In the Middle-of-Somewhere

2010-05-05T18:05:00.002-05:00

My Life as a Road Warrior

I may as well admit it ... I am a Road Warrior! Not that I set out to be one, but there was one thing and then another ... soon enough I was a full-fledged member of the million mile club ... an offical Road Warrior.

My first "move" away from home (my hometown) involved a town 60 miles away. I was so afraid of traveling that far that I made it a practice to know exactly which mile markers I was between ... you know ... just in case ... there's just no telling what could happen to someone traveling so far! Then I moved 8 hours from home ... catapulting my traveling life into high-gear (a term my mother likes to use when she needs extra emphasis for something). Years later, a move from Iowa to Indianapolis stepped things up a few more notches! Then there was the year when I stayed in Indy (until our home sold) while Bruce and Katy got our life in northwest Iowa started (trust me ... there were lots of trips that year!) After I joined them, I worked as a consultant for a company 2 and a half hours from Storm Lake ... now THAT was a commute! These days we have children (who, by the way, have our grandchildren!) living on each of the US coastlines and one holdout still in the midwest ... living in a vehicle has managed to become a way-of-life!

I tend to be a singularly-focused person ... getting so wrapped up in the moment (or task-at-hand) that I lose track of all else. Recently I got to thinking about how this attribute has created some interesting (and scary) moments along the path to the Road Warrior Club!

My sister, Sandy, once rode with me on the way back home many years ago. After picking her up in LeSueur, MN, I focused so much on our chit-chat while I was driving that eventually I had to ask her if she knew the name of the town we were approaching (it was after midnight...so I couldn't use any landmarks to try and guess, and obviously I hadn't been reading signs). She thought I was kidding because we were only 5 miles from mom's house! How can you not know you are approaching your destination? Well, it's easy ... if you are me!

On one of my trips from Storm Lake to Indianapolis the year we first bought the acreage ... I found myself reading a sign for Indiana's Exit 4 (our favorite exit for gas and refreshments along the I-74 route). The problem was ... the last stop I'd paid any attention to was the I-80 Truck Stop in Davenport, Iowa. My auto-pilot was apparently ON through the entire state of Illinois! You can bet I was thankful I hadn't run out of gas!

Then there's the trip north from Storm Lake to Alexandria (MN) one year when they were tearing up Hwy 71 and toally replacing the road (that means they totally remove everything ... all the way down past the road bed!) ... I'd gotten so engrossed in a conversation with my mother-in-law (the co-pilot) that I simply went around barracades were meant to protect drivers from the dangers of a "missing" road! I didn't pay much attention to the decreasing quality of the road until it was impossible to not notice, "My goodness! This road is crazy bad!" I said. To which, my rider replied, "Yep. That's probably because way back there you went around a sign that said, Road Closed!"

I don't know, but I'm guessing that the knowledge of these events is largely behind the fact that my sweetie doesn't ask me to be a "relief-driver" on our recent long trips to Birmingham? What do you think?

2010-05-03T17:45:00.006-05:00

Where DOES the time go?

Today is our 25th Wedding Anniversary ... wow ... who would have thought so many years could fly by so quickly? Even worse is that I (ME!) can even say that! I'm starting to sound more and more like my Grama! Oh me Oh my!

I made this "card" for my sweetie ...

Photos:

Bruce and I with The Fabulous Mr Elijah Brown on our recent visit to Birmingham (Left)

Shoppers at the auction looking at the stamping/scrapbooking supplies (Top Right)

Fire pit at the north end of garden with a couple waiting for woodburner or Cub Cadet mower to be sold. (Bottom Right)

Lots to do ... heading up to my hometown for the weekend! We have a family baby shower for Jason & Paula (my nephew and his wife) ... pretty exciting! I'm happy to have one last chance to make the pilgramage from Storm Lake to Alexandria and plan to take the time to stop along the way and take photos of some of my favorite scenes!
As Red Green would say, "Stay safe ... Keep it between the lines!"

2010-05-01T23:10:00.001-05:00

Almost Home

Our drive home is getting interesting. We pushed ourselves to drive as far as Memphis, TN today. Using my little Verizon MiFi connection and the Mac laptop I tried to locate a motel that wasn't charging an arm-and-a-leg for a room tonight (goodness knows we need all of our limbs, as rickety as they are!) ... to no avail. So Bruce decides to find a WalMart, buy a clearance blanket and just sleep in the Tahoe (isn't he romantic? Gotta love my frugal little Norweign!)

After some heated debate about how to get off the freeway and over to that WalMart on our left ... we find a comforter on clearance (imagine that! at WalMart? really? ... bwahhahhah) and eating a bad-for-you-and-the-world-McBurger we discovered every checkout station was at least 6 people deep. What in the world was going on? It's 9 p.m. Why would there be so many people at WalMart with their carts packed full rushing the checkout? Bruce cleverly decides to checkout in the jewelry department (he might be frugal, but he's also clever!) I decide to ask a store clerk why the place is packed. She tells me there's bad weather coming and folks are stocking-up.

Curious, we decide to hustle back to the Tahoe and check out the NOAA website's Doppler ... sure enough! There wass a severe weather warning covering the midwest ... all of it ... from Texas to Memphis, Tennessee to St Louis, Missouri to Des Moines, Iowa to Minneapolis, Minnesota. Well! That pretty much covers our path home! YIKES! We decided, tired or not, we'd better skeedaddle!

About 2-3 hours down the road we began encountering some rain and even more wind than before. Forecast was calling for winds up to 75 mph, softball sized hail, and possibility of tornadoes. Bruce was way past tired and from the looks of the Doppler we were north of one tornado warning and south of another ... a "sweet spot" so to speak. It seemed like a good time to pull of the freeway and see if he could find cover (didn't want to have hail damage the Tahoe or the nice enclosed trailer he just got.)

This is where we begin to see God's hand covering us in a tangible way (as if getting us out of Memphis before it flooded wasn't enough)! At the end of the exit ramp guess what we found!?! A vacant BP gas station ... you know what they have don't you? BIG, strong awnings (where the gas pumps had been)! Woohoo! Bruce pulled in so the entire rig was under cover and we settled in for the night under our new blanket (for those of you that don't know our family's reputation ... we are known for all the quilts we make ... if you are in the family you've no doubt been blessed with many a blanket-gifts! Our motto: No family member should ever be cold due to the lack of a good, warm blanket made with lots of love by another family member!) As we settled in, we both gave thanks to God for the protection!

Six hours later, stiff from our nap in the back of a truck (we had an air mattress with us, but no power inverter to blow it up ... the plan was to only need it while at Paul and Andrea's ... who knew we'd be sleeping in our vehicle?!) Bruce decided to get out and check our rig ... make sure everything was in good order, then drive across the freeway to the other side where there was an open Shell station.

Nothing. That's what he got when he turned the key in the ignition ... nothing. The Tahoe was dead ... no battery power. Ugg! I guess leaving my Mac connected all night long was a bad idea ... oopsie! Apparently its an energy hog even when it's in sleep mode!

Just as he got his hat and coat on, in preparation for a nice long walk over to that Shell station, a car pulls up next to us. Bruce cautiously walks over and taps on the window (scaring the poor lady half out of her wits!) Turns out she was there to meet up with her carpooler (What do you think? I say she was actually an angel.) She happily jump-started our vehicle and then refused to accept any money for her help. God is GOOD, All the Time! Talk about provision!

