TWIML

This Week In Moppy's Life - TWIML - The only problem with doing this is I'll probably forget most of my week. Sometimes things just seem to come together in a blur by Friday evening. I'm going to "steal" the format of a new friend at church who "stole" it from someone else. We'll see how it works.

Sitting: on my bed with my laptop - it's become one of my favorite places to hang out.

Waiting: for my baby boy - all 6'4" of him - to come home for a visit from Springfield. I'm not sure how much we'll see of him because he's bringing a couple of friends but it'll be nice to have him around for a couple of days.

Glad: that I had a productive week. Had a lot of planning to do and feel pretty good about things. Felt God's guidance as we began to prepare for the Fall.

Needing: more exercise but it's painful to do. My cardiologist told me today that I need to stay active so we'll know if the heart is acting up. He said just walking is fine... but that hurts my hips. I guess I'll dose up on painkillers and give it a try.

Reading: The Guardian by Dee Henderson. Sara got hooked on them in Nigeria so I'm borrowing her series. This is book 2.

Also reading: Two Views on Women's Ministry and that read is going to take forever!!

Reading on hold: Two other books I've glanced at and need to start on... one for MOPS - Life on Planet Mom and a class I'd like to teach from the book, 5 Conversations You Must Have With Your Daughter.

Avoiding: filing... I hate it but the stack is blocking pictures that I like to look at in my office.

Enjoyed: going to the Cardinal game with Sara on Thursday night even though we lost. I've missed her the last 2 1/2 years - probably more than she realizes.

Preparing: for lots of things... Fall Kick-Off, new Awana year, new Sunday School year, Upward Basketball. Met with Cheryl on Monday about the Fall Kick-Off. It's a great theme this year - Strong Tower - as the kids learn about the names of God this year. I need to do a better job of incorporating that into Awana. Monday evening was spent with my Upward Basketball commissioners. They are THE best bunch of guys. Now granted I don't know every church's commissioners but I can guarantee you that we have the finest ever. They are committed and fun and faithful and fun and responsible and fun and encouraging and fun. Did I mention how much fun they are when we meet? :-)

Drinking: diet Pepsi

Snacking: on nothing at the moment but thinking about some fresh cherries when I finish this.

Trying: to lose some weight... seems like an impossible task... and uphill battle... on meds that make it difficult... age makes it difficult... lack of exercise makes it almost impossible.

Ending: with an old age reminder from Sara. This morning I was drying my hair. The dryer started cutting in and out and then it sparked and burnt my hand. When I got home from work this afternoon, I was telling Sara about it. She asked, "Was it the red one?" I told her that it was. She said, "That's the only hair dryer I ever remember you having. It must be old." Thank you, Sara!!! I had no qualms about throwing it in the trash.

Thanks, Rebekah... this format was fun!

Mornings... Blech! Blech! & Kid's Thoughts... Fun! Fun!

Have I always hated mornings? I guess my mom would have to answer that... but I sure have in recent years. I think if sunrises came a lot later, I would love them. :-) Right now, there have been trucks outside my window, working on the road, since before 7 a.m. What is their problem? OK, enough complaining about mornings.

I treated myself last night to a fun evening. Now it may not sound like fun to everyone but that's OK. I was content!! First, I went to Target for some wedding gifts. Normally, I don't like shopping but when it's for someone else... and I have a list to choose from... and it's not going to take very long... then I don't mind it so much. I was in and out in less about 20 minutes. Then it was off to the hairdresser. Michelle does wonders with her magic fingers. It's so relaxing to get my hair done. I love it! After that it was a short walk to Bug's store while she closed up and then we headed to dinner at PJ's. The Cardinal game had just started back up after a rain delay. However, by the time we finished, it was raining again. We walked outside... talked a bit more... started walking to our cars in opposite directions and a deluge came. Thankfully, I did not have very far to go and Bug had an umbrella with her. It lasted about a minute.

I posted in my previous note about spending time with the grandkids at the Mills. We had some interesting words of advice from Sammy... "Poppy, why are you driving so fast in the neighborhood? My mommy and daddy don't drive this fast." "Poppy, you're driving too slow on the highway. Why are you driving so slow?"

