Into The Wild Blue Yonder- Flying High Into The Sun

Well, my grandfather is finally a "free man" as my mom so appropriately put it. He passed away at around 3 a.m. today. I have been at my grandparents house every day for the past few days, so no blog for a while.( I have missed "journaling".) I am so happy that my grandfather is not suffering anymore. He battled Alzheimer's and Parkinson's for 24 years. He would have never wanted to live the way he has for the past 12 years. He was a man who was full of life and good to everyone he met. In the 10th grade, he lied about his age so he could go and fight for his country in WWII - he enrolled in the Air Force (hence the titile of this certain post- part of the Air Force song) and operated the machine guns on the bomber planes. He saw many friends get shot down and that haunted him for a while. After the war, he went to Furman University and majored in Psychology and also earned a spot in the Furman Baseball Hall of Fame as a pitcher for their team. He then went to Clemson University (yay) to earn his master's degree in education. He was a high school teacher and has a scholarship at that school named after him. He was an awesome grandfather. Took me everywhere, enrolled me in art classes when I was very young- I love to paint and draw to this day. He was a talented artist and a very intelligent man. He taught me to read when I was 3 years old. I have some incredible memories of him and I will always cherish them. I am not sad about his death. I learned to view death in a different way when I worked on Pediatric Oncology for 10 years. Not suggesting in any way that it is not sad to me or anything- especially if I lost a child or my husband- I hope I never have to experience that, I cannot imagine that type of pain and grief. But, we all have an appointment with it that cannot be changed and when our time is up it's up. Life is a precious gift, we should do the best we can with it- but eternal life is the real prize. I think about how amazing Heaven must be and I am so happy that he is there. I am sad for my grandmother. She took care of him all day every day for the past howevermany years. My mom also was so involved and helped so much with his care. My grandmother viewed him as literally her other half and I hope she can fill her life with some enjoyment and fun, but it is going to take her a while to get used to this "new normal" life. I know this post is a little blabberish but I am tired..... So, I hope you were able to bear with me as I traveled down memory lane tonight. I could have written a book just about my grandfather, but I will stop at what I have. Anytime I pass by a Hardees or see a light blue Volkswagon Bug, I will think of him. I hope when it is my time (hopefully a while from now) , that he will be at the gate with a smile on his face and a hug ready for me!

Lots O' Shots from the Cruise

Here's a couple of pics of our lovely cabin. Looked to me like someone
ate a whole bunch of cantelope with some Pepto chasers and then
puked it all over the room.

At least the bedding was white......... How bout those primary color

abstract paintings on the wall?

Now for the pretty- took this above pic of the water at Grand Turk off the boat. I don't

think anyone could reproduce the blue-green color of the Caribbean. It is so pretty-

even the pictures don't do it justice.

Grand Turk- loved it- this was the beach area where we layed out and swam. I swam

between the safety nets and saw so many cool fish (didn't go above my knees in depth...).

I think this was the absolute prettiest water and beach I have seen, yet.

These were some little studio apartments on Grand Turk- I thought they were really

cute. Wouldn't want to be in one during a hurricane, but I would take one in a heartbeat!

The beach at Grand Turk- pure white sand.

Grand Turk also had some of the prettiest flowers.

Another beauty at Grand Turk.

Y'all see me representin' the tigers on Grand Turk? (Even with no makeup and greasy hair....)

Sure, no one there had probably heard of Clemson, but I was showin' some love anyway.

San Juan, Puerto Rico as seen from the balcony of the boat. I was surprised at how"developed"

it was- I expected it to be more slum-like. I don't know why.

Loved this picture in downtown San Juan. Loved the light strings all over, and

the blue-hued cobblestone streets. It reminded me of a dirty Charleston.

View of the ocean from one of the park areas in San Juan. They had some really

pretty shrubs and plantings.

This was one of the old fort walls in what I called "Pigeon Park" - there were pigeons

everywhere as you will see in the next couple of pics. It was so nasty. You could

barely walk through the alley without stepping on birds- they were covering the street.

Almost all the trees in San Juan had these cool twisted trunks. Took this pic in

"Pigeon Park" in one of the less crowded spots.

