The Week Ahead

Happy Monday! We had a great weekend spending time with family and friends. We celebrated Rich's Mom's 70th Birthday at the House of Blues Gospel Brunch at Downtown Disney. Great food and music! This week is going to be a busy week. Need to get the house cleaned, do some work for S3 Integrity and need to get ready for traveling to The Allen family reunion in NC, so I can spend some time this weekend at UCF taking pictures of the Cheer Squad while they are at camp. We leave for Lake Junaluska on Monday the 20th as soon as Bekah is done with camp. Busy, Busy... We are looking forward to spending time with family and riding the motorcycle through the beautiful mountain terrain.

A Friday Afternoon in St. Augustine

Just a Friday afternoon in St. Augustine with my favorite cousin and my favorite daughter! :) Yes, she is my only daughter, but she is still my favorite daughter! I have a favorite son too! Bekah and I decided to drive to St. Augustine after her cheerleading practice on Friday, called Craig and met him there. We had to drive through stormy weather, but we finally made it around 2:00 PM. To our pleasant surprise it was not raining in St. Augustine even though it was raining the entire way there. We walked up King St., through the park and up St. George street. We went in a few shops, just looking around. Stopped in the Harley store to buy my favorite husband (yes, my only husband) a St. Augustine Harley T/Shirt to add to his collection. In our wandering... we decided we needed something to snack on before we met Craig for a late lunch. We first stopped in a pizza place, Bekah ordered a slice of Hawaiian pizza and we proceeded to move down the counter to pay; however, the guy behind the counter helping us told us to stay and wait for our pizza slice. So we did.. a woman then took a slice of Hawaiian pizza out of the oven (let me point out there was no one in front of us waiting for pizza) and said "Hawaiian Pizza" - so Bekah went to take the slice of pizza, the woman behind the counter said "Lady, I don't think that's yours" - then the guy behind the counter said yes, she ordered a Hawaiian pizza... by now Bekah had reached for the pizza, pulled it off the counter, put it back and pulled it again... Bekah turned around and looked at me and said "Did she just say what I think she said?" ... I said "yep wanna leave"... she is "yes", turned around and said loudly "Lady, I don't think that's yours... forget about the pizza, I don't want it." and we left. There are too many establishments that want our business that we don't have to take that kind of rude behavior. We walked a couple doors down, got a hot dog and we were treated very well.
We then walked around a bit more... met up with Craig and we went to Pizza Alley, they have a very good full service Italian restaurant if you walk through their counter pizza service to the way back. Craig and I had the best Sangria I think I have ever had! Amazing... 2 glasses was all that was needed, one more and I think I would have started forgetting some of the evening! Ha ha...
We then walked around for a bit, took pictures and Craig and Bekah got some ice cream. After the ice cream, we decided to leave that area and drive across the bridge to The Conch House. This was the last place Jakki was on Easter Sunday before she got in the boat and the terrible accident happened. Craig showed us around, big complex of bars, restaurant, a pier and marina. We decided to hang out there awhile, ordered mud slides and a couple of appetizers.. their hummus was wonderful. We were laughing a lot! Isn't that what life should be all about really? Laughing, enjoying each others company and having fun!!! Bekah was calling Craig her CousUncle... he is a 2nd cousin to her.. but he and Bekah think he should be a fun loving Uncle who also has to approve all the boyfriends, but one who lets her get away with stuff her Dad might not!! Good times!! I am glad Bekah and I have been able to spend time with Craig this summer.

Poor Bebe

It has been kinda crazy since last Monday (6/29), Bekah and I came home to find that BeBe had popped her eye out of the socket. It was an awful site. Bekah of course got very upset immediately and I wasn't much better. I rushed her to the vet and they quickly took her in for surgery to put the eye back into place. The procedure seemed to go well and the vet was hopeful that she would not lose the eye and she might even be able to see again with it. She had ointment for her eye that we put on four times a day. The eye wasn't looking great and I was getting concerned that she would go blind in that eye. Then this Monday we took her back to the vet to get her stitches out of her eye lid. The vet felt that the eye looked pretty good and still might come back. He prescribed new ointment. The next day the eye looked swollen, but it had been and the vet said that is normal and would go down. So, we just kept a watch over her. Then on Wednesday, I thought the eye looked worse, so I took back to the vet. This time the vet said the eye was infected, so he wasn't as optimistic that she would be able to see out of that eye again. Now he was concerned that she might lose the eye all together. BeBe is on antibiotics twice a day, eye drops every two hours and the ointment at least 4 times a day. She also has to go back to wearing the "cone" collar. She is still wagging her tail and is active, she doesn't like the ointment much, other than that she is doing okay relatively speaking. We are hopeful that the we caught the infection soon enough and she will not have to have the eye removed. She is such a sweet girl and we feel so bad for what she is going through. Blue feels bad too, we have to keep him from trying to lick her eye and from trying to take care of her. He gets very sensitive when things happen and BeBe is his buddy. It is so sweet. We hope she gets better soon.

