Sugar overload...

From Lik-m-dip's to mini cheesecake brownies to pie and ice cream. Whether real or pretend, we have had our share of sweets around the house this week. Chip's birthday is on Sunday. I would declare our house 'sugar-free' this weekend, but I have feeling we will have to have a little something in celebration.

Monday morning starts our kids' spring break. I am planning on laying off the sugar and pushing the veggies instead. Wish me luck! =)

Somehow, Chip has managed to stick to a fairly healthy diet through all our desserts. Maybe there won't be birthday cake and buttercream afterall. Poor guy...with an April Fool's birthday, he never knows quite what to expect from all of us!

Four years and three days.

That's how long Brock has been waiting for this moment. It has not been easy. He's had to try and try and get frustrated and there have been moments of anger and doubt. But yesterday, he learned an important lesson in perseverance. Some things in life are worth fighting for.

Riding a bike is just one of those things. Today he got out there and fell down and got tired and frustrated all over again. But after a few more trys, his confidence and ability began to kick in. It was so great to witness...one of those moments in life where you couldn't put a pricetag on it...it really was priceless. Just now he came inside the house with one of the biggest grins I've seen in a long time. Sure, it's great to place first in a speech meet. Certainly there is something to be said for those terrific math scores and the list of books he read through for the recent Read-a-Thon at school.

But this time was different. It was years of trying and expending effort and finally realizing what we've been encouraging him to do all along really was to his benefit. We weren't lying. Riding a bike really is easy and worth all the effort it took to be able to ride all by himself. As a parent, I was proud. And I know he is now one step closer to the day we will eventually have to let him go out into the world- all by himself.

What's on my mind...

I guess the best way to describe my 'scrap-style' is this- 'Don't try to figure it out'. =) Some scrappers are very 'predictable' when they scrap. They have a certain 'look' or elements that you can expect in virtually every layout. Like Cathy Zielske...she's 'clean and simple'. I stuck fairly closely to her philosophy in that top layout of Chip and me (which I have to 'fix' because I typed the wrong year on it), but butchered it in the Hello Kitty layout. I have no common margins, no 'visual three's', and just basically did a free-style thing on it. Or think Heidi Swapp...just because I love her style and products. =) You can expect paint or chipboard on almost every single page she creates...lots of handwriting and solid colored backgrounds. She makes it 'work' everytime!
Then there's Elsie...always trying something new and different,and yet is just 'looks Elsie'. Am I right?! Me? I'm still trying to figure out what exactly it is that drives me to make pages. Or not make pages as some weeks go. =) I have a head full of ideas at any given time, but I'm finding I hold back, just because I'm not really sure what my 'style' is, and so I feel like I have to have the design figured out before I actually pull all my products together and stick them down on the page.
In these two layouts, I decided to just go for it. There was no 'pre-planning' or much thought to the overall design. In fact, these two layouts turned out totally different in their finished form, than the idea I sort of formed in my head as I sat down to create them. And you know what? I still like them. Both of them, because they show to me that I don't have to just do one thing when it comes to scrapping. Maybe that's my style...to shake it up each time, I don't know. I guess I am still in the process of figuring myself out from day to day, and it's only appropriate that that carries over into my scrapping life as well. Besides, I haven't even been doing this for a year yet, so I keep reminding myself that I am 'young' and still have a lot of learning to do when it comes to this part of me.
That's a part of the fun...the process, and growing and experimenting. Just how I like my life to be! I have always had a few 'quirks' in life. Just ask my family about what I was like growing up (if you're reading, Steph and Jacque, my Ragstock-trench-coat-phase comes to mind!) or ask Chip what he has to say about me. They'll tell you I can be a real oddball. That feeling that I've always had inside came out in the Hello Kitty layout full force. The part of me that never liked herself in Jr.High and High School is finally coming to terms with reality. And that, I am realizing, no matter how it looks on a scrap page, is a very good thing.
This is the message I wanted to share on my 'quirky' page. It says:
"At age 34 I am {finally} BeGiNing to love & accept myself just the way I am...including my Love of all things Hello Kitty."
It's about time, huh?!

Radical truths.

