Swim Merry Swim

The Place I was always happy & comfortable at was the water.  Let's see if captured this properly.  LOL

After tje Honeymoon

  My freind Renee sent me this. I thnk it 's a scream.  I'd never seen it before.

Hugs to all,

Merry

After the Honeymoon

Please excuse the rough language in the following
story...

I would have deleted them, but the story wouldn't
be the same.

A young couple got married and went on their
honeymoon. When they got back, the bride immediately
called her mother.

"Well", said her mother, "so how was the
  honeymoon?"

"Oh mama", she replied, "the honeymoon was
wonderful! So romantic"......Suddenly she burst out
crying. "But, mama, as soon as we returned, Sam
started using the most horrible language -- things
I'd never heard before! I mean, all these awful
4-letter words! You've got to take me home! PLEASE
  MAMA!"

"Sarah, Sarah", her mother said, "calm down! You
need to stay with your husband and work this out.
Now, tell me, what could be so awful?  WHAT 4-letter
words?"

"Please don't make me tell you, mama," wept the
daughter. "I'm so embarrassed, they're just too
awful! COME GET ME, PLEASE!!"

Darling, baby, you must tell me what has you so
upset. Tell your mother these horrible 4-letter
words!"

Sobbing, the bride said, "Oh, Mama..., he used
words like: dust, wash, iron, and cook..."

"I'll pick you up in twenty minutes," said the
  mother.

Hope you all had a good day, it's hot and humid in north Iowa.  I stay in the AC all day except to take the dogies out.  Whew.  I hate hot & I hate humid.  I am a Minnesota gal. At least when I was growing up I had a lake to jump into if it ever got HOT.

Love,

Merry

Look and See

Sent to my dear friend Rhonda who just lost her Uncle!  And anyone else who needs it!  I thought it was moving and wanted to share it with anyone who reads my journal.

- Merry

hen somebody dies, a cloud turns into
   an angel, and flies up to tell God
   to put another flower on a pillow.
   A bird gives the message back to
   the world, and sings a silent prayer
   that makes the rain cry. People dis-
   appear, but they never really go away.
   The spirits up there put the sun to
   bed, wake up grass, and spin the
   earth in dizzy circles. Sometimes you
   can see them dancing in a cloud during
   the day-time, when they're supposed
   to be sleeping. They paint the rain-
   bows and also the sunsets and make
   waves splash and tug at the tide.
   They toss shooting stars and listen to
   wishes. And when they sing wind-
   songs, they whisper to us, don't
   miss me too much. The view is nice
   and I'm doing just fine.
             - Ashley

Puppy Breath

Hi,
I am sharing one I got and love.  If you haven't seen it already, I think you will really enjoy it!

