Sunday, May 30, 2010

holiday weekends = time to unwind

Where oh where do I begin?  This blog thing has become a major source of stress as of late, okay, maybe the past few months or maybe just this year, as I so badly want to update more often but life tends to get in the way of my sitting at the computer and actually completing this task.  Well, that and the fact that by the time I am done working for the day I would just like to toss this computer out the back window which means the last thing I want to do is sit here and type.  SOME MORE.  But that thing with work, when you have to listen to me, or rather read about it, is sort of like what the kids of Peanuts hear when their teacher speaks to them....like this.  Geez....I can't even believe I just found that.

Oh internet....how I you.

So....the last three weeks have flown by at light speed.  So much has happened.  So many miles have been traversed.  So many random occurrences, both good and bad, have kept us on our toes.

I don't even know if I have made note of it but my sweet boy is now a member of the work force.  We are so proud of him and how he takes on this responsibility with a great attitude.  He seems to have made the adjustment well and I must say, for a 16-year-old he is making bank.  I would have loved to have made the kind of money he is currently making.  I know....it's all relative.  He seems to be enjoying that bit of teenage financial freedom but most of all what i love about it is that he is growing into an even more mature, responsible and wonderful being.  And that was never more apparent than how he handled himself recently as we had a visit from "the donor."

Yes, we've had yet another visit from the man who thought it wise and responsible to sign away his rights more than 5 years ago now.  Without getting into the details, he somehow ended up at my son's place of employment then proceeded to sit outside until my son got off work.  The guess is he was out in that parking lot a mere 4+ hours waiting for this little reunion.  Yes, we now are confirmed in our suspicions that we have a stalker on our hands.

I must tell you that I cannot even put into words how proud of my son and how he handled himself.  He definitely displayed a grace and ability to handle the situation much older than his years and it just makes my heart burst with pride on how blessed I was to have been chosen to be his mom.  This will sound cheesy but it just makes me want to gobble him up!  I used to always think that was the weirdest thing a mother would say about their child but I understand now what it means.

We are a bit unsettled around here and really wishing that this would stop but as my very sweet boy would say...."mom, he's never going to stop."  And unfortunate reality is that there is great truth in that, as far as we have seen.  The very real issue here is the kids and their ability to handle this situation with this termination and my son has always dealt with this in a very brave way.  My little one was too young to remember much but her feelings are much the same as my son's.  They want nothing to do with this man and they would really like to be left alone.  I've reiterated time and time again to this man that what he is doing is only going to prove what I have said all along....that if he does not allow these kids to heal and to do what they need to with their lives and allow them to make their own decisions on if, or when, they should ever decide to contact him that it should be left up to them and not continually shoved down their throat as he tends to do but as we always knew, this man will ultimately live by his rules as his rules are the only ones that apply.  The other issue with him is that he is quite sick, obviously, because who would do this to their children only to hurt his children's mother?  Why would you not realize that to get at the mother it means you will harm the children and in the end potentially harm a relationship with them?  The answer to that would be the answer he gave me one day while speaking to him on the phone....."haven't you seen those movies where the kid always said that they never sent them a birthday card?"  Well....this, my friend, is not a movie.  This is real life and you can't treat them like they are puppets on a string, pulling this one and that one to your liking to get your ultimate desired outcome.  But then, we're dealing with a person who seriously is a few french fries short of an order.  Oh, how I wish I could divulge more of that particular evenings happenings but at this point I am not at liberty to do that.  Let's just end this little note by saying that when your child says that you are sick and that he was fearful, that says volumes about how he feels about the person who actually helped give him life.

You have absolutely no idea how I wish that my children did not have to go through this ordeal.  It breaks my heart and makes me so sad.  How unfair of him to do this to them.

