Let me paint you a picture

I have been rushing around tonight, trying to get a a million things done. I tell my 6 yr old, hurry do this, hurry do that. Eat your snack, drink your milk, brush teeth, hurry, time for bed, blah, blah, blah...

We get to his room, he puts in his music CD and looks over at me and says "Mom, are you happy?"

I said, "Yes... Don't I seem happy?"

He said, "No."

Wow, that's how he sees it. Made me think about my behavior and actions.

He's a plain white canvas...and I am the paint....

Made in the USA

8 days in Cancun Mexico. WOW! What a great time. Sun was great. Drinks were better.
Now, to work off the 10 pounds I gained. You would be surprised what happens to your body when you lay in a beach chair and let the little mexican boys bring you Pina Coladas.
Didn't have to get up.
Just waved my hand.
The service is great....Yeah...
The 10 pounds are not.
Let me just say, in Cancun they treat you like a Queen. 8 days. Not a single mistake. Food ordered was always correct. Checking in was a breeze and they didn't say "I'll be with you in a moment." Plenty of employees. No one rolled there eyes at you. No one said ,"Sorry I can't do that", or "I don't know." Everything worked, pop machines, candy machines, automatic doors, cash registers, people..
It's so relaxing...
I always dislike getting on that big Frontier plane to go home.
We weren't even off the ground before the stewardess rolled her eyes at my friend Michele.
Customs employees were not friendly.
Guy that drives the transportation van to get us to our car was not pleased when were not sure where our car was at. Come on..that was 8 days ago. My brain was on a siesta. Drove to St. Jo Missouri and stopped at a McDonald's.
Reality check.
1 person waiting on you.
I check the sacks before we leave.
Ketchup..got it..didn't want it. Where is the ranch dressing for the nuggets? They forgot apple slices and gave me fries instead. Forgot the apple juice.
But...they gave me napkins. Go figure. The employee was mad at me because I asked for the things to be corrected.
I got the evil look.
Welcome Home.

My little smartie

Reed (my 6 year old) and I went to a school function tonight. At the end they handed out zip-lock bags with two rolls of smarties candy. On the drive home, he asked "Can I have one?" It was pushing 7:30 pm, and I don't usually allow candy this late.
I made an exception and said " Yes, you can have one."
Continuing to drive, I heard him crunchin' over there in the passenger seat.
(I drive a sports car with only 2 seats, so he has to sit in the front.) I took the fuse to the airbag out, so if we were in an accident, well..it would be safer? (I use to stand on the front seat some 40 years ago, if mom had to stop fast she just stuck her arm in front of me to keep me from projecting through the windshield. Hey, it worked didn't it?, I came out okay!)
Okay, now he's crunchin', and crunchin'..
He's almost eaten the whole package of smarties.
I look over at him and say "We need to practice our communication skills a little more, there's a big difference between 1 piece and 1 package."
"When you ask me next time let me know if your saying 1 piece or 1 package." You have to learn to be more specific honey."
"Okay Mom."
We drive in silence for a while.
"Mom?"
"Yes?"
"Can I have another one?"
I laugh, look over at him and thank God silently for giving me this loving, intelligent boy.
"Sure, go ahead," I tell him.
He proceeds to unwrap the package of smarties and put them all in his mouth at the same time.
I look over at him, and he smiles at me, his cheeks full of candy, and we both laugh.

We got this communication thing down...

We would

If we knew that tonight we were going to go blind, we would take a long last real look at every blade of grass, every cloud formation, every speck of dust, every rainbow, raindrop-everything.

You find out who your friends are

Where does the time go? I could answer that but I am too busy. I dream that I could have time to write everyday. I don't sit at a desk at work, no computer to log on to. I have friends to call, people to see, things to do. No time. My friend Julie C. had back surgery, I want to make dinner for her family, but for god's sake I barely have time to make mine. Thom G.'s dad had his leg removed, (not his choice) and I haven't been over there in weeks. This makes me a crappy friend. (I did let him park in my $600 parking space for Easter Sunday Mass). Does that make me a less crappy friend, probably not. My time will come and everybody will be too busy for me.
So that brings me to..What are friends for anyway? Should they be angry because I wasn't there for them, or should they be forgiving and understanding because I wasn't there for them.

Quiet

On Friday I had the pleasure of working in my most favorite areas. In the lake and river areas. The snow is gone and I have seen the first crocus bloom. The deer are thick in Lake Leba and I always remember to bring my camera, not just for the deer, but many things that I see there. Saw my first Cardinal hopping through the dry grass. In the morning, to hear the birds when all else is quiet is a wonderful thing. Sometimes I take a minute to sit on someone's patio and just listen, and think. I thought about how busy life is with a 6 year old, and how I would like to write more often. I thought about my lifelong friend and how I let his birthday go by without sending him a card or text message or something. I feel bad. We aren't the kind of friends that send a card every year, or acknowledge each others day every time. Our birthdays are only 10 days apart. I think of him even if I don't get that $3.99 Hallmark sent. I have been writing his birthday on my Calendar for about 30 years. Even after I was married, his name remained on the Calendar. He's that important. I wanted to wish him a Happy Birthday this year, but the time slipped away again for the verbal or paper birthday card. I wished him a Happy one, silently in my heart, while I listened to the wind in the evergreen trees.
At the Rod and Gun Club area along the river I took time out to see what the river was up to. A few weeks ago during a thaw, the "mighty" Platte River went over its banks and did some water damage to a few cabins. Mine barely made it out without getting hit by a huge ice chunk. (Huge was 10 inches thick and 6 by 4 feet). It, and many others were piled against my trees thus saving my little cabin from being removed from its foundation. When I bought my little getaway 3 years ago, the original owner said she hadn't had any problems with the river since 1979. Except till now..(It's that damn black sand I brought back from Hawaii, that's another story).

Insight

The truth of the matter is that you always know
the right thing to do. The hard part is doing it.

H. Norman Schwarzkopf