Our whirlwind weekend

We had a whirlwind weekend trip to Lancaster County. We didn't leave State College until 8 PM Friday, because of the later shift Dick worked. I was afraid we'd drive through torrential rain all the way home, with Tropical Storm Bill making his way northward, but to our surprise, there were times it wasn't raining at all. We enjoyed good conversation as we drove.

Our first order of business was picking up Destiny, who called us several times throughout the evening. She was so excited for us to get there. I sat in the back seat with her and hugged her all the way from Reading to Lititz. We got to our house around 11:45, and everything was just as we'd left it, except the grass had grown! Actually, the house smelled like someone would have shampooed the carpets!! I have no idea why. It's been over a year since I had that done, but it was nice to be greeted with such a nice, clean smell!

It didn't take us long to go to bed, since there's no internet service at the house anymore. We didn't spend one minute on blogs or Facebook or emails all weekend! Hmmm. Remember those days???

On Saturday morning we started the process of getting ready for the Sunday's joint worship service. There were many people involved in setting up the school gym with chairs, tables for food, mics, music stands, sound system, etc. At 1:00 the worship team, comprised of 13 people from all three churches, met for our only practice. It would have been better to have two practices like we did last year, but because I was leading the team, that was impossible this time. So we plowed through our seven songs two times in a row. And it was HOT!!!! There is no AC in the school gym, and Saturday was a very hot, humid day.

After finishining there, we went to a local country store for some necessary groceries that cannot be bought anywhere in State College, at least not for the same low price.

Then we went to visit my dad and stepmother. I had been told that Dad is rapidly getting weaker and spends most of his time in bed. So I was very pleasantly surprised to find him in his power chair when I arrived. My sister Mary Ellen was there for the weekend, and soon my sister Doris arrived. We sat around the table talking about "the old days" and laughing. We knew Dad was getting tired, but he was enjoying himself so much he didn't want to leave the table. Spending time with family means SO MUCH to him these days. He said he was sure he would remember this day in eternity!

Finally he agreed to let us help him into his bed in the sunroom. Then we sang. At first he didn't want a songbook, saying he'd groan along every now and then. But already on the first hymn he was singing bass and soon asked for a book. We sang song after song after song in four part harmony. After one particularly good sounding song he said, "When are we taking our next appointment?" He meant for a family program like we used to do!!

Some songs were hard to sing. Like verse four of "Does Jesus Care?"

Does Jesus care when I've said goodbye
To the dearest on earth to me?
And my sad heart aches till it nearly breaks?
Is it aught to Him, does He see?

Oh YES, He cares, I know He cares,
His heart is touched with my grief.
When the days are weary, the long nights dreary,
I know my Savior cares.

And so many songs were about Heaven. We're so glad to know he will be in Heaven and no longer in pain and weakness, but it's so terribly hard to think of letting him go. Every moment spent with him is so precious.

Sunday's weather was more bearable, and the worship service was again a very special time with the Lord and with the three churches together. I did not have a chance to take any pictures, but I saw a former student of mine taking some, so I'll see if I can get some from him to post later. There was a wonderful meal served afterward, and plenty of time to talk and talk and talk and talk....... But not enough. Afterward I realized there were people I had missed altogether.

After we got home I took a nap while Dick mowed our yard, then we packed up and began our trip back to State College. Destiny was in much better spirits when we left her this time. School starts this week, which she's looking forward to, and I am planning to go to Lancaster County next weekend again. I've decided that right now spending time with my dad while he's still here is a very important priority. I drove part of the way back so Dick could take a nap. Later when he was driving again I had some good phone conversations with Lisa and Jeremy about Grandpa. It's so hard for them to be so far away at this time.

We stopped at Giant just before we got home to buy fresh flowers and a card for Lori. Her birthday is today. It was about 10:00 when we got home. Austin was already sleeping, of course, but Lori and Anthony were up. In fact, the house smelled absolutely yummy from the curried chicken, rice, and oxtail she had been cooking. It tasted even yummier.

And THEN there was the Facebook, emails, and blogs to catch up on after a whole weekend away from the internet! So, needless to say, it was late when we finally hit the sack. Thankfully, Dick did not have to work the early shift today.

