Here We Go Again

It's once again time for me and my dad to hit the road on vacation, only this year we're letting my brother come along too. We're headed to Hawaii and provided I'm not too exhausted at the end of each day, I hope to keep you posted on all of our activities, or at least mine as we are doing a few things separately.

I dropped The Pip off at the vet's office where she will be staying while we are gone. I'm paying a little extra for her to have one-on-one time with someone every other day. Admittedly, I got a little teary-eyed when I was thinking about dropping her off, but she was happy as a lark and didn't even look back. It's also been nice to have an evening without her so I can get some packing done and some things straightened up around the house.

As always, Jeff will be keeping an eye on things at the house and also my sweet friend Pat and her husband Dave will be checking in on things for me as well. I've got my fingers crossed that Dave will mow the grass for me before I get home but I'm doubtful that will happen. I am certain, however, that the grass will need mowing by the time I get home because it's already starting to grow and I can only imagine how dreadful it will be upon my return.

It's doubtful I will write tomorrow. We don't land in Honolulu until 9:00 p.m. local time which is, I think, midnight at home. We will spend 17 hours of our day traveling. Here's to hoping the travel time will be worth it.

In the meantime, I would ask that you remember us in your prayers for safe travel, good attitudes, and a fun time. Aloha!

A picture of The Pip, just because

An Early Birthday Bash

This past Saturday, we threw an early birthday bash for my mom. Her actual birthday is March 26, but my dad, brother and I will all be in Hawaii. So, we decided to throw her a big party before we left. Mother will be 60 this year, but I have to say, she doesn't look that old. I guess she's had a good life.

My dad and I began the planning in January and tossed around various ideas about what we wanted to do and where we wanted to have the party. We finally decided on having the party at their house and Mother gave me a list of people to invite.

I finally got around to ordering and sending out invitations and I'm so thankful that some of Mother's favorite people were able to come to the party. I bought some decorations and on the day of picked up some fresh flowers. Jackie was a good friend and came over early to help me decorate. Since we had all been at Mrs. Irma's funeral earlier in the day, we were in a time crunch to get things done. The cake arrived around 2:00 p.m., we got the decorations up and I managed to change out of my funeral clothes and into something more comfortable before the guests arrived.

In addition to Jackie, some of Mother's closest high school friends came to the party as well as friends who we all used to go to church with and my grandparents. My favorite aunt, Linda, was there and brought her famous macaroni and cheese and my cousin Brittany and Syndey came as well. It was a really great group of people.

We had BBQ, potato salad, coleslaw, baked beans, the aforementioned mac and cheese and BBQ bread to eat. It was all very good! The cake was made by my co-worker Meri and was white chocolate raspberry and was absolutely delicious. It was also very pretty. The cake got a lot of compliments, as did the other food.

Mother got some very nice gifts, but mostly she was blessed to be around family and friends she loves and who love her. I'm thankful we were able to have this celebration in honor of my mother! Happy Birthday, Mamma! I hope you have many, many more!

Remembering Irma

After all the death I experienced last year, my 2014 had been going along rather well until Wednesday. I've managed to make it two and a half months without a trip to the funeral home; but, I'm sad to say that streak is going to come to an end this Saturday.

Monday morning when I got into work, I read the email blast from the church I used to attend and saw that Jim and Irma Steelman had been in a car accident the day before. The accident took place as they were driving to church and Irma had sustained a broken jaw and some other injuries, and Jim had a few scrapes and scratches, but nothing serious. On Tuesday, Irma had surgery and all went well according to the folks I've talked to. Wednesday afternoon a special email came through saying that Irma's heart rate had dropped and she was moved to SICU. I don't know what it was about that email, but as soon as I read it, my heart sank and I knew that she wasn't going to pull through.

