Fleeting

We have a tree in our backyard. It blooms once a year. Early Spring.

The tree is full of yellow flowers for just a few weeks. Then, slowly, the flowers begin to fall to the ground and the brilliance of color is gone until next Spring.

This is what the tree looked like 4 years ago. I was 9 months pregnant with my Abby Grace.


This tree had fallen over in the hurricanes during the Summer of 2004.

We lost several trees in our backyard that Summer...






All of them were cut up and taken away.

But, for some reason we decided to use some stakes to prop up the tree with yellow flowers. It continues to bloom every Spring.

This is what it looked like this year.


I'm so happy when the tree is blooming. We see it each time we drive into the neighborhood and the yellow flowers remind me that my favorite season has finally arrived.


The flowers don't last for very long so I've learned to appreciate them while they are here.




And, sadly, they fall just a few weeks after they have bloomed.

However, I am blessed with a precious girl. She LOVES flowers just as much as her Mama. And she has been so excited for Spring with all her talk of flowers blooming, bees buzzing, and warm sunshiney days ahead.

So we ventured outside one afternoon to enjoy the last of those pretty yellow flowers...




She gathered them up in her hands.


And then she threw them up into the air!


She giggled as they fell all around her so we did it again and again!






I've never been happier that we kept that tree.

The Good Life

Matt and I went to the first Gator game of the season on Saturday. It was a 12:30 game vs. Hawaii.

12:30.

End of August.

Oppressive heat. Sudden rain showers. Then it becomes muggy, oppressive heat.

So, we attended the game the only way I'd be willing.

That would be indoors with some air conditioning.

Oh, I love the screaming fans and the atmosphere of the stadium - we experienced it for years as students there. But now I'm old and tired and not willing to start drinking at 10 in the morning on game day.

For the past few seasons we've been able to sit in the box (courtesy of Matt's company) for one game each season. It's not quite the same as sitting in the stadium, but in my book the pros easily outweigh the cons. So with tickets in hand we lined up Grandma and Grandpa to babysit and headed to our Alma Mater.


The box is a pretty fancy way to watch a game. There's lots of yummy food, snacks, desserts, and drinks. It's all free and it's all you can eat! The view is great and the air conditioning is like heaven on earth.

How many more times do you think I will mention the air conditioning?

Anyway, Ed (the man who organizes the company box for our little group - he's awesome) caught me walking back to the box with my second plate of food and asked me if I was having fun. I'm pretty sure I replied, "This is the life I was meant to live."

I'm nothing if not straight to the point.

Another great thing about the box is there are several tickets available that allow friends and family to come sit in the box during the 4th quarter. Matt was able to grab two, so we invited Anna and Kyle to join us for the 4th quarter of the game.

The arrangements were all made through about a dozen text messages - my first attempt at ever texting anyone (sad, I know). It was quite exciting and I'm sure it will soon be a new addiction. I was using Matt's Blackberry and at one point I looked over at him lovingly and said, "Yeah, I'm going to need to get me one of these things."

We had a great time with Anna and Kyle. They were ecstatic to be out of the aforementioned muggy, oppressive, I feel like I can barely breathe heat.

They were also more than a little pleased to have access to free beer.

Oh, to be young again.



Oh, and yes, there was a football game. A little one. Involving our beloved Gators and the amazing Tim Tebow. The final score was 56-10 so there were lots of reasons to cheer. And sitting next to Matt is fun because he knows all the player names and backgrounds so he fills me in on all the good stuff.

I used to know all of this important Gator information and then I gave birth to my children. And now I'm required to remember their names and background and stuff.

Child rearing is very complicated, you see.

Anyway, we've got an awesome team this year and Matt is thrilled because he'll be spending lots of Saturdays up in Gainesville this season.

It's great to be a Florida Gator!

Always has been and always will be.

Now She's Probably Wondering If We Brush Our Teeth With Shaving Cream.

My mom came over to babysit Abby today for a few hours.

When I got home she took the opportunity to go the the restroom - alone.

That's quite a luxury in our house. You might get to be in there alone, but little kiddos are always right outside the door just begging to come in.

