Category Archives: Family
365 Reasons to Smile – Day 31
During the summer, I do most of my bike riding in the early morning hours as the sun is ascending into the sky.
Because of that, there are times when the areas I pass through are still fairly dark.
The corn fields look like a jumble of unorganized stalks in which I could easily be lost.
And the groves of trees looks unwelcoming.
And then I ride a little farther or a little higher and everything looks different.
Instead of seeing crowded stalks of corn, I see a field neat and well-organized rows.
And instead of seeing the sun barely peeking through the trees, I see rays of sunshine warming the woods and warming my thoughts.
These tiny changes in perspective reflect the importance of perspective in our lives as well.
When we change our perspective, we often get a better understanding of how, life is basically really, really good.
Just knowing that always makes me smile.
Day 31: Perspective
Day 28: Am I a Man or Am I a Muppet? Day 27: Shadows
Day 26: Bike Riding on Country Roads
Day 24: Hibiscus Day 23: The Ice Cream Truck
Day 22: The Wonderful World of Disney Day 21: Puppy love
Day 20 Personal Theme Songs Day 19: Summer Clouds
Day 18: Bartholomew Cubbin’s Victory
Day 17: A Royal Birth Day 16: Creative Kids
Day 15: The Scent of Honeysuckle Day 14: Clip of Kevin Kline Exploring His Masculinity
Day 13: Random Text Messages from My Daughter Day 12: Round Bales of Hay
Day 11: Water Fountains for Dogs Day 10: The Rainier Beer Motorcycle Commercial
Day 9: Four-Leaf Clovers Day 8: Great Teachers We Still Remember
Day 7: Finding the missing sock Day 6: Children’s books that teach life-long lessons
Day 5: The Perfect Photo at the Perfect Moment Day 4: Jumping in Puddles
Day 3: The Ride Downhill after the Struggle Uphill Day 2: Old Photographs
365 Reasons to Smile – Day 29
I was riding my bike yesterday morning when I saw a tall man ahead of me on the road holding something out in front of him. At first, I thought he was walking a dog, but I couldn’t see one. As I got closer, I became more and more puzzled.
Then I realized he was carrying a broom. He was walking along a country road carrying a broom.
Just as I reached him, he stopped and began sweeping the road.
He motioned for me to be careful as I rode through broken glass, and I turned around to thank him.
He yelled something back that seemed to be an explanation of what had happened and a comment that it happens a lot, but I couldn’t really understand him.
But I was smiling at his efforts to make the world a safer place for everyone else.
People who do that always make me smile.
Day 29: Good Samaritans
Day 28: Am I a Man or Am I a Muppet? Day 27: Shadows
Day 26: Bike Riding on Country Roads
Day 24: Hibiscus Day 23: The Ice Cream Truck
Day 22: The Wonderful World of Disney Day 21: Puppy love
Day 20 Personal Theme Songs Day 19: Summer Clouds
Day 18: Bartholomew Cubbin’s Victory
Day 17: A Royal Birth Day 16: Creative Kids
Day 15: The Scent of Honeysuckle Day 14: Clip of Kevin Kline Exploring His Masculinity
Day 13: Random Text Messages from My Daughter Day 12: Round Bales of Hay
Day 11: Water Fountains for Dogs Day 10: The Rainier Beer Motorcycle Commercial
Day 9: Four-Leaf Clovers Day 8: Great Teachers We Still Remember
Day 7: Finding the missing sock Day 6: Children’s books that teach life-long lessons
Day 5: The Perfect Photo at the Perfect Moment Day 4: Jumping in Puddles
Day 3: The Ride Downhill after the Struggle Uphill Day 2: Old Photographs
365 Reasons to Smile – Day 28
I don’t often experience serendipitous moments in my life, so when I do, I celebrate them.
There is just something completely satisfying when two of your loves combine. I’m not talking the “you got your peanut butter in my chocolate” and “you got your chocolate in my peanut butter” type of love (although I always enjoy a good Reese’s Cup.)
