March - August 2014

Wonderful Husband and I traveled to Puerto Rico in March departing Philadelphia early on a Tuesday morning when the temperature read a frigid 16 degrees!

We arrived in Puerto Rico where the high displays 83 degrees and the low rests at 73 every evening.

We hopped on a shuttle bus and 50 minutes later arrived at the resort where the trade winds greeted us with open arms.

The view outside our hotel room.
Picture postcard perfect?

And if you were wondering....the answer is "Yes."

I think Puerto Rico saved my sanity.

This was a working trip for Wonderful Husband who attends meetings during some of the days.

I linger for 5 days and soak up the warmth like a sponge.

Deep into my memory and my soul.

Beautiful flora made my eyes and heart happy!

At the end of March, our daughter and granddaughter moved in with us.

We are now an intergenerational home.

April brought Easter with excited egg-dyeing

and an Easter basket.

(The funniest part while taking this photo was Youngest Sweetie saying, "Cheese," and of course I couldn't see her smile.)

May brought another birthday celebration for me and Wonderful Husband.

You know the years do fly by.

June celebrated our 32nd wedding anniversary and my in laws 65th.

July was our vacation in Wildwood, NJ,

A storm rolling in.

and a bridal shower for our niece.

The four girl cousins from Wonderful Husband's side of the family.

August ends with a wedding of Wonderful Husband's cousin's daughter.

Yummy cake!

And now I'm ready for September.

How about you?

Joy on Easter Sunday

Thank you Ann Voskamp for reminding me of this video!

Second Baptist Church in Houston, TX

Easter 2013

Wonderful Husband, the Teacher and I attended the 7:00 a.m. Easter Service at the United Methodist Church. It was early, lovely, and celebratory! It could be our new Easter tradition.

Happy Easter!

The day began with sun and just in time for the Easter gathering, the clouds rolled in, the sky began to drizzle, then rain lasted the rest of the day.

The Toddler Easter Egg Hunt was held inside this year since the weather didn't cooperate.

I wish I could have captured (on video) the Young Adult Outdoor Easter Egg Hunt. Ages 23 - 34. Too funny watching "the kids" scamper around the backyard in the rain!

I deemed this Easter "The Year of Crying." You can hear it during the Toddler's Egg Hunt. There was crying during the Young Adult Egg Hunt too. (One of toddlers, not the Young Adults.)

Then I had to include this picture of the younger generation:

Too funny!

Grandparenthood is the best season of life so far because after all the Easter excitement...we went home to our quiet house.

How was your Easter?

St. Patrick's Day

also known as our daughter's birthday!

Wonderful Husband was out of town so I met our daughter, her family, and her in-laws for dinner at:

P.F.Chang's China Bistro

By the way, did you know that this upcoming Wednesday is the First Day of Spring?

Here is what this morning looked like from my front porch in PA:

Clumpy snow. Are you kidding me?

The snow melted as the day progressed.

Hooray!

Our granddaughter, Youngest Sweetie arriving for dinner.

Happy Birthday Young Sweetie and thanks for the dinner invitation!

No Calorie Donuts

I went to the grocery store and saw these scrumptious looking pre-St. Patrick's Day donuts:

Just looking at them made me experience a sugar high and no I didn't purchase any.

I sent the picture to my St. Patrick's Day born daughter though.

A sweet gift with no messy calories to regret!

Brace Yourself

My granddaughter has always known me looking like this....

a mouth full of braces.

Last Tuesday, after 20 and a half months of wearing braces....

they're gone!

(Side thought: I wish I had a sun tan.)

After my braces were removed, my orthodontist handed me a bottle of non-alcoholic, sparkling cider.

Later his assistant took me for "after pictures" and I said, "Gee, this bottle is nice....but I was kind of hoping for a bag of candy."


A few minutes later I was handed this....

and although I offered to return the cider, I was told I could keep both.

Score!

If you're wondering if my granddaughter noticed the difference....the answer is no. She did not.

So much for my thinking she'd freak-out over her newly improved Grandma.

Now I'm off to chew gum, or eat popcorn, or a Rice Krispies Treat!

Hooray!

