Hello from Blogville!!!

I've recently been asked "are you OK? I haven't seen you on your blog for awhile." Yes, I am FINE!  Just seems as though when I began keeping up with friends via Facebook and purchased an iPhone, I'm not spending so much time blogging at my computer. I hope that pattern will reverse itself in 2014.

For those who haven't heard ... we took our house off the market at the end of the summer.  It was a tough decision and one that made us sad. I struggled for a couple of weeks, but thankfully I'm "back on top of things". Simply put, the time just didn't seem right, although it is our wish to make the move back to California. Our family is looking forward to that day!

We spent a lovely Thanksgiving with our family in California and look forward to spending Christmas there as well. A highlight of our Thanksgiving celebration was Maddie's announcement that she is a "big sister in training!" Yes, Jeremy and Renee are expecting another little one June 21 and we are all very excited!

It's been quite a year! Brett and Esther and girls left here for Simi Valley on July 6 and our new neighbors (a lovely young family) moved in shortly thereafter. It was truly amazing to see how God orchestrated every detail of their move. Esther is teaching second grade for LAUSD. Brett is teaching Bible at Oaks Christian (OCS) and Moira attends there as well. (So we have five Dewey girls at that school!) The other little girls attend a nearby neighborhood school. They have settled in quite well with family and friends nearby.

Jeff and Caroline and their family continue life's hectic pace. Jeff is loving having Brett teaching at "his school" (The students love it too! :)) Caroline continues her private tutor work, as well as at OCS.  Cole is second year at local community college and all the girls are at OCS. Work, sports, church and friends keep the family in high gear.

Jeremy is very busy in his management position with PennyMac and Renee has been blessed to be able to work from home with her Bank of America job. Maddie is now in pre-school and is enjoying it. She's very precocious and very social! She is very excited about being a big sister!

Rich and I are waiting to see how God directs our path. We have stepped down from our ministries in anticipation of a move and await God's direction. We have determined that in the meantime, we will continue to enjoy our home and the lovely friends God has put in our lives here.

We wish you all the joys and blessings of this Holy Season. Merry Christmas to all!

Colorado Here We Come!!!

Looking forward to seeing these happy faces REAL SOON!!!

We've been planning a family reunion at Breckenridge, CO, for a year. Original plan was for us to caravan with Brett and Esther and girls. Of course, this was long before Brett and Esther and family moved to California. Now they will caravan with Jeff, Caroline, and their family. We'll pick up Jeremy, Renee, and Maddie at the Denver airport. We are ALL so excited!!!

All 18 of us will be celebrating LIFE!!! Enjoying each other and just plan ole' hanging' out together. Who knows what excitement lies ahead.

We can hardly wait!

Thank you Lord for your bountiful blessings, namely our three great sons, their lovely wives, and their collective 10 precious children!!!

Happy Birthday Maeve!

Maeve will be six years old on Sunday, but since they'll be moving to California and on the road somewhere between Albuquerque and Phoenix, we had her birthday dinner on July 3.

She set the menu: meat loaf, mashed potatoes, corn, carrots, cucumbers, and apple crisp for birthday dessert. I surprised her with the black olives!

She had originally asked for a rainbow cake, but I knew I didn't want to have three-quarters of a six layer cake left over so I had decided on making cupcakes.

As we were driving into Wichita a couple of days ago, she announced she changed her mind and asked for apple crisp with ice cream. Her favorite ice cream is strawberry so I asked if we could do vanilla and she was fine with that. The funny thing was, she said she'd never had apple crisp before. I knew all the adults would be in favor, so apple crisp it was!

Maeve is a fun, spunky, very petite little girl.  She's missing her top front teeth and has a lose bottom tooth. It was fun to watch her eat! She loves school and will be going into first grade this year.

Earlier in the day, Audrey and I were at Wal-Mart when she said, "I wish I had money to buy Maeve a birthday present". I asked her what she would get and she said an Ariel doll.  So we went to check them out. It was just like the one Maeve and I had seen at Kohl's but cost a little less. Audrey then proceeded to tell me how all four girls would like the princess dolls and who would like which doll. So for a going-away gift for each of them we (Grandma!) bought four dolls. Cinderella for Isabel, Ariel for Maeve, Belle for Audrey, and Rapunzel for Moira. Audrey had in mind how to arrange them on the island, from oldest to youngest. The girls were so surprised and loved them!! I worried that Mo would think she was too old for a doll. Not so!!! They took them to breakfast at Cracker Barrel this morning and then sat out on the driveway playing. Very sweet.

A fun birthday celebration, which happened to be our last dinner at our house. We didn't make a point of that, probably a good thing.  I was worried the mashed potatoes would be a little salty from my tears.

