Happy New Year!

What do we expect in 2008? Health, wealth, happiness, contentment?

I read something that I would like to share with you. These are little things we can do to bring satisfaction into our lives.

Smile at a stranger; listen to someone's heart;
hug a loved one.

Tell someone you're thinking of them. Drop a
coin where a child can find it. Learn something
new then teach it to someone else.

Look a child in the eye and tell them how great
they are.

Don't hold a grudge.

Don't be afraid to say, "I'm sorry."

Look beyond the face of a person into their
heart.

Make a promise and keep it.

Call someone for no other reason than to
just say "hello."

Show kindness to an animal. Stand up for
what you believe in.

Smell the rain, feel the breeze, listen to
the wind.

Use all your senses to their fullest. Cherish
all your todays."

These are all things we can do, but most of all, we need a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He is the One who can do all things for us.

I would like 2008 to be the year that I draw closer to our Lord. I know that He wants to work in my life, and I want Him to be first place.

I think we all would like the fireworks to be spectacular in our lives, and they can be if we let Him lead us. That is my prayer for me, and I hope your prayer for yourself.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! May 2008 bring you all of His blessings!

Our Christmas Card to You...

May You Have a Blessed Christmas Day!

We wish we could spend it will all of you.

Love,

Mom & Dad

We wish you a Merry Christmas...

This is our wish for all of you....and by the way, what is a 'figgy pudding'?

Mary, did you know.....

Dad's elf name

Your Elf Name Is...

Sassy Sweet Cheeks

What's Your Elf Name?

Your Elf Name Is...

Giggles Helper

What's Your Elf Name?

Life has its ups and downs.....

Carol of the Bells

Carol of the Bells - Computer Controlled Christmas Lights from Richard Holdman on Vimeo.

It's About the Cross - A Christmas Video

Thanks to Lois for this site!
Let it buffer before listening!

Joseph's song

Here's one you should all be able to get!

http://www.sporcle.com/games/biblebooksold.php

Guess the Alzheimer's isn't here yet......

Get a Cash Advance

Can You Find The Place?

Traveler IQ challenge

Halloween Hangman

Here is another game!

http://dedge.com/flash/hangman/hangman.swf?a=300

I agree with Carole....EWWWW!!!

1,617,840How Many Germs Live On Your Keyboard?

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Life Goes On

Well, I thought I'd write a little on my blog today. It has been kind of an interesting week. On Sunday, our pastor resigned. They will probably be here for another 4-6 weeks, and then we will get to find a new man for the post.

They went to KC this week to enroll their daughter in college. I am letting the dogs out and feeding them in the morning. It doesn't take a lot of time, but just the time to do it 4 times a day. Maybe our new pastor won't have pets. This one has 2 dogs and 2 cats!

Lana, Chloe, and I went to town today to see Gloria. She was put in the hospital for some medical problems. Aren't you glad it wasn't for any other problems? She will probably be there until the weekend. For those of you who know her, she and her husband are moving! They have lived here their whole lives. It will be quite a change for them, and us! Who will play the organ?

Thursday, school starts. I am going to help in the first grade class again. It will just be Thursdays, from 9-11. Chloe will start kindergarten, and she is so excited!

The bathroom is done, the new cabinets are in place, and they are getting filled up. I don't think I have enough room, so I am getting rid of some stuff.

This past week I have run into, (not literally), two of the ladies that used to clean my house, when I could afford to have someone clean it. Lana told me I should ask for a refund, because it didn't take!:(!

Well, enough for now. Take care!

Lana-isms

Well, Lana and I were looking at a magazine, and in it Queen Latifah made the comment that she quit smoking cold turkey. Lana said she doesn't smoke cold turkey!

Our idea of a vacation, according to Lana is, get in the car, go as far and as fast as you can, stop for the night, at a motel, get up the next morning and do it all over again. Then turn around and go home the same way!

Our Weekend with the grandkids!

Well, we went to see the grandkids this past weekend. It is amazing how they are all growing up! Our little D is standing, and before we know it, she will be taking off after her sister and brothers! She just smiles...all the time!

We got to see the boys ride their bikes without their training wheels. They can really go fast! J fell a couple of times, but he was a trooper, and hardly cried at all. N can make that little bike go! We can tell that L is looking forward to being on a two wheeler, so she can keep up with her brothers.

On Saturday night, Josh brought over Kiana and her children. They were very welcome, and it was good to meet them. Her kids are really sweet too.

We all enjoyed the hot dogs and bratz cooked over the fire. Thanks Phil for doing that for us. The heat was terrible! All the food was good, and the chiggers got to eat too. I hope they really enjoyed all our flesh. We are itching!

