We're All Getting Older, And The Parties Are More Fun

Adam's 25th birthday was upon us about a week ago, September 19th to be exact. We've adopted the O'Connell tradition of a "friends" party the weekend of your birthday followed by a family party on your actual birthday. Growing up, family dinner was always so special because for me it meant an abundance of cheesy spaghetti and plenty of double chocolate cheesecake, as the rule was you got your favorite food. We started our weekend off Friday night with dinner with our partners in crime-Cydney & Brandon. Recently, Adam and Brandon have joined a Men's Group that meets for 4 hours on Wednesday nights, and they had all planned to meet out Friday night at our local wine bar with their wives. So, after dinner---which was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G, and I have to slide in the detail that Adam told Cydney (who was trying to help by making reservations) "just pick something yummy", we headed out to meet everyone at Crush.

The first of Adam's birthday surprises was that his best friend Mitchell met us at Crush, having just driven all the way in from College Station for the celebration.

It was fun to get to meet most of the guys Adam spends so much time with, and their wives especially!

After hours of talking and laughing, we headed to Mitchell's to swim and hangout in the hot tub, a very lucky thing to have a friend with such fun things at his disposal! Saturday brought us out to Greenbelt lake where we camped, cooked HoBo pizzas, played games and Adam opened presents. His first, from Cydney & Brandon was a beautiful pipe that is so very much Adam, and fitting too since Adam gave Brandon his first pipe last year.

I swear they're both really 65, trapped in 25yr old's bodies! The best surprise of all, although I am quite biased, was getting to give Adam his violin he's wanted for 4 years. He was so excited, and a day later already had a song down!

Sunday, his actual birthday brought us family day, and Adam's choice was to watch Mythbusters re-runs and eat grilled cheese with tomato soup, a very, very easy request to fulfill. I love that our way to celebrate is to spend as much time with our friends as possible, and then to relax and cut away the world on our family day, even if it's just for some grilled cheese. Happy Birthday Adam! I love you very much, and can't wait to celebrate the next!

Wedding Magic

This past weekend has been a flurry of activity, with one of my childhood friends finally getting married to her military man. They have waited several years, and after their wedding and honeymoon, will have to wait 6 more months before they get the chance to live together as a real family, so keep them in your prayers. Bright fall colors, beckoning a break from the heat, a beautiful bundle of girls, and a night of dancing made a gorgeous Saturday! Weddings in Amarillo, or in any smaller town, are always a treat because there are so many people you know, and from so many circles! Always someone to talk to in line, someone to dance with when your spouse needs a break, and someone to laugh with while certain people (read, Brandon and Adam) show their dance moves. Adam, Brandon, Cydney and I were among the last to leave, the dance floor's call was just too strong. At one point I was literally dancing all alone on the floor, I believe it was Lady Gaga, calling my name! I give you now, proof of a wonderful wedding....

Adam, Donald, Sally & Me

Adam & I Show How It's Done, Opening Up the Floor for the Twist

Our Family of Friends

Have I Mentioned Before How Much I Love This Man?

Brothers and Weddings and Camping--Oh My!

The end of July was a busy and exciting time for us here in Amarillo. My younger brother's best friends were getting married and that meant that we were lucky enough for him to be in town for nearly 2 weeks!!! Ryan is a man of popularity, and has missed his friends over the last year with his new life in DC. While we were happy he got the chance to hangout with all his friends, and enjoy being back in town, it was a little sad to just see him a few days. I embarrassed him terribly when it was time for him to go, crying at the airport when it was time for his check-in. We did get the chance to go camping at the lake, eat at our favorite hole in the wall, and watch some movies. The wedding was great, and Adam and I enjoyed ourselves (perhaps a bit too much) on the dance floor, particularly for the twist!

An American Holiday

The 4th of July has become one of Adam and my favorite holidays, next of course to Christmas and Halloween. (We are very big on the Christmas decorations and love love love dressing up for Halloween!)We were so excited to be back together again after the 2 weeks and 6 hours apart, that Adam surprised me with a romantic weekend trip to Santa Fe, one of our favorite cities!

It was a wonderful, sweet surprise and we had a fabulous time. We stayed at a hotel down the street from the square, and ate at our favorite and most amazing restaurant ever, Cafe Pasquals. YUM!

We spent the weekend walking around looking at art, eating from street vendors, and socializing our dogs. We brought both Dutchess and Kitri, and they were incredibly popular! We spent about 20min one day talking with an older couple there with three of their five shelties! One of which was so old, and with such terrible arthritis that he was being pushed around in a "doggie carriage!"

