The Few

Just shy of twelve years ago, I turned twenty-three among a sea of fabulous friends.  I loved my life.  I loved my friends, of which there were many.  Many of high quality.  Many with the potential to be "bests."  Many of whom I had known for my whole life in this little town where we were in the same classes from kindergarten through senior year.  Many who meant the world to me at the time.  

When we're twenty-three, the many seem infinitely important.  At that age, we're a tribe, moving through life like a force of nature, leaving smiles, incredulous gasps and epic stories in our wake.  Everything seems so important.

Looking back now, many of those things that seemed so big at the time are overshadowed by just a few.  The few true friendships that endure, even through this beautiful mess we call adulthood.  The few nights that continue to invade my memory even after so many truly gigantic things have happened since.

The weekend of my twenty-third birthday, a man who would become one of The Few invited me to sit in the audience while he performed at a Vegas-style lounge show at our favorite karaoke spot.  That's right.  We met while singing karaoke.  We RULED that shit.  Over the course of a couple of years leading up to this weekend, we had become bar friends.  Yup.  Some of The Many.  Funny how that can change, huh?

Let's call him Brother T.

That night, Brother T's good friend was also in attendance.  I was there with my bestie of umpteen years, and I was nursing a hangover and a major crush on Brother T's buddy.  This boy was absolutely gorgeous, and I wanted to know more.  

So I covertly asked Brother T a couple of questions.  What was his name?  How old was he?  Where was he from?

In classic Brother T style (he's not known for being shy), answers were boomed out in his very best radio announcer voice.

Did I mention I was twenty-three?  And kinda shy?  Now, don't judge me...

I made a beeline for the bathroom, where I remained for an embarrassing amount of time.  My bestie and I camped out in there, smoking cigarettes (yup, this was when you could still smoke in bars) and sending out for drinks every so often.

It wasn't as peaceful as you might think, though.  Brother T, ever the introvert (ahem), pounded on the door and stuck his head in to laugh at me.  He convinced me to go back into the lounge - back to my table that was right in front of Gorgeous Boy.

I slunk to my seat, feeling extremely silly.  It seems that while we were hiding out, Brother T must have told Gorgeous Boy about my immature freak-out in a way that apparently didn't make me seem all that immature after all.  Guess it helps that he's a salesman...

Gorgeous Boy bought me a drink, and we started talking.  It turned out that we had some things in common, and we spent the next few weeks getting to know each other while going out with Brother T and hanging out at his house.

Six months in, Gorgeous Boy became The Fiance.  One year later, The Fiance became The Hubbs.

Yup.  My karaoke buddy introduced me to the love of my life.  And did I mention the fact that I bought Brother T's house when he moved out of state?  I mean, it would have been irresponsible not to.  This is the first place The Hubbs ever kissed me.  We're talking lifetime landmark here, people.  This place had to be preserved!

***

The Hubbs and Brother T were in a band together, and they were really good.  Not too long after I started spending all my time with them, they introduced me to another member of the band.  The social network was growing and growing, but these three, they were to become some of The Few.

That third band member?  Uncle D.  If you've spent any time at all on this blog, you'll know Uncle D as The Hubbs' bestie and Piggy's favorite human.  

***

It's been almost eleven years since I bought Brother T's house, though it feels like almost no time has passed.  A little over eight years ago was the last time we saw Brother T in person.  It's been hard to be so far apart for so long...

...but yesterday was one of The Few days that will live on forever.

Brother T and his lovely bride, Red, are in town this week.  Even though it was a school night, we all decided it was time to get the band back together (we were on a mission from God!).

The best part?  It felt like no time had passed at all.  The night flew by as we played all the old songs and sang our hearts out into the wee hours of the morning.  

The Hubbs and Brother T, warming up the ol' pipes

Me and Red.  I swear this gal is the sister I never had.

The Hubbs, Uncle D and Brother T in their truest form

The band!  I LOVE THESE BOYS!

There are no words for how this makes me feel.  Oh, wait.  Yes there are,
and as it turns out, I need only one.  Home.

It's nights like this that make me immensely thankful for my life.  So, so many things happen in our lives, and it's easy to get lost in that.  But when you find The Few, you hang on for dear life.  After all, they don't come along often, and that's what makes them so very, very special.

Just Because

Sometimes, a gal just has to share a picture of her kids in front of the Christmas tree.

Ellie Ellie Smelly Belly!

Losing Bubbles was a blow to our family. We've never been the same, and we never will be.

Piggy has had almost a year and a half as an only dog, and she's been spoiled rotten.

Up until a few months ago, it hurt too much to think about "replacing" our eldest kid. Then, one day The Hubbs and I looked at each other and both admitted we couldn't stop thinking about getting Pig a new companion. 

