An Innocent Enough Date

It started out innocent enough. I asked my dear friend out for chocolate. We have our usual favorite chocolate haunt we like to get our late night craving satisfied from. So last night, as I was driving to go pick her up, I thought, "wait a minute here, there's got to be other places to sit down, lean back and enjoy each other's company at!" But it's gotta have good coffee and chocolate right? So The Dad suggested another place. Off my dear friend and I went. Imagine us, walking into a nice restaurant that is quiet and has cushy booths to sit and visit in. That's what the place The Dad suggested usually is like on a weeknight. So in we walk and to our surprise the place is packed and the waitress asks, "so, are ya here for the burger and brew?" My dear friend and I just looked at each other blankly. But, we valiantly held it together... and asked what is burger and brew? So the cute little waitress launches into all the different variations of burgers we could get for $7.00 that evening. We stopped her before she got to the brew alternatives by saying we would just like some dessert; chocolate preferably. After looking dubiously into the crowded, lively restaurant and wondering if we would even be able to hear ourselves talk over the noise level, we allowed ourselves to be led to a very small two-person booth. There's a light hanging down over our heads. I presume it is supposed to give us a feeling of our own personal space, lit up so we can see our food. Instead, it glares into our eyes from above. We giggle a little at each other. Then by mutual consent, we both jump up out of the booth and make a quick run for it! Yes, we abandoned the place! Yes, we are giggling hysterically by now! So, after a quick phone call to Son Th, who was a chef and knows all the good chocolate haunts in town, we head on over to the next place. Park in a very scary back alley in a spot that quite possibly might be flagged as ticket worthy or even tow away worthy and we charge in for our chocolate. To get to the place we have to weave our way through a narrow pathway between two houses and there, finally, is the door to the palace of chocolate that holds the promise of satisfaction. But what's this in front of us? A stairway with a belching plume of billowing steam coming from it? Very 1940 noir feeling. Cue the smoothly suspenseful music. We open the door... we walk in and there is a waiter. Or so we surmise. We are still giggling a little at this point. Mostly from that 1940 plume of steam coming from the stairway... we're nervous! The nice man in the suit, who looks just like a waiter asks us, "so are you here for the Lingerie Party? Because if you are you just missed it!" My dear friend and I look at each other again and of course start giggling hysterically as we tell the nice man that we just want some dessert, preferably chocolate and some coffee. At that point, thank heavens, a very discreet waitress comes and rescues us from the "definitely not a waiter, Lingerie salesman". She leads us through the dimly lit, very quiet restaurant to the most divine looking dessert case you could possibly imagine. Cue the heavenly choir music. At that point, my friend and I both needed someone to tell us to close our flabbergasted mouths so we would stop drooling! Oh the beautiful desserts in that case! Oh the chocolate! Oh the cheesecakes so lovingly decorated! Bless the pastry chef who could create such masterpieces for our delight! What were we doing just standing there? Let's get down to business! Needless to say, we both were served the most wonderful chocolate cake on gorgeous dessert plates all (as my dear friend would say) fancy schmancy! The coffee was rich and satisfying and the place was quiet with little candles on each table. Cue the sound of clinking fine silverware on even finer china! We got to hear each others trials of life without the sounds of "burger and brew" being served to 100 people all around us. Oh! and one more thing to top the evening off just right. The "definitely not a waiter, Lingerie salesman" came by our table as he was leaving and gave us the rest of a bottle of fine wine that was leftover from his Lingerie Party, a Petite Syrah, for us to share! It was one of the best wines I have ever tasted. My dear friend and I definitely will be going back there someday... hopefully soon. Hopefully not on Lingerie Party Night. But I will never forget our date last night, that started out innocently enough!

Got Worms?

This past weekend was absolutely beautiful here in Oregon. Blue skies, 70 degrees; what more could you ask for. Well, you could start by asking for worms. Yep worms. And I've got the worm crew for you! Here they are... ready to unearth as many worms as you need. And in case you're worried about the pretty-pretty princess in pink getting dirty? No need. Dirt doesn't seem to cling to her at all... whereas the bare little feet and hands on our prince charming seems to be getting a tad bit grubby. What's a Grammy and Poppa to do?

Lately...

