So Sad

For the last 2 days, my heart has been aching.  A very good friend, Mark Scott, went fishing by himself on a lake called Jack The Horse lake in northern Minnesota and he never came back.  They found his canoe and a cap but they have not found him.  He was a wonderful man who loved God and his family very much.  My heart hurts for them so very much.  Our small church as a whole is hurting knowing we have lost this wonderful friend.  He was a strong healthy man.  It just makes me so aware that this life we have is so very fragile.  We are not promised one more day, not even one more minute. 

Then last night I found out that my little granddaughter Abbe has contracted Lyme Disease again.  That makes me hurt.  I hope and pray that it was caught soon enough that the medicines that she is taking will let her return to being fully healthy again and that no part of her body has been compromised. 

So if you read this blog, say a prayer for Mark's family and for my granddaughter Abbe.

Thank you and God bless

We All Should Know This

JULY 4th


Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.

Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.

Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army;

Another had two sons captured.

Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?
Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.
Eleven were merchants,
Nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated.

But they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if
they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the
British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly.
He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Rutledge, and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed.The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying; their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his Children vanished.

So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots.

It's not much to ask for the price they paid.

Remember: freedom is never free!

It's time we get the word out that patriotism Is NOT a sin, and the Fourth of July has more to it than beer, picnics, and baseball games.

“A government big enough to give you everything you want, is big enough to take away everything you have.” - Thomas Jefferson

Fun Facts, History and Trivia about Independence Day

· Independence Day was first celebrated in Philadelphia on July 8, 1776.

· The Liberty Bell sounded from the tower of Independence Hall that day summoning citizens to gather for the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence by Colonel John Nixon.

· When John Hancock had signed the Declaration of Independence with that well-known bold signature, he is supposed to have said, “King George ought to be able to read that!”

· The first public Fourth of July event at the White House occurred in 1804.

· The names of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were withheld from the public for more than six months to protect those who signed. If independence had not been achieved, the treasonable act of the signers would have, by law, resulted in their deaths.

· It was not until 1941 that Congress declared the 4th of July as a federal legal holiday.

· In July 1776 the estimated number of people living in the newly independent nation was 2.5 million.

· There is a greater than 1 in 4 chance that the hot dogs or pork sausages consumed on the Fourth of July originated in Iowa. The odds are 1 in 3 that your side dish of baked beans originated from North Dakota.

The Declaration of Independence was approved in wording by the Continental Congress on July 2, 1776.On July 4, the delegates voted to accept it. On the day between, July 3, 1776, John Adams wrote to his wife, Abigail: I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty.

2011 Annual Moteberg Reunion At The Lake

The Saturday before the 4th of July the Motebergs gathered for the annual reunion.  How blessed the family is to have Mark, Lynne and Geri invite us all to the lake for the weekend.  Most come for just a day but several come for the weekend.  It is so good to see everyone.  Most of us live within the Twin Cities area, but just don't make a point of getting together. 

The sad part is that each year, that the children of Gilbert O and Lily Moteberg, show their age more and move slower and slower.  But hey, at least we are still here and kicking.  Of course the kids are all growing bigger too.  This picture below is of great-grand children of Gilbert and Lily and there is even a great great grandchild in the mix.  Some in this picture are friends of the great grand kids.

 Eric and Kim were not able to make it this year, so we brought Josiah with us to represent them.  He had a blast playing in the water and with the other kids.

 Corey, Emma's friend, is getting a fishing pole ready for Luke.  Emma doesn't look too excited about it.  I don't think that is really it, I just caught her in a strange pose.

 Maurissa had been camping a couple of weeks earlier and had a bad reaction to the sun, so she was staying pretty much at shore.  She did go out on the jet ski, but I didn't get my camera out to capture it.

So this is just a synopsis of that wonderful Saturday spent with the Moteberg Clan

A birthday celebration

In the month of June it was Jim's daughter and grandson's birthdays.  So we had them over for dinner one night.  It was a beautiful night and we sat on the deck and visited for about 5 hours.  It was a great time.

This is a picture of his daughter and grandson.

Target Field

For Father's Day, Eric and Kim gave Jim 2 tickets to tour the Twins new home stadium, Target Field.  I tell you it is quite impressive.  Every thing is pretty much top of the line and very much fan orientated.

This picture below is the visitors club house.  Pretty swanky.  We were not allowed into the Twins club house as the players keep personal stuff there and are in and out for therapy, etc. But we saw pictures of it, and well, the visitors club house is a couple of notches down.

 We got to sit in the Twins dugout

 Around the outside of the stadium, there are statues of players that have said "Twins" over the years.  Here I am posed with my favorite, Harmon Killabrew.

 This is just a snap shot of the stadium. 

While we were there we bought tickets to a Tigers/Twins game.  Those seats are almost right below from where I took this picture in the lower level.  We tease Kim and Eric, telling them the day was very expensive for us.  Jim being a Tigers fan and me a Twins fan, many think it might be impossible for us to attend a Twins/Tigers game, but I assure them that we can behave in public!!