This One Is Very Family Newslettery-ish - Warning

We managed to get a family photo just before Writer Son and Sassy Bride moved to Texas. They are the cozy couple in the upper left, been married just over one year! I love both shots and feel like they truly portray who we are. 

Miss Tattoo Girl, Rocker Son's girlfriend now has black hair. I have a suspicion that if Tattoo Girl ever officially joins our family, it will be difficult to keep the photos up to date due to her constant hair changes! Ha! That is one of the things I love about her, very artistic! I sincerely hope that she will be making our family photos colorful for many years to come. (C'mon Rocker Son, don't do anything stupid ok?)

Hubs and I are missing our eldest and his wife but our hearts have been totally gratified to see and hear the good things that are happening for them since making the move. It was the right thing to do and they are happy and thriving with lots of people around them who love and appreciate who they are. What more could a mom want? (...well...to be in the same state when grandkids arrive!....but whatever!)

Oh I remember what I came to tell you! Writer Son has finally created his own blog! I am so excited that he is following the urge to write again as he used to years ago. His writing voice is exactly how he talks, very funny, self-depreciating and clever with words and cultural phrases. He plays with words in a way that people love and find engaging. You'll see when you go to his site cause I know you will, won't you? 

Warning...His passions are very nerdy; movies, comics, and God. Name any superhero and he knows its entire history, name a movie and he knows not only the director but which actors were considered before they chose the ones we see.  And, yes, name a book of the Bible or a question about God and he has good, deep and often funny thoughts and stories to tell.

Ok, enough of the bragging mom, go check his blog out....BUT do not give him this blog address in your comments ok?

This is my secret blog that they do not read!!

Otherwise how could I post family pics and talk about possible future daughter-in-laws, etc? 

Got it?

ok thanks! I am trusting you.

Writer Son's blog is called Last Action Arnold.  You will love it, especially my younger readers, well I love it and I'm not young, but I'm his mom so......the rambling has begun so this is a good place to say good-night I think.

Blessings,

"Hello, this is the Emergency Room..."

I got the call that I feared.....I was home alone this last Wednesday, sitting down to eat my sandwich and enjoy my iced tea when my cell rang. It was THE CALL. The one I feared and wrote about just one post ago on Recovering Church Lady. In that post I talked about my fear that Hubs was in a motorcycle accident on his way home from work thirty miles away. But this call was about Rocker Son.

"Your son has been in a motorcycle accident and he is breathing on his own....."

I think, and I told her this later; that she should have said that he was coherent first. Breathing can be done while in a coma or whatever.  

I paced as the ER nurse had to repeat again and again where she was calling from and why my son who would turn 25 in two days was there. 

I hung up after scribbling info on a tablet and yelled a bad word for only the second time in my life. And then in the same breath I asked God where He was. My mind was swirling and I made a mess of Hub's work papers as I tried to find the phone number of his new job. I was put on hold as they found him and let him leave to get me and head to the hospital 20 minutes away to see how our son was.

We talked to God about our son as we found the hospital by my scribbled directions. I had sent out a couple of quick emails to friends and family before leaving the house. They made us wait while trying to find his name in the records at the ER desk. They had a "Doe" that just came in, yes that's him, have no idea why they did not know his name. Followed the guy to our boy.

He was laughing with a police officer and when he saw me the only look he had was "Don't cry Mom, I'm ok." The nurse had told me on the phone that this biggest concern was how I would react and how his girlfriend would freak out and try to come to him on her scooter. 

He was not ok, he was broken. But not irreparably. He broke the biggest bone in the body, the femur (thigh bone). Totally snapped in two. A pinkie is broken, a wrist is sprained and a suspicious spot on his brain has been shown to be only a cluster of veins that have been there all along. No other scratches or road rash at all! It really is amazing!

He flew over the hood of a car that was making an illegal left turn in front of him. He broke their windshield and landed on the ground beside the road with a twisted up leg yelling for help. Someone saw and police and ambulance arrived in minutes. 

That was 4 days ago. Yesterday the doctors inserted a steel rod in my boy's right thigh bone and it will always be there. He walked on it a bit today and will be out of the hospital early next week. 