We went to church on Sunday morning, and enjoyed the fellowship. Communion was good too.

P and T got to go on a DATE! Auntie C sent movie tickets, so they went to an afternoon movie, and G'ma and G'pa got to babysit. We all had fun!

On Monday morning, we had a special breakfast with Josh. It was good to spend some alone time with him.

We did find out that Phil can make wonderful cinnamon rolls. Thanks Phil!

We came home, and the cleaning fairy forgot to come! One of these days, the bathroom will be done, and I can clean.

A Page From Tesa

Okay, I don't know how to do the poll that Tesa did, but I would like your imput.

I want to paint the south wall of the kitchen. Should I do it a conservative, pale green, or should I go bold?

If bold, what color should I do it?

Give me your feedback.

Oh my, Oh my, Oh my....

Well, I was told I needed to do an update on the remodeling job! Are you sure you want to see what is going on?

What a mess we have! There is dust everywhere, boxes full of cabinets, lumber with nails, boxes of tiles, and did I mention the dust? (Does anyone want to volunteer to come and help out?)

Anyway, here are a few of the pictures!
The sewing cabinet is gone! New cabinets will be placed here!


Here is dad putting the finishing touch on the drywall. He now needs to finish the wall so he can get the paint on it. We are going to be really brave, and paint it..........WHITE!

In case you can't tell, this is the new shower he is working on.

It is a nice shower!





This is where the new toilet is going to go!

There is going to be a 4' light above it so we can use the time on the throne productively!

I also think we need a fold-down table so we can do our sudoku puzzles!








The old medicine cabinet is going back in this place, but the lights are going to be GONE!

We are putting another 4' fluorescent light over the new sink.









The guest room needs a lot of attention before we have any more guests!

Before we hang the pictures, I also want the hallway painted!









The living room-dining room have become the new storage warehouse!

Do you think we can have it done by our Christmas? If not, guess what we'll be doing instead of eating turkey?









This is the new sink! It will sit on an oak base, and I think it will be very nice.

Do you suppose we (meaning me) can keep it clean? We are using the same faucets.









This is the stuff I get to go through, and get organized in the new cabinets, when they get hung.

I think this is a work in progress, just like our lives! We have so much "stuff" to go through, it is hard to see the things that matter!

These are what matters to us!

Did I mention the DUST?

Is There an End in Sight?

Well, Vern has been working on this bathroom for over a week now, and it brings to mind the TV shows we have seen about houses being demolished, and rebuilt in a week. How do they do that? He told me today that the rain we have had is slowing him down. You just needed to be there to understand!

He got the shower installed yesterday, and is hanging drywall today. He used 7 sheets of drywall.

The sewing cabinet is walled in, and he has done some wiring. Tomorrow, we are going to Hays to look for cabinets on that wall. Hopefully, we will find ones that match the ones in the kitchen. We also need to get the stool and sink with vanity. He also wants to find the tile. I want white, that can be laid flat, with no "divots" to clean. I hope we can find a stool, with little, or no, little crevasses to clean.

I think we will be happy with it, if it EVER gets done.

Maybe, if we are lucky, it will be done by our Christmas! LOL!!!

Correction....

We read in the paper today that the driver of the car crossed the median, going east (south, if you look at a map)and went under the truck.

A Wild Time in the Ole Town Tonight....

If anyone thinks living in a small town is boring, they weren't in Mingo last night!



We just came home from going to the Mingo overpass because we heard about a terrible accident. We went to see for ourselves.

It looks like a semi lost it's rear dual tires:













Here is a picture of the wheels:









The tragedy of this is the car the wheels hit: We don't know if there were any fatalities, but we heard there was at least one.

As we've all said, we need to be ready when the Lord calls us home!







After all of that, we had a terrible storm. The wind, lightening, and rain started around 10:30. There was a lot of damage, as you can see:


Here is a picture of the roof of dad's shop.....again!
















What is left of Aunt Lana's fence!







This is where it landed!














As you can see, we had a lot of damage. We don't think it was a tornado, but probably a wind shear. Nobody was hurt, and we didn't lose any shingles! :)

Of course, I slept through it all!

First the mess.....

Well, Vern has started on the new bathroom. What a mess we have. Actually, it could be worse because he is cleaning up after each thing he takes out!

Can anybody guess what this is?
The answer at the end of the page!

I asked him a long time ago if we could remodel the main bathroom. I want a handicapped one, because someday we aren't going to be so young and able to do things that need to be done!

