Trying to catch up

The point of my blog was to journal what it is like to go to college at a time in life when I can't remember where I left my keys, purse, house...etc.

It's sort of kicking me right now. I am in the middle of writing research papers. My first problem is the subject matter isn't very interesting to me. Biology research papers? Who even knew they were necessary? I've chosen adaptive radiation and the tectonic plate theory. See? Boring!

And math. WTH? I hate to tell the upcoming parental generation, but their kids are going to be so messed up. Teachers are being forced to teach the little darlings so much pertaining to critical thinking skills that they are not being taught, and drilled on, the basics. I'm learning something called tessellations right now. Basically, its how to repeat drawn patterns. I'm sure its got something to do with something, (Maybe geometry?) but its not making sense to me. I even asked the teacher what to tell the kids when they asked why they were learning it, and she didn't have an answer either. And don't get me started on polyhedrons.

Mom's house in Irving is finally on the market. She acts like she's excited about the move. I hope she is. It's hard to make sure we're doing the right thing for her.

Changes

Anyone that knows me knows how much I dislike change. I like doing new things but most of the time I like how comfortable my old life. Plus I've noticed that when you do one new thing, you have a dozen other things that have to been done too. Case in point - we bought a new bed. First you have to find one - then buy mattresses, then comforters, sheets, the list goes on and on. Then you actually have to find a comforter set you like, when you need to find it. I usually only find one I like when I've bought another one. It has been easier to just keep the old stuff.

2008 brought a lot of change for our family. Lindy and Dustin got married in May. Gray Michael was born in August. Wayne started a new job last year and I started school. 2009 seems to be headed in the same direction.

Our family has been worrying about my mom living in Irving without any family close to her. Sometime in December I had an epiphany that she should sell her house and move to Terrell. Well, it was more like a brain fart, but I did remember to tell her my thought on the subject. She hem-hawed around about the idea. She didn't think her house would sell, she didn't want to leave Gwen, she didn't know where she would find a house, etc. (Excuses I would have used.) I found a neighborhood I thought Mom would like and drove her through it when she was down with Johnny and Lynn. We talked again about the idea then dropped it because I didn't want to wear her down over it. However, my two daughters got together and took the idea and ran with it. I'm so proud of them because of how much they care about their Granny. Lindy and Dustin toured neighborhod after neighborhood culling through the best places for Mom to live. Raylan and I got on the computer and searched for available houses that would work. Between us all, we came up with the house on Stonebriar. Lindy and I went and looked at it on Jan. 31, then took Mom, along with Raylan and Shelley through it on Feb. 1. It is perfect. The right size, the right place, the right time.

I still didn't know if Mom would go for the idea. She's lived in her house for 40 years. She raised her two daughters there, watched my Dad live his last good and bad years there. Her trees have grown from small saplings to huge yard-covering forrests. A million memories live in those walls. The hardest thing I've done is ask her to give that up. It's probably selfish on my part. I want her near all of us. I want her to have backup in her life when she needs it, yet still be independent. It is a lot to ask of anyone.

On Monday she called me and told me to make an offer on the house. I was surprised, relieved, saddened and very, very happy all at once. I'm so proud of her. She's worried about getting her house sold, of course. She's overwhelmed about culling through and packing four decades of memories then fitting it all in a smaller house. I won't tell her, but so am I. But it will get done. We'll all pitch in and help. In the meantime we have to get Jake and Kelley moved into their new home. More changes in our lives.

It makes me ashamed of how much I dread change. If a 76-year-old woman can embrace moving from a town she's lived in since she was in her 20's, leaving old friends and familiar places behind, then I can embrace a few new things in my life too. I will quit putting off some of the home improvements I've been contemplating for 20 years. I can lay tile floor I bet.....

Obama's Day

I've been glued to my computer all day watching and listening to Charlie Gibson and the ABC crew cover the inaugauration of Barack Obama. I will be forever jealous of Tricia Scruggs and Reba Williams-White for having the opportunity to be in Washington to view this amazing day in person.

I did not vote for Obama. I had nothing against him personally, I just worried about the political ramifications of having the Democratic party in office. That being said, I pray that I will be proven wrong about my misgivings. Day 1 - So far, so good.

I enjoyed the inaugauration speech and all the hoopla leading up to it. In my secret heart I wish I was smart enough and good enough to write political speeches. I can only imagine what it would be like to pen words that helped shape a nation. And the new president did a pretty good job of saying them too.

The speech truly was inspiring to me. I loved that he quoted scripture. I like the line where he pointed out that "our forefathers struggled to give all of us a better life." And "we must begin again the work of remaking America" along with "Old hatreds shall sometime pass." This was cemented by showing the reactions of a group of people in Selma, Alabama, a room full of Obama's relatives in Kenya, members of the Tuskegee Airmen and the 1.2 million who thronged the Mall to get a glimpse of the new President.

I, along with the rest of America, noticed he was wearing his flag pen on his coat, unlike when we watched for it in vain during parts of his campaign. The crowd along the parade route screamed for him like a rock star. And Michelle walked along side him IN HEELS in the 30 +/- degree weather. She looked great, btw.

