What Do You See Outside YOUR Open Window Today?

What Do You See Outside YOUR Open Window Today?
Remember: "When God closes a door, He always opens a window!" You never know what might be out there waiting for you!

Sunday, May 10, 2020

Mother's Day Blessings

Well, another Mother's Day has come and gone.  Well almost...it's 7:30 p.m., and I'm sure most "celebrations" are winding down by now, if you were able to have one at all.  I didn't think that we would be able to do anything today due to some other conflicts, but God and family intervened, and it turned out to be a very nice day.

The day started out raining, which was actually an answer to prayer because we need it so much. Wish it would have stayed a bit longer...but at least I didn't have to water the flowers outside today!
We also were able to go meet some church friends for "brunch" at our local restaurant, which reopened this past week. Our churches still are not able to hold indoor services,  and so our pastor does an online message each week. We used to go to lunch with friends after church, so today we went to brunch instead and then we watched the service online later. (Individually at home).   Our church district leaders are saying we probably won't be able to reconvene indoor church services until at least mid-June. I am not too happy about that, but I guess there isn't anything to do but be patient and wait and trust the Lord that all will work out for the best according to His plan. I'm thankful we can at least meet with friends at a restaurant now. That helps a lot!

We originally were going to wait until tomorrow (Monday) to celebrate Mother's Day with family because of other conflicts today. But those conflicts were changed, and we were able to get together after all!

Here we are, enjoying a wonderful lasagna dinner prepared by my sweet daughter in law.  What a blessing she is in our lives.

 And here I am with two of my sons, #1 and #3.

Our #2 son (as he actually used to call himself) is helping the Lord prepare our "mansion" in heaven, where we will have a grand reunion someday.   This picture below was taken in February, 2014, just a few months before our #2 son passed away from cancer.  These are all the Steiner "men" in my life:
 L to R: Hubby, #1 son, #1 (and only) grandson, #2 son, and #3 son.  I am blessed to have been known as Wifey, Mom, and Grandma by this crew of handsome men. 

Back to today:
Here is my plate of lasagna, garlic bread , and salad. It was delicious! Thank you, dear Rose, for providing such a wonderful dinner.  BTW, I told the guys that I had set the table with the pink tablecloth in honor of us girls, so they'd better not get any lasagna spilled on it. LOL.  They did really well...they ate it up so fast it didn't have time to hit the tablecloth! LOL.


And here are some of my gifts...my kids gave me two new kinds of bird feeders. One is for hummingbirds, and goes on the window so I can see them up close. The other is a regular bird feeder, and it also goes on the window so I can see it up close too.  I can't wait to get them put up...and I look forward to lots of wonderful up close encounters with our bird world.

My number #3 son is very creative. He constructed this beautiful angel for me today out of copper wire.  She will sit/fly in a special place where I can enjoy seeing her every day.

My "daughter in love" knows how much I love a certain kind of Lavender Goat Milk Soap. It is home made by a friend from down where we used to live, and is loaded with wonderful essential oils and healthy ingredients.
 She ordered this for me as it difficult to get back down there to get it, especially since this "pandemic". These six bars should last me at least six months! I am so happy to get this as I was almost out of it.


I did bake an apple pie today.  Here is what is left of it:

Click HERE for a Mother's Day story about my mother's pies.  My mother was the expert pie baker in the family...and she always baked an apple pie for my birthday. So, in honor of her memory I baked an apple pie today. It was almost as good as Mama's...but not quite as perfect.

My mother at age 70. In my mind, she was still this beautiful when she passed away almost 20 years later.
Dorothea Tedlie Mursch
1917-2006

Here is a picture (below) of me with my mother, way back in the late 80's I think.  This was taken on a very special day that we spent rambling around an old abandoned house in north Georgia. There just happened to be some lilacs blooming on that property, and since that was my mother's most favorite flower ever, my Dad took this picture of us enjoying the lilacs together.  CLICK HERE for a story about my mother and lilacs.  Such a beautiful memory of a wonderful day together.


And then of course I want to remember my dear mother in law too. There are many stories about her scattered throughout this blog, as she spent a good bit of her last several years of life with us in our home.  If you want some interesting stories about life with "Nanny", go to the right sidebar here on the blog and under "Some Special Topics", click on the first one "Caregiver", and you will be able to live through some of our adventures together.  She was a very special woman, one whom I will never forget. I was blessed to be her "daughter-in-love".
Vivian Martin Steiner, "Nanny"
1923-2018
You can also CLICK HERE for a "Tribute to My Mother-in-Law, updated last year for Mother's Day, a few months after she had passed away.

