Today I am thankful for propane and electricity. Most days I tend to take those things for granted. Today I am thankful I have access to both. It is very cold here in Blaine. The high of 27' and an expected low of 16' tonight means a very cold motor home without propane and/or electricity. We usually just heat the motor home with a small electric heater. We actually have two but we can only run one at a time. So during the day when we are up and about we run the heater in the living room facing it towards the kitchen. When we go to bed, we turn the one in the living room off and turn the one on in the middle of the rig and face it towards the bedroom.
We usually use the propane furnace to just take the chill off first thing in the morning and when we come home from being gone for any period of time. Well, since Saturday we have been running the furnace quite a bit. Our plan was to fill the propane tank when we left to go sell Christmas trees. Saturday I happened to check the level and it was getting down into the top of the red so Ron made a trip to the storage unit to get our little propane tank (like one used on a gas grill). I am so thankful he did because when he came home from Ferndale earlier today we had totally run out of propane out of the tank in the motor home. He quickly hooked up the little tank and made it all toasty in here.
With the weather as cold as it has been the little electric heaters just can't keep the motor home warm.
Thank you Lord for the men who invented the use of electricity and how to make propane. Thank you Lord too, for a husband who is handy and knows how to switch out tanks.
Selling Christmas Trees ~~~
We are going to be selling Christmas trees for Noel's Christmas Trees at the Aurora Marketplace Safeway parking lot. The address is 23632 Highway 99, Edmonds, WA. You take exit 179 off of I5 and go west on 220th. Go to Highway 99 and turn left. (I think it is the 3rd or 4th stoplight.) The parking lot for Safeway is on the right about 2 1/2 miles from 220th. We are in the corner. You won't be able to miss us. Our hours start on Wednesday, November 24th and go thru December 24th at 5:00 p.m. Monday thru Friday the hours are 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. and Sunday's 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
One of us will always be there as we are also on duty all night - for security.
If you are in the area we would love to have you stop and see us, check out the trees and if it works for you to buy one. We plan to have coffee and hot chocolate going. I know if this cold weather continues we will definitely need the warm drinks to keep us going. Though I have told Ron I may have to go to Starbucks, inside Safeway, once in awhile :)
Prayer requests ~
1. Please pray for our friends Kenny & Tammy. Tammy is having a radical double mastectomy on the 9th of December. Please pray for clarity for Kenny and Tammy regarding treatment and for the doctors who are treating her. Please also pray for others to be able to physically near them to walk hand in hand with them to doctor appointments.
2. For safety for Ron and I as we travel to Edmonds tomorrow. We are in the midst of a very cold and blustery storm. Snow and ice are prevalent throughout the area. We had our 16' flatbed trailer for sale so that we could purchase a tow bar setup for the Jeep but the trailer did not sell. We have made the decision to tow the Jeep on the trailer. This means we are going to be almost 60 feet long on the road. This means extra stress on Ron as he will do the driving this trip. I have not ever pulled a trailer with the motor home and in winter weather I am not going to learn.
3. For our boys and their families as this will be the first year we will not be with at least one of them for both the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. I guess also pray for us to not be missing them too much.
4. For Theresa as she has had her final surgery for her breast cancer and is now recovering and the healing process is going slow. Pray that she will be patient with herself and follow the doctor's orders. Pray also for Rick as he stands by her and supports her during this recovery time.
I will check in with all of you tomorrow night once we are settled at the Christmas tree lot. They are supposed to have power to the lot no later than Wednesday - we are praying it will be ready for us when we arrive tomorrow, especially with this brrrr chilly weather.
Ali & Ron - you two keep safe! It's funny to see how we shut down Portland and get no snow.
ReplyDeleteI will be praying about those things. I hope that you all have a good Thanksgiving even though you all will be apart.
