May 2012 Flickr Upload

I'm really trying to just get back to my favorites, so these posts aren't so long.  It's hard sometimes to choose!

But here they are, and as always you can find the complete upload here:
Flickr Stream

 Seeing the 2 of them play together - Best Mom gift ever!

Having fun with fire...Looks a bit like Groucho Marx!

Finally got the new windsock not only ordered, but installed too, with a bit of help!

This post comes from Max Lucado.  If you've read his stuff, you know how powerful his word imagery can be.  If you are not familiar with his writing, then please take a minute, you will not be sorry.

How amazing would the world be if everyone tried to do this?

Today I Will Make a Difference

Today I will make a difference. I will begin by controlling my thoughts. A person is the product of his thoughts. I want to be happy and hopeful. Therefore, I will have thoughts that are happy and hopeful. I refuse to be victimized by my circumstances. I will not let petty inconveniences such as stoplights, long lines, and traffic jams be my masters. I will avoid negativism and gossip. Optimism will be my companion, and victory will be my hallmark. Today I will make a difference.
I will be grateful for the twenty-four hours that are before me. Time is a precious commodity. I refuse to allow what little time I have to be contaminated by self-pity, anxiety, or boredom. I will face this day with the joy of a child and the courage of a giant. I will drink each minute as though it is my last. When tomorrow comes, today will be gone forever. While it is here, I will use it for loving and giving. Today I will make a difference.
I will not let past failures haunt me. Even though my life is scarred with mistakes, I refuse to rummage through my trash heap of failures. I will admit them. I will correct them. I will press on. Victoriously. No failure is fatal. It’s OK to stumble… . I will get up. It’s OK to fail… . I will rise again. Today I will make a difference.
I will spend time with those I love. My spouse, my children, my family. A man can own the world but be poor for the lack of love. A man can own nothing and yet be wealthy in relationships. Today I will spend at least five minutes with the significant people in my world. Five quality minutes of talking or hugging or thanking or listening. Five undiluted minutes with my mate, children, and friends.
Today I will make a difference.
 
From Shaped by God (original title: On the Anvil)
Copyright (Tyndale House, 1985, 2002) Max Lucado

April 2012 Flickr Upload

Good morning!  I've noticed lately that I've been including sooo many pictures on each upload that it makes the post so long.  So I've tried to trim this down to JUST my favorites.  But it is hard to choose....

You can see all of April 2012 here....

 It was my birthday month and first I got to spend it with 2 of my favorite guys...

 And then I got to spend it with my other favorite guy...

 011 had his First Communion during Lent at Mt. Olive Lutheran Church, I was so proud of him!

 Favorite family picture of almost all of us!

 New toy on the block.  It has been so much fun & boy has it come in handy!  

Favorite new dish, bibimbap

Let freedom ring

Land where my father's died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountain-side...

Today, we celebrate the birth of our nation, the declaration of certain inalienable rights, that all mankind deserves life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Lest we forget that there is a cost to this choice, let's remember the men & women who choose to protect that freedom.  Stop, take a moment, look around and see, really SEE the amazing gift you have been given; that for some is but a dream.  That is what they are protecting.  That is what is worth protecting; every day, by every one.  What do you do to ensure that isn't taken away from you?  What would you do to make sure it was not taken away from someone else?  Maybe even someone you don't even know.

The following was shared awhile back on his daily email list (from another reader) , and it really touched my soul and made me think, how much do I take for granted every day?  You can read more of Arlin here, www.arlinsorensen.com

How  much do we notice as we go through a day?????  

Lisa Beamer on Good Morning America - If you remember she's the wife of Todd Beamer who said 'Let's Roll!' and helped take down the plane  over Pennsylvania that was heading for Washington, DC back on 9/11.  

She  said it's the little things that she misses most about Todd, such as hearing the garage door open as he came home, and her children  running to meet him.  

Lisa recalled this story:  "I had  a very special teacher in high school many years   ago whose husband died suddenly of a heart attack.   About a week after his  death, she shared some of her   insight with a classroom  of students. As the late afternoon sunlight came  streaming in through the classroom windows and the class was  nearly over, she moved a few things aside on the edge of her  desk and sat down there.  

With a gentle look  of reflection on her face, she paused and said, 'Class is over,  I would like to share with all of   you, a thought that is  unrelated to class, but which I feel   is very important. Each of  us is put here on earth to learn, share, love, appreciate  and give of ourselves. None of us knows when this  fantastic experience will end.   It can be taken away at  any moment.  

Perhaps this is  God’s way of telling us that we must make the most out of every single day. Her eyes, beginning to water, she  went on, 'So I would like you all to make me a promise. From  now on, on your way to school, or on your way home, find something beautiful to notice.  

It doesn't have to  be something you see, it could be a scent, perhaps of freshly  baked bread wafting out of someone's house, or it  could be the sound of the breeze slightly rustling the leaves in the trees, or the way the morning light  catches one autumn leaf as it   falls gently to the  ground. Please look for these things, and cherish them. For,  although it may sound trite to some, these things are the  "stuff" of life. The  little things we are put here on earth to enjoy. The things we often take for granted.  

The class was completely quiet. We all picked up our   books and filed out of the  room silently. That afternoon, I noticed more things on  my way home from school than I had that whole semester.  Every once in a while, I think   of that teacher and  remember what an impression she made on all of us, and I try to appreciate all of those things that sometimes we  all overlook.  

Take notice of  something special you see on your lunch   hour today. Go barefoot.  Or walk on the beach at sunset.   Stop off on the way home  tonight to get a double dip ice   cream cone. For as we get  older, it is not the things we did that we often regret,  but the things we didn't do.