Hey, Ma!
Ramblings of a wife and mom - what made me who I am, stories of raising kids to be responsible adults, preparing for the empty nest, day-to-day happenings, and the man who's beside me in the journey. Quite a lot to cover!
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Love is Not for Sissies
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
"Come 'n get it!!"
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Pretty Stinkin’ Cool
It’s hard to believe that my little brother is 40! I remember vividly the day he was born – a boy born into a family of six girls was a big deal! Of course, that was long before there was any way to determine the sex of a baby. So we all wished and planned and hoped for a boy, but had to wait nine long months to find out if our wish came true. (Actually, I was only six when he was born, so I don’t really think I had a preference, but all I heard was how much everyone wanted a boy.)
Markie and his big sisters (plus 2 bros-in-law) circa 1973 |
Mark with his sweet family 2011 |
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Games on the GO!!
I’m Baaaa-aaack!
I’ve been a busy, busy girl this month – as evidenced by the lack of entries in July. I’ve been working a lot of extra hours, covering for some vacationing co-workers. You know I’m not a big fan of working full-time – but, I’ve been trying hard to keep my mouth shut about it and just “suck it up”!
I’ve made it through – back to my part-time hours this week! Woo hoo! Now I’ll have more time to ramble on here. Yay – I’ve missed it!
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Fabulous 4th
I love the 4th. Family, food, and fun in the sun – the best kind of holiday!
Cassie & Kristi kayaked -- and, yes, that is a dolphin they're heading toward. They were everywhere! |
Todd with the sun-kissed girls. |
He knows how to relax! |
Enjoyed spending time with Todd's bro and family -- gotta love the enthusiasm of a 1-year-old! |
This is the life! |
Perfect ending of a perfect day! |
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Patience is a Virtue
And, as far as hubbies go, mine is what many would consider “high-maintenance”. (I mean that in the best possible way!) Don’t get me wrong: he is the most considerate, sweet guy. He treats me like a queen and is helpful around the house. In fact, he does laundry, cleans the house, and even cooks now and then. However, he’s one of those guys that needs a fan to fall asleep, uses 4 pillows, has to have a particular kind of undershirt, etc. Not fussy and primpy, just particular about certain things. Luckily, he has me! :) I do my best to keep the home calm and approach his particular desires with a cool, patient attitude.
So, between my kids and my hubby, I have my hands full - like all moms. But, if I were to name what I considered my best traits, patience would be right up there at the top. That’s why it completely floored and disappointed me when Todd told me yesterday, “You are NOT a patient person!” I don’t know why he would say such a thing!!
-- Ok, maybe I do. --
It may have been the rolling of my eyes when he sat on the couch and asked me to help him take his shoes and socks off. Then, a few minutes later, when he was grumbling and searching the house for his flip-flops, I may have let out a huge sigh when I got up to find them for him. And then, my sarcastic remark, “Is there anything else I can do for you?!” might have made him think I was being impatient.
I claim to be patient. I do NOT claim to be quiet about it. Apparently, it’s something I need to work on.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
A Daily Choice
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Insomnia (ĭn-sŏm'nē-ə)
This completely frustrates my hubby! He tosses and turns, replays conversations and situations from his day, and worries about future decisions. It can take him hours to fall asleep! I usually try to let him get to sleep before I even go to bed. I've started doing this because, if I should begin what I like to call loud breathing (NOT snoring), he can get so worked up and frustrated that one of us ends up having to move out to the couch so he can fall asleep!
Insomnia is not a problem I deal with -- as a general rule. However, every now and then I have a night where my mind spins. I think about upcoming events, past events, and what to make for supper tomorrow night. I get too hot and throw off the covers, then too cold and bundle back up. I lie there and think about my kids and what’s going on in their lives, how bored I am with my job, and how much I’m looking forward to retirement some day.
Tonight is one of those nights. I’m wide-eyed and my mind is spinning. Todd’s out of town, so I’ve got no one to talk it out with. I’m thinking about my son’s upcoming wedding, the mother/daughter cruise my sisters and I are planning, and the humdrum of my job. It’s driving me crazy! I’m tired and I just want to sleep!
It doesn’t help that both dogs are sprawled out next to me, snoring away. Now I understand how Todd must feel.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Daddy-O
Cassie loves her Grandpa! |
THE. SWEETEST. MAN.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Here’s to Barney Rubble Feet!
So, I’ve decided NOT to be interesting or clever today. (Why start now, right?) Instead, I’m just going to give a TOP TEN list.
The TOP TEN Reasons I Love My Family:
(Of course, some of these are specific to one or two different people, but you should be able to figure out who I'm talking about . . . I know they will!)
10) He can fix anything and everything – and is always willing to help others.
9) They know their way around the kitchen.
8) They work hard, handle responsibility, and are respectful to others.
7) They love the puppies – gotta love a guy that’s not afraid to gush over a prissy little poodle!
6) We can share shoes!
5) They possess a sincere appreciation of all types of music and know exactly who you mean when you talk about “Stevie”, “Billy”, or “Bob”.
4) They can quote lines word-for-word from more than 100 different movies . . . and can reference a “Friends” episode to fit just about any circumstance.
3) She has the cutest Barney Rubble feet!
2) He can spontaneously make up a song on the guitar and WOW us with his amazing falsetto voice!
