Box of Love Letters

Do you remember getting letters in the mail from a friend who lived far away or a cousin or an Aunt? It was so exciting to open the mailbox and see a handwritten address across the front of the envelope. You could usually tell from the handwriting who it was from but you looked at the return address anyway. I remember the anticipation of opening the envelope and taking the letter out. I had to find the right spot in the house to open it so that I could be comfy while I read. Usually I read the letter the first time quickly but then always went and re-read it again savoring the handwritten words.

I have been cleaning out closets, dresser drawers and the basement. I had the fun of "finding" a box of old letters that I kept. They are from my husband. To think that I am one of the lucky few to have a box of love letters! I felt sad for a moment for the relationships today. The age of technology had stolen the art of writing love letters. People are in constant contact with each other with e-mail, text, social media...where's the anticipation of waiting to hear from someone? 

My husband and I had a long-distance relationship and people will ask me, "Was it hard?" I used to say yes. But now, I feel lucky to have gotten to actually know my husband and who he was inside before we got married. We didn't have a lot of dates so we didn't take our time together for granted. Long distance phone calls were expensive (we met in 1989), we didn't have free long distance. So....we wrote a lot of letters! I remember writing a letter a day and I usually got one from him most days of the week.

I treasure these letters. They revealed to me the man that he was and the man that I fell in love with. So my wish to all the young people out there, embarking on new relationships, is that you get love letters. They are a window to a person's soul.

Baby Steps

As I mentioned, my one and only darling child graduated this past year. He has moved into a dorm so that left me and my hubby with a sense of "this house is too big" for the two of us. So, what better way to fill the void??

Yep! This past June we adopted this darling little pooch from a local rescue. His name is Mr. Darcy (too much??). We saw him and fell in love with him instantly. He is a shih-tzu and beagle mix. Very precocious, pretentious and affectionate! I had forgotten what it was like to have a little pup in the house again. He's kept me very busy and he's definitely given this house a routine once again. 

He is now 10 months old and we are going to begin "Fundamentals" class next week. Overall, he's pretty well behaved except when visitors come to the door and he's all over them. So, we'll be working on that. My hope is to eventually get him to be a certified therapy dog and take him for hospital visitations. Here is a picture of him now that he's almost fully grown...

I think getting him trained as a therapy dog will be great...for him as well as me. I want to be able to help bring a little more sunshine into people's lives that aren't looking so great at the moment. One look at this furry face and you can't help but smile!

Blogging Adventure

Hello World! This blog is really about the next chapter in my life. A way for me to document my new adventures and escapades of being an empty nester. My son, now 19, has flown the coop and left me with a lot of time on my hands. I have spent the last 19 years doing all of the fun things that a mom likes to do. I have been the dedicated lacrosse mom and volunteered for all of the school functions. Now, I find that I have time to try a bunch of new things. A few of my favorite things that I like to do: read, cook, hang out with family and friends, watch movies, hike, bike and play in our little garden. I love Jesus, my family and my country. I've never really had the time to do crafty things or really get into making complex types of food. My new aspirations include learning how to can vegetables, make jelly, make homemade pasta, bake bread as well as become more crafty! I hope you'll enjoy the chronicles of my attempts, failed or successful. It should be a lot of fun!