Happy Thanksgiving

We were very happy to celebrate Thanksgiving with family and friends.

Thanksgiving 2007

We are counting our many blessings this year! One year ago at this time, we had just moved into our house. Most of the boxes had been unpacked, and we were trying to settle in. This year we were happy to have family and friends join us for a Thanksgiving festival.

We are truly blessed, and we thank God for His goodness to us as we reflect on the events of the past year.

We are so thankful for our sons! Micah and Becky arrived on Wednesday evening so we had a few extra hours with them before the rest of the guests came. We are thankful that they will be moving closer to us the end of December.
Jamie and Krista came on Thursday morning with her parents. We are all thankful for their first child that will be born in just a few months! Randy and Penny (Krista's parents) joined us this year for Thanksgiving, along with another family from our church. We are so thankful for new friends!
We thoroughly enjoyed hosting the Thanksgiving celebration in our home this year. Even though our two younger sons couldn't join us for Thanksgiving, we were happy that they were together and celebrated the day with other family members back in the Midwest. We are so thankful for family and friends, for plenty of food, for laughter, for good health, and for the beautiful sunny day we had!
Photo op for Krista's family...

Micah and Becky enjoyed being together, since they have been separated so much the past five months because of his schooling.

And of course, there was a little bit of comparison of bellies...

A Fun Weekend Get-Away

This past weekend we were able to get away for some rest and relaxation.


Our friends, Bob and Jan, invited us to come and spend the weekend with them in Palm Springs where they have a second home.


This puppy dog did not like us at first! But, with alot of patience and gentle attention, Patch became our good friend!






This is the view from the front of their home...
It was so relaxing to see the mountains, right there! And the evenings were so clear that we could see the starry sky!

In their backyard they had several fruit trees, rose bushes, and of course--palm trees!

On Saturday morning, we went with Bob to an air show at the Palm Springs Airport. In the museum we saw several planes, (and also tanks, cars, etc) from WWII. The man that had purchased many of the planes and cars that were on display, was originally from Mlps, MN so we heard a bit about his life as well.

If you look closely, you'll discover that this plane came from Minnesota...

Jim and I had to try out the vintage motorcycle!

This was one of the planes (the PBY Catalina) that was flown in the show. It was interesting to see how much time it actually took for the prop plane to get started. (Later, I'll try to post a couple videos of two of the planes that we saw)

One whole room was dedicated to Pearl Harbor and the war that was fought on the sea. Because it was Veteran's Day weekend, there were many vets in and around the buildings. It was fastinating to listen to their stories. Bob is a former Marine, so he shared some of his experiences with us also.

Downtown, next to the baseball field, the Veterans were honored by this display of flags. The waving "Stars and Stripes" stretched on around the block and was many rows deep. It made me proud once again to be part of this great nation, and also very thankful for the many people that have given their lives to defend my freedom. "Freedom isn't free!" Thanks to all who have paid the price!

On Sunday morning, we were thrilled to join Bob and Jan in celebrating together with many other people, as they dedicated their new church.

The courtyard and entrance area.

The front of the church had a beautiful stained glass window. We also ran into some other old friends at this church! It is exactly one year ago since we moved here, and God continues to surprise us with new and old friends that He brings our way. Wonderful!

And the perfect ending to our weekend was a stop at Jamie and Krista's house on our way home! We got to see the "new" media room that Jamie has been working on, and also to see the plans for the nursery for our GRANDSON! We are so excited to be close by so we can share in this joy.

Minnesota Memories

So many memories from my time in Minnesota...where do I start?

Mother befriending another neighborhood cat that now knows she can find extra food at this back door...
helping Mother with some fall cleaning...
Mom and Dad...
Visiting the local museum...

Finding out that my grandmother's wedding dress is on display there...

Visiting the pioneer cottage...

Seeing the upstairs cottage bedroom (squeeky bedsprings, chamberpot)...

Becky encountering the "main attraction" --the two-headed calf...

Looking at Mom's pictures from hers and her father's childhood...

Sisters working together on Mom's memory book...

Enjoying an early morning visit with nephew Rick...

Father and son visiting together...

Mother and son together...

Sister Margaret and Dave with their youngest son, Rob...

Brother Rayn and Glenda...

So much to do, so little time! Thanks to all my family for making this such a memorable and fun trip.

Harmonica time

While we were staying with our parents in MN, we enjoyed a musical concert! Dad decided to get out his old harmonicas and Becky decided that she was going to learn how to play also! We had a great time- both listening and learning! Enjoy...

A Tribute to Dad

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow His precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise." (Ps. 111:10)
On October 26th, my father turned 86 years old. I was so happy to be able to be there for this special day in his life. My father has taught me so many things in life and I am truly grateful to still have the Godly influence of this man in my life.

Being a hard working dairy farmer almost all of his life, Dad taught each of his children the value of hard work. Milking the cows by hand as a young boy, and then later using an old milking machine (such as the one below) he was in the barn early in the morning and late at night--day after day, year after year--faithfully doing the work that God had called him to do. Dad also taught us to love and care for the farm animals, and to take care of the land that we owned. He was always very proud of the work that he did, and he always did his best with what he owned.

When we were kids, the milk was separated from the cream in a machine like the one below. Later on, Dad bought a large cooling tank to store the fresh milk in until the truck came to haul the milk away to the local creamery where it was processed. I remember one winter when the snowstorms were so bad that the truck could not make it through on the roads, and Dad was worried that he would have to dump the milk on the ground because he had no more storage place for it. Fortunately, the weather cleared and the truck was able to haul some of the milk away so that he didn't have to lose that revenue.

Since moving off the farm, Dad has enjoyed working in his woodshop in the basement of their house. He seems to always have some new project that he is creating, and all of us kids (and also grandkids) have been recipients of his workmanship. Thanks Dad!

Many times I have heard these words of scripture from my father's mouth, "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." My father has lived many days, and I can truly say that he has a wise man, a man who loves God, and a man who is to be praised. Happy 86th Birthday, Dad, I love you!

A Golden Birthday Celebration!

On October 25th, our youngest son celebrated his golden birthday! I was so happy to be able to spend the day with him! We had such an enjoyable time together.

We met in Fargo and went shopping at the mall, had some lunch, and then drove around town visiting some of the places that Jared used to enjoy while he lived there. This last summer, he has been working in several different aspects of construction. This is one of the playgrounds that he installed a few months ago.
And "big kids" that we were, we had to try out the slides! We were so thankful for the clear, warm, fall day.
In the afternoon we saw a movie, then in the evening I took Jared out to eat at a beautiful Greek restaurant called Santa Lucia. The food was superb, and the company was even better!
While I was in MN, Jared was my capable chauffeur much of the time. It was a good time to talk and catch up on the latest news. And he was very patient with his mother, stopping frequently so that I could get another "great Minnesota" picture!

Of course, he was more than happy to show me his "new" car!
I was also able to see Jared's "new house" where he now lives and works. Being one of the assistant deans at Hillcrest, he lives in the boys' dormitory and eats his meals in the high school cafeteria.

When Jared is not working his construction job, or as dean, he enjoys being an artist. Just before he left his old job, he was given several display boards that he has put to good use painting murals.


His dorm room is small, but he still manages to find enough space to be creative! Don't you just love those vivid colors???

Hillcrest Academy is our church school that all of our sons graduated from. It is exciting for us to know that one of them is now back there working as an adult.

The last evening that we were together, Jared was the dean on duty, so I got to meet several of the young men (his "boys") and also see him interact with them.

We are so very proud of the young man that you are, Jared, and the way that you are influencing these young lives for God! Way to go Jared, we love you! Have a wonderful 25th year!