Happy 'ocean side' Birthday, sweet Kelly!

I call Kelly my heart/step daughter because she really did steal my heart immediately with her gentle, sweet and loving ways. She is a big time people pleaser and she really does please me!!

This is one of her favorite things to say when things are not going as good as they should:

Today has been super duper busy because it is her birthday. We went to church, picked up her cake, got the gifts and cards taken care of, took a short nap, went out to eat, decorated the dining room with a beach theme (will post pictures later), and now I am trying to frantically get this post done and pack before we leave at 4:00 a.m. tomorrow morning for her BIG birthday gift of a trip to the beach! We will be gone for two days, so I will be missing (but praying) for all of you and posting again on Wednesday...with a POEM (and for all you cheerful souls who would like to join in on this brain exercise or craziness, I will look for a cute little or big or medium poem on Wordful Wednesday)!!

We are headed for Tybee Island, GA because Kelly has never ever even seen a beach or the ocean. She has repeatedly mentioned how she would love to one day go, so now is the time , on her 21st birthday!!

Here is the Tybee Lighthouse that we will visit:

And here is the long anticipated beach we will see:

Kelly absolutely LOVES anything to do with Mario brothers, so her cake had that theme and we even went to a Japanese restaurant, so in honor of her birthday, here is some Mario sushi (I say yuck and she say yum, I say toomaaatoe and she says tomato...uh oh, on a roll here...):

Doesn't get much better than oriental + Mario brothers, the best of both worlds:

Here are some guys dressed the way Kelly thinks all people should dress, everyday, all the time:

Uh oh, think this Mario needs some rescuing, Kelly:

Kelly did love her nintendo Mario and now her Wii:

Now who couldn't love this cute little guy (and I, for one, surely do love the name Mario with both a husband in heaven and a son named Mario):




Finally how about some Mario cupcakes? Boy I tried every place here for Mario cakes and Had to decorate it myself!

{{P. S. Once again thank you wonderful Bernie for my newest award and will do it justcie when we get back. Also, still need those addresses for the prize winners, please.}}

Sweet Kelly LOVES puns too and is always saying them, so for her birthday, here are some to enjoy and/or groan over:


What happened when the cow tried to jump over a barbed wire fence? Udder destruction.

When I was in the supermarket I saw a man and a woman wrapped in a barcode. I asked, "Are you two an item?"

What do you call a fish with no eyes? A fsh.

I used to be a transplant surgeon, but my heart just wasn't in it.

I fired my masseuse today. She just rubbed me the wrong way.

I used to be a train driver but I got sidetracked.

I used to be a tailor, but found the work to be just so-so.

I tried working in a bakery, but was told I wasn't "bread" for it.

A guy walks into the psychiatrist's office wearing only Glad Wrap shorts. The shrink says, "Well, I can clearly see you're nuts."

I used to be a hotel clerk, but then I had reservations.

What did the toy store sign say? Don't feed the animals. They are already stuffed.

What musical is about a train conductor? "My Fare, Lady"

A horse walks into a bar. The bartender says, "So, why the long face?"

Old printers never die, they're just not the type.

What do you call a baby monkey? A chimp off the old block

Old cooks never die, they just get deranged.

What did the chimpanzee say when his sister had a baby? Well, I'll be a monkey's uncle.

Old photographers never die, they just stop developing.

Old seers never die, they just lose their vision.

What is the difference between a frog and a cat? A frog croaks all the time, a cat only nine times.

Old cleaning people never die, they just kick the bucket.

Old bosses never die, much as you want them to.

What would you get if you crossed a parrot with a centipede? A walkie-talkie.

There is no conclusive evidence about what happens to old skeptics, but their future is doubtful.

Shakespeare walks into a bar and asks the bartender for a beer. "I can't serve you." says the bartender. "You're Bard!"

My first job was working in an orange juice factory, but I got canned because I couldn't concentrate.

A piece of string walked into a bar and said "Gimme a beer!" but the bartender said "Get outta here! We don't serve your kind here!" So the string left, but he was thirsty, and he really wanted a beer, so he messed up his hair real badly and looped himself around until he had tied himself into a knot. When the string went back into the bar, the bartender looked at him suspiciously and said "Aren't you that worthless piece of string I just threw outta here?" No, the string replied, "I'm a frayed knot!"

They arrested a man for passing himself off as the comedian named Seinfeld....the charge was playjerism.

Old electricians never die, they just lose contact.

What Disney movie is about a stupid boyfriend? Dumb Beau

What is the religion of a woman who had a sex-change operation. A HeThen

Old limbo dancers never die, they just go under.What is the purpose of reindeer? It makes the grass grow, sweetie.

Old sculptors never die, they just lose their marbles.

Old hypochondriacs never die, they just lose their grippe.Old professors never die, they just lose their class.

