Another place and time

I just love days that are filled with relaxing and enjoying life. Some days are just so rushed and hurried that you actually forget to just take a breath and enjoy being alive. One of the disadvantages to growing up and becoming an responsible adult is that we are often so weighed down with our load of responsibilities, our worries, and all the "necessities" of life in our society that we forget to just enjoy living.

I remember the simple pleasures of being a child. Waking up each morning with a renewed sense of adventure. The thought that anything was possible and fun waited on every turn.

I think that feeling of endless possibility and the sense of wonder are the two aspects of childhood that I most miss. I can almost remember the point when I crossed over that threshold, the place of feeling anything was possible to the new reality of adulthood, feeling limited by life and its circumstances. Fully understanding the weight of reality and the fact that dreams don't always come true, no matter how hard you wish it to be.

But there are moments, although they are only fleeting now, moments that it seems as though I am breathing the same air and have been transported back to the 1970's when I was still a child. I can feel that feeling that is free of the load of life, free of the responsibilities of adulthood, and the capacity to believe that anything is possible...

I was reminded of this when I saw Noah sitting in the chair mindlessly watching TV, with Bentley the guinea pig on his lap. I was for a brief moment caught up in the wonder of childhood and enraptured by the simple art of enjoying each little moment that life offers.

Last Saturday Megan and I drove to Cameron to the Antiques Festival they hold there every May and October. This was our third time to attend. We had an enjoyable day although we didn't find much that caught our attention and even less in which to spend our money.

I did end up buying a wire basket with Farmers Market painted on it. I really didn't have anything special in mind for it, I just liked the way it looked. I thought it would be a good basket for gathering the veggies from the garden when it is harvest time. I also decided to purchase a sign that I had seen both times I had attended the festival previously. It is a framed sign that says:

Help Wanted

No Irish Need Apply

I plan to find a better frame to put it in and hang it in my bathroom upstairs. I don't know exactly why, but it caught my attention last May, and I saw it again in October. So I decided to finally buy it this time.

Here are a few more images from Cameron that caught my eye:

A little boys dream! If I had several hundred extra dollars to just blow, I would have brought this home to my little man, even if he is nearly to big to fit in it. But I figured there was a more sensible way to spend that much money...

Here are a whole fleet of boy toys

This house was actually the most interesting thing I saw

Unfortunately, it wasn't for sale

I loved this old gas pump. The colors were great!

This brought back some memories. We use to fight over who got to crank the handle. I also loved the blue color. Would have like to have had this to put on my front porch. But it is hard to have a minimalist lifestyle if you keep bring things home.

Old roller skates

An old tricycle

I don't know why I like old things so much. I suppose it has to do with being nostalgic for the past. The memories of another place and another time. An attempt to bring back those days and the people with which they were shared and enjoyed.

When I am around these relics from the past, I can conjure in my mind the life that these items have had and seen. I can for those fleeting moments be carried away, back to my childhood, back to that place when life was simple and carefree, when I was young and unencumbered by the weight of life and the adult world. When my mind was not burdened by the reality of a world that is full of hate and unhappiness, mistrust, lies, hurt, pain, and loss.

I lived a very sheltered life, a life full of love and peace. I was around adults that were kind and loving, who would never think of hurting a child. I feel very fortunate to have lived in a place and time where children could run freely about, playing and enjoying childhood without the worry of being exploited or abused.

We grew up in a idyllic world where we were able to dream good dreams, and have pure thoughts and not know of anything bad or fearful. A world before all of the modern day conveniences but also a world absent of our modern day perils.

Working out, feeling good

It has been a few really nice days lately. I have been getting outside more and really enjoying the weather. We got our raised garden bed built, but now I am waiting on the okay to go ahead and plant. I am listening to some of the older folks who have lived in this area for years. Being from further south, I would have probably put some things in the ground already, but they say wait, we could get another cold spell. So I wait. I did build a small bed along the fence and planted my gourd seeds already. I did that on Saturday. Gourds need more time to come to maturity and I figured it wouldn't hurt them as long as we don't get a frost.

I have been struggling with the bathroom scale! We are not friends right now. I haven't lost anything in weeks...I lost 25 pounds and then nothing...nothing for weeks now. In fact, I have put on a couple of pounds. I am sure that it is only the fact that muscle weighs more than fat...yadda yadda...because I am continuing to see a difference in my body and in the way the clothes are fitting. So I know all this work isn't in vain. But the numbers are discouraging. If I could just drop a pound every once in a while, as long as it was moving some...So the last couple of weeks I have upped the intensity levels on my workouts, pushed harder and I am shaking up my routine some. Instead of the same thing every day, I am changing it up some. I have been trying to do a morning workout and an afternoon workout.

Yesterday I went to Curves and had an awesome workout. I did three rounds, hitting them hard each round. Then yesterday afternoon. I did about 25 minutes of strength training in the garage and 30 minutes on the elliptical. I worked it hard. I could really feel it when I finished, completely worn out. But in a good way, an accomplished way. Today I am thinking of adding my Tae Bo back into the mix. I use to love doing Tae Bo. I also have a Beach Body Slim in 6 dvd that I bought way back when we lived in Corpus Christi, before I got pregnant with Noah. I only did it once and boy did it make me sore...wow! I was so sore for days, but then I wasn't use to doing exercise regularly so thinking maybe I will pull it out and try to start it. There are a lot of squats and things like that in it. So I may do Tae Bo this morning and try that this afternoon.

I really like my Asics shoes. They fit great but now I am having an issue with ball-of-foot pain and my three middle toes go numb after walk/running for 20 minutes or so. It happens on the elliptical also. So I read that I need to get an insert for that. I have been trying to get out three

days a week for a two mile walk/run. I start out walking for a few minutes then I pick a point to run to, then I walk again and find another point to run to. I am trying run half of the time, broken up into short distances. I can feel I am getting stronger and my stamina is getting much better. I am still a little leery of my shins though. I am running on asphalt and after a bit I can feel it in my shins. So I ease off a bit. I have a fear of shin splints. I know they happen, but I don't want to get them right now at this point. It would sideline me at a point I need to be working up to more. So, slow and steady wins the race, is my motto for now.

I started on a six-week plan to try this working out twice each day and to pay close attention to what was going into my mouth. I started re-evaluating everything I am eating. A few things crept back into my diet that I really don't need, so I am cleaning my food intake up once again. I am cutting out the white chocolate mocha treat that I use to enjoy once or twice a week from Starbucks. I am cutting out the Stacy's pita chips and some of the mindless snacking that went along with having a bag of them in the house. After six weeks I am going to see what my efforts produce.

