Christian Photographers Community

I think I forgot to mention that Sunday I called my son Roger to set the dates for my trip to ca in July. I will be staying at his place. I am going by train and will leave Oregon on July 18 arrive there on the 19th return home on the 25th after leaving there the night of the 24th. I am excited to  go and hope to see at least 3 of my kids that I haven't seen since briefly at my Mother's funeral. In June Keith and I will be gone from the 10th to the 17th on vacation splitting the time between two of the timeshares. 3 days on the coast HERE and 7 days HEREl

I love the last words of the chorus of that song! "Grounded firm and deep in the Savior's love." Praise His wonderful name.

So good to hear from y'all today. I'm could feel better today, but our Lord knows how to take good care of each of us, no matter the problem. Yes, Bonnie, it will be better to take that medication - irregular heartbeats certainly aren't very good for us. I know - I've had 'em.

Thanks be to God that you're better, Al - we're continuing to pray for and with you, as well as for the other requests here at CP. We love you, and God loves you even MORE!

Y'all have a great day today in your walk with Him.

Ruth Ann

OK I am home from a whirlwind trip to Toronto then to my sisters, for 2 nights and finally home from Toronto last night leaving at 9:15.  We headed in blowing snow but wet roads.  At Gravenhurst after the big bend we were into the most terrible winter weather I have driven in for over a year.  The roads were snow covered and slushy as well there was heavy snow blowing into the window, both hypnotizing and blinding. That was about 11:00, 2 hours from home, with the conditions it took 3 hours.  After 2:00 we arrived home, tired and frazzled. We were up 4 hours after getting to bed, to head to North Bay to a doctors appointment and pick up my little girl.  Cimi was will looked after at  our friends in Redbridge.

We spent 3 days in Toronto at the Truck Show with John doing his duties as a Road Knight.  I did so much walking that I have been in intense pain with my hips and knees.  The joys of getting older!  The last day I stayed at the OTA booth handing out the giveaways.  That gave opportunities to sit more and rest.

Another highlight of the Hotel stay was the fire alarm.  At 2:50 AM Friday night Saturday AM, it went off waking the entire hotel!!  I suspect someone pulled the alarm as a prank.

On the weekend we met with old (not in age) friends including Bonnie  (strollin) and others. Church Sunday morning was wonderful...being able to hear the pastor we have come to love so much.  I left wanting more of the message .....which is in 3 parts ;(  How I wish I could go back for the next 2 weeks to hear the remainder.  It is an amazing feeling leaving church wanting more.

In the evening we went to church with Pat.  It is more of the traditional type of service, as I enjoyed that as well.  I need my glasses there though as they use hymn books and not the words projected on a screen, which I prefer as I can see the words better.

A wonderful visit with Pat and friends now home to rest up for the next time!

I received word from my course instructor that I achieved a mark of 84% on the Nationa Exam, toward my attaining the Personal Support Worker certification. Such a relief, even though I trusted that I would do well.  Going to school while still working, then doing the required placement, was a struggle, but the Lord got me through it. 

Thank you, Ruth Ann, for your encouragement and oh so gentle reminder re my having to be dilligent in taking my beta blocker.

Yes, Judy, it was lovely spending time with you. Hope to see you again real soon.

Each and every concern brought forward this week has been added to my prayer list.

Thank you all for listening, praying, and sharing.

Bonnie

We decided to go up to Dad's last night since the weather didn't look like it would be very good for driving today. We were earlier than you were though, Judy, and just had to face very wet snow. I'm sorry you had a bad trip, but am glad you got home safely. Trust your trip today went well.

We took Dad up to North Bay today through the snow storm. It actually got better the closer we got to North Bay. Dad's appointment went well, although he is feeling overwhelmed about the whole dialysis thing. My sister arrives from Calgary on Thursday for a two week visit and will go with him to the next appointments. He is learning how to do his dialysis at home, which looks like it will be a challenge.

Thought you might like to see our snow:


The first picture is at Burk's Falls, and the second picture is what it looked like when we were going past Powassan - just thought I'd let you see what it looked like in JudyB and RuthV's area this morning.

