37 days...

As I sat and watched the Dow drop and the House Bail out bill, flop - there was the sense that no one knew what was going on. There were several mikes open and we heard some panic voices in the background. The largest single drop of 777.58 on the stock market in one day, ever.

37 days. No wonder it didn't pass. Those who are looking at re-election couldn't bring themselves to commit political suicide and those who were getting in for the first time, wouldn't have a snowball chance in hell of winning if they voted yea.

There are very few times that you see the press and the Congress speechless but that was the case today. After watching the whole thing and the vote was closed it occurred to me that not only was this a historic moment for our country but these guys were experiencing what believers feel like when witnessing a miracle. You are totally in awe and are frozen in the Moment. 37 days sounds like a lifetime, where will we be as a country in that time. My 401K has already gone to a 101K. Not sure I have 37 more days left.

No one knows what to do next. With calls to elected officials running 100 to 1 against any kind of bail-out plan, who is going to decide which way we go? Gives us even more reason not to put our trust in people, governments, bail out plans or MSNBC. Especially now, put your trust, vote, effort to the One who made the heavens and the earth.

We are all stunned.
This is not what we are used to.
37 days is not the end.

Especially with Tina Fey to cheer us up...

delight...

Kids don't have the same thought process as Big People. They are much more hands-on than those of us who follow a calendar. To them it is about running through falling leaves and drinking hot cocoa with marshmallows. Now that pumpkin season is here, their thoughts are turning to what they are going to be for Halloween. At our house, it appears that we will be having Indiana Jones, Bobb Fett (Star Wars) and Hannah Montana at our party.

The day was gorgeous as have been the last few days. As I drove through the back roads yesterday, I was desperately trying to take it all in and remember this wonderful moment for recall when we are up to our armpits in snow. Sometimes I try so hard to gather it all up that I forget to just enjoy it. Just like the pumpkins and their season, fall won't last fovever. We have to grab our provebial wagons and as we walk through another fall field, enjoy each step.

There is nothing quite like taking photos this time of year. You can't help but smile with the colors and icons of fall. Delight is the best description that comes to mind. That reminds me, must go and enjoy today's bounty...

voice of reason...

I have spent a lot of time the last few days with the Voice of reason and her brothers. They spent the week taking turns having the flu in its various stages of manifestations and then a few hours before mommy was to have surgery, she got it too. They went ahead with the surgery but daddy, and the other grandma and grandpa got it too so we piled everybody in the van and headed for nana's.

On Friday, with the Voice of reason always by my side, immediately after Kindergarten and lunch, enrolled in Jedi school. Having seen all the Star Wars movies and thinking myself cool for remembering that Samuel Jackson agreed to be in SW after demanding that he be given a purple lightsword, you can't imagine how much there is to learn. As the VOR and I sat as instruction and practice were exercised, it was obvious that I was in over my head. Apparently it is ok to be overwhelmed at your first lesson, as the VOR encouraged me.

Voice of Reason - I call her that because that is what she has been these last few days to all of us. She has reassured each of us that it was ok, whatever the issue. With little fan fare, she has taken the drama out of all the craziness of the last few days and has been for all of us, the voice of reason. Hard to believe that she is only 3 1/2. She reminds me of me - we are two peas in a pod and pretty much attached at the hip. Keaton reminds her that I have been his nana longer,but that kind of talk just rolls right off of her without ever landing.

It was late in the night and I spent time just staring at the three of them sleeping. Each one, made in God's image - have qualities that I can only dream of. The fruits of the spirit, and a few more, are all there in the three of them. All that and they are a part of me. I see bits and pieces of myself in each of them. I could not be a more blessed person. Not many people have their own voice of reason with brothers - what more could anyone ask?

the 70's...

I started out in 1970 by getting a job. In 1971, I got married and by mid 1973, I was a mommy. The 70's were very good to me.

