She ought to be in pictures

Oh wait.

She is.

Lots of them in fact.

Lots and lots and lots of pictures.

I'm sorry, but a birthday happens only once a year and besides...

they tell her story.

If you need more words you can read the post I wrote about her last year.

In the meantime...

Happy Birthday to my baby.

My baby who is sweet

and sassy,

a blonde headed

blue eyed beauty.

Confident

and funny,

a natural born actress

who loves her books

her music

and being in the kitchen.

She was born fearless

and is still not afraid to try something new.

She's a sister's best friend

and a Daddy's little girl.

My mini me

She can exasperate

and fill my heart to the point of overflowing.

She is independent

determined

and full of courage and self-discipline in a way I only wish I could be.

She has traveled the globe,

seen lands far and wide,

and knows that home is anywhere your people are.

She loves her friends,

fun shoes,

animals,

life.

Today she leaves the teen years behind and celebrates her 20th birthday.

Happy Birthday Daughter2!

You, my sweet girl, have made my life fuller, scarier, richer...

you who feels so deeply

and who loves so completely.

Whose smile lights up the darkest days,

whose zest for life has given me more than a few gray hairs,

and whose love has filled every nook and cranny of my soul.

"Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart's desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust Him and He will help you."

Psalm 37:4-5

Calling All Readers

My daughter has a link up on her blog today and I thought I'd play along. We're supposed to come up with a list of our top ten texts...books we want to have in our own libraries and keep forever...books we never get tired of reading. No pressure though. Ha.

I have picked ten. However these are not my only ten. They are just ten that I know I would want in my personal library. And, yes, my daughter and I have some of the same books and I'm sure if my mom and sisters and my daughter2 all made lists we'd probably have some of the same too. Reading is a family affair in our house. I'd love to see your list...click here to link it to Daughter1's blog and see what others have said.

1. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

2. Charlotte's Web by E.B. White

3. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

4. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

5. The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough

6. The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

7. The Shell Seekers by Rosamunde Pilcher

8. The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy

9. Crow Boy by Taro Yashima

10. The Mitford Series by Jan Karon

Happy Reading!

Laboring Over the Random

Let's see...how many times can I use the word labor in a blog post title? At least one more it seems. The random dozen has rolled around again and wow, that was fast! When holidays fall on a Monday I usually spend the whole week thinking its a day earlier than it actually is. Fun questions this week though, so why not play along? Answer the questions on your own blog or in the comments here or on your fb page and link up by clicking on the donuts. Here are mine this week-

1. Describe the best sandwich in the world, according to you.

Philly cheese steak. And this is not just according to me because millions (yes, I'm sure its millions) of people would agree with me. Oh, and it must be made in the Philadelphia or surrounding area. I've had them other places and they just aren't the same. Ultra thin slices of steak with melted cheese and grilled onions on a hard hoagie roll. The roll is very, very important and where a good cheese steak often goes wrong outside the Philadelphia area.

Photo credit...Big John's

2. Which inspires you more: a good conversation, a song, a book or a movie?

I can find inspiration in conversations, songs and books. Off the top of my head I cannot think of any movies that were truly inspiring but there may be something out there. The Blindside?

I'm just getting ready to start Radical by David Platt...pretty sure it's going to be inspiring.

3. What is your favorite board game?

Surprise-I don't have ONE favorite. I like board games...a few favorites are Scattegories, Backgammon, Mexican Train Dominoes and Scrabble.

4. As you grow older, are you more or less patient with small children?

I think I'm still really patient with young children but I guess we all become less patient as we get older. I'm probably not as patient with them as I was 20 years ago but I'm not impatient either.

5. Name one item you never let yourself run out of.

Twizzlers. There's no wrong answers, right?

6. Do you agree with Tennyson's assertion "Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all?"

Absolutely!

7. Name one National Treasure or landmark that you have visited.

Wow, this is hard because I think we've already established here and in previous randoms that a. I don't do 'just one' very well and 2. I travel a lot. I looked up the definition of National Treasure to see if this would apply only to things I've seen in the US but wiki defines it as -

"a person, place, or object that is deemed to be of value to an entire nation, usually due to its cultural significance."

