Blue skies and sunshine remind me of all the good times in 2010.

Good Maternal Genetics

I had a great day today visiting my Great Grandma in northern Wisconsin, and let me tell you, I've never seen a 98-year-old woman look so great.  It had been almost 3 years since I had last seen her, and she is still as witty and wonderful as I remember.  She continuously teased my grandpa about stealing her chocolates and insisted that she hid them all before he arrived.  And my favorite memory of the visit was her answer to the question, "Grandma, you still have your walker?"  "Yeah, they still make me walk up and down the hall a few times each day."  They make her? Oh, no big deal that she has almost a century and can still use her legs!  And at the end of the visit, we told her not to get in any trouble until we see her again.  She responded with, "Oh, we don't do anything here anyways."  Seriously witty!

I love you, Great Grandma! Here's to an awesome 99th year for you!

December 18...

...and I'm writing graduate school applications.  Happy birthday to me.

An Advent lesson on HOPE.

I am not saved because I hope.  I have hope because I am saved.

I love this poem.

Phenomenal Woman

Maya Angelou

Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I'm telling lies.
I say,
It's in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It's the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can't touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can't see.
I say,
It's in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I'm a woman

Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

Now you understand
Just why my head's not bowed.
I don't shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It's in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need of my care,
'Cause I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.