One More Sleep

I am so excited I'm about to burst. We leave at 6 A.M. tomorrow for Michigan. I can't believe it's nearly here. We've known since July that Meghan and Casey's wedding would take place this weekend and it's almost here!!



I searched and searched and this is the only picture I have of Meghan and Casey. Aren't they cute? For those of you who don't know, Meghan is the daughter of one of my dearest friends. Being quite a bit older than Laurie (the mother), I have been an honorary aunt/grandmother to these children. Hence, my excitement about the coming event.



This picture of Laurie, Emily, Meghan and me was taken the day Meghan picked out her wedding dress. I was so honored to be asked to accompany them on such a wonderful shopping trip. This family also consists of Sam, a senior in high school and Carl, a Romanian orphan the family adopted when he was 8 years old. They are a very special family and dear to my family.

Which brings us to the second reason for my unbridled excitement; both the girls will be in Michigan for the wedding. Paige is driving up from Chicago tomorrow afternoon and Gretchen and Brian are flying into Minneapolis tomorrow, renting a car and driving to Holland. It is a special time for Gretchen as she graduated from Hope College and this is only the second time she will have visited since her graduation.

Today was a great day that started out a little hinky. I had tons of errands to do but was totally organized, went out to the brand spanking clean car, turned the key and NOTHING. Okay, I took a deep breath, turned the key again - NOTHING. Just stay calm, Pam. I went in, called to Jim and said, "I think my battery is dead". Which, of course, it was. No fear, we have a great mechanic. I took Jim's car on my errand journey, he had a new battery put in the car and we were all set.

From there on, the day was FABB-O. I found Florence doing much better than last week. Although, she has a hard time putting a sentence together, she was very alert. She smiled during my visit, even raised her eyebrows as I regaled her with tales of my life. I was more than pleased. Leaving Florence, I went, once again, to the Mall where I found SALES! WHOOPEE!! I bought two pairs of shoes, a skirt, two tops, a pair of dress pants, shirt and tie for Jim all for about $150. Just about the same as I paid for gas today. LOL.

Now, I've made sandwiches to eat on the way across Canada (the rest stops there are dreadful), packaged fruit and chips, wrapped the gift and made a card. I guess the only thing left to do is pack. So, I'm off to do just that.

I hope all of you have a beautiful weekend. I'll be back Monday with tons of pictures and tales of the Wolfanger Family.

Ta-Ta.

P.S. I forgot two important things. First, I forgot the father of the bride, Bob. He is a great guy who we all love to pieces. Secondly, Jim saw his orthopedist today and has been referred to the doctor who was so highly recommended. It turns out she did the surgery on Jim's doctor's hand. She will review his file and decide by Monday whether or not she will take him as a patient. If not, there is another hand surgeon who the orthopedist recommends highly. I think we are on the right track. Please keep praying - his pain is intense.

Wonderful Wednesday

After a nice "sleep in" this morning (I stayed in bed until nearly 9 AM), I started the day working in my flower garden. As I've said previously, it needs quite a bit of work. Although it wasn't particularly warm today, it was a gorgeous, sunny day. It was totally pleasant working in the garden and I managed to accomplish quite a bit. Here's a pile of weeds I have to show how hard I worked.



I must admit I'm not a real gardener. I love my flowers, but I'm not exactly Mrs. Green Thumb. Example: I sometimes don't know a weed from a plant. My friend, Sandi, is the gardener so today I took a picture of something I can't identify. I'll show her on Friday and ask her it it's a weed or a plant. Personally, I think it may be something I've heard called "pigweed", but I'm not sure so I didn't want to dig it up. Isn't that sad?




Pigweed or flower?

I have some other perennial spots around my house. This one is particularly lovely with its abundance of hastas and lilies of the valley.





After I finished in the flower garden, I spent a good part of the afternoon cleaning my car. We decided to take my car to Michigan this weekend as I think it is a little more comfortable than Jim's. It really looks good although I will admit to washing it at the local car wash. I just couldn't face washing it myself when I can drive it through the wash for $9.

While I was busy with these projects, my dear hubby walked the entire lawn. His rider is giving him fits and he thinks the walk is good excercise (which, of course, it is). Still, it's a big lawn.

We finished the day with steak and shrimp on the grill. All in all it was a good day. Sad to say, Jim is suffering for mowing the lawn. His hand is really giving him extreme pain tonight. I so wish that I could do something to alleviate his pain. I did heat my herbal pack and wrap it in a towel. He tried it for a few minutes but it didn't seem to help. I am so happy that he is seeing his orthopedist tomorrow. Keep praying, please.

