On The Lighter Side...

Who can come up with a caption for this photo?


So, Big Daddy caught up on my blog tonight and let me know things have been a little on the gloomy side around here. I went back and by golly, he's right - those holidays can be tough for me. So I resolve to balance my blue with some sunshine and fun.

Interesting Photo

The above photo circulated the internet many (?) years ago and it stunned and fascinated me when I first saw it. After a little research over at snopes.com I was relieved to learn that the sea creature is a dolphin and not a shark! But, Oh what a picture! What gives me chills is that at first glance I thought it was a shark. I was not alone in that assessment. Then there is the size of the dolphin (9-10 ft.?) compared to the size and proximity of the surfer. Look closely at the dorsal fin, it's curved and the tail fin is horizontal rather than vertical, characteristic of dolphins and porpoises.

My family moved to Florida when I was in my early teens, and for a short time we lived in Indiatlantic, at a condo right on the beach. I remember swimming alone in the ocean one day, chest deep in the water. I was facing the horizon, when in front of me and a little to the right a dorsal fin cut through the surface o the ocean. It was about 10 feet away from me. I froze. The adrenalin coursed through my body but I could not move. I was so relieved when the body beneath the dorsal fin curved into a hump and I realized it was a dolphin. Still, being that close to something wild and that big, frightened me. I'll never forget it.

Honoring Dads

I am so grateful for my Dad.

"I had a dad
He was big and strong
I turned around
I found my daddy gone
He was the one
Made me what I am today
It's up to me now
My daddy has gone away*..."

I still miss him terribly!



I am blessed with a husband who is a great dad.
My husband's step-father, is a fine man, also a pastor,
and I couldn't ask for a better father-in-law.

This is an older photo - Adam is as tall as his Dad now.


May the Lord bless all you Dads out there, may you grow in His grace,
mercy and love. We are grateful for you.

*lyrics from 'Had A Dad' by Jane's Addiction

My Fellow Bloggers...

You may or may not have noticed that I changed some of the links on my blog roll over there on the right hand side. Please don't take it personally if I removed your blog link, I was just doing a little spring cleaning. I really enjoy all the blogs I link(ed) too, but I noticed that a few of them were not active for 6 or more months. So in the interest of being interesting and current, albeit in my own limited way, I was just doing a little tidying. I have you all saved in my favorite bookmarks and will continue to check on them. And when there is some more blogging afoot, then I will link away (again)! I miss you guys! I have also come across some new blogs lately and I am enjoying them. What are your favorite blogs? Share a link if you like.

Big Daddy took this beautiful sunset picture the other evening. He really has a good eye, and it runs in the family because one of his sisters is a very gifted, self-taught professional photographer. (I also like to think that spending a couple of decades with an artistic wife has rubbed off on him a bit, too.) I think he is inspired by her talent because he is taking many good pictures of the children and their teammates at games. That is how his sister got started with becoming passionate about photography. I love it when we can inspire, learn and encourage each other to good works. It is a blessing that he now has a bit more time to do these types of things he loves, ministry included (and actually imbued in all he does), instead of working himself to exhaustion just to support us. I do believe he's enjoying this season of life, but I can't presume to speak for him. It's just a nice little thing I've noticed.