EYES
My cataract surgery in both eyes is now behind me.  I see great to drive and walk without any glasses, but need a 175 dollar store reader  for computer and piano work.
I am very glad that ordeal is over.  Tom is great with giving me my endless drops.  The right eye now is winding down and will be over when the drops are gone.  My left eye is still on three drops three times a day.

I thankfully can play piano as well as I ever have in my older years.  I don't make many mistakes and manage to get through well enough to play at the Congo church for the full service and only do offertory at my church.  I usually play one song with the congregation. The Praise team uses tapes and sometime I play organ along with the tapes.  That is fun.

The parsonage is nearly complete.  At least Pastor Chris, Heidi and Hannah are in residence.  There was much to be done to renovate the house, but the church got it cheap enough so there was money left for the fixing it up.

The big news today is the weather.  The winds gust over 10 MPH and the 40 degree temp makes walking Mara an unpleasant chore.  BUT the sun is shining.

New life adventure

I am experiencing a new phase of my life at the moment, cataracts in my eyes.  Of course, playing the piano is my favorite hobby and it is actually more than a hobby, it is life to me.  I started lessons in a group in our country school and practiced on a toy piano for years.  When I was14, my mom and grandmom managed to get  a piano for Christmas, my best gift ever.  It was an upright and now sadly, I have forgotten the name.  Lighting was poor on the farm and I struggled with lamplight to practice.  My lessons were paid for by fresh cream and butter from the farm.  My teachers were task masters and I excelled.  Went to college on music scholarship, but lagged in practice due to pressure of other classes. I never was really smart, but just got by.  Didn't deserve the good grades at all and though I got honor roll most of the time, I don't think it was really earned.  Now as I am older, I see how I really needed more structure in my education.  I have messed up badly, but am trying to make the best of the time I have left.  I pray my eyes will get fixed and I can continue to play my piano.  Tom still calls me, "the girl at the piano", because the first time he saw me was at the piano in church.
Needless to say, I am really concerned about this new phase in my life.  

snowy month

We have been spared the worst winter can bring, so far, but that appears to be changing.  We have four new inches of the white stuff that Mara and I wade through when I take her out.  IT's really going to get cold, so I've moved my kitchen window orchids into the little solarium in the Dining room.  They will have warmth away from the window and I can close the blinds to help with the heat.  Not much else I can do to help keep a warm house, but it's been a mild winter for heating fuel so far.  I"m making lots of warming stews and such for food.

February snow, 2016

We had a little snow yesterday, about 6 inches, I guess and today is nice and sunny.  Mara and i walked out in snow and she did her usual rolls in the snow.  Tom suggests we put soap on her so when she rolls, she can bathe.  That's a no no, but she would smell better.  We look forward to a bigger snow storm on Tuesday, so it will be back to snow shoes.  I can walk in the snow now with my boots, but not when it accumulates to a foot or more.

LATVIA

Some of our European trips include the following We walked the shores of the baltic looking for Amber while on a missionary trip passing out 50,000 Bibles in Latvia. This was a life changing experience as we mingled with the Latvian people and saw that fear was still in their eyes as the liberation had only been the year before.  Most walked with downcast eyes and it was rewarding to see their faces light up when they realized we were offering them a gift.  No one refused the free Biblio.We visited a children's orphanage and were blessed by their attention to our stories an songs.  We also visited Lithuania and traveled through forests where we could imagine the voices of the jews calling out in fear.  All in all, it was a great trip.    
While in London, we toured the British museum, walked into Churchhills bunker, saw the tower bridge and Buckingham palace.  We enjoyed  high tea in Herrods and saw a performance of Oliver at the   .
We traveled by car through Holland, viewing fields of tulips, marveled at the beauty in Kuenkenoff gardens and the flower mart.  We walked through Anne Franks house and felt her families's fears from the Germans.  I stood in the closet where Carrie Tenn Boom hid some jews.  We toured all the museums in Amsterdam and spent two full days in the Rike museum.. We took a canal trip through the Red light district, not getting off the boat. We walked into Anne Frank's bedroom where she hid from the Germans with her family.  We visited the Corey Tenn boom museum and stood inside the closet where she hid so many Jews over the years.  Another unforgettable  experience.

Valentine Day is fast approaching.  I remember a big box of chocolates and a valentine when I was seventeen years old from the love of my life.  Once he was going to be in the hospital of just coming home, so he hired a barbershop quartet to come to the house here in Sumner and sing to me since he couldn't take me out.  Now that folks, was romantic.  After 60 plus years, I will not expect any kind of show, but I bet I get a box of chocolates.

Colorado river raft trip though Grand Canyon

Another highlight that I have failed to write in my blog is one I will never forget.
Chuck,  Luella, Bryce, Beth, Charlie, me and Tom took a summer trip that was the best ever trip.
We got into rafts at the beginning of the Colorado River where is starts through the Canyon.  Each day, we got deeper and deeper into the canyon.  We slept on the river bank each night after the guides made a tasty supper of Grilled steak and corn over the campfire and the next morning, we had leftovers with our eggs and toast.
The guides would beach the rafts before we got to the rapids each day and would analyze how to get over the rapids without tipping us over.  The secret was to ride the tongue of the rapid and not get pulled into the hole.  We never had real close calls.  Once our guide had us bailing like crazy but she managed to right the raft without tipping. I can remember her yelling to stop bailing and hold on.
Each day they would lead us to historic sights along  the river to give us exercise.  And it being the desert, it was hot.  I was not immune to jumping into the water when we got back to the raft.  Tom was not happy that I once  enticed him to jump in as well.
When we got to Phantom Ranch, we got off the raft and spent the night at the ranch.  Our cabin had mice and we girls didn't sleep much.
The next day we picked up a reserved lunch and stuck out to hike ten miles with a mile elevation to reach the rim of the canyon where one car was waiting. It was a long walk, but we all made it. We drove back to other car and our camper and continued our vacation.