Granny Goose Arrives Today...

I am blessed to be an almost forty year old mother of four and still have my Grandma around. She is 87 years old and lives about two hours away. She takes the train up to visit our family when the weather isn't too warm and when she can squeeze it in between her exercise classes and day trips to play the slot machines. She is coming today. I am really looking forward to spending time with her. The kids are going to be home quite a bit this week and she will even get to see her oldest great-granddaughter sing in her high school choir event on Thursday. Her family is truly her life, she will love it.

My grandma is a really funny character. She is pretty much deaf but still insists that she can hear everything you say. Our visit is one never-ending game of 'telephone'. Do you remember that game as a kid? It was my favorite...you would sit in a circle and whisper something in your neighbors ear and then whisper what you heard to the person on the other side of you. By the time it got to the last person they would have to blurt out what was said, which was ALWAYS wrong but always so funny. Talking with her is alot like that. Once when my husband Paul was eating his favorite chocolate treat, he offered, "Mary, would you like a Ho-Ho "? With a shocked look, she quickly replied, "Now Paul, why would I want a Homo?"

Pray for us, it's going to be an interesting couple of days...

Friday Family Favorites: FALL

A precious Fall moment from a few years ago...

Long...but well worth it.

Those of you that know me, know that I have much to learn when it comes to waiting on God. My 'patience' meter runs on low more often than I'd like to admit. This devotion from my book 'Streams in the Desert' by, Mrs. Charles E. Cowman was a blessing to my heart today.

Be patient (that's the pot calling the kettle black!), it is a bit long for a blog post, but that has never stopped me before.
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Blessed are all they that wait for him. Isaiah 30:18

We hear a great deal about waiting on God. There is, however, another side. When we wait on God, He is waiting till we are ready; when we wait for God, we are waiting till He is ready.

There are some people who say, and many more who believe, that as soon as we meet all the conditions, God will answer our prayers. They say that God lives in an eternal now; with Him there is no past nor future; and that if we could fulfill all that He requires in the way of obedience to His will, immediately our needs would be supplied, our desires fulfilled, our prayers answered.

There is much truth in this belief, and yet it expresses only one side of the truth. While God lives in an eternal now, yet He works out His purposes in time. A petition presented before God is like a seed dropped in the ground. Forces above and beyond our control must work upon it, till the true fruition of the answer is given.

I longed to walk along an easy road,
And leave behind the dull routine of home,
Thinking in other fields to serve my God;
But Jesus said,"My time has not yet come."

I longed to sow the seed in other soil,
To be unfettered in the work, and free,
To join with other laborers in their toil;
But Jesus said, "Tis' not My choice for thee."

I longed to leave the desert, and be led
To work where souls were sunk in sin and shame,
That I might win them; but the Master said,
"I have not called thee, publish here My name."

I longed to fight the battles of my King,
Lift high His standards in the thickest strife;
But my great Captain bade me wait and sing
Songs of His conquests in my quiet life.

I longed to leave the uncongenial sphere,
Where all alone I seemed to stand and wait,
To feel I had some human helper near,
But Jesus bade me guard one lonely gate.

I longed to leave the round of daily toil,
Where no one seemed to understand or care;
But Jesus said, "I choose for thee this toil,
That thou might'st raise for Me some blossomes rare."

And now I have no longing but to do
At home, or else afar, His blessed will,
To work amid the many or the few;
Thus, "choosing not to choose," my heart is still.

THE REVOLVE TOUR "Let no one look down on your youth, but in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe."

A few of us moms got together and took our teen and pre-teen girls to the Revolve Tour this weekend. We had such a great time. The girls were blessed to see an arena jam packed with other young girls who believe in Jesus. The music was age appropriate (for them). Excedrin was passed around amongst a few of us moms. The noise of thousands of screaming teenage girls was enough to bring the house down. If you get a chance, try and go. It is a bit commercialized but the blessings of the testimonies by Christian recording artist Natalie Grant and Gold medalist Laura Wilkenson, and the chance for your girls to be around other Christian teens far outweighed even the longest on-stage commercial.

