Why I Have a Crush on My Pastor

October is Pastor Appreciation Month! Have I mentioned that I have a crush on my pastor?  I think that is acceptable, given that he is also my husband.  Recently I told you a bit about the day Mike shocked me with the news that he was being called into the ministry.  Today I want to tell you how it is now, more than 31 years after that day.

Last Sunday Mike received a basket full of cards from people at our church.  They were tender and expressed such kind words; I had tears in my eyes as I read them.  I loved that many were made by children in Sunday School classes.

Do you see that bottom right card?  I loved that one.  It is so true!  Let me break it down for you.

Encourager - Mike is most definitely that to his flock.  He wants to help everyone feel confident and he encourages them to build on their strengths.  For example, people within the congregation often take turns giving the children's sermon.  Although it is for the children, it occurs right up front in the middle of the service with everyone watching and listening.  It is kind of scary if you aren't used to it.  One lady was nervous but wanted to try it.  He helped her along the way,  encouraging her as she came in to practice during the week.  She did a fine job!

Counselor - This is one aspect that I don't know as much about, but there is a good reason for that.  When Mike graduated from the seminary we had a discussion about confidentiality.  We felt it was very, very important that when people come to Mike for counselling, they could feel certain that their private matters were only for his ears.  Sometimes that has led to some weird moments when people THINK I know everything they have told them, but it is important.  I think there are times that this makes the burden of carrying others' pain a bit more difficult but he is a professional and that is what professionals do.  I can tell you that I've had many people, over the years, tell me that Mike has helped them so much.  Even if I don't know what they are talking about, it makes me proud of him.

Teacher - This part is not hard for Mike at all.  His Mom and one of his sisters were teachers and so I think it is in his blood.  He prepares thoroughly and has an easy, logical flow to his teaching style.  It just comes naturally.  When he teaches kids, he is just down-right fun!  He creatively works up games and other ways to make learning a blast for them.

Preacher - Mike is an introvert so it is really surprisingly weird that he is such a good preacher.  The very first time he was to give a sermon I felt very nervous on his behalf.  That was the last time that happened to me, though.  I never felt nervous for him to preach again.  He has a way of speaking the truth with a delightful mixture of humor, conviction and knowledge.  I can't tell you how many times I've heard people say it felt like he was talking directly to them.  He knows what he wants to say, he is prepared and knowledgeable, concise, and speaks the truth with a calm, easy-going style.  

Leader - I think many of us think of a leader as an exuberant, boisterous personality that has a flare for revving up a group of people.  That isn't Mike... ever.  His style is straight forward and honest.  Often one of the best leadership traits I've seen in him is his ability to calm a group.  He has a simple way of helping people work through issues or follow through on projects with an approach of kindness.  I don't know if any of you have ever noticed this, but sometimes a group of people have a tendency to pull in different directions and maybe even build a bit of resentment toward one another.  Mike is good at cutting through that to help them see how to work together more effectively and lovingly.

Comforter - Mike is truly a talented comforter.  This is not something he had to develop.  He knows when to speak soothing words, when to quietly listen and when to just give a hug.  Over and over and over I hear people telling me how much his visit meant to them when they were hurting...in the hospital...dealing with a shock...in pain...experiencing loss of a loved one... etc.    He does things like go out in the middle of the night to be with someone in the emergency room.  Just this week he spent much of his day off at the hospital to be with a lady facing surgery.  I've seen him drive 6 hours to attend a funeral of someone he didn't even know because one of the family members needed him there.  Sometimes I worry about Mike in this part of his job.  I worry that in taking on the pain of others, the burden will be more than he can withstand.  In this I have to trust the ultimate comforter, the Holy Spirit, to comfort Mike himself.

There was no card from me in the basket.  This post is my card to him.  I want to tell him how I feel blessed beyond the others because I get to not only have him as my pastor but I get to spend my life with him.  I want him to know that I see how he puts so much into his work.  When others tease him that he only works Sunday Mornings, I am well aware that he usually works 50+ hours a week.  Often, after putting in a full day, he spends his evenings counseling, at committee meetings or at home working into the night.  Sometimes that is the only way he can complete lessons and sermons after spending a day of interruptions as he attends to his flock.  He sacrifices so much of himself for others.  I want him to know that I see this.  I want him to know that I also appreciate his dedication to his calling and I am honored to be his helpmate.

The cards were all beautiful.  Many had Bible verses and poems.  Many had sweet and grateful handwritten expressions of appreciation.  Many thanked him for the blessing he has been in their lives.  One thanked him for reflecting Jesus and followed with Matthew 5:16:

"Let your light so shine before others, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father in heaven."

