wandering the country road...

our happy bohemian made her way to the boondocks to the bayou for one last day. although it was raining for the last two days, today was bright and sunny. it was a beautiful half hour drive to the little a-frame church. the bohemian was sad for it to be the last day but also glad. she was tired. but the "good" tired, like when you've got something big accomplished.

she dismantled her "red sea" that all the little fishermen had "crossed through". she folded up the blue tarp "sea water", folded away the "rock" sheets. away it all went into boxes, to await the next time it was needed to spark little imaginations. away went all the little sea creatures, the sea weed netting, the frogs, the crocodiles, butterflies... as she left the little a-frame church, she realized she was oh so hungry! so she stopped at the little espresso/deli and got a yummy ham & cheese melt and an iced latte. she sipped and smiled and sipped and sighed...boy was she contented! the drive home was beautiful... she slowed down to watch the mama deer and her wee babe cross the road and disappear into the woods. she stopped to take pictures of the lovely clouds and the beautiful mountains and charming farm buildings..

there under an old apple tree, she spied a lovely yellowish green apple...no, wait...many, many green apples all fallen onto the soft mossy grass under the bower of the ancient apple tree.

on she travelled past the giant round hay bales...

the stately evergreen trees, the weathered old barns...

the tall green corn stocks with their shocks of golden hair...

a stop at mama's garden fruit and veggie stand yielded up some lovely cherry tomatoes.

arriving back in bohemia with a few less tiny tomatoes (they had leapt into her mouth!), she was greeted by her loving cats, hoping she had brought them a smidgen of something to eat. she finished off her delicious iced latte and sat down to unwind and relax. an episode of "bones" and the movie "independence day", a little blackberry picking, some blueberry picking...

the remains of a very lovely day... blue sky, morning glories, dahlias smiling in the garden, the sun on her skin, ginkgo leaves dancing in the breeze. heaven must be like this.

even more bayou?!!

the bohemian once again found herself in the bayou... this time, a little farther north, up in the boondocks. inside a little a-frame church, she found a small fishing shack and many small fishermen. Come right on in, said the parrot in the window... ribbit, ribbit, said a large green frog, sitting beside the fisherman's basket...

and the bohemian was so amazed at the gorgeous butterfly which sat on the handle!

and a friendly dragonfly invited her to come sing and dance and have a blast with all the swamp creatures and the small fishermen...

but he warned her to watch out for the crocodiles that were there at the Crocodile Dock...

oh! what an adventure she had walking through a deep blue sea and spying on all the sea creatures there!

there were rainbow colored fish swimming happily in the blue waters...

and sea horses and lobsters hanging around in seaweed...

and all the small fishermen came along on the adventure too....

so our bohemian had three more days of the bayou... and THEN. then she was going to rest up for days and days, till the next adventure came along.

happy adventuring to all... take advantage of every opportunity that comes along and enjoy it to the fullest! don't forget to sing and dance and laugh a lot... and pretending is ALWAYS fun!

a grratitude fling...

small graces: no rain at the Mariners' game! unfortunately, they didn't win...

sky art...

rain means not having to water the garden...

lasagna...

ray bradbury's writing...

butterfly bushes in bloom...

children's laughter...

dreyer's sugar-free ice cream...

good sleep...

many small graces are wished for you! don't forget to notice them! list them...in your journal, in your blog, on the sidewalk with chalk... practice gratitude. hey! i'm thankful for all of you!

small graces...

