Top 10 (ok 11) Reasons I love my husband

It's been almost four months since my last post, and I haven't forgotten about the intent of why I started this. Finding the time has just been difficult. So, I figured I needed to take a moment over lunch today to just make time. I'm gonna start with the most important event this week, and just backfill when I am able. So, bare with me. Sorry, Mom! The memories are coming!

This week, Joe and I celebrate our eighth wedding anniversary. In reflection, I am one lucky gal. Just to make him blush (when he thought he was safe), here are my Top 10 favorite things about Joe...in no particular order:

1. I love the personal heater that you are. The bed is always 20 degrees warmer with you in it.
2. I love that you know just when I need a hug, aren't afraid to give it to me anywhere, and know just how long to hold on without me saying a word.
3. I love that you live without fear or reservation. You always have a new idea, believe anything is possible, and ALWAYS live in the moment.
4. I love that you never harass me over money or "pretty things" I just can't live without.
5. I love your fun-loving spirit. I haven't met a person yet who doesn't think you are amazing (me included), and I admire you for the lifelong friends you have and treasure.
6. I love that you embrace our kids and their youth...never ashamed to get on the floor and play "puppy" with Kate or "crash trains" with Conor.
7. I love how you support me. No matter how many hours I think I can work, community programs I think I can get involved in, or "me time" I need. You may shake your head, but you do it with a smile.
8. I love how much fun we have when we travel. How you insist on always driving, feel completely comfortable in the silence not always feeling the need to talk (simply enjoying eachother), embrace exploring new things, and always share the airtime with music you know I would enjoy.
9. I love how in all these years, I never feel jealous of your time with others. You have given me more confidence and security than I have ever known. The best relationship to be in is one of trust, laughter, and love.
10. I love that every year on our Anniversary, you write the number of years we have been married in the card, like it's your favorite sports team jersey number.

Ok. Had to add #11. I love that public posts like this don't embarass you at all.

Thanks for making everyday better than the last, and making marriage so easy...so fun.

I love you.

Slumber party with Nana

We couldn't leave Texas without a stop at Nana's house.  The kids love to visit Nana and were entertained for hours with their favorite game- Dominoes. 

After a little dessert and a few bubble baths we all climbed into Nana's bed for a slumber party. 

Nightime chatter with my MiMi was always comforting, and I found that same comfort listening to her chatter with her great grandchildren.    Three generations all snuggled in bed...It was a Merry Christmas indeed.

One day in December

I grew up in the city. But, one weekend a month when I was young, I would travel with my Dad 100 miles to the country to stay with my Grandparents while my Dad tended to his reserve duties. It was a weekend I always looked forward to, and a home where so many wonderful childhood memories still exist. So, one day in December, I picked my Grandma up from the Nursing Home and we traveled back to her home for no reason at all.

Even though the home is no longer occupied and three decades have gone by, the living room still looks like I remember it. I remember watching Saturday morning cartoons on the TV (in the center). I remember the old 8-track player that sat on the end table and played Polka music for hours. I remember sitting quietly in this living room listening to my Grandma talk to her friends in Czech on the telephone. And I remember when that AC wall unit was installed. I don't know how we ever survived the summers without it!

This is my Grandma's kitchen. I remember the old cubbard to the left where she would hide the candy bars, the smell of scrambled eggs and ham as it made its way from the kitchen to the bedroom in the mornings, and where every little item was to help bake cookies. She made GREAT cookies!

These were the sausage barrels. Making sausage was a family affair. We would sit parallel on either sides of the table and work in an assembly line. I was always best at tying off the ends, so it was next to these barrels where I usually sat. When the barrels were full, we carried them to the smke house for the best dry sausage around. In all my years of trying, nothing beats good old butchered, seasoned, grinded, cased, dried in a smoke-house home sausage like we used to make it! Except, of course, when paired with cheese and a Shiner Bock!

Me and my Grandmother spent many days in this kitchen, at this sink, washing eggs we had just picked. My Grandma can tell some funny stories from when I was little and full of questions on where the eggs came from and why they needed to be washed. The stories are so much funnier now, listening to her tell them to her great grandchildren.

