Tiny Dancers!.......

I seem to have an insurmountable amount of backlogged photos and thoughts I have not recorded.  Some days just thinking it is time to stop this madness seems like a great idea...but...to do so I would have to give up what makes life fun.  

Things like dance recitals!

 

 Sometimes life seems to be repeating itself.  Who would guess that after watching our boys literally grow up together on the soccer field, we would be watching our grandbabies dance together on stage.

Clay and Tim years as bests when they were young.  Now Brooklynn, Finley, and Henlee don't just go to school together, they are recital partners!  What pretty little dancers they are!

 Brooklynn and Lila's moms also grew up together, and here they are full circle with their own little girls doing the same thing.

 Confident and proud of themselves as they should be!

These little dancers were ready to shine...a little applause please!

All of that attention can just wear a ballerina out!

Happy Mother's Day to Me.......

 It is that day.  That day when I declare a holiday for me. 

Sleeping late..

No laundry..

No cooking..

No cleaning the house..

A day for brunch with the family where there are no dishes for me to wash or menu to plan.

 Yes, it was Mother's Day but somehow Gramps was the "main man".

Snuggled up at the restaurant with the littlest of the "specials", he was his happiest.

And where was the mom of the day....taking pictures of course!

   "Blessed", probably my most used word ever. 

We really are.

Blessed by children, daughter-in-laws, and grandchildren.

Happy Mother's Day to me!

Cinco de Mayo.......

May 5th, Cinco de Mayo, was our yearly Volunteer Appreciation luncheon hosted by the VNA for all those who take on the task of delivering Meals on Wheels.  I actually enjoy going to this.  We have a great group from church that attends.  It is a day to get out and visit and see all the good that is done by those in the Dallas area for those whose need is so great. 4500 meals a day delivered by volunteers.  That is an amazing number of people daily who go to their pick up sight to grab a dozen or more meals for the needy.  The people on these lists are the hidden hungry.  They are not the homeless.  

Today was actually my day to deliver.  I did my 10:00 pick up and I was on the road with my hot and cold bags of food.  I think it is good to do this alone, though most drivers have partners.  It is a little bit of a reflective time as I pick up my list...which is different every month, and then try to map out a workable route for my drive.  It is never consistent.  People drop on and off.  New addresses are added and the VNA never puts the route in an order that makes sense. My greatest challenge is not taking the food, it is navigating a course with my total lack of direction sense.  

As I drove today to some new spots I realized that there is no sacrifice in the delivery.  It does nothing but reinforce how very blessed I am as I see first hand the deplorable conditions that some are forced to live in.  A new address today took me to a house that was probably 400 square feet.  There were cats and flys everywhere.  As the door opened the cats and flys went in.  There are no words for what I saw and how I felt.  I can only think that all those who deliver must leave with a sense of gratitude for having the ability to do this for those that have so little.  I do not think I have dropped off any meals for anyone I thought was not deserving.

Some days it is good to take note of what we are truly blessed with....
and today was that day.

Reunited!.......

I jumped right out of my comfort zone today and went to the 30th reunion for the staff of Luna Elementary!

 I am not usually the go back and reminisce type of person so I can find a million reasons why I do not need to be there, but the truth of the matter is I did need to go!

 All of our family...including myself, was involved in Luna from the time they broke ground!

These people are my friends.  They educated my children.

 I think the beauty of staying planted is that you do develop "roots".

We have been in the same community since 1976.

This is our home, our neighborhood, and our family.

 I worked in this building and watched my children perform on this stage.

Maybe I am getting old and nostalgic....maybe I have always been old and nostalgic but I enjoyed the morning.  

Memories are good....and there were many good memories in those halls and with those people.

Thanks Luna!!!

Something Different....

Yes, this is a little different.  It is not a book review because literary critic is WAY down at the bottom of my capabilities.  

My taste in reading material is all over the map.  However, I do read....a lot!!!  I have changed from trashy novels that used to consume my time, to magazines because they are a quick read, to cookbooks because I thought I might prepare dinner, and now I just target anything that might be some sort of self improvement.  

There is always hope!!!!

This book just made me feel good.  It was what I needed to read right now.  Lots of things in front of me, maybe some changes and challenges and decisions to make...and this had some great bits of material that I reread over and over.

BUT

That is not the reason I took time out to write about this.  It is because right there in the title is the reason I continue to occasionally keep up with this blog.  I am 

"COLLECTING THE MOMENTS THAT MATTER.'

Annie Downs says she scrapbooks in order to leave a trail of who she was at any particular point in time.  Well, I could send her crates of scrapbook materials from that era in my life!  

Bottom line...the reason I continue this blog (though not so often anymore) is because I want to leave a trail of things that matter.  That right now happens to be the moments I spend with my precious grand babies.  Someday they might look back and remember the things we did and that will make me smile!  They are growing.  Adeline is 8 weeks already and Matthew is 5 months.  I am so lucky that they are here and I can take part in their growth process and enjoy those precious moments...and so I record them because I am collecting the moments that matter!

Caught........

 When you think you are sneaky....

 And choosing a snack you know are not supposed to have....

 And get caught.......

And It Is A Party........

Our first trip out of the country took us to France with this awesome group from our church.  

Little did we know that the friends made on the journey would remain friends who loved to reconnect and reminisce.

And eat and drink!!!!

When you spend 10 days in close quarters, traveling on a bus all over Northern France you learn way more than you really might want to know about your trip mates!  So the need to meet up and share stories and laughter becomes necessary.

When they asked for a volunteer to host the April get together I volunteered...in a weak moment!

I did not know that the hailstorm of the century would travel directly over my house the week before this function, totally destroying my beautiful flower beds, fence, roof, lawn furniture, ect!

But the party must go on....house in shambles or not!

 Need a theme for things...go to the attic and unearth all of the decorations from Tim's rehearsal dinner 9 years ago.  Mexican is still in style and I had a boxful of serapes that worked. 

Thirty wine glasses from a shower many years ago and silverware from the table settings at Drew's wedding.  The best part of it all...I knew exactly where everything was!

 The biggest predicament was storage for the HUGE overload of STUFF that clutters ever room of my house.  

Stuff it in my sewing room and put a sign on the door....

Set out some wine and wait for the guests...

who arrived on time and stayed WAY too long.

Obligation over, now on to the next thing on my list.

Maybe it will be to finish off the wine that was left in all of these bottles!!

Easter, Shubzda Style!......

It was a bonnet wearing,

sunshine lovin',

 Egg hunting,

 Ruffle dresses,

 Easter basket wearing,

 Cousin meeting,

Laughing and smiling kind of day!

What a perfect Easter to share with family!!!!

The Crazies!!!!.......

What happens when you finally get to keep all three kids for the day and you try to take some pics of these precious kids?

THIS..................!!!!!!

It was futile....but FUN!!!

Oh Adeline!.........

March 3, 2016

What  BEAUTIFUL day for a birthday!

Overdue baby,  an over anxious family and so excited you have finally arrived!

 It was a long day in the family waiting room.

After nine month of waiting on you, your gender, and your name we finally had a baby GIRL!!

An 8 lb. 4oz. baby with not too much blonde hair and absolutely beautiful.

A mom that did an incredible job of bringing this baby into the world and a dad that is so very proud of his new family.

Cousins.....that are pretty happy with their new family member.  

Oh Matthew, how did you go from newborn to little man in just three months?

Time to go little Adeline....

and what a beautiful March day it is for a homecoming!

Welcome to the family!