January 4 - “Un-Christmasin’”

We started the day with walking two full miles. We did it, admittedly, kinda slow, but we nevertheless, we did it. 

Next we hit the back yard again. Chris watered every plant in sight. I put together our new hose holder. It does work, but I think we may need to replace the faucet next to the house next. It leaked pretty bad from the connection there. Of course there is also the valid possibility of operator error. I also tried one last time to disconnect the other hose back there from the old faucet we replaced and from the sprayer at the other end. Neither would budge. So the trash can received a larger than usual deposit. Put that one on the Walmart list, I guess. 

The rest of the afternoon Chris was in un-Christmas mode. Take down decorations around the house and begin filling up boxes. We even got all the ornaments off of the tree. We are still a ways off from loading the boxes back into the attic. The tables and some of the chairs are full of stuff. To be continued ..  

Mark‬ ‭2‬:‭27‬-‭28‬ says, Then He told them, “The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore, the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Father, thanks for Christmas. I really love that time of year. Amen. 

January 3 - “From Pick-up-Sticks to Basketball”

I played the Pick-up-Sticks - Outdoor Version yesterday. That sounds so much cooler than just picking up the dead branches that the wind knocked out of the Sycamore tree. It didn’t really take all that long. I thought there would be more. 

After lunch we ventured off the island. Cailyn’s boyfriend Gavin had a basketball game in Santa Fe. When we arrived the game had already begun. Four minutes into the game the score was tied 7-7. By halftime the score was 37-31 in favor of the bad guys. And then everything fell off the rails. I think the bad guys ended up winning by around 23 points. Gavin played some good minutes, but the opponents’ speed proved too much. 

After the game we stopped by Cailyn’s house. Mom and Dad were out running errands, so I helped myself to one of those Hostess cupcakes. Chocolate with cream in the middle and sugar (er, icing) on top. Haven’t had one of those in a long time. 

We gave the girls a hug and headed home when Chris’ Freddy alarm went off. Time for her seizure meds again. I was late with the morning dose, so the timing was just about right. Technically, however, that meant we should have stayed up until midnight for the next dose. Nope. Didn’t happen. 

We are rewatching Stranger Things from the beginning before starting the last season (no spoilers, please!). We took in a few episodes of that, then watched Liberty University basketball. Fun game. Liberty won. Micah was pleased. 

‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭4‬:‭16‬ says, Therefore we do not give up. Even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner person is being renewed day by day.

Father, thanks for watching over the guys playing basketball. Keep them all healthy. Amen. 

January 2 - “Playoffs”

We started out the new year on a determined note. We walked a mile and a half. Hey. It’s a start. We also watched some of the Rose Bowl parade. Haven’t seen that one in a long time. 

We were getting hungry around eleven, so we pulled out some leftovers. Fortunately, the college football playoff game began at the same time. Texas Tech vs. Oregon. Had to root for the home team. Sadly, only the defense showed up. The quarterback played like he had the flu. Sorry, Tech fans. 

And next up was Indiana vs. Alabama. I confess. I rooted for Indiana in this one. Alabama always gets to the “big game.” Indiana hasn’t been there since sometime early in the last century.  Go underdogs … sort of. Technically, Indiana was favored as the higher seed, and their quarterback won the Heisman Trophy. But it felt like they were the underdogs. Well, Indiana didn’t disappoint. 

I really didn’t care who won the last game between Georgia and Ole Miss. So we watched The Christmas Chronicles 2 instead. Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn Russell - they are married) are great as the Clauses. But then I made the mistake of checking the score of the game. Close one at the half. We watched through the third quarter, then Chris went on to bed. By this time I was really rooting for the underdog, Ole Miss. and I was hooked. I stayed up to see how this one ended. Glad I did. It was really close, but Ole Miss kicked a field goal with six seconds left to take the lead. Georgia tried a trick play on the kickoff reception, but fumbled a long backwards pass out of the end zone for a safety as the clock ran out. Phew! 39-34 final score. Exciting stuff. 

Isaiah‬ ‭43‬:‭18‬-‭19‬ says, Do not remember the past events, pay no attention to things of old. Look, I am about to do something new; even now it is coming. Do you not see it? Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness, rivers in the desert.

Father, thank you for the really nice weather the last few days. Cool and clear. Nice. Amen. 

January 1 - “Happy New Year!”

Cold again yesterday. The temp was 42 with a wind chill of 37. Somebody take this stuff back north!

Josh and his crew did their part. They departed around 10:30 with a van load of kids and Christmas presents and full bellies (at least until they see a Buc-ees). 

We came back inside, made the bed, and … sat down. Just for a minute or two. Chris texted our friends David and Mona and their daughter Cami who are in town for the holidays. The two ladies have been in touch several times since just before Christmas. The plan didn’t take long to fabricate. Shrimp n Stuff, of course! The food was great. The company even greater. They came over to the house for a while after we ate, and we continued our reminiscing. Great times. 

Last night we just crashed on the couch. We watched A Christmas Carol and some football. We tried to catch the fireworks at Moody Gardens from our front porch or the deck, but the explosions were too low behind the house across the street. So it was back to our quiet New Year’s Eve. And it was … nice. 

