Mom, this one's for you!

The last many Christmases we have purchased an Amaryllis bulb for our Aunt Wilma. We have picked several different colors over the years, and I believe all have bloomed with the exception of one that got left in a vehicle overnight in freezing temps. It makes a nice gift for a shut-in, and brings such a cheeriness to any room. This last Christmas was no exception to our rule, other than Mom reported the amaryllis had a total of five blooms on one stalk.

 Also this last Christmas, the insurance man decided it was about time we had an amaryllis around our house as well. So while he was getting one for Aunt Wilma, he also got one for me as a present under the tree. They are a bit different, in that instead of being potted, they sit in a glass vase on small pebbles above the water. The roots grow down into the water. Of course, this is designed for a big show just the once, and then it's finished. We have been patiently waiting, and are now rewarded with the above beauty.

Mom told us that Aunt Wilma's bloomed right away, and has been long gone...but ours is just getting into it's glory, with another stem on the way. Even bulbs are each individually unique, with their own schedule. What a blessing.

A Good Thing in the News

Our daughter Joy lives in the State of Washington, which is also where I grew up. It's hard to imagine but I do think Washington is even more liberal in it's thinking and politics than Oregon. Joy has worked in the Pregnancy Resource Center in her community since it's inception 10+ years ago, serving as the treasurer and on the board. Last year she asked us to pray for the leaders in the Washington State Senate, as there was a lot of pressure on the senators to pass a bill that would effectively shut down all resource centers in the State. Fortunately, the bill was narrowly defeated. But, they are back at it again in this session, hammering away at all 'roadblocks' to uncontested abortions. Please continue to pray that they won't succeed.

Yesterday in our newspaper I found a good article about the State of Washington. It seems that two pharmacists and a pharmacy owner went to court to contest a state ruling requiring them to dispense Plan B, or other emergency contraceptives, stating that it went against their conscience and violated their constitutional rights to freedom of religion. Washington's rules require that pharmacies stock and dispense drugs that can destroy a fertilized egg, equal to an abortion. Fortunately, US District Judge Ronald Leighton sided with the pharmacists, and overturned the state ruling. The Judge recognized that "the state's true goal was to suppress religious objections" by druggists to dispensing abortion medications. The Judge stated "the most compelling evidence that the rules target religious conduct is the fact that the rules already contain numerous secular exemptions...the rules now exempt pharmacies and pharmacists from stocking and delivering lawfully prescribed drugs for an almost unlimited variety of secular reasons, but fail to provide exemptions for reasons of conscience". Now it does, thanks to an insightful Judge. It's a small victory, but any victory is welcome, and especially when favorably reported in our newspaper. May more Christians stand up and fight for their beliefs.

*The photo above is one of Elijah right after her was born in January of 2011. I used it not just because he was so cute, but to remind us once again of the value of human life.

Beauty at sunrise in the Grand Canyon

Yesterday morning I was up early and working on a scrapbook I am putting together of our vacation last Sept. I was at the point of working on photos we took of an early morning sunrise at the Grand Canyon, and it was just like living it all over again. Oh so gloriously beautiful and full of the grandeur of God's creation. What a wonderful way to start a Sabbath.

Later, after Church the insurance man and I attended a performance of our Central Oregon Symphony. What a delight and joy to find on the program three selections from the 'Grand Canyon Suite' by Ferde Grofe. The first was 'Sunrise' and I felt like I was enjoying it yet again. I checked YouTube this morning, and sure enough there was a really good video of the Canyon while enjoying the beautiful music. So, here is the link so that you too can experience the early morning sunrise at Grand Canyon. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCM8u-YlGQE

JoAnn's New Look

Today, JoAnn decided to go and have her hair cut after she picked up a new pair of glasses. I think she decided it was time for a totally new look.

It's hard to tell, but the glasses are dark brown with a light pink trim on the inside. Very nice with her coloring. She let me take  a couple of photos, and these show her new haircut...one with her hair tucked behind her ears, and one with it full . She has such beautiful thick hair, it always hangs so nicely. And the stylist layered it perfectly. It's always nice to get a change, isn't it?

Seashells for the Jones Kids

You may have noticed that it has been a while since I posted. We were/are having major computer issues, with the last two weeks ending with a crashed computer. As of today, we have a new one and I am trying to get the hang of the Windows 7 operating system.

I took these photos some time ago to share with my grandchildren, and am now going to try and post about them. Over the years I have collected quite a few seashells. Some from actually finding them on a beach, some passed on from my mother, and some from our friend Doris. She has been to some rather exotic places, like the Canary Islands or the coast of Africa, and picked up some beautiful shells.

 This doesn't really give the exact feel of the size of the shells, but it was the best my camera could do. You have to click on the photo to enlarge it to see the wonderful and intricate patterns. I am quite fascinated with shells, and the detail and artistry God put into fashioning these houses for crabs and snails.

Some are smooth, some ridged, some spiny, some pointy sharp, some smooth & rounded like glass, and each amazing. The colors are wonderful too, both solid colors and combinations like tiger stripes, or a surface that rivals any pottery man can produce.

I don't pretend to know the names of each, but just marvel at creation. Anne Morrow Lindbergh wrote a small volume 'Gifts From the Sea', where each chapter is a lesson taken from a seashell. I have enjoyed the first chapter especially, about the intricacy and simpleness of a seashell.

Maybe 12-year-old Samuel can tell us the names of some of these beautiful shells.