The Parable of the Cracked Pot

 

This could lend itself to all kinds of funny, I know, I know.

Unfortunately, I’m swinging a little low these days so I’ve got nothing.

I love this story, I found it on Beyond Blue.

 

A water-bearer carries two large pots on a yoke across his shoulders up the hill from the river to his master’s house each day. One has a crack and leaks half its water out each day before arriving at the house. The other pot is perfect and always delivered a full portion of water after the long walk from the river.

Finally, after years of arriving half-empty and feeling guilty, the cracked pot apologized to the water-bearer. It was miserable. “I’m sorry that I couldn’t accomplish what the perfect pot did.”

The water-bearer says, “What do you have to apologize for?'”

“After all this time, I still only deliver half my load of water. I make more work for you because of my flaw.”

The man smiled and told the pot. “Take note of all the lovely flowers growing on the side of the path where I carried you. The flowers grew so lovely because of the water you leaked. There are no flowers on the perfect pot’s side.”

I love the story because the perfect pot wasn’t the bad guy—he still got the water to the master but the cracked pot had a purpose too, a redeemable quality--

Some days, a few flowers a long the path means everything…….

And some days the Atonement means even more…..

Kelly Boo

WARNING:If parental sentimentality and birthday tributes make you want to pound your head against your computer screen ---

You should probably leave now.

Seriously-I get it—flee now!!

18 years and some change ago—I got this prize from the stork----

She was #3 and my third girl and a huge surprise as we were told we couldn’t have any more!

She has a lovely, happy, sweet disposition

BUT…..

She also has a temper that goes from 0 to 100 in 1.5 seconds that has been and is a force to be reckoned with….

She has grown in beauty on the outside and the inside……

She is one of my favorite people to spend time with…..

She loves books, just like me…

She loves playing the piano, just like me….

She loves taking pictures, just like me…

But what I love best is……..she just loves me.

Isn’t that amazing?!

She’s amazing!!!

She has even promised to let me come live with her when I am old and feeble minded…

…well…OLDER and MORE feeble minded…hush now and let me have my delusions of sanity………

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY BOO!!! I LOVE YOU!

Lovin’ It…..

This is a follow up to this post.

I’ve finally transferred all my favorite blogs over to Bloglovin’ and I have been using it awhile and I LOVE it.

**The interface is so clean and crisp.

Since they are not trying to do a million other things besides be a reader--( like Google)-- everything is uncluttered and orderly.

**It is SO user friendly

I am sure I could do all the things I am doing in Blolglovin’ in Google but in Google I could never figure out for the life of me how to do it. You want to add a blog? Just click the button. You want to put some blogs that you read on to your blog? Click the button. Want to delete a blog? Click a button and it actually disappears. (This has been a great way to get rid of all those blogs that I never even visit—or that have deleted me{What's up with that?!}--I feel like a new woman!) Google would never let me delete! LOVE it!

({{}{}{Yes I realize I should be shot for that last mess of punctuation and sentence UN-structure)}}}{}{}{

**Adding categories and putting your blogs in them is a piece of cake!

Now when I am in a hurry I can just click on “Fav” blogs and read and comment and then come come back and catch the craft blogs etc later. And I can erase all posts within a category instead of having to wipe out the entire library.

**Need to discover some new blogs? They’ve got a button for that too!!

I just can’t say enough good about my new blog home! Farewell Google Reader! I would highly recommend that you at least go check it out HERE.

PS-This is not a paid advertisement. But the “Send Lisa to Ireland” fund is always open for donations. Amen.

*blurb*….excuse me……

I’ve decided to enter the brave frontier of “Blurb” and make a book of our life and times “Under the Garage Door on the Roof”. I thought I would give each of the kids one for Christmas this year. (They rarely read my blog and if by some rare alliance of the planets that I do get said book accomplished—well, we will all be surprised together, won’t we??!!!) Due to this new found desire, and as I collect and edit all the photos---I will be posting , on occasion some sometimes sappy, sometimes unrelated, sometimes from the distant past etc photos and words that will have no meaning except to (hopefully) me and mine. Feel free to skip these and move on with your lovely lives. Today is one of those posts.

