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A Weekend to Remember

Happy Sunday, my friends! This is the weekend in Sierre, Switzerland for my oldest grandson’s wedding. The civil ceremony was at the County Courthouse in the beautiful town center yesterday morning. I was having too much fun to stop and post then. Here are the highlights for you to enjoy today…

Congratulations, Tania and Michael Solioz… Such a beautiful couple!

The civil ceremony was attended by their two best friends and 18 other family members. It was all in French, so Bob & I could not understand the words, but the feelings of love and commitment were more than evident.

We are so glad the couple has decided to make their union “legal.” In today’s world so many young people decide marriage is pointless.

Our daughter, DeAna, was a radiant mother of the groom!

Bob & I were so pleased to be among the grandparents who are still alive and well and able to travel to enjoy the festivities. We do not take this privilege for granted!

Following the ceremony, we all went to Tania’s parents’ lovely home. It was about a ten minute drive up into a town (named Chalet) on the other side of the Rhone River, perched on the mountainside with a phenomenal yard and the most spectacular views!

We were blessed with the most beautiful weather! On Friday it rained and was gray & cloudy all day. So this was an answer to prayer to have this gorgeous blue sky and warm weather!

De and I chatted about our arthritic fingers and compared knuckles! “Thanks Mom, for my hands!”

Grandmas of the groom (that’s me and Denise – the one in blue) and between us is the maternal grandma of the bride. Denise speaks some English so she helped translate for me. I wish I could speak French – more than just a few words!

It was a very happy occasion. We’re so glad we could share it with this darling couple!

There you have it! A Saturday to remember! And now on this beautiful Sunday morning, I send you my love 😍 Thanks for vicariously sharing this wonderful trip with me. Tonight we’ll leave Sierre and travel about 20 minutes up the mountain – on an amazing road with terrifying switchbacks – to Vissoie, where DeAna and André have their chalet/hotel/restaurant. See you there!

We are there! More later!!

Category:

blessings, children, Family, Gratitude, happiness, Love, Memories, prayer, relationships, Travel

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Wonderful Weekend

Enjoying Sunday
Remembering Saturday
And Fish on Friday

Sunday began
with this prayer-filled
good morning photo
from my friend Lisa
in North Carolina

After church,
Sunday continues
with our TazE
needing attention
and us
trying to
just relax!

Saturday memories
include a wonderful evening
shared with Bob
and dozens of friends
at the Madison Valley Ranchland’s
annual “Noxious Weed Dinner and Auction.”

Check out
Bonny Morningstar Guzzo
on Facebook
to see her wonderful pictures
of that highly successful event.

Friday memories
include our walk
along the Madison River
in Lion’s Club Park
where this beautiful
painted fish sculpture
greets us.

The painting on the fish inspires the Haiku poet in me.

“Father, please teach me
I want to learn how to fish
To fish like you, Dad“

Back home, the clouds keep the day cooler
as the sun plays peek-a-boo
The trees provide welcomed shade
And the birds serenade you

The breeze causes the wind chimes
To sing a lullaby
Reminding me of my sis, Sally
She’d love this place as much as I

The deer come quietly to rest
Beneath the shade of verdant trees
They promise not to nibble
But who can trust deer like these?

Time to think about a meal
Don’t know what I’d like to cook
Need to go check out the fridge
Maybe left-overs -Have a look!

Mmmm… I can see shrimp
Waiting for the coconut
Time to make the sauce

Hope all is well with you.
Thanks for sharing
my weekend memories
vicariously with me.

Now it is your turn
What are your best memories
Of this great weekend?

Sending love your way…
Hugs,
JanBeek

Category:

Animals, blessings, Family, Fishing, food, happiness, Love, Memories, Montana, Poetry, trees

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Embrace 5 Ways to Keep Long-time Friends

Bob & Victor

Victor Salazar and Bob have stayed in touch for 50 years. How has that happened?