At the age my daughter is now, she has a 9, 6 and 3 year old. When I was her age, I had a freshman in high school. Maybe that is why it seems like my generation grew up faster than the generations that followed. My generations said you will have all your kids by age 25, at the very latest. So we grew up fast. We became adults faster. By 45, kids were married or in college. Baby Boomers, who knew.

My husband has had hsi little blue comb, forever. I am talking high school and he graduated in 1966. A few weeks ago, he said he lost the The Comb. You're kidding, I said. I felt bad. The little blue comb had been around longer than me. I have watched him use that comb at our daughter's wedding and his dad's funeral.
He probably used it the day we got married and I would bet he had it in his hands the day our daughter was born. How do you keep a comb for almost 40 years? The same way you put up with me for 37 years.

The 70's was about growing up and doing it quickly. We learned well and it is serving us pretty good now. Earlier this week, DH says, Guess what I found? Instantly I said, The Comb. Funny, I was pretty happy that it came back.

The kids got Bob and Larry's Hits of the 70/80. We were listening to it today as we drove around town. Listening to the kids sing the songs that are so familiar to me and now them, put a big smile on my face. Thanks for the memories, 70's. We all know you so rock!

understanding...

This is the code for my current background blog theme. The insert shows a very small portion but you get the idea. I don't understand HTML but I do know how to make it work on ER.

I don't know how God works either but I know how to tune in, hang on and leave behind the need to understand.

Sometimes understanding is more about being than doing...

climate...

These are strange, strange days. We are 43 days from making political history. The last 10 days have made that president job a lot less attractive one would think but as Bill Clinton said on David Letterman last night, there is no where to go but up.

The current climate for us is frightening. What is going to happen, is unknown. WE are all having to tighten our belts or worse. I keep watching businesses all around me close. The fear of $10 gas has been replaced with watching our 401K's go to 201K. Everything is up but us. Food, utilities - all the needs of life where the wants seem to be going down in price. Retailers were dealt a big blow with bad back to school sales and the Christmas season isn't looking much better.

With so much more time on our hands from not shopping and eating out, we might as well take advantage of it. It might be a great time to start a journal like my friend Anna's mother did. She is starting to record Stories for her family and finding she is liking it. What a gift this will be for her family while she got the experience of reliving old memories.

Not unlike physical climate, we have to adjust to what we have no control over. On a rainy day, there is no better way to spend it than with a book, soft blanket on the couch in front of a roaring fire. Now you could, sit by the window and wish it wasn't raining and sit with your head in your hands for 8 hours but what would be the point? Make the most of the climate you are dealt.

No one knows what it going to happen in the next few weeks or tomorrow, for that matter. Make lemonade when life gives you lemons - it's corny but we could all use a little corny every now and then.

I have lived through enough rough patches to know, it is not always fatal - no matter how it feels. One of my favorite quotes is from the movie, Steel Magnolies.

What doesn't kill us, makes us stronger...Amen.

sabbath...

,

Don't know why but the book of Genesis has been coming at me, fast and hard. First with Rob Bell's, Everything is Spiritual and a short time stumbling onto Anne Jackson's blog with this post:

am reading this amazing book right now. here are some things i’ve highlighted so far…it’s truly enlightening. i realize it’s a bit long, and it takes a little time to read, but it is so rich, i really recommend you invest a few minutes in absorbing this.
• technical civilization is man’s conquest of space. it is a triumph frequently achieved by sacrificing an essential ingredient of existence, namely, time. in technical civilization, we expend time to gain space to enhance our power in the world of space is our main objective. yet to have more does not mean to be more. the power we attain in the world of space terminates abruptly at the borderline of time. but time is the heart of existence.
• there is a realm of time where the goal is not to have but to be, not to own but to give, not to control but to share, not to subdue but to be in accord.
• we have often suffered from the degradation by poverty, now we are threatened with the degradation through power. there is a happiness in the love of labor, there is misery in the love of gain.
• many hearts and pitchers are broken at the fountain of profit.
• to retain the holy, to perpetuate the presence of god, his image is fashioned. yet a god who can be fashioned, a god who can be confined, is but a shadow of a man.
• time to us is sarcasm, a slick treacherous monster with a jaw like a furnace incinerating every moment of our lives. shrinking, therefore, from facing time, we escape for shelter to things of space.
• the bible is more concerned with time than with space. it sees the world in the dimension of time. it pays more attention to generations, to events, than to countries, to things; it is more concerned with history than geography.
• the sabbath is not for the sake of the weekdays; the weekdays are for the sake of the sabbath. it is not an interlude but the climax of living.
• it must always be remembered that the sabbath is not an occasion for diversion or frivolity; not a day to shoot fireworks or to turn somersaults, but an opportunity to mend our tattered lives; to collect rather than to dissipate time.
• labor without dignity is the cause of misery; rest without spirit is the source of depravity.
and i am only 18 pages in…(The Sabbath Paperback)by Abraham Joshua Heschel)