These were taken after a rain storm in April, 2010. Our dog, Hershey is no longer with us. It is not because she was eating that dirt. But I remember being a little worried.

Until she pulled this face….

Then I caught the cat doing it too…..

I know you might think he was licking up moisture, but I promise there was none—he was eating that green stuff. The sneaky little vegetarian that he is…

This is his best “King of the Forest”—to bad it took him an hour to get up there……I kid…I kid……

The rest of these are just photos of the forest and the lichen, because 100 years from now---people are going to find that absolutely fascinating don’t you know. Hush now…..

Wasn’t that fun??!! I kind of miss my forest, I need to get my behind outside and take some pics of my new 10 acres so I can “bond" with it and stop missing the old place so much. If Spring would come---maybe I just miss Spring…..

It’s a small town Montana thing…….

This is a …I love the quirky village I live in post…continue at your own peril…..

We are lucky in respect to where we live and work.

He gets to work here:

In the oilfields of Prudhoe Bay, Alaska

And I get to live in my quirky, beautiful village here in the middle of nowhere Montana.

I realize this does not always happen.

Today I would like to share with you some of the reasons

THIS IS THE PLACE FOR ME

First of all I will draw you in with some shots of the breath taking scenery---

Next I will ensnare you with the endearing quirky things that will make you want to book your flight to Montana tomorrow:

I hope you can tell what this is cuz its a treasure---you’ll find it staring out the window of the Laundromat.

Our grocery store parking lot is usually full of these—just hanging around. No leashes.

One time I didn’t see the dog when I got out of my car and as I came around the end of my car….

…. it let out this horrendously deep bark….

to which I screamed like a sissy girl…

….. threw my purse in the air…

….fell to my knees….

….. and about wet my pants.

Thankfully that little morsel has stayed between me and the dog right up until this very moment—what can I say—I’m a sharer.

And there is always a bunch of these but they have always been much more polite-----

This magical store is found on Main Street and my favorite part about it is that white sale sign is out front every.single.day.

This is my favorite mailbox in the WHOLE WORLD…

And this is my favorite thing my kids have ever done to occupy themselves:

And then for my final push—that sales pitch that will bring it home-----

Can you see it? The little gem tucked over there on the left? Here, let me help you……

YEP--I know—no words. it’s okay—take a moment………….

…prepare yourself for the final piece of wonderfulness that will have you loading your wagons and heading to Montana post haste--------

Because somewhere in the middle of nowhere Montana people actually dress like this AND they are NOT in a Star Wars movie.

You know you wanna touch that hat…..see if it is made to fit…..

{{{{{{{{deep sigh}}}}}}}}

I LOVE where I live.

The Call! THE Call!!!!!!!

Our family has been on vacation in Idaho this week.

Its a hard thing but we have reached down deep and found the strength to power through.

Our #2 daughter had to go home early to report back to the job thing.

The whole ‘responsible’ thing.

(she gets it from her Dad)

Guess what she found in the mail???!!

HER MISSSION CALL!!!!! (I just spelled mission with 3 s’ and it did not spell correct me—?????)

GUESS WHERE SHE IS GOING???????!!!!!!!

Nope.

Nope.

Oh, okay.

She is going to…….

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE!!!!!

For those who are not Mormon-- she will be leaving in May for 18 months to go to Nashville to serve and share her knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ with others as she represents our church.

She is very excited and nervous at the moment but at least will be able to sleep. The suspense was killing her.

I on the other hand am calm and cool and collected. I am not worried because I am just going to go with her you see. Problem solved.

ACCKKK!! My baby is leaving me!!!! I don’t take enough medication for this!! How do the rest of you missionary Mom’s do this???!!