Anyway, she walked out of the bathroom and went to the kitchen to wash her hands. I wondered why she was washing her hands in the kitchen when we happen to have a perfectly good sink in the bathroom, but two small people were jumping on me and whatever her answer might be just didn't seem that important.

She sat down on the couch and asked me, "Since when are we washing our hands with shampoo?"

Ummm...what?

"There's no soap next to the bathroom sink," she continued, "only shampoo."

I sent Drew to the bathroom to bring me the "soap" (it's so convenient to have little people who are willing to fetch things from all over the house) and, sure enough, he brought me this -





In case you can't read the writing it says, "Instant-foam, Easy-rinse shampoo"

My kids have been using shampoo to wash their hands for at least a week.

Just thought you all should know that.

As you were...

Perhaps If I Didn't Live So Close To The Equator...

Oh my word, it is hot here. I don't know what the rest of the country's weather is like right now because my DVR is not set to tape the news, but I can't imagine that it could be anywhere near as hot as it is in Florida. And if it is then I'm still not impressed. Any Floridian worth their salt would be able to explain the difference of "Florida hot" to you. It's steamy. It's oppressive. It's humid.

It's miserable.

And I've lived here all my life.

And I'm still not used to it.

Despite what you might assume based on my physical appearance, I'm a delicate flower. Truly, a fragile, delicate flower. I'm freezing if the weather dips below 65 and I'm unbelievably hot once it goes above 85. It's not at all comforting to know that there is absolutely nowhere on this earth I could live year-round and be happy about it.

As you can imagine, living with me is a dream. Just ask my husband.

So, I'm an indoor girl. Always have been and always will be. It's a huge sacrifice these days just to take my kids outside to play. I cannot even imagine if they played sports, you know, outside. I've decided that I'm limiting all my children's activities to indoor sports.

I'd love to be able to tell you I'm kidding.

I've already done the soccer thing with my brother and sister. My brother had the good sense to stand off to the side and play with the grass while the other crazy, red-faced kids chased that ball around for what seemed like hours. My sister, on the other hand, ended up joining a traveling team (I think that meant she was good) and we spent our weekends in different cities around the state of Florida slowing melting to death while she chased a ball up and down a field.

With no trees.

Which meant no shade.

Which meant certain heat exhaustion.

The only redeeming part of those weekends was heading to the air-conditioned sanctuary of Olive Garden or Chili's for the big team meal.

Anyway, I've kind of deviated from the original intent of this post.

Which is to say it's hot. And it's only May. And there are at least 5 months before it will get any better at all. For the time being, it will just get worse.

And one of the most annoying things to me is the women who walk around looking like the heat doesn't bother them at all. We were at Sea World on Friday for a field trip. It had rained a little that morning so it felt like we were walking inside a sauna for the rest of the day. It was finally time to leave (read: I couldn't take it anymore) and I was pushing the double stroller towards the exit and dreading the long car ride home. My hair was in a pony tail, my cheeks were flushed, there were assorted sweat stains all over my shirt (just keepin' it real), and I'm certain that the look on my face was one of utter misery. We ran into one of the teachers from the school. Her blond hair was down and brushed, her sunglasses were perched atop her head, her make-up was perfect, her outfit was adorable - she looked cool as a cucumber. I don't know how she did it.

But, I do know one thing. That will never be me.

I am a delicate flower and I wilt in this oppressive heat.

Heat that reached 103 degrees on the car thermometer that day on the way home from Sea World.

And, I do realize that Florida isn't all that close to the Equator.

But, compared to the rest of the United States it really is.

So, there.

The Vacation That The Blog Forgot...

Ahem...

So, Matt and I went on vacation last month. To Colorado. For the skiing. Without the kids.

I meant to write about our trip, but I just haven't gotten around to it. Last year, Matt kept asking me to send out pictures from our trip in an email and I never got around to that either.

Maybe I have issues about sharing pictures that don't involve my children.

We just aren't quite as cute.

However, the frigid temperatures in Central Florida this week brought back sweet memories of almost freezing to death on vacation this year.

