Our Family is Still Growing

Well, if you have a facebook account you know all the gossip on Caleb and Gaby. A summer wedding is in the plans now with three possible dates being considered.

Months ago several of my family members sat around my parents table (minus the young couple) and made predictions for a summer wedding. Each of us took a date on the calendar and made our bets....while actually, we just each announced a date we wanted and no money was actually put down. BUT the date that is their first choice (June 20th) is the one I was betting on. Still time will tell. It is no surprise to any of us watching these twos that marriage was in the plans. And what a great addition to our family Gaby will make. I feel so fortunate that each of my children-in-law are wonderful choices for my children and I love them all dearly. Each is different....but all seek God.

My prayers have included my children, grandchildren, and extended family in particular for years. My prayers for Caleb have been very specific for quite a while but in recent years very, very specifically about the young woman God was preparing to be his bride. Fortunately Gaby and her parents were praying the same prayers for her.

We welcome her to our family with so much love.

That makes two we will be adding to our family in 2009.
In November Carl, Lisa, Reese and Pearson will be welcoming a new member to their family. Babies are always so much fun. Carl and Lisa have such sweet babies. A new baby will be such a welcome addition to our family.

My cup runneth over.

Another Cup of Coffee

Here I sit again with a leisurely cup of coffee and reflect on a great week that has passed. I crammed in only good things this week and the only regret I have is having to deal with heavy traffic although I did alright even with that.

• The weekend began with a great visit with Leann and Eric while they took refuge under my roof while the rest of their family was on a camp-out.
• Monday before daylight Linda and I made a day trip to Houston as buyers for the shop and oh, is that ever fun! I'd quit my day job to do that for a fraction of the pay! We are going to have that shop so girl-ed up Caleb will have to hire me. We got bracelets that dangle, bracelets for teachers, bracelets for sisters, bracelets that say I love you, bracelets that have scriptures, bracelets that support our sons overseas, bracelets for our granddaughters and bracelets for the teenagers....just for fun...we got bracelets! We even found a couple of them in Spanish. We found more turquoise, and sterling silver jewelry, we found tiaras and fun bangling necklaces and a few counter top jewelry stands to crowd the counter. OH-HO! How much fun is that?
• Tuesday and Wednesday again Linda and I got up early before dark and headed to visit our grandmother in east Texas. We sat at her feet and visited with her, drank coffee at her side and laughed with her and with my Uncle Grady and Aunt Patsy. The countryside is beautiful up there. Everything is greening up and even in the early afternoon with the sunlight on the rolling green hills a light fog lay under the tree branches and cows grazed on tender shoots....a very bucolic setting....the sort of thing that inspires artists to paint.
• Back home on Thursday, I spent my day working in the shop for Caleb while he went to SA with Gaby. So while I was there of course, I rearranged a few items, did inventory of the new purchases we made and got more jewelry on display.
• Friday was my most lazy day. I spent it grocery shopping, a quick stop in the shop to add a few more touches, cleaned out a couple of closets, did some laundry, drank coffee with the family and then a birthday celebration for Matthew that evening.
• Saturday I spent almost the entire day in my dad's shop. We cut out the tree for the busy bags to hang on and made a picket fence to go in front of it. It is going to be so cute. Now that it is cut out it needs to be primed and painted and then have it installed. I hope the location we chose will be acceptable to everyone but I know you can not please, everyone all of the time.
• And somewhere in there I finished my third book of the series of four. And the fourth book is now sitting next to me begging me to pick it up.
  

So here I am. Happy! With a full week behind me and no regrets of time wasted. What fun!
Tomorrow is back to school for a few more weeks and then it will be summer vacation.
I think I can make it now.

The First Cup of Coffee

I am having my first morning cup of coffee on my spring break while I recline in my chair in my snuggly blue pajamas with my cat pawing at my left side, an old movie on television and my laptop in my lap. It is still dark outside and cold and wet (Thank you, God for the rain...even the little bit that it is.) and I have a strong desire to yell for the others to wake up and come join me.

