Tough Times

I spoke with my brother, Dave, about a month ago and he was heading to the beach to go kayaking.

3 weeks ago he phoned to tell me he was having trouble with stomach swelling.  His doctor was out of town but had phoned in orders for some tests.

2 weeks ago he called to tell me his doctor said the tests results looked like a tumor on his liver but he had never seen anything like this so he was sending Dave to a specialist.

Last week Dave arrived at the hospital to meet the specialist and have the test run.  This doctor confirmed the earlier diagnosis and within 24 hours Dave died.

How I will miss him.  Dave was my strong supporter.  I could always call him and he always had time for me.  I was his spiritual compass.  He called me when he needed prayer and spiritual help.  He was always there for me and I tried to be there for him.  Now I feel like a part of me is missing.

Dave did not suffer long and for this I am eternally grateful.  But this happened so very fast that it still feels surreal.  Quite often he had assured me of his trust in Jesus as his Saviour and on this I lean for peace.  This peace is a true gift from the Lord and I am trusting that Dave is in heaven with our parents.

There are no words to say how special he was to me or to say how much my heart grieves, but Dave will always be remembered and sadly missed by our family.

Dave's obituary has been posted here.
http://www.honakerforestlawn.com/sitemaker/sites/HONAKE1/obit.cgi?user=777817Bailey

Sunday Phunnies

Who Needs Instructions

The proud father brought home a backyard swing set for his children and
 immediately started to assemble it with all the neighborhood children
 anxiously waiting to play on it. After several hours of reading the
 directions, attempting to fit bolt A into slot B, etc., he finally gave
 up and called upon an old handyman working in a neighboring yard.

The old-timer came over, threw the directions away and in a short while
 had the set completely assembled.

"It's beyond me," said the father, "how you got it together without even
 reading instructions."

"To tell the truth," replied the old-timer, "I can't read and when you
 can't read, you've got to think."

The Wedding

On October 20, 2012 our oldest granddaughter got married and changed her name from Lydia Walker to Mrs. Joshua Chaffin.

We left North Dakota and flew to South Carolina to meet the rest of the family for this happy/sad occasion.  The Lord blessed us with good travels both ways, including making all connecting flights.

The weather was perfect and it was such an enjoyable time for our family but it sure is sad to think of our darling girl so grown up.

This is our beautiful bride.

And the happy couple.

The maid of honor, her brother and cousin.

The adorable flower girl.

The oldest brother of the bride, our oldest grandson.

One more look at the bride and groom.

These are all the photos I have at the present but I am sure I will get more as time goes on.

 

Sunday Phunnies

Twenty Ways To Tell You've Been Online Too Long

1. You type faster than you think.

2. Someone at work tells you a joke and you say "LOL".

3. You keep begging your friends to get an account so "we can hang
 out".

4. You double click your TV remote.

5. You check your email but forget you have real mail (snail mail).

6. You have a vanity license plate with your screen name on it.

7. You no longer type with proper capitalization, punctuation, or
 complete sentences.

8. You can actually read & follow all the names of the cast that scrolls
 up your TV screen at the end of a movie.

9. When someone says "What did you say?" you reply "Scroll up!"

10. You don't even notice anymore when someone has a typo.

11. You have an identity crisis if someone is using a screen name close
 to your own.

12. You type messages to people while you are on the phone with them at
 the same time.

13. You smile sideways.

14. You chat with an annoying person in real life and wish you had your
 ignore button handy.

15. You bring a bag lunch and a cooler to the computer.

16. You have withdrawals if you are away from the computer for more than
 a few hours.

17. You take a speed reading course to keep up with the scrolling.

18. You get up at 2:00 am to go to the bathroom but turn on the computer
 instead.

19. You stop typing whole words and use things like ppl, dunno and
 lemme.

20. You spend at least 30 minutes making sure you say goodbye to
 everyone online before you log off.

First Snow

North Dakota residents tell us the first snow will normally occur in October and this year is no exception.  The first snow fall of the year happened last week. 

 

There was only a couple inches of snow and it did not stay on the ground very long.

 

The first snow is always exciting and it leaves the air so crisp and  clean.

The roads were not icy and the snow was pretty much cleared up by the time we headed home so this snow was one we could enjoy while at work.

In Our Own Backyard

A few weeks ago we made a trip up to the Turtle Mountains in northern North Dakota to see the Fall colors in the trees.  We were heading home from work the other day and right around the corner from our house we saw these gorgeous colors.

What a blessing it has been to come down this street ever since we discovered it.  Now coming home from work is even more enjoyable.

Sunday Phunnies

Computer Is Down

The new office computer system was down as much as it was working. Cathy
 decided to stay late one evening to catch up on the work that had
 accumulated. On her way home, a police officer stopped her for
 speeding.
 "What a perfect end to an awful day!" she exclaimed. "Our computer is
 up, then down -- up, then down. I stay late to catch up, and now this!"

 The officer was unaffected by Cathy's griping, and he went to his car to
 prepare a citation. After what seemed an eternity, he returned with her
 license and registration. As he handed them to her, he smiled and said,
 "No ticket. Our computer is down."

Mystical Horizons

As we were heading up the mountains we saw these signs along the way.

As I mentioned previously the Turtle Mountains are not very high, 2,541 feet.  We did enjoy driving through them and seeing the beautiful colors.  Along the way we saw a point of interest sign and turned off to explore.

Mystical Horizons features a Solar Calendar, A North Star viewing tube and a giant sundial-not to mention absolutely breath-taking views.

We never could figure out how this is supposed to be a calendar.

 

Now for the breath-taking views.  I left some of the stones in the photo to help show dimensions and the real distance we could see.

 

It was a clear day and I would imagine we could see at least 20 miles.  This view is looking west. 

 

My favorite traveling companion!

 

Just taking a break and enjoying the view.

 

This is looking toward the east.

What a lovely day and a great opportunity to experience the beauty in God's creation.

Turtle Mountains

The only mountains in North Dakota are the Turtle Mountains-not very high, not very steep, but it is the best we can do.

We continued on our way trying to find some Fall colors in the trees.  Of course, we had to drive across the prairie to get to the mountains.  This is what the fields look like after the crops have been harvested.

 

As we got closer we began to see the mountains in the distance.

 

The roads heading up the mountain were very similar to those in North Carolina (of course, not nearly as twisty and steep).

But the closer we got the more the roads changed from the flat, straight roads we normally travel.

The higher we got the more we could see the colors in the trees changing.

North Dakota does not have stately trees like the spruce trees in Wisconsin or the mighty oaks down south, but after being up here for so long we were grateful for the trees we could see.

Not quite the beauty of the eastern seacoast in the Autumn but we sure loved the scenery.  Hope you did as well.