Rebekah's New Project

Rebekah found three baby mice this morning under the fire pit. The mother was dead. They didn't even have their eyes opened. She called PetsMart herself and talked to several people, trying to figure out the best way to care for them. Thankfully, we already had replacement milk and tiny little bottles. The cats and snake are really interested in our new critters. Not really.

Sweet Old Summertime Poem

Image Courtesy of the Vintage Moth

Desires of a Mother's Heart

I still find it amazing after all these years of being a mom how deeply the "mother heart" yearns for His good and perfect gifts for her children. 

Over and over again, I have considered the verse that says: "But Mary treasured up all these things, and pondered them in her heart." Luke 2:19 in the NIV. The Message says it this way: "Mary kept all these things to herself, holding them dear, deep within herself." The shepherds were spreading the news the angels had delivered to them: The Messiah is here! 

Mary heard and pondered.

I like to think about her holding her precious baby boy in her arms as a brand new mother, imagining how the Father would fulfill all the things spoken of Him. 

Can't you just see her gazing into His little face in complete awe thinking about the Promise and the Potential and the Plan? 

Did she humbly wonder, "How?" 

Not, "How on earth . . .?" 

But, "I wonder how the Father will accomplish it? 

Or, "I wonder what the process will look like?" 

Never doubting, only anticipating. 

Or did she simply accept it as fact and not even wonder?

Webster's 1828 Dictionary defines "ponder" this way: 
"To weigh in the mind; to consider and compare the circumstances or consequences of an event, or the importance of the reasons for or against a decision."

When I became a mother, a piece of my heart awakened that I had never before known existed. Wonder-struck, because God had entrusted to us this precious little person with an eternal soul! 

Exponential Paradigm Shift! 

Who was she?  What would she would be like?  What would He accomplish through her? How would she talk and walk and laugh?  Who would she marry?  What would her children be like?  What would her talents and giftings be?  On and on and on and . . .

All of a sudden, my perspective was completely different. Things mattered more now. The important things had to be the important things. A sense of complete cluelessness descended concerning the "hows" and "whens" and "whichs" and "whats" that would need to be answered to be the mother of this little one. If I tried to reason out the answers to these things, there was a tension, a striving, a tendency to worry. If, instead, I asked for what He had promised me was always abundantly and readily available, there was peace. There was Peace standing beside me. Peace. Even when I could see no answer, solution, system, process, there was an underlying foundation that steadied my feet: He is the Answer, Provision, Way. An overflowing stream of resources available just for the asking.

James 1:5 "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him." (NIV) 


And then another daughter. Then a son. Then another daughter. And another. And then two more sons: born to another, but given to us.

When I consider our children, I sometimes ponder the distance that remains for the "becoming" to be reality. It's the same when I look in the mirror. Through His Grace, He reminds how much He has already accomplished in the process of transforming them (and me) into His likeness. Not because of anything I have done as His daughter or their mother, but simply because He wills it.

At other times, I stare in wonder when I witness the fruits of the Spirit displayed in these young lives. The joy is like a huge wave crashing over my head. Joy overflowing the bounds of my heart, running down my face. 

How did He do it? 

When did it ripen? 

In Grace, He points to the many tiny, stumbling steps of obedience that seemed at the time without value or real meaning. And then He says, "Look what I have done! Is my arm not strong enough to bring it about?  I am Sufficient to accomplish it in them and in you."

"But Mary treasured up all these things, and pondered them in her heart."

Our Eskimo Audition (Better Known as our 25th Anniversary Trip), Part II

 

When we emerged from the tunnel, there was our ship! This was the first time to cruise for all but Doug and Denise. Our cruise was from Whittier to Vancouver along the inside passage. Scenic cruising to Hubbard Glacier and the Glacier National Park were days one and two.
 
The scenery was constantly changing, but always breathtaking.


 Golden eagle



 
This is a harbor seal. 



It's hard to understand from a picture the size of these glaciers. One of them was a mile across the front edge at the water and over 200 feet tall!


It would change from clear to cloudy in a matter of a few minutes.

 
Kregg was Chief Photographer on the trip and he did an incredible job!



We had stops in Skagway, Juneau, and Ketchikan where we had the option of scheduling excursions. There were so many choices, it was hard deciding what everyone wanted to do. Our first stop was in Skagway. Audie and Marlene chose to ride a train and take a tour of the city. Denise and I chose an excursion that included a train ride up into British Columbia, a short drive over to a suspension bridge, and a tour of Jewel Gardens where we would have lunch. After the rest of us had left on our excursions, Kregg and Doug decided on a driving tour up to the Yukon Territory.



It was a narrow gauge railroad that wound through the valleys and up into the mountains. 
 
