Good Enough?

This has been a mixed up jumbled week.  I haven't completed an official workout in a week, I haven't tracked my calories in over 10 days, and I lost no weight this week.

The kicker?  I really don't care all that much. 

Ya see those things I haven't done?  Those were choices I made.  Deliberate choices.

Cleaning my house on Saturday?  Far more important than working out.  Helping my sister over the weekend?  That's getting the job done.  In light of the week's events "completed her food and exercise diary for XX/XX/20XX and was under her calorie goal" didn't even register on the radar.

Having lunch with the Princess and Little Man, followed by dinner & playing on the playground with them was far more rewarding than any training run could come close to being.

I'm going to apologize in advance for not being able to cheer you on commenting on your blogs this week.  I understand that many of you are on this journey so you can have those moments with your children and grandchildren.  I also understand (maybe more than anyone) how health and vanity get confused sometimes.

How'd I do on my goals?  While I had a salad most days, I averaged about 2 fruits/veggies a day (at least 3 was goal).  I moved every day, but Wednesday/Thursday were the only two days I actually "worked out". 

I did very well on my water - I drank as much water as possible without Jay fussing on me for having to take potty breaks on our road trips.

I hit the reading goals out of the park.   Practically every night I've read on my front porch swing.  For those days we were traveling I love reading while riding in the car.  Even exhausted at 11:30 at night, I got my Bible reading in. 

So while I'm up 1.4 pounds from last week, I'm happy with my life.  I'm blessed to have an incredible family.  I'm blessed that we're all in (mostly) good health.  My sister said a few days ago that it was surreal having her Grandparents extend their condolences for the passing of her husband's father. 

My BIL was headed home for a spring break visit when he got a call from his SIL.  The ambulance was at his parents house and they were trying to resessitate his father.  His flight couldn't be pushed up any more, and he arrived 2 hours before his father passed. 

I refuse to believe things like that are coincidence.

Also?  Through a conversation started by Twitter, God's hand of protection with my husband was revealed to have started from an early age.  His hemophillia diagnosis was late in coming, which meant he was never treated with human blood - including blood infected with HIV like many other hemophilliacs in that era.  He was, however, diagnosed just days before he was about to have surgery.  A surgery that would have quite possibly killed him since the doctors weren't aware of his bleeding disorder.

God's timing is always perfect, whether we realize it or not.

I guess knowing all of that, its hard for me to care that eating pizza and ice cream with my niece caused me the scale to rise. 

She's missing her father and sad about her Papa.  And I'm just enough for her, to provide her with comfort and a sense of security.

If I'm enough for her and the Little Man (& my husband & parents & grandparents & doctor), that's enough for me.

I run...

It started out as a whim. A friend of mine and I had started counting calories earlier in the year, we took spin classes and weight classes together. Then out of the blue she called and said “I think we should train for a 5K, I’ve just found this program online.”


It was, of course, the Couch to 5K program. We signed up for our first race, but part of the way through the training she was sidelined and couldn’t compete with me. I remembered being nervous and excited – my only goal was to run the entire 5K, no walking in between. I had run 3 miles in training, but always on a track. The course was hilly, but I managed to meet my goal.

After my first race – I was hooked. It was probably the rush of setting a goal then pushing myself to meet it. I finished 11th out of 16 in my age group, but I’d never felt more like a winner in my life.

Why do I run?

I run for me.

I run for weight loss/maintenance.

I run for health.

I run for the high.

I run for the sense of accomplishment.

I run for my niece and nephew.

My niece, who’s 6, has already said she wants to run races like her Aunt Boo.

My nephew was unofficially diagnosed with asthma at 16 months old. Instead of getting upset about it, my sister told my mom “If Brooke can have it, and go on to run a half marathon, its not gonna hold him back.”

That makes me incredibly proud. So I guess it all comes back to…


I run for me.



What about you?

Character vs Comfort

We're plugging along on the Your Secret Name read along.  In Chapters 10 and 11 author Kary Oberbrunner continues with the parallel stories of Jacob, and Mr. Oberbrunner's own personal testimony. 