Sunshine & Shadows

Late yesterday afternoon I sat down in the recliner with a bag of yarn and my crochet hook.  The sun was hanging low and pouring in the window, shining in my eyes so that I couldn't even do my work.  I got up to close the drapes and then came to my senses. Instead, I grabbed my camera and went out to better appreciate the last of the day.  It was so lovely out, I decided to just share some of that beauty here with you.  I hope it makes you feel as happy as it did me.

Up-Scaling Makes Me Feel Like a Hero!

There's something new going on at our Wyoming Rose Boutique.  Yes, we're still crocheting and crafting but we've added up-scaling to the mix as well.  Have you done any up-scaling that you'd recommend?

If you don't know what I am talking about, let me break it down to two simple steps.

1)     SHOP!  Maria and I aren't too excited to shop the usual way.  We aren't big on going to department stores to find our treasures.  What is the most fun is to shop thrift stores, keeping our eyes (and minds) open.  We really try to see items through our creative vision glasses.  OK, we don't have special glasses.  But we are developing an eye for potential.  We don't always know what we are searching for until we see it.  Things that catch my attention are classic styles or delicate remnants from the past.  Sometimes it is just a unique color or texture that I want to enhance.

2)     LET YOUR IMAGINATION RUN WILD!  This is the part that takes the most time.  I take one of our treasures back to my Rose Room and start experimenting.  I can't tell you how many different ideas I worked through on this golden purse, for example.  What I ended up doing is cutting out this piece of vintage lace and appliqueing it to the front of the purse.  The lace itself has some history.  My mother-in-law gave me some of her sewing things years ago (more than 30 years) and I still have some of it.  (Carol, do you recognize it?) This lace is one of my favorites as you just can't find any like it now.  Isn't it pretty?  It took this purse to a new level of of awesome.  But, I still felt like it needed something more.  I cut and twirled and tied and imagined for quite awhile before I realized this purse just needed some bling, so I made a bracelet for it.  I was really quite pleased with the result.  I like the mixture of antique and glamour, don't you?  We have it listed on our Wyoming Rose Boutique on Etsy.

I went kind of a different way with this classic red purse.  I wanted to keep it youthful and fun but it needed some personality.  I pawed through a lot of fabric before seeing how this bright apple print wanted to bring out the best of the red purse.  I put a lot of time into the process but the result was a cheerful, unique and spunky looking up-scaled bag.  What do you think of it?

I am pretty proud of this next one.  We found this chocolatey blazer and I knew right away that it was a candidate for up-scaling.  It was in excellent condition, soft and cozy - perfect for chilly days.  It already had some interesting lines.  Some of the vertical seams actually had encased elastic that gathered it up just enough to give it some drama, but it still wasn't really living up to its potential.  I took  it home and loved it up.  It had perfectly nice covered buttons but the brown on brown just went flat.  I replaced all the buttons with cool white ones that celebrated the fun of shape.  No more round boring buttons!  Then, I started experimenting with color.  I settled on a peachy cotton thread that had kind of a special smooth finish to it.  I hand-crocheted a lace that could peek out at the bottom of the sleeves.  I did not want to over do it but I still felt it needed a bit more.  I then used more of the fun thread to crochet a flower.  I centered the flower on a cut-out of more antique lace (thanks again to my mother-in-law) that was already a daisy-like design.  I centered another of the funky buttons for the center and sewed it all together.  When I attached it to the blazer, a star was born!  To see more detailed photos just click here.  

So, there you have it.  Go shopping and see if you get any fun ideas to upscale something.  I know that it made me feel rather heroic, as though I'd rescued something from boredom.  Have fun!

p.s.  Anyone who orders from Wyoming Rose Boutique can enter the secret code at check-out to receive a 10% discount.  The secret code is:  DISCOUNT 

Spanish for Nursing - It's FUN!

I am enjoying my Spanish for Nursing Class sooooo much!  Our instructor is likely the biggest part of what makes it so enjoyable.  She's funny, well organized and knowledgeable.  She moves at a very fast pace but she has ways of helping us remember things.

Another reason I am enjoying it is because it is a very practical approach to learning what we absolutely need to learn in the least amount of time.  We didn't have to start with difficult (and boring) grammar lessons. We really just jumped right in.  I can now ask a patient if they have nausea.  I can ask them to hold their breath, turn over, sit, stand, etc.  I can tell them where to find the bathroom, ask them where it hurts and tell their family to wait in the waiting room. Our instructor tosses in grammar knowledge as well as cultural knowledge in ways that make it all even more interesting to us.

The curriculum is wonderful!  In fact, it is so excellent I have decided I need to provide an unsolicited commercial right here, right now.  You see, this company makes courses for a lot more than just nurses.  I went online and looked it up.  I found they have courses for those working at convenience stores, correctional facilities, bank tellers, firefighters, realtors and more... much more!

This company uses something called the Language Power-Lock System, which is trademarked. I don't know why it is so much better than traditional ways of learning a language but here is what they have to say about it.. .

