Well the Garden is in. We will be having 42 tomato plants, 36 peppers, 7 rows of Beans and Peas, plus 4 rows of lettuce and beets. Can not wait!!!

Wow!!  Can you truly believe that it is already May 1st.  I can not believe where this last year has gone.  This has been a year.  It is official we are now at 22 more days tell we have been at Parkview for a year.  What a year!!  It is truly a blessing to be a part of the home for such a great year.  There has been a huge amount of stuff though we got through together as a family.  A birthday for everyone First of every holiday first traditional fundraiser of everything moving 3 new people in.  Getting the yard ready for summer, right after seeing what comes up in the spring!!  What a great year.

Yesterday was Mike’s Birthday and we had a great time celebrating in the morning with Strawberry cake for Breakfast, 8th St Birthday huddle and cup cakes, and followed by a spaghetti supper with Blue Moon Ice cream for desert. Mike’s mom even came and joined the fun last night We had a great time and are truly blessed to have Mike living at Parkview!!

Enjoy

I was not sure if I was going for Lions, Tigers, and Bears! Or Planes, Trains, and Automobiles but they both sound good. So lets say Both!!

Sherrie took everyone out to her Cousins – Cal and Kim.
Once there at Bill’s Greenhouses they enjoyed seeing all the pretty flowers. But the fun did not stop there…there were also PUPPIES!!!!! Everyone loved holding the puppies and giving them kisses, hugs, and smells. (Who does not like puppy??) After the puppies were loved on it was time for a surprise and we got to see the huge room with trains all over and tracks to wove through the room. The trains even whistled and blew smoke!!

This morning we all packed up for a very busy morning and afternoon. Howard, Mike, Tom, and John all walked to Milt’s this morning with Big Mike to get Mike and Tom’s haircut. While there Howard decided that Milt looked sad and sang him a song in Dutch. (I would have to say Howard was the only one who knew what he was singing ). Then everyone home left to go out to Christine’s niece’s Greenhouse to get flowers for the front of the house. The flowers are beautiful!! Even the ones we brought home with us. On the way back we decided to have some lunch at On the Border!! What a great day. Enjoy the pictures.

Wow!!  Spring here at Parkview has truly been amazing on so many levels!!  Running has been one of our new found activities that we are really liking. Erin, Mike, Travis, and Mary all joined Special Olympics Track and Field and love it.  We are also training for a 5K race that we want to run before the end of the year.

The Gem’s girls from 1st Reformed stop by and donated bubbles, towels, coloring books, crayons, and story books.  All of the towels were welcomed with smiles and great acceptance.  They also enjoying talking with Linda and Christine and learning about the different crafts we are making for the Craft Shows this spring and summer.

Saturday night we were outside and heard something in the distance, the Ice Cream truck!  John and Travis went running the down the drive way to flag the truck down while I ran into the house to get the camera and money.  They had a great time and were waving both arms in the air at the end of the drive when they saw the truck all the way infront of First Reformed church.  Many smiles from all.  Who complains about ice cream?  I surely do not.  Followed by the first campfire of the year and many smiles from Parker.

We also have inherited many hours of yard work this spring.  From the 1000 bulbs of Daffediols we pulled out of the ground and replanted to the shrubs that Ben came over and pulled out of the back shrub line we didn’t know was ours.  The lot is starting to look loved by the family who lives on it.  Thank you to everyone helping

 

To see the pictures go to -

http://parkviewafchome.shutterfly.com/pictures/3317

http://parkviewafchome.shutterfly.com/pictures/3329

 

We have started and the day will never end of Donating our time, Donating our money, Donating our life to Build God’s Glory!!

 

Mike and I sat last night and again reflecting on that just 1 year ago to the day we were getting ready to leave Minnesota at 9pm at night just barely enough money to come out to Michigan for an interview to our new possible life.  We left Minnesota at 9pm that night and drove straight through the night in a truck Big Mike was not sure would even make it out here and make it back.  There were things wrong with the Truck Physically, engine wise, and God willing enough money for gas to make everything work.

Thursday Morning we arrived at the Hampton Inn where Parkview had gotten us a room for 2 nights.  It was 8:30am and our room was not ready but we were exhausted.  After checking in with the desk clerk we found out the soonest they could have a room ready for us would be 12pm.  We had been driving all night through Minnesota, Wisconsin, Chicago, and Michigan to get to Zeeland, waiting tell noon did not sound like a great idea.  So we called Dana.   She met us at the house in jeans and sweatshirt with Mike and I still having sleepers and blood shot eyes.  We walked into the home and saw the house and met Cheryl Johnson.  What a great home was all we could keep saying.  By 10:30am the room was ready we saw the house and were excited to return for Supper that night. Bedtime!!  That night we came back to the home for dinner and time to meet everyone (We were sold!!!)