I once again went to North Carolina to attend inspired.10, Donna Downey's artist event.  I flew to Jacksonville and met some friends and then drove to Charlotte.  It was an absolutely wonderful weekend except for getting sick in the middle of the night with a horrible infection, the subsequent issue of no sleep, the trip to urgent care, and the medication that we now know I am allergic to.  Other than that the weekend was amazing.  Spending time with my good friends who took such good care of me when I was sick (that so tells you how much they really like you but I will totally know if they tell me they aren't going next year just so they don't have to deal with me!), seeing other friends at inspired that I only see once a year at the event and creating some wonderful art was so refreshing.  This was the third year and this year's event was so awesome ~ I feel it was the best one yet!  I must thank one friend in particular (you know who you are) for your generosity - thank you.


I got to the opportunity to go to Wicked Friday evening for a girls' night out with a good friend that I rarely see anymore.  Oh.My.Goodness.  So good!  I cannot say enough about this...if you get the chance to go....by all means, do it!  I am a huge Wizard of Oz fan and it was cool to see the "untold story of the witches of Oz."  You will not be at all disappointed.  I came home and downloaded the soundtrack and ordered a used copy of Wicked:  The Grimmerie for some crazy amount like $16.  They wanted $50 for it at the show.  I cannot wait to look though it at my leisure.  Just glancing through it there made the artist inside me giddy!  I saw The Phantom of the Opera when I lived in Los Angeles and when I marched in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1986 I saw Cats on Broadway as well as the Radio City Christmas Spectacular that features the Rockettes.

I love this song from the show but make sure to pause the Playlist player on the sidebar.


Eric and I went to see Shrek Forever After at the IMAX in 3D last night.  (hello free tickets)  We really enjoyed it and if you have followed Shrek as we have this won't disappoint either.  Really looking forward to Toy Story 3

My sweet little girl is at it again using her green thumb to grow some yummies.  This is her strawberry plant that she is so excited to be growing.  She's got basil again and is growing cilantro and jalapenos for our salsa as well as pumpkins and watermelon.  She tends to those plants better than her own room.  It's so cute to watch her.  That is her and Eric's thing....she has him help her with some things and they work together and it's such a wonderful thing to sit back and watch....and believe me, I do watch from somewhere where they cannot see me.  It's adorable.


We had some rain a few weeks ago and this beautiful rainbow appeared.  It was a full arch rainbow, though I wasn't able to get a good shot with my camera.  Still waiting on that lens.  Soon....it will finally be soon!

This is what Wikipedia says about the double rainbow:

Supernumerary rainbow


A contrast-enhanced photograph of a supernumerary rainbow, with additional green and purple arcs inside the primary bow.
A supernumerary rainbow - also known as a stacker rainbow - is an infrequent phenomenon, consisting of several faint rainbows on the inner side of the primary rainbow, and very rarely also outside the secondary rainbow. Supernumerary rainbows are slightly detached and have pastel colour bands that do not fit the usual pattern.
It is not possible to explain their existence using classical geometric optics. The alternating faint rainbows are caused by interference between rays of light following slightly different paths with slightly varying lengths within the raindrops. Some rays are in phase, reinforcing each other through constructive interference, creating a bright band; others are out of phase by up to half a wavelength, canceling each other out through destructive interference, and creating a gap. Given the different angles of refraction for rays of different colours, the patterns of interference are slightly different for rays of different colours, so each bright band is differentiated in colour, creating a miniature rainbow. Supernumerary rainbows are clearest when raindrops are small and of similar size. The very existence of supernumerary rainbows was historically a first indication of the wave nature of light, and the first explanation was provided by Thomas Young in 1804.

Click here for more information on rainbows from Wiki.  

Did I mention earlier how much I the internet?  I'm just saying......

Stay safe and enjoy your holiday weekend and please don't forget to take a moment to thank those who came before and after us sacrificing their life for our freedom.  Happy Memorial Day. 

2 comments:

Michelle said...

love the pictures and post!

Michelle said...

You have amazing kids!!!!!!!

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