What's Wrong with this Picture?

I need agricultural advice. Carolyn, I expect your input. My grape tomatoes are beautiful and delicious. However, my other tomatoes, obviously "bursting with flavor," are not very pleasing to the eye. What is causing them to split? I'm anxiously awaiting your comments.

Grandchildren

Last night was our night to spend with the kiddos. My job was to get them up and ready for school and the babysitter this morning. Somehow I also got the privilege of picking up the twins--Piercen and Baylor--and getting them all to school by 8:00, which is usually about the time I'm finishing my first cup of java. Jacob was excited to have us spend the night with him and insisted that I sleep with him (the child with Restless Leg Syndrome), leaving the gigantic king-size bed in the master bedroom for Neal. Hope he slept well.

When we've been with the kids for a 24-hour period of time, there are usually some memorable conversations. But with my memory, I must write them here, or next week I'll have forgotten.

Jacob has observed lately that Neal doesn't have any hair. Jacob: "Papa, you don't got any hair." Neal: "I don't? Where'd it go?" Jacob: "I don't know!" This last week Neal began growing his hair out again.

Lauren has been calling me "Nina" lately. I guess it's a combination of "Lita" and "Nana." She really talks well for a not-yet-2 yr. old. "Nina, what you doing?" "I'm brushing my teeth." "Bwushing you teef? Ohhh-kayyyy." She wanted to draw in Jacob's marker book yesterday.















She was still wearing the outfit (minus the skirt) that she'd worn to church. I really did consider removing it, or covering it up with another shirt, but I had gotten some of the marker on my hand and it had wiped right off, like it does on the page. When we put the book away, I noticed several places on her shirt and tights that had nice, bright blue markings. *GASP* She looked down on it and whispered, "oh my gosh!!!" I immediately treated and washed the shirt, but to no avail. Sorry, Trista. Seems like every time I have the kids, clothes get ruined.

Jacob went out in the Cadet with Neal to do some work around the place. Several limbs had fallen due to the wind from Hurricane Ike. When they came back, Neal had shot a couple of doves, which delighted Jacob. One of them was still blinking and opening and closing his little bill, like he was saying, "help me, help me, I'm still breathing." It might give me nightmares. Speaking of which, Jacob told me about a dream he had where a scorpion with claws was knocking on his window. I didn't know 4 yr. olds could remember their dreams. Later in the evening, the deer had come up to feed and we tiptoed out to watch them over the pool fence. While we were admiring them, Jacob said, "I want to shoot one." He is soooo Blevins.
Before we left to go to their place, Neal decided he'd had enough of people commenting on his gray hair. So Jacob had the honor of shaving his head. But he did tell Papa that he liked his beard.

While still in the bathroom, Jacob applied some of Neal's cologne with one of my make-up sponges. While he was playing with it, the sponge tore in half. "Oh, no. I ALWAYS tear things up." Earlier, he had spilled something and remarked, "I ALWAYS make a mess." Then after bath that night I started to dry him off before he got out of the tub. He said, "You have to get me out to dry me, on the rug." I said, "Oh, okay, my fault." He said, "It's not your faut, Nana, it's my faut." Whoa. Gotta work on those self-esteem issues.

Most of the time the two siblings get along pretty well. But occasionally there's a little conflict. Jacob came sobbing to me that "Sissy told me, NO." I comforted him, knowing that he was probably starting to really miss Mommy and Daddy. Later he gave me a huge hug and said, "I LOVE you, Nana. Sissy made my feelings hurt."

Jacob was really excited this morning that we were going to pick up Pierce and Baylor. All the way to school Pierce and Jacob goofed off and laughed and made faces and wierd noises. It's so much fun to watch them interact. Once at school I had three kids to unbuckle and don backpacks, so by the time Baylor was out and ready, Pierce and Jacob were already to the door without so much as a wave good-bye. So I just hugged Baylor and told her to have a good day.

Sunday Morning Circus

With Jeremy & Trista in NYC for a few days, our grand parental duty started this morning. It seems like only yesterday that we were wrestling J & J on a church pew, but somehow I had forgotten how little time is spent worshiping and how much time is spent corralling the kids. Being the planner and organizer that I am, I packed a bag last night with coloring books, stickers, paper, crayons, etc. and even wrote the contribution check so that I would have it ready to tear out and drop in the plate. We were either very brave or very naive by choosing to sit in our regular pew, just a few rows from the front. As we were standing and singing the second of three "stand-up" songs, I glimpsed out of the corner of my eye a blond head peeking out from under the pew in front of us. Neal had noticed at the same time and in unison we each extended our right forefingers and gestured to "come back." Jacob had brought some of his matchbox cars that kept him relatively occupied and Lauren kept busy coloring and writing on the attendance cards from both our pew and the pew behind us (she can be sneaky). Communion time. Uh oh. Miss Prepared forgot to pack any snacks, and at the passing of the bread, both kids were suddenly starving. Papa made a trip to the kitchen to retrieve cookies. Meanwhile, I searched my purse frantically for the check I had so painstakingly prepared the night before, and finally gave in to the fact that I had left it sitting on the kitchen table. Sometimes I think I try too hard. After communion and contribution, I happened to notice that the attendance card that Neal had filled out was still sitting at the end of the pew. Now, I did put a card in the plate when it was passed (in lieu of actual contribution) but I don't think it will be legible. Papa tried taking Jacob to Children's Bible Hour, but no such luck. No big deal...they'll be fine. Shortly into the sermon Lauren decided to start a game of rocking forward on my lap, then leaning back and sticking her pink-tighted legs and black patent leathered feet high into the air and practicing her scissor kick. I'm sure the rest of the congregation were getting quite a show. Midway through the sermon Lauren became restless and after whispering to her several times that we would be leaving soon and go eat pizza, I decided to take her out to change her diaper. Walking up the aisle that was much longer than I remembered, she bellowed out, "OHHHH-KAYYYY!" Snickers were heard throughout the auditorium. I went into the nursery and began changing her when one of the nursery attendants informed me that I had not one, but two spaceship stickers on my toes. Ohhhh, I love and admire and sympathize with all the young mothers out there.