I feel good about where I am, and where I am heading physically. I would like to get off another ten pounds at least. But I know it takes time. I know that sometimes your body hits a plateau and you have to readjust to that level before you can move on. So that is where I am today. But I know that I have come a long way in the past eight months. I am looking forward to seeing where I can get to from here.

Most of my adult life I have wanted to be physically fit. I wanted to be a runner and I have never been willing to put in the work to accomplish that goal. Now I feel like I am on the right path. My head is in the right place and I feel like I know what it takes to get to the goal I have set. I really feel like I am on the edge...I feel like this is my opportunity to make this happen. I want to see just how far I can go with it. I want to spend the next 20 years and beyond of my life being active and healthy. Getting older isn't something I like to think about. But it is going to happen there is no denying it. I just hope by getting physically fit that I can avoid some of the medical issues that older people face.

I'm not trying to defy age, just trying to get my body in it's best shape in order to meet old age with a better attitude and more physically fit. Maybe this is my last ditch effort to try to stave off old age a bit more. I have a "now or never" kind of feeling about this whole thing. I see that if I wait any longer, it might be to late to reach the place where I would like to be physically. So yes, maybe in some way this is an attempt on my part to defy age, to trick it into staying away from me...at least the effects of age. By working out and getting into better physical shape I can feel younger and more energetic.

Although forty-three isn't considered old in our culture, I do think there is a mentality in some places that you are moving into a different part of your life and that you should act or behave in a certain way. I know some forty + year old people that are old, because they have an old mind set. They think they are old, so they are. Their minds tell their bodies that they are old so the body begins to be old. I think that is a generational thing. I think they saw their parents at that age being old, so they just assumed that they would be old by forty also. On the other hand, I know some ninety year old people that seem very young. They are active, alert and energetic. They move like someone half their age and they are cheerful and happy in their lives. They have a young mentality. So it shows you that your mental attitude makes the difference.

As I work on the physical me, I am also working on my mind. Reshape my thinking about life and the expectations I have about where my life is and where it is heading. I have heard people say for many years that their 40's and 50's were their best times in life. I can see how that would be. I think as you reach your 40's, you have learned a thing or two about the world. Some people spent their 20's and 30's trying to obtain, build, and create a life or a living. Then when you reach your 40's and 50's you realize that some of the truths about life you always held weren't really true after all. And you also reach a place where you no longer try to please other people or impress other people with your accomplishments and what you have amassed in life.

Maybe you see that what you thought was important at twenty, isn't really that important in the whole scheme of life after all. Maybe you realize that the people you were trying so hard to impress, weren't worth the effort.

I have always been a late bloomer. But I find that after reaching forty I begin to fit more comfortably in my own skin. I finally fit me and accepted me for who I was, not for what I was trying to be or what I thought I should be at forty. I let go of the expectations I had about what my life was suppose to be, and how it was "suppose to" become, and I just learned to enjoy where I was and what was happening, even if it wasn't a comfortable, pleasant place. Like the bible says, finding contentment in whatever state you are in. I have found an inner contentment in so many areas of my life. I have lived long enough that I know there will be times of joy, times of sorrow, times of plenty, and times of want. I know that whatever I am facing that with time the situation will change. The old saying, "This too shall pass." I have lived long enough to see that and understand that time passes quickly. What today feels like an impossible task or hard time, soon will be only a memory. Another time that God shows Himself true in my life. I know the things God has brought me through and I can look back now and know His hand was on me. So in faith, I understand that His hand will continue to guide me and bring me to new places and new understandings.

For this truly is journey that we are on...we are all trying to find our way. I think by accepting where I am, I am better able to understand that there is a reason for it, there is a purpose that is higher than my own and the desires that God places in my life are also there for a purpose. But I need to learn to put aside my thoughts and desires or my expectations and allow Him to show me the real purpose and lead me to His desired outcome.

Of Summer Days and Memories

Some of my favorite memories from my childhood are connected to one place; my Grandma's house. Actually we called her Mawmaw and her house was actually the house she had grown up in from the time she was very young. In the early 1900's my great-grandpa and great-grandma moved to a community that would later be known as Reids community, or Blackjack. They bought around 140 acres that had three houses on it. They lived in one of the houses while they worked on another one. After a time they moved into the big house at the curve.

For most of my growing up years we lived on part of what was originally some of the family land that had been sold to other family members. My parents bought a piece of it back from an uncle. Then again later in my life, my husband and I bought an acre of land from a cousin and we lived there for several years. So my kids, the girls, were the fifth generation of my family to have lived on the land.

As a child, I ran and romped all over from one end to the other; through the woods, across the fields and down to the creek bank. I picked flowers, climbed trees, crawled through hay bales in the barn and picked vegetables from the gardens. We rode bikes up and down the county lane, played on the tractor and learned how to drive in Uncle Ford's truck. We were country kids who were carefree and played from sun up to sun down. We swam in the creek and rode on the tail gate of pickup trucks, and jumped from the tops of the barn. Some how we all survived.

My mom grew up in that house and in her time it was unpainted. But for as long as I can remember it was painted green. The porch ran the length of the front and was a place that welcomed visitors. There was a large tree that shaded the porch and the roots spread out across that half of the yard. On the other side, was a Camellia bush. Which was much more like a tree than a bush. It had the prettiest pink flowers that we always loved to pick. I remember breaking off a handful and bringing them in and Mawmaw would put them into an old mason jar and set them in the windowsill or on the table.

My grandma was always in the kitchen either cooking or cleaning up after a meal. Every Sunday the family would gather there after church and eat and visit. Often times the pastor and his family would come to eat and there would be other cousins and family members and neighbors dropping in for coffee and a visit. There was always a pot of coffee for the adults and a pitcher of cool-aid for the kids. The coffee was Community dark roast and the cool-aid was usually grape flavored. There was always something good from the garden to eat. One of our childhood favorites was what we called Mawmaw beans and rice. It was actually lima beans but because Mawamaw cooked them, we called them Mawmaw beans. We would often add ketchup to the beans and rice and it was delicious.

