The next last thing

Last week I attended my cousin, Kelly's, wedding.  She's 24.  She's full of life, adventure and new beginnings, and so are all her friends - all those 20 some year olds.  I enjoyed chatting with each of them.  Whether or not they realize it, they have a world of possibilities right in front of them. Many of them went to the University of Alabama and then dispersed throughout the country after college.  I admire that - no fear to spread your wings & I pray for big wings for Jay and Nick.  I started to reflect on my 20's.  There was probably a big part of me who was afraid to spread my wings, fearful of what the great unknown might have had in store for my 20 something self.  I shared this with my sister who asked me what I would have done differently, and when she asked me I laughed and said, Nothing!  I'm exactly where I believe God planted me.  In my 20's I was over the moon crazy about Mike and became his bride at 23.  When I think of my 20's I think of my youth and being in love, like the kind of intoxicating love you feel only when you're young.  I made my closest friends in my 20's who remain dear to me to this day.  I wasn't at all rooted in my faith, and I wasn't centered on my career, I just wanted a job with a steady income, which God provided me with.  I remember my 20's fondly & when I was chatting with those 20 some year olds at the wedding I wanted to grab their fresh faces, and tell them to enjoy this time, as they won't get it back.  In fact the 20's are gone in a blink of an eye.  I read somewhere that the best stages of life are the 20's and 60's.  So where does that leave the 30's, 40's and 50's?  While I can't speak about the 50's, as I'm 43.  I can speak about the 30's.  I see my 30's as the next last thing.  I had two boys who would run into my arms when I came home from work.  One day it stopped.  I don't know when but there was always one stage ending and another one beginning, the next last thing.  I made big mistakes in my 30's - parenting mistakes, financial mistakes, and probably mistakes in my marriage.  By the end of my 30's I felt like I was finally catching my breath.  My babies weren't babies but in elementary school!  Where had the time gone?  In just three short years I've experienced the most growth in who I am in my 40's.  I'm comfortable in my own skin.  I don't waste time with people who bring me down, and I'm slowly starting to accept that uncomfortable, yet necessary thing in life called, letting go of your children.  As the progression unfolds, it shapes me.  I'm pretty sure God is doing the shaping and the molding, preparing me for the next last thing, as He always has. 

This, that and the other

 It's been another whirlwind week in our household.  When I reflect on last year at this time, I was in my cast, dealing with a blood clot and pulmonary embolism and counting down the days until the boys returned to school, as I was about to lose my mind.  Plus, Mike's business was stressing me out!  What a difference a year makes.  I'm well and off my blood thinners.  The summer has been great and even though I'm always ready for the boys to start school, I wish July would linger just a wee bit longer.  And Mike's business is stupid busy and I no longer allow it to stress me out.  I'm in full support of Mike and the business and will help in any way I can, but only when I'm asked.  I have my own job to handle and two boys that I'm practically handling full time - that's enough for me right now.  Yesterday, Nick left for gun camp with a friend.  He was really excited about it.  They get to camp and shoot guns.  If you added fishing into the mix it would be Nick's all around perfect adventure. 

 I absolutely hate this picture of me.  I'm on a whacked out, clean eating diet right now and I've lost 4.5 lbs in 2 weeks but it's not fun and when I see pictures like this of me I'm reminded to stick to my diet - UGH!  My mom looks fabulous, however!  I digress.  The whole point was to write about visiting with Melissa - who always looks great!  She came from TX for a visit.  We've been friends since kindergarten.  She is my longest friend - not old - but long.  Ha!  I usually get to see her about once a year.  It is always a treat to catch up with her. 

 And finally, detasseling!  Detasseling is over for Jay.  I took this picture of his neck because it was his only body part that got sun in the fields and boy did it get sun!  He detasseled for a good two weeks and hated every second of it, but he did it with very little complaining.  He got his first paycheck, with another one on the way.  Now he's full speed ahead in searching for a vehicle. 

I snapped this picture of Jay this morning.  And yes, it's impossible to get a picture of him smiling at the camera.  He was relaxed in his chair with his dog.  He leaves in 2 days for a week long vacation in TN with the Ausili's.  I think it's fair to say that Jay's summer and Nick's also has been pretty good and will certainly wrap up positively. 

Kelly's Wedding - Alabama Style

 My youngest cousin, Kelly, got married over the weekend.  My sister and I made the very wise choice to travel to AL without our spouses or our kids.  We needed that sisters weekend.  We loved every minute of it and witnessing Kelly getting married was just the icing on the cake. 

 Here we are all dressed up.  I haven't been this dressed up and feeling good about it (after my unfortunate ankle incident last summer and trying to dress up for Michelle's wedding) in a long time. 

 Aunt Karen looks fabulous as the mother of the bride.  What an evening.

 I love this picture.  I only wish that Kelly would have been in the picture also.  Michelle is pregnant, although you can't tell it from any of the pictures.  She is due in December with a girl. 

