Friday, February 12, 2010

98 and Counting

Last weekend, Bella and I took a trip to Florida to see my Grandma and celebrate her 98th birthday. All of her 7 children were there, along with most of their spouses. My brother, Paul, and Isabella and I represented the 17 grandchildren and 21 (about to be 22) great-grandchildren. It was great getting a chance to catch up with our aunts and uncles, and a rare opportunity for them to see Isabella.


Isabella was a real trooper, flying from San Antonio to Orlando, with a 6 hour layover in Atlanta. We were some of the lucky ones, though, as we had an onward flight. Many around us were scrambling to try to get into points north before the approaching storms, or were stranded from the previous ones. Rough go...


The trip back home was equally uneventful for us. We got back to find that Charlie, who had been looked after by Tita Mickie and Tita Lyn (thanks, ladies) had left the house mostly unscathed. He was really glad to see us though, ebulliently bouncing around the house.

Life as a single Papa has been interesting. I'm gaining an incredible amount of respect for those who do this full time. It isn't easy. But, it's rewarding, and I couldn't ask for a better child. She has her moments, as do we all, but overall, I'm terrifically blessed.

Melody is doing fine out in Washington State. She's so far done Combatives (i.e., hand to hand combat), HMMWV rollover training, rifle and pistol qualifications, land navigation, and a lot of other things. She's enjoying the training, and I continually tell her to pay attention, as it will go far to getting her back to us. Still, it's awfully quiet around here without her. We miss her terribly, but are getting thru it. The routine mentioned in the previous post helps. Still, we can't wait for the time to go by.

Be sure to take a look at her blog, www.dearbabybee.com.

A few more pictures from the weekend...















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