"Leave It As It Is..."

That full quote reads: "Leave it as it is. The ages have been at work on it and man can only marr it." ~President Theodore Roosevelt~

During my time off, I have been catching up on some tv that has been burning a hole in my dvr. I finally hit 'play' on the 6 part PBS series by Ken Burns called, The National Parks: America's Best Idea. I have only one episode left to watch, but I must say now that it is an absolutely amazing series. I have always been impressed with Ken Burns documentaries mainly for his attention to detail. Burns does beautiful, beautiful work. The photography in National Parks, both still and moving, is stunning. I constantly hit the pause button just to take in the scenery for a few extra moments. The stories, writings and antidotes born out of the National Parks by those who visited them in the late 1800's and early 1900's are so engaging and re-told by voices you'd recognize: Tom Hanks, George Takai, Sam Waterston, John Lithgow, Eli Wallach and many others. They share these moments beautifully without upstaging the series. The spotlight is left right where it belongs--on the story and the scenery. The whole series is narrated by Peter Coyote, who is brilliant in the role as 'tour guide through history'. As someone who has done professional voice over work for many years, I bow to his seemingly effortless vocal mastery in this piece.

"God never made an ugly landscape. All that the sun shines on is beautiful, so long as it is wild." ~John Muir (1869)~

I was lucky that both of my parents held a big love for our National Parks and took my brothers and I to many of them when we were kids. We would camp and hike and fish and sit around the campfire late at night. I have scattered memories of these trips as I was a pre-teen for most of the trips. The memories I do have though, are vivid. I remember Mesa Verde National Park like I visited there yesterday. That Park, those ruins, that mysterious band of Indians who just up and disappeared one day....intrigued me so. I remember Yellowstone and watching Old Faithful burst skyward. I also remember some of the stinkiest sulfur blurps of mud bubbling there too. I remember the Grand Tetons and standing at a split-rail fence that bordered the valley that ran up to the base of those peaks. Imagine how silent we were, staring in awe....


Oh, these vast, calm, measureless mountain days, inciting at once to work and rest! Days in whose light everything seems equally divine, opening a thousand windows to show us God. Nevermore, however weary, should one faint by the way who gains the blessings of one mountain day; whatever his fate, long life, short life, stormy or calm, he is rich forever.

~John Muir~

The National Parks: America's Best Idea is quite the history lesson, but unlike any history class I ever sat through. I've learned so much by watching this series. Not only the struggles our own nation went through to preserve these gorgeous areas, but those who helped spearhead the whole system. The one person who takes center stage for the first two episodes is John Muir. I have read more John Muir works and writings in the past week than I ever did in school. Pity, really, as Mr. Muir was a top-notch wordsmith. With a string of words, Muir could paint, not just a picture, but an entire panoramic landscape in high-def! Some of his writings, that I'm reading for the first time, have literally brought me to tears. Few contemporary writers do that for me.

If you haven't already, download, rent or buy The National Parks: America's Best Idea and watch it. And if you've already seen it--watch it again. And watch it with your kids. Maybe it'll inspire them to go see these wonders in person one day. Maybe you'll be lucky enough to take them!

"Walk away quietly in any direction and taste the freedom of the mountaineer. Camp out among the grasses and gentians of glacial meadows, in craggy garden nooks full of nature's darlings. Climb the mountains and get their good tidings, Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves. As age comes on, one source of enjoyment after another is closed, but nature's sources never fail."
~from the book Our National Parks
by John Muir (1901)~

(thank-you Mr. Muir)

Rebounding in 2010....

I am once again turning my blog over to the writing prowess of my friend and writer, Joel Burke, who updated his blog with the most insightful writing about using 2010 to your fullest potential. Thanks Joel, for once again giving me lots to think about for the upcoming New Year!

What would be your personal top ten moments in 2009? Take a moment to write down one list that contains both the wins and losses! Then, begin to reflect on each one. What were you thinking and feeling with both the highlights and the low lights. What did you learn from each one? I would guess for most of you, 2009 has been a year of tough losses. In fact, you likely are suffering through a loss right now as the New Year begins.

In basketball, most games are won or lost by a rebound. However, for a rebound to happen, there has to be a missed shot! You may have had some missed shots in 2009, but be ready for a rebound in 2010! One of the most basics fundamentals in basketball when you shoot the ball is to follow it. In fact, there is a good chance you will get your own rebound from the missed shot!

Two of the best rebounders in NBA history were Elgin Baylor and Charles Barkley. They didn’t have the height or even the jumping ability, but they had a hunger and a desire to go get the ball after a missed shot!

In order to be a great rebounder in basketball and in life, we all need to have three skills. These skills are not about talent, but rather our attitude.

