And A New Year Begins

I sit in the little house that God has provided for us here in Massachusetts watching the snow gently fall outside our window and the smell of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies fill the rooms. Ah, small town New England in winter. While it is cold (ya well it IS January) there is a beauty to this part of the country I think I was too young to appreciate when I lived here last. And while we have seen more gray skies than blue since we arrived, I love the scenery that surrounds us. It is peaceful and serene on this little street that we have been blessed to call home for now, and it is a peace that I desperately need.

Mom is doing well. She listens to our conversations and occasionally forces herself to sit up and reply or respond or correct us when our ‘information is slightly off’, lol. She can hold her milk to drink out of a straw, but we must still have to feed her. All and all considering the disease they say she is doing very well. She could possibly continue on like this for quite a while. My father was doing well. He adjusted to having his right leg removed (just below his knee) had gotten to the point of being able to use the bathroom alone & with minimal help can get in and out of his wheel chair. We also just got the news that he qualified for and is getting a handicap unit within the complex he is currently living in. The list for those units is usually very long, but his will be ready the first week in February…praise God! But now his left leg has started to pain him something awful, and sores are appearing on it, just like the right leg. He goes back to the hospital on Friday morning to have it looked at. We are praying we caught this leg early enough so he does not need more surgery. For now, he is handling the news with a “one day at a time” attitude which in itself is a miracle.

I know that God is with us, He has shown His presence in everything. For although we are having a hard time finding work, we are able to spend a lot of time with my folks, running errands for my Dad and getting to know our way around the area. It also allows us to come back to Colorado on 22 Jan for a week to see Nikki & Ryan one more time before they move to Cambodia on 3 Feb. (Praise God for CHEAP unadvertised airfares!).

Other than being unemployed, we are enjoying all the quirks of living in a little house that was built in 1888 (seriously it was!!!). We no longer jump when the pipes ping & the floors creak at 2am and we are quite happy wearing our long johns & hoodies in the house because oil heat is wicked expensive *grins*. We love running in to Dunkin Donuts for a coffee and seeing a pack of retirees hanging out in the corner loudly discussing everything from , “this wicked nasty weathah” or their beloved Patriots. And the fact that once again we have the accents… ok so the reality is MIKE has the accent, it seems I am falling back into old pronunciations *grins*.

We thank you all for all of your prayers & support. We ask that you continue praying for my parents. And we pray that you all have a blessed & amazing 2013, we know we will.

 ".....knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. "     James 1:3-4

 In His Name,
Mike & Jeanine

Our new guard dog, Wilbur

The view from our front window

Piping hot cookies by the kitchen window