Road Trip 2008

"There are two things you can give your children.

One is roots. The other, wings." -- Kelly Owen (Okay, Plato.)

I've spent the last week doing just that. Giving the girls roots and wings. We have had an amazing journey. Fasten your seatbelts -- we've accomplished a lot!!

We started off last Tuesday with a trip to Waxahachie. Baby Kelton was making his entrance into the world, and we were not about to miss it!!! There's no better treat than ice cream on the day you're getting a new baby brother / cousin, so Mimi and I took gang to Chick Fil A for lunch and ice cream!

Here's baby Kelton with a VERY proud Auntie D'Lyn. He was bruised a lot during delivery, so that explains the blue face. Dr. Hays said that as long as his lips were pink, he was okay. Whew!!

Speaking of Dr. Hays, she delivered Kaitlyn, Kamryn and now Kelton. She definitely has stock in this family! She came out to the waiting room to visit with us for a bit -- it was great to see her!



Here the girls check out their new cousin. I think they're already ready to introduce him to the world of fishing!


From Waxahachie, we drove straight to Fluvanna to get there for Granny Nelva's 74th birthday lunch. We were kind of late, but the left-overs were great!!! Carla & Donelle were there with Sarah, Callie and Pace. That Pace is something else!!!

Thursday night was the opening night of the Snyder Rodeo. So, the girls got all decked out and went to see Grandma Laverne. She wasn't up for a lot, but we did snap a quick picture.

Kaitlyn's goal for the visit was to find a way to touch the ceiling. Paw-Paw was more than happy to help her out!

Here's Kait on Simon before the rodeo. She wasn't riding in the Grand Entry, but she made sure to get some time in with her friend before the show started!

Here's Abs in her "official" riding helmet -- she loves it!

Abbie & Uncle Max. It's a mutual admiration society for the two of them.

I was so glad Uncle Don felt like coming to the rodeo. It was great to have him there!

From Snyder, we drove to Midland on Friday, and loaded into Aunt M'Lys' car. She drove the rest of the way up to Ruidoso, giving me a break from being behing the wheel. It also gave me a huge block of time to work on Zoe Babcock's baby quilt -- and I got it finished before we got there. Kayren is coming to town this weekend, and I'm thrilled that it's done so I can give it to her!

Friday night we went out to the Flying J Ranch for dinner. Here's Kait on a $2 / 2-minute horseback ride.

I know you can't tell from her "big smile," but that Abbie really is happiest when on a horse!

Here are the girls and Aunt M'Lys panning for gold. We didn't find any big nuggets, but they had fun playing in the water!

Kait decided looking for rocks in the gift shop was way easier than panning for gold.

Here are the girls with the sheriff of Bonita City.

Shortly after our visit with the sheriff, two outlaws came to town. Don't they look dangerous??

At dinner, the girls had a great time playing with Aunt M'Lys' new I-touch.

We stayed with my cousin Angie at her cabin. That was great. It's up in the canyon and the smell of the pines in the morning is so refreshing!!

On Saturday, we got up and drove with Aunt Vell to the hotel, where the girls and I hiked up the hill. Later, they hiked with their "big" cousin Kaitlyn and my cousin Greg. Greg has always been one of my favorites -- maybe because he's just a big kid at heart?

After lunch, we went to the Races. The girls each placed two bets. Abbie won on both and Kait won on one, so I think we just ended up about 20 cents in the hole over-all. They had a great time, and I think Granpa Weldon had a lot of fun watching them. Of course, no trip to the races is complete without bumming ice cream off your Granpa -- a task the excelled at!!!

We left the races early to go to the Hubbard horse museum. Unfortunately, it was closed to the public for their annual fundraiser. But we did get to wander around outside and check out the horse sculptures.

We headed back to the hotel for a swim and dinner after that, then it was on to the Go-Karts for the Goober 500. I don't have pictures of that yet, but it was a blast. I did the Go-Karts with the girls first -- loved the little Go-Karts and the fact that I could easily outrun the 12-year-olds. Then, Angie said she'd watch the girls so I could do the "big" Go-Karts with the rest of the cousins. Oh my goodness. Talk about addictive! I did scream like a girl. And Uncle Lane was pretty much no-holds-barred when it came to trying to run me off the track. But it was so much fun.

