Over the River and Through the Woods......

Pioneer Stock???

2011-11-07T19:57:00.001-08:00

Today as I was canning up some more batches of tomatoes and making some apple jelly from the skins and cores of the apples Lani and I put up for her on Saturday, I was contemplating on why I get so much satisfaction from doing things the "old fashioned" way. Am I part squirrel, that I like storing up my food? I have always loved gardening, canning, making bread, even to the point that I now grind my own wheat to make my bread. I had this conversation once with my oldest daughter, Shannon, who is much like me in this respect, in that she derives the same pleasure and satisfaction from doing things "the hard way". I think that we both decided it is because we come from "pioneer stock". My Great Grandfather was a homesteader in southern Idaho. He signed up for a hundred acres, built himself a sod home to start with and went to work growing sugar beets, potatoes and corn. He had to make good with his crops for a period of time and then the acreage became his. He then built a great big farmhouse for his bride, my grandmother and they continued working together to provide for their family. I still remember their farm and apple orchard and fields. I remember my Great Grandmother sending me down to the cellar, (it was dark and scarey), to get apples for her to make some applesauce for us for breakfast. (To go along with the oatmeal, bacon, eggs and biscuits that she also fixed every morning!) You have to realize that my Great Grandfather had already put in at least two hours of work on an empty stomach before this first meal of the day, so a hearty breakfast was necessary! Now, of course, I do not eat breakfasts like that, but I very much enjoy the "putting by" as it used to be called, and the doing for yourself rather than totally relying on the grocery store. So, there's the theory as to why I am the way I am. I blame it on my Great Grandparents who rode the immigrant train west to make a place for themselves.

This picture is of my Great Grandfather, (seated) and his brother and one of their first crops of potatoes. You can see how Idaho became the potato state, SEVEN potatoes, SEVEN feet tall!
God Blessed America!

2011-08-05T11:57:00.000-07:00

Monday February 21, 2011: Dr. Frank Seekins - Hebrew Word Pictures from El Shaddai Ministries on Vimeo.

I totally love the way this guy teaches relationships in family. This will truly bless any family or marriage.

For The Beauty of the Earth

2011-08-02T06:56:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share some of the outdoor pictures I've been taking throughout the spring and summer on my walks through the property. I only wish I could infuse the sweet woodland fragrances, and the feeling of peace and wonder that you experience walking through these places into the pictures; for that, you will have to use your imagination.

For the Beauty of the earth, for the glory of the skies,
For the love which from our birth, over and around us lies,
Lord Our God to Thee we raise, this our hymn of Grateful Praise!
(Folliott Pierpoint)

2011-07-26T21:00:00.000-07:00

Well, all that manure shoveling is paying off...

and with my little helpers watering my garden with the little teapot,

my garden is probably smiling as much as I am.

Coco walked from the pool,
to the gate,

to the garden, poured out his little tea pot of water and then

walked back to the pool only to repeat the process over and over....he seemed to thoroughly enjoy the entire procedure.... and felt he was a huge help to Grandma ! I certainly enjoyed it as well!
Eli and Cohen...I love you!

Lovin' Country Livin'

2011-05-07T17:37:00.000-07:00

Life does not seem very glamorous when you are unloading a pick-up truck full of manure...but somehow, I love it. I'm collecting things to grow a garden and doing that kind of stuff has a certain amount of satisfaction. I guess I was born a "little bit country." The only draw back is my back, it really complains when I do heavy work, but I just pop some ibu's and aspirin and rest it for a couple of days. I've got someone building a fence for me and I'm looking forward to trying a "lasagna" garden this year.

I'm posting some pictures of having Lani and Brady's kids last week. We sure had a great time. We took walks in the woods, had a picnic in the woods by the creek, the kids played outside when the weather permitted and all in all had a good time in spite of the rain.
This is Jaxson jumping off a hay bale...

We had some wagon rides....
We roasted hotdogs in the fireplace....

Then had our picnic in the living room by the fire! We also put up my very first flag at Walk in Love Ranch and then did the Pledge of Allegiance together. It was cool.

TO DO's ...

2011-04-12T19:34:00.000-07:00

I have started what I call a Master List of all the things that I need to do. I do this for my benefit bedcause I am a list maker. I make little lists and leave them all over, I sometimes have multiple listings on my lists. If I do something that I didn't put on my list to do, I write in on my list and then cross it off. It's such a grand feeling of accomplishment even though no one sees that list but me. But, the Master List HAD to come into exsistance because some things just can't be done in a day or a month or they are future to do's that I might forget to do if I don't have them written down....Can anyone relate to this??
Well whatever, I can't possibly be alone...I know I have at least ONE daughter who may share or may have inherited this syndrome. But, the good news of this Master List, which by the way is GIANT....is that I am actually getting to cross some things off of it, (I also keep adding, so it's not getting smaller) But to not lose the feeling of accomplishment I leave everything that I've done on it, just neatly crossed off...I love the new strike through font! Maybe it's not new, but nevertheless, I just found it so it's new to me. This blog's slide show is featuring some of my TA DONES from my TA DO list. Of course it doesn't show nearly all of the ta-dones that I've done but enough to make me have that grand feeling of accomplishment. AHHH...but! There is so much more TO DO! but NOT tonight, time for a glass of wine by the fire.

2011-01-30T21:05:00.000-08:00

I'm such a lucky Grandma! I got to have a couple of my grandgirls over for a weekend! We got to sled and play

and watch movies..(Rin Tin Tin)

We made ourselves lovely meals and ate them in the newly decorated dining room complete with candlelight and romantic music.

Abbie kept us entertained by appearing every few moments in disguise...she is a russian spy and you never know what costume she might be wearing at the moment! (These are a couple of them.)

This poor man was operated on by Abbie, you should have seen the kidney stones he had!!! (It looked far more like an autopsy to me)

Micah contentedly took care of her baby daughter,cooking and caring for her. Once she had me babysit so she could make the 50 mile trek to go get the medicine she needed to get her baby well. Such happy times we had.... How wonderful to see the imagination and self engineered entertainment of children...

Lovely Poetry

2011-01-29T14:53:00.000-08:00

This morning I woke up with these two verses to a poem in my head that was written by Holly Dempsen, one of my awesome neices....

O Lord this love is heavy and it hath no other place,
I pray, my Lord, direct this love to Thee.
That love when it hath caught a glimpse of Thy beloved face,
Shall say, "There is no better love than He."

Though in this tent we groan and would be further clothed and whole,
And long to know as we are fully known.
We have this perfect confidence implanted in our soul;
That we are not, and shall not be, alone.

It's funny how you remember things when you need them...Thanks, Holly

Not Snowed In!

2011-01-24T18:45:00.000-08:00

All is well in the winter wonderland. The snow comes and the snow goes, the ice comes and the snow comes over it. I shovel the snow and I play in the snow...I keep finding myself stopping and staring out the window at the trees and the mountians covered in snow...it's so beautiful. I think also of the song, "White as Snow" taken from a verse in the Bible that tells us the outcome of the Work of Christ at the cross...through the power of His blood, through the wonder of His love, through faith in Him I know that I can be...White as snow. I hope that you'll enjoy this video of my little ride down the icy driveway. Sometimes you just can't let the ice get the best of you.

Couldn't upload this to my blog somehow so I had to use YouTube and embed a link.

Turkey Parade!

2011-01-19T08:18:00.000-08:00

Thought you'd enjoy this little video of some Turkeys passing by. Pretty sweet! Deer and Turkeys are begining to seem "Ho Hum". NOT!

