re-tale

in my newly 'nothing to do but sit and ponder' state I spend a lot of time on the computer. googling. pinteresting. and yes, facebooking. so as I wandered through posts and pictures this morning I came across 31 days in October. an interesting blog that requests its participants write daily for the entire month on a particular subject. and I thought, 'hey self, that sounds interesting!'. you see, my head is full of bits and pieces. half-started projects and assorted daydreams. but one in particular that I keep going back to is a collaboration with the hubs on a pet project of his.

when our kiddos were young he would tell them stories. in particular a long series of adventures of a certain yellow stuffed-animal lion named Lucky. we've always talked about and been prompted by the children to write down the stories for future generations. at the very least for the tales to be retold within our family; at the very most to write a series of children's books.

so when I saw the challenge to write - and it has become a new favorite past time of mine these days - I thought why not take on this project. it fulfills the dream of capturing the stories. it fills my time with a productive task. it, frankly, sounds like fun.

with September dwindling away I have a few days to organize my thoughts and story lines. sit down with the master and record his words. and bring that fuzzy mischievous lion to life once again.

'to me, the greatest pleasure of writing is not what it's about, but the inner music the words make.'

in black & white

you know how I love the written word. quotes. sayings. proverbs. snippets and cuttings. I am big on filling my head and my heart with literal reminders. be nice. play fair. say thank you. don't whine. be thankful. say my prayers. smile. laugh. cry. choose love baby.

and one I came across today did all those things in abundance.









I am working on making this simple message a steady truth in my life. not always easy. fear creeps in. grabs hold. and takes an ugly toll. but as long as I remember to take a deep breath. be patient. ask for others to be patient with me. count my blessings. I can keep calm and carry on.

'the fruit of the spirit is love, joy and peace.'

one moment please

home from our trip to California. allow me to share a photo (out of about a million favorite shots) of darling daughter and precious baby.














'a little child, a thing on mother's milk and kisses fed...'

hello world

today I am launching a new project. a little idea I've been considering for awhile. a bit of a wild notion combined with a continued mission to choose love baby.

and what makes it all the more exciting is that I have been accepted to a forum on Vibrant Nation, whose the tag line reads 'what women 50+ want to know' (how enticing is that?). where hopefully more eyes and ears and hearts will join my personal campaign to save the world one little bit at a time. follow me weekly at Omikuji.

'when I started counting my blessings, my whole world turned around.'

perchance to dream

all is quiet in the house this morning. a lovely sound to hear. it means darling daughter/momma and the little one are asleep. but I have to say I've never seen sleep deprivation look so beautiful.

yesterday morning I came into the living room to see both of my darlings curled up on the sofa. him, the little bundle of joy, in that delightful fanny-up-in-the-air pose, fast asleep on her chest. tv on low. she told me they spent the night watching 'saved by the bell' reruns. how that brought back memories of when she and I knew the midnight to six am television schedule. how much I missed the bliss of sleep. but more so how much I loved that quiet time between her and I. holding. nursing. rocking. watching. nothing more beautiful that a child and momma can share.

there is plenty of time to sleep. catching up is the easy part. for now. hold on tight.

'aside from new babies, new mothers must be the most beautiful creatures on earth.'

wait for it ...

busy day today. a few things to do to get ready for our trip to grandparent heaven tomorrow. seeing the little one for the first time. joy. happiness. oh so much love. holding on tight to every precious moment.

'every now and then, when the world sits just right, a gentle breath of heaven fills my soul with delight ...'

story time

one benefit of being unemployed? today I spent the entire morning reading. curled up on the sofa (amidst the hum of the painters spraying ... so close yet so far from finished) I simply could not put down the guernsey literary and potato peel pie society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Anne Barrows. these days my library card is wearing thin. and I am reaping. wallowing in. utterly captivated by. the benefit of a good read.

I mentioned a post or hundred ago that I was never much of a reader. a friend showed me the error of my ways with an introduction to Cannery Row. and since then books have lulled me to sleep. taken me away. brought me back to reality. unnerved me. perplexed me. soothed me. and I am ever so thankful for the mental diversion. escape. vacation. vicarious opportunity to see life through another's words. pure joy.

'reading well is one of the great pleasures that solitude can afford you.'