Lucky to be loving you

Chapter 2

Page 4

Nathan was taking in the fall colors trying to change over the summer foilage and trees as he was riding Newton in the country during his rounds. It would soon be the prettiest time of year as far as he was concerned. Amazed by the colors of orange, rust, yellow, and red, he would stop and thank God for his artistry!

Pausing in his ride to say, "Lord, you are the Creator of all and I am in awe of your beauty!" Nathan declared out loud, "You never cease to amaze me every autumn."

As if God heard him, the deer in his path stopped and looked straight at him and Nathan could've sworn he winked. Soon, the hunters would be out looking for more like this beautiful whitetail, but he hoped this one would escape as he looked young with his small antlers. Once the whitetail scattered into the brush, Nathan gave Newton a nudge to continue.

It was a clear, sunny, cool, and crisp day. The best time of the year for him, and he thought he'd take Newton out a little further this time. Greeting the O'Neills, he stopped to meet the newest one, Patrick.

"He's going to be baptized by Fr. Ricardo along with Erin Flynn soon. We are hoping that St. James will be ready to open in a few weeks," Christy informed Nathan.

"Well, he certainly looks healthy! At least his lungs are!" Nathan chuckled, "He is the one I heard while out riding on my rounds."

Sean laughed, "Top of the morning to ya! Yes, that's Patrick all right! He wants his attention that's for sure."

"That's the Irish in him!" Mary joined in the laughter.

Christy excused herself as she took Patrick to nurse him. Not wanting to disturb the family any longer, Nathan got ready to go, but didn't leave without a hug from Timi Anne.

Back in the saddle, he rode over to St. James Church and saw that the stained-glass windows had arrived and were actually being installed right then. The installation was executed by well-trained experienced craftsmen. Nathan watched as the project manager from Union City supervised the workmanship. Lee was completely immersed in his duty as general contractor and was showing Fr. Ricardo what specific Biblical scenes were going up where. It was a huge undertaking and Lee was handling it quite well being a novice. No one even noticed that Nathan was watching as they were so focused on the job at hand.

Nathan knew that this church was going to be a beautiful place to worship. He had driven his mother to attend mass many a Sunday morning to the O'Neill barn until the time of that powerful summer storm. It hit that barn with all it's fury and luckily the parishioners were able to take shelter and no one was injured. He thanked God his Ma and Dad were spared and grateful that Pastor Joseph was willing to share the Community Church with Fr. Ricardo for the time being.

That's exactly why Nathan wanted his family to grow up in Hope Valley. The town had grown, true, but the people's hearts were good as gold. Riding further he nodded and waved at all the farmers and ranchers.

The Henderson couple was gone from their farm now, and living in Henry's previous home. Ned had taken a few things out to the farm now that it was Paul's farm. He was so thrilled that co-signing for Paul helped cement the bond between the two of them. Whenever something arrived at the Mercantile, Ned had it taken out to the farmhouse. Paul and his fiancé, Darcy had already picked out colors for their rooms inside, so when the paint arrived, Ned asked Kevin Townsend to help him paint the rooms.

Lee had visited the farm when Ned asked, and checked it out to see what repairs, if any, had to be taken care of. Lee ordered the wood and a few windows, and Ned ordered the rest. It was great having it all taken care of before the winter set in. Paul and Darcy would have a renovated home to come to live in someday soon,all done with love.

Paul had asked for Darcy's hand in marriage when they returned back to his grandfather's farm, and her father and mother gave their blessings. Darcy and her parents were making arrangements at the church and looking for a place for a reception. When they moved to Hope Valley, they would have another reception at Billees to celebrate with Paul's family.

Right now, Paul was busy out in the field helping his grandfather harvest the last of his crops. It was hard to know that the farm that had been in the family through several generations was going up for sale. He felt badly for his grandfather and asked if any of his cousins were ready to buy it.

"Grandpa, I know you truly are going to miss this farm," Paul started, "and I was thinking maybe someone else in our family might want to buy it."

His grandfather stopped his combine and talked to Paul, "I have a lot of expensive equipment here. A swather, combine, and grain trucks to name a few. I would make good money if I sold the implements with the farm. I could have a good nest egg for your grandma and me." Paul listened carefully as his grandfather continued.

He stopped to scratch his head and looked out over the fields. "Paul, I have close to 175 acres here, and there's a lot of work to be done. Fences need mending, animals need to be fed, crops need to be planted and harvested, machines need upkeep and we're dependent on the weather. I couldn't sell this farm for as much to family as I can to others. Besides, not too many of our kin want to take on all this."

"But grandpa, I know my cousins on grandma's side are farmers and maybe one of them is interested in continuing this farm," Paul suggested.

"Could be, could be," Grandpa turned his combine back on, "Ain't going to get the harvesting done, talking about it," he winked at Paul.

Paul watched as his grandpa went back out in the fields. "I'm sure going to miss working with you, grandpa!" he called after him with tears in his eyes, but Grandpa couldn't hear him.