I watched Ted Kennedy be loaded onto an ambulance during the luncheon held at Statuary Hall and said a prayer for his health.

Barack Obama has an opportunity to inspire a nation. He is inspiring me and I hope I, along with many,many others, will give him the benefit of the doubt and back his decisions.

My Perfect Day

On the Survivor application form there was a blank for "describe your perfect day." I've been blessed in my life to have many, many perfect days. My girls wedding days were perfect to me. A Saturday after Thanksgiving spent at Crystal Beach on the Gulf was a never to be forgotten experience. Jake and Kelley's engagement day. And that's just the recent ones. I've got an endless list from my childhood and when the kids were little, plus I got to add another one on Friday, Jan. 9.

Uncle Johnny and Aunt Lynn Tidwell, residents of Loma Linda, CA. have been in town for a few weeks doing the rounds of relatives and Friday was our turn. Johnny met Brian and Dustin along with Shelley's husband Paul and son, Caleb, at Creekview in Crandall for an 11 o'clock tee time. I took the day off work so I could hang out with Mom and Lynn when they got to Terrell. I went to Raylan's about 10 and got a call from Mom at 11 saying that she and Lynn had run over a ladder on I20 and blew out a front tire. They ended up getting it changed by a TxDOT Courtesy Crew (you guys are awesome!) and got to Terrell about noon. In the meantime, Miss Lauren showed up at Raylans to watch the boys for us so Ray and I took off on an errand running tour of town. We hit the bank, post office, Methodist Day School and two propane places before we finally got back to her house. Shelley and Rylee, along with Mom and Lynn, were there when we got back. We loaded up again, dropped Mom's car at Discount Tire and headed to Rockwall to meet Wayne for a late lunch. Add a flying trip to Bass Pro Shop for Beau's "Arctic Cat" birthday gift, two trips around a Bank of America (with Raylan freaking out because I tried to drive the dually the wrong way in the drive up lane) and we got back to Terrell a little before 4. Raylan took off for her house with the gift in tow, the rest of us did one more trip to WalMart and we all met up at Raylan's at 5. They guys showed up and Jake and Kelley were there when we got back. Dustin and Lindy were responsible for hors deourves. My original plan was to cook spaghetti but it got diluted into ordering pizza. I sat at Raylan's kitchen table and watched my family cooking and laughing through frying ravioli, baking pizza bites and making a feta cheese, pepperoni and pesto appetizer. The fire alarm went off several times (Olive oil can't be cooked too hot evidently). Jake got roped into the ravioli frying and did a great job. Raylan contributed by waving the kitchen towel around to clear the smoke. Paul, Dustin and Lindy contributed as well and the food was wonderful.

It was about 8 when Johnny and Dustin got out the guitars, mandolin and music. The entire family was treated to them picking and singing the evening away. Brian joined in the singing. Lynn and Johnny sang only one duet but it was wonderful. It's obvious that my immediate family has no talent for music but my son-in-laws are way talented. Johnny's "Cattle Call" gave me goose bumps. Beau had his singing debut and gave us a solo of a hymn that I don't know, but his Mama says he sings it all the time. He loved the mic time. My girls know the words to "On The Road Again", "You Don't Have To Call Me Darling" and many more of the beer joint oldies but goodies. We all sang along.

My perfect day is always one where my family is around and everyone is happy. Having Johnny, Lynn and Mom there was the icing on the cake. I hope it was just the first of many, many nights to come where we get Dustin to play and he and Brian to sing for us. Maybe someday we'll even be back at the beach for a Thanksgiving. Perfect.

Survivor

I'm one of the 500-plus crazy people that showed up at Randall Noe Ford on Jan. 3 for the Survivor tv show tryouts. I have no idea why I wanted to do that but since one of my resolutions for 2009 was to step outside of my comfort zone, it was a good fit. That and it was in Terrell so I didn't have to do much to get there.

I filled out the application and spent most of Saturday morning talking myself out of going. Wayne and I joined Raylan, Lindy and Dustin at Beau and Dax's basketball practice at 9. Then Wayne and I jetted over to WalMart (what is Saturday unless you go to WalMart?) for a few things. By 10:30 when we got home, I had made up my mind to go and at least check it out.

I got there, parked and was in line at 11:00. The line stretched behind the building and snaked around the parking lot. I stared at it then took my spot. What the heck? How long could it take? The answer is four hours. I left there at 3 that afternoon, a little sunburned and a lot happy that I had taken the chance to make a fool of myself. I was officially No. 411. I got to visit with several of the people in front and behind me. The couple directly ahead of me were firefighters from Chisholm that both work for the City of Dallas. She is also a part-time law student. Behind me was a young man and his girlfriend. She came along for the ride but about 2 hours into the experience let the boyfriend fill out an application for her. Robert, a 2000 graduate of Terrell High School, was next in line. He joined the Marines after he got out of school and did three tours of duty in Iraq before he got out of the service. He is now a manager at Autozone in Terrell and has gone back to school to get a teaching degree. Joe was an advertising salesman for CBS-11 but now buys wine.

