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Dear family and friends, We have had a wonderful year here at Macs MountainView in NC. We’ve enjoyed our first year in Ruby Cottage and Macs Music. But instead of our usual update on us, we decided to share an article that Jeannie wrote many years ago. We hope you enjoy this timeless story filled with memories of special holiday times. Have a very BLESSED Thanksgiving and Christmas season! Love and prayers, Dennis and JA (Christmas photo from a couple years ago)  Holiday Cardboard Memories It sounds strange, but when I think about childhood holiday time, many of my memories started out as just plain old everyday cardboard. But in that magic time of year, ordinary cardboard was transformed into a colorful cornucopia centerpiece, full of perfect fruits and vegetables that looked good enough to eat. Fold pieces of cardboard in half, have the cousins write names on them and add a sticker, and they became handmade personal place cards, which sat atop each sparkling plate that surrounded the family table. Cardboard turkey cutouts hung on the front and back door windows, greeting visiting neighbors and Thanksgiving Day guests. The next day, the turkeys on the windows were replaced with grinning cardboard Santas. Cardboard bells hung in the doorway, silently ringing in the season. Homemade cardboard ornaments, each with their own special memory, were lovingly hung on the Christmas tree every year. Underneath the tree lay cardboard boxes of every size and shape, wrapped in bright paper, ribbons and bows, waiting to be opened. The cardboard fireplace burned bright with it's flaming logs and painted red bricks. On the cardboard mantle sat a whole cardboard Christmas Village, each little town building placed side by side over the cotton-snow. A tin foil ice rink held little cardboard skaters and a cardboard sleigh was suspended between the housetops, paper reindeer hooves resting on cardboard chimneys. But my favorite was the little cardboard church that got assembled every December 1st. The steeple held 25 little cardboard gifts and every morning during the month, my brother and I would take turns opening one of the gifts. Each little package held a piece of the Nativity; the shepherds, the animals, the wisemen and the Holy family. Number 25 was opened on Christmas morning, and the precious baby Jesus was always in that very last gift box. That ordinary cardboard box held the reason we celebrate Christmas. God still used the old, ordinary "cardboard" in our lives by transforming it into some of His very greatest gifts. Over 2000 years ago, God used the ordinary of this world to bring us a Savior. Jesus is His greatest gift of all. It's all there in the book of Luke, chapter 2. Read the Story. -Jeannie
Dear family and friends, Since our last newsletter in September, 2023, there has been both a flurry of activity and many peaceful times of rest. We have enjoyed a few visitors, worked on the finishing touches here in Ruby Cottage and Macs Music, and done a bit of landscaping! There are many more projects on our to-do lists, but we are trying to take them slow and easy. In this season of our lives that plan is both wise and necessary! Our first visitors were two of Jeanne Ann’s (as they knew her) girlhood friends from Topeka! Debbie Tucker Haukenberry and Gail Price Scott arrived a little over three weeks after we moved in. We still had the camper then, so we gave them the run of the house and we became campers again for a few days. Debbie and Gail cooked for us, drove us around to see the sights, and we enjoyed many hours around the campfire and “porching” with coffee and memory-filled conversation. They also came bearing the perfect housewarming gifts. Debbie created a beautiful Kansas sunflower picture and Gail created a gorgeous piano quilt to hang over Den’s piano!
Christmas was wonderful and peaceful. Putting up all of Stacie’s Coca-Cola and snowflake decorations warmed our hearts with sweet memories. Again, we were glad that her collections were chosen and saved for Ruby Cottage. Lots of Coke red also fit in well with the name!
