This is Abby from Little Birdie Blessings, with some news about our dear friend Vee. On Sunday, July 23, 2023, Vee peacefully left this earth for her Heavenly reward. For four years, she valiantly fought the battle of breast cancer, until the Lord called her home. Her family has provided a link to her obituary below.
She had such a strong faith that seemed to never waiver, despite her circumstances. I know she had met many friends through the blogging community, and enjoyed reading and commenting on many of your blogs. If you'd like to leave a message for the family, you can comment here, they will see it. On behalf of the family, thank you to all who were her friend, and prayed for her.
One of the last scriptures she posted was: "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." Isaiah 41:10
Here are my sister's grands on March 1 trying to scale Mt. Plowmore at my house. Love the commentary. My little grand niece's sweet voice particularly tickles me—"I'll never make it." She reminds me of my own laments in recent weeks.
"You're pushing me off!"
Did they make it? Oh, yes, they did!
Isaiah 41:10
“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”
King James Version (KJV)
Thank you for reading. I know that I am pretty scarce in Blogdom these days and will continue to be. Do not keep the light on. ッ
1. Something you've done recently that might be considered a labor of love?
2. What's one thing you love about being the age you are now?
3. What do you value more: careful planning or the freedom to be spontaneous? Elaborate.
4. A home cooked meal or a fancy restaurant? pink or red? watch the sunrise or watch the sunset? wine and cheese or champagne and chocolate?
5. What's your definition of romance? Are you a 'romantic'?
6. Insert your own random thought here.
Responses:
1. Honestly, can not think of a thing. Mostly, I am on the receiving end these days. Oh I did spend hours on Amazon shopping for 💘 treats.
It was fun, but hardly a labor of love.
2. The thing I love about my age now is that it is not the age it will be by month's end.
3. The freedom to be spontaneous because planning is not my strong point. Anytime that I don't have to fret or agonize in advance is good.
4. home cooked
both pink and red
both sunrise and sunset
cheese and chocolate 🍫 no wine nor champagne for me, thanks!
5. Oh do I have to? Romance is not an easy thing to define. It is easier to define what it is not as it may have zero to do with genuine love, which I don't have to define since 1 Corinthians 13 explains so very well.
Am I a romantic? Hope not.
6. Wishing everyone who honors Valentine's Day a blessed one. May it be an opportunity to say, "I love You" to all your favorite peeps.
Hello, Dear One. Did I scare you being away so long? Goodness, I just thought that I would have all kinds of time in January. Yet here it went skipping off like a mountain goat just as every other month does. I freely confess that coming up with blog fodder grows more difficult for me all the time.
What is that? Well sometimes I take photos based on pattern or textural interest. I think I was hoping that taking a picture would spur me on. Sometimes that works.
Just a few short weeks ago, I thought that God had blessed me and all Mainers with a mild winter and, in fact, He had up to that point. Then winter arrived. I try not to be annoyed with the cold and ice since all children I know seem to enjoy snow. This is Emmanuel and Anneke and Sprocket the Rocket. He is a Tamaskan. He is big. He is still a puppy. I imagine that he will be huge when grown.
Laurel knocking off the icicles. Sam has done it since and so has Adam. Thanks be for helpers! Every member of the family, including my sister, has helped with so much around here.
Adam and Jake in negotiations. Jake was ready to split. Laurel and I had the January birthday boys over for pizza and cake and ice cream and gifts. It was just one of many birthday parties for them.
Sam looked out at the luge and said it would be ready for sledding in another storm or two. I was surprised that he still thinks of the luge fondly now that he is 17. Jake is 16. John sure made it fun for them.
Here they are in younger years....perhaps 5 and 6 or 6 and 7. I would ask their mom, but then I would have to confess that I stole this picture from her FB page.
Can you believe the price of groceries? Eggs!
May February be sweet... thanks for stopping by...
“This glorious word Emmanuel means, first, that God in Christ is with us in very near association. The Greek particle here used is very forcible, and expresses the strongest form of ‘with.’ It is not merely ‘in company with us as another Greek word would signify, but ‘with,’ ‘together with,’ and ‘sharing with.’ This preposition is a close rivet, a firm bond, implying, if not declaring, close fellowship. God is peculiarly and closely ‘with us.’”
