Monday, June 28, 2010

Summer Days

I thought I would take a minute to update on our summer. I have noticed that even though I thought it would be pretty slow, I was so wrong. The past several weeks have flown by and I can't believe that it is almost the Fourth of July.

We have been spending a lot of time outside. Lillie has decided that when we are outside, I need to be making clover jewelry. Here she is modeling a necklace, ring, and bracelet. :)
The girls have been in the sprinkler and slip-n-slide so many times I probably could count. They even make their own water slide. We have been swimming at my parents house and at my nephews bday.

Gracie has found a nightgown that used to be mine when I was her age. I sent her to her bedroom to get her pj's on and she came running out a few minutes later giggling up a storm. She yells "purprise" (that is surprised in Gracie talk) as she comes in the living room. I just laughed and asked what she was wearing, to which she replied, "Isn't it funny? I just thought I'd wear this to be funny." She has worn it several times since and each time she laughs. I guess she wasn't too thrilled about my style at that age. :)

Lillie had a performance on Saturday at a park outreach held by several churches. It was soo hot, but the girls did great!

Lillie and Gracie went to VBS at my parent's church last week. The last day as we were leaving, I caught a lightening bug and you wouldn't believe who held it..............Lillie. That is right, my little bug hater, she wanted to and didn't even freak out when it started crawling. That is a pretty big thing for her.

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Time

My mom sent me this email:

In the faint light of the attic, an old man, tall and stooped, bent his great frame and made his way to a stack of boxes that sat near one of the little half-windows. Brushing aside a wisp of cobwebs, he tilted the top box toward the light and began to carefully lift out one old photograph album after another. Eyes once bright but now dim searched longingly for the source that had drawn him here.

It began with the fond recollection of the love of his life, long gone, and somewhere in these albums was a photo of her he hoped to re-discover. Silent as a mouse, he patiently opened the long buried treasures and soon was lost in a sea of memories. Although his world had not stopped spinning when his wife left it, the past was more alive in his heart than his present aloneness.

Setting aside one of the dusty albums, he pulled from the box what appeared to be a journal from his grown son's childhood. He could not recall ever having seen it before, or that his son had ever kept a journal. Why did Elizabeth always save the children's old junk? he wondered, shaking his white head.

Opening the yellowed pages, he glanced over a short reading, and his lips curved in an unconscious smile. Even his eyes brightened as he read the words that spoke clear and sweet to his soul. It was the voice of the little boy who had grown up far too fast in this very house, and whose voice had grown fainter and fainter over the years. In the utter silence of the attic, the words of a guileless six-year-old worked their magic and carried the old man back to a time almost totally forgotten.

Entry after entry stirred a sentimental hunger in his heart like the longing a gardener feels in the winter for the fragrance of spring flowers. But it was accompanied by the painful memory that his son's simple recollections of those days were far different from his own. But how different?

Reminded that he had kept a daily journal of his business activities over the years, he closed his son's journal and turned to leave, having forgotten the cherished photo that originally triggered his search. Hunched over to keep from bumping his head on the rafters, the old man stepped to the wooden stairway and made his descent, then headed down a carpeted stairway that led to the den.

Opening a glass cabinet door, he reached in and pulled out an old business journal. Turning, he sat down at his desk and placed the two journals beside each other. His was leather-bound and engraved neatly with his name in gold, while his son's was tattered and the name Jimmy had been nearly scuffed from its surface. He ran a long skinny finger over the letters, as though he could restore what had been worn away with time and use.

As he opened his journal, the old man's eyes fell upon an inscription that stood out because it was so brief in comparison to other days. In his own neat handwriting were these words:

Wasted the whole day fishing with Jimmy. Didn't catch a thing.

With a deep sigh and a shaking hand, he took Jimmy's journal and found the boy's entry for the same day, June 4. Large scrawling letters, pressed deeply into the paper, read:

Went fishing with my Dad. Best day of my life.

Which perspective is yours today?

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Softly Sleeping

Setting the stage: I am in the car with Lillie and Gracie and Gracie is asleep. I look in the rearview mirror and see Lillie reaching over and touching her sisters arm.

Mom: Lillie, don't bother her. It is okay that she is asleep

Lillie: But Mom., I have to.

Mom: Leave her be, she will be cranky if you wake her up.

Lillie: I have to, I just can't help myself.

Mom: Please keep your hands to yourself.

Lillie: But Mom, she is so soft when she sleeps. I just have to touch her.

Mom: (smiling) She is isn't she.

Thursday, June 3, 2010

How to use Swagbucks

Swagbucks is an online portal dedicated to helping you earn digital dollars called "Swag Bucks", which can be redeemed for exclusive Swagbucks.com merchandise.

It is very simple to use and you are able to rack up points quickly. I make it the first page (homepage) I see when I log in and use it to go to my email, facebook, yahoo, and blog accounts. I also use it to search for other sites that I am looking for. You can also download the toolbar to make searching even easier (I receive 1-3 points first thing in the morning just because I have the toolbar)!

Besides searching, you can earn points by answering the daily poles, viewing special offers, or entering special codes given out periodically thru facebook, twitter or on their blog. Get as many people to sign up under you as you can, because as they are rewarded, you will receive matching swagbucks. A good way to get referrals is to connect your swagbucks to facebook.

The best reward, in my opinion, is the Amazon.com giftcard (450 points). I have been a member for about 1 year and have earned around $100 in amazon.com gift cards. It is easy money!