The Post Office During the Holidays

(hello there. i found this post in the archives and although  there are many drafts in my archives that never make the light of day this one was too good to pass up. so now that i have fine tuned it for you without further ado, i give you the post office during the holidays)

The post office is an interesting place on any given day, but around the holidays it becomes a spectacle that any and all true people watchers can appreciate beyond words.

I am of course that said people watcher, who is now going to try and put into words the Post Office during the holidays.

Here's goes nothing...

When I set out a few Fridays ago (December 14th) to get my packages in the mail I thought if I chose a time that was during the middle of a work day( 2 o'clock in the afternoon) I might find the line not so long. The stress level not so high. The people, oh the people, not so crazy!

Ahem...

This was not the case.

The line was not only outside the room, the temple, the holy place, but it was almost outside the building!!

I waited patiently and was ever so grateful for my Iphone. 

I felt sad for others who didn't have an Iphone.

What a deprived world we live in that all of humanity doesn't already have an Iphone. Cough. Cough. Sorry, I mean....

I felt the urge to offer my Iphone up so that the man behind me could check his emails, but I didn't.

No, I started writing here to YOU on my blogspot app.

Do you feel guilty?

 Ya know what,sure, fine you can blame one angry citizen in Washington on me, and my lack of generosity with my Iphone, but  a thousand others on the Post Office.

Because, while standing in line I heard the murmur, the rumble, the complaints that started to work their way to my ears.

"There is no other business that could get away with such poor customer service"

"These postal workers are so rude."

"At least at the grocery stores they have a self check out"

And so on and so forth.

Truly, the conversations were as entertaining as the interactions that were going on up front.

Oh the stage that was set in those 4 open isles.

Yes, only 4.

One woman mailing upwards of 30 boxes all the same size, all marked FRAGILE.

"Fra - giley must be Italian"

My only guess was ornaments, but I dunno... what do you think?

Or 

The person who brought in two garbage bags FULL of boxes that were all going over seas, and all were miss marked. 

Umm... yah I said TWO bags FULL!!

The sweet old man wearing a plaid golfers hat(melt my heart)who had to fumble through his address book each time a box was being weighed and measured to double check that every last detail was correct.

Or the woman who couldn't get over the price it cost to ship something over a 1000+ miles away. Get over it LADY! Yes, we all know the post office has been raising their prices but um... you take that letter 1000+ miles by plane or by car and then report back here for the 6.50 you just paid for the priority mail that will be delivered TOMORROW!! 

Sorry.

I'm apparently highly defensive for the Post Office.

As I stood there I was reminded of two things, one was a song OF COURSE and the other was just a happy thought!!

1. I LOVE PEOPLE!! I do. Ya'll  are so great. So entertaining. And I'm sure as right is rain there was another people watcher, commentator in that line that was making note of my constant ... Tap a Tap a Tap a on my beloved phone, but no matter I love even YOU!! I love that we come in all shapes and sizes, all different colors, and different languages. I love accents, and cultures, and just PEOPLE!!

And the second thing I was reminded to sing was a song that has gotten me through many a pickle before...

B. A song one of my favorite songs, that I learned in grade school and have been teaching to preschool children for years, sing along if you know it....

"Have patience, Have patience don't be in such a hurry.

When you get impatient you only start to worry.

Remember, Remember that God is patient too, 

and 

Think of all the times when others had to wait for 

YOU!!"

(so here it is 4 days after christmas((wait it's after midnight so 5 days)) and i set foot in the post office again today, Saturday around 1 o'clock only to find that the madness hasn't ended. how much do we pay our postal workers? i think that they deserve a raise, and if i have anything to do with it i'm gonna see to it that they stay in business)

Merry Christmas To All

Merry Christmas To All and  To All A Goodnight!
Meet you back here in 2013!

Barley and Boo Scary

I have been saving this photo shoot with Barley for a funny post, but today I'm going to try and mix humor with serious and blend it all together, to see if I can come up with a point at the end.

