I love Our Church!

Yesterday was just so fun!

We had such great discussion in
the Sunday School. There was
input from young people and
the eldest member alike.

Love that!

The service was good but I was
distracted and wasn't my best at
the piano. So, I am beating myself
up a bit for that....but it has to
happen sometimes, right?

There was an excellent offertory by
siblings, one on the piano, the other
with her violin. They totally blew
us away with their talent and the
beauty of the song.

After church a bunch of us headed to
a local pizza shop for lunch. We
nearly filled the place.
It was fun.

Then it was time for the rocket launch.
So many people came out. Usually it is
the die-hard rocket people, but this time
there were many children and young people,
ladies and men. Maybe it is because it wasn't
90 degrees and humid. Standing out in an
open field on a hot day isn't my idea of a
great time, either. But, it was so very
beautiful yesterday and we enjoyed watching
kites being flown and the rockets launching.


Jonathan had a great day.
He ran, wrestled, and went to
The Rabes' home for more fellowship.
He is blessed with great friendships
both in the church and outside of it.
Isn't that every parent's hope,
that their child would choose friends
wisely? Thank You, Jesus!






Courtney loves Rachel and didn't want
to leave her side. Aren't they cute?



THE rocket of the day.
Pastor Mike mounted a figurine in the
cockpit of this rocket.
The figurine came down with it's own
parachute while the rocket had one too.
A very fun surprise.




I never cease to be amazed at the joy with which our
young people interact with all of
the adults, with each other and
with visitors who come to the church.

God is blessing us!
I am Grateful.

Just so you know...Saturday evening I was
overwhelmed, feeling tired and thought that
if we didn't have so many responsibilities I
could have just stayed home. I am so very
happy that we are involved to the level that
made that not an option. I would have missed
out, BIG TIME, on a huge blessing.

Going Postal....

It was a very full weekend.
Full of friends and family.

Full of cake.

Chelsea had two birthday cakes!

What are we to do?
The girl loves cake...
and attention.

But the boys were the ones to make
us laugh this weekend.
What a blessing after Mikey's driving
test disappointment.

The idea of him laughing and having fun
seemed quite far away on Friday evening.

However, Saturday Warren replaced his Mom's
mailbox with a nice plastic new one.
The old one was metal and rusty with
a falling off door.
It definitely needed
to be replaced.

Anyway, I looked outside and saw Mikey
in his protective gear.



For good reason.
He and Jonathan were about
to play ball with the old rusty mailbox.

I think most sane mothers would have just
said this was a bad idea.
But, I couldn't
see the harm in it.
Why not grab the camera
and join in the fun?

Jonathan pitched...Mikey was at bat.



Jonathan was so cautious at first
that he didn't get it all of the
way to Mikey.

But he got over that.



Finally there was the unmistakable crash of
metal into bat. Ahhh...they were happy.

You know my theory on boys
and exercise...they NEED it!

It's not every day they can
legally smash a mailbox though.
Trust me, had there been any possible
use left for this one I would have
Freecycled it...but it was soooo bad.

So good clean fun was had.



Grandma Georgia left her weeding
and came to see what all of
the ruckus was about.



She got a real kick out of the demo
of this mailbox that has given her
such frustration for so long.
She couldn't even pretend to be mad
for the fun of scaring the boys.



To strike the final blows,
the axe came out.








It didn't
matter that it was the dull
end of the axe that was used.
Finally the mailbox was compressed
for its final disposal.



Only the door remains.





The mail lady is going to enjoy
this mail box so much more.



The "barn" on the right is
our box. Warren recently had
to eradicate a nest of ants who
thought it was a great place to live.

How icky it was to bring in the mail
and smoosh the ants as we did.

Who knew a post on mailboxes could
grow so long.
Well, it is not likely to be a subject
any time again soon.

Do you have any good mailbox stories?


♥♥Becky K.♥♥

My Talented Brother

Some time ago I showed you a couple of my brother's
doors. He and his wife built this house and he has
personally done nearly every piece of wood in the house.

All of the kitchen cabinetry, the baseboard, window
casing, etc. It is done to perfection...because that
is the only way he would have it.

He made these doors from scratch.
I love the sayings he put in them.




and...




This is one of the few pieces he hasn't sold.
I remember, as a teenager, loading up the car and
heading out to the Pennsylvania Arts Festival.
It was usually hot and humid.
We sat and smiled at the crowds as they admired
Allan's work. I was so proud. Maybe a bit jealous
that my talents didn't lie in something so tangible.


Over the years most pieces sold
but there are a couple hanging
around. We enjoy those and watch
Allan now pour all of that creativity
into his home. See the woodwork around
the windows?
He did it all from rough lumber.



The kitty is Tigger.
She is sixteen years old.
Unfortunately she is beginning to
look her age. But she is still very
sweet. Allan had given her to us as a
kitten. We gave her back as an adult.

I love to raise up kittens and then
bless others with them and rescue
the next kitty. I never try to force
pets on anyone, though. That would not
be nice for either cat or human.



Tomorrow for Outdoor Wednesday I
plan to show you what is happening
with these stones.

Yet another gorgeous project
at Allan's house.

Thank You, brother, for letting me
share your work.
I am so proud of you!
God blessed you...big time...
with these abilities!!!!

