Friends & Roses

I am grateful for friends.  I am grateful for roses...and I am grateful for friends who give me roses!

Roses make me smile...and they smell so wonderful.  Friends make me laugh....even if you feel like you should just cry, but that's what friends do.  They lift you up when you're feeling down.  I am so grateful. 

Kitties & TP

I am grateful for a crazy cat who seems to think that my TP is there for his entertainment.  Every time I'm in the powder room now I smile and shake my head...and this was a new roll, so I should be diverted for at least a few days.

Thank You Veterans!

Tomorrow morning we are packing up and hitting the road.  We are taking the rest of the week to head up to Pensacola to see the Blue Angels!  We are also.....and what I'm most excited about.....meeting up with our good friends (more like family).  We haven't seen them in over 2 years.  Two years, too long!  What a wonderful way to say "Thank-You" to our veterans......and to my own personal vet, Scott!!  What can I say....he looked hot in uniform!

We are so blessed to live in the United States of America.  It is an amazing place, for all it's faults, and I stand in awe that we have such brave young women and men that choose to enlist in our military and stand up and fight for the freedoms that we enjoy everyday.  I am profoundly grateful to live here!!!

Childhood Memories

Yes, it's been one of "those" days.  Actually the last couple of weeks have been one of THOSE days.  I do believe I've had my fill. Waiter...Check Please!! 

But I still have something to be grateful for today.  Chick-fil-A has their holiday peppermint and chocolate chip shake back.  I feel a little like I'm in Charlie Brown cartoon with Peppermint Patty.  Lucy should be setting up the football or offering psychiatric advice for 10 cents.  Charlie and Linus are leaning against the wall discussing life.  Snoopy and Woodstock are decorating the dog house for the holiday.  Yes this simple milkshake has brought back a piece of my childhood today...and for that I am grateful.

 

Come What May & Love It

             "How we react to adversity can be a major factor in how happy or successful we can be.  If we approach adversity wisely, in our hardest times, it can be our greatest growth, which in turn can lead toward times of greatest happiness." (Joseph B. Wirthlin)

Sometimes I think it just helps to be reminded to learn from our troubles, to stop and smell the roses, to not take ourselves so seriously, to not take offense, to count our blessings and to follow the admonition of Paul and give thanks in all things. 

Sometimes we just need to be grateful.

Perspective

Times are tough right now...for everybody...I realize that.  The last couple of weeks have been particularly harsh for our family.  I won't bore you with the details...besides which this is a gratitude blog where I focus on the positive!

Scott got off work early yesterday to come home and spend some time with me simply because he knew that I have been especially stressed.  Some times you just need to take a moment and find your perspective.  That is what we did.  We went for a drive and eventually ended up at the beach.  There was an incredible rip-tide and wave action going on after a couple days of a tropical depression in the area.  It was a good afternoon of just watching and listening to the waves, feeling my toes in the sand and breathing in the salt air.  It is truly a Salt Life.   I am grateful for a wonderful husband who understands, or at least tries.  I am grateful to have taken an afternoon and found some perspective.

Canopy

It's the Little Things

Some days it's just the little things that make you happy.  Today I didn't have time to shave my legs...no biggie....but tonight as I was getting into bed my prickly legs were really bugging me!  BUT it's late....after 1am....I'm tired (or just too lazy) to hop in the shower to shave...so I did something I haven't done in a long time.  I sat on the bathroom counter and shaved my legs in the sink.  Now, I have smooth, lotioned (is that a word?  who cares it's 1:30am!) legs and I am a grateful, happy camper!

Life is a Rollercoaster...

...and sometimes you just want to get off and stop for a bit.  Let your stomach settle, get your feet back under you, before you jump back on again.  

Aahh, but that is not what life is all about.  You twist and spin, you feel like you're going to vomit...sometimes you do--and you just pray you don't hit anyone nearby with it and share your grief.  It's these times that we see what we are made of.  Do we close our eyes and groan for the rest of the ride?  Or do we take a deep breath, say a little prayer...and then say to the world "Bring it on baby!"