Waiting to leave

We're driving to Lancaster County sometime this evening - whenever Dick gets finished at work. We're always glad when Pep Boys has lots of work, just not today! I guess we'll be driving in rain all the way. Fun, fun.

We no longer have internet access at our house in Lititz, so no updates till we get back to State College Sunday night.

A drizzly day

This was a drizzly kind of day. This morning I did more weeding around the pool, and actually, the light drizzle felt good. Cheryl, you asked about the pool the other day. Yes, there's a pool, but it needs repairs, so Anthony didn't open it this year. Hopefully next year.

This evening Lori, Anthony, and Austin went to Harrisburg for a King of the Blues competition that Anthony took part in. He was one of two winners and goes to the next round on Sept. 10th.

Dick worked until 9 this evening, so I had a lot of time to myself. I went to the bank and McDonalds, then got myself lost on the way home, but I found myself again!!

We're leaving tomorrow evening for Lancaster County for the weekend. It will be a busy two days because of the joint worship service on Sunday and the preparations for it on Saturday. Plus I definitely want to spend some time with my dad and stepmother. And of course we get to see Destiny again. She called today and can hardly wait.

Normal things around here

This is not an unusual scene in the mornings around here - three generations of Stauffer males bonding over breakfast. Austin makes a lot of mess and a lot of noise when he eats.

Remember this picture taken when we were in Florida back in June? Lisa sat Austin on the potty right before his bath, just because it looked so cute. We all shrieked with laughter, and he thoroughly enjoyed it.

Well, believe it or not, it's becoming a daily occurrence around here! Let me say, first of all, that neither Lori nor I are the "hurry and grow them up fast" type. But he honestly makes such an unmistakably loud grunt when he's ready to poop, that we immediately take him to the bathroom, remove his diaper, sit him on the toilet, and he goes (a LOT!!) - just like that! It's hilarious!! Sure makes cleaning up that little bottom a whole lot easier!!

Weeds and distractions

This morning the weather was just as perfect as could possibly be. I decided I didn't feel like staying indoors and was in the mood for some hard physical labor, so I attacked the weeds in one of Lori's flowerbeds.

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A couple of hours later when I finished it, it was getting pretty hot and I definitely felt like I had done some hard physical labor! Later I told Anthony to look out over the deck to see what I had done. He looked and couldn't see anything. MEN!!!!

This evening I was trying to do some work on the computer, but there was this constant distraction right next to me on the bed. What an adorable distraction, almost always smiling.

When he got tired of sitting up, he discovered that Grandpa's belly made a nice, soft back rest!

Little swinger!

On Saturday Lori found this swing at a yard sale in the neighborhood. We have it hanging out on the deck, and he LOVES it!

I was very aware today that the staff at MCDS was having an in-service day. It felt so strange to be missing it. I'm just a nosey enough person that I hate to miss out on everything that's going on and all the good laughs that I know they had. But I have peace. I know God has led my path. And it's not hard at all to love my new "job".

More info about the books

This morning Lori and I (and of course Austin) went to church. Anthony is just now returning home from Nashville, and Dick worked today. This afternoon I finally got to talk to Destiny on the phone. She was so excited about the things she had gotten in the mail from me, and said she has written a letter to me, but she can't tell me what it says. I had sent her an extra piece of paper and a stamped, addressed envelope so she could easily write to me. I hope someone will get it to a mailbox for her.

In a comment on yesterday's post, my friend Cheryl asked if I could give just a hint what the Yada Yada Prayer Group books are about. So I went to Neta Jackson's website and copied the introduction to the first book in the series.

The Yada Yada Prayer Group^®

a Novel by

Neta Jackson

What do an ex-con, a former drug addict, a real estate broker, a college student, and a married mother of two have in common?

