once in a blue moon conversations

in the hustle and bustle of the daily grind, there are many conversations that need documenting... for future reference.  this is one.

me: oh, we almost forgot to take a peek at the blue moon!
nator:  let me get my shoes!
me:  graaaaaaacieeeeee!  
gracie: {just getting settled in her loft bed}  yeeeees?
me:  come here.

{insert jeopardy music as nator and mom wait for gracie to climb down mt. everest}

gracie: {singing -with a cheesy grin- as she comes out of her room}  what do you want from me?  what do you want from me?
me:  how appropriate.
gracie:  what did y'all want?
nator and mama:  let's go look at the blue moon.
gracie:  oh.

me:  i'm sure it's not blue.  it's an expression used because we are having a full moon twice this month.

{walks outside the front door}

gracie:  it's not blue. 
me:  but it's a full moon.
nator:  it's so pretty.  i'm sure neil armstrong is enjoying it from somewhere up there.
me:  i bet you're right.

{clearly impressed, gracie walks back indoors, while mom and nator enjoy the glow of the moonlight a little longer}

nator:  i learned on brainpop that the next one will be in three years.
me:  and that will put you at how old?
{mom cringes and might be sporting a frowny face}
nator:  fifteen.
{we console each other embrace in a big hug, then slowly make our way indoors}
nator:  but i'll still love you.  i might just have a little attitude.
me:  {laughs to keep from crying} let's hope not.

i mean... attitudes in this sweet girlie only come once in a blue moon.  let's not mess with that statistic.

remembering {the alamo}

{finally} the end of our thanksgiving vacation.  you know... so we can blog about reality our current life.

one cannot go to san antonio without walking through this piece of history.



we opted to make a day of it.  
our traditional walk through the alamo itself.  no pictures allowed inside.

a trip to the disney store.



a ride through the riverwalk.
riverwalk + christmas lights = a great way to ring in the christmas season. 

end of the day celebrated at the hard rock cafe'.



this year, we threw in a little education torture.
we made our way through the wax museum and...

ripley's believe it or not.  i guarantee that's a stop our girls will remember for years to come.  the girls were mostly eager to find the exit sign.  i don't blame them.  they really should post signs for parents of what's around the corner. ;)

my favorite room was dedicated to the titanic.  the picture below shows a demonstration of the leak that took the titanic down.  unbelievable. 

we rewarded the girls with a lil' ice cream.  we're cool like that.



after we said goodbye to our room, it was time to make a mad-dash home.  just in time for theater rehearsal.  that's how we've been rolling lately.

i wanted to remember these circles in the carpet.  gracie walked on these {only} getting to and from our room.  seeing life through a spunky 9 year old is always exciting.



souvineers in hand, we had to say good-bye.
or see you later.  back to reality.

until next time...

moments with pops

he often told me that the first time i ever met him i asked, "and how old are you?"
a bold question for a lil' 8 year old.
i don't remember that, so it couldn't be me. ;)

there was quite an age different between he and my mom,
but they always kept in touch through my growing up years.

i remember receiving dolls from various countries in his travels.
today, i'm wishing i knew what ever happened to those dolls.

my birth-dad died when i was a baby.  i never knew him.  the stories of him are few.  his life was taken too young.

my second dad died when my brother was but a toddler.  i can't imagine the heartache mom must have felt.  two husbands gone, now left as a single mother... with two children.  our little family of three relied on other family members to help us through rough patches.   there were quite a few. 

mom went on to marry again.  twice.  but those turned into more heartache than can be shared on a blog.

then... mom and pops reunited again.  this time, we all knew that this reunion would finally end in "i do's."  mom and pops married months before hubs and me in 1992.

i had a dad.

before i married, i remember walking in any given room in the house to simply... chat. 

sometimes, i goosed him.  *giggle* 

we didn't solve life's problems in those moments, but i was thankful to have spent time with him.  he was always present in conversation.  he never made me feel as though he was more interested in watching a television program, or running an errand.