My Love Language has been spoken…..

So my birthday was awhile ago but a friend of mine just recently had a chance to give me her present and since I have been sadly LACKING in the blog post department, I decided to blog about it. Its all I’ve got, people.

This year was the year of….. the Love Language is spoken. My love language is pretty easy to figure out—check out these gifts…..

A head massager and some sort of fabulous covered in gooey marshmallow, sugar and heaven only knows what else, gorp mix—(these 2 things, when used together induce a coma like state that can be likened to something that is like bliss on steroids…..and definitely involves drool....)

Another friend got me this “Faith” sign and I ordered the rest and I am still working on the display but it is nice to have something that feels so springy. I had never seen these before. They are metal and interchangeable and magnetic. Made by the people who make the Willow figurines.

This piece of luscious technology I received for my next 5 birthdays, Valentines Day and our Anniversary. I got one of these cute little baby blue bumpers too—very handy dandy.

Can you guess my love language?

Make sure you don’t confuse it with one of the 7 deadly sins………..

I did, I do, I will

24 years ago I found this Studmuffin on a dance floor in Northpole, Alaska.

For 4 years I had been playing the field HARDCORE……marriage was not on my agenda…..

It took him only 3 weeks……and I knew……..

We were engaged…….25 years and 7 months ago today………..

25 years ago today, we were married in the St. George, UT Temple. (I belong to the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints or LDS) It was all very serious and beautiful……

Then of course there was a reception and it was anything BUT serious……

One might wonder what in the world I was doing here…..I have no recollection…

I do know that here I had just taken off my garter and Phil had to steal the show by revealing that he had worn these most HATED of socks the entire reception!!! I thought I had thrown these away before we left Alaska but he had gone dumpster diving ---ACK!!

HAPPY QUARTER OF A CENTURY POOD!!!!! Each year has been better than the last—I can’t wait till 50! LOVE YOU!

Just a little ending note::::::::::

As I was going through my box looking for pictures to scan for this post, I came across a lot of memorabilia. I even found our plane tickets that we had used from Alaska to Utah. I thought I had kept them for a memento of our “special” day. Then I turned it over……

Yeah, it had to be for a memento of our “special” day…that's it.

You’re welcome.

My “Someday” is now—And my Prince has come………..

It was my birthday the other day.

Other than the fact that I am now just so much dust blowing in the wind AND that dust is covered in copious amounts of snot from the head cold I am suffering through…………..

It was a lovely day.

My husband is doing his 2 weeks off work thing right now. When he is off work he likes to take the dog for a hike everyday and get the mail. (Makes you wonder where my mailbox is, doesn’t it??)

When he returned from the mail hike on my birthday, he handed me some magazines and the envelope pictured above.

My husband is NOT a romantic man. Which would explain a lot about why I would feel the need to take a picture of said envelope and blog about it.

It is my new favorite thing in the whole universe.

He said it cost eighty cents to send because it was extra full of love.

Yeah, mushy AND did I mention it was my new favorite thing in the whole universe?!

Now we just need to get him some art lessons because that picture on that stamp does not look like

_ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ .

Any guesses?

Flagrant Fido Flattery OR This is for you Shad....

It has come to my attention that my nephew who gave us Obi (the dog):

Has been disappointed by the lack of post relating to said dog.

Far be it from me to be the source of ANYONE'S disappointment.

(That's not true. My getting up in the morning causes a string a disappointments so great they are thinking of erecting a statue in my honor. But I digress....)

So I am going to post a couple of silly little video's Boo took for Shad. It's okay if no one else wants to watch them--I understand--but they are kind of funny--in a --itsmydogandisn'thethecutestdogyouhaveeverseen kind of way.

Hope all of you that made it this far have a great day!!!

And no matter what anyone says, there is no video of me doing the hula while on Ambien....I don't know where these rumors get started.....

