Faith

Getting older has some perks.  Some of those perks are time and opportunity.  We have the opportunity to be around our granddaughter on a daily basis.  We have the time to spend with her and to share her life experiences with her.  Because we have fewer obligations now than we did with our own children, we have the time to spend with her and see her through good times and bad.

We live at the tail end of tornado alley and we can have some really rough weather.  Bean is totally afraid of storms.  Recently we had such a storm while she was here and her behavior completely astonished me.  Now, she has been in church since she was born—we are active, practicing Anglicans.  She has been Catholic School educated since age 3.  The child is well indoctrinated so it shouldn’t have been such a shock to me but the thunder started and I watched her as she fell to her knees, crossed herself and started praying furtively through the tears.  Then she came to the table where we were all sitting  and asked us to please pray with her.  We did, of course, and then took the pets to the safe place in the house and as the storm subsided we learned that there was a small tornado that went through her neighborhood and did some damage.  She asked why her house was spared.  I asked the question back to her and she smiled and said “because we prayed”.  

The next day or so a friend of mine who has an uncanny knack of posting scripture that is just what I need to hear when I need to hear it posted this—

“When my heart is overwhelmed, lead me to the rock that is higher than I am” — Psalm 61.2

How could I not think of my sobbing, frightened little granddaughter when I saw that?  She knew exactly what to do when she couldn’t do anything else. She was overwhelmed and she went to the rock.

I am so glad to be at this time in my life where I have the time to sit back and watch and wonder at the growth and development of this young mind and heart.  I am so glad to have the opportunity to witness her faith in action.,

The Bean and Me Book Club

The Bean and Me Book Club is a joint effort of my granddaughter and I to read the same books and review them.  Obviously these are youth books but don’t mistake that for being childish or simplistic.  Some of the books Bean brings to the table are really good and very engaging for an adult as well.

Right now I am reading “Wish” on her recommendation.  It is about Charlie, a girl who has been shipped off to live with her aunt and uncle because her mom is severely depressed and can’t get out of bed and her dad is in jail.  She doesn’t fit in very well in her school and she has a chip on her shoulder as big as the county.  She has become obsessed with rescuing and caring for a stray dog that has been lurking about trying to get her attention.  Her uncle and her friend Howard, who walks up down (limps) are going to help her.

That is my stopping point.  I am hoping that today they figure out where the dog goes when he is hiding out!  So far it is a good story although some of the circumstances are a little adult but certainly not unrealistic.  Bean handled it well and didn’t get bogged down in the sad parts.  She won’t tell me what happens so I guess I am going to have to finish soon so I can find out for myself.

I will let you know!

Redeaux

I read some really lovely blogs.  I love visiting with my blog friends every day and seeing what is going on in their lives.  I love seeing all the photos as well.  It makes me think about my own blog and not in a very good way.

I enjoy playing with the layouts and color combos.  I get a kick out of different fonts. However what doesn’t seem to be as good as it should be is the content.  That is sort of a big deal because that is why people visit blogs.  So I am thinking about being a bit more organized about my writing.  I am thinking about assigning a topic for each day of the week.  For example, Monday could be The Trixie Chronicles, Tuesday could be the Bean and Me Book Club, Wednesday could be about cardmaking, Thursday could be about faith (that should actually be first), Friday could be about cooking or fashion or something.  Anyway, you get the picture.  So, since yesterday I introduced The Trixie Chronicles, I think today will be about the Bean and Me Book Club.

I have always thought blogs should be sort of random but that makes it difficult sometimes when there is no direction.  I really enjoy blogging because it gives me a venue to write.  My goal in life was to be a writer and, of course, that didn’t happen but I still like to put my thoughts down on paper. Sometimes it is a great way to clear your mind.

So, I am hoping to be a better blogger with a plan.  We will see how it goes.

And here are some photos for you — my fairy gardens in pots

The Trixie Chronicles

Hi there! My name is Trixie and I am a 4 month old Yorkshire Terrier.  I came to live with Mommy Nona and Grampsey two weeks ago.  I came from Cleburne where I  lived with my four sisters.   I am  not much dog —less than five pounds —but I am so much more than that.  I am a supreme escape artist, a potty training challenge, a cuddly ball of fluff and an Olympic grade runner every night about 8 pm.

