October 2, 2010

breezy blue

for the past for 7 months

we have had sun and heat

and the occasion trade wind blowing.

today the weather is sunny and coolish

HA!!

am i loving it?

yes.

the rainy season is coming

it has been raining every night for the past few days

and today the sun came out, yet the wind remained

so it was sunny and not hot!

making it, literally, the perfect day!

i  gardened,

practiced spanish with carlos,

got caught up on correspondence,

shared my birthday cake

with carlos, candy and of course bob,

ran some errands with bob,

wash floors,

cleaned the bathroom,

did laundry

and hallelujah.. i didn't sweat!!!

i know you might be thinking that is more information that you need

but truly after 7 months of almost constant heat i am 

thrilled about the change in the weather.

delighted

truly

delighted!

October 1, 2010

his thoughtfulness

i woke up to this sight

what a beautiful birthday greeting!

i guess bob did this after i had gone to bed

isn't he sweet?

he is!

bob is the best surprise giver ever.

he has given me many surprise birthday parties,

once surprised me with a trip to florida for our 10 anniversary.

he got me to the airport and i didn't have a clue that we were

going on a trip.

in the 28 years of marriage we have learned something

those who give surprises like surprises

but those who receive them often don't.

that means:

i should surprise BOB!

but i can't keep a surprise to save my life.

bob has learned to consult me more before

throwing parties and whisking me away on trips!

he asked what i wanted this year.

i didn't want a big party

i gathered together some of my island friends 

and took them out for dinner to a local dive..

oops i mean favorite restaurant.

it was fun to bless them!

we had a good time together

brandi surprised me with flowers picked from her yard!!

and then in the evening we had a few couples over for

a time of sharing, singing and support spiritually

and yes..

we had cake!!  

a lovely lovely day.

one thing that did surprise me was that

the kids are arranged to all meet up and skype together

THAT WAS WONDERFUL! 

mmmm cake!
looks like a small piece but that is because..
ahem..
that was my third piece!!!

:-)

Sept. 30, 2010

a little light

my day starts early

i am usually up at 5:30 am

while it is still dark

but within a half hour the light is dawning

it is the sweetest time of my day

i watch the light kiss the clouds

i watch the birds come to feed

i listen to the sound of the morning with joy

and 

i am in awe of the beauty that behold my eyes

i try to grab my camera when i get up

for moments such as this

the door on our bedroom is warped so it makes quite a racket

upon opening and closing so i hate to go back in the bedroom

for my camera

as i don't want to wake up bob

(sleep is precious)

thankfully i had grabbed it before leaving the room

i was drawn to the deck by the light in that one cloud

it wasn't til i was standing there that i saw the cruise ship 

coming in bathed in early morning light

light in the clouds

light shining 

through the dark cloud

always hope

always

always

it stills my soul

knowing He is there

no matter what is all around us there is always light shining

as i write this i am listening to kari jobe

and i want to share the lyrics to a song 

that is so fitting

BE STILL

He is here for the broken and life to the one who is undone
He is peace to the wounded and hope for the helpless one
He is here, He is here

Be still my soul, be still
Be still my soul, be still
Wait patiently upon the Lord
Be still my soul, be still

When the waves rise against me and the wind tries to draw me away
I will stand on the mountain, safe in Your arms I will sing I will sing

Be still my soul, be still
Be still my soul, be still
Wait patiently upon the Lord
Be still my soul, be still

Be still I know He is God
He is here, He is here
Be still I know He is God
He is here, He is here

no matter what you are facing

today 

may there be enough light

for you to be still

and know 

that 

He

is 

God

Sept. 29, 2010

a gift

last night we had chuck and tia over for dinner

i was so surprised when she handed me this beautiful candle!

wow
i wasn't expecting anything other then a lovely evening together
connecting after too long


a pleasant surprise

you know how much i love hummingbirds.

how beautiful is this?

it got me thinking about the art of being thoughtful

i believe in some ways it is becoming a lost art

the art of thinking of someone else

and doing or saying something for them

tia is thoughtful
and caring
and alive
here is a quote off her fb page:

Love through me, Love of God.
Make me like thy clear air
through which, unhindered, colors pass
As if it were not there.
--(Amy Carmichael)

i encourage you to do something for someone tomorrow 

or today

whenever you read this

write them a note, give them a call, 

buy them a cupcake,

make time for them in your busy schedule

practice the art of thoughtfulness

it is such a blessing

i am blessed by my little candle

it's soft glow warms my heart 

because i know the heart who gave it to me

what about you?

who are you going to be thoughtful towards?

go for it!