In closing, I want to thank the Lord for the wonderful women He placed in my life. My own dear mother, and also my dear mother-in-law. Not to mention the many other women of influence throughout the years, many who were like "spiritual mothers" to me during my years of serving alongside my husband in the ministry.  I needed a lot of wise counsel during those years, and God always seemed to bring just the right women along at the right time to help lead me in the right direction. I am not sure I would have made it without their kindness and Christian love.

Praying that you have also had a blessed and beautiful day today. I know for many this has not been a great day, due to distance away from loved ones, and perhaps some have not felt like this was a day they could celebrate for one reason or another.
I believe that Mother's Day really should be a day of tribute to all women, regardless of whether or not they are mothers.  Many women, who may not have been mothers in the physical sense, have been more like mothers to other people's children than perhaps those other's own mothers were. I like these words from the famous Proverbs 31 "A Portrait of a Virtuous Woman"

"25.  Strength and honor are her clothing;
She shall rejoice in time to come.
26.  She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and on her tongue is the law of kindness.
27.  She watches over the ways of her household,
and does not eat the bread of idleness."

29.  "Many daughters have done well,
but you excel them all."
30.  "Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing.
but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised."
31. "Give her of the fruit of her hands,
and let her own works praise her in the gates."

That is the kind of woman that we should each aspire to be, regardless of whether or not we are married, have children, or live alone. Our worth comes from the Lord, first of all...not from our marital or familial status.  
"A woman who fears the Lord....She shall be praised."
That is the most important quality in a woman ever.
Amen?

26 comments:

  1. Such beautiful women, inside and out, in your life and that includes you, too! Your lunch looks delicious and so does that apple pie! Many blessings wished for you in the coming week!

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    1. Thank you, Terri. I woke up this morning (Tuesday) thinking about you. You may be getting prepped and ready for your surgery right this minute as I write this. I will be praying for you today. God is with you.

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  2. I can see where you get your looks from. You are as beautiful as your mother. I'm glad you got to celebrate with the family. I had my steak supper on Friday and today Steve brought home a banana split for me.I may be just a little spoiled.

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    1. Oh, my Ruth! What a sweet thing to say. I was thinking about how lovely my mother was at 70, and I will be 70 this year, and I don't think I look a think like her and I know I have more wrinkles than she did! But thank you for the compliment. That made my day!!! Your Steve is a keeper! you are blessed that he sees to it that you have such good food and a banana split to boot!! Yes, it is good to be spoiled by those who love us. You deserve to be spoiled!!! Have a blessed day.

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  3. Such a blessing to have so many wonderful women in your life Pamela. They all sound and look like very special ladies. You are quite special yourself so I'm happy to hear your Mother's Day celebration took an unexpected and pleasant turn. It was good to see your sons and grandson with your husband. I noticed that all the Steiner men have a similar standing pose and they carry their arms in exactly the same way. This is also the case in my family and I enjoy watching my youngest brother and nephew walking side by side. They look like twins, lol with their movements. Your pie looks very delicious. I'm sure your move would approve. Have a happy week ahead.

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    1. Good Morning...what an interesting comment about how all "The Steiner men have a similar standing pose..." I had to go back and look, and you are right, and I bet if my father in law was still living he would have stood the same way. I am noticing that my hubby is walking and standing more like his father did all the time. I've noticed also that my sister and I also do more things alike these days than we ever did as kids. Must be a gene thing. Yes, the pie was good, and I'm sure my mother was winking at me from heaven. For her, ever special occasion was an occasion for pie!! Have a blessed day!

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  4. What a lovely post, smiles. You are so blessed to have a beautiful family, my friend. Thank you for sharing and I also love that soap and my mom has the same soap in the guest bathroom (well, she use too, I haven't been home in over 13 years, so really I can't say for sure). Gosh, Pamela, I can smell the lavender...smiles.

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    1. Thank you, Linda. I am very thankful for my family. God has been very kind to us. Yes, I love the scent of lavender, and now with so many bars of soap in my bathroom at once, I can really smell it when I go in there. Makes me calm down and be happy!! Let's see, I think you said your mother lives in the same area not far from where I live. Would you like for me to go check and see what kind of soap she has? LOL. Just kidding with you...but I would if I could. I hope you will be able to do some traveling soon and that God will open some wonderful doors for you to go through. If you DO ever get down this far, you must let me know!!!!! I'll even share one of my bars of soap with you! :)

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  5. So happy that you had such a wonderful Mother's Day, Pamela! You certainly deserve to be treated like a queen each and every day.
    Blessings!

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    1. Oh, Martha, you are so sweet. I am not so sure about the being "treated like a queen" part, but thank you for thinking it. I have been thinking about you and praying that you will soon be able to be with your precious family again. I am sure you will when you feel comfortable enough to do so. Praying it won't be too much longer, as I know you are missing one another so much. (((hugs))). Have a blessed and beautiful day my friend.

