Fun at GrandTom's house

GrandTom is the name that Braden invented for Tom, my step-dad (although the term step-dad has never seemed quite right for him--he is so much more than that to me). We started calling him Grandad Tom, and then when Braden was about 2, he shortened it to GrandTom.

The boys have become pretty attached to GrandTom in the last few weeks. In fact, today I mentioned to Braden that we are going back home to College Station tomorrow. He said, "why? I like it at GrandTom's."

GrandTom has a great bathtub--it is a 5 ft round horse trough. And--here's the best part--it has a TV! The boys LOVE to take bubble baths and watch cartoons. Life doesn't get any greater than that!

Here's some pictures of the boys having fun at GrandTom's house.

God's blessings

This blog is supposed to be about my kids. I'm going to hijack it for another post.

This morning I got a message on Facebook from an old friend. He and I were very close friends throughout junior high and high school. I dated his brother a couple of times, and even though that didn't work out so well, Derek and I always got along, were always friends. I thought he would be the kind of friend I would have for life: we would go to each others' weddings, etc. Then graduation day came and I moved to College Station the next day. I never saw or talked to him again. I had heard through the grapevine that he had a profound experience with God and had taken up the ministry. I was very happy for him. Last night, I saw his profile on Facebook and sent a brief message: "Hey, I always wondered where you ended up. Vermont, huh?" He replied this morning that he is a youth minister working to spread the Gospel throughout New England. He is married, has two boys, and loves the cold. Fifteen years ago, when we were high school seniors, I never would have suspected this path for him. He wrote that "God has been very kind to me." I replied a bit about my life, my husband, my kids, my job. I started to write, "God has been kind to me, too. I have the life I always wanted." I typed that out. But it wasn't right. I don't have the life I always wanted. I have the life God wanted for me. I have a beautiful house, a great family, an amazingly fulfilling job, healthy kids, and terrific friends. Thank you, God, for those blessings.

Before Christmas, before mom died, I thought a lot about writing a post about all of my friends and how thankful I am for each of them. Then mom died and my world shifted. As I adjust to this "new normal," my friends have been more important to me than ever. I've thought for two weeks about how to put into words what they each mean to me. I was going to write each of them a thank-you card with profound words of gratitude. I may still do that, but I'm also going to put some of those words here for all the world to see.

Kyle, I'll start with you. After ten years together I love you more than ever. Thank you for supporting and loving me. I admire your strength and your mind. I am thankful that you are so darn smart! I love that you can fix anything, do anything. I am very thankful for the sacrifices you make every day so that we can live in College Station. I know your commute isn't fun, but living close to my friends and my support system is so important to me. I'm glad you understand and appreciate that. Thank you for being a great dad, and thank you for accepting me as I am (messy house and all). I look forward to the day that we don't have to work so hard all the time and that we can just BE. I cannot begin to express my thanks for the rock that you have been through all of this with mom. I know you are grieving, too.

Tiffany, thank you for being my best friend. You are the one person who knows me and understands me at a depth that no one else does. Thank you for not judging and for loving me and supporting me. I love that we have so much in common and I really feel like you are a soul-mate kind of friend. I'd never met someone who is so like me, until I met you. You are the best friend that I always wanted. Someday when we are little old ladies and we have our super-cute house together we are going to have a BLAST! Thank you for being my lifeline in the awful days after mom died. Thank you for dropping whatever you were doing to help me, support me, and love me. You have no idea the depths of my gratitude to you and to your family.

Amie, if anyone understands what I go through in my day to day life, it is you. I'm so glad that we had both of our kiddos together and that our families are so close. I love our long, in-depth talks and I sure wish we had time for more of them. Thank you for helping me deal with my grief and for assuring me that I am normal and will slowly return to normal. Thank you for coming to mom's service on a day when you were supposed to be with your own family. I sure appreciate that sacrifice!

April, thank you for being so darn cool. You are the coolest girl that I know (sorry, everyone else). I love that you always go after what you want instead of living for others. I've always admired that about you. Not too many girls would just take off to travel around Costa Rica or spend so much time in the gym and on the road just for the sake of being healthy. I love your approach to fitness--for the body's sake, not for appearance. Thank you for pushing me to run. I love that you are my running buddy; we make a great team. Thank you for coming to mom's service even though you were sick! We've been friends for a long time, and I know we will be for the rest of our lives.

Stormy, thank you for being funny and smart and emotional. Thanks for being so open and honest with your own writing, your blog, and your faith. That inspires me. Thank you for not pretending to be perfect. I sometimes look around at my chaotic house and think, "it's okay. Stormy's house is chaotic, too!" I appreciate your support at work and in our personal lives. Thanks for your help the day of mom's service, for following my crazy orders without stopping to question or point out my insanity.