Last night I baked a pumpkin to make some pumpkin pie. Today I plan to get something built in the shop. (IF my new saw blade works....I dropped my skil-saw the other day and now it is not cutting right, I'm hoping it's just the blade I wrecked and not the saw itself.)

Cold temperatures are back, 24 degrees at 8:23am, but, the sun is shining and the sky is blue, blue, blue!

We had our first power outage of the winter the other evening. It was out for around 6 hours. Not bad. I just get my flashlight, then my gun, then I light my candles. I already had a fire going so heat was not a problem. I really don't NEED to "get my gun" but, when you are alone...in the dark....it helps you not feel helpless in case there is an unforseen danger.

Going to take a walk in the woods today...I won't need the snowshoes this time since the thaw from the last week melted nearly all the snow.

Be watching for my upcoming video of my ride down the icy driveway!!
Signing off,
Grandma, (from Over the River and Through the Woods :>)

To The "Fretters"

2011-01-18T10:44:00.000-08:00

Psalm 37

Fretting, fretting, always fretting
What’s the use of that?
It changes naught
With evil fraught
And keeps my mind from what it ought.

Trust, delight, commit and rest
Wait patiently for him
Live righteously
And faithful be
The desires of your heart you’ll see.

Fret not, He say’s THREE times because
He knows our tendency
To sit and fret
Then get upset
It leads to evil, don’t forget!

Trust in the Lord with all your heart
Delight yourself in Him
Commit your way
Trust and pray
He’ll make your goodness shine like day.

Be still before the Lord and wait
So patiently for Him
Refrain from anger
Turn from wrath
Fret not and let Him guide your path

If God delights in your way
Your steps will be secure
And should you slip
You will not trip
He has your hand within His grip.

Your salvation comes from Him
He’ll be your strength in trouble
He’ll deliver you from
The wicked one
When to his refuge you will run.

So, turn from evil and do good
Then in the land you’ll dwell
He loves the just
And though we’re dust
He’ll not forsake those who trust.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

2011-01-05T16:15:00.000-08:00

My first little snowshoeing expedition...

Walking down the hill...

Looking back up the hill...

Now I'm on the opposite side of the house going up into the woods...

Looking back at the house....

That was cool

The next day, the SUN came out! So beautiful!

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Ringing, ringing, ringing while people singing

2010-12-28T12:34:00.000-08:00

Songs of good cheer CHRISTMAS IS HERE....

The decorated tree...for those who were asking to see it

What a wonderful Christmas we had. Thank you Lord! It was nice to work and play and eat together. I was so occupied however, that I didn’t take pictures on Christmas day. Brady said he will send me some sledding pictures and I'll post them later.

We found this little nest in the tree, so we put a christmas "egg" in it!

The kids opened the gifts of their new slippers and new pajamas… they were so excited over them, it was really cute. Lani and Brady did their advent reading with the kids and lit the Christmas candle in the advent ring.
So special…I love to see traditions passed on from generation to generation. Such good parents all of my children are to their children…it doesn’t get any better then to see your children passing on the Holy Scriptures and teachings to their children. Again, I say, Thank you Lord!

I was cleaning up the house today and came across this picture from Ellie. It made my day once again! How true it is!

And this one from Vance...I'm a pretty blessed Grandma. I love them all so much!

O Tannenbaum

2010-12-21T19:43:00.000-08:00

I had some visitors at Walk in Love Ranch….some awesome grandkids! Here we are picking out the tree, (notice the moose droppings in the snow)
So I got some help cutting down a Christmas tree! Funny thing about that tree, it actually grew THREE feet between the woods and the house. It was every bit of 10’ by the time we got it to the house. As it turned out a 10 foot tall tree was the perfect size for house, with the topper it came right to the ceiling in the corner of the living room. Lani and I thought that the hill got longer also!
Hauling the tree up the hill, and the wagon with a couple of little ones and cedar boughs was quite a chore. We had to lay down in the snow and laugh at ourselves a couple of times.

Jaxson, Ellie, Vance, Lilah and I were able to do some sledding. It was great fun being outdoors in the snow with the kiddos. We only had two saucers, but I had some huge pieces of cardboard that made great toboggans and went down the hill with good speed, the boys found that if you unfolded it they could ride double. Today I bought a plastic toboggan. I can’t wait to give it a try.

And how many kids have to dodge the Moose poop when they walk back up their sledding hill???
I stopped in at the Valentine farm today. Their new barn is so cool, it is beautiful, Marcus and Shannon did a great job building it. I’ll have to put up a picture of it. I loved walking into it and smelling the hay and seeing the little goats contentedly eating. And my goodness, how those Valentine girls are growing. My firstborn granddaughter is nearly as tall as I am. They are such a sweet blessing to me. God is so good.

O taste and see that the Lord is good, how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him. Psalm 34:8

Blessing..Blessing!

2010-09-03T17:27:00.001-07:00

Now if you want to go to THIS Grandma's house,
you have to go "over the river....
... and through the woods"!

The pumpkin pie will be waiting..........
I'm loving it....

let me know when you want to visit!

Back to my Blog

2010-05-27T16:05:00.000-07:00

It has been over a year now since I have posted anything on my blog...I totally blame FaceBook for that!! I can't do both.

Today is windy and a little bit cool. I was going to start another horse, but caught a little bit of a sewing bug instead. I suddenly became inspired with an idea of how to use the "chicken scratching" needle work I had done.
So, I got to work making napkins and used an applique technique to apply the chicken scratching square and then also a flower that I cut from the material I was using for the table cloth.

It is totally feminine looking and I love it, I wonder if it's too feminine for family use? It's a little busy but I love the colors.

Easter

2009-04-25T20:55:00.000-07:00

As you can see, Cohen had a busy day on Easter. We all had a wonderful time of fellowship with family and friends. Also, I thought you'd enjoy the pictures of Mom and Dad walking down to the boat, before the fall:( It might be a while before Dad will be up to that walk again.
Love to all, Mom, AKA Leslie, Ruthie, Grandma

More pics

2009-03-31T18:31:00.001-07:00

Back from Alaska

2009-03-30T16:45:00.000-07:00

We had such a great time. The hot springs were especially great because it was so cold outside. Your hair turns frosted, literally, from the steam that rises into the freezing air and coats your, your eyelashes and eyebrows turn white as well. I didn't remember to take my weatherpoof camara case so I couldn't get a picture of that.
We were able to see a spectacular show of the Auroa Borealis. God is Awesome!
Here is a picture of one of the many bald eagles we saw.
The temperatures varied depending on where we were. Day time temps were between 20 and 20 below.
I'm posting a link to a little video I put together of us dog sledding. It must have been too big to upload on blogger, so I put it on youtube. It's my first attempt and I'm not very good at putting stuff together, just to warn any of you kids who seem to be able to do this stuff with ease. :>)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6z-EpFmyG8
I can't get blogger to put this in as a link so you have to copy and paste.
Love to all,
Mom, AKA Grandma, Leslie, Ruthie

Cultivating Faithfulness

2009-03-14T10:32:00.000-07:00

Good morning,
I just spent a good hour and a half reviewing last years journels that I keep during my Bible reading. Wow, do I see myself going around Mt. Sinai! I need to learn my lessons! The Lord has recently called my attention to that phrase from Psalm 37:3 Trust in the Lord and do good,dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. Genesis and Exodus are full of those examples of faithfulness.
Cultivate Faithfulness
Faithful when the grass is green
When fruit hangs on the vine
Faithful when the skies are blue
Our tables spread with cheese and wine.

