Cairns

We recently took a vacation to the New England area and stayed in Vermont near the base of Mount Mansfield.  It's a beautiful mountain and the tallest in Vermont.  We drove up to the top and then hiked several miles from the parking lot to the peak, then back again.  These markers, or "cairn" as they are called (pronounced kern), helped mark our path.  They also had these little lines placed along paths you could take to the peak as you hiked.  We stayed on the white path, but there was also blue.
  These markers kept us on track.  We looked for them as we were walking, and noticed immediately if we were following the wrong marker.  The blue path was much more difficult and closer to the edge than I wanted to be, so I was always making sure I was following the white line.  If we went a little distance without seeing one, we would immediately stop and start looking.  There was even one time the white line went a little too close to the edge and I decided to move away from it.
These cairns parallel so closely the Lord's presence and direction in my life. How often I have stayed on path and looked for His direction, and how many times I have drifted away.  Sometimes, like on my hike, I deliberately kept away from His direction for fear of what it may hold.
Cairn's are also used as markers in life.  That what this blog is for me.  It's a way of remembering what God has done in our lives.  It's so easy to forget, so it's important to write things down; to remember.
God instructed His people to use cairns when they crossed over into the promised land.  He instructed Joshua to appoint 12 men, each from the tribes of Israel, to take a stone from the middle of the Jordan river they had just crossed.  Joshua placed them together at the place where the priests who had carried the ark had stood.  These stones were used as a memorial to what God had done.
I love that!  How quickly we forget!  And how important it is to remember - in what ever way we can - that God is faithful.

A year of great loss

Glenn, Arlene, Gram, Janice, Mom, Rich

It's been quite a while since I have posted.  A lot has been going on.  But it seems like every time this year I feel I need to update the old blog - so here goes!

This year has been a year of great loss for our family.  First, my sweet Uncle Glenn passed away of a sudden heart attack 18 months ago.  He was very special and made me laugh.  Even though I didn't get to see him very often, I miss him a lot.

My precious Grandmother passed away in August of 2011, just 3 days shy of her 96th birthday.  I still think of her every day and the huge impact she had on my life.  There just aren't words to describe how much I miss her; how much I long to talk to her again and hear her voice.  I am who I am today in large part because of her.  Everyone needs someone in their life that thinks that everything you do is phenomenal.  That's what she was to me.

A few months later, my sweet Aunt Arlene passed away after a long and courageous battle with breast cancer.  Almost a year to the day that her husband died.  I am incredibly sad for my cousins who have to struggle with the loss of both parents within a year and pray for them always.  Whenever I think of my aunt and uncle, I think of how they loved gospel music.  How happy they must be to be together again in heaven, in the presence of Jesus, with my grandmother and grandfather, with no pain and no worries.  Joy does come in the morning.

Earlier this year my mother suffered a severe heart attack.  We are grateful the Lord spared her life.

There are lots of lessons to be learned from all this tragedy and sadness.  I know all you can do is tell your family you love them, and do everything you can to live at peace with one another.  I realize that's not always possible, but I think a lot of times we don't try as hard as we should.  All you can do is your part; you can't change who other people are or how they act.  All you can do is love them, and stay away from them when you feel you can't love them anymore or they don't have love for you.  I also know that we can't take our health for granted.  My uncle and my mom's heart attacks came out of the blue.  Yet, I don't know how often they had their heart's checked.  It's something I will be looking out for that's for sure.

I miss each one of these precious people for different reasons.  I am grateful they were in my life and part of my family.  My hope is in the Lord that we will be together again one day.

Next Stop - Mount Washington, NH

I'll just go ahead and say it right now, this is my most favorite place to be in the whole wide world (other than home).  I love the Mount Washington Hotel in New Hampshire.  It was built in 1902 and has undergone extensive renovations that are stunning.  The history and beauty of this place cannot be done justice by my camera - but I try.  We spent 3 days here and loved every minute of it!