Let's Get It Started!

Cheer practice started this week! 8:00 AM everyday... Bekah is loving it this year and really looking forward to the season. We are too!! It's her last year... (sniffle, sniffle) we want to make the most of every minute of it!! Gearing up for the games, activities, parades, homecoming and of course all the fundraising!
Go Eagles!!

Smiles in Sausalito, CA

I just love this picture of Zack, he had just turned 16 and we went on a family vacation to San Francisco. It was a great trip with lots of fond memories. The four of us had so much fun... one silly memory (of all things) is the location of our hotel room! We stayed at the Hyatt in Fisherman's Wharf and the hotel was shaped like a "U" well our room was the furthest point from the entry of the hotel (or the elevators for that matter). So when we got off the elevators to go to our room it became a joke about how long it took to get to our room, especially after long days of sight seeing. Some days it was a race to see who could get there first, some days it was "I need water..." comments on the way, and some days we just drug our feet and pretended we would never find it. No one complained, we just all laughed and made silly jokes about it. At this age, Zack didn't always like his picture taken, but this time I got a nice big smile! This picture was taken in Sausalito, CA we took a water ferry from San Francisco to get there. It was such a beautiful quaint city. I tinted the picture in a vintage tint. You can see the difference with the original one below.

I HEART Sushi

Bekah is so much fun...such a joy. Always laughing, having fun, and being goofy too! One of my favorite things about her is that she just appreciates her life and she lets us know. She is a very positive... go with the flow person. When I opened my laptop, this picture magically appeared as my wall paper. (Rebekah is such a magician!)I love this photo, I took this of Bekah in the West Village in NYC at a restaurant called Sushi Samba. We loved the colors in this place and the food was good too.

Watermelon 5K July 4th, 2009

We started our 4th of July out with a very humid...HOT 5k. We participated in the Watermelon 5k yesterday morning at 7:30 AM at Mead Gardens in Winter Park. Craig and Mike came down from Jacksonville to run and Bao visited us from Gainsville and also ran. For Russ and Markus, this was there first 5k run and they did awesome!! It wasn't a chip race, so we don't know exactly what the running time was but everyone has an idea. Rich was happy that he shaved a minute off his last time, Bekah didn't beat her last time, but she did well as always. Craig, even with bruised ribs came in within 28 minutes! I don't run and planned on walking it, well I got caught up in the running in the beginning and thought I was going to die. I should not have ran. I finally finished though and on the plus side, I never stopped moving. I am so proud of everyone! This was my 3rd 5K that I have participated in and I was happy when it was over and I can say at least I did it. I'm losing count on how many Bekah has done, I think she is up to about 8 races, she inspires me. Rich is doing awesome and he is so supportive, for that I'm so grateful! What a great way to start the day.

"Get It Together!"

Everything I started today I had a hard time finishing. Somethings did not get finished. This morning, I woke up with a list of things I needed to get done in my head. Rich had the day off, so he took half the list (really more than half) and I proceeded to get out of bed. Really struggled with that today! Rich was up and out in no time. He washed the Jeep and Harley, cleaned the pool, and cleaned the bathtub. I moved to the sofa where I checked my work e-mail, worked on a couple of updates, received a phone call and checked Facebook and myfamily.com. A couple hours went by (and so did Rich working hard going in and out of the house) so I decided I probably should take a shower and get it together. So I did. It was about noon at this point. I then offered to get Rich something to eat, but he was almost done with his chores so I waited for him to jump in the shower to get cleaned up for lunch. While I was waiting, I mustered up just enough energy to sweep and mop the floors, put in a load of laundry and change Bekah's bedding. Yeah, I accomplished something today.
Rich and I headed to Mimi's Cuban Cafe only to find out they are closed for the July 4th holiday, then we tried Black Bean Cuban Cafe, closed too! As we were headed to a Cuban Cafe off of Park Ave (We really wanted Cuban), we decided to go with Sobik's instead. We were pretty hungry by this time. Had a nice lunch, went to the grocery store and came home.
After we got home, we had the pleasure of meeting Bao, Bekah's friend who is staying with us tonight to run in the Watermelon 5k in the morning.
Tonight we will have a houseful people, which we love. Our house is small, but we manage. Just makes us that much closer! :) Happy July 4th!