Betty:  And, here we are experiencing record heat.  Unusual for us because we often get a late spring storm but the month of May is about to begin and you never know. 

Roofers are back - we are exhausted.  Will check in tomorrow. 

Bonnie I KNEW you would do well!!!

Betty Yes it was bad, yet by the time we left this morning the roads were clear!

Pat and Paul are requesting prayer for Paul's daughter and new baby.  The baby was born this morning and is facing a series of operations.  Pray that God guides the doctors in the decision making and in the surgeries as is necessary.

This is a "J" night.  So I will head off again and see if I can get some zzzzzzz's.

On a dark, stormy, night, when the waves rolled like mountains, and not a star was to be seen, a boat, rocking and plunging, neared the Cleveland harbor. "Are you sure this is Cleveland?" asked the captain, seeing only one light from the lighthouse.
"Quite sure, sir," replied the pilot.
"Where are the lower lights?"
"Gone out, sir."
"Can you make the harbor?"
"We must, or perish, sir!"
And with a strong hand and a brave heart, the old pilot turned the wheel. But alas, in the darkness he missed the channel, and with a crash upon the rocks the boat was shivered, and many a life lost in a watery grave. Brethren, the Master will take care of the great lighthouse: let us keep the lower lights burning!
D. L. Moody.

   

It seems a bit surreal reading about Judy's trip through blowing snow, and the others up there, when we are having such heat here.  It was 99* yesterday!  And one place in Kansas saw 100* temps.  Crazy weather, for sure.  "Everything that can be shaken will be shaken" says the Word.....we have no idea what other things are coming upon this world.  But we do know WHO hold the world in the palm of His hand!

My little ones are coming today to stay with me while their mommy and daddy go to Garden for the sonogram which will tell us whether the coming baby is a girl or a boy.  Curtis REALLY wants a boy, as this is to be their last baby

This afternoon I will drive to Hugoton for the funeral of my friend's little grandson.  It appears he took his own life....so awful.  Little things can be magnified by the enemy until a child thinks death is better than life.  It is heartbreaking.  Only 14 years old and gone far too soon. 

I'm going to get a   

Well, I have been discharged from Home Health, which means no more visits by the bath fellow, the physical therapist, the nurse, etc.  I have to get along on my own now.  Pray I'll succeed.

I'm glad I don't live where it snows now.  I had enough of that when we lived in the mountains, where it snowed about 60 days each year.  I had to drive through it  up at Lake Talhoe every night to my work.  It was about 25 miles one way, and many times I had to follow a truck in front of me in order to see where the road was.  Where we are now it never snows..  So I know what Judy's trips through blowing snow were like, but I don't want any more myself!  Isn't it a bit late for snow there?

Yes it is a bit late for snow, however we have been known to have a snowstorm in July!  We long for the better weather.

I got the Droid Razr since I am familiar with Droid features.  I seldom used the slide out keyboard so this one doesn't have it.  It is much slimmer, bigger monitor and lighter in weight! 

Today, in a few minutes I leave to get my eyes examined.  I hope he knows what is wrong with my right eye and I get it fixed by glasses or surgery! 

Gotta go....things to do....

The weather seems to be topsy-turvy all over this year. 

So much sadness in the world.  My friend Pat called to tell me her Daddy passed away at 1 this morning......then a little while ago a classmate of mine from HS -- her husband called to tell me she will not be at the alumni banquet because she had a stroke in Feb. and has been in Colorado since then.  I had called and left her a message saying I hoped to see her on Sat. night.

Almost time to find something for these little girls to eat!  They have made Play Doh cookies, checked out every item in the toy box, eaten some apple, rocked in the rocking chair, played peek-a-boo, and anything else they can think of to keep from being still for one minute!    And Lexi has informed me "We are NOT having a girl baby!!  Our baby is going to be a BOY!"     Today we will know.  She still doesn't really like having a little sister, so she sure doesn't want two of them.  But little Chelsea is a doll, very calm and sweet natured, and never even minds Lexi snatching things from her hand.  She just calmly goes and finds something else. 

