Grandkids....

Our grandchildren accept us for ourselves, without rebuke or effort to change us,

as no one in our entire lives has ever done,

not our parents, siblings, spouses, friends 

 and hardly ever our own grown children.

Ruth Goode

Soon to be eleven strong...they laugh at  our jokes, pose for our pictures (most of the time)....stand still for our hugs...and love us for who we are.   You fill our lives with joy, kids! 

Causes...

Rebels...with a cause!

On a very cold February morning, a large hole was cut in Holmes Lake...and these rebels... plus one ....jumped in!  A fundraiser for the Special Olympics, and a chance to just have fun...they showed up at work for those of us that couldn't be there to watch them.  Great job, Boogie Knights!   Hope to be at the lake next year for some action shots!

Lessons...

A dog teaches you about fidelity....perseverance...

and to turn around three times before lying down!

Author Unknown

Still winter....

breezy, sneezy, freezy

slippy, drippy, nippy

...like an uninvited guest, winter has overstayed it's welcome...

come on spring!

About friends...

Friendship is precious, not only in the shade, but in the sunshine of life.
Thomas Jefferson

A gift from a friend...an unexpected surprise on a day that was in desperate need of sunshine.  A tiny wrapped package, tucked into my hands with the instructions ..."open this later".  A reminder that when I think no one cares...I'm wrong.   When I think I no longer make a difference....I'd better think again.  Thank you,  my friend...each morning I glance at this heartfelt gift as I walk out the door...and smile.  

Treasure...

Memory is the treasury and guardian of all things

Cicero

To some, a pile of rocks and  concrete and metal. 

To Grandpa, a treasure.....a paperweight filled with memories from his Dad.

This paperweight came from Great Grandpa's childhood...safe to say it's close to 100 years old.  Unsure of it's origin...he only knows that it had to have meant something to his Dad as it moved from place to place with him..office to office, house to house.  It rarely held papers...but always found its way to a display spot where it could be seen.  Off limits to play with (though he remembers sneaking a touch or two)..it never found it's way into a box (even if his Mother did redecorate!)  I'm hoping by making it a photo of the day...a memory from this year in our life...that somewhere down the line, a great great great grandson will hold this sturdy litle fellow in his hands and know that one man's trash is always a treasure somewhere!

Boldly going nowhere....

Leaps of faith can put us in a new spot we couldn't see from where we stood before. SARK

Good to know that we've made the top 10 snowiest winters in recorded history?!

Good to know that snow is forecast three more times in the next week?!

Good to know that spring is less than a month away!

Happy Birthday, Jim!

Birthdays...they come...they go...they come again!

Happy Birthday, little brother! 

I know it's an old picture...but it's not quite as old as you are!

Lots of love from Team B an Joe!

Dog days..

There are times when only a dog will do for a friend...

when you're beaten sick and blue and the world's all wrong,

for he won't care if you break and cry or grouch and swear..

for he'll let you know as he licks your hands that he's downright sorry...and understands.

Don Blanding

Day 52 in the Project 365 year....a little bad with the huge doses of good!

Tyler and Grandma...hit by the flu bug.

Hope it stops here!

It really is a day only Gus can understand.

Yuch!

Love is...

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word,

a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring,

all of which have the potential to turn a life around.     

Leo Buscaglia

For a lesson in love, kids....follow in Grandpa's footsteps!

Love is so much more than things....a lesson that some never learn in life.  It doesn't take a diamond ring  ...an island trip....a fancy home....or an expensive car to show someone you love them.  Love doesn't live in a bank account.    Love is so much more.    Love is overusing "I love you" each and every day.  Love is little surprises...kind words...gentle touches...love notes you find in your pocket in the middle of the day!  Love is remembering your favorite candy...or color....or bookstore.  Love is showing up at your baseketball game after he's scooped snow since 4 in the morning.  Love is sitting in the parking lot on a freezing day, so two little boys can play just a little longer on a snow mountain.  Love is not letting  any of his grandsons beat him at basketball....or Uno....or most any other game, because we all need to learn to loose in life before we can win! (or so he says...Grandma lets you win!)  Love is a gentle giant of a man walking into Gamers for some gift cards, even though he believes the best games in life are played with a deck of cards.  Love is pancakes with fresh blueberries at 10 pm, after a long day at work.  Love is determined to drive 8 hours for a birthday party...and wouldn't have it any other way.  Love carries a new American Girl doll to the arms of a wishing grandaughter....in a snowstorm!  Love accepts...love forgives....love  endures.....love never ends...even when tempers flare and harsh words are spoken...Love holds out his hand and says...welcome home, you belong here.     What lessons you can learn from your Grandpa! 

A Good Idea...

Ideas are the roots of creation.

Ernest Dimnet

Take one creative teacher.....interview a group of 4th and 5th grade kids...

mix with one PTA loan and a good supply of product...produce one fantastic Student Store that has already made it's first "loan repayment" from it's proceeds!  What a great idea...what a fantastic way to teach these children about small business...responsibility...cooperation...team work...supply and demand...and creativity.  Each student interviewed and was "hired" into the position they fill.....and what great role models these young men and women are to the little ones that shop there!   Good job, Fredstrom Elementary.  (and to the young women that created the duct tape flower pens, you girls rock...I think an Etsy shop is in your future!)

Another blessing on the way...

 Blessings come in many shapes, in sizes large and small...

but a new little baby is the sweetest of them all.

Working on blessing # 10...due in August!

Congratulations, Ashley and Kevin!

Play

A dog at play has the mind of a wise martial arts master, a mind capable of perfect focus.

