MIA.....

Been missing for a while, but I've been overloaded at school. Our seniors have a little more than 2 weeks left & I'm tracking their progress to make sure they all graduate on time! So by the time I get home at night, my brain is mush! I am not very motivated to do much of anything. I hate that feeling.

I am in charge of stage decor and such at our church and we've entered a new series now that Easter is over. On top of the Mother's Day project I have going on, I needed to reset the stage. Our sermon series is currently on the Holy Spirt. Well what can you do with that? Images of dry ice fog & billowing white sheets were what 1st entered my mind, but that is almost scary! So I decided just to start a "spring theme". I pulled the Ficus (fake) trees back up onto the stage & starting rummaging through our flower closet. I found a huge stash of daffodils, tulips, & several other springy flowers. As I started pulling them & putting them in various containers & arranging them here & there on the stage I had a brain fart!!! Last summer/fall, I read the book, "The Shack". It is about the trinity! The Holy Spirit was portrayed as a gardener of sorts! As I read this book & the sections in regards to the Holy Spirit, I had images of these gorgeous, colorful flower beds. I also thought I could see little glimmers of light, or sparkles in the surrounding gardens. So there you have it, my "Holy Spirit" came alive on the stage last night with lots & lots of spring flower bouquets. I put up some chairs from our yard, along with gardening gloves, seed packets, potting soil & little tea light candles propped here & there to be lit to add that "sparkle" to the stage!

It has been a very rainy week in Michigan - I think it's now time to start building an Ark. The rivers are already swollen from the winter snows & have barely begun to recede. The rains we've received this week are setting off flood watches all over the place. But the nice thing about it is that things are really greening up around here. I do love spring - it's my favorite season because the newness of everything. It's just such a fresh start.

April CJ Challenge

Our challenge for this month was posted by Rhonda. The assignment: use circles.

I'm working on a project for Mother's Day for church using photos of mom's, grandma's & their kids & grandkids. I had this idea that it needed a "centerpiece" if you will.

This is a 24 x 24 canvas using, what else, circles. Kind of like the song, "Circle of Life". I'm still playing with it, tweeking it here, & then again there. I used several different colors of Making Memories paints & gesso to texturize the canvas. The center circle is surrounded by white tulle & the "spacers" are stickles. The flowers are cut from various scraps, mostly basic grey papers with colorful stone centers. The ribbons are various pieces from my stash - I have enough of it!

I feel it's missing something, but what I don't know. Any suggestions?

Senior Trip 2009

I've returned from Senior Trip #7. I have been trying all week to post pics, but my computer/internet link has been messing up. Our trip was fantastic! We flew right out of our home town which made it SO much easier. We had a connection at the airline counter & she made sure the chaperones flew 1st class on the way down. WOW!
We had a few medical "emergencies" this past weekend. I've never had to be paged to the First Aid station before, but it happened twice this weekend. The 1st was in Disney @ Grad Nite. A student was walking down the sidewalk looking @ her map & she didn't see the curb. I know that Disney is protecting themselves, but they are johnny on the spot when it comes to taking care of their patrons! They told me that if the need was there, they would transport her to their personal hospital on the Disney grounds. It was kind of tempting to say she needed to go so we could see where Mickey Mouse is treated for his medical emergencies!
On Sunday while at Aquatica Water Park (SeaWorld) an announcement is made calling my principal to the First Aid Station. I ended up going myself as I had all the medical release forms on me. Another one of our girls' had rolled her ankle earlier in the trip & it had become extremely inflamed, bruised & swollen. This one did warrent a trip to an ER.....but not Disney's. The poor thing had a severe sprain & ended up on crutches for the remainder of the trip. Fortunately it was only Sunday night (free time) and Monday we flew home. She said the pressure in her foot upon our descent into Kalamazoo was awful. She is walking around again now & is doing much better!

I continue to be amazed at the number of students who just don't get the sunscreen thing. They (& their parents) were told over & over to make sure they had a high numbered sunscreen. I cannot believe how many fair skinned kids did NOT bring any sunscreen at all! Needless to say, there were quite a few lobsters by Sunday night. Most of them are peeling now & not happy because this weekend is prom. They all thought they would be so glowing with their Florida tans & are finding that sunburn does not always turn to a golden bronze color! Oh well, lesson learned.
I am more than ready to start planning next year's trip! Class of 2010 - just you wait - it is the most amazing trip you will have ever gone on!

