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A THANKSGIVING I REMEMBER
by Nancy B. Gibbs
I vividly remember a Thanksgiving Day when I was a teenager. Our
family had planned to go to my aunt''s home in the country to enjoy a
tra***ional Thanksgiving meal. Unfortunately, that morning the plans
changed. My mother hadn''t planned to cook, so there was no food in the
house. The grocery stores and restaurants were all closed.
My father was determined that we would have something to eat for
Thanksgiving, however. After riding around for about an hour, we
discovered a hot dog stand, sitting just off the highway. God blessed us.
The hot dog stand was open!
Daddy purchased four dogs to go. Before long, we were sitting around
our kitchen table, holding hands, and thanking God for our Thanksgiving
meal.
It has been many years since that particular Thanksgiving Day, but I
remember it like just yesterday. Ironically, I cannot recall how we spent
any other Thanksgiving Day when I was young.
What is important about Thanksgiving is not the menu. The important
thing is that we are thankful for whatever blessing God sends our way.
Let''s all decide to make this a Thanksgiving to remember, regardless
of whether we feast on turkey or hot dogs!
-- Nancy B. Gibbs <daiseydood @ aol.com>
Cha Mẹ nuôi con như biển hồ lai láng .Con nuôi Cha Mẹ sao tính tháng , tính ngày .

HIS EYES SPEAK VOLUMES
by Bethany Brake
We walk tonight, my service dog and I, in the dim yellow harvest glow
of the campus lights, under a nearly-full moon.
The air is crisp. There is a hint of winter on the way, layered with
the spicy, singular aroma of fallen leaves -- that crisp and earthy tone
that hails the autumn.
Chester is exuberant, bouncing after a long day. I am sleepy,
languorous, at peace. I sit on a bench under a grandfather tree -- one so
tall and old that its presence can be felt, ancient as the earth, timeless.
I take off his vest, and Chester is instantly all dog -- nose to the
ground, racing circles around me while I sit and smell the scents of autumn
under the tranquil moon. Leaves crackle under his feet, and his buoyant
playing kicks them into the air, where they flutter for a moment before
alighting gently back on earth.
Everything is golden -- bathed in low ambient light, the brown leaves
underfoot acquiring an almost unearthly glow, heaven on earth and God in
all. A gentle breeze blows with a hint of bite, warning of winter to come,
but saying now to be content as there still is time to play.
Chester has worn himself out and comes to lay at my feet. I watch him
quietly, thinking only how beautiful he is. What a gloriously beautiful
and noble creature -- the golden light caresses his fur, catching highs and
lows, lights and darks, shimmering with the gentle motion of his breathing.
I watch his ears prick and swivel as he listens to the night sounds. He
is alert but not tense. He looks up at me -- his brown eyes warm, relaxed,
and I smile at him. Such a beautiful creature. My dog. My heart.
He stares at me. His eyes speak volumes. And then he stands and
licks my hands and face as I bend down and wrap my arms around him. I
could not dare but love him -- the earnest ways in which he tries to please
me, to help me -- his never-failing trust of me, the all-consuming goodness
of him.
Animals must have souls. Anyone who has experienced their pure
con***ionless love could do little but come to that conclusion. My heart
hurts with the love I have for him, and brings tears to my eyes. I love
him so much. And all I give to him is mirrored right back for me. For he
has given me my life back, walked me through hardship after hardship, and
kept me from giving up, as I am no longer alone in battling my disability.
After a long moment, I rise and we get ready to leave. He picks up
his vest on the bench next to me and places it into my hands. I open it up
and he slips his head into the strap and stands quietly while I buckle it
around his belly. Then he hands me the leash, his tail wagging, ready for
a new adventure.
Oh, to be so happy with life! To await with eagerness even the
mundane. I wonder if he knows that it''s time to go inside and get ready
for tomorrow, and then bed?
Even though the fun is over for the night, he doesn''t complain, there
is no disappointment. Just a zest for life and eagerness to move on. He
lives in the moment.
I gather the leash and we walk together back home -- life intruding
again on something that seemed, however brief, truly otherworldly.
