Monday, November 22, 2010

I Am Still Here!

I have taken pictures and I have about five half-written blog posts that I never posted. Life is really good and I have been busy. I am looking forward to some nasal surgery next month that will help me breathe much better (I can only breathe through one side of my nose) and hopefully, by some chance, stop the daily headaches. 

All in all, I can't complain about anything and who'd want to hear me complain anyway.  I am looking forward to the holidays and am thankful for everything I have in my life be it good or not so good.

Monday, September 27, 2010

Two Funerals and a Wedding

Exactly one year ago tomorrow, we said goodbye to my sweet, sweet mother-in-law.  She lived to just one month shy of her 94th birthday, and we know that she has been reunited with her sweetheart who passed 25 years before her.


On July 19 of this summer, we said goodbye to my brother-in-law after a very brief illness - it was way too soon for him to leave us  and his wife....
But on September 24 my family had a very good reason to be happy and to celebrate for our niece married the love of her life...

My new nephew-in-law is a carpenter by trade and had a novel way for the rings to be presented... What better transport than in a handcrafted tool box!


The wedding was such a fun time of family.....


Great food and sweets and dancing....
And while this past year has brought much sadness with the loss of loved ones, my family is still able to enjoy fully all of those times that are meant to be fun and joyous occasions.  
I even caught my recently widowed sister-in-law enjoying a moment of fun - displaying just a glimpse of her wicked sense of humor....





Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Blogging...

I don't know why I just can't do an update every day. There is no reason not to. I wake up breathing so that in itself is something noteworthy.  Pioneer Woman (whose blog I have faithfully followed almost since the beginning) lists the 10 key ingredients to a successful blog and one of them is to basically "water it" daily.

So, I am watering.....

Tonight I am thinking about my daughter who is now off to her freshman year of college.  This is what she looked like as we drove her down to deposit her at her new home for the next nine months....
All the photo editing in the world couldn't have erased the fear on her face that day....

We arrived and moved her into her temporary housing for the first four days while she participated in marching band camp.  This dormitory had air conditioning....


She didn't want us to leave so we hung around for quite a while.  I think she was really mildly traumatized  by the fact that this was really "it" and she would probably not see her home for a month.

I then casually mentioned that her brother, dad and I should probably get back on the road home and this is what I saw....


She wasn't quite ready for us to leave yet, but there really wasn't much for us to do either. So, we all strolled outside and looked around the "turf" outside her dorm. This was to be the gathering spot for the freshmen band members at 5 PM.  So, we waited and chatted, and she chewed her fingernails...



Finally, a few other girls walked over to the "turf".  We encouraged my daughter to go over and introduce herself.  She hesitated a moment and then finally agreed.  She walked over and joined in the circle and....


The moment her butt hit the ground, we were outta there!!

We aren't coldhearted parents. We just knew that we needed to use the opportunity to leave.  We returned four days later for the kids were all moving into their permanent dorms.

We are still going through a period of adjustment... many ups and downs.  I think the ups will begin to outnumber the downs for her soon.  I for one haven't shed many tears on her departure. I think I'm too excited about this next four-year adventure she will be living.  Also, knowing she's really only an hour away brings me great comfort.


Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Our Gift

Could very well be another birthday for our guy to look like this.... Here's hoping Freckles will be wearing his birthday hat come February 1, 2011.

He has pancreatitis but it seems that the combination of fluids, antibiotics, and anti-nausea medications have really turned my little guy around. We saw him tonight and there is life back in his eyes and I swear he was smiling.  The girls at the vet's office are smitten - he's quite the ladies man there.... They are enjoying his "song" - he had been completely quiet since he got sick. 

Our gift is some more time and if it's a week, a month, or a year I'll take it!!!

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Twelve Years and Six Months.....


Can a person every have "too much" time with their dog. I doubt it..... Freckles was like Marley when we first got him at 7 1/2 weeks of age... I never thought I'd survive puppyhood with him. But I did.  Now 12 1/2 years later I look back on the first months (well maybe first year and a half) and I realize how quickly it flew by.  My neighbors would just laugh when I told them my woes.... and to this day they still laugh at me and recall all of my "Freckles stories". 

Now I sit here knowing he's hooked up to an IV with the possibility of making a decision soon. He's not suffering at all right now, he's just not feeling well. I'll get through it and will make the best decision for him (not me). In fact, the vet already knows my wishes.

I got lots of great photos of him, and for that I am thrilled! When I repaint my office, some of my "Freckles art" will be proudly displayed on my wall - especially this last photo....( I am so glad I got a good camera)

Twelve years and six months flew by................