Need I Say More???

I'm Heading to Disney.....Again!!

I'm leaving on a jet plane - but I'll be back again......on Tuesday.

I'm taking 56 high school seniors to Orlando this Friday - Monday!

I've been coordinating this trip since the class of 2003.

We leave Friday @ noon & return on Monday @ 5:30 p.m. In our time away we will be going to dinner @ Planet Hollywood in Downtown Disney, shopping in Downtown Disney, Busch Gardens in Tampa, Hollywood Studios for the Senior Class Grad Nite, & Sea World Aquatica Water Park.

It's a jammed packed weekend with lots of fun, sun, laughs, & tons of memories made!

So think of me keeping track of 56 high schoolers, fortunately I have 6 other chaperones.

I Serve A Risen Savior.....

Today my Savior has risen from the dead - He has given me hope & a promise of eternal life.
He Lives! He Lives!
Christ Jesus lives today!
He walks with me & talks with me,
along life's narrow ways!
He Lives! He Lives!
Salvation to impart.
You ask me how I know HE lives?
He LIVES within my heart!

Happy Easter everyone - what an amazing grace our Savior has shown us.

Signed Up For An Online Class

I've never done this before, but have several friends who have. So I've finally decided to jump on board & take an online class.
I have been following Stephanie of Homegrown Hospitality . I am a doodler - always have been. You should have seen my notebooks in high school! I love her doodles & the quotes & verses that she uses so frequently. So I'm going to learn from her how to be even more artistic in my doodles.
I also have linked into her newest endeavor - photography. I'm a "beginner" when it comes to knowing what all the bells & whistles are on my camera. I have bought books & more books, but I'm a visual learner. I really need someone to walk beside me & SHOW me how to play with it & what this & that means.
We have a local photographer who is awesome & his wife comes in to the store to scrapbook. She recently gave me his business card to call him. She said he would be happy to teach me. I just need to find the right time to set it up, but in the meantime, I'm gonna see what I can learn from Stephanie & her Dream Team.

Hard To Believe....

One year ago I lost something.

I lost my dad.

Heaven gained an angel.

He was reunited with mom.

His broken heart was mended.

My life was changed.

No longer are my parents' here.

To talk to, to laugh with, to cry to.

To share with, to hug, to love.

But I'm healing.

My heart, my mind, my life.

I'm at peace knowing

they are with each other again.

Knowing I will someday be

with them again.

Living in MY eternal home.

Celebrating with my heavenly family.

Being able to laugh, sing & love.

No pain, no sorrow, no envy,

no fears.

I took a ride today to the beach. It was a beautiful spring day in Michigan. Plenty of blue sky & sunshine. The beach was still in it's winter setting, waiting for grooming. The snow fences were still up on the beach, taming the "sand drifts" from the winter winds.

I love the beach. Whether it be the ocean or the shores of Lake Michigan, I find it a healing place. The sounds, the smells & the sights. The waves washing ashore & the sounds of the gulls. The horizon, the beautiful water & sunny blue skies.
This is where I can escape & be alone with my thoughts. It brings healing to me somehow, & peace.

What a beautiful day it has been. I am so thankful for the blessings in my life & the time I had with my mom & dad. They mean so much to me. They taught me so many valuable lessons & the most precious was teaching me about the love of Jesus.

Thanks mom & dad. I love you both & miss you everyday. I will always hold tight to all that you gave me.

With a week off from school there is so much I want to accomplish. The first was to paint my bedroom, but I have yet to find a bedding set that I really like that will match the colors (or at least come close to) those that I've picked. I think I found one at Target & it went on sale this week, so I just may stop & check it out again. Steve looked at it last week & really liked it, so that's half the battle.

I have so many projects in the making right now. The biggest one is a Mother's Day project for church. I got the approval from church to go ahead with it & started 3 weeks ago taking pics for it. Each Sunday I'm hauling my camera around & taking pics of moms, grandmas & their kids. I'm converting them all to black & white & having them printed in various poster sizes & then mounting them on foam board. I'm making a large display (still working that out in my head) to put on the front of the stage. In the center of this will be a canvas that I'm painting. It's a very "simple" theme, but still a work in progress also. The picture below is one of my favorites. I think I still need to work on some editing before I print it.

