Florida

Last Friday we returned from our vacation to Florida. Twice a year we take a trip there and try to be gone for 2 weeks. Our sons flew down there and spent one of the weeks with us this time. We had such a great time! We went to Kennedy Space Center, went to Downtown Disney and Universal Walkway. We had some time on the beach and went to a very large Flea Market. It was awesome! My favorite part was the beach time. It's so lovely there and towards the end of our vacation the weather was getting warmer and more sunny. It was fantastic!

Tax Time

I hate tax time. I get nervous doing them and this year I had 4 to do. This past weekend I was busy getting them done and today I filed the last one. What a relief! Luckily none of them were too hard to do. Now we can sit back and enjoy the rest of the year and look forward to some refunds. It's nice to see my boys receive a refund. They can sure use the extra money. Before we know it I will be sitting down filing again. It just seems to go that fast.

Great Nephews

This past spring and summer we were blessed to have attended two of our great nephew's weddings. They are brothers and got married about 5 weeks apart. Now the third brother is getting married next weekend. I can't imagine having 3 weddings in a years time. I am sure the parents of these young men will breathe a sigh of relief after this one is done. Then it will be several years before there young daughters walk down the isle. We are looking forward to going to the wedding. It should be a great time!

Family and Fun

Yesterday after noon and evening were so much fun. Spent time with some amazing family members and then went to a wonderful Christian concert. We laughed, sang and boogied. The four bands that played for awesome. It made me feel young again. Great fun with great people. The bands that were there at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa were Sanctus Real, Citizen Way, Neverclaim, and Everfound. Very talented young men and such strong Christian people.

Mom's Surgery

I took a couple days off from work because my mom was going to have surgery. We got up early this morning to be at the hospital and she had the procedures done and shortly after an hour of being in surgery we got the call that everything went well and what they were looking for was clear and normal, Praise the Lord! She recovered for a couple of hours and I brought her home. You would hardly know that she was in for surgery this morning. She is doing so well. Even the small incision she had isn't causing her much pain. It's wonderful and answers to prayer.

The Love of a Mom

We have two boys and they have grown into wonderful loving young adults. This past weekend I had been talking with our youngest son and he had asked me to pray for him because he was getting a sore throat and just not feeling well. So of course I said I would be praying for him. By Monday he was feeling even worse and by evening he could hardly stand the sore throat he was dealing with. I told him he needed to go see a doctor. The next day he went to the doctor and found out that he had a case of severe tonsillitis. He was so sick and in so much pain. He was put on medication and sent home. That night he went to bed and tossed and turned because of the pain in his throat. He didn't even want to swallow. He cried out to God to heal him and take it away! So the next morning on my first break at work I texted him to see how he was feeling and he told me about the night before and he was sending me sad faces. Well as his mother I couldn't take it anymore and I left work and took ingredients with me to make some soup for him and headed down to his place. I spent the rest of the day with him yesterday and part of today. When I left he seemed a little better. It was such a great feeling knowing that my son of 26 years old wanted his mama to come be with him and give him some tlc. No matter how old you get, it's always nice to have mom around when you feel as bad as he did.

Wedding

We traveled to Texas this past weekend to attend our great nephew's wedding. It is a long trip but we had a nice time. The weather was very iffy, it stormed and was cloudy a lot. The wedding was going to be held outdoors so it was pretty questionable if it would go off without a hitch without rain. It did! It was a beautiful evening and a very nice wedding. We had yummy food and it was a great turnout of family and friends. We are back home now and it's good to be home.

Texas Wedding

On Memorial weekend our great nephew is marrying his high school sweetheart. It is going to be in Texas and we are making the trip down to be a part of it. Another rode trip in our future and that's okay with us. It should be a lot of fun but a short few days. I'm hoping the weather won't be too hot, warm would be nice. We are looking forward to the time away and also seeing family we don't get to see much.

Blessings!

What a blessing that our oldest son found out he got a job! Now both of our sons have full time jobs and it is such a blessing. It's been a tough few months getting them both working full time and now it is here. They are very excited about it too. Our youngest son has been working for several months now but two months ago he got his first full time job. He loves it and we are so happy for him. God is so good. We fully put our trust in him.

Husband's Birthday

Funny Picture

Every year when my side of the family gets together for Christmas, we like to take a picture of everyone who attended. First we take a normal regular picture then we always have to take a goofy funny picture. This year was no different and I would like to share that photo with you.

My Sister

Well, my sister came to stay with us through this past weekend. Once again we had so much fun. Friday night she and I talked and talked while she painted my fingernails. Then Saturday we got up early and headed for Des Moines to shop all day. We ate at Huhot and then shopped and shopped. We got home around 10 that evening which was good for us. Sunday she left after lunch and now we have to wait another year for our sister fun time together. We talked that we should try and do this more often. We will have to work on that.

Jobs

My sons are both college graduates and have been steadily looking for a job. It has become quite discouraging for them and us. With student loans on the horizon and some coming due now it gets scary. They have even tried for jobs working in a store and haven't gotten anything. God tells us to lean on him and sometimes it gets worse before it gets better. I am thankful for a God who is there 24 7 because I reach out to him through all of this and so do our sons. We believe he has great things in store for them.

Mother's Day

I have to work on Mother's Day and when I get home I was going to be alone. My husband is going to be gone and my youngest son is here now but planning to go back to his home. Then my oldest son wasn't planning to come till Monday. But last night I received a text from him saying he is coming home on Mother's Day! He said he will be here around the time I get home from work. So it looks like I won't have to celebrate Mother's Day by myself. :)

Disney World

Over a week ago already my immediate family all went to Disney World. We got park hopper tickets and went to Hollywood Studios, Epcot and the Magic Kingdom. It was a fun filled day and we stayed till almost 10:00 P.M. We got there when the gates opened. I'm sure glad we took the time to go one more time while our sons were with us. It was a great day!

Vacations

Our family really enjoys vacations. We have taken quite a few vacations in the USA and also Hawaii. The ones we like best are in Florida. We are able to stay rent free in a friend's condo on the beach. That is just wonderful. We have had two weeks of playing in the ocean and also visiting Disney World and all the other great places in and around Daytona Beach.

Family

A couple of weeks ago we took a trip to Texas to see some of our family. Our neice has three grown boys and 4 beautiful adopted girls. The girls are ages 6,6,4 and 3. They are precious and adorable. We had a fun time with all of them. It was so cute how much they wanted me to play games with them. I love them all.

Relocating

Our sons are planning to relocate in about a month. They are trying so hard to find an apartment, duplex, or house that they can rent and afford to rent. It's been a real challenge. Our youngest son is scrambling to find a full time job in that area. We are praying and believing everything will fall into place at the right time.

Texas

In about a couple of weeks we will be taking a quick trip down to Texas. We have a niece and her family that live down there and my husband's older sister. We haven't seen them since last summer and thought it would be fun to take a long weekend and go visit them. Our niece is so excited and is planning a big barbecue when we get there. She wants to have her family all come. I sure hope the weather holds out so that we can go. If it snows we are stuck at home.

Christmas Preparation

I am busy trying to get the last minute Christmas prep done before Saturday. That is when we will be celebrating Christmas together with our sons. I have some desserts to make, clean house some and work too. I have tomorrow off so I am going to accomplish as much as I possibly can before our sons get home tomorrow night. I am excited and love this time of year.