All kinds of tourists were feeding the birds and letting them sit on their hands and arms. If they

knew the diseases they could get they would freak. I almost puked thinking about how

nasty this is. There was nowhere to wash your hands after something like this.

Part of an old fort in San Juan. I did not know about all of the huge old forts that San Juan has.

It is pretty much surrounded by them on all sides and they are really well preserved. C and M

toured one of the big ones. It only cost 3 bucks, which was also cool. They said it was pretty

neat to see. B and I were too busy shopping. ; )

I love window boxes and planters and this one was just fabulous. It was on an apartment

in downtown San Juan in one of the historical buildings.

Pic of one of the historical streets of San Juan- again- I was really

surprised at the beautiful architecture and cool lanterns.

View of St. Thomas, USVI. We had been there before, but it is very pretty

and the shopping is the best there, so we didn't mind going there again!

2 giant iguanas in St. Thomas. They were everywhere and they were huge!

Annelise would have loved to see them.

St. Thomas- so truly pretty.

Another view of St. Thomas from a hillside. Our cruise ship is in the pic over

on the left side. Again, the water color is just gorgeous.

This is a view of Magen's Bay at St. Thomas- their most beautiful beach. We went

there and swam and laid out on the beach for the afternoon. (After shopping

and getting some new bling- you know the gems are about 1/2 the price here and

twice as beautiful.....) I got an emerald ring this time and Sweet Thang's hubby had

her diamond reset into a beautiful band with some blinding shimmer. ; )

Me and B on formal night on the ship. I was already burnt a little. I cannot wait to

get those braces off! I look so ridiculous. I tried not to smile in most of the

pics, but C and M made so much fun of me trying not to smile that it was useless...

Half Moon Cay, Bahamas as seen from the boat. You won't see any pics from the actual

beach, because after waiting for almost an hour to get off the ship, we decided

it was not worth all the trouble and went to the pool on the boat for the

rest of the day. We had fun and it was a good decision.

Half Moon Cay, Bahamas

View of the ocean and side of the ship from our balcony. One of my favorite things was

to sit on the balcony and just stare at the never ending ocean. It was

the most relaxing thing I did.

View from the front of the balcony.

* Lots of pics, I know, but it was so hard to decide which ones to put on here. I left out a lot but I think I got the main ideas across. We are already planning a cruise in February when the girls have a few days out of school for a Princess line cruise and we are going to take them with us. They are already so excited they can barely contain themselves. I can't wait to see their amazement when they actually see how big the boat really is in person! We are going to get a mini-suite so they will have their own bed and also their own TV. We will also have a tub in the bathroom which is going to be awesome, since I think I almost went through bubble bath withdrawal on the cruise this last time. Now we have some lake trips to look forward to and then it will be time to start school again!! This Summer is really flying by..................................

Whew.

