Krl had a trying day yesterday. Kali needed someone to keep Addie so Krl agreed to and then she invited Kat over. One stipulation with Addie is that she must take her medication, otherwise she bounces off the walls! Needless to say Addie's Mom didn't see fit to give it to her, also needless to say, this was the last time day care will be volunteered from this house. Addie was in one of her hateful moods, complete with "I want my Mommy" or "I want my Daddy" anytime she didn't get her way. It probably is a good thing Dandy wasn't here because I bet after she threw her first opened can of coke (in her bedroom) that Dandy would have warmed up her backside. We love her to death but she is such a brat, and her parents just shrug and say that's they way she is. Wrong! They are currently trying to get pregnant again but I feel they need to get their current family and finances under control before they try to go to the next stage.

For the last three weeks I have been doing project close down. I have been packing up my portion of the office and putting it into storage. During this time my Mom has been inviting me for lunch. Dad is busy farming and she is alone at the house so I figure it is a welcome reprieve. With all the stuff going on with the business shut down and its far reaching effects Dad has not been very conversational. My Mom is seventy-three, she is one year removed from heart valve repair and enjoys pretty good health. She goes to cardio rehab three days a week, she has good days and she has weak days but when you are seventy-three you are entitled. I've got to tell the following story because it has led to lots of conversation at her lunch table. Recently preparations at her church (a small rural community CoC) were being made for Vacation Bible school. Mom has been a vital part of the refreshments for as far back as when I was attending VBS! They made the announcement that a list was on the bulletin board to sign up to help with refreshments and bring cookies. My Mom's weakest sense is her hearing (my sister Pat is getting her an appointment) but on this day it worked well enough for her to hear about the sign up. Her next weakest sense is her vision (she had cornea transplants about eighteen years ago). After services she went directly to the foyer to sign up! Her neighbor saw her signing and went over to also sign up. In a couple of minutes the neighbor was looking my Mom up to tell her she needed to go back and see what she had signed up for. Upon my Mom's return to the bulletin board she found that she had signed up to present the devotional on a future Wednesday night! She erased her name as well as she could but it wasn't good enough and everyone had a good laugh, her included! Could it be that Highland isn't the leader in West Central Texas?!!!!

My Mom and I have had lots of talks about Highland being on the leading edge of the CoC's "renaissance" movement. She is very intrigued and has a lot of questions, a lot of observations. I have told her that any time she wants to, to come over and attend with us. I have told her of the worship leaders, the praise team, the new praise songs, the communion services and the emerging role of women in worship. In order to get them to visit I might have to tempt them with Golden Corral after services.

One thing I have been noticing during church services with our pewee granddaughters is that whether it is announcements or a special presentation, both of these five year olds will sit on the edge of their seats or stand to see who it is (sorry Mike, you just can't captivate them like a female voice). I have discussed this with my Mom and I have also brought up the fact that I feel women can be much more effective in certain situations due to being the kinder gentler gender. I am going to continue to monitor responsive behavior on our row, there may be a dissertation here!

FATHER, bless my day as I give it back to YOU! Use me. FATHER I continue to ask for your healing of Aimee, Rene', Carol, and Michelle. Bless them. There is none other than YOU!