RECITAL TIME

I FINALLY purchased some musical note cookie cutters to make cookies for my piano recital. Mind you, I did not decorate these darlings. At this moment, mine are awaiting dressing. Hmmm.....wonder how cute I can make them?......
A little sloppy, but I got the idea :)

This is called The Temptation Piano, by John Lawson. I think I may start a project like this with all my beads and baubles. What do ya think?
OR how about some ordinary paint?

I think I better stick with my cookie project for the time being....this can get out of hand very quickly.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY EARL!

This is your mom, dad and sister - wishing you a Happy Birthday! You are now the same age as your older brother Del. (10 months apart) On this day 55 years ago your dad was informed that he could not visit your mom at the hospital anymore due the high risk of getting her pregnant. (private joke)

Although your life was spared when mom jumped off the washing machine hoping to cause a miscarriage, you have been an incredible blessing to your parents.

You were a good baby - didn't cause any trouble, even when you were fed pears at about 3 weeks old. You got very constipated, where you received your first enema (could this have been a precursor to your post-op rectal problems?)

You had many episodes of police contact. Riding your trike to Ninth Street parking in the middle of the road, blocking traffic (the police told mom to tie you to a tree to keep you in the back yard - you loved it); running away with a pillow case full of bread, a few clothes, guns, holsters, and cowboy boots to go shoot bear; making a dummy, placing it in the middle of the road with a bike and strawberry jam all over it; shooting off illegal fireworks in the back yard on July 4th.

Medical issues: rode your bike into a picket fence, ripping your chest wide open (another precursor to your current chest pain?); potential lung cancer thwarted by being caught smoking cigarettes behind the garage; God spared your life when your Volkswagen Beetle went off a cliff, killing your new puppy.(God also brought you into His grace of salvation at that time)

Heroism: You snuck dog Brandy into your bed so dad wouldn't spank the dog for barking in his kennel at night. The Wenatchee Panther football team were constantly evangelized by you. An uproar in all of Wenatchee Valley ensued after, as speaker, you gave an alter call at your high school Baccalaureate service. We were so proud of you! You, Del, and Buck Foland created havoc at Wenatchee Valley College football - using every opportunity to hit hard with your helmets and the gospel.

We love you so much and wish you a great day! We pray for a RECOVERY from pain and hemolysis. Quit messing around with this and get back to normal.

King's Men - Gotta Love 'Em

Ahhhhh - we just love the Biola King's Men - and Jordan :)


Julianne got to come this time to meet up with my sister Janice and her hubby Jeff.

A day trip to Knotts Berry Farm wore us all out - I think even Julianne was tired, although she did want to go on "one more ride".


It was refreshing to be able to go away for a weekend, and have nothing to worry myself over back at home....a new concept for me;)


I love my family - they have stuck with me through thick and thin and good and ugly.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY MOM!

Where does one begin to describe such an amazing lady, my mom?

From the time you were very young, you wanted to be a wife and mother. It is your biggest joy in life, and I appreciate that so much! Your full time career was caring for five children and your husband. What a beautiful example for us!


I came across this letter you wrote to our estranged daughter last February 2008!(wow time sure flies) You wrote this letter from the depth of your heart, showing who you really are:

"Dear Jessica,

I have been meaning to write this letter for awhile now. So here goes. I want you to know that I want the best for you. I know you are having a hard time now. I don’t know what is really the problem. But I want you to be happy with yourself and the world.

Do you remember the day your Mom got you from the adoption agency? I had coffee with you and your new Mom that day. She was so excited to have a little girl and so happy to be able to give you a home and have a family who loved you. I often wonder where you would be if they had not taken you under their wing. You had much to learn and they were hard on you so would learn the right things.

You have become a beautiful girl now, with a wonderful future ahead of you. Girls your age don’t make good choices . Listen to your parents and people who are trying to help you. God will see you thru this, if you lean on him.

I want to tell you what happened to my life. My father was killed in a drowning accident when I was 5 yrs. old. My brother and I went to live with my Aunt and Uncle who loved us and took good care of us. My mother went to live in another town to work and we rarely saw her. I didn’t understand till many yrs. later how much I resented that and felt abandoned. She had already died and I could not tell her how much that hurt. I sat in a chair with an empty chair across from me and I pretended she was in that chair. I told her how she had hurt me for leaving us and how sorry I was for the way I treated her. I asked for forgiveness and I forgave her. A weight was lifted from my shoulders. I had carried that for many yrs. Hopefully you can do that with your biological mom and dad who abandoned you.

Don’t carry around resentment and bitterness for the past or the present. It can eat away at your soul and take away your happiness. I really care about you and am praying that you will make good choices for your life. You are a beautiful girl with a wonderful future, don’t mess it up.

Papa and I love you and praying that you will work your problems out and trust those who love you to help. God bless you Jessica"

You, mom, could have been bitter about your past, but you chose instead to pour your life into family and be a blessing to everyone who knows you. You are the most unselfish person I know.

You and your brother are very close and adorable. You call him "brother rat" and you laugh at your noses.

You, my mom, had five rambunctious independent children in 6 years. You love being a mother and wife, and to this day I reap the benefits of your love for us.

Last July, you had a stroke. Since then, you had to work to learn to speak, walk, and do as much as you can for yourself. You have the use of only one arm, and suffer from severe leg pains. I hate that you have to endure pain.

Yet, you are the sweetest, most caring, warm hearted spirit ever! Your change of lifestyle has been drastic. I am sure there are times of great discouragement, but you plod ahead.

My greatest friend, my faithful confidante, my laughing companion, my MOM.

I love you mom!

Mother's Day Coming Up

I am formulating my tribute to my mom for Sunday - in the meantime, I ponder her beautiful spirit.