Giving Thanks | Childhood Myths

Super Saturday

May 18, 2013 By Diane and Chad Leave a Comment

Just a test for a possible Super Saturday to take the place of Joyful Thursdays. I can’t seem to make up my mind!

But I am grateful and happy for all kinds of things. So I will share some of those with you now under a temoporary name change:)))

1) I actually got to spend some time with my good buddy Bev who now lives in California…she was in the area so I went over to bug her a bit….loved every bit of it:))))

isn't she awesome?

2) I’m still enjoying the green of spring…the flowers on the trees are still hanging in there, so beautiful…and sunshine almost every day. Ahhh, lovely!

lilacs?? ....almost!

this little beauty will be huge!

another one growing its way to beauty

3) I just watched an hour-long program on TV with nothing but Nat King Cole singing. I love his mellow voice!! It made me head to the internet to see if I could find some of his songs to play on the piano!!

some of my dad's old songbooks:)

My head is still confused about how to continue my grateful pages. Hmmm, maybe I won’t name them a specific name. Maybe they’ll just appear whenever they appear! Unless folks are looking for them, I guess that part doesn’t matter. Are you looking for them under a certain name??

Happy Parenting!

D and C

Filed Under: beauty, carpe diem, changing blog, fun, giving thanks, happiness, Happiness Tuesdays, inspiration, intentions, joyful, joyful Thursdays, smile, special friend, spring, sunshine

A Lovely Day

May 13, 2013 By Diane and Chad Leave a Comment

I had a delightful day yesterday with my favorite people in the whole world…these guys:

We had brunch where these two will be married this summer:

C and S:

with S’s Mom and Dad:

and her brother and sister (missing one brother)

S and L:

L’s Mom (missing her brother):

This beautiful day included brunch, flowers, wine and very special gifts that only my boys would know that I would LOVE…a weather station to replace a broken one and a very simple bottle of soap with a smell that I love…They always impress me with their caring, loving ways:))

Happy Parenting!

D and C

Filed Under: angels, brothers, families, family fun, family photos, flowers, giving thanks, joyful, joyful holidays, love, parenting, photos, receiving gifts, smile, thank yous

Happy Mother’s Day

May 12, 2013 By Diane and Chad Leave a Comment

Today is a day for celebrating moms. So hurray to my mom…the lovely Helen!!! I just found a few more photos to share with you. She will have to wait to see them until I visit again since she does not ‘do computers’!!

Happy Mother’s Day, Mom! Splurge on yourself and have some fun….I love you lots:)))

Everyone….celebrate your moms…they deserve it!

Happy Parenting!

D and C

Filed Under: appreciation, families, family photos, giving thanks, love, parenting, photos

Spring Beauty

May 9, 2013 By Diane and Chad Leave a Comment

What happened to Joyful Thursdays, you say….Yes, I still have many things that bring me joy. But…I have done over a year’s worth of Happiness Tuesdays and over a year’s worth of Joyful Thursdays. So it’s about time for another change…at least in name. Do you have any suggestions for me? Super Sundays…Sunshine Saturdays…What do you think??

Anyway, today we celebrate spring in all its glory. We have had the BEST week…warm and sunny and very much appreciated:))

beautiful tulips...just a short burst of loveliness!

the special green of new leaves

some still waiting for the green, some already there!

almost ready for blooms

blossoms a-blooming:)

just amazing!

if only we could call these lil stinkers wildflowers, I'd welcome them into my lawn!

Have a delightful spring day…make the most of the beauty around you!

Happy Parenting!

D and C

Filed Under: appreciation, beauty, carpe diem, flowers, giving thanks, goals, happiness, Happiness Tuesdays, inspiration, joyful, joyful Thursdays, photos, spring, sunshine

Quilts from Memories

April 27, 2013 By Diane and Chad 1 Comment

After completing quilts for both Chad and Scott….do you remember….made from t-shirts I kept after their dad died. Each quilt was made from more than 45 shirts, 12 x 12 squares or pieces formed into that size. My lovely neighbor sewed the pieces together after I pinned them in the order I wanted. Then I used batting and a backing and hand-sewed them together….YOW! I am. not. a seamstress and therefor wrecked my fingers on each quilt. BUT I loved that I could give each boy a lovely memory quilt to remind them of their most awesome father:)))

Here is Scott’s

7' across and 7' down!!!