Come Home George!

It's been over a month now since we last saw George. One morning, Neal found Gracie in the front yard and Otis inside the pool fence, but no trace of our "special needs" basset. Gracie has been in mourning and I'm sure she thinks we acquired Otis with the intentions of getting rid of her best friend. Otis has tried his darndest to win her approval, but Gracie remains aloof. We now know for certain who the escape artist was, as there have been no prison breaks since George's disappearance. Meanwhile, Otis' "for-real" owner seems to have forgotten that he asked us to dog-sit for "a few days." He has become a permanent resident at the Blevins' Farm. The "for-real" owner may be shocked if he ever does come to reclaim his paper-carrying, registered Basset Hound and find that we've had him "fixed." So much for stud fees.

We've pretty much given up hope of ever seeing George again, but if you happen to come across a tri-colored, un-fixed, male basset with a prominent underbite, give us a shout. Gracie will be much obliged.

Lazy Lita

Sometimes you just have to take a whole day to do nothing. Rainy days are the best. Today was one of those days. Don't get me wrong, I can make a list of things I DID do today, albeit the list is very short.
1. I made coffee this morning before sitting down to my BSF Bible study. Actually that should've been listed as TWO things.
2. I checked my email and Facebook.
3. I played Word Twist and Pathwords on Facebook.
4. I watched two episodes of Lost, Season 2, Disc 4.
5. I called my Dad to wish him a Happy Birthday...left him a voicemail.
6. I did a load of laundry (Neal's jeans--if I'm gonna do ANYTHING, I want Neal to notice).
7. I vacuumed the bedroom and living room.
8. I sorta watched the Spanish version of the Discovery Channel.
9. I cooked supper for my hardworking husband. (Fried catfish, black-eyed peas and cornbread, fried okra and sliced tomatoes out of my garden.)
10. The "rest of the day" I was engrossed in a blog Janell introduced to me. I'm telling you, once you start reading, you can't stop! Maybe I'm especially interested since her story isn't too different from mine--City Girl turned Ranch Wife. This woman is amazing. Fantastic writer, fabulous cook, gardener, photographer, etc., etc. What is even more amazing is that she lives in Pawnee!!! Who knew? I spent most of the afternoon reading, laughing and crying. Better than a good book, 'cause it never ends. You may want to check it out -- thepioneerwoman.com She is also writing a cookbook to be published soon.

Pre-K

Jacob started Pre-K exactly 2 weeks ago today. Hard to believe he's getting so big. In general, he likes school, likes his teacher, and his teacher likes him. But I think he'd still rather just go to Nana's house, which Carolyn attributes to the fact that his teacher probably doesn't feed him Trix while he watches Spongebob. Only 2 weeks and already he is "learning." The other day he walked into his bedroom and saw his drum set knocked over, to which he exclaimed, "What the h__ll?"...parents' mouths agape in disbelief..."What the h__ll happened to my drums?" Oh, their little brains are just like sponges, aren't they?

Big D

I returned home last night from a girls-only weekend in Dallas. One of my long-time BFFs, Janell, is now working with and has become good friends with my former sister-in-law and forever friend, Mary Ann. Hence, they have also become BFFs. So the three of us took a break from our real lives and headed to Big D for food, fun and shopping. On Saturday we were joined by another of Mary Ann's friends, Leigh, who rounded out our foursome. Janell, who lived in Dallas several years, introduced us to IKEA. Yeah...that's what I'm talkin' about! I think we spent four hours there! We really need one in Sand Springs (the old Walmart/Cheapo Depo building is my suggestion) or even somewhere in Tulsa or OKC would be fine. Leigh had to return to Wichita Falls Saturday night and the rest of us stayed up talking way past my bedtime. But here we are on Sunday morning, rested and refreshed...

If we can't have an IKEA, my next suggestion is "Sprouts". That's where we went on Sunday, much to Janell's delight and my reluctance. We came to Dallas to go to a grocery store? Really? But I did like Sprouts and even bought some walnuts and almonds for Neal and a basil plant for myself.

Today is catch-up day. This morning I vacuumed the pool since I'm closing it tomorrow. I also took an unplanned, unexpected, unintentional last dip in the pool. That pole and vacuum can get away from you fast! Gotta go get my drenched clothes out of the dryer now! Stay tuned for pics of Jacob's first day of school.