The rest of the day was uneventful. The storm system was behind us and to the east ... not in our path! We made it to Kansas City with enough time to enjoy a wonderful dinner at Red Robin, meet Katy's latest beau, Todd, and then enjoy a movie together.

We finally got to meet Ms. Izzy, Katy's new kittie ... a ball of bouncing, running, climbing, and fighting fluff! She's adorable! I do believe that MC was quite happy to see us again ... she came right over for a leg rub and plopped herself down, rolled over and begged for a tummy rub. Later, during the movie she found her favorite snuggle spot ... Bruce's tummy when he's all sprawled out in a recliner!

2010-04-30T22:55:00.002-05:00

So long ... for now!

Day Four - Grampa was on duty this morning. Paul needed to go to the store for some construction supplies and Andrea needed to sleep in as long as she could so she'd be full of energy at tonight's Secret Church meeting. Elijah is loving his Grampa J, so there was no trouble. I even got a chance to sleep in ... though I admit I did wake up from time to time to enjoy Elijah's chatter ... I'm not sure just what he was telling Grampa, but it was definitely something exciting!

Once Paul got home we set about trying to decide what we would do? Put in an offer on the Leeds house or the Center Point house ... or just continue our search. Both Bruce and I could easily argue the case for either house and the government's $6,500 incentive money was certainly tempting. Paul and Andrea helped us with our debate. I'm sure any onlooker would have wondered just who was voting for what, because we all flipflopped from house to house ... one minute passionately supporting Leeds and only a breath later strongly reminding the group of the drawbacks.

By noon Bruce got up from his place in the group, grabbed the phone and called Sonia. We all looked at him in wonder. What was he doing?

"Sonia, we'd like to come in and make an offer on the house in Center Point."

Hum ... so ... I guess the debate helped Bruce settle his mind. We spent a little bit of time saying our good-byes to everyone (I so hate that part!) and sneeking a few extra hugs and lovies from Elijah, then it was off to the realty office where we spent the rest of our time in Birmingham.

Once all the papers were signed we began our long trip home ... to Storm Lake, Iowa. Paul would have to be our proxy after this.

On our way out of town we met up with Paul at his rental house in the Ensley neighborhood (near downtown Birmingham). We'd seen the house before he took possession, back in December. Since then he's put a new roof on, new siding, new front porch and steps, new windows, fresh paint throughout the interior and is in the process of refinishing the hardwood floors. The transformation is beautiful! Between all the work he's done and that gorgeous, monstrosity of a Magnolia tree in the backyard someone is going to have a nice little house to call home soon!

Now we are on our way North ... hoping to get a call from Sonia about our offer! Pray for favor? (Thanks!)

2010-04-29T22:55:00.002-05:00

The Hunt is On!

Day Three - We are off to an early start today ... 8:30 am ... no sleeping in for these two old foggies! Sonia is taking us to the northside today so we needed to get going! We've been meeting her at the church and leaving our vehicle there while we tour. It's good to have "connections" ... LOL!

There were more houses to see that we had time for, so Bruce and Sonia went through the MLS sheets quickly and ruled out anything that had a lot smaller than 1/2 acre or had lots of steps leading up to the front door. Once the list was culled to a reasonable size we set out.

Driving around the northside and the northeast area is an amazing experience! There are so many trees and bluffs that it's very difficult to believe you are in a large metropolitan area! Breathtaking beauty everywhere you look.

We saw many nice homes, but there was one that really stood out: 2005 NE Reed Road, Center Point, Alabama.

What's not to love about a yard filled with flowering shrubs, fruit-bearing trees (pears, figs, pecans, apples) and home that's been meticulously cared-for the past 25 years? The listing descriptions said:

Great full brick on shaded 1.6 acres with storage building, large detached garage and backyard fenced area. Living room with brick wood burning fireplace seperate dining area and kitchen with large breakfast bar(stove, dishwasher & microwave to stay)lots of natural light. Enjoy relaxing on the covered front porch and the large covered deck which is conveniently located near kitchen area exit. Three large bedrooms and 2 baths along with a bonus room that can be used as a sewing room, office, bedroom or sitting room and last but not least there is several closets. Lots of parking on the long driveway for all your guest when you have them over for the holiday BBQ's on the BBQ pit in the backyard. Easy access from kitchen eating area to partial finished basement allows for additional storage.

Later in the evening we decided to have Paul and Andrea come see the place ... needed to discuss some of the changes we felt we'd need to make to accommodate a workshop for Bruce and a garage/storage space for our "extras" (Fancy, trailer, car dolly ...). Andrea tells us that the minute they drove up Paul said, "OH! My parents are SO gonna buy THIS place!"

Here is a VISUAL TOUR of the place ... enjoy!

Well ... we will sleep on it and see how we feel in the morning.

2010-04-28T17:40:00.002-05:00

House Hunting - Alabama Style!

Day Two - How fun it is to wake up hearing the sounds of a baby happily jabbering away in the morning! Elijah is an early riser and completely content to spend time in his crib before the rest of the household rises. We could listen in on him through the baby monitor in the living room. The temptation to get him out of the crib was great, but we didn't want to be in trouble on our first morning.

Paul has Wednesdays off so he agreed to accompany us on our house hunt, along with Elijah. The tour today focused on area East of Birmingham:

Leeds
Irondale
Cedar Point (East side)

While we looked at many houses, the one we liked the best from today's search was 6596 SW Lynn Ave, Leeds. It's a foreclosure home, so poses some special issues as far as timing (no control over what a bank will or will not agree to for closing dates.)

We like that this home has three nice sized bedrooms, two baths, and a family room, (in addition to a living room, dining roomkitchen, and a full basement.) It sits on a beautiful lot with a strong slope in the back so spring rain water has a definite place to go. There is a deck just off the kitchen wrapping around to the back and lots of old growth trees ... shouldn't be hard to find a place for the tire swing! Just down the street is a beautiful park and the church is only 15 miles away.

I think it's fun that the street just south of the house is Katherine St., the street just north of the house is Carolyn St. and to the east is Elisabeth St. ... all familiar names (my mother and her two sisters!)

Drawbacks include a water/mold problem in the basement just under the front doorsteps (probably requiring some landscaping modifications and mold abatement). The living room and dining room need wallpaper removal and fresh paint, the kitchen needs to be gutted and redesigned (luckily we have great access with a fabulous cabinet maker!), the big bathroom needs to be gutted and have some redesign work done, the family room needs the dark paneling to be painted and we think the basement steps would need to be moved in order to make the kitchen work. THAT is a pretty long list!

In addition, Bruce would want to extend the parking slab to include room for the trailer and other misc odd vehicles we seem to have off and on. Then he would be converting the basement (which is exposed in the back) into his workshop, including the addition of a basement bathroom.

It's all do-able, but ... gives us reason to pause.

2010-04-27T17:16:00.005-05:00

Sweet Home Alabama!

Day One - We arrived around noon and meet up with the realtor, Sonia, and headed straight away to see some houses. The tour began in the northwest corner of Birmingham. We fell in love with the second home we saw ... beautiful beautiful yard and a very well-maintained home. Crossed it off the list because it sat next to a trailer-home and across the street from another trailer-home. Call us intolerant, politically incorrect, or just plain snooty, but we suspect that property value just will not hold given what we were seeing.