-- Bethany Brake <brake.20 @ osu.edu>
Cha Mẹ nuôi con như biển hồ lai láng .Con nuôi Cha Mẹ sao tính tháng , tính ngày .

THE FUNNY THINGS KIDS SAY
Sarah, 4, had just come from her first wedding. She told her
grandmother that the bride had on a pretty white dress and Josh (the groom)
had on a "black mosqui*****it." She meant tuxedo! -- Grandma Suzze of
Decatur, Indiana
When Celia took a cold chocolate pie to her grandson Victor''s house
and pulled the plastic wrap off to get it ready for whipped cream, Victor,
4, said, "MMMmmm, chocolate pizza!" -- Celia Keel of Harveyville, Kansas
Phillip, 8, and his nephew Ryan, 4, were arguing back and forth. Ryan
was telling Phillip how to do various things. Phillip, being the older and
wiser of the two, finally told Ryan, "You don''t have any sense." Ryan
promptly replied in a very serious voice, "Yes I do. It''s in the car." --
Myra, mother of Ryan and sister of Phillip of South Carolina
A friend of Sherri''s took her little boy Dylan, 5, to the beauty salon
for a haircut. After the girl cut his hair she said, "Now I will put a
little mousse in your hair." Dylan looked up at her and asked, "What part
of the mousse?" -- Sherri Princell of Santa Clarita, California
As a first grade project, Jay''s granddaughter, Baillie, was studying
the planets in our solar system. When she arrived home from school,
Baillie''s mother asked what she had learned. She replied, "I know almost
all the names of the planets -- they are, The Moon, Pluto, Jupiter, Saturn,
Mars and Your Highness (Uranus)!" -- Jay Miller of Slaterville, Utah
S.T., a 4-year-old in the hospital, had an uncomfortable tube in her
nose. The doctor came in and asked if he could (finally) take it out.
Without hesitating the little girl told him, "You have to ask the nurse
first!" -- Erika Kiefer (the patient in the next bed was Erika''s) of
Baltimore, Maryland
Starla''s daughter Sara, 4, was hungry. Starla told her to wait... Dad
was making dinner. Sara wrinkled her nose and asked what he was making.
Starla said, "Steaks and stuff." Sara ****ed her head and asked, "Is that
kind of like mis-STEAKS?" -- Starla Smith of Cedar Rapids, Iowa
When Janet had her birthday a few weeks ago, her son Alex, 7, asked
her how old she was. Stretching the truth a little, Janet said, "I''m 29."
Alex thought for a moment and then said, "Well, Mom, you can''t be 29! You
were 29 last year, so you have to be 30 this year!" -- Janet Hart of
Wolcottville, Indiana
Kennedy, almost 2, was staying at her grandmother''s house. Her
grandmother would say, "Kennedy, what does a cat do?" Kennedy would say,
"Meow." Grandmother would say, "Kennedy, what does a cow do?" Kennedy
would say, "Moo." After going through other animals, her grandmother said,
"Kennedy, what does a dog do?" Kennedy said, "Poop in the house!" --
Shane Housholder (father of Kennedy) of Fort Wayne, Indiana
A homeschool group went on a field trip to a children''s museum in San
Antonio, Texas. It was an interactive museum where children can touch and
explore things. One of the exibits was a real airplane where the children
can take turns being the pilot and using the microphone to speak to the
children who are pretending to be passangers. Shawn, 8, was taking his
turn when his mother informed him it was time to leave. Shane grabbed the
microphone and shouted, "People, we have to land this plane, and we are
going to crash! I want everyone to evaporate! Evaporate this plane now!"
-- Mary Ann Boyd (mother of Shawn) of Pleasanton, Texas
Debbie''s 15-month-old, Jared, loves to chatter. And he loves to be
tickled, as with most babies his age. The other night at the dinner table,
his mother Debbie was eating a baby dill pickle and Jared was opening and
closing his hand at Debbie, as if he wanted one. So she gave him a pickle
and told him what it was. He grabbed it and started to "tickle" it with
his fingers while saying, "tickle-tickle" with the biggest grin on his
face! -- Debbie Pipkin of Michigan
Cha Mẹ nuôi con như biển hồ lai láng .Con nuôi Cha Mẹ sao tính tháng , tính ngày .