1. I've enjoyed all the sister's blogs...wept for your sorrows and shed different tears for your joy and testimonies. Thank you ladies for sharing your lives!
2. We had The Dad's little sister visit us with her children. What a joy they were! I loved watching videos of my nieces dancing so beautifully and seeing them become young women. I got to visit with my nephew who, on the brink of manhood is one step away from the Lord. We got to talk about our thoughts on the world around us and it was fascinating to see life from his point of view. It's wonderful to see my dear sister in law with her children and the care and devotion she has for them...we only wished her hubby could have been with us too!
3. It's getting easier to only have one child left at home... sorta!
4. My granddaughter wrote my name... LORI... and said, "that spells Grammy!" I will always treasure those little things with my grand children!
5. The daffodils are all blooming and it makes me want to go out and plant in our garden again.
6. I had to speak at a city council meeting and I was so nervous, but I went into the quiet part of my library beforehand and begged God to help me... and it turned out not to be so bad after all. I just needed to be myself...just plain old me!
7. I'm making headway on my yearlong reading of the bible! I'm staying up on it (some days I do better than others and I get behind a little! ) but I'm already to 2 Samuel. I have been so edified by the story of the children of Israel and their struggles. I do NOT want to be like them and disappoint our God. I absolutely loved reading Ruth again! I read it thinking of my dear daughter in laws. I stand in awe at the care and love that Naomi had for both them. My heart went out to those three women so much! My hope is to be such a mother in law as Naomi was to all my lovely daughters who love my sons so much!

Well... besides trying to think of what in the world to make for this Sunday's church dinner, not much else is happening lately!

Introducing a new Brother and two Sisters!

It's been a whirlwind day! We knew this morning that we were having a baptism. Sis. Patsy gave her hand a week ago, but we waited because there were sick brethren who couldn't come to watch. But today, as meetng went on, and ended; two more gave their hands! So, here you see Sis. Kaitlyn at the way back of the picture, Sis. Patsy in the very middle and our new Bro. Jonathan! Yes, our youngest and final child has been baptized. And what a wonderful day it is! Thanks be to God that his hand has been extended to each and every one of our children and that they each chose Life!

Thank Full for dear Like-minded Friends

I was sitting in a room full of people the other day just listening. The conversation was spinning around and around and I felt pretty much an outsider. The talk was leading down a road I haven't ever walked. Most everyone there had no idea what to do about the situation they were talking about; it was all bleakness and desolation in fact. Suddenly I wanted out of that room so badly. But, I was bound to my chair having been invited to be there and I saw no escaping until the clock set me free. Finally, having been released I bade my farewells and wondered at my weepy feelings. What was wrong with me? I felt like the room's conversation of bleakness had worn off onto me! I called my husband and spoke to him and he cheered me up. We spoke of God's mercy to His people and how we should love people in the world, as the Lord does, but not the things they do. That it's okay to keep these two things separate. Love the person, not the works they do. Now skip ahead to later that night. I was again in a room full of people; this time they are all my sisters in Christ. Again I sat there listening. And suddenly I was so lightened in heart. I wanted to start singing! I was an insider here in this room... I belonged. Every woman there knew exactly where she was going in life and there was no bleakness or desolation. Now I didn't want the clock to set me free, I wanted that clock to stop exactly where it was. I wanted nothing more in life than to sit there in my chair and hold on to the sweetness in that room. When the time finally did come to leave, I realized on my way home that I was refreshed because I had been with dear friends who were like-minded and so dear to me. Once again, I am so thank-full of God's mercy to me to give me such a cloud of dear friends to walk this way with.

Dinner at the new apartment

Last night Daughter L and Son T had The Dad, Son J2 and I over for dinner at their new apartment. Words cannot convey how proud of was of them. My daughter; for making a wonderfully prepared meal and our son; for hosting us at his table. They have made themselves a comfortable home together. After dinner we sat and visited on the Word and then we played a quick game Son T had gotten for Christmas. It was a wonderfully comfortable evening. They both talked about it being their intent to have the brethren over for meals and visits and it struck me that they had grown up just like I wanted them to. How blessed am I to have a bounty of faithful children around me who love the Lord with all their hearts! This surely is all I could ask for as a servant of God.

