one wee little one~

"You can shed a tear that she is gone,

or you can smile because she has lived.

you can close your eyes and pray

that she will come back,

or you can open your eyes and see all she has left.

your heart can be empty because you can't see her,

or you can be full of the love you shared.

you can turn your back on tomorrow

and live yesterday,

or you can be happy for tomorrow

because of yesterday.

you can remember her only that she is gone,

or you can cherish her memory and let it live on.

you can cry and close your mind,

be empty and turn your back,

or you can do what she'd want,

smile, open your eyes, love and go on."

David Harkins

last night

as we were sitting together

one wee little looks out at the window

into the dark night

turns back to me and says

"mama...when we die we go up to the sky?"

some believe so

"oh"

{insert long pause}

"mama...we can die together"

no...hopefully not

"but when you die i want to die with you"

but you will still have your life you need to live

and a family to care for

children and a love who will need you

"but i will miss you"

and i will miss you to

even though you will not see me

i will always be there with you

and you know what

i am not going to die for a really long time

me and you...we are going to grow old together

"really...how old will you be"

i will be 120 and you will be 93

"promise"

sweetie i can't make that promise

but lets just hope it will be

"goodnight mama"

their minds constantly thinking

i too remember

thinking about death when i was little

not really for any specific reason

i think because

it just remained such a mystery



a six letter word~

our morning starts

 with time together

in a circle

we are quiet

we are calm

we are peaceful

three candles are lit

to signify each present

our singing bowl is heard

eyes are closed

all are still

a verse said in unity

moving stretching yoga begins

affirmations and a lesson hearned

cards are created using one word

to carry through their day

a book of virtues comes into play

a closing verse leaves our mouths

and the candles are blown out

this happens before any lessons start for the day

Please

by...Alicia Aspinwall

Webster's defines our manners

as our

"morals shown in conduct."

good people stick to good manners,"

as this story from

 a turn-of-the-century reader reminds us.

There was once a little word

named "Please,"

 that lived in a small boy's mouth.

 Pleases live in everybody's mouth,

 though people often forget they are there.

Now, all Pleases, to be kept strong and happy,
should be taken out of the mouth very often,
 so they can get air.

They are like little fish in a bowl, you know,

that come popping up to the top of the water to breathe.

The Please I am going to tell you about
 lived in the mouth of a boy named Dick;
but only once in a long while
 did it have a chance to get out.
For Dick, I am sorry to say, was a rude little boy;

he hardly ever remembered to say "Please."

"Give me some bread! I want some water!
Give me that book!" 
 that is the way he would ask for things.

His father and mother felt very bad about this.

And, as for the poor Please itself,
it would sit up on

the roof of the boy's mouth day after day,

hoping for a chance to get out.

 It was growing weaker and weaker every day.

This boy Dick had a brother, John.

Now, John was older than Dick 

 he was almost ten;
and he was just as polite as Dick was rude.

 So his Please had plenty of fresh air,
and was strong and happy.

One day at breakfast, Dick's Please felt
that he must have some fresh air,
even if he had to run away.

So out he ran out of Dick's mouth

and took a long breath.
 Then he crept across the table

 and jumped into John's mouth!

The Please-who-lived-there was very angry.

"Get out!" he cried. "You don't belong here!
This is my mouth!"

"I know it," replied Dick's Please.
"I live over there in that brother mouth.
But alas! I am not happy there.
I am never used.

 I never get a breath of fresh air!
I thought you might be willing
 to let me stay here for a day or so
until I felt stronger."

"Why, certainly," said the other Please, kindly.
 "I understand. Stay, of course;
and when my master uses me,
we will both go out together.
He is kind, and I am sure
he would not mind saying 'Please' twice.
Stay, as long as you like."

That noon, at dinner,

John wanted some butter;
 and this is what he said:

"Father, will you pass me the butter, please,please?"

"Certainly," said the father. "But why be so very polite?"

John did not answer.
He was turning to his mother, and said,

"Mother, will you give me a muffin, please,please?"

His mother laughed.

"You shall have the muffin, dear;

but why do you say 'please' twice?"

"I don't know," answered John.

 "The words seem just to jump out, somehow.

 Katie, please,please, some water!

"This time, John was almost frightened.

"Well, well," said his father,
 "there is no harm done.

 One can't be too 'pleasing' in this world."