I’m talking about my love of the Muppets and my love of Sheldon Cooper on the Big Bang Theory. So when Jim Parsons made a brief, but unexpected, cameo appearance in the 2011 movie The Muppets, I was actually gleeful.
Literally.
In the dark theater, I shrieked with delight when he appeared as the human Walter in “Am I a Man or a Muppet?”
And I always smile when I think about that moment.
Day 28: Am I a Man or Am I a Muppet? Day 27: Shadows
Day 26: Bike Riding on Country Roads
Day 24: Hibiscus Day 23: The Ice Cream Truck
Day 22: The Wonderful World of Disney Day 21: Puppy love
Day 20 Personal Theme Songs Day 19: Summer Clouds
Day 18: Bartholomew Cubbin’s Victory
Day 17: A Royal Birth Day 16: Creative Kids
Day 15: The Scent of Honeysuckle Day 14: Clip of Kevin Kline Exploring His Masculinity
Day 13: Random Text Messages from My Daughter Day 12: Round Bales of Hay
Day 11: Water Fountains for Dogs Day 10: The Rainier Beer Motorcycle Commercial
Day 9: Four-Leaf Clovers Day 8: Great Teachers We Still Remember
Day 7: Finding the missing sock Day 6: Children’s books that teach life-long lessons
Day 5: The Perfect Photo at the Perfect Moment Day 4: Jumping in Puddles
Day 3: The Ride Downhill after the Struggle Uphill Day 2: Old Photographs
365 Reasons to Smile – Day 27
Shadows have a bad reputation.
They’ve been used by too many horror writers and movie directors to create suspense and fear.
But I think shadows are incredibly interesting, and one of the first poems I ever memorized was I Have a Little Shadow by Robert Louis Stevenson:
I have a little shadow that goes in and out with me,
And what can be the use of him is more than I can see.
He is very, very like me from the heels up to the head;
And I see him jump before me, when I jump into my bed.
The funniest thing about him is the way he likes to grow—
Not at all like proper children, which is always very slow;
For he sometimes shoots up taller like an india-rubber ball,
And he sometimes gets so little that there’s none of him at all.
He hasn’t got a notion of how children ought to play,
And can only make a fool of me in every sort of way.
He stays so close beside me, he’s a coward you can see;
I’d think shame to stick to nursie as that shadow sticks to me!
One morning, very early, before the sun was up,
I rose and found the shining dew on every buttercup;
But my lazy little shadow, like an arrant sleepy-head,
Had stayed at home behind me and was fast asleep in bed
That poem, and shadows in general, always make me smile.
Day 27: Shadows
Day 26: Bike Riding on Country Roads
Day 24: Hibiscus Day 23: The Ice Cream Truck
Day 22: The Wonderful World of Disney Day 21: Puppy love
Day 20 Personal Theme Songs Day 19: Summer Clouds
Day 18: Bartholomew Cubbin’s Victory
Day 17: A Royal Birth Day 16: Creative Kids
Day 15: The Scent of Honeysuckle Day 14: Clip of Kevin Kline Exploring His Masculinity
Day 13: Random Text Messages from My Daughter Day 12: Round Bales of Hay
Day 11: Water Fountains for Dogs Day 10: The Rainier Beer Motorcycle Commercial
Day 9: Four-Leaf Clovers Day 8: Great Teachers We Still Remember
Day 7: Finding the missing sock Day 6: Children’s books that teach life-long lessons
Day 5: The Perfect Photo at the Perfect Moment Day 4: Jumping in Puddles
Day 3: The Ride Downhill after the Struggle Uphill Day 2: Old Photographs
365 Reasons to Smile – Day 26
My friends think I ride my bike for exercise, which is partly true.
My family thinks I ride my bike to get away from them, which is also partly true.
But I also ride my bike to observe what I either don’t see or can’t enjoy when I’m rushing by in my car.
I love the calm of the deer who raise their heads in curiosity and watch me ride by them. I’m fascinated by the rabbits that stand completely still in hopes that they won’t be seen. And I am amused by the skunks that amble through the weeds in an almost charming manner.