Oh, we are back, thank goodness. We did have a great time (right, C and M?) and there were many relaxing moments. The cruise ship staff was wonderful and the food was pretty good. We also enjoyed the ports we went to and had an absolute blast with Sweet Thang and her hubby. But- I do have to say that it was the first and last Carnival cruise I will ever do if I can help it. We went on the Princess Cruise line last time- and it was more than we could have ever expected from a cruise. Just truly awesome. This time, they did not have any 7-day cruises on Princess during the Summer and we didn't want to leave the kids any longer than that, so we looked at Carnival and decided to go with them. If you are looking for a cruise that is similar to a continuous college Spring Break party for 7 straight days, then you should choose Carnival. That is what it reminded me of. The environment was just really loud and obnoxious and even the decor was tacky and gaudy and over the top. Our cabin was decorated in puke pink and melon with some orange (yes, I took pictures so you can see...)- and there were bright abstract paintings on the wall. People partied into all hours of the night and would walk down the hall yelling and laughing until 2 in the morning. Every time anyone near us/ beside us/ above us would close their door (room door or door to the balconies) it was really loud. Then the cruise director would start making really loud announcements over the loud speaker by 9 am most mornings. So, I slept about 5 hours a night on average. The last night we were there, we had to get up at 5:45 the next morning so we could get the heck off the boat first thing, and people were still running up and down the hall yelling at 2 or 3 that morning, so it was 3 hours of sleep that night. I came home, took my aunt and cousin to my grandmother's house and collapsed in the bed. The girls were so glad to see us and we could not wait to hug them and love on them for a while. We are still so worn out. But, like I said- we did have a lot of good moments, too- just when comparing it to Princess- it did not measure up. I think the biggest difference was the movement. On the Carribean Princess ship (which was the same size as this one), I would sometimes forget I was even on a ship because it was so stable and still. The Carnival ship (Liberty) was so unstable, it was constantly rocking and rolling. Poor C had his "Seabands" on almost the entire trip. So- although we had a good time and the ports were cool, we won't be going on a Carnival cruise again if there is another option. However, just the fact that we were on a cruise for a week was great- so it was still a blessing and an overall good experience. This week the girls will be going to VBS at my parents church every night. It is a long drive to do every night, but they feed them dinner every night and the girls always have a blast- so it will be worth not having to cook for a week and also letting them have some fun. I plan to catch up with my friends from that area and spend some time with my grandfather this week. I will get around to posting pics from the cruise this week. (Don't worry- none with me in my bikini!) I did gain a pound back, and I am ok with that- I went to the gym on the ship several times so that I wouldn't be in trouble with that when I came home. ; ) I will say that the cruise did wonders for me and B and our marriage. Every couple needs to take time away from the kids every now and then to boost up their relationship with each other. I know we do, at least. Well- gonna go get the girls ready for VBS kickoff tonight. Then it is home and sleep catch up time! Talk more tommorrow.

Leavin' In the Mornin'

Well, it is eleven o'clock and I just finished the laundry and all of my other loose ends are now tied up. We dropped the girls off at my parents without any fuss- but Annelise did tell us that she is going to be missing us a lot and she is worried that we will get hurt. I miss them already- but they will see a renewed and refreshed Mommy when I come back. I am going to spend a little time on the cruise trying to think of fun things to do with them when I get back. My aunt and cousin arrive Sunday night and my sister will pick them up and take them to my house. The girls are sure to have a blast with them! I am so looking forward to this cruise and I promise to take lots of pictures! Now I have got to go hit the sack, because I am about to drop. (Insomnia issues, again, lately- been falling asleep around 3:30 every night). I am sure it is because I have been getting everything ready for this trip......) Gotta get up around 4:30 in the a.m. to get out to the airport on time. I will probably have a 2-page post by the time I get back. Hope everyone has a wonderful and peaceful week! I know I should! Be back Sunday.

Too Little Too Late

Well- the results are in and Brian won the weight loss competition. I am just sick about it! He let me know by taping up pictures all around the house of his feet on the scales, showing his weight. I told him that his ugly toes are the last thing I want to see first thing in the morning!! I am just ill because I have worked my hiney off and he just stopped drinking tea and cut back slightly on portions. But, we knew it wasn't really a fair bet to begin with, and I took it, so I guess it is my own fault! I have lost 7.5 lbs and I am fitting nicely into shorts/pants that were really tight on me a few months ago. I am going to continue my exercise/diet plan until I am back to where I would like to be. I feel so much better even though it is only 7.5 lbs. I do think that I probably did not do myself any favors by doing weights/strength training at the gym. I think I may have added some muscle weight, but I am going to be a woman and accept the loss. Brian did say (in the beginning) that since it wasn't a fair competition, he was going to see how I actually looked and then judge who won, but I sure have not heard any of that talk since he made it to 10 pounds! That was just to get my hopes up. Oh, well- at least we leave for our cruise Saturday and I am sure looking forward to that. Brian and I have not packed the first thing- but I do have the girls squared away. I am taking some advice from Pikes Pickles and I have bought little presents for the girls to open each night while we are gone. (Nothing big- pretty much raided the $1.00 spot at Target.) I would normally not do that, but Annelise is having such a hard time with us leaving her for a week. She has really been acting out. Tonight we are going to Gatti-Town and they are really excited about that. We will have the whole day with them tommorrow and then we'll take them to my parents house tommorrow evening. Then (early) Saturday morning we will be off! I know I'll be missing the girls like crazy by the end of the week, but boy this is going to be nice. I bet it will be one of the fastest weeks of the year! Well- gotta go finish labeling the cabinets and drawers for my aunt and cousin. No need for them to go all over looking for something when I can just label it!

