Still Considering the Iris

Days later, and I'm still marveling at both the handiwork of God and how well my little camera captured it!



The colors: some bold, some pale.

The frills: some delicate, some strong.

The blooms: all breathtaking, all proof of the Creator's endless imagination.

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Psalm 19:1

Still more to come. Check back soon!

No Itching Here

Seven years ago today, I married my best friend.

Since then, life has been crazy and fun and full of surprises and adventures. Most of them have been wonderful; a few have been difficult. All of them have been easier because we've had each other.

We've laughed. A lot.

We've journeyed through life together.

We've cried some, too.

And we've had our communication challenges and our moments when communication simply didn't exist. We've frustrated each other. We've even made each other angry.

But those things make us human.

It's hard to remember life before April 20, 2002. Life before sharing a bathroom and fighting for the covers on a cold night. Life before the inevitable toilet seat up-versus-down debate. Life before the risk of having someone else eat your leftovers before you could get to them. Life before sharing the remote control. Life before splitting holiday and vacation time between TWO families.

But I wouldn't trade any of it. (Okay, I'd trade the toilet seat being up in the middle of the night.) Because through all of those adventures, we've become a team. We've built a home together that is a haven for us. We've grown a ministry together. We've become family.

Happy anniversary, Studly Man.

I love you.

September 1, A Memorable Day...

It was Labor Day weekend on the edge of a warm Texas summer. The year was 2001.

He wanted to go shopping. She wanted to be anywhere he was.

He wanted to "see the latest trends" in menswear at Neiman Marcus. She feared he'd spend too much.

He wanted to meander around the pretentious North Dallas mall. She wanted to be anywhere he was.

He wanted to get an idea of the fall trends and then purchase elsewhere. She sighed with relief at his fiscal sensibilities.

He wanted to invite another friend to join them for dinner. She wanted to be anywhere he was.

He suggested dinner at Houston's, her favorite and a place they frequented together. Saturday night at Houston's certainly meant a wait. She didn't mind; the more time with him, the better. She secretly hoped their friend would not arrive. He knew he wouldn't.

At about 8:15, a quiet booth fortuitously opened in the bar, and they slipped into it. Over a plate of delicious guacamole salad accompanied by a wonderful pinot grigio, they talked of the significance of an upcoming date, October 6. She reminded him that not only would it include the blessing of the ministry's annual fund raiser, but it was also the anniversary of their first kiss!

He said, "Well, how'd I do?"

She smiled and said, "VERY well."

He said, "We've sure learned a lot about each other over the past year and that only leaves one question. Will you marry me? You don't have to answer right away. You can think about it."

"Do I HAVE to think about it? YES!!!!!!!!!!" she exclaimed.

After a sweet, celebratory kiss, they enjoyed dinner and discussed with excitement the plans for their future.

After leaving Houston's, he drove her to Celestial Park. In the center of the enormous sundial, the acoustics change in an amazing way as to drown out all other sound. He led her there, and under the starry sky, he sweetly whispered "I love you" in her ear, the only thing she could hear. Her heart melted... again.

As he drove her home that night, her heart was so full. She thanked the Lord for answering her prayers and bringing this precious man into her life to be her beloved forever.

I love you, Studly Man.

Ahhh.... September.

Defeating a determined enemy

In the morning, Studly Man and I will be leading a team of 25 volunteers into our local juvenile prison.

We are strangely delighted by the horrendous week we've had. (We're delighted NOW... it took a few days to get that way.)

Let me explain.

Studly's sister is an amazing artisan. She left her job as a chemical engineer after adopting four amazing kids, and she has replaced her income by selling her art. (Those kids are seven, seven, six and five now - pray for her!!) She lives near Austin, and we're here in Dallas. There is a huge art festival here this weekend. Her husband is at another huge art festival in Santa Fe selling her art, so he couldn't travel with her and help her during the show here. That means that Studly's parental units had to drive five hours from Brownsville (FAR south Texas) up to Austin, pick up Sister and her wares, and drive four and a half more hours to Dallas to check in at Casa de Castro.