We're driving up 270 and this conversation takes place:

Poppy: Sammy, can you tell me how to get to our house?

Sammy: I don't have a map.

Masha: You can be a navigator. They read maps.

Sammy: I don't know how to be an abigator.

Sammy & Lizzie rode kiddie cars that just go round and round. When the ride stopped, Lizzie puts her hands in the air and says, "I'm the winner!"

We've been at the Mills for quite a while. We've shopped... played games... rode race cars... had lunch. We're walking through the arcade area and Charlie asks me what I want to do now. I tell him that I'm tired and it's time for the Cardinal game so let's just go home. Sammy is not missing a word of this and says: "Actually, Moppy, it's not time for the Cardinal game. Let's do some more." So we went to the Cardinal store and bought the kids their caps. Lizzie immediately picked out a pink Cardinal hat with Tinkerbell and silver stars. What Tinkerbell has to do with the Cardinals, I have no idea. And a pink Cardinal hat? But she was insistent and I knew there was no changing her mind. We started heading for the exit but Sammy saw the Haagen-Daas sign and yells, "It's time for ice cream!" And Lizzie even wanted pink ice cream.

My sister, Brenda, reminded me yesterday of how nice the weather was 9 years ago. Jason & Jenny were married on July 22 and I remember wondering why anyone would pick the middle of July with the heat and humidity in St. Louis. But it was an absolutely beautiful, cool day.

My baby sister, Bev, had a birthday on Wednesday... and I'm a slacker for not even wishing her a happy birthday!! So sorry... I'm a terrible big sister. The day just got away from me. Now I'm sad. :-(

Ramblings...

Nine kids and 3 sponsors left Monday morning for Centri-Kid at SBU in Bolivar. It's a week-long camp for those who have completed 3rd-6th grade. It's the home of OMC - Organized Mass Chaos and the kids love it!! Please pray for the rest of their week.

Wow! Can you believe this July weather? When was the last time you remember several days in July of 70 degree weather?

Summer is coming to a close way too quickly. I spent the day preparing for the new church year - Sunday School, Awana, new safety & security procedures, Children's Ministry Team - hard to believe it's time to restart all that again.

Had to go by the doctor's office on Monday morning to have some blood drawn. Supposedly, I'm supposed to have it done every 3 months and the last time was February... oops!!

Celebrations in order for Wednesday - My baby sister has a birthday! Jason & Jenny celebrate an anniversay - #9, I think.

40th anniversary of man walking on the moon for the first time was Monday. I was sitting in a hotel restaurant in Japan. My dad had been transferred and we had just arrived, waiting for a house. And as someone said on Facebook... yes, that makes me old as dirt!!

To pray about: my mom is feeling better after breaking 4 ribs but is still having some pain; Jenny is expecting baby #3 and is really not feeling too well these days; Masha has a doctor's appointment... pray for good results from her scan; Awana looks like it may be another big year and more leadership is needed, especially with our 3rd-6th grade girls; new Sunday School teachers will be needed starting in September. God is good!!

TED DREWES, HANNIBAL, THE MILLS

It's probably not possible to really catch up so this will be just a synopsis of the past couple of weeks. Eventually I will put even more pictures on Facebook.

Trips to Ted Drewes are always "necessary" in St. Louis. We met Jason and family there one evening and were continuously entertained by the kids.

Conversation with Sammy... Moppy: Sammy, your ice cream has melted. Let's throw it away. Sammy: No, that's OK... I'll just drink it!!!

Masha got an orange slushie for all of us to share... so thinks Sammy & Lizzie.

Ring around the roses... pocket full of posies... ashes, ashes, we all fall down!!


I decided Masha needed to visit the birthplace of Mark Twain so on Wednesday afternoon we headed for Hannibal. We took the scenic route (thank you, Keith) - the Great River Road on the way up. We stopped along the way for some great views of the Mighty Mississippi.

A ride on the Mark Twain riverboat was the first order of the afternoon.

The Mark Twain cave was also a must-see.

And at the request of Jasper... Huck Finn hats. No trip to Hannibal would be complete without them.