Weekend Adventure

This was the first Labor Day weekend in years that I haven't either gone to Kemah, TX or picked Neal up at the airport for a short hiatus at home. Janet and I had discussed the possibility of going camping...you know, actually taking the 5th wheel out for it's original intent and purpose. Neal mentioned that he was thinking of going out west to mow the 40 acres that's in CRP (Conservation Reserve Program). Now, getting Neal to actually make definite "plans" is like trying to nail jello to the wall. I'm usually the planner and organizer and he dutifully follows along. But this time, I decided to leave everything up to him. That was my first mistake. By the time he was ready to start making decisions, it was too late to try to get a camping spot and the Richardson's had made other plans. Okay, I guess it's a good time to head west. Even though my uncle has more John Deers than Old MacDonald, Neal insisted on loading his baby on the trailer and hauling it down I-40. I took along my Spanish CD and planned on doing some practicing and then having a nice siesta on the road. We had barely made it to the turnpike, when the airconditioning changed to heat. That meant open windows, hair-in-the-face, hot & sweaty, and the desperate need for earplugs. By OKC I was in dire need of el agua and managed to yell loud enough to let Neal know that I needed to stop. As we passed El Reno, with parched lips I reminded Neal of my request. We finally pulled over at Weatherford where I bought a large bottle of water and lingered in the airconditioned store as long as Neal would allow. Meanwhile, not only had we not secured a place to stay the night (usually at my cousin Carolyn's, who was away for the weekend) but we really didn't know the regulations for mowing, since it's in a government program. Minor details. We reached our property around 6:30 p.m. and I helped Neal unload the tractor...which looked more like a riding lawn mower on the acreage. I got back in the truck and commenced extracting the cuckleburrs/goatheads/stickers (whatever you like to call them) out of my Old Navy flip flops. The evening air was relatively cool, so I sat with the windows open while reviewing my Spanish. It wasn't long before the ginormous mosquitoes began their attack. I fought a losing battle and finally closed the windows and killed off the last sucker (literally) when Neal came and opened the door (I can't even remember why) letting in a dozen more. I continued to swat until it was too dark for Neal to see to mow. My uncle and aunt gave us shelter for the night, as well as sausage, biscuits & gravy for breakfast, and a huge delicious, farm grown meal for lunch yesterday. In the meantime we started checking around for details about the regulations for CRP. Aunt Don asked if we'd looked it up in the handbook. Handbook? I guess since the acreage was already in CRP when we acquired it, the handbook was lost somewhere in the shuffle. I remembered getting a notice last year that we would have to mow, and when I called to inquire, I was told we had two years to do it. I thought that was sufficient. Not so. After several phone calls to those "in-the-know" we concluded that we could only mow from November to March. Hmmm. Hope they don't notice those strips Neal cut Sunday night. The trip home last night was slightly better than previous. The airconditioning worked long enough for me to get a short nap, then back to the open windows. Neal did some dove hunting and I got to visit with my aunt, uncle and cousin (who returned on Monday), so the weekend wasn't a total loss. And I learned a valuable lesson--not to leave the planning up to Neal.

Quick Update

As you can see, I have a new template. I was looking for something that would allow me to put a big picture at the top and settled on this one. Then I couldn't find a picture worthy of the honor. Maybe soon. My brother-in-law brought it to my attention that it's the same template he and my sister have, yeah I noticed that after I had changed it. I think it's the same as Amy's as well. Sorry for the infringement. But I like it, so I'm keeping it.

Yesterday was a glorious day. First day in awhile that I've felt really good and energetic. I went into the gameroom/guest house/Jeff's storage room to look for something and got a wild hair to start cleaning. Then began hanging curtains--something that I've intended to do for over a year now. The cleaning frenzy lasted most of the day and now my back is screaming for mercy. A dip in the pool felt good. The water was cold--82-84 degrees. Why does water feel colder than air? The temperature yesterday was in the 80's, and felt HOT. But the same temperature water was freezing. Someone explain that to me.

Monday night the grandkids were here and desperately wanted to swim. I warned them that the water was not as warm as their last swim, but after putting their feet in, they were still insistent. I got their swimsuits on, then slipped on the floaties and Jacob yelled "CANNONBALL!" and jumped in. This is something new since Marcia's visit. He is no longer afraid for his face to get wet and is so proud of himself for going under water. He usually comes up asking for a towel to dry his eyes, but sometimes doesn't even need that. He's getting so big! Later in the evening, he began the game of mimicking....repeating everything we said. When his parents came to get them, he started repeating Trista. Trista: "Jacob stop it." Jacob: "Jacob stop it." Trista: "Jacob that's annoying." Jacob: "Jacob that's annoying." I remember Jeremy and Jeff doing that and how it got on my nerves. With Jacob, I think it's hysterical, which I'm sure annoys Trista as well. "Lita that's annoying." "Lita that's annoying."

Spanish class starts tonight. Five of us are enrolled. Should be interesting.

Sweet, Sweet DSL

One of the biggest drawbacks (for me) living in the country is the internet. I love being on the computer, love blogging, facebooking, uploading pictures, playing games...you name it. It has been a frustrating adjustment having to depend on a Sprint data card for "dial-up" access. The signal out here is not the best and it has caused me much stress...I know...I have a really hard life. Last week Alan called me with the best news--DSL is now available in our area! Woo hoo!!! I immediately went online to order it. Tried multiple times, each time getting the message that it was NOT available in my area. I called AT&T MANY times, and each person had a different explanation, but no solution. I plugged in the phone numbers of neighbors to the north, south, east and west of me, all of which either had already placed an order, or were eligible to place an order. So on Saturday I spent all morning with a representative, vowing that I would not hang up the phone until I had DSL ordered. She was finally able to discern that the problem was the new E911 address that had been assigned to our phone number. Hmmm. Available at 5610 but not available at 5578. I convinced her that it was the SAME HOUSE! Wednesday (yesterday), a new phone jack was installed in my office. I had a very busy day yesterday and didn't have time to check it out until late in the afternoon. I was able to connect to the world wide web initially, but when I connected through my router (allowing use of my laptop) I could not connect. I'll try to make a long story short. After several phone calls and attempts, the technicians got me to a point that I could no longer connect AT ALL. Erghh!! My last call (just a few minutes ago) was to attempt getting out of "bridged" mode and at least be able to connect directly to the computer. He said that since I was already in "bridged" mode, let's try it through the router. "Whatever." He had me wire it up again, turn off the modem, restart the computer....yeah, yeah, yeah, like I haven't already tried that. But voila! Immediate connection. Magic! So now I have the desktop purring and can use my laptop as well--at lightning speed--well, at least faster than before. Life is good.

