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!

Saturday, September 19, 2020

Let the Fun Begin

I think I've hinted around that next week is my birthday, and it is going to be a big one...a new decade!
And so it only makes good sense to spread out the celebration over a longer period of time, especially with "social distancing" and long distance between families.
So today was the beginning of the "celebrations". We knew it was going to be a fun day when we saw this sign as we entered the Ocala National Forest on our way to our destination.
I hope our friend Diane from Lavender Dreams sees this picture, because I was just telling her in my comment on her blog this morning that this is the season for high bear activity...and guess what sign we saw flashing at us as we entered the forest!:



Yep! Proved me right! And then the next announcement flashing on the same sign said:

Oops! Too Late!  We had to stop to take this picture! But there wasn't any sign of bears around at that location, however...

When we reached our destination guess what we saw?


Yep! Some "High Bear Activity" all right! LOL.

My hubby decided to swap secrets with this bear:


And the bear told him a few bear tales...unbeknownst to them there was a photo bomber:


I think they were discussing the "Appetizers"...


Thankfully they didn't become the appetizers! LOL.
At least this is a patriotic bear. 

Yes, that is our son, who came along for the festivities. Unfortunately his wife had to work today, so we took lots of pictures so she would be able to see the fun.

While waiting for the rest of our party to arrive we enjoyed looking at the many different old pictures on the wall in the lobby of the restaurant.

This one in particular caught my eye, because I knew most of those men in that picture. You see, my mother used to be a secretary in the Sheriff's Office  many years ago, and this was the infamous Sheriff Willis V. McCall and his deputies. Sheriff McCall is the one in the light suit with the big hat. These deputies all worked in the office at the same time as my mother worked there, and so we heard a lot of stories of things that were going on.  My mother had to close her ears to some of the goings on of the Sheriff and crew.  Anyone familiar with this man and his reputation back in the 50's and early 60's will understand why. She was thankful to have a job, but some things were difficult to handle for my "Yankee bred mother" in a very different kind of old southern "dixie" atmosphere. Law enforcement tactics were much different then, and what was considered "acceptable" then would never be acceptable today. It was a very different time and place.


This was another picture that caught my eye. This man had just wrestled this alligator. I am sure that alligator was a real prize for both his hide and his meat.  Again, times were very different then.


Back to the present. Our party finally arrived, and we had lunch with our family.

Below is our nephew Nick, my hubby and his brother Bill.


Here are the cousins:
Shannon, Ben, and Nick. What's interesting is Ben and Nick were born on the same day, only 31 years apart.  They are each the first born child of their fathers, who are the brothers above. So they are first cousins, just pretty far "removed". 


And here we are:


And here is my brother in law and his family.


Please keep these young people in your thoughts and prayers. With all of the covid 19 issues surrounding going to school, etc., they are having to make some pretty difficult adjustments in their lives. Nick is a senior and Shannon is a junior. They are missing out on a lot of the normal activities that should be happening with these last years of high school and the transition has had some major consequences in their lives. So please just lift them up in your thoughts and prayers, along with all young people who are struggling with all of the changes in their lives these days.

We had a wonderful time together. It is always great to be with family. We haven't seen them since February, so this was a grand reunion.  We are hoping it won't be that long again before we can be together. The kids are growing up way too fast.

Some thoughts and a prayer for our young people:

Jeremiah 29:11-13
11.  "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, 
thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.
12.  Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.
13.  And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart."


Hope you are having a great weekend so far! 

Oh, we received an update for another young person we have been praying for, my friend's grandson Jimmy.

"The bad news is progress is slow.  The good news is there is progress.
Jimmy opens his eyes and moves his arms and legs but until yesterday did not respond to stimulus. Yesterday when they applied pressure to pressure points he reached to try to remove the source of the pain.  This has renewed our optimism."

Thank you for your prayers! There is a link for a gofundme.com account on Jimmy's behalf. 
Here is the link if you are interested:

Thank you again.








 

18 comments:

  1. "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord,
    thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope."

    This is so true. (Of course, because it's scripture, but I mean it is so true.)

    Glad to hear Jimmy is doing better. Slowly or quickly, it is good news.


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    1. Thank you, Sandi. I love that verse so much. And I pray it on behalf of these young people who are going through so many changes, especially for Jimmy, who is fighting for his life. God has a good plan for his life too. Just keep praying!