After that bit of not so good news, I'd like to leave you with this lovely picture of our rhododendron.

Bless you all and to borrow from Stephanie "bunches of hugs".

A Quick Update

Jim saw the neurologist today. Although the news was not good, it was what we expected. The carpal tunnel is still there. The neurologist thinks it's probably being caused, this time, by scar tissue. Jim left his office and went straight to the office of his Orthopedist. He has an appointment on Thursday. Although it is by no means over, at least we are making forward progress. Thanks for all your prayers. I'll keep you posted.

An Almost Perfect Weekend

In my last post, I listed some of the things I wanted to accomplish this weekend. Well, of course, I didn't accomplish them all, but what a wonderful weekend we had!!

Friday, my first real day of freedom in six weeks, I had the whole day to myself. Well, minus an hour and a half at the library with Tracy. I left the library at 11:20 A.M. knowing that I would arrive at the nursing home just as Florence was having lunch. That's not the best time to visit, so I had to rework my plan a little. But, Hey! I could be flexible - I'm retired.

So I decided to hit the Mall first. As long as I was in the area I thought I'd buy some cheap ($3.92) gas at BJ's. It was $4.01 at the regular pump. I drove down to the Mall and had my glasses adjusted at Perle Vision, then made a quick stop at Bath and Body Works. MMM-MMM. I smell soo good.

How could I be at the Mall and not stop in at Starbucks for a Mocha. It was so good. Oh yes, I forgot to tell you. I thought I could afford the Mocha since I had lost 3 pounds at weigh in on Friday morning.

From the Mall, it was on to see Florence. I'm sorry to report Florence isn't doing as well as I'd like. She doesn't seem to have bounced back from this last physical setback. She was resting and either didn't want to talk to me, or couldn't. After a few minutes, I kissed her and left. The aides on the floor said she has been very quiet since her return from the hospital. She's such a dear. I hate to see her like this.

I needed to stop at the grocery and wine stores, but on the way there is a Target. I decided to run in quickly. And what do you know? I found the cutest little sundress and sweater. I like it much better than the dress I bought on Thursday so I brought it home. I WILL return the other one this coming week.

True to my word, I cooked a nice meal for Jim. Actually, I ate it too. It was quite good. Then it was off to bed early.

Saturday was a beautiful day. I did some laundry and fiddled around here a little. Jim felt some better from his cold so we called Linda and Jason and went to see "Indiana Jones". OMIGOSH! What fun. I think this might have been my favorite of all the Indy movies. We topped the day off with dinner out.

Sunday was church and breakfast. I napped a little in the afternoon, but then got up and worked in the garden for awhile. Pulled a pile of weeds. I still have much to do, but feel good. I also got the porch in order so we could eat out here today.

This morning I went to the annual Memorial Day Parade. It's such fun to go out and see all the people gathered to watch this parade. It's a lot of fire trucks and ambulances, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts and ball teams. The only band is the High School Marching Band but we all just eat it up. I snapped a few pics.



This is my friend Lonnie, her daughter, Heidi, and grandson, Tanner.



Veteran flag bearers.



The Marion Jr/Sr High School Band





Our friend, Adam, the Drum Major



Girl Scout Leaders, Kasey and Joyce

Here is one last picture I just had to post. This young man, Nick, was involved in a ATV accident last fall; an accident which left him paralyzed from the waist down. He has been on the hearts and in the prayers of many of our townspeople this past year. Just look at the smile and hope on this young man's face. He's being wheeled by his Aunt and is holding his cousin.




Doesn't this give you hope?

Thanks for bearing with me in this long post. Now, I have one more favor to ask of all of you. Please pray for my husband who will be seeing a neurologist tomorrow about his hand. It is certainly not right. He has regressed to the point where he cannot tie his shoes or button his shirt. Needless to say, we are both a little discouraged. We have been given the name of a very competent and highly recommended hand surgeon. My prayer is that he will be able to see her soon and that something can be done for him. If you have prayer groups available to you, will you ask them to pray also? I am so grateful to all of my friends in blogland.

Have a great week.

It's Unofficially Summer!!

Last night my favorite weatherman, Scot Hetsko, said Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer. I agree with him one hundred per cent. Even though school doesn't finish here in New York until late June, I have always begun to celebrate summer at Memorial Day.