(The picture on the top is of my dtr's best friend Bridget and my dtr Meghan, at the concert. The bottom picture is of all us moms/dtrs before we left for the weekend.)

*HAPPY BIRTHDAY LITTLE SISTER* Oct. 21st

Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday dear Amy...
Happy Birthday to you!

I love you!

Are you a leaf or a stone?

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One of the most beautiful sights during the Fall season is watching leaves gracefully fall from their branches to the ground below. Gently they move whichever way the wind carries them, never fighting their direction or sudden change of course. God’s word speaks of the Holy Spirit as the wind. When Jesus spoke with Nicodemus he explained, “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Sprit.” John 3:8 nkjv

If only I would let His soft breezes and gentle winds direct my paths with the same grace as an autumn leaf. Thankfully, while running errands on Monday, for a few short hours I was a leaf too.

Like most days I had my list of to-do’s in hand. After dropping off our last child at school I had planned to drive into town and look for winter clothes for the children. While driving into the school I looked at the traffic heading back in the direction I needed to take to the stores. I became quite irritated. Like a stone I stood my ground and didn’t want to budge. A war waged in my mind as I talked back and forth to myself about the short time I had to accomplish all I had wanted to accomplish. This traffic just wouldn’t do. How could I get all that I needed to get done?

Miraculously, I decided not to take that route. Instead I drove the opposite direction along a windy tree laden road. As I got closer to my planned time of shopping, I realized that I was very close to my husbands’ office. Instead, I decided to let the road carry me to the freeway entrance that would drop me off only blocks from his work.

For two hours I enjoyed just being alongside him. We walked to the coffee shop together and brought back our treats to his office. My husband busied himself taking calls from clients, while I worked on my women’s Bible study. It was unplanned and unexpected and I thanked God for my detour.

Once I left my husband, I made it to the store. After an hour of hunting for the best bargains I took my bags and stuffed them into the back of our car. With most of my to-do list complete, I decided to take the back road home. This route would take me right past the exit to my sister’s house. My car seemed to know the way as it coasted into her driveway. I hadn’t planned a visit with her and thought it would be nice just to sit and talk awhile.

My sister Jennifer was busy throwing a baby shower for a friend. I was getting ready to leave when I saw my sister's mother-in-law Geneva amidst a sea of small children. I shared with her that I thought today would be a great day for a cup of tea…Geneva loved the idea so off we went upstairs to the secluded room above the garage. I floated alongside her onto my next divine appointment.

Geneva made us both two cups of lemon tea. It was delicious. We sat and chatted, sharing stories and heart-felt thoughts. I can’t begin to convey the joy I have in visiting with her. There is something so very special about a woman who has experienced many years of life. I glean off of the wisdom of women like Geneva. Time quickly passed, our cups were empty and once again the noises of the company beckoned below. I hugged her goodbye as I got back into my car and onto my next stop.

Driving again on a windy, rural tree lined road, I couldn’t help but thank God for the divine appointments I had had this day. I sadly wondered just how often I may have missed such delightful times as these by sticking to my own to-do list. Maybe from now on I should make a to-don’t list instead. At the top of my to-don’t list will be to stop writing in stone the things I want to do and start asking the Lord what things He wants me to accomplish in my day instead. I am tired of being a stone. I would much rather be a leaf and have His soft winds and gentle breezes take me to places where I have never dreamed of going.

What's Your Grade?

Being a Christian mother with children in the public school system can be quite a challenge at times. My friend Aly got to experience this first hand last week. At church Sunday when she explained to me the situation she had gone through, I was so proud of her. But it was her response to her daughter that brought tears to my eyes. (Godly moms have that affect on me.)