I get by with a little help from my friends……

This is my Fabulous friend Julie and her Fabulous daughter Emma with my Fabulous daughter Kelly at the movie theater

(oh yes I did stand up and take a picture, right there in the theater—and yes—I don’t get out much---why do you ask???)

We went and saw this:

 

I had such a good time AND I really enjoyed the movie!

 

Julie is one of my favorite people in the WHOLE world! We have been friends for what seems like forever but in reality is probably more like 15 years or so. Her oldest daughter and my oldest daughter were the same age and we met through school activities. I have always been drawn to Julie like a moth to a flame for  many reasons but I think if I had to choose one it would be her incredible sense of self worth. She is quite frankly, one of the most self assured people I know. That, and she loves me. I make her giggle---a lot. I like that. A lot. She laughs really loudly at movies and plays. And I like that a lot too. She is also one of the finest pianists I know. Love it! As a matter of fact---there is nothing I don’t like about this remarkable woman. I love Julie! Thanx for being my friend and including me in your life--- and your circle of friendship—Julie,you are definitely a FOREVER FRIEND.

Bloglovin'

Follow my blog with bloglovin

Discovered this.

Trying this.

You don't need to follow--it's just what I had to post at the top--I just want to use it it like a Google Reader....

Will keep you posted.....

What happens in Mama’s Jacuzzi tub……stays in Mama’s Jacuzzi tub…….

 

Things have been a little slow in the news department around the old homestead.

The Christmas tree is down, but the stockings are still up…..it’s a process people.

The Studmuffin, Boy-Child and Bean are out of town this week, leaving Kelly and I  to bask in our, “Sweet Silence, Testosterone Free, Eat frozen dinners every night, watch every musical and episode of Gilmore Girls” blissdom.

My #2 daughter is moving home because she is thinking she wants to prepare to go on a mission for our church. Obviously this is one of those cases of--- the child turned out all splendid and spiritual IN SPITE of what her Mother did or didn’t do. It will be lovely having her here but hard to have to say good-bye again so soon. She also took her State boards and is a licensed Cosmetologist! Huzzah!

My refrigerator may or may not be  sustaining a life form or two that makes me afraid to open the door.

Speaking of unidentified life forms in unexpected places…… (like that lead in, huh, huh???)

This is my double seater jacuzzi bath tub.

Those are 4 of my children.

They all have their swimming suits on.

That is some of the bath jelly I made for my girls for Christmas.

Guess it really does foam up just fine.

I have no idea how this came about.

I blame this all on their Father’s genes.

I only lasted long enough to get the pictures.

The party lasted for quite awhile, I heard.

 

I am still finding crusty bubbles in unexpected places…………..help me………

What’s in a word?!

 

One word.

COLD.

It’s cold here.

Chilly.

Nippy.

Shivery.

{{I could play all day with my Thesaurus}}

Our new house has radiant floor heating and it isn’t feeling very radiant.

And yet…..

We just had to mortgage our second cousin’s, uncle’s new house to pay the propane bill.

Speaking of words……..

I see all over the internet that people do this thing where they choose a “word of the year” kind of thing.

Quite honestly, I sort of mocked it at first. Mostly because I was sure that, like New Years resolutions, I wouldn’t be able to sustain it past January 2nd.

But the thought has taken hold and bumped around in that empty space between my ears until it dawned on me that the very reason I didn’t want to do it……… provided me with the perfect word!

STRENGTH

Behind the masks. Beneath the pain. In that place where I still keep a little happiness and faith safely tucked away----I long for strength.

 

The strength to walk a mile……………..

The strength to smile more and to be less cynical….

The strength to say “yes” to my family more often…….

The strength to gather my family for scripture study and prayer, DAILY……..

Most of all, the mental and emotional strength to realize the difference between “my strength” and the “power of the Lord”………………..

 

One year.

One word.

An interesting experiment………………………….