when hubs and i married, we moved out of state.  staying close from such a distance can prove challenging when you rely on real face time.  our visits, when traveled across many miles, have always been genuine and engaging. 

during those visits, he was always proud to show us his woodwork. 
pieces that will always be cherished. 
  
his beth {his granddaughter they adopted as a baby}.
fruit trees.
boats he sold.
and his dogs. 
he had a thing for boston terriers.
and the name tony.
all of his dogs were named tony. 
I, II, and III.



we never realized our last visit would be our last.  christmas 2010. 

sunday eve, we received word that he wouldn't likely make it through the night.  a couple hours later, he breathed his last. 

i would have liked to have had more face time with him.  but i will have to save that conversation for when i see him again. 

we will. 
see him again. 
our tears are temporary.
what a joyful day that will be. 
reunited with my hubby's sweet dad, as well.
we miss him much.

many years ago, i'd never felt the comfort of god more real than in a quiet moment of tears regarding the history of fathers in my life.  his words to me were not chastising, but beautifully healing and full of pure love...   "what better father can you ask for than me?"

i'm thankful pops is resting in the arms of our father. 
rejoicing in a new body that will never again betray him.
there's no need for medications because there are no symptoms of alzheimer's there. 
but i'm sure he knows that by now.

missing you, pops.

Remembering

Veterans Day.

I suppose my giveaway will have to wait one more post.   This post is dedicated to the many men and women who have sacrificed so much for the freedoms we enjoy today.

*these were taken at the Seawolf Park in Galveston, Texas.  The Cavalla and the USS Stewart.

We have friends who have served tours in Iraq. 

I took pictures of everything... including the potty.  Wow.  Thought I'd just show you the sinks.

Last night at Panera, I stood in line next to a beautiful woman, dressed in Air Force fatigues.  I had many questions, but remained silent.

I mostly wondered if she had children and what a sacrifice that would be.

I pondered the dedication.  The determination.  Not only from the many who have served in active duty, but from the families left behind to balance the homestead.

Having a husband who travels, gives us a small taste of said life.  And yet, I still can't imagine.


If you guessed that hubs was in Alaska, you would be correct.  The moose were crossing the street in Anchorage, to be exact.  Gracie says they were going to Golden Corral.  ha. 

Important decisions were once made here.  Life and death.

Food was prepared here.

Two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches please. 

We were told these mattresses also double as 'sea bags'.  They can bring as many personal items as can fit in them.  You think there would be room for 8x10 pictures from home?  I'm guessing shoes would be uncomfortable.  Yes, even shoes must fit in the sea bag.

The tour guide called this a man-hole.  I'm not certain my 8 and 10 year old could have fit.

Sacrifice doesn't begin to describe what our courageous men and women do on a daily basis. 

From the bottom of our hearts... 

Thank you.

Celebrating Birthdays

God Bless America

A friend emailed this to me...

Her husband served 1 year in Iraq.

Support our military...

The next birthday we remembered... DK's!

Here's Gracie trying on "the pants in the family" {DK's, not mine. ha!}

before we spent the afternoon at the pool!

Mmmmm... yummy brownie cake with vanilla ice cream!

Happy Birthday, DK! We love you!!!

Thank God for this Hay

As a former minister’s wife, I sat under more than my fair share of sermons between the numerous conferences, special services, revivals, retreats, etc, etc. However, when I'm forced to recall any of them, it is Martha Tennison's testimony that is locked into my long-term memory best. She and her husband, Don, were the pastors of a congregation in Kentucky. I still can't wrap my mind around the tragedy she shared years ago. It will forever be engraved on my mind… and in my heart.

The Kentucky Guide wrote: “The collision and subsequent fire involving a church bus at Carrollton, Kentucky on May 14, 1988 was one of the most disastrous bus accidents in United States history. About 11 PM on a Saturday night, a drunk driver traveling the wrong way on an interstate highway collided head-on with a school bus which was in use as a church bus. The initial crash was exacerbated by the bus catching fire and difficulties encountered by the occupants attempting to evacuate the crowded bus in the smoke and darkness.”

