Happy Bloggiversary to Me!

Four years ago I wrote this:

"I have entered blogland with fear and trembling. Feisty is sitting on my lap and Care Bear is here too. I don't have time to think or write, but just wanted you all to know that Kristen has launched me. There have been so many great messages in the last two days that I feel I need to do some explanations. I will do that as time goes on. I just wanted you to know I'm here. Just Call Me Grandma Dawn!"

I had many family members who were quite surprised that I jumped in, because I had resisted for a long time. Three months later, I became a full-fledged member. . .


. . . and wrote this:


I am waiting for someone to begin a support group - Bloggers Anonymous. At that time, all of us who have known each other anonymously can meet face to face! Face it - we have an addiction. I wonder how soon it will become a part of the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition). I can see it now: Blogmania, a recently diagnosed mental disorder with the following symptoms:

• Computer is on 24/7
• You are running to the computer every few minutes
• Laundry is piling up
• Meals have become the frozen variety
• Conversation with mate revolves around what you read in cyberspace
• Blogger problems become bigger than life
• Your mind is always thinking of what to write next
• Depression occurs if there are fewer than 7 comments on any given day
• You are sleep deprived from staying up reading hundreds of messages
  
  
  Of course, this is an exaggeration, and meant to be a bit tongue in cheek. Seriously, it does become addictive. But there are so many good things about this new mania:
  
  
• I have met so many wonderful people from so many places - Canada, Chili, Australia, every state I've lived in.
• I have found so many kindred spirits who know my Jesus.
• I have seen miracles through the prayers of these new friends.
• I have laughed and cried, both with tears running down my cheeks.
• I have discovered people who have such a gift of words.
• I have found astounding spiritual truths from new acquaintances.
• I have been challenged to be a better Christian.
• I have become better acquainted with family members who are bloggers also.
• I now look at everything that happens as a potential post. It has opened my eyes to a whole new way of looking at things.
• My memory has been jogged and I realize what a wonderful life I have had.
• I was reduced to happy tears when so many people welcomed our prodigal home. God is so good!
• So many of us will someday meet, if not in this life at least in the next.
  

It has been quite a ride. I have to say I've enjoyed it very much. It is hard to imagine, before you jump into blogland, how close you can become to "cyber friends." I have been immensely privileged to meet 10 of my blogging buddies IRL (in real life, in case you don't know the the terminology). What fun!

There have been many changes over the last four years. Quite a few of my original followers are no longer blogging. Several are now Facebook friends, but I do miss their posts very much.

Many of us have stuck with it, but have cut down considerably on the number of posts per week. I am in awe of those who manage to write something every single day.

During my first couple of years of blogging, there were lots of activities going on - Christmas open houses, neighborhood visits, memes, contests, awards. Maybe these things still happen, but not in my circle so much any more. It was fun, but time consuming.

Blogging buddies have come and gone. I lost quite a few when I had to go private for over a year.

One former blogger asked on Facebook the other day if it was wrong to have more contact with our cyberfriends than our "real life" friends. If so, then I must admit my guilt. I can hardly believe how close I feel to so many of you as we share our joys, our trials, our prayer requests, our trivia, our families, our homes, our yards, our dreams with each other.

You have become prayer partners during many family situations - if it weren't for many of you, our little miracle twins may not have been born in perfect health. You have been such a support of Kevin as he has gone through his recovery process. You have shared with Sema as her family in Africa were in serious financial crisis. You have watched the 4 girlies growing up.

No big giveaway today - sorry! Just thanks to you all for your friendship. Some of you have been with me since Day One, when Diane hosted a Welcome Home Prodigal party for Kev. Many of you I have found along the way, and I wish I remembered where and how! I'm glad some of us continue to write. I love checking in on you every day or so. You are definitely a big part of my life.

Monday Musings

"He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us." II Corinthians 1:4 (The Message)

I remember clearly when I discovered this verse and it became a beacon of light for me. There are times when I have said to God, "Okay, we've learned enough now that we can help people who are going through hard times like ours - we don't need any more!"

DC and I were 25 and 30 when we married. We had both made it through 4 years of college without finding that special one. When we met, each of us had experienced enough of life to know what we were and were not looking for in a mate. We didn't date long before we knew that we would be "Together Forever" (the song from "I Do, I Do" which was sung at our wedding).

It wasn't long before our little family was complete - two adorable little blue-eyed blondes, one of each. Perfect.



We went through the typical growing pains of any young family - those were very busy years and for the most part very fun. It's one of those deals - if we had known the future, we might not have had the courage to face it. I can remember, as the kids got old enough to stay home for a few minutes alone, DC and I took walks together, and our conversation often turned to how blessed we were compared to other families who were going through such tough times.

Then life hit us smack in the face - with both kids. Life became incredibly difficult for a season, and we all continue to live with the consequences of those situations. But we live in hope and trust for their futures and ours.

In the meantime, both subjects - eating disorders and addictions - are near and dear to my heart. I read books on both topics and love reading about positive outcomes. I have recently completed these three books:




If you know anyone with an eating disorder of any kind, or if you have dealt with one yourself, the above two books are most encouraging.

If you live with or are close to anyone with addictions of any sort (which includes eating disorders), the following book is gripping, enlightening, disturbing, and uplifting.



If you are a more recent follower of this blog, feel free to e-mail me at dawn.carlson@colostate.edu and I will be glad to send you Kristen's and Kevin's stories by e-mail attachment.