Cheryl wrote about her summer plans yesterday. That made me think about our weekend plans, as well as our summer ones.

Before tackling those plans, here's a little recap of the past week here in our little corner of the world.

Poor Jim. It's not enough that his carpal tunnel surgery was unsuccessful and he is in constant pain in his right hand. Now he has the mother of all colds. I really don't remember him having a cold this bad in a long, long time. This has been a truly miserable week for him. Our weekend plans were to go to the Adirondacks with our friends Bruce and Shelly to open their cabin, but Wednesday Jim had to finally admit that he was too sick to go. We felt really bad. Number one, because we LOVE going to the mountains and number two, because Bruce and Shelly had planned on our help. We're hoping we can go up sometime in the next couple of weeks to help. There is much to be done before the wedding in July.

My week was a busy one. Workwise, Tracy and I worked hard and accomplished much. She is doing a great job and will be a cracker jack Library Director. We attended her first Board of Trustees meeting for which she prepared all the reports. She conducted her first staff meeting, sent her first book order, kept up with the library blog and generally did everything a library director does. Hence, I am now out of a job. Isn't that great news? I plan to stop by her office for a short time this morning to go over one or two things and then I'm officially re-retired.

Which brings me to my plans for the weekend. First of all, for the first time in weeks, I didn't set my alarm this morning. It felt really good to wake up at my leisure, read the paper (including the comics), have my coffee and come in here to post.

Oh yes, before I started this post, I went out and took a couple of pictures of the lilacs. The purple ones belong to my neighbor to the south; the white ones are ours.





When I sign off here, I'm off to visit Florence, do some grocery shopping, visit the wine store and whatever else suits my fancy. I am all atwitter.

As much as I was looking forward to the mountains, I am pleased to have this long, wonderful weekend to attack some projects here at home. I am hoping to:

get my sun porch ready for summer (as well as spend some time relaxing out there)

do some weeding an mulching in my perennial garden. It sorely needs my attention.

Cook a really nice meal for my dear hubby this evening.

Organize and straighten up my work room.

Make some cards.

IF Jim feels better, see the new Indiana Jones movie

I think that is probably more than enough for one weekend. I'm also looking forward to being back in church on Sunday as I've missed the last two Sundays.

As the summer stretches out before us, I am smilingly (is that a word?) thinking about some of our plans. We start next weekend with our trip to Michigan for Meghan's wedding and a weekend with our kids. I'm so excited. I bought a new dress yesterday. I hated to do that as I am in the middle of this weight loss thing and I know I won't wear it long. BUT, I had nothing presentable that really fit me, and the dress WAS on sale, sooooo. But I digress. Back to summer plans.

We are looking forward to the LPGA when the brothers, wives and girlfriends will visit us. It's always a rollicking good time. I plan to attend this year and am really looking forward to it. Soon after that is Kara's wedding in the mountains. We plan to spend the entire 4th of July weekend there. We are also looking forward to some day trips, a visit or two to PA to see the MIL, our 40th wedding anniversary and perhaps (gas prices allowing) a trip to Seattle.

That looks like a good list of things to post about as they occur. In the meantime, let's all enjoy this wonderful long weekend. And let's take some time this weekend to remember the veterans who sacrificed for our freedom.

Happy celebrating.

Where did the week go?????

I can't believe it's been a week since I've posted here. Not only have I not posted, I haven't even read any of my favorite blogs. It's been a whirlwind week. A good one, but a really busy one that left me feeling like I'd been run over by a truck at night.

I'm not the only one who is tired. Tracy, who began her position as Library Director, is pretty pooped too. She has been training this week. What a terrific job she is doing. I am so excited about the Board's choice. She and Adrienne have already started a blog.I know we were both tired but happy at the end of the week. I'm looking forward to spending this coming week with her and then re-retiring.

But I'm getting a little ahead of myself. Here is my week in sequential order:

A delightful Mother's Day

Although Kaylynn and Cami were mortified that I was spending Mother's Day alone, it was just what I needed. It was a great day, made even better by the gift I found on my doorstep in the afternoon.



Beautiful tulips from Cami.



A new hippo for my collection from Kaylynn. She was on a class trip to Albany and found this for me. I can't imagine why I am so blessed, but am very grateful.



This lovely package contained my decadent bath products from Gretchen.

