Thursday, March 31, 2016

sleep little batman....


...you need your rest to be able to do all of your awesome stunts.

This sweet boy is going home tomorrow.
Needless to say...
I have enjoyed every minute of our time together.

Archie is home....
doing well.
He is an amazing kid!
Very thankful to God for how this went.

Back for a minute to Gus.

We were working in the yard just now.
The sun was setting.
He was jumping from tree to tree
playacting a show he likes.

He stopped.
looked over at me,
and said,
"Grammy, is your dream my dream?
I replied,
"Probably not dear one,
but I know both of our dreams are very special."
There is nothing like the mind of a child.

Sleep now sweet boy and dream your dreams...
very soon I'll be dreaming mine.
Grammy

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

i don't want to go to neverland


This is my little helper.
His name is Gus.
He is staying with us while his brother Archie has his surgery.
I bought him a child size rake and
we have almost filled a whole bag with debris.
I just tucked him in,
kissed him,
and we prayed for Arch.
I love this little guy so much.

Archie did so well today
and he is recovering nicely.
Thank you Lord for hearing our prayers.

This next picture is a silly one,
at Gus' request.
You can also see the size of the bag he (we) filled.



Outside we were discussing Peter Pan.
He told me emphatically
that he didn't want to go to Neverland.
"Why not," I asked.
"Most kids would give anything to go there."
He replied, "Because I want to grow up."

Gus is wise beyond his years,
and he sings
beautifully and with passion.

I am so glad that God brought him to us!!!


Tuesday, March 29, 2016

the easter gathering.....


Chicken Salad
Shrimp salad
Pineapple bake,
Deviled eggs
Broccoli Salad
Strawberries with fresh whipped cream
Warm yeast Rolls
Crackers (for David)
Tea and Lemonade

A peep cake
Coconut cake
Pecan pie
Coffee after the hunt.


Charlotte Bell as the Easter Bunny.


Kid's table
Some major happiness went on here!


August David with his new sunglasses.


Before the hunt...
The rain stopped long enough
for the egg hunt to happen.
We were all very happy!

Archie had the right idea to use his Easter basket
as an umbrella.


The hunters are getting very "hot" on the trail
of the golden egg!


Lucy found the "golden egg."
It had 20 dollars in it.


After the hunt...
happy hunters with wet, dirty feet.

Easter Sunday is a great celebration for believers.
It starts early with church
and then continues all day long
with dinner and fun times.

All we have comes from Him....
even our very life.
Another day to be glad and thankful!!!



































Monday, March 28, 2016

He is Risen....


He is risen indeed!

If I could just go to church and worship
every morning,
standing strong in my faith would be so much easier.
I gather so much strength from
worshiping in song,
being with other believers,
and hearing the truth of God's word proclaimed.

Yesterday on Easter morning in Savannah
it was cloudy, and rainy, and gloomy
on the outside,
but in our hearts it was bright and joyful.
We met together to worship Him
who died and returned to life,
just like He said.
God keeps all of His promises,
not one word of His truth ever fails.


The boys in their new shirts.
All smiles.
Gussie doing some of his antics behind.


Gram and Lucy.
Everybody else is singing and we are
posing for a picture
taken by granddaddy.
Go figure.

I will share about our Easter party later.





Saturday, March 26, 2016

saturday ~ silence


On Friday when Jesus was taken down from the cross,
the soldiers saw that He was already dead,
so they did not break His legs
as was done to the other two who were crucified with Him.
His side was pierced with a spear, though,
and immediately blood and water came out.

Joseph of Arimathea,
a secret disciple of Jesus, got permission from Pilate
to take away Jesus' body.
Nicodemus also came,
bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes,
about a hundred pounds.

In the place where He was crucified
there was a garden
and in the garden was a new tomb
 in which nobody had yet been laid.

So they took Jesus' body,
bound it in strips of linen with the spices,
as was the custom.
Then they laid Him in the tomb.
The stone was rolled in place and secured.
From John 19

Today has been a quiet Saturday for Bubba and I.
After the Good Friday service last night,
our minds and hearts were prepared for today 
and especially tomorrow ~
Resurrection Sunday.

So great to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord!
 Our faith is based on that one truth.
If Jesus had not died, 
rose from the dead,
and ascended back to heaven to sit at the right hand of our Father,
there would be no hope of eternal life
with God,
as He intended from the beginning.

Hallelujah...What a Savior!!


Friday, March 25, 2016

Jesus walking to His death


Jesus is God...
Jesus was a man.
He was sinless...
but He was human.
He was born to die.

We had transgressed God's commandments.
God could not look upon us in our sin.
God provided Jesus.
Jesus was our substitute.
We should have died but He died for us.
God accepted Jesus' death on our behalf.
All who believe that Jesus is God's Son
and that He died for our sins
has eternal life.

