The Theme is Imperfection

This time of year, I find photos in magazines of the "perfect Christmas tree". They are themed and beautiful and perfect. I am a person who LOVES a theme, but somehow this has never worked out on our Christmas tree. As much as part of me would love the color coordination and symmetry, I can't bring myself to create one that looks that way.
As I open the drawers where I store our ornaments, I find ones that we purchased in our travels: Hawaii, Alaska, Banff, the East Coast, Brianhead, Mexico and more. I find the homemade ones from my children where they used too much glue or wrote in an unsteady six year old hand. I find the ones with photos of my kids and grandkids that captured a moment in time never to be relived. I find the most hideous and rudimentary craft ability ones that I can't bear to toss as they were made by my sweet aunt and godmother, long dead. And they each have a spot on the tree.
My life is not perfect. Our tree is not perfect, but it is OUR tree. It speaks to who we are as a family. It remind us of fun moments we shared. It reminds us that love and people matter. It reminds us that who we are today, is partially because of where we went, who we met, and what we experienced together.
Actually, now that I think about it, it is perfect!

Long Time...No Blog

I borrowed the title of this blog from my BFF who also said it had been a long time since she blogged. Months without blogging...nothing to say or so much life, no time to say it?!

 Lots of things going on, mostly good, but, dang, life is messy too! Thank goodness it was October and the month my best friend and I take a trip. This year was a BIG one as we went all the way to the east coast for my 40th half marathon. We stayed at the Ritz Carlton and enjoyed being pampered by the hotel staff. How do they remember our names?! Kind of creepy along with classy!!

 I took this photo right before I started ,my half marathon. It was a unusually cold morning for Florida. And, while I froze waiting in the wind, I was thankful for the temperature about a half mile into the race.

 The last two tenths of the race was on the sand. It was a brutal ending, but also very memorable. My BFF was waiting at the finish line and I can't tell you how much that meant to me. I usually am solo at my races, which is fine, but when you have somebody there for you, it is the exclamation point on the 13.1 miles.

 We shopped the darling town of Amelia Island and also enjoyed some much needed down time relaxing on the beach by our hotel. Perfect weather every day, not too hot and not too cold.

 At the airport in Jacksonville, FL, they have a huge group of rocking chairs. What a fun idea for weary travelers!

We even rented a car and drove two hours to Savannah, GA and explored the city. Lunch was in a beautiful spot right on the river. We both noticed how very friendly EVERYONE was. There must be something to the "southern hospitality" people talk about as we definitely experienced it.
We spent five days laughing and talking and exploring and eating and shopping. I've said it before and I'll say it again ~ we travel well together! Lucky us!!
We are already talking about where we will go in 2017!

A Shi**y Blog

This is MY neighborhood. This is OUR neighborhood.
Yes, these are photos of dog poop!
I walk my dog two or three times a day, every day! I live in an upscale neighborhood with houses that cost a fair amount of money. I don't say this to brag, I say it to let you know how appalled I am that people do not pick up their dog's poop when they are walking them. I simply cannot understand what kind of person does this ~ thoughtless? dirty? selfish? Maybe they are perfectly lovely people in every other aspect of their life except this. Hmmm, I somehow doubt this! When my grandkids go along on the walks, I always point out the poop. I tell them that the definition of being a good citizen is doing the right thing...even when no one is looking!
This is MY neighborhood. This is OUR neighborhood.
I have a small dog which means her poops are small. I still pick them up on every walk! I buy these great bags at the dollar store (see photo). They are actually in the baby section and are scented with powder! All this for $1 and you get 75 of them!! What a deal! You don't even have to purchase poop bags. You can recycle the plastic bags you get from the grocery store and use them. For a while, someone was actually bagging up their dog's poop and then leaving it on the sidewalk, IN THE BAG!! This means they bent down, scooped it up but didn't take it with them. I know it was the same person because it was always the same blue bags. Again I ask, who does this??
This is MY neighborhood. This is OUR neighborhood.
One house I walk by just redid their landscape down the side. I am sure he spent a lot of money to have it done. It is now, riddled with dog poop throughout the bark!! I will keep asking, who does this??
Yes, there are bigger problems in the world today than dog poop riddled streets and yet maybe this speaks to an ever growing attitude of, "It's not my problem." "Let somebody else take care of things." "If I don't get caught, it doesn't count." "Who cares?" The definition of conscience is:
 "an inner feeling or voice viewed as acting as a guide to the rightness or wrongness of one's behavior"
Have we stopped listening to that inner feeling or voice? Right and wrong still exist and they make the world a more livable, civilized place. I don't always do right, none of us do, but I'd like to believe that I do what's right way more often than what's wrong. If you do right more often than wrong, it becomes your "go to", default behavior. That's how it's supposed to be. That is a good citizen.
I will keep picking up my dog's poop. I hope you will do the same.
This is MY neighborhood. This is OUR neighborhood.
Respect it!
Biggsuzi
 

What a Week!

