8busyfeet
chasing the dreamArchive for Uncategorized
She is gifted and talented for sure!
There is no doubt about it…
Anna Mae… When is your anniversary?
Me… on Wednesday.
Anna Mae… Is dad going to get you a gift?
Me… I don’t know… you will have to remind him I guess.
Anna Mae… Are you getting Dad a gift?
Me… Yes, I still have to do that… what should I get him?
Anna Mae… Get him a pair of silver earrings and when he says, “I don’t wear earrings” than you can just tell him you’ll keep them.
See what I mean… Gifted and Talented…
Life Lesson
I’ve learned that the people who are most suspicious of others are also those that have something to hide.
Said another way…
Those who are guilty tend to look for guilt in others.
The reverse is true as well:
Those who are kind hearted tend to look at others and find the kindness in them.
Here’s the point – If you want people to see the best in you – you best look for the best in them. If you want to be loved treat others with love. You can fill in respect, generosity, or whatever virtue you’d like.
None of this seems like rocket science of course, but the trick is that you have to actually look inside yourself and face up to the stuff that is uncomfortable and then realize that the motivation behind your poor behavor is obvious to everyone else around you and God himself. Embarassing as that might be, no one will mind if you get out of the glass house 
Was this little lecture from my soap box meant for you? I don’t know… do you have a guilty conscious…? Then, yes it just might have been…
Aunt Theresa what else do you know about vampires?
I have been reading the Twilight books this summer – a little late for the craze, but I really didn’t think I would enjoy a teen book about vampires. My girl friends were taking them on vacation and enjoying the romantic easy and addictive stories so after listening to them for a while I decided to indulge.
Don’t tell them, but I think they ruined all the romantic parts for me. After hearing them giggle about the meadow scene for a week there was no chance it wouldn’t be a letdown. However, I have gotten into the story lines, the history of vampires and werewolves, and the drama of Bella’s life.
Tim has been on vacation this week and as he left to run errands yesterday, he planted a total great aunt kiss on my cheek and mumbled something about how long he would be gone. I actually stopped him, and suggested that it would be nice if he would say good-bye, as if he really loved me. For example, something like, “I’ll be back so soon you won’t have time to miss me. Look after my heart – I’ve left it with you.” He looked nauseous and left laughing.
On the other hand my kids and my niece Ella have proven to be much more willing participants in a Twilight series book discussion. Unfortunately, none of them can read beyond a third grade level. Additionally, I am positive I would have “mother of the year” eternally taken away if I handed the PG- 13 book over to be consumed as a bed time story for elementary school crowd. Therefore, we have narrowed our discussion to interesting facts related to vampires, werewolves, and the people who love or run into them.
For example, my daughterAnna Mae’s new favorite joke starts by asking, “Why do vampires wait for a thunderstorm to play baseball?” Cole, on the other handis intrigued with the immortality and dietary information. He thinks it’s funny that vegetarian vampires only drink animal blood and even more impressive– if a vampire should move into the neighborhood and if he turns out to have werewolves as part of his genetic make-up, he might turn out to be taller than any of his friends.
However, I really had fun with Ella yesterday as she pushed me for more and more detailed information on where vampires hunt and if there might be a werewolf living in the woods behind her house. Her dad had just created a bike trail back there and as it turned out, she was already concerned about the habitation of the leprechauns and fairies that had had their homes unsettled. Now poor Ella has to add romantic vampires and protective werewolves to her list of threatened species.
After a good deal of discussion, I was unable to ease her mind so I suggested that she become a zoologist specializing in mythical creatures. I’m pretty sure that if I am not already in trouble with my sister I will be when Ella shows up for career day at school – and knowing Ella she won’t forget by then.
Amazing paragraph
“You cannot legislate the poor into freedom by legislating the wealthy out of freedom. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is the end of any nation. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it.”
~~~~~ Dr. Adrian Pierce Rogers, 1931-2005, Southern Baptist clergyman
The Little Tree
There is a fire-prairie crabapple tree right outside my window. Tim and I planted it last summer in the same place where a similar tree had stood. Unfortunately, the past tree was caught off guard by a rare northwest wind. We were sad, but I found a smaller tree on sale and tried not to think about it too much.
We took the new tree out of the only home it had known – a brown plastic garden store pot. We planted the tree and then sunk two thick metal sticks into the earth just to the northeast and to the southwest of the tree. We wrapped straps made from the same material used to make tires around the tree trunk and tied it to the sticks. Like a boy scout, this tree would be prepared.
