Happy Wednesday everyone,

As promised things are going to start being about some new topics and today’s is about blessings.

I could talk about so many things right now. I have had hard times, but I sure have been blessed too. I have friends and family that support me in so many ways. I have the ones that get angry for me when I can’t, those who just listen, those who offer a kind word and those who put up with me when I am grumpy but today to put a smile everyone’s face, I am going to talk a bit about my four-legged blessings.

Let me introduce them. Their pictures are on the Opal and Ivy page of this website if you are interested in checking them out.

Opal is my almost two-year-old Springer Spaniel. I assure you she is not the calm one. She is going all the time she never rests. If she has a ball, she is all set. Her “green ball” is what she cherishes the most. She is definitely a counter surfer, and we are working on that. I often refer to her as my “problem puppy with way too much energy.” I know that isn’t probably the nicest reference but the amount of energy she is often overwhelming and hard to keep up with. I think she thinks her name is “Opal NO.” There is one quality she has that is amazing and that is the way she knows what I am feeling. She hugs me and stays right near me when I am feeling depressed and sad – she won’t let go.

Then there is IVY, she is my almost one-year old Labradoodle. She is my laid back one. Often looking at the situation like -“why are we expending so much energy on something so silly.” She is my protector making sure no deer or birds attack me at any given time. She is a mixture of colors (silver, brown, black and speckles) so she is very interesting looking. She is way bigger than she was supposed to be hence her nickname of “Large Marge.” While she doesn’t like to do the crazy things that Opal does, she is consistent with her desire to play fetch forever. The one amazing quality that Ivy has is she knows when my hand is numb from MS and she starts taking care of her momma. By taking care I mean slapping my hand and making me use it. Making sure I stop feelig sorry for myself. (I am not always a fan but know that she is just loving me.)

Where am I going with all of this you might ask. I was thinking about these dogs this morning and how to God we are probably a little similar. We all have totally different personalities and are challenging in our own way. We may be “counter surfers” always pushing things to the limit. We know what is right, but we chose to push it just a little bit. We might be encouragers to others, we might be so energetic that he wants to tell us just to slow down listen and rest, but there may also be times where he knows there are some things, we should be passionate about, and being too laid back isn’t good either. The difference between Opal and Ivy’s momma and God is that he is so much more patient and offers so much more Grace. He loves us in the messy times, and I am definitely not that patient when I am cleaning up one more mess that the two of them have made. He however offers us Grace no matter how much we have screwed up or how big of a mess we are in, as long as we seek him. Grace is sometimes hard to understand. How can God love me in spite of me, but he does, and he gives us each more blessings than we realize?

So, when I spend time with these crazy puppies, I am reminded that much like me they are a work in progress. They need a little grace to allow them to become the wonderful dogs they are meant to be. (5 more years)

I am sure I will be sharing many of their adventures on this page right now Opal is determined to lift the toilet lid and put her ball in. I must go stop this disaster before it happens again. By again I mean this is a weekly occurrence.

Have a really great week everyone!