Another wonderful memory was going to Mawmaw's on Saturday morning early and helping her make biscuits. She would give me a piece of dough so I could roll my own. We would put them in a pan and cook them along side hers. But somehow mine never turned out as good as hers did. I loved nothing better that to eat those hot biscuits with cold Steen's Cane syrup. It came in a yellow can and tasted like heaven on earth. I would pour some onto a plate and it would slowly fill the middle of the plate. Then break a piece of the biscuit off and drag it across the bottom of the plate, loading it with that thick, cold syrup. By the time you finished your fingers were sticky and syrup dripped down your arms. She would also cook bacon, not the kind of bacon you buy in the store these days, but thick, fatty pieces of bacon. The left overs would sit in a pan on the stove all day and if you were lucky you could come in later after being outside playing and sneak a piece of that cold bacon. It was delicious even when it was cold and hours old. Sometimes we would take a piece of it and put it on a string and go down to the creek bank and use the bacon to catch crawfish. I can remember a few times bringing back a few small crawfish and Mawmaw would put some butter in a skillet and fry up the crawfish for us to eat. Of course they were usually so tiny that you really only got a taste of them, but it was great, because we had caught them ourselves.

There were many days after the garden came in that we would all sit around on the front porch, to catch a breeze, and shell peas or beans. We would have a dish pan in our laps with a bucket filled with whatever happened to be ready that morning sitting on the porch at our feet. We had a ball just sitting there together seeing who could shell the most. Kids today just don't realize what they are missing out on. I wouldn't trade any of those times for all of the electronic gadgets that my kids have today. There was nothing like it.

Long hot summer days spent down at the creek, swimming with cousins and neighbor kids. Swinging from the rope that someone had hung from a tree in the deep part of the creek. Sitting on the log that had fallen across one end of the swimming hole, running down the sand bank splashing into the creek for the first time; wonderful memories fresh in my mind as though I did them just yesterday.

Often times we would have a watermelon floating in the water to chill and someone would use their pocket knife to cut it open and cut off pieces to pass around. The taste of that cold melon, the feel of the creek water and the sound of squeals and laughter; pieces of a happy childhood that I wish I could bottle and keep forever. I can remember riding in the back of Uncle Ford's pickup wet from swimming, the hot sun and summer wind drying me as we headed back up the road to Mawmaw's house. There we would often be greeted by the smells of the big Bar-b-Que grill that sat in the back yard by the car shed. Uncle Ford would be standing there with his little mop, mopping his homemade Bar-b-Que sauce onto the meat. If I close my eyes, I can smell it now.

His grill was a huge metal barrel looking thing that had been hand fashioned and welded onto a base of four legs and had a large smoke pipe coming from the side. It has long been left to sit unused for many years now. In 1986 Uncle Ford was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and passed away in 1995. The bar-b-ques that he use to host are only memories of those who were blessed enough to be a part of the family or the community. But when I sit very still and quiet, I can close my eyes and visualize it all again. I can smell the smoky smell of the grill, and I can taste his bar-b-que sauce.

A couple of years ago, after my grandma passed away, I begin to remember little pieces of yellowed paper that she would keep stuffed here or there in her kitchen. Some were in a small box that she kept in her pie safe in the dining room. These pieces of paper were recipes that she had written down through the years. So I had my mom, who still lives just down the road, start going through her things to find the recipe for Uncle Ford's famous bar-b-que sauce. She searched and went through things a little at a time until one day she happened upon the recipe. It is written on a piece of notebook paper. Yellowed and spotted by age, written in pencil. The handwriting is the familiar script of my grandma.

As I sit and hold this recipe in my hands I am taken back to a place, down a country road and around the big curve, right back into the 1960'and 70's. The memories of good times, simple times when people didn't have much, but were rich just the same. When love, family and community was everything. The pace was slow and easy, people were warm and genuine. The air was cleaner and water was purer, and life was good.

After all the complaining about the winter weather, summer will be upon us before we know it. I am making plans to plant some vegetables in a raised bed and I am getting ready to prepare the grill for summer cooking. Now that I have Uncle Ford's Bar-b-Que sauce recipe I am going to cook up a large batch to keep on hand for those summer evenings when for a few moments I can conjure up some long held memories of another place and another time. In a small way, I can share with my kids a piece of the past, a part of their family history. A time when days were long and carefree and the world was a much friendlier place for kids to live.

Mindful March Monday...

It is the start of a new week, and a new month. Hopefully the beginning of spring as well. This winter has seemed to drag on forever. I am tired of the cold. I am anxious to get outside, dig in the earth and be active again. I feel like I have been hibernating all winter and now it is time to live again.

This morning I stood at the back door and watched as the sun begin to peep over the rooftops and through the pines in the backyard. It is such beautiful thing. So natural that most of the time we take it for granted that the sun will rise. This morning I am trying to be more mindful of the day to day things that I often don't stop to pay attention to. Like the sound of Noah's footsteps coming down the stairs for the first time in the morning. He is so joyous. Happy to be awake and ready to explore the new day.

Even the little annoyances such as the guinea pig squealing for food each morning, and the dogs scratching to get out for the first time each day are things I want to remember and pay more attention to. These are all parts of my life, parts of the present. So quickly these things will be only memories for me to hold and a rifle through like old photos in a shoe box. Pulling out each one and trying to remember the details of who, where, what and when. If we aren't mindful of each day, then when we review our memories our minds will rebel and not allow us to bring each memory back with clarity.

The memories that I hold most dear are the ones that I was fully present in the moment. Some of those were times of sorrow or pain; such as recalling in precise detail every thing about the morning that I learned that Daren had been killed. I can call to mind the exact details as though it were yesterday. When it was actually seventeen years ago this month.

There are images that I recall when closing my eyes, as though looking at a photograph, because I was mindful and present in the moment. I will never forget the approach by plane into Seattle. Flying over the city, then banking and turning to go into a landing at the airport. I recall with clarity the details of flying out of Seattle and looking out the window of the plane as we flew around Mt. Rainer. The beauty was breathtaking...I took it all in. I was there, I didn't want it to end. I wanted to drink in the beauty until I was intoxicated by it.

I am by nature a very visual person. I find enjoyment in the simple act of viewing things of beauty. It isn't necessarily things that others would call beautiful. Although somethings are universal...many people find beauty in scenes of the ocean or mountain views. But there are other things, small things that I find beautiful. I can sit for long periods of time looking into my basket of seashells. Taking them out one by one, turning them over and over in my hand, feeling their texture.

I have a small bottle filled with white and green beach glass that I picked up at Lake Michigan. It sits by my kitchen sink. I often pick it up and look into the glass, sometimes taking out the pieces and holding them, feeling their smooth edges, know that only time caused such a thing. It wasn't an overnight process. Time and consistency brought about something of beauty out of brokenness. The water and sand working day after day polishing away the sharp edges. Wearing down the thickness of the glass. Rounding the jagged edges of the broken pieces.

It seems very poignant to me, standing in my kitchen in North Carolina, miles away from Chicago, maybe even many more miles from where the bottles originated. Something that as a whole piece someone considered trash and tossed aside mindlessly, now is considered a treasure to me. How it was broken and the smaller parts of the whole were cast into the water for who knows how long.

