Florida June 2011!

It initially started as a trip to watch the final shuttle launch on June 28, 2011. That was my birthday and what a great present to vacation in Florida. Everyone in the family requested the time off from work and saved their money for the trip.

Then about 2 weeks before we were to leave, NASA changed the schedule for the launch to July 8, 2011! What were we to do? We couldn't change our vacation times, so we decided to go to Florida anyway and just enjoy ourselves. And boy did we!

Danny, Heather, and Daniel drove together in a 2010 Charger. It was a beautiful blue color with wonderful air conditioning. David, Denise, Deborah and I rode together in David's Custom Cruiser. With the air conditioner now working, it was quite comfortable. So off we went on a sunny Friday afternoon. St Augustine or Bust!

We arrived in St. Augustine just before noon on Saturday. It was sunny and HOT! After getting our hotel, we drove to the old city and visited the Castillo de San Marcos, the oldest masonry fort in the United States. Construction was begun in 1672 when Florida was a Spanish territory (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castillo_de_San_Marcos). After walking around the fort, we traversed the old city, looking into shops and photographing some of the old buildings. When we left the fort, we went back to the hotel to cool off and rest (we drove straight through the night with only an occasional gas break/restroom stop, and a two hour stop at a rest are just north of the Florida state line).

Sunday morning after breakfast, we visited Our Lady of La Leche shrine on the grounds of the Mission of Nombre de Dios
(http://www.missionandshrine.org/la_leche.htm). It is recognized as the oldest mission in America. The grounds are beautifully laid out and it is a quiet peaceful place.

Upon leaving the mission, we found our way onto Anastasia Island and the Atlantic Ocean. We all went swimming and had lots of fun soaking up the sun. The sky was blue and the water was warm. Waves came crashing all around us toward the shore, and then returned to the great deep.

From there we traveled across the state to Manatee Springs near Chiefland, Florida. This is a Florida State Park located near the Gulf of Mexico. Normally, one can see the manatees swimming up the Suwannee River and then toward the warmer waters of the springs. However, that usually occurs in the winter. I should have done my homework better, because in the summer they stay out in the Gulf where it is a bit cooler. But it was nice to visit again and enjoy nature. That night we stayed in a small town called Perry, Florida. Pizza Hut was our food of choice that night.

We drove to Destin Monday morning and found a hotel in Crestview. Crestview is about 25 miles north of Destin, but much more affordable. We stayed at a Hampton Inn for only $58 per night. The swimming pool felt wonderful and we enjoyed it several times during our 3 day stay there. That evening we went to Whataburger. And what a burger it is! Luscious juicy hamburgers and jumbo creamy milkshakes - that was the order of the night!

The next day was Tuesday, my birthday, and we drove down to the city of Destin. Called the Emerald Coast, the Destin-Fort Walton Beach-Okaloosa Beach area provides many tourist attractions and the opportunity to spend LOTS of money! After shopping for a few "beach necessities" we found a beach that wasn't too busy and staked our claim on it. The waves were a little larger here since there were some thunderstorms in the forecast. Lots of fun in the sun for us that day!

While we were at the beach, we received a call from Dannae that she and Zach were almost to the hotel. We packed up our entourage and headed for Crestview. We all enjoyed a brief time of cooling down and relaxing together. After showering and dressing we were off to another adventure.

We headed back to Destin to an eating place called Fudpuckers Beachside Bar & Grill for diner that night. That's right, Fudpuckers. From the Fudpucker's webpage comes the following "Fudpucker's in Destin keeps growing, and growing... Fudpucker's Beachside Bar & Grill on Highway 98 in Destin now exceeds 30,000 square feet with over 2,500 square feet of retail alone! Visit Gator Beach at Fud's in Destin to feed the gators and get your picture holding one of these ultra cool creatures!" It is a fun place to eat with lots to do. I enjoyed the live music while we were waiting - and yes, you must be prepared to wait!