Lunch Packing

I pack Neal's lunch every night for work the next day. It's a chore that I both despise AND take pride in. Neal requires a lot of nourishment to get him through his 10-hour day. And he's quite particular about certain proteins, minerals and vitamins being included in his diet. For instance, yogurt and a banana after his safety meeting every morning, to give him the potassium and calcium needed to sustain him until lunch. One morning, I was out of bananas, but was saved by the fact that the yogurt I packed was "strawberry-banana." Whew! His lunch also routinely includes: 2 sandwiches, natural almonds and walnuts, an apple or orange or peach, and a bag of grapes. Sometimes I will add some watermelon or canteloupe. Lately, we've had homegrown tomatoes from our garden and occasionally I'll include a tomato for him to slice and put on his sandwiches.

My mom and dad were here recently and we were laughing about some of the "surprises" she had put in Dad's lunch over the years. Once, he bit into a sandwich to find the paper label of the bologna still stuck to the piece of meat. Another time, they had leftover barbecue and she packed a bun but forgot to include the barbecue, so he had a dry bun for lunch!

Last night, as we were having dinner, I proudly asked Neal how he liked the tomato I so lovingly had packed in his lunch that day. "Oh, I loved it," he said, "but I wasn't quite sure what to do with the worm that was zipped up in my sandwich bag." Now, the tomato was worm-free, and the sandwich was zipped up tight in the bag. I have no idea how a worm found its way into the bag, but maybe I need to start making sure I have my glasses on when I prepare his lunch at night! Well...he DID say he needed to start adding more protein to his diet.

Zoo Trip

Linda and Marcia are here for a visit. One of the activities on the itinerary was to spend some time with the kids. Since we went to the Aquarium a couple of weeks ago with Grandma and Grandpa Smith, we decided to spend a day at the Zoo...despite Jacob's insistence that "no...we...are...going...to...the...quarium." It was a tiring, but fun adventure that began with trying to wedge the wagon into the back of my Pilot. I was ready to give it up and just rent a wagon at the zoo, but no, Marcia would not accept defeat. After moving Jacob's car seat to the middle row, we were finally able to get the back gate shut and wedge Marcia between the two car seats. It was a good decision as we were able to store ice, juice and snacks for the kids in the wagon. The chimps put on quite a show and all was fun and games until two of the bigger ones began fighting and swinging up to and banging against the window just inches away from us. Lauren was not thrilled with that! One of the last exhibits we saw was the Feather Fest, where we were surrounded by birds from Australia. We were given popsicle sticks with bird seed (we had to convince Lauren it wasn't a snack for HER) and the kids loved feeding the birds. Jacob was very brave and allowed one to sit on his shoulder and peck at his neck and cheek. Fun day!

A Day With Jacob

Jacob didn't want to go to the mean old babysitter (just kidding...she's really sweet) so he spent yesterday with me. It was a pretty typical day. He said he wanted Trix for breakfast, when actually he really just wanted to suck milk through the jack-o-lantern straw that I keep in the front of my silverware drawer. While I did my Bible study, he pulled out the GI Joes and set them all up--army men together, fences in a row, tanks lined up, airplanes in take-off order, all in the organized manner that is Jacob. Soon he was truly hungry and decided on waffles...with butter and syrup which he licked off first before rolling up the waffles and devouring them. I went about cleaning up the kitchen while he made aliens with the play-doh and goop that we had purchased on one of our trips to Wal-mart. We're down to half a bottle of goop, so I mentioned that we may have to buy some more when we go grocery shopping. He of course, thought we should buy a "different" toy, after all there's plenty of goop for 3 or 4 more creative sessions.

Upon arriving at Wal-mart, I headed to "health & beauty" to get some essentials and he reminded me that "the toys are over THERE." Okay, okay, "we have to be patient." I could have had all my groceries bought in the time it took us to decide on a toy. As we were walking down the same aisle for the third time, I tried to make some cheap suggestions. "No, Nana, not that, we have to be PATIENT." No kidding!!! After several of HIS suggestions, to which I nixed because of the ginormous price, we both agreed on some Black & Decker tools in their own backpack. "Nana, I LOVE my tools." Great.

I tried to hurry through my shopping since it was getting close to my lunch time. (I ate breakfast early, not 10:30 like him.) I only bought a couple of things that would not have been on the list were it not for him. He wanted green pop (Sprite), but then saw Elmo Apple Juice. I persuaded him to make a choice--we couldn't buy both--so he reluctantly decided on the Elmo Juice. Then we HAD TO HAVE Cocoa Straws, something I'd never heard of. While paying for my groceries, he saw a miniature Etch-a-Sketch that he wanted. "No, remember, we got the tools." "But I LOVE it, Nana." "Well, maybe next time we come to Wal-mart that's what we'll buy." The bottom lip pooched out, but no tantrum, and out the door we went. He was asleep by the time we got home and I carried him, backpack of tools and all, to bed for an hour of rest.

After naptime, a late lunch of leftover steak and milk with Cocoa Straws. A well-rounded meal, don't you think? A safe 30 minutes later we were ready for a swim. He likes to put his own sunscreen on and applies pretty thick. While I was getting his back, he was drawing in the sunscreen on his belly and said, "Hey Nana, I made a D." Yep, I think he's ready for school.

When Jacob's in the pool, there's no relaxing. There's only playing. I had to sing about swimming in the ocean on this beautiful day at the beach, unaware that there was an octopus or whale or shark sneaking up behind me. He would suddenly latch on to me and I would squirm and flail and splash, screaming for someone to help me. While we were in the pool, Jacob noticed for the first time our RV sitting out in the field. He said, "Nana! You got a trailer?" "Yes, we have a trailer." "I got a idea. You can go wif us to trout fishing!" I think that's an excellent idea.

