Celebrating the Newlyweds

Sunday was a beautiful day all the way around!  Starting out worshipping with our church family and as always, an uplifting sermon by Tim and singing led by Chris...just started our day beautifully.  God provided some gorgeous weather, just the right temperature and azure blue skies!

All this, and add in good friends, delicious food, and beautiful surroundings, made for the perfect backdrop for a get-together!  Several of our good friends at Timberlane threw a "gift card and money shower" for Charlie & Nichole on Sunday afternoon at the Fisher home.   We were all very humbled and touched by the large number of those who trickled in and out all afternoon and their generous gifts.  As Charlie's mom, my heart swelled and throat knotted up at times, watching all the hugs, hand shakes, laughs and conversations shared with friends old and new and everyone getting to meet our special new daughter-in-law.  We even had some reconnections with some who knew Nichole or her sisters from years ago.  What a very special afternoon.

Here's some captured moments from the party:

Thanks Katie Cowart, for the banner!

High School/Church friends here to celebrate!

And wow, at the food - and the table was beautifully set!

Yummy!!!

Oh, and did we mention, Ice Cream Bar! (a huge hit!)

Catching up...

Tour of Marc's greenhouse & orchid nursery

The outdoor shower was a hit with Charlie!

Hostesses: R to L

Karen Hinson, Charla Mullinax, Martha Stutzman, Nancy Jeter

(daughter a high school friend of Charlie), Charlie, Nichole,

Cynthia Poole, Elaine Reavis, Carol Fisher, Cherri Raines

(Laura Lasseter, Karen Walker and Suzanne Adams were uanble to attend)

Thank you all, ladies!

A special thanks to Marc and Carol Fisher for opening their beautiful home and hosting this very meaningful event for our children!

The clock is ticking down...one week from today, Charlie & Nichole will strike out for the adventure of a life-time!  Pray for their safety in driving and in settling in to new jobs and new city.  We pray God's blessings on them!







January...where did you go?

January has just flown by...there are only six more days of the first month in the new year and I want to just put on the brakes and say, "STOP"!  I'm not ready for January to be over...that means I have way too much to do at work before the end of the month.  There's the 2011 4th quarter 941 to get completed and submitted, W-2s, W-3, contribution statements out, new budget developed in Quick Books and Excel, January financial report, February's calendar.  But most of all, I don't want the end of the month to arrive, because that means after that there will not be but six more days before our oldest son and his new bride move 15+ hours away from us.

We can't help but be happy for them. New life together, new jobs, a new city to experience.  We will need to get our computer camera soon so we can "Tango" and "Skype" with them without much delay!

Keep Charlie & Nichole in your prayers as they drive the long distance and as they begin their new life in Pittsburgh!  You can say one for us too as we try to adapt to not having them close by...

And the Rains Came

I love the sound of rain on the roof. That's what I woke to in the middle of the night.  After sighing, I turned over and went back to sleep, snuggling under the covers next to my sweet husband.  But, not until I tried to coax poor Buddy into calming down and to go back to sleep too.  He's our 7 year old mix terrier who sleeps in a kennel in our bedroom...poor thing is terrified of thunder and lightening and the rain.

When the rain comes during the night, when things are quiet around me and I stop and listen, the rain provides such a calming sensation.  And it reminds me of how God uses rain to wash the dust and grim away and to nourish the earth.  This is what baptism does to our bodies and souls.  By immersion, we're washed and made clean by the blood of Jesus.  Ready to start each new day with a clean heart and soul.

Everything around us and every experience can be a teaching moment if we'll just "be still and know He is God".

Have a blessed day and stop to listen to what God has to share with you.

It's Official

Congratulations to my precious new daughter-in-law, Nichole, for passing her Boards with flying colors today!  She is officially a CRNA (certified registered nurse anethetist) and will begin her new job at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center February 6th. 

Oh, how Charlie & Nichole will be missed by their family and friends...but, do I hear "road trip"?  Already saving our pennies to make a trip in the late spring/early summer...oh, the places we have yet to see!

Love you, Nichole!  We're so proud of you!

Let's let February 1st be the new year

Our friends who have just been through a blur since mid-December caring for a dying mother, have decided to let February 1st become their New Year's celebration...the holidays all ran together without celebration and fan fare. They will bid farewell to her sweet spirit tomorrow.

And another close friend just buried her mother yesterday, also after a blur of holidays.  We may just have to do the same for her family - February 1st, the new, New Year!

But change comes, whether we're prepared for it or not.  We grow older, lose hair, turn gray, gain weight, lose family members to death or to dementia, have great staff members at your family member's assisted living leave without notice, marry off children, have those children move way too far away to visit everyday or even every month...some things we look forward to, others we dread with a passion. 

God is forever faithful to do what He promises and it is we who must trust in Him and stop trying to handle all these changes on our own.  It can become overwhelming if we try to cope without God in the driver's seat...we've heard He is to be our co-pilot, but I'd rather Him do the driving.  But, I am preaching to myself here...it is so very hard to "let go and let God". 

As we start this new week, I hope I can do just that.  Stop worrying or concerning myself with things I simply cannot control.  Get back in the Word and let the Father do His thing with my heart and my life.

Have a great week everyone...as we say farewell to those we love and will miss greatly, let's turn it over to God...they will be in His presence now and our loved ones would definately want us to no longer worry about them.