Love,

Merry

PUPPY BREATH
by Earla Jean Hollon

      In early March, the day after we sadly put Bear, our 14 year old
Goldie down, my husband had to go out of state for work.
      Abby, our 11 year old Lab/Shepherd mix, was sad.  In two days
she had lost Bear, her life long companion, and then my husband.
      I tried to compensate by taking her for two walks and two car
rides a day instead of one, but overnight Abby started acting old.
She moved slowly and stiffly, turned her nose up at her doggie treats
and just seemed depressed.
      I took her to the vet for a checkup, and we put her on arthritis
medicine but she continued moving slowly.
      On June 9th, as a lark, I looked on the website for available
dogs at our local Animal Shelter.  There were three nice looking dogs
-- a Golden Retriever, a female Lab and a two year old male yellow
Lab.  I thought to myself, and said, "No, no more dogs."
      On June 10th,  I took Abby to the vet as she did not seem to be
improving.  He said he thought that Abby was depressed.  Abby and I
left the vet's office and I drove straight to our local Animal
Shelter and asked to see the Goldie, but he had been sent to the
rescue group three days earlier.  Then I asked to see the black Lab,
but she had been adopted.
      Finally, I asked to see the yellow Lab.  After a few minutes,
the door opened and in walked some of the biggest paws on a dog that
I had ever seen.  Then I noticed huge head and long skinny body.  I
first thought, oh no,  don't think so.  But to be fair to the dog, I
thought I'd give him a chance.
      He started sniffing Abby, she sniffed him back, slowly wagging
her tail.  She liked him.  I said OK, I'll take him.  I drove him
straight to Petco and had Cody engraved on his name tag.  Once the
cashier found out Cody was newly adopted she gave me a nice little
coupon book that was full of free and/or discounted stuff for dogs.
It was fun picking out different treats for Cody.
      Abby and Cody were friends from the start, and sure enough, Abby
got back a little spring in her step.
      But it's not the end of the story.
      Even though Cody is 2-years-old, he is all puppy.  Neither Abby
nor I can match Cody's energy.  I was whining on the phone to my
husband about how Cody was so energetic, that he wanted to play all
of the time and I just needed some down time.
      The next day, I woke up to drizzling rain and thunder.  I
bundled the dogs into the car for our Starbucks run.  I get a coffee
and the dogs share a bagel.  I hadn't gone far when I noticed a small
yellow puppy running down the middle of the road.  By the time I got
close to her, she had veered off of the road and into a yard.
      I turned around in the next driveway.  I pulled to the curb and
opened my car door.  She started running for the car, trying to climb
over me to get inside.  I took her home and spent the next few days
looking for her owner.  I called every vet within a 10 mile radius
and the Golden Retriever Recovery Program, because she looks like a
3-4 months old Goldie.  No one had reported missing a puppy.
      So now I have three dogs.  I've named her Millie.  I don't know
why I couldn't just drive on past her.  Maybe because I've seen how
afraid Cody is of thunder.  He tries to hide whenever it thunders,
and he's now a 90 pound dog and and she's just a small 15-20 pound
puppy.
      Maybe it's because I knew chances were that if I didn't stop she
might be dead before dark.  A lot of cats and dogs get killed on that
road.  Maybe it was because I know how my old, run-down neighborhood
has an overabundance of Pit Bulls and I know that many of the
neighbors purposely draw out their aggressive behavior.
      Or maybe, it's because I somehow knew that I would love how
Millie will run and jump in my lap after playing rough house with
Cody for several minutes -- looking at my face afterwards, with her
mouth open and her tongue hanging out, reaching up and kissing me.
      I cansmell a faint whiff of puppy breath and there's nothing
else like it in this world.

              -- Earla Jean Hollon  <Ehollon at fulbright.com>

___________________________________________
Earla says, "I live in Pasadena, Texas, with my very patient husband
and a small zoo -- dogs, cat, turtles, parrots, and sugar-gliders.  I
have loved animals all my life and have rescued, adopted many of my
pets and found homes for several others."

___________________________________________

Husbands on Father's Day

This is exactly how I feel about my wonderful husband Dave!  He has been my rock for 45 years.  Our son is 44 years old and we were just teenagers when he was born.  Still he has been the best husband and father any girl could ask for.  Everyday, I thank God for him.  He is such a special man.  And anyone who ever meets him loves him!  God has really blessed me!  Hope all of you like this entry. I am sure some of you have this same sentiment about your husbands!