This is a Test

Tuesday evening, as I was feeding the granddogs, Neal arrived home from work. But not alone. With him was a 7 month old basset hound puppy.....Otis. Now what, in tarnation, possessed him to add to my misery by adding a THIRD dog to this otherwise happy home? He is either testing me, or just doesn't have a clue how I agonize over the well-being of the two uninvited Houdini's of whom I have unwittingly become the primary caretaker. To my relief, Neal quickly made it clear that this was a short-term situation. Some guy at work just needed babysitting services for a few days.

Wednesday morning I went out to check on/feed these critters, and NONE of them were in their yard. OHHHH, WOE IS ME! They had managed to pry the chain link away from the corner of the gate and escape after dark. I jumped in the Pilot and began my usual trek up and down and around 97, to no avail. When I returned, I discovered that Otis had spent the night in the game room with Jeff--he had scratched on the door around 1:00 a.m. Fortunately, around 9:00 a.m. I received a call from one of the regular destinations of George and Gracie, the Davidson residence. (I'll start calling her first whenever they come up missing.) Jeff and I managed to fix the gate (bottom right corner in the picture). I dare not say that it is now inescapable...I've already had to eat my words. I do hope Otis returns to his owner soon, as Jeff is becoming attached. Hmmm, do ya think they would notice if we returned George in his place?

Yes...I Am Crazy, Too!

I have to eat crow today. Yesterday, I commented on my sister's blog titled "Are We Crazy?" about the lengths they go to for their dogs. I don't even OWN dogs, but somehow have taken over the care and feeding of my two granddogs, George and Gracie. Loyal readers of my blog know that it has been a never-ending battle trying to keep them from digging under the fence and gallivanting all over creation. Alan said that when we first moved here a year ago, we were known along 97 as "the people that bought the old Reed place." Then we became known as "the people that fixed up the old Reed place." Now we're more commonly known as "the people at the old Reed place that can't keep their bassets in the yard." Well we think we have finally built an inescapable fence that Neal calls "Ft. Knox." (He says the next step is hiring an armed guard to walk the perimeter of the fence 24/7.)

This morning Neal and I spent almost an hour removing ticks from George and Gracie, who have conveniently rid themselves of their flea & tick collars. I guess it's been close to a month since the last tick treatment. Of course, if they'd just stay in our sprayed yard, we wouldn't have this problem. Anyway....I made a trip into town to purchase more tick treatment and new collars. Mom caught the process on camera, proving that I, too, am crazy. You're not alone Sandra.

Mexico Mission - Day 7...Guadalupe River

Friday, June 27

Slept til 8:00 this morning--YEAH!!!! After a McDonald's breakfast we drove to the Guadalupe River, rented tubes and stepped foot into the frigid waters of the spring-fed river. Some of the "kids" (including Ted and Roger) bought water cannons, just in case some of us didn't get wet enough! <:o Thanks, guys. Parts of the river were slow and relaxing and provided a much needed respite from the past week of labor in the hot sun. However, there were areas that required some maneuvering to stay in the flow, and even a few rapids to conquer. We had a great time and it was over way too soon. The prospects of the long drive home in the van were looming large. After all our "together time", the discussions on this drive were a little deeper and more meaningful than those of seven days ago. We managed to take turns stretching out and getting some sleep and arrived safely home around 11:00 p.m.



True to our vow of knowing more Spanish before our next trip, some of us have already enrolled in a conversational Spanish class at TCC in the Fall. Hasta la vista!

Mexico Mission - Day 6...Cornerstone

Thursday, June 26

This morning we had to be packed, loaded and checked out of our rooms by 7:00 a.m. Our 4th and final day on the job and Lita is STILL WORKING. Incredible! I started the work day with Janet, pounding bent metal bars to be used for wrapping re bar. Not a bad job...we took turns swinging the hammer and found it to be very therapeutic--plus we found a nice place in the shade for our task--BONUS! Janet didn't trust me and preferred hammering while I held the bar...porrrrr que? (That was a "rolling r"...Michelle can't roll her r's....but she can roll her tongue....so can I...we learned a lot about each other on this trip...but I'm rambling...or should I say rrrrrambling...okay, okay, enough.) Just as we were getting a good rhythm going, the whole gang was summoned for "brick brigade." Stacks and stacks of cinder blocks had to be moved from the front of the property to individual piles spaced out the length of the site. The troops lined up and started passing. The job was done in quick order and Janet and I returned to our little place in the shade, only to find someone else had stolen our assignment. What's up with that?! Well, guess it's back to the rock pile for me. That's fine, I've got this job down to an art. It was an emotional moment when Glenn Elliott had the honor of laying the cornerstone.

At lunch, Rick Owens talked to the group and expressed his gratitude for all that we had accomplished. He reminded us that the results of our work, along with many other volunteer groups, and of course, our magnificent God, would endure for years to come. After lunch and many group photos, we headed to the border, which this time was a relative breeze compared to our first experience. Paco met us there with Dewey's trailer and after the luggage exchange, we placed our sights on New Braunfels, Texas. We arrived at Motel 6 very, very late and the girls again allowed me the first shower. They went to mingle with the other young'uns from Ft. Gibson, Dewey and SS and I went to bed! Have no idea when they came back to our room...I just know they were in their beds when I woke up at 8:00 the next morning. (I'm such a conscientious chaperon.)

Jacob's 4th Birthday

We interrupt this Mexico Mission Documentary for an important news bulletin. On July 17, 2008, Jacob turned 4 years old.

