My apologies for not posting for so long! Such is life, right? I’ve retired. One would think that I have more time for a blog, right? Not so! Much has happened since my last post; I’ve retired, my dad passed away (I miss him so!), there was a fire in the house I grew up in, my family made the decision to fix up the house, it is now a VRBO, and I clean it after guests stay. The remodeling of this house took over a year and my husband and I did the work to remodel it – we either hired the work done or did it ourselves. What a job! My whole first year of retirement was remodeling that house. We gutted it! In the mid-west that means tearing out lathe and horsehair plaster walls down to the studs. We had it foam insulated and I hired a gal and her team to paint the entire house once the drywall was finished. It is hard to find contractor’s these days! They are all so busy! One joyful thing about hiring contractors was that we hired several Amish. Joe did a fantastic job tearing out an old porch and rebuilding an open style porch that was larger than the original. It’s beautiful! We also hired Amish to cut and hang drywall and another Amish expert to do the seams and mudding. Now my husband and I have met and gotten to know some fine Amish men in our community. That really helps when it is the season for buying strawberries locally! Locally grown strawberries actually have flavor to them! Unlike the shipped in strawberries from California that we purchase in the grocery stores.

Other new news: I am seeing a Spiritual Director, and I am so pleased about my progress so far! I first attended a Silent Retreat through our local Franciscan Spirituality Center. That was an interesting experience! You’ve got to try it some time. My challenge was not saying anything during lunch. It definitely felt strange to sit and eat lunch in the same room with others attending the retreat and not be able to converse with them! The experience that I signed up for included 3 sessions with a Spiritual Director. A Spiritual Director is trained to listen to your stories. It is helpful to anyone seeking spiritual growth, healing or a deeper connection with God and others.

Something else new to retirement. I have chosen to join a workout program through Unity Fitness with the goal of improving my strength and balance (I fell and broke my hand in October, 2023).

Guess what else is new!? I now have 6 Grandchildren! So, 3 Grandsons and 2 Granddaughters. What a joy!