 Looking back at last week, all I have to say is "Whew!" I think we are jamming the last few days before school starts with as many adventures as we can. Monday, I took the trio to San Juan Capistrano via the Amtrak. It only takes 30 minutes, but what a fun ride.

 After lunch at Ruby's, we went to the petting zoo and I could barely get them out of there after almost 2 hours! They were calm and relaxed. There were no electronics in sight. They were full of smiles and sweetness. It made my heart happy.

 Love, love, love this photo of all four of us by the train tracks before we departed for home. A good time had by all.

 Thursday, after Jack had a birthday party (no photos available ~ I guess keeping up with 15 ten year old boys kept us too busy!), the girls and I went to see Broadway in the Park's production of Beauty and the Beast. What amazing talent and singing voices the actors had. They were enthralled throughout the entire play. They are growing up and can appreciate things like this.

 Friday, Maddy had girlfriends over for an end of summer pool party. As you can see, they were a lively bunch of cuties. These girls will probably remain friends throughout middle and high school. Hosting them and seeing them all laughing together was as much fun for me as it was for them.

Jack has been asking and asking  to run a 5K race with me. We finished out the weekend with the Tiki Beach 5K in Huntington Beach. He shot out right from the start and left me in the dust! I kept plodding along and, eventually, at about the 2.5 mile mark, I caught up to him. We finished the race side by side and I felt nothing but pride for him. Yes, he is an athlete, but running, any distance, is a challenge. He admitted to me later that it was harder than he thought it was going to be. Then he asked me when we can do another one!!
Looking back over the week, it may seem pretty bland to some. I didn't get on an airplane. I didn't go on a cruise. In fact, I never left Orange County. The common thread in all the adventures is that I spent each and every one of them with my grandchildren. We laughed a lot together. We made a lot of memories together. I won't forget these adventures and I hope they won't either.
They make my life so very full and my heart so very happy.

What a Ride!

Our wedding photos are fading, but our love is not. OK, that was so corny, I think I threw up a little in my mouth! Look, I have very realistic thoughts about marriage, especially after being married for 41 years! Some years are great and some years are not. Sometimes you are soul mates and sometimes it feels like cell mates. We make each other smile and we make each other growl. Being married is hard work and I think people forget that fact. "I don't want to do this any more." "It's not fun any more." You hear this all the time. Heck, we've said this from time to time in the past 41 years! And, yet, here we are, still riding side by side in the car together, sometimes in stony silence and sometimes laughing the whole way. That I talked him into recreating this wedding photo just shows what a good man he is.
Mark, on our anniversary, I want you to know how much I have enjoyed annoying you all this time and how excited I am to keep doing it in the future!
Yea, that's love!!!

 

Camp Grammie

 Welcome to Camp Grammie!
During the summer we invite kids to come and spend a few hours with us having fun in the pool with games and races followed by lunch. I caught this photo of Maddy and thought it was pretty amazing...or maybe SHE is just amazing. Look out, junior high! Here she comes!

 We had nine kiddos this time and they were all SO GOOD!! Listening to them laugh in the pool just makes me smile.

 Of course, we had to have a few silly contests. These crazy kids are total daredevils and I sometimes cringe at what they do.

 Abbey just turns the diving board into her gymnastics platform and away she goes!

 Any good contest needs judges, complete with scoring to hold up after each contestant. They took turns doing tricks and then being a judge. Such great kids and so kind to each other. I made sure the lowest score was only a "6", so nobody got their feelings hurt. Most scored them an 8 - 10. Once Jack said, "That was such an amazing trick, I wish I had a higher number than the "10"!!!"

 Lunch was mini pizzas (rave reviews), watermelon, pretzels and fruit snacks, followed by brownies and ice cream for dessert. Nobody leaves Grammie's house hungry!!!

A big hit of the day was the many games we played with about 175 ping pong balls. We had team games and individual games. I even managed to get them to do some math by writing numbers on each ball and they had to add up what they collected to see who had the highest score. This photo is titled, "Having a ball at Camp Grammie!"
What they all don't realize is that I have as much fun as they do at Camp Grammie. Thanks to al the parents that entrust me with their kids for a few hours.
Some days are simply meant for playing!

 

Sad Truth/My Truth

I grew up in a world where we were taught respect for our elders. I met some adults who, clearly, didn’t seem to deserve my respect, but I was still taught to give it, if only in my silence. I grew up in a world where teachers were respected. If I brought a note home from the teacher, my parents first words were, “What did you do?!” Now, the first thing parents say is, “What did that teacher do?” I grew up in a world where police officers were respected. They were heroes, just like firemen. If we saw one in the coffee shop, we stopped and said hello. They seemed so big and brave and we respected them and the badge they wore. Today, we spew hate behind the safety of our computer screens. We judge the actions of police officers in a few stories that go viral. We read the headline only and write the whole story from there. Using our cell phones and computers we easily edit any situation to make it seem the way we want it to be seen.

