Fear and what you do with it

 Like my mom and sisters, I am afraid of heights. I've tried to get over it. I've been to Pikes Peak on a motorcycle,  in a small car, and an rv. I've traveled the highest road in the US. I've hiked to Hawksbill Craig and went to the ledge for pictures. I've jumped at Falling Water Falls. I've ventured out onto the skywalk at the Grand Canyon (to be fair I sat down and scooted back to the building after I looked down). The point is I did these things even though I was afraid and nothing bad happened. My heart probably beat a little faster. So I'm back on the band wagon trying to conquer these fears and I'm going to learn to cut glass. I've had the glass cutter for two years. It's about time to dust it off. Now I'm not going to get carried away. There's no way in hell I will go pick raspberries by myself.  The bears like them as much as I do.

One day

 

One day soon he won't fit in my lap. He won't take naps or laugh hysterically at my tickles.  He's growing so fast. Saying new words and learning all sorts of new things. Things like cabinet doors pinch. Dogs don't like cantaloupe and it feels weird under your feet, but it doesn't taste bad. Things really important like Papa Ralph never runs out of cookies and Poppy can wake up really, really early. Things like Granny is much nicer after her coffee and will brush my teeth every night no matter how loud the squalling gets. One day I hope he understands how much he's loved.

Blurbs

 I'm sitting down and it's kinda slow and I think to myself "I need to call Mom" and a couple of seconds later there's a stab to my heart and reality hits. She's been gone nine years and still my mind won't/can't process this fact. I could tell her anything.  Rant. Cry. Voice unpopular opinions. It didn't matter. She'd listen. Sometimes cry with me. Sometimes telling me what I needed to hear. It was nice always having someone. No matter what, no matter when, no matter where. Miss you Mom.

Memorial Day

 I know today was meant to honor those who died in service to our Country,  but if you live near the hills of Jasper, Arkansas things are a little different.  The Sunday before Memorial Day is Decoration Day which is a lot like it sounds. You decorate.  You decorate graves of loved ones. Every cemetery.  Some people come from hundreds of miles away. Every grave is decorated. We made it last year and visited with a lot of people.  This year was harder, but all the graves looked beautiful. 

Iris 2023

 From my yard this year;

beach, beach, beach

 As an island, St. Thomas has a lot of beaches (as does St. John's) but here's the ones that we visited:

Magen's Bay Beach(the very first day):

Sapphire beach( sunrise and snorkling):

Coki Beach(after Coral World)

Trunk Bay Beach(lots of fish and the island)

Maho Bay Beach(Sea turtles!!!!)

Neltjeberg Beach (down the dirt road):

Linquist Beach (snorkeling):

Down the hatch

 Just because vacation is over doesn't mean I'm ready to let it go. I set out to try the famous Painkiller and Bush wacker drinks that St. Thomas is famous for, but did you know that the banana daiquiri was invented there? Well now you do, and it was added to the list as well. Not gonna lie, the banana daiquiri kicked my butt. I liked the painkiller and loved the bush wacker.