green day

oh, how i need me some green

hurry spring!

I'm linked up to Patty's McLinky Picture Party -- come on over and join the fun. 

I know you'll love Patty as much as I do!

Ohh Ahh!

photo: the buried life, mtv

no way

our daughter looked at my blog post and wondered why i didn't have "ohh ahh" playing

because it's the buried life theme song

kind of rapper-annoying to me after awhile

but i'm playing it for a few days

because the lyrics?

no way. no way.

perhaps the spirit in me

connected with the spirit in those 4 boys

who knows for sure

but i told you i was crazy about those boys

*God Rocks*

(or raps, whichever the case may be)

buried no more

video killed the radio star

was the last time i watched MTV

but it pays to have a 16 year old in the house

to bring me back to a long forgotten love

music + videos circa 1981 = totally rad  

{i want my mtv...}

{if you just sang that line instead of reading it, you're my age}

my new favorite show?

the buried life

on MTV

who would-a-thunk it?

and on top of that

it's a show i want my kids to watch

{but not your kids...you be the judge on that one}

If you had one day left to live what would you do? Ride a bull? Throw a legendary party for everyone you love? Vegas? Now if you had your whole life to live, would you lose that drive, or would your list just keep getting longer? 

This is the real life adventure of four young men on an epic quest to prove that anyone can do anything. With cameras rolling, Duncan, Ben, Jonnie and Dave set out with a list of 100 dreams: everything from kissing Megan Fox to giving a toast at a stranger's wedding to giving away a million dollars to falling in love. 

But they also made a promise to themselves. For every goal they achieve on their list, they help a stranger do something on theirs. 

(MTV, The Buried Life)

the boys in the buried life are college graduates who got their idea from (get this) a poem written in the 1800s

our dreams are sometimes buried by everyday life


but these boys remind us that it's

never too late to resurrect our dreams


and live them --


while at the same time, helping others live their dreams




*

what do you want to do before you die?




i'm crazy about these boys

Message in a Bottle

my children, 2003

We stand watching image after image appear on the small screen.

Hushed conversations swirl around us.

An uncle's oxygen tank makes a schooooo. schoooo. schoooo sound from the corner of the room.

"At my funeral I want a real candle, not an electric one," my friend whispers into my ear.

And we watch image after image pop to the smooth surface of the box in front of us.

Like little corked bottles from a shipwreck finally making it to the surface of the water.

And we, like sailors looking over boat's rail, delight in each bottle breaking the surface.

"Wow, Jim looks so much like his Dad in that picture."

"Look at how much she loved her son...you know she was never supposed to get pregnant..."

I am overwhelmed at the all the unique bottles popping up around me.  All the LOVE. Enough to fill an ocean.  Despite the heartaches and troubles every life has.

Treasures from a life.  

{The life itself soaring past the water's surface and breaking into heaven just a few days past.}

I didn't really know the mother we laid to rest.

But I know how she loved her son because of how he loves.

And so I know how she was loved.

And so it goes through the generations.

Our greatest legacy is not one of physical beauty or wealth or professional success.

There was not one single bottle popping to the surface about any of those.

The bottles that break the surface and continue bobbing in the lives of those left behind contain one common message.

L O V E

As I continue steering my own little boat through the waters of motherhood, I will remember the images of all of those bottles of love bobbing in the wake of one woman's life.

Thanks, Rita.

love divine

"Well, I sort of feel obligated to go in and talk to him..."

"Oh," now Jesus was serious.  "Don't go because you feel obligated.  That won't get you any points around here.  Go because it's what you want to do."

{The Shack, by Wm. Paul Young}

...

Lent is spelled L-O-V-E

and so anything I give up...

anything I add

can only

happen

because

i

love

Jesus

*

for you I sing, I dance

 i rejoice in this divine romance

lift my heart and my hands,

to show my love, to show my love

Dancing Into Monday

{photo: r. wood}


did you know that honeybees 


communicate with one another


by dancing?


