Showers of blessings

This is the time of year that the Calla lilies bloom. It reminds us that Easter is soon here.

I planted this flower in our backyard about 6 months after we moved here. This year it has so many beautiful blossoms on it.
The Lord has graciously sent us good rains this year and all the plants are doing well. Of course, our beautiful sunny weather helps!
This past week we were blessed by having our daughter-in-law and her mother come to visit.
The special occasion was a baby shower for our sweet grand daughter!

The ladies from our church gave a lovely baby shower for Kylie. She and her parents were "showered" with the blessing of many beautiful gifts. Thank you dear friends!

Kylie R holding Kylie E!

Kylie's parents were admonished to "clothe her in prayer and in the Word of God." They were also encouraged to build Godly character into her life. The devotional using several baby objects was very good. Thanks girls, for all your time and work in preparing this shower of blessing!

Mommy and baby wore matching outfits!

This afternoon, we had a visit from this happy little boy and his parents!

He is so fun to play with now and is so curious about everything!

Today was hot and I needed to water my plants--and we all know how boys love to play in the water...

We took the family for a walk around our little lake here in town. I can't believe it, but I forgot to take the camera along! We had a fun time watching the ducks, other birds, many kids, and also a couple of horses that rode by on the trail (check out J&K's blog for the pics!) It was a wonderful way to spend the afternoon. And it is so fun to see our grandson trying to figure things out. He loved the feel of the ground on his bare feet. Such a fun afternoon!

Jayden loves playing the piano!

Our little Viking fan eating table food now!

Oh, such fun to crawl up the stairs and have somebody chasing you!

"Kissing the baby"

What showers of blessings we have experienced through the eyes of these little ones! We are SO blessed!

Weekend getaway

This last weekend, we were able to get away for a long weekend to Palm Springs for some R&R. Not only did we stay in a lovely home (thanks so much, dear friends!) but we were surrounded by the relaxing beauty of God's creation...

Many of the bushes were in bloom... ...and so were the flower gardens along the sidewalks.

There are many hiking and biking paths beside the many golf courses in the city...

and of course, many kinds of Palm trees!

The view from our back patio was literally a canopy of fruit trees!

And to top off the weekend, we got to see this little guy! (Unfortunately, his little cousin across the street was out visiting, so we didn't get to see her.)

"sooo big!"
his favorite book
talking with Abby and "talking" with his puppet dog
We came home refreshed and rested and thankful for friends and family and all the blessings that God has given to us.

Happy Valentine's Day & Friends that Touch our Hearts

Happy Valentine's Day to all!

For us, it all began many years ago...

...and the love has only grown since then!

The four brothers grew up and have established homes of their own.

We thank God for the love that has grown through the years--through the ups and downs of life-- and also for our precious family that continues to grow. May God continue to bless us, to lead and guide us, and help us to grow stronger in our love relationship with Him.

We also treasure the many friendships that we have developed through the years. A couple of days ago, we received a call from John and Donna who were vacationing here in our area.

We met at this lovely little french restaurant in Laguna Beach.

It was great to catch up on each other's lives!

Fortunately, we had a clear and sunny day (we have had many cloudy, rainy days the past few weeks).

The day was cool, however, and even the pigeons hunkered down in a sunny spot!

The beach was beautiful...

and the rains have brought out the brilliant blossoms.

The view was spectacular!

Even though we had only a few hours together, we savored every moment.

We also took a short walk downtown and enjoyed checking out some of the unique shops.

The hours went by all too quickly! Thanks J&D for a wonderful day and for your friendship.

We ended our Valentine's Day with a Valentine's meal together with our friends Paul and Teresa. A lovely evening of delicious food and conversation was a perfect ending to this week.

And while the adults were out for dinner, the kids were busy back at the house assembling their models.

This happy smile says it all!

Happy Valentine's Day to all!