Easter & First Quarter of the Year Catch-Up

We had a nice time together on Easter. I always try to get a grandchildren picture but that was quite a challenge this year. Here is the best I could do. Cassidy wanted nothing to do with a group picture so as fast as we set her down, she quickly ran away. I managed to just get her in this picture.

I actually really love this photo! So many different expressions!

Here are a few other random pictures of the egg hunt.

Mark & Awstin search diligently for eggs

Clara shows off her golden egg.

Janae's color was purple and Jake in the background was collecting blue eggs.

Cassidy is delighted to find one of her green eggs in the refrigerator.

Even Kyle was excited to find an egg.

Also in the month of March we had two baby dedications to attend. The first one was for Kyle. It is so wonderful to see our grandchildren dedicated to God.

Showing off his wave

Jake got in on the picture taking too!

And the second one was for Seth

Neither Cassidy or Seth were interested in smiling!

Also in March, we were able to watch some of our grandchildren's Bible quizzing. Mark & Hannah's tournament was on Saturday, March 23.

Both Mark & Hannah were top 15 quizzers!

 

Team Picture!

And on Sunday, March 24, it was the final quiz of the year for Alexis and Lydia.

                                                                                

Lydia received the most improved quizzer award of the season and Alexis tied for top quizzer! Amazing!

                                                                                    

Waiting to quiz

The second week of February we kept Clara & Janae for a weekend while Jay & Kristen went to the mountains with friends.

                                                                                    

Clara is quite the climber!

                                                                                    

Janae enjoys the slide

                                                                                    

You can't have a sleepover at Grandma's without having movie time!

The end of January was Jake's 3rd birthday.

                                                                                

Birthday Boy!

                                                                                        

Family picture!

And...way back in January we got a new car!

A 2019 Ford Edge. I love it!

That is a brief recap of the first part of the year. Now we are ready for Spring and warmer weather!

Welcome Naomi Ann Lehman!

It was just an ordinary day. I was working the store and heard my phone signal that I had a text message. I continued finishing what I was doing and then went to check it. I picked it up and saw that Kristen had sent me this picture with 5 words underneath it.

And then there were seven!

Suddenly it wasn't an ordinary day! This was a surprising and very exciting piece of news as the baby wasn't due for another 3 weeks. The fun was that I didn't know if it was a boy or girl. I quickly tried to call Kristen but it went to her voicemail. I then tried Jay and thankfully Lydia answered his phone so I didn't have to be in suspense much longer. 

I found out that Naomi Ann Lehman made her appearance at 6:30 am weighing 6lbs 13 ounces! We are delighted to welcome her into our family. She will be much loved by her siblings and parents. We are so happy that she is safely here and everyone is doing well.

Steve and I stopped at the hospital to visit and of course took a few pictures.

Such a little sweetheart! We can't wait to see her little personality emerge! We now have 13 grandchildren--7 girls and 6 boys! What a blessing they are to us!

And...here is my Scrabble board. I had to do a complete overhaul but I am pleased with the result. It needed an upgrade with all matching tiles so I did that as well as moving Steve, Mary and Lehman to the side giving me more room to add Naomi.

The Impossible Puzzle

I have always enjoyed doing puzzles. I know as a child, we would occasionally put a puzzle together over the winter months and in my dad's later years, he always had a puzzle that he was working on. When the children were small, I didn't have time for it (or didn't make the time), but over the past couple of winters I have resurrected my love for puzzles. I am partial to 1000 piece puzzles and if I'm not too busy, I can often put one together in about a week. Years ago, when my step-grandmother's (Vivien) items were being disbursed I received a small folding table and it is the perfect size for a 1000 piece puzzle.

About 3 weeks ago I started this puzzle.

Now, there are easy 1000 piece puzzles and there are hard 1000 piece puzzles. I realized right away that this was a hard one. Too many pieces had the same shape and almost fit, but not quite, and there were also a lot of one color so it was hard to tell them apart and figure out where they might go. I struggled with the border and as you can see in the above picture I actually couldn't complete the black on the bottom border. Pieces just didn't fit. So I started at the top and hoped the bottom would come together as I got to it. 

I slowly moved along and completed the sky, eagle and lighthouse. All that was left was the black bushes on the bottom. And they were just impossible. I would think I had it figured out and even get down to 6 or 8 pieces left and they just weren't the right ones. I would take all the black pieces out again  (about 40 pieces) and try again and again and again. I have never worked on such an impossible puzzle. Megan tried and also deemed it impossible. Julissa tried and came up with the same conclusion. The pieces were getting ripped and jagged from just taking them out and putting them back in so often.

I was determined not to give up on this puzzle, but it was going on 3 weeks of working on it and the last 10 days were just on the approximately 40 black pieces. Finally I got so frustrated that I just jammed the last 6 pieces in that didn't fit and called it finished. To the casual observer it looks like I completed the puzzle.

But if you look close, you can see where a few pieces don't fit.

I'm sure if you are reading this blog, you are convinced that you would be able to fix it, but I honestly don't believe you could. I really wonder if it is possible.