Faith, Hope and Love (2012)

For a child is born to us
a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6 (NLT)

And he will stand to lead his flock with the Lord's strength,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
Then his people will live there undisturbed,
for he will be highly honored around the world.
And he will be the source of peace.
Micah 5:4-5a (NLT)

...but the angel reassured them, "Don't be afraid!" he said. "I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all the people. The Savior --- yes, the Messiah, the Lord --- has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!
Luke 2:10-11 (NLT)

May your Christmas be filled with faith, hope and love!

A Nephew's Wedding

I've complained about mentioned the outdoor wedding and reception before.

In August.

We had severe weather on Friday morning and the chance of scattered thunderstorms throughout the day.

Here's what the sky looked like when the ceremony began....

a bit iffy.

We were sprinkled with a bit of rain during the ceremony.

The sun broke through the clouds intermittently.

It was a tad bit warm.

And yet when all was said and done,

it was a joy-filled and beautiful celebration.

Blessings to our nephew and now niece-in-law as they begin their married life together!

Have you attended an outdoor wedding?

The 7th of July

It seemed odd this year when July 4th fell on a Wednesday. I worked Monday and Tuesday, came home and thought it was Friday. (My mind is a funny thing.)

We were off from work on Wednesday, yet it was so steamy-hot that we stayed home and watched some fireworks off in the distance from our front door. (I love air conditioning.)

Back to work for Thursday and Friday, and here is a secret that Wonderful Husband told me....he thought Thursday night was Friday night. (Maybe the confused-mind-syndrome is contagious in this house? Ha!)

Although today is Saturday July 7th, we went to my sister-in-law's for a pig roast. It's an annual 4th of July tradition. The high temperature forecast for today was 100 degrees, and the weather forecasters were correct this time. (Boo!)

The pig was 108 lbs. this year.
Big pig.

Hamburgers and hotdogs were available
for those who didn't want pig for dinner.

This was where the lemonade, sodas, water, and
toy trucks were located.

Two tables of side dishes....

Desserts were covered so the little kids
(and adults) wouldn't break them out before dinner.

Although we had thunder and lightening move through our area, the day ended beautifully.

Wonderful Husband, our son, daughter, and son-in-law had tickets to a Phillies night game so they left the festivities early.

That's what happens when July 4th falls on a Wednesday and it isn't celebrated until the 7th.

Did the Wednesday holiday confuse you as much as it confused me?

What 51 Looks Like

....to me.

I still have braces.
11 months into my 10-14 month estimated treatment .

Two gifts from Maria

Hummingbird wind chime

Gardening gloves.
(Wonder if she got the idea from
Wonderful Husband?)
Time to get my gardening on!

I'm still taller than Youngest Sweetie.
(Of course my granddaughter is 6 months old.)

I take every day that I'm not the shortest person in the family as a win for me!

51 is looking/feeling pretty good so far!

Our Granddaughter's Baptism

I've written about baptism before here.

Almost two weeks ago our granddaughter was baptized at the 8:30 a.m. service.

The Baptismal Font at our church.




I was thankful to witness our granddaughter's baptism and to make a commitment with the congregation to love and support her parents in raising this sweet girl to believe in God and love Jesus.

Amen.

A Perfect Day For A Wedding

The weather was unseasonably warmish, sunny, and delightful on Tuesday, February 7th.

A perfect day for a wedding. (But really wouldn't every day be perfect for a wedding?)

Our daughter Young Sweetie married Andy, our son-in-law.

On our way up the courthouse steps, I glanced to our right and saw a wall of glass and a small group of women behind the glass smiling and waving. I waved and then told Young Sweetie, "Look to your right and wave."  She did and their smiles increased while they enthusiastically waved to her.

It was my first time attending a courthouse wedding and the judge who officiated is also a member of our church.

The ceremony was beautiful. Wonderful Husband and I had a few tears...but didn't go into full boo-hoo mode. Phew!

We pray for the newlyweds to keep God first and each other second, and are thankful to be able to witness the beginning of their lives as husband and wife.

A perfect day for a wedding!

Grace and Joy (2011)

For a child is born to us
a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6 (NLT)

And he will stand to lead his flock with the Lord's strength,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
Then his people will live there undisturbed,
for he will be highly honored around the world.
And he will be the source of peace.
Micah 5:4-5a (NLT)

...but the angel reassured them, "Don't be afraid!" he said. "I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all the people. The Savior --- yes, the Messiah, the Lord --- has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!
Luke 2:10-11 (NLT)

May your Christmas be filled with grace and joy!

