The Snowmen — they are ready to go to the attic, all condensed and ready for their box as soon as I get it packed (Monday?) Still have two lone snowmen decs on the mantle where half of them were before —
conversation – (“NOT CHRISTMAS, MOM!” lol – she put the Christmas bow with them – “that’s not right,” as Ryan would say). Have to keep emphasizing that Christmas is the red, green, etc., and WINTER is white and blue and can stay up into March!
Bought these awesome bunny baskets – 3 of them for 3 kids – at Gabriel Bros. ($2 each!) Also bought the bunny hanger – loved it!! The hyacinth (I think that’s right) was from Ryan’s spring concert – think I can finally put it outside if it’s not going to freeze again? Also want to buy some daffodils and tulips in pots, to plant later in the fall.
Roger had his surgery on Monday, and after a brief struggle with temp and not feeling well from some infection he is finally feeling better today and is eating!! So hopefully he’ll be home in a few days. A new beginning to a new part of our lives in many ways – Roger with his body hopefully fully healed now from all the troubles he had from his gall bladder (this was related to that, from last year), and Ryan and Chris both adding new skills to their getting independent and ready to fly to what they will become, and Colleen getting ready to be a senior next year, with college decisions to make – wow. And then me, on to Kent State in August – to take my first two speech therapy classes, phonetics and hearing science. Another time of change.
Seeing examples with Roger’s surgery this morning, as well as other prayer requests we have had through the years, it is amazing to see how so many from God’s family come together in so many ways to pray for those in need. I am touched to know that individuals from two of the churches we have attended in our life, as well as other friends and family, are all praying for Roger right now at the same time, largely through the technological advances of Facebook.
Technology is a neat part of this for many people, where even people that may not be able to attend church right now can put a prayer request on Facebook, or even do something as simple as call a prayer line on the telephone and someone else then spreads the request technologically, and believers then pray en masse for that request.
Daniel 12:4
American Standard Version
”But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” Heard the end of this verse since I was a little girl, and we always interpreted it to mean that at the end times knowledge should increase – though this seems to have been happening for a long time, at least to my human mind. Wonder how close we are to what we always called “The New World,” when: (Revelation 21:4)
27 years ago I made a decision to be what at the time I was pretty sure was your life-mate, even though we were just starting to date! March 25, 1984 we went out as “friends,” but felt it, both of us, that evening, the fact that we were falling in love. I was actually dating someone else; you were not. I had dated someone else for about 5 months, and he was nice and very kind and generous, but there was something about you that drew me, like a spiritual connection.
We dated for 2 years, 2 months or so before we got engaged, and then we got married, one week after I got my associate’s degree, June of 1987. Never did we know what all these years would hold. What a wild ride we have had! Still you are there, the father of our three children.
I love you, and I pray for you as you have hopefully your last surgery for your recent troubles, next week, and pray that God will sustain you and give us many more years together.
What I’m interested in saying really won’t interest anyone.
That is really ridiculous, though, as even if no one else reads this, I read it. I do go back and look at these from time to time, and to see something that makes us smile, or brings a memory, or even makes us cry a little is worth sharing. Even for ourselves.
So, what have I been busy with? Well, school until last Friday (Now on spring break, working out of town with Rog) was very challenging (math!) and kept me busy nonstop. I was also working some at the same time. During the week break I am on now from that, as you can see by the pictures, we had a snowstorm, and I went on a trip to gather geographic information on Ireland (the obviously Irish pictures) and now we are on our trip out of town for work, and met our friends for dinner last night.
So I go back Monday, and need to spend double the time on math, as my grade is not so hot right now. I still have two months to bring it up. I will be also sending my computer back to Asus for some repairs before the warranty expires, meaning that I will be using Ryan’s computer for the necessities, but won’t be working during that time as I don’t have Windows on that computer, just Linux giving the availability of Internet for bill paying, etc., and open office if I need it. So I should get more math studied and completed with the addition of transcription projects not being an option. I don’t know how long the computer repairs will take, as I have never done this before!
Roger’s surgery is now pending most likely at the end of this month, where after almost a year’s wait he will finally have a cyst and hernia removed (they were hoping it would all shrink on its own with time, but it has not). Roger is probably about 95 pound lighter than he was in February 2010 when he went into the hospital with his gall bladder and related problems, and looks so nice! I think he’s passing me up with his weight loss <3. Prayers for him are appreciated.
Still looking for the proper residency for Chris – this is all taking so long it’s driving me crazy. He’s going to finish off the school year staying with his “mama” and “papa,” and then we’ll see if he’ll come home to our house as he still awaits his residency or I/O waiver caretaking arrangements, or what we’re going to do. He’s a sweetie. He stays at our house every weekend, sometimes sleeps, sometimes doesn’t, and still loves to laugh!
