Independence Day

And we have a busy week scheduled - but took some time to go out to the air show and see the Blue Angels. We've always loved seeing them on TV so can you believe we've never seen them live ?
- after living in Mobile for four years?
[they train in Pensacola, less than an hour away.]

And while we were out enjoying the sunshine [really, although it was 90*+ there was a wonderful breeze and we were very comfy sitting in the shade] we saw a little family of killdeer. Mom [in the middle] was doing all she could to distract me from her babies, but they didn't realize they needed to cooperate and began running around like crazy on those spindly little legs. Very cute...And gaining their own independence -
So Happy Independence Day everyone!
I'll probably not be back before then - C and the boys have headed to Camp War Eagle, I work in Birmingham ALL DAY tomorrow and will join them at Auburn tomorrow night - then I work in Montgomery ALL DAY Tuesday. C & I will head back to Huntsville that afternoon and the boys will be back later in the week after doing some things with the Baptist Campus Ministry. We're off on Friday and have fishing and family reunions planned for the weekend.
I'm thinking it's apple dumpling time!

Announcing -

the 2008 Blueberry crop:

And then there were three...

[The sisters: girls, lined up, as always, in age-order... standing: Eulene, Quida, Emmie, Billie [Vivian], Anna Lyn, and Lois;

 back row sitting: Betty, Carol, and Mary; and front row: Gail.]

...and then there were three -my cousin [the one who lost her mother, Lois, this month] and I had this same thought at the same time on the Saturday morning we were preparing for the funeral. 

I know every family is different, and original, and unique - 

but let me share a little about mine -

 a family definitely dominated by the women in my life... 

including the three [very] strong women who are / were my dad's sisters.

 But where do I start? 

From my earliest recollection this is a family that is always 'there' for each other - 

despite whatever squabble might be going on at the time 

[and with nine women, there's bound to be something going on...] 

- if someone needs a listening ear, the others are there. 

Always. 

Even when you might not want them to be. 

They care.  

This is a family of faith - and dependence on the Lord - 

we attend different churches, but we're brought up to be Christ -followers. 

And know He is the only way to eternal life. 

This is a family with no secrets - trust me on this [I won't go there bc some things just shouldn't be told - but hey, we told / heard it anyway] - we know each others' secrets.  

This is a family where the men [the uncles] appeared to stay in the background but might really be the glue that held it all together afterall because they knew how strong the bond was between these sisters and supported their need to be together.  

This is a family that is forgiving - we know each others' faults, accept that no one is perfect, and we love anyway.  

This is a family that communicates [and I think the cousins will need to start doing a little better with this] - for as long as I can remember, my Mom and her sisters were early risers [4:30 a.m., anyone?] who would touch base with each other every single morning by phone. Even now, when I'm back home I'm usually awakened by the sound of multiple phone calls coming in. It's how the day is started.  

This is a family who enjoys being together - growing up all the family who could would be at my grandmother's every Sunday afternoon. [Imagine nine adult daughters, husbands, and 55 grandchildren visiting at a two bedroom house....and I'm sure there were days when we were ALL there at the same time.] Can't you just see the sisters sitting on the couch talking and shaking that foot... 

This is a family that shares many variations of the same memories - playing under the wooden bridge, finding snakes and crawdads in the branch [is it true that if they pinch you they won't let go until sundown?], gathering eggs in the morning, being careful of the pump house, wandering through the hills and being on the look-out for the 'old bluff woman', horses, cattle, gardens, hollyhocks and gladiolas, and going to the storm cellar and telling ghost stories under musty old quilts by the light of kerosene lanterns when a storm blew up...  

This is a family that is multi-generational - I have at least one cousin who is older than my mom, and some cousins have children my age... despite the age differences we still enjoy being together so much.  This is a family that has always loved photographs - I'm blessed to have copies [and some originals] of these very early photos, including our grand parent's wedding photo - odd as it might be...

 This is a family who met each others' needs [and still would if the need arose] - food, clothing [hey girls, remember the box of hand-me-down clothes? As one of the youngest cousins, I was always last to get the fun stuff], shelter from harm? Someone was always there to take you in or assist.  

This is a family that likes to have fun -some of our 'family stories' are still hilarious to me - we see the humor in life and can let loose with some good ones... I'm so blessed to have grown up with them surrounding my life. This is my family...

