Thursday, May 27

Come Boldly!

"Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." Hebrews 4:16

Let us draw near with confidence!  Do you bring your concerns/needs with confidence to the Lord?  I know God's love is unconditional and he loves the meek and the bold, but sometimes I just don't have the confidence in myself to bring mine or other petitions to the Lord.  In Hebrews, we are reminded that we will receive mercy and find grace, but we have to go to Him to get it.  My needs won't be met by me doing what I've always done, I need to go to Him - change it up a bit and bring the most insignificant to the ginormous need to Him. (btw, is ginormous a word?  well, if not it should be! LOL)

Okay, so today I will go in confidence to God with my needs and other's desires and let His grace and mercy lift us through!

Monday, May 24

Lake Pleasant



Went out on the lake last weekend, fishing with the kids on Friday and the neighbors on Saturday, the stars were amazing!

Enjoy some pics.

Michigan Visitors

We were so blessed to see Aunt Rose and Joanie from Michigan last weekend!  They came out for Rob's retirement from the Air Force!  We visited with Bob and Sue, their daughter Shelly and Tom and Linda at his party following the ceremony at Luke - it was such a joy to visit with Aunt Rose, she is sooo happy and always laughing! 
Otto and me with Aunt Rose

What a fun time - Tina and the girls were there as well as Linda's grandkids, Nate, Patrick and Bella - plus Rob's three kids - cousins meeting for the first time! 

Friday, May 14

Rooted

Our bible study this week had us looking up scriptures on being 'rooted'.  Jesus' parable of the sower describes those who do not endure in their faith as those who did not take root.  What does it mean to have a life that is properly grounded so you can endure?  The deeper your roots are planted, the stronger you are to stand firm.


In my quiet time this morning, I read about releasing control to God of the things I have no control over and the author compared this to a farmer tending crops.  The farmer has no control over the weather, so he plants his crops, protects them from the wind, feeds them and waters them if there is no rain.  He presses on and endures whatever comes his way.  He provides the crops with good soil and food and provides shelter, but he cannot control the wind, rain or drought that may come.



This week has been very reflective for me as many changes are taking place with our family and I have little or no control over most of it!  The bible study this week reminds me that it is important to feed my soul and mind with scripture to be firmly planted and to take root so you can endure hardships, and my reading this morning tells me that I can only take control of my own actions/life and that I have to release what I can't - doesn't seem so hard to do, does it?

Wednesday, May 12

New House Guest

Polo officially checked in to the 'Stuck Hotel' about 4:00 pm yesterday.  After about 6 hours flight time, and a two hour layover he arrived a little thirsty, but in great spirits!

After a tour of the house and yard, he settled onto our bed with Otto, and took a nap!



I guess you can say he likes the place!  We are awaiting his 'baby', leash and other personal items, but all is well!  I guess he takes after his owner in luggage arriving late! 

Tuesday, May 11

Fear not, I am with you; be not dismayed, I am your God. I will strengthen you, and help you, and uphold you with my right hand of justice. Isaiah 41:10

Just a reminder, He is our rock and strength during times of trouble, He will raise you up when needed.  Don't forget to call on Him!

Monday, May 10

A Labor of Love

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Four siblings, two hubbies and two grandchildren headed to Kingman for a weekend makeover of mom's yard.  Weed-pulling, rototilling, drip line repair and rock spreading were the tasks at hand.  We left Phoenix, rakes in hand to meet Robin, Joe, Tree and Tony in what turned out to be an extremely tough job of turning mom's weed ridden, plain backyard into a weedless paradise!

THE CREW












BEFORE AND IN-PROCESS PICS

Otto and Tony concentrated on putting a 4" border around the bottom of the entire fence, while Tree and I picked up all the weeds that they managed to shovel out the night before.  Otto then started the rototilling, we all started leveling and pulling out more weeds and rock while we waited for older sister Robin and Joe to make an appearance!  After several trips to Home Depot, two rock deliveries, gatorade, water, lunch service provided by Eden and Kaya, and a 30 pack of Coors Light, here's the fruit of our labor.



It truly was a labor of love and we are all so happy and blessed to be able to do this for our mom, who has done so much for all of us!  Happy Mother's Day mom, hope you enjoy the yard!

TREE FIXING THE TOILET PAPER HOLDER

We also replaced a toilet paper roll holder, fixed a leaky faucet, planted two new Bird of Paradise plants, and repaired and re-programmed the drip system!

P.S. the saga continues.... stay tuned for the next episode of 'mom's makeover' and final reveal!

Tuesday, May 4

Leaving on a Jet Plane..........

All our bags are packed, but we're not ready to go!  These extra two days have made it even more tough to leave the kiddos in TN!



Yesterday we walked to downtown Franklin for some Sweet CeCe's yogurt and then on to Pinkerton Park to see the Harpeth River.  The sound of water pumps and chainsaws on the way overtook the usual sounds of quiet content and wildlife.  Amazingly, everyone's attitude was pretty up beat in the city, and although you could see devastation, the spirits here were not broken.

 Sewers overflow in Franklin and Pinkerton Park

We all seemed a little more quiet on the walk home, don't know if the scene caused it or just the fact that it was our last night here.  In 47 days, the kids will embark on their adventure to live overseas in Turkey for 18-24 months and although we don't see them daily, their travels will take them further away than a 4 hour flight!


 Playing golf and celebrating Gill's 10th Birthday

My thoughts see-saw from our time here to a time when we won't be so close and from excitement to sadness.  But through it all, this change is out of my control and I know our God is watching over them no matter where they may roam, right?  So, I try to steer my thoughts in the direction of our ever-loving Father whose hands they are really in, and steer my memories back to these last two weeks of time spent with them.

So, we are leaving on a jet plane, don't know when I'll be back again.... oh babe, I hate to go.

Saturday, May 1

Look Who's in the Zoo

Nani and Popi with LuLu, Kenz, Gill and Will

We went to the Nashville Zoo yesterday, to lunch at Red Robin's and a quick stop at the outlets on the way home.  At the zoo, we saw most of the animals except the wild dogs, don't know where they ran off to but they weren't anywhere in the pen.  It was a pretty nice day with the fam!  

Lani views the Meerkat close up!

Everyone had their favorite animal but the most entertaining, of course, was the Saimang monkey!  They are loud and their throats enlarge as they screech and howl while twirling on the branches and swinging from limb to limb!

 Saimang Monkey

Kenz won her soccer game 4-1 and she had an awesome shot; upper V, for the first goal!  Way to start the tourny Kenz!  Just found out though, that the tournament has been cancelled due to severe thunderstorms - it has been pouring since 6 am this morning!  Will has an indoor game at 10:30, but all other 6 games have been cancelled.  So, we are going to hang out and watch movies, play games, whatever.  Jared also just found Jimmy Buffet tickets for tonight's concert in Nashville, so the adults may partake in some fun downtown tonight!

What a blessing these past two weeks have been for Otto and I to be able to spend every minute with the Hanson family!