Overexposed

Does this bother anyone else? These two girls are talking to the President of the United States wearing what is basically underwear. This is their "uniform". Seriously? Is this really necessary? I know the sport originated on the beach, but come on! Put some clothes on.

Rollin' on the River

Our family and some of our favorite Texas people floated on inner tubes and canoes down a section of river in central Arkansas on Saturday. The weather was hot, but the water was cold.

Our group was made up of 10 adults and 6 kids. Wait, only six kids? It sure seemed like more than that at times. Seriously, the four "big" boys get along very well and love hanging out together. The two younger kids (a girl and a boy) seem to get along well too.

Besides hanging out in a nice condo and on the river with some of our favorite people, Mark and I got to eat at two of our favorite restaurants. Woo hoo - that is a good weekend.

I took one of those water-proof cameras and have not gotten them developed yet, but if you really want to see our group photo go to Antique Mommy's blog.

True Grit

I have something I feel I need to share. Mark told me this story and it brought tears to my eyes.

A little background information: Mark and the boys are at Scout Resident Camp for a few days. There are 4 other dads and 10 other boys from our group there too. Everyone seems to be having a good time despite the heat and humidity. Swimming is a daily activity and a favorite one as you can probably imagine. Everyone has to take a swim test when they first arrive and then are classified into one of three categories: non-swimmer, beginner or swimmer.

Then there is X. He does not want to be there, or at least he does not want to participate in the activities. He did not want to canoe. He did not want to swim. He lags behind when they have to go from one area to another. There is nothing wrong with this boy physically. He is on the small side for his age, but healthy. I can only assume that his parents want him there, because he himself does not appear to want to be there.

On the other hand, there is a boy there from another group who contracted meningitis a couple of years ago. He now has a cochlear implant and is partially paralyzed. He had to learn to walk all over again. This boy passed his swim test to be a "swimmer." With one arm. He could be mad at the world or feel sorry for himself, but he does not. He goes after what he wants with the heart of a lion.

He probably does not realize what an example he is setting for the other boys at camp. I hope the other boys do.

What's New?

This has been a crazy week. (It is a crazy month actually.)

Mark and I celebrated our anniversary Saturday night with a wonderful dinner at Sonny William's Steakhouse in Little Rock. Just before we left for Little Rock, I found out that my (great) Aunt Mildred had passed away. I had not seen her in years, but she was a part of my childhood and I loved her. I want to say more about her in another post.

Now, back to the craziness. I had to take Mark to the airport early Sunday morning, after I checked out of the hotel I had to go get the boys from Mark's parents in Bryant. VBS started Sunday night and I am helping with registration. We are having a busy, great time! The boys are attending a Sports Camp at the Country Club this week from 9-2. Trying to juggle Camp and VBS and funeral stuff has been exhausting.

Then I got home yesterday and Stephanie had invited me to join Facebook. I've been curious anyway, so I did it. I am now on Facebook. So now I have another thing to waste time on when I should be doing something constructive.

Fifteen Years!

Today Mark and I have been married 15 years. Fifteen! That sounds like a long time to me, but it seems like it has flown by for the most part. We were meant for each other.

I was going to do a photo retrospective of us, but I have discovered that I do not have many pictures of US. There are pictures of me with the boys, even more with Mark and the boys and some with all four of us, but there are very few of just the two of us. (There are some, but I would first I would have to find them, then I would have to scan them and all that junk.) So here is a quick review:

July 10, 1993

Maul Road Church of Christ

Camden, Arkansas

Awwww!

Several years later. Approximately 2002 in Fort Worth, Texas. (I really need to fill that time gap, don't I?)

July 2003: We went on a cruise for our 10th Anniversary. One of our ports-of-call was Key West, Florida.

Christmas 2003 in Conway, Arkansas. Aren't we cute?

February 2005: Our second cruise. We saw ancient ruins in Chachoben, Mexico.

July 10, 2007 in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

June 2008, Key West, Florida

Happy 4th of July!

We had a fun Fourth. The possibility of rain threatened to put a damper on the day, but it actually kept us from being totally miserable at the pool. The boys and I hung out at the pool for hours. We had lunch there, visited with friends, got painted (the boys, not me), relaxed and generally had a good time. We went home to change and then had burgers with friends at their house. After dinner we walked back to the Country Club to watch the fireworks. We all enjoyed the show. Back at our friends' house we shot off even more fireworks. The boys loved it!

Hope your Fourth of July was a good one. I truly love this holiday.

Lemons into Lemondae

Father's Day this year was not a fun day for any of us. We spent hours and hours in airports trying to make it to the Virgin Islands. Mark had gotten airline employee discount tickets on AA and DL. That meant we could go if there were enough seats available. By 9pm Sunday night we made it as far as Miami. We were exhausted and frustrated. The next day was not looking much better for stand-by passengers. Our much anticipated trip to the Islands was quickly going down the tubes. It was time to cut our losses. We were stuck in Florida, how bad could it be?

Mark and I had visited Key West for a few hours five years ago. We were on a cruise and that was our first stop. We have always wanted to go back. So we did. Mark's mom is a travel agent, so we called her and she got us a great room at a decent price. We rented a car and took off.

We stopped to see the sunset on the trip down. It was beautiful. This was right before the 7 mile bridge. Yikes!

We arrived in Key West Monday evening and stayed until Thursday afternoon. We already want to go back. Here are some highlights:

The Southernmost Point of the United Sates. In KW you are close to Cuba than to Miami. Jackson was fascinated with this marker. His souvenirs all have this image on them.

We took the Conch Train Tour. It took us all around the older part of KW and told about the history and interesting things about the island. The boys were a little bored, but they were good sports.

We went on a Sunset Cruise. Clouds got in the way, but it was still nice.

On Wednesday we went on a tour called the Ultimate Adventure. We went out on a boat to an area where they had a water trampoline and a floating rock wall. We were divided into groups and took turns riding Sea Doos, snorkeling on a living coral reef and para sailing. I was terrified, but it was beautiful up there. Mark and the boys LOVED it.

Here the boys are playing around in the roots of a Banyan tree. They are the craziest plants I have even seen. This one is on the lighthouse grounds.

We climbed up a circular iron staircase, about 86 steps to get to the top of this lighthouse.

It was worth it. The view was breathtaking.

We did not get the vacation we had planned for and hoped for, but we did have a wonderful time.