25 Wonderful Years

Yep, 25 years ago today, in the Washington Temple,  Eric and I got married. Eric insists on the word "Wonderful" always being associated with the "25."  Sometimes as a declaration, sometimes as a reminder, haha. And here we still are. When I asked Evan if he and his siblings had planned a big surprise party for us, he started slightly (there is no party planned), then said with a wry smile, "Well if we had, I wouldn't exactly be able to tell you about it, now would I?"

It's totally okay there won't be a party, and actually, his quick-witted answer rather delighted me. It made me think about how in our family, humor is one of the best things we have going for us. We laugh a lot.
I'm glad about that.

The first photo is from the bridal shower that Eric's mom threw for me. We'd been engaged a couple of weeks and while I was not at all expecting to be engaged at that point in my life, the strong friendship that we had established translated over to being engaged, and I think this photo shows that.

The other photos were taken by me and my self-timer as we stood on our front porch just before going out to dinner last night. I wore flowers in my hair to celebrate and we went to our favorite French place to eat great food and talk about regular stuff and feel grateful for our life together. The time together and the amazing food were our gifts to ourselves, and it was a great evening. The waiter got on board when we told him why we were there and brought our desserts with candles because he said it is a day for making wishes. That actually brought a tear to my eye. So we both wished for at least 25 more years and laughed some more.

1986

2011

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A Friend Makes Anything Fun

My pal Kirsten and I made a plan to spend a day together at an art gallery. We took the metro, made it to Dupont Circle (it's been a long time since I've been to that metro stop-the escalator is impressive-like going up into heaven), found the gallery with no trouble, and discovered that, naturally, it is closed on Monday. 

Neither one of us thought to call. 

Heaven awaits. 

Just Kidding. Proper exposure shows it's just Dupont Circle.
But it is a BIG escalator. 

Our hoped-for destination. 

It's a gorgeous building. 

Except for this bit. 

But no matter. We had fun in Dupont Circle anyway (bookstore, fantastic burger, yummy bakery), and now we're guaranteed of another day together because the Eversave expires in a month or so.

There was plenty of other fun to be had. 

And burgers to eat. Those are Sweet Potato Fries!
Fabulous. 

And back we go into the metro. 

So it's all good. And it was a reminder of this quote that I like. For us, this was a laugh and a lark.  I treasure the time together, even though it ended up being what some might call "nothing," it was really a wonderful little oasis of refreshment in our busy lives.

The real test of friendship is: can you literally do nothing with the other person? Can you enjoy those moments of life that are utterly simple?
Eugene Kennedy 

The answer is yes. I enjoyed myself completely and can't wait till Take 2!

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What if Love Was Our Only Motivation

This is the title of an address that was given earlier this year at Brigham Young University during their weekly devotional.  I get these addresses via podcast, and finally caught up and listened to this one this morning during my own daily personal devotional time.

It was a powerful experience for me to consider, especially in light of the many possible motivations that are out there, whether or not my motives are always powered by love. Is such a thing even possible or practical while trying to live a normal, productive life? This speaker suggests that not only that it is possible, but that it will significantly improve not only our own life, but the lives of those around us.

It is tempting to turn inward and think only of protecting ourselves, of preventing personal hurt or embarrassment, or of working only for personal gain.

After reading and listening to this man's ideas, my mind and heart have opened up enough to think about things differently.

I love that I'm halfway through my life and I'm still learning. May it ever be so.

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Foreign Exchange

This week has been filled with the delicious excitement of arrivals.
Sara and Johnathan returned home from Spain on Monday.
They slept.
And talked.

And waited for their new-found friends to come. 

And on Wednesday, those friends did come. 

All the way from Madrid. 

Later than planned, and tired and not used to the humidity. 

But smiling and gracious. 

I like them both so much, Jorge and Sergio. 

The house is full again-5 kids here and lots to do: 

Late nights and welcome meetings and swimming and visits to the city-we've been busy. 

It will be gone in a blink, so I want to remember it all. 

Johnathan was first off the bus when
they arrived home on Monday. 

Sara saw Evan and dropped her bag...

and ran straight to him. 

On Wednesday the Spanish kids arrived and there were
many reunions. 

Welcome Sergio! We still need a photo with Jorge, one
of the Spanish chaperones, who is also staying with us. 

Friday was a  big party at Splashdown, a local pool with a
rocking waterslide...

And a rope swing.

And room for everyone to have a big, splashy visit. 

Johnathan on the rope. 

Jorge swishes out of the slide tube. 

Johnathan does his best Superman impression.

While Sara looks more like an angel when she flies. 

We love this photo both because of Ev's awesome
flipping skills AND the looks on the faces of the women
in the background. 

Today we went into Baltimore to check out Artscape.
We took the Light Rail train which is sooo slow but easier
than trying to park downtown. 

Artscape had all you would imagine a street
festival to have: Sights to see...

Hawaiian ices to savor...

Time to spend together...

and of course, Five-dollar lemonade that you can't
resist because your water bottle is
empty and it's so hot.

The train on the way home was crowded-we had to
stand for the first 20 minutes. 

On the way out of the city, you see
everything from the urban landscape

to the wetlands of the Patapsco River...

Sometimes you have to wait for the next train to get to
your station. 

But when you're with friends,
both new and old, it's all
good.