Here is Barley ignoring me and the camera despite the fact that I am saying his name oh so sweetly. Oh Barley Bambino Boo... look over here sweet lil puppy PLEASE!!
This morning something really strange happened.  We were rudely awoken by Barley barking like a crazy, ferocious killer that he is NOT!! Then Emma who was already up came running into our room saying that someone very strange was coming to our door.
Mo got up and answered the door only to find a woman who was very clearly in a withdrawal stage of some addiction on the other side of our front door. She proceeded to say that she knew this was a strange request, but did we have any hard alcohol in our house and if we wouldn't mind sharing some with her?

Here is Barley still ignoring me, but now blatantly just being down right RUDE and sticking his tongue out at me!
Mo said we didn't, but decided to give her some money instead. Now, I'm not sure how I feel about it all frankly. Wait. Question...
Why do we say frankly when trying to be frank? I mean, poor Frank.  I have an Uncle Frank, and I wonder if he has ever wished that phrase was changed to use the name Sally? Why don't we ever say,  I'm not sure how I feel about it all sal-laley? Or, To be sally, I just don't like you!! Hmm... Sally Doesn't really work now does it?

Speaking of not WORKING ,Again Barley Bambino Boo not working with me here! Can you see this attitude? It's like he's saying, yeah, I know I'm cute and you want to capture my greatness but good luck with that.
Also,  I would like to point out that another friend has ruined the phrase, "I'm not sure how I feel about that." He said, I'm pretty sure you do know how you feel about that, you know EXACTLY how you feel. And ya know what he's right.
So to be Frank, or Sally, let me just tell you how I really feel about a stranger showing up on my front door asking for a drink just a few days before Christmas .... At first I felt alarmed, and if it weren't for Barley I think I would still be feeling a little scared. Then, I feel deeply saddened by the world we live in. Her addiction reminds me of one of my new favorite phrases that I heard Beth Moore say on her video, "There is NO high, like the MOST HIGH"  Beloved reader that is SO the TRUTH! And finally, I feel grateful. Grateful that My Giant decided to give instead of be cynical. Grateful that we are in a place to give something, anything of those that ask. Grateful that I, and many of my family members have been delivered by the Grace of God from addictions, And Grateful for this guy.

Sharing Vitamin Love on My Birthday

Good Morning Beloved Reader-
Today is my 38th Birthday and I am at home today because I have one sicky(my baby with a slight temp) and my oldest who is ditching school well... because "the school doesn't own her I do" that's what my mom used to always say when she just wanted to keep us home for some company. I learned from the best ;) My Giant is off to work on a typical Monday, and the other 2 of the Fab 4 are finishing up the last day of school before our winter break begins. 
Sigh... Life is unpredictable.
I am wearing some slippers that my friend Christeeny gave to me, drinking coffee, listening to Christmas music and now writing this here lil note.

 Later, I think I will probably watch one of my all time favorite movies You've Got Mail, eat some chocolate, check FB to read all your love notes, and I will continue to drink coffee with Peppermint creamer til my hearts content.   Sigh... Life is full of lots of little joys.
That's the big plan for my bday. Not too exciting, but what's a girl to do when her birthday falls on a Monday. I have decided that Monday birthdays should be banned. Who's with me?
Before you go feeling sorry for me don't, because truly, even if my Zed wasn't sick I would still be home doing exactly the same thing. No really, I'm kinda a home body(something I have learned to be okay with these past 38 years) and excitement is highly overrated, so it's all good.
Sigh... Life is good.

Besides, I already celebrated with My Giant this weekend. I had wanted to see the movie Lincoln for a long time so there was that, and some good ole' fashioned quality time, and lots of words. I love words. That's how that Giant gets me every time. He is a man of few words TheMoses, so when he speaks it's with the most sincere, genuine, heartfelt words, and I treasure each and every one.  Words sometimes of adoration, but mostly just of sharing life together. Sharing our hearts, our joys and our sorrows. 
Sigh... Life is full of words, they mean something. 
That being said it was also an emotional weekend for me because of what happened to all those beautiful innocent children in Connecticut  on Friday. There were times through out the weekend that both me and the Big guy got all choked up. I'm sure it was the same for you. When things like this happen it really makes you stop cold in your tracks, and take stock in a sense.  So that's what I did. I sat with my fab 4, and just stared at them. That is when I wasn't busy taxi cabbing them around or cleaning up after them. I cleaned up their messes with a whole new attitude. I was thankful there was a mess there to clean up because that meant they were home safe with me. 
Sigh... Life is hard to understand.
But,what I am really checking in today to tell you about is one of the ways I got to celebrate my weekend and I don't think it will be your typical birthday celebratory events. This weekend my girls and I went shopping for a homeless teen.
Sigh... Life is full of giving hope.
I write about this not to brag about how my family and I have done this awesome act of charity, but simply to remind you of the forgotten and unseen. The poor, the broken, the abused, and the weary souls that need GOOD NEWS this holiday season! I write to even remind myself of that GOOD NEWS! Who could use some GOOD NEWS today? Jesus is still saving all these 2000 years later. He is still capturing hearts and changing lives. There are still young people who want to spend their life serving and giving back to this world, and that my friends is  GOOD NEWS!!

