THE SOAPBOX

It's very frustrating to listen to the news today... our congress is faced with such horrific situations in the world, and they are stuck on paper cuts...
AAACCCKKKK!!!! A PAPER CUT!!! SUE THE PAPER COMPANY WHO MADE THAT SHEET OF PAPER AND DIDN'T PUT A WARNING ON THE LABEL.. NO, NO LABEL ON EVEN ONE SHEET OF THAT DANGEROUS PAPER!
I guess I should also be expecting an apology from the US.. congress for permitting the paper company to exist. ~ AND REPARATIONS... DON'T FORGET THE REPARATIONS!!!! My PAPER CUT might get infected if I have to dip it in cow manure to accomplish it.. and since I need my hands to feed my face and do most everything.. they are worth millions, don't you think?

What has happened in our country? Why are the elected servants now turning tables on the people and becoming so bold in their arrogance.. We need to dump the lot of them and try again. These ninnies need to get their acts together... we have some serious things facing our nation today.. and they are hung up on trivialities.. or is this all they can agree on? Apologizing for slavery was a farce.. Slavery went out in the 1800's.. it doesn't exist here.. so what are you apologizing for? for living? for existing? The apology is worthless.. I cannot apologize for anything done by my forefathers.. it's a personal thing.. I can only apologize for my own misdeeds.
I am paying taxes to have this congress make a mockery of history and of the country.. and wasting .. no, WASTING money and precious time.
And reparations? You need to stay away from the koolaid. Congress is out of control. Not all, but the ones in charge. I encourage all who read to pray for these sick people.

Anyone who feels they don't like our nation can leave if they want .. it's a basic freedom. But what is this?.. . they don't want to leave? why not? Life would seem to be so much better in a 3rd world country, eh? That seems to be what they want.. .. or are they just whiners?
I'm feeling a bit testy today over the news..can you tell?

Could we get on with our lives here?

How can hope for the future help me live today?

What we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will give us later.
For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are.
Against its will, everything on earth was subjected to God's curse.
All creation anticipates the day when it will join God's children in glorious freedom from death and decay.
For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.
And even we Christians, although we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, also groan to be released from pain and suffering.
We, too, wait anxiously for that day when God will give us our full rights as his children, including the new bodies he has promised us.
Now that we are saved, we eagerly look forward to this freedom.
For if you already have something, you don't need to hope for it.
But if we look forward to something we don't have yet, we must wait patiently and confidently.
Romans 8:18-25 NLT

"Everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or property, for my sake, will receive a hundred times as much in return and will have eternal life."
Matthew 19:29 NLT

Facing trials
We have strength and courage to face the trials of this life because we can look beyond them to the glory that God has in store for us.
We know the sacrifices we make now will be rewarded by God.

Adapted from The Promise Bible (Tyndale House) p A53

The stork has landed......
Grateful thanks to the Lord for the safe arrival of Timothy Robert David Hiles yesterday..
Congratulations to Jeremiah, Annsley and Big brother Brendon too..
OH.. And also to the grandparents~ Bob and Nicki

The natives are getting restless.. each time the kids see me, they ask "When is Gramma Camp?"
I keep putting it off, but I think we need to do a couple of nights with the older kids anyway.
We are a bit limited this year, but we still can have lots of fun.
Joyce wants to make something with paper mache'. I'm game. Not sure just what we'll make, but we will need to get the project started as soon as they get here for the camp so that it'll dry out.
Perhaps next week.. I'll check with Amy to see when I can have the children here.

Wendy won't be coming till some time around August 16.. so we can do more then.
It would be fun to set up the air maze again.. if only we could locate it.

We got our laundry done yesterday. It's a major chore these days. 3 hampers, and 2+ hours of the day.. and we are about spent. Nothing else gets done on laundry day.