Victor was Bob’s wrestling student when Bob coached at Hillsdale High in San Mateo, CA. back in the 1970’s. Every year at Christmas, we exchanged Christmas cards. Victor let us know where he was each year – and his career took him to over 30 different countries! What a joy to have Vic come from Alabama to reconnect with us here in Montana! (That photo was taken last year when I first posted this blog)

I have had the fun of that kind of connection with former students, too. This is Ty Stiles and his wife with Bob & me. He was my kindergarten student in 1962! I named our first child, Ty. We never let Ty Stiles out of our sphere of contact. He was in my prayers daily. He came with his wife, Roxanne, from California to visit us a few years ago. About a year after his visit, sadly, Ty left this earth for his eternal home. My memories of him and his visit warm my heart every single day as I look at the cross he welded and sent to us shortly after his visit.

There’s no greater joy
Than to reconnect with friends
From long, long ago

Look up for your purpose!
Look up to the cross
Recall its loving meaning
Embrace those friendships

5 Ways to Keep Long-time Friends

  1. Pray lovingly for them daily.
  2. Be sure to keep them in your address book and write to them often (don’t just rely on social media)
  3. Pick up the phone and talk to them, emptying yourself into them… it’s an investment. Be loyal and be confidential.
  4. Let them know how much they mean to you, but don’t force the relationship. It has to be natural. Don’t insist that the relationship is forever reciprocal. Some friendships are meant to be seasonal… and the season may last years – but maybe not. You can’t control that.
  5. Be honest and transparent with them … let them see your warts. It shows you trust them not to hurt you… and you are trustworthy in return.

Embrace Long-time Friendships
Never let those precious folks go
Keep them forever in your heart
How long we’ll be here, we can’t know

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

“Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. Likewise, two people lying close together can keep each other warm. But how can one be warm alone? A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.”

Embrace Long-time Friends
My heart’s covered with footprints.
How about your heart?

See ya tomorrow (God willing)
Love,
JanBeek

Category:

Bible Lessons, blessings, children, Faith, friendship, Haiku, Living in Christ's Family, Living in Harmony, Love, Memories, mental health, Poetry, prayer, relationships, Sharing, truth

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The Power of Music

Bee my little Honey
And Love me all the time!

Music speaks of love to my heart!

Recently Gottfried (Banter Republic) wrote about the power of music.
He reminded me of a most unforgettable experience
I had back in the ‘60s when I was majoring in music therapy
at the College of the Pacific in Stockton, CA.

My counselor, Wilhelmina Harbert, conducted a clinic for children every weekend. I attended and assisted her. One of our attendees was a 5 year old named Jimmy. Jimmy was a puzzle. He had never spoken a word. The doctors were unable to determine the cause. He could grunt and squeal, laugh and cry audibly, so we knew vocalization was possible. But, he didn’t talk. He was cute as a button and I loved him dearly. He loved me, too. I could tell —- he gave me big hugs when he came into our workshop each weekend.

One Saturday morning I was sitting on the floor with Jimmy in my lap. we were in a circle with other students and children. Mrs. Harbert was playing a silly, rhythmic, nonsense song. The words were repetitive. “Hos-po-di-po-miel-wi” 🎵 “Hospodipomielwi” 🎶 Joyfully, over and over I sang along with the others in the circle. Jimmy clapped along.

Mrs. Harbert played on.

I bounced Jimmy on my lap. I laughed.
I continued singing.
A little girl, next to us, MaryJane – who had cerebral palsy –
turned to Jimmy and sang close to his ear.

Suddenly Jimmy started to sing, too.
🎶 “Hos-po-di-po-miel-wi!!”🎶
“Hospodipomielwi” 🎵

Music unlocked whatever gate was locked to Jimmy’s words!!

I cried as we continued to sing. I hugged that little boy so tightly that he stopped singing and laughed! I’ll never forget that moment! Then he resumed singing :o)

A year later when I saw Jimmy with his mom in the grocery store, she stopped me and said, “ Oh, Jan, it’s so good to see you. I don’t know if I should thank you or not. A year ago I prayed daily for Jimmy to talk. And now I can’t get him to shut up!”

We laughed. I gave her and Jimmy a hug. “It wasn’t me,” I explained. “Thank the Lord. Thank the gift of prayer and friendship. Thank music! It performs miracles!”

Hugs + Friendship + Music = Miracles

Thank you, Gottfried, for encouraging me to tell my story.
Yes, music changes lives!
Thank you for recognizing its power.