Friday was our interview with lots of tears and many stories, followed by lunch at S&P.  We all know how the story goes from there.

Big Mike and I truly do love our donated live Parkview at this time.  We love our new family, life, home, and job (if I could put job in smaller letters they would be very faint and small).  This truly is not our job it is our life, family, home, and journey!!

Thank you everyone for all your continued prayers for Parkview!!

Blessings – Gretchen

Tonight we were all sitting around the table working on Crafts for the Craft Shows. Ted was working tieing the strips for the bathroom rugs. Linda was cutting the strips. Howard was ripping the strips. Nick was watching a movie. Big Mike was making the styrophom wreaths. I was cutting the circles. Christine was pinning the felt on the wreaths and Erin was supervising. When Big Mike walked into the room he did not see Erin right away. He yelled out “Where is our Superviser Erin?”
“Get to work Slacker!!” Erin yells from the living room.
Then Christine states without missing a beat “Who are you talking to? Herself?”

We all started laughing!!

Love this family and our family times.

So I went back tonight to an old blog I had written in 2010 when we were living in Minnesota.  I truly feel this blog is not only a great blog but a story of honesty, compassion, and truth.  After reading this blog you will understand not only Big Mike and I’s heart more but you will also understand the Lord’s heart I was taught my whole life by truly just living God’s life not the life of the world.

“There are things in life you can plan for, prep for, and even pray for but what God’s timing is always God’s timing.  My sister was married on July 16th, 2010. It was on that day which Grandpa and Grandma Johannes were present and looking very happy and proud. 1 1/2 weeks later I stopped in to see how they were doing and they were still talking about the wonderful wedding and all the beauty the day had brought. Now 3 1/2 weeks later we are all at their house to celebrate Grandma’s life as we say our final good-byes. I do not care how much you plan for the final good-bye of your 91year old grandmother but it never is easy. There are so many wonderful memories and all I have been praying for the last 6 months is Mike and I will be able to share the joy of adding to her family. And now the time has come where the good-byes are in line and there is no joy to share with her. We went to the house on Tuesday with the rest of my family to see, pray, and just enjoy Grandma. It was amazing and everything I could even imagine happened. Yes there were tears but there was also laughter. Yes there was food and way to much of it. Yes the family was there but not everyone due to family in other states. Yes there was a wonderful women and man who have shown their family how to love, how to give, how to share, how to care, how to serve, how to eat, and how to come together to embrace eachother. Grandma has not left us yet to care for her daughter in heaven just yet but the days draw to an end.
After a full morning and afternoon of: tears, boiling corn, cutting corn, freezing corn, completing a baby gift, and quite time were all complete it was time to find something else to do to help with the tears of sadness. I called up my dear friend Yvette who came and got me for afternoon and evening of retreat. We went to the coffee shop and just talked and crochet’d some more. Once back at her place to pick up Mike, I felt a strong earge to stay with her. We stayed up late trying to find a song which I have been hearing on the radio but did not know the words or the singer. After around 3 hours of looking we finally found the song and now I know why. The song is “Love Has Come” by Mark Schultz. As we listened to the song I loved the beat. Then once we put the lyrics up I realized why the song was so important for me to find.

Love Has Come
by: Mark Schultz

Well , I know this life is filled with sorrow
And there are days when the pain just lasts and lasts
But I know there will come a day
When all your tears are washed away with a break in the clouds
His glory coming down and in that moment

Every knee should bow, every tongue confess
That God is love and love has come for us all
Every heart set free, everyone will see
That God is love and love has come for us all

For anybody who has ever lost a loved one
And you feel like you had to let go too soon
I know it hurts to say goodbye
But don’t you know it’s just a matter of time till the tears are gonna end
You’ll see them once again and ate that moment

Every knee should bow, every tongue confess
That God is love and love has come for us all
Every heart set free, everyone will see
That God is love and love has come for us all

Oh, and on that day we will stand amazed
At our Savior, God and King
Just to see the face of Amazing grace
As our hearts rise up and sing

Glory, glory Hallelujah
Thank You for the cross
Singing Glory, Glory, Hallelujah
Christ has paid the Cross

Every knee should bow, every tongue confess
That God is love and love has come for us all
Every heart set free, everyone will see
That God is love and love has come for us all

After hearing and seeing these words I knew why it was so important for me to have this song. I love this song and will continue to sing this song as we go through the next hours, days, weeks, months, and events. I need to realize there are reasons for everything in life. Nothing happens unexpectedly. God knows what He is doing and why He is doing it, we just need to wait for our tickets at the train station.