Courtney W., thank you for reaching out to me five years ago when we were both pregnant. I don't know how I would have made it through that first summer with Braden without you and Amie. You were (and are) an amazingly supportive friend. I love your passion for life! I love your passion for teaching and your passion for your family! When I first started teaching, I wanted to be like you so badly. Now, I'm something better: your friend. Thank you for checking on me my first day back in the classroom. I was so comforted to know that you were just down the hall anytime that I needed you.

Courtney S., it is hard for me to believe that I just met you two years ago. I'm so glad you are my neighbor. Thanks for looking out for my house in the last few weeks, and thanks for the massage gift cert.! I love your passion for your job (both the good parts and the bad parts). I admire your independence--do you feel independent? I see such a strength in you and a determination to live life for YOU, and I admire that. I can't wait to meet baby Smith and I'm going to spend lots of time at your house holding and cuddling him!

Kelly, thanks for being so fun, so creative, so professional. I admire your sense of style: your scrapbooking style, your decorating style, your fashion style. I also admire how professional you are with your job. You are amazing! Some day, when you are a head principal, I want to work for you. Thanks for coming to the mom's service, and thanks for hosting a great New Year's Eve party on a day when I really needed a distraction.

Britina, thanks for be you! I love you for your appreciation of fine country music, fine drinking establishments, and fine western wear. I love you for your passion for teaching those very difficult students. I love you for your friendship and your help throughout the last six years.

To the boys (Ryan, Scott, Chauncey, Caleb, Mike, Aaron, Patrick, Chris, Trey, Rodney). Thank you. Thanks for loving me for who I am and for being such good friends to me. I appreciate your hugs, your messages of support, and your friendship. Ryan, thanks for being my other running buddy. Thanks for letting me just talk and talk during that run the day after mom's service. Thanks for understanding that I just needed to run hard and get all the crazy emotions and thoughts out, and for understanding that running is one way that I can do that. Scott, thanks for coming to the service, and for always being a great friend. I appreciate that you and Chauncey have known me since teaching day 1 and that you accept me as I am. Chauncey, thank you for being a great friend, for checking on me in the classroom every day. Caleb, thanks for sharing your own loss with me. I feel connected to you in a way I never did before. I've really enjoyed working with you this year, and I'm so thankful that you are just right next door. Mike and Aaron, thanks for your support at work and in life, too. Patrick, Chris, Trey, and Rodney, thanks for sharing your wives with me! I love and appreciate you guys. Patrick, I am thankful that you and Amie were willing to spend so much time on the road the day of mom's service.

God sure has blessed me! Thank you, God, for answering my prayer that summer evening 6 1/2 years ago, and for granting me the job that I wanted. I just wanted the job, but what I found was much more important: my friends. Thank you for answering that other prayer two years ago and for bringing us back to College Station. Thank you for answering my prayer two and half weeks ago and for taking mom quickly and painlessly. Thank you for all of your blessings.

What a sad Christmas season

My mom died on December 21st. I haven't blogged about it because I'm just not sure what to say. To say it has been difficult is an understatement. This is the worst pain and grief I've felt in my life. I miss her terribly.

We had a beautiful memorial service for her on December 23rd. At the service, we showed a video of pictures of her life. My sister is working on uploading that video to her website; I'll post a link as soon as it is available. I'll also post a link to the obituary when it is available. My friend Stormy wrote a very nice blog entry called "Why We'll be Terrible Old Ladies" about my friends' reactions to mom's death and her memorial service. Go to http://stormyhickman.blogspot.com/2008/12/why-well-be-terrible-old-ladies.html

We attempted a normal Christmas, and there were happy moments: playing pool in the Dixie Chicken with my kids in Santa hats on Christmas Eve, the chaos of opening presents with four kids under age four at my step-sisters on Christmas Day, cooking a yummy fajita lunch for Tom and five of his coaching buddies, opening presents from my mom.

There have also been lots of sad moments: choosing the pictures to capture her life story, cleaning out my mom's closets to make room for Linsey to move home, comforting Braden as he cried for hours, telling people who mom came across during daily life (the mailman, the neighbor, the marina people).

I've updated my playlist (at the bottom of this page) to include the George Strait song "You'll be There." This is the song that played during the slide show of mom's pictures. Mom loved George Strait.

Today is the first day of 2009--my first year without my mom. What a sad day.

Snow!!

I bet every blog that originates in College Station has an entry about the miraculous snowfall of 2008!

When we woke up last Wednesday morning, there was a light dusting of snow on the ground. Braden hopped out of bed as soon as I told him, which is miraculous in itself. I took a few pictures of the boys before school, and we were pretty darn impressed by the snow as we drove to daycare. At 3pm, the snow started up again. I let my 7th period sneak out to the windows to have a look--some had never seen snow fall before! By the time I picked up the boys at 5 and drove home, the snow had really piled up (well, "piled up" for College Station standards).

As soon as we pulled in the driveway, the boys were tugging at their seatbelts and begging to get out of the truck. We all jumped out, and while they immediately dove into the snow, I ran in for the camera. I found my truck keys, purse, phone, lunchboxes, etc. still in the truck the next morning.

