A joke video made by Kelsey and Matthew Schott.

It all started in Iowa

About a year ago, on 11/11, we were invited to a birthday party of a friend and state representative. We got the chance to meet the guest of honor, now our First Lady-elect.

My Hero

Usually I blog about the activities of our family. The kids are always doing some creative thing that they want to share. They have informed me that they have a bunch of video that they want to put on the blog. Maybe I will get on that soon.

But today my thoughts are on the reality of my life. My mother is growing older and her Alzheimers is taking its toll. The most obvious symptom is her voice. She no longer sounds like herself. Her voice is weaker and higher than normal. The best description of it is the voice you might here from a resident when you are visiting a nursing home. That is fine for these residents, but this is my mother. I want her to sound like herself.
I miss my mother's voice.

We had been singing on the phone together. We would sing our favorite scipture songs and of course, our favorite, What a Day that Will Be. That is the song I first harmonized to when I was 6. We were on our way to Grammy Day's house and I put my head down and covered my ear to find my note. We have been singing it ever since.

The words to What a day That Will Be are so fitting. First, it has her name in it. My grandmother, her Mother, had planned to name her Glorious Peace Day because she was born on Veterans Day. She shortened it to Gloria. In the Hymn it references what a day, Glorious Day, that will be.

I shared some of this with my Bible Study and sang the song. I got through the whole thing without crying, but not many of the other ladies did.

So, these lyrics have become so much more meaningful.

Here is a website with the lyrics and the tune. My mother has a scooping voice so be sure you slur the notes if you want to sound like her. Also, close your eyes and focus on the words. That is what she would do. You might even raise one hand just a little.

http://my.homewithgod.com/heavenlymidis2/whataday.html


I hope you can picture it now. Except, now she can't sing. It was really amazing, because up until about a month ago, I could sing some old song we may not have sung for 20 years, and she would know it and sing along. About 6 weeks ago she sang along with me to Psalm 100. She knew the whole thing. She still knows it, but she can't get the sound out.

But she is still able to show what a sweet person she is inside. While being assisted in the bathroom, she looked up at my Dad and said, "Thank you so much."

And that is my mother. Such a very happy and sweet person on the inside that even Alzheimer’s cannot keep it from coming out.

They say Alzheimer’s is like a long goodbye. I just don’t like the sound of it. My mother is my role model. She is my hero. She is my standard of what a wife and mother should be. I could go on with all the wise saying she has. Maybe later.

October Camping

We are having such a beautiful fall. We are out camping again this weekend. Can you believe camping in October? This time we are at Kennedy park. The are celebrating 50 years of the Webster County Conservation dept. There is boating, archery, fishing, etc. Matthew is in his element. We are also celebrating Tim's birthday this weekend.

Point of Grace

I wanted to do something special with Kelsey so I noticed that Point of Grace was going to be singing at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake. We ended up standing right in the front. We could even read their song list. One of the Point of Grace members even reached out and took our picture. It was a great evening. We camped at Clear Lake so we did not have a long drive home. It was a great evening.

Back to School

We had a great summer....but the time has come to go back to school. Just what did we do this summer? This year it was a little of this, a little of that:

• Dance Recital for the two girls


• Kelsey had her piano judging


• Our annual trip to Lake Okoboji and Arnold's Park


• A new tradition was started. Seeing the Indy Corn 250 and camping nearby. The kids met the big names in racing.


• Saw Drake Bell in Concert at the Indy Corn 250. Who is Drake Bell? A singer in the tradition of Buddy Holly. Matthew loved it!!


• Kelsey went to music camp.


• Kelsey and Matthew got new bedrooms. Erin got a room of her own.


• Camping at Brushy Creek


• We drove to Maine with our camper. Got to do our favorite things in Maine.


• Went camping at Clear Lake. Kelsey and I went to see Point of Grace who performed at the Surf Ballroom. We got to meet them and were in the front row for the concert.


• The kids played, and played and played in the neighborhood. They would play from sun up to sun down...or even after sun down.

But all fun must come to an end. Back to school. Back to music and dance lessons.

Borrowing a page

I am taking this blog from my sister's. She posted this about a week ago.

So it finally has come to pass! Niece Kelsey (Glorianne's oldest) came to work with me on Sunday at the Shop. She was a great help busing tables and it made the day go quickly. Someone even gave her a tip! We are posing with our favorite cinnamon buns and our look-alike red glasses.

Note: Kelsey purchased her denim dress "uniform" and brought it to Maine just in case she got called up to service. How is that for dedication?