And then there was one

As you may recall, a year ago last January we made the tough decision to put down our Dino. He had lived with us for over fifteen years and had made friends with all the cats who came and went in our household. But his best buddy was the Cheshire Cat, or Ches for short.

Last summer Ches was diagnosed with diabetes. He continued to go downhill, and we knew that eventually we would have to make a decision.

Over the weekend, his breathing got much worse, and he wasn’t interested in his food. When I called the vet on Tuesday, they were able to get him in that day.

He is once again with his best buddy, Dino.

Ches was by far our most photogenic pet.

And sadly, poor little Emma is all we have left. 

Some Place I Know

A year ago, we sold my mom’s land to another relative of ours. On Memorial Day, Hubby and I had the honor of being invited out to visit that piece of property with its new owners. I was so happy to see them enjoying it – getting outdoors with the kids and getting them away from their cell phones and video games.

I couldn’t remember exactly where I had taken pictures of before, but I gave it my best shot.

May 2024

July 2017

May 2024

July 2017

May 2024

August 2018

May 2024

Aug 2018

They said they were going to put everyone’s hand prints on this rock. I thought it was a cool idea, until I saw the face on the rock. Hmm? Maybe a paint job would cheer him up. 

Someone I Do Know

 On Friday, I wrote about the last words that my parents said to me. My dad's words, I thought, were especially profound. "You are someone I should know."

Here's the really cool thing - when I die and go to heaven, all my loved ones who have gone before me will greet me and my dad will say, "You ARE someone I know."

And then you know what Jesus will say to me? "I know you; I have called you by name." Jesus more than just knows me as someone in passing, He knows me as someone He loves and was willing to die for. 

The Lord who created you says, “Do not be afraid—I will save you.  I have called you by name—you are mine. When you pass through deep waters, I will be with you; your troubles will not overwhelm you. When you pass through fire, you will not be burned; the hard trials that come will not hurt you. For I am the Lord your God, the holy God of Israel, who saves you. I will give up Egypt to set you free. I will give up whole nations to save your life, because you are precious to me and because I love you and give you honor. Do not be afraid—I am with you!" (Isaiah 43:1-5a, Good News Translation) 

Some of my husband's family - grandparents, aunts, uncles and his mom.
Five of them have been called home to Jesus. 

Last Words

 
My mom would have been 97 years old today. Hard to believe. But she passed away in February of 2017, a few months shy of her 90th birthday.

The doctor had admitted her to the hospital that afternoon because she was declining so much. I helped the nurse tuck her in bed before returning to work at the clinic just down the hall. I’m pretty sure the last words I said to her were something like, “I love you, and I’ll be back when I finish with work.”

I’m pretty sure she answered with something like, “I love you, too. Thank you for everything you do for me.” As if she hadn’t done more for me as my mother.

Two hours later, her doctor – the one I worked for – came out of his office to tell me the hospital had just called him to say my mom had passed away.

Quite the surprise, but I knew she was ready.

A few weeks ago, I watched an old episode of a TV sitcom where the character’s dad had died, and he couldn’t remember what his dad’s last words were to him. His dad’s death was even less expected than my mom’s, so why would he say something loving and meaningful?

My dad had Alzheimer’s, and it was getting more and more challenging to keep him at home. Mom finally admitted him to the nursing home on a Friday morning, and I went to see him that afternoon. He was happily pacing the hall, along with several other residents who didn’t know what they were doing.

When I walked up to him, his face lit up. “You’re someone I should know.”

I answered, “Yes, Dad, it’s me, Chris.”

He smiled, nodded, and then kept walking down the hall.

He ended up in the hospital with pneumonia on that Sunday and passed away on Thursday.

I feel blessed that both my parents had gentle words to say to me just before they left their earthly bodies. If any of your loved ones had less than kindness to share with you before their passing, please don’t sweat it. It’s life. But you might want to remember to say something loving to those you care about whenever you see them.

(The picture is of my mom and my sister Pat at my first wedding in 1985. I always liked this picture - they both look so happy. I can't remember what Pat's last words were.)

Turtles, turtles and more turtles

Last Wednesday, when we had that rare day of beautiful weather in the Northwoods, I took a walk with a friend through a local park, and we saw a few turtles.

Okay, it seemed like more than just a few. How many can you see in the picture above?

But I did manage to take pictures of things other than turtles.

And as nice as those shots were, I kept coming back to the turtles. How many can there be on three different small bodies of water within a quarter mile of each other? 

God is Always Fair

God is fair. He will not forget the work you did and the love you showed for him by helping his people. And he will remember that you are still helping them. (Hebrews 6:10, International Children’s Bible)

I know we all complain about stupid things sometimes. We argue that things are unfair, that we worked as hard as someone else, and they got all the credit. Or it’s not fair when a person we see as a bad sinner gets the better things in life, while we try to always do what is right and feel we have nothing to show for it.

And then we get so disgusted with life that we say that God is not fair. And we almost agree with a nonbeliever who says that if God were real, then there would be no injustice.

No one said it would be easy and no one said that life would always seem fair. But in the end, no matter how we see things, God is always just and always fair. He loves us more than we can imagine, and He really does want the best for us.

And, in turn, we need only love Him back and then show others how much we love them too.  

Another Day, Another Sale

Saturday, I attended another vendor sale, peddling my books and bags. The sale was just outside of Two Rivers, which is a two-and-a-half-hour drive for me. Somehow, I managed to get there early (I’ll have to write that down in my miracle book).

Seeing as I had a few minutes, I drove to the end of the road. The actual location of the sale was Two Creeks and was on Two Creeks Road and at the end of the road was Two Creeks Park. They don’t want to confuse anyone by changing any names.

Right on Lake Michigan, the park was very small, mostly just a boat landing.

But you know me, I can find a beautiful picture where ever I am.  

On a lot of my pictures, I tweak the color just a little bit to make it pop, but I didn’t need to do that on this picture. Isn’t the color of the water amazing?

Then I turned around and there were all these pelicans in the water.

I got back to the sale and set up in plenty of time. Overall, it was a very nice day
 

Thank you to the women who helped coordinate the sale and to all the other vendors who were so friendly. 

Happy Mother's Day

             If you can find a truly good wife, she is worth more than precious gems!

She is a woman of strength and dignity and has no fear of old age. When she speaks, her words are wise, and kindness is the rule for everything she says. She watches carefully all that goes on throughout her household and is never lazy. Her children stand and bless her; so does her husband. He praises her with these words: “There are many fine women in the world, but you are the best of them all!”

Charm can be deceptive and beauty doesn’t last, but a woman who fears and respects God shall be greatly praised. Praise her for the many fine things she does. These good deeds of hers shall bring her honor and recognition from people of importance. (Proverbs 31, verse 10 and verses 25 through 31, Living Bible)

There is nothing I can add to that. Wishing mother’s everywhere a blessed day today and every day. You deserve it!

My mom with my sister Pat and me in our pickup camper in 1967

Middleton Meanderings

After we left the Farmer’s Market at the capitol last Saturday, we visited the Mustard Museum in Middleton.

We walked around the main drag in Middleton for a bit. Naturally I found it fascinating, but restrained myself from taking a ton of pictures.

Then we ate brunch at the Hubbard Avenue Diner. Don’t you think it would be cute if they named it Old Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard?

These last pictures are from up on Capitol Square.

Hmm? I don’t think you have much choice but to wait for someone to seat you. 

Have a great weekend!