Very sweet, indeed.

Don't get me wrong. I love skiing. I'm just a native Floridian. So, when I'm drinking my hot chocolate in the morning and the weather man in Beaver Creek, Colorado tells me it's -4 degrees outside, well, I started worrying that 64 layers of clothing just wouldn't be enough.

And, it wasn't.

This was our second annual (and last annual) ski trip with good friends of ours (with an awesome bonus couple this year). The ladies and I spent much of the trip planning the cruise we'll take this year for vacation. You know, with the sun and it's glorious warmth.

But, I do love the mountains. There is nothing like being at the top of one of the mountains and taking in the exquisite views around you. And, I've loved skiing since I was a little girl on our family vacations. So, Matt stepped out of his comfort zone to take me on my favorite kind of vacation, and let me tell you, he turned out to be a fantastic skier. I was totally impressed.

The interesting thing about the pictures is you can't tell which year they are from since we are wearing exactly same thing.

Trust me, if you saw the price tags on those ski clothes then you'd be wearing the same thing too.

Last year, we took all manner of pictures, because, LOOK, we were skiing! This year, we realized that frostbite is a very large price to pay for something as trivial as a picture.

We are nothing if not sentimental.

So, I'm going to pick the best photos out of both trips and leave you wondering if they are from this year or last year.

I know the suspense will just take you right to the edge...



So, here's the kind of view I'm talking about. Truly amazing.





And, here we are!



Yep, that's us again. It's just too cute a picture not to share with the interweb.




Ok...down to business. Here I am skiing through some trees. It's like I'm a professional or something.



Matt skiing through the same trees.



These next pictures are right before we got snowed off the mountain in what could only be described as a blizzard. I love how sassy we look!






I stopped halfway down a trail to take this next picture of Beaver Creek Village, which is where we stayed.




Here is Matt doing a jump. Seriously, he did so great for a beginner. I don't think he fell at all this year. (except upon landing this jump)




And, here I am doing the same jump. It's a set of three shots, courtesy of my personal photographer, Kari.

Please hold all applause until the end.

The only shot she didn't get was me wiping out .3 seconds later.

I think I'll call my travel agent...those cruise ships might be getting booked for the summer already.

Y'all, It Was Bad Enough to Take Some Nyquil

And, that's pretty bad because me and Nyquil - we do NOT get along. Not since the hallucination incident of 1993. But, I'm getting ahead of myself.

It all started Wednesday afternoon - a headache, sore throat, sore/achy muscles - the "oh no, I can tell I'm starting to get sick" thing. Thursday morning - same thing but each symptom a lot worse. By Thursday afternoon my mom was at my house, I was on the floor shaking with the chills and a 101 degree fever. Called the in-laws for reinforcements for Friday because I already knew there was no way I would be able to take care of my children. Straight to bed when Matt got home (with a Percocet courtesy of an unnamed source).

I stayed in bed all day Friday - hurting too much to even watch TV. Just laying in the darkened room and hoping the kids were behaving. The percocet was helping a little but not enough, and the headache had turned into a migraine and the fever was now 102 degrees. My mom and sister convinced me I needed to head to the ER for some serious meds and my mom got me there at 11:30pm. Thankfully, we were called back quickly and I was hooked up to some morphine which did nothing for the migraine. Strep test - negative, mono test - negative, ear infection - negative, urinary tract infection - negative, CT scan - negative. Next step was Delaudin for the pain and that finally put me to sleep so at least I wasn't aware of the constantpaininmyhead. The doctor came in to inform me that he had to do a spinal tap since I was exhibiting 4 of the 5 symptoms for meningitis.

Nice.

That too, was negative. They gave me another dose of Delaudin and then my little brother picked me up at 5:30am in the pouring rain. I was more than a little drugged. He said it was kind of like I had Tourette's.

Nice.

He took me back to my mom's house for a day of recovery (with more prescribed medication). My mom had to work that day, but this is what happens when I'm at home and I lay down on the floor for a bit of rest from the PAIN THAT IS IN MY HEAD!!!

