What a way to begin the day!

Man, it was soooo cold this morning, I simply hated the prospect of climbing out of bed. Sometimes we have no choice in the matter and are forced to throw off the covers, walk on the cold tile floor for a minute or two, and then head to the kitchen on more cold tile to get a soda. Back I dashed to the warm bedroom where my little heater was hard at it and had been all night long and dived under my covers. The news was pretty much a re-hash of the week's events so I opted to grab my "Grandma Speaks" book instead of watching TV.

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In reading chapter upon chapter in rapid succession, it occurred to me that the author, Pearl Rainwater, is just a pseudonym for Judy Rusert! Aha, you are so busted, Judy! While I realize it is not actually Judy's writing, it certainly could be. She recommended this book series to me, the "used" ones I mentioned in a previous posting, and I am richer for it. First 'The Shack' and now these books. Wow! The chapters consist of a number of paragraphs about the author's life and family, spaced with the appropriate Scripture passages which tie it all together. For example, Chapter 8 begins with the passage from Matt. 18: 10-14, which cautions not looking down on little ones, that their angels in heaven are always seeing the face of God....Oh yes, good stuff.

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Finally I did have to get up and dressed as it was time to leave for Bible study over at Victory. Before I left, though, Jean Nichols called to report that Twila's hip replacement was already complete and all went very well. Praise be to God! Twila was still in recovery and had not been assigned to a room yet but Jean promised to call back with a room number and phone number when she had it. I called Pastor with the news as well as a few others who would be interested. Even called Mom to let her know and she was so surprised that the whole thing was over already this a.m.! It is an hour earlier there than here, of course.

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We had a full house at Bible study as two 'snowbird' members returned to the roost. They own a restaurant outside of Milwaukee which their kids now run so the parents can enjoy retirement in "warm" Florida!!! They remember me and I them from when they came to check out Good Shepherd many years ago. (I worked in the church office at the time and had a nice long chat before Pastor came in to meet with Dick and Audrey.) It was great to see them again and join "our" Bible study!

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Before class began, Pastor filled in the attendees about Timmy's accident, then included me in the opening prayers as well as those who were having surgery or health problems. That was incredibly thoughtful and greatly appreciated. Audrey reached over and clutched my hand, again, greatly appreciated.

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I would have liked to meet Justin for lunch today but had to get back to this side of town because of a Board of Directors meeting for Art Guild at the library. It occurred to me it was Martie's day to work so I called her to meet for lunch at Pengree's before my meeting and her working. Great! Wishing they had meatloaf, I am on a kick these days!, we instead shared a patty melt and fries. Oh well, perhaps next time we will strike on meatloaf day!

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The meeting room at the library was freezing cold, certainly had to have been without heat for some time. Sonya allowed me to drape my lap with her leather coat as she had her internal furnace turned up extra high. Her heat did not help me any! I simply could not get warm and could not wait to get out of the meeting. It went quickly because the President was ill and Sonya ran it instead. Once back to my car which was warm from the sun and my heated car seats, I hustled it back up here to defrost.

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But not for long! Kathy B. called to say she had taken off of work early for a test so was available for dinner and a movie! We had talked about doing this on Sunday but tonight works just as well. I will put on socks and oxfords so my feet are warm and even take my "Bible study" blanket along to the movies. I have to get to the bank first to get some cash as I got cleaned out at the BOD meeting for a gift for our President!

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Justin was here to clean yesterday and he once more invited me to the opera! Saturday the Met Opera House in New York is broadcasting live to the area theaters the opera about Orpheus. Of course, we are going, but to his AMC instead of Orange Park because last time it took a long time for them to connect with NYC and we missed part of it. He has a gift card or two to use up so we will use those to help defray our expenses. It is still open as to whether or not we will worship at Victory Saturday night, guessing it depends if he makes plans with his friends or not. I will be satisfied with our time at the Opera....

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Last night Suzanne made me roar with laughter after choir. She was telling me a story about traveling to New York City on business and about her hotel situation. The room was small and cheezy, a twin bed and over $300 a night to stay there. She said she walked into the lobby to check in, pulling her bag behind her, wearing her jeans and sweatshirt, as usual. She started to tell me that a lady was standing there "looking all New Yorkish"....................and that is all I heard. I lost it, totally lost it, looking all New Yorkish.....so funny! Just what Justin and I love about NYC, she hates! Go figure!

My niece's posting from her blogsite, for those who couldn't find it.....

Monday, January 19, 2009

Where were you...
WARNING: Just a warning to all of you...this may be a tear jerker.