My how he's grown! Four short years ago we could not have imagined what an incredible little boy he would become. The big birthday bash isn't until tomorrow evening, but today he spent his special day with Nana, Grandpa Smith and Grandma Smith. When he arrived this morning, hot blueberry bran muffins were waiting for him...one of his favorite treats at Nana's. After breakfast, we went outside and played baseball. He is able to hit the ball when pitched to him, and is a very fast runner! We were soon hot and sweaty, and he was ready to go for a swim. Nothing would do but that Grandpa and Grandma get in the pool as well. They obliged...what grandparents won't do for their grandkids! He had lots of fun swimming, shooting Grandpa with his noodle/pool thermometer gun and playing with a tiny frog he found. After lunch dishes were put away he couldn't wait another minute to go to the Aquarium. "Where is the Aquarium? Is it far, far away? They have toys there! Gwama, Gwampa, you wanna spen'a night wif me?"

After the Aquarium (and yes, he talked Nana into buying some sea creatures for him) we walked along the Riverwalk and stopped in for ice cream at the Marble Slab. He chose a cone dipped in sprinkles and vanilla ice cream with sprinkles mixed in. I got a cup of "cake and cookies"--birthday cake ice cream with chocolate chip cookie dough and oreo cookies mixed in. As soon as he saw the big chunks of cookies in mine, he decided we needed to trade. Yep, we traded...it IS his birthday after all.

On the way home, we stopped at Miss Ann's and picked up Lauren. Jacob fell asleep and I carried him in the house and put him on my bed. He slept for two and a half hours--until his Mom arrived with pizza and cupcakes for supper. Presents from Grandma & Grandpa, Aunt Linda, Uncle Jeff and Papa & Nana were opened and he and Lauren entertained us the rest of the evening with their singing and dancing.

Whew! What a busy day. Happy birthday Sugar Bear!

Mexico Mission - Day 5...The Rock Pile

Wednesday, June 25

Day 5 of the trip--day 3 of manual labor. And I'm still able to walk upright--amazing. The whole mission team decided to start an hour early this morning and leave the site an hour early so we could fit in some good ol' tourist-type shopping.

I began the day with a little shoveling, then resorted to a relatively easy, sit-down job--removing old rusty nails from the wood of a shed that had fallen down. We were re-using the wood to use as concrete forms and the old nails were being pounded out straight for re-use. Nothing is wasted. What a novel concept! My job in the shade didn't last long and I was, again, handed a shovel. Lots of concrete work going on now and they needed buckets and buckets of gravel and sand to mix the concrete. My job--relay bucket thrower and gravel shoveler. (I'll have to update my resume.) As 5-gallon buckets were emptied into the cement mixer, they were literally THROWN to me, then I threw 4 of them back to the sand pile to be refilled, and kept 2 for myself to fill with gravel. I must say, I'm a good bucket relayer (except for the one that I caught with my knee...ouch!) and at least there was a few minutes of rest between filling to allow the cement mixers to do their thing. It was during one of those "in between" times, as I was leaning on my shovel, looking out at all the busy workers--helping each other, taking care of each other, laughing together and even some of the wheel barrow runners singing--that I found myself brushing away tears...again. Fortunately, the 100+ temperatures made it difficult to tell tears from sweat.

The "old" folks, taking a break and surveying their accomplishments.

"descanse por un momento" (rest for a moment)

As mentioned before, we left the job site early for a shopping trip. No shower...just a few swipes with a baby wipe and we were good to go. I'll bet we were the dirtiest, stinkiest, sweatiest tourists those shopkeepers had ever seen. I bought a "Monterrey" t-shirt, and a couple of bottles of vanilla, but other than that, there really wasn't much to see, want, or buy. The real excitement wasn't until after we returned to the hotel. Ted (oh great keeper of the passports and visas) had somehow LOST the famous BLACK BAG that held these precious items. He remembered having it while he was sitting on a bench outside one of the shops, then didn't think about it til we got back to the hotel. So, accompanied by the Hotel Manager, Ft. Gibson's bus driver, and his daughter, Kristen, he drove back to the market (about an hour away). As news spread throughout our group, panic also set in. I remember saying, "well, someone has hit the jackpot--13 U.S. passports--hot commodity in Mexico. There is NO WAY we will ever get them back." I was already making plans to call Neal, tell him where the copy to mine was, and have him fax it to the hotel. Then I said, "no....there is a way.....let's pray that God leads an honest person to that bag!" Within 15-20 minutes of that prayer, we saw Ted come strolling down the hallway, black bag in hand. He quickly assured us that all the passports were there, as well as money he had in the bag. Praise God!!!! He had gone to that bench, went inside the shop and the shopkeeper said someone had found it and given it to him. So it went through the hands of TWO honest people.

Joel and Justin had the privilege of choosing the restaurant for tonight's dining pleasure. They wanted "authentic" Mexican cuisine and got directions to a place within walking distance of the hotel. As we approached the restaurant, we could see carcasses hanging in the window. Are you kiddin' me? We're eating THERE???? The carcasses were goats, cooking over an open fire. As we perused the menu, everything seemed to be made of goat. The waiter took orders and when he came to me I politely said, "Nada, gracias."

The evening devotional was by the pool, as some other group had reserved "OUR" conference room. But it was still good, just a little harder to hear the speaker. After devo, we headed back to our rooms to pack up, since we're leaving the country tomorrow immediately after lunch, directly from the job site.

