Janet's Blog

A few days ago, Bill handed me a red box of chocolate covered cherries, wished me an early "Happy Valentine's Day," and pointed out that they were dark chocolate. Bill knows I've loved chocolate covered cherries ever since my grandpa started sharing his with me. You see, Grandpa was a rural letter carrier at a time when his patrons always left  small Christmas gifts in their mailboxes for their letter carrier. Since chocolate covered cherries were consistently available at Christmas time, and relatively cheap besides, Grandpa invariably ended up with several boxes. While he appreciated the thoughtfulness behind the gifts, he really didn't like chocolate covered cherries at all. So, his three grandkids benefited from his unappreciated windfall. Today, as I stumbled into the kitchen to take my morning meds, Bill handed me a large red gift bag with a shiny red bow on it. Once again, he uttered those appropriate words, "Happy Valentine's Day!" I thought...

It's been several years since I started walking, first a few days a week, and now almost every day, year-round. At first, I didn't really have a goal, other than to get some regular exercise. I took the dog with me because no one else in my family had any desire to walk with me--and I didn't want to walk alone. It wasn't long until I started using the health app on my phone to keep track of my steps. However, I soon realized that my chosen method wasn't very accurate because I don't usually carry my phone around with me at home. That's when I began to wear the free smart watch Bill had been given at some conference. Now, I'm on my third smart watch... I have been able to meet my somewhat arbitrary daily goal of 10,000 steps for three seasons of the year, but it is harder in the winter. I don't like to walk outside when the weather is cold and windy! Actually, my asthma and arthritis both act up in extreme weather, so I guess I have a good excuse to s...

When I was walking with Jackson the other day, near Northfield Park, a man in an over-sized pickup stopped and rolled down his window, leaned out, and thanked me for picking up after my dog. (I guess it was obvious that the translucent bag dangling from my hand contained Jackson's poop.) I think I raised my mittened hand in acknowledgement before he continued on his way. I didn't quite know what to think about that unexpected interaction, because I was just doing what I always do. No matter the season, whenever I walk with Jackson, I always tie a couple of plastic grocery bags onto Jackson's leash before we set out. After Jackson does his business--usually two or three times each walk--I put my hand inside a bag to pick up his poop, turn the bag inside out, and tie it at the top. Then I carry the bag in the same hand as the leash until I toss it in a convenient trash can along the way. In the winter, the hardest part of the whole process is untying the bag from the leash wi...

A few days ago, Bill went to Menards to buy Levi some warm gloves to replace the worn out pair he had been using when he shoveled snow. While he was there, Bill also bought Levi a new stocking cap, and he picked up a pair of soft, warm, double-layered socks for me. It was cold and extremely windy last week, so I was glad to have some new warm socks. I rarely wear shoes in the house. Bill considers this to be almost sacrilege, since he is never without shoes unless he is sleeping, and sometimes not even then. In the summer, I go barefoot in the house, and wear sandals outside. In the winter, I wear socks. Bill wears shoes and socks year-round, inside and out. When the temperatures hover in the single digits, or even below zero, and the wind is blowing a gale, even our new furnace is unable to keep our house comfortably warm. We have decided that we need to replace our old, single-paned, west windows, which are original to this house, with new, energy efficient, double-paned or even ...

The sun is about to set on 2021. Some of us will say "Good riddance!" Others will be looking forward to 2022 as a chance for new beginnings. As I drove home yesterday afternoon, I was captivated by the sunset near Chimney Rock. Way back in the mid-1800s, travelers were excited to finally see its spire stretching toward the sky, signaling that they were on the right trail, and well on their way to Oregon. Just as those long-ago pioneers faced unknown challenges on their long, often treacherous trip, we, too, look ahead to the New Year with a little uneasiness, even trepidation, and perhaps a little anticipation as we wait to see just what God has planned. As I savored the beautiful sunset, I was reminded that the sun will come up again, just as it has since the beginning of creation, until that day when God determines that the world will come to an end. But even then, he will be with us. Chimney Rock no longer guides wagon trains on their way to the pioneers' new homes, bu...

For a child is born to us, a son is given to us... And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. It's December, the beginning of "birthday season" for our family. Two December birthdays down--Will and Evie--and four January birthdays to go--Ruthie, Lydia, Erin, and Tobin. But this week, we are focusing on that one birthday that changed the world--the birth of Jesus, our Savior. The house is (mostly) clean, the trees are decorated, the nativity scenes are in place, the shopping is done, and the gifts are wrapped. Now, we wait for Erin's family to arrive from Wisconsin, for Christmas Eve practice to commence, for cookies to be baked. And then, the celebration will begin! As we wait, it's a good time to reflect on the past year, which has been another hard one, in many ways. But it has brought us many blessings, as well. Levi, a senior this year, has put forth a lot of effort, and is on the honor roll for this semester. H...

  D ecember is here at last, this exciting, magical, sometimes overwhelming month we all love. Or do we? December has much to offer, it's true. Even sleepy little towns are busy this time of year with concerts and children's programs, parties and parades. Every main street in the US is decorated. Every store promotes its seasonal sales. Delivery workers are so overburdened that, unfortunately, even enterprising porch pirates have many choices. It's easy to become so wrapped up in the trappings of our modern day Christmas celebrations that we overlook the real meaning of this ubiquitous holiday. Even the word, Christmas , spells out the truth about the season: Christ's Mass was a worship service instituted about a thousand years ago, when Holy Communion was celebrated in commemoration of Jesus' birth. What started as a Christian feast day has somehow morphed into the extravaganza we continue to celebrate as Christmas.  Perhaps you are feeling jaded about life in gene...