Sunday - Day 266 - Mom Update

Mommy update....

I booked a flight today to see my mom in December. She is doing better, at least she sounds better over the phone.  She's not physically better, but mentally she is stable and more accepting of her medical conditions. 

My mom is still home bound, with no plans of leaving the house other than to see her doctors.  She has the same breathing issues, utilizing a large oxygen tank 24/7 and she has other medical issues, which I won't elaborate on. Considering all this, she seems less sad when I speak with her, more like her old self.  She is a little more happy and a lot less feeling sorry, with no hope.
  

A little bit of happiness,
is better than none.

I'd like to think positive intentions and happy, uplifting thoughts helped her feel emotional better.  But, maybe we all simply come around in our own time. 

A strong, healthy mind breeds a strong, healthy body.  When feeling well is a challenge, it takes time to find our way.  I will remain hopeful that my mom is back on track to finding her way.  A positive spirit, will transform her body, and maybe soon she'll want to venture out into the world again.

It only takes one good day at a time.

In the mist of rain, there is often a rainbow!

Saturday - Day 265 - Kiwanis Fishing Derby

John and I took a much needed study break today and decided to take James to the Kiwanis Fishing Derby in town.

Fishing Derby Location 

We had not been to a Kiwanis event since we moved away in 2009.  We were long over due for one.

Past Event - 2008

We saw old friends today and it felt really  good.  We'd been through so much in the last five years, reconnecting with friends was normal and easy.  As if we'd never left.  We have come full circle and things are more or less the same from our old life.  They are the same, yet better.  

John and I were active Kiwanis members before we moved away.  We loved our time spent with our fellow Kiwanians.  We have struggled with whether to get back into the club upon our relocation back to Florida.  Time restraints and schedules have held us back, yet returning would be a very welcomed event.

For me juggling two kids makes it difficult to be overly involved.  Once upon a time, I took baby James to weekly Kiwanis lunch meetings.  These days James has early school release which conflicts with Kiwanis meetings.   I am sure I'll coordinate a lunch meeting soon, but a weekly commitment would be difficult.

James at his first Fishing Derby - 2008

John on the other hand is non stop during his days.  Between his full time job commitments and law school commitments, I'm lucky I get any time to talk with him (and I see him every day!) 

It is difficult to give excuses when it feels much time has escaped us and we have not made time to see many of our old friends.  

Time runs away when we arebusy doing   something else.  

I also believe when the time is right, people will come back into our lives effortlessly.

Friday - Day 264 - Love (part 2)

I have a friend whose life resembles a romantic comedy.  She has a thriving career, tons of social engagements, a fabulous, funny supporting cast and a love life to bring any woman to her knees.  

She is my friend, my lovable girlfriend who is in search of Mr. Right, but only seems to find Mr. Wrong.  It is a classic recipe for a romantic comedy.  Guy meets girl, girl is smitten, guy screws everything up,  guy proves his unconditional love. Girl forgives guy.  They live happily ever after. 

And that's a wrap!

Life isn't that simple, or is it? 

Despite a checkered history of bad boys and unrealistic mates, who in retrospect where all the wrong fit, my friend had FINALLY found a different kind of guy, one who matched up with her extremely well.  

The guy had his own thriving career, he had never been married and has had no children, (that we know of).  He had a good upbringing.  The two truly clicked and so the story of guy meets girl had begun.  A courtship had blossomed.  

Based on what I know, this guy could very well be "the one" for my friend.  

And then he screwed up.  He did the thing that many girls fear. The "perfect" guy had been seeing his exgirlfriend, who lived in a different state.  The news, delivered by the ex, did not go over well with my friend.  My friend was in shock. I was disappointed.  I was rooting for this guy the entire time.

But I always root for the guy, I always give the man the benefit of the doubt.  Don't we all root for the guy in romantic comedies? We want the guy to get the girl!  

"Fools Rush In"

"Sex In the City" the movie

"How to Lose a guy in 10 days"

"13 going on 30"

"Along Came Polly"

"Pretty Woman"

"Say Anything"

"Knocked Up"

(Just to name a few)

There is always a happy ending and we love the guy even if he did act unforgivable. 