Nothing, or so Jodi Baxter thought. Who would have imagined that God would make a group as mismatched as that the closest of friends?
“I almost didn’t even go to the Chicago Women’s Conference—after all, being thrown together with five hundred strangers wasn’t exactly my ‘comfort zone.’ But I would be rooming with my boss, Avis, and I hoped that maybe I might make a friend or two.
“When Avis and I were assigned to a prayer group of twelve women at the conference, I wasn’t sure what to think. There was Flo, an outspoken ex-drug addict; Ruth, a Messianic Jew who could smother-mother you to death; and Yo-Yo, an ex-con who wasn’t even a Christian! Not to mention women from Jamaica, Honduras, South Africa—practically a mini-United nations. We certainly didn’t have much in common.
“But something happened that weekend to make us realize we had to hang together. So ‘the Yada Yada Prayer Group’ decided to keep praying for each other via e-mail. That worked for a while, but our personal struggles and requests soon got too intense for cyberspace, so we decided to meet together every other Sunday night.
“Talk about a rock tumbler!—knocking off each other’s rough edges, learning to laugh and cry along the way. But when I faced the biggest crisis of my life, God used my newfound girlfriends to help teach me—Jodi Baxter, longtime Christian ‘good girl’—what it means to be just a sinner saved by grace.”
The rest of the seven books in the series are a continuation of the things these women and their families go through, REAL LIFE situations, and the way they pray for each other and support each other through thick and thin. These are by far the best novels I have ever read.

A rare Saturday, indeed

This was such a different kind of Saturday for me, I feel like it was a dream. I had NO PLANS, no Sunday preparations, no responsibilities. I feel almost guilty to even write such a thing. So what did I do with myself? I took a walk, I took a bath, I played with Austin, I made a bunch of phone calls, I went to Target with Lori, and mostly I read and read and read. I can hardly put this new book down. I'm sure I'll finish it before I go to sleep tonight, and then what am I going to do? The next book in the series isn't even published yet. The title of this one is Where Do I Go? the first one in the Yada Yada House of Hope series by Neta Jackson. (But read the Yada Yada Prayer Group series first.) I know you're probably tired of hearing me talk about these books all the time, but they're just that good. I can't help it.

And now for some pictures from today. Here's Austin getting his evening bath. I think I surprised him when I walked in on him.

This is where I sat to read for a few hours this evening. The weather was downright pleasant.

Lori brought Austin outside to me to say goodnight. He loves big, sloppy kisses.

And what are we looking at as Lori snaps pictures?

The beautiful pink and blue sky.

Nanny and gad-about

Lori had a conference to attend today, so I was on duty by 8:30. Dick didn't have to start work until 10:30 so he enjoyed having some play time with Austin. Just before I took this picture he was smiling so big and bright, but do you think he would flash a smile for my camera?

After his first nap I fed him cherries. What a mess! And look what his bib says! We had a wonderful day together.

Today Anthony left for an amplifier show in Nashville. Unfortunately, because of the bad storms in the Philly area, his flight out of Philly was cancelled, so he's spending the night there and going the rest of the way early in the morning. He'll be back Sunday.

This evening I had fun gadding about. First I went to the library down town, but they were about to close, so I quickly got my new library card and grabbed a Baby Einstein DVD for Austin. Then I found a wonderful Barnes and Noble and I found the book I wanted by Neta Jackson. I finished all seven books in her Yada Yada Prayer Group series. Now she has started a new series that has some of the same people in it, called House of Hope. I think she has just published the first one so far, and that's the one I got. I can't wait to start it.

As I left Barnes and Noble I just had to grab my cell phone and take a picture of the view. I never realized how this entire town is surrounded by mountains. It was a beautiful sight, but my cell phone did not do it justice.

After I left the bookstore I went to Giant and took forever looking for all the things on our grocery list. I miss my little Weisers Market so close to our house. I knew where everything was in that store.

I'm really missing Destiny tonight. It just doesn't feel right for it to be Friday night without her. I sent her several things this week, and tomorrow I'll call her. And of course I'm praying for her with every thought. I want to call and catch up with my dad and stepmother tomorrow too.

Lori's first day back

Today was Lori's first official day back at work - no classes yet, but orientations. Wouldn't you like to have her for your professor? If you want to know more about what she does at Penn State, here's a website you can go to.

Here she is, all ready to go and looking fine!

Sometime this morning Anthony came upstairs from his studio and said he needs to go to the attic to get some of his old CD's that a customer wants to buy. I asked, "How do you get to the attic?" "Right here," he answered as he climbed up. And this is what I saw! Nice.

Once again, Austin was a pure pleasure to take care of. He has the most easy going personality. Of course, he's at the stage where EVERYTHING goes into his mouth.