Marc Christophe

a simple request...

Lord..if you can't make me skinny, please make my friends look fat.

Smiles...

When I see you smiling, ear to ear

I look at the world in a whole new way...

and the important things in life are clear.

Saying goodbye Monday morning...these smiles remind us of just what matters most!

Thanks for a short, but sweet visit...can't wait to come back!

Love is..

Love is just a word, until someone you meet gives it a proper meaning.

author unknown

Love sat on my lap today.  Love wore a pink bow in her hair and ate pancakes for breakfast.  Love stirred alphabet soup in a plastic cup and served it to Grandpa...over and over.  Love shook her tiny finger at her puppy and said "no" when he tried to share her toys.  Love hugged her Mommy and "bumped" her little fist into her Daddy's hand.  Love reached up and rubbed potato soup in her curls...and giggled when her Mother told her "no"!    Love brought book after book to Grandma for reading.  Love played in the bathtub...and gave bedtime hugs and kisses.  Love is so much more than a word in this family....it's nine words,  nine little faces (soon to be ten) that fill our hearts with joy.  We are so blessed.

attitude...

Attitudes are contagious...and hers is worth catching!

Joy met us at the door in tiny blue overalls...and kept us laughing for days!  There's a spirit in this girl that bubbles out...and makes you giggle with delight!  From her busy little tiptoe run to her sticky hugs and kisses....she radiates joy...she shows us what love is.  We'll remember forever her chubby little hands clasped in prayer, followed with a little clap, a giggle and an "Amen" shouted out to the world!  What a blessing you are to this family, Miss K!

rub-a-dub-a-dubby...

Behold the duck. It does not cluck. A cluck it lacks. It quacks.

It is specially fond   of a puddle or pond.   When it dines or sups   it bottoms ups.

Ogden Nash

One man's trash will always be another's treasure..

and today, treasure arrived in the shape of a duck!

Bathtime fun....good for floating and squirting and diving and clucking...

ready and waiting at Grandma's!

Spoiled?

Never fear spoiling children by making them too happy.

Happiness is the atmosphere in which all good affections grow.

Thomas Bray

Happiness is Grandpa's lap...with a new doll to hold!

Welcome to the famly, MAE!

of birds..and mice!

The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.

As for me, I think I'd like to be the second mouse!  This little early bird was enjoying a freshly filled bird feeder outside my dining room window this morning!

Glow.....

A final burst of light and color. A diminishing glow on the horizon.

 Encroaching darkness. Sunset signifies both a beginning and an end.

from the book True Colors

This was a most beautiful sunset, kids....we shivered....it glowed!

Silence...

In order to see the birds it is necessary to become a part of the silence.

Robert Lynd

There's a lesson in this photo...and quote for today...

If only Gus could read!

Happy, Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to a guy who's smart, charming, and plenty loud....

and I'd say so even if I WEREN'T your Grandma!

Happy 10th Birthday, Mr. K....from a tiny 3# to a grown up 10 year old,

you've been a blessing we're so very thankful for! 

(and it was so worth seeing you so embarrased when all the waiters sang to you!)

K..I..C..K..S.....2nd Place!

A good cheerleader is not measured by the height of her jumps but by the span of her spirit.

Home safely from South Dakota, with her cheer face intact...

way to go Miss K and friends for a job well done!

About life...

While we try to teach our children all about life,

Our children teach us what life is all about.

Angela Schwindt

Life on this crazy winter day was all about climbing huge snow mountains, throwing snowballs at your brother, sliding down steep hills on a plastic sled, shoving your brothers face in the snow, plugging quarters in the games at Red Robin  and sipping hot chocolate with no whipped cream.  Somewhere in the middle of all that fun, we remembered how good being young felt.  (We sure do wish there were cartilage left in these old knees to make it down the hill on our stomachs on a sled, boys....it looked like such fun!  Thanks for the many, many laughs on this cold, gray winter day!)

Gus...again!

Most dogs don't think they're human; they know they are!

Jane Swan

Anyone who has met Gus KNOWS he's human...or at least smarter than most of them!  He's one small Sheltie tha loves greenies, rolling in snow, chasing cats, singing with the kids, sleeping in the sun....and capturing the hearts of all that meet him...

our little "discount dog"....

Gus!

(sitting in the front seat of the Honda, waiting for a car ride!)

Groundhogs...and prophets...

The groundhog is like most other prophets;

it delivers its prediction and then disappears!

Bill Vaughn

Punxsutawney Phil has crawled back in his hole and pulled his covers up to his chin...and the snow has returned.  I think we should collect money to have the furry little critter "exholed" and tortured...but am reminded by my husband that he's at least as accurate as our own local weatherman...and much less irritating to watch!  I think it's a real good thing Phil doesn't live close...I have four little boys that are learning to use a Red Ryder...and they need a target! 

History...

 Remember your history. To forget is to not belong

Charlotte A. Black Elk

Tucked in tiny sections on a wall in our home is our past, our present and our future.

Each little section has a story to be told, a bit of history to preserve.

  May I live long enough to write them all down!

Blue...

Blue is a color you can feel....

mix it with sunshine, and it feels fantastic!

A fine red thread...

An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place, or circumstances. The thread may stretch or tangle, but never break.

Ancient Chinese Proverb

When in doubt...wear red.  Red shouts.  Red is a blazing sunset.  Red is brave. 

Red is a Valentine heart.  Red is a fire truck.  Red is a rose.

Red reaches its thin strong arms to touch the warmth of the sun....

Red grows proud in our front yard...and connects us....always.