I believe this guy is in love with my friend.  I truly believe he was drawn to the comfort of his ex and his emotions were pulled in multiple directions. 

I believe as humans we could have feelings for more than one person at a time, but we make choices to be faithful and get married and to be true to one love. We want to stay committed to our word. 

Love is never black and white. 

How does this love affair end or has it ended already?  I can't answer that.  I am wondering if either one will fight for what they could have together.  They spoke of marriage and children.  They envisioned their future with one another.  They laughed and enjoyed quality time together. They fit like perfect puzzle pieces. 

Is it enough to fight for a lifetime of potential happiness or will she always suspect he is seeing other women behind her back?  

Men can decide to be faithful to the right woman at anytime, even if they have made mistakes in their past. 

Time has an interesting way of revealing people's true colors.  Sometimes we need to take chances on the most unlikely souls, because nobody comes with a lifetime guarantee. 

Where there is love,
there must be faith. 

Check out part 1 of my "Love" Series 

Thursday - Day 263 - Love (part 1)

I use the word "Love" loosely as the title for this two part blog series.
My inspiration is a friend who has been going through some love tribulations.  However, before I get into her romance dilemma, (in Part 2), I'll share a few personal experiences regarding the coveted emotion we call "Love". 

"As easy as Love comes - It can slip away"

If you ask my husband how he and I met, he'll share our "love at first sight" romance.   Seven months from the day when our world wind courtship began, we were married on a beach.  It's a fairy tale, because that's exactly what I opened my heart to.  Isn't that what every hopeless romantic dreams up?

"Fairy tale Love"

My fairy tale did not come without a history of failed love affairs.  I have had happy and sad tails of romance gone awry.  Boyfriends who came in and out of my life, shaping my views of what is and isn't true about love.  Love that I initially thought could last forever. 

I also had love crushes, by me and for me, that were never reciprocated.  Potential love never to be realized, transformed into distant memories of what could have been, but never meant to be. 

I was fortunate to have opened my heart to love without fear.  In some cases, intense "like" may be a better description.  

With that said and with the hope that none of my previous boyfriends are reading my blog, I will choose to share two significant and very real loves.   

One whose heart I broke and the other who ironically broke mine.

"Young Pure Love"

One of my first boyfriends had the sweetest hearts and he loved me with all his heart.  He would have moved mountains for me.  I loved him sincerely for a many months until I suddenly changed my mind and stopped.  To this day, I'm still not certain what changed,  immaturity laced with feelings of discontentment?   It is hard to pinpoint, considering there was nothing wrong with him. I discovered his heartbroken feelings would change me, they moved me in ways I had no idea could exist.  I hurt someone I cared deeply for and it hurt immensely.  

My lackluster love could not compare to what he felt for me and I choose to let him go; Only to one day understand the essence of the innocent, unscathed love I experienced at 17, was exactly what I needed, right before I met my husband.  

My heart had come full circle. This is a love of sincerity, the sweet love with endless boundaries that is extremely hard to come by.  When we are young our hearts have not experienced heartache, they are whole, broken-less hearts, pristine with hope and anticipation of what true love is. 

"Lost Love"

I had my own heart broken a few years later.  My college boyfriend, who again loved deeply, never having his heart torn to shreds, fell into my life and stole my heart.  He and I had an instant connection, one which was too strong for me to grasp or comprehend.  One I took for granted.  As much endless potential he and I had, I believe we met too early in life.  After only one short year as a couple, he walked out of my life as quickly as he walked into it.  He let me go and I was forced to fly alone.  It crushed my spirits, my self esteem and left a huge whole in my heart, one I had to to mend.  It was a slow, painful process. 

"Heartbreaking Love"

Years later, I learned how my past has shaped who I have become today.  I am better having loved and lost.  I am a better wife and mother.  I can pull from my archive of feelings to truly empathize with family, friends and eventually my children when they experience their first or lost love.  

Most importantly, I found happiness, the kind that can not be lost, as I know what the other side of happiness feels like and it is a difficult place to thrive. 