There were the requisite freaks and slackers, ditzy looking girls wearing heels and low cut shirts, Viet Nam vets, bikers, and a bunch of regular folks that wanted to add Survivor tryout to their resume'.

Do I think I have a snowball's chance in hell of making it on the show? No. Did I get what I wanted out of the four hours in line? Sure. Everyday I learn to take a chance, even if it seems like it won't make a difference. Maybe it did. I had fun and I got to plead my case on camera. Now I won't have to wonder if I could have made it.

Thanks to Janna and Alison for encouraging me. If I get on the show, I promise I will wear jewelry and lipstick and be encouragment for all of us that are approaching "the far side of 50."

Resolutions

We (the family) were sitting around Raylan's table New Years Day discussing resolutions and whether or not we are making any for 2009. We went around the table, Jake first.
He says he is going to work out in preparation for the DFD test in March. Kelley said she wants to be healthier, be more social and be more positive. Raylan wants to become a genuinely better person. I've never known anyone who works harder to be a good person than she does so I'm betting it will be a successful year for her. Lindy thought long and hard and came up with "I don't want to kill anybody." As a family, we hope she keeps this resolution. Wayne gave up dipping snuff and is working on his second week. I'm so proud of him for this. I can't imagine how hard it would be to kick a nicotine habit. I can't even quit eating sweets so I don't know what it would be like to quit doing something that ingrained.

My resolutions are plenty.
1) Quit procrastinating. I kind of want to do this one next year instead of 2009 but I'm keeping it on my list for now.
2) Step outside my comfort zone every now and then. I started doing this last summer when I went back to school. Now in 2009, I've removed the popcorn off the ceiling in a back bedroom. For all who know what kind of handyman I'm not, this was a big step.
3) Lose that last darn 10 pounds. Seriously this time.
4) Get the two mares broke and ridden before summer is over.

That's enough resolutions for me. I'm pretty sure I'll only get 2 and 4 done this year anyway.

2008 finished

2008 has been a great year for the Baker family. We added several new members by marriage, birth and engagement and for their sakes, I hope they all are strong willed.

We started the year with the news there would be a new addition to the family in August. Raylan and Brian gave us the news, via pink and blue M&M's (sorry I was a little slow on the uptake). What a great gift so early in the year.

Wayne's job at Equipment Depot started in February. I'm so proud of him. He was pushed into the computer age and is doing great. He emails, Googles and Excel's like a pro now. He bought himself a laptop (with no help from more computer savvy family members) and now spends more time communicating that I do.

Spring meant wedding preparations were underway for Lindy Lou and fiance' Dustin. Every weekend was either getting ready for a shower, going to a shower or recovering from a shower from February until we got on the plane for Mexico in May. They decided on a destination wedding to be held in Playa del Carmen. The family was pumped because it looked like the good excuse to go on vacation. We spent a wonderful week with family and friends hanging out at the beach and visiting. There were around 40 people at the wedding including 10 who made the trek from California for the occasion. It was fun to get to know our cousins, their husbands and kids. Thanks for making the trip Tidwell group. Dustin's family and friends showed up en masse too. He's blessed to have so many people in his life that love him.

Mom and I returned from the trip with a case of the Mexican flu. We found out later that family friend Gwen Black, cousin Kim and husband David and eventually Wayne all came down with the mess. For anyone who wants to find out how to see a doctor really fast, just mention at the check in desk that you've contracted an illness in a foreign country. They rush you out of the waiting area.

Janna Wampler came back from Mexico sick too but she was diagnosed with Type I diabetes. She spent a week in the hospital and got instructions for a lifetime of needles and insulin. She's been a trooper.

Post wedding and flu, we waited and waited and waited for the new baby to arrive. Did I mention we waited? Gray Michael Smith finally showed up (after plenty of coaxing from the dr.) on August 15, 2008. His Papaw, Mae-Mae, Granny and Aunt Lindy spent the afternoon waiting for him with both of his big brothers. An hour of Beau and Dax chasing each other in circles in the cafeteria and another hour of trying to keep them out of trouble in the waiting room and we finally got into see Baby Gray. He is just as cute as the first two. For fun now we mention to Raylan that she has THREE boys and watch her facial muscles start twitching.

Sometime in July I made the decision to start back to college so between the wedding, flu, baby and class, that's how I spent my summer.

This fall the two sisters pounced on Jake and talked rings and then on Nov. 9 Jake proposed to Kelley and she accepted. What a great day. She wrote about it on her blog jakeandkelley.blogspot.com. I'm gaining a daughter-in-law and someone who will ride horses with me. Thanks Kelley.

Christmas was wonderful. How can you go wrong with three little boys and Shelley's two kids opening gifts and a house full of adults fighting over Aqua Globes and hearing inhancers? As usual, there was way too much food.

All of this to say, our family is blessed. Lets just hope the three new members feel that way too.