More Hometown Memories

Being back in my growing up hometown brings back so many memories - especially those of all the good times. Sort of looking back at the good ole days, which were not really so good at all!! But it was a fun time, a time for growing and maturing, not really knowing what great plans the Lord had for me! Jeremiah 29:11.

the cafe my parents owned at one time and where I learned to peel potatoes!

the bandstand where locals played every Friday night (the only night the stores were open late)

a sweet little "strawberry lady", at Strawberry Days, a local celebration

My Sister-in-law Dorothy (we call her Sis) always seems to find neat and out of the way places and things for us to do while we are in Wisconsin. She found this quaint little coffe shop that specialized in maple syrup grilled cheese sandwiches. Yep - sounds strange, but it is wonderful - a toasted cheese sandwich glazed with maple syrup!! Of course, the cheese came from one of the local cheese factories.

We also toured Hearthstone, a palatial home in Appleton, WI, which was the very first home in the world to be lit by hydro-electric power. tTe home itself was a manson, to say the very least. Mr. Rogers, the owner had it built to be a showplace for his wife. And a showplace it truly was. He was part owner of a paper mill in that city which was lit by hydo-electric (because it is on the Fox River) and had copper piping run from the mill to his home - a great show of wealth at the time. But God does warn us about storing up treasures on earth, that we should be concerned about storing up our wealth in heaven.

the history of hearthstone

a small section of the home

since there were no patio  doors, a person just opened the upstairs windows and stepped out onto the balconey

The weather was very hot at times, very humid, and rainy. You could even hear the corn growing from all the wonderful growing weather. We took a couple of pictures of a cornfield two days apart - the results were amazing. God seems to know just the best way to porduce crops - so much more than we can predict.

Dorothy and "Bud"

                                           Dorothy and Bud two days later - the corn has grown!

The last of the big celebrations was the family reunion, held in a near-by town, with a swimming pool for the kids. I remember years ago when the men played baseball - now we are all too "mature" to do that!! A lot of the family members showed up, with great food, of course. We had a white elephant auction - you bid on items wrapped in newspaper and never know what you are going to get. It was lots of fun, especially when we wound up with a Pizza Pizzazz - a pizza cooker our daughter brought!!!! Families are so important - the knowledge that there are those you can depend on, and who will love you regardless. Our Heavenly Father is so much like that - He is always there for us, we can always depend on Him to never leave us, always watching over us. All He asks is that we believe in Him.  

In the land of beautiful lakes and woods, this last picture really needs no explaination  -

 camping anyone?



More Wisconsin family fun

Since  3 of our 4 daughters were here in Wisconsin for the neighborhood reunion, one of them had a bright idea to met with their cousins they had not seen in a few years (for Brenda it was 11 years ) so again it was time for another family get together. My sister-in-law was so kind as to open her house for the invasion.

daughter Chandra and nephew Jeff - loving cousins who had not seen each other in a long time

niece Jacci and daughter - together for fun and laughs after 11 years

I was raised in a small town (since I was 11) in Wisconsin where my parents owned a small cafe where all the local people used to eat, including the police department (I could never, never do anything wrong, a everyone knew who  I was!).  We went there to visit during a recent Strawberry Festival, and enjoyed strolling through all the vendors, just enjoying the gorgeous day. My mother died a few years ago, and was cremated, so we spread her ashes in the local cemetery in Waupaca, as I said a quiet prayer for her. We also spread some of her ashes in Arkansas, where she had lived for many years. As I remember my childhood day, I must admit that I did not" obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord" as we were instructed in Collossians 3:20.

Talking about parents, we celebrated Father's Day with our daughters and granddaughters. It was a fun day, with daughter Connie being the chef this time. Our earthly fathers were often present in our lives forgiving us for our sins and disobedience,just as our heavenly Father does. We give praise to   all fathers - past, present, and future.