THE FUNNY THINGS KIDS SAY
Brian, 7, was shopping with his mother in her favorite gift store.
His mother was looking at cards, and Brian was smelling all the candles.
Suddenly he yelled, "Hey, Mom, come here! Doesn''t this one smell like the
stuff Daddy puts on under his arms?" -- JoAnne Johnson (mother of Brian)
of Chews Landing, New Jersey
When Sherri''s oldest son was 3, she had to visit the cemetery to be
sure that the headstone of a loved one had been placed on the grave. Billy
had fallen asleep in the car on the way, so Sherri left him in the car
while she walked the few feet to the grave to check. When she came back to
the car he was awake, quietly contemplating the scene before him.
Unfortunately, he had known of death through the loss of two family
members. As they slowly drove out of the cemetery he turned to Sherri,
with a very serious look on his face, and asked, "Mom, is this the place
where you plant people and flowers come up?" -- Sherri Nussbaum of
Ofallon, Missouri
Denise''s nephew, 3 at the time, went into the bathroom, and upon his
return, he seemed a little upset. When asked what the problem was, he told
his Papa (grandpa) that "the toilet was throwing up." It had overflowed!
-- Denise Theriot of Ocala, Florida
Denise''s adoped son came to live with them when he was 13 months old.
For reasons unknown to Denise, he hated bath time. Finally, at age 2, he
realized that bath time was not a time for screaming and unhappiness,
rather it was a fun time to share with your parents. He even allowed
Denise to pour water over his head to rinse the shampoo. One of the first
times they did this, he said, laughing, "Mommy, it is raining on my face!"
-- Denise Theriot of Ocala, Florida
When Sandi''s daughters were 8 and 5 years-old, Sandi remarried. Her
second husband (Bob) wanted to adopt the girls, so one day as they were
driving to the store Sandi asked her daughters how they felt about being
adopted. Staci, 5, said, "I don''t understand what you are saying." Sandi
explained that they would go to court and then they would have the same
name as "Dad." Staci looked at her mother as if she were truly insane and
said, "BOB?" -- Sandi Rezner of Arlington, Minnesota
Victor, 4, became tired of his brother Eric, 1, who was bothering his
play. Victor took Eric to his parents and said, "Eric needs a nap!" --
Celia Keel of Harveyville, Kansas
Lu''s brother and sister-in-law belonged to a motorcycle club and won
many awards. Lu''s sister-in-law''s dad, who loved to fish, died. Lu''s
niece said, "Grandpa won''t be gone long." Lu''s brother asked her why she
was so sure. She replied, "He didn''t take his boat along. It''s still in
the garage." On the way to the cemetery, they passed a large stone with a
loving cup urn on top. Lu''s niece said, "Look, Dad, that guy won a
trophy!" -- Lu Peterson of Miltona, Minnesota
Ayron, who is nearly 7 feet tall, lives in the country and doesn''t
have the opportunity to pass out candy at Halloween. So he asked if he
could sit on Lynette''s roof to pass out treats. He was on the roof and he
lowered down a pumpkin full of candy for each trick or treater. One little
boy looked up and took a tiny piece of candy. "Oh, take some more," Ayron
said. "It''s getting late." The little boy was frightened but he took a
handful. As he ran to his mother, she said, "What are you supposed to
say?" The little boy, who was very shaken, stuttered, "Merry Christmas!"
-- Lynette Reese of Auburn, Indiana
Betty and her husband were talking to their 5-year-old grandson
Zackery over the phone. He was excited about coming to their house for
Thanksgiving. Betty told him they were going to have a big turkey and that
Aunt Lori was going to fry it in a new cooker she had bought. Zackery
asked, "A real turkey?" Betty told him yes and that it would be very good.
Zackery said, "Well I sure hope she gets all the poop out of it before she
cooks it!" -- Betty Baker of Dodd City, Texas
Sue''s 4-year-old granddaughter told her parents, very seriously, "I''ll
tell you what Grandma needs. She NEEDS A NEW PAIR OF EARS!" -- Sue R. of
Texas
One day just before Christmas, Meggie, 5, was riding in the car with
her mother. There was some snow on the ground in the wooded area where
they live. All of a sudden a deer popped out of the woods, stared at the
car, and ran off. Meggie sucked in her breath and got all excited.
