Saturday's Scribbles

 

Good Saturday to you from our corner of Iowa where it is hard to define what season we are in.   The temperatures continues to stay in the 50's and Monday's forecast is 66 degrees?!? It's great for now but will not help the drought come Spring. 

Speaking of weather, Joel continues to ride his recumbent and has 90 miles in so far in 2024.  So unusual.   Joel took a trip to Minnesota on Feb 16 and came home the 18th.  His oldest brother is not doing well so he headed north.  Drove 15 hrs out of the 52 he was gone....plus visited with a few family members in several areas.    He was tired by the time he arrived home.  Still, a good trip!

Speaking of Feb 16th that was our son Mark's birthday.  I enjoy looking back and remembering when birthdays come around and his is no different.  We welcomed him home as our son when he was 5 months old.  He was a beautiful baby....in fact his birth mom gave him a Filipino middle name that means beautiful.  He was and is a gift from God and we are so grateful God chose us as his parents.  

Going back to Joel's trip, while he was gone my sister Janelle came and stayed with me.  We had a great time visiting....talking a lot!  Catching up on our lives and families, and watching Dateline together!  Ha....One weird thing happened while she was here.  I got up to go to the bathroom at 3:00 A.M. the first night and glanced over the upstairs landing to see the living room fireplace going.  Say, what??  I was trying to process it of course and thought ...How did that turn on!  If there was a burglar in the house they would not turn on the fireplace!  Eventually my foggy brain connected and I went downstairs and found the remote  (no one had turned it on for days) and turned it off.  I checked the doors and headed back to bed.  It took a long time for me to fall back to sleep...and I was extra grateful Janelle was here with me.  It has never turned on by itself before or since.  Of course when Joel was gone..,,right?!  Ha

Lent began on February 14th with Ash Wednesday.  We went to early services and gave thanks too for 57 Valentine's Days together.  

As I listen to George Winston on Alexa this morning I missed hearing my older girls play the piano.  They both took many years of lessons and the oldest has been teaching piano since she was 15.  Often on Sunday mornings I go to YouTube and watch live our oldest on Keyboard at her church.  We can be "stalker parents" at 3 of our kids churches for services they attend.  It was especially comforting when we were in the midst of the pandemic.  It makes us feel closer to them to "see" them livestream.  

Joel and I finished watching the documentary, "You Are What You Eat" on Netflix.  Of course it was biased for a plant based diet but the medical information gathered with sets of twins...some who ate a plant based diet in the study and some who ate a carnavore diet were pretty intersting.  I think for us it was beneficial to see.  When Janelle was here she mentioned how important getting enough protein is and where do we get it?  Joel and I did about 3 hours of research so far on own about how much protein the elderly need to sustain muscle mass, etc.  It has helped us to see where our protein is coming from daily.  Still figuring it all out but hoping the small changes we are making help our energy levels. etc.  

I am continued to walk most days, and writing a few posts on Facebook.  I will be getting a new laptop soon so I can get back to this book I am writing. 

Speaking of writing,  I was thinking about what I do when I feel my day has no real agenda.  I write.  BUT I also clean.  And I like cleaning bathrooms.  Crazy, right?  I just like making them sparkle and shine.  Silly me..........

TV this week consisted of a few Murdochs from Acorn, American Idol, NCIS for Joel, Antique Roadshow, and to much HGTV.  Our TV is usually off until Jeopardy comes on at 3....I keep thinking I will learn something from that show but I probably forget as much as I hear!  Add a few sermons or teaching from our favorite speakers, and an audiobook and time passes!

As i said before, it is forecast to be 66 here on Monday.  Amazing!  Strange.  and confusing to nature I am sure. Every once in awhile a day in the 30's shows up but otherwise we are breaking records up here in God's country!  

Time to close this week's Scribbles.  Hope you are all doing okay in youor corner of the world.  Grateful for our corner.  Grateful for George Winston, son Mark, TV, Ash Wednesday and Lent, Joel's safe travels and time with family.  Grateful for so many Valentines with Joel.  Grateful for biking,  walking,  and resting.   Grateful for Janelles visit.  Grateful for livestream, texting and phone calls.   Grateful for all this and more. 

Enjoy your weekend!

Saturday's Scribbles

Good Saturday to you from Iowa where Mother Nature is messing with us!  This past week our temperatures were in the 50's...one day 57.  That same day south central Wisconsin had a hail storm AND a tornado touched⁶ down in one county.  In the Upper Midwest!   In February.  Seriously messed up.  We are back to the high 30's now so a little closer to "normal".  The animals continue to be confused.  This week we saw our resident duck couple waddling around.  Joel told them to go back....they are two months early!  The lakes are no longer frozen, the grass is getting green and I heard that some bulb flowers are budding along with a few confused trees....Yikes!

Speaking of weather, Joel continues to ride his recumbent bike....in February.  A first.  He has been working in the office alot, attended a pastors conference, the churches Wednesday night gathering and today, Gabby Grandpas.  He got all the floors done in the house again, which is no small feat with the size of our house.  I have said it many many times...our house is too big for two people and the 1-2 times a year our family gathers here BUT it's comfortable, the neighborhood is good, and moving doesn't seem to be on God's agenda right now.  

