Sonidos Serranos
Sonidos Serranos: Sounds of the Sierras...
Reflecting some of my family's interests: God's wonderful creation (especially mountains and hills!), music, and language...
Psalm 121:1-2 (NASB)
I will lift up my eyes to the mountains;
From where shall my help come?
My help comes from the LORD,
Who made heaven and earth.
The Picture People sent me
a coupon I just couldn't pass up, so Esther and I and the three cousins celebrated New Year's Eve by taking Oso, the new puppy, for a special portrait session.
The pictures turned out wonderfully – and they even gave us an extra free portrait sheet for waiting so patiently and sweetly!
I couldn't resist doing a comparison...
So much has changed in three years...
So much to be thankful for!
T'was grace that brought us safe thus far...
And grace will lead us Home!
Elizabeth made these tags for Jona and Marcos... I did help with the letter "Z" – but the rest of the work is hers!
She had to explain to me that the tag for Marcos depicts "things blowing in the wind!"
And the tag for Jona is a picture of him "with lots of hair!"
There's been a lot of excitement this month! Sandwiched between the Pottery Outings was the K-3 Christmas Program.
This year's program was longer than last year's, and Elizabeth did sing out a good bit more... Perhaps the most memorable moment for me was the huge smile she flashed at her Daddy and me when she first spotted us in the audience. She then kept looking our way throughout the program, smiling widely every time she did so!
The Annual Pottery Outing is another "sort of" family tradition – for Steel Ladies only! We varied things slightly this year...
A friend and I checked out the more northern location, hosting its Open House the week before our usual place did. We got our complimentary mugs, of course – and, as a bonus, we got to see snow!
Elizabeth was very excited!
The Steel Ladies ended up traveling in two groups this year. Here are the memories, chronicled in photos, for our group...
Fun times!
The Lighting Ceremony has been a "sort of" family tradition for years. We enjoyed it once again on the evening of December 4.
The cousins enjoyed the experience, too!
As you can see, I also enjoyed playing with Picasa
– and learning some new tricks!
Pretty cool, eh?!
A long overdue but quick update!
Jona left the hospital on Monday, December 21, having gone in for the three-day chemo on Friday, December 18. He went back for routine blood work this past Monday, December 28. All levels were good, and he did not need a transfusion. We are praising the Lord that so far Jona has bounced back fairly quickly from each chemo treatment and has not yet needed a blood transfusion!
He is now enjoying two weeks off before the next chemo, which is scheduled to take place in January.
Please continue to pray. We continue to look to the Lord, the Great Physician – and
we rest on HIM!
Quick update!
We are praising the Lord! Jona was able to take final exams this week and, as far as we know, successfully finished first semester – with the one exception of some outstanding reading and/or projects for English class.
This morning he goes to see the doctors to have the routine blood test as well as the preliminary battery of tests for the next round of chemo, which will probably start this evening. This is the same 3-day chemo that he had previous to the surgery, so we are thankful to not be navigating unknown territory – yet!
Please pray for wisdom for Esteban and Esther and the doctors as they discuss the two suggested courses of post-surgery treatment. We are continuing to trust the Lord, and we know that whatever the computer might "randomize" is ultimately controlled by the Sovereign of the universe. By faith in Christ's completed work on Calvary, HE is our loving Heavenly Father! We rest on Him...
Thank-you for praying with us!
