Thursday, September 29, 2011

For The Record.....

We did It....

Finally after suffering through endless heat, wildfires that are another topic altogether and fried landscape all over the state of Texas that may never look the same...we set a record. It took us until almost the middle of September and a temperature that would cook the proverbial egg but we made it. We not only tied the hottest summer ever, we passed the hottest summer ever by a day.
This is not necessarily a record you strive to conquer but it was really painful to fail before you reach your mark. If you are headed that way anyway, don't stop short.
We are finally enjoying reasonable, seasonal temperatures. I am not officially calling it fall. We still have a way to go but somewhere in the 90's is surely an attitude changer. Just being able to check the mail without having to shower afterward is a HUGE plus. So now I can move on to other topics. I do want to note though for all future readers that the record was set and 2011 is officially the year we fried.

As and added postscript...the day after I posted this we once again hit 101 degrees on September 29th. Yes, yet another record high temperature for that day. We are slashing the pages of the record books by the minute. NOW, I hope we are finished. I am ready to move on. Come on fall. It is time for you to check in!!

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Grapefest 2011.....

For the last five years I have wanted to head to Grapevine, Texas and check out the happenings at Grapefest. Look out California. Texas actually has a great list of wineries so we decided to go see what they had to offer.
For those who chose to partake there were plenty of grape barrels for jumping into barefoot. Normal sanitation rules say wash feet before..not here. It is wash after. And personally I decided that stomping around like Lucille Ball in this mess was something I could pass on.
This friends is the product that comes for jumping all around in that barrel. And this is what our wine is made from. Because of the miracle of pasteurization we can put this in our mouths and not be admitted for food poisoning.
Food, arts, craft and a walking grapevine!
Thanks Grapevine for sharing your community with us. And thanks good friends for joining us for the evening!And thanks pouring rain for sending us home a couple of hours ahead of schedule!!!

Sunday, September 18, 2011

I Am Going On Vacation....

First post ever without a picture. I find this a bit strange but nothing really matches. I am taking a blog break. I think because I have become too repetitive. I find myself blogging about such random things and they are not really even interesting to me. Maybe I have writers cramp. None the less I am off for awhile to simply enjoy the day instead of reporting on it. I will probably be back....when my head is on overload and I have to have a place to dump all of the info. That may be sooner than I think!

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Stop Me Now!!!!.....

Seriously! Have you discovered this? I am sucked in. It is a virtual pinboard for anything and everything you love. Decorator ideas, crafts, photography, sewing, recipes and so on forever. It is another black hole that I simply cannot get out of. It is another internet craze that accidentally came my way...via a friend that should know NOT to give me anything else that will swallow me up and cause me to forget that there really are things I should be doing.

Retirement??? Yes. Boredom? Not for one single minute. Question I ask daily...how did I ever find time to work????

I am consumed from sun up until sun down everyday and go to bed wishing I had a few more hours. When Jimmy gets home from work and asks me what I did with my day (because once again I am offering hot dogs as the meal of the day), I cannot even answer. At least I cannot give him a logical and realistic excuse for not leaving home but not having time to prepare dinner.

I really worried that I would spend far too much time shopping...due to lack of anything else to do. Well, rest assured I have not drained our bank account (unless I have to account for the $$ I spend shopping for a grandchild, which thrills me to death). I do not go anywhere unless I am forced to....like to purchase deodorant and toilet paper.

I get up and look at all the possibilities for at home entertainment and it is hard to decide where to begin. Do I sew, do I read a photography manual, do I attack pinterest for more ways to spend free time???? Am I lucky enough to get time with Brooklynn? Oh my, the endless possibilities. Throw in a few needs like curtains and tee shirts for other family members and life is an endless smile. Nothing pleases me like being helpful.

I had an elderly neighbor many years ago who used to really get mad at me because I always had a project. She thought I never relaxed. It is all in one's perspective of relaxation. Maybe mine is different.

"Time You Enjoy Wasting Is Really Not Wasted Time."

All I really need is a few more hours a day to waste!!!

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Final Thoughts......

I think it was fitting that the 10th Anniversary of September 11th fell on a Sunday. Our church was packed with people who found strength gathering together to remember in the presence of God. How fitting and ironic that the readings set many years ago addressed letting go of wrath and anger. How fitting that our hymns touched on putting your trust in the hands of the Lord. Religion binds people together. It does not matter who you worship. When there is tragedy we come together in prayer. That is how we heal. Yet this country seems to believe that we need to take God out of our schools and our government. Today we find strength in prayer. Thank heavens for parents that gave me a good religious foundation. God has carried me through the darkest of days.

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Ten Years Later.........

I feel like this post should come with a disclaimer. These are not the thoughts that I usually put on my blog, but this is, in all reality just my journal. It is where I record everyday events, family activities, and my thoughts. Today is for my thoughts.

It has been a tough week. Television has been a constant reminder that the 10th Anniversary of September 11, 2001 is here. Stories of survival, stories of loss, and memories shared by those who were there and witnessed it firsthand are being reported on all newscast. They are reliving the day. You cannot help but relive the day with them.