Two fish swim into a concrete wall. One turns to the other and says "dam"

Old sewage workers never die, they just waste away.Old investors never die, they just roll over.

I used to be a shoe salesman, till they gave me the boot.

What would you get if you crossed an electric eel with a sponge? A shock absorber.

Old owls never die, they just don't give a hoot.I used to sell computer parts, but then I lost my drive.

Old mathematicians never die, they just disintegrate.

What is the difference between one yard and two yards? A fence

I used to be a carpenter, but then I got bored.

Old hippies never die, they just smell that way.

I used to work at an orange juice factory, but I was canned because I couldn't concentrate.

Old steelmakers never die, they just lose their temper.

What is the difference between a miser and a canary? One's a little cheap and the other is a little cheeper.

Old tanners never die, they just go into hiding.

What did the religious owner of a pest control company tell his workers he sent them off to their assignments each day? ?Brothers and sisters, let us spray.

Old policemen never die, they just cop out.

They arrested the monkey for throwing Rhesus feces at zoo attendants.His charge? Turd debris assault

Did you hear about the butcher who backed into his meat grinder & got a little behind in his work?

This mushroom walks into a bar and starts hitting on this woman. She, of course, turns him down. Not willing, to give up, he pleads with her, "C'mon lady, I'm a fun guy.

"They arrested the bartender for taking liquor home. I believe the official charge was "emboozlement.

Old number theorists never die, they just get past their prime.

Old chauffeurs never die, they just lose their drive.I

went to the butchers the other day and I bet him $50 that he couldn't reach the meat off the top shelf. He said, 'no, the steaks are too high.'

They arrested the former chewing gum manufacturer for unlicensed ex-spearmints.

Why couldn't the chicken find her eggs? Because she mislaid them.

Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?

Old bookkeepers never die, they just lose their figures.

They arrested the Chrysler salesman and he couldn't a-Ford bail.

Old sailors never die, they just get a little dingy.

Old programming wizards never die, they just recurse.

They arrested a woman for causing an accident while on her cellphone....she was charged with driving while intalksicated.

What happened to the woman with ten children? She went stork raving mad.

Old archers never die, they just bow and quiver.

What do you get if you cross a bullet and a tree with no leaves? A cartridge in a bare tree.

What is a mouse's favorite game? Hide and Squeak

I used to be a marathon runner, but couldn't stand the agony of de feet.

Old lawyers never die, they just lose their appeal.

A neutron walks into a bar. "I'd like a beer" he says. The bartender promptly serves up a beer. "How much will that be?" asks the neutron. "For you?" replies the bartender, "no charge"

Old hardware engineers never die, they just cache in their chips.

Old quarterbacks never die, they just pass away.

What would you get if you crossed a mole with a porcupine? A tunnel that leaks.

Old schools never die, they just lose their principals.

Old doctors never die, they just lose their patience.

Old preachers never die, they just ramble on, and on, and on, and on....

What is the difference between an ornithologist and a stutterer? One is a bird watcher, and the other is a word botcher.

What is the difference between a well dressed man and a dog? The man wears a suit, the dog just pants.

Four fonts walk into a bar. The barman says "Oi - get out! We don't want your type in here

Old numerical analysts never die, they just get disarrayed.

Where do you find giant snails? On the ends of giant's fingers.

Old chemists never die, they just fail to react.

Which president was least guilty? Lincoln. He is in a cent.

Old white water rafters never die, they just get disgorged.

Old actors never die, they just drop apart.

When she told me I was average, she was just being mean.

Old pilots never die, they just go to a higher plane.

Old architects never die, they just lose their structures.

A dog with his leg wrapped in bandages hobbles into a saloon. He sidles up to the bar and announces: "I'm lookin' fer the man that shot my paw.