Today, every group, every race, every faction, asks for our respect. Usually, it is demanded. Often, neither side wants to be the first one to grant that respect. It’s a “I’ll like you if you like me.” mentality. Our political correctness has reached such absurd levels, that, in trying to be so fair, so unbiased, so equal, we have actually isolated some groups for the sake of others. Where is the correctness of that? I am a white (not black) heterosexual (not gay) woman (not man) who works (not on welfare), lives in a home I pay for (not homeless). I am poorer than some and richer than others. All this makes me, what? An oddball? I don’t fall into any of the “hot topic” stereotypes. I am asked to accept, even embrace, every single person and all their differences, or risk being called racist, homophobe, heartless, godless and more.

Stop telling me I have to accept you. Act in a way that deserves that I accept you. Stop telling me I have to listen to your words. Act in a way that your actions make me want to hear more of your words. Stop telling me that life is not fair and you are oppressed. Act in a way that makes your life and the lives of others better and, therefore, less oppressed. Stop telling me you have to fight, protest and spew more hate to get your agenda heard. Act in a way that your attitude, passion and goodness make me want to be around you.

We have lost our people-ness. We have lost our people. We have lost…

RIP Peanut

Hard, sad lessons are part of life, even if you are only eleven years old. Today, Maddy's little hamster passed away. He had been acting sick for the last few days. It was heart wrenching to watch him look like he was in pain, disoriented and suffering. The adults had many texts, quiet conversations and moments of, "My gosh, what do we do???" Maddy knew he was sick and she cried herself to sleep the last two nights. In the scope of life, it is easy for adults to pass this off and not get so upset. I mean, it was a hamster, not a cat or dog!! But, here's the thing. She loved that hamster and we love her! Her pain is our pain. As any parent knows, watching your child suffer is one of the worst things imaginable. You desperately want to take away their pain and often cannot. You feel helpless.

When her dad got home from work today, he confirmed that Peanut was gone and proceeded to take care of him. I found a beautiful box that I had no idea why I was saving, but today I knew why. It was the perfect size and shape for a tiny coffin for Peanut. Pa and Sean both agreed that the sooner we buried him, the better for Maddy's sake.

 Every time I hear the Charlie Puth song "Only One Call Away", I think of my husband. In the song, Charlie sings:

I'm only one call away
I'll be there to save the day
Superman got nothing on me
I'm only one call away

Well, that's our Pa in a nutshell. He rescues all of us on a regular basis, both big and small. Here he is digging a grave, making sure it is deep enough and placing a block on top so no animal can dig it up. Maddy's girlfriends heard about the hamster and came over for the "service", complete with flowers in hand! Such a sweet gesture. Maddy learned another lesson today. Girlfriends get you through a lot of things that happen in life. Maddy couldn't speak, so she asked me to say a few words. I hope I said the right ones. We thanked God for the joy he brought Maddy and that he was no longer suffering. We shed tears and we hugged each other.

Marley even showed up for the funeral. He may have only been looking for lettuce, but I want to believe he was holding vigil for one of his own animal brothers! Now here's a pet! This tortoise will live to be over 100 years old and will surely outlive us all.
No need for his funeral. He can show up at mine!!
RIP, Peanut

The Mystery

Throughout the school year, I help the kids with their homework most afternoons. It can be a trying time. There is a lot of it. Everybody needs help at once. They all talk at once. Maddy's math is just about beyond my helping abilities and I make Pa step in and work on it with her. Don't even ask what I think of this "common core" way of teaching! They use terms I have not heard and they seem to meander down the math road rather than the direct approach we used as kids.
Sometimes, however, especially with writing and language, they get an assignment that I love. Recently, Jack had to write a mystery, We discussed possible story lines for days. We talked about writing a good mystery by making it appear that one person did the stealing when it was actually another person who did it. His teacher loves lots of description so you really can see the room, know what the characters look like, etc. Jack settled on a story about a skateboard being stolen. It was a good story for a 9 year old boy with a plot twist. The title was "The Case of the Stolen Skateboard". When he brought home the story, written perfectly, it was in a folder with the title and this photo on the outside, I couldn't help but smile.
Jack, this photo should be titled, "The Boy that Stole His Grammie's Heart". This kid makes me laugh every day. He says things that are wise beyond his years. He makes me think.
You have my heart, Jack.
Please keep it forever!

Our Gymnast

When you're in the kitchen preparing dinner and you hear, "Help! Help!" I didn't expect to find #3 twisted up in a bar stool! She has jumped with both feet (pun intended) into gymnastics and is always trying something, most of which makes me cringe! She can flip, jump, and do moves that I fear will injure her tiny, little body. Our gymnast is fearless and head strong. Add a dose of perfectionism and you get our Abs!
Look out world!!