Our room was in the corner so we had beautiful windows to look out.

The boys thought it would be cool to go swimming in the outdoor pool at night.  Little did they know how cold it was going to feel like when they got out!  They were shivering (notice they are the only ones in the pool - should have been clue number one!

 New Hampshire is beautiful from it's rivers to mountains - and we did lots of exploring.

 I interrupt this vacation summary to say - aren't my boys beautiful?  I love this picture of them - they were having a great time together and it shows on their faces.  Now, back to the story.....

Here are two great pictures of Mount Washington.  The one on the left shows the Railway - we didn't brave it - but we did get a tour of the train.  The pictures truly don't show how beautiful this mountain is up close.  I hope to see it again someday.

Road Trip!

We spent two weeks in our van driving up the east coast for our summer vacation.  First of all - the van!  Rick bought me a new Toyota Sienna right before the trip.  I would have never thought a car could make such a difference - WOW!  We love our van (and for me to say that - being so anti-van after becoming a mom - is a big deal!)   The kids had reclining seats, a dvd player with cordless headphones.  It gives all new meaning to the words "road trip".  Now, on to the vacation! 

The first stop was Hershey, PA!  We have made several trips to Hershey, but none in the summer when the park was open.  We had a lot of fun playing games in the park (not much roller coaster riding for my bunch!), and going to the Chocolate Factory.  The park also has a zoo as part of admission, so that was fun to go through.  We have been through the zoo in winter and froze our hineys off!

Rick won this MASSIVE leopard by knocking 3 blocks off a small table with one baseball!  It was quite a feat and the boys were so happy - until they had to lug it all over the park.  Mommy ended up taking over that job.   Daddy also won a couple of basketballs for the boys.  It sure was fun!  Next stop - Mount Washington!

Happy Birthday Jason!

 Our sweet little boy turned 7 yesterday!  Jason I can hardly believe how much you have grown.  You still have the same personality you did when you were born.  You have added so much to our family and we wouldn't be the same without you.  Your sweet smile melts my heart and your inquisitive nature and strong spirit take me to new places every day.  Daddy and I are so thankful the Lord blessed our family with you as a son.  Your brother David wouldn't know what to do without you!  Happy birthday my little monkey.  May you grow in your love for the Lord and may that strength you exhibit allow you to do great things for Him without fear.  We love you so much and are so proud of you!

Field Day

 This special day requires a post all of it's own, as this day holds a special place in my heart.  As part of PTF, this became my event to coordinate last year - and as far as I am concerned it will ALWAYS be mine!  I love this day and all the joy it brings.  We had an awesome team that put this great day together.  I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Yep, that's Steve Smith of the Carolina Panthers.  I was taking this picture of David when he just came over and ruined the shot....can you imagine how happy my child would have been had it not been ruined by an All-Pro Wide Receiver from our NFL team sliding over and hogging the shot.  You can just see the disappointment in my little man's face.....oh well, there is always next year.  (Yes, it's sarcasm, in case you couldn't recognize it).

School's Out for SUMMER!

I love that song - and the happiness it conveys.   We are so stinkin' happy around here we can hardly stand ourselves.  Jason got out May 25th following Kindergarten Graduation, and David followed that Friday.  It has been GLORIOUS not getting up in the morning, packing lunches, fighting over homework, getting up in the morning, remembering band instruments, getting up in the morning....did I say that already?  Before school got out we did a lot of things.  David and his 5th grade class took a field trip to Friendship Trays - it's a local charity that prepares meals for those in need and delivers them - all 650 of them - a day.  It was great to watch and help prepare these trays and learn about this great organization.  Don't we look cute in our hairnets?!

Then Boosterthon came around.  This is our annual fundraiser for our school.  The kids get commitments from friends and family and then run laps.



There is the back of Jason's head - he was running at lightening speed and that's the best I could get.

David and his friends had a great time too - this was them before they got all hot and sweaty!