A Trip Down Memory Lane

Sometimes not living in Lubbock really bothers me, especially times like these. You can go to Ann's blog to read about the recent happenings with my grandma.

We are all realizing quickly she is no longer the wife, mother or grandma we grew up with. That wonderful lady is gone and has been replaced with someone we hardly know. Ann is exactly right in everything she says. It is time we look at doing something different for her and my grandpa. I don't think either of them can survive much longer the way things are.

Grandma is still a little bit recognizable in one aspect. She is still making quilts. I have no idea when I got my first quilt from her. I know she made me my bedspread, throw pillows and curtains when I was little. I think after I moved out of that bed I might have got my first quilt.

I still have the quilt that I consider "my first." Just looking at the design I am amazed. When I was growing up I didn't think much of it, but now I can't look at it without being fascinated with the pattern. My favorite part of this quilt is the pink butterfly. Can you imagine how long it took to make the butterfly?

My second quilt came when Jaime and I got married. I got to pick out the colors and pick the pattern . At the time grandma could still make anything. She really didn't need a pattern. She was just that amazing. Jaime and I have slept under this quilt since the day we got married. Grandma even "autographed" this quilt for me.
My next quilt came about a year and a half ago. The disease had already started affecting her, but not too much. She was still close to the grandma I grew up with. She was having a harder time doing things she normally did. Quilting was one of those things. She had finished all the quilts for other grandchildren so I asked for another one. This one was made out of scraps. I love it because there are pieces of material in there from dresses Doneece and I had when we were growing up. It is fun to look at the pieces and remember what they are from. This quilt started with a pattern, but didn't end up in a pattern. You can kind of see the pattern forming and then it is gone. I still love it even thought the pattern may not be exactly right.

It is a lot easier for grandma to make baby quilts these days. They are smaller and don't always have a pattern. Sometimes she can just block a piece of material. I know some of you have given up on us having kids, but I promise some day we will. I wanted my kids to have quilts made by their great-grandmother. I asked grandma to make me some baby quilts. I never told her that someday they would be my kids quilts and I never will. It would kill her to know I was asking for them now in fear that she not remember how to make the quilts by the time we have kids.

She started out with a quilt for a little boy. It turned out perfectly. She quilted to pieces of material and didn't have to cut blocks or follow a pattern.
Next came the quilt for a little girl. This one was not so easy. I picked out three pieces of material, which is the minimum she can use for blocks. This should have been fairly easy, but she had a really hard time. It was a family effort to get this quilt done. A lot of people spent many hours at her house fixing mistakes and pinning pieces of material back in the correct spot. One day she said it was finished and I was so relieved. I know it took a lot for her to make this quilt. Unfortunately, this quilt wasn't right. I will never tell grandma that the pattern is wrong. It would kill her as much as it kills me to see it wrong. A few years ago she would have never let a quilt leave her house with a mistake. Now she doesn't even realize.
Please just pray for our family especially my mom and grandpa. This disease is probably the hardest on them. Please pray that the Lord just leads us to do the best possible thing for Grandma and Grandpa. They are two wonderful people who helped raise us girls. They deserve nothing but the best.

Home, Where Are You???

I have almost forgot where are home is.  It has been two weeks of travel and I am tired.  I know most of you find me very lucky to do what I do.  I also find myself very lucky, but I am ready to be home.

Tonight we will finally be home.  We flew into San Antonio yesterday from Vegas and headed to Corpus.  Jaime had work in Corpus today and so here we are.  I am getting a much needed manicure and pedicure so I am not complaining too much.

What do I miss most about my house???  My BED.  It has been so long and I am so ready to be back in my bed.  We have been traveling for over two weeks now and have spent 4 nights in our bed in that time.  We will head home from Corpus tonight and I will have my bed back for awhile.  Jaime on the other hand is not so lucky.  He leaves tomorrow for another trip.  

