Happy Birthday Mark!

We wanted send special wishes for a very Happy Birthday to our son-in-law Mark.

 

We are so thankful to have you in our family.  It has been a blessing to see you grow and develop into a true man of faith. 

We love you!

It’s Football Time Again

Austin is playing 8th grade football again this year.  After an early season injury, a sprained thumb, Austin was back on the field ready to play in their first game.  It was mid-90’s at game time so it was a little hot for the players as well as the spectators.

 

Waiting to go in…

  

Austin enjoys playing and being a part of the team.

The College Station Middle School Cubs White team won their first game.  Yey!

Lawn Boy

We’ve never had a lawn service (or cleaning service for that matter), but this year it was time to teach Austin how to use the mower.  We are so excited that he can help out this year with the lawn and earn some extra cash.  Steve just showed him how to start the mower, took one trip around the lawn to teach him the basics and then off he went.

  

Austin is allergic to aspergillis, a fungus that is commonly in the soil, so when he mows he needs to wear a mask to protect his lungs.

Austin has honestly done a great job when he mows.  He has mowed our lawn for us several times this summer and hopefully can come again soon because after the rain the lawn needs to be mowed!  Thanks to our own personal lawn boy.  Keep up the good work!

We Love Aggie Football

I love football season and I love to go to Texas A&M football games.  Whether they win or lose we really just enjoy the experience.  On 9-11 Heather’s family had tickets as well and this was Nathan’s first Aggie football game.  He was so excited.

This is Nathan right before getting on the bus.  We rode the “get to the grid” buses to the campus.

 

Heather, Kevin, Ty, Nathan and Austin Hodge.

The Hodge boys heading into the game.

We walked by the Freedom from Terrorism Memorial.  The whole plaza was filled with small flags.   

It was a great reminder of 9-11 and I said a quick prayer for our serviceman as we passed by.

Following are some of the sights from the game.

Chrisine Michael and Jerrod Johnson (among others) singing the Spirit of Aggieland.

Below is the flyover of F-18’s.

  

 

Honoring our military and first responders.

 

A sea of maroon on the student side.

The Aggies always win the halftime.  Aggies love the “Fighting Texas Aggie Band”.

 

It was a little hot that evening, but the Aggies won so all was well.

Knee Surgery – Third Time Around

Steve’s first knee surgery was in fall 1971.  He tore some cartilage in his right knee playing college football and his knee has never been the same.  He lifts weights to keep his muscle strong around his knee and that has helped although it is sore and achy much of the time.  The second surgery was in spring 1992 when his knee had come to the point of hurting all the time.  He had an arthroscopic surgery to clean out all the loose cartilage and scrape away some of the scar tissue.  For some reason his recovery from that surgery was long and painful, more so than expected.  He told me to break his arm if he ever said he was going to have surgery on that knee again.  Fast forward to September 2010 when Steve was lifting weights and something broke loose in the knee and caused some real problems.  He went to the orthopedic surgeon and he was told he may need surgery again, but to wait a couple of weeks and see if it got better.  Well….it didn’t get better, in fact it was painful for him all the time.  So last week Steve had his third arthroscopic knee surgery to clean out cartilage, bone spurs and scrape and smooth the joint surfaces.

This is Steve a couple of hours after surgery when I set him up with a chocolate milk shake, an ice pack, the remote and a soft pillow for an afternoon of recovery.  Steve is not much to watch TV so I found him later answering emails on his iphone.

The surgeon warned that he would have quite a bit of pain the next couple of days and it would take about a month for full recovery.  But much to our surprise, Steve’s pain has been minimal, in fact he says it is no more than he was experiencing before the surgery.  Praise the Lord!

This photo was taken on Saturday in the lab where we work, right before we went in to the Aggie football game.  Surgery Thursday at 1pm and at the Aggie game on Saturday at 6:00pm.  What a trooper.  We are so thankful for the good result he has had so far, but he realizes that he may have a few more weeks before he can call it a complete success.

Observing Nature

One thing we love about living on 2.5 acres with our house nearly surrounded by woods is all the wildlife we are able to observe on a daily basis.  We have deer in our yard every day.  This year a doe with three fawns come through to snack on our scrubs.  Of course we have lots of squirrel and rabbits and pesky armadillo. 

This time of year we enjoy our hummingbird feeder just outside out bay window in the dining area.

     

A zipper spider has also set up shop just outside one of our dining windows.  He spins a new web nearly every day and we have watched it devour a small gecko.  These spiders inject a paralyzing venom and then spin a web around their victims before they eat them.

 

This photo shows  most of the spider web.  It is quite large.

We also have an enormous amount of birds that feed at our bird feeder.  I have counted as many as eleven cardinals feeding at the feeder and on the ground below.  

It’s amazing what simple things can entertain Steve and I!

Putting Life in Perspective

This is where I spend quite a bit of time each week with my mother.  I began by visiting every day and now I miss a day occasionally. 

I pick up Mom every Sunday when we are in town and take her to church and out to eat or to my house to eat after church.  She seems to really enjoy going to church.  It is sometimes a struggle getting parked, walking in without falling and getting settled in our seat.  She always comments on the crowd and how the church is so large….but when the music starts, she begins to sway and sing along.  She loves the music!

This week the first thing she said when we got in the car was “it is so beautiful outside.  It is so green and the trees even have flowers on them” (crepe myrtles).  This simple comment really made me think about what is important.  The Lord spoke to me through my Mom….He was saying “enjoy the beauty of each day, don’t take my creation, your health, your family or My grace for granted.”  

 

After lunch on Sunday, Mom is always tired so we headed to her room for her to lie down for awhile.  Along with their name, each room has a photo to help the resident locate their room.

Although I felt it inappropriate to take photos of the other residents, we greeted many on our way down the halls.  It is amazing how a simple touch and hello can make their face light up.

   

This is the courtyard where I think Mom will enjoy more time here when it gets cooler.

 

After putting Mom down for a nap I wanted to take of photo of the garden room where we spend most of our time when I visit.

It is surrounded on three sides by windows and we both love it there.

We will often find another resident napping in a chair, but we just visit quietly and it doesn’t seem to bother anyone.

Mom seems to be settling in to her new home…..slowly but surely.  I am hoping some of her friends from Iowa get a chance to look at this blog post so that they  see where their friend has found her home.  Please take a moment to pray for peace in Mom’s heart as her mind fades a little more each week….and for patience for all of us who care for her and love her.