There was a small platform on the front and back of the passenger car where you could stand and take pictures or just admire the scenery. At one point, the train passed through a tunnel while I was standing on the platform. It was so dark, I couldn't see my hand when I held it up right at the end of my nose!
 
This little tree was growing right on top of a big boulder beside the tracks.


The clouds poured down into the valley at times and completely obscured the scenery.
 
We got off the train in Fraser, British Columbia and boarded a bus for the ride to the suspension bridge. We didn't know it until later, but Kregg and Doug also stopped in Fraser on their way to the Yukon via Ford Excursion.


 
This bridge was suspended over class VI rapids that have never been successfully run. Pretty serious water!


 I had never seen candles this color on an evergreen.



On the drive back down to Skagway, we crossed over this bridge. It is the only bridge of its kind and was designed specifically to handle all the earthquakes in Alaska. They had tried two other bridge designs that each lasted only a month or two until they were completely destroyed. This design has all its major support on the left side. On the right side, the road bed of the bridge is only attached with concrete--kind of glued down. When there is an earthquake, the right side of the bridge can pop loose and then be reattached. Because it is not anchored on both sides, it comes through the earthquakes completely undamaged. They just go back in and "glue" it down again.


This water is truly brown. We had seen lakes like this on a previous trip into Eastern Canada and didn't know if the water was that color or if it was the bottom of the lake that merely made it look that color. Our guide explained that when the needles from the Sitka Spruce trees fall into the water and decompose, they release tannic acid, the same as in coffee and tea, and the acid dyes the water this color. Mystery solved.


When we arrived back in Skagway, our next stop was Jewel Gardens where they served us a lovely luncheon and tea then gave us a tour of the gardens.

The peonies were enormous. The growing season is so short with almost constant daylight, that plants just sort of explode out of the ground. 

Isn't that one of the most gorgeous colors you have ever seen??



There was a model train running through the garden, complete with the town of Skagway depicted during the early days.


After our time at the garden, we got off the bus to explore the town of Skagway. The main street is lined with shops and interesting buildings.

 Our enormous ship is docked at the end of the street.

This is a snow blower they attach to the engine of the train to help clear the tracks.
We wandered around the town for awhile and then met everyone back on the ship.



Kregg and Doug stopped in Fraser and got to stamp their own passports.



This marker is on the border of Canada and the U. S.



This is International Falls. The waterfall splits in two and half of it flows into the Pacific Ocean, the other half flows over a thousand miles into the Bering Sea.


They also visited the facilities of a woman who races in the Iditarod. Kregg wanted to bring back a puppy.
 
Aren't the puppies adorable??




No shortage of postcard views here.

 

This is actually a small desert made up of only a few acres. Unexpected!





Isn't that a great shot? Good job, Kregg.


This is cotton grass.

 
Many of the trees only have branches on one side because of the fierce winds.





The next day, we stopped in Juneau. We had all agreed that a whale watching excursion was the order of the day. We once again boarded a bus that took us to our boat. 

The guide on the boat said this glacier is not usually visible because of the clouds.

 
Lighthouses are always fascinating.


 
Whales!!!




Sea lions! 



It's really hard to tell because of the size of this photo, but there are bald eagles in the tops of several of the trees. We counted about fourteen or fifteen. A group of bald eagles is called a congress. We watched them swoop down out of the trees to fish.


We even saw a momma and baby!!!! It was absolutely incredible. We ended up seeing a dozen or so whales, some of which we watched for quite a while.

The next day, we stopped in Ketchikan. It was the only day we had on our entire trip that had constant rain. They rarely have thunderstorms, just gentle, soaking showers. Often. Kregg was the only one who went on an excursion in Ketchikan. The rest of us shopped and looked around the town. Kregg went to the ziplines and suspension bridges over the rainforest. 

He took this shot from the zipline looking out over the harbor.

While on the ship, many activities are offered. There are live shows, music, movies, and even a pottery class!

 I got to make a bowl. A few days later, everyone came back to apply the glaze. There was a kiln on the ship, so we picked up our finished pieces the day before we disembarked. 

Having never been on a cruise before, we really didn't know what to expect. The service and hospitality of the crew was outstanding. Being able to sit and read a book or play cards while seeing such amazing sights was definitely living in the lap of luxury. We would love to take the kids to Alaska someday. 

 
We hated for our trip to be over, but it sure was wonderful to come home to lots of hugs from the kids. They all managed their list of "to do's" well and the house was clean, which always makes me happy!! The last big anniversary trip we took was at ten years. I think instead of waiting another fifteen, we should plan them every five years from here on!

Thank you, Kregg, for such a wonderful adventure! (25 years of marriage) And thanks, for the trip, too!! I love you more than ever!