Surprise!!!

Yesterday was Cami's birthday. (We did the mandatory eating and shopping.) Today Todd showed up, unannounced, as a birthday surprise for her. And me!

After I took David to church, I came home to shower, start dinner, etc. A knock came at the door. Oh great, I thought, who the hell is that? I open the door all aggravated because I'm behind schedule and there stands my Todd with a big ole grin on his face. Ha! Surprise!

What fun. Cami picks up David from church every week and comes to do laundry, grade and record papers, and dine. We have eaten Sunday dinner together forever, so Todd knew where to find her. 

SURPRISE!!!

Ahhh--

Cami was appropriately surprised. (She almost slugged him.) We had a lovely birthday dinner and birthday cake. Watched some basketball and then it was time for him to leave. :(

I still can't believe the guys planned it without our help. How'd they do that?? (Apparently it involved cheap airline tickets from lastminute.com.)

Every day our children bring joy to our lives. Today was a happy surprise.

All Good Things--

Memphis and Duke both lost in the Sweet Sixteen games.

And that's all I have to say about that.   

                                         

However-- I will still be watching the rest of the tournament. 

There will still be basketball. 

So Many Kids, So Little Time

"When you're growing up your mother says, 'Wear a hat or you'll catch cold.'  When you become an adult you discover you have the right not to wear a hat and see if you catch cold or not."

Yes, we were young once. So were our children.

Now they have grown up, and we have grown old.

(Summer 1978, Durham, NC)

With my keen sense of observation, I have noticed that there seem to be a whole bunch of kids in this family. When reading these blogs, I am struck by the effort made to document the lives of children and grandchildren. It's a noble cause, because they grow up too fast and leave too soon. A friend once told me "You know your children are growing up when they stop asking you where they came from and refuse to tell you where they're going". 

There are so many things we try to teach our children. Our hope is that they learn enough to be loving, self-reliant adults. Not as easy as it sounds though, is it? Growing old is mandatory, growing up is optional. 

We all try to give our children some things we didn't have growing up. In our family, it seems we also try to give them what we did have growing up. 

If I could, I would shield my children from the hurts of life that have, and will, inevitably come to them. Certainly all of their trials will not have a happy ending. But we watch over them and encourage them as they experience both the joys and sorrows of life. And I will pray that from their experiences, they will recognize and accept the gifts that come their way.

"Children begin by loving their parents; as they grow older they judge them; sometimes they forgive them" 

Oscar Wilde

YIKES!

There Will Be Basketball !!

For three glorious weeks in March I get to forget everything and revel in the joy that is NCAA basketball. I love football and am sad when the season ends. But--after living for 2 years in ACC country, I became a basketball fan. I also spent 6 years following my son around Tennessee, Mississippi and Arkansas watching him play the game. 

So let the games begin. I cheer wildly for BYU and the U. But, the teams that make me crazy enough to clean the house during the game are 

          Duke--

Todd at Cameron Indoor Stadium earlier this year.

      And Memphis--

Cami, a proud Memphis alum, at the home of the Tigers. Fed Ex Forum is also where the South regionals will be played next week --we're so proud ;)

For your viewing pleasure, another in front of Fed Ex Forum. (The building in the background is the Rock & Soul Museum.)

So fill out your brackets, watch the games and, if you're like me, your house will be clean by Sunday.

Go Cougars, Utes, Blue Devils and Tigers!!!

              

                          

Happy Birthday Papa

Papa, Dad, Daddy, Sterling, Slats. However you know him, he is the most handsome 89 year old I know. He has been a son, a husband, a father, an uncle, a brother a grandpa,and a great grandpa. He is a farmer, a firefighter, a carpenter, a runner, and now retired. 

He has helped all of his children build a home. Well, except me. I lived too far away. But every time he visited he brought his tools. He poured concrete, made a sandbox, designed and constructed the sturdiest play set ever, built a deck and even a horse stall. I loved when he came because everything in the house got repaired. (David has many skills, but throwing a hammer is not one of them.)

Some of the random thing I learned from him: 

• Never drive with bugs in your car. Okay, this might need an explanation. When I was just learning to drive he got in the car with me and there was a bee in the back window. As I started to drive off, he stopped me. Always make sure you are not distracted when you drive, he said. So, even now, I check my car for such pesty  distractions.
• Children need structure and a schedule. When Cami was a baby (my first) she might become fussy when we were visiting the parents. He told me then to make sure she had regular naps and a schedule for feeding. I have learned through the years just how wise this was.
• Drive defensively. There are all sorts of public service announcements today that say that very thing. I learned it early on--from my dad the fire truck driver.
• Exercise!! If only I had listened---

Did you know?  