We plan on living in our house for many more years, and a handicapped bathroom may make all the difference of where we live during our "last" days.

He is putting in a shower that is on the 45 degree angle, with grab bars, a higher stool, with grab bars, and a new sink.

I am so excited about getting rid of all the old wall paper. It has been in that bathroom for 31 years, and I want it gone. We are also getting new paint and a new tile floor.

He is also putting in a 36" door, just in case we ever have to have wheelchairs.

I lost my sewing cabinet, but I haven't sewn anything for so many years, I don't think I will miss it. I hope the "U Save Shop" will have someone who wants the material and patterns that were in it.

This reminds me of what our lives are like when the Lord finally gets us. He has to clean out all the mess and make us new. He gets rid of the stuff that doesn't need to be there, and He makes us new creatures. Just imagine what it will be like when we are PERFECT!



{The Answer to the Picture: it is a mouse ladder! I wonder how many we have in our insulation throughout the house?}

Ahh! Home

It was so good to be in church this morning. We missed 2 Sundays because of our trip, and it felt like we were gone for so long.

Pastor talked about the Brotherhood of the church, and I can truly say it was so good to see the "Brotherhood" this morning. So often we take the people of our church for granted, and that we will always be able to see them next time, but you never know when our Lord will take one home.

It felt like we were "Home" today. How I love the people we worship with.

Thank you, Lord, for our Mingo Bible Church family.

P.S.

Well, I was told that I needed to add some details to our trip....so here goes. When we were at Disneyland, we should have taken advantage of all of the rides, especially the roller coasters. Here is a picture of the one we would have gone on, if we had gone on one!

This is the Big Thunder Mountain roller coaster!

If we had done what most people had done when they go to California, we would have seen...



Then we would have gone on to.....


After Hoover Dam we would have swung south to see....

The Grand Canyon!

Of course, we shouldn't have missed the....


Since some of you noticed the "bugs" on the windshield, here is the pictures of the scenery we should have taken....

The desert!

The beautiful lakes in the mountains!

However, here are some more of the actual pictures of our trip:

Dave with the twins!

Here is a picture of Christie, Gary and Sherry.

Christie and her attendants.

Christie and the Cinderella Carriage! The horse was found on an Amish farm, and pulls the carriage for lots of "Princess'" weddings!

Christie and her nieces;
Cara, Rosemary, Kennedy,
Chloe, Michaela and Courtney.
What pretty girls!

Dave & Jim

Linda and Lana at the Colorado sign!



Linda & Vern

And finally, here is Vern! He is plenty tuckered out after our long, but fun trip!

After the anticipation!

Wow! 3000 miles! 3 Motel Rooms! (all included breakfast!) 5 lo-o-ong days! (3 going and 2 coming home!

We started on Sunday, June 24. We went to Dave & Regina's for a "coming home, going away" party for Patrick. Lots of good food, and fun people. Patrick came home from Korea safely, and will now be deployed to Iraq in November. He looks good, and has learned a lot. We will remember him in our prayers.

On Monday, after a dental appointment for Vern, we headed west. We made it to Grand Junction, CO early evening. Had a good supper and went to bed! We were tired! (Our trip was just beginning.)

On Tuesday, we drove into Las Vegas, or the city of "Lost Wages." It was hot, and crowded. We drove down the "strip", but couldn't figure out if we wanted to stay in a casino or not. We ended up on the west end of town, and stayed in a motel there. They had shuttle service to the casinos so we decided we needed to at least see one, and maybe get supper there. What a joke! We ended up walking through a couple of them, found a place to eat, but it was so noisy, we decided to go back and get the car. Well, by the time we got back, over an hour had passed, and we were cooked. We had a cookie, and a glass of water, and slept on very comfortable beds with the best pillows!

On Wednesday, we got up, had breakfast and finished the drive into Los Angeles. We arrived at Aunt Sherry's about lunchtime. We had a wonderful visit with her, and also with the rest of the family as they all came over.

On Saturday, THE BIG DAY, we had a BEAUTIFUL wedding, in a beautiful garden full of roses, on a very HOT day in Disneyland! Christie looked every bit the princess. She rode up to the wedding in the Cinderella Coach! She carried beautiful roses, and looked so pretty. Roger looked pretty good too! I can't believe I didn't get a picture of the two of them, but maybe you can tell what he looks like in the dance picture. We pray the Lord's blessing on the marriage of Christie and Roger! That is a picture of Katherine with Christie!

The reception had delicious food, and wonderful music. The little ones weren't afraid to get out on the dance floor.

