Pumpkin Saranita

Saranita came to visit yesterday before her first out of state trip. She's going to South Bend to visit with her other Grandparents. Before she left, I got some snuggle time with my little pumpkin.

Preparation for Sunday Morning

Saturday evenings, when I was a child, were bath times. There were 4 children and we shared bath water. My mother helped me (the youngest) so I'm guessing that I got to take one of the first baths. We were preparing for church on Sunday morning when we took our baths on Saturday evening. I had pounded into my head at an early age that preparation for Sunday morning begins Saturday night.

When I was an older teen, Pastor Vajda would check out the youth group on Sunday mornings to see if we looked like we had been at the bar late on Saturday night. He would chide us with preparation for Sunday morning begins Saturday night.

As we began having our children, Saturday once again became bath night...although I did allow for clean water for each boy! I would set out their dress clothes, shoes, socks etc on Saturday before bed because we always went to Bible Class/Sunday School and that required an early get up. Being married to a pastor did not allow us to be late on Sunday morning so once again preparation for Sunday morning begins Saturday night.

In their teen years, the boys would ask permission to go out on Saturday evening and we always reminded them that preparation for Sunday morning begins Saturday night. By this time, we had reduced the reminder to PFSMBSN.

Luther says in the explanation to the 3rd commandment that "We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it." I have always considered that getting ready on Saturday made me more likely to gladly hear (and go) on Sunday morning.

Grandma, is this right?

At St. Barbara's Academy, I am the EXPERT. I answer all kinds of questions. Did I add this right? Did I spell this right? Does this look good? What should I do next? How many more pages, Grandma?

Yesterday I was saddened by one of the questions. "Grandma, my Mommy has MS." What does MS stand for?" Marina's mom, Meg has received a definitive diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. I told Marina what the letters stood for and she then remembered. Her mom did read her a book about the disease. She is in the early stage and it is very mild. Our prayer will be that God in His mercy will keep Meg in health so she can fulfill her vocation as mother to her 2 children and her 1 step-child. Although she and my son Theo are divorced, she still calls me Mom and we see and talk to each other regularly. We will do all that we can to help her.

Today I had another question which threw me for a loop. The question was "Grandma, Val says that it's OK to eat boogers as long as they are not bloody. Is she right? " I swallowed, tried not to visualize the question and queasily explained about germs and boogers. Marina understood then that it's not OK to eat any boogers : )

Another Exciting Night out on the Town

Last evening, Chaplain to the World
asked me if I wanted to ride along with him to the hospital. He had a call to make. Armed with my Sudoku book and a pencil, we drove through a cold drizzle to Metro Hospital. After a brisk walk to get to the lobby, I settled in to wait for him. Before I had one line finished, he informed me that the person had been released from the hospital! So with Sudoku book and pencil in purse, instead of hand, we briskly walked back to the car, and drove home through the drizzle. We spent the evening blogging together. The family that blogs together, has at least one laptop : )

Ohio District Pastor's Conference - my perspective

Our congregation, Christ Lutheran Church was kind enough to include the cost for the spouse for the Ohio District Fall Pastoral Conference. I promised, in return, to blog about the days. Finally, 2 weeks later I am getting to it! This is the view which greeted us from the balcony of our room. It was delightful to say the least. The weather turned sunny later that day and Tuesday was also a beautiful sunny day.

Here is the view looking the other way on the balcony. Looks the same doesn't it? That's because we were surrounded by beauty at the Wilson Lodge at the Oglebay Resort and Conference Center The fall colors were almost at their peak....we were just missing the
reds of the season.


The room they put us in was deluxe to say the least. This part of the Lodge just opened in 2006 and was the plushest place we have ever stayed. They had a heated towel rack in the spacious bathroom! We did not have need of the comfy-loooking robes hanging in the wardrobe, but they did look inviting. Pastoral conferences are a real treat for pastors and their wives and they try to hold them in places which help restore the spirit. This place fit the bill. West Viginia (where this was located) is part of the Ohio District.

In addition to time alone, luxurious surroundings and the opportunity for recreation, part of the conference is to hear speakers and worship together. It has been a good many years since we attended this fall conference -- you can see this entry of my husband's blog for further info on that.

