Wednesday, September 30, 2009

The perfect reminder

of God's goodness





It's time to put away the worries, abandon the undone must do's, and just remember how good God is, how much He loves us and trust that He will take care of us!

Friday, September 25, 2009

Widow of the South



The 2nd Battle of Franklin, was the deadliest of the Civil War. 2,500 Northern casualties, and 6,700 Confederate casualties.
The Widow of the South tells the story of that day and subsequent events. The McGavock plantation was seized as a hospital, where hundreds were cared for and buried. Already devastated by the loss of three of her children, Carrie McGavock is thrust into the middle of the dead and dying. She devotes the rest of her life writing letters to the relatives and tending the graves of more than 1,500 fallen.
It's a fascinating story, heartbreaking, but a testimony to a woman's strength.
I shed many a tear, but that's criteria for a good read in my estimation.

Thursday, September 17, 2009

It's official!



Blessings on a new little Deinhammer, scheduled to join the family in early April.

Speaking of a million

This from the CCI newsletter:



Dean Koontz Memoir A Big Little Life




Dean and Gerda Koontz have been generous donors to Canine Companions for many years. Canine Companions was pleased to receive a $1 million donation this month, with over $6.5 million given to Canine Companions over the past few years.
Everybody knows Dean Koontz. He is an enormously popular novelist with eleven #1 New York Times bestsellers to his credit. But do you know Trixie? She was the Koontz family’s beloved golden retriever, and she had quite a following of her own. A BIG LITTLE LIFE: A Memoir of a Joyful Dog (August 25; $24.99; Hardcover) is Dean Koontz’s first ever nonfiction book and it chronicles the love shared between Dean, his wife Gerda, and their inimitable “Trix,” and the life lessons learned from this unbelievable dog with a megawatt personality.

Trixie Koontz, or “Short Stuff” as Dean often called her, has a unique story. Dean and Gerda adopted Trixie after an injury released her from Canine Companions for Independence, a nonprofit organization that trains dogs to assist people with disabilities. As a guest blogger on Dean’s Web site, Trixie attracted her own loyal contingent, and went on to author three books. Her most recent book, Bliss to You, was a New York Times bestseller. Trixie passed away in 2007, and the Koontz family remains a major supporter of Canine Companions. In fact, the Canine Companions campus in Oceanside, California, one of five training centers nationwide, is named the Dean, Gerda and Trixie Koontz Campus. All of the author proceeds from sales of A BIG LITTLE LIFE will be donated to Canine Companions.

The private life of Dean Koontz has never been the focus of his books—until now. A BIG LITTLE LIFE gives Koontz fans and dog-lovers a never-before-seen look into Dean’s home and family life. He talks about his own past, the inspiration for his writing, his and Gerda’s marriage and business partnership, and their life in southern California with Trixie. Dean’s sense of humor is at its best as he describes his own habits and those of the people closest to him. He is also not afraid to get serious, imbuing the book with a deeper meaning by opening up about his personal beliefs.

In often humorous and always touching language, Dean describes Trixie as a little dog with a huge heart, one that inspired him in many ways. He weaves in stories about the golden retriever’s uncanny ability to recognize good character, her adventurous nature, her love of practical jokes, how well she vogued for the camera, and her stoicism. Trixie became a critic, writer, and entrepreneur and caused Dean to rethink everything he thought he knew about animal psychology. This heartwarming memoir makes it clear that Trixie’s winsome and caring personality was contagious. She affected everyone—human and animal alike—who was lucky enough to cross her path.

For the Koontzes, Trixie was more than a pet. She was a teacher, a furry daughter, and a constant companion. Most of all, Dean says, Trixie restored a sense of wonder to his world. A BIG LITTLE LIFE is a powerful tribute to a beloved family member and will remind readers everywhere that the love of our canine best friends is a love that lasts a lifetime.




Word on the street is that the book is captivating!!! Can't wait to start it.

A Million Minutes for Peace




I hope you'll submit your name to the United Nations
PrayforPeace
and join millions of others at noon on September 21 praying for peace.

Here's one prayer for peace, written by Ken Hamilton, based on the Prayer of St. Francis:



Dearly Beloved,

Make me an instrument of your peace.

Help me to see by the graceful light of forgiveness,

To hear in the blessed silence of inner peace,

To feel with the loving heart of compassion,

And be free through the power of faith and love,

That I may serve in the glory of your love

Bringing peace, love, and meaning to the world

This day, for this day is thine, forevermore.

—Ken Hamilton

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Woof if you love America



Davi and Willie, you're such instigators!!!

We all got a message from Davi yesterday, asking us to vote for her photo that she submitted to Aaron Brothers' Show Me Your America contest. It's a great shot of her grandson, a baseball phenom, throwing out a runner at first base.

