Blank

Blank. . . that pretty much sums up what my mind's been coming up with for a blog entry. I've been enjoying a week off from work. It feels good to get out of the regular routine for a while. Tomorrow it's back to the grind. I'll keep trying to come up with something witty and insightful for you all to read.

Feel free to leave a comment with suggestions on what I could write about! :)

10 Days of PDL

As you know, I've been extremely busy working on the 40 Days of Purpose campaign at church. Part of being committed to this campaign is faithfully reading a chapter a day. The book (The Purpose Drive Life) is full of tidbits (and chunks :) ). Thought I'd share some with you.

Ch. 1 - It All Starts with God

"It's not about you."
"You must begin with God, your creator. You exist only because God wills that you exist. You were made by God and for God -- and until you understand that, life will never make sense."

Ch. 2 - You Are Not an Accident

"He planned the days of your life in advance, choosing the exact time of your birth and death."
"God made you so he could love you."

Ch. 3 - What Drives Your Life?

"Real security can only be found in that which can never be taken from you --- your relationship with God."

Ch. 4 - Made to Last Forever

"When you live in light of eternity, your values change."

Ch. 5 - Seeing Life from God's View

"When you understand that life is a test, you realize that nothing is insignificant in your life."

Ch. 6 - Life is a Temporary Assignment

"In order to keep us from becoming too attached to earth, God allows us to feel a significant amount of discontent and dissatisfaction in life - longings that will never be fulfilled this side of eternity."
"Your time on earth is not the complete story of your life. You must wait for heaven for the rest of the chapters."

Ch. 7 - The Reason for Everything

"God didn't give you your abilities for selfish purposes. They were given to benefit others, just as others were given abilities for your benefit."

Bear with me . . . three more chapters to go. . .

Ch. 8 - Planned for God's Pleasure

"Work becomes worship when you dedicate it to God and perform it with an awareness of his presence."

Ch. 9 - What Makes God Smile

"God made you to love you, and he longs for you to love him back."
"Trusting God completely means having faith that he knows what is best for your life."

Ch. 10 - The Heart of Worship

"God wants your life -- all of it. Ninety-five percent isn't enough."
"Don't be afraid; nothing under his control can ever be out of control. Mastered by Christ, you can handle anything."

I don't share this with you so that you won't read the book. :) I still highly recommend it. It was difficult for me to just pick one or two statements from each chapter. I hope at least one or two them spoke to you too. . .

Quotes taken from The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren

Dumb duck!

For some reason today, I was reminded of a story that my mom and I were a part of eight years ago this summer. It's a pretty good story so I thought I would share it with you. Some of you may remember this, but anyway, here it goes. . .

It was a summer evening in June of 2000. I was shopping for a dress to wear to my friend Amy's wedding that was coming up on July 7. Mom graciously agreed to help in the search for the perfect dress. I don't remember how many stores we hit, but our last stop of the night was to Centerpointe Mall. Was it Centerpointe or Eastbrook back in 2000? I can't remember. As I drove across the parking lot we see a mother duck leading her baby ducks (probably about 5 or 6 of them) right across the parking lot! Mom and I commented on how dumb this mother duck was to lead her babies in the path of danger.

So we go into Steketee's (another blast from the past). The selection of dresses was poor so we were only in there for about 10 minutes. We climb in the car to head home.

As we were driving out of the parking lot we see the mother duck standing by the curb just quacking away. And then we saw it. A drain, at the edge of the curb. I stopped the car and we get out. There are all the baby ducks swimming in the drain. They had fallen through because their not so bright mother let them right over the grates. My mom and I are like-minded (for the most part :) ) and we knew we couldn't just leave those ducks there.

Mom said, "Do you have anything in the trunk that we could use to get them out?"

I opened the trunk. The only thing there was a set of golf clubs. Now I hate to admit it, but we thought maybe my driver would work. I'm not sure how we thought that would ever work. Were the baby ducks just supposed to hop on and let us lift them out? Yeah, sure.