Doesn't exactly have the same effect that the Delaudin did.

Anyway, fast forward to tonight. All is better except for a pesky cold that I have generously shared with my poor, poor son. We cannot stop coughing.

Seriously. Cannot. Stop. Coughing.

So desperate am I for sleep that I turn to my old enemy - NyQuil. This stuff makes me hallucinate and it tastes downright awful (Matt insists the liquid works better than the pills). I took it and slept for about five hours. It has since worn off and now the coughing prevents sleep. So, it's 4am and Drew and I have been up for hours now. The only sounds in our house are coughing, typing, and Curious George as the rest of the world sleeps because the annoying, constant, painful, constant, head-hurting, constant coughing is not keeping them awake.

Sweet Dreams...

My Girls

Truth be told, I'm an introvert. I re-charge my batteries best when I'm on my own and there is peace and quiet surrounding me. Don't get me wrong - I love, love, love the people in my life. However, it always seems as if I'm looking for that excuse to just have a few minutes to myself. Alone. Quiet. Peaceful. I don't mind the silence - I crave it. And, if something stressful happens, my very best friends would tell you that I retreat into my own little world and they have to pull me out of my little cocoon to talk about it. Once I'm talking, I'm good. It's just that connecting with the outer world is too much for me sometimes. (of course my husband would probably tell you that I never stop talking....but, whatEVer!)

On my mind lately have been my truly wonderful friendships that sustain me. As I continue in this life, I realize more and more how very important it is to have GOOD girlfriends that you can count on. I have these friendships in so many ways and without using any names (but with pictures!) I want to describe my girls...

Family, of course, is so very important and I am truly blessed in this department. My sister is one of my best friends. We are more alike than we are different and that can be good and bad. But, as we've gotten older we've become closer and closer and I am so proud of the woman she is becoming. I can depend on her whenever I need someone in my corner and I know she feels the same about me. We just share that wavelength. Plus, she is great with my kids and they love her!

My sister-in-law is just like a sister to me and one of the hardest working and loving people that I know. She is so thoughtful and supportive and I just feel so lucky to have her as a part of my life. The only thing that would be better is if we lived in the same city - we have so many things in common and it would be wonderful to share our lives on a daily basis - maybe, one day...

My playgroup girls are next. I met these women in my Lamaze class before I had Drew. Most of us became stay at home moms and the friendships began. Nothing connects you like having a child (your first child) be the same age. To illustrate my introvert ways: We had a little party when the babies were six weeks old so we could finally meet each other's babies. Drew was terrible in the car at this age (the party was across town) and we were so stressed with adjusting to life with a new baby that I told Matt I couldn't handle going to the party.

See, I just retreat into my own little world.

Thankfully, a few months later I joined in on a playgroup and I was hooked immediately. We are all so different but have such a strong link that we get along amazingly - going on four years now! We used to see each other on a weekly basis, but with all the kids in school it is few and far between these days. Whenever we get together though we have a blast and the kids love each other. And we all know we are there for each other when needed.

There are girls who now live far away and our lives have become more separate because of the distance. One, in particular, is still a wonderful friend even though we don't talk as often as we would like. We were roommates in college and there is nobody who can make me laugh like she can. And, there is no comparison to the thoughtfulness and compassion and empathy she has brought into my life. She is one of the best listeners I have ever met, and she is a friend in the truest sense of the word. I miss her so much and I really wish we could live closer. Our husbands are great friends and the four of us recently spent the day together and had SO MUCH FUN! I miss having her in my daily life.

My scrapbook girls - the treasures of my heart, these women are. I get alot done when I scrapbook by myself, but I have so much more fun when I scrapbook with my girls. Our leader is the most optimistic and positive person you would ever meet. She is gifted with generosity and overflowing with love and you can't help but be happy in her presence - and her life is filled with trials, believe you me. You would never know it though - she is that full of joy.

