Random Picture #6

Carly is having her BFF, Olivia, sleepover tonight.  LAST night I told her to get her room all cleaned up and ready for the Big Event.  This is what I found today... I will take full credit for her organizational skills.

And a Formal Apology to my BFF, Sue:  Please forgive me for never scheduling Pillow Fights, or 30 minute laughing sessions when you came over.

And Mom, I did NOT put your picture there to win a few points... that's where your little darling put it.  She misses you already!

This is my Uncle...

Hillard Lee Hiner

April 10, 1920 - February 16, 2011

This is my Mom's Big Brother.  This is my Uncle.  This is my kids Great Uncle.  This is my Cousin's Father.  This is my Second Cousin's Grandfather.  This is my Father's Brother-in-Law.  This is a Child of God.  


It occurred to me in the past month just how very faithless I am. 


When I was little, my parents taught me to pray.  My earliest "Prayer Memories" were for my Grandmother and my Uncle to come to know Christ as their personal Savior.  When my Grandmother accepted Christ when I was a little girl, my prayers zeroed in on my Uncle.  In fact, the first time I ever prayed with Ryan, before we were even an "item", was backstage before a performance of The Passion Play, that my Uncle would be attending.  Ryan prayed with me for a VERY long time, and although it was 20 years ago, I vividly remember.  My very FAVORITE memory of these prayers is really my brothers... my mom was our Bible teacher at the little Christian school we attended and there was a question in our workbooks that said, "Is there someone you pray for to receive Christ as their Savior?" or something along those lines.  Of course, my brother wrote in "Uncle Hillard".  As did Scott Latour, who was copying my brother's homework.  Scott might have gotten away with it if my Uncle had been named "John" or something a little more common!  We've laughed about that for a long time.


Fast forward to the weekend before my Uncle passed away.  My mother had gone up to NH to be with him for the second time in as many weeks.  I was at Flatwoods, working on a 12 mile "run".  Praying.  The usual prayer for my Uncle, perhaps more urgently in case God wasn't aware that time was running out.  Faithless.  I added a new prayer this time around, however...  that God would comfort us if this wasn't really his plan for my Uncle.  Faithless.  It made sense to me to pray this way, as lots of times God has a completely different plan that we do.  I wanted to be open to the miracle, whether it was the miracle I liked best, or the one He liked best.  Amazingly, the next day, my Uncle received Christ as his Savior.  He even told my mom to talk to his girlfriend to make sure SHE understood too.  He told my mom, "I'm going with you now!".  Sweet words.  


Words I thought I'd never hear.  Faithless.  When my mom shared this story with me, I was beyond overjoyed, as you can imagine.  But my very next thought was, "I never thought it would happen!!!" Faithless.  There was a nagging part in my head that reminded me that sometimes people don't get cured, sometimes people lose their job, sometimes people don't arrive safely, sometimes babies don't come, sometimes life doesn't go "well"... no matter how hard you pray.  It occurs to me, especially when I have these thoughts, that this isn't what prayer is about.  It's not about giving your shopping list to God and asking Him to pick up everything on His way home.  It's about communicating with Him.  And believing that He's got your best interest in mind, even when it seems YOUR idea of your best interest is somewhat different than His.  It's about Trust.  


Ryan always reminds me that God isn't surprised by anything.  He knew on the day my Uncle was born that for 90 years he wouldn't believe, but that 3 days before he died, he would believe.  Anyways, I love this story.  I love that chapters of my Uncle's life are essentially still being written.  I love that he is in an Amazing place, and that he is a "whosoever" (that is for YOU, Ryan!).  I love that we will see him again.  


So, MY UNCLE!  Really more of a Grandpa to us, as he was 23 years older than my mom, and their father passed away before we were all born.  I always loved the fact that he LOOKED so much like our grandfather's pictures.  He always called me "Honey", in his rich, gruff voice.  He was with us for so many important events in our lives, and just KNOWING he was there, made me smile.  He could be opinionated and cranky, but I kind of liked that about him... always made me laugh!  He was such a sweet Big Brother to my mom, who he adored.
My kids will always remember the day we dragged him to see Madagascar with us.  Torrey and Tracy were visiting and we trooped the kids and Uncle Hillard up to the TOP row of the movie theatre, balancing soda's and popcorn!  We sure laughed alot, and HE sure laughed alot. 