Yeah, we all need to close our eyes and groan for a moment...but then we need to open our eyes again, with gratitude that we are even here on the ride, and enjoy the rest of the journey.  The view from the top is something to see.

Scouting Advancement

My boys went to a Court of Honor just recently and both have been advanced in the scouting program.

Carson loves Boy Scouts and has been working so hard.  He just earned the rank Life Scout and 7 Merit Badges!  He will be working hard on Eagle next.

Carson before the Court of Honor

Rafe has also been working hard in Cub Scouts.  He earned his Bear rank, 4 Arrow Points and several belt loops!  He was so excited.

Rafe before the Court of Honor

I am so grateful for the scouting program and the benefits that it brings to my boys.  Thank you Boy Scouts of America!

"Be Prepared!"

Behold....The Nile River!

We are studying Ancient History...Ancient Egypt specifically.  The Nile was so important to those ancient peoples.  So what better way to learn that to build our own mighty Nile River.

Creating the river bed

Planting grass seed

Construction crew

Filling the river

After the banks have overflowed

The idea is that early farmers depended on the river to flood each year to water their crops and deposit fertile soil on the banks.  So, every few days we will "flood" our Nile to water the grass seeds.  Soon we should have lush, green grass.  Next week....we begin pyramid construction!

I am grateful for fun learning projects.

Diet Coke

Ok, I know, I know.  Soda is not good for you, but I love it.  I love the bubbles, the taste...there is nothing like an ice-cold Diet Coke!  It is so refreshing and it makes me smile.  I am grateful for Diet Coke!

Confessions

Well, I wasn't sure if I was going to post this, but it's too funny not to share, so here it goes.  I just found an Easter Egg that was never found on "the big day."  When was Easter?  April?  So, what, that's 5 months?  Ugh.  Now, hang on, it only one of those plastic ones that are filled with candy so it's not like I had a rotten egg fumigating the house or something.  It just tells me that when we clean house we need to move the furniture more!  This one was hidden in the corner behind the old milk/cream bucket by the front door.  As I was sweeping I noticed a dust bunny so I moved the bucket with my foot and...TA-DA!  Today I am grateful that we don't hide hard boiled eggs...just call me Templeton! 

Templeton & Wilbur (E.B. White's Charlotte's Web)

The lost egg

The Day is Done

Today I think I'll just be grateful that the day is done and over with and I survived.  I'll just leave it at that.

Think a happy thought!

Classic

Sometimes the classics just make you smile.  Today for example, I found Coke in glass bottles.  My kids have never had Coke, heck...any soda, in a glass bottle!  So I bought the "Party Bucket."  Today the old ad campaign was true to form...."Have a Coke & a Smile!"  I'm grateful for the classics...

I'm SAD

I think I must have that seasonal depression....We have had near constant cloud cover now for most of the week.  I could NOT live happily in the Pacific Northwest,  I'm sure of it.  I MISS my sunshine!!

So today I will be grateful that I do live in the "Sunshine State" and that eventually the tropical storm that is brewing in the Gulf of Mexico will move on and then I will have mostly sunny skies, with afternoon thunderstorms once again!  I love Florida and I'm grateful that I live here.

Preparing

The lazy days of summer are coming to an end.  That makes me a little sad.  It is almost time to get back into our school routine.  I have purchased curriculum and it should be arriving any day now.  I have virtual classes set up for the older two.  I have organized the school room and now I just need to finish cleaning it and getting rid of the stuff we don't use.   I also start my online seminary class next week so I have been preparing for that as well.  I nearly have that complete, but today I just found out that I have 5 new students to add... and here I thought I might have a lazy day off tomorrow.  I'm not sure I am ready to get back into our daily routine.  I'm a little afraid that I'm going to struggle for the first week or two. 