 Kim and I arrived in Birmingham on Friday at 3:00.  We walked into the lobby of our hotel and thankfully my uncle was there.  He said he was headed out but that he would see us at the very fancy rehearsal dinner.  Kim and I shot each other a look, "How fancy," we asked?  We got on the horn and called our aunt and she said it was you need to wear a dress fancy!  WHAT????  Kim and I had packed capri's for the rehearsal dinner.  We got in our room, threw our suitcases down and found the nearest Macy's.  I'm embarrassed to say this but we tore up a dressing room in Macy's.  There were dresses everywhere.  The dresses you see in the picture above is our last minute Macy's purchases.  I think we cleaned up quite well and thank goodness our shoes we had for the wedding worked with the dresses.  Somehow we made it back to our hotel room by 5:00, cleaned up and made it to the rehearsal dinner by 6:45.  Again, we were just so thankful we didn't bring our husbands or kids.  Mike and the boys would have been all kinds of crabby if they had to dress up for a rehearsal dinner!  Ha. 

 Jayde was the flower girl.  It was such a big day for her but she was a trooper.  She did awesome! 

When we got the reception Nick's buds from Myrtle were there.  We took this picture and sent to Nick, telling him we missed him.  Well the boys did, me, not so much! 

 I was honored that Kelly asked me to the prayer at the reception.  Here's me right before the prayer.  I was proud of the prayer and it went just fine!  I had hoped it would honor God first and Kelly and Andrew's special day. 

                                                 Me, getting ready to deliver the prayer.

 Sisters weekend.  Honestly I can't remember the last time I spent one on one time with Kim for an extended time, but I can tell you it's been years........years I tell you!  We laughed (a lot), and talked.  It was just like old times!

 I love my aunt and uncle.  I asked Karen if it felt good to have her youngest child married.  She said that yes it did feel quite good.  I can only imagine how it must feel to know your kids have married two good people.  People that love your children and fit in nicely with your family.  My aunt and uncle are very hospitable and selfless, and it's reflected in their friends.  People came from all over the country to love them and support them for this special occasion. 

Finally, I had to throw this picture in the blog because I could not do what I do without my mom.  She kept Nick and this was a picture they sent me.  It's good for my mental health to get away.  Sometimes it can be down right impossible for me, but my mom makes it possible.  Mike is working a ton lately so I didn't want  to put anything extra on him.  Jay is not driving yet, and although the boys can be home alone for a short time, it's a recipe for disaster to leave them home alone (together) for an entire day.  Mike is great about taking Jay to work with him,, but  Nick is another story.  Anyway, thank you, mom.  It was sure good for my mental health to get away and know everything was being handled back on the home front. 

Detasseling

 Jay has been detasseling since July 10.  Does he like it.....No.  Does he complain.....barely.  Is he focused on the money......Yes.  That pretty much sums it up.  He really hates it but he's tolerating it.   I made an epic mistake the first day in asking him if it was hot outside.  Note to self, never ever ask anyone who has spent a day detasseling if it's hot out, especially when it's your 15 year old son.  Most mornings Mike drives Jay to meet the bus but one morning I drove him and this was the scenery I got a glimpse of.  If you look closely you can see the rainbow - beautiful. 

I'm really proud of Jay.  He absolutely hates detasseling, but he is doing very little complaining.  He's moving forward with it and focused on the end of it.  Age 15 has been hard on this momma, mostly because of all the transitions and I'm very focused on backing off from Jay (even though he may not feel like I'm backing off, ha).  Jay sets his own alarm for detasseling, gets himself up, feeds himself breakfast, and packs his lunch.  I have to pinch myself that I'm actually at this stage in parenting.  Detasseling is also one of those things that as a parent is hard for the short term but the long term effects will be worth it.  Jay will tell anyone listening that we "made him" detassel.  That is not true.  We very clearly told him he needed to work, doing something, this summer.  He applied at our local IGA and at a parks and recreation department, but neither of those jobs played out.  It's challenging for a 15 year old to get a job.  He knew he needed to have "some skin in the game" for a vehicle so detasseling it was.  Needless to say witnessing how Jay is handling detasseling and working for Mike this summer encourages Mike and I to help him as much as we possibly can with his car.  Forking over money for a car to a kid that did nothing all summer was not going to happen in this household.  Ha!  Thus far Jay has handled his schedule with maturity and has proven he can do something that isn't fun and do it as it should be done - with very little complaining!  And my final shout out to Jay is he had detasseled for a few days and was then given 2 days off.  Mike really needed Jay's help at Cornerstone for one of Jay's days off so he got out of bed on his day off and put a smile on his face and helped his dad.  Way to go, Jay!  I'm happy to report Jay is laying low today but gearing up for more detasseling tomorrow. 

Another fun July weekend

 My dear friend, Karen Page (now Karen Nance) got married in June, and yesterday my former boss, Jill and friend, Karen Neal threw a simple but lovely bridal brunch for her.  Leaving my former employer six years ago was one of the best decisions I ever made, but these women sure have my heart.  I worked with all of them day in and day out for 16 years.  I am so glad we've all stayed in contact and remained close friends.  And I am so happy for Karen! 