Tracy and I flew up to NH to be with my mom.  We were hoping to make it before Uncle Hillard passed away, but we did not.  Laurie was already with her, and we did our best to help Mom with arrangements and just being there to love her!  We made her laugh some, so I think that was good for my Mom!!  We had a memorial service that was exactly what my uncle would have loved... in the Community Center of the retirement community where he lived, where he played cribbage and cards!  It was a big living room type setting, and many people stood up to talk about him, which was really great.  


We are going to miss him.  But we WILL see him again.  Amazing.


This is the obituary Laurie wrote: 


GOFFSTOWN -- Hillard Lee Hiner, 90, died Feb. 16, 2011, at Concord Hospital after a period of declining health.

He was born April 10, 1920, in Boston, the son of Joseph E. Hiner and Helen (Germer) Hiner.

He served in the U.S. Army for three years in the European Theatre duringWorld War II, and fought in the Battle of the Bulge, earning the Good Conduct Medal and Victory Medal.

Mr. Hiner worked for B&M Railroad and later as an operator of heavy construction equipment.

He was vice president of the Tri-State NH-ME-VT Battle of the Bulge Chapter 17. He was a member of the VFW and Danbury Grange.

He is survived by his partner of 21 years, Florence McLaughlin of Goffstown.

The family also includes his son, Robert L. Hiner; a daughter, Sandra Morrison of Canton S.D.; a sister, Judith G. Melton of Tampa, Fla.; seven grandchildren; several great-grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews.

SERVICES: A memorial service is Friday at 6 p.m. at Medford Farms, 96 Partridge Road, Goffstown

Spring burial with military honors is planned for May. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Salvation Army 121 Cedar St. Manchester 03101.

"For God so loved the world 

that He gave His only begotten Son,

that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish

but have eternal life."

John 3:16

Fabulous February 12th

Well, he's 12.  It is so very hard to believe, and certainly 12 years ago at 9:24pm when he was first handed over to me, it was hard to fathom 12.  We've been blessed. 

We celebrated Ben's Birthday the way he wanted... in Orlando, going to the Lego Store at Downtown Disney, eating Where he wanted, and Going Where he wanted.  Such Power for a 12 year old!  Our first stop was the Lego Store... we got a little nervous as there were enormous barriers all around it, but fortunately, there was a tent close by where you could still purchase items (only Disney would make sure you can STILL spend money!).  Please excuse the odd yellow glow on the boys... the tent was YELLOW.  We found some GREAT sales, so he was able to purchase many items.

Next, we walked around Downtown Disney and took a few photos... watched a Show Choir from NY perform... went in a few shops.  Made Ben get his picture taken with Cinderella.  When he was about 2, he LOVED this statue.  I mean, REALLY LOVED it, but as you can see here, he is OVER his Cinderella Fascination.  For now.

And a picture with Buzz, outside the Once Upon a Toy Store...

And you can see why I made them take this above photo... here they are in 2004!!

also, 2004...

Ben's pick for dinner, Planet Hollywood.  Because Ryan took him there for his 6th Birthday, after they had spent the day at Disney Quest.  He remebered it was his 6th, not us.

Afterwards, Ryan treated us all to Birthday Desserts at Mama's Favorite Candy Store... My parents will appreciate the humor.

Checked into our hotel, where we sprung for the Kids Suite, which was REALLY smart of Ryan and I since the kids stayed in JAIL the WHOLE evening. 

The next morning, we started a VERY fun day at the Magic Kingdom, Ben's Choice.  We took away his Where We Go Power when he started telling us his plan to attack the park:  Space Mountain, ThunderMountain, Speedway Race Cars, Splash Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, Pirates of the Caribbean... now I don't mind all those rides, but if you have ever been to the MK, you know this Plan of Attack has you criss crossing all over the park!  We helped him get better organized... 

We DID have to stop by to see Ben and Tracy's Birthday Buddy, Abe Lincoln at the Hall of Presidents.  The Boys yelled out "Happy Birthday!!!" when they called Abe's name... hilarious.  They did the same thing last year:)

This picture is for my parents:

In line at Thunder Mountain... the adoring Little Sister.

I'm never going on Splash Mountain again.  That's what I said 3 months ago.  And I stuck by it.  No matter how much Carly begged.  It's her fault I'm never going again, anyways.  THEY had fun without me.  I'm ok with that.

I DID, however, brave Space Mountain.  It is scary.  It made me laugh.  And cry.  Mostly because I had good memories while riding it of when my sisters made me ride it (and I cried), and the times I rode it with my BFF, Sue, and we laughed and laughed... ANYWAYS, I took this picture, well, you-know-where, and immediately screamed, "CAROLINE!!! Put your hands down!  Don't you know the tracks are really really close together and you will get your hands cut off if you put them up?!?!?!??!" oh yes I did.

