good things come in small packages

when you think of the good things that come in small packages,
what do you think of first?

diamond earrings?

keys to a porsche?

a baby in the manger?

a mustard seed?

"I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed,

you can say to this mountain, 'move from here to there' and it

will move.  nothing will be impossible for you."  matthew 17:20

here's what the mustard seed becomes:

i thought of the diamond earrings, too.  :)

love,

lea

the perfect day!

my perfect day would begin at 7:30 a.m. when  my eyes would pop
open a few minutes before hans' alarm beeps.  i would hop out of
bed to his surprise saying,

"oh my gosh, i slept nine straight hours and had the sweetest dreams
about my grandma goldie!"

sipping my perfectly brewed vanilla bean latte, i would flip open my
laptop and then close it again and flip open my bible instead to the
psalms.  i would be reminded and then grateful for the Lord's love for
me and, lo and behold, an incredible post would float into my head.

hans kisses me goodbye, and now i begin typing.  oh, the heart stirring
eloquence and funny anecdotes that would drip from my fingers!

time to meet one of my dear friends at the gym to run for 30 minutes,
complete four intervals of 20 reps on every machine, and a cartwheel.
from here i would surrender to my masseuse for an hour followed by
some time with my manicurist and hair stylist.  when i try to pay them,
the owner would say,

"you have been such a long and faithful patron, we want to  'comp'
this today."  sigh

i glide into whole foods with one of my 1,000 memorized recipes in mind
and am able to fit all that i need into two extremely light bags.  when back
home, i am pleasantly surprised to see that it is beautifully decorated by
ralph lauren.  the groceries magically wash, dice, and throw  themselves
into a pot of savory broth to simmer all afternoon.

after exchanging two or three delightful phone calls and emails, i will hit
the shower and put on a favorite lily pulitzer, which is a tiny bit snug in
the  bust and loose through the hips.

hans would then walk back in the door and say,

"why don't we watch all the pbs 'pride and predjudice' episodes back
to back?"

one can dream. :)   what's your perfect day?

love,
lea

ps.  "I will maintain my love to him forever."  psalm 89:28

'peggy-isms'

dear emily,

i have already written a post on my precious mother in law, peggy, but
today she said so many darling 'peggy-isms' i had to pass them along.
hans and i were driving peggy and walt, my father in law, to see the
progress of the new "anthropologie" installation.  as we were passing
through one of the pretty neighborhoods on the way, peggy says,

"oh, look at those sweet naked ladies!"

hans almost had a wreck and was very disappointed to see that the
naked ladies were actually lovely pink flowers with no leaves.

en route, she also told us about a friend whose mother was a devoted
bridge player.  if she ever needed a fourth, the mother would call the
school to say that her daughter had a dentist's appointment.   then she
would send her chauffeur to pick up  the daughter and deliver her to
the bridge game, and no one thought a thing about it.  they probably
even let her have some sherry.

that story then somehow reminded peggy of her favorite little red sports
car on which she had a bumper sticker that said, "you toucha' my car, i
smasha' your face!"  apparently, in addition to the bumper sticker, one
night at the dinner table with her husband and FIVE sons, she read to
them the mafia application:

1.  what'sa your name-a'?
2.  what'sa your favorite-a' pasta?
3.  who'sa your momma'?

i know this is terribly politically incorrect, but she can DO these accents
hysterically well, having been trained to do so.

anyway, back to the "anthopologie" tour:

this amazing store  has a team of designers who fly from city to city to
oversee the installation of each store.  it was fascinating to see how clever
and creative the designers are.

these are just two examples of background displays inserted even before
the walls are painted or the reclaimed wood floors finished.  while we
were there, hans made his mom pose for a pic.  can you believe that
figure at 81?

here's another time she posed in a similar 'fashion'.  sorry it's so tiny and
blurry.  you can see lots of her movie photos here.

that'sa all i have to say about-a' that-a',
lea

ps.  "when she heard in moab that the Lord had come to the aid
of His people, naomi and her daughters-in-law prepared to return
home."  ruth 1:4

have a heavenly weekend!

You established Your faithfulness in heaven itself.

the heavens praise Your wonders, o Lord.

for Who in the skies above can compare with the Lord?

Who is like the Lord among the heavenly beings?

have a heavenly weekend!

love,
lea

ps.  psalm 89: 2, 5, &6

anniversary month

hans and i celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary this month with
an elegant dinner and a lovely bottle of wine.  when we began dating
35 years ago, many people said, "you two will never make it!  you're
way too different."

that is exactly the reason we have been so happy.  he's the gregarious
extrovert who entertains my quiet, simple introverted self.

our daughter shelby recently saved each of our text message responses
to a question.  me:  "that sounds perfect.  love you."  hans sent five
paragraphs of scripture and encouraging words!

it is also shelby and dan's month to celebrate their second year.  they are
the source of goodness and strength to all who know them, especially us!

i'm linking with joyce for her "friday pretties" not because i think we're
pretty, but because i think anniversaries are PRETTY special!

love,
lea

"love does not delight in evil but rejoices in the truth.  it always protects,
always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."  1 corinthians 13:8,9

want to live a happy, fulfilled life?

dear emily,

did you know that many studies have shown that people are much
happier, healthier, and live longer if they do just one little, fun thing?

sing in a choir!

singing requires steady aerobic breathing which oxygenates the
bloodstream and releases those 'feel good' endorphins we all know
and love.  the same ones released from eating chocolate but without
any of the calories.

in fact, consistent prolonged singing is great exercise, working the
heart, lungs, back, and abdomen.  i typically lose two - four pounds
during the Christmas season from the additional rehearsals and per-
formances of the season.

for those of you, natasha!, who like to celebrate Christmas longer,
singers begin enjoying the lovely Christmas music in august!

choir members experience sweet camaraderie from the challenge of a
new and difficult song.  we laugh at our hilarious mistakes, and our
spirits soar when we have learned to sing the music as beautifully as
we had hoped.

even the shyest of creatures cannot be lonely in a choir, because the
esprit de corps automatically enfolds everyone.

this lovely lady is 84 years old and sings like an angel.  she's also
sitting by an angel.

love,
lea

"i will sing of the Lord's great love forever."  psalm 89:1

lonely moms?

dear emily,

i just ran into a young mom who wished she had a friend with whom
she could share her heart and struggles.  she said that as much as she
loved her two little boys, they couldn't discuss the issues in her heart
or even fashion, for that matter.  her husband could only answer,
"does this make me look fat?" so many times.

i've also read a few blogs written by some other lonely moms, saying
that they just didn't have time to be with their friends.  no time for
friends?

it is heartbreaking to hear about such loneliness . . . and a little
befuddling.  when my children were little, we met my friends and
their children at the park, the pool, or the church all the time.   once
they began attending 'real' school, it was harder to see my closest
friends, but i made new ones in the basketball stands, and i caught
up with the old ones whenever possible.

is it really harder now for young moms to make new friends or to spend
time with their dear friends?  is it that we are becoming more remote
from each other because of the internet, etc.?

i have the most wonderful, caring, selfless friends in the world, and
cannot imagine my life without them.  i can remember my mom's
best friend laughing in our kitchen over coffee and my grandmother's
helping her to can sandplums.  women are wired for companionship,
and it worries me to imagine our culture without that.

i would love to hear your suggestions to help these lonely moms find
some kinship.

love,
lea

"a friend loves at all times, and is born, as is a brother, for adversity."
proverbs 17:17