About GoldintheClouds

Welcome to Gold in the Clouds.  I started this blog about 2006 and I've found  writing to be a good outlet for sharing my faith in God,  my family life, friendships, and the things I have a passion for.  The title of the blog comes from the song with the same title, by Annie Herring of the Jesus Movement  music group 2nd Chapter of Acts (my fave group as a teen).  Even in the storms of life, walking through days that are sometimes mundane, we CAN experience joy, blessings and "gold" in the clouds.......

I'm married to my best friend, Dave and we have 2 daughters.  I've been a full time Master teacher (Special Education in an inner city prek) and a stay at home mom (4 years full time and 2 years working part time). Between the time our youngest was 8 months old and when she entered 2nd grade, I worked part time as parenting instructor and child development counselor at an inner-city not for profit faith-based crisis pregnancy center in the city to the east of us (across the Hudson River).   I was there for 5 years before accepting a temporary assistant teacher job at a private school in that same city. In the autumn of 2007, I started working part time as a Special Education aide in the public school district we live in....the fun of working with special needs students without the responsibilities and time-consuming tasks of a Master teacher and stayed there until the autumn of 2016.  

I'm currently retired after working full time (2017-2023) as an Assistant Special Education teacher at an early childhood education/special education preKindergarten agency.  I loved it!

I'm currently a volunteer with HomeBound, a ministry that supports shut-ins/hospital patients or rehab and nursing home patients. 

I have started and lead a ministry  called SoulSteps.  This ministry is divided into 3 groups: a once a month SoulSteps Walking and Meditation Friday group; a once a month SoulSteps Walking and Meditation Saturday group; and a SoulSteps Hiking group that hikes 3-4 times a month. I have 20 women in the walking group and  38 men and women (and some children) in the hiking group. 

I  co-lead a small group for women over age 45.  We meet weekly in my home and this year we are discussing a Joyce Meyer book followed by a Priscilla Shirer book.  I have a total of 8 women in this group and it's an honor to come alongside them with these studies. 

When I'm not busy with one of the ministries or with HomeBound, you can find me talking power walks in my neighborhood or a local park, playing piano, drinking good coffee, reading books or hanging out with my husband. We also travel a few times a year.  Our fave places are New England/Boston or the mountains and sometimes the ocean. 

Dave

My husband is a full time software engineer and volunteers on our church's production team after many years of working as a mentor/volunteer for the church middle school youth group. He also has a passion for writing good short stories (science fiction and fantasy) and recently had his first short story published in an online magazine! He's always willing to hike and kayak with me and we enjoy trying new restaurants. He's into video gaming and has several he enjoys in our gaming area of the basement. We love to go on spontaneous dates and we are super competitive on game nights and mini golf dates. 

 Our oldest, Courtney (age 31 is a 2015 Gordon College graduate.  She holds a BA in Fine Arts/Graphic Design and a BA in Math.  She is currently working full  time as the Office Administrator for a large corporation  here in the Capital Region of NYS. She lives in the same town as we do about 3 miles away. Courtney is busy with various ministries at church including a women's study, a young professional's group, and the church choir. She paints, is a member of my SoulSteps Sat Walking group as well as the hiking group and helps me with all things tech. 

Courtney, Autumn 2022

 Our youngest, Claire (age 25) is a 2021 honors and Phi Beta Kappa  graduate  from the University of New Hampshire/College of Liberal Arts. She has her BA in Sociology and minored in Russian, Ballet, and Psychology.  She was a member of the UNH Ballet Company as well as Alpha Phi Omega. She recently was invited to join the International Honor Society of Sociologists known as Alpha Kappa Delta.  She also volunteered weekly for The Freedom Cafe coffee shop whose proceeds go to help rescue people from human trafficking trade and she volunteered with Waysmeet, the on campus Food Pantry for needy people in the community.  She works as an apprentice optician and is studying to get her NYS optician's license.    She lives in a town about 20 min from us. She recently rescued a cat from a local shelter and named him Karma. She keeps busy with work, friends, and drinking good coffee. She also helps me with vegan recipes. k

I first accepted God as Redeemer in the summer of 1975 and went on to major in Music Education/Piano at a faith-based college in western New York.  After a time of being away from God after graduating in 1982, I re-dedicated my life to Christ and moved to the Capital Region to earn my Master of Science degree in Educational Psychology/Special Education.  I met my husband shortly after accepting a full time teaching job and we were married a year later!! 

I love hiking, biking, power-walking, and kayaking. These activities fit me well due to my spiritual temperament of "Naturalist".  My other passions include advocating for abused children, reading, creative writing, cooking and collecting recipes, and spending time in the Adirondack mountains. I also love visiting National Parks and Historic Sites  and we've been to several to camp, hike, tour and take photos in the last 24 years.

We all love God and strive to shine the Light in this diverse and often dark world.  We all love meeting new people and learning about new cultures...and our fave city is Boston!! We think of life as an adventure.

My hope is that by visiting here, you will be encouraged to draw close to God on your life walk and shine the Light so others can see the "gold in the clouds".