By now, this couple stopped to "help". The man was obviously slightly inebriated. We all tried to think about what to do. One of us noticed Dunham's across the parking lot, so I headed over there to buy a net, while my mom, the lady, and the lush all protected the ducklings. Meanwhile the mother duck is still quacking like crazy.

I bought the net at Dunham's. I did ask if I could just borrow it, but after explaining the situation they said I had to buy it. Anyway I went back and we got all the baby ducks out. They went waddling away behind their mom. Across the parking lot again. In attempting to replace the grate on top the drain the drunk man dropped it in! They assured us they would let someone know. . .right. The ducks weren't done being rescued that night because now their mom was going to lead them across Lake Eastbrook Blvd. Mom and the lady went and stopped traffic. The ducks safely cross and we go on our way.

We didn't find the perfect dress but we saved some (duck) lives. Somewhere there are hopefully some grown up ducks who are better mothers than their mother.

What are you staring at?

I received some strange looks today in Meijer as I had eight buckets of ice cream, five bottles of ketchup, four bottles of mayo, 32 boxes of jello, and six bags of tortilla chips piled high in my cart. What can I say? I'm a bargain hunter and I like ice cream (and chips and mayo and ketchup and jello). :)

Actually I was catching some sales for the kickoff dinner for 40 Days of Purpose at my church.

You're all invited to come to Providence for a picnic dinner on Wed. September 10 to learn how to get involved in figuring out what on earth you are here for. We were all created for a purpose. . . now let's together figure out what that is.

Contact me for more info. Or go to http://www.providence-crc.org/. We'd love to have you join us!

The Olympics

I love, love, LOVE the Olympics. I love everything about them. The competition, the patriotism, the dedication and sacrafice of the athletes, and the idea that the entire planet is focused on one thing at one time.

I think the thing I love the most though is how our great America team is made up of athletes of all colors, backgrounds, and ethnicities. What an amazing country we have!

I'm sad the Olympics will soon be over. . . but I'm ready to get to bed on time again. :)

FYI: In case you were wondering like I was, the value of a gold metal is about $220. I was curious so I did a little research.

O Happy Day!

The Gates Family . . . Together is a Wonderful
Place to Be!

"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the
Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
to give you hope and a future." Jer. 29:11

It was a happy day yesterday in the Gates' family, in the Kamps' family, and in heaven when Gina and Lovey were officially adopted into their "forever" home. In the last year and a half they have already been such a blessing to their parents, friends, and the entire family. We can't imagine our family without them.

May God bless you, Josh and Malinda, as you raise these beautiful children to know and love and serve God. May God bless you, Gina and Lovey, as you grow and learn that God has adopted you too and He can't wait to welcome you into your other "forever" home.

"Eyes"

My Mother's hands are not like mine

But both can wave or climb a vine.

Or make a castle out of sand,

Or hold onto my Daddy's hand.

My Mother's eyes are not like mine

But both can see the bright sunshine

Our eyes can look way up and down

Tho' hers are blue and mine are brown.

My Mother's hair is not like mine

But both of us look very fine

With braids and bows and Sunday hats

We even put them on the cat!

My Mother's heart is just like mine!

We love and care and learn each line

Of God's own word to Mom, Dad and me.

Our insides are all that He can see.

Because God doesn't care about our skin

Or eyes, or hair, or even our chins!

He loves what's inside of me, So I'm the best girl I can be.

God loves me so much, you see

That He gave me two Mommies--each are perfect just for me.

So every night I pray to God above

For the Mom who gave me life and for the Mom who gives me love.

© © All rights reserved CHRISTIAN ADOPTIONChristian Adoption

I also stumbled upon a devotional by John Piper that highlights eight similiarities between our adoption as God's children and that of a Christian adoption today. I encourage you to look it over. We are all so blessed!http//www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/ConferenceMessages/ByDate/1991_Adoption_The_Heart_of_the_Gospel/

More Pics from Brunch

Nathan is even cute when he cries. :)





Alissa and her kids. Our attempts to get them to smile failed. :)

Welcoming Anna (Brunch with the Girls)

Anna Kay Toonstra was born July 15.

The whole gang - turned out pretty good, huh?