Yesterday we had the grandkids here.. 5 of them. We had a very good time playing together. I had some old straw hats and some items with which to decorate them.. and so we did. Coloring and some movies were on the agenda too.. including movies of their cousins from up on the NY border.
We took a nice walk around the perimeter and through the garden.. picked what asparagus we could find and then looked for a ripe peach.. not quite yet, but the animals are eating them anyway.
No camera.. no pictures.. sigh....

It's morning. I've had a peaceful night's sleep. Today we plan to keep some grandkids~ a task that we enjoy so very much. There is a minor threat of thunderstorms, but the day should be a warm 82 degrees otherwise. We can play outside or watch a movie inside.

I've been making some progress.. eh.. snail's pace progress..
Yesterday I got up late after not sleeping at all through the night, but then the day wasn't totally lost as I did get clothes sorted for the laundry and then worked on the mess in the bedroom. Wendell and I decided that instead of heading for the laundromat at midnight we would watch a movie~ the Apple Dumpling Gang rides Again. It was worth the watch. Tonite we plan to watch Pirates of the Caribbean.

Have a super day Bloggers.. I'm off to get mine started...

On an appointed day Herod, having put on his royal apparel, took his seat on the rostrum and began delivering an address to them.
The people kept crying out, “The voice of a god and not of a man!”
And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give
God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died.
Acts 12

Does this have a familiar ring to it? I believe so as I listen to the news every day. Is history repeating itself?
There are those in this world today who should be aware of the warning, and then we should also be encouraged as those who are in direct opposition to God and His Word will find defeat.
There is a tendency to be fearful of some persons in our world today. "Fear Not" says scripture. Do not be overly concerned or impressed by the power and royal appearance, the speaker, their arrogance and love of self or the army who surrounds him.

Note the account of Genesis 1:1-5

5For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

From the very beginning of creation, the oldest lie is born. The devil tells Eve that in her rebellion, she would overthrow God himself and occupy his throne. Humanity has felt the repercussion ever since that time.

Herod loved the chanting crowd.. "the voice of a god".. and met his death as he believed them and did not make an effort to correct them. In his delusion, he was stricken with maggots and died a horrific death.

I've been slow at blogging today... but just to keep the record straight, it was office infusion day, and that meant I went in to start 9 IVs.. all good first stick. Some were ones I really prayed hard over.. With our new system, I am supposed to just go in and start infusions and go home while Darlene covers me before and after.. she gets the paperwork ready (AMEN) and makes sure the authorizations are in order, and cleans up after. I was able to leave at 1pm today. I usually come home with a terrific back ache, but today.. none.
I'm not paid by the hour any more, but a flat rate for every patient I infuse. WOOHOO!! I like it so far...
AND.. the rep brought Chinese for lunch.. you just can't beat that with a stick.
I took mine home to share with the hubby.

It was a quiet day.. I did some research on the internet while Wendell snoozed.. we had some rain .. nothing much.
Just a quiet day..
Hope yours was peaceful and quiet too..

WISDOM

"The real American dream is not found in having a government that helps you pay for your home, your health care and your retirement.

It is found in taking care of those things yourself, as a free and independent person."

---Terence Jeffrey

TORNADO

It's summer, and summer brings rain and sometimes tornadoes to western PA. We had a tornado warning last evening. Makes everyone a bit edgy.
Wendell called from the other room.. as the computer spit out emergency warnings over and over again.. Oh, boy.. I called back.. "are you sure they said 'warning' and not watch? There's a difference, you know?"
It was a warning.. it meant that either swirling clouds threatened to drop to land, or that an actual tornado had formed. The original warning was wide spread.. and we were in the path.
We called Amy and Jane and JJ to make sure they were aware as time wore on.. it looked like we were safe (according to radar), but they were pretty much in the path.
It was early on when I sent out emails to family and friends to ask them to pray for us all..
The tornado warning/storm went north and east.. again we watched it on radar on the computer.
When the alerts were lifted, Jane had experienced dark dark clouds around her home.. and Amy said they had a little rain. We had none of the above. It missed us completely.

