Autumn

It was a beautiful fall day, so Roland and I took one of our favorite drives up in the mountains so we could enjoy the gorgeous colors! Wow! It was absolutely breath-taking!

Something to think about

So often, only in weakness do we reach out to God, and only as we reach out to God do we find the strength He always intended for us, the strength for whatever comes next.

Life

"... and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us..." Romans 5:5
So many times we hear people describe the Christian life as picture perfect, with no struggles, no hardships; just happiness and love. If you’re a realistic person, you will quickly realize that the Christian life is NOT always full of beautiful roses and perfumed pathways. The pathway that I have traveled has often been crooked and filled with unbelievable hardships, holes along the way, and stumps that I have tripped and stumbled over, sharp horrible prickly thorns have often caught me off-guard, and I have experienced enormous loss, and unbeatable disease. Sometimes the struggles that I have gone through have become almost all-consuming and I’ve thought that I couldn’t go on anymore. The wounds that I carry are very deep. I have questioned everything I could possibly question, and have thrown my fists up high in the air yelling at God – “WHY God, WHY?? I don’t understand!!” Numerous times I have wished for a way out, but I am so thankful for a Savior who loves me regardless of the many times I stumble and fall and want to give up, and for a Savior who gives me hope and a purpose for living. I am so thankful for the moments of unspeakable joy, love, and happiness, and for family and wonderful friends that I have been blessed with along the way! Even when things look bad, God is always good! He is still standing there with His arms spread wide open, ready to accept us, strengthen us, encourage us, forgive us, and love us! How awesome is that?!
"...Put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption..." Psalm 1:30

What a Cutie!!

These pictures are just so precious to me!

I'm a "Granmama" - and I love it!!

I spent 5 wonderful weeks in Arkansas with Liz and Josh. During that time, I was blessed with the awesome experience of witnessing my first grandchild being born! I was so proud of Liz, going through 20 hours of labor! She was definitely our hero that day!! Josh did a fabulous job of coaching Liz, and the 2 of them made a wonderful team! Little Rachel had some fluid in her lungs when she first entered our world, and the Dr.’s thought she possibly had newborn pneumonia, so they kept her in the NICU for the first 3 days. She was on constant oxygen and antibiotics. That was hard for Liz, because she didn’t get to hold Rachel during that time. But after a few days, the Dr.’s were able to give her a clean bill of health, and Liz and Josh were able to take her home with them! What a precious sweet baby!

We were all delighted to see that Rachel was born with a whole head of dark curly hair! Right now, her eyes are very dark; but with time, they will be fully able to tell what color her eyes are.

Liz is doing really well. If you saw her today, you would never know she had a baby 2 weeks ago! She looks fabulous! She is already wearing her pre-pregnancy clothes! Wow!

I had absolutely NO understanding of the depth of a Grandmother’s love … until little Rachel Anne came into my world!! Oh my! What can I say? I ADORE this precious little child!! I extended my stay by one week so I was able to spend 7 days with Rachel. She has my heart, and I had a hard time kissing her (and her mama!) “good-bye!”

Baby Rachel Anne

Rachel Anne Roggasch
August 23rd, 2008 ----------------------------- I left my heart ---
7 lbs. 13 oz. 20 inches long ---------------------in Arkansas! ----

Proud parents: Josh & Liz Roggasch