I'm Not SAD

It's beautiful outside today in New Jersey. It's just about 70 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. Most of the leaves have fallen so there is nothing to stop the Sun from shining on you. I read that many people suffer with seasonal depression, called SAD. This is from a lack of sunshine and the many benefits the Sun provides. With shortened days and less UV rays, our bodies can react in a negative way. This article said that if you wanted to soak up enough sunshine to avoid seasonal depression and to obtain the right amount of Vitamin D, you need to expose 70% of your body to the Sun for 20 twenty minutes a day. Since I'm in favor of obtaining Vitamin D naturally and not a fan of depression I decided to take a walk today . . . in my bathing suit . . . okay, not really . . . but I did walk with my face towards the Sun. What this article failed to mention was that exposing 70% of your body to the Sun each day may have the opposite affect on nosey neighbors and neighborhood children. Plus, if I had to look at myself in a bathing suit every day, all winter, I may become suicidal . . . okay, not really . . . but SAD wouldn't cover my feelings. However, have you ever noticed how darn happy those folks in the Polar Bear Club are?

You Light Up My Life

I walk Bart everyday. I try to walk him in the late morning when the Sun is high in the sky. Today, however, I missed walking him in the daylight. It seems that added to my motherly duties is delivering cell phone parts to a forgetful college student and as long as I was meeting said college student, I might as well buy her and her quirky goat boy lunch. There went my daylight. It was a nice lunch except for the lady bugs, but now I digress. So, I had to walk Bart this evening, after dark. I grabbed a flashlight and went on my merry way. There is a beautiful, bright moon out but it is hidden by clouds and thus very dark. Our neighborhood is not well lit so it was essential that I lighted my path with the flashlight, lest I risk falling flat on my face. Here is the thing, that small circle of light needed to be directly in front of me the whole time. If I lit the path on my right or my left or behind me or too far ahead of me it didn't do me a bit of good. The light needed to be at the spot where my foot would fall next. It didn't matter what was next to me or behind me or way ahead of me, what mattered was the next step. Do you smell an analogy? God is my light and He is where my foot will hit the pavement. He wants me to focus on Him and the path that is directly in front of me, lest I risk falling flat on my face. God is present, directly in front of me, lighting only what I need to see next. "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." Psalm 119:105

Are You Smarter Than A Twit?

Has anyone else made the connection between the two words, twitter and twit? Am I the only one? A twit, put kindly, is a bothersome person. Twitter, put kindly, is chatter of trivial matters. How low has our society gone? Are we getting twitter updates on anything that matters? Sorry, I have to say it, but if you use Twitter, you must be a twit or, put kindly, a bothersome person. Honestly, who cares about everything you are doing? Even nosy Italian mothers don't want to know the stuff that folks put on Twitter. It is truly a good thing that evolution is just a theory and not a fact, because if it were a fact, our next generation of children would be born with tiny little thumbs, long and slender, pointy at the tips for quick texting and twittering on tiny little devices. And our brains, which we now realize have the potential to start learning while still unformed in their mommy's uterus and don't stop learning until death, would begin to shrink. Surely, we would become a world of small minded, bothersome people. Luckily, evolution is just a theory and twits will not prevail. I urge you, put down you cell phones, your Blackberries, your Bluetooths - unplug and disconnect - give up your mindless twitter and engage in activity that does not require the exclusive use of your thumbs and exclude the use of your imagination. Just sayin' . . .