Sometimes (most times) in our busy, noisy lives, we struggle to find truth and make sense out of life and our purpose for living. I think there is a longing in every heart to know the truth. I have really enjoyed our sermon series at church the past several weeks- all about 'stories that Jesus told'. I have found them to be very 'timely' and full of good applications for living a life that really matters. Our pastor (Pastor Bill Rudd) has a new blog, which offers a bit more insight into the messages.
I have also listened to some really great messages from a couple of other insightful teachers of the truth. One is my former professor of theology, Greg Boyd, who has made me stop and think on more than one occasion. He is a bit more dynamic then some traditional preachers that you may have grown up listening to- he breaks the stereotype most people have of what a preacher looks and acts like. He used to play the drums like no other during the music portion of worship in church, and then swig some Mountain Dew before and during his preaching. I'd encourage you to listen to one or two of his messages, just to see what 'radical truth' sounds like sometimes! Especially check out his message from March 4, 2007- "The Kingdom is a really messy Party". Here is a list of some of the books he's written- which I'm sure you can find through Amazon.com or other websites.
Another spot I can wholeheartedly point you to are the messages linked here. This pastor here (Steve Goold) will tell it like it is- sometimes that's just the way we need to hear it. I have found some really great quotes and encouragement, and yet totally without 'fluff' or a 'nice package' like some people wish they could get their 'fix'. We often think that life is supposed to be 'easy' or comfortable and go our way. We fight the bad stuff that can come at us in all sorts of ways, and somehow buy into the idea that life is about getting to the top- being successful and having it all.
The messages and links I share with you here will challenge that thinking. It will sound so absolutely contrary to what 99% of the world is telling you is true. Yet, in the end, the truths you find in them will be 100% true, and absoultely something that you can believe in and challenge yourself to become more of. So, if you're looking for a little something to shake up your simple way of life, or to stop you in your tracks and ask, "Is there something more to life...am I missing something?", well then, follow the links, and prepare to be changed.
I believe you will find truth, wholeness, contentment and ways to strengthen your faith. There are lots of great messages and links...I hope that these offer you a good start!

Everyday pictures.

These photos are all mixed-matched pictures from last week. Basically if you are around me long enough or read back into the archives here at Nitty.Gritty., you notice a major theme. That would be 'loving your ordinary life'. I cannot stress this enough. It was something I was learning and applying to my life to a certain degree before our lives were touched by tragedy, but now have an even greater awareness that I need to love every minute I have been given, and to enjoy them and make the most of them- no matter what!

Granted, I blow it from time to time, and then feel really bad and have to apologize to people in my life, and then I refocus and get back on track. It keeps me humble, and is a good reminder to me, that life is a learning process and for me I strive everyday to be a better person than the day before.

Today then, these pictures remind me how much I love my life and my family and all the things that have made us who we are. They are a reminder to enjoy the present, to savor the simple, and to take each day as it comes~ just the way it is. I never want to lose sight of the things that truly matter to me...and then remember that they are gifts in my life- every single day.

Target is calling my name.

There are 58 different designer rainboots for women at Target. It's like a sick marketing ploy for a person with my genetic make-up...one who buys things because of the color combo or the interesting design, or simply because it's a little bit funky. At $19.99 a pair, these are a great price. But with more than 10 designs catching my eye it's a shame. I can't justify spending $200 on boots, and besides, I do not have space or need for that many- no matter how cute they are. So, instead, I'm passing on the link to you here.

Have fun browsing and seeing if there are any boots that catch your eye. I'm sure I'll cave and pick up a pair. The others will have to just be saved and used as my desktop background, and/or printed out and scrapped on a page. =) That's just what any good scrapper would do, right?!

The Way I See It #233. Exactly!

I was fortunate to be given the opportunity to trek up to northern Michigan (yes, the Sugar Bowl is still there...still going strong!) in {Chip's} new Highlander-Hybrid and enjoy an quick visit with old friends, new friends, and I scored a latte too. =)
It was one of those times in life where I saw many ways that God had things fall into place for me in order for this trip to take place. The time I put into my preparations more than blessed me with new insights, new challenges, and just a clearer sense of who God is and should be in life. I don't claim to be an expert on the topics of which I spoke {that picture is the intro slide of the presentation I gave..."Nitty.Gritty. Thoughts on passion and Spiritual Growth"}, but I found it to be a really great and an appropriate topic for busy Moms especially, but also to anyone who is feeling the need to slow down the pace of life, and get their priorities aligned with the goals and dreams they have- which are hopefully aligned with God's purpose and plans for our lives too. That is the key to living a life of peace, contentment and joy. It's about making intentional choices, seeking our highest purpose and calling in life, and letting go of anything that gets in the way of that.
You see, I am learning that the less I call the shots in my life and instead sacrifice what I think I need and want from day to day, that God in turn blesses that willingness in my heart, and gives me things which fill me more than the things I thought I really wanted in the first place. Okay...I need to go back, maybe you do too, and reread that, because it is so true. I believe, more and more, that that truth is becoming so contrary to what our American culture is telling us about ourselves and how we should live our lives. It's really about tuning out what society or the media or our environment is saying we should be doing, and instead, listening to what is our true heart's desire...which if it is in sync with God's desires and ultimate purpose and design for your life, I truly believe you will experinece a life of peace, contentment, joy. In the end, you will be living a life of true freedom. No matter what your circumstances, pressures or any other outside factor that comes at you and threatens to steal that from you; you will know true peace and that's the truth.