Miss Ella with her big blue eyes.

Ben, Trenton, and Luke being silly. They were supposed to be "buddies" with their arms around each other, but instead chose to keep falling over.

Ben and Ella see eye-to-eye.

One year ago today . . .

. . .I was on my way to Europe for nine short days. In some ways it feels like yesterday and in other ways it feels like a long time ago. The memories are still fresh though, and I hope and pray that someday I'll return for more adventures. Anyone wanna go? :)

Enjoy these pictures!

Family, Friends, Fireworks, and a Fender-Bender

Wow. . . where do I start in summing up the past six days? Thanks to Brian and Larissa's wedding we had a big family get-together and a ton of fun. I'll give you a play by play of each day. . .



Thursday:

• Family started arriving. I spent the morning hanging out at the hotel just catching up with everyone. Some uncles, aunts, and cousins I hadn't seen in five years (which is really a shame because we have an absolute blast when we get together).


• In the afternoon, Josh, Malinda, Gina and Lovey came to see my place. Then we headed to the splash pad at Lamar Park. The girls loved it and us adults wished that we could have had something like that when we were kids.


• On my way back to the hotel that evening I was rear-ended on 28th St. over 131. It was actually just a tap, but did scrape some paint off. It could have been a whole lot worse.


• That evening the cousins and I headed for the bachelor/bachelorette party. It was a rather tame event, except for a certain book that was floating around that people were adding comments to ('nuf said :) ). We had a good time as Kamps cousins just talking and laughing.

Friday:

• In the morning we had a couples' shower for Brian and Larissa at the Christian Reformed Rec. Center. The brunch was delicious. The presents were plentiful. And the game . . . well, let's just say Larissa will probably never chew cotton candy flavored gum ever again.


• Then 20 of us played in the first annual Kamps' Family Golf Scramble. First annual is wishful thinking because more than likely this was the first and the last. It was a blast though. Somehow I got a little lucky and won closest to the pin and the longest putt for the women. My brother Brad won the drawing for a car which was donated by Uncle Gil. OK, it was a matchbox, but it was a car nonetheless. :)


• That afternoon, Malinda (and family) and I headed out to Heidi's house in Wayland for a mini Dordt roommate reunion. We missed Angie who just had a baby a month ago, but Amy and Kristin and their families were there and we had a great time. Chad grilled some dogs and brats, the kids played, us girls talked. It was a blessing to see each other again.


• Josh, Malinda, Gina, Lovey, Amy, Adam, Isaac, and I then headed downtown for the fireworks. What a show! It was amazing. Lovey was so cute. She wanted to know if the fireworks were going to kill God. How sweet is that. . .

Saturday:

• Just the Dordt girls met for breakfast. It was good to have more time to spend together. The pressure is on me to get married, because we figure that will be our next opportunity to all see each other. :)


• The wedding was in the afternoon. The weather was perfect, the wedding was beautiful, good times were had by all. FYI - not everything that's wrapped in bacon is a waterchestnut. Sometimes it's scallops. (I learned the hard way.) :) All kidding aside, it was wonderful to watch Brian and Larissa get married. They are great together and we are thrilled to welcome Larissa into the family.

Sunday:

• After church we all hung out on the patio at the hotel. We had leftover wedding food for lunch. The kids swam and swam and swam some more. It was fun to watch all the kids interact with each other. They were all good friends by the end of the weekend.


• At various points in the day, family started leaving. It's always sad to say goodbye, but I think I speak for everyone when I say that we cherished the time we had together and feel like it's just a glimpse of what heaven is going to be like when we're all together forever. :)

As you can tell it was a busy, but fun-filled weekend. I'm still exhausted from all the late nights and running around, but I would do it all again in a heartbeat. It was fun. To all those who traveled long distances, thank you. It was awesome spending time with you. Love you all. . .

You Are Not an Accident

I'm on a committee at church that is planning the 40 Days of Purpose to start in the fall. In preparation for this I am re-reading the Purpose Driven Life. Actually I'm not positive that I've read it in it's entirety before, so some things are jumping out at me as new and insightful. This is a poem by Russell Kelfer that is found in Chapter 2.

