The Belle of Portugal

     For my 89 year old father, this ship represents many great WWII stories. He was a Morris code operator during the 4 years that he was in the Army and stayed mainly on this ship, sailing around the coast of Panama, and also hovering around the Galapagos Islands. Currently, he doesn't remember what he ate for his last meal, but he can entertain you with story after story, once you get him going, about his life as an Army soldier stationed on this ship. Our nephew found this photo on the web and offers the  following information, "52 tuna boats from San Diego were conscripted into the service shortly after Pearl Harbor, to serve as Yard Patrol (YP) boats.  The boats were to be used as look outs and supply craft and they were scattered from Alaska to South America.  The government asked their crews to serve on the boats, and they did.  The Belle of Portugal was one of these boats.  Of the 52 boats that were conscripted, 21 didn't return."

    We have a Thanksgiving tradition of writing down 5 things that we are thankful for. My mom and dad probably won't want to participate this year, but they will enjoy sitting at the table and listening to the seven of us share what we are giving thanks to our Lord for this year. My DH will give dad this photo after we are done. We are so thankful that they are with us this year. We are enjoying God's mercies and blessings, for sure.  

"A careless word may kindle strife;

A cruel word may wreck a life.

A bitter word may hate instill;

A brutal word may smite and kill.

A gracious word may smooth the way;

A joyous word may light the day.

A timely word may lessen stress;

A loving word may heal and bless."

- Author Unkown

(taken from "The Power of a Woman's Words" written by Sharon Jaynes)

      This is our last evening of bible study and we are having a pitch-in dinner, fellowship, and a little review of where we have  journeyed these past months.  I will miss these ladies very much but hope to stay in touch by email or perhaps bump into them at church. The good news is that Jenn and I are signing up for the next bible study, which starts in January. We even have the passage to be memorized so we are good to go as far as getting an early start.    

     Jenn4him, my daughter, and I are attending a Wednesday night Bible study together at church. She has been to many but this is my first,  and I have to say that I am awestruck with wonder at how God's Grace surrounds us ladies as we study from a wonderful book called,  "The Power of a Woman's Words" by Sharon Jaynes. We are also memorizing I Corinthians 13, and I didn't think it possible for me to do with my "over 60 memory issues" but I am. Another new experience for me is praying out loud with another lady, after getting into groups of 2 or 3. I am awkward and not as eloquent as the other ladies but I am doing this too.  

     From the time spent in Wednesday night Bible study, God is also changing my thoughts and speech.  "Think before speaking" is a new daily mantra. Picture yourself biting down on your tongue holding back words before they fly helter skelter out of your mouth, and cannot be taken back. I love the image.  This week's chapter, from Sharon Jayne's book, is  called "The Potency of Silence." She nailed a bad habit of mine, which I didn't think was gossiping, when she wrote that to say "bless her heart" after  talking about someone was really just sugar coated gossip. Guilty as charged.  But I am trying to stop this before the words get out of my mouth. Remember the tongue biting"?  She suggests that we say, "May I quote you on what you are about to tell me?" to anyone wanting to share "news" or a "concern" about somone else.  I like this. 

      I am being drawn nearer to the Lord, partly due to this Bible study, attending church, and early morning quiet time spent in the Word, but most importantly because the Lord has opened my DH's eyes and softened his heart, growing us closer to each other. God's plan for us is unfolding and He is working inside both of us daily. No matter what happens to our business, we know that He will take care of us if we follow His plan . We are attending a new members class this Saturday in the hopes of joining the church. Please pray for us.  

"Lord, make my words gracious and tender, for tomorrow I may have to eat them!" - Author Unknown

Taken from "The Power of a Woman's Words" by Sharon James

   Today is Jenn's birthday, so please visit her blog  and wish her a very happy day. Our hard drive died a few weeks ago and I lost  everything...so, I need to install some software in order to put photos taken yesterday of Jenn's birthday party at our home on my blog. We had a wonderful time, and it filled my heart with so much joy to share time with our lovely daughter and her precious family. She is God's child and great blessing to all who know her.  

     Jenn treated me to a yummy birthday dinner last evening at the Texas Roadhouse! DH came too which made the evening doubly special. We were supposed to be attending our Weds. night Bible Study, but we ditched it and had such a great time. Thank you so much, dear daughter!

     I felt like a queen all evening. We shared the most humongous, warm brownie birthday dessert ever!!! It  filled a big bowl and was topped with a huge dip of melting vanilla ice cream. DH was ever so good and didn't partake in the dessert. I am proud of his conviction to take care of his diabetes.

     Today, I feel pretty full...I am "for sure and for certain" so glad that birthdays only come once a year. If we celebrated everyday, mercy!

     I have been AWL on blogging, spending so much more time working at the bakery during the day that in past days. I guess I had lots of time to kill back then, but not now. Our bakery is still struggling...it's in God's hand. Everyday, I place our business burdens at His feet. Only He knows what will be.

    I've been reading some Amish books by Beverly Lewis lately and had no idea that Old Order Amish don't believe in salvation through Jesus Christ, that the Books of John are forbidden. Eye opening material. I like their gentle ways though and love certain phrases like, "wonderfully good" and "for sure and for certain."     