Old/New Friends

 Running a race is a perfect excuse for travel. Last weekend, I ran the San Luis Obispo half marathon. Our high school friend, Michael, has lived up in Los Osos for a long time and we got to stay at his house and visit while we were there for the race. How do I describe Michael? He has this crusty, foul mouthed exterior with a heart of gold. He loves to grouse about life and all it's trials and challenges. He is one person I hold on a very small list that I could call, in the middle of the night, and say, "I need help!" He would ask where I was and be on his way. He is a loyal, true friend and has been for more decades than I care to count. We tease him that we have stood by him through a couple of wives and countless girlfriends, which brings me to the lovely lady in his life, Nicki. We had met her only briefly once before, but this weekend we had a chance to really get to know her. She is a gem! Smart, funny, kind and yet, takes no nonsense. She is perfect for Michael. She tends to see the good in most things and tries to help him see it too.

 We were fed like royalty while there, with Nicki and Michael preparing two amazing dinners for us. Saturday they made sure I was "carbo-loaded" for my race the next day and then Sunday, they barbequed steaks that were perfection. Sitting at home, sharing a meal with friends is far better than going to a restaurant. We laughed and talked and drank and ate the night away. I will cherish these memories for a long time.

Yes, we are older. Who knows if we are wiser, but we are smart enough to know the value of lasting friendship and love. Time goes by, sometimes too much time, but when we are together, we pick up where we left off.
What a blessing!

Mr. VIP

When you walk into your office and find this!! I laugh every time I look at this photo. Trying to find the right caption:
"What?! I'm working here!!"
"My feet don't stink!"
"I'm busy. What do you want?!"
"Can't a guy relax once in awhile??"
Love you, Jack!!

More than a Game

 This past weekend, we had the pleasure of going to San Jose to watch our grandson and his teammates compete for the state championship in ice hockey. Lots of kid are involved in sports and lots of parents and grandparents watch. Nothing new there. However, every once in awhile, something magical happens. The athletes come together, with the leadership of excellent coaching, and they grow and excel and achieve things they never thought possible at the beginning of the season. The team becomes more than a team. They become a family. This is what happened to this team.

 There is lots of time, money and energy spent on travel teams. We put more people in a hotel room than is probably allowed. Some sleep on a makeshift bed on the floor. Thank goodness their bear, Rusty, was there also!

 The siblings have lots of time to bond with the other kid as well. The girls all gravitate to each other and become fast friends. Memories are made for them also. After a weekend like this, many sentences are started with, "Remember when we did...." They store up these memories and will cherish them later more than they will ever know when they are happening. We call them "hockey sisters".

My husband stayed behind this weekend because he had so much work. It killed him not to go. He is at everything for the kids. After we won our two games on Friday, I called him and said, "Please fly up here tomorrow night for the championship game on Sunday." Mind you, this man has not flown in over ten years! He HATES to fly!! He said yes! Thanks to our dear friend, Jason, who helped me book the flight, checked him in remotely, picked him up at the airport and delivered him to the hotel. The plan was for Pa to be sitting there Sunday morning when Jack woke up! When he arrived, Amber, Mark and I were talking quietly in the living room of our hotel room because Jack was asleep. Suddenly, we hear, "Pa! Is that you???" He was so excited to see him! That alone, was worth the price of the ticket. The next morning, before the game, Mark found our "other" hockey grandson and surprised him as well. "Pa, you're here!!" Our goaltender lives in San Jose and has flown down to the OC to play with this team all year. This "away" tournament for us, was his first "home" tournament!! He was beyond happy to have all of us in his home city. There was a crazy amount of family and friends cheering his every move. His performance didn't disappoint. He was a rock star!

We are so lucky that the hockey parents welcome us with open arms. We have come to know and love some of them more than we can say. (You know who you are!) We laugh and cry together, making our own set of memories along with the boys.

 Coffee in hand, my son-in-law walks to the bench before the game. He is a fierce competitor and wants to win, but he never loses sight of the true goal. He takes a skater, wherever they are, and moves them along. He helps them fine tune their abilities, creates a team atmosphere where everyone feels welcome, and never lets them accept less than their best. He doesn't just coach the mechanics of a game he knows so well, he coaches them on life skills that make them better people. He lets them know he truly cares about each and every one of them. He becomes their "hockey dad".

I love this photo. Even though I have no idea what he is saying to them at this moment, I see that all eyes are on him and each of these kids is "all in" at this point. It may sound biased, but they were all so lucky to have him as their coach. Some know it now, some may realize it later.

 Here we all are, basking in the victory and loving the moment with the people we love. So happy for these kids and their coaches, even happier that we get to share some of their sunshine. They make us proud!