But there are so many things to look at while you wait. There are over 100 live alligators at Fudpucker's. One of the employees gives a talk about the alligators and also brings a small one, about 3 foot in length, inside so customers can "pet" it. There is a gift shop where you can purchase all kinds of crazy things, including a magnet that reads, "If a fudpucker could puck fud, how much fud could a fudpucker puck if a fudpucker could puck fud." Repeat that 10 times fast!

While we were waiting, a storm came up. Part of the restaurant is out-of-doors and we were sitting under a flat roof that was suspended from trees and other parts of the building. The wind was fierce and the rain came pelting down on the roof. A limb broke off of a nearby tree that was partly inside the area where we were waiting for our table and listening to the live music. It was hanging precariously over the stairs that went to the lower level by the alligators. No one seemed to notice but me. I told Daniel about it and we watched to see what was to become of the limb. If it fell, it could have injured someone as they walked down the stairs.

The wind continued to blow and the rain came down in torrents. A saw several employees walk by, but no one saw the limb. I called to one man as he walked by and I explained to him about the tree limb and how it broke from the wind blowing. I told him I was concerned because if it fell on someone, it could seriously injure them. Within a couple minutes, 2 more men came to assess the situation. Eventually the men got it taken care of. I was glad I noticed the potential hazard and was able to report it to someone who could do something about it.

Deborah ordered an appetizer of alligator tail which was quite tasty. Of course, if something is breaded and deep-fried, it all tastes like chicken! Everything is large on the menu so come with an appetite.

During dinner, Dannae spoke with our waitress. After dinner, about 6-8 waiter/waitresses came to our table with 2 ice cream dessert plates for Zach and me. Zach's birthday is June 30, only 2 days after mine. The main waiter asked the other dinners to join them in singing "Happy Birthday" as off-key as possible. It was noisy and rowdy, but lots of fun!

After dinner, we drove back to Crestview and our hotel across the Choctawhatchee Bay via the Mid Bay Bridge. It is a beautiful site at night with all the lights on shore and the sky twinkling with stars. Upon arriving at our hotel, Dannae brought out 2 birthday cakes, one for Zach and one for me. (Dannae is a cake decorator by trade). Zach's had a tank on it and was appropriately decorated. My cake had a beach scene on it with 2 magnet flip flops. Boy were they tasty!

The following was a day of departure for Danny and Heather. They headed toward Broken Arrow, Oklahoma where Daniel's sister Sara and her husband Stacy live. They arrived late at night and spent the following day there visiting and enjoying each others company. We were reunited with Danny and Heather in Huntington on Saturday.

After breakfast, the seven of us that were left drove to Destin and did some more shopping, this time for snacks and plenty of WATER to keep us hydrated as we frolicked on the beach and got some more sun. We spent time enjoying the water, sunshine, and sand. After several hours, we traveled back to the hotel where we cooled off in the clean sparkling waters of the hotel pool.

That night we went across the street and introduced Zach to Whataburger! More burgers and milkshakes were on the menu that night as we stuffed ourselves with the delicious food. We spent some time talking and computing our travels for the next day.

Early the next morning, we ate breakfast in the hotel dining area of the lobby. Zach and Dannae were headed for Salem, Missouri to visit Zach's oldest friend and his wife, Ian and Amber. We said our goodbyes and watched them leave us much to soon.

David, Daniel, Denise, Deborah, and I left shortly afterward and went to Pensacola, Florida. There we visited the National Naval Aviation Museum. According to the website (http://www.navalaviationmuseum.org/), one can..."Fly high with an adventure at the National Naval Aviation Museum, one of the world’s largest aviation museums. Located aboard Naval Air Station Pensacola, this historic treasure boasts more than 150 beautifully restored aircraft, hands-on exhibits and more than 4,000 artifacts representing Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard aviation." It was a great time of reminiscing about our fathers, Donald E. Divelbiss and Robert L. Scheie, and the many adventures they endured while serving in the US Navy and the US Army, respectively, during World War II.