All this time
 little Dick had been calling,
 "Give me an egg! I want some milk.
Give me a spoon!"
in the rude way he had.
But now he stopped
and listened to his brother.

He thought it would be fun
 to try to talk like John;

 so he began,

"Mother, will you give me a muffin, m-m-m-?"

He was trying to say "please";
but how could he?

 He never guessed
 that his own little Please

 was sitting in John's mouth.

So he tried again, and asked for the butter.

"Mother, will you pass me the butter, m-m-m-?"

That was all he could say.

So it went on all day,
and everyone wondered
what was the matter with those two boys.
When night came, they were both so tired,
and Dick was so cross,
that their mother sent them to bed very early.

But the next morning,
no sooner had they sat down to breakfast
 than Dick's Please ran home again.
He had had so much fresh air the day before
that now he was feeling quite strong and happy.
And the very next moment,
he had another airing; for Dick said,

"Father, will you cut my orange, please?"
 Why! the word slipped out as easily as could be!
 It sounded just as well as when John said it 
 John was saying only one "please" this morning.
 And from that time on,
little Dick was just as polite as his brother.

http://www.enotalone.com/parenting/5505.html

after reading this story to my littles

one wee littlest one says

"i'm gonna talk like brother"

and funny thing is

this went on all throughout the day

PLEASE...was getting plenty of fresh air

and I even received a few words below

"uh...mama...you forgot to say PLEASE"

if i had only known this story would be the key

a gentle reminder

~to remember & use such word~

i would have read it long ago

girls first dip into the snow~

at 11 months old

our girls got their first taste of

SNOW



we have said from the beginning

our wee little girls are a bit of sallys

they are not fans of the rain

and snow

mmm...not so much

did you ever know

...a.chicken.can.whine...

one wee little one thought

maybe if i feed it to them

they'll see it doesn't hurt

our dear sweet lani

to two steps in the cold

looked up at me

turned around

and tucked herself in back in her home

as the day went on

the more they were willing to carry on

two had a thought

maybe the higher up we go

the better off we may be

three more caught on

and said

 hey wait for me

and this here little one

pondered the thought

should i stay or should i go

before too long

there was a party on ones trampoline

six girls came home~

let me back track to a cold rainy day in may 2011

sunday was slowly coming to an end

yet one wee older one was searching away

seeking adds for chickens

keeping a long story short

i will cut to the chase

we hopped in our truck

and off we went

to bring home 6 wee little girls

was this a spur of the moment

oh my goodness

are we really doing this type of thing

it surely was

but that is kind of how my love and i work best

we have learned the more we think about something

the more difficult it becomes

the least we think

the smoother goes

kind of twisted...i know!

we had been wanting to raise chickens for a few years now

and well my dear friends 

6 lovely girls joined our family

the moment of truth came

when we arrived home

where were they going to stay

probably should have thought more about that before we brought them home

much work was needed to be done

 a make shift home went up for the night

and before long

lani...lila...forest...lilith...foxy and hamburger

were all snugged in for the night

really hard to take a good pic...with the lovely glow fo the red heat light...hehehe

mama...i'm gonna sit here a few more minutes

and sing them a lullaby

i don't want them to be scared

i don't think any of us slept well that night

we wondered and worried if all were alright

morning came and six little girls

were bright eyed and bushy tailed

we opened the hatch and out they came

ever so excited to explore their new home

meet little lani...no laughing at her...we know she is the runt of the family

forest 

WAS enjoying a free ranging moment

 till i came with camera in hand

lila...no not much bigger than lani...tell me tell me

what do you see

little miss foxy...who still...to this day

prefers to. be. alone.

hamburger...in all her glory...she has quite the wee little tail

always stading so tall and proud

and last but not the least

lilith... who really is ever so sweet

and so this day i shall end our story here

and share more of our

6 little girls adventure

 in the days to come

one wee older one~

one wee older one

has officially entered

into the land of blog!

quite excited for his journey ahead

http://imodifynerfs.blogspot.com/

may he travel far and wide

in this endless sea of treasures

painting love~

“Every artist dips his brush in his own soul,

 and paints his own nature into his pictures.”

