Random Thoughts

1. I'm tired, but no so much as yesterday. The office was at a slower pace today;
2. I walked with Ramona this afternoon and am feeling it even now - cold out there, too!;
3. Another friend called me tonight (Connie) about the Destin conference in February;
4. I've begun preparing the Sunday School lesson for this coming Sunday - "Being Yourself;"
5. Ramona gave me some homemade chili for supper;
6. My hair needs washing, which means I get up earlier tomorrow morning - ugh!
7. Angela and I are having a yard sale the last weekend in January. My kitchen is piled!;
8. Looking forward to being off Friday - have a gift card I need to use. ha;
9. So thankful for heat in the winter and air in the summer;
10. Hooked on Diet Coke and Green Tea - think I'll go have one or the other.

Aren't you glad I shared all of that! Until next time...Wanda.

Dropped the Ball!

Yes, I've already dropped the ball on my good intentions to post something every day. But you must agree that I'm doing much better. It seems I come home from work every day wiped out and just don't have the energy to put my thoughts down. Since I'm the only staff person in the office, I have a lot more responsibilities besides the regular work keeping up with the three attorneys. I made three trips to the post office today and one trip to the courthouse. Since I'm at the front desk, I have to answer the phones, take care of visitors, make coffee, switch out backup tapes from server, supervise the runner, teach her how to do different things, and still get all the regular work done. I've even reniged on walking in the afternoons but MUST get back to that.

I spent this past weekend in Columbus with my three youngest grandchildren while Jawan and Mitch went to Macon for a church meeting. They were so good, and I enjoyed my time with them so much. Andrew said he wished I could just live with them forever or at least be their neighbor. ha. It is sad that families are not in close proximity with each other like in the "olden" days. But I'm thankful for telephones and computers to stay in touch.

My four-day work week began this month, so I now have Fridays off. That I like; the salary cut I don't like. However, I'm not gonna worry about that. I'm going to enjoy the long weekends and take mini vacations. There are a lot of places I want to go (Texas to see Linda and Crystal; Mississippi to see old school chums and long-time friends; Florida in February to a women's seminar; etc. etc.) and plan to hit the road on Thursdays after work to start working on my list.

It's bedtime so until next time...Wanda.

WM/Men's Ministry Meeting

The men's ministry invited the women's ministry to have a joint meeting with them tonight, so we accepted the invitation. There was a good turnout, and the food was delicious. The men cooked the meat, and the ladies provided side dishes and desserts. Yum, as usual. One of the men gave a short devotional on Romans 13:11-14 - "Wake up, time is short!", and we all left encouraged and stuffed. Those men eat well at every meeting; we just have finger foods. ha. But you know that the wives probably have to fix most of the food at home and let them take credit for it at the meeting, which is why we only have finger foods at ours. However, we always have plenty. I got lots of pictures of the men cleaning up, washing the dishes, drying them, carrying out garbage, etc. Gotta keep my scrapbook going! Our regular meeting is usually a week later than the men's, which normally would be next Tuesday. Now I'll have plenty of time to plan for the February and March meetings. I know you are thrilled with all this chatter, so I won't bore you further. Just had to post something! Until next time...Wanda.

My Tribute

I received in the mail today from my sister a copy of the funeral program and tribute booklet for my brother-in-law, Gwin Turner. All of their children and grandchildren, as well as a daughter-in-law and a granddaughter-in-law, wrote tributes to their father/grandfather/father-in-law. What a wonderfully sweet gesture that was -- it brought tears to my eyes -- and I began to think about what I could say about him.

Gwin and Norma (my sister) got married when she was only 15 years old and had been married for 57 years. I don't know if Gwin ever dated anyone else or not (he was 20 when they married), but I know Norma had not. In fact, the two of them never dated. We all went to the same church, and he would come to our house on the pretense of visiting with my older brother who was his age. Then he and Norma would sit together on the couch in the living room watching their manners lest one of our parents should walk by. Anyway, I was only 9 years old at that time, so I never felt very "close" to Gwin. They always lived in another state while getting their education (seminary in New Orleans, LA and further seminary in Fort Worth, TX), and I didn't get to spend any time with them.

One incident that has stuck with me through the years is when I went to stay with them for a few days after their first two children were born. By then I was about 12 or 13 years old. When either of the children misbehaved or didn't mind as he thought they should, Gwin would spank. That was ok, but it was what he did next that made my blood boil. He wouldn't let them cry and made them stand in front of him and smile at him before they could walk away. I yelled at him and he then threatened me and said if I didn't hush I would be next. Would you believe that as much as I love him today and as well as his children have turned out, I still get mad when I think about that!!!???!?!!!!!!! Is that unforgiveness or what?! We've talked about that incident several times in the recent past, and they (he and his children) think it's funny. Needless to say, I didn't and still don't. Maybe one day I can turn that loose. ha.

Besides being one of the best preachers I ever heard, Gwin was one of the sweetest, kindest men I've ever known. One thing that no one else has mentioned is the fact that he loved my sister with all his heart. He was a wonderful provider (not only for her but for the whole family), gave her lavish gifts, and made it known that she was his inspiration and joy. I've visited with then on several occasions, and Gwin always went with us wherever we went (Disneyland, Universal, California Adventures, etc.), took a book/Bible with him, his cell phone, found him a spot to sit close to a concession stand and told us to go have a good time for as long as we wanted. How many men do you know that would do that? I truly wish I could have known him better, but distance prevented. He had a beautiful voice and could play the accordion, too. After reading his family's memories, I see there was a lot about him I didn't know or get to see. I do know his family loved him dearly, and he will be missed by everyone, including me.

