Monday, December 30, 2013

Reflections of 2013

Sitting here thinking about the last year and it has been a crazy roller coaster ride.  My girls and I embarked on a new adventure and I think we will continue our adventures into 2014.  We have become closer over the last year than ever before and developed deeper relationships with each other.  Here are some of our adventures.

Photo: Just a typical night! Penelope Shae cooking, Emberlee reading me interesting facts, Atalyn eating out of a bowl on the floor.

Addie Mae learned to count to ten in Spanish.  Emberlee became a fountain of knowledge about insects...especially spiders. Actually Emberlee is a fountain of knowledge of just about everything.  Think I am lying...just ask her a question..she probably knows the answer.  Penelope created some dances to help me teach the duckies cardiology.  As for me God painted me beautiful sunsets.  He also brought someone into my life.  Although I wasn't prepared for that and mostly an unwilling and stubborn fool I am now thankful that he chose me for him.  As a family we spent more time together and made it a point for it to be meaningful.  Penelope had to dance to get in the car (on multiple occasions) and well, so did I.  Addie and I dug a pond for a peaceful area in the backyard to reflect...and we still use this today.  Emberlee showed us how to make giant bubbles from dishwashing soap and string.  We also made dreamcatchers and learned the story of what they mean.  We cracked geodes and looked inside to see the awesome crystals.  We watched meteor showers with wonderment at the universe. We made rope swings and played in piles of leaves. We saw Tim McGraw and others in concert.  We went to the fair and rode rides and ate funnel cake.  We made a fire pit in the backyard and now have roasted many a marshmallow by the fire.  Addie Mae graduated Pre-K and started Kindergarten.  Emberlee embarked on her 5th grade year and Penelope started her Senior Year (yikes).  We hatched Mexican jumping beans...which I previously did not know could be hatched.  The girls danced with grace and poise and quite a bit of booty shaking in their dance recital.  It is amazing to watch them grow through dance.  Especially Penelope... what she cannot find the words to say she expresses through dance.  We got a cat.  This is huge...a cat.  He is evil, but he is ours.  Penelope went to Paris.  It was extremely difficult to watch my baby of 17 years leave the country by herself.  Off to explore places I myself have never been.  She played music in a subway and made memories that will last a lifetime.  We went fishing with my dad.  Something I really hadn't done since I was a child.  I know my girls will cherish this just as I do.  Addie Mae turned 5 years old.  Her giant personality is hardly contained and she will continue to grow into a strong independent woman.  I encouraged my girls to jump in puddles every chance they got.  Sometimes they did and sometimes they didn't...such is life.  Penelope turned 18.  18!!  She graduates this year.  I am excited and terrified at the same time.  She will do well in this world.  She is tough, smart, and determined.  Just the combination it takes to succeed these days.  We discovered Addie Mae had a problem with her eyes- Amblyopia.  She is getting better every day and loves her cute new glasses look.  Actually all three girls are in glasses now!!  We saw double rainbows at least three times this year.  That is some really good luck!  The Tooth Fairy visited Emberlee three times this year and she made a killing off of her.  We picked out and carved pumpkins as a family and they turned out awesome.  We trick or treated as an Indian and a Rainbow Unicorn with a great friend and his munchkins.  Addie was chosen for Positive Points.  It's a program for school students to visit Baptist hospital  to help spread a little cheer to the patients.  Emberlee has made straight A's all year long.  The depth of her thirst for knowledge truly knows no depth.  Penelope is working her way through college courses during her senior year. We had puppies...Lady and Tramp.  They are cute.   They are lucky they are cute .... since they will continue to live here along with Ava and Koko. We celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas at my parents.  This always reminds me that it that life truly is about family and togetherness.  Penelope competed in the talent show and won second place.  I was really pleased and somewhat surprised at the level of talent at Bridge City High School.  Emberlee turns 11 tomorrow.  It is hard to believe that tiny little baby will be 11 years old.  Wow, time flies!  This year in the girls life now comes to a close.  What did I do?

I saw Imagine Dragons, Fun, Maroon Five, Stone Temple Pilots, Cage the Elephant, Sevendust, 10 Years, Drowning Pool, Framing the Red, The Neighborhood, The Dirty Heads, Taproot, and a bunch more.
I got more tattoos... I cultivated new friendships and solidified old ones.  I went Tornado Chasing and actually know what terror the people in Moore felt before the lives were ripped apart by Mother Nature.  I did what I could to bring a bit of peace to them.  I know it was not nearly enough to heal them.  I met a woman in a department store and helped her pick out clothes for date night with her husband.  In doing this I found my confidence that I had lost.  I celebrated my birthday with a surprise party put on by Emberlee, Jeremy, and my parents.  I played airsoft...it hurt like hell but was crazy fun.  I went camping with Jeremy and friends at Jellystone Park and floated the River.  Crazy fun times with the best of friends.  I gave my shoes to a homeless man and in turn was reminded that it was so much better to give than to receive.  It does the heart good to know that your actions make other lives better.  I rode a backboard pulled at an entirely too fast speed and busted my ass.  It hurt, but I haven't laughed that hard for awhile.  I graduated with a Master's Degree in Education Technology Leadership.  I am done with school I think...for a while anyway. Oh yeah...I kept a 4.0 the whole time!!  I went to Vegas for the first time.  I won some money and then lost it.  It was awesome!  I saw the Yankees play in Houston.  My roses bloomed like crazy and reminded me of my Grandmother.  She loved them.  I made Chicken and Dumplings ALOT...this reminded me of my Maw Maw.  I am glad I keep their memory alive and pass what I can to my girls. I conquered my fear of watching the girls jump on the trampoline...now I barely pay attention and just wait for the blood curdling screams.  I spoke at the Texas EMS Conference on Cardiology and it was an awesome experience.  I hope to do it every year now.  I had shoulder surgery...it sucks...and continues to suck.  I am hoping it will suck less in 2014. I graduated another class of Paramedic students and am ready to start another group in 2014.  Oh yeah I fell in love.  He is the perfect complement to me and I am loved like no other.  It has been a long time since I had that feeling.  I enjoy it every day and cherish our time together.

We saw tragedies in West, Texas,  the Arizona 19, Houston Fire Department, and Moore, Oklahoma.  We helped when we could and prayed for their recovery.

See!  It has been an amazing year.  Our family will continue to make great memories and enjoy making every minute count.

Lastly,  I suppose I have to make resolutions.  We all know the typical ones so I won't even go there but I did make a list of things I do want to do or continue doing.

1. Let go of the things I cannot change and not allow them to weigh me down.  People are responsible for their own actions.
2. I will continue to build the close relationships with my children they they and I both crave.
3. I will help others when I can and when I know it will make a difference in their lives.
4. I will invest time in myself.
5. I will love hard and without regret.