Now they are considered treasures to someone who herself has been broken and tossed on the sea of life. Realizing that everything that life has brought my way is something ordained by God who is trying to make something useful of me. Each blow was designed to soften my rough edges, to remove the jagged, sharp corners so that they can no longer injure. I see my life as a work in progress. Each day trying again to move a little closer to that image that God has for my life.

Some days I feel as though I may be learning, understand a little more, moving the right direction. However, there are times when I know that I should have learned something and things should have gone differently, but the old human nature rises up and flesh becomes more dominate. A rough edge needs to be smoothed. But for that day, I wasn't able to overcome the very nature that tries to destroy us. For that day the score is flesh 1: spirit 0.

So I keep this little bottle of beautiful beach glass where I can see it, all through out my day it stands as a visual reminder of the work of God in my life. If something were to happen and we had to leave quickly. I would grab this little bottle and carry with me.

I don't wear jewelery of diamonds or gold. I find no value in those types of things. I do have a wedding ring set that Andrew bought me when we married. I also have a diamond that he gave me on our anniversary one year. Those are special because they are part of our life together, a reminder of the past. I don't wear them, simply because I don't wear jewelry anymore. I keep them in a special place and one day the kids will have them to keep. But I do not desire to have more, I find no real value in those types of things. But my bottle of glass is a treasure to me, something I value, something I hold dear. It has meaning to me, it is a talisman of sorts. Not that I believe within it lies some magic power, but the effect it has on me when I look at it, when I remember, it changes my thinking and my understanding. It takes me beyond the moment, the place where my feet are standing.

It serves two purposes. It carries me back to the place and time when I walked along the shores of Lake Michigan and reached down into the sand to retrieve this beautiful glass. I recall the enjoyment of spending time with my family and reveling in the last few days of summer, when my kids were still with me; still children. It also carries me to a place somewhere in the future, knowing that one day I will hold that bottle and everything will be different. The house I live in will be different, my children may be grown and on their own. God only knows the changes that will have occurred between now and then. But I will be able to hold that bottle of small chards of glass that have been worn down by time and elements, and I will remember.

At the same time I can take a piece out of the bottle and hold it in my hand, letting my fingers touch and feel the smoothness and the rounded edges, understanding that God has held me in His hands. Finding the sharp edges and jaggedness of my life, yet seeing what I could be with a little more polishing and wearing down. Hopefully by the time my life is done, and God calls me out of this world, I can be a smooth, polished and shining example of God's love and His endless mercy. A thing of beauty to the Lord. A treasure that he finds enjoyment in, and receives glory from. I want to be a reflection of Him. I want to reflect His light and love, His goodness and power.

To most, the beach glass is just a bunch broken pieces in a jar, nothing of value, but to me they are a treasure. In the same way I hope God sees me when He looks down at my brokenness, my uselessness. Only through Him can my life be a thing of beauty. Only to Him can I be of any value.

A week of being sick...

Nothing much has been going on this week. We have all been sick. I think Lauren brought something back with her from Atlanta last week and we have all taken turns passing it around. I think she and I have had it worse than Megan and Noah. Noah just had a little runny nose and a slight cough. Megan is stopped up and blowing her nose. But Lauren and I have been really stopped up with a congested cough and feeling awful!

Because of this our week has been pretty slow and filled with drug induced sleep and hazy thinking and very little conversation. We have all pretty much found our own little spaces in the house and nested. Noah has enjoyed more time on the wii this week. Mario Kart can keep him satisfied for quite some time.

The girls did spend all day one day this week working on Lauren a new photography blog site. Megan designed it and did all the necessary computer magic to make it come together. She is really good at that. She taught herself all the codes and computer language to get the colors and designs and everything working together to make the site work. I am amazed at how she does it. I wish I could find a class that she could take that would give her a little more instruction and she could have her own website design business. She is really good at it. Check out this site:

www.aloimagery.blogspot.com

I have been doing some reading this week. I read a humorous book about southern mama's

Now I am reading one of Jon Katz books. I have never read any of his work, but picked this one up at the library and thought it sounded interesting. So far I am not disappointed.

My reading interest seem so varied that I usually end up with a stack of book at the library that are so different from each other. The librarian even commented about the wide range of books that I was checking out. I never know what I will be in the mood for, so I try to cover all the bases. Right now I am not really doing a lot of fiction reading. I usually have a stack of books by the time I make it back to the fiction section and I usually say the same thing every time...next time I will start in the fiction section and work my way back up. But I never do, something always catches my attention in the nonfiction and I get carried away into book land...

Since I was a child, I have always loved the library. My mom took me to the library and got my first card when I was around three years old. From that point on I was so amazed that you could go to a place with all those books and get a stack and bring them home...then go back next time and get another stack and bring them home to read. Yes, I suppose I was easily amazed by simple things...

From the time I was old enough to read, I have wished that there was some type of machine that I could hook to my brain and go through the library and take in all the words and read all the books...like scanning them with a computer but understanding and retaining each one. There were so many I wanted to read, but not enough time to read them all. I am still that way...I have to limit myself each time to a tote bag full. I know in my heart that I will not have the time to read all of them but I have to attempt it.

So I leave the library with wide eyes and pounding heart...hardly able to wait until I get home to start the first one. I often look through them while stopped at red lights on the way home. Deciding which one will be the first. I usually know that by the time I get home. I have picked out the one that I will devour, like a hungry wolf devouring its prey. The first one gets read quickly, usually by the second day I am ready to begin the next one on the list. This book will take me a little longer to complete, and on and on it goes down the line of books until it is time to return them to the library.

Usually I am a few days late returning them. I always have a fine at the library...it's just my way of helping support such an awesome place. One dollar here, seventy-five cents there...sometimes it may even get as high as three or four dollars depending on what is going on in my life at the time. In some places that we have lived you can renew them online, and I will do that, but in other places you have to call to renew. I'm not much of a phone person, so I just let it go and willingly pay the fine.

Once I even had the privilege of working at a library. I loved it! I got to see all the new books that came in before they were put on the shelves. I actually got paid to do something I loved. I was able to read, read, and read some more...It was great. For a small town, it was one of the best libraries I had seen.

Of course, living in Little Rock was great...there were so many branches of the library that it was like an adventure. Each branch had its own feel to it, but they were all great with lots of great books. I could even visit more than one a day! Wow! Yes, I am easily amused...

I do love books and stories; reading and writing them. I am looking forward to starting this creative writing class on Monday. I just hope this sinus mess is all cleared up by then.