"Mommy," she exclaimed, "I think I just saw Rudolph. He''s in our
neighborhood!" -- Cynthia Janes (mother of Meggie) of Bridgewater,
Massachusetts
Cha Mẹ nuôi con như biển hồ lai láng .Con nuôi Cha Mẹ sao tính tháng , tính ngày .

Some thing interesting to read about.
Copyrighted at http://www.vikarsrant.net/MilitaryWife.htm
When the good Lord was creating Wives, he was into his sixth day of overtime.
An angel appeared and said, "You''re having a lot of trouble with this one. What''s wrong with the standard model?"
And the Lord replied, "Have you seen the specs on this order? She has to be completely independent, but must be sponsored to get on post; have the qualities of both father and mother during deployments; be a perfect hostess to 4 or 40; run on black coffee; handle emergencies without a manual; be able to handle flu, birthdays and moves around the world; have a kiss that can cure anything from a child''s torn Valentine to a husband''s weary day; have the patience of a saint when waiting for the Unit to return home; and have six pairs of hands."
The angel shook her hand slowly and said, "Six pairs of hands... no way!"
And the Lord answered, "Don''t worry, we''ll make other military wives to help. Besides it''s not the hands that are causing the problem, it''s the heart. It must swell with pride in her husband, sustain the ache of separations, beat on soundly when it''s too tired to do so and be large enough to say, "I Understand" when she doesn''t, and ''I love you'' regardless."
"Lord," said the angel, touching his sleeve gently. "Come to bed... finish this tomorrow!"
"I can''t," said the Lord. "I''m so close to creating something unique. Already I have one who heals herself when she''s sick, can feed three unexpected guests who are stuck in the area due to bad weather, and can wave good-bye to her husband, from a pier, off a runway and understand that it is important to his country that he leaves."
The angel circled the model of the military wife very slowly. "It''s too soft," she sighed.
"But tough," said the Lord excitedly. "You cannot imagine what this woman can do or endure."
"Can it think?"
"Can it think? It can convert 1400 to 2 p.m."
Finally, the angel bent over and ran her finger across the cheek. "There''s a leak," she pronounced. "I told you that you were trying to put too much into this model."
"It''s not a leak," said the Lord. "It''s a tear."
"What''s it for?" asked the angel.
"It''s for joy. Sadness. Disappointment. Pain, loneliness and pride!"
"You are a genius," sighed the angel.
The Lord looked somber and replied, "I didn''t put it there."
If I was pressed to say
Why I love her
I feel that my only reply could be:
"Because it was she,
Because it was I" 

FARM AND FAMILY
by Stefanie Wass
"Where are you spending the holidays?" a friend asks as we meet after
church one Sunday.
"Are you kidding?" I reply, "There is no option for me. I have been
going to the same house for Thanksgiving and Christmas my entire life. We
have to drive the kids and all the gear to the family farm in Pennsylvania
where my mom grew up. There will be the usual slew of relatives, lots of
confusion, the kids will miss their naps..."
I sigh just thinking about the day ahead.
I am definitely not looking forward to the long car ride with
18-month-old Julia screaming "stuck!" for two hours while she attempts to
unbuckle her car seat. My shy four-year-old Emily will not be amused by
unfamiliar relatives planting "gooey" kisses upon her forehead.
"It would be nice if I could just host Thanksgiving myself some year,"
I say. But the instant that the words are out of my mouth, I know that my
heart yearns each year to return to our 200-year-old Pennsylvania dairy
farm. For 34 years I have spent Thanksgiving at the same locale, and I
wouldn''t have it any other way.
It is the old white milkhouse that I will spot first as we drive up
the dirt road towards the McEntire Farm. Constructed in 1952 by my
grandfather, the little house served as much more than just a holding tank
for the milk that was shipped to the nearby dairy. Lessons in hard work
and perseverance were taught there every summer as I helped my grandmother
wash the milk buckets each morning and carry the milkers back to the barn.
Thankful to be one of the youngest of thirteen grandchildren, I watched as
my older cousins carried 100-pound milk pails to the bulk tank. Swish,
swish. I always wanted one last look at all that milk before heading back
home after a farm visit as a little girl.
