Memorial Day

It should not be a day mostly for bargains and barbeque,

but a day to remember and pay respect.

To all members of our military, past, present and future -- and their families, too --

a most heartfelt thank you.

God Bless America!

Happy Birthday!

If I live in a house of spotless beauty with everything in its place, but have not love,

I am a housekeeper -- not a homemaker.

If I have time for waxing, polishing, and decorative achievements, but have not love,

my children learn cleanliness -- not godliness.

Love leaves the dust in search of a child's laugh.

Love smiles at the tiny fingerprints on a newly cleaned window.

Love wipes away the tears before it wipes up the spilled milk.

Love picks up the child before it picks up the toys.

Love is present through the trials.

Love reprimands, reproves, and is responsive.

Love crawls with the baby, walks with the toddler, runs with the child,

then stands aside to let the youth walk into adulthood.

Love is the key that opens salvation's message to a child's heart.

Before I became a mother I took glory in my house of perfection.

Now I glory in God's perfection of my child.

As a mother there is much I must teach my child,

but the greatest of all is love.

~Jo Ann Merrill~

Twenty six years ago today, I became a mother.

I looked into those sweet eyes and saw a glimpse of God.

I never knew such love, such hope, such worry, such frustration, and such fear,

until I became a parent.

My son has no doubt taught me more, than I have taught him.

Twenty six years has not been enough time to do all we dreamed or planned.

But he has grown into a son that makes his parents so very proud.

It has been a comfort to have him nearby in recent years.

He was here to help and comfort through the difficult days of illness and surgery.

Yet, no mother should ever experience that type of worry and fear in the eyes of her child.

Soon, he will be moving several states away to begin another chapter of his life.

Nothing makes me happier than to see him so happy -- even though I will miss him very, very much.

The timing was perfect, and one of the best birthday gifts he could receive.

His birth, those twenty six years ago, was the best gift I ever received.

Happy Birthday!

Love, Mom

Blessings

"Pretty Much Picasso" Supertunias in my front door planters!

Guard well within yourself that treasure, kindness.

Know how to give without hesitation,

how to lose without regret,

how to acquire without meanness.

~George Sand~

Watching the Magnolia Bloom

Gee, it has been a little quiet around here lately!

Somewhere in all those boxes I was unpacking last month, I also seemed to unpack a severe case of the blahs.  Hopefully, better days are ahead.

About the only thing I have been doing is watching my magnolia tree bloom.

I love magnolia blooms!

The ones from this tree are very dear and special.

Maybe one day, I will share the story behind this special tree.

The tree is now about thirteen years old.

Each year, I anxiously wait to see if it will bloom.

For the first several years, there was nary a bloom.

The last few years, there have been maybe two or three blooms each Spring.

For unknown reasons, there are now at least twenty four blooms!

I have been bringing some inside and floating them in water.

Their intoxicating scent fill my house.

I am loving them, and they are definitely helping to chase away those pesky blahs.

This is a magnolia bloom created with ribbon and tiny glass seed beads.

It was a project one year at Stitchin' Charleston Style, taught by Laura Jenkins Thompson.

There are folded ribbon roses on the other side, and the whole bouquet was to adorn a black silk evening bag.  A few years ago, I removed the cluster from the purse and nestled it in a bow on a hat worn to a Kentucky Derby party.  I loved them so much on the hat, they never found their way back to the purse!

And here is one more form of magnolia bloom found in our home.

It is a piece of Boehm porcelain, with a special link to the tree that I am watching bloom in our yard!

All part of a special time and people in my life.

And to my friends in Mississippi and Louisiana, where magnolias are usually in great abundance, my prayers and thoughts are with you.  May each of you stay safe from the danger and destruction of floodwaters.

Blessings on Mother's Day

Illustration by Robert O. Reid
c. 1932

A Mother's Creed

I believe in the eternal importance of the home

as the fundamental institution of society.

I believe in the immeasurable possibilities of

every boy and girl.

I believe in the imagination, the trust, the hopes

and the ideals which dwell in the hearts of all children.

I believe in the beauty of nature, of art, of books

and of friendship.

I believe in the satisfactions of duty.

I believe in the little homely joys of everyday life.

I believe in the goodness of the great design

which lies behind our complex world.

I believe in the safety and peace which surround us all

through the overbrooding love of God.

~Ozora Davis~

As you remember mothers no longer here,

As you celebrate mothers with whom you are still blessed,

As you honor women who act as role models,

As you give thanks for those who made you a mother . . .

Happy Mother's Day! 

Blessings

God hath not promised

Skies always blue,

Flower-strewn pathways

All our lives through;

God hath not promised

Sun without rain,

Joy without sorrow,

Peace without pain.

But God hath promised

Strength for the day,

Rest for the labor,

Light for the way,

Grace for the trials,

Help from above,

Unfailing sympathy,

Undying love.

~Annie Johnson Flint~

To those who have suffered recent loss in storms and other ways,

my thoughts and prayers remain with you.

May the love of God, family and friends strengthen and lift you.