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Where were you eight years ago today?

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"Why eight years ago," you ask? It's not an easy number to remember such as 5, 10, or even 20 years. How would you remember what went on or where you were on such an odd year? Well, for me eight years ago today was a very sad emotional day. Never in my life did I think I'd feel so many different emotions.

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Eight years ago today my entire family and I were in Florida to say good-bye to a very dear loved one. It was eight years ago today that we laid to rest the one person who we didn't think would pass at such an early age. We were all at the funeral of my five-year old cousin, Timothy Charles Day. What made the whole event even more trying was that today would have been his birthday. We buried a five year old little boy. I have a five year old, and I can't even imagine what it's like. Every year it's the same sad feeling I get when I think of how awful it was the night I received the horrible call. "We lost Timmy tonight." Yes, we may have lost Timmy, but on the happy side of things, look what heaven gained! The bright eyed smiley little boy with the lowest voice I ever heard from a little fella.

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I can remember walking into the house the night we arrived in Florida. It was very hard for me to look out at the pool. I collapsed into Roger's arms and just sobbed. Then Kim said something to me that I will never forget. "Timmy's sitting on Jesus' lap, probably pulling on His beard." Yeah, he's sitting on Jesus' lap. What a perfect vision. Kim always knows just the right thing to say at just the right time. The Lord may have taken Timmy from her, but He blessed her with the gift to comfort others in times of sorrow. I feel that to be a bitter sweet blessing.

A year or so later, when Vickie and I took our girl's vacation, we stopped to visit Timmy's resting place. Vickie's mother had just passed away a few weeks prior to our trip. All of us were standing by Timmy's grave crying for different people. Kim knew just what to say then too. "Mom" passed away while sitting at the dining room table getting ready to eat a meatloaf sandwich. Kim put her arm around Vickie and said, "Your mom prayed, "Come, Lord Jesus" and this time he came." Oh how true. Vickie told me that night, "I never thought of it that way. That makes me feel better."

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Kim wrote in her blog today about people saying, "Get over it." or "You need to move on." What kind of words are these??? To me, they are a slap in the face. You never fully get over losing a loved one. They are always in your heart and memories. I remember the Friday before Timmy passed, I talked with him on the phone, and he sang to me. He sang "Who Let the Dogs Out". I used to think it was a stupid song. Now it's a treasure I'll never (get over) or forget. There are just things that you can't move on from. Yeah, it's been a whole eight years, but it's going to take forever and back to GET OVER IT. Never once has anyone said that to me, instead, only words of encouragement.

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I've had a few downer days this last week, and there are several quotes I'd like to share from people who tried to comfort me. Each quote shows that yeah, it's bitter sweet that we lost a loved one, but look where he is now...PARADISE!

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"It comforts me to know that the last 8 years have been much better for Timmy than it has for us. It's sad we didn't get to see him grow up but we will see him again. I wonder if he will be the same age or if you age in heaven?"

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"Chin up, he's in heaven smiling down. We should all be so lucky."

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Some day we will be so lucky! I'm so looking forward to being up there and seeing what it looks like sitting on Jesus' lap. Of course, I have the manners to not tug on His beard!

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Because Timmy was called home at such an early age, Kim has had the opportunity to "counsel" other families who have lost children. The Lord has blessed her with the gift to console. She went through the pain and sorrow of losing a child, but she can feel the joy of helping others to overcome their sadness in times of grief. What a blessing that is for all those she consoles. And my family and I are blessed that we have such a strong caring individual who shares her story to help others.

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We don't keep stories of Timmy to ourselves in the Ellison household. We talk about our cousin quite a bit. We want our boys to know what kind of a loving and happy child Timmy was. Gabe asks questions about him once in awhile. "Is Timmy the boy by Jesus?" "Timmy is in heaven with Jesus, right mom?" I only wish they could have met the boisterous little guy we were able to love and adore for five years. I also have the poppyseed donut in the face to remember him by! For those of you who were there you know the laugh we had.

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Good night to you all and God bless you!

I have a mission for you!

Yesterday, when visiting my niece and her family, her hubby got called into work for a little while to take care of something which only he could handle. He is the food and beverage manager at a yacht club and is responsible for all things related to food and beverage service, including those who actually distribute said items. So, off he went!