Marla has been giving us some great prompts for further discussion.  This week she writes:

On page 111, Kary writes, “With Jacob’s situation in mind, we might wonder why God allows his children to remain in painful places.” He says that one answer would be that “times of testing instill character development.” What are some other reasons God might allow his children to remain in painful places? And do you have a personal example?

I'm not sure where the idea got started that God's main purpose is to make His followers comfortable got started.  Crack open your Bible and show me one place where it says that.

Jesus certainly didn't live a plush, cushy life.  He was born into a working class family and in the last days of His life here on Earth He was abandoned by most of His close friends, to die a horrible death.

Maybe its a lesson I need to better learn, because its a topic that's come up in a lot of books I've been reading lately.  Whether it be giving up material possessions (Radical by David Platt) or giving up my pride (From Blushing Bride to Wedded Wife by Marla Taviano) or even stepping out of my comfort zone (Same Kind of Different as Me by Ron Hall &Denver Moore ) the call of Christianity is to put off self and serve.

Having said all that, I will reiterate my point from last week - its easy for me to stay.  I'm not the one struggling from week to week wondering how I'm going to cover the bills.  (When my parents were in this situation they made a careful effort to keep my sister and I in the dark.)  I've never been abused or homeless. 

Sure I've had heart ache.  There was that time I rebelled against God and dated someone I knew I shouldn't.  While I can't be certain that ache outbreak wasn't a smite from God, it certainly cleared up once said bad boy dumped me.

I've lost beloved grandparents, who'd lived long full lives and died of illnesses brought on by old age.

My one experience with true pain - that moment where God has to hold you because you don't have the strength to stand - ended in a beautiful miracle of God.  My sister, at the age of 27, suffered congestive heart failure after the birth of her first child. 

She spent several days in Cardiac ICU and had to have pounds of fluid drained from around her heart.  While her husband and my parents stayed spent as much time as the hospital as they could, I stayed at home with her 6 day old baby.  I'd never baby sat, or even really been around small children.

My best friend was knocking on death's door and I was alone, with no one to comfort me but this creature that kept spitting up and pooping. 

And the Maker of the Universe.

I have no clue why we got a miracle.  Why God chose to resort my sister's health leaving behind no ill effects.  But I know without a doubt God used those days to change me.  He opened my eyes to my ability to serve despite experience or even willingness. 

I can only pray that the next time one of those devastatingly painful moments come - I'll better know how to rely on Him for strength and wisdom.

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Looooooong Weekend Update

Long referring to the fact that I had 4 days off.  Not at all related to the length of the post.  Although with 4 days to recap no promises!!

Thursday - Finally got my kitchen cleaned up and a little laundry one.  Then it was off to Sam's Club to stockpile and pick up the world's largest jug of laundry detergent.

Friday - A run, some house cleaning, and then Jay & I headed to the University town to pick out tile and fixtures for our bathroom remodel.  We came home empty handed, but I think we got a great idea what we were looking for.

After our shopping was complete, we headed to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse to enjoy our belated anniversary dinner.

We took our signature arms-length photo and headed in for one of the most expensive meals of my life.  Wanna see what $151 worth of food looks like?  (Tip not included)

Caesar salad and a glass of Guinness

T-Bone steak, shoestring fries, 2 more Guinness, a filet, mashed potatoes, and a glass of red wine.

The world's tiniest cheesecake with raspberry, blackberry, and blueberry garnish

with chocolate pecan bark on the side.

We had the waiter snap a picture of us with the river front in the background then we headed home.  I had to get up early the next morning for a long run (don't tell on me for the glass of wine 'kay?) and Jay put on a documentary that had him snoozing before 9 o'clock! 

Saturday - Woke up at 4:30 for my long run.  Jay told me that it would take 2 hours to get to Cades Cove from my house.  When I arrived in the park - this is what greeted me:

Due to the lack of traffic on the Parkway, I had arrived an hour early, before the picnic area or loop road was even open yet.  Thankfully the campground bathrooms were open, so I got to take care of business before heading out to my run.

I brought my new camera along (an anniversary gift) to see how annoying it would be in the pocket of my jacket.  I want to get pictures of Disney, but didn't want to bring it along without knowing how it would feel.

Most of the pictures were taken early on in the run, before the hills had sapped my energy.  Before I questioned if I had enough to finish 26.2 miles at Disney.  (The rest are on Facebook if you want to check them out.)

