Happy Birthday Pap

Yesterday would have been my grandfather's 87th birthday. I wanted to blog something all day yesterday but knew if I tried, I would start crying and never stop. So I waited til today to put my feelings down about what he means to me....

Pap, not only is today your birthday but it was also exactly six months ago that you left us and I've missed you like crazy every day since. You were such a bright spot in my life and I'm filled with so many warm memories when I think of you. I spent the first five years of my life at your house every single day. You took a demotion at work to change shifts so you could be home to help Grandma take care of me while Mom and Dad worked. I remember riding my Big Wheel around your basement while you did the laundry, our trips to the Elks Club where you always made me feel like a big girl and not a baby, all the card games at your kitchen table with Grandma and Dugan (and you always letting me win all the money at the end of the night), and all your wonderful visits to see us no matter where we lived (Kentucky, Indiana, Texas, Louisiana).

I will miss you always!

Let us give thanks

Thanksgiving is supposed to be a time to reflect on the things in our lives that we are most thankful for. However, I usually find Thanksgiving to be a hectic whirlwind of activity that allows very little time for reflection. You see, almost every year since my daughter was born my dad's parents, his uncle (a priest) and his aunt (a nun) have come down to spend Thanksgiving at my parent's house. This usually means that I'm required to bring my family over as often as possible to spend time with the relatives. It also usually means squeezing in a trip to a casino nearby (or not so nearby like the two times we've traveled to Vegas for Thanksgiving - not complaining a bit about those trips!!). My dad's side of the family loves to gamble. It's in our blood. My grandmother is practically addicted to it. Even my great aunt and uncle love it. This year we only had my grandmother and great aunt with us for Thanksgiving as my beloved grandfather passed away in May and my great uncle is suddenly afraid of flying. Our week started on Tuesday with a trip to Shreveport. My dad, grandmother, aunt and I piled in the car after work and headed to Sam's Town. My dad financed my trip so I can't complain. I lost almost all the money he gave me to gamble with so I wasn't feeling very thankful (or lucky) when we returned on Thursday afternoon. However, when my hubby, kids and brother arrived at Mom's for dinner - I remembered how much in life I am thankful for....

2007 was a rough year for our family. We buried two grandfathers, watched my husband's father's health deteriorate to the point of moving him into an assisted living center this week, struggled financially, watched my son suffer thru terrible pain after a botched surgery and dealt with my daughter's broken collar bone and scoliosis issues. It was not a banner year to say the least. However, I am so grateful for my dear hubby (who is so supportive of me, my hobbies, my craziness - 16 years is a long time to put up with me and my family), my wonderful children (who bring me such joy and pride on a daily basis), my parents and C's father (who have helped us in good times and bad by providing free daycare, a job when C needed one, money when we were broke, and so much more), my brother (who is a source of laughter and sometimes of frustration), my sisters in Alpha Phi (without you my sanity would be in question. you are my lifeline. my laughter. my Kleenex. the song in my heart), my friends (the ones that I can talk to, laugh with, scrap with, hang out with after work or at lunch), the roof over my head (although you are a source of my greatest frustration - I'm glad to have a place that is comfortable to come to after work and to hang out in on the weekends), my job (just glad to have one because I sure need the income), and my health (I am hoping when the new year rolls around I can give you more of my attention as you deserve it!).

So as I reflect on the ups and downs of my life, I realize that 2007 has been a rough year but it did not defeat us. And for that.....I am truly grateful.

Adventures in Mommyhood

Professional picture time is a phrase I dread. Why? A number of reasons come to mind. 1) Everytime we had pictures scheduled for A when she was little, she would inevitably bump her head or scratch her face the day before or day of the appointment; 2) My son usually falls into fits of crying everytime I try sitting him on that little platform to have his photo taken; 3) The Photo studios are always behind schedule and keeping a baby or toddler happy during the waiting time can be exhausting; 4) You always end up spending twice the amount than what you intended to spend on pictures of your little darling(s)!!!!