On July 4th, we adopted a sweet little seven-month-old American Staffordshire terrier. We named her Liberty Louise - Libby Lou for short. We fell hard and fast. And then, about two days after the adoption, there was an incident. My heart cracked in two and I sobbed uncontrollably when Grumma and I returned her to the shelter. 

Fast forward to Halloween. I had been browsing the shelter's web site periodically, and there was a pup who had caught my interest a couple of weeks before. She would be available on Halloween, and she was on my mind. They called her Ingrid, and her brother was named Bogart. 

After planning to sleep in and have a lazy morning, The Hubbs and I both happened to wake up at 7:00. I asked if he wanted to meet her. After just a little bit of hemming and hawing, we decided we'd try. 

We carted the whole family down to the shelter again and entered with the bar set low. Our name was the first to be called, and we were the only ones on the list who were there to see Ingrid when the shelter opened. 

We walked into the puppy room and locked eyes with the cutest little thing in the place. I picked her up. She snuggled in and kissed me. I asked The Hubbs if he wanted to hold her, and she reached for him as I handed her over. 

The first time they went nose to nose, she and Piggy trembled together. It was loud and chaotic, and these two immediately seemed to be kindred spirits. 

All five of us went outside to get better acquainted in the light rain. The Princess regarded this tiny little thing and gave almost no reaction one way or the other. It's always so hard to tell with her. She's always had big dogs in her life, and she tends to ignore them for the most part. We figured it was a good sign that she was not showing any signs of agitation. 

We were hooked. 

The shelter is forty-five minutes from home. Two hours after leaving the house as a four-person family, we returned home with our newly added fifth member. 

She is about eleven weeks old, and the consensus is that she's probably a Jack Russell terrier mix of some sort. 

But Ingrid just didn't strike us as a fitting name for this sweet little thing. 

World, meet Eleanor, also affectionately known as Ellie Ellie Smelly Belly. 

We took her trick-or-treating with her human sister who dressed up as a puppy. We walked, we played, we met lots of new people, smelled lots of new smells, and melted lots of hearts.

We dressed up as Piggy. 

We bonded. 

We proved that The Princess is not always indifferent to dogs, and we bonded some more. 

We became the little spoon. 

And we took a picture that tugs the heartstrings. If you know us in real life, you'll understand why immediately. This is amazingly similar to one of our favorite pictures of Bubbles and Piggy when Piggy was about this age. 

We've played and slept and melted hearts. We've shown how easy and right it can be. 

We've become family. 

Dimmer

Yesterday, the world got dimmer.

Ron Payton, a dear family friend, passed away unexpectedly, and for once I find myself at a loss for words. 

A man so full of light and life, he instantly lit up a room the moment he entered. It was impossible to be grumpy around that smile. 

He had a voice that could make me bounce with glee and eyes that twinkled like the stars. Watching him sing and perform was an absolute joy. 

Story time is over, and I just can't believe I'll never see him again. 

His charm, his grace and his kindness were unparalleled, and he will be sorely missed. 

Ron, we love you. Always will. 

Mommen!

Me: Princess, what do you want?

She opens the food cabinet and deliberately grabs the bright orange package of chicken ramen. 

Me: Ooh, ramen?

The Princess: MOMMEN!

Is there anyone cuter on the planet?  I think not. 

Thank you, Mrs. G.

We found out near the beginning of this school year that our local special education district center and programs would be shutting down, effective this summer.  Months of uncertainty and up-in-the-air-ness were followed by the final responsibility of finding another program for The Princess and finding out that her beloved teacher, The Fabulous Mrs. G., would be out of a job as of the end of the school year.

Scary, heartbreaking stuff.

Long story short: we found a great program for The Princess, a program that's been in place for eleven years and is located 20 minutes from home.  New school, new staff, new classmates.  Third grade is gonna be a whole new world.

I've been trying to figure out how to thank The Fabulous Mrs. G. for everything she's done for our girl.  Five years, these two have been together.  I had all these grand plans of making a heartfelt handmade end-of-year gift with a handwritten letter, and then the school year was over.

Here's an excerpt from the email I just sent.  It's not much, but I hope it brings a smile to her face.

***

I am very sorry that we didn't get a chance to see you this spring at the music program or another time before the school year ended.  I wanted to tell you this in person, but email will just have to do, I suppose.

Thank you.

Thank you for being such a huge part of The Princess's life for the past five years.  When we met you, we were all lost and scared.  You have helped our entire family grow into more mature people in so many ways, and there just aren't words to describe how significantly you have impacted our lives.

Thank you for always having her - and our - best interests at heart.  I've heard horror stories from other moms across the country about their special education experiences, and I'm grateful that this was never an issue for us.  Whenever the road got bumpy, you took our hands and led the way.