Is Masha trying to break into Mark Twain's boyhood home? And I'm sure she's hoping for someone to paint that fence so she doesn't have to do it.


On Saturday, it was a day with the grandkids. The weather was iffy so we headed for fun at The Mills.



After a walk through Cabela's, car races and lunch, Charlie asked what I wanted to do next. I said, "It's time for the Cardinal game. Why don't we go home and watch it?" Sammy: "Actually, it's not time for the Cardinal game so let's stay here." But we did go to the Cardinal store to get the kids their Cardinal hats. As we were walking towards the exit, Sammy says, "Hey, time for ice cream!"

Malikas left on Monday evening to go home to the Isle of Man. I really, really liked having her here for almost 3 weeks. I wasn't ready for her to go home. I miss her. :-(

This past week was our annual Sports Crusader Basketball Camp so there was no time for anything else... almost all day, every day was spent at church. It was a good week with several kids coming who had no church affiliation. Plus we probably gained some Upward basketball players, too.

I was so tired by Friday evening I could hardly think straight however the week was not over. I headed to Julie's for the start of the MOPS retreat. Dinner was a potato bar and salad - very good - and then some brainstorming about vision and goals. An excellent vision statement came out of the evening... "Connect with God - Connect with moms". I've never worked with such a focused team of moms and leaders. It's a fabulous steering team!!! It's gonna be a great year on Planet Mom!!!

Sara arrived safely back home after a week with the Mission Raleigh team. And she's going to be around until Monday morning when she leaves with our Centri-Kid group for Bolivar.

We are having some great weather in St. Louis... especially for July. Sara loves the fact that we've turned off the air conditioning. She's been cold ever since she got home from Nigeria... especially when she's in an air-conditioned building.

CRAZY WEEK

It has been a crazy, busy week... work, trip to Hannibal, a movie, Sara to Raleigh, a day with the grandkids... and no time to write about those things until later. Just wanted to let anyone who reads this know that I'm still alive. Watch next week for more details and pictures.

Pray for Sara and the other sponsors and youth from Parkway as they are in Raleigh, NC on a mission trip. Sara was home for 5 whole weeks before heading out for mission work again. :-) They will be ministering to inner city kids this upcoming week.

Masha leaves Monday to go back home. :-( I will miss her... terribly. It doesn't take long to get used to having her here.

Sports Crusaders will be here this week for our basketball camp... busy and fun week!!

THE BIG BANG

Life is always... exciting... surprising... when Chris comes home. He shared with us one of his recent "science experiments"... plastic bottle, aluminum foil, Works toilet bowl cleaner. Put the foil and cleaner in a plastic bottle and throw it far away... and kaboom!!! And here is the result of the ka-boom...

For the first time in several years, we braved the crowds and went downtown for the fireworks. And it was worth it... an incredible show. According to a recent news report, St. Louis was #5 in the country for their fireworks, beating Chicago and New York City. Oh yeah!!!! It was great fun to be there with Malikas - her first 4th of July celebration with us... and to be with Sara - our first 4th with her in several years. Prior to the fireworks, it was our annual Independence Day dinner at Greg and Bug's... and as always... DELICIOUS food!!

Earlier in the week was spent working and at Cardinal games. On Tuesday night, Malikas and Charlie had tickets to the suite that Charlie's company buys tickets for. Bug and I had great seats, too... a few rows up from the Cardinal dugout. It wasn't Carpenter's night and we lost the game but the company was fun and the view was incredible.

On Thursday night, we headed to the ballpark again and enjoyed another fun Cardinal game... and a win!!

Got a phone call from Dad on Monday evening - usually a bad sign and this time was no different. He left a voice mail... "This is Dad. Just wanted to let you know about your mom. Bye." Arrrggghhhh!!!! I immediately called him back and learned that my mom had broken 3 ribs... falling at church. Not much to be done about broken ribs except to control the pain. I spoke with my mom later in the week and she told me she had broken 4 ribs. She was feeling some better but has to sleep sitting up in a chair. She's getting out of a bed is one of the most painful things right now. She also found out she's allergic to Motrin... it was beginning to affect her kidneys. Pray for my mom!