There is Hope in this day of uncertainty..........

I Have Overcome the World
I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer [take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted]! For I have overcome the world. [I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you.] John 16:33 AMP
I’m thankful that God is in control; that He is on the throne; that He is wise and good; that we stand upon a kingdom that can’t be shaken; that He knows His own; that He knows what He is doing; that our lives are in His hands; that He is working out His plan; that He has overcome the world!
~devotional taken from "Meet me in the Meadow"

Happy 56th Birthday Cousin Tim!

Happy Birthday to you dear cousin of mine! There were 6 of us 1st cousins who were in the same grade in school, Tim and I were 2 of the 6. 4 of us went to the same school. What fun we had in high school, we did our share of laughing and we knew what the other cousin was thinking by just looking at them. This was the last time I saw Tim~ May 2006. He lives in Colorado.

What is Faith?

What is faith? It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see. So, you see, it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to Him must believe that there is a God and that He rewards those who sincerely seek Him. Hebrews 11:1, 6 nlt
Faith sees what your physical eyes can never see; Faith knows what your natural mind can never comprehend; Faith possesses what your physical arms can never hold.
Your faith in God today is your lifeline to His heartbeat. Faith is the hand that reaches up and takes hold of God’s promises and gathers in the spiritual treasures that are found in Christ. Faith sees the sunshine of God’s face, even when there are dark clouds all around.
From the DaySpring 365 DayBrightener, Today is Your Best Day

Happy 4th Birthday Dear Maddi!

Summer of 2007 with her Great Grandma Reed and Summer of 2008. Happy Birthday Dear Matti, Hugs and kisses fom Great Auntie Sue Sue!

Philip, Alex and Ashley on Saturday

Teen Challenge was singing at the Cloquet Gospel Tab on Saturday night so Delia and I picked up Alex and Ashley and went to the service. I think this is the first time Ashley had been to a concert of theirs and I saw her blowing her Dad a kiss while he was singing. So sweet. The church had a time of refreshment afterwards so we had time to visit. The children are so much fun and I just love what they say. On the way home Ashley was telling us how she loves to be in a car at night because she likes to see all the pretty lights and look at the stars. She said she loves to listen to music when it is dark outside. We stopped at McDonalds for a late supper for some of us and stopped for gas.....it was $2.17 per gallon! Funny as in Duluth the cheapest I have seen this weekend was $2.43!!

Busy Saturday!

We are Mt. Tabor buddies! Philip Reed (my first cousin once removed!) and his wife Denise, Delia and myself, enjoy a nice visit. Philip and Denise are going on a Mission's trip to the Ukraine in a month and they are feeling the nudge to go into full time Missions. May God direct and guide them.......

Pam and I. Pam is my first cousin once removed and we go to the same church. We have agreed to decorate the new coffee house that we have in our church annex. It will be appealing to the youth of our church and college students. I loved the coffee house scene in the late 70's-early 80's that I visited with friends. So say a prayer that we will have divine inspiration! (we want to be a blessing!)

Delia and myself at Mike and Pam Stangland's Home to meet their son and daughter in law who are newly weds from Oregon, but I realize I never took their picture! Jason and Megan are such a sweet couple.

Happy Birthday Delia! October 24, 1952

What a blessing to be able to share my dearest friend's birthday with her. She came from Mpls. on Thursday night and we celebrated her birthday by going to the Swamp Sisters in Twig for coffee and shopping, then to Grandma's Attic Treasures in Floodwood to deliver some goods, as we do consignment there, and then having an early dinner in Canal Park @ "Little Angie's". Here she is having her birthday dessert of fried ice cream that of course she shared! We have been blessed to have shared a friendship since we were 8 years old when we met at Bible Camp. God has been so good to us to bless those years, He knew we would need each other on this life journey! In 2 years we get to celebrate 50 years of friendship!

Happy Birthday Cindy Lou!

Thursday October 18th, 1956 @ 12;25PM

52 years ago today our dear Mama gave birth to child #3, a little girl weighing in at 5lbs 3 oz and she was 19 inches long. Here is a picture of Cindy and Mom in January.

We celebrated Cindy's birthday by the two of us going to garage sales and church bazaars. Fun, as Cindy found a few treasures for herself. Then we met Clarence for a late breakfast and off they went back to Deer River!

Happy Birthday Sister! What a blessing you have been to me (and our family).