Jaime travels a lot like this and I don't know how he does it.  I can't take anymore.  Don't get me wrong, I have really enjoyed traveling.  I enjoyed it until about Saturday.  Saturday came and I was ready to go home.

The road trip came at a great time.  It was during the Spurs Rodeo Road Trip.  They spend most of February traveling to other cities so that the rodeo can move in.  We didn't miss a single game.  The Spurs are back tomorrow night against Dallas.  

Being in Corpus today worked out really well.  Today is my mother-in-laws birthday.  We will be able to have birthday dinner with her tonight before we head home.  Happy Birthday Becky!!!  You gave me the best present ever in your son.  You did an amazing job raising him and I am so lucky to have him as my husband.  Thank you.

Hopefully the rest of the week will be low key.  Lots of sleep and laundry are my plan.  Here's hoping it is a fast Monday. 

Chicago, You Rank Right Up There

As you may have noticed we travel a little.  Sometimes it is a lot and at other times it is none.  I wouldn't say I have seen many places, but I am working on that.  Before I die I would like to travel to all 50 states and see a game in every major league ball park.  That is not too much to ask, right?

Once we have been to a city I am pretty much done with that city.  I would much rather travel to a city that I have never been too.  There are a few exceptions.  I of course will go back to Lubbock a hundred times.  I also do not include Dallas, Houston or Corpus on that list because they are in my state and I don't really consider going to those places as a vacation.  I would also add Chicago to the list.

I really do love Chicago.  Traveling on Southwest to Chicago is easy and effortless when they do not lose your luggage or steal items out of your luggage.  The weather is also great.  I have never been when the weather wasn't nice.  I have been in the summer and the winter and can't decide which I like more.  I love cold weather so it is the perfect place to go to get a little taste of the cold.  In case you didn't know, South Texas doesn't have much cold weather.  In the summer it is nice because I can step outside without wanting to faint from the heat.  All around it is good.

This time in Chicago it was cold.  It was nice to be able to pull out all my favorite cold weather clothes from the closet one last time.  I love walking down Michigan avenue all bundled up.  

I have never been to Chicago for non business.  Jaime for some reason has a lot of work in Chicago.  It is a great place for me to tag along to.  The only very very small problem is that I have never been sight seeing in Chicago.  Every time I go I say I will see some sights, but I never do.  I guarantee Jaime and I will go back to Chicago at some point for a little vacation when it is just the two of us.

The main reason we will go back is to go to a Cubbies game.  I have been to Chicago three times and have never been to a Cubs game.  This makes me sad because the Cubs are my favorite baseball team ever.  There was really only one time I could have seen a game when we

were in Chicago.  It was last summer and the Cubs were in town while we were there.  Jaime told me I could go, but he wouldn't be able to get away from work.  

It wouldn't be the same going to a game by myself.  I would love the game, but I would love it more if I got to share it with someone I love.  Don't worry Cubbies, some day I will make it to Wrigley Field to watch you play.

The second thing I love about Chicago is this....

Chocolate Mouse Cake from Gibsons.  Please tell me that you can tell how large this piece of cake WAS.  It no longer exist and it was good on the way down.

Thank You Southwest

It has been such a long day that I don't even remember where I left off yesterday.  I know I told you that the airline lost our bag.  The good news is they found our bag, but not with all of our contents.  

They left out a major article when they returned the bag to us.  The brand new purse that I had packed in the bag was no longer in the bag.  Thank you for choosing the item of your liking and keeping it for yourself.

Of course I called Southwest bright and early yesterday to inform them of the missing purse.  The lady was nice, but not extremely helpful.  She said the claim had been added to our original missing bag claim, but now I would need to mail a claim form to Southwest.  I was also informed that I should contact TSA and file a claim with them because they are the only people that look in bags.

She asked me if TSA had inspected my bag.  I told her no.  There was no paper left in my bag from TSA or a sticker on the bag tag with TSA.  She still said I would have to file a claim with them because Southwest does not look in bags.

