A Happy Mama's Day, 2012

Now that I'm in retail, I have a whole new perspective on Mother's Day.  It blows Christmas out of the water....when it comes to busy...at least in our little gift store.  We had a crazy 2 weeks in the store and I was beyond exhausted by Saturday night.


The difference in the busy between Christmas and Mother's Day?  Men.  When men come in the store, they have a helpless stare in their eyes.  They need help.  And that help can be exhausting.  Or they bring in the kids and let the kids pick something out.  And one must bite their tongue because it might possibly be the one thing I would never pick out in the store and I suspect the "mama" isn't going to love it.   But it sure feels good when finally....after a lot of suggestions...they say "that's the one I want."  Multiply that by 1000 men and kids in the last two weeks...and I was so ready for a Saturday night out with my own family to celebrate me being the "mama."  Off my feet...with a glass of wine. 

This is the ritual at our house before we leave.  Everytime. 

I say, "Let's get a treat!"  and they all surround me. 

"Let's get a treat" is how I surround them and lock them up.

  I throw out a treat to each dog...as I call out their name.

  They wait patiently for their turn.  Smart?  I like to think so.

  Addicted?  Definitely.  Locked up while we're gone? Absolutely.

I really just want you to look at those back legs on Harry.  I love him. 

And this just makes me love him more.  Poor little thing. 

 He's got bad back legs.  As he sits and waits his turn, they slide out even further.

  He pulls them back in and they slide right back. 

It's worth dragging out the treat process just to watch this. 

 Love.

We met up with my sister and her family (minus one who had to work) at Houston's.

  Houston's never takes reservations so were prepared for a long wait.

  Chuck drops us off to get our name in and he parks. 

 I walk up to the Hostess and she asks me, "Do you have a reservation?" 

 Me, "No, you don't take reservations...." 

 She says, "Yes, we do...." 

 WE have been going to Houston's for years and years and

have called and asked for reservations often

 and they always say they don't take them. 

 And suddenly they do. 

 Good to know. 

Anyway, we had a great time waiting and were seated within 30 minutes.

  Cameron and Will were given instructions

to be sure Jordan was represented. 

 So they printed out a large photo of her and carried her with us. 

Jordan, you watched me open cards...it really felt like you were there. 

  That brown blob on Will's card is the attempt to get Harry's paw print. 

Will said Harry immediately pulled his paw back.

  Really?

We were seated in a large booth against a wall of open shelving. 

 The bottom shelves were full of old National Geographics...

see the yellow over Will's shoulder?  When our kids were little,

they were scared of the girl on the front of the June, 1985, issue. 

 This issue was put on each other's pillows now and then 

to scare each other when they woke up.  

So they looked for this issue along the stacks in the shelves....

knowing it was an early 80's issue.  It was in the stack right behind us. 

 That is coincidence.

And that called for a photo. 

Of course, we had to get this photo. 

Who can look the most like her? 

 Sorry, Jordan didn't stand a chance.

We ended Saturday watching our favorite local talent, Jon McConnell. 

 This guy is the same age as Jordan...so literally, I could be his mama. 

 He is so talented and so humble.  I just know he is going to make it big one day.

  He plays in bars to pay the bills, but he also plays Christian music

 in a church every Sunday morning....

living on about 2 hours of sleep between Saturday nights

 and Sunday mornings. 

Sunday morning, Will gave me his gift...a tea cup and saucer...and this balloon. 

 Harry was scared to death of it. 

So I tied it on the refrigerator door to keep it away from him. 

Not saying I'm the Best Mommy, but the balloon does. 

Speaking of Mommy. 

I've never been called anything but "Mama." 

Never mother, or mom, or mommy.

Is that a Texas thing?   A Southern thing?

Harry.  Being calm. 

Just had to throw this one in.

Chuck surprised me with a gift card to Magpies...where I work. 

Believe it or not, I spend very little money there. 

Not because I don't want a lot of it, but because my impulse to buy

 the cute stuff that comes in has time to subside during the day. 

I will enjoy spending the gift cards....over and over in my mind....before I finally actually spend them.  Chuck was proud of the fact that he bought the cards right under my nose.  He brought me lunch on Saturday and handed over a typed note to the other girls. 