So, another Fabulous February 12th.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my Sweetest Boy, and to my Sweet Sister!  and Honest Abe... and while I'm at it, Pa Bridge!!!  What a GREAT day to be born!!

Swim Meet in Clearwater

Ben and Carly had a Swim Meet in Clearwater, FL.  They did so good!  My Dad was able to come over to watch (Mom is out of town) and he took some pictures for us.  The one above is, of course, Carly WAVING to us as soon as she got up on the block to start.  We were all the way across the pool and in the second level bleachers, so pretty nice zoom!  The very fun part is that he just happened to catch my friends daughter and husband in the background!

Carly's 50 FreeStyle times:  46.57 Previously   46.34 TODAY

And Carly's 50 BackStroke:  55.83 Previously  55.14 TODAY

We were surprised she didn't get a DQ (disqualified) for this race as she didn't touch the far wall,  and a Line Judge was standing right there, but apparently they didn't notice.  Not sure if that is Good, or Bad as far as "counting" this time.... but it did occur to us that she would have been FASTER if she had pushed off on the wall, so I guess we will take it.

Pictures from Ben's BackStroke race... getting ready to start, and below, his impressive form.  He's had trouble with his Stroke Count (the strokes they have left after they see the flags across the pool, you know, so they don't smash into the wall), but this time he got it down perfectly!

Ben's  50 BackStroke:  39.76 Previously  38.51 TODAY (a B time!)

Ben's  50 FreeStyle:   31.89 Previoulsy  31.77 TODAY (a B time!)

The excellent part about this meet was that Ben was FINALLY able to bring his 50 Free time down!  It's been over a year, and he finally broke it!  We were so happy for him.  I know it seems insignificant because it's "just" a tenth of a second, but that is a pretty big deal! 

Thanks for the pictures, Dad, and for coming along for the fun! 

iTunes Prayer App

So, interesting story.  A few nights ago, Ryan and I were startled by excessive crying and wailing coming from Carly's room... Now, keep in mind:  Drama Queen.  So we call her down and ask her what the issue is, and she is just hysterical.  "I accidentally bought an App for my iPod!!!!  And I deleted it already, but I bought it.  I bought it!!!" 
I reminded her that she could NOT have bought an App without us first putting in the password for iTunes, and that we were SURE she was mistaken... I rolled my eyes (oh yes, I did) and went along with her story, and said oh-so-nonchalantly, "What App did you buy?  And why are you so upset, Drama?".  Her reply?

"I don't even know!!  I deleted it, but it was $349.99!!!!"

"Sweets, I don't think there is an App for that much money.  And I don't think you could buy an App without my password..."  says her Super Smart Mama.

"It never asked for the password!!!!"

So, (remember: Super Smart Mama) I asked Ryan to pull up the bank account online and verify to Carlita that no such charges have occurred.  Off he heads to the computer. 

Tap tap tap.  Silence.  Silence.  "Are you kidding me??"  then "Why, why, why is there an App that costs twice as much as the iPod?!?!?!??!?!?!!??!?!?!??!!?!?"  More crying.  (Carly, not Ryan... well, perhaps Ryan.) *sigh*.

Ryan quickly sent an email off to Apple to the Trouble Shooting App Section, complete with it's own department for "I accidentally bought this item from the App Store".  Carly was sent off to bed (with her iPod safely out of reach on the top of the hutch... we are not idiots.)

I couldn't bear the sniffling.  I couldn't bear by girl having a broken, worried heart.  I went into her room.  "I'm so sorry, Mom.  It's so much money."  I reminded her that is was just money.  No one was dead.  We hadn't lost anyone (yup, those were my comforting words)... and that while I would certainly enjoy having my $349.99 back in my bank account safe-and-sound, if it didn't happen, we would survive.  She said in such a quiet voice, "Isn't there anything we can do?"  I told her that her Dad had sent an email to iTunes, explaining the situation, and that there was even an option for "I accidentally bought this item from the App Store" so that led us to believe this must happen occaisionally and that they might be able to fix it. 

"But there is something we can do...  we can pray for whoever is reading the email that they will just know that we are telling the truth and that they will show you some mercy and reimburse your Mama."

Such a fervent prayer followed that I'm certain it brought tears to my eyes.  Who am I kidding, it would have brought tears to my eyes if it wasn't fervent!  Who doesn't love to hear their little one hand her burdens over to the Lord? 

When we got to "Amen", she let out the sweetest, most content sigh... flopped onto her tummy and went to sleep.  Peace enough to sleep.  God's Peace.  Love that.