Much has happened in our world this past week

– one our aunts went on to be with the Lord so unexpectedly last Thursday that it really threw all of us younger cousins for a loop. And while we know that she’s with the Lord, the loss and grief for her children [and yes, ourselves] is still very real. – I’ll write more on this in the days to come. We had her funeral on Saturday and then went ahead with a planned family baby shower for my brother and his sweet wife – expecting their first baby in August. The circle of life…

Now on to Monday – first the blessings:
We’re blessed that angels were riding in our car with us Monday afternoon…
We’re blessed that auto engineers build cars to crumple…
We’re blessed that the Lord assisted Craig in steering our car safely off the road…
We’re blessed that we had on seatbelts…
We’re blessed that there were no cars in front or beside us…
We’re blessed that a little 18 year old girl had a car with working airbags in the front…
We’re blessed to have good insurance…
We’re blessed to have very little injuries… but mostly
We’re blessed to have our Lord who will never leave us or forsake us –

So is it wrong to grieve a good car lost?
… a car that was reliable and drove so smoothly –
… a car that got terrific gas mileage – 34 to 36 routinely –
… a car that could haul an entire convention booth of scrapbook supplies + two adults comfortably –
… a car that had plenty of room for a family of four –
… a car that for the last two years has practically been my home away from home as I used it to travel more than 30, 000 miles for work –
… a car that, in the end, proved to be safe and trustworthy-

Even now, it seems a little surreal that we’d just been talking about death and insurance and what the boys would need to know should something happen to us when we took an off ramp and started coasting down and around the curve to the red light into Brentwood, TN. We were going about 50 mph when BAM! We felt a jolt from BEHIND and then our left rear tire blew. Just a few weeks ago we’d discussed what a blown tire feels like and what to do when it happens [you know me – I always want to know I’ve DISCUSSED things with my boys so they’ll be prepared should an emergency arise.] So one of my first thoughts was, I don’t remember anyone ever saying it felt like a giant bumper car before the tire blew… I also remember saying so calmly, “Just tap the brake and steer us to the side of the road.” Once we were stopped I realized we’d been hit – HARD.

She had to have been traveling at least 50, maybe 60 mph [maybe more.] And she had alcohol on her breath, admitted she’d been drinking – it was 2:30 in the afternoon… We’re not sure if she just didn’t see us, couldn’t quite get her foot on the brake, or if the brakes really didn’t work as she said [although she steered it to the side of the road and stopped easily enough after she hit us]… but either way, she plowed right into us. She called her dad, but he couldn’t come help her because this was their only car… she was crying to another person on the phone, “I just want my mom!” over and over… [We later found out her address is an aunt’s.] … She appeared to be street savvy and like I’ve shared with others - having supervised child welfare in the past, I feel confident calling it like I see it. But oh, how my heart went out to her – even while I was comprehending that my car was a total loss* - I hurt for her and prayed that the Lord would use us and send others into her life so that this could be a ‘wake-up’ call for her. Will you join us in this prayer for a little 18 year old girl who’s had a hard life? She failed the field sobriety test, but passed the breath test [the officer working the accident said if it’d been given even thirty minutes earlier that she would not have passed – but it took an hour and half for them to determine which jurisdiction we were in… gotta love it…] Since her insurance expired in January she will lose her license for 18 months I think…I'm not real sure about TN laws...

*Our car crumpled – if you look closely you can see the roof is buckled up and the rear windows are bowed out. The doors wouldn’t open. When we finally were able to get the back deck lid open and get our stuff out we could see that the ‘trunk’ area was buckled up like a little earth quake… the right rear bumper was pushed into the tire, the passenger door would open, but not close again… there was NO DAMAGE from the front seats forward …a good little car… and a total loss. We have good insurance and have found a replacement, not another vibe – with gas prices the way they are these little cars are hard to find. We’ll be joining my sister and brother in the Camry Camaraderie. It’s pretty and bit of an upgrade from the vibe, but still should get decent gas mileage. It’s automatic. And for me that’s a big deal since I prefer a five speed manual - so I’ll have bit of transition in that area. I haven’t driven an automatic since my pre- new beetle days [maybe 1996 -?] But I’ll get used to it. And since it’s a little larger I’ll feel a little bit safer as I drive down the interstate worrying about crazed drivers plowing into my rear…

I'm enjoying this on-line class with Heather Preckell! [It's on-going so others can join in by visiting her blog -linked to the class on the left- if you want.] I love Heather's scrapbook style, but it is a little different from mine so I'm stretching myself a little each week - and it's been fun! This week I actually used some paint in the title - written free-style no less! And rub-ons over the photo too. Love her inspiration for this page about what I was taught in my earliest years about Jesus' love for me. Also love this new line of papers / rub-ons, etc. from K & Company - called Wild Saffron. I picked up a paper pack, stickers, rub-ons, and tag set a few weeks back at Michaels when I had a 6o% off coupon and they had a 25% off your entire purchase deal going. The colors and patterns are wonderful!