Well this wasn't the most interesting post I have written, but just a record of our week. Like a journal entry for my future self. One day I can compile all of these posts and sit and read them and remember how things were...I am sure it isn't of much interest to anyone else.

My Bucket List...or God's Purpose for Me.

The photo has no connection with the post...just a picture I took in Pike Place Market in Seattle last summer. While looking through my photos this one made me think of spring and made me think of Seattle...so it brought a smile to my face...in this cold, dead of winter, these flowers and the memories of Seattle were heart warming...

Well, I finally did it...being the commitment phobe and the semi-recluse that I have become, I stepped out of my comfort zone and did something I have wanted to do for a very long time.

I suppose I have begun to realize that I need to get to work on that "life list" or as some affectionately refer to it; "my bucket list". Or maybe I just ran out of excuses why I couldn't do it...

I signed up for a Creative Writing class at the local community college. It is a continuing ed course, and not one leading to a degree. I'm not seeking a degree, I already have one of those...I think it is in my dresser drawer upstairs...anyway...

I have always been an aspiring writer. I started making up and writing stories when I was old enough to put pencil to paper. Often times just making up stories without writing them down.

So I finally decided today was the day, or yesterday to be exact.

I went and signed up on the spot. I was so pumped and excited, ready to learn...but for some reason the instructor didn't show...they couldn't get in touch with her, I hope it wasn't anything serious. Last week I was looking at taking another class and the following day I heard on the news that the instructor was killed in a car crash.

Anyway, they will be in touch with us to discuss a make up day and next week there won't be class being that it is on Monday and next Monday is MLK day.

Which means we won't start for two weeks! I hope by then I haven't found some excuse for not continuing to take the class. However, the fact that they already have my money is a pretty good incentive to continue.

In all honesty, I am looking forward to it. I am hoping that I can hone my skills, learn some techniques to improve my writing and learn how to go about submitting my writing for possible publication.

The instructor is a long time writer for the newspaper and probably has lots of stories to tell about the business. From her photo she looks like a very pleasant, engaging person. She seems like someone who is encouraging and a mentor. The type of woman who is easy with a laugh and someone with whom you feel comfortable immediately. A confident person, comfortable in her own skin, someone with wisdom and compassion.

To think I got all that from looking at her photo. A photo that probably reminds her of the DMV photo on a drivers license that no one likes. But I have always been insightful that way, you know, reading things about people just by looking at them. Feeling their spirit...Oh, I never shared that talent with you? Well, that is one of many that I have been hiding, waiting for the right moment to share. Stick around, you never know just what you might discover about me next.

So for now, this being a new year and my theme being NEW YEAR, NEW ME, this is one thing I can cross of that list of mine...On my death bed, when I am 103, I can look back with fondness and remember that I did follow some of my dreams, I took a creative writing class...only God and the future knows if anything actually came of it...if I actually learned something and used it to pursue the dream of being a writer, well a paid writer...I have always been a writer...the point of this exercise is to see if I have the stuff to actually make it pay for me...we will see. In the meantime, I hope to have a good time, meet interesting people and broaden my horizons; or as Bruce Wilkinson says, allow God to expand my territory.

Started reading The Purpose Driven Life yesterday. Day one is a reminder that it isn't about me...I am here for a purpose, God's purpose to be exact. So even with all of my talk about following my dreams or doing something I've always wanted to do, I realize that above it all, I need to pursue God's purpose for this life.

God put each of us here for a specific purpose and like most people, I got sidetracked along the way, seeking my purpose. Now with the New Year, New Me mindset, I am not just marking off items that I selfishly want to do, I am seeking Him in each of these things...using the items to move me toward where He envisioned my life...Although some of them may cause you to ponder; how could running a 5k help you reach the place God wants you to be?

Well, I'm not sure, but I feel God's leading in that direction for some reason... I only have a little light to shine on the first step, I don't see the whole journey laid out before me. God usually doesn't work that way...it is about faith, trusting in Him that He knows where He is leading you...He sees the end from the beginning.

I truly believe that when you start in the right direction God will continue to give you a little more and a little more detail about what you are suppose to be doing along the way. The bible says that if we delight ourselves in Him, He will give us the desires of our heart. That doesn't mean that He will grant all of your wishes and life will be grand. Sometimes I wish it did...well maybe, sometimes...

It means that He will put into you the desires that He has for your life. They will become your desires. They will replace the old, self serving desires that you once had for yourself. But He will put into you new desires, desires that you can pursue to take you further along the journey God put you on.

He gave each of us talents, and with those talents, He put desires to pursue those areas. He gives us an inclination toward those things. I don't know how becoming a runner or a writer could profit God or further His plan in my life, but I believe that He gave me those desires. I suspect it has something to do with the people I could meet while participating in these activities...because after all God is in the people business...and I don't believe you meet anyone by accident. I believe all of our encounters are God ordained...you have something to offer that person, or they have something that God wants them to share with you. I believe that you have a connection with certain people over others, because God has a purpose in that...

Things to remember: It isn't about me...It's all about Him...
Colossians 1:16 reminds us:

For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:

That means that we were created by Him and for Him. We were put here to fulfill His purpose...I know that I haven't been fulfilling that purpose...I have fallen far short of that purpose.

Do I know for what purpose I was put here? Not all of it, but I know that He is leading me in that direction... the more I shed of me, the more I seek Him, the further down that path I go. I don't see the whole picture, but that's okay...each day, if I seek Him He will direct me a little more and a little more. Will I ever be able to say, "this is it, this is the thing I was placed here for?" I don't know. There are probably many things we are placed here for; not great big things, just a lot of small, everyday things. Things we don't think of as purpose...but are things that in the end add up to a life pleasing to God...I think it is about relationship, about finding relationship with fellow travelers along this journey...

God put in me His Spirit, He gave me the revelation of Him, who He is and how to find Him...just as He gives to all that seek Him. Armed with just that is enough to keep someone busy for a lifetime. Sharing that with others...I use to become a bit overwhelmed with that task, trying to find a way to share that truth with people I meet. It isn't always easy for someone like me, someone who is shy and reserved. Someone who often feels intimidated by social situations...

...did I happen to mention that I have a tendency to be a border line recluse...

So at times relationships tend to be my problem...I have to push out of my comfort zone in order to reach out to people...yes, it is a big character flaw of mine...I understand that no man is an island...but some of us try, we eventually make ourselves a peninsula if not an island...(a little of my nutty geographical humor.)

But there are times when I know it is God pushing me, and I stretch myself to accomplish the task...but the last few years, I haven't been doing that...I have given in to that reclusive side and allowed the devil and my flesh to keep me from responding in the way I need to for God to use me to reach others for Him...

