A Creative Vacation Week

This past week I have been on vacation although I have not travelled out of town except for one night. A friend and I usually take a week together during the year. This year we decided to stay close to home due to the rising cost of gas and everything else and the limited budgets we both are on. We tried to find interesting things nearby that we had not experienced or had not in a long time. It is amazing what Louisville and the surrounding areas can offer. Thanks to Derby, this week was designated as a "2 for 1" week in many local attractions which certainly helped stretch our vacation dollars.

We spent Monday-Tuesday at Shakertown in Pleasant Hill, KY. The weather was gorgeous and the grounds were are well. We learned alot about that group and enjoyed seeing how they lived their daily life. Makes me truly appreciate what I have now, although I do respect the ideas they promoted such as the equality of gender, race and economics, etc. Our meals there were absolutely delicious and bountiful! Can we spell gluttony??? Our accommodations were lovely, yet simple in nature. Somehow losing games of Scrabble wasn't as bad when you were in such wonderful surroundings!!

My friend and I enjoyed other local attractions and tried some new places to eat meals. We also enjoyed simple things like Scrabble games, the zoo, and attending a school band's spring concert. I enjoyed being able to sleep in my own bed at night and anticipating something fun the next day. My dog Kipper also liked the fact that I was home throughout the week.

While we weren't able to visit one of our favorite places like Gatlinburg, it was still a very enjoyable week. Spending time with those we love is always special and even the ordinary becomes extraordinary when shared with a friend.

Getting back into the work routine will be challenging I am sure. However, I am grateful for my job and will be glad to return.

I am grateful for a good week. Hope each of you have a vacation opportunity sometime soon!

An excellent question...

In a recent letter to me, my mother asked me what kinds of things I wrote on my blog, while also in that wonderful motherly way, reminding me that blogs can be read by alot of people. I think she asked an excellent question. I answered that recently it had been mostly about my new dog Kipper. However, tonight I think the space rightfully belongs to my mother since Mother's Day is fast approaching.

My mother is a wonderful person. She has always been strong in spirit and determination. This was keenly seen as she fought hard to recoupe after a severe knee injury/replacement 2 years ago. As a result, she is now mobile, though slower, but able to walk unassisted and to do what she needs to do. Many times during those hard weeks, I would "melt" emotionally but somehow she managed to encourage me.

Mom loves the Lord. Her walk with her Savior is genuine, growing, and affects her everyday life. She strives to serve Him with her spiritual gifts and with her abilities. When her faith is tested or she struggles, she only clings tighter to the One in whose hand she rests. Again, she is such an encouragement to me. I know faith is real when I see how Mom lives out hers.

Mom is creative. She can turn dry, dusty "facts and figures" into learning experiences filled with all kinds of things to see and do. She can make Scripture passages come alive as she teaches. She can create fun with little or no "props". One of my fondest childhood memories is of her typing "gibberish" on a typewriter and then "reading" that aloud to my sister and I. We all would laugh until we couldn't breathe! (move over Victor Borga!!). She was able to turn ordinary things into wonderful play times for us (like playing hide-n-seek) in our closets!!

Mom is getting older now, but in my eyes she is growing even more special. Her long, handwritten letters are treasures to read, filled with the ordinary events of their lives and other things that make me feel that I am at home when I read them. Her words of advice come laden with years of experience and a deep desire to see her daughters have the "abundant life" God wants to give his children. Her movements are slower, but her heart still leaps at news from family members, when personal mail arrives in the mailbox or when the Lord teaches her something new from His word. Mom's spirit is still young!!

Mom. I hope alot of people do read this blog because I want everyone to know that you mean so much to me. I love you so very much and am so blessed to have you as my mother. I hope that I tell you this more than just on a special holiday. Thanks for helping to make me into the person I am today. Thank you for loving my dad and my sister and me in such sacrificial, creative, tangible and intangible ways. I hope this Mother's Day is very special for you.

Thank you Lord for my mother.

Making changes...

During my pet searching days, my family and friends both tried to tell me that my days would definitely change after aquiring a dog. In my own mind, I had tried to envision (though I now know not accurately) just what having a dog would do to my daily life. I knew I was willing/ready to make some sacrifices of time, energy and expenses but just exactly how that would unfold is just now becoming clear.

Having my first dog since childhood has created the following changes:
---I no longer can feel guilty for not exercising since my walking has increased a billion percent since last Saturday!
---my bathroom scale and I are becoming friends again as a result of increased walking and less time for eating lunch!
---I have met more neighbors here at my complex this week than I had the previous 5 months of being here thanks to Kipper
---I have the wonderful joy of having a totally excited living thing greeting me when I get home-who knew tails could wag that fast!
---I really can do without that TV show if outside time is needed
---I love Kipper and he loves me....

We're gradually learning each other's ways and making the necessary adjustments. I am so thankful that God has brought Kipper into my life. I hope he knows how much he is loved.

I'm sure there will continue to be lessons learned and blessings received.

Kipper and I are off to enjoy another day.