Faithful when you see storms brew
When fears begin to form
Faithful though the winds of change
Have scents of woe un-born.

Faithful-Noah, building the ark
Faithful-The midwives of Goshen
Faithful-Joseph unjustly in jail
God is searching for hearts of devotion.

Faithful to God in the midst of evil
The midwives feared not to nurture
Noah feared not the ridicule of men
And Joseph feared not for his future.

Know that the eyes of the Lord are searching
through-out this tumultuous land
for hearts that are fully devoted to Him
to strongly support with His hand.

So faithful remain when the times are hard
When the grass and the vine have died
Faithful when darkness is all you can see
He is there,ever there,by your side

Oh, will the Son of Man find faith
When He returns to the earth?
Wise ones-choose faithfulness, scriptures are true
Sell all for that pearl of great worth.

Leslie Allen Litton
Feb 2008

This picture of a Robin bathing in my little pond back in Idaho reminded me of the verses that tell us of God's faithfulness to even the birds and how much more He cares for us.
Love to all,
Mom, AKA Leslie, Ruthie, Grandma

Hike

2009-03-12T10:07:00.001-07:00

Hike up Iron Mountain

2009-03-12T09:57:00.000-07:00

Hola from San Diego!
I sure enjoyed my trip to Idaho, the drive up and back was beautiful, and of course I cherished the time spent with kids and grandkids.

I got home on Saturday and on Sunday Bill and I took a hike up Iron Mountain, taking the branch of the hike that looks over Ramona. The rains have caused the flowers and vegetation to bloom and I thought you might enjoy the pictures I took.
Later that evening we took a picnic dinner to the boat and hung out there. It was a nice finish to the day.
Love to all,
Mom

I'm still alive!

2009-02-17T16:34:00.000-08:00

Wow! It really has been a long time since I've been here. All my good intentions to be a diligent blogger are foiled! It's funny because once I get behind I find it easier to keep putting it off.

I wanted to put up the sledding video's I took when I went sledding with the grandkids, but I evidently did NOT get it onto my computer before deleting them from my camera. So, I'm just going to put up a few of the beautiful pictures I took of the snow in December. Then I'll blog again very soon, I promise.

Enjoy the picts.(recognize my "old" house?) I went for a drive by it and took a picture, it looks the same.
Love to all,
Mom, AKA Grandma, Leslie, Ruthie

My Angels

2009-01-12T15:32:00.001-08:00

Just a few pictures for now of the grandkids along with a quick note on what a great time we had in Idaho over Christmas. I've got a ton of great snow pictures that I'll put together on a slide show and post next time. What a beautiful two weeks it was.
I got to enjoy sledding with the kids, skiing with Jax and Brady, making an underground snow fort with the Valentine girls, holding babies, playing games with the grown kids...got in a little snowshoeing, had a Christmas Carol sing with my brother David's family; we also had a little recital that night from the kids who have been taking piano lessons from their Aunt Lorie. We got to see the Valentines perform in their Church Christmas program, I got to visit with Becky & her family and Mark and his family and even with a few friends. Unfortunately, due to the weather, I was unable to see everyone that I wanted to, so I had to save some visiting for yet another trip. I really had wanted to see my friends from the "store" and even say hello to those that are still working there. I miss them...but...all in all, it was just a great holiday... and I didn't even mentioned all the eating! As you can see from the pictures, Jerry and Jessica also made the trip from CA to ID and the cousins got their first visit with their newest cousin,Cohen Ray.
Say! That's quite a good looking group of cousins and boy do they have some fun together! AND...once in a while a wonderfully amusing fight:>) (Amusing for us that is..pretty serious for them!)

The kids looked so cute in the bathrobes that I made them for Christmas and I was delighted that they really seemed excited about receiving them. Well, I'll be signing off for now will post the snow pictures next time. Happy New Year!
Love, Mom, AKA Leslie, Ruthie, Grandma

My Little Christmas Spot

2008-12-19T10:24:00.001-08:00

I wanted to share my little Christmas spot here in San Diego....I am looking forward to coming "Home for Christmas" to the snow, family and friends! We leave tomorrow morning!
Thank you God for such a gift as the Son of God, born of a virgin to be a light to the Gentiles and the glory of His people,Israel. The Savior of the World, Immanuel, God with us! It's all about the gift, the promise fulfilled, the offer eternal life to all who believe.....Will you accept the gift?

I love the celebration of His first Advent and look forward to His second Advent when he will reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords! Let us be watching so that we will not be like the many who missed His first coming because it was not "the way" they expected it to happen.

O Mandy Pick a Bale of Cotton

2008-12-19T07:16:00.000-08:00

Remember that song? On our trip to Texas we happened by a bale of cotton, a little bigger than "Mandy's" I'm sure.... since it is machine picked and baled.
I wanted to put up pictures for the kids to see how the cotton is grown and picked. It's not something you get to see in Idaho. Also, on the educational side I put in a picture of mistletoe growing in the tree. Another item you don't get to see in Idaho. Pa Pa Bill got under it to pull some from the tree, but it was too dangerous to kiss him while he was standing on the trunk of the car reaching for it.
We had a good visit in Texas with Trey and Granny and Eldon, Bill's brother.
Love to all,
Mom, AKA Leslie, Ruthie, Grandma

Thanksgiving

2008-12-09T14:26:00.000-08:00

Did I remember to take pictures of the family at the table? No, how utterly strange of me....consummed with thoughts of dinner preparations no doubt.
However, we did have a lovely time with the kids, Shonna and Adam, Jerry and Jessica and Mom and Dad.
We were also suprised to have some little Indian show up at our feast....I wonder where He came from...
...I think he was from the Allen Tribe.
Love to all,
Mom AKA Leslie, Ruthie, Grandma

No greater Joy!

2008-12-06T08:39:00.000-08:00

I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth. IIIJohn 1:4
It is such a blessing to me to watch my kids taking their responsibilty as parents seriously. Anyone can have a kid, but it takes dedication to raise a godly child in such a fallen and messed up world.
I was so proud of Jerry and Jessica as they spoke their written vows to little Cohen when they dedicated
him to the Lord. It truly does give me great joy.... I can only imagine the heartache one would feel if you had to watch your children leave God's path and screw up their lives and the lives your grandchilden, that is one of the reasons I pray for them every day.
I know that it is not easy to be a good parent. In fact, I would venture to say that the hardest thing you'll ever do, (if you choose to do it well) is to be a Mother/Father.
For a mom to create a home filled with love, a place of refuge, a place of learning,a place of order,a place of fun and fond memories for her family,is a 24/7 job.(and I didn't even mention the cooking and cleaning) It requires so much more than a "punch the clock" job and although there is no monetary income from the constant giving of oneself, the value is priceless.
And for the Father who's providing, leading, loving and protecting his family, showing them the way to the Heavenly Father, there may be no earthly recognition, but again, a priceless value as you present your family to the Lord on the day of accounting when we stand before the King of Kings and answer for what we did with what He gave us.
Since the world won't recognize this value, be sure to tell each other how much it means to you and how much you appreciate each others efforts! So....I am proud of you Jer and Jess, I'm behind you in prayer and available for whatever...and I love you both.
I am so blessed by all of my kids and their spouses. God has definitely been good to me. Thank you, Thank you, Lord!