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Johnathan at 22

My second son happens to be living at home right now, so we had the opportunity today to celebrate his birthday with him. We pulled out all the stops for dinner and had grilled porterhouse steaks, corn on the cob, grilled zucchini, bread and my pal's outstanding homemade pesto. What a meal. I'm nearly asleep as I try to digest. While we take a break and get ready for cake and candles, Johnathan is allowing me to interview him.

Me: How was your day?
J: It was busy.
Me: In a good way?
J: Yeah, I never regret being busy. I was getting ready for Jorge to come from Spain. It was also fun to be able to give people gifts on my birthday as I delivered my presents from Spain.
Me: What do you see happening for you in the next year?
J: I see myself living on my own, preparing to move on to the next phase of my life.  Sometime I want to get married a start a family, so I need to prepare for that to happen with work and education.
Me: What was something good that happened in the past year:
J: Returning home after serving an honorable full-time mission. When I say that, I'm also glad that I got home ready to keep going, knowing it was another beginning, not an end, and that I had put in my best efforts and worked my hardest.
Me: How do you most enjoy spending your free time right now:
J: In the company of friends with whom I have a lot in common.
Me: What's something you want the world to know about you right now?
J: That I'm secretly black. Just kidding. My real answer is that life is very good and that I'm enjoying it a lot.
Me: Anything else?
J: Nope.
Me: Happy Birthday!

Johnathan has always been a great person. I homeschooled him for 3 years and when he went back to school I genuinely missed having him around. He has a pleasant, kind personality, and he is one of the hardest working people I've ever met. He has a wicked sense of humor and likes to look for the positive aspects of every situation.

I'm thrilled at what a great person he's grown into and can't wait to see what life brings for him.

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A Dead Cell Phone, an Unlucky Banana and Some Vegetables

I'm sure you are intrigued.
Here's the scoop:

Friday, Evan and I took the metro down to the city to meet up with a couple of his friends. It was, overall, a great day...for a boy. For a mom, it was a great learning experience. Here is the summary:

• Tip #1: Don't take a non-disposable water bottle to the Capitol. You can't take it in, even if it is empty (this is an actual travel tip so remember it-never have I seen so many disgruntled tourists). 
• Tip #2: If you do take a non-disposable water bottle to the Capitol, throw it away before you let your kid walk into the capitol to meet friends without you, even if you think he will only be in there for 30 minutes and then be right back out.  Water bottles are cheap. Therapy is expensive.  
• Tip #3: Make sure your phone is charged. All the time. Just do it. Go charge it right now. 
• Tip #4: When the security guard at the Capitol tells you that EVERYONE will come out the same door they came in, don't believe her. There are TUNNELS to leave the Capitol. It is possible that, while you wait and assume your kid will just come back to the last place you were together, your kid is walking to the Library of Congress invisibly, right under your feet and then taking a train to the Lincoln Memorial without any knowledge on your part. See #3 above. 
• Tip #5: Remember that in Washington D.C, the most heavily guarded and paranoid city on earth, it is not a good idea to look desperate, crazy and unbalanced. Get a grip on yourself and try not to look like a terrorist BEFORE you walk up to a police officer to ask to use his phone to try and get in touch with your 15-year old son who is now on the other side of the National Mall, which looks rather small on google maps but is actually about an hour walk from end to end. 
• Tip #6: Remember that even if you made that previously-mentioned water-bottle mistake, you are still a smart person and can figure it out (10 minutes of walking, a 15-minute taxi ride and a 20-minute pedi-cab adventure later we were back together,  on the train and on our way home) and that if the kid is smiling and thinks it was all a big adventure, it's not so bad. But go charge your cell phone anyway. 

It looks so beautiful from this vantage point. 

The Mighty Statue of Freedom

Pavement in the rain while I waited for Evan

People Watching Heaven

More People Watching as the rain started. 

The Library of Congress. He was probably in there when I
turned around and took this photo. 

So that was Friday. 

And really, can anything be more gripping than accidentally losing your kid in the Capital of the Free World? Take a deep breath and prepare for the tale of the Unlucky Banana. 

You probably already know this, but I did not. Bananas are the worst kind of bad luck on a fishing boat. It's true, but I, being unlearned in the ways of the sea, unwisely packed a single, deadly Musa acuminata polyploid in Evan's lunch for his Chesapeake Bay fishing trip on Saturday. It went unnoticed in his little cooler for the first part of the day but to the brave fisherman plying the waves for edible prizes, its effects were painfully obvious. Nothing but toadfish and a couple of spotfish for the first hour and a half of the trip. For anyone. When the banana was discovered, Evan was almost thrown overboard along with it for bringing such a deadly curse upon their fair vessel, but instead, they just jettisoned the evil yellow. True to its sinister nature, it followed them, floating ominously back to the boat. The owner gunned it for a full five minutes and they finally got far enough away for the power of the fruit-that-shall-not-be-named to wane. The other passengers avoided Ev for another couple of hours until he finally caught a fish, then gradually things turned around and the expedition was a success. The bottom line:  With the cursed, thick-skinned thing on the boat, 2 keepers. After nature's not-so-perfect-food was properly exorcized, 62 keepers. SIXTY-TWO!!! 

I tell you, I'm convinced and you should be too. Beware the banana friends. Seriously. 

As if that wasn't enough to think about, on Saturday night my garden got some special visitors. It was so fun to watch these kids I adore climbing around the veggies, squealing with delight when they found something to pick. I loved it. My own kids' interest in the garden has waned over the years, so it is fun to have some younger ones nearby for whom it is still a novelty. It is really satisfying to see this tiny little patch of land be alive in so many different ways. 

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