You are who you are for a reason.
You're part of an intricate plan.
You're a precious and perfect unique design,
Called God's special woman or man.

You look like you look for a reason.
Our God made no mistake.
He knit you together within the womb,
You're just what He wanted to make.

The parents you had were the ones he chose,
And no matter how you may feel,
They were custom-designed with God's plan in mind,
And they bear the Master's seal.

No, that trauma you faced was not easy.
And God wept that it hurt you so;
But it was allowed to shape your heart
So that into his likeness you'd grow.

You are who you are for a reason,
You've been formed by the Master's rod.
You are who you are, beloved,
Because there is a God!

WooHoo!!

I received some exciting news on Thursday. Six and a half weeks ago I took an exam to receive my certification in peri-anesthesia nursing. I equate this to nursing boards for my specialty. The only difference is that it is not required, but is optional. Don't ask me why, but I decided to go for it. And finally I heard that I passed! I was quite ecstatic and very relieved. I believe I may have even jumped up and down and kinda got the chills. It was fun going to work and receiving congratulations and hugs from my co-workers.

Now I just need to get 90 continuing education credits every three years. Yikes, I better set aside my procrastinating ways or that could get ugly. :)

To all of you who supported me along the way. . . THANK YOU! You're the best. . .

Now there's an idea. . .

Last night I thought I'd take advantage of the beautiful weather and having a day off. I headed out to the Christian Reformed Rec. Center to watch our two men's softball teams play each other. It was kinda nice, knowing that no matter what Providence was going to win. :)

Anyway, after a great game that was won in the bottom of the seventh, I headed back to my vehicle. By now the parking lot was quite full. There was a couple walking out near me and they were having an issue with relocating their car. The guy came up with what I thought was a very clever idea. He said to his wife, "They should put signs in this parking lot, like at Cedar Point or something. But instead of A,B,C, they could label the sections with the five points of Calvinism. Like one section could be Total Depravity. . ." I chuckled to myself. His wife calmly said, "Why don't you write a letter and suggest it?"

History

Not all of you will appreciate this accomplishment, but some of you will know how big this is. I golfed today for the first time this season. You never really know what to expect the first time out so my expectations weren't too high. I'd like to tell you I had a hole-in-one or something exciting like that. But that didn't happen. Maybe another time. :) I did though shoot a 46, which is my best round ever. Each year my goal is to hopefully break 50 and it had never happened. Now that's accomplished. Maybe my next goal should be to break 45? Nah, that would be pushing it. . . :)

Perspective

Have you ever noticed how life is all about perspective? During a seemingly bad day, it's always quite easy to find someone else whose life is more difficult. And your perspective changes. Or you might feel like you are living to your full potential, only to come across someone who seems to have made a much bigger impact on the world.

All this musing on perspective started yesterday, when on the way to work I passed a gas station where gas had skyrocketed to $3.99/gallon. This is never a good thing, but is especially frustrating when your gas gauge reads between an eighth and a quarter. Fortunately at the next gas station gas was still the "bargain" price of $3.86. I was ecstatic! I pulled in and filled up. Then I drove away thinking how crazy this was. A couple months ago this would have been depressing, but now it was a bargain.

Life is indeed all about perspective.

Nathan & Ella's Dedication

Today I had the privilege of witnessing Nathan and Ella's dedication at Mars Hill. It was an honor to witness Tim and Alissa's covenant to their children. Tim's parents hosted a luncheon afterwards which was really nice.




Me, Alissa, and Carissa

Ella had had enough of the excitement and was overdue for her nap.

Nathan is so animated and alert all the time.

Weekend Getaway

Brendan is enjoying his ice cream cone.

Kailyn all dressed up and ready for church. Yes, she is as sweet as she looks. :)

Lauryn loves her babies.

All three kids before church.

I travelled to Canada with Paul this past weekend. He dropped me off in Woodstock so I could spend some time with Dordt friends, John and Kristin and their three kids. He then continued on to Toronto.