"What is the difference between a crazy rabbit and a counterfeit coin? One is bad money, and the other is a mad bunny.

~~~For the blessings of "increased family" through marriages, I thank You Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

***May God bless and be with all fathers!***

To the Heavenly Father of us all, who doesn't stumble and 'fall' like our earthly fathers, who is beside us even when we don't see Him, who guides and loves us beyond belief even when we fail to 'hear' Him. I say THANK YOU LORD FOR BEING SO LOVING!And for the many fathers who are now in Heaven, smiling down us and wishing and praying for all of us to stay on the right path and make this world a good and happy world...even through the smallest of kindnesses....

In His Name, may we be just a little faster to help someone, even if it means opening a door or carrying a package or putting a smile on a frowning stranger's face....

For Mikemal, who loves cars, and will see this and smile, knowing it is for him (just the picture, honey, just the picture...yoo hoo, are you listening...stop checking the ads for this car, honey!!)

To all the hard working and good helpmates, like Michael, who cut up ALL the veggies for stir fry on Friday.....

For Mikemal who loves to monkey around and who says he smells like a monkey after working outside or in the garage (don't worry, sweetheart...I'll protect you from the zookeeper)...

Because he loves to fish (although I love sweet Kelly's way of fishing...she throws ALL of her catches back in, so basically she is just there to feed the fish!) ...

And because Mikemal has learned to like bright cheerful, fun shirts since we got married...

Last and certainly not least here...because he has this HUGE sweet tooth (actually I think his mouth is full of them, but have been afraid to look in there, especially on a day when I'm being sweet). In fact, he was eyeing a cheesecake at B.J.'s and I said that I had planned on baking him a nice blueberry treat and he said that sounds good, you could do that TOO, not instead of, but TOO!!...

Some smiles for this Father's day:


The Outhouse
These two country boys, brothers, were knocking around one lazy summer day and thought it would be a good prank to push over the outhouse and surprise the next person 'in need'. They crept up from an advantageous direction like a couple of commandos, pushed the outhouse over on one side and headed for the woods. They circled round and returned home an hour later from a completely different direction thus, trying to divert suspicion from themselves.
Upon returning, their father approached them with anger and bellowed, "Did you two push the outhouse over this afternoon?"
The older boy replied, "As learned in Sunday school, I cannot tell a lie. Yes, Father, we pushed over the outhouse this afternoon."
At this revelation, the farmer proceeded yell at the two boys severely, put them on a month's restriction and sent them to bed without supper.
In the morning, the two boys meekly approached the breakfast table and took their seats. Everything was quiet until their father finally said, "Have you two learned your lesson?"
"Sure, Dad!" said the big brother, "But, in school we learned that George Washington admitted to HIS father that he'd chopped down a cherry tree and he was forgiven because he told the truth."
"Ah yes!' said the farmer, "BUT, George's DAD, wasn't in the cherry tree when he chopped it down!!!"

The Truth About Dad
One summer evening during a violent thunderstorm a mother was tucking her small boy into bed. She was about to turn off the light when he asked with a tremor in his voice, "Mommy, will you sleep with me tonight?"

The mother smiled and gave him a reassuring hug. "I can't, dear," she said. "I have to sleep with Daddy."

A long silence was broken at last by his shaky little voice: "The big sissy."

The Brown Apple
A four-year-old boy was eating an apple in the back seat of the car, when he asked, "Daddy, why is my apple turning brown?"

"Because," his dad explained, "after you ate the skin off, the meat of the apple came into contact with the air, which caused it to oxidise, thus changing the molecular structure and turning it into a different color."

There was a long silence, with the little boy looking all around him. Then, with big and questioning eyes, the son asked softly, "Daddy, are you talking to ME?"

*******
A teen boy had just gotten his driving permit. He asked his dad, who was a minister, if they could discuss the use of the car. His father took him to his study and said to him, "I'll make a deal with you. You bring your grades up, study your bible a little and get your hair cut and we'll talk about it."
After about a month the boy came back and again asked his father if they could discuss use of the car. They again went to the father's study where his father said, "Son, I've been real proud of you. You have brought your grades up, you've studied your bible diligently, but you didn't get your hair cut!"
The young man waited a moment and replied, "You know Dad, I've been thinking about that. You know, Samson had long hair, Moses had long hair, Noah had long hair, and even Jesus had long hair...."
To which his father replied...."Yes, and they WALKED everywhere they went!"


~~~Heavenly Father, thank You for the blessing of Your Presence in our lives and for the fathers You have blessed us with.

"Wear bright colors, laugh and dance at my funeral."

Whenever my late hubby, Mario, and I would discuss how we wanted our funerals to be, he and I were both in total agreement that we wanted no one to wear dark, somber colors, but bright happy ones instead with happy upbeat music played at the funeral.

Mario said to me several times "I want people to wear bright colors, laugh and dance at my funeral." Never dreaming it would ever be a possibility to 'lose' him, until we were rocking each other's rocking chairs, I would look at him and say "I can agree with the color thing, but I don't know how I could EVER laugh or dance, as losing you would be losing my world," then he'd remind me that what he was saying is the way we all should be, happy for our loved one who would now happy beyond our wildest dreams. All of his wishes were fulfilled the best I possibly could at his funeral ...another of God's gracious blessings (and possibly another post).

I am truly so incredibly happy that he is in Heaven, but a hole was created in me when he left, and yet I am also ever so grateful for all the wonderful, loving years I was blessed with his deep and passionate love for me and our children, his kindness, his thoughtfulness for others, his willingness to help them and his ability to always put others first. He would never even start to eat any meal until I was eating and he would always give me the best portion of anything and have me eat first or usually even serve me first himself. He'd even save his "allowance" (we both had an 'allowance' each month to spend as we wished or to save...most often we saved to spend on each other) for weeks to buy something for me for a special occasion or take me out.

