It seems like only yesterday that I wrote on this blog. Yet, the truth is, that since I wrote, I have gained another year of life, moved into a new house, and discovered that I am going to be a grandma to another baby girl! Wow! Where DOES the time go?

Well, I had a good birthday. Since it is, and always has been, (ha ha) the day before Valentine's, I've learned to share the moment with those I love. So we had a family dinner ON my birthday in which we also exchanged Valentine's. Most of the valentine's I received were pictures of my precious grandchildren! Nothing could be better. But my thoughtful children also gave me gift cards for Kohl's and a restaraunt. My son and oldest grandson also gave me a special gift...they helped, tremendously, in painting my new living room and office. Since this was a desire of mine, and also a daunting task, their help was considered by me to be a huge gift! I NEVER could have done it without them!

And I also discovered many gifts this last few weeks...in the form of friends and help! On the weekend after my birthday, we moved! Since I had planned on the last move, truly being the LAST, I felt overwhelmed by the amount of stuff we had acquired. We gave some of it away. We sold some of it. And we moved the rest. On Friday, a group of teenagers from our church came and helped pack up the remaining items, and clean the laundry room. This was quite a blessing, as the laundry room seemed to build up dust levels that sent my sinuses into orbit. Also on Friday evening, my husband's friend and my son-in-law came and between the three of them, moved most of the furniture into the moving van. The teenagers helped with loading the boxes as well.

Then Saturday morning, my son and grandson returned. More friends of my husband came too, and by noon, we had the entire truck loaded. It was then unloaded, reloaded partially, and unloaded again...all by 3:00 PM! Wow!

Now, my living room is lovely and completely the way I like it. My daughter-in-law says it looks like a model home! Wow! I'm sure that won't last long! The master bedroom, playroom, and family room are nice as well, although there are boxes still to be unloaded in the closets. The kitchen LOOKS good, but there is much reorganizing still to be done, as well as more boxes! The offices...mine and my hubby's...well...they're private! We reserve the right to take our time on those!

And this weekend, we plan to tackle the boxes in the garage and plot out and plow our garden! Yes, we are amibitous sorts! We will have little hands to help us, as three of our grandchildren will be spending the weekend with us!

So, all of these were gifts to me! And, then to top if off, we found out that my younger daughter, whom we knew was expecting a child, is having a girl. A boy would certainly have been great. But girls are rarer in our family, so the news is exciting to us. Having a loving, healthy family and lots of friends cannot be surpassed. They are what makes a great life! And, yes, the days and even years, roll by quickly, teaching us the value of enjoying one day at a time...each and every day...and ALL the people God puts in our lives!