So, of course I followed directions as I'm wont to do. But at our CCI outing last night Willie said I needed to submit this famous photo of Mer. I didn't give it much thought, but she, being the encourager that she is, followed up with an email. Once again I followed directions because that's what I do.
So now Mer and I are asking for your votes. You can't vote until Sept. 16th, but you can rank the photo, which will move it up in the ratings.
voteforamerica


I also hope you'll vote for Davi's photo!



Here's another to vote for:


voteforbubba

and another, Nona, being raised by Sharon Crawford and her girl scout daughter as part of silver award

voteforNona

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

update


I'm only half crazy - #24 was in the scanner,
too bad, it was one of my favorites..
still looking for sewing kit:-)
if anyone goes to encinitas panni, will you let me know if sleeves are selling?

Can't wait to meet Suzy again



It's been 22 years since I've seen her in person. Looking forward to meeting her again.

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Follow-up for Enviromedia's Pay It Forward Day

This from Enviromedia's blog Enviromedia
Today, Friday, September 11, 2009, more than 40 EnviroMedians in Texas, Oregon, New York and Wyoming set out on a journey of goodwill, in teams of two, armed with a $100 bill and this card:




Then, later that afternoon, we gathered together to share our experiences. While you’ll be hearing more about those experiences in subsequent posts, here are some of the creative and compassionate ways our staff put those $100 bills to work:

Purchased groceries for people at supermarkets
Funded the adoption of a homeless cat from an animal shelter
Provided supplies for an elementary schoolchildren’s vegetable garden
Presented more than 100 red roses to residents of a senior center
Paid for music lessons for three aspiring young cellists
Gave out restaurant gift cards at a facility for unemployed jobseekers
Contributed toward physician co-payments for several patients
Bought baby supplies for residents of a homeless shelter
Contributed to the (Matthew) Shepard Symposium on Social Justice
Paid admission fees for people at an art museum
Provided flu shots for people without health insurance
Helped to sponsor senior trips for underprivileged high school students
Provided gifts and bedding to a resident of a women’s shelter
Picked up tabs for people at a sandwich shop, taco stand and coffeehouse
Made a cash donation to a blood bank
Provided free coffee for firefighters
Made a donation to NYC’s Ground Zero Museum
And purchased a commemorative brick to raise funds for the expansion of a facility for neglected and abused children. The brick will bear the inscription, “Kindness is a boomerang; Pay It Forward.”

Friday, September 11, 2009

Pay It Forward 9/11



This is Katie's boss at Enviromedia, who instituted his own idea of pay it forward after experiencing the kindness of strangers on 9/11.

The next post will tell you more of the story.

Pay It Forward 9/11

This is the company Katie works for. Hopefully I'll have some more feedback when I find out how she and each of her co-workers spend their $100.
Here's the link that explains the story better and describes what people did last year.
enviromediapayitforward

I got to go with Katie this morning to the Austin Children's Center where she and her partner chose to buy a brick commemorating 9/11 and the pay it forward story.
It's still under construction, but we were given a tour. The multiple buildings include and infant/toddler center, villas for older children, a charter school with a gymnasium. Ultimately it will be able to care for 78 abused children of all ages until proper, caring homes can be found for them.





This afternoon I'll get to hear the stories of her co-workers and how they made this better place.

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

The land of the lost

why is it I spend so much of my time looking for lost things???

I had counted and recounted 24 coffee sleeves, but when I went to deliver them there were 23.
Not in my car, not at home, not at Rita's where I stopped...
Such a mystery.

Today it's my sweet little black hello kitty sewing kit, which contains one of the few remaining pin cushions knit by my mother and my grandmother's gold thimble. I used it Monday to finish afore mentioned sleeves and didn't take it anywhere, but it's vanished.

I don't care so much about the sleeve, but I do care about my little black case.
Guess I'll put it in St. Anthony's hands.




Dear St. Anthony, I pray
Bring it back, without delay.

St. Anthony, St. Anthony
Please come down
Something is lost 
And can't be found 

Monday, September 7, 2009

I did it!

I finished the 24 coffee sleeves for the Pannikin.



These are my favorites.

Such a privilege



to be invited to the nuptial mass for Christy Peters and Terence Hoeft

Saturday, September 5, 2009

homework assignment #1

After working all day I've finally finished my homework in suziblu's class for this week.

meet Gloria


She's far from perfect, slightly chubby and her eyes and head are a tad too big for her body, but I love her just the same.

Next step: learning to color her in with colored pencils...

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

I think she's a toddler now!





but still as beautiful and sweet as ever.

Going to be a reader too I'm sure!