After spending close to three hours, which really wasn't long enough to see everything in/around the museum, we continued driving north through the state of Alabama. Realizing that we didn't want to drive through the night, we stopped in Decatur, Alabama at a Microtel. It was an interesting experience, with large mirrors as our headboards all along the wall. There was also a bed in the window sill!

The next morning we ate our breakfast and chatted with the hotel employee who was attending the food area. She was from Muncie, Indiana - it's a small world! We continued driving home that day, arriving around 8:30 pm.

We saw and did some exciting things while in Florida, but the best part was being with our entire family! Everyone had safe journeys home and it has been fun remembering the time we had together in Florida in the summer of 2011!

Where Has The Time Gone???

Hello again :)

I really must remember that I have a blog. Since last December, things have changed somewhat. Of course, that is to be expected - the only thing that doesn't change is God and His Word! And PRAISE GOD FOR THAT! In this world in which we live, there is a constant. :)
For Christmas, we all went to Illinois to visit with Dannae and Zach. We had a lovely dinner and enjoyed spending time together. The weather was decent for driving in the Chicago area.
At the end of February, we found out we were going to become grandparents. Danny and Heather are going to have a baby in October. Very exciting!
In March, Daniel, Denise, Deborah and I went to Springfield, Missouri for the National Homeschool Basketball tournaments. The weather was comfortable and it was nice to have a change of scenery.
David started new job at the Walmart DC in Gas City in March as well. He normally works Sat through Monday from 4 am until 4 pm. However, he has been known to work until 7 pm at times! He gets up around 2:30 am and leaves around 3:15 in order to begin work at 4 am. It is a physical demanding job. He is currently looking for work closer to home with more decent hours. Sleeping for 3-4 hours a night takes its toll on a person after a while.
In April, Daniel and I celebrated our 32nd wedding anniversary! I don't know where the time has gone. It seems like yesterday we started dating. We are still in love with each other like crazy and we do our best to be good examples to our children and other young people. God has blessed immeasurably.
On May 21, Denise and Deborah took part in the Huntington Area Home Educators Graduation Ceremony. I was in charge of gathering the senior photos and biographies of each of the nine students. Then I designed and organized the program that was handed out at the graduation. It was a headache at times, but overall lots of fun :)
Denise and Deborah are still working at Owens and Taco Bell, but they are also working at the reservoir. Denise has been mowing, weed eating, and driving pontoons and stake-bed trucks. Deborah worked at the boat ramp selling tags for watercraft, but has recently started working on the labor crew. Lat week she did some weed eating and this Monday she is going to learn the ropes of mowing. They both love the outdoors, and working together.
Toward the end of June our whole family took a vacation to Florida. But I'll save that for next time.
Have a wonderful day!

WOW!

I can't believe it has been over a year since I have posted anything. Actually, it has been so long that I forgot I even had a blog!

We had a very busy summer and fall, with winter and spring not look to be any less busy. Daniel, Danny, David, and Heather were all in college this fall. Daniel complete his STAT 125 class that he started in Spring 2009 when he ended up in the hospital for 2 weeks with pancreatitis. He got an A in the course so he maintained his 4.0 GPA.

Danny and David completed the 1st semester of their Masters in Communication degree. Danny took 1 class and David took 2 classes. Heather took 3 classes this fall, with one of them being a tap dancing class. Daniel and I went for her final dance production. There were about 10-12 of us watching as the class performed a shortened version of The Wizard of Oz. Heather was a lion. Roaaarrr!!!

Danny started a new job as the Manager of Monroe Shocks and Brakes. It was a challenge for him working 65+ hours per week. David continued working at Walmart with his crazy hours, working around 60 hours per week. Heather works at Applebee's most Fridays through Mondays.

Denise worked at Salamonie Reservoir this past summer on the mowing crew. She learned a lot and really blossomed as an individual. She was able to drive a Dixie ZTR, a Kubota ZTR, a payloader, a bulldozer, a pontoon, and a bobcat, as well as the trucks she drove almost daily to get to other parts of the park. Before her job ended in October, she began working as a cashier at Owens North, which is owned by Kroger. She is really enjoying her work there, but she missed the folks she worked with over the summer.

