All over the map

Following a trail to a far off place.

Not sure where I'm going.

Know all too well where I've been.

I wander from the trail

exploring and discovering

all the world has to offer.

There is breathtaking scenery

and there is danger lurking.

I get lost.

I call for help.

Someone find me.

Guide me.

Perhaps a compass would help.

Or clear directions to where true north lies.

I have neither.

Instead I must look within.

Find my center.

A good starting point for sure.

I've been all over the map lately. My word of the year (focus) seems to be most challenging. Obviously the correct choice for me as I am proving over and over that I need to work harder at it. I'm feeling lately that it could be my word of the decade for how challenging it has been. I am Stretch-Arm-Strong in a daycare being pulled in too many directions at once.

I am currently facing some life altering challenges and decisions. Some I have the ability to influence the outcome, some I have absolutely no control over. For both types of situation the best bet is to find my center and move on from there. Focus and carry on. Challenging for sure. Think I'll go revisit my meditation post.

The Silent Evolution

eerie

amazing

haunting

intriguing

beautiful

thought provoking

peaceful

Please visit the following links for an amazing art display.

I would have loved to include a picture here

but do not wish to infringe on any copyrights.

Artist's Link

Article on the under water sculptures

YouTube videos of people's visits to the sculptures

Another Article with great shots

A very lovely holiday weekend to all.

A Stormy Week

The weather this past week has been very interesting.

We have seen blazing sunshine, hail, high winds,

massive downpour associated thunderstorms,

humidity, cold nights and more.

Up the street from us sits a little house.

At that little house they had a little sale.

Many days before, during and after that sale,

in all that crazy weather,

sat a little fish on a big dresser.

He survived a week of severe storms and hot sun.

The kids and I felt quite bad for the little fella.

He was for sale without a buyer.

They had named him Butthead.

Now he was literally homeless.

He was going to be sent off to a pet store

when they got around to it.

Every day the kids worked on me.

"Mommy, it's sooooo sad."

"Honey, Mommy doesn't need ANOTHER animal to take care of."

"But mommy, he needs a home."

"I know but maybe someone will come and save him."

"Mommy, it should be us."

"Ugh! I feel awful, but it's not a good idea."

--------------

Yesterday I woke up to a campaign to save the fish.

I had tucked the kids into bed the night before

thinking they went straight to sleep.

Now I know otherwise.

I headed down the stairs and found this.

UGH!

As I headed toward their room I saw this...

I arrived at their bedroom door to find this...

On their floor was this...

They must have hit a point of exhaustion

as the sign was not finished or hung.

I credited them for their care and creativity and got them ready.

Off to school with my fish militia.

Great. Now they've got me.

I dug through my purse and found $10.

I marched up to the house, knocked on the door,

woke a man covered in tattoos and made my offer.

It's all I had.

"No thanks" was the answer I received.

Kids came home from school.

I told them it was a No Go.

Second born scrounges another $5 of his own money.

Heads back up to the house.

Perhaps he hit their magic number.

Perhaps they fell for his pleas.

Perhaps they thought it would save them a trip to the pet store.

Whatever the reason, the mission was a success.

Into the bathroom with this fella.

He was in desperate need of house cleaning.

Yup. He's in there.

Look far left.

We found some extra food in our supply.

Cleaned him, fed him, found him a spot in the boy's room.

Meet Stormy (a.k.a. Storm)!!!

I am such a sucker!

What A Pig!

Went on a farm field trip on Friday.

Tried to get a picture of the pigs but they just wouldn't cooperate.

Every time I went for a shot, they turned their heinies toward me.

All I could think was, "What a total pig!"

Ha ha ha ha ha!

I thought we could all use a good laugh on a Monday morning.

Especially after another weekend full of devastating news on the tellie.

I'm off to create something fabulous.

Give yourself permission to do the same.

Nourishment

I went to a little Amish style country store yesterday.

I was out of almond meal.

Waking kids in shifts so early in the morning makes for weary eaters.

Making breakfast cakes with almond and blueberry tempts their palette

and nourishes their bodies.

I also made homemade soup from a smoked turkey leg.

It turned out better than imagined.

Soup nourishes body and heart.

(the following definitions from my trusty Merriam Webster Dictionary© 1994)

nourish (vb): to promote the growth or development of

nourishing (adj.): giving nourishment

nourishment (n):the action or process of nourishing

The words themselves sound satisfying and fulfilling.

Some associated words might be love, care, wholesome, nurture.

All positive.

When we think of nourishment we most often think of food.

But what about other forms of nourishment?

What do you feed your heart?

Your soul?

In order to thrive we need proper nourishment.

The same goes for all parts of our "selves"

Do you nourish your creativity? your dreams?

Do you nourish your relationships?

What area in your life is suffering?

Perhaps you simply need to tend to it with proper nourishment.

Feed your hopes, dreams and desires.

Promote their growth.

Nourish them.

With love,

Lynn

Amazing Story (an absolute must read)

Do you want to feel good this morning?

I have a story to share with you.