The tree looked beautiful, proud, and sturdy for a week. Then, it began to miss it’s pot. It had a temper tantrum and threw all it’s leaves to the ground. It was alive, but stubborn. It sulked through the summer – naked and narrow – but well staked.
When autumn arrived and the other trees dropped their leaves the little tree outside my window stopped looking so out of place. I forgot the tree’s prior bad attitude and forgave it for misbehaving. As one of my charges, I kept an eye on the tree through the winter as it slept.
Now, spring’s arrival put an end to the long nap. Last week I saw six tiny yellow finches sitting on top of each of the highest branches. Playmates. The birds swayed in circles, like heavy ornaments atop the tree’s tiny arms. Since then the tree has begun to blush the beginning of pink buds. A patient parent I am happy to see the change. Distracted from the toy I took away, deciding to be happy in it’s new home.
Whatever.
Me: Anna Mae would you please set the table?
Anna: That’s not really my responsibility.
Me: Anna help Tru get the cars picked up so I can vacuum.
Anna: Whatever. I don’t want to do that.
Me: Let’s just stand in line for a minute so I can check out my book club book.
Anna: Come on Tru, let’s get a drink at the bubbler.
Me: What are you eating?
Anna: It was just some pretzels from my lunch bag. If you’re wondering who ate the candy it was Grace (who is napping)… I’m just throwing the wrappers away for her.
Me: Anna when you come in the door what are you supposed to do?
Anna: A bunch of slave stuff…
Me: No, Anna, try a bunch of we all have to live in this house together and I am tired of tripping over your jacket stuff…
Anna: Whatever.
Me: Tim your daughter is going to be the death of me.
Tim: I think it’s a phase – but you only have to live through it twice.
Me: Once – Grace can’t muster up being this sassy – Grace has never gotten to me the way Anna can.
Tim: So, are you making a connection here?
Me: What?
Tim: Not so easy dealing with someone a little too much like you?
Me: Whatever.
I imagined it would be sort of like this…
It’s the end of Easter break. The kids have not gone to bed on time in over a week and Anna Mae brought me a book that was too hard for her to read. It was an American Girl book about a girl named Kit who grew up during The Depression. I piled three of the kids into my bed and told them that if we read a chapter every day we would be done by the weekend. That way we could rent the movie and watch it after the soccer games next Saturday.
Truman listened to the first page of the book and began making car noises, “Veroooom, verooom, rrrrrrrk,” and then something that sounded like a crash. I suggested that if he wanted to he could just go to his own bed and play with his Leapster. I meant it as a threat, but he took off running. I was relieved because I didn’t feel like listening to any more noises.
Next to me Anna Mae lay on her back looking at the ceiling while I read. She wanted to be able to look over my shoulder to see if there were words she could read or in case there were any pictures. There was a small illustration of phlox and a joke about spots on phlox that she thought was funny.
I read some more as Cole flipped about at the foot of the bed. It upset me that he couldn’t sit still, I wondered if he was paying attention. I asked him what a typewriter was and he said it was like a computer that you put the paper right in – “no printer needed”. Then he added that he was trying to visualize the story while I read. I decided that I ought to not complain that he was not still because at least he was listening and I did not want to ruin a potentially great parenting moment.
Grace came in and tried to crawl into the bed. I let her slip between Anna Mae and I, but she too could not hold still. I read two more words and then I told her to go find daddy and ask him to read her a book. She crawled over me and headed down stairs. A couple minutes later I could hear Tim’s voice reading Good Night Moon to her. Cole got up to shut the door leaving Tim’s voice muffled enough that it did not distract us.
I finished the first chapter and closed the book. Anna Mae suggested that there had to be more. I showed her that the next page was a new chapter and she made me promise that we would really read again tomorrow. I promised and Cole agreed that it was not so bad for a “girl book.” He took his Magic Tree House book and his timer/bookmark and headed to his room. I asked Anna if she was going to read by herself and she yawned an answer as she rolled over and fell asleep on my pillow. I turned off the light and headed down to the basement in search of all the books I saved to read to my kids someday…
Of course I’m worried but…
Okay, so it’s my birthday, the snow if falling, and Grace is taking a nap – seems like a good time to ignore work and write for fun.
I found this really wonderful quote that is meaningful as I begin my “happy year” journey… “In my life’s chain of events nothing was accidental. Everything happened according to an inner need.” – Hannah Senesh
The first part of the statement accurately describes my own life experience. I sometimes think about God with a huge story board trying to figure out how he is going to get everyone to the people they have been sent to know and then to do the things he knows we will do. I am left with the feeling that he must have been in a creative mood when he mapped things out for me. Just knowing that it took multiple generations of friends, an adoption, and an out of state wedding to put Tim and I into the same place seems more like a scene from “When Harry Met Sally,” rather than anything that happens in real life.