My sister has a long hard road ahead of her adjusting to life within Gwin, but her faith is strong, she has family support, knows where he is, and will be fine. I wish I could have gone to be with her during this time, but that just wasn't possible. Maybe in a month or two we can visit. In the meantime, she's in my heart and prayers. I love you, sis!

Until next time...Wanda.

My Favorite Day

This has been a bitter sweet day. I look forward to and love going to church, which I did today. However, three couples have decided to look for another church home, so my heart has been heavy in that regard. It's a long story and one I won't discuss, but I'm praying that hearts will be convicted, forgiveness asked for and granted, and that we'll pick up the pieces and go on with God's help. My pastor and wife came by my house tonight after to church to feel me out to see how solid I am. ha. I assured them I wasn't going anywhere. Other than that, it's been a good day.

For some reason, I couldn't go to sleep last night and stayed awake until around 5:00 a.m. this morning. I got up around 2:00 a.m. and cleaned part of my bedroom and scrapbooked some pictures. I finally got about 2 hours of sleep before having to get up and start the day. After lunch I decided I would come home and take a nap on the couch. Just as I got in a comfortable position and was about to doze off, Angela and Emily came by to use the computer. I love having them and it probably was best that I didn't soundly sleep. I always feel horrible when I wake up. However, Emily entertained herself with the TV in my bedroom, Angela was on the computer, and I sat in my recliner and napped. Needless to say, I'll be heading to bed in a few minutes.

The holidays are over and it's back to work tomorrow. From now on, however, I'll be having a four-day work week and plan to make use of Fridays off. Have a great week! Until next time...Wanda.

Uneventful Saturday

Yep, it's hardly worth writing about, but I'm trying to do better at posting. Emily spent the night again last night, and we stayed up until about 2:00 a.m. this morning watching movies and playing Phase 10. She slept until 12:00 noon today. I've washed clothes, which is about the only productive thing I did all day. Emily was picked up by Angela and Steve about 6:00 p.m., and I'm listening to the Falcon/Cardinal game as I sit in here and post. Even though the day was uneventful, it was safe, pleasant, and I always enjoy my grandchildren. So, I'm thankful for God's protection and provisions for not only me but my entire family. I'm looking forward to being in church tomorrow and hearing God's Word taught. Until next time...Wanda.

Day 2 of '09

Bet you can tell that Emily and I have spent the day together, and she's also spending the night with me. Angela and Steve had to go to Tallahassee to be with a church member who had surgery this morning and dropped Emily off with me. I had been invited to a surprise birthday get together for my friend Dottie tonight, so when I got ready to take Emily home, she did not want to go. So what did I as a grandmother do? I took her with me to the party and intended to take her to her house afterwards. She set in to spend the night with me so that's what we are doing. She is watching Tinkerbell and eating a pot pie while I post. Next weekend, I'll get to be with three of the other grands. Aren't they all wonderful!!!

I got my Christmas tree and decorations down and put away today, as well as some cleanup from Christmas. Floors vacuumed, mopped, dusted, etc. I'm not done, but it looks a lot better. I plan to do more tomorrow if there is time, but have promised Angela that I will help her move the rest of their stuff from the "temporary" house to the new house. It shouldn't take long, I hope. I need a haircut, and I have a gift card that I would like to spend. ha. So much to do; so little time.

I'm so thankful for my family and friends. I talk to all of my children every week - sometimes they call me, sometimes I call them - and we always express our love for one another. Then there are my friends who, although they are all married, ALWAYS include me in their activities. That means so much, and I hope this coming year that I will reach out to them and others they way they have done for me. I was thinking today of what I was going through one year ago in January 2007. Clinical depression so severe I thought I was losing my mind. I am so thankful for the love, support, medication and grace of God that got me through. I still struggle a bit but not nearly like it was a year ago.

I'll check in tomorrow. Until then...Wanda.

Happy New Year!

This is my little family of children and grandchildren that I got to enjoy during the Christmas holidays. We had beautiful weather (as you can tell from the short sleeves) and had a wonderful time together.

The only "downer" to the holidays was the death of my brother-in-law, Gwin Turner, in California. He and my sister (Norma) had been married for 57 years (married when she was only 15) and had been together day and night for all those years. I wanted to go to be with her and the family but, under the circumstances of being Christmas, all my family at my house, getting an airline ticket on the spur of the minute, and the weather elsewhere, I just couldn't make it work. Sis understood and assured me it was ok. My heart was there with her, and I'm staying in touch often. It will be a long, hard, lonesome road for her for a long time, but her faith is strong, she knows Gwin is with Jesus, and she has her children/grandchildren for company and comfort. However, there will always be an empty spot in her heart for her mate, but it will ease somewhat as time goes on. She knows she is loved! I'm hoping to be able to go and spend a few days with her sometime soon.

Christmas has been wonderful in a lot of ways. I had five of my friends over for a night of food, fun and fellowship a couple of weeks ago. We ate, made Christmas ornaments, exchanged gifts, and just had a great "girlfriend" session. Then last night, New Year's Eve, eleven of us got together (five couples and me) at one of the couple's homes and ate and played Pictionary. What fun!!! I've spent all day today at Angela's. We ate the usual New Year's Day meal (black eye peas, ham, etc.)and then went shopping. What's a day off if you don't go to Walmart?!

I have tomorrow off from work also and plan to spend most of it cleaning house. I haven't touched this place since everyone left after Christmas, so there's lots to be done. I guess my new work arrangement starts this next week, so just pray that I can adjust to the changes. I will enjoy having every Friday off, but the pay cut will still take some getting used to. God knew seventeen years and a half ago when I was initially hired that this was going to take place, and He has promised to meet my needs. Therefore, I trust Him to do just that.

I've made no resolutions for this coming year, but I do hope I'll be better at posting. We'll see. Until next time...Wanda.