" a nice breath of fresh air, company from home 🏡!! Thomas and Kaci...so good to see them!

Good morning from NYC, in the springtime!! Lovely sunny day and temperature is now at 66*!

Like I mentioned, so good to be with Thomas and Kaci! Ron and I went to get them from LaGuardia on Saturday afternoon. They settled in here for 2 nights. Rest of Saturday afternoon we just sat here and visited. Come supper time we parted, they went to Da Gennaro and rode the Staten Island ferry. Yesterday, beings it was Sunday, they were here for worship, lunch and supper. They cleaned up the guest apartment and moved out this morning, booked a hotel for the rest of their stay! Enjoyed their stay much and felt like I got to know Kaci better! 💜

It's Monday, so normal Monday happenings... like laundry, clean up the house. Enjoyed the table conversations as Thomas asked the boys about the personal at the pantries etc and we laughed and talked about some old memories. Good times!! We are home for supper this evening...Ron and I settled on grilled steaks, baked potato and green salad. Buttered and warmed bread. 

Alistair left on Wednesday for Vermont, Ron and Alistair were messaging in the evening and he said he got there safe and sound!! I'm glad I have a big brother in Vermont, so we can keep a connection going and maybe check in once in awhile.  We really enjoyed having Alistair over, it's a little hard to say goodbye for a little while! 

Let me tell you about Tuesday afternoon, I have a hard time deciding who received more blessings?! ( The guys have decided to start singing later in the afternoon, so we only go for 1:30. ) We experienced a fabulous day, so many said yes.... listened with interest. We sang God is bigger than all my mountains that I can or cannot see. Bigger than all my hang ups, bigger than anything....we sang for a lady shackled by her ankle to the bed....the security guard who sat outside her room, was so thankful too! Reverend Dennis was up on 6th floor, he wanted us to sing for a certain patient, we did....Amen, after we were done singing! Another room we sang for patient in bed B, when leaving the room, the patient in bed A and her family requested prayer. A nurse requested we sing for the Mama in another room. ( Mama here in the city is a older lady) So we sang, " Let me touch Him, as He passes by; Then when I shall reach out to others, They shall know Him, they shall live and not die. Chorus: oh, to be His hand extended, Reaching out to the oppressed; Let me touch Him, let me touch Jesus, So that others may know and be blessed. We noticed that Mama in her bed, was crying....the nurse stepped into the room and said, oh look, you made Mama cry!! Reverend Dennis was still with us, he says that is because the Holy Spirit touched her. Oh, the nurse says, I just have goose bumps!!! Us 6 looked at each other and I detected a few other misty eyes, I know mine were! O, experiences like this makes everything so worthwhile!!! Back to first question ❓, who was more deeply blessed? Ron and I took the subway train to Central Park. We went to the conservatory first, wanted to see the tulips.... they were still pretty, but pretty played out.....we were just a tad late. Then we caught a bus and went to Shakespeare's gardens, in Central Park....we took the bus, because we didn't want to walk the 30 some minutes it would take to arrive at another location in the park. Same thing, pretty done for!!! Enjoyed the walk and warmer weather and the most awesome scenery!! Tim cooked for supper.... Noodle Discada, tasted great...steak, chicken and bacon in it. I made the cookies for dessert!

Wednesday evening was Bible study....Tim wrote a lesson on Christian Liberty, so thus he led the discussion. I feel like sometimes, the guys write a good lesson, but it doesn't get discussed to it's full potential! ( Just because) Eric, Peter and a new Eric from Long Island City were in attendance with us. The new Eric was a younger fellow. Jamin had smoked 2 cream cheese blocks and so we had that for night lunch with popcorn. Jamin had invited Darrel's to come up, which they did, but already quite a late hour. Let's just say, one attendee loves to talk, so going home isn't always the first foremost thing in the mind. Our conversation upstairs centered on ghosts and ghost stories...to those who believe in them, they always will and to those who don't, remaining a skeptic will be their default mode! We got to bed late.... like actually maybe on Thursday morning! 

And then Thursday morning dawned ( on us ) at 5!! So nap for night..... breakfast was at 6:30 and guys off to 109 pantry to help serve breakfast and then morph into regular work. Ron and I went shopping.... later in the morning. In the afternoon I made a Butterfinger dessert for Friday and put it away in the freezer. That is.... Butterfinger candy bars are hard to come by in the city...so I was already wondering which candy bar to substitute? I went to Foodtown next door, I asked, do you have Butterfinger candy...no, look, chocolate is there and pointed. So Ron walks up to Super Foodtown, no luck there either, but Duane Reads, a pharmacy had some! Yay! After work, the guys stopped and played pickleball. Supper was sesame chicken over rice. Guys left for a outing and Ron and I went to 125th and walked a couple of blocks! Stopped at a McDonald's, haven't darkened the threshold of those stores for ages! Ron had a Mcflurry and I a chocolate shake!! 