Sonia told us the W/NW areas of Birmingham are struggling and have been on the decline the past couple years. She strongly suggests we constrain our search to the NE, E, and SE areas ... including small towns outside the metro area.

After a long afternoon we decided it was time for us to call it a day and go meet Mr. Elijah! We made arrangements to meet Sonia about 10 a.m. tomorrow morning.

Mr. Elijah turns out to be even more adorable in person than he is in pictures! I know that is hard to believe, but it is true! He gave us a bit of a shy-shoulder for the first half hour or so, but after that we were in-like-Flynn!!! He was smiles and giggles. We took the kids to Chipotle for supper since Andrea had to go back to church for worship team practice. I had a ball giving Elijah "rasperries" under his chin and listening to his big budda-belly laugh ... I'm really looking forward to seeing this little guy on a frequent basis! His eyes are so bright!

2010-04-24T20:58:00.007-05:00

SOLD!

We sold our amazing little acreage at auction today! What an interesting experience ... pins and needles. You might wonder, "Why would anyone sell their property at auction by choice?!" We admit, it does seem counterintuitive and it certainly tested our ability to totally trust God to provide for our needs.

Bruce and I have bought and sold real estate many times over the years ... mostly through realtors (one property was sold privately). This time, because we needed to greatly reduce the amount of "stuff" we would be moving (trust me ... when pack-rats and do-it-yourself-ers live on an acreage there will be lots of stuff tucked in everywhere!) we decided the best approach would be to have an auction.

Because we would be auctioning our "stuff" we had the option of including the property on the auction. We decided to give ourselves until April 1 to try selling the acreage ourselves. Then, if it hadn't sold, we would give the auctioneer the 'go ahead' to include the acreage in his efforts. He felt this would give him plenty of time.

I admit, we didn't work as hard as we could have on selling it ourselves - mainly promoting it via the internet and word-of-mouth. Never even managed to get a sign posted at the end of our lane (silly us! can't tell you how many vehicles we've sold during the 14+ years we've lived here simply by parking them near the road and putting a sign in the window).

With 10' of snow still on the ground March 20th we had some serious doubts about any of the auction plans being realistic! Who in their right mind would come to an auction under those conditions? Worse yet, how could anyone actually visualize the beauty of this place whilst it's covered in old snow? How much damage would be done to the yard? (After 14 years of blood-sweat-n-tears getting the yard into the beautiful condition it is now in neither Bruce or I could face the idea of having it ruined because of a sale.)

As March faded into April we began to have some serious doubts! On April 1 we met with Kevin the auctioneer. He assured us the snow would melt in due time and reminded us that in his 20+ years of auctioneering he's only ever had to cancel one auction due to weather. Deep breath ... trust God ... trust God ... trust God ... goodness life can be challenging!

Once we set the wheels in motion our schedule for April was set in stone:

Friday, April 9 - My Big Crafty Sale (and books!)
Saturday, April 17 - Open House (for the acreage)
Saturday, April 24 - Auction Day!

We reluctantly agreed to press on and immediately contacted all of our prayer warriors (you know the folks ... those who truly understand the power of prayer and are disciplined in their prayer lives) and ask for some pretty specific assistance from God:

NO moisture of any kind on April 24th from 6am to the end of the sale.
LOTS of moisture on April 22-23rd ... so fields would be too wet for the farmer's to be in on April 24! We wanted all the farming families to be free to attend our sale! We were going to need lots of customers to move this much stuff!
Last, but not least, a good result from the auction.

So, here's how that all worked out:

Thursday was a picture-perfect spring day for Iowa! Bright blue skies and all sunshine!
Friday was nice enough (very light moisture in the air) in the morning giving us just enough time to mow the yard, but by afternoon we had rain ... lots of it! (Isn't God faithful?)
This morning? Well ... it rained ... until about 6:30 am - 7:00 am. Then, it dried up and the sun came out and stayed out giving us the perfect day for an auction! Everyone came. We were able to use the neighbor's field for parking and what a good thing that was! We needed it! It looked like we were having a carnival ... lots of people ... lots of things for folks to buy strewn all around the yard! Furniture in the front yard, crafts in the grassy area west of my craft-cottage, garden supplies and equipment all around the barn and tools by the woodshop ... it was pretty crazy!

The property (real estate) sold first with bidding beginning at 11:15 a.m. about a half hour later. In the end we sold it for less than we wanted, but only after much prayer and consideration. God gave Bruce a strong sense of peace about the buyers and the price, so we accepted the final bid and then moved on to the selling of everything else! We know it's all God's money anyway and He will do what He wants with it. If He wants to, He will totally restore the portion we gave up on this part of the sale, that's a certainty.

Tables lined up and ready to load with household items.

At one point during the afternoon someone sitting inside the house with me asked how I could be so relaxed about it all ... just letting it all go like that. My response?

"Look out my picture window. See all those cars parked there? If I would have asked for some volunteers to come and help us load and move all the things we are selling today I wouldn't have had 1/4th that many cars or people. Not only are so many people here to help us move but they are actually paying us for the privilege. How could it get any better?"

That is how I truly feel! What a blessing it was today! God allowed our guests today to help me thin out our worldly possessions and build up our storehouse (bank account) in preparation for our move south and for our new role as workers in His harvest fields.

All kinds of tools & handi-man supplies on the sale

Band saw, dust collector, table saw ... oh me oh my! Handi-man's Dream!

(Nephew, Jason, is checking out Uncle Bruce's stash)

Yard tools etc lined the walls of the barn

Sprinkler system, gardening supplies, and the ever-famous "miscellaneous stuff"

Our friend, Bruce E, came early to help move things out of the buildings and onto the yard.

So, what's he doing on his cell phone?

We chose to believe he was calling friends to tell them about

all the goodies they'll find at the sale!

A couple more helpers! Sister Sandy, friends Lee M and Steve helping me get things

out of the basement and outside to the tables.

Katy decided to climb up to the attic of the corn crib and take photos ... great idea!

For sale: wood-burning stove, trailer, Cub Cadet lawn mower, comfy lawn chairs and more. :-)

So much stuff...even the side yard is full! This is gonna take awhile to sell!

I sure hope Cone Auctioneers got a good night's sleep.

OK! Now you know just how much stuff a person can stash when you have lots of out-buildings!

Those stacks of "stuff" in the lower right corner of the photo?

That's just some of the stuff left-over from my Big Crafty Sale two weeks ago!

My sister, Sandy, helped sort through the paper and rubber stamps to make flats with nice collections.

I'm so blessed to have my sisters ... I really can't imagine a life without sisters!

Our very-kind neighbors to the north offered to let everyone park on the

grassy boulevard on the south-end of their field. PERFECT!

LOOK at all the cars! Reminds me of the county fair!

Did I mention that we prayed for God to send a big crowd? Woohoo! Look at all the people!

There goes my living room furniture and the adorable children's folding chairs!

Going ... Going ... Going ...

Bye Bye Craft Stuff...

The flower beds did their BEST today ... they were TOTALLY showing off!

End of a very long day!

Friends leaving with their new-found treasures (Thanks Lee & Becky & Neely!)

Friends arriving (Glad you came by to see what God accomplished today Ken & Bonnie!)

5:04 pm The last few shoppers are loading up and the first few raindrops are arriving.

GOD IS GOOD! ALL THE TIME!