After my run I caught a quick nap then met my parents along with the Princess and Little Man to head to Dollywood.  They have their Christmas lights up now and this past week was only a $5 entrance fee for residents.

Sunday - All of my dad's  brothers and sisters met up for lunch - there are 8 of them (including my dad) still living.   As per my standard, I took a to-go plate so that I could cart off some of the best mac & cheese ever.  My cousin makes a big pot and uses a box and a half of Velveeta!  Since the Princess and LM were with us, I had a run for my money on the mac & cheese, but there was still plenty left over for me to have for leftovers this week.

Then it was time to take the kids back to my sister and BIL.  We met at a restaurant, but since we were still so full from lunch we just got salad (I boxed half up and will be eating it for lunch today) and soup.

THE END

Is it any wonder I'm still exhausted 2 days later??

The Weekend is a-coming!

• I started the book Intuitive Eating last night and can already tell that it'll make a difference.  The first few chapters describe exactly what I'm going through right now.  Either they were able to read my blog before I ever wrote it - even thought it - or else I'm not the only one in this postion.  I'm hopeful that it will help.
• I'm a month behind in my marathon training.  This should either be a 9 or 11 miler per my training plan.  It will be a 7 miler.  Crap - how am I going to make this up?
• My parents are heading to my sister's to watch the Princess play soccer.  I figure its now or never for me, since my mileage will only be increasing. 
• I have no clue when I'm going to clean my house. 
• I'm a perfectionist.  So in my world a dirty house = failure as a human.
• I'm considering a media fast.  Internet (non-work related), TV, movies, magazines.  I can't give up books and am not sure if I should give up the radio.  Can I last a week??
• I go back to the Hematologist for my 3 month follow-up.  I'm hoping he cuts me loose after this.  Do you think it would be appropriate to write a thank you letter to the infusion nurses?  I thought about including my race report and saying "thank you for the gift of completing this race."  Thoughts?
• Anyone had experience with iron-on words?  I was thinking about making a t-shirt for my next 5K.
• Did I mention I'm a nervous rex (I <3 Toy Story) and overwhelmed? 

Gifts of the Body Part 2

Now before you go looking for part 1, there isn't one.  At least on my blog any way.  I stumbled upon Faith, Fitness, Fun yesterday afternoon.  I was excited to read her 30 Days of Self love challenge and even more thrilled to see that she is a Christian. 

While faith in Jesus Christ isn't a requirement for the challenge (it doesn't even factor in if you don't want it to) it gave me the assurance that we wouldn't be getting into any self worship. Without Christ I am nothing.  Part of my self esteem issues come from leaving Him out of my life and trying to do things my own way.  My own way = superficial + shallow.

During this challenge she's encouraging us to...well I'll just let her tell you.

We need to shift the qualities with which we define them from aesthetic ones to purposeful ones. Hopefully, after completing 4 rounds of this exercise and having to come up with 12 different parts of ourselves we recognize as a gift, we will grow to love our bodies more and more.

I'm going to give it a try.  I'm not going to be able to get all the rounds in.  Or maybe I'll just spill over into October.

Here goes.

1) My hands/fingers.

I love to read.  Nothing says comfort to my brain like the pages of a warn out old paperback in my hands.  Or the soft leather of my NIV Study Bible, as I turn the thin pages with my fingers.  I need my fingers and hands for all the list making I do.  As well as my blogging.

Not to mention is the perfect perch for my ultimate bling:

If you're new to my blog, please know that the day I said "I do" I got another ring to stack behind that one - complete with 10 more small diamonds.  My husband use to be a Larry Byrd fan and was redneck sweet enough to want me to have 33 diamonds - Byrds jersey number.

2) My arms

These arms are made for hugging.  I'm not sure who gives better hugs, my niece or husband.  Nothing makes me feel more loved then when they wrap their arms around me.  The picture above is a tame hug on her part.  I'd just ran 13.1 miles in 2 hours and 44 minutes.  I was exhausted and wouldn't have been able to hold her had she jumped in my arms like she normally does.

