Stop and Smell the Roses Would Ya?

Here we are - Mother's Day Weekend.

My first one without my girls.  They live in another state and can't be here this weekend.  BUT!  They have given me an even better gift!  

They came last weekend instead and we did Mother's Day then.  

A nice (awesome actually) breakfast at Tin Pan Galley in Sackets... 

and a beautiful flowy flowery vest that is pretty cool if I do say so myself.  

So, that leaves this weekend.  Now I thought I might be disappointed even though we did Mother's Day last weekend, but instead I think I received a double gift...

I get to stop and smell the roses - literally.  

My plan was to get up early, do some chores, hit the landscaping, and then the treadmill - well I did some chores, and then I hit the landscaping - for about an hour - do you know it was like 80 degrees at 9:30 this morning?  Holy hotness!  

As you can see under my favorite pine tree looks pretty good,

And I pulled all the weeds so you could see my one lonely tulip that is now already past it's prime.

By the time I decided to take a rest on the front porch, both Weezer (cause he always helps me garden) and myself looked like this...

Whew!

 

I guess being an almost empty nester means that gardening IS my exercise!  I couldn't walk on my treadmill right now if my life literally depended on it.  In fact, I'm pretty sure my life would end if I tried.  

Soooo....the rest of my Mother's Day weekend will consist of porch sitting...

Ummm... oh!  Yes, I think I will spend some time writing on my book...

I have two favorite places to work on my book

My room (pretty serene right?) 

And "The Rock".  The Rock will probably win out today since it's breezy and the bugs haven't arrived yet. 

I remember once sitting on the rock and watching my dog play tag with about 10 deer in the field.  Major tick inspection followed but it was worth it!  So cool! 

Yes, I think that's a good plan, today - I will stop and smell the...well, whatever the breeze brings me...but I think I will appreciate it no matter what that might be!  

 

Oh My Promness!

Ok, so I had no intention of posting about Indian River's prom weekend but I had an epiphany so I just have to!  

First of all, I loathe prom weekend.  Now mind you I have raised two girls and am on my third so prom weekend is something we have dealt with ALOT.  

When I had prom (1970 something), we went to JC Penney's, picked out a dress that actually your mom picked out, (oh that sailor dress), wore a pair of sandals from our closets, did our own hair, didn't wear much makeup...blah blah blah.  Then we went to our school gym where there may have been some punch and we danced to a band.  

Usually, the best part of prom was...yeah, the band.  



NOW...hold on to your hats...prom is crazy!  Let me share the difference that being an empty nester has been for me...

People do these things...
   1. Shop for months (at boutiques and wedding shops)for that perfect dress that they make payments on because it's too expensive to buy all at once; Oh and make sure it's sexy - that's right - S.E.X.Y!  (yes, we are still talking about high school kids, mmhm)

WE DO THIS:  Gather all the prom dresses that all the sisters, cousins, etc. have over the years, pick out the one that speaks to you - and BAM!  DRESS SHOPPING DONE!

   2. Once that's done, then come the appointments that have to be made way way ahead of time for hair, makeup, manicures and pedicures because everybody and their brother (or sister in this case) is trying to get in the same day 

WE DO THIS:  Okay okay I did take Cassie to get her nails done.  But being an almost empty nester and my two grown girls LOVING nothing more than dressing up Cassie - 

my girls have every product needed for a makeover!

BAM!  HAIR AND MAKEUP DONE!  AT HOME! 

   

3.  Ok, then you have to buy shoes - and of course they must have crazy sparkles and heels to enhance the sparkly look that every girl nowadays wants at her prom. 

WE DO THIS:  Paige and Laice took Cassie shopping and bought her a reasonable pair of sandals that she will wear again!  BAM - SHOE SHOPPING - PAINLESS AND DONE! 

   4.  Limo rides, to the prom - umm, no

WE DO THIS: Laice came with me and we drove Paige's car to bring Cassie to...

   5. Pictures.  To most people today these are mega important because there must be beautiful backgrounds, preferrably some water, very awesome looking stairs...you get the picture (wink, wink)

WE DO THIS: Okay we did go to a park for pictures.  But it was 
so much easier having Laice with me and sharing gas cost by using her car...
   


