Uncategorized

  • Hello!

    I have been soooooooooo busy -- but who hasn't, huh?!!!!

    We had Steve's brother's, Mike from Washington, daughter come down to visit us from 9/28 - 10/4.  We had a great time with her.  Too short of a visit and clouded in  no so happy circumstances as my nephew (Steve's other brother's son) left for NY for college for at least 4 years on 10/4 as well.  Still -- we managed to have a great time with her.  We went to Knott's Berry Farm one day -- too fun!!  My girls spent some time with her at the beach and shopping, too!  

    Here are some much treasured pictures from our time with her!!!



















    Much fun indeed!!!!!!!!!

    This last week I have just been busy trying to catch up!!  My car has had a leak now since the day she came and I haven't been able to get it in because we are going going going...   Today I got my car stereo installed that Steve bought me for my birthday -- I just love it!!! It has been a year without a CD player in the car!

    Have a good week!  I'll try to update more often!
    ~Di

  • ...MORE...


    HAPPY

    49th

    BIRTHDAY

    TO
    STEVE!
    You are the love of my life!
    100% forever!


       

    For his present, I redid our bedroom
    (new picture, curtains and bedspread)
     -- before it was in reds and yellows and oranges...

     

    Here is the only picture I could find what it looked like before...

     



  • HAPPY

    43RD

    BIRTHDAY

    TO

    ME!


      

      

  • I was reading something today and I came across these quotes.  The first one was a really good picture of not letting busyness drive you.  When it does, we get the exact opposite of the peace we have in resting in God.  The last two are are about worry and stress and again, waiting on God.


    "PSALM
    23, ANTITHESIS

    The
    clock is my dictator, I shall not rest. It makes me lie down only when exhausted.         It
    leads me to deep depression. It hounds my soul. It leads me in circles of
    frenzy for activity’s sake. Even though I run frantically from task to task, I
    will never get it all done, For my “ideal” is with me. Deadlines and my need
    for approval, they drive me. They demand performance from me, beyond the limits
    of my schedule. They anoint my head with migraines. My in-basket overflows. Surely
    fatigue and time pressure shall follow me all the days of my life, And I will
    dwell in the bonds of frustration forever."

    ~ Marcia K. Hornok

    "When we fail to wait prayerfully for God's guidance and strength, we are saying with our actions if not our lips, that we don't need Him."

    ~ Charles Hummel

    "Anxiety is a mild case of atheism."

    The answer to stress, worry and striving - Wait on the Lord:

    "Prayerfully waiting on God is indispensible to effective service.  Like the time-out in a football game, it enables us to catch our breath and fix new strategy.  As we wait for directions, the Lord frees us from the tryanny of the urgent. He shows us the truth about Himself, ourselves and our tasks.  He impresses on ourminds the assignments he wants us to undertake.  The need itself is not the call; the call must come from God who knows our limitations.

    '...The Lord pities them that fear him.  For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust'

    - Psalm 103-13-14

    It is not God who loads us until we bend or crack with an ulcer, nervous breakdown, heart attack, or stroke.  These come from our inner complusions coupled with the pressure of circumstances."

    ~Charles Hummel

    "Only one thing is needed."

    ~Jesus Christ


    Much to think about...

    ~Di

  • ***EDIT***

    This just in from the American Familiy Association.  NBC will be airing a special where Madonna will be mocking the crucifixion of Christ.

    Please visit the link and at the bottom is an area to send a letter asking the NBC not to air it.  Please take action!!!

    http://www.afa.net/Petitions/Issuedetail.asp?id=215

    ***END EDIT***

    Someone sent this to me.... thought it was interesting and cute, yet so very real...

    Had a good weekend.  It was our church's men's retreat weekend.  Friday night I had a couple of Mom's and their kids over.  Saturday was a school meeting (which I didn't wake up for! Thank the LORD that my friend came to pick me up for it or I'd probably still be sleeping!!!) Saturday night over to another friend's house to watch the "Love Comes Softly" movie series (but we only stayed for the one).  When the men go on retreat we do not meet for church, so Sunday morning I opened our home for anyone who wanted to come over to worship and pray and encourage one another.   My dear friend, Sue, led our time together.  It was very special. I'm thankful that some of the ladies were able to come and join us. Some of them stayed afterwards and had lunch and the kids swam.  Sunday night the girls and Steve and I went out to dinner celebrate his homecoming! 

    Yes, a very full weekend with lots of fun and fellowship!
    Have a great week!
    ~Di

  • Someone sent this to me (below).  The purpose is to see that we are blessed even when we think our day is going bad - as in, here are all these things that slowed people down from going to work in the Twin Towers and therefore their lives were saved. 

