Mother’s Prayers Have Followed Me ~ Hymn

Mother’s Prayers Have Followed Me

I grieved my Lord from day to day,
I scorned His love so full and free,
And though I wandered far away,
My mother’s prayers have followed me.

Refrain

I’m coming home, I’m coming home,
To live my wasted life anew,
For mother’s prayers have followed me,
Have followed me, the whole world thro’.

O’er desert wild, o’er mountain high
A wanderer I chose to be,
A wretched soul condemned to die,
Still mother’s prayers have followed me.

Refrain

He turned my darkness into light,
This blessèd Christ of Calvary,
I’ll praise His name both day and night,
That mother’s prayers have followed me.

Refrain

Words: Lizzie DeArmond, 1912.

My mother went to be with her Savior on September 13, 2013. I’m still thankful for her prayers, my father’s prayers to this day and my maternal grandmother’s prayers.

Mother’s Day ~ World War II

This is Dear’s grandfather, his father Rex, one of Rex’s sisters and Rex’s mom, Nettie. Rex honored his parents his whole life and left this great legacy to his two sons. Nettie died 2 months before Rex, who died of complications due to lung cancer in 1985.

This is a Mother’s Day card that Rex sent his mom in the 1940’s. His mom framed it.

On the back of the frame here is some history of what was happening with Rex during World War II and how Nettie felt. We called Nettie, Gommy. Our kids called Nettie, Gommy Gommy.

I’m so happy that she wrote this history on the back of the frame. This last photo is of Dear, Gommy, and Rex.

Pregnant Josh newborn

Hope a happy Mother’s Day weekend is in store for all of you. The weather is supposed to be summery here in the Pacific Northwest. Maybe we’ll even put our patio covers up. We will definitely do some outdoor activities!

Fences and Signs!

 

This short red, white and blue fence is in the side yard of a house I pass on my way to exercise class.

On our way to Canada last Saturday I spotted these signs.

 

 

We have a few choices for border crossings into Canada in our state of Washington but Sumas is the one we choose when we are traveling to Chilliwack or the center of Abbotsford.

 

This is dairy country!

 

I’ll add one more fence looking out my basement door. It might be time to trim my Japanese Maple.

 

Linking to Signs, signs with Lesley and Good Fences with Tex-Wis-Girl!

Quirky-

-strikingly unconventional.

When Dear and I were on Bainbridge Island in March we came across these quirky structures.

Q is for Quirky and I’m adding this post to ABC Wednesday started by Denise Nesbitt and continued by the great ABC Team!

Here’s my Bible Verse for the letter Q!

Speaking of the letter Q, I’m on a quest for the next couple months to drop some of my “fluff” before our son’s wedding the end of June. I feel like I deserve a medal only after two weeks of de-fluffing. I am way more fond of feasting than fasting. In reading Shauna Niequist’s book, Bread and Wine (a love letter to life around the table with recipes), her chapter on feasting and fasting resonated with me and helped me finally get on with a “fasting” time in my life. She uses the term fasting loosely meaning the opposite of feasting not the traditional fasting where for spiritual reasons you have set aside a time where you only have broth and juice. There are times in my life where it’s appropriate to feast and times when it’s appropriate to fast. My fasting consists of only having a certain amount of calories per day. Even in this short two month quest there are events where it’s not appropriate for me to fast, like when my kids take me out for Mother’s day this coming Saturday. Life goes on. I know at the end of this quest I’ll feel more like a Queen for the day in my mother of the groom dress.

Happy Cinco de Mayo! I’m saving my calories for Tequila Tuesday at our local Mexican restaurant tonight.

Drive By Barns…

You know how it goes…when you see something that would be cool to take a photo of you are on a direct mission to your destination. No time for stopping along the way. On our way to and back from our son’s in Eastern Washington I took a lot of shots of barns from the highway. If they are a little blurry it’s because we were going 70 and 80 MPH fast!

Close to Ellensburg…

Does covered hay count as a hay barn? These first few I’m sharing are from Central Washington.

Linking up to Rose Street Reflections by Amy for The Barn Collection #30.

We had a great weekend. On Saturday we traveled to Chilliwack, B.C. to attend a wedding. We enjoyed time with seven of the Mennonite Girls and their husbands but we had a total photo fail. None of us got one photo of the eight of us together. Oye! On Sunday after church we enjoyed a pulled pork meal with our Western Washington kids and we watched the Seattle Sounders game together. We had fun cheering loudly together and we won which is always more enjoyable than losing!

Hope you had a good weekend!

Marching to Zion ~ Hymn

Marching to Zion

Come, we that love the Lord,
And let our joys be known;
Join in a song with sweet accord,
Join in a song with sweet accord
And thus surround the throne,
And thus surround the throne.

Refrain

We’re marching to Zion,
Beautiful, beautiful Zion;
We’re marching upward to Zion,
The beautiful city of God.

The sorrows of the mind
Be banished from the place;
Religion never was designed
Religion never was designed,
To make our pleasures less,
To make our pleasures less.

