June and July (Time with all our family - in Arkansas and in Texas)

On June 9th, Mackie turned 7!💙

June 11th, we joined others from our church at Skylark Cafe in Leslie, AR.  Always good food and fellowship!

Josh, Michelle and Saylor stopped in Conway and spent the night with us on their way to NWA to take Saylor to spend the week with her other Grandma and cousins (she would return a week later to spend a week with us) 💗

She's our "toothless" Say!😂

Happy Father's  Day to Jeff, Josh Andy and Jonathan!  Thankful for each one!

Josh and Michelle were on their way back to TN on Father's Day, so they stopped in Conway and ate lunch with us💙💙

Please join me in praying for my dear friend, Mary Mooney. Paul and Mary are Jeff and I’s longest friendship (as couples) that has spanned 53 years. While we were still dating, I convinced Jeff to go with me to a little mission church in downtown Pittsburg as I knew the missionary pastor and wife from my childhood. It was the best decision we made as that young dating couple. The Mooney’s took us under their wing and we became family! Paul baptized Jeff and put him to work in that church plant and then mentored him in the faith. We had so much fun with them….late night trips to Joplin and elsewhere to eat watermelon (after breaking into Mary’s sisters house to get a knife), going to church camp together; traveling together to meetings; surprising Mary in the middle of the night (those who know that story can laugh with us😂) and so much more!

Paul started out as our first Pastor as a married couple and then we came full circle in 2009 when Jeff became their Pastor at FBC, Galena, KS. When we got word on June 18th that Mary was diagnosed with a serious brain tumor and was very ill, we knew we had to go see her that day in the hospital in Joplin, MO. It brought much joy to our hearts to gather in that hospital room with Mary and Paul and their children, Becky, Craig, and Paula (who I’ve always referred to as my first baby as she was around 3 or 4 and we would take her home with us many Sunday afternoons) and also other family members, daughter-in-law Angie and granddaughter Heather. Jeff even got Mary to laugh at some of those old memories.

The next day, Mary was transported to Barnes Hospital in St. Louis to remove the tumor. After a week or more in St. Louis, she was transferred to Freeman East in Joplin for recovery. She is now home. They will meet with an oncologist soon to discuss plans for her future. Thank you for praying for our friend!❤️🙏❤️

We love you all, Mooney family, and are praying!

Praying over Mary in the hospital room in Joplin

Jeff and I walked this journey with our friends Mike and Karen Meier during our ministry in Galena.  Definitely a tough, tough road ahead!  We also are praying for good friends in our church, Steve and Gwen Styles as Gwen also has had a brain tumor removed and undergoing treatments.🙏💞🙏  

On Monday, June 23rd, Jeff went and picked up Eisley in Little Rock.  Then together, we all met Saylor and her Nana in Clarksville to exchange her for the week ahead.

I had asked Eisley to spend the week with us to help me entertain Saylor.  I'm definitely feeling my age these days (with my shoulder, etc.) and knew it would be much more fun for Say to have her cousin here.  And it was!!💗

Nana (Sheila) and her youngest grandchild.

Proud of our daughter-in-law, Michelle, in advocating for children in the TN area!

And proud of Andy and his family, who are "living" the life of ministry in Texas.  This was the week of VBS and the whole family was involved!

Back to the girls.....we had a full, fun week!

Making brownies for the pool party later that day.

Enjoyed going to LR and using the McCrary's nice pool.

Really nice just visiting with Rachel and Jonathan while the kids swam. Life is so busy anymore that those times are rare. Rachel did take us by her school that she has been working so hard on for 6+ weeks getting it all set up for her Art classes.

Our days were full of game playing, watching/joining in on DeDe's shoulder exercises, cooking, watching movies, etc.!

June 25th was Josh and Michelle's 10th Wedding Anniversary💖💖

On Thursday of the week the girls were with us, I took them out to the Aultman's for "A Day at the Farm" with Landri.  They had so much fun!

First time for either girl to ride a horse (and they sure did love it)

Saylor told me on the way home, she wanted to live there!💗

One morning, Eisley made us pancakes

Saylor said they were delicious (and they were!)

On their last day together, they helped me "clean" house as Josh and Michelle were coming from TN and Eisley's family from LR for a roast meal that evening.

