The Bird Feeder

I asked for a bird feeder for Christmas. Didn't get one. Cary said he couldn't find one, wrong time of year. The reason I wanted one was because when I go visit Frank, he has one and we just love sitting and watching the birds. Frank knew I wanted one for Christmas, and when he found out I didn't get one, he wasn't happy. Now, let me remind you, Frank is 95 years old. He called me one day and told me he needed me to come by when I could. A few days later I made it by and he had gotten someone to take him shopping-yes, he still gets out and does anything he wants to, and he had gotten me a bird feeder. We got it put up last week, and I was beginning to wonder if I would ever see a bird. Today was the day! I first saw one, then he left to tell his friends and came back soon with one friend. I grabbed my camera, and I know you can't really SEE the two birds, so just trust me, they ARE there! I think they were just sparrows, but I think they will get the word out for me!

Red Sox Boys

Last week, I picked up Daniel at the airport. We had never met, but through connections, he came to stay with us for a couple of weeks before spring training starts for the Red Sox. We have loved having him around, and he just seems to fit right in. He is from California and hopes to make the team! We have another friend, Caleb who is with the Red Sox. Caleb has been around for a while and active in our ministry. Caleb has just found out that he had to be out of his apartment, so we are giving him Daniel's room-when Daniel leaves! Until then...the couch! We love having the guys around and Kaylee loves the extra big brothers!

MOG (Mother of the Groom)

I had my first Mother of the Groom moment today. I woke up to find an email from a very dear friend, Marcia. I shared Joshua with Marcia for a while till her first born came along. She loved Joshua like he was hers and made him mind like I did. She made him say "please" and "thank you". She probably kept me from suicide lots of days! She has done her share of praying for my boy. She has given and invested for many years. In my heart, I thought that if anyone, other than family, would make the sacrifice to come for the wedding, it would be Marcia and her family. Well, Marcia is flying in, just for the weekend and leaving her husband and three children behind. Somehow, the reality that she is coming just made everything real to me. I love my boy like I can't even describe, but he is the man he is because a lot of people did a lot of investing and praying, and God heard those prayers. I have a young man to be proud of because of the work God has done, and is doing in his life. Today was probably not my last MOG moment!

What Have I Been Doing?

Where does the time go? I THINK about getting to this, but somehow I just haven't! Jen and I have been very busy working on things for the wedding. We are really trying to stay focused here! Yesterday I spent the day organizing pictures so Jen can go through them for the wedding DVD she is making. Well, yes, it WAS a job, but it was also a sweet trip down memory lane! And, in the end, it feels so good to get organized!

I never even wrote about our mission conference. That was a couple of weeks ago...going on during the Holy Land decision! We were BLESSED to have a college friend of Cary's, Scott, to stay with us for the week. He and his wife, and three children are in the states for a couple more months before returning to Southeast Asia. We had the BEST week ever and SO enjoyed having Scott in our home. He was completely at our mercy...we asked a LOT of questions about what life on the field is really like. They are staying in Orlando while in the states, so we were even able to have dinner with Scott and Ellen on Valentines Day. Cary and I got away for a couple of days and just did nothing. Missions week is my favorite thing we do around McGregor and it was a wonderful week. I was taken back to when I surrendered to missions at age 12. Mom always said when I married Cary and moved to Florida that I might as well have been serving God in Africa, because I was just as far away! (She was in California!) A couple of years ago Cary and I were talking about when we gave up youth and moved into working with the college age. I asked what we would do next...Cary said we'd work with the senior adults-which I do now. I asked what we'd do after that and he said we'd probably go on the mission field somewhere. Well, you just never know what God is planning, only that He has the plan and THAT'S where we want to be.

On Sunday Cary left for Ecuador to plan the summer mission trip. I went to our first Holy Land meeting. WOW. I just wasn't expecting it. The room was so full of emotion, people that are going and have spent their lives dreaming about the possibility. We had a wonderful time together and look forward to ten days together in the Holy Land! I need to do a little shopping if I can find some spare time!

Jen's Shower

Saturday was Jen's shower. There was a great turn out and we had a good time. She got lots of things off of her registry. I have to tell you about my favorite gift. Kathy has always looked out for Joshua, and this was no different. This is the SAME Kathy that introduced my son to sugar cereal-against my will. She said it wouldn't hurt him... I think that's probably the root of any problems he might have. Jen unwrapped a gift from Kathy that was a Bass Pro gift card and chocolate bar! It IS nice for the groom to feel blessed too! I gave Jen a recipe book that I had been working on with Joshua's favorites recipes and family traditional recipes. After the shower we stopped by the craft fair that was in town. No big thrill there-we didn't buy anything!

The Holy Land

I have wanted to go to the Holy Land since I started doing Beth Moore Bible studies about 10 years ago. It just seems the more that I learn, the more I want to know and understand. Last year, for the first time our church offered a trip and I really wanted to go. Cary had some reservations, so we didn't go, but we've heard so much about the trip ever since. Well, on Monday, we were asked to go on the trip this year-which will be just a few days before Joshua's wedding! I was just minding my own business, trying to recover from the Super Bowl party we had at the house, when the call came. The trip is from March 31-April 9, and the wedding is April 12! Of course, NOTHING is more important than this wedding, so first I called Joshua, then Jen. Of course, Kaylee's opinion mattered too! Carissa has been planning to go on a trip in the summer, and has been saving her money to get there, so we had to tell her that we might be going before she had the chance to! I waited till the next day to call my sister and get her input. After getting all the details, within a 48 hour period, the decision was made. WE ARE GOING! We know it is the chance of a lifetime, and have a real peace about going. The attitudes from the people that mattered made the decision much easier! Everyone seemed to be thrilled and wonder why we were even having to think about it! My sister, Donna already has her ticket to come for the wedding, and she actually will arrive about 12 hours BEFORE we do! The girls seem to think they can entertain her for that long! It means I have to be very disciplined with my time and stay on task, so I have things in order for the wedding before we leave. I am very thankful for the opportunity to go-it was my grandmother's and mother's dream to go, but they never got to. Well, I have things to get done, so I better get busy!

Olanda Update

Recently, I got a "report card" on Olanda, including a new picture. She is the little girl I support through World Vision. She is now five, and passed to the next grade in school, and remains healthy! She drew a picture for me and thanked me for all the gifts I sent for Christmas. I started supporting her a year ago, in memory of my mom. Mom had been supporting the same little girl for quite some time, and when mom died, Bob took over supporting her. Bob told me last week that she had "moved out of the area" and they had assigned them a new little girl. It kind of made me sad that we have lost contact with someone that was so special to mom, but there's nothing we can do about it! It is such a blessing to be making a difference in their lives!