As you can see, this very special moment just wore poor little Cohen out!!
Love to all, Mom AKA Leslie, Ruthie, Grandma

The Surprise!

2008-11-18T09:57:00.001-08:00

"Come in, come in!"

2008-11-18T07:28:00.000-08:00

"We've already started the party! - Who is it anyway??"
Abbie hollered from the lighted front porch. She was unable to see who that "guest" was that was walking toward them in the dark. As the mysterious person stepped into the light.....the surprise on their faces were evident....Grandma!!!!What are you doing here??? How did you get here!!! We thought you were in California!!! What a great surprise!
We stepped into the house where my daughter Shannon is on the phone, "I've got to go now, Mom is here.....MOM IS HERE!!? MOM!!! What are you doing here??!!!"
This was the scene that played out yet again as Lani arrived with her kids and my Mom and Dad. It was so much fun for me to be the surprise at the party. Soaking up hugs and kisses from the little ones. We were celebrating Micah's 9th birthday and Charis' 7th birthday. Hard to believe these grandkids are growing up so. My daily prayer for each of them is that they grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. They are such a blessing!

Love to all!
Mom AKA Leslie,Ruthie,Grandma

2008-10-28T17:53:00.001-07:00

Wow! Has it been a long time since I’ve updated my blog or what??? My excuse? Hmmm….... I haven’t been in the mood? Whatever the reason, I’m going to do it now.
September and October have been filled mostly with fishing trips on the weekends and during the week I’ve been working on and off on the Christmas sewing projects I started.
Mom and Dad came down for a week this month and happened to be here the weekend we needed to take the “Net Gain” down to Ensenada to dock it at the Marina Coral for a few months. We hopped in the boat and took off for the 70 mile ride on a Friday afternoon getting in to the Marina after dark. We saw dolphins and whales on the ride down and Bill totally enjoyed having the auto pilot on the boat fixed so that he sit back while the boat stayed on course. I think Mom and Dad totally enjoyed the boat ride and we were glad to have them along. We had a fantastic weekend, staying at the Hotel there. Shonna and Adam drove down on Saturday to be our ride back home and we all took the boat out fishing on Sunday before leaving.
We didn’t know if the tuna would be biting or not, we hoped, for Mom and Dad’s sake, that they were so they would have a chance experience the thrill of bringing one into the boat. Well, thank you Lord!
Our wish was granted and both Mom and Dad hooked up with a tuna. Dad brought in a feisty Bonito tuna and Mom brought in (with a little help from Bill) a nice Yellowfin tuna. Unfortunately, when you look at the picture of Mom’s fish, we didn’t get the whole fish in the picture, but you can tell by the head about how big it was, I think it was in the 25 – 30 lb class. They had so much fun and were so tickled to have the chance to catch a tuna! We enjoyed watching them as much as they enjoyed the fishing.

Bill and I took a little weekend trip to visit Ken and Bev in Arkansas. We planned to go stripper bass fishing but ended up just fishing for large mouth bass. It was fun, I’ve never bass fished before and we had fun “attracting” them to our lures. Ken fried them up in beer batter the next day and we had the best fish fry, it was delish ! Yummm! (To quote Rachel Ray)
We had a great visit with Ken and Bev, it was good to catch up with them. We also spent a considerable amount of time bemoaning our fears of the upcoming elections. Scared to death we are going to have an Obama presidency. Bill alone remains optimistic that it isn’t going to happen. I SO hope he’s right! Ken and Bev send their love to all the family and especially wanted us to let Marcus know they have been praying for him.
We love you all and miss you. Be praying for the elections!

Ready, Set....Play!

2008-09-09T17:27:00.001-07:00

Hola from San Diego!

2008-09-09T16:28:00.001-07:00

We are praising the Lord for a safe and complete removal of Marcus’ cyst from his brain. He is still in recovery which is slow but normal for such an operation. Shannon has been taking good care of him and made sure that he was taken care of while he was in the hospital by being by his side all the way. I am thankful, so thankful that they have each other. Here’s a picture of Shannon cutting Marcus’ hair the night before the surgery so he wouldn’t be “lopsided” after the surgery.

Meanwhile, I got to be grandma to the four girls, we had a great time together,(except when Grandma makes them pick up their messes.) We made trips to the library, went roller skating, had Jaxson and Ellie over for an overnighter, and just enjoyed each other’s company; giving and receiving many hugs. One of my favorite pictures you'll see in the slide show are the soon to be famous NOSEWARMERS! Yes, these kids say they really work and keep your nose warm while you're playing the the crisp fall air. In fact they plan to crochet and sell them, maybe even on EBAY!!! I love it! They are sooo cute! When we went rollerskating, Kathy met us there and brought her granddaughter, Kelsey. She and Abbie really enjoyed skating together. Later, Daniel and Jessy met us bringing along little Matthias, so we had a regular little cousin’s party going on.
I did have a bit of time Lani and Brad, Jax, Ellie, Vance & Lilah….what a rowdy, funny bunch of kids, so fun!
I also spent some time with Mom and Dad. We had dinner together and Dave and Lorie joined us. Dave seems to be doing very well considering he just had a major heart attack. Thankfully, he did not have any damage to his heart.
Mom and Dad indulged me in a drive to gather Elderberries so that I could make some Elderberry Jelly which I have been missing since I moved to SD. I got to juice them there in Idaho and then brought a half gallon of juice home to make the jelly. In fact, that is what I did today, yumm….I had forgotten how delicious Elderberry Jelly is!
Many, many years ago, my kids made me this apron as a Christmas gift inspired by the purple Elderberry juice that turned into one of their favorite jellies, so I wore it today while making the jelly.

Friday we packed up for a fishing trip, spending the night on the boat before heading out early in the morning. It was a beautiful day. We caught fish early on, but after that had no more action except a stray bonito. But we caught four 30-35lb yellow fin tuna (that’s called Ahi on menu’s.) They really are a great fish to catch and eat. The boat did great, it was pretty choppy out there but we had a relatively smooth ride. I’ve also included a picture of the sunrise as we were headed out.
By the way, for those who have been asking what we are naming the boat…….Net Gain…..yes, that’s right.
Love to all,
Mom AKA Leslie, Ruthie, Grandma

Here he is!

2008-08-15T11:03:00.001-07:00

Introducing Cohen Ray Allen Grandchild # 9

2008-08-15T10:27:00.000-07:00

Okay you guys, I'm posting some pictures. I'll be adding more as I get them since I just have a few right now.
The grand event happened yesterday morning at 7:06am ...weighing in at 7.6 pounds, little Cohen arrived looking just like his beautiful mother. Jerry and Jess are a couple of VERY proud and Happy parents, (also cute) Jess said yesterday that she really needed to sleep but she just could quit staring at her new baby. They are both absolutely enthralled with Cohen.
After getting a bit of sleep yesterday afternoon, Uncle John (Jess's little bro) and I made him his first birthday cake, which we took over that evening for his first little birthday party. Of course, he was oblivious to our little celebration, but we forgave him and went ahead and enjoyed his cake and icecream.
Jerry and Grandpa Mark were worried that his eyes would be blinded from the paparazzi so we didn't take too many pictures. Grandma Julie and I,(the offending paparazzi)couldn't help ourselves.
I'll continue to add to these picts and I'm sure when Jerry gets a chance his blog will be full of them.
Love to you all and blessings,
Mom AKA Leslie, Grandma & Ruthie

San Diego Summer

2008-08-09T18:38:00.000-07:00

The summer seems to be flying by….It’s been a while since I’ve posted. I’ve been keeping busy between company and traveling. A couple of weeks ago I made a batch of zucchini relish with Jessica and the next week I made some carrot pickles. (I’ve been feeling like canning.) I think it ties back to my big summer garden in Idaho.