And I know...TMI....so I'm outa here!

Hello everyone I thought I woulld give a shout out to my special friecials and c,p,
Went to the doctor Taking schools today rand everyone else is redy to updated
Today

Hello everyone I thought I would let you all know that I am praying and thinking of you daily.  I read the updates everyday but most of the days I don't have the energy to respond.  Your words encourage me daily.  I have a praise report at least I feel it as one.

My nephew Jonathon is a Senior in High School.  He went to a State science competition this past weekend in Kentucky.
He cam in second in FORENSIC SCIENCE.  He is the first person that as every place in Forensic Science for his schools history.  What a Great accomplishment.  I am so proud of him.  He told me we are not to have pride, I said true but,  we can be proud of someone or something.  Love you Johnathon David. 

Hi everyone.  Just up from a nice afternoon nap.  We were gone all morning as this is our morning for our Bible study.  I then dropped Pat off at the donut shop for the time of fellowship while I went to Kaiser and picked up medicine I needed and then joined the group and finally  the whole group went to the nearby cafe for lunch.  It is a beautiful day outside and has warmed up this afternoon. 

Stacey will not be released from therapy tomorrow as she had thought but has been told it will be Saturday.  We will go down and help her get her things back to her apartment and be sure she has everything she needs for awhile in terms of food, etc.  She seems to be making progress and is going to her apartment sometime during the day for a little while.  I guess that should toughen up his hip as the ride up the sidewalk in her wheelchair is very rough, or at least it was to me.  Of course, she knows where she needs to go slowly as is familiar with the walk.

Marilyn, it sounds like you have a nice summer planned with the vacation to the timeshares and the trip to California.  It sounds like it should be a very special time with your three children.  Do they all live in the same area and is it southern California?

Ruth Ann, hope you are feeling better this afternoon.

Judy, what a nice trip (except for the weather) that you and John had.  It is always fun to go but also very nice to get back home whether you are gone a few hours or a few days.  At our church they print up copies of the hymns being used for those with vision problems.  There are always extra copies and I use one of them as the hymn book is so heavy and the print fine and the lighting not good and it really helps.  I got used to them as the choir uses them to avoid having to deal with hymn books during the processional or in the choir loft as they use folder to hold their music. 

Bonnie, congratulations on your course work.  Will you be working as a home health worker?  Our daughter is going to need this type of help when she gets out of rehab.

Betty, does your dad live alone and will have to deal with the dialysis by himself?  Glad you had a safe trip.

Carol, are your roofers using the nail guns or hammering?  Our son and DIL just had part of the roof replaced on their old home because of wind damage. 

Judy, neonatal cardiologists can do marvelous things these days to repair heart damage.  I am sure this will be a trying time for all the family but sure they will be covered in prayer and God will be keeping them in the palm of his hand to see them through the ordeal ahead.

Janet, hope Curtis and his wife will get the boy they want.  Will this be their third child?  So sad about the suicide of the young man.  We can never know what causes a person to have such despair and his family will suffer for the rest of their lives.

Marlo, having joy in the accomplishments of ourselves or others isn't pride in my book.  I can't imagine what forensic science means in a highschool setting.



Al, it sounds like they feel you have made significant progress.   Like you I can't imagine living where there is a lot of snow, but have been there and done that.  There is no way I could shovel snow and doing so was really the first signs of my hearth problems that I became aware of back in 1987 when we lived in Maryland. 

Etta Sue, I am thinking when I replace my phone that I may go with an iPhone.  I like the android phone I have but find it requires a lot of rebooting and loses the wi-fi connection often.  However, I will have this one another year plus.

We had a beautiful day today. I sent in my retirement letter ... so will be retiring the end of June. I have a lot to get done before then - I don't think I'm counting the days with a "can't wait" but with the idea that it's not much time to get everything done that should be done. However, once I go, I won't have to worry about it, will I

Larry, my Dad does live alone. My Mom went to be with the Lord almost 4 years ago. He's going to be 82 in July, and has had good health up until the last year. He has been a real example to our family with the patience and fortitude he has faced everything this year, and is facing with the dialysis. He is hoping to be able to do this on his own. I have two sisters living in Ontario, and a brother and sister in Alberta, so most of the support he gets is from us in Ontario. My sister from Calgary is coming tomorrow to stay with him for a couple of weeks before she goes to Quebec for her daughter's graduation. The timing is perfect for having someone with him right now.