Last week my youngest turned 19. If you've been following my blog - you've seen the celebration pics of Shaun's birthday.

Sunday night as we were actually having a sit at the table full blown Sunday dinner with our oldest son Chad & his girlfried Melissa, the phone rings. It's Shaun. Now it's not that unusual for him to call on Sunday night, especially since his roommate was gone for the weekend & he gets kinda bored at times. But as we're talking I sense there is a purpose for this call. He finally tells me that he had to get stitches that afternoon. He was playing a game of pick up basketball with a bunch of buddies at an outside court. Somehow he tripped & landed on his chin. He was feeling pretty sore & I think maybe a little homesick. It was the 1st time he's had to seek medical attention on his own. His friends took him to the local E.R. & helped him through it, but I think it just didn't seem to be the same as having mom and/or dad with him. Another phase of growing up & becoming independent. It struck Steve & I a little too.....our boys' are growing up. He thought he had 3 stitches, but when he sent this pic to me, Steve & I think we count 4. Oh well, he's taking after his dad & brother. Chad fell several years back at the local skate park that he worked at in the summer's. When I went to pick him up after his shift, he had a bandaid on this huge cut that was still somewhat bleeding. I told him he probably should go to the E.R. He said no. When we got home & Steve saw it, he said definitely stitches! So off we went!
I've also been doing a lot of thinking regarding my health. The past 6 months have really opened my eyes to this. Things can change so quickly without you knowing it! Last week I had my full physical. So on Friday I spent the day at the hospital getting routine tests & one follow up cancer test done. I had x-rays on my knees as they are getting creakier with age, I had an ultrasound done on my lower legs because I have consistant swelling in my ankles & lower legs. I had my mamogram done too! Then I had a full body scan to follow up for my radiation from the week before. I had a lot of time to think while having my boobs smashed, my legs rubbed & my body scanned. :)
My doctor told me that I'm still in very good shape, I just need some "tweeking". He told me I need to do more cardio excercising & asked me what I like to do. I love walking, but sometimes my foot (another story) doesn't allow me to because of the pain. I also love biking, but my bike is need of some tender loving care. Last Saturday I had to work at the store. When I came home, Steve had surprised me by taking my bike down to the local bike shop for a full tune up. He then told me that I needed to go with him to pick it up so I could get a new seat. Mine was falling apart, the padding was gone & the seat would disappear when I sat on it? Hahahaha! After picking it up & bringing it home, he presented me with a new helmet. It was a beautiful spring day, so we jumped on our bikes & took off. There is a local state park about a mile from our home. The boys' & I used to pack a picnic lunch & ride our bikes out there several times in the summer. They would catch frogs & play in the creek & then we would have lunch. It's been years' since we've done that. The park has several trails & paved roads, so we headed there. We rode over 5 miles that day & it felt so good. We saw about 5 deer in the woods just off the road - wish now I had brought my camera. But it was a good feeling & one I'm gonna continue as the weather gets nicer. It's only 30 degrees today, so a little too cool for a ride. But it will soon be changing. My friend Lisa, in California, has actually been an inspiration to me in getting a little more exercise in my daily routine. I can't go hiking in the hills as she can, but I can go biking on the trails!
Happy Tuesday everyone! I'm off to play with my nieces for a little longer before I take them home. It's been fun having 2 girls' in the house!

Spring Break In Michigan

My spring break started this past Friday. I've been looking forward to having a week off to do this & that. See the Robin in the tree? She looks so happy to have spring temps & blue skies. I was happy too! It was a beautiful start to my time off.
Generally we head south for spring break. White sandy beaches along the Gulf Coast of Florida beckon us. We've even gone to Myrtle Beach, SC one spring break, but returned to Anna Maria Island, FL the next. It's a comforting, familiar place for us.

This year we've opted to make a change. Since both the boys' are in college, Steve & I decided to take our 1st "adult" vacation to a new spot. We're going to Maine at the end of June. Of course, we are only one block from the beach. What's a vacation without the beach?