To end, I wish everyone a Happy St. Patrick’s day, and in memory of that: https://criscollrj.com/2010/03/17/miracles/. We will have our corned beef and cabbage dinner this weekend, as we will be out of town. I can’t wait! And a big thank you to our parents that are keeping up the ship at home while we are gone.
Yep, that’s a tiny example of that schedule, which I started in approximately 1994 on my word processor back then, to try and get organized with my housework. I would follow it in tiny spurts, and I even for a while had a following on an organizing site on the internet, in approximately 1998, where people said it was an awesomely successful schedule (maybe not those EXACT words, LOL), but they liked it, and followed it. I was temporarily famous.
I would like to try it again. It’s been about 5 years since I’ve attempted it, as I felt I would just be overwhelmed with it with work and school. However, maybe if I make an amended version like
morning:
if you pick something up, put it back
if you dribble on the counter, wipe it up!
and (Dorene) when you open the mail, PUT IT AWAY!
I have to stop stacking things. It’s driving me nuts. I don’t know that I’ll ever stop Ryan from dumping toys, or get Colleen to scrub the floor (without bribery), but if I could just receive my electric bill, open it, throw the envelope in the recycle box, and put in the bill file, my life would be so much easier.
I did make a place for my coat as we really don’t have a coat closet. See my basket – and I’m putting my hat, gloves, etc., there without fail! This is a step forward.
Now to see about redoing that schedule But first, back to studying for algebra test and then transcription.
First I must confess I did have to look up if the plural of syllabus was syllabi – and certainly it is. I wonder where I came about that certain bit of information in my head – I’m certainly not sure – but slightly pleased to know that was right. LOL.
Since 1999 I have had a cell phone – a bit late on that front, but there it is. At first I shared with my mom a cell phone plan where I had a phone similar to the one in the photo. A little bigger perhaps, it was still an amazing thing to us! We progressed to having our own plan by 2004, where at first Roger had Alltel and I had T-Mobile – our workplaces and the connectivity thereto was of upmost importance, and Roger even had to have something of a direct connect right after with Nextel. I also toyed with Sprint before we both ended up getting Verizon in approximately 2006, and even with a brief period with AT&T we are now back with Verizon, as for us now they have the best connectivity of the bunch.
As everyone knows, cell phones are everywhere, and everyone seems addicted to them. They are precious possessions, connections with the world, comfort for parents that children can instantly check in, and entertainment for some, and internet connectivity for the lucky! Yet they are accident causers, confusion creating (remember the first time you saw someone talking on a Bluetooth?) and sometimes patience prodding (person in line online not paying attention – with embarrassment I admit I was that person in line the day after Christmas, talking with my daughter about some urgent question she had about a ride to an activity, where I didn’t hear the clerk say, “Please move your cart, ma’am, the stockboy needs to get through!”
After being in college now for a year, I am now in my first semester of taking three classes on college grounds. I have taken two other college classes on campus, one my first session (Spring 2010) and one in the Fall of 2010. The other 3 classes were online. I don’t recall what those syllabi said about cell phone use. What struck me this semester, is all three of the documents pretty much forbid even looking at the cell phone. I liked the humor in one of the paragraphs:
“Turn off and put away all electronic devices. This includes cell phones, pagers, Palm Pilots,
Blackberries, MP3 players, tape recorders, cameras, laptops, electronic notebooks, and all other
devices already in circulation or yet to be invented. For those who must be reachable, leave the
telephone number of Campus Police (440-525-7241) and your class schedule. Campus police
will be happy to dispatch an officer to your classroom. The person who needs to reach you will
be able to call Campus Police even if they lose the phone number. Lakeland is listed in the
phone book, and our police have access to your schedule.”
She does have a point. I actually am going to follow her directions and if anyone has an emergency they can call the campus police. Hopefully that policy won’t have be used, but it’s comforting to know it’s there!
Me in choir in 9th grade in high school. My love of music started way before that, though, when I learned the fundamentals of music from my Uncle Don when he taught me the accordion at Age 7 I picked up the guitar at 10 and never looked back. I couldn’t wait to get into choir, and finally in high school was able to join for three years. (Hard to forget the devastation in 12th grade when I had to drop choir for geometry).
Starting this class tomorrow:
MUSC 1200 – Music Appreciation
“This survey course provides an introduction to aesthetic and historic issues relating to musical works of major composers. The course emphasizes the art of listening to music. Topics include instruments of the orchestra as well as works and influences of composers. Students will study both instrumental and vocal works. This course requires no musical background or skills. (3 contact hours).”
