Saturday, July 21, 2012

Happy Birthday Grandma!


Today is my Grandma Donna's birthday, she passed away in 2005. I had the opportunity to speak at her funeral. In honor of her today I am going to share what I read. 

Recently I had the chance to talk to my grandma in a very intimate way, I did an interview for a paper I wrote in April. I asked her all kinds of questions and found out so much about her. One of the things she stressed to me was family. She cared so much for her family. She always wanted to make others as happy as she was. One of the questions I asked her was, whom she most admired. She told me she admired her mother because she was so strong and always the backbone of the family. This hit home with me because I, along with many others, think my grandmother is the backbone of our family. She expressed to me her worries about her family when she passed away. She told me she worried her children would not get along and keep the family strong. Grandma would be happy to know that because we all have a part of her in us our family will stay strong and close nit. She is not only seen through us physically, but also in all she has taught us. Grandma Donna taught all of us that we must look on the bright side of things. She always stressed to me that when you find a bright side in all situations it makes life better and makes you happier. Grandma also instilled in all of us that the way you treat others is an important factor in a satisfying life. Even while she was in the hospital she was always concerned with everyone else. She knew all about the nurses, once while I was visiting she asked me about one of the nurse’s dog. This made me smile because here she is unable to speak and she wants to know about someone’s dog. Another way Grandma always cared for others was the way she would ask all kinds of questions every time she saw you. She would know exactly what was going on in your life and know exactly how to talk to you. She would know when to listen and when to give her opinion. Grandma Donna had so many amazing qualities and I can barely get across how wonderful she was. She was cheerful, sociable, genuine, trustworthy, classy, confident, wise, a giver, a teacher, a singer, and most of all a kisser. I will never forget my Grandma’s kisses. She kissed everyone. She knew how to show love and I will always admire that and strive to be the same. She was a giver because she would give you fifty dollars to spend when she took you shopping, but would pay for everything and make you save the money she gave you. She was classy in the fact that she was always so presentable; she had the best style, the best manners, and the best grammar. She was cheerful and you could see it in the way she presented her home, at Grandma’s you always felt welcome and felt at home. Almost every time I went over to Grandma’s she was in on her bed reading and she would have me come in and lay down with her so we could catch up on all that had happened in my life. She was so colorful and joyful in all she did. She let you know when you were doing something wrong, but she also let you know when you were doing something right. She was a gift giver in many ways. She loved to give you anything, whether it be her lip gloss or nail polish, her extra magazines or books, it could have been all the sweets in the world or something she bought for herself but thinks you need more, but most of all she gave advice and wisdom. She always did things to make others happy, but always made herself happy as well. Grandma Donna was also quite the singer; we will all miss her humming, whistling, and singing. It was always so comforting because you could just feel her happiness. Every time I see my Grandma in my self or anyone else I know it will make me smile because it is what she would have wanted. It’s amazing to me how many times I have already learned something from her or knew what she would have wanted since she has been gone. I love to know that it wont end in a couple days, but that it will go on forever. I know Grandma Donna would want everyone to rejoice in her memory and continue her love and her legacy. 

As I read over this 7 years later I think of my Grandma and how I think of her almost everyday. When I see a red bird, drive by a Big Lots or Tuesday Morning store, when I talk to my Baum side of the family, or when I see her beautiful picture on my bookcase. I know she would be so proud of me and she would remind me of the joy in my life. Love you Grandma!

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Two Days off

A couple months ago, Mike and I decided to go to St. Louis for vacation. Mike likes the Cardinals, so we were going to go to a game. Not too much later we found out our friend Blake got a job coaching at Army. It wasn't too hard of a decision to make to not go to St. Louis and save our money for a trip to New York. I had already asked off work for yesterday and today, so because of a busy last two weeks playing Director, I decided to take the days off and be home.

Yesterday I had a lot of work to do to prepare for Upper Elementary camp so I spent the whole morning working on that, Mike and I went swimming at Mom's, and then I had two meetings. Day off? Yeah, I guess.

Today I ran a few errands and worked on a couple Pinterest projects.

Brownie in a Mug
I have been wanting to show a friend how much she means to me, so today I made her a little gift. For you pinners, have you seen the "Brownie in a Mug" or the "Chocolate Chip Cookie and a Cup?" Well, I thought this would be perfect for my friend at her job. If she had what she needed she could in just a few minutes whip up a brownie. I also recently saw a pin for writing on a mug with a sharpie, baking it in the oven, and then the writing doesn't come off. So, I decided these two things would be great together. I got a mug for $1 at the Dollar Tree, wrote on it "There is nothing better than a good friend, except a good friend with chocolate." Then I realized I hadn't tried this brownie to see if it even tasted good, so I whipped one up and I was pleasantly surprised that it was yummy. The next step was to mix the ingredients, the dry ingredients into a ziploc baggie and the water and oil into a small plastic container. I got a spoon and a dish towel. I put the ziploc, the recipe, a spoon, and the plastic container inside the mug, wrapped it in the dish towel and wah-la! I know she will love it!

Jersey knit headband
I found a pin that was a homemade headband out of t-shirt material. Wouldn't ya know I just happen to have a few yards of orange jersey knit just calling my name to be something wonderful! It uses a 5 strand braid/weave technique. First you sew the ends of the 5 strips to start braiding. I followed the directions---good thing for pictures because I am not so good at following directions without them. When you're done braiding you sew the other end and then sew a piece of material around them and together. It turned out wonderful and I even wore it tonight when I took a trip to Walmart.

Tonight I am doing my first couple loads of laundry in our basement. We recently received a washer from a high school classmate, what a blessing! We had a dryer waiting for us, but we had to change out the plug in cord (Mike did a great job). Mike has done laundry, but tonight is the first time for me. Kinda fun, I'm sure the fun will end when the dryer buzzes and it is time to fold.

We have decided not to buy a house yet. We hadn't found the perfect thing for us so we decided to stay in our rental home. We really like our landlord and the neighborhood, so here we stay for awhile. Because we are staying we are turning our extra bedroom into a craft room/office. The extra bed will go downstairs in that bedroom...YOU can still come visit, don't worry. Surely if we spend a lot of work changing the to be nursery into something else a baby will come!

Speaking of baby, we are still waiting! God is good. We know He is faithful. He is not working on my time, it is His and that is how it is supposed to be. BUT don't let these words fool you, I am struggling. Yes I am struggling. A. Lot. I am so thankful to have the Lord on my side because I'm struggling, but I'm succeeding. Not as a mother yet, but as a child of God. I'm trying to be a light for Him. As I struggle I will continue to shine. I will not believe Satan's lie-I know my God is for me not against me!

Thanks for reading! I know it has been awhile.