30 Days of Thanksgiving – Day 28: Anna

CarolynCares Anna

Happy Birthday, Anna! Today, on Thanksgiving Day, our oldest turns 23. When she was born, Jonathan’s mom said, “Oh, good. Being born so late in November, she won’t have to worry about celebrating her birthday on Thanksgiving Day.” Her first birthday fell on Thanksgiving that year!

Anna just finished her student teaching, and will be officially be a graduate of Augustana College. She has many interests and talents, and can’t wait to see where God leads her. We are so proud of her!

Anna’s strong faith, and positive attitude have helped to carry her through tough times. Typically, junior high girls are trying to navigate a new school schedule, boys, and hanging out with friends at football games. Anna was dealing with a diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis, and the loss of friendships due to a misunderstanding of what it means to have MS. Her classmates weren’t always very kind to her, but that only made her push harder. She doesn’t want to be defined by this disease. She wants to be known for her sunny personality, her music, and her faith.

Hanging out with Anna is always fun. She has my sense of humor, and her dad’s sense of adventure. Jonathan and Anna have a great bond, and I love that they can have so much fun together. It doesn’t matter if it is the Alpine Slides in Keystone, SD, driving go-carts, jet skiing, or playing Rummy, they will find a way to have a good time.

I am so thankful for Anna! I am thankful for the sunshine she spreads to others, for her heart of compassion, for her stubbornness when she could have just given up. I am thankful for her friends that have seen past her limitations, especially the boy she brought home this weekend. I am thankful that her dreams are becoming her vision. Happy Birthday, sweet Anna! I love you!

Check out Anna’s blog – Smiles Squared

 

Want to see other 30 Day Challenge blogs? Head over to Holly Spangler’s blog to find the link!

30 Days of Thanksgiving – Day 27: Thanksgiving

CarolynCares Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day will be here before we know it. The next 24 hours will pass in a whirlwind of cooking, cleaning, and greeting guests. Even though the day can be a little stressful with food preparations and dealing with family dynamics, I think it is important to enjoy the chaos. There are so many people in our communities who will be spending Thanksgiving alone, and many who cannot afford to prepare a full meal.

This year, I was able to donate a bag of food to our school for a program that was started this year. There are about 9 homeless families in our school district. All of the food donated gets sent home to students in need on the last day of school for the week. The food is put in their lockers discretely, to save them from embarrassment or ridicule. This weekend, extra food was sent home to make sure these children would have something to eat over the holiday weekend. This program is helped out by our local Wal-Mart, but in December, our local school families will be encouraged to donate as well. I applaud the teacher who started this program, and I really hope the community will support it by donating money or food to the school. As the prayer says in the graphic above, “For food and raiment Thou dost give, That we in comfort here may live.” I really believe that God works through communities to be his cheerful givers. I am thankful that I was prompted to donate through #FoodThanks. I never would have found out about this program otherwise. I plan on donating at other times during the school year as well.

As for our Thanksgiving plans? We’ll be hosting Thanksgiving this year. All of the family (my side and Jonathan’s side) that live in Minnesota will be there. We’ll have one nervous person at the table this year. Anna is bringing home her boyfriend. He’ll be meeting most of the family on Thursday. He might appreciate a few prayers! We’ll be thinking and praying for family members who are living too far away to join us this year. I am so thankful for all of the members of our family!

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

 

To follow other 30 Day Blog Challenge participants, click here.

30 Days of Thanksgiving – Day 24: Christina

CarolynCares Christina

Christina is our middle daughter. She has always had a great imagination, and a love for books. Right now, she is majoring in theater, with the hopes of becoming a costume designer. As I write this, she just finished playing 3 characters in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”. I was able to see the production once, and Jonathan was fortunate enough to see it a second time. She was great…the characters she played are ones I think she was born to play. I seemed to have seen her facial expressions and attitudes directed at her sisters when she was growing up. 🙂 I’m looking forward to catching the show when they take it on the road in January, and again in March when they perform with the South Dakota Symphony.