A neighborhood friend passed away while we were in Wisconsin, so we attended a quiet military funeral at the Grand Army Home at King, a state veterans home. I was so amazed at the many graves  throughout the cemetery, each one representing a veteran (and in some cases, his wife) who gave up some time of his life, and in some cases gave his life,  so that I can be free to write this blog, expressing my spiritual beliefs with no fear of repercussions. It was a truly moving ceremony, reverently remembering and honoring this man. Did not Jesus do the same thing? Give His life so that I could be free??? Free from sin and with the promise of eternal life with Him.

just a small section of the veterans cemetery

My sister-in-law, Susan is an awesome quilter, always creating beautiful works of art in fabric, We visited a quilt shop, where we met the owner, a very Christian man who shared his love of Jesus with us. We did find time to purchase a few very beautiful pieces of fabric - I now have some projects in mind. While at their house, Susan had a project for us to share - we each made a beautiful wall hanging, enjoying the time we had creating together.  They have a beautiful Boxer dog by the name of Skipper who kept us all entertained the whole time that we were there.

our sister-in-law quilting project

Skipper - resident  spoiled Boxer

Even though we are sort of on a hiatus while visiting friends, we keep in mind our Sanctuary Outpost
ministry, trying not to miss the ever present opportunity to tell others how Jesus can change their lives. To keep up to date on this and other mission outreaches, go to crmintl.org and search for SON (Sancturary Outpost Newsletter) to follow this area of Christian Resort Ministries. We love the time we get to spend with family and old friends, but are anxiously look forward to our return to the Rio Grande Valley and our responsibilities waiting there for us.

Old friends

After leaving our daughter Connie's house, we traveled just a couple of miles to our other Wisconsin daughter, Chandra. Chandra's daughter Katie lives with her now, but will soon be leaving for Milwaukee for grad school for 2 years. Although Katie had to work while we were there, we did get to spend some great quality time with her - she even convinced Grandpa to buy her ice cream (a standing joke between her and Grandpa - at one time she asked for ice cream and it cost Grandpa $28 for 5 people!!). We went to Briq's - the home of the 1# cone - Jack Gregory missed out on that one!!! The ice cream was delicious and eating it outside was even better. A little chipmunk found a bit of cherry coating and was enjoying it along with us. "How many are your works, Oh Lord! In wisdom you made them all: the earth is full of your creatures."

beautiful Wisconsin moon and clouds

Although we had four daughters, we have another sort of unofficially adopted daughter who lived with us for a bit after she turned 18.  Barbara was living with her grandmother as her mother died and when she was of age, she came to live with us in our all female (except for Fred) household. Barb has matured along with the rest of us, but still calls me Mom and often refers to me as such when talking with others. We did find time to spend an evening with her and her youngest daughter. "If anyone does not provide for his relatives, especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever.".

"daughter" Barbara

Barbara and her youngest daughter, Jamie

We met with 4 old friends of 38 years ago (although we see them every year) for Monday morning breakfast - reliving great times together, and getting caught up on current events. Our first neighborhood reunion in 38 years was coming up on Saturday, so we talked about final plans. This reunion was planned last year by all of our children who grew up in a truly unique neighborhood, where we mothers did not work and we were all as poor as church mice!!  A deep bond seems to have developed since then, as they all keep in touch and were anxious to see each other.

friend and former neighbor, Donna, whom we always said was the the neighborhood social secretary, directing and leading as usual

Donna made these great treat bags for all

tables all decorated and ready to begin!

a perfect place for a reunion

a few friends starting to arrive

let the party begin

oh, do I remember that!!!!

a pinata for the kids

from the very youngest

to the oldest - who broke it open

We all brought white elephant gifts to be take part in a take away game. Some of the gifts were very nice, some were absolutely hilarious. It was fun, and a great chance to get reacquainted.

truly 70's Cd's - I baby sat for this gal, who now has a 27 year old daughter -

the funniest gift of all - Batman briefs  - won by our grandson, Calton, who shouted "Sweet!".