...so the task of sharing His word and His gospel becomes overwhelming to me. But God begins to deal with me, that it is about relationship, building relationships and allowing God to shine through me and He would draw them to Himself. But no one is going to see Him in me, if I am not doing the necessary work of building relationships.

My heart has always been about missions...I ALWAYS cry endless tears when a missionary comes with their stories and slides of the people in other countries who are in need of God. When they share their burden, I feel that burden, I have always dreamed of mission work and being the kind of person God could send... But I understand that my own choices have limited me in that area...I understand that I haven't allowed God to use me in that way, even though that is where my heart lies...

But I also realize that the lifestyle we live; the gypsy lifestyle, that takes us places we never knew we wanted to go, allows me the opportunity to fulfill that desire. Since Andrew works as a general contractor on government jobs, we travel and move around, a lot...it brings me in contact with so many people, so many people that like in those missionary slides, are lost and needing God...I used to understand that God was allowing me to follow that aspect of my heart...somewhere I lost that...somewhere I began to get bogged down in the day to day...I forgot what God had given me, the purpose for this way of life...if I couldn't go to foreign soil and share His love, He could move me around this country, bringing me in contact with so many people, so many hurting people who need His love...

...the question I posed to myself Sunday after Bro Mitchel did such a marvelous job of preaching about our purpose...Are you fulfilling that purpose that God put you in each of these places to fulfill?

Unfortunately, the answer had to be NO! A loud and resounding NO! My spirit yelled out NO, NO, NO!

Where does that leave me? Back on my knees, back to repentance, and back to seeking His purpose for me...Understanding again, as so many times, I am in much need of Him and His mercy...I am in much need of Him...without His help, I can do nothing...but through Him I can do all things.

God doesn't require more of us than He equips us to give...He places in us the desires to follow His leading...the interests He puts in our hearts are to help us come closer to that dream He had for our lives when He created us...

I am again recommitting my life and purpose to Him, Asking Him to put His desires in me and give me the necessary skills to be successful at the tasks He gives me...Whatever and where ever that may be.

of resolutions and new years...

Well another Christmas has come and gone...now to close out the old year and bring in the new. With the new year comes new possibilities, new plans, dreams and resolution.

Although I have never been much for publicly announcing my resolutions, I have in years past made them. I have at times even written them down and attempted to make them happen. But often times, I have done as many do, reverted back to my old habits and ways shortly after the new year.

According to "experts" it takes about 21 days to create a habit, or 30 to 40 repetitions of a behavior for that behavior to become a new habit. I have also read that you can develop a taste for a food you don't like after trying it as few as seven to as many as fourteen times.

So if these facts are true and accurate, then many of us don't repeat our desired new behavior that long into the new year for those resolutions to become our new habit. I know with myself, changing my eating habits and preferences took time to develop. I didn't wake up the first morning craving yogurt and fruit and passing the biscuits and bacon without my mouth salivating.

And the first few days I didn't have my usual morning dose of Dr Pepper weren't easy...the headache alone was enough to send me running back to Sonic for a route 44 size of my drug of choice. But after a week or so the caffeine was out of my system and I no longer had that desire for the dark brown fizzy stuff. Now, I don't know if I could finish a glass of that sweet syrup-y drink or not. Just so you know, I'm not going to try...because with anything, it can become a habit again. I haven't been delivered from my human nature yet, so I realize that the whole act of creating new habits works in reverse also.

With exercise it takes more than just a few times of pushing yourself to get up off the couch and putting on your gym shoes and pushing your body beyond what it wants to do. Even after months of repeating the behavior, there are times when I really don't want to get up and "just do it". But once you see the results of your hard work, and you know how much better you feel after the workout, your more likely to get up and repeat the behavior for the reward...not necessarily because you want to exercise, but the reward becomes the motive to propel you to repeat the action again and again...At least I find this true for me.

The way I feel after I complete a workout is what drives me even on the laziest of days to get up and move. I have so much more energy and feel more mentally alert and the endorphins kick in to lift my mood to such a level that I want to repeat this feeling again and again. It gets to the place that on a day that I can't workout for some reason or the other, I am actually upset or disappointed that I missed that workout. Along with the pleasure I get from seeing the results on my body and watching the pounds fall off and my clothing size shrinking.

I am at a point now, where I want to push beyond my current physical level and see what else my body can do. I want to change my idea of what a women of 43, 44, 45 and so on can do. I want to show my children that they don't have to become a statistic. They don't have to become over weight, under active and plagued with health problems...

Instead of trying to start my weight loss journey at the beginning of a new year, I find I do better by just picking a time and doing it. So I chose August of this past year to really get serious about my health and weight issues. So far, I have lost twenty-five pounds and feel so much better physically and mentally. I still want to lose fifteen to twenty pounds in order to reach the goal I set for myself. And to reach the goal that Wii fit said I needed to be for my height and age.

As New Years Resolutions go, I suppose mine would include continued weight loss and fitness goals. Continue to incorporate clean eating, getting more natural and pure with my food choices. Which would include adding more fresh real food, cutting out more refined sugar and flour products. But one resolution I have is to grow more of our food this year. I am planning a raised bed garden for our backyard that will provide fresh vegetables for the family. I want to find a source of fresh eggs, milk and meat. I plan to eat more locally produced foods, and rely less on the standard grocery stores. I want to help support local, small farms to help keep their lifestyle part of our culture. Since I can't have my own farm like we did a few years back, I want to help those who do, continue their way of life. Perhaps by helping them, I can come closer to living the life that I desire.

I want to continue to simplify my lifestyle. To not only rid myself of excess things, but to set aside ideas, thoughts, behaviors, habits and attitudes that no longer serve or support the lifestyle that I am seeking. I don't want to be bogged down by things that are contrary to who I am becoming and the direction I am headed. Knowing however, that a mind that is to wide open can be filled with garbage and untruth, so I will continue to hold to those truths which will never become old or outdated, but will always remain...I don't want to be led astray, down a path of deception, so I will continue to seek Him in all my ways...

My plan for this year is to start to train for a 5K. I want to run my first this year, hopefully in the spring or early summer. I know this will require more discipline of me and demand more physically from my body. I feel that I am ready for this challenge more so than I have ever been. I am ready for this next step. I am hoping that this is something that Andrew and I can do together, something that we can work toward as a couple as well as individually.

Some books that I plan to begin to reread in the coming year in order to refocus and renew my convictions and passions in these areas are:

Because it is my road map for this life and the one to come.

This one inspires me each year to plant, even at times when I have been unable to do so.

Because I need to readjust my priorities ever so often.