Love,

Merry

ALL HE EVER WANTED
by Kathy Whirity

      Out of all the Father's days my husband, Bill, has celebrated as
a dad, I recall the one we spent apart.
      The girls were young and we had the opportunity to visit my
sister and her sons at their new home in Portland, Oregon.  Bill
couldn't take the time off work but he encouraged me to take the
girls and have a fun trip.
      The girls were anxious to see their aunt and cousins, so we
booked a flight, along with my parents, for a three week stay.
      Departure day arrived and Bill drove us all to the airport.
Right before we boarded the plane, and after he kissed us
each good-bye, Bill shook my dad's hand and, with a tear in his eye,
asked him to take care of "his girls."
      And then we were off.
      I was about to discover just how lost I would be without my
husband.  Portland is an awesome city.  My sister, the kids and I,
would often take walks to a park a few blocks away from her home.
While in the park, we'd climb the more than 50 cobblestone steps that led to a striking neighborhood of mansions on a hill.  It was said that movie starts owned some of the homes, Harrison Ford being among the Hollywood elite to spend time there.
      Though we never saw any famous faces, we'd walk around admiring the meticulously kept lawns as well as being mesmerized by the flowers that bloomed everywhere.  The beauty of the blossoms invigorated the senses leaving the neighborhoods literally drenched in eye catching color.
     We drove across a bridge,over water, that seemed to stretch 5
miles.  I was thankful to have something to watch -- a scenic view of
wind surfers catching waves held my attention until we were safely
back on land.
      But, no matter what the tourist attraction or tranquil scene, I
missed my husband dearly.
      After four days, I was ready to pack my bags for home.  But the
calendar was a sad reminder that I had another 17 days to go.
      I pre-ordered a Father's Day bouquet of flowers from the local
florist -- a pitiful replacement for our presence.  I spent that
Father's Day sipping lemonade on my sister's porch as I cherished a
gift of my own -- memories of my dear Bill being a wonderful, fun
loving and compassionate father to our daughters.
      Changing diapers was a main event if Bill was on diaper duty.
The task wasn't finished until little bottoms were lotioned and
powered to perfection.  He was a dad that paid attention to detail.
      When the girls were toddlers and sun dresses were the fashion,
the look was not complete until their dad patiently dotted each tiny
toe with pretty red nail polish.
      On cool summer evenings he'd fill the wading pool with warm
water from the hose he'd hook up to the basement faucet.  In the
winter, he'd bundle them up and pull them in the bright orange sled
over freshly fallen snow.
      He is a man who loves his family more than life itself -- his
family is all the life he's ever wanted or needed.  And there I was,
in a far away city -- me without my husband and our girls without
their daddy.
      That tender moment at the airport came to mind of my husband asking my dad to do what he could not -- watch out for us.
     The three weeks finally came to an end.  Bill was there waiting
for us when we got off the plane.
      As soon as we got home we were greeted with gifts.  Among them were Flight Attendant Barbies for the girls and a sparkling gold necklace for me.
      It felt like Christmas in July.  And the best gift of all was
being back home with my husband.
      All these years later, I can still remember how it felt when he
hugged me the minute I got off the plane.  He hugged me so tight I
didn't think he'd ever let me go.
      And, I can tell you, from that day on -- I will never let him.

             -- Kathy Whirity   <kathywhirity at yahoo.com>

Friend's VS. Mexican Friends

 With all the bad stuff you hear people saying about Mexicans these days, I found this something very inpspiring and feel compelled to pass it on.   It's so true.  Read it, don't just click it away!

Love,

Merry

 

My Mexican friend sent this to me...........

FRIENDS VS. MEXICAN FRIENDS 
 
FRIENDS: Never ask for food. 
MEXICAN FRIENDS: Are the reason you have food. 
 
FRIENDS: Will say "hello." 
MEXICAN FRIENDS: Will give you a big hug and a kiss. 
 
 
 
FRIENDS: Call your parents Mr. and Mrs. 
MEXICAN FRIENDS: Call your parents mom and dad. 
 
FRIENDS: Have never seen you cry. 
MEXICAN FRIENDS: Cry with you. 
 
FRIENDS: Will eat at your dinner table and leave. 
MEXICAN FRIENDS: Will spend hours there, talking, laughing and just 
being together. 
 
FRIENDS: Borrow your stuff for a few days then give it back. 
MEXICAN FRIENDS: Keep your stuff so long they forget it's yours. 

 
FRIENDS: know a few things about you. 
MEXICAN FRIENDS: Could write a book with direct quotes from you. 
 
FRIENDS: Will leave you behind if that's what the crowd is doing. 
MEXICAN FRIENDS: Will kick the whole crowds' ass that left you. 
 
FRIENDS: Would knock on your door. 
MEXICAN FRIENDS: Walk right in and say, "I'm home!" 
 
FRIENDS: Are for a while. 
MEXICAN FRIENDS: Are for life. 
 
FRIENDS: Will ignore this. 
MEXICAN FRIENDS: Will forward this.