Summer Fun, of the unusual kind

It is amazing what a pile of pillows blankets and a camera can become as an entertainment factor.  I'm happy to sit here at the computer and ignore an activity that just a few years ago, I couldn't have imagined allowing my kids to do.  I know my husband wouldn't be allowing this, but you know, sometimes kids just need to be kids.  I just got told by my dad the other night, that I'm no longer a kid.  He yelled at me because I was tickling my son and wrestling with him on the living room floor.  I remember him always saying things to my mom when she was playing with me or the grandkids, not wanting her to hurt herself.  Maybe that's his big worry, that playing hard, someone will get hurt, but you know, sometimes you have to just let loose, have fun and go for it.  I like to play that way with my kids, and I remember my mom and my grandpa playing like that with me.  My grandpa use to give me bucking horsey rides on his back, and they're some of the best memories I have.  I want my kids to remember me that way.

Bringing Tears to My Own Eyes

As we prepare to gut the attic space and convert it to an insulated, modern space for Tristan, we have come across quite a few things that had been forgotten over the years.  One of the boxes contained an old Floppy Disc organizer, complete with installation disks for WordPerfect 5.0, Dos 3.1, backups of checking statements from 12 years ago (a few more recent, also) and scrapbook papers that I'm obviously never going to use.  A phone cord, 128 Mb RAM, and a few manuals for software.  Oh!  Also the installation cd for the Nikon software that I've been looking for! 

The real jackpot though, were two floppy disks that I began in 2000, not long after Shelby was born.  I called them 'Love Letters to My Daughter', and I wrote to her faithfully, but not daily, for nearly two years.  I was excited to find them, but a worry nagged in the back of my mind that the files would be corrupted, the disk too old, and that the treasure intended for my little girl were truly lost, although right in my hand.  I set them carefully aside, and after sorting through the remainder of the box and ending with a garbage pile, a recycle pile, a yard sale pile and a keep pile, I put everything away but the disks.

After lunch, and after everyone else in the family had had their computer time for the day, I finally sat down to check Facebook and my e-mail.  The disks sat staring at me, and I finally picked one up and bent down to look at the pc tower.  Do I even have a floppy drive on this thing?  Hey!  There is one!  Cool!  In popped the disk.  First attempt through My Computer took a few minutes, ending with a message "the disk is not formatted, would you like to format?"   Heaven's NO! I thought to myself.  Never one to give up with just one direct try...I opened up MS Word, clicked open a file, and navigated to the floppy drive.....somethings happening.  Just then Shelby walks up and says....'What's that noise?'  'Well, that's what a floppy disk drive sounds like, instead of a CD Drive."  Oh! 

Suddenly a file list appearred!  Letters to Shelby 2001.doc.    It's there.  It worked!  It's SAFE.

I opened the file, skimmed through a few letters, and saved a copy to my pc.  In popped the second disc, containing two files:   Love Letters 2000.doc and Love Letters to Shelby.doc.  They're both saved on the pc and on a CD.  My heart is happy.

I did read about three entries to Shelby, we both ended up in tears and I promised her she would be able to read them all.  They are for her, after all.  

I have often wished I was a writer.  Not that I never tried.  I took advanced Language Arts in High School, wrote at home all the time, started many stories, never finished.  Took a correspondence course for writing for children, tried to publish a few short stories, without success.  Didn't try hard enough. But reading a few of these entries, I was really touched by some of the things I wrote, and how I wrote them.   Maybe I could do it.  While I continue to ponder that option, here is one entry that truly touched me, and I hope you enjoy.


December 31, 2000


And so this year in which you were born is coming to an end. It has been the most incredible year of my life. You are so full of life, curiousity, and joy. You bring new meaning to each day for me, and something for me to look forard to. It’s as if I have never seen geese fly, never heard a hickup, never seen a messy face or seen such beauty as can exist in the human face. My hope is to help keep that joy in your life, that wonder which you exhibit every day, and to give you some of the happiness which you have brought to me, just by being alive. I love you, with all my heart.

You will find, as you look back upon your life,
that the moments when you have really lived
were the moments when you have done things
in the spirit of love.  - Henry Drummond

Where've I been?

