How To Train a Grandparent

Last Sunday at our church, they had a Home Improvement Sunday. They are good to have to strengthen families and to give help in raising  your children.

They seem to never include how to be a better grandparent into their messages. I'm not sure why. Maybe they think we already know all the answers. But believe me, sometimes I feel like I need help.

As a grand parent, sometimes I have a way of always doing the wrong thing, stepping in where I shouldn't be, saying the wrong things. Kyla calls me her crazy grandma. She says I act crazy and I get her in trouble.

A grandma has to have some fun. Maybe grandparents should be seen and not heard.

I know a lot of things have changed since I was a young parent. I'm probably considered old fashion. I think about all the technology and world changes we Baby Boomers have seen in our life time. We survived the 60's and the 70's. Talk about changes. We were introduced to television, computers, and smart phones in our time.

Maybe they don't teach on training grandparents, because grandparents aren't suppose to change. They are suppose to always be that safe person who offers unconditional love. They are always there to give hugs and try to make the hurts go away. And my biggest problem - how do you say "NO" to those "sweet" angels. But I'll try to keep on being the best grand parent I know how and maybe I'll have it all figured out by the time I'm a Great Grandparent.

 

 

Deuteronomy 4:9

Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons;

Setting Goals and Dreaming Dreams

You are NEVER too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.

C.S. Lewis

 



Every morning when I go into my kitchen to make my morning coffee, I see this sign hanging on my wall.  I read it every morning as I start my day.

Sometimes it's just a little goal that I set for that day. If I didn't set a goal, I would probably end up sitting on my couch all day.  And a person always have to have dreams.

 

Proverbs 29:18a

Where there is no vision, the people perish:

 

I might not accomplish all the dreams I have for my life, but if I didn't have dreams, they might never come true. One of my grand daughters, Alexis, and I each have a written list of our dreams. I carry mine with me in my purse. We'll compare our lists and add new dreams to it. We've got to cross off some of them that we accomplished. Dreams keep you excited about life.

 

One of the dreams on my list is to see all my grand kids saved and baptized. Easter weekend, three more of my grand kids were saved and baptized.   It was my son Aaron's three youngest - Emma, Elena, and Evan.  Ethan was already saved and baptized. I'm a happy grandma.

God is good and I believe that one day I'm going to get to cross the dream of seeing all my grand kids saved off my list.

 

Four of My Grand Kids - Ethan, Elena, Emma, and Evan

 

Natural Beauty

AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

In case you are wondering why I'm screaming, I looked in the mirror this morning. I scared myself. I could probably had scared Frankenstein.

I had been sick for about 3 days with a cough, fever, chills, sore throat, laryngitis, and all that wonderful stuff that someone was kind enough to share with me.

But, thankfully I'm on the mend. The sparkle is returning to my eyes.

I wasn't even able to go to church Easter Sunday and the Easter Bunny didn't come to see me and  leave a basket full of chocolate.

But I do look scary. I always wonder why I don't wake up like those women on television or in the movies. They wake up with their skin glowing and their hair still in one place.  I'm pretty sure that's not the real world. My husband probably was in shock when we woke up after our wedding night and he saw the real me - bed head and no make-up.

 

In my early teens I wanted to look like Audrey Hepburn. You know how at that age you are fascinated by movie stars and you want to look like them. I thought she was so beautiful. I always liked reading her ten beauty tips.

1. For attractive lips, speak words of kindness.
2. For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.
3. For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.
4. For beautiful hair, let a child run his or her fingers through it once a day. (One of my favorites)
5. For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone.
6. People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed and redeemed; never throw out anyone.
7. Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of each of your arms. As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.
8. The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.
9. The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole, but the true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It is the caring that she lovingly gives and the passion that she shows.
10. The beauty of a woman grows with the passing years. (That is talking about growing old gracefully)
 
I'm not a natural beauty, but I pray that the beauty of God's love shows through me.