That night, we piled into Angie's "Cabin Car" -- a 1984 AMC Eagle hatchback thingy -- for a midnight Bear Hunt. No shoulder seatbelts in the backseat -- just lap belts. And it's own special smell that's really hard to described. Angie drove all over looking for a bear for Abbie to see -- no luck. We did drive by my Great-Grandmother Chatchie's old cabin. It didn't look nearly as big as I remembered from when I was Abbie's age, but it was great to see it.

Angie was such a wonderful hostess. She remembers what it's like to travel alone with two kids, and she really went above and beyond. Especially with the bear hunt -- it was a blast!

The girls really had a great time climbing all over the rocks at the hotel. They wanted to bring them ALL home, but we settled on a few "special" rocks. They each found a special place at the hotel where they would sit for forever and just look at the view. Here's Kait's "beautiful view" from her rock.

And here's Abbie's....

Okay. So.... This next series of pictures has a theme. Can you figure it out?

That's right! It's me at the reunion with cousins who are older than I am!!! Seriously, though, I just met Laura on this trip -- I have no idea if our paths have ever crossed before. But she rocks -- and she lives in Houston! Go figure! But the others... Sidney, Angie and Laura Jane are all "older" cousins that I've always thought the world of and looked up to all these years. If Angie's eyes were just open...

I really think the highlight was spending time with Aunt Vell. I've always thought it was such a shame she lived all the way in IDAHO! Aunt Vell and I spent a good part of our time at the reunion cuddling the babies. Here we are with Baby Bella -- the newest member of the clan and the owner of more headband bows than any baby I've ever seen!

Here are the girls on Abbie's "special rock" with Cousin Hannah -- Laura's daughter. They think it's pretty cool that they've discovered a cousin who lives in Houston!

Sunday was a REALLY long day. We left Ruidoso and drove to Midland to get our car, then on to Sonora to spend time with Kelly Owen's crew. Here, a very worn-out Kaitlyn naps in the car.

Spending time with Kelly's family was a dream come true. Rebeckah, her oldest, is a month younger than Abbie. And Reagan, her middle child, is about a week older than Kaitlyn. And then there's Gage, who has to be about the cutest 3-year-old ever. He's a mess!

Many of you will remember praying for Kelly's family in the spring of 2007. They are the ones who were in a massive car wreck between Sonora and San Angelo. Kelly's right arm was almost severed and was broken in 50+ places. Rebeckah's skull was cracked all the way from behind her right eye, around the top of her head, and back to the bottom of her skull.

This family is living proof that miracles happen. Rebeckah has no brain damage, and only two visible scars. She's happy and healthy and a perfect 7-year-old. Kelly's arm has frozen at the elbow and she cannot rotate her wrist. But she has enough function in her arm to drive and handle all the household tasks a mom takes care of. And she has the most amazing attitude. I'm truly blessed to have her for a friend. Please continue to keep their family in your prayers, especially as Kelly faces additional surgeries down the road.

When I planned this trip, I knew I had a choice. Monday, July 21, marked one year since my Mom had gone to Heaven. And I had a decision to make. I could spend the day sitting around, feeling sorry for myself and dwelling on the what-could-have-beens and the past. Or I could choose life. For the girls and I, I chose life. And Monday, we lived life to the fullest.

If you believe that my Mom has a window from Heaven where she can see us living life, then you know she saw us on Monday -- and spent time with us this whole week. Joined by a whole host of uncles, aunts and friends, she must have had a window to our crazy adventures.

Yep, we chose life.

On Monday, we took the gang to the Sonora Caverns. Here, they try their hand at sluicing. It was a bit more fruitful than the panning for gold, but still no million-dollar nuggets!

See? Isn't he the cutest 3-year-old??

It blows my mind that these girls can be so much alike. When one of them says "Mama," you never know who it is -- they sound exactly the same. It was so much fun to see them interact!


Once we went into the Caverns, our top-notch guide took us to the classroom for a dinosaur dig.

No dinosaurs, but we did find a few shark teeth!

This is Cave Coral. How cool is that?

Pictures really don't do this justice. It was beautiful....

We really packed in a lot of adventure. After the caverns, we drove out to Paint Rock to see Fred and Kay Campbell and the Indians' painted rocks. I can't tell you how good it was to see Kay and Fred. I hadn't seen them in about 13 years -- since I worked for Ranch Magazine. They are still such precious friends. And we were so blessed to spend time with them.

Here are a few shots of the painted rocks. This one, the Turtle rock was a way of recording the summer solstice.

Here's Fred showing the kids the Chief's rock. The Indian chief would stand on this rock and make predictions.

Here are our Indian chiefs making some big predictions!

