Happy Mothers Day

I love being a mom. Sometimes I don't like it, but I always love it. I never wanted kids when I was younger. I was a career woman and didn't see the "need". I'm so blessed my darling husband helped me to change my mind. My kids are great. The fun thing now is to watch them become who they really are. At 22 and 19, they are making their decisions for their lives. We are still here to guide and encourage, but it's their choice. We've raised them and now we get to enjoy. We're celebrating tomorrow by going to Disneyland. Just the 4 of us. It's hard to get together with just us. Everyone has busy schedules. But tomorrow it's just us. My boys will play slap tickle in line, Reid and Sam will pick on Dan and I, well laugh and be silly. Just the joyfilled kinda of day I love to spend. If I have one piece of advice for younger moms, enjoy the time. Yes, it is hetic and you are being pulled in 10 different directions, but enjoy. Your kids really do grow up too fast and time slips away. So, all of you moms out there, Happy Mothers Day! May your day be filled with blessings and time together with those you love!

You can't please everyone!

Phil is a part of our family. We met him in 2000 when the youth group he was a part of came out to help with our churches VBS. He stayed with us while they were here and we all fell in love with him. He became our "other" son. He's getting married this summer to his beautiful Monica. The wedding was supposed to be August 1st, but they just found out that the place they were having their reception has closed. Now they are trying to put something else together. One of the ideas is a 3 day Bahama cruise. The wedding and reception would be on the ship and then those not sailing would get off and the rest enjoy the cruise. Her family is not having any part of it. I have spent most of my life trying to please my mom. I'm pretty sure I haven't done it yet. My point is, at some point in our lives we need to just live life. We aren't going to please everyone and we will surely dissapoint someone. As we told Phil and Monica, it's their wedding. Are they pleased? She feels they will hold it over her head. So what? There's so much junk floating over my head I feel like the Macy's Thanksgiving day parade. My goal is to please God. If he's happy with me than it's a good day.

Guacamole

We had a late day at church yesterday. I had eaten breakfast around 8:00 am and by 2:30 when we got home I was really hungry. The only thing that sounded good was guacamole with chips. So that's what I had for lunch. Now, when I was a 2o something that would have been no big deal. As I sat in our backyard enjoy such a beautiful afternoon with my husband and son, I asked them to remind me NEVER to do that again. Yes, guacamole is green but it is not a food group. Oh the indigestion! Hours later it was still coming back to haunt me. It's funny how your body changes as you get older. We make fun of our parents always talking about Drs. appointments but I'm beginning to see why. I do ache more when I get up in the morning and that noise isn't our stairs creaking, it's my knees! It's all part of the process. In my mind I'm still 20 something and can do and eat anything, but my body is telling me something a bit different! I have a feeling this will be on ongoing argument!

Simple joy

Some of the most wonderful joys in life are so simple. Yesterday, our son received his EMT certificate. As I watched his face glow with pride I was taken back to when he was small. School awards, sports trophies or just an amazing picture he drew. I could see it so clearly and it made me realize how amazing God and his plan is. Because Reid quit his job he had to move back in with us. That propelled him to make a career decision to get moving and join the fire dept. After a long, hard month of EMT school and the National Registry test, his hard work paid off. If he hadn't been living with us, I would have missed that moment of him smiling as I handed him his mail and realizing what was in the large white envelope. I got to watch him slowly open it and gently pull the certificate out. I got to see his eyes light up and the curve of a smile come on his face. I witnessed my sons joy! I witnessed a pivotal point in my sons life. A new season where anything is possible and where hard work and determination pay off. I am so honored and blessed that I was afforded that joy.

I'm not a big "change" person. I collect change for our vacation jar, but I don't like change. I love the same patterns and daily life. I quit "working" for a paycheck when our daughter was 20 months old. I became a stay at home mom and worked harder than I have ever in my life. Next week I am going back to work. Just part time and doing something I really love, but it is weird. I'm used to coming and going and I have my routines. Now I need to switch things up a bit and for me it's an adjustment. I have found as I get older switching isn't as easy as it was. We become settled in our daily lives and find comfort there. We generally know what to expect. The funny thing is I make fun of my mom because of her "schedule". She does her laundry every Saturday morning at 9:00am. No matter what. I'll never be like that, I proclaim! Yet, what am I doing every Monday morning? Yup, laundry. So my goal for the next 50 years is to try to not be so settled in a routine. Mix it up a little. So next week I might just do my laundry on Friday!

Friendship

I am so blessed to have some really special people in my life that lift me up when needed, laugh at my stupid jokes and accept me just as I am. I think back in high school about people who were my "best friends". I don't have a clue where they are today. I tell my kids that when they get discouraged about people. The true friends I have are ones I have made as an adult. The women in my life are amazing. They are strong and beautiful and full of life. They speak wisdom into my life and seek to build and not destroy. They completly accept me for who I am and do not try to change me. That's the kind of friendships that work because you don't have to work on them. I am so glad I can head into the next 50 years with them at my side. I am blessed!

What happens now?

Ok, so if I am almost 50 and I live to be a 100, that means I am half way through my life. My grandmother Eva, my moms mom, lived to be 104 and was as healthy as a horse up to the day she peacefully died at home. What have I done with the last 50 years of my life and what will I do with the next 50 years? It's so easy to look back and see how you would do things differently. There are a few things I would change but on the whole it is what it is. If the decisions I have made and the experiences I've been through hadn't happened, I wouldn't be the person I am today. I truly believe that everything happens for a purpose and a reason. I like who I am today. Getting "older" is cool. Things that used to drive me nuts when I was younger don't bother me quite so much anymore. I have relaxed in some areas of my life. Like housework. What is up with that? I used to freak out if things weren't just so. Before we left on vacation I would tear the house apart to clean it. Even colsets. Just in case someone broke in they would find my closets nice and clean. What a freak. I find it is easier to let it go a little more than I used to. I still have a hard time sitting still. Except on cruises. Maybe because I am trapped on a ship in the middle of the ocean and can't get off. I will actually nap and read books. What a pleasure. I don't do that at home because I always feel there is something else that needs to be done. Hopefully during the next 50 years I'll learn to let that go too.

Welcome to the next half!

I'm turning 50 this year. I'm really excited about it. If you think about it, if I live to be a 100 I'm half way there. It's interesting to look back on my life and see where I've come and exciting to look forward and wonder where I will go. Who will be with me? What will I accomplish? What is out there? So you know a little bit about me, I've been married to a hot guy named Dan for 25 years. We met in a bar in San Diego on a "I hate men night" for me. I had just come out of a not so great relationship and there he was. He noticed me first, asked me to dance, bought me a beer and we talked for 3 hours until my friends made me leave. He wrote my name and number on a napkin that we still have. The rest is history. We we're engaged 3 weeks later and married 1 year to the date that we met. Love at first sight does happen! We have 2 great kids, Reid and Sam. Sometime I'll write about Reid and his amazing entry into life, but that's a whole other story. My reason for doing this blog is a challenge I made to myself the first of the year. Do new things. I'm a creature of habit. I don't like change. I like fun. I'd like to live in Funville if it was a place. Or on a cruise ship. Love cruising. So come along and enjoy the ride. This year has already proven to be a year of change and opportunity. It'll be fun to see where it ends up!