The end is near!

Yes, the end is near, of summer that is. I cannot believe that it is the end of August already. As far as I'm concerned it's the beginning of June! School just let out and we have hot, sunny, lazy days ahead of us. Which we did, two months ago. How time flies! When I was younger, it seemed like summer lasted FOREVER! I spent my summers on my bike. I'd ride "uptown"Bright and meet my friends at Jot Em Down or Rencks store. We'd get a can of pop, sometimes it would be frozen, then off we'd go. We would then ride the loop, which took us through Logan, down Mt. Plesant and then back up Sneakville to Bright. There were no bike trails then. We rode on the road, up and down hills, and waved at all the cars as they went by. It took a couple of hours and we had a great time. We had no video games or air conditioning to keep us inside. The world was different then. I can't say that it was better, just different. I would love for Jake to be outside more, instead of laying on the couch glued to TV/iPad/PS3. But I also can't blame him for laying on the couch in a nice air conditioned room when it's 90* with 80% humidity. I would have loved that too. Add in allergies and I'm right there on the couch with him. Maybe that's what happened. I laid down on the couch and went into a TV coma. It started in June and ended the end of August. I know we went on vacation, I'll tell you that story later, and I started my business, it's just all a blur! Now, this coming weekend is Labor Day. The official end of summer weekend. The WEBN fireworks will happen on Sunday. The family will get together several times over the weekend for pool parties. The evenings will become cooler as will the mornings. It's already started. The mornings are brisk, I love that. I can sit outside with my coffee and enjoy the cool air, in my mind. In reality I am getting breakfast, packing lunches and driving the car pool. Yes, the end is near. Next year I will take a bit more time to enjoy summer! I hope that you created some wonderful moments this summer, there are more to come! Take Care!!

In the Summertime!

Today is a perfect summer day. It is warm and sunny with a light breeze blowing. The pool water is warm and we are hanging out on the patio. Lee and Jake are playing RISK, Lily the dog is laying stretched out asleep and I am just hangin. This reminds me of growing up. I have mentioned before that I grew up in Bright Indiana. When I lived there, it was really country. Many of the roads were gravel, the town consisted of three churches, a grave yard, two general stores, a gas station, firehouse and the grade school. Most of the land was farmed, and "sub divisions" didn't exist. Bright is very different today. Once Hidden Valley was developed in the 70's, there was a building boom in Bright. The roads are all paved, they have home pizza delivery and a Chinese place. There are many more businesses and restaurants than I ever imagined. However, the farmland is a thing of the past, and sub divisions are the norm.

When I was young there wasn't really anything to do in the summer. There weren't that many organized club sports, especially for girls. There weren't any malls to hang out at and no air conditioning. That left us to hang outside. You could look out and see the heat rise off the corn fields across the street. There was a small groove of trees with a creek across the road. I would spend hours over there, walking through the woods, imagining, and playing in the creek. That is where I found the frog eggs and brought them home. We put them in a container and watched them hatch.  The sounds and smells of summers past was very different. There would be the singing of birds, the rumble of a hay wagon, the crunch of the gravel on the road as the milk tank truck went back to pick up the Grubbs milk. Once every couple weeks the "grader" would come down the road and smooth out the gravel. This would cause a large dust cloud to settle all over the place. Mom would yell for us to shut the windows so the dust wouldn't get inside. The smells would vary from Spring to Fall. There was the sweet, clean smell of rain in the Spring. There was also the stinky smell of manure being spread to fertilize the fields. The summer would bring honey suckle and a yellow dusting of pollen from the tassels of the corn as we ran through the rows. At night we could hear the frogs and crickets and chased lighting bugs that seemed to be everywhere. We could see brown bats diving for bugs at our light outside. Greg and I would put a cloth over a rock and throw it up in the air to watch the bats dive for it. I have no idea what we thought we were doing. It just seemed right at the time. There would be the soft ground from the turned dirt in the garden. I loved running barefoot outside, I still do today. In the Fall, there was the smell of cut hay, and a crispness in the air. The garden was turned and put to bed for the winter and we would prepare for ice, snow and electric outages. We raised hogs, so we would have litters of piglets over the summer. Sometimes there would be a couple that were rejected by the sows and we would end up hand feeding them. We would ride our bikes up to Rencks store and buy ice cream, or go down to the grade school and play on the playground. It was a very different time. Today, as I sit in my backyard, watching my teenage son. There is a TV attached to the wall, a iPad on the table and his cell phone. I can hear the hum of the air conditioners and smell the grills being warmed up. I can still hear the birds and later on my yard will glow with fireflies. We will grill out and have a grand time. These are the memories Jake will have when he is older. Playing games on the patio, a sleeping dog, grilling out, warm pool water and he might even remember the birds and fireflies. Everyone remembers things differently. It's your own personal past. I hope that you have wonderful memories of summers past, and that you are making new memories this summer. Take care!

