trick or treat

The way it used to be!

Good times!

Life was different then.

🍂🍂

I have always loved Folk Art.🧡

 

Just this is enough...

Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life;

No one comes to the Father but through me."

John 14:6

 

come along to the ocean with me

These old memories keep popping up.

They take me back...way back,

to when Bubba was with me and the grandbabies were tiny...

When we were teaching them to learn to love the beach.

Harry is mesmerized by the water that comes and goes under his feet.

He didn't understand the ways of the ocean yet.

But he keeps going back for more.

(He's a surfer of the waves now)

Our study of the book of James at Hope Bible Church is so hard.

Evidently, I have never grasped the power of Jame's words.

As I wrestle with Mr. Hiebert's Commentary every morning,

I come away exhausted from the mental power it takes to understand the truths contained there.

It is not an easy study, but it is life-changing.

Like Harry and the ocean, 

I don't understand all that the book of James contains.

but I keep going back for more.

The Holy Spirit teaches the Word of God to all who ask Him.

Dig in!!

Read and study God's Word!

It's the best thing I do all day!

"Even so faith, if it has no works,

is dead, being by itself."

James 2:17

 

just because...

...old pictures of cute kids need to be shared.

It was somebody's birthday.

I don't recall which one.

We hadn't gotten Walter yet.

I miss him in the picture.

Time is moving fast.

Our grandkids are growing up.

Anyway...

God is always good

He never changes.

He is working His plan of salvation even now as we hurry through life.

Take a few moments to go vote.

We the people still have a way to make our voices heard in how our country is governed.

I want my children and grandchildren to live in a free country.

Pray for wisdom and knowledge and understanding from God's Word.

 

"spread over everything"

In the quote above I substitute his for her.

Usually, I write about Bubba on the 29th of the month

 because that was the day he went to be with Jesus,

but this popped up this morning,

 and I am going through a hard time,

 so I'm writing about grief today instead.

"His absence is like the sky, spread over everything."

Still. after all these months, I struggle with grief.

Bubba was a huge presence.

He had a large personality.

He took care of me.

He loved me unconditionally.

His life covered mine.

I depended on him.

I'm sure it's why I live afraid.

My cover was removed.

I fight the fear.

But, it never completely goes away.

I'm learning to depend on Jesus.

This widowhood was His will for me from eternity past.

There are things I still need to learn before I'm fit for heaven.

He knows what I need and provides for me in ways I sometimes cannot fathom.

Maybe it's the fear that He wants to help me conquer.

Whatever it is,

I look forward to heaven because there won't be any more sin.

Fear is sin...not trusting God.

I hate my sin.

"one must choose to do it afraid"

This pretty much sums up my life.

The fear, in reality, never really goes away.

The simplest things, 

things you would least expect, cause me to be afraid.

I get courage from this woman.

Elisabath Elliot was the wife of Jim Elliot.

They were missionaries to the Auca/Whodani tribe in the Ecuadorian Jungle.

Jim and four others were speared to death

 by those they went to minister to.

Elisabeth and her daughter later went back to the Auca/Whodani village after Jim's death

 to live among the people who had killed their husband and father.

That took bravery and a deep trust in God.

I am sure many times they had to do their missionary work afraid.

Yes, the fearful ones like me have to choose to do things afraid.

If not I would stop doing things at all.

I can't do that...not yet.

Cathy

 

rejoice with me today

The flowers that Lucy brought me have stayed so beautiful.

They bloomed in intervals,

causing there to be new beauty every morning all through this last week.

The colors are exquisite.

They are still sitting on my island bringing me joy.

Rejoice with me today.

God made these flowers with all of their colorful beauty and vibrancy.

If we are believers, we know this God who makes the flowers and...

He knows us.

Jesus paid the price with his blood so that we can be reconciled to God.

He doesn't hold our sins against us if we repent and believe.

Our life may be hard, painful, and lonely.

We may be barely getting by,

but our hope is the promise of eternal life in heaven for eternity with our God 

and the people we have loved and are separated from temporarily.

Rejoice with me today.

Rejoice in what we see only by faith,

and what we see by sight...

Lucy on my front porch with a big bunch of gorgeous flowers behind her back,

and a beautiful smile of love for her Gram on her face.

😍

"So be truly glad.

There is wonderful joy ahead,

even though you must endure many trials for a while."

I Peter 1:6

 

a gentle reminder

Every Government is responsible to God. 

No Government can expect to prosper without God's blessing.

JC Ryle

Vote and...

Pray for our country!

Our nation has turned its back on God.

I just went to "early" vote.

A couple of things...

1. There were a crazy amount of people voting.

I take that as a good sign!

2. The line was very long and the sun was very hot.

At one point about halfway there, I thought I was going to faint.

I didn't, but I still haven't fully recovered.

I think I needed water.

They provided big coolers with "free" water, but they were all empty.

I persevered and managed to vote.

I took my book to read in line.

That makes the time go faster, but I think that's what made me sick.

I had to stop reading.

3. There were a plethora of people over 75 who got to go to the head of the line.

I missed that honor by one year.

I'm glad that's done!

 

happy birthday gus #12

Gus turns 12 today which means we have had him for almost 12 years.

He was just seven months old when we got him.

We had his party yesterday evening.

He got a new bike.

He immediately took it outside for a test ride.

I gave him the camo 1/4 zip.

You can tell it's new because it still has the tags.

I made his birthday cake from scratch.

It got rave reviews.

I was asked to put this among our favorite desserts to be made again.

Buttermilk pound cake with caramel icing.

Gus is a fine young man who is set to be on the honor roll this semester.

He plays soccer, basketball, and flag football.

He is going to Romania in a few weeks with his dad.

David often treats his children with trips to interesting places.

He has good manners and a sweet, loving spirit.