I also started volunteering at a Crisis Pregnancy Center in Mira Mesa called Turning Point. I go on Wednesdays and do whatever tasks they have for me. Then twice a week on Thursday evenings I go to the “bridges” program where they have a speaker for the gals on some subject and then they get to spend their points and shop. I mostly hold babies for the mothers. A lot of the gals do not speak English so I’m not good at communicating. I’m good at smiling tho’… and at holding babies :>)
I’ve been enjoying the opportunity. I’ll have to take a picture of the many ladies and babies to post for you.
I got into the sewing mood this last week also and made myself a cape and purse to match. Plus I bought about 12 yards of material to start Christmas presents for all the grandkids. I don’t think they read my blog so I guess it’s ok to say that I plan to make them each a bathrobe. I got pink velour for the girls and camo fleece for the boys. I’ll probably start that project this coming week.
Bill is out of town, he went to see his Mom and Trey again and then is on his way to Chicago to the LPL National Conference. I decided to stay home this trip, I’d hate to miss out on the birth of little Cohen. He’s actually due today.

Well, now for the big news….We bought a boat. It’s a 3080 Glacier Bay Coastal Runner. It seems that the guy who bought it brand new has only put 8 hours on it; there’s a long story that goes with the reason, but it turns out he bought a different boat that’s a better fit for him and since people aren’t exactly buying boats right now with fuel prices being what they are, Bill was able to get this one for a whole lot less than his asking price. ( That was a long, run on sentence; I apologize to all of you grammar geeks... you know who you are.) Also, “long, run on” is redundant, but, of course, you knew that. I digress…. BTW, we will be changing the name on this boat. But, I'm not sure it will be much better than this name for reasons I won't take time to explain here.:>)

Jer and Jess and I went down to see the boat today so I took a few picts to show you all. Next week I’ll start cleaning it and getting it ready for our first voyage. They are catching a lot of Dorado right now, hopefully we can get the boat out there to fish before I leave for Idaho and before the fish leave town!
After spending some time at the marina we had some fish tacos at WaHoo's and then decided we'd take Jessica for a walk to try and shake out that baby, but it didn't work. These pictures along the bay are some of the scenery from our walk...hope you enjoy them.It was a beautiful day!

Love to all...Mom,AKA Leslie,Grandma,Ruthie

2008-07-19T16:12:00.000-07:00

Wow, it was hard to believe 50 but now I’m 51 and have received and thrown away my first AARP invite to join. I refuse to join, not because I can't admit I'm old enough, but that I won't give a dime to that liberal organization.
I had a very nice couple of birthday weeks; starting with the Mariner's/Padre's game Bill arranged for the kids and I.
Then I had such a great time while Kathy was here visiting. We really had a lot of fun and lots of good catch up time. Kathy said the highlight of the trip was the fishing. We ended up going about 90 miles out and she caught two Albacore Tuna. It was pretty exciting… we had just started trolling for only about 10 to 15 minutes and Bill had gone to use the head and immediately we had a hook up – so I quickly pulled back the throttle and put the engines in neutral and set the bail on the rod and was calling Kathy to come and take it when another rod went off, so there we were with a double hook up! I was telling Kathy what to do (only because it was her first experience ocean fishing and catching a tuna) while working with my rod. We had quite a good time on the catching side having to switch over and under to keep our lines straight. Kathy’s fish dived down a couple of times as they usually do when they see the boat, but unfortunately my drag was way too tight and when my fish kept trying to dive, my line wasn’t giving. I’m not that experience to know how to change my drag, though I realize now that I should have loosened my bail a bit instead. Anyway, by the 3rd or 4th try, my fish broke the 100 pound test line and swam away with my black and purple.
I’ve never lost a fish before so I was totally disappointed. If Bill had been available he would have been able to tell me what to do about the drag. Anyway, when we examined the line it looks like he might have damaged it on the propeller or something, because it wasn’t my knot that broke it was the line. But, since I lost my fish, I was free to gaff Kathy’s fish for her and get it into the boat….Yea!! It was a nice fat 25 pound Albacore Tuna. Later she brought in another 18 pounder. And to add to the beauty of the day we watched whales and had porpoise swim along side and in front of the boat with us, saw a few flying fish…all in all it was an awesome day!
Kathy and I and Jerry attended a Padre’s / Braves game, which the Braves won (Kathy’s Team) so I was very glad for her. It didn’t make much difference for the Padre’s since they are in last place in the NL West. My AL team stinks this year also…poor Mariners. At this point, I’m with Jerry in hoping that they get last place in the whole league just so they get first round draft pick…..which by the way is only worth it if they are able to know to pick the right player…which they haven’t demonstrated a lot of talent at....read Jerry’s blog for some great Mariner’s insights, he’s the expert and the funny writer in the family.
Kathy and I also took a drive over to Coronado Island, spent a day at Sea World and on her last day we went to tour the USS Midway, it was great. The time went by so fast, we could have done a lot more, but somehow her visit seemed to be over before it had barely begun.
On my actual birthday, Bill had made reservations several days before for a nice dinner out at the Chart House in Del Mar, when we got there he had surprised me with having the kids there for a little dinner party. It was a very nice evening.

My visit to Idaho was another very enjoyable time. The girls and I painted the guest room, living room and kitchen at my folks house. I always enjoy visiting with family. I also camped at a nearby campground during this time. It was a way to sneak in some camping while still being close enough to help out.

Shannon and Marcus hosted our 4th of July celebration. Bill and I provided the tuna which Bill grilled to perfection,as usual. It was great to see all of my Brothers, and my sister and most all of my nieces and nephews and their kids….my goodness our family is getting so big! I took advantage of Brady getting a photo of all the great grandkids with my Mom and Dad and snapped this picture.
Since returning to Idaho, we received the news from Shannon about Marcus have a cyst on his brain. We are thanking God that it is not a malignant cancer, but a slow growing cyst which is operable… Marcus, we are keeping you and your family in our prayers and hope you will let us know if we can do anything. I have just gotten tickets to be there to stay with the grandkids so that Shannon will be free to spend as much time at the hospital with Marcus as she needs to. I understand it is not going to be an easy surgery or recovery.
Bill is currently in Texas, as his mom is having knee replacement surgery. I am getting caught up on things around here that I’ve not been home to do. This morning I picked cukes and tomatoes, basil and of course more zucchini.
When Bill gets home, I’m going to pick this watermelon for us to eat.

