"You used to be Much....Muchier!"

I realize that I am behind the times as usual, but Hubs and I just watched the new Alice in Wonderland movie last night. We were not all that interested in seeing it while it was in the theaters because neither of us cared much for the original version in the first place.

But, oh my goodness!

After wimpy little Alice fell down the rabbit hole she found herself in crazy situations that demanded she change her size to fit the need again and again. She became what was required to get the job done for that moment.

But then came the ultimate tough situation. She is being told that she is THE Alice that will be the White Queen’s champion and single-handedly slay the dreaded and horrible Jabberwocky!

Timid Alice argues that she does not slay. “I do not slay!”

The wise caterpillar agrees that she is not THE Alice. But as he agrees with her and says, “No, you are not the Alice.” I could clearly hear his silent…. “yet”!

Everyone around Alice knows that she has a huge and valuable destiny. The Mad Hatter tells her with disappointment, “You used to be much more….muchier. You’ve lost your muchness.”

Slowly she begins to see and believe that the words of destiny that all these strange creatures keep speaking over her may be true. She finds herself being the brave one, the one who solves the dilemmas for her new friends.

Alice’s “muchness” is returning.

Early in the movie during the fun and silly dialogues between Alice and the fantasy animals and the Mad Hatter, I found that unexpected tears were streaming down my cheeks. I heard Hubs quietly say, without seeing me, “Wow, this movie is really something!”

We were blown away at the power in the message of this movie! Alice had forgotten who she was. But forgetting or not knowing who you are does not change who you are. She was THE Alice, the one who would be their brave Champion and save the kingdom. Just because she did not FEEL like the Champion, did not alter the truth of it.

God has spoken beautiful words of worth to me through others, through His word and straight to my heart from His. God’s description of me (and you) is TRUTH. It just is.

I have recently lost some of my muchness. But it is returning.

As I sat on my couch and watched Alice in full armor fight the Jabberwocky, I felt that I was fighting also. I was fighting false ideas about myself that I had allowed to linger a bit too long. False ideas about my place in God’s Kingdom.

Alice renewed her strength as she fought by counting six impossible things that she had believed in the last few hours. One by one she declared some new truths, and each one made her stronger……………..

“I try to believe in as many as six impossible things before breakfast. Count them, Alice. One, there are drinks that make you shrink. Two, there are foods that make you grow. Three, animals can talk. Four, cats can disappear. Five, there is a place called Underland…….”

And with the final Impossible Thing,

“ Six, I can slay the Jabberwocky.”

She swung her sword and the Jabberwocky lost his head!

God has given you a MUCHNESS that is there to stay. But you and I do need to recognize it and use what he has given us. We may even need to talk to ourselves a bit and remind ourselves that we are Champions. You are a Champion in your area of influence. Call up your MUCHNESS and believe the impossible.

Sad news, Great news!

I enjoyed a very long phone chat with Writer Son last night. He is in Texas, we are in California. He and the delightful Miss M will be married in Texas in about 6 weeks!

It was a great talk, full of wedding details, job updates, deep thoughts on being a husband and being in love. But one little item that was mentioned brought me to tears. He did not know that I was chatting with tears in my eyes though!

What did it to me this time? He told me about some game at their first wedding shower, co-ed wedding shower! A little yelp of sadness did escape me I am afraid and he immediately said, "Oh don't be sad Mom." I always pictured myself as part of the pre-wedding fun, you know.

This distance thing is really hard. Harder than I thought it would be. Due to the distance of a wedding in TX, my parents and my sis and brother and their families will not be able to attend the wedding!! Of my eldest son! The first grandchild of the family!! Dang it! (They cannot afford an additional reception in Cali.)

BUT, some really wonderful news also came out of this late night phone call! Writer Son and Miss M (gotta find a new name for her!) have chosen to begin their married life.........in California....in our town!!!! YES! I am not free to tell anyone this due to some job situations etc. but YAY! (Once again I am so thankful that this blog is not known to the people in my life. And if any of you who know me in "real" life have found this little spot of anonymity, DO NOT TELL ME OR MENTION THIS OK?)

I would say that the good news clearly outweighs the sad.

Are they not the cutest couple ever?

AAACK!!

Only six weeks

till Writer Son's

wedding!!

I really, really do not

want to hate the wedding pictures

for the rest of my life!

Just realized as I look at what

I have written.....

My FOCUS

is very screwed up!!

OY!

Girl's Getaway!

I am home again after a wonderful three-day girl's getaway with a few of my close buddies. We stayed in a huge lake house and had a blast together!

Did I mention the Suit of Armor guy in my post from the lake? This huge guy was just outside my bedroom door and even when I knew he was there, he scared me again and again! Especially after dark! You just don't expect an armored knight to be guarding/stalking your bedroom door!

We also loved the water bikes. They took us all around the lake to peak into other people's lake houses and see if we had the best one or not. I think we pretty much outclassed them all! If you consider sitting around in the dark telling our most embarrassing stories ever as classy. And the way sound carries over water, we probably should have been embarrassed even more! "Hi neighbors!"

