Tomorrow

I had a really late meeting, and it is too late to blog, so I will post tomorrow (Wednesday!)

What Will You Do With Your Dash?

This week, two teachers in my district lost their husbands. The one gentleman was only 50 years old. The other gentleman was only 42. They died within days of each other. They were friends. Their wives were friends.

The entire district has been saddened by the lost of these two young people. It has made us all think about our lives, our families.

There is a poem called "The Dash" that I was shared with me, and I wanted to share with you.

The Dash

"I read of a man who stood to speak at the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on her tombstone from the beginning.......to the end.
He noted first came the date of her birth, and spoke of the following date with tears.
But what he said mattered the most of all was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all that time that she spent alive on earth
And now only those who loved her know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not how much we own,
The cars...the house...the cash,
What matters is how we live and love.....
And How we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard....
Are there things you would like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
that can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
to consider what is true and real.....
And always try and understand
the way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger and show appreciation more
and love the people in our lives
Like we never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect and more often wear a smile,
Remembering that this special dash may only last a little while.

So, when your eulogy is being read, with your life's actions to rehash,
Would you be proud of the things they would say.........
About how you spent your dash?

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I feel pretty good about how I am spending my dash so far. But I have a ton of room for improvement.

But for the most part, I am in love with my life. I look at my kids and my wonderful husband, and try and put into perspective how lucky I am. How grateful I am for my life.

I am proud of myself for fighting for Finley. For all of my kids. Making sure they have the best that I can offer them. And I don't mean material wise. I mean in love, and encouragment. And to make sure they know that I believe in them. That they are important. That they are perfect just the way they are. I want them to realize that I will always be their biggest (and loudest) advocate. That I don't take "no" very well.

I will never give up. I will always be a loud, head strong, willing participant in life. I will love everyone who is in my life with all of my heart. Friends, family, co-workers, students......everyone is worthy of my time.

I want to look back at my life, dust off my hands and say "what a ride". I want to look up to Heaven and say....."I have lived my best and I have no regrets".

That is where I want to be. That is how I want to be remembered.

So - what about you? Are you happy with who you are? Where your life has gone so far?
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A few of you asked for the answers of the flowers in the last post. So sad that there weren't any takers of the challenge!

So here are the answers!
1. Dahlia
2. Geranium (perennial variety)
3. Gaillardia (goblin) - blooms all summer - so pretty
4. Pomona Broom
5. Petunias
6. Coronation Gold Yarrow
7. Caradonna
8. Day lily
9. Japanese Maple
10. Lamb's Ear (ornamental)
11. Hydrangea (it will be a blue one!)
12. Yucca (interesting flower, huh?)
13. Mountain Laurel
14. Kent Belle (bellflower) - it blooms all summer - it is my favorite!
15. Petunias
16. Pansies



I hope you are all enjoying the weather, and having a nice weekend. Hug your loved ones. Tell them how much they mean to you and that you will always love them. No.Matter.What.

See you Tuesday.

A good year for flowers

At least so far it is. And I can only say that about my perennials. My annuals - well......they have seen better days. I am not sure what is wrong with them.

I took some pictures of the flowers in our yard. I didn't write their names down, but if you are interested and what to know - leave me a comment and I will tell you! Or even more fun - how about a guessing game??? Leave me a comment if you know what the flowers are!! The person with the most guesses will win a little prize from me. A REAL prize this time. Look out!!! The flower pictures will be at the bottom of this post.

But I LOVE summer. I love getting the yard in shape, and watching the flowers bloom. I love swinging on the porch. Picnics in the backyard. Roasting marshmallows in our fire pit.

Watching the kids play outside for hours on end without begging to watch TV.

I don't even mind the yard work. Mostly. I like making the yard and the trees and the flowers look nice.

We have also decided to excavate another part of our yard. Yes, we are gluten for mowing punishment. But we want a flat area in the front of our yard where the kids can play, ride their bikes, even play basketball at some point. I will take pictures when it is complete. We got a sweet deal from a local excavator, and so we are going forward. It should be done in a few weeks time.

