Sunday Blessing

I heard a pastor this morning talk about the end times and that many preachers are saying the end won't come until the Christians in our country go through persecution like the ones in other countries.

In communist and Muslim run nations, the Christians are physically beaten, tortured, stoned, even beheaded, for their faith in Jesus Christ.

He went on to say that those who have left their homes and came to the United States, to flee from the persecutions, to live their faith openly, have a much harder time being Christians here. In our country, we face a much more difficult battle. This is not a battle which is fought on a physical plane at all, but rather a spiritual one: a spiritual battle they've never known. The devil is at work in our country's open society of homosexuality, nudity, devil worshipers, false teachers, lies, etc. etc. etc.

Ephesians 6:12, "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."

Each morning, the Christians, in overseas countries, know what battles they will need to fight that day, but here each one of us is in a very strong spiritual battle at every turn. We do not know what we will face each day. We are constantly being persecuted against, non-stop with deceptions and lies, and temptations everywhere, trying to destroy us, separate us from our faith.

So to my Christian friends, we must stay strong and keep our eyes on Jesus....

One Crazy Week

We have had quite a week. I'm go glad it's Friday.

Monday we had both of the youngest grandsons, ages 8 and 10. That wasn't too bad, love having them  here, except for the constant activity. One of them was always wanting something. It was just a busy day.

Tuesday Bob's cell phone died suddenly and he was not happy. He'd been carrying that antique flip phone for 4 years, it wasn't a surprise. He dug out the 2 used ones we had and he wanted me to see if I could activate the one he liked. They were old analog phones and I told him I probably couldn't, but I'd try. I spent 3 hours and 2 technicians from Verizon working on it! They both told me from their end the phone was programmed successfully. But it wouldn't dial out or receive a call. I kept telling Bob "it's the phone"!! Finally, 10 minutes later I had shopped on their web site, found him another flip phone and ordered it.

Wednesday Bob's new phone arrived. I got it activated then spent the next several hours getting it personalized and teaching him how to use it. It was another standard flip, but to him it was another complicated piece of technology. Need I say, my hubby is not very techie. We also had the boys again that day. Bryan, the youngest, was having a rough day and was in a bad mood. All he wanted to do was fight with his brother.

Thursday it was a day to run errands. I was on the computer answering an email from my friend in Riverview, FL. She's making her plans to come back up again next month and staying a couple weeks, just her. We're making our plans to get together and see if we can get into trouble somewhere. No, not really. We did that when we were young, but I'm too old to run from someone in authority.

Anyways, Bob was ready to leave so I cut my email short and got ready. After what happened later, I should have made him wait on me a little longer. The accident might not have happened.

We stopped in at a discount store, looked around for what we wanted, then left. We got out the car and Bob started to back out. No one around, except the lady in a van. She came flying into the parking lot, swung left behind us, to get into a parking spot in the other row and Bob backed into the side of her van. He didn't see her, and neither did I. We had just started to move, probably not more than 3ft. ..... the speedometer hadn't even moved yet. But if she'd stayed to her right as she was suppose to, she wouldn't have been close to our car at all. No... she does one of those wide turns like 18-wheelers have to do. She admitted she didn't see us backing out and she was in a hurry, had to be somewhere in a half-hour. We exchanged names and insurance companies. There was hardly any damage done to either vehicle, but Bob went out to get an estimate for insurance and came back with over a $500 repair estimate. It was just our back bumper, which of course is plastic. Just scratches that took the paint off. She has a slight dent right where the side door opens on her van. She called her husband right away and he came out. Bob got worried when he saw who it was (we both know OF him and his family's reputation) so Bob was sure this man was going to start pointing fingers. He looked angry. Keep your fingers crossed.

Friday (today) after a couple days of playing and setting up his personal preferences, I'm happy to report that Bob has decided he kinda likes his new phone after all. hahaha I am also happy to report that he's doing very well after his heart cath and stent surgery. He has been out mowing and just now got the yard work done. I've got the laundry done, so we're going to relax the rest of the day and recoup from the week's tension. I just finished making plans for tomorrow with Bob's brother and his wife to meet for dinner. That will be a good time with them.

I hope you've had a good week and are looking forward to a relaxing weekend. 

Until next time............ 

7/15 Hodgepodge

Another Wednesday... another version of Hodgepodge. Thank you, Joyce, at From This Side of the Pond  I hope you enjoy today's questions and my answers. If you would like to join in the fun, here's where you can find more information...... Click here

Whether your brain feels too full lately or not full enough, there's always the Hodgepodge to provide a little mid-week focus.

