January (special mtg rounds) February (West field), March (East field)

True  congeniality:  A gentleman noticed me leaving CVS, so he rushed over to "open" the automatic door!  How thoughtful:)

A 16.5 foot, 3500 pound Great White Shark was among some who wandered around the Jacksonville coastline for awhile.  HUGE!

It always makes me pause to see Greek yogurt and skim milk sitting side by side in the fridge.  hmmm.  The least and the most.

The dominating church in the Bible belt is Baptist, but a medley of other denominations are present as well.  We were very interested to note the self description of a pretty big church the other day.  They had a banner flying to state the following:  "We are Undecided.  All denominations welcome."  Tina and I really wanted to check it out, but we had to leave town.  Now we're 400 miles away, in another part of our field, but we'll be interested to see what happens if we get back out there this summer.  

The FL specials meetings (Jan) went really well.  We were split into two or three groups until the last weekend, when we all showed up in St Pete.  The remaining FL rounds are held in April.

Ruth & Connie visiting with Gladys in Palm Coast



Tina & Chi visiting the Manatees - they enjoy the warm waters of the Big Ben Nuclear Plant

 We were back in the field in February, having meetings and visiting who we could.  We didn't feel like we'd finished our work out west in Dec, so we returned to Panama City, Crestview and Penasacola.  We bid farewell to those folks this past week and headed east.  It felt sad to leave them, like we were changing fields.  It'll be until mid summer until before we'll be able to return...unless somebody passes away! erk

Butterweed in full bloom in the cypress forests..

Madilyn waking up from her snooze in the hammock.  I spoiled myself with a night out there...gotta love North FL!

Absolutely the best char grilled oysters in FL!  Apalachicola Bay is a great place to have to travel through...
 

Finding a use for the stick that Trevor hauled around for two days:)

Caden is an easy to please little sport



The woods were calling, "come hike, come hike!"  So we did!  This was the only hour that it didn't rain for 7 seven days.

Our present gospel mtg schedule:
Tuesday at 7:30pm in Starke
Sundays at 4:00pm in Jacksonville
Our first Starke meeting was last night and we are very excited about those who attended.  We look forward to seeing how things will unfold.

On the horizon is a visit from Dad, Mom, Nate, Darla, Rhya and Brielle!  We're in the last week countdown; 6 days until they arrive!

I just got in from playing with the Coday's goats.  There are 10 little kids running around.  Great fun!

December - Pensacola, Panama City, etc

December Going-Ons:

Gospel Meetings:
Sundays:Pensacola
Wednesdays:Panama City

Family Visits:
Tina's mother: December 12-16
Mike, Kristina & Grady: Dec 21-28

Don, a brother on our staff, has been taking care of his parents for a few years. His father passed away, so we went down to Orlando for the funeral. It was nice to meet the family and to witness a military burial. The Bushnell National Cemetary is very, very beautiful. The Taps rendition rolled over the hills and through the huge oaks. Hot day though...shaking sweaty hands, giving sticky hugs.

After a Sonny's lunch together, Tina and I headed back up North. 7 hours later is where our tire story begins.
We had 4 flat tires in 3 days. The first one was Tue eve, after 7 hours of driving, shortly before pulling into the friend's home in Panama City. The car started shimmying and jumping as it veered toward the ditch. The tire had seperated and was causing quite a ruckus. We took it to the shop the next day and had two brand new tires put on the front, oil change, etc, etc. That night, we planned on driving to Pensacola (2.5 hrs away) after the gospel meeting. Tina's mom, Sherry, was flying in. We'd hoped to arrive at the airport at midnight. 20 miles out of town, on a two lane, DARK road, our brand new front right tire went VERY flat. I didn't have cell service, but Tina did, so 1/2 an hour later, some friends showed up. We'd managed to get all of our belongings out from the trunk and into the back seat as we listened to howling coyotes and watched twinkling stars. When a lone car would drive by, we'd sit in the car and make sure the light was off. :) Wups, guess we were a little spooked. We jacked up the car, but it kept falling off because of the sandy soil. We planned to put on the spare and keep going, since it was a full size tire. IT was FLAT too! So, 20 miles back to town at 11:30pm to air up the spare. We decided to spend the night back in Pan.City and try again in the morning. Finally got to bed and planned to leave at 6:30am. Got up, went out, and the OTHER brand new front left tire was flat! So, that equals 4. We did finally get to Pensacola and picked up Tina's mom at the hotel she'd ended up going to. Leaky valve stems.

