Start your day with a giggle!

Wish I had more videos of my girls when they were babies! If this doesn't put a smile on your face this morning...GO BACK TO BED! :-)

Who says I let the cat out of the bag?

Inspiration, Part 1: Writing Practice

Some of my earliest writing was inspired by my Grandma Lil. My Mom recently gave me a handmade (circa 1978) book I'd written about a baby and my grandparents from Grandma's things. The cover was made with a piece of pink construction paper folded unevenly in half. Sadly, I've never developed any more drawing skill than the stick figures on those yellowed pages. I have, however, improved my writing since the first grade. I have far to go, but I will never want to stop learning the craft.

I got lots of writing practice in correspondence with Grandma. She used to write the best letters! I loved to race inside from the mailbox with an envelope addressed to me in her meticulous handwriting. Reading the details of her days, I could picture her there in her big house, watching the turkeys and deer out the picture windows. She'd tell me how many eggs she'd gotten that day and if they'd heard another bobcat in the distance. Since she lived three hours away, I didn't get to talk with her in person nearly enough, but she made up for it by keeping in touch.

In turn, I'd write her about my days. I always started like this:

Dear Grandma,

How are you?

One time she mentioned that it was funny I started that way. I think it was about third grade or so. It made a lasting impression on me, because from then on I tried to think of more imaginative ways of starting all my letters. I guess you could say she was my first writing critiquer! She also used to chide me about my penmanship, but that hasn't improved much, either. (Thank God for computers!)

When we did get together, we'd play Scrabble, her favorite game. I don't think I ever beat her, but she taught me some of the weird words, like qoa. It expanded my vocabulary.

In the end, she couldn't write anymore. She'd never owned a computer or sent an email and I think she was proud of that fact! It was hard to see her deteriorating in mental and physical capacity. I don't know when the letters stopped; they just gradually tapered off.

She could read, though. I remember her being excited for me while writing my first novel. She told me I had to send her a free copy :-) I was about 25. (Still working on that first book contract, Grandma!)

Later on, I actually had some work published, but when I presented it to her, she curtly told me she didn't read anymore. That came as a slap because 1) it wasn't true--she read the newspaper every day. 2) She was the one who encouraged my dream of writing.

I knew it was because of her diminished mental state, a result of the strokes that took away most of her short term memory and affected her moods. The only thing to do was to remember who she was before she got sick and let the comment roll off my back.

That is why, years after her passing, I treasure my first book. I've tossed quite a few of my projects over the years, but the worn and yellowed pages she kept for almost three decades--a symbol of her support--will forever be part of my writing library. Thanks, Grandma Lil!

This is the first in a series of posts on people who've encouraged me in my writing. Whatever I achieve, it will be to God's glory first, then to those angels He sent to spur me along.

Where have I been?

As you, my readers, have already guessed...I have been doing something other than blogging. Whew! Is all I can say. It's been a heckuva ride. I'll blog all about it--another day. For now, if you'd like, you can read something else I wrote here.

Cat in a Bag

So funny!

I'm choosing not to participate in the recession!

And you can, too...

Guess what? Dave Ramsey's got a free event called Town Hall for Hope. You can attend via webcast at a location near you. More and more venues are signing up all the time, but you can click here for one in your area.

Mark of a Good Friend

Winter Jam 09

This weekend Doug and I took the kids on one of our surprise outings. All the way to downtown Nashville they kept saying, "Just tell us where we're going."

When we didn't answer they said, "I hate when they do this."

When we finally parked in the parkade, they said, "Oh, I betcha we're going out to eat."

Still, Doug and I didn't say anything as we walked to the Sommet Center.

The doors weren't open yet, but the crowd was pumped and lined up to the street. Mariah finally goes, "Is this a concert or something?"

"Yep." Doug's barely suppressing a grin by now.

Naturally, they want to know who's playing.

In his nonchalant voice, Doug says, "Oh, just Pure NRG, Toby Mac, and lots of others."

"Really?" They both shout. They let out whoops of joy. By now people are starting to stare. (And the girls are afraid I'll embarrass them in public--Sheesh!)

We bought them the rare junk-food dinner and found our seats just in time for the show to begin.

The concert was loud for the parents:




















And a time to get a little crazy for the kids:



















Except the kids who are too cool to get a little crazy:

Happy Braces Girl

Here is the long overdue picture of Katie with her new braces. This was taken the day she got them on. It hasn't all been smiles and giggles, but she's doing a great job taking care of her teeth. It'll be two long years with them!

Back in touch?

Guess who's getting braces?