It was Spring on that Friday morning so long ago.
What was on Jesus mind after the night 
of suffering and humiliation?
Did He notice the sunrise,
the flowers,
their scent?
Was He sad to be leaving the earth and His friends?
Probably.
But His face was set like flint to His duty.
He came to die and He did,
and that death of our
Savior the Lord Jesus Christ 
changed everything.

Just Believe!
I love you!!



Thursday, March 24, 2016

getting ready for easter


Lucy spent the night last night..
This morning
 she helped me dye the eggs
for our big Easter celebration on Sunday.


It was as you can see,
quite the production line.
She was in charge of all of the colors.
I put in the vinegar and boiling water.
She did the rest.

Right in the middle I ran out of
red food coloring
and had to make a flying trip down to the grocery.
The eggs came out beautiful
we think.....
always such a magnificent centerpiece.



After all was said and done
we poured all of the colors together in one big bowl.
We had one egg left and wanted to see what color it would turn out.
Wanna take a guess?


It came out brown!!!
Now we all know where brown eggs come from.


Next I let Lucy dye her hands,
(This is something only a grammy would let a grandchild do.)

So much fun!!

Now all I have to do is 
finish decorating 
and get some food together.
Can't wait!!!

Sadly, rain is expected
but the egg hunt will go on.
There will be $20.00 in the golden egg this year!!!



Tuesday, March 22, 2016

amanda


She is my daughter,
my best friend,
my baby girl,
my grandson's mom.
She is Mark's wife,
a personal trainer,
 fitness instructor extraordinaire.
We shop together,
we talk till our voices give out,
and...
most of all we laugh, laugh, laugh together.
We find the same things funny.
she is one of my blessings from God.

At Jupiter Beach
in the glow of the setting sun!!.


Monday, March 21, 2016

ascending into jerusalem....


...on the back of a donkey.

On the Sunday before He died,
our Lord Jesus was going up to Jerusalem.
The city was packed full of people
celebrating the Passover.

When he arrived near the Mount of Olives,
He said to two of His disciples,
"Go into the village opposite you
in which when you enter you will find a colt tied,
on which no one has ever sat;
untie it and bring it here."

"And if anyone asks you,
'Why are you untying it?'
thus you shall speak,
'The Lord has need of it."

"The two found it just as Jesus had told them.
And as they were untying the colt,
it's owner said to them
'Why are you untying the colt?'
And they said,
'The Lord has need of it."

Interesting!
It happened just as Jesus said.
They brought the donkey to Jesus,
spread their garments on it's back,
and had Him sit there atop the beast of burden.

As they were going the people were
spreading their garments on the ground ahead of Him.
They were praising God
joyfully with a loud voice for all the miracles they had seen.

In just a few days,
many of this same crowd 
would be crying out for His Crucifixion.
Jesus knew what would happen
because He came here to die.

The people were amazed at Jesus for His miracles,
but they didn't know who He was.
He wasn't riding on that donkey up to Jerusalem to be their king.
The donkey thing should have given them a clue.
Kings don't ride on donkeys.
He was coming to be their Savior.
He was coming to die so that they could be reconciled to God.
but....
they didn't want a Savior, they wanted an earthly king.

We are sinners!
We need a Savior!
Don't miss who He is and what He came to do.

Sunday, March 20, 2016

yep....he got me to the ocean again


Bubba & Cathy standing on a pier
 very, very far out over the 
beautiful blue ocean
in Jupiter, Florida.
Oh how I love it so!!!

I thought I had two more weeks until Easter,
but sadly there is only one.
We will get it done!
It will be a fabulous day
because...
its our big celebration,
the biggest of the year.
Jesus rose.
That one truth changes everything.



Gazing over the rail at the beauty of the water.
Its a different color in South Florida/



Saturday, March 19, 2016

home again




Home from trip.....
Confused by clocks in this house
 that were not set to
Daylight Savings Time
before we left last Sunday.

Missing Amanda and the boys
and all the fun we had.

Feeling very pollinated.....
translated:
tired with flu-like symptoms.

Thankful for the blessing that last week was!!

more later...
c

Saturday, March 12, 2016

first for charlotte bell


Happy First Birthday Charlotte Belle!
Cannot believe that you are turning one already.
We had such a good time celebrating with you this afternoon.
You are walking,
you like to dance a few moves,
you have some teeth,
you babble and coo.
I love you little girl!!!!!


You had your very own tasting cake
which looked so delicious.
You were very careful, though, 
not to make a big mess.
You gave more to your brother than you ate yourself.


Thanks for inviting your Aunt Cathy & Uncle Bubba to your party.
We had a lovely afternoon.



Friday, March 11, 2016

new plates


These are my new spring plates,
I cannot wait to set this adorable table....
Cannot control my joy at finding these on sale.

Of course there will be the Easter dinner served on them...
but...
these will be used every day of Spring.
They are too cute not to use them.


This plate was brought to me by
David and Erika.
When in Atlanta "Star Provisions" is always
a must stop.
They have all my favorite things.
I just love this!!!