     I need to get back to work.          

     I may need to change the name of my blog from "Living By Faith" to "Busy at Work" as my playtime while I am at the bakery has been cut short since our SIL left the bakery (he worked with us for over 11 yrs.) to work in an accounting firm.While working with us, he wore several different hats and with only one hat to wear now, I'll bet he enjoys his new job. The beauty of his leaving us is that we still have him as our SIL, so it's not like the end of a relationship. More like the beginning of building stronger family bonds. Can you imagine working for your inlaws? It couldn't have been easy for him, but that's water over the proverbial bridge.  

     His changing jobs now couldn't have come at a better time for me personally. This past winter and spring have been filled with trips to visit my ailing parents and I barely worked 30 hours with all of their emergencies, appointments, moves, and visits. Some weeks I only worked two or three days. Now that they are settled in the nursing home, and seem to be stable healthwise (knock on wood), I plan to visit them once a week on Fridays.

      At least that's the plan. Since we mortals aren't really in control of our destinys, it's best to start each new day by asking our Lord for His mercies and blessings, then move about the day with a "plan," subject to change at any given time. I am just greatful for each day's portion alloted me. Each morning I thank God for the coming day, whatever it brings. And, going through some days can feel like walking in minefields, but God is with me even on those days.

     Back to the bakery,  we were promised a large loan from a customer who didn't want us to close our bakery doors this past month. We soared with this news! But, of course our customer's parent company had a different idea and no monies are coming to fill our coffers. DH has swung into mega power drive (he's our Super Hero) squeezing worn out "lemons" into lemonaide. His days are FULL and he comes home tired, sleeping in his chair during his favorite TV shows. A biproduct of this is that he is also losing weight. 

     Along with looking under every rock for an opportunity, he also has turned to the Lord. Can we say a BIG, "Hallelujah?" We have attended church together for the past two Sundays and he has his own private sessions with God now too. Dh realizes that he can't do this by himself, that he needs a Higher Power. I have prayed that he would give this burden to the Lord and it took his facing the eleventh hour of our bakery to make it happen. 

     We've all  been there. At least I know from past life experiences I have strayed away from the Father but returned during a crisis, realizing I couldn't do it alone. I recently made a vow to God. I know that one shouldn't make vows with God unless we intend to keep them, so this is the first one in a long time. I vowed to love Him forever, to put Him before everyone else in my life. He is first. I'm so content with this vow.          

Rachel Katherine is 4 lbs. 7 oz.

Daddy's little Angel

Happy 10th Birthday Gracie!!!

     This has not been a banner week for us at the bakery.  We usually keep pretty busy producing bakery items for our customers, but this week started with only one order to be filled, which meant that we had to lay off thirty-two employees on Tuesday. Without orders to fill, we cannot pay loans, taxes, rent, and suppliers. We are in a pretty horrible situation right now and can only believe we got snagged by the recession (depression) that is plaguing our sluggish Indiana economy.

     This situation makes DH and I feel like failures. We have been in the bakery business for almost twenty-nine years and have survivied several recessions in that time period. In the past three days, we have experienced shame, guilt, loss, and depression. DH, who is known for optimism, is feeling like the bottom has fallen out. But, we love each other and are communicating about how we feel, which helps us stay close during this storm.   

     We have to consider our options and they are not pretty to look at. The word "bankruptcy" has not entered into our working vocabulary until now. The bank will take our assets, and except for our home, there isn't much to take. We are seeing a lawyer tomorrow to go over what is what. I pray alot. If you think about it, could you send a prayer up to Heaven in our names?

      We just received two orders for product.  One from a cutomer that owes us money...if he would pay on time, then maybe we wouldn't be in as much of a mess? It's hard to say. We have a meeting this afternoon with him and don't know how that will come out. My hopes went up to see these orders but they probably aren't enough to dig us out. Our suppliers will want us to pay up front for the ingredients. I'm just a mess with emotions. Shutting down will be so hard.        

     I have a "Praise Report" to post. I don't get too many "golden moments" with my parents and am so happy to share yesterday's treasure. Firstly, why do I continue to doubt the good Lord's intentions? I made myself physically sick yesterday morning worrying about the visit and not focusing on His intentions. I asked Him to shower our visit  with His divine mercy and grace, and He did that and more.

     They were ready for an outing when I got to their room so we awaited my sister's arrrival to begin our getaway in their old "chariot." Mom's cellulitis in her legs seems to be getting better and the swelling is going down. The wonderful nursing staff are keeping them wrapped in Ace bandages, and she looked better than she has in the past few weeks. Dad was dressed and ready too. Yeah!

     We took them to a local restaurant called Sunshine Cafe for lunch. This used to be mom's favorite  place to eat and for years, she and dad ate there after her hair appointments. My sister took charge of wheel chair duties which was such a blessing for my hands and feet (EM didn't roar its ugly head yesterday).  After stuffing ourselves silly, we took them to DICK'S  to get mom new shoes. We couldn't remember when she had a new pair of shoes. She wore my disgards for too many years.