~Charles Spurgeon
Sitting here thinking of you and how quickly time will get away from us in these last few days before Christmas. It has been such fun visiting your blogs and homes during December. I always think that Christmas Time should be perfect; it never is. This December has had some heartache as I know it has had for many of you. Whatever the burden, whatever the sorrow, it is the reason He came. He will save; He will rescue; He will comfort. All one has to do is ask.
Comments are closed. No one has time for that! 🙃
See you in the New Year, The Lord willing and the creek don't rise. (Flood watches all over the place in my corner.) You take care now...
1. The Hodgepodge lands on National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.
Have you visited the memorial? no
Any desire to do so? If I could be translated without the headache of travel, yes.
Have you visited other WW2 sites and memorials? yes
Do you think we do a good job of teaching current and younger generations about the events of WW2? Highly unlikely...when I taught high school American history, I realized that the year was never long enough to get to WWII so I began teaching history from the present to the past. I was able to get back to the Civil War. Many parents thanked me for the unique approach and the students were relieved being taught something "new." One of the more shocking things we learned about WWII was that many Jews were turned away from entering the United States even though they had all the required papers and passports. You can read more about that *here.*
Do you think it matters? yes
2. Many books, both fiction and non-fiction have been written with WW2 as the setting. Is this a 'genre' you gravitate towards? not necessarily
Share with us a book (or two) you've enjoyed that is set in some way around WW2. If you're not a reader, how about a movie? .🎥The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society 🎥Tora Tora Tora was the first and only movie my family saw in a theater when I was growing up. My father felt that it was important. Whether what was presented was 100% true, I don't know. The
3. According to Better Homes and Gardens Magazine, there are seven popular color trends for the holidays this year. They are- red and white, Victorian blue, pops of pink, rich shades of green, rainbow hues, black and white, and nostalgic retro colors. Are you 'trendy' when it comes to holiday decorating in 2022? I hope not.
How so? Oh-oh! A careful look at my wee tree in an antique trunk reveals that my colors are mostly red and white so I may have to rethink my disdain for trendy.
Does your tree have a 'theme'? Now that would imply careful thought and planning — nope!
4. What's a current trend you buck? I like to think that I buck most trends.
6. Insert your own random thought here. My best random thought is this: Sparkle on! We who have invited Christ into our hearts have every reason to rejoice!
I Christmas shopped all day yesterday with my sister. Fun! I followed Susan Branch's advice to "Be an Elf."
This means washing my face dressing up, putting on some make-up, and trying to get my hair to cooperate. It also means finding my mother's poinsettia pin to wear on my coat. Plus I worked on smiling a lot. My face aches today. ツ Thanks for reading! You deserve a prize.
Oh my! Yes, Laurel more than surprised both her brother and me. Everything was so lovely, smelled so good, and tasted so fine. I was especially pleased that I did not have to prepare anything more than a pecan pie. Adam made his famous dinner rolls while Michelle baked a pumpkin pie and bought a chocolate cream pie from the library's annual sale.
(We were down by one as Jake has declared himself a hunter who will no longer be attending our Thanksgivings. 😢)
This was Laurel's table theme with the sweet table runner that I first saw at Betsy's right *here.* When I saw that runner, I thought it would be perfect for Laurel's riverside cabin up in the semi-north woods. I had no idea that she would be moving to a new home closer to civilization. I also purchased one for Michelle and one for my sister. Both Laurel and Kim have enjoyed theirs.
Michelle has hers packed away because she thought itwas a pillow cover. It might be especially appreciated by Jake at their home these days. 🦌 Laurel bought her table and chairs new for our holiday. It was very nice seating...no one was crowded.
Speaking of table runners, Betsy has many beautiful tablescapes from which to gather ideas. Her blog, named after her grandmother, is simply beautiful and, if you don't already, you would certainly love it there. Also, she has the best recipes. I have several on speed dial.
Okay, back to Thanksgiving. Alas, I took hardly any photos. You know how my family is not a fan of picture taking. My grandkitty has no problems with it. He has a ghost cat visit regularly who asks the same question, "Can Charlie come out to play?"
Here's Laurel preparing me a cup of peppermint tea. Yes, into every lovely time a clinker must fall. 😏
Don't worry, though, because when Laurel was taking me home Friday afternoon, she found a lovely lake side restaurant called Lintonia. It had the added bonus of an eagle in a tree just beside the restaurant.
We had the best cup of coffee and delicious tacos. Laurel just found out that they closed for good the day after we were there. So sad all the businesses that are closing. It was a fabulous little restaurant. My sister and I had already made plans to visit soon.