ReplyDeleteHi Alice,
ReplyDeleteI am enjoying reading how you make the most normal things of life seem so amazing and special, like propane and electricity. I agree that we take them for granted oftentimes. I was thinking last night while waiting for Noah to come out of his practice and Ethan asleep in his carseat, how thankful I am for our vehicle that has heat. I turn it on and warm it up and then turn it off to save gas, but then have to turn it on again in awhile, but trying to keep Ethan comfortable while he patiently waits, every evening M-F at 6:15. Last night they didn't come out until 6:45. But the time spent sitting and thinking is never wasted. I love having the opportunity to have no demands and no problems. I know that selling trees may seem cold and hard sometimes. We were going up to Ketchum still up until last week. It was cold up there but it was invigorating and at the end of the day, you really feel like you did something. One woman told us that the cold alkalinizes the blood. I did not know that. I do know that people that enjoy winter sports tend to be a lot healthier people up there, you can tell. I think that keeping warm is partly dietary related. I had some licorice (Panda natural from Fred Meyers in the health food section) and felt it warming all over my body. I also think ginger is especially a warming herb in food like Chinese or in tea. I bought some hand warmers for the guys at Wal Mart that supposedly last 10 hours as we are still setting up in Boise downtown for what they now call the Holiday Farmers Market. We thank the Lord for our faithful customers who thank us ever time we show up. Lately I have not been able to be there at all because of Ethan's basketball games being at 11. I drive down to pick up Kurtis who drove down earlier and helped set up. They now put up the sides to the tent canopy, on 2 sides and have a propane heater. Thinking it would cost a lot they tried to use it sparingly. Also, have to be careful not to stand too close as it will burn skin, clothes, etc. however it warms the whole area. Come to find out when Kurtis went to fill it yesterday that it works out to only cost $5 per market of 4 hours use. They are glad to find that out as this week we will be trying to go one more week (we say that each week), and they do have each other to give breaks to. Having an indoor escape can make a big difference. The Backwoods Sports store where we set up in Ketchum (In their parking lot) on Thursdays would let us (invited us often) come in for bathroom break or to just chat around the counter with them to get warm, they had a little electric heater set up for our hands! So incredibly gracious of them, but they thanked us for being there saying how it attracted customers to their store! It is such a great atmosphere to be doing what the LORD gives us to do and have a CHEERFUL HEART! You may be the closest remembrance of Christmas for someone you will never know why they are so glad to see you, ALice! The LORD knows why you are there, it is like a sacrifice to have to be away from your sons and their children but you will get to make it up to them, and them to you later! Sweet family kindness! ENJOY the missing them even! That is what I have come to learn. The LORD WANTS OBEDIENCE not sacrifice, but we are glad to sacrifice if we ever can for the sake of someone coming to know HIM and how MUCH HE SACRIFICED for us! I love that it is not about what we do for HIM for any other reason than it is pure love and not to get anything. WE ALREADY HAVE EVERY PROMISE IN HIS BOOK! I love that HE is with you and keeping you SAFE and in HIS CARE! I love that you keep looking for all the ways that HE SHOWS YOU how much HE CARES for you! I THANK HIM for each and every dear HEART that is drawn to buy their tree from you guys. I have another story to tell you about one time when Kurt's Dad went with us to buy a Christmas tree... it is incredible what GOD DID! Love you, Roxine
I wrote you a long comment a little while ago but when I submitted it something had disconnected so I guess it was lost. I was so moved by what you wrote over the last week, as I had not read all the things since before you spoke at the church. It was really heart felt and I can see the LORD really moving in your Lives! I know you have a special Heart, Alice and I am thankful that we met and are friends. I am glad to hear that Brandon is coaching in Orofino. Hope we get to see them at the State Tournament this year! That would be awesome! I can't even remember what I had put in that other comment, who knows? maybe it did go through. I hope so. Love you, God Bless You!
ReplyDelete~Roxine
Oh Ali I can't believe you are having to work your bad weather. You bundle up good!!
ReplyDeleteNext year come work here in Texas selling trees..you will never turn on your heater..lol
Hot chocolate sounds yummy..save me some!! Take lots of pictures and have fun visiting with all the little children.
Hugs Cindy
Good grief, stay warm. Blessings!
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the lot, we are also in a freeze and very wet time here in Pleasanton, California. We arrived on Friday in the rain and as of right now...still raining. The rain should end this afternoon, but then for the next few days they are calling for freezing temperatures...brrrr. We too usually only use a space heater and we also have an electric blanket and a heat pad on the mattress, keeps us warm at night but getting out in the morning can be really hard...
ReplyDeleteI wish you a safe journey to Edmonds. It sounds like you will be "on" for a lot of hours in Edmonds. Take care, and I'll be praying for your prayer requests as well as for you and Ron.
ReplyDeleteOh what long, long hours you will be working. But as it is only for one month, I would hope the time will fly.
ReplyDeleteSo many times I thank God for hot and cold running water.