Teen Challenge Gala

Last night Clarence and Cindy and I went to Teen Challenge's Annual Fund Raiser. For those of you who do not know, Teen Challenge is a Faith-based residential drug and alcohol treatment center for men and women of any age. Philip, my nephew has been in the program for 5 1/2 months and here he is with his parents. Duluth has a men's program but Minneapolis has one for men and one for women. They were celebrating TC's 50th year anniversary since David Wilkerson went into the slums of Harlem in NYC and shared Jesus with gang members. One of his first converts was Nicky Cruz and Nicky Cruz was the guest speaker last night. Such a powerful message he gave on forgiveness and redemption. Nicky Cruz is 68 years old now. Here are pictures of Philip with some of his TC Brother's in Christ. "Sunny" aka Leroy and Philip in the first photo and Mike, John and Philip in the 2nd photo. As you get to know these guys your heart goes out to them as so many of them have such sad backgrounds but to see them change week by week is such a joy.There is hope in every circumstance when we turn our lives over to Jesus. To learn more about the program and the Northland Campus you can go to www.mntc.org/northland. Teen Challenge Choirs sang last night also, this included both Minneapolis and Duluth groups singing together, pretty powerful.

Hope in the time of financial crisis......

The ‘pain’ of this present financial crisis is a powerful reminder that if we place our trust and our security in anything or anyone but God alone, we can see it crumble before our eyes. If we can quiet our hearts as the news of the tickertape roars in our ears, we will still hear the sound of God’s still small voice calling us to the ‘meadow’—drawing us to Himself, assuring us of His presence, and saying, “Peace be still.”
"Though the fig tree may not blossom, Nor fruit be on the vines; Though the labor of the olive may fail, And the fields yield no food; Though the flock may be cut off from the fold, And there be no herd in the stalls-- Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The LORD God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer's feet, And He will make me walk on my high hills." ................ Habakkuk 3:17-19

taken from "Meet Me in the Meadows" by Roy Lessin

The perfect picture..............

I purchased this print last weekend up the shore at a very unique shop called "Vinegar Hill". I knew when I saw it that it was just the picture I was looking for to fill the empty space on my kitchen wall. What do you think?

Alex and Ashley

I picked up these 2 from school today. I had not seen them in a couple weeks so I was lonesome for them. First we went to Perkins to eat. They are growing up so fast. We had a little photography session at the table while we were waiting for our food. Alex is 8 and in 3rd grade and Ashley is 6 and in First. They both love school and I love all of their stories. Then we got gas in Cloquet as it was cheaper than Duluth's cheapest that I saw today was $3.07. I was thrilled to pay $2.96 but across the street it was $2.93...oh well! On our way back to my humble abode I took a few pictures, the leaves are unbelievably beautiful!

Cousins.....ya gotta love them!

What a fun day I have had! I had the pleasure of having lunch with my cousin Linda and her hubby Ted AKA Ran Dather. We dined at the Boat House in Superior where we had a great meal, a good waitress and great conversation, not to mention the view of the Lake Superior Bay. How did 3 hours go by so fast??? Linda is also a nurse (and my senior I must say), so you can only imagine some of our conversation. 3 cheers for the blessings of cousins!

Did you know I am a GABA?

I am a Great Aunt by Affection x2 now. This little sweetheart is Lily Grace Leach, daughter of Weyland and Katie. She was born on April 10, 2008 and was adopted on May 12th, 2008. Have you ever seen such a cutie? I just have one comment....why do chubby thighs look so cute on little babies and when they come on big girls they have not one ounce of cuteness in them??

Baby #2 on the right is Levia Rose Anderson, born to Haddon and Karlyn Anderson on September 17th. What a precious little one she is. How fun these 2 little girls will grow up as loving cousins! I am so looking forward to hugging and kissing these little ones that honor me as their GABA!

Hydrangea time!

Today I went to my friend's house and picked hydrangea, my favorite flower. She calls me every fall to say "your hydrangea are ready"!! You just pick them and put them in a vase or basket without water and they dry just like that. What a wonderful Creator who gave us flowers to enjoy on the vine and then their beauty continues when they are dried. I think He especially made them for us in the north land so we can have flowers to enjoy in the winter!!

Thank you Marlene!

Mama's treasures become our treasures.....

We found Mom's graduation dress from high school ~June 1950, 3 months later it was her wedding dress. It has faded and a bit moth eaten but it is our treasure now. Cindy is wearing it and she is posing like Mom posed in a picture that Dad has.

more treasures....

We found Jeff and Jason's birth certificates. Jeff weighed 6 lbs and Jason weighed 3 lbs.

Can you tell who is who???

Mama's Treasures

Most of you know we lost our Dear Mama on March 24th, 2008. This is a picture of Mom and Dad last fall....

This week my sisters and I went through my Mom's last keepsakes. We dreaded doing it in a way but we knew we needed to finish it. God was gracious to us and we ended up smiling a lot and laughing at all the things Mom saved....the cards that she received, our report cards, our artwork, Deer River papers with stories that interested her. She was the editor of the Deer River Hospital and Nursing Home monthly newsletter called "Heart Sounds" and she saved every copy! At the end of every publication she would write a thought for the month. Let me share one with you from the late 1980's:

Thot' for the month---

There may be times when you will be sorry for something you said;

sorry that you stayed too late; or sorry that you went so early;

sorry that you won something or lost, but all your life, you'll never

be sorry that you were kind.

Don't Worry, Be Happy

and Be Kind---

'till next month,

AReed