"The Language Power-Lock System™, created by Command Spanish® Inc., revolutionizes language e-Training. Seven brain-compatible, interactive processes unite to provide contextualized, purposeful learning opportunities. The Language Power-Lock System™ employs an integrated “switchback method” to engage the learner through visual, auditory, and psychomotor pathways. These interactive learning processes provide adult learners with an easy, user-friendly, effective system for the learning and long-term retention of practical Spanish language for the workplace." 

I know.  What did they just say?  No matter, just know that I think it's fun and would recommend it.

I also learned that you can order the books on your own.  You can use the CD included instead of attending classes as we are.  They also offer online classes.  I really, really enjoy the in-class situation but realize that isn't always practical.  

So, if you have any interest in learning some Spanish, check out Command Spanish, Inc. and see what you think.  

Credit or Debit?

Last Thursday was mall lunch day.  As usual, we all went through the lines at various businesses in the food court.  I chose pizza that day.  Boy, was that expensive pizza!  Actually,  before I even received my receipt I heard the clerk make some funny gasping sounds.  She seemed pretty upset and then finally explained to me the problem.  She'd accidentally charged me over $800 for my meal!  Yikes!

I had used my debit card for this transaction so she then had to figure out how to issue a credit.  That took some time but she finally managed to do it and gave me that receipt as well.  I was surprised by all this because I thought our debit card had a $300 daily use limit anyway.  I'm not sure but maybe it is because she ran our debit card as a credit card.  I don't know.  Anyway, I didn't throw a fit.  It looked as though she'd reversed everything so I assured her all was well.  She really was more upset than I.  She then ran the transaction for the proper amount and I went off to eat my lunch with my family, telling them of my little adventure.

Do you use a debit card much?  I love the simplicity of it!  I am careful, though.  For instance, if we are eating in a restaurant where they take your card from you at the table and go to a back room to run it, I will only use cash or a credit card.  Why?  Because stuff happens.  I don't want my debit card out of my sight.  As far as I know it wouldn't be more likely to happen with a debit card than a credit card but the repercussions can be more difficult to manage.  

If there is a problem with a credit card, I am pretty confident it will be corrected...eventually.  We've experienced a couple of cases of credit card fraud years ago.  The issuing bank always fixed it for us with no problems.  Actually, it was the credit card company that found one of the errors and reported it to us before we even knew it occurred.  It was some company far away that set off some sort of alarms with the fraud department of the credit card company.  I even had our credit card company fraud people call me on a Christmas morning  regarding a charge they were investigating.  As it turned out, it was a gift I'd ordered for one of our boys.  I asked why that one made them suspicious and it was because they'd had a lot of fraudulent charges of that item in particular.  Anyway, I figure if someone does something bad with a credit card I will have some time to deal with it.

If someone uses our debit card fraudulently I assume the bank will work it out as well.  However, in the meantime it could cause a lot of problems.  For example, it someone used our debit card for a large amount, that amount would immediately be taken out of our bank account.  Even if it is later put back in, during the interval time that money would not be available to us.  We may unknowingly write checks that bounce or have the card rejected when getting groceries or something.  So, I only use it when it stays in my sight, never online or over the phone either.

Well, in the situation of my expensive lunch, I thought the immediate refund would balance it all out.  I learned something new.  Although the clerk put through the credit on that gross overcharge only minutes later, $843.43 was immediately noted on our account as a pending transaction.  Although it didn't ever really go through, that amount was deducted FOR THREE BUSINESS DAYS!  The credited amount did not appear at all until the third day.  I go online and peek at our bank account frequently and I'm glad that I did so that I could adjust as needed!  On day three, everything went through, the refund negated the charge and the drama was over. 

What I learned from all of this is that when your card is used, even though it appears on your account right away, a company has three business days to put it through in its final form.  That is useful for things like renting a hotel room.  The hotel can put the charge through as a pending amount, to be certain your card (debit or credit) will cover the room charge.  However, they may need to change the final amount if you charge room service, a movie or something more on the card.  Or, if using a card for a meal a restaurant may run it through for the cost of the meal to be certain it will be covered.  When you sign for it, though, you may choose to add the tip amount on the bill.  They have up to three days to go back in and adjust that total.  It all seems kind of messed up to me but that's the way it is.

Have you had any weird problems with a debit or credit card?  It can happen with checks as well.  Once, several years ago, Mike's paycheck wasn't applied to our account when we deposited it.  Although we had a receipt, something weird happened at the bank.  We were oblivious to the problem as that was before I could go online and check our account regularly.  That was quite a mess before it was all resolved!

So, here's my banking advice for you.... pay attention.  That's it.  That's the advice.  Just pay attention.  Look at your receipts, check your accounts regularly and report any problems.  That's all the financial advice I have for you.  

If you want real financial advice, including a FREE investment plan,  visit Financial Tailor.   