A couple of our fantastic helpers managed to avoid the camera but not the work! Thanks to the following for being so supportive and super helpful:

Crystal Cook (what can we say? sorting & packing help, encourager, prayer warrior ... we owe you so much ... there's just no words ... if God blesses you as much as you've blessed us you better buckle your seatbelt girl!)
Dave Jacobson (drove up from Ames to be here for us ... world's best brother!)
Jerry, Sandy, Jason Antes (drove down from Mpls to be here for us, came a day early and stayed a day longer to help with prep and clean-up, then even helped load the trailer for the drive to Birmingham ... huge huge huge THANKS!)
Lee & Becky Meyers (who were not only helpers, but also shoppers! BIG thanks!)
Bruce Engelmann (for volunteering to abandon farming duties to come and help these two old foggies from the Sunday night bible study group!)
Steve (for pitching in when he really only intended to be a 'shopper' today! guess that'll teach him to be early to an auction? God bless you guy!)
Kim (who couldn't be here the day of the sale, but still managed to put in lots of hours helping me sort and pack craft stuff for days and days and days!)
Kevin Cone and his gang (for putting up with all our questions, doubts, and concerns over the winter and esp the past few weeks ... and for doing a bang-up job on the sale ... we pray God blesses you for being faithful in your assignment and for being an instrument of His Blessings in our lives!)
Katy Jacobson (who drove up from Kansas City and spent the whole week helping us ... even mowing in the rain on Friday so the place would look its best! you're the best! couldn't have done it without all your help over the past three weeks, your words of encouragement and prayers!)

It's been a pretty amazing journey to be sure! Feel free to follow the links to the stories I've posted along the way and celebrate God's great mercies with us!

2010-04-17T12:03:00.007-05:00

Acreage Open House

Today is THE DAY ... we officially invite folks into our world ... sharing a place that has been an oasis for two middle-agers who were in need of an oasis ... a place of peace and restoration. Will people feel the presence of the Holy Spirit here like we do? Will they see all the beauty this small bit of earth has to offer? Have we done our best in getting her ready ... our beautiful lady ... this acreage we call, Willow Hill? I hope so.

After the craft sale last weekend we've each tried to stay focused on those tasks that must be completed for an Open House, for the auction, and ultimately for the move. Talk about a challenge! All the "left over" crafty supplies ended up spending the week in the trailer ... there just wasn't time to deal with them.

We decided we'd have to work smarter and harder to reach our goals, so we created designated areas in the buildings around the place. The garage would be the place we put things that would be on the auction. The grandchildren's playhouse would be things we'd be taking with us when we move. My crafty-cottage would eventually be only things we are keeping (for this weekend, however, it would be a mix ... no time to sort and move now). We haven't have time to do anything with the barn yet, but Bruce was making good progress in his woodshop. The corn crib and quansit are both ready.

Crystal Cook (another good friend ... I have been blessed with so many great friends while living here!) spent three days this week helping me box things up in the basement ... some boxes for the auction and some to be moved (not to mention the to-be-burned pile). Then she brought over a team from her house cleaning company and spent Friday cleaning the main level of the house ... talk about helpful! Wow! I decluttered while they did the dusting, glass surfaces, and floors.

When we woke up this morning, the sun was shining, the grass was green and ready to mow and the tulips were totally showing off! All-in-all it is a perfect day for an Open House. We made a quick round on the mowers, then Bruce and I showered, dressed, and started a batch of chocolate - chocolate chip brownies and a pot of Godiva Chocolate coffee for our guests.

We had a nice group of visitors ... from empty nesters like us to families with as many as 3 children (keep in mind ... this house has only 2 official bedrooms), even an elderly couple who'd lived on the acreage many years ago, come by to see the place and share stories from their tenure here ... we enjoyed them all.

Now? Well, we wait and see what God has in mind. In one week much will change!

Want a tour? Check out the website we made for the acreage HERE

2010-04-09T22:55:00.002-05:00

My Big Crafty Sale!

The more I think about the prospect of moving so many crafty supplies the more I am convinced that they must be sold. At first I thought I would sell them on the auction we'd be having April 24, but there are just too many. I suspect the prices would just be too low (too few people at the auction, too many items, and too little time ... any economist would be able to forecast the results of that formula!) Discussing this with Katy one afternoon caused her to suggest a separate sale ... just crafts. It took me a bit to agree as our schedule has already been pretty tight ... I couldn't see how I would have time to pull that off. She agreed to help by arriving the Thursday evening prior to the sale (the only weekend available would be April 9-11 as we were having our discussion on March 28th!).

My friend, Kim, spent many days prior to the sale ... helping me sort through supplies and get them boxed up for the ride to Summit Evangelical Free Church in Alta where the sale was going to be conducted. Turns out this process was much harder than I'd expected!

Kim and I would go to my precious little craft cottage ... pick a corner ... and get started. My resolve to "sell it all" would melt away and I'd find myself creating a Keep box and a Sell box. Then I would sleep on it and by morning I'd be convicted and move things from the Keep pile over to the Sell pile.

Thus it went, craft by craft, until the day before the sale! Working my way through all of my beloved crafts ... card making, scrapbooking, knitting, lace making, rug weaving, sewing, painting, gardening, cooking ... a slow and rather tender process of letting go ... each day bringing a surprising new freedom ... freedom from the years of unfinished (yet loved) projects ... turns out allowing myself to let go of all my old ideas/inspirations/plans created a newfound horizon for future possibilities. Even to the point that it invaded my dreams! I was letting-go in my nightly dream-life ... amazing ... Who knew something so difficult would be so rewarding?!

As the supplies were getting prepared, I also got busy making posters to put up in a variety of locations around town. Facebook helped me get the word out, as did an ad in the local paper and an announcement at MOPS (Mothers of PreSchoolers). There wasn't much time but somehow we managed!

The sale would be April 9 from noon to 8pm. Due to restrictions at the church we wouldn't be able to do any setup until the morning of the sale ... something that would be challenging at best! Then, the day before the sale the church secretary called to say we could setup that afternoon/evening! I quickly called Becky (another good friend) who'd offered to help us ... she could help, so Bruce and I drove a full 8'x12' enclosed trailer to Alta. Becky arrived just as we began to bring the first few boxes into the building. We spent about 5 hours unloading and setting up. There was no time to get all the pricing done so we decided to just trust the Lord to manage that little detail! For the most part our pricing strategy went like this:

Papers were $0.75 per pound (crazy cheap!) ... regardless of the type of paper (so, even the beautiful petallics and gold glitter papers!)
Envelopes were priced by the piece or by the box (yes, there were boxes of 250 envelopes in my stash!)
Everything was "Make an Offer"

The morning of the sale I got word that my sister, Sandy, and neice, Laura, and her new little baby, Darrin, would be coming to help! WOW! This was a big answer to prayer! Sandy and Laura are both crafters, so would be infinitely helpful at the sale. They could answer questions, help people with their price/offers, keep things organized, etc. God is so Good!

We spent the morning of the sale making pricing signs and getting a pay station set up near the church entrance. Kim and Katy would be the cashiers (I really didn't want to know what people were offering to pay for my beloved supplies.) Kim's familiarity with paper products (from the old Print Shop days!) was a great help! And her trust in God's provision and understanding of the mission made all the different at the pay station!

During the sale I tried to keep things organized, help people find matching/coordinating supplies or explain just what some of those supplies were meant to be used for! I had supplies for all kinds of fun crafty-artsy activities ... some not so obvious to figure out as others!