Only 8 more days of school for me, and 9 for Arlington. Cannot WAIT to be done!! The kids are antsy, and really over school. We at least have our field day this coming Friday, so that is one day of pure fun and no work for them. Next week we have two half days at the end of the week, and then we are FREE until September 1st. I can't wait.

The kids are all fine. The little ones will also be out of school for the summer. Their last day will be June 25th, and then they will return when Arlington and I start again in the fall.

Okay - here are the plants. Good luck with your guesses!! Like I said - the person who guesses the most right wins a prize. I will give you a choice - either a $25 gift card from Amazon, or a $25 gift card to Lowe's. Leave your guesses in the comments section!!! Good luck and I will see you Saturday!

Okay - picture #1 is at the TOP of this post. What is it??? (hint - annual)

Picture #2: (perennial)


Picture #3 (perennial)

Picture #4 (perennial)

Picture #5 annual):

Picture #6 (perennial):

Picture #7 (perennial):

Picture #8 (perennial):

Picture #9 (tree):

Picture #10 (perennial):



Picture #11 (perennial - and the flower hasn't formed yet):


Picture #12 (perennial): Hint - this bush stays green all winter, but only gets flowers in the summer:



Picture #13 (tree):


Picture #14 (perennial):



Picture #15 (annual):


Picture #16 (annual):


Good luck! See you Saturday!

Making Meals Monday

MMM is going on hiatus for a few weeks. School is winding down and we are really busy. And with company and outside time, my meals are a little lighter these days. So once summer vacation officially starts, I will be back with some summer time yummies!!

See you tomorrow!

More birthday and a busy Saturday

We are trying to hit a record for the most things one kid has to do in one day. At least it felt that way.

But before we get to that, We have finally wrapped up Cainan's birthday celebration.

My parents and Mat's mom arrived Thursday night to help celebrate Cainan's birthday. It is nice to have company.

The kids are beyond excited to have their grandparents here for the weekend.

Friday we let Cainan open the rest of his presents. He received a large amount of really great loot.

Here are some pictures to prove it!.










After he opened his presents, we went out to a nice dinner at a restaurant we have never tried before.




The food was good, but the service was terrible. The waitress was more interested in flirting with a young waiter than waiting on our table. The word "wait" was in the sentence way too many time. Kind of interesting since that is all we did there......wait.

Today - we started our busy day by reading some books before we got started.


And Cainan showed off his new Iron Man costume.


After that, we went to Arlington's softball game. The team did pretty well, but it was really hot, so it wasn't their best game.

Immediately after the game, Arlington came home, changed clothes, and headed to her friend "O's" birthday party. It was a little all girl party this afternoon, and she had a blast.

THEN - after the party, she came home, changed AGAIN, and then we left for a ceremony for her enrichment program that she has been taking this past year.

She had made honor roll, and was getting an award, and we were really proud of her! She has worked really hard this year, and her hard work really paid off.

Here she is with her friend s"J" and "J". (ha!) "J" the boy also made the honor roll. "J" the girl was REALLY close and will probably make it next time.


We all went. We had to dress up. It wasn't a long ceremony, and the little ones were easily entertained with snacks and toys.



Arlington's teacher, Seema, is there on the left. She talked to at the end of last school year - was impressed with Arlington's abilities and asked her to join her program.


She got awards in both reading and math. She has worked really hard and it paid off!


She is going to take the summer off, but will probably continue the program next year.

She was so excited about her trophies and pin. That girl loves getting trophies.



We also bought her flowers. And her brother and sister wanted to get some trophy action.

She had her picture taken with Mat's mom. We were so glad that she was able to come this weekend.

And she had her picture taken with my parents before we headed off to dinner.

So a busy, yet fun weekend. My parents and Mat's mom go back home tomorrow. We are going to church and then spending the day in the yard. There are two whole weeks of school left, and then we are done for the summer! We can't wait!!!

Enjoy the warm weather!