~ Who'd A Thought? ~

Your Brain is Blue

Of all the brain types, yours is the most mellow.You tend to be in a meditative state most of the time. You don't try to think away your troubles.Your thoughts are realistic, fresh, and honest. You truly see things as how they are. You tend to spend a lot of time thinking about your friends, your surroundings, and your life.

http://www.blogthings.com/whatcolorisyourbrainquiz/


~~These results surprised me~~

Thanks Kathy! I hope your's mellows soon :)

~ A Part of the Circle ~

What an amazing weekend.... I've had three birthdays to celebrate, a surprise party to be an instigator in, and yet the weekend just got better and better.

In my last blog I talked about the reconnection of our little group. It's been such a long time. I just have to share these pictures. We took them this morning :) Now we need to figure out how to get all of us together again for that group shot!

Terri and Randy came through town last night on their way to Canada. It was so AWESOME to see them. Randy is such a fun guy. They are the cutest couple! They were married this summer, but they are already to the point of almost finishing each other's sentences. I've never seen her so happy!

Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Randy Leach :)

... Sophia Was Right ....

Trudy Jones, Cindy Overton, Terri Aylward

Trudy Jones, Cindy Overton, Judy Woodside, Kaye Ashcroft

You know how sometimes someone will tell you something that you just can't wrap your mind around? I had a good friend a few years ago. She had an interesting theory on things. She had a beautiful spirit and I do miss her unique way.... Maybe this theory will apply again to her. She would now be my last puzzle piece.

Sophia's theory was that if you think about something or someone hard enough and "cast that energy outward to the universe", what you desire will return to you like a boomerang. The first time she tried to explain this to me I said uh uh.. OK. As the years have gone by I have seen her theory through. Each person that I wanted to reconnect with for even a brief time in these past few years have just popped up, even in the strangest places. Yes... all of them. Even in a restaurant 6 miles from my home. A little scary... The others were quite random and interesting also!

The latest was one that I thought the universe would not be able to come through on. She could have been anywhere from Singapore to Kentucky. We were good friends and being crazy teenagers seemed like it would last forever. (Thankfully it didn't though.. ) I had a phone number and address from 19 years ago when we first had contact again. The first Christmas that I tried to send her a card with an update (around 1988) she already had moved on. ? I have since wondered if I would ever hear from her again. I watched for her on websites like Classmates and Reunion.com but was never in the right place at the right time.

Finally!

Hey Judy..... I've missed you! I have teenagers of my own now and our craziness has come back to me like it was yesterday! My parents are now watching from "above" and probably laughing because mine are truly giving me a run more so than I gave them!

We had a lot of fun and crazy times... If you choose to scroll through this blog, go back to the archives of 8/18/06. The 30 year reunion was a bit strange. Running into Bob Prestwich was truly the highlight though. (He's how I met Gary) I don't know if you had heard about Cindy or not. If not, I'm sorry. It's been a long time. I will forward this link to Terri and Kaye. :)

~ An Anniversary To Remember ~ And A Heck of a Month ~

Viva Las Vegas - June 2007

What a summer! What a year! It's kind of a blur but I vowed NOT to let this month get away without a blog to capture some of the good stuff.

This was an anniversary to remember. We celebrated 30 years on June 3rd, but we really celebrated on the 13th by running away to Las Vegas. This was the first time we have left our home to the mercy of our kids and their friends. They were 3 and 5 last time we left them. They had Grandparents to spoil them then. It was so long ago.... they are now 16 and 18. We got home and the house was intact. The neighbors said they were fairly well behaved :) Life is good.

Las Vegas was great fun! We stayed for 3 days, 2 nights. We saw 2 shows; Lance Burton and Le Reve. Both were very good!

Lance Burton, at the Monte Carlo

Le Reve, at the Wynn

We went to the Body Exhibit. That will stay in my mind for a long time. It was a bit haunting but done very well. Yes, they were real bodies... from the inside out. I hope this image isn't too disturbing but it was fascinating. There were many more....

Bodies, The Exhibition - at the Tropicana

And yes, there was Blackjack. Lots and lots of blackjack...

Also we were able to spend some time with Brent! He was there for business. It was so AWESOME to see him! It's been 2 years. What are the chances of us being in the same town at the same time unplanned? The timing was as though it were just meant to be.