I love when we get together with the girls. Christina is so good at making me laugh. I am amazed at her ability to remember lines from movies, and use them at just the right time to catch me off guard. There have been many times when I have laughed til I cried, or had to spit out my beverage. Trust me, Root Beer out the nose hurts!

When I was looking through photos of Christina to use in this post, I noticed that there were very few photos where she is not smiling, or being funny. This photo made me laugh. It is so typical of the Sunday picnics we used to take in the summer.

CarolynCares Christina L

I am so thankful for Christina and the sunshine and laughter she brings to the family. Life isn’t always easy, nor is it always fair. That is something not lost on a middle child. I love that she is becoming her own hero.

To follow other 30 Day Blog Challenge participants, click here.

30 Days of Thanksgiving – Day 20: Parents

CarolynCares Parents

Today would have been Mom and Dad’s 42nd Anniversary. My dad passed away just shy of his 70th birthday in 2004 after many health issues. I miss him – especially when I could use some advice on how to fix something. I would go bug Dad when he was working in his wood shop, and he taught me the names of all the tools for wood working and for fixing things. That really came in handy when I moved to the farm!

Mom is my second mom. My first mom passed away shortly after I turned 2. My second mom is the only mom I’ve know. I remember when she and dad were dating, how excited I was that I got to stay over at her apartment. I was happy when dad told us that they were going to get married. They married shortly after I turned 4. I remember being at the church, and wearing a pretty dress with little gloves, and really pretty shoes. I loved those shoes.

I am so thankful that my Dad found Mom, and that she was willing to raise us 4 kids. It isn’t easy to jump into a big family! When Jonathan and I were taking Foster Parenting classes this fall, I realized just how difficult that is. I have many fond memories of my childhood. Fighting over who got to hold our baby brother, skating on the ice rink dad made in the back yard, the Birthday cake platter (and getting to choose what kind of cake we wanted), and Christmas traditions that I brought into my own family.

I am thankful that Mom taught me how to cook and bake. She taught me how to make white sauces and gravy when I was in junior high, and caramel rolls and desserts in high school. I still love to cook and bake today, and I love the challenge of finding new ways to do things. I am still amazed by Mom’s ability to make a perfect pie crust without measuring any ingredient, and I have yet to make a lemon filling that is even close to her lemon meringue pie. I’m not sure if I should credit her, or blame her for my love of cookbooks. Love you, Mom! 🙂

I know we don’t express our appreciation for our families nearly enough, so I would like to take this opportunity to tell my mom and siblings how thankful I am for all of you!

 

To follow other 30 Day Blog Challenge participants, click here.

30 Days of Thanksgiving – Day 16: Laura

CarolynCares Laura

Laura is the youngest of our daughters. She is in her second year of college, living in the same town as her sisters, which is awesome!

Laura was pretty much born with a smile on her face. She was a little stinker, but then would look at us with her huge blue eyes as if to say, “who, me?” Before she could walk, she would tackle her sisters to get their attention. While we had to be firm with her, there were many times when we were secretly laughing at her antics. When she was about 18 months old, I was working in the kitchen while the girls were playing in their rooms. One of her sisters came to me and said that Laura was being naughty. Suddenly, I caught a whiff of Desitin, a diaper rash cream. When I walked into Laura’s room, there she was, stripped down to her diaper, rubbing this cream all over her body, and in between her toes. For those of you that have never used a diaper rash cream, this stuff is pretty difficult to just wash off. It is made to repel liquids. It took a few baths to clean her up. We had to scrub the tub in between baths, otherwise it would be super slippery. That was one time where we had to be firm, yet were laughing when she was out of earshot.

Laura covered in Desitin - even between the toes
Laura covered in Desitin – even between the toes

I really wouldn’t trade any of these moments for anything. I like to tease the girls that they are the cause of my gray hair, but really, they were pretty sweet girls growing up.

Laura has such a compassionate heart, and really hates when people judge others based on appearance. She is very protective of her oldest sister, and her dad, and gets really annoyed when people judge them because of the limps they have due to their MS.