Thank you for helping to mold our cute little toddler into the gorgeous, confident girl she's growing up to be.  Though I'd like to take all the credit for how awesome she is, I'm under no illusions that we did this all on our own.

Thank you for loving our girl.  One of my favorite parts of every new school year so far has been the open house.  Watching her see you for the first time at the end of summer has always warmed my heart.  For someone who had a very hard time opening up to people for a very long time, I just can't say how much it meant to me when she'd see you across the room and run up with a big grin and hug for her favorite teacher.

Thank you, most of all, for dedicating your life to helping kids like The Princess.  I can't begin to fathom how many little lives you've touched, and I am so grateful that our girl is among those ranks.  It takes a very special kind of person to do what you do, and you do it all with such grace.

We hope you'll keep in touch and let us know how you're doing down the road.  The Hubbs and I would love to hear from you any time, as long as you're up for it.

Good luck, and we wish you all the happiness in the world.  After all, you've helped us find ours.

Love,
Daisy Mae and the Little Yellow House family

Go Go Red. Again.

So, Bumma's been trying to convince me to take Go Go Red for a spin. Every time she's said it, it's been too late, I've been to lazy, or something else kept me from it.

Until today. 

During one of many laps around the block, I stopped at the bottom of a hill to see what she'd do. Her little body flapped and she wiggled her butt to and fro. 

"What?" I asked. 

Wait for it...

"GO!" shouted the happiest girl I know. 

So we went. 

Now, I have a feeling The Princess is convinced that she's in the process of training her very own staff of chauffeurs. 

As you can plainly see, this is a great hardship for all of us. 

Go Go Red

Yeah, it's been a while!  We're still here, havin' a ball as usual.

Bumpa got a toy for Christmas, and The Princess has decided it's pretty much the best thing ever. She got her first ride last week. 

Bumpa came back three times, thinking he was done. The Princess...well, she had other ideas.  Every time he stopped, she put his hands back on the handlebars and rocked back and forth, asking him to GO. 

I asked her what color it was, to which she immediately replied, "Ruh." 

And now every time we pull up in the driveway, she races from the car right to Go Go Red. 

It's gonna be a good summer, y'all. 

Nine Years

Nine years ago today, I married my best friend.  Heading down the aisle with Pop singing the oh-ee-oh guard song from The Wizard of Oz under his breath, I swear my feet left the ground.  This boy, this wonderful, handsome, hilarious boy, was about to be my husband.

I'm still floating.

Nine years of dinners.  Nine years of dishes and laundry and budgeting and grocery shopping.  Nine years of ups and downs, nine years of transitioning from job to job, both professionally and at home.  Nine years of home repairs, financial malarkey, and the millions of little details that go into building a life together.

Nine years of memories.  Some of the biggies: driving home with Bubbles on her first day as a member of our family.  Meeting Piggy in that little hole-in-the-wall pet store by the movie theater.  That day the second line finally showed up on the pregnancy test.  The crazy debacle with the freak snow storm in April while I was in the hospital for The Princess's arrival.

Those are obvious.  Everyone looks back fondly on those days.  For me, though, what makes us special and keeps me floating a couple of inches above the ground is the little stuff.  Biking together.  Hiking together.  Claiming the neighborhood beach as our own for months at a time.  Mr. Amazing, absolutely nailing the whole stay-at-home dad/hubby role.  All of our inside jokes: swattas, ee-honk-honk, mule turkey banana brain snort, and so many more.  Helping each other move outside of our comfort zones, and discovering new ways to go about everyday life while forming traditions of our own...one tiny change at a time.

Nine years of little insignificant conversations that, when added up, helped to build the most significant bond in my life.

Nine years of hugs and tickles and kisses goodnight.

Yes, I'm still floating.  I never would have believed how much those little things add up over time, but now I can't imagine life without them.  I am in awe of how much my life has changed for the better since I met The Hubbs, and I can't wait to see how high I'll be floating as we add more years to the stack.

Just imagine how high I'll be able to float after 25 or 50 years, if 9 have gotten me this far.  I can only hope and pray that we're fortunate enough to turn old and gray together.

Hey, Swa?  I love you, man.  Like really, really big.  Thank you for going on this journey with me.  I can't imagine a better co-pilot.

Labor Day Weekend

Holy cow, y'all...it's tough being this popular!  This weekend was full of laughs, good music and great friends.

Saturday evening was reserved for a pal's birthday outing with the girls. We took a commuter train a few towns away to see a band play and had a blast. I didn't end up getting home until about 4:00 Sunday morning, which hasn't happened in a coon's age. 

Here I am with my boss lady, JJ on the way to the bar.