My most constant scrapbooking girl is actually a former teacher of mine. What can you say about the one person who inspired you to choose the career that you did? This woman was a HUGE influence on my life as a young adult and she is now a much-loved friend that I cannot imagine my life without. She has touched the lives of countless people with her faith and acceptance and wisdom and love. I, of course, am one of her very favorites. We all spent a recent 3-day weekend together scrapbooking with lots of other ladies and that is when I first began thinking about this post. I was working through some issues and began to tell the ladies around me (including the above ladies) what had been weighing on my mind. Before I knew it, they had all put down the stickers and photos and they were just listening to me - fully. I felt so loved and understood in only the way that good girlfriends can make you feel. I was just so grateful to have friends who cared about my world so much. It makes such a difference.

And then there is my scrapbooking girl who is the greatest Christian influence in my life. We have such a blast when we are together - no matter what we are doing. But, there are also these fantastic quiet times when I am able to seek her advice and guidance in a biblical sense. She is a light shining for Jesus in this world and it makes such an impact on my life. Our kids love each other and our husbands are good friends - it has all the makings for a lifelong friendship that I am so grateful to have.

And, I've saved a very special group of girls for last - the girls I've known the longest (and who still put up with me!) There are four of us and these are truly my girls. I am so fantastically lucky to have these girls who I've known for practically my whole life. We were best friends in high school and we are best friends today. We have a regular girl's night out and we have play dates with our multitude of children - with two more babies on the way! One of them is the one who was always there for me with "boy problems" in high school and we shared more secrets over a dessert called death by chocolate than I would ever care to admit. One of them is that one person who knows the best when I need to be pulled out of my little cave to talk about things that are stressing me out. She was there for me recently in a HUGE way that I will never, ever forget. She is a rock for me, truly. And, finally, there is the one I have been best friends with since I was five years old. We have been through it all together and she is the very best friend I have ever had. She is a generous person - beyond belief, and she has a huge heart. The sheer number of experiences that I can retrieve from old memories make me teary at how much we have shared of each other's lives. Oh, these girls are so nice to still love me. We were inseparable in high school and then all ended up at the same college. They stayed close, but I drifted away. Not on purpose, it just kind of happened. We all live close now, and they accepted me back into the group without a thought or judgement. It has been like this for years now. Watching each other's children grown and sharing secrets that only girls can during a night out. We've been there for the highs and the lows and we aren't going anywhere for a long time.

If you are still here with me at the end of this sappy post then I thank you for sharing in my celebration of my girlfriends. I could not be sane without these women in my life, and I want each of them to know how very much they mean to me.

Rock on, Sisters!!

They Sure Don't Let You Do This Anymore...

I was scrapbooking a recent Sea World trip this weekend and it brought back memories of this picture that I just begged Matt to pull out of the attic.

Yep, that's me! Couldn't tell you how old I am, but it had to be the 80's with that rockin' outfit! My dad used to be Sea World's attorney so we got all kinds of perks - this had to be the best one! I can still vividly remember the freezing water and the feel of the whale's rubbery skin. I don't think it even occurred to me to be afraid.

Anyway, it was a fun memory so I just thought I would share!

My Super Stylin' Sporty Minivan

Heavens to mercy - has it been a crazy week! Oh wait, the week is only halfway over...can't wait to see what else is in store! It started out innocently enough - my husband decided to wash cars on Sunday because the van had gotten to the point where you worry about people using their finger to write "wash me" on your back windshield. An impending thunderstorm drove him back inside to watch golf, so my super-cool minivan remained filthy. It's just as well because now my van looks like this...

Actually, it looks much worse than this now - but, I don't want to get ahead of myself.

We packed up the van Monday and headed to the other side of town to a consignment shop that wanted to give me tons of money for old baby things that were cluttering up my house. The store wasn't open when we got there so we made a quick trip inside Toys R Us for a fantastic sale they were having (got to replace that clutter!) Anyway, we pulled onto the road that runs in front of the stores (let me emphasize - it was the main road that had the right of way) and all of a sudden there was a white car on the hood of my van. Pure terror - I cannot even begin to describe the feelings of pure terror that went through me, though I continue to re-live it in my mind. The car flew out of nowhere - I didn't see it until I had crashed into it, and I don't remember it flipping over, but there it was, on it's roof when we finally skidded to a stop.