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Tina, Rayna, and I enjoyed the time getting caught up on family matters such as what is happening with her grandpa, now in an Alzheimer facility in Green Bay. Also, her parents who live in south Florida, had been considering, and actually preparing, to sell their trailer in Davey and relocate closer to their daughter and family. That plan has been scuttled, however, because Palm Coast does not offer the medical facilities now both her parents require. The nearest 'fine' hospitals, clinics, and doctors would be in Jacksonville, an hour north of Tina's; not the best idea for two people with failing vision and health. Not a happy decision to come to but it is reasonable to make sure they have ready access to medical care, as historically, this has been vital.

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In the course of our conversation, we turned to cameras and video cameras. She mentioned that they were thinking of getting a video camera since now they have two little beauties to capture for posterity. I told her how I just recently gave my video camera to my nephew, Jamie, who also has two little ones to record. Not that that would have made any difference, I would have still let Jamie have it, but still, it seemed funny that two family members have the same need, or want, as the case might be. She wished Justin had come along to lend some wisdom to which is the best way to go video camera-wise, since he so incredibly techy. Keith and Tina's camera has the capability to record video but it eats up their memory space so quickly that it is hardly a feasible solution.

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I told Tina that I have friends with babies, some brand-new grandchildren, and some with kids in grade school and told her I would ask around to see which is the best way to go as far as recorders go. Should they go the way of video tape, as compared to digital as compared to direct to mini-DVD or regular DVD????? I am counting on the experts who follow this blogsite to help us out here with your personal advice and/or cautions. Thanks!

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Sadly, this young family is feeling the pinch most of us are feeling, but theirs is mainly due to having to add a second child to their childcare expenses. Tina said it will cost an extra $800 a month for Rayna's childcare in addition to what they already pay for Maya's care. Tina works from home and simply cannot have the children there when she is conducting business, very much like my friend, Suzanne, in her home office. You cannot have conference calls with clients and a baby crying at the same time. I know, we ran our building business from home for many years, when we were a 'family business' but it was much more conducive to conducting business when the kids weren't with us!

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It is not financially feasible for Keith or her to quit working in order to care for the kids themselves, allow I did throw out the option. I recalled for her when Lisa had Manny and she toyed briefly with the option of quitting work to stay home with the boys, saving the childcare expenses. The Lord's hand took over and Noah's hours were switched to nights, which allowed for a parent to be home with the kids almost the entire day. A couple hours in the afternoon has the kids, mostly Manny, as Gabe started pre-school this past fall, at an in-home childcare situation with a fellow church member. Lisa takes their child along to pre-school, so they cross over with services!

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Something I meant to mention: thank you all so very much for the loving and supportive messages I received this past week, the funeral week. Lynn, thank you for the very beautiful card, the message in it was truly perfect, just like the other cards you send me! Mom, thanks for the check for the tuition assistance Memorial set up in Timmy's name at Precious Lambs! All others, particularly those who were with us during that tragic time, thanks so very much, especially those who remember without being prompted......this means so very much to me, to Justin and me! By the way, he did not vacuum on Monday when he got here---he just laid on my bed or sat on the bench and we listened to "In Christ Alone" and "Jerusalem..........." with tears streaming. You can be a big shot 21 year old cool dude with your friends and co-workers, but you can let your guard down with your mama, and even download those hymns onto your iPhone for future reference...............

May I please introduce.....Rayna!

I arrived at Tina's house just in time to witness the bath of Rayna, who really wasn't quite nuts about the whole routine. Tina and Keith are both on materinity leave to take care of the new baby, born on December 31. Their older daughter, Maya, aged 2, is at childcare during the day which allows them sufficient time to take care of this new baby without the over-enthusiastic help of Maya. Rayna was a big baby, nearly 9 pounds at birth, but failed to flourish with the breast feeding, ending up dehydrated and having a couple trips to the ER already. She is now doing well using fortified formula, much to Tina's dismay as well as relief, knowing the baby is going to be okay and will re-gain the lost weight.
Just look at the little bird face Rayna is making! Tina washed her hair/head at the kitchen sink and that was not the baby's favorite part of the bath at all. Getting all wrapped up in blankets with a fresh diaper in place makes all the difference in the world. The noise she makes can hardly be described as crying and to the non-parent, it was musical! Once swaddled, Rayna was ready to have a bottle of yukky looking formula and snuggle into her great-aunt's bosom for the remainder of the afternoon.