All proceeds from this sale were being used to buy sewing machines for the young ladies graduating from the Aim Asia orphanage in India this spring so I was really hoping we would raise at least $700 - $900.

The day before the sale I was talking about the goals with Bruce and said, "Wouldn't it be amazing if God used the sale to raise enough money to buy ALL the machines they need plus enough to send one young lady to the university?" A goal that would require $1400. We both knew how much "stuff" I had, but this seemed pretty unlikely ... a nice goal though.

Craft Sale results? When everything "cleared" ... we ended up with $1520! God is So Good! Not only that, but we ended up going home with almost 50% of the supplies, a much more realistic amount for an auction. Did I mention that God is Good? All the Time!!!

2009-11-21T23:15:00.003-06:00

The day started out with a workout in the resort fitness center. A very nice facility! I chose a recumbent bike, Katy used an elliptical trainer, and Bruce worked on some of the resistance equipment. Later we had a wonderful time exploring the area!
We drove to Colonial Williamsburg and walked around their Farmer's Market and enjoyed the drive past the college of William and Mary (talk about a beautiful campus!), hung out in their campus bookstore (which is also a Barnes & Nobels! cool!)

While in Colonial Williamsburg, we toured the old Governor's Mansion, a cart-maker's shop, the home of a pioneer entrepreneur, and stayed to watch most of the evening's re-enactment of pre-civil war unrest experienced by folks in this area.

Once the sun went down it got too cold for us...we headed back to the resort and the hot tub.

2009-11-20T23:58:00.007-06:00

Arrived in Williamsburg early afternoon today and checked in at the Wyndham Kingsgate Resort.

Very nice place! Grabbed a quick picture of Bruce on his way to the get some of our gear out of the vehicle. The weather was just gorgeous ... beautiful blue skies and trees still dressed in their rich fall colors! Lovely.

Our room was nice. It had a small kitchenette and dining table, a sofa bed for Katy, and a master suite for us.

After some exploring we found an amazing video gaming complex on-site ... the ultimate in video games with over 30 state-of-the-art video games and movies ... this would make a great place for future Destination Thanksgivings (once the grandchildren are 8-19 yrs old!).

Over the past couple days, my broken foot started having issues with the running shoes I brought along, so off we went to find a shoe store. Just down the road was a collection of outlet stores (of course we all know they are just a gimmick right?). I found shoes at the Puma store, a warm winter vest at Eddie Bauer, and some perfume at another store. Bruce looked for golf clubs but they didn't have anything he wanted. Katy found some adorable summer sundresses.

Before calling an end to the day we enjoyed their outdoor hot tub ... very nice!

2009-11-19T22:02:00.005-06:00

We made great progress yesterday! Katy drove until St. Louis. Then Bruce took over and drove for hour, eventually deciding to pull off the road and "catch a quick nap" (that's PC talk for sleep in the Tahoe!). We had our pillows and blankets along (and our camping gear ... just didn't have a campground LOL) so we were quite comfy.

In the morning, we found a McDonald's (I know...that isn't a very healty place for breakfast...oh well ... it's a holiday ...) and got back on the road.

Check out the beautiful scene we found as we got on the road:

We drove through to Lexington, VA. Found a hotel and headed out to Ruby Tuesdays for some dinner before getting a good nights sleep.

Tomorrow we will arrive in Williamsburg, VA ... the destination for the first part of our Thanksgiving vacation! We'll be there for three days.

2009-11-18T21:52:00.002-06:00

I'm spending the day in Ames while Bruce is in meetings. When he is done we'll be heading down to Kansas City to pick up Katy and begin our trek for the first Jacobson Family Destination Thanksgiving!

While waiting for Bruce I'm off to Sam's Club to have the tire checked on the Tahoe ... the front passenger side keeps losing air. Pesky! Then I'm going to work on getting some digi-scrap pages posted ... my assignments for the first half of November. Hoping my "usual" wifi spots in Ames are working okay today!

2009-11-15T17:06:00.002-06:00

Today I decided to do a "Spring Cleaning" on my cleaning-closet ... yep ... I know ... it's ANYTHING BUT spring right now ... does it count that the weather is unseasonably warm for Iowa ... in November?

I took EVERYTHING out of the cabinet, sorted, discarded, donated, and then put things back into the cabinet. Here's how it looked once the work was all done. (Sure wishing I'd taken some "before" shots! It was beginning to be reminiscent of Fiber McGee's closet (so, for you young folks that was an old-time radio show...if Fiber McGee opened the closet door EVERYTHING would come tumbling out!)
That's the top half...and here's the bottom half (I have a "thing" about running out of rags for cleaning...so...I have a big ol' bucket full of them!)Ahhhh...that's one more cupboard that's gotten a thorough cleaning! Feels good!
:-)

2009-07-11T15:14:00.002-05:00

I don't really have time to add anything today . . . just feeling bad that April was my last update! Since then, let's see ... I've been to southern California for a nice long visit (not long enough mind you, but ...), then to Cedar Falls Iowa for Katy's graduation, to Redwing MN for Katy's other graduation, to Kansas City area twice to help Katy with moving and to see her new employer's store (Palin Music ... very nice!), to Alexandria to visit my mom and two of my sisters and brother (and his family) ... and to Ames to play at the cottage there!

In between ... I tried to 'work' and catch up on laundry and weeding in the veggie gardens!

2009-04-08T12:03:00.002-05:00

Well ... it's almost time for me to say "Good-Bye Bay Area" and I'm not looking forward to it! There's just never enough sister-time (boohoo!) is there? So, for now I'll focus on all that the next three days have to offer and then settle for digi-scrapping all the fun photos, reliving all the fun through the process.

Today, I am playing with some photos of Ms. Scarlett. Her mama's install of Photoshop is getting fussy so I get to have the fun!!! There's just 'something' fun about getting up close and personal with photos of the grans! I love it!

The original image is PERFECT in my opinion, but we decided to brush it out a bit. The second and third images show the progression of change.

Will see how far mama wanted things to go.

2009-03-20T13:09:00.003-05:00

It looks like I've been doing nothing doesn't it! Well...it's just that I've been making myself stay focused on the tasks at hand so I could leave on my California visit with a clear conscience! Lots got done this week!

Taxes are all off to the accountant now! (personal and business!) - so, again I'm making a commitment to be better about keeping better records for the business! That is NO fun ... trying to find all the paperwork needed, you'd think I would learn! My action plan for this year - build a Google spreadsheet that both my business partner and I can update AS THE EXPENSES OCCUR! Wish us well?
Client billing is all caught up! Woohoo!
Client work that requires me to be 'in town' is all done. Some tasks will be coming along with me, but that's okay! Something productive to do while Sara is working!
Supplies are not only ordered but have been received (just today! woohoo!). This would be my cooling pad for macbook pro and a smaller external hard drive (1TB) so I can take my data along!