Saturday was different though. I set up the appointment to have E's 3 yr and Christmas pictures taken at Sears. Everything was looking good. He woke up in a good mood, no bumps or bruises on his face, we had plenty of time to get ready and make sure he looked appropriately handsome!! Then........bam!! His big sister accidentally slammed his thumb in the closet door. 45 minutes until time to leave for Sears and he is crying unconsolably. I tried every trick in the book to calm him down but it was useless. Finally, I handed him off to dear hubby and got myself ready. When I came back in to see if E was calm, I found him sound asleep in his daddy's arms. As adorable as that was, my child was in his pj's w/ his hair sticking up and our appointment was approaching quickly. Hubby convinced me to dress him as much as I could, throw him in the car and let him sleep off the pain on the trip to Denton. Do not ever breathe a word of this to my husband, but he was right. By the time we got to Sears, E was awake, happy and no poofy eyes!! We walked in, finished getting dressed and they took us right back. My son actually smiled for the camera and the pictures were adorable. The best part is that I spent less than I had budgeted!!! So for an outing that seemed doomed from the start - I'm pretty darn pleased with the way it turned out.

Of course, later to make up for being such a good boy earlier - he proceeded to dump the poop from his diaper onto the playroom floor for daddy to find while I was out to lunch with some friends from High School. Thank goodness I wasn't home for that one!!

The joys of parenting.....

Phi Weekend!!

Another weekend has come and gone....where does the time go? Friday night was filled with memories and fun. I went back to Commerce to attend the Alpha Phi initiation of 15 new sisters!! What an enormous pledge class for ol' ETSU. I think the biggest class we ever had back in "my day" was about 13 and that was amazing back then. There were supposed to be 18 initiates but they had a few decide at the last minute to hold off til next semester. The evening started by meeting my BFF at our hotel in Commerce and chatting for awhile in the room. Then we decided since none of the rest of our group had called to say they were on their way - we'd go explore campus. As we were exiting, we ran into K who was checking in so we waited on her and made her go with us.

Beverages in hand, first stop - the Kappa Alpha house, my former home away from home. Ahhh, the memories. We went in thru the side door and found the chapter room and entire front of the house completely void of life. The house hasn't changed much except for a big screen TV on the hearth and they switched out the t.v. and Doc Barchard rooms (odd). We were about to give up on meeting any actual life forms in the house when a tall boy of about 18 walked thru the door. We were impressed when he introduced himself as "Kappa Alpha Pledge.......". Glad to see some traditions never fade. We explained to the pledge that we were old folks from way before his time. I told him that I was actually a Southern Belle at the time the KA house we were standing in was built. He really didn't seem impressed. He did give us permission to explore the living quarters, which we did and then we weren't impressed. Looks like the same crappy furniture, etc. that the guys had back in our day. Sad! I have to say that I couldn't resist standing up on the hearth in the chapter room and thinking about all the mixers, parties, etc. where I had stood in that exact spot and danced my butt off! Oh, I was so much younger (and skinnier) then. That house is responsible for finding me a husband, creating some fabulous memories, and a lot of hangovers. That house and the KA's from the late 80's/early 90's were such a part of my college experience. What a great moment to be back there again to refresh those memories.

After our tour of the Mansion, we headed back to the hotel to hook up with the other 4 Phis that were arriving for initiation. Once everyone was there, we headed to the House to setup the food we brought to feed the actives and new initiates after the ceremony. There were seven other alums from various age groups (and a couple from other chapters) there to be a part of the evening as well. We partipated in all the secret stuff (can't go into further details or I'd have to....well, you know). After that, we fed the girls, cleaned the kitchen and headed back to the hotel. After a brief trip to the hot tub, we all went up to hang out in our hotel room. Lots of stories, laughs and beverages and eventually folks started showing their age and getting sleepy (me included). I didn't sleep well and was a total zombie on Saturday but that is okay with me because I had a great time with my sisters and reliving all the memories. I cannot wait to do it again next year.

Sunday we all went to A's Team Tennis party. It was the end of season party where the kids have fun playing games on the courts with the pros, eat pizza and get prizes. The NETT group which represents our division does a great job with the door prizes and almost every kid walks away with something. A got a hat and a t-shirt this year. It was fun but we sure are glad to have our Sunday's back for awhile.

This weekend is going to be busy. I'm taking Mr. E to get his 3 yr and Christmas pics taken at Sears. People (my mother) complain that I do not get his picture taken professionally enough. Sorry - too expensive plus he doesn't smile and ham it up like his sister used to. Then my grandmother is flying down from Ohio to spend a few weeks with my parents so we'll pick her up at the airport Saturday night. Then Sunday, we are going to Paris to do Thanksgiving with my father in law. His health has been so fragile this year that I have been sending hubby alone to see him so we do not expose him to the kids colds, etc. I realized today that I have not seen him since last Christmas. Ugh! That is too long. I'll be glad to be in Paris on Sunday to see him again.