While I was at the grocery store last night at about 9:40, they arrived. Which was after we'd returned from my parents' 55th anniversary dinner/party thingy that I planned. Which was after I got home from the dentist. Which was after I broke a tooth by chewing my night guard in half. Which was after Studly spent three hours on his hands and knees or a ladder frantically trying to get blood (lots o' blood) off the walls, ceiling and just-professionally-cleaned-seven-days-ago carpet before his family arrived for the weekend. Which was after Shiloh sliced her tail and then wagged it briskly for say, oh, an hour or more while no one was home, slinging blood all.over.the.place. Which was after Studly delivered his brand spanking new project to his potential first buyer. Which was after a very long and sleepless night preparing for the delivery of said new project. Which was after a spat we had over who would unload the dishwasher. Which was after I spilled a half gallon of milk on the freshly mopped floor.

This was in a 24-hour-period.

There's SO much more for the previous 48 hours, but my fingers are tired. Use your imagination.

Why? WHY are we delighted that we had such a horrendous week? We've learned a simple truth.

satan (yes, not capitalized on purpose) doesn't waste his time attacking where God is not at work. Why would he? If there is no threat that God's kingdom will be added unto, glorified, honored or built up, satan will focus his efforts elsewhere.

God must have really big plans in store for this weekend....



We're rejoicing. We weren't earlier in the week because we'd had a momentary lapse of reason, but we are now.

Please remember our team and the kids we'll minister to in your prayers.

This day in history

Exactly 55 years ago today, two amazing people pledged their lives to one another forever.

Last night as I sat at the dinner table talking to them, I learned something I'd never heard before. Part of the story I knew, but there was one BIG piece I'd never known.

Dad was in college on a naval ROTC scholarship and as such, he had to go on a six-week midshipman's cruise. Mom was "back home," and though she loved him, she feared her high school romance might not be "the one" she should commit to forever. She was young and hadn't dated too many others, and she felt she needed to make sure she wasn't going to make a mistake. While he was at sea, she dated a little. Nothing serious, just general "getting to know you" types of dates.

At one point while Dad was away, she wrote him a "Dear John" letter, which is funny considering his name is, well... John. She has always said she knew before the letter hit the bottom of the mailbox, it was a mistake. She could only trust that IF this relationship was meant to be, the letter wouldn't matter.

Dad got the letter. Dad ignored what it said.

Smart man!


When his ship returned, he got his pay and spent everything he had on her engagement ring. All he could think of was getting to her. He had no money. He was Norfolk, Virginia at the naval base, and she was at home in Roanoke, Virginia. How did he get there?

He hitchhiked.

For 200 miles.

He didn't even go to his own home to see his family after six weeks at sea. He went to her home.

When he got there, her mother told him she wasn't home because....

SHE

WAS

OUT

ON

A

DATE.

On.a.date.

With someone else.


Being very sure of himself and his intention, he opted to stay there and wait for her.


To come home.

From her date.

With someone else.




That absolutely cracked me up when I heard that last night!

And yes, it was meant to be.



Happy 55th, Mom and Dad. I love you both more than words can say. You have set the bar high and given your daughters a most excellent model of a Christian marriage. Thank you for loving each other right.in.front.of.us. Thank you honoring and respecting each other. Thank you for being faithful to your vows and to our Lord.

This girl is glad an ill-conceived "Dear John" letter missed its mark.

1953
2008

I'd Marry Him All Over Again

And I really want to, because when we got married, they didn’t have these. Okay, well they did, but they were "new" on the wedding scene, and we hadn’t ever heard of them. Every April, I tell Studly Man we hafta get married again so we can have one at our reception. He ignores me.

Since he won’t let me have another wedding (I LOVED being a bride), he compensated with a wonderful anniversary celebration. Last year at our church’s annual golf tournament, he won a gift certificate for a night’s stay here. We cashed it in on Saturday night. What a grand idea! It felt like a honeymoon trip all over again.

After we got Frick and Frack settled at my parents’ house, we journeyed on to Frisco to begin our adventure. (Those dawgs would not be happy with their mother for calling them Frick and Frack, but hey, they can’t read.) When we arrived at the hotel, Studly went to park the car while I went to check us in. My eyes rolled back in my head and a seizure ensued I was so excited when I entered the lobby. It was beautiful and hip, and I knew we were in for a treat. After presenting the gift certificate to the nice young gentleman at check-in kiosk number 1 (no long traditional check-in counter), I received our room key. Cracked me up.

All of the keys have one of about 20 clever little sayings on them. Studly’s said, "Take your children on an outdoor adventure.... in our lobby." Mine was cuter. But then, that’s not surprising. But I digress.