The Spanish phrase for today is "VIDA DIGNA" conveying the idea of "Living a Life Worthy." Eph. 4:1 says, "As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received." "VIDA DIGNA"

Mexico Mission - Day 4...Back to Work

Tuesday, June 24

I worked super hard the first day, because I was sure my body would resist this new torture and I wouldn't be able to get out of bed this morning. Much to my amazement, and thanks be to God, I was up at 6:00 and pulling on my work clothes and looking for my leather gloves. Several of us met for breakfast in the hotel lobby, preparing for another day on the chain gang. Now that we have an idea of what our day will be like, we are not shy about eating hearty. Today, instead of digging holes and trenches, we are filling in holes where concrete has dried. Dig a hole....fill the hole, hmmmm. I also took a break from shoveling to measure and cut rebar for awhile. At about 11:00 we can small our lunch cooking--YUMMMM! Wow, that last hour before lunch is a KILLER!

Our cooks! Senoras y senoritas bonita!

Como se dice "supervisor"?

"Just a little more on the left, Janet....good job, Michelle."

After dinner at Applebees, we enjoyed a wonderful devo with Ft. Gibson & Dewey. At the end of the devo, Edgar and 4 other Mexican brothers and sisters sang for us in beautiful harmony. Even though I only caught a word here and there, it was still very inspirational and, to no one's surprise, I had to wipe the tears from my eyes...probably a combination of exhaustion and spiritual awakening. The Spanish phrase for today is "Para El" -- "For Him". After raising all the money to get to Mexico, and paying for our stay, and paying for our supplies to build a church building in Santa Monica, and giving money to keep Rick Owens' ministry successful, it could be easy for us to forget why we are on this trip, or maybe take some of the credit for "our" success. "to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus..." Eph. 3:21 "PARA EL"

I'm starting to feel guilty about the 5-star hotel where we are staying. The people living in the vicinity of the job site live in--what should I call them--they're not even shacks--just some tin and wood, no running water, no air conditioning. Many sleep on their roofs to stay cool and, in fact, there is a mattress on the roof of the temporary building at the job site. Wonder who's sleeping there tonight? However, we get to take hot showers, flush the toilets and adjust the temperature in our rooms to a cool 68 degrees, then crawl between fresh, white, soft linens. Muchos gracias, Dios.

Mexico Mission - Day 3...Get to Work!

Monday, June 23


The Gran Hotel Ancira provided a delicious, hot breakfast every morning, with the richest, most flavorful coffee I've had since Louisiana. We were up, fed, and in our work clothes in time to leave the hotel at 8:00. Everyone loaded up and began the hour drive to Santa Monica, where we would be working on the construction of a church building. Edgar, one of the locals from Santa Monica, was wisely loaned to us as a guide, just in case we got separated from Ft. Gibson's bus--because we didn't have a clue how to get there. Have I mentioned the traffic and crazy drivers in Monterrey? Apparently there are no traffic laws in Mexico...no speed limits, at least none that are enforced. If the road you're driving on has 3 paved lanes, there may be 5 lanes of cars, as they use medians, shoulders, etc. Ted tried to stay glued to the back of the bus, but whenever he would allow more than 24 inches of space, a little car would squeeze in between us. The bus driver seemed to forget that we were trying to follow, 'cause he would veer off at the last second to exit, leaving us on a road going "who knows where." But Edgar got us there in one piece and we got the first look at our mission. Holy guacamole! This building is gonna be HUGE! The land had been purchased by the church at Ft. Gibson, as well as a few other private donors. This building will be the largest so far, and will be 2 stories. Much residential construction has begun in close proximity to the property, so it is believed that once the building is complete, it will fill up fast and another will be needed a few short miles away. It is still in the beginning stages and we will be working on the foundation.

Okay, time to go to work. Somehow, I had envisioned myself in the role of "chaperone," "supervisor," "water-girl." So why are they handing me a shovel? It soon became apparent that they expected everyone to really "WORK." I was put on boundary or stem wall ditch-digging detail right away and found myself constantly hitting rock. Time for the "pickers" to come in. Some of the big, strong, young guys picked the rocky soil and we came in behind them digging the trenches. By noon the temperature was above 100 degrees and I had drank more water than I usually do in a week. Someone had been smart and brought towels that we soaked in our ice chest then wrapped around our necks. Ahhhhhh. Feels so goooood. At 12:00 it was time for lunch. The local women (and men) had prepared a wonderful meal for us and we didn't even care what the meat was.....we ate like we hadn't eaten in days. Homemade tortillas, refried beans, noodles and sauce and of course, the mystery meat. Also homemade salsa (mui picante) that burned my lips right off, but I kept going back for more. In the afternoon, I worked on stabilizing the forms for cement around the piers (more shovel work) and donned the rubber gloves to help scoop cement into the forms. Throughout the day I became acquainted with several of my brothers and sisters from Dewey and Ft. Gibson and also met Loddy (sp?) the preacher at Santa Monica, George (Loddy's little boy), and our cooks, Hilda, Elizabeth, Benny, and Rosa.

Finally, quitting time. On the drive back to the hotel Edgar (who does not speak English) worked hard to communicate and interact with us (mostly with the young girls!). Then we started singing some songs and when he recognized the tune, he would sing the song in Spanish.

Back at the hotel, I collapsed on the floor (way too dirty to get on the bed of white linens) and waited for my turn to shower. Oh, it felt so good to get the shoes off. How do toenails get dirty with socks and shoes on????


We walked across the street for a lovely dinner before meeting with Ft. Gibson and Dewey for our evening devotional. The Spanish word for today is "PODER" which conveys the idea of "power." "...according to His power that is at work within us..." Eph. 3:20


After devo, seven of us decided to take an adventure and try to find a Walmart. We had gotten directions, but when we had traveled awhile and still didn't see it, we stopped to ask directions from a motorcycle "policia". He began trying to direct us, then said "Follow me." We had a police escort to Walmart. Bueno.


Back to the hotel where we all slept like babies.