Well, I think that about catches you up on what’s been going on with me. I love you all and pray for you often.
Mom, Leslie, Grandma, AKA Ruthie,

More Alaska Pix

2008-06-26T13:17:00.001-07:00

Alaska Trip

2008-06-21T17:51:00.000-07:00

Our trip to Alaska was a such a nice laid back time. At first it takes a while to get used to the light at night, it makes you stay up way past your usual bedtime. We'd stay up late, not getting to bed until 1:00am and then I'd wake up at my usual 6:30am. So I'd put my pillow over my head and try and force myself to sleep some more. I was actually reading by the campfire without needing any extra light at 11:30 at night.
We enjoyed so many things along the way, the Iditerod Trail history was pretty cool, it made you want to get a sled dog team and learn to train and run them. I think it would be a lot of fun.
We really enjoyed Chena Hot Springs, they have it looking so natural with a gravel bottom and boulders all around, it was really beautiful and the water was great! A moose came down the mountian and drank out of a creek right beside the hotsprings while we were in it.
Also, at the hotsprings is the Ice Museum...it was cool, pun fully intended...20 degrees. Everything in there is carved from ice, the fireplace, several bedrooms, shower, bathroom, ect... also a lot of carvings, railings, a bar where we were served an apple martini out of a martini glass made from ice. Afterwards, we decided to take another dip in the hotsprings! We would love to go back there in March when you can sit in the Hotsprings and watch the Arora Borealis. They tell us that a lot of Japanese people are there at that time because many of them have a belief that if their child is conceived under the northern lights the child will be blessed or stronger or gifted or something.
The next highlight of our trip was Talkeetna, where we got on a "flagstop" train. You buy your ticket and tell the conducter where you want to get off and then when you want to go back you have to flag the train down by waving something white. But, the train only makes the run once a day, so we decided that if we could find a good camping spot and are able to scrounge up enough firewood to keep us through the night we would stay in the woods and catch the train back the next day.

Well, it took us two or three hours to gather enough firewood, but we did, so we camped in a lovely spot on the Indian River. Didn't sleep much for keeping the fire going so we could stay warm, you see we didn't take a tent, but made a makeshift shelter with our emergency blankets to reflect the fire's heat. We did take food in our backpacks and coffee making stuff. We took a great water filter that we bought at Sportsman's Warehouse so we could refill our water bottles from the rivers. We were a little dissapointed that we didn't see any bears. Before we got off the train, the train had stopped three times because of bears beside the railroad tracks. Twice it was a black bear and once it was a grizzley sow with last years cub. Bill had bought a new gun just for this trip, not that we wanted to be in a position that you have to have it out with a bear, but better safe than sorry. He bought a Ruger 44Magnum, I think it is actually called a Ruger Alaskan, it's made especially for bear protection, especially with the right ammo, it's stainless steel for the weather with only a 2 1/2 inch barrel so it stays out of your way when you're fishing and hiking. We went to the shooting range to shoot it before we left... I'll tell you what, it has quite a kick and it's very loud, I would hate to have to shoot it without ear protection and you have to hang on with both hands!

Another cool thing to see was the Alaskan Pipeline. It's huge! It covers a lot of territory and it was built in just 4 years with round the clock crews.
We saw a lot of moose and wolverines while driving. We watched quite a few busy beavers, alaska's waters seem to be full of beavers.
Hope you enjoyed the "report" , there is so much to do there and see, that you really have to pick and choose when you have limited time.....until next time-I love you all and miss you....Mom AKA Leslie, Ruthie, Grandma
p.s. I'll put together a slide show with more picts soon.

Father's Day

2008-06-12T15:48:00.001-07:00

A Tribute to the FATHERS in my Family

2008-06-12T15:16:00.000-07:00

Merrel, my dad, Larry, the father of my children, Marcus and Brady my sons-in-law, Jerry my son and (soon to be father) and Bill, my husband and the father of his children.

I just learned that the Hebrew word for Daddy – “Abba” is spelled in a very meaningful way. The Hebrew language consists of “picture” letters and to spell Daddy or Abba the 1st letter is a picture of an ox and the 2nd letter is a picture of a three sided house. Thus the literal translation of Daddy is “strength of the house”. Christ used the term “the strongman of the house”. What a beautiful picture that paints of a Dad, a strong man.

To be a true father, a man must be the strength in the home. The Dad is strong because he is the provider and the protector of his family, both physically and spiritually. This is the role he was created for, the role he was meant to do. That of course, is why a man is wired differently than a woman. Unfortunately, our society does not like to recognize this and it seems to try and feminize men and minimize their leadership and authority in the home.

But as I look at you, the men in our family, I look with pride and admiration. Are you all perfect? Of course not, only God the Father qualifies for that – but you all are the “strength in your homes” and I am proud of you for that. You are the providers-the strong leaders-the protectors of your wife and children. You take your jobs seriously; aware of the great responsibility and accountability you have to God for them.

I know that you pray for your families, play with your families, love them and teach them right from wrong. You do the hard things. You care for them not because it’s easy, but because of love, you discipline your children not because it’s easy, but because of love, you keep on doing the hard things when everyone else is tired, because you are the strong man in the house….and in turn you… are loved, honored and respected; your wives and children look up to you and trust you because of the sacrifices you make for them.

Thank you, men, for loving, protecting and providing for the women and children in this family. I love you all.
Happy Father’s Day and may God continue to strengthen you for your tasks.
Love,
Mom, AKA Leslie, Ruthie

2008-05-28T15:58:00.001-07:00

Hi ho hi ho I'm home from Idaho

2008-05-28T14:01:00.000-07:00

Hi ho hi ho I'm home from Idaho...and what a great visit I had with everyone. I really got to see a lot of people this time, (thanks to Amanda Bedwell's wedding). I got to see and visit with so many old friends, Mark and Scone, Millie and Carol, Jean Hartz, Sonny and Lavonna, and of course, all the Bedwells. It was like going back in time to happy memories with these long time friends that I seldom see, (especially all at the same time) It was like old Blanchard days.

Then of course, I spent time with the grandkids and that was and is always fun. The highlight of our time together was the rollerskating night. That was so fun. The kids were a blast to watch, all of them skating for the first time. Big smiles all around!

I had a great visit with Mom and Dad and was able to do just a few little things around the place for them. We just enjoyed each other, eating, visiting,and watching old "Monks", and old "Murder She Wrote" shows. It was fun. They also let me bring home one grandchild each night for an overnighter, so we all got to enjoy the kids.

I made a special trip to the Cemetary in Blanchard on May 8th, to remember Larry and our life together. It was a sweet day. Jerry went with me and we also stopped to visit with Karen Campbell.

I had a chance to have a quick visit even with both my bros and my sis. It was good to see everyone. I'm already looking forward to my next visit, but this one may be different, because, hopefully I'll be able to do some camping after the 4th of July.

I guess this is kind of a "what I did on my vacation report" :>) A quick play by play of my visit, but not a lot of news.
Love to all,
Mom,AKA Leslie, Ruthie, Grandma

2008-05-02T12:32:00.001-07:00

Mr. Bluebird on my shoulder

2008-05-02T11:28:00.000-07:00

It's not the truth,nor is it factual, but everything is satisfactual. He doesn't get on my shoulder, but he certianly seems like he wants to come in. As you can see by the pictures, I have enjoyed the little bit of nature that I get here in the big city. So, I thought I'd share my bluebird pictures and some pictures of how my garden and flowers are coming along. I know that this will be hard for those of you still recovering from a snowy spring.

I'm looking forward to my trip up to Idaho to visit with everyone. I have a ton of things to do before I go, so this will be a short update.

Tomorrow is our 4th Anniversary, it's nice to get a little bit of history together. I am very blessed to have Bill for my husband. I think we are going to go to Temecula and go wine tasting and have a nice dinner. The weather should be beautiful for it. We usually start our Saturday mornings with a bike ride around Miramar lake, this gives us a touch of nature, and a little exercise, a good way to start a Saturday.

