Dragonfly

Taken in our front yard....

"Open your window and look upon
All the kinds of alive you can be
Be still, be light, believe me"

~Lyrics from "Little Bird"

~The Weepies

Love Thursday: Brothers

Sometimes being a brother 

is even better than being a superhero.  

~Marc Brown

Charlie helping Jake ride a bike (I know it's pink...)

There's no other love like the love for a brother.  

There's no other love like the love from a brother.  

~Astrid Alauda

Sunset

"Clouds come floating into my life, 

no longer to carry rain or usher storm, 

but to add color to my sunset sky."

~ Rabindranath Tagore

Love Thursday

"No, there's nothing half so sweet in life

As love's young dream."

~Thomas Moore

Fear

There have been some things happening lately that have brought this word to the forefront of my every thought.  Fear.  What is it that makes us fear so much?  The unknown?  The worst possible "known"?  I think I have found that my fear stems from lack of control.  The feeling that I have no control over what will happen.  What am I saying?  It's not the feeling that I have no control, it's knowing that I have absolutely no control.  Period.  The end.  

No control.

So, it appears I've gotten myself knocked up again.  Number 4.  That's crazy!  Or so I thought for a while.  All the thoughts went through my head: What are we going to do?  FOUR kids?  How are we going to do this?  I can't do this!  Then I had a reminder from God.  

It's not my decision.  Either way- fourth child or not- it is not my decision.  

I had a pretty bad scare last Monday that put me on bed-rest for 48 hours before I begged my doctor for an ultrasound to find out what is going on.  I will find out Tuesday what the ultrasound showed- but what it showed me was a perfectly healthy beautiful baby.  

No control.  I know what this means.  But I also know that even thought I have no control, I do have prayer.  And meditation.  And lots and lots of movies.  And wonderful, kind-hearted family members.  And comforting friends.  I may not have control- but look what I do have.

 

Something New

I've decided to do something new to try to keep things fresh.  You know- Fresh!  Exciting!  Gripping!  Riveting!  Or maybe it's just something to keep me posting more often.  

What is this novel idea, you ask?  Well, let me tell you!

It will be on Fridays (or in today's case- a day very close to Friday).

I am calling it "Flashback Friday".  What do you think?  Fresh?  Exciting?  Gripping?  Riveting?

Well, it turns out I have so many pictures from so many decades (yes decades) that are too magnificent not to share, so- I'm just going to share.  Novel, no?   

Well, here goes...

Happy Flashback Friday (or- in today's case- Saturday).

This is a picture of my mother and grandmother from July 4, 1953.  I believe they were visiting cousins in Kansas City.  (I'm sure my mother will correct me if I am mistaken.)

I think "weeeeeeeee!" would describe it best.  Do you agree?

Love Thursday

Today, on this Love Thursday, I will be posting about a... let's say, a different type of love. 

It is called: 

"Loving your child just enough so that you do not maim them while in a public dining facility."

So here is where my story starts:

Once upon a time there was a beautiful, elegant, and very, very, very patient (oh be quiet- yes she is) mother with three children.  One day, this mother decided to take her children to the store to buy essentials for the eldest's upcoming birthday party.  The shopping trip went something like this:

Older two children: "Mother Dear, how can we be of help to you?  Our only aim is to please you and make you happy and proud of us."

Youngest child: "Screeeeeech, screeeeeech, whine, whine, whine, whiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine, screeech. Hi.  Hi.  Screeeeeeeeech."

It was most certainly a lovely trip.

After that, it was decided that the family would make a stop at a restaurant where food is served at a quicker pace.  Soups, salads, and sandwiches are on the menu, making it a favorite of the children.  The Mother and children quickly washed their hands, ordered their food, and sat down to wait.  While waiting, the mother, ever so gracefully swished her arm to the side and unloaded her drink all over the table and floor.  After that was cleaned up, the daughter, loving the mother so very much, chose to follow her pattern and most agilely spilled her drink all over the table and floor.  It was so very delightful.  Delightful, delightful, delightful.  So delightful, I might add, that the mother exclaimed quite loudly, "I CAN'T DEAL WITH THIS!" (I'm sure she meant she couldn't deal with the overflowing amount of love she was feeling.)