Tooth Brushes and Hand Sanitizer

One day about 16 years ago I took my 2 children, 10 months and 3 years old, to Burger King for cookies and milk. It was the Spring and the kids liked to play (crawl) in the outside gym. As we left to go home I saw an old man in the parking lot scrounging through the garbage. I held on tightly to one daughter's hand while I carried the other in an infant seat. I noticed his torn flannel shirt, his unshaven face, the old shoes and dirty pants. As we walked passed him he looked up at me with one hand still in the garbage can. I felt a surge of sympathy for this man who had to pick through the discarded scraps left by others for his meal. I stopped and asked him if I could buy him a hamburger. He grumbled, "Hamburger - Hello!" (I added the o.) "I lost my teef!" It took me a second to register what he was telling me. He continued, "I done throwed them in the trash!" What could I do? I put down my daughters and helped him find his teef, I mean teeth, that he had wrapped in a napkin and accidentally throwed, I mean threw, in the trash. After about a minute, I yelled, "I think I found them! Ewww, I mean, here you go." He quickly took them from me and without hesitation (or washing) he put them in his mouth and smiled at me. I said, "Well, we need to go now. Have a nice day." My 3 year old, who was forever asking me questions, asked, "Where are we going, Mommy?" I answered, "To get tooth brushes and hand sanitizer, Sweetie."

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

My daughter and I had a wonderful trip to Tennessee. We toured a college campus, ate in the cafeteria, shopped at the campus book store, went to the school's play, drove through down town (my daughter blinked the first time, so we needed to take a second drive through), dined at Sonic, Bimbo's and The Waffle House (after eating the best pecan waffles I've ever had, I said to my daughter, "Forget college, let's just open up a Waffle House instead."), went in a cave, road the railroad, saw a movie, played cards and survived a haunted hotel. Spending time with my daughter was the most fun part of the trip. She's smart and sassy and witty and she makes me laugh out loud. She makes me think. She is considerate and kind and full of life. She desires to please God and intends to enjoy every minute doing it. My daughter really liked this college (me too, I guess) and that was the only misfortune of the entire trip. It's her top choice right now. I don't want it to be her top choice, I don't want her to like it, I don't want her to go all the way to Tennessee for school, I don't want my baby 800 miles away from her mama. So, when the folks at Sonic, at Bimbo's, at the Waffle House, at Shop Rite, at the cave and at the school said to her, "Y'all come back now." I turned and looked them right in the eye and said, "Grrrrrrrrrrrrr."

Thanks Mon

I received this award from 2 really sweet blogger ladies in Jamaica. Verne and Ruth. For the spirit that it was given, I am humbled. I am thrilled right down to my core that folks actually are entertained by my rants and observations of the world around me. My little world is small, yet so full and it is my belief that God has blessed me immensely with His Grace even though I am just a worm. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for your kindnesses.

My little world will expand a bit today as I am to travel to Tennessee to see a college with my daughter. Folks in the south are never quite sure how to take us New Jerseyians. We talk so darn fast that sometimes we have long conversations all by ourselves and no one understands a single word we are saying. They just nod and smile. They will surely be impressed with my daughter as she is smart and witty and lovely and sharp. I love and respect her greatly and look forward to see this college through her eyes. Now, if I can only keep my mouth shut . . . .

But Did They Like Me?

My daughter was home for lunch Sunday. We had company (a lovely family that exemplify true service to Christ and who really make us laugh) and my daughter came in half-way through the meal (of delicious potato soup and fresh bagels and fruit - yummy). She had been to her church in the morning. I couldn't wait to ask, "Did they like me, the ladies at the retreat?" She said, "I guess, what are you 7?" I said, "What do you mean, 'I guess' and no, I'm not 7!" I really wanted the ladies to like me even though I was like the enemy coming in to sabotage their battle plan against the bulge with a really good cake. And I know it was good too, because some of the ladies had seconds and some didn't even use forks, they just picked up the cake and ate it with their fingers - just sayin'. I may come across as a confident and secure gal but behind those Christopher & Banks outfits and my casual wit and humor (haha - see) is an insecure lady. So I asked again, "But did they like me?" She said, "I guess . . . they all just wanted to know if you liked them." Go figure, while I'm wondering if they liked me, they were wondering if I liked them. And I did like them, they were real and sweet and kind and honest and 20 minutes after we got there most of them changed into comfortable sweats or pj's. So now, I like them even more knowing they are just a bunch of insecure ladies too!

