Home Safe and Sound

Ryan made it back to Cincinnati about 5:30 a.m. Monday, safe and sound. Thank the Lord.

Does ANYONE Read Blogs Anymore?

Just wondering if people read blogs anymore, since everyone seems to be so involved in Bebo. If you do, please leave a comment, so I know to continue working with my blog. I love to read others and do my best to comment. Just wondering what your thoughts are... Leave me a comment.

Ryan Made It!

Ryan went to Alabama this weekend, with the Ministerial Student
delegation from God's Bible School and College. He went to two different churches today and had to teach a Sunday School class this morning for the teens and went to another church in the evening and preached. He has been very nervous about this weekend but the Lord helped him to do what HE wanted him to do and the students are now on their way home to Cincinnati. It is quite a long drive for them and they plan to arrive in Cinncinati around 5:00 or 5:30 a.m. Monday morning. I told him tonight that I will be glad when he is safely back in the dorm. as that is a long drive when you are already tired. Thank the Lord for helping the students this weekend and giving them the experience they need as they prepare for the various forms of ministry. These young people learn so much from weekends like this and it gives them more than they can even get in a classroom environment. Thank the Lord for HIS help!

Relax - Do We Know How?

Sometimes I wonder if I truly know how to relax and just 'let my hair down'. It seems that with today's society and the lives we live and the schedules we keep, it is hard to find the time to truly relax. Stress is a word that we hear quite frequently these days and it is not healthy for us. We find ourselves hurrying from one place to another and sometimes we just need to relax. I am working two jobs. I start work at 7:30 a.m. at Lenawee Christian School, as a secretary, and there is not much relaxation going on in my office. I am finished here at 4:00 and head over to my second job, where I am officially supposed to start at 4:00 (but they understand and allow me to come to work a little late) and I work here till 9:00 p.m. This will be my schedule starting Wednesday of this week, plus I work most Saturdays. The second job is working as a receptionist in a Tax Office in the mall, so this is only a 3 -4 month job, but it is still a busy season. I love the flurry of activity, but I need to find a way to relax. I have two ways of truly relaxing and you may find them strange, but I do puzzles and I play the piano when I am feeling overwhelmed. Before Steve died, I would come home from work and play the piano and he could tell by the way I touched the keys as to how my day went. We human beings do strange things, don't we? But we all have to find an outlet to serve as a pressure release, and mine is the piano first, then puzzles second. I trust you have a special way of venting and 'letting your hair down'.

Two Years Ago Today

Do you know where you were two years ago today? What were you doing? As I was looking through old pictures tonight, I found Ryan's January 15, 2006 file and was reminded that I was sitting at home, waiting for Ryan to return. It was a Sunday afternoon and we were going to be late for church. I knew he had gone somewhere to take a picture of a sunset or scenery somewhere but it should have taken him only a few minutes.

An hour later he returned. I asked him where he had been, as I was very worried. He said, "Oh, I just decided to take some pictures of the train tracks and then a train was coming so I decided to lay down on the tracks and get some pictures as it approached."

I panicked! "You laid down on the tracks?????"

"Yes, but I got up in time. I am fine. Besides, it is going to be a real cool picture."

Needless to say, this lady was not a happy momma but was I ever thankful that Ryan was safe. He wasn't worried about it. I told him that it was a good thing that I didn't know what he was doing and he assured me that he didn't tell me for that very reason.

"Kids these days!!"

I Believe Winter is Returning!

BRRRR!!!! Is it cold outside! I am even cold inside, so that tells you that I do not like COLD weather. I love snow. I love blizzards! But I do not like cold weather. If we get a couple of good snow storms, I would be happy to see spring arrive. I long for the time when we can put away our winter coats and open the windows. I guess I am dreaming. After all, it is only January 15th. It doesn't hurt to dream though. Spring's comin'... Good ole' Michigan.

School year is half over

It is so hard to believe that today marks the half-way mark in our school year. One whole semester behind us. I am glad, but it still seems impossible! Looking at it from the perspective of a school secretary, it is NICE when everyone is gone. I am able to get so much done. Here is where I work. It is called Lenawee Christian School in Adrian, Michigan. It has been a haven to our family.

Family Photos

I asked the boys to get their family together for a family photo and here are the results. I think they turned out pretty good. As soon as Ryan crops the big family photo, I'll post that one too. Considering they were so excited about opening gifts and mamaw was making them wait until they had their picture taken, I think they turned out pretty good. Enjoy

Family Time

Our family celebrated Christmas together on Saturday, December 29th this year. We wanted to wait until everyone was here and Andrew, Jennifer and the kids couldn't be here until Friday night. Everyone had a great time and my grandchildren had many lessons in sharing. It is hard when you are two and four years old to know that you can't open everyone's gifts and especially your cousin's gift. Seriously, they did excellent. They played very well together and it was a fun time for everyone. After the gift exchange we had our Christmas dinner together, with turkey and all of the fixin's. The girls helped to clean up the kitchen, then we decided to try something that none of us had been able to do yet and that was watch our home videos from when the boys were babies. This may sound like it shouldn't be that big of a deal, but watching pictures of their dad and hearing his voice brought back all sorts of memories. We all wish things were different but they are not and we will work to move ahead and make the best of a dark situation. We all considered this a part of the healing process and we were happy to see that we were successful in keeping ourselves together in viewing these videos. We reminisced and discussed some of the names Steve used to call us. Names such as "flame", "sir minus", "gomer pile", "Andy don't" and the list goes on. There is a history behind each nickname and without these videos we may have forgotten about some of them. We watched the boys all ice skating with the Arnold boys and just seeing who could go the fastest and scrape the most ice, pictures of their first birthday party, and saw lots of people who are no longer with us. Grandma and Grandpa Baughey were in a lot of these pictures. Fun times, for sure! Christmas this year was the best since Steve died (almost 7 years ago) and this has been one happy mom.