And here is Chad’s

same size

After giving my fingers a break, I decided I needed a quilt of my own. So combining F2′s shirts with some of my old shirts also…here is the front of my quilt. I haven’t decided yet what to do with the back…less than I did with the boys, I think.

this was how I started...

good, huh?

And then some up close and personal views…do you recognize any of these??

for my Monfort buddies...and Dave and Jodi:)

for F2's Teke buddies

for my Alpha Chi sisters

for remembering the Crary and Fink boat:)

Memories of all kinds….that’s what it’s all about!!! Make sure you keep every memory you might want later…time is fleeting!! Love my quilt:)))

Happy Parenting!

D and C

Filed Under: appreciation, beauty, brothers, carpe diem, families, follow-through, giving thanks, goals, happiness, having fun, inspiration, intentions, methods, parenting

More April Birthdays

April 10, 2013 By Diane and Chad Leave a Comment

In just one week, three very important birthdays:

You read about Scott’s birthday on the 5th…continuing on:

My dad’s birthday was April 7th…it’s amazing to me that he has been gone almost 49 years!! Wow! He was a most lovely man:))

And my beautiful mother’s birthday is April 11th!!

So here are a few photo memories for any of you who know us:

First, a long-ago picture of me with my mom and dad

Then, one of my favorite photos of my mom and dad… holding the Siamese, Ping (first name Poo)

…and finally, Mom and stepdad Carl in their younger years

Happy Birthday to Mom and Dad…I love you both:)))

Happy Parenting!

D and C

Filed Under: appreciation, beauty, birthdays, family, family photos, giving thanks, love, memories, photos

Joyful Thursdays #58

April 4, 2013 By Diane and Chad Leave a Comment

What brings you joy, makes you happy, gives you peace? Here are some photos, quotes, and thoughts that make me joyful.

Joyful Thursdays #58

Here are three things that make me happy and bring me joy:

1) Having friends with me in Florida for fun and support:))

2) Having my friends love and support my mom, too!!

3) Coming home to Easter dinner with these 3 lovelies!

I’m so happy to be home again…looking forward to spring…a certain someone’s birthday tomorrow…and loving having the purring cat back on my lap! Are you finding your ‘happy’?? Keep searching:)

Happy Parenting!

D and C

Filed Under: birthdays, cat, Florida, giving thanks, happiness, Happiness Tuesdays, joyful, joyful Thursdays, love, pets, photos, spring

Sunday Mornin’

March 3, 2013 By Diane and Chad 1 Comment

Whew! I had an issue with my computer….couldn’t access my own website!!! Arghhh, that was a wee bit frustrating! So Thursdays Joyfulness just went directly to FaceBook instead…and even then, not until Saturday.

Today, talk of Bob Seger:)))) We went to his concert in Toledo! Have you been to that arena??? Wow! We usually go to the Palace and have seats where the performers look like ants. This particular place is small and lovely. We were on the floor 16 rows from the stage, with wide aisles between every 10 seats. …And the seats not on the floor-only about 20 rows total! It is so impressive!

2 Seger beauties at "The Bar" before the concert

getting ready!

this is how far from the stage we were...

just waiting...see how small the venue is!!!

Friday night was the 2nd of at least 20 performances by the amazing Bob Seger and his equally awesome band! His voice was the best I’ve heard, mellow and smooth, singing most of his classics and a few new tunes.

Seger singing:)

Thanks to my 4 sweeties for a most exceptional birthday present…just spending time with you is always my favorite thing to do, but throw in a little Bob Seger…wonderful!!!

my birthday gift

Have a delightful Sunday…enjoy your family:))

Happy Parenting!

D and C

Filed Under: appreciation, beauty, birthdays, families, family fun, family photos, giving thanks, having fun, joyful, love, photos, smile

Thank You, MOPs!!

February 26, 2013 By Diane and Chad Leave a Comment

Last night Chad and I spoke at a MOPS (mothers of preschoolers) meeting in Macomb. What a great bunch of ladies!!! Lots of fun, lots of discussion, and hopefully for them lots of hints! A couple of little ones were there to add to the atmosphere…baby talk is always welcome:))

This is what we love to do, so let us know if you’d like us to come speak to your group…

talking about family life is what it's all about:)

we actually sold some of these last night!!

Finding ways to share our message is always important to us. The meeting last night helped to invigorate us with some new energy…so thank you very much MOPs:)