Larry, I have an iPhone through work, and will probably get one when I retire. My Educational Assistants have Androids and they like them, but I think the iPhone gives more options, at least at this point in time.

We're on our way to Niagara Falls tomorrow evening. I'm hoping to get some night time photos of the city and falls. Our hotel will be overlooking the falls. I'm looking forward to the "break" even though I'll be working on Friday.

Praying for everyone ...

I had a lot of catching up to do! The snow, that Betty took a picture of, covered our satellite dish and we were without internet. My husband had taken down the ladder I used during the winter, so I just had to wait until the Sun's rays melted the snow. This morning it was very sporadic so I just turned off the modem to relieve my frustration of getting "DNS lookup error"s and "The connection to the server was reset while the page was loading."

I just came in from a prayer meeting.... there has been much discussion in the church that prayer is the foundation of revival and living the kind of life that will point people to their Saviour....... tonight the Holy Spirit spoke to the hearts of those in attendance. I think He has great plans for this area of Ontario and I am excited!!!

Good Morning everyone!  This is the day that the Lord has made we will rejoice and be glad in it!!!

It is raining here today.  All the work John planned to do while he was off has fallen by the wayside.  The outdoor work that can't be done in the bad weather will have to wait.

I have a lot to get accomplished so I am off for the day.

Hi eveyrone.  Just back from coffee and now have the whole day ahead without having to leave the house (I hope).  I have several projects to attend to today including preparing some financial reports for an organization for which I serve as treasurer.  Pat is planning to meet a friend for lunch.  So not much to write about today.  We will need to go to Atlanta on Saturday to help Stacey get her things home from rehab.  She can get herself there by the power chair.  We can also then see that she has what she needs from the store for awhile.

Betty, it is a nice feeling to know you have reached the point where you can retire.  It sort of takes the pressure off.  Hope you have a good trip to Niagara Falls.

RuthV, I don't think I would be very patient with waiting for the snow to melt if it cut off my internet. 

Judy, sorry you weren't able to get the work done that you had wanted but I bet it will wait until you can tackle it. 

The boy's funeral service last evening was incredibly sad, yet hopeful.  We were assured by two pastors that Dominic had received the Lord as his Savior, and we will see him in heaven.  The big question--WHY?--was answered like this:  Dominic was listening to the wrong voice--for only a little while--and made a decision that took away his life here on earth.  But did it take away his salvation?  Absolutely not.

There was a huge crowd there, and the eighth graders--his classmates--sat together.  Several boys his age were pall bearers, and their faces were so said and pained it broke my heart.  One thing for sure, they will never forget this experience.  From the photos they showed and what the three men said at the service, this was a tender-hearted, fun-loving boy who was nice to everyone with whom he came into contact.  So to take his own life was really out of character for him, making the shock even greater.  The enemy is after our kids, folks!  How we need to pray for them!

Ruth L. thank you for the comments on my webpage.  Knowing at least one person reads them, I will try to be more diligent with my updates!

I have a really hectic few days through the rest of this week and weekend.  So I need to spend extra time in prayer.

I have read and enjoyed each post, won't make comments just now, as must get busy on my 'list for today.' 

Blessings to all of you!

I just had to come back here this morning to share the following story that a good friend sent me this morning.  Again it is long but worth the read.  Janet, that must have been a tough funeral to attend and I certainly agree with you on what our children are facing. 

A Truckers Story

If this doesn't light your fire, your wood is wet!

I try not to be biased, but I had my doubts about hiring Stevie. His placement counselor assured me that he would be a good, reliable busboy. But I had never had a mentally handicapped employee and wasn't sure I wanted one. I wasn't sure how my customers would react to Stevie.

