Calvin

Keith and I are now dog owners. His name is Calvin and he makes me smile :-)

Christmas Joy

A few weeks ago, I was shopping with my parents at Menards. We made our purchases and chose a check-out line. The gentleman who helped us was named Bobby. He noticed my dad’s necklace and he and dad struck up a conversation.

My dad is pretty creative – he does quite a bit of carving, especially with shed deer antlers. The necklace he was wearing was an antler cross. Bobby asked how much he would charge for something like that; he sure would like to have one.

Today, my mom & dad went to Menards again to look for Bobby, but he wasn’t there. Dad gave me 3 different crosses and asked me to look for Bobby next time I went to Menards. I went there a little later in the day to buy some stuff for the dog and happened to be in Bobby’s check-out line. I asked him if he remembered my dad, with the deer antler carvings. He said he did. I showed him the 3 options and he chose one. Then he gave me a big hug and I told him Merry Christmas and God bless. He seemed genuinely moved by the act of kindness and told me to make sure I told my dad that he’d be in his prayers.

It was wonderful to share some joy this Christmas season with a stranger. I’m thankful for Bobby and pray that this small act helped bring the love and light of Jesus in to his hear this Christmas season.

Grandma

My grandma is 96 this year. Until recently, she'd been living on her own and doing really well. This fall, she had some heart trouble and had to have a pace maker. Since that ordeal, she's been living with my parents. She seems to be doing ok there, but her memory is a little cloudy. It is hard to see her fading, physically and mentally. She's been such a sweet constant presence in my life, and is one of my favorite people in the world. I love you, Grandma.

She was a good sport with our silly photos with "the head" my uncle got me for Christmas a couple years ago:

Me, mom, grandma, & Rachel:

We were trying to gather up the great-grand kids for a photo, and Emmett wasn't cooperating! I love how she's laughing in the background in this picture!
Grandma and my cousin Jenny's little boy, Sidney:
The whole family:

ice bucket

I've been wanting an ice bucket to use in our new house, but haven't wanted to pay for one. It is on the "list" of things we want to get eventually...just not one of the top priorities. I was browsing around the Goodwill thrift store recently, and found this lovely thing for 99 cents. I wasn't crazy about the colors. For less than a dollar, though, I thought it would serve the purpose just fine.

When I got it home, I thought I'd try to cover it with something. The bucket has an inside removable layer, so I hot-glued some fabric around it. I like this much better!

It still looks a little funny inside, but overall, I was really happy with the result!