Life has been interesting as of late! More family drama than I care to shake a stick at with real highs and lows! Last Tuesday evening I recognized the sure fire signs of me getting sick. You don't live with an auto-immune disease this long and not know them! Dr Connie believes that at times it's a sinus thing that escalates into a cold thing complete with a sore throat thing, drainage and an upper and lower respiratory thingy going on. Have I impressed you with my medical jargon? Didn't think so! If this follows the usual pattern, this crud will be gone in about 6 weeks! Hey, at least it's not the Swine Flu!
On Sunday we began watching the latest Ken Burns Documentary aired on PBS on our National Parks. Last night on part 2, they profiled my favorite person, Theodore Roosevelt. He had such a Conservationist mind set that we, the Nations Progeny, have truly benefited from his foresight! I am thinking I want to go back and re read some of the many books I have collected on him since first my interest was peaked! They have covered a LOT on John Muir as well. I completely understand the effect that Nature had on him because I feel that too however, I worship the Creator and not the Creation. Many times that is how he's portrayed so I guess that's someone else I need to read up on! Here is a clip of the meeting between TR and John Muir in Yosemite.
I am thinking, because viewing this series makes me "homesick" for the beautiful places we've visited, I will try and post some of my favorite pictures from our travels.
Glacier National Park is my favorite, the crown jewel of our National Parks. Next summer, Dave and I are heading back there since it will be the Centennial of the establishment of this beautiful landscape! Clicking on the photos will REALLY give you an idea of the majesty of Glacier NP! Clicking here will share a deleted scene from this documentary on Glacier NP.
Charlie with the magnificent view of Glacier National Parks mountains at Saint Mary's Lake, 2007.
Charlie wrestling with his favorite Uncle (Perry) on a snow field on our hike to Sperry Glacier! (Glacier NP 2007)
Here I am crossing a snow field on the way to Sperry Glacier (Glacier NP 2007)
Dave and Charlie on top of the world at Sperry Glacier (Glacier NP 2007)
Charlie and I at Grinnell Glacier (Glacier NP 2007).
Time is running out to e-mail me before this blog goes to Invitation Only. If you haven't yet and would like to continue reading stimulating blog posts about Fire Ants, Life Under The Big Top, Adorable Grandchildren or Mindless Drivel, please e-mail me at: edelweisstexas1@aol.com so I can get the invites out! Thank you and I will now return you to your regularly scheduled blog!
Dave did an outstanding job this year for my birthday. I must say that I felt especially cherished not only by him but by many others as well. I think I got a record number of birthday cards this year! What will it be like next year when I turn 50 I wonder?
I really had a birthweekend and not just a birth DAY. I met Dave down at Cabela's on Friday and we got almost all of Charlie's gear for our Winter trip in December. Then my sweet Hub took me to lunch at Saltgrass Steak House near his office. We had a work related function (meal with a couple of Railroad Contractors and their spouses on Saturday) and bless their hearts they recognized my birthday. On Sunday starting at noon we celebrated with family. How many of us get to have a birthday celebration last that long? Good thing I wasn't bothered about turning 49!
Also, after much thought, I have decided to make this blog open by invitation only. You should be receiving e-mail invitations by the end of the week. Please e-mail me to make sure I send you one: edelweisstexas1@aol.com. Thanks for your understanding.
Today, I received (after requesting!) 5 words from the lovely Trish; it's all part of a meme that you join in, if you want to. Here's how it works; Trish got 5 words from another blogger, and she did a post about the 5 words she was given. She then offered to give 5 words to someone else. I posted my 5 words from Trish and wrote about each of them. If you want to play along, let me know in the comments and make sure I have your e-mail address, and I'll give you your own 5 words! It's fun!
LOVE WOW! What hasn't been said about this 4 letter word. We LOVE our spouse but we also LOVE that new sweater we got such a great deal on! We LOVE our kids but we also LOVE that great Lobster Ravioli dish at our favorite Italian Restaurant!
I choose to write about the most perfect kind of love there is, our Heavenly Father's love for us. It's the love that allowed His only Son to leave the glory and majesty that He deserved in Heaven and was made flesh, with all of its limitations. It's the love that watched a perfect baby, the ultimate gift of love, be wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a trough full of cow slobber! The same Love that watched His gift be spat upon and tortured. It's the kind of love that had to turn away from His only Son- the Son who knew no sin that became OUR sin, so we can experience the Love of God. It's the kind of love that raised Christ from the dead so we too can be more than conquerors through Him. I LOVE how death could not hold our Savior and how He burst forth from the tomb!! It's the ULTIMATE LOVE STORY, we could do nothing to change our position so God did it all!
