Wow, how great it is to just go about a regular day....I caught up with cleaning and laundry and even cooked a nice, hot dinner.  Then I went and worked out with the girls and Steve, our body sculpting expert!  It feels good to get back into a routine.  One of these days I'll return to subbing, but I'm enjoying the Springtime weather and getting jobs accomplished around the house.

Looking forward to attending Giddeon and Krista's wedding next weekend.  It's always a joyous occasion when the family gathers for a celebration!  God bless each one of you, my friends.  Have an awesome weekend of relaxation and refreshment.  Enjoy a time of worship on Sunday! 

Okay, friends...it's Springtime.  Although the weather currently in Pittsburgh is cool, at least the sun is shining.  With all the blooming and budding going on, I hear mowers running and everyone is smiling a bit more.  That's what a good dose of Vitamin D does for a body....and for the mind!  However, I wasn't as good as I should have been when it came to decisions about food.  So, I look at my body and groan....so, anyone like to share some hints about how to decrease the size of our bodies?

Let me know what you think....this can be an ongoing discussion with women, but we like to look our best!  Take care, my friends and God bless!

Today Gary and I traveled back to Pittsburgh after being in Lynchburg, VA for the weekend.  As I wrote previously, it was the dedication ceremony for the new worship center of Hyland Heights Baptist Church, my “home” church.  HHBC was founded when I was only 13 years old and my parents helped to start a bus ministry, lots of fond memories.

We then celebrated my mom’s 88th birthday yesterday, April 26th.   My mom loves to eat steak so we treated her to a steak dinner at the Texas Roadhouse.  No, she didn’t get on the birthday saddle, but the waiters and waitresses did announce her presence to all the folks dining at the restaurant.  We then bought two of the tiniest decorated birthday cakes we’d ever seen and put a big number “8” on each one of them and sang Happy Birthday!   It was a delightful occasion.

Gary and I look forward to more trips south as we continue to be used of God to help my parents with daily life and also make frequent trips to Sharpsville, PA to check on Gary’s mom.  It fills us with joy to be able to help when we can at this point in their lives. 

Please continue to pray for The Sounding Board Teaching Ministries.  With Gary on board full-time as my business manager, more plans are being prayed about and sought out as we look forward with great expectation to what God will do with this ministry!  God bless, my friends!

 

Gary and I were able to attend a dedication service at my home church this morning to celebrate the completion of a 1,500 seat auditorium.  Hyland Heights Baptist Church, formed 45 years ago, honored and remembered its charter members during this very special event.  As we sat in a reserved area, I looked around at my parents and the other elders that I remember as a teen who gave of themselves in time and tithe to start this church in a Ruritan Club building.  This church has come a long way from its humble beginnings as the membership has always strived to be "a light on the hill".  May its beacon always shine on the same hillside where 69 original members broke ground and felt the call of God on their lives to start a new church.

It was a privilege to be numbered among this elite group this morning and to have my husband by my side to witness this great time of reflection.  To God be the glory, great things He has done!

Thank you for praying for Gary's cousin, Peter.  From the updates I am following on Facebook posted by Peter's wife, Anita, Peter still has a way to go, but he's improving.  Peter is a very active man.  He assists his dad with basketball camps and is very involved with his own four sons' activities.  He coaches baseball and the root of his problem surfaced after being hit in the face (cheek) with a line drive.  After a little over a week and episodes of blurred vision and bleeding from his ear, a blood clot caused this stroke.  How sad that his two previous trips to seek medical aid didn't recommend an MRI. 

He is worried about missing baseball games this afternoon and was pretty determined he could make them when we visited on Thursday afternoon.  Gary assured him that he would still be in Presby Hospital when gametime rolled around on Friday.  Anita wrote this morning that there is still blood needing to be drained from his brain and the swelling needs time to recede.  The PT came in this morning and Peter slowly moved from bed to chair, but got a little dizzy.  Coordinatiion with the left side needs time. 

Watching this yesterday as we visited the hospital gave perspective to life's everyday occurences.  Roadblocks are given to slow us down and help us to realize that time is short, life is precious and we need to be about the Lord's work whenever the opportunity avails itself.  Don't get tangled up in the short term view and be thankful for every healthy breath you breathe.  God bless, friends and have a wonderful weekend.