3) My Feet

These feet have carried me lots of miles.  Of course the 13.1 mentioned above.  Plus a 26.2 mile walk.  And countless hikes in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Sure my grandmother sees my long, skinny feat and sees nothing but problems.  I've inherited her feet and she just recently had to undergo foot surgery.  She swears its that they are too skinny to handle all the pressure of carrying her body.   I doubt that's a doctor's diagnosis.  All I can say for sure is that for the past 30 years these feet have served me well.  I pray that they'll continue to do so for the next 50-60 year

4) My Lips

I think from the picture its obvious, I'm a lady who knows how to take charge.  It was I that took the lead and kissed him when he was too shy.  (3 dates ladies - I had to wait until the end of date 3.  And who knows how long it would have taken had I left it up to him!)

I've come to realize in the past few months that my spirtual gift is encouragement.  Sometimes it comes in the forms of the words I say.  Other times its the words I type to my efriends.  (See #1)

I hope you take a moment to reflect on yourself - think about how well your body has served you all these years.  Rejoce!  Try to love the woman in the mirror just a little more each day.

"Hi pot, its the kettle here."

Trust me, I'm working on it!

Down on the Farm & Other Weekend Tales

This weekend I got to check out farm life at its finest.  First off I won the best/hottest wife ever award.  Sorry to all you ladies out there, you can just quit trying

After waking up early to see my hubby off to work, I headed out for a 3.5 mile run (with some walking throw on the uphills of the last mile).  When I finished, I was covered in sweat  and decided it was the perfect opportunity to take out the trash.  Typically that's Jay's job, but he hadn't gotten around to it and it desperately needed doing.

Having a hard time passing up that cookie or brownie this afternoon?

Read on.

I loaded up the garbage from the kitchen (including my Pantry Purge bag o'junk) into the back of his Jeep, then tried to figure out how to get the outside trash can into the Jeep I gave up and just ended up putting the bags directly into the back.  Although I did double bag the ones with maggots crawling all over them.

That's right, our trash usually ferments long enough outside to not only smell like a rotted corps, but to also have those slimy little worm-thingys crawling in and out of the bags.

Once that was all loaded up, I hauled myself up into the Jeep and fired it up.  It only took a few moments to noticed that my rear end was soaked.  Excellent.  You see Jay had taken the sides off the Jeep about a week ago, and its rained several times since.  I even noticed that the passenger seat is starting to get a white film on it.  (Mold?  Mildew?  I didn't get close enough to see.)

After finishing at the dump, I headed to the Dunkin Donuts near my house. 

Picture it - Tourist Town exit gas station.  A young 30 something girl getting out of a jacket up Jeep.  Her ass is soggy, her hair pulled back in a nubby, sweaty pony tail and she most likely reeks of rotten chicken carcass.

As I got out of the Jeep, I got hit on.

Seriously. 

My hands feel like I'm covered in filth and a gas station attendant gives me that leer.  "Nice Jeep."

If I hadn't already wanted to vomit, that would have cinched it for me.

The rest of the day I just hung out on my front porch swing, or inside napping.  At one point I did finish my pantry purge and list making, but I figured I'd earned my day off with that 20 minute trip to hell the county dump.

Yesterday my sister and BIL brought the Princess & Little Man to town.  School is starting back soon, so they kids are having a week with the grandparents while their parents prepare for the first days of school.  (They are both teachers.)

After dinner, we headed home for the main event of the weekend - watching a calf suck on the nipple of a bucket.  Apparently she's not able to get milk from her mother, so my Papaw has to feed her every night. 

Inez/Beautiful the donkey always seems to think that its food for her, and gets irritated when she doesn't get any.  Last night we got a half loaf of bread and fed her after Papaw fed the calf, so she wouldn't feel left out.  The Princess was loving it until the donkey slobbered on her!

Both the Princess and LM each got rides on the tractor before darkness fell and we had to call it a night. 

NC part 2

The 3rd and final day we were in Blowing Rock, NC we visited Grandfather Mountain.  Jay & I thought it was just a mile high swinging bridge - turns out it was much more!

We picnic-ed near the nature museum so that we could catch the 1 o'clock snake demonstration.  Once we learned all about corn snakes, we were allowed to touch it.  The Little Man was the first to raise his hand, but the Princess took some convincing.

