Category Archives: Grandchildren

My Birthday Hodgpodge

It’s just about time for Wednesday Hodgepodge. Joyce From This Side of the Pond asks the questions and we answer them. Here are the questions for Volume 344!

1. Best place you’ve been lately?

The best place I’ve been lately is under the same roof with our little grand watching all her new skills and quirks and expressions. We just returned home after spending four days with her and her dear parents.

2. What’s something you should say yes to today? Or this week? Or even this year?

Yes to letting things go and not regretting that I let them go.

3. Do you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in any way, shape, or form? If so tell us how. In Western cultures the color green is typically associated with jealousy, nature, good luck, and growth. What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word ‘green’?

Some years I do set a St. Patrick’s Day table and most years we enjoy some corned beef and cabbage.

The first thing that came to my mind on the subject of green was my kitchen. Our home has many shades of green in it and on it’s exterior, too. We happen to live in the Evergreen state and Seattle is the Emerald city we are happily surrounded by all kinds of green year round.

4. What’s a product or service you love so much you’d happily be their spokesperson? Tell us what makes you such a fan.

I can highly recommend Grace to You and their daily broadcasts and sermon archives. The faithfulness of John MacArthur in teaching the truth of the Bible verse by verse makes me a fan. Dependable, consistent, accurate handling of the Word of God is the best resource to have for life.

While we were at Dan and Jamie’s they pulled out their super duper butter mill to spread on hamburger buns before grilling the buns. We were really impressed with the ease of spreading butter using one of these mills. Here’s what they look like. If you use real butter I would highly recommend one of these gadgets.

5. March 14th is Pi Day. How are your math skills? What’s the last thing you did that required math of any kind? And most importantly do you like pie? What’s your favorite kind? With ice cream, whipped cream, or please hold the cream?

March 14th happens to be my birthday and this year I’m turning 67. How did that happen? I do have some math skills and I had to use those skills to figure out how old I was turning this year.

Berry pies are my favorite kind of pie or fresh strawberry and fresh peach.  Al a mode or as my pop would say “pie alamo” is good for the berry pies and the fresh pies require nothing on top for me.

I do NOT like Cherry pie. The texture of the cherries in cherry pie do not appeal to my palate. When I was young one of my aunts served cherry pie and I took a bite and did not like it. She made me eat the whole piece anyway even though it made me gag. Ever since then I’ve turned my nose up and refuse to eat cherry pie. For that reason and many others I did not like this aunt. Just typing this makes me realize I need to talk to God about my ill feelings toward her and forgive her in my heart since she died several years ago.

Boysenberry pie was probably the first kind of pie I had growing up from Knott’s Berry Farm in Southern California. My mother did not bake pies when I was young or even into my teen years.

This is a photo that I love of my parents from Knott’s Berry Farm taken sometime in the 1950’s.  Knott’s Berry Farm was one of the very few places we ever ate out as a family. We enjoyed their popular fried chicken dinner with their famous boysenberry pie for dessert. A very special treat for all of us.

6.  Insert your own random thought here.

Thanking God for another year in the books and for what this new year holds for our family. Lots of changes are coming and I pray that things will move along smoothly.  Asking God to provide the right home and the strength to make this big move. Also asking God to lead and guide our youngest and her hubby as he completes his degree in June and he looks for a job somewhere in these United States which will mean a move and a new place to live for them, too. Moving is the theme for the majority of our immediate family in 2018.

An update on my dear old pop. He is spending more of his day in bed these days. His eyesight has deteriorated enough that he can no longer read his Bible or do his jigsaw puzzles. He has got to be so bored! Hopefully he will have his major heavenly move this year, Lord willing.

Birthday Month

In less then two weeks our little grandgirlie turns 1 year old! She loves her veggies and whole grain noodles.

Growing up is tiring.

It’s time to make the trip over the mountains to see all her new skills in person.

My answers to my random questions from yesterday…

1. God has decided to send you on a Mission trip, where are you going and why?

Russia because that’s where both my parents were born which makes me 100% Russian. I understand a little Russian and can speak some…not much intelligently. Everyone including Russians need Jesus as their Savior.

