Bucket List Item Complete Part 1

Since I was a little girl I can remember thinking that hot air balloons were so magical.  There is something quite serene and beautiful about them.

Last Friday, Lee and I experienced a hot air balloon flight for the first time, and it was such a wonderful experience.  I'll call it....celebrating our anniversary in style!

This was our third attempt at going up in the balloon.  The previous two attempts were cancelled due to bad weather and high winds.  The total experience lasted four hours, and it was well worth the dent to our pocketbook!

We first arrived at the Bloomington airport at 5:30 p.m.  After initial paperwork, we were driven to our launching site on the east side of the IU campus.  The balloon coasted its way to the north side of Ellettsville.  We had the joy of being with another couple near our age.  A second balloon also went up, and we followed it for most of our journey.  We grazed treetops, waved to people below, and enjoyed the beautiful sunset.  It was amazing!

After landing in a field (where the owner was not pleased), we loaded back into the van and returned to the balloon hangar at the airport.  There we were greeted with champagne, appetizers, and the story of the first hot air balloon ride in history.  We were able to see how the balloons are made and the many baskets used for passengers.  At 9:30 p.m. we headed home.

It was an experience!  Bucket list item complete!

A New Half Bath

We purchased our home 6 years ago. When we bought it, we took on the responsibility of updating it, as its decor was straight out of the 70s and 80s. We have done A LOT of work on the house, but we have been avoiding the bathrooms and kitchen because of the cost of such renovations.

This year we decided to bite the bullet and work on the master half bathroom. This is a bathroom that I primarily use day-to-day. We began work at the end of June, and throughout one weekend, we finished a lot of the work. For the past 6 weeks, we have done some work here and there. But now it is complete!!

Check out this link for the progress and the finished product!  My hubby gives some details in the picture descriptions.  Enjoy!!  http://imgur.com/a/2hu0r

My Furry Firstborn

13 months ago today, we lost our tuxedo kitty, Oreo (http://raclee.blogspot.com/2011/06/healing-begins.html).  Last night his “brother” Furby joined him both spiritually and physically.  My two boys have been with me through thick and thin – through moves, relationships, children, other pets – and they were always the constant in my adult life.  Having them both gone leaves a hole in my heart.

Furby was a birthday gift from my then-boyfriend for my 20^th birthday.  I remember going to the humane society, and as soon as I picked up a 1 ½ year old cat named Furby, he gave me a hug.  He forever had my heart.  

Furby experienced a lot of change during his time with me – a concept that kitties do not like.  He briefly lived with my then-boyfriend, spent a few nights with me in my college dorm room, and lived with my parents for 2 years while I lived in an apartment that didn’t accept pets.  After I graduated college and moved out on my own, I purposely chose an apartment where I could finally have my Furby.  He was soon joined by Oreo and within a year, I was moving to Bloomington.  There he met my stepdaughter, a female kitty, moved with us to our new home, met a bunny, lost the female kitty and bunny, met Amelia, lost his best friend Oreo, and met Charlie.  If there was anything constant in his life, it was change.

And while he may not have been the friendliest kitty when it came to strangers, he had a loyalty to those he loved.  Our household and select members of the family would get to see the softer side of Furby – the side I fell in love with.  After Oreo passed, Furby became a much more docile cat, and you could tell he missed his best friend.

About 2 weeks ago, Furby was diagnosed with diabetes.  It was determined that he would be given a special diet and two shots of insulin a day.  He did great in his first week on the medicine.  A few days ago, his health began to deteriorate.  Yesterday, we took him to the doctor for a recheck.  After explaining his symptoms they found the following:   dehydration, muscle mass loss, lost 1 pound in 2 weeks, obstructed bowel, extremely weak back legs.  After discussing it, we decided that he deserved to no longer be in pain. 

We buried him next to Oreo under our dogwood tree, where they will forever lay next to each other.  We know that they are playing again in another place, and I hope to one day see them both again.  As I said last year, they have been “my boys” and the furry loves of my life.  They have forever left paw prints on my heart!

