Tornado Warning Weekend

 I can't believe that it's Tuesday already. The days are flying by. Completely crazy. As to the title of this post, it has been a rip-roaring Saturday, Sunday and Monday weather wise around here. There were tornado watches all three nights and although there were warnings all around us, the only time we actually had a warning was Sunday night, although there were other ones very close by. We jumped in the truck with Zoey and went to Curt & Barb's basement as they're only about 2 blocks away and Mandy & Brad's house is much farther.  We hung out in their basement for about an hour or so and had a great time visiting while we listened with half an ear to the weather radio. 

This, my friends, was the main reason I was happy to move to Spokane all those years ago. Tornado's. I've lived through a couple of very close calls, including seeing the proverbial cow flying through the air. Yes. I saw that when I was about 13-14 years old and have never forgotten it. Then a BIG one in 1975 that flattened a big part of Omaha when I was 15. Dennis's Mom barely missed being in the middle of that one. I was at work at the nursing home getting people out of beds and into hallways. There is no real warning with tornadoes. Although forecasting is much better than it used to be, one can literally drop out of the clouds right above you with no warning. Although I don't get as scared as I used to, I still do not like them.

A house a few blocks from Mandy's did get struck by lightening and they had hail, otherwise they were fine too. We have a tornado shelter here at the condo, but it's just a building built with bricks instead of wood and it's at the front of the complex. We would have been soaked trying to run there because the rain was pelting down. I think we would be just as safe in our garage as we would be there. But we know how to get into Curt & Barb's even if they aren't home and that's what we'll do if we have enough warning. Today was COLD compared to the last week and no rain forecast for awhile. Thank goodness.

And now onto much nicer things. A lady at church brought two huge bouquets of peonies to church on Sunday. After church we could take some home if we wanted as they would just be left there otherwise. I brought just one and let me tell you, it has made the condo smell SO good. I love peonies and have had them at all of our houses. I do miss them. And do you see the sweet Mother's Day card I got from Miss Piper? I love hedgehogs and it was the most wonderful card. It says I'm one of her favorite people and believe me, she's one of my favorites too.

Dennis went out kayaking with our camping buddies last Thursday before the wild weekend weather hit. This is our two person inflatable kayak and it wasn't the easiest by himself. I really need to try to go with him sometime. I don't swim and with my back I'm not sure I can even climb in, but I know he would love it if I tried. He called me when they were done and I met them at Culver's for some frozen yogurt.

I finished two more prayer shawls for the Med. Center and took them, along with 3 others, to my sister on Sunday and she delivered them when she went to rock babies in the NICU last night.

The first one is a simple granny square shawl. It's 18 x 70 inches and perfect for someone in a hospital bed or wheelchair.

I played a game of yarn chicken as I made it. I had exactly 5 1/2 inches left of white when I finished it. I am completely out of worsted weight white and cream. I have been trying not to buy yarn this year, but I do need to have white and cream on hand so I think I've going to have to break down and buy some. 

This one used the last of my stash of cream. It wasn't even a full skein.

Now I've started another "Grace" baby blanket using Mandela Baby in the Diagon Alley color way.

We leave on Monday for the Black Hills with Piper. Hopefully the internet will work while we're there. It has worked at that campground in the past, but not fast by any stretch of the imagination. We're looking forward to it for sure. It's our favorite place to camp, (in the summer.) In the winter there is waaaay to much snow. :-)

Thank you for asking about the skin biopsies. Although they were both considered pre-cancerous, they were benign and now they're gone. It's weird because both were in places that the sun doesn't ever touch. I'm just glad they are now gone and I have no worries about them anymore.

Take care my friends. I'll be back soon and will be visiting with all of you on your blogs. Continuing to pray for the world and all of those who don't know the love of Jesus. Without Him I would be nothing.

Blessings and love,

Betsy

WITHOUT HIM

By: Mylone R. LeFevre

Without Him, I could do nothing
Without Him, I'd surely fail
Without Him, I would be drifting
Like a ship without a sail

Without Him, I would be dying
Without Him, I'd be enslaved
Without Him, life would be worthless
But with Jesus, thank God I'm saved

Oh Jesus, oh Jesus
Do you know Him today?
Please don't turn Him away
Oh Jesus, my Jesus
Without Him, how lost I would be
Without Him, how lost I would be

Tulip or Stem Festival?

We returned from our camping trip and I tried to catch up with your blogs last night after catching up on laundry and other necessities. We had a great time. The days were warm and the nights were cool, down to 41F the third night! As the blog title says, we missed prime tulip time. Most of what were left was stems in the flower beds. Apparently the peak bloom was about 3-4 weeks ago. We had such a warm spring and you just can't plan on that can you? The actual Tulip Festival, with a craft fair, parade and all kinds of events started Thursday and goes all weekend. I think there will be a lot of disappointed people in Pella, Iowa this weekend. 