As we park our car alongside the old barn hill this Thanksgiving, I
will fondly glance over the pastures and gardens that have been in our
family for generations. It is in these gardens that I learned the value of
hard work as I hoed weeds until my fingers blistered. It is among the rows
of beans and stalks of corn where family gossip has been shared and
problems solved over the years. So many of life''s problems were put in
perspective as we tended God''s soil under the hot summer sun.
Inside the farmhouse, the warm arms of my aunts, uncles and cousins
will welcome me and embrace my children. Warm aromas of all that is good
about this holiday will linger -- homemade pies, several turkeys, and fresh
garden vegetables.
So much about this sixth generation farmhouse will remind me of
summers spent there as a young girl -- the big kitchen table where my
"Grammie" taught me how to roll out egg noodles by hand, the old Victrola,
which can still roll out some pretty high-steppin'' tunes, and the big beds
covered with Grammie''s prize-winning, homemade quilts.
I realize that not every family has as many as forty relatives gather
at a homestead such as ours every holiday season. Everyone helps prepare
the meal, which always is preceded by a prayer of thanksgiving. After the
meal, many of my cousins and their children all hop aboard a tractor-pulled
wagon as my Uncle Tom takes everyone through the fields for the annual
"gathering of the greens". It is there, deep in the woods of Western
Pennsylvania, that my Christmas wreath takes its origins.
Pine boughs are gathered and then brought back home to be assembled
into beautiful wreaths by my talented aunts. The warmth of Uncle Tom''s
shed provides the backdrop for a wreath making workshop as everyone helps
create beautiful Christmas wreaths adorned with bows, pinecones and the
like. I feel a tug upon my heart as I see wreath stands for the cemeteries
in loving memory of my dad, my uncle and my grandparents.
As I bundle up the kids and head back to Ohio with my wreath in tow, I
will be filled with the love of our spirited clan. Diaper bags, sippy
cups, and toddler tunes on the car CD player won''t be able to dampen my
holiday mood.
Filled with the strength of farm and family, I will say a prayer of
thanks to God for all that I have been given.
-- Stefanie Wass <swass @ adelphia.net>
MY FAVORITE TIME OF YEAR
This is the time of year,
That to me is best of all,
When the air is crisp and cool,
And the leaves begin to fall,
Soon when I open up my door,
Ghosts and goblins will appear,
"Trick or treat," they''ll yell,
And Halloween is really here,
After that comes the time to plan,
A big Thanksgiving dinner,
I''ll have to forget about my diet,
Cause I never will get thinner,
And anyway, it doesn''t matter,
Cause now I''m really hopping,
I''ll burn up all those calories,
When I go Christmas shopping,
Soon after Christmas comes the time,
To get together with my friends,
To wish them all a happy New Year,
And watch the old one as it ends,
So, you see, this is the time of year,
That''s filled with love, family, and fun,
And as Tiny Tim would say,
"God bless us, every one!"
-- Anita Burney <neets7 @ aol.com>
Cha Mẹ nuôi con như biển hồ lai láng .Con nuôi Cha Mẹ sao tính tháng , tính ngày .

THE POSSUM-BILITIES
by Brenda Ice
As a girl growing up on a small southern farm, I probably had a wider
variety of pets than most. My mother was an animal lover too, which made
it a little easier to do the "Mom can I keep it?" thing with success.
As an adult, I continued my collection of pets, which by now were only
the domestic kind -- cats, dogs, hamsters, an occasional squirrel, a pair
of skunk and maybe a bird or two. That is, until one warm May evening,
when into my home and heart came the animal that was to forever change my
life.
My son was visiting, and since he is night sport''s e***or for a
newspaper, he''s used to keeping late hours and there was a West Coast
ballgame he wanted to watch.
My fur babies feel they have the obligation of training new people to
the true doggie duties in life. One of these duties includes letting them
in and out on demand. (No, they are not spoiled!) After about a dozen or
more in and out door openings, my son decided to just leave the patio door
open.
Well, you guessed it -- he fell asleep on the couch leaving the door open.