Today has been a "house cleaning" day.
Love to get it "spic & span."

Constantly on my quest to bring beauty to our home!!


Wednesday, March 9, 2016

chaos?


Our country...
what do you think?
Is it in chaos?
Yes, probably.
But....
God is still in control.

Lest you think that God is not sovereign over
The United States of America,
stop and think again.

Whatever happens next November
will be exactly according to His plan.
No one,
not even the plenteous talking heads
know what will come down.
So much talk only fuels the chaos.

Believers can pray.
We know for a fact that God hears our prayers.
My prayer is that He will glorify Himself in this land.
But,
this is not a Christian nation.
Yes,
it was founded on Christian principles,
but the government
 no longer abides by those principles.

Our country has not received any promises from God 
that we as a nation will be blessed.
When the leaders and the people
no longer call upon His name,
no longer obey His word,
have no sense of right and wrong,
prefer lawlessness to order,
Yes there is chaos.

Pray that God will draw this people to Himself...




Monday, March 7, 2016

eli turns nine today


Happy birthday to this
blue-eyed,
freckle-faced,
smart as a whip little boy
who stole my heart from day one.

He love Star Wars.
especially Boba Fett.
He plays Wii U' like a real pro.
He and I are going shopping when we get to his house
for four of the game figures that he loves.

He is a swimmer,
he loves the ocean like his Gram,
he will walk with me and look for treasures,
he is interesting to talk to...

He loves Disney and Sea world,
he does well in school,
he loves to read in bed till he falls asleep,
just like I do.

every now and then I still get a snuggle,
a sitting real close time.
And,
wonder of wonders,
he and his brother still love for me to read to them.

Happy Birthday Eli!
I Love You,
Gram







Sunday, March 6, 2016

he will cry

Lucy, Harry, Archie & Gus,
all four of them spent the night here
on Friday night.

It is kind of a tradition
 for us to watch a movie together.
I asked David about E.T.
He said that was fine,
but Gus would cry.

E.T. came out in 1982.
It is 34 years old.
Lucy and I had already watched it together
a couple of times.
We love it.

I made our TV room into a movie theater.
Lu and I sat in the big recliners
and the boys had comfy quilts and pillows on the floor.
We fixed ice cream sundaes,
dimmed the lights,
and started to watch the show.

Lucy was quiet,
Harry was mesmerized,
Archie asked a thousand questions,
and Gus, he asked questions too.
All of the boys desperately wanted me to tell them
what was going to happen next.

Gus started out with his brothers,
then he separated from them a little bit.
Next thing I knew,
he was up in the chair with me
sitting very close.

By the end of the movie,
when it came time for the children 
to send E.T. back home,
Gus started sobbing unconsolably.
He was so sad and would not be comforted.

Gus is all boy...
He can be tough and brave.
But he cries at movies.
I like that in a man.
He is not ashamed to show emotion.
I hope he never stops!




Saturday, March 5, 2016

the black and white dog


These four just left to go home.
The house is very quiet...
no one is saying "Gram."

We were outside 
working in the yard this afternoon
when Miss Lucy Lu
came over to play.
Lucy Lu is the black and white dog
who belongs to our neighbors.
Great joy abounded
as she chased them around.

Tired grammy I am,
but it was all so much fun!!!
Love these kids!
So thankful for what they teach me.

Thursday, March 3, 2016

breathing


This I love!!

I have a little metal sign that spells out the word
BREATHE.

Sometimes I need to be reminded to take that
long, deep breath
that makes all the difference in the world.

Stand before the sunrise at the ocean
and remember to breathe deeply,
and then remember Who gives you the ability 
to take the next breath.

Praise to the One tonight who sustains us
in our life!

Wednesday, March 2, 2016

geraniums ~ 3 for $10.00


Here I go again...
first sign of Spring and I'm at the nursery buying flowers.
These deep green healthy geraniums were
such a good buy
 I couldn't pass them up....
And, they look so lovely on the porches.
Maybe the deer will leave them alone this year.
(In my dreams)

Have you noticed how much longer the days are getting?
That, along with increasing warmth from the sun
is a sure sign that winter is almost over.
It's time to start thinking of the yard again
and all that goes with that.

Very thankful today
for the progress that has been made
getting the David Cleland family settled in their new home.
Most all of the boxes have been unpacked
and it is a living, breathing home.

Bubba and I are looking forward to a trip
to South Florida very soon.
One little boy who lives down there
is getting ready to turn nine
and, of course,
we have to celebrate with him.

Friday and Saturday
we will have four great kids here
for an overnighter.
believe me,
you have to be up for this undertaking.
Maybe will all watch a movie together....
ride bikes,
eat hamburgers cooked on the grill,
plant my flowers.
For sure there will be a lot of
laughter and craziness.

Busy days and Happy nights.
Full life and then overflowing.
God's grace abounds.
Thank you dear God.