Eh.

• Mexican Cornbread Pie for dinner.  LINK
• We have bats in our attic. Isn’t that funny?
• Disrespect and the ministry kind of go hand-in-hand. It’s annoying. Purposeful, but annoying.
• An old friend once said, “We need our stuff, because it’s how our children know they’re home.”  I loved that. I wonder what stuff Hannah recognizes as home; what Lucy and Isaac will recognize as their Grandma Gregan’s home?
• Truth: I have a stupid string of colored Christmas lights hanging on my bedroom wall.
• Over the summer, I developed a raging case of eczema. I am going crazy in stages.
• I would like to make slipcovers for my furniture. No, I don’t know how, but I would like to try.
• My garden this year was such a bust, that I may not garden, again. I just didn’t have it in me. And, I’m really a very bad gardener. I grow plants, but they don’t bear much fruit.
• We’ve been watching The Durrells in Corfu. So far, it’s pleasant. Beautiful location, wherever they filmed. Reminds me of Doc Martin in some ways – the music, the lighting, the quirky characters, etc.
• “Better to live in a tent in the wild, than with a cross and petulant spouse.”
  Proverbs 21:19 (Message) Oy.
• We are grabby, we humans. We think we know, but we don’t. Pride blinds us, and fear binds us.
• I miss my California friends. They’re the only reason I wouldn’t hate moving back to California.

I love this video of Lucy.

Chatty Isaac. 🙂

I did achieve one garden goal: growing tomatoes for Lucy to pick. They were not tasty tomatoes at all – very tough skin – but she did have fun picking them! The two pictures on the right look almost identical, but they aren’t—you can see her little tooth indentations in the second one. LOL

This picture is only a month old, but he’s grown so much since then.

She loved playing in the dirt. The sunflowers were fun, but the drought made it hard for them to thrive.

My zinnias thrived, even the one that grew crooked in order to reach the sun.

It’s been several weeks since my last Saturday Evening Post. I don’t have much of an update, but I have several pictures to share.

There is a lot on my mind these days. A lot on my To Do List. A lot on my Prayer Wall. These are difficult times for many reasons, but blessed times, too. It is a battle to keep my mind set on the blessings, though, because there is a fierce spiritual battle raging. I suspect many of you who follow Christ would raise your hand and concur: “Yeah. It’s been challenging lately.”  Probably, not about to get easier. We just won’t always be on the front lines. Sometimes, we get a weekend pass. So to speak.

Tomorrow is our Sunday service at the shelter. I look forward to it all month. I am hoping three or four churches in Lynn will step-up and volunteer to lead a service once a month. Churches like to minister in their building, but this is a mission field. We must be willing to go.

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” Isaiah 26:3

The past few weeks are a bit of a blur. The nice weather has gotten me outside more, and that helps me keep my sanity. My work is mostly in front of a computer screen, and usually painstaking. Being able to do something completely different, and kind of rough and messy, like pull some weeds, is very good therapy.

I am mainly growing flowers this year, and Doug has offered to redo my brick boarders. They’re awful, but what an I say? I laid them without knowing what I was doing. Kinda like the peony flowerbed. I didn’t expect the peonies to even live, and had no idea how much room they needed. I just had a dream of peonies growing in my yard, and took a chance.

In the fall, I will dig them up and arrange them better than they are now—very off-center, crowded on one side. Who knew they would multiply? We’ll also be able to level the bed a little better, too. It’s at a strange angle now. But, the peonies are growing, I moved the daisies that wanted to choke them out last year, and the weeding is complete. I’m satisfied.

Like I say, I’m a hack gardener. I’m learning as I go, and doing the best with my limitations. I’m more than content!

Lucy loves being outside, which makes for a lot of  fun. We fly a little kite in the yard, and she laughs and laughs when her grandmother runs to make it fly. She likes kicking a ball. Loves to chase bubbles. Loves to dip the bubble wand in the soap. She’s learning to blow the seeds off a dandelion. Watering plants is a favorite thing—she even took her watering can into the neighbor’s yard, looking for something more to water. She’s a constant source of joy. God has been so kind.

God bless you all today. I know Mother’s Day isn’t a happy day for everyone, so my prayers are with you.<3

• So, I finished my paperwork.
• We had a great quarterly Board meeting.
• Shared the ministry at one of our partnering churches.
• We are working hard on what is coming in the months ahead, and it’s going well.
• Treated the ladies at the Great Hill Shelter to Popeye’s Fried Chicken, and that was very cool. I would like to take in food once a month.
• I love the work we do, and it all starts with praying. Then, waiting. Pray, wait. repeat. The fight is real, so nothing good can happen without prayer, in His time. So, it’s nice when we get to a place where the wind is at our back, so to speak, and we can dig in and get busy. That’s how it’s feeling right now, like a season of waiting has passed. Lots to do, while the doing is good.
• My daughter made me a birthday cake this week. Excellent, gluten-free, and very cheery. She also helped Lucy give me the best gift. We had dinnertogether, with a special guest. It was a very nice day.
• It was a very good week.