The next morning as I came downstairs, my dog Sammi -- all 160 pounds
of her -- accompanied me to the kitchen, to make sure I didn''t get lost,
and stopped at the bookcase by the door and started to bark her "one of my
babies is under there" bark.
Sammi''s babies can be anything from a ball to a kitten, but I knew
"we" would have to get whatever was under there or there would be no peace
in the house that morning. I got down on all fours with Sammi''s big ole''
Newfoundland head stuck in the way, trying to see what was there.
There he was, all bristle and blow, about two months old and scared
beyond belief! A baby opossum!
He must have fallen off his mom''s back and become lost in the dark,
because he was much too small to be on his own. I guess he found his way
to the first warm dry spot available. Fully furred and with almost all of
his fifty teeth, he did his best to scare away the two monsters. But,
after all, he was only a baby, and I''m a sucker for anything furry and
helpless.
Now, most southerners are not known to be possum lovers and I had
never been a particular fan of them myself. Like most other people, I was
under the mistaken opinion that they were mostly rat like -- nasty, garbage
eating smelly things!
Nothing could be further from the truth!
Sweet Pea (don''t laugh) was the sweetest, most gentle and cleanest
animal ever. They clean themselves as thoroughly as any cat and can be
trained to use a litter box. With opposing "thumbs", they grip and use
their hands in a very humanlike fashion. I had no idea how to take care of
this kind of baby, so I immediately turned to the modern day information
hub, the Internet.
What little information available on possums has been compiled by a
worldwide network of "rehabbers". These beautiful selfless people have
made it their job to help these little fellows and to educate the world on
what wonderfully valuable creatures they really are.
That was then. This is now. And many, many opossums later, I am
fully and thoroughly hooked! I have successfully raised and released all
but two that have been put in my care. Miss Molly is a non-releasable due
to an injury to her right shoulder and leg. But she''s my little princess
and an ambassador for her kind. She and I visit clubs and schools to
educate people on the good that opossums do in our environment. We try to
show how gentle and smart they are and that they should be left alone to do
their little opossum thing.
People are always amazed at how sweet and soft and gentle she is. Now
they''re hooked too! After all, when you live with a princess who has over
75 million years of heritage behind her, you are indeed privileged.
When she accepts you as one of her special people and looks to you for
comfort and affection, well let''s just say your life is never the same
again.
-- Brenda Ice <bande1 @ comcast.net>
Cha Mẹ nuôi con như biển hồ lai láng .Con nuôi Cha Mẹ sao tính tháng , tính ngày .

WHEN LIGHTNING STRIKES
by Angela Walker
I''m sure you can relate to this story.
You''re in bed, sound asleep, and all of the sudden you feel something
hit the side of your bed. You''re still in that half-awake, half-asleep
mode. You open one eye, still kind of blurry, and what do you see but this
really long nose and beady eyes staring at you -- panting like it is having
a heart attack or something.
It''s Bella.
I sat up and started to get out of bed, thinking maybe she needed to
go outside. Now, this is kind of odd because she never has to go outside
during the middle of the night. I just sit there on the bed looking at her
like she has lost her mind. She starts running around the bedroom like
crazy, just panting and whining. I crawl to the end of the bed and try to
coax her onto bed with me. But what am I thinking? A sixty-five pound dog
pouncing on my waterbed! I decide to get up and take her into the living
room and try to calm her down. From what? I''m not sure.
I''m thinking, did someone break in the house and Bella is the only one
who got up? You have to understand that I have three collies in my house
and if they are sleeping nothing bothers them. A burglar could make off
with everything in the house while they are sleeping.
All of the sudden, Bella jumps straight up in the air and lands right
on top of me. It''s at that moment that I see a streak of light flash
before my eyes.
It took me a minute to wipe the sweat off of my brows and the sleep
from my eyes and to finally realize that it was lightning outside.
Usually, thunder wakes me up but there was no thunder.
Mystery solved.
Bella is terrified of thunder and lightening. I think this could be
the result of her living on the streets of Houston. Poor baby. How
terrified and alone she must have felt before she was found and rescued. I
can just see her running along the street trying to find someone to hold
her.
Bella will never have to know that fear again.
I will always be there to hold her -- all sixty-five pounds of her --
when she is scared or lonely.