No one needs gifts, but aren't they fun? My Paige called on Mother's Day saying she would bring my gift to Michigan later this month. I love having gifts spread out. I have yet to give Paige a birthday present. I hope she has something in mind when we see each other in Michigan. If there is anything I love more than getting gifts, it's giving them.

But, I digress. After Mother's Day, Jim came home - Is this ever a story.

Jim arrived home Tuesday evening late. It was so good to see him. It is so very true that absence makes the heart grow fonder. One day is plenty, three is too much. Anyway, he came in complaining about the cell phone. Jim is many wonderful things, but technologically adept, he is not. He had inadvertently turned the phone off the first day he was gone. When I turned it on, I found three messages. Two from the nursing home and one from the hospital saying that Florence had been admitted to the hospital. I was nothing if not really upset. It's a long story - one involving our answering machine message which is meant to be a joke - and one that any sensible person would realize was a joke - Hey Pam, tell us how you really feel. Anyway, after several calls, I finally talked to the nurse on her floor and got the details. So, Monday as soon as I could leave work, we went to the hospital and talked to the PA. The long and short of it is this: They still can't find the source of her problem, she is better and will go back to the Nursing Home tomorrow. Needless to say, it was an upsetting incident, but we are praising God that everything has worked out.

That entailed most of my free time this week. EXCEPT for the fun!!

Shopping for Bras at Vicky Whispers

Laurie called me on Wednesday and asked if I'd like to have a girls' night out with her and Meg and Emmie. They needed to shop for bras for the wedding. Sounded good to me. We met at 6 (after I finished work) and went to Uno's for dinner. It was just fun to spend some quality time with these dear friends. This will be my last chance to be with them before Meg gets married. After dinner, it was on to Victoria's Secret.



The store wasn't busy and we had several sales clerks helping us. It was such fun and lots of laughs. Especially when the groom called and we told him we were "shopping for him". Lots and lots of fun.

We topped the evening off with Starbucks. Who could ask for more?

By Friday, I was whipped and was in bed by 9 PM. I hate that, but sometimes the body just gives out.

Yesterday, was a really nice shower for our friend Kara. I, foolishly, forgot to take the camera, but I expect some pics via email and will post some later.

Today, we went to the Public Market to buy flowers. There are so many flowers it is hard to choose. I am pleased with our choices. Here are two:




This one will go in a planter near the garage door.



By the time I was ready to take pictures this afternoon, it was pouring rain. I decided this pic from a distance would have to do. More to follow.

I think I have gone on long enough, friends. I'll close for now and wish you all a wonderful week ahead. My plan is to post and read more this week.

Oh yes, we are doing very well on the "diet". I have lost 12 pounds, Jim 11. We are delighted. We are both doing well with our exercise too. I feel better already.

Ciao!

Happy Mother's Day

Today is Mother's Day. Jim and I had an early breakfast at the Bee Skep and then he left for Pennsylvania to visit his mother. My SIL has gone to Las Vegas with her sisters so this is the perfect time for the brothers to get together and do "guy" things as well as spend some quality time with their mother. Mom lives in an assisted living facility. Jim will pick her up around noon and take her to Dale's home where they will cook steak and shrimp for lunch. As much as she loves her daughters in law, I know she will really love this time alone with her sons.

For my part, i plan to have a very quiet day here at home. My list of activities far out distance the time I have to accomplish them, I'm sure. I hope to do some scrapping - maybe I'll even post something this time. I also plan to indulge myself in a long bath. One of my daughters sent me some wonderfully decadent bath products which I intend to use. All this, after my walk. Yesterday was four miles. Today, well, we'll see. I just finished reading the Sunday paper and see Kohl's is having a really nice sale on shoes. My sandals have bit the dust, so I just might try to squeeze a trip to Kohl's in too.

Before I any of those things, I want to take a minute to pay tribute to some of the women in my life.

My Mother-in-law: If you have been a reader of my blog for any time, you know how much I love and appreciate this woman. I've known her since I was a girl and have always looked up to and respected her. Never dreaming that she would one day be my mother in law, I always looked to her as a role model of a real lady. I love you, Mom.

My mother, Lucy Huston: In spite of a life that was at some times very difficult and disappointing, my mom never gave in to self-pity. She always saw the cup half full, a trait she passed on to me and I thank her for. Not only was my mom good to look at, she was also fun to be with. She always had room in her home for my friends and time to be interested in their lives. She was legally blind most of her life but she never let that hold her back. I could write pages about her and perhaps someday I will. Although she (and I) thought she would outlive all of us, we lost her eleven years ago. I know she is in heaven with my Grandma and Aunt Jessie waiting for me. I miss you, mom.