2. You have a free afternoon to read uninterrupted. Where would you choose to read?

I would choose to read in a comfy corner by a fireplace with a window view close by.

3. If you were stuck in an elevator for over an hour what music would you want playing while you were stuck?

I think I’d want the comfort of some good Worship music playing.

4. You have to travel from the west coast to the east coast of your country, what 5 cities would you want to spend time in?

I’ll take the northern tier of our states and choose:

Missoula, Montana
Grand Marais, Minnesota
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
Newport, Rhode Island
Rockport, Maine

The Best of February Hodgepodge

1. Are you currently operating at 100% capacity? If not, what % are you? What’s keeping you there?

At this stage of life I have spurts of working at different capacities. I’ve been working on one project at 100% which means my other daily operations are working at a lower capacity. I am learning more and more to appreciate the days and hours that my output is 100%.

2. Have you done your taxes? Planned/booked a summer holiday? Thought about or started your ‘spring cleaning’? Besides what’s listed here, tell us one task that needs doing before spring rolls around.

We have an appointment with a bookkeeper to do our taxes on Thursday. Spring cleaning is definitely on the schedule as we are putting our home on the market in May. Spring cleaning will probably start in April, with the most daunting project being the cleaning of our mini blinds. No Summer holiday this year as we will be using all our energy to move and adapt into our new environs. We do have a fall road trip planned in October to attend my 50 year high school reunion in Montebello, California.

3. What’s a favorite food from your part of the country?

Fish and shellfish stand out as the favorites for the Greater Seattle area. A favorite cooked in a variety of ways or smoked is Salmon. I did not grow up with much fish and it is not my favorite thing. A good barbecued Salmon is something I like. I also enjoy Penn Cove Mussels in a great sauce on occasion with a thick slice of bread that I can dip in the sauce. This next weekend the Penn Cove Musselfest in Coupeville is happening on Whidbey Island. I have to mention Dungeness Crab, too. We have Dungeness Bay, Spit and Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge in Washington State.

I’m amazed with myself that I’ve grown to enjoy a good oyster in a great sauce which would have made me gag years ago. A good piece of halibut, swordfish, or some good ole fish and chips cooked to perfection are dishes that I enjoy once in a while.

4. This isn’t a leap year, but let’s run with it anyway…look before you leap, a leap of faith, grow by leaps and bounds, leap to conclusions, leap at the opportunity…which phrase might best be applied to your life currently (or recently)? Explain.

We will be leaping at the opportunity to sell our home in a very hot market in the Seattle area and move to an area of Washington that is more affordable.

Special Side note about Leap Year: My sister Vera was born on leap year and only has her real birthday once every 4 years! We celebrate her on the 28th the other three years. Happy Birthday Vera! You are a dear sister and I appreciate you!

5. As the month draws to a close list five fun and/or fabulous things (large or small) you noticed or experienced in February.

  • The most fabulous/large experience I had in February happened at the very beginning of the month when I was able to fly down to Southern California with our son’s family and introduce our granddaughter to some of her Great Uncles, Great Aunts, her cousins once and twice removed. Most special was introducing her to her Great Grandfather (Dzeda).
  • We had some unexpected snow that only lasts a short time which is great, the short part.
  • Our kids, all of them, spent a weekend together which warms a mom’s heart. (Top Photo)
  • My dear old pop is feeling better in his health decline and he sounds better which is good to hear.
  • We are making progress on this old house, getting it ready to sell.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

I’m looking forward to March. Our little granddaughter is turning one year old! Wow how fast the year has gone. She is just marching forward to her milestone! Walking, signing, lots of new teeth, eating some solids, standing up from a sitting position, climbing and learning some consequences from over reaching her limits and safety boundaries. Her Baba (me) will be enjoying a birthday in the month of March, too.

Thank you Jo, for the questions you ask for Wednesday Hodgepodge. Thank you, too, for those of you who swing by and read the answers. I appreciate you.

