some day

i'm linking up with the red dress club to write a letter to our younger
selves.

dear younger lea,

i know you think you're fat, because there is a tiny jiggle behind
you, but you're NOT.  some day you WILL be, so try to enjoy
that cute little figure while you have it.

it makes you feel prettier to be as tan as a piece of leather, but
some day that's what your skin will look like . . . only worse.
put on sunscreen.

be kind to everyone.  some day you may work for one of them.

think sweet thoughts, and you will say sweet words.  some day
you may have to eat them.

love,
your much older self

"whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever
is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable . . . think on
such things."  philippians 4:8

thank you! and 'friday pretties!'

it seems i always have something for which to be grateful here.
your prayers and encouragement have lifted me above the tide
that would have swept over me at my daughter's departure.   if
you knew how precious she is, you would understand our terrible
loss and brazil's great gain.   the Light seems to find her.

many of you left the kindest comments and prayers after my last 

entreaty, but i received the most input about gwendolyn's eloquent 

one.  if you have time to visit her, you will be comforted and inspired.

friday is the day we look forward to joyce's 'pretties.'  it astounds me to
see the beauty of God's creation presented for us to enjoy at all the lovely
blogs who participate.

my 'pretty' is from our beloved colorado.  the same God who formed

this majestic mountain,

set the seed for a delicate white blossom.

"for the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods.

in His hand are the depths of the earth, 

and the mountain peaks belong to Him."

psalm 95:3,4

love,

lea

brazilian send off

the plane fare for four, including two trips to the airport

on friday, one more on sunday, and two additional ones 

on monday and tuesday . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$1,000.00

a houseful of "emily's" adorable little ones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  $00.00

brazilian feijoada stew for forty, festive decorations, 

samba music, dancing, laughter, and tears . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $200.00

the chance for all my children to say "goodbye" to their

baby sister, who is traveling to brazil for three months . . . . .priceless

i would be so grateful if you would remember our daughter, hailey,

in your prayers while she embarks on this mission experience.  she

is so precious to us.

here she is at her beloved big sister's wedding.

love,

lea

"and walk in love, esteeming and delighting in one another . . . 

ephesians 5:2

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