It's Wednesday

1. The Lincoln Lawyer - Dan and I were able to go to the movies yesterday and we saw "The Lincoln Lawyer". Wow. What a great movie. The buzz about it being Matthew McConaughey's best role to date is spot on. I like him anyway, but Dan doesn't and even he said McConaughey did a great job. We agreed that we'd actually like to see this one again! I highly recommend it. There is some rough language in it and one sexual encounter scene.

2. Decisions - Sometimes it's very easy for me to make decisions. Actually it's often very easy for me to make decisions. But other times it's extremely difficult for me. Agonizing actually. Not only for me, but for everyone around me while I'm deliberating on what decision to make. I've been going through one of those times for the past four months or so. You know, it's strange. Sometimes the decisions that should be easiest are the hardest ones for me. I get all caught up in what will other people think. Will I be disappointing someone. Am I doing the wrong thing. Am I being selfish. I'll go round and round and round on the same issues, unable to come to a conclusion. Well, I think I finally solved the latest dilemma yesterday. I feel pretty good about my decision, but I still have some reservations in the back of my mind. Is it ever hard for you to make decisions?

3. Weather - The weather here is just gorgeous right now. Our highs are in the 80s. The sky is clear blue with occasional high clouds drifting by. My windows are open. My heater is off. My a/c is off. This is why I moved here. We're going to have a few days in the 90s and then head right back down to the 80s. I know, I know, it will be hot in the coming months. But just remember this. I never have to shovel the heat...

Grandchildren, Miscellaneous

Sunny was over yesterday. Dan had a day off from Sam's and was doing yard work. Sunny loves to be outside. She stands at the sliding door and chants "outguy, outguy" over and over again. Her wish came true yesterday. She played outside most of the time she was here. I bought chalk at IKEA several months ago and yesterday seemed like a good day to bring it out. She enthusiastically grasped the idea of coloring on the patio. Unfortunately, she left the purple chalk out and Duke ate it. Otherwise the chalk was a success!

We traveled down to Mesa yesterday afternoon to have dinner with Zach, Ashley, and Baby K. What a sweetie! I hadn't seen her for more than a week, she's really changed. Her arms and legs are so long. Guess she got those from her daddy! True to my word, I held her as much as I could. I was gracious though, and Dan held her during dinner.



It has been my intention to call the grandchildren by weather terms. I don't feel comfortable using their real names on my blog. I'm really having a tough time coming up with a name for Baby K. I think I'm rushing it. So I'm going to hold off in naming her. She's stuck with Baby K for a while till I get to know her and can come up with a name that fits her. I may have to abandon the weather term idea and go with something else that's descriptive of who she is.

I can't believe I have two granddaughters! Soon to be joined by a grandson. It is the coolest thing ever!

We had family photos taken a while back. I'm getting my prints next week. I am so excited! The photos are so good and I'm thrilled to add them to my photo gallery wall. We're planning another session in the fall with all three grandchildren - another four generation shoot. I'm telling you, if you live in the Phoenix area and want photos of your kids, I highly recommend Joanna Polling Photography. But you don't have to take my word for it. You can check out her work here. She's fantastic. I will be sharing some of my photos when I get them.

Stay Tuned for Pictures

I am so excited. We're going to see Zach, Ashley, and Baby K today. You can be sure there will be photos tomorrow! I haven't seen her in almost two weeks. I can't wait to get my hands on her. Dan will be lucky that he for sure gets to hold her for one picture, but other than that... I'm not sure I'm going to share!

We have Sunny today and Dan has a day off from Sam's. The weather is gorgeous, so we're heading to the park with her to play on the playground. Whenever we go to the park, she sees all the other kids and she starts squealing/screaming. She is so excited to play with them. She's not one bit shy. She runs up to them and then starts babbling.

She did that yesterday at Joanna's too. As soon as I pulled up to the house, she started squealing in excitement. As we were playing, she'd let out (blood-curdling) screams of excitement at random moments. She's definitely Miss Social!

Oh, What Fun!

Today Sunny and I went over to Joanna's to play with her three kids. I can't speak for how much Joanna, her kids, and Sunny enjoyed the day, but I enjoyed it immensely! Adult conversation. Homemade cupcakes. Discussions about anything and everything. Time with a treasured friend. I really needed that today.

Thank you Joanna, for letting us come over each month and destroy your home! Now that the weather's warming up, maybe we'll play in the park next month...

How Cute is This?

I have not had a voice since Monday. Since I can't speak aloud, Sunny has not been over this week for Grammy Daycare (she's coming today). Yesterday she went to daycare for the day (her Abuela is sick too). She did very well and enjoyed playing with the kids. I talked to Katie last night and she told me this cute story.