Now that Laura is in college, we like to get together to shop. Well, we’ve always liked to shop together. She is so fun to hang out with. I look forward to trips to the Twin Cities with her. She has a good eye for style, and is a great bargain hunter. Days when we can laugh, and forget about the stresses of life are the best days.

There are times when I wish Laura was still little enough to crawl up onto my lap, but I am so thankful for the woman she is becoming. I love you, baby girl!

 

To follow other 30 Day Blog Challenge participants, click here.

30 Days of Thanksgiving – Day 14: Sunsets

CarolynCares Sunsets

One of the things I love about living where I do are the wide open views. I love to run out to the edge of the yard and watch the brilliant colors as they constantly change while the sun is sinking. This fall, there have been breathtaking sunsets, where I’ve paused just to drink it all in.

Some think that it is cliche to take photos of sunrises and sunsets, but I disagree. Our goddaughter’s Chinese name meant Beautiful Colors in the Sky. Her favorite colors were purple and pink. After she was killed in a bus accident, I think about her every time the sunset is full of purples and pinks. Sometimes I take photos of those sunsets, and other times I just pause and watch. I think some professional photographers forget that some of us find inspiration and joy in sunsets. It is not cliche if it means something to you.

I am thankful for beautiful sunsets that make me pause, and appreciate the painting God is putting on display for us.

I know I may be biased that my Minnesota sunsets are the best, but I have a couple of friends from North Dakota who would beg to differ! Head over to [j.l.d.] photograph blog to see her sunsets, then check out the Pinke Post for more.

To follow other 30 Day Blog Challenge participants, click here.

30 Days of Thanksgiving – Day 10: Reunions

CarolynCares Reunions

Growing up in a large, close knit family was awesome. On my dad’s side, we would get together for Christmases, graduations, Confirmations, birthdays, anniversaries, 4th of July parades, and reunions. We lived 3 hours away from my grandparents and the majority of dad’s family, so our trips typically started early, and ended late. There were many times when we would get home after 10:00 pm on a Sunday night. We never wanted those weekends to end.

This past January, I lost two uncles. My dad’s oldest brother, and the husband of dad’s oldest sister. Many of the cousins were at one or both of the funerals. We realized how much we missed seeing each other, and plans were made to have a reunion in August. We all felt we needed to gather for a happy occasion.

Over the course of the weekend, 73 members of the Bredlow clan descended on Thornton, Iowa to share stories, play games, and reconnect with one another. There are 65 of us in the photo above, taken by my cousin, Judy (check out her photography blog here). Looking at this crowd, and knowing that many members of this bunch were missing, was kind of amazing. I started counting, and I believe we number somewhere around the 99 to 100 mark now. I can just imagine my Grandpa and Grandma being so pleased, and loving every single one. That’s the kind of people they were.

When we get together, we are a little loud at times. We all like to chatter, and we all have pretty much the same sense of humor. If you can’t handle puns and sarcasm, you may not enjoy our gatherings as much. Some of us went on a tour of the places Grandpa and Grandma had lived. I had never been to the site of the last farm they owned, so that was super interesting to me. We also went to the two houses they lived in after they retired. So many memories of holiday gatherings, 4th of July parades, and summers spent with cousins came flooding back. After the tour, some went golfing, while others visited. We closed out our reunion on Sunday morning with a very meaningful worship service. I believe that our family is so close, and so strong due to the faith foundation that we have.

I am so thankful to be a part of this crazy family. We may not always agree on things – I mean, some of them are Packers fans if you can believe it – but when we get together, there is so much love. I am also thankful that we had a reunion this year. I can’t wait until the next one!

 

Want to connect with other 30 Day Challenge bloggers? Click here to find a current list if participating blogs.

30 Days of Thanksgiving – Day 8: Photography

CarolynCares Photography

I fell in love with taking photos when I purchased my very first digital camera. Before that, I would take the typical family snapshot at birthdays and on holidays, but wouldn’t really bother with photos of nature. Now, I keep looking for things to photograph.