Frozen Randomness

It started snowing a little on Wednesday night and into the very early morning. No new snow the rest of the day. We don’t get snow very often in the Seattle Area but when it falls it has an interesting effect on me. I go right into hibernation mode. I did manage to do some indoor things like a load of wash and made a couple of meals for the two of us. I’m going to have to change my ways when we move to Northeastern Washington and experience more snow.

Someone recommended this book but I can’t remember who. Was it you? I started it and I was engaged from the beginning.

Look who is 11 months already! Yikes I was warned grand babies grow fast and now I’ve seen it with my own eyes. Today her mommy shared that she stood up from a sitting position with no help. Nothing to lift her up but her own strength and balance.

Just like we hoped we are beginning to see some dimples to match her mommy and daddy’s.

I’ve enjoyed reading so many great remembrances, tributes and personal stories from people all over the world whose lives were impacted by God through the evangelist Billy Graham.

The photo above is from the Los Angeles Billy Graham Crusade in 1963. My father took us to the crusade every night. My father started his life of following Christ at this crusade. My life as a follower of Christ started in 1963, too. The song, Just As I Am always reminds me of the Billy Graham Crusades and our time at the crusades and what this time meant for the future of myself and my family.

Just as I am – without one plea,
But that Thy blood was shed for me,
And that Thou bidst me come to Thee,
– O Lamb of God, I come!

My mother was home with my newborn siblings, twins, a boy and a girl born on July 29th. I like the illustration above since it has the dates of the crusade. Now I’m wondering how my poor mother managed at home alone with twins!

Here’s a quote from Billy Graham…

“By the time you read this, I will be in heaven, and as I write this I’m looking forward with great anticipation to the day when I will be in God’s presence forever.

I’m convinced that heaven is far more glorious than anything we can possibly imagine right now, and I look forward not only to its wonder and peace, but also to the joy of being reunited with those who have gone there before me, especially my dear wife, Ruth. The Bible says, “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face” (1 Corinthians 13:12).

But I won’t be in heaven because I’ve preached to large crowds or because I’ve tried to live a good life. I’ll be in heaven for one reason: Many years ago I put my faith and trust in Jesus Christ, who died on the cross to make our forgiveness possible and rose again from the dead to give us eternal life. Do you know you will go to heaven when you die? You can, by committing your life to Jesus Christ today.”

Billy Graham 1918-2018

Inspiration Hodgepodge

1. Where do you go when you need some inspiration?

It all depends…

For Life: It’s man’s chief end to glorify God… for the inspiration I need for living a life that does that, I go to a good Bible Gospel preaching church and I listen to good teachers and read books from authors who believe in the inerrancy of the Bible, God’s truth.

For Cooking: I glean from the other gals from the MGCC Blog. When I have to post a new recipe I look to magazines and cooking shows for inspiration.

For decorating: Fixer Upper, magazines, Instagram and blogs.

2. What’s under your bed?

I went and looked and at this time there is nothing under my bed except for most likely dust. The guestroom beds are another story. The guestrooms have those bins that fit under beds. A ribbon bin, a gift bag and tissue bin for packaging gifts, a Christmas bin with bags etc., linens in those space saver bags, and Katie and Andrew’s collection of swords. (I also found a stack of Chinese take-out boxes) I use those to send home leftovers with our kids and company when I cook too much food.

3. Thursday, February 22nd is National Chili Day, National Margarita Day, and National Cook a Sweet Potato Day. Of the three which would you most like to celebrate? Is that likely?

Hmm…who comes up with these days? Most likely we would be celebrating having a good pot of chili. It’s really cold this week in the Seattle area and chili is always a good choice in freezing weather. What kind of chili to enjoy? We enjoy chicken, turkey or beef. Our Margarita day is Tuesday…every Tuesday. In fact, our favorite waitress at the local Mexican restaurant sees us drive up and she heads to the bar to make our Margaritas. It’s telling on my state of healthy that I’m ignoring the sweet potato.

4. What are you ‘snowed under’ with right now?

I’m snowed under with stuff. Stuff, stuff and more stuff. Many years of accumulated stuff. We’ve been in this old house since 1998 and we moved a lot of stuff to this old house. Because we are moving and contemplating the wisdom of paying too much to move all that stuff we need to serious about what we can live without.