He was short, a little dumpy with the smooth facial features and thick-tongued speech of Downs Syndrome. I wasn't worried about most of my trucker customers because truckers don't generally care who buses tables as long as the meatloaf platter is good and the pies are homemade.

The four-wheeler drivers were the ones who concerned me; the mouthy college kids traveling to school; the yuppie snobs who secretly polish their silverware with their napkins for fear of catching some dreaded "truck stop germ" the pairs of white-shirted business men on expense accounts who think every truck stop waitress wants to be flirted with. I knew those people would be uncomfortable around Stevie so I closely watched him for the first few weeks.
I shouldn't have worried. After the first week, Stevie had my staff wrapped around his stubby little finger, and within a month my truck regulars had adopted him as their official truck stop mascot.
After that, I really didn't care what the rest of the customers' thought of him. He was like a 21-year-old in blue jeans and Nikes, eager to laugh and eager to please, but fierce in his attention to his duties. Every salt and peppershaker was exactly in its place, not a breadcrumb or coffee spill was visible when Stevie got done with the table. Our only problem was persuading him to wait to clean a table until after the customers were finished. He would hover in the background, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, scanning the dining room until a table was empty. Then he would scurry to the empty table and carefully bus dishes and glasses onto his cart and meticulously wipe the table up with a practiced flourish of his rag.
If he thought a customer was watching, his brow would pucker with added concentration. He took pride in doing his job exactly right, and you had to love how hard he tried to please each and every person he met.

Over time, we learned that he lived with his mother, a widow who was disabled after repeated surgeries for cancer. They lived on their Social Security benefits in public housing two miles from the truck stop. Their social worker, who stopped to check on him every so often, admitted they had fallen between the cracks. Money was tight, and what I paid him was probably the difference between them being able to live together and Stevie being sent to a group home. That's why the restaurant was a gloomy place that morning last August, the first morning in three years that Stevie missed work.
He was at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester getting a new valve or something put in his heart. His social worker said that people with Downs Syndrome often have heart problems at an early age so this wasn't unexpected, and there was a good chance he would come through the surgery in good shape and be back at work in a few months.
A ripple of excitement ran through the staff later that morning when word came that he was out of surgery, in recovery, and doing fine.
Frannie, the head waitress, let out a war hoop and did a little dance in the aisle when she heard the good news.

Belle Ringer, one of our regular trucker customers, stared at the sight of this 50-year-old grandmother of four doing a victory shimmy beside his table.

Frannie blushed, smoothed her apron and shot Belle Ringer a withering look.

He grinned. "OK, Frannie, what was that all about?" he asked.
"We just got word that Stevie is out of surgery and going to be okay."
"I was wondering where he was. I had a new joke to tell him. What was the surgery about?"

Frannie quickly told Belle Ringer and the other two drivers sitting at his booth about Stevie's surgery, then sighed: "Yeah, I'm glad he is going to be OK," she said. "But I don't know how he and his Mom are going to handle all the bills. From what I hear, they're barely getting by as it is." Belle Ringer nodded thoughtfully, and Frannie hurried off to wait on the rest of her tables. Since I hadn't had time to round up a busboy to replace Stevie and really didn't want to replace him, the girls were busing their own tables that day until we decided what to do.

After the morning rush, Frannie walked into my office. She had a couple of paper napkins in her hand and a funny look on her face.
"What's up?" I asked.

"I didn't get that table where Belle Ringer and his friends were sitting cleared off after they left, and Pony Pete and Tony Tipper were sitting there when I got back to clean it off," she said. "This was folded and tucked under a coffee cup."
She handed the napkin to me, and three $20 bills fell onto my desk when I opened it. On the outside, in big, bold letters, was printed "Something For Stevie".

"Pony Pete asked me what that was all about," she said, "so I told him about Stevie and his Mom and everything, and Pete looked at Tony and Tony looked at Pete, and they ended up giving me this." She handed me another paper napkin that had "Something For Stevie" scrawled on its outside. Two $50 bills were tucked within its folds. Frannie looked at me with wet, shiny eyes, shook her head and said simply: "truckers."
That was three months ago. Today is Thanksgiving, the first day Stevie is supposed to be back to work.

