Special Women: part II

Kelly- Josh's wife. Kelly is a wonderful daughter-in-law. She and Josh enjoy the same things, they play golf together, both love to coach sports and are so much alike. Kelly is a not afraid to speak her mind to Josh, but will also be his staunchest defender.

Andrea- Jake's wife. Andrea is also a wonderful daughter-in-law. She and Jake both have a passion for the youth group in church. Jake is a youth minister and Andrea is supportive and is there to work beside him every step of the way.


Audrey-Oldest niece. Audrey may not "officially" be a woman at the tender age of 16, she is none the less a strong young woman. In a day when most 16 year old girls are giving their parents fits, Audrey has a strong moral conviction and desire to do the right thing.


STRENGTH
COMMITMENT
DETERMINATION
CHARITY

These are the lessons I learned from the 4 women in the previous post that I hope these 3 can one day learn from me.

Lessons from the special Women in my life

Mom- Growing up, my mom was not the huggy, kissy type mom, However, I never had any doubt that she loved me. I always knew that she was the one person that I could always count on. Our house was always full of kids, my parents took in several foster children over the years and my mom became " mom " to many. My dad died 8 years ago and she has had to adjust to living alone. She has had her share of broken bones ( arm, leg, many toes) but she still tries to do as much on her own as possible.

The lesson I take from my mother is STRENGTH.
Aunt A'trice- Growing up, I probably stayed at my aunts house as much as my own. For the past few years she had been dealing with the fact that the love of her life (Uncle Avery) was slowing slipping away because of Alzheimer's. Uncle Avery died in November 2006 and Aunt A'trice was there as she had been for over 50 years.

The lesson I take from Aunt A'trice is COMMITMENT.
Wendy- My sister. While blood may not connect us, our hearts do. Wendy is someone who overcame a childhood that would have broken the spirit of many, Wendy was not going to let that stop her from having a fulfilling life for her and her family.

The lesson I take from Wendy is DETERMINATION.
Melody- My Sister-in-law. I don't know many people with a heart as big as this woman's. Melody is always there with a helping hand. The best part is, you don't have to ask for her to help, she just does.

The lesson I take from Melody is CHARITY.

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I am convinced that the influence of an army of godly women will be incalculable--in our homes, our churches, and our culture. Will you be one of those women?

Nancy Leigh DeMoss

Grandmother & Pop

My Grandparents, what can I say...I'm very lucky to still have these two. They are very interesting characters. They have been married over 60 years. My grandmother was just 13 years old (gasp) when they married, I know that sounds awful, but 6o years ago, 13 year olds were very different than they are today.

My grandparents are very independent, they both still drive, work in their yard, go fishing and camping, and love to travel, (although long trips require someone else driving).

Pop was in WWII and was stationed in Italy. He later worked many years as a security guard and still loves to dance. He's also very funny, he has this wonderful, dry sense of humor. In his younger days Pop had the reputation as someone you wouldn't want to make mad, he had no tolerance for idiots. I wish everyone could sit and listen to him talk about the past.

Grandmother is your typical grandmother. She loves to cook and boy,...is she good at it! If you could taste heaven, it would taste like her Coconut Cake. She gave birth to my mother when she was 14 ( almost 15) and then had 2 boys (Ray and Larry). In a time when large families were very common, they had a relatively small one. She too, can tell you stories about the past that are so enjoyable you could sit and listen forever.

My grandparents set several examples for all of us in the family.

1. Marriages can last, you just have to work at it
2. Your children are Never too old for discipline ( On my mothers wedding night she told pop that he would never be able to "whip" her again, to which he replied "why,... are you dying?"
3.You're never too old to become faithful members of the church.

If you are lucky enough to still have parents or grandparents from that generation, sit down and ask them to tell you their stories about their lives. You won't be disappointed, I promise.

Those Were The Days...

I am SO thankful my Mom & Dad let me be a KID! Look at all these wonderful memories we have! Wish our kids could have the same ones! Living like we did, basically all people over 30 should, by all rights, be dead.
According to today's bureaucrats, those of us who were kids in the 50's, 60's and 70's probably shouldn't have survived.
Our baby cribs were covered with bright colored lead-based paint. We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets, and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets. (Not to mention the risks we took jumping homemade ramps & curbs).
As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags. Riding in the back of a pickup truck on a warm day was always a special treat. We even drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle. Horrors! We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle, and no one actually died from this. We ate cupcakes, bread and butter, and drank soda pop with sugar in it, but we were never overweight because we were always outside playing. We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back for supper. No one was able to reach us all day. No cell phones. Unthinkable.
We did not have Playstations, Nintendo 64, X-Boxes, no video games at all, no 99 channels on cable, DVD's, surround sound, personal cell phones, personal computers, or Internet chat rooms. We had friends! We went outside and found them. We fell out of trees, got cut and broke bones and teeth, and there were no lawsuits from these accidents. We made up games with sticks and tennis balls and ate worms, and although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes, nor did the worms live inside us forever. We rode bikes or walked to a friend's home, knocked and just walked on in and talked to them.
The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke a law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law. Back then if you got in trouble, they would give you a "whippin", and no one called Child Protective Services on your parents for "child abuse", Imagine that!
Our generation has produced some of the best risk-takers and problem solvers and inventors, ever. The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas. We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all!

Milestone

The Teeth!

Gabe at 6 months

June 1st Gabe was 6 months old. I am so amazed at how much he changes each time I get to see him. I had not seen him for almost a month and boy...what a difference a month makes. For starters, he no longer attempts to grab at things, he now actually grabs them. He has also acquired the ability to bite (not that he would ever be allowed to), as he now has 2 teeth. He's also showing his personality. He's not just a baby anymore, he's a little boy with a temper and an attitude! He can also be loving and "kiss" all over your face. Man!...I just left and my heart is already aching to see him again.

Picnic with a view

This memorial day my husband and I decided to pack a lunch and take a drive. We ended up on the Blue Ridge Parkway, 5000 feet up. For those of you that have never taken that drive all I can ask is "What are you waiting for?. It truly is some of the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen. We started out with no particular place to go and nothing but a tomato, mayo, mustard, salt and pepper in our bag. We quickly made a stop to get bread and a few more items.

For some reason, beanie weenies, bologna, Prairie Belt sausage, Tabasco and a tomato tastes like a gourmet meal when it's eaten with a view like this. We had a wonderful time, great meal and made some memories along the way.