This is a favorite picture of my mom, my sister and myself taken a long time ago.

The Aunts: I am fortunate to have three of my many aunts still living. Each one of them has played, and still plays, a major part in making me who I am today. My Aunt Mary prayed for me for many years that I would come to know the Lord in an intimate way. I will always thank her for her steadfast faith the God would be present in my life. My Aunt Bets is the fun one. Talented and generous, she is the one who always makes me laugh. She was my Dad's baby sister. I just love being with her. My Aunt Letty is my Mom's baby sister. She has always been there for me, loving me as if were her own child, which in many ways, I am. She has always been a constant in my life. To all three of you I say "Thanks". I love you.

I can't write about Aunts without mentioning my Aunt Jessie who passed away before any of us was ready to let her go. She was the most amazing woman. Crippled with arthritis from early age, she looked the world in the face and smiled. She was one of the strongest women I've ever known. Having these women in my life, no wonder Jim always says of me, "Those Reed women are tough". We sure are. We learned that from my dear grandmother. Someday I'll write about the life of Cora Reed, but for today I'll just say, "I love and miss you, Grandma".

The girlfriends: I raise my coffee cup to these women who make my life so worthwhile. They are the sisters, who laugh with me, who hold me in their arms and cry when my world has fallen apart, who speak the truth in love, who have loved my children, cooked me meals, driven me to the hospital, supported and loved me as if we were related by blood. To these women I say, "Where would I be without you?"

The blogland friends: One would think I knew you all personally. You have become such a big part of my life. You are creative, funny, talented, smart, compassionate and honest to name a few attributes of women of strength. I am proud to know you and count myself in your number.

God Bless.

Answered Prayer

I am really tired tonight and had just about decided not to write a post, but then I remembered the really cool and positive things that have happened today. So, this will be short, but I wanted to share.

Two really cool people have had answered prayer this weekend. First of all, Chrissy and Sean have had answered prayer in that Sean has been offered the job that they want in North Carolina. It was so cool to read her blog and see how she is praising God for this good news.

Then tonight, my daughter Gretchen called. I answered the phone and she said, "I just want to tell you how good God is". I already knew that God is good, but was eager to hear the details. She and her camp buddy have been beating the bushes to raise money so that they can have horses at their camp this summer. I think they had a $1,500 shortfall as of last Friday. By this afternoon, they are only $300 short. They are just flying high. Me too. I never doubted that God would come through, I just wasn't sure how. It is such a blessing that these kids, many of them inner city kids from really sad family situations, will be able to have the experience of not only riding horses, but learning about their care too.

Here are a few pics from last year at camp. The kids had such fun.







I have lots and lots of camp stories, but I'll just share this one. One of the girls in my cabin was not the least bit happy to be there. She told me her Foster Mother tricked her into coming. The first question she asked Gretchen and Karen was, "Can I smoke here?" Karen and Gretch decided not to tell me that right off the bat. Anyway, she was a bit of a tough nut. But the first day of horses, she came to me just brimming with excitement. Not only had she ridden the horse, but Gina had encouraged her to put her finger in the horses mouth and feel his gums. That girl was just blown away. What a joy to be a part of that moment of wonder.

So, tired as I am, I wanted to share the goodness of God. He always answers prayers; He is always good even when the answers aren't what we expect or want, but it is such a joy when the answer is just what we need at that moment.

Sleep well, friends.

YUM! YUM! STICKY LIPS

Before you even ask, "What is sticky lips?" I'll tell you. It's a Bar-b-cue place in Rochester. Jim and I had never been there before this weekend. We picked up our friends, Bruce and Shelly and drove to the city. From the outside it looks pretty dinghy. The neighborhood is a little suspect too, but once inside the door MMM! MMM! The menu is large with all kinds of bar-b-q. Bruce and Jim had an appetizer of "deep fried pickles". Shelly and I just shuddered, but the boys managed to eat the whole order.



I think everyone ordered something different. I chose the 1/4 chicken and pulled pork. I love pulled pork and NEVER tackle ribs. Shelly The Brave, took on the ribs though.