HIKING What a perfect topic!! I LOVE (there's that word again!) to hike! I consider myself blessed that I have been given an appreciation for God's Creation and that God gave me a Husband that feels the same way! Hiking gives me a sense of satisfaction because the payoff is worth the work! In today's hustle and bustle lifestyle, even vacation can be rushed! When we go to our National Parks, it's amazing how many people NEVER get out of their cars or off the beaten path! There's something about lacing up my boots, filling my Camelbak, packing some snacks and securing my bear spray that gets my heart racing! I still remember how on one hike in particular in Glacier National Park I was attempting to take in the incredible panoramic vistas! It's 360 degrees all around you when you are on top of the world! He brought this verse to my mind:
"Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created." Revelation 4:11
These things were created for His pleasure! His creation brings me pleasure and in that instant, I shared in the heart of God!!! That did and continues to, blow me away!
A Black Bear Cub that Dave and I encountered on a hike to Tokupah Falls in Sequoia/King's Canyon NP in 2006. This was a GREAT payoff!
FUN I love (WOW that word AGAIN!) to laugh and I enjoy being around special people like family and friends. A special memory comes immediately to mind of a fun time I had last summer in San Antonio with my Best Friend Brenda at the Beth Moore Conference at the Alamodome! "Bee" & Me goofing around at the Texas Ranger's Museum in San Antonio!
SCRAPBOOK The word preservation comes to my mind when I think of scrap booking. It's a way to keep a memory alive long after the time has passed. I thoroughly enjoy the whole process of scrap booking. The choosing of papers, stickers and/or embellishments and then watching how it all comes together. Dave has a great eye for photo composition and I have the ability to organize my lay outs and pull out just the right colors to compliment the photos. This past December I finally got an area, all my own, to scrapbook in. Although I share the room with Dave's hobby of Dairy Memorabilia, I get to leave my work space out and pick right back up when I have a spare hour or so. Before, I had to take it all down and put it away so I could use the kitchen table for dinner! My "happy place".
YEARN Since I am all about knowing things I looked up YEARN in the dictionary. It is defined: "To desire something earnestly, longing. To be deeply moved; feel sympathy. Synonymous with: wish, want, covet, hunger, crave, pine for."
My first reaction to this is looking towards our future in about 6 years. I am yearning for the days when Dave and I are retired and we can travel, Lord willing. We would like to buy our couple of acres in Montana and build our cabin. With the days of hard work behind us and time to enjoy one another as well as the beauty of God's creation. Short term I am yearning to go to the big Log Home Show in Dallas next weekend. Dave has us signed up for a building seminar and that should be FUN!! This is one of my favorite floor plans!
When I asked God to tell me something about myself this is what He told me.
"I delight in you".
Naturally, I decided to go to Mr Webster for the definition of "delight":
"Great pleasure, joyful satisfaction. That which affords extreme enjoyment. The quality of delighting; charm. To take great pleasure, rejoice. To give great enjoyment. To please or gratify highly."
That was such an eye-opener to me! We've all heard Zephaniah 3:17 before but I have never heard the God of creation speak it to my spirit! To think that He delights in me, I bring Him pleasure and enjoyment when the universe is His footstool tells me how much He values me and my relationship with Him. I am the apple of His eye! How can I break His heart by sinning against Him knowing that?
"The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing." Zephaniah 3:17
As a Believer and co-heir in Christ, He sings over you as well! That is SOME love song!
That is how I feel today. Last night, Dave and I went to the live taping at our church for our Pastor's first of a four week series titled, "Foundations of Freedom". Pastor Toby has just wrapped up the condensed version on Sunday mornings the last 4 weeks. There is a limited amount of time on Sunday mornings and more ground can be covered in an evening format. This material is life-changing. It's all about understanding WHY you do or don't do the things you do. At its core, it's an identity issue. When we truly know who and whose we are, the value and worth that God the Creator puts on us, it unleashes the power not to always change our circumstances but it certainly changes the way we respond to those circumstances. Modifying our environment and behavior is not enough to have victory in our lives. There was an excellent turn out last night. Dave and I had great dialogue afterwards!
Here's an exercise at the end of the evening that we had to do: Get totally quiet and focused on the Lord Jesus and ask Him to reveal something about Himself to us. What He told me blew my mind! I've known it in my head but it's almost like my heart heard it for the first time!
Ask God to tell me something about myself. Again, what I heard has really challenged me to want to be a better Christian!
Life doesn't slow down just because your kids grow up. I never thought that was possible and yet, it is true!
