One Part Inspiration...

What do you indulge in? Tonight, I am freely admitting that I am having an "indulging-me" kind of night. I am all by myself. There are no lights on but the monitor. The sun is just finished setting and the colors are magnificient. It is cooler now, and just the time of night when a good sigh is in order. "AHHHHHH" There I said it. I have tons of things that I love to do when I don't have anything to do. First of all, when I arrived home from work, I laid on the bed and talked to my husband. I am always amazed how optomistic he is. I am optomistic too - in a pessimistic sort of way. But he is consistently optomistic. What a pleasure to be around someone who can see good in all. Then we went outside and took some wood off the hay wagon so that he can rebuild it to collect all the hay that he has been working on this weekend. When he and the kids left for the soccer game, I went out to the garden and attached the hose to my "plant food" nozzle. I managed...

Umbrella for the table (don't expect me to buy top-of-the-line because all I need is a bit of shade - not a statement) Bug Spray ( why this doesn't come in gallon-sized containers I don't know) Sunscreen (Spray on please - five people have a lot of square footage to cover) BBQ sauce (the stuff we've have for three years is just about out) Fresh fruit (road-side stand cherries the other day were the size of my thumm) Anything beginning with ICE Pop (Diet Coke is my absolute favorite this time of year) Magazines (I want to read up on all the things that will make my life better) Popsicles (lots of different flavors) A great watering system (one with a rolling cart and easy to apply plant food)

One of the additions to our pet collection was a pair of kittens. I have already blogged about how I was hoodwinked into getting them in the first place. So I won't repeat myself - that would be redundant. However, I do want to tell you a little story about what has happened since. Actually, the story is split into two bits. The first one is very short. One of the kittens was run over as it made a mad dash across the road to get to the other side. This is proof that before you start a dash, you should be sure you are not going to change your mind. As I might have mentioned, cats are the expendable crewmen of the farm. They come, they go, and their memory fades. Sad but true. Don't report me to the SPCA. The second bit of the story is a little longer. It is about the other kitten of the pair. As you may or may not know, we have come to have the reputation of naming our animals after foods. We have Burger (cat), Kola (dog), we had Sundae (cat), we've had Broccoli (cat) and so...

Friday, I read the paper. In it was the annual advertisement for a local nursery's dawn to dusk sale. It started at 4 a.m. If I could have got myself up, I would have saved 50%. However, I didn't wake up until 6:30 so I only got to the 30% off part of the sale. I managed to part with a few dollars anyhow. For several years now, I have been adding plants to my garden - just a little at a time. When I first realized how much I liked flowers, I began my "annuals" phase. At that time, my husband was heavy-duty into Scouting and they had a plant sale for a few years. One year, we ended up buying the bulk of the plants because there was so many left overs. That was the year my mom died. I had to leave suddenly because she was so sick and I didn't come back for several weeks. By the time I came back, everything was in full bloom. Every time I drove in the driveway, I slowed down just a little to take a look - and found such comfort from it. The next year I bought a trel...

Well, the dust is beginning to clear. We are coming up for air. The end of the tunnel is in sight. Whatever cliche you want to use, you can probably hear a sigh of relief emanating from this house. Two of the three are officially finished classes. One to go - but does anything really happen in the last week of school? (or the first week, or just before Christmas or just after March Break?) Tonight, we celebrated the ending of an era. The only child who has attended the same school all his life and his parents were invited to a restaurant with the rest of the graduates and their parents for a dinner. I reflected how much more low-key this dinner was than the one at the same restaurant five years ago when my daughter was leaving the elementary school. I guess it's true that your first-born's firsts are very emotionally impacting. By the time my third reaches these milestones, I am more conscious of the impact of the milestone on the seasons of life that we are approaching. I thi...

Graduation: Multitudes of nervous parents looking for the only graduate they want to see crossing the stage. Proud friends (fans) watch the proceedings, feeling honored to be invited to this occasion. A buzz of excitement reverberates in the hall where graduates are pre -assembled. The only classical music that most people will hear is played for the prelude, processional and recessional. Speeches made by dignitaries tell audience members about great accomplishments of their institution and their graduates, enticing audience members wondering what to do with their life into a world of learning. Flowers and cards and presents and cameras abound in an attempt to capture a moment, a sentiment; to commemorate the hard work that has gone into this moment. The best and the brightest of the student body are honored publicly. The audience is amazed at the grade point average, the athletic prowess, the artistic abilities of the students getting the awards - either thinking back to their own gr...

I don't know if you are like me, but I hate scales. I am not talking about piano scales (although they're not high on my list of things I like to do either). I am talking about weigh scales. When we got married, some loving, solicitous soul gave us a set of weigh scales as a wedding present. I don't really know if it was a gift with a message for us. I kind of wonder if they were on their way to the wedding and remembered they'd forgotten a gift. Perhaps they made a quick stop at Canadian Tire to pick up the first thing they could grab at the front of the store, before they went on to our wedding. (I guess it's better than motor oil...but only slightly) I can picture those scales now. They were white and had some sort of fake vinyl on the top as if that would soothe the weigh- ee into feeling more comfortable about using it. The dial would flutter wildly when you stepped on it before settling down to a rough estimate of your weight. The white scale was not accurate...

This Kenny Roger's Song about the Baseball player reminded me of a day at the beach with my #1 son. He made up his own game with driftwood and a rock. Enjoy! Little boy, in a baseball hat, Stands in a field, with his ball and bat,says "I am the greatest, player of them all" puts his bat on his shoulder, and tosses up his ball. And the ball goes up, and the ball comes down, he swings his bat all the way around, and the worlds so still you can hear the sound as the baseball falls, to the ground. Now the little boy, doesn't say a word, picks up his ball, he is undeterred, Says "I am the greatest, there has ever been,"and he grits his teeth, and tries it again. And the ball goes up, and the ball comes down, he swings his bat all the way around, and the worlds so still you can hear the sound as the baseball falls, to the ground. He makes no excuses, He shows no fear, He just closes his eyes, and listens to the cheers. Little boy, he adjusts his hatpicks up his ba...

It's late. Or early. Depending on how you look at it. The darkness is binding. I am lying on the floor of my son's bedroom being as quiet as I can. I am hoping he will find some rest. I send out prayers for some relief for him. He is struggling. I hear him trying to find a spot that is comfortable. And he can't. I hear him whimpering at the seizing pain in his stomach. He is being very, very brave. Outside his window, a car screeches through the stop sign. I silently bid it be quiet so that what rest he can get, he will be undisturbed. I am prepared to lie there all night. I am prepared to do whatever it takes to help him through this rough patch. The floor is hard and ungiving to my body. I am scrunched up in a little corner to try and give him enough running room in case he has to dash for the bathroom, and to give me enough room to come to his rescue in that moment, to stand by him and offer him my support and comfort. As I lie there, it occurs t...