It's the Little Things...

... that I'm thankful for.

Let me explain. Tuesday in preschool we made ice cream. Oooooo, it was yummy! The process wasn't completely painless though, and I mean that literally! Each child had his/her own bag to make their own ice cream. Well, after about 4 shakes, they asked in a chorus, "Is mine ready now, Miss Heather?" Wait a minute, didn't something like this happen once to me before? Ahhhh, yes, I remember now. Does "butter" ring a bell? (If not, read here.)

Well, Miss Heather ended up shaking bags for four very adorable preschool students who suddenly developed weak muscles. By the time the liquid had thickened to ice cream consistency, my fingers were rather cold. At least I think they were. You see, they were so numb that I could hardly feel them.

As I considered what to do for class today, I knew ice cream was on the "menu," but to be honest, I wasn't looking forward too much to making their ice cream, too, especially since I have a total of 12 preschool students on Wednesday. I figured I wouldn't have any fingers left at all!

Stopping at Walmart on the way home, I picked up the few things I needed and while taking a detour through the housewares department on the way to my destination, my eye was immediately drawn to an end cap filled with... you guessed it! ICE CREAM MAKERS! I was not expecting to see them in the store, let alone buy one. But the "Clearance" sign piqued my interest. I didn't see a price, so in my mind I determined the maximum I would be willing to pay for it. When I found a sales associate to scan the price, imagine my utter surprise when the price same up $6.00. $6.00??? Are you kidding me? I should take two at that price!

So today in preschool, I was once again excited because there were no frozen fingers in my future. Just some absolutely yummy, extremely delicious ice cream that I didn't have to make by hand!

Thank you, Jesus!

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At times, I'm amazed at God's timing, although I shouldn't be. On Monday, I received a call from a Cubbie leader saying she wouldn't be there Wednesday night. Not a major problem, since there are two leaders at most tables. Tuesday I had a similar message from another leader... I can't be there Wednesday night. Okay, no need for panic. We'll be fine. A while later, I heard from yet another leader that she had to be gone for a few minutes tonight to speak to another group. Okay, that's three leaders. I think I'll stop answering my phone now.

After school today when I was in my "Cubbie prep mode," I had a call from a friend of mine. Her first words?? "Do you need any help in Cubbies tonight?"

(Enter complete and utter shock here!)

Why, yes, I definitely do need help tonight!

She then proceeded to tell me that she'd felt a nagging today to call me. Coincidence? I don't think so! God knew exactly what help I would need tonight. Not that God "nags" us to do anything, but in His own sovereign way, He impressed upon Katie the need to call me to volunteer herself... AND her husband!

Exactly ten minutes later (yes, I checked the time on my phone), Cubbie leader #3 called to say her son has pink eye, so she wouldn't be coming tonight. Once again, God took care of my needs even before I knew what they were! As Cubbies started tonight, one parent asked, "Do you have anyone to replace the leader at the purple table? Do you want me to help?"

I had three leaders gone tonight, and three people randomly volunteered to help. Let me rephrase that... I don't think it was "random" at all. It was totally God taking care of my needs even before I knew I would have a need! Isn't God great?!?!

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So today I'm thankful for the little things... things like ice cream makers and volunteers! What are you thankful for?

Camping 2009... the Continuing Story

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and with all the pictures on this post, I figure I'm saving my fingers a lot of typing!


Meet Marv... AKA Dad, Papa, Male Parental Unit... the brains behind the Lutterman campsite setup. With his step ladder and millions hundreds of feet of rope in tow, there was barely a square inch of our dwelling that wasn't kept dry for lack of tarps overhead. Thanks, Dad!

These two handsome boys are Micah and Ryan. How do you keep them out of trouble the dirt while camping? Rides in the stroller with Auntie Rah, of course! We put on a few miles, I'm sure.


Callie, Ashleigh, Samantha, and Natalie entertained themselves with Barbies, group excursions to the bathroom, playing games, reading, soccer, and exploring.