Yesterday, Bekah, my Mother and I took Joshua, Ginger's son, out to the Magic Kingdom for a few hours. We had a good time, going on a few rides and watching a show at the castle. These are a few pictures from our wonderful day.

Summer in NYC

Bekah and I were so fortunate to be able to take a Mother and Daughter trip to New York City this summer. What a blessing to be able to spend this time together. We had so much fun. We shopped, saw Phantom of the Opera, we shopped, we went to a great, absolutely great concert in Central Park of some of Bekah's favorite artists, Expendables, Ziggy Marley and 311, we shopped (not sure I said that?), experienced dinner at Tavern on The Green, which was awesome... Bekah said and I quote "That this is the BEST food I've ever had" and walked, walked, and walked everywhere.
Oh, and we talked about boys, well, one in particular that she happens to be fond of right now and just met a couple weeks before we left for NYC. I remember those days... being on the phone at all hours, talking about everything, being excited and as Bekah so uniquely called it, being "all giggly inside."
Aww, young love, it is so special.
Bekah and I like so many of the same things, it is really cool. We really connect. The biggest difference between Bekah and I when I was her age is that she is so much more independent and says what she thinks and feels. Much more than I ever did at her age, probably more than I do now. I respect that strength and confidence in her.
I love this time we spent together and will cherish these memories forever.

I Love LA

Totally out of sequence, but I just finished this page tonight and I liked the way it turned out. This was a fun trip (except for the getting lost and traffic!). These pictures are from our trip to LA. I flew out to meet with a client and Bekah and Zack flew out separately to meet me. We went to Hollywood, Venice Beach, the Getty Center, drove on Sunset Strip and went to Santa Monica Pier. We went to the LA Farmer's Market twice for breakfast... that along with Venice Beach was our favorite. We stayed in West Hollywood, close to Beverly Hills.

I have more great pictures from that trip that I will have to create a matching layout with. More to come...

Happy Father's Day

Rich,
Happy Father's Day! When I decided to blog this, I thought I would insert a Father's Day Poem or a saying or quote...but as I searched for one, I could not find one that seemed to be the right fit. I can't write from our children's point of view about you as their Father, but I can write from my point of view as to what type of father I see as your wife and the mother of our children.

You are a great coach, you listen and you teach! I have watched our children hang on to every word you say when you are teaching them something knew. Always, if they have a question about something, it's "Dad will know." Even when you think they are not listening, I know they are. They look up to you, always have and always will. You have taught them so much about life and about love. The way you love me teaches them about true love and what they should expect out of their own relationships. The unconditional love you have for others even when you are hurting teaches them never to give up on people.

You are loving, caring, you hug and say "I love you" often. Those actions might seem like little things, but they say so much. It's hard to believe that not everyone does those "little" things. You have taught our children how to love and show affection.

Have fun and enjoy what you do. Another lesson I see you instilling in our children. Enjoy life, be responsible doesn't mean you can't have fun. Laugh and be silly.

You teach tolerance. I see someone who doesn't always have to be right, you listen to other's perspectives and opinions.

You are supportive, you support them and me and they see that. So important.

I could not have asked for a better friend, husband and father to our children. I am thankful everyday for our family and how we have been blessed. When I was a little girl, my mother's prayed for the partner that God had picked out for me. I am glad she did, I am so grateful we found each other all those years ago.


