He Leadeth Me

One of the first groups I joined when we moved to CS, was a group in my church called Secret Sisters. Through this group, I have learned to love so many wonderful, fun and giving women. This month, it was my turn to host the group.   Every month, we have a theme, and I chose "Color My World". Is anyone who knows me surprised that I chose a school theme? The crayon banks were a Dollar Tree find.  I just love that store. Each woman took a crayon bank home. We are going to fill the banks with our loose change over the course of this year and then donate the money to a worthy cause.     This tablecloth is actually a parachute. Thanks Kelly for letting me borrow it. We had so many women attend that we had to seat some of them downstairs in our den. The food also had to be colorful so one of the hostesses, Claudia, made this beautiful cake. The flowers are all real and are from her garden. Letha's colo...

On a recent trip to Houston, I asked my sister-in-law, Gail, if she would mind giving me some cookie decorating lessons. Gail is so creative and I thought if she actually showed me how to ice  cookies, I might actually tackle them on my own. This was the set up when we arrived. She had already baked the cookies and even iced one (upper right) so that it could harden and we could try a special technique on it. The icing bags were filled and ready to go. Eager pupils were Kim and Sweetie, pictured with teacher, Gail.   I was the third eager student. My first attempt at a cupcake cookie. Gail demonstrating the fine art of spreading the icing.   Some of my finished creations. We ate just a few along the way. Not because we were hungry, you understand, but because we wanted to test them to be sure they were tasty.  (And they were!) Kim was a natural, rubber gloves and all. Thank you Gail for the great lesson. I cann...

Our family is going to have to start behaving because we have a principal in the family now. Mike VanLoenen, or Mr. V, as he is affectionately called, was named principal of A.B. Freeman Elementary for the 2012-2013 school year. We are all excited for Mike and for the teachers and children of Freeman because Mike is a really great guy who has the best interests of both  students and teachers as his priority. But we are especially excited because Mike's father-in-law, Terry, and all Terry's siblings,  brother Lynn, and sisters Kim and Karen (that's me) are alumni of Freeman.  We attended Freeman when it was a brand new school some 50 years ago.   On a recent visit to Houston,  Mike gave Kim and me a tour of the school.   What a thrill it was to see the school still looking so beautiful! Congratulations Mr. V!!!!!

We took a short trip to Glenwood Springs when my sister and brother-in-law, Kim and Randy came to visit. We checked out the Amtrak station since Sweetie and I plan a train trip here soon. For some reason, this sign tickled my funny bone. The hot springs pools were beautiful and so relaxing. Good conversations. The largest pool was 2-3 blocks long. We took a tram to the top of the mountain where there was an amusement park. Kim and Randy David and Karen None of us braved this swing which soared out into the open sky at the top of the mountain. I'm sure the views were awesome if you were brave enough to open your eyes. I travel with such nice looking people. Randy braved the roller coaster which went down the hill. The rest of us watched him. I sat with my feet propped up and enjoyed the beautiful scenery.  

Aaron isn't known for sitting still for long. However, when he can sit in the comfy recliner with his Ducca, he has been known to stay still for a while. What precious memories these times are!  

Each of my grandsons is unique. They are all loved tremendously. Caleb is the Superhero fan. David loves all things cars and trucks. Aaron LOVES Sesame Street Characters. It is so much fun revisiting Sesame Street through his eyes since my children were also Sesame Street fans. Aren't these little feet, clad in his little SS socks just adorable? Extra points if you know the character.  

This post is especially for my friend Donna P. who reads my blog and who loves sunflowers. Last summer I planted giant sunflower seeds in my back flowerbed. This year I forgot, but one came up anyway.  My Grandma Aven called that "coming up volunteer." I like to think of it as one of God's many surprises. The bloom is huge, beautiful, and amazing. This little beauty grew from a sunflower seed that was meant to feed a bird who visits my birdfeeder. Instead the bird dropped the seed and it grew. Donna, I love sunflowers too.

 Flowers were blooming everywhere when we visited Breckenridge recently. I hope you enjoy the beauty. One of the books that I require my Children's Literature students to read is The Giver by Lois Lowry. In the society where the book is set, there is no color. How depressing!  I am so glad  God created color.