My mind and heart are swirling with two differing conclusions.......

• My son was in an awful motorcycle accident and is now forever carrying a steel rod in his leg. 
• My son was in a motorcycle accident and we are all ok. It wasn't that bad!

The thing that I feared happened and we have been laughing, crying and enjoying each other for the last few days in a boring hospital room. Where do I land?

I land on the fact that stuff happens. The idea that everything good that happens is God and everything bad that happens is satan just does not work for me. Stuff just happens and we figure out how to deal with  it. 

God was there. I believe that my son was protected from what could have been much worse. He wore his new leather motorcycle jacket for the first time because even though it was a hot day it was too bulky to fit in his backpack. He wore no gloves but did not scrape his hands or dent his helmet. The police saw a "denim burn" on the road but he has no scrapes on his legs other than some small scratches on his ankle.

We have much more to be thankful for than to be angry about. I am learning so much from Rocker Son. He is charming the hospital staff and creating a party where ever he goes! They love him and have told us they don't want him to leave the ICU but were happy that he did just that tonight and is being moved to a regular room. His friends are streaming in and turning a quiet hospital into a celebration of not dying this time. 

Rocker Son has a gift for living in the moment and seeing the good in it. In his own words on his Facebook page last night: 

"Surprisingly this is turning out to be a great birthday, even though it's being spent in the hospital. 

My amazing girl is with me

I get free meals

Room service

Bluray player

Sponge bath

And FREE DRUGS at the click of a button!"

The awful thing we fear can happen and we will still live through it. As we drove to the emergency room wondering why this happened I contemplated how I could live in such a scary world. Why couldn't I just find a safe place and hide forever. That sounded so good, but so, so impossible. 

But then I spent three days around my son and his friends and I am inspired by them. Stuff happens and they find the joy in it and move on. And God is there in his hospital room whether they know it or not. :)

Just Discovered Picnik.com

My sons and their lovely loves!

Isn't that a great collage? I have never done much with all the tons of pics I take. I found a fun place called Picnik.com and it is really easy and free up to a point anyway. I can't wait to explore it some more. This was just my first practice session with them to see if it works for me. Have fun you creative people! 

Do Your Dishes Talk?

Have said it before but I am saying it again! I LOVE my empty nest. But it does get kind of quiet and boring every once in a while. ...I know that those of you who are currently chasing little munchkins around your house and yard are wanting to cuss at me after that statement.....Sorry, but your quiet, boring moments will come, they will.

As I was saying, it does happen around here, but not so often that I wish they'd move back home! Nope, that is not happening (knock on wood). But I really do love it when they come spend the evening or day with us. I never knew how fun it would be to be around my sons and their Loves as adults.

For a small peek at one of the best things about their visits, hop on over to my latest post at GoodBlogs, called I Think My Dishes Are Talking To Each Other and help vote it to the Top Posts for me won't you?

Thanks friends!,

Do You Have Old Kids?

I am trying to find the words to explain the pleasure I get from having my grown kids in my home. Even though my sons are 24 and 28, this is a new sensation for me. Twenty-four year old Rocker Son has only started coming around now that he has a new girlfriend and has cleaned up his life a bit. Writer Son is newly married and I think my enjoyment about his presence is that we are not always nagging at him about job, money, car etc. That's his wife's job now! Ha! Actually, being married has transformed him into a grown man taking on real responsibilities and that is totally a kick to watch!

I remember my mom talking a lot about how much she loved having us all home for visits. We could never stay long enough to please her. "Don't go home yet, spend the night!" I did not understand it. But I do now.

Well, I'm not sure that I really understand it, like I said at the beginning, I am having trouble putting my finger on why it brings me so much pleasure to have them around. After all, I am basking in the wonderfullness of the empty nest!

The empty nest is glorious for hubs and me! I have waxed rapturous about it way back here and several other posts as well. So what is it about sitting on the couch and watching my sons and their ladies laughing and jostling in the kitchen that warms my heart so much? Hubs and I will catch each others eyes and share a smile as we hear the loud laughter erupt, even if they are laughing at us. Which they definitely do. 