It was wonderful seeing John and Kris again. It had been about three years since we last saw each other which is just plain ludicrous since we live less than 5 hours apart. Anyway, it was fun getting to know the kids too. They are beautiful, fun-loving kids, and we played catch and Playstation, and flew a remote-controlled dragonfly. Saturday we went to St. Jacobs which is a Mennonite area. There was a great farmer's market where I suckered for a metal lawn ornament. I put it out today in front of the house and it looks pretty good. The weather was amazing and much to Kailyn's delight we enjoyed ice cream cones before heading back home.

Hopefully our next get together will happen sooner than three years from now. . .

Burnishing again. . .

Thought I'd share with you another Uppercase Living project. I'm hopeful that we're done with snowstorms for the season, so that the elements won't ruin the design! I thought it turned out pretty good. The message on the door is for all of you. You are "welcome" anytime. I love visitors. :)

Sure Signs of Spring. . .

• Tigers' baseball - OK, so far they are 0-5, but things have to turn around, right?
• The ice cream truck started making it's rounds through the neighborhood. Annoying little jingle, but good childhood memories. . .
• chicken on the grill - Yum!
• I used my sunroof for the first time!
• neighborhood kids wearing shorts. (It wasn't that warm, was it?)
• the sun!

He is Risen!

Happy Easter to each and everyone of you. I pray that today was a day of rejoicing for you as we were reminded that death doesn't have the final word. What hope that gives to those of us who trust in Christ for our salvation.

We (my dad, mom, and I) enjoyed a delicious ham dinner at Ben and Kim's. It was a good time. The sun added to the joy of the day as well. I'm thankful for the promise of new seasons. I hope you all had a wonderful day with friends and family.

"It's a great day to be alive. . .

. . . I know the sun's still shining when I close my eyes." This is a line to some country song by some artist (can't remember who), but it popped into my head today as I was walking outside enjoying the sunshine and warmer temperatures. There were kids on bikes, seagulls on the iced-over pond, people playing tennis, and numerous other walkers out enjoying the day. I believe everyday is a gift from God, but something about the feel of spring and signs of the earth being renewed makes me all the more grateful for the life God has graciously given me. Today was one of those days.

Crazy!

I was coming home from church last night around 6:15 and turned onto Porter from Burlingame and saw several cop cars, yellow tape, and people clustered in groups. Apparently there was a double shooting. The police ended up storming the house looking for a third suspect; two had already been arrested down by Chicago Drive and Burlingame. The victims are in critical condition. A little too close to home . . .

Playing Hooky

I was supposed to be at work tonight, but I had the option to leave early so I took it. If I would turn it down it would still count as my turn so I thought I'd head on home. So I was home by 6:30. It does feel a little like playing hooky. Remember those days in college of getting out of class early? How great that felt then and it still does. . . :)

To those of you who placed Uppercase Living orders, they came today! So I'll try to get them to you in a timely manner. I've already put up one of my freebies. Doesn't it look great?!

Grandma Kamps gave us a scare last evening, but she had stabilized some by this morning. She is in hospice care and has been steadily declining. I'm thankful that God has our days numbered and He is in control. Thanks for all your prayers.

Snow, Shopping, & Safety

Julie, Kim, and I headed to IKEA on Friday. I decided we must be doomed because it was nasty weather once again. But we went anyway. Snow isn't so bad; ice is a problem. It took us 3 hours and 15 minutes to get there; it should have taken about an hour less than that. We should have counted the cars we saw in the ditch between here and there, but I'm guessing between 20-25. It was slick, but we took our time and arrived safely.

IKEA was fun, but none of us made any huge purchases. So we went to Pier 1. :) After dinner at Chili's we headed back home. We had dry roads until the Ionia area, then it was snowy and nasty once again. It was solid ice in the Grand Rapids area and I was thankful to just be safely home.

It was worth it though; we had a great time. This might have to be an annual trip. . .

Days gone by. . .

Alissa, Rachel, and I at some bar downtown GR.

Rachel, Alissa, Me, and Carissa at Tim & Alissa's reception.

