Authors: Delia Parr
“I think retirement is at least twelve or fifteen years away, not two like we’d hoped. By then, these maps and brochures will all be badly outdated.”
“What about this summer when the girls are out of school? They’ll probably want to spend some time with the Carrs at the farm, but why couldn’t we take them on a short trip to see if they like sailing as much as we do? We could take a trip with them every summer. I know it’s not exactly what we planned to do originally, but it might be even better. The girls are young enough that we could actually go on that two-year, sail-around-the-world trip we wanted and take them with us. I could homeschool them. Just imagine what it would be like. They’d have the world as their classroom. History would come alive. They’d learn so
much more from experience, rather than reading a dull textbook.”
Laughing, he pulled her into his arms. “Slow down! You’re on fast-forward,” he teased. “Let’s take it one step at a time. There’s a boat show in Philadelphia next weekend. Why don’t we take Jessie and Melanie over to look at the sailboats?”
She smiled and patted his back, quite certain that they had both taken the most important step of all—the step toward reclaiming and living the faith that would sustain them for the rest of their days.
B
y custom, families across the nation celebrate Mother’s Day on the second Sunday in May. Also by custom, the Welleswood PTA hosts a Mother’s Day Breakfast that day. This year, however, the event that honored the women who loved and nurtured the children in the community went far beyond previous efforts.
Families and friends, neighbors and residents, as well as a choir of schoolchildren, welcomed women of all ages to the cafeteria at the high school for the first time to accommodate the largest number of attendees since the event began more than fifteen years earlier. Some women were mothers of biological or adopted children. Others were foster mothers, grandmothers, aunts, or cousins. Long-term caregivers or occasional babysitters were not overlooked. All but one senior woman from the Towers attended. Since she was in the hospital recuperating from surgery, she received a bouquet of flowers and a gift cer
tificate good for a free breakfast at The Diner whenever she was well enough to return home.
Beneath a rainbow canopy of paper flowers made by all the elementary school children in the district, everyone enjoyed a good meal together after Reverend Fisher said grace, and listened to a wonderfully funny speech given by the pastor’s wife, Eleanor. Exhilarated by their success, exhausted by their hours and hours of work, but extremely pleased by the whole affair, Barbara, Judy and Ginger gave a collective groan when the PTA President called them all up to the head table. They lined up together behind Pam and stood shoulder to shoulder. She asked the audience to stand and give the three women a round of applause that, once started, did not seem to have an end.
Ginger giggled and nudged Barbara’s shoulder. “You know what this means, don’t you?”
“I imagine we get to do this again next year,” she replied and leaned toward Judy. “Didn’t I warn you about doing a good job? You two better think of something quick, or Pam is going to ask us in front of everyone so we won’t turn her down.”
Judy craned her neck to get both Barbara and Ginger in her sights. “Don’t worry. I already told her we couldn’t possibly work on the breakfast next year.”
Ginger grinned. “I knew we could count on you. Just exactly what excuse did you use?”
“And when did you tell her?” Barbara added, still skeptical.
Judy laughed. “I told her yesterday. Right after I promised to convince both of you we would help the PTA Executive Board organize some events to raise money to
expand the after-school programs in each of the elementary schools.”
Barbara gasped. “You didn’t! All of the schools?”
Ginger groaned. “What kind of events?”
“As a matter of fact, I did. Yes, all of the schools. As for the events…” Judy waved her hand in the air and jingled the keys to Pretty Ladies. “As the proud, heavily-in-debt, new owner of my very own salon, I thought we could start with a special event where the salon would donate all the proceeds on a given event day to the after-school programs. That’s just one event I have in mind, though. I’m sure the two of you will be able to come up with others. It’ll be a snap.”
Ginger’s eyes widened. “A snap?”
“A snap? For whom?” Barbara huffed.
“For three grandmothers who can outwork, outthink, and outplan all of the men and most of the women in this room. We’re all grand mothers, too. Doesn’t that say it all?” Judy teased.
Absolutely.
A
ccording to the U.S. Census 2000, grandparents who are raising grandchildren under the age of eighteen are a growing phenomenon that is reality for more than two and a quarter million grandparents in the United States. Help for those grandparents is available online at a number of sites. I highly recommend the AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) Webplace, Grandparents Information, which is especially helpful, offering advice on different challenges and links to related Web sites. If you or someone you know is raising his or her grandchild, please visit
www.aarp.org
for further information.
The Shawl Ministry is not fictional. To learn more information about this loving ministry, please visit the official Web site at
www.shawlministry.com.
For those interested in recipes, below is the recipe for the Cinnamon Bubble Wreath. Recipes for other goodies are posted on my Web page,
www.deliaparr.com.
Enjoy!
Preheat oven: 350°
Ingredients:
¼ cup sugar
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
1 can (11 ounces) refrigerated French bread dough
1½ tbs. melted margarine or butter
Grease 9-inch tube pan. Combine sugar and cinnamon in small bowl. Cut dough into 16 slices and roll into balls. Roll balls in sugar-cinnamon mixture and fill tube pan. Bake 20–25 minutes or until golden brown. Note: For an extra treat, top with vanilla ice cream and sprinkle with caramel and crushed pecans.
During the writing of
Day by Day,
I relied heavily on friends and family for inspiration and information. They deserve all the credit, but I’ll take responsibility for any mistakes I may have made sharing their wisdom within the pages of this book.
Laurie Cohen, who owns the delightful Sweet Tooth Candies store in Collingswood, N.J., graciously explained the candy business to me. Laurie is an amazing woman of faith who truly does see operating her store as a ministry. I thank her for spending the afternoon with me, for showing me around Sweet Tooth Candies and for the bag of chocolates I ate on the way home!
My coworker and friend Monica Segrest is my colleague as well as a hairstylist who has made a very real difference in the lives of her clients and her community. I am very grateful for the time she spent giving me information about hairdressing as a career and a ministry.
Arlene B. Rubin, Esquire, is an outstanding school administrator, colleague and friend who provided answers about the legal system that kept me writing on the beach and saved me countless hours in a law library. Marty Barrett, security coordinator for our local school district, helped me learn the process of enrolling a grandchild in school.
In addition to my incredibly dedicated agent, Linda Kruger, I have a very talented family, who helped me a great deal. My daughter-in-law, Ileana, is a gifted family counselor who shared her professional understanding of children and family dynamics during the writing of this book. My sister, Carol Beth, as always, was my first line editor and shared her summer home with me again so I could write at the beach, and my sister-friend, Jeanne, never let me doubt I would finish the book by deadline. Pat and Joanne are always there if I need a word of encouragement, too.
And finally, my children: Matt, Brett and Liz. You are the real sunshine in my life.
Thank you, all. You are all such wonderful blessings!
ISBN: 978-1-4268-5339-5
DAY BY DAY
Copyright © 2007 by Mary Lechleidner
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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