That would be…three big boys and one little boy.  And, that would be Adam, Alex, Ian and Little Levi.

Ian was home for the weekend and quite a time was had by us all!  He managed to get much accomplished!  On Friday night, he and his sweet cousin Lori, and Pop all went out to dinner.  They all enjoyed the time together and catching up and reminiscing.

Then, on Sat, he did a little studying, a little visiting, and then our little family all ate together last night.  Of course, the main attraction was Little Levi!  We cooked out for our supper…the traditional Southern, get-together, without too much trouble…hamburgers on the grill!  Delicious!

Ian managed to get in some special ‘Levi time’ while he was here.  And last night, all 3 boys were having such fun together.  God blessed Alex with a better day and he was able to be up with the family last evening.  And, those 4 had a ball together.  Levi doesn’t stand a chance!  Check out these pictures…

                      “Children are a blessing and a gift from the Lord.”Psalm 127:3…

                                                                                                      …that would be both big children and little ones!

SMILE:

A facial expression characterized by an upward curving of the corners of the mouth and indicating pleasure, amusement, or derision.

A pleasant or favorable disposition or aspect.To have or form a smile.

A SMILE WILL MAKE YOU HAPPIER

Know that wonderful feeling you get when you have a great workout? That’s from the happy chemicals the body produces called ENDORPHINS. Athletes experience this after their workout or competition. They call it a natural high. Smiling releases endorphins. Endorphins not only create a happier state mentally when they are released into the body, but they also have a variety of other health benefits.  Smiling and laughter have been proven to release endorphins in the body in the same way that they are released for an athlete.  So, by increasing laughter and smiling in your life can release endorphins in your body, ultimately providing you a variety of health benefits above. Smiling allows each and every one of us to provide our body with healing benefits. In fact, it can be your own prescription to heal and prevent ailments. So, SMILE !  Right now !  Coooome on…..THERE!  Now don’t you feel better?

“A cheerful heart is a good medicine,

but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”    Proverbs 17:22   NIV

The most wonderful smile of all, however…..is your grandson’s FIRST smile…at YOU !

Life is like a mirror, we get the best results when we smile at it!

Sunday…June 12…2o11

Today was a special day.  You know, I realize how fortunate I am to be able to say that.  I am so thankful for good news.  I am thankful that my family believes that what is good for one of us is good for all.  And, of course…what hurts one of us affects us all.  You take one of us …you take us all.  We are a cohesive unit…even if we have differing paths to follow.

Well,as I said, today was a special day.  And, so much leads up to it, that I don’t know if I can even explain it all to you so that it makes sense.  For years, our family has worshipped together at SBC. ***But children grow up and move away  to other cities and worship with strangers (to us) but where they feel comfortable.  ***They grow up and move away……even if it is only 30 miles up the highway, and they join the community church and use their talents there.  Which is, I believe, what God intends for us to do wherever we may call home.  ***They grow up and move with others to start a new church.  ***They grow up and worship in a totally new kind of church.  ***They grow up, but don’t always move away…and are not even able to attend church at all……but read and study and worships in his own way…living very close to God.  ***And, then there are our elders who simply moved on to  the the most wonderful place of all to worship…at the feet of Jesus.  And, this is the way of the world.  It is right and fitting that they should make their own decisions about how and where they worship.  They are serving the Lord , they are teaching, as they have been taught,  they are raising their children to love their church.  This makes mothers and fathers and aunts and uncles and grandfathers very happy and proud.  Together at SBC or worshipping in other places…we are ALL part of the Family of God.

But,  there are those of us who come  to our dear SBC each Sunday to worship.  Joy is the church pianist, Don and Tommy serve as Deacons, and committee heads, and Pop leads a Sunday School Department. I have not been able to be very active in the past few months due to my health, but I’m hoping to get a reprieve soon. It is funny thing that if I clear my throat or cough, Joy will always look my way from across the church.  It is a gift to sing the hymns with Don.  It is a treasure in my heart each time my Pop takes my hand during the benediction and holds it gently in his.  He always did the same with Mom.

It is nothing short of an early Heaven to be at church with those who have known you since you were a babe yourself.  Who saw you and loved you and taught you and  TOLD ON YOU!! and set the example of what being a Christian means.  They watched you grow, and helped you grow,  and then they watched your children.  And, they loved them and visited them, and taught them, and set the example, and yes, TOLD ON THEM! when necessary.   And, their children were taught, and loved and TOLD ON, when they were taught by us.    We love their children just as they love ours.These are the people who feed you when you are sick.  They sit with you during illness.  They comfort you during the pain of death.  There are many ladies here who loved my Mom.  They never mind us mentioning her or talking about her…they loved her, too.  It helps us so that we know they can recall sweet times with her, too.   I know that any of them would stand in for my Mom should we need it.   This is what makes a church family.  This is what binds us together.  This is the stabalizing force in our lives.  And, it is a good place to be.  And, here we shall be until we join Mom and  Mrs Elizabeth and Mr. Hanlan  (Don’s Mom and Dad), along with Tommy’s and Ben’s Dads,  on the streets of gold.