Friday, August 20, 2010

Sock It To Me .......

At first this may appear to be an intricate knitting project I am currently undertaking.


However, truth be told it is a sock!


Two socks actually, two fairly dirty socks.

These socks have been sitting here since Sunday afternoon - when my college-bound daughter peeled them off of her sweaty feet following her participation in an Ultimate Frisbee tournament.  I wouldn't normally have a problem with her removing her wet socks. In fact, I think it's a good idea!

However, these socks have been sitting in this one spot since Sunday, and it is now Thursday.  And, the socks have been sitting outside one of the entrances to my home....

...the entrance we use all day long when we come and go from our house...


And the entrance that friends and neighbors use....


And I have had to repeatedly walk by them, day in and day out. I refuse to take them inside. You don't know how hard it was for me to just walk on by, but I did walk on by every single day.  I really couldn't figure out why they sat there so long and considering she's leaving for school this week, I didn't want to make a big stink about it (no pun intended), but I really found these socks to be annoying.


Is it just me? Am I making a big deal out of it? Could I just exercise a bit more tolerance?

I THINK NOT!



Thursday, August 12, 2010

In Eight Days!!!!!

She leaves on 8/21 for college.  I have been so excited for her up until this moment, when I am starting to feel sadness creeping in.  I told her yesterday that she will be leaving for college as a kid (granted she just turned 19 but she really is still a kid) and she will be coming home an adult who is hopefully all set to pass her nursing boards and start taking care of people.  My little girl who I was told was not quite ready for kindergarten because she still couldn't master cutting with scissors is now going off to college.  I still have the packet the preschool gave me demonstrating her deficient scissor skills as they strongly encouraged me to to send her to another year of pre-K to give her another "year to grow" and "develop stronger fine motor coordination".


So, here I am now with lists of things to buy. She just came into my office and showed me the list of needed/recommended items the college sent and on it they have "stuffed animals". I think they know they are getting our "kids".

I have seen commercials where a daughter asks for the keys to the car and the dad sees the daughter as still a very young child.... There are days that in my mind's eye I see this......


But in reality, this is the little girl who is ready to set sail on this next adventure in her life.

We are in the midst of lots of dorm shopping. It's kind of fun, it really is.  I will miss having her living under our roof full-time but my friends tell me that I may feel differently when she returns home for summer break with all of her stuff, she will come home a slightly different person.  Life's all about adjustments.  I will adjust when she leaves and I will adjust when she returns.  Right now I am trying to savor all of the moments I can.... because she leaves in eight days.



Thursday, August 5, 2010

Summertime Fun

We took a last minute extended weekend away with the kids to Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, VA this past weekend, and we had an absolute blast. Although I don't do many rides, I still find enough to keep me busy in the park while the kids go off and do some wild coaster riding.  Here is a photo of the Griffon, which is located in New France. It is 205 feet high, and before it plunges its riders, it just hangs over the top edge for about 5 seconds....
Note the expressions on the riders - terror seems to be the common  reaction. My two genetic material packages are right in the front row. I don't know where they get their bravery from - Neither hubby nor I will venture on to a ride like this.

I spent my time visiting the Abbey Stone Theatre for their production of Celtic Fyre.




My daughter and I went to see this particular show THREE times... my son begrudgingly attended two times with us.  If we had made him go anymore than that, this is the face we would have been stuck with...

See my point?

We spent some time with some colorful birds - they like ponytails - my daughter found this out the hard way.  Let's just say that if the old wives' tale is true, my daughter has a fair amount of good luck headed her way.

Water rides are a favorite in my family.  Le Scoot is a great log flume that gets you fairly soaked. I went on it earlier in the day (thankfully I put my camera in a waterproof bag) as my son assured me that I would not get "that wet".  I got drenched  but the camera was just fine.

I was able to capture this moment after I got off the flume.

This little vacation is just what was needed for a bit of a pick-me-up. On Sunday, I will once again head to Maryland for a few days to chaperon my son's high school band camp.  Temperatures are supposed to be in the 90s, there is no A/C,  there are lots of  bugs and mice, and the cabin doors do not lock.

Oh how I will miss the luxury of our motel room in Virginia - even if it was the size of a postage stamp....

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Hank

My brother-in-law is preparing to take flight from this earth.....

Hank, you always knew how to prepare amazing asparagus for me.....

 

11/15/42-7/19/10

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Mentalpause

Believe it or not, I sort of forgot I had a blog!!! It certainly isn't for lack of anything to say as I have LOTS to say, it's just that my mind is always subdivided and going in a thousand different directions, none of which seems to include posting updates.