We spent several days discussing this with Carly, the fact that we would keep praying for "mercy", and peace about the situation.... and that there was a very real chance that they might say "No".  They are, afterall, a business, and they very clearly state in their fine print that all sales are final.  I have to say, I was so proud of her when she told me that she told her friends what she did, and that she prayed and prayed afterwards and that God made her feel so much better and less worried that she was able to fall asleep! 

Any-who, it took a few days, and a few email updates stating such information like "We know how frustrating it can be when you Accidentally Buy an Item From Our App Store" and "We are going to Investigate this matter..." (enjoy looking at McGregor App Buying History, complete with every Free Game known to man, and 99cent Apps for flashlights and Mood Scanners)... but tonight we got an email from iTunes that they will be reimbursing our funds in 3-5 days. 

They also said, "This is a One-Time Exception".  Which really got me thinking.  And breathing a complete sigh of relief.  I mean, what if when we prayed to GOD for mercy and forgiveness HE  took 3 days to consider and investigate our case, only to finally say "ok, but this is a One-Time Exception".

Thankful for a Teachable Moment (and most thankful that said Moment did NOT cost me $349.99 in the end) and especially thankful for One More Thing to be thankful for... no "one-time exceptions".

Random Picture #5

Lovely bird the Useless-Member-of-the-McGregor-Family amazingly enough captured and brought onto our porch for me... Well, "for me" might be a HUGE over statement, as Cassidy was horribly upset with me when I made him DROP it, and got Ryan to help me assist it to fly away, you know, OUT the door of our screened-in porch!

It all started when our Indoor Cat forgot he lives Inside and escaped to the Outside... Continued with Me thinking said Indoor Cat would get cold (it's a freezing 50 degrees here today!!) so I left the porch door open for him to Seek Shelter... and Ended with Carly's charming statement of: "Ummmm, Mom?  Cassidy's eating a bird for dinner.  It's not chicken."

ANYWAYS, the bird flew off the porch (yup, there are feathers EVERYWHERE, including stuck to Cassidy's mouth... ewwwwwww), and settled on the ground beside the house, where Carly and I checked on her, and of course, photographed her.  You are welcome.  There's a good chance She'll be just fine.  At least, that is the story I'm sticking to with Carlita.

Ohio State House

On our way to Michigan right after Christmas, we stopped in Columbus, Ohio to visit the State House... You know, on our Quest to take our little Pumpkins to EVERY State Capitol before Ben heads off to college.  I would like to remind everyone that I agreed because of 2 reasons:  Alaska and Hawaii.  Hopefully you didn't think I agreed to ensure my children get a great American History Education.  That's what Florida Public Schools are for.  I digress... so, COLUMBUS!  As you can see, chilly outside.  Our time on the Grounds was somewhat limited due to the Freezing Cold Wind Chill Factor.  But we did enjoy a very fun tour INSIDE...

The have a replica of one of the stage coaches that were used when the building was originally built...

Beautiful arches and tile floor make up the Rotunda...

The House of Representatives... everything has been restored to it's original colors and moldings, etc... Our guide informed us that the original walls were painted PINK, as ANY form of RED was considered a MASCULINE color "back then".  See what you can learn by visiting our Nations Capitols??

The House is actually decorated with much more detail as the Architect ran out of money after starting here, and had to cut a few corners when he got to the Senate.

Looking up into the Cuppula... beautiful stained glass.

More pink, and some really pretty flowers...

Beautiful tile floor in the Rotunda...

The "Plain" Senate Chambers

Still love all the lights and artwork displayed in these State Houses...

There is an Atrium that was constructed a few decades ago between the State House and the Judiciary Annex, where this Christmas Tree is on display.  It is decorated in the 1870's style, complete with lighted candles (although, for OBVIOUS reasons, these are battery operated!) which we all thought was pretty cool... the Atrium itself is kind of fun, since it was built to "Get Rid" of the excessive pigeon population that had taken over the area between the buildings... The area where the Atrium is, was originally called "Pigeon Run" and there is a small statue of a pigeon over the door way of the Judiciary Annex as a reminder of the Pigeon Issue.  Yes, we found this QUITE entertaining.

Stained glass in the ceiling of the Judiciary Annex.

The Annex has several original light fixtures, complete with gas light bulbs.

The Map Room... the floor is tiled with the Counties of the State of Ohio.

Shout Out to Chris.

Appreciated the Underground Parking... our car stayed nice and warm during our visit!

A war memorial, which we found very moving...