Parenting

Mike and I have been parenting for 31 years and it is still one of my very favorite things.  There have been some times when it was among the hardest things we've done but the joys have been so much bigger.  I do not take it for granted.

Another favorite thing is watching our children as parents (yes, I count Eric as one of our children as well).  They are very good at it.

Son-in-Law, Eric, with Elise

Daughter, Maria, with Cordelia

Marching Band Competition

Remember my trumpet-playing nephew, Steven?  Last night Mike & I got to go to see him perform in a competition with his band.  His mom (my sister)  wasn't able to be there so I took some photos for her.  You can look, too. though.  It was fun to watch!  I think I would've enjoyed being in a marching band.  I know that Steven does!

And because it is Sunday here is a passage from the book of Amos.


"Seek good and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you..."

What I Need is a Good Closer

Last night Mike and I watched the St. Louis Cardinals play the Washington Nationals.  The winning team would be done for the season and the losing team would go on to play in the National League Championship.  The Cardinals are the reigning World Series Champions (Mike likes me to say that) but has been a very long dry spell for baseball in Washington.  Like a lot of people, I find it fun to cheer for the underdogs in most situations, but not baseball.  Do you remember to whom I am married?  Remember, we even eat St. Louis Cardinal toast in this house.

This post really isn't about baseball.  It is about crafting.  I know, it's hard to tell that.  Don't underestimate me as I am capable of finding a way to talk about my projects while still getting in a mention of the St. Louis Cardinal's win last night.  It may not make a lot of sense but it will make Mike happy so hang in there with me.

So... last night looked pretty bleak for the Cardinals.  They were behind by 6-1, within one strike of being done.  I'm guessing a lot of Cardinal fans there were already heading to the parking lot. The announcers even seemed to be wrapping things up.  Yet, the Cardinals managed to pull it all out of the toilet.  They won the game!  I know, I know.... still nothing about crafting.  But again, Mike is happy.

Ok, in this paragraph I PROMISE I will make the connection.  While watching the game I saw that the Nationals brought in a new pitcher right near the end.  They called him the "closer".  A closer is a pitcher who can hold up to the pressure often found at the end of a game.  A lot of times they are just brought in for that last inning.  They are highly paid for their ability to finish the job.  It doesn't always work out that way but that's their purpose.  Here's the connection to my crafting... I NEED A CLOSER!  

I love, love, love to crochet, sew, make jewelry, etc.  Often I am in the middle of one project when I dream up another.  I don't know if I'm just so excited about the next project or if I'm just afraid I will forget the new idea, but I often jump up from one and start another... and then another... and yet another.  This morning I pulled some of the bags of projects out of the little nooks and crannies (where did that phrase come from?) of my Rose Room.  Actually, there was no need to pull them out as they were spilling out on their own.  I gathered them up to show you what I mean. 

Here are more bags with projects, hanging on the closet door.

Please tell me you do this, too.  How many unfinished projects do you have hanging around?  

In the spirit of full disclosure, there are even more unfinished projects in my Rose Room than what I've shown you here.  Not for long, though!  I'm ready now, in the mood, to finish what I've started.  I think it is time for some of those projects to make their appearance on Wyoming Rose Boutique.  Yes, I am sending myself in as THE CLOSER!

The Day Mike Gave Me a Shock

Before I start this story I want to say that this is my 600th blog post.  Good grief!  That's like writing 600 assignments but no one is telling me to do it.  Baffling.  Anyway, I'm telling you this because I am a bit worried that perhaps I've blogged the following story before.  However, I didn't get it to pop up with any of the labels I could think of to search.  I'm much too lazy to go back and plow through 600 posts to look for it.  My hope is that I've not told the story before or that if I have, you won't remember it either.  If those hopes fall through, I then hope you'll forgive the repeat.

OK, onward...

Once upon a time, three years into our marriage, Mike and I were living a very different life than we do now.  Only one month after our wedding Mike's dad died.  Not long after that his mom left the farm.  Shortly after that, we moved to the farm.  We were living in the house where Mike had lived his whole childhood.  I'd been rather a gypsy child so the idea of settling down was very, very appealing to me.  It was a delightful life.

Our days were lovely.  I admit I am blocking out the memories of farm equipment breaking down, hurried drives, sometimes 150 miles round-trip, looking for some stupid little part for the tractor.
I'm also blocking out the times we stood at the window watching for clouds when we desperately needed rain.  I'm also blocking out the times we stood at the same window watching a big storm approach, praying it wouldn't hail and ruin the wheat just before it was ready for harvest.

What I do remember are the days of working alongside Mike.  The winter afternoons we had time to play cribbage or other games.  I remember lots of time to sew, crochet or bake.  I remember Mike upstairs singing and playing his guitar.  I remember quiet nights and bright stars, sometimes even Northern Lights.  I remember bringing home our first baby to a community who remembered her great grandmother.  I had friends that I expected to know for a lifetime.  What I'm saying is, I loved our life there.  We both did.