Some of my puzzles I keep and put together again, but not this one! I thought about packaging this one up and taking it to the Main Street Closet Thrift Store with a note including my phone number: This is an impossible puzzle. If you solve it please send me a picture.  I'm sure someone would be up to the challenge but I decided to save them the frustration. This puzzle is going in the trash can!

2023 Reflections

Here's a picture of all of us that I said I would post from when we got together on New Year's Day. We all look so happy. Can you believe that in the next 24-48 hours over half of us got the stomach bug?!?! Ugh! 

Us & the Grands - All 12 of them with #13 coming in April :)

As I sit here at the computer to write on this 27th day of December, 2023, Bryce lays on the sofa, sick with fever and cough. Steve threw up overnight and even though he feels somewhat better, still has a bad headache. I have just recovered from a severe bout of vomiting and diarrhea that laid me up for four days the week before Christmas. Because of all the sickness (others in the family were sick too), we decided to postpone our Christmas get-together, which was scheduled for last Saturday (the 23rd) to New Year's Day.  It will be interesting to see how many make it to that.

Anyway, this is not intended to be a down-and-out blog. I was just sharing where we are at in life right now. On the contrary, we have a lot to be thankful for this year.

First and foremost, we are thankful for Steve's recovery from his heart attack. Since I had written about it on this blog when it happened, I won't repeat it again. For the most part, he feels pretty good. I think the biggest concern for him right now, is managing his diabetes. It is difficult to get the right blend of diet and medication but he and his doctors continue to work at it.  He is also still taxiing for the Amish and enjoys that very much.

We are also thankful that we were able to take a trip to Alaska with Lois and Jim. It had been a long time, since we had traveled. We figured out that the last time we were on a plane was 2012! It was a wonderful week of relaxation and restoration. It was so good to take time away from our "normal" lives. We both came back feeling refreshed and renewed. Although I will never recommend that anyone take a red-eye flight!

We also welcomed two grandsons into the family! Kyle was born in July and Seth in September. It is such a joy to watch these little ones grow. We have never had grandchildren this close in age, and I am betting that these two cousins will share many happy times together. 

We are so thankful that we found Victory Church in August of 2021. We love the sermons, fellowship, and many friends that we have made there. We also teach children's Sunday School once a month. This has been a bit challenging but it is good for us. We meet regularly with our small group and these people have become such good friends to us. The one couple has access to a cabin that their daughter and son-in-law own and our small group was able to share two weekends this year at this wonderful mountain retreat. I'm not sure how people do life without church, friends and family and I'm so thankful to have the support of all three.

My year was busy with managing the store. At times I definitely grew weary of it and wondered why a woman my age was working so hard! Steve and I have always said that we were not going to let the store wear us out and I said that I didn't want to manage it after the age of 65. This year a neighbor started approaching us about buying the store/property. At first, we didn't think he was really serious, but then this fall he gave us a number to consider and said he would like to start the process of buying us out in 2024! It was appealing so we told our children about it and said we were thinking about taking him up on his offer. 

Well, to make a long story short, Shawn and Josh said that if we were going to sell, they had interest in it. We are still working out details, but as of January 1st I will no longer be the manager of the store! Instead I will just be an employee. I am amazed at how quickly this has come about and I couldn't be more excited. I am beyond ready to not have to shoulder so much responsibility and I look forward to having some hours in my day that I don't  have to think about the store. I will still be working a good many hours and also doing some managerial jobs, but at least any final decisions are no longer with me!

As we turn the corner and enter 2024, I am excited to see what God has in store for us. Twelve months is a long time and it is good to look back over a year and reflect on the joys, difficulties and challenges that were faced. However, one thing never changes and that is God's faithfulness. I am thankful for that promise.

Finally, here are my wishes for the coming year.  Good health for Steve and me...less stress...lots of time with grandchildren...relaxing times with God, family and friends...and last but not least....a new car!

I will edit this blog and post our annual Christmas picture if we manage to all get together on New Year's Day.

Annual Grandchildren Birthday Drop

Here are my annual grandchildren birthday pictures taken on or around their birthdays.

Jake - 2 years old

Lydia - 12 years old

Janae - 3 years old

Kyle - Newborn :)

Awstin - 10 years old

Clara - 6 years old

Alexis - 14 years old

Seth - Newborn (I like that I have the same top on for both Kyle and Seth's first visit!)

Bryce - 4 years old

Cassidy - 2 years old

Mark - 11 years old

Hannah - 9 years old

This year we added 2 new grandchildren and next year there will be another one as Jay & Kristen are expecting a baby in April :)  We are so grateful for every single one of our grandchildren! What a blessing!

Welcome Seth Dietrich Lehman!

Josh & Julissa welcomed son Seth Dietrich into their family today! He was born at 3:03 pm and weighed 6 lbs, 11 oz. Everyone is doing great!

Here are some first pictures.

First car ride

Not sure this is a "first" picture but probably pretty close.

First meeting with Grandma

First meeting with Grandpa

Big sister Cassidy gets in on the picture too!

Good thing Daddy has two arms!

First meeting of cousins! I'm sure these two will have many happy times together! 

We now have a dozen grandchildren! We are so grateful for each and every one of them. They are truly one of life's greatest joys!

And of course...here is the Scrabble board. His name went on so easily. I guess it was just meant to be!