Hand Book 2010

Health:

1. Drink plenty of water.

2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.

3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants..

4. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm and Empathy

5. Make time to pray.

6. Play more games

7. Read more books than you did in 2009 .

8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day

9. Sleep for 7 hours.

10. Take a 10-30 minutes walk daily. And while you walk, smile.

Personality:

11. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

12. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Insteadinvest your energy in the positive present moment.

13. Don't over do. Keep your limits.

14. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

15. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.

16. Dream more while you are awake

17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need..

18. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with His/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.

19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.

20. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.

21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.

23. Smile and laugh more.

24. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree...

Society:

25. Call your family often.

26. Each day give something good to others.

27. Forgive everyone for everything..

28. Spend time w/ people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.

29. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

30. What other people think of you is none of your business.

31. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

Life:

32. Do the right thing!

33. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

34. GOD heals everything.

35. However good or bad a situation is, it will change..

36. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

37. The best is yet to come..

38. When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it.

39. Your inner most is always happy. So, be happy.

Last but not the least:

40. Please Forward this to everyone you care about, I just did.

*I received this as an email from a very close friend...

Wishing a Very Happy New Year to ALL

If it wasn't for bad pictures I would have no pictures.

* * * * * * *

The pictures below are random and my usual poor quality photography.

The picture of the door opening to the bright outside,

was my attempt to take a picture of the guys going out to shovel.

First Tom bundled up and went out then Papa followed after.

(I would have my turn after the snow stopped.)

Look how bright it looks outside.

It looks like a sunny day.
...

But when I opened the door to click some more...

this is what it really was like...

it was a blizzard.

then the battery on the camera died

( so typical)

and even though I charged it right away

Quite a few days would go by before I used it again.
Christmas came.

Some pictures are too personal to show.

Some pictures are too blurry.

Doesn't it seem as if all these boys do is play video games?

Emma was feeling a bug coming on but she still smiled for us.

She called it Merry Sickness.

Nora was so relieved to have passed another semester in the nursing program.

One more to go. We are all so happy for her.

I don't know what's going on in this picture,

but it's Tom with Nana and Grandpa.

Just some dark and blurry memories...

but they shine in my heart.

Behave or bee-have

This started out to be a cat but it looks very much like a dog.
Also, I tried to make him look scared. The bee skep is added just to give him something to be worried about,
but sometimes he seems to be saying...
I couldn't care less, it's a bead not a bee!
All depends on how closely you look.

This is my desk top picture now a days.

So you can imagine my shock...when I got offline and saw THIS!

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THANKS TOM!

(yes it's quite an amazing resemblance)

you have much prettier eyes.

Thanksgiving

Here's just a glimpse, so many pictures came out blurry. I don't want to make you dizzy. We had a wonderful turkey dinner with Nana and Grandpa. So thankful to be alive and together. The kids were awesome. Pat and I danced. I wish I was a better photographer and writer. Just want to share some good times here...

The Holy Family

This came out blurry but I love it.

Time keeps on slippin'...

Tom is a good man.

Here he is getting the flashlight ready to take his little brother out

for the time of his life... trick - or - treating.

This year 2009, Xavier is Superman.

Here he is in action, first stop, our house!

2 hours later...

What an awesome memory.

Plenty of Peppers

Heirloom California Wonder Peppers

These peppers grew beautifully.

***

During the first week of June...
I purchased 3 individual seedlings from my local farm stand.

(Crow Farm in Sandwich)

The healthy little seedlings were about 6" tall.

I planted them in the evening beside my patio.

Exposer: full sun

I would faithfully

water them every late afternoon.

(unless it rained - which it did a lot!)

Around each plant I sprinkled fresh coffee grounds.

Every other week I fed them with

Cockadoodledoodoo tea.

(I've stopped feeding them)

We haven't had a killing frost and they're still growing strong.

I just love when they turn sweet red.

The more the peppers ripen the better they are for you too.

***

Nutrition Facts that I googled ...

Peppers are full of vitamins C and A,

as well as folate.

They are also high in fiber.

Peppers consist mostly of water so the added bonus is they are low in calories.

***

Mark This Day

I guess it's your turn to play huh?

Forget me ... You're great. I wanna watch YOU play.

Playing and...

... relaxing after school.

Winding up Summer

The Clematis is still willing to flower.

This bucket left over from a live Christmas Tree,
came in very handy to grow cherry tomatoes.

Pretty Bell Peppers.

A bumper crop of string beans stretches over the bricks.

One tired Geranium.

These photos were left in my camera from the past 2 weeks.

What a difference even a day makes.

Now things look like the last picture...very tired and spent.
***

There shall be eternal summer in the grateful heart. -Celia Thaxter

Climbing the Tree

Through the years this old apple tree has seen many children climb it's branches. This summer the boys figured out how to climb.
Some things just come naturally don't they?