Yes, if you look really closely you'll see closed eyes..... but the photographer (Gary) took only one picture so here we are :)

So this was the month for seeing family! Ann was in Pocatello spending time with her Mom. It was so fun to go over on the 9th and attend "Time Out For Women" with them. I have been to this before but it makes it extra special to spend it with family.

As is our tradition, Ann and I made the trip to Malad to beautify Mom and Dad's graves. This has been such a great way to honor them together. This is the first overhaul that we've done since our first decorating spree a few years ago. I added very little last time I was there knowing when the time was right she and I would do it again together. We try to make this a peaceful time well spent. It only seemed right to get Burger King burgers and take them back after we were done. Somewhere Dad chuckled... I hope. Even through our reverent irreverence. ? Love ya Sis...

I also spent an evening with Venna Jean and Jim. Thankfully they are night owls... or they said they were so I wouldn't feel bad for staying so late. I got to see some of my favorite people and I just couldn't get enough!

Yet.... the month is not over! This weekend I will head out yet again for Pocatello. This time for the Warren reunion. OK so maybe being gone every weekend this month might be a bit much... but we'll see. If there are some fun pictures, I'll share them :)

~ What Made Me Me ~

I received this from a dear friend/Sister In Law. It's all too real. Yup, I'm old enough to remember all of this stuff, except Kennedy was my president. And yes, I got the AARP invitation this last year. It sort of offended me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
What Made Me Me

Long ago and far away,
In a land that time forgot,
Before the days of Dylan,
Or the dawn of Camelot.
There lived a race of innocents,
And they were you and me,
Long ago and far away
In the Land That Made Me Me.
Oh, there was truth and goodness
In that land where we were born,
Where navels were for oranges,
And Peyton Place was porn.
For Ike was in the White House,
And Hoss was on TV,
And God was in His heaven
In the Land That Made Me Me.
We learned to gut a muffler,
We washed our hair at dawn,
We spread our crinolines to dry
In circles on the lawn.
And they could hear us coming
All the way to Tennessee,
All starched and sprayed and rumbling
in the Land That Made Me Me.
We longed for love and romance,
And waited for the prince,
And Eddie Fisher married Liz,
And no one's seen him since.
We danced to "Little Darlin'",
And Sang to "Stagger Lee"
And cried for Buddy Holly
In the Land That Made Me Me.
Only girls wore earrings then,
And three was one too many,
And only boys wore flat-top cuts,
Except for Jean McKinney.
And only in our wildest dreams
Did we expect to see
A boy named George, with Lipstick
In the Land That Made Me Me.
We fell for Frankie Avalon,
Annette was oh, so nice,
And when they made a movie,
They never made it twice.
We didn't have a Star Trek Five,
Or Psycho Two and Three,
Or Rockey-Rambo Twenty
In the Land That Made Me Me.
Miss Kitty had a heart of gold,
And Chester had a limp,
And Reagan was a Democrat
Whose co-star was a chimp.
We had a Mr Wizard,
But not a Mr T,
And Oprah couldn't talk, yet
In the Land That Made Me Me.
We had our share of heroes,
We never thought they'd go,
At least not Bobby Darin,
Or Marilyn Monroe.
For youth was still eternal,
And life was yet to be,
And Elvis was forever,
In the Land That Made Me Me.
We'd never seen the rock band
That was Grateful to be Dead,
And Airplanes weren't named Jefferson,
And Zeppelins weren't Led.
And Beatles lived in gardens then,
And Monkees in a tree,
Madonna was a virgin
In the Land That Made Me Me.
We'd never heard of Microwaves,
Or telephones in cars,
And babies might be bottle-fed,
But they weren't grown in jars.
And pumping iron got wrinkles out,
And "gay" meant fancy-free,
And dorms were never coed
In the Land That Made Me Me.
We hadn't seen enough of jets
To talk about the lag,
And microchips were what was left at
The bottom of the bag.
And Hardware was a box of nails,
And bytes came from a flea,
And rocket ships were fiction
In the Land That Made Me Me.
Buicks came with portholes,
And side show came with freaks,
And bathing suits came big enough
To cover both your cheeks.
And Coke came just in bottles,
And skirts came to the knee,
And Castro came to power
In the Land That Made Me Me.
We had no Crest with Fluoride,
We had no Hill Street Blues,
We all wore superstructure bras
Designed by Howard Hughes.
We had no patterned pantyhose
Or Lipton herbal tea
Or prime-time ads for condoms
In the Land That Made Me Me.
There were no golden arches,
No Perriers to chill,
And fish were not called Wanda,
And cats were not called Bill.
And middle-aged was thirty-five
And old was forty-three,
And ancient was our parents
In the Land That Made Me Me.
But all things have a season,
Or so we've heard them say,
And now instead of Maybelline
We swear by Retin-A.
And they send us invitations
To join AARP,
We've come a long way, baby,
From the Land That Made Me Me.
So now we face a brave new world
In slightly larger jeans,
And wonder why they're using
Smaller print in magazines.
And we tell our children's children
of the way it used to be,
Long ago, and far away
In the Land That Made Me Me.