Tina, Christina as she prefers now as an adult, took this photo of me holding Rayna, declaring it was good picture of me........I disagree and won't show it. Maybe it was because I was holding a newborn or something, but I looked rather old. Can't have that! Thanks to the cropping ability of my computer, I can show the lovely sleeping baby in her great-aunt's arms. Tina also showed me the picture she has of herself as an infant and the resemblance between mom and baby girl is absolutely incredible! I encouraged her to scan the baby picture of herself into the computer and put a photo of Rayna alongside, just for interest sake. It was uncanny, but then, I don't know why we are surprised when the babies look like their parents! The best news was that Rayna was baptized while still in the hospital, as was Maya. It was a non-denominational pastor who administered the washing with water and the Word. That was the finest baby gift Rayna got, her re-birth in God's promises of salvation!

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About that resembling their parents: Justin was looking at the photos I printed off the Prange's website and was amazed at how much Baby Grace looks like her mama! And Lucas looks like his father! Go figure!

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Kathy B. was looking at photos of Justin and me in one of my scrapbooks as well as my facebook pages and remarked that he looks so much like me, especially the smile. I do not think he would be overly excited to hear he looks like me, but I think he already knows it!

Please read this..........

lisamellison.blogspot.com

Jesus Triumphs Over Tragedy

This title has been used before, but guess what----it never gets old! One of the best, smartest, and valuable things we did in planning for the funeral for Timmy was have the satellite viewing and video recording set up in the Fellowship Hall. Overflow seating was needed as the church was jam packed that day, over 300 people at one count. But, now I have a "permanent" record of the very special worship service that took place on January 19, 2001. More than once I have allowed the question to cross my mind and occasionally my lips, "How in the world did he do it?"---meaning, how did Pastor Prange, Pete, ever manage to get through that service like he did? Of course, it was the Lord who provided the strength and support he needed, plus perhaps a healthy dose of adrenalin, another blessing from our Creator!

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Last night after the Board meeting, I decided to watch the video of the funeral service, in part to hear the amazing message Pete delivered to us, and partly to experience the whole "triumph" once more. Parts of the sermon I have memorized, such as when Pete is explaining how we are all sinful and need Jesus' forgiveness, and that anyone who has spent any time at all with Timothy knew he was a sinner.........and the congregation, or parts of it, chuckled. He was a stinker, that is for sure! The one part of the sermon that moves me so much is when Pete points out that triumph has already taken place----not one person in our family and not one person from his congregation expressed concern for Timothy's soul. We all had the comfort and assurance that he was with his Savior in heaven. "I know that my Redeemer lives! What comfort this sweet sentence gives! He lives, he lives who once was dead, He lives my ever living head!" Just as Pete is about to end the sermon, he recalls the story I told about Jesus and God sleeping with me at the hospital...........oh, yeah.....

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In talking with my mom today, she didn't know how to go back to re-read my postings or the comments that are added sometimes a day or two after the initial posting. I explained to her about the "Older" button on the bottom right hand side of the opening page which allows the reader to go backwards, even so far as to the first posting ever! One can also click on the archives on the left side of the opening page according to date, or even according to year. Hope this helps anyone else who is not familiar yet with navigating the site. She had sent me a comment last week and thought it did not get to me, and when I told where to look for it, Mom said the blog did not go back far enough. Now she knows how to work backward and see her comment posted.

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Please take some time, if you do not already, to read some of the comments posted recently. Suzanne, my friend from church and Timmy's Sunday school teacher, sent me a list of her remembrances from the night of the 'accident' through the funeral service, and it warmed my heart through and through to read about her memories. Hers seem almost more clear than are mine!

Fixin' to go meet Rayna...

....but, first, just a few notes from the warmth of my desk. It is really cold outside (forgive me, those where it is extra cold!) with hard freeze warnings cautioned for tonight. I have heard from several folks in the upper midwest regarding being weary of shoveling, layering their clothes, scraping or chiseling ice from their car windows, and bundling children until they are barely able to move their arms. I hear you! Remember, I spent two weeks in that same environment over the holidays and haven't gotten over it yet!

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When people are considering moving south to live and work, they are encouraged to move during the spring or our version of winter rather than when it is summer or fall, to avoid the trauma and shock of the heat, heat, heat, and oh, yes, the sun! The same thing should be true for those considering moving back to WI to help take care of their moms: do not go when the temperatures are less than 60 degrees above zero! That leaves a two week window for decision making. And what a terrible shock it would be when the "warm" weather wears off and the cold sets in.......it does not matter if you grow up there, once you have escaped, it is incredibly difficult to re-adjust. I think of poor Tarren, moving to IL, after living her entire life in Florida, immediately after CHRISTmas, having to shovel snow in order for the moving van to unload their belongings. Welcome to winter!

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Off I go to Palm Coast! That even sounds warm, does it not?