This bus (carrying 63 children and 4 adults) was returning from King’s Island Theme Park. As parents (unaware of the crash) were arriving at the church to pick up their children, Martha and Don learned that their son was one of 6 people who miraculously escaped this disaster unscathed.

At the beginning of the bus trip, Allen had been sitting near the driver. However, he noticed a girl seated at the back of the bus that was new to the youth group. When no one appeared to be talking to her, he traded seats so that he could join her. Because of this move, he was strategically positioned for evacuation when the bus exploded in flames. Unfortunately, the person he traded with perished. The force of the collision and the ensuing fire had rendered the front exit unusable.

There were 24 kids & 3 adults killed in this bus crash. 34 were injured: some burned beyond recognition. Martha Tennison is careful to address this bus crash as a tragedy and not an accident. She said, "It's not an accident when someone decides to drink and drive."

There were many stories that came out of this that would grip your heart and make your hair stand on end, but I will spare you most of those details.

However, one story she told (although still difficult to hear) has stayed with me and has been the quiet voice of reason when frustrated about the little things. It’s the story of one mother who lost her 13-year old son and had been unable to forgive herself due to the last frustrated conversation that took place between them. She was frustrated with things from work and took it out on him for a number of things including that of not cleaning up his room.

Afterwards, her son tidied up his room and then went to bed, crying himself to sleep. Due to her work schedule, she wasn't able to touch base with him before he boarded the bus on the day of the crash. Later, when she walked into his "clean" room, she found a note taped to his mirror. It read something like this: "Dear Mom, I didn't clean my room because you told me so. I cleaned my room because I love you."

Martha told of her own frustration when her husband and son would come into the living room and empty the hay out of their boots onto her floor. She would always find piles of hay to which she would scold them for.

After this tragedy, she walked into her living room, picked up those piles of hay, raised them up in the air and thanked God for her hay.

Such a gripping story. It really makes you stop and reevaluate priorities.

My prayer is… Lord, regardless of what stage of life I’m in, help me to always be thankful for my piles of hay. May I never take this season of life for granted. May I not get distracted away from those things that really matter. May my family know and feel my love for them and not my frustrations and… May I never dwell on my regrets so much that I live in them.

So, today I am thankful for… the pencil sharpener in the coat closet, dry cleaner stubs on the closet floor, notebook scraps, socks, cheerios, and the kitchen sink under the coffee table, stairway filled with things little feet walk past, cups that were once filled with cheerios or apples all over the house, miscellaneous computer parts all over the house, washed, dried & folded clothes in the dirty clothes pile, miscellaneous papers in various stacks throughout the house, empty toilet paper rolls or paper left on the floor, nail polish on my nice hand towels, crumbs… lots of them, vitamins in the sofa, lumber that needed to be torn down and hauled, spots in the carpet, garbage that has spilled over onto the floor, band-aids in the lawn, clothes under the bed, food left on the counter…

Thank God for this hay.

If you'd like to read more about this story, you can find it here.

Some of the best things in life aren't free

"For anything worth having, one must pay the price; and the price is always work, patience, love, self-sacrifice." --John Burroughs

• Freedom. May we never forget the sacrifices that were made for our many freedoms. I love that our streets are lined with flags on days like Memorial Day.
• Family. I love my family. Realisticly, good memories don't always just happen. We have to live them on purpose. The greatest happinesses are family happinesses. It was a rainy weekend so we had lots of cuddles and movies in our house over the weekend.

When the rain cleared up, we went to lunch at our favorite sandwich place... mostly because it has an outdoor area where we are welcome to bring Jasmine. The girls love to feed the birds and Jazz loves to watch them. Although, she wishes the girls would give her all of that bread.

Doesn't he just look cool? Well, that's just how he rolls. :)

Gracie was cooling herself off. A-Nator was just being a cutie-pie.

Jasmine was putting her best face forward in hopes of getting some chicken or bread. Who could resist these big brown puppy eyes?

This bird was helping himself to a sandwich. Jasmine wanted to help herself to the bird... or maybe she was trying to protect the sandwich? Leashes are a good thing.