With little thought about the other driver I ran to Abby's door because I needed to get her out of the car rightthatverysecond! She was screaming, but thankfully she was unharmed - just scared (and probably a little annoyed that this maniac had interrupted the Cinderella movie she was watching). Several bystanders had called 911 and two fire trucks, two ambulances, and three police cars were there within minutes (I called Matt while we waited). The other driver had crawled out from under his car and appeared to be fine.


Just as the paramedics were taking us to the ambulance to check on Abby, a bystander who had waited with us (he had heard the accident while inside the Borders next to us) brought over a lady who had witnessed the accident. God bless this woman for being willing to come forward with what she saw because Lord knows she's received more than her fair share of calls from insurance companies over the past few days. She told the police that the man in the other car was "flying" and that the lady "didn't have a chance." Can I get an Amen?


Ugh - I was on the main road and this guy was coming out from the row of parking spots. His defense was "I didn't have a stop sign." So, he was going straight across this little intersection and decided he needn't even slow down since no one thought it prudent to actually put a stop sign in a place where common sense dictates you STOP! And, he was going fast because I never even saw him coming - he was just there - scaring the living daylights out of me and my baby girl. The police did determine he was "at fault" and he received a citation for "failure to drive with due care." You think?


Matt and my good friend Kari arrived at the very same time to rescue us. Kari loaded most of my consignment junk in her car and then let Abby play with her kids while Matt and I took care of all the "business" that comes with an accident. Police report, towing company, insurance reports, etc.


Fast forward past all the boring stuff to the more interesting updates. I went to visit my car at the insurance place and it looked so much worse. The whole fender was hanging off of the car - exposing all the insides that are crucial to actually getting the car to run. I just knew it was worse than we thought, and that was confirmed later - the estimate was over $15, 000 in damage and a month to make all the repairs. I'll let you digest that for a minute...


Ok, on with it now because there haven't been any breaks for us. I'm going to spare you more of the insurance junk that has caused lots of stress for us and get to the bottom line. They still haven't gotten this guy's car insurance company to admit 100% responsibility so we are still waiting to see how this will all work out (and we have now enlisted my famous father as our attorney).


Abby has been to her doctor and appears to be in perfect health. I'm very sore (as you would imagine) so I visited my doctor this morning. He's going to see me again next week to keep track of how the sore ribs and back are healing, but he's more worried about my head. The man thinks I have a concussion. This is embarrassing, but hilarious, so I will share. He began by asking me to perform some subtraction. "What's 7 from 100?" I got that one right - 93. He did about half a dozen more and I'm pretty sure I got them all wrong. At one point I asked for a calculator because my husband is an accountant for crying out loud and he still needs a calculator for simple math. No calculator was forthcoming so he moved onto other questions, "What does it mean if I say don't cross the bridge before you come to it?" I had a pretty good answer for this that seemed satisfactory to him. Then he asked, "What does it mean when you say a rolling stone gathers no moss?" Ummm, I really didn't know this one (even before the accident) so I rambled for a few minutes before he motioned for me to stop just making things up (Mom, I'm blaming you for this lack of knowledge - Matt has now explained it to me and I discovered I didn't do all that bad with my rambling answer). To break the tension, I blamed my shortcomings on "baby brain" and said I was willing to discuss the age old question that every mother struggles with: Huggies or Pampers? He didn't seem interested, but a few minutes later when he asked me what I preferred I could not figure out for the life of me what the heck he was talking about. I was diagnosed with a mild concussion. This didn't bother Matt, who promptly drove the rental car to work and left me to care for his two children. Let's all pray for my kids...


This has been long, I know. But, you also have no idea how much I have left out, so you are really getting the short version of the story. Everyone is fine and that is the most important thing - I really am so grateful that we (especially my Abby) were not more seriously injured. Abby has been telling everyone that her blue car has a "boo boo" and she will kiss it to make it better - that is, if we ever get it back.


And, in case you were still wondering...Pampers all the way!! :)