Page 5

Grandmother Ingrid was such a huge help for Elsa tending to one baby while she took care of the other. She loved counting on her Mom for not only helping with the twins, but keeping house and cooking. She was a Godsend taking over like it was her own home.

William didn't mind, in fact, he enjoyed his mother-in-law's old recipe cooking. It stuck to his bones, as she would say, and being a big man, he ate more than a plate full! It was quite a different lifestyle for the brand-new parents who were used to cuddling together and now had a baby in bed with them. Or one of them would be out of bed and changing a diaper in the middle of the night. Elsa tried to tend to both babies so Will could get a decent night's sleep since he was working long hours chopping trees or working at the saw mill. Often, he would come home exhausted and when he sat in his chair before dinner he's closes his eyes to try to steel a wink.

Elsa was encouraged by her Mom to take a nap when her Julia and Greta were sleeping. Ingrid would clean, do laundry, and sew. She enjoyed sewing new clothes for Elsa and the girls. When she did the laundry, she took Will's shirts and trousers to measure. When Will was home she'd walk to Dottie's and look at the material she had, and bought some and picked up a few items at the Mercantile.

Elsa received a letter from Lily, her sister. She was thrilled to be the Godmother and would take the train with her father to come out and meet her nieces and see her sister and Will. Elsa and Will had planned to have the girls christened in a few weeks. Lily reassured that she had found the family baptismal gowns and would bring them with her. Ingrid planned on decorating the gowns with white satin ribbon and some lace that she bought at the Mercantile.

Elsa noted that Lily sent three pages in her letter and the last page was addressed just to her. She swiftly pulled that last page and tucked it into her dress pocket. When she went upstairs to take a nap, she felt the paper and remembered. Pulling it out she sat on the edge of her bed and read. Lily was very excited to tell her that Erik had brought her flowers and was taking her to the next dance at the Community Center. She didn't want her mother to know yet, as she just wanted their Mom to focus on Elsa and her family, besides she wasn't sure what would come of it. Lily stretched out on the bed thinking about when she met Will at the dance a few years ago. She fell asleep dreaming of that night.

Will's brother, Noah, would be the Godfather. His family had planned on coming into Hope Valley too. Will had talked to Lee about reserving rooms for both families at Billees and Lee said he'd make sure of it. Everything seemed to be falling into place.

Brook was very grateful that Violet didn't forget to look for someone to teach her English. When Violet stopped to see her on her way from Elsa's, Brook was trying to sound out letters with Dee's help. Not teaching music this year, Dee said she'd stop by once or twice a week when Christopher was napping. That afternoon, she happened to be there when Violet came by.

"How are you doing Brook?" Violet asked.

"All right. We talk conso..." Brook looked at Dee for help.

Dee smiled, "Brook is learning consonants and vowels. It's called phonics."

Violet nodded, "Of course, that's what Jake was practicing when Elizabeth was teaching him to read this summer. Once you catch on, it goes easily."

"So far, Brook has come along a good way," Dee said cheerfully.

Violet was happy to hear the good news. Looking at Brook, Violet asked, "Have you talked to Minnie or Pastor Joseph, Brook?"

Dee was puzzled, "About what, may I ask?"

Brook nodded, "I still sad about losing baby."

"Oh Brook, that is hard," Dee sighed, "but that doesn't mean you can't get pregnant again."

Violet spoke up, "I assured her that when we talked, but she needs to grieve before she tries again. So, I suggested she talk to someone like the Canfields."

"Yes," Dee nodded, "Minnie would be a good person to talk to woman to woman. Of course, you can talk to me anytime. If I can help in anyway, let me know."

Violet walked to the door, "Let me know if you want me to go with you Brook, and I'll make the time."

Brook stood up and walked over to Violet, giving her a hug, "Thank you."

Lucia was busy interviewing Rosaleen about Elizabeth's new book that she had in the library for an article in the Valley Voice.

She was so happy to talk about it, "I've always wanted to pursue a career in writing, maybe someday. Can you tell me how one goes about getting published so I can report to our readers?"

"Sure, when you write you want to have the best punctuation and grammar. So once you have your story written, you type it on a typewriter and have someone proof read it which is part of editing. Once it is all polished, then it's sent to a publisher for their approval. It's really a trial and error time. If one publisher doesn't accept it, then you contact another, until it's a deal."

"That can be intimidating, can't it?" Lucia asked.

"Yes, it can, so I'm sure some novice authors give up, but persistence is required if you want to be published. You just have to accept the constructive criticism and make the corrections, but if it's meant to be, it will happen!" Rosaleen said.

"Did Elizabeth sell many books at her reading?" Lucia asked.

"I think she sold all of them. Have you read her book?"

"Not yet, but I have my name on your holds list, so I hope soon. I'd like to interview Elizabeth soon, so it would be great to read it before I do," Lucia answered.

"I'll tell you what, take my own personal copy, but don't say anything, just bring it back when you're done," Rosaleen said as she took out her copy from her desk drawer and handed it to Lucia.

