RAINBOWS COME IN MANY FORMS

(heads up, a long one)

Yes, it was my birthday...

the big 5-0

Many want diamonds for their big birthdays,

some want vacations, me? what do I want?

A RAINBOW!

In the form of a vacuum cleaner.

Let my go back 27 years, right after Baby boy's first birthday.

We had just gone through a demonstration of one a few weeks before

and although I fell in love and wanted it desperately,

it was not financially in the cards.

However, at one year old, BB got a bad case of

croup and was in the hospital, ICU until he became stable.

HOBL at the time was a smoker and he felt so bad

for the fact that maybe his smoking made BB sick

that he called and ordered the rainbow.

It is still the one we use now. It has broken a few times

but each time I think maybe I will get a new one,

HOBL fixes it. To say we have gotten our money's worth is

an understatement. This time HOBL goes to Alaska and

that darn rainbow breaks again! I convince him that although

I still want him to fix this one for upstairs, it is time for a new one.

He gives me all his arguments that he can fix that one,

that they are too expensive... blah blah blah...

Finally I send him an email explaining that the time has come

for a new one, that if you divide 28 years by the 2,000 dollars

a new one may cost, that is less than 50 cents a day.

He finally gives in but after much study, we agree on 

no more than 2100 dollars.

He wants to order online,

I want to go to Gray... where I have always bought

our parts, where the couple who owns it has always been

friendly and helpful. Where I have always promised if ever

I would buy a new one, it would be from them.

I walk in yesterday, so excited. Of course, they know me.

"The time has come, I am ready to buy a new Rainbow"

I am hoping for a brand spanking new one.

The price??? 3,100 dollars.

My heart sinks as I explain HOBL and I have agreed to spend

not more than 2,000 dollars and how I drove there because

I had promised my business. In there is a little old man

getting a demonstration on a second hand vacuum that he is 

about to purchase. That one is well under my budget and even

though my heart is sad, I realize a second hand one is probably 

what I am going to get. They work me some prices,

if I trade in my old one, they will take 1,000 off a new one

placing it right at my budget. I don't want to give away my old one.

I know it sounds ridiculous to be attached to a silly vacuum but I am.

I want HOBL to fix it and place it upstairs.

They knock off 600 dollars without any trade and will

give me the "no state tax" that went on last weekend.

Still the price is more than HOBL and I agreed on.

There are no second hand ones left at this moment so I give them

my name and number to call if another comes in.

I am sad, it is evident. The friendly owners say that if money

is the issue they can finance the little bit left.

I explain it is not a money issue. Thankfully because HOBL

is the big saver, money is not a problem. It is just out of

respect for him that I will not go over budget we agreed on

without speaking to him.

We just don't do that.

The little old man buying the second hand rainbow has taken all this in.

He is teary eyed as he finally speaks up.

"Tell your husband to get you the new one. My wife wanted 

one like you, a brand new one. I put it off because I though it

was not needed, to expensive. She died last week. Now I buy the second hand

one because it is all I need now that she is gone, but

I sure wish I had bought her that shiny new one."

I am speechless... me, speechless? Yep it happens some time.

We all are quiet. I give my sympathy but leave without the vacuum.

I get in the car thinking of this poor little man.

Even after in the car I turn around once deciding I am just

going to trade in my old one for the thousand dollars off.

I turn towards home again because I can't let the old one go

and I also can't go over what we budgeted without speaking to HOBL.

I want to cry, I am 50 years old and I am crying over a ridiculous 

material possession. But the sadness is more about the little old man

than wanting the vacuum. Within a few minutes of turning around

for the second time a call comes through from my dear friend,

the owner of the rainbow store, David.

"Listen, Ms. Lilly, I couldn't say it in front of my other customers

but my wife and I have decided without a trade in they will give me

the thousand dollars off as well as no tax at all.

the total price? $2, 197!

I am turning around right now... and I do....

