Aloha

Well, we did it again! My friend and I got to grant another Make-A-Wish wish. It is such a feel good moment in life when you get to do something for someone else. Especially a well deserving child. Like the sweet adorable teen with an infectious positive personality that we selected and is a joy to be paired with! 

This is Katie and I on the evening we met 13 year old E. E suffered a form of cancer known as rhabdomyosarcoma. Happy to say she rang the bell--symbolic that treatment is over and cancer is in remission. Making her year-long courageous battle and fight to win over cancer worth a wish! 

When we met E she was excited and conflicted about what she wanted her wish to be. Did she want to be a makeup artist, meet a YouTube sensation, go to Hawaii? After Katie and I played a little game to help her select her one true wish she narrowed it down to Hawaii. But not before E schooled us in all things YouTube. You know who the "it" people are on YouTube and why they're so popular. That evening we had E write her wish on a tag and sail it into a wishful sky on a silver star balloon. I know balloon releases piss of the eco friendly people of the world...too bad this kid fought and beat some bad ass cancer!  

Fast forward. Last week we got word that E's wish was granted, and that we could reveal the wish-come-true to her.  Katie and I knew all along how we were going to reveal--a parody of one of E's own YouTube postings titled, "Lies We All Tell." You know the little white lies we tell ourselves...eat only one more chip, be productive, do homework right after school.... With the help of M and her video editing program we made a spoof of E's whole video and at the end revealed a "it's no lie" she really is going to Hawaii!!! 

Then last night we enlisted the help of D to play special messenger and deliver a strawberry daiquiri in a pineapple cup, a card with a link to our parody video and a bag filled with a grass skirt, a Hawaiian Lei, a pair of sunglasses and a sign that read "Aloha". We instructed E to make a Boomerang video for us wearing the getup. Here's D right before she made the delivery 

D got back in the car and reported that it was such a feel good moment. That E said "this is the Make-A-Wish people", with a huge smile plastered across her face. Perhaps the leis D wore and the pineapple drink cup might have tipped her off. LOL D got to feel what Katie and I feel every time we play wish granters-pure unadulterated joy! 

Here is our parody reveal https://youtu.be/UnjeW2dxnVE

Till our next wish...

Good Times and See Ya Laters

Last Friday I racked up more than 20,000 steps cleaning my house, mowing grass, and doing the stuff that my damn job gets in the way of me doing. Gosh I LOVE my summer hall pass!! I'm back in my routine of morning chores, binge watching Grace and Frankie (two episodes per day) on Netflix, reading and sunning (at the same time) for 30 minutes--twice a day. Then I exercise...whenever I feel like squeezing it in. And squeeze it in I do! 

This past weekend King Ralph, D and I did what we do every year on my first weekend I've been set free (yes set free, because some school year's actually feel like a jail sentence...like this year, lol)--we attended Shakespeare in the Park. There is nothing we love more than a beautiful evening in the glen, near art hill in Forest Park, getting our Shakespeare on. This year: The Winter's Tale. I loved the first half...D thinks I'm nuts for liking the tragedy portion more, but I did! We spread out our blankets, noshed on Italian sandwiches, potato salad, chips and homemade chocolate chip cookies, while sipping spiked seltzer drinks. 

Once the sun set the stage lit up in a gorgeous soft hue of color. 

Saturday took us to The Wanderlust to tend to some necessary tasks. We are weeks away from wandering about this great country. Then if was off to our nephew's going away party. 

Since the Air Force base is minutes down the road from his house Princess A, D, King Ralph and I decided to stop at the base first for the air show. We waited in line for 40 minutes to see the nephew's "office." This is the beast he flys 

It's impressive! So many buttons and gadgets it makes the average person's (us) head spin. Now we have a good picture in our heads of what he is doing when he's flying. 

Next the party! 

My nephew is off on a year long deployment to Qatar. That calls for a party. This is not his first trip to the "sandbox." It is however; the first time in his military career that he has been stationed close to home where we can actually be together to say see-you-later.  As protocol has it we took a cousin picture...this time minus the customary name signs of the (two) missing cousins...we instead threw in the spouses for good measure. 

These cousins love each other. One will sorely be missed. 

It was good weekend! 