    Although I agree with the point (that even though we are irritated with all these little things sometimes - we need to remember that we are always in God's care) I think a second point needs to be equally shared: that being that there were many Christians that died that day in the disasters.  And they all were equally as blessed.   They all are now with Christ.  My point being, even if our bad day ends up in disaster, God is still blessing us.  It is still good.  And not dying isn't always the best thing we can see in a situation.  Death is equally good.  Just very, very hard on us that are left behind.  But because it is hard on us, doesn't make it not good or that we should look at their deaths as being less than blessed because they were there.

    God is always good and His ways are always good.  He is the Good Shepherd that is always watching over us and keeping our foot from stumbling. 

    T h e ' L I T T L E ' t hi n g s

    As you might know, the head of a company survived
    9/11 because his son started kindergarten.

    Another fellow was alive because it was
    his turn to bring donuts.

    One woman was late because her
    alarm clock didn't go off in time.

    One was late because of being stuck on the NJ Turnpike
    because of an automobile accident.     

    One of them     missed
    his bus.

    One spilled food on her clothes and had to take
    time to change.

    One's     car wouldn't start.

    One went back to
    answer the telephone.

    One had a child that dawdled
    and didn't get ready as soon as he should have.

    One couldn't get a taxi.

    The     one that struck me
    was the man
    who put on a new pair of shoes that morning,
    took the various means to get to work
    but before he got there, he developed
    a blister on his foot.
    He     stopped at a drugstore to
    buy a Band-Aid.
    That is why he is alive today.

    Now when I am
    stuck in traffic    ,
    miss an elevator,
    turn back to answer a ringing telephone     .
    all the little things that annoy me.
    I think to myself,
    this is exactly where
    God wants me to be
    at this very moment..

    Next time your morning seems to be
    going wrong     ,
    the children are slow getting dressed,
    you can't seem to find the car keys,
    you hit every traffic light,
    don't get mad or frustrated;
    God is at work watching over you.

    May God continue to bless you
    with all those annoying little things
    and may you remember that you are
    always in Gods care.

    ~Di
     

  • Hi all.

    I haven't updated in a bit because I just haven't had much to share.  We had a great Labor Day.  We had a few friends over, swam and BBQ'd.  It was relaxing.

    Steve has lots of work. School is going well.  My house is clean.  My car is running. About the only thing not going too well is that a few of us are sick with a later summer cold and cough -- but not enough to slow us down too much.  Praise God for all of this -- we are blessed (always, but especially now).

    Well -- here are some pictures:

     
    This is a picture of my friends, Dee Dee & Rebecca, and I.  We were celebrating Dee Dee's 40th Birthday.  Not the greatest of pictures as it was already after 10pm and we were tired!

     
     
    Sad day for the girls... we took down the swing set -- it was 13 years old.

     
    The Unseparatable Three - Anna Julie and Sammi

    Gracie and Jazmine
    the warm, humid weather in July made our Plumeria's bloom quite spectacularly!!! I made the lei above for Dee Dee for her birthday from our plants -- I still had a hundred or more left on our 7 trees.


    Heather, Tessica, Jill and Nika

     
    The kids were playing, what I called, Popcorn (I guess another name for it is Round Robin).  Where you hit the ball, drop the paddle and run to the other side.

    I was trying to take a picture of my three friends. Rebecca, Julie and Donna, that came dressed alike -- silly Stan snuck in!

    OH MY OH MY -- you just have to check out my friend, zippyboot's, post!  They had BEES... Lots of them! Yikes!!!!

     Have a great weekend!!! Tomorrow is my friend, Rebecca's, birthday (that the one on the left above).
    HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY, friend!!!

    You can wish her happy birthday on her site (that she never updates!) http://www.xanga.com/eyesrwatchnu

    Well -- that's all for now.
    ~Di

  • A totally random thought:  I hate Times New Roman font.  Don't know why, but it just irritates me.   Funny how stupid little things like that can bother you -- I mean, they have no meaning whatsoever in the grand scheme of life, and yet.... there ya have it.

    God has been exposing the ugliness of my initial reactions to things.  It's like all I see is my sin and how dreadful it is. I have been in a constant battle over responding lovingly -- with a gracious and merciful attitude.  I know that this only comes through trusting in God for my good and the good He has and wants for me in every situation.  This is an ongoing conflict within me.

    The other thing is that things are effecting me much more than they used to.  I think that God has softened my indifference to the hardships of life (like with other people). Not that things didn't effect me before, it just seems like I am awakened to the amount of suffering going on around me and I find myself emotional and in prayer much more about it. I grieve for the things that different people I know need to go through, yet I rejoice because I know that it's all God and that God is ultimately glorified through it and in it as difficult and ugly as it may get. 

