Celebrate, we will

We spent $8 and one hour decorating a wagon in red, white, and blue for tomorrow’s old fashioned pet parade.

Although the kids are still pretty little we know they’ll love it. And since we have no idea when we’ll get to celebrate another 4th of July we’re doing it, well, biggish.

It feels like an eternity ago that I was a kid riding my bike in the parade. Dressing in silly outfits and having my own children in the parade was a million miles from my mind.

But here I am, so excited about some old fashioned small town parade and festivities.

We’ll hit up the free pancake breakfast, enjoy the parade, and roam around the park filled with three-legged races, hoola hooping, and other “old fashioned” games.

And though the boys are far too young to understand what it is to be American, they will understand that it’s something worth celebrating.

Celebrate, we will.

Happy 4th my friends.

STOP.

 

Q for you: If you are American, what are you doing for the 4th?

 

Love,
A

 

Click Clink Five | Five minutes a day, unedited.

Life on the ranch

Even though I grew up in a small town, I’ve always thought of myself as a city girl.

Being in cities (the bigger, the better) makes me come alive – always has.

I love the bustle and movement, the diversity and the color.

Never in a million years would I have thought I’d enjoy living on a farm or in the country.

On Saturday we spent some time at a friend’s place outside of town.

They live on two-and-a-half acres – just big enough for a barn, a horse, and a couple of ponies. Levi ran free the entire afternoon between the tire swing, the pile of tonka trucks under the big pine tree, feeding the horse, grooming the ponies, playing with the wheelbarrow, and who knows what else he got up to.

He ran around like he owned the place. Love would be an understatement here.

And although I still imagine myself as a “city girl” and can’t see myself desiring life on the ranch anytime soon… for the first time in my life I “got it” a little tiny bit.

I could see the draw, the pull, the motivation to get out and find yourself some space for the kids to run free.

Kids change almost everything, don’t they?

STOP

 

Q for you: Can you imagine living in the country? Or on a ranch or a farm?

 

Love,
A

 

Click Clink Five | Five minutes a day, unedited. 

Along party lines. Again.

It’s hard for me to be in America and not think about politics.

I love watching the news and hearing from the analysts.

This last week has been interesting – watching my facebook feed with Americans weighing in on the health care reforms that have just passed.

I’m certainly no expert, but I have read up a little. And although finding a perfect health care plan is impossible, my belief is that the reforms coming through “Obamacare” are moving us in the right direction.

As a Christian my primary concern is that we’re looking after those who are marginalized – those who have disease and disability, children, the elderly, the poor.

This imperfect plan (even by Obama’s admission) addresses all those those and more.

It’s a huge step in the right direction, starting from where we are right now.

Sincerely I try, but I just can’t understand the Republican/Democratic divide on this one. I really can’t.

I’m no Republican-hater, but my goodness, what’s the deal here folks? Are we disagreeing just because we’re “supposed” to be opposing? (Sometimes that’s what the debate feels like.)

From what I can tell the only ones who will really “suffer” from the impending changes are the insurance companies and pharmaceuticals. (But I make it no secret that I’m in favor of a more socialized health care system.)

And doesn’t the concept of helping “the least of these” seem like it will help build a better future for all of us?

And doesn’t it just seem like the right thing to do?

Just sayin.

STOP.

 

Q for you: Obamacare – what do you think? Do you get as annoyed that issues are always split down party lines as I do?

 

Love,
A

 

Click Clink Five | Five minutes a day, unedited. 

 

An inconvenient errand

The streets were fairly quiet as I was driving to the grocery store at 10:45pm tonight.

It was the first time I’d had a chance all day to get to the store. We needed milk for the morning.

As I drove there I thought about what a novelty it was to be able to grocery shop at that hour.

The supermarket I go to at home closes as 9pm, or 5pm on the weekends.

All of a sudden I was excited for my little errand.

I’m. in. America. I thought to myself.

It’s the little things I miss about home. (Well, the little things and a few big things like my family and church.)

But I miss being able to grocery shop late at night when I’m free to roam the isles slow and steady and feel like the place is there just for me.

So tonight, even an inconvenient errand didn’t seem so inconvenient.

In fact, it seemed kinda fun.

Fancy that.

STOP.

 

Q for you: Before I moved to Australia I used to do my grocery shopping most Sunday nights around 10pm. I enjoyed my late-evening weekly ritual. Do you ever do your grocery shopping at night? Or is that only when you need to run in and grab a one-off for some special reason?

 

Love,
A

p.s. This is yesterday’s post. My internet wasn’t working when I tried to post it last night.

 

Click Clink Five | Five minutes a day, unedited.