Most imporantly though, I talked about how it isn't always easy. In fact, I am beginning to see that many times our troubles in life are really opportunities for us to do some soul-searching, but instead, we get hung up on them or in them. We struggle to make sense of them and oftentimes, we don't know how to do that. I talked about how it's really a process. Sometimes an on-going one at that. I really think that if we embrace our struggles, and instead of feeling we are victims of circumstances or getting angry at these problems, or worse, feeling depressed and sorry for ourselves in the midst of these problems, we can ask ourselves, "what can I learn from this crisis; how can I grow through this trial, and what ways can I use this situation to become a better person in life because of it?". I know... it really isn't easy. I am also fully aware of the scope and range of growing issues in life that can creep up or show up unannounced- no matter who we are, what we do, or where we live. Really. I'm talking about 'big stuff'...like cancer, and death and divorce. Maybe your 'big thing' is a sudden job loss or some other financial disaster that looms just in front of you. For others, it could be a series of health concerns or infertility, that no matter how many tests or treatments or experts you talk to, you find yourself with no clear answers or direction to take next. Some of the hardest things in life to overcome are the ones that have changed and shaped your life in many ways, as you were a kid- growing up. Maybe it was a form of abuse, or a home in which you lived and yet never felt loved or secure, and because of that reality, you have found yourself going through life trying to fill those 'empty, hurting parts of yourself' with all sorts of things that seem to offer answers or temporary healing...like a job or sex or alcohol or food...anything that can numb you to the reality of the pain of your life. These kinds of things are like covering a massive wound with a bandaid. They just don't cut it in the longrun.

I know that this happens because I have lived it, but also witnessed it, first-hand and second-hand and even beyond that, through the lives of people around me. It is true at some point in every single life. Nobody is immune to the problems of this world.

Fortunately though, I fully believe that there is Hope for the hurting, that there is Strength for the weary, and that there is an Answer to every problem. It's up to you to seek the Truth, and begin to apply it and then experience it fully in your own life.

I am grateful for the opportunity to speak to some of that and to hopefully serve as an encouragement to not give up if you are in the middle of life's trouble, or just feeling that life has lost some of it's luster, and you just don't see much beauty or joy in it anymore. Once you 'get' what Life is truly about, you will find it to be full and exciting and really a joy from day to day, no matter where you are or what you do.

Maria Fadiman put it this way, in #233 The Way I See It, on the back of my Starbuck's cup yesterday morning. It states that she is a geographer and National Geographic Emerging Explorer, and her quote goes like this:

"I used to think that going to the jungle made my life an adventure. However, after years of unusual work in exoctic places, I realize that it is not how far off I go or how deep into the forest I walk that gives my life meaning. I see that living fully is what makes my life- anyone's life, no matter where they do or do not go- an adventure".

I think that is how we should embrace all of life and our problems. Tune out the world, listen to your heart, hear what Life is trying to tell you, and then respond appropriately, and with intention. I am thankful for each new day in my life and the opportunities- the good and the bad- that serve to grow me and challenge me to become all that I can be.

To the ladies that I got to meet (and see again, Heidi S. and others!), thank you. I throughougly enjoyed my time with you. I hope that you got a little something out of all that talking and laughing and crying we did together. I look forward to my next adventure in life, and I hope you do to!

Interesting.

