My Summer Flowers!

Today was a fun afternoon! Stan took me out to lunch (Burger King--yumm!) and afterwards we went to Lowe's and he and I picked out some flowers for our deck.  A few years ago for Mother's Day, Stan and the boys added onto the deck so that I could hang potted flowers and windchimes out there during the summer.  I like to sit out there in the early evenings when it's cool and watch the dogs play and listen to the breeze, if there is one, make the chimes tinkle. So refreshing!

When we got home Kevin planted them for me and it looks so nice!

A couple of the purple flowers broke off and Kevin put them in a glass for me.  They're so happy looking!

The Big Change

Many of you know my youngest son Kevin. He's a sweet, fun young man with a good sense of humor and a loving heart. He graduated from high school in May 2010. Since then he's been working hard losing weight. I'm so proud of him! His dedication, his perserverence and doggedness on this quest has been inspiring.

He finally has reached his goal! I'm so proud of him! He has lost, since last May, a total of 106 pounds. Here are before and after pictures:

Here are a couple of photos from his senior year:

And here he is now! Doesn't he look great?



 I think he looks fabulous, and he is an inspiration to me. Here's three cheers to Kevin!

The New Dog

Our dog Jasper turned two years old July 1st. He's a sweet, silly dog and was in serious need of a haircut. I've been cutting his bangs over the past two years so he could see better, but this time he needed a full body job. Being part husky he gets this thick winter undercoat that keeps him comfortable in snowy times, but has lately made him miserable.

When I found out that a grooming job just to take out the undercoat would cost more than $100 and then the haircut would be another $80 or so I freaked out. Instead I went out and bought a pair of heavy duty dog clippers -- $68 -- and AJ, Kevin and I did the job ourselves.

Now I know why the groomers charge so much. It took us 2-1/2 hours!! Here are the results:

BEFORE

AFTER



He looks so different, and so much smaller! Now that he doesn't have the width added by all that hair and fur we can see that he really isn't that big of a dog after all.

It was a lot of work, but it was fun and I think he's going to be a much happier puppy dog this summer!

A THOUGHT FOR THE WEEKEND

Summer is a promissory note signed in June, its long days spent and gone before you know it, and due to be repaid next January.

Hal Borland

Hurrah for the flag of the free! May it wave as our standard forever!

Today is Independence Day; the 4th of July! It's the day we, as citizens of the United States of America, take to remember all the blessings we have. And we have so much to be grateful for, don't we?

When I was at BYU studying journalism, one of the required courses was Media Law. It was an interesting class, and the professor, Dr. Ralph Barney, was a retired newspaper editor. One day we came into class and he asked us a question. "What is a one word definition of freedom?"

We all shouted out our answers; noble, lofty words like liberty, justice, mercy. Then Dr. Barney turned and wrote on the board the word: Alternatives.  This lesson has always stuck with me. Isn't this exactly what freedom means? That we have the choices to make, on our own, what we want in and with our lives.

We can go to a chapel, a mosque or a synagogue or even sit in a forest glen and worship as we choose, if we choose. We can decide for ourselves how we spend our lives, be it as a butcher, baker or candlestick maker. It's up to us. If the president goes on television to speak, I can listen to him or not. For that matter I can agree with him or not. It's your choice. You want to live in Florida or Kansas, go for it! It's all up to you.

But I have been thinking today of the freedom that I enjoy as a woman. So many women around the world are unable to have alternatives in their lives. The choice to get married and who to marry; to have children, how many children to have; and what to think. I don't always appreciate my life. If I want to wear shorts and a t-shirt I can, or makeup or short hair, or to read romance novels and listen to bluegrass music. Pierced ears or a tatoo or nothing at all. All those choices I have and they're mine to make.

I am so grateful to the men and women who forged the way for us. Who came to this land and survived, and died, to create a country where these freedoms, these choice, these alternatives are available for us today.  As we celebrate with our BBQs or fried chicken; taking a hike or going for a swim; hanging with your family and friends, or spending it in solitary reflection -- may we all appreciate that it's up to us. Not only how we celebrate this holiday, but how we live our lives.

Happy Indenpendence Day!

A THOUGHT FOR THE WEEKEND

Imagination is not only the uniquely human capacity to envision that which is not, and, therefore, the foundation of all invention and innovation. In its arguably most transformative and relevetory capacity, it is the power that enables us to empathize with humans whose experiences we have never shared.

J.K. Rowling, Harvard Commencement Address, 2008

So True!

A THOUGHT FOR THE WEEKEND

When we let go of fear,

only then can we gracefully move

from what was into the miracle of what can be.

Of Long Summer Days and Good Summer Books!

Summer is officially here! And with summer comes the opportunity to relax in the warm sun and pull out a good book to read. Do you have any good books on your list that you're just dying to get into?

It seems everyone has a summer reading list, a beach reading selection. I love to read all year long, but confess that in the summer my tastes run much lighter. No Tolstoy or Hemmingway for me please. Give me the new Stephanie Plum book or some Kristin Hannah or Barbara Delinsky to while away the long hot days with. In other words, I don't want to think, I just want to be entertained. Romance novels call to me as do cozy mysteries.

Here's my first book of summer: A Turn in the Road by Debbie Macomber.  I'm picking it up at the library later today, and I'm sure I'll be well into it before bedtime. I like her books. She has a sensitivity I respond to, and her books are about real people in real situations that feel familiar.

AJ's trying to re-read The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings trilogy, which is difficult since he's in the middle of calculus and astronomy in summer school. But he's making headway and enjoying the ride.

A fellow writer and a friend of mine from here in Colorado Springs has a new book out I'm anxious to read. It's the first in her new series. I've read the books from Beth Groundwater's first series and they are excellent, so I feel confident recommending these to you if you're interested.

Whatever your tastes or interests are, stop by the library, or the bookstore or go online for an ebook. Read something. Read to your kids. Have fun with it. After all, it's summertime! Yay!

A THOUGHT FOR THE WEEKEND

Sometimes, if you stand on the bottom rail of a bridge and lean over to watch the river slipping slowly away beneath you, you will suddenly know everything there is to be known.

Winnie the Pooh
(A.A. Milne)