Sherry booked 3 nights at a condo located two islands out from Pensacola. The Gulf Islands National Seashore was directly beside us. Beautiful! We enjoyed relaxing on the patio, cooking our native food (hotdish!), and walking on the beach. One day we went shopping, another day we visited Fort Pickens. It was a wonderful time!

Mother & Daughter at Fort Pickens



Ready for anything!

Going up - grand view of the island and ocean from the wall!



Sherry had a birthday on Sunday

We have a fish!  His name in Jinx.  He's very tame and his passion is traveling. His name stems from the lack of good luck Tina and I have had with our travels.  Tires, blocked road to gospel meeting, annual parades blocking everything, getting detained while on the way to a baptism in our own city(burning cars in the road)... So Jinx it is.
EversincePrep went down the drain at preps, I've been joking about getting a fish.  "We could get a fish" had become our favored phrase.  I stopped saying it after awhile, as to not create a joke gone old.  What do you know, Tina picked up where I left off!  "We could get a fish"  chuckle:)  He lives in a clear water bottle and travels in the car's cupholder.  When needed, his bottle cover is screwed on and he's placed in a side pocket of a backpack.  He's very active and entertains us on our many long car rides.!

 

I forgot to note that in Nov, there was a very special baptism in Jacksonville.  Three adults who made their choice last year were ready for the step.  We used the pool of some of the friends and the two churches where the friends attend were invited. There is a baptism each Oct at Apopka as well.

 Mike, Kristina and Grady came for  a visit!  Meeting Grady was the highlight of the week; he's a special little guy!  Smart one, he is.  Very engaging and keenly aware of everybody and everything.  He was a very good sport in all of our travels...  They flew into Pensacola on Friday.  We used the Annabel's house for the beginning and end of the trip and stayed on Panama City Beach for the middle of the week.  A lot of time was spent relaxing at home, simply being together.  We all enjoyed the beach even though it was cloudy and stormy for a few days.  (to quote the warning that beeped into Mike's cell phone: "Imminent Extreme Alert.  Go inside immediately")  Tornadoes...
The week held so many special moments...they are available to be remembered and enjoyed.  Thank you, thank you for coming!



Grady!  Just as perfect as what I pictured, only in real life!  I've
 decided it's somehow better to miss them 'em when they've gone home
 than to not know what you're missing... 

The Simplicity of the National Gulf Islands Seashore

Grady very pleasingly helped me get ready for gospel meeting!  He was quite a proper little boy, sitting there in such an engaging, but knowing way! Like he knew this was important business...

The Larson family, getting sand in their toes

Home by the fire

We were up in Georgia last week for some of their special meeting rounds.  We started out in Albany and ended up in Thomasville.  There was a Sunday special mtg there, and then we returned to FL.  Noticeable was cotton fuzz lining the road side and good sized tractors working in the pecan groves.  There were 7 of us making the S GA route.  The fact of folks in S GA, is that they are 3 hours from everywhere.  Proves true!

THIS was inhabiting my bed on Sat night in Thomasville!  gracious

We were treated to an oyster roast/chili feed this week!  A family in Callahan have a splendid firepit set up, so we gathered around and shucked oysters.  SO GOOD!  Chili, hotdogs, coleslaw, fresh lemon pie...

North Florida - November

Place: North FL.  East to West: Jacksonville to Pensacola: 400 miles.  North to South: Varies greatly: 2-4 hrs.  Neighbors: Georgia, Alabama, the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico. 

Tina & I have thoroughly enjoyed our time up here.  We're working in stages, as to not wear the wheels off the car.  Well...we did that anyhow, but that's another story.  We spent Nov in the eastern part of the field. 

November: Gospel meetings in Waldo (just north of Gainesville) and Jacksonville.
The town people in Waldo did a great job of attending!  There were 10 visitors in the first meeting.  They continued to attend throughout the month, but it wasn't all of the same people each time. 

Our last Sunday meeting had a little different twist to it.  We were a couple of hours away, so left 3 hours ahead of time.  The folks of the home where we were at traveled with us.  Our plan was a leasurely drive with plenty of time to spare.  The end result: we were 1 1/2 hours late to our own gospel meeting!  A new power plant is being built along the highway and little did we know that they were going to be transporting a HUGE smokestack on Sunday!  We waited and waited in traffic, counting on the road to open up after a while.  It never, never did. There are no other thru roads in that forgotten, rural part of FL, so we were option-less.  The folks waited very patiently for us, but if any of us had realized just how long it would take, we would have called off the thing.  4 hours of 'uh-oh' in the car.  UGGH  We amused ourselves by telling "when I was late" stories, but after it became apparent just how late we were going to be, our entertainment ceased to be entertaining!
~To describe this area, a mental picture is provided...  Roosters crowing on the top of gas pumps at the station.  Folks selling boiled peanuts on the roadside for a living.  Trailors houses placed under a metal roof with wooden posts holding it up, as to not fix the roof.  We love the laid back, home town culture.