Kay wanted to show the kids something -- no parents allowed!

She took them to see the medicine man's markings....

Then, they all did a rain dance. Something tells me our personal medicine woman may have had a bit of help from the weatherman and a certain Hurricane named Dolly.



This is a cool painting. On the way over, Kelly and I read that it depicts the burning of a mission. We were really amazed at how the history ties into the paint rocks.


The learning never stops! Here the kids feed a dogie angora goat at Kay & Fred's house.


My friendship with Kay (and Kelly Owen and Kelley Watkins) was one of the best things to come out of the time I lived in San Angelo.

So then it was back to the Ft. McKavett Ranch -- five exhausted kids and two worn-out Mamas. But not too tired to get up early Tuesday morning and bottle-feed the fawns!

Here are the girls with Terry. He hasn't changed a bit in all these years. It was great to spend time with him!

To get to Kelly's house, you have to go through 6 bump gates. Bump gates were never a big deal when I drove that big Chevy truck in college, but for this trip I took the Honda. I know. Cramped quarters -- but WAY better gas mileage! So I had to employ a few gate-holders on the way to the highway!

Here we are at the gate. You know, people pass through your life all the time. With some people, you'll be friends while they're nearby -- but they aren't the kind of friends that "stick" forever. Sure... You might trade Christmas cards, but it's not like this. I am so incredibly blessed to have a few of those forever friends -- and Kelly's one of them. Kayren's another -- and she's coming to visit tomorrow. I can't wait to see her!

We're Home!

I just sent this to a friend, but it pretty much sums things up....

We're finally home after 8 days, 2000 miles, too many potty stops to count, one new nephew, one meal of birthday lunch left-overs, one rodeo grand entry, one calf scramble, brisket for dinner three nights in a row, one family reunion, one chuck wagon dinner complete with gunfight, a swim in a hotel pool, three hikes up a mountain (big hill :-)), a trip to the races, four wins on bets, one loss, three crazy go-cart races, one midnight bear-hunting trip, 12 bump gates that had to be held open, one hike through the Sonora Caverns, one visit to the Indian paint rocks, one rain dance and the bottle feeding of one dogie angora kid and 20 fawns that still had spots.

Tons of pictures & video to follow soon!

Family Ties

The girls and I are in Ruidoso, NM right now at a Lloyd family reunion. It's so awesome to see everyone -- especially Aunt Vell!!! Stay tuned.... until next week the updates will be few. But I have tons of pictures to post -- Abbie riding in the Grand Entry at the Snyder Rodeo, the girls hanging out with all their "new" cousins, and lots of bear-hunting adventures!

Happy Birthday Granny Nelva!

Today is Granny Nelva's 74th birthday!  If it was anyone else, I'd give you her email address and have her deluge her with birthday wishes, but being Nelva you will just have to call!  Her number is 325-573-2426.  Have a great day Granny Nelva!

I am Having the BEST Day!!!

I know I've been a bit quiet on the whole blogging business for the last week or so, but things have just been pretty quiet around here. We've done a lot of swimming and a lot of having friends over to play.

Last Wednesday, the girls and I went over to Mimi's, so I could walk and they could swim. What was supposed to be an 8-mile walk with my walking buddies turned into about an 11-mile walk. My shoes had maybe 1 mile left in them, so by Thursday morning I was paying the price. I always try to make my shoes go farther than I should! So Thursday I was at Luke's Locker when they opened buying yet another pair of shoes. What fun!

Biggs was in Spain all last week, so the girls and I just spent Wednesday night with Mimi & Pa. Lots of fun all the way around. The girls conned Mimi into a trip to Learning Express for more Webkins. As if we don't have enough!

Friday morning I woke up and decided the girls and I needed to do something healthy. Sooo... we rode our bikes to the donut shop! We stopped back by the playground at Ault for a little while. Kaitlyn loves playgrounds. Abbie's getting a bit past them, I think. But Kait's all over it.

So now we come to today. A REALLY cool day. I'm kind of in the middle of a Perfect Storm -- but the good kind.

I know ya'll have all heard me talk a ton about working out and losing all this weight. Part of the reason why I share it all is because I want to share that it doesn't matter where you are in your life -- it's never too late to start getting in shape. In our family, the gene pool where our health is concerned is nothing to brag about. And that's part of the reason I take the girls with me when I go to water aerobics -- I want them to see me having fun while exercising. I want them to see me making it a priority in my life.