I can't believe it's been since November since I posted.  A bunch of things have happened:

Thanksgiving
Christmas
New Years
My mom hurt her back and is still gimping around
My aunt passed away at 88 years old
I met a cousin who is in her 60's that I've known about but never met, and another cousin who is 12 who is adorable
Tristan became a Cub Scout.
Shelby started 'Winter Wonderings' classes at OSU again. 
I have a great-nephew named Kyrian Alexander Wayne.  He was born on January 27th at 9:00 p.m. and was relatively nice to his mommy during the process. 
The no-contact order against our lunatic neighbor expired in January, and things have still been relatively quiet.  I still have this lurking feeling that it won't last forever, but I"m keeping the situation in my prayers.
Scott had reconstructive/replacement surgery on the thumb joint of his left hand.  Have to admit, the recovery is going pretty well, except when he tried out the new resistence band  by stretching it over Tristan's foot, and it slipped off and got Scott in the 'you know where'   - dang, I KNOW that was a 10,000 AFV moment and I missed it!
And as of two days ago - got my haircut!  No picture yet, but I actually styled it this morning and it turned out pretty good.  Now I just need to work on my hair texture, it feels like straw these days. :(

This Saturday we're going to see the Harlem Globetrotters with Tristans Cub Scout pack.  The cool thing is, we've had this free pass for Shelby to see them since she was born in 2000.  It was a special thing the Globetrotters did for all the babys born in the new Milennia.  We could've taken her once for free every year until she's twelve, but it just never seemed to work out.  So Saturday it is.  The kids really didn't know much about the Globetrotters, so we had fun the other day looking at Utube clips.  I'll post again with some pictures of that trip and more about what's been 'goin' on!

A friend in 'Deed'

What is a true friend?  There a many definitions, by many different people.  Some say a friend is always there when you need them.  Others would say a friend listens when you really need to vent.  Then there's the friend that tells you like it is, when you need to hear it, even if you don't want to hear it. 

I have lots of different kinds of friends, and it's really special knowing that because I can call on a different friend for a different reason.  It allows me respect the best in my friends, and not expect something of them that I know (or suspect) they're not willing to give.   I like friends that have those same considerate (some would say low) expectations of me. 

There are really two ways of looking at your friends.  You can expect everything of them, and wear them out like a pair of  favorite socks that are always the first ones you pull out of the drawer, wear them around the house, even sneak outside with just them on, inconsiderate of the damage you're doing to them.  Or, you can pull them out for both regular and special occasions, not every day, so as to not wear them out, but knowing the smile they bring to your face whenever you see them is that special smile just for those socks.  Yah, you're thinking, okay, is she talking about socks now or friends?

I think that's all I have to say, except this- I had a friend stop by unannounced today.  Well, kind of unannouced.  She told me a earlier this week she'd have a surprise for me in a couple of days, but I didn't know how it would be delivered, or when.  And the big deal is, this is a friend who just doesn't stop by unannounced.  Some people are uncomfortable with that, and they just don't do it, even if they've been told 'stop by', as I have done with this friend several times.  So I was a little surprised when I opened the door and it was her.  And she was bearing a surprise in her hand, thoughtful, cutely packaged, just for me.  Even in the midst of this crud I've been fighting for over 5 weeks, it cheered me up as you can't even imagine.  So I think our friendship has grown, with the whole showing up at the door thing, and I like it.

And I hope that friend likes reading this post, especially when she finds out that the reason it took me so long to get to the door after the 4th time (or was it 5th) she'd knocked was because I was sitting on my feet at the computer playing the 'What Drives Edward' contest at the Volvo website - trying for about the 15th time to wind my way through the red-hooded Italian crowd to save Edward.  When I tried to get up, my left foot was so asleep that I couldn't step on it- I tried and just about sprained it...so I had to crawl to the living room on all fours....(yah, like a DOG!') and then carefully stand up and act normal when I opened the door.

"It is better to be in chains with friends , than to be in a garden with strangers."

-Persian Proverb

Shelby's presentation on Hungary

I'm glad that's over!

Shelby's fourth grade class all did presentations on a country that part of their family heritage is from.  Yesterday was her turn so I went in and took a couple of pictures.  She said she was nervous but she seemed very calm about it!  She even answered a few questions of the teacher and class.  The most interesting part of the presentation was when she talked about how her great-grandfather, John Heineck stowed away on a ship coming to America.  He never went through Ellis Island so he was technically here illegally, but it's thanks to him that the rest of us have grown up as free Americans.

Halloween 2009

Out trick or treating downtown Lebanon...it was a big crowd and it poured part of the time...but luckily we were mostly under awnings during the rain.  Here's our favorite stop...Bi-Rite...Mark makes a perfect Frankenstein and Kathy his perfect bride!

I'm having fun with my digital scrapbooking!

I am having SO MUCH FUN with my digital scrapbooking software from Creative Memories - Storybook Creator Plus 3.0

As you can see, the creative possibilities are endless...all without dragging out ANYTHING!   I still cling to my need to touch paper, scissors, stickers and tools, but I have to admit, digital creativity is allowing me to do things with my photos and scrapbook layouts that I never dreamed of.