I get there and hug them both! 

I am not in to delayed gratification, they have made my birthday!

I know that they are still making a good profit but they explain 

that after I left the little old man, before leaving with his second hand 

rainbow goes on about his dear wife and how he wishes he could

go back and buy her what she wanted.

The decision was made and they throw in a rainmate room air freshner machine

for my birthday.

Such an awesome story and again,

it could be called a coincidence but I will call it a God gift.

NO WORDS, no words....

I am going to try, really hard to put some words together here

to explain what yesterday meant to me.

It is going to be hard but I am going to try to give it justice.

When my Mommy was sick, we talked about a lot.

Some I shared with many, some I kept personal between us.

I have always been one not afraid to talk about the "deep stuff"

so it should be no surprise that Mommy and I talked about

death, we talked about life. I asked her is she could change

anything about her wonderful life what would it be?

She shared that even though she and Daddy spent some time

with family and friends, she would have done more of that.

She would have visited more rather than just talking about it.

She would have slept over at people's homes, kept in touch

with those she cared for.

I have said before here, I made her a promise that I would do just that.

I have always tried really hard to be important in the lives of 

the children in our family and to close friends and besties.

I promised Mommy that I would do more of that.

Yesterday, a few of my many friends made the trip to Plaquemine

to visit me, to see the house but mostly to visit with me.

The fact that they all had to go to work tomorrow 

had me feel very special.

Patricia, Amanda, Mel....

and then the kiddies,

Elisse, Emily, Cameron, Taylor and last but not least,

My dear, sweet, Nee Nee, who is here spending time with her Nannie

made for a beautiful and emotional day for me.

We did some old fashioned, "Make the VEy Yay"

( Cajun french slang for talking)

We caught up on all the happenings in our life

as well as heart talks. We spoke of relationships of teens,

of next school year, of the happenings of our other TES families,

I was able to share my heart about the loss of my Mommy...

the changes in my life since moving to Plaquemine.

They let me brag and go on and on about my sweet Bean

and never looked bored.

just such a touching day for me.

We then all went to Guidry's here in town to 

have a wonderful, long and relaxed lunch.

It was perfect, ending with a piece of bread pudding with

a candle in it, the famous Happy Birthday song

and I , of course, sang along.

From there we all separated with many hugs and kisses,

promises of more visits many "I love you"

I wanted to cry because I was just so filled with happiness.

I held it together and we all drove away.

Sweet Nee and I then went to movies.

When I returned home I realized that not only had they

brought me a most beautiful flowering plant but a card.

I had overlooked the card with love notes and signed by each of them.

More than that, the words of the card, just got me.

I then did tear up and let some of my overflowing love out:

HAPPY IS A WORD THAT COMES TO MIND

WHEN THINKING OF YOU.

HAPPY BECAUSE THAT'S THE KIND 

OF POSITIVE AND CHEERFUL PERSON

EVERYONE SEES IN YOU.

HAPPY BECAUSE OF THE WAY YOU MAKE

OTHER PEOPLE FEEL.

HAPPY BECAUSE OF THE SMILES YOU INSPIRE. ALWAYS.

HAVE A WHOLE LOT OF HAPPY TODAY

AND IF ANYONE KNOWS HOW IT'S YOU.

I try so hard to make others feel special in my life.

Sometimes it gets hard and I don't think I am doing a very good

job of it. This card reminds me that to some, I am doing it.

Again, thanks to you all...

Now hoping from a visit from the besties soon!

 "My Mel"

 Elisse, taytay, amanda

 my sweet Nee

 C, Patricia, Emily

 Amanda and her love, Taylor (tay-tay)

 Patricia and her baby girl, Emily

 Some are embarrassed having birthday wishes in an establishment....

not me!

Sweet, Tay Tay.... such a cutie!!!!

Oh our Mommee

I am going through the last of Mommee's things.

All that is left is her personal cards and letters, pictures

that she has accumulated over the 92 years she lived.