I found an old memory card today that had a bunch of old pictures on it. Included were Alissa's shower and wedding. Thought I'd share a couple favorites. These are from almost three years ago. I don't think we look one day older. :)

The sun is yellow. . .

I had almost forgotten what the sun looked like, but the past few days have been bright, beautiful and sunny! It's been very refreshing for the spirit and gave me hope for the spring season ahead.

As a family we celebrated my Dad's birthday on Saturday night. It was a good time complete with several urinal stories. Ben and Brad both have a tendency to exaggerate which makes the stories even funnier. Don't ask me how that subject came up, but Ben has had some rather interesting experiences. It was quite funny. Tonight I went to Randy and Michele's church to witness Nolan's baptism. Nolan did well; Isaac and Connor made everyone smile with their antics in front of church.

It's back to work tomorrow. Now I look forward to Friday and an IKEA trip with Kim and Julie. Hopefully the weather cooperates. . .

Lunar Eclipse

The pictures don't really do it justice, but for those of you who were unaware there was a lunar eclipse tonight. Pretty fascinating. I must admit I find these things more interesting as I get older or maybe I just have learned to appreciate them more. Hopefully some of you were able to witness this event for yourselves.

I guess I don't have it too bad. . .

This winter has been the longest, dreariest winter I can remember. Now maybe I just forget once spring arrives every year (I am getting older), but I've heard many people say that they've had it with the bitter cold and constant snow. Then I realize I really don't have it too bad:

• God has blessed me with a warm home to shelter me from the wind and the cold. If I get chilly I just turn up the heat.
• My mailman has reason to complain, but six days a week he faithfully delivers my mail right to my front door and then trudges through the snow to the next house.
• I walk through the parking ramp at work and look out at the new cancer center going up. There the construction crews work outside in the elements, as the wind whips and the snow falls.
• I drive to work and don't have to think about driving again until 12 1/2 hours later. The paramedics, firemen, and police officers travel the roads to help those in need no matter what the weather.

Just some random thoughts that helped me keep perspective. Maybe they'll help you too as we still have almost 2 months of winter. . . :)

Happy V-Day!

Happy Valentine's Day to my dear friends and family! Hope you all have a wonderful day with the ones you love. XOXOXO A special greeting to Amy who celebrates her 32nd birthday today. Happy Birthday, Amos, may God bless you with many more. . .

Honestly

Don't you just love how kids say it like it is? They don't beat around the bush or worry about how what they say may be taken by the other person. They just say what they want to say, when they want to say it.

This morning during the children's message at church our pastor asked the kids what looked different when they walked into church today. One little tike piped up, "There's less people here!" The whole congregation chuckled at that because it was, in fact, a true statement. It was basically a blizzard this morning with temps just above zero and near white-out conditions. So several people decided (apparently) to stay warm and safe in their homes. The difference the pastor was looking for though, was the addition of 20 flags in front of church as today was the beginning of Mission Emphasis week. I guess that kid has learned at a young age that church is the people and not the decorations/building/music, etc. A good reminder for all of us. . .

Oldies but goodies. . .

Have you noticed how some old hymns are making a "comeback" in new contemporary ways? I love how these old, Spirit-inspired songs are being performed by bands like Third Day, Selah, Avalon, and Chris Rice. Sunday at church we sang a hymn that was new to me. It is called "Before the Throne of God Above". The words and tune are beautiful. Lucky for you I cannot sing it for you in this post. :) It goes like this,

"Before the throne of God above I have a strong and perfect plea; a great High Priest whose name is Love, who ever lives and pleads for me. My name is graven on His hands, my name is written on His heart; I know that while in heaven He stands, no tongue can bid me thence depart, no tongue can bid me thence depart.

When Satan tempts me to despair, and tells me of the guilt within. Upward I look and see him there, who made an end to all my sin. Because the sinless Savior died, my sinful soul is counted free; for God the Just is satisfied to look on Him and pardon me, to look on Him and pardon me.

Behold Him there! The Risen Lamb, my perfect spotless Righteousness; the Great Unchangeable I Am, the King of Glory and of grace! One with Himself, I cannot die, my soul is purchased with His blood; my life is hid with Christ on high, with Christ my Savior and my God, with Christ my Savior and my God."