In the end, the thought of being able to chase Mamaw (my grandmother who's terrified of snakes) and her JuJu (baby sitter who's like an extra grandmother to the kids) with her snakified hand.

Then it was on to the animal exhibits.  Claire saw the "one armed" eagle first and had to tell us all about it.  Apparently it lost its wing to gunfire before being relocated to the park.

The otters had just been fed, so they were hiding out behind logs the first pass through, but we finally got a glimpse of them. 

The black bears were just hanging out. 

After a fudge pit stop, we were headed to the swinging bridge - the main attraction.  For Jay & I at least.  My mom, sister, and the kids had no interest.  Actually the Little Man was interested, he just wasn't allowed.

Upon further review, my dad decide he wasn't going to cross either.  So it was just Jay, BIL, and myself.  At least we had a camera man come with us right?

That's us in the very middle.  Jay is wearing a yellow shirt and I'm in a pink/red tank.

The Princess finally got brave enough to meet her dad in the middle of the bridge & my dad put on his big girl panties and crossed.  The rest of the crew kept with their original decision.

While the bridge itself isn't a mile from the ground, it is a mile above sea level. 

Then it was on to the rock cliffs ahead.

And while this last picture is photo shopped - its not for the reason you think.  The BIL didn't notice that I was imitating a plumber before he snapped the picture.  The only touch ups that were done on this picture were just making my pants look like they came up higher than they really did!

Following Grandfather Mountain (and the purchase of some silly bands to swap with the Princess) we headed to a pizzeria.  It was recommended to us by a GM clerk, and it looked like it was a nice place.  When we got seated we noticed some extra decor added to the windows.

Turns out several years before they had a waitress with a very jealous boyfriend.  He suspected that the owner was a true Italian stallion and paid the restaurant a little visit.

That's some strong glass!

We parted ways and headed home.  The end of a fun trip is always the hardest part, isn't it?

North Carolina part 1

Two weekends ago my family took a trip to Blowing Rock, North Carolina.  Jay was a little slow at getting the pictures uploaded, so here is the full report just a tinsy bit late.

We left early on Sunday, but tried to keep the excitement to a minimum.  We had trouble finding a breakfast meeting spot (where my parents, Jay & I were supposed to meet up with my sister and her family).  The first mom & pop place we tried wasn't open on Sunday, and the 2nd confirmed via a phone call they were open, but when we arrived at their location no one was there.  (We've since discovered that they moved.)

Though we were all starving, we decided to stop in at a place my sister had eaten at before 30 minutes up the road.  My mom decided to ride between the princess and little man's seats and got hit with some projectile vomit (courtesy of the princess's car sickness) for her trouble.

Once we got into town, we didn't do a whole lot.  We walked up and down the street going into the cute little shops, stopping at the park to play, even finding a garage sale to shop!  After checking into the cottage, we freshened up then went back out to a pub for dinner.  After trying a sip of my BIL's beer selection, I went with a pint of Old Speckled Hen. 

It wasn't until Monday that the fun really got started.

Something that we didn't realize when booking the cottage with Blowing Rock Resort Rentals, was that their policy only allowed for 1 bag of garbage for the entirety of our stay.  8 people in a cabin for 3 days, and we only got 1 bag of trash.  If we left anything above that we'd be charged an additional $10 per bag.

Ridiculous right?  They did, however, include directions to the nearest trash dumps. 

My father instructed me not to tell you the story about the dump.  About how due to road construction he didn't see the dump entrance until it was too late to turn in, so he went out the in.  About how the "gentleman" working the dump lectured us about how we'd cause an accident coming in the wrong way.  How he and my dad argued for 5 minutes about whether or not it hurt anything.  About how my dad tried to explain it was an accident and we were tourists (and the problem wouldn't happen again) but the guy kept being a jerk about it.  About how my dad called him all kinds of names once we pulled away- names we were hoping the Little Man wouldn't try to repeat.

Then it was on to Tweesie Railroad - the Little Man loves trains (and all things "go-go" related) so we figured it'd be fun for him.  I was less than enthused about Jay and I shelling out $32 each for a stupid train ride, but we were pleasantly surprised at everything the park has to offer.

First off, they allowed us to bring in our picnic lunch.  Coming from a tourist town ourselves, we're use to being told we can't even carry in a bottle of water in our purse, much less lug in a rolly cooler full of sandwiches, fruit, and drinks.