Funny. You live somewhere and have so many big events happen in that place, and yet you forget so many things. I had three babies in this town, had a funeral for another, bought my first home, made lifelong friends...basically did a lot of living here. Yet, a flood of memories hits me each time I drive into Gaylord.
It's amazing to me how much I 'forget' when I'm not here. It's nice to come "home" every once in awhile. Feels good. Makes my 'memories real again'...and that's a beautiful thing.
The fact that there isn't much snow on the ground for this time of year, and now there's a Starbucks in town, makes it that much more sweet to be here.
No matter where I live in this world, a part of my heart will always be in Gaylord. I felt it today.

One Hit Wonder.

Found this on Elsie's blog. Now there's a girl with spunk, zest for life, and obviously too much time on her hands to find links like this! Really, I *love* her...always fun colors and ideas and inspiration on her blog.

When I saw this today, I just HAD to go there. My stomach was growling...time to feed my 'fame addiction'. =) If you feel the need to do the same thing for your own blog, go here.

Honestly? It has nothing to do with my fame addiction (which I don't think has ever been properly diagnosed), and everything to do with the fact that it's been too long since I've typed or talked about 'buttercream' around here. Buttercream makes me happy. I just was taking my own advice from my last entry and creating a little happiness. For me and some of you.

Happiness is...

If you are a scrapper, you can't help but scroll through these pictures and sense a scrap page coming on. This is a series of photos that I took of Wyndham while she ate icecream yesterday. I was sitting in the middle of the dining room table while she did her thing. Total happiness. In the form of a cup of fudge-swirled icecream- complete with the little 'wooden spoon'. For a few moments, this was our life...Wyndham and her icecream, and me and my camera making sure I didn't miss a drop. =)
To be fair (or 'unfair' to Wyndham as it was), she is having this moment of icecream bliss all to herself, because while she was at therapy, I took Brock, Bella and Ava to our local Marble Slab ice cream shop and we had our own icecream bliss; we shared a big dipper of coffee icecream with chocolate chips and marshmallows mixed in it. We were still 'celebrating Teagan' through our icecream treats yesterday, a day after her birthday...but close enough so we didn't feel guilty about the calories or the fact that dinner was only an hour away. =)
My plans to scrap a layout with these pictures are going to sit on hold for a few days, because I am in the midst of another project. A full-blown Nitty.Gritty. PowerPoint Presentation. I have the privilege and opportunity to head back to our former hometown of Gaylord, where I have been invited to speak to the MOPS (Mother's Of PreschoolerS) group this coming Thursday. I am excited to see some of my friends and connect for a short time with them and share with them in person, some of the thoughts I have been kicking around in preparation for this time together. It's gonna be fun. There might be some little surprises, and if I may be so bold to say so, I have a feeling that God is going to 'show up' for the morning too. I just have been so moved in preparing for this time, that it just seems fitting that God will be there to challenge us even more than I can do on my own.
So, if you're in the area, or you know someone who is, I'd love to have you show up too! In the meantime, and in case I get bogged down with trying to get everything done before I go and I neglect this blog for a couple of days, I will challenge you to stop for a minute at some point in your day, and "look for happiness" somewhere. Maybe in your kids, like I saw through Wyndham and some icecream yesterday. Maybe it's in doing something unexpected that creates happiness in the life of a coworker, friend, or family member. Maybe it's in taking a moment for yourself and simply making a short list (1-5 things off the top of your head) that you truly ARE thankful for in your life...but that sometimes you overlook because it's always there. {Like your refridgerator full of food, or your email contacts that at any time you can send a note to someone on that list just to say hello, or your spouse...who doesn't always turn his/her socks right-side out, but who does so much more for you in life that makes the 'sock-thing' actually a privilege for you! That kind of stuff.}
Whatever it may be, I encourage you to find it. Or create it. There is plenty of 'bad stuff' in this world in which we live each day, that I think it's only fitting for us to intentionally look for or create Joy and happiness in life at times. It makes life not only bearable...but {gasp} FUN once in awhile! That's what I love about my life. That's what I am seeking more of...and although I don't deserve goodness and joy and happiness because of anything I have done in my life, I am learning to accept it as a gift when it comes my way.

Teagan's Birthday.

