LOOK WHAT WE GOT IN OUR EASTER BASKET THIS YEAR!

This year when the Easter Bunny (Sam and Lindsay) came from Bismarck this is what we opened up in our basket!  The excitement just keeps happening in the Risbrudt family.  We are so excited to be grandparents.  Pending arrival of Baby Gietzen is December 3rd!  We are so thankful for this little blessing and praying for a safe arrival!

THE JEWELRY BOX

                                        THE JEWELRY BOX

This past month we have truly experienced April Showers!  We have had wonderful spring rains that have brought us spring flowers and we have also experienced many bridal showers that have blessed Jeff and Kaylie over and over again.  A few weeks ago there was a bridal shower at our church.  It was a humbling experience to sit beside your future daughter in law and look around the room to see the many women whom you know touched your son’s life.  Women who taught him in Sunday School, prayed for him through out his life, sent him a box of home made cookies during finals week, sent him an encouraging note to lift his spirits, prayed for his mother, and the list goes on! 

As part of the bridal shower program Jeff’s first grade teacher was asked to share a few thoughts.  Our children have had the privilege of having Diane Selvig be their first grade teacher.  That was a wonderful experience!  That night she came to the microphone to share a story and tell it like only a first grade teacher could.  

She told about her first grade student Jeffrey Risbrudt who came to her one day and asked her if she had a jewelry box.  Jeff struggled with those “r”s back then so it probably sounded like “jewelwy” box.  Mrs. Selvig being an experienced teacher wondered where this question was coming from and knows to answer very carefully because one never knows what is going on in a first grade boy’s little mind.  So she told Jeffrey that she had a little jewelry box.  To which he responded “You have a little jewelwy box?  Would you like a big jewelwy box?”  She wasn’t quite sure what his plans were but she responded that a big jewelry box would be very nice. 

A few weeks passed and then one day in walked Jeffrey with a package, all wrapped like only a first grader could wrap.  It was a rather big package.  To her dismay when she opened it up there was a very large jewelry box.  It was made with beautiful :) particle board and shiny silver hinges.  Jeffrey had built his first grade teacher a big jewelry box.  He was so proud and she made him feel like it was the best gift ever.

Well years have passed and we all know that teachers cannot keep every gift they get from their students.  Except there is this one teacher named Mrs. Selvig who cherished this jewelry box all these years with a secret plan in mind to pass it on to Jeffrey’s wife some day.  Despite her many, many moves to different homes she told me how she made sure she carried this jewelry box to the car herself and did not pack it away so she always knew where it was.  So at this shower she shared the jewelry box story and as tears filled eyes at the gentleness of this teacher loving her student she passed on the jewelry box to Kaylie.  

The bible talks about jewels in heaven, but Mrs. Selvig is like a most rare jewel here on earth.  Thank you for teaching our children and many others over the years and touching their lives in your own special way.  We were so blessed to have you share that evening and to see you pass on the jewelry box.  Now some young man has a very big “jewelwy” box to begin to fill!