I am grateful though that I have the opportunity to homeschool my kids and that I don't have to send them away come fall.  Even though our summer break is ending, I still get the chance to spend the days with my kids, discovering, exploring, reading, learning and going on adventures with them.  I am blessed to be able to spend this time with them and for that I am truly grateful!

Mid-summer Night...Swim That Is

Nothing beats a hot summer night like going for a night swim.  Yesterday my kids discovered some glow sticks that hadn't been used and then came up with the brilliant, perhaps I should say illuminating idea to crack and shake them up for a night swim.  I knew we didn't have time last night so I promised them they could do it tonight...forgetting that we had company coming over.  Well, I thought that's ok, it's a Sunday night so nobody will stay late.  When everyone left it was almost 11pm and my kids were just bursting with excitement to jump into the pool with glow sticks.  How could I say no to that?  I am grateful for lazy summer nights.

Tomato Butts

Do you have a family curse?  Mine is tomato butts.  What are tomato butts you say?  It's actually the top of the tomato where it was once attached to the vine.  It's the part that any decent person, when chopping or slicing up a tomato, would remove and toss.  It is unappetizing and it looks...well, like a butt.  My sister and I are very aware of tomato butts and if there is one to be found in the salad brought to the table at a restaurant it is sure to be in one of ours.  Not our husbands, not our kids or even our friends.  It will be in our salad.  It's the family curse.  It's the same with salsa, tacos or today... my nachos. 

I am grateful that I am not in such bad shape, so poor and hungry that I would feel obligated to eat the tomato butt.  I am also grateful that even though I am 3,000 miles away...when I found a tomato butt... I felt just a little bit closer to my sister Liz!

My Online Classroom

I've been working very hard the last month to get ready to teach Online Seminary again this year.  We are studying the Old Testament this year.  This is a pilot program for the church so things have and are changing, which in part is what I have been learning during my 30+ hours of training.  I now have my "classroom" set up and I feel quite accomplished!  I meet with all my students in person this weekend.  I am doing an orientation class, handing out books and supplies and answering any questions.  Then the final step will be register all the students so that they can log on to our first class September 6.  For privacy reasons I can't post a picture of the class web page (it includes person information like student names etc.) but I can show you the log on page!  I am so excited for this coming year and I am grateful that I have the opportunity to study in depth the Old Testament with the students this year.

More Dental

Yes, that's right...more dental work today.  Today was Rafe's turn and boy was it a doozy!  He had a pulpectomy (root canal on a baby tooth).  What a procedure that is!  He also had a couple of small cavities.  Thankfully we have a good pediatric dentist and so they really cater to children.  They have video games in the lobby as well as a movie, books and toys.  Once they go into the treatment room they have flat screen TV's on the ceiling so that the kids can watch the movie while they are getting the work done.  

What could be better than reclining in a chair and watching a movie?  Well Nitrous Oxide of course!  Rafe was totally chillin'...AND he did so well!  I have to brag about my kid just a bit here.  Normally the dentist only works on one side of the mouth at a time but Rafe was doing sooo good and since the next appointment failed to show they were able to get all the work done at one time!!  Seriously they told us multiple times that most kids wont sit still for this much work and that the dentist said he couldn't remember the last time he was able to get so much done or do a whole mouth at one time!  They were all seriously impressed and his Dad and I were seriously proud!  I am grateful for good dentists and for a patient and calm child...and although I would have been ok with paying for another dental appointment I am also grateful that we saved some money by combining the office visits.

                                                   Rafe really enjoyed the Nitrous!

                                                 All done and coming off the "high"

                                                 A little dizzy & a little nauseated

                                             Showing off his new "Transformer" tooth

Teeth Cleaning

I had my dental appointment and teeth cleaning today.  Since this is a gratitude blog I will just keep it simple.  I am grateful for clean teeth.  They feel so smooth.  I am grateful for a gag reflex because it means I am unlikely to choke.  I am grateful for dental insurance because it means that today I didn't have to pay any money out of pocket.