I had no idea.  Which gave him a big kick.

Have I mentioned I hate surprises?  Well, obviously not this kind.

We ended Mama's Day in my favorite place. 

I look back at the years that flew by and try hard to remember these adults as babies, as toddlers, as children.  We all survived the crazy years of diapers, bottles, laundry and homework...and arrived at this day safe and healthy and beyond blessed.  I don't take it for granted.  I know there were a lot of hard days...hard times...but that only makes it more of an accomplishment. 

This post is for me.  To remember.  To be thankful. 
Because it all goes so fast. 

I am so proud of the newborn babies that are now newborn adults. 

Thank you for calling me "mama."

Barnacles and Floaters

Contrary to the title, this post is not about the ocean.  

I wish it were.  But it is about barnacles and floaters.

A few years ago, I had a place on my back that was bothersome.  This was mostly because it was right where the hooks of my bra landed across the middle of my back.  I had Chuck look at it a time or two to see if it was changing or if it looked like something suspicious.  He would take less than a millisecond and declare it fine.  I never felt quite comfortable with his opinion, so I got a second one.

The dermatologist I go to is the most beautiful woman....flawless skin....not a pore is detectable...she literally looks airbrushed.  Not only is she beautiful, but she is extremely kind and good and so popular it can take up to 3 months to get an appointment with her. 

So I made the appointment and waited my 3 months.

When it was finally the moment of my long awaited appointment and she walked in the room with all of her flawless beauty, she declared the spot "a barnacle."  A barnacle of aging.  Just how my skin ages she said matter of factly.  She burned the barnacle off and, my appointment, that I had waited 3 months for, was over in less than 15 minutes...start to finish. Plus, of course, the hour or more I waited in the Waiting Room. 

I tell you this, because a couple of months ago, I noticed another spot in the hairline above my left ear.  It didn't hurt, but it was bothersome and felt like a ......barnacle.  Because I am constantly tucking my hair behind my ear, I would feel it a hundred times a day.  Again, I had Chuck check it out and in the bat of an eye, he said it looked like nothing to him. 

His exact words, "yeah, I see something but it looks like nothing."

But that "nothing" was a barnacle, I just knew it...because it felt the same.  I needed to call that dermatologist and get on her waiting list again.  But I kept forgetting to make that call.  So the other day, I looked up when a customer came in and it happened to be another dermatologist that I had been to a few times years ago.  I asked my co-worker,  "Would it be totally inappropriate for me to see if she'll take a look at my barnacle?"  I said this facetiously...of course.

And as I said it, I reached up to the place above my ear
 but inside my hairline to feel the rough little barnacle. 

And y'all...........

IT WAS GONE!

I am not kidding!  It's gone!

And I swear it was just there the day before this...and only a few days before my co-worker and I were talking about skin stuff....barnacles and such....which is why I asked her the facetious question.  It's been there at least 2 or 3 months. 

What the heck happened? 

Do you think it could be that all the chemicals in my hair products burned that sucker right off?

Whatever, it's gone.

But you know what isn't gone?

The floaters in my eye.

Nope...still dealing with those.

Like looking through a dirty shower glass door.  If you see me and it looks like I'm winking at you, I'm probably not.  Just looking through that bad eye with the good eye closed to check on the progress of my floater.

Talk about fun.  This aging is a riot.

Amen.

Water Repellent Pants

This will be the last summer before Will graduates....if all goes as planned and he passes his senior classes next year.  The last two summers, he has worked at the YMCA as a day camp counselor. And while that was a good job and he loved it... he was strongly encouraged to get an internship in his field this summer.  Blah, blah, looks good on your resume, blah, blah.

What is his field?  Hmmmm.  Well, his degree will be in Communication: Radio and Television with a minor in Film.  His dream is to become a film director.  He loves photography.  He wants to move to New York City or L.A.  Or Austin.  He really wants to write for Saturday Night Live.  Or maybe act.


Let's just say, something in the film industry.  Let's just hope it's not working at the ticket counter of a movie theater.  (just kidding Will!)

I have suggested he learns to wait tables this summer as that will help him while he pursues his dream.

