It's May!

Well, here it is, already May.  I read/record the evening weather for the radio each day around 4 PM when the weather service updates the forecast.  In my former life, who would have ever thought I'd be announcing the weather on the radio?!  Not only the local weather but also the marine outlook!  It cracks me up when I think about it. Anyway, I was reading the weather the other day and the forecast called for snow, possibly mixed with rain, with "little or no accumulation."  I didn't think much of it because we can get snow flurries for months on end and I figured it would just be a small amount that didn't stick.  But here we are on May 1st and we had snow and sleet all day long.  I know I am not supposed to speak ill of the weather so I am just stating facts, okay? Yes, May 1st=snowstorm.  That's all I will say.  :)

My friend Judi has decided to retire and move to the lower 48.  She and I were behavioral health clinicians together for several years before I gave it up.  Besides her clinical work, Judi is a fabulous quilter and you may have seen previous posts about her beautiful work; she has been a huge supporter of local nonprofits, donating quilts to just about all of us for our fundraisers.  She also makes what she calls "comfort quilts" for people who are ill, have had a loss in the family, or who are dealing with difficult circumstances; in fact, she kindly made a sweet baby quilt for Emery when she was so sick as an infant.  Several nonprofit organizations got together and planned a surprise "thank you/going away" party for Judi a couple of weeks ago.  We had a great turnout and managed to keep it a surprise--hard to do in a small town!  We ordered a cake from Athena Jones, a local baker who owns Enticing Icing Custom Cakes and Confections and asked her if she could make something with a quilting theme.  Yes, she could!  The photo above shows the top of the very cool cake!

 Judi and me

 More of the cake

We decorated the room and tables with quilting quotes

 Just a small sampling of the fabulous food made by the chef and his crew

Rich and me

The community will greatly miss Judi and we wish her all the best as she moves on to more adventures!

Then last weekend the Convention and Visitors Bureau held its annual wine tasting event at the hotel. Rich always has to work so I am usually searching for a date.  My friend Tammy was supposed to go with me but got sick so I ended up crashing other people's dates.  Above, my friend Sonia and her husband Ray were lots of fun. I don't know Ray very well but he had me cracking up--he's a funny guy!

Who's this???!!  Oh yeah, (former) blogger Steve and the lovely Goldfish.  It was so good to see these two and catch up a bit.  Maybe, just maybe, Steve will think about blogging again.  I know lots of people miss his insights and unique view of life.

Last night was the last night of my ESL class for this session.  We had a potluck dinner in the classroom, I handed out certificates and we enjoyed visiting with one another while sharing a meal.  Some of our classmates have already left town so not everyone is in the photo. 

I asked the students to say what they liked best about the class and they shared these thoughts :  "I liked making new friends." "I enjoyed meeting people from many cultures." "I did not know anyone and now I feel like I have many friends."  "I could not talk to anyone but now I am having conversations with many people!" "I could not pass a test for my job but now I have passed it and been hired!" It warms my heart that they have grown to love and appreciate one another and to feel a part of a positive and supportive group.  I told them how proud I am to know them and how inspiring they are to me.  And I hope to see them back next session!

Rich and I head out on a month's vacation on May 7. We are looking forward to several stops and a big ole time.  Stay tuned!

In case you need a little inspiration

There's been lots going on in the last several weeks and I feel like I am always running a little behind. I am not sure how I managed to work full time in the past and still get things done--I am either getting lazier by the day or slowing down more than I want to admit. :)   Rich and I were laughing recently because we will both be 59 in June but we have started to think of ourselves as "almost 60."  It's like we have totally dismissed the year in between.  And then I think, "how in the world could we be approaching 59, much less 60?" Somehow I think we should still be 35 or 40.  And then I remember I have kids in their 30s.

My ESL/GED class is awesome again this session.  Even when I am tired and think that it would be nice to stay at home and relax instead of going to teach class in the evening, once I get there I am happy and energized.  My students are so dedicated and hardworking and inspire me to be the same.  Last week we were talking about the session finishing at the end of April and I told them I wanted to have them over to the house for a party during the last week.  During further discussion we realized that two students would be leaving soon, so we bumped the party up to April 9.

I love each and every one of these wonderful individuals! Last week our classroom was being used for a meeting so we were  moved to the rec room which is lined with pool tables and a foosball table.  We had no blackboard so I was doing everything verbally and they had some worksheets to follow along.  We began talking about pronouns, which is somewhat complicated and I was really wishing I had a blackboard!  Toward the end of class, I felt like everyone was getting exhausted and a little frustrated so I asked if they wanted to keep going or stop and have some casual conversations for the rest of the time. I fully expected them to say "conversations!"  But no, most of them said "keep going, keep going!"  They are so eager to learn and so dedicated.

I took off work yesterday so I could get the house ready and run errands and Rich began prepping the food the night before.  He is the best at saying yes to anything I ask of him, even if he has plenty of his own tasks to keep him busy.  And he goes all-out to make sure the food is fabulous and exceptional.  I know, I am spoiled. 

My students are the kindest people in the world.  Although I told them to just "bring themselves," I received two  huge bouquets of flowers, a large green plant, a lovely scarf from Thailand, and they brought lots more soft drinks, a case of water,  and a cake to add to the spread. 

 Eating and chatting

 Toi, Magda and me, plus Susi's grandson.  Magda had to work so just stopped by for a minute and we had to get a quick photo with her.

Yumiko, Juanita and Champen

 Baciliso, Tom, Thao, Tuyet, Juanita, Enrique, and Susi and Toi in front

 Aldouma, Arnold, Emmanuel, Baciliso and Tom

 Qart

 Mohamed

Victor playing guitar and singing

 Dessert!