• I hate to brag, but I was the only child born on the farm.
• He had polio as a child.
• During WWII he was in the Coast Guard. At first he was assigned land duty. He purposefully broke a rule so he would be sent to sea.
• When Jolene was born he worked at fire station #3 in Sugarhouse. When mother went into labor with her, he ran home to take her to the hospital. (yes, before everybody had two cars.)

(These are just the things that popped into my head. Please add yours.)

Papa is the patriarch of a large family who all love and admire him. He asks for little and has given all he can. So Happy Birthday Papa. We love you well.

Dance!!!

Are you feeling down? Is your 401K in the toilet? Are your savings at piggy bank status?

Are you having problems with your job? Your family? Your kids? Your car? 

Is spring taking too long to arrive?

Has life thrown you a curveball?

Never mind all that--just DANCE!!!

Todd's Snow

Here is the art Todd created outside his window. The storm that left SNOW!! in Memphis continued on to Charlotte, NC. on Sunday night. The flakes were big and fluffy, not always the kind we get in the South. Later that night, he looked out and saw that someone else had added their name below his. Ah, kids today. Whatcha gonna do?

This view is from the his tenth floor apartment overlooking the Johnson and Wales Culinary School. It was a lot of snow for this part of the country. Todd says there are still piles of snow all around the city today.

So we bid farewell to the snow event of the season. The early blooming daffodils are bent and pitiful. We're ready for spring. Bring it!!

It Snowed!!! In Memphis!!!

Updated

Do not mock my enthusiasm dear readers from the Mountain West. This is the South, dagnabit! We are prepared for HEAT!-HUMIDITY! not SNOW! Wouldn't know a snowplow if it rammed our pickup. And-your lil' ole swamp cooler would surrender without a fight in the summer. 

I reckon we got 6-8" in the city by the time it ended. Places a bit further north got a foot. Of course I had to get out in it. (The baby I'm holding belongs to our neighbors. They are from Hong Kong and call me "auntie".)

Today (Sunday) it's still cold, but by afternoon the snow was off the streets. Cami is disappointed it happened on the weekend--no snow day. Bummer.

Now I'm off to sweep the snow off the car. But it was pretty to look at while it was falling.    

Yes, the ubiquitous pick up truck in the -SNOW!!!!

Update: A friend from my old neighborhood sent this to me. Pretty!!

Somerville Courthouse

Smile!

Okay, this picture is here just so there will be a better picture at the top of the blog than that wretched wheelchair. It was taken in NC on the same climb that resulted in the picture of Todd on the mountain top. But not the point of this post.

The job David does requires him to talk to 40-50 people by phone every day. He gets all sorts because there are all sorts of people in the world. Some are pleasant, some are bitchy and mean and some are just--well-not too smart. When he gets something interesting he hauls his butt to the wheelchair to find me. Once, in answer to the question regarding joint pain, a poor woman chuckled and said "I hurt everywhere under my hair". It made me chortle 'cause I feel the same way some days. Another, when asked for his height and weight said "I'm full grown". He was 6' 5" and around 300 lbs. Made us laugh. 

I love when I get unexpected smiles. One of those happened in the parking lot of the grocery store. I passed an elderly gentleman (more elderly than I) and just nodded and smiled at him. He stopped me to say thank you. For a smile. He smiled back and we went on our way. 

I have also discovered that even the kid at the drive through window appreciates a smile and thank you. (It also makes for better service.)

Here's what I wonder. Why is it a surprise when someone is kind?? Don't know the answer to that but I have my suspicions.

I have posted elsewhere a quote from a friend of mine; "Be kind, for everyone you meet is enduring a mighty struggle". That struggle may be as insignificant as a flat tire or as consequential as a terrible illness or death. 

Anyway, there is a reason for the main title of my little blog. Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much.

And smile!

David's Wheels

I am David's best friend. I am old. I am worn out. I am dirty. (Am I tilted?) I get David wherever he needs to go. I take him all around the house so he can do more for himself. I take him to get a haircut, to check the mail, to take out the trash. And if he's very good, and if the weather is fine, I take him to the grocery/deli in our neighborhood. I am a convertible with green technology and emit no hydrocarbons. I am abusive to furniture (see dings on leg of chair) and walls, but am forgiven for my trespasses because I am indispensable to the sanity of my family.  David may be broken and unable to be repaired, but not me. I have been through two batteries, two new tires and one motor, but I keep on going--because I must.  I am David's wheels.