However - some of my pictures have branches and stuff in front of them because the mother of all mom-photographers was there with her giant expensive camera pushing everyone else out of the way so she could get her perfect pics - patience Terri patience - don't blow....good thing I didn't care that much about perfect pics...with my iPhone...

   
6.  Then the after prom plans - the pickup - parties?  Overnighters?  Prom of course lasts until midnight so the parents have to go pick up their kids at ungodly hours of the night - oh, and to make it as difficult as possible, the prom is at the Commons on base - as most of you know, civilians cannot get on base these days without a sponsor - so we put our names on a list - and of course only those names are allowed in, and you have to go to a special gate to get there...

WE DO THIS:  Stop at the gate office to beg for special treatment

so Laice and her boyfriend, Spencer, can pick up Cassie so I can go to bed at a decent hour - (Laice was on the list but Spencer wasn't) we get the go ahead (after alot of sob story stuff) - and then don't take them up on it.  Good grief.  But hey, Laice did go alone THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART LAICE MAE! And I was able to go to bed.  Ha!

WHEW!  

So now for the epiphany...being an almost empty nester has actually helped the entire process - thanks to my grown up girls!

So, my only thought left on this matter is this - what in the world are the wedding expectations going to be?? Lucky for me, we don't worry about expectations or keeping up with the Jones'.  We like to keep it humble - and that's ok with us.  

It's a crazy world out there.  Try to stay in your own zone - it will pay off in the end - and your kids will be happier for it!   
  

The First Quarter

The first quarter of this new year is over.  

It's been a "red letter" year for the Ward family...

And being an almost empty nester made it...well....HARD!  






BUT...we Wards are pretty hardy and at this point we are not complaining - nope, in fact, we are kind of laughing...











So first, my daughter Laice had a gallbladder attack and torn esophagus and had emergency surgery - at which time I left work one day not knowing when I would return (because my Laice is in PA and I'm not - they still need their mamma sometimes even if they are all grown up - sort of)

I spent a week with her helping my other daughter, Paige, nurse her back to health (the details are in a previous blog)...



Then I returned home and got stranded with a flat tire - the ridiculous thing is that I had all brand new tires!  It was freezing and AAA took two hours to get to me - then they sent a guy with no air and no tools to change my tire - great.  They said they could send someone else but I would have to wait again - SO I had the unprepared (but very nice) guy tow me to where I bought the tire...

Next, I was riding with my boss in my truck and BOOM!  The emergency brake broke into pieces and got stuck in a whole bunch of other stuff which made it impossible to drive (oh, and did I mention "my guy" had just inspected my truck 1 week before that happened?!!)...





During all that and around two weeks after Laice's surgery, she fell and broke her leg in three places...nuff said there...

Then Laice's boyfriend, Spencer, was in a terrible accident on Route 81 that caused a multi (and I mean multi) car pileup that totaled his vehicle...

Next our beloved Boston Terrier, Weezer, 












decided to get into a wrestling match with a porcupine - the porcupine won.. Weezer had to have surgery and was a total mess...swollen face and nose, bleeding, sores, - you name it...










After that I came down with a nasty flu/bronchial thing that laid me out straight  for over a week - I actually missed work!  That rarely happens...

Cassie helping around the sick house

then Cassie got the nasty bug - and Ronnie followed suit - the house of sick - that's what we were for a good month...

Then, I got sick again!!  Seriously?!  Again?...









And then Ronnie's truck broke down...back to the shop we go...

Then Weezer fell and hurt his leg - he's still not walking on it... What to do, what to do...



I started working out and actually was getting ready to start a "couch to 5K" program, and now, incomprehensibly, I am sick again - yes again - so I went to my doctor and demanded she find out what the heck!!!!  Enough!!  

Well there were other things less drastic in-between all this drama - but here's the thing...

Now when something happens - we are laughing and throwing our arms up  - Also, it helped us think of the positives...

At least it was only a gallbladder, and my boss is very understanding...
At least it was only a flat tire, I had AAA tow, and they fixed it for free...
At least I don't really need an emergency brake to drive...
At least Laice fell at work, so it's all covered under Comp...
At least Spencer escaped (thank God!) and now he has an awesome truck...
At least we were able to have Weezer's quills removed...
At least we have insurance so we can get better...
At least Ron was able to fix his own truck (and afford me some entertainment as I watched a belt slap back and wrap around him a couple times before he actually got it on right - )
At least I'm not in hospital with something serious..
At least Weezer has a comfy bed to lay down in, and he is carefully walking on it today...
At least when I'm better I have a partner to work out with...(I'm coming Carla!!!)