Our dear Shelda left us....back to Oakridge MO on the bus....we miss her much!!

Friday morning, Ron and I worked hard and fast with the laundry and apartment cleaning!!! Done by noon, which was our intention!!! Ate a quick bite of early lunch and then Ornan and Sheila came at noon. They stopped for some lunch in Patterson New Jersey. Ornan's came for Carson's orientation and Ornan wanted to see where the guys worked. So us 4 left and went to Bronx pantry. ( We invited Darrel and Darla to join us, but they had other stuff going! ) It was so enjoyable to be at the pantry and watch the guys work! And to meet Omar, Hosea, Tanisha, Luci and more....Luci appears like quite a hardened person, but has a heart of gold! She was standing right beside me and she asks me quietly, do you miss Caden, answer was in the affirmative...I asked, do you? Yes....I liked him really well!!! But she looks at the 4 working and said, but I like all these too! And I knew with all my heart, that is exactly how she feels!! We watched awhile and then bid them all goodbye and went to the 109 pantry. Looked around a little and left. Walked through the top end of Central Park and then over to Manhattanville for " coffee"!! We had drinks of choice, standing/ sitting in the sunshine....we walked home from there. Up in our apartment till 4:30, then orientation for Carson and to Darrel's for supper. Sheila and I helped Darla some and gabbed more!! Supper was grilled bacon burgers, Caesar salad, sour dough bread and baked beans. I took the dessert...sat long at the supper table, just conversation, like Carson would say!! Topic for one, was ghosts again! Those who were skeptic on Wednesday evening, remained in that position. We also talked marriage proposals and cold feet before marriage situations....and other topics! 😀 Sometimes the moments hardly would be considered dull!! Ornan's got up to leave...had the drive back to Fleetwood! We love them already!! Guys still went to ride the Staten Island ferry. ( In the afternoon, I had a matcha with seasonal syrup in it, was honey/ rose and cinnamon! I asked them to hold the cinnamon!! Was pretty tasty! My boys like to give me fits about my matcha...Mama, it's grass!!! ) It's not!! 😂

Saturday....laid back morning, including breakfast! Guys did cleaning chores and then worked out in the basement. They went out for sushi for lunch and played some sand volleyball in the afternoon, waiting a long time for a court to play in! Ron and I did this and that.... Being with Thomas's.... already what I talked about. We met our guys for supper in Korean Town on 32nd, restaurant was named Jongro BBQ. We waited for at least 30 or minutes for a table. The experience was worth everything, but I wouldn't say the food was remarkable....but doable! Tim ordered a beef platter and a pork platter....which there is a grill burner in the middle of the table and they grill the meat right in front of you! Plus a couple of other dishes.... like some egg mixture and corn with mozzarella cheese. Plus they brought little dishes of this and that. Radish, what looked like collared greens, rice, a spicy soup with tofu. And some other unidentifiable objects, which we asked, but couldn't always get the answer correctly!!! Trust me, I laughed about how they brought the water to your table....in just a plastic jug, like what a kid would take to school or to the park!!! Like glug, glug when you poured. 😁 With a blue like frog and a pink frog....I guess the mascots of Jongro!!!!! Home after supper and when Thomas's came home we visited awhile.

Sunday ....a lovely day of rest!!! 😊 I smile, because it not always what we feel!! Ron got up at 5:45 to grill ham steaks! Breakfast was for the 8 of us ... baked oatmeal, maple twists, yogurt, fruit and cheese. We were 20 for worship and 21 for lunch.... Rebecca came when church was just out!! Thomas had the opening and Darrel brought the sermon thoughts! Darrel's thoughts centered around, How big is your God? Lunch was grilled ham, scalloped potatoes, green salad and bread. Brownie a la mode for dessert!! After lunch and dishes, we left for Yonkers.... driving....us 6 took the Sugar Hill van, Darrel's went with Kendon's and Laurence's with Clay's. ( Thomas and Kaci did their own thing) There are these awesome gardens up there called Untermyer. It's a historic 43 acre public park featuring magnificent multicultural gardens. Created by a lawyer Samuel Untermyer on his Greystone estate. It was once the most spectacular garden in America! Became a city park in 1946. Some of the features are a Walled garden, The vista, Temple of Love, Ruin gardens and other areas. Had what they called Stumpery.... approximately150 upended tree stumps have been gathered to form the basis of a whimsical woodland garden with a fountain in the middle. I absolutely loved the flowers and brilliant blooming bushes! I could have stayed for a small forever! Guy's and Laurence's took the Metro North home, rest of us drove! Thomas's joined us for supper, we were 16. Darla fixed enchiladas, corn/ bean salsa, chips and fruit. Dana baked cookies for dessert. Talking filled the evening! 

The guys are all home! Practicing for Wednesday sing out to begin at 4!! 

Love, prayers and springtime blessings, Mama Carol