A few promised pictures

Dorothy's cheesecake make by Melva for last night's birthday supper. She put the candles into the shape of an "89". Next year we'll have to have a grand celebration for her 90th!
The day we did the newsletter mailing at our office we had lots of good help. (Even some special little people, eh, Twila?) Dorothy was very surprised when we sang "Happy Birthday" to her and brought the coconut cake out. I'll be happy if I'm still able to help with a mailing when I'm 89!!

Here's Sienna with her first pie ever! She did a great job.

Cold outside, but warm inside

When I woke up this morning and came downstairs, I checked the thermometer and it read a chilly -35 C. That is COLD, just in case you're wondering. Then I checked the inside temp. and it read a warm and cozy +20 C. The coffee is making the house smell so good and after being gone for 3 days, it's fun to be alive and well here at home.

The past 2 weeks have been filled with blessings from God as we have experienced His unfailing love, provisions and protection. It is always a joy to hear an unbeliever as they express their desire to know God, which is what one young lady told me over coffee one afternoon.

Another day I had fun teaching a young mom/friend how to make pie crust and also how to make lemon meringue pie from scratch. I'm still not totally sure why she picked that kind, except that she likes it. It turned out well, and the next evening she used an extra shell and made another one all on her own.

Then one afternoon my little 8 year old friend called and wanted to visit. It was a cold day, but her mom doesn't drive so Hannah walked over here (about a 10 min. walk), and stayed for several hours. She loves playing around on the piano and would do well if she'd take lessons, I'm sure. After supper and playing a few games with her, I drove her home.

Last Friday was our bulk mailing day at the office. I offered to make a cake for dessert and also to celebrate Dorothy's 89th birthday a week early. I made one of my favorites, a 4 layer, coconut cake that is hard to beat! We had so much great help that we were finished with everything by 1:30 p.m. and Kendra was on her way to the Falls to mail it shortly after.

It seems we've been feeding one person at at time lately. But that's fun too sometimes as you get to focus on that person alone. We had a widower, a single guy, a widow, another single guy, and Hannah. Who's next? It keeps my blog title reality, I guess.

This past Tues. morning, we were on the road around 6:00 a.m. heading to Dorion Bible Camp for our winter prayer retreat. It was a good turnout, with all our staff minus 2 couples. We always have a lot of fun times reconnecting with each other and between the prayer sessions there's time for eating, and playing games. Some venture outside for fresh air and walks, but for myself, I mostly stay inside once I'm there. All of us stayed in a huge lodge called The Eagles Nest. The young kids found jumping off a top deck rail down into the deep soft snow a real thrill. I preferred watching the sun rise over Lake Superior yesterday morning. I am so grateful to be a part of a dedicated team of missionaries like we are. They are just "normal" people in most respects, with joys and sorrows like anyone else. The part that's impressive is their willingness to leave mother, father, brothers, sisters, children, grandchildren, houses and lands to follow Christ's call to wherever that has led them. ( See Matthew 19: 28-30) Some live on remote first nations reserves, others live in modern cities. Those of us in administration live in a small gold mining town here in Red Lake. I've come home challenged to do my part in praying for each of them with their own unique needs and desires that God has placed in their hearts.

Well, this has gotten longer than I thought it would and I haven't even included pictures. So, I think I'll wait for that and maybe I can even borrow some from others who were taking pictures at the retreat. We'll see, but don't sit around holding your breath!

OH DEAR! How could I forget to make my confession? I took the leap into the unknown (for me) world of addictions; namely, facebook. I already can see why some have a love/hate relationship with it. I plan on checking it every so often, but, truthfully, I find it pretty hard to put down and so if I don't want to be totally controlled by it, I just can't look at it every day. Are you on it? If so, let me know what you think of it and/or how you control it. thanks.

Valentines Day/week-end

It's Sunday evening; almost bedtime and not the best time to blog, but I just wanted to make sure you knew I had a good week and week-end. Not that you've told me you're out there reading what I write (except you faithful few that comment or tell me in person--thanks!).

My honey of 35 years grilled some special steaks on Friday evening for our little valentines dinner together. I almost messed up our evening by making a run to help out a friend that was in desperate need of prayer and encouragement. But everything worked out o.k. in the end. I had made a mocha cream pie for dessert which went well with our decaf coffee to end the evening. I forgot to take pictures of our little white table with candles, etc. in the sun room.

On Sat. evening we went to our church's annual sweetheart banquet. The attendance was smaller than some years, but the food was a delicious roast beef meal made by Kendra and team with a choice of two desserts to choose from. There were some special musical numbers and talks on communication in marriage.

One fun "gift" this week-end was seeing a video (or two) of our youngest granddaughter rolling over in her bed. Pretty amazing for a 3 1/2 month old! Her smile is priceless.

One thought from a devotional book: A great Valentine would be a picture of Jesus. When we open it up, there would be our own picture inside, next to His heart! I'm so grateful for His unfailing LOVE for me, His daughter!

You know you're sick when...

...your internet is off and it doesn't even matter
...you can't smell the fresh coffee first thing in the morning
...you don't remember when you fall asleep or when you wake up in the middle of the day
...broth tastes better than food
...you're housebound for 4 days and it's o.k.
...you're thankful your husband doesn't complain about leftovers
...your bones feel like you ran a marathon without practicing first
...you wonder what you look like but always forget to look in the mirror 'cause you just want to get back on the couch*

Well, you get the picture. *You know you must look awful when you catch your husband suppressing his laughter as he looks at you.

Anyway, with the long hard winter we've been having, just thinking about spring brings HOPE! Last week one day I looked out my picture window and saw something interesting. We have a small ornamental crab apple tree that is only several years old now. When I noticed it standing there I saw it was being whipped by the wind and had snow blowing all around it. It looked cold and lonely, but strong. The snow must be close to 3' deep around it. (See picture above.) The picture below helps me remember that winter will not last forever and when we have spring and summer we thoroughly enjoy the vast differences. One morning I told Rhonda in Mada that we started out with -30C. They, on the other hand, had +30C over there in the middle of the day.

I once had someone comment to me that us "northerners" must have to stay inside when it's that cold here. I was rather taken aback when I realized she was serious. I didn't remind her that people go to their jobs, kids go to school, and all in all we are, after all, quite normal in those respects. So, yes, in case you're wondering, we do go outside. And, our vehicles even run. We do have heaters that we plug in when we know it's going to be a cold night to make sure they start. And we know how to dress warmly, believe me. If we didn't our exposed skin would be frost bitten in 6 minutes at that temperature.

I wish I had a good quality camera and were a great photograper for some of the breathtaking beauty that God has blessed us with in this area. I wish I could capture the clear blue sky when there's hoarfrost glistening on the bare branches or when the snow is fresh and hanging on all the evergreen branches about 4" thick with that bright blue sky behind it.

And now, for the rest of the story... you know you're getting better when...

...you start to think about others again instead of just yourself
...you're thankful your eyes are back to the right color
...you thank the good Lord for health and pray for friends who aren't getting better

What are you grateful for today? I'd love to know!