Blessed

I want to share how blessed I am to have my sweet husband in my life. Not only does he tolerate my cranky moods and indulge me when I’m feeling sick or silly – he’s my rock here on earth, the one person I share everything with without reservation or tempering. [And I’m sure there are moments when he wishes I would tone things down a bit before sharing.] He is, quite simply, my very best friend. And I’m always amazed that he loves me so completely.

He’s a great guy who has a servant’s heart and enjoys helping others, whether strangers, friends or neighbors. And especially family – I know he’s willing to do anything to make our lives happy. He’s a great handyman and does little things that brighten my day – I still enjoy the light he put in my closet after we moved a few years ago, – and the shelving in the pantry, - and the ceiling fans in our den and bedroom, - and our covered patio area he built, - and our fire pit deck he constructed, and, recently, the light in our dining area. [And so, so much more…] He’s a great mechanic too and keeps all of our vehicles in good repair – keeping up with maintenance and oil changing and all those things that I really don’t think about much. And he’s pretty good at assessing the needs of appliances that may go awry and taking the steps to repair them as well. [The vehicles alone could be a full-time job…] He budgets our money and time well and ensures that we live a life of enjoyment.

He’s a great dad and continues to be a wonderful partner in parenthood as we move into this new stage of being parents of young adult children. Through the years he’s given tons of time to sports, church, band, and school activities to support our boys as they’ve grown and learned, but more importantly to share these opportunities with them and simply be with them. I often feel he’s a better parent than me, beginning with giving our first newborn his first little shower [while I was recovering from 26+ hours of labor!] to patiently teaching them how to drive a car, to always, always discussing options with them as they make choices that affect their lives [from consequences of not doing required school work to whether to get a tattoo] and then letting them make their own decisions.

He’s one great dad, partner in life, husband, and friend. And I love him more today than 25 years ago when we were so busy planning our wedding during the summer of 1983. Love you baby – Happy Father’s Day!

Clean House Boot Camp:

Sometimes I have to admit I feel like a failure as a mom [and who doesn’t sometimes? I hope I’m not the only one…] I’ve always thought that one of my biggest regrets was not instilling good oral hygiene habits in my children [and how could they NOT get it when they were forced to brush twice a day?!?] Thank goodness that's been taken care of! But now I’ve realized that I haven’t properly taught my boys how to keep a house clean. And I mean BASIC cleanliness… Was it because they are BOYS [I sure hope not!], or because I was “forced” to clean the house every Saturday before I could do other things and didn’t want to enforce such tyranny on my own children? Or was it because it was just easier to ‘do it myself?’
Whatever, I’ve come to see that I’ve raised a couple of guys who really have no idea where the trash can is, much less how to use it…so this summer “Clean House Boot Camp” has begun! We’re starting slow with setting a day aside for each to DO THEIR OWN LAUNDRY [and I know that there are many gasping in disbelief that we still do the laundry for our now young adult sons!] They know HOW to do laundry, and have done it on their own, but this summer
Lesson One: Doing Laundry on a REGULAR Basis and not only when you’re out of clean underwear. The sub-lesson is no clothes on the floor – you have a hamper for goodness’ sake! Use it. So far [four days in] the floor is clear in their rooms [after a little come-a-part from me] and they’ve both completed LOADS of their own. Yay! But what it their sustainability? And mine, for that matter. I feel like a nag, but hope they will thank me for it one day [or maybe I’ll get thanks from my dear daughter-in-laws one day, whoever they might be…]
Lesson Two: Loading and Unloading the Dishwasher on a Regular Basis: We’re still working on this one… and can I tell you how very hard it is for me to let this go? I’ve avoided my [own!] kitchen for a day or two now! Hopefully all will be right with the world [in my house anyway] by the end of the night…

My first 'class' with Heather's Scrapbooking Your Faith course.
I'm looking forward to having a little challenge and inspiration for the next eight weeks!
I'm doing all of these in 8x8 and putting them in a little faith book all their own. I've never done a book devoted entirely to my faith [instead, my faith based pages are interspersed throughout my on-going scrap books] so it'll be fun to see how it all comes together.