If that's the case, how much time do you have? I could list hundreds just from my treks around England.

I think for today I'll pick one of my favorite US treasures...Arlington National Cemetery. I've seen treasures the world over but few places move me more than sitting on a grassy hillside in Arlington. I've written about it before and you can read that here.

8. Which is more painful, to be disappointed in someone else or to be disappointed in yourself?

Myself. It happens more often than I'd care to say.

9. What makes your kitchen uniquely yours?

Hmmm...I'm not sure how to answer this one. Maybe its my recipe book with favorite family and friend recipes copied by hand and filed there. Maybe my collection of English and Italian pottery. Or it could be the digital photo frame that sits on the desk in my kitchen and circulates pictures of our family. It is uniquely ours and no one else would have something exactly like it.

10. Are you a crafty person?

in a word, no.

11. What is your favorite or traditional picnic or bbq (cookout) food?

Just one?

Really?

Roasted corn on the cob.

12. Name one leisurely activity you enjoyed over the Labor Day weekend.

Again with the 'just one'. Sigh.

I wrote a whole post on our Labor Day weekend here, however, if I must pick 'just one activity' I'll say a walk with my hubs and our pup in Central Park.

Labor Day without the Labor

What a fabulous weekend!

The weathermen could not have been more wrong and we have had the most gorgeous weather I can remember in a long time.

Crystal clear blue skies with a light breeze and nothing but sunshine.

We spent as much time outdoors as we could manage which was actually quite a lot.

And okay, there was a little bit of labor but it came in the form of yard work which isn't like the normal 9-5 7-7 kind of day my hubs usually works.

Sunday afternoon we decided to take a picnic into Central Park.

We took the pup too because she has been to Central Park before and remembers it as a great place to chase birds and squirrels.

She wears a gentle lead when we walk in the park because it keeps her from pulling your arm out of the socket when she spies a squirrel/bird/sandwich wrapper/trash bag...I think you get the idea...

Walking around the park with Dixie is like walking with a celebrity.

Seriously.

No less than three people had their picture taken with her.

That's my hubs with his arm around a woman he met about ten minutes prior.

The woman and her husband saw Dixie attempt to go for a swim in the fountain and she came over and asked if she could have a picture.

They are from Serbia and the husband has been in the US for about 10 years but she's only been here a few months and speaks very little English.

I think I've mentioned here before that people meet my hubs and proceed to tell him their life story.

Even people who need a translator to help with the telling.

We spent some time hanging out near the Boat House which if you saw 27 Dresses you might recognize as the wedding locale.

This is the spot people come to sail their model boats which is really fun to watch and its also the place you can rent rowboats.

When you see that happening on television they always just walk right up and hop in a boat.

Yeah, that's not quite how it happens in real life.

The queue must have been a day long.

We walked for miles enjoying the spectacular weather and scenery and of course all the people watching.

Because, seriously, is there any place better for people watching than NYC?

I rest my case.

Today was a repeat of yesterday in regards to the weather so we hung out at the Lake in our little town and watched our local water ski team perform.

They range in age from 3 (yes you read that right) to adult and they're good.

There was a little ballet...

and some pyramids...

some jumps...

there were a few adrenaline junkies who did flips and skiied barefoot...

there was some water ski envy...

So wishing he was out there too.

He loves to ski and he's really good at it.

Plus he may have just a little bit of that adrenaline thing happening.

Case in point, he has a chunk missing from the bottom of his water ski where he may have come a little too close to a sailboat one time.

I don't think I'll mention the night skiing or some of the other craziness for which I'm sure he'll thank me.

Anyone else ever get the Sunday night blues?

On a Monday night?

The weather has taken a turn for the cooler, schools will be back in session tomorrow and it seems summer is officially coming to an end.

I think this evening we'll grill the last of the summer corn and slice some of the remaining sweet tomatoes. We'll soak up the last rays of weekend sun and will do our best to make it last just a little bit longer...