When a new flower meadow is found far away from the hive,  the scout bee performs a waggle dance. During the waggle dance, the scout runs in a straight line while waggling her abdomen, and then returns to the starting point by running in a curve to the left or right of the line. 


The straight line indicates the direction of the food in relation to the sun. If the scout runs straight up the hive wall, then the worker bees can find the food by flying toward the sun. If she runs straight down the wall, then the worker bees can find the food by flying away from the sun
{howstuffworks.com}


I hope and pray my life dance points others to the flowers...


"and that I sing with the birds


and listen to their secrets of the world"


that instead of complaining,


I waggle.


{Gee, a girl can learn a lot from a little bee}

through rose colored lense

here's to valentine's day 2010

love the funky-tattoo look of this john derian plate

deep breaths of love...today and every day

no flowers, thank you..."you" bought me some funky lipstick this year, honey

{i'm so glad our little system works so well for us both!}

j'amore de musee de francais 
(proof of my very poor hs French training. hey, I went to country school)

pink rosy frame captures valentine cut-out

valentine reading {u kno i heart this mag}

yep, i'm still twitterpated...sigh



always a valentine from my dad



john 3:16.  yep. that's sure love.

happy valentine's day

love the ones you're with

xoxo

Notes

Hi

I've been wanting to ask you a question for awhile...

It's not a huge question

Just a simple little question, really

Do you like to hear music when you visit me?

Because music is really a big part of my life.

If you came to my brick and mortar home, music would sneak out my windows and greet you on the sidewalk

If I gave you a ride in my car

Music would already be riding with me

If you came to a party on our porch in the summertime

You would hear "porch music" playing as you opened our back gate

Music used to live here, too

But then I read a popular blogger and she basically said

"i hate music on blogs"

So I quieted the musicians and singers in my little box over there

Cuz sometimes I like silence, too

SILENCE

But that's not really me

So I'm playing a new song for you today

Won't you tell me, pretty please

Do you like to visit and listen with me...

Or do you prefer the silence?

Either way...we're still friends

Pinky Promise

Let Me Count the Ways

I love this singer and this song for many reasons...

--It's a smiling and humming song & her voice is amazing

--I love how Kara's eyes fill up with tears while Didi is singing Kara's song

--I love how Didi tells the judges she's been "working real hard at this and I think it's my time."

{Isn't that a life lesson for all of us?}

--It's a love song and love is always great

--Didi auditioned for Idol in memory and honor of her best friend

--Didi seems genuine and warm...real

--And the ultimate test?  If Didi had a cd, I'd buy it yesterday.

--So tell me, do you like Didi's voice, too?

This post brought to you by a Mac.  Thanks to all for weighing in on our decision!

LOL

by far the best parenting behavior I learned from my parents is

to LAUGH

because laughter really is the shortest distance between two people

even when hormones are raging...

even when the cell phone has to be confiscated...

even when the "First Communicant" begs you to put down your new camera...

even when there are 5 people in a galley kitchen at dinnertime...

even when the car gets stuck in the snow...

even when you have to clean up dog accidents...

Laughter

is

the

best

weapon

a

mother

has.

And I'm not afraid to use it.

Whoever said "never let them see you smile" was nuts.  When all is said and done, there's nothing like a good belly laugh to ease the growing pains of a life.

a laugh is a smile that bursts!
-mary h. waldrip 

Mac or PC....that is the Question

So, my dear blogging friend Patty is not at Blissdom and is having a party!  You're invited, too!

My husband just brought home Graeter's ice cream (hand churned French ice cream--oh my!), our daughter is finding a good movie for us on pay-per-view, and the wind and snow are blowing outside.  Our own little cozy blissdom, if you will.

So before you head over to ring Patty's doorbell, answer me this...

Do you have a Mac or a PC?  Our computer crashed with a virus AGAIN (thus the reason for no pics with this post) and we're sick of it.  So, should we count our pennies and head to the Apple store this week?

Ok.  You can think about your response while heading over to Patty's.  Tell her I'm on way, won't you please?  Then come back and give me your thoughts.

http://blessedmoon.squarespace.com/

God's Funny Love

Friend: "Thanks for all the groceries, Cath.  And guess what?"