The Ladies Retreat

My oldest daughter invited me to a ladies retreat with her. I was just a tiny bit thrilled :) While she has been away at college she found a small church that she loves. I had been wanting to meet these folks to thank them for being so kind to my daughter. This retreat would be the perfect opportunity for me to thank the ladies in-person for their love and kindness. The retreat title was "Winning The Battle Of The Bulge - It's Not Just About The Weight." I gave the title very little thought - winning battles is a great theme considering we fight so many of them each day, if not with the kids, the dog, the vacuum cleaner, the seat belt (don't ask), it's with the unseen spiritual battles that are ever present. I wanted to spend some time with my daughter in a beautiful setting in the Poconos learning how to fight spiritual battles. I bought a new outfit at Christopher & Banks (I wanted the ladies to like me) and I baked something very special for us to bring (I wanted the ladies to like me - did I mention that already?). My daughter called me the day before we were to leave and said she was sick and didn't think she could go. Fast forward - we were able to go just for Saturday night's dinner and the evening session with the guest speaker. To my surprise the theme really was about weight. . . a diet plan to help fight the battles that cause women to gain weight. Guess what that special thing was that I baked and arrived with on Saturday night . . . a chocolate chip, cream cheese cake with thick, home-made chocolate icing. Yes, folks, I walked into a room filled with ladies that were trying to win the battle of the bulge with a cake. . . oops. . . do you suppose they liked me?

Vacuuming Stinks!

With 2 adults, 2 teenagers, 2 cats and 1 dog living in 1 house in the fall, vacuuming can be a daily activity. Since I don't like to waste time or energy it makes me so mad when I have a fight with the vacuum cleaner. My teenagers are very attractive - that is, they attract dirt, leaves, dust and the like, which all ends up on the carpet, which I must vacuum. I don't mind vacuuming really. It's good exercise and I love making those lines in the carpet by vacuuming forward for as far as you can reach and then pulling the vacuum cleaner backwards. For as long as the kids, the cats and the dog are out of the house, it looks clean and I like that. Today, my vacuuming experience was not so pleasant. First, after I vacuumed the entire downstairs (much to my daughter's dismay as she was trying to sleep in - sorry honey), I vacuumed right up the stairs in to the kitchen and that's where the trouble began. I vacuumed up 1/2 a dozen plastic grocery bags that I didn't see under the kitchen table and attempted to pull them out while the vacuum cleaner was still running. I don't know why but I hate to turn the vacuum cleaner off until I'm done. Then, the little kitchen rug got caught up in the bottom and the belt began to burn. Then, I saw one of those little beady eyed stink bugs and sucked him up. I smiled in victory over the dirt and grime that were no longer invading my home and that dead stink bug that dared to enter my house . . . until the smell of burnt rubber and dead stink bug permeated the kitchen. I had no choice but to change the vacuum cleaner bag and belt before their time and that is why vacuuming stinks!

Distracted Much?

This post is for Parsley - this morning I got up (a little later than I had hoped), put on the computer, cleaned up some dishes, made some eggs and spinach with cheese (yummy), opened my water bottle and set out my vitamins to take. I have to take my vitamins as soon after I eat as possible for better absorption and for the least amount of stomach upset. The phone rang and I dusted the living room and dining room while I chatted. So, then when I hung up, I dusted the bedroom since I had a rag in my hand anyway. I went to the bathroom and decided to clean the sink and empty the bathroom garbage and so as not to put a dirty wipe in the new garbage bag, I wiped down the entire bathroom with Clorox wipes and put them in the old garbage bag. I went downstairs to throw out the garbage and saw the vacuum cleaner and decided to vacuum the steps. The husband saw me and asked me to send an important email for him - I obliged. Downstairs, I picked up 2 empty bottles, 2 dirty plates and a hand full of dirty tissues (teenagers - augh!) and somehow never got the vacuum cleaner to the steps. I went to the recycling can in the kitchen with the empty bottles and saw my vitamins and open bottle of water at the table. My belly is empty by now and so I need to eat again before I can take my vitamins. So, while I am toasting my bread for a peanut butter and honey sandwich (yummy), I decided to write a post about how distracted I can be. But now I must go because I smell something burning . . .