Reviews- Take Em or Leave Em

So- here's the skinny on the "stuff" I have seen, eaten, etcetera lately. 1.) Kung Fu Panda- Really cute. The girls loved it. However, didn't quite live up to the hype I had heard from other moms about it. Still- well worth seeing and pretty funny to boot. 2.) The pumpkin/chocolate concoctions from the Hungry Girl cookbook- First, let me correct myself. I called them brownies in my other post and they were actually muffins. (I told Annelise they were cupcakes to make them more enticing.) Anywho- they could not have been easier to make, seriously, just a can of pumpkin and a box of a certain type of brownie mix- that's it. I thought they were pretty good for low-cal. Brian and Emmaline did not like the texture, but did like the taste. (They are really thick and heavy.) Annelise, thinking they were chocolate cupcakes, ate it up and loved it. I had one for breakfast this morning and it held me until lunch. I have also made a yogurt parfait for breakfast from that book and for lunch I made something that consisted of rolling up a light hotdog into a light tortilla with fat-free cheese and baking it. All of that was really quite good. I am really pleased with the recipes I have tried from there so far. I am making a light taco turkey meatloaf tommorrow night also from that book (don't tell Brian, he doesn't know that yet....) That will be the true test. I've tried all new recipes for supper this week so far. They have both been from Southern Living- but I did try to stay away from fried stuff. Monday night I made an awesome linguine with tomato cream sauce and I sauteed some fresh Beaufort shrimp from Publix to go in it. It was really yummy. Even Annelise and Emmaline liked it. Then tonight I made a dish with all kinds of sauteed veggies and hamburger meat and then served it over rice. I made a new recipe for ambrosia to go with that. It was so simple and also light. Annelise and Emmaline also loved all of that. So, we will see how the turkey taco loaf goes tommorrrow! (I know it sounds gross, but the ingredients actually make it look like it might be good.) Brian is going to automatically hate it if I tell im what it is beforehand! The girls and I had a good time at a friend's house swimming today. They went to bed on time tonight- exhausted. I am sharing that feeling right now, so I am going to follow suit. Tommorrow is errand day- trying to get all the loose ends tied up before I start packing. I need to get a baseball hat (preferably white) and a smaller beach bag to take to the pool on the cruise. And I am sure I will find some things I don't need, but will have to get anyway. (At least I try to shop the clearance racks!) Off to bed- long day ahead!

Fabulous Finds

Went to Target this weekend and (as always) found all kinds of stuff I loved and didn't need..... But I am especially excited about this cookbook I found. It's called "Hungry Girl" and it is probably one of those things that everyone else knows about except me, but I am so into these recipes! They are all low-cal and high flavor and they are really easy and creative. I have already made a couple of them and they even taste great. She listed all of the nutrition info for each recipe and also has a website with a lot of cool recipes and advice on it, too. There is a recipe in the book for brownies where the only ingredients are a box of Betty Crocker traditional chewy fudge brownies and a can of pure pumpkin. How easy can that be? I am going to make those today, so I will do a "review" after I test them. Anyway- to anyone who is watching the waistline, I would definitely recommend this book to you. I was happy enough after finding that (not to mention I also saw my friend Sweet Thang there). Then I spotted someone who looked an awful lot like one of my best friends in high school, but I wasn't sure since it had been about 12 years since I had seen her and this lady had 3 kids in tow. After passing by her, I became ultra curious and had to go find her. Looked everywhere and couldn't track her down and I finally found her in the check out line. On my way up to her she started smiling and I knew it was her. We talked for a minute and she gave me her # so we can get together soon. She was so nice in high school- one of those rare genuinely sweet people at that age. I am going to try to call her this week before we leave for the cruise- just have to find a time slot to do that! Anyway- it was a productive trip to Tarjetti. Getting ready to go see Kung Fu Panda right now. Wish it would rain- everything outside is so crunchy and brown. Oh, well- at least the air will be on in the theater!