But most of all, I adore my ongoing relationship with the sheep and cows that graze in fields along the country roads.
They almost always respond to my greetings, which are usually delivered as I sing off-key at the top of my lungs.
And since they never seem to mind my lack of musical ability, they always make me smile.
Day 26: Bike Riding on Country Roads
Day 24: Hibiscus Day 23: The Ice Cream Truck
Day 22: The Wonderful World of Disney
Day 20 Personal Theme Songs Day 19: Summer Clouds
Day 18: Bartholomew Cubbin’s Victory
Day 17: A Royal Birth Day 16: Creative Kids
Day 15: The Scent of Honeysuckle Day 14: Clip of Kevin Kline Exploring His Masculinity
Day 13: Random Text Messages from My Daughter Day 12: Round Bales of Hay
Day 11: Water Fountains for Dogs Day 10: The Rainier Beer Motorcycle Commercial
Day 9: Four-Leaf Clovers Day 8: Great Teachers We Still Remember
Day 7: Finding the missing sock Day 6: Children’s books that teach life-long lessons
Day 5: The Perfect Photo at the Perfect Moment Day 4: Jumping in Puddles
Day 3: The Ride Downhill after the Struggle Uphill Day 2: Old Photographs
365 Reasons to Smile – Day 25
If you ask me what my favorite movie is, you’ll get the same answer you’d get if you asked me my favorite song.
“That depends on my mood.”
But, I do have top ten lists, and When Harry Met Sally will always be near the top of my favorite movies list.
From the first time I saw the film in the theater when to the last time I saw it on television, the love story always makes me smile.
Day 25: When Harry Met Sally
Day 24: Hibiscus Day 23: The Ice Cream Truck
Day 22: The Wonderful World of Disney Day 21: Puppy Love
Day 20 Personal Theme Songs Day 19: Summer Clouds
Day 18: Bartholomew Cubbin’s Victory
Day 17: A Royal Birth Day 16: Creative Kids
Day 15: The Scent of Honeysuckle Day 14: Clip of Kevin Kline Exploring His Masculinity
Day 13: Random Text Messages from My Daughter Day 12: Round Bales of Hay
Day 11: Water Fountains for Dogs Day 10: The Rainier Beer Motorcycle Commercial
Day 9: Four-Leaf Clovers Day 8: Great Teachers We Still Remember
Day 7: Finding the missing sock Day 6: Children’s books that teach life-long lessons
Day 5: The Perfect Photo at the Perfect Moment Day 4: Jumping in Puddles
Day 3: The Ride Downhill after the Struggle Uphill Day 2: Old Photographs
365 Reasons to Smile – Day 24
My neighbor has a hibiscus bush, and I’m always amazed at how big the blossoms can get.
I’m just as amazed at how quickly they die. Unlike flowers that last for days, the hibiscus blossoms are short-lived.
Like so many beautiful things and moments in our lives, those blossoms serve as a reminder of what we miss when we are constantly busy and hurried.
Sometimes, we really do need to take time to smell the roses, or at least the hibiscus.
And doing that always makes me smile.
Day 24: Hibiscus Day 23: The Ice Cream Truck
Day 22: The Wonderful World of Disney
Day 20: Personal Theme Songs Day 19: Summer Clouds
Day 18: Bartholomew Cubbin’s Victory
Day 17: A Royal Birth Day 16: Creative Kids
Day 15: The Scent of Honeysuckle Day 14: Clip of Kevin Kline Exploring His Masculinity
Day 13: Random Text Messages from My Daughter Day 12: Round Bales of Hay
Day 11: Water Fountains for Dogs Day 10: The Rainier Beer Motorcycle Commercial
Day 9: Four-Leaf Clovers Day 8: Great Teachers We Still Remember
Day 7: Finding the missing sock Day 6: Children’s books that teach life-long lessons
Day 5: The Perfect Photo at the Perfect Moment Day 4: Jumping in Puddles
Day 3: The Ride Downhill after the Struggle Uphill Day 2: Old Photographs
365 Reasons to Smile – Day 23
The reaction kids have to the sound of the ice cream truck winding its way through our neighborhood is comparable to Pavlov’s dog. Only instead of drooling, they head for the closest source of cash.