As he jumped in his chair, he turned himself around and what to his wondering eyes did he see??? A cute little face looking back at him from the cabinet glass! That kept his attention for a long time.

Early this evening we went to a park for a picnic with Lori's department. Of course her co-workers enjoyed meeting Austin. However, he wasn't interested in making a good impression. He spit up majorly on one woman, and then again on another! That is something he almost never does anymore.

Dick is just now finishing up work for the day, after having started at 8 this morning. They were swamped with jobs today, so he put in several hours of overtime. After the picnic we took him a big plateful of food. He's been working so hard, and doing without his big bowlful of ice cream each night, and guess what? He's been losing some weight without trying to!

This town is crazy right now

This morning I decided to go for a walk before I did anything else. As it happened, Austin was awake already, so I put him in his jogging buggy, and away we went. He LOVES being outdoors. My feet wore out long before his contentment did.

This afternoon I needed to get some things at WalMart. What a crazy day to be there, and what memories it brought back to me. The place was crawling with college kids and their parents getting those last minute things for dorm rooms and apartments. How well I remembered being at this very same WalMart doing the very same thing several years in a row. I overheard a girl calling her mom on her cell phone, saying, "Mom, I put some more things on that credit card, because my account is empty till I get that job." I thanked the Lord that I was not that mother!

Driving in downtown State College was NUTS on the way home. In addition to all the kids moving into town, one of the main streets is under construction! And to top it off, there was an accident tying things up. I was glad to finally get home and do something mundane like making a big pot of spaghetti sauce.

The new and the very old

I slept seven hours last night! I know that's not news for most people, but I'm one of those people they're talking about in the news these days - I think I have that gene that causes one to need only six hours of sleep, always have been. However, this summer I was lucky if I could sleep more than four or five hours per night.

This morning I found my way to the post office and a grocery store. Tomorrow I hope to find Fulton Bank, CVS, and the library. This afternoon I stayed here with Austin while Lori worked at her office on campus. He's incredibly easy to take care of, and he LOVES my piano. Unfortunately, I didn't think of snapping any pictures today.

There was a really bad storm while I was watching him this afternoon. The electricity blinked many times and it was terribly windy. After supper this evening I went for a walk and saw two trees down. The one looked like it had been blown down by the wind. The other appeared to have been struck by lightning, split right down the middle. Thankfully, neither one hit the homes they were in front of.

This evening I'm finally having time to do something I have been meaning to do for 7 months!! For my last birthday gift my sister Mary Ellen decided to arrange a tour of our first childhood home. Because my Christmas season, and the weeks leading up to it, have always been so hectic due to my big Christmas program at school, she decided we would wait to do the tour until after Christmas. On the first scheduled Saturday there was snow, so we cancelled. On the second scheduled date, January 17, I had been up till very, very late the night before keeping up to the minute with the news of Austin's birth! That Saturday morning I was chomping at the bit to get on the road to State College to see that new grandson, but we kept our "tour" appointment first. Somehow, in the excitement over his birth, I never did the post about the tour.

This was my first home - we moved away from it when I was 5, but I have vivid, very detailed memories of every room of the house. It was SO MUCH FUN to go through the house, even though much has changed. My dad, brother Dick, and sister Doris also went along that day. Oh, how the stories flowed!!

On this picture, with a view of the front of the house, are Janet (holding her doll, Mary Ellen, me (in the cap), and brother Dick with the dog.

And this is the house as it looked on January 17th. A beautiful farmhouse indeed.

We did it!

This morning Dick and I finished packing the things we needed to take with us, got the truck loaded, turned everything off that could be turned off (pretty much everything but the refrigerator, which is quite empty), locked everything, exchanged important information with the neighbors, made a few necessary stops in town, stopped in to see my Dad and stepmother, and then we hit road and headed toward State College.

We arrived at our new "home" around 3:00 this afternoon. It was a HOT day, but with Anthony and Lori's help we unloaded everything.

Look who was happy to see Grandma!! Could those dimples get any deeper or those legs any chubbier??

I realized this afternoon that it's fifteen years, almost to the day, that we came to State College for the very first time - to move Lisa to Penn State for her junior year of college. A year later Anthony arrived for his first year of college, and he's been here ever since. So we have made many, many trips here in the last fifteen years and it feels pretty familiar.