i get so inspired by dawn over at thoughts from along the broken road and her "grace in small things" lists! she does it every day and i know i can't do that but here's a list for today: * picture windows! i LOVE my huge windows! right now from my computer, i can see outside my house: green trees, blowing in the wind, on a backround of greyblue mountains. just above the mountains hang these white puffy clouds rimmed in a contrasting edge of dark blue. accent colors: pink flowers, yellow leaves, terra cotta colored bricks of the front porch. * hot coffee. two spoonfuls of honey, a dash of half and half. mmmm. i learned to drink coffe in haiti. they served it very strong, with raw cane sugar syrup. yes. just right. * Blue Mountain Grill. right at the end of my country road sits a little highway cafe. it's so nice to be able to go less than a minute from my house and still "go out" to eat. living out in the country, you get used to everything being far away. a trip to town takes up at least half your day! and don't get me started on traffic and road construction because this is supposed to be a gratitude thing here!!!! hurray for our little cafe! * My Honey. i just don't know how to explain how incredible it is to be married to such a wonderful husband! this is not a small grace but a big giant huge grace! he has humor, faithfulness, honor, compassion, good looks and a contagious laugh. and a dash of romance in his soul. love that man of mine! * my children, who are no longer children. -my oldest daughter, jessie: bohemian like me, fun, artistic, a little eccentric like me, dramatic, loves tea shops and parasols but is in NO WAY prissy! married to a romantic gamer who loves her drama... -my oldest son, aaron: redneck, carhart man. a dramatic, charasmatic charmer married to a beautiful girl who puts up with his redneck BS and brings out the tender side of him. not in public, of course...he has an image to uphold! -my younger son, brandon: clown, comedian, full of life, full of joy, full of humor. goes through life making sure everyone is having fun and laughing... his gorgeous girlfriend is as ornery as he is and they are a perfect matched pair! they keep us entertained and laughing... -my youngest daughter, katie: only one at home now. beautiful, funny, compassionate, and has such a servant's heart. she loves to do things for other people. we've travelled all around the world with her and she makes friends wherever we go. hmmmm... long post with no pictures. next time...more pictures. i promise. don't forget to be a joy rebel, a grace observer, a wonder noticer, a bliss hunter, a gratitude lister, and full-on participant in life....

all manner of silliness...

Zig Ziglar said: "Most of us would be upset if we were accused of being "silly." But the word "silly" comes from the old English word "selig", and its literal definition is "to be blessed, happy, healthy, and prosperous." i'm extremely silly. are you? look at someone you think is being silly. see that big grin on their face? don't you want some of that?!!!! I DO!

i wish for everyone the silliest of days, weeks and lives ever.... BIG GRIN!!!

blessed life...

more berries, more bayou... that's our bohemian's day again. it's such a nice cool day today.

the bohemian left the bayou tired but happy. there was laughing and singing and sharing and dancing and lots of children's smiles... but now it was time to go to the market. where's her list? oh. here it is: parsley, deoderant for Her Honey, bread... oh! look at those nectarines! and grapes. and ice cream. oh man, fresh baked french bread. from the market, the bohemian travelled to the gas station: gas and milk. then home again, home again, jiggety, jog... oh wait! stop by Mama's Garden, the fresh vegie stand. yes, yes! tomatoes! the bohemian and Her Honey have tomatoes planted in their garden. and the bohemian had even stolen the first ripe one and ate it all by herself! but she needed MORE! cherry tomatoes, and a lovely bell pepper and a sweet onion. YUM! her gardener friend was there, so chatting and laughter and watching of adorable children. then home, at last. pizza for dinner, ice cream for dessert. cool 75 degree day. yes, the bohemian was a very happy lady today. driving home from the market, she realized how much she loved living in her valley! she drove passed the U-Pick blueberry field, the bicycle rider, the dahlia farmer out walking his dogs around the corn field, the swimmers headed for the river with their tubes, ladies chatting outside the post office... and her fabulous view of her bohemian mountain!! wow. she feels sooooo blessed! hope you do too. don't forget to list EVERY WAY you are blessed. it will make you so grateful and fill you with JOY! till next time... xoxoxo

down at the bayou...

the bohemian travelled to the bayou again today... the sunset was so awesome!! the spooky moss draped lazily from the swamp trees. it was unlike anything the bohemian had ever seen. she spied a little cabin there in the swamp...

and a lovely, graceful heron fished for his dinner in the cool, murky waters...

frogs sang their pond songs. obviously, this guy sang bass...

but then it was time to step through the waterfall curtain and return to her home...

but tomorrow.... tomorrow, she's going back to the swamp for another adventure!!! see you down at the bayou tomorrow. until then, look for the little blessings of your life, that aren't so little after all!!!