I have never been much of a OT girl. I have read thru the whole thing but would be hard pressed to recite much of what I read. In my journal, there is a note to read Isaiah but I can't remember why I wrote that. Time to read whether I understand why or not. In my quest to understand that I will never understand it is becoming increasing important to follow these little paths whether I see where they are leading or not.

Growing up, Sunday was most like any other day. Maybe a bit more scary because no one had to go to work and Saturday had given them a head start to do their thing. By the time I started attending a church, what with going day and night, it seemed somewhat overwhelming. Whatever the reason, this is where my head is concerning the Sabbath these days. Always the student, always in process and always in awe...

wonderFall...

No matter what is going on, fall makes it seem less horrible or more joyous. There is much passion in autumn which officially begins tomorrow but came early to us this year. DH had a rare day off but the change in the weather turned him into a coach potato today, waiting for his Aleve to kick in. I thought his discomfort might have to do with working 7 days a week since the middle of July but he is convinced, it is weather-related. I will not argue when his faith is so firm.

The sun is still around to kiss us. She still shines bright with intermittent glimpses of change to come. It is a time of transition with a great view. Fall teaches us to enjoy the Moment because there are no guarantees, moment to moment. We look forward to pumpkins, hayrides and later on, Thanksgiving. We donT take time to give thanks much. It probably happens more when Something happens to someone we know and we are thankful, it is not us. We take each of our 24 hour days, mostly for granted. Days go by and I think, I forgot. I forgot to stop and be grateful for short periods of time. Days run together, I get busy and nto until I stop, does my recall kick in. Fall helps me to remember. There is just Something about it whether it slows me down or I am breathing in the air more deeply. I was reminded today of how precious life is and how fast it can change. WonderFall, I sure think so...

Nancy's Cookies...

When I found out that the farmers' market in Boise sold Nancy's Cookies, I had to go. I remember driving 15 miles for the sole purpose of obtaining these cookies. In a little shop, nestled on a large block, you could smell these things a mile away. That was probably 15 years ago and then Nancy disappeared. The Story is she sold the recipe and now there is a Mr Nancy.

While a little different than I remembered, the ginger and chocolate chip were pretty darn good. At $1.75 a piece and because they were too hard to swallow, I don't see many Nancy cookies in my future. Maybe I should have left well enough alone. The memory was so strong. They will always be my favorite cookies.

Memory is strong. Good and Bad. Sometimes I wonder if everything I remember is actually real or even true. How would it affect my life if I had real and true recall. I imagine it would make for a better life. When we hold grudges because of how we remember we were wronged, it affects our entire lives. I don't know if there is any real answer other than to be aware and open. Expectations and memory are a powerful duo, and a point of reference jump off point for many of our life experiences.

It was fun anticipating having my favorite cookie again. It made my day. It doesn't matter that life has changed and we all know, we can't go back. Besides, we will always have Boise...

life shorts...

Keaton went to a sleepover last weekend. N told him, If you like tuna fish casserole, come at 6PM. If not, come at 7

She was 60ish. Fiery, long red hair - parted down the middle, with grey roots. She came up behind me in the frozen food isle and started talking ice cream. I knew in a Moment, it was God in not so much disguise.

