Tales of the Ordinary Days

Selfie attempt at Hy-Vee to memorialize Matt's last purchase as a Nebraska resident (note that Matt was supposed to be in the picture) My brother, Matt, moved out of Omaha this morning. He began his 20 hour road trip to Kingman, Arizona at about 5:30 a.m. With car loaded to the hilt and fresh off of a going-away party from last night, there were few words between us. Just a quick hug and wave. And then he was gone. Life changes just keep marching on in my life and this is another biggie. My brothers and I grew up close in age and close in life. Matt is the oldest and I am the youngest. There is only 28 months between our birthdays with our brother, Mark, born in between. Being so close in age, we shared friends, teachers and experiences through our childhood years. I have often said that birth order rules don't apply to us. There is one thing the three of us share and that is a sense of humor. We fought our way through childhood, constantly trying to outwit each o...

Caption of photo: Miss Daisy Driving (Zach and my recent Vegas/Arizona road trip to visit my parents) A friend recently posted a quote that has stuck with me. "The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities." - Stephen Covey Too often, I have let my schedule run my life. Not always, but more in my past than I'd like to admit. And I am not in the minority with this offense. It is more common for people to let their days run them, rather than them running their days. Priorities. This last month has been a win for me in the priority management category. There were many great times with my husband, kids, parents, friends. This feat did require planes and a lot of careful planning, but a success. Zach has turned the page to 24, Ben safely past the age of 21, and Grant a golden 17. Although my three sons live in three cities, we found a way to uniquely celebrate each April birthday. My husband finished his teaching st...

Mom firing up her vintage Singer for some repair work on Garrett's jeans Day 74 was full of sunshine in beautiful Arizona. Mom, Dad, Garrett, and I kicked back and enjoyed exercise, activities, and lots of great conversations. Mom and I started with an early Silver Sneakers class at her gym. Kip led us in a strength-training class with a group of about a dozen. With some hyped-up oldies music, we got our strength on. Dad got in his many walks for the day and Garrett and I both found time to enjoy a run in the Arizona sunshine. Health is very important to my parents. They have their daily activities that keep their bodies fit and eating habits exemplify clean living. I often remark that my mom has always been ahead of the pack in understanding the good and the bad on the health spectrum. She defined 'clean eating' while we were all consuming mounds of processed, fat-free foods in the 90's. In the 70's my mom was 'uncool' at the pool, wearing a flop...

From Ben's phone The adventure has begun. Ben and Mom. Mom and Ben. A quick trip planned in a short timeline. But life is short and time, a treasure. So we are off on our adventure. The idea of a getaway began 19 days ago when Ben sent me a text at 2:51 a.m. on a Saturday morning. I quickly surmised that my middle child, who doesn't like to miss a party, was creating his own party. Coincidentally my blog post the day prior was on his brothers spending a week together in Denver without him on Grant's spring break. It was tempting. Very tempting. We hadn't seen my parents since last May at Ben's graduation. Although time is a scarcity these days, I bit. My counteroffer was that the trip would have to fall over a long weekend. An excited Ben called his grandpa the same day to seal the deal. I was just as excited. I missed my parents. Spontaneous quick trips many times hold pleasant surprises and the best memories. With a 19 day window to take off, I sec...