He is a huge blessing to us.

Party setting...

It looks a lot like Fall at my new house.

Gus had "sparkler" candles which were a little hard to blow out.

It took him several blows to do the job.

We sang and wished him Happy Birthday before we cut the delicious cake.

I also made him a chicken-broccoli casserole.

We played lawn darts for money in the backyard.

We finished the evening watching him ride his new bike around out front.

Happy Birthday Gus!

Your Grammy 💙 loves you!

 

fall flowers

There was a slight knock on my front door the day before yesterday.

It was my Lu.

I knew she was coming because she had texted me.

She had a huge smile on her face.

One of her arms was behind her back.

She came all the way into my kitchen before she revealed her surprise...

the huge bouquet of flowers you see above.

Lucy is my only granddaughter and she showers me with love.

💗

 

11

Eleven years ago we went to a pumpkin patch over in South Carolina.

It was an extremely hot for October day.

In reality, we were all a big, hot, sweaty mess.

We rode in a wagon back to choose our pumpkins.

This is at the end of that experience...

Jake, the oldest grandchild chose the biggest one.

He at least glanced at the camera even though there is a bit of stress on his face.

Lucy, next to the oldest, is hanging strong, loving her choice, with a big smile.

Eli, 

(I'm going in age order)

Eli even at such a young age exhibits his now 15-year-old personality.

He got two pumpkins but is totally disinterested in what's going on around him.

(His brain is going 90 to nothing with creative ideas though)

Harry is a bit overwhelmed with the whole process

and would rather be running around.

Gus, who will be 12 on Sunday chose the most beautiful pumpkin.

(I'm sure he got some help from his mom)

I am so thankful for these very special memories.

Littles have grown up.

Jake will be 18 in May of 2023.

💗💙💙💙💙

 

special guest

There are only five actual people in this photo.

Can you figure it out?

David's friend is visiting Savannah this weekend.

We were honored this morning by his presence at Hope.

He taught the youth this morning and then brought the message for our worship.

What a huge blessing!

To hear of the work that God is doing through his ministry thrilled our hearts.

He is staying down at the beach at my condo.

We went down on Friday afternoon to take a few things that he might need.

It makes me so happy to share my place with others.

We went to Bow Ties after church.

Back to the first picture.

We are all on the deck looking out over the beach.

(some of us are)

(okay at the time this was taken only Erika is looking at the view)

There is a mirror at the far end.

Arch and Lu are caught in the reflection.

I did a pencil sketch setting and lightened the picture.

You can see me behind David taking the picture.

I love this picture!

A few more...

Walkway to the beach from my deck.

Here you can see where the mirror is in the first shot.

Views for miles and miles.

💗🏖🌴🐬

 

one more

I bought another beautiful pumpkin yesterday.

I'll show you where I put it in a minute.

This one is smaller but equally as interesting.

No two are alike.

I would actually love to have a truckload delivered right here to my house.

I could find places for all of them.

It's the color!

This newest pumpkin is sitting on my backyard patio.

Now I have a pumpkin on my front porch and one out back.

Perfect views from all over my house.

I have cut all of my gorgeous geraniums back.

They were leggy and the leaves were turning various shades of gold.

They had almost stopped blooming completely.

I really did a radical cutting,

They have already started to come back.

It had really become quite bleak out there.

That's why I needed another pumpkin.

That's all...no more!

Oh, sorry, I did buy one, just one of those mini pumpkins.

I couldn't resist!

Off to the beach again on this amazing Fall day.

I'll share more about that later.

🍁🍂🍁🍂🍁🍂🍁🍂🍁🍂

I wish they had a pumpkin emoji.

 

welcome here fall...

I am having so much fun decorating my new home for Fall.

Decorating for the seasons is one of my passions.

That's what I'm doing right now.

Along with the cooler temperatures and shorter days

come the golden glow of Autumn.

The golds, oranges, and browns are exquisite.

The nice thing about the paint color I love ~ Sea Salt,

(the color that I fought so hard for)

is that it goes perfectly with all of the seasons.

My attic is the best!

Plenty of room to hold the myriad of boxes full of tempting decorations.

And, there is workspace galore.

I can walk right in.

It is not too hot.

I kinda decided on this house because of that space.

Everyone agrees that it is perfect and encourages me in my crazy love of my attic.

The entry table belonged to my grandmother.

Hodie was her name.

I always hoped it would be mine someday.

It is perfect as the first thing you see as you walk into the house.

The lamp is new...

weathered.

Looks like it was found in an old barn somewhere.

It is so beautiful to me.

I am full of the joy of the Lord.

Thankful for His bountiful blessings.

My life now is quiet.

Plenty of time to read and study God's Word and pray.

Beautiful things are a blessing.

Old age is good.

Waiting for Jesus to come.

Hope it will be soon.

 

to the beach

Yesterday we went to the beach to check on things after Hurricane Ian.

It was one of those perfect afternoons...

the calm beauty after a storm.

It was clear.

We could see Daufuskie Island and Hilton Head perfectly.

The air was light and fresh.

It was super low tide.

The sun was in the west shining brightly.

My little beach condo was unscathed.

So thankful!

We made long shadows in the sand.

The sun does that in the fall you know.

The dunes were seriously eroded.

A lot of the sand ended up in the swimming pool.

The pool was closed so we couldn't go in and see for ourselves.

There will need to be a beach renourishment taking place soon.

This guy was very tame.

He was stalking a fisherman trying to steal his bait.

This little patch of marsh grows on the beach in front of the condo.

Green ball is a reflection of the sun.

Harry found a perfect shell.

When I mentioned casually that the storm may have brought jewelry and coins to the shore,

David set off to search.

David and Erika.

I'm so thankful for the time and love these two invest in me.