After the train ride, we had lunch, then headed into the park toward the rides.  Jay took a million pictures (as always) and while some of them didn't turn out to his liking, it meant that I could post some on my blog.  You see my sister thinks the Internet is full of crazies just waiting to kidnap her children.  I've been given specific instructions not to post their gorgeous faces on my blog.  Enter Jay's photo fails.

The princess was too tall to ride the kiddie rides, and surprising (and sadly) enough the Little Man was big enough to go it alone!

One payoff for the princess being as tall as kids a year older than her was that she got to ride the adult rides - here's one of her in between her parents are the tiltawhilr.

The Little Man (with my sister & mom) were in front of the Princess and I on the Merry-Go-Round.

The photo fails of the Princess are few and far between - in true diva fashion she always knows where the camera is and is always willing to pose.  Here Jay has caught us in the middle of enjoying an ice cream snack.

The Princess and BIL were in the pole position.  Followed by Jay & I, my dad and the little man, then my mom and sister.  No, that isn't a possum on my dad's face.  Its his beloved mustache that makes him look about a decade older than he really is.

Here are a couple of mean rascals we found in the Tweesie jail, but the must have broken out because we found them riding off into the sunset a couple hours later.

As I said we were pleasantly surprised at how much fun the park was.  When we'd finally had enough we headed back to the cottage for some grilled steaks (courtesy of my dad).  The evening was capped off by a rousing game of Apples to Apples, before everyone headed to bed in the late 9 o'clock hour.

We're getting old!

Best.Auntie.Ever.

I officially earned my title this weekend.  Up until now I only suspected I was the best.  I mean surely there are other childless women out there who treat their nieces and nephews with the utmost adoration right?  How could I be sure I was the best?

Now, there is no doubt.  An unbiased observer officially bestowed the title upon me this weekend.

When my sister called last weekend, wanting to know if I was going to attend the Princess's dance recital I told her I would have to check but I thought I was free.  My sister made no mention that she wasn't attending. 

My sister is one of my best friends, so I was definitely bummed when I found out that she would be away for a work conference that weekend.   Little by little the story began to unfold.  My BIL was away with his school's 7 & 8th grades the prior week, not getting back until late Friday night.  Since my sister was leaving Friday afternoon at lunch, they needed someone to pickup the Princess from school and the Little Man from the baby sitter's.

We were left with an instruction sheet of all the different activities we had to attend. 

Friday:    5:30 dance practice
Saturday: 12:00 soccer game
               5:00 dance recital 

Dance practice seemed to go on forever.  Thankfully my purses is large enough to hold a small book, so I plowed through several chapters of the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.  By the time we got the Princess home (thankfully my BIL showed up to take the Little Man home and get him ready for bed) we still had to wash her hair, and Baby (my dad) had to braid her hair in several sections.

According to my sister, her hair had to be curly for the recital but her hair type won't hold curl well (and she doesn't sit still well for my sister to use the curling iron.)  The Princess has chin length hair, so Baby's job wasn't easy but he got it done and we eventually all called it a night.

The next day was a whirl wind.  They don't keep score for KinderSoccer, but the Princess scored 4 goals and didn't even play half the game!  My  mom kept the little man occupied playing in the dirt during the game while Baby & I cheered on the Princess.

After the game we went to the creek to have a picnic and were accosted by some parents of another team.  Apparently, before leaving for her conference, my sister had gotten the game time wrong and we'd played the wrong team.  After 10 minutes of seeing my BIL apologize for any blame he had (remaining calm all the while having two women in his face yelling at him over a soccer game involving 5 year olds), I commented trying to get them to see that there was nothing to be done about the situation.

Instead of helping matters, I'm pretty sure I just made things worse.  Even though one of the women was twice my age - she mocked me like she was a child.  When I started to say "The point is there is nothing that can be done about it now," she interrupted by saying "Tell us, just what is the point" in a mocking tone.

Then later they had the never to comment on us being rude.  My BIL stood there and took their crap for 10 minutes, then when we were finally sick of it, we defended him - yet we were the rude ones?  So I reminded them "Yall got hateful first."  So then this same mature 60 year old woman, in the same high pitch tone mocked me "Yall got hateful first."