I am a proud parent of a member of

This Class 

(click on the link above)

The entire class of 2012 voted for king and queen.

The vote was won by a landslide!

I am so proud of all of them.

What an amazing prom!
Congrats to the King and Queen.

America's future is looking brighter.  ;)

Motherhood Is Beautiful

I drove through downtown last week and spotted this bird nesting on a cross light.

She found a warm spot with a roof over head to build her nest.

The traffic is hustle bustle and the light blinks...

On   Off   On   Off   On   Off

The day was so hot and muggy she had to keep her mouth agape to cool herself.

With all the chaos and discomfort she stayed vigilant.

I was completely taken by her.

Motherhood truly is beautiful.

My Backyard

Quick scenes from my backyard.

Do you see the baby bunny?

 

 So golden!!!

 Twins!

Color

We could learn a lot from crayons; some are sharp, some are pretty, some are dull, while others bright, some have weird names, but they all have learned to live together in the same box.  ~Robert Fulghum

 Maybe we should develop a Crayola bomb as our next secret weapon.  A happiness weapon.  A beauty bomb.  And every time a crisis developed, we would launch one.  It would explode high in the air - explode softly - and send thousands, millions, of little parachutes into the air.  Floating down to earth - boxes of Crayolas.  And we wouldn't go cheap, either - not little boxes of eight.  Boxes of sixty-four, with the sharpener built right in.  With silver and gold and copper, magenta and peach and lime, amber and umber and all the rest.  And people would smile and get a little funny look on their faces and cover the world with imagination.  ~Robert Fulghum

Give crayons.  Adults are disturbingly impoverished of these magical dream sticks.  ~Dr SunWolf

Life is about using the whole box of crayons.  ~RuPaul

 Have A Colorful Day!

(crayons pictured above purchased at a local artisan show)

Mixed Up Unfairytale

 (One of those days. Spent over a half hour working on getting the background removed when I accidentally bumped "cancel". Now I'm out of time so I will live with it. Ha! It is supposed to represent the three bear's chaotic chairs.)

 ------------------------------

Mixed Up Unfairytale

Deep down in Tiny Town there is a house built of cards. The card house is home to three bears. There is Grandma Bear, Grandpa Bear and Baby Bear. Baby Bear is actually more like Pre-teen Bear but we'll live in denial for a bit as everyone knows teenagers are notorious trouble. I am Little Red Writing Hood. I live very near this house of cards and care for the three bears very much.

Once upon a time Grandpa Bear built Grandma Bear a brand new house built of wood and windows. It was a good and strong house with lots of land and love. Grandma Bear wanted to move closer to the dens of the other bears she loves so they sold their little house and went shopping.

When buying a new house the bear family would have been wise to use Three Little Pig Realty as they are knowledgeable when it comes to house structure. Sadly, the bears used a realtor called Tough Luck. They were new to the area and did not know who they were buying from. They also had no clue their new house was built of cards as it was not disclosed to them.

At first life for the bears seemed fairly normal. As normal as grandparents raising a  baby bear can be. Grandma Bear kept herself busy sewing and gardening while Grandpa Bear worked and played tennis. Baby Bear was sent to them by the Wicked Witch of the West and was not very well behaved. It seems as if that Wicked Witch had not treated Baby Bear very well and Baby Bear responded accordingly. The three bears worked hard at making their new life together work.

After a short while the glue on the house of cards started to wash away with the rain. Baby Bear was no help as he tended to be a bit naughty and help the glue melt away by doing silly little things such as running the hose without permission and picking at the cracks in his room. Baby Bear also invites trouble in. I spend quite a bit of time with Baby Bear. He doesn't mean the harm he causes but that nasty old witch did not send him off with the proper tools to work his life.

Grandma Bear felt the house's foundation begin to crumble. The melting of the card holding glue and the crumbling of the foundation was too much for Grandma Bear and she fell off the wagon she has been riding for decades. I have known Grandma Bear my whole life and I have seen this wagon predicament many times in the past. If only she were strong enough to hold on longer, or if the ride weren't so bumpy, perhaps she wouldn't fall. But fall once again she did and she is hurting. You see, she has a disease that causes her to depend on a wagon for survival much as some people require a wheelchair to get around. I love Grandma Bear and will be there to help her up just as I have always done in the past.

The bear I worry about the most is Grandpa Bear. You see, Grandpa Bear has always been a fix-it bear. He is strong, hard working and very handy. He has always been able to fix anything. That is his gift. He seals cracks, reapplies glue, builds things new if he has to. Grandpa Bear is aware that his house of cards is weakening and this time there is nothing he can do. An evil doctor named Dr. Evil has taken away his tools and supplies. He replaced them with useless words like "cancer" and "terminal" leaving Grandpa Bear helpless as his house falls around his family.

Dealing with Baby Bear is no problem as I have four rascals myself. I have dealt with Grandma Bear's falls in the past and have collected many tools to enable me to deal with the current fall as well. I am sick with worry over Grandpa Bear and have never had to deal with one of my loved ones being spell stricken by Dr. Evil before. Dr. Evil is about as evil as they come. No one sees him come or go. He just devastates and runs. The crazy part of his spells is their ability to cause pain and heartache to so many with one blow.