Not a whole lot going on here: I finally finished recovering my chairs. Both of them look pretty good. We had our Home Fellowship group over for a fish BBQ last Friday, that was fun. I continue to stop in on my friend who is still unable to get around. I set up a drip system for my flowers and hanging baskets so that when I'm gone, everything "should" continue to be watered. This will make things easier for Bill.

So...I'm signing off and probably there will be nothing new until I return from Idaho. I love you all.
Mom, AKA Ruthie, Leslie, Grandma

Puerto Rico

2008-04-17T09:15:00.001-07:00

In Awe of God's Creation

2008-04-17T09:00:00.000-07:00

Hello Again,
You'll see the picts from Puerto Rico above. Everyplace I go, whether here in the States or abroad, I am in awe of the beautiful earth and the creatures that fill it. God has such an incredible imagination. Beauty, detail, and purpose for each created thing. He truly is an amazing God, and I'm thankful for the opportunities to explore His creation.
I actually didn't take too many pictures in Puerto Rico; and although we saw some great conches and starfish while snorkeling, we didn't see any fish. The water was a bit murkey from a recent storm so visabilty was not at it's best.
There is no lack of Iguanas in Puerto Rico, they are run over on the roads like skunks up north or possums in the south. On my horse back trip through the foothills of the El Yonke Rain forest we came across a guy out riding with his dogs following along, and one of them had captured an iguana and was carrying it around. It was not dead, but they play dead when attacked. That iguana actually survived but it may have been injured to the point that it would die.
The country side we rode in was beautiful. The horses we rode were Pasofinos which are known for their smooth trotting gait and were brought over originally by Christopher Columbus. They really were a pleasure to ride.
We did take a trip into Old San Juan, no pictures though because I left my camera in the car. This area is quite historical dating back to Columbus (Christobol Colon) as they call him. Also, some pirate history. The old fort is still there along the coast.
The weather there is pretty warm but the trade winds constantly blow so you do not really get too hot. The humidity is high so you do feel a bit sticky, but all in all it is very pleasant weather.
I am glad to be home and since I've been home I've been working in the yard, planting my little garden, hanging baskets etc... I've been trying to take meals to a friend of mine here who is laid up and not knowing if her life will be prolonged by surgery or if she will be soon going home to be with the Lord. She is a really dear lady who always has a smile in spite of her constant discomfort. You might pray for her and her husband. Her name is Tana. We have some things in common, in that we both lost our husbands to cancer after long marriages and that we both remarried and moved to San Diego and both of us have made a switch from rural life to city.

Spiritually, I am working on learning the secret to being content in any and every situation, and that is that; whether in poverty or wealth, sickness or health, sorrow or joy, if you've been wronged or blessed, WHATEVER situation because Paul says ANY and EVERY, the secret is that you CAN do all things through Christ who strengthens you. Even forgive when you don't feel like it. You just make the choice to do what's right and if you do it through Jesus, He gives you the strength, and contentment follows soon after. Phillipians 4:11-13
I love you all!
Mom, AKA Leslie, Ruthie, Grandma

Cabo

2008-03-25T12:10:00.001-07:00

Cabo

2008-03-25T12:08:00.000-07:00

As you can see by these pictures, we experienced another beautiful part of God's creation. We sat by the ocean watching whales right off of the beach. In fact, we tried swimming with them, and I did get some in the water video coverage, but nothing close enough to call good. We had a wonderful time snorkeling, the water was a bit cold so we were glad we brought our wetsuits. We also ran into a little "wild" burro he was so sweet. I jumped out of the car to see if he would be friendly and he was, only I had no food to give him as a reward form his friendliness, which I'm sure that is what he was hoping. We took a drive and saw some beautiful beaches as you can see from the pictures. The hotel that LPL put us up at was landscaped so wonderfully, that it was an enjoyable experience just looking at it all.
The highlight of the conference was hearing Tony Snow speak, and for Bill, getting his picture taken with him. Bill told him: "my wife and I are Christians and just want you to know that we will be praying for you" (about his cancer) and Tony's reply was: " I am a Christian also, it is the most important thing in my life, and I thank you." Cool...He was an outstanding speaker.

We had a lovely Easter celebration with Mom and Dad, Jer and Jess and some friends from our Bible Study, the Hawkins. How wonderful our hope of eternity because of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I need to be ready to leave to go to Puerto Rico tomorrow so I've got to get with it. Hopefully, I'll have some great picts to share.
Love to all, Mom, AKA Ruthie,Leslie,Grandma,Aunt Leslie

Still Catching Up - Idaho trip

2008-03-24T13:02:00.001-07:00

WAITING........

WAITING.....

PACKAGE DELIVERED! Another beautiful grand daughter. Of course, this is old news to anyone who reads Lani's blog, because it happened a month ago! (Thus, the continued title to my blog called "Catching Up") I had such a good visit with the Campbells while I stayed with them and helped during the "help out the new mommy stage." It was a delight to see the other kids react to the new baby sister, so sweet and precious, their faces filling with wonder as they touch and kiss and stare at the new baby sister. And my eyes could not help but fill with tears as I watched another miracle be born into this world, God is so amazing!

I also got to spend a little time with the Valentine grandchildren. In fact we all got together for a very special "Miner's Party" where we went digging for treasures in the snow. I had a wonderful time with them, they are such a joy to me. I just want them to see the Lord in everything and point their little lives in His direction and have them choose to walk faithfully on His path, hiding God's Word in their hearts.
Bill came on up for a weekend to welcome the beautiful Lilah Rose, and took the opportunity to go out for dinner with my brothers and my sis. We had a really good visit and it was just plain fun to get together. We don't do it often anymore, so it's nice to get caught up every now and then with family.
One more blog post telling you about our trip to Cabo should get me caught up. But we leave for Puerto Rico day after tomorrow, so, to REALLY be caught up, I have to post BEFORE I leave.....will it actually happen?....stay tuned. I love you all!
May our Ressurected Lord, bless you and keep you and make His face to shine upon you.

Catching Up

2008-03-20T09:42:00.001-07:00

It's going to take me a couple of posts to get caught up. So, I'll start back in February. Bill and I finally got together with some friends and made an overnight trip to Ensenada, Mexico. We had a really nice time, stayed at a lovely botique hotel called Casa Natalie and basically just enjoyed the ocean view, the good food and the great company. This is a picture of us, eating of course, with Randy and Nora.

Right after that we had to make an unexpected trip to Texas, as Bill's Grandmother had died and Bill went to be a pall bearer with some of his many cousins. It was a pretty short trip, but we had a great visit. His Uncle Sol and Sol's daughters came over to Freda's and we had a fun singing session, which I enjoyed very much, it was a neat family time. I'll tell you what, those Texans sure make a LOT of food! They have dinners at lunch time and then dinners at dinner! This is Bill and his brother Eldon.