You'll be as amazed as I am to know that they were sent by Amazon on Tuesday a.m. via USPS and one arrived Thurs, the other arrived today! So...not that I think their top execs (public servants) need a bonus, but all the folks along the path certainly deserve a big round of applause!
Packing is nearly done - waiting on some laundry.
Followed up on some IOUs that we've been waiting on ... should have that taken care of by 2:00 p.m. Ahhhh...another needling detail off the list!
Played with blog header ... as you can see. Still working on customizing other aspects!
Scanned more of our vintage family photos! Finished brother Paul's stack from my mom. Now I only have one small box (a mixture of things from mom) and my sister Wanda's stack from mom. I can almost see the floor under the scanner table now ... yay! (Already returned a big ole' box of scanned images when I went to Alex in January) Looking forward to working with some of these images! Talk about stories!
Took a morning off to enjoy a great speaker at our MOPS meeting Wednesday.
Elizabeth Hagen, member NAPO (Nat'l Association of Professional Organizers). Thoroughly enjoyed her presentation ... imagine that ... an OCD/ADD girl like me ... haha ... gotta love any reason to use office supplies and bins and labels!!! Right?
Last but not least ... final update to my blog for the week! We are going to be in Ames doing some spring yardwork tonight and all day tomorrow. Saturday evening we'll meet-up with Bruce's siblings and enjoy some time together! Then, Sunday, it's off to California for me!

2009-03-17T15:16:00.004-05:00

Just finished uploading some images for a test print with a dear friend of mine from the digital printing world (Barb!) We are going to see how digital scrapbook page designs look when printed on her industrial digital wide-format printer (prints on rolls of watercolor paper, canvas, vinyl, etc ... yup ... I'm envious ... and thankful!) If they look great I'm going to start promoting her services on the various sites I like to frequent ... I know! It sounds like I'm a stalker!

Thought I'd post one of my FAV photos of me and Baby Scarlett (she was 6 days old). It was taken the day we had the sweat lodge going in Tara's bathroom. She was just so relaxed and awake. I temporarily 'painted' Tara's bathroom walls ... hope she doesn't mind! :-)

NOTE TO STACEY! WE NEED MORE PHOTOS!!! Seriously ... I'm thinking about writing a book. The title? When you give a Grama a Photo! I've got the perfect story line!

2009-03-13T21:49:00.010-05:00

Good-Bye So Soon

As quickly as she arrived ... she's gone again! We tied two of her quilt tops, she did laundry, she and my guy figured out the crazy cell phone bill (oh yeah ... after many months of phantom 'extra' charges we finally discovered our provider, Verizon, charges a minimum of $1.99/mb for accessing their download library ... just for accessing ... the downloading fees are in addition to that ... I'm quilty! Sometimes I bump that dhangh quick key when I'm trying to get at something else ... who KNEW that they would be charging me for that little mistake! I'm not the only one either. It's happened to my guy, my mom, and of course our girlie! Good grief!)

Oops! Back to the subject! We packed a lot of activities into her brief stay! Whew!

Figured out the trouble I was having with the iPod (needed a new gadget/accessory ... imagine that!)
She brushed me up on stir-fry techniques (so I made cashew chicken for lunch ... my guy and girlie both testify that it was quite good ... my guy has already put dibs on the leftovers for his meals while I'm off to California visiting my baby sister!).
My guy helped her with several issues on the new-to-her car (PT Cruiser totally decked out) ... don't ask me the details ... it was moslty greek to me ... but, they are both happy ... so ... I'm happy.

After sending her on her way (back to school) I made a stew for supper that turned out fabulous!! Winter Butternut Squash Stew - the 'secret' ingredient must be the wine ... it was fantastic! ... and ... you guessed it ... my guy quickly divided the extra portions into little containers and hustled them off to the freezer to add to his little stash!

I was SO SURE he'd get suspicious ... I mean ... really ... when is the last time "I" made two, from scratch, meals in the same day?! I thought this would throw him off ... just a bit ... you know ... sorta like the day he fixed two things around the house ... remember that?
Hmmmmmmm....

Good Bye Sweet Pea! Next time I see you . . . you'll be "all gwowd up" . . . out of school, out there in the big, wide world and (if I know you at all) slaying dragons everywhere you go! I love you and I am so proud of the young lady you've become!

2009-03-12T17:29:00.004-05:00

Home!

Our youngest daughter is on Spring Break for the last time (well, at least for this stretch of her life!). She came home yesterday just in time for supper. After supper we headed straight to the little craft cottage and set up shop!
She has two quilts she just pieced out of her old sweatshirts ... those she's collected from a variety of high school and college sports or clubs and the miscellaneous vacations she's been on over the past 10 years or so. They are colorful and SO FUN!

She cleverly cut some of the blocks so they would include the fun front pocket (where you can put both hands ... IYKWIM) ... I like that!

We were able to get one all tied ... just the binding left. She said something about needing to run a quality control check and then snuggled under it all night ... I'm guessing it passed muster!

It's nice to have her home ... the house never really feels like "HOME" when we don't have at least ONE of our children here. I think Bruce and I both slept much more soundly last night ... there's just something about having your children home that brings peace to your soul.

2009-03-10T23:00:00.005-05:00

Sheets of Ice! Bitter cold wind!

A Mac and a stash of photos ... the PERFECT winter's day (IF you must live in this crazy place, that is!) I am hoping the weather doesn't make traveling dangerous tomorrow for Katy . . . 5 hours on bad roads isn't very fun. Worse yet, what if she can't come because of the weather . . . oh now THAT would be bad! We are looking forward to her visit! Crafting, catching up on our late night chats, movies, or whatever else we can squeeze into a short visit.

The highlight of my day today . . . oddly enough . . . was getting my vacuum fixed (it's needed repairs since December . . . yikes! . . . don't EVEN ask how my floors were looking!) My sweet, handy hubby got it all fixed before he went to work (now that's sweet!)- new belt, clean roller with fresh lube job and a new bag . . . woohoo! I was a vacuuming fool today!

Then, when that same sweet guy got home he fixed the ice maker in our frig! It's been nonfunctional since January! He's really earning some big points today, ay?

Hmmmmm . . . you don't think he's up to something do you?

2009-03-09T09:18:00.003-05:00

Welcome Emily Ann!

Grandbaby #7 has just arrived (8:20 this morning) in North Carolina! She was 9# and 20" long ... and of course has head circumference 14.75"! Mama is still in recovery as I right this (C-section) and Daddy's feet haven't hit the ground yet. Her older brothers, Alex and Noah, will be by to meet her later this morning. We are anxiously waiting for some photos!!! (PTL for cell phone picture capability!!!)

Well ... the photos have arrived. Here's mommy and baby, getting to know each other. Emily looks like an angel! Awwwwwwwwwwwww

2009-03-08T16:02:00.002-05:00

Saying Good-Bye is always bitter sweet! New and reNewed friendships always make Sunday a little bit sad, yet we leave with the inner joy that comes from spending time with others who share our passion, looking forward to our next chance to get together.

Retreat always culminates with a Show & Tell ... everyone shows the group layouts they've worked on over the weekend and has a chance to tell about new skills they've used, ah-ha moments, ideas for future retreats, and overall impression of their experience at this retreat.

I'll be back with some photos from today! Already missing everyone ... SYS (see you soon) I hope!

2009-03-08T01:23:00.007-06:00

Quick camp update ... the date/time stamp says "Sunday" ... but we are all choosing to think it's still Saturday ... it's 1:24 am (or 2:24 am daylight savings time ... I'm not gonna think about that ... having too much fun!)

Earlier today (yesterday/Saturday) we tore ourselves away from our keyboards and enjoyed a walk in the sunshine. This photo is a little bit deceiving ... it really was a beautiful day ... blue sky, birds chirping, melting snow, and the smell of a wood-burning stove wafting through the air ... a wonderful break from our computer screens!

