Remembering Summer

The hot air today reminds me of all the things I did not blog about over the last month of summer....we were too busy having fun, I guess!

The extended stay at the cabin was one of the best parts.....and out of more than 630 pictures to choose from those 10 days, it is hard to know where to begin!

....we had a lovely large cabin at Limmer's resort on Rush Lake, with plenty of room for all of us,

tons of floatie toys, life jackets, and sand toys to keep the kids busy in the water,

as well as all the fun large water toys provided by the resort,

naps on the beach,

a playground,

two decks which provided a nice spot for summer meals and tea parties with dolls,

visit with friends,

trip to the gravel pit,

visit with our Miami cousins and Grandma and Grandpa who rented a cabin also during part of our stay,

casting and fishing from the dock,

bonfire and smores after outdoor BBQs,

crossing the Mississippi headwaters,

Watermelon Day in Vining....our tenth year of this fun tradition,

horseback rides,

and celebrating Great Grandma's 100th Birthday!

Farewell to a Legacy

Cookies and pecan pie, following a hearty meal of pot roast, rutabagas, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, and German potato salad. Popcorn cooked on the stove top as we settled at the kitchen table for an evening of Yahtzee, Tri-ominos, Uno, or Blitz. And just when you thought you couldn't possibly fit in one more bite of anything, out came another round of cookies and bars from the coolness of the front porch.

Grandma loved us, and loved us well.

But above all physical and visible signs of Grandma's legacy, was the immense and vast reaches of her faith. Her love for and trust in God's plans for her life showed through more than mere rituals and rules....but rather by her relationship with Him as one friend cherishes another. She walked to church everyday as she was able, to daily spend devoted time with her Heavenly Father. The Bible from her home, holding God's precious words of wisdom and truth, is used and well worn. Some will say it was her stubborn German blood that allowed her to live independently in her home for so long, kept her healthy enough to avoid a hospital stay in her 100 years, and having the mind control over all of us to stuff our bodies full of more food in one day than any one person should consume in one year's time.

Instead, I believe it was her incredible faith that made the impossible possible. The daughter she longed for born to her after prayer, healing for her sons who have both stood face to face with their own mortality at one time or another, and the miraculous birth of her granddaughter (my own daughter) who was given a meager 1% chance of survival. These are only a few examples of countless times in which God answered her prayers. She was a powerful prayer warrior for all of us, whether we were aware of it or not. She was an example of faithfulness, and steadfastness, unwavering in good times and in bad.

Her love for God was apparent, as was His love for her.

I am certain, that as she reached the Heavens, Jesus welcomed her into His loving arms with these words: "Well done, my good and faithful servant. Well done."

I love you, Grandma, and miss you terribly already.