And the new year brings....

The new year has brought some sadness at church with the death of a long-time member...at the too-young age of 55.  Robin fought hard - first breast cancer in the late 90's and then developed lung cancer last year.  Her sweet family, friends and church family said farewell to her last week.  Her devoted husband, Jeff, and daughters, sons-in-law and grandchildren, mother, sister, brother, friends...will all try to carry on without her in their daily lives.

Now, we're preparing to saying farewell to a precious 93 year old faithful member of our church.  Annie Ruth is continuing to hold on to life, though none of us can believe after the many, many days of unresponsiveness and no food and water...but this is God's timing and He will carry this close, loving family through this difficult time of saying good-bye to their "Mama".  She is only about 4'10" (give or take), but the spunk and sparkling eyes, non-stop activity in service to her family and others, will be greatly missed.  She was one of the founding members of our church's Golden Triangle group and has been directly responsible for helping make and provide over 21,000 stuffed bears to our local hospital, and hundreds of lap robes provided to the VA Hospital in Lake City...and thousands of cards mailed to sick and shut-ins, and the list goes on of their good deeds.  Annie Ruth was a big participant in all of these.  We love you, Little Mama!

Other friends are having to prepare for the passing of their loved ones, illnesses and diseases are becoming more frequent in the families of close friends...all we can do is support and love our friends through these overwhelming times. 

Memories past and present are swirling as the new year begins.  We're  having to say good-bye to life as we know it in some cases, and looking encouragingly toward the future in other circumstances.  We brought Mrs. Vinson to Tallahassee in June and belongings from the past are being gone through - difficult and bittersweet, but necessary...life changes.  We brought a precious new "daughter" into our family, but will have to be separated from them for a time (but we're already making plans for a good visit in the spring). 

Much love to everyone in the coming year.  May God grant us "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness" in 2012.

Married to My Best Friend

[Wow!  The grandiose ideas of posting every day in 2012 sure passed me by.  I'm amazed the last post was December 15.  Life started into overdrive and is just now settling down.  I'll try to catch you all up on everything going on.]

Christmas was highlighted by a wedding in our household!  On Friday, December 23, we all drove to Seacrest, FL for the beginning of a wonderful weekend.  A three-story house right on the beach had been rented and the Daviduk/Vinson families had a great time getting to know each other better and to celebrate the joining of our children in marriage.  That night we enjoyed self-serve sandwich fixings and sat around with lots of laughter and sharing memories from our families.

Saturday, December 24, stared out cloudy, very cold and windy and brought just a little apprehension when thinking of a noon wedding about to happen.  But, God is good, and with my pleas to Him while walking on the beach in the wee hours of the morning, He so chose to shoo the clouds away and bring out the sunshine!  It was truly a "chamber of commerce" day at the beach. 

The morning went smoothly, everyone was relaxed [dare I say such a thing before a wedding?] and our intimate family wedding went off without a hitch!  Carl had the amazing task of officiating for the ceremony and was so honored to do so.  [Let me interject here that he started getting sick on the drive over and was really feeling horrible on Saturday and Sunday - but he faked feeling well throughout and did a wonderful job!] 

The day could not have been more beautiful - azure blue skies, crashing waves, and a breeze with 70 degree temperatures, on the pretty much isolated beach.  And how nice to be barefooted or wearing flip-flops during a wedding instead of fancy, toe-hurting shoes!  Everyone was comfortable, happy and relaxed -- I highly recommend the simpler, one-month planned weddings...our children are just as married and my, how much more enjoyable and economical this was...and the venue couldn't have been more perfect.

Nichole's parents provided a delicious reception/lunch of homemade lasagna, salad, and garlic bread, which we all enjoyed immensely!  We had the honor of providing the wedding cake, which we indulged in following lunch, along with a champaign toast from family members to the newlyweds!  What a wonderful day!  As the sun started setting, we went back down to the beach for some sunset pictures...beautiful and breathtaking!  God's paintbrush was fully involved.

[thanks to Suzanne and Vince Fontana "Flowers by Vince"]



The evening consisted of us sharing lots more laughter and memories, while creating new memories for the future.  Us older folks finally went to bed and let the younger folks welcome in Christmas morning!

Sunday morning we had our family private time and communion, followed by our family opening their Christmas presents.  How wonderful to have a "daughter" in the mix now!  Carl and I provided the Christmas lunch consisting of ham, turkey, dressing and all the trimmings.  And after that, there was the lazy afternoon just spent talking and looking over digital pictures - over 1000 - on the computer from the day before.  [We didn't take a single picture opening presents...]

Monday started very early for Nichole's parents and younger sister, Laura, who had to be at the Ft. Walton airport by 5am for her flight back to California.  We had said our good-byes on Sunday evening, and look forward to more times with the Daviduks in coming months.  The Vinsons spent a little more time with the newlyweds that morning before heading back to reality in Tallahassee. 

Charlie & Nichole then spent another day at the beach ... alone finally... before also getting back to reality, which for Nichole has been studying 8-10 hours a day for her upcoming Boards, and for Charlie, getting business settled in Tallahassee and preparing for their move to Pennsylvania the first of February.

Our year-end was spent quietly together, while our grown sons were working (Mike) and enjoying time with his new bride (Charlie)...God bless you all and may 2012 be a great year for everyone!