The holidays are on the way....will you be home for Christmas

I have been thinking about the holidays. Christmas is my favorite holiday. Everyone becomes happy and joy is everywhere. People do nice things they buy gifts for friends and family just to see smiles on their faces. There are movies about it and cartoons about it. We decorate our homes and light up our homes.
I have been thinking about it because it didn't seem the same for me anymore. My kids are grown with families of their own living far away. My grandchildren will have Christmas morning and celebrate the holiday with their other grand parents and that made me sad. I stayed that way fro a while and then I started to think today. Why am I sad? Just because I can not spend one day with my kids and their families. After all they are all coming here the week after Christmas for us to celebrate my husband's 50th birthday and we will have a Christmas celebration on New Years day.
I started to think about those people who truly are away from their families for the holidays. The military who are defending our country in foreign lands, who would love to have just one day to celebrate with their families. Missionaries in foreign lands and across our nation who are doing the job they have been destined to do. Prisoners in jails across the country some deserving of their time others who do not deserve to be there wishing every day that they would be able to see their families again. The sick in the hospitals who hurt so bad because of injuries, surgeries or illnesses who only want to have one more day with the families they love. The lonely and alone who do not have anyone to have a dinner with but will spend Christmas alone in their homes or worse on the streets of this nation watching all the fun but never quit getting close to having fun themselves. Those who sit in nursing homes across the country having just another day of the same old thing hoping someone will call or come to visit them today.
For the rest of this holiday season I will not feel sorry for myself. I will not fret because my day is bad or I can not get my way. For the rest of this holiday season I chose to pray for one lost and lonely soul a day to have a good, happy and memorable Christmas day.

Great weekend...wonderful yet sad

This past weekend my husband and I reunited with dear friends who we thought were lost. I know you remember me talking about my cousin who was my friend forever then all the family stuff happened and we lost contact and how it devastated me and when she wanted to reconnect I was afraid to open myself up. Well the Lord had plans for this relationship. On Thursday last week I awoke to a text message from my mom telling me Debbie, my cousin, father in law had passed away. Just a side bar here my husband and Debbie's husband grew up together that is how I met my husband through Rick, Debbie's husband. We both knew Rick's dad well and morned for his passing. Both Kevin and I felt a tugging in our hearts to make the trip home and go to this funeral. We had a few obstacles #1 money, we had about $100 which would be enough to get us there but not back; #2 our dog, she can not stay at my dad's where we usually stay because he is allergic and our dog sitter was going away for the weekend. We decided we could not go but the tugging continued in both of our hearts. I made two calls one to my dad to borrow money to get back home, which I am paying back today and one to my mom to see if we could stay at her new apartment with our dog. Both agreed this was OK. So Friday morning Kevin, Tia (the dog) and I packed into my Subaru and headed home. We did not tell Debbie we were coming I had only texted her my sympathy. I did post on my facebook when I got home that night simple words "we made it, we are here". My sister in law posted after me about it being such sad circumstances. Saturday afternoon at 2pm Kevin and I walked into the funeral home. I was first. The look on both Debbie and Rick's faces told us God had wanted us to be there. Rick came over and hugged us both and cried as he thanked us for coming. Debbie came over to me and we embraced like we never have before both of us crying. I think we stood there embracing for about 5 whole minutes. I told her I loved her and she told me the she loved me. I will never forget that few minutes!
During the course of our only 1 day there, we had to come back the next day so Kevin could go back to work, we talked and talked and talked. I found out she knew nothing about all the lies and threats her mom had thrown towards me in the past year and a half. In fact I learned her mom had stopped talking to her in Jan of 2009 because of a spat they had. We rekindled our friendship and vowed never to let family come between us again. We decided we are friends FIRST!!!
Although all of this happened on such a sad occasion as Rick's dad funeral, I believe this was truly the Lord at work. He knew how much I missed her and she me so He brought us back together!
God is good all the time!!!! Praise His Holy Name!!!

Back Home

I had a wonderful trip to my daughter's house in Oregon. The weather does not always cooperate; it rains quite often but it does have beautiful scenery. The trees were all the pretty colors of Autumn all around town. We did go up the mountain because I wanted to see the colors displayed across the mountain, only to find out they are covered with mostly pine trees but it was still pretty.We were up so high Ethan said we were miles and miles in the sky.It was beautiful.

The best part about the trip was seeing my daughter and her family and spending time with them. We laughed and played and played and laughed and laughed some more. I just had a great time.I

I got to go on a field trip with Ethan's class to the Pumpkin Patch. (I did get lost driving there believe it or not I drove right by a pumpkin patch miles and miles long. So I did not get to pick the pumpkin with him but I got there for hay ride, apple orchard, and games.

The weekend before I left to go to Oregon I also got a special treat. My son Bryan and his family came to visit me. So I also got to see my grandson Asher.

I feel truly blessed!