It didn't affect us much. We all had a great time. There are lots of great shops, restaurants, bakeries, meat & cheese shops, etc. Pella is in southeast Iowa and I can't believe I had never been there. It was about a 3 1/2 hour drive each way for us, pulling the camper.

In the photo below from left to right, Curt & Barb, Terri & Phillip, Angie & Jeff, Dennis & I and Zoey. Yes, we have a dog stroller. It's our first time using it and she loved it. There were a lot of people there and it was much better than a leash.

Curt & Phillip are both Dennis's cousins. Phillip has had a LOT of health issues and is waiting for a heart transplant. He and Terri stayed in a hotel and spent the daytimes with us.

This was the only bed of tulips still blooming and even those were starting to droop a lot. This sculpture is a sundial and was very accurate.

Outside the visitor kiosk were a pair of wooden shoes. Unfortunately they didn't fit very well. Ha!

This was the view from our camper door. No close neighbors. I have to say, I think it was the most peaceful and beautiful campground we've stayed in. The spots were huge. We had bluebirds flying all around us the entire time. So much birdsong. There is an eagle sanctuary right across the DesMoines River from the campground.

Sitting around the campfire, but I missed taking a photo of the actual campfire! Such peaceful evening and so fun. We played a bunch of different trivia games, boys against the girls. We didn't keep score but I'm pretty sure the girls won.

This is such a cool sculpture by the river. It's shows all of the birds of the area and how large their wingspan is. I wish I could have gotten enough detail to show the writing on each bird. Our campground was called Howell's Station, but there used to be a river ferry crossing here years ago called Horn's Ferry.

These were the original ferry prices for traffic crossing the river. 

Then a bridge was built to replace it. I hope you can enlarge this and read it. The portion left of the bridge is from the river bank on the left to the supports on the right of the photo below. The rest of it collapsed into the river in 1992. We were able to walk out on the bridge to that spot. A bit scary because of the plank floor. You could see the river between the planks but it was still fun. From there we watched 5 adult eagles soaring through the sky and a baby across the river in it's nest.

We certainly had a wonderful time. Although my back prevented me from joining in, most of the others went kayaking, biking and hiking. It was so relaxing and although the diesel fuel prices weren't fun, we still thought it was worth it. It's a corps of engineers campground and with our America the Beautiful pass we only paid $12.00 per night! Most places are $75-$120 per night now, although we try to find deals where we can.

Yesterday I went to a Mother's Day luncheon at a community center here in Omaha. I've gone for the past three years with these same three friends that I've known for over 50 years! The speaker yesterday told the history of the Durham Centennial Museum that was originally the Union Pacific Railroad Depot. Every year they have fantastic speakers. The first year I went it was about influential women from Omaha. Last year was about Elizabeth Barrett Browning. 

From left to right, Jaleena, Barb, Sheryl and yours truly. We had a wonderful time and enjoyed salads, chicken croissant sandwiches and brownies for dessert. I always enjoy the company of these three ladies. We've been through a lot together, even with me living so far away for so long. 

Dennis went to Piper's Taekwondo testing this morning and she advanced another belt. She's been doing so well and moving up steadily. Tomorrow we're going out to lunch with them and Brad's family. We like a restaurant in a tiny, tiny town called Malmo in farm country Nebraska. Really good food and very nice people. I'm looking forward to visiting with Brad's parents, we haven't seen them for a few months.

Happy Mother's Day to all of you as well!

I hope all is well with you all. 

Blessings and love,

Betsy

The Churches One Foundation

Text: Samuel J. Stone

Music: Samuel Wesley

1

The Church’s one foundation
  Is Jesus Christ her Lord;
She is His new creation
  By water and the Word:
From heav’n He came and sought her
  To be His holy Bride;
With His own blood He bought her,
  And for her life He died.

2

Elect from every nation,
  Yet one o’er all the earth,
Her charter of salvation,
  One Lord, one faith, one birth;
One holy Name she blesses,
  Partakes one holy food,
And to one hope she presses,
  With every grace endued.

3

’Mid toil and tribulation,
  And tumult of her war,
She waits the consummation
  Of peace for evermore;
Till, with the vision glorious,
  Her longing eyes are blest,
And the great Church victorious
  Shall be the Church at rest.