"Summer afternoon-summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language." Henry James

Labor Day Link Love

Do you have any fun plans for the Labor Day weekend? We hope to remove a layer of dust from the house but that's about as far as we've gotten. We're on the East Coast (if you count up on a mountaintop 45 miles inland as the coast) so we may see some rain which means there will probably be a nap squeezed into our weekend plans too. Don't rainy days and naps go together? Pretty sure its the law.

I have some miscellaneous stuff I want to share before the weekend kicks off so here you go...and don't you like how I used miscellaneous as opposed to random? I'm shaking things up today....

1. Need a new blog header and button? Need a banner for your Etsy shop? Business cards or logo design? You're in luck...daughter1 opened her online graphic design 'shop' and would love to create something special for you. Click here to see samples and to access her shop and order form. What are mothers for if not to promote and encourage and advertise their children's creative endeavors, right?

2. It is always amazing to me to think about people living in this world without something so basic as access to clean water. Most of us just go to the tap and mindlessly turn on our faucets. Or take a shower anytime we feel like it. Or water our lawns and wash our cars or make a cup of tea without giving it too much thought. Did you know that $20 will provide clean water for one person for 20 years? Think about that for a minute.

One of my favorite bloggers, Billy Coffey, is part of a 30 bloggers/30 days campaign which essentially means 30 bloggers are trying to raise $30,000 in 30 days for water projects in the Central African Republic. The $30,000 they hope to raise will provide clean water for 300 families in six communities with 100% of the monies donated going to the actual water project. All overhead has been paid by private funding elsewhere. Hop over here and read what you can do to help. In this instance, a little does a lot.

3. On a lighter note...we went to our first football game of the season last night and saw the NY Giants beat the New England Patriots in the last minute and a half of the game. We sat in the corporate box which, as I've said before, is my preferred viewing method particularly when the temperature outside is 90+ degrees with 99% humidity at 10 PM. Access to air conditioning is a beautiful thing. If you love football...high school, college, or professional... and you haven't seen Kenny Chesney's new video you must watch...it will make you smile.

(it takes a few seconds for the video to appear)

Have a great long weekend! Go Vols!

Some days I should not operate heavy machinery

Yesterday was hubs birthday but we really had his birthday dinner on Monday night because daughter1 was home. And he cooked it but that's okay because he loves to grill. And I didn't bake him anything because we didn't want to have a whole cake sitting around calling our name after the fact. Wow, I made his day special didn't I?

Daughter1 and I went to a local bakery and chose three cupcakes. Okay, four. In our defense we couldn't make up our minds so we ended up with one lemon mousse filled lemon cupcake, one red velvet with cream cheese icing, one chocolate with raspberry mousse icing, and one chocolate mocha fudge with peanut butter filling.

You understand why we couldn't choose, right?

On his actual birthday he wanted dinner at home because, have you noticed we are out a lot? I had been planning to make his absolute favorite dish in the whole wide world which is my mom's enchilada recipe. I make it only once in a blue moon because it literally takes
all day hours.

The first step is making a homemade sauce which went beautifully and I was feeling pretty proud of myself. I was so organized too...I arranged an assembly line process to put them together which involves frying the tortilla, draining it on a paper towel, dipping it in the sauce, laying it in the pan, adding the filling and rolling it up. I fried the first tortilla and thought, hmmm, something is not quite right but what? It's been well over a year since I have prepared this dish but I knew I'd made an error somewhere along the way. I continued frying and dipping and stuffing and rolling and it wasn't until the 4th enchilada was rolled up and tucked snugly in the pan that it dawned on me- I was using flour tortillas. These absolutely positively must be made with corn. Oh how annoying. When I do stuff like this I think, what in the world has happened to my brain??? And then I remember. Mid-life. Ugh. Ten years ago I would not have mistakenly bought flour. And five years ago I would have realized after making enchilada numero uno that I'd goofed. Sometimes I think women my age need a warning like you find on the side of a medicine bottle tattooed across our forehead.

Back to the store I went. I grabbed the one and only package of corn tortillas they had and started over. With slightly less enthusiasm.

On the bright side, hubs was surprised and oh so happy to walk in the house and see homemade guacamole and smell his favorite food. And I didn't even ask him to clean the stove top even though that has kind of become 'his' job around here. I mean, it was his birthday and I'm all about making it special.