Cincinnati 2012

Our vacation to Michigan last year was clouded by the fact that our neighborhood had just been hit by a tornado , and we left before our power ever came back on.  Because our minds were elsewhere, we didn’t enjoy the vacation as much as we could/should have.  This year was much different!

I was determined to make this a good vacation for our family!  After discussing our choices, we decided to head to the Cincinnati area this summer.  It is close enough to be “close”, but far enough away to be a “vacation” versus a “staycation”.  To top it off, we stayed at the Great Wolf Lodge north of Cincinnati.  Great Wolf is a resort that includes restaurants, children’s activities, an arcade, and most importantly…..their own indoor waterpark.  The waterpark includes a children’s area, lazy river, wave pool, interactive family area, a water coaster, and several waterslides.  We had a wonderful time there, and we spent our entire third vacation day at the resort exclusively.  From our balcony, we could also see part of King’s Island, so I spent every night watching the rides.

While in the Cincinnati area, we also we able to see some great attractions.  Our first day we visited Entertrainment Junction, which advertises as the largest indoor train display.  It was huge!  There was a children’s play area, an opportunity to ride Thomas the Train, and a funhouse.  For our train fan, Amelia, it was great!  She had a wonderful time!  Taylor really enjoyed the funhouse which included a curtain maze, mirror maze, and clown college, to name just a few.

Our second day, we visited the Cincinnati Museum Center, which is located in the Union Terminal building.  The building is architecturally amazing!  The center itself houses many museums; we visited the children’s museum and the natural history museum.  Taylor was not overly excited to be there, but museums never hurt anyone – lol!  We also visited Chateau Laroche, a castle.  A man spent his entire life building this castle by hand.  He passed away in the early 1980s and now many boy scout troops spent retreats there, but it is also open to the public.  I found out once we got back that my brother-in-law had stayed there with a boy scount troop.  It is off the beaten path but very interesting to see.

Our fourth and last day we actually went into Kentucky – Newport, Kentucky to be exact.  We took the girls to the Newport Aquarium, which is the largest in the Midwest.  We got to pet crabs and sharks and see many animals up close.  There were several opportunities to walk through the tunnels and be surrounded by animal life.  It was beautiful, and I’m so glad we went.

All in all, it was a great vacation.  We had plenty of down time to relax, but we also got to visit some great places that we will remember.  I always think of family vacations as wonderful bonding times.  You all are sharing the same experiences that you can talk about forever.  And sometimes fun things happen that you will never forget – such as hanging a U-turn in the middle of the Taylor-Southgate Bridge.    

Busy Spring 2012 and Graduations Abound!

It has been 5 months since I last wrote in my blog, and I can’t believe I have neglected it so.  April was a significant month in our lives as we stayed pretty busy, so I will start there.  Right after Easter, my parents and I took a trip up to northern Indiana.  My father’s grandparents and sister are buried northwest of Lafayette.  His sister died when she was an infant before my father was born.  Although it was sad to visit the resting places of family members, it was nice to spend a day with my parents alone.  We had a lot of fun, and I even took them to Cataract Falls north of Spencer.

We also got a new kitty in April.  He is solid gray, and we named him Charlie (after Charcoal).  Charlie was a stray cat in our babysitter’s neighborhood, and he was so friendly.  We decided to adopt him, and we couldn’t love him more!  He reminds us a lot of our Oreo, who passed away a year ago.  They have similar personalities, and we believe Oreo sent him to us.  Of course, Amelia and Taylor just adore him!

My sister and I also took Amelia to see Sesame Street Live in April.  It was her first “concert”, and she did really well.  Cookie Monster, her favorite, hugged her before the show.  And she got to see a lot of her Sesame Street “friends”.  Even if she doesn’t remember it in the years to come, I certainly will!