Speaking of meetings,

I blundered good one day.  Lost my voice, croaked along quite hack-fully and needed a drink.  Picked up from where I left off(Jesus preparing his apostles for his death), which was to say, “Don’t be concerned that I’ll pass away.”  Wups.  Snorts prevailed

A few quotes from our time in the "Eastern part" 
"I've done many things once."  True, true...good thing for the learnig curve!
"I feel like there's something I should be worrying about, but I can't remember what it is!"  huh

Now for a few snaps of life:

Frank & Pat with their famous fish soup

In honor of the Red Eye with Heavy Whip!  Only for special occassions...

Some friends own some hydroponic style greenhouses north of Jax 

Our new field car...it's been suggested that we use a helicopter:)

Cotton fields ready for harvest

Tooling around Dixie County in the souped up golf cart

Butch wanting to get an Oreo Blizzard 

Co-worker picture for the year

Sarah S had a b-day, so we got the creative bug and fixed her up a terrarium.  It was so fun to work with plants and dirt, no matter how tiny it was!

Potassium Broth.  We are now experienced participants of this red-purple potent liquid called Potassium Broth.  A lady is attempting to cure her mother's cancer, so this was the method of choice.

50 cloves of garlic, 10 jalapenos, an entire root of ginger, beet and potato skins and countless other things juiced and boiled into the quantity of 5 drinking mugs had us sneezing, blowing our nose and wiping our eyes for three days.  It was our supper...although we did have sweet potato fries as a reward!  I ate one fry per sip.   Tina did a little better in holding off on the fries!  It's the type of thing that you drink & choke on, all at the same time.:)  Sip, Hack, Eat Sweet Potato Fry.  Repeat for a  1/2 hour.  Guess you can say we’re purged in the head at least. 

~There were other anti-cancer procedures that we were involved in during the visit, but this was most 'involved' 

~We were happy to help in the encouragment department, in whatever way we could.


Thanksgiving was enjoyed at the Sain household.  Irene and Jane were in town for a few weeks, so we all piled into Johnny, Linda and Sarah's and enjoyed the feast.  We each had the opportunity to fix something for the meal, which proved absolutely delicious!  A TRUE thanksgiving spread.

About to get VERY fed.

A lively afternoon of Catch Phrase!

We had one week of limbo time between meetings in the east in Nov and the west in Dec, so we spent time with the Tallahassee church.  It was great to see them all again, as the last time I'd been in that city was the beginning '08.

Trip to Louisiana

Effie convention is held at the end of October.  It was planned to be Irene, Jane and my extra convention.  I caught a ride with Jo, Mary and Bea and arrived up there on Monday eve. It generally takes 15 driving hours to get from Tampa to Effie, but our carload decided to challenge that fact!  It was suggested that we not drive under 75 mph, and we stopped only at drive thrus.  I pleasedly introduced the fellow travelers to McD's Deluxe Angus wraps and Wild Berry Smoothies.  We arrived at the grounds in 13 hours:)  All three ladies are from LA, so I was delighted to ask as many questions as possible about their state!  It is a very intruiging place.


Travel coherts

The first two days of the convention were pretty hot and muggy.  We accepted the fact that we were in LA and kept on living.  The 3 & 4 days turned noticably chilly and we revelled in the novelty of goosebumps!  The mornings were in the 30's!!  Effie is on a little road, out from town.   It was a wonderful convention, helpful and quiet.

Kennan, Becky and Jonie came from Texarkana for the weekend! 

Irene, Jane and I traveled back home together.  We stopped for two nights in New Orleans, with the purpose of touring the city on Monday.  Jane had to spend the day in the hospital, but Irene and I went through with the plan.  We stayed with a lovely, long-time-N-Orleans couple and they treated us royally and took us to all the best places.  A highlight of the city: the cemeteries!  Wowsers!  They are dubbed Cities of the Dead.  Huge developments of tombs spot the landscape on every turn.

Sunday night stop off on our way to New Orleans: Beignuts and Chicory Coffee!  This was after our HUGE cajun meal.

Enjoying the delicatessen at a local Cajun place.  Another lip smacking meal!

Tombs, tombs, tombs.  No floating bodies here!