So there, so many positives right?  I have no doubt that the second part of 2015 is going to be better - and if it's not - then our tough skin will be all that more tough for the third quarter!  

Ok, 2015 - you don't scare us...the Ward's are rushing in! 

Hey, there's nowhere to go but up right? 

Driving Miss....haps?

My husband and I have owned many modes of travel over the years...

He can drive a vehicle for years and years and never need brakes, or new tires, or anything major happen...

Me?  Well, he says I'm a little reckless, I say it's just my luck - and not the good kind either - I have the worst luck with vehicles...

I thought I would give you a little tour of our modes of travel over the years...Make, model and size is really important to Ron, for me?  Well, if it's the right color I'm happy...



First was his 1970's something Chevy Impala.  He loved this car, for me it was like driving a large boat through a skinny alley... oh, and I hate the color

Then our next mode was a Harley Davidson - yep, we both loved being bikers and it might have lasted into our old age, but...

Then this happened...

(Ron survived, the bike, not so much...) 








So then came the "pimp" car - our silver Ford LTD (with blood red interior), it was kind of cool, but wow, bigger than the last boat - silver was ok I guess

then we found a winner - 1960 Rambler.  It was pink with red interior and a push start.  PINK! and not just pink, it was metalic pink!  She was a sweet ride and I miss her soooo much! 
(I lost a tire while driving down the road though - like literally - it detached from the car and went rolling down the road!)




Ron's next pick - yeah, no words, I was so glad when this one died... I got nothin'

 And then I'm not sure how this happened but I got stuck driving an old beat up Chevy Chevette. It was this color too, yuk,  Worst car ever!!!  I remember driving it down the road one day and the whole bottom dropped out because of rust - (of course it was because of my reckless driving) I was stuck unless I wanted to Fred Flintstone it all the way home!

The only NEW car I ever owned was a Plymouth Acclaim - yep, totally old lady but it got me where I needed to me - uh, until I totaled it - and broke my hand - but it was worth it because that led me to my personal favorite...

 - my Dodge Stratus - red (best color for a car in my opinion) and it drove like a charm - that is, until the cam cracked and,  well, apparently my reckless driving sent it to its grave...mmhmm

Then all of a sudden all our other cars were gray. Every time a salesperson wants to get rid of a car it's gray.  Ugh.  We had a silver/gray van in between here somewhere while we were basketball and soccer parents - and yeah, I drove that thing into the ground - last thing I remember was driving to work in the middle of the winter with no heat...must have been my reckless driving.  I hate vans.

Now over the last 15 years my husband has owned two trucks: a Toyota and a Dodge Ram - he has hardly had anything done to them - then he insisted that I buy this thing - a Nissan Titan, in gray!  We got a "good deal" on it.  I didn't like it - too big, ugly color (that's right color is important to me!), oh, did I mention too big? Well in the three years I have owned the thing we have put over $3500 into it, I still owe two years of payments, and I have been stranded twice! Luckily, the "good deal" has made it feaseable for us to look for a new car!  (Although Ron swears all it's problems are due to my reckless driving) - but still, the repair bill is starting to convince him...sooooo



I will say that I have become partial to driving trucks - I do like them.  You sit nice and high and if they get beat up or rust they just get better with age, ya know?  So these are my next two picks and I'm soooo excited!  

  My first choice is the new Dodge Ram Rebel - (comes out summer of 2015) - in red of course - pretty cool huh?  

My next choice is a Dodge Ram (I don't care what make) but it has to be Robin Egg Blue!  That's right!  Robin Egg Blue! 

Hey, a girl can dream can't she?  Besides, I figure that as an almost empty nester I should NEVER have a vehicle that will leave me stranded anywhere!  Been there, done that!  Yes I have triple AAA, thank goodness - but still, sometimes they can't get there for a couple of hours.  

Anyway - if I could get my pink rambler back I would take her. But I can settle for a truck - as long as the color is right!

