Flowers

I have loved photography for such a long time and I like to pretend that I'm good at it! Let's pretend, shall we, that these pictures were taken with a $2,000 camera and taken by a trained professional. Do it for the flowers, will ya?

Oh, Murphy!

Ok, I'm not certain that it's broken but, the blood - oh the blood - something had to have caused all of that blood! Now, just because you're a medical person, don't start commenting on the reason behind all of the blood involved! I know that injuries to the nose and face cause a lot of bleeding but yikes!

And now...





(had to have a tough one!)

Of course...

Broken nose anyone? You, Kelly? "Nope, had one!" How about you, Briege? "I haven't had one but I had to have 14 stitches in my ear to re-attach the tip!" Keagan? "Well, I spent 6 hours in an ER only for a doctor to tell me that I touch myself a bit too much!!" That leaves you, Murphy! Why, yes! You play baseball and you frequently have relatively fast balls whizzing by your face! Yes, Murphy it is!!

I wonder if I can work this into my talk about renewal? Pictures...coming soon!

New Family Pictures

Briege - pitching for the very first time!

Briege - jumping in the rain (sorry for the blurry action shot but I thought it was cute anyway)

Murphy - again in the rain

Keagan - jumping (duh!)

Oh, to be a kid again!!

Images from Iran

“…hope is not simply a feeling. Hope says, “awake, O Sleeper, arise from death!” Hope is the builder of bridges, the tamer of winds, the harnesser of ideas and possibilities. A poor man with hope is immeasurably richer than a wealthy man without it, because he carries within him the spark that can alight a thousand tomorrows.”

So?

...And, oh yeah, I know! You know that I know, right? The blog is different! Again! But, the flip-flop page was waaaay too busy and the colors were really not suited to me. I tried to find a background of just a few flip-flops on a neutral color but I couldn't. So, I found this one that incorporates my love of red and my love of neutrals. I loathe cherries but I love the colors and that there are not a million cherries in a pastel background. Anyway, I just wanted you to know that I know that you know!

300 Lb. Gorilla

Well, I'm on the tail-end of a trip back in time. It served to remind me that I don't miss the hormones, the drama, the gossip, the everything! It all seems to begin and end with gossip and it leaves everyone in its wake reeling. Don't get me wrong, I am guilty of gossiping and each time I'm left with ache and regret! If not checked, gossip makes one bitter, angry, self-righteous, and lonely. In my opinion, and maybe God's too, gossip may be the worst sin out there! I can look at each Commandment and find gossip's ugliness at the head!

Perhaps the only silver lining in this is that I have made it clear to myself that I won't gossip anymore. I was tested seconds after coming to this decision and I passed the "test". It's particularly difficult not to gossip when the people involved in the gossip are people you like. I think it usually starts off pretty innocently and then it becomes this 300 lb. gorilla that is on his hairy way to consuming us all (how's that for drama?)

So, I am going to make every attempt to not only not gossip but to kindly redirect conversations away from gossip. If you're reading this, please help me in this and gently (gently, dang it!) remind me of my pledge of no gossip! Who's in?