Have I mentioned that McCarthy Beach State Park is our family's favorite spot to camp? Surrounded by beautiful tall trees, amazing sand beach, and brilliant stars at night, who can help but love it! But perhaps the best thing about our little piece of heaven is the gold mine we discovered down the road years ago. A small gas station that serves ice cream! Two scoops of the delicious, mouth-watering, icy treat in a sugar or plain cone will only set you back $1.25 (the single scoop price). The kids have learned that camping = ICE CREAM CONES!

Don't get me wrong... the adults love them too, although you wouldn't really know it by the look on Dad's face!




On Wednesday of our camping week, Ryan turned 2. Although the day was rainy and cold, we managed to have a party, complete with balloons, cupcakes, and well, of course, ice cream! We also celebrated Samantha's birthday because we weren't able to be there for her party in KC.

Here are a few pictures of the week at camp... hanging out, playing games, cooking, roasting marshmallows...









This year we had electric hook-up in our campsite, so we made full use of that. Some things we brought... night lights, crock pot, electric cooler, icicle lights to decorate our sites, laptop with DVD player! Because we had a lot of rain during our camping week, the kids spent time in the tents watching DVDs to keep them entertained. It was a nice diversion for them, since the weather wasn't very cooperative.


For the last couple years, my sisters and I have exchanged tacky gifts. There doesn't have to be a special occasion to receive or give a tacky gift... just being together is occasion enough for us. Erin brought Samantha's swim goggles camping, and Becky found a gem at the dollar store to give Erin. The combination is beyond words...

I don't ever remember a time when we cut a camping trip short because of the weather, but this year was so rainy and cold that we came home a couple days early. Camping at Gramma & Papa's house wasn't too bad. We still had some of the ambiance of "real" camping, and we were able to stay out of the rain and cold when it hindered our outside fun. Here are Callie, Natalie, and Ryan playing trains with Papa. Who is enjoying it more?

Does this answer the question?

We did have a campfire a couple times, so we were able to roast hot dogs and marshmallows in between the raindrops.

Lutterman family camping wasn't complete without several games of baseball and kickball. I think the kids beat the adults, but we had a lot of fun.

Time at Gramma's house isn't complete until the girls have had a tea party. Samantha was the host, since she was the birthday girl. A delicious meal of turkey, ham, cheese, dinner rolls, crackers, grapes, jelly beans, cookies, and of course tea lemonade, served from Great Great Great Gramma Minnie Randolph's tea service.

And with that, I end the Lutterman Camping 2009 saga... I still typed a novel, didn't I? If I didn't have the pictures, it could have been a series!

Thankful Thursday

As usual, I have so much to be thankful for, but these things pop into my mind...

Right now, I'm thankful for peanut butter (the stuff that hasn't been recalled). It makes the ice cream I'm eating taste so much better.

Webcams are a great invention, aren't they? I'm glad I was able to "see" my sister and her family in Kansas City tonight.

Today was an absolutely gorgeous day. To walk outside and feel the warm sun on my face, not the cold Arctic air we're used to during a Minnesota winter... it was a great promise of the coming spring, even if it's a few months away.

My family has always been important to me. We enjoyed a wonderful Christmas together, and even though everyone is gone back to their homes now--Erin to Kansas City, Becky to Two Harbors, and Grandma to Alaska--we have wonderful memories to keep with us until we're all together again.

The other day at school, I was grading a student's work. She had to write sentences using a certain vocabulary word. The word was influence. Every once in a while, I am surprised at the thought that the students put into their work, because it's not too often they wow me with their love for writing sentences. Anyway, after a couple hard days last week, it was very reassuring to me to read her sentence and know that maybe some of the things I'm trying to teach them are really getting through. Her sentence... Miss L. has had great influence in my education. Not a hugely (is that a word?) profound sentence, but I was very touched and thankful to God for those "little" things that give confidence and remind me that God is working in my life to influence the students in my class.

What are you thankful for today?