If I don't blog again this week....have a good week and weekend.

Halloween recap

Halloween came and went and there are already Christmas decorations everywhere. I sure wish the retailers would give us time to recover from the candy overdose before shoving Christmas sales down our throats. Not to be a bah humbug but with money so tight this year - I need not be reminded that Christmas (and E's birthday) are just around the corner.

The kids had a great time Trick or Treating last week. E thought the whole process was pretty cool. He loved getting the candy and I loved that he said "thanks" at every door. He's super polite and I love it. He cracked up a friend of mine who just happened to be walking by when he informed me that the decorations at one house were "Freaky". Where does he get this stuff? His big sis - that's where!! She says freaky all the time but I guess I didn't realize how much until he said it. He's a real parrot these days so we have to be pretty careful about what comes out of our mouth or we will soon here it out of his!!

A was a little disappointed that we got back to TC to TorT after all her friends were already out and about. She was hoping to catch up and walk with a few of them but that didn't happen. She wanted me to let her run up ahead of us so she could try and find a group of friends that were supposed to be in the area. I let her walk ahead a house or two but became nervous about the idea and decided it was a good time to tell her my "halloween horror" story. ......

When I was about her age, I thought I was too old to TorT with my parents so I begged them to let me go with my friend Debbie from down the street and some of her friends. Debbie was two years older than me but we got along really well. Her mom convinced her to let me tag along and the four or so of us headed out in the neighborhood. We were doing great - the candy was plentiful that year. As we made it to the edges of the neighborhood, the big girls decided they could get lots of loot if we went to the apartments. Big problem - our mom's had forbidden us from going there. I was at that age where I still listened to my mom so I made the decision to walk home alone while the big girls went to the dreaded apartments. On my lonely walk home, I heard footsteps rapidly approaching from behind. I was too scared to turn around so I just kept walking. All of a sudden, I was pushed to the ground, my candy bag yanked out of my hand and I had a view of a couple big boys running away with my candy. I sat on the ground and bawled my eyes out. I was scared.....I was hurt.....I wanted my candy back....and I knew my parents were right about me being to young to TorT w/o them. Another boy came along, picked me up off the ground, walked me to a nearby house and asked them for an empty sack and any candy they were willing to spare. He then escorted me to a couple more houses and proceeded to get me a decent amount of candy before walking me back to my street. I ran to my house and thru the door and collapsed on the floor crying in my mother's arms. She finally calmed me down enough to get my story and never said "I told you so". I never learned who the boy was that helped me out that night but he was a real "knight in shining armour". After that, I always went Trick or Treating w/ my dad and brother (until I was too old and then I just escorted my brother and his friends). A couldn't believe I'd never told her this story before and promised she would always stay with an adult when out on Halloween. She also decided that she got more candy when taking her little brother to the houses anyway - he's a real goldmine!!

E update - He's learned to spell his name. He can also spell JOE - thanks to Blue's Clues. And he can spell DOG - thanks to my mother. He loves to sit at the computer w/ Word up and type. He's always just banged away on the keys until this weekend, when he started using the keyboard to spell real words. He spelled his name on is own and then backspaced the letters and asked me how to spell Mommy. Where did this kid learn to backspace?? His new thing is "I say dat all the time". He'll say something silly and then follow it with "I say dat all the time Mommy" and then laugh at his own joke. He is such a hoot.

A update - 5th grade is going well. They performed a Living Museum at school last Friday and she was Wilma Mankiller (first female Chief of the Cherokee Indians). She had to prepare a speech, create a backdrop and object that represented her famous person, put together a costume and then perform all day Friday for all the other grades and then the parents. These kids did such a great job with their costumes and speeches. I was floored by the amount of effort you could tell was put into this project. The variety of "famous" folks was pretty interesting: Ronald Reagan, Colin Powell, Robert E Lee, Harriett Beecher Stowe, Helen Keller, George Washington Carver, Albert Einstein, etc. It was set up in various rooms around the school and the students were frozen until it was there turn to speak. It was supposed to look like you were going thru an actual museum and pressing the button under each character to start their speech. Great Job Fifth Graders!!!