After that scene, the youngest child chose this time to let all the patrons of this fine establishment know just how he felt about the delicious sandwich his mother put before him.  That statement sounded something like this:

"Screeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeech."  And lasted for the duration of their stay.  Which wasn't very much longer.

The mother, realizing that she would much rather spend these precious moments at home with her children- she sometimes has trouble sharing her children with the world- chose to grab several "to-go" containers, pack up the food (all while saying calmly and serenely, "I love my youngest son.  I love my youngest son.  I love my youngest son.  I love my youngest son."), seized her youngest child from his highchair, and made haste to exit the restaurant.  In fact, they left with such haste, it was as if the youngest child's feet flew behind him.

The mother chose this moment, while in the car, to reflect on the past few hours with her children, and fought the urge to cry.  Whether this urge was brought on by the lovely noises her youngest child made, or the knowledge that one day, these children will grow up and they will no longer have trips like this- we will never know.  But we do know this:  The youngest child is still alive, has not been maimed, and will smile again.... someday.  

So, there you have it ladies and gents.  A wonderful story showing how the love of one mother kept her child alive, one fateful day.

Plus, could you maim a child who looked like this?  Please.

Passion

Passionflower from my back garden

“Passion, it lies in all of us, sleeping... waiting... and though unwanted... unbidden... it will stir... open its jaws and howl. It speaks to us... guides us... passion rules us all, and we obey. What other choice do we have? Passion is the source of our finest moments. The joy of love... the clarity of hatred... and the ecstasy of grief. It hurts sometimes more than we can bear. If we could live without passion maybe we'd know some kind of peace... but we would be hollow... Empty rooms shuttered and dank. Without passion we'd be truly dead.”

~Joss Wheden

Miracles...

"If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change."

~Buddha

I Believe...

"Who loves not a false imagining, an unreal character in us; but looking through all the rubbish of our imperfections, loves in us the divine ideal of our natures - not the man that we are, but the angel that we may be." 

~ Lord Tennyson

Happy Independence Day

“In the truest sense, freedom cannot be bestowed; it must be achieved.”

~Franklin D. Roosevelt

What's more loving...

Than this?

Before:

After:

This is Emma's second donation to Locks of Love.

Both times I have grieved this haircut- I love her hair when it is long.  But I can't grieve very long, because I quickly remember WHY she has cut her hair.  I imagine another child wearing Emma's golden hair, and I can't help but smile.  

I haven't had the heart to fully explain why those beautiful children need her hair, and it amazes me how willing she is to give with no greater explanation than, "They are sick right now and can't grow hair on their own, so they need help by wearing a wig from someone else's hair."

Wow.  I love that kid.

Happy Love Thursday!  More here.

Oh yeah, and PS?  My husband- yes, my husband!  Donated 10" of his hair to Locks of Love as well.  What a great guy! 

Dad, Dad He's Our Man...

C'mon- you know it's corny cute!

Crown of Contentment

“My crown is in my heart, not in my head, 

Nor decked with diamonds and Indian stones, 

Nor to be seen; my crown is called contentment; 

A crown it is, that seldom kings enjoy”

~William Shakespeare

To Swing or Not to Swing?

Swing!

How do you like to go up in a swing,
Up in the air so blue?
Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing
Ever a child can do!
Up in the air and over the wall,
Till I can see so wide,
Rivers and trees and cattle and all
Over the countryside—
Till I look down on the garden green,
Down on the roof so brown—
Up in the air I go flying again,
Up in the air and down! - Robert Louis Stevenson

Choo Choo Love

What is it about trains and little boys?