Left to Right:
Kim, LeAnna, Barb, Denise, (me!), Debbie, Janelle, Judy!
GO DigiChicks!

Today we've learned to:

create custom shadows
create custom brushes
change brush settings (spacing, roundness, fade, etc) for some pretty cool effects!
create straight stitches (use Hard Round brush w/special settings)
create reflective layouts using masks, blending modes, etc
warp a photo frame & mask in Elements (bent-looking photos...)
(don't forget that wonderful combination of CTRL+SHIFT+ALT or just CTRL+click corner control handle when you are in Free Transform mode! Woohoo!)

2009-03-07T01:25:00.008-06:00

Spring Retreat is officially underway!
Here we are ... all working hard ... (it's 1:25 am ... such devoted scrappers!)

This group is on-the-ball!

In addition to getting through the Accelerated Intro Class (really! just ask them ... this Intro Class includes Clipping Masks ... it's not a whimpy class!) we've already worked our way through lessons on:

the Gradient Tool and all it's settings
creating a fade-out clipping mask
creating a clipping mask that uses text as well as a box
using templates that arrive as a group of .png files

So ... it's off to bed now so we are ready for the first lesson at 9:00 am. TTFN!

2009-03-06T12:05:00.002-06:00

Off to the annual Spring DigiChick Retreat!
We have some returning guests this spring and some new ... it's always exciting to spend a weekend with other enthusiasts of digital scrapbooking and/or photo restoration. I'll be sure to post some of the happenings ... bbl!

2009-03-04T08:04:00.006-06:00

Polar Plunge!

Last Saturday, Bruce and I found ourselves standing at the edge of hole, cut into a frozen lake in Minnesota, watching our youngest jump in! It was 11 degrees below zero, there was a bitter breeze, and a deceptively bright blue sky . . . MAN IT WAS COLD! Never-the-less, she and two of her friends donned their swimgear and jumped into that hole. All to help raise money for the Special Olympics.

NOTE: If you want to see a clearer version of this photo ... just click on it.

Hmmmmm ... I'm thinking, "Do they have any 'special' olympics for folks crazy enough to get half-naked in the freezing weather and jump into a frozen-over lake?"!

2009-02-27T11:09:00.009-06:00

Ah! HOME!

Well, I can honestly say I had a 'new' experience recently. After being gone for a full month I have to say my little hovel in Storm Lake looked SO GOOD TO ME! It actually took me by surprise! I'm often fussing about how small it is (esp in the winter!), how chopped up the floor plan is, how this or that it is or isn't ... you know, crumbling in general (I know! I'm to be content in ALL THINGS, right? right!) Everything seemed 'different' somehow ... I don't really have words for the sensation, but it was GOOD TO BE HOME.

January 18 I left Iowa for a stay in California. The first week I was at Tara's being a 'helper' in preparation for the arrival of her third child. Then Bruce drove out to join me (poor guy! He somehow managed to give himself food poisening! So...about that idea ... leaving your 1/2 eaten sandwich 'on top' of the cooler ... yeah ... 'not' such a good idea after all!). A couple days after he arrived, we checked into a beachside condo at Mandalay Bay near Oxnard.

Ron and Cheryl (Bruce's sister and brother-in-law) joined us. We stayed on the beach for a week.

We spent one day visiting the Santa Barbara Zoo with Tara and the kids.

On Feb 6, in celebration of Cheryl's birthday, we went to the Ronald Reagan Library (which happens to be Reagan's birthday too!). All four of us were amazed by this experience. WOW! What a tribute. This man had so many qualities and was accomplished in so many things we were unaware of ... guess that goes to show you can't trust the media to be your only source of information!

We enjoyed boarding Air Force One! and seeing the recently retired Presidential helicopter (Marine One?).

While at the beach house, we had a several sleep-overs with Savannah and William. They loved the easy access to the beach ... just a partial block (two houses between us and the beach). The little storage closet under the steps provided hours of fun! It had a louvered door and they just had a ball 'hiding' in there and surprising us when we'd walk by! It was just too cute! Then, to top off all that fun, "Gwampa" would get up with them early in the morning (they LOVE to wake up at O'Dark-hundred, as does Grampa) and together they would make fresh cookies for the day ... we are totally loving the Grandparent role!

Bruce took Cheryl and Ron on a tour of Hollywood, various interest points in LA, Malibu, and the famous pier, ending in a meal at a restaurant at the ocean's edge (recommended by friends of Ron & Cheryl).

When our little grand-daughter didn't arrive on time (in fact she was two weeks late!) Tara and Nathan bought me a return flight so I could stay until after baby arrived. We said good-bye to a very disappointed grampa and great-aunt and great-uncle ONE day before baby arrived!

Scarlett was born at home and immediately welcomed into her family by not only mama and daddy, but big sister and big brother! The older siblings fell in love immediately with their little sister ... it was so precious to witness! I feel so blessed that I was there to be part of her first day here on earth! And, of course, happy that I had the extra time to get to know her before I had to come home.

The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one's own country as a foreign land. ~G.K. Chesterton

2009-01-31T16:53:00.000-06:00

Tomorrow morning the 'fun' begins! I'm going to be part of a "Creative Team" competition over at www.DigiTownSquare.com. I'll be on the Hula Girls team (sure hope I don't have to wear a 'real' hula skirt ... yikes! ROTLOL!)

All teams will get one assignment per week. Then the general public votes on our galleries and the team with the highest number of votes will win (I don't really know WHAT we win, but hey...who cares ... we WIN! LOL!)

I'll try to stop back with any exciting news!

2009-01-14T19:29:00.004-06:00

Lawn Ornaments - Iowa Style!

So, this morning I wake-up to the sound of a semi-truck approaching our acreage on the county road, then ... silence. Hum. That's odd. Normally that sound is followed by the sound of the semi disappearing on the other side of the big hill. Up & At 'Em!!!

Outside our picture window there lays a semi ... on it's side ... across the entrance to our drive and the ditch area on either side of the drive! So much for anyone 'going anywhere' today!

This is going to be an adventure ... it's one of those severe, ice cold, winter days in Iowa. The good news is that the driver was fine. His load was beans (thankfully NOT turkeys, pigs, or cattle as so many of the trucks that drive by carry).

Bruce happened to be AT the end of the drive getting our trash cans in place for Wednesday pickup. He saw the semi coming up the hill from the west and a snowplow climbing the east side of the hill ... stood there for a few seconds and decided he'd best high-tail it out of there when the semi began to move toward the shoulder hoping to avoid hitting that snowplow! Good choice dear! Those garbage cans ended up under the semi's cab!

I've posted a slideshow with photos taken of the process required to extract a fallen semi from a snow-filled ditch and back on the road HERE. If your browser has trouble with the slideshow, HERE is a link to the gallery.

2009-01-05T19:05:00.006-06:00

It's another New Year ... and next time around it will be the end of the first decade of the first century of this millinium ... who'da thought? The year's do seem to fly by don't they? ... Wow!

Christmas has come & gone. We are still enjoying the warm glow left behind by Paul & Andrea and the two dogs ... what a wonderful visit we had. Not one of those action-packed visits, nope. This was a slow-paced, quiet, and thoroughly enjoyable visit! We had time to catch up on all their news, play with the pups and learn more about 2009 dreams for their family. (oops! the back porch wasn't 'supposed' to be featured on our blog! teehee!)