All my love,
Kim

In Jakki's Honor

Saturday we drove to Jacksonville, FL to particpate in the "Running of the Pies" one of Jakki's favorite races in downtown Jacksonville. We had a great time! It was so much fun getting together with Craig, Marc, Kayla, Tiffany and Mike. We are so blessed to have this time with each other, supporting one another, sharing stories and memories, laughing and just being together. We have our next 5K in Orlando on July 4th. I'm so excited our running team is growing, Rich's brother and nephew will also being running on July 4th with us! As most know, I am not a runner, but I plan on walking in the Watermelon 5K Walk/Run on July 4th as well. The run is in support of the Wounded Warriors Project, I support this project 100% and am personally honored to be raising money for the brave men and women who serve our county.

...and off she goes!

Bekah's last day as a junior in High School was yesterday 06/03/09 and today she is starting her very first job! She has training for the next three days to become a National Sales Representative for Cutco Cutlery and Vector Marketing. She is very excited and she looks awesome! ... with Sales skills she can do anything, go anywhere and always have a job! Go get 'em!

DMB Live from the Beacon Theatre

New music from DMB new album
"Big Whiskey and the Groo Grux King"
This wouldn't be my blog if I didn't post some DMB to it!

Promotion to Lance Corporal

The post is a little late, but I wanted to get it out here. Congratulations to Zack on his March 09 promotion to Lance Corporal! Love you! Great job!

Zack, You AMAZE me!

Congratulations on earning your Green Belt!
5/28/2009 By Byline Cpl. Laura A. Mapes, Unit Marine Corps Air Station Yuma

Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz. — Students in a Marine Corps martial arts instructor course here worked through their sweat and tears to earn special training certificates May 21, 2009.

The 15 green belt students in the course volunteered to be sprayed and certified to carry Oleoresin Capsicum spray, which is a nonlethal weapon used by law enforcement.

The circuit course was designed to show the Marines what it is like to work through stress and disorientation, said Poulin.

“The instructors are here to coach the students through each station,” said Warrant Officer Bradley Poulin, Marine Air Control 1 maintenance officer and martial arts instructor trainer. “As long as they don’t freak out, they will be fine. They just have to keep their eyes open.”

The OC course was set up with nine stations. After being sprayed, the Marines worked their way through each challenge, before being rewarded with water and decontamination.

At the first station Marines were sprayed in the face from about three paces away and had to correctly count a number of fingers held up by an instructor.

From there the students are guided to the next station by the sound of the instructors’ voices. Here, they test their muscle memory with upper body strikes and punches. The next station called for the Marines to practice knee strikes.

“I’m glad I did so much MCMAP before we did this (OC spray) course. I think that it helped me, because when you get sprayed, you can’t think clearly and your brain just doesn’t want to work,” said Cpl. Daniel Byrd, station armorer and student in the course.

At the next stop, students had to locate a rubber knife and defend themselves from knife-wielding instructors using proper techniques.

During the fifth portion of the circuit course, the students were guided under simulated barbed wire while low, back and high crawling with a rubber rifle.

The Marines fought their way through the next stations using lower leg strikes and weapons of opportunity, as well as subduing and handcuffing an opponent.

Once they completed the stations, each student was steered to a table at the opposite side of the field, where they had to write their name and answer two questions in writing: how do you feel, and what did you think of the OC spray circuit course?

This last station was designed to simulate writing orders, where Marines might debrief or write up orders under stress.

“This is the worst feeling ever, but it’s worth it because I know that I will never have to do it again,” said Cpl. Tony Ellerbe, Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron range coach and student in the course.

Once all 15 students made it through the circuit course and were decontaminated, Poulin spoke with the Marines and commended them for completing the training.

“You all followed through with your commitment and you’ve finished the training,” said Poulin. “That is good to go Marines.”

The spray is not a requirement for graduating the class. However, once the students finish the training, they never have to requalify with the spray for any other training.

The instructor course is scheduled to graduate May 29, 2009 at 11 a.m. in the station chapel.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday my sweet girl! Happy 17th Birthday. This is going to be YOUR year, you're a High School Senior! Whoo Hoo! Have fun and enjoy it! I love you!