My girls and I set out to fill a backpack that our church provided with some necessities that a medium sized, female, teenager who lives on the streets might need. 

I cannot even begin to tell you how this act of giving, gave us so much more than the small tokens that we put in a bag for a stranger that will forever be in our prayers.

As my girls picked out items like a first aid kit, they asked why would a teenage girl need that? Or hand sanitizer, why and how, and where do they shower and get dressed? 

After describing to my girls where these kids are sleeping and where they are eating,IF they are eating.. they asked Why? Why are they on the streets? Why, did they run away? Why do bad things happen? So then the discussion turned to  what some peoples home life looks like. 

Instead of waking up to Advent calendar treats and warm coffee, some kids wake to  a mom passed out on the couch because she was out all night working hard to survive herself, or a dad who is an angry drunk because the cares and worries of this world have given him a raw deal and he takes them to a bottle, instead of the Cross of Christ.

Sigh... Life is full of sorrow.

When our bag was packed full and ready to give away we headed in to the drop off zone at our church. Yesterday morning I was so emotional watching all of God's kids walking in with back packs full of love for the homeless teens in Seattle.

  I was so honored to be a part of this family of people who have looked beyond their front doors for ways they could give back this holiday season, and I was reminded once again that life is full of unspeakable joy.

Sigh... Life is full of joy.

"Oh come all ye faithful Joyful and triumphant  Oh come ye, Oh come ye to Bethlehem.  COME AND ADORE HIM  BORN THE KING OF ANGELS. Oh come let us adore him. Oh come let us adore him. Oh come let us adore him Christ the Lord."
 I hope this note inspires you to Come and Adore, To be Joyful and feel triumphant knowing that although there is sorrow in the night Joy comes in the morning.


Joining up here

Pinterest and Other Such Rambles

Tonight I'm flying solo while My Captain Oh Captain, aka My Giant, aka Hubs, aka Moses is away at sea. I made that sentence much more dramatic than what was necessary and used far too many aka's, but if I haven't lost you yet with drama and aka's then lets move on shall we.

(Now that is Butt A$$ COLD right there!)
While my Giant is gone away for work I tend to stay up way too late, drink way too much wine,and Pin way too many things on Pinterest.
Do you do the same beloved reader ? No,Huh? Ok... Well tonight I realized a few things while happily pinning away.
One- that I haven't been on the site in quite some time. AND Two- I think I kinda know why.

( I need this Santa PLEASE)
It's not because I haven't had any interests worth pinning it's just that I have found myself to be overwhelmed with the interests I already have.
I'm pretty sure not everyone Pins things with the determination to actually accomplish those interests, or even come back to them for that matter, but that is exactly what I set out to do when I started my Pinterest site.

I quickly realized how foolish I was to think that was even humanly possible. I mean I am a Sanguine for goodness sakes, and we are just all over the place. Can I get a witness?
So as I dusted off the shelves in my Pinterest account I thought, ya know what I need to just look at this site in a whole new way. It can just be a place like, oh I don't know, maybe your favorite Department store. For some that's Macy's, maybe Ross, for me it's Value Village.  Now these are places that I don't dare set foot in unless I have the money that earns me a spot in the buyers department.  Ya know what I'm saying?
Pinterest can be a place that if I have the time, using all the time management skills I can muster up then I can allow myself to walk the aisles. But I dare not roam the streets of Pinterest when I have say... Oh I dunno so, so, so many ...  Christmas Crafts  Wrapping Gifts Writing Letters Laundry Shaving my legs Advent Calendar clues to write  Bible Study reading Praying Wives book club reading Emails to read Showering Dishes Laundry and  Etsy Shop clean up 
TO DO!!!!

