Summer Plans

With only five weeks of school left, I am thinking of summer. I have workshops on June 1 and 3, but after that the summer lays before me. I told Randy I was going somewhere, and he was welcome to come with me! The trip to Alaska can not be beat, but that was a once in a life time or a once every 25 years of marriage thing. I have several ideas. After white water rafting in Alaska, I want to do that again. I am looking at Colorado and Tennessee. We also would like to take the motorcycle somewhere, and we have the camper(AKA ..the Hurricane Escape Pod) that we have only spent one night in.

My sister-in-law and I are going to Smoky Mountain National Park to a teacher's workshop the week of June 14 to June 19. It is a freebie that I found on the Internet. We both applied, and have since heard back from them. We will live dormitory style at Tremont Institute studying the different ecosystems of the park. Like I say, it is a freebie. It will only cost the gas there and the money we spend shopping in Gatlinburg! I am very excited about that. I went to something similar summer before last at Yellowstone National Park. It was NASA sponsored, and I did receive a $500 stipend that paid for my plane ticket, but I had to pay for the weeks room and board. It was a great experience though!

I am mainly looking forward to just being off and not hearing...."Mrs. Brooks, I can't find my pencil and can I go to the bathroom?"

Just another day in paradise

Randy and I spent a weekend working outside. What does one do when they have 80 acres to play on?
Arbor with climbing roses.
Give them a few years.
First blooms of the season.
I wish I had more bushes.

When we were not working,
we bird watched.

The weather was beautiful. We even ate our meals outside. Before there was tv, computers, and Ipods I think God provided plenty of entertainment for us in the form of flowers, sunshine, cool breezes, and beautiful birds.

Free Airshow

Randy and I spent today doing some yardwork. We mulched the roses, fed them, potted some hanging baskets, and he got up the arbor for the climbing roses. About 6 o'clock or so, we were sitting in the swing when we heard a low flying plane. At about the same time, we thought and said......David Tracy. He always buzzes the house when he is near by in his plane. We went out to the open field on the south side of the house so he could see us. He saw us...............

He dipped. He dived. He barrel-rolled. He flew straight up. He flew straight down. He flew sideways. He flew high. He flew low. After several passes, I went inside the house to get the camera. As I hurried into the house, I kept looking up to watch for him. He flew sideways right over the house. It made me scream. He is a maniac!

By the time I got the camera, he was on his way back to the airport in DeQuincy. We only got the one shot of him leaving. When he flew sideways over the house, you could really see his plane. With the sun shining off of it, it was beautiful. I wish we could have gotten that picture.

David, you are nuts! I kept saying don't do anything stupid that will haunt my dreams the rest of my life. He is wild! I do have a question for you though...Did your air show count as your home teaching visit? If so, this is what I learned: I will never fly in a plane with you.

Happy Anniversary

This picture was actually taken
on our 1st anniversary.

Today is mine and Randy's 26th wedding anniversary. We were married in my parent's livingroom at around 5 in the evening. Randy and I left a couple of hours later for our "honeymoon" . We spent the first night in Shreveport and the following night in Hot Springs, Arkansas. When we were about 15 miles up the road, we hit a deer. We were in Randy's big dual wheeled truck. The deer was not quite dead, so Randy finished him off with the pistol he had with him. He loaded the deer into the back of the truck and took it to my parents house. My dad called someone he knew would skin it, and we were on our way again.

From the beginning of our marriage, we have always did things or made decisions for the long run. We have come to realize that we are now living in the long run. It has been a long run at times, but of late we have chosen to slow down and make it a long walk.

My Top 5 Favorite Things About Randy:(in no particular order and by no way limited to 5)

1. He knows me better than anyone.
2. He tolerates my premenopausal mood swings, heat waves, and cold fronts.
3. He surprised me with a wooden rocker on Valentine's Day that he had stained himself.
4. He rubs my feet and uses the pumice and lotion on them with or without me requesting.
5. He likes to travel as much as I do and wants to see so this country with me.

Happy Anniversary Randy. I love you!

U2

I love Bono and U2. They are coming to Houston in October(the 14th, Randy's birthday) and Sarah got our tickets today. We saw them in 05 as well. This time Randy and I will be on the floor with Greg and Sarah. It should be great!

I became a U2 fan after we saw them in 05. Until then, I knew who they were, but did not know a lot about them and their music. I researched the band and Bono, and discovered that Bono is quite the man. I am a huge fan.

I have their most recent CD. Below is the lyrics to my favorite song on the CD.

Magnificent
Oh, magnificent



I was born
I was born to be with you 

In this space and time

After that and ever after
I haven't had a clue


Only to break rhyme
This foolishness can leave a heart
Black and blue



Only love
Only love can leave such a mark

But only love
Only love can heal such a scar


I was born
I was born to sing for you 

I didn’t have a choice
But to lift you up
And sing whatever song you wanted me to
I give you back my voice
From the womb my first cry
It was a joyful noise
Oh, oh

Only love
Only love can leave such a mark

But only love
Only love can heal such a scar


Justified till we die
You and I will magnify

Oh, the magnificent

Magnificent

Only love
Only love can leave such a mark

But only love
Only love unites our hearts



Justified till we die
You and I will magnify
Oh, the magnificent

Magnificent

Magnificent

Where did the week go?

It seems like it was just last Sunday and I was looking forward to the week off. Monday, I met my former co-workers from Hyatt for lunch in DeQuincy, then that afternoon Randy and I went and picked up Sarah and Liam. It was a wonderful week. Yesterday I took them to Vidor where we met Greg, and they went back to The Woodlands.

Rain, rain, rain....we have had plenty. The creek is out of its banks and is threatening to go over our road. I do not believe it will, but I should be prepared to leave with Randy in the morning in case my car can't go through.

Six more weeks of school....I can do this.

Maiden Blog

This is actually not my first post, but since Sarah helped me revamp my blog and it has been over a year since I did post, I decided to start anew. I think blogging is a wonderful way to keep up with and get to know friends and family. I hope that I do not ramble too much.

Sarah and Liam are staying with us this week while Randy and I are both off. Daniel even came up today and will stay through Thursday. Jacob was able to come over Sunday, but had to return back to Baton Rouge. We had fun today riding Liam on the 4wheeler, watching and hearing Daniel terrify Sarah on the 4wheeler, and just enjoying the beautiful spring day. Randy even commented that Sarah's screams on the 4wheeler with Daniel were music to his ears. I have to agree.

Randy grilled some awesome steaks. Sarah made some brillant green beans that involved us steaming them and then pouring a mixture of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and garlic over them. We watched American Idol(well, not Daniel) together. After Idol went off, Liam was ready for a bath and bed.

It is wonderful having a baby in the house. Liam is 10 1/2 months old, and is everywhere. I think he will walk before his first birthday. I keep a basket of toys for him, and he is quick to dump them out. He also loves to get in the pots and pans drawer. He took about 7 or 8 steps today toward Randy....sorry Greg.

I have so been looking forward to this week off. So far it has been just what I needed, including holding a sleeping Liam today, and finally dozing off with him. Holding a sleeping baby is probably one of the best forms of therapy in the world. I highly recommend it to those who have not tried it.