God bless you!
❤

Day started well: slept late.

Did the usual morning stuff; started coffee.

Let the Saxophone Player know I’d be in the spare room, working on “paperwork.” Paperwork means all the ministry stuff I do that has legal implications.

Things were buzzing along.

Then…the garden grabbed my imagination.

• I imagined that the sun was probably at a great angle for pictures.
• I imagined that it was probably warm enough to actually enjoy being outside.
• From the kitchen window, I eyed the daisies already outgrowing my peonies, and imagined those happy weeds (that I love so much) overtaking the peonies and choking every glorious bloom—all because I neglected to transplant the daisies in time.
• I imagined I would only be outside for a few minutes.

Well, two-and-a-half hours later…what can I say? It’s  just so easy to piddle around—especially on such a perfect weather day. You think you’re just going to brush away the dead leaves, but then you pull a weed and take away a stick…and it’s hard to stop.

At least I started transplanting the daisies. Their roots are impressively strong, by the way.

I moved them over to an area where Japanese Knotweed always grows. I thought they might give the knotweed a run for the money. We’ll see. I have more to transplant, but my digging uncovered what looks like a queen bee. I got scared away.

On another note: everything this Spring is really coming in late. It’s strange. Even the Japanese Knotweed. Things look pretty barren.

Well, the little, blue flowers are blooming—a delicious foretaste of flowers to come.

 

P.S.
Sweet Isaac is six-weeks-old today.

He is holding his hand in the same position he had it in the womb, wrapped in a quilt that once was wrapped around his mommy.

God bless you this week!
❤

 

Very productive week. Added some things to the big To Do List for the ministry. Doug and I met almost daily to plot our course, and I am excited about what’s ahead. Must just pray, pray, pray. That’s everything, because nothing good can happen without it.

Tonight I finished a document that knocked a few items off that List. Correctional facilities are asking for materials without personal information. Hopefully, this qualifies.

Isaac sat with me, as I clicked and dragged. He’s a good work companion, but tends to sleep on the job. 😉

ON ANOTHER NOTE
I found a great children’s song leader on YouTube. Lucy really likes her (the song lady is classic ’90’s, and she’s fantastic). Lucy already has a favorite song, and we listen to over and over. It’s a pretty great song, though. My favorite line: “I’ll never have to say that He loves me not.” Check it out:

Lucy copies the woman’s hand motions (as best she can), but one day she got so excited she ran to get her tambourine.

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SPEAKING OF THE CHILDREN
Until the Lord called us into prison ministry, children’s ministry was always my favorite place to serve in church. It’s a such an honor to share Jesus with a little one.

Interestingly enough, I used to always say (when I was trying to recruit people to help) that serving in or giving to children’s ministry was a investment with a guaranteed return (Proverbs 22:6 says so). During all our years on this prison ministry mission field, I have gathered stories to prove that little slogan. Many men and women will recount how they first heard about Jesus at a neighborhood VBS or in Sunday School—when a neighbor lady would take them, or a church bus would pick them up. For whatever reason, they stopped going, but once they were in jail they began to recall the things they had learned as little ones. Many, many also talk about their grandmother’s prayers, or their grandmother “forcing’ them to go to church. They are always grateful! 

I say it all the time, and I will say forever: the most important ministry in any church is its children’s ministry. If you ever have the chance to do anything to support the children’s ministry in your church, please do it. You won’t regret it.

God bless you all! ❤

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Here’s a related post about children’s ministry. Click the title.

• 7 Questions to Ask Your Church

I know.

It’s nowhere NEAR Saturday evening anymore, but in my heart and mind this is still my Saturday Evening Post—my little review of the previous seven days. So, it may go on the record as the latest SEP ever, but I guess I wouldn’t give that prize away, yet.

JUST A THOUGHT
Doug and I were meeting with someone who was sharing a set of circumstances regarding their work that, for this person, were just the law. This was just the way it was, and that’s all there was to it. After several minutes of asking questions, astonished by what this person was describing, we began to wonder out loud about things that could be done to bring change.  They said, “I can see that you two think outside the box.”

I didn’t ask Doug what he thought about this, but I know what I was thinking: What box?

EASTER SUNDAY
We were so happy to share Easter Sunday with the folks at Great Hill. We had a Creole Easter with them, and then came home for our traditional Chicken & Noodles. No pictures of our feast, I’m afraid. Doug did a great job, again. Here is a little video of Lucy and Isaac. She likes her brother, a lot. So far, so good.

 
Isaac, almost a whole month old. It is so much easier to photograph babies who can’t run!

PRIORITIES ARE MEANT TO BE JUGGLED
It’s shaping up to be a pretty busy Spring and Summer.