We had a wonderful trip to KS in early spring visiting family and friends. The photo at the end of this newsletter was taken at Ward Meade Park in Topeka as the tulips were first blooming! Dennis will be in his seventh year as a referee beginning with clinics and meetings in July. He still enjoys the activity and connection with kids. He’s glad for break in seasons this time of year as he needs to keep up with mowing our four acres! But he loves riding his tractor, too. God has given him several songs since he’s been in his studio, but inspiration often began on his tractor! He is ready and looking forward to doing small recording projects, so let him know if you want more info. Dennis is also writing instrumental music for JA’s Tresia series as background for the audio books that are in the works. We will keep you posted on that project! Here is a preview of the Tresia Theme. Dennis first wrote it for the book trailer video, but it has been updated in Macs Music Recording Studio!  Jeannie keeps busy writing her own new book series, as well as mentoring her online writers group, Warriors Writing. Two of her Warriors began blogs over the past year. Carol’s “Positioned for Purpose” and Krista’s “Consider the Wildflowers” are encouraging words for women from these amazing new writers. (Both can be subscribed to and delivered to your inbox.) Her third Warrior is Jeannie’s niece, Amy. Some of you may remember the three “Cousin’s Backyard Mystery Club” picture eBooks that Jeannie wrote a couple of years ago for her great-nieces and nephews and her writers email list. Amy wanted to add to the collection with another story about the now dozen cousins! The first draft is done and Aunt JA loves it! Please visit the website for updates to J.A.’s Reading Nook. This list contains books Jeannie is reading and if they made the list, they are recommended. She recently finished the Truth Series by F.D. Adkins. If you enjoy futuristic political thrillers, this is the series for you. It is especially timely in this election year to get a glimpse into what our country could look like around 2050. Here’s my review.  Speaking of an election year, for Believers we highly recommend following current events on “Victory News: Coverage in the Spirit of Faith” on the Victory Channel at noon and 5:00ET. We also enjoy “Flashpoint” which airs Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday at 8:00ET on the same channel. Victory Channel can be found online and on DISH, Direct TV, Roku, and Rumble. Our latest great-niece, born in December to Adam and Kelsey Aadalen, is Jolie Jeanne, her Great-Aunt Jeanne Ann and cousin Stacie Jeanne’s namesake. This was such an honor. Aunt JA asked her friend Gail to make a special quilt for Jolie Jeanne so she will always know the connection. Jeanne Ann was named after her mom’s best friend Norma Jeanne, so Jolie Jeanne is the fourth Jeanne in the “family.” What about all that dark wavy hair! We are a proud Great-Aunt and Uncle!
We are so grateful to have Ruby Cottage Guest House and Macs Music finished and being used to the limit we are able. We continue to look forward to the building process for Phase III of Macs MountainView, Sapphire Lodge (our home.) Please pray with us that God’s direction and plan will be provided for and the vision clear. We seek and trust Holy Spirit’s guidance every day for each step we need to take. That brings you up-to-date on the Macs. Please reply and let us know what God is doing in your lives! We love hearing from you! Love and Prayers, Dennis and JA  P. s. Please feel free to forward MountainView Moments to anyone you think would be interested in subscribing. Thanks!
Dear family and friends, The Spring/Summer Edition was postponed so many times due to still working on our house that we decided to skip it this year and go directly to Harvest and Holiday News! We’ve packed in double news and photos! Here in NC, autumn is in the air (in the cool mornings anyway) and a few trees and bushes are already beginning to display colorful traces of a change of season. The news many have been waiting for is here! We moved in to the new house on August 30! It took a while longer to finish the construction and decorating than we had planned, (like a year…) but we are finally done. A few glitches are still being worked out, as always happens with new construction, but it’s good to be out of the camper!
As you can see, Ruby Cottage is decorated with all of our daughter Stacie’s Coca-Cola collection. We saved everything. It has all been in storage for over eleven years since she moved to Heaven. Unpacking and putting things up again brought many memories filled with laughter and tears, but we are glad that we planned it this way. We love that Stacie inspired this house.
One of our favorite things is taking a cup of coffee outside and “porching” every morning while watching our hummingbirds and family of deer! We think they know they are protected by our angels!
On our trip west in April, we had wonderful visits with many of you. Good food, fellowship, and shopping! We found this adorable “phone booth” cabinet which was perfect for all the small Coke collectibles that Jeannie didn’t want to dust! Macs Music also has many bits of Stacie’s favorite musical mementos such as a signed copy of a Gene Kelly photograph and two Singin’ in the Rain posters! Our Macs tartan tablecloth (from our former tape and CD table) is the scarf for the new piano (a wonderful gift from our pastor and family.) Our first Macs photo is displayed on top. The sign above this inside door includes our Macs MountainView verse. We love the sign and that it was a gift from Jeannie’s dear friend, Cindy and family in Silver Lake, KS.
