19 months

Grief never goes away.

It gets better,

but it never goes away. 

Today, Bubba has been gone from me for nineteen months.

I'm getting stronger...more able to handle things,

a little less anxious.

God has drawn me closer to Him than I've ever been in my life.

His word is what gives me hope and strength to keep working at life.

God knew I would be alone for a while here in this world

and He Himself has been my constant companion.

I am thankful for His will for me,

 I  am thankful in the knowledge that this portion of my life is what He planned for me,

that He has provided everything I need,

That He loves me and wants me to rejoice and be happy in Him.

God is so good ALL the time.

To God be the glory great things He has done.

💙

 

hello pumpkin

It's Fall!

Time to buy pumpkins and put them on your front porch.

I like the shape of this guy and the curve of his stem.

It is visible to all who walk by my apartment.

I love Fall...

all except that the days get shorter and the darkness lasts longer.

I am astounded at how fast the year has gone by.

"Hold me up Lord, lest I fall."

Since Bubba left me I have been much in God's word.

At first, I could only read tiny portions.

I spent a long time in the Psalms,

I read them over and over.

When David started preaching through the gospel of John,

I felt ready for deeper study.

I grabbed JC Ryle's commentary and just recently added Arthur Pink's as well.

It has been so rewarding. 

I can't wait to get to it early in the morning.

It sets the tone for my day.

The deeper you go the more you learn,

I am so thankful that God is patient with me as I slowly absorb more about what He desires of me.

I am held up by His word.

Without it, I would fall into misery and despair.

By reading truth every day, He enables me to see things from His perspective...

to put my hope and trust in Him.

The times that we live in are scary.

God's word explains why things are as they are.

He is sovereign.

He knows the beginning and the end.

His plans are being accomplished.

Trust Him!

"Hold me up Lord, lest I fall."

 

sunday after church at my house.

I stopped by my house after church and lunch this afternoon.

There was no one there but me.

It was kinda nice to wander around without being watched. 👀

This is my front entrance with brick.

Front entrance looking all the way through to the back.

I plan to put my Christmas tree right in the middle of the sunroom.

Brick stacked and ready to be laid on the side of the house.

The bricklayers are amazing.

They do such a neat job!

I am so thankful for their hard, consistent work.

The drywall and the smooth ceilings on the inside are beautiful.

Soon the cabinets and the floors will go in and all of the finishing work will start.

This process is so much fun.

I am so thankful for Hope Bible Church.

There is nothing sweeter than the fellowship there.

God's word was proclaimed.

Oh, the joy to gather and worship with our beloved friends in Christ.

"My sins they are many,

His mercy is more!"

♡

 

house in progress

My house sat idly all week due to the deluge of September

which I wrote about and mistakenly deleted.

I get nervous when I'm working remotely on my computer with Chris.

He is very nice, efficient, and patient.

It's just me.

He knows computers inside and out and I,

well, I barely can do what I do.

I found this gable at my house on Thursday all decked out with maybe

board and batten?

Isn't that what you call those vertical boards?

I wasn't going by yesterday because I had no expectations, 

but, lo and behold, I did and this had happened...

They had started laying the brick.

On the most beautiful blue sky no humidity fall day

they had made this happen.

I love this brick.

It reminds me of the Old Savannah Gray.

I don't have a clue why the bricklayers wore matching shirts.

Maybe they have gotten so accustomed to me taking pictures that they wanted to dress up.

Notice the front porch post.

I think there will be brick under it to hold it up.

I can't imagine why else it would be suspended so far up off of the ground.

I left Herb River Bluff yesterday with my heart rejoicing.

I'm not going by today.

We are having a pool party later this afternoon.

I will, however, stop by after church tomorrow to see how much they have gotten done.

🏡

"If God gives you a few more years,

 remember,

It is not yours.

Your time must honor God.

Your home must honor God,

Your activity must honor God,

And everything you do must honor God.

A.W.Tozer

A man of God

 

we found my pictures this afternoon

Happy Birthday, Harry!

You turned 14 last week and I'm just now getting to post your pictures.

You did so well at your track meet and came straight to your party.

There was a "husband" in the big box.

You know, one of those large pillows with armrests

that let you sit up in bed and read.

That was one of the things on his wish list.

I love this boy so much!

Happy Birthday, Harry,

Love, Gram

It has been a busy week and I am tired so I'll keep this short.