But it made us think and make a plan to be prepared for this emergency should it return again.
What WOULD we do? Wendell felt that he would be able to get to the basement.. the rest would be up to me. The plan was that if we developed the storm that precedes a tornado, I would take the blankets/pillows off the bed, a small tank of oxygen, and some drink to the basement before we heard the jet plane engine. Then we would wait until needed to head to the basement.
We had been here before in 1985.. the slogan went "I survived in '85" ..when a long line of huge tornadoes slashed paths through western PA.. our back yard included. The only word that could possibly describe it is awesome.. TOTALLY AND COMPLETELY AWESOME!!!
Last night we were remembering....
I was sitting on the bed waiting to get in the shower.. it had been a stormy afternoon.. I noted how loud the wind was howling and not a leaf on the trees was moving. I had a cup of coffee on the nightstand that I'd been sipping. The 4 kids were settled in the living room on the sofa.. Wendy relates how she remembered her head bouncing on the vibrating walls of the room.. and then I realized what was happening and raced out to them screaming for them to 'hit the basement NOW!'... they didn't wait.. they took off running. Wendell dragged his feet.. unbelief? until he heard the freight train outside the window..and everyone was downstairs.. including my brother Charlie and my mom.
Mother had looked out the window of her trailer and actually saw the tornado coming at us. She screamed for Charlie who was sleeping in a back room, and he took off running without pausing to put his shoes on.. grabbed mom by the hand and literally pulled her out the door and across the lawn to our house and safety. The tornado as it approached us, changed it's direction and went behind us instead.. through our woods.. We heard it and felt it all.
No damage to us, but many of our largest and tallest trees were reduced to toothpicks and splinters in a matter of seconds.. Later, we took a walk through the woods and found flyers and merchandise from the Beaver Valley Mall.. 40 miles away. We found much debris..siding, roofing, and splintered boards.. all kinds of things that the storm simply dropped on it's way.
We could see the half million volt power line on the hill across from us just toppled over and lines down on the ground.
Our neighbors came soon after to check on us to make sure we were okay.. we did the same.. checking on the folks down over the hill from us .. everyone was okay.
The next day, our road was a parade of cars and trucks.. people curious to see the damage. We also went sight seeing and took pictures.. devastation was everywhere.. That particular tornado took 6 lives in our area, and injured around 70. The ER was hopping that night as I went into work. We had been hit by an F3.. severe.
I'd rather not relive all this again.. but it makes one realize that tornadoes are very dangerous, and can strike twice in the same area..
I'd be interested to hear what others remember about tornadoes they have experienced.

Since I don't have a camera, I sort of 'stole' this picture from Google to show what the kids and I did today. The bear cookies were a hit.. but didn't quite look like these ones in the picture.. Ours were 3D like these ones, but without the colors.. ours were light brown with chocolate chip eyes and belly button... really cute.
We had a fun time with the kids today. Time went toooooo fast!
Tonite I played a game with Mandy on the PS.. Rockstar. First I played the drums and was beaten down badly.. Then we did singing.. I shone like the brightest star in the sky. HAH! I actually didn't know most of the songs, but when they let me listen to a few bars, I could pick up the tune pretty quickly. It was fun..
My favorite? The Eye of the Tiger.. yep..
Had a good day here.. hope you all did too..

The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry..