My Runner

Bekah, I'm so proud of you! More importantly, I hope you are proud of yourself and your accomplishments. You are an amazing young woman. Your healthy living, your decision making, your appreciation for love, life, tradition and family are just some of the attributes that makes you so special. As your junior year in high school wraps up, things will start changing. People will start asking you "what's next", "what college" what are YOU going to do? Stay calm, stay relaxed and be yourself. Make your plans based on what you want to do! Your Dad and I are here to guide you, we want your decisions to be your decisions. I know you have heard me say this quote before "In a world where you can be anything, be yourself" this is so important. Find your passion early.
You did a fantastic job during Saturday's 5K. I know you were not happy with your time, be proud that you did it and that you finished. Your time was not your personal best time, but I have already seen how you are driven to beat not only that time, but previous times as well. I love your drive and determination. I remember when you were first learning to ride a bike. Your brother and the boys in the neighborhood were riding bikes and you were determined that you would as well. You tried so hard and never gave up, even after hitting a tree. You where hurt, you cried for half a second as you climbed back on the bike and asked your Dad to push you off. I love your spirit.

For My Family

In my blog, I write a lot about my family, especially my children. They are my "Sunshine" I love them more than anything and I enjoy every moment with them. When I started this blog, I wrote about my weekends home, away from work, away from Jeffersonville, IN and Louisville, KY. I wrote about Zack being away at boot camp and some of the changes we were going through. We went through those changes and came out on the other side. I continue to grow, learn about myself and appreciate those moments in life that make up time which is so special. We are now being faced with more changes. I am embracing these changes as I have learned that change can be exciting and even invigorating. I'm not saying that it is easy, however, I am remarkably more relaxed now. So, as I get the privilege to spend even more time with Bekah and Rich, (Zack is living in Arizona) I will continue to try to capture a piece of our life together. Maybe when I am gone, my children will have some of my words to reflect on, a little piece of me. Or at least how I was feeling at the time when I entered my "notes" in this blog. I am verbally and emotionally open with my family, so I don't think anything will be a "ah ha" moment or remotely close to a surprise. My hope is that someone will find it comforting, like a journal, as time passes on. With the death of Vonni and Jakki this year, two strong women who left us in their 40s, it reminds me how short life really is and we need to say what we need to say. I love you all.

Florida Conference for Women

On Tuesday, I went to the Florida Conference for Women. I went by myself attending seminars that I hoped would inspire me and get my mind going. It worked, they where just what I needed. I listened to women who went after what they wanted and achieved their goals. It was great to actually hear about their "stories" from the perspective that it wasn't easy, that things were not perfect, that they were human like the rest of us. But mustered up that inner spirit to keep going and to take risks for what they believed in. Their stories started in a surprisingly similar place to my recent story. I felt like they were talking to me.
Tori Johnson was the first keynote speaker, she is the Founder & CEO of Women for Hire & Good Morning America's Career Guru, truly genuine and her story resonated with me. and the second keynote speaker was Ariane de Bonvoisin, Founder & Chief Change Optimist, first30days.com - she was amazing, I could have listened to her speak all day. Even though I was one of a thousand, I connected with her. Her face lite up when she spoke, she was very inspiring.
During lunch there were four speakers, my favorite was Kelly Corrigan. If anyone you know is going through cancer, there is a book by Kelly Corriagn, "The Middle Place" - she talks about how she was in the middle of childhood and adulthood, being a wife and mother of two young children and finding out she had cancer.
She has a great sense of humor and captivated the audience with her story.
The breakout sessions were great, I went to Brand You! All about branding and getting your brand in the marketplace and "Reinvent Yourself" - Strategies for having the career you want. Loved it!
It is so important to feed out minds and spirit. I so needed that. Now I need to put one foot in front of the other and not get overwhelmed with all of the thoughts going through my head! One day at a time... right!

"Chillaxing"