                                                       Jean, me and Karen!

 Saturday we headed to Uncle Mike's.  What a farm he has!  It's so much fun.  The kids loved it and it was like Mike had ordered the weather, it was perfect.

 Just to prove that I do go to these events.  I didn't think this picture was half bad of us, even though Mike is impossible to get a picture of!  Grrrrr........

 The boys spent a lot of time on the gator!  Truly though the evening was so nice and relaxing and the firework show was amazing! 

As dusk set in the cross on the silo lit up and I instantly thought of my grandparents.  My Uncle said that cross has lit up everyday for the past 20 years.  As drivers drive past his farm, they see the cross.  My Aunt Kathy said she will try to describe to people where her farm is located, but in the end she just says it's the farm with the lit up cross and then people know exactly where her farm is!  It's a true testament to our family and the fact that Christ cements our family together.  We are certainly less than perfect, but my mom, my grandparents, their parents, and the list goes on and on, all loved Christ.  I am truly enjoying every part of what summer has to offer this year.  Mike is crazy busy, and I think it's fair to say that for the time being, this business is exactly what he needs to be involved in.  I'm over most of the anxiety I initially felt when he began this adventure.  The boys are always challenging in the summer.  They fight A LOT, watch too much trash TV and by mid-July they are complaining they are bored.  It's not mid-July yet so the complaining is still at a minimum (ha), but overall all things considered this summer has gone relatively smoothly, so far.  Nick has had just enough activities to keep him busy and Jay has worked with Mike on and off, and tomorrow he starts detasseling.  I'm sure I'll be devoting an entire blog to that. 

Our whirlwind weekend

 I've had a weekend that turned into 4 days of fun!  On Saturday morning my friend, Laura, invited us over for brunch and although I didn't take any pictures, we sure enjoyed ourselves.  The weather was beautiful and the company was even better.  I came home from Laura's, took a shower and geared up for the second round of the night.  I took Nick and his friends (Noah, Calvin and Jake) to SkyZone in Springfield.  The boys had a really good time.  I adore these boys!  Nick has given me a run for my money lately, as all kids can sometimes do, but when I was with these group of boys on Saturday I was reminded that even though some of the choices Nick is making these days stink, he sure has it spot on in picking his friends! 

 We ended the night at Steak 'n Shake.  Again, I so enjoyed eating a meal with these sweet boys! 

 On Sunday we went to church and listened to an amazing sermon.  Our pastor is one in a million.  I spent the afternoon at Shannon's house with Mary!  Another perfect day.  On Monday, I worked.  Yes, I still have to make a living amongst all the fun.  Ausili's and I pulled together a quick evening  on Monday night.  How things change!  Ausili's use to come out every 4th of July and when the boys were little, even as little as 3 years ago, the Ausili's would come out almost every weekend in the summer.  Of our four children, three of them are in high school now - time marches on.  I am just so thankful we all make the effort to get together.  Due to our schedules, we are often pulling together something at the last minute, but it doesn't make it any less meaningful.  I snapped the above picture of the kids and although it's not very good I had to show how grown up they are all getting.  It's mind boggling to me that Faith will be a senior.  Next summer she may not even be around to spend a summer night at what she affectionately calls "the siebert compound."  Crazy.  Jay and Curt will be sophomores and will driving next summer and Nick enters middle school.  Ausili's are the kind of friends whom I pray we grow old with and as times change, we can reflect and remember when. 

 On Monday Nick and Lauren started a rock climbing class together.  I am exceptionally proud of Lauren.  She is making leaps and bounds in conquering her fears, and rock climbing is one of them.  She climbed all the way to the top, listening to us cheer her on. 

 Jay and Luke aren't participating but ran into each other during pick up times. 

 And finally, fourth of July came.  As I blog today I remember vividly waking up last July 5 to my broken ankle and thinking what the heck have I done to myself?  This fourth of July, although fun, was uneventful.  No broken bones sustained this year.  Hallejah!  We had our annual fourth of July parade at Spin Lake, and later in the afternoon we went to Winterland's for their shrimp boil.  We were hindered by rain, but once the rain passed through, it was smooth sailing.

 The shrimp boil!  It is so yummy.  Brooke plans and organizes the boil.  She puts out two big tables, lines them with newspaper and the entire shrimp boil gets dumped on the newspaper and we dig in and eat.  No plates, just our hands and lots of napkins.  Brooke joked that she's pretty sure we are violating a dozen health codes!  But we sure enjoy it and the food is really good! 

Jay and his friends (Jay, Aaron, Garrett, Ayden, Peyton, and Jeremy).  We are missing Reece in this picture because he left early to be with a girl.......and so it begins.  Ha.  I remember these boys in early elementary school.  Now they look like giants!  I give the same compliment to Jay as I did Nick.  Jay has a good, solid group of friends.
Today I am in somewhat of a fog.  I have a dirty house and lots of laundry, but my heart is full. Considering where I was a year ago, life is sure good!  I am thankful for everyday I and my family are healthy!  I'm looking forward to what the rest of the summer has planned for us.