Christmas Celebrations 2011

This week has been filled with celebrations.

My Christmas lunch with co-workers at the William Penn Inn on Tuesday.
Beautiful ambiance.
Wonderful food and my dessert choice was creme brulee.
Yum!



Outside the entrance to the William Penn Inn.

Inside the foyer.
Love the red and the statue!

On Thursday, I took a vacation day from work and joined my Bible Study Buddies for a class where we watched one of  Beth Moore's video on "Esther: It's Tough Being a Woman." We had lunch which was a full turkey dinner with all the fixins and then an ornament exchange.

A month ago I tried to find where I could purchase Old World Ornaments. No luck in the New Hope stores I had stopped in. I was very disappointed.

Nutcrackers on our mantle.
Our granddaughter, Youngest Sweetie loves to stare at them.

I chose an Old World Ornament box from the table, wrapped only with a gold bow, and inside was this:

When Youngest Sweetie came over to visit, I showed her this one and hung it very high on the tree.

Well as high as a short person can reach that is.

After the ornament exchange, I asked who brought the ornament and if she would please tell me where she had purchased it.

Who brought the ornament?

Her name is Grace.

FYI - "Grace" is the word I have focused on for this year.

(Now I can tell Wonderful Husband where to find Old World Ornaments for future gift ideas. Pine Wreath and Candle in Peddler's Village. Hey! They've been around since 1964. Where have I been?)

Which leads me to Saturday and Wonderful Husband's Annual Family Christmas Party. A quick estimate of attendees was 30. And I can't begin to tell you what decibel level we reached....let's just say L O U D!

The dessert table!

After this week of festivities...I am sooooo full of food that I'm asking God to help me with some self control for this week leading up to Christmas!

Have you been calorically overloaded with celebrations?

My plan today is to reintroduce myself to my treadmill. It's been a while so I hope "she" doesn't hold a grudge!

A Grandmother

It's time to update my profile description to include "Grandma."

Our daughter (Young Sweetie) gave birth to our granddaughter, Amber Riley, at 8:57 p.m. on her due date of 11-11-11.

Amber weighed 6 lbs.1 oz. and measures 20 inches.

Hey! I'm not the shortest person in the family anymore!

Welcome to the world Amber!

Congratulations to Young Sweetie and Andy!

Thank you Lord!

I am exhausted :)

Grandma and Snow (Showers)

Last Saturday (October 29) we had snow in PA. Lots of snow. Crazy for Autumn and I hope not an example of the winter ahead snow.

I have mentioned my Bible Study Buddies mutliple times on my ongoing list of counting toward One Thousand Gifts. Last Saturday I was invited to Maria's home for a get together with some of them and breakfast was included. Yum!

Sorry of the blurriness. I forgot my camera, had Maria's son take the pictures with my phone and although the pictures looked crystal clear on my phone, by the time I copied them to my computer...fuzziness appeared. (I'm the one in the center, hands clasped in front.)

Have you ever heard of a Grandma Shower? I hadn't and these ladies pulled it together and there were gifts  and it was awesome! Someone asked the last time I had a shower in my honor and I had to think back to my baby shower 25 years ago. YIKES!

The gifts included:
lots of books - plastic, cardboard, and regular paper pages,
swaddling blankets and a Comfort in the Word quilt,
some toys,
and diapers and wipes (what?) Ha!

We prayed before digging into breakfast, Maria thanking God for bringing us all together in life and thanking Him for me too. They are such a great group of godly women. I was blessed to study God's word with them for five years. I told them that the drawback to working full-time since last December is that I don't see them on Thursday mornings. I miss them.

I drove home carefully in the snow and arrived home at noon. Here's what the heavy snow looked like from inside my house. The burning bush struggling to remain upright under the heavy, wet snow. Wonderful Husband went out later to brush the snow off and it did spring back up.

This is what snow looks like on beautiful fall colored leaves in our neighbor's backyard.

We're watching our other neighbor's tree to see if it loses another section of branches due to the weight of the heavy snow and the blowing wind.

It was a fun and crazy day in PA. (See, I am a poet!)

I am thankful for my Bible Study Buddies gifting me with supplies for grandmotherhood. A Grandma Shower is a wonderful idea for a first time grandma.

And snow showers in October? That is just bizarre!