A quickie post to let anyone who reads this flailing blog of a blog know that we are alive and kicking. Good to know, I guess, considering today is the day we remember the dead. I will be forever grateful for those who have served our country and paid the ultimate sacrifice so I can be free. I see the news stories of what happens around the world in other countries and I am saddened by the fact that so many have to die for such deplorable reasons and that they don't have the freedoms we do. Thank you, thank you, thank you - to those who have served to gain our freedom, to those who have helped keep our freedom, and to those who continue to ensure we will always have freedom.
We are mainly hanging out at the house today, doing odds and ends...laundry, girls camp stuff, cleaning up the patio, working on the scrapboffice, etc. We barbecued some ribs yesterday, had some corn on the cob, and I actually made a homemade macaroni salad. It was a quiet day after church - we just tried to relax and hang with each other. After Melon Man went to bed because he was getting fidgety legs, I worked on some camp stuff, some vinyl designs, and then did two batches of 1940 Census indexing. More on the indexing project in a future post (I know...laugh now...when does she ever post anymore?!?!). I finally went to bed around 1 a.m. last night.
Melon Man woke me up around 8 a.m. this morning - seriously - on a holiday. What?!? Well, I guess it's okay. I have stuff I need to do, stuff I want to do, and the new gardener is coming today so I have to go get fundage to pay him. Our last one has moved away and so we have been without one for about a month. Melon Man mowed the lawn once, but now the mower won't work. Plus, he's not really a "gardener" type of guy - you know, the one that edges, weeds, trims, blows, etc. That stuff is important to me. I couldn't believe how awful our backyard (and our front yard too now) are looking. Everything is so overgrown. For a number of reasons, we've finally decided to hire a company instead of doing as we've done for the last 7 years. Do you ever change your process or hire out a job and have concerns/doubts about doing so? Yeah, sometimes, that happens to me. Not this time. I felt so totally good when we were done discussing the job. I told him exactly what I want done - EVERY time - and he was good with that. The price was a little higher than we have been paying but I'm okay with that - if everything is done professionally and regularly. Since this is his "life" and business, I think it will happen. PLUS, he is willing to pick up the dog poo! OH HEAVENS, THAT MAKES IT TOTALLY WORTH THE INCREASED COST! So, we'll be waiting with bells on for him and his crew to arrive today!
Today is Mom's birthday. She would have been 69 today. Oh my. I can't imagine her being 69 years old. I like keeping her in my mind at the ripe young age of 61. I miss her. I miss talking with her. I miss sharing exciting things with her and hearing her excitement back. It's hard because she is so far away and I can't easily drive to the cemetery to "visit" with her. It's a good 9 hour drive and 500 miles to get there. My Utah family is lucky - if they feel the need to "visit" her, it's only two and a half hours to three hours. That's a lot more manageable. I realize that it's still far, but it's doable.
My sister, Jennifer, wrote something on her blog something recently that I thought captured how I feel as well. Granted, I don't have any kids, but the pain in her "voice" expresses how I feel having lost my mother while I am still (fairly) young. She wrote...
"My mother was one of my dearest friends. I talked to her every single day. I shared with her things I couldn't share with any other person. No matter how much time passes. I still miss her just as much! Unless you have lost your own mother, you really won't ever understand how I feel. Even then, you most likely won't. If your mother lives to see her grandchildren be baptized, ordained, receive their young women medallion, or go on a mission, you won't know how I feel. If she lives to see them graduate from high school, you won't know how I feel. If she lives to see them get married, you won't know how I feel. Because your mother should be there for these things. I think of those I know who are younger than I and have lost their mothers. The things they can't share with them and I hurt for them."
Yes, I know...she and I blog our pain every year on her birthday, every year on Mother's Day, every year on Memorial Day, and every year at Christmas. That's because we truly love our mom and we desperately miss her. It's not fair that she had to go so soon. But, today, I'm going to try to focus on all the good memories and keep a smile on my face about her. Maybe that will help just a little to get through the day...
Happy Memorial Day,
Melon Man, Fatty Girl, Dog, and Little Dog
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