Polar Bear Plunge 2012 - Practice Run

Jaxon was practicing for the Polar Bear Plunge this past weekend

Tuesday Tid Bits

SO many little things going on.  Jakes B-day dinner was lovely, except that I embarassed him.  I don't know how, maybe just being Mom.  ha!  That's ok cause my dad embarrassed ME at the birthday dinner.

Jakes invited a GIRL to his birthday dinner!  She's cute and so nice!  They both deny being boyfriend and girlfriend and with them being 13, I imagine its more embarrassing to be boyfriend/girlfriend.  Such an awkward age!

January is a month with an "R" in it and you know what that means!  OYSTERS!  I love 'em fried but not raw.  On my way home from the IEP meeting, I got me some for dinner tomorrow!

AZ is packing up in Arizona and will be heading back this way by the end of February or early March.  YAY!  Much easier to be friends without a country in between!  Especially when the time difference is 3 hours part of the year and only 2 the other part.  Talk about confusing......

I've certainly been enjoying the lovely spring-like weather this winter.  I didn't even mind the little snow storm we had a couple weeks back.  I ended up with Jakes staying with me and sent him out to dig everyone out. Win-Win!

I got to see Jakes today at school.  I went there for a meeting with the child study team to establish his IEP. It took them this long to get their version in place because they had to do their own evaluations and such.  Because Jakes is now 13, they include him in the meetings for transitioning to high school and beyond.  Father of the Year didn't show up as usual.

I'm sure I have more tid bits to share but I'm going for a walk in the lovely weather this afternoon!

This Little One.......

Just Hours Old

This little one didn't know the joy he'd bring to his Momma, Dad, and Grandparents.



Sweet Smiling Face



But Joy he brought, each and every day



Angel Face



Growing through the years.



Reminding us how to love.



Handsome Young Man



Happy 13th Birthday, My Son!

Finding the Balance

This weeks theme over at Theme Thursday is Balance.  It got me to thinking about how I "balance" my friendships.  I have wonderful friends, lots of them!  But there are times when I wonder if there are some friends that I use when life is hard and others that are only for the good times.

My definition of friendship is being there through thick and thin, good times and bad.  I will admit that I have good friends and then I also have true friends.  The difference you ask....  (IMO) A good friend will be there for you to call for bail money.  A true friend will be there in the jail cell saying, "lets do that again!"  I can happily say that I think I would have trouble finding someone to call for the bail money cause everyone would be in the cell with me!

I know that dealing with Jakes and making the decision about where he would live was a very bad time for me and I love that my friends rallied around and supported me through all.  I know that I was a very Negative Nelly and couldn't have been much fun to listen to.

Now that Jakes is happier and life is looking better, I WILL remember to share my happy days as well as be there for my friends through their good and bad times. I want to find that balance between needy negative nelly and a true friend.

PINNED! -WW

At the end of the count, the Monkey defeated Jaxon

My Momma

For the past couple of days, I've been pondering ways to honor my Momma.  See, she died 13 years ago today.  Last year, I wrote her a letter telling her about my year, the year before that I shared the story of her death and Jakes birth.  I though about typing in the eulogy that was given at the funeral.  But that just seems sad.  I read through it today and cried.  That's enough sadness.

Momma

I think its time to just share the good things about Momma.  Its time to stop being sad over her passing and rejoice in her life.  She knows how much I still miss her every day, she knows how much I love her and cherish the memories that I have of her.  So let me share some with you..........

Momma wasn't a morning person.  But she got up with us each and every school day.  She made sure we had breakfast, made our lunches and then sat at the dining room table to watch us get on the bus.  I think most mornings, she went back to bed once we were gone, but she was there went it mattered.

Christmas mornings found Brother and I in the hallway, blocked by a baby gate, waiting for a decent hour to wake the parents up.  At 6:00 am, we'd start yelling and jumping up and down to get them up.  Eventually, Mom and Dad would come downstairs to let us tear open the presents.  After the mess was cleaned up, Mom would head to the kitchen to start making the cinnamon buns and coffee for the relatives who would be stopping by later.  Brother and I would be playing with our new toys.  I loved the smell of coffee percolating.

I remember Brother and I fighting or causing trouble and Mom yelling "JAMIE!"  Brother and I would stop and wait for Mom to decide which of us was in trouble......  Brother = Jimmy, me = Amy   Jimmy+Amy= JAMIE when Mom was angry.  It was usually ME in trouble for something or other.

Mom was a wonderful seamstress.  She made so many of my clothes.  If we were in a shop and I saw something I liked., Mom would whip out her sketch pad.  A week or so later, I'd have the same garment!  Every 6 months or so (especially before Christmas), Mom would make us kids stand in her sewing room and get our measurements taken.  Without them, she couldn't make new stuff for us.

Halloween 1985
All made by Momma

OH! And from November 1st through Christmas, you'd better NOT be in her sewing room without her permission!  You never know what she's got on the table for you or someone else.

