thehereandafter

I have a little guy that shows up at my door. His has a huge personality packed into a very little body! He just turned three but is smart beyond his years. Confidence is not one of the traits he lacks and it is hard to be serious when you looks up at you from those big eyes...he brings us a lot of joy. A few weeks ago my little friend showed up at our door, opened the screen and walked right into the living room. He had a toy he wanted to show us and immediately started a conversation. Timid is he not! He crawled up on the couch, talking the whole time, trying to tell me his news but quite distracted by our bloodhound that was very excited we had company...Yes, it was a bit chaotic! Actually, our bloodhound is much bigger than this little fella and gets overly excited when he comes to visit. Once, I got the dog under control...well sort of...and sat down beside my friend I started to question him. You see, I had an idea that he was paying us a visit but his mama didn't know he h...

Over the last couple of weeks my daughter and I have been working on designing her wedding invitations. When you are making invitations, as in almost everything you do,  there are so many details that have to be considered. She had no idea! When we decided to start on the invitations she thought all she had to do was pick out what she wanted and MOM could make it.  Little did she know...(she knows now!)...that you have to consider paper size, paper weight, texture of paper, size of invitation and cost of mailing just to name a few of the considerations. Then there is the fonts, font size, and color of fonts...it is a project that demands attention to detail...but so well worth it when you see the finished project! In the details...how often last year did you pause to reflect on the millions of details that are and where taken care of in and around your life? We serve a God that is the master of details. He sees the sparrow that falls to the earth. He...

Well we are in the 3rd week of January! I almost have my Christmas decorations put away...still have a few pieces of garland and one or two boxes laying around that need to be put in the storage shed. It is on my list of "To Do" items! This Christmas season was packed with meaning for me...from Advent on through. My family has been through and is still going through a lot of changes. During my meditations during Advent I felt God's presence all around me. He graced us with a peace and joy that we have needed. There was an excitement about life, a hope focused on the birth of Christ that spilled over into my life...a hope of the life that is ahead. In a few weeks we will be blessed with our first grandchild...a brand new tiny life, a baby boy, a child not born in a stable but still such a gift to us. For my husband and I another new life that is a part of us. For my son and daughter a miracle that flows out of their love and commitment to each other. For our daughter a...

Two of my nieces have babies that are only a year old...JM was one just a week ago and Eden will be celebrating her first birthday in about 2 weeks. They are both just starting to develop sounds into words. Both of these little ones are saying mama and daddy but as each day passes more words will come tumbling out of their little mouths. For my nieces Christmas present I gave them each a little book so that they could document the treasures of speech that will be flowing from their toddlers lips. Each and every word will be like silver and gold to their mommies and daddies. I imagine both these mommies will be calling, texting, and waiting at the door for their husbands to share what precious nuggets have blessed their ears. I hope that in the years to come they can sit with their child and show him/her their little books and the wonderful words that were recorded. We each have a precious book that we can sit with and find nuggets of gold and silver. You know ...

Our Christmas morning was much the same as many of you. We gathered around our fresh cut tree that was covered with wonderful decorations of every kind and size, engulfed in tiny white twinkling lights. At the bottom of the tree were stacked gifts of every size wrapped in brightly colored papers and tied up with Christmas bows. Although we are now all adults, the air around us was thick with joy and anticipation as to what lay beneath all that festive paper. As we unwrapped our gifts I noticed the surprise, the joy, and the gratefulness that jumped out of every member of my family. And again, the same as all the years past, those famous family words..."Mama, this is the best Christmas EVER!" (see my blog posted August 19, 2005). As I stood in front of our nativity and laid baby Jesus in the manger I said a prayer for all. My prayer was that all would discover the Christmas gift that is given to all, feel the joy of this gift, and that they would grat...