BUT when I woke up this morning I'm thinking we made a horrible mistake! White sandy beaches & the sound of ocean waves outside my window were in my dreams. When I got up & looked out the window this morning.....this is what I saw!!!

NOT white sandy beaches, but a white snowy patio! Ugh. Only in Michigan is this possible! We've had so much snow this year - more than we've had in years & finally, FINALLY the temps have started to warm up & the grass is greening up. I've lived here all my life & I should be used to this by now, but I (along with many other Michiganians) always think this year will be different! NOT!

So, my nieces are here for a few days & we are going to burrow in the basement in my creative space & play! That's one way to turn our noses up to Old Man Winter!

If you are reading this & live in a warm, sunny climate right now would you please bottle some up & send it my way! A girl can dream, right?

I'm actually going to dream about next week - April 17. Even though I'm going with 56 high school seniors, I will get my 4 days in Florida this year! I'm SO looking forward to a warm weekend somewhere!

Marley & Me

So many of you asked me on facebook to write a review of this movie. I LOVED it.
I did bawl like a baby at the end of it though. So did Steve. I am thankful that I
didn't see it in the theatre because of how hard I cried.
If you've ever owned a dog, you can relate. If you've ever owned a Lab, you can really relate. Steve & I laughed so much at the similarities from Marley to our Libbi & our 2 other labs that we've had. Cinder was a black lab mixed & Mocha was a chocolate lab.
Cinder was petrifide of loud noises & tore up furniture & linoleum. She did not like being locked up in confined areas. Mocha ate anything & everything & never seemed to get sick. She loved bananas, never tried a mango.
Libbi just is crazy, she loves everyone & everything! She is a little more manageable than Marley, actually much more manageable.
This movie will tug on your heart strings, even if you are a cat person more than a dog. If you love animals, you'll love Marely. It proves how much a part of your life & family that your pet really is.
Two thumbs up on this one!!! If you have the chance to read the book, I highly recommend it. There is so much more detail that the movie didn't even touch on, a really good read.

How You Celebrate A Birthday!

We went to Holland last night to take Shaun out for his birthday. We were together as a whole family as Chad was able to get the night off work & join us. We ended up at the New Holland Brewery with Shaun & 4 of his college buddies. What fun!

I was very glad they were there as my boys' feel they are too old to be recognized at restaurants for their birthday's now. They get really pissy if you say anything to the waitress. So one of the buddies snuck off to the "bathroom" at one point. When he came back really quick I gave him a puzzled look. He leaned over & whispered that he had actually told the waitress it was Shaun's birthday. Gotta love this guy!

So when 5 college boys' are sitting at your table waiting to order dinner, what do you get to feed them all? We ordered 4 large pizzas & had just over 1/2 of a pizza left! Good choice, I'd say.

So Shaun has one more year as a teenager & then both my kids' will be in their 20's & Steve & I will both be in our ........?????? :)

So off today to the hospital for some routine testing as a result of my physical this past Tuesday. My doctor told me I'm still a very good model, I just need a little tweeking. I have 2 tests at radiology and then I go 2 blocks over to the hospital for an ultrasound & a full body scan. It almost sounds like a day at the spa, eh? With all the radiation I've received in this past week, I'll be glowing for a long, long time!!

Enjoy your weekend everyone!

Happy Birthday Shaun!

I cannot believe that my baby boy is 19 years old today! Wow - time has flown. As I was browsing through pictures & came across this one of him as a baby, I can really see my dad in him. While most people comment on how much he looks like my hubby - his dad - when he was a baby he looked so much like my dad! It is really evident here.

This picture was at a church campground that we went to every year with a large group from our church. This tractor was just sitting there, a piece of "playground equipment". The kids' loved to play on this. Whenever we couldn't immediately find Chad or Shaun all we had to do was look over at the tractor & there they both would be!

Life was so simple then it seems. It was busy, but so simple. It's busy today too, but in a much different way. And college is a lot more expensive than a weekend camping trip & an old tractor to play on!

But - I love my boys & my life & I wouldn't change anything we've done in the years' that they've grown up. God has blessed me richly in my life & I am so thankful for everything that I have!