And, I got the guy...

We were with our neighbors recently and they wanted to know our history. Sweetly, it reminded me of one of the 80s movie favorites "Sixteen Candles". Girl has crush on guy, girl gets guy. I first saw Chuck the first day of my freshman year of high school. Pep rallies were scheduled during the last 30 minutes of school. That first day...we were all rallied to the gym and there were open spaces where the JV football and Varsity Football teams were supposed to be in the bleachers. In the middle of that wide open space was a very daring sophomore, mad at the world, for making him participate in high school festivities...there he sat in that wide open space, with his skater hair and anti-establishment attitude. And there I sat mesmerised...following him for the next two years. I would figure out his class schedule/locker and stalk him! I was a stalker for two years! He ran in close circles to my own and there were a few lunch/smoke breaks where we almost had conversation...but nothing quite materialized...until....

My Junior year (his senior) we ended up in second period Art II together. Mrs. Latray sat us across from each other the second day. There was a lot of nervous small talk and foot tapping (on my part) and at some point in late September of 1990, I made the plunge of inviting him to meet up with me and my friends in the graveyard (yes, remember I was goth and we lived in WF with not much else to do) and he accepted. Our first phone conversation happened on November 01, 1990 and we talked for 3 hours.When I hung up the phone, I said to my friend, Kure, "that is the man I am going to marry" and I did on July 01, 1995. It never ceases to amaze me how I can still hear his voice on the phone, smell his cologne or look in his eyes and be floored by the butterflies I feel when he walks through the door or tells me he loves me. I still revel in the fact that..."I got the guy!".

Mother's Day Festivities

I had a great time at Patrick's school on Thursday. It was Muffins for Moms. They had the festivities in the classroom. We sat down to placemats decorated by our kids and there was a really cool 3-D flower bouquet that they had made out of construction paper. The kids served us muffins and juice, sang songs and showed us a slide show. They had drawn pictures in tech lab of their favorite memory with their mom and then their voice was with the picture telling about it. Patrick's was Sea World. It was really cute. There was also handmade cards and three letters about us moms. One was about what they like about us. Patrick said play checkers, go to the pack (park) and you make me feel speckle (special). He also said that I was 20 feet tall and I weigh 100 pounds! His favorite food that I make him is chickcur (Thai Chicken Curry).

Saturday, Chuck sent flowers (lillies) and yesterday, he helped feed 640 people for brunch at the hotel. The boys and I went to church and then we had a cookout with the neighbors last night. We were glad Chuck was off in time to join us. Hope all of you moms out there had a great day!

To All the Special Moms in My Life...

Mom, thanks for being the best mom there can be. You were always there when I needed you growing up, and you still are today. From stroking my face to get me to sleep when I was a small child to dropping everything and moving to NYC for a semester when I was a depressed teenager, you have always answered the call of mom, NaNa and friend. You are the first I want to call with exciting news. You are there when I need a shoulder to cry on. Thanks for all you have done for me in my life. Thanks for teaching me what our purpose on this earth is for...to glorify God.

Guinea, you and Grandaddy have taught me so much over the years. I appreciate your generosity the most. You have always given to other people and set a wonderful example of hospitality. To this day, our family meets people from all over that at one time preached as a visiting preacher in your church and then came to eat lunch afterward in your home. You have always reminded me of what the Bible teaches and encouraged me to be the best I can be. Your advice has always been to "Put the Lord first and then everything else will fall into place". You have blessed our lives so much with your devotion and love.

Grandma Entine, you and Grandpa were what I called the "fun" grandparents. You were always there ready to play games, draw pictures and make crafts with me. I always felt so loved by you. The picture above makes me remember how happy I felt when I was with you. You and Grandpa also put God first in your lives and it showed by the way you treated others. You both had such a happy, positive outlook, and I appreciate the example you set.

Mel, I couldn't ask for a better mother-in-law and grandma to my boys. You have always treated me like a daughter, and I have always felt loved by you and your family. If there was ever a time (and there was!) that I needed a friend, you have always been there. I appreciate your generosity toward us and others. You are warm, fun loving and happy. You know the importance of being a Christian and you raised your son to be one. You are such a wonderful bright spot and blessing to our lives.

Charlece, even though you are my grandmother-n-law, I have often thought of you as my grandmother, too. You love your family. You are thoughtful and kind. You love Jesus, first, and never miss an opportunity to thank him for his blessings. You are always so considerate and you set a great example of serving others.

First Popsicle

"It was good!"
OK, I am not a big fan of popsicles because of the sticky mess they make and I guess I never gave one to Nicholas last summer. I make him wear a life jacket a lot of times when we are outside because of his complete lack of fear of the pool. He loves to throw whatever he can find in the pool. Gardening gloves, landscape rocks, small potted plants...you name it! If it's outside, it has been in the pool at one time or another. We played miniature golf the other night and he really like it. The next day, I gave him a plastic golf club and some plastic golf balls, and he invented a new game we call pool golf.

Has Big Bird always been a whiner?

I loved Sesame Street growing up as I am sure most kids of the 70s/80s did. My brother, Russell, actually started reading at 2 from watching Sesame Street and Electric Company. He is also just very bright. As most toddlers, Patrick had a great love for Elmo (who if you will recall was not around when we were growing up), but not until recently has he begun to enjoy Sesame Street. Nicholas, however, loves Sesame Street and will watch the whole show. Originally, I was just turning it on for the last 20 minutes to catch the Elmo segment, but then I started turning it on earlier and he really loves all of the characters. Which leads me to my big thought provoking question of the day. I do prefer Sesame Street over the Nick Jr, Noggin world as I had three years of Blue, Dora and The Backyardigans. It was enough to make any sane person crazy. I have been avoiding those shows with Nicholas. My nerves are just not ready for them yet. Oh, and who can forget Little Bear. To this day, Patrick still watches Little Bear. I have seen every Little Bear episode at least 5 times. I was excited when Patrick finally started watching Batman, Scooby Doo and Garfield. Those were cartoons we all enjoyed at our house. Paige told us awhile back about Yo Gabba Gabba. This has become a favorite and I like watching it, too. Nicholas likes it so much that when I say it is on he says "Yoooooooooooooooooooooo..ga..ba" and immediately crawls up in his dad's chair ready to watch. Now, I know this probably sounds like we watch TV all of the time. We do not. I think I am just anxietal about Dora possibly returning to our lives for the next few years. I hope to avoid her. I guess that is another good argument for why to have your kids close together. To get Dora out of your life once and for all, never to return again...

Nicholas has been a real cutie pie lately. Sunday, he was having a big time in church hiding under the chairs and popping out at me yelling, "boo!". Unfortunately it was during communion, so I had to take him to the nursery. He has also been attacking stuffed animals. I don't know if he is wrestling with them or what, but he hops on top of them, growls and tries to smash them with his body. He is always ready for a game of chase. Whenever I tell him to come to me, he loves to squeal with delight and run the other way. He also loves to give a big smirk and one eyebrow raise when he hears the word, "no". He keeps us laughing most of the time.

Patrick got a new bike helmet over the weekend. We had to buy an adult one! I recall having to buy him a winter cap in the adult section when he was in kindergarten! I guess we have big heads in this family.

Chuck's boss is away on vacation for 11 days and poor Chuck has been working 14 hour days. It has been a long week so far...but we will press on with our local storytimes and adventures to the park and mall. We try and stay busy around here!