Because this is the way I want to live my life.

For inspiration and a reminder of how we should be eating.

There are many others I will add to that list. All of these are ones I have read before, more than once, but continue to find inspiration and something new with each reading. I have others on my shelf I will list at another time, for now, life is calling, and that is one call I want to answer!

All My Marbles...

*The photo has nothing to do with this post. I was just going through some pics I have taken in the past and liked the way this one looked. It was taken at Petite Jean State Park in Arkansas*


I haven't posted much lately...I have been busy with the daily business of being a stay-at-home-homeschooling-mom. The daily chores of housekeeping, school, cooking and mothering seem to be taking more time than usual as of late. I have also been using my "spare" time exercising and looking at recipes and reading about clean eating. That has taken up a lot of my time...but I am determined that THIS time I will see it through and get into the physical shape that I have always hoped I could.

The weather has been awesome lately. Right now as I type this, the sun is shining in through the blinds and the outside temp is 52*. It looks like it is going to be a beautiful day ahead.

It is already November! I can't believe how the year has passed. My birthday is just around the corner...43, Wow! When did that happen? How did I suddenly become a woman in her 40's?

I know it didn't happen overnight...But looking back it seems like the years have just slipped away. Then one day I woke up and I was 40...Forty didn't bother me like it does some people, but it was the fact that after 40 comes 41, 42, 43 and so on. Then you wake up and your in your 50's then 60's and well...time just slips right on by...

Which makes me begin to question; how I am spending these days that God has given me? What am I doing with this life I am blessed to have? Am I getting bogged down by the daily drudge of life and allowing the problems and pressures of life to drain me of the strength and energy that I should be using productively? Am I on mission? Or have I gotten off course somewhere and somehow?

Will I look back from some future self and see where I wasted years and have regrets? My greatest fear is to get to the end of life's road and look back with regret for something I didn't do. That I would allow fear to keep me from accomplishing something I wanted to do; something I was put here to do...

I suppose this month, the month of my birth, is one of reflection and contemplation. Reflection on the past and the issues that I bring from it...how it affects who and what I am today. Contemplation of the present and future that is out before me...

Every decision that I am making today will affect my future. Every day is a gift waiting to be unwrapped and enjoyed. So this got me to thinking about a story I once read. I looked it up on the Internet and have added a link to it below for you to read or reread if you have already read it. I think it is a story that we should read often and take to heart.

1000 Marbles

The Power of Place

I began to understand the "power of place" as a young child. Of course I didn't think of it in those terms as a child. But I understood that I felt better in some places as opposed to others. I really understood this when at about 13 years old we went to western North Carolina for the first time.



Being from Louisiana I had only seen flat terrain. I had traveled to Arkansas and that was the largest hills I had seen. I can remember all these years later just how I felt the first time I saw the beauty of the Smoky Mountains. I felt different while there than I did in Louisiana.



This was something that I also noticed when we would travel along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. I knew I loved the ocean, loved the sounds of the waves crashing onto the beach. Loved to look out across that vastness of the water. I loved looking for shells and playing in the sand. Add to that the fact that I could live on seafood, you can see how being at the coast would make me happy.



As I got older, I begin to really notice how differently I felt, depending on what part of the country I was in at the time. I love to travel and as I do, I notice what really affects my moods, and how I feel according to the environment.



When I was in college I found this book:

As I read the book, I connected what I had felt all those years with what the author was saying. And I begin to understand the power that geography has on our well being. Due to the type of job and the lifestyle that we have chosen to live, we don't necessarily have the ability to choose where we live...we go where the job is, but in that moving around I have had the opportunity to experience this incredible "power of place" and now understand why I feel awesome and feel like life is full of potential and possibilities, while in other places, I feel down and depressed unable to awaken my creative side. I feel stagnated and stuck, as though life is a chore instead of an adventure.

I am sure that each person has their own "place" where they love and feel connected to, a place they want to be. For the lucky ones, they get to live there, for others of us, we only get to visit those places where we feel our best.

As I said earlier, the mountains and the ocean are my places. But it wasn't until I visited the northwest part of our country, did I feel like I had found "my place". I love the Pacific Northwest and think I would do well there. I felt alive and energetic, full of creative energy...I loved most every aspect of the time I was there. However, the chances of moving there at this point in our lives is really slim. Although I know anything is possible, I don't see our moving out there anytime soon. So where does that leave me? Well I am trying to remember the saying, "Bloom where your planted!" And I spend as much time as possible surrounding myself with the things that I love, things connected with those areas of the country that I love. For now, that will have to do.

As of lately...

Today started off with a jolt. Noah woke me around 4:30 by getting in the bed with Andrew and I. Then about 5:30 he woke me again gagging. He started vomiting. He vomited everything from his stomach and continued to gag up everything I tried to give him to drink. This continued for a few hours. Then he had to make a trip to the bathroom...I won't go into detail...

We were suppose to go to the beach today, but needless to say, we didn't make the trip.

Noah just lay around most of the morning, every time he sat up, he would start to get sick again.

So I emailed some of my prayer buddies and had them help me pray. Within a short time he was feeling good. He wanted to drink something and then he got up and started playing around with Megan. At noon, he, Megan, and Andrew were swimming in the pool.

Thank you Jesus for healing Noah. I give you all the glory!

On another note; I decided since we couldn't go to the beach today, I would bring a little beach flavor to us. So I fried some oysters and made Oyster Po' Boys. They were pretty yummy also.

A few nights ago I fixed a homemade pizza but using my bread machine to knead the dough then rolling it out and adding sauce, pepperoni, and cheese. I use to make them all the time, but I suppose I got lazy and started buying pizza's ready made. I had forgotten just how much better they were homemade.
On Reading:

I am currently reading a few magazine I picked up in town. I have always loved Mother Earth News. They have been a continual source of inspiration and information.

Of course, if you have read my blog for very long you know how I adore Hobby Farm Home. This issue was no different, Wonderful! I love the idea of making my own cheese and plan to do it one day. So the article on cheese making was especially interesting to me.

Urban Farm is new, this was the premier issue. I found it very interesting and informative. I think everyone should adopt some aspects of sustainable living no matter where they live. I would love to have a few chickens and a small garden. Maybe next spring I will plant a raised bed garden here.

The health magazine was for inspiration to continue my healthy eating and exercise. I have changed my eating habits and started watching everything. I have been going to curves and exercising at least three days a week. So far I have lost seven pounds! I am very excited about it. Although today I did allow myself a fried oyster po' boy sandwich.

Well there isn't much else to report for now. I will post again soon.

On Being Sick...

Being sick is only good if your interested in catching up on a little reading and rest...

