HOCKEY on the Sabbath...

 Allow me to indulge myself a little, please....

I don't usually choose sports over church on Sundays, 

but today was an exception.

Nick's ice hockey team was given an invitation to have a little game time here this morning

He's not a picture person,

 but I got a kick out of watching him enjoy entering the stadium from the side door

AUTHORIZED ENTRANCE ONLY

DOOR 5

TEAM

I especially enjoyed the text he sent me while we were parking the car, 

"Mom, this is SO cool!  It's like the player's locker room with a lounge and everything!"

I almost missed this day.

My dad offered to take him...and I was tempted to say 

"SURE, then I'll take Emma to church"

{cause that's what I'm SUPPOSED to do on Sunday}

But today I choose to enjoy my son's morning of wonder over the obligatory Sunday morning service.

DON'T get me wrong, I happen to LOVE church.

I love everything about Sundays...

But today was about THIS  

and THIS...

 The stadium was all but empty...

Parents and custodians made up the audience...

the team was in awe of the opportunity...

and excited from their first look

 Off they go...

 what a great morning of enjoying the boys having fun.  

It didn't matter an ounce to them that there was no one watching,

it was all about enjoying the moment.

It's hard to know how to react when your COACH becomes your TEAMMATE

and loses his footing right in front of you...

DO you laugh?

DO you reach down to help?

OR do you just pretend it never happened?

 SLAPSHOT!

My traveling buddy...

always willing to ride along,

always treats me to a cup of steaming coffee,

and keeps me company...

he's my hero!

and I believe he's someone else's hero, too...

Thanks dad....

 yet again.

No doubt we would have been blessed at church this morning 

but I think possibly we had an even greater blessing by 

BEING THERE

for him...

I think Jesus goes wherever we do...

and today He enjoyed the Sabbath on ICE...

  "Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit?
      to be out of your sight?
   If I climb to the sky, you're there!
      If I go underground, you're there!
   If I flew on morning's wings
      to the far western horizon,
   You'd find me in a minute—
      you're already there waiting!"

Psalm 139

Snow...again...

Everywhere you look around here there is snow...

 It started yesterday morning, causing the buses to practically turn back around

 and pick the students back up from school to return them home..

I believe their school day lasted for about 2 hours.

 Before long we had a white coating everywhere, so in order to keep up with it, I decided we should start the shoveling between the two storms they were calling for.  

SOMEone was not very happy about helping with shoveling...

She tried to convince me, 

"I don't DO snow..."

Sorry, Chickie...neither do I, but today...

we all do!

So she got the job of shoveling the front sidewalk...

 The snow started up again later in the afternoon and by bedtime had made it's landing over everything.

I had a feeling that we'd awaken to a hard job today...

and we did...

This is some really heavy snow...

and unfortunately, I realized we only own TWO shovels even though there are THREE able bodies...

 So...off he went up to the top of the drive...

to the part that the plows dump onto, giving us even more to shovel..

 while she and I took turns with the second shovel...

 Honestly...we got about halfway done before we all decided WE QUIT...

and it sits out there waiting for us to finish the job....

which we will.

Sometime before it gets dark.

I'm SURE of it.

Meanwhile, I came in for one of these

and finished THIS...

And now, with wet hair, the last thing I feel like doing is putting THESE back on...

 But...it must be done...

Also...apparently if you are forced to stay home for a few days because your car is stranded in the driveway

you actually can change your mind and "DO" snow.

Apparently, 

because she did this....

 and this...

don't be too impressed, though

the tallest one is two feet high.

All in all, we've gotten along pretty well all trapped in here together...

We've had THIS to remind us to have a little grace...

and I guess it works when you choose to live by it.

The sun is starting to make its' way down...and if I don't make it happen now, 

chances are my car will still be stuck here tomorrow...

the time has come.

We are missing this guy who is now snowed in at school...

{picture taken as he makes a last ditch effort to finish all his laundry before heading back to school on Tuesday...}

it really does make a difference when he is here to help dig us out!

Enjoy the day off of classes, dude...

and take a look outside, there might be someone who could use a helping hand.

We love you and miss you already around these parts!

Fo' REAL!

Quoting Paris

I was stuck in the orthodontist waiting room for over an hour today and

 the book I'd planned to read was left on my kitchen counter. So, I had to resort to leafing through piles of magazines instead {while drinking office coffee with powdered creamer}.  

ANYway...