The boys were amazing--they knew exactly what to do! They were slinging snowballs and creating snow angels like they'd been in snow their entire lives. While I was shivering and shaking, they were just reveling in the wonderment of it all. I had a hard time getting pictures--they just wouldn't pause for a second, not for a candy bribe, or an ice-cream bribe, or a serious threat.

Notice that Braden is wearing his black hat and gloves--he got those at an ice-skating party his friend Catelyn had. Garrett is not wearing gloves (or gwubs, as he calls them) because I'm a bad mom. He is, however, wearing his favorite "dragon hat."

Notice, too, the fabulous lights on our house. My husband is amazing!!

My friend Stormy has a heartfelt and poetic blog entry about the snow on her blog: http://stormyhickman.blogspot.com Check it out.

Garrett's newest accessory

If you recall Garrett's obsession with his sunglasses (see last February-March), you will appreciate this.

Garrett's latest fashion accessory is his Santa hat. He calls it his "christmas hat" and he has being wearing it almost nonstop for the last few days. He hasn't worn it to daycare (yet), but wears it around the house. He slept in it last night. He wore it to the student council babysitting this morning and out to lunch. People think it is very cute. I think it is a bit obsessive.

Those PJs are from Old Navy--they say "chillin' with my homies." Braden also got a new set of Christmas PJs. His say "one tough cookie" and has an image of a gingerbread man cookie. He was NOT interested in putting them on for a picture.

Halloween one month later

In the spirit of the holidays, I thought I should finally blog about Halloween.

We had a great Halloween this year. The events kicked off with a pumpkin carving party at my friend Michelle's house. Michelle and Chris's daughter, Isa, goes to my kids' daycare, and the three of them had a blast playing while I carved a fairly intricate jack-o-lantern using one of those stencil kits.

Halloween continued several days later with the annual fall festival at Sam Houston. We made the trek to Huntsville to "Daddy's ranch" for the party. On the way there, Braden told Garrett all about it and said, "last year, I was too shy to play any games. This year, I'm not going to be shy." And he wasn't! Both kids enjoyed the games, the hayride, and especially the cookie decorating station.

The third event of our Halloween extravaganza was the kids' party at daycare. I dressed them in matching skeleton shirts and black pants, much to Braden's dismay and slight embarrassment. My intentions were good: I didn't want them to mess up their costumes before trick or treating that evening. When I arrived at the daycare to help with the party, however, Braden's friends were quick to inform me that he wasn't wearing a costume, just a shirt. Braden didn't seem to mind too much, though.

Halloween evening was supposed to begin with "trunk or treating" at Keller Williams Realty with The Corleys (our friend Melina is a realtor). When the boys and I got home, though, Kyle was in the driveway cleaning fish from the previous day's offshore trip with Tom. Between the fish, the grouchy boys, and the tired mom, the trunk-or-treating just didn't happen. We did manage to get ready in time to join the neighborhood hay ride and trick-or-treating party. It was great fun!

Oh, as for the costumes. Braden's may look vaguely familiar. He was Elmo the Halloween that he was 18 month old, too. This is the same costume, just in a bigger size. The first Elmo costume was one that he practically lunged out of the cart for. The same thing happened this time. We had looked at costumes at a couple of places, and we were in Target looking at all kinds of great things--pirates, ninjas, puppy dogs, firemen, etc. Braden just HAD to have Elmo. Again. Even though he is four and hasn't watched Elmo in at least two years. The night of the hayride he got very upset that "people keep calling me Elmo, but my name is Braden." Sheesh.

Garrett was the cutest lion you've ever seen. Roar!

Braden wrote his first sentence!

This is really what made me update the blog. Braden wrote a sentence all by himself. I'm so proud--I should make it into a giant button and wear it around!

This is a computer-generated version of what it looked like:

I LiC MRCRS.

Isn't he brilliant?? (It says, "I like markers." Sheesh, can't you read?)

He was inspired to write this sentence because he is currently grounded from his markers and crayons. He scribbled on my very favorite coffee table with a red sharpie that he fished out of a drawer somewhere. I didn't yell. I didn't cry. I didn't spank him or put him in time out. What I did was much, much more effective (and maybe a little mean?): I gave him a giant plastic bag and told him to go put all of his markers and crayons in it. When he did, I brought him over to the coffee table and showed him his scribbling. We confirmed that it was, indeed, Braden who did it. I explained that it is my very favorite coffee table and that it is the very first piece of grown-up furniture I ever bought, and that his scribbling ruined it (I'm not sure he caught all of that drama). Then, I told him that as punishment, I was going to put his markers and crayons away for a week so that he would learn not to write on things.

Every day he has asked for his markers back. We then go through the days of the week and discover how many more days there are until Saturday.

So, all in all, this has been a week of learning for Braden: he learned the days of the week, he learned how to write a sentence.

Hopefully he learned not to write on anything, too!