First Signs of Spring

A few of the daffodils and crocuses have made their appearance in our yard in the past two weeks. What a welcome reminder of the promise that spring is just around the corner! "He is faithful that has promised" Hebrews 10:23 "God is ever true to His promises." I Corinthians 1:9

Born in Indian Territory in New Mexico

Last night our family gathered to celebrate our firstborn's 36th birthday. Here's his photo with his niece,Molly. Evan Henry Williams was born in Shiprock, New Mexico, a small town located on the Navajo Indian Reservation. My husband was working for the Public Health Service as a physician and I was working as a teacher at Shiprock Elementary school to all black headed Navajo children. During our 2nd year of living on the reservation, God blessed us with our first child. When my due date drew near, my parents drove all the way from Minnesota to support us in this momentous occasion. They arrived and waited, but no labor pains. So Henry suggested that we take Grandma and Grandpa on a sightseeing tour around our area of desert. A harrowing jeep ride over dusty,bumpy roads up a steep mesa took my parents' breath away! Next we drove out to the foot of the actual rock formation of the Shiprock. It is a sacred mountain to the Indians made from the core of an ancient volcano where the lava sticks straight up. No one is permitted to climb it! It resembles a tall sailing ship from a distance and the Spanish explorers thought they had come to the ocean when they saw its silhouette across the desert. The jolting worked! I went in to labor that night and Evan made his appearance in this world at 8 am. We called my parents to announce his arrival! As my parents walked the one block from our house to the little Indian hospital, they wondered if they would be able to tell which baby in the nursery window was their new grandson? As it turned out, it wasn't difficult at all because their brand new grandson was the only "paleface" in the nursery! We are thankful to the LORD for all 4 Williams children that He blessed us with over the years, but this is the only one born in "foreign" territory.

Remarkable Valentine Week!

Memories,Sweet,Sweet Memories What an amazing week this has been! It started on Sunday with a surprise 40th party for our nephew and Godson, Micah Morrison. His dear wife Allie and mother, Sally asked to host the party at our cabin on the river! Despite the drizzle, there were many warm wishes from family and friends with a roaring fireplace and bluegrass. The celebrating continued at Mellow Mushroom with more family gathering together for pizza. An extra bonus was the first time meeting of two sweet two year old cousins! Margo Morrison and our granddaughter, Frances were born only 4 days apart and finally able to meet and even played Ring Around the Roses together! Tuesday I caught up with my 93 yr. old mom over the phone, then our dear friend, Terry invited Henry and me to her townhouse for a delicious Valentine dinner by candlelight. Fun to share a tasty meal together! Wednesday I met my daughter, Tacy and granddaughter, Molly Beck at the Batterie to outfit her with her first leotard and ballet slippers, she's already five years old and starting a ballet class! Their BIG announcement is that the LORD is blessing their family with a new, little baby to join Madeleine in the nursery this summer!And number 5 grandchild for us! Henry,my MARVELOUS sweetheart of 38 years, brought me breakfast in bed on Valentine's Day! What a blessing he has been in my life!!! Then our son, Evan showed up in his landscaping truck with bales of pine straw and made our yard BEAUTIFUL! Then I had the privilege of arranging several bouquets for the special Valentine luncheon at our church gathering widows from several churches to pray, eat and love being together celebrating God's enduring love for us. Stunned is the best way to describe how the evening developed. Our son,Eric, who has had a rough year, surprised us by coming home for 4 hours to cook his parents a gourmet Valentine dinner of salmon fillets smothered in caramelized mango salsa! And we all wanted to catch up with our west coast family so we skyped with Kira and 21 month old granddaughter, Ivey out in Seattle. What a sweet family evening. Yes, I did eat some chocolate yesterday,too...but sweeter than honey and the honeycomb is God's Word! "Behold what manner of love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called the children of God, and that is what we are!" I John 3:1