i just read sonja's tribute to her mother and realized that i could
never write one that inspiring, but that doesn't mean i won't try!

my mom was by far the prettiest and youngest of all the mothers
of my classmates .  hans says that when he was a little boy, he used
to hang out around the choir room just to see her walk by.

just for perspective and lest you think he had an older, washed out
mother,  his was a movie star! (peggy dow)

though my mom was lovely, her real beauty radiated from within
her kind and giving heart.  i have watched her bake countless pies,
cobblers, and homemade cinnamon rolls for sick friends and spend
endless hours consoling them.

she was the chaperone for the 5,000 choir trips i took, attended any
concert in which i sang, and made my beautiful dresses for each
event.   she also created all my formal gowns and prom dresses.  i'm
surprised she didn't make my wedding dress!

but her greatest feat was in cherishing her own mother in law.  some
of you may have tough ones, but they couldn't be more difficult than
the one my mom had.  when grandma moved to our town,  all the
aunts from other cities sent their condolences.

my mother purposed in her heart to love her, and therefore, had her
to our house for dinner at least once a week, took her to the store, to
many doctors' appointments, and hair salons.

the most loving gift she gave, though, was a birthday party each year,
at which my grandmother would give a recitation of scripture or a poem
she had written.  my own future mother in law attended many of these
lovely parties.

at the end of my grandmother's life, she and my mother had the most
wonderful loving relationship that i will always cherish.

happy mother's day, mom!

love,
lea

"therefore, i urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your
bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God."  romans 12:1

pretty little chick

every friday, joyce at pretty things has a party for everyone to share
their favorite pretty things.  i never participate in these fun parties,
because i don't now how to take pictures. :(

however, my daughter, sunday lane, the first little chick to hop back
into the nest, was sharing some of her pictures with me.  so, in honor
of her return and in light of the fact that she is by far the prettiest thing
at my house right now, here's a pretty chick:

p.s. CHECK OUT SUNDAY LANE'S NEWEST SONG: 

become her fan on facebok: sundaylane :)

is there 'pepto bismol' for writer's flux?

i've read many bloggers' chagrin over writer's block and am sure i
will encounter that dreaded condition, but so far i seem to suffer
from the opposite malady.

it's difficult to know what to call it, maybe the writer's flux.  there
are so many trivial, insignificant thoughts popping around my brain
that i have a difficult time landing on an appropriate one.

another strange symptom is the good intention to wax eloquent on a
poignant, meaningful subject, but instead watch in befuddlement as i
boldly type something completely different.  it is horrifying to imagine
that i have so little control over what i write.

for instance, this morning i purposed to climb onto my soapbox and cry
out against Christians who are reputed to be the worst tippers, causing
every waiter to dread the stingy sunday lunch crowd.  shame on us!

but, no, here i am rambling about the mysteries of my unpredictable
prose and making myself a little sick to my stomach, one more symptom
of writer's flux.

it is also a great illustration of the famous quote, "it is almost impossible
to exaggerate the unimportance of almost everything." (19th century
cleric, whose name is apparently unimportant)

thankfully, unlike my drivel, "all scripture is God-breathed and useful
for teaching, correcting, and training in righteousness." 2 timothy 3:16
i guess you could call it 'pepto bismol' for the trivialities of life.

love,
lea

shelby kate

twenty four years ago i gave birth to the prettiest little raven haired
angel.  for three days i played baby doll with her in the hospital,
dressing her in a different adorable smocked gown several times
a day.  i just couldn't believe she was mine.

since then she has amazed us with her sweet spirit and capacity to
accomplish everything from medicine to embroidery.  she has the
confidence to correct doctors  but the compassion to serve unwed
mothers.

i wrote about her strong will six months ago, but i didn't mention what
a lovely young lady she has become.


shelby has the most tender heart.  that heart has cared for countless
babies and helped many young mommies deliver their babies.  she even
took my 18 year old baby into her home for this school year.

those two have the sweetest of relationships, and it has been a wonder
to behold them both benefit from this special year together.

but, shelby's husband dan really deserves the medal of honor.   as they
were leaving the first day to embark on the odyssey, shelby said, "dan,
have you seen my cell phone?"  only seconds before hailey said, "dan,
do you know where my keys are?"  poor guy.

he is a prince, and he has wisely chosen a woman "worth far more than
rubies."  proverbs 31: 10

happy birthday, sweet girl.