They were great helpers!💚💜

Cuties💖

Saylor was sure glad to be reunited with her parents!

We enjoyed having her!

On July 3rd, we headed to Texas to spend the holiday with Andy's family and Rachel's family.

It was the McCrary's first time to visit the Swarts in Texas.  All the kids stayed with Andy & Carman for 3 nights and Jeff and I and Rachel and Jonathan got hotel rooms nearby.

On the evening of July 3rd, we went to Keller for their fireworks show.

Laine was across the street from us with a group of her friends, so thus wasn't in the pictures.

It was a fun night and the weather was perfect (unbelievable for Texas in July--high 70's)!

Carman's friend and family were out of town, so they offered their pool to us.  We took advantage of it on two occasions.  So nice!

Copeland was struggling with some ear problems, so the second day we went to swim, he first played games with us (Jonathan, Rachel, Carman and myself).  He eventually did get in the pool💚

It was so cool, us adults were able to sit on the patio and watch the kids swim and didn't even get hot!

This was on another day.  Jonathan took this picture......to show how spoiled Gus is😉

Gus is definitely a pretty doggie!

July 6th is Jonathan and Rachel's 13th Wedding Anniversary! 💘

We all went to church together on Sunday at The Mount.  Andy is on Sabbatical during the month of July, so he didn't preach that day but it was a great service.  We had gone a day or two earlier so Rachel's family could tour the church and facilities.  It's a great church and ministry there in Keller, TX!  God is definitely blessing!

We did miss our TN Swart's.  But it's a "long ways" from Tennessee to Texas and both Michelle and Josh had work commitments and couldn't come this time.

Sunday afternoon meant it was time to say goodbye for the cousins.  The McCrary's were going to continue their vacation in the DFW area and Jeff and I would then stay in Andy's home for a few days.

I'm so glad they love each other!💕💕

Andy and Carman was able to take the afternoon and overnight to celebrate their 20th anniversary😍!  So we had the kids Sunday night and Monday.  We drove to an El Fenix for dinner that night.

Monday, Laine started a 3 week drama/musical day camp.  So the kids and I played games and then I took them to Kid Mania to run off some energy!

It was pajama day - which meant half price.  This boy got hot in his pj's!

Shep FINALLY turned over the #10 card and he wanted his picture 😂

It was a wonderful family visit and so thankful for Andy and Carman hosting us, all the groceries and delicious meals!  
July 9th is their 20th Wedding Anniversary!  Big Milestone!💖💖

As I've mentioned before -- I've been going to PT for 11 weeks (since the second shoulder surgery).  This place felt like home away from home.  On July 10th, I completed that task, at least as far as insurance was concerned (but will continue to do daily exercises at home as my shoulder is not healed yet).  I got a steroid shot a couple of days before going to TX in a very stubborn scar tissue area.  It's definitely NOT been fun!

This was my great OT, Jessica.  She was very good in my therapy, and I recommend her if you are needing OT.

Jeff turns 72 on July 15th💙!  He has sure enjoyed being fully retired and is doing so much better physically and mentally.  He has been privileged to teach two S.S. classes the last few months (one at 8 and one at 10).  Teaching is his passion, and he is loving it.  He finally figured out that the medication he was taking for Meniere's was actually causing him to have much worse vertigo!!  This was the medication that the "Meniere's Specialist" put him on 😔.  Once he stopped it, he hasn't had a spell👏.  He is scheduled for back surgery, July 28th, at Baptist in LR.  Our prayer is that it will help him to finally get off the walker.  We appreciate your prayers as well.

To close out this post, I want to write about the terrible tragedy in South Texas over the 4th.  Flooding waters claimed the lives of over 120 (as of this writing) with 170 still missing.  Many of those were children from the camps on the Guadalupe River.  This was one cabin at the Christian Camp Mystic and I believe all those campers/counselor lost their lives (the girls were 7/8 years old).  Heartbreaking💔💔!  The stories we are seeing on the news of loss, devastation, survival, heroism, and hundreds of volunteers working to find the victims is so, so touching! 

It's a reminder of the fragility of life and to never take our loved ones for granted.  So thankful that there is a God who loves us and loves each of these children (and the many others who also lost their lives in the flood).  We must trust Him, even when we do not understand the why.  All who have been affected by this great tragedy have been and will continue to be in my prayers!