She was a beauty - the '60 Rambler of course - although the girl's not too shabby - who is that creepy guy...oh, never mind...ha!

Happy Travels! 

  

The Greatest Illustration...

Hello there!  Have you missed me?  

Well this is a short blog to let you know I have been otherwise engaged and so had to slack on my blog for a couple of weeks.  

Then I thought I would write a nice long one this week, but hey, it's Holy Week and I got distracted.  

I know, I should have lots of contemplation time and quiet time and therefore should have lots of time to pen a blog....but here's the thing...

Holy Week for me always consumes me.  It occupies my mind and

makes it difficult to think about anything else.  

I mean, can you imagine what Jesus went through this past week?  Knowing he was going to be tortured and slaughtered and knowing he didn't do anything to deserve it?  It brings me to my knees to think He went through that for me.  



Here's a question for you..

What would you do if someone came right up to you and spit in your face when you didn't do anything to them?  Really, what would you do?  


As I walked through this past week I couldn't help but be moved as I read about what He suffered each day...

Talking to His disciples about His death...

Meeting with them on Thursday for their last meal together...

Dying on Friday - I work at a church so we set a dark scene of candles and images of Jesus as contemplative instrumental music played through the halls - and offering communion to remember His sacrifice...




Then tomorrow...HE IS RISEN! He conquered death by rising on Sunday - a proven hope for all people.  

I am so thankful, so hopeful, so grateful that He went through that for me.  And I am so thankful to all those who have fought and suffered and died for our freedom to celebrate my risen Savior on Easter Sunday. 

I mean, put yourself in the place of Mary Magdalene.  A whore, a nobody, hated by society - but loved by Jesus - then she loses him to execution - when she goes to visit his grave - finds that he has risen from the dead - can you even imagine the hope she must have felt?  

If you want to see an amazing video go to youtube and search "Alive" - W, Lyrics by natalie grant 

I couldn't get it to post here but here's what it will look like

You should come to Life Church on Thompson Blvd. to celebrate with me.  Service starts at 11:15am but if you want a free breakfast come at 9:45.  The service is going to be super special.  We will start with a contemplative remembrance of his suffering that will explode into a celebration of His life and our HOPE.  

Now, for some fun tidbits...

Hey, if you comment I would love to hear some of your Easter traditions...

Did you know that if you wrap eggs in silk and dip them in vinegar and water the pattern on the silk will transfer onto the eggs?  Check this out it's soooo cool!  

 "Here is the amazing thing about Easter; the Resurrection Sunday for Christians is this, that Christ in the dying moments on the cross gives us the greatest illustration of forgiveness possible." -- TD Jakes

Fun With Kids!

Sometimes I miss my kids being kids.  I can still hardly believe that they are grown up, living on their own and out of state.  

I miss playing, I miss cuddling, I miss talking about kid stuff, I miss kid movies, I miss kid books - I miss it all!  

BUT - An almost empty nester does not mean you can't still have fun with kids.  

This weekend Cassie and I spent the night with my niece (Ashlee 10) and nephew (Jackson 5)  so their parents could go have some fun adult time together. 

I think it was us who had the fun...






We started off the day at the YMCA to watch Ashlee's soccer game...











See ya later mom and dad - have fun all  by yourselves!

Oh yeah - up to our elbows in cookie dough...

Softball game in the kitchen!   sshhhhh....















These kids know how to build some pretty cool forts...










And now we settle down with lots of fun snacks and a movie - "The Box Trolls"...

And now it's bedtime - well, if you count watching a basketball game in bed bedtime...

Goodnight you two, I love you to pieces...

I could also cover lots of great and funny conversations that were had over the last two days, but my favorite was this one...

Me - I really hate some of these risque commercials on anymore.

Ashlee -  Don't worry Aunt Terri, I had "the talk".

Me - Oh is that so?  And who gave you this talk? 

Ashlee - My Mamma 

Me - Well that's good.  So, what did you think about it? 

Ashlee - just one word, (spelling it out as she looked at me with some very intense eyes)   G.R.O.S.S.   

hahahaha.  

Oh how I miss this stuff.   

Hey, if you don't have any kids in your family - find some!  They are so much fun.  I can hardly wait to be a grandma after spending the weekend with Ashlee and Jackson.