"parents, do NOT let your kids go to sunday school!"

remember the book, everything i know i learned in kindergarten?  if i
wrote a book, it would be called, all my orneriness was committed in
church.  pretty sure it would be a best seller.

kids are going to be ornery, and if you spend night and day at church, that's
where you're going to err.  at least, that's my excuse.

now i had a sidekick, or i was the sidekick, but she is a highly respected
minister, so i can't reveal her secret identity.  she is adored by all her
flocks for her insightful preaching and caring heart.  she will pray for you
at the drop of a hat.  she even did that in high school!

but that's not where we were ornery.  no, pretty much only in church.

at church camp, we unscrewed all the sugar lids, put a napkin over the
top, and gently turned them upside down.  then we carefully balanced
the lids on the actual bottom.  when an unsuspecting counselor wanted
a little sugar in his coffee . . . voila!

when we were supposed to be singing sweetly in choir, we were really
sneaking all over the church.  and by all over, i mean every square inch
from the basement to the 16th floor prayer room.  if we were caught
there, we had a great excuse . . . praying, of course.

we had to be good in sunday school, though, because the teacher was
my future mother in law.  we still had a secret way of communicating
that pretty much made fun of every single person in the class, just not
my mother in law to be.

i've managed to misuse the word 'pretty' three times, and i think that
was a freudian slip, because my friend is really pretty!

anyway,  the moral of the story is, "parents, do NOT let your kids go to
sunday school!"  :)

love,
lea

"hear my voice when i call, o Lord;  be merciful to me . . ."
psalm 27:7

dearly beloved, we interrupt this marriage . . .

hans and i are participating in a bible study that is focusing on
fortifying our marriages.  we are working our way through john
and staci eldredge's love & war, which is four parts silly to one
part helpful.  fortunately, the one part has redeemed the rest.

the most helpful suggestions have been to work at keeping some
excitement and a shared sense of purpose in our marriages.  they
have really encouraged us, also, to be vigilant in maintaining good
communication and to be willing to fight for our relationship.

none of this is new information, but we all thought that we should
be able to coast by now.  ha ha!  who ever said that after 30 years
of marriage, we can just recline, put our feet up, and treat each
other with careless disregard?

a healthy, vibrant marriage, like every other force, is subject to the
exponential law of decay.  it  requires loving care and diligent
maintenance to keep the tiny fissures in the dam from widening
and causing a flood of problems.

one thing the eldredges haven't talked about is the life-giving source
of laughter.  i'm convinced that our capacity to laugh together is just
as important our capacity to do . . .  other things.  :)

love,
lea

"love is kind, does not delight in evil,  . . . and is not self-seeking."
1 corinthians 13

the last child

when was the last time you opened the first page of a book and stepped
onto a roller coaster?

well, it had been too long for me, but john hart's thriller, the last child,
took me for a ride i will not soon forget.

"johnny merrimon was thirteen when his twin sister disappeared.  now,
one year later, she is presumed dead.  his mother is devastated,  his dad
gone, and his life will never be the same.  but johnny has a map, a bike,
and a plan.  he's going to find his sister. . . " (back cover)

this kid is so brave and loyal, he even has the police turning a blind eye
to his underage driving and house breaking.  not only is his story gripping,
with many twists and turns, but it is also laden with raw emotion and
lovely prose.

"when they came . . . into the abandoned fields, the sky opened above
them: high, lonely stars and a trace of moon behind tissue clouds."  i
needed to use those clouds a couple of times to blow my nose.

as a disclaimer, the story is very pg-13 because of strong language and
some gory details.  it seems to support an anti-Christian theme, but things
are not all they appear to be.  unlike many novels that are littered with
unnecessary characters, this one has a purpose for each one.

enjoy the ride,
lea

"be strong and very courageous." (like johnny)  joshua 1:7