"Really? Oh thank you so much, I'm going to start it tonight!"

"Lucia, one more thing, if you want to write, don't wait. Take some time, and try, just look around and see all the books here? What if none of these authors didn't try? You might be the next Louisa May Alcott!"

Page 6

Dee was listening to Allie talk non-stop about her idea to train Penny into a jumping horse. "I talked to Lisa and she said Penny was too young for jumping, but she'd help me work with Penny to teach her some basic tricks. There's so much potential for the future, but right now I have to build more trust with Penny first. So, Lisa told me that I should make sure I spend time with her every day."

Dee listened and agreed, "That makes sense. I'm sure Penny will appreciate that too."

"Even just walking her out to the stream and letting her play in the water Lisa said helps us bond."

"When are you going to find time with working at the Mercantile?" Dee asked.

"Mom, I don't work every day. Maybe, early in the morning and after dinner on the days I work. The other days I'll be helping Oma keeping Grandpa company."

"Allie I must admit that having you here instead of school, is really a big help! Not only Grandpa needs company, but Christopher needs attention too. I don't know how it's going to be when the new little baby bun joins us," Dee laughed.

Allie never skipped a chance to talk about Penny and actually it was hard for Dee to get more work done as Allie followed her around the house. Finally, when Dee went outside to hang the laundry she put Allie to work helping her hang the clothes.

Once back inside, she checked on Christopher who she left sitting on the rug in the living room with his Grandpa playing with the blocks that Nathan had made for him. Archie was enjoying making towers and roads with Christopher. It was a good thing that Nathan was handy with wood as he made little automobiles, trucks, and trains even though he wasn't even a year old yet.

Soon they would have another baby and it was going to be very hectic for sure. Right now everything seemed to be running smoothly for the most part. Archie was staying in the present moment most of the time, but he'd lose his whereabouts and memory on a daily basis now.

The Hendersons and the Gleixners would visit which helped out Emily so that she could relax and go to town or to bible study with the ladies while the men stayed with Archie and played cards or if the weather was nice they'd go fishing.

Andy and Gunther enjoyed a few darts at Billees with some of the other guys. Forming teams, they made it a weekly game of darts on Friday nights if there wasn't anything special going on. It was fun for Kenny to join in too when Trevor suggested he come with him. Jacob joined his dad downstairs until he was too tired and went to bed. They still hadn't found a place to live, so for now they were still living at Billees.

Now that Jacob was playing football, he'd have to get to bed at the same time as during the school so when Saturday came, he'd be rested and ready to play. This was what most of the school boys were involved in while most of the girls didn't like football they'd go watch just to see the boys. If you asked them what the score was, they usually didn't have a clue.

Sometimes the Girl Guides would be meeting on Saturdays but now Flo and Molly turned the jobs as leaders to Katie, Debra, and Rosaleen. It was more exciting for the Girls as they would go camping now with their leaders being younger and in better shape.

Rosaleen would start a story, when they were sitting around the campfire, and the girl sitting next to her would continue with the story for a while, then she'd quit and the girl next to her picked up the story and so forth until the circle of girls had each added to their circle story.

"I really enjoy doing that," Opal said happily.

"Great!" Rosaleen smiled, "the next time you can start the story."

Katie, being the accountant for the Mercantile, talked to the girls about starting to collect dues to save for adventurous trips or equipment for their troop, "Maybe we could decide on our dues today. Any ideas?"

One girl suggested they bring a nickel and put it in a jar. Opal asked if she could check off the names every time and keep track of their monies.

"Sure that sounds fine, Opal!"

It was decided that Katie would keep the jar of coins safely in her possession.

Debra who still worked at Dottie's suggested the girls learn to knit scarfs for their family members for Christmas since they couldn't afford to buy any.

All around Hope Valley the folks were busy. Henry and Dottie were working outside of their house raking leaves when Henry heard the telephone ringing in the house.

Running inside as fast as his body could handle, he picked up the receiver, "Hello,"

he greeted.

On the other end of the call was his son, Christopher, "Dad! You are officially a grandfather now!"

"Christopher, Rachel had her baby?" Henry was grinning from ear to ear!

"Yes, we have a son, dad, a baby boy. He is 8 pounds and healthy!" Christopher was so excited he sounded out of breath.

Henry called out to Dottie, "Come here Dottie, Christopher's on the telephone. Rachel gave birth to their baby boy!"

"A boy! Wonderful!" Dottie said excitedly as she walked in the door.

Henry was listening to Christopher and the next thing Dottie heard was, "Hot dang! Aww, what an honor son. Thank you!"

Dottie had her ear to the receiver and added, "Henry Patrick! That's the grandfather's names, how lovely!" Dottie grinned.

"Yes, we'll come to see you soon. Give our love to Rachel and little Henry! Love you all!" Henry said goodbye and turned to Dottie for a big hug lifting her up off the floor.

"We're grandparents!"