Sept. 28, 2010

homegrown

this is one of my favorite tropical flowers

it is called pride of barbados

i can see why they would call it that

we have a beautiful tree on the far side of the property

i got tired of making my way over there just to see it

or pick some flowers for the table

so i decided to try to grow some from seed.

i am happy to say it worked!!!

today the first flower bloomed.

small joys.

life is full of small joys.

was it worth the wait?

absolutely

most good things are worth the wait

i am also happy to say that the wind is blowing,

rain is falling and that heat that plaqued us is now

a vague yet real memory.

there is a huge storm all around us

a tropical storm

so far it doesn't look like it will be bad

but truthfully i love a good storm

i feel terrible about the terrible mudslides and flooding 

in mexico

please lift them up in your prayers

many lives were lost, 

many homes were destoyed

sorrow prevails for them

on the topic of prayer please pray for our gardener carlos

he had a severe migraine today

he has the aura flashes, vomited twice

and  yet still resisted me taking him to the clinic

but.. i won and he went!

he has special meds to take and the doctor ordered some bloodwork 

to see if it might by acute malaria or anemia.

thanks for sticking with me as  i blog blog blog away.

i am on day 271 out of 365

less then 3 months til the project is done.

Sept. 27, 2010

crabby

the blue crabs are out in full force these days

you see them in the garden
(destroying plants.. argh!)

on pathways

on the road

i knew a gringo here who hated the blue crabs

so everytime he saw one on the road he would run it over

it was a sadistic pleasure of his

'ahha got another one!!'

but the problem was that they 'got' him in the end

when one of their pinchers put a hole in the tire of his car

i know it wasn't nice but i laughed when i heard that

it isn't just gringos that hate these little critters

but so do dogs

today moto, our dog was going crazy barking at it,

nipping at it, and basically trying to eat it

it is strange

can you imagine a north american dog trying to eat a crab??

i can't

but island dogs enjoy the crab meat.

strange eh?

who told the dogs that crab meat is good eatin'??!

:-)

i am happy to say that no crab was injured in this photo shoot

carlos managed to pick up the crab and throw it over the fence

i was proud of him because the local people love crabs..

in their soup!

i am glad he didn't kill it and take it home to mama

it isn't easy being a blue crab here in roatan

tis a dangerous place..

and for the record...

this blasted heat is making me crabby!

september is unbearable here because the trade winds stop blowing

and it is just HOT

the good thing is that in my crabbiness no one tried to run me over,

no dog tried to eat me

so i guess it is okay

i just regret not going out to run errands with bob in the a/c car today

instead i stayed home and roasted to death

yes i am complaining.

unashamed

crabby

moto get away from that crab mister!

Sept. 26, 2010

liquid light

sunday is "west bay day"

we usually visit with friends and snorkel

alot of friends are off island right now (sigh)

and today i tried to snorkel but, my back was too sore after

stupidly trying to take a hibsicus out of the garden yesterday.

i think i did a real number on my back

so instead of snorkeling i went for a nice beach walk

poor bob had to snorkel alone

i know, i know.. i should have left the hibiscus for carlos to deal with

but sometimes i just like puttering in the garden

removing a large tree is a bit more then puttering though.

 anywys, as i was walking i saw a friend in the water 

and so i meandered in

(with my camera in hand, of course)

as she was talking i couldn't believe how beautiful the light

was on the water 

i was listening to her.. yes i was, BUT

i was also thinking 'man, i need to get a photo of this before the light changes!'

i am glad i did

isn't this gorgeous!?!

i am so blessed to live in such a beautiful spot

now in case some of you are having thoughts of envy

let me also share this:

the sand flies were terrible today on the beach

and i got eaten alive.

but you have to take the good with the bad in life

it is all about that.

i hope you had more good in your day then bad...

blessings

xo