Deborah worked at Walmart this past summer, 3rd shift, in the freezer and dairy as a stock woman. She did her job well, but didn't care for the hours. While Denise worked in the hot sun mowing during the day, Deborah worked in the cold freezer at night. The girls didn't get to see each other much and were not happy about that. Two months ago, Deborah took a job at Taco Bell working mornings. She has wanted to work there for many years. Now the girls are spending more time together and loving it :)

Dannae got married the end of September and that was quite an undertaking. They each had 6 attendants. The wedding was held at Back Forty Clays in Bourbon, Indiana. I made her dress and mine, finishing them hours before the wedding. The weather was beautiful and the wedding went very well. Guests from the Chicago area, Wisconsin, and Tennessee were in attendance, as well as from Indiana. Zach and Dannae live in nice apartment in Aurora, IL where they both work.

Denise and Debbie are playing basketball again this year, their senior year. They are doing very well and have had a lot more playing time. The girls' team is 12-1 after Friday night's win. They are rated 13th in the nation of homeschool girl's basketball teams. They started out this year at number 22, so they have been climbing the ladder.

So after all the busyness we have had, we are all looking forward to the time off from school, basketball, and running here and there. We anticipate wonderful holiday celebrations together with our family.

God Bless You!
I Love You!
YOU Are the BEST!!!

The Five Stages of the Grief

The Five Stages of the Grief

Grief can occur as the result of a number of different events – someone we know dies, a relationship ends, we lose a pet, we have to give up a long held goal in our life, or any other number of situations. But there is one common denominator in all of these events, and that is loss. Grief is a process of physical, emotional, social, and cognitive reactions to loss. The grieving process is often a hard one to work through. It requires patience with ourselves and with others. Although responses to loss are as diverse as the people experiencing it, patterns or stages that are commonly experienced have emerged. These stages were identified and named by Dr. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross. Knowing these five stages can sometimes help in coping with the process of grief and recognizing that there is light at the end of the tunnel. It should be noted that although most people experience all of the following stages, they do not experience them with the same duration, or in the same order, or with the same intensity. It is a very unique process.

Denial

Denial is generally the first stage in the grief process. It can be experienced as numbness or avoidance or isolation or direct denial. It is a stage in which we just cannot believe that the loss is true. We may tell ourselves that it did not really happen. It does not seem real.

Anger

Another stage of grief is anger. At this point, we have gotten past some or all of the denial, but now we are angry about the loss. We may want to take it out on something or someone, or we may just express our anger in ways that are familiar to us.

Bargaining

In the bargaining stage, we are trying to come up with ways to get back what we lost or just find someone or something to blame. Common thoughts include "If only I had just …." or "I wish we could have…." or "Maybe if I do this…." In the case of a lost relationship, we might actually bargain with the person we lost in an effort to get them back. "If I change my behavior, will you come back?"

Depression

The depression stage is just as it sounds, a time of sadness. It generally follows denial, anger, and bargaining when we feel helpless and hopeless to stop the loss. It may include crying, withdrawal, or any other way that expresses sadness.

Acceptance

The final stage is acceptance. Most often we have gone through all of the above stages and in many cases cycled through the above stages more than once before getting to acceptance. At this stage, we have (to some extent) reorganized ourselves and our thinking to incorporate the loss. This does not mean that we no longer get sad about the loss from time to time, but the sadness is now a part of us and does not keep us from functioning normally most of the time. Over time, the intensity of the sadness generally diminishes, but may never entirely go away.

Armed with the knowledge of these five stages, we can now better understand ourselves and others who are going through the grief process. Recognizing the stages can increase your empathy and support for others and provide permission for yourself to go through the process in your own way and in your own time.

©2000 Lori Godin, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. She can be reached in San Jose, California, at 408.260.9996.