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    1. Sorry about that!
      So again..Happy (belated!) Mother's Day! Wasn't it nice to get out for a little while and be with friends and family? How much we have taken for granted that we now are so appreciative of..Our church begins services this coming Sunday, with restrictions.(I live in SC.) Only 120 allowed for each service and we have to make "reservations". I qualify for the older group, but I'm going to attend the 8:00 one.
      All of your pictures were a delight to see, and the feeders and soap were so thoughtful.
      Blessings, Linda

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    2. Hi Linda...no problem...not sure what happened, but I'm glad you are here again! Oh, I am so "envious" of you to be going back to church services this Sunday. Even with restrictions, it is better than not going. Our little church building is so small, it only holds about 80 people, and it is always packed, so I don't know what we will do to accommodate the "restrictions". We are such a close "family" of people that we would hate to miss anyone. But it will work out I am sure in time. I am glad that you will be able to get back to church. Things sure can change in life, can't they? Things we always took for granted can be upended really quickly. But thankfully God still is on His throne, and He has a plan!! Be blessed my friend, and have a wonderful week.

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  7. I enjoyed reading about your mom and her pies. Your pie looks delicious too and I'd love a piece of that coconut pie. Yummy!!!

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    1. Oh, thank you, Cathy. I haven't made a coconut cream pie in a while, but I probably should. My hubby and kids love it. That one was my mother's claim to fame and many people requested it from her! Thank you for going back in time and reading that story. I hope you had a blessed mother's day.

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  8. Aw, I really felt like I got to know you better through this post. What a beautiful heart you have - for your family, for those who have gone on, and most of all, for God. I love the angel your son made for you, and it was heartwrenching to read of your son's homegoing to Heaven. I am SO sorry. The soap was such a thoughtful, kind gift. I love those kinds of homemade soap, too. You have a lovely and loving family and are abundantly blessed. Happy belated Mother's Day!

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    1. Thank you, Cheryl. Yes, I am so thankful for my "lovely and loving family". And I do know I am abundantly blessed. Even with the loss we have suffered, and it is a GREAT loss, God has blessed us and we are so thankful for what we have here together. Thank you for visiting. I hope you had a blessed Mother's day as well.

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  9. So glad that you had a most wonderful Mother's Day and what a wonderful meal your dear DIL prepared. I can smell it right about now cause I am hungry! LOL! Loving the pictures of your mama. How precious. I hope that you have a wonderful week and oh yes...Son #2 is probably getting your chair ready to sit by the beautiful pond that the Lord has just for you. Hugs and blessings, Cindy

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    1. Oh Cindy, you are a woman who understands my heart! Yes, my #2 son would make sure I had a place by the heavenly pond, where I could watch him fish! LOL. He used to tell his "Nanny" that he was going to build her a log cabin someday, as she often expressed a desire to have one. So he may be doing that for her up there now, and they may be rocking on the porch. That sounds better than a mansion to me any day!! And yes, the lasagna was so good, I ate leftovers last night! And it was even better the 2nd day! Have a blessed day my friend.

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  10. Your Mother's Day was awesome! It's so great that you were with your family and shared a great meal together. Nice gifts, nice meal, nice family and precious memories! I enjoyed it all, thanks for sharing with us.

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    1. Thank you, Mary. It was such a lovely day, and I truly felt blessed. I am so thankful for my kids, and especially my sweet daughter in law. She has become like a daughter to me. God is so good.

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  11. I enjoyed reading about your Mother's Day. I was so glad to have my children in the house with me as well. I made a pie too...well, actually two. One of them makes me think of my mother-in-law each time I make it. She always made it for me. We celebrated Mom's 85th birthday which was actually in March but this is the first time we have all been in the house at the same time, so the kids got balloons and so forth to surprise her.

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    1. Thank you for visiting Sandy. I am so glad you had your family with you for Mother's Day. That certainly made the day complete. And I know your Mother really enjoyed being with the family too. I'm wondering what kind of pie you baked that made you think of your mother in law. Just curious. My sweet mother in law never baked pies, unless they were Mrs. Smith's! So whenever I have one of those (which isn't THAT often, but occasionally I like to get a cherry pie because it's hard to find decent cherries for pie baking) I think of her. Hope the fires are getting put out by now. Still praying, especially for that sweet couple.

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  12. The LORD has indeed blessed you through your life. I like your angel that your youngest son made for you.

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    1. Thank you, Cecelia. I truly am thankful to the Lord for His blessings, which are many. And thank you for appreciating the beauty of the angel. I love it. It is very uniquely created with love. Praying you are doing well and that things are gradually getting better where you are. One day at a time!!

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  13. What a nice Mother's Day post. You inherited your mother's beauty. Nice to read about your mother in law, also. Such a nice lunch and gifts you received; very thoughtful of the family.

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