Back to music after many years away – at least educationally. With a change of classes proposed by Kent when I went there for my advisory meeting last week, I had to drop children’s literature (which was a choice for a humanities credit at Lakeland but not at Kent) and Health (which was needed at Lakeland but not at Kent for the degree I chose), I chose Music Appreciation out of the list of humanities choices that Kent gave me as the final humanities I needed for their degree. So tomorrow I’m off to Music Appreciation, a course which I remember Roger being in when I first met him in 1983 . I took a course with this professor before, “Popular Music,” in approximately 1984. He is a good teacher. It will be strange to see him again with us both being 26 years older, probably in the same room where I took the course before.
That room brings back many memories. At Lakeland, when you enter the building where the music rooms are, at first you go by the large art gallery.
These were some of the pictures that were in the Lakeland gallery last time I was there a few weeks ago. They change the series of pictures every few months. Back in the 80s I often did homework there in the gallery, ate snacks, and usually ended up meeting one or more friends that hung out with me, or me and Rog together, and it was the spot where we would often play guitar and sing together. So the gallery is definitely a part of the whole music experience for me. Since I went back this decade, I have probably sat in there 4 times doing algebra. The ghosts of past times still are there, merging with the current scenes.
In the music room, in the main section, I had Lakeland Singers (a choir group that also had some dancing, which I was not so used to and made my awkward debut in Winter quarter, 1984), and I was in that class until the end of spring quarter, 1986. This room served as practice room for the band and choral groups, and I also took my popular music class in that room. Roger, who I met in a band practice in December 1983, was a student in that room as well for music appreciation and music theory (2 years of that!) and we often met there as I would find him after my secretarial classes, as well. He also had a piano class in an adjacent room. Then later in approximately summer of 85 or 86 I took piano and voice lessons and that was in the piano/organ practice rooms that are adjacent on the other side of the large teaching room.
Wish I had pictures of the Lakeland music room in the 80’s, but I’ll make up for it by taking some this week! The picture above of me in high school was taken by my mom. She is a bigger photo buff than me! And I think my Uncle Don took the one below, another great amateur photographer!
The tree unadorned, awaiting just the unassembly. I did get the tree up right after Thanksgiving, but was a little late getting it all decorated (a week or so after Thanksgiving?) But as always we treasured it’s beauty, and planned to take it down the 7th. However, because Colleen was having a New Year’s party January 8, I decided to leave it up the 8th and take it down the 9th. Life got busy and I didn’t finish until the 12th!
This is my attic, and what a super attic it is! As you can see in the 3rd picture on the right there there is plenty of room to stack boxes 4-5 high even in the eaves. That is my Christmas corner where everything will snooze until next November – –
This is my first year to establish a snowman corner
The lights are put away now, of course, but the merry white figures remain. It seems to be good timing with scenes like this:
This was the beginning of the most snow we received at once this year. This was, I believe, Saturday the 8th, the day of Colleen’s party. We have had snow since then for 4 days from two different systems – I believe we now have about a foot of snow – less than some snow belt areas around us and some states to the Northeast in the blizzard, but enough to remind us that it is indeed January! I have always loved the snow. I don’t know what it is, but snow makes me feel refreshed and energetic. I get crabby and lethargic in the heat, and am much more active in the winter. I hate the heat, and you don’t want to be around me if the air conditioner fails on a hot summer day!
Things continue to be about the same in our household – we are in prayer over many issues and know the Lord has us in the palm of his hand.
We continue to pray for Chris’s placement. A place that will offer him autism and deafness therapy and a safe residency, covered by our insurance or development disabilities funding, has not been found. His grandparents continue to care for him in the week . . . Continue reading “From Christmas to just Winter”→
There you have my probable two favorite songs of the year. One is the reflection upon the heavenly eternal Christmas where we think of eternity with Him and our place in the heavens. I do think about that, though, of course, I want to be sure to serve others here on earth and do my best here as well – our home is here, but There as well —
Worthy is the,
Lamb who was slain
Holy, Holy, is He
Sing a new song, to Him who sits on
Heaven’s Mercy Seat
[Repeat 2x]
(Chorus)
Holy, Holy, Holy
Is the Lord God Almighty
Who was, and is, and is to come
With all creation I sing:
Praise to the King of Kings!
You are my everything,
And I will adore You…!
Yeah!
Clothed in rainbows, of living color
Flashes of lightning, rolls of thunder
Blessing and honor, strength and
Glory and power be
To You the Only Wise King,
Yeah
(Chorus)
Holy, Holy, Holy
Is the Lord God Almighty
Who was, and is, and is to come, yeah
With all creation I sing:
Praise to the King of Kings!