Yep! My little Indian...

I can hardly believe she's twelve now. She's so excited! (And Doug says he should have been an orthodontist--that's where the big bucks are earned--lol)

I'll post a before and after picture when she gets them.

Ode to My Aunt Rubye

Okay, it's not really classical poetry. But I'm not a classical poet. It's January, I'm bogged down with work and have very little creativity left in my brain at the end of the day. But she wants a new post, so what can you do? (Remember I don't claim to be a poet!)

So...here goes:


Assiduous. That's a fancy word for hardworking.
Unwavering. She is one of the strongest women I know. Most others would have broken by now.
Naughty. In a really fun way! I got her as a babysitter when I was a child and she likes to break the rules a little.
Toot doot! Not that she would admit it, but still...I think her sisters and my cousins would agree with me.

Relishes time with her grandchildren--just like her mother.
Understands what it means to sacrifice for her kids and grandkids.
Bighearted. She's always doing stuff and helping people. She's got a tender heart for her family.
Yellow daffodils make her smile. One of the many flowers in her beautiful garden. She's definitely got the gift of a green thumb.
Entertaining. She loves to engage in silliness that results in pee-your-pants laughing. Once she used three of my naked, shabby old plastic dolls as puppets in her own rendition of "We are Family." If you're not old enough to remember that song, be thankful.

Note from the Library Guild: No actual thesauruses were harmed in the writing of this post.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Let it snow! Katie decided to adorn our mailbox with a tiny snowman.


Mariah built a snow bear in the back yard.


And after they got too cold, they watched it come down some more.



And, it wouldn't be Christmas without The Nutcracker! Here's Katie and some of her other ballerina friends from the show. Katie, Clara, and the Sugarplum Fairy.



Kitties love Christmas, and Rillian is no exception. The tree is his favorite. Soon we'll have the train up and he loves that, too. It's fun to tackle!


Here he is trying to make some Christmas music, but he can't get any sound out of this horn. Maybe in 2009 he'll learn to turn on the stereo--it's easier. Isn't my Christmas tree skirt beautiful? I made it a few years ago, and I still love it!



Here's the lobby of the downtown Hilton, where Doug's company Christmas party was held. Wow! Talk about a shindig. The whole night was incredible, beautiful, and magical.

Just in Time for Christmas

There are three days left over on Open Book for you to enter my latest book giveaway contest. Suspense lovers won't want to pass this one up!

Christmas Questionnaire- join the fun!

My Aunt JoJo put up another fun questionnaire. Comment and let me know if you answered it. You know the drill, copy and paste, erasing my answers, putting in yours, and yada yada.

1. 'Tis the Season to be? Cheery
2. Wrapping paper or gift bags? wrapping paper
3. Real tree or Artificial? Doug says artificial over his dead body, so... real
4. When do you put up the tree? mid-December (after the kids' shows)
5. When do you take the tree down? sometime after New Year's, whenever I'm sick of vacuuming up needles
6. Do you like eggnog? yes
7. Favorite gift received as a child? my first bike
8. Hardest person to buy for? My dad
9. Easiest person to buy for? My girls
10. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes
11. Mail or email Christmas cards? um, do I hafta?
12. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? can't think of one, unless you count that dreaded fruitcake
13. Favorite Christmas Movie? It's a Wonderful Life
14. When do you start shopping for Christmas? started making presents in July
15. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? no, not that I'll admit to online, fps!
16. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? homemade sweets
17. Lights on the tree? Yes--lots
18. Favorite Christmas song? Silver Bells
19. Travel at Christmas or stay home? stay home
20. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? yes
21. Angel on the tree top or a star? Angel
22. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Both--Kids gotta have new Christmas PJ's for the AM pics, right?
23. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Grouchy people and excess traffic
24. Favorite ornament theme or color? I need a theme? How about "The best of... ornaments through the years" I have one starting in 1971 and have gotten a new one each year. So have Mariah and Katie
25. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Turkey/stuffing, and let's not forget the pie
26. What do you want for Christmas this year? Healthy family
27. Who is most likely to respond to this? hmmm.... hopefully lots of people

Merry Christmas, everyone!

7 Things Meme

My Auntie JoJo tagged me on this, so here are seven random things about me:

One of the most frequent things I say to my kids is, "don't waste water." I can almost hear my Grandma Lil's voice in my head! She probably said it to me a few thousand times as a youngster :-)


I am never, ever eating ham and beans again. I was really, really sick (I think from a church potluck) on Mon and Tuesday and guess what I ate Sunday night? Yup. Many reasons to make it: I grew up on it, it's an inexpensive, healthy dinner, my husband loves it, but... YUCK. No way.