It starts as curiosity, then so quickly you almost miss it- it moves to a consuming passion. 

You begin with maybe a few trains, a couple pieces of track.  Next thing you know, you have a train table, buckets of trains of all colors and types.  Metal, wood, electric, noisy... Then you move on to train conductor hats, train whistles, it becomes all consuming.

And then it seems, as you reach the train pinnacle and you feel you can't handle one more "choo choo", one more "chugga chugga", the obsession begins to wane.  But when that happens, you realize, it wasn't only your child touched by this train magic.  You start to try to persuade your child to join you in some train time.  You build big, elaborate train tracks, complete with hills and turns, and maybe a few twists.  You start making the "choo choo" and "chugga chugga" sounds.  Then you turn around and find you are playing with the trains.  Alone. 

How do I know all this?  How, you ask, have I become this consummate  self-proclaimed expert?  Well, you see, I've been there before.

And this is how it all begins...  Choo choo love.

Oh, and just so you know?  You are in for some major turbulence when the train playing is coupled with helmet wearing.  Big Trouble.  Huge.

Happy Love Thursday, everyone.  Check out more via Chookooloonks.

Swim

(verb) propel the body through water by using the limbs...

Most of us, swimming against the tides of trouble the world knows nothing about, need only a bit of praise or encouragement - and we will make the goal.  ~Jerome Fleishman

Time Keeps on Slippin'...

How many of you are singing that song now?

How do we slow it down?  Is it possible?  How do we take these days that seem to drag on for too long, and make them drag on even longer?  There are so many days that I am willing the night to be here.  Willing it to be bedtime for the little folk, only for it to start all over the next day.  But I fear I am willing away my very best years.  My most precious moments.  And if I keep willing them away, and reaching for this future that is so unpredictable, will I miss out and forget the present that is surrounding me, calling me to take part?  I want it to slow down.

My monkey-in-the-middle has had a birthday.  He is now a year older.  He is stretching himself into this future that I am trying to drag my feet against.  Plug my ears against.  Close my eyes against.  Yet, every time I open my eyes again, there he is- taller, heavier, stronger, funnier, smarter... growing. 

How do I describe this wonderful child?  I have been so blessed to be in his presence for the past six years.  Six years doesn't sound like too many- but look what has happened in those six years!  It's a lifetime to this little guy.  It's a blink of an eye to me.  I have watched him discover, learn, laugh, cry.  He is so desperate to be a "guy", yet I still see that little boy, that baby.  My baby.  

Charlie was named for my grandfather, and he has more than lived up to that name.  I think my Papa would be proud to share his name with my Charlie.  Since the day he was born, Charlie has had the uncanny ability to make me smile.  It started with his noises, his cuddles, his baby-rolls, and has far too quickly transitioned to his jokes, his "Charlie-isms", and his chicken legs.  But the one thing that has never changed is his smile.  Charlie can light up a room with his smile.  You can see it shine out through his eyes.  You can't help but feel it's warmth. 

So today I feel a push and a pull inside me.  A push to keep this future from coming, and a pull to see all that is in store.  I have seen six years grow on this boy.  If I look real hard, I can see a glint of the man he will become.  I can see it by the way he treats his sibling with love and respect.  I can see it by the way he cares for his Mommy and Daddy.  I can see it in the way he is so quick to laugh and so desperate to be brave, but so unabashed when crying out in fear or unfairness.  I can see.  I just hope I continue to keep my eyes open, so I won't miss a moment.

Happy Birthday, my sweet boy.

“In the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.”

~ Kahlil Gibran

Here I go, here I go, here I go...

Again!

A year.  One whole year.  Actually, one whole year and 3 months.

I'm starting slow.  Not too much writing, but hopefully still a lot to see.  

After all, this blog IS titled Picture This... we'll just keep the emphasis on picture.

So, here I go again.  

Enjoy.