I would ask for your prayers for Gary's cousin, Peter White.  Peters is only 43 years old and suffered a stroke last night.  He was life flighted to Presby Hospital in Pittsburgh to have a procedure performed that evidently only Presby can do.  He is the father of four young boys and his wife, Ana, is by his side.  Gary's Uncle drove Ana to Presby during the night from Williamsport.

Peter is stablized and in ICU.  The procedure was performed successfully and currently we are in the "wait and see" stage.  Gary and I will be going down this afternoon.  Peter's siblings will probably be coming in this weekend if he stays in Pittsburgh rather than returning to the hospital in Williamsport.  Please pray that we will be the witnesses we need to be and our home will be a place of refreshment for those who gather here.  God bless!

I might have mentioned before that one of my former students from Hillcrest Christian School is now a professional baseball player with the Minnesota Twins.  Kevin Slowey was always an outstanding young man.  He comes from a wonderful Christian family and has developed into a man of God who knows no compromises in the faith.  After visiting with him for a short period of time this spring during spring training in Florida, it was evident that Kevin has a level head and a he lives his life to honor God with the talent he has been given.

Yesterday, Gary found clips of the Twins' game in which Kevin pitched eight innings and struck out nine batters.  Watching him on the mound I couldn't help but reflect back to the days when he would enter my middle school classroom with a big smile on his face.  That same young man is now a mature man of God doing what he loves to the best of his ability.  And you know the word he has taught me, his former teacher?  Temporal.  All of the recognition, the success, the fans striving for autographs is temporal.  It will all come to an end someday.  The most important factor...did others see Jesus in you? 
God bless, my friends.

Gary and I are constantly looking at one another and commenting about how our lives are changing.  We are finally getting into retirement and understanding exactly what that means to us.  We decided we would begin doing things we had planned on doing "when Gary retires"....thus, today we went to a high school baseball game.  It was a game played outside our school district, but a member of the team is the son of dear friends that we haven't seen for a long time.  So, this is part of our future....seeing friends we haven't seen in a while, planning dinner with friends that we kept promising "let's have dinner" and doing tourist type things we always said we'd experience.
Plus, it's great to ride our bikes in the middle of the afternoon while we still have the energy to do so!  God bless, friends and continue to stay tuned in....Gary and I are changing it up!

Okay, I'll stay....in Pittsburgh, that is!  After coming back on Friday evening to cool and damp temperatures and spending the weekend in more of the same, I was ready to head back to Florida!  But today is beautiful....springtime in Pittsburgh.  I took a nice, long walk on the trail and listened as the birds serenaded me and the sun beat down on my face....it was fantastic.  The earth is once again coming to life and it's a blessing to be able to be alive and well and able to enjoy the view once again!

Praise to our awesome Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

Okay, if my Florida friends and family are reading this you'll get a big kick out of the fact I'm freezing today!  Coming up the road yesterday we had great weather until we hit West Virignia....then the skies darkened and the rain/storms began.  When we reached our home in McMurray the temperature had dropped to 58 degrees, wind was blowing and it was COOL....

The local station commented last night that a storm carrying strong winds had blown through and many tree branches were down along with power lines in some areas.  Fortunately, we had power when we arrived at 113 Thomas Road, but today the weather is still very, very cool....out came the jeans and sweatshirts!

So, if you're reading this Aunt Jane and Uncle Bob, I know you and Laurie are still enjoying pool weather and sunshine.  I think we're upping the date of our return next year to the end of April!  The area of Lake Norman was gorgeous and we enjoyed having lunch there on Friday.   Okay, so much for what we left behind, the Spring beauty is in abundance here with our Dogwood in bloom and our Cleveland Pear Tree holding on to a few remaining buds.  I haven't checked the Lilac yet, but I'm hoping it made it through the harsh winter.  Many of the other annuals didn't fair as well and need to be replaced.

Gary and I have our work cut out for us as the yard needs a bunch of work, the unloading of boxes and suitcases need to be completed and we begin a new phase of life with the first duty being.....purging!  Yes, we are purging all the items we no longer need or use.  This means we're going through the garage, the basement, the attic, closets and then we'll work on other items we no longer will be using.  After living in a small villa for 2 1/2 months, you realize exactly what it is you need to survive and how much "stuff" you have accumulated over the years! 

Hope everyone is enjoying the Spring....keep in touch and have a wonderful Saturday!  God bless!