Thank you for reading my simple Thanksgiving record. I have been enjoying reading yours.
A sigh of relief is always breathedNovember 1st.I am so glad that the entire end of October scene has finished for another year. I am happily moving on to the next big holiday (not Veterans Day). We'll chat about that toward the end of this post, yet let's tidy up on the big day just past—
I say, "There is no such thing as Bigfoot." At which point, Anneke's brother, who is playing with the rotary phone, run on imagination alone, says, "Bigfoot? Is that you? Ackkkk! It's Bigfoot!" Anneke's eyes grow even wider and she clings a little tighter to Grammie.
I may have dialed Bigfoot
So I have no idea how this story ultimately unfolded. My sister agrees with me and says that they will ask their mommy and daddy because parents tell the truth. I am hoping that mommy and daddy didn't decide instead to crank Anneke's chain. One of them can be a bit of a prankster. I just happen to know that for.a.fact. ッ
Peach and Mario
Aren't they cute? Peach and Mario...aka Anneke and Emmanuel.
Now I do have news about my own grandchildren. Sam received his driver's license last week. Doesn't he look happy? So proud of him!
Jake got his first deer on Saturday. I'll be careful with that picture because I'd not like to offend those who might keel over. I am thrilled that there will be extra food in the freezer and that Jake is happy too.
A few weeks ago, when sickness hit, we had to postpone plans to see Laurel for her birthday. She graciously joined us a couple of weeks later at a local restaurant where my family made plans for Thanksgiving. I saw a bit of eye-rolling, heard some comments. It boils down to this: I have messed up Thanksgiving dinner one too many times. Instead, we shall celebrate at Laurel's. She's in for the roller coaster ride that is Thanksgivingpreparations. Should be fun!
To my American brethren and sistren, have your plans for Thanksgiving firmed up?
I want a nice sweet ending so I am sharing what I am making this week. I had to check for ingredients and found that I have them all. Yippee!
Now I found this recipe somewhere in the last week or so. I have not named that source because my mind is a sieve. If it was yours or you know whose, let me know so I can include it.
It was *here* with a nice photo of what it should look like, too. My mind really is a sieve.🤦🏻♀️
Pumpkin Crunch Cake
Ingredients:
1 box yellow cake mix
1 can (15 oz) pumpkin puree
1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans (the original recipe called for 1/2 cup)
1 cup butter, melted
*Heat oven to 350° F.
*Grease bottom of 9 x 13″ pan.
*Mix pumpkin, milk, eggs, sugar, cinnamon, and salt.
*Pour mixture into greased pan.
*Sprinkle dry cake mix over pumpkin mixture and top with pecans.
1. Thursday (Oct 13) is National Train Your Brain Day. What do you do to keep your brain in tip top shape? Is it helping?
Sometimes I amuse myself by thinking that doing Sudokus is helping. I can prove that it isn't because just last week, after simmering chicken bones all afternoon to make chicken broth, I poured it into a sieve that had nothing beneath it to capture the broth—Right down the drain!
2. You can sit with anyone in the world and 'pick their brain'...whom do you choose? Tell us why?
This is a tough question!
Let's see, who meets my criteria?
I insist that said person is attentive, gives me enough time, has great patience, does not make me feel foolish, and is kind, though he or she can and should offer helpful insights.
Okay, there's no one in the world like that! Sounds as if I am looking for a counselor; scripture teaches me that Jesus is a wonderful or is it "the" wonderful counselor? I'm sticking with Him.
But! If I must choose a human being, I guess I'd choose Jordan Peterson who intrigues me a lot, yet with whom I do not always agree, especially on matters of faith.
3. What's something happening in the world (or your corner of it) right now that you have trouble 'wrapping your brain around'?
4. On a scale of 1-10 where do you fall in the pumpkin fanclub? (1=blech, 10=make it all pumpkin all the time) Tell us something delicious you've tasted recently that had some pumpkin in it somewhere.
7
I have yet to enjoy any pumpkin this autumn, but I have a can of pumpkin and am planning to do something with it.
5. Share a favorite song, book, or movie with an autumn title, setting, or vibe.
(Nat King Cole sings "Autumn Leaves)
(Love this channel...an entire hour plus of pure nostalgia.)
6. Insert your own random thought here.
I've got a pile of random thoughts, just like the leaves in my yard.
Eagerly looking forward to spending time with my kids and grands this weekend. ☺️
