April 15 - Traveled to Dayton, Ohio as a chaperone/driver for the Mission Viejo High School World Class Drumline. Our students competed in the WGI International Championships for the 14th year in a row! We took 5th out of the top 15 this year. I'm most proud of those moments of grace and spontaneous sportsmanship that happen uncoached. I had a five young men in my group including my son, Paul, and his friend all the way back to elementary school, Ryan. Every moment I was there was worth it! I had a great time with my friend, Michelle, also a band mom, and the guys in my group, as well as the other chaperones. I met some very nice folks from Pearl, Mississippi as well as a host of other people from other schools throughout the country! The shows and level of competition were AMAZING!!! I only regret that I didn't go the first three years, but am soooo thankful to be there Paul's senior year! DRUMLINE, ROCKS!May brought, Troy English, master painter, cat lover, foodie and all-round good-guy to our home for painting, window blinds, furniture placement, color coordination... June was a month off and now in July the outside begins... wait till you see what Troy does with custom door finishes! It's all so cool!
May also marked my introduction to...Facebook. That's really what put me off the blogging map. I'm going to blame it on my book group friends, sister, Michelle, and a couple people I work with at Borders. And then, Michelle introduced me to FarmTown... well...
June 1 - Jazz Cat went missing. My best friend with fur just seemed to vanish overnight. He would be 4 years old July 15, gray stripe Tabby, male neutered, no collar, very friendly, indoor cat. We looked through the neighborhood, posted flyers, talked to neighbors and people around our subdivision, checked the shelter listings every day (still do). Neo, our other cat and Jazz' litter mate, wandered around the house for a week looking for him. He's become much more needy. I still feel heartbroken about it. People who don't have "pets" don't understand.
June 7 was the Irongirl 5K in Del Mar. My friend, Judy, and I checked into the Hilton Saturday afternoon before the race on Sunday morning. Thread count is an important component prior to any race;-) I hadn't been running for three weeks and didn't expect to run faster than 45 min., but, oh yeah, mamma made it in 38 min.!
June 8 was Music Awards Night at the high school. Paul received his plaque for four years in Marching Band, four years in Drumline and senior year as Pit Section Leader. It's been a great ride and well worth every penny. The evening also marked the end of seven years as a band mom. Bittersweet to be sure.
June 11 Paul turned 18. My daughter, Katie, is already 24. Oh, my!
June 18 Paul graduates Mission Viejo High School! Real life begins! It was especially great to hear the names of so many young people who I remembered from my years as Librarian / Computer Instructional Asst. at Del Cerro School. It was great seeing Paul's friends walking at graduation. He's been blessed with a great group of friends and we've been blessed with a group of young men we care about and truly enjoy spending time with.
We also welcomed Mike, one of Paul's good friends, into our home. Mike is a very talented musician and composer. He's also a really great guy.
Throw in more hours with Borders Books, college preparations, driving lessons, and every thing else Life throws in the way... It's been a pretty full time. So, in the immortal words of Ferris Bueller, "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop to look around once in a while, you could miss it".
Life changes again and it's time to reinvent...