Aly’s daughter Ely is in junior high and her oldest of three children. She is a beautiful little girl and quite the overachiever. Getting A’s in all her classes is quite common for Ely. When Ely shared with her mom what she was learning in one of her classes her mom made an immediate phone call to the school, followed by some very effective letters.

The curriculum in question,the study of the Muslim religion. It wasn’t just a broad overview with a few questions or a page of interactive study with some class participation. Nor was this study taught equally alongside other religions. Ely was to memorize and recite poems from the Qu’ran. This lesson also incorrectly taught the tolerance and peaceful nature of this faith.

Aly was irate, she has the life experience of growing up in Europe, and knows first hand the 'peaceful tolerance' of the Muslim faith. Her own brother is an officer serving his second tour right now in Iraq and emails her quite frequently. After her time with the teacher and principal, the teacher was responsive to the fact that in the face of tolerance of religions, the school wasn't being very tolerant with Aly's beliefs. She shared that she had been highly offended by the curriculum and made the point that the few sentences taught about Jesus and Christianity never included any prayers or the even the ten commandments. In fact those few sentences about Jesus were even incorrect.

After Aly’s phone calls and letters, and after a calm discussion in truth and love with Ely’s teacher and much prayer, her daughter is going to be doing a study on the geography of the Middle East instead.

The part of the story that touched my heart was what she had told her daughter in the beginning of all of this. Ely was aware that her mom would take her out of that class for these teachings and though she understood why, she was in tears about the possibility of failing her class and getting an 'F' for the first time. Her mother responded by saying, “Honey, if you get an ‘F’, I'll frame it. It won't stand for your ‘failure’, but for your ‘faith’.”

Chokes you up too doesn’t it?

The Stalker-Walker

This is my girlfriend and walking buddy Gina. Don’t let the pretty face and pearly whites fool you. When it comes to walking, this girl means business. She is a stay at home mommy to two beautiful children, but I personally think she has missed her true calling. She should have been one of those evil personal fitness trainers.

I thought I would share with you how this beautiful gal came to be known by me, as ‘The Stalker-Walker’

Walking is my favorite form of exercise, so last year when my walking buddy Carolyn moved away I prayed for another friend to take her place. A few months later my phone rang, “Joanne, it’s Gina. Hey, do you want to walk with me tomorrow morning?” Gina lives in my neighborhood and is a true blue dedicated walker. Neither rain, sleet, snow nor darkness of night will keep this woman from her daily walk.

From my car, I had seen her many times pounding the pavement when I would drop off my children at school. Her dedication really impressed me. “Thank you God, this is perfect.” Was my silent prayer of thankfulness, as I jumped at this golden opportunity. You see, I’m a very weak individual when it comes to exercise, I just can’t do it alone. Gina would be a great encouragement for me, just what I needed. (What I believed was God’s answer to prayer, has quickly become a real thorn in my side.)

After starting my part time job a few weeks ago, my hours were so late, I was too exhausted to get up to meet at our usual 6am time. I decided it was the perfect opportunity to take a break from walking for awhile. Instantly a thought came to mind. I had remembered, not walking...well, that just wasn’t an option for Gina…there was no quitting her. I quickly flashed back to the first time that I had tried to cancel our morning ritual.

I had awakened that morning to the sound of rain. (Well, I called it rain, Gina called it a sprinkle.) You see God knew what he was doing when he gave me this gal for my walking partner. She is a born and bred Midwesterner and California rain is nothing more than a gentle mist to her. It was 5:55am so I quickly dialed her phone number. I was hoping I could leave a message, unfortunately ‘The Stalker-Walker’ picked right up. “Gina, I am not going this morning.” I whispered into the phone. “Why not?” Her tone of voice demanded a good answer. “Have you looked outside? I asked her. “It’s raining, don’t you hear it?” I pressed. She quickly replied, “No, I don’t hear anything, and even if it is, it’s just a sprinkle…you won’t melt Joanne.” She said with a hint of Midwestern sarcasm. “I am not training for a marathon Gina.” I exclaimed. “…and we aren’t trying out for the 2008 Olympics.” I reminded her. She finally accepted the fact that there was no way I was going to budge. We hung up only after agreeing that we’d talk later to reschedule our walk. “Yippee” I thought, I had won! I skipped to my room and gleefully jumped back into my warm bed.