While I waited for Studly to arrive from Outer Mongolia the parking garage, I whipped out my trusty camera. I am my father's daughter, and I took pictures of just about everything! As I've always had a love for beautiful art glass, I took lots of pictures of what we saw. I also love beautiful light fixtures and chandeliers, and imagine how happy I was to find beautiful colored art glass light fixtures and chandeliers! (Those three sentences are for Susan. She says I make her listen to all my stories more than once, so it’s her own fault for coming here to read about a story she’s already heard. 'Cuz o' that, I cut and pasted sentences from an email I sent her. That'll teach her. So there.) Anywho, here are some of the beautiful lights in the hotel’s lobby.

Studly arrived, and Jason, our young bellman, escorted us to our room with our puny little overnight bag proudly riding on the hotel’s huge luggage cart. It looked so lonely all by itself, but Jason gave it (and us) the royal treatment. He opened the door to Suite 424 and little bluebirds circled above our heads and serenaded us in sweet song we entered our home for the evening. It was beautifully appointed.


After we embarrassed ourselves by taking geeky pictures of a hotel suite changed our clothes, we left the hotel for dinner at Nicola’s. If you live in North Texas and have never been to this fine establishment, you have been cheated. We had an early reservation and got there before the throngs of weekend revelry seekers arrived. It was beautiful and quiet and wonderful. And it had chandeliers. LOTS of chandeliers! So I threatened bodily harm asked Studly to snap a few shots.
Our waitress noticed our attempts at documenting our evening, so she volunteered to take a picture of the happy couple together. Not bad...After a glass of wine and some fabulous bruschetta, we ordered dinner. I had Lasagnetta, one of the house specialties, and it was indeed special. It was chicken and artichoke hearts layered with lasagna, Ricotta cheese, and tomato sauce. To die for! Studly had Filetto di Manzo which was black pepper-crusted beef tenderloin with grilled vegetables, red wine and gorgonzola sauce. It was mediocre only in that it was HIS dinner and not mine. Both entrees were out.of.this.world. Jealous much?

Thinking we couldn’t possibly eat another bite, we asked for the dessert menu. The choices were legion. After a brief discussion, decisions were made. The gentleman had Affogato al Caffe (that just SOUNDS romantic) which was vanilla bean gelato with a shot of espresso and Cantucci almond cookies. The lady (that’s me) had Semifreddo al Croccantino. That’s semi-soft Amaretto Italian gelato with crushed almond praline topped with a touch of chocolate sauce. My mother taught me never to lick the bowl in public, but hey, Momma wasn’t there! Oh.my.goodness. Perfection in a bowl.

Being thoroughly satisfied with our dining experience and desiring to get out of the fray of the weekend rush, we walked outside to a gorgeous Texas evening and began our stroll through the plaza filled with restaurants and shops and theaters and flowers and fountains and people listening to a wonderful street musician. It was a great way to pass the time until the next portion of the evening began.

We went to the Angelika and saw Smart People. It was enjoyable, but the best part was running in to our very dear friends, Amy and Chris, as we were exiting the building. They were celebrating their first wedding anniversary and were on their way into the theater to catch a flick as well. It was great to see them and share the celebration of two anniversaries.

Then it was back to our palace for the evening. We rested well and slept in late. When we finally got dressed, we went down to the complimentary cooked-to-order breakfast that included fresh fruit, yogurt, cereal, French toast, crispy bacon, buttermilk biscuits and gravy, scrambled eggs with cheese, sausage, grits, ham, steak and omelets. We ate until they made us leave we couldn’t eat another bite.

It was a wonderful celebration. We picked up Frick and Frack and went home to get our insulin.

Happy sixth anniversary, Honey. I love you.

Haven't seen you in 24 years! Excuse me while I vomit. In your new home.

This past weekend, Studly Man and I escorted my dear parents to Atlanta for the celebration of Mom’s brother and sister-in-love’s 50th wedding anniversary. Though American Airlines TRIED to ruin our fun, we persevered. Almost.

Speaking of air travel with elderly parents, here’s a tip: Prearrange with the airline to have wheelchairs meet you at the door. I’ll never fly again that SOMEONE in my party isn’t in a wheelchair, whether they need it or not! Assigned bulkhead seats that can’t be taken away, early pre-boarding, wheeled by escorts from door to door - it’s the only way to fly. That is unless you can afford one of these. We can’t.

