Sweet Memories, Old and in the Making

December, 1996:

We left the three little kids with our friends the Cowans the other night while we went to an adult church dinner. Murray tried to pay Brenda for taking care of the kids, but she gave him the money back. I didn't know this, and I asked Rebecca the next day if she knew if Daddy had given Brenda any money when he picked them up. "No, I think SHE gave HIM some money."

I was reading to Sarah the other day about how King Herod killed all the baby boys in Bethlehem, trying to kill Jesus. Sarah said, "But he didn't get Jesus, because he went to Egypt. But if he did kill Jesus, Jesus could make himself back alive again, because He's God."

Sarah has memorized Philippians 1, 9-11 a long time ago, which is our church's prayer. The other day she said that for our lunch-time prayer, and then said, "Mommy, I want you to tell me what all that means."

Murray called home the other day, and when Kathy hung up from talking with him, Sarah said, "I knew that was Daddy because you talked in your normal voice. Why do you talk like a lady when other people call?"

December 13, 1996: Sarah was in the car with Murray, and she likes to put the keys in the ignition. She was having trouble figuring out which key, and she said, "Now, be patient, I'll get it."

December 23, 1996: The other day at lunch, I put my hands on the sides of Sarah's head. Sarah said that we should do that from now on when we pray. She said, "Let's hold the ears instead of holding hands when we pray."

Today at lunch, I was reading the kids stories about when God created the world. They were asking all sorts of questions about how He did it. “How did He do it?” “Did He just say it and it was done?” “Did He make it up out of His imagination?” “Where did He get the seeds for the plants?” We read a little more about it, and Sarah said, "He made a miracle!"

The other day at breakfast, we finished reading a passage from Mark, and Kathy said that tomorrow we would read about when Jesus was arrested. Rebecca said, "Oh, good!" Kathy said we shouldn't be happy about that, we should be sad because Jesus would be hurt and then die. Sarah said, "But I'm a teentsy bit happy because we don't have to be punished."

December 25, 1996: Today Caleb had hot chocolate for breakfast. He took a swallow and said, "Mommy, I drank a baboon."

December 30, 1996: The kids stayed at three different homes this weekend while we went to Colorado. We heard that they called each other while we were gone, and discussed what they each had to eat.

Sarah received a monetary gift from Grandma Brinkmann for her birthday. When she opened the envelope, she exclaimed, "I got $100!"(or whatever). She danced around excitedly and said, "I can give it to Jesus!"

And let’s make a new sweet memory. My children’s Christmas book, Millie’s Christmas, comes out on October 22.

Ruthie says Millie will love Christmas. Ruthie is Millie’s best friend, so she’s sure Ruthie’s right, but why does Millie keep finding Ruthie and her brother Jake crying?

Millie, an orange kitten, shares about her first Christmas. Her best friend Ruthie, six years old, teaches Millie about Christmas—food, decorations, music, presents, and Jesus!

Millie’s friend Bruce, the family dog, also helps her celebrate Christmas, and sometimes gets her in trouble.

When Ruthie’s big brother Jake breaks his ankle, Millie learns about sad things, like divorce, when Jake can’t visit his mommy for Christmas. Millie watches Ruthie’s family love each other through the sadness, and find joy in Christmas.

Share this story with a child you love, struggling with sadness at Christmas. Jesus’ love and truth remain solid.

Three Smiles

One.

God has given me another precious gift. I’ve been enjoying new memories with my kids as adults. Now my prayer is that god will help me remember to bite my tongue on advice unless I’m asked. And maybe even then. I’ll share some of those new memories in the upcoming weeks.

Next.

In June of this year, my friend Nina in Arizona sent me this lovely message. With her permission, I am sharing it:

“Hi Kathy, It's quiet here. We are waiting for the monsoons to come and the days are hot and dry.

“Ravens built a nest on an electrical power line scaffold and we watched them from afar as they tended to the chicks. And then one day, they were out of the nest and two of the youngsters spent their first day as grownups hopping around on our back porch.

“Big as chickens they were. The poor things looked confused, hot and thirsty with their bills wide open and their wings trailing on the ground. I tossed some cooked chicken bits outside and they ate a few but mostly they hopped awkwardly on and around chairs, a table and two loungers.

“Evening came and we could hear the parents calling with their raspy croaks to come home for the evening. The two youngsters tried to fly- one took off and sailed across the wash and up again into the scaffolding to join mom and dad. The other one appeared completely lost and he banged against the windows, only getting aloft for a few seconds.

“He tried again and again and finally, he managed to glide off and away but never managed to get up to the top of the scaffolding in the evening gloom.

“I thought about how much raven children are like human children, wanting to leave, unsure of their independence and how good parents try and keep a watchful eye. The day the two ravens were in our tiny yard, the parents could see and hear them. Perhaps they considered our place to be a safe spot, much like parents dropping off young teens at the mall for the first time.”

And the third smile?

I’ve received the book cover for my children’s story, “Millie’s Christmas,” which will be released by Mantle Rock Publishing on October 22.

I will share more about that soon also.

What an Exciting Week

I had already fallen asleep last Friday night when my husband Murray’s soft voice woke me. “Kathy, your book is on Amazon.”

The only thing I could think to say that night was, “How much does it cost?”

The next day I was giddy. I couldn’t think or talk about anything else.

I’ve barely calmed down.

The first day my daughter Sarah called and said, “Guess what I pre-ordered.”

When I’d tell people about the book, and they’d say, “That’s exciting,” I’d say, “Yeah, yeah, yeah!”

Here is the link to pre-order my book for release on April second:

https://www.amazon.com/All-My-Tears-Kathy-McKinsey-ebook/dp/B07P92QZPJ/ref=sr_1_fkmrnull_1?keywords=All+My+Tears+by+Kathy+McKinsey&qid=1551488626&s=books&sr=1-1-fkmrnull

The print version of the Matthew devotional I had the opportunity to be a part of also became available this week. Here is the link:

https://kdp.amazon.com/amazon-dp-action/us/dualbookshelf.marketplacelink/1942225067

I’m going to be a guest on several other writers’ blogs over the next couple of weeks. Please check these out and see what else these wonderful people have to offer:

On March 10: https://lighthouse-academy.blogspot.com/2019/03/touch-heart-by-kathy-mckinsey.html

March 12 or 13: https://www.maryvee.com

March 18: https://beliedoutcastlegends.com/blog/

Psalm 136:1: Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever.