Tomato Soup and Other News

A couple night ago a friend of ours from Raleigh showed up at our doorstep. We were thrilled to see her and gave her tons of apples and fresh tomatoes (which are just starting to ripen) from our property. She was gracious enough to take us to the local Mexican restaurant, which Sam loves afterwards. It is always wonderful to see old friends and hear all the news from Raleigh.

Afterwards, we followed Bill and Sam over to Big Lots. While I was leaving Big Lots, I saw our old neighbor from here in town. I asked him how the old neighborhood is doing (remember, I absolutely hated it there). This also happened to be the neighbor who smoked pot a lot.

He said that things went downhill fast after we left. Some of the neighbors lost one of their dogs in a very inhumane way, and it was left for them on their doorstep. I'll save the gory details. Then, one of their cars was broken into and they were robbed, his nephew was mugged on our old street and finally, the neighbor who lived just next to us had a falling out with her boyfriend. He was apparently so angry he slashed all of her tires and smashed in her windshield. My old neighbor said, "I don't know why it went to h*ll in a hand basket after you left." To which I responded, "we prayed a lot while we were there." And that's the truth. Thank God for protecting our family. Thank God for delivering us from that place. And thank God for giving us that home to live in while we needed it, one that we were safe in for that time.

I was really burdened by everything he said to me. I asked Bill, more than once, how a man could be so cruel to the mother of his own child by destroying her car. I asked him why someone would do that to an animal - a little dog who once jumped into my own car because he was so friendly. I asked Bill why all of this happened. His response to me was the same each time: Because people are worldly and full of sin. They don't have hope and they don't have Jesus.

I only hope that we were a light in that neighborhood while we lived there. I think we were, since our neighbor clearly indicated that after we left things got very dark.

On aonther note: some good news. Tomorrow officially marks three months since Sam's last cardiology appointment. We've NEVER actually made it to a three-month appointment before being interupted by hospital visits and other illnesses.

We're heading to Greensboro and we've invited a friend to tag along, so it shouldn't be too boring of a trip for me this time. Unfortunately, I have a cold. I believe I caught it from Sam, who has been coughing a little and sneezing some. He hasn't had a fever that I know of. I am really hopeful that his immune system kicked this one in the bud before it got too bad. As for me, well, I could complain but I won't. I just want to feel better.

Sam's second birthday party is coming up and I plan on getting lots of little goodies while we're in the big city. We're having a train theme, since he's crazy about trains. I bought a little engineer cap at Tweetsie last week and a train whistle. My parents and we have gone in together to buy him a train table and we've asked everyone coming to bring a train for him. I think he's going to have a blast. I just need to practice on his cake a few times before we celebrate for real. If you want to come and haven't gotten an invitation, let me know! We're gonna have a great time.

Oh, and here's a recipe for old fashioned tomato soup that I love!

1 large can crushed tomatoes or 2 cups fresh
1/2 t baking soda
2 cups milk
2 T butter
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper
Place tomatoes in a large saucepan. If using fresh tomatoes, simmer until tender. If canned, bring to a boil. Add soda. In another pan, scald milk. Add milk to tomatoes and stir. Add butter, salt and pepper, stirring well. Serve immediately. Eat with half of a grilled cheese sandwich - yummy!