With God as my witness
What are 5 everyday things that bring you happiness?
This could be for, ‘ (F)amily or #frainsthename or (F)riends ‘ that are family. I’m thinking it’s all of the above…
Let’s go back to where it all started.
This is the video our youngest made for us for our 45th anniversary…
https://videos.files.wordpress.com/6xChRDt8/mom-and-dad45th-anniversary.mov
47 years later … Outer Banks
Yes I know there’s 4 kids (we had 5), but our 2nd son, “Sean Patrick” is in heaven watching over us all. Making sure we get there with him and of course there’s always that one kid (our oldest) who has his own agenda and so I really don’t have much more to say about him except too much drama and disrespect !!! We’re the mom and dad and we don’t have to take that ever !!! That is why this is the most you’ll seen of him on my blog. So I’ve purposely let him go b/c not really that interested in what he’s doing…
One final pic of the family that I came from…Irish/Italian Catholic and these are just some of the cousins b/c some weren’t even born yet 😉 …
This was the first group and from the looks of how old I was it was probably 1964…I’m down in front on the left w/my 3 other sisters…Mary had her head turned and Beth (Liz) was in the green dress. I’m right next to her, kay was on the outside.
This one the later one in the early 70’s. I’m in the middle of(Red, White & Blue shirt) with pig tails. That was grandmama Fannie and Grandpapa Harry…She had 7 boys and 1 girl, my mom. Family is everything and we still get together and many of my cousins are like sisters to me…Love and Blessings to this bunch…We had a blast growing up at grandmama’s in the the summer and our family reunions were a blast ….
I need to add one more pic…They’re our best friends. They got married a week before us and we were neighbors (that’s how we met). Scott was in dental school and now our family dentist for the last 48 years and me and Cheryl had all our babies together !!! We are together forever !!!
Today I will be posting paintings from our Store …
He really is quite talented and can really paint anything he has a mind too. He also does contracted work, if anyone is interested in that. Just msg me if you’re interested. Blessings on your day …
Enjoy the paintings….
I chose the picture Jesus (C)Christ with the crown of thorns b/c that was the one he was working on during lent…I have a couple more that I like better than that one.
The husband is an artist, not his day job…B/C a starving artist is a real thing and we are way past that point. He told me to be famous when you are an artist, death usually has to happen first so I think I’m happy just the way things are.
I’m the writer of the family and he’s the artist. He sells commercial title insurance for his day job. We’ve been together going on 50 years, 47 of them married. It wasn’t til Covid happened that I realized what a huge talent he had with painting and drawing. When we were raising our family, when it came to art things for the kiddos during their school years that was his job. Writing of course was my strong suit. It worked out well.
I might as well throw in a couple of pictures he has been working on during this Lenten Season…Haven’t quite found the best venue for selling them on, that too is in the works.
I’ll put up a couple of his Masterpiece works, as he really is quite talented !!!
It you look in the middle painting, he put himself in as one of the attendees…He’s the one with his hands folded 🙂 …
This is one of my favorite compilations … It’s his band ‘Elan’ which means, “With Eagerness of Spirit…”
Trust me, these are just a few of his paintings. He’s really an amazing Artist….
Happy Good Friday to all. I’m a day late for the letter ‘B’… No worries. As I was laying in bed last night, I was trying to come up with a good story for this atoz post.
Today I’ll write about my boys, as the mother of 4 boys. Our 2 youngest boys (now grown men, husband’s and father’s) they have added so much joy to this family. Another one of my boys (our 2nd baby) is watching over his family from above…
Our 3rd and 4th son’s are retired professional ballet dancers!!! They both married ballerina’s that were also dancers on the same company …
I’ll post more pics as I have so many great ones with their careers !!!
They were such adorable little guys too ♥️♥️
Hannah injured her foot so sad b/c it was a career ending injury but she too was a beautiful dancer 💃🏻
I’ll add a few pics of their adorable kiddos !!
