March 24th is Jessica's birthday. We have a wonderful video when she was a little girl talking about how her birthday was on a "Good Friday". She was almost an Easter bunny baby.
Jessica and her boyfriend Tommy came home for a visit this weekend. Jennifer and Mia were here also, because Rex had to go out of town.
Catherine was missing from my nest.
We ate grilled steak and veggies, and played croquet, and Mia dyed and hunted eggs. It was a very nice weekend and I loved spending every minute with my girls and their families and my parents.
Here are some pics I took.
And if you have time, are interested and don't have dial up internet, here are some videos I took. The background noise from the motorcycles next door is VERY annoying!
Easter and Birthday Weekend
Monday, March 24, 2008
Posted by Jami at 11:04 PM 0 comments
My Little Ponies
When Jessica was a little girl, she loved "My Little Ponies". She played with them for hours on end. Every pony had a name and a story, and a voice. Through life changes, some pony items are gone, but there is one box that remained. I got the box down from the closet the other night and Mia is now LOVING the ponies.
Here are some clips I took. And yes, in one of the clips, it does look like a pony graveyard........but they are only sleeping, not dead!
My Little Ponies 3/17/08
Posted by Jami at 10:49 AM 2 comments
Old Age, I decided, is a gift.
Saturday, March 08, 2008
This was actually an email I got from a friend...........I believe it speaks loudly to me. So, I decided to copy and paste an email on my blog. There is a first time for everything I guess!
I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I have
always wanted to be. Oh, not my body! I sometime despair over my body,
the wrinkles, the baggy eyes, and the sagging butt. And often I am
taken aback by that old person that lives in my mirror, but I don't
agonize over those things for long.
I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving
family for less gray hair or a flatter belly. As I've aged, I've
become more kind to myself, and less critical of myself.. I've become
my own friend.
I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making
my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but
looks so avante garde on my patio. I am entitled to a treat, to be
messy, to be extravagant.
I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before
they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.
Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until
4 AM and sleep until noon?
I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60 & 70's,
and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love .... I will.
I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging
body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to,
despite the pitying glances from the jet set . They, too, will get old.
I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just
as well forgotten. And I eventually remember the important things.
Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not
break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when
somebody's beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what
give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never
broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being
imperfect.
I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning
gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep
grooves on my face. So many have never laughed, and so many have died
before their hair could turn silver.
As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about
what other people think. I don't question myself anymore. I've even
earned the right to be wrong.
So, to answer your question, I like being old. It has set me free. I
like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever, but
while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have
been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every
single day. (If I feel like it)
Posted by Jami at 5:01 PM 1 comments
Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band
Friday, March 07, 2008
Tonight I had the pleasure of going with Joanne McCay and Sheryl Stephenson to Cypress Community Church (which by the way, is the church where I got married) to see Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band. We went and had pedi's and mani's and Sheryl got her hair cut, and then we had a fabulous dinner at a place I use to eat many many moons ago, called "Clementine's". They use to be a burger joint with the best cheddar cheese soup EVER, and now they are a little more "up scale". But, Becky A............I FINALLY got my boiled shrimp!
Anyway, back to the Big Phat Band, truth be told, not following the jazz scene, I had never heard of them.............but man can they blow! Kind of a combination of big band and jazz.
Watching them brought back a lot of great memories of good times I had being a full blown band nerd, in high school and my earlier college year.
There are several clips of the performing songs on YouTube......... I hope you enjoy, because I know we sure did!
Thanks Joanne for a great time!
Posted by Jami at 11:36 PM 1 comments
Rob and Cindy
Monday, March 03, 2008
I have talked in past blogs about friends and family and about friends who become family. I have yet to mention Rob and Cindy Schmid. Yep, I spelled the last name right, it is NOT "Schmidt".........the "t" is not there on purpose. Anyway I met Cindy I believe about 15 years ago, we were both band booster officers. Cindy and I chaperoned a band trip and I think we actually had more fun than the kids did. I remember being asked by the band directors to "keep it down a little" at an outside dinner! A terrible tragedy fell on one of our band directors, and as officers, we ended up putting in more time than normal. (I will not elaborate on this tragedy more)
One thing leads to another.........
Then a few years later, a tragedy happened in my life, and for what ever reason, I turned to Cindy first. We were friends, but, nothing like "BFF". I have since told her, I think I turned to her first because she was "safe". (I will not elaborate on this tragedy more either).
One thing leads to another............
At some point, Cindy and her husband Rob,their son Taylor, Catherine and Jessica and I start doing some "adventures in dining". We went to a Persian restaurant (smoked a bong!), we went to a Russian restaurant (had borscht) , we went to a Brazilian restaurant(most expensive meal I have ever eaten, and one of the best), and we went to an Asian restaurant(they served us a fried fish with his head still attached, sitting upright on the plate like he was swimming and it had a red sauce poured over it, it looked like blood....I did not eat that). Several of these were very international experiences. When we went to the Russian restaurant, we had an authentic Russian dine with us. He worked with Rob and Cindy and was here in the US learning to be a fish farmer. (Oh, by the way, that is what Rob does for a living).
One thing leads to another.............
When I went white water rafting in Colorado, I rode with them all the way there and back. Now, if you have ever been in the car with me for any length of time, you know that can not be an easy thing for them! I HATE riding in the car. They graciously let me ride in the back, with all of my pillows and sleep all I wanted! Possibly more important than that, they let me listen to HOURS of John Denver as we were leaving Colorado! Now, that IS friendship!
One thing leads to another.................
Through them I have met some wonderful couples, with whom I have since camped and kayaked, and canoed and spent Fourth of July and New Years and birthdays with. They call their group the "EGGS".......which is the last name initials of the core families who camp and canoe together (Elbert, Goetzman, Garcia, Schmid). (They all have sons who have since all become Eagle Scouts).
One thing leads to another.................
One year, Cindy, Becky (see older posts) and I took a road trip and drove to New Orleans just to eat at Emril Lagassi's (spelling?)restaurant. Now I have known Becky seems like forever, and by now, I have know Cindy really well, but, these two do not know each other at all. Often, mixing friends can be like mixing oil and vinegar. Truth be told, I wondered how it would work out. Catherine, being the wise old soul that she is said "Mom, how can anyone not like Mrs. Schmid ?". I thought it was funny in retrospect that she did not say that about Becky! (and I of course told this to Becky). We had a SUPER time! And, again, being the friends that they are, they let me ride in the back seat with all of my pillows!
One thing leads to another.................
When Catherine was a senior in high school, she decided that Rob and Cindy needed more of a special designation than just friends, so she declared them her "God parents". She even thanked her "God parents" in her salutatory speech at her high school graduation.
One thing leads to another.................
When Jennifer married this past December, she asked Rob to be the master of ceremonies, I guess you could say. What ever it is you call the person who keeps things at the reception moving forward. She asked Cindy to be in charge of decorating the reception area. The hours Cindy spent planning and creating and designing and building was beyond words, even for me. This couple, these wonderful friends, took more than two days of their lives to travel and work and be a part of my daughters special day. They worked their tails off, and without them there supporting me, well, I would not have made it.
One thing leads to another......................
I love this wonderful, fun, exciting, adventurous couple.
Rob has applied for a job near San Marcos. He would be perfect for this job. I work hard every day, trying to be the friend to them that they have been to me, by praying that he gets this job. It would mean they move away. It would mean a big hole in my life. It could mean the world to them.
So, if one thing truly leads to another, my prayers will lead them to this job, a new town, new friends, and new adventures.
Posted by Jami at 9:15 PM 3 comments