I want to know information!
I want the guys to join me so we can talk about stuff, not that I want to make them breakfast or anything but I want them here to talk to me and tell me the exciting things or the mundane things going on in their lives.

But they sleep!

I am a goal-oriented person...not competitive but quietly a mental list person. My mental list this week during my spring break is to visit my grandmother, go to market in Houston to get upper end jewelry for the shop (and yes, that is turquoise most of it anyway), clean this house, finish reading the third book in a series of four, and work outside in my yard....maybe get to visit Cooper's nursery outside of Floresville. OH! And get my tree cut out of plywood that will be for the busy bags for our congregation's preschool children to use during church services. In order to fulfill some goals I need to sync with a few others and for gardening....warmer weather.

It is amazing how quickly the time will pass if I do not make mental notes of things to do.
I'll read while it is dark, early morning or late night;
clean house in the mornings, and do small tasks on occasion;
and work outside anytime it is warm,(once started could turn into an all day thing).

Now my first cup gone; I need a another. And they are still not up.
It is going to be a great week!

*A note to our Busy Bags committee women: Bags are made, most labels are sewn on to be completed soon, have lots of crayons, stickers sheets, finger puppets, and a few books. Still need more things for the bags like maybe little match box cars and small items (quiet toys please). A small clipboard about 5 x 7 would be great to hold clean paper and colorful pencils. SOON TO BE A REALITY!

These Random Thoughts by Gaby

Okay, all.
Welcome Gaby to our fold. I know you will love her as I do.
http://theserandomthoughts-gabriela.blogspot.com/
She has certainly added color to my life with a loving spirit and her diverse cultural experiences.
She speaks to my heart about the older women in our lives....her first post.

Spring Cleaning

Okay, Jackie and Gaby, this is for you...It has been a very long time since I blogged. I see it was almost a month ago. What a long time. I have been busy, I guess.

Spring has certainly arrived! I hear that while we are basking in the sun here is south Texas in Athens, Georgia where my nephew lives he had six inches of snow just recently. I can not remember when it was really cold here this year. What a mild winter we had. I guess that is one reason I love Texas. Lately it has been too cool at night to turn on the air conditioner but too warm to turn on the heater so the windows are open.

My huge cat (baby), Einstein loves to sleep on the bed next to me but he also, likes to have the freedom to decide where and when he comes and goes. I let him. I never allowed my children as much freedom as this cat seems to have. You have heard the saying "dogs have owners, cats have staff". I think it applies here.

At night he wants out and stands by the back door and rushes out at the first opportunity. He'll be out there for a little while and then he will come scratching on the window to let him in upstairs.
Usually, I am sleeping when he scratches the window.
The sound wakes me,
I get up,
walk in the dark to the door,
open the sliding glass door,
Einstein sniffs around the door as if trying to sniff out danger,
if he decides it is all clear he then slowly enters,
I slide the door closed,
I go climb back in bed fall asleep again.
This has been a routine now for a long time. In fact, Einstein has scratched a hole in the screen. First it was just a small tear in the screening and then I noticed it was about the size of a quarter or larger.

The warmth of the night invites sleeping with the windows open. The air conditioner was on downstairs and the windows open upstairs so the door between the floors was closed. Einstein came up with me while I prepared to go to bed. He curled up in his usual spot next to me and fell asleep . The next morning as I was getting ready for school I wondered where the big cat was. He could not have gotten out himself with the door closed and I did not remember getting up during the night to let him out. My mind focused on preparing for school, I just did not worry over him.

Last night Einstein rushed outside before I went to bed. I knew he would come scratching on the window upstairs soon so went on to bed. It did not take me but a few minutes before I was sound asleep. Suddenly an unfamiliar noise woke me. The sound came from outside....or was it inside? It was close and to my right side near the window, a strange ripping scratchy sound. Jumping straight up in bed and looking toward the sound I was startled to see a huge cat entering the house through the giant hole in the screen. It looked like the lion in the opening credits on those old black and white Tarzan movies.

Spring cleaning will include replacing some screens this year, I guess.