The next morning my phone rang, yep, you guessed it, it was Gina. She wanted to let me know that she walked without me and that she didn’t like it. She said that the trees weren’t very good company and that they didn’t make her laugh like I did. She then made it crystal clear that she wasn’t going to let me quit. (I couldn’t help but think of that scene from the movie ‘Fatal Attraction’ when Glenn Close tells Michael Douglas, “I won’t be ignored Dan!”) I told her that she was starting to frighten me and that I was thinking about getting a restraining order against her. She just laughed. I whined that I was too pooped to walk this week. Tired or not, Gina continued to call me everyday that I didn’t walk with her. It was then that I gave my darling friend the title ‘The Stalker-Walker’.

After many sleepy days plus the added guilt that my arch enemy the ‘Stalker-Walker’ heaped upon me…I finally changed my schedule at work. The two of us are now back to our old schedule of 0600hrs. Now, every cold dark morning when we meet in front of her house, I make sure to take a few seconds to tell her just how much I don’t like her. On some mornings I even threaten her, reminding her that I do have a husband who knows how to fill out restraining orders and that he would do it for me in a heartbeat! Bundled in sweats with a scarf around her beautiful face ‘The Stalker-Walker’ continues to lead me around the neighborhood, looking straight ahead, with an evil twinkle in her eye, she quietly laughs.

Friday Family Favorites: FALL

This is one of our family's favorite pictures of our lil'peanut Grace. It was taken a few years back and is now framed in our hallway. She is playing in the tree in front of our house.

Apple Crisp Showdown!

One of the most hectic times of day for me is the afternoon. After driving to three different schools, picking up four very different children I then bring my brood of chicks home and they cluck-cluck-cluck around me in our kitchen. As I try and figure out what to make for dinner, my children share stories with me of their day, a few pull out homework to work on at the kitchen table while the rest search like a pack of wild dogs for a snack to devour. It was during this time last week that my son David (13) asked me to make him an apple crisp for his class. Being the wonderfully attentive mother that I am…I forgot. My son reminded me by a hand scribbled note taped to my bedroom mirror at 10:30pm that the apple crisp was needed for school TOMORROW. Guess who was up at 6am making apple crisp?

Apparently my son David had a showdown with his friend Luke over whose mom made the best apple crisp. On the way to school yesterday morning I tried to convince my son that there was no way that his friend would ever admit that my apple crisp was better than his own mothers. As he stepped out of the car, with the piping hot dessert in his hands my son said, “Mom, I know that. I don’t expect Luke to tell me that yours is better, he has his pride mom. But there is a way that I will know. If he tells me that yours is almost as good as his moms then what he really means is that yours is better. That is how I will know.”

Everytime our family sits down to dinner, my son David tells me how great my cooking is. He usually says with a mouthful of food, “Thanks mom, this is great!” I am not exaggerating, he tells me this almost every night. I am aware that he is a growing boy and that his taste buds aren’t fully matured. He would compliment a Twinkie and Dr.Pepper as a meal, but my heart swells every time he says it. What a reminder to me of the power of a sweet word, a kind word. The Bible says in Proverbs 12:25 “An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.” My son is such an example of this verse to me.

So today I am including for all of you my famous apple crisp recipe for your Fall pleasure.

Oh, and just in case you're wondering...Luke admitted that my apple crisp was almost as good as his moms'.(David was thrilled.)

Joanne’s Almost As Good As Your Moms'-Apple Crisp
INGREDIENTS
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cups butter (I never said it was fat free!)
• 2 quarts peeled, cored and sliced apples (I use two kinds, fuji & Macintosh)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, oatmeal, cinnamon, nutmeg and brown
sugar. Cut in until mixture is crumbly.