Really, we just want him happy....and graduated...and employed.  I say "go for it...as long as you can pay your bills." Daddy grits his teeth because Daddy is an engineer....and he doesn't understand having an open ended plan.  Engineers become engineers.  But Communication majors become....well that depends....

Here's how one of those interviews for a summer internship went according to Will:

Me:  How'd it go?

Will:  I don't know.  I was nice and  I made them laugh but I don't think I'm what they want.

Me:  Why?

Will:  I don't know.  I was so nervous, I'm not sure if I answered the questions the right way. 

Me:  Well did they say anything at the end....like they will get back with you?

Will:  Not really.  And I felt so bad for them....cause I had to shake their hands and my palms were dripping wet.

Me:  Why didn't you wipe them on your pants!?!?

Will:  I tried.  But those pants y'all bought me were like water repellent.

Those pants were men's dress slacks. After that conversation, I don't think any of us were very hopeful.  I just kept thinking about those wet handshakes.  Oh, well.

Last night, Will told me he had gotten 5 letters of decline for some internships he had applied for. He was sounding pretty down so I told him if worse comes to worse, he may have to work at the Y again.  Just get a job. 

Today...he got a phone call from the company he first interviewed with...the wet handshakes one...and they want him!  He called me giggling, he was so happy.  (Huge sigh of relief for me...as I wanted Will AND Chuck happy about a job for Will this summer.)

The good news is this internship is in Houston.  He can live at home and carpool with Chuck...and save some money.  Or he can ride the Metro and pay for it himself.  Or spend his hard earned money on gas.  Carpooling is sounding way free.

Hopefully he won't have to wear water repellent pants every day.

The really great news? 

Harry will have his boy home for the summer.   

It's Finished...

The last coat of paint was put on the inside of the door yesterday, so the Powder Room is done.  The only before  picture I could find of the Powder Room is this one...

There was a golden damask print wallpaper,  white pedestal sink and a gold light fixture. 

There was nothing wrong with any of it,

except the warped and musty smelling hardwoods around the potty. 

 Yuk.

Once we decided to replace the floor, the job just grew and grew. 

So now we have a new vanity, a new light fixture,

painted walls and a new "faux" brick wall. 

I painted and textured over the wallpaper and the trim all got new paint, too.

 I took the doors off of the cabinets that hang above the toilet and hung some antique corbels. 

 Shopped the house and Target and accessorized the open shelves.

This little 3' x 6' room turned into a major project...

that I could only work on here and there...so it also took a lot longer than expected.

But it's finished.

So here is the "after."

I found the antique corbels on my Silver Bella trip in Omaha, Nebraska. 

The rusted iron piece over the potty was found in Roundtop

 and has been hanging outside on our fence.

We found this antique mirror at Leftovers Antiques in Brenham

on our way to Austin for the MS150.

Because the room is so tiny and there was already a lot going on

with the new vanity and brick wall,

I painted the trim, inside of the door and walls the same color. 

I used a satin latex enamel for the shelves and trim and door

 and an eggshell latex wall paint on the walls.

 

It's finished.

And how is Harry?

Harry is fine.

The comforter? 

It's finished.

Last bed he's getting.

Ever.

I mean it.

What's To Miss

I begged my older sister to move out with me and get an apartment when I was 19. We lived together for a couple of years before she moved back home to save money. And then I lived alone for about 5 years before marrying.

It's been so long now (28 years) that I have to stop and really think about it. But in the early years of my marriage and child rearing, it was the precious memories of those single and alone days that I would flee to as I stared out the window while doing dishes at the kitchen sink.... with babies screaming in the background and the husband mowing the lawn replacing the quiet solitude and music I used to play. Rarely did I turn a t.v. on in my single days' apartment. Rarely is one of the 4 t.v.'s off in my home as a married lady. Laundry piled up in my single days but it only had to be tackled once a month rather than 3 times a day. I could leave a room clean...or messy...and it stayed.

Yep. I miss that stuff...those days. But had I not traded it in for married life and motherhood, I would have missed so much more and not known it. If you're single, the following is a list you should be thankful for...because once married, or co-habiting, these things vanish. And while some really great things replace them...some you will dream about the rest of your life while staring out the window.

She has no clue about the things she will miss about being single.

