TECHNOLOGY, etc.

I am so surprised at how far along ultrasounds have come. When we were having our kids (in 1983 and 1984), the ultrasounds were hard to read even for the technicians. NOW, you can see our beautiful granddaughter's face!!!



Amy's "condition" is progressing. She believes she will deliver Kate before the due date of May 14th. HOW EXCITING!!!!!

My ankle was doing pretty good, but then I twisted it again yesterday. I just didn't realize how weak it still is; all I was doing was walking back into the house after I "ran" (actually DROVE our golf cart) over to the food shed here on the Ranch to pick up a few items we needed. It is pretty sore and the stairs don't help a whole lot. So, I am trying to keep off of it and elevate it as much as is possible with taking care of a household full of boys.

It is GORGEOUS outside! I enjoy opening the doors first thing in the morning and smelling the cool, sweet air. I love seeing the birds that come to eat the seed that we put out for them (and maybe a squirrel or two). I love watching the flowers and ferns, fruit and veggies that I have planted grow. We have baby birds up under the eave of our shed and you can hear them chirping for their breakfast. We have a whole gaggle (?) of Canadian geese who honk and fly and waddle all over the Ranch, but especially near us because we live so close to the lake (to me it is a lake - to others it is a good-sized pond!). Our lawn is beautiful green and I enjoy getting out in the early evening and watering everything (although it isn't nearly as necessary as it was in Phoenix!), but it is therapy for me.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *

You're just minding your own business and then BAM! Life happens!

This weekend was supposed to be PERFECT! I had it planned for weeks that my daughter (Bethany) and I (and Jonathan) would spend the entire weekend together up at the Ranch retreat home. We were going to scrapbook and I was really looking forward to it...but that was dependent on Vaughn's plans and Joseph's plans and God's plans, and it did not come to pass...

THEN, I was going to go to the Retreat home first thing this morning and enjoy the day because Bethany and Jonathan were going to spend the day with me and then tomorrow I was going to go down there and spend at least the morning with them at a ladies craft time at their church; but that was dependent on Joseph's plans and Luke's plans and God's plans, and it did not come to pass...

THEN some friends offered to keep the boys for us as a birthday present for me, so that I could drive Vaughn down to Bethany's and Joseph's house on Thursday as he was taking an early morning flight to Phoenix on Friday...but that was dependent on our boys not getting sick st school, and God's plans and it did not come to pass...

SO, I was to be "off" for the weekend starting at 7:00 this morning until Sunday evening at 6 pm, BUT that was dependent on whether the boy who got sick yesterday did not get sick during the night, and God's plans and it did not come to pass....

I am sitting here waiting to hear whether we have a doctor's appointment for our sick boy. I probably ought to see the Doctor myself, because I fell yesterday morning off of a stepstool while hanging border in our game room. It hurts pretty bad and is quite swollen...So, now I don't have any plans.

As the late John Lennon wrote: "Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans..."

I think I need a nap!

*~* GRANDMA VAN'S GRADUATION *~*

Vaughn just came home (Tuesdays and Thursdays the housedads work around the Ranch from 8 - 1). He got a call - Grandma Van went to be with Jesus last night. That is all the information that I got from him. He asked me to call our kids. Bethany and I were already IMing, so I asked if she had her cell with her and then called and told her. Adam took a little more work to get a hold of...it IS 2 hours earlier in Phoenix, so I had to rouse him out of bed. Both of them responded much like I did. We are sad that we will not see her again on Earth; we are not teary, though.

FIVE GENERATIONS

Gma., Irene, Vaughn, Adam & Aidan

May 2006

Gma., Irene, Vaughn, Bethany & Jonathan

February 2007

We were told about a week ago that Grandma had had another "mini" stroke, but that she did not seem to be coming back around like she had with the others. This was not a surprise, but then again it was...death is never really a joyous thing. However, think about it...Grandma Van is 100 years old and her finite body was failing her. Was she not filled with JOY as she met Jesus face to face last night and heard Him say to her, "Well done, Mildred, My good and faithful servant; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord! Welcome home!" ?

I think you know my opinion.

I love you and will miss you GREATLY !

Grandma Mildred Marcetta Charles Van Liew

Goodbye Grandma!

(The memorial celebration is being planned for Saturday, April 21st, 2007.)

A Day ALONE at Home - AHHHHHH, my favorite!

It has been a full week, as usual. One of our boys got into a fight (both of the boys say they were just horsing around!?!) at school on Tuesday, so he was home with me all day yesterday. Usually our boys go and work the same hours that the others are in school with our Operations Guy. However, Tim (our Ops. Guy) was not going to be on the Ranch all day yesterday, so I got to come up with things for JN to do all day. WELL, I ended up working just as much (if not more) that HE did! Anyway, we got a lot done; the house looks great! We even got a border put up in our "game room" that I bought the summer of '05! I had to order one more roll of the border ( a Vintage Coke - "Date Night" border), so I also ordered a Coke valance for the window. A few more things for the walls and it will be just right (in my opinion, anyway). Not really what I would have chosen had it been for just Vaughn and me, however, since the room already had a lot of Coke things in it and since I did get a good bit more of Coke things for last Christmas from Adam and Amy, AND since Cherry Coke is my favorite beverage of choice, I decided to go for it. It really does look great!