Why didn't I do this before? I wish YOU were here with me today.

I did something wonderful today, quite by accident actually. And I need to stop and do it more often.

We stayed the night at Jer's after our ByrdDay celebration. Nicole let me take some baby plant starts and seeds from her garden. So I was out planting them. It was a pretty nice July day but I was getting a little hot. I had driven to the backside of our pond on our Hog (like a John Deere Gator).

I sat down on the grass under an elm tree we had planted. After 10 years, it has gotten big enough for a little bit of shade. I was just messing with the seed and throwing the seeds out.

Suddenly, my eyes really opened to what I was looking at, where I was, and what the Lord had blessed me with. You can look at something like this in your life every day, but yet never SEE it.

Growing up as a Desert Rat in the Imperial Valley, CA, this would have been a dream, a piece of heaven, and yet there it was in front of me. Although I am retired, I just am always working trying to keep up with my babies (my pets) and the house and the yard. Work, work, work, clean, clean, clean, poop patrol, poop patrol.

But you never take time to smell the roses, as it is said.

We built our pond 11 summers ago and have 9 lb (average) catfish, bass, hybrid blue gills bigger than your whole hand, and Indiana crappies. We had fed our fish from the dock before I drove to the other side. The catfish and bass were eating and splashing the water. Dragonflies were darting everywhere.

I was sitting in the middle of my flowers and a large amount of 'Queen Anne's Lace'. It's a weed in Indiana but it's a beautiful flower to me. My Mom had told me about Queen Anne's Lace and it always reminds me of her. I could see Dane's Rocket, a pink wildflower here and a precious little plant called 'Butter & Eggs' that is blooming in one of the pictures.

A cool breeze was blowing as I was beginning to cool off. Then my big dogs were swimming in the pond and had come up to sit by me. What a great moment the Lord had made me stop and SEE.

I took pictures to share with you. I hope you take a minute to look around at what you have around you today. I was surprised and so blessed by what I experienced. You will be, too.
Trix through the 'lace'

Our pond. Bloomfield, IN

Roxanne our GSD, and Liana. Liana is a lab/golden mix (an official LGX) bred by CCI and born in Santa Rosa, CA.

Queen Anne's Lace

The dogs and the 'Hog'

Pink coneflowers on the left, Dusty Miller is the white stuff, The small yellow flower is Butter & Eggs, and Dane's Rocket on the right.

Trixie by the dock.

My Liana