Gabi's third birthday at Disneyland

Gabi was treated to a birthday celebration at Disneyland....we had such a great time!!

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Never Forget

Today is September 11. We should never forget those whose lives were lost on that day, 8 years ago.

Sadness in the loss of someone so young

We received sad news this week. Our great niece has passed away from complications of pneumonia. She was only 20 years old...a couple of weeks away from celebrating her 21st birthday. What should be a celebration of a young lady becoming an adult has now turned into a memorial for someone who did not have time to really live a life. Her name is Jessica Lynn Prater. She was my husband's sister's granddaughter. We met her once when she was just a baby but haven't seen her since. This still doesn't ease the pain that is felt for such saddness in ones family. May she rest in peace and may peace and comfort come to her family.

~*~ Jessica Lynn Prater 09/24/88 to 09/04/09 ~*~

The Invitation

It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for
and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.

It doesn’t interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn’t interest me what planets are squaring your moon...
I want to know if you have touched the centre of your own sorrow
if you have been opened by life’s betrayals
or have become shrivelled and closed
from fear of further pain.

I want to know if you can sit with pain
mine or your own
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it.

I want to know if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes
without cautioning us
to be careful
to be realistic
to remember the limitations of being human.

It doesn’t interest me if the story you are telling me
is true.
I want to know if you can
disappoint another
to be true to yourself.
If you can bear the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless
and therefore trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not pretty
every day.
And if you can source your own life
from its presence.

I want to know if you can live with failure
yours and mine
and still stand at the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,
“Yes.”

It doesn’t interest me
to know where you live or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up
after the night of grief and despair
weary and bruised to the bone
and do what needs to be done
to feed the children.

It doesn’t interest me who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the centre of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.

It doesn’t interest me where or what or with whom
you have studied.
I want to know what sustains you
from the inside
when all else falls away.

I want to know if you can be alone
with yourself
and if you truly like the company you keep
in the empty moments.

oriah mountain dreamer

My london/paris trip

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My new fairy name

Your fairy is called Columbine Goblintree

She is a bringer of riches and wealth.

She lives in mushroom fields and quiet meadows.

She is only seen when the first leaves fall from the trees.

She wears lilac and purple like columbine flowers. She has gentle green wings like a butterfly.

Get your free fairy name here!