It is the hardest as it has me looking into her life,

those things that were important to her.

I don't think she ever threw away one card,

one picture colored by a grandchild, one love note.

I am scanning all her old pictures to put on a disc for

each sibling and giving the originals to the rightful owner.

When I saw this picture of Mickey Mouse at first,

I couldn't find out which child in our family was in 

the many children. I looked better and there, I see,

our Mommee, in there with all the children copping a kiss

on Mickey's cheek while he signs someones autograph book.

It makes me laugh and makes me cry at the same time.

See, this was our old Mommee, the one before dementia.

It is in these pictures, those times that I realize just how much

I am like her. Part of me will just not grow up.

I would be the one pushing my way through all the children

to kiss Mickey.

I am going to frame this one as it represents so much of 

our Mommee's personality.

She definitely made us laugh and smile just as I did yesterday.

A new child is born...

The Alessi family, the Vizier family,

they are all on cloud nine right now.

Their baby Finn is here!

A beautiful name for a wonderful child,

FINN PAUL ALESSI

What can I say to this newly born child?

I can tell him, he is a very lucky little boy that

God has chosen these two for his parents.

They come from a "good crop"

parents who have taught them so much about 

marriage, family, commitment.

They are so much in love, a team before and now

bonded by a little baby boy named FINN.

I see this beautiful new Mommy and can remember

the day her own Mommy had her.

So hard to see all those little girls growing up, getting married,

having babies. Leah and the Pitre girls have always followed

each other while growing up so it is fitting that they all married

and now all having babies within 6 months of each other.

It is how it should be, the way God intended it to be.

No matter what is wrong in the world, when

looking into the eyes of a newborn child,

all is right.

On the other hand, never before will the bad things in the world

alarm new parents as much as it will now.

This future of the world now means something to them because

it is now their little boys world, his future.

I can remember before having BB, I never thought of pollution.

Once he was born I remember wanting to recycle, never to throw

another thing out of my car window.

I worried about  the world I was going to leave them in.

OH My! What a new baby does to your life.

 To hear Pat, Leah's mother for the short

conversation this morning before the phone went out,

has me so excited for what is to come in her life.

To hear her in awe of her own baby girl as she delivered

her first grandchild swells my heart.

Leah, I know just how much you are in love with this baby,

I also can tell you that in the next few days and weeks to come,

you will miss the bond the two of you had together, 

him swimming around inside of you, where he could hear your

heart beat and all was perfect in his world.

You will miss having him all to yourself and yet,

will be so thankful, so relieved that he is here, healthy

and now you can share with the world all you already know

about this sweet child of yours.

To become a parent is to now wear your heart on your sleeve.

How can I explain to all just what this life will be like now?

Fact is, there are no words, none in the English language to 

express what has just happened to these two families.

I am sure even if I looked on every Rosetta Stone there still

would be no language that can speak the love of one little bitty

sweet new born baby boy.

Congrats to all!!!!!

Love you all!

What is attractive?

Today the blog is a lesson for the men in our lives.

What attracts a woman to a man?

Men think it is roses and gifts,

a tub poured with rose petals to the bath.

They are wrong. So, so wrong.

It is the small things you do for them.

Most importantly to see you with your child, playing,

taking on responsibilities to ease your woman's life.

This morning I am going through pictures on my computer,

trying to organize them as I have over 3,000 and I come

across these from Bean's second birthday.

Seeing HOBL playing with Bean melts my heart.

It is sad that I can barely remember him as a daddy.

How he was with our own children. 

In our life right now, it would benefit me to have those memories.

Yet, I see these, him playing with our Bean and my heart melts.

IT is these moments that I think are attractive,

so you men out there....

do what Dr. Phil says every man should think when he wakes up,

"What can I do today to make my wife's life better?"

It would be spending time with the babies in your life.

There is something about a man enjoying the company of a child

that is just down right attractive.