That was us this morning trying as best we could to get ourselves ready for church today. We really can be pathetic. We both were up early... before 7am. We both felt like an 18 wheeler had passed through our bedroom last night... ugh. Wendell said "It must be going to rain"... he was correct, for it had already rained in the wee hours of the morning.
It takes a while to get the pain meds going and some coffee in us to get us moving. We had gone to bed around 9pm last night, so it wasn't just tiredness. I staggered to the bathroom first and got my shower.. and started dressing while Wendell staggered into the shower about the same time. Dressing is difficult when your body feels so sore .. every muscle aching.. but I managed to get fully dressed before the coughing started in earnest... and the wheezing.. a funny whistle to my exhalations..
Wendell has his own brand of problem.. he got out of the shower and was so short of breath, he had to lay down for a while till he caught it. It was about 10 minutes to 10am when he was able to start getting ready for church.. we leave at 10am. In frustration, we decided not to push it any longer, and just stayed home.. He layed back down and I put the Bible CD on and we both listened to the narrator read from Genesis.. and then we switched to Matthew... between the two passages, we talked about how really awesome God is..how he created this world.. and how he controls it yet... and then I pondered over the rotating sword that guards the Garden of Eden.. is it still there? Have others been in the garden? Is the tree of life still growing there.. hmmmm... deep questions and thought.
And being omnipresent.. He would have been right there when Eve was tempted.. and why didn't He intervene?
More deep thoughts..
It's been a quiet day.. we are both feeling some better as of mid afternoon, but will be heading for bed early so we can be on our feet when the little Blairs come tomorrow for a visit. Things here are sort of in disarray, but morning clean up will be a big help when the kids arrive. I'm anxious to show them the video we took of their cousins this past weekend.. especially Eli on the Slip 'n Slide race track.. it's a hoot.
More tomorrow...

JULY 19

MANY GOOD WISHES FOR A

VERY HAPPY DAY FOR MY

BEST FRIEND

SANDI

WHOSE BIRTHDAY

IS TODAY

Oh.. WOW! Here it is Friday already, and I'm getting ready to go to the office. Seems like that last week went REALLY fast. My patients start at 10am I believe, but I'll be there around 8am to get organized. My office is now being shared by the former office manager who is now handling the biologics.. ordering and authorizing, calling patients, etc.. My job will be a bit easier with her doing the footwork. I've given her my desk and will now be working from a table, but nowhere to put my collection of pens, pads, etc. I do have a file cabinet. Right now everything is back in boxes and it looks so cluttered.

I'll ask you to pray for me this morning as I infuse the patients.. and pray for them too, that no untoward events would occur. It's my usual prayer request for biologic day.


Please also remember Nicki. She is having a rough time right now. And also remember Marilyn, the friend of Kneesocks, who has had a brain injury and is in rehab trying to get back the faculties she had once before.
Give thanks for beautiful weather, even if it is hot.
I'm off to work.. have a beautiful day, bloggers!

AUGUST 2 IMM FAMILY REUNION

HEAR YE

HEAR YE !!

THE

ANNUAL

IMM FAMILY REUNION

2008

AUGUST 2

12 NOON~5PM

DO YOU REMEMBER THESE?

It's a hot one today..88 degrees.. tomorrow? hmmmm 90 I believe. Does it really matter when it's hot hot hot?

Supper was sooooo good tonite.. roast pork , mashed potatoes and gravy.. and then the wonderful fresh salad! Wow!! I made us a dessert.. mock cheesecake (no bake). It didn't taste anything like my cheesecake, but we all agreed it was delicious anyway. It came from Wendells new diabetic cookbook. I made us fruit smoothies too. Tonite was banana, a whole container of strawberries (fresh of course), a container of peach yogurt, milk, and a package of SF jello.. cherry, I think. mmmmmmm... so refreshing!

It's been a productive day.. all the bills are now paid and in the mail or online. Yippee!! I love it when I get them paid and there is a small balance left over.. Of course, my car is thirsty right now, but I think we can give it a drink tomorrow.

In other news, my camera has died.. or is dying... oh.. I could cry. I really love my digital camera, and now I can't trust it to take pictures any more. The ones from the party at Valentines were from Wendy's disk.