1. The month of July was named for Roman Emperor Julius Caesar. He's quoted as saying, 'Experience is the teacher of all things." So what has experience taught you lately?

Never let a hot curling iron hit your bare arm! hahaha

2. Where did you last 'roam'?

Around Walmart, trying to find something they didn't have.

3. Speaking of 'Rome'...pizza, pasta, gelato ... you can only pick one, which would you choose?

Pizza.... Super Supreme, with a cold Pepsi and a movie

4. 'Rome wasn't built in a day', 'All roads lead to Rome', 'When in Rome...' which 'Roman' idiom have you most recently encountered? Explain.

"Rome wasn't built in a day" ......... I have a tendency, when I start a project, I want to get it done as fast as possible. That's not always feasible. 

5. What's a movie you've seen or a book you've read, that makes you want to book a trip to Italy?

The movie, Under the Tuscan Sun. I loved the scenery and the architecture. I'd walk down those streets, browse the shops and stop in at the cafes. 

6. Walt's original Disneyland opened almost sixty years ago, on July 17, 1955.  Have you ever been to the California park? How about any of the other Disney parks around the world? What's your favorite amusement park ride or attraction?

No, I've never been to any of them and I have never had a desire to see them. When my twin daughters graduated from high school in 1989, they both spent that summer working at Cedar Point. Hubby and I made several trips on weekends visiting them and hauling their things back and forth. While they were on their jobs, we walked the park from one end to the other, many, many times.

7. It's that time of year...when were you last bitten or stung?

That's the worst part of summer. The bees and mosquitoes all loved me. I was always getting bitten/stung, so I tried to avoid them at all cost. Now, if I'm caught in their area, they don't seem to like me anymore. I think my medication might have something to do with that.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

Hubby and I have decided we need to get in some exercise, so yesterday we hooked the Wii back up and spent 2 hrs. last evening 'bowling'. It was fun. I beat him in every game, but he still likes me today.

Hope you have a great day.

A Lazy Sunday

Today is a typical summer day in Ohio. It's very warm, 82° and the humidity is 63%. When I step outside, I can feel the conditions building into a thunder storm. A good day to stay inside and just play hooky.

Yesterday we had a good and a bad day. Daughter #2 came down from Michigan. She stayed here so we could have a nice talk while her hubby went out to his mother's house to take care of some repair work at her house for her. Lori's 2, Hollie and Dylan, plus Hollie's fiance, came in a bit later to see their mother. Then When Grandson #1, Lisa's boy, came in they all decided to go out to Bob Evans to get something to eat. We had a great time.

Then we got the bad news. Lisa, daughter #1, was on a road trip with the group of friends (Babes Out on Bikes --- the charity group that goes out on motorcycles to raise money and awareness for breast cancer). They were all in southern Indiana when Lisa laid her bike over, landing in a ditch, with her bike laying on her leg. The gals were able to lift it off her and got her into town, where they had a cabin rented and were going to do a major fund-raiser. Lisa got some first aid on her scrapes and ice on her sprained ankle. She was banged up pretty bad, but thankfully no broken bones.

The group was down in the hills and often couldn't get a phone signal. That's why I wasn't able to talk to her. Finally, she got her husband on the phone and he drove down with the trailer to get her and the bike home. The bike had only minor damage, but she was more worried about it than she was about herself. They're all home now and she's pretty sore but doing well. As a mother, I was so worried, not knowing the extent of her injuries, and thinking the worse.

For more good/bad news, my cousin John has been battling liver cancer. He's gone through 2 rounds of chemo and the 2 spots on his liver were shrinking nicely. Friday I talked to his wife and she told me the 2 spots had shrunk enough that a surgeon in Columbus says he'll be able to operate and get what's left. The doctor is going to slice off a section of his liver then insert a chemo pump for the next several months. Everyone is trying to stay positive. The operation will be the 29th in Columbus. John and I were raised together and we're more like brother and sister than cousins. His father and my mother were brother and sister and very close. It's so hard to see John going through this, losing so much weight, he looks like a scare crow, only half the size he used to be. He has such a positive attitude that he might just beat this. Either way, I know he's in God's hands.

On a brighter note... ♪ ♪ ♫ ♫ ♪ ♪  You have a blessed day.

Friday, or is it Saturday?