It may have something to do with watching them become grown-ups right before our eyes. Where did those messy, bumbling, noisy (well they are still noisy) little boys go? We can still see them very clearly in these handsome men that fill our kitchen up with their huge feet and tall bodies. 

Or it could be the joy in seeing them look at the girls they love! Oh my goodness! That is a truly amazing sensation to watch that happen! To listen to the cute, flirty banter and even the married bickering is funny to us.

I am so thankful that both my sons live close right now. I do not take it for granted, it could change in a moment. I intend to enjoy every minute I can while they live close enough to drop by if they happen to be passing by on their way to something else, or they want to watch a show we all love. 

And someday.....they will take a while to get in the house because they are busy unloading baby seats and grabbing the diaper bag! Someday, but for now they are more than enough!

Had A Great M Day!!I

I love gifts so much! This sat around ALL day without a mention, drove me craaazy!

Any moments with Rocker Son are a treasure to me. He is creative and hilarious!

I adore these people! My men and their ladies.

Hubs calls Writer Son his "Giant leprechaun" since sporting this beard. He is over 6 feet.

Sweet Sassy Bride made us some wonderful chicken tacos with homemade guacamole! Delish!

At last Writer Son handed me the gift bag! Wonderful scarf and a charm necklace that
 I cannot wait to wear!

I also love Rocker Son's, Tattoo Girlfriend, she is so funny and strong!

Amazing dessert of yogurt, fruit, sweet granola and honey! So good!

Not sure why Hubs took a pic of these guys, but we laughed a lot at them
on our fav show, The Amazing Race Finale!

Sassy Bride even insisted on cleaning my kitchen after all that hard work!

Hubs "helping" Sassy Bride at the stove.

Yay for a great Mother's Day 2011.

I hope yours was a good one too! 

He Was a Pretty Boy

Rocker Son was a really pretty little boy. For some reason he does not like it when I say that!

A cutie huh?

This is one of my favorite pics of him. I love the unashamed joy on his face!

Rocker Son and me! I was pretty too.

Tony - It Was A Love/Hate Relationship. We Loved Him and He Hated Us

I had not seen our ailing sixteen year old cat for the last two days so today I sent Hubs out to look for Tony. Hubs found him hidden in the ivy that covers our back fence. What I had suspected was true, he was not alive. He had crawled into his favorite spot, curled up to sleep and never woke up. Well actually, I do not know if he was curled up. I did not want to see him, and that is how I am picturing him whether it is true or not. We all knew that Tony was  about done with his final life. I swear he almost died so many times that this had to be the ninth life! Sixteen years ago Tony was a special surprise for Rocker Son's ninth birthday. Our life with Tony had a rocky beginning.

Hubs and I got him from a lady who rescued cats, gave them their

shots and fixed them and then gave or sold them to good homes. As Hubs and I entered her home we began to wonder what we were getting into. There were so many cats moving around that it felt like the room was alive! 

But the lady cheerfully led us out to her backyard which was lined with stacks of cages of kittens and full grown cats. I wandered over to the gorgeous persians who could be named "Princess", but Hubs was immediately drawn to a scrawny orange kitten. He convinced me that the poor little thing would turn into a cuddly Garfield kind of cat.

The angular face looked far from the round and healthy face of Garfield but he was ours now and there was no turning back. Rocker Son was ecstatic and very shocked that we got him a kitten! He said that since we had said no to a pet rat, he figured that a "cat cost even more than a rat" so we'd never get him one! Ha!

We had temporarily wrapped the kitten loosely in a box and when Rocker Son ripped open the birthday paper, the frightened kitten immediately jumped out and skittered around the entire house with all of us screaming until he finally found the perfect hiding place under a bed! I believe he stayed under there for several days and nights refusing to come out for anything. This is when I realized that the sweet cat lady had not had time to socialize her little orphans and we basically owned a wild kitten. 

Eventually Tony became a grudging member of our family. But he never became cuddly or anywhere near looking like Garfield. He looked like a neglected ally cat until his final days. Holding Tony was not a calming or soothing experience. You never knew when his internal clock would alert him that petting time was over this instant and not one second longer, on penalty of a scratched hand!

