31 years and counting.....

Today is Bruce's and my 31st anniversary. Its been a wonderful ride!!! We have had many great times together. We have two wonderful daughters, two terrific sons-in-law, and the cutest granddaughter in the world!!

Bruce has been my best friend and will always be. I have always been able to count on him to lift me up and love me. I thank God for him. I don't always tell him how much I appreciate him, and I am going to change that right now.

Life has not always been easy, but we have tried to keep God as the main focus of out lives and He has blessed us with manifold blessings.

Here's to another 31...at least!!

Anniversary Angst...

What do you get a man who has everything he wants and/or needs??? Our anniversary is fast approaching and I have not one clue as to what to get Bruce. I did get him tickets to see David Copperfield here in Billings, but that doesn't seem like much. He always seems to come up with something nice for me at holidays, birthdays and anniversarys and I am always scrounging at the last minute because of lack of ideas. If any one of my 3 or 4 followers have a suggestion - I am very open!!!!

As an aside, I had a great surprise this past weekend. I had known that a gentleman was coming to visit our congregation regarding a new work he is undertaking in Chicago, but I never heard his name. As it turns out, it is Kerry Holton - my youth group leader from my senior year in high school in Oklahoma. I hadn't seen him in 30 years. It was so great to see him again. I only wish his wonderful wife, Becky, had been with him. It is always a blessing to see old friends and renew those relationships. God is so good!!!

Just for fun - here is a Montana "no trespassing" sign.

The Death of Winter - HOPEFULLY!

Is Spring finally here? One could only hope!! We have been teased with nice weather about once a week for a month, but then it will get cold again and snow. I like winter just fine, but it should end sometime in March. I am so ready for warm weather and sunshine. I am ready to hit the golf course, and I know that Bruce is ready to go fishing. Unfortunately, we have no control over the weather and must live with what we get.

Every day on my way to and from work, I look for two hawks that live near me. One is a large, immature hawk (I'm not sure what kind) who lives about a block or two from here. I see it almost every day sitting on top of a utility pole. Once I even saw him dive down to capture his dinner. The other hawk I see is a Kestrel-which is my favorite species of hawk. There are actually a pair that live about two miles from my home. I see one of them almost every day on the power line. It just thrills me when I see them-OK, I get cheap thrills-but I do love to see a hawk flying - or even just sitting.

God has given us so many wonderful things to marvel about in our world. I hope you take time today to just revel in God's nature.

Lily's First Birthday

This weekend Bruce and I went to Idaho for our granddaughter Lily's first birthday. We had a great time!!! She is so sweet and such a cutie. We only wish we could see her more often. It was so nice to visit with Jim and Alyson. They have made such a nice home for themselves and they are such good parents. We were privileged to meet many of Jim & Alyson's friends at the birthday party. I am posting a couple of pictures - one of Lily and me, and one of Lily with her birthday cake (all over her!!). Alyson saved her first taste of chocolate for her birthday. She is a true Blackketter girl - she loves chocolate!!!!!!

Awesome Responsibility

Its been several days since my last post, so I thought I would bring the blog up to date. For those who read my blog - probably just my daughters - Bruce was installed as an elder in our congregation today. Its an awesome responsibility, with which I think he will do well. The Lord has truly blessed us in many ways. Not the least of which is a wonderful church family.

We are getting excited to go to Lily's first birthday in a couple of weeks. I cannot believe she is already a year old. Where does the time go??????? She is so cute - as you can see in the photo. It will be fun to be able to spend a few days with Jim & Alyson and Miss Lily. Please pray for fair weather and good roads.

And to end my blog for today, just a little quote about babies.....
When babies look beyond you and giggle, maybe they're seeing angels. ~Quoted in The Angels' Little Instruction Book by Eileen Elias Freeman, 1994

Winter Continues

(Reality)
Old man Winter teased us last week. He acted like he had headed to Australia to bless them with snow, but he came back. We received about 4 inches of snow last night and this morning. I don't mind winter - after all I do live in Montana, so it's expected - but enough is enough. I am suffering from a bad case of Spring fever.


(Desire)
I can hardly wait to go golfing. I also plan on getting my bicycle updated so I can go riding in my neighborhood. I want to go floating on the Yellowstone this summer with Bruce, too. We hope to do more fun things this spring & summer since we don't have a house to remodel.



Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine.
~Anthony J. D'Angelo, The College Blue Book

Fun with Friends

Saturday-Valentine's Day- we attended a part at a friend's house. There were several other couples and we played "The Newlywed Game". What a hoot!!! Bruce and I played against three other couples who have been married about the same length of time as we have. We lost miserably!!! The funny thing is, when we were first married, we played against people who had been married quit a lot longer than us, and we won by a mile. Oh, well. I guess he and I will just have to spend time getting reacquainted.
The best thing about the evening was spending time with friends with whom we have so much in common. We attend church together and enjoy spending time with them so very much. It is such a blessing to have good friends!! I hope each of you have good friends to spend time with and share good times.
Here's my quote for the day:
"Stop telling God how big your storm is and start telling your storm how big your God is."