E-mail her at lgodin@pacbell.net, or click the mailbox link:

© Copyright 1999 through 2003 Counseling for Modern Life. Any article may be reprinted, but must be printed in its entirety, without alteration, and must show the name and contact information for the author, in order to comply with copyright laws.

Grief (see next post for explanation of 5 steps)

This past weekend we attended the funeral of my dear Uncle Del. I have attended many funerals throughout my life and one thing they all have in common is that there is grieving and sadness. I once heard that there are 5 stages of grief. I know that I have experienced grief many times and so I researched this topic and decided that if I could benefit from what I found then quite possibly others could also benefit. Therefore the next post will be an article I found that explains it rather well.

God Bless You!

Delbert G. Divelbiss, Awaiting the Return of Jesus Christ

Today was a sad day in my life and the lives of my family. My dear Uncle Del fell asleep and is awaiting the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. For him, the next thing he will know will be the return of Jesus Christ. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.

Uncle Del was my Dad's only brother. They were 5-1/2 years apart in age, my Dad being the older. They were born in a house here in Huntington, my Dad in 1924 and Uncle Del in 1929. In fact, Uncle Del just celebrated his 80th birthday on August 31. He didn't think he would make it to that age, but he did.

Uncle Del married Aunt Norma on her 19th birthday, June 22, 1952. The following year my cousin Karen was born on June 17. Two years later on February 9, 1955 Kay Ann was born. Tom was born on July 23, 1959 and Kathy on February 4, 1965. They lived in a house here in Huntington until 1966 when they moved to Fort Wayne.

Karen married Dave in the summer of 1975 and they live in the Plymouth, Indiana area. Kay Ann married Mike in the summer of 1977 and they currently live in Virginia. Tom has lived around the Los Angeles area of California for over 15 years. Kathy lives in Fort Wayne.

In around 1978, Uncle Del, Aunt Norma, and Kathy moved to a property on the southern edge of Salamonie Reservoir. There they owned about 26 acres, much of it being rented out to a farmer. Uncle Del and Aunt Norma lived there until a few years ago when it became too difficult for Uncle Del to take care of the yard. They sold their property and bought a house back in Fort Wayne where they would be close to Kathy.

One of the things I can tell you about Uncle Del was how much he liked watermelon. I remember sitting on the back steps of the Huntington house when I was very young, eating watermelon and spiting the seeds out in the yard. He also like popcorn and RC Cola and we ate many bowls of popcorn while watching TV. The house they lived in had hard wood floors and Tom's room was knotty pine. I think it was used as a den where we watched TV until he was born.

One time when I was visiting my cousins, I went for a short, very short, bike ride after supper. The man who lived behind them had dug a little ditch across the alley so that the water would drain. I didn't know it was there and for some reason, I went head over heels and landed on my chin. Uncle Del and Aunt Norma's brother Clyde took me to the emergency room where they proceeded to remove the many stones that were stuck in my chin. Then the doctor put a clamp on my chin to hold it together. I still have the scars although the hurt is gone.

Another time, we went swimming on the back side of Lake Clare. Lake Clare was an old gravel pit that had filled with water. Rumor has it that there are train cars in the bottom of the lake and as such, it is very deep. As kids, my Dad and Uncle Del used to swim in it with the neighborhood boys. The area where we went to swim wasn't a beach area, but the water right at the edge wasn't too deep. I went out a little too far and went down. Karen grabbed my foot and called to her Dad. He jumped in and pulled me out of the cold water. He saved my life. For that, I will ever be thankful.

In 1970 Uncle Del asked if I wanted to join their family and our Grandpa for a 4-week vacation to Alaska. Of course I said YES! He had a 1969 12-passenger Ford van. The back two seats were turned to face each other and we played many card games as we traveled the 4,000 miles one way. We had such a good time that we all went again in 1972, but this time for 7 weeks! We camped and prepared much of our food. Those two trips were highlights of my life and I am so grateful for the time we spent together as a family. We all have very good memories of those vacations.