Gage had to apologize to his brother for breaking his toy. Later, daddy was able to fix it. Gage replies - well, that was a big waste of I'm sorry.

Walking out to my car at Walmart, I see what looked like one of those kid's jewelry bead kits that had been broken, When I got right up close to it, it was M&M vomit.

I had worked with the same group of people for 10 years before becoming a believer. As they watched my transformation which I didn't realize they were doing at the time, must have been something. I was always known as the girl who could cuss the wallpaper off the wall.

Making God over in our own image makes us more secure but it is false comfort.

Doing so appeals to my Martha side. It is comfortable and easy...until it is not.

Each of us knows hundreds of these life shorts. Some funny, some profound but all telling. They may be short, but their impact could last a lifetime...

digital TV...

On February 17, 2009 all full-power broadcast television stations in the United States will stop broadcasting on analog airwaves and begin broadcasting only in digital. Digital broadcasting will allow stations to offer improved picture and sound quality and additional channels. Find out more about whether or not you will be impacted by the digital TV (DTV) transition.

We have been seeing the commercials for months. The date is burned into our minds and there is no way we can every say - we didn't know. I am curious how many people it will affect. How many people are not hooked up to cable and have to buy a box to watch any kind of TV? Well, for one, we do.

Let me say, we are not TV poor. we have four TV's hooked to cable but there is a little one in the kitchen is not and we are out of cable hook ups. We will not be buying a converter box and will have to do without. Don't feel sorry for us, we need a life.
So it should come as no surprise that when a certain group of people in our culture started vocalizing about their lack of TV concerns, I understood. Seems that those who have been incarcerated and are serving time in our prison system are worried and in distress about what is going to happen to them. They have probably seen the commercials too. They know what is coming...and what is not coming.

Not sure if they would qualify for a coupon for a converter box. Not sure what is the right thing to do. Pretty sure you won't be seeing a telethon for converter boxes for prisoners. Making do looks different, depending on your view...

SNL...

Every year about this time, my ongoing love for Saturday Night Live kicks into high gear. These masters have managed to make politics not only palatable but downright enjoyable. The season premiere this weekend with Tina Fey as Sarah Palin was pure genius.

When I heard that John McCann had picked her as his VP, my first thought was Hillary. What was she thinking! I couldn't help it - I giggled like a school girl imagining her reaction. Amy Poehler could not have been more perfect as Hillary. SNL goes where most are terrified to attempt. To see these two at the podium is a dream we will never see except on NBC on Saturday night. If comedy is the most sincere form of flattery, what kudos those two real ladies were given.

When I see all the things on YouTube, Jib Jab and all those other people/sites following in SNL's footsteps, I can't help but think that they have been taught by the best. Those who were way ahead of their time and have made several generations now, learn the fine art of creative license. This isn't about who you are going to vote for or against. It's about how to look at ourselves and laugh. I thank you, SNL for blazing the trail and Rick Astley's for such a great song...

baggage...

Baggage from Pete Wilson on Vimeo.


We have all had it, in one way or another. As we go through the seasons of Life, it may come back and look a bit different. We may drop some and then, find more. We just can't seem to put it down and leave it down. Maybe it is because we are leaning unto own understanding/baggage.

This came out of my journal last week -

when it comes to healing,
we are on God's time.
when it comes to grief,
we are on God's time.
when it comes to our lives,
we are on God's time
if we can grasp that our time
is nothing like God's time.
when it comes to our love,
it is nothing like God's love.
and when it comes to our perception,
it it nothing like God's perception.

Bring it, all the baggage you can muster up and leave it at His feet and walk away...

911..

As has been my custom for the last few years, I have been watching a rebroadcast of NBC's coverage of this life changing morning. The first thing I think of is that the Katie/Matt duo is no longer. As they continue to roll out details as they become available, it is strange when we already know how it ends. When they brought up the possibility of Flight 93 in Pennsylvania, it was at first a vague notion and even after the crash, they were no convinced it was part of what had happened to the twin towers.

