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A Little Uke

This is just a little something I had to pass along to my musician friends out there. If you haven't heard of Jake Shimabukuro, maybe you should check him out. I keep thinking... just four strings! Amazing. You can watch him play here and here. There's also a nice interview of him here. Enjoy!

Sweetness

One Week Old

As some of you may remember, we had a dog named Maggie who was very old and tired. We adopted her from a local shelter after being told that she was about two years old and was just overweight. Unfortunately, Maggie turned out to be closer to twelve years old and very, very sick. If you would like to read more about her and see her picture, you can go to this previous post. We had to have Maggie put to sleep last summer and I had a very difficult time wanting to talk about it. That is partly why I didn't blog much last August.

Last summer, though, we decided that we wanted to get a Boston Terrier puppy "next spring". Will had a Boston Terrier when he was growing up and felt it would be a good breed for our family. I was leaning more towards a Cairn Terrier because I am rather smitten with terriers in general. The more I read, though, the more convinced I became that Will was right. I even started looking at Bostons as being cute in a funny sort of way.

In October, we found a breeder we liked and began to develop a relationship with her. The family is a Christian, homeschooling family with seven young children. Well, I am sure the thirteen-year-old, much like my own, might resent being called young, but you all know what I mean.

Ever since they contacted me to let me know that the puppies had been born, I have been just too excited for words. The puppies were born on January 5th and are adorable. Of course, all babies are adorable. God made them that way for a reason. We wanted a male puppy and the one that we most admire is being held for us. The family is going to keep an eye on how the puppies develop, though, as far as their dispositions. We would rather not have the alpha male of the litter, but we don't want a shrinking violet, either.

So this is my most exciting news. News to get me through the winter blues. I'll keep you updated.

Waiting For The Ferris Wheel

Photo Meme: High (Thursday Challenge)

Two Things

I found this meme over at Quiet Life and thought it sounded fun. I have been sitting on my "Seven Things" post for a while. This one seemed a bit more manageable for the likes of me. I used to have a page devoted to "One Hundred Things About Me". It was an ongoing project. I may just rebuild that page. Hopefully, it will satisfy any desire anyone may have to get to know me a little better. I admit that it can be fun reading some of these lists.

2 names you go by:
1. Firefly
2. Mom

2 parts of your heritage:
1. English
2. Scots-Irish

2 things that scare you:
1. Strange, large dogs running loose (Rottweilers, wolf-dog hybrids, etc.)
2. Strange, large cats running loose (lions, tigers, etc.)

2 of your everyday essentials:
1. Prayer
2. Tea

2 things you are wearing right now:
1. Long johns
2. Cardigan sweater

2 favorite bands or musical artists (at the moment):
1. Guster
2. Iron and Wine

2 favorite songs at the moment:
1. Backyard by Guster
2. Fever Dreams by Iron and Wine

2 truths:
1. God loves us.
2. Boiled okra tastes terrible. (Okay, this is just a personal opinion.)

2 of your favorite hobbies:
1. Photography
2. Reading

2 things you want really badly:
1. To please God
2. My children to walk in truth

2 places you want to go on vacation:
1. A comfortable cottage in the Scottish countryside
2. An old castle in the English countryside

2 things you want to do before you die:
1. Clean my house
2. Write something like a book

2 things you are thinking about now:
1. The piano teacher is coming at 8:30 A.M.
2. It is after midnight.

2 stores you shop at:
1. Hechts
2. Goodwill

2 people you would like to complete this meme:
1. Thicket Dweller
2. JavaMom

Tommy Can You Hear Me?

Aw, Pete, don't ruin it for me. The little bit of joy I got over the holidays came from my husband's kind gift of a new iPod. After placing it into its "force field of protection", uploading my CDs to it and slipping it into its own cute, little sock, I happily went about listening to my new Iron & Wine and Guster CDs. In my bed, I lie in the darkness and feel the music become one with the night. I have only want of the stars above me to complete my delirious, child-like happiness.

Then, one day recently, I read an article online entitled "Headphones deafen you, Who star tells iPod fans". What? This can't be true. Pete, tell me it ain't so. Well, being the curious type, I went to the source and read the actual diary entry on Pete's site. Obviously, the diary entry was more fluid than the news article and I felt like I could give Pete back a little credit for being an intelligent human being. I am still not convinced that I should throw my iPod and it's little earphones to the wind.

I am a married woman homeschooling two rapidly growing children. The thirty-six hour breaks I take from my iPod are not self-imposed. They are called running a home and staying connected to my family. I was out in the kitchen the other day and thought maybe I would listen to my iPod while cleaning up a bit. Once I got the dishwasher and the washing machine going, though, I found I couldn't really hear the music anymore. Being the sensible sort, I put my iPod away for quieter moments. This is why you may find me lying awake in my bed pretending there are stars above me and listening to old bluegrass hymns in the middle of the night. It is also why I have to pretend my husband isn't snoring rather loudly beside me.

There are a lot of things that come to mind while reading Pete's diary, but I think I would be stating the obvious. This one quote had me thinking, though.

I have unwittingly helped to invent and refine a type of music that makes its principal proponents deaf. It takes time, but it happens. This is, I suppose, no worse than being a sports person or dancer who knows they have a limited working span, and their body will suffer. The rewards are great - money, fame, adulation and a real sense of self-worth and achievement. But music is a calling for life. You can write it when you're deaf, but you can't hear it or perform it.

I could pick it apart, but I won't. I have only one thing to say. If anything in your life becomes more important than the one thing that can truly complete you, you are always at risk of losing everything you have. If, however, you have God in your life, you can lose everything and still have exactly what you need.

On a side note, what exactly is that dangling from Pete's ear in this photo? Tommy... Tommy... Tommy?

Finding Hope

Hope is definitely not the same thing as optimism. It is not the conviction that something will turn out well, but the certainty that something makes sense, no matter how it turns out. ~ Disturbing the Peace, by Vaclav Havel

I like this quote. I will never be an optimist, but I do have hope. And loving God makes sense no matter how it all turns out.

I have been a bit depressed lately. It is not unusual for this time of year, but it came a little early. I have been told that I think over things too much. What people don't understand is that I often find great pleasure in turning over all the little bits and pieces of life. Whether they are bitter or sweet. Some things are quite heavy, though. Turning them over takes much more effort than one would first expect. I sometimes grow weary from the effort.

That is often when you don't hear much from me on this blog. It is not that I have nothing to say, it is that I am so very tired. Putting things into words that are fitting is no easy thing. I will try harder, though. Sometimes that is how something beautiful is born.

Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart, All you who hope in the LORD.
Psalm 31:24