     Then, came the drive to their old home. Inside, I felt butterflies swirling around and I prayed silently. My sister on the other hand took an aggressive tack and prayed outloud. While waiting for the proverbial "other shoe to drop" on our outing, I was so relieved when it appeared to be a non-event. Maybe mom was doing a happy dance because she had new shoes? Our most vocal parent (mom) didn't say much. Both were glad to see it and said that the yard was being kept up nicely. Wow! Thank you Jesus!!! 

     When we got back to their new digs, we told them that the house was empty and that most of their possessions were stored by family. Mom again took the news well while dad became stone faced. I need to call and talk with him today, hoping that he will give it to me straight if he needs to get his feelings about the news off his chest. 

     I am so very thankful that my sister was in control of her emotions during the visit and was such a great help.  I left the nursing home with warm, love-filled emotions for her, and am shamefully aware that I cannot remember having these feelings for her in so years. I now have a new found respect for my older sibling and know in my heart that Jesus is drawing us both closer to each other and to HIm, whose Will was blessedly done yesterday.            

     I hope you all have enjoyed my S&T today. Please go to Mary 's blog and check out more S&T posts, as they are all so wonderful and worthy of your read.  I pray that your weekend ahead is blessed with God's divine mercies. He is so faithful

     This past Sunday we celebrated Father's Day at my parents new "home." I don't think dad felt too well and mom is suffering from cellulitis, but we honered the special men in our lives at this gathering with good food and loving conversation, then went up to their room to watch Charlotte's Web. 

     Have any of you sweet ladies who have elderly grandparents (or parents, if your my age) had to tell them that all of their possessions are gone, that nothing remains in their home? Or, listened to your parents while they told you about letting them know? How did it go? Were they told before or after? These are hard questions that are eating at me. 

     My sister was asked by dad where his truck and car were and she told him that they were safer at her home than staying at their home, not the real truth that they now belong to her.  He was wondering about the machinery and tools that used to be in his garage too.They know that their clothes are at my home and have been told that the house will be put on the market soon, but we have not told  them of the weekends spent with their grandchildren dejunking. This week, they forgot about the house being ready for maket, and the idea of the nursing home being their new home hasn't quite gelled.

     My sister now says that we did everything wrong, that we didn't let tell them about our dejunking their house before we started. My problem is that she pushed to get rid of everything fast in early spring, while I kept dragging my feet.  Now its WE were wrong. She wants to take them to a family reunion in July and is worried about confronting "the ELEPHANT in the car," or their request to stop by their house that day. My DH said that he would go with me to show the house to dad, but we would need to tell him first. So, now I need to "man up" and tell them before the car trip, right? Call me chicken but I don't want to tell them by myself. 

     After visiting with them yesterday, I am stumped on what to say. Would it do any good to tell them? My mom is suffering with cellulitis and is in bed with her legs elevated, and isn't asking about going home, while dad is acting like a caged lion. He wants to see his house, remembering it with all of his worldly possessions intact, not disbanded as it sits in its current state. He told me yesterday that he thought he would have to hop on a bicylce and ride there. Help! I could use some advice from those of  you who have been down this path, or have tales from your parents.       

     Yesterday we started a new tradition, I think. Since mom and dad are now residing in a nursing home, we were able to enjoy Father's Day in a large conference room provided for family functions and staff meetings. We were thankful that it was available. Jenn and family brought a huge bucket of KFC with all the trimmings, along with a wonderful key lime cheesecake,  and DH and I brought Subway sandwiches and drinks. You can tell that we didn't mind letting someone else do the cooking.

     My dad seemed to be in a quiet mood, maybe a little overwhelmed with all of the activity surrounding him, but mom loves a party and was not phased at all. She has a new bout with cellulitis. Her poor legs are swollen and redish purple. Her skin looks like it could burst as it is so tight and shiny. If you push a finger into the swollen part of her leg, it sinks about an inch. She is taking an antibiotic and a water pill. Boy, I hope that does the trick. 

     We went to their room to watch "Charlotte's Web" after our feast. Dad went to sleep on and off. I could tell that he wasn't feeling particularly good. DH had spent Saturday on top of our 2-story home's roof  cleaning the gutters (a thankless job) and was ready to go home. I wanted to stay but knew that DH needed some TLC after 4 hours on the roof. Three generations of husbands and fathers were represented. My two sweet little grandsons wanted to be counted as future fathers too. I took photos but have not downloaded them yet.  I hope to have them posted by Friday's Show & Tell.

Cross my fingers.

     It seems that I'm not posting as much as I used to and I have been thinking about why this is. The answer is that I am pretty busy with my parents and their affairs, even though they are in a nursing care facililty. Between the bakery, my parents, home life, daily bible study (which has become extremely important to me) my day gets pretty stretched out and I end up drawing a blank when it comes to posting the day's events on my blog. 

      I guess I'm taking a tiny sabbatical from blogging over the summer but will post whenever I can. I rely on Facebook more and more to communicate with family and friends and have tried Twitter but am not faithfully commited to it. So, I'll write more when I have time, and will continue to visit your blogs. You all are such great inspirations!