On Saturday morning Dave and I left the house by 7:15 in the morning and drove down to Fort Worth for the Annual Heart Walk. Dave is the Team Leader for his Dept with the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway and they raised almost $1,000. Rain was in the forecast and boy oh boy, did we ever get it! Nearing the end, we were soaked pretty good. Many people were walking with umbrellas, (we had our rain jackets on) so the pace was even slower than normal. I actually call this the "Heart Stroll" and since Dave and I are hikers the pace is TOO slow for us. You just have to go in with a different mind set-either that or try to be at the front of the line!
We got home and I jumped into the shower to get all of the mud and "whatever" off of me and then went to a Bridal Shower for our "niece" Kristen. No make up, wet hair, what you see is what you get but it was a lovely shower!
After I got home "Jelly Bean" came over to spend the rest of the day and night with us since Steven was photographing the Texas Tech game out in Lubbock and Jessica was photographing a "Sweet 16" Party that evening she had been hired for. Grampy teaches "Jelly Bean" how to make paper airplanes. They used me for target practice! Competing against Grampy!
Dave and I took "The Bean" with us that evening for Kristen and her fiance David's Couples Shower. David & Kristen. David with Kristen's daddy, Randy. Our friendship with this family goes back MANY years, through thick and thin, they are the best! Kristen and Jelly Bean!
The theme was "Around the World", each invited couple were assigned a country and the gift should reflect that culture. For example the couple who had Italy gave them a basket with wine, pasta, sauce and spices, etc. We were also asked to bring a food item from the country that we were assigned. Opening the "United States" basket. The "Mexico" basket. Naturally, we got GERMANY! I got them these great aprons, complete with Lederhosen printed on them, I wrapped them in the yellow, red and black colors of the German flag and we got them a German Cookbook. In it I wrote the Prayer (in German) that my mother taught me as a child to say before every meal. They were such great sports! I made a Black Forest Cake. Jelly bean is SO Jessica's daughter! We had a wonderful evening, sharing in Kristen and David's happiness and the warmth of friends and family. Kristen is dazzling, she just sparkles under David's love for her and David is a wonderful, Godly man! As they shared their story with all of us, it is so incredibly obvious that God has orchestrated their lives every step of the way to bring them to this very point together!
Sunday we had church, Jessica picked up Jelly Bean, we watched the Dallas Cowboys game and spent the rest of the day relaxing. We are still getting rain and the temperatures are only supposed to hit around 80 today! I am pretty excited over this! Charlie has been trained for his new job and the Pizza Hut has their Grand Opening today! He has class all day and then works 6 to midnight! A long day for sure!
I remember getting ready to take Laura to Middle School, Charlie had already been dropped off to the Elementary School, he was in 5th grade. Laura was watching TV and showed me the burning tower of the first airplane strike while details were still sketchy. I commented something to the effect of how like most "big news" stories everyone will be all focused on this and then in a couple of days it would die down while we waited for the NEXT "big news" story. I have never been more wrong. We are still talking about this horrible day! Right before we turned off the TV to leave we saw the 2nd plane hit the 2nd tower. We couldn't believe what we had just seen with our own eyes! I took her to school and went to clean my friend's house. A short time later, Jessica called me to tell me the towers had fallen and that 2 more planes had went down. I left and went to school to pick up Laura and Charlie. Dave was out of town in LA and I needed to have the kids with me! I still remember one of Charlie's teachers telling me how I should leave him at school. NOPE! Not long after the airlines were up and flying, my Mom came down to Texas for a visit. Someone on the plane asked her if she was afraid to fly? She told them how she'd survived WW2, living under Hitler and many more things in her life and that she wasn't afraid! Those of us who know the Savior have no fear of what man can do to us!
Where were you when the world stopped turning that September day Out in the yard with your wife and children Working on some stage in LA Did you stand there in shock at the site of That black smoke rising against that blue sky Did you shout out in anger In fear for your neighbor Or did you just sit down and cry
Did you weep for the children Who lost their dear loved ones And pray for the ones who don't know Did you rejoice for the people who walked from the rubble And sob for the ones left below
Did you burst out in pride For the red white and blue The heroes who died just doing what they do Did you look up to heaven for some kind of answer And look at yourself to what really matters
I'm just a singer of simple songs I'm not a real political man I watch CNN but I'm not sure I can tell you The difference in Iraq and Iran But I know Jesus and I talk to God And I remember this from when I was young Faith hope and love are some good things he gave us And the greatest is love
Where were you when the world stopped turning that September day Teaching a class full of innocent children Driving down some cold interstate Did you feel guilty cause you're a survivor In a crowded room did you feel alone Did you call up your mother and tell her you love her Did you dust off that bible at home Did you open your eyes and hope it never happened Close your eyes and not go to sleep Did you notice the sunset the first time in ages Speak with some stranger on the street Did you lay down at night and think of tomorrow Go out and buy you a gun Did you turn off that violent old movie you're watching And turn on "I Love Lucy" reruns Did you go to a church and hold hands with some stranger Stand in line and give your own blood Did you just stay home and cling tight to your family Thank God you had somebody to love
I'm just a singer of simple songs I'm not a real political man I watch CNN but I'm not sure I can tell you The difference in Iraq and Iran But I know Jesus and I talk to God And I remember this from when I was young Faith hope and love are some good things he gave us And the greatest is love
I'm just a singer of simple songs I'm not a real political man I watch CNN but I'm not sure I can tell you The difference in Iraq and Iran But I know Jesus and I talk to God And I remember this from when I was young Faith hope and love are some good things he gave us And the greatest is love
The greatest is love The greatest is love
Where were you when the world stopped turning that September day
Eight years later, this video still brings tears to my eyes!