-- Author Unknown

~ Sweet Sixteen ~

And Then There Was Light.....

What a fun weekend this was. Steph turned 16 on Sunday, May 6th. I asked her many times what she wanted to do and got the same sad melancholy reply... "I dunno".

Well enough of that! She experienced her first suprise party and oh was it fun. Within 24 hours we lined up 10 friends to show up at 1:00 Sunday afternoon. Saturday evening I secretly ran to Zurchers and got decorations, then to the store for chips and drinks. Everything was carefully hidden in the back of my car. She got up on Sunday morning to an uneventful opening of birthday cards and hanging out. She thought it was weird but never really suspected anything when her Dad announced that he would be taking her out in his car for driving practice. She needs some parking lot work. I told her we would have cake and ice cream when they got home.

As soon as they left we hit the ground running. Decorations went up. Balloons came out. Pizzas were ordered with delivery time set for 1:15 (Pizza Hut of course thanks to Ryan). Friends arrived perfectly as planned. And Steph and Gary walked in at 1:35. All of the friends hid in the family room and jumped out as she came in. Oh What FUN!!!

First Reaction.... A Full Blush :)

Do you think there's enough food and chips?

No party would be complete without Ryan trying to light something on fire or blow it up. I wonder if this was genetic..

Some smiles just have to be preserved on a blog.... :)

And yes, silly string can make it clear to the ceiling... and clear across a kitchen in 2 seconds.. Observe blue splatter on picture #1...

And what do I do with this?

Mom playing with lighting and focus stuff.... but a pretty good picture of the goings on...

Fun was had by all..... and yes that is silly string hanging off of everything...

Happy Birthday Dear Stephanie...

~ The Black Hole ~

Just Words?

Raged, Full of Fury, Cynical, Embarrassed, Fearful, Rejected, Betrayed, Pained, Hurt, Resentful, Full of Anger, Just Plain Downright Pissed Off. Fooled. Foolish.

Or:

Forgiving, Loving, Nurturing, Healing, Tender, Calm, Patient, Filled with Mercy, Grace, Willing to Help, And Again Forgiving.

Living in those moments can be dangerous. It could probably be said that the first set of words and feelings come from the dark side and the second set comes from the opposite. Sometimes a bit of a shake up makes you realize where your spirit lies. It's way too easy to get there. It’s easy to get caught in rage and fury. It takes a strong person to wake up and move through it into the light.

I heard a talk in church a few weeks ago on forgiveness. Of course we listen and file those things away thinking they are all good words that are really just words. Then one day something comes along and hits us over the head. Suddenly it’s apparent that we should have listened a little more carefully. Life lessons sure suck.

I knew someone once very close to me that seemed to be able to move into that state of rage and fury so easily. It was frustrating to watch. I didn’t understand why. She alienated so many. I never wanted to be that. My life has been very blessed. This I know.

I found this picture of a black hole. It seems like rather an appropriate picture for the day. It’s time to move away from the vortex. This won’t last forever. The opposite of dark is light. There will be light. It will be alright.

~ Fewer Words, More Meaning ~

"The size of your success is measured by the strength of your desire; the size of your dream; and how you handle disappointment along the way." Robert Kivosaki

"There can be no deep disappointment where there is not deep love." Martin Luther King, Jr.

“The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I'm letting these quotes be my blog today.

~ Senior Prom ~

These pics speak for themselves. He was stylin'!!