♥♥Becky K.♥♥

Blue Skies~View from a Hammock

A Blue Monday Post!




The hammock went up on Saturday.

I climbed in and enjoyed the view!












This inspired such an attitude of awe and worship!


So, there I was enjoying the quiet and peace when I sensed
someone had joined me...



Turns out she had crawled under me in the hammock
to avoid being noticed. When she stood
up her shadow alerted me to her presence.
She is convinced now that I truly do have
eyes on the back of my head! lol

Pretty soon, I was out of the hammock
and she was in.



How did that happen??

Well, I certainly enjoyed the blue, blue skies
and lacy leaves while I had the chance.

Had to share the view!

Perhaps next week I can start sharing
my blue beauties from inside the house.


For more Blue Monday Posts head over to Smiling Sally's
happy blog and check them out.

♥♥Becky K.♥♥

A Busy Week Serves as a Reminder

Busy Day in Dollville

We are having a busy week this
week as used to be normal to us.

Sometimes events all fall into
the same week of the month.
Such is the case this week.

Saturday morning was a homeschool
related breakfast.
Sunday was special
in that we installed our Elders and
Associate Pastor at church, had communion
and a fellowship meal and then had a
Congregational Meeting after which we
sat and chatted until 6pm.
Brought some friends home with us and
later went over to the Rabe's so Warren
could get their wireless working with
Deanna's new laptop.

Last night was another Homeschool meeting...
tis the season, I guess and then tomorrow
night is book club. There is a church
event on Friday evening. So...that leaves
tonight and Thursday without formal plans.

However, today is bowling and Thursday is
Homeschool Co-op...the last one for this
school year. I am making special plans
toward this for my classes.

There are obviously school days to complete
and candle orders to fill. One son to take
to work and another to Physical Therapy.

A meal to make for a very dear friend.
Sooo happy to do this. I even hope to
take them some of my newly conquered
French Sweet Bread to go with the lasagna
and Salad.

For this week these are our chosen
activities...next week will be back
to the sanity.

I cannot believe we used to live like
this all of the time.
What were we thinking???

Have you made any changes in your schedule
to save your sanity?

We have found our
communication with teenagers is much
better when we are not gone most evenings
of the week. They seem to appreciate the
stability.

So...once we are through this craziness...
back to the quiet life we have come to
enjoy.

Mrs. Rabe and I were talking about this
on Saturday as we went to an event together.
It is so easy to continue to pile on
responsibility of things that are good.

However, just because it is a good thing
doesn't mean that it is something that
should obligate us to it or take us away
from our families in the tender years.

It is so easy to see a once a month commitment
as no big deal and then end up with five
separate monthly commitments. Sigh...how
well I know this one.

So...anyway...this week is my object lesson
in keeping my commitments under control and
not returning to that craziness we once called
life.

That is the encouragement to be found here.
It is possible to let things go.
If we can do it...you can do it.
That is for sure.
Then, when you have the occasional week like
this, you can smile and say to yourself...
"Next week...back to the calm life."

Have a wonderful day and a peaceful week.

♥♥Becky K.♥♥

Dedicated to Lee - A Walking Miracle!

The pictures you will see from Busch
Gardens in this post mean the world
to us!

For the past four years our cousin,
Lee, has suffered from undiagnosed
pain in her feet.



This was debilitating
pain that felt as if her feet were on
fire all of the time.
Many doctors had given her their
thoughts on what was causing it.
She had endured painful surgery.



But, the pain was driving
Lee into a wheelchair.
She had no hope of
ever getting relief.



In fact, she had been
told there was nothing more
that could be done.




In September of 2008 through a series of
events that could only be explained as
led by the Lord, Lee was made aware of
one more doctor. He believed that he
would be able to help her.



She and Tim had endured many times
of raised hopes...
this would be just one more,
they were afraid.

Unbelievably though, an ultrasound of
Lee's feet showed large tumors in her
heels. Shots of Vitamin B12 were the cure.

One day Lee woke up...no more pain.
She felt the carpet under her feet for
the first time in four years.

Since September Lee has been relearning
to walk. After years of accommodating the
pain and then not walking her body had to
relearn how to walk properly.



We rejoiced in the fact that we could
walk all over the park. Lee could ride the rides
again and a wonderful time was had by all.




Micki does some modeling.
She struck a pose for me.
What a sweet girl...


We were undecided as to what to do for lunch since we were in the park for the entire day. The conductor on the train spoke very positively of the Crown Restaurant and said that the prices were reasonable. We wondered what that meant in the economy of the park.

Well, we decided to look and see.
Boy, were we glad we did.
In a place where you cannot get a bottle of
water for less than $2.69 this was a very
pleasant surprise.



We enjoyed a private room and a family style meal
that included fish, fried chicken, cole slaw, rolls, mashed potatoes, french fries, and homemade stuffing for $14.95 per person.
I know that is not exactly cheap...but for our
one and only meal of the day...it was a pleasant surprise.


When Chelsea posts, she wants to show you the Sheikra.
It is a very, very tall and intimidating rollercoaster.
She and Lee felt they had accomplished much, for different
reasons after riding this. It was scary!

We are off to Orlando for the remainder of our trip.
The boys are ready to come home.
Hope that changes or it will be a long week.

Have a great day!

♥♥Becky K.♥♥