I finish with this, Every person in life is chosen for a purpose in life no matter their age of death, size or clothes, journeys of life, attitudes in life, and many more. God knows what you are going to do before you even think about doing it, why not do what you are to do. Love!!!! That is the only thing He has asked us to do. I was just told tonight by a friend in Romans 13 it talks about God died on the cross for our sins and our trials in life. The only payment we owe to him is love. Grandpa and Grandma J were the prime example of just that. It did not matter what you did in your life time they always loved you and did not hold anything againist you. You are your worse critic. Just love on everyone else and you will live, treat, show, serve, and raise your child differently then you did before you just loved. I praise God for all the great memories in life with Grandma. She made it to the last event she was waiting for, Katie’s wedding. God knew everyone would be there to see Grandma one last time and the last family potrait was taken.

“Lord I thank you tonight for everything you have shown me through Grandma J. I thank you for all the wonderful people she has helped in her life, and all the wonderful people has touched. At this time I ask you help me and the people around Grandma to go out and live the life she did and be a prime example of how great you can be when you just follow Romans 13 and love!!”

I love you all very much!

My Grandmother died in November of that year and to this day I reminded of her daily living with my family.  God knew what he was doing!!  I love because I was loved.  Thank-you friends, family, acquaintances, and Parkview for allowing us to follow Romans 13 and show love, be love, and simply LOVE!

Gretchen

Wow what a day!! Today was great. We started the day with work outside Christine and I pulled lots of weeds out of the flower bed next to the park. After that it was Lunch time followed by the NCAA Division III Girls Basketball competition.

We arrived at the game and found the tickets that were given to us for free. The seats were great!! Close to the court and on the bleachers with not many people around us. That just meant we could spread out and no one would have to be upset because someone looked, touched, or bumped them. (God knew it would have been a long 2 games if there were not enough room.)

Once everyone was situated in their seats it was time to see who was going to be playing that day. I looked ahead to the teams and noticed the team who was playing was St. Thomas! For those Michigan readers that is a private school in Minnesota. History – I looked at attending St. Thomas for my degree in Special education but decided to go to Dana (in Blair Nebraska) instead. Enough history for today. So we were listening to the line-up for the game and Big Mike and I kept hearing Minnesota towns being called and we were excited to have home here in Michigan. After 2 or 3 girls were called I heard something I will never forget, “Maggie Weiers from New Prague Minnesota”. (History class – New Prague is the town I graduated from. The town when I attended school was only 5,000 people. There were just over 200 in my graduating class, you knew everyone. Well the Weiers’ family is a bigger family in town and the Skluzacek’s, my maiden name, were just the same big.) It was great to the hear the name. I texted my mom right away to let her know what had happened. At the half I walked over where I had spotted Maggie’s mom, Patty, and brother, Joe. I introduced myself and they knew but were a little on the confused side of why I would be there in Holland, Michigan watching the game. It was at that time I told them Big Mike and I were living in Zeeland at an AFC home with 11 adults with disabilities. They thought it was really cool we were doing that and they even watched Mike play during the half time show the day before and loved it!! Well St. Thomas ended up winning their game and we were able to celebrate a win for a team we felt apart of. St. Thomas ended up getting 3rd place in Division III

After the first game was over it was time for supper, if that is what you would call it. Everyone was very excited to be eating hot dog and diet pop or Nacho’s and a diet pop. After everyone was done eating it was time for the championship game. The teams were both very good and a very close game. We enjoyed watching the teams play very hard. Big Mike was cheering for the Bruins – the blue ones and Gretchen was cheering for the Titans – the white ones. I truly feel this will be the only time that I will cheer for a green a white team and Big Mike will cheer for a blue team

After the game was over they announced the MVP and the outstanding players from the Division III. If you are making a prediction you would be right by saying that Maggie was given an award for outstanding player!! It was a great moment. After awards were completed we started walking everyone out of the arena to go to the van. We sent Big Mike ahead to get the van. As we were walking out of the arena I noticed again that the Weiers’ were all standing around by the entry way. I went up to Patty and told her congratulations on the win and that I hoped they had a great time in Holland, MI. She then also replied they had a great time and it was wonderful to see us. Patty then asked if everyone would like to meet Maggie. Excitement hit there faces!! Maggie took time to meet everyone, give hugs, and even take some pictures, Priceless. On the way out of the building Mike was very worried about if the team would have enough food to eat when they got done with the game and how long they would have to be in the plane on the way to Minnesota tomorrow morning. Erin was giddy and wanted to make sure she told her sister how cool it was they she got to meet a real basketball player!! She just thought it was so cool! The excitement climbed from everyone in the van all the way home.

Big Mike and I would just like to say thank – you to the NCAA Division III for their outstanding support, love, and integrity they showed not only on the court but off the court. They truly did make a difference in someone’s life. Thanks for all you do.

Enjoy the pictures they are priceless.