The day of the big shocker is still pretty clear in my mind.  Maria, our first baby, was just two months old.  I'd taken her with me that morning as I was helping out at our church with Vacation Bible School.  After VBS I remember talking with my friend, Valerie.  I really liked her and confided in her how happy I was to be living on Mike's family farm.  I felt I belonged.  I told her I wanted to DIG MY ROOTS 100 FEET DEEP.  Yep, that's what I said.

Later that day, or maybe it was evening, Mike wanted to talk.  I didn't have any premonition of change.  I didn't expect anything out of the ordinary.  I didn't expect to be shocked.  I was, though.  Mike told me he'd been wrestling with something for quite awhile.  He told me he thought he was supposed to be a pastor!  I'm glad to tell you I didn't throw a fit.  I just mumbled, "Well then, let's go" ... or something along those lines.  

OK, maybe that doesn't seem so crazy now because I've known him as a pastor for many years.  It doesn't seem strange at all.  But that day I was really shocked.  Mike was very spiritual and attended church faithfully.  His preference, though, was to arrive at the church exactly as the service began and to leave pretty quickly afterward.  I certainly never got the idea he was being led to pastor a congregation!  Years later Mike's Mom told us his Dad had the idea Mike might someday be a pastor, but I sure never did.

Anyway, this was not Mike's dream.  It was a very, very difficult decision but he knew he was being called and he answered the call.  I was proud of him for that.  At that time he was looking at 7 more years of schooling, not his favorite thing, but he was willing to go.  We spent another year on the farm before things were in place for us to leave, but the rest is history now, isn't it?  

There you have it.  As promised, the story of someone else letting God have control of his life.

Giving Up Control

One thing that is hard to remember, as a Christian, is that I have given up control of my own future.  In fact, that explains the name of my blog; it is a reminder for me that my life is not my own.  Really, it was only a perceived control in the first place.  Like most people, I like to think I have control over my own life.  Anyone who has ever watched the news knows how quickly that control can be lost.  Illness, natural disasters, wars, etc. can all play a part in destroying an individual's feeling of control.  Those things are not what this post is about, though.

I'm talking about giving away control.  I have given control of my life to God.  This is how I do it, though.  I give God control (yes, I know I'm not really giving anything as he always had control), I try to take back control, I repent, I give God control, I try to take back control, I repent, repeat... repeat... repeat.

I think being an American maybe makes it all even more difficult.  I love living in a country that tells me I have the right to pursue happiness and all that.  I'm grateful that I get to choose where I live, my career path, who  I marry and a myriad of other choices.  As glad as I am to have those choices, though, I am constantly trying to hand it all over to God.

A few years ago I saw this prayer printed in a church bulletin.  I clipped it out and stuck it on our fridge where it has been for years.  I found that it is believed the original version was written by Dr. Martin Luther in the 1500's.

If you are not a Christian you may wonder why anyone would want to give control away.  Well, one reason is because we are told to do so...

New Living Translation (©2007) Matthew 16:24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. ...but the main reason I choose to give control has to do with trust.  I absolutely trust that God has all wisdom.  I absolutely trust that he will protect me and eventually bring me to himself.  I absolutely trust that he knows better what is important for me in all things.  I absolutely trust that he is God and I am not. How about you?  Do you have times when you want to give God control but are having trouble letting go?  Do you have times when you know that giving up control has turned out to be a blessing to you?  Tomorrow I am going to tell you a story about someone else giving up control to follow an unexpected path.

What I Did and Didn't Know Then

Yesterday, as I was looking for photos of my little sister, I stumbled upon this photo of Mike and me when we were 18 years old.

I know, it's terrible quality.  You have to remember that waaaaaay back then, we were lucky to have enough film in a camera to take even a few photos.  I never took a whole roll at once so it remained in the camera, sometimes for months (years?).  THEN, it was sent off to somewhere like Seattle Filmworks.  Often, when that fat package returned with my prints, I had no idea what photos would be in there.  Usually, few or none were of good quality but nearly all were saved as they were the best we had to remember the pictured event.   

So, terrible quality or not, looking at this photo makes me happy.  It was taken our senior year of high school.  Mike and I had been dating for about a year at that time.  This was taken in the living room of the Christian Church parsonage in Turner, MT... my high school home.  The paintings on the wall were created by my mother.   The photo on the wall is my older brother, who at that time lived so far away we rarely got to see him.  Those striped chairs behind us had been reupholstered more than once by my talented mother.  I made my own prom dress and added that shawl that was a gift from my Grandma.  Mike looked especially cool in his blue polyester leisure suit.  We already knew we loved each other but we knew very little of what our future would hold.  Look at us, though.  Don't we look pleased with ourselves?  It was a happy night.

