a MAY zing

It's that time of year where things begin to get really busy for about a month. And the crazier it gets, the closer we get to summertime.

Here is my countdown list:

9 days of school:
- field day
- awards assemblies (x3)
- a read in
- an American Idol contest
- family picnics (x2)
- meetings to sit through for students (x4)
- coordinate and conduct the 5th grade talent show

12 more baseball games
9 more sets of team pictures with possibly 4 more to schedule
2 senior photo shoots

The only two days that we have to catch our breath are Wednesdays, Sundays and the occasional rain outs. I don't mind being busy, now that I have someone I can enjoy being busy with. And, if we can't be busy together, I always have him to talk about my busy with. Together, we coordinate, help with all the kids and know that everyone will get where they need to be and it will all work out somehow.

Clayson is growing up so fast. I can't believe he is finishing his 7th grade year. He has recently started complaining about his (previously injured) arm but the doctor says that it is just strained tendons and nothing to do with the surgery. That is good news. I have a feeling that he may be trying to lift too much weight in the weight room.

Trey has survived being in my class for almost a semester. I'm sure it's tough on a kid whose mom is there to tell him to tie his shoes and clean his ice cream moustache off his face every day.

Ashlyn is getting so sassy! I'm not sure what happened to my sweet little girl who now bosses her brothers around, answers for me and has to be in the middle of every conversation with her two cents. Her attitude may have changed and she might be getting big teeth but she still loves her momma :)

Joey and I are still doing great. I never knew such a perfect relationship could exist. We have not had one fight or disagreement. I've learned, (the hard way), that it's so much easier to just go with the flow. We live day to day, knowing that things are good between us with no worries. That's something worth smiling about - every single day.


The month has been aMAYzing and as it draws to a close, the ending brings sunny, hot, new beginnings. Bring on summer '11. We are ready.

moving out and moving on

On April 17th, 2010, I was having a get-rid-of-it sale. The house had sold and I was trying to get rid of stuff that I wasn't interested in packing. It was a crazy sale, I started late on Friday night and just kept it out and going all day Saturday. Joey and I had been randomly texting for a few weeks - almost daily, and we talked on the phone quite a bit. (I slowly overcame the avoidance mentioned in previous posts.) I got a text from him this Saturday afternoon that asked how the sale was going and if I still had anything left. He said that he was headed to Wal-Mart and that he and Kayla were thinking about stopping by. I gave him my address. I wasn't too sure about this, but deep down I knew it would be nice to see him. In the meantime, another couple had stopped by so they were there when he got there. I was talking to Dawana about stuff going on, had mentioned Joey and told her that I wasn't sure about all this. For once, I knew that I needed to guard my heart. With the finality of the divorce and another relationship gone wrong (very, very wrong), I was hesitant to think about any possibilities. Joey was fun to text and easy to talk to but I had issues that needed to be dealt with, a heart that needed mending and I needed time to just find myself. I felt like I had lost all of my identity over the past 13 years and I needed to regroup. A little later, he and Kayla showed up. We all talked - outside on the front porch. It had started to sprinkle. The others left so it was just us and the kids. Mykids were in and out, of course acting shy. We talked awhile and as he was leaving, he asked if I wanted to go get drinks or something out of Crandall. I told him that I was just too tired but maybe some other time. He left and I went inside. We ended up texting the rest of the night until I finally fell asleep ... with him on my mind. Little did I know that from then on, I would continue to fall asleep with him on my mind ... every single night.

surrounded by bluebonnets

A couple of afternoons in the bluebonnets, a few smiles and a lot of God's grace all in one place.

diamonds!

Baseball...diamonds...

It's all about the baseball right now. In April, we just "get our feet wet" with a bunch of games, but in May it's all baseball - all month - four to five days a week. We'll be cheering for four different teams - the Yankees, the Reds, the Predators and the Lady Pirates. Thank goodness for grandparents to help out when games overlap because it gets kind of crazy some nights.

Here are some pictures from opening weekend. I had the perfect blog all written out, ready to type and post but yeah, it's lost in the sauce somewhere. I'll save it for later on in the season.

