FASTPITCH

Here's my girl, Catherine, with her fastpitch team.

I'm digging this picture of Catherine at bat not only because she's got a great stance, but in the background, sitting in the stands is her little sister, Stephanie.

Catherine has a menacing swing and I love to hear the opposing coach shout out to his fielders, "Take a step back!" When she connects (we encourage her to lay off the high ones) she sends the ball sailing! This season she's had a couple of doubles already. Once on base, this kid has wheels; she's an aggressive runner!

Catherine plays ball for our local public high school even though she attends Christian school. I love the fact that since we are still paying taxes, we have access to public school services. So here's my girl covering second base, playing ball and making friends.

IT WAS YOU

Every day I receive a devotional via email from the Christian Women Today site. (There's a link to the site on my blog -- CWT-- as I benefit greatly from hanging out there.)
This morning the devotion was entitled, It Was You .

In Psalm 74:13-17 the author declares,
"It was you who split open the sea by your power; you broke the heads of the monster in the waters. It was you who crushed the heads of Leviathan and gave him as food to the creatures of the desert. It was you who opened up springs and streams; you dried up the ever flowing rivers. The day is yours, and yours also the night; you established the sun and moon. It was you who set all the boundaries of the earth; you made both summer and winter."

Besides appealing to my love of Earth Science, I mark these verses because the author of the devotional pointed out that in these verses the Lord's power is seen in troublesome times. (To know that He broke the heads of the monster, you have to be aware of the monster in the first place! Scary monster.)
The author of the devotional encourages us to have a "personal litany of praise" with reminders of how the Lord has intervened for us. So here's mine. (The author shared hers in the devotional which you may access at http://www.tmdevotionals.com/women/ )

It was you, Lord, who brought me through the stormy sea;
you led me when I had no idea what to do.
It was you who opened the doors to teaching.
You gave me peace and healed me.
You gave me a family -- Steve, the children, and more.
You gave me courage when I was shaken and stability when I tripped.
It was you who brought me through sadness and preserved my life.
I will praise you.

Now it's your turn. How about taking time to write your own "litany of praise"? I would love to read it.

WE ARE FAMILY

EASTER, 2007

Mitchell, Catherine,

Cindy, Steve and Stephanie

OPENING DAY

Today was opening day for girls' softball. At 9:00 this morning we were at the ballpark for the annual Softball Jamboree!

Yesterday the weather forecasters said that today would bring cold temps and rain, RAIN, RAIN. We got the cool temps (high: 55 degrees F) but were blessed with partly cloudy skies and NO RAIN.

There was a year when our three kids played ball at three different locations throughout town and Steve and I played tag-team parenting effectively. Today was Stephanie's day as she's the only one still playing city ball.

Behind the plate Stephanie is an intense catcher...chasing down a wild pitch, digging one out of the dirt and patiently waiting for the pitch to come in.

The whole game was a blast! Stephanie played catcher and second base, tagging a runner for the final out of the game. It's a good thing that the girls wear helmets while on base as Stephanie almost took the runner's head off! Stephanie's team ended up on top with the score 14-8. Next game is on Tuesday!

KIDS

Mitchell.

Catherine.

Stephanie.

Altogether now at Christmas. The sky was clear and the sun was bright, but it was so chilly! The scarves are not worn for fashion.

CEDAROSA

Cedarosa is the family ranch in New Mexico.

Catherine took this picture of the
windmill at the pond and
played with it on the computer.

I love the results.


A couple of views from the main house. There is an arroyo, but water rarely flows through it. Heavy rains last year allowed for some flow.
The ranch is quiet, open, and simply beautiful. I love to sit at the pond, read, meditate and talk to God. At night the skies are cluttered with stars. I always take a constellation map to the ranch. During the summer monsoon season, thunderstorms roll in each afternoon. It's fun to watch the lightning play off the surrounding mountains, and the rains are refreshing!

Steve's folks moved to Cedarosa after living for years in Los Angeles. When they sold their floor covering business and retired, dad's dream of living on a ranch came true. He built a beautiful house, rode the horses with his grandchildren and got everyone involved in branding cattle.

This was his place to be with family.

In February of 2005, Dad passed away after a long, tough battle with cancer. He is buried on Cedarosa.