We've spent hours organizing our room. What a MESS!!! It's looking much better already, but I'm not showing any "after" pictures until we're finished.

Our bedroom is big - formerly Anthony's band practice room (it's sound proof, woo hoo!!) So one corner of it is my office, complete with my piano. Of course, getting the computer set up was the first priority!

It's happening

Well, it's happening. Dick came home with a Budget truck today. It now contains our bedroom furniture, my piano, and our little chest freezer. There are boxes of necessary things from the desk, the filing cabinet, the bathroom, the pantry, my closet, my music, etc. Tomorrow morning I'll put things from the frig in a cooler. Last of all, we will dismantle our computer/monitor/ printer set-up and pack all that up. I'll probably discover that I forgot something important, but I guess they have stores in State College.

I took Destiny home this evening amidst many tears. My heart is so heavy for her, but I need to trust that the Lord loves her even more than I do and that He will be with her. This morning at church several of my dearest intercessor friends prayed with me about this, and I know they are praying for her too. I stopped at Wal Mart on the way home this evening and bought her a singing card which I'll put in the mail tomorrow. I'll probably send her a letter or two as well. To her, twelve days seems like an absolute eternity.

I have never lived outside Lancaster County in my entire life, and my roots are very deep. I always thought I would love the chance to start out somewhere new. But I think my brave heart left me somewhere along the line. Right now I am rejoicing that this move is happening in stages and that there are loved ones at the other end. I have a brand new admiration for my friends and family who moved to completely new areas of the country/world with no one they knew at the other end.

State College, Anthony, Lori, Austin....ready or not, here I come.

Weekend visitor/playmate

Last evening my friend Tuwana from Virginia arrived, much to Destiny's delight. It worked out great to have Tuwana here, because I had a hair appointment this morning, so Tuwana took Destiny to the park. They've been playing all kinds of things together - dolls' hair, V-Tech, Dance, Dance Revolution - all the things I never seem to have time to do with her. THANK YOU, Tuwana!!

This afternoon I mowed our yard, and it was HOT. I should have burned off some calories doing that, let me tell you! Then we went to the pool at the rec center, but I couldn't go in because I couldn't find my swim suit anywhere. I have a feeling it's in Florida somewhere. It spent a whole year down there once before and was found in Lisa's linen closet after I had already gotten a new one. But it's still my favorite, so please don't throw it out, Lisa or Jeremy, whoever finds it!

Destiny will spend the evening with her daddy and I'll probably try to go through a few more things in preparation for Monday. Dick is working today, but he'll be picking up a rental truck after work and driving home in the morning in time for church. It's really happening. I can't believe it.

Busy days

It's after midnight (Thursday night) and I'm still up. I just realized this is my last night at home alone. Whew. I survived. Tomorrow night Destiny will be here, as well as my friend Tuwana from Virginia, who is coming for the weekend. Sunday night Dick will be here, and Monday night I'll be in my bed at Anthony and Lori's. Wow. I can't believe it.

This morning we had a very long meeting with a nurse and a social worker from Hospice. They were tremendously kind and helpful in helping us to understand the role they will now be playing in Dad's care. Tomorrow they will bring a bed to put in the lovely sun room, so Dad will not have to spend so much time in the bedroom. The view from the sun room is just spectacular, and I feel so happy thinking of him there.

I had a dentist appointment this afternoon to fix a tooth from which a filling fell out sometime in the last week or two. I never realized it happened, just noticed one day that there was a hole in my tooth. So, did I swallow that filling????? Maybe that's why I had such dreadful indigestion for a few days last week, ha, ha, ha!

This evening I had a practice here with Dick's brother Steve and a former student of mine, Hillary. We are going to sing the Brooklyn Tab song, I'm Amazed, at the joint worship service in a few weeks. If I must say so myself, we sounded pretty darn good. And that song just gives me the goosebumps.

I've also gotten all the music ready for this Sunday as well as for the joint service in two weeks. And got our change of address at the Post Office taken care of, and the house phone service cancelled as of Monday, and the cable downgraded and the internet service stopped as of Tuesday, and the furnace and AC serviced, and pictures finally ready to be mailed to Miki, and now I don't know her new address........ I'm putting myself to sleep. If you read this, Miki, send me your new address. Good night, all.