So this weekend I hit another milestone. Since March 2007, I've lost 20 pounds!!! That's right! I've gone from 150 to 130. From a 10-12 to a 2-4-6. (Okay. I have one pair of size 2 shorts that fit -- so that counts. Right??) I don't have any hang-ups about telling you where I started. If you don't know where you started, there's no way to know how far you've come.

I haven't weighed 130 since Grease was re-released into the theaters. That means that SO many of my friends have never seen me where I am now. But I guess you could really say no one has ever seen me here ever. EVER. Even though my weight has been "down here" before, I wasn't in the shape I am now -- with my two little biceps and my "one-pack!"

So anyway, after stepping on the scales this morning and seeing that I was still at 130, a lightbulb went on.

"I wonder if that dress fits."

You know what I mean. You have a that dress. Everyone does. The one that hangs in the back of the closet. The one you just can't get rid of no matter how many Good Housekeeping articles you read about purging your wardrobe.

My dress is black. Sleeveless. Has crocheted lace around the waist. Mid-calf length. Talbots, circa 1996. A classic, according to my Mom.

Some of you will remember it. I wore it a lot.

I wore it to Kelly Lyon's wedding. My "intro" night into the Nimitz crowd. The night Mrs. Sullivan said, "I think we've met before." And I said, "I think that was one of the other girlfriends."

The night I got a little tipsy and Alan got more than a little tipsy, and we sat on the steps at the Majestic and had a heart-to-heart. And he told me I'd better not break his big brother's heart -- that Biggs was sensitive.

The dress.

And it Fits.

Wow.

I went upstairs and had a big party with a box of old clothes I just can't part with. Memories. Many of them outfits my Mom made me.

White linen. Talbots. Wore it to all my wedding showers. Zip!

Way too short dress from Old Navy. Bought it while Biggs and I were dating. On a shopping trip with Jenny Wilkins before she and I had the world's biggest falling out. (Well, the world's biggest at that time.) Zip!

Black and cream long dress with short sleeves that originated in Kayren's closet (I think.) Zip!

Haven't found my hunter green still-starched Rockies, but I'm looking!!!

Ring Dance Dress. Okay. Confession time. Still won't zip. But what was I back then? Maybe a buck-ten??

Anyway, I'm having one of the coolest days ever. And I just had to share. And I have to say that the whole Facebook thing really has kind of helped make this a "good" perfect storm! I love it that it's so easy to reconnect with so many people I haven't heard from in forever!

Today I touched base with Janet Laminack -- one of my old buddies in the AFC. Janet just got back from two years in Ecuador with the Peace Corps. How cool is that??

They had a Facebook and MySpace seminar yesterday at church -- it was geared at protecting your teenagers. I really needed to go to pick up some tips on how to use the thing. But I'm guessing sending "Flair" probably wasn't on their list. If you haven't joined Facebook I recommend it! It's great for reconnecting with old friends while you sit here in a dress you haven't worn since 1997 -- that isn't in style enough to wear it to church, but who cares???

Deep Thoughts. By Kaitlyn.

K: Mom, I think my right foot was born before my left foot.


Me: I don't think so. I'm pretty sure they were born at the same time.


K: Nope. My right foot is bigger.

What's the Plan, Stan??

Okay. If you know me at all, you know I missed the "planning" gene when God was handing them out. I tend to jump in with both feet before I'm totally sure where I'm headed -- and it does make for some interesting adventures!!!

I just did the "jumping in" exercise again!I signed up to walk in the San Diego Breast Cancer 3-Day.

I have no idea how this is all going to work out. It's two weeks after Dallas. So I guess that's 120 miles in 6 days, even if those 6 days aren't all together.

The walking doesn't worry me. I'm in better shape than I've ever been in and have been wanting to take on this challenge for a long time.

The fundraising doesn't really worry me. I'm not afraid to sit outside Wal-Mart with a bucket every day if I have to!

It's the logistics that have me a bit worried. That's two weekends out of November that I'll be gone. Two weekends where Biggs will have the kids. He and the kids would probably have a blast, but it's the guilt factor that would do me in.

I've got to get there somehow, although once I'm there things should be easy. I'll be sleeping in a tent, after all.

And I've got friends on three different teams in San Diego, so surely I can find a couple of couches to surf the night before and the night after.

But I've taken the first step, I'm excited about the adventure, and I guess the plan will just have to work itself out. Right??

You can visit my San Diego fundraising page at http://08.the3day.org/goto/formymom

Catching up....

We've had a hectic week or so, so I'm just now getting these up on the blog.


