Friends and Family

Jim had a meeting in Minneapolis and because it was so close to our friends Sally and Ron's house I went with him.

It is wonderful to be with long time friends that you feel so comfortable with. We laughed together, cried together, and talked and talked.  One day Ron walked in the room and reminded us how many words women had and he was sure were were using all of them. We were making up for all the days, months, years we are not together.

 As we sat by the fire visiting that first morning we looked outside and saw snowflakes!

 

 

 

 

When we were on the plane flying home I could not help but think of this verse as we looked out the window. 

 

 The heavens declare the glory of God;

the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

Psalm 19:1

 

 

 

 

 While we were gone, Colette and Ashlynn's school had the children dress as their favorite book character and bring that book to school. I am so glad both mothers sent me pictures of the girls!

Colette dressed as Kaya, one of the American Girl dolls.

She carried the book that was her story.

 

 

Ashlynn was Angelina Ballerina.  Angelina is a is a ballerina that is a mouse!

Ashlynn made the cutest little mouse.  

 

 

I am thankful for the opportunity to visit our friends

and thankful to come back home to family! 

Ronald McDonald House

A group of ladies from our church went to Ft. Worth to the Ronald McDonald House to serve lunch to the families. None of us had ever been there but all of us were excited about the day.
Ronald McDonald House provides a supportive home-away-from-home for families of children receiving medical treatment in area hospitals. It is their desire that families are able to rest and relax while being able to be close to their children. Their vision is to never turn a family away. 
We were so impressed with the beautiful kitchen as well as the other areas.  The kitchen had everything we needed to prepare our meal. The staff were all so welcoming and helpful to us.

 

Our menu was Taco Soup, Tortilla Chips, Sour Cream, Cheese, Fruit Salad, Brownies, Iced Tea, and Lemonade

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was a blessing to serve these families. We had a chance to talk to and encourage a few.

 

 

We were very glad that Jim wanted to join us. 

 

 On the way home we talked about how we wanted to do it again.  So in November we will return and again fix lunch for the families!

 

"I used to think you had to be special for God to use you,

 but now I know you simply need to say yes."

~Bob Goff

from Love Does

 

 

 

 

 

A week of sunshine and flowers

I had a week with no obligations so I spent some time with friends.

Monday I met my friend Jenny for lunch and we spent hours talking and laughing!

That evening our church helped at  6Stones . Besides stacking cans of food we had a fun time visiting with each other.  A great way to become friends or get to know each other better while helping an organization that provides food and clothing for those in need.

Tuesday I had lunch with my friend Carol.  We ate salads and visited for what seemed to be too short of a time.

Wednesday I had lunch with my friend Jennifer and her daughter. What fun to spend time with her and her sweet three yr. old who loves to be read to and work puzzles.

Besides a fun visit I received a special treat of Jennifer's homemade strawberry-cranberry jam. It tasted delicious on our biscuits this morning!

Thursday I baby sat for my friend Lindsay while she was out of town helping her sister with her new baby. Her little Keane is adorable!

Friday morning my friend Jennifer and I visited our friend Phyllis that is in the hospital recovering from a fall.

I am blessed and believe that...

Week-end of shower and friends...

Shawna and I had fun planning a brunch baby shower for our friend, Monica!  We were happy to have help from our friend, Teresa and Shawna's mother in law, Cheryl. Monica's nursery theme is Safari so we kept that in mind as we decorated.

P for Baby Preston

Every safari needs a jeep!

Thanks to my very talented son-in-law, Austin

Vanilla, Chocolate, and Lemon Cake balls!

Homemade...by Shawna

We also had donut holes.

And yes, that is the cutest diaper cake

that Shawna also made!

Aren't these little fruit cups and small spoons cute?

Monica received many nice gifts and baby Preston will look adorable in his cute outfits.

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In the evening our dear friends, Chad and Heather, along with three of their four children arrived for the night.  They live in Japan and are in the states visiting family and friends. We had a wonderful time with them.

Noa loved playing our piano

Lili's first time to break an egg...

She then cooked our scrambled eggs for breakfast!

Good bye till next summer

I am so grateful for the friends the Lord brings into our lives...

some close by and some far away...but all always in our hearts!

More than pancakes...

CityLife Church serves...

~by Jim

This summer, as we begin training for missional living, we are scheduling opportunities for our people to connect with the surrounding community. Saturday we had a group set up to feed a pancake breakfast for the families that would be served by 6Stones through New Hope Center. We planned, prepared, and conducted the entire event without any need for the team at New Hope to be involved…but we did have their approval and their blessing on our effort.

As we gathered early Saturday morning we took time to pray together and talk about what it means to be missional. Missional living has been defined in terms of realigning ourselves with the biblical narrative where we adopt a missionary stance in relation to our culture. Living on mission goes far beyond the “what” and “how” of being sent; it hinges on the “who” of other people. It’s about entering into life with other people and intentionally living the gospel wherever we are. What we do must be of value to the people that we encounter, but it is only the foil that gets us there. While we are there we must engage the people and join them on their journey…we must be willing to get outside of our assumptions about life and walk with people as Jesus did. It was our prayer God would circumcise our eyes and hearts allowing us to see what He sees as we served those that came.

As we departed we were aware that the “pancakes” may have met the immediate need…but we were greatly aware that encounters of significance could only happen by taking the first step to be where the people are. It remains our hope that the “ancient way” will be made new to us again.

Happy Birthday Molly Joy

Our sweet dog, Molly Joy, had a birthday Saturday.  She is 3 yr. old! Colette and her sister Sabrina brought Molly some gifts. Molly was so happy to see them and even happier when she realized what they brought her. We are thankful for our dog who brings us much happiness! We are also thankful for little girls who love our dog like we do.

Doggie Cookies! They smelled so good!

Every dog has to have a birthday card!

She was ready for her birthday bone!

YES! So good!

A favorite pie...

Years ago when we lived in Oklahoma a friend gave me a pie recipe from the tea room where she worked. It is a Peanut Butter Cream Pie. I enjoy making and sharing it with family and friends. Yesterday I made one as a surprise for a friend's birthday and another one for Joshua, my nephew, who came home today from a mission trip to Guatemala. I hope he shares it with us later tonight. I loved blessing others with this pie this week end!


Does your family have a favorite pie?