YANKEES:Clayson

PREDATORS: Trey

LADY PIRATES:Ashlyn

Take us out to the ball games...

that chance worth takin'

On March 31st, 2010 I decided to send Joey a text about pictures. I thought that this may be an easy way to open the lines of communication. I wasn't sure if he was a texter so I was testing the water. He texted back and then asked if he could call me later. What? Talk? On the phone? I was more of the texting type; hardly ever wanted to talk on the phone. The thought of this kind of made me nervous. Nervous enough that I waited five hours to respond. I told him to call me anytime. He called. I didn't answer. I called him back. We talked about pictures, baseball and stuff. He was very easy to talk to. He talked me into letting Clayson and Trey play in a baseball tournament that I thought we were going to be too busy for. We talked about when and where to take Justin's senior pictures. We talked about life and how bad it sucked. (excuse my language) I have to say that I hung up with a smile. A smile that had been "missing in action" most days, most nights. The texts, the phone calls (that I avoided at times) continued until the middle of April when things started to pick up. At this time last year we were both very vulnerable, emotional, unhappy, living lives that were mentally draining, looking for happiness and in a state of uncertainty. I had people in my life that constantly brought me down so it was nice to have someone come along who could pick me up. We formed a friendship of faith and hope. Months later, the greatest of these became love.

history in the making

It's here, the one year mark of an incredible journey. So many firsts, so many memories - all preserved in my heart and in a journal. And now, I can share with you on my blog (that also uploads to my Facebook) so that the memories are also forever written in cyberspace. One year ago today, I was at Clayson's baseball game in Terrell. I saw Joey standing next to the bleachers. (Granted, I have known him since I had his son in 5th grade and Clayson and Matt have played ball together for about 7 years.) I slid down to the end of my row so that I could talk to him about pictures. I had received a message that they were interested in me taking his son's senior pictures. I asked him if these would be family pictures or just senior. He came and sat with me in the stands, showed me his empty wedding ring finger and said that there wouldn't be any family pictures; just Justin, his girlfriend and their baby. We talked a minute about our current situations, about places to take the pictures and that was that.

For a split second, I might have thought about "us" but knew that it was way too risky because things were just starting to fall apart for him. Little did I know that sometimes things fall apart so that better things can fall into place.

down by the bay

sort of.



Joey had 9 jobs to do in Houston on Tuesday, four Blockbusters and five Denny's. I was just along for the ride. We left out about 9:00 a.m. We made it to the first job just in time for lunch, having a sit down meal in the McDonald's, where kids must have been on spring break :-). After that we went to two more jobs and realized that we were close enough to Galveston that we needed to cruise on out to the beach for some dessert and to enjoy the view. We made the thirty minute drive, went up and down Seawall Blvd. and ended up at Chili's. But, we didn't have dessert, we enjoyed appetizers instead. Joey also had to pick up some fresh shrimp while we were on the bay. Thank goodness it was in an ice chest in the back of the truck and I didn't have to smell it all the way home. (I knew that I would regret not taking pictures of us while we were there. Oh well, these will have to do.)


We left Galveston and headed back to Houston to finish up the remaining six jobs. We bypassed miles of traffic by staying on the service road and probably saved an hour of time.

Around 11:00, all jobs were complete and we were hungry and so very tired, going on 13 hours on the road. Joey was slowly fading so we stopped at IHOP to pep him back up. I was starting to get tired, too. But, I don't like to sleep when other people are driving - it's a control issue, I'm sure. I drove from Conroe to Hunstville and it was all I could do to stay awake. We stopped at a rest stop at 1:45 and both of us slept until 3:45. Forcing our eyes to stay open, we traveled the long stretch of road back home, pulling in at 6:30. 21 hours later.

Spending all this time together, in close quarters and not once did we argue. We get along so well, have so much fun, laugh all of the time and enjoy every second that we are together. I've waited a long time for a relationship like this and I know how blessed I am to have what we have.

Sometimes it's okay to mix business with pleasure.