First Marble

Well, today is the first of my 1,545 Saturdays.

I have no idea what to do.

I have thought about it all week, but Life always intrudes and makes a mockery of plans. Eldest has a video project to complete with the aid of Hubby, so that puts a bit of a crimp time-wise. So, I’ll play it by ear and just plan on a nice dinner with friends.

Seascape not included.

With my luck it the weather will turn, the dinner will burn, and the cork get stuck in the wine bottle.

But if you can’t laugh with your friends, who can you laugh with? And don’t say “by yourself”, because I’m tired of doing that all the time 😉

Losing Marbles

I received a chain email from a friend this morning. I usually read and delete, since I really don’t like to send along “forwards”. This one actually gave me pause. It was about a man who had calculated the average amount of Saturdays in the average lifespan. In 75 years, you have 3,900 Saturdays (75×52= 3,900). That is the average amount of Saturdays a human being has to enjoy. Admittedly, when that human is very young, it has no concept of “enjoying a Saturday”, but then again that same human has only the responsibility to investigate his or her environment, so it is enjoying pretty much every single day of the week. The man went on to tell of how he only had 1,000 Saturdays left to enjoy, so he went out and bought 1,000 marbles. Every Saturday he would take a marble, and throw it away.

By throwing the marble away, he could see Time running, and focus on what is most important in his life. There’s nothing like watching your time here on this earth run out to help get your priorities straight.

By my calculations, I have 1,545 Saturdays left on this Big Blue Marble™. Now, I’m not going out to buy a bunch of marbles. If I did, the kids would end up playing with them. But I will concentrate on enjoying my Saturdays with my family, while keeping a journal of how I spent each one. That way, when I finish the 1,545th entry, I can then appreciate the little extra time I have been gifted on this Earth that much more 🙂

GUESS WHAT????

HUBBY IS HOME!!!!!

I had to keep quiet about because the kids read the blog, and couldn’t spoil the surprise!

Of course, my sister and my Mom were upset that I didn’t tell them, because had my mother known he was coming she would have prepared a feast.

In retrospect, maybe I should have told her. Nah!! My jeans fit now, and I don’t need the temptation of her food to challenge the bounds of denim 😉

Easter Blessings

For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.– John 3:16

Happy Easter, and may you be showered with blessings 🙂

Just Breathe

Yesterday, though a milestone, was still a hectic day. I spent most of the day running to and fro, conducting errands and taking care of a sick kid. It used to be that I had time for me, but lately I have forgotten about that. I find myself saying that I can just do “that” later, or I can go “there” next week, or perhaps have “this” done at the beauty salon sometime…. but it doesn’t happen. Not because I don’t have the time, but because I don’t make the time.

As I was driving back from the post office yesterday, I was passing a local farm. Yes, we have farms within our subdivisions here. I was looking at the beauty of the field, when I suddenly stopped the car, put the hazard lights on, and stepped out to enjoy the view.

I must have stood there, leaning against the fence just looking, and enjoying the peace and serenity. I hadn’t noticed how long I had been there, until an older gentleman stopped to inquire if I were having car trouble. I told him no, just wanted to stop and look at enjoy the flowers. And then he parked his car, put his hazard lights on, and came to stand by the fence, telling me that as many times as he drives on that road, he had never noticed the field before. We chatted for a bit, until the cattle started to moo, and then we parted. But not without humor.

Me: Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.

Him: That’s very profound…. Hemingway?

Me: Nope. Ferris Bueller.

Him: HAHAHA!!

But it’s true, isn’t it? Life does move pretty fast. And we should always stop and look around, take a deep breath and enjoy it. 🙂

Eighteen to Life

It’s a funny title, because it’s our anniversary today!!!

And he was sweet enough to send me this:

Yep, and Edible Bouquet! I’ve never received one before, so it was quite a novelty. And Hubby was considerate enough to call them and ask that they NOT cover the strawberries in chocolate…

….but there was a slight miscommunication, and most of the strawberries were covered in chocolate, which made the girls ecstatic, but at least I got the plain fruit, so it was all good.

Eighteen years, going on eighty. This past year has been hard, but soon enough it will be over, and then we can both eat chocolate covered strawberries while sitting on the couch, watching some really awful movie on SyFy™ and laughing at the carnage.

What can I say? We enjoy the little things in life 😀

Fierce Fifteen

Today we get to celebrate Son’s fifteenth birthday.

Don’t know the plans yet, because that’s how he rolls!

Hard to believe he is fifteen, and waaaaaay taller than I am. Ok, that second bit isn’t hard to believe. He is a joy, a warm hearted soul, considerate of others, and full of plans for the future, and no parents could be prouder than we are.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SON!!! WE LOVE YOU!!! 😀

Prayers for a Friend

I am a firm believer that there is nothing I can’t handle, as long as God is with me. I am blessed that I have so many friends to pray for every night and every day. All prayers are heard, though not all of them are answered to my satisfaction! But they are answered, and for every closed door, there is an open window. I just have to look for it, usually in the most unlikely places. But trust me, the window is always there, open and waiting.

A few weeks ago, an online friend of mine who suffers from cancer had to have a brain tumor removed. He is a true warrior, in every sense of the word. He is also one of the most giving people I have ever known. There was never a stray anything that he didn’t take in. After the last major hurricane hit his area, he personally gave of his time and money to fix his neighbor’s homes, providing shelter while repairs went on. He wasn’t afraid to argue with anyone, and he was always offering of himself to anyone that needed a hand.

I have lost touch with him in the past couple of weeks, and fear for the worst. I know he is a fighter, and not even death makes him afraid. But I will pray for him to get better, so that he can finally come out this way to meet us, as was his wish to travel cross-country. And if God has closed that door, then I pray to find the window, where I can look up to the sky and see him arguing with the Archangel Michael.

Because that’s the way he rolls 🙂

Well, I Did It

And I had a wonderful time. Yesterday I had the Travelling Red Dress™ photo shoot (info on the TRD is here). I had an amazing time with the photographer, Elizabeth, of Amakua Market Photography. She is a young woman who has an infectious love of life, and a wonderful personality, as well as that rarest of rare things: a love of her job. Grateful for the warm weather, we decided to go to the Japanese Gardens and walk around taking pics and laughing while enjoying the scenery.

And this is me. In the Almost Red Dress.

Yes, pixelated to protect my secret identity.

I found that this dress has a secret: it’s a magnifying glass. I started off wearing this dress to give myself a bit of magic, and found that the dress didn’t give it to me, it only let’s it show through. For that hour when I wore it, I saw myself like a court jester, and a petite flower, and a queen, and a little fish in the big pond full of Koi, and I loved it!! Big or small, I liked what I saw. It took me a long time to realize that I like who I am, and this dress helped me to see that others have always felt the same way. No, not everyone likes me, but at least I can see why some people do.

And the Converse All Stars™ were definitely the finishing touch 😉

Rough Day Ahead

It’s a rough week for me. This week Hubby would have been home from his deployment. Though we don’t do much celebrating for Valentine’s Day, it still hard not having him here.

So I send him a kiss…

And I send him flowers….

And my fervent wish that he comes home soon.

I would send more, but this here is a family friendly blog 😉