Family and Friends - God's Angels on Earth

Hello out there! Good morning to all of you, near and far, wherever you are! So much to share - I will just jump right in! In my previous post, I told you that four of our grandchildren are staying with us while their sister is in the hospital. She is doing much better but it is still going to be a while before she gets to come home. Her brothers and sisters have been with us for two and a half months now and will stay with us through the first semester of school. We have been blessed with a lot of help from our family and friends during this time. We still receive two meals a week, thanks to the meal train, two of my dear friends set up. And friends and family continue to drop by with this or that; paper plates, cereal, ice, laundry detergent, snacks, gift cards, homemade meals, fruit, and pizza deliveries! We are so thankful and truly blessed! Our home is full of young life and everything that goes with having four children from ages five through fourteen and a half. During this time, the tooth fairy has come to visit twice. Our youngest grandson, who is ten, has lost two teeth. He walked into my home office when he lost the second one and said, "I lost another tooth, Nana" and proceeded to drop the bloody tooth in my hand. We've celebrated two birthdays, his tenth and his older sister's thirteenth birthday. Jim and I celebrated our 37th anniversary back in June with pizza and grandkids! There have been haircuts, firstaid, and the laundry is endless. I have watched the Marvel super-hero movies and old classic Disney movies, "That Darn Cat" is still my favorite. My daughter and her husband have been great. They have one or two of the kids spend the night with them every week. Their daughters, three more of my precious granddaughters, have a lot of fun with their cousins. They are all in the same age group so it works out so well. Last week, I decided that I had to do something about all the gray in my hair. I haven't been to a beauty shop since January. I bought a box of Garnier Nutrisse number 33. My hair was supposed to be the color of caramel fudge but it turned out to be more like dark chocolate! They didn't put a plastic shower cap for me to cover my hair while it was processing, so I grabbed the Glad Cling Wrap and my thirteen year old granddaughter wrapped it around my hair! My five year old granddaughter told me that I looked funny! My daughter and her girls came over the next morning and her oldest daughter, who is fourteen, loved the color. She wants her hair to be the same color. Her mother and I simultaneously replied, "No!" My eight year old granddaughter looked at my hair and said, "It's a little dark, Nana." She is always honest and to the point! My daughter's youngest, who is five years old didn't even notice because she was too busy playing with her cousin, the other five year old. Let me tell you, those two are a mess! They grab their baby dolls and put them in the baby doll strollers and race through the house - yes,there is a lot of life in our home. My husband's work has been really slow so he is just as busy as I am with the kids. He cooks a great breakfast; eggs and bacon, or eggs and sausage, maybe some refried beans, sometimes fried potatoes. The kids love it when he fixes breakfast. When he isn't here I say, "How about some cereal, or maybe a poptart?" I don't even drink my first cup of coffee until I've walked through the house and picked up towels, and socks (the ones that are so dirty they are stiff)and grab clothes from the kid's hamper and start a load of laundry! My daughter takes all the kids swimming once a week (seven kids from five - fourteen and a half) yes, she is amazing! I decided I would do some breakfast food prep - since the kids aren't impressed with my breakfast ideas. I preheated the oven and lined a cookie sheet with foil. I took out a package of bacon and spread each piesce all over the foil and put it in the oven to cook. I turned my comal on medium and whipped up a double batch of pancake batter. I hummed and sang as I cooked the pancakes. I placed them on a wire rack to cool and then I took the bacon out of the oven and drained it and put it to the side to cool also. I got out some red beans (pinto) that I had cooked the day before and I refried a big panful of beans. The kids came in from swimming and wanted to know if we were having breakfast for dinner and were trying to grab pieces of bacon. I shooed them out of the kitchen and put everything away to save for breakfast for at least the next three days! One breakfast! It was all gone the next morning! This week I've made egg salad twice - we have chickens so we always have plenty of eggs. I boiled eighteen eggs on Monday and made a huge batch of egg salad, it was all gone by Tuesday afternoon. I boiled sixteen more eggs and began removing the shells yesterday afternoon. Jim grabbed two boiled eggs, and then both of our grandsons grabbed a boiled egg before I shooed them out of the kitchen. I made another batch of egg salad with the remaining eggs. I heard my oldest grandson in the kitchen last night - I'm pretty sure the egg salad is gone! I tell everyone it is like the story of the locusts in the bible - they eat all the time! I think, hope, our oldest son and his two girls, our other precious granddaughters are going to come and visit next week. Somehow our three bedroom home always has room, the walls seem to move and we have couches and air mattresses. Our home is full of love and life. Someday I may have to put a bed in our kitchen - my great aunt had a bed in her kitchen. I always thought that was so cool. My cousin and I would sit on it and play cards while our grandmother and great aunts would visit. Everytime I tell Jim we need a bed in the kitchen he reminds me that we don't have room for a bed with the huge table we have in there! I think of all the things going on in the world and I realize that my job is to take care of my family. And maybe, if we all just take care of our family, the world will be a better place. Our home is full of love and prayer, discipline too and I pray that God will guide me in all that I do. Matthew 7:24-25 Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. Blessings to you and yours! Bye for now, Sharla

