Romans 8:28

I miss my grandson, Hunter and his mommy Ali, too.  His toy lawn mower sits on my front porch from his visit here in March. I am so excited to visit them soon.  The trunk of my car has been storing a few surprises for my little guy when I get there! 

This is a photo of Hunter and his ice cream taken by Lori Wroblewski (one of Ali's bffs) last night.  I can't wait to hug and kiss him! 
 

Michael Wayne Carter

1981 - 2010

Last week was quite the tragic one.  There was a roof collapse at Dotiki Coal Mine in Western Kentucky that took the lives of two young men.  I had to make the agonizing, heartbreaking drive to my daughter, Katie's workplace to let her know that Michael Carter had died.  She collapsed in my arms and just sobbed.  I took her home and we stayed glued to MSNBC for any news coverage.

Michael was Katie's high school/early college boyfriend for 6 years. One of the things I remember about Michael is his big, beautiful smile.  He was so kind and such a joy to be around.  Michael was a big comfort to me when I lost my mother.  He was a big part of our family for many years and I have always loved him.  He was a wonderful boyfriend to Katie and I have so many fond memories of him.  I thought the world of Michael and he meant so much to us.  We are blessed for having known him.

The last time I saw him was at Applebee’s with Hayden (2 year old son) in his arms and Melissa (his wife) at his side a couple of years ago.  He had such a big, beaming grin as he introduced Alison and me to Hayden and Melissa.  You could tell Michael was a happy, proud family man

Katie went home for the funeral and her husband, Joey has been so supportive.  I lit a candle in honor and remembrance of Michael at the time of his funeral last Sunday.  He will be missed by many people.

I can't imagine the grief and pain Melissa, Hayden, Curtis and Sharon (his parents) are suffering at this time.  Please keep them in your prayers along with the family of Justin Travis who also died in this accident.

On Sunday, May 1st Morehead (Rowan County) received over 7 inches of rain causing flooding everywhere.  All main roads were impassable and many people lost their homes and belongings.  Above is the parking lot of my favorite coffee shop.

This is the Save-A-Lot parking lot (they had to rescue people out of there by boat) and a gas station not too far down the road from me.  I was lucky not to have any flooding near my home and only had to deal without power for 12 hours.  We are still under a boil water advisory and clean up continues.

The past week has reminded me that life can change in a blink of an eye.  It's also made me aware of the many blessings God has given me and all my hope is in God. Thank you, Jesus.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those that love him, who have been called according to His purpose.  Romans 8:28

Favorite Things

Chocolate, men, coffee – some things are better rich.

One of the simple pleasures I enjoy in life is drinking a great cup of coffee out of my favorite mug.  My daughter, Alison gave me this mug one Christmas and I love its large size and whimsy. It is well used and much loved as shown by the tiny chips along the bottom of the rim.  


I really enjoy my Keurig coffee brewer but I felt guilty for weeks after buying such a luxurious Christmas gift for myself.  Didn't I deserve drinking a freshly brewed cup, never a stale one again?  Of course! 

Love the movies; bugs in my food, not so much.

Katie and I went to see "Date Night", late Friday afternoon.  I just love being able to spend time with her at a moment's notice!  It was a good, funny movie and we give it two thumbs up!


After the movie, we did some shopping.  It's a requirement when you have a coupon for $20.00 off on a $50.00 purchase!  We were quite successful (maybe too much) in reaching that $50.00 total!  Katie is a quick shopper while I tend to wander around the store for a long time but she's very patient with me.

Katie wanted to eat at The Frosty Freeze in Midland, KY (just a hop, skip & jump from here).  My stomach was a bit upset but I knew I had to eat something so I ordered one of their famous cheeseburgers.  The first half of it was delicious but then as I looked down on my plate there was a nasty bug, dead as can be, on his back right next to what was left of my burger.  OMG!  I looked at it again - was it a fly?  What the hell was it?  


I pointed it out to Katie... Ewww.  She grabbed my plate and headed to the counter. The waitress was horrified and dashed in the back with the plate in her hand (otherwise known as getting rid of evidence!).  If I had been thinking I would have taken a photo of it to share with everyone.


Both of our appetites had vanished so we gathered our belongings and headed back to the counter.  The waitress/cook came out and said, "I don't know where that came from and I am so sorry.  It's on the house."  Both meals and drinks on the house, dead bug included! Good grief. We give this diner two thumbs down.  Despite the dead bug, it was a great day!

Decisions, Decisions

After living in Madisonville, KY for over 30 years, I made the move to Morehead, KY on January 1, 2010. My daughter, Katie lives here and I am only a 3 hour drive to my daughter, Alison's home. This was not an easy step for me to take but it was time for me to start a new beginning.

It took me well over a year to finally make the decision to move here. Katie was very encouraging and let me know that I was wanted here very much. That made me feel really good about the possibilities of moving. I knew deep inside that I was overdue for a fresh start but fear and hiding inside my comfort zone held me back from making a final choice.

I had prayed on and off about it. Sometimes not making the decision was my decision! The fall of 2009 started opening the doors to my move. God was answering prayers but I was hesitant to listen, to really believe. He was opening up doors of opportunities but there were time limits to it. I was scared. Was I doing the right thing?

I sat down late one evening and pulled out a notebook after a quick prayer. I drew a line down the middle to make 2 columns, pro and con. It didn't take much time to realize the pro side was spilling over while the con column appeared almost trivial. I read over it twice, made my decision and called Katie to let her know I would soon be living in Morehead. I was amazed on how simple, and easy it had become make this choice.

I am pleased with myself and the courage it took to make this move. God is good; I am blessed.