A Walk In The Park - on Memorial Day...

Memorial day was a beautiful day, sunny, 70s, a fresh & refreshing wind blowing, people & critters out & about, birds singing, flowers blooming… perfect day for Jeff & I to take a walk around Como Lake in Como Park, St Paul!!

Small delicate Iris growing up at the edge of the lake...

A whole bunch of delicate Iris...

Wild Roses...

Momma & her ducklings...

Looking across the lake toward the bandshell / pavilion...

Como Park Pavillion...

Walking on the walking path...

Como Lake was quite full… these Iris are (amazingly)
thriving in a few inches of standing water!!

One of the local birds...

Fishermen wading on the point that's usually above water… people
out on paddle-boats… sun shining… puffy clouds… ahhh!!!

 What a Lovely Day!!!  What Lovely Company!!!

Back into my usual rhythm...

My gavot has been a bit out-of-sorts… we prepped for, went on, and returned from a mission trip to Ukraine, and then it took about a week to get my travel log done (see previous post for a link to my full log)… So now I get to catch up with the "normal" stuff, but we all know "normal" is just a setting on our clothes dryers :)

We have a new special arrival… a brand new nephew Benjamin!!  So cute, so sweet, so nice to hold, and good lungs to boot!!

This post is mainly for my family to enjoy… but feel free to check it out…

Big brother Dylan & big sister Callie...

Callie introduces us to her little brother Ben...

Look at all that dark hair!!

Big brother Dylan takes good care of little Ben...

I got to hold Ben… that's his bigger sister
Whitney in the background… also a big helper!

Sleeping soundly...

A big yawn...

Starting to wake up… who is this strange
lady that's holding me?

Finally he's awake...

Kim (mom) feeds Ben...

Uncle Jeff is playing with the doggies...

Jeff finally gets to hold the little guy...

Uncle Jeff is popular in this house!!

We decided Uncle Jeff is going to have to help teach Ben
how to play Hockey & Golf...

Adventures in Ukraine...

We've been gone, as in out-of-town / out-of-country gone (told you we'd been busy), but you may not have noticed because I'd scheduled some posts for the time while I was away… now we're home & there's so much to share I'm not even sure where to get started!!


We were on a Mission Trip with a Choir in Ukraine, May 12th-22nd, singing & ministering in several small churches mostly in smaller cities/towns, and its been a wonderful experience - one we can only give you a glimpse of… God is Good!!

Our Choir is named "Voices Of Praise" after one of the songs we sing… this is a scan of one of the postcards we handed out to people after our concerts, it has John 3:16 written in the Ukrainian language.


It will take me several days to blog about this trip… the experiences were so rich & varied… but here is a glimpse, follow the link to learn more… I hope that reading about my experiences will be a blessing to you!!


The Sights (Visual):


As with many places in the Eastern Hemisphere, Ukraine has a lengthy & rich history… this is reflected in the architecture… some examples…

St Michael's Cathedral
Domes covered with Gold Leaf

Official Residence of the President of Ukraine

A small local church, or "House Of Prayer".

The land itself was also a rich visual experience… reminding me many times of home (many of the same plants & trees)… and Spring was in full swing… again, just examples…

Iris

Woods

Sofia Park

Other interesting sights…

A Babushka (grandma)… at a nursing home

Ceremonial Bread

The Sounds (Auditory):

Ukrainian Chickadee

Waking up to a cacophony of bird song while staying at the hotel in Uman that's located right next to Sofia Park…  

Inside our room at Fortress Hotel

Hearing cuckoo's singing outside the Fortress Hotel...

Inside one of the small churches.

The particular quality of Ukrainian voices singing (congregations & choirs)… as well as the acoustics at the small churches we visited...

The Tastes (Gustatory):

Part of one of many tasty meals… a "cole slaw"...

To say we ate some new foods would be an understatement… just about every meal contained a new and tasty experience… a "cole slaw" at breakfast for instance… I could write so much just on the food!!






The Smells (Olfactory):

Lilac still in bloom...

Lilacs blooming…

One of many wonderful meals served to us at local churches...

Meals cooking in the church kitchens...

The Feel (Tactile):


Fresh Spring breezes wafting through church windows…  clean sheets at the end of a long day…  a drop or two of rain while out on a walk…

Veronica & Nadia, two of our Angels (translators)...

Hugs from new friends made along the way...

The Dance (gavot):


So many lives impacted, ours & others: friendships formed, people repenting & coming to Christ, breaking down cultural barriers…

Olga, 9 of us stayed overnight at this Grandma's house.

I couldn't help but fall in love with the people of Ukraine!!








Don't forget, this is just the appetizer, click here to see my very extensive Travel / Photo Log!!

Time Warp???

A friend of mine posted this picture on Facebook the other day… this is a static picture, not video… the movement of your eyes is what makes it appear to pulse…

I feel as if I've been transported back to the 60's… Far Out!!

Too Busy to Post!!

Yikes!!  Jeff & I have been super-busy lately… so busy that when I post it seems as if I'm several days after the fact…

I've been crazy-busy in the garden… still working on Spring Cleanup, trying like crazy to get it done before the plants get too big to thin (oops already a bit late)…

I'm supporting a group that's getting ready to travel to Ukraine… I've been coordinating a massive puppet-making effort - Thanks to all the wonderful volunteers!!


I've been so busy I've barely posted on my cooking site lately, and that's weird!!  
Its not that I haven't been cooking, but I haven't cooked much that I've taken time to get pictures of… so it doesn't make sense to post…


The next couple weeks are loaded for us… lots of things going on… so if I'm a bit quieter than usual I'm sorry… things will settle down again soon…  The "gavot" is in full swing!!

Cinco De Madre??

Question: What do you do when:
  1) You won't be able to get together with your child for Mother's Day.
  2) You are from the Southwest U.S. & love Mexican Food.
  3) You have a favorite local Mexican restaurant celebrating Cinco De Mayo.

My wonderful son Tim with his awesome wife Marta.

Answer: You combine them & get Cinco De Madre!!


Ok, its silly, but I'm silly & so is my son… so it works for us!!


My son & I moved to Minnesota from the San Diego area about 15 years ago, and we have strong family ties to that area… in addition our family also has ties to Mexico (some relatives are Mexican citizens & some are of Mexican descent)…

Me & my amazing hubby Jeff

There is a restaurant in St Paul that I discovered while living nearby, La Cucaracha, that reminds me of the good Mexican restaurants back home… you know, the ones that have colorful decor & awesome food.  The food reminds me of some of the things my Grandma, who lived in Mexico off & on for several years, would cook.  Yum!!

What's a Kitty to do?!?

I love my kitty, she's very sweet & has been since she was young… not an active cat by any stretch of the imagination… and she's 12 now, naps a bit more than she did when she was younger, but otherwise is still the same kitty I've known all along…  When the weather is nice she loves to go outside and share a love-seat with me, especially when there are cushions on the seat… But this isn't an outdoor cat…

We had a pretty good storm the other day… you can tell by the water that accumulated under my Oak trees… complete with lots of wind, lots of thunder, and even some hail… Kitty, very wisely, made herself scarce… You see my little sweetheart is a Scaredy-Cat (now you know how someone came up with that moniker) and she finds the lowest spot in the house…

And cowers in fear… in this picture she's down in the basement, under the hide-a-bed (which was left out), and refuses to come out or be comforted.  This also proves that cats don't have 9 lives, or at least mine doesn't, because she's been scared to death 100s of times already… maybe the 9 lives are only connected to the curiosity that kills cats… hmm...