3. Take half of the mixture and pat it into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking
dish.

4. Cover crumb mixture with apple slices, then sprinkle apple slices with
remaining crumb mixture.

5. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 to 50 minutes or until apples
are tender.

SPECIAL: extraordinary; exceptional, having a specific or particular function or purpose.

Our family spent last Saturday morning at the Special Olympics. We were invited by our friends from church. Their son Isaac was competing so we were able to watch him compete in quite a few events. We came loaded down with posters and with Doritos (Isaac's favorite), along with pom poms, Isaac had the loudest cheering section there. We watched as he threw a javelin, launch a discus and his skill at the long jump was second to none. This picture was taken when he received his medal in the 50yd. dash. We had just missed watching him run but got there just in time to see the medal being placed around his neck. His parents showed us the pictures they had taken before we arrived of Isaac running in this event...the tears welled up in my eyes. To get him to run is no small feat but with the encouragement of his brother Joel he earned a medal. The picture showed Isaac's brother Joel running along the outside of the lane, alongside Isaac, encouraging his brother to run harder and faster encouraging him to finish well.

I can't convey in a few short paragraphs what Isaac has meant to our family. For the past five years he has been our personal greeter at church. He waits for us to drive up while at the same time taking a head count of any of us that may be missing. He is the first to ask us what we had for dinner or what we are going to be doing after church. He will also ask around anyone (quite loudly) why we may have missed the Sunday before. He isn't afraid to ask anyone he meets why they don't go to church and is first to encourage others to thank God for their food before eating. He is quite an accountability leader!

Isaac is special. He has shown our family laughter and love beyond measure. I included the definition of 'special' in my title above because I have learned through Isaac that being labeled special is not something to be ashamed of. Being 'special' is an honor and a blessing from the Lord. Isaac is extraordinarily exceptional. He has a specific God given purpose in our lives. Through Isaac God will continue to show Himself faithful and through the laughter and love of this 'special' child God will receive His 'special' glory.

Mom Jeans

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This morning after dropping of my son at school I went down to the stores to shop for some jeans. Rarely do I ever shop for clothes. I am not what you call a fashionista by any sense of the imagination. I purchase clothes on a 'need to' not 'want to' basis. Maybe it is an in herited trait passed down from my mother. She would purchase something new only for weddings or funerals. I am not attending neither a wedding nor a funeral so this really felt like indulgant shopping. While perusing the racks at Ross I found my DNA causing guilty thoughts to pop into my head. "How can you be shopping for jeans when Grace needs new tennis shoes?" "The kids don't even have their own jeans for winter yet." While these thoughts were still wreaking havoc in my mind, slowly I became aware of something else...my middle age.

Could it be that I have been out of touch for too long? How many different kinds of jeans are out there?!? Dark blue, acid wash, boot cut, button fly...the choices were endless. I finally found a few pair and went into one of the dressing rooms. What I thought were a light blue jean was not light blue at all. My vision wasn't as good as it used to be...another sign of my middle age. While looking in the three way mirror with these jeans on, I instantly became a rocker chick from a Bon Jovi concert. Those definitely wouldn't work. Next I tried on some cute Levi's, they fit great but the length was more for a 2nd grader. Were these jeans or capri's? I had no clue so off they came. Then I found them,the perfect pair, they fit great, felt good and looked pretty good on...but there was a problem. Their flaw? They were WAY TOO LOW! My belly rolls hung over the top like a woman who was having an early midlife crisis or a later in life pregnancy. Who in the world can wear these kinds of jeans? Certainly only a 14yr old...then why were they in the woman's section?!?


I couldn't help but think of a Saturday Night Live skit that I had seen that had cracked me up. It is called 'mom-jeans'. I have attached the video below.

Oh, and by the way...I never did find a pair of jeans.