Bubba ~ 29 ~3 ~ 4

To this day I miss him so much it hurts.

💙

 

my most egregious sin

Our God,

the Maker of Heaven and Earth,

the Sustainer of Life,

the blessed Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,

made this beautiful flower.

I praise Him and thank Him for the beauty of His creation.

🌹

Psalm 112:7

People say...

"If only God would speak to me,

reveal His will to me,

tell me what decision I should make in any particular circumstance."

I say...

"Read God's Word.

It contains everything we need for life and godliness.

Do what He says,

Be obedient.

Trust His Word.

Lean not unto your own understanding.

He will direct your path."

I love the verse above.

My most egregious sin is fear.

I encounter "DO NOT FEAR" everywhere in God's Word.

He is speaking to me when I see those words.

He is telling me not to be afraid.

I'm working on this sin.

It's a slow process,

but this admonition is sinking in.

Look what Psalm 112 verse 7 says.

If your heart is steadfast, 

set upon the Lord,

If you are trusting Him,

Your heart is upheld,

You will not fear.

It's a promise.

God keeps all of His promises.

The problem is me.

My heart is not always "Set upon the Lord."

I let other things, things of the world, creep in and I worry.

Trying to keep my mind steadfast on God.

It's a constant battle.

 

so proud of harry

The answer to the last question is...

Because my sister Lucy works at Chick Fil A.

Harry and Lucy and Jake and Eli left for Youth Camp this morning.

They will be at the same camp,

somewhere in South Carolina.

Such a busy summer!

I, on the other hand, have a quiet week ahead of me.

Except for having yet another dental emergency,

I am looking forward to resting up and getting some things done around my home.

Can't believe this is already the last week of June 2023.

Time flies when you're having fun!

 

Hope children's summer camp is done

This is what happens to some of the men at our church on the last day of

Vacation Bible School.

Every one of the kids gets to throw whipped cream on a plate in their faces

and sprinkle color powder over their heads.

All of them were super good sports and even let us take a picture.

It was a week of fun, fellowship, and deep theological teaching.

God blessed every minute of this camp.

The kids were well behaved and no one got hurt.

Our prayer is that deep seeds of truth were planted in these young hearts,

seeds that will flourish and multiply as they grow and mature.

The workers left exhausted but filled with the afterglow of time well spent.

To God be the glory for all He has done!

😊

 

not keeping kids anymore

What can I say?

My house is quiet.

I didn't get up and fix scrambled eggs and bacon this morning.

I'm not playing Uno this afternoon.

No Chick Fil A uniforms to wash.

No one asking,

Grammy, do you need any help.

The kids are gone.

David and Erika and Gus and Archie got home from Israel yesterday,

and, of course, they wanted their children back.

There is so much to be thankful for.

Safe trip.

No one got sick.

No one fell off of a scooter and broke a bone.

I only took two "serious" disciplinary actions.

I won't say which kid was the recipient.

Somehow I managed to feed them 33 meals and keep the fridge well stocked.

We got to Vacation Bible School on time every morning.

God answered every prayer I sent up.

Here are a few memories...

Walter loved his bed on the floor.

I had a little lamp on a stool where he keep his water and his Bible.

In the afternoon when I rested,

he read his book and listened to stories here.

Shoes left in the foyer...

ready to go outside.

Riding the golden scooters is always a big hit.

Lucy painting shoes to be worn at Vacation Bible School.

The finished project.

Harry has read this book several times.

He left it with me to read.

He wants me to get inspired to start running.

He thinks I have lots of energy and would love it.

He warned me that the book contains lots of profanity.

Then he told me.

"Don't worry Gram, I blacked out every bad word."

Lucy went to the Farmer's Market at Forsyth Park on Saturday morning.

She brought these delicious peaches back to me.

Just picked!

Walter spent lots of time riding his bike around my neighborhood.

One day I found Walter's toy cars lined up on his bed.

He showed me each one,

inside and out.

Very intricate and well-made cars.

Interestingly,

you buy them at Kroger.

There has been no news from the bottle that we threw off of the pier on

Saturday afternoon.

I'm glad.

I want it to travel far.

 

day 2 vbs ~ tropical day

I wore my flamingo shirt.

It was truly tropical as we had strong storms and lots of rain yesterday.

It didn't damper our enthusiasm though.

The kids love it.

So do I!

 

first day of vacation bible school

This morning before we left for Vacation Bible School.^

I had to work hard to get Harry up from his night of slumber.

Walt had already spilled on his camp shirt.

(We all wore matching shirts)

but we made it on time and had a wonderful first day.

This camp is called Zoomerang.

It is set in beautiful Australia.

It gives the kids a basic understanding of...

The beginning of Life.

The Wonder of Life.

The value of Life.

Using your life.

Eternal Life...

All taken from the answers in Genesis curriculum,

I am always amazed at the level of excitement and willingness to serve at our church.