One of Mario's interests was skydiving. Now, we're not talking the ordinary skydiving, but something called HALO which stands for High Altitude, Low Opening. He was even an Airborne instructor for awhile at Ft. Benning, GA. He had his Master Airborne wings as well, all of which helped me to become the great prayer that I am!! He would have loved this patriotic canopy (top of the parachute) and flag.

Although, (or maybe because) Mario had served two tours in Viet Nam, he could not bring himself to ever look at the Viet Nam memorial wall (on a trip to Washington, DC)...even the thought would choke him up. There was a smaller replica of it in Arizona, but he just couldn't bear it (probably because he would see the names of fallen comrades he knew so well). He had two purple hearts as well as medals from 'Nam for lives he had saved under fire. Although it never did happen, the 'good news' is that just a few months before he died he said he thought he was ready to go see it.

He was also fiercely patriotic...maybe not quite as much as me, but a very close second. He did make a career out of the Army and even went through the naturalization process to become an real U. S. citizen, after Ria was born. He had been born in Poland, but raised in Venezuela, so he was a Venezuelan when we got married!! What a blessing it was that we both always dreamed of marrying someone who could speak Spanish like a native and we found each other!

Mario was grateful that America, the U.S., stood for so many good and honorable and God fearing ideals...something we need to pray deeply will return to us in full now!

His favorite symbol was the American Bald Eagle and we had eagles all over the house. For awhile he had a fabulous collection of somewhat expensive eagles, but sad to say, this collection gradually got broken. There are still quite a few other, more durable ones left that I will have to post for you in the near future.

Mario was also a very strong Christian, a true man of God and volunteered repeatedly to help out at any spiritual retreat and at many of our church's ministries. We said prayers together and blessed our children (and each other) every night.

Finally, I leave you with my most recent blessing as tied in with Mario, and that would be my Michael. God knew that I would need to find a man who could respect my sorrow over losing Mario and a man who could hold him in high esteem. Michael has always felt this way and more, never harboring any jealousy for as he has put it, if I could so easily 'get over the loss of Mario', my feelings wouldn't be very deep and I could not love Michael well either!

Some clever and amusing thoughts on being a Christian

Under same management for over 2,000 years.


Soul food served here.


Tithe if you love Jesus! Anyone can honk.


You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.


Beat the Christmas rush, come to church this Sunday!


Don't wait for the hearse to take you to church.


We should be more concerned with the Rock Of Ages, instead of the age of rock.


Don't give up. Moses was once a basket case!


Come early for a good seat in the back.


Life has many choices, Eternity has two. What's yours?


The best vitamin for a Christian is B1.


Worry is interest paid on trouble before it is due.


A man's character is like a fence. It cannot be strengthened by whitewash.






Mario loved a good laugh, so please enjoy these for him:

Help from God

A woman named Edna finds herself in dire trouble. Her business has gone bust and she's in serious financial trouble. She's so desperate that she decides to ask God for help. She begins to pray...' God, please help me. I've lost my business and if I don't get some money, I'm going to lose my house as well. Please let me win the lotto.'
Lotto night comes and somebody else wins it.
Edna again prays.... 'God, please let me win the lotto! I've lost my business, my house and I'm going to lose my car as well.'
Lotto night comes and Edna still has no luck.
Once again, she prays, 'My God, why have you forsaken me?? I've lost my business, my house, and my car. My children are starving. I don't often ask you for help and I have always been a good servant to you. PLEASE, just let me win the lotto this one time so I can get my life back in order.
Suddenly there is a blinding flash of light as the heavens open and Edna is confronted by the voice of God Himself:
'Edna, meet Me halfway on this. Buy a ticket.'

Adam Revealed

Four-year-old Robert opened the big bible which had been in his family for years. Absolutely fascinated, he flicked through the old pages. Suddenly, something fell out of the bible. Robert picked up the object and looked at it. What he saw was an old dry leaf that had been pressed in between the pages.
'Mum, look what I've found', the boy called out.' What have you got there, dear?' With astonishment in the young boy's voice, he answered, 'I think I've found Adam's underwear!'

Amish Humour:
Sign behind an Amish carriage: Energy efficient vehicle. Runs on grass and oats. Extreme caution: Avoid exhaust.

Poor Sick Boy
Marty, a little boy, was in church one Sunday with his mother Doris, when he started feeling sick.
'Mummy,' he inquired, 'can we leave now?' 'No,' his mother replied, 'the service isn't over yet.'.
'Well, I think I'm about to throw up.' Marty announced. 'Then go out of the front door and around to the back of the church and throw up behind a bush.' said Doris.
After about sixty seconds, Marty returned to his pew, alongside his mother.
'Did you throw up?' Marty's Mum asked quietly. 'Yes,' Marty answered, embarrassed.
'How could you have gone all the way to the back of the church and returned so quickly?' Doris demanded.
'I didn't have to go out of the church, Mummy. They have a box next to the front door that says, "For the Sick" '.