My most favorite Christmas memory is when I was six or seven years old. I got my first bike ever! It was sitting under the tree all shiny, white and blue with a butterfly on the banana seat. Even had a gigantic gold bow on it! It was the coolest ever. Grandma Lil was sitting on the couch when I got up; she had fun telling the story all day of how my jaw dropped when I saw it.

My idea of paradise is the Oregon Coast. I know there are going to be craggy shorelines like this with big, powerful crashing waves in Heaven.


I finally broke down and got a new cell phone. It flips open for easy texting! Should have done it a long time ago. (But I waited for an awesome deal.)

I'll be spending my first Christmas in Tennessee at our new home. Here's one of the resorts on the way to the Smoky MT. National Park. It's called The Inn at Christmas Place. Not that we're staying there, I just think it's cool. Maybe someday!

We spent Thanksgiving with some great friends who also moved from the Oregon Coast to Nashville this year. They served an amazing meal and played some incredible music for us. The top picture is Kim and Joe with Doug at the piano. Kim and Doug are playing a Sleigh Ride duet. The bottom picture is Steven and Spencer with Mariah and Katie; the boys were able to play some of their own compositions for us, as well as some more familiar tunes. Very talented, nice family!

More vacation pics

So where did I leave off? Ah, yes... the donut party on Halloween. Well, as you can see it got a little wild.



Ahhh... the smells of the ocean air, the waves crashing on the rocks, and seagulls sailing overhead. Man, I sure do miss that! Even on a grey and cloudy day, my heart soared to be near the beach again. This is near our old house. See the lighthouse waaay out there?



This is the table setting on the first morning of our stay at the bed and breakfast in Seal Rock. Talk about pampered! What a fabulous, relaxing time. Resting on the Rock is certainly an appropriate name.

This place is called Elephant Rock. You can't see it in the picture, but it's covered with pelicans this year. Apparently they had become almost nil on the Central Oregon Coast, but they're now making a comeback. Wish I could've gotten a better picture of these beautiful, graceful birds.



And here's another shot nearby, down the beach a bit. Isn't it gorgeous?



Here's Doug with one of the many special people at Newport Nazarene. Nine years ago, Doug was at rock bottom, broken and hurting, and Don welcomed him and showed him around the place. That was the first church he'd stepped into in years...and never considered shopping around for another one after that day. We weren't surprised that Don was the first one we'd see as we pulled in. He's still faithfully waiting to greet people with that big hug and exuberant welcome after all this time.

I have lots more pictures, but not on my camera... I'm hoping for some to be emailed, so if I get some more, I'll post them!

Happy Veteran's Day

This is my favorite vet, my Dad. From my youth, he taught me to honor the dead by serving the living. Ever since I can remember, he's worked at doing that by serving in the VFW. In Buffalo, where he lives, the VFW POST raises money through Bingo and concessions at the fairgrounds to help people in the community. They supply car seats and medical equipment to people who can't afford them and wake up early to put out flags on patriotic holidays.

Love you, Dad! Wish I could be out there with you to put flags up and down Main St. today!

A little love goes a long way

Our much anticipated vacation is even better than I expected it would be. Doug worked the Dave Ramsey Live Event in Portland this year, and we got to tag along! Here's where we stayed the first few nights...


Our first night with our wonderful friends, the Foley/Connor clan. Patti and Josh are making Bobobe (ba HOE bay), a dish they learned how to make while serving on the mission field in South Africa. Yummy!!

Naomi and Katie playing dress-up for the Halloween donut party. Mark and Patti made fabulous donuts while the kids tried on costumes, waiting for the guests to arrive.
One morning we went to help Naomi move and clean her apartment. We had wayyy too much fun! Patti couldn't just paint the wall white without showing off her artistic nature.

There's lots more to come, but this is probably enough for one post.

Happy Birthday, Doug!!!

Wow, forty-two years and I've gotten to spend the last nine with him. Am I a lucky girl, or what? Katie has quite a way of expressing birthday affection.


















As you can see, someone went a little wild with the decorations this year. Doug and I were gone an hour an a half to vote, and the girls spent the entire time taping up balloons and streamers.










































Doug was happy to get a homemade carrot cake (his favorite).

Here we are at Doug's choice of restaurant for his birthday dinner. Poor Mariah is put out that she can't have Tabasco sauce until she is 18! (It's the law, you know).

P.S. This blog is a few days late, but I'm so glad we got to celebrate all day Saturday!