It was a wonderful party! All of the siblings were there, and we have pictures to prove it! If you look closely, you can tell us apart. Dave and Sherry are the thin ones! Left to right, Lana, Sherry, Me, back row, Dave (lost lots of weight), and Jim.

On Sunday, we started the trip in reverse. We made it to Grand Junction on Sunday, and home on Monday. We all did sudoku, and sometimes we think we are getting the hang of if! I guess we can drive to either coast in 2 days.

We saw the beautiful scenery God created. The mountains are majestic, and the desert is dry! We had a great trip, but we are really glad to be back home. That is the best place to be.

Anticipation!

Oh the anticipation of it! Do I have everything done? Is the laundry done? Is the house cleaned up? Did I remember to freeze the water so we'll have cold water? Are the maps printed out, and are they in the car? The Car! Oh, Lana took care of that. It is all serviced, tires rotated, and ready to go!

WE ARE GOING ON A TRIP!

We are leaving tomorrow, and there is so much to be done! We will be gone for about 10 days.

This morning we got our nails done, and our hair cut. We do want to look nice for our family. It is going to be so nice to see our siblings. It has been a long time since we have all been together.

Jim and Barb, and Dave and Regina will be flying. We are driving!

We are going to California to Christie's wedding. She is getting married at Disneyland! She is going to be a princess for a day! She is a sheriff's deputy, so she carries a gun in her job, and is probably ready to just look pretty for a day!

The trip takes us through the mountains, so we should see some beautiful scenery! The desert has its beauty too. We will go out on I70 and we will probably drive into Los Angeles on Thursday. Sherry is expecting us, and is so excited about our coming. We will be staying at her house, because they are all staying at Disneyland.

I hope we won't forget to live in the present and not the future. We need to learn to live today and not spend too much time in anticipation for tomorrow.

I'll probably not be able to write while I'm gone, but will post when we get home.

Another day on the journey of our lives!

The Sights, Sounds & Smells of Harvest

As we were sitting on the deck last night we could hear the combines and tractors going down the road. Wheat harvest has begun! We will be hearing the combines going until late into the night. The dust will rise and settle in my house! It does that all during the year anyway, but more so during harvest!

We see mostly the big green machines, but there are some red ones out there too. The colors are varied, as are the people who do the job of cutting this beautiful crop. It reminds me of the many different people that make my world so wonderful. I'm so glad we have colors, and not just black and white!

As we drive down the road, we can see the fields with the wheat. It flows like the waves on the ocean. It is so beautiful!

The straw smells so good. The farmers have big smiles on their faces as they anticipate getting the grain into the bins. They hope they can get it in before rain and hail have a chance to beat it down.

This time of the year reminds us of the passage in Luke 10:2..."The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that we would send forth labourers into His harvest."

How thankful we are for the labourers that are willing to get into the fields and bring in the harvest for the Lord.

The Monster!

Vern discovered Sudoku! It didn't take him long to get the hang of it!

I think we have unleashed another "monster"! I am going to have to hide my books! We even bought new pencils to work the puzzles! It is good that they have erasers!

The Lord has taken care of the "monsters" of our lives. He has the best eraser. He has erased our sin in the blood of Jesus! He has all the puzzles figured out, and we just need to trust in Him. We may not know what is coming in the next "box", but He does, and it all adds up just the way it is supposed to. His pencil is always sharp, and He doesn't make mistakes!

Our Trip to Denver

Our Trip to Denver

Well, we made another trip to Denver. It seems to get longer every time we go! We had to go for dental appointments. Sure do wish Paul would move here! He is so good, though, we still wouldn't get in to see him.

It was a hot day. Thank goodness for air conditioning!

Guess we'll make the trip again next week. Gotta' keep the tires hot, and use a lot of gas. Sure hate the high prices!

After the BIG Weekend

Well, this is the first time I'm posting to my blog! We had a big weekend with a family reunion, the Franz-Goossen families! There were over 200 people there, including all our children and grandchildren. We have 5 grand-daughters, and 3 grand-sons. We had so much fun!

It was so neat seeing so many different family members. We have such a neat family, and such a rich heritage. Both sets of Vern's grandparents were dedicated Christians, and so many of their family are too!

It is such a blessing to hear about Grandma's prayer to raise up workers for God's kingdom, and then to meet all the missionaries and pastors, as well as regular "church" workers in the family. The sun doesn't set on the family name. We have workers around the world!

Next time, in three years, it will be our turn to host the gathering. The kids are already excited about it, and I hope the enthusiasm will continue until we have a wonderful gathering planned.