Today's Hymn
Reverend Clive Morgan was completing his homily in St John's Church about the dangers of alcohol and the need for moderation and temperance.

He announced at the end of the sermon in a loud, clear voice, 'If I had all the beer in the world, I'd take it and throw it into the river.' With even greater emphasis he added, 'And if I had all the wine in the world, I'd take it and throw it into the river.' Finally, he intoned in an extremely serious manner, 'And if I had all the whiskey in the world, I'd take it and throw it into the river.'
The Reverend Morgan then sat down. Jerry, St John's leading chorister stood up and announced with a smile, 'For our closing hymn this Sunday, let us sing together hymn number 109: 'Shall We Gather at the River.'




~~~Most gracious God and Father of us all, I thank you for the blessings of wonderful memories and children with a wonderful man, Mario and future blessings with another wonderful man, Michael.

Just for Sweet Brande

Even her name has an unusual spelling and today is this special person's birthday...HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEAR BRANDE!!!

She doesn't know about this because I have purposely avoided posting any pictures of these flowers. They are special to her because she chose them for her wedding and to give to each of the mothers (me, being one) of the couple. I wanted to surprise her when they came to visit from Arizona, but it won't happen this year...sniff...sniff..., but here are the calla lilies, or just one lily in this picture.

There is a photo of before it opened up and then a photo taken from the top. It actually bloomed after this with TWO flowers that were pink! But, puke, I can't find them for the love of me...I searched through the pictures I downloaded and can't find them. If I had more time, I could have put some fake plastic ones in there, but I was sure that I'd find them, dagnabbit (pretty colorful language, huh?)
Hopefully my sweet daughter-in-law will not 'have a cow' when she sees this picture that I posted of her last year at the Georgia Aquarium with cute Myla Smyla, but it is SO her. she is such a GREAT mother...she get down and plays with her children and gets messy with them and oohs and aahhs at all the right times!


Here are all four of them. For this vacation trip my son Mario, a very loving father, and his son Corbyn got matching Mohawks. But see how Brande is always being such an 'on hands' mom, explaining and caring and giving massive doses of love???

I call Myla the Smyla, but you can see she gets it from mommy!! You would be hard put to find a time when Brande isn't all smiles and sweetness. She laughs easily and with gusto!! Her laugh is infectious and always make me laugh.

One of my strongest prayers when she and my son got married was that they would be able to have children. Brande is loving with all babies and children, a real born mommy, so I was thrilled beyond words when she got pregnant with Corbyn a few years after they were married.

I know my loving late husband would have liked it this way, but this is the day to celebrate both a wonderful young woman and to honor the passing of a wonderful husband, so I will do the post for Mario on Sunday, so that this day can be just a birthday celebration.

And a joke for Brande's day:

It was the teacher's birthday and all the little children in kindergarten had brought her presents.

Little Myla's mommy worked with designing chocolates, so when the teacher shook her the birthday box from Myla, she asked "Could this be chocolates"? Myla smiled her big smile and said "Yes".

Then came the gift box from Corbyn who proudly brought his up with a little shy smile. Knowing that Corbyn's daddy worked designing lego sets, she shook his and guessed again correctly and Corbyn beamed.

Now came little Brande with a big beautiful box that wiggled. Knowing that Brande's mommy worked in a fun toy store and her daddy sold exotic liqueurs, she shook it and guessed "Is it a battery operated toy that wiggles?" Brande grinned her winning grin and said "Nope". The teacher noticed the box began to leak and feared she had broken some liqueur, so she licked the dripping spot and asked little Brande "Is this some wonderfully exotic liqueur?" Brande just giggled and giggled. Finally, the teacher said "Okay, I give up. What did you bring me"? Brande happily told her, "A brand new puppy!!"

~~~For the blessings of loving people who become our family by means other than birth, I thank You, Heavenly Father.

***It was Myla's Birthday May 25th***

I wanted Myla to have her own special birthday post, so I waited until after yesterday's holiday.



Here is my precious granddaughter Myla at one year old, helping to pick the abundant blueberries at my friend, Mimi's house...she's pretty darn tickled to be getting those blueberries. The only problem was that she loves them so much, she wouldn't drop them in the cup, but just kept on eating them!!

Here is darling little Myla at two years old, once again visiting Georgia from Phoenix, AZ and once again helping to pick some blueberries at Mimi's, but this time she actually would put some in the bowl and eat some and put some and eat some...





