Day 64.  When I was young and we went camping it involved a tent, and sleeping bags, and a good fire.  Camping for Maggie and Annie is going to a motel, laying on the bed, and watching TV.  Here they are satisfied just to stay up late and lay in mom and dad's bed and watch TV.  Gone are the days of sitting in the tent and watching the raccoons rummage through the garbage.  I remember sitting at a picnic table and watching the chipmunks  scavenge for leftovers by the fire, and being surprised at how close the humming birds would get to us.  The best part was that we usually camped near water so there was a lot of swimming.  The motel version has fewer insects and cleaner water, but I like the tent version better.  You can make life so sterile that you never really experience parts of God's creation.   Maybe it's time to invest in a new tent and make time to go camping again.  I thinks the kids will love it.  

Day 63.  This picture proved harder to get than I had thought it would.  This little guy posed great but he wouldn't hold it or be still.  But, that is the nature of gerbils.  They are only still when they are asleep.  They are most active at dawn and dusk.  And during those times they run, and eat, and chew, and see how much noise they can make while they do these things.  They are also very curious.  If they escape it doesn't take much to find them because they come out of hiding to see what is going on.  If you hold out your hand they will come up to see what is in it, even if they know it's not food.  Through out our marriage we have had dogs, cats, ducks, a rabbit, fish, turtles, Guinea pigs, a Pygmy hedgehog, gerbils, and don't even get me started on the puppies.  Ok, I like variety.  That's a good thing though.  If you only like one type, how do you have friends.  Or more importantly, how do you minister to people, because, people are all different.  Some more different than others, and it takes all kinds to make life interesting.

Day 62.  I took Daisy out for a walk tonight.  She doesn't get out much.  She usually stays inside on a shelf.  Rocks don't need a lot of care.  They don't eat much, they don't make a mess, and they live a very long time.  What a great pet.  She will patiently listen to anyone who happens to talk to her.  So she is a pretty good counselor, too.  And, she never gets angry and acts out.  When people say that someone is like a rock, they are saying that person is strong and reliable.  Maybe I should find more of these little pets and have them around to remind me that I need to be like a rock.

Day 61.  And what a day it has been.  Really it started out good.  I knew it would be a busy day and it turned out busier than I could have imagined.  If you remember I just put a new radiator in my jeep last week.  This afternoon I drove Dugan over to get new glasses.  The jeep made it fine with no problems.  After choosing frames, and paying for them, and staying within my budget we went to get some supper.  We noticed a puddle of antifreeze under the jeep in the parking lot.  After a quick look it was determined that some had overflowed from the reservoir.  So, not a problem, right?  We went to get the glasses and the frames we had picked out had a flaw that couldn't be fixed and there wasn't another pair of those frames.  So, they gave us another pair that Dugan had really wanted but were too expensive.  We didn't even have to pay the difference.  It was an awesome blessing.  By the time the glasses were ready it was about 7:30 and we headed home.  We hadn't gotten far when the temperature light came on.  The jeep was overheating.  I headed for the closest gas station I knew of.  By the time we got there, smoke was pouring out from under the hood.  People were staring and calling out to us, "do you know your car is smoking?".   I drove into the station parking lot and opened the hood to find that the upper radiator hose had a 4 inch split and had spewed the antifreeze onto the engine.  That's why it was smoking so badly.  Dugan went in to ask if there was a place we could get water while I tried to asses the situation.  I looked up and just across the street was a parts store and it was still open.  The guy at the store was very nice.  He loaned me the tools I needed and we found a new hose.  From the time we overheated until we had it fixed and back on the road was less than an hour.  Then, as we headed toward home once again, we ran up on a roadblock.  Red and blue lights all around.  A flashlight signaled us through the mess of glass and debris.  Dugan noted that it must have been a bad wreck.  I told him that since the cars were already gone and they were cleaning up that this wreck must have happened about 20 or 30 minutes before.  His eyes got big and his mouth dropped open.  He realized that if we had not had problems with the glasses and the jeep, we could have been involved in that wreck.  We praised God all the way home.  What a valuable lesson God was teaching.  So, tonight I want to say thank you to my dad for teaching me how to change a radiator hose, and now Dugan knows how also.  But, mostly I want to say Thank You God for watching over us and orchestrating this night.  By the way, we had no more problems getting home.

Day 60.  The twins had their first tournament of the year today.  They're not champions yet, but the year is young.  At least they are trying.  That's more than so many others do.  Even if they aren't winning they still play hard.  That makes me proud.  A lot of adults  could learn from them.

Day 59.  I gave Scruffy a haircut yesterday.  It's still not short enough, but he can see now.  He has been such a good dog.  Between him and Scooter I have decided that "if" we ever get another dog it will be one that doesn't need to be groomed so much.  I still need to groom Scooter and now he is jealous because I groomed Scruffy.  It is funny to see him pout about it.  They are pets and we treat them that way, not like they are people.  But, they sure act like people sometimes.       

Day 58.  Welcome to my parlor said the spider to the fly.  Hmmm, and what do you think happens to the fly.  And yet, how many times does the fly go right in.  As I write tonight I feel a sense of caution. Like the fly is about to hit the web again.  So if your reading this then please stop what you are about to do, think about it, pray about it, then decide whether or not to continue.  Because not everything that looks like a good thing is.  I hope everyone finds a good thing.