Yesterday one of the bifold doors to my "laundry room"

came off of its course and hit me in the head.

It was one of those things that I didn't see coming.

I was more shocked than hurt.

I am so glad to be able to blog again with pictures.

They speak louder than words.

Tomorrow I will share the latest news on my house.

Not much got done this week because of all the rain.

By the way,

I inadvertently deleted my post about the deluge.

Oh well, you lose some!

God is good all the time!

 

my decision

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope

through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

I Peter 1:3

Just now I signed a new three-month lease with this apartment.

I will have until February 6th to vacate...

a little less than 5 months.

I kept hoping for some clarity as to when my house will be finished.

They couldn't give it to me before my extension here ran out.

Much prayer has gone into this decision.

I am confident that God's will for me at this juncture has been done.

I will wait here with patience and great thanksgiving,

There is a story behind the HOPE sign in the picture above.

I'll write about that later.

 

I have bricks and another extension

Yesterday my drive-by was very exciting.

A huge, flatbed truck was at my house delivering all things brick.

The work seems to be moving so fast,

 but the powers that be still won't give me a closing date.

My first extension ended yesterday.

I was to let my leasing lady know my future plans for my time here at this apartment.

After another frustrating text adventure on Monday with the sales rep for my new house,

I found out nothing new.

It was the same old runaround and bag of excuses.

 Yesterday I headed into the leasing office still not having made up my mind definitely what to do.

Out of the kindness of her heart, she offered me till this Friday to decide.

I didn't even ask her for anything.

So, I now have a little more time to plan.

I probably won't know anything more by then,

but maybe I will.

We are celebrating Harry's 14th birthday this afternoon.

I have been cooking all morning in my tiny, hot apartment kitchen.

It is a labor of love for this boy who lights up my life.

I am still completely lost in the quagmire of my pictures.

They are loaded onto my computer but I can't get them to my blog.

I haven't had any time to sit here and see if I can figure this mystery out.

Amanda had a part in getting the above photo to post.

I am good. 

I have everything I need for life and godliness.

No need for murmuring or complaining.

I'm just very, very thankful for all of my blessings.

To God be the glory great things he has done.

 

sitting on the edge of their tub

Our grandkids sitting on the edge of their tub in my new house.

They have all been so excited watching this home come together.

I am so thankful for these kids.

They have helped me hold it all together since their granddaddy left us.

In their own sweet way, 

each of them is so tenderhearted toward my sorrow.

I thank God for them.

When I lost my computer last week,

 I lost the ability to find and use my pictures.

When I load them onto my computer, I can't find them anywhere.

Writing and sharing my blog with you guys is one of my most favorite things to do.

I am very sad and frustrated at this point.

😏

I will walk away now and try again later.

Hopefully, 

if I keep trying, I can master this.

 

my house has walls and ceilings

So much has been done on my house.

I now have walls and ceilings.

I cannot even believe!

Look how beautiful!

This room is my bedroom.

My house will be filled with light!

The sunroom and my living room.

It's all taking shape.

My Kitchen.

The white pole is where the island will be.

The door enters a huge walk-in pantry.

I can't wait to cook for my family in this space.

I love the wood trim on the dog houses.

I think one of the workers was posing for this picture. 😀

🏡

Here is my dilemma...

My lease is up on November 6th here at Hammocks View.

My house will definitely not be ready by then.

The Building Supervisor said that when the drywall is done, they will set my closing date.

The drywall was probably finished yesterday.

I got a one-week extension to let the leasing agent here know my plans.

Will the closing date be set by next Tuesday?

I am so close, but will I be able to get my answer in time?

Probably not.

Do I choose a month-by-month lease?

The rent for this goes soaring.

(You wouldn't believe how much it goes up)

Or do I sign a 3-month lease which is cheaper,

 but do I need to pay for three more months?

I'm praying for wisdom to know what to do.

What is the best choice?

Stay tuned!

 

just be nice

Over a week ago,

 my computer completely crashed and had to be taken to Chris' computer hospital.

(Chris is a genius)

It was like someone had been living with me and was suddenly gone.

That's how much I missed it.

I got it back this afternoon.

I'm much too tired to write coherently,

but I wanted to say HI!

My shirt says "just be nice."

I was trying to take a selfie but the words are backward.

Anyway, it's good to be back.

I'll have some updates on the house tomorrow.

But for now...

Just Be Nice

🧡