What's With The Cream?

I just felt it was a day to write even though there is really nothing new going on here. We are on the count down to Cheridyn's birthday...soon to be 3, though most people ask if she is already 4! HAHAHA Still swimming, working on the house, the yard, and enjoying the sunshine! Still experiencing growing pains as we try to find our way in this new world of ours. But we are working through them together...and that truly makes all the difference! Though I am far away from most of those I love, I have made great memories that will last forever!

What makes my life memorable is the people who liven it up. If all I had was me to rely on for entertainment? Holy BORING! Since the course of my life seems to have taken an extreme turn and I some how got into the slow lane, I am reminded of how fast things change. Relationships change or end, children grow up too quickly, we move away or return, get new jobs, quit old ones, get rich, lose it all, experience emotions of every kind, wish we could just stay where we are most comforatble and happy...and then eventually it all comes to an end.

What is left? What is the point? Live, laugh and love. I heard once that it matters more who you love, than who loves you. That is the only real difference we can expect to make in this life which will count in eternity. We can't take material wealth, possessions, luxury spa treatments, or any chocolate (no matter how divine) with us when we leave here. We take with us experience, emotion, regret...what we leave is a legacy of our own creation.

You know I am not a farmer, by any stretch of the imagination! But I was thinking this morning that love is like cream. (Yeah, I know it's not a new concept, just go with me here for a minute!)

If we let it, cream rises to the top of everything. It is delicate, adding richeness to everything it mingles and mixes with. Depending on how you make it and what you put it with, cream can be light and fluffy, disolving easily,or dense and thick, adding depth, smoothing, soothing, leaving you wanting more. Cream is plentiful...all you have to do it gently milk it out, though you might miss it at first. Cream gets mixed in with the rest of the milk, and if it's kept stirred up, you'll never notice it at all. Let it settle, give it time. Patience...it is always present, just like love. It comes in many different forms.

There have been times in my life that I have felt abandoned, alone, unloveable... But perhaps one of the greatest lessons in life, which I am still learning, is not to dwell on those feelings. All we have to do is let the milk settle, and not get crazy over what spills out...realize that we can get more and it comes with all of the really good stuff which makes life worth while.

I guess that's why I tell my kids when they ask why my cooking is so good that it's because it's made with love...makes everything taste better. The longer I live, the more I can see that love is the answer to making everything better. If you think you have lost it, or perhaps think you do not know love at all..."seek and ye shall find". Can't get the cream if you don't find the cow.

End of the philosophy lecture for today, however you might be quizzed on it at a later juncture. You might want to jott some of this down... major points like "What's the new age metaphor for the "good stuff" in life?

Perhaps the college courses are paying off!!!

These Family Ties

It's a rare thing for me to see or even to have pictures of myself as a very young child. My mom didn't have a camera, believe it or not. But thanks to some really wonderful grandparents (on both sides of my family) there are a few out there.

My auntie Di sent these over a few weeks ago. I had never seen them before. This one of me and my paternal grandparents was taken sometime in 1974 at K-Mart. I was 2 years old. I am so glad to have this picture! Although I did not spend a lot of time with my dad growing up, I did spend time with his parents. I was very fond of them and of course my auntie Di. She is only 12 years older than me, and would always play Barbies, and let me play to my hearts content on the organ. She was always enthusiastic, no matter how many times she heard the song! Thanks Di...love you!



This picture of me and my Grandpa touched me so much, I cried when I saw it. He passed away last December. He is missed every single day. He was the very BEST hugger in the world! He always had smile on his face. There is a very special place in heaven for a Grandpa like that. I am so gratful that my grandparents took the time to have these pictures taken. These are all I have like this!


Anyway, there is a long story about the relationship or lack there of with my Dad. Some of you know it already, so I'll spare the details. A few years ago I tried to mend the fence with him and we made arrangements to see one another after nearly 15 years. He had never met my children, and has still never met my husband. Just before we moved to Juneau, I had the opportunity to bring Alex and Camryn to Utah for a visit. They met their Grandpa Werner for the first time in April 2003. The photo of me and the kids is with him. My grandparents (April 2003) and my aunt Diane and her hubby James (May 2008) are the other two pictures.