Wow, all of that over a soccer game for kids so little they don't even take score?

So that was my big oopsy this weekend - getting myself involved.  They ran back, twisted the facts, and accused us of accosting them.  I don't care for getting involved for my sake, but turns out they thought I was my sister and tattled as much.  I joked with her yesterday now she knows how those people on Soap Operas feel when their evil twins run amok in the town and the good sister gets the blame!

Moving on to the part where I was the good sister/auntie...

My sister had informed me that someone would need to be in the dressing room helping Claire change, and the duties would probably fall to me.  After all, they probably wouldn't let a Dad hang out in the dressing room and my mom gets nervous in stressful situations.

In flies Super Boo to save the day.

This was the Princess's first recital, so my sister couldn't have anticipated how to prepare me.  I didn't bring snacks.  The dance teacher had said the recital would last 2 hours and water would be provided for the girls, so I didn't bring water.

My sister had the dance bag packed, so all I had to do Saturday morning was go through the bag marking the Princess's initials on all of her gear.  That should have tipped me off as to the mass confusion that happens while performing costume changes on 5 and 6 year old girls, but it didn't.

The air conditioning had broken and been patched back together the night before, but it certainly wasn't doing its job well.  The dressing room got hot and miserable, the water ran out an hour and a half into the performance (which actually lasted 4 hours), and the Princess asked to go home after the first act.

With the opening number, I prayed (a very sincere prayer) that the Princess wouldn't get caught up in the world of dance. I'm sure it has plenty of redeeming qualities, but I worry about her getting involved in an activity that is so focused on appearance.



When I mentioned having not thought to pack snacks I said "I guess since I'm not a mom I can't win the 'most inept mom of the year' award right?"  The lady beside me stared at me. 

"You're not her mother?  And you're down here in all the madness?  You must be the best aunt ever!"

So there you have it.  Super Boo is willing to wade through the superficiality and craziness to help her niece enjoy her very first recital. 

Although given the boredom and even the dry heaves (from exhaustion and being over heated) in the parking lot, I'm not sure its an experience the Princess will want to repeat.

Pictures from the homestead

After church on Sunday morning, the whole crew met up for Mother's day lunch at our favorite homestyle cookin' joint.  (The whole crew = my grandparents, my parents, my aunt & uncle, cousin & his wife, my sister & her kids, Jay & me.)  The restaurant was giving away free red velvet cake to all the mothers, but as my cousin's wife and I learned, they didn't bother to ask who was a mother and who was not.  All of us adult women at the table got a piece.  I suppose I earned my piece by being the best auntie in the world & she earned hers by being a mommy to a beagle.

Jay and I followed my parents (who were driving my sister's minivan with her crew in toe) back to their house to just hang out for the afternoon.  We found ourselves out by the swing set.  After the Princess demostrated her mad skillz on the monkey bars, we decided to go track down Beautiful the donkey.

My grandparents came over to the house as we were loading up, so they decided to join us on our journey.  Mamaw hates having her picture taken so for the entire afternoon these are the only shots we were able to get of her.

Jay was slightly more creative getting his picture of her than I was. 

He captioned this one "sexiness in a pickup", but prefaced that the redneck in him wanted it to be a picture of me holding a beer can, rather than a Pepsi can.

We found Beautiful on the back part of the farm, protecting her charges.

My pawaw got Beautiful because several of his calves went missing the night they were born - no doubt cyotes were to blame.  Its her job to protect them, kick the crap out of anyone who tries to mess with them.  Although she's not above kicking them if they come between her and her feed.

At first the Princess didn't want to get her shoes dirty, so she requested that Jay hold her.  She quickly got over that though and got down to the business of letting the donkey eat out of her hand.  Beautiful sneezed on her, so the Princess had enough.  I stepped in to help Jay out feeding the donkey.

The countrified men looked on, probably amazed that what they consider chores we consider a fun way to spend the afternoon.

We call this section of the farm "honeymoon lane" because my Papaw (on the right) had to go milk cows on this part of the farm on his wedding night. 

I'm not sure how I became lucky enough to get all blessings of growing up on land this beautiful and none of the chores, but I'm not going to complain!