The Bible Study leader was Professor Dan Gard from Concordia Seminary in Ft Wayne. His topic was Citizens of Two Kingdoms and it was very interesting indeed! Professor Gard is both a pastor and a Naval Reserve chaplain so he lives with a foot in each kingdom on a regular basis. This picture shows the chappies together at the conference. Chaplain Gard served our nation after 9/11 at the Pentagon and Chaplain dh served our nation after 9/11 in Shanksville Pa and in NYC.


The speaker for the conference was Uwe Simon-Netto and he talked about Lay Vocation = The Lutheran Remedy Against the Me Disease. From his perspective of journalism, he encouraged us (and by extension the members of our churches) to get involved in politics and journalism. He gave us statistics which showed that Lutherans are vastly under-represented in Congress. We of all people should be involved so that we can work for good in the Kingdom of the Left. His quote was "Dirty your hands in politics and journalism; we have soap". He was a very entertaining speaker recounting many personal experiences as illustrations. During the Vietnam War, he was a journalist and considered most of the reporting foul during the TET Offensive. He said all the civilians fled in the direction of the US and the allies and yet that was not reported. He never saw any person fleeing North towards the communists yet according to the journalists, you would have thought no one wanted the Americans there. Speaking to the pastors he said "It is your job to proclaim the truth in the right-hand kingdom; it is the journalists job to proclaim the truth in the left-hand kingdom." He urged the pastors to encourage young people to enter journalism or politics. Dr. Simon-Netto was very forthright - another quote "Political correctness is institutionalized stupidity!."

He also bemoaned the lack of classical education in American resulting in not understanding philosophy and history. Because American journalists don't understand, they don't cover philosophical thought. In the European newspapers, competent debates are covered and discussed in newspapers and magazines enriching the readers as a result.

Another great treat at the Pastoral retreat is reconnecting with other pastor's wives that I know (and love). Carrie and I were able to catch a lunch together and chatted for much too brief of a time.







One more treat to mention is the wonderful food at Oglebay -- here is a picture of the dessert from our Tuesday evening banquet. Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate!

Catechesis for October 22, 2006 19th Sunday after Trinity

Begin with Luther’s Morning Prayer

Recite the Books of the Bible Moses wrote the Pentateuch – first five books. 12 books of history, 5 books of poetry, 5 major prophets, 12 minor prophets. Gospels – first 4 books of the New Testament. Acts is the only NT book of history. Followed by the 13 Pauline Epistles which are arranged by length. Followed by the 8 general epistles. The last book is the book of prophecy. Ask how many books in the OT (39), NT(27) and entire Bible (66). Ask what language the OT was written in (Hebrew and Aramaic). What language was the NT written in (Greek).

New Lesson This is the Trinity season. It is the non-festival part of the church year. The color on the altar is green because this is considered ordinary time – the time of growth. It is the longest part of the church year and we are more than half way through the Trinity season. This Sunday is the 19th Sunday after Trinity. What do you think next Sunday will be called? We are quickly approaching a Sunday which will be called something other than a Sunday after Trinity. Do you know what it is?


Memory Review:

What is Baptism? Baptism is not just plain water, but it is the water included in God’s command and combined with God’s Word.

Which is that word of God? Christ our Lord says in the last chapter of Matthew: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Matthew 28:19

What benefits does Baptism give? It works forgiveness of sins, rescues us from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare.

Which are these words and promises of God? Christ our Lord says in the last chapter of Mark: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” Mark 16:16

How can water do such great things? Certainly not just water, but the word of God in and with the water does these things, along with the faith, which trusts this word of God in the water. For without God’s word the water is plain water and no Baptism. But with the word of God it is a Baptism, that is, a life-giving water, rich in grace, and a washing of the new birth in the Holy Spirit, as St. Paul says in Titus, chapter three:

NEW MEMORY WORK “He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that,

Explain, read and enact the Gospel lesson Matt 9: 1-8 (We have perfect healing in our soul when our sins are forgiven)

Memorize TLH 297 The Gospel Shows the Father’s Grace Sing all the verses.
Sing TLH 283 God’s Word is our Great Heritage

Babies, babies, babies

This baby is our newest granddaughter Saranita. I have also posted some pictures of her cousins, her Daddy and her Uncle Theo. They are all Kavourases and even Grandpa Kavouras was confused about whose name belongs to which picture.