The Top 10 Things I Miss About Being Living Alone:

1. Absolute quiet. No sound drifting from a t.v. left on in every room.
2. Sleeping. Going to bed without someone commenting, "You're going to bed already?" Or waking up late without someone saying, "Well.....did you get enough sleep?"
3. Eating out of the pantry, refrigerator or over the sink. Without worrying about someone seeing you.
4. Watching "Little House On The Prairie" and not some stupid ghost hunting show.
5. Laundry day came only once a month.
6. I could let the phone ring without yelling, "DON'T ANSWER IT!" and feeling guilty about it.
7. Painting and listening to music until the wee hours of the morning.
8. Paying my own bills and knowing that I could make it on the leftover $50 for the next two weeks. Because I had noone else to worry about.
9. The mess was my mess. I could clean it or walk away from it. It wouldn't get any messier.
10. Only one commode to clean. Or bathroom mirror. Or shower. Or closet. Or bedroom.

3232 LaGrange to Austin

Sunday morning we slept in and missed the free continental breakfast.  Which really isn't a big deal when you've eaten a huge Mexican food dinner at 10:30 the evening before. 

 The day ahead was about finding a great place in the shade to set up our chairs and ice chest and wait for #3232 to arrive in Austin. 

 It could be as early as 1:00 p.m. according to Chuck so we all hurried! 

(Picture a sheep herding dog ...Chuck... nipping at us to hurry and get there.)

Cameron's first text to us that morning was that she had run

 in to a friend of ours at the lunch stop.  

Shout out to Kim!

Small world.

We found some shade, set up our camp and
 watched bikers and supportive families give hugs.
It's a wonderful feeling to watch these bikers come off their bikes
after they cross the finish line.

So we watched....and waited.


And waited.

It was hot. 
Some were forced to make their own shade.

Or find an inch of shade by a port-a-potty.


The dogs were out to show their support....and their tongues.

After sitting for hours, eating picnic food, getting up to walk around and take pictures, and seeing millions of bikers...one begins to lose focus on looking at individual bikers....so imagine my surprise when, from my chair, I looked up and I knew the biker walking right past me!

It was my friend Carol and her family...who have ridden in the MS150 for at least 8 years.

 Carol and her sisters being greeted by their mom.

Jim, Carol's husband.

Jim's bike.
This bike has a sentimental meaning to me.  This was my cousin Paul's bike.  Paul died from Pancreatic Cancer in '04...and I was with him during those last few weeks. I brought his bike back from Dallas thinking Chuck or Will would use it.  But after a year or two of gathering dust, I handed it over to Jim who dusted it off and fixed it up with new wheels.  I can't tell you how much it means to me that this bike is being used and for such a great purpose.  Paul would be proud.

So after that excitement....we waited some more. 



And some more.

Jordan and Chris waited on the other side for awhile.

This is the curve the bikers take right past the finish line. 
So we kept our eye out for #3232 here.

This is my brother-in-law Kim and his hairy hat that we gave him for his birthday.
Cameron said she spotted his hat as she came around the corner.

And there she is! 
See her waving?

#3232

In the yellow jersey.

#3232

She may kill me for this backside shot, but I had to show you the A&M maroon flag that she tucked in her helmet as she came through the finish line!
Whoop!

She immediately wanted ice to sit on.  Apparently her Boo Tay was killing her.
Kim and Chris are providing her some shade.
When you've just finished the MS150, you get the special treatment.
Did I mention it was hot?
Well, if I mentioned it to Cameron, she informed me I had no idea how hot it was.
Hot was being on a bike in spandex with sleeves and leggings to protect her from the sun. 

It was so much fun to have Catha and Kim with us.
Cameron appreciated the support.

Cameron stayed behind in the FMC tent to eat and drink

and then shower and head home on their bus.

Backsides of Jordan (behind the light pole), Kim, Chuck and Chris.

We loaded up our stuff...and there was a ton of it...and headed home.

A million bikers, hours of waiting in the hot sun....and I would do it over and over again. 

Nothing feels as good as seeing your child grin with accomplishment.

And we can never forget this is all about finding a cure for Multiple Sclerosis.

The cure is out there. 

The scientist who will discover it is out there.

It just takes time....and money.

And prayer can't hurt.