Funny, someone looked in my bag and found the brand new purse I bought on Thursday.  It was so new, I hadn't even carried it.  Hopefully, someone is looking great carrying my nice new bag. 

The really sad part is that I only brought the purse to Chicago so I could return it and get my money back.  No such luck.  I guess that turned out to be a bad idea.

We are now sitting in the Chicago airport waiting on our flight.  It is only an hour and a half delayed.  Hopefully, our bags make it home with us and if they decide to take something out of one of the bags it will be Jaime's.  

Welcome to Chicago

I know I said I would be back yesterday with a more in depth update on Valentine's Day.  I was wrong.  My day really didn't go as I planned. 

We had an early flight so that meant we were up really early.  I have to admit I look forward to the day I get to sleep late on a Monday morning.  It was part of the reason I quit my job.  I don't want you to think I am complaining.  I am extremely lucky to be in Chicago instead of sitting at home by myself.  My sweet Jaime had a little trouble setting the alarm.  He set it for 5am instead of 6am.  I hate waking up an hour before the alarm goes off.  It makes me so sad to realize I only have 1 more hour to sleep.

When the alarm went off at 5am I realized I had a migraine.  That is a wonderful way to start off the morning.  I took some medicine, but it was too late in the game.  We got up at 6am and proceeded forward.  The flights were not horrible, but not great.  Traveling with a migraine is not much fun, really nothing is fun when you have a migraine.

We made it to Chicago and I was so excited, until one of our bags did not make it with us.  We realized we were not in Texas quickly.  No one was really rude, but no one was really nice.  There was no apology for the bag being lost.  Instead, you would have thought we should be thanking them.

There were some very important things in the bag.  Jaime had a some work documents in the bag that he needed by 4pm.  I had most of my warm clothes, a purse and my old lap top.  Out of everything I was most worried about the purse.  I am a little obsessed with my purses.  I had recently backed up my computer so no big deal as far a information on the computer.  The clothes would give me a good excuse to buy some new clothes.

After an hour at the airport waiting for luggage and making a baggage report, we headed to the hotel.  By the time we arrived at the hotel it was 2pm.  By this point my migraine was out of control.  We went across the street from our hotel to get something to eat.  After 20 minutes and 2 bites of my food, I couldn't handle it anymore.  I headed back to the hotel.

I ended up sleeping for 2 hours.  I felt much better after my nap.  I felt so good that I was ready to do a little shopping.  The one thing I love about shopping in Chicago at this time of year is that they actually have clothes that you could wear right now.  When you go shopping in Texas right now, everything is shorts and tank tops in spring colors.  Don't people realize it is still winter.  I know it may be a little warm in Texas, but not that warm.

After a little light shopping I meet up with Jaime for dinner.  We went to this wonderful steakhouse called Gibsons.  If you know us, you know we would rather sit in the bar at a restaurant and eat so that we can watch sports.  It was perfect!!  We sat at the bar, which is better for Jaime's long legs, and watched the UT vs A&M basketball game.  Great food and basketball, can't beat it.

I am thinking I may go to the top of the John Hancock building to the observatory.  It is suppose to be cold but pretty tomorrow.  I would love to see Chicago from a birds eye view.  I also may make it over to the aquarium.  The aquarium is running a "recession special," where you get in for free on Monday and Tuesday.  I may just take them up on their special.

Now it is time for the dessert we brought back to the hotel and bed.  Maybe tomorrow I will tell you about Valentine's Day 

Learning New Tricks

For Valentines day my sweet Jaime got me a MacBook aka laptop for those who are not up with the lingo.  I was so excited, but now I have no idea how to use it.

I have always been a PC user and now it is time for a change.  I am excited about the change, I just hope I am smart enough to figure all this out.  It may take me awhile.  

It is late and we have a early morning flight to catch.  Come back later today for an update.  I will have time while waiting for flights to do an update on all the valentines activities.

Hope you have a great Monday

Headed Home

I am afraid my titles from now on will be "Moving On" and "Headed Home." We are in Houston waiting on our flight home, which is delayed. We will only be home 2 days and then head out again. The bad news tonight is I don't have much battery to blog , so I am sure this will be short.

