J.D. Hartman

I read with interest the Caring Bridge update for J.D. Hartman today. I don't know this family, but somehow I started following their story of a near-drowning of their son, J.D., and the rough road to recovery over a period of more than a year. His father, John, who was writing today talks about how difficult it is to keep praying over and over for something (with conviction):

Praying a prayer for miraculous results over and over is hard to do, I want His answer (the one I want) now, not when He wants to give it and I need to turn the timer off and realize God hears my cries, pleas, demands and with persistence, patience and a heart that is true in my belief- He will answer.... I have often told myself and JD, I will be here and we will get through this thing however long it takes. Talk is cheap, now it is time to execute on that commitment and speak directly to God with a "right heart" everyday for as long as it takes.

Dear Lord, please help me have patience and faith while I wait to hear from You. Help me live in excited anticipation for the day when I will see how You answer my prayers. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Haven't you felt that way?
Why do I keep asking?
Am I being heard?
Does it make any difference?
Am I asking for the wrong thing?

I know that prayer is not all about asking, but I know right now, at this time in my life, I am surrounded by hurting, suffering people. Another one brought to my attention last week: Denise, a young woman with stage 4 melanoma. My kids went to school with her. We know her family. We know her sister died as a young mother of cancer. I add Denise and her family to my list. I'm praying for a miracle of healing for Denise, but also asking God to show HIs presence through all this nightmare of a situation they are going through.

Denny's muffins

Denny always makes these muffins. He eats them every day! I go on a diet, and he loses weight, so they must fill him up. Anyway, he wanted to know the nutritional information, so I entered the recipe on sparkpeople. You can view the recipe here . Someday I may even take a picture of them, or him eating one!

Denny yelled "Stop!" and I did!

We were walking this morning, and I saw a snake right in front of me. I jumped over it and screamed. It was little, dead, and not a rattler. We laughed, and talked about keeping our eyes open! About 30 minutes later, Denny yells, "Stop!" I did. To the right in front of us, a live, big rattler in the road. We watched it for a bit, as it slithered to the side of the road and into a pack rat hole. The pack rat came running out of her back door! We stayed to watch. Sadly, she probably had babies in that hole, and stayed near the entrance, but did not re enter! The snake already looked pretty fat, so we assumed it had already eaten. So, again, we said, "We better keep our eyes open!" In response to this picture and story, I get an email immediately back from Carrie:

"MOM! You have to get out of that God-forsaken hell hole you call home! Move to Texas! :)"

I responded: "You have mosquitos bigger than that in Texas!"

Quality Time with Grandson and Grandson's Best Friend?

Cody called me yesterday, asking if I would like to spend quality time with him and his best friend Michael. He also mentioned that he wanted to use our barbeque! I went and picked them up, and found out their desire was to go to Safeway and buy ground beef and cheese to make a "Juicy Lucy" burger with cheese stuffed in the middle. We got the meat, made the patties and they fully enjoyed their big, fat burgers. The only buns we keep in our house are those new Sandwich Thins. I got some out, and Michael said to Cody, "What are these?" Cody said, "I don't know". But they ate them and fully enjoyed their lunch. It is always fun to have the two of them around.....

African Daisies in March

While traveling around on this beautiful Saturday morning, we saw so many African Daisies. They are just beautiful in all of the neighborhoods. They just seem to have appeared overnight! I want to get these going in my yard. What a beautiful welcome of spring in the desert.

the Garden Railroad Tour-2010

We spent this morning visiting several homes in the Tucson area that have Garden Railroads in their yard. They were very amazing. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, and we enjoyed the company of 4 other couples from our church. One of the guys is a model railroad enthusiast, and invited us all to go. It was a fun morning, with lunch at Olive Garden in the middle of the tour.

Effie Brooks Obituary: Effie Brooks’s Obituary by the Tucson Newspapers.

Effie Brooks Obituary: Effie Brooks’s Obituary by the Tucson Newspapers.

Sadie Brooks was a dear friend of ours. We stayed with Sadie and Doodie the first time we ever came to Tucson, in 1982. I remember her as a gracious, dedicated, Godly woman in our lives. She invited Denny to lunch every Wednesday for years, when I was teaching at Rio Vista. We have fond memories of both of them.