You are my everything,
And – I – will – adore You!
Yeah!
Filled with wonder,
Awestruck wonder
At the mention of Your Name
Jesus, Your Name is Power
Breath, and Living Water
Such a marvelous mystery
Yeah…
(Chorus)
Holy, Holy, Holy
Is the Lord God Almighty
Who was, and is, and is to come, yeah
With all creation I sing:
Praise to the King of Kings!
You are my everything,
And – I – will – adore You!
Holy, Holy, Holy
Is the Lord God Almighty
Who was, and is, and is to come,
With all creation I sing:
Praise to the King of Kings!
You are my everything,
And – I – will – adore YOU…
(Chorus) (Repeat at a cappella)
Come up lift up His Name
To the King of Kings…
We will adore YOU Lord…
King of heaven and earth
King Jesus, King Jesus
Aleluya, aleluya, aleluya!
Majesty, awestruck Honor
And Power and Strength and Dominion
To You Lord,
To the King, to King
To the King of Glory
(Singer: Kari Jobe)
More lyrics: http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/g/gateway_worship/#share
Then more recently I have heard the Selah Christmas song, above, that I never heard until this month. What a beautiful tribute to the Babe in the hay whose birthday is tomorrow, and who I keep reminding Ryan is the reason for the gifts, and the reason for the story of Santa (St. Nicholas) who also worshipped 🙂
Hail, hail to the newborn King
Let our voices sing Him our praises
Hail, hail to the guiding Light
That brought us tonight to our Savior
Halle, hallelujah
Halle, hallelujah
Halle, hallelujah
Halle, hallelujah
Come now, let it shine so bright
To the knowing Light of the stable
Kneel close to the Child so dear
Cast aside your fear and be thankful
Hail, hail to the newborn King
Let our voices sing Him our praises
Hail, hail to the guiding Light
That brought us tonight to our Savior
Chorus
Hail, hail to the newborn King
Let our voices sing Him our praises
Hail, hail to the guiding Light
That brought us tonight to our Savior
Chorus
More lyrics: http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/s/selah/#share
There are so many traditions about Christmas that I love, and we try and do every year. Beautiful boxes of Christmas cards in front of me are one thing that just makes me feel inspired about the whole season — I got the most beautiful cards this year – even though I vowed at the beginning of the year I wasn’t going to do any. But here I am, ended up buying them anyway – because after all even if I don’t “send” any I still need them for teachers, friends receiving gift cards, etc., and I ended up starting them to mail anyway – Started to write them out yesterday and will probably not get them out until next week before New Year’s. But it’s a very special tradition to me, and I miss getting as many as I used to, and even sending as many as I used to, and I’m just not ready to give it up. I love receiving them and sending them – the way they feel and the different color pen colors on the ones I display, and the different kinds of envelopes, and even how some have a foil stamp and others may have a unique picture, and still others may be handmade or with a family portrait. Christmas cards – they are an art, and something I am not ready to give up. Click for the rest of our letter —
In my spare time, here and there, have been tagging and categorizing my posts back to 2003. I got to November 2005, then just found a way today to import all the comments from Livejournal! This is exciting as I just don’t get to Livejournal much anymore so this way all my comments both from WordPress and Livejournal are in one place! And this pleases my computer geeky self
Any Live Journal readers here that were on my friends list in the mid 2000s – if you want to add this blog that would be great. It’s fun re-reading your comments now as I re-add them [all the posts were imported in on private and I have to edit and tag each one] – it will take me a while to get them all in but hopefully in a few months all the comments to the posts that I have put on WordPress will be added (not all my Live Journal posts are on WordPress, so some comments will still only be on LJ – – -)
Have had a few things done to the house recently – some unsafe wiring fixed and getting some drains cleaned out. It will be nice to have all that done for winter! We had to clear part of the attic so in the process brought the tree down. It’s in my bedroom – we’ll probably put it up sometime this weekend without decorations.
Can’t believe the holidays are around the corner – refuse to change the background yet of my blog – ha ha – but will choose the layout and probably change it right away on Friday!
Took difficult square roots test in Algebra yesterday – hope I did all right.
Taking Ryan to his hearing evaluation today for school – it’s at our deaf school in Mayfield.
Have lost 10 pounds since September but no more – need to get back on that.
But first, back to studying for algebra test and then transcription.
I picked up the guitar at 10 and never looked back. I couldn’t wait to get into choir, and finally in high school was able to join for three years. (Hard to forget the devastation in 12th grade when I had to drop choir for geometry).
