You are going to think I am complaining. I am not. It's just that when I read these newsletters years from now I want to remember that the weather this spring seems to have gone from one extreme to another. With the temperature reaching the mid to high 80s, the last few days have been the hottest on record so far for 2005. We have had several very pleasant days as well. It just feels like the cold snaps have been colder and the warm spells have been hotter than most years.
BACK TO THE DOCTOR. I took Mom back to the ER on Friday as she felt like her knee was swelling again. I think she was probably feeling it sooner because it was still wrapped up from the previous visit to the ER. After this visit (they didn't draw any blood or fluid this time), an MRI and a visit to the orthopedic surgeon she is left with two options: a series of shots or knee replacement. Needless to say, she opted for the shots although she hasn't had the first one yet. She is doing better now.
A NEW CHAPTER. Sometimes when you accomplish things in life you have a big celebration. Other times you simply note it as a turn of the page. This is one of those "page turn" events--we have dismantled the baby bed. It served us well for these seven years but we are glad to have it stored away for future grandchildren. Now...we may be sending out party invitations when Nate is is out of diapers. I know my plan for the Diaper Genie definitely involves gunpowder and buckshot.
PARTY TIME. We had a choir party on Saturday at Jimmie and Susanne Pitt's house (they live next door). All the choir members and their families were invited and there was a good size crowd there. After eating supper Jimmie saddled up one of the horses and walked all the kids around the horse lot. I think that was the hit of the evening for them. It certainly was with our three kids.
SOCCER, SOCCER AND MORE SOCCER. It feels like we are doing more soccer as practice has been replaced with make-up games. I'll have to say that I've seen an improvement in Ben as he is focusing a bit more on the game than playing tag while on the field.
What is good to see is how she about Jenna is that she is learning to work together with her teammates to make plays happen. She has a knowledgeable coach who really expects a lot out of the team. He is intense but they respond very well to him which I think is because he treats the kids with respect. They had a really good game going tonight but the referee called it off shortly after half time due to an approaching storm. Jenna left pleased with her performance because she made lots of good defensive plays.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MOM. Today is Mom's birthday. We all went out to eat at the Catfish House after the soccer game to celebrate. I found out this morning that she was in Springfield for a church secretaries meeting so I made a quick trip to pick up some balloons and deliver them to her at the meeting. I knew at the time my stopping by meant a lot to her but later she told me I had "rendered her speechless." For those of you who know Mom well know that's pretty hard to do. How old is she? Well, I'll come close to giving that away in a moment.
REMINISCING ABOUT AUNT MYRTLE. Growing up I had an aunt we would see on occasion that I really thought a lot of. Aunt Myrtle passed away when I was in college. She lived in Nashville and we would visit each other several times a year when I was a boy. She was a very proper lady (she was "Mrs. J. O. Johnson") and even today I check my posture whenever I think about her. I think the reason I remember her so fondly is that she thought children were special and treated them that way. She always took the time to talk to me and take what I had to say seriously which is important to any young boy.
Jenna's birthday last month and Mom's birthday today has made me think a lot about Aunt Myrtle over the last few weeks. The reason is that, like Mom and Jenna, Aunt Myrtle and I had a 70 year age difference. I will never forget visiting with her one summer day when I was seven years old. Aunt Myrtle discovered I couldn't jump rope and set out to teach me (which she did). What was so neat was that at the age of 77 she could jump rope as well as any of the girls in my class at school.
Joe