The car was compliments of Gary (only for the

evening). There would have been more pictures

but I was over-ruled.

~ Ever Had One of Those Days/Weeks/Months? ~

Grumpy? Who's Grumpy? I'm NOT Grumpy!



Sometime it sort of makes you wanna...

I didn't know they really did that but wouldn't it just be nice every once in awhile?

<-- OK... I know there's sunshine out there. I feel it on my butt!

Prom, (first yes, then no, then yes..) High School Graduation for Ryan, Mono for Steph, Way TOO much overtime for Gary, and a few more hours at the desk than I was used to last month, but it's all good!

On the fun side.... I played the organ for a choir accompaniment piece on Easter. I put in way more hours of practice than usual but it was well worth the time spent.

There will be great cause to celebrate soon I hope! High School Graduation.. 30th Wedding Anniversary.. and all in the same weekend! Hopefully there will be an escape (for two) sometime in June or July.

Meanwhile...... every once in awhile there's the dark coolness of the sand ~

I'll look back on this time all too soon and remember how much fun adrenaline was.

~ Happy Valentine's Day ~

I've been checking out some of my favorite blogs today. I really shouldn't let this day get away without throwing some words out there.

I remember being in grade school and making those cute Valentine boxes out of shoe boxes and construction paper. I remember being giddy about how many little cards would fit in the box and how cool it was to get those little hearts that said stuff. It was really fun when there would be a little candy bar or a sucker taped to one. This was before the days of boyfriend/girlfriend stuff. It was all in fun.

When my kids were little I loved helping them shop for valentines for their classmates. I always made sure there was something fun to stick to each one. :)

This is such an odd and strange day in our family. You see, I still love to go out and get something just a little special for the kids....maybe just a little box of chocolate samplers and a cute card. This year I went to Target and got their favorite Choxie truffles. Yumm... I finally let go of the notion of buying those little stuffed animals. I think I was loving it more than they were the last few years. I'm wondering how weird next year will be when Ryan's not here ;-( Maybe there should be a Mom care package. Hmm... yeah... I'll chase him down ~snicker~

And of course I spent some time carefully picking out a card for my sweetie. This is where it gets weird.... He randomly made a comment in front of some friends a few years ago that this was truly just a "Hallmark Holiday" that was created by the card company in collusion with the candy manufacturers to sell candy and cards, and that it was terrible that every year millions of people were shamed into taking part. Well of course word spread of his scrooginess because they work at a large company and now he has this "reputation" that is hard to break. Of course word got out to friends outside of the company also and no one really has let it go. I promise, I'm not the one instigating this!

It's time for me to help him come clean, even if perhaps he doesn't really want to. He might like this reputation but it's time for the truth. There is always a card on our anniversary among other treasures. On this day there have been flowers or chocolates, and sometimes both. Today it was lunch at Applebee's! Tonight I will make the family's favorite lasagna. Guess what? That works for me!! I have been sufficiently spoiled many other days of the year. Those of you who know me know that I truly speak the Truth!

I Love You Gary Wood! You Rock My World!

Happy * Day

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I saw this on two of those favorite blogs. Feel free to cut and paste and pass it on with your own answers. It was good for a giggle or two.....

YOUR REAL NAME: Trudy
YOUR GANGSTA NAME (1st 4 letters plus izzle): Trudizzle
YOUR DETECTIVE NAME (fave color + fave animal): Purple Dog
YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME (middle name + childhood street): Ann Fairmont
YOUR STAR WARS NAME (last 3 letters of your last name + first 2 letters of your first name + first 3 letters of Mom's maiden name): Oodtrwar
YOUR SUPER HERO NAME (2nd fave color + fave drink): Yellow D. Pepsi (ewww….)
YOUR IRAQI NAME (2nd letter of your first name + 3rd letter of your last name + any letter of your middle name + 2nd letter of your Mom's maiden name + 3rd letter of your Dad's middle name + 1st letter of a sibling's first name + last letter of your Mom's middle name): Ronarby
YOUR WITNESS PROTECTION PROGRAM NAME (Grandma/Grandpa's first name + Jones): Minnie Jones
YOUR GOTH NAME (Black + name of one of your pets): Black Cosmo (sounds like a wicked drink!)