They're Back

The girls, that is. They were gone for 3 nights and 4 days. We missed them, but we also got a lot done. The picture is from the photo session we had the other day with my 2 neices. My youngest neice cried the entire time and did not want to sit for the pictures, so the ones of all of them together did not turn out so well- but they were still cute. While they were gone, Brian decided we needed our own eliptical and went and got one and put it together. It is huge! We really didn't have room for it, but we will when we move into our next house. (If we ever start building, that is!) I have been trying to get everything ready for the cruise- getting the medicine bag together with the correct doses on all of them for my aunt, putting their clothes (with underwear and hair bows) in their "day of the week" organizer in their closets so my aunt and cousin don't have to search their drawers for outfits. I need to clean out the fridge, go grocery shopping and do about a million other things before we leave next Saturday! My poor aunt, I have typed her an "info" list about 10 pages long so she can find things in the house and can drive to places without getting lost. Brian is currently studying for the Sunday school talk he is going to do in the morning and the girls are brushing their teeth and getting ready for bed. I am on about the hundredth load of laundry...... Anyway- we should have a great week ahead with the girls. We have lots of fun stuff planned to get in a lot of time with them before we leave.

On a different subject- please pray for some good friends of ours, their 11-year old daughter died this afternoon after a long battle with Sanfillipo syndrome. It is a terrible and rare disease and there is currently no cure. They took amazing care of her and are just incredible parents and awesome people in general. Their faith is very strong- but they are just heartbroken right now. I am sure that even when you know something like this is going to happen it is still incredibly devastating. There is a foundation in her name at http://www.laurenshope.org/ if any of you ever want to learn about her or the research or the disease itself. When you say your prayers today or this week, please just send one up for this family. Thanks.

Well- time to put the girls to bed. Seems like it has been such a long time since I have done that even though it was only 3 nights that they were gone! I will sleep a little better tonight knowing we are all under the same roof.

I Spy With My Little Eye......

..... an injured baby bird in the parking lot at the gym. Actually, I saw it when I was going into the gym and thought it was dead. Then, when I came back out- it was moving and trying to scootch itself around. It was in the parking lot and the mama bird was squawking all over the place. You can't tell from the picture, but the bird is not even as big as an egg. The nest is on top of the building, and apparantly, the baby bird fell out and landed on it's left side. The left wing and leg were either broken or very close to being broken. Either way- I knew I was in for it because God gave me such a huge softspot for animals. I just sighed and walked back into the gym and asked for a small box and a ziploc bag to put over my hand so I could pick it up. It is going to be close to 100 degrees today- it would have gotten fried in that parking lot. It also would never have survived with the injuries it has. As I was picking it up and putting it in the box, the mama bird was just freaking out. I felt so bad for her. I wish she could have known I was helping her baby! So, when I got home, I searched "bird rescue" for my city and found a number for Wildlife Rescue and called. The lady met me out in town about 30 minutes later. Turns out the bird is a little Wren. It was shivering and shaking the whole way in the car. And it would open it's mouth and just sit there- I don't typically keep worms in the car, but I was wishing for one this morning! It squawked at me once and then pooped all in the box. I hope it has a good recovery and a long life. I know it seems a little silly to be that concerned for a bird, but hey- we are all God's creatures and He cares about every single living one of us- no matter how insignificant anyone else thinks we are! Except for cockroaches and mosquitos- I'm pretty sure those are from the devil. So- I have done my good deed for the day. Tonight, Sweet Thang and I went shopping for things for the cruise. We both had to get dresses for formal night (semi-formal night in our cases...) I think we walked 15 miles all over the mall. We also looked for swimsuits. Nothing will make you want to go home and crawl into a hole like trying on bathing suits. The girls have been with Aunt Libby since last evening and will not return until tommorrow afternoon. Then, we will put them back in the car to go to my parents for the night. I actually really miss them- but it has been nice to just do whatever we need/want to do. I have not gotten a thing done in the house. I will focus on that tommorrow...... maybe.