When I look at that photo, I clearly remember all the hope and excitement for the unknown future. I also remember being a bit nervous.  There is often a lot of pressure on high school seniors to have some things figured out.  How many times are seniors asked about their future plans... what path do they plan to follow?  It's kind of crazy, huh?

The evening that photo was taken, I thought I'd likely go to college to learn sign language as I prepared to teach deaf students.  As it turned out, that wasn't my path at all.  When that photo was taken I'd not yet realized that I really, really needed to be a nurse.  I didn't know anything about Mike's future as a pastor...absolutely no clue.  I didn't know that we'd have a daughter and two sons that would become more important to us than almost anything.  I didn't know Mike and I would someday live in the Seattle area, New Mexico, Wyoming and other places together.  I most certainly did not even consider being grandparents together and loving two precious little girls so much our hearts almost explode.  I had more happiness in my future than I was even able to imagine!

I also didn't know much about grief and loss.  I didn't know what it would be like to be a young wife trying to help a 20 year old husband deal with the loss of his Dad while taking over the responsibility of a farm all on his own.  I didn't know the anguish of miscarriage or the pain caused by learning someone I trusted was not trustworthy.  I didn't know about days when I'd only see Mike for 10 minutes because he was so busy helping other people.  I had a lot of challenges and sadness I'd not yet experienced.  I didn't know what it was like to have children in the hospital.  I had never worked so many hours straight that I was in tears by the time I went home. I didn't know what it was like to worry about household expenses, tuition, children in the hospital or any of those concerns of life.  Even though all of those things eventually molded me into a stronger person, I'm glad I didn't have to know about them ahead of time.

When that photo was taken I didn't know that someday I'd carry around a tiny computer/camera (smartphone) that would give me instant photos and that'd I'd post them for the whole world to see.  In fact, I didn't know that posts would be anything except something to hold up a fence.  I am certain I could not have imagined the power of the internet.  I thought I knew a lot back then, but there was so much more to come.  There were so many changes to embrace/endure.  There was so much adventure ahead!

Looking at the photo, though, I remember that I DID know that I was well-loved by my family, Mike and most importantly, by God.  I trusted that my future was secure because of that.  I still do.  I still look forward to more adventures.  I still feel blessed to have Mike by my side, just as I did in that photo.  I still know that I am loved.

Growing Up With Cerebral Palsy

My younger sister, Tina, has cerebral palsy.  She's done a lot of things in her life despite this fact, things like everyone else.  She went to college, she worked, she married, she had children, she traveled, she even lived in Japan for a time.  Later, she endured a divorce and carried on raising her children alone.  She lives in her own home, drives her own car and has her own friends.  However, all of those things are a lot more work for her than for anyone else.

Tina's life has always been a lot more work than for most of us.  She was such a pretty little blonde girl with a big giant smile!  We are close enough in age I don't really remember watching her learn to walk but it had to have been scary as she had to learn to walk with crutches.  Can you imagine?!  I remember her being just a little tiny girl walking with big clunky braces and teeny, tiny crutches.  At that time, that just seemed normal to me.  That was just the way she walked.

If I remember right, Tina started school in a hospital.  She was 5 years old when our whole family moved to Lincoln, Nebraska.  The reason for our move was because she had a long, long time to be in a hospital.  She was only able to be at home for holidays.  During that year she underwent a lot of misery.  Her hips were dislocated and the process to help her was grueling.  She was in a cast up to her waist with openings for her to go to the bathroom on a bedpan.  There was a bar between her feet.  At intervals, maybe weekly, they cut the bar and added more to it.  Each time we visited, her feet and legs were spread further and further apart until she had her legs sticking out almost to the side with a big round bar holding her legs that way.  It was awful.  I remember that bar very well because when she came home for holidays I shared my bottom bunk with her!  Looking back, I can't imagine how she endured all that.

When Tina was a first grader we were living in Scottsbluff, Nebraska.  Because she was handicapped, she wasn't allowed to go to school with us.  She had to go to a special school that had a classroom for handicapped kids.  I wish I had that photo here (it is at our Mom's house) of her first class.  She's so cute, all smiley and pretty.  In the photo, though she is maybe 6 years old, her classmates are much older.  They ranged all the way through high school age.  Most of them had handicaps of a cognitive nature.  I think Tina had a fun year and didn't know any difference, but that photo always makes my  heart sad.  I can't imagine how it made our Mom feel.

 Later, we lived in places small enough that there were no special classrooms for handicapped kids.  Thanks be to God!  Tina was a very smart little girl and needed a chance to learn alongside her peers.  