I had no idea that Paris Hilton ever said anything that anyone remembered long enough to quote it, 

but I was apparently mistaken...

She has her own quotation marks and everything on either side of a quote that goes like this:

"The only rule is don't be boring and dress cute wherever you go.  Life is too short to blend in."

I would say that she is far from blending in, she has the market on trying to be noticed and "cute"

but I have to disagree with her.  

Sometimes you don't have to dress cute to be noticed....

just ask this guy

Even without his bling he is not likely to go unnoticed. 

And sometimes you can just try way too hard....

and, though you may get noticed, it's really not for your charming beauty.

Someone PUHleease tell Paris that sometimes less is more 

{but NOT when it comes to modesty}

and a little blending in could do you good, girl...

I need to think about leaving a book in my car...

Today is the day Alex heads back to college.  It's been well over a month that he's been home and I've enjoyed every minute.  {Even with all his LATE hours.....LATE to bed, LATE to get up}  He is becoming a great young man and watching it happen is a joy to me.  He's had some rough hurdles in school this year...in his own words he has a love/hate relationship with college.  I'm a little sad about sending him back today, I think I'll miss him skulking around these parts at odd times during the day.  But, he's ready and it's time...you can read his thoughts about it HERE on his blog.

He doesn't know it yet, but I'll be taking some pictures a little later on.  

I am realizing how fleeting these years are and how bad I am at capturing them...

{don't tell him, he hates my camera}

He just walked in the room to convince me we should lunch together at Panera...

he knows my weak spot...

In a perfect world...

I would stop HERE every day

Eat a dozen or two of THESE

 and THESE

And not need one of THESE

Also, I just saw a commercial for a show called "My Strange Addiction".  Up next, a guy who is addicted to a blow up doll.  I'm not kidding...it's his friend...and he has no idea it is weird. 

 Really, we have become quite a society when we start showing stuff like THIS 

on tv and call it worthwhile.  

In a perfect world this would just not happen.

God help us.

FAST

{Word-less Wednesday} Art in a cup...

{Pictures from Google images}

Coffee?

I think 

YES!

A life celebrated....

"Helen D. Cook Astfalk, 93, of Homestead Village, passed away peacefully into the arms of Jesus on Sunday, January 9, 2011.

Helen was preceded in death by her first husband, Robert Cook, who died in 1987. Her second husband, Walter Astfalk, preceded her in 2006. She and Walter were married for ten years.

Born in Great Bend, PA, Helen was the daughter of the late Willard and Mabel (Reinhart) Alexander. She and her husband Robert moved to Lancaster in 1976 to be near their son, Robert, married to Sharon (Edgett) Cook, two grandchildren, Tammi Hoke and Terri Hershey, both of Lancaster and nine great-grandchildren. Helen is also survived by three stepchildren, Deb Moshier of Lancaster, Craig Astfalk of Michigan and Reneé Vosburgh of Tamaqua. Helen was preceded in death by six brothers and sisters.

Helen was dreaming of Heaven more and more as her health was failing and she wanted nothing more than to see Jesus. She spent the majority of her life seeking the Lord and now she has found him. She spent hours upon hours sharing her heart with Him and now she’s talking to Him face to face, for her life has just begun."

Today we celebrated the life of my grandmother with those whom she loved and those who loved her back.  Of course, there were tears...she was a pretty cool lady, which was evident by the sweet comments that were spoken of her.  As I listened to many of her loved ones speak so highly of her life, I couldn't help but feel a sense of awe all over again about the kind of woman she was.  

I want my funeral to be just like hers....

and I have 54 years to learn how to be the same kind of woman that she was.

  Our children had the privilege of being the pall bearers 

{I hope these pictures don't offend you...bottom line is, they wouldn't offend my grandmother-

she'd get a big kick out of it, actually!}

We came home exhausted...and did absolutely nothing.

Until I decided that in honor of the fact that my grandmother LOVED her some desserts,

I'd cut up some of these...

...put it in one of these...

bake it...

 and partake in a 

GREAT

BIG

PIECE.

 Thanks, Grandma, for a day of celebrating YOU,

For leaving us with something to STRETCH towards

and reminding us that life is nothing without 

FAMILY

FRIENDS

and a deep love

 for JESUS.

"You honor me by anointing my head with oil.
      My cup overflows with blessings.
  Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me
      all the days of my life,
   and I will live in the house of the Lord
      forever."

Psalm 23:5,6