Is It Time For School Again Yet??

For the love of all things holy, if I ever think that it is a good idea to go to the grocery store with both of my children again- please someone remind me of this day's trip!! What a day. I don't think that the 3 of us are going to survive all Summer. It has been a really long time since I have been to the store with both girls. Usually it would be just me and Emmaline or just me. I don't care if all we have is moldy bread- I will not be doing that again. I will go at midnight if I have to. Don't get me wrong- I truly love my girls more than life itself. They know that. But they are just so high-maintenance lately. Especially Emmaline. They just act like wolverines sometimes and are having a terrible time minding me. I am ready to pull my hair out. I like to cook when I am stressed- so dinner tonight was fabulous if I do say so myself. (Baked sweet and sour chicken, mashed sweet potatoes, sauteed zucchini/corn/mushrooms/onions.) If I don't watch it I am going to be 400 pounds by the end of Summer. Oh- update on the weight loss contest- B and I both are at a standstill- I am still at 5 lbs and he is at 6. Only 10 days left and I am not sure the 10 lbs is gonna happen, folks! I went back to the gym today - worked out like a fiend. We'll see! Tommorrow the girls are having their pics made with their 2 girl cousins for my mom's birthday present. That should be a challenge. (My neices are 4 and 1 and a half. ) I am going to be sure and eat like 10 Pamprin or something before we go! The girls are spending the night with Aunt Libby tommorrow night and they are spending the night with my parents on Friday- so I am trying really hard to get some good quality time in with them- seeing as we leave for our cruise in 10 days. We had family night last night and bought the movie Nancy Drew and watched it together. I am pleased to say- it was really quite good! The girls liked it, too. ; ) Sometime next week we are going to take them to see Kung Fu Panda. Can you believe that movie tickets are $9.00 a piece, now?! That is totally outrageous. We only go to see movies at the theater on special nights. We can buy them cheaper than going- and that way we get to keep them! Oh, well- gotta go find the shirts I bought the girls for their pics tommorrow. I will say a special prayer for that to go well!

Lake Scenes

Annelise on the boat- just after swimming.

Annelise skiing- it took 2 tries, but she did get up

and proceeded to ski all over the cove!

Emmaline with her "catch"- she likes to kiss the fish
before throwing them back in the water.

They had a blast on the Big Bertha- Brian didn't sling
them....... too hard.

Emmaline watching for whomever was skiing to give

hand signals (stop, slow down, faster, etc..) This is

usually her job and she is very good at it.

Annelise climbing onto the dock- she is doing so well swimming

without her lifejacket- supervised, of course!

The Mommy Martin bird that lays her eggs in this same nest

every year. She is so cute. They are almost ready to hatch.

I hope she comes back next year, even though we will have a new

dock by then. We love to watch the baby birds when they hatch.

View from the side of our dock. Nobody and I mean nobody was there

this weekend. It was so nice and quiet! This was taken around 11 am on

Saturday. Not a soul to be seen except for a few fishermen.

View from the front of our dock. It's kind of nice to just have

trees to look at and no houses there. I am sure that may change at

some point! We usually paddleboat over to that shore and explore for things.

Sometimes, for exercise, I will swim there and back- if there are not many

boats out!

We had a good time. We were all so exhausted when we got home. I did manage to slalom several times and actually remembered a lot. By the 3rd time, I was racing across the wake and I think I even got a little airborne a couple of times! (Of course, I am so sore all over today that I can't move, but it was worth it!) We are trying so hard to convince Emmaline to ski. She would do so well at it. It is much easier to learn when you are young! Maybe sometime this Summer she will cave in to our requests. The water was still very cold but once you got used to it, it was tolerable. Otherwise it was beautiful weather. We won't get to go back for a few weeks, since we are going on the cruise, soon and B has to speak at to a Sunday school class this weekend. I'll be ready to go back when we can! The girls and I are going to go there at the beginning of the week a few times and B is going to meet us there on the weekends. They will have a lot more fun there than they will here at home! Well, hope you enjoyed the pics. More to come later!