I always think of the song that was written shortly after this horrible tragedy...

"Where were you when the world stopped turning that September Day?
Were you teaching a class full of innocent children?"

That is where I was. I was sitting in a class full of innocent children. No they really were not children, but that day they became children again. Until that day their biggest problem was who they were going to sit with at lunch, or maybe who their current boyfriend was talking to between classes. This day shook their core. It pulled the rug out from under them. I remember telling them what was happening and they could not grasp it. Nothing like this had occurred in our lifetime and I am not sure they understood what it all meant or how it would affect the history of the US. They were scared but possibly not so much as the teaching staff that was supposed to remain calm and not allow chaos to take over a building for the remainder of the day. How could I pull that off when I could not wrap my mind around what had just happened? I could not focus. I could not think of it in any way at all but the human side of this tragedy. How could these families deal with the enormous loss. These people did not go off to war and leave loved ones behind who feared for their safety each day. These people got up, got dressed, and left for work. This was a day like every other. They would be home for dinner. But this day was different and no one could have predicted such a fateful event happening in our country and unfolding right in front of our eyes. That is the miracle of live television. The coverage was too human, too real. Real people leaping from windows 45 stories above the ground to avoid the fires that were engulfing two buildings.

All day and for many days thereafter I thought about how devastating it must be to know that your husband, wife, son, or daughter was trapped in a building that would collapse into a pile of burning rubble. How hard it must be to know that there was not chance of survival. How hard it must be to know they were gone but to have no tangible proof of your loss. So many unanswered questions in their minds. What was it like for them? What were their last moments like? Did they know, did they pray, did they suffer? How do these families face all of these questions? It was a different kind of death and one that will never have answers. That is where my mind was for weeks after September 11th. My heart hurt for the loved ones of 2752 people. How on earth could they cope with something like this.

On Oct. 18, 2002, just 13 months later, I found out what it was like. No, it was not the World Trade Center catastrophe but it was a horrific training accident that killed my son. And it was then I knew. I knew what it was like to loose a loved one. What it was like to start the day expecting it to end like all others. I had an uneasy feeling that day. An unexplained irritation with everything. I came home in the pouring rain expecting to head out to a football game and knowing I had little time to locate umbrellas and rain gear. It was a big game. Naaman was playing Garland. It was Drew's senior year and this would be the end of Friday night football for us. But there would be no game that night. We would be together grieving the loss of our son. Trying together to grasp the fact that his plane had exploded in midair and there was no tangible evidence except for a flight helmet found floating amidst the rubble in the Pacific Ocean. There was no body to be recovered but we were told our son was gone. I knew then. I knew what it was like to wonder. What it was like to wonder what his last moments were like. Did he know what was happening, did he suffer, did he pray?

We had a memorial service.
It was something to hold on to. Matt was not in the casket. I wanted to bury Matt's helmet. I followed all the proper Navy channels in order to receive the helmet I was told they found. I asked for it. I was told by the Navy in these exact words "it was destroyed in a way that would be respectful to the pilot". The respectful thing to do in my opinion would be to give it to his family. Give them some tangible piece of that awful day. But the Navy had it's protocol so we never saw his helmet.
In that box were mementos, his favorite flip flops, letters from the family and small tokens from special friends......but not Matt.

I am sad this week. It is difficult. Life has moved on for them just as my life has moved on. Ten years ago I did not know how they dealt with it. Sadly enough, now I do.

When you loose a parent, you loose your past....
When you loose a child you loose your future.

For all the survivors and families of September 11, may God hold your heart in His hands.

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Today.....

I woke up to the most glorious weather. It is the kind of day we have been waiting for after suffering through this unbearable summer. Along with the amazing day comes the freedom to do whatever I want with it. Thank you retirement. Guess you never realize what a gift a day like this is until you really have the freedom to enjoy it however you choose!!! So, I think I will sit on the porch with a cup of tea and wait for a mockingbird to come eat out of my new feeder!! Actually, I might just choose to sit here all day long. The neighborhood kids are out playing for the first time since spring. Moms are not fearful of anyone succumbing to heatstroke and the kids are in heaven. All is right with the world!

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Men At Work.....

It is Labor Day weekend so the men labored....all weekend long.
There is definitely a bond that forms between two guys with a nail gun and a level. It is like the bond between two women in the kitchen. Electric mixers and muffin tins make you relate.

As long as one is the king bee and the other the worker bee there aren't any problems!
I think they both fit in the worker bee category as they labored strenuously on the seemingly last 100 plus degree day of this year.
And speaking of heat....we dropped the ball just shy of the finish line. One day short both times of record setting temps in 2011. A day short of the most days in a row of 100 degree days and now a day short of the most 100 degree days in a year. It could still happen but at this point it is not looking good. It is kind of sad to suffer through the run and not cross the goal line, but for today I will take the great north breeze and a chance to actually sit outside. I have earned it!

Thursday, September 1, 2011

A Walk In The Park......

Actually, a run in the park....
And a swing....

And a slide.....





and taking a friend along for the ride.....
An early morning at the park to beat the heat before the 104 degree temperatures arrive.
So glad to find a shaded place to play!!!!