By the way, on a whim I searched iTunes for this song and found several recorded versions. My favorite is by Shane & Shane. Check it out. . .

Won't you be my neighbor?

Last spring my mom and I were doing some work in my yard when this kind of scraggly older gentleman who was walking down the street stopped to run his mouth about how my house is a piece of crap, etc. I can't remember exactly what he said, but I do remember feeling somewhat hurt. You just don't stop and trash someone else's home. I happen to love my house and feel that God led me to this neighborhood for a reason.

Anyway, today it happened again. I was out shoveling the driveway at about 6:30 tonight. I had been putting it off all day because I'm just sick and tired of shoveling. So it's dark out and there's no one else around and I seen a man walking down the street. He got closer and I said "hello". He stopped and I recognized him instantly.

Initially he was friendly, saying, "It looks like you've done this before."

"Yes I have, but it's getting a little old. I'm ready for spring," I replied.

Then he starts in again.

"This house isn't worth half of what you paid for it. . . blah blah blah."

I immediately felt myself getting defensive and said,

"Sir, you stopped by here before and made some unkind comments. I would appreciate it if you would just keep on walking. Bye."

Maybe that wasn't the best thing to say because he replied, "I will, when I'm d--- good and ready."

Uh oh. This could be interesting. At least I had a snow shovel as a weapon. :) Thankfully he kept on walking. Maybe I should have handled this differently, but I can't figure out how some people can be so rude. Any suggestions on what I should have said?

Beautiful

Check out this beautiful, thought-provoking video. It's worth a few minutes of your precious time.

http://www.dashpoemmovie.com/

Brrrr!!

To go along with the "Grrrr" post I have added the "Brrrr" post. :) It is a snowy and nasty day here today. Last evening it was 45 degrees and rainy; this morning when I got up it was 3 degrees and basically a blizzard. Julie, Kim, and I were planning to head to IKEA today which is in Canton, MI east of Detroit. Let's just say that we decided that although IKEA is great, but it is not worth risking our lives for. The roads were "treacherous" this a.m. so we decided to stay home. Hopefully another day will work in the near future.

Grrrrr. . .

The title of this post is a slight indication of my frustration level in setting up my new computer. Why I thought I could set up my own wireless is beyond me. You'd think by 31 years of age I'd be able to admit when I need help. But I thought I could follow directions. That is something learned way back in kindergarten, right? Anyway, when it comes to computers, we all know it's not as easy as 1-2-3. Thank goodness for Dell and Netgear support! I think I was about ready to marry "Rob" from Netgear after he helped me get everything up and running. :) I am now wireless, although getting there involved lots of wires going every which way. Trust me, from now on I will admit the need for help before the frustration level gets out of control. :)

Saturday Morning Coffee

Trenton and Ben had fun playing together.

Trenton and Ben testing out Tim and Alissa's
new jogger stroller.

Ella is getting so big!

Nathan chilling out in his bouncy seat.


Saturday morning us girls (and kids) got together for coffee. It was a great time. We haven't all been together in quite a while so it was fun to just catch up. Soon the kids will outnumber the adults. Congrats go out to Rachel and Mike who are expecting Toonstra #3 this summer!

Slippery Little Buggers. . .

Most of you know I wear contact lenses. Well, as I was getting ready today to brace the elements and shovel my driveway, I had a little mishap with the contacts. For some reason the drain stopper in my bathroom sink has never really worked well. I've tried to "fix" it to no avail. So cleaning the contacts over an open drain is always a gamble. Today it happened. . . the left contact went down the drain. This happened about six weeks ago too, but the contact was quickly rescued. When you figure I've lived here two years and I rinse my contacts twice a day I haven't done too bad. But anyway I frantically turned off the water hoping to keep it from being washed all the way down. I grabbed a bowl and put my limited plumbing knowledge to work. Now if I turned the water off quickly enough the contact should be in the little u-shaped thing under the sink. So I loosen it and dump the water in a bowl. No contact. Hmmm. Now what? I thought maybe it hadn't made it down that far yet. This was a long shot, but I put the u-shaped pipe back on and ran a little water. Now for the moment of truth. I loosened the pipe again and wala! A bright blue contact floated in the water. You may wonder why this is worthy of blog post, but that was basically like finding sixty dollars under the sink, and that's something worth sharing. . .

