Sky Watch Friday 4-30-09

Forsythia Reaching to Sky Watch
Tender flowers burst forth ~ yellow and bright
Reaching to Sky Watch
With Us

A Beautiful Concrete Poem by Mary Ellen Solt

Think of all that you will do today.

Think of the people and things that will grow a little more
because YOU are there.

"Give us this day our Daily Bread"

The blessings of these apple trees

send me into a world of gratitude.
~ I thank God for their beauty and their harvest ~
They are one of the first things I see when
I open my eyes every morning.
I am so amazed how these trees endure
the harshness of the winter.
Then, every spring,
their energy within softens their branches
and new life begins to emerge.
They are ripe with buds . . .
Blossoms, new apples, ripe apples, bushels of apples, apple pies ...
yet to come!

Me -- Pack leader to Big Dogs?

Who would have ever thought ! ? !Big Dogs ~ I used to be afraid of them ~

When I was little I was terrified of them ... Except for my aunt's dog, Rocky, an old beagle mix, who ate Zia's delicious pasta on a paper plate.
Bear is a neighbor's dog; I'm just getting to know this big, beautiful Akita.
When I first met her, she was over-anxious to greet me... "excited-dominant" as they say...So, I used The Dog Whisperer's suggestion: no touch, no talk, no eye contact.
I carried on a conversation with my neighbor as if his dog were not really there... (This wasn't easy since Bear kept putting her nose in my hand for me to pet her... She is almost waist high *difficult to tell from this picture*
Now, she approaches me calmly, with her head bowed low, offers me her paw and rolls over *in the middle of the road* to show me her tummy.
I love being a pack leader ; )

Sky Watch Friday

Our trees are slowly budding
The crisp air is flowing in from the hills
Spring is blooming everywhere
Be Still and Know

See more sky photos at

A Shih Tzu gets a Bath

This is Misty. She is our 13 year old Shih Tzu.
She played outdoors, took long walks and tried very hard

to keep up with my daughter's two young and frisky dogs!
She REALLY needed a bath and a lil' pampering.

 

Am I done yet?

After almost two hours of grooming...
I'm all done and so proud!

Dog Whisperer, Cesar Milan says,
if I'm holding my head up, I'm proud!

Making the world more beautiful, one pooch at a time!
Okay, Muffin ~ You're next!

Something Delicioso! Parmesano Reggiano

Fresh Parmesano Reggiano Cheese!
I never knew it could taste like this!
Delicioso!
I've heard Rachael Ray talking about it all the time...and thought that all Parmesan cheese was the same until my cousin, Saro, explained it to me! It is only Parmesano Reggiano if it comes from that region of Italy. We treated ourselves to it at $12.99 a pound.
My reasoning was this...

We go out to eat only occasionally... soooo...

Why not enjoy fabulous cheese at home with our pasta! I checked with my cousin in Italy to see if I indeed purchased authentic Parmesano Reggiano cheese... ~I did~
~ Buon Appetito ~

What's in My Bible?

~A treasured Christmas gift of 33 years~

~I made the outside cover decades ago when I realized that my Bible was allowed out of the house~
~Filled with coffee stains, notes and prayers to read... this one is a parent's prayer~
~Special cards & letters of the special people in my life~
~Old songs from a church that closed, but I still "sing" them~~My husband's new and organized Bible~

~I think he secretly loves using mine, there's so much history inside~

Good Morning

Good Morning!
A dry Saturday morning in April means...
Everything!
Raking and gathering the old...
Spreading mulch, garden soil ~ the new...

April showers are due next week...
Out to give the garden a peek! ~Maria

. . . I was born to friends. . .

To the outside world we all grow old, but not to our sister and brother. To them, we look as we always have, for we know each other's hearts. We live outside the slow and gentle touch of time. Brothers and sisters share childhood memories and grown-up dreams. How beautiful it is to have been born to friends.

Jason: You light up my soul with laughter.

Rachael: I admire your go-get-'em attitude toward life's little pleasures.

I love you <3>

~Amanda

P.S. laughing and giggling in church was a gift--a glimpse back through childhood.

Sisters don't need words

...but we certainly manage to share a few!

What a wonderful Easter weekend...that overflowed into the week... 
Thank you for the treasury of time, talk, hugs and flowers

Sisters make you biscotti, just because!

Sisters are blossoms in the garden of life.

We may look old and wise to the outside world.
But to each other, we are still in junior high.

One of the best things about being an adult is the realization that
you can share with your sister and still have plenty for yourself. 


A sister is a friend and defender - a listener, conspirator,
a counselor and a sharer of delights.