Unfortunately, Tina had more to endure.  When she was a third grader she had to go back to that hospital in Lincoln, Nebraska.  Our family had very little money and our Dad was trying to finish college and support us all at the same time.  Tina spent a lot of time in Lincoln, away from her family.  Later, that was repeated when she was in 6th grade or so, in a Shriner's Hospital in Minneapolis.  By then we were living only a few hours away and got to visit a bit more often but she still had to endure pain and frightening procedures alone.  On a side note, though, we all remain grateful to the Shriner's for offering all those services at no charge.  That's amazing.

Tina is smart.  In spite of her strange classroom experiences, she did well and later went through high school in only three years.  I think that those teen years were pretty tough, not that she'd say it to us then.   She was pretty, smart and sweet but a lot of teens, struggling to fit in themselves, did not take the time to get to know the girl on crutches.  I think most were nice to her, but few took the time to develop a true friendship with her.  That can't have been easy on her but it surely made her appreciate those who did see beyond the crutches.  Thankfully, as an adult, she has found a variety of kind and caring people who have been true friends to her.

Tina now writes a blog, Living With Cerebral Palsy, that helps others who are dealing with similar obstacles.  Her blog is also helpful to the rest of us, helping us better understand.  I spent my childhood with her and I still learn things from her blog!  I'm afraid that I was a typical kid, seeing things only from my own perspective and not always realizing what childhood was like for her.  Reading her blog can be eye-opening.  Today, she has a particularly clarifying post.  I really, really hope that you will click here to read what she has to say about living with constant muscle spasms. It's not a whiny post; Tina is not a whiny person.  It is, however, a post that may make you appreciate your own muscles a bit more.

I remember talking to Tina, when we were kids, about how it feels to be unable to walk.  She told me that it just felt normal.  In fact, she told me that the thought of walking like the rest of us was probably the same as it was for me to try to explain how it feels to not be able to flap my arms and fly.  She is, however, looking forward to heaven and to a time when she believes she will be able to walk.  I like to think she'll also be able to fly!

Financial Tailor

I have a hard time being interested in financial planning and investing.  Why is that?  I do like the idea of financial security.  I hope that when we retire our children won't have to help us make ends meet.  I want to make our money useful not only to us, but for charities we support.  Nevertheless, my brain kind of glazes over when someone starts talking to me about financial issues.

 Lucky for me, I've got some help now!  Our oldest son, Ben, is a professional in this area.  Maybe it is because we named him after Mike's banker grandfather.  I don't know but he has a serious knack when it comes to money management and financial advising.  He worked for a large,  national bank and helped a lot of people with his knowledge and ability advising them with their investments.  He enjoyed that work but could see areas where things could be done better, ways to better benefit his clients.

Eventually, Ben founded a new company with a new and innovative approach to financial advisement.  I moved my own 401K's to an IRA with his firm.  The banks handling those funds tried to scare me I did it because I trust him.  I know him.  He's a man of integrity.  With  his company, Financial Tailor, I went through a questionnaire that really helped me to know my own financial needs.  I was the one making the choices regarding risk, but I had access to professional knowledge and advice.  Other questions were more of an ethical or moral nature and because of that approach I get to know that my money won't be invested in companies that would upset me.  It was quite in-depth and helped me to think about some things I'd not considered before.  For instance, I do NOT want my money in the tobacco industry.  I also don't want to support companies that put painful shampoos or something in animal's eyes to see if it hurts.  You see what I mean?

I was one of those people who didn't have a clue regarding how much the bank was getting for managing my 401K.   As it turned out, their fees are much higher than those of Financial Tailor.  Financial Tailor, because they are an online company, keeps overhead low.  Don't think for a minute, though, that they sacrifice that personal touch.  You have access to a wealth of information as well as personal advice.

The Financial Tailor Clients have access to a LOT of information.  Their website is loaded with information!  In fact, a lot of that information is available just for visiting their website.They have a newsletter that explains a lot of what is going on in the financial world and why it effects the market.  You can learn tips about hedging and diversification.  You can even ask a question online and receive a personalized reply.

No, I'm still no whizz at investing but I don't have to be.  My investment adviser breaks things down for me into ideas I can understand.   I can learn what I need to know and I can trust that my money is well cared for.  Maybe you should check it out as well!

Blessings

"Blessings"
by Laura Story

We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love is way too much to give us lesser things

'Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

We pray for wisdom
Your voice to hear
We cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt your goodness, we doubt your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
All the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe

When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know that pain reminds this heart
That this is not our home

What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can't satisfy
What if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are your mercies in disguise

This song really touched me today.  Please click here to listen to Laura Story sing it.   I found Laura Story's website here.    

Good Morning, Winter!

What a difference a day makes!  When I woke up this morning I could FEEL the soft heaviness.  If you live somewhere that  gets heavy snows, you know what I mean.  Everything just feels softer, weightier and dulled after a heavy snow.  Our sky is heavy today as well.  It's gray and leaking its contents even still.  It is time for me to get over autumn and embrace this other beauty... winter.

