No Greater Love

"Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends." - Jesus (John 15:13)

I've been pondering today.  Whenever that happens it produces a blog post :-)

I've been pondering dying.  Not the "keel over," sort of dying, but the "laying down your life for someone" sort of dying.  It all started yesterday after church when I talked to a friend.  This sweet friend has just brought two new kids into her family, as she was telling about how the adjustment is going, I couldn't help but think, "this is what it looks like to die."  It brought back many memories of when we first brought Marcus and Zoe home.  She didn't have to say too much to me; it only took only a few words for me to vividly recall and understand what she is experiencing.  The laying down of a life, her life, for another.

Later, we went to a Super Bowl party.  While the men watched the game, the women talked (and ate, but mostly talked).  These dear friends shared their trials (and their joys) of being a mom.  I sat with dying women.  What splendid company!

Today, as I pondered these thoughts, several of my children had "issues."  Some of these "issues" made school start late, they made lunch be served an hour and a half late.  Plans were set aside, the laundry did not get done, the house did not get cleaned, the dulcimer did not get played, the emails did not get read.  They made me die.  Laying down MY life for THEIRS.

And that is what love looks like.  It hurts.  It's hard.  It is so worth every sacrifice.


"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit."   -Jesus (John 12:24)

This Is Slightly Embarrassing!

I'm not really sure if this is a good idea, to post my very poor attempts to play my hammered dulcimer, but...oh well!  You'll need to overlook the uneven tempos, the hesitating, and the wrong notes :-)

So here you go, this is a sampling of what goes on around here every day...in 60 second intervals :-)



If you can stomach another one, here you go....

The Enemy

For those of you that haven't been informed, you can now hear the entire song The Enemy (from Wuthering Heights). Some of us have been waiting for this for months!  Enjoy!!

Thoughts On Mange

Well, I never thought that I would write a post about mange.  I also never thought that reading informational sheets from the vet could be entertaining, but I was wrong on both accounts.  While sitting in McDonald's enjoying a chocolate/Shamrock shake tonight, I pulled out the info sheet the vet gave me earlier today.  Here are some interesting (?) and entertaining nuggets of information I gathered.

1. "Most dogs live in harmony with their mites, never suffering any consequences from being parasitized."  First off, is parasitized even a word??  And how do we KNOW that dog and mite are living harmoniously??  Maybe they are waging constant, albeit very small, battles against each other.  Hmm?
2. "It seems like this would be a simple task since localized demodicosis classically involves several round facial bald spots and generalized demodicosis involves a bald scaly entire dog;"   Hmmm, yes, I think if I looked really closely, I could figure out which dog had generalized mange and which one had localized.  I'm sorry, but picturing a "bald scaly entire dog" is making laugh so hard, I'm crying!
3. "Treatment is not necessary or recommended for localized demodicosis but there are treatment options for people who simply cannot feel right about doing nothing." "Doctor, I know that there is no needed treatment, and that you don't think it wise to do anything to treat this condition, but I HAVE to do something!  Just give my dog some medicine so I can feel better!"  Hmmm, that sounds like a good idea, don't you think?
4. And last, but certainly not least - "Please, do not dip your dog in motor oil!"  Oh, bummer!  I was just going to go out and do that tonight!  I guess I'll just go to Redbox and get a movie instead.

Introducing....

Dumbledore

Because we all know we don't have enough pets around here! Actually, we like to get our pets in pairs...kind of like Noah...2 bunnies, 2 dogs, and now (once again) 2 hamsters.

Sad Puppy!

Our poor baby is not feeling well!  Not only has she developed a lovely bald spot (mange) on her back, she also has a double ear infection.  Poor thing had to be scraped, poked and prodded at the vet today.  No fun :-(

In Minnesota

Sand is in short supply, but snow will do....



Actually, snow is in short supply as well, but there was still enough yesterday to bury a small boy!