Lucky the Dog...

I just wept through a story of a woman and her dog, Lucky.  It was posted by Diane of Vintage Tickled Pink.  I think it will touch you even if you are not a "dog person"...  To read it, go here:

Vintage Tickled Pink

I have a busy afternoon, so I will leave you with this quote:  

There are people who put their dreams in a little box and say, 'Yes, I've got dreams, of course I've got dreams.' Then they put the box away and bring it out once in awhile to look in it, and yep, they're still there. These are great dreams, but they never even get out of the box. It takes an uncommon amount of guts to put your dreams on the line, to hold them up and say, 'How good or how bad am I?' That's where courage comes in...     
~ Erma Louise Bombeck

Be Still...

I've been watching a video called, "Be Still" and it really has some good thoughts.  Here's the Netflix description:

In an age in which multitasking has become second nature, the idea of being "still" almost seems luxurious. Yet achieving stillness through Christian prayer is a spiritually rewarding practice that can change your life forever. In this inspirational program narrated by actor Judge Reinhold and co-directed by his wife, Amy, noted authors, ministers and educators discuss the techniques of contemplative prayer.

I have been thinking a lot about the over-stimulation of our everyday lives. Cell phones and computers are wonderful.  I couldn't imagine doing without either, it's just that I realized how much they can take over.  Responding to phone calls, replying to emails, updating our Facebook, our Blogs, our YouTube pages, watching our favorite programs... all good things if taken in moderation. 

My heart has been crying out for silence... for a time of stillness in my day.  I love the idea of contemplative prayer.  Setting aside a quiet time to enter into God's presence, and then, just listen... wait on Him with no requests, no expectations;  making it a time of opening yourself to what He might say to you. 

Meditation has been around in many religions and cultures for centuries.  As a Christian, I find that applying the concept to my prayer life enhances it. 

I intend to make this part of my daily routine.  I need the stillness, the release of stress, the bit of quiet solitude in the midst of a noisy world.

Happy 18th Birthday to my Lucky 13!

I posted a "mother" poem yesterday.  Today, I am celebrating my baby's 18th birthday.  He is no baby... actually, never really was after about the age of two.  He has always seemed "tuned in to the world around him.  He had those eyes... brown, dark, people said "He looks at you like an old soul" and, he did. Our Lucky 13... EJ, he learned so easily, reading when he was barely 4 years old. Well, that's when he told me he could read!  I didn't believe him and picked up a book.  "Read this then" I said.  He read it all, smoothly and clearly, and every other page I picked out.  I was stunned!  

 My little Lucky 13 and I... a long time ago

We had always read to him, even his big brother had pointed out words to him.  Sometime before the day he told me he could read, he had drawn a cat on their little blackboard and spelled "cat".  When he showed it to me, I asked how he knew how to spell it... "My brain told me" he replied.  


Even without those things, our youngest is special to his family and his friends.  He's weathered a lot of loss, illness, and more in his 18 years.  He keeps those things to himself.  I believe he has an inner strength that he doesn't even fully realize yet.  

Here he is fishing with his older brother and Grandpa

He has so much creativity.  He has a wonderful, unique sense of humor.  He has a talent for music.  I always loved hearing him play his Cello.  He doesn't play as often, but still loves music.


I know folks get weary of hearing people brag on their children, so please indulge me today... this wonderful day, as I look back over the years.  If my own PC wasn't down today, I'd be posting a lot of pictures.  I'm using EJ's PC, and there very few photos on it yet.  Anyway, I want to say how blessed I am.  I prayed for children years ago, after being told I might never have them.  God gave me two wonderful sons, different and yet, so alike.


My family has been blessed by having our Lucky 13 in our lives.  God knew we needed this child... who is now a man, in our lives.  Happy Birthday son!  Our "Lucky 13"!