Somewhere down the line I feel like I lost a day. It "feels" more like a Saturday. All day yesterday I kept having that feeling I'm forgetting something. Never found out what it was. For some reason, my whole system is screwed up.

This past week Monday and Tuesday was ok, fairly normal. Then came Wednesday. We had a clogged drain that needed immediate attention. Now, when it comes to plumbing projects around here, it's always best if I just make myself scarce. Hubby gets very touchy and usually loses his temper.

So, I went outside and worked on the flower bed out front. I did a LOT of bending and stooping. I felt pretty good and just kept working until I hit that proverbial brick wall. I had taken a few breaks off and on, but when I hit my limit, that was it. I had to come inside, cool down and re-hydrate. By then Bob had gotten his project done and he came outside to help me. I just watched. Our neighbor across the street came over and we talked to him for awhile, then I put my tools away and came in to relax. I was ok that evening. Actually felt good.

Then came Thursday. I had trouble getting out of bed. I rolled out my muscles hurt so bad. Then my migraine hit me. I was light-headed and had flying stars in my vision that I couldn't see very well. I didn't do anything but sit. After a few hours it cleared up, but I didn't feel like going to WalMart like I had planned. I got a load of laundry of done and by that time I was ok.

When daughter #3 finished with her last client at 7:30 pm, she wanted us to go out to WalMart and help her haul some new bicycles for the boys (ages 10 & 8). She ended up with 5!

The 2 little grandsons are going to have a big surprise when they get home from their dad's Sunday.

Grandson #2 bought him one to ride to work.

Teresa got her a new one for exercise and her friend Rob bought himself one to ride to work. 

We were able to put one of the 26" in her car; the other 4 went in the back of our van. Teresa lives 16 miles to our east, so we followed her home to put the bikes in the garage. Today she has to go over them and make sure all the bolts are tight.

Today I'm going back out to WalMart to get the things we need, then tomorrow Lori and Hollie (daughter and grand-daughter) are coming over to make the plans for Hollie's baby shower next month. I hope my house is going to be big enough for all her guests.

Well, now that I've bored you to tears, that's all I'm going to write about today.
I hope you have a great weekend.

Until next time................

Throwback Thursday

I haven't done one of these in weeks, so I thought today I'd scroll through  the oldies and find a picture.

This was taken in 1964. Bob and I went to my Jr.-Sr. Prom. Bob went to another school so it was quite an experience for me to show up on the arm of a guy from our biggest rival in football. But that fall, we beat them.

Hope you're having a great day.

7/9 Hodgepodge

Another Wednesday, and a beautiful Wednesday it is. And now we have another version of Hodgepodge. Thank you, Joyce, at From This Side of the Pond  I hope you enjoy today's questions and my answers. If you would like to join in the fun, here's where you can find more information...... Click here

1. July is National Anti-Boredom Month. When was the last time you were bored? What's your go-to cure for boredom?

The last time I was bored --- this afternoon. 
My go-to cure --- a book, a long walk, or go to WalMart to watch the people.

2. What's the last thing you made a reservation for?

When Hubby's father's health condition became terminal, we flew to Texas to be with him and we made reservations at a B&B.

3. What's one thing on your summer 'bucket list'? Any plans to make it happen?

I have no bucket list, for summer or otherwise. For me, it's one day at a time.... no plans, no expectations, no stress.

4. What's your favorite summertime sip?

Iced tea. Sadly I'm not allowed to have anything stronger, now that I've become old. hahaha

5. What do you find is the best way to handle another person's hostility and hopefully ease the tension?

Leave the room? I don't know. I can't say what I'd do. It would depend on the person and the circumstances.

6. Your favorite film set in summer?

Dirty Dancing .... I love that movie

7. What word are you using too much lately?

"What?" My grandchildren just won't speak up so I can hear them. 

8. Insert your own random thought here.

Summer is just getting started and already we're hearing about children being left in hot cars. It's so sad. Some of those instances the parent says they "forgot she was back there". Some are just stupidity. Like the story I just saw on TV. The child was rescued by another customer at a WalMart somewhere, didn't catch that. He and the story manager got the child into the store and got her cooled down. EMS were called and she was taken to the hospital. The parents? Well, they showed up 45 min. later, looking for their child, crying their heart out!!!

I get SO angry when I see these stories. I did see a good idea on Facebook the other day. For parents, when you buckle your child into their seat, put your left shoe beside them. You won't forget they are there.

You have a great day.