Mexico Mission - Day 2...Crossing the Border

Sunday, June 22

I had my alarm set for 7:20. One of my girls' alarms went off at 6. I'd forgotten how long it takes teenaged girls to get ready. After a quick breakfast at the hotel, we headed for the border. At Immigration, we were met with a few set-backs. Even though we would be in Mexico less than seven days, and were DONATING our time, the Mexican authorities demanded that we purchase work visas. These are good for 180 days, so I guess if we were inclined to go back in the next few weeks we'd be good to go. We also exchanged our dollars for pesos, then began the waiting process for them to give us the green light. Since Ft. Gibson had jumped through these hoops many times before, they had warned us to make sure and have a title for the trailer that we were using to transport our luggage. Dewey was also pulling a trailer and the authorities were not happy that they had a COPY of their title, not the original. Then they found that we had a carbon copy of our van rental agreement, not the original.....bad news. Waiting....waiting....waiting...then all of us were chased out of the cool, air-conditioned Immigration building accused of "loitering." Oh boy, we get to wait this out in the hot van! More waiting...it was approaching two hours...hey, why don't we pray about this? Great idea. About 10 minutes after the "Amen" Ted came strolling toward the van. He said, "I don't know what happened, but all of a sudden they changed their minds and said we could enter." Hmmm. We know what happened. Sadly, Dewey was not allowed to bring their trailer so we unloaded their trailer and crammed their belongings into ours. Paco, the preacher at Nuevo Laredo, Mexico had left services and come to meet us at the border. He assured the authorities that he would take care of the trailer until our return. Finally, we're on our way again. We arrived at church in Nuevo Laredo in time to hear the last 10 minutes of Paco's sermon (which we couldn't understand, anyway), then sang "I Will Call Upon the Lord" and "God is So Good" in Spanish and English. Afterwards we were greeted by the congregation and tried our best to communicate. We pulled out a bag of Beanie Babies to give to the children who were enthralled--no interpretation needed. Back into the van and more driving--about an hour to a rest stop where we all ate--our group from SS made sandwiches (we're cheap) while the others tried to order food at the restaurants. By the time we arrived at the beautiful Gran Hotel Ancira in Monterrey, we were too tired to go eat and ordered pizza. Right...Dominoes in Mexico. Bueno.

The Bible study text for our devos was Efesios 3:20-4:1. The thought for today is..."Todos" --"everything" or "all-encompassing." In the first three chapters of Ephesians, Paul talks about the spiritual blessings that are found in Christ. He gives thanks for a God who gives us everything we need (1:23). He acknowledges the fact that we are made alive through Christ, and that without Jesus we are all dead in sin (2:5). He tells us that we are "God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (2:10). Ephesians 3:20 says, "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine..." TODOS

Independence Day

Forty-two people descended upon our house yesterday to celebrate the 4th of July. The forecast included chance of thunderstorms, but I was thankful that the meteoroligists got it wrong again, as it turned out to be a beautiful day. The pool was the big hit for the afternoon, then grilling began around 6:00. Plenty of hamburgers, hotdogs and ribs for everyone, accompanied by baked beans, veggies and dip, chips, watermelon, cantaloupe and more desserts than I can list. More swimming and a few firecrackers before dark. When the real fireworks began, we were surrounded on all sides with beautiful displays. Being on a hill, we had the perfect view in all directions. Sorry, no pictures from yesterday, since I was busy being hostess.

Thursday night Jeff, Neal and I took Lauren and Jacob to Skiatook for their big fireworks display. Since the lake is still high, the concert and fireworks were at the airport which is just across the road from Neal's shop. So we took popcorn and juice and met up with several of Neal's new co-workers for a front-row view of all the festivities. We sat in the beds of pickups and Jacob made a new friend, 6-yr. old Colby, who had all kinds of fun toys and flash lights that he shared with Jacob (or Jake, as he called him). We left before the show was over...it was getting late...past Lauren's bedtime...and we had forgotten to take her blankie and binky. She started saying, "mama...home" over and over, so we decided we'd seen enough.

Mexico Mission - Day 1...Driving

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Thirteen of us from Sand Springs joined 15 from Dewey, OK and about 44 from Ft. Gibson, OK on this trip to Mexico. Even though Janet made the comment today--"these Texans won't let us in just 'cause we're from Arkansas"--we really are all from Oklahoma (that must have been a previous life, Janet). Knowing we had a long drive ahead of us, we voted to leave EARLY. Amazingly enough, we had the rental van and trailer loaded and were leaving Sand Springs around 4:00 a.m.

After thirteen hours of off-and-on semi-sleep, travel Yahtzee, eating breaks, "circle of life" stops (that's when you stop to go to the bathroom and buy a bottle of soda or water, which leads to another bathroom stop and more soda and water, etc., etc.) and endless adjustments of the temperature and vents, we arrived in Laredo, Texas. We checked into the Marriott, cleaned up and went to Logan's Steak House for dinner. Afterwards, some went shopping, while others opted to go back to the hotel. Since I'm rooming with three 18 & 19 yr. olds, I decided this might be my only chance at the bathroom, so I went back to the room and had a leisurely shower. I'm rooming with Michelle (18), Kiley (18) and Amy (19)--"my girls." Michelle must have drawn the short straw, as she is my bed partner. By the time they returned to the room, I was already in bed and had begun to doze off. But I still heard Michelle laughing at the wall of pillows I had built between my side and hers.

Kristen...riding backwards and reading...I'd be sick as a dog.

Dare-devil Terri risks her life after Joel reads a warning on her pillow, "Do not use for sleeping purposes. For decorative use only." Oh, Terri, you're a brave, brave woman!

With very little room to stretch out on the seats, Kiley takes to the floorboard.