After spending a week with Chandra, we traveled to our home county to visit with Fred's brother and wife. We will spend 3 weeks here, with his brother, sister, and cousin. We are so blessed to be able to travel to visit family and friends - and to have our own family near enough that we can all get together. Right now we are talking about the family reunion coming up on June 23rd and reflecting on the fact that we now are the "older generation" and wondering if our children will carry on the tradition. How very different than Jesus' time, when families all lived, worked, laughed and cried together almost every day and family genealogy was passed on down through the generations. When we see how important genealogy is in the Bible in order to trace the heritage of Jesus, we hope some family member steps up to keep ours intact. How often I reflect that I should have talked more about our family to my grandmother, father, or other close family member.

Wisconsin travels

After leaving Arkansas following our granddaughter's graduation, we began making our way towards two of our daughters and other family in Wisconsin. Our first stop was Adventureland in Altoona, Iowa where some CRM chaplains spend their summer, working at the amusement park as well as bringing the word of the Lord to the workers there. We thoroughly surprised Chaplains Jack and Karen Gregory, Chaplains Bob and Karen Johnson, as well as friends Glenn and Sandy Rivers. It was a wonderful evening of visiting and talking about God's plan in our lives. Sometimes it is very clear, while other times we just wait and be patient for His guidance. After spending the night at the Settle Inn (it is a nationwide chain that offers a pastoral discount!) and a morning breakfast, we proceeded on our way to Waudamee, WI to visit friends and Texas neighbors Kay and Don Schmidtknect, Dave and Pat Niccum and Dave and Joy Schmidtknect. The area where they live is so very beautiful in the rolling hills of Southwest Wisconsin. All of them were so very hospitable that we never went hungry!!!! A great two days of visiting, laughing, and just spending time with good friends

Upper Mississippi River Wildlife area

Overlooking a dam from the bluffs

Fred and friends, Don and Kay Schmidtknect

the town of Alma, Wi on the Missippi River from the bluffs

good friends, good food

it amazes me how the farmers can farm these hillsides

perhaps they are part mountain goat!

this area is also home to many Amish families

After leaving this  area, we continued to our daughter Connie's home, in Wausau WI, the city where we spent many years of our married life. The area has changed so very much, as I am sure many places have. Strange that we think that even though our lives go forward, all else stands still! I still expect everything to be the same as always - is this a fear of or perhaps an inability to change?
At our daughter Connie's house, she, as usual, had a project in store for us. A new splash board under the cupboards and behind the appliances was in need of some TLC. Fred and Connie laid the tiles, which involved placing a sticky sheet on the walls (a big improvement over applying mortar), cutting some tiles, and continuing on. My job?? Grouting - I do like to do that, especially with pre-mixed grout. If we must say so ourselves, the job looks pretty professional, even if it did take two days to do. Connie also likes outdoor flowers, so we went flower shopping. As you can see, they look beautiful.

tiles all laid

and grouted

Connie's home exploding with flowers

adorned with a flag from the parade

We girls had a fun day (daughters and granddaughter) as we checked out rentals (daughter Chandra is moving). We took a short road trip, laughing and having just an awesome time together. I thank God for giving me this time to be with our daughters, to be able to freely express our ideas and inner thoughts, to share the good times as well as the sad times.
Memorial Day involved a drive downtown Wausau to the Memorial Day Parade. These parades are always so patriotic, always involving local politicians shaking hands and passing out flags and candy.
Local bands participated, including one from the school where all of our girls graduated (Connie marched with it during her high school years). Some very inspiring speeches followed, beginning with a Christian invocation!  What a country we live in (due to the service of all of our veterans) that we can be free to worship as we please.

a local band from the school where our  4 daughters graduated

the raising of the flag for the National Anthem

the home of the brave

I am asking for an unspoken prayer request for Tuesday, June5th - for God's grace, wisdom and fairness on the part of those in charge. We serve a great God, and expect Him to grant our requests if we present them to Him with prayer, petition, and thanksgiving, as stated Philippians 4:6