Archive for November, 2006
November 30, 2006 @ 9:39 pm | Filed under: Family
Today was a rare day around here, to be sure!
Snow - the soft, white stuff that falls straight from what must surely be heaven - drifted to the ground slowly, but surely, this afternoon. Of course, it didn’t make its magical appearance until well after its first cousins (sleet & freezing rain) dropped in for a long, icy visit first!
This IS North Texas, folks, and we just don’t see much honest-to-goodness snow. In fact, we didn’t see much of it today either. But you can tell from the picture of Carter and Kendall that even a little of the white, wet stuff is enough to bundle up and go explore!
November 30, 2006 @ 8:25 pm | Filed under: Family
ANYWHERE!
For a few days last week, I was a lady of leisure. If I needed a gallon of milk…no problem.
Nate was happy to go fetch it for me.
And when I needed to go pay the bill on our storage building?
"Don’t worry about it, Mom. I’ll go do it for you."
And the best offer?
"Mom, do you need a Sonic Diet Coke?"
Now before you go and start thinking that I’ve raised the most considerate, loving, and attentive son EVER, maybe this would be the appropriate time to mention that we’ve made a recent purchase that was a complete surprise waiting for Nate when he arrived home for Thanksgiving break.
A Mustang. (That would be the car, not the horse like my niece Madison first thought!)
I would imagine that there are only a few times in a parent’s life when you get the kind of joy that I received last Wednesday night when we called Nate outside and Mike tossed him the keys. The look on Nate’s face (speechless, open-mouthed) and the bear hugs we promptly received were just the trigger that…
made this Mom break down in tears.
But they were happy tears. Tears that are only shed when maternal pride mixes with nostalgia and then dances away with the realization that this was just another step in the maturation process that has been increasingly obvious these past few months.
So if you see a good-looking, tow-headed young man (with a big goofy grin) seated behind the wheel of a cool white Mustang, give him a wave.
You never know, you just might be waving at one (I HAVE done this TWICE, you know!) of the most considerate, loving, and attentive sons EVER!
November 30, 2006 @ 8:08 pm | Filed under: Family
Today is Thursday. It is exactly one week after the *real* Thanksgiving. The day when we baste a turkey in the wee hours of the night and concoct a bajillion different casseroles that - incidently - only get made on this one day and are avoided for the remaining 364. (Kind of makes you go hmmm…, doesn’t it?) We clean, we bake, we wish North Texas had more honest-to-goodness fallness about it, and we look forward to the time we get to spend with friends and family.
I’m behind on my Thanksgiving Day blog (my sis-in-law kindly reminded me that I’ve only blogged twice this month, so this one’s for you, Robyn) but then I’m behind on a lot of things these days. Days that are so busy, and yet so precious.
Last Thursday family and friends gathered in our home and I spent the day with people that I love and treasure. Some are related by blood, some are in our family by choice (WOW, imagine that!), and still others just simply choose to be with us. There really aren’t words to describe the warmth (and it wasn’t just the fact that my oven ran for five straight hours that morning) that filled our hearts and our house.
I am a blessed woman. Too often these days I get so wrapped up in my "busyness" that I don’t take the time to really count the blessings that surround me on a daily basis. A husband who adores me. Children who actually like to talk to me. Parents who continue to nurture me even though I’m all grown up. Friends who make me laugh. Health that allows me to continue with all my "busyness."
It’s a good life.
It’s my life.
And I’m thankful.
So to everyone who filled my house last Thursday and to everyone else (you know who you are) that couldn’t be here with me in person (but are always with me in heart), I love you!
November 21, 2006 @ 5:53 am | Filed under: Uncategorized
that I still love to blog and - actually - have quite a lot to say.
It’s the time that’s running a bit short these days. Right now, I’m sprinting out the door at 6:45 a.m. to make the three-hour drive to Huntsville to pick Nate up for the Thanksgiving break.
(taking a brief moment to do a little happy dance…)
Tonight I’ll have both sons, at home, in their beds, under MY roof. Yay!
Until tomorrow, here is how I feel about all of you - MY FRIENDS…
I am only as strong as the coffee I drink, the hairspray I use and the friends I have.
I’m feeling strong today!
November 16, 2006 @ 5:07 am | Filed under: Family
Guess what?I’m a morning person in a house full of night people. I regularly wake up, ready to begin animated conversations. Sometimes they are about nothing. Other times, I have really pressing, world-changing ideas and notions that need to be discussed - RIGHT NOW!
It continues to puzzle me when the three males in my house gaze at me with that glazed look in their half-open eyes. Sometimes I can even hear their sigh of resignment as they resist the urge to roll those sleepy eyes and do their dead-level best to - PAY ATTENTION!
"You’re not a morning person, are you?" I take a sip of my coffee and glance over at Jorge, who is sitting in a semi-comatose state yesterday morning as he begrudgingly counts down the minutes until time to leave for school.
His closed eyes and steady breathing don’t deter my line of questioning.
"Nope. You’re not a morning person."
One eye opens, the brow above it arching dangerously. "W-what?" (Eyes close again.)
I take another sip of my coffee and think about this. I’ve never really considered myself a true morning person before. I mean, I don’t wake up looking for a marathan to run or anything. And I DO perform (talk, write) better after a couple cups of coffee.
But I do wake up quickly and I generally do at least 85% of my day’s duties and accomplishments by two o’clock. After that, it’s hit or miss. That’s why I write in the early mornings. That’s why I deliberately chose morning classes. That’s why, I guess, that I’m a - MORNING PERSON.
Thank goodness Jesus likes to talk to me in the morning!
"Are you okay?" Jordan poses the question last night on the drive home from church.
I struggle to concentrate on the question. Even in the darkness of the Suburban, I can feel him studying me. "Yeah." I yawn. "Why do you ask?"
"Well." He shrugs. "You quit talking. You’re quiet."
(LIGHT BULB MOMENT.)
I do my best to arch my brow menacingly just as I’d seen him do yesterday morning, but a big ‘ol yawn escaped, disturbing my effort. After that, it just didn’t feel worth it.
"Guess what, Jorge?" I hurry and smile at him before another yawn creeps out. "I’m a morning person."