-- Angela Walker <alwalker @ academicplanet.com>
Cha Mẹ nuôi con như biển hồ lai láng .Con nuôi Cha Mẹ sao tính tháng , tính ngày .

THE FUNNY THINGS KIDS SAY
Last year Patti and her daughter Paige, 5, decorated the Christmas
tree. Later in the evening while Paige was asleep, Patti reassessed the
tree as it didn''t look complete. She decided to add a couple of strings of
beaded garland to the tree. The next morning when Paige saw the tree, she
exclaimed, "Mommy, what a beautiful necklace you put on the tree!" --
Patti Schmidt of Appleton, Wisconsin
Zachary called and asked his Grammy if she would take him swimming.
She replied that she had her hair done for Thanksgiving and she didn''t want
to get it wet. Zach replied, "When it''s wrinkled again, can we go?" --
Sally Hershiser (Grammy) of Kent, Ohio
Donna and her husband were taking their grandchildren on a weekend
outing. It was a cool brisk day with a strong wind. As they passed a
large lake, their 4-year-old grandson piped up from the back seat,
"Grandma, look at all the FEATHERS on the lake!" Sure enough, the
whitecaps looked just like feathers strewn all over the lake! -- Donna
Johnson of Ashby, Minnesota (a winter wonderland)
Beth was putting the "closed caption" on their television and was
probably pushing the wrong button because it didn''t work, but before she
could fix her mistake, her youngest son, Alex, 7, suggested sweetly, "Maybe
we ran out of it, Mom!" -- Beth Padini of Saipan
Often Kidwarmer stories jog people''s memories. For exampe, P. Jean
Champoux wrote, "Your ''corrections'' as opposed to directions, jogged one of
my teaching memories. It was my first year, way back in 1957, and Mary
Alice was standing by my desk in her third grade classroom. We were
discussing family, and she said that her mother was ''always jumping to
confusions'' (conclusions)!" -- P. Jean Champoux of Westerville, Ohio
Being a mother can get stressful. Annette, mother of Lauren, 9, and
Kaitlyn, 6, needed to take a few minutes break. She went into her room to
regroup when she heard Kaitlyn''s hand on the doorknob. Then she heard
Lauren stop her and say, "No, leave Mom alone. She''s trying to reboot!"
-- Annette from Montana
Cree had Grandparent''s Day at her nursery school, Emmaus Lutheran.
Her Grandma Lois went with her to chapel. As they were waiting, Cree kept
saying "Where is he?" After asking two or three times Lois asked, "Where
is who, Cree?" Cree said, "Where is the judge?" (Whe was waiting on the
minister!) -- Shane Housholder (father of Cree) of Fort Wayne, Indiana
Three-year-old Brianna was scared of Santa Claus. She would not sit
on Santa''s lap or even talk to him on the phone. Her Grandmother Barbara
tried telling her how much fun Santa was and that he would bring her a
present under the tree. Finally Brianna gave in a little, saying, "I will
go see Santa if Cassie (an older cousin) comes with me. Santa has two
knees so both of us could sit on his lap at the same time!" -- Barbara
Roney (grandmother of Brianna) of Portland, Oregon
Yehuda''s 13-year-old daughter was asked to get the salami from the
refrigerator. She said, "OK, I''ll get the cold cats." When Yehuda''s wife
explained that it''s "cold cuts," she responded, "Since franks are hot dogs,
I thought salami would be cold cats!" -- Yehuda Yoel Zimmerman of Ashdod,
Israel
While grocery shopping for Thanksgiving, Roseann pushed her basket
down the aisle and passed a mother and her small daughter. The mother was
one one side of the aisle and her daughter on the other. Roseann said
"excuse me" as she passed them. The little girl, in a loud stage whisper,
said, "Mommy, did she burp?" -- Roseann Dunteman of Paradise Valley,
Arizona
One evening while eating out at a local restaurant, Dan''s 3-year-old
daughter, Alleen, was watching as patrons entered the building. An elderly
couple entered and the woman was using a three legged walker that had
wheels on the back legs. Alleen exclaimed, "Mommy, look, that lady has a
tricycle with no seat!" -- Dan LeDoux of St. Peters, Missouri
Roc, 4, had been Christmas shopping with his mother. They stopped at
his Grandma''s house on the way home. Roc said, "Grandma, you are going to
like the present we bought you. It came from the God Store." They had
been shopping in the Christian book store! -- Grace Nau (grandmother of
Roc) of Evansville, Indiana
Leah''s daughter Sarah asked Leah how old her grandmother was. Leah
said, "39" because that''s how old Grandma has been for as long as Leah can
remember. Sarah''s eyes got big and she said, "Wow! She''s younger than my
dad!" -- Leah Clark of Tampa, Florida
Cha Mẹ nuôi con như biển hồ lai láng .Con nuôi Cha Mẹ sao tính tháng , tính ngày .

