Days of Craze

The days are full and moving fast. A handful of events, a couple of weddings, a dash of statistics, mixed with kids, chores, and laundry, all tossed with a political campaign are the ingredients of my daily recipe. Needless to say, it feels like I need a bigger kitchen!!
Even as the days stream by at breakneck speed, I am filled with joy and peace. The blessings bestowed on me by a loving God are immeasurable. Over the years I have nurtured and loved the ones God has entrusted to me and now they are individually taking flight, leaving the nest and spreading their wings out into the world.
My girls are getting married in a few short days and months. The youngest will be married this coming Sunday, the oldest in a few weeks. I have found that as I reflect upon my life with these two young ladies, my heart moves from a deep ache to pure joy at any given moment. My girls have been my constant companions for the past 20+ years, encouraging me, supporting me, loving me and now they are both moving on in the same season of my life. Can I cling just a little longer to that tender connection that binds our hearts together? I find it hard to let go if I allow myself to ponder that question for very long, but I know I must. There is this clenching deep down in my heart, squeezing tight as if it were a sponge, spilling over tears from my eyes with out a moments notice. Driving down the road, in the middle of a conversation, at the glimpse of an old photograph on the wall, any of these will bring the emotional wave to the surface as the salty tears begin to flow. How I will miss them!
But the joy comes in knowing that they are both marrying fine young men who love them and cherish them and will stand by them and care for them just as I have for the past 2 decades. The joy comes in knowing that Gus and I have raised them to love and cherish their new husbands and to be strong and faithful wives. The joy comes in seeing their hearts light up with love when they look into the face of the man they have chosen to become their husband. This is what I reflect upon when the tears try to overwhelm my heart. Knowing that God has provided each of them with a companion that will faithfully walk along side of them through life's challenges is enough to set my heart back on track.
Now for the next two!! These are the final two of the clan to be wed. Hopefully it will be a while yet!!

One never knows how a story will go...

A few years ago, a posted a story about a little dog named Hero. Just for a little refresher, you can link over to this post and this or this for the details. Upon hearing how handsome "Hero's" new owner was, daughter Reebs decided to follow up on the adoption, just to be sure the dog went to a good home and to say her goodbyes. She emailed the young man who gladly agreed to meet with her. She called me later to tell me that they spent 3 full hours together talking about more than just the dog! One meeting led to another and now the two shall become one..... Reebs and Cam have become engaged and will soon be married.



They are so happy and so are we. Cam is a great guy and will be a wonderful husband for my beautiful darling girl.
So here is Rex's (aka Hero) "new" family. He and Tilly get to romp and play together frequently which makes Tilly very happy!!



Here's Rex hanging out with us while we play board games. He's a cool little dude and I for one am glad that he jumped into our truck looking for a new home that day.

What is this?!

Are you kidding me? What is this? I found it on my dining room table this morning.
Is that my name etched in the card? And did you notice that it says these are my permanent cards? What exactly does that mean?
I wasn't aware when my membership in this club actually started. I thought I had a few years. What's the deal? Do they want us to feel older?
C'mon.... I'm just getting used to the fact that I have gone over the hill. I don't need these people signing me up for the old people's club.
Notice that at the bottom it says that if I remove the perforated portion and send it off, I will become a member in good standing....
Who tore it off and sent it in????
I certainly didn't have a hand in it.
I would have shredded the envelope without even opening it.
Gosh... I feel old just looking at it!!!!
Does it sound like I am in crisis mode??? I'm really not. I just get worked up about random things. I love the fact that I am now 50 yrs old and I feel as good as I do! I am grateful for the fact that I can still hop on my ten speed and take a long bike ride (yes, a ten speed - I still have it from the 70's and it still works great! ). I am thankful that I have a wonderful husband that has loved me through the various seasons of our lives together, despite my mood swings :)
So, no... actually I am not in crisis mode. Getting this card in the mail offers for me a visual reminder of the years that have gone by and the ones yet to come. I guess I, too, have come to a milestone in my life just like some of my other family members in previous days.

Humboldt Recreation

A couple of days ago I went out to the beach to catch a much needed sunset. I say much needed because it had been far too long since I had actually taken the time to appreciate the beauty of this daily event. Here in Humboldt, the sun quite often sets into a nice bed of fog before it descends into the ocean, so when we see a sunset like the one in the photo, it just makes it that much more spectacular. I am almost ashamed to say that my life has been so busy lately that I had to actually plan this event. Usually I tend to be a very spontaneous person, but this week seemed to be quite rapidly getting away from me. I had to take drastic measures to ensure that my activities remained balance between work and play! I told my honey the night before to set aside this evening to go to the beach with me for some quiet time to which he enthusiastically agreed.


Again, the evening was one of those spring evenings where the wind was gentle, the sand was cool, and the breeze even had a hint of warmth to it. I love the fact that after 28 yrs together, my honey and I still love to spend time together doing the simple things that we have loved the most over the years.


I took my other favorite friends along with me as well. These friends would be Tilly and Hero, my dogs. And boy do they love going to the beach!