A well rested pair

And I thought raw oysters were superior??  These char broiled oysters are unexplainable!  Very very tasty.  They're big on garlic and quality cheese.

Our gracious hosts at yet another restaurant.  Before us is a hot brownie with a mountain of whipped cream...

:Observations of LA:

• The schools are very rough & ratty looking.  I started out assuming that they were abandoned.  Not so.
• ALL graves are above ground.  WAY above.
• Daiquiri shacks abound.
• Many Post Offices are trailer houses
• Washeteria.  It sounds better than laundrymat, no?
• No hot water in public places.  Only proved wrong once.
• Parishes.  Not counties.  There are 64 parishes.  Assumption Parish, Avengeline Parrish, Saint Bernard Parish, Saint John the Baptist Parish...
• Many, many railroad crossings
• Rice fields, cane fields, cotton fields
• Take the ferry to get home.  They haven't gotten to building all the needfull bridges yet.
• Quite a number of big homes.   Guard houses in front of big homes.  (from times past)
• Dark soil.  Songbirds.
• French abounds.  Lanya is used a lot(a little extra)
• Spill bays.  Levies.  water, water, where to go with it?  The entire state is below sea level.  The Mississippi River is levied off.  Cattle and horses graze on the levies.

 

Ruth's surgery

After convention, Ruth and I went back down to the SW field to prepare for her back surgery.  Upon our meeting with her surgeon, it was decided that the traditional method would be much safer than the lapriscopic method.  She has blood vessels in very precarious positions...to be nicked would mean the end of life.  On this note, we rearranged our mind to a larger and more involved surgery and hospital experience.  The day arrived and we found ourselves in the surgery prep room at 5am.  Carl, Tina, Jane and Marty all came to the waiting room where we passed the hours.  Ruth was out of OR by 3pm and all was well.  She continues to recover at this point, but is finished with therapy and her incision is healing well.

A side note.  One day at the hosp, Tina and I decided to walk to lunch to give Ruth a little trial session of being alone.  We found ourselves in the middle of a bank robbery!  Police cars, forensics units, bullet proof vests, dogs, helicopters were all present, so we got quite a show.  They apprehended the man in the woods to the right of our sidewalk.  We had an exciting story to distract Ruth with when we got back!

We got R a mini sock monkey of whom we named Progress.  He had a little clip on him, so we attached him to the call light in hopes that it would encourage use.  The idea was to see Progress in all things, as often as possible!  Through the effects of R's pain medication, Progress got called Prospect, Improvement, Prosperity...  Ruth loved introducing him to the doctor, nurses and friends...we couldn't wait to see what he'd get called next!


Doctors Hospital

FL convention season

I WILL catch up before the new year.  Here is Segment 1 of ?

Apopka Preps
Our 3 weeks together passed quickly and we were soon past the convention season here in FL. 

Kiddos hard at work!

Charles Thain passed away during our time at Apopka.  Four of us were able to attend his service in Metter.  Kevin, Tina and I all offered for the work to Mr. Charles.

 

 We had a lot of gas line problems, sewer troubles and complications stemming from the before-mentioned, so the four days of convention got a tad intense!  One visiting sister asked, "is out-of-order the only thing you people can spell?"  ha  dryers, washers, ovens, hot water, water. itself....  The sewer backed up and ceased to function on Fri eve, so the entire Friday night was spent putting in a new one!    The act of totally replacing a sewer system at last minute in the middle of the night, squirming around parked cars is an art of amazing talent!

I have a weakness for animals.  Something living and breathing besides the human race. I got a Walmart goldfish.  He was 38 cents.  He lived in a Mason jar beside my bed.  His name was Prep.  We sisters in the dorm enjoyed watching him in the evenings as he swam around and blew bubbles.  Convention week came, so I cleaned his jar.  While his new water was obtaining room temperature, Prep stayed in a little tiny jar on the bathroom counter.  When I returned a few hrs later to transer him over into his big Mason, the little mason was clean and upside down on the drying rack!  Oh no!  Somebody took to a cleaning frenzy and didn't notice the inhabitant of the clutter on the counter.  He took a slide down the drain, never to be seen again.  More details of this episode have developed since then, but they need not be disclaimed at this time...:)

There were some huge, giant, violent thunderstorms during convention.  Everybody huddled in the dining tent as the sides flapped out and whipped everybody on the edges with water.  The tent top floated up, sank down, up down, up down, as the rain and wind waxed on.  No power, water rushing down the aisles and people packed in like sardines made for some quality bonding time.  The new tent passed it's test!