"I ate a key"

Rafe at 3 yrs old

 

 

 

When Rafe was about 3 years old he swallowed a key.  It was one of those suitcase keys, although I didn't know that at the time.  I remember him coming to me and telling me he "ate a key."  He kept pointing to his tummy and telling me it was "in there", but he couldn't adequately tell me what key or how big it was.  I ended up taking him to the doctors office, who ordered an x-ray.  They took a picture and sure enough...he ate a key.  They told me I should check his poop for the next week (are you kidding me?) and if I didn't find it I should come back and have another x-ray taken.  I didn't search very hard...so the next week we had another x-ray (much cleaner and not as gross!) to verify that he had passed the key.  Hey I didn't want it back anyway!

Now, lets fast-forward 6 years.  Tonight Rafe asked me if I remembered when this happened, which of course I do.  Tonight he tells me the reason he swallowed it was because he had it in his hand when he was going into the bathroom.  The door was closed.  He needed both hands to open it.  He had no pocket.  Putting it into his mouth seemed like a good idea.  

I guess in his 3 year old mind he thought he could retrieve it just like they do in the cartoons.  Swallow it, then later when you need it reach in, cough gently and....voilà!  You have your key back.

My kids make me smile and I am grateful for them and their sense of humor.

Busy Days

What a busy two days!  Here is a quick recap:  I went for 39 hours on 21/2 hours of sleep.  On Saturday morning I got up at 5am to drive 102 miles north to Tampa area to attend a four hour seminary & institute training meeting.  I came home at 3pm and left again at 4:30pm to drive Teal and some of her friends about 80 miles north to Lakeland for a regional dance.  While the kids danced Scott and I found an AMAZING  Turkish restaurant.  The food was delicious and the "dinner for two" covered our whole table!

The dance ended at 10pm and the long drive home began with a car full of happy, hungry teenagers.  We programed the GPS to take the "shortest route" and followed along.  Central Florida is very remote, lots of cattle and horse ranches and has some wild areas that are not populated at all.  This road took us through the even less populated areas where the wild things are.  A Mac truck traveling the opposite direction as us hit it first and popped it's head off, but the rest of the 6 ft alligator was left in our lane...so we ran over a gator.  Eeeew, gator guts!  Sorry, no actual pictures...it was too dark.  After dropping off all the other kids I made it home to my bed at 12:30 am.  It was a long but productive day!

This morning it was HARD  to get up and even though I have wanted desperately to go back to sleep since I've gotten home from church, I am resisting.  I want to be able to sleep all night tonight and wake up tomorrow and be back on a normal schedule.  I've been endeavoring to keep myself busy.  I've been swimming, I enjoyed a great thunderstorm that is still lingering in the area rumbling and spitting rain here and there.  I got a video of the storm and in the beginning you can actually see a bolt of lightening!  I am grateful the day is coming to end.  I will enjoy the rest of the storm and my movie "Jane Eyre".

Summer Days

I'm loving my pool.  I love summer's down here in Florida.  I know a lot of people complain about the heat, but I LOVE it.  Granted if I worked in lawn care I probably wouldn't love it as much, but since I'm spoiled and can most times choose if and when I am outdoors and for how long....I love it.  But mostly and lately I'm loving spending the afternoon in the pool.  I swim some laps, I float on a mat or a noodle and I watch the clouds roll by.  Nothing is as relaxing to me as to just float on my back and watch the sky....of course that peace and quite is often shattered by children screaming and jumping into the pool as well and splashing me...but that is a whole different kind of joy.  I am grateful for lazy summer days!

Happy Anniversary!

Today is my wedding anniversary!  We have been married for 20 years!  I can't believe it.  I don't feel old enough to have been married for so long, but married I am and for the most part it has been a very happy, blessed time.  I look forward to the next 20 and the adventures it will bring.  I am grateful for my husband Scott and the joy he brings into our home.