! Keep Elie going with her penpal, to.

Write to my dad, since he's still in the rehab/nursing home recovering from surgery. Send him boxes of yummy stuff at least once a week...if possible.

Get a meal plan going..again.

Find time to crochet!

Find time to exercise.

Slow down and ENJOY these little guys (and gal)....