His placement worker said he's been counting the days until the doctor said he could work, and it didn't matter at all that it was a holiday. He called 10 times in the past week, making sure we knew he was coming, fearful that we had forgotten him or that his job was in jeopardy. I arranged to have his mother bring him to work. I then met them in the parking lot and invited them both to celebrate his day back.

Stevie was thinner and paler, but couldn't stop grinning as he pushed through the doors and headed for the back room where his apron and busing cart were waiting.

"Hold up there, Stevie, not so fast," I said. I took him and his mother by their arms. "Work can wait for a minute. To celebrate you coming back, breakfast for you and your mother is on me!" I led them toward a large corner booth at the rear of the room.
I could feel and hear the rest of the staff following behind as we marched through the dining room. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw booth after booth of grinning truckers empty and join the procession. We stopped in front of the big table. Its surface was covered with coffee cups, saucers and dinner plates, all sitting slightly crooked on dozens of folded paper napkins. "First thing you have to do, Stevie, is clean up this mess," I said. I tried to sound stern.
Stevie looked at me, and then at his mother, then pulled out one of the napkins. It had "Something for Stevie" printed on the outside. As he picked it up, two $10 bills fell onto the table.
Stevie stared at the money, then at all the napkins peeking from beneath the tableware, each with his name printed or scrawled on it. I turned to his mother. "There's more than $10,000 in cash and checks on that table, all from truckers and trucking companies that heard about your problems. "Happy Thanksgiving."

Well, it got real noisy about that time, with everybody hollering and shouting, and there were a few tears, as well.
But you know what's funny?

While everybody else was busy shaking hands and hugging each other, Stevie, with a big, big smile on his face, was busy clearing all the cups and dishes from the table.

Best worker I ever hired.

Plant a seed and watch it grow.

At this point, you can bury this inspirational message or forward it fulfilling the need!

If you shed a tear, hug yourself, because you are a compassionate person.

Well.. Don't just sit there! Send this story on! Keep it going, this is a good one!

AMEN!!!!!!!

Linda posted some photos of her dear little Cayla Joy (Paul and my granddaughter)  in her blog last night.  I thought some of you might like to take a look and as you are looking, please pray for this little one.

http://ourpreciouscaylajoy.blogspot.ca/2012/04/pictures-of-our-precious-cayla-joys-1st.html?spref=fb


And if you just want to see one photo, here's one you might like to see:


[attachimg=1]

And here's the best one!!!  Linda posted this one this morning.


[attachimg=1]

What a wonderful visit it's been with y'all this morning.

Pat, your littlest sweetie is a living doll! Yes, I'll be praying with everyone for her and her parents and extended family. God is faithful! And, He loves us tenderly and cares about every little tiny detail of our lives.

Oh, so much to comment about, but our Master's business for me today is to fetch and carry - fetch a lady and carry (that's "drive" here in the South) her to the doctor's office, then fetch and LITERALLY carry medications to my disabled son.

If God allows, I'll rest this afternoon, before attending a charity dinner for the wonderful unit at the church which is in the Master's business of rescuing and helping rebuild lives of those who have become addicted, been imprisoned, or are homeless. How gladly I wrote that check last week!

Through CrossBridge, I have become pen pals with a lady who still has 9 months to serve of a sentence down in Memphis, TN - BUT, she is now a christian and the 2 directors of CrossBridge testified at her latest parole hearing which resulted in a greatly reduced sentence. God works in mysterious ways, His will to perform.

Well, time to "get presentable" and head to the car.

Much love to everyone,
Ruth Ann

Pat thanks for the pictures.

Ruth Ann you are a marvel with all that you do!

Larry that Truckers Story is very typical of the gruff tough cowboy truck driver.....It really blows the image I think.

We are having company tonight, an unsaved local couple.  Pray we are a good witness.

It is snowing yet again, big white globs of snow. our car is covered. as is the ground.

Have a great day!