Pink

I've always liked the color pink.  My sister and I shared a pink bedroom growing up.  I still remember the name of the color of the paint...it was called "Shrimp."  Fortunately, it didn't look like the color of any shrimp I've ever seen.

There's just something about pink that makes me feel safe and secure.  I suppose that's silly but maybe it harkens back to wearing lots of pink when I was a little girl when I felt safe in my parents' care.

Anyway, I was wearing pink today.  And it turned out to be very appropriate because my son called with the wonderful news that our grandbaby is actually a GRANDDAUGHTER!  I'm thrilled... of course, I would have been thrilled with a boy also!  But now, I have an excuse to buy lots of pink...not to mention ruffles!

Love is...

Do you ever get a little tired of all the "special" emails that people feel certain you would want to read, so they forward them to you? I admit that I've "accidently" hit "delete" when I'm sure I meant to hit "save" after receiving a boatload of forwarded emails.

But once in a while, I read one that I'm really glad I did.  So, I'm giving you advance warning, if you don't want to read a "forwarded email," you'd probably better stop right here and move on to someone else's blog.  Because here is one of those emails that I'm really glad I read.  It came from my husband and I'm pretty sure he sent it to me because he knew it would make me cry.  But it's a good cry.  So enjoy...especially the last one!

What Love means to a 4-8 year old.. .


Slow down for three minutes to read this. It is so worth it. Touching words from the mouths of babes.
A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds, 'What does love mean?'

The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined See what you think:
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'When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore.
So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love..'

Rebecca- age 8
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'When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different..
You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.'

Billy - age 4
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'Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.'

Karl - age 5
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'Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.'

Chrissy - age 6
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'Love is what makes you smile when you're tired.'

Terri - age 4
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'Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.'

Danny - age 7
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'Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that.. They look gross when they kiss'

Emily - age 8
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'Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.'

Bobby - age 7 (Wow!)
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'If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate,'

Nikka - age 6 (we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet)
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'Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday.'

Noelle - age 7
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'Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.'

Tommy - age 6
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'During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore.'

Cindy - age 8
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'My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.

Clare - age 6
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'Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.'

Elaine-age 5
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'Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.'

Chris - age 7
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'Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.'

Mary Ann - age 4
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'I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.'

Lauren - age 4
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'When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.' (what an image)

Karen - age 7
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'Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross.'

Mark - age 6
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'You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.'

Jessica - age 8
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And the final one

The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife.

Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there..

When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said,

'Nothing, I just helped him cry'

Comfort in a Bowl

I have a confession to make.  It's not pretty, but it's true.  All of the stress I've been under lately has led me astray.  I haven't been exercising, sleeping or eating like I should.  All of the good, healthy habits that I have been cultivating over the past year or so have pretty much gone by the wayside.  And here's the worst thing of all.  I've sought comfort in a bowl.

That's right.  When I just couldn't take it any more, I headed to the freezer and there I found my friend.  There I found ICE CREAM.   It started out innocently enough.  I grabbed a small bowl from the cupboard and put in just a couple of small scoops.  It was delicious.  Smooth, sweet, and creamy.  A balm for my hurting soul.

Certainly you can't blame me for deciding that, if a little was good, a little more was better.  So after another trip to the freezer, I did begin to feel better.   It's amazing how a little creamy deliciousness can calm frayed and fractured nerves.  It's also amazing how, when you make two trips to the freezer night after night, the ice cream carton empties out pretty quickly!

Thankfully, I think I'm getting this whole thing back under control. I know that the answer doesn't lie at the bottom of an ice cream bowl.  And I sure as heck don't want to end up in some 12-step program for ice cream abusers. 

But here's what I've learned...when life hands you a "rocky road,"  a little dish of the frozen stuff can help get you back into "mint" condition. Three cheers for chocolate, strawberry and vanilla!

Food for Thought

Seen on the wall of a pizza parlor in Oregon:

"What if the hokey-pokey really is what it's all about?"

Two thoughts about that:
1.  Wow! That's almost too depressing to even consider.
2.  You, Oregonians, are some deep thinkers!

Those Nice Lantz Girls

Growing up, that's what my sisters and I were called.  "Those nice Lantz girls."  Now, only my youngest sister still has the name, but at heart, we all still proudly wear that title.

So here we are doing Whistler, B.C. and sharing the Olympic spirit.  One of my sisters had the great idea that, since there are five of us, and five Olympic rings, there would be one ring for each of us to sit in.  Right!  Like maybe ten years ago. Those rings are BIG! It would not have been pretty to watch us try to hoist ourselves up into them. But I do love how my sister, Martha, is on tippy-toes and still nearly hanging herself in the far right ring!

Words of Encouragement

One of the last pages of my Bible is filled with quotes that I have jotted down over the years from sermons I have heard.  I'm claiming this one today:

"At the time of our worst despair, God is often preparing our greatest blessing." 
 ~Pastor Ray Armstrong

Finding Strength Without All the Answers

This summer started with such joy!  In the first part of June, our daughter became engaged to be married.  Then two weeks later, our son and daughter-in-law told us that we would become first-time grandparents in February.  Such rejoicing!

However, shortly after the news of the grandbaby, came the news that our son was being laid off from his position as a young adults pastor. Suddenly, the joy was a bit clouded by the uncertainty for the future.  We continue to pray for God's provision in this area.

Then two weeks ago, we had lay offs at my work.  My boss was laid off and our entire work group has been thrown into uncertainty.  It has felt like a hostile take-over and the morale is painfully low as we all struggle with this crushing blow.  I don't know who I will end up working for or with in the days ahead.  What I do know is that my work family is being torn apart.

Last week, however, came the most difficult news.  On Wednesday, we found out that my husband has prostate cancer.  Gratefully, the cancer was found early, but we are now trying to come to grips with this new and frightening reality, as we search for the best course of treatment.

In these past day, I have found myself crying out to God, asking "What happened? Why did the joy and blessings so quickly turn to such painful struggles?"  "Why all of this; why now; why us?"

But every time I start to utter these questions, I am brought up short, because I have asked these questions before. Only then I was asking  "Why ALL of this; why us?" as I tried to grasp God's goodness to me throughout my life.  While so much of the rest of the world is suffering and broken, God has graciously poured out His love for me in ways that I don't understand or deserve.

Tonight, He is still covering me with His love.  I may not have the answers to the questions that trouble me at this moment.  What I do have, is the assurance that nothing is touching my life that hasn't first gone through the Father's loving hands. I have not been abandoned, nor am I a helpless orphan.  I still have a Father who allows me to ask the "whys" until I am able to move forward in His strength...with or without the answers.