Mom loved Broadway musicals, she's the one that got me hooked.  One day I came home from school to find her listening to her CD player.  She handed me the headset and said "You HAVE to listen!"  The CD started out low, with someone talking - no singing yet.  I'm listening intently when all of a sudden, the music starts up LOUD!  I tossed the headset off while Mom sat there laughing at me.  She knew it was going to get loud.

Jenni
She hangs in my hallway
Momma cross-stitched her

I remember taking the train to NYC with Mom and my Aunt.  Once in the City, we grabbed a cab to take us to Broadway.  I remember hanging on for Dear Life and praying for all I was worth on that short cab ride!  Once we arrived at the theatre, Mom, Aunt and I piled out of the cab as quickly as humanly possible.  We hugged each other, laughing to make sure we really did survive.  I think we had a greater appreciation for the show we went to see because of that cab ride.  I also remember walking back to the train station.......

The Patch Family
Momma made so many to share
I still have Momma's two favorite

Mom had a predictable menu throughout the week.  Wednesday was Spaghetti night. She would spend all day making sauce, usually with tomatoes canned from her garden.  It was Dad's favorite meal.  There were usually homemade chocolate chip cookies waiting for us after school.

I remember so many summer afternoons standing in the kitchen, slicing tomatoes to cold pack them or working the food mill for tomato sauce.  Then in the fall, we'd make applesauce.  There was also the time spent blanching the green veggies for freezing.  And soaking the broccoli to make sure there was no worms!

One evening in the garden, she was pulling weeds or something and it was my turn to get the potato bugs off the potatoes and tomatoes.  She had an old peanut butter jar for scrapping them off the leaves.  All the dead bugs just stayed in there, with no air, in the sunshine, cooking away.  gross.

The Family
Momma made everything we are wearing, even Dad's tie
(except Brothers outfit)

Another year, we borrowed the neighbors field to plant extra corn.  It was a particularly dry year and we spent lots of time running soaker hoses out to the field, between the rows of corn stalks.  Mom would be running down one row, I'd be in the next one, dragging the hose behind us.  By the time we got to the other end, I was itching and broke out in hives wherever the corn stalks had touched me.  That was the first time I'd broken out over the corn but there was no panic in Mom.  Just sent me to the house for a benadryl.

As I became a teen, I'd spend tons of time with my BFF, Kimber.  My parents knew her parents and communicated frequently to make sure we were behaving when we were together.

Mom and I butted heads on plenty of occasions.  I thought I was more grown than I actually was.  Typical teen.  But once I moved out and truly "grew up", Momma was my best friend.  We talked daily, shared almost everything.  I had a wonderful childhood (not that I always thought so then) and Mom did a wonderful job of raising Brother and I.  I always thought Mom loved Brother best and he thought the same of me.

Momma and Me
1995

I do know that no matter how annoying, mouthy, obnoxious or bad I was, Momma always loved me.

Monday, Monday

Its a rainy Monday and I'm a happy camper!  The rain will wash away the snow and ice and the temperatures will be warmer than they were over the weekend.  I really do not like this kind of a winter!

After Venting about my start with Jakes, things got better between us.  I had yelled at him and threatened to take him back to his fathers if he didn't change how he was treating the people at the Compound.  When I got out of the shower, he was a different kid.  He apologized to me and he worked really hard to change his attitude toward me.  On Sunday, when it was time for him to get ready to leave, he said he didn't want to go back to his Dad's.  He said it was because he didn't want to go to school on Tuesday but I think there is more going on over there then he's telling me.  The complete story will come out eventually, in dribs and drabs.

I am looking forward to singing tomorrow; I really missed singing last semester.  We have some really NEAT songs to learn; the spring concert is going to be such FUN!  doom-a-loom-a, doom-a-loom-a, doom-a-loom-a, doom-a-loom-a, doom-a-loom-a.

Jakes is turning 13 on Friday.  Everyone gets to choose where we go to dinner for their birthday, even if they want to eat at home.  Jakes let me know where he wants to go and who to invite.  Last night when he got home, he asked if he could invite a GIRL to dinner with us!  Um.... sure.... my baby is growing up!  A GIRL!  sigh..... I don't think I'm ready for this......


**I know the girl and her grandmother lives at The Compound**

The Blogging Mama Andrea put me onto a new book, Every Day a Friday, by Joel Osteen.  I read the first chapter and it really hit home for me.  I can't wait for it to be available at my local library (there's a waiting list) so I can finish reading it!  I don't know how I'm going to feel about the religious part of the book but I'm sure there are loads of ways I can apply what he's saying to my life, with or without the religious aspect.  Maybe I can even get Neicy to read it........

Dad and Renie bought a camper, henceforth named The Thing!  Its SO Nice too.  They are planning lots of weekend trips for all of us.  Should be interesting and fun!

Time to get this Monday, Monday rolling.  Have a good one!