Sunday's Song--Cannons

Cannons

It's falling from the clouds

A strange and lovely sound

I hear it in the thunder and rain

It's ringing in the skies

Like cannons in the night

The music of the universe plays

You are holy great and mighty

The moon and the stars declare who You are

I'm so unworthy, but still You love me

Forever my heart will sing of how great You are

Beautiful and free

Song of Galaxies

It's reaching far beyond the milky way

Lets join in with the sound

C'mon let's sing it loud

As the music of the universe plays

All glory, honor, power is Yours amen

All glory, honor, power is Yours amen

All glory, honor, power is Yours forever amen

--Phil Wickham, 2007

A Rainy Soccer Day

Wild horses couldn't have dragged me out of the safety and shelter of my van! Instead, I cowardly pulled into a parking space nearest to the field my son was playing on.

Futile attempts were made in digitally documenting the 1 1/2 hour game that, by the way, continued in a downpour of much needed rain. Had the sun been shining, I would have carried my weary carcass to the soccer field and cheered both teams on at this early morning game. I honestly love watching kids play soccer! The above image is the best shot I got from this morning, which was made as the storm subsided. (Raindrops blurred many goal shots of younger teams playing, and my son's team was too far for a decent, recognizable image!) Those brave souls! --LKR

Here We Go Again...

What started out as rain turned into heavy, wet snow by noon.Reports of cars in ditches were abundant, as were of branches snapping under the burdening pressure of a winter come too soon.By 6:30, plows rumbled through our country subdivision, ridding our road of a slushy mess. What will tomorrow bring? --LKR

Cold Front Blowing In...

The sick and twisted side of me laughed each time one of my three children ran out the door to wait at the bus stop.

"Burrrr!"

"Ah! It's COLD out there!"

"Ugh!"

If they weren't totally awake before they reached for the door knob at 6:44 am, they sure were by the time they stepped out through the door!

Don't worry, I had my moment too while running out to bring poochie back inside. "Ahhhh!" I shrieked as unexpected freezing pellet raindrops blew at me horizontally in the fiercely blowing wind.

How I long for warmer days after this cold front blows through, but I don't think we'll get it. If only we could migrate along with the birds and butterflies to warmer winter dwellings!!! --LKR

Early Mornings, Once Again!

It's that time of the year, once again. Back to (very early) mornings! I'm not a morning person, so this can be quite an ordeal. Fortunately, the sun is up by the time the bus arrives at the beginning (and end) of the school year. Not true for the rest of the year!

The bus was early, today, which was expected since they are only picking up middle schoolers. Tomorrow, high schoolers will be joining them on their early morning journey.

One nice thing about getting up before dawn is the chance to witness beauty in early morning light.

Dew, mist, and fog are awesome, too!

There's something really cool about dew that can't quite compare with rain. If the kids didn't have to get up so early, this is something I would have missed! --LKR

Hanging Out In The Rain

Well, last night, my oldest daughter and I were coming up with songs she could use for an English project to show rhythms, rhymes, and patterns (or lack of!). One song we both came up with was "Stand in the Rain" by Superchick. So this morning when I found myself still listening to this song in my head..., while watching the hummingbirds braving the rain out our patio door..., I just had to post!!!

This is the first in the almost five years we've lived here that our hummers have learned to "play nice" and actually share. I'm glad we've (finally!) "accomplished" comradery!!! --LKR

Rain, A Rainbow, and...Snow???

Riding home from swimming lessons with the kids, yesterday afternoon, was fun. We had all run--or walked quickly--through the rain to get to our van, and were close to being soaked. (it was a long walk!) As we were driving, the sky began to brighten. I urged the kids to search for a rainbow. "Where?" they asked? "Opposite the sun," I told them.

Turning onto our street, I instructed them to look toward our neighbor's house in the back yard. My son hopped out of the van and started searching the sky. "Over there!" he cried. Sure enough, one was beginning to form. All four of us watched as the rainbow became more vibrant right before our very eyes. I don't know about you, but I never tire from witnessing this phenomena, nor of remembering why the Lord put them there!

As my youngest daughter and I headed for the house, I turned around in time to see the raindrops glistening in the sunshine. It looked like a thousand little sparkling diamonds, and thankfully I still had my camera in hand to capture the moment before this disappeared!

Then this morning, Hubby broke the news that we had gotten snow over the wee hours of morning. My oldest daughter came in to say that it was still snowing before she and her brother headed out the door before 7AM. Monday, donned in tee shirts, refusing to wear their winter jackets, they stood waiting at the bus stop in 22F!!! They sure didn't do that this morning!!! --LKR

Cool Rain

Getting ready to watch our children's soccer game, we got a surprise sun shower. One of my friends excitedly told us to look up. The sun was hitting the raindrops as they were falling from the sky, making them look like dazzling crystals!

Pictures can't do justice to what we saw, but thanks to Daphne's prompting, I got this shot. You'll have to click on this image to better see the sparkling gems. --LKR

Julie's Lilies

Aren't these lovely? My friend Julie sent me seeds for these yellow lilies when we moved to Eau Claire almost four years ago. It was overcast, dark, and drizzling cold rain when I planted them, that September day. Since then, they have multiplied and really add their glowing beauty to the garden! --LKR

Here We Go Again!!!

The gusty winds are howling, and the presence of snow mixed with rain and sleet is threatening the very nature of spring! NOAA Weather Radio has cautioned it's listeners to make sure we're all still prepared for winter conditions.

Last night, possible blizzards were being predicted for the Duluth area. Closer to home, they're now saying we could get up to 5" of snow on Friday!!! While that remains to be seen, fellow cheeseheads are heeding the warning and have cancilled soccer games that were scheduled for Saturday.

I'm no where near as seasoned as the cheddarheads living up here in the north their whole lives, so I'll follow suit. I'd like to tell myself this is all a bad dream, or maybe click my heels together and whisper, "there's no place like home," but the cold sharp winds encountered when I brought poochie in was a rude awakening.

My kids ran all the way home from the bus stop after school. "It's hailing and snowing, and it hurts when it hits you!" they shrieked. And to think, my son almost left the house this morning wearing shorts!!! --LKR

We've Needed the Rain!

It's so strange--our grass looks greener than it did during the summer months due to the amount of rain we've had, these past weeks. With last night's showers, we got close to an additional inch of rain. If you don't look at the trees, it looks more like spring after a good soaking than fall! --LKR