The Candy Man Cometh

The Candy Man cometh. He lumbers down our driveway in his beat up white van, and hikes up his jeans as he steps out and greets our golden retrievers. To Hans and Luke, he is Willy Wonka, the man to be loved, slobbered upon and worshiped. He is...the ferrier. The trimmer of horse hooves and the one that my dogs adore; for to them, horse hooves are the ultimate in dog chewies.

If you have never experienced the look on a dog's face as he gnaws on a hoof, jowls all frothy and foamy-white, then you do not know the look of heaven on a dog's face.

But to Hamlet, the obese, mini (haha) Dachshund that we are doggie-sitting, this is a new experience. While the other dogs reverently sat around my horse, eager for the Candy Man to throw them a trimming, Hamlet was clueless. Until he happened upon a piece that the others had overlooked. Suddenly, Hamlet was prancing around the yard as if he had just discovered the Golden Ticket. However, this ticket is dirty, smelly, and gross to us humans. And really, it's just a very large, disgusting toenail. eeewwww.

So when Hamlet pranced up to the porch with it, and proceeded to walk into the house, I snatched it from him.Hey, we may be in the country, but THAT thing stays outside.

Yep, Hamlet is a city dog gone country!

Author's note to self: When a doggie over-indulges on hoof chewies, remember to contain him in a room with linoleum. DO NOT put him in a warm car and take him for a jaunt into town. Bad idea. VERY bad idea.

"Ooohhh, my aching belly!"

Henry's First Picnic!.wmv

Man, oh man. It feels as if it was just yesterday when I was so in love with my little one. And now my "little one" is in love with her little man. Time, you really can fly.

Fat Camp for Ham-butt

While others travel off to exotic places, I am the one that is called on to dog-sit.

So when my mom and sisters flew off to Spain, Hamlet came to stay with us.

Now, this mini long-haired Dachshund isn't typical. raised primarily by my eighty-five year old mom, he is NOT mini, and he is truly a mama's boy.

But Hamlet catches on quickly, realizing here at the Hall's that he's not the center of the house, as he has two other Dachshunds to deal with! And surprisingly,Hamlet is fitting in nicely; finding that Stevie's bed is the place to sleep, the cat is a fun action toy, and if he gives me a pitiful look while he tilts his head just so, he can come along for the car ride.

However, this week it's fat camp here at the Hall House. Not just for me, but for the... ahem... MINI long-haired Dachshund.






Truly, Hamlet is as big as a Savannah pork-butt roast at a Fourth of July covered dish dinner at The Mighty Lord's Perpetual Grace and Enveloping Arms Church. (How's that, Allie?!) and now that he's here, it's time to whip him into shape! Gone are the cookies and treats; instead it's three mile hikes. Maybe Hamlet and I will inspire one another to lost a few pounds!

HaPpInEsS is...........

Children that leave such sweet comments that make me tear up!!!!!!

Thanks, Peanut and Loula Bell.....

It's in the Choosing

"What am I doing wrong as a mother?"

How many times have I assaulted myself with this very question? Too many times. And it is so easy to do. Fearful of making the right decision, I convince myself that their very life depends on the decisions I make.

Or the rant I hit them with the night before comes back to haunt me and whispers in my ear, "They will carry that with them for the rest of their lives!"

I could spend hours mulling it.

But lately when I look at my kids, I see such strength and awesome qualities, inspite of me!(Thank you, God!) And I especially see this in the three that are out on their own. But you know the greatest, most amazing characteristic that blows me away?

It is that they are brave.

Yes, brave! Not brave like, go-off -to-war-and-slay-thy-enemies brave, but step-out-and-choose-hard-things, brave.

I see three young women who are stepping out with much courage into this big world. Sure, at times it can get scary. And at times fear can keep us from doing something brave. But, it's in the choosing where we grow.

like birthin' a baby. Scary.

like leading a worship team. (Don't even ask me to sing in front of people!)

like leaving everything and everyone you know and living in a third world country where cockroaches love to hide in the squatty and jump out at you at night, making you hold it 'till you get a massive headache and are about to wet your pants, until you are able to shoo them all away.

'nough said.

I am finally realizing that, while education is very important, there is this characteristic of choosing to be brave that is so incredibly valuable. I don't believe that we are just born with courage in our hearts, but it's in the choosing where it is developed. And without the choosing, we don't grow, learn, experience, change; become an adult.

But fear, self-doubt, and perfectionism can be such a courage killer. It can suck the courage right out of a person. I know that as well as anyone else, and that is why I am so in awe of my brave young women!

Which ultimately leads me to ask myself, "When was the last time I chose to be brave and do something hard?"

Hmmm.

John Bingham said, "The miracle is not that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start."

I am so very proud of you girls for having the courage to start.

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Have you ever considered following a blog? How about mine? I mean, not that it matters to me or anything because,hey, it's not about the numbers for me. really. Okay, just a little. What grinds my gears are those blogs out there that are full of simple sentences, misspelled words and run-ons that have a bizillion followers! Unfair! It simply sucks the creative juices out of a blogger. Just thought you'd want to know.