Even though Kevin is in treatment for the second time, I feel that his story has great merit, and I hope that we can continue to write it when he finishes his time in Teen Challenge.

Please, if you are a believer in prayer, put Kev and Sema on your list as he comes up to graduation on July 30, then heads into a 6 month aftercare program. He and Sema have huge decisions to make and need direction from above. I am convinced that God has a special plan for Kevin, since He has spared his life at least 5 times. He is doing so well and has such insight. I can hardly wait to see what comes next.

Thank you!

Grandma-ing and Other Things

The story of the irises and the short hailstorm strikes me as a metaphor for life. We can be doing well, "June is busting out all over," we are productive and "blossoming." We feel blessed and like things are just going our way.

Then the clouds gather ominously. Our experience is, though, that often clouds are just that - clouds. The rain or snow may go somewhere else and effect others' lives, but not ours. But this time, a cloudburst hits and it's not just rain. It's hail, and it wreaks havoc on the beauty of our lives. We feel shredded and useless. It is all out of our control.

But God is still there. He is a redeeming God. He creates beauty in the midst of it all, and in spite of it all. The words that come to mind are endurance, courage, fortitude, perseverance, persistence, stamina, tolerance - it is amazing what can come out of trauma. These flowers popped out as soon as the sun came back out. (See my previous post if you missed it).

















But the most interesting thing of all to me is that the new growth, in some cases, grew right THROUGH the destroyed blossoms. Reminds me that God can work THROUGH all the "stuff" of our lives. And He can create something beautiful out of trauma.



It gives me such hope that, no matter how tough things get, no matter how long it takes to see the beauty again, it can and will happen, and beauty can come from the ashes of our "stuff."


On Memorial Day, our family met, as is our tradition, in my folks' back yard for a picnic. This event began when my parents moved here from Oklahoma to retire close to my sister and me. They moved on Memorial Day week-end that year and the tradition began - my brother and his wife and son always run and work at the Bolder Boulder, the 10K race which has become the largest race of its kind in the world.

This year was extra special because of the significance of my nephew David's graduation from West Point the week before. My grandgirls are crazy about David, and the feeling seems to be quite mutual.




David will make a great daddy someday - he is great at making up games - and he's really good at figuring out ways to get a little break from hard playing - this one is called the "Rock Game" - see how long you can keep the rocks from falling off your body!





Care Bear and Feisty had a great time that day - Great Grandpa put up the swing in a tree when they first moved into this house - probably the smartest thing he ever did.




The twins love being here without the big girls, I think. They've spent a couple of nights here by themselves and they think they don't need to go to sleep for some reason. They were playing hard this night with their little tunnel -













One trip to bed didn't do the trick, so Grandpa got them back up. They played and played. I finally put them back to bed and they continued to chatter with their "twin language" until after 10:30. I sure wish I could understand what they're saying!

They have become huge fans of "Dowa" and Boots - if you haven't watched Dora lately, I'll fill you in a bit. There is a character on the show called "Swiper the Fox." He is always trying to swipe something from Dora and her friends. The kids watching are supposed to yell, "Swiper, no swiping!" When he is snafued, he says, "Oh, Man!" That's one of their favorite things to say now, "Oh, Man!" So cute.

These girls are just like their big sisters - whatever you do one time soon becomes a "habit" - something they think has to happen every time. So I started this one - turning on Dora right after their bath while they are getting dressed. The second they get out of the tub now, they run into the t.v. room where they get dressed and "demand" Dora to be turned on.












The most recent new "habit" just happened this week. We came home from the library with a few videos to watch. Care Bear was tired and feeling kind of puny that day, so she was lying down to watch it. Before you know it, all four of them were dragging out quilts, sleeping bags, and pillows to join in the fun. Now they immediately head for the closet when I put a video in for them.




The other day I went to find some little strollers for them - they love to play with the ones in the nursery and the gym and at church. Turns out the only ones I could find were Fisher Price and required a lot more assembly than I felt like tackling. So Good Old Dad (great grandpa) was willing to do the job for me.

Let me tell you, they have had more fun with these two little strollers than anything else they've had in a long time. We've been on so many walks since they got them. I read a book by Chuck Swindoll that's called Three Steps Forward, Two Steps Back, which reminds me of our walks. Only I'd have to call it Two Steps Forward, Ten Steps Back, as I am constantly running back to bring one up with us as the other one is too far ahead. Herding cats, I say!


We made the mistake of taking the strollers and their babies to library story time - will never do that again. Every kid there wanted to take them for a spin - caused quite a ruckus!







On these walks, we often have a good time with the "wildlife" we find - Care Bear has loved roley-poleys since she was the twins' age. Emma says "EWWWW" when she sees a tiny ant.

They love to "help" Grandpa with whatever he is working on.

Emma is a budding fashionista - she insisted on wearing this ensemble --







Katie seems to be pondering the meaning of life - or how to learn to jump rope.



Well, I hope you're all having a good week -

It's Amazing . . .

. . . what five minutes of soft, pea-sized hail can do to irises. These were all brand new to us this year after planting them last fall - the rhyzomes were a gift from our friendly "iris lady." They were doing so well - and I think the ones that are "pending" will be okay when the sun comes back out. But it's sad. I have been thinking all afternoon, ever since the hail hit, that if it feels this bad to lose a few flowers, how awful it must be to be the victim of a tornado or hurricane!

I was going to go out and get a shot of this one this afternoon, but I didn't even have a chance.