The Sad Truth

"Nothing lasts except the grace of God, by which I'm saved." (That's a happy truth)


The sad truth is that these little snow people are fading fast, even their arms are getting droopy. I felt a little bit like this myself this afternoon.



In spite of their droopy arms and failing eyes (and falling noses) these snowmen are still making me smile. I thought they were beautiful on Monday and they're rather cute today too. Ever wonder if this is how God sees us?

Piano Practice

Here's Troy helping Hannah practice her piano.

"My neck hurts." says Hannah, but I think she's really enjoying it.

Personality

Now you know us just a little bit better! Any psychology majors out there? Are we doing okay?

A Little More Snow, Man!

My girls and I had a little fun in the snow this afternoon. We ended up with three very different looking snowmen.


Hannah's snowman reminds me of those Calvin and Hobbes make.
Mine (seen here) looks slightly confused...
... and Bethany's? Well, hers is just too funny! (Visit her page to see.)

Don't Ask!

I know a single woman in her early 30's who is a full time college student. Last night I asked her how school was going. Karen seemed rather frustrated as she explained that everyone asks her the same question. I took a seat next to her and sure enough, along came another woman who sat down and said, "How's school going?" Then a young mom came along and said, "I'm praying for you at school." We laughed about it as I looked at Karen and said "So Karen, how's the weather?" I am determined to find some other topics of conversation before I head back to church but I'm not quite sure where to start. Any great ideas out there?

Meeting of the Minds

The snow people held an emergency meeting. It was to no avail. They could not save themselves from the relentless sun and above freezing temperatures...

Visibly Shakin'

Saturday is our grocery and errand running day, so after cleaning at church, I dropped Nate off at the barber shop and ran to the bank and Wegman's. We returned home very close to noon and proceeded to put the food away and clean up the house. I was washing dishes and warming leftover soup when all of the sudden, it hit me! I had the hungry shakes. I'm not sure why my stomach can't just say, "Hey, you need to have a little bite to eat..." Why does my body wait until it is shaking uncontrollably before I realize I need food? I didn't sleep very well last night and this shaky spell has left me feeling sleepy. I think I'll join Little Cat and take a nap this afternoon. (Yaaaaawwwwwn!)

What To Do?

Snowmen never live long...

A Rare Moment

Listen... do you hear that? It's called silence. Only Nathan and I are at home. James is out installing a job and Ben and Hannah stayed overnight with some friends. Nate and I took a ride out to the music store for guitar strings, Walmart (haven't been there in months!), and Wegman's for milk. I've done a little painting, a little blogging, and I think I'll do a little Bible reading. I'm rarely alone so I have to enjoy the quiet while it lasts.

The Painter

Here is Priscilla painting my birdhouse. This is how the roof looked after I had painted it. When I finished the roof I had no idea what to do with the sides of the house and so it sat unfinished for many years. Priscilla did a beautiful job of painting a lovely flower garden all around but unfortunately, the roof did not match the flowers and so it was reroofed. Neither one of us really wants to take credit for the roof as it is at the moment so stay tuned and you just may get an updated photo with yet another "new" roof.

(PS. How do you like that nifty sweater drier in the background?)

Snowmen!

Priscilla came over today; Sara and Alysa were here too. The girls finally decided to go outside and make some snowmen. The boys decided to go out and snowball the girls.

This one looks like someone familiar...

Snowball Weather

The temperature is 40 degrees. It's perfect weather for building a snowman or having a snowball fight!

A Hard Day's Work

I cleaned the bathroom!

I cleaned my bedroom!

I dusted and vacuumed!

And I made supper too!

Big Things

I have set my mind to accomplish big things today. I'm off to clean the house!

Lazy Sunday Afternoon

It's a lazy Sunday afternoon, sunny but blustery cold. James is playing a game of Life with Jim, Ben, and Hannah.

Sunday seems to be a lazy kind of day here. There is rarely anything much going on. Every Sunday morning we go to church. Sometimes in the afternoon we watch the race or a football game. Often we take a nap. There are Sundays when all of our kids show up and those when we have just a few. Sometimes I need to make a big lunch and sometimes we end up eating leftovers on Monday evening. Today I feel sleepy. I think I need a cup of coffee.

A World of White

It was a beautiful day. Would have been great for sledding if we had the time. After all those bitterly cold days, it is amazing to see the icicles actually dripping again. Winter really is a very pretty time if you can tolerate frozen fingers and toes.

Winter Like I Remember

For the third day in a row Troy has been home with his mom, another snow day in Sodus. They have a large school district to cover with lots of hills and backroads. This morning would have been rough on school bus drivers!

Here in Williamson, there was school so Sara and Alysa came off the bus bus this afternoon. They found the forts my kids dug earlier to be fun and inviting so they are out there now playing in the snow.

Sometimes I think I have grown up way too fast and should be out there on my belly digging a snowfort. This is how I remember winter, cold with lots and lots of snow!

That's S'no Tree

The maple tree on the east side of our house is constantly amazing us with it's ability to dress in differing outfits.

Where Did I Come From?

My father's grandparents came to America from Europe in 1903. They were just nineteen years old and newly married. It must have been a long exhausting trip, full of excitement as well as much trepidation. Their destination was Rochester, NY where an uncle awaited their arrival.

Grandma (Bertha) and Grandpa (Emil) arrived in NY City on September 27, 1903. Grandma was three months pregant with her first child. I don't really know much about these grandparents. It was said that they were German. Grandma cooked German and spoke German and I've been told that Grandpa spoke four languages fluently. The couple eventually settled in Penfield, owned a small farm and raised six children. Grandpa died long before I was born, Grandma when I was about seven or eight years old.

Several years ago I decided to look up the record of their arrival at Ellis Island and found that they did not come from Germany as we had always believed, but smack dab in the middle of what is now Poland. Their ethnicity is listed as Russian, and their name we have discovered is Jewish. Who were these ancestors of mine? Where did they come from and what did they leave behind? So many unanswered questions...

S'no Fun

It's another cold and blustery day out there. Wonders never cease and local schools were closed for the second day in a row. Troy stayed home with his mom (she's a teacher) so things were quiet here. James and I went up town for lunch, a late Valentine outing. When we came home we found Ben and Hannah outside. Ben said his face was frozen and they were just ready to head back inside. There isn't much to take pictures of as everything turns out mostly black and white anyway.