My fractured soul

I know I need to write something here, but it's hard to know what to say out of my fractured soul in such a public forum as this blog.

As I plug along through all the things I need to accomplish before Monday, my tears are flowing freely and God and I are having an ongoing conversation. There are many things tearing at my heart, but hearing the news from the oncologist yesterday that my dad's bone scan showed cancer in many of his bones has just undone me. On the way home from the doctor visit my dad said he was hoping he'd be able to get well enough to preach one more time. I asked him what sermon would he preach. He said, "The Wonder of It All." I said, "I remember that sermon. It's the one you preached the last time you were at my church a number of years ago." He said, "I can never stop being amazed at the grace of God."

That is so my dad. He is so in love with the Lord and has been for as long as I can remember. He said last week after his bone scan that as he lay there he just prayed and meditated to get through it. Yesterday he said that he spends most of his time in his bed, because that's where he's most comfortable. We wondered if he'd like a TV in his bedroom. He said he didn't think so - he still enjoys reading and he said he meditates on the Word while he lies there.

I am so challenged by that! Is there any better reason to memorize scripture? What will my thoughts be filled with when all I can do is lie in my bed? Will I have enough of the Word in my heart to fill my mind with it?

The oncologist gave us the go-ahead to get Hospice involved with his care at home to give my precious step mother the help she needs. So tomorrow morning we will be having a meeting with a person from Hospice.

And then there's Destiny. This move is very, very hard for her. Even though we plan to be with her every other weekend, she is so terribly sad. And my heart is just being ripped to pieces.

I feel like I'm at a point in my life where I'm literally needing to put my hands up in complete surrender. I know I have dreadful control issues. I like to be in control of everything I do, plus I like to help the struggling ones by being in control of their problems too. And sometimes (often) I have trouble believing that God can do as good a job of it as I can. How's that for true confession?

All that to say that this last year has put me in a position where I don't feel like I'm in control of anything, and I'm hanging on to God for dear life. It feels horrible, it feels scary, it feels okay.....sometimes. And maybe very occasionally it feels a little bit exciting. Because I know He likes getting me to the point where I need Him so desperately. And I know from Psalm 62:11 & 12 that He is strong and He is loving - two good reasons I can trust Him. Psalm 138: 8 tells me that He will fulfill His purpose for me, and I claim that for all the ones on my heart. Those are just a few of the scriptures that I have been writing all over the place (even on toilet paper!) and putting them at places where I see them throughout the day. Maybe I AM starting to gather my meditations for that future day.

On a much happier note, Dick is doing tremendously well at his job and is making a quite an impression on the management there. It must be a breath of fresh air for them to have an employee with the experience he has, plus the work ethic and attitude he has. Go, Dick!

And please don't think that I'm not remembering that next week at this time I'll be living in the same house as, and caring for, the most precious grandson in the world. I know he will be a good healer for me.

Destiny and Grandma's trip to Florida

Early Saturday morning Destiny and I left the house for the Harrisburg International Airport. She's been my little traveling buddy ever since she went to Sweden with me at age 19 months, and we both just love to fly! She knows all the ropes - I think she could do it herself! And she did SO WELL!! We had a really fun, enjoyable trip, both coming and going, and of course while in Florida. The main reason for the trip was to see Jeremy perform in a musical, but we had plenty of other special times too.

George met us at the Tampa airport and took us directly to their "old" house where they were hanging out with their friends who rent the house from them. George and Lisa really, really miss the pool at this house. Here the two couples are - Lisa, Mary, Adam, and George.

Adam and Mary have four children, so Destiny had plenty of playmates.

AND they have a trampoline too!

Adam made some fantastic pizza on their grill - an idea we have got to try sometime. Just as we were finished eating there was a severe thunder storm. We waited till it was over, then headed north to Lisa and George's new house. We weren't on the road long until we were in one of the worst rain storms ever - and you know I've had plenty of experience driving in torrential rain this summer.

By the time we reached their house, the roads were dry - but not for long. That evening it rained and rained and rained and rained. Their back yard began to look like a pool! (By the way, this picture was not taken that dark day - I took it right before we left for the airport yesterday.)