Refrain

Let those refuse to sing,
Who never knew our God;
But favorites of the heavenly King,
But favorites of the heavenly King
May speak their joys abroad,
May speak their joys abroad.

Refrain

The God that rules on high,
And thunders when He please,
Who rides upon the stormy sky,
Who rides upon the stormy sky,
And manages the seas,
And manages the seas.

Refrain

This awful God is ours,
Our Father and our Love;
He will send down his heav’nly powers,
He will send down his heav’nly powers,
To carry us above,
To carry us above.

Refrain

There we shall see His face,
And never, never sin!
There, from the rivers of His grace,
There, from the rivers of His grace,
Drink endless pleasures in,
Drink endless pleasures in.

Refrain

Yea, and before we rise,
To that immortal state,
The thoughts of such amazing bliss,
The thoughts of such amazing bliss,
Should constant joys create,
Should constant joys create.

Refrain

The men of grace have found,
Glory begun below.
Celestial fruits on earthly ground
Celestial fruits on earthly ground
From faith and hope may grow,
From faith and hope may grow.

Refrain

The hill of Zion yields
A thousand sacred sweets
Before we reach the heav’nly fields,
Before we reach the heav’nly fields,
Or walk the golden streets,
Or walk the golden streets.

Refrain

Then let our songs abound,
And every tear be dry;
We’re marching through Immanuel’s ground,
We’re marching through Immanuel’s ground,
To fairer worlds on high,
To fairer worlds on high.

Refrain

Words: Isaac Watts, 1707.

A Year Ago…

For InSPIREd Sunday and Spiritual Sundays I’m going back to a road trip our daughter and I took to get her back to North Carolina to welcome her husband home from his second tour of duty in Afghanistan with the Marine Corps. One of the places we took time to visit was Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis, Missouri.

Bellefontaine 039

Bellefontaine 021

SeaJack #4 016

SeaJack #4 006

Bellefontaine 040

The Legend of the Dogwood

There is a legend, that at the time of the Crucifixion the dogwood had been the size of the oak and other forest trees. So firm and strong was the tree that it was chosen as the timber of the cross. To be used thus for such a cruel purpose greatly distressed the tree, and Jesus, nailed upon it, sensed this, and in His gentle pity for all sorrow and suffering said to it: “Because of your regret and pity for My suffering, never again shall the dogwood tree grow large enough to be used as a cross. Henceforth it shall be slender and bent and twisted and its blossoms shall be in the form of a cross. ..two long and two short petals. And in the center of the outer edge of each petal there will be nail prints, brown with rust and stained with red, and in the center of the flower will be a crown of thorns, and all who see it will remember.”

I recognize that this is just a legend but I wanted to post this entry because I’ve always loved the Dogwood blooms. If I look at them and think about what my Savior did for me that’s a good thing. He created the tree, the beautiful bloom, and you and me to enjoy it!

We will be taking a short road trip to Canada on Saturday. I’ll share about our time next week. It takes us under two hours to get to the U.S./Canadian border from where we live in Washington State. Hope you have a wonderful first weekend in May!

Hello May!

Early this morning on this first day of May I wandered around our yard and clicked away…

So full, so lush, so many shades of green to enjoy.

Our state flower is the Rhododendron and some of our bushes are blooming.

The soft pink Rose Bud Azaleas bloom later than the bright ones in the next photo.

I’ll give my lilac blooms till Sunday to completely open up and then I’ll bring them inside to enjoy their fragrance.

Thankful today and joining Susanne’s Fave Five to say…

Thank you Lord for Spring flowers and the month of May.

Thank you Lord for a yard that I can enjoy your creation in.

Thank you Lord for a home I can relax in.

Thank you Lord for friends and family and the peace we share.

Thank you Lord that you are the same yesterday, today and forever and we don’t have to fear the ups and downs of our culture.

What are you looking forward to in the Merry Month of May?!

Signs and Fences…

We are in wedding mode counting down the days to our son’s wedding in June. This sign is hanging in our son’s home. Linking up with Lesley for Signs, signs!

While Dear and I were on Bainbridge Island we saw these fences. Of course I thought of Good Fences and Tex Wis Girl!

We are looking forward to a special event coming up on Saturday. We had to chuckle when Dear’s fortune cookie said “Traveling to the north will bring you unexpected happiness.”

What are your plans for the first weekend in May?

Peonies and Purple Blooms

Time for ABC Wednesday and the letter P! Thank you Mrs. Nesbitt, Roger and the whole ABC Team!

I love all the shades of purple that are growing in my yard right now. My lilac blooms are almost full.

Pansies and the ground cover have purple blooms.

I have the promise of more peonies this year than last.

More perennials that are purple.

And here’s my Bible Verse Card for the Letter P!

And on the subject of peace here are some words from the Prince of Peace, Jesus;

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” John 14:27

I’m continuing to enjoy a peaceful week at this old house. We had some very warm weather here on Monday. It reached 76 degrees in our town. Tuesday is another story. Hopefully I’ll be able to mow the lawn before the rain comes in.

Do you have promises of more blooms in your yard?