Ms. Ruby (Big Sis) & Sam #7/#8 Grandbaby’s ♥️♥️
We are so blessed w/such a great family … Happy Easter everyone. Grandmama loves y’all to the moon!!!
Who knew April 1st would be here so fast. So much going on so I’m just going to let this challenge evolve. I have found out after 60 odd years in this life that sometimes it’s just better to wing things. Doesn’t mean you are not putting in 100 percent, just means you’ve learned to be more mindful with your content. Let it go and we’ll see. Hopefully I won’t disappoint and we’ll have some fun with it.
I’m going pull from my many books and journals of my writings. Easy little tidbits of Scarlett’s Wisdom that gets me through this thing called life…
Today we will start w/the Letter
Today’s writing is a quote I found many years ago. This quote below comes from Julian of Norwich, England 1342/1416
“All shall be well,
And all shall be well,
And all manner of things shall be
Well.
Below is a link to more of her writings…Well worth the read. Happy AtoZ Blogging…
It has taken me a long time to get to this point to be able to put music to this very special birthday…I’m glad I can do this for him b/c this is his day that he changed the world forever and he’s earned that…A Mother never forgets.
Happy Birthday Sean Patrick. Today would’ve been your 42nd birthday. I remember our short time together every year. I know you see your family down here and are looking after us all. We will all be together again someday, and I will get to hold you and tell you how much you taught me from our short time together. After you were born, you changed our world forever. You were here on this earth for only a short time but you were here for exactly how long you were suppose to be. God took you with him and now you are perfect.
Sean Patrick, March 21, 1984…He didn’t know how short his life was. He only knew he lived a perfect life because all he knew was that he was loved by his mom & dad. Blessings today on your heavenly birthday … You will never be forgotten because your birthday changed the world forever. It changed our world for good. Your family will always love you.
I remember the day after we lost you and waking up. It was over and I felt very empty. I got out of bed and I remember going and looking out the window down at all the people. I was so sad. Everyone was just walking so fast, going no where I thought. Really what was so important. I wanted the world to stop because my world had. I wanted to cry and yell at everyone. Why is life still going on? Everything looked so normal, but it wasn’t for me. Life can be so cruel sometime. I was 24 years old but my innocence was gone. When your baby dies a part of your soul goes with him, yet part of him stays with you. I would never again be that young mother who walked into the hospital that Sunday night.
Well it was time to move on now. I remember wanting to go home and be with my baby Michael Jr. and your dad. The hospital chaplain came into my room and said that they would take care of you and I did not have to worry about it, but I said I did. You were our baby and we would take care of the arrangements. Michael told me not to worry about anything and that he would handle the funeral arrangements. The same priest who married us come out to the gravesite. It was a cold, gray rainy March day. We buried you with your Grandpapa Frain. I didn’t have a lot of people there because I was too sad. It is hard to see a small little box that you know your baby was in. It was hard burying you and letting go. Saying goodbye was very hard.
I became an awesome mom that day. I learned not to take anything for granted ever. I learned about unconditional love, really. My faith in God grew strong and I learned how to accept his will. Maybe not agree with it, but accept it and know that someday I would understand it all. I learned how fragile life is and to appreciate all that I have. I went on to have 3 more children. I just gave my life to God, and let him handle it. It worked out exactly how it was suppose too. Blessings to all my family, we have an angel watching over all of us…
Good afternoon SLS fans…IDK how I got away from the blog but been sort of laying low through this winter…I guess you could say I was hibernating … Today the SLS prompt came from March 15, 2026 – Song related to weather conditions of sunny, cloudy, windy, rainy, or stormy suggested by Nancy of the Elephant’s Trunk aka The Sicilian Storyteller/ I thought of this song right away for some reason I do not know why, but I like this song a lot !!!! So here goes and I hope you enjoy it too.
The song is, Macarthur’s Park sung by Donna Summer…
So here goes and I hope you enjoy it too.