HOW LONG UNTIL CHRISTMAS?
Um…I still haven’t taken these off. I’m wondering if I might just leave them on.

Can you see that little object at the bottom of the picture? It’s one of the last things my mother-in-law gave me. It’s whimsical, and useful! I love it. Can you guess what it is?

SPRING HAS SPRUNG
Warmer weather is around the corner. More importantly, though, the flowers are coming back! Here is my first pansy.

I was so excited—and shocked—to find this pansy blooming. In December, I brought them to our enclosed porch, along with my strawberry plants. I had no expectation that anything would survive. I don’t think any pansies in my second pot lived, but this pot is full of life. The strawberries? Well, it remains to be seen how they survived. Hoping to take them all outside soon.

I hope you’ve had a good week, and that your Sunday is blessed with the hope, joy, and peace that can only come from knowing Jesus as Lord. He loves you! ❤

A week of celebrations and traditions.

EASTER EGG HUNT
I remember my very first Easter Egg Hunt. Someone handed me a decorated berry basket with pipe cleaners for a handle. I was told to look for colored eggs. I was kind of confused. Didn’t really want to look for eggs. Wasn’t very good at it, either. Yet, I remember thinking that basket was very cute.

I don’t hide real eggs, just plastic eggs. And, I like to hide a lot of them. At our monthly family dinner, we had an Egg Hunt through the house. There are five grand ones altogether, but Isaac was not up for the hunt. Really, the oldest (6 y/o) found 90% of the eggs, and divided them amongst the others. Lucy found one egg as she entered the house, and that seemed to do the trick for her.

No chocolate in these eggs, because Lucy is still allergic to milk. Instead, I filled tiny zipper bags with the animal crackers, fruit snacks, bunny-shaped cookies, toys, etc. I think I’ll do that every year. The kids had fun with the variety.

We also celebrated Doug’s birthday.

 

SUNSHINE-Y DAY
Today was lovely. Low 50’s. So much sunshine, but there was still some snow for playing. My bulbs are starting to pop-up. Lucy loves being outside, and I’m looking forward to sharing the garden with her. She is getting speedy, though, and I wonder about some kind of portable fencing we might be able to use to make sure she doesn’t run off into the street.

OUR ANNUAL SELFIE

 

BIRTHDAY POPPA
Hannah used to call Doug Pop, so he became Poppa to her children. On his birthday, I caught this moment—the first of many such moments, we hope and pray.

EVERYDAY IS RESURRECTION DAY
Tomorrow is Easter. We will be holding a service at the Great Hill Shelter, and I’m really looking forward to it.

I trust you have a very blessed day!

They say a picture paints a thousand words, so I’ll let this photo explain why I missed last week’s SEP.

My new grandbaby, Isaac Timothy, was born last Saturday morning. He was a few days early, but he’s healthy and growing. We are grateful!

Sweet Lucy is adapting well, but it’s challenging. She’s only 15-months-old, so there’s only so much she can understand. Sometimes, she gets a little desperate for her “Da,” like when he was out shoveling snow. She was looking everywhere for him—even under his pillow! I finally picked her up and helped her pound on the window until he heard her and waved back. I’m thankful her daddy holds such a special place in her heart. That bodes well for her future.

The past two weeks have had quite a lot of snow for us New Englanders. We had our second snow hurricane last week. It brought terrible destruction to coastal cities, and the wind and heavy snow took out the power in many communities—including our own. I think it may be the first time all three power lines in our town went down. We retreated to Maine to stay with my sister, the Historian, whose power rather miraculously was restored. It ended up being a very special time. It was our last family gathering before Isaac, but it was also our Mother’s birthday. Being together is exactly what she would have wanted.

I guess snow pictures might get boring, but I really do love the snow. And, different kinds of storms create a different scene.

My neighbor’s fence looked like he’d hung a woolly garland.

It’s a wonder more branches didn’t break. What you can see resting on the red car bounced right back up—25 feet?—as soon as the snow melted off. It was awesome to see the white everywhere. I know heavy snow makes clearing it a much harder job, but it does make everything look like a marshmallow world!

Aside from snow storms and new babies, Lucy decided she likes spaghetti. This is pretty big news, because Lucy is a bit of a picky eater. I tried to make a video to show her parents she really did eat the spaghetti, but it took so long for Doug to feed her I had to stop it—the video was getting too long. But, she did something super-cute, so I saved the video. And, now you get to see it, if you like.

She waits so patiently to be fed, but Doug seemed a little caught-up with the task that she finally puts her hand up in wonder. That is her classic move anytime something curious happens. So fun. ❤

Well, that’s not a very thorough account of the past two weeks, but it’s the happiest highlights. I like to meditate on the good things, you know? The lovely and pure things. The hard and bad things, the trials and suffering, they have a purpose in the life surrendered to Christ, but they aren’t meant to be our focus.

God bless you today. Hope you have many happy highlights to meditate on today. 🙂