This year, there was a new change. As I type this, Tim Russert was trying to talk to someone in the Pentagon and kept having technical difficulties. Just hearing his voice reminds me how life goes on. As the years go by, the event becomes more and more the day that America grew up instantly. Some of the things I have forgotten and watching the coverage live, bring back. Bush had brown hair on Sept 11, 2001 - they cut away for his speech at the Pentagon this morning as he dedicated a new memorial and seven years later, his hair is mainly grey. He has had a tough 8 years, no matter what your politics are.

It is something that we have not been attacked again. While we have changed the way we do business, there are still many loopholes and quite frankly, if you had of ask me that on Sept 11, 2001 - I would have bet an wallet full of money that we would have lived through another one by now.

It seems like so long ago, in an age that seemed so innocent. We are more cynical now, disasters will do that to you. We hold our kids closer, we do look both ways before crossing the street and we stay strangers more often than not. It is part of the package. It it is how we roll...

Flair...

Ok, here is the deal. I signed up with Facebook for the buttons. Flair. I have been obsessed with them ever since. I first saw them on Emily Powers blog. These little pieces of love - there is a compulsion to have and make. Yes, along with the millions of pre-made buttons, you can make your own, this is a digital scrapbookers dream. I have already made one layout and these 7 are today's bounty.

Back to Facebook - this thing is nuts. Nothing like My Space. Once you sign up with Facebook, you start getting email from people that want to be, your friend. Some I know, some I don't. When you get on yoour page, it tell you people, you know. They certainly have a very elaborate social network so we can all be social together. It feels a bit like stalking and I can see how trying to keep up with everybody and their flair's would be exhausting. I already have a friend who signed up yesterday for the same reason I did but somehow she got into the whole social thing, After less than one day, I ahve already posted on her wall that I see an intervention coming. I knew there was trouble a brewing last ngiht when I wen tot make some Flair and saw that she was doing Facebook when she should have been digi scrapping. I am on stand by if she need me.

For those of you on Facebook, I will pray for you. If I don't invite you to be my friend or if I don't write on your wall - don't think this is me not caring. I just don't have the energy. Besides, I may have to leave at anytime to save my friend. It could be a long weekend...

bullies...

Keaton has encountered the first bully of the school year. It is not personal, this kid is an equal opportunity bully. He stood up for himself and since this seems to be a chosen lifestyle for this kid, his number will soon be called.

Bullies have been around forever and will always be. They are there when you are in fourth grade or 56 th grade. They come in all shapes and sizes. There are bullies who when grown up, still physically push people around but most go on to a more verbal type of attack.

Mr and Mrs Loudmouth are people we all wish to avoid. Sometimes that is possible and sometimes it is not. The truth is we all have the option to stand up to bullies but it seems a more likely option when we are adults.

Recently I had such an option. The bullying had been long time coming, I had let alot slide. When it came time to make a choice, I did and I carried it through. I was firm but fair. The bully was caught off guard. There was an attempt to make amends but I pushed for the whole banana and got it. It was still fair. I imagine it may happen again but now we each know that it won't be one-sided. This isn't the playground of our youth and I will fight back.

So will Keaton. Because of his experience last year, he recognized the bully right away. As the bully wrapped his arms around Keaton's neck, he grabbed said arms and broke them away. Whether big or little, we will have to live with them.

Those who badger and intimidate win, when we let them. I would imagine that we have all been a bully of some degree, at one time or another. Nothing we are proud of and hopefully if you ever encounter one and you do fight back, their lives may be changed. We can only hope...

fine art...

It is now very often that one gets a piece of fine art and made in your own image, well that just about takes all the wind out of your sails.

Our art came in full bodies but have since become Flair and I think I have found my new BFF. She looks alot like me. In the full version, she looks much thinner than me. I think poppa was given a bit more hair than Real Life but that is just my opinion.