1. Aggressiveness

2. Positioning

3. Determination

Aggressiveness: The basketball term is to crash the boards. You’ve got to have the desire to go get the ball. In basketball and in life, you can’t expect the ball to bounce your way. You must go get it!

Positioning: This skill is setting you up for a rebound (success) by anticipating where the ball is going to bounce. Proper positioning and a little extra effort to get the ball will most often create a positive outcome!

Determination: This is purely an attitude that every missed shot is one you can turn into a made shot! You have “can-do” attitude of energy and emotion. This energy and emotion will not only help you succeed, but lift up those around you!

Yes, 2010 will likely be another tough year for all of us. However, I hope it will be a year for you to rebound from the missed shots of 2009! Now, go chase the ball!

Catnip caper...

My two cats have a wonderful great-uncle who bought them a bag of fresh catnip some time ago from an herb farm up in Maryland. It is a 1/2 lb bag that is taking forever to finish up but the bag is now almost finished. The cats know the sound of the closet door opening that houses the nip and they usually come running when they hear it. If they are out of earshot of the door, they definitely know the sound of that bag that holds the nip. As I try to walk around, over, through kitties at my feet who are circling me, weaving in and out of my legs looking up at me so endearingly. Their little, bright eyes saying "please oh please oh please put the nip down NOW!". They each get a little pile on the carpet in our bedroom and that is where they stay for the rest of the day. First they lay on it, then roll in it, lick at it, chew on it and eventually, sleep on top of it. Ahhhhh, a full day.

The bummer of this story is, is that Stillridge Farms in Maryland, the herb farm where my brother bought this catnip, does not have an on-line store, so I can't get a new bag of their favorite stuff. I now will have to search out another 'supplier' and hope that it will be just as good as their favorite nip!

Winter Solstice....

With those North of us digging out of a massive snow storm that hit yesterday, it only seems timely and appropriate to stop this week and welcome in old man Winter. Today is the eve of the Winter Solstice, the time when those of us in the Northern Hemisphere officially welcome Winter. Tomorrow at 12:47 pm (ET) the earths axial tilt is at it's furthest away from the sun, hence shorter days and longer nights and the official start of Winter. The small bit of good news for you Winter-haters, is that starting Tuesday, the days will get longer and longer--even if it is a little bit--as we once again start the process toward the Summer Solstice which comes June 21st.

"Throughout history, solstices have been celebrated and heralded with cultural and religious traditions. Our ancestors, who believed in mystery and magic, gathered together to celebrate the miraculous return of the light after the longest night of the year and that’s how Winter Solstice festivals were born. Still to this day,people all over the world celebrate Winter Solstice as a time of rebirth, a new beginning and a chance to marvel at the power of transition from darkness into light." (Daily World Buzz)



Nature chose for a tool, not the earthquake or lightening to rend and split asunder, not the stormy torrent or eroding rain, but the tender snow-flowers noiselessly falling through unnumbered centuries.
~John Muir~

Near miss....

I went to a cookie exchange tonight in my old neighborhood. I love that they still invite me, as it is for those who still live on the street.....it makes me feel good that they still consider me part of the group. Driving back home became a heart racing adventure though, as I almost hit a deer. We live a little further out in the country than we used to, so we have alot more wildlife to encounter on our roads out here. I don't know if our new surroundings are the reason why, but I have seen so many more deer on the side of the road who didn't make it across the road than any year before. Everyday I must pass by 3-5 that perished the night before. Well tonight I almost added to that number.

As I traveled down the dark, twisty two lane road that leads to our subdivision, I saw what I thought was a dog all of a sudden running along side my SUV. As soon as I put my foot on the brake to slow, the deer darted out right in front of me. I stood up on the brake, tires a-squealin', SUV going a little sideways and barely missed that little doe by a couple of inches. All of a sudden I realized why I see so many on the side of the road dead....they're not the brightest animals in the kingdom are they? Why would you dart out in front of the car instead of back into the yard you were just grazing in? As much as my heart was pounding as I watched her scamper off into the woods, I can imagine hers was beating probably faster! I hope she stays in the woods tonight and off the roads.

Cookie mountain....

I have been so absent updating my blog and I apologize for that. I have been baking like a mad-woman these past couple of weeks. The Mina Project that I am doing through my church-- where they give you $10 in seed money and it is your job to use your talents to build that $10 into more, then release the money back into the community for needy families--has been very active since I started before Thanksgiving, but even more so right now. I have been baking breads and charging $10 for each loaf. So far I have raised $350--35 loaves! Now the Christmas rush starts and on Friday and Saturday alone, I have 11 loaves due. The beauty is that it's another $110 dollars. That puts my total Mina money raised up to $460. I am soooo proud and sooo grateful to my neighbors and teachers at Cassie's school and friends who have ordered! I think that I may make this a yearly event to raise money for someone who is in need. My Mina money, btw, is going to Interact of Wake County, a charity Sal & I have long supported.