As I watch the snow fall and enjoy the busy sound of birthday wishes arrive in my e-mail box and the occasional telephone call, I realize for the second time since Christmas that there are so many people who have intercepted my life journey- each for a reason – each a God given gift. I much prefer this reminder to last week when I watched Tim say good- bye to his Dad. However painful, I did come away from that day feeling blessed knowing that neither of us are at all alone in this world and truly enjoying the idea of how much Tim is loved.
However, today I am struck by the second part of the quote. The idea that things happen because of an inner need, leads me to ask –“just what do I need?” – Especially in terms of being happy.
I think that can be answered by realizing what I have lost in the past few years. The other night Tim asked me if I thought life would ever be as perfect as it was in early 2001 and instantly I knew why had chosen that time. We had just had Cole, my Dad had beat cancer, we both loved our jobs, and we just felt nothing but joy about where our lives were going.
Since that snapshot moment there have been lots of changes – some good, some not so good. But the thing that strikes me is that I have lost the intangible feeling of contentment – the ability to stop wishing away time until things are better, but instead loving the way things are right now.
Unfortunately, there is a laundry list of worries that cloud my mind these days making it hard to see the sunshine. I think that comes with the territory of being a mom, a daughter, a granddaughter, a niece, a cousin, a sister, a wife and a friend who tends to feel things as deeply as I do.
Honestly, if you are reading this, then most likely you are someone who I am worried about. Please feel special about that, but also know that while I still care very much, I am going to work on trusting that things today are exactly the way they are supposed to be, everything is going to be okay, I can acknowledge my “inner need” to be content, and that it’s alright to go ahead and feel happy. Well – that’s a little harder than it sounds – but I guess I am going to go ahead and work on it…
Happy Year!
It’s “happy year.” I determined it would be just after Thanksgiving and have spent the past few weeks getting myself focused on obtaining that goal. It’s sort of a vague goal, I know. Not able to be approved by the engineering fact minded self –help gurus who would want something that can be broken down into measurable tasks and objectives. However, it’s my goal and I am determined to do what is needed to put joy back into my life.
For the past three years I have been letting other people, events, and worries rob me of what has been an otherwise optimistic outlook on life. We are not going back to re-visit any of those things. I have lived them all for long enough and am now on the healing end of things – ready to take back what was mine.
Not that anyone would question why I want “happy” back into my life, but for my own sake I’ll mention that I want it back for me. You hear people say that if you don’t take care of yourself then you are no good to any one or any thing else. Well if you misplace your ability to be happy it’s even worse. I tried to take care of myself without being happy and trust me hair cuts, manicures, and whole wheat can’t mask the dark storm clouds that have been left to hang over my head. So I am first doing this for me and then for all the people who I love and who love me who I want to spoil and love in only the way that a truly happy person can.
But how do I make up my mind to “get happy?” The first two things I think I have to do are to take responsibility for how I feel and then to give myself permission to feel good about feeling good. That said, I am going to break it down into a few areas of concentration – including improving my physical health, taking control of my time, and accomplishing a few personal and financial goals that I have been wanting get to eventually.
I have not blogged in awhile. To paraphrase one of my favorite people I was just feeling to down and I figured if I had nothing good to say, I’d best not blog about it. So after a break, I am ready to report in on how happy year is going, what the kids are doing, and whatever else comes up along the way.
HAPPY New Year to everyone – I hope your year is as good as I am going make mine!
The Smelly Bridge
When I was a kid there was a bridge that we would go under on our way into the city that was really smelly. I had forgotten about that until tonight when while making dinner. I decided that with the turn in the weather I would make chili and that beer bread would be great with it. As I poured the beer into the dry ingredients there it was… the same smell that surrounded the smelly bridge. When I told the kids that the kitchen smelled like the bridge near Milwaukee they had no idea what I was talking about and, it’s true, I don’t think the bridge smells anymore.
Honestly, the aroma of beer and yeast and whatever it was that created that smell is not all that lovely. However, if you are feeling like talking a walk down memory lane – here is the recipe…
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon baking powder
14 ounces beer (or 12 ounces beer & 2 ounces water)
Optional glaze: 1 egg & 2 teaspoons water, beaten
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Combine flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Slowly stir in beer and mix just until combined. Batter will be thick. Spread in a greased 8-inch loaf pan. Brush with egg glaze if desired, and bake until golden brown and a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool 10 more minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