I went to The Good Witch and asked her for a spell to counter Dr. Evil. She was not able to offer a spell so she granted me the power of prayer and visualization. Now, every day, I visualize a hand full of butterflies. I visualize them filling with healing light. Once the butterflies are fluttering and glowing, I send them off to Grandpa Bear where they land on his sleeping chest and as it rises and falls, rises and falls, they radiate their healing light, dispersing healing powers and when they are done, they flutter off. Then I pray that the visualization worked.

Grandpa Bear still spends every day working and playing when he can. He is working very hard to find new tools to fix his house and his situation. I hold his heart and help where I am able. I offer all the tools I have available. Still, I am only Little Red Writing Hood. Do you think you could help? Perhaps you could send some butterflies his way. I know he would appreciate it and so would I.

If something happens to Grandpa Bear, that will surely be the blow that knocks down the house of cards. If Grandpa Bear gets better, he can rebuild that faulty house. He can lift Grandma Bear back onto that wagon and help keep Baby Bear out of trouble. That would be a happy ending for sure.

 This piece of writing was put together after reading a prompt over at The Magpie's Pen. Apologies in advance for not having time to rework and rework and rework this piece. It's a first draft and is probably for shit. I barely found the time to write it in the first place but found it extremely important to do. More important to get the work out than worry about perfection at this point. Thanks for understanding.

Dreams

I'm reading the book

"The Practical Dreamer's Handbook"

(finding the time, money, and energy to live the life you want to live)

by

Paul & Sarah Edwards

It was published in 2000

and can now be purchased (hardcover)

for a mere $4.74.

It is a good book full of good advice

both practical and inspirational.

I own the book.

I have probably owned it since the publish date.
The pages have been leafed through here and there

but this is the first time I have picked it up with the intention of reading it cover to cover.
I am taking it as a sign that I was not ready for the messages before and now I am.

Last night I read a line that felt rather important to share.

"Without the yearning of desire, a dream is only a diversion."

It goes on...

"Yearning brings dreams to life, wakes them up and plants their seeds in our hearts."

I thought hard about those lines.

I thought, "I dream ALL the time. Perhaps it is the yearning that is missing."

The reality sits in the fact that I have had yearnings but have failed to ACT.

Action (to me) seems to be key.

Quiet your mind for a moment.

Now ask yourself, what have I been dreaming of lately?

Is it just a dream? Or is there yearning and desire involved?

Have you taken that desire and used it as fuel to act upon your dream?

If not, why?

There is no better day than today to start acting on and living out your dreams.

Wishing you a beautiful, dreamy, action filled day!

Happy Mother's Day!!!!

Was driving through town yesterday

when I passed this home.

It filled my heart

that they would share this message

and spread love and positivity so freely.

I thought of all my lovely blog readers

and wanted to share this message with you

on this fine Mother's Day.

To all of my readers:

Wordless Wednesday

Self-doubt

I swear I have the strangest thought process at times.

It was years ago that I was pondering the subject of self-doubt.

I came up with this quote.

Buah ha ha ha ha!!

I crack me up!!!!

 Today, don't take yourself so seriously.

Let your inner-freak fly.

Laugh a little!

Enjoy life.

Mastering Meditation

It's lamb season at the farm.

Watching those sweet fuzzy babies brings peace to my heart.

Today's news headline brings hope to so very many.

Peace and hope.

Important words.

Light words.

Love words.

I have tried for YEARS to meditate

finding it near impossible to shut down the chattering of my brain.

To focus.

My breathing is not steady and I struggle in that area as well.

I am ecstatic to say I have cracked the code!

Not everyone wants to meditate.

Not everyone who practices has difficulty.

For those who do, you have to find what works for you.

Some approach meditation traditionally.

Some walk and meditate.

Some use visualization.

Some use prayer.

I am going to share my technique in hopes it will help someone else

who is struggling, find a way that works for them.

 *******

The term "Let go and let God".

Valuable

You do not have to be religious.

You do not have to be of a particular religion.

Consider God to be God, Higher Power, Divine Being, Energy.

Whatever your belief.

I have practiced "Let go and let God".

It has been important to me.

I tend to have control issues.
I tend to take on too much.

I tend to live cranial.

One night as I was sitting in bed

very troubled

trying to meditate

I decided to let go and let God.

Something clicked.

I applied it to meditation.

As I exhaled, I thought "Let go"

(let go of worry, anxiety, control, all the negative, exhale it out of your body)

As I inhaled, I thought "Let God"

(bring in the good, the love, the peace, the positive, inhale and fill your body with good)

Exhale = Let Go

Inhale = Let God

Exhale

Inhale

Exhale

Inhale

As I said those four little words

visualizing all negative leaving with the exhaled breath

and all positive entering on the inhale

I achieved my first successful meditation session.

Call it prayer,

call it meditation, 

call it whatever you wish.

It works for me

and perhaps it will work for you as well.

May you have a Peace and Hope filled day!

Happy Monday!