One Night With the King

Last night Chaplain to the World and I went to see a movie. We have had free tickets for 3 years and have never had an opportunity to use them. 3 years ago while I was recovering from surgery, Luther the Movie had just come out and we were eager to see it. It was one of my first outings and I was still using the walker. It was a matinee and we went to the top of the theatre so that I could prop my legs up and not be knocked by anyone. About 7/8's of the way through the movie, the fire alarm went off and we were evacuated from the building....with the walker it was none too quickly. We never saw or smelled smoke but we did not return to the theatre. The manager was handing out "emergency tickets" which were good for any time, any movie. The tickets have been sitting on my husband's desk taunting him with "take your wife to the movies, take her, take her now". Yesterday was the day he finally heeded the call.

We saw previews for a film about the Biblical Esther and it looked like a good movie to view. We both knew the story and it appeared that it would be like the old time Biblical movies with the wonderful scenery, great costumes and close to the narrative story. We both thoroughly enjoyed the movie

One Night With the King features a beautiful Esther. King Xerxes is played by Luke Goss and I didn't like him in the beginning of the movie but he definitely grew on me as his character was "fleshed out" so to speak : ) Omar Shariff was his trusted aide, Prince Memucan. He was good but I kept waiting for him to say "Fannie" and pursue that Funny Girl. Peter O'Toole briefly appeared as the prophet Samuel and was intimidating (as usual). The best acting goes to James Callis as Hamann. He was evil and made my skin crawl. I never saw Battlestar Galatica so I was unfamilar with his work. Go see the film. My only criticism was that I missed some of the dialogue because the background music wasn't in the background enough!

There were several direct quotes from the Bible...some even from the New Testament!! The story was believable and based on the book Hadassah. I think someone should clue them that the credits should indicate it was based on the Old Testament book Esther, unless that is what they meant by the book Hadassah. Although it is a love story, there are no steamy scenes. Take your children!

Esther has always been a favorite name of mine. If Theo or Nick had been a girl, I would have named my daughter Esther. Here is a picture of me and my mom from May of 1964. Her name was Esther.

Catechesis for October 15, 2006 18th Sunday after Trinity

Begin with Luther’s Morning Prayer

Recite the Books of the Bible Moses wrote the Pentateuch – first five books. 12 books of history, 5 books of poetry, 5 major prophets, 12 minor prophets. Gospels – first 4 books of the New Testament. Acts is the only NT book of history. Followed by the 13 Pauline Epistles which are arranged by length. Followed by 8 general epistles. Ask how many books in the OT (39), NT(27) and entire Bible (66). Ask what language the OT was written in (Hebrew and Aramaic). What language was the NT written in (Greek).

New Lesson This is the Trinity season. It is the non-festival part of the church year. The color on the altar is green because this is considered ordinary time – the time of growth. It is the longest part of the church year and we are more than half way through the Trinity season. This Sunday is the 18th Sunday after Trinity. What do you think next Sunday will be called? We are quickly approaching a Sunday which will be called something other than a Sunday after Trinity. Do you know what it is?


Memory Review:

What is Baptism? Baptism is not just plain water, but it is the water included in God’s command and combined with God’s Word.

Which is that word of God? Christ our Lord says in the last chapter of Matthew: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Matthew 28:19

What benefits does Baptism give? It works forgiveness of sins, rescues us from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare.

Which are these words and promises of God? Christ our Lord says in the last chapter of Mark: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” Mark 16:16

How can water do such great things? Certainly not just water, but the word of God in and with the water does these things, along with the faith, which trusts this word of God in the water.

NEW MEMORY WORK For without God’s word the water is plain water and no Baptism. But with the word of God it is a Baptism, that is, a life-giving water, rich in grace, and a washing of the new birth in the Holy Spirit, as St. Paul says in Titus, chapter three:

Explain, read and enact the Gospel lesson Matt 22:34-46 (This is what Jesus has done for us. The Pharisees wanted to do something to earn salvation. Jesus loved the Lord perfectly [first table of the law] and He loved his neighbor perfectly [second table of the law] In Baptism, we are given that perfection of Christ.)