See those margaritas? They were my first. No, it was not peer pressure. I requested them when we were menu planning back at home. I have always heard women gush over them but was not brave enough to order one in a restaurant because didn't know what to ask for. So I figured this would be the perfect environment to see what all the fuss was about. Very very yummy!! Loved it!

I am back to work after being off and jobless all June, July and half of August. It is good news that the new school has re-hired us........and I don't want to be ungrateful............but, sure was nice to concentrate on writing and to sleep in as long as I wanted. I will find a balance in this new position because the time off has shown me that freelance writing is something I enjoy and want to pursue. So there was a blessing in the awful situation after-all. (For those of you who know the story.)

I'll tell you more about my new job in a future post.

Thanks for listening....um....reading, I mean.

So That's A LAKE HOUSE!

This moment is so perfectly wonderful that I have to capture it. It will come in handy for the next time I need a ‘Happy Place’ to run to. I wonder if I can bring you here with me? I will give it a go, as my English friend would say.

I am sitting on the deck of a fabulous lake house. My picture of the words ‘lake-house’ has changed dramatically since yesterday morning when I woke up and began the hour and a half drive here. ‘Cabin’ was more fitting to what I imagined this would be. I. Was. Very. Wrong! Ha!

I am staying three days in the second home of a friend of a friend. It is a two-level grand house that includes two knights in full armor that are a bit surprising when you turn the corner and see them out of the corner of your eye. There is a clear Lucite grand piano with beautiful brass workings inside. Do those two examples give you an idea of the extravagance of this “Lake House”?

But the very best part is that each home here has it’s own private dock and it is about twenty steps from the glass back doors to the water! I am a real water rat. The phrase that comes to mind this morning is that I am free to “swim on whim” at any moment I choose!! This to me is true luxury.

Back to this exact moment….On the deck that is spread across the length of the home, are some of my closest friends. There are two more who are not here, but they need to be with us to make it TOTALLY perfect.

Three women are sitting here reading or sunbathing, two others are in the water talking as they swim and hold onto swim-noodles. This morning we made quite a comical scene as we maneuvered two water-bikes down a steep hill from the garage to the waters edge! I have never ridden a bike on the water but it was so fun! I thought it was going to be paddleboats but they are basically a bike between two brightly colored pontoons.

Okay, just now the sun was bothering us so we wondered if moving down to the grassy area would be cooler. My friend says, and I’m not making this up……..”Yes, let’s give it a go.” Ha! So of course I read the first paragraph to her and we cracked up!

The first night I was given a rule: No un-authorized photos can be published. We looked at some of the pictures last night and a few needed to be immediately deleted. Keep in mind this is supposed to be a relaxing escape for a bunch of fifty-somethings!

Actually the original intent and agenda for the girl’s getaway was to have a Silent Retreat. We were not going to speak at all during the day and then share our hearts during dinner. ……………..Nope, not happening. The sharing is definitely happening. I feel full and encouraged and lifted up by spending time with my friends. I even received a little one sentence scolding last night when I said something about my weight and was told to “Stop talking about my friend like that!”

So the sharing part is working but the silent part…..um, not so much! In fact no one is even mentioning it! THIS time.

I guess we will just have to try again in the fall! Yep, I think we may need to give it a go!

Bullet Point Update

I have been writing my brains out lately, so tonight's post will be a sparse and bottom line kind of bullet point update. By the way "writing my brains out" is a really good good thing!

• Followed through on the plan to create a new blog.
• Love it and see that it will be a great place to do some good out here in blogland. :)
• To check it out you will find a link in the sidebar.
• WARNING: it is full of the G-word. :0
• Am following through with book idea!
• Figuring out my target and my "voice" and other fun stuff like that. Enjoying the process.
• Found a wonderful Mother of the Groom dress! It is deep purple.
• Due to my pear shape it is going to be altered.
• Wish I was not going to be photographed at the highest weight in my life!!
• Remind Self.....It's not about ME!
• Looks like we may have enough enrollments in our new school to be partially paid.
• Hubs will look for part-time work and I will get $$ from writing.
• YES I WILL! have made nearly $300 in few months.
• Sent off a devotional that will pay $25. Easy speazy!
• Am leaving tomorrow for a 3 day girls getaway with my closest friends!!
• Fancy lake house, swimming all day....
• laughing all night!!!
• Oh yes!!!!
• Thanks God.

Sirens On Silent??

This morning when I walked out to the kitchen for my coffee, which I must have before speaking,breathing or pretty much anything, Hubs was standing at the big front window.

Apparently there was some big stuff going on in our neighborhood during the night!

As you can see in the pictures, we had us a fire!!

The strangest part is that neither Hubs or I heard any sirens or commotion at all!

And this garage fire was not very far from our home. The final photo was taken on my front porch without using the zoom!! (the red truck is the house that caught on fire!)

So let this be a warning. Don't expect Hubs or me to hear your cries for help during the night. When we sleep we are GONE!!

At Last!

I found my Mother of the Groom dress!