We've survived lots here - graduation ceremonies, tornadoes, parties, and basically life in general. I cannot complain. Life is good - tiring and trying - but good.

I have lots of pictures but haven't uploaded most of them. I think that I am in the midlife phase of what I am calling "mentalpause".....  so I'll leave you with just a cute photo of Ruby.....

Saturday, June 12, 2010

Fledging

Since early March, I have been engrossed in the lives of six barn owls - a mom named Molly, a dad named McGee, four owlets named Max, Pattison, Austin, and Wesley, and one lone unhatched egg that all who were watching named Dudley.  For almost four months I have been intrigued by the day-to-day life of a mother owl nurturing her babies, and a father owl who provided food every single night for mom and babies, with dad stopping momentarily in the owl box to bond with his mate - a ritual carried out every single night. Did you know barn owls mate for life? I didn't...  Did you know that they can actually feel emotions?  I did not.  Did you ever witness the beauty of nature inside an owl box 24/7?  I hadn't until now.  I joined the ustream site right after the first two eggs hatched and have been hooked ever since, fully knowing that approximately 70 days from the hatching, the babies would begin the process of fledging - leaving the nest to strike out on their own.  



This morning at 5:17 AM, the last two owlets fledged, leaving a couple thousand viewers both sad and happy - happy that all four owlets survived to adulthood so that they can begin their own families, but sad because this one chat room that has intertwined so many lives together for the sole purpose of watching this beautiful event in nature will no longer air the lives of six barn owls.



This week, the process of "fledging" has begun in my own home.  My oldest child, my daughter, graduated high school, left the following morning for Walt Disney World for senior week, and will soon be preparing to head off to college.  Funny how both events happened around the same time.....


I've watched nature prepare its young to face the world, and now I'm preparing to send my "young" out into the world....

Monday, May 17, 2010

I Heart Faces - Faces and Flowers



I decided to try my hand at adding some texture to one of the prom photos I took back on senior prom night. This young beautiful girl is a friend of my daughter.  I have lots of learning to do with adding texture. I used a free texture called "Bokeh Flash" created by Prareeerica.

Be sure to stop by I Heart Faces and catch a glimpse of hundreds of other faces and flower entries.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Does This Phobia Have A Name?

For almost three years, I have been taking photos with my Canon Rebel, and for almost three years I have stored all of my photos on this laptop - to the tune of over 16,500 photographs. I have twice now backed them up to the "family" external hard drive, and I have also started the process of backing them up on CDs. I am also looking into getting my own external drive to copy them to.  So, somebody tell me why I am having such a difficult time hitting the delete button for the folders of pictures that I know are backed up. I cannot get myself to do it and I need to free up space on my hard drive.... I need to remove everything from one of my first photographs taken back in early 2007... when my little boy was on the cusp of a growth spurt...


To one of the last photos I took last month..... It amazes me that my boy's face could change this much and he could grow 7 1/2 inches in just a smidge less than three years.


I plan on practicing hitting that "delete" button soon, but I'm not quite ready yet.  It'll have to happen on a day that I've had a good cup of tea (or two or three) and am feeling more confident that all of my photo files are truly safe and sound....

I'm calling this fear "phototossophobia" -  I will now admit that I suffer from phototossophobia. Now, I must look into a remedy for this!


Tuesday, April 13, 2010

College High, Prom Woes Over, and Phillies Phever

College decision finalized, and our deposit is in!!! We will be Blue Hens, and their motto is "Fear the Hen".... No fear here, though, just excitement.

As of two hours ago, the prom issue was resolved also, and my daughter asked a friend who graduated last year.

Monday was a really fun day as my kids' high school marching band was invited to lead the Phillies into the ballpark for our season home opener.  The skies were beautiful and brilliant, the breeze just perfect, and all was right for a great day of baseball.

This new lens allowed me to take some great photos of the day's events.

The kids had about two hours to kill outside Citizens Bank Ballpark before the festivities began. There was lots of socializing....





A picture of the band director taking a picture of me....



Then there was some warming up....


Then there was the parade for about 100 yards - it was a very short parade lead by some absolutely gorgeous Clydesdale horses......








Jamie Moyer had a lot to say to Roy Halladay the full length of the parade - I'd love to know what he was chatting about.


Then a great game that began with some wonderful festivities.




 
The game was great, with Cole Hamels pitching, and the Phils winning over the Capitols 7-4


Yes, my new zoom lens allows me to capture great moments.....................


and also allows me to stalk my friends who are seated clear across the ballpark!