Sunny did not eat much of a lunch at daycare and only part of her afternoon snack. She was very hungry when Katie picked her up and kept saying "hungry, hungry" and crying in the car on the way home. Katie asked her, "would you like some McDonald's?". Sunny responded, "E-I-E-I-O, yes", nodding her head. Isn't that the funniest thing?! We sing "Old MacDonald has a Farm" almost every single day. She asks for it by saying "E-I-E-I-O". At least I thought that was what she was asking for. Maybe she just really wanted me to take her to McDonald's!

Praying For Japan

The images coming out of Japan are horrifying. The power of the tsunami is awful and awesome. The moans of the people taking the video as the water rushes by them carrying cars, houses, trucks, (unseen people) is chilling. Can you imagine? A 9.0 earthquake, a 23 ft Tsunami, nuclear issues, lack of electricity, water, food, and now, snow. There is much to pray for in this circumstance.

Whenever disasters like this occur, I react in several ways.

I start to analyze. Am I prepared to survive something like this? Do I have enough food and water on hand to last until I can purchase more? Do I have a way of preparing food if the power is lost? Do I have cash on hand if the infrastructure is shut down for days? Do I know how to get out of the valley by a route other than I-17 or I-10? Do I know what to grab if I have to be evacuated quickly? I'm not saying I want to convert one of the bedrooms into a storage room stocked with survival gear. I'm just saying I want to be prepared.

I look at my priorities and re-evaluate them. Am I more concerned about things than people?

I count my blessings. Do I have problems? Are there issues that are getting me down? Are you kidding me? In the light of what the Japanese people are going through, I am completely blessed. And the truth of the matter is I am blessed without having to compare my condition to the situation in Japan. It is so easy to get caught up in the drama of my life (drama that is primarily of my own making) and lose sight of the blessings I receive every single day. It's so easy to be consumed with the things in my life to the point of neglecting the people in my life.

I pray. I pray for the missing. For the families of the deceased. For the health and welfare of the survivors. For the first responders. For the government officials. That the glory of God will be revealed in the midst of tragedy. That non-believers will be open to hearing about the Lord. That believers will be bold in sharing their faith. For swift recovery and rebuilding.

So today as I watch the latest news from Japan, I think about preparation, I'm thankful for the people in my life, and I'm praying for God's blessing, protection, and provision for the people of Japan.

They're Home!

Thanks to all of you who prayed for my son and his new little family today. I got word mid-afternoon that Ashley's numbers resolved themselves and they were released to go home. I'm just hoping that they can all get some rest!

Updates and Scripture Memory Verse #6

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7

The verse I chose to be the sixth one I memorize for the Scripture Memory Challenge is timely. I posted yesterday that Ashley was to be released from the hospital, but unfortunately, there's been a couple of complications. Her blood pressure is quite high and her liver enzymes are elevated. She will be in at least until Wednesday or Thursday. They are conducting more tests. They had already discharged Baby K, but thankfully they cancelled that.

So, once again we are waiting. Ashley and Zach are just beside themselves with fatigue. They want to go home! Please join me in praying that Ashley's complications are not serious. And in praying that they will be released soon so they can get home and get some rest. Thank you.

Miscellaneous Monday

1. I don't have Sunny today and Jessica is on Spring Break, so we're hanging out today. We are going to the Musical Instrument Museum over in Scottsdale (or maybe it's North Phoenix). She has two free tickets, plus she gets some sort of continuing education benefit from going. I've heard it's a great museum and I'm looking forward to it. When we're finished there, we're either going to visit Zach/Ashley/Baby K or we're going antiquing in Glendale. We plan to have a fun day!

2. Visited the kids in the hospital again last night. I can't tell you how good Ashley is doing. Oh my gosh! She's going home today and I know she'll feel even better when she can finally get some rest. Here's a few more photos...

3. Spring has finally sprung here in Phoenix. We're in the upper 80s headed for the 90s. The birds are chirping, everything is blooming, and for the first time in years I actually have allergy issues. I don't know what it is that's blooming that I'm allergic to, but it's in full force. I rarely have allergy problems, so I'm bummed that I'm having them now.

4. Daylight Savings Time began this weekend. We do not change here in Arizona, so we're the same time as California now. One hour off from Mountain Time Zone, two hours from Central Time Zone, and three hours from Eastern Time Zone. JD and Janel live in the east, so trying to call each other for the next eight months or so will be a challenge.

Enjoy your day...

More Photos of Baby K

Dan and I went up to the hospital last night after attending a wedding (more on that at end of post) to hold our new granddaughter. Is there anything sweeter than a baby? I don't think so...