Even though I think the quality of the available frozen treats isn’t what it was when I was young, I too love tinny music of the ice cream truck.
It’s a reminder of summer and youthful enthusiasm.
And that always make me smile.
Day 23: The Ice Cream Truck
Day 22: The Wonderful World of Disney Day 21: Puppy Love
Day 20: Personal Theme Songs Day 19: Summer Clouds
Day 18: Bartholomew Cubbin’s Victory
Day 17: A Royal Birth Day 16: Creative Kids
Day 15: The Scent of Honeysuckle Day 14: Clip of Kevin Kline Exploring His Masculinity
Day 13: Random Text Messages from My Daughter Day 12: Round Bales of Hay
Day 11: Water Fountains for Dogs Day 10: The Rainier Beer Motorcycle Commercial
Day 9: Four-Leaf Clovers Day 8: Great Teachers We Still Remember
Day 7: Finding the missing sock Day 6: Children’s books that teach life-long lessons
Day 5: The Perfect Photo at the Perfect Moment Day 4: Jumping in Puddles
Day 3: The Ride Downhill after the Struggle Uphill Day 2: Old Photographs
365 Reasons to Smile – Day 22
Growing up, my family didn’t watch a lot of television. 
By the time my brother and I were in school, my parents limited us to seven hours of television a week.
Because of that, we had to choose carefully, but we always chose to watch The Wonderful World of Disney on Sunday nights.
In the days before cable television, movie rentals or pay per view, we always looked forward to watching the movies in the comfort of our own home.
My parents would pop popcorn, and we’d settle in to watch an old Kurt Russell movie like The Strongest Man in the World or an even older movie like Fred MacMurray’s The Shaggy Dog.
Times have changed dramatically since the mid 1970’s, but my love for those movies never will.
They always make me smile.
Day 22: The Wonderful World of Disney Day 21: Puppy love
Day 20 Personal Theme Songs Day 19: Summer Clouds
Day 18: Bartholomew Cubbin’s Victory
Day 17: A Royal Birth Day 16: Creative Kids
Day 15: The Scent of Honeysuckle Day 14: Clip of Kevin Kline Exploring His Masculinity
Day 13: Random Text Messages from My Daughter Day 12: Round Bales of Hay
Day 11: Water Fountains for Dogs Day 10: The Rainier Beer Motorcycle Commercial
Day 9: Four-Leaf Clovers Day 8: Great Teachers We Still Remember
Day 7: Finding the missing sock Day 6: Children’s books that teach life-long lessons
Day 5: The Perfect Photo at the Perfect Moment Day 4: Jumping in Puddles
Day 3: The Ride Downhill after the Struggle Uphill Day 2: Old Photographs
365 Reasons to Smile – Day 21
I
f someone were to ask me what is needed to live a happy life, having a dog would be at the top of my list.
Even when I was young, I knew I could never marry a man who didn’t love dogs and consider them important family members.
But that never guaranteed I would have children who love dogs.
Thank goodness they do, and that always makes me smile.
Day 21: Puppy Love
Day 20: Personal Theme Songs Day 19: Summer Clouds
Day 18: Bartholomew Cubbin’s Victory
Day 17: A Royal Birth Day 16: Creative Kids
Day 15: The Scent of Honeysuckle Day 14: Clip of Kevin Kline Exploring His Masculinity
Day 13: Random Text Messages from My Daughter Day 12: Round Bales of Hay
Day 11: Water Fountains for Dogs Day 10: The Rainier Beer Motorcycle Commercial
Day 9: Four-Leaf Clovers Day 8: Great Teachers We Still Remember
Day 7: Finding the missing sock Day 6: Children’s books that teach life-long lessons
Day 5: The Perfect Photo at the Perfect Moment Day 4: Jumping in Puddles
Day 3: The Ride Downhill after the Struggle Uphill Day 2: Old Photographs
Just So You Know 