Which is what I have been doing the last couple of days...

Thanks to the local public library.

An Example of 2:00AM Logic...

You know you've been up too long at night when you suddenly feel the need to photograph the contents of the fridge...

Cheap flights...

You know, according to reports I am hearing, between August 18th and sometime in November, the price of flights should hit an all time low...

Sounds like a really good time to get a great deal on a flight to SEATTLE!!!!

I am going to keep checking Travelosity for those great rates. Late summer, early fall sounds like a perfect time for getting away to the Northwest...

Victoria Magazine love...

Have you seen the new Victoria magazine? I use to subscribe to the magazine years ago, but they went out of business. I have kept all of my old magazines and still enjoy looking back through them at times.

Well last year I got a card in the mail; how they found me after all these years and different addresses I have had I will never know; but they were inviting me to come back for their all new Victoria Magazine. I didn't, however, I look at them on the newsstand and I am so tempted to buy one, just to see if it is as good as before.

Today while standing in the check-out line at Food Lion, I saw the July/August issue and I had to have it. So I bought it, and I am only one quarter of the way into it and I am in love...

Of course I am a sucker for anything beach-y and coastal related. This issue grabbed me with the beautiful blues, greens and sand colors on the front...

Oh, I do wish we were going to the beach for our vacation. Those long lazy days playing in the sand and surf...showering at the end of the day in the cool spray of water as you feel the burn of the sun on your shoulders...Dressing in a gauzy cotton dress that swishes around your legs and then going to a restaurant with an outdoor eating area while a local band plays, and enjoying the freshest of seafood for supper...

I want to retire by the beach...in a little cottage along the shore. I want to wake early before sun rise and walk along the beach. I want to search for daily treasures to bring back to the cottage and decorate in an authentically beach decor...I want to dine on seafood everyday...I want to play in the sand and feel the rush of the tide swirl about my feet. I want to walk out of my door and feel and smell the salty spray of water off of the ocean...This is my dream!

Thank you Victoria magazine for reminding me of the incredible wonders of being at the beach...

Happy Birthday Megan!

Happy Birthday my sweet Megan! I can't believe you are already 14. They years have flown and you have gone from that quiet, shy little girl into a beautiful young lady. I am so very proud of you.

We celebrated on Friday with a Baskin Robbins ice cream cake. Chocolate cake with chocolate chip ice cream! I had a small sliver of it, that is all I would allow myself...

Of course, Little Miss had to open her presents on Friday instead of waiting until Sat. She was especially happy with this one.

Saturday for her actually birthday we went bowling and had a great time.

Noah finally relented and allowed Megan to have a birthday by herself. He had been saying that it was his birthday too. But he finally agreed that it was just Megan's birthday and he would celebrate his birthday in September.

Here is the bowling king himself! He started out just rolling the ball down the lane, but after seeing Andrew bowl, he decided he needed to kick his leg back when he threw the ball...

Here he is hamming it up for the camera while waiting his turn. Wonder where he gets his silliness from????

Surely not from Daddy!

We ended the evening by filling our bellies with seafood! We went to Shucker's Oyster Bar and enjoyed some raw and steamed oysters along with steamed crab, shrimp, clams, potatoes, corn on the cob, and andouille sausage. Megan had the fried catfish and Noah had the usual, chicken tenders and fries. We were extremely full and ready to head home to relax for the rest of the evening...

All in all it was a great birthday for Megan. We just wish Lauren had been here with us to help celebrate. Fortunately she will be here in two weeks...I wrapped the cake good and have it in the freezer, so we can pull it out when she gets here and enjoy it again...I don't know how good it will be by then, but we can try...

Yin and Yang

You know it is funny how the Yin and Yang of life works. Last week I had a really bad day. I won't even being to explain, but this week, well this week has been the yang to last weeks yin. It is as though God is balancing out things. Even though I know that isn't the way things go...But I am thankful for the yang of this week...and I give Him the glory for it.



Curves is still great...I have been tired this week. I haven't been sleeping well, staying up to late and getting up to early. But the workouts have been great. I didn't go yesterday, I felt I needed a day to let my body rest. But this morning I hit it early. I found my old Billy Blanks Tae Bo tape and worked out with it. However, I was doing more marching in place than I use to have to do, but it felt good to do the workout. Then this evening when Andrew got home I ran to Curves for a workout. I do have to say I am tired, but feel good.



Went into town today and did a little mall shopping. I really don't like the mall, but there are times when you just can't get some things anywhere else. It wasn't to bad; the kids are still in school here and working people were, well, working...so there weren't to many people running around. That is the best time to go. I don't even attempt to go on a weekend or in the evening. It is just way to crowded and crazy.



Saturday is Megan's birthday. I can't believe that she will be fourteen! Wow! Time sure flies. I remember so well when I was pregnant with her and how she decided she wasn't ready to be born and I had to go home and come back a week later to be induced for the second time. Finally she made her entrance into the world. Now she is 14! And taller than I am!!



In two weeks Lauren will be coming for a visit. I can't wait to see her. It has been way to long!

She flies in one day and we are leaving the next to go on vacation. We want to go to the Outer Banks, and Andrew wants to go to DC. So we are going to DC then back down to the Outer Banks for a few days.



Well that's all I have for today. I have a couple of books waiting on me upstairs; French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano, and A Weekend to Change Your Life: Find Your Authentic Self After a Lifetime of Being All Things to All People by Joan Anderson. If you haven't read her books, I suggest you do. Here is her web site that list all of her books in this series of books for women. I am still trying to get her newest one; The Second Journey. I guess I will have to order it. I got a 15% off coupon from Barnes and Noble today, so maybe I will use it for that.

Oh and I have a new obsession: Nova Scotia...I told Andrew the other day, Nova Scotia is our next "just the two of us" destination...
Have you seen the place? Wow! The beauty is amazing. And haven't you always wanted to go to the Bay of Fundy ever since 5th grade when you learned that there was actually such a place?
Check out their web site, and see if you don't fall in love... I suppose I have some Acadian roots there, and maybe some Scottish ancestry came through there as well...maybe that ancient familial connection is drawing me there...Nah, probably just the beauty of the place...
Goodnight to all...

Today's Thoughts

All of life is a journey which paths we take, what we look back on, and what we look forward to is up to us. We determine our destination, what kind of road we will take to get there, and how happy we are when we get there

~unknown~

There is no better time than right now to be happy.Happiness is a journey, not a destination.So work like you don't need money. Love like you've never been hurt, and, Dance like no one's watching

~unknown~

A person is just about as happy as they make up their minds to be...

~unknown~