(I'm a tad bit Garland obsessed these days)
Not to mention a reasonable bed time awaiting so that I can wake to the Fab 4 kids in the morning with a smile on my face(that never happens) and a cheerful skip in my step. Bah-ha-ha... the visual of me smiling and skipping out of my room in the morning just made me LOL for realz!! My kids would be like, "Who put a nickel in YOU?" Needless to say tonight, CAN YOU SAY EPIC FAIL  in the time management department... cause I can! What a major time suck you are Pinterest. I mean how dare YOU?!?
And well so there ya have it my friends.  My Pinterest account might go untouched until the next time My Giant is out at sea, but for tonight it sure did keep me company. As did YOU.

12.12.12

How can I pass up a day like 12.12.12 and NOT write something?

We will never have this moment in time again, so thank you for sharing some part of it with me.

I'm going to try to not get all sentimental on you, but I make no promises because...

numbers and the seasons changing always causes my sentimental heart to reflect.

Of course the official first day of winter isn't until 12.22.12 but as the song goes, "It's beginning to look alot like Christmas"  you could also add Winter too. Around here it looks and feels like both Christmas and Winter have arrived, and that means the end of another year is right around the corner.

This year I have to say, first of all it went by SO fast! I mean it seems only yesterday I was welcoming my little niece "Last Minute Biscuit" onto planet earth and now she's almost ONE!

Would you look at those toophers!! SO darn cute!

When I look back on 2012 though,

It was a Good year for me and mine, but if it was as dark as winter for you, 

then I pray your heart is filled with Hope for the future.

Because like the quote from good ole' Anne with an  'E' goes,

"Tomorrow is always fresh with no mistakes in it."

"Winter must be cold for those with no warm memories"

An Affair To Remember

I have to admit, that Winter is not my favorite season. In fact I think it is my least favorite season.

 If it is yours, I would like to know why?

Like a true blue optimist though, I try to find the good in every season as it comes down the train of life.

But, I gotta say that really I just find it hard to celebrate the time of year that death and darkness are so prevalent. 

That being said,  

I can't help but think about you all as I sit here and tappa tappa tappa.

You fill my heart with such joy, and the days may be dark outside, but in my heart as I think of you there is such bright color.

 I'm a bit like Fredrick the field mouse in that way.

(BTW Fredrick is one of my all time favorites)

I know that not everyone can gather the colors of love like this and that sometimes where they "live"

is like the land of Narnia, where 

"It's always winter, and never Christmas."

So...

  In an effort to spread Christmas cheer and love with YOU beloved reader, and my neighbors,

I went about our property putting up spots of color and Christmas everywhere.

As I was hanging those ornaments on our driveway fence, a neighbor who spoke no English( I think she is from Japan) was on a walk with her husband, or at least I think it was her husband.

She stopped and watched me for a minute with a great big smile on her face, and then without a word she came along side me and started to hang up some Christmas Cheer for the rest of the neighborhood to enjoy.

“My old grandmother always used to say, Summer friends will melt
away like summer snows, but winter friends are friends forever.”

If you are just passing by my blog today, like that neighbor who was out for a walk, then I hope your heart feels lighter after leaving here. I hope I have put up spots of color for you to enjoy before we head into the dark winter months.

Here is another spot of color to make you smile

I just can't get enough of my ADORABLE nieces. 

Because, although it may be dark and dismal in nature it does not need to be so in our hearts.

Keep in mind that as we head into the gloomy months of winter you are never alone.

You are never without a friend.

And the lover of your soul longs to bring you Christmas every day.

He is a good Winter friend.

"Creator of heaven and earth,
He was born on earth under heaven.
Unspeakably wise,
He is wisely speechless.
Filling the world, 
He lies in a manger...
He is both great in the nature of God,
and small in the form of a servant." Augustine

Where Does The Time Go?

Hello Beloved Reader- I hope this post finds you happy, healthy and enjoying your last days in 2012. Speaking of days... I can't believe that we are already 10 days into this glorious time of year, can you? I also can't believe that 31 years ago my baby sister Gina-Bo-"Bean"a,  was born.

