...Halloween...

I love Halloween in our neighborhood.  It is so Americana.  Halloween in our neighborhood makes you think that, despite how they say we're going to "He-- in a handbasket", around here everything is a-okay.  Kids were running around the streets, mostly followed by adults joining right in with the fun.  We had lots of trick-or-treaters and the neighbors got a chance to come out and visit and chat. 

It makes me feel sad for the anti-Halloweeners.  They are so focused on the "pagan" aspects of Halloween that they miss what is really a happy and joyful time.  Halloween is about kids...being one and pretending to be one.  I love it.

Here's what greeted our trick or treaters!  She seemed very confused, but loved all the visitors!

...man's best friend...

Okay, here she is...

before...

and after.

She is way cute and too bright. If intelligence in dogs leads to excessive naughtiness, she must be the Madame Curie of canines! But those soft brown eyes are pools of repentance and the amount of forgiveness shown by her doggie heart is a lesson to all of us smaller hearted mammals.

"To those who have cherished an affection for a faithful and sagacious dog, I need hardly be at the trouble of explaining the nature or the intensity of the gratification thus derivable. There is something in the unselfish and self-sacrificing love of a brute, which goes directly to the heart of him who has had frequent occasion to test the paltry friendship and gossamer fidelity of mere Man." - Edgar Allan Poe

...rain...

Can you even imagine seeing rain for the first time?

It would be a little frightening.


A little confusing.


But, ultimately a lot of fun.


Oh yeah, drying off is the best part!

...dancing...

You need to PAUSE the music at the bottom of the page before you watch this one...

Oscar the Meyer's Parrot dances to his favorite tune...Listen as he declares himself a "good boy" before and after...

...cooling off on a hot day...

...downtime in the backyard...

Some comfortably cool "June gloom" mornings have resulted in some pleasantly warm June afternoons.  Time well spent in the "work in progress" backyard.

Now, doesn't that look inviting?  Look, a seat saved just for you!

Of course, you may run into this fuzzy friend in the backyard.  Go ahead, throw a ball.  Fun for both of you!

The "hula girl" is blooming as big as plates and covering the whole bush in sunny yellow.  As the evening approaches, the smell of jasmine adds just the right amount of sweetness to the gentle ocean breezes blowing in the next morning's cloud cover.  

Late spring in the backyard...enjoy!

Isaiah 45:18

...animals and people who care for them...

Visited a small zoo that exists because a group of people wanted to help animals in need. I've always been an animal lover and am so proud of and impressed by those who spend their extra hours caring for them. I can't manage to keep my bird's cage clean, let alone find funding and a home for grizzly bears! I know there is some sort of animal sanctuary or zoo near you. Go find one and visit as soon as you can.

Deuteronomy 22:4,6-7

...puppy love...

Is being joyful genetic?  or is it a learned?  Nature vs. Nurture...the old debate.  

Well, recently I welcomed a brand new "bundle of joy".  I like that old expression that we give to babies; it sure describes my new baby.   My bundle of joy is named Olive and watching her play and romp is guaranteed to make you laugh.  Her joy in being alive and experiencing new things is so neat to see.

Don't all little ones come already full of joy?  I think they do.  They have a natural ease with being joyful and expressing it.  They don't begin to lose that joy until they experience disappointment. This is where the effects of nurture come in.  I think that disappointment and discouragement is the learned trait.  

That means that somewhere inside us all we have the little bundle of joy we came with.  Find it.  If you're having trouble finding it...play with a puppy!

Doctrine and Covenants 136:28-29

...parrots...

6:30 am.  Sleeping.  Suddenly awake!  Loud screeching coming from the sky.  Parrots!

I am lucky enough to live in an area frequented by a very large group of WILD PARROTS.  I don't mean the ones I have living in my family room (even though they do act wild).  I mean wild urban parrots.  During this time of the year they fly over my house at around 6:30 am and play around in the trees all day until they fly off somewhere to the northwest to wherever they are roosting right now.  Wow, they are beautiful to see in flight...and funny to watch playing in the trees or on the wires above.  When we have loquats on our tree they like to sit in the tree and eat them, which is fine with me otherwise they all go to waste.  But, they are loud.  This is an important part of being a parrot, especially a wild parrot.  They live in pairs and family groups that, generally, stick together.  So, when they fly they are constantly calling to keep check on each other or to warn of dangers.  Living with a couple of parrots it is amazing to me how many different sounds they are capable of.  (Having a bird tell you "I love you" will have to be a post for another day. )  

Now, I know that this moment may not be one that would bring happiness to everyone's life. Some people may find the parrots downright annoying.  So, I guess this is a good time to talk about perspective.  Obviously, I am a bird person.  So, seeing these beautiful intelligent creatures flying free and thriving where they were never meant to be brings me running out of my house to watch them whenever they fly over.  However, others may be pretty annoyed during the 6:30 am fly-over when they are trying to get that last half-hour of sleep.  

So, I guess the point is that although this is my list of moments that bring me happiness, you should reflect upon the things that you run into every day that keep you moving forward. And remember, we are trying to look through that glass half full.  Maybe you can find something joyful that you never thought of in that way before...even at 6:30 am.   

Click here for more info on California's wild parrots.