Ironically the one who chose Tony to join our family was the first to change from love to hate. Hubs got the first bad bite from Tony; right out of his nose! I don't believe they spoke ever again except to growl at one another. Tony ended his days looking pretty bad. Do you know what a cat looks like who has decided not to groom himself anymore? It's not pretty and he would not allow me to help at all. Before Hubs got to him with some good scissors Tony was a dread-locked beast. A rastafari cat if you will. Not pretty at all!

But he was still part of our family and the last to leave the nest today. I suppose I should get rid of his food & water dish. Maybe tomorrow.

HEY FRIENDS...Go to GoodBlogs and vote for my sweet Blogger friend Shawna on her first post in that venue. It's hilarious and very snotty!

Not A Kitchen Lady....

Today is going to be a great day, full of loved ones and food! My parents are here from out of state. My new daughter-in-law's parents are here from out of state also and they have never met my parents. So tonight both my sons and there lady-loves will be here along with my folks and Sassy Bride's folks! Big crowd for me.

We will get to see the wedding pics finally, maybe play some board games and eat a yummy dinner.

As some of you know, I HATE TO COOK, so why will the dinner be yummy and why am I so sure of that?

We are getting TAKE-OUT from Tahoe Joe's!! Yeehaw!

PS......And thank you thank you for voting for me at GoodBlogs, I truly appreciate it!

Enough With the Action Movies!!

I will now publicly admit that this movie is my all-time favorite. THE PHILADELPHIA  STORY has been my most loved and enjoyed movie for many years but in my house this was not discussed very often. I adore Katherine Hepburn, Cary Grant and who doesn't love Jimmy Stewart? This crazy fun movie has ALL THREE!!

I love Katherine Hepburn's rapid fire sassy talk to the men who are chasing her or trying to get away from her. Another reason this flick grabs my attention over and over again are the amazing clothes! I love her dresses and pants and swim suits so much!

Here is why I am feeling all bold and careless to publicly announce this movie as a favorite....I am and have been the only girl in this house for 33 years. I am an expert on the Star Wars Series, the Star Trek Series and Superman and The Justice League. 

I know the lines, the jokes and even tiny details like directors and costume changes. My sons and husband have saturated our home and garage with posters, toys, videos and dvds of these guys. As a matter of fact, my married son, Writer Son has a three foot tall plastic Batman in our garage that creeps me out every time I flip the light on out there!

If I ever wanted to get the TV to myself, all I had to do was pop The Philadelphia Story into the player and the family room was instantly cleared out. They dislike the exact same things I love about the movie. They find Katherine's voice and attitude annoying. And they do not "get" the cultural,  high-society snobbish humor of the story at all.

But I LOVE IT ALL! And believe you me, I'm gonna watch it again any day now! that is just one of the lovely perks of an empty nest! Now if I can just get Hubs to go for a long motorcycle ride......

Isn't she wonderful

Help Me Get To 200?

FOLLOW FRIDAY 40 and Over

Want to give me a sweet BIRTHDAY present

this Sunday?

I just noticed that I have 189 Followers

and I really really want more numbers 

I don't really

care about silly numbers but,

I am wondering if I could get to

200 by my birthday?

As I told you the other day

I have invited my sons and their

lady-loves to come over

and make us a great meal.

I am so excited about this!

They are making plans (I hope!)

and it will be fun to have 

Writer Son and Sassy Bride,

Rocker Son and Gorgeous Girlfriend

here waiting on me and serving me an

amazing birthday dinner!

None of us have a lot of $$$ for gifts,

so you guys have to come through for me by

finding me some more Followers OK?

Of course you know

that i really really really want

that I do not really care

about numbers,

but it would be fun to have 200!

UPDATE! wow!
at 7:50 last night I had 189 Followers
and I asked for help getting my numbers up
 (which of course I do not really care about!)
by my birthday on Sunday.
Today at 3:30pm
I have 196 !!
You guys are awesome!!
Thank you!