Hallelujah! It was quickly becoming more important and time consuming than I wanted it to be!

I cannot find a picture of it online, but it is really close to this dress.

But it hits the knee and has two pretty darts at the neckline and wider V neck, so it's almost off the shoulder. Mine is a deep purple and I totally love it! (Feel like Jackie O or Michelle O in it, if I squint a lot!)

Yikes, it was becoming way too mind consuming. I hate that! Feel so relieved. It does need some altering because I am a definite Pear shape, so I bought a size that fits the LARGE part of the pear and will have the top taken in so there isn't a lot of EMPTY space up there!

Hubs says that now he won't keep finding me just staring into space as I try to figure out where to go to find THE dress anymore! Ha!

Clearing My Mind

Today is Saturday, Hubs and I did a lot of nothing for most of the day. Sat around playing with the Internet on our laptops as we sat across from each other in the living room. Pretty pathetic on a gorgeous day. So finally late in the afternoon Hubs says,

"I'm going for a ride,

wanna go?"

I nod yes, but continue my web browsing for the perfect 'mother of the groom' dress. He turns off his laptop and heads to the garage. I better move it or I will be left behind! I go put on some jeans instead of my summer dress and off we go!

Out on the bike my mind considers the fact that we did not get a paycheck yesterday. For the first time in many, many years. I decided pretty quickly not to go there. Look at the pretty trees, aren't they amazing?....Yes, they are! And look at the field of tomatoes coming up here. Wonder what all those hundreds of tiny white butterflies are doing? So beautiful!

I am easily distracted when there is good reason

to be.

Never Heard of this Award Before!!

Okay, I thought I had seen every single AWARD possible

for bloggers.

But this is a new one

and I am thrilled and twitter-pated

to receive it!

Thank you Weezer

for the

SHOPPING FOR A WEDDING AWARD!

I absolutely LOVE it!

As Mother of the Groom

I am looking for the perfect dress for

Writer Son's casual woodsy wedding in Texas.

He and the totally delightful and adorable Miss M

will celebrate their joy of finding one another on the fun date of

TEN * TEN * TEN !!

ARGH! Dress Shopping!

Over 40 Friday Follow!

I thought that I would enjoy the

dress shopping process.

My normal uniform is jeans and nice tops

If we go out I dress up by wearing

better pants and higher heals.

As a Mother of the Groom in October

I don't think pants are going to work

I know that,

and I was looking forward to getting dressed up

for a change.

But I still don't know HOW dressy to get

for a casual outdoor wedding.

In the woods and trees kind of outdoor,

not a manicured lawn or garden.

Long dress or knee length dress?

I just found out he Mother of the Bride

is going with the short style.

So I will try to do that.

But I am overweight and the

dressingroom

mirrors are making me very unhappy!

And again I say

ARGH!

(Yes, I added "Menopause" as a subject label because my weight has nothing to do with eating junk and forgetting to exercise!)

OK, Next Day....Just did a full hour of yoga and high - low aerobics...take that, unsightly flab!!

Creative Way to Share a Love story-My Son & Bride to be!

Our Story: Plain & Simple from Melissa Roden on Vimeo.

Country Boy in the City......

Hubs and I spent a night in San Francisco this last week with some good friends. We live close enough to make it a day trip but staying over added some fun to our outing! Hubs had a little trouble with the pillows but otherwise he did fine.

We had the amazing and magical opportunity to go to the De Young Museum to see the new "Birth of Impressionism" Exhibit! In June our students gifted us with some tickets to the art showing and it was breathtaking!

We had to keep telling ourselves that we were in the same room with the ORIGINALS .....Whistler's Mother, Renior, Monet, Degas, and others!

Rather than fight city traffic and CRAZY parking fees we caught a ferry in Vallejo and enjoyed an hour ride over to Fisherman's Wharf.

I always forget what a beautiful city SF really is. so much to see. For a small town girl it can be pretty overwhelming, but when you are with friends it becomes another fun adventure!

Hubs is considering this for his next job if the school thing doesn't work out! You never know what you will see around each corner.

This cool little Bistro cafe was right across from our room. In fact this pic was taken on our balcony! We had breakfast and lunch here, very cozy and beautiful.

Fishermen's Wharf is a crazy, busy, noisy and wonderfully colorful place to just stand still and take in all the life around you.

This painting by Renoir called, "The Swing" brought tears to my eyes. I did not expect that reaction at all! But I have loved this and seen it in books and on TV for so long, with no expectation that I might actually see it in person. it was so lovely and sweet.

My favorite Degas paintings are the dancers. He did them in several different ways. I love paintings that hint at a story. I also learned that nearly all of the great "Masters" were not accepted or applauded at all in their lifetimes! The great artists were always pushing the accepted norms and getting all creative! (Lesson there?You bet!)

The surprise about Whistler's Mother was the size of it. I had assumed it was normal portrait size but it is wall size. About 8 feet by 8 feet, amazing and her face is really quite serene and lovely. In September there will be a showing of Van Gogh and we will try to gather some friends and do this again!