There is an eagerness to work together as one for the good of the Kingdom of God.

What an honor to plant and nourish the seeds of Truth in these kids.

I'm still "Keeping Kids."

It's become a way of life for me now.

David and Ericka and Archie and Gus are due home on Wednesday.

 

message in a bottle

Four years ago I found this bottle on the beach at Hilton Head.

There was no message in it,

 but there were small shells growing on the outside

and the bottle cap made reference to a "Havanna Club."

I brought it home and showed it to the kids,

planning to write a  message and throw it back in the ocean.

That never happened.

Evidently, it got packed up when I moved and was forgotten.

Recently I came across the bottle again while unpacking a random box.

Perfect timing!

We sent it on its way yesterday evening with a message and a five-dollar bill.

I cleaned it up,

wrote the message,

we signed our names and headed out.

I put the shells that had attached themselves to the bottle on its first voyage

 inside along with the message and the money.

We also wanted to let whoever finds it know that Jesus loves them.

We first ate at Spnakys on the beach and then headed for the pier with our treasure.

We walked all the way to the end which was heavily populated with fishermen.

Harry was going to throw it over but chickened out.

The Lu said she would do it and then she backed out too.

It was left to me!

I raised my arm,

gave it my best toss,

and the bottle with the message was back in the ocean.

It headed north, to Hilton Head back where it came from.

I put my e-mail address on the note and asked whoever finds it to contact me.

The last we saw of it, it was floating and bobbing happily.

We laughed so hard.

The fishermen were surprised and a little scared

when the bottle hit the water and made a loud, crashing sound.

It was high tide but getting ready to turn.

I'm hoping it was carried out to the jet stream and will travel a long distance.

We'll see.

I'll let you know!

 

sisters

My sister Teri came to town last week.

Her daughter Anna, and Robert, Anna's husband, bought a beautiful house in Savannah

and Teri came to help them settle in.

I was able to spend some time with them.

I always love it when Teri visits because, you know,

sisters are just special.

Even though she is 13 years younger than me,

we were cut from the same cloth.

We understand each other in ways no one else can.

We spent some time alone and some time with the kids I'm keeping.

I'm always sorry to see her go.

There's just never enough time to finish talking.

💗💗

The hardest part of keeping kids is feeding them.

I can't keep enough food in the house.

I almost need to go to the grocery store every day.

I actually thought Walter was enjoying our shopping event until I saw this picture.

He looks bored out of his gourd.

He was rolling the buggy,

fetching large items from low shelves,

and helping me make decisions like what flavor of lemonade to buy.

Maybe I just caught him in deep contemplation.

Who knows!

I always do self-checkout.

He got to bag my items, put them back in the buggy,

and roll them to the Tank to be placed in the rear.

When we got home he carried all of my purchases in for me.

I could get used to that!

I've had the kids for a week now.

David and Erika are due home on Wednesday.

Vacation Bible School starts on Monday.

I'm helping with snacks.

Hope I hold out.

*Serve the Lord with gladness.

 

blogging ~ keeping kids

Ordinarily, one of the greatest parts of my day

 is sitting down at my computer in the middle of the afternoon to write my blog. 

Since I've been keeping kids, 

the greatest part of my afternoon is sitting down and taking a rest break.

I have morphed into a short-order cook,

a daily washer of Chick Fil A uniforms,

a player of games,

a shuttler of Harry to run,

a watcher of scooter races.

There is a lot of listening to foolishness 

and the occasional opportunity for a deep theological discussion.

Yesterday at lunch we talked about the Rapture.

I read the little bit we know about it from I Thessalonians and they were intrigued.

There is no part of my daily existence that is the same as it was on Friday of last week!

I am a better person than I was then simply by fostering these kids.

They are full of life and they keep me laughing.

It is such an honor to be their Grammy.

Lucy and the boys just came through the door with an armful of flowers and some chocolate candy.

She took them over to our church this morning to prep for VBS next week

I had my infusion today and they knew I wasn't feeling great. 

They showered me with these blessings.

My grandchildren are God's gift to me.

They are love in action.

Thankful!

💗

 

day one ~ keeping kids

This morning,

after I fed them breakfast and before I fed them lunch,

I put Harry and Walter to work in my yard.

My neighbor had some trees cut down

which revealed how badly I needed to clean up a little bit in my own yard.

Mainly, 

 they cut down scrub brush and pulled viney things out of the trees.

I am thrilled with the progress they made.

Two great finds...

I discovered a beautiful Magnolia tree and some wild ferns.

I am hoping that by giving these beauties space they will grow and flourish.

The boys work for food.

Tonight I will take them to Cici's pizza.

They love it ~ I don't.

That's okay!

I got some very good work out of them this morning.

💙💙

 

bed & breakfast...

...lunch and dinner too.

Things are just before getting cranked up here at 124-B.

David & Erika are leaving on the night plane in a couple of hours.