Save the Date

Save the Date for an Uppercase Living party at my house on Saturday, February 16 at 10:00am. It should be a good time. If nothing else just come for brunch and some great company. :) Let me know if you'd like to come. Official invitations to follow. . .

Stopping by the Stuive's on a Snowy Afternoon

Did any of you catch that my title was a play on words from the title of Robert Frost's poem, "Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening"? At Cutlerville Christian we had an English teacher who required us to memorize this poem and then recite it with expression. Ben and I remember every word. I'm not sure what happened with Brad because he can't recite a line. :)

I drove out to Holland today to see Tim, Alissa, Nathan, and Ella. Once I exited the highway it was quite snowy and there was (or is it were?) several inches in Tim and Alissa's driveway. The all wheel drive came in handy once again. The babies are doing great. They're growing like weeds and continue to be content, except when their diapers are being changed. Although Ella doesn't mind as much as Nathan. It's hard to believe they are three weeks old already.

The best things. . .

This pic turned out dark but you get the idea. . .

. . . come to those who wait AND work hard. Ben and Kim moved into their new house today after months of hard work and long days. They are still getting settled in and have a few projects to finish up, but are thrilled to be "homeless" no more. Congrats, Ben & Kim, your house is beautiful! May it be a happy home for many years to come.

Burnishing

What do us bloggers who don't have kids blog about? Apparently the weather and home improvements/decor. Very exciting, I know. You should really limit how many times you check my blog a day. :) Just kidding.

So I went to a "party" for Uppercase Living a few weeks ago. If you haven't heard of this before you're missing something pretty cool. Basically they sell thousands of different sayings/pictures/designs that you can put on your wall. The great thing about it is that it is completely removable without damaging the paint. Anyway, I spent some time this evening putting up my purchase above my kitchen window. I'm thrilled with how it turned out! You may need to click on the picture to see it larger. By the way, burnishing is the technique of transferring the pattern to the wall by rubbing it with a credit card, thus the title of this post.

Those of you who know me well are probably thinking I will jump on the bandwagon since I'm so crazy for this product and start selling it. For those of you who don't know me well, I tend to jump head first into something I'm excited about only to get bored a little while later. You'll be pleased to know that I have no intentions of selling Uppercase Living, but I may have a party. :) I think I'm getting wiser as I get older.

Is it really January?

Seriously, 62 degrees and a tornado watch hardly make sense for January 7. It would be nice if the sun would shine, but I guess I should just be thankful for temps above freezing. Thankfully the PACU has no exterior windows so we don't have to move any patients or do anything special.

Hope you're all adjusting to a full week of work/school after two shortened weeks. It was nice while it lasted, wasn't it?

They're growing!

Proud mommy with her two beautiful babies

Nathan was wide awake after eating.

I buzzed out to Holland today to spend some time with Alissa, her mom, Nathan, and Ella. It was fun to catch up and just relax holding the babies. I even witnessed a cloth diaper change which went very smoothly! :) Nathan and Ella seem to be content, easy-going babies (I'm knocking on wood, Alissa). As you can see Nathan was quite alert while I was there, but Ella was sacked out most of the time.

"Party" pics

OK Rach, here's some pics from the wild party! Carissa and I were privileged to spend New Year's Eve with five great guys - Mike, Dan, Luke, Ben, and Trenton. We had a blast hitting balloons around, stacking poker chips, and "eating" play food. It's funny how my idea of fun changes as I get older. Unfortunately Kurt and Rachel had to work, but I'm sure the party will be just as wild next year!

Happy 2008!

Happy New Year to each of you! I pray that 2008 will be a year of happiness and health for you and your families. May we all look forward with joyful anticipation of what God has planned for us in this new year. And when times get tough (and we know they will) may we be at peace knowing that God is walking with us through it all.