Thoughts while Traveling

A Flummadiddle is a New England casserole. I learned this over the weekend...along with many other things. I particularly enjoy that word. Flummadiddle. Say it a few times and it is bound to bring a smile (at least a smirk) to your face.

You just never know with our family on holidays. We came to several conclusions collectively over a lovely Thanksgiving dinner, after of course....giving thanks. I will recap one the highlights: God is a chicken with very large wings and he is merely an interested spectator of football, sitting on the edge of his seet waiting to see who prevails in the end (perhaps flapping away in excitement all the while.)

The weekend was too short and altogether pleasant. Booth has gotten fatter, and he is learning to play the guitar. I am amazed at not only his great ear, but his ability to succeed in learning something when he decides he really wants to. Booth has the ability to touch the deepest part of my heart, one that sometimes I admit seems unreachable. I love you, my brother...my kindred spirit. You give me hope when I can't find it. I know I am supposed to be "older and wiser"(not so much) , but you have wisdom beyond your years and you remind me how to approach my journey, with all the bumps and twists in the road. You probably have no idea of that. It's very true. On a side note, him and Justin are rediculous. They really should go into the country music industry.


I am thankful. For many things. Life is so fragile, and we can learn more from our grandparents that many of us neglect to find. I wish I had learned this when I was a kid. Waiting until they are almost gone to really "see" them is sobering, challenging, and convicting. Justin and I are both 25 years old, and we are blessed enough to have all EIGHT of our grandparents still around. That's pretty crazy if you think about it. It's also a little sad, knowing that we will have eight funerals to attend as adults....fully aware of of what's happening. That is, if we don't go first. You never know in this lifetime. Life is fragile and it's where your heart is that matters.

I still hate hospitals and get very sick to my stomach when in one, smelling the all too familiar disinfectant smell ... and yet they are a part of life, and I know I will have to keep darkening the door of them. Hope I can do it with a more pleasant look on my face next time. And I hope I can have more opportunities to see my grandparents and know them more. I really do.

Well, the lessons are learned and the first holiday of the season is over. Now I must get some work done and get my last good night's sleep before the downhill sprint ahead of me. Oh, December 22 cannot come fast enough. A small vacation, which I have already given my mother-in-law a heads up that I will need at least a day of total hibernation. She's cool like that. When I think of all that has to get done (and done WELL) in the next 3 weeks my head begins to spin...yet I know where to look for strength. And so I cry out for help, buckle my seat belt, and brace myself for the ride.



us "thinking." This picture makes me laugh.