Thanks, friends, for joining JanBeek today.
Come again soon.
And sing along with Susie Q and me!

You don’t have to be a senior to sing along to these oldies –
You just needed a dad or mom or grandma or grandpa who sang to you!

Sing Along!
Feel the Power of Music
Lift Your Soul!

Category:

blessings, children, Faith, Giving, God, Gratitude, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love, Memories, music, prayer, relationships, Serving One Another

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Great End to a Wonderful Day!

As promised, here is the way our 60th anniversary day ended. We took three friends with us physically (and dozens with us in our hearts) to Pompey Grill in the Sacajawea Inn & Hotel in Three Forks to enjoy an evening of thanks and fellowship and good food.

It’s a beautiful hotel.
BW, Ed & Maria helped us celebrate our 60th.
BW and Ed were both soooo helpful
during this recent move
in and out of our house
while the floor was being done!

We had already enjoyed a shrimp hors d’oeuver and a glass of wine and we were digging in to our meals when I remembered – oh yes, DeAna wanted me to be sure and take photos of us at the restaurant and the food we ate… so here are a few of our plates:

Photo by icon0.com on Pexels.com

I enjoyed rack of lamb.

Photo by Lovefood Art on Pexels.com

You decide what the other plates were!
Everyone raved about the flavors
in the plates they chose.

Bob & I shared our special dessert with our friends.

Wish you could have joined us!

When we returned home,
Laina had sent us this collage
of our 1962 and 2022 pictures:

Thank you, Laina!
(Bob’s as handsome as ever, huh??)

It was a wonderful day start to finish.
Thanks for sharing it vicariously with us.

We hope to celebrate
many more
happy anniversaries
together!

God bless you, my friends.
Have a beautiful Valentine’s Day weekend!

Love and Hugs,
JanBeek

Category:

Aging Gracefully, blessings, Family, food, friendship, happiness, Love, Memories, relationships

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A Virtual Baby Shower

My granddaughter, Faith, is expecting a baby girl this April. This Sunday her mom is hosting a virtual baby shower for her. It’ll be my first ZOOM baby shower. Have you ever attended one?

In preparation for the event, we were invited to go on-line and offer advice using a variety of prompts. That was a fun thing to do. Fun to read each other’s responses! Also, Faith’s mom (our daughter-in-law, Monika) will be posting pictures of all the gifts as Faith virtually opens each one. How clever, huh?

Faith and Kyle were married in July of 2020. It was a fairy tale wedding.

Such a darling couple! They met at a Young Life Christian camping activity about 2018. They both have a strong faith. They have many ideals and activities they enjoy in common. One of their mutual activities is snowboarding. This photo gives you a glimpse into their personalities:

Hah! Sweet Kyle – Sassy Faith!

I am looking forward to attending the virtual shower tomorrow. Should be a fun, unique experience. I’ll post afterward to let you know how it went.

Faithy is an old fashioned girl. Her desires are simple. This is the bassinet/carrying case she chose for her baby!!

Fun, huh?

Don’t know how many months Baby McSparron will fit in there… but should be fun while it lasts!

This is a picture of Faith when she was a baby. She was a true gift from God! I have this photo framed and displayed up in my Angel room:

Precious baby!
Ty & Monika were blessed to be able to adopt her at her birth!!

I can hardly wait to hold my newest little miracle baby when she comes. She’ll be our 4th great-grandchild. Yes, I know… we are mighty blessed.

Thanks for visiting JanBeek
See ya tomorrow(God willing)
Hugs…

Bye for now

Oh, before you go, I need to share with you a song that came to mind as I was writing this post. The Penguins went to the top of the hit parade in 1955 with this song. I was a sophomore in high school!! (Yes, I know… the dark ages!!) I loved dancing to this one … Thanks Phil & Benny – happy memories!

Category:

blessings, children, Faith, Family, Gratitude, Living in Christ's Family, Love, Memories, music, relationships

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A Dream Remembered

#Bloganuary #24 asked us to recall a dream we remembered (from childhood). I posted my response on the Bloganuary site. You can find it here:
https://bloganuary.wordpress.com/2022/01/24/whats-a-dream-i-remember/

How would you answer that question?