This is Myla helping decorate the Easter tree in Phoenix, AZ this year and very pleased about it...think she may have her sweet mama's crafty side.

More darling and recent pictures of the little girl with no curl who turned three yesterday!

After my son's first born, Corbyn blessed us with his appearance into this world, we were so enthralled with how cute he was and how he had these big beautiful eyes and long lashes. When we found out that another blessing was on the way three years later, we wondered how the next baby could keep up with Corbyn's precedent of cuteness and beauty. We discovered that God solved that problem by making, in effect, a girl Corbyn. Not really, but they do look so much alike, yet one is left handed and one is right handed. Corbyn started out so agreeable (for the longest time) with everything mommy wanted, whereas Myla started out with her own little ideas of what she did and didn't want.

Myla has always been 'gifted' with the biggest, best smile there is. When she came into Georgia as a little baby, to visit, I was worried about how she would behave with me ( I hadn't seen her since I went to Phoenix to help out after her birth), but there was nothing to worry about as she greeted me with the sweetest and happiest of smiles. It was then that I gave her my pet nickname for her...Myla Smyla!

Here's Michael, me and Myla visiting Fernbank Museum in Atlanta last year:

She is a treasure and I can't smooch or hug her enough!!

Now for some jokes (you might notice the names have been changed, hee hee):

A father wanted to read the paper, but was being bothered by his little daughter, Myla. Finally, he took a sheet out of his magazine, on which was printed the map of the world. Tearing it into small pieces, he gave it to Myla, and said, "Go into the other room and see if you can put this together."

After a few minutes, Myla returned and handed him the map correctly fitted together. The father was very surprised and asked how she had finished so quickly.

"Oh", she said, "on the other side of the paper is a picture of Jesus. When I got Jesus in His place, then the world came out all right."

~~~~

One Spring afternoon, I came home to find two little girls on the steps of my building. Both were crying hard, shedding big tears.

Thinking they might be hurt, I dropped my briefcase and quickly went over to them. "Are you all right?" I asked.

Still sobbing, one held up her doll. "My baby's arm came off," she said. I took the doll and its disjointed arm. After a little effort and luck, the doll was again whole.

"Thank you." came a whisper.

Next looking into the tearful eyes of her friend, I asked, "and what's the matter with you, young lady?"

She wiped her cheeks. "I was helping her cry," she said.

~~~~

Little Myla, 4 years old, walked down the beach, and as she did, she spied a matronly woman sitting under a beach umbrella on the sand. She walked up to her and asked, "Are you a Christian?" "

Yes." she replied.

"Do you read your Bible every day?"

She nodded her head, "Yes."

"Do you pray often?" the girl asked next, and again she answered, "Yes."

