Our Big Boy.....

Oh my big boy....

How can you be nine months old already?

Love that precious face.

You are just one big hug!

Happy Birthday Timmy.....

It is that time of the year when we begin the family birthday celebrations....yes, all but one of us celebrate birthdays in a three week period!  It used to be tough when you tried to convince your kids that all those new school clothes counted as their birthday presents!!!

Daddy and Mattie enjoyed a swim...

We all did!

Summer is a great time for family celebrations!

Birthday hats and big smiles make a mama happy.

Next year is the big 40 Tim!

How can that be?

What???.............

I finally decided today that I had milked recovery from my surgery long enough and it was time to dig through the clutter and pick up some of the rubble.  

Have I been so distracted that I did not notice that my grandchildren's possessions ore overtaking our lives?

 A trip through our entry hall to get the mail got my attention.

Yes, this is the line of baby goods in the living room.  

In the living room!  This is the room that used to only be used for the Christmas tree.  That treasured clean room where no one was allowed and company could always count on to be clean.  

NO MORE!

 One spare bedroom, one pack and play.

 Another spare bedroom, a crib.....

 and a bassinet.

 A sunroom filled from floor to ceiling with  more toys than my children ever saw in one place...

 And car seats ...... really how many car seats do we need?  

And in the kitchen another high chair.  

Yes, this is all in my house.  That does not even count what is stuffed under beds and in closets  So we really need all of this....obviously, but I am not sure how we got here or why my husband has not addressed the fact that it has become hard to find a place that is child free.

Honestly, I would not change anything.  Nothing pleases me more than to have a houseful of my "specials" and things for them to do.  Someday we will pack up all the high chairs and put away the toys and time spent here will not be as exciting.  School activities and sleepovers with friends will be a priority.  Until then I will work around the clutter and know that much too soon my Christmas tree room will be clean enough for company once again.

Forced "PAUSE".......

I cannot tell you how many days I wake up at 8:00 in the morning and think how great it would be to just stay in bed all day.  Well, I am now able to report that I have spent the last nine days doing exactly that and I am just about over it.  It is not all it is cracked up to be.  Days 1-3 weren't so bad.  There is something to be said for having the family wait on you hand and foot.  I didn't need a bell.  I just grabbed my cell and called for service....fill my water glass, fluff my pillow, can you get me a bowl of ice cream "please".  How can that be bad?  By day 4 it was all bad.  I am totally over it and ready for life to be back to normal.

How did I end up in this stranded state?  I had to undergo yet another surgery.  I can now almost connect the scars on my body.  It started with pains in my legs ands hips that would not go away.  Off to my doctor thinking I needed hip replacement.  Nothing wrong with my hips....my back was out of wack.  Crushed nerves were the culprit causing the intense pain.  The cure....surgery of course.  So blindly accepting the prognosis we set a date for the procedure and here I am recovering.

So how do I know I am getting better?  The tray in my lap is a sure sign that there is nothing wrong with me.  I have every food group in front of me...including my favorite....a Whataburger Jr. and Diet Coke.  All is well in my world!

So what to do during all of this idle time?

Read!

I get a regular visit from the UPS man with another book in a package.  Previous problem? No time to read.  Boy, not an excuse now.  So I am buried in books and enjoying it.  It is about that time to "PAUSE"!

Morning coffee in bed is a good thing.  Of course, I do that everyday anyway.  Now I just stay here.  It is a three hour coffee hour!

And finally, I am attacking all of those quilts that have no binding.  I am actually almost through with one and if I can milk this recovery long enough I may be able to finish a second.

I am actually feeling fairly good but while I have the families attention I think I will just enjoy it a little longer....why not?

Gramma Camp 2016.......

When I was growing up I used to love going to spend a few days with my grandparents.  I have such great memories.  I loved to play in the yard while my Gramma hung the laundry on the clothes line.  She was a tiny little lady so she had to stand on a stool.  I have that stool in my bedroom today.  

At night we would have an ice cream soda and watch my grandad roll his cigarettes.  I can clearly remember the thin white papers and the smell of the tobacco.  

We slept upstairs and I could hear the church bells ringing every hour all night long because of course...we slept with the windows open.

I want to my grand babies to have memories.  Not just the ones we create when I pick them up from school but the ones we can make when we spend a couple of days together.  

So we had a Gramma Camp.  I hope it will be an annual event...at least until they are too old to be interested anymore.

We began by building a bug garden.  

A fairy garden was my original plan but bugs happened to be the in item at Hobby Lobby this summer so that is what we picked!

Finley took great care in the placement of the stone pathways...

Brooklynn took a break to cool off inside.

Dinner was pizza in our own outdoor pizza oven.

Wow...that was one hot oven!

Dessert was ice cream sundaes with chocolate coated waffle cones...

not an ice cream soda but fun!

A little cooking making because you can never have too much sugar!

 No camp would be complete without a swim....
the beauty of a pool, you  can just hop in whenever you want!

 One of our favorite adventures....URBAN AIR!!!
Wow...we just had too much fun!

Last stop...Finding Dory at the movies.
I am not a movie fan but this was just too good.  We went armed with snacks and money for a bag of popcorn because what is better than spending $6.50 for a small bag of movie theater popcorn.
Believe we will of course!
It was a great three days!
I probably have better memories of the time than they do and that is a good thing!

Carry The Load 2016......

Memorial Day weekend.......I used to consider it the beginning of summer and my vacation from the world of textbooks and students...until I lost a son.  Then everything changed and I am not sure what kind of day it was.  Most people are in celebration mode this time of year but that did not seem quite appropriate when it is a day to remember those who gave their lives in service to our country.  

My son did that.  He did not die in battle.  He died training for battle.  He went down in an massive explosion over the Pacific Ocean with three other pilots.  Not bodies recovered.  That is hard to say and even harder to accept.  Matt was my special son....the one that called many times a week and always said I love you mom and he is forever gone.  I love my other children.  They mourn his loss as I do but no one misses like a mom.

 Carry the Load is healing us.  It brings together those with a common purple who all somehow know the pain of loss.  We have grown in our acceptance and PRIDE.  Those lost are not forgotten.  They are honored for what they did.  Most families say their lost sons and daughter would not have it any other way.

 Our kids know why we are here and now so do our grandkids.  Memorial day has meaning for us all.  A new dimension has been added...a namesake for our lost son....

Matthew Joseph Shubzda attended his first Carry the Load and someday will understand the significance of the event and his name.  

I hope he understands what a great man his uncle was.  We always tend to glorify those that leave us but in the is case and I think my son is pretty much worthy of all of the accolades.  

He was much like my dad and that is a good thing.  

I love the pictures.  I love the memories.  I love the friends we tun into who always have stories to share.  I am grateful for the continued support and I am blessed by the love that surrounds us this weekend each year.  

We will all continue to help 

Carry the Load.