Henry Ward Beecher

Jan. 21

yesterday

one wee littlest: mama can we paint

me: sure

just give me a moment

to gather everything

one wee littlest: o.k.

i gather our supplies and return to the table

one wee littlest: PINK

mama didn't we used to have black

member i used to paint with black

mama: yes, i remember

 and yes we have black

but today

we are going to paint with

pink red and white

one wee littlest: WHY

mama: for valentines day

one wee older: WHAT

 its valentines day already

i thought it was still january

mama: *laughing*

oh its still january

just thought we'd get an earlier start

 on making some cards

one wee littlest: WHY

I JUST WANTED TO PAINT

mama: paint away

paint whatever you want

one wee littlest: but i don't want pink

mama: then don't use pink

one wee little picks up a brush and starts to paint

one mama joins along

seconds go by and one mama hears

one wee littlest: OH NO

i forgot red and white make pink

gggrrr

mama: *giggling*

your right

its ok

 it can be a love card

one wee littlest: A LOVE CARD

I DON'T WANT TO MAKE

 A LOVE CARD

mama: why

you can give it to someone you love

one wee littlest: who are you making love for

mama: i don't know

i was just playing

maybe for a background for tags or cards

one wee littlest: but who are you sending love too

mama: you can send love to anyone

papa mama brother

anyone really

one wee littlest: oh so your making love for papa

mama: sure and maybe for others

one wee littlest: oh for your friends

your sending love to your friends right

mama: yes

yes i am

one wee littlest: YUCK

i don't wanna send love

one wee littlest pauses

then picks up his brush once more

and begins to paint again

mama: whatcha painting

one wee littlest: its a surprise card

mama: a surprise card for who

one wee littlest: a surprise for you

 but don't look

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

♥♥♥♥♥♥

♥♥♥

♥

p.s...

all your

 l♥ve

that was sent and graciously recieved

was felt and heard

from afar

my biopsy results came back yesterday

NORMAL

no cancer nor abnormal cells to be found

so onto the next step

waiting to hear back from my doc

I SEND FORTH

 MY L♥VE

TO EACH OF YOU

a constant blessings in my day to day



sugar plum faeries~

dec. 24

so much excitement
is rushing through our home

yesterday was as if our little had been visited by the sweetest of sugar plum faeires
and been injected with a pure sugar infusion

so much so

that there was nothing we could do

but watch him zoom about

as high on life as one could be

and just laugh

pic by~  John Aardema of Woodridge

Dancing in your head on Christmas Eve
while you excitedly await
the arrival of Father Christmas,
the Sugar Plum Fairy
is a favorite character for all sweet-tooths.
The Sugar Plum Fairy
 invites her guests to sit and be entertained by Kingdom of Sweets subjects representing international delicacies such as Chinese Tea, Arabian Coffee, and Spanish Chocolate.
Her crown is made of sugar
and her skirt is made from specially spun
 cotton candy only found in
 The Kingdom of Sweets.
by Jennie Joyce


may the sugar plum fairies come out to play
 and sprinkle you with only magical delights...
as a child
 i was always fascinated by the mere thought of sugar plum faeries
 and would wish and wish
to have them dance about
sharing their sweet yummy treats with me

Merry Eve

am i sane~

nov. 24

...am i sane...

i am starting to woner if i am sane

maybe just maybe

 because i am so far past already losing my sanity

insanity has been

 i think

and simply brought me back

full circle

to being sane

once more

can this make any sense at all

mind you all...i am joking

no need to worry

...i haven't gone off my rocker quite yet...

but if i may

let me paint my picture for you

SATURDAY

*remember it started snowing!

*around 3:00 am i heard a loud noise

i ran into the room

as i thought one may have fallen off the bed

*everyone sound asleep...in beds

*i look out the kitchen window...nothing to be seen

*i sit down and share with you all for the day

*get all ready to head up to the mountains

*husband leaves to auto part store

*husband returns home

*husbands comes inside to share such news

yes this is one of our cars

that became a victim of the most silliest of crimes

so innocent he was

just sitting outdoors

doors even unlocked

case someone felt the need to help themselves

yet these smart criminals

did not even stop to think

all they had to do was open the door

and reach in for the stereo

this i was not going to bother to share...