Gus and Archie are accompaniying them.

They are going on an almost two-week tour of Israel.

Lucy, Harry, and Walt will be staying here with me.

I've got my fridge stocked.

I've made their beds comfy.

I have the kid's room set up for movie-watching and game-playing.

It should be interesting.

Am I ready for this?

Hopefully,

 this old set-in-her ways Grammy 

will adapt to two teenagers and an eight-year-old in my care full time.

I'll keep you readers informed.

I like the picture and quote above.

When you take the time to sit quietly and be thankful,

you realize how richly blessed you are.

No matter what's going on in the world, believers are safe in Christ.

He has given us everything we need for life and godliness.

God daily loads us up with benefits.

We have a future and a hope to look forward to.

Now,

I breathe a prayer for stamina, 

for a loving heart,

for patience,

for the opportunity to share Christ with these precious gifts for God.

I pray that I will be able to manage my anxious heart.

That I will not get angry.

I pray for safety on the road for Lu and me as we drive.

for the ability to play endless games of Uno with Walter,

and endurance to sit in the hot sun at the pool.

This is what Grammies do.

Just wish Bubba was here to share these times with us.

💗💙💙

 

seeing hearts...

Lucy pointed out this heart-shaped bush to me on our trip to Orlando last week.

Hearts are everywhere if you just keep looking for them.

"Though the tree should not blossom,

And there be no fruit on the vines. 

Though the yield of the olive should fail,

And the fields produce no food.

Though the flock should be cut off from the fold,

And there be no cattle in the stalls.

Yet I will exult in the Lord,

I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.

The Lord God is my strength,

And He has made my feet like hinds feet,

And makes me walk on my high places."

Habakkuk 3: 17 ~ 19

Someone very special sent this passage to me way back in 2008.

I made a note of it in my Bible.

I found it this morning.

I needed to read it and be reminded.

Everything is going to be alright because God is in control.

 

no worry mam, i'll get you there on time

This is the post I didn't write about my trip home from Florida a couple of weeks ago.

My flight left West Palm Beach at 8:00 AM.

I asked Amanda if we could leave her house at 5:30 AM.

When I got my suitcase checked,

 went through security,

 and got to the place where I was to board the plane,

 the sun was just coming up.

I snapped this picture and settled in to wait.

The plane left right on time for the hour-and-a-half flight to Atlanta.

I had a 45-minute window to make it to my connecting flight to Savannah.

Just to be on the safe side,

I asked for a transport to meet me at the gate and hurry me to my next flight.

We were a little late arriving because of thunderstorms.

Then I had to wait to get off of the fully loaded jet.

When I finally emerged there was no one to meet me and there was no time to spare.

I finally rounded up a chair on wheels and a guy to drive it.

"No worry Mam, I'll get you there on time."

We take off through the airport at a fast past.

He is yelling,

"Coming down the center with a wheelchair."

We get on an elevator and then a bullet train.

Back up to the concourse and down to the end.

He is still yelling...

"Coming down the center with a wheelchair."

I am hanging on for dear life and praying we'll make it with my falling out.

There are no sides to the transport chairs.

We didn't make it.

The door to the plane had just closed and they would not open it for me.

I missed my flight ~ my worst nightmare.

The nice transport guy took me to get my ticket changed

and then wheeled me to the gate for my flight to Savannah.

I was frazzled and felt all alone in a bad place.

Thankfully, I only had to wait a couple of hours and I was on my way.

The landing in Savannah was a rough one.

I thought we had dropped out of the sky.

But I was home alive and that was all that mattered.

Atlanta Hartsfield is insane,

but you have to go there to get anywhere.

Hope I don't have to fly again any time soon.

Rocky

The Hollinsworth kitty,

I 💗 him!

 

peonies

If I have but one day to gaze upon the beauty of this flower,

it will be enough.

I am just back from a trip to Sea World/Aquatica down in Florida.

Me and my family crammed a whole lot of fun into a few days.

We met up with Amanda.

We went to all of our favorite restaurants,

We even went over to Disney and spent an evening enjoying Dole Whip treats,

There was much laughter and hilarity.

It's what families do when they get together.

We remember old times and make new memories to talk about later.

All that to say,

we were packed like sardines into David's black Honda Odyssey.

Limited to one small bag each,

we had to pack small.

That's eight people and eight suitcases

There was a whole library of DVDs 

so that continuous movies could be played for the enjoyment of the kids.

Bags of snacks, large water bottles, purses, and carry-ons.

Crazy huh?

Yesterday we stopped in Jacksonville on our way back home.

We ate at PF Changs and did a little shopping.

When it was time to leave I noticed a big bouquet of peonies.

They were standing upright along with all of our baggage and added shopping bags.

They were for me,

bought at Trader Joe's before we left Orlando.

I don't know how they survived but they made it home and are thriving.

So thankful for my family, and big bouquets of flowers and trips and laughter!