I'm mixing the pictures up a bit today in this post in memory of Teagan. That top one is a picture of a card that we got from Grandma Karen as we marked Teagan's first birthday in Heaven. I have kept it on a memo board in my kitchen for 5 years now. It hardly seems like it's been that long, but it has.
For me, when I look at pictures of Teagan, or recall memories that we shared, they could have happened yesterday- they are that clear in my mind. Even as I spent time thinking about our birth experience with her and all the changes we made with having our first baby, now 10 years ago today, it hardly feels like it could be so long ago. I remember my thoughts and emotions and how perfect Teagan was when she was born. I remember hardly being able to breathe... probably partly from just having a baby, but truly, she took my breath away. I think it was the way she felt in my arms. I had been so against having a baby in my life, and I was so afraid of not being able to love this baby when it was born. I look back now, and can't believe I wasted so much time stressing about and worrying about something that never happened. Something that couldn't have been further from the reality that took place.
The moment Teagan was placed in my arms, tears started rolling down my cheeks. I was smitten. I would have died on the spot for her. And any of my other kids when they were born too. It just happened naturally to me. Instant, absolute, pure love. I remember trying to fall asleep that first night, (yeah right! Teagan was up squawking for most of it!) and thinking to myself that my heart could burst- I had no idea I was capable of so much love.
There were lots of challenges with Teagan as a newborn in my life. I felt isolated in my home alone most of the day- alone, but with Teagan. As a firsttime Mom, I was nervous to go very far and struggles with figuring out how to do everything...like baths and grocery shopping and stuff I never thought would be an issue. It was tricky. As many of you know, parenthood changes the dynamics of your relationship with your spouse too. There were lots of things we had to adjust to...but as we learned to adapt, I was more and more comfortable with my new role as a mom, and I grew to love this new part of my life every single day.
As Teagan grew, so did I, in many respects. I not only realized how much I loved having kids, but also that I couldn't have been happier than when I was home just being with my family. When I had to go back to work, part-time, Teagan got to come with me to the office and it worked out great, but I realized I just loved being a mom most of all. Through the years, and with a second and third baby, it became a priority of mine to be home full-time. It also costs a lot to have three kids in daycare, so we crunched our budget and made it work so that I could stay home and be with our kids. I loved it.
I thought I 'had it all' when Wyndham was born. We were living in the first home we had bought just months earlier, in a quiet neighborhood with a fenced in back yard. We had great friends, Chip liked his job, we were happy at our church, and life just seemed to be "going our way". Really, it was like that. We stressed once in awhile if we had a car needing a repair, or I wished I could see our family in Minnesota more often, but by and large, things were rosy in our corner of the world.
At three weeks of age, Wyndham had a medical problem...she stopped breathing and we called 9-1-1 and she ended up air-ambulanced to Hurley Hospital in Flint, MI where she spent 5 days in the ICU on a respirator. We were able to bring her home, and although we were all shaken by this incident and concerned and aware of how close we had come to losing her, we were very grateful to have our little family back together again. I felt that God was telling Chip and I to never take what He had given to us for granted- even our kids. So, I didn't. I loved my kids in a 'new way', realizing that they could be gone if something ever happened. I was more protective of them, and yet more patient, because I realized they were kids, and I wouldn't have forever with them. They were growing up and I was aware of how much I just needed to soak up this time with them while they were so young.
I was living that and loving that and thought life had tested me and that I had come through my experience as a better person. I was 'living the good life'. At least the way Chip and I had decided we wanted to live life. Comfortable, secure, happy.
Teagan couldn't have been happier. She followed me around the house all day, or outside, "helping me" and asking questions, playing with Brock and making us all laugh at her antics. She would sing and dance and run and play Barbies and color and paint and just basically had the kind of easy childhood that every kid deserves. She loved being a little girl. She loved her birthdays, and when her fourth birthday came, she said, "I just want to be four forever!". She said it for the next four and a half months, from time to time. I always thought is was unusual that she wanted to stay four, but she held her ground on that wish.
I think about that wish of hers more than anything, each year when her birthday rolls around. I wonder if God made her say that so often, so to ease some of my sorrow in the way that it sort of does. I mean, I have a hope of Heaven. There is no doubt in my mind that Teagan is there. She prayed and asked Jesus into her heart the day before she died just before she ate her lunch. I know that is all God asks of us if we want to gain eternal life- simply believe that Jesus died on the cross to pay the price for our sins, and we in return are given everlasting life in Heaven. I believe that He is true to this promise, and since Teagan prayed a little prayer, asking Jesus to come into her heart, I live with the assurance that I will see her again when I die.
That hope, that reality, that even though she is separated from me now I will see her again someday, was the one thought that made my pain bearable when she died. I miss her in my life every single day. Some more than others. Like when I stop and think too long, or when we do something that I know Teagan would have loved doing, or in our family pictures...I always see a 'hole' where she should be. It's true. It hurts more than I could put into words here, at times.
Today Teagan would have turned 10. I have no idea how she would like to style her hair, or what her favorite subject would be in school. I don't know if she would be playing an instrument, or what sport she would like the best. I don't know if she would want a puppy or would have wanted a sleepover with her friends. I don't know what kind of cake she would have had me make; I have no idea what would have topped her birthday wish list of presents. There is so much I don't know, that if I spend too much time thinking about it, I can't type through my tears. And that pain that gets pushed in to a little corner of my soul...it comes at me in full force. It hurts. It's sad and it's not fair that the arms I have that once held her and felt love like no other from the moment she was placed into them, cannot give her a simple, little birthday hug today.
I could go on and on, but I have learned, after celebrating 6 birthdays without her now, that my heart would rather celebrate what I had, and what I still have in life, rather than getting hung up on what I am missing out on. I wouldn't trade the hug I got in that picture above from Teagan that time. And that picture is only one of several hundred hugs around the neck that I got in her 4 short years. The smiles, the laughter, the joy, the challenges, the changes, the ups, the downs, the realization that I was so lucky to have her in my life- and all the blessings that our family has been given since her death- that is what my heart celebrates on Teagan's birthday. I posted a picture of Brock and me from our lunch out today, as a family. I sat there thinking how different things would be if Teagan were here, and really I can't say that I know how things would be for sure.
A part of me knows that I was lucky to not have lost Brock and Wyndham at the same time as Teagan's death. I don't know that I would be the person I am today if that had happened. So, I was thankful for them. And for Chip. And for Isabella who showed up in my life when I thought the timing couldn't have hardly been worse...and yet when she was born {4 days before we marked the first anniversary of Teagan's death} the timing was perfect. She filled my arms again, not that she could replace Teagan, but she diverted some of the sorrow of my soul, and created a new purpose for my pain. I had to look beyond some of my sorrow and embrace what life (I believe God planned her all along) was giving to me. I am thankful for Ava too. She likely wouldn't be in my life if Teagan were still here. Again, I don't know for certain, but Chip and I weren't planning to have a family of five kids. Now we have five, but one is waiting for us in her new home in Heaven.
Sometimes I feel like Teagan can look down and see everything we're doing in life. I don't know if she can for certain; it just feels like it sometimes. I know that if she was watching us today, she would see that we still love her like crazy, that there is a longing in our hearts to know everything about her, and that we can't wait to see her in Heaven someday. In the meantime, we are doing our best to make sure that we remember to laugh and live and love, and to tell others about Heaven. Because we want everyone to have a chance to meet her...and more importantly, to meet God- the one who has changed our hearts forever.
Happy Birthday, Teagan from your whole family on earth. You were celebrated today, and are in our hearts always!