Talk about a late bloomer!  This poor clematis blossom looked like a frozen beauty.

You can feel the heaviness just by looking at this photo, can't you?

It also seems pretty quiet in our backyard.

Bode was pretty surprised about the overnight change.  

  

He got wound up for a bit.

He's quite a princess, though.  He had his fun and then wanted inside quickly.

Viszlas don't have an undercoat so I'll try to not make fun of him.

Autumn

Autumn breaks my heart...

...because it is over all too soon.

The Voice - My Review So Far

Have you been watching THE VOICE?  I don't usually watch those kinds of shows.  It just so happened that I ran across it the night a young man from our area was on.  I was so surprised!  I don't know if you realize it but there simply aren't that many people in the whole state of Wyoming.  There are just over 568,000 people here.  That's to say that all of Wyoming has about the same number of people as the city of Portland, Oregon.  Wyoming is the least populous state of all!  Wyoming is pretty large, so as you can figure, there is a lot of open space here with no people at all.  Because of this, we don't all that often see people from Wyoming on national television.

Anyway, the young man on THE VOICE is someone people around here know.  He used to work at Sears here and I actually think I remember seeing him.  I may or may not have purchased shoes from him.  So, I watched the rest of that episode of the show and tuned in again a couple of other times.  Although I am kind of an anti-reality show kind of person, I have to admit I am enjoying this one.

One thing I like is that the judges, at least in this first round, don't see the contestants when they first sing.  They are focusing on the voice, not the look of the person.  That seems like a good thing.

Another thing I noticed that is different with this show from some of the others is that they really don't have any contestants on who are without talent.  You know what I am saying!  Some of those shows put people on who have no talent, just so they can make fun of them.  That is just mean!  THE VOICE, however, does not do that.  All of the contestants have enough talent to have some sort of a career with their voice, even if it isn't super stardom.

The best difference I noticed is that the judges are kind.  Really.  They are kind.  Even when they aren't choosing to select a contestant to go further in the contest, they still validate their talent and encourage them to keep singing.  I appreciate that!

So, since I've taken it upon myself to write this review, I'm going to give it a lot of stars.  I don't know how many stars should be available anyway, so I'm just saying I give it a lot of them.  Go watch it if you wish, or not, your choice.  I'm just admmitting that I enjoy it.

Back to School

About a month ago my friend, Donna, asked me if I'd like to take a continuing education course with her at our local college.  The class is "Spanish for Nursing".  I quickly decided to attend with her.  I based my decision mostly on the fact that I like Donna.  Later, I wondered what I was thinking!  I already am quite busy, I'm too old to learn a new language, I get tired more easily than I once did so why would I want to go to a class after a day of working? ... I started coming up with lots of excuses.  However, I wanted to keep my word so, when class started this week, I went.

I took this photo while waiting for Donna to arrive.   I always love back-to-school sales and a fresh notebook makes my heart happy.  At least I had that to enjoy.  Still, I was thinking I'd rather stay in for the evening, maybe do a little crocheting.  I wonder if Donna offered to pick me up to make certain I actually went.

As we arrived at the college, I couldn't help but notice a couple of very young looking students walking by.  Oh man!  I felt OLD!

We found our building and went on in.  I was kind of hoping to find a big classroom full of other nurses.  I was hoping to be anonymous.  That was not to be!  Donna and I were the first to arrive and the instructor visited directly with us.  In fact, only four people showed up for the class.  So much for anonymity!  

Our instructor, however, was wonderful.  She told us, no, she PROMISED us, that we'd be able to read Spanish by the END OF THE FIRST CLASS!  What?  That seemed like a ridiculous statement.  I instantly liked her, though, so I played along.

Guess what!?  By the end of the class we could all read Spanish.  I am NOT KIDDING!  The woman is a miracle worker!  I realize that we won't understand much of what we are reading but we can read.  What's the use of that?  Well, let me tell you.  Along with the class we received a big notebook full of useful information just for nurses.  We can look up a phrase in that book, maybe something like, "I am going to give you an enema now."  We can read the corresponding words in Spanish that are right beside the English phrases and the Spanish-speaking person listening to us will hopefully understand our meaning (and in this case be filled with horror!).

As it turned out, the class was actually quite delightful.  I'm anxious to go back!  I've been practicing some of the words and phrases from the first class and am hoping I can remember them when called upon.  This is a very, very interactive class.  I do notice that I don't learn as easily as I once did; I have to work harder and practice more to keep things in my memory.  Nevertheless, I am certain that I will get some of this to stick.  It's actually kind of fun to be working on something new.  I feel like I've stepped out of my comfort zone but that is likely a good thing.

So, tell me what you've been learning.  Have you tried a new musical instrument, new crafting skill or maybe a bit of a new language such as what we are doing?  Is it hard?  Is it fun?  Is it exciting?