God is in CONTROL

Tuesday, April 27, 2010


More "Nana Nesting" - I found a perfect crib at a garage sale -- driving out of my neighborhood early Sat. morn -- and yes, it does have another side! I think that when grandbabies come to visit Nana and Pappa Bell they need a comfortable bed -- and it means less things for their mommy and daddy to have to tote along. Now to check to make certain it's no on all the recall lists.

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Baby Season

A I mentioned earlier, Post-Easter -- the three week season pre-Mother's Day is my favorite time of year because of our kid's births. I know, I know, they are soon-to-be 28 and just-turned-30 -- but this time of year my "mother-heart" becomes pretty tender. AND THIS YEAR with Campbell Hope due in a few weeks, I am over-the-top sentimental and having even more flashbacks. Wasn't it just yesterday that we held THEM?




We LOVE hearing Mat and Bethany's anticipations of their life with Campbell -- and remembering how it was for us just a short time ago.

(Today's their 4th Anniversary.)



Now these two "grandparents-in-waiting" are doing the same kind of dreaming we did years ago at this season of the year.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Thank You, Grandma Walton

We've been studying family changes, challenges and crisis in my Marriage and Family Living classes. 2 months ago I had visited with one of my students and as we were catching up on each other's week, he told me his grandfather had just died at the age of 96. I questioned -- was this his GREAT grandfather or GRANDfather? (I thought that old -- he must be his a "great". He said it was his grandfather most definitely and went on to share what active and special people they are. His grandparents were just short of celebrating their 79th wedding anniversary.

I asked about grandmother and Jon said she still drove, was very sharp (mentally)-- at 96, is a great cook and still quite active. The Challenges of Aging is part of this particular unit and we're moving into Relationships --the thought occurred to me who better to talk to my students about marriage than someone who'd been married for SO long? Who wouldn't have had at least a few challenges in 96 years of living?

I prepped my students by having them submit questions they wanted to ask Mrs. Walton.
one of their's was "What was it like in the 60's and 70's? --like that was some sort of ancient history or something -- hey, was MY day-- whew! that makes me feel really old. Most of their questions were all like "how did you stay married that long?"

Tiny little "Grandma" arrived right on time today and was D-E-L-I-G-H-T-F-U-L! A pretty little lady in a peach slack suit, my students were charmed by her wit and wisdom. She shared the essentials of making a marriage last a lifetime, said that raising children and having someone to share life with were her greatest joys of marriage. She said respect and finding someone who was a good person were two necessary components to a healthy marriage. Married in 1931 at 17 (they eloped -- the kids LOVED that story) she helped support her husband through college and law school by working as a comptroller in Washington, D.C.


She told this plugged-in, ipod generation that she rememberes silent movies, not having radio or television, buying a hamburger for a nickel and a gallon of gas for a quarter. She went on to say that to be successful they had to work hard and go to college or get some kind of education.


Growing up, she said, everyone in the neighborhood walked to church and said that if her family happended to be out of town -- their dog would just go on up, anyway - as that was what everybody did back then and that going to church was always an important part of their lives.

She stressed to these awestruck highschoolers (we all had to keep reminding ourselves that she was really 96) that staying involved with others and keeping their minds active by reading are important to mental alertness.

"Grandma Walton" finished by saying she wouldn't want to be a teenager today and that she believes there are too many temptations -- "with all that dope out there". She told them living together outside of marriage was not the way to have a successful marriage. Her frankness and forthrightness brought grins to all of them.

John earlier had told me of his grandfather's last stay in the hospital being extended a few days. One of the nurses said, "I bet you like that with all of these pretty girls taking care of you," He quickly shot back with, "Why would I want that when I'm married to the prettiest girl in the world?"

As she left my students all agreed Mrs. Walton, could be "Grandmother of the Year" HANDS DOWN!

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Nana "Nesting"

Each year as our kids' birthdays approach (they are two weeks apart), certain memories that I cherish come to mind. We plan on celebrating Bethany's 30th birthday with her next weekend, so I decided to unearth the tubs of her baby things from the attic and take them to KC to give Campbell some of her momma's favorites. I'd been looking forward to going through my "treasures" for a while now.