The loaves are in addition to other orders that have come in over the past few weeks. It has been a very lucrative holiday for the Heavenly Scents Bakery, for sure! The past few days I have filled orders for not only Mina bread, but a large 250 Christmas cookie order, another platter of 30 cookies, 3-50 piece dessert trays, not to mention the weekly Sunday breakfast I do for 200. It's been very busy.

Through all of this, I give my thanks to God. Re-building this business since the move back to NC has been what I have prayed for ALOT over the past year and the clients are coming. Just like the Field of Dreams "If you build it they will come", I prayed for it and it has come and it still is. I am soooooo thankful! Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you!

Lotsa lights....

My computer has been at the IT hospital for the past few days getting some bugs removed and I've been using my work laptop lately. I didn't realize how much I would miss my personal computer. Of course the day we got the CPU back, the monitor decided to blow up so I had to make an emergency trip out to buy a new one today. This monitor is much bigger than our previous one, so I feel like I'm watching tv rather than working on the computer. It sure is nice!

I've been wanting to publish these Christmas photos and can now that my harddrive is back. These are from our decorating weekend over the long Thanksgiving holiday.

Christmas Kitty. I haven't quite figured out what it is about cats and their love for either climbing into the Christmas tree to sleep or settling for the tree skirt. Casper has found his favorite spot for this year!

We decided to do a live tree this year. This guy is 10 ft. tall and drinks water like a camel. There are needles everywhere. I don't think we'll do a live one again next year. This is tree 1 of 2!!


Tree #2. This is the artificial tree we normally use that I went ahead and set up even though we had the real thing this year. It's pretty cool having 2 trees all decorated. There are over 1800 little Christmas lights between the two trees and they are only 25 feet away from each other. Oh, how we glow.....really!


I've always loved the idea of having a train at the base of my Christmas tree. Eleven years ago, when I was pregnant with Cassie, I bought this from a wood craftsman and painted it myself.
It is one of my favorite things to pull out of storage every Christmas. I love knowing that she will have it to pass on to her kids one day.....

Poinsettias......

I was in Sam's Club last week and was amazed at their display of poinsettias. The plants they have are monstrous. I mean huge! They certainly are gorgeous. I read somewhere recently that North Carolina is the 2nd largest grower of poinsettias behind California. These gorgeous red, white & pink plants bring our state almost $18 million in revenue...nice! Every year at this time, the email about the Legend of the Poinsettia shows up in my email inbox and it did this weekend. It's a sweet little story......

Maria and Pablo lived in a tiny village in Mexico. Because Christmastime at their house did not include many gifts, Maria and Pablo looked forward to the Christmas festivities at the village church with great joy and anticipation.

©2006 Publications International, Ltd.

To honor the birth of Christ, the church displayed a beautiful manger that drew crowds of admirers. Villagers walked miles to admire the manger, bringing lovely, expensive gifts for the Baby Jesus. As Maria and Pablo watched the villagers place their gifts in the soft hay around the manger, they felt sad. They had no money to buy gifts for their family and no money to buy a gift for the Baby Jesus. One Christmas Eve, Maria and Pablo walked to the church for that evening's services, wishing desperately that they had a gift to bring.

Just then, a soft glowing light shone through the darkness, and the shadowy outline of an angel appeared above them. Maria and Pablo were afraid, but the angel comforted them, instructing them to pick some of the short green weeds that were growing by the road. They should bring the plants to the church, the angel explained, and place them near the manger as their gift to the Baby Jesus. Then just as quickly as she had appeared, the angel was gone, leaving Maria and Pablo on the road looking up into the dark sky. Confused but excited, the children filled their arms with large bunches of the green weeds and hurried to the church.

When the children entered the church, many of the villagers turned to stare. As Maria and Pablo began placing the weeds around the manger, some of the villagers laughed at them. "Why are those children putting weeds by the manger?" they asked each other. Maria and Pablo began to feel embarrassed and ashamed of their gift to the Baby Jesus, but they stood bravely near the manger, placing the plants on the soft hay, as the angel had instructed.

Suddenly, the dull green leaves on the tops of the plants began to turn a beautiful shade of red, surrounding the Baby with beautiful blooms. The laughing villagers became silent as they watched the green plants transform into the lovely star-shaped crimson flowers we call poinsettias. As they watched the weeds bloom before their eyes, Maria and Pablo knew they had no reason to be ashamed anymore. They had given the Baby Jesus the only gift they could--and it was the most beautiful gift of all.