I spy something green...

My kids are all wearing green tshirts today to display our Irish heritage. I couldn't help but grab my camera and snap a picture of Ava at our front door sporting her little green fairy wings. I'm wise enough to know that it won't be much longer until she's outgrown them and moving on to 'bigger and better' outfits. They likely won't have wings.
The greatest thing to me about St. Patrick's Day is my Irish Grandma. She would be horrified to know that I posted a picture of us without any green in sight on our clothing (it's a requirement around her on March 17th), but this most recent photo of us happened to be taken on Valentine's Day when we were with her last month- thus, the pink.
I have wonderful memories of this holiday through the years. My Grandma Shirley was adopted as a baby, but maintains that she is 'pure Irish'. If you saw the number of Irish decorations, from shamrocks to leprechauns and everything in between, you wouldn't question that she is right. She has put on an Irish dinner for friends and family easch year, sometimes over a period of several days, just so everybody gets in on it. Everything on her menu- the corned beef and potatoes and cabbage and Irish Soda bread are mouth watering. It makes you wish St. Patrick's Day happened more than once in a calendar year- it's that good.
Im fairly certain today, as I reflect back over my life through the years, that I am at least half Irish in my heritage. I'm that lucky.
Here's wishing my "Irish Grandma" much blessing and good fortune in her life. She has been a blessing in mine already. Love and miss you Grandma Shirley. My kids are happy to wear green and share your love of this day with you!