The Busyness continues

Last week my friend and I went strawberry picking. Last year the crop was terrible. This year there is abundance, and there was hardly anyone in the strawberry patch. Soon we were the only ones in the strawberries. We found a corner of the field that hadn't been touched and started working. It didn't take long for the kids and I to pick 68 pounds! I don't remember ever seeing such good picking since I was a kid and lived on the west side of Washington in a climate where strawberries thrive.

My friend is getting married in late summer. She is so excited. She has had to wait a long time to find the right guy. She and her finance are both tight financially and their parents aren't able to help much either. She was really worried about how she was going to pay for a dress. Then at a garage sale, there it was, sealed in a white box, a gorgeous white dress. It has lots of beads, and pretty details, and an 8 foot train full of beads and cut out lace. And you won't believe this, but it fits her perfectly! Nothing needs to be altered. Nothing. Even the beaded slippers fit her perfectly. The price? $30! There was another dress she liked at the bridal ship better, but if God gives you a dress that fits perfectly, I think you'd better wear it. I just love how God is taking care of all her needs!

Over Memorial Day weekend dad and mom visited. Dad and my husband built a structure on our deck and put shade cloth over the top so we can eat outside more often through the summer. We had company over this weekend on a day when the rest of the deck was too hot to touch. Everyone was cool and comfortable under the shade cloth. We should have made one of these years ago!

Some of you might remember that my mom was really sick about a year and a half ago and came and stayed at our house for three months. The doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong with her. I made her green smoothies and other nutritious foods and she got well and was able to go back home. Still she never got back up to her previous level of health. We felt like we were loosing her. She wasn't doing well when she visited at the end of May. I was thinking about her symptoms and then thought of the gluten intolerance that I have. I did some Google searches to learn if gluten can be connected to neurological and brain issues. Sure enough it can, and the gene I carry (given to me by my mom and dad) is more likely to effect the nervous system and the brain then the intestines. In fact, most people that carry this gene marker don't have flattened villi in their intestines! Very interesting. I shared what I was discovering with mom and she is finally willing to try eating gluten free. I sent her home with a pile of my recipes. The good news is that my sister emailed and said that she is doing better then she has in two years! Praise God! Mom is even excited about going camping with us this summer! Maybe one of the reasons mom got better when she was with us when she was so sick was because she was living in a gluten free house for those three months. We are getting quite hopeful that mom is going to have some healthy retirement years yet.

Sorry for no pictures. I thought it would be better to post something quickly, then to not post at all.