There are all these pretty handmade (crocheted or quilted) baby blankets -- and little pieces my Mom made for both kids--- look alike outfits I had sewn when they were preschoolers -- yes -- Marshall had to have a matching guy outfit for some of Bethany's - I unpacked the cutest dresses she was given at her baby shower.



I came across her special blanket. A friend had hand-sewn a small quilt in my nursery colors and Bethany literally took it everywhere with her, practically until she started school. When we would pack up the van for a preaching trip with Daddy -- she always had her blanket and books to read on the bed that we made for them in the back. (Can you believe people actually could let their children sleep in the back compartment of their vans back then?)

My favorite attic treasure was finding the Winnie the Pooh rain boots (Marshall of course, had a blue pair)-- I grinned as I remembered some of the outfits she would put together and then slide her feet into these. (Brown ET shirt / yellow and green gym shorts, pink hand bag and red rain boots) A Birthday present that got quite a work out, I figured they were a must-save --they'd been put away for 25 years. Campbell has got to slosh in the rain in her momma's boots someday -- at least when she comes to Nana's house.





I've been monogramming burp pads this weekend (did that instead of writing lesson plans yesterday afternoon), laundering baby blankets from yester-year and trying to embroider "C" on a new tiny hotpink "onsie". After tearing two holes in it -- I decided to sew on a flower patch. Pretty cute, if you ask me.


I told Terry a while ago, I'd probably dream of having babies and toddlers tonight. Can't believe it's been 30 years since we rocked little ones to sleep to the songs their Daddy made up--It does only seem like yesterday!

Thursday, April 8, 2010

What Do YOU Want to Ask?

With the upcoming opening of the movie "Letters to God", I read an e-mail forward last Thursday in Youth Alive that has made the rounds several times "Children's Letters to God." The students loved it and laughed -- at ones like


"Dear God -- Please don't send Peter Brown to my camp this summer" - Bobby
or


"Dear God -- if you look careful in Church next Sunday you can see my new shoes." Lisa.


"Dear God - - Instead of letting people die and having to make new ones -- why don't you just keep the ones you got now?"

I asked them to write letters to God asking what they'd always wanted to know. One such letter,


"Dear God, What does the face that launched a thousand ships look like?"
or
"Is there poker night in Heaven?"

and "Are the chocolate chip cookies better in Heaven?"

or "Why do people hate life so much that they want to end their's?"

or "Thank you for saving me from myself" - Your Prodigal Daughter.


Today we continued in that same vein. I told them on Sunday I had taught the crucifixion story to my SuperKids and explained that the soldiers threw dice to determine who would get Jesus' seamless robe. I said I want to find the soldier who won the robe and ask him -- did he realize he was wearing the coat of the son of God? After the earthquake and six hours of darkness with people coming out of the tombs -- did it "sink in" that this really was the son of God? What did he do with the coat?

My question to them was -- when you get to Heaven WHO do you want to ask and WHAT do you want to know?

One gal said she wants to find the boy who gave the lunch to feed the 5,000 -- "What did you feel like when you saw YOUR lunch feed so many people?" "Did you willingly offer or did they come asking for it?"

One of my rowdier guys seriously said, "I want to ask Paul how he turned his life around after the blinding light?"

Or "Jonah, what was it like in the belly of the whale?"

Another young lady wants to ask one of Jesus' brothers what it was like to have him for a sibling -- and hear their Mom say, "why can't you be more like your big brother?"

One guy said he wanted to talk to Lazarus -- did he really want to come back?

An intuitive one wants to ask Judas, "What did you feel when you saw what happened to Jesus?"


YOU KNOW THINKING ABOUT WHAT ALL IS GOING ON IN HEAVEN AND WHO IS ALREADY THERE, I REALIZE THAT THE



















ISN'T THE REAL THING! IT'S EVERYTHING THAT TAKES PLACE IN THE SPIRITUAL REALM THAT IS TRUE REALITY! Thinking about it gives me new perspective on my day-to-day challenges.

He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. Eccl. 3:11

Blog Archive

Followers