 Thao watching Victor play

Toi and Napasorn leaving for home.  Yes, we are still having snow. 

Tuyet, Susi, Juanita, Yumiko, Magda, Champen and Victor were in my class last session and the rest are new except Mohamed, who was in my FIRST class a year ago--the early morning class.  Victor, you might remember, obtained his GED last session, but he still comes to class to help and encourage the others.   When some of the students wanted to meet an extra night, he offered to hold class on Fridays.  So they come to my class TTh nights and then an additional night with Victor. AND some of them also attend the early morning TTh class or the MW night class with other teachers as well!  Now that is some real dedication.

It really frustrates me when I hear people complaining about immigrants or acting like they are somehow a drain on our society.  If the nay-sayers could only see what life is like for my students, I think (hope!) they would trade their negativity for admiration.  Many work very long hours, sometimes 12 hour shifts 7 days a week during the busiest fishing seasons but are still motivated to come to class and stay awake and pay attention and participate.  I am not sure I would have that drive--wouldn't it be so much easier to go home and veg out in front of the TV or go to sleep?  They are such an inspiration!

Sometimes we just have to be silly

I have no photos of the grandsons acting goofy but the girls are definitely into it!  Here are a few funny photos of my little comediennes.  Ally....

Emery and a dinosaur...

Elle...

Ally and Gigi...

Emery...

 Elle and Gigi...

and even Sarah gets into the act.  I love my funny girls!

Whirlwind Texas Trip, Part IV

After a delayed flight out of Abilene, I spent one more night and most of a day in Dallas with Sarah's family before heading home to Alaska.  Monday was busy, as Sarah had an appointment and then Elle was scheduled to get her cast off later in the day so I stayed at the house with my sweet boy, Beck. 

We were a little worried about how Elle would do with the cast removal since Sarah had been warned that they used some sort of saw and that it would be noisy.  She was told to prepare Elle for this so we had a little talk about the "cast removing tool" that would be used and how it might be pretty loud.  Sarah texted me from the doctor's office saying Elle did great but the doc decided the arm was not quite where he wanted it to be so he was having another cast put on for 10 more days.

 New cast--pink this time!

 Another cast?  No big deal!

 Sarah and her sweeties

 

 Gigi and one of her best girls

Miles is a busy guy but I caught a quick glimpse of him as I was out the door to the airport and he was taking the kids to Elle's soccer practice.

It's always hard to say goodbye to  my girls, guys, and precious grandkids.  I know I am the most biased person around when it comes to my family but I could not ask for better.  My girls are all kind and caring people, great moms, and lots of fun.  I am not sure how I lucked out and got the three best sons-in-law in the world, but I did.  :)  And these grandkids make life all the sweeter.  I could not be more grateful.  I love y'all and can't wait till the next visit!

Whirlwind Texas Trip, Part III

I left Amarillo and flew to Abilene, which necessitated a plane change in Dallas.  The joke in West Texas is that "even on your way to hell, you have to go through DFW."  Such a pain that there are no direct flights.  I was excited to see Susan, Corey and kids upon arrival!  It was dinner time and we'd made arrangements to meet up with some friends so we headed straight for a new place called Abi Haus in downtown Abilene.  Our friend Kyle is the chef there and we got to visit with him briefly, though I failed to get a photo!  We enjoyed our dinner and visiting with Sherri, Karen, and Jim. 

Thursday and Friday I took the kids to school while their parents went to work.  Susan and Corey just bought their first house in Clyde and I'm thrilled for them that they have their own place!  It's really nice and roomy with a big back yard and a trampoline....what more do you need?!

 Yes, the kids talked me into jumping on the trampoline.  I am not excited about the accentuated belly flab showing in this photo but I did want to prove that all the cool grannies get out there and participate despite bladder issues and having to run to the house almost immediately.  :)  We laughed and laughed and had a big ole time.

Our little Ally turned 6 while I was in town so I got to celebrate with her.  She came home from school wearing a crown from her teacher and carrying certificates naming her Student of the Month--so it was quite a day for our girl!

 That night we went out to dinner for Ally's bday and then took the kids to Prime Time to play.  In keeping with my cool status, I also rode the bumper cars, which brought on another fit of laughter for all.  I had no idea what I was doing.

 Corey and Aidan

 My cute girls

 We opened presents at home

Aidan will turn 10 at the end of the month (how is that possible?) so Susan and I took the kids to Gatti's for lunch the next day and celebrated his bday early with pizza and more games.

Aidan loves Lego projects and picked out another big one for his gift.  Usually he and Grandpa Rich work on these together and spend hours making various intricate vehicles but Aidan is getting good enough at it to make this one on his own. Good thing, since Gigi is inept and Grandpa was not along for this trip!

 Usually when I go to Abilene, I've stayed with my friend Karen or in a hotel because Susan and Corey didn't have much space.  This time was great fun because we got to hang out at home, cook meals, relax till bedtime, and spend time together in the morning. 

 Corey, Susan, Aidan and Ally

 Aidan also had a music program at school so I went to hear him and the other 3rd graders at 2 PM and then back again that night with his family. They did such a great job! I was really impressed with how well they sang together, harmonizing, and singing different parts.  Excellent, 3rd graders!  One of the things I miss about being so far away is that I don't get to attend their programs, games, and activities.  If I lived in town with any of them, you  know I would always be there!

My last day I said goodbye to Ally, who was going to Brady to spend Spring Break with Corey's grandmother.  We then went out to the track to watch Aidan ride his bike for a couple of hours before I got back on the plane and returned to Dallas for one more night.

 He's getting way too grown up!

Another leg of the journey complete! I missed some of my good friends this time--the trip was so short and it just ended up being unworkable.  Note to self: plan a longer trip next time!