The entire meal was delicious. The atmosphere in the restaurant is one of fun. It's a very loud and happy place. You can be sure we will go back again. After dinner, Bruce took us to a little bakery where we chose decadent desserts to take back to their house. All-in-all, I'm sure I blew my 35 flex points for the week. Believe me, it was well worth it.

With such an early burst of warm weather, things are in bloom everywhere you turn here in Upstate New York. Next week is the Lilac Festival and none too soon, as the lilacs are beginning to bloom. Here's a picture of our Flowering Crab, otherwise known as "The Paige Tree".



I can't print a picture of this beautiful tree without telling the story behind it. Thirty-five years ago, when Paige was born, I was a very nervous first time mother. My mom was with me, watching over both Paige and I, and being very
protective. One afternoon the doorbell rang and my friend Izzy and her son were standing on our front porch. Izzy said, "I thought this new baby should have something alive for a gift". I nearly had a fainting spell right there. My dear mom, was literally ready to slug the poor dear woman when she said, "So, we bought her a tree." What a joy this tree has been to us all the years of Paige's life and we thank Izzy for it over and over.

Sleep sweet friends. See you again soon, I hope.

May is here!!

Every Thursday morning that I am in town, I arise early and meet some of my friends for breakfast before we begin our duties of the day. For many years we have called ourselves "The Loser Housewives" a name that my daughter, Gretchen and her friend Heather gave us. Some of us are still working, some are retired, or as in my case, retired, returned to work, re-retired, etc. etc. Whatever the case, we really enjoy these minutes (which sometimes turn into hours) of time spent together. All that is said as a seque into my coming home from breakfast today and finding this lovely "May basket" on my doorstep. I know that the neighborhood elves were busy. What a delightful way to start a day and a month! Happy May Day to all of you.

One of my blogging buddies, Cheryl, posted a great list of all the fun things coming in May. Stephanie had a great post about World Day of Prayer. I decided to take a page from their blogs and write about all the fun things that the month of May will bring into my life.

I'll start with World Day of Prayer. Our church has a 24 hour prayer vigil on this day. My turn to pray was at 11 A.M. I took that time to pray for our national, state and local officials, the candidates for president, the people voting, the super delegates and everyone else involved. I prayed, too, for our economy, the violence in our country and the lack of respect we seem to have in the world.
It was really good to have that time to really concentrate on our country and the problems facing us in these days.

I love May and always have. Although Jim has planted our peas already, May is always the month when we start planning and planting our vegetable garden. This year, we are particularly excited about the garden as Jim had foot surgery last year and wasn't able to plant a garden. With food and gas prices so high, we also plan to buy a small freezer this year and "put some things by" as my Grandma used to say.

Of course, May always brings the flower gardens too. I always add a plant or two to my perreniel garden this time of year. In the next two weekends, the public market will have special flower days. We love to go to the market and browse and buy. Of course, we also have coffee and a pastry while we're there.

Then there are college graduations. Meghan and Casey will be receiving their bachelor's degrees this weekend. In three weeks, Jodie will be graduating from the University of Iowa with her PHd. We are so proud of these friends and their accomplishments.

Mothers' Day is a little difficult for me. With my mother gone, and my girls far away, I try to downplay this holiday some. I think Jim will go to see his Mom by himself this time and I plan to have a "Me" weekend, shopping, indulging myself in good food and wine, reading and relaxing on my porch. Doesn't that sound like a good Mother's Day?

Cheryl mentioned Cinco de Mayo on May 5. We just happen to be going out for bar-b-cue with friends this weekend. I definitely plan on at least one Margarita. YUM!!

Memorial Day is one of my favorite holidays. To me it marks the beginning of Summer. I know, I know summer is officially a long way off, but Memorial Day just feels like summer. We always have our first picnic food after the Memorial Day parade. We invite our friends Bruce and Shelly and plan our week in the mountains. I look forward to that every year.

Probably the best part of May will be the last weekend when we go to Holland, MI for Meghan and Casey's wedding. Jim and I have known Meghan since she was born, we watched her grow from a cute little girl to a lovely woman. Her wedding will be a joyful occasion for us. AND our children will be there to celebrate with us. Brian and Gretchen will be flying in from Las Vegas and Paige will drive up from Chicago. It is so seldom that we are all together. This will certainly be an occasion for great celebration.

Those are the highlights I am looking forward to. Along the way will be the wonderful surprises and blessings hiding in each day waiting to bring us joy and happiness.

Have a Happy May.
May the hippos be with you.