Old Wagon at New Salem

Another photo of New Salem, Illinois.  It was very picturesque, and primitive and beautiful all at the same time.  Gardens were everywhere, filled with veggies and flowers. 

Kidland in my upstairs...

When my daughter left our home, I had dreams of the beautiful guest rooms I would have to decorate and keep neat as a pin upstairs.  Three grandchildren later, (and a fourth on the way!) I can say my upstairs has become kidland.  A place of toys, crafts, kiddie beds, and diaper changing stations.  I am blessed.  Maybe things get messy and are definitely not HGTV quality, but I am definitely blessed.  :)

Abraham Lincoln in Illinois

I grew up in the city that was Abraham Lincoln's home before his family left on the train for Washington when he was elected President.  The Edward's place, where he courted his wife-to-be, lies just a few blocks south of my old house.  He came home to Springfield arriving at the same train station in a casket after he was shot.  New Salem, near Springfield, was his home base for many years while he was learning what he wanted to do in life.  I could tell many stories about him, but this is a photo of the town he settled in just as he was beginning to choose his future.

I can see for miles and miles......

And what I saw was corn, and corn and beautiful corn.  We just returned from our home state of Illinois, and I could not get enough of the driving the back roads, and even the big roads and seeing blue sky and cornfields.  What a bounty!!!  This year's crop is way over 7 feet already, and it is only mid-July.  God has so blessed this country with fertile fields and our time spent seeing all the farms and fields was priceless.... 

Two little sweet cocoons.....

Two little gals, wanting to take a snooze, but doing anything they can to prevent it!  Just having spent two hours splashing in the pool and running around, they said they were ready to "get warm and sunbathe (wrapped in a dry towel)."  July 4th.  (P.S. they did NOT fall asleep, though drooping eyes were very obvious!

Six kids at the house on July 4....one is napping

And the others played in the kiddie pool for over two hours...then they gathered, wet hair and all, on the couch for a new Curious George DVD (you can see Hannah is serious about having control of the remote)......gave them time to wind down.....and the adults, too!

July 4 - My 61st birhtday

July 4th.  All my life, this day has been a day of personal celebration.  I was born on this day.  My only child was born on this day, 31 years ago.  But today on my 61st, when one would think nothing could get better, it did.  I heard my son-in-law preach a sermon on the Christ-centered family, and how we must put God first in the family, and how we must all make Jesus our daily devotion including our children from the day they are born.  I sat at church, and looked at my son-in-law, who gives my daughter so much love and strength, and their three children, too, and wondered how it is that God chose to bless me so abundantly, me a terrible, and I mean terrible sinner.  It does not matter, I praise Him and only ask that I can bring His glory to those around me as a return present.