I remember so well being 6 almost 7 years old waiting for her to come home from the hospital with my mom.  I was beyond excited. She was to be my new dolly :) Her birthday falls exactly one week before my own so not only was I excited for a brand new baby in the house, and my birthday, but then Christmas! It was like that saying that my Gram, "Grandma The Great" always used to say,  "All This AND Heaven Too" And that's really all I can say in regards to having not one but TWO amazing sisters!
Bean is without a doubt one of my very best friends.  I treasure the time we have together and miss her dearly when we are apart.

She is an amazing momma to these two beauties;  My nieces Savanah and Sophia. They have captured not only my heart, but my wallet as well.  I would buy them the world if I could. Sophia my niece, is the baby in the picture and she is coming up on her first birthday this  December 31st. My friend Natalie nicknamed her our "Last Minute Biscuit" and be still my heart that girl... oh good heaven's do I miss her SO!! Ah CRAP!! Now I'm getting misty.
Again, where does the time go?
Happy Birthday Gina! I wish I was there to celebrate. Give the Last Minute Biscuit extra kisses from her Auntie, and  have an extra piece of cake for me.

Clark Griswold Spirit vs. The Holy Spirit

I feel I have incarnated the spirit of Clark Griswold in trying to make this family Christmas the BEST ever!! And if you remember the series of unfortunate events that occurs through the course of that movie then you know this is not the Spirit of Christmas that I want to be channeling.
Let me explain, I have found myself frantically trying to squeeze in as many Holiday fun activities as one 25 day period can possibly hold.
YOU know what I'm talking about; Decorating, Pics for Christmas cards, Addressing cards, Tree hunting, Cocoa drinking watching Polar Express, Decorating some more, Gingerbread making, Christmas Caroling, Advent making and keeping track of treats for said Advent calendar, Tree Trimming, Elf Party, Decorating, and so on and so forth and 
 Fa la la la, and ya da ya da ya da!
And that list doesn't even include the several birthdays that I want to celebrate(mine included), or the 2 Choir concerts we get to go to, or the Band concert, or the Packages I need to mail or the .... 
Fa la, la, la and ya da ya da !!

So before this train gets too off track or I lose anymore sleep over "the List" that I have going on in my head, I'm going to try and remember the WHY behind CHRISTmas.

My intent of this post is not to go on a deep theological tangent about what we do during the holiday season and why we do it, but I am checking in to say, that I needed to check in today, and maybe that's for you too. It doesn't hurt to remember the WHY to what we do every December 1st- til the 25th. We all have a busier calendar, a brighter smile, a deeper wallet, and a whole lot more egg nog, and I hope a lot more fun. But, do we have this all year long?
If not why not? I mean, excluding the egg nog,* that is the DEVIL if you ask me. SO tempting, so FATTENING! I was reminded that there is no reason why our smiles shouldn't be as bright, or our wallets as deep unless we don't have the True Spirit of Christmas working in and through us. See, I believe the true Spirit of Christmas comes not from a fat jolly man in a red suit, and certainly not from Silly Clark, but from Our Creator. Not from Father Christmas but from our Father God who gave the greatest Christmas gift to the world some 2000 years ago. And if you haven't yet received the package deal that comes from knowing Christ(He's a 3 for the price of 1 kind of deal) then you don't have the true Spirit of Christmas. Even if you have unwrapped that package, sometimes we, I mean ME, need to be reminded of the gift all year long that keeps on giving.

The Spirit of the one true living God is a gift that is given to us 24/7 and here is what that gift provides on a daily basis;
Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness,and Self-Control.
 If those are things you want not just from December 1st-the 25th then jump on board this train.
Here's what I did to get off the wrong polar express,
I headed off to bible study this morning despite the fact that I had SO SO SO much to do. I went to be with a group of women who love God and serve him.
I listened and I was so blessed by just who they are and what they were saying.
I was reminded that God's family is big, and comes in many shapes, sizes, and accents. 
I felt the Spirit over and over and it wasn't creepy, (I mean silly) Clark Griswold's. And now, with peace and purpose I will go forward as a good Christmas Elf, 
singing loud for all to hear.....

JOY TO THE WORLD THE LORD HAS COME!!
I do hope you will take your ticket and get on board.
ALL ABOARD!!