Happy Fathers Day!

Today is Fathers Day. My Dad is 81 and lives with me, so I get to see him every day. I'm very lucky to have a great Dad. The things I remember while growing up was sitting on the couch and Dad reading the comics to my brother and I on Sunday mornings. Dad making sure that when Mom was in the hospital, we stayed together as a family. Even though my Grandmother offered to keep me at her house.  Dad running around the yard holding on to my bike as I learned to ride. That led to my spending hours in the summer riding. Dad making a maze for my science project. I won first prize. Dad teaching me how to drive a stick shift. Dad walking me down the isle, on Fathers Day, 27 years ago. Dad coming to Guam and snorkeling even though he isn't a great swimmer. Dad coming to the Wal Mart parking lot with the truck when Lee and I bought a grill to big to fit in our car. Dad fixing EVERYTHING that needed to be fixed in our new house, and every place we have lived since. Dad holding my newborn son. Dad coming to every event my son and my nieces have been in. Dad teaching Lee and Jake how to fix things, sometimes. Dad going to the markets and craft shows to help me set up. Dad taking care of Lily, the new puppy, when no one else has time. She follows him around like a shadow. I have a great Dad. I hope that your Dad is still with you, and if not, I hope that you have wonderful memories of times together. By the way, I have a great Mom too! Take Care!

Happy Anniversary!

Yesterday Lee and I celebrated our 27th anniversary. It is hard for me to believe that I have been married that long. The statistics today for married people doesn't look good. Most people are married at least twice in their life times. You never know. Look at Liz Taylor and Marie Osmond. Who would have thought Marie Osmond would be married three times! She even  followed Lizs lead and married one husband twice. I have a friend who has been married twice, to the same man. They took a year or two off early on the their marriage. How does one keep it all straight? If you marry the same guy twice, do you celebrate the first or second date? I need to ask. If you forget the first date can you make it up on the second? Do you just celebrate both? Hmmm, that sounds like a plan. Lees parent were married over 50 years before my father in law passed away and my parents have been married 60 years. You don't really hear about that much anymore. June 17,1984 was a long time ago. We were different people then. Lee was a medical student who wasn't sure what type of medicine he wanted to practice. I was in college and not sure what I wanted to do, so we got married. The Navy entered our lives in the form of a scholarship and Lee decided on OB/GYN. Off to Virginia we went, then over seas to Guam. Those experiences formed us in some ways. We traveled more than we ever thought we would. We were able to see Bali, Singapore, Saipan, Hong Kong, with stops in Japan and China. Not the type of vacations we really thought we would be doing. We learned to scuba dive and became independent of "the family". Moving away was scary, but I feel that is helped us grow together. To not rely on anyone else but each other. When the time came to decide where we wanted to go, Cincinnati was the obvious choice. Both our families were here, and when you think about it, what do you do for vacations when you live away from your family. You take vacation to visit family. We decided to live in Cincinnati, not vacation there. It has been good. There is always ups and downs in marriage, and in life. It's nice to have someone to take that ride with you, even if the road is bumpy. Sometimes thats the fun of it. Becoming parents in our late 30's also changed us. You look at things differently. We were more settled than if we had been able to have Jake in our late 20's. Yes, Lee and I have changed over the years. One thing hasn't, that is our humor. Our very odd sense of humor seems to have stayed the same over all these years. Maybe that's why we have made it so long. We are able to laugh, at each other and with each other. Love makes the world go round, but laughter keeps it together. Take care!