1) They are just plain goofy and they make me laugh every day – not just a snicker or a giggle, but an all-out, spit-out-your-drink, pee-your-pants kind of laugh!
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
A “Kick in the Seat”
I speak from experience. I can tell you the very day it happened to us. It was that day, just over two years ago, when we sat in the doctor’s office and heard the doctor say to Todd, “you have cancer.” It was actually more like, “Blah blah blah blah blah. Blah blah blah non-small cell carcinoma. Blah blah blah blah." He said it so nonchalantly that, if you weren’t paying attention, you’d totally miss it. In fact, Todd did! I had to stop the conversation and say, “Todd, he said it’s cancer.”
I remember the feeling of nausea that started deep in my stomach and grew up and up, into my throat. My mind was racing. “Who do we need to call?” “How will we tell the kids?” “What’s the next step?” We had known it was a possibility, but I don’t think either of us really ever thought it would be cancer! Our life together so far had been fairly charmed. We were happily married, we had beautiful kids, we had good jobs. We were going to grow old together and have amazing grandkids. Anyone that knows my husband, knows that he has always been considered “lucky”. Good things just happened to him. We weren’t used to getting bad news!
Leaving the office, we walked to the car in silence. Once inside, he reached over and grabbed my hand and said a prayer. I don’t remember exactly what was said, but I do remember the feeling of helplessness. In that instance, I understood – maybe for the first time in my whole life – what it meant to rely completely on God. We were both raised in Christian homes; we knew right from wrong. But, somewhere along the line, we’d gotten lazy. We hadn’t taken our family to church in years. We’d strayed far from our childhood morals and ideals. But, when faced with a problem bigger than we could handle, we knew what to do. We hit our knees.
Over the next several months, cancer consumed our lives. It affected our diet, sleep habits, schedule, relationships. The doctors didn’t give us much hope. So we pumped vitamins and supplements, juiced more vegetables than you can imagine each day, and drank fruit smoothies every morning - doing our best to attack the cancer in the most natural way. Upon finding out that the mass below his right ear was growing, we opted to have it removed, and traveled to Houston for a grueling 11-hour surgery. And somewhere in the midst of all this fear and chaos, our home and family were restored. While “getting our house in order”, we began praying together, reading our Bible, and going to church as a family again. Todd and I grew closer and were reminded how blessed we were to have each other.
It has been over 2 years now - a milestone in recurrence expectations! We PRAISE THE LORD everyday for His healing touch and for giving us this time together --- but, most of all, we THANK HIM FOR THE CHANGES IN OUR LIVES as a result of this cancer. In many ways, our lives are sweeter and happier from going through this experience.
“Thank you, Lord, for giving us this ‘kick in the seat’ and reminding us how important it is to use our time on this earth wisely! Through it all, we have felt Your hand in our lives and we know that, no matter what the future holds, You are in control.”
Monday, May 30, 2011
Brighter and Better
After a little whining and “wearing him down”, I finally got my ugly, paneled dining room painted! He was not excited about using his day off to paint, but he’s a good sport! As much as he originally fought me on it, even he has to admit It looks much better! There are still curtains to hang, a new rug to purchase, and dining chairs to reupholster. Those pictures will come later.
BEFORE:
Thursday, May 26, 2011
“The Meltdown”
By the way, to set the record straight, I don’t hate our house. It is, as I’ve mentioned before, a “fixer-upper”, but it’s comfortable, livable, and just the right size. The yard, the woods, the pears and blueberries are awesome! I love the privacy and quietness of our setting. I love my kitchen. Thanks to the amazing handiwork of my sweet hubby, there’s ample cupboard space, the floors are beautifully tiled, there’s nice new countertops, it’s a bright green color (my fave) – so we’re good there. Our straight-from-the-50’s PeptoBismol pink bathroom is hideous, but functional. The bedrooms are small, but who really needs that much room? All the windows need to be replaced (especially the front window in the living room that has a cardboard panel where one of the panes broke out). But, all in all, I know these things will be addressed eventually and I can live with things in the mean time.
So, what have we learned here? Not sure about you, but I’ve learned that these unexpected bursts of emotion can be useful! And, more importantly, I’ve learned that my hubby loves me! He doesn’t like when I’m unhappy. All I need to do is tell him what I want. He’ll do whatever he can to make me feel better. He’s a good man!
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Worth a thousand words . . .
So, a picture a day is harder than you’d think! You have to really be looking and paying attention to get a shot that’s even close to interesting – but, it was a lot of fun! I encourage you to give it a try sometime. It definitely forces you to take notice of the world around you!
Click on the photos below to see my shots for the week:
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
A Photo Experiment
So, I've decided to do my own version of this for a week, starting this past Sunday. Obviously, this will not compare to her blog! Her pictures are beautiful and professional, skillfully capturing moments in her family's life that she'll treasure forever. My expectation is quite different. I just want to snap one pic a day of something that inspires me or surprises me that particular day. Maybe something I see while driving to work that I snap quickly with my camera phone; or something that makes me laugh, like my dogs playing in the back yard. We live in a beautiful world - God has created a masterpiece. I'm just going to try to capture it in my unique perspective for one week. Should be fun!!
Stay tuned. I'll post the pics on Saturday.