That's what my son Charles calls my decorating for Fall. Here's Part One of a glimpse of some of the additional clutter now strewn all over the house. Clicking on the pictures will enlarge them.
On top of the rolltop computer desk this little pumpkin that has on it, "Praise God from whom all blessings flow" and this cute clown candle holder from my best friend Brenda! Brenda also gave me this cute Boyd's bear that sits on the antique school desk. Notice the little pumpkins embroidered on her sweater?
The computer room used to be the formal dining room but we switched out years ago from lack of use. The China cabinet is still in here though and holds some cheery decor! My best friend Lois gave me this colorful flower vase. It sits on the ornamental windows that separate the living room from the former dining room. A ghost hangs around on our bedroom door! Dave's Mom gave me his old Trick Or Treat Pumpkin from when he was a little boy! Stacking Scarecrow! These 3 pictures show the pumpkins that sit on 3 of the stereo speakers near the TV. A little figure sits on top of the tall filing cabinet in the living room. Acorns and a small pumpkin on the sofa table. On top of the curio cabinet that holds pictures of Dave and I, these little ghosts hardly look spooky! Even the milk bottle shelves in the living room get some color! "Kit-Kat" and "Sweet-Tart" are surrounded by these cute little figures on top of the other tall filing cabinet. Cute grand-daughters on display!
I am disregarding the thermometer and looking at my calendar instead. We are in the month of September so that means I am decorating for Fall! I normally would have done it yesterday but I had the exterminator out 2 weeks earlier than his routine scheduling to get rid of some Fire Ants.
On Sunday, I went to hang the clean laundry in my closet and to my horror, saw hundreds of them crawling all over my clothes and hangers! The pictures don't really convey the large amount of ants in my closet!
I sprayed RAID into my closet and shut the door. After a few minutes I started taking them out one by one and shaking them over the bathtub so they would fall off and then I immediately threw them into the washer. (DIE, DIE, DIE you wretched beasties!)
It appeared to me that they were only in the front section of my closet so I only did 4 washer loads of laundry as opposed to emptying out the entire closet full of clothes. Everything is back in place and life is good once more.
I have joked that the 11th, unwritten plague in Exodus was Fire Ants! If anyone has ever had to deal with them or ever been bitten/stung by them, you must have wondered like I have, what their purpose could possibly be for existing!!! When we moved here from Colorado 16 years ago, we had no reference point when it came to dealing with these "devil insects". Charlie was bitten/stung over 30 times on just one leg playing in the yard! Fortunately he wasn't allergic! From that point on he had a personal vendetta against Fire Ants. On any given day you would see him outside in his training underpants and his cowboy boots, kicking Fire Ant mounds to smitherins! No love lost there! Me either for that matter! When I get bitten/stung by a Fire Ant, the area immediately fills up with fluid and itches like the dickens, for days!! A human leg three days after coming in brief contact with a fire ant colony. This is from Wikipedia BRIEF CONTACT! Is it any wonder these things can swarm and kill livestock out on ranches!?
So today I am anticipating nicer things! After I get home from my Morning cleaning job I am hauling out my Fall decor and will start decorating the house! It's a tad early for pumpkins but I will still hang my orange lights and put out some straw and my scarecrow. Then I will sit and think of caramel apples, Halloween decorations, sweater weather from the inside of my house with the Air Conditioner blasting away!
I am first & foremost a child of the King-a risen, reigning King named Jesus. I am married to the great love of my life, my soul mate. I am the mother of 3 beautiful daughters and a handsome son! I am also a grandmother of 4 precious girls and 2 grandsons! I love my Savior and wish to bring glory to Him through my life! My favorite place to be is hiking in the mountains with a daypack, a hiking stick and a canister of bear spray! Glacier National Park, Yellowstone, Bryce Canyon and Yosemite are some of my favorite places to hike. My Hubby and I are retired and live in Northwestern Montana, "The Last Best Place."