I am overwhelmed at the Love behind this great gift. How could you not be? From those who came from your loins, from those you love you best. Oh my, it so made my day.

I have fine art.
I have the best family ever.
I am a blessed woman...

my choice ...

Shoe Circus from Windows Videos on Vimeo.
With only 58 days to go, I have made my choice. This duo has it all. The other two pair of candidates are making my head hurt. These two are perfect.

Each strong in his own field, direct opposites yet seem able to work together. They may even rub off on one another. I never would have put them together but unlikely pairs seem to be the theme for 2008.

I will admit it now, I am hoping someone stumbles and that an obvious choice is handed to me on a silver platter. Short of that, these are my guys...

50 ft...

We took some family photos on Saturday. Keaton came with to help. We started at the park for some nature backgrounds and then moved to one of our favorite places to take those fabulous urban shots. It really is a skatepark that doubles as a gathering place for homeless folks. It seems like such a dicotomy to have kids skateboarding for fun and people who literally, have no place else to be.

I have a love-hate relationship with the homeless culture. They really are a culture onto their own. I have some experience with the homeless - my father was one. Finding himself in this predicament was not because of bad breaks due to a lack of employment. Alcohol took over his life and eventually, killed him. Because of his choices, he was not welcome at my home. I took some hits because of it and later, was apolgized too. It didn't really matter - I had a family and refused to put any of us in harm's way. That experience overlays my attitude toward this culture and it has taken more than 20 years to come back around.

Come back around to what? I have found myself in the last couple of years, putting myself in their place during times of prayer. I imagine living out in the cold and wonder what one thinks about. It is an odd place to be and while I can't iamgine that I might be involved in any kind of homeless ministy - I also could never imagine praying for them.

I am still frightened to be around them. As is Keaton. I didn't find that out until after we left the park. We didn't take as many pictures as we did last time mainly because there were many more homeless people around. There is only about 50 ft between the space where this man was resting and D and R were practicing their musical skills. Only 50 ft.

Keaton told his mom about being scared.
The night before, he had nightmares about the homeless man we saw at the park.
No nightmares last night, Thank God.
I have had plenty, enough for the both of us.

50 ft, yet a lifetime apart. It is a culture than includes so many Stories, so many reasons for being a part of a club that no one would choose, if sound of mind. That is the problem not- only for the homeless but for the families they leave behind. I find myself wanting to tell their Stories thru the lens of the camera. Whether that ever happens or not, it is a miracle to be just find myself here...

endings...

endings from Zalaine Dille on Vimeo.
It may seems strange to start a week with an ending but it seems very natural today.
Most of us start our mornings with as much gusto as we can muster up and often end the day, in complete chaos. We feel bad, say we are going to do better tomorrow or next week or when the kids leave or most certainly, when we retire. We are tired, worn out and the last thing we have time for is a perfect ending. I am here to tell you, it will always be this way.

It dawned on me this morning as I waited for Pastor Jim's ending prayer, how much I look forward to it. I know it almost, word for word and it brings me to a place to start the new week.

And now, to Him who is able to do immeasureably more than all we ask or even imagine,
According to His Power, that is at work within us, to Him be Glory in the church.
both now and forever more...And all God's people said...Amen. It flows from his mouth and heart and because he has repeated it so many times, it fits him like a pair of well-worn shoes.

I loved what he read today. I love that he talked about committing to memory those things we need to hear the most. The things I need to hear at the end of the day. The things I need to hear. I want something that no matter what the day has brought, will end in thankfulness. This prayer would be a great way to do just that. Endings... we all look forward to beginning but endings, not so much. Maybe it is time to change that...

JPEG...

Sometimes, we Martha's have to be Mary's.
We have to put down our pots and pans a while,
look around and see what time it is.

We need to rest, pause and reflect.

I got this photo from my DD this afternoon and stopped making dinner and started tweeking it, With each preset, I could feel the life of the photo begin to reach out and grab my heart led me to Love. The kind of Love that brings one into community not just for my favorite three year old ballerina but for all that surrounds me.