Dream a Little Dream of Me!
Let your dreams be rich and free.
Let them swirl and toss you happily.
Yes, dream a little dream of me!

I hope you have a good day.
Bob & I are in back to back
appointments at Mayo Clinic
in Rochester, Minnesota today.

I’ll post later to let you know how it went.

Thanks for visiting JanBeek.

See ya later (God willing)
Hugs to you! Sweet Dreams…

Category:

Living in Harmony, Love, Memories, music, Poetry, writing

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Favorite Quote

Missed the prompt yesterday … so here it is a day late… or is it two days? Life’s been busy as we were packing and preparing for this trip to Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota . Departure is at 5:55 tomorrow morning! But anyway, here’s my favorite quote. It’s what my mom always told me. But I’m sure it’s not original. Wonder who first said it?

“It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt “

What’s your favorite quote?

See ya later alligator

After while crocodile

Hah! Hugs from JanBeek

Category:

blogging, learning, life, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love, Memories, teaching, writing

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Bloganuary#20 – Favorite Photo

https://bloganuary.wordpress.com/2022/01/20/favorite-photo/
Check out my response to the #Bloganuary prompt #20.
Click on the link above.

By the way, I love that photo of Bob back in his beekeeper days when he permed his hair. Don’t you? It was taken in our house in Modesto, CA with our Boston, Jacques. He had funny buck teeth (the dog, not Bob).

Do you know why Bob curled his hair? He hates to wear hats. As a beekeeper with naturally oily hair, bees loved to buzz in there and sting his scalp. The curls lifted the hair off the scalp and dried out the oiliness. The bees left his head alone. Interesting, huh?

I hope you enjoy the collection of photos I put on the Bloganuary site today.

Tell me, can you choose a favorite photo that you have taken?

Thanks for visiting JanBeek.
See ya tomorrow (God willing)

Category:

blogging, food, friendship, Love, Memories, photography, writing

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Bloganuary #4 -Favorite Toy

Today’s topic on #Bloganuary is:
“What was your favorite toy as a child?”

Mother-Daughter

Here I am as a young mom with my daughter, DeAna.
I don’t have available with me here on vacation
Any photos of myself as a child at her age.
I’m think my toys were part of my education.

DeDe was born during Barbie era.
She had boyfriend Ken and their playhouse.
She could play for hours with them
And be as quiet as a mouse.

Here is our son, Ty, as a child.
I know what he liked most at a young age:
“BamBam” – his bouncing horsey!
Quiet wasn’t a word on any Tyroneee page!

I didn’t have those kinds of toys!
It was World War Two and we were poor.
We tore our napkins in half to save paper.
We knew the soldiers needed it more!

I was content to play outside.
Rocks and dogs and imagination
Kept me entertained for hours.
No need for a Play Station!

I didn’t know at that time
That we weren’t rich as can be!
I had all the love in the world –
And that was enough “play” for me.

My parents never failed to provide
For all of the things we needed.
If a parent’s goal is to raise happy kids,
Mom and Dad certainly succeeded!

I may have had a doll or two –
I really don’t remember.
What I envision when I think of play
Is our “wedding” in September.

My friend, Frankie, and brother, Aldo,
Lived on our same property.
We dressed up in some cloth we found.
He wrapped it all around us three.

Cousin Bobby was a little younger.
We convinced him to be preacher.
He walked ahead of us down the “aisle”.
My dog, Jumbo, was best man. What a creature!

Our pretend house was a large hole
We dug in the old cow field.
We fixed it up with pretend furniture,
And covered the entrance – truly concealed.

We often climbed down to that “house”.
It worked just fine as a place to play….
Until a cow fell in and broke its leg.
I remember the lickin’ I got that day!

So, what was my favorite toy?
It was probably the neighbor boy!
Eventually we both got accordions –
Music was the “toy” that brought us joy!!

The accordion still is one of my favorite toys!
What’s your favorite childhood toy??
Thank you, Mom, for helping me
know that imagination and creativity
are the best “toys” ever!

Thanks for visiting JanBeek.
See ya tomorrow (God willing).
Are you enjoying the daily WordPress prompts?



Category:

Animals, children, Family, friendship, happiness, humor, life, Life's Challenges, Love, Memories, music, pets, Poetry, relationships, writing

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