With that she asked her final question,"Will you hold my quarter while I go swimming?"

~~~Lord, how is it possible to thank You sufficiently for the enormous blessings of the little children in this world, but thank You, thank You so much!!!

God bless Tato, too

Okay, well, I let life interrupt blogging again (how crazy is that) just because I had three places to go and a dessert to make (it was getting time to leave and I kept on looking at this peach cobbler and saying "Come on and cook, please, you can do it.") Well, guess what? No matter how hard you cheer on your desserts, they just kind of stick their tongues out at you.

Got side tracked again, but I really need to explain the Tato part of the post for the 3rd of April. Incredibly, my father-in-law and my mom had the same birthday! And I miss him also but he died many years before my mother. He and my mother-in-law were the reasons why I learned to speak Polish. You see, you can live in Chicago and NEVER learn to speak English (even I am still working on it). Seriously, there are newspapers, grocery stores, places to work (where they worked) and shops, radio stations and even a TV station , all in Polish! Sad to say, I am mostly self taught in this language, although my father-in-law did give me two lessons (he wasn't real into teaching and figured that ought to do me).

Not being a "giver upper" (I make up new and fun words...if you need any, let me know as there are tons more available where these came from), I kept at it and could understand and be understood which just really underscores the awesome power of our God. You see, in order to speak Polish you have to be able to whistle and whistle well...in this I am most challenged and many have attempted to help me here and many have wrung their hands in despair! Actually, in order to keep up my Polish, I have that little widget here, so just click on it and you will hear all that whistling.

One of the most wonderful things about my late father-in-law was his marvelous sense of humor. He was loving and he was kind. Even when he was undergoing some of his many operations (severe heart problems) he would make the doctors, nurses and staff laugh by his cute, broken (sometimes shattered) English comments. He could even get my mother-in-law laughing when she was so scared, thus making everyone feel better. I always called him Tato which is Polish for dad. Heaven should be getting some cute joking around from his presence there. Thank you, Tato for the joy and laughter of your cute ways!

Now, I will finish this post with a little plea for Michael. I just mentioned that once again someone said they liked my hair (in a very nice comment). Here I go off into the wild blue yonder again, but you have to know that my Irish grandfather came from a family of all bright redheads, even the mom and dad. Of his seven children, not one was a redhead...then, of all the grandchildren, (only my mom did not want a redhead) only I got blessed with these tresses. Fortunately mom did not sell me to the gypsies and she decided the red hair was a pretty cool thing after a few people oohed and aahed, but sometimes I even forget about it except it's great to blame for my mischievousness! FINALLY, the plea for Michael (I know, you already forgot what I started out writing, but hey, it's good brain exercise). Michael said (with a whimper and possibly even a tear in his eye) that no one EVER says nice things about his hair, so can someone say something nice for this poor guy and his one or two hairs (just kidding, we know that rogaine really is working)???

Thank you dear Lord for the blessings from those dear ones we had with us and for wonderful senses of humor.

P.S. I took a picture and edited my mom's post below so that there was something "special" in it.

Happiest of Birthdays, sweet Momma (and Tato)

Today is my mom's birthday and I miss her sorely, although I know that she is so super happy with Jesus now. My mother always made me feel loved and she was always there for me. She had me later in life and I never did get a brother or sister, just my dog Spot and I tried out the "calling him my brother thing" and she said no way, Jose' (pretty impressive since she didn't speak any Spanish, eh?), but the fact that she got this puppy for me was awesome in itself because we lived in an apartment complex and my "bedroom" was really the dining room (2 doorways, no doors). Which means that Spot (she thought that name was lame but that's what happens when you allow an eight year old free rein to name the dog...later I even decided on a better name, but apparently momma thought it was like naming a child and he was stuck with the lame name...have you noticed that I like the lame name rhyme?) had to be walked in the city of Chicago at least twice a day.



Gosh, I could do a whole post on Spot and the many neat tricks my mom so patiently taught him, but he could not find his way out of a wet paper bag (although one of the times we picked him up from the pound he LOOKED like he had been in several wet paper bags...it seems the dogs would get sprayed down with this gacky yellow-brown mixture to kill bugs and see just how much the owners really wanted them back. Did I mention that he smelled like he had a swim in a polluted, overgrown with algae and less than savory pond scum waterhole? We didn't/couldn't identify Spot...he identified us by his happy barks!!).



One of the wonderful things I remember about my mom is the fact that homeless or out of work men would show up at our back door and she'd fix them sandwiches (dad and I were always at home).



She shared a few (not enough though, rats) stories of her childhood. She was born and raised in a very small town in Nebraska where we went every summer for vacation...we're talking no lights, two grocery stores eventually, one restaurant, one barber (my uncle), one movie theater (opened whenever the urge hit the owner), a small newspaper, a farm goods store and fifty-three taverns (well, not really, but at least four or five!) She was very little when she and her six brothers and sisters helped the family move into their permanent new home. Wanting to help, she took the clothesline and it unraveled all the way to the new home (now everyone could find their way there and back)!



When she was in high school, she had a really close girl friend and they were mischievous (imagine that...see my roots?). Mom decided to play a little prank on her girlfriend and put a tack through an erasure on her friend's seat. Sad to say, her friend came in to school late and was really mad (see...anger never pays) so she slammed down her books on her desk (at this point mom is thinking yikes, holy moly, rats, HELP) and sat down with a slam too! The friend jumped back up and let out a bloodcurdling scream. The alarmed teacher asked her what on earth was wrong, but being the devoted friend that she was, my mom's friend calmly (and painfully) said "Oh nothing" and sat back down (after extracting the offending tack) very gingerly. WOW, is that inspiring or what?