Me: "You're welcome.  What?"

Friend:  "I can only tell you this story...but that toilet paper you sent?"

Me: "Yeah (laughing). I grabbed a package from my warehouse supply at the last minute to put in the box with the food.  True friends give toilet paper!"

Friend:  "Well, you know money is really tight with all the medical bills and what not.  And I went to the store this afternoon to get toilet paper.  I bumped into Janet and totally forgot to get it.  And we're down to one roll.  I walked in the house kicking myself that I forgot...and there was your gift of toilet paper on the counter!"

"God's faithfulness I was experiencing continually, and I was also finding out something about His sense of humor."

-Brother Andrew

Isn't God amazing, the way He leads and nudges us to do "little things" that turn out to be BIG things for someone else?

And sometimes, He does little things for us that turn out to be really BIG.

Remember this book?  The one the lady on the plane recommended?

Well, I've been on a spending hiatus in 2010, but I really (really) wanted to buy this book.  Even though the library had 3 copies (for FREE), I anticipated loads of clever wordsmithery that I would want to underline and highlight. 

But I was convicted. And I love how happy my hiatus makes my husband.

So, to the library I went.

I chose the least dog-earred copy

(and told myself all the people who read it before me had very clean hands...it's like reading a tattered magazine at the doctor's office...yehewwwwww!).

On the way to check out, I told our son I wanted to sweep a glance at the new book section.

Which meant we had to pass a teeny, tiny, little Friends of the Library "For Sale" shelf.

Yep.

God has a sense of humor alright.

Nestled in between a handful of ancient runt books that no one wants sat a new-looking copy of my New York Times, 2009 bestseller.

For $1

I get that God loves all of us.

But sometimes, I am overwhelmed when He reminds me through simple things (like using me as a messenger of His love for someone else or a finding a dollar book), that He's crazy in love with ME.

May I never be so preoccupied that I ignore God's gentle nudges to meet someone's needs (often needs of which I know nothing about!).

And may I never be so busy that I forget to read all

the little love notes He sends just to little old me.

God is the best Valentine a girl could want.

Back in My Own Pond

Isn't he just creepy? You do see him, don't you? And yes, I got this close to him to snap (no pun intended) this picture (w/our pocket camera).

I'm back from visiting my Dad and his wife (and their resident alligator) in sunny Florida. My Dad looks amazing (after this) and I adored being close enough to just gaze at him.

Had fun just window shopping (only bought a Gap teeshirt!), lunching, and breathing in the salty air. I traveled alone to make hosting easy on my Dad and his wife (they've been through the ringer these past few months) so it was relaxing just concerning myself with me! All the locals were complaining about the "cold", but coming from Ohio, it felt downright tropical.

On the way there, I gave up my seat (my idea) so a married couple could sit together. Little did I know the husband wasn't sitting in the aisle seat behind us (on the teeny plane) but in the window seat! Instead of saying "oh, I'm so sorry, but I thought I would be changing to another aisle seat", I stuffed myself and my luggage into that little space and watched my large seat mate promptly fall asleep whereby his relaxed body smooshed me even more. When I looked up half way throught the flight, the married couple had moved and my whole row sat EMPTY!

If everything in life is a lesson, I'm still trying to figure that one out. (And "don't give up your aisle seat" seems so harsh.)

On the two legs home, I made wonderful friends which made up for my ditzy move on the way there. My seat mate from Florida to Atlanta (an opthamologist) had me read passages from her book because she wanted me to experience the author's wit (it's on my "to read" list now).

And from Atlanta to Ohio, I got to chatting with a photographer and his wife who had just photographed the inauguration of the new president in Honduras. The wife works for The Limited doing all kinds of creative things and flies on the corporate jet weekly to NYC. Loads of interesting conversation on all sides!

I'm generally not real chatty on planes, but sometimes short little friendships are just destined to happen!

Well, the pond here got kind of stagnant so I better get my mop out and stir things up a bit. As fun as it is to travel, I always love coming home to my own pond..mostly because I adore all the critters who live in it!