"Chillaxing" this is Bekah and Rich's word, but it seemed fitting for our chill weekend we had at the beach. We went camping at Jetty Park and had a chillaxing time! Friday Bekah and Rich drove over in the afternoon, Brianna and I arrived at night due to other commitments we had. Saturday morning before anyone else got up, I went down to the beach to take some pictures. I had fun trying different settings on my camera, exploring and taking lots of pictures. When I walked back to camp, everyone else got up, we ate breakfast and played "Apples to Apples" and "Scattergories" until about noon. We were having so much fun. The weather was perfect, breezy and we were in a shaded spot. In the afternoon we walked down to the beach, put up our umbrella and "chillaxed" some more. Rich tried his hand at sand sculpting at the girl's expense. Bekah became part of an octopus and Brianna became a mermaid. It was fun to watch. Saturday evening, we went to Grills, but there was a 2 hour wait and we were all hungry! So, we walked down to Rusty's and had a great dinner. Got back to the campsite about 9:15 ish... the four of us took a walk on the beach and then walked back to the site. I was tired! Bekah and Brianna went for ice cream and scored by finding a Dairy Queen. Rich, Bekah and Bri ate their blizzards and I turned in for the night. Sunday, we all got up to wish Rich a Happy Birthday! I was also wished a Happy Mother's Day. Bekah ran and got breakfast for everyone (we didn't take a lot of food this trip). Then it was time to start packing up. Bekah and Bri hung out at the beach for a couple hours and Rich and I headed home.
Once home, Rich made a wonderful Mother's Day feast of hamburgers, hot dogs, shrimp, crab legs, corn on the cob, strawberry margaritas, and angel food cake!...then there was the chocolate chip cookie cake for Rich WOW! my mom and Rich's mom came over and we celebrated both Rich's birthday and Mother's Day! Fun weekend...

Wonderful!

I just realized I had not posted the details of our date that we had last Friday. I am sure that you are on the edge of your seat waiting for the update:). As previously said, we went to Leu Gardens to watch a movie on the lawn. It was wonderful. Rich made all the arrangements, the picnic basket full of goodies, brought the blanket and chairs and even the wine. Wonderful! (Okay, so I did embellish just a bit, we don't have a "picnic basket" but we do have Publix reusable bags and a lunch cooler, that worked perfectly.)
We got to Leu Gardens nice and early around 6:00 I believe, the movie was starting at 8:30 PM. I highly recommend anyone that is going to go early, it was fun watching people trying to squeeze into a spot later in the evening. So, we got there, it was a beautiful night. We set up our chairs and blanket and then walked around the gardens and yes, hand in hand...aww! Until my Mother called... just kidding Mom. We Love you! After a quick phone call, we resumed with our hand holding.
Food and Drink - one word "yummy." As we were walking around, we did decide to get a hot dog from the concession to tide us over until the movie and we opened our publix bag of treats. Rich brought cheeses, crackers, prosciutto and salami, little Italian thin bread sticks, grapes, hummus and chips, wine and for dessert, my favorite Milano cookies with chocolate and raspberry. He set it all up on a little bamboo platter and it was perfect.
I've seen the movie P.S. I Love you more than twice, it was one of my five movies when I lived in Louisville last year. I have to say this was by far the best time I have every watched it! It was just wonderful.
Thank you Rich for being you and taking such good care of me. I love you!

Lucky Girl

I am such a lucky girl! I don't think many would have imagined that after getting married at age 19 that I would be still SO IN LOVE with my wonderful man. He is my best friend. Not because he wasn't always wonderful, but because of our age and the length of time we were together before we got engaged. I don't blame those naysayers... with a daughter who is only 2 years younger than I was when I married Rich, I can't imagine her being married at 19. But it worked for us and I couldn't be happier. Rich and I were married when we were 19 and 21. I just turned 19 in August and we married in September of that same year, 1987. I graduated in June of '86, moved in with Rich on New Years Eve of 1986, Rich asked me to marry him on Valentines Day February 14th, 1987, we were married on September 12th, 1987. Wow! And here we are 22 years later, with a 20 year old and a soon to be 17 year old! Wow.. Wow.. Wow!
Just like the saying goes... Time flys when you are having fun!
Rich is so thoughtful, caring, fun, loving, funny and an amazing Father! I am truly a lucky girl! Rich and I grew up together, we grew trying new things, sharing everything we are with our children, opening our minds and hearts to new experiences. We grew together!
Tonight Rich is taking me on a date, Whoo Hoo! He was going to surprise me but he ended up telling me. We are going to Leu Gardens Movie night. We are going to see P.S. I Love you - a movie I really like. He is planning the date and I can't wait. Rich is such a wonderful man! And I am such a lucky girl!

Zack

I couldn't be more proud of Zack. Today I found out that he was recommended by his Staff Sargent for a Meritorious Corporal Board. This is an amazing achievement. The Staff Sargent recognizing Zack this way really says a lot about his character, his work ethic and his discipline. What makes this even more amazing is that Zack has only been a Lance Corporal for a couple of months. Way to go Zack! You are amazing!

