Well, it is the last day of the year here, and in about 9 hours a new year will begin. Another year to watch 3 of my four children grow, and another year to wonder what John would be like at age 13. Another year to explore life as a mom who only has one more living at home after having 4 to 6 kids in the house. Another year to live, another year to laugh, and another year to love. To find out what God has in store for us can sometimes be a scary thought, but then again, exciting, for with God, all things are possible. With God at our side, what is there to fear? For if we follow his word, the Bible, and confess our faith, and life in a manner that he wants us to, then we know that after death, it is life with him at his side with our family of Christians that has gone before us. I no longer fear what will come for me, for whatever it may be, if God saw me to it, he will bring me through it, in his way, in his time. And I have Faith that He knows what he is doing.
So, may you all have a very Happy New Year, and may your life be filled with love, but mostly with the Love of God!
Love always,
Judy

Fun Times

Well, let me tell you about the cake B.J. and her friends made tonight. They decided that they wanted to make a cake from scratch for B.J.'s birthday, I think I mentioned something about it in the last post, but anyway, they were just to noisy and hyper for me, so I showed them where everything was and let them have at it. Well, as the "cake" was finishing up in the oven, I went to begin making supper, and noticed that almost all my kosher salt was gone. I asked them if they spilled it, and B.J. said that she didn't think so, that the last time she noticed the lid was on it. So I asked one of her friends about it, and well to make a long story short, instead of sugar, the cake had 1 3/4 cups of coarse Kosher salt in it. We had a good laugh about it, and we threw it into the woods for the local deer, and we are now calling it "Salt Lick Cake for deer", HA HA HA! Sometimes it is just to fun to have teen girls in the house, I loved it!!!!!
May all your kids make you smile and laugh, I am so blessed!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Judy

Were does the time go!

Well, it is Saturday afternoon here, 2 days after Christmas and 1 day before my little girl turns 15 years old. Were does the time go? It seems like it was just a little while back that she was born, so petite, but weighing in at 7 lb 15 3/4 ounces. She didn't look like she should weigh that much but she did. Now she is 15, one more year before the "Sweet 16" and wanting to know why she can't date like her friends do already, starting to wear makeup, and finding her own style. She is into the "emo" look, but she doesn't like the stigma it brings. People think that it means she is cutting herself and that kind of stuff, but she just likes the look, and she is emotional and wears it on her sleeve so to speak. I pray she never gets into the rest of the stuff like cutting and such, but if she does I will just have to help her and get her some counseling for it. She is starting to try to pull back from the activities at church and even said that she doesn't know if she really wants to go to LLL this year with the Church, but I told her that she is already signed up and she needs to follow through, then if she doesn't want to go next year that will be fine. I guess I knew she would pull away from it sometime, but I am still hoping to keep her interested in Church and stuff.

Christmas went well here, even with finances tight we were able to get B.J. what she wanted, and my husband still tried to spoil me some too. I got him a pen that was hand turned by our preacher, and it is gorgeous! He really liked it, and that made me feel good. I was able to babysit in return for the pen, so I didn't have to use his money to get him a gift. That made me feel good, I did it on my own without help. I don't get to do that to much. My oldest kids did okay too. I am in a little of a weird mood, between melancholy and proud of B.J. and just in a funk I guess you could say. Not really depressed, but just,I don't know, weird.

Well, I guess I need to get off of here, B.J. and her 2 guest for her Birthday are in the kitchen, making a cake, from scratch, never having done it before, I need to go supervise before the kitchen is wrecked and I have to clean it by myself.
May God bless you all,
Judy

3 more days until Christmas

As I sit here, missing John of course, and thinking about the Christmas holidays, I think about how God gave us his son, whom we Celebrate every year, and should Celebrate every day. Christmas is not just about the giving and receiving of gifts, or a big jolly man in red, riding in a sleigh with 8 reindeer flying him around to leave gifts under the trees around the world. It is about the birth of our Savior, the Son of God. The Son that God gave to us, who lived to please our Father in heaven, who was pure as we can only strive to be, that was crucified so that we can be forgiven for our sins and have a chance at having a place in heaven with Him and all His children. My son truly believed in God and Jesus, and lived in a manner that most grown Christians would be proud, I know I was proud. Even toward the end of his young life, and he was struggling with breathing and scared, all I had to do was ask him if he still believed in God, and that God had a plan, he would say yes or just shake his head yes, and would settle in and let God and the doctors do what they would. I always said that he was an old soul in a young and imperfect body, and was wise beyond his years. Now I try to live my life with the faith and strength as my son did, to make him proud of me, and to let everyone know that I too have faith in the Lord, and that I try to live as God wants me to. That is not to say that I don't still struggle with the loss in my heart, the ache of emptiness where John should be, but it does sooth my soul to know that my little John is were God wants him to be as am I, and that if I read my bible, and do as God wants, and have faith, that I have a chance to be with my son, beside our Lord and Savior in Heaven some day. So, while you celebrate, in what ever way you celebrate this holiday season, remember what it is truly about, Thanking God for all the blessings he has given us all, and for Giving His Son, so that our sins may be forgiven. Love your kids while you can, for they are a gift from God, and we never know when they will be called home to our Lord. We need to love everyone in our lives, because we are not guaranteed even one more day, so spread the Love and while you are at it, spread the word, that Christ is there waiting for us all, to hear the word of the Bible, to believe in him, to repent from our sins, and to receive him into our lives. The Gospel is for us all, will you read, listen and repent?
God bless you each and every one!
In Him,
Judy