Thanks Giving Season starts

I really love that our holiday season begins with Thanksgiving. I believe that the whole season from Thanksgiving through New Years Day is a season of giving thanks. On Thanksgiving Day we celebrate a bountiful harvest, which we all truly do enjoy. We give thanks to God for all our many blessings and gather friends and family close around us to enjoy their company. Then it's on to a whole month of preparation culminating in Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We decorate our houses to remember Christ's birth, we gather and shop for presents for our loved ones, we plan delicious goodies to give to each other, we look forward to our church Christmas dinner celebration, all the while remembering that Christ was born one day a long time ago to save us and to bring us true "peace on earth and goodwill toward men". Every family has their own special way of doing this, and what a blessing and I am so thankful that we have the freedom to do whatever we choose to do! Even when the festivities of Christmas are over, we then celebrate the bringing in of a New Year. A New Year to live for our Lord, a New Year to give our lives for our family and brethren, a New Year to begin again the turning of the tide toward spring. We truly do have much to be thankful for beginning with our Thanksgiving celebration.

On that note, I'll post a few pictures of our Thanksgiving Day!

Morning Glory!

I thought I would post some pictures of my garden that The Dad has worked on so hard this year
We both work out there, but mostly it is his continual puttering that keeps it going. It's time to
order our garlic to put in the ground in September and we have been avidly pouring through the
Territorial Seed Catalog to pick which variety to plant. We are also going to plant some fall cabbage and
some Oriental Bok Joi which is luscious in a stir fry! Oh and we won't forget to plant some carrots so our
little guys can go out and pick them and eat them directly!

Understanding God's Mercy to Us

Sis Shannon asked that I post some stories from our quick trip to Colorado and so here goes! This is Sis. Carolyn G. from Grand Junction. She cares for her dear husband, Bro. Marc who is so sick. I mentioned them in my previous post. A long time ago, we had Bro. Marc and Sis. Carolyn in our home (back when we lived in California!) and to make a long story short, they were not treated well while there. So, for many years, The Dad has been praying that our paths would cross again and we would have the chance to say we were sorry and make it right with them. We didn't know where they lived in Colorado and didn't know their last name, so it was pretty impossible to find out who they were. But, lo and behold! The Lord knew my husband's prayer and He made a way for us to apologize to them. Recently our nephew married a sister from Colorado and wouldn't you know it but it's Bro. Marc and Sis. Carolyn's daughter! As soon as The Dad heard her maiden name, he recognized it as the last name of the brethren who were in our home so long ago. We were able to visit with our new niece in Idaho and learned that her father was terribly sick and both The Dad and I knew that we'd need to make a trip to Colorado post haste. That is how we found ourselves on the road there and back again. We were welcomed in to the very brethren's home that we had mistreated so long ago and were welcomed with open arms! They had not carried any hardness of heart along with them through these years. God was very good to us that we were able to meet them again and this time to actually get to know them! We spent time with Bro. Marc the first afternoon and evening we got there and we enjoyed his apparent grace and bravery in the face of what surely could be death. He spoke of his joy in the faith and his hope for the faith to continue through all of our children. He stressed the importance of teaching our children about the treasure we possess and living the faith ourselves so that they can learn from our examples. He loves his children dearly. He loves his wife dearly. And rightly so, two of his children are in the faith now and he hopes for his third. And his wife! She is a dear solid sister. Up she was early in the morning caring for Bro. Marc and caring for their home. You could tell she was very busy at keeping her household running smoothly for Bro. Marc. She tends her yard and it's beautiful! You can tell she loves plants because even her house is full of gorgeous pots full of deep lucious greenery. Good grief, I'd have those plants dead in a week! Her calmness of spirit was an inspiration and she made us feel so at home. The next morning Bro. Marc was needing to sleep and rest and so we got to visit with her and the whole morning the telephone kept ringing. I finally gathered that it was her birthday and here she was cooking breakfast and taking care for us! Later that day we were able to get her a birthday cake and have a little celebration. Even Bro. Marc was able to have a bit of cake and sing to his wife! I cannot stress enough how much that Bro. Marc needs prayers. He needs God's grace to suffer the affliction he has. I know he wants it, I know he will only get it through the grace of God. So, when you think of him, please ask God for mercy for both him and Sis. Carolyn. She has a big job caring for him and their home. Oh and she also helps care for her almost blind mother, Sis. Helen who lives about 45 minutes away! I will always treasure getting a chance to know these dear brethren and understand that it was God's mercy to The Dad and I to have the chance to make things right with such sweet children of His.