Sister to sister we will always be,
A couple of nuts off the family tree.
~Maria

 Hi, Mom

Mom told me to stay off of the computer, because apparently dogs aren't allowed online, woof! Can you believe her? I was only trying to blog. Especially on the family sight, since I'm learning how to have calm energy myself. I guess all of those tapes of "The Dog Whisperer" have really helped me, mom's been letting me sleep on the bed lately. I don't even bother Mr. Darcy, but that might have something to do with the extra big bone I got the other day! Mr. Darcy's hind leg is bothering him again today. He's been holding it up in the air since mom got home from work. He doesn't seem to be in any pain, but I'm not trying to play with him anyway. I don't want to hurt him when he's the three-legged wonder. Mom thinks it might be a luxating patella, which I guess is like a dislocated kneecap. Apparently, this is really common in toy dog breeds and usually rights itself. I don't know how this could have happened, Mr. Darcy is very careful about not jumping off of things without help. Mom lifts him off of the bed every morning, so that he wont jump. I hope he feels better soon. Lastly, I wanted to say that I really miss you. You are my first pack leader, and I am grateful for getting whispered. I also miss Misty, you can tell her this yourself although I'll bet she puts in a little growl for me. ;)
Alrighty, Citu it's nearly time to be walked before bed. I love you. <3
~Chino Sanchez

little birdies

Our sweet lil' juncos!
They'll be here a few more weeks and then...
one by one
they migrate north to cooler temps.
I'll miss their sweet dispositions...
their lil' white tummies...
and golden beaks.
In this picture taken through my sunroom window
there are two juncos, the other two are part of the feeder.

Easter celebration!

I had so much fun at Aunt Doreen's Easter Celebration yesterday! Some of the highlights were: baking tea cookies and cooking appetizers with mom the night before, traveling in the pouring rain to get Nonno, all going to church together even though the "kids" weren't really listening to mass (by kids I mean the grown adults who are my parents children--we were worse than the actual kids in front of us), getting to see Sarah, Anna and Joey for a couple of hours, Isabella and Marcy's make-believe stories about diamond castles and wish fulfillment, eating delicious food and needing to exercise it off today.

Much love to my family, Amanda

Magic in my Cup♥

Hi Koralee!
I hope this little post helps.
I used the 'post options' to set the date as April '09
so it's like a secret post ;)

About my frother... It's just a simple lil' thing, but I love it!

My brother, Joe, first showed me how to make great lattes.
I bought the frother he used, an aerolatte.
The motor lasted about two years.

Then I tried the Bodum but the glass part broke!
I think that made the stiffest foam. But the glass is so thin.

I love the milk frother I have now... from the Melitta Coffee Co.
Several years ago, the Melitta co. offered it free for using their coffee filters.
I think I had to send in 3 or 4 UPC labels.
The motor is great...but you have to have good batteries.
I use rechargeable batteries in this, since I use it often. This way the motor is always functioning at its peak performance. (for a frother ;o)

I don't see it on their site any more... They sold it for $17.
I just emailed them and hope they get back to me.
My cousin has one ... she said she got it at the Christmas Tree Store!
*for a lot less, I'm sure!
Having frothy milk in my afternoon tea is such an awesome treat!

Hope your weekend is restful and that your upcoming week is gentle.
Your students will certainly be happy to have you back !
Take care and God Bless You,

Easter Joy

Gloria to God in the Highest

Sing Glory to God

Glory to God in the Highest

And Peace to His people on Earth.

Be Still and Know
Christ's suffering was not only physical, but deeply spiritual as He surrendered himself. He surrendered his ego, all the power and possibilities of a worldly life...He had thousands of followers (which was a lot at the time)...can you just imagine.
His sacrifice and example has so much more meaning than can be expressed in words.
It is in the stillness and space between our thoughts that we come close to God.

At the Cross

This post is so beautiful!

Oh Lord Jesus . . .lover of my soul,

even as you knew what you faced at the cross . . .

still you went.

On that tree you died for me . . .
...continued...
~Lovella

I need to know Jesus

This video is another amazing testimonial given on Sunday at Grace Fellowship Church.
There are more testimonials below.


I need to know Jesus from Frank Deno on Vimeo.

why BE alone?

Think about it…the story of Zacchaeus begins with Zacchaeus climbing a tree because he doesn’t think he matters. And one week later Jesus Christ will go to another tree to prove that he does… to prove that we all matter! (Awesome quote from this morning's service)

John 12:13
"They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, "Hosanna!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"

~An atheist is one who has no invisible means of support~

Grace Fellowship

Chris and i have been attending Grace Fellowship Church most Saturdays (when we see Paula) or Sundays with Jason, Rachael and Juan. I love it when we're all together ~ when Amanda and Billy are also there it's even sweeter ... I can sense our spiritual connection... it is vast and yet so intimate.
Rex Keener, the pastor, has a blog, which I visit occasionally. http://rexkeener.com/ Today I stumbled upon a link to the videos of personal testimony that are being used to intro his sermons. The first two I have featured on Calm~Energy are of people who are part of Grace's musical group.

They are very powerful stories. ~Maria


I have been forgiven much from Frank Deno on Vimeo.


I have been set free from Frank Deno on Vimeo.