Here is a picture of Doneece teaching dance. I don't know how she does it! I don't have the patience to be in the same room with 20 4 year-0lds. She does and she is a great teacher. Caroline is lucky she has her as a teacher.Doesn't Caroline look so cute. I love the skirt she has on. I could never get her to look at the camera. She was much more interested in looking at all her friends and what they were doing.

Caroline and Doneece after dance. Aren't they so cute? They both love each other so much. I love them too.

They are also very silly.

My sweet John boy. He is getting so big. I cannot believe how much he has grown since Christmas. I am afraid they are trying to make him skinny at his house. His belly is shrinking and it makes me sad.

Caroline and her artwork. The kid loves to draw. She passes many hours by drawing. I tried to talk her into giving this drawing to me, but she refused. She was intent on giving it to her best friend at school. I tried to reason with her that she gives a picture to her friend everyday and I only get one about every other month. She didn't care for my reasoning.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend and an even better Valentine's Day.

Moving On

I am done with Lubbock and have moved onto Houston. I spent yesterday morning with Caroline and John before flying out. I braided Caroline's hair before she went to school. I must say, her hair looked so cute. It is a good thing that I spent all those hours french braiding my barbies hair. I dropped John John off at school and he was so sweet. He shared lots of hugs and kisses with me. It made me re-think my decision about leaving.

I flew out to Houston to meet Jaime. The first thing I did once I arrived here was take a nap. A 2 year-old and a 4 year-old will wear you out in a hurry. I don't know how all you moms do it. You are doing a marvelous job and I am impressed.

I have been thinking maybe I should look for a job as a nanny. I would like to be a traveling nanny and only stay with the family for a few days. Wouldn't that be a fun job. My requirements would be that the kids are as well behaved as Caroline and John. Most important, they have to be cute and funny like Caroline and John. It all seemed like a good idea until I realized how tired I was. Do you think I could find a traveling nanny job where I got to sleep late?

Don't worry, I will be catching up on my sleep this morning and then heading to the mall. I am here for the sleep and to help boost the economy. I am sure the little money I will spend will boost the economy.

How Time Changes Things

Remember how I said I was going to start volunteering at The Foundry from now on 2 days a week? Well what I really meant was that I would start volunteering 2 days a week once I am done with all my trips.

Jaime is going to be traveling most of the month of February so I have decided to tag along on some of the trips. This is one of the perks to quiting my job. So far we have 4 trips planned. I have already started one trip.

Ann and the kids were going to be home by themselves this week so I decided to come to Lubbock to help out. Jaime is out of town so I decided there was no point in me sitting at home when I could be here helping. I am basically the nanny and I am loving it. I got here on Monday and I leave today.

I have got to spend lots of time with my favorite kids in the whole entire world. I have taken them to school and picked them up. It has been lots of fun, but it makes me tired. I don't know how Ann does it.

Caroline wanted me to sleep with her so bad. I told her I would, but I lied. Don't tell her. She is not a very good sleeping mate. She likes to sleep in the middle of the bed which doesn't leave much room for me. I stayed in there until she went to sleep and then I went to sleep with Ann. I was back in bed with Caroline before she woke up in the morning. She didn't know the difference. I will have to delete this post before she is able to read. I don't want her to know I lied to her.

It is really funny. I never thought I would see the day when I slept in the same bed as Ann. Growing up I was never allowed to sleep with her. Aunt Anita would make me a palet on the floor next to Ann's bed. I never pushed my luck to get in the bed. I knew it wouldn't happen.

When I crawled into bed on Monday night with her it was odd. I kind of waited for her to kick me out. She didn't. She was really nice and shared the bed and covers with me.

I was tempted to push my luck with her. I love to hold hands. I don't really care with who. It is so comforting to me. Ann knows I love to hold hands and I know Ann does not care to hold hands. I almost asked if she would hold my hand, but I figured that would get me a palet on the floor.