And with Birthday Girl, LB during the show:

The band was fun. They played everything from Styx to Muse. 

Bill Murray hand stamp!

3am IHOP run!  Left to right, that's me, R, JJ and LB. 

Sunday had another band slated...this time outside with The Grumps and all of Pop's work buds. 

Before the festivities, this lovely little lady stole my favorite hat. 

Here's me and Pop at the show:

And this is the clam-bake (boil is more like it). We had crab, clams, mussels, crayfish, shrimp and corn. 

Me, Grumma and D:

And here I am with my boys: Pop and Unky Harv!

Two crazy chicks:

Six crazy chicks:

The whole gang!

The Princess loved Monday's afternoon activity, which was unexpected and totally necessary. 

And the Momma fried some catfish for dinner. 

All in all, I can say one thing for sure about this holiday weekend: I love my life. Oh, and one more thing: I could use a nap. :)

School, Birthdays, Visits and a New Instrument (or three)

Hey, y'all!

What a week.  On Monday, as you already know, Pudge the banjolele joined our happy little family, and I'm proud to report he's fitting in well.

Tuesday was kinda big around here, too.  Someone started second grade.

7:45 am - way too early for certain little girls to get out of bed!

My slightly overwhelmed little girl, waiting for the bus

The Princess much prefers to wait in the back seat of
Da's car.

It was a whole family affair, waiting for the bus to arrive on the first day.
Here's Piggy, hangin' out at the salad bar.

My love and me.  D'aww.

See?  Waiting in the car is fun.  Oooooooooohhh.

She jumped up and flapped when she saw the bus.

I had to snap these pictures quickly while trying to keep Piggy
from jumping on the bus with The Princess.
That was friggin' adorable, lemme tell ya.

A hastily taken shot of our girl on the bus, next to her classmate, Z.

The week flew by, and it was Saturday before we knew it.  This meant a
trip to the Hubbo Family Estate for cousin K's birthday party.  I hate to
say it, but I didn't have a chance to take more than a couple of quick
pics here, as I was chasing The Princess and being her playmate of
choice.  No, I am not complaining.

The theme was My Little Pony, and - true to form - my sis-in-law, Jello,
went all out.  It was beautiful, and the birthday girl was super-excited to
play with her cousins.  Goddaughter E even snuggled with me for a good
long time, which doesn't happen often.  We're so blessed to have such
a wonderful family.

Saturday was also Grumpa's birthday.  It had poured rain all day, and it was
hot and muggy outside, but we were pleasantly surprised by this gorgeous
sunset over our little lake.

Uncle D met us at K's birthday party and made the trek back up to our
little yellow house for a good, old fashioned visit.  Piggy was ecstatic.
He's her boyfriend, and she didn't leave his side the whole time he was here.
There was lots of great music (made by the three of us crazy grown-ups, of
course), and we actually got to sit down and watch a movie, which pretty
much never happens.  All in all, I'd say it was a perfect visit.

Last night, Uncle D took us all out for Mexican, and we had a great time.
Then, this morning (as if we haven't been spoiled enough), we all went
down the street for brunch.  As you can see, it was a very serious affair.

After brunch, Uncle D took off and we headed for our beloved beach.
Hi, Hubbs!

Here's The Princess, doin' her Baywatch babe thing.  :)

Some doofus attached this death trap to one of our swimming piers, and I
am not impressed.  It's obviously someone's idea of a boat bumper system,
but it's in the middle of the swim area and has jagged rusty pieces hanging
off at odd angles.

So friggin' unsafe.  I'm really not happy about this, and I'll be reporting it
to the neighborhood association.  Someone's gonna get hurt, and when
they do, the subdivision will be liable.  Idiots.

After swimming, we headed over to The Grumps' house with all the fixings
for fried chicken.  We spent a wonderful few hours visiting and eating,
and The Princess was all about the birthday boy.  As you can see,
they don't get along at all.

See that beautiful Epiphone acoustic guitar?  That belonged to Grumpa -
he bought it shortly after graduating high school and has just passed
it down to The Hubbs.  Our little family of musical instruments keeps
growing, and we couldn't be happier.  We also found out this weekend
that we will be housing two more instruments here: Auntie G's 12-string
Mexican guitar and The Hubbs' great grandfather's bass banjo uke.

At The Grumps' house this evening, Grumpa looked at The Princess and asked, "Do you have to go to school tomorrow?"  Without missing a beat, she looked right back at him and blew a raspberry.  Best.  Answer.  Ever.  I believe The Hubbs' reaction was something to the effect of, "A truer statement has never been uttered."

It's always super-awesome to spend time with family, and we really made the rounds this weekend.  Hard to believe, though, that Labor Day is coming up a week from tomorrow.  The summers really do fly, don't they?