Thursday, January 18, 2018

Mom's "Last" Gift to Michael

My mom was a gift giver. Gifts were her love language - gifts and cards. She loved wrapping them as well. She planned all year long for Christmas. She often bought things at end of the year sales and held them for the following year.

Now that we are in a home where we are fairly certain we'll stay - in other words there won't be surprise orders to move and we aren't living in an RV - we find ourselves seeing great merit in squirreling things away for a later date. I bought a ton of wrapping paper for .61 a roll. Our immediate family of five, hasn't had Christmas yet, but we have plenty of paper for when we do. LOL

We all got Christmas gifts from Mom on Christmas day. Even though she was fighting with cancer, she was determined to get the gifts mailed to Alaska. She didn't make it, but I was able to bring the gifts back with me - we love Alaska Air Club 49!!!! None of us had the money, the time, or the heart to do a lot of shopping....but we had Mom's gifts. I'll post more about that later...it's still a surreal time for me.

Years ago, mom discovered that Michael and a couple of our kids loved puzzles. Each year she worked to find one more difficult or unique than the year before. This was her final gift to Michael....
Dakota, Bre and Gideon watch as Michael is introduced to this year's challenge

This is an AMAZING puzzle. It's in the shape of a leaf....there are NO straight edges....not one. In case that wouldn't be hard enough many of the pieces were odd shapes...a cat, a moon, a sun, a wheelbarrow...you get the idea. Izaak brought a card table in and he, Jamin, Nolan and Michael set to work it.  

After the first night, Nolan and Michael did most the work on the puzzle. 


Krista and I covered it in Modge Podge....OF COURSE we would save the last puzzle mom gave Michael...Michael is holding the EXTRA puzzle piece they found in the box! LOL

We have several puzzles we're ready to hang on the wall in the game room/family room, which right now is more like CoRielle's living room.....

Ginger Gherkin Celebrates with BreZaak

The first Mr. Gingerbread Post of 2018.

Hi, I'm Gingerbread Gherkin aka, Mr. Gingerbread, or Gingerbread man. This is my first week to be hosted by the Gherkin MEN.  There was a lot of excitement this afternoon.

BreZaak and kids took me in to the big house, where Mom and Dad G live, along with Nolan, Alex, Stacia, CoRielle and Benny.  I guess Mom and Dad G can't get the moving bug out of their systems. We found Mom G busy rearranging the "nook" so it will hold a desk and printer. Dad G was setting up new equipment in the office.  She didn't notice us come in.
Izaak mumbled, "I quit my job today."

"Really?" Mom G graciously responded.

"Yes."

Now, Izaak makes a mean pizza, but he's qualified for much more than making pizzas. However, this is  the work God gave him to do and he'd kept his hand to the plow so to speak. Mom G was puzzled as to why he'd quit now.

She glanced at Bre and Izaak, they had solemn faces,  and gently asked, "Why?"

With a gleam in his eye, Izaak announced, "Because I HAVE ANOTHER JOB!"

They've been praying and fasting around here for jobs for all.....

Mom G screamed! She laughed. She yelled for Dad G and stomped her foot so he would hear her in the office below.

Dad G bounded up the stairs into the nook, thinking she'd caught something on fire or the new stove had malfunctioned. Izaak proceeded to delightedly proclaim the news of his new employment to Dad G, as well.

Dad G did a happy dance when he heard the news.

This is a miracle. Izaak interviewed back in December for the job. First they told him they'd decided not to give him the job. Then they called him and said they'd prayed about it and decided to have him go ahead and put his background check in the system. It took much longer than expected to hear back, but he got the call today.  Izaak was pretty sure they'd turn him down after the background check. He's been scrupulously honest at each job interview, several have thought it wouldn't be a problem, only to have corporate offices rescind the job offer.

Izaak is the newest Substance Abuse Counselor for Set Free Alaska. They are a Christian treatment center that uses a mind-body-spirit approach to recovery.  We (Mom and Dad G and me) have long known God was going to redeem Izaak's past and use it in his future.

Mom and Dad G are so proud of Izaak. The past six months have not gone as planned; yet he was faithful during the wait.

And here are a couple of pictures of Gideon 2 days short of 8 months.