Macarthur’s Park
Spring was never waiting for us, dear
It ran one step ahead
As we followed in the dance
MacArthur’s Park is melting in the dark
All the sweet, green icing flowing down
Someone left the cake out in the rain
I don’t think that I can take it
‘Cause it took so long to bake it
And I’ll never have that recipe again
Oh, no
I recall the yellow cotton dress
Foaming like a wave
On the ground beneath your knees
The birds, like tender babies in your hands
And the old men playing Chinese checkers by the trees
MacArthur’s Park is melting in the dark
All the sweet, green icing flowing down
Someone left the cake out in the rain
I don’t think that I can take it
‘Cause it took so long to bake it
And I’ll never have that recipe again
Oh, no
MacArthur’s Park is melting in the dark
All the sweet, green icing flowing down
Someone left my cake out in the rain
And I don’t think that I can take it
‘Cause it took so long to bake it
And I’ll never have that recipe again
Oh, no, oh
I found a different version of this song by Richard Harris. I always liked his voice better in his version of the song. The AI music video was amazing too!!! Really you must watch it, you will feel all the feels 🙂 Enjoy and Blessings on for your upcoming week…Love, Scarlett
ps…Not posting for a bit, I must I have gotten a bit rusty. So sorry 🙂 …
I’m just dropping in on this Cloudy February Monday…Dinner’s made and I’m just have having my PM Snack Latte…
This is so much easier and cheaper than Starbucks, plus I don’t have to interrupt my afternoon by going out and getting this…1 Glass, 2 Nespresso Pod’s of Bianco Doppio, a splash of Simple Vanilla Syrup and you can’t forget the Topper of DD Cold Foam Creamer, enjoy and your welcome. You can do it yourself and it’s always better.
And before I forget dinner is going to be Scarlet’s Yummy Apple Pancake. So easy and great for dinner, plus don’t forget the smoky links…Again, your welcome…
If your interested, leave a comment below and I’ll send you my recipe…Happy Monday all of my friendly blogger’s !!! Hope everyone has a great week…Blessings
and the early mornings that came far too soon.
Back then, I believed the wonder was loud.
But now I know
the wonder is quiet.
It lives in the soft glow of the tree
before the day has even started.
It lives in the memories that show up without asking —
some joyful,
some tender,
some carrying faces and names I still ache for.
Every ornament tells a story.
Mr. Matthew/1988
Mr. Connor/1992
Every recipe remembers a pair of loving hands.
Every carol opens a doorway to who we used to be,
before we understood
how quickly time would carry everything forward.
I did not realize then
how fast children would grow,
how parents would age,
how soon “next year” would become “years ago.”
But now I stand here —
older,
a little slower,
and so much more thankful.
Because Christmas after Sixty
is not about rushing anymore.
It is about the peace that settles in
when you finally understand
that time itself is the blessing.
It is holding the people you love
just a little longer.
It is letting go of what never really mattered.
It is thanking God for one more December —
for breath,
for life,
for another chance to love well.
It is sitting in the stillness
and realizing the greatest gifts
were never wrapped or placed beneath the tree.
They were the ones gathered around it —
every child,
every answered prayer,
every ordinary moment
that turned out to be holy.
Maybe that is the gift of aging —
you stop chasing wonder
and start recognizing it.
So here is to Christmas after sixty —
where joy is softer,
gratitude runs deeper,
love stretches wider,
and the meaning shines clearer than ever.
And if you are reading this,
may you rest in this truth:
even as the years change us,
God’s love remains the same.
It was faithful before.
It is faithful now.
And it will be faithful
in every Christmas yet to come.
And the family grows and grows and so does our love for all the life !!!!
Ms. Mariah & Ms. Olivia…Sister’s 2nd & 3rd Grandbaby’s
Mr. Sam & Ms. Ruby #7  Grandbaby/Big Sister & Little Brother
Merry Christmas to all and a very Happy New Year !!!!