Priceless Priorities

These pictures and lots of others that I could post remind me that we need to plan and prepare for the future, but not forget to live each moment and laugh and have fun. I am not a fan of lists. Sorry to all of you list makers, but for me they usually just don't work. I know, I should try harder to adhere to lists and then I wouldn't feel like I'm running around really fast but not accomplishing much, but I just can't bring myself to do it. Life is way too much fun and my philosophy is that if I stuck to a "to do" list each day I would miss out on so many great things that aren't always planned but just happen. Take this weekend for example: I left the house Saturday morning at 8:30 a.m. to take Meg to the airport. My plan was to drop Meg off, stop in and see my parents for a quick minute, drop off several bags of donations at D.I., stop by a yard sale that was being held for a good cause by some friends of mine and then hurry home so that I could cheer for the 11:00 a.m. baseball game being played by my favorite team, the green frogs.
Below is what really happened...............

I dropped Meg off at the airport and stopped by to see my parents. I should get points for having a plan and attempting to carry it out, but then, while I was at my parent's house, my sister, Sharon, called and said "why don't you stop by my house and see some ducks that have been living in my pool?"

At that point, my plans were already fading away quickly and all that I was thinking in my mind was MUST SEE DUCKS. So, I did. This is my sister, Sharon's house. She lives in Tempe and she is a good example to me of making sure that the people around you know that you love them by serving them and telling them often how much they mean to you even when you have a bunch of other things that you "should" be doing. Her children have followed her example and are really great at helping others too, so even though she has never won an award for Mother of the Year and her home has never been featured in Better Homes & Gardens I love her and I think that she is wonderful.

When my Mom and I got to Sharon's house we saw that she really does have two ducks living in her backyard pool. She throws bread out and they will come right up and eat it. Those might be even cooler pets than chickens. She even has a boy and a girl duck, so she just might get ducklings. Wouldn't that be ducky?

By now, I was so far off from my plan that I decided I might as well have a really great time looking at all of Sharon's amazing things. In this picture she is showing us her garden and this picture is not doing it justice because it really is amazing. Apparently, ducks don't like vegetables. Maybe ducks are better than chickens. NAH!

Here are some huge tomato plants that she tended through the winter so that they could give her lots of yummy tomatoes before it gets too hot. Sharon always says she isn't good at growing things, but she's not fooling me.

As we left Sharon's house this is what I saw across the street. One of her neighbors had taken the time to put out these happy face signs and wish someone living in that house a happy birthday. That is a very nice way to tell someone that they mean a lot to you. I will have to tuck that idea away for future use.

Here is a cute dress that my sister made for someone that she loves very much.

And, here is a yummy apple pie that Sharon had made just that morning that she sent home for our parents. Wasn't that a nice thing to do. Sharon was saying that is didn't look very good, but that isn't what matters. I'm sure it tasted fabulous. (I wish I could have stayed at my parent's house longer to try it, but I had to get back on track with my plan for the day.) I don't think our efforts have to be perfect, we just have to keep making efforts to love those around us. So, I left my parents and headed for home with a trunk full of bags that I will drop off at D.I. one day, just not this day. As for the friend's yard sale, those friends know that I love them and I will keep showing them that I love them, but ducks just don't land in people's pools every day, right?

As I pulled into our neighborhood at 10:45 a.m. all of my kids were walking to the field where the green frogs would be playing soon. Thank you kids for being kind and supporting the green frogs even without me being home to "encourage" you to support the green frogs. You guys are the best and I love you! I know you had other things that you probably needed to be doing and I really appreciate you taking time away from your own "to do" lists and living in the moment and letting someone that is in your family know that you love her.

11:00 a.m. found me slightly off track with my list, but sitting in the sun exactly where I had hoped to be, watching the green frogs play another amazing game. So, if you come to my house or see me in the neighborhood running around like a crazy woman, know that my intentions are good, but I am just awful at sticking to lists. Show someone that you love them today, leave something undone and spend the time you would have spent on that chore letting someone know that you love them. (This post is most likely NOT endorsed by my amazing husband who is very talented at making lists and sticking to them, but who loves me anyway, even if our car is still full of bags that need to go to D.I.)