i was able to move past it

shaking my head

SUNDAY

*1:00 am one little rises

with a body that is roasting

on fire

103 temp

burning up was he

*our day was spent watching the snow

snuggled up as a family

quietly in our home

i think this was a silent way of preparing us for what was to come

MONDAY

*one little wakes still with a temp

*the roads lay frosty and glazed with sheets of ice

*one husband makes his way to work

*our truck realizes its on its last leg

*the wind kicks up

*the temp begins to drop

*the mail man comes with letters to give

*my grandfathers documents are all safely at hand

*yet as i start looking at these pieces

my heart begins to sink a bit

each piece has a different birth date

so i am keeping my faith that a birth certificate

 they still will provide

*one little so so sad he can not go out into the snow

*one older one sweetest that can be

goes outdoors to brave the colder weather

and make a friend for thee

*husband returns home to tell the truck kept dying  for he needs to buy an alternater

*7:30pm husband and wee little

fall asleep on the couch

*one older had been begging me all day

to get out in the snow and play with him

*two beautiful angels were made

*a mama and son spent some quality time together

now at this point you may be saying

well this isn't so bad

oh please do keep on reading my friends

for my adventure

is really going to turn

*we come inside and calls i've missed

*i call my sister to hear her say

she has lost power from the winds

 that came our way

adn could you please look up online

the signs and symptoms of a blood clot please

*long story short

doctor tells her its her choice to go in to the er

she could wait and see

 if her blood pressure gets higher

*now its 9:oopm

19 degrees outside

snowing

icy roads

winds 25 miles per hour

*she chooses to wait and see what happens

*one little wakes up crying

fever has hit 103 degrees once more

*care to one little

*and off to bed i finally go

TUESDAY

*5:30 am i start to wake my l♥ve

for i know he will need an early start

to make it into work

*one husband walks outside to start his truck

*one husband comes back into the garage

 to visit with me for a minute

*we together hear

OUR TRUCK START IDLING HIGH

WE HEAR OUR TRUCK POP INTO GEAR

down comes two coffee cups

out we run

to see right before our very eyes

OUR TRUCK IN REVERSE

DRIVING OUT OF OUR DRIVEWAY

BARELY MISSING A CAR DRIVING BY

 HEADING STRAIGHT INTO

OUR NEIGHBORS HOUSE

BY FATE

IT VEARS A LITTLE TO THE RIGHT

THE BACK TIRES HOP UP

ONTO THEIR  ROCKERY

AND TAKES DOWN THEIR FENCE

ONE TRUCK BECOMES STUCK

*one husband is able to get inside

and drive our wild naughty truck back home

*two people

husband and wife

just stare at eachother in disbelief

*they both just start laughing uncontrollably

THIS IS NO JOKE EITHER

OR STORY MADE UP

this is just a mere glimpse

 of

my reality

my life

*one husband gets calmed down,

cleaned up and heads off to work

*one little rises with hopes of a fever finally broke

*one sister calls

and says she needs to go in to the e.r

*so off i go gathering our things

and bundling my littles

*we hop in the car
 and i ask them to please be very quiet
as their mama really has not much experience
driving in the snow

and her tires are those

meant for racing not snow playing

* i pick up my sister

*give my l♥ve a call

to ask him to come get the boys on his way home

*one l♥ve comes by the hospital

*three boys safely return home

*one sister is discharged with flying stars

*one mama makes her way slowly back home

*8:00pm she calls her parents and reports all is well

and she makes the smarta** remark of what else could go on

*she says her goodnights to the men in her house

*she crawls into her nice warm soft bed

*one little comes in who needs a cuddle

*two have quietly dozed off to sleep

*"mama" she hears..."i'm gonna frow up"

before i can even think

i throw back our covers and hold up my little

all over my bed it goes

*two others hear me yell

*cleaned up we all get

and try once more to lay down quietly

and go to bed

* two more times through the night this did occur

*one little is finally sleeping as i type

*one husband has safely arrived at work

*and me i sit here hoping and wishing for nothing more

so as for this coming holiday

really i have no idea where we will be

do i feel bad

NO

just tired

i sit and am thankful

that though a car has been broken into

it is still here

though a truck mindlessly ran off

and destructed a fence

no one was hurt all can be fixed

one trip to the er

just reassured us all is alright

one little sick

well really it could be far worse

to the urgent care we will go

and i am sure

 in a day or so he will be on the mend

i sit and am thankful that we have a vehicles, we have family around us, littles we l♥ve,
for we could be without any of this
and what excitement would that be for one
so today and always
i am blessed and thankful for all that i have

~i wish you all a wonderful holiday ahead~

and to all who have joined my swap
please be a bit patient
 as i gather everyones info and match up partners...
there will be a little delay
but don't let that stop you from creating or gathering...
hopefully an email i will send by the end of this day