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Archive for the ‘Gratitude’ Category

Rescued

In my devotional, “When God Thinks of You, He Smiles,” the message fit perfectly for us today. I was invited to “Think of a time when God rescued you.” Yesterday I mourned the loss of one of our beautiful big evergreen trees. It blew over in a 50 mph wind storm. God heard my unspoken pleas. Obviously Bob & I needed help cutting up and removing that fallen spruce. We didn’t have time to think about that task before three different friends reached out and offered to come and help us. It was certainly something they (and for sure God) knew we could not do ourselves. Our bodies just lack that capability at the ripe age of 87!

So, that tree that once stood at least 20 feet tall snapped off right at its base… and lay there Sunday pathetically waiting to be removed… and dear friends came Monday to cut it up. A big job for two men with chain saws, a pick up and a borrowed trailer. Took three trips to the dump to get most of it removed. Tomorrow the rest will go and the trailer will be returned to the generous owner. We are so blessed to have such caring, capable friends!

The devotional this morning began with, “God’s love leads Him to do more for us than we can envision.” Certainly the Godly servants of the Lord that He sent our way did more than I could envision.

The message went on to say, “No matter how often you need Him, He will always be there. Trust in Him, for He is faithful and true.”

Thank You, God, for rescuing us. I do trust in You. Thank You for sending Your beloved followers to help us. We delight in You.

My devotional says, “When God thinks of you, He smiles.” Well, guess what, when I think of God, I smile.

Do you?

Love,
JanBeek

Hospitality

The gift of hospitality

Cannot be taken for granted

It’s a gift to be treasured

A gift that cannot be measured

Our niece, Jodie, is a gracious hostess

and…

… her husband, Bill, is generous beyond measure
Yesterday he barbecued steaks, chicken, veggies, etc. and created a meal fit for royalty!
Of course, Jodie was responsible for all the prep work. No small feat!
In this home, tucked among the trees, love grows.
And they treated us to a night out on the town, too. A wonderful banjo event!
My maternal grandpa played the banjo, so this took on extra nostalgic meaning for me.
Could you hear me singing along? I loved it!🥰

Tonight we’re headed to a Pittsburgh baseball game. So, stay tuned! I’ll be back!

Love, JanBeek

Flowers Flowers Flowers

Phipps Conservatory, Pittsburgh, PA
Here I am… ready to tour this beautiful exhibit.
The theme is Alice in Wonderland
Amazing displays!
Gorgeous displays
Time for a rest. Lots of walking!
Some glass art still on display from the Chuhuly (sp?)
exhibit
Thanks to my niece, Jodie, for her gracious hospitality!
Many fascinating flowers!
Wish you could have seen these in person with us!

Thanks for traveling with me vicariously!

Love, JanBeek

Mothers

M others

O nly

T hink of

H elping

E veryone

R egardless of their

S ituation

Hope your day was beautiful and you had (have) that kind of helpful mother (I did!)
And I am blessed with this very loving helpful son and…
… these two very sweet, helpful, loving daughters.

I am sure a lucky mama!

I hope your Mothers’ Day has been blessed, too.

Happy Mothers’ Day

Love, JanBeek

Help!

We live in a beautiful place with a beautiful view and wonderful neighbors.

Our property has about 4 acres and in the center of those is where our house sits surrounded by 13 evergreen trees.

The lawn and trees require a lot of care to keep the trees healthy year round and the sprinkler system working in the spring, summer and fall.

This is the time of year when turning the sprinklers back on and repairing broken ones and adjusting the direction of the water’s flow has to happen.

We couldn’t possibly do all this by ourselves.

Thank God for the helpful guys in our “hood” who volunteer their services annually because without their help, I’m sure we would find it very difficult to live here!

Live love laugh with JanBeek ♥️👌🏽

April Snow Continues

Gorgeous! But after my last post of April flowers, this is surprising, isn’t it?

It’s Ennis, Montana… and yes, friends, it can snow here on July 4th! So, this April snow should not be a surprise. In fact, after a relatively dry January through March, we are grateful for the moisture in April! It snowed all last night… and then more today. With no wind to blow it off the branches, ain’t it gorgeous?

I am up in my sanctuary, looking out at the magnificent snow covered trees and thanking God for them.

Smile, God loves you.
And so do I!

I’m praying for you,
For our world, and
For peace, please.

Love ❤️

JanBeek

Treasure Every Day

Treasure every day
Know it will not come again
Make sweet memories

Lady in middle
Just died unexpectedly
Yesterday was fine
Man of the hour
Being treated for cancer
Shows his gratitude
Flowers in springtime
Bloom quickly then fade away
Life can be like that
Life can be a ball
When you are loved and cared for
Every child should be
Even as moms work
Their babies can know they’re loved
Hold and cuddle them
Nourish your loved ones
Treasure every day with them
Tomorrow’s not clear
Flush out the toxins
Left from our sad yesterdays
Embrace healthy days


Thank you, dear Lamiel
For your encouraging words
Applicable now!

Bob & I send love
To our faithful WordPress friends
So, Carpé Diem!!

❤️👌🏽❤️

A Month of Love

February Love

Lasts the entire month through

Hugs and kisses too

Sure to celebrate
Cheers to wine and rose for you

Happy Valentines

Anniversary

Sixty-four years of kisses

Feeling very blessed

Blessed indeed!

Love, JanBeek

1940 Tribute to Parents

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Below is a letter I found in Grandma Foster’s Scrapbook. It was written in 1940 by Sheldon H. Kinney… the Fosters’ next door neighbor in Pasadena, CA… quite an accomplished young 25 year old. Here is a newspaper article published in the Chicago Tribune about him:

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Interesting how they published his parents’ home address, huh? I don’t think we’d see that in today’s press, do you?

While at sea, during World War Two, Sheldon wrote this heartfelt letter to his parents:

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How Grandma Foster got ahold of that letter so she could include it in her scrapbook is a mystery. But, it is there… preserved for me to share! I hope you find it as inspiring as I do. Makes me wish I had written something similar to my parents when I was 25! But, did I have the insight at that age to “see my parents as man and woman” the way Sheldon did? I doubt it.

How very precious to read Sheldon’s praise of his parents, and to feel the warmth they must have felt when reading those accolades!

As I continue to sift through the scrapbook’s treasures, I will gladly share others with you. I hope you are enjoying these as much as I am!

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Lots of love to you…
from JanBeek

Wonderful Family Time

The end of 2025

Found us loving life

Spending it with family

Avoiding stress and strife

All should be so blessed

To have such happy love

We don’t take it for granted

Such love is from above!

May you experience such love, too!!
Bob’s brother Bill and Marge
Our love for each other
My cousin, Adrian DeAngelis & Laura
Bob’s 1969 wrestling student, Kevin with wife, Kim
Time with in-laws, the Paynes
Contact with our DollyWolly, DeDe, in Switzerland
Visit with Bob’s nephew, Bryan, and his sweet wife, Michelle
… in their beautiful home
Opportunity to attend church at Harvest – such sweet memories here!
Christmas with granddaughter Faith and her hubby
So proud of our son, Ty, and the life he is living
Ty’s wife, Monika, the perfect partner!
Great food and precious Mable, our great-granddaughter
Time in CA wine country: life can’t get much better!
Thank you, Ty & Monika
May your life be so blessed, too!!

Love, JanBeek

& my happy 87th birthday boy, BionicBob