    Well, those are some of my thoughts for this morning. Hope you all have a wonderful week.
    ~Di

  • Yesterday I was sick all day -- don't know if I had a touch of the flu or something
    else --- so....

    I decided to make soup for dinner.  I love soup and I have been waiting for
    it to cool down enough to make it.  I made a huge pot of this great Italian soup
    with barley -- I think it's the best soup I've made in a while.  Everyone loved
    it -- everyone had seconds (except for Grace, but she doesn't like soup in
    general)... ANYways, I still wasn't feeling well but I ate anyways because I
    hadn't had anything to eat since breakfast. 
     
    So later on Val and I were cleaning up and she notices these eency-weency
    bugs on the counter, smaller-than-a-speck-of-pepper tiny --- we're trying to
    figure where they came from... they were all over the place as we inspected the
    counter closer....
     
    Then Val picks up the bag of barley and screams and drops it because THEY
    ARE ALL OVER IN THE BAG -- talk about blowing chunks -- I made soup with bugs in
    it         - my nausea took a turn for the worse!!!  lol!! We were careful not to tell
    Grace because she'd probably never eat soup again!!  rolf!!  So I tell Steve and
    ask him if he would eat it if I saved it for left overs --- no... and I couldn't
    bring myself to even think of it so I threw it out...
     
    HA!  Just when I'm ready to pat myself on the back for a job well done --
    BUGS! ahahhaahhahah!

    Have a good day!
    ~Di

  • Hello! We're home!

    Yesterday was an exhausting trip.  We got up at 5:30am to come home - got home around 3pm (left around 6:30am).  I came home, got out of the car, hugged my hubby, laid down on my bed and fell asleep!!  The kids and Steve unpacked the car.

    We had a good time!  It was a busy trip with lots to do, lots of visiting, etc.  Friday we arrived in Stockton to visit my counins.  We had a wonderful time there.  We stayed at my cousin Linda's house.  She invited all the cousins that were around over for dinner both Friday and Saturday nights, so we were able to have a lot of good fellowship there. We left about 9am on Sunday and drove over the Sierra's to my parents' home in Sparks, NV (by Reno). 

    My parents' friends, Leah and Barney who we camped with when I was a kid, were there for the few days we were.  The girls and I went on a tour of the Nevada Bowers Museum with my mom, Leah and my mom's Red Hats group on Monday.  It was very interesting. Tuesday my mom, Leah and myself and the girls went shopping at Target.  My mom had given Gracie a gift card for her birthday that she wanted to spend while we were up there.

    Wednesday was a quiet day.  Leah and Barney left and we didn't do much of anything.  Later in the day I took my two littles to the water park and then met my parents and the two older girls at a park near their home where a band had come to play. 

    Thursday was my dad's birthday. In the afternoon we went looking for crystals in the hills.  My dad's friend had told him about it.  We did find a lot of quartz in the form of rock crystals - but not anything else.  It was an adventure, though and it was a lot of fun. That night my older brother, Ken, flew in.  Poor guy, his flight was greatly delayed because of all the hightened security that started that day.
     
    Friday drove to Frazier Falls just outside of Graeagle in California (about an hour and a half trip over there) and went on a hike there.  It was very beautiful!!!  Then we stopped in at this little lake in Graeagele and swam and had ice cream... it was very nice.  Friday night my Dad was playing with his accordian group up at Galena State Park in the Mt. Rose Wilderness area. It was a bit cold, but a lot of fun!!!

    Saturday the Cerri family (my cousins) came to visit for the weekend, as well as my brother, Mike and his girlfriend, Janie.  We pretty much hung around the house that day, did some "swimming" in my parents' shallow pool/pond and had a big BBQ dinner. We did go over to Kohls for a while and shop some during the day, too.

    Sunday was Ken's birthday. My two older girls and my cousins two older girls went to go see a movie with him while my mom, Gracie and I went shopping (again!).  Mike and his girlfriend left in the morning and when we got back from shopping and the movies so did the Cerri's.  We had a quiet evening and then drove Ken to the airport to go home.  I packed up and went to bed as early as I could (10pm I think).

    A busy vacation, but lots of fun!  Here are some pictures:


    Me being silly!


    Julie



    Ellie


    Gracie


    Valerie

    These next pictures are from when we went looking for crystals.



    It was waayyyy hot!!





    This next set of pictures is from Frazier Falls



    My mom and dad








    Fun with the cousins



    Mike, Janie and the girls

    It's good to be back home!!  I start school with the girls tomorrow so I have lots to do!!

    Have a good week.
    ~Di