I did my best to get a family greeting sent out this year ... as always, it's the details that give me the biggest challenge. Designing the greetings was the fun part. Then I got bogged down while getting the mailing list up-to-date (if I had a dollar for every time I've entered addresses into a program of one sort or another I could buy a house I think!). My effort grew into a project that included the making of a mailing list for my mother too (that's not just more family, but friends as well!). I just keep thinking, "Maybe when the technology outstrips my cognitive skills someday there will be a child somewhere in my family that will be happy to do this for me." Anyone? Anyone? Anyone?

True to form ... the computer analyst in me kicked in! My mailing list update has turned into a full-scale IT Project! Once the addresses were being collected, it only seemed natural to expand the scope and collect/record birthdays and anniversaries. Weeks later, I wondered, "Why not get all that data published somewhere online so any family member can access it? Someplace that allows subscriptions that can then be posted to their Google Calendar or iCal!" Oh yeah! I'm goin' there (... with Paul's help of course)!

With my MacBookPro in tow ... iCal linked to AddressBook ... all published to GoogleDocs/Cal ... I'm jumping into 2009! So, my big question is ...

Will there be more time to play Photoshop now?

2008-10-27T21:50:00.003-05:00

How time flies! Since my last post (July) much has happened.

I had a wonderful trip to see the grandbabies on the west coast in September. I got to watch them while mama & daddy went on a great little getaway ... did WE have fun!

In October we went on a great trip to Door County, Wisc with sister-in-law and her husband ... WHAT a great trip! I hope to have a chance to go again sometime ... winter or summer ... the scenery is just beautiful!

I will post images later ... my internet speed is very degraded at this time of day.

2008-07-18T20:25:00.002-05:00

Since it's been over a year I thought I'd post a couple pages I made LAST summer when our grandson came for his visit! He was in love with "The Pirates" during his visit in Summer 2006 - didn't miss a beat - on the way to our farm he hatched "The Plan" and wrote this letter to "The Good Pirates". We had MANY pirate adventures throughout the summer!

2007-03-02T17:34:00.000-06:00

His Snowglobe

flakes in horizontal flight,
evidence of an unseen force,
horizon gone

beyond the tree line,
fields invisible
I only see white
deep, thick, white

across the yard,
absent lake,
I only see white
deep, thick, white

snow drifting, waves,
testifying to the hidden
garden beds, shrubs, tire swing,
I only see white
deep, thick, white

wind carving incredible sculptures,
graceful, smooth swirls
undulating, twisting, cresting
every shade of white
deep, thick, white

my Father, knowing every heart
put me
in the center
of
His snowglobe.

I'm here, safe, warm, well loved and
blessed by the view.

by Linda Brown-Jacobson

3/2/2007

2007-02-07T06:16:00.001-06:00

Every year on this day I begin to reflect back to the day (29 years ago) that I had a sudden burst of energy after 9 VERY long months of pregnancy ... well ... actually we weren't so sure HOW long I'd been pregnant ... back then the doctors didn't have the advantage of all this technology we have today. Initially they 'guessed' my due date to be around the first of January. Then they'd move it out a week or two ... until I finally decided maybe I'd just be pregnant forever!

Eventually the labor pains started and off to the hospital we went after calling Grama Garnett to come and watch Paul, our 18 month old son. Shortly after noon we had a beautiful little daughter, Tara. We were SO excited! Who could have dreamed all the joys that were just beginning to unfold.

So, today I reflect and tomorrow I'll wish my beautiful daughter a very Happy 29th Birthday.

As I pondered again those old memories, I decided to make two digital scrapbook pages of my beautiful daughter's daughter ... check them out!

She just LOVES shoes! Thanks for letting me share!

Savannah Shoes

2007-02-05T09:54:00.000-06:00

How exciting! My friend and business partner, Kim, just called to tell me, "Today's the Day!" She's about to become a grandma! Oh-h-h-h I remember THAT day in my life. How I seemed to traverse time - one moment I'm in the hospital where my baby girl is about to give birth to her baby girl and the next moment I was back to a time ... 29 years earlier ... when I was the one about to become a mommy for the first time.

How odd it seemed! She's still my baby ... my little Tawa ... I'm still her "Muddo" ... I had trouble getting my mind wrapped around all the feeling swirly around. It didn't seem like so many years had passed. Then again, ... so much had happened between then and now ... it may actually have been a century! How odd.

There's a lot to learn about being a member of the 'sandwich generation' ... it's certainly going to be an adventure, ay? Hang on to your hat, Kim! It's a wild ride! One worth taking!

2007-02-04T11:38:00.000-06:00

One of the 'challenges' a parent faces is how to instill in their children the confidence to 'fly' ... to leave the nest, when the time comes. Right?

Well, now I realize you can do too good a job of it! Take our family...of four children, one is now living in North Carolina with our two grandsons, another is living in southern California with our two youngest grandchildren, and one is newly married and living in Alabama.

Our youngest is still in college ... we're betting she'll move to Alaska (thus we will have effectively sent our children to all the far corners of the USA ... not counting Maine...but we've run out of children ... do you suppose the grandchildren will cover that region?)

So, I often wonder, "Are they self-confident and adventurous or do they just want to be far from home?" I've spent a great deal of time pondering this! I see the children of my peers settling in right next door (okay...that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but you get my meaning!) to their parents. They gather weekly to worship, to share some of the challenges of parenting the new generation, to celebrate life's milestones. It all leaves me wondering, "Was it really a good idea to encourage their desire for adventure?" "Why did we want them to be so darned independent?" "What were we thinking?" "What am I now . . . am I no longer needed as the parent of my children?"

Then, one day, the calls start coming. Those independent, adventurers actually want advice! I'm not saying they always follow the advice they seek...but it was a big day in our household when the calls began. "Mom, What do you think about ..." "Dad, how can I ..." etc etc etc

Of course, I know these same children already know the advice we'll be giving and we (DH and I) know in most cases they most likely just want to hear the advice as a confirmation to what they had been planning to do.

All this said, it warms a parent's heart to feel needed again! Welcome home, children!

Check out my Slide Show!

2007-02-02T22:18:00.001-06:00

2007-02-02T21:15:00.001-06:00

Just updated my blog from the old blogspot.com! Now to get started with entries...goodness!

Yesterday Kim (business partner) and I held our first training class as a Mobile Training Unit! Due to the severely cold weather in NW Iowa (high of 18 degrees F with high winds) we lost a few students, but three brave souls made it. The monitor for the instructor's pc decided to fail, so Kim was running the lesson 'blind' - and STILL she did GREAT! She was somehow able to keep an eye on the image projecting at the front of the room...better eyes than mine!

We are in the process, still, of getting a website developed. Today we started a Google Group (Digital Scrapbook Friends) to give our students a place to connect with each other on-line. All the notes from the class yesterday are posted there ... just in case they'd like to review what they learned! We will need to send an announcement to our student's from the classes held at the Lab in Ames, Iowa.

Our images for display and download are all up on 4shared.com now, so we can give access to our students and clients regardless of our physical location. That will be a huge help as we alternate our time on a weekly basis between NW Iowa and Ames.

As we venture forward, God continues to bless our little business in ways beyond our imagination! As if the first 8 computers God sent weren't enough, we've now been blessed with 7 more! (Isn't HE amazing?) Of course, this would be a good time to give a BIG THANKS to Jason for ALL he has done to help us. He is our ENTIRE technology team! There isn't anything he cannot do and we SO appreciate his help!