At the end of April, my sister and I took Taylor to see The Miracle Worker at the Indiana Repertory Theater.  Taylor enjoyed see The Diary of Anne Frank a year ago, and so we thought she might enjoy this story as well.  She did!  The production was amazing, and I’m so glad we got to take her!

May was also a busy month for us for various reasons.  Towards the end of the month, though, we celebrated the graduations of two very important people.  First, Taylor graduated from 6^th grade!  She is now moving from a child to a young adult and beginning middle school next year.  I am so proud of the young lady she is becoming.

My niece, Sabrina, graduated from high school as one of her classes’ valedictorians.  What an amazing accomplishment!  Sabrina is a bright, beautiful young woman, and I am so happy to see her begin this new journey in her life.  She will begin studying at the University of Evansville this fall while majoring in psychology.  She will go far in life, and I am so happy for everything that awaits her.

Weekend Getaway

Lee and I have not had a getaway alone since August 2009. At that time, I was very pregnant, and we went to French Lick for our 5-year anniversary. But due to the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, we both had a 3-day weekend, and my sister was watching Amelia. So, we headed into hiding for a few days.

Our trip took us to Springfield, IL - maybe not the most romantic place on earth, but certainly one filled with history, an interest for both of us. Lee takes interest in the Civil War and used to reenact when he was younger. He is also very interested in Abraham Lincoln. As a surprise for Christmas, I planned this getaway weekend to Springfield! We had a wonderful time. It was a much needed vacation for us, and we had an amazing time touring the sites.

On Saturday, we visited the Lincoln Tomb, which was intimate and amazingly beautiful. We then headed to the Lincoln-Herndon Law Offices, where he was once a lawyer. Lastly, we toured the presidential museum. Saturday night we had "date night" and headed to an 1850s mansion that is now a seafood restaurant. Not only was the food good, but the ambiance was fantastic. We took dessert back to the hotel - Red Velvet Cheesecake - yum! On Sunday, we toured the Lincoln home, which is the only home he ever owned. Such an amazing piece of history. We also toured the Dana-Thomas house, which was designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

All in all, the trip just what we needed, but it also allowed us to see such an important part of history - Abe Lincoln's history. I grew up near Lincoln City, Indiana, where Abe grew up and lost both his mother and his sister. He truly was an amazing man who came from nothing and proved that dreams can come true by becoming President. I recommend the trip to anyone who loves history! It truly is a must-see.

Holidays 2011

So I haven’t kept up on my blog as much as I wished the last few months – 3 months to be exact, since I last posted. I guess that means I’ve been busy :-).

The holidays were wonderful for the Lawmasters. This year we hosted the Lee family Thanksgiving. With a table full of family, it was a great celebration to show how much we have been thankful for this year. And, as usual, we celebrated with Lee’s family at Basswood, which is our Thanksgiving tradition. We never know who will be in attendance, but it is always so good to see family we haven’t seen since last year or even longer!

Our Christmas was fantastic! I think it might have been the best Christmas we have had so far. Christmas Eve was spent with the Lee family, as usual. We had a great time – shared laughs, presents, and good food! We hosted Lee’s family for Christmas Day – his mom, grandma, dad, uncle, and aunt! It was great to have all of the family together. Santa brought Taylor and Amelia lots of gifts, but the presents from me and Lee were the best. Taylor received an autographed Taylor Swift songbook framed with her concert ticket from the July concert, and Amelia received a play kitchen! But before we knew it, Christmas had passed, the tree came down, and life moved on.

Time seems to pass so much quicker now than it used to. I suppose when you are a kid, a year is a huge percentage of your life. If you are 5, 20% of your life is 1 year. So time seems to stand still. But when you get older, a year is such a small part of your life – 1/32 of your life in my case. But I think since having Amelia, the time has flown even quicker. Milestones come and go, memories fade, and she grows up. But we do our best to document all that we can with our blogs, pictures, and video. One day I’ll be an old woman saying, “It all goes by too quick.” I’m working on trying to enjoy the moments as they happen. Wish me luck!