Category Archives: Family History

Sacred Arts Graduation Sunday

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I have said this many times, but our three younger children have attended our church’s Wednesday evening Sacred Arts program since 2007 and have absolutely loved it.  It is run my our church music director.  It is a way for her to teach children in grades K – 5 that there are many ways to praise the Lord through music, but not just by singing music.  They have done presentations nearly every month throughout the school years which have included liturgical dance, puppetry, percussion instruments, American sign language, bells and a host of other fun activities that keep the kids enthralled and excited to return each week.  We loved the program so much that I have been the assistant for most of the years that our kids have been attending.

But, that is soon to come to an end.  Our youngest daughter is finishing the fifth grade this year, and that is the last grade allowed in Sacred Arts.  So, along with our youngest daughter, I will be graduating from the program, too!  We are going out in a fun way as we are going to make graduation caps to wear at her final presentation Sunday.  And, since a few of the girls in the class will not be able to attend, I have to stand up and play the tambourine!  Here are a few pictures from over the years that I have worked with this wonderful music director of our kids performing:

February 2009 DD#3 and DD#2

May 2009 Son with Streamers

November 2010 DD#3 and Son (and friend) performing a Thanksgiving drama

February 2012 DD#3 American Sign Language Song Interpretation

EGGxtra Fun

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Last week was spring break for our kids, and although we couldn’t afford to take them on a trip around the world, to a fascinating place or even to town for fun – we did manage to have a few laughs along the way.

One of the things they did was help a local family out by caring for their livestock while they enjoyed a spring break trip.  They had four different types of animals, which meant each of my four kids got to pick which animal they wanted to take care of and it worked out perfectly!  It was also wonderful for this Mom to see how responsible they really are outside of the confines of home, where they whine and complain by having to unload the dishwasher or clean their bedrooms.

One of the animals DD#1 cared for were chickens.  They were lovely birds, brown and black and fluffy and fun.  They just had a bit of a problem with geing able to grow feathers on their nether-regions.  The owner asked me not to photograph and share her birds, and I agreed.

But, I never said anything about the EGGS we gathered!  It became quite the conversation over dinner each evening, as to how many eggs the kids had collected and some funny descriptions of some of them.  Below is a photograph of three of the eggs from these prolific hens, and the descriptions DD#1 gave to me as she showed them to me.  Perhaps not the same as a spring break vacation, but love and laughter go a long way in my book!

 

 

BFF Brother, My Love Continues…Now Pick Up the Phone!

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Today would have been my brother Mike’s 49th birthday.  I’m sure I would have made a very big deal out of it.  Black balloons.  A black frosted cake.  Black candles.  I would have gone all out to show him that he was fixin’ to cross the line into old age – as next year, he would have been the big 5-0.

I never got the chance to do that.  I lost him, as did his wife, his other family, his other brothers, and a host of friends who loved him.  He died of a brain aneurysm at the age of 34.  DOA.  My world, and those who loved him, changed forever.

But, aside from his wife – I daresay, I loved him more than life itself.  He became my best friend forever in a few short years.  My brother, in every sense of the word.  He was my world – he and his wife, and eventually my boyfriend’s (and now husband) and first daughter’s.  I would have done anything for him, and he for me.  We were two peas in a pod.  Torn apart by family and circumstances, but reunited by love and our desire to create a relationship that no one was a part of aside from his wife.  My sister-in-law Trickie was the only one who truly knew the depth of my relationship with Mike.  And I know I will never, ever have a brother that can give as much as Mike gave of his heart to me, and graciously accept as much as I accepted so unconditionally.

I recall one weekend when we decided we would head from their home in New Franklin, Missouri and travel to Branson, Missouri.  I worked at a honky tonk and usually finished up my work around 2 am.  We decided I’d drive over to pick them up after I got off work and we would burn the midnight oil and drive to a campground, pitch a tent, sleep a few hours, then hit Silver Dollar City and all the hot spots of tourist fun for a couple of days.  I had been practicing with a stick-shift so I could drive his truck, and since I was usually wide awake after work, he would sleep and his wife would keep me company.  Seemed like a good plan to us at the time.

What he failed to teach me in my driving lessons was that you were supposed to push the clutch in every single time you shifted gears.  Who knew???  He was sound asleep in the back seat of his truck and Trickie and I were chatting along.  We were on the highway between Sedalia, Missouri and Branson – which if you’ve ever drove that road, is just one long hill after another.  I knew to shift to a lower gear going down the hill and a higher gear going up the hill.  I had this one in the bag.

Until I started grinding the gears and he sat straight up out of the back seat and wondered what in the heck I was doing to his truck!

I had no clue, so I recreated my steps and explained what I was doing.  Then I felt like a total idiot because he was laughing so hard, he couldn’t tell me what I was doing wrong.  I’m sure I used words that would singe the hair on a man’s chest – but, when he finally calmed down (probably during the next grinding of the gears), he explained the CORRECT process of how to downshift to me.   OHHHHHH, TWO feet needed to be in play at the same time – clutch and accelerator!  Gee, why didn’t he give me those words of wisdom while he was giving me lessons???

I never did live that faux paus down – but, he didn’t allow me to drive his truck again, either <grin>.

I don’t care how many people want to claim him as their best friend, their brother, their son or their guardian angel since his passing.  His widow and I know the truth – and that is that Mike and I had something special, and he will forever be my best friend forever brother.  We were meant to find each other in our adulthood – and I truly believe God allowed us to be together to help show us what unconditional love truly meant, and that despite all the obstacles in our way, love is the only thing that matters in our messed up world.

Happy heavenly birthday brother.  I just wish the next time I have a hankering to call you, that you’d just pick that darned phone up and let me hear your voice one last time.

Birthday Girl Hanky-Panky Pillow

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My mother-in-law made this very special pillow for our second daughter’s 14th birthday.  It is made from fabric and handkerchiefs, sort of in a crazy quilt pattern.  She used official Girl Scout fabrics, some fun ribbon and hankies.  The yo-yo’s are something special that my daughter enjoyed making for a Girl Scout ceremony she planned and executed.  I believe that the hankie that has the pink on it was one that I carried when I married my husband nearly 20 years ago.  Very special gift and treasure!