It's an old choral song from NNU and I can still hear Royce Mitchell singing the words of Jesus.

You try so hard to please,
and still there is no peace.
Stop and listen, there's another Voice a calling.

To think, sometimes it comes in the form of a JPEG...

politics - this is about as exciting as it gets...

After over a year and a half of watching and waiting, we are now down to the Final Four. In two months we will either have a Black man as president or a woman as vice president. Either way, it will be a new way of doing business. For my generation, although we came too close with Geraldine Ferraro - not sure I expected to see this before my Social Security years. For DD's generation, it will become common place in the next few elections. For my gkids, it will be life as usual - nothing to write home about.

Two months, hard to believe that it all comes down to 60 some days. Last Thursday, I couldn't have imagined Sarah Palin - now she is all you hear about. Her family's private life plastered on every news show but that is the price you pay if you want to run with the Big Dogs. Tomorrow night after John McCain does his Big Speech, it will be hours and hours of watching each team shaking hands and kissing babies in every city imaginable...but it is only for two months.

If the election were held today - who would you vote for? A 10 page post on a digi board that I keep up with came up with unremarkable results. While most of it was semi-polite discussion, the actual vote count was 29/Obama and 27/McCann. There were 2 posts that really stood out - because of VP choices, two ladies from each political party were going to cross party lines and vote against their party. That tells me that tensions and emotions are running deep.

Whatever the outcome, for the most part, our lives will go on. God help us if they start campaigning January 21, 2009 after the last musician has left the Inauguration Ball. This is history being made and however you vote, you will be able to tell your children, grandchildren and ggrandchildren about this time in our country's history.

I am going to relish each moment of the next 2 months. While I have a general distrust of all things organized, this is proof that we live in the greatest country in the world, faults and all, I love the USA...

stellan...

Family affair - it started out as a small family project and wound up with poppa and a camera on the roof.

DD and I both are walking with Stellan and his mommy aka MckMama thru their journey at mycharmingkids.net. Stellan has already defied the doctors expectations and continues to keep growing on. One of the things MckMama is going to do is make some funky wallpaper for his nursery with all the photos people have sent in of Stellan's name written in all different kinds of ways.

So yesterday, DD came up with the hose idea and her and her dad hooked a couple hoses together and came up with a nice little Stellan outline. The thing was it was pretty big. We got poppa up on a ladder and it still wasn't enough so he took his ladder and headed for the side of the house, climbed to the opposite side and finally got a shot.

The whole time, I was praying for Stellan and poppa, for obviously different reasons but mainly I prayed that someday Stellan and his poppa might do the same for someone else and Stellan would get as big a kick of watching his poppa go on the roof with everyone squealing in the background to Be Careful, as Keaton, Gage and Morgan did. There are many roads to love - sometimes all you need is a hose and a camera...

feels like fall...

School was out Friday and we took advantage of the still very warm weather and headed to the pool for one last swim. Those of us not in swim suits soon wished we were. It was also the last warm, warn day we have had. Fall is already in the air. You can feel the change coming already. The weather liars say it is one of the earlier fall seasons on record - I don't have the courage to ask about winter yet.

We have enjoyed a lazy weekend. DH had a few days off and we took advantage of it to do a few honey do's but mainly not much. We did manage to meet the kids at Costco yesterday and have a little lunch. While there, I did have to check to see if they were carrying my Happy Chocolates. I have been stalking my Costco for the last 2 weeks and they were thinking late this week. Lo and behold, the other Costco already had them. I did not plan very well last December - usually try to make sure I have enough to last until September because they are only available until Dec 24, then they are pulled from the shelves, not to return for a good 9 months. Yes, I know too much about Costco and their marketing ways but if you are close and need a fix, I am your Woman.



We will have a BBQ with the kids this afternoon then DH has to get some sleep before heading to work tonight. All in all, it has been a great weekend. Living in the Moment in times like these, is the greatest lessons one can learn from. That and Happy Chocolates...