~ Cause Baby, It's Cold Outside ~

I have this 4-legged friend named Cosmo pictured with one of his neighborhood friends. We visit Sadie (the black one) almost daily. Cosmo really gets rather anxious without a daily walk. He loves to meet up with his dog acquaintences along the path as I enjoy meeting up with "their people". Many of us don't know each other's names but we know each other's dog's names. Now in addition to being Ryan and Steph's Mom, or Gary's wife, I'm also known as Cosmo's Mom.

I've tried to maintain a schedule of walking with him at least 5 to 6 days per week. We've been doing this since last March. Some days we walk with a friend and her dog and some days we just go solo. Those are good days to take an IPOD. I've tried to continue these walks even at 10 degress. I rarely see other fools on the paths when it's that cold, except the ducks and Canadian geese.

I realized one day last week that the more bundled up I was, the more likely I was to walk with my head down. I really wasn't looking at the beauty around me. It's too easy to turn inside yourself and not get the full benefit of being in the moment.... Once I realized what I was doing, I challenged myself to take my camera the next day and try to capture the season. I recall a blog of someone dear to me that took his camera on a jog with him. It was fun to see through his eyes for just a moment.

I'm sure I will look back on these pictures next July when it is again 103 degrees and remember the feeling of my nose hairs freezing backwards as I breathe. Also, that non feeling in my face and my eyelids hurting. Hmm...... why am I doing this again?

I do love these pathways though...... I love these scenes.

Believe It! Boise State 43, Oklahoma 42!!

This was the headline in the Idaho Statesman on January 2nd, 2007. We Won The Fiesta Bowl!!!!! Pictured is our quarterback, Jared Zabransky. Having attended Boise State it would be wrong of me NOT to blog this! WHAT A GAME!!

This has been called the game of the century and I can believe it. I watched the whole game, which is not something I normally do. This was an amazing game to watch though! We had some friends that attended it, along with 20,000 other Bronco fans, and they had a blast! I lost track of how many planes and busloads made the trip to Glendale, Arizona. I wish we could have made the trip, but timing and circumstances made it wiser to not.

Oklahoma really didn't take them very seriously. They have a bigger school, they've been to 40 bowl games, and they've won 7 national championships. We haven't. But this year we are undefeated!

We were up, we were down, then with 7 seconds left in the game we were tied. Zabransky faked a pass while handing off behind his back to Ian Johnson, who ran it into the end zone for the win! The interviews after were awesome to watch. Coach Peterson just glowed! Then the interiew with Ian Johnson took a romantic turn. With his head cheerleader girlfriend at his side the interviewer said, "Don't you have something to ask her?" He turned and got down on one knee and proposed! What a great end to a great game!!

Congratulations BSU!! Happy New Year!!!

~ And More ~

I couldn't resist..... perhaps I should wait until I have more to post, but this picture took me by suprise. Stephanie had this posted on her myspace page tonight and I kind of borrowed/stole it. I've posted enough of those proud football pictures of Ryan. This one spoke to me. They are growing up just way too fast!

Happy New Year Friends and Family! Here's to a Safe, Happy and Healthy 2007!!!

Love, Trudy

~ Yet More Pics ~ Mom's Brag Book ~

This is for those Christmas cards that already got sent out.... And my kids will NOT be happy with me that they've been exposed to the blog world.... But then they don't read my blog anyway. I know you've already seen football pictures but this one was from Senior night. A lot of stress and worry went into making this picture happen. (Yeah I know, it shows!)

There will be another Senior picture in the spring that I will share later.

We are really proud of Ryan. He was awarded the "Coaches Award" at the end of the year banquet, for his teamwork, and willing to go the extra mile. There is only one of these awards per year. It was a very pleasant suprise. He worked hard to make it happen.

Stephanie hates this picture. This is what's going in the year book and therefore it's already going to be published. I think that look on her face is rather cute, but she doesn't. Years from now when she's got crows feet, etc. she will :)

She just finished driver's training Tuesday night. She drove us home! Somehow it seems a little more nerve wracking driving home in the dark on pitch black back country roads but she did OK. I'll will attemp not to freak out or faint as MY mother did on me. Yes, in fact, I did cause my Mom to faint in the back seat on one of my first drives. I was thankful that my Dad was sitting next to me and was the calm man that he was. Neither of us knew why she was suddenly so quiet, but we continued on our drive in the pleasance of peace and quiet. It wasn't until we got home that we realized she had passed out. Hmm...... My goal is to be calmer than that. :)

I've put the word out to these pictured individuals that we WILL have a traditional family photo completed sometime this next year. It's almost impossible to get synchronicity on this subject but it will happen.