We also stopped by one of our favorite grocery stores that we miss here in Amarillo, Whole Foods. On our way back to the hotel we saw a Thrift Store with a vintage bike out front. Most of you know, we've been searching for bikes for us for some time. Of course we HAD to stop! I know, I know, we're dorks. Most people come back from Santa Fe with some turquoise or art, we come back with groceries and a bicycle! That's right, we bought her! A 1974 Free Spirit bike that I impulsively named Charmaine, and now no one will give me a 'do-over.' (pictures coming soon!!) :) We made it back to Amarillo the evening of the 4th in time to buy some fireworks and head over to Cydney & Brandon's to shoot some off and celebrate with our friend-family!

We had a wonderful weekend, and a great holiday!

Happy 4th of July to all of you!!!

Home in Hawaii

My time in Hawaii has been busy, emotional and less familiar. The years we spent here growing up have made this place my second home. I know the neighborhood intimately, can navigate all over the island, and know all the places the tourists don't. But this trip, things are different. While Mom & I have been making a morning escape to the beach as usual, we are coming home to help my grandfather manage everyday tasks, talking to my grandmother about help & options, and trying to stay on top of all that needs to be accomplished.

It's been good to be here, but it's been a difficult trip, and not at all like the past. Though, just when it seems the joy is gone from this house, and I feel as though things are changed forever, I can hear from the other room "Harriet, will you get me some ice cream? 3 BIG scoops!", or perhaps "Geraldine, where is she hiding all the chocolate in this place?!". As long as I can remember my Pappy, I can remember not understanding his nicknames for me. And I love them. Geraldine & Harriet, used interchangeably, and while cousins were about, Jade & I made the pair Tuesday & Wednesday.

Leaving makes me sad, but Adam and I have plans for Christmas, and hopefully without a car to buy, or a move to make, we'll be able to do it this year!! The plan is to buy our tickets August 1st, so hold me to that! Until then, I leave my Mom here to help continue the work we all started and know that at least they have the CNA at the house 4hrs a day now, which is a start. Hopefully with the time and attention, he will be able to focus more on his physical therapy and regain some of his finer motor skills and strength. While my mind has been here these last two weeks, my heart has been racing back across the ocean daily with Adam in Amarillo, and I am really looking forward to seeing him again.

Fathers Day

Fathers Day weekend this year is a little different then those of the past. While I'm celebrating with my Dad, who is off in New England with my younger brother, I am lucky to have almost all my family here in Hawaii to celebrate with our patriarch, my Pappy. A weekend of cousins giggling in the distant bedroom, uncles cooking in the kitchen and grandparents beaming with the luck of having almost all of us here at once for the first time in years.

Jade & I were together often when we were younger, trips to my great-grandmother's in Pennsylvania, the first trip to Disneyland when we were toddlers, and many summers at my grandparent's on Oahu. The older we've gotten, the less we've seen each other, and it had been 5 years since we'd last gotten together. It didn't take long to start laughing and joking again, and was fun to include "baby" Sarah this time. Weekends like this make me incredibly grateful to have such a wonderful family, and strengthen my desire to have children, because I know how lucky our kids will be to come into a family like this.

A Good Kind of Morning

So, it's 9:43am here...if you're curious, though I did not go to bed until 12:00am (or 5am...) last night, I popped out of bed free of alarms at 7:45am. *sigh* My internal clock, it would appear, is set. I even tried to go back to sleep and had no luck. The only person up earlier then me was Uncle Craig, which is not much of a surprise. Was able to pass the usual granola and yogurt to have fresh pineapple and papaya for breakfast with the biggest cup of Kona coffee. Heaven in my mouth! I forget what fruit should really taste like until I'm here again. Had breakfast with Pappy, Nana and Craig. Was nice, especially because between Craig and me they were able to have a good breakfast while we filled bowls with fruit and cereal, found coffee, poured water and searched out straws. Pappy was totally different this morning, and after our conversation I remembered Mom mentioning that he was usually confused when sleepy. This morning he was completely alert and talking to me about our trip to the beach in the Carolinas, all our cross-country trips and everything. It was just a normal breakfast with Pappy, which made me feel so much better. Last night I was feeling pretty confused, and cried at dinner....A few silent tears, but they were still there. It was just hard to sit through dinner and hear the repeated confused statements that were connected to our conversation by the tiniest thread of sense. It's hard too to see how Nana tries to cope with all the struggles and hardship Parkinsons brings without being frustrated with Pappy. He did make me smile last night when we were talking about school, Pappy: "I wish I had paid more attention in school, I really should have." Sarah: "What do you mean?" Pappy: "Well for one thing, not being so girl crazy!" (Laughter) "No, really, you know your Nana and I started going together when we were 16!" Then, of course, Nana tells the famous story of Pappy faking sick and then stealing (or 'borrowing' as he insisted) his Dad's car to go visit Nana when he had no license.

Watching them you know that's how they're getting through this, they've been in love for more then 60 years, so this is just another challenge to walk together. I hope Adam and I will be lucky enough to count pills for each other and argue about how much raisin bran the other needs when we're almost 80. Seemingly annoyed but peppering conversation with nicknames and winks to let us know "I love you, you know".