John‬ ‭1‬:‭5‬ says, That light shines in the darkness, yet the darkness did not overcome it.

Father, thank you for your protection over Josh and his family on their drive back to Waco. And thanks for the chance to hang out with David and Mona and Cami. Bless them. Amen. 

December 31 - “A Visit Averted”

And I thought it was cold on Monday. Yesterday we woke up to 43 degrees with a wind chill of 27. Bypassed the 30’s altogether. That’s for sure going the wrong direction. 

Much of the crowd from the day before made another appearance yesterday. The menu for lunch was burgers on the grill. Great food. Great company, of course. 

But then …

I almost had another unscheduled opportunity to touch base with my buddies down at fire station four. Last time was when our neighbor messed up her medication again, so they were next door on an overdose call. 

But this time … as we finished up our burgers, I happened to glance out the back door …

And what to my wondering eyes should appear,

but flames and black smoke shooting high up, oh, dear! 

I sprang to the door. Josh raced for some shoes. 

Ezra grabbed the extinguisher- it’s spot he knew. 

We kept the grill closed to keep out extra air. 

Chris brought some baking soda to share. 

Our brand new fire blanket even made its way out - 

There if we needed to use its safe clout. 

Time and great care proved to be our best friend.

And that baking soda won the day in the end. 

Only one picture was snapped to be seen

Of fire from the grease trap refusing to leave. 

On seeing that pic in the text he received, 

Nathan’s scathing reply, “Use that blanket!” decreed. 

This time was one that ended OK

But always be careful out there, I say!  

‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭17‬ says, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new things have come.

Father, thank you for your protection from that fire yesterday. Amen. 

December 30 - “A Family Christmas”

Wow! That was some serious wind yesterday. So much so that we even lost power briefly - just as I was cooking a timed dish. It shut off the timer and didn’t restart it. And of course I wasn’t paying attention to the time when I first put it in. Back to old school. We just “watched it” from then on. It tasted awfully good. 

But back to the wind. It was so strong that even though the temperature outside was 54, the wind chill was 36 degrees. Nope. Way too cold. However, there was an upside. When we went to bed the night before, the entire front yard and driveway were covered with sycamore leaves. When the sun came up … all gone. The yard and driveway were both as clear as could be. Don’t know where they ended up, but sorry, neighbor!

The cousins (all of them) were together for most of the day. We had a great lunch anchored by roast and followed by key desserts such as frozen cheesecake and pudding pie and those chocolate chip cookies. 

Next we all went over to Moody Gardens. They agreed to let us take some family pictures amongst some of the beautiful backdrops around the hotel. Micah’s girlfriend Kaylie has her own photography business, so we entrusted her with the task, and I can’t wait to see what she comes up with. 

Back at the house, Santa read the Christmas story. Then we exchanged gifts between all the families. It was a flurry of paper snow balls and chorus after chorus of oohs and aahs. I’m pretty sure everyone was happy. 

That segment was followed by the DaDDad Gifts time. Those are the ones I get for the adults so they will feel seen and appreciated. In other words, the gifts I get that Nana refuses to sign her name to. Lots of fun … for me, at least. 

After some supper - Mexican food this time - we played an abbreviated version of the Reindeer Games. Probably the stars of that show were Uncle Josh, Uncle Kel, and Micah. They had boxes of ping pong balls and bells strapped to their backs. On the charges to begin. All three of them dropped to the floor like bucking reindeer. Their cargo didn’t stand a chance. Everybody enjoyed the group participation games as well.  Musical Candy Canes and Frosty’s Melting really brought out the competitive side of the family. I stayed well out of way in both cases. 

It was a pretty grand day in more ways than one (pun intended). 

‭‭1 Kings‬ ‭8‬:‭61‬ says, Let your heart be completely devoted to the Lord our God to walk in His statutes and to keep His commands, as it is today.

Father, thank for those young-uns. Bless them. Amen. 

December 29 - “Nice job, Glenn”

Great day at church. I counted at least 65 or 66 people there. And that was on a Sunday when the pastor was gone. One of our amazing laymen, Glenn (In his words, “the part time drummer”), filled in and did a great job. He taught about how Good spoke to Joseph and how Joseph obeyed. My favorite part was his point about God using unusual and even unsuspecting characters to carry out his will. Nice job, Glenn. 

We grabbed some lunch and got started cleaning the house for our waves of family. Zak and Lindsay were first to arrive. That was really convenient. It gave me a chance to chat with them about their wedding ceremony. I think we have it sketched out, for the most part. Now we wait for the big day in April. 

The rest of the Waco crew arrived shortly after. And lo and behold, the entire LaMarque bunch showed up a little while later. That meant football on TV, guitars in the office, and a rousing game of Nuts at the table. That round of cousinly fun kept its steam until the LaMarquers had to leave around 8.

‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭9‬:‭6‬ says, Remember this: The person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the person who sows generously will also reap generously.

Father, again … thank you, thank you, thank you (one for each branch) for our kids’ kids … and their Moms and Dads. Amen.