I am truly blessed
With a talented family.
They’re so generous!
My daughter-in-law,
The day after Thanksgiving,
Helped transform the house.
This is just a glimpse
Of her decorating skills.
I feel very blessed!
I hope you are feeling blessed
by helpful family and friends, too.
What are your December plans?
See ya tomorrow.
I live gratefully
With thanks for family and friends
Gratitude brings joy
The Flights Were Great!
I hope you had a joy-filled day of gratitude, too – on that day we call Thanksgiving here in the USA. We arrived safely (thanks to my niece, Jodie) at the Pittsburgh airport around 5: AM. Our flight to Minneapolis arrived on time, with no difficulties – and we had a nice breakfast in their lovely airport. The 6:15 AM flight to Bozeman was on time and encountered no problems.
Problems Began After Landing
The problems came after we landed in Bozeman, MT and Bob tried to find our car in long-term parking. He wandered in the wrong parking lot for a half hour before realizing the car was in the next lot over. By then, I knew he was in some kind of trouble as I stood in the warmth of the airport with our luggage waiting for him.
I prayed to God, “Please help Bob solve whatever trouble he has encountered.”
Prayer Works
About that same time, Bob reported later, he realized he had not sought God’s help, so he also prayed to find the car. That’s when God nudged him to go to the next parking lot over… and sure enough, there it was. BUT, it was covered in snow… and the snow had more than one layer during the time we were gone. The under-layer was iced on.
Be Prepared
Anyone who has lived through a winter in this part of the world, should know what to carry in the trunk of your car. An emergency kit needs to include a blanket or two, gloves, a hat or two, an ice/snow scraper, etc. Our trunk had a can of de-icer and a blanket, but none of the rest of those items. It took Bob 20 minutes to clear away enough of the ice and snow to make the car safe to drive.
Yes, we know what we need to add to our emergency supply to be prepared in the future!
Home Safely
It was snowing lightly as we began the 60 miles toward home, but it let up as we crossed over the mountain pass and followed the Madison River into Madison County and our valley. The roads were clear – and we praised God for a wonderful homecoming!
Family Greeted Us
At home, we were greeted by our son, his wife, two grand-daughters and their husbands, and two of our great-grandchildren. Happy Thanksgiving!! The smell of turkey assailed my nostrils when I opened the door – and hugs all around said, “Welcome Home!”
I am grateful to our dear friends, Gail & Harold, who took care of TazE while we were gone.
It was a wonderful meal…
and great fellowship.
I hope you had a great day, too.
Now on to “Black Friday!”
Only Thing Black
The only thing black about today for me is my coffee and the night sky! I am up early and enjoying some quiet time.
I hope yours is a Fabulous Friday with delicious coffee (or tea) to warm you inside, and a cozy home filled with love to warm you through and through.
Eternally Grateful
While my family is still asleep, I am up in my sanctuary, thanking God for:
Life is Good!
You are loved!
See ya later.
Clouds cover Big Sky
Struggling grass survives
Gray Montana Day
Cattle graze in the fields
The sun struggles to peek through
There’s blue sky ahead
Approaching our home
The blue sky tries to shine through
And sun emerges
Gray Montana Days
Are sure to change in due time
Just wait five minutes!
See ya tomorrow
A glimpse of Paradise
Is here in the heart
Of a home where love is –
Where living is an art.
We each carry a paradise
With us here on earth.
It’s in hearts of compassion.
It’s in expressions of mirth.
When we count all our blessings
Living a life of gratitude,
Heaven is felt and seen
In the joy of our attitude.
Edward Hays wrote this story in his book, Feathers on the Wind,
Once upon a time there was a woman who longed to find out what heaven was like. She prayed constantly, “O God, grant me in this life a vision of paradise.” She prayed in this way for years until one night she had a dream. In her dream, an angel came and led her to heaven. They walked down a street in paradise until they came to an ordinary looking house.The angel, pointing toward the house, said, “Go and look inside.”
So the woman walked in the house and found a person preparing supper, another reading a newspaper, and children playing with their toys. Naturally she was disappointed, and returned to the angel on the street. “Is this all there is to heaven?”The angel replied, “Those people that you saw in the house are not in paradise. Paradise is in them!”
Paradise is not distant.
It’s the place where we live –
If the Son shines within us
And His love is what we give.
Hark, my Blogging Friend,
What is it I see?
Is that a glimpse of paradise
I see in thee?
Oh, by the way,
I saw this quote below posted by Cristian Mihai
this morning on his “The Art of Blogging.”
He was giving us tips
(as he does EVERY day)
on how to be better bloggers.
One of his recommendations was this:
“Decide on a realistic posting frequency
For me this is every single day, without exception. For you, it may be every other day or twice a week. Whatever you decide on, announce it to your readers on your blog. Announcing it accomplishes two things. One, you’re creating and managing your reader’s expectations of when new content will be posted. Two, you’re making yourself accountable to your readership. It’s harder to blow off posting when you know there’s a bunch of people out there who are expecting to see something new on a given day.”
So, taking his tip to heart, I am here to tell you, I blog at least once daily. This is my 313th day of consecutive blogging. I’ve been at it for more than six years, but I got serious 313 days ago. It’s paying off because you can count on me… and so I can count on you, too.
For example, on 7/6/19 I had a wonderful 550 followers. I was on a roll… and now, less than 50 days later, I have 614 followers. For those of you with thousands of followers, this might not be a big deal, but for me, it proves the importance of tenacity.