The Light of Christ Shines Through You

Good morning out there! Peace and blessings to all of you - my last post was on
April 29th - oh my goodness, I have so much to share.
Our seven year old granddaughter (just had a birthday a couple of weeks ago) was
diagnosed with leukemia a little over six weeks ago. She has been in a very good
children's hospital since then. Jim and I have been taking care of her two brothers
and two sisters during this time. They range in age from five years old to fourteen
and a half. Our daughter-in-law is at the hospital with her during the week while our
son works. He goes and stays with her on the weekends and our daughter-in-law
comes home to spend time with the other four children. Our granddaughter is doing
okay but she has had some scary complications. Please keep her in your prayers.
She has been so tough through it all. I call her my warrior princess. They have met
other families at this hospital. It breaks your heart to know that so many children
have cancer. The doctors and nurses have been amazing.
We have been blessed during this time with a tremendous outpouring of kindness,
generosity, love, and support. And talk about prayers and the power of prayers!
People of all ages, from all over this country have been praying for our granddaughter,
and for our whole family. Faith and prayers - family and friends!
The week before our granddaughter's birthday, cards and gifts were delivered to
our home. Some by mail, other by UPS and FED EX, and several were hand
delivered. We still receive a couple of cards every week. Kindness and generosity -
family and friends!
Jim and I, and our grandchildren who are staying with us during this extended time
have also been blessed in abundance by our family and friends. Two of my dear
friends organized a meal train to help out with meals a couple of times a week.
Our friends signed up and we have been receiving dinners on Tuesday and
Thursday evenings every week since the end of May. Other family members and
friends have brought meals on other days also. We have been blessed with groceries,
tamales, tortillas, fresh fruit, toilet paper, laundry detergent (tons of laundry now),
paper towels, Pizza Nights, Ice Cream with all the toppings, cones, bowls, and spoons,
gift cards to Chick Fil A, Dairy Queen, HEB, Walmart etc.
The Catholic Church where my son and his family attend have given us brisket, buns,
chips, paper goods, and more! Their parish priest bought snacks, milk, and breakfast
items for the kids. He and the members of the parish have prayed many rosaries for
our son and his family.
During this time we have prayed and cried, prayed and laughed and prayed some
more. Our daughter and son-in-law, who have three daughters of their own, have
helped out so much. The kids love to spend time with their cousins, and aunt and
uncle. Jess has picked up the kids and taken them swimming, back to their home
to hang out, for sleep overs, etc. She has helped organize closets, dresser drawers,
and my refrigerator!
Phone calls, and texts, and visits by so many concerned family and friends.
In the last six + weeks our lives have changed dramatically. But our faith in God,
our strong, close knit family, and our devoted friends have been with us on this
journey. We are so thankful for each and every one you!
I've posted this hymn before - but it definitely goes with this post.

The Servant Song by Richard Gillard
Verse:1,6
Will you let me be your servant, let me be as Christ to you;
Pray that I may have the grace to let you be my servant too.
Verse:2
We are pilgrims on a journey, we are travelers on the road;
We are here to help each other walk the mile and bear the load.
Verse:3
I will hold the Christ-light for you in the night-time of your fear;
I will hold my hand out to you, speak the peace you long to hear.
Verse:4
I will weep when you are weeping; When you laugh I'll laugh with you.
I will share your joy and sorrow til we've seen this journey through.
Verse:5
When we sing to God in heaven we shall find such harmony,
born of all we've known together of Christ's love and agony.
Verse:6
Will you let me be your servant, let me be as Christ to you;
Pray that I may have the grace to let you be my servant too.

Thank you for being the Christ-light for us during this time. Please know that we

are here for you too!

                                               Blessings and peace,

                                                    Bye for now, Sharla

The Servant Song by Richard Gillard
Verse:1,6
Will you let me be your servant, let me be as Christ to you;
Pray that I may have the grace to let you be my servant too.
Verse:2
We are pilgrims on a journey, we are travelers on the road;
We are here to help each other walk the mile and bear the load.
Verse:3
I will hold the Christ-light for you in the night-time of your fear;
I will hold my hand out to you, speak the peace you long to hear.
Verse:4
I will weep when you are weeping; When you laugh I'll laugh with you.
I will share your joy and sorrow til we've seen this journey through.
Verse:5
When we sing to God in heaven we shall find such harmony,
born of all we've known together of Christ's love and agony.
Verse:6
Will you let me be your servant, let me be as Christ to you;
Pray that I may have the grace to let you be my servant too.