4

Yet she on earth hath union
  With God the Three in One,
And mystic sweet communion
  With those whose rest is won:
O happy ones and holy!
  Lord, give us grace that we,
Like them, the meek and lowly,
  In love may dwell with Thee.

Another Month Just Went Whoosh!

Where oh where is the time going? How can it possibly be May 1 already? I'm beginning to understand even better our daughter -in-law's Dad's saying, "Life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer you get to the end the faster it goes." And with that, here's a photo of me in Galveston at Bubba Gump's Restaurant. Doesn't it sound like something that Forrest Gump would say? I forgot this picture was on my phone until Dennis took the one below this week.

Here I am, sitting next to Ronald Regan outside of Sheel's Sporting Good's store here in Omaha. We had gone to a nearby restaurant for lunch after our doctors appointments last week and Sheel's is across the parking lot. Dennis wanted to get prices on some things and we always like to look at camping gear, so we wandered around the store to get a little bit of exercise. I had a few biopsies and my leg was really hurting so I had sat down for a minute when Dennis surprised me with this picture. I don't like photos of myself at all.  Believe me, Dennis didn't need the exercise. Besides very, very physical work at the Open Door Mission, he goes to the exercise room here at the condo several times a week for an hour and a half. Right now he's out doing a full-moon hike with friends. They're trying to hike the first evening of a full moon as it gets dark during this year. They really enjoy it and I encourage him to go with them, even though my back doesn't let me participate.

I finished the granny square shawl and really enjoyed working with the two tones of purple. I made the border up by just doing some double crochets, single crochets and a scallop stitch for the border. It's nice and long, almost 72 inches. This will be donated to UNMC prayer shawl ministry.

I made both of these little pieces this week while waiting at different places. Very simple and easy to do and only 6 inches in diameter. It made me realize just how much I have always enjoyed embroidery and I just haven't done much of it for awhile. I may get a few flour sack towels and make some dish towels for the camper.

This bottom one was only made with five different colors but I love it.

Tomorrow we'll take a run to the storage lot and load some food and clothes into the camper. On the way home after church on Sunday we'll turn the refrigerator on and go pick up the rest of the food and anything else we may need from the condo. Then we'll be off to Pella, Iowa and the Tulip Festival. We're camping with our usual gang. Our minister Jeff and his wife Angie, Curt and Barb. Also Curt's brother Philip, (who is also Dennis' cousin) and his wife Terri will be joining us during the day but staying in a hotel as Philip has had some serious health issues and isn't up to camping yet. 

We have other friends who were in Pella a couple of weeks ago who told us that the tulips were already past their prime when they were there. Last year it was the end of May before they bloomed. The weather has been so strange this year. Warm, then cold. So we may not see the tulips, but I think that Pella has other things to offer. Everyone except me is taking their bicycles and kayaks so there will be lots of other things to do too. We'll be there until Wednesday and then come back home. We're both looking forward to being back in the camper. Fun times for sure.

I just thought this picture below was a cute photo I saw online. Even though our girls aren't long-haired chihuahua's, the sentiment is the same for Zoey and Lizzie. :-)

I hope you are all doing well. We've been busy, just doing doctor visits and this and that. A funeral this past week of a long-time friend who died at 68 of cancer. She was a bright spot in this world with a smile on her face until the very end. She will be missed, but oh, how she's celebrating in Heaven right now with Jesus! The memorial service was a fitting tribute to LuAnn, with lots of uplifting stories of her life and happy "Jesus Music" as she called it way back when we sang together in our 20's. We were in a group that traveled the midwest singing concerts.

I'm not sure if the campground we'll be at will have any internet, so I'm not sure if I'll be online. There aren't a lot of amenities there, so not sure how good cell reception will be for my hotspot. If I can get online I will be visiting with you all. Take care and I'll be back soon.

Blessings and hugs,

Betsy

What a Day That Will Be

By: Gaither Vocal Band and Jim Hill

What a day that will be
When my Jesus I shall see
And I look upon his face
The one who saved me by his grace
When he takes me by the hand
And leads me through the Promised Land
What a day, glorious day that will be (in the second person)

There'll be no sorrows there
No more burdens to bear
No more sickness and no more pain
No more parting over there
But forever I will be
With the one who died for me
What a day, glorious day that will be

What a day that will be
When my Jesus I shall see
When I look upon his face
The one who saved me by his grace (but when he)
When he takes me by the hand (takes me by the hand)
And leads me through the Promised Land
What a day, glorious day that will be

Oh, what a day that will be
When my Jesus I shall see
When I look upon his face
The one who saved me by his grace (but when
When he takes me by the hand (he takes me by the hand)
And leads me through the Promised Land
What a day, glorious day that will be