The jars. You name it, and it came out of the garden and into these jars. I remember one season helping to pick cucumbers from the garden and getting bit a dozen or so times from a fire ant pile. Needless to say, I didn't go back in the garden. Ants still creep me out.

Oh how I wanted to take these with me. These were the old metal band-aid boxes they had when I was a kid. Only, when the bandaids ran out, we used the tins for all kinds of things...lost buttons, beeds, and crayons are what I remember. They were the best storage boxes for us girls!

And the coke bottles we used to feed a calf or two or three...

My grandparents old ice cream maker. We would pull this out in the summertime, and all sit under the carport to enjoy it. I remember it being so hot, you practically had to inhale it before it would melt. I can still taste the sugar.

The old meat hooks from the hogs still hang in the garage.

And the old meat grinder still shelved among items that haven't been used in years.

While years have passed, and I have grown, the memories never fade. On this trip, I found a new appreciation for my youth and the life my Grandparents lived. It was just me and my Grandmother together walking room to room, talking and laughing recalling fond memories. Some of the stories she would recall I hadn't ever heard. It made me smile just to watch her share them.  Every once in a while, my Dad would join us to look at something we had run across. It was like picking up pictures from an old photo album.

While the distance makes it difficult to visit as much as I would like, spending a few hours with my Grandma on this day, and sharing conversation as grown adults made this one of the best memories.

 

 

 

Not better, just new

I have written before about where I grew up, and how good it feels to witness a liftime of work pay off for someone you love. But, this Christmas was even more special because it was the year we were able to spend together in my parent's new home. This would be a year when me and my kids would be sharing "first" memories together. The first time in the new house, the first time arond the new tree, the first time seeing Rudolph's cousins. Precious memories in the new jacuzzi tub pressing the limit on bubble bath.

Many laughs chasing Uncle Brad around a new floorplan, and wrestling on new carpet in a new room.

Countless games of dominoes at the kitchen table.

Many a mess clearing rocks for the new gate.

Plenty of rides on the tractor.

A memorable visit from Auntie Aubs.

And oodles of snuggles from Mom Mom.

No matter where we are, being surrounded my family truly makes for a great Christmas!

Ka-chow!

You have to know this little guy to know "Ka-chow!"

For the Con-Man, "Ka-chow" = Lightening McQueen!

Tonight, when he took his eye to his toy box, I loaded him up for urgent care in his "Ka-chow" jammies, "Ka-chow" slippers, and with his "Ka-chow" toy car (the woobie was temporarily unlocatable). He was so brave. He didn't even cry. Nor did it phase him that his eye was leaking blood. Instead, he skipped around the urgent care office, and laid still waiting for his "Ka-chow" tracks (steri strips) to be put in place.

"Two tracks!" he said. He can't wait to show all his friends at school tomorrow!

I am so glad we had the Christmas pictures done just hours before!

Liberty and Justice

This past week, we celebrated the brave men and women who dedicate and sacrifice their lives to serve our country.

As such, Katie learned all about the "veterans", and practiced filling in the blanks on the pledge she has been reciting now for two years.

But, on this day...for some reason...it was all about her. She gets her sense of humor from her Father.

Finding your voice

I remember when we found out we were having a boy. Other Moms warned be it would be different. "You will love your children the same," they would say. "But, your relationship with your son will be different."

While I didn't think it was possible, they were right. I do love my children the same, but my relationships with them are different.

I have told your story before. After eighteen months seeing an Early Intervention Specialist once a week, you still hadn't found "your voice". You were two years behind, and the specialists offered me no options, despite my expressions of concern.

I have always believed God puts people in your life for a reason...be it good or bad. Thankfully, God put a friend in my life who cared enough (and knew enough) to show me I did have options. I needed to see a developmental pediatrician for a medical opinion. Thanks to God, my dear friend, and a few good doctors, we received your medical diagnosis and began our treatment plan.

Since that time six months ago, you have indeed "found your voice". I will never forget when you said "Mama" for the first time, "Love you", or "I can talk". Sure, you may not be able to say your name, but you can spell it! Your words aren't always clear, but you have come leaps and bounds.

We look forward to celebrating your progress again and again! We have so much hope and are so proud of you!

http://youtu.be/oCFwnqzI6pg