Christmas is just around the corner! My thoughts are on Christmas present AND past. What a wonderful yet melancholy time of year.

If I don't get another blog in by the end of the year have a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

Today Is My Birthday!!

I could title this blog "Embracing Wrinkles and Life" or maybe "Marking Time". I "earned" some more crows feet and wrinkle lines this year :) I'm always thankful for birthdays. I'll never complain because God could take me seriously and take them away. Birthdays are very good things to have. A summer birthday would have been more fun to have because no one wants cake at Thanksgiving, but that's OK.

My family and I went to see "Happy Feet" today at the IMAX theater. What a fun movie to see, especially at an IMAX theater. I thought of all kinds of things I could write about after we left but now they sound cliche'. It was a very cute movie and I was amazed at the detail and expressions. Each character had a definite personality. The music was awesome! If I wanted to make up a silly theme for the whole thing I'd say "If you can't sing...... make sure you dance! Dance, dance, dance!!!! Yeah I know.... I just couldn't resist :)

We then went to McGrath's for an early dinner. Fish sounded like a welcomed relief from turkey! It's been a good day. :)

Hey, if you're reading this twinner cuz, Happy Birthday To You Too!!! Marta and I were born just an hour or so apart! It was fun sharing this day when we were growing up!

And THANK YOU Brent! Your blog was very special today! I am so very thankful that we are friends! You have taught me much too!

And thank you Gary! What a weekend! We've always given him such a bad time about our scroogy Christmas lights. He wanted to make this year better because he knew how much I love our neighborhood decorations. Yesterday while I was out and about he started stringing our new lights alone. He actually fell off of the ladder and landed on his shoulder and scratched up his face and hands on the rocks. He continued to work on the decorations submerged in bandaids and pain! This was not the price to pay for Christmas lights! We finished them finally together. He has helped to make this weekend special.

I am blessed!

Past, Present, Future...

The title of this blog says it all. I ran across this picture in one of Stephanie's artistic files. She takes beautiful pictures!

I've seen this picture before, but not as clearly as I saw it tonight. What I see is the past, present, and future...... the china pieces are from a set that my Mother and Father cherished for as many years as I can remember. I believe that these dishes were older than me! There were many Thanksgiving and Christmas meals served on this set.

I remember carefully wrapping up this sugar bowl, cup and saucer as a precious memory to bring home after my parents had passed away. The rest of the set was sent home with a granddaughter who will make her own memories along with what they bring with them.

Of course the present is reflected in the mirror behind the china. My Stephanie has a beautiful spirit..... she is the present AND the future. She is full of mischief (Oh, such mischief... ) and curiosity. The future is hers to write. :)

Being A Mom...

No pictures today..... just a great forwarded email that I wanted to share :)

BEING A MOTHER

After 21 years of marriage, My wife wanted me to take another woman out to dinner and a movie.

She said, "I love you, but I know this other woman loves you and would love to spend some time with you." The other woman that my wife wanted me to visit was my MOTHER, who has been a widow for 19 years, but the demands of my work and my three children had made it possible to visit her only occasionally. That night I called to invite her to go out for dinner and a movie.

"What's wrong, are you well," she asked? My mother is the type of woman who suspects that a late night call or a surprise invitation is a sign of bad news.

"I thought that it would be pleasant to spend some time with you" I responded. "Just the two of us."

She thought about it for a moment, and then said, "I would like that very much." That Friday after work, as I drove over to pick her up I was a bit nervous. When I arrived at her house I noticed that she, too, seemed to be nervous about our date. She waited in the door with her coat on. She had curled her hair and was wearing the dress that she had worn to celebrate her last wedding anniversary.

She smiled from a face that was as radiant as an angel's. "I told my friends that I was going to go out with my son, and they were impressed," she said, as she got into the car. "They can't wait to hear about our meeting."