It’s the number of you who click into my blog and the ones who click “like,” and most importantly the ones who leave a comment – those are the folks who keep me going, give me encouragement, and help me know I am not blogging into empty space. Thank you!!
Today was the annual parade of homes
in Ennis, Montana.
It was a fundraiser for our local Madison Valley Med Center.
As a MVMC volunteer, I was hostess
all morning at one of the homes.
I lucked out because this was a marvelous,
gorgeous place to spend the morning.
Let me share some of the views with you.
Maybe you will get some decorting ideas.
The design from the outside is quite square and modern. But once you step inside the front door, you see an early 1800s chair – inherited from the owner’s great-grandparents – and brought here in the early 1900’s from Germany.
You know you’re in for a treat when you see the art work on the walls and the other family heirlooms dotted throughout.
The owners’ almost life-sized painting in the entry gives you a clue to their vibrant personalities. And the dog by the hearth shows you their hearts of warmth and love.
Keep going, and look out. The house seems to be floating on Lake Ennis. There are no guard rails on the deck to interrupt your view of the lake.
The window to the right of this continues the spectacular view.
Step outside and dream awhile.
Sit in the hammock and read a good book.
Choose a chair and we’ll tell each other tales of the last 24″ trout we caught in that lake.
Wait for the next fisherman to drift by.
Back out the front door, join me for a swim in the exercise pool in the guest house. You can rent it for a couple of nights and really enjoy this Montana wonderland.
To your right is the bedroom with a small kitchenette and the bathroom. Do you feel like you could stay here awhile – no problem?
I hated to leave, but life must go on. Hope you enjoyed the house tour. Oh, can’t leave wihout going back into the main house to thank the owners for their hospitality. Don’t you love this kitchen?
All this – and nice people, too.
What a great way to spend a day, huh?
Thanks for visiting with me.
See ya tomorrow.
Independence Day in Ennis, Montana is like stepping back 50 years.
The Firemen put on a pancake breakfast and feed over 800 people.
The parade blocks off Hiway 287 traffic for two hours. The floats are simple. The horses are wonderful. The old cars are fun to see. The children are delightful.
This video taken when we were watching it from Main Street a couple years ago gives you a real good glimpse of our parade. My friend, Mary Oliver, was Grand Marshall.
This year we watched from across the way from our Manor, the nursing home. The residents come out in their wheelchairs to enjoy the festivities. Some voolunteers served them rootbeer floats and presented the with July 4th hats or crowns. Adorable!!
It was overcast and a little cool
when the sun went behind a cloud,
but it did not rain on our parade!
Thank you, God!
I volunteered at our Senior Center to offer coffee, water, donuts, and restroom facilities to the more than 6,000 visitors who came to our little town of 1,000 residents on this special occasion.
My friend, Lynn,
who is President of our Sr. Center Board of Directors,
spear-headed the effort.
The rodeo is good-ole western down-home country.
And after the rodeo, we all have a BBQ
or invite neighbors and friends to come home with us.
The neighbors invite the neighbors to come dine with them in their welcoming homes.
What a lovely evening we had!
Just look at that view from our neighbor’s patio!
(Our house is beyond the trees to the left.)
You gotta experience it to believe it.
Maybe next year YOU can come to Ennis, Montana to experience the Firemen’s breakfast, the parade, the hospitality of the Sr. Center and the residents’ homes, and the rodeo.
Hope you had a Happy 4th of July.
What did you do if you were in the USA? And if you’re in another country, do you have similar celebratory experiences to celebrate your country’s independence or founding? Tell me about it!
Thanks for joining me!
See ya tomorrow.
I received this notice today:
Seven is my magic number!
It’s God’s number for “completeness.” On the 7th day he rested.
Seven is our house number.
Seven is the number of grandchildren I have.
Seven is my birthday month.
Our phone number ends in a 77.
So does our PO Box number.
Our current house is the 7th dwelling
my husband and I have shared in our 57 years of marriage!
But, my friends, 7 is not my number for completeness. It’s the number that causes me to look in amazement at all this synchronicity – and realize, “This is good!”
But, I am nowhere near complete – and neither is this JanBeek blog! This is good – and it’s fun, but it’s not great yet!
I’m a work in progress, ending my 7th decade on earth … and ready to enter new challenges, new learning, new sharing. Growing in knowledge and grace. Striving to blog with intention and purpose – to make a positive difference for my faithfilled blogging friends.
I look forward to making new friends and keeping in touch with those who’ve hung in there with me. Thank you for reading and commenting on my blog. Please try to check in with me daily and see what’s new – and leave me some encouragement, too!
I will continue to share what I am passionate about as I enter this 8th year of blogging.
As I approach my 8th decade on this earth, I share the love, joy and peace that are mine through faith. I express my gratitude. I seek help with expressions of patience, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. I share ways life is a blessing and ways I have learned to manage the challenges life tosses at us. I write about things I care about (like today’s fire at Notre Dame). Sometimes I write just to entertain. Every now and then I just wanna make you laugh (like Jesus is Walkin’ on Water Again).
I hope my sharing helps and inspires and encourages my followers.
I’m hangin’ in there, and I hope you do, too!
Send seven of your friends this way., will you?
Let’s grow together!
Hugs to You !!
Inspire to Love
Let the SonShine!
You inspire me to respond
Learning to Live; Living to Learn; Learning to Love; Living in Love
