A couple of Monday's missed but who is counting.

If it seemed as though I have been MIA lately it's 'cause I was. This will be an attempt to play catch up.

Two weeks ago I piled my worldly goods into Fred and drove to NY for this little boy's First Holy Communion. 

I also got to see Layn serving Our Lord on the altar several times while I was gone. This grandma cannot help but swell with love and pride at the sight of a new generation of altar servers.

Of course these two figured heavily in my trip as well. The picture that I carry in my head of my grands had a major adjustment to make at the sight of them growing so quickly.  There was a popular country song several years ago entitled, "Don't Blink" I cannot help but hum it to myself as I watch the time fly past so quickly.

The contrast between these two pictures is an example of what happens in my head whenever the kids change or I go from one place to another. The snow I woke up to the first morning in New York...

gave way to the blatant signs of spring I witnessed when I got to the farm. That forsythia bush is the only one left of the three I planted after Doug and I were married. This bush is another metaphor for life. The other two bushes succombed to the ravages of children and dogs over the years but this one has endured.  (perhaps because it was the one that shaded a statue of Our Blessed Mother for many of those years?) I hope the cuttings that I brought back to Tennessee with me will thrive as well.

Every time one of the boys fixes something I will be forever reminded of their father. Just in case this chair even thinks it is going to fall apart again.

I am blessed to have some of the grands in my day to day life and the upcoming birthday celebration of this little man was sure to bring me back to the south.

Two years old! Am I being repetitive when I say, where did that last two years go?

The gifts and cake aside this little boy has been a blessing that cannot be expressed adequately. 

Being able to have Auntie home for the celebration is a gift in itself. She is so busy with work and school that there are times when I bet she can't tell if she's coming or going.

 This is just for the smile that it brings to my face.