I left work, went to the chiropractor and headed home to eat some dinner and watch the news before heading out to church for the night. I was running late and I looked at my phone as I was walking out the door. I had a text from my friend Candy letting me know that Irma had died. I was immediately overcome with emotion and my heart was full of sadness. I called my dad to let him know and later called some others because I know I like to hear this kind of news from someone I love rather than read about it in a news blast.

Irma was no doubt, one of the top five most influential people in my life. I have known her since I came into this world. My mother has known her since she was in junior high school and Irma was her PE teacher. My dad has known Irma since he was in high school. To say she has been a big part of our lives is an understatement.

Today, I want to share with you, in no particular order, some of the things I will always remember and admire about Irma.

She had arthritic fingers which were bent and swollen but her hands were always working, always doing for others, never resting.

She went on countless mission trips ( here and in Mexico) and door knocking campaigns, always working to bring people to the Lord

She had a recipe for a one egg cake. This used to always make me laugh and she loved that it made me laugh as we have laughed over the one egg cake together too many times to count. It was her mother's recipe from the depression when eggs were scarce. The cake could be made in various flavors, but Irma always made it as a cherry cake with whipped cream icing and she always had it readily available at Christmastime.

Speaking of Christmas, I'm inclined to think it was Irma's favorite holiday. She began decorating the outside and inside of her house well before December 1. She always hosted the Ladies' Night Out Christmas Party for me and used to tell people that I told her she had to have everything decorated before the party. She gave me a hard time about this and it became a joke of ours. She loved Santa Claus and had numerous Santas displayed throughout her house. Upstairs she kept her Christmas Village with the felt snow. Christmas will not be the same without a trip to Irma's.

She made the absolute best strawberry cake anyone has ever put in their mouth. It's the same recipe I use, but she used strawberries that she had put up and the color of her cake was always such a deep pink. People used to fight over her cake and I've seen grown men grab a fork and scrape the crumbs from the cake plate. I used to request that she make it for me from time to time and she never turned me down.

Irma was a fantastic teacher. She was first my teacher when I was in third or fourth grade and she taught with Nancy Kelly. It was one of the best classes of my childhood at church. Later on she taught me again in junior high school and used to warn us girls about "boys in tight blue jeans" and warned us of the perils of pre-marital sex and teenage pregnancy. In my adult life, I never missed a Ladies Class that she taught. She was full of knowledge and wisdom and I loved the sound of her voice and her present day applications from the Bible. She is probably the number one reason I began teaching ladies' classes and am leading women's Bible study now.

When she wasn't teaching Ladies' Class, she was sitting on the front row and if I wasn't teaching, my seat was right beside hers and believe me, I got upset if someone stole my seat beside Irma.

Smell is probably my most keen sense and Irma's smell was a comfort to me. I must have asked her 1,000 times what the name of her perfume was and to this day I still couldn't tell you, but I can assure you that when I smell it again I will always be reminded of Irma and the love I had for her.

Irma has been my confidant more times than I can count. I have relied on her for advice, for a shoulder to cry on and for a hand to hold.

She gave out hugs freely and without prejudice.

Her mission was people and she cared for them with fervor and love, just like Jesus. She was always providing for those in need.

She was a school secretary and saw too many children neglected and abused and she went out of her way to make those children feel special and loved.

She was one of my biggest champions and supported me all the years I headed up Ladies' Night Out. She hosted, she dressed up at Halloween, she encouraged and prayed.

She was so good about sending people cards. I loved opening the mailbox and finding a card with her handwriting on it. I have no doubt she sent out thousands of cards over the years.

She started the Ladies' Breakfast at church and headed it up for 30 years or so. She wrote a poem each year for the breakfast and one of my proudest moments was when she asked me to lead a prayer at the breakfast a few years ago.

It always gave me a chuckle how when we had Ladies Night Out at her house and we were done eating, she would holler up the stairs at Jim so he would come down and gather up the chairs and tables.

She served on the board of Agape and took up a collection in class each week for the organization. Each year at Christmas she organized a drive to raise money so we could help some of the Agape children have a nice Christmas.

