The Goings-Ons.......pictures and wedding trip

I have been working a lot this week making Kodak Gallery albums of our big trip to Alaska, Vancouver, and Washington State. I am now working on the last album ~~ #16!!!!! It's been fun to look back at the pics and to relive the great time we had, but I am ready to be done with the project. Once I have the last album made, I am going to go in the Alaska Trip Blog and change all of the dates of the posts so that the blog reads in order from start of trip to finish. I will post each album under the journal of that day's events. It will make it nicer for us to go back and "re-visit" the trip or for any guests who find their way to the blog. The URL for that blog is shown in the right hand top corner of this blog in case you want to check it out.

We are about to take off for Alabama!! Our long-time friend, Sarah Pender, is getting married on Saturday. We have known Sarah since she was 12 or 13 years old and then she was our "campus daughter" during her four years of college. We are so happy for her and Josh and know they will be an awesome Christian couple who will labor together to advance the Kingdom of Christ. We wish them well and so much look forward to their wedding day. And of course, an added excitement for us is that Jaden is the ring-bearer in the wedding. He and Amy will attend the rehearsal at 6:00 this evening. I hope he does well with this new "activity."

I'm hoping I will have some precious pics of Jaden and hopefully of Josh and Sarah, too, to post upon our return.

Have a good weekend, everyone!

Twenty-Second Anniversary of My Dad's Departure for Heaven

Philippians 1:3 ¶ I thank my God upon every remembrance of you...

June 26, 1986: I was thankful for JESUS CHRIST, my solid rock, on that day. Dad had been very ill for just three weeks with his just-diagnosed with Acute myelogenous leukemia: (AML) a fast-growing cancer of the blood and bone marrow. In AML, the bone marrow makes many unformed cells called blasts. Blasts normally develop into white blood cells that fight infection. However, the blasts are abnormal in AML. They do not develop and cannot fight infections. The bone marrow may also make abnormal red blood cells and platelets. The number of abnormal cells (or leukemia cells) grows quickly. They crowd out the normal red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets the body needs.

Daddy thought he had the flu and fought it for a few days before going to the doctor when he wasn't getting any better. What a shock to learn that day that he had leukemia. He fought it valiantly at UAB in Birmingham, but it wasn't God's plan for him to be healed. Of course, he realized the ULTIMATE HEALING when he arrived in Heaven on June 26!!

As the two photos portray, I always looked up to my dad (that's Nonie and me with Dad and Mom and I am looking up at him); and I loved him dearly. It hurt so much to lose my beloved Daddy but the Lord was gracious and saw us all through each difficult day. I still miss you, Daddy, and love you so much. I can't wait to see you and Mom when the Lord calls me home one of these days. I love you!!!!!!!!!!!!!