Adam grew up at SBC and Suzanne came when she was in college.  There are many, many people who love Adam…from watching him grow…and for watching him fight and beat cancer when he was just a little boy!  And, he and Suzanne are sorely missed…as are the rest of the cousins.

*****Allow me to stop here and say again what a blessing God has given us in Little Levi.  There was much doubt as to whether Adam and Suzanne would be able to bring a child into the world.  There were fertility issues that shall remain theirs to tell.  But, it was devastating when discovered.  However, God can take the saddest things in our lives and work through them to bring about a miracle.  Through wonderful doctors and God’s grace…they were able to have this precious child!  You know…people often get angry with God and wonder why He allows such sadness to occur in the lives of His children.    God made this natural world for us to live in,  and things sometimes go a little wonky.  It is the way of this world.  Even though it was created to be a perfect place…it changed with Adam and Eve.  So, God takes these sad and bad things that come into our lives and turns them into things we can bear.  Sometimes He makes things right.  Sometimes, He helps us find a workable solution…even if it is not the perfection we truly want.  And, sometimes, He says, “Be strong and learn from this trial.  I will help you and hold you and I will never leave you alone.”  And, He does just what He promises.  He is there to smooth our paths and He uses His followers to love on us and comfort us.  He. Is. Always. Good.*****

***Wow!  That was a lot of background that probably was not at all interesting, but as a historian for our family…it is important for me to tell the whole story.***

Today was a day of happiness and joy.  Joy deep down inside.  Adam and Suzanne brought Levi to SBC and my heart overflowed with happy.  There were so, so many people who loved and still love Adam…and they have been praying for he and Suzanne throughout this whole process.  They were happy to hear when they got pregnant, and even more so when he was born.  And, today, they were so happy to see their new son.

Pop began sitting on the other side of the church soon after Mom died.  Joy and Tommy sit there and it is easier for him to sit in a different place.  But today, he came and sat between Adam and I.  Forgive the goofy grin…like  I’m the only woman to ever have a grandchild.  He was so good all through the service.  Not a sound…except when he got the hiccups!

Do you notice how adoringly he is looking at me in the pic above?   Now look at the pic below….see?  Yes, I think the correct word would be adoration…just saying…

Here he is with our dear Uncle Allison, who just celebrated his 92 nd birthday!

Don and I with the sweetest grandson ever!

And, then Adam said they needed to go home.  Well, Levi was having a grand time at church with all the attention.  So, he whispered to me that he wanted to stay.  Then Adam told him that really they had to go.  And, this is what he thought about that…

And, thus the day came to an end.   Adam and Suzanne and Levi will be back in their church next week.  They are now in a  long and well established church where they are very happy.  And, that makes us happy!

“God has given us these times of joy.”  Nehemiah 12:43

“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”

Psalm 139: 13-16 ESV

“ We pray that you will lead a life that is worthy of the Lord. We pray that you will please him in every way. So we want you to bear fruit in every good thing you do. We want you to grow to know God better.  We want you to be very strong, in keeping with his glorious power. We want you to be patient. Never give up. Be joyful  as you give thanks to the Father. He has made you fit to share with all his people. You will all receive a share in the kingdom of light”  AMEN.

Colossians 1: 10-12

“Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers.”

Proverbs 17:6  ESV

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We had Adam and Suzanne over for supper this week.  It is always such a treat when the 3 of them are here!  This little butterbean was sound asleep when he came in, so we just let him be for a while.

After he woke up, and after we had all finished eating, Suzanne decided to let Levi have his first taste of the pool.  And, lest you think it was not warm enough to swim…yesterday the temp here was 101….yes, 101!!!  It is approx. 5:00 p.m. right now and it is 102 degrees!  So, yes, it was warm enough!

I bought him a little swimsuit when I was in Maui, and Suzanne put it on him.  And, out we went.  I was afraid he would cry when he first got in the water, but, he never made a whimper!   He loved it!  See what you think…

After he was in for a few minutes, we got him out and dried him off and he got a good snuggle in with his granddaddy.

And, I’m not sure, but I imagine that he was dreaming of his first swim before he got out of the driveway!