I've sat by her side as we've sang at funerals and she sang at my granddad's funeral last January. I will miss hearing her voice at times like these.

I could probably go on for days about how amazing of a person Irma was and how special she was to me. I am having a hard time grasping the fact that I will never see her again, smell her, or hear her voice. I think it goes without saying that she will be immeasurably missed. If ever there was a Proverbs 31 woman, it was Irma Steelman. Her price was indeed far above rubies. This earth lost a giant, and I lost a hero, but heaven gained an angel and Irma undoubtedly has gained her reward.

Book Review Let There Be Light

Today I am reviewing for you a delightful children's book titled Let There Be Light, written by Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa and beautifully illustrated by Nancy Tillman.

To put it simply, the book tells the story of creation from Genesis, from day one when God said, "Let there be light," to day seven when God rested. A story that has been told for generations, this gorgeous book provides vibrant illustrations that are sure to capture the imagination of any child. Each page is beautifully illustrated as it tells the story of what God created on each day. 

The next time I teach creation to one of my classes, I will be certain to use this book because I know the kids will love it and your kids will too. It is reasonably priced and available from Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Let There Be Light combines the love and warmth of Nobel Peace Prize Winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu with the extraordinary talents of bestselling author and illustrator Nancy Tillman. This retelling of the biblical story of creation vividly portrays the wonder and beauty of God’s creation on each of the seven days. Using Archbishop Tutu’s lyrical text from the Children of God Storybook Bible and Tillman’s remarkable illustrations, Let There Be Light brings the story of creation to life for readers young and old.

Saturday, A Shower, and Shrek

Saturday was another busy day for me. I was supposed to start the day with a hike on Wade Mountain with co-workers as part of our health program for reduced insurance rates. The hike was slated for 9:00 a.m. and honestly, I had been looking forward to it. The weather was supposed to be nice and I was ready to enjoy some fresh air and sunshine. However, because of how busy the rest of my day was going to be and the fact that I wanted to finish the laundry and have a clean house, I ended up skipping the hike and stayed home to do chores instead.

My cousin Brittany is pregnant with her second child (she is the mother of the infamous Sydney) and she was having a baby shower on Saturday afternoon. I was originally supposed to pick up my grandmother and take her to the shower, but my aunt Sandra was in town and so she drove my grandmother. The shower began with some baby shower games and ended with Brittany opening her gifts. She got a lot of nice things and her new baby is sure to be blessed with lots of cute outfits.

After the shower, I went home for about an hour or so to let Pip run around before heading out again. I stopped by Target to pick up Catching Fire which had just been released on Blu-Ray and then I met Jackie and the kids at Mellow Mushroom. After we ate, we went over to Grissom to see Shrek the Musical. I had bought two tickets the day they went on sale and then Jackie asked about going and so she bought two tickets as well. She and Ashlyn sat together and Troy and I sat together.

When Troy and I went to our seats, there was someone sitting in them. Long story short, I had ordered tickets for Saturday, but it seems I was mailed tickets for Friday and apparently they had the same problem on Friday night. Thankfully they had a couple of seats close to the front on the left-hand side and Troy and I sat there. It wasn't the middle like I had planned, but we were still able to see the stage very well and that is what was most important. We all really enjoyed the show and I really don't think I've ever seen Troy so fired up about something. He was whooping and hollering and clapping at the end of the show and it gave me a chuckle.

We got out of the show around 10:30 and I got home and in bed by 11:30 which was really 12:30 a.m. thanks to the time change. It was another fun day and night on what was a really great weekend. Shrek the Musical is going on next weekend as well. Check it out if you get a chance!

Tailgating, Hockey, The First Pitch and The Chicken Dance

Y'all, this past Friday was one of the best days I've had in a long while and I'm super excited to tell you about it!