The draw of photography for me, is trying to capture what I am seeing, to be able to share it with others. It is a very personal thing, really. I love putting on my winter gear to head outside and walk around the yard with my camera the morning after a blizzard. The patterns the wind and snow make are incredible. Trying to capture that beauty is a challenge. This fall, as I was getting out of the combine on night, I looked up and saw the Milky Way. That.Was.Awesome! Capturing the Milky Way with a camera is not easy. I have learned quite a few new things about night photography, but I still haven’t captured “the” photo yet. You’ll probably see it on my blog if I ever do!

There are times when I go through a dry spell, where my camera just sits in it’s bag. I find that I look at the world a little differently during those dry spells. I’m not noticing the little things. When I pick up the camera once again, I start thinking in terms of camera frames. I notice little details, and all sorts of patterns in nature. It fills me with awe when I look at tiny little flowers, or insects, or blades of grass. God made so many things uniquely beautiful. How can I say that He didn’t make me uniquely beautiful as well? I am so thankful for the gift of photography, and how it makes me look at the world, and at myself, with appreciation for the little things.

Want to follow along with other 30 Day Challenge bloggers? Head over to Holly Spangler’s blog for a current list of participating blogs.

Introduction to the 30 Day Challenge

 

30 Days of Thanksgiving – Day 1: Family

CarolynCares Family Blessing

The best decision I ever made, was to accompany my college friend on a night with her cousin and his friend. Her cousin was coming up to our small Christian college in the Twin Cities to introduce her to his friend. She was uncomfortable hanging out with two boys, even though one was a relative. Her solution was to invite me to tag along, since I pretty much had no social life. (Small campus, and I was quite shy at the time. Really!) My instructions were that if she liked her cousin’s friend, then I could hang out with her cousin. If she didn’t get along with him, than I could hang out with him. Either way, we all would have fun.

The night arrived, and I met both of these college guys for the first time. We started with small talk, then went for a walk around campus. I’m not really sure how my friend’s evening went with her cousin’s friend. I really didn’t care. Her cousin and I hit it off immediately.

Jonathan and I have now been married for 25 years. It hasn’t been easy, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything. When we were first married, and we moved into a tiny house on a gravel road in what seemed like the middle of nowhere, I had a bit of culture shock. If you have read the book, “How To Talk Minnesotan”, you would understand that moving to Southwest Minnesota was like moving to another state. Being three hours away from my family, friends, and church family, I was very dependent on Jonathan as a spouse and as a friend. We did a lot of growing up in the first few years of our marriage.

Jonathan is the calm one in our marriage. I am so thankful for his patience in teaching me how to run farm equipment, and for believing in me when I was sure I would fail miserably. After 25 years, that hasn’t changed a bit. I still hate not being perfect on the first try when I’m working outside with him. I like to worry and fret and get my undies all in a bundle. He reminds me that all we have are blessings from God. We can’t worry about what the weather is doing, if we have a breakdown, if the crops are not yielding as expected, or if the Vikings defense isn’t stopping the opponent on 3rd downs. He loves me unconditionally. That is the best gift!

We have three beautiful daughters, who bring such joy to our lives. I love when we are all together. Mealtimes bring laughter, jokes, and bad puns. The girls all have their own interests, yet they enjoy getting together as sisters and as friends. I am so thankful for each one of them. They make me a better person.

I am so thankful for this family of mine! We may be a bit nutty, we may get the giggles in church, and we may be a bit loud at times, but that is exactly how I like it.

Introduction to the 30 Day Challenge

Follow along with Holly Spangler here, and the rest of the 30 Day Bloggers below.

Wordless Wednesday – Halloween Before Pinterest

This is maybe a Semi-Wordless Wednesday… How did we find ideas for making Halloween costumes before the days of internet let alone before Pinterest? Thankfully, there were some good parent magazines, and Golden Story Books. We had three blonde little girls. When they were little we dressed them as the three little pigs one year, and the three blind mice another. Sadly, I can’t find a photo of the mice. So, here are the three little pigs:

The Three Little Pigs
The Three Little Pigs