Most of the rest of the decor in the studio is connected to family, friends, and even our Messengers Quartet days in KS. The framed poster is from one of the biggest concerts we ever performed with the Kingsmen and the McKameys. The piano on top of the wardrobe is one Dennis played and is signed by Florida Boys Darrell Stewart, old “Red Socks” himself! We had the privilege of singing onstage with many well-known groups in both the Messengers and the Macs. Side note: Let us know if you are interested in any Messengers albums, cassettes, or CDs. Our former manager, John Oathout has a closet full! Dennis even found a shelf to display his 1973 Shawnee Heights Regional Championship basketball team trophy that Jeannie saved when they cleaned out the old trophy closet at SH. (With permission.)
These gorgeous wood signs were made and given to us by John’s daughter and her husband. If you are in need of a custom-made wood sign, see info below.
For your own custom-made wood signs like ours contact: Circle M Wood Crafts David & Lisa Marshall 785-845-6005 [email protected] With the new music studio in operation, Dennis has already written a new song and looks forward to many more to come! He is deep into volleyball season as a referee, which he truly enjoys. Basketball begins in November and Dennis still runs up and down the court - but now he has a whistle and can stop the game!
Jeannie’s new writing area is ready to go, although her old personal computer didn’t make it through five years of storage. She is switching to a Mac that Dennis is passing down to her. He is upgrading his computer in the studio, thanks to his life-long friend, Dave Barkes who keeps him supplied with all things Apple. Jeannie will have a new learning curve to navigate the new system, so pray for her! She is anxious to get back to writing her next project, an adult trilogy, working title is “Tales of Tresia Depot Bookshop.” She is also thrilled to have recently started a mentoring group for new writers. The Warriors Writing charter group is only four members including Jeannie, and they are all excited about what God is going to do through this group. If Warriors Writing sounds interesting to you, find out more about it on her website. There are many people who have helped us through our 49 years of walking out God’s Plan. You are all so loved and appreciated. God has given us amazing family and friends and we want you to know that your prayers for us have helped bring us to this brand new season. Divine connections are a huge part of who we are and what we do and we pray for you on a regular basis. Our Father is so GOOD! He gave us Jesus, Holy Spirit, and YOU! We praise the Lord for the Vision of Macs MountainView. When we purchased our land in 2016, we started believing and planning to build a mortgage-free Ruby Cottage guest house and Macs Music recording studio. Drawings of the house have been on Jeannie’s Vision Board since then, but this past week she took those pictures down because the building of Phase II has come to pass! We believed God, spoke His promises, did the work, and now we see it! Praise the LORD! What remains in our Vision is 1) spending more time with God, 2) working on our assignments of writing new books and songs and helping other writers and musicians, 3) preparing for Phase III, watching someone else build Sapphire Lodge (our home,) 4) staying healthy, and 5) continuing to walk out the plan of God. For now, we will definitely enjoy living here in the “guest cottage” and music studio! We will share it as we are able, until it can become a full-time guest cottage. Three statements were added to the Vision Board this week as a testimony to what God has done and will do. We want to share them because they apply to everyone. “It’s fun doing the impossible.” “God is going to do more than we can imagine.” “You’re never too old for an adventure with God!” Please let us know if you will be in our area. We’d love to see you and show you around the new place. Or at least reply to this email and give us an update on you and what God has been doing in your life! Have a wonderful Harvest season enjoying God’s beautiful creation, as well as a BLESSED Holiday Season celebrating Christmas and 2024! Until we send out our MountainView Moments Spring/Summer Edition 2024, or we see you in Heaven, Be BLESSED! Love and prayers, Dennis and Jeannie  We’ve been so busy that we have not taken any current photos. This was taken right after we bought the property and began this adventure five years ago!” |
Archives
May 2024
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BooksKingdom Corner Connection
Tresia Book III -- A Perfectly Magnificent Cane (Includes short allegory, A Glimpse, The Truly Excellent Scepter) Tresia Book II -- A Quite Extraordinary Umbrella Tresia Book I -- A Most Remarkable Hat I Will Not Fear A Chosen Life Dawn of Day |
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