Here's Kait in the middle of Powdered-sugar donut Heaven!

We went to Dallas last weekend for a whirlwind of activity. Friday night, the Tiara Gang gathered at Rudy's BBQ in Frisco. It just happened to be the day after Anthony's birthday, so we thought we were surprising him with a birthday cake. Turns out, it would have been a surprise if Biggs hadn't told him about it!!!!

On Saturday, we celebrated Kodie & Kamy's birthdays at Amber's house. We were supposed to host a baby shower for Amber on Sunday, but the kids and I had to leave to get to Snyder for Uncle Keith's funeral. While we were at the church, we got word that Jack Martin had passed away. Jack was Jacquelyn Wills, Jeffrey Martin, Judy Church and Janet Merritt's dad. So the girls and I adjusted our schedule to be able to stay an extra day and go to the visitation.

Uncle Keith's funeral was so sweet. They had put his saddle on his casket -- so fitting. We got to spend time with Grandpa Weldon, and a lot of the aunts, uncles and cousins. The girls were thrilled to meet "new cousins" their age -- Jon's girls Sidney and Abigail. We're going to the Lloyd family reunion at the end of July, and the girls are really looking forward to getting to know Sidney and Abigail even better!

On Monday, Abbie & Kait rode Simon out at Uncle Max's. That Simon is a horse with a mind of his own. It's virtually impossible for the girls to get him out of walk -- which is an especially good thing when Kait is on his back! Max decided it was time for the girls to learn to ride poles, and they did a great job!

Jane and Don worked really hard on the riding lesson! :-) Don is doing better -- but still not 100%. Please continue to pray for his recovery and for strength and energy for Granny Nelva.

Here are a couple of video clips of the girls. Max and I both tried to run Simon around the poles. It was kind of a contest, but I'm pretty sure neither one of us won.

Things are so dry out there right now. The winds have blown hard, sapping all of the moisture out of the fields, and they aren't going to have much of a cotton crop this year -- if at all. The one bright spot is in our pastures. After the fires, God blessed us with some great rains. We have great grass, and the tank in the Home pasture is comepletely full. The tank in the Park Pasture also has water in it -- not a common occurrence! The guys may have to hunt around water this fall, but at least they'll have some to hunt around!

We spent Tuesday night with Carla in her new house! We were their first slumber party! Then, we got back here late on Wednesday. Here's the annual July 4th Parade picture. We may not have been at "Our Tree" in Plano, but we're blessed to have good friends to go to the parade with us!!! From the left, Meghan (Amanda's best friend from Canada), Amanda, Abbie, Hannah and Kaitlyn. Amanda and Hannah live across the street and have been a huge blessing to the Biggs family!

So that's it!! One really cool thing happened while we were gone! Team Tiara's goal was to top $38,000 in fundraising by the end of June. That would mean we were topping last year's total. Well.... We topped $39,000!!!! How cool is that?? We still have five months to finish our fundraising. Hang on to your hats!!

Big Hugs,

d.

Money for Nothing & Your Clicks for Free

Money for Nothing and Your Clicks for Free

Please visit http://www.booksforboobies.blogspot.com/ and click on the google ad. Every click earns a few cents to find a cure for breast cancer.

Top Ten Reasons to Tap it for the Ta-Ta’s

10. It don’t cost nothin’
9. You don’t have to sign up for nothin’
8. You can tell all of your friends about it and you get to say “boobies.” The more friends you tell, the more times you get to say “boobies.”
7. It’s better than a sharp stick in the eye.
6. If you’re going to click anyway, you might as well click for a cause.
5. It’s fun and all the kids are doing it.
4. There are 0 carbs in clicking for the cause.
3. It does not require any special skills – just a working mouse.
2. No animals will be harmed in the clicking for the cause.
1. You are raising money to find a cure for breast cancer!!!

Seriously. Go to the site. Click the ad. That’s it! One single click yesterday earned 67 cents!

-- From my precious friend, Caroline

Update from Caroline:
The only rule I'm aware of is that I can't click on it because I set it up. You can click several times, but then it won't allow you to click any more. You don't have to be on the site for any certain amount of time. So far it shows 37 clicks, which has earned $26.65.

From D'Lyn again:
I do think it earns more the longer you stay on there, but I'm not sure.

I'm Walking!!!

If you're one of my 3-Day sponsors, you might wonder if I'm really out training in the summer heat. Well, here are a few pix to put your mind at ease!

Porta-Potty training is an essential part of the 3-Day!!! :-)