il bello Venezia

We were talking to some friends the other day, reminiscing about our trip to Greece and Italy last fall, and I realized that I hadn't finished sharing our Overseas Adventure.......so, here is the first instalment of the rest of the story.

We spent the last three days of our vacation in Italy, and if I do say so myself, these were my favorite days of all.

We spent a day in Florence, a day in Venice, and a day in Rome. Of course, only having a day meant that we could only see a portion of each city, but I enjoyed it none the less.

Of the three cities, my favorite by far was Venice......the canals with gondolas sailing up and down, and the old brick bridges that allowed us to walk over them. The ancient and beautiful buildings, with vines trailing from the roofs, and moss growing on the walls. The narrow cobblestone pathways that twist and turn throughout the city, with the scent of the sea on the air.

After a day of exploration, we enjoyed a late supper at a restaurant that we discovered was a favorite of the locals. The interior of the place was an experience I won't soon forget......dark wood paneling and stucco walls, yellowed with age......chunky wooden tables and mismatched dining chairs......the scent of wine and garlic, seafood and coffee......a family eating a birthday supper together, complete with gifts and a cake......there was even a dog resting under one of the tables waiting for its owners to finish dinner. The food was some of the best I have ever tasted........the freshest seafood and a juicy steak, with the ever present side of homemade pasta. We had a coffee and walked back to our hotel in the romantic light of beautiful wrought iron lamps.

The next morning, after breakfast, we headed to Piazza San Marco, where we boarded a water taxi (there are no motor vehicles in Venice) and headed to the train station to catch the early train to Rome.

"Why....?'

"I know now Lord, why You utter no answer.

You are Yourself the answer.

Before Your face questions die away.

What other answer would suffice?"

C.S. Lewis

"It is Good......"

Didn't Mitch do a FABULOUS job on his creation? I LOVE it and I sit on the swing, enjoying the shade each morning.......Reading my Bible and watching the robins and the starlings hunt for worms. The shade is heavenly and what is even better.........this morning we had a thunderstorm and I sat out there and stayed safe and dry! It was so nice sitting there listening to the rain fall and the thunder roll.

GOOD JOB hon! Thank you for ALL of your hard work......each time I am out there enjoying the shade, I FEEL your love for me. What a blessed woman I am, I couldn't ask for more. Well.......maybe a fire pit, and an outdoor kitchen, some patio furniture would be nice......oh and a snuggle with my honey on a new porch swing (I know that you can build one......I only have to look up and see your talent for building things!!)

Life Abundant

As I was returning home from Spokane last week, I saw a doe and her fawn dead on the side of the road. Not a pretty picture to have on my mind and yet it keeps on returning........I love how the Lord uses even sad things to get my attention about some issue of life........The sight of the doe with her fawn lying on the roadside brought a thought to mind....a little one will follow its mother, even if it means following her to death.....I know that we humans are different than animals, we have a reasoning mind and can make choices, whereas an animal has instincts, and must follow them. As a mom I have the power to greatly influence my children, and their children, and their children.......They WILL FOLLOW me. I want my children to follow me to LIFE and not to DEATH, and I am not talking about a literal death (like the poor little fawn). Jesus said that He came to give us life, and that more abundantly..........He wasn't just speaking of eternal life, but of this LIFE that I live here on the earth. My life, our lives, affect others. What I do or don't do here in this life will follow me into eternity. I am not perfect, no human is.......but I want my life to reflect what I believe, what I KNOW. Each and every moment of everyday I will affect the lives of those around me, for good or for bad. And so, I choose today to FOLLOW my Jesus....to go where He has gone....to do as He does....to love and serve with compassion and caring. And as I follow Jesus, I pray that my life will be an example worth following.........

Under Construction

I am so proud of my honey.....the Patio Cover is taking shape and it looks great, doesn't it? He has been working long hours and I am so thankful for his willingness to do so! All I know is that I am going to "owe" him BIG TIME!!

Raising the Roof

Finally. At Last. The time has come to begin our patio cover! We have wanted to have some shade in our backyard for 4 years now, and our little trees just 'aint cuttin' it........give them a few more decades and then we shall see.......they are trying though.......I go out and encourage them every day.

Mitch has been hard at it, and if I do say so myself, doing a mighty fine job of it. No really, I am very impressed. It isn't that I thought that he couldn't do it, I knew that he could.......it's just.......why would he want to do it?!! I sure wouldn't want to work out in the heat and use power tools all day long, and I know for a fact that I would never be able to decipher a set of building plans, trust me I've tried! I have to give credit to my son-in-law for his hard work on the plans.......thanks Davie, you're awesome!! I am loved, for you see that is the reason for the patio cover.......Mitch knows that I would love to have one. He knows that I love to be outside. But......The LOVE doesn't end with covering the patio.......he is also building a small BBQ island, complete with a gas burner, and a counter top, and a fireplace too! We will be able to enjoy the out of doors in any season! He did inform me the other day that the fireplace might be a project for next year.........ah well......I will try to be patient. I am planning to promise him a "cuddling session" by the fire........you never know, it might speed things up a bit!

A Bit of Boasting.....

Please excuse me while I brag.......I can't help myself, for this is something to be boasting about! My daughter Stephenie called me earlier this week to let me know that my sweet grand children aced their final exams! All three of them received A's!! My granddaughters Bethanne and Rachel made "Eagle of the Year" and Adam finished well too. I am so proud of them and of their hard work........But most of all, I am so proud of my daughter Steph. For those of you who may not know, Steph home schooled her children up until this past year. She is the one who taught them their ABCs, how to read, and how to do math, but I am most proud of the way that she and her man, David, have raised them to love and fear the Lord. Adam is becoming a man of God and he showed this as he went through a very difficult time with another student. He showed that he could overcome adversity by following the Word of God and I am so thankful for that. Bethanne and Rachel have recently been struggling with some pretty scary health issues......they are in the process of wearing heart monitors to determine exactly what is going on......and yet, they continue to find humor in the situation (see my Steph's blog for a post about this), and both of them continue to grow in the graces of God.

The photo that is included in this post says it all......It was taken at the girls' baptism........

I am remembering today to thank the Lord for answered prayer.....I have prayed fervently for all of my sweet grand babies, and He has once again been faithful to answer me. A long time ago God made a promise to me about having many grand children to enjoy. At the time of the promise, there was only 2 year old Adam and we were moving to Colorado, and I was very heart broken to be leaving my family behind in Washington. In the passage of scripture that He impressed on my heart at that time, is a line that caused me to hope that I would again live close to my family. The verse tells of it only being a moment that we would be separated......And here I am experiencing the joy of this word from the Father being fulfilled!

So, here's to you Adam, Bethanne, and Rachel.........Grammie says, "Well Done.......I am so PROUD of you.....and I love you so very much!!"