Peaceful

Special moments become special memories that will last forever. On Thursday, Bekah and I spent the afternoon together. Nothing grand was scheduled, just going to lunch somewhere on Park Ave. We hadn't even decided where. It was a gorgeous day outside and we thought it would be nice to stroll through Central Park, Winter Park. I took my camera, I told Bekah she looked so pretty that I may have to snap some pictures while we were there. I love spending time with Bekah. We have great conversations and I thoroughly enjoy her company.
After we enjoyed our lunch at "Spice" one of our favorite places, Bekah took the orchid from her plate and put it behind her ear. We were walking over by the rose garden and I snapped this shot. I love the way it came out, Bekah looks so peaceful. I will always cherish the special moments I spend with her. Capturing as many pictures as possible is "Saving my sunshine" - my children are my sunshine.

I used a Hof3 Sanded Overlay frame.

Moonlight Mystery Prom 2009

Days Like This

After a very emotional Friday and Saturday visiting the family and attending Jakki's viewing and memorial service, it was nice to be able to just "hang out" with Rich and Bekah. The memorial service was very nice, standing room only in the YMCA gym. Jakki touched so many lives and it was apparent at her service. She will be missed by so many. Jakki, the way you lived your life is an inspiration to so many. It was good to see my cousins. The Allen family is such a loving family. So after traveling back and forth to Jacksonville on Friday and Saturday, Sunday was a day to reflect, relax and just be with one another.
We started the day very leisurely, checking email, searching the Internet, checking facebook, listening to music and watching a bit of TV. About 11ish, we mustered the energy to take the dogs to the dog park. Blue and BeeBee love going to the dog park. I am amazed how close they stay to us when not leashed. I think they may be afraid we might trade them in on another dog... :) Blue especially is very jealous. I also took the time to practice different settings on my camera and getting some action shots. It was a beautiful day outside, perfect for being outside. There was at one point when we lost sight of BeeBee. Bekah said "there she is" looking towards the lake. Rich made the comment how did she get over there so fast. (As I said before, they typically stay very close). So we walked down to the lake and marveled at how fast BeeBee was running and playing with other dogs, as this is not typical, until we realized we were taking pictures of a pug that was NOT BeeBee! This pug even had the same collar! It was a little embarrassing to say the least. I got some great shots. See below. You can see that this pug is much younger then BeeBee. We found BeeBee about 2ft from where we originated, she wasn't running around and we realized that's our dog!
During the car ride to the dog park we were contemplating lunch. Do we take it with us? What should we get? We ended up deciding to take the dogs first, then go to lunch. So after the dog park visit we took Blue and BeeBee home.
We settled on the Cuban Cafe in Winter Park, right off of Park Ave. They have the best homemade plantains. We enjoyed our lunch, sitting outside in our beautiful weather. After lunch, it was time for ice cream. Rich headed towards Cold Stone, which apparently according to Bekah is ick... we had to divert and go across the street to Marble Slab. That was a close call! Once again, we sat outside and had our ice cream dessert. As we were sitting outside we looked at our feet and legs, OMG! They were completely filthy from the dog park. So, after the ice cream, we sprinted home, washed our feet and legs and headed to the Mall of Millennium. Wasn't Rich's first choice, or second or third, but Bekah had a mall gift certificate that she had since Christmas and wanted to use it. Rich survived, Bekah spent some money and home we went. It doesn't matter what we are doing, as long as we are together we are having fun. I love my family! Rich, Bekah, Zack and of course BeeBee and Blue! I love days like this.
Not BeeBee
BeeBee

Happy Easter 2009

Happy Easter! Today was a very nice relaxing day. Rich's Mom, Dad, and Uncle came over today for Easter Brunch. It was just the 6 of us, plus the 2 dogs! My Mom and Bill are in Tennessee.
We did it up Southern style with a recipe from Paula Deen for French Toast Casserole with a praline topping, biscuits, chicken and gravy. We sat outside to eat as it was a beautiful day. Rich and Bekah went on a bike ride down to Lake Eola in the afternoon and we ended the day with the three of us watching a movie together. We called Zack and left a message for him wishing him a Happy Easter, we hope he gets a break as he has been very busy working! We hope he had a good day.
Happy Easter.

Rebekah Lauren Mills

Bekah on the Disney Wonder

Disney Cruise Spring Break 2009