Random with a side of birthday

It's Wednesday which means its once again time for the weekly random dozen hosted by Linda. It's also time for someone in my house to turn one year older and Linda conveniently worked that into her questions for me this week. Feel free to join in the fun and link your own answers to the questions by clicking on the donuts...

1. What insect are you most afraid of? Feel free to post a picture.

Well, to be honest, I'm not a fan of any insect but I particularly dislike spiders and most especially the kind that crunch when you squash them. Or when you yell and your hubs comes running and squashes them for you.

2. What is the greenest/most organic thing about you or that you do?

I guess recycling, which really is such a habit now I don't even think about it. I was thinking recently about the fact that my kids have grown up never throwing cans or bottles in a regular trash bin.

I do buy local produce and I also buy seasonal produce but that's easy because its fabulous. I read Barbara Kingsolver's book, Animal Vegetable Mineral, a couple of years ago and it did get me thinking about where my food comes from and it made me want to buy local when possible. We have a lot of farms and orchards in our neck of the woods so that's not especially difficult.

3. Tell me about a recurring dream that haunts you.

Huh? Might be time to cut back on the Starbucks Linda : )

4. Have you ever missed a flight? What were the circumstances?

I have never actually missed a flight because I am one of those people who like to get to the airport with plenty of time to spare. I fly a lot but I avoid connections whenever possible because I dislike all that up and down business.

We were bumped off of our return flight from Dubai to London because BA had oversold our flight by 30 seats. Seriously? Did they really think 30 people wouldn't show? Every single person booked, showed, and we were bumped. They ended up putting us on an Emirates flight where my daughter thought for about 5 minutes she'd like to be a flight attendant so she could wear the super cute hat that is part of their uniform. Then she remembered that she doesn't like all that up and down business either so nah. I recently wrote a long and picture laden post here about our trip to Dubai...I'm sure that intro makes you want to click right over and read doesn't it?

5. What do you consider your best feature?

My eyes.

6. What was the last concert you went to?

Brooks and Dunn -The Last Rodeo..it was on a weekend trip to Chicago and I wrote about it here. They were fab. In June we saw The Eagles, Keith Urban and The Dixie Chicks all together and they were also fab. Coincidentally I wrote about that one too and you can read it here.

7. Describe the most embarrassing church moment you ever experienced.

nada, I got nothin'.

8. Are you a whistler, hummer, or singer?

Much to my family's dismay, I'm a singer. Just typing that seems wrong.

How about this...I'm a person who loves to sing. Much better.

9. George Washington Carver said, "I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we only tune in." What is God saying to you through nature today or this very minute?

I look out my window every morning and see woods that change with the seasons, a beautiful sunrise, the mountains,

and so much wildlife...

It's a visual reminder that God is in control of the universe...that if He can number the stars and paint the sky with a million shades of pink...

He is able.

'...I tell you, do not worry about your life, ....look at the birds of the air;...are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life..." from Matthew 6

10. On September 1, 1752 the Liberty Bell arrived in Philadelphia. What memorable event will take place in your life on September 1, 2010?

I'm so happy to see this question because today, September 1, 2010, is my hubs birthday. I wrote a post about him on his birthday last year which you can read here. (I'm all about linking to my own blog today folks.)

I did post this video on his facebook page this morning because the song says it all...Happy Birthday Hubs!

11. Taco Bell or the Liberty Bell? (You must choose.)

The Liberty Bell of course. There is mucho Mexican food to be had but only one Liberty Bell. Plus I'm loyal to all things Philadelphia. I grew up just across the bridge from the city and have seen the bell many times. Did you know the Liberty Bell is inscribed with part of a verse from the book of Leviticus? "Proclaim liberty throughout all the land and to all the inhabitants thereof."

12. Do you believe men and women can have purely platonic friendships?

Hmmm...this is an interesting question. I like to think so. I have men I consider friends. My hubs has women friends. I think women can definitely have a platonic friendship with a man. I think some men can have platonic friendships with some women but I guess you'd need to ask a man what he's really thinking. I am not sure all men are capable of purely platonic friendships with women but I feel sure that some are.