We've had a lot of rain this winter and San Diego is beautifully green with lots of spring flowers in bloom right now. I have beets growing in my garden and will soon be planting tomatoes and peppers and corn etc... I have a very little garden and will post a picture some time in the future.
*A follow up to my last post....It looks like both Bill and I will be attending the griefshare counseling, they recommended we do it as a couple. I have to say, that although I haven't started yet, I feel a relief with a hope of actually taking a step forward. I thank you for your prayers.
Love to all....Next catching up post will be my trip to I-dee-hoe.
Mom, AKA Ruthie, Leslie, Grandma, Aunt Leslie

Blog Delinquincy Syndrome

2008-03-17T15:52:00.000-07:00

Wow, it's been over a month since I last posted. I have a lot to catch you all up on. From my trip to Idaho to witness the birth of our latest granddaughter, Lilah Rose, to our trip to Cabo, Mexico. But, I'm afraid I'll have to do that yet in the future, since today does not work for me. Instead, I'm asking for prayer. I think I have made the decision to join a griefshare group. I have a hard time sharing what's going on with me, because I don't really know.
I know everyone thinks that I remarried, that I'm living a charmed life in San Diego and everything is hunky-dorry. But, the fact is that my problems are affecting our marriage and I need to get over them. I'm afraid that my grief isn't just over the stuff I went though with Larry, but also the choices I made that caused further loss. Loss of my "life as I knew it", my home,my family, grandkids, my familiar routines, friends and trying to adjust at the same time to all the newness here and a new husband. Now, I knew all of this, and thought I was handeling it. But it is almost 5 years now since Larry went to be with the Lord and I am still struggling with....well, I'll just call it stuff. God has been so good to me and such a help to me, I'm so independent and have been trying to work everything out on my own. But I think that the Lord is showing me that I need help. I have been walking with the Lord, have been journaling a lot, reading God’s word and being in prayer on a regular basis. God is my refuge and my strength, but just this last week, as I prayed and asked God to be my Counselor and give me counsel and help from my daily reading; the scripture I was on was the time that Amalek had attacked the Israelites in the wilderness and Aaron and Hur had to hold up Moses’ arms to the Lord and be his support so that Israel could prevail; I felt that God was telling me that I need the support of others. So I prayed for the right people to support me. Then a couple of days later I read about the time that Jethro came and gave Moses counsel and wisdom on how to deal with the large group he was daily judging….Moses wasn’t seeing the need for counsel, but God sent it to him because God saw the need. You know the story…Exodus 18, I wrote in my journel: “ Lord, you meet the needs and come to the rescue even before we ourselves realize the need. Sometimes, I think we are so close and involved that we fail to see objectively. But, if we are following you, we can be sure that you will send us wise counsel.. Lord- I continue to ask you for the support and counsel I need.”
This morning I went on our church's website and looked up our griefshare ministry. I think that this is the counsel that the Lord is leading me to. It is a nationwide program, there is one at real life also. It's hard for me to go and hard for me to admit that I need it. But I am admitting and asking for your prayers.
My next blog will be more fun, I promise.
Love, Mom

February 9, 2008

2008-02-09T13:26:00.000-08:00

The past couple of weeks have flown by.Mom and Dad were in town and spent a few days with us and also celebrated their 54th wedding anniversary. I took this picture of them just before they wentout to dinner. Aren't they a sweet couple? ( A couple of characters too!)
Last weekend Bill and I turned into a couple of kids and went to Disneyland
for the weekend. Shonna, Adam and Jerry drove up on Sunday and joined us to visit the mouse. It was a cold and rainy weekend, but we had a great time.

I had a root canal done on Tuesday and seem to have gotten an infection. I am in a great deal of pain, living on tylenol and ibuprophen. Why didn't I take his offer of vicoden??? Included with the infection is a fat jaw and numbness around the right side of my lips and chin. I'm thinking of a nap after I finish here.

Tomorrow, Bill and Adam and a friend are going to Pomona for the NHRA drag races. A guys day. Bill is planning to train again and try and get licensed for a dragster in April, needless to say he's just a little bit excited.
All for now.... Love to you all and blessings from whom all blessings flow.
Mom,AKA Leslie, Grandma, Ruthie

2008-01-22T08:50:00.000-08:00

All is well in San Diego, not a lot to report in this quiet household; although it does not really seem like we sit still. Bill and I made a trip to Palm Desert last weekend. It is a beautiful place. We made our usual stop at a date farm and indulged in a date shake, and we went to "The Living Desert" which is kind of a desert animal park and desert vegetation park. We spent about three hours touring it, it was pretty neat. We actually got to see new butterflies trying to emerge from their chrysalids at the butterfly garden house. On the way back home, we decided to take the "long" way and surprise Mom and Dad with a visit and take them out to dinner.

The weather was beautiful while we were there, but the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic was going on so it was a pretty busy place. These are pictures of the scenery at Palm Desert.

Also, I'm posting a beautiful picture of the sunset that we saw each evening from the cabin we rented at Big Bear over Christmas and a picture of just one of our visitors to the deck. We had Canadian Jays, Camp Robbers, squirrels, a Downey Woodpecker and a couple of curious raccoons.

Jerry, Jess and Great Grandma went tubing while I stayed with Grandpa because he wasn't feeling too hot. Bill was under the weather, so he participated by watching. They had a great time. Mom and Jess and I strung popcorn for our tree and listened to a lot of christmas music. We also had quite the foosball tournament going on, with Jerry and Bill being the main competitors. In spite of the emergency trip to the hospital on Christmas Day for Grandpa we had a very nice time.

I'm looking forward to the new year trusting that God is in control and He has a plan for each of us. "His eyes roam to and fro over all the earth seeking those whose hearts are fully devoted to Him, that He might show Himself stong on their behalf." Keep your eyes on Him and your hearts devoted to Him. Love to all, Mom- aka Grandma, Leslie & Ruthie

Trip to Idaho

2007-12-15T11:10:00.000-08:00

What a wonderful time we had visiting the kids up north! The weather was cold... we saw a little snow... played with the grandkids... skied with Marcus & Brady and Abbie, Micah and Jaxson. It was a lot of fun. Shannon's house was very festive and she and Lani fixed us great food. We had our Christmas with them early since we will not be together for Christmas; we enjoyed watching the grandkids open gifts. The time went by very quickly and we did not get to visit with other family members. We need to be up there for a longer period to see my brothers and my sis. Maybe next trip. Lani's baby is due at the end of Feb or first of March; so I will be making a trip back at that time, Lord willing, to help out for a while.

We did stop and see some long time friends, Dave and Karen Larson and enjoyed a great visit with them. Please pray for them as Dave is fighting cancer big time. I was encouraged by their faith and trust in our Savior. They know that God is in control and He is their strength.

"The Lord redeems the soul of His servants, and none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned." Psalm 34:22

Until later....Leslie

First Blog -

2007-12-03T18:00:00.000-08:00

My kids are blogging, their cousins blog, all their cool friends blog, that's how you stay in touch these days. Oh sure, we see each other, we talk some on the phone, but when you blog you really say something. You share inner thoughts, contemplations, silly and serious, or you may tell anyone who cares (and even people who don't care) about events in your life, you can post pictures, share a laugh and all your family can tune in and read about it. It no longer takes a phone call to each person.

Okay, count me in, I'll give it a try. Will my kids read their mom's blog??? Weird, I don't think so. I hope they might check it out once in a while. I hope that when they do, that I'll have something there worth reading. Something to brighten their day, make them smile, or be surprised. Most likely they'll say..."yup, that's mom" ...whatever. Maybe, it will be one of the coolest blogs ever and they'll tell their friends, "check out MY mom's blog!" (I told you I wanted to make them smile - I'll bet you anything that they are!) and Jerry will be wishing he wasn't. That's how well I know my kids. When they read my blog they'll be correcting my punctuation errors and my spellling, but it's ok, I'm terribly proud of all of them. They are my "opus" my finest work, even though I myself am still a work in progress as they also are, I will stand before the Lord and He will know, that with all my faults and short-comings, I did my best to teach them His ways, His path, and His love.

In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.

All for now.

Leslie AKA- Mom, Grandma, Ruthie