Well, at Least the Rain is Good For Something....

Don't get me wrong; I love rainy days. In fact, I think I enjoy them more than most people. As long as I can remember, I never, ever tried to wish the rain away. It is the soft rain (or loud thunderstorm) that makes me want to cozy up in my house with my family and enjoy. I remember one time when I was teaching high school, it rained for something like 21 days in a row. Didn't bother me. Everyone was whining about the lack of sun, but I cherished each and every gray day we had. Well, I don't know the exact number, but it seems like nearly every day in June has been rainy. And lots of rain. And thinking back way in April and May, it was pretty rainy then too. It's like we're living in Seattle without living in Seattle. So, I'm pretty happy, right? After all, I love this H2O from heaven!!! There is a small difference now, and it's called a son. Poor Luke is climbing the walls. He's breaking the dishes. He's going stir crazy. He's beating down the doors. He's pulling out all the stops. He's going nuts, and getting into all kinds of trouble. And I feel sorry for him. A similar thing happened during the ice storm back in January. Because he wasn't able to "get his energy out" as we say, it came out in other ways, in not nice ways. So when I found Luke standing outside, mouth open like a hungry bird, trying to catch the rain rolling off the roof, I didn't stop him. I let him get drenched. Soaked. He stood out there and laughed hysterically in between big mouth fulls of rainwater. It wasn't a permanent fix, (Tom later came home and spent 5 hours with him, biking, playing, gaming,) but it was a moment to enjoy.

Can It Really Be 20 Years?

Amazingly, the answer is yes. It has been 20 years since I graduated from Will Rogers High School. Here I am in 1987 at graduation along with my fellow Ropers. On either side of me are Kim and Linda, my 2 best friends in high school/college along with from left Kim's triplet, Chris, his now-wife Kelly, Stephen, Kim's other triplet Craig, and Trevin. My how young we all were! And now, just seemingly a few blinks later, here we are. Everyone in the above pic was able to attend the reunion, except Craig. Out of a class of about 390, we had 170, including spouses. To tell you the truth, the reunion was just a date on my calendar. I was neither looking forward to it, nor dreading it. However, it was a GREAT time. Everyone seemed so much more relaxed than the 10 year reunion and we laughed and had a BLAST from the PAST thinking back to the silly things we did 20 years ago.


We called ourselves LAK



He did a great job of trying to talk to people he's never met and has nothing in common with. After all, he's an Edison Eagle.







How much fun do you think these spouses are having?

Old friends Krista and Whitney on the left


Linda and I dancing to our class song "Lean on Me"
(when you're not strong; and you need a friend; I'll help you carry on; for it won't be long; till I'm gonna need; somebody to lean on) Those good old 80's songs!





Russell and Tim, the life of the party! Some things never change!

Red Bud Valley

On Friday, we took a hike in Red Bud Valley, a nature preserve just east of Tulsa. Kelly, my niece, Nana and Papa, Kami, Luke (our fearless "leader") and I walked the mile long loop, enjoying the landscapes, the natural spring, the rock formations, the moss-covered logs.... everything but the bugs. It is absolutely stunning! I went there as a kid. Usually, memories as a child are much bigger and grander than things are in reality. But, this place was more beautiful and awesome than I ever imagined!

To All the Fathers Out There

I hope you had a wonderful day today. We celebrated with Papa at the club. The kids swam and then we had a delicious dinner. Thanks Kim & Scott for a fun night!

amAZ ing COusins

There is a little hint in the title of this post that we have cousins in from out-of-town. Sam and Kelly are here from AZ with Uncle Matt (Tom's brother). Even though there is quite an age range, the kids have hit it off with them! We had them over for dinner last night and all 5 of them were outside having a nerf gun war. (Ever since Luke's bday, that's been the game of choice.) And just a few days ago, the A family, as I call them, were in town from CO. Aunt Anne, cousin Ashley, her husband Alex and their son, Andrew. Last time they were here, Andrew was just a baby, but this time, he thought he was one of the big kids, running around like crazy. It was a blessing to be with all of you, especially since we very rarely get to see you!!!!

Seven is a Funny Word

As rambunctious as Luke is, he somehow takes time to think about words (which I totally eat up being an English teacher and all.) He told me in the car the other day that "seven is a funny word." When asked why, he said that the number seven just doesn't look like a seven sounds. Interesting observation. His other questions about words.... *Where is the "pop" in popcicle? Is it when I pop it in my mouth? Also, why isn't there a "tree" growing in our pantry? Never thought of that one. He did understand, however, why there is "water" in watermelon.

Fabulous Four

It's official! Luke is finally and fabulously four. After months of planning different birthday parties for himself, (Hot Wheels, Spiderman, and Monster Trucks to name a few,) Luke finally got a CARS birthday party featuring Lightning McQueen! On the invitations, on the cake and on the party hats. I think he picked CARS because of his favorite quote by Lightning McQueen: "Speed. I am speed." That quote pretty much sums up my son! He is all go, go, go! And I wouldn't want it any other way. You know, sometimes he exhausts me! But the last couple of weeks, he has been sick off and on, and he hasn't been his speedy and ornery self. Well, that just hasn't seemed quite right to me. You think I'd enjoy the "downtime," but I have actually missed my mischievous boy. It made me realize that I love him just the way he is! (Remind me that I said that when I am breathlessly chasing him around the store and he is hiding among the clothes, like he was today!)

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