This week the Iowa Services for the Blind called at my request and we discussed their services.  They teach people how to live without their sight.  They were not sure I would qualify now. ]  An assessment would be taken along with an eye exam.  Their program takes several months of them coming and going.  I decided that it is not for me yet, and hopefully never.  It was good to get the information, though. I had been hoping that they could help me with my laptop, lighting, etc.  BUT they only deal with services to prepare you for blindness. You practice being blind.   My response for now: No thank you.

Today would have been my mom's AA birthday.  She stopped drinking at age 58 and was sober until she died at age 92.  She was courageous in her battle and we are grateful and so proud of her.  I'm sure she's celebrating in Heaven. ❤️ 

Our favorite TV show is found on PBS...."All Creatures Great and Small" base on a true life story of Vet James Harriet.  We read the books decades ago and watched the original series.  They have redone the series now and it is fantastic in our eyes.  Nothing tops it for us and we are always sad the seasons are so short.

I did find myself watching "Jesus Revolution" on Netflix this week.  We saw the movie a year ago and I found it very interesting.  This was our generation....with the Hippies....and then through their seeking, the Jesus revolution.  It started in California and spread across the country and into other countires.  A good old fashioned revival but with barefoot kids seeking the more we all search for in life. The more that comes from only Jesus.  

Speaking of Jesus, Ash Wednesday is coming next week.  Lent is practiced by our denomination, among others. It begins with Ash Wednesday.  Some rituals are worthy of our time and focus.  Of course places like New Orleans have taken this time and made it into something more, something else.  We'll stick with these 40 days before Jesus death and resurrection.  A time of repentence, reflection, and spiritual growth.  

This week we had a long Facetime visit with friends....nearly three hours to catch up with their lives and ours.  It is nice to just use our phone to either use Face time, messenger Skype, or more to see who we are talking to.  Still fascinating to me that all this is right there on one small device that keeps us connected. What a blessing!

Speaking of blessings, we have much to be grateful for.  Grateful for warm weather in February, fresh air mid "winter".  Grateful for movies that make us think and focus us on Jesus.  Grateful for shows that make us relax and smile.  Grateful for biking, walking, cleaning, and shopping.  Simple tasks we take for granted.  Grateful for a phone that connects us to the world.  For all the ways to see the faces of those we care about who are far away.  So grateful.  Grateful for emails, texts, pictures, Facetime and so much more!

Enjoy your weekend!

Saturday's Scribbles

Good Saturday to you from our corner of Iowa where the temperatures continue most days in the 40's with a record breaking 54 degrees on Wednesday.  Our snow has vanished!  Joel actually got his bike out and rode a couple days. So strange for the end of January and early February.   What an unusual year.

I'm thinking the animals might be a bit confused too.  We've had a lot of deer in our yard and the squirrels are rambunctious!  I wonder if they realize how out of sync nature is..

Besides biking, Joel has been in his office working most days.  Editing his second book....getting ready to preach again....getting tax stuff together.   He took a friend to coffee this week and is at Gabby Grandpas this morning.   He loves his coffee and he loves to talk!  

I'm still walking indoors 25-30 minutes a day,  doing a little cleaning and cooking daily, and staying occupied with my phone!  Gotta love how easy it is to text and call...besides Facebook connections.   All in all?  A pretty normal and yes, boring week except for February 1st when one of our grandsons celebrated his 16th birthday and my sister Jan celebrates her birthday on the same day!  Jan is 11 yrs older than me BUT looks younger!  A beauty inside and out.   We have a history together that runs deep.  I took my first steps to her. She provided me with a home at times and nurtured my soul.  She makes me laugh.  She is a gift from God in my life and the lives of so many others.  

This past week God has been highlighting the parable of the Persistent Widow in Luke 18.  We have received the story, the scriptures 3x so far from different sources of our usual devotionals.  When God highlights, we pay attention.  Persistant prayer......Jesus tells his disciples....Keep praying, don't lose heart. And then he tells the parable of the persistent widow.  Yes...Justice will come to His righteous ones.  A family member is being greatly challenged and I had been asking God for a verse to stand on......Then this passage came.  It tells us justice for the righteous will come.  And our part in this?  Be obedient by being persistent in prayer.   We want to do more, right?  But we are called to persist in prayer.  We can do that.  

Speaking of that I want to thank you friends and family who have persisted in prayer for us over the years.  Prayer is a powerful weapon.  It has blessed us more that we can say.

I have little to share this week so will close with a few things I am grateful for today.  Grateful for a good report from the glaucoma check up.  Grateful for the prayers of others and the privilege to pray. Grateful for walks, talks, and texts.  Grateful for God highlighting passages for us to pay attention to.  Grateful for warm temps, good weather, and visiting deer.  Grateful for our grandson turning 16, and my sister Jan's birthday too!  Grateful for all this and so much more...

Enjoy your weekend!