Memorize TLH 297 The Gospel Shows the Father’s Grace Sing all the verses.

Saranita at two weeks

We were away for a few days and were invited over today to see/touch/hug/smell/cuddle/smooch and otherwise love our newest Grandbaby! We did manage to take a picture of Saranita before her lovely Baptismal banner made by our friend Barb




A few more pictures from the Baptism. Here our darling Saranita is surrounded by her Momma and her Grandmas -- she has just a few, wouldn't you say?






This delicious cake was supplied by Saranita's Great Uncle Terry and his new bride Crina. Crina works at an Italian bakery and they produced this beautiful cake. The curls surrounding the cake are white chocolate shavings. Yummmmm! There was not one piece of this cake left after the luncheon : )

Saranita - God's Own Child

Saranita began her new life in Christ at this font at Christ Church. It was here that God declared her His Own Child. Family, friends and the congregation was there to witness this rebirth. Can a man be born again? Yes, here we witnessed Saranita receiving the benefits of Baptism - forgiveness of sins, rescued from death and the devil and eternal salvation to all who believe!

At the font were her parents, Nick and Naomi; Godparents, Nat and Maggie and her grandfather Pastor Kavouras.



At the luncheon afterwards, Saranita is surrounded by parents, grandparents and great grandmothers.












4 generations on Saranita's maternal side. Uffelman, Rhein, Kavouras and Kavouras







4 generations on Saranita's paternal side. Kavouras, Kavouras, Kavouras and Kavouras : )

Catechesis for Trinity 17 October 8, 2006

Begin with Luther’s Morning Prayer

Recite the Books of the Bible Moses wrote the Pentateuch – first five books. 12 books of history, 5 books of poetry, 5 major prophets, 12 minor prophets. Gospels – first 4 books of the New Testament. Acts is the only NT book of history. Followed by the 13 Pauline Epistles which are arranged by length. Ask how many books in the OT (39), NT(27) and entire Bible (66). Ask what language the OT was written in (Hebrew and Aramaic). What language was the NT written in (Greek).

New Lesson This is the Trinity season. It is the non-festival part of the church year. The color on the altar is green because this is considered ordinary time – the time of growth. It is the longest part of the church year and we are more than half way through the Trinity season. This Sunday is the 17th Sunday after Trinity. What do you think next Sunday will be called?

Memory Review:

What is Baptism? Baptism is not just plain water, but it is the water included in God’s command and combined with God’s Word.

Which is that word of God? Christ our Lord says in the last chapter of Matthew: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Matthew 28:19

What benefits does Baptism give? It works forgiveness of sins, rescues us from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare.

Which are these words and promises of God? Christ our Lord says in the last chapter of Mark: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” Mark 16:16

NEW MEMORY WORK How can water do such great things? Certainly not just water, but the word of God in and with the water does these things, along with the faith, which trusts this word of God in the water.

Explain, read and enact the Gospel lesson Luke 14: 1-11 (poor, miserable sinner is then exalted by having our sins forgiven) Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled and he who humbles himself will be exalted. In Baptism we are drowned with Christ and raised (exalted) with Him.

Memorize TLH 297 The Gospel Shows the Father’s Grace Sing all the verses.

Due Date

Today was to be Saranita's due date but she had other things in mind and entered this bright world over a week ago.

I was in the neighborhood and Naomi invited me over for some cuddle time with my sweet Grandbaby! We were sitting near a window and I suggested she look outside. Here she is asking me "Whaddya say Grandma?"




"Those windows over there Grandma? Gee, they are very bright!"



"Oh, but everything is beautiful out there! Where's Pooh Bear?"

Saranita at one week

She looks safe and snuggled in Grandpa's hands, doesn't she?











Then Grandpa started to tell his jokes again......