Happy birthday, sweet girl!

Happy Birthday Moira!

Moira joins the ranks of teen agers today - 13 on Father's Day! What a gift for her Daddy!!!

When I asked her wanted she wanted for her birthday dessert, she told me she wanted to make cupcakes and make roses for the decoration. So I took out my cake decorating book, pastry bags and tips from my 1980's JCPenney decorating class and did we ever have fun!!!

We spent almost four hours making cupcakes, then a batch of decorating frostings. I read the instructions while she practiced using the various tips. What a blast! This is one talented girl. It took her about five tries and she had the roses looking really nice.

We were very excited with the results!  We had to prepare everything early since she'd be coming home from camp the day of her birthday dinner. So they are tucked away in the freezer, nicely wrapped and ready for her 13th birthday dinner. She's so excited to show her family her accomplishment.  Let it be said ... she made the cupcakes, I frosted them with chocolate frosting, she did ALL the decorating except for the leaves, which she asked me to do. I put on the green polka dots, she created the rest!! We both agreed that it was the most fun we've ever had!!! Aren't they beautiful!!!

Happy birthday sweet girl! You are one musically talented, athletically talented, and academically talented young woman!!! God has great things in store for you. Just follow his path!!!

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6

Walking Sand Creek Trail

There was little break in the heat on Thursday so I took Audrey and Maeve to walk the Sand Creek Trail in North Newton. We haven't done this in a long time and it was such fun. There were actually cool breezes under the canopy of trees, although by the time we returned to the van, we were HOT - and Audrey and I feeling the allergy affects of cottonwoods!!!

The little red hat Maeve is wearing is one her Daddy got in Hawaii in 1984, just before he turned 10! It's been a staple in "Grandma's toy box" for 20 years. ALL the grandchildren have worn it at one time or another. Now Maeve has it.  Isn't it cute on her!!!!

We stopped to see lots of pretty and interesting things, like these little purple wildflowers.

Can you fnd the butterfly? We have never seen a butterfly with these colors. It really blended in with the dirt, twigs, and leaves. One wing was a little damaged but it still managed to flit around.

We sure don't know what this is but Maeve emphatically proclaimed it as GROSS!

There is still water in the Sand Creek. Many more days of high temps and it will be dry. So sad! The girls would have liked to walk across the bridge, but Grandma wasn't brave enough.

We saw lots of lady bugs and other little crawly things.

So gorgeous!

The trail is marked with several lovely memorial benches - great places to rest! The girls read every memorial plaque! Sitting on the benches provided perfect opportunities to be quiet and listen to the birds. We heard lots of woodpeckers. Maeve asked "what is a woodpecker?" Audrey replied, "like Woody Woodpecker."  "Oh!"

Along the way we began to hear a tractor and clanging equipment. At the break in the trail a hay field appeared! Sure enough, a farmer was baling hay! By the time we returned on the trail he was finished and carrying off the last bale!

Audrey wanted to take my photo and thought it was special to use my phone for this purpose.

So then Maeve wanted a turn to take a "phone photo" and found this puffy weed!

One of them spotted the bird house nailed to the tree. Good eye. I had missed it.

Fallen trees with such interesting interiors.

I remembered from another hike that there was this little burial spot for a little dog.  So we used this as our turn-around point. Maeve was quite concerned that a little dog would be buried here. That prompted a discussion as to what might have happened to it. I proposed that the owner loved it so much that they probably laid it on its special bed, wrapped in its special blanket. That satisfied her and she was not so concerned. Judging by the cut-out of a daschund, that lead to a discussion of the little dog their Mommie had when she was young which was hit by a car - boy could we take "rabbit trails".

Sometime before we all arrived in Newton there was a serious flood and the creek level was exceedingly high. This marker indicates just how high - many feet above the current level. Amazing!

Walking out. Audrey and I trying to escape the cotton from the cottonwood trees. Not good for our allergies!

Lady bug on Audrey's shirt. Even had one in the car after we departed.

A little stroll through the memorial garden.

Audrey wanted to take one more photo. She tried really hard to get these two white butterflies on the purple flowers.  Good job!

Lunch and ice cream at Braum's ended a perfect time together!!! Thank you girls for being my walking buddies! I love you SOOOO much!!!!

I am going to miss these girls more than I can say!!

It's Official: Our House is for Sale!

Yes, that's right, our house is for sale. Talk about a faith and trust journey! We'll let you know where we land, just a soon as WE know!

Here's a tiny glimpse of our home! Well, maybe not so tiny. Have to leave SOMETHING to the imagination, so people will come see it!

It's a well-loved, well-cared for, well-shared home!