5. Tell us three to five things that make you feel balanced?

  1. Trust in God.
  2. Being at peace in my relationship with Dear, my husband.
  3. A good blend between learning and playing.
  4. Getting away from the day to day with a road trip now and again with my camera.
  5. A clean kitchen.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Speaking of snow or snowed under here are some photos of our kids in the snow from President’s weekend.

Linking up to Hodgepodge Wednesday with Jo From This Side of the Pond. She asks the questions and we answer them.

Twenty seven-ish more days until Spring and little Miss Addy’s first birthday. She’s the sweet gift of Spring to our family!

Update: I woke up to hear that Billy Graham has been ushered into heaven today. I’ll be posting a tribute to him later this week. Finally this great evangelist is in the arms of Jesus.

 

From Afar…

…enjoyment through photos. These are photos our kids took (Laura) while spending time together in snowy Colville. I loved seeing the fun in the snow and happy faces from this side of the mountains where rain persists with no snow.

I think she likes her ride.

Hey mom, why can’t I move my legs?!

Our first born with his love.

Our second born with his favorite girls.

Our youngest with her love.

All of our favorites in one photo! Thankful for each one of them.

Awesome mama and our little delightful granddaughter.

The snow angel!

The early morning snow warriors.

I’m a grateful mom and baba for this time our kids had together. Addy got re-acquainted with her aunts and uncles. Now I’m praying for safe journeys home for Josh, Laura, Andrew and Katie.

Meanwhile back at the ranch (this old house) and at Mennonite Girls Can Cook I posted a One-skillet steak meal for two. Enjoy.

Happy President’s Day!

Smile, It’s Friday

Hope this makes you smile.

Enjoy your President’s weekend. I’m still a little sad that we don’t celebrate Lincoln’s and Washington’s birthday separately like we did when I was in school so many years ago. Are you doing anything special this weekend? Our Western Washington kids are heading east to spend the weekend with our Eastern Washington kids. This makes me happy.

We are going to try and find a good spot for Happy Hour today.

Successful Journey

On the Monday after Super Bowl Sunday we traveled inland from Huntington Beach to see my pop. This would be the first time Pop would meet Addy, his youngest great granddaughter. Addy was very concerned about our pop who is not looking well. She had quite a grip on her daddy’s t-shirt.

She loosened up that grip to accept the cash her Great Grandfather pulled out of his wallet for her. Too funny.

She even had a slight smile for him when he handed her the second bill.

After the meeting she enjoyed multi-tasking, walking and holding the ball.

Pop had to spend 20 minutes on his Nebulizer. Addy was very interested in what was going on and her concern showed in her facial expressions. All my sisters were together for this visit, too, which was nice. We enjoyed some Borsch together and Addy liked her first taste of it, too.

My Pop thanked me again for this chair Dear and I bought him. The power control to move the chair to the recline and other positions has really come in handy for him. Before we left each of us daughters prayed for him and then we all sang Great is Thy Faithfulness and God be With You Till We Meet Again. That made me choke up but I’m glad to sing it to him while he’s still alive instead of just at his funeral.

From our time in La Habra with our pop/grandfather (dzeda), Great Grandfather, we headed back to Huntington Beach and met up with Debbee and Lenny for dinner at Ola’s. The next morning we flew home to Washington. Our trip to Southern California was full from beginning to end and little Addy adjusted well to everything thrown at her. Speaking of driving in Southern California, I’m happy to report that we had smooth sailing for each of our comings and goings. That’s a praise for sure!

The four of us sat together going to California and coming home and I was happy to enjoy more time with Addy and giving her parents some breaks in the journey. We parted in Seattle and their trip continued on to Spokane where they would have another hour drive to get all the way home again.

We have had some sunshine which has been great the last couple of days. Some much needed planter clean out has happened and I’m grateful to have been able to accomplish those tasks in that sunshine!

As I type away I’m enjoying the Winter Olympics in the background. Are you watching?