She has the biggest deep blue eyes. Ashley said she hopes her eyes stay blue and after seeing them open, I'm pretty sure they will. They are just beautiful. She is very alert and was awake for most of our visit. Ashley's doing well. I think they're staying on top of her pain. She and Zach need sleep. I hope they're able to get some before they go home early next week.

I changed out the wallpaper on my monitors to a picture of K and realized that I need to get a photo of her and Sunny together. Sunny's days as the only grandchild are over!

Before going to the hospital, we attended the wedding of Gabe's younger brother Vince, and his bride Chantell. The bride was beautiful, the attendants were lovely (their dresses were gorgeous), and all of the boys looked debonair.

Then we came home and collapsed!

Beautiful mother and daughter

Proud Grammy

We can't believe we have two grandbabies!

Gramps... wrapped around another little girl's finger

Me, my baby, his baby

The new family

I am so proud of this girl!

Katie and Gabe... all dressed up!

She's Finally Here!

Hallelujah! Baby K was finally born this morning at 8:08 am. She weighed in at 7 lb. 15 oz, 19 inches long. I think she looks like her mama...

Ashley's doing great. So is Zach.

Congratulations Zach and Ashley, thanks for making me a Grammy again!

Meeting Grammy

Holding hands with Daddy

Baby Watch Update

Ashley was admitted to the hospital late yesterday afternoon for induction. Got an update from Zach at 5:00 am today that she is contracting with pain, so they're giving her some pain meds. They won't check her for progress until around 9:00 or so this morning. Waiting... waiting... waiting...

No Baby Yet...

Still waiting. Ashley is four days past due. Poor thing. I was never past due, so I can't imagine how she feels. She goes to the Dr. tomorrow for some decisions... Thank you for your prayers!

Still Waiting...

Poor Ashley. I'm sure she (and Zach) are getting pretty weary of waiting for baby K to arrive. I know I'm having a really hard time keeping from calling or texting them every hour on the hour to see if there's any update. As it is, they're hearing from me more often than usual.

Ashley goes to the Dr. on Wednesday and then he'll decide if he's going to induce or not. She'll be five days overdue at that time, so we'll see.

I just keep praying that her body will wake up and start to do whatever it needs to do for this baby to be born... SOON!

A New Blog

(First things first... still no baby!)

When I started this blog, I wasn't sure what I wanted it to be. My primary goal in writing it was to share my life with my kids. I also wanted to satisfy my desire to write, which had been frustrated since I quit working outside of my home.

I was so afraid to start this blog.

It didn't take me long to get into blogging. At first there was a lot that I didn't get. I was afraid that my technical skills would be lacking. I worried that no one would read it. Well, I'm still not sure that too many people read it (I know for a fact that my husband, two of my closest friends, and one of my kids NEVER look at it), but that really doesn't concern me any more.

Last year I started adding pages to my blog. One of my first pages was the "Christmas Corner". I wanted a separate page to record my obsession with all things Christmas. As the blog has evolved, the Christmas Corner just wasn't living up to my expectations. So... I decided to take the plunge and start a Christmas blog. I think having a separate blog will give me the freedom I need to talk about Christmas any day of the year, whenever the urge hits me, without fear of judgement.

I mean if it's a Christmas blog, then it stands to reason that I'll be writing about Christmas, right?!

So, this is my roll-out of  Christmas 24/7/365. I'm excited myself to see where this goes. I'm hoping that the Christmas blog will be a participatory site. I'd love to hear your traditions, stories, recipes, and memories of Christmas. I think it would be cool to have guest bloggers from time to time.

If you enjoy everything Christmas like I do, check it out...

Wii... Whee!

(Before I get into my post, I want to say that today is Ashley's due date. While I don't think the baby will come today, I have to admit I am absolutely on pins and needles!)

Last night Dan and I finally played the Wii that we got for Christmas. We hadn't played it yet because we need a 2nd controller. We bowled and golfed last night since we could share the controller for those games. I did good at bowling. I love to bowl in real life, so it was a lot of fun, although it took a whole game to get used to the controller. Plus, I kept lofting the ball. We bowled four games.

I've never played golf in my life. Except for miniature golf. I'm not particularly good at it. Golf requires patience and concentration. It's way too slow and deliberate for me. But I did pretty good. Dan and I both finished two over par.

My back was killing me at the end of the evening. I must have been using muscles I don't use often enough!

Scripture Memory Challenge – 5th Verse

I am so enjoying this scripture memory challenge! It’s good for me mentally, as well as spiritually. It’s been many years since I actively tried to memorize anything of length. The only verse that I’m having trouble with is the 3rd one. I think it’s because the wording is awkward. I keep plugging away at it though.


The verse I’ve chosen for today is:
This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 1 John 4:10


Ah, it brings me peace just to read it!