My four cousins, whom I had not seen since our grandmother’s funeral in 1984, had planned a great party for their parents. (I had seen my aunt and uncle since then, just not their kids.) It was so much fun to meet their spouses and children I’d only heard about and seen in pictures. Studly finally got to meet those people he’d heard so much about when I’d share stories of the six cousins (four of them, my sister and me) growing up together. We were "stair steps," separated only by a year or two. I am fourth in the line-up, which means I usually fell right in the middle of the shenanigans. We reminisced and talked about favorite home movies we all watched over and over and over again - in reverse! We laughed about funny things our grandparents did and their funny little dog. We quizzed each other on events that happened decades ago. We laughed until our sides hurt. A great time was had by all!

Can I just say... my cousins ROCK. They planned every detail of the party, right down to these. The food was awesome. I wanted to get in the punch bowl and absorb that punch through my pores. The flowers were gorgeous. The speeches were heartwarming. It was grand. It was fun to have (most of) the family together again after all these years.
After the party, Studly and I were to spend the night with my cousin. He’s single and lives in a beautiful townhome. He’s an architect, and he has quite the eye for interior design. He was a gracious host. I mean really gracious.
Somewhere in the wee hours of the morning, I woke up with a headache. Knowing I needed to take something soon, I glanced over at Studly who was sleeping soundly. I considered what my dear cousin had said shortly before we turned in for the night. Cuzin Joe is a light sleeper. Passing his bedroom door to go down the wooden stairs for a glass of water would surely wake him. That'd be three people awake because I needed a glass of water. I decided against getting up and prayed the headache would abate.


Bad idea. Bad, BAD idea.


When we finally got up in the morning light, I knew I was in trouble. I got in a hot shower and asked Studly to please go get something liquid to wash down the medicine I was overdue to take. He smiled and said, "Be right back!" I continued getting ready for the day, even though I could feel the tiny little men with pickaxes chipping away at my brain. We were going to do some touristy stuff. We wanted to go here and here. We had big plans.

It occurred to me Studly had been gone a long time. I called down the stairs for him. Silence. I called for Cuzin Joe. Silence. I looked out the window. Cuzin’s truck was gone. I knew in a instant where they had gone. Studly knows caffeine often helps with my migraines. He also knows I love me some coffee. I waited. And I waited. And I waited s'more. FINALLY they arrived. Studly was holding my latte and wearing a big grin that said he was so proud of himself for securing the favored caffeinated drink for his ailing wife. I sat down on the couch after swallowing some Advil with a latte chaser. Trying to make pleasant conversation was a chore. And then I knew. I knew I was in real.serious.trouble.

After excusing myself, I made my way dizzily back up the stairs to the privacy of the bathroom. And I got sick. I mean REALLY sick. While I was wondering if Studly and Cuzin could HEAR me being sick, I got sick again. And again. A venti latte from Starbucks is a lot easier to clean off the wall than lighter liquids might be not nearly as appetizing the second time around. I’m just sayin’.

When at last the evil vomit monster retreated, I looked for a cool washcloth to soothe my face. I looked in the mirror. Oh, NO!

Here's what I saw:
I had strained so much that tiny blood vessels under my eyes had ruptured. Now I’d been sick in my cousin-whom-I-hadn't-seen-in-24-years' home AND I looked like a battered woman. Nice. Really nice. It did bring some sympathy, I must admit, but it certainly wasn’t funny. (BTW, those pictures clearly show what my momma calls my "sick eyes." How apt a description is that?)

I wandered downstairs and frightened both my husband and my cousin, who had in fact NOT heard what had been happening upstairs. (Thank God for that!) They stared at me and inquired about my new appearance. I told them I had been assaulted by the American Airlines ticket agent who had had.enough.of.me. at the airport. Geez. How lovely.

Then my dear cousin suggested this. I love that man. He also suffers from migraines, but he is smarter than I am. He never gets too far away from the big guns. I never will again either. I learned my lesson.

Humbled? Yes, sir. Embarrassed? Yes, ma’am. Glad it’s over? Um, yeah. I think I am.

I invited my cousin to visit us in Texas. Wonder if he’ll do it. I may have just scared him off 'cuz really, who wants to visit their Vomitin' Cousin? At least we aint' the kissin' kind. And that's all I have to say about that.