Uncle Del had 4 children who I mentioned earlier. He also had 5 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

I praise God for the times that I shared with Uncle Del. He was a wonderful uncle and I am going to miss him greatly.

Being Thankful and Forgiving

Today is a new day. I finished reading Ecclesiastes this morning. Tomorrow I will begin the Song of Solomon. It is amazing to me how someone as wise as Solomon could get tricked into idolatry during his lifetime. He "had it all" as the saying goes, and yet he wasn't thankful for what God had done for him and what God had given to him. I am sure I will share more about Solomon as I read that book.

Another book I have been reading is by Robin Jones Gunn. Robin is an author that Denise has been reading for several years. One year ago in October, Robin was at the Anchor Room, a Christian book store in Fort Wayne. Denise really wanted to go and meet her, so we arranged our schedule to do that. Denise, Deborah and I arrived at the Anchor Room and found the books we wanted to purchase. Then we stood in line for only a short time, as there were only about 3 or 4 people in front of us. When it was our turn to meet her, Robin greeted us with open arms and a BIG hug. We introduced ourselves to her, she signed our books, we took pictures of her with each of us, and enjoyed a few minutes of sharing with her before it was time for the next women to meet Robin. I am thankful for the time we shared with Robin. She is a great example of a woman of God.

I had never read any of her books, but after meeting her, I couldn't wait to delve into the new book I had bought. It was called "SisterChicks on the Loose!" Now if you don't know what a Sisterchick is, I will tell you. From Robin's website the definition of a sister chick is as follows:

SISTERCHICK n.: a friend who shares the deepest wonders of your heart, loves you like a sister, and provides a reality check when you're being a brat.

There are 8 SisterChick books as well as a devotional book. The books are wonderful stories of women in the prime of life (used to be called close to middle age LOL) taking vacations together and growing closer to God and each other. I would recommend these books to anyone wanting to know God better.

Robin has written a couple of series for young girls, the first of which was the "Christy Miller Series". It begins when Christy is about 15 years old. She visits her aunt and uncle in California for the summer and so begins her lifetime of getting to know God better and Him. There are 12 books in the series. The first spin-off series was the Sierra Jensen series, which I have not read. The second spin-off series continued with Christy and is called The College Years. The fourth spin-off series is called the Katie Weldon Series.

Denise encouraged me to read these books and so I began. I read the "Christy Miller Series" (all 12 books) and I am almost done with "The College Years". The third book in the "The College Years" series is called "I Promise". Christy is talking to her grandmother. She is visiting her in light of her grandfather's recent death. Her grandmother gives her some advice that I thought I would share.

"It goes very fast." A tear glistened in Grandma's eye before finding its way down her wrinkled cheek. "It's over so soon. Keep short lists, honey. Learn to forgive quickly and go on because one day you'll wake up and find that somehow you got old when you weren't looking. Your lists won't matter at all then." These words are a gem! I am not that old yet, but I can see the logic behind what Christy's grandmother is telling her.

In the Bible, Ephesians 4:26 tells us, "Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath." How often have we gotten angry about something, then we let it brew, and then we stew over it for so long that now we are REALLY angry? What profit is there when we hold on to anger and bitterness? Does it affect the person with whom we are angry or bitter against? The answer is no, probably not. A lot of times that person may not even know that we are angry with them. But do you know who it does affect? It affects the one who holds the anger and bitterness. That person is out of alignment and harmony with God. It keeps that one from enjoying the sweet fellowship he could be having with his heavenly Father. Does God walk away from him at those times? No, he walks away from God.

Ephesians chapter 4 is an excellent chapter that begins the practical application of the doctrine we have read in the first three chapters of Ephesians. (I encourage all of you to read this section of the Word.) The closing verses in chapter 4 tell us,

Eph 4:31
Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:
Eph 4:32
And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

If God can forgive us for the things that we do, then we can surely forgive others who do things to us. Let's walk in newness of life as we endeavor to forget the little things and focus on the greatness of God's wonderful, matchless Word.

Remember to be thankful for God's goodness and God's love! God Bless You :)