This post is being done in blue because was her favorite color...now I'm off (not only that, I'm leaving) on a mission (yup, probably mission impossible) to find some image or picture to put in here...so this will be a 'to be continued' post....

Well, I finally just had to take a picture as blog post refused to upload what I scanned. this is a VERY special pin that my daughter-in-law bought for me shortly after my mother passed away. First, some significance for you: Feeling pretty crushed and going back home after the burial, I happened to step out of the car and see a beautiful butterfly on the bush in front of the house ( a rarity for me to catch) which immediately comforted me because my mother knew of my love for butterflies, so I felt it was a message from her. A few days later my daughter-in-law's eye was caught by a butterfly pin in a spot where she normally would not look, at the retail store she worked, and it was BLUE and she felt the urge to buy it, as if my momma was telling her.

The obvious and wonderful blessing here is of my mother's sweet love.

Short, but not so sweet

Here is a short little blog on the continuing adventures of Tinkabelle...she was getting pretty big as you can see from this photo.





Just to show you the extent of Michael's love for this puppy, let me relate a dark and slightly sad "tail"...





Actually, I need to preface this with the information that Michael has a very weak stomach and if there is a less than savory "situation" (be it animal or human) to clean up, he most likely will not be the one to call on unless you want him to "contribute". Either that, or...maybe he just fakes it so that I have to do all the cleaning up!!





Well, one day, long ago ( about a year and a half) and not too far away, he comes home and joyfully greets his puppy, then proceeds to go to the front door where we leave our shoes (as I delude myself into thinking that this will keep the carpets cleaner while I am dealing with an untrained puppy). After taking his shoes off, he steps into a "present" that the little girl has left by the shoes and he goes goooosh and realizes that even his after shave is not going to cover this scent! He yells upstairs to me "Help, Tinka pooped down here and I stepped in it...I need some paper towels in a hurry". With that, I madly dash, while snickering, to get......of course, the camera!! Laughing hysterically, I take pictures...fortunately, for you, everything was on the bottom of his sock! Whoops, I just noticed, that if you enlarge the picture, there are some "graphic" details...so be forwarned. But he still loves her, so there is a happily ever after story (especially since he didn't throw up).

Tinkabelle's "Tail" continues...

Sorry to leave you "hanging" on this suspenseful tale(tail) of Tinka belle, but sometimes life (so brazenly) interfers with blogging.

We put this little puppy in a big cardboard box , foolishly thinking that she would stay there happily, next to our bed with a little blanket to lay on and a stuffed toy next to her. After a few pitiful whimpers, we put her in her rightful place, which is our (she thinks it's hers and hogs the whole king sized bed when possible) bed!

The next morning, I very carefully gave her a bath and we took her to the veterinarian. Our vet said it was probably just a sprain in such a young puppy, but she took X-rays. Sad to say, she had two breaks in her little leg and the vet advised against looking for this owner!

We discussed the fact that we already had three cats and no fence and a yard that was large and expensive to fence in and we really couldn't afford another pet. So , armed with pictures, Michael goes to work to see if he can find a family for Tinka (who is probably snickering and saying "What a waste of time...I am ALREADY home"). In fact, I am highly suspicious of Michael's sincere effort to encourage someone to take her as he was acting like a love-stricken teenager and talking baby talk to her and saying "Are you SURE we can't keep her"? Now, I'm not very strong when it comes to little puppies, much less ones with a broken leg, so my mind is reeling with possibilities....

We had already spent a considerable amount of money to get her leg set and casted as well as get her shots. One of the last straws was Michael saying "Look at her. Isn't she beautiful and she loves us?" (Many years ago I once fed a fully grown stray who wandered to our door a few times and might have ended up with one of the ugliest dogs because he even had big warts on his face, but he never returned, so beauty is not my only weakness). Then Tinka herself kept on acting cuter and cuter (a DEFINITE conspiracy) to further weaken me (like that was necessary), so I just (happily) gave up.

I would like for you to study these pictures of a man who claims he is NOT a dog person, but only a cat person........what do you think?

Now, Michael's kids are trying to think of a name for this little girl, but the night we decided to keep her, I have a dream, no kidding, a dream that someone is telling me her name. This bodyless entity is saying "Her name is Tinkabelle" and, in my dream I am arguing "What kind of name is Tinkabelle? Don't you, at least mean Tinkerbell?" The answer comes back "No, her name is TinkAbelle!!" I woke up, related my dream, said it was crazy and we tried other names, but nothing sounded right, so she became our

Tinkabelle.

Tales (tails?) of Tinkabelle

Well, this ought to be interesting...I am going to probably do half a blog this morning and then come back and finish it after picking up sweet Helen for prayer group and making my trek to the hospital.

This will be the Tinkabelle story...hold on, it's a "thrill a minute". Most of my life (Mario, my darling late husband always loved dogs), I have always had a dog and most of his life, Michael, my present wonderful husband, has only had cats. Michael said he was NOT a dog person, which turns out to be a huge LOL!

Once upon a time on a dark and stormy night...nope, not stormy, but it was after midnight and Michael and I were upstairs in the computer room in January of 2007 when we heard a strange noise at our front door, so we carefully went down the stairs, pausing to listen and the noise ( a cross between a bark and whine) repeated itself a couple of times. My big protective hubby says "Stand back from the door while I protect you from the fierce monster at our door and show you how big and brave I am"...well, maybe he didn't say exactly that, but he did say "Stand back".

Not being one of those women who just stand by as danger assaults their hero, I peeked immediately around the door as he opened it...................................and there stood a teeny little limping puppy of about 5 weeks old!! As I ran out to get her, Michael says "You probably won't catch.." and before he finished I had this puppy in my arms!

There is more action packed adventure coming up, but I need to get ready now...so, please stay tuned for the continuing saga and find out what we did and the very strange way that Tinka got her name... :-)