I think I made a wise decision.

Late Breaking News

It really isn't late breaking news, but it sounded good. I am so excited about my news, but the rest of you may not be so excited. I actually think you maybe a little disappointed. I can't help that.

Last week after much thought and even more prayer, I decided to give my resignation at the coffee shop. I had been thinking about it since November, but I wanted to take sometime and really think about it.

In November a few things happened that made me question my being there. It all of the sudden didn't feel the same. I became where I dreaded going in. Once I was there it was fine, but the thought of going to work made me sick and worried. I went through most of December feeling this way, but I didn't want to make a decision about the coffee shop during the holidays. I had 2 weeks off and I really wanted to enjoy the time with my family and not think about work.

I did just that. I hardly thought about it at all until it was time to go back. January came and I still hadn't made a decision.

Jaime and I spent many hours talking about the coffee shop and what the "right" decision was for me. I know he got tired of talking about it, but he continued to talk about it as much as I wanted in order to help me out. After all our talks, I still didn't feel at ease with the situation. I would decide to quit and wouldn't feel good. I would decide to stay and still not feel good. Nothing felt right.

When I decided to volunteer at the church I had no idea I would end up running a coffee shop. It really was the last thing from my mind. I volunteered my time thinking that I would answer the phones a couple times a week. That is not what God had planned. From the very beginning I was sent to The Foundry.

I prayed a lot about what I should do. I would talk to God and weight out the options. It was really hard because I wasn't hearing from him. The coffee shop is a really big deal to me. It wasn't just a place I worked. It was my baby. I had worked so hard with so many other people to get the doors open. I didn't feel like I could just walk away.

I felt like I owed it to God and The Foundry to take my time in making a decision. I didn't want to let either down.

While I was sick it gave me a lot of time to think about it. All of a sudden it came to me that it was my time to leave. I was totally at piece with the decision. I talked to Jaime about it and he agreed that it was time to leave The Foundry. Once I decided I never looked back.

Last week was my last week as manager. All last week I felt like it was the end of school right before summer break. I was so excited all week. There was still a part of me that didn't want to leave The Foundry completely. I decided I will volunteer 2 days a week for a few hours from now on. I am really happy with this decision. I can keep some of my job duties, but it also gives me a break.

This had been weighting on me a lot and I finally feel at peace again. Thank you Lord for taking your time and guiding me in the right direction.

Let's Start From The Very Beginning....

A very good place to start..... That is all I remember from the song until it actually gets into "doe a deer, a female deer." I am already off track and I haven't even started.

Sorry, as I was about to say, I have been gone for a little while. I have missed you all so much. While I was gone I didn't keep up with any blogs, not even mine. I bet you are thinking we were on some great vacation. Somewhere far, far away, but no. We have been here the whole time.

I was on vacation at home with BRONCHITIS. It was a wonderful vacation. Not really. It started about the last time I posted and continued to get worse. I went to the doctor on a Friday and got some really nice drugs. By Monday I felt the end was near. I went back to said doctor and was told it was not looking good. I was breathing at about 40%. They like you to breath at about 80%. I had cut mine in half and could tell. The doctor was afraid it had turned into pneumonia and sent me for a chest x-ray. The chest x-ray came back okay, but not great.

I was sent home and told to take it easy or it would turn into pneumonia. I did just that. I took lots of cough medicine and slept a lot. Finally, by the next Friday I was feeling like I would live again. We spent that weekend doing nothing in order to try and rest and get back to normal.

I still have a cough that comes and goes, but I feel much better than I had. Someone told me that it takes your lungs 5 weeks to get over bronchitis. I have no idea if that person is right because they are not a doctor, but I am starting to believe them.

After being off work for a week and a half, I finally went back last week. It was a really busy week and here we are starting another one.

Come back tomorrow, I have some really exciting news. I am sure you all will have a hard time sleeping tonight in anticipation of my exciting news.