Happy Birthday, Dad

Happy Birthday, Papa.  As of last weekend, you gained a new name, just in time for your 52nd birthday.  You are "Papa" to your grandson.  How sweet it is to hear him call you by name.  How sweet it is to see you as a grandfather. 

Naturally, most of the photos I currently have on my phone of you are with McCoy, and they make me smile.  You are such a proud papa!

 

 

 

 

The saying holds true that daughters seek to find a man with the qualities of their father.  So thank you for providing me and Kimberly with true, genuine qualities to look for in the men in our lives.  We look to find support, and to have the answers to any random, complicated, off-the-wall questions we may have at any given time.  We hope to have someone in our lives who will drive countless miles to our rescue, without question, whether it be to unlock our vehicle or bring us our left-behind ID, and we always hope the last slice of dessert is left for us to eat.

 

 

 

 

Your family loves you.  Growing up I saw you put a lot of time and dedication into your work, and although there were times that I felt you were gone too much, I always knew you were putting your family first and doing what you needed to do.  Most of all, we were always cared for, loved, and supported.  You were quick to address what you didn't agree with and were involved in our ever-changing worlds.  You were there for us.  And you showed us what love truly feels like.

Today, I am so very thankful for you, Dad.  I am happy to always have you there to lean on for knowledge and support.  I love seeing you there for Kollin and playing all the sports that he has found interest in.  You are such a neat, intelligent, and thoughtful man, and I know that everybody who knows you, thinks the same thing.

And I can't not mention the same birthday blessings to your twin.  I know, I know, that you two have had to share every single birthday together, but at the same time, I'm positive that you're thankful for the 52 birthdays that you've had a brother, a best bud, to share your special day with. 

(Birthday photos from two birthdays ago)

Happy Birthday, Dad!  And Happy Birthday, Uncle Dale!

Turquoise

I have discovered my color.  I have always, and I mean always, struggled with a favorite color.  When I was a young girl, my first favorite color was blue, then it was orange (which was the favorite color of a boy I didn't like in my kindergarten class), then it was hot pink, and then it was green and yellow (which were my best friend's favorite color).  Now I like orange colors, burnt orange and tangerine, and I appreciate browns, and I really love mustard yellow.  I love greens but more specifically sage green or jade green.  I also love turquoise and aqua, but I don't like blue.  I like deep purples, but not mauve.  I cannot figure out why it is so hard to choose a color I like.  When Kylie asks me what my favorite color is, I say, "Ummm, green, purple, orange..."  It depends on what you're talking about.  Is it the color of a wall, a shirt, the color to put on my nails, the color to decorate my Christmas tree, etc.?  It matters what you're doing with that color.  To generally have a favorite color is absurd.  I cannot do it.

But as I was browsing through my Pinterest pins, I discovered my favorite color.

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

Source

 Source

You probably get the point.  For now, I'm really happy with my favorite color.  And when Kylie asks me what my favorite color is now, I can proudly say Turquoise.  When she asks me what happened to purple and orange and green, I'll probably tell her that I like those too.

A Day in the Life of Lenox

Lenox wakes up when Keane and I do during the week.  He moves from our legs to our chests in the mornings, purring loudly, requesting some petting.  He's the sweetest during this time.  He hangs out in the bathroom and on our bed while we get ready for our work day.  On weekends (the very few days we sometimes sleep in), he tries to wake us up by running around the bedroom, up and down the hallway, on and off the bed, and meowing.

Hiding in Keane's pants.  Lenox's favorite thing to do in the morning is run into pant legs or shorts if you hold them open for him.  He begins to purr instantly and lays inside them.

Helping me water plants in the kitchen sink.

Playing in boxes, bags, or anything his little nose will fit inside.

Following me from room to room, and always wanting the most attention when I'm in the kitchen and can't touch him or play with him.

Napping in his favorite place.

Being held by Kylie.  I don't think he would let anyone else hold him the way she does.

Playing King of the jungle.

Hiding under blankets.  This cat loves to hide!

Getting ready to pounce at me.

Relaxing on a blanketed lap during TV time.

Napping, again.

Checking for bugs on the ceiling.  He loves chasing moths and bugs during the summertime.

Chatting with Natty through the door.

 

Chilling on the living room coffee table. 

 

 

 

Helping put laundry away.  Or making a bed in the laundry, rather.

 

 

 

And giving kisses.

 

 

Visit with Katie

A few weeks ago, I took an evening to go visit a friend.  Keane and Kaden had tickets to go to the MU basketball game vs. Georgia so Kylie and I made plans to visit Katie.  Keane brought the kids to check out my place of employment.  I think they enjoyed it, especially the stapler and stapler remover.  I think that was their favorite...that or the candy drawer, or maybe the dry erase board in the "cafeteria" as Kylie called it.

I really enjoyed spending some time catching up and chatting.  Katie let me play with her camera and I fell in love.  I believe Kylie found about twenty things in each room to snap a photo of.  Sorry, Katie, for overloading your camera!



Love at first snap.

Katie was showing me some photography by a good friend of hers, Glory Photography, in Warrenton, Missouri, and she came across a photo of triplets girls.  I was astonished as I have been following the blog of the mother of those triplet girls!  It's such a small world, isn't it?



Kylie's photos of Katie's pillows
(You can find us in the background)

Katie had to get to bed as she was off for California the following morning, to Disneyland at that!  I hope she enjoyed the sunshine for us all!

Thanks for a great evening, friend!

Rain

I have spent the morning going through old emails, reorganizing and deleting them.  I went through my notebook and scratched off the to-do's that I have since done.  I have updated my budget and spendings for the month so far.  I went through my calendar for work and updated the changes necessary.  I feel good.

It is raining outside.  These rainy days are, in their own way, perfect, refreshing days.  I am usually anxious to get done everything I can possibly get done.  I literally made myself a list yesterday with the shopping options I had and the order I could do them: "Walgreens on lunch, mall next week," "Dollar General after work, mall next week, "Mall on lunch, Dollar General after work."  (I went with Dollar General after work, mall next week.)

I appreciate rainy days because it gives me a sense of calmness, and a chance to slow down my brain regarding the trillion things that I want to get accomplished.  Instead, I can focus on myself a little bit more, and gather my overworking thoughts.

I love planning, I love organizing, and I need these things in my life or else I feel scattered and behind.  I love lists and folders and sorting through to rid of the old.  I am constantly going through stacks of keepsakes, reorganizing our kitchen junk drawer, and sorting through everyone's unworn clothes piles.  I donate what we don't use, throw away what can't be reused, and reorganize what's left to keep.  And I feel so much better after doing so.

So today I'm very thankful for the rain.  Not only because it helps the earth, the crops, and the water-thirsty lakes, but also because it has given me peace and focus today.