Happy Memorial Day

Time is really flying by. I haven't updated in weeks and I have so many stories piling up! I decided that today would be a good day to look back. In the last few months I have gotten a vendors license, applied and gotten into several famers markets, and got my business off the ground. How did I do it? I was able to do it because of this wonderful country we live in. I am able, in my early 50's, to walk into the tax department and apply and receive a vendors license. I am able every Tuesday to set up shop on fountain square with other like minded people and sell my dog cookies. I can do this because of the beliefs that founded our country. I have two Navy men in my house. My father was in the Navy during the Korean War and Lee was in the Navy twice, once in the late 70's and then again in the late 80's/early 90's. We were already married on the second time around. Lee didn't "see action" the way Dad did. We weren't "at war" at those times. He was still ready, and willing, to go if needed. It's because of people like Dad and Lee that we can be free and sometimes stupid. We can protest what we think is wrong. We can vote, or not, for who we want to run the country and then complain about them when they are in office. There are some who feel the need to burn the flag and protest at military funerals, and they have the right to do so. Because men and women fought for our rights. It saddens me that when Jake was in grade school they sang America the Beautiful instead of the Star Spangled Banner. I was told it was easier to sing. Jake isn't sure about the words to the National Anthem. I plan on working on that this year. I want him to understand his roots. I want him to know that because of very brave men and women he can be free and feel safe. That    the freedom we enjoy did come with a price. So today, hug your family, and if they happen to be, or have been in the military, thank them for me. Take care!

Graduation Time!

This year I have two nieces and one nephew graduating from high school. As they say, time really flies by. I graduated high school in 1977. There were about 230 in my class. At that time, the friends you have in high school you think will be in your life forever. Most of the time, if you're lucky, one or two make it. Things change, you change, and time passes by. I am still in contact with two friends from high school, although I don't actually see them much. I am facebook friends with a few more. Graduation is a gateway into the world of adulthood. You go out into the world with the ideas of changing it. Making the world a better place. Gaining independence, and learning how to be an adult. It can be frightening, and exhilarating at the same time. Matt will stay in Columbus and go to Ohio State,  Jessi will head to St. Louis university, and Courtney will join her sister Gwen at Indiana University, in Bloomington. I can't help but look back at when they were born. Matt was this little thing, loves working with his hands and very creative. Courtney was born with a smile and a twinkle in her eye. Loves sports, being social, but still making the grades. Jessi is a born student athlete. There isn't a sport she can't excel at along with understanding the game. Loves both competition in academics and sports. They are all three so different, and all three ready to head out in the world to make a difference. To see the world as they see it is a real joy. I have my wishes for them. The main one is to be happy in what you do. I want you to be spared pain in relationships and in school, although those are the things that help you grow. You will have ups and downs, and things won't always go as planned, but you will succeed in what ever path you choose. The world will be a better place with you in it.  So, as graduation nears, enjoy your parties, have a great summer, and be happy! Much Love, Aunt Kim

Happy Mothers Day!

I didn't become a Mom until I was 38 years old. We had a long hard road to get there dealing with infertility problems. Needless to say it was a true miracle the day Jake was born. Now, thirteen years later, I have a teenager living in my house. Along with my own Mother. Six years ago when we built our house, Lee suggested that we have Mom and Dad move into the lower level. The reason was they were getting older, they lived an hour away and we had a small child, and I would always add that Lee was trying to push me over the edge by having my mother move in.  When I was little, I would dress up in Moms night gowns like they were evening gowns. Mom made Barbie clothes for my dolls, she also made my own clothes. We had our ups and downs through the teenage years, as most parents do. As we age relationships grow. Some grow closer, some grow apart. I think the turning point was when Lee and I moved to Guam. That was the first time we lived so far away from our families that we only "had each other". You grow when you have to stand on your own two feet. It is a great experience. Now that I am a Mom, I understand some of the things that I thought were awful when I was younger. Mom and I parent differently, and that's okay. We agree to disagree on certain things, and have learned that line between Mom and Grandma. Most of the time, life is good. Being a Mom is a hard job. You are range from being the most important person in your childs life, to being considered a monster, then becoming a friend. The bond of being a Mom is different with each child that you have. Since I only have one, my bond is that of a Mother and her son. Now the choice of movies, music and video games are very different. As I have said many times, I have never been nor will ever be, male.  I don't always understand the way he thinks, but we still have a connection. We still can sit and talk and laugh, just like I can do with my Mom. I hope that you have a great connection with someone. Happy Mothers Day Mom! Take care!