Family Reunion

This is a very exciting week for me. My side of the family is having a family reunion of sorts. My grandparents, who are 85 years old, live in a retirement village in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. They have not been away from their town in almost 4 years due to aging and health issues. Last fall when Jeff and I went down to visit them, Jeff felt prompted by the Lord to invite them to our home; we would drive down and get them. We were excited when they took us up on the offer.

After months of planning with my parents and siblings, Jeff and I left Sunday for tornado country. We got back here with them yesterday. We set up a bedroom for them on the main level of the house and there is also a full bathroom. We have a lot of family coming in starting with my brother's family tomorrow. It will be a crazy but fun week.

The Graduate!

Saturday, Josh graduated from Madrid High School - class of 2008. The ceremony was short and sweet with just 30 seniors graduating this year. Each student walked across the platform to receive their diploma, then walked out into the audience and presented their moms with a long stemmed rose before taking their seat. Graduation is bitter sweet. It is so cool to see Josh finishing high school. He is growing to be a fine young man and we are so proud of him, but we will really miss him when he goes off to college this fall.

A Hike in the Ledges

This afternoon Zach came and got me and the dog and took us for a hike at Ledges State Park. Only about 15 minutes away, the Ledges is certainly different from the rest of our cornfield covered area. The Des Moines River runs through the park and has lots of rugged hiking trails that lead up and down steep slopes to beautiful scenic overlooks.

Today we went looking for Lost Lake, a small body of water surrounded by cliffs on all sides. Zach wanted to check out the lake to see if it would be a good place to go fishing. I just love being in the great outdoors. Listening to the birds, smelling the water, and seeing the wild flowers and spectacular sights just makes me feel so close to God. Besides, the exercise of hiking up and down the hills is good for me and I'm pretty sure that Dodger will take a long afternoon nap!

Graduation Open House

Josh had his graduation open house yesterday. We had a good crowd show up even though many people were out of town. He picked a pretty easy menu: hot dogs on the grill, vegetable tray, fruit salad, chips, and cake. Since he used to work in the produce department at the grocery store, he volunteered to shop for and cut up all the fruits and vegetables. He really helped a lot to get ready for all the guests.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!! Mother's Day weekend has been absolutely crazy for us but we did find a little time to spend as a family. Jeff picked me up from work at 8:00 tonight, and I was surprised to find both boys with him. We all went to Red Lobster for dinner. Our whole family loves sea food and we try to go there once a year as a family. Zach ate like a bottomless pit! Not only did he eat all of his own food, but he finished Josh's shrimp, my broccoli, and the rest of the cheese biscuits!! Our yearly trips to Red Lobster is a tradition that I think my boys will have fond memories of for the rest of their lives.

That's my mom in the picture. I really love my mom. One of my earliest memories of my mom is sitting on her bed when I was four years old and her helping me to invite Jesus to come into my heart. I will always be grateful for the Christian upbringing that I had. I also remember the many game she played with us to pass the time while traveling and all the books that she read to us. Memories are really important to me. I don't see my family very often, but I always have my memories of them. Thanks Mom for all you've done for me throughout the years. I love you!

Spring Finally Sprung!!

About a week ago I was talking on the phone to my mom (who lives in Michigan) about how slow it has taken for spring to get here this year. Last week, our trees still didn't have any leaves on them. Even our daffodils and tulips hadn't bloomed yet. It seems like in the last few days, though, everything has just popped.

Jeff and I went for a short walk tonight and as always found ourselves walking past our new house. We specifically were looking to see what kind of trees are in the yard. We have quite a few beautiful flowering trees; two white ones and at least four purple ones. We also have a birch tree. I can't tell about the trees in the back yard, but since they are so big I would guess them to be maple or cottonwood.

I'M GLAD WINTER IS OVER!!!

Zach Goes to Prom...Again!

Zach went to prom again this year even though he is out of school. Lauren is a good friend of his that lives in another school district. This is Zach's fourth prom. He went to two in Hawley, one in Madrid, and this year in Story City-Roland. He could have just bought a tux and it probably would have been cheaper in the end!

Deep Freeze

Jeff got an email the other day from DMACC with a note explaining that all faculty, including adjunct professors, have the opportunity to purchase either a whole or half hog at a greatly discounted price. Jeff ordered a half hog which is fine with me except where will we put it?!! We decided that we need a freezer.

After scouring the newspaper for rummage sales, we headed out bright and early this morning to a couple of garage sales that advertised freezers. We bought one at the first sale we went to for $50. It is probably 10-15 years old and needs a good cleaning, but seems to seal well and looks pretty good on the inside. The outside does have some rust due to moisture. I think I will try my hand at using appliance paint and see what I can do with it. It will be so good to have a freezer again!

Confused About Teaching

Last night Jeff and I went to an open house for a group called Boone County Empowerment. This organization heads up a number of social service agencies that serve the infant/preschool children and their families in our county. Jeff, being clergy in our community, is on their board of directors. When I am exposed to anything in the field of Early Childhood, it always brings back the desire to work with young children. Our visit to the open house did just that.

I am currently not working with kids in any capacity except for in the nursery at church (which isn’t even close to teaching!). I know that right now I am doing just exactly what God wants me to be doing job-wise: church secretary and at the grocery store. I also know that the longer I am out of the field the harder it will be for me to get a job and finding a decent paying job in the early childhood field is not easy to do!

I do believe that some day I will be back working in education in some way. Right now am I struggling with issues like do I continue to pay for an expensive membership in a teaching organization when I’m not teaching even though I do read the journal and books that come with the membership? And how will I know when the right time is to begin working with kids again? I can’t really go by emotion or feelings and I certainly don’t want to leave it to chance. I try to take it day-by-day and trust that God will make His perfect plan for my life known.