Joyce Kilmer. 1886–1918
Trees

I THINK that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the sweet earth's flowing breast;

A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;

Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

I scream, you scream, we all scream....

Just so you don't think that I live the life of a saint but as you know I wish that I did. After dinner tonight Papa wanted to take us out for ice cream. The kids were so excited and wanted monster mash sundaes and that made me want a hot fudge sundae too. I was in my pajamas so I stayed in the car while the guys went up to the take-out window. Papa knows exactly what kind of sundae I like (that's one of the perks for being married more than half your life). I closed my eyes and waited patiently for my treat to be brought to me. I really felt like a queen being pampered.
The kids come out squealing with excitement ...I sit up and grow a big smile. Papa hands me a LARGE sundae. The kids are so happy.
What kind of cruel person am I? Looking at this LARGE sundae in my hands should make me giddy. But my stomach starts punching me just looking at it. I open my mouth to say it's LARGE! I must have said it just the way I meant it.....because little daggers fired out Papa's eyes and I realized I was complaining.
He agrees...yes it is.
I don't stop. I add fuel to the fire... Have I ever ordered a large?
Don't eat it all.
What a waste.
It was on sale.
I pick at it with my plastic spoon. Then I dig looking for some hot fudge. Honestly there was just a sick amount of ice cream and only about a tea spoon of hot fudge.
Is there any fudge?
The girl is new.
Did you get any fudge?
Not much ..hey the girl is really nice she's just new here and doesn't know how to make a sundae very good.
oh.
By now the kids are sugared up, and cooped in the back seat. They're playing tug of war with a sweatshirt or something. One is laughing, one is crying...both are loud. Something is spilled...more laughing and crying. Papa gets out and fills a brown bag with everybody's bowl ready or not. We leave with both kids crying.
On the way home we stopped at a non demoninational church, ( see , I'm open) because I saw a circle drive. In the dark, under many bright parking lot lights we let the 2 boys out of the back seat to run the circle. It took 3 times around to tucker them out. They got in the car panting and friends again, too tired for horseing around.
My theory is if I'm going to consume 1,000 calories it better be just the way I like it. Which I would never want to anyway! What a waste.

100th post

Alright, because this is my 100th post ...I'm sharing this with you.... this is me.
I have on a Cape Cod Times T'shirt but I don't work there anymore I just like wearing free clothes. Speaking of free, I think it's a blogging tradition to have a give away for the 100th post. Sorry...I'm not having a give away. (this time)
I'll tell you some more things. I'm 54. As the earlier post says I've been married 36 years. That means I've been married since I was 18. I'm a mother 4 times and a grandmother once. I have grown up children and I'm also blessed or cursed depending on the moment with a younger child. So I'm starting all over again with the elementary school horrors. My family is basically my whole life. My grandson and son are 18months apart. They spend so much time together they're like brothers. I'm very thankful for everything. I don't want to take anything or anyone for granted.
I'm a Roman Catholic. I would like to say that I'm a devout Catholic but I'm sorry that I do miss Mass quite a lot. That makes me a very bad Catholic. In my back yard there's a little garden statue of Mary the Blessed Mother. For those of you who wonder about what these little statues are all about ... no they are not for good luck. No, they are not to worship either. Statues are not idols. Idols are worshipped and statues of Saints and Mary are just reminders of the person. They're called shrines. They are not graven images. For example..when you hang a photograph, you know very well the picture is not actually the person...it's only a reminder of the person. The feelings you have go much deeper than the picture itself. Same as a crucifix too. We do not worship the cross by itself. It symbolizes the greatest act of love ever known to man. We don't worship the image itself, because that would make it a god. Some people adore money. It's not money that's bad it's the way you perceive...........................
OMG what am I talking about here? I'm supposed to be telling you about me....not all of this.
See????
This is so typical. This is me....it's so much a part of me.
And I'm really - not even a holy person. I just am so aware of another realm.
When I was a little girl I wanted to be a nun when I grew up.
(Thank-God for the church's sake that I didn't!)
You know I didn't get these kids by being chaste.
Ok let's see what else ...........................................................I guess that's it for now anyway.
Except, one of the reasons that I do enjoy blogging so much is for this reason. I'm free to express myself without forcing my opinions on anyone else. I can feel free to be me and that's a great feeling. I love that we can all celebrate our differences.
Thank-you for listening to me. I appreciate every single visit. xox~Elaine
.............. With that said, I bet you can't wait to see my 101st post!

September 15th

Today is our 36th wedding anniversary.

nine eleven

One nation under God ...

September Mayfly

For those of you who are not acquainted, this is a Mayfly .

Considering a Mayfly has only hours to live,

together with the fact that this is not May,

makes hanging out on my door extra special.