Fish, Food, and Fire Pits

Fishing off the pier is lots of fun.

And so is eating at Ruby's diner.

Roasting marshmallows and wolf 'ems is a good time, too.

(Jeremiah lips are wearing some of the evidence.)

Don't I have good-looking grandkids?!

;)

PS. To enter my 900th post giveaway, just leave a comment over here.

Ode to the Ocean

Forget all your troubles, and come out with me

for a day by the ocean, a day by the sea.

You can walk on the sand with the breakers quite near

or gaze out contentedly over the pier;

but no matter your viewpoint, the tides and the swells

will remind you of secrets your heart rarely tells.

(Oh, happy the family that by the sea dwells!)

for more O posts, click below

PS. To enter my 900th post Expect a Miracle giveaway, leave a comment here.

Just Our Cup(cake) of Tea

Check out the cute cupcakes my sister sent Todd the day he found out he would still be going to medical school in August. It was such a neat surprise to see them arrive, and they tasted every bit as good as they look!

Don't you love the way the bakery wrote a message on top of them?

=)

PS. To enter my 900th post Expect a Miracle giveaway, just leave a comment here.

Sun, Sand, and a Giveaway

My view looks pretty sunny these days, which makes me want to celebrate 900 posts at Sue's News, Views 'n Muse with a little giveaway.

Since life's been handing out miracles, I've decided to give one BIG prize this time to one LUCKY winner. (And then I promise never to talk about miracles again. Well, not for a while, anyway.) Below is the piece of art from Etsy that will go to the commenter whose name is drawn from my loverly red bowl. All you do to participate is make a comment on this post and be (or become) a follower. Easy!

(FYI, the buddha is just window dressing.)

I'm not sure how the artist does it, but the plaque is a piece of mahogany painted to look like stone. Pretty cool. It can hang either outside or in the house.

Thanks to all of you for being such wonderful readers. Writing my blog, along with reading yours, is one of my favorite hobbies. This party couldn't happen if you didn't come, and I'm ever so grateful that you do!

The giveaway will end Sunday night (July 31st) at 11:58 PM, and I will announce the winner Monday morning. Good luck, y'all.

=)

for more happiness, click below

Beach Boy

Beach life has returned to normal now that the crisis with Todd has passed, except for the fact that he has lots to do and has to leave us a little more than he (or we) would like. But hey, we can put up with that small sacrifice, right?

As you can see, my great nephew Sullivan is hanging out with the fam, and that child continues to amaze his doctors in every way. He is not only a blessing, but a bit of a miracle.

(We like miracles around here...)

=)

Walk Tall

I am even happier than I usually am to play Saturday Centus today, because I am even happier than I usually am, period. And I still have a whole week of beach time ahead of me! This makes me a very lucky person, and so does the fact that Jenny has given her Centusians a prompt that suits me to a "T." (15 words plus the prompt, highlighted in red, below.)

∞§∞

"Walk tall; you're a daughter of God."

Before I die, I want to prove to myself irrefutably that I am the person the Lord already knows I am.

∞§∞

Here Comes the Sun!

Okay, everyone. I'm sorry to have been so mysterious, but I just couldn't bring myself to talk about what was going on without knowing the resolution. And now we DO know it. And it is the BEST NEWS EVER!!!

A week ago yesterday, we learned that there was a problem in Todd's application for medical school (an unintentional one on his part, but serious). This called his very admittance into question, and he was told by the Dean that it "didn't look good." In fact, there was a real possibility that his acceptance was going to be rescinded.

Anyway, we just learned that the committee has decided NOT to rescind his acceptance (woo-hoo!), and he will indeed be attending medical school in August as planned. I'm not sure I have ever been happier, and I want to thank each and every one of you for your prayers and well wishes, because I truly believe they have made the difference. A little miracle has been wrought in our family, and we are grateful.

You are a wonderful group of friends, and we thank you for rooting for our Todd!

Life is good.

We are blessed.

=)

No News Is No News: Limbo Time!

We are still waiting in limbo land here. Apparently we should have an answer to our week-long ordeal tomorrow. Needless to say, we are praying like crazy that things go our way. (And if they don't, that we will find the strength to rally.)

It's hard to feel so powerless, but we know the Lord knows what He's doing (or not doing).

Thanks for the great support you've all been this week.

=)

Click below for more N posts.

A Bit of Comic Relief

Why Me?

©1992 Susan Noyes Anderson

Of all the people

in the world

millions of guys

zillions of girls

of all the animals

there are

from Timbuktu

to Zanzibar

of all the statues

ever raised

to villains feared

or heroes praised

of all the buildings

ever built

that stand up straight

or even tilt

of all the car tops

ever made

from fiberglass

to steel

to suede

why did it have to

land on me

not on the ground

not on a tree

not on the street

or at my feet

but on my head

with liquid dread

I must exclaim

at the deadly aim

of the dreadful turd

of that dreadful bird

I hope this silly verse doesn't offend anyone. I wrote it almost 20 years ago when I was feeling particularly sorry for myself after my hysterectomy, which did not go well. (Surgical menopause = not a good thing.) Way back then, writing this childish poem with a bit of crudity thrown in for good measure made me laugh. It still does.

It also makes me remember that braving bird-filled skies is part of the package here on earth. And I sure wouldn't want to give up the beautiful music they bring with them!

Signing out. At the beach. Still on pins and needles...

"/

A Not So Jolly Holiday

Still no resolution this morning.

Sometimes I wish we could take a holiday from those times in life when dreams are breaking on the sand and hope is water, slipping through our fingers. But living was never meant to be a smooth ride, was it? And tender mercies glisten in the sun.

We're counting on those warm and tender mercies.