I am also a practical joker.  The first two days I was here my human folks thought I was so quiet and polite.  I didn’t let them hear my big threatening bark for the first week.  I had to laugh because the first time Mommy Nona heard me she wasn’t sure it was a bark!  I really only bark when they put me in my crate and I don’t want to be there.  Seems they think it’s ok to ignore me.  Hmmmmp.

Mommy Nona is really beside herself because no matter how hard she tries I still have accidents in
the house.  I am really stealthy like.  So today we went on an outing to Petco.  I went and even got to ride outside my crate.  BUT, when we got there she bought a big box and some pellets and she thinks she is going to make me potty like a cat!  Haha, Mommy Nona is so fun——-ny!  We all know that isn’t going to work but we will play the game for a while because apparently she doesn’t have anything else to do.  It does look like the laundry is piling up though. Oh, the pellets are really tasty too.

So, the last two weeks have been interesting.  I have been loved on (that’s nice), yelled at (just once), taken outside a bazillion times and told to “go potty” more than that.  I am pretty independent, really slippery, rather tiny and loved by everybody even if I have no intention of ever telling them when I need to go out.

Well, it is past my bedtime.  So until the next time......Nighty nite from me, the Trixster!  Oh, hi Jack!

Today

Today this happened

Meet Trixie Brinkley.  I hope I get some sleep tonight.

Summer Has Arrived

Not much has been going on — thank goodness.  We had a tornado that tore up the street behind my daughter and broke a big tree in our yard.  I will never get used to the weather in North Texas.  Girl Scouts is over for the year so that activity is on hiatus.  One set of kids has already been to Disney and the other set is getting ready for the UK.  It will be quiet around here for a while.

It has taken me since April to get my husband an appointment with an endocrinologist.  It has been like pulling solid teeth but we are going next week to see if we can get his blood sugar under control again.  I am trying to decide if I want to go to an eye doctor close to home or go back to the guy I have been going to for years. I really can’t decide but my cute, trendy glasses are driving me crazy.

And.......I am thinking about getting a dog.  It is a toss up between a Maltichon (Maltese/Bichon Frise  mix) and another Cairn Terrier.  I have been reading about the maltichon and it seems they are adorable, companion dogs that make good support dogs BUT they can be needy and anxiety ridden.  Just what I need, another anxiety ridden something in my life.  The Cairn, well I have had one before and she was lovely but I think I am at the bottom of a very long waiting list.  Whatever I get has to be hypoallergenic which there really is no such thing but, well, we have too many allergies.  If I were a younger, non allergic woman, I would have a labradoodle but....yeah.  I would love to have a Norwich Terrier but they don’t grow them in Texas.  I think I am fixin to go down the rabbit hole.

So, that is what is going on here when things get slow.

See the Nest

See the nest at the top of my page?  Well two of the four eggs have hatched into little baby cardinals. It must have just happened because they look REALLY new.  I will try to get some photos later!

Today in the Garden

Storms are coming so Hubs is rushing to get the trimming finished. This week has been our big spring clean up week and we are getting done just in time.

Bird nest in bush

The deck from the yard

Add caption

Pinocchio

And this was today. “Pinocchio” at Bass Performance Hall.

 Fantastic! Thank you kids!

A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler

I just finished “A Spool of Blue Thread” by Anne  Tyler.  I have read several Anne Tyler titles and have had the same reaction to each of them. As I am reading I am thinking how tedious and mundane the story is. It is compelling enough to keep me reading but I am struck as how the story is so ordinary.

And then it ends and I am sorry because I am struck about how powerful the story really was.  This was the case with this book as well.

It is the story of the Whitshank family—Red and Abby and their four children. The story travels back to the story of the previous generation as well.  It is the story of everyday life and death, coming of age, secrets—the stuff of life.

I recommend.

My little book buddy is a little bear called Flags.

Snowball