We went to a restaurant that, although not elegant, was very nice and cozy. My mother took my arm as if she were the First Lady. After we sat down, I had to read the menu. Her eyes could only read large print. Half way through the entries, I lifted my eyes and saw Mom sitting there staring at me. A nostalgic smile was on her lips. "It was I who used to have to read the menu when you were small," she said. "Then it's time that you relax and let me return the favor," I responded.

During the dinner, we had an agreeable conversation... nothing extraordinary but catching up on recent events of each other's life. We talked so much that we missed the movie. As we arrived at her house later, she said, "I'll go out with you again, but only if you let me invite you." I agreed.

"How was your dinner date?" asked my wife when I got home. "Very nice. Much more so than I could have imagined," I answered.

A few days later, my mother died of a massive heart attack. It happened so suddenly that I didn't have a chance to do anything for her.

Some time later, I received an envelope with a copy of a restaurant receipt from the same place mother and I had dined. An attached note said: "I paid this bill in advance. I wasn't sure that I could be there; but nevertheless, I paid for two plates - one for you and the other for your wife. You will never know what that night meant for me. I love you, son."

At that moment, I understood the importance of saying in time: "I LOVE YOU" and to give our loved ones the time that they deserve. Nothing in life is more important than your family. Give them the time they deserve, because these things cannot be put off till "some other time."

Somebody said it takes about six weeks to get back to normal after you've had a baby. Somebody doesn't know that once you're a mother, "normal" is history.

Somebody said you learn how to be a mother by instinct . . . somebody never took a three-year-old shopping.

Somebody said being a mother is boring . . . somebody never rode in a car driven by a teenager with a driver's permit.

Somebody said if you're a "good" mother, your child will "turn out good" . . .somebody thinks a child comes with directions and a guarantee.

Somebody said "good" mothers never raise their voices . . . somebody never came out the back door just in time to see her child hit a golf ball through the neighbor's kitchen window.

Somebody said you don't need an education to be a mother . . . somebody never helped a fourth grader with his math.

Somebody said you can't love the second child as much as you love the first . . . somebody doesn't have two children.

Somebody said a mother can find all the answers to her child-rearing questions in the books . . . somebody never had a child stuff beans up his nose or in his ears.

Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother is labor and delivery . . . somebody never watched her "baby" get on the bus for the first day of kindergarten . . . or on a plane headed for military "boot camp."

Somebody said a mother can do her job with her eyes closed and one hand tied behind her back somebody never organized seven giggling Brownies to sell cookies.

Somebody said a mother can stop worrying after her child gets married . . .somebody doesn't know that marriage adds a new son or daughter-in-law to a mother's heartstrings.

Somebody said a mother's job is done when her last child leaves home . . . somebody never had grandchildren.

Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so you don't need to tell her . . . somebody isn't a mother.

This isn't just about being a mother. It's about appreciating the people in your life while you have them.... no matter who that person is.

~Consumed by Football, Work, and Life~

The second picture was taken from the Idaho Statesman archives. This was the week that Ryan was the team captain. He's looking all too serious. Stephanie teases him about looking like a terrorist. In fact, for some reason he's decided that he will not cut his hair or his beard until football is over because it would be bad luck. So far, it doesn't feel like it's given him that much "good" luck. It has gotten some attention though.

OK so maybe I disappeared for just a little while.? I will try to write when I have write-worthy things. I'll try not to write when I'm feeling too scattered to the wind... which is what I've been. The last few weeks have been a flurry! We've been in the midst of football season and trying to keep things lined up between grades, and schedules. We had "Senior Night" on the football field last Friday, yes that would be the 13th. It was a surreal experience to meet our player on the 50 yard line as he was introduced. Pictures will follow and I will try to share (if they are share worthy). It was very cool....

And meanwhile, back at the Wood house, I started a new job. I'm now officially employed and working 4 hour days. My brain hasn't quite caught up to my body yet. I truly didn't think 4 hours would be such a shock, but I'm finding myself having to write everything down at home and at work for fear of forgetting things. Simple things! I'm feeling very disorganized in an organized way lately. The person I am working for is a very nice person. He is a commercial property broker. Initially I was to be a bookkeeper. It looks like I will be learning more about listing services and postings. This could be a lot of fun! More on this later....

And Here's Another One :)

Oh, and yes there was a cake fight....