Psalm 139:14

I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made:

marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

Easter 1975

Easter Sunday, March 30, 1975

 

That is some of the kids that rode my Sunday School bus and me hunting Easter eggs. It was so cold that day, we were freezing. I think the temperature was only around 20 degrees.

And also notice my baby bump.  In about three weeks on April 23, 1975, a baby by the name of Jonathan Neal Rice will make his way into this world.

It was exciting times.

Easter is one of my favorite days. It renews the love of God again in my heart and reminds me that there is no greater love then what He showed to us on that day.

 

 

John 15:13

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

 

 

Happy Easter to all my family and friends.

 

 



National Bring Your Grandmothers to the Beach Day!

Just kidding. It is spring break and Neal and Amy invited Amy's mom, Teresa, and me to go to the Outer Banks with them. We had an beautiful, exciting day with lots of laughter.

We saw Bodie Light House, Cape Hatteras, and Ocracoke Island Light House.  

 

 

Bodie

 Light House

   

Cape Hatteras Light House

 We took a ferry over the Ocracoke Island. You can only get there by ferry, boat, or private plane. It was a beautiful trip over. Ocracoke is known for where Blackbeard the Pirate died.

T

Ocracoke Light House

Hayden pretending to be a pirate.

A visitor to the light house.

You can't be at the ocean and not get your feet wet.

Brylee

 

It was fun watching the grand daughters running through the waves and gathering shells. 

As the sun was setting, we said good-bye to Ocracoke and headed back home. It had been a good day of making memories and spending time with family.

Thank you Neal and Amy for putting up with a couple of grandmothers.

Deep In The Heart of Texas

I needed to see my son, Mark. As you know, he had cancer surgery in December and has undergone two rounds of chemo. I had to make sure he was doing okay.
I want to thank everybody for their prayers. The doctor says he is doing good and for right now he doesn't have to have anymore chemo treatments. They will have to check him several times - doing blood work and body scans to make sure the cancer doesn't return.
I am so thankful to God for his love and care for my son. And I am so thankful for prayers.

I am so thankful I am getting to spend some time with him and his wife, Maria. 





An authentic Mexican Restaurant - La Gloria.
It was created to celebrate the rich and delicious street foods from interior Mexico.
La Gloria means "the heavens".



My son, Mark, on the River Walk.

Enchanted Rock

Mark and Maria

Mark and I made it almost to the top of Enchanted Rock.
To the top is 6 miles and we made 4 miles.
 

Fredericksburg, Texas is a German Settlement founded in
May, 1846.

At Rustlin Rob's
Full of Texas gourmet foods for you to sample.

Luckenbach, Texas
A little town with not much in it. But I know there is a song
called Luckenbach, Texas and so I had to go there just so I could
say I had been to Luckenbach, Texas.

The Alamo at night.

And The Gold Medal Winner Is....

And the gold medal winner in The Grandma's Figure Skating Competition is Patricia Rice. I stepped proudly into the winner's circle. They placed the Gold Medal around my neck and the National Anthem for the United States echoed throughout the building.

Yes, that's me and my grand daughter, Hayden.  And I'm sure not a gold medalist winner. I'm praying that all my bones are in one piece before the night is over. I had to be crazy. It had been 50 years since I had a pair of ice skates on.

I looked like a little old lady with a walker going around the ice.  When I let go of the walker - down I went. But I was determined. I might never have another pair of ice skates on in my life, but that was FUN!

Sometimes a person has to take chances.  I needed to laugh. Neal said I needed an award for being the oldest person on the ice. I wasn't sure if that was a compliment or not.

It did take a lot of  courage and faith to step out on that ice. I felt like I had jello legs.

As we go through life, sometimes we all need courage and faith to face life's challenges.  Facing a fall on the ice is nothing compared to trials that people face daily. I'm so thankful to God who gives us courage to keep pressing on.   

2 Timothy 1:7

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; 
but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.