After work Friday, I headed home to let Pippa out for an hour or so before Jackie and the kids stopped by. We had made plans to go down to the VBC and join in the free festivities. It was the final home weekend for the UAH hockey team, and an outdoor tailgate had been organized which included the local food trucks, a band, and various other activities such as face paintings and games for the kids.

I had told my dad about all that was going on and he and my mom came down for the fun as well. We met up with them and ate dinner from the food trucks. Most of us ate from the food truck that served cheese steaks and hot dogs, and while the sandwiches were good, the service was extremely slow. They clearly "hadn't got the hang of it yet" according to my dad and I'm inclined to agree. Ashlyn got tacos from the Food Fighters bus and they looked really good and she said they were.

While we were waiting on our food, I was checking my Twitter account. Earlier in the day I had retweeted a tweet from the Huntsville Stars which was a tweet to win eight tickets, a cap and the fist pitch for the April 10 game. I honestly didn't think much about it but then, as I was sitting at the tailgate checking my Twitter, I discovered that I was the lucky winner. I cannot even tell you how excited I am about this. I have been telling all my friends and family because I want all the people I love to come to the game and cheer me on and/or heckle me. So, if you live in the Huntsville area, mark your calendar for Thursday, April 10 because I'm throwing out the first pitch and I'm so very excited about it!

After we ate, we made our way to the arena. The game was free admission courtesy of Huntsville International Airport and since my parents got there before us, they found out you had to have an actual ticket to get in and they picked up tickets for all of us. We found some seats upstairs and proceeded to have a large time. The kids and I did some dancing and we made it onto the jumbotron more than once.

Troy and I had some popcorn and at some point during the night, we convinced Troy to go toss some popcorn down onto my parents. It took a while to get their attention but they finally looked up and we all got a big laugh out of it. Then came time for the Chicken Dance which we all participated in and I'm pretty sure I even broke a sweat. We were on a row behind a group of college girls and they won the Chicken Dance prize which was a free chicken biscuit from Bojangles. One of the girls gave her coupon to Troy since he had been dancing all night long.He reminded me and Jackie of a younger Justin from hockey games long ago.

After the game was over, we parted ways and called it a night. It was seriously such a fun evening. I'm so grateful to live in a city that always has something fun going on and to have fun people to enjoy the good times with.

Downtown Huntsville Mardi Gras Parade

I'm alive!  It might be hard to believe, but it is true. I've had a busy week with work during the day and then Bible study or the gym in the evenings. Tonight I've got church, but I have managed to find a minute to do some writing before heading out.

This past weekend was full of fun and most importantly, laughter. Friday night I hosted my friends Paul and Leah and Jonathan and Caley for dinner. Jackie helped me host and brought a delicious salad. We played a hilarious game and spent the evening laughing and talking. It was such a fun night.

Most of Saturday was lazy as I caught up on the DVR and managed to get some laundry done. Jackie came over around 4:30 and we headed downtown for Huntsville's first ever Mardi Gras parade. Yall, it was so much fun! The streets were packed with people - a lot more people than show up for the Christmas parade. We ran into my co-worker Maria and hung out with her and her friends. After the parade passed us by, we walked up to Washington Street and watched it pass again. The floats and people in the parade were decked out in all manner of Mardi Gras costume. We managed to catch a few beads and Jackie even scored a t-shirt.

After the parade, we decided to grab some dinner. We figured the Po-Boy Factory would be packed but we drove by anyway and indeed it was. So, we turned around and went to Ted's instead. It was a big night for Ted's as they got all the Po-Boy Factory overflow or it least that's what we thought. Everyone had one beads and were dressed in purple, gold and green, It was almost like being in New Orleans except without all the drunkards.

The evening and weekend was so much fun and I really hope whoever organized the parade will keep up the tradition because everyone that went had a fantastic time!

 The Army band opened up the parade

 Mayor Battle waving to the crowd!

J.O. Johnson High Band - Always entertaining!

Jackie scored a t-shirt!

Me and my co-worker Maria