RATTLING RULES
by Della Goodson
In my youth, I must confess, I was a rattler and a shaker when it came
to Christmas gifts.
I would spend hours in front of the fragrant, living tree gazing at
the colored lights and watching my distorted reflection in the glittering
glass ornaments.
Should the opportunity present itself, I would indulge in a squeeze of
any packages bearing my name. Sometimes a gentle jostling of the box would
yield valuable information as to its contents. More than likely, I would
be able to discern only whether the items were toys or clothes.
There were unwritten rules to the shake, rattle and squeeze game I
played each year.
I would strive to make my handling of the packages unnoticeable. I
prided myself on my ability to escape detection. Ad***ionally, the
presents absolutely must be replaced in the exact same positions with no
outward signs on the wrapping paper of my mauling of them. Under no
circumstances would I ever remove part of the tape to see the box or
packaging underneath the wrapping paper. I especially delighted in the
presents that were wrapped without a box to camouflage the nature and shape
of the item. Of course, my curiosity sometimes led to disappointment. For
example, when I deduced that the soft, squishy roll could be nothing other
than a package of new socks.
One of my most memorable Christmas gifts was totally unexpected as
memorable things are inclined to be. In all my probing and prodding, I had
been unable to figure out what the gift contained. One end was round and
squishy with a rough, patterned surface. The middle section was noticeably
flatter with the patterned surface still present. The extreme opposite end
was smooth, rounded, not at all squishy but extremely hard.
I mulled over that gift and lay awake in the evenings scanning my mind
for possibilities to fit the known dimensions and characteristics. As
Christmas approached, my attention was drawn repeatedly to the small, oddly
shaped package under the tree.
One afternoon, before Dad came home, while Mom was busily preparing
supper, I was engaged with my detective work under the Christmas tree
trying to unlock the mystery of the "Gift" when a dreadful thing happened.
Part of the wrapping paper tore!
I was mortified! I had broken one of my self-imposed Christmas gift
rattling rules and torn the package. Trying to turn this horrible event to
my good, I quickly tried to take a peek through the torn bit of paper.
Still, I could tell nothing about what was under the paper because the tear
was too small. Carefully, I replaced the gift in its proper place making
sure the side with the break in the wrapping was turned downward.
Reluctantly, I admitted defeat and firmly resolved not to disturb it again
until I could open it on Christmas morning.
Finally, Christmas Day arrived. I bypassed looking through my
stocking and several large boxed gifts that I was reasonably sure contained
some new clothes in order to quench my curiosity.
My parents were surprised to see me reaching for a rather small,
seemingly insignificant gift tucked around on the wall side of the tree.
At long last the waiting was over.
Joyously, I removed the paper and found a unique catching game for two
players. Each person used a small net suspended between two twelve-inch
handles to throw and catch a round, squishy rubber ball. The game could be
played alone by throwing the ball skyward and catching it yourself. I
enjoyed many hours with this very simple toy. It was not on my Christmas
wish list, but my folks knew I would love it.
In many ways our blessings from God are like an unexpected gift. We
often poke and prod at the exterior wondering what it could be and how we
will like it.
These blessings are showered upon us daily and all we must do is
acknowledge the gifts we have received and enjoy them -- trusting God to
know the presents that will please us most.
-- Della Goodson <goodson @ networktel.net>
Cha Mẹ nuôi con như biển hồ lai láng .Con nuôi Cha Mẹ sao tính tháng , tính ngày .