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  2. First of all...Happy Birthday week! I'll be glad for you to have this birthday so that you can finally catch up with me just a little! lol I think we must have been born in the same year anyway! And this was a good start of fun celebrations. You found a mighty fearsome bear!!! Glad you didn't see one on the road. We've seen bears a few times on the road near the forest over the years. Love your post! I thought maybe you saw a pretty bird but this is even better! Enjoy your weekend! Hugs!

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    1. Yes, I am catching up to all my "elders". LOL. But we still love to play with our dolls and other "toys"! LOL. Yes, that was quite the fearsome bear. But he seemed to be in a good mood today. Yes, we have seen many bears on the road in our years of living in the forest. I would have loved to have seen a live one, but glad none came out of the woods when we stopped to take that picture! We did see one deer, but not soon enough for a picture. Thank you for your kind wishes! We girls of this decade need to get together sometime!! :)

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  3. What a great way to start your birthday week!! I can tell you were so happy to be with family and am sure you had a great meal! Pretty cool that you recognized some of the deputies and the Sheriff in that picture! Yes, those times were sure different!

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    1. Thank you Terri. Yes, we were happy to see the family today. It's been too long. The kids are growing up too fast. And yes, the times sure were different back when that sheriff was in control...and he was definitely that... and yes, I often had to go wait for my mother to get off work at the office, so I knew all of those deputies at the time. Some were very nice to our family and brought us a Christmas tree from the woods, a beagle dog, and just looked out for our family. We felt very safe since every body knew everybody back in the day. My brothers went on trail rides (horseback) with the sheriff and deputies up into the Ocala National Forest. It was a big event every year, camping and interesting stuff. I wanted to go too, but I was too little and didn't know how to ride a horse. I was very disappointed. so it wasn't all bad...there was a lot of good stuff too.

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  4. It looks like the birthday celebration fun is off to a great start. I'm so glad, too, for the news about Jimmy.

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  5. I'm so glad, Pamela, that John and you feel comfortable gathering with family. We are definitely not there yet, and it is lonely going. Praying that this virus will be defeated sooner than later! And yes, things and perceptions change over time, and as long as those changes are God focused and blessed, they are the right ones to make. I'm so afraid, in these times when so many have fallen away from God's promises, that human desire for power and control want to take over a free people. May we be vigilant and prayerful in these coming weeks!
    Blessings to you and yours!

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  6. Happy Birthday Week. I am celebrating all month. I think decade markers are worth it!

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  7. Wonderful verses of encouragement . I understand that as we get older we have the privilege of drawing those birthday celebrations out as long as possible. Hope each day just brings you added joy.

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  8. Yay, your birthday is coming up! Your special day! What are you getting for your b/day? So glad y'all got to go enjoy this special family time together, looks like a great time was had by all! Glad you shared the pictures with us. I liked seeing the pictures on the wall there too. And seeing the pretty rose blooming in the previous post, so pretty! I missed the post somehow with all your precious little dollhouse pretties, that was FUN!! I love all the sweet lil things you put in the cottage dollhouse, so cute. I loved yesterday's post with the gorgeous RAINBOW!! It sure was a VIVID one wasn't it?

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  9. Happy birthday week Pamela! I'm glad you were able to get together with family, what a great start to your celebrations. I feel so bad for young people during this time. It's hard enough for those of us who are older and retired. Sending prayers!

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  10. What lovely photos! Yay to another birthday, Pamela, smiles. Keeping young Jimmy and his family in prayer.

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  11. Happy Birthday Week ... or month, however you want to celebrate. :) Love all these pictures, especially that of your hubby and the big black bear sharing confidences.

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  12. Happy Birthday to you dear Pamela. It sounds like you've got a lot planned to celebrate the entry into the coming decade. I'm so glad you were able to get together with family. I know how precious that is when you haven't seen them for awhile. I like all the photos and the vintage ones too. I'm so glad your husband your son didn't become appetizers for the bear, lol. Enjoy the week ahead.

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  13. I love the idea of celebrating a special new decade for the entire week! Great family photos & fun narration - awesome photos, but I have two favorites today. The one of you with the bear and the photo bomb...that one made me giggle!

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    1. I am glad you got a giggle out of the bear and the photo bomb. There is never a dull moment around here, trust me! LOL.

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  14. What a fun post! Life is a grand adventure for sure. Happy early Birthday!

    Love and blessings!

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