A "Monkish" Week

This week at St Barbara's Academy the girls are being introduced to the Middle Ages, monks and monasteries. They were intrigued by the vow of silence. We set the timer for 5 minutes and spoke not a word. This was very difficult for the giggle girls....although Grandma liked it just a little : ) Lily walked around with her hand clamped over her mouth holding back the giggles. Marina stood sentinel at the stove watching the 5 minutes count down. She indicated by fingers how much time we had left. During the silent time, Grandpa came home. He is usually accompanied by shouts of joy and hugs and kisses. The monks at St Barbara's Monastery were much too intent on fulfilling their vows for that! I quickly signed the letters m - o - n - k to him so he would understand.

The girls were interested that someone could communicate by signing so the next day I showed them the alphabet, how to sign their name and also say I love you in sign. Needless to say, there was a lot of signing going on that day.

At our temporary monastery, the 2 monks were busy learning how to illuminate manuscripts. While they learned the art of illumination, we listened to Gregorian chants, much to their delight!






Here is Lily trying her hand at the tedious job of adding art to a manuscript. First she copied Psalm 23 and then carefully added color and some gold highlights.



Here is the Happy Monk Lily with her finished project!
I am now quoting from her journal entry (corrected for spelling) "I am a monk in a monastery and they do not talk and they do not get married. They have fields and beehives and they copy books. They take care of sick people. I like monks because they take care of sick people and that's good they help people. And there are good people too who give money to the leader. Thank you God for making them."


Marina also worked very hard at printing Psalm 23 and adding color and gold highlights to her parchment manuscript. This was her art project in addition to a history lesson.


Monk Marina displays her completed work.


This is a quote from Marina's journal for that day. "A monk is someone who writes and prays but if they don't listen to their boss they'll be condemned and that means they will die. They also live in a monastery. So do you know that they didn't have a store? Well, they did not! They had a farm back then to grow food for the winter because they can't grow food in the winter. Seriously, they could not grow anything, not even carrots!"

Knee Replacement Checkup

Today was my 3 yr post surgery checkup for my knee replacements and I passed with flying colors : ) Of course, my active lifestyle is more a confirmation that everything is going well than my doctor saying so! I do like going to see Dr Gittinger because I am a source of inspiration for him. A year after my surgery I sent a picture to him which showed me hiking the Appalatian Trail holding a sign which said "Thanks Dr. Gittinger". He said that he still has it up in his office and when he is discouraged he looks at it and it perks him up! I showed him the degree of bend which I have in both my knees and he was incredulous. He said those knee replacements aren't supposed to do that : ) They have newer high-flex knee replacements which are supposed to do that, but not mine. Oh well, no one told my knees they aren't supposed to bend that much!

This is the card they gave me after my surgery to use when I go through metal detectors. I used it the first time I flew but they don't care if you have a card or not. If you beep, you get the personal attention of the TSA and the wand.

My next appointment is in 2 years. They take x-rays to determine that the dark space between the bones is still there (see the sample x-ray above). That space is the plastic cushion which replaced the cartilage. As long as that remains, my knees are good to go. I asked him what it will be like when they do replace them and he said the surgery is relatively easy; they make the same size incision, slip out the old disc and slip in the new one. The recovery, although not as long as the original surgery, will still take time and effort. They are constantly improving the plastic so who knows how long mine will last....as God wills. Dr Gittinger also said that they are doing more knee replacements in younger people because of the pain relief. Ya gotta like a Doc who calls someone who is almost 56 years old, young!

Hello October

The time has come to retire my September coffee mug and welcome the cup I will use for the month of October. You might recognize this as the cup I got at the Feed My Lambs Homeschool retreat. It has Luther's seal on it and since Reformation happens in October, this is my cup of choice. This picture was taken by our pond right off the patio.

The Divine Service was very special this morning since I got to sit with Nick, Naomi and Saranita. Somehow arms do not get too tired holding a newborn babe but still Naomi was gracious enough to let me hold Saranita for part of the service. After communion, Nick informed me that my arms were tired and he should hold his beautiful daughter.


Here is Grandpa Kavouras with his lovely Saranita. We were invited to come cuddle with our wee one after church and of course we quickly took advantage of it! Grandpa told Saranita joke after joke....most of them she just didn't get. She is too young to understand that since Grandpa is the funniest Grandpa in the world, she should laugh at his jokes. She did express herself though......