conclusions and new starts

I watched the Olympic torch go out tonight. It was a bittersweet moment.
Some are eager to get back to the 'real" NBC lineup.
For me, I love the Olympics.
Nice work, Canada: Vancouver, Whistler, and Richmond.
You will be missed.
And to all the athletes
who pursued their dreams and trained to compete,
be proud.
I am.
May the spirit of good sportsmanship,
and the heart of these interactions,
lead us on toward something better in the world.
I know I love this admonishment
from the ancient text of Hebrews:
Let us consider how we may spur one another on
toward love and good deeds.
That is another thing to pursue and train toward.
I hope we can live out that kind of love
whether or not we are in an athletic competition.

But then again, maybe not

As B left for work today,
he asked me to drop off some dry cleaning.
This simple request launched a period of brain synapses
(or something) that reminded me
I never drycleaned my wedding dress.
So I grabbed it from the closet and packed it in the car.

This is all a rather mundane story
(perhaps even worthy of the dullest blog in the world material). The mundane ended, however,
when they informed me they charge $150
to dry clean and press my dress.
Seriously? How did I not know this.
Call me crazy, I was thinking more around $50. But three times that amount??
Perhaps you suspected this,
but my lovely dress found its way
back into my car
and is now happily hanging
back in the bag in the closet.
Back to the mundane...

Unless, of course, you have suggestions
on a different way to clean my dress.

Oh, one more thing, the dullest blog is really worth a read.
But the find goes to my friend Sabrina.
Thanks for the heads up, lady!

One last thing, the picture credit here is to Jewels! You should check out her work because it is fabulous.

Celebrating Winerva Joanne Van Roekel Klungel aka My Mom!!

So, if my Mom was 39 when I was born,
and now I'm forty,
and today is her birthday that makes her...

amazingly young at heart. The first photo

(with Carmen, her girls, me, and Grandma, Mom's mom)
is from seven years ago


and Mom hasn't changed a bit.
God granted her incredible energy and health.
What a thing to celebrate!!
Happy, happy, happy birthday my beloved Mom.

some of our favorite things

In the hope of
days to come,

In the memory of
wonderful events
of "oh-nine,"


I am celebrating
some of the things

we hosted and
some of the things

we like to do.
We love having company.


We love games.
And especially,
we love playing twister.

On bonus days,
sometimes we have guests
AND play twister.


I know,
Fun overload. :)

in the category of...oblivion and gratitude

So, as I have mentioned, my husband and I live in Indiana. But I also live and work in Michigan. Yes. We sometimes choose complexity in this life, I know. Without regurgitating all the detail, some of the motivation revolved around me completing my grad school work and receiving a substantial discount through my employer, the University where I received my Master's degree. Which leads me to my weekly commute and married life where I spend my weekends with my family in Indiana, naturally!

Recently B scheduled a work trip. Although the thought of joining him in Texas in February whilst one winters (ha!) where we do in Michiana tempted me, the idea of hanging with my girlfriends in Michigan captured me more. So the plans were made...
I anticipated hanging out with my friend Beth for some long awaited time at Karla's. I scheduled time with other girlfriends for later in the weekend. It was like the anticipation of vacation, I'm telling you. I was delighted for the opportunity to have these moments with some precious friends.

And Karla's phone call did not deter me. She mentioned that she and the kids had experienced the flu. Her doctor assured her they would not be contagious after 24 hours sans-puking. And so our anticipated arrival at about 48 hours later provided us double precaution. Not to mention, anyone who knows Karla knows she keeps a very clean and tidy house so germs wouldn't have much a chance. Without hesitation I answered her question about whether I still wanted to come with a confident Yes! Who knew when the "stars would align" for me to make these plans again?

Now Beth, well, she did not have the luxury of saying, "I'll take a sick day if i get sick." Understandably, she leaves for Florida soon and needs to save up those days. So she rescheduled with Karla.

Sad, but resilient, I trekked north. And aside from missing Beth, had a blast. Karla's kids are always fun and always lively and the opportunity to talk late into the night with such a dear friend is priceless.

Phase two meant packing up and heading back to my house in Michigan where friends and my sister, Hildred, descended upon my lovely roommate, to share food, laughter, tears, and who knows what else for the rest of the weekend. We combined leftovers for a delicious meal, witty conversation, and God's inspired "communion of the saints" as we communicated about the things on our hearts and lives.

That is until my stomach began a now-familiar bout of discomfort.
And well, let's just say, by the time we all attempted to settle for sleep, the party in my stomach began and everyone else quickly hit the road.
Oh, not totally. My sister, Hildred, she took care of me. I haven't been that sick in years. Twelve, I think, if memory serves correctly.
And my Shirley friends, well, they provided the necessary nourishment and hydration that a sick "puppy" like myself would need.
They offered more than cups of cold water, although, really, cold ice chips is literally all I could stomach.

How crazy is it, to be here now, a couple days later, sipping on soup, my first "real" meal in days, with a settled stomach, actually thinking food might taste and smell good once again.
It is more than enough to say, "Oh Lord, please forgive me for taking my health for granted. Every moment of peace within the body is a gift from you. Thank you Lord."