I'm seriously considering this Kodak Easy Share 12 mp digital.. price is not overbearing, though it's not inexpensive either. I had this one all picked out and then asked Wendy what camera brand she had... it is exactly like this one..
What I need is user friendly, auto focus.. low price.. Well.. that about does it.
One day....
The camera I now use is a Sony Cyber Shot 3.2mp, and very user friendly. I love it a lot, but the last couple of times I tried to use it, it told me it was malfunctioning.. imagine a camera telling you it was broken! It seems to work off and on..but I couldn't trust it for the party.
So I'm looking...and wishing..............

Sounds like JJ and Keith had a pretty fine weekend too.. in Cleveland. Hey.. that sounded fantastic to me! I love museums and places like that.
And camping out in a motel is even nicer. My kinda R&R.

It's a hot one today..88 degrees and super sunny. I went out to mail the bills and got some Vit D in the process. One cannot avoid it. My car was so hot, I had to open doors and wait till it cooled down to boiling before I got in. Glad and thankful for AC.

Better work on supper....

I have to laugh when I think about how much Gayle loved her parella and boots.. she wore the boots to bed one night.. and would have done it every night if permitted..

The party was in full swing when word came that a tornado had touched down and hit the cottage owned by the senior Valentines.. it sustained some major damages..
Most everyone left, but we continued partying for the kids..

Eli made it to lunch.. and fell asleep with a bite in his mouth..

Eli and Papa

The cleanup crew of one..

Look at that smile! The girls each got a new bike from Gramma and Poppy V.. Essie wants the training wheels off hers, and that will be done this week if not already.

Eli on the climber.. looks like he's in a washing machine, eh?

Gayle spent a lot of time in her bikini with her new kitty boots and her "parella".
I think she liked them. She wanted to wear this outfit everywhere.. even to church on Sunday.
Mom and Dad said 'no', but let her take her parella anyway.

Gayle got a Mariposa doll for her birthday.
Her mom and dad got her this Mariposa outfit and she was ecstatic..
and wore it all afternoon.

Outside, she caught a butterfly and was so pleased with herself.

Eli loved the slip 'n slide even though the water was icy cold

Gramma Blair and Eli

Esther's dress and Gayle's new jacket were from the Z's.
The "Parella" was from Gramma and Papa Blair.

Hammin' it up

Singing Happy Birthday..
There was one cake for 2 girls.. when the singing started, Esther was upset that she only saw 4 candles when she was 6 yrs old that day.. but she just missed the 2 sets .. one with 4 candles and one with 6, and each blew out their own set.

We are back home again

There's no place like home

We are back home again arriving at around 3:30pm today... unloading, viewing our video, uploading pictures, and deciding which to post and what to do next..emails are out of control...YIKE!
We have decided to just post some pictures of our visit in a random order.. and tell you about them.

It was Gayle's and Esther's birthday that took us to visit. They got lots of presents and we had a great time. Here are the girls modeling their new sun glasses.

The Z's gave them a 3 lane slip 'n slide racer. Oh.. they did love that so much! Eli tried it too, and you have to see and listen to the video to appreciate how much he enjoyed it.

Isaac and Eli..

It's been a busy day preparing for our trip to Valentines this week. So much to be done. Wendell and I went to the laundromat today and got all of our clothes washed and ready to go.. we are packed aside from a couple of CPAPs and our meds. Those things will be packed tomorrow before we leave.

We also packed a brand new metallic blue Rollator! Wow! Was that fast.. shipped on Monday and delivered today.. Wednesday. Wendell likes it. It has a basket for an oxygen tank so he can go shopping or walking or whatever he chooses! HOORAY!! Thank you Rick and thank you Paul!!!!

I do have to work tomorrow. Wendell will get his tanks of oxygen ready during the day, and he should be ready to go when I get home. Hope it's a pleasant day.

I'll be checking email while I'm away. Won't be back till Tuesday. I won't likely blog.. or maybe I will.. we'll see.. there is so much to do while we are visiting for Gayle and Esther's birthdays.