This morning I woke up at 6am and sent my nephew a text. I told him safe travels. Next I told him we are proud of him, his service and dedication to preserving our freedoms. Then I reminded him what I told him on Saturday--use sunscreen and Goldbond powder. That no one wants a sunburnt, chaffed squadron commander. He text me back that those goods were indeed packed and gave me the Qatar weather report: 114*. Folks that's not dry heat either, it's humid as hell in Qatar.  I felt a little tear in my eye. When we finally had him close by for the last two years it's easy to get use to having him at family functions all the time. It's not going to be easy to get unuse to him not being around again. It just isn't! 

Summatime

This happened yesterday at 3:25pm 

While the kids and teachers started summer on May 26, I didn't get my summer hall pass till yesterday. You should know there was smoke coming off my heels and a giant ole' smile smeared across my face as I left the building. It was the second or maybe third hardest school year for me. I was more than happy to bid it farewell! 

Best part of summer is doing chores on my time...not dictated by the hours off work. This morning I woke and cleaned the family room, unloaded the dishwasher, mowed grass, showered, walked to Starbucks, started laundry...all by 10am.

While the towels churn in the washer this how I'm taking my morning break

Summer hall pass how I've missed you! 

Thirty Years Strong

I fall in love with you a little bit more every day... in you i have found my soul mate...my best friend...my lover...my partner...my safe place...you are my great love story and our story is just getting started. 

May 30,1987, King Ralph and I gathered in the sculpture park at 10:30am with our 19 guests, two strangers and a dog to say our "I do's." We had a toast of champagne and peaced out in the direction of Caribbean sun and sand. It was a simple ceremony. It was exactly what we wanted...still reflecting back on the day as it being perfect for us.  

This past Tuesday we celebrated beating those 50 perfect odds with the kids at dinner and toasted with champagne again...this time to 30 great years! Bonus: the restaraunt gifted us our toast. 

We have weathered ups and downs...more ups than downs. We have rejoiced in bringing new life into the world--times three. We've stressed over buying (two) houses, numerous campers and a couple of dogs--building family memories. We delight together in our daughters's successes. In other words we are a team through thick and thin, tried and true.

One thing we did not have at our wedding 30 years ago was cake. The girls surprised us with a cake.

While King Ralph surprised me with a gorgeous pearl/diamond ring (thirty years is the pearl anniversary).

It was as perfect an evening of celebration as it was a morning of commitment 30 years earlier. 

There's Light At The End Of The Tunnel

School ended for students on May 26. It was a glorious feeling to run my end of month report at 1:30pm and start the long weekend at 2pm. It was even more glorious knowing come that Tuesday no menace behavior would grace my work area. It's been a year! 

The long weekend was perfect! In traditional form we went camping at Johnson Shut-Ins. By hap chance and unknowingly we ended up reserving the exact same site as last year. Turns out we LOVE the site! 

We arrived at the campground around dinner and broke out a spread of hearty appetizers. Next we took Uli the camping dog for a walk.

 Then we attended a program on owls. The program was hosted by our favorite MO State Parks naturalist, Liz. Her enthusiasm for her job is evident. Since we'd all worked Friday we decided to call it a night at 10:30pm. 

Sure we had a Saturday afternoon of storms, but we also had plenty of sunshine. Rainy afternoons in the camper are no big deal. It's like Mother Nature's invitation to play board games while sipping cocktails...and that's exactly what we did! 

King Ralph, Maddi and I played Sequence and sipped cucumber martinis. When the rain kept up all night we decided on a movie--because The Wanderlust has a ridiculously large flat screen TV. 

By Sunday morning the sun was out in full force. D, Princess A and Prince Charming joined us. They arrived donuts in hand. We welcomed them with freshly perkalated coffee. The plan was to splash around in the Johnson Shut-Ins, but the river rose and the shut-ins closed.

We staked claim on an island in the day use area's calm water. The kids drank brews, we all soaked in the sun and we noshed on sammies and chips. We ended the day with a few more games of Sequence and grilling bacon burgers. Of course no camping trip is complete without a campfire and s'mores. So that's exactly what we did. 

We were not ready for the weekend to end so...

Monday morning M, King Ralph and I drove down the road to Elephant Rocks State Park.

We hadn't been since the kids were little. Climbing around, on, up and over the rocks is fun. 

Then it was home to unpack and prepare for work days countdown..and something else worth celebrating.