The thing about any lost love is, it never goes away, it hibernates and resurfaces in new ways when we are ready to bring it back into our lives. 

Wednesday - Day 262 - Tomorrowland

"Sometimes it doesn't matter how we got here, it only matters that we're here and the past is only a mere figment of our imagination." 

These words came to me while lying with Ty as he fell asleep one evening last week.  I thought it, and saved it, until I was ready to share it.

Ironically, Disney is filming parts of a new movie called Tomorrowland in our quaint little beach town, New Smyrna Beach.  

Film crews came in and created fake facades on our downtown buildings.  Famous actors like Tim McGraw and George Clooney secretly made their way through town.  

Rumors had George Clooney getting a pedicure at a local salon. I've yet to determine if this was true.  I'll be sure to get the entire scoop at my next appointment. 

In the meantime, the hustle and bustle of a two day shoot is long over as I write this blog, and although I didn't stick around for the actual filming, I drove through downtown, curious to see what was going on.  It was fun to witness the town's transformation, but all I have now are my memories to say I was there, I saw it and now it is over. 

The building facades are back to what they were.  Today it looks as if nothing had happened.  The only people who know for sure are the ones who saw and experienced it first hand.  

Tomorrowland is a story about a "teen bursting with scientific curiosity and former boy genius who embark on a mission to unearth the secrets of a place somewhere in time and space that exists in their collective memory.1"  The movie originally had a working title of "1952".

We can not or should not live in the past and we can not predict the future, but what we can do is make right NOW the best possible NOW it can be.  And as we reflect, we envision our Memories well and fondly, none should be filled with despair or regret.

Wise Words to Ponder  

Tuesday - Day 261 - Blog Spin Off

As much as I love sharing and finding new things to blog about each and every day, my daily RVing blog will be coming to a close before I even realize it.......only 45 days to go, or something close to that.

I have already made a decision that I want to create a spin off blog, something new and different, it will be called "Living Life" the name, mirroring "RVing Life".  It will NOT be a daily blog, it will most definitely be a weekly or bi-monthly blog.  My purpose is to continue writing and to have an outlet to speak my truth, sharing life, while living life.

"A blog Move"

I have continued to blog over the last year specifically because I set a goal for myself and wanted to see it achieved.  My original goal was to blog each day of our lives while living in our RV, although at the time, I had no idea how long it would last, or how hard a daily blog would be, but I pressed on.

So I wrote.  I wrote about camping life, life in the RV, life away from the RV.  I wrote about love, happiness and my kids, I wrote about hardship and uncertainties.  I wrote each and every day, even when nothing of significance happened.  

I found myself getting ideas at the oddest hours and jotting them down.  I will admit, some ideas were better than others, but all my blog entries have been my babies, I nurtured them, molded them and set them free.  My hope was to share a secret chuckle, a smile or pause in thought.  

Regardless of what anyone thinks about my personal life experiences, I wrote for my own self growth and to one day share it all with my boys.  A snapshot in time, immortalized forever.

I will continued to blog and see where the next 45 days or so take me through the holidays.  It is the end of an era, a chapter in my life closing as another one gets ready to begin. 

Monday - Day 260 - Veterans Day

A day to remember.  A reminder to honor those who served our country and possibly to feel a little pride for being a United States citizen.  It is easy to forgot how good Americans have it.  Especially, when many of us are feeling the pinch of our current economy. 

John had a nice chat with one of our permanent neighbors today.  It's amazing what we learn from people, especially on a day like Veterans Day. 

Our neighbor served in Vietnam.  John and I had no idea.  He was in the Navy, on special assignment, he rode down rivers, at night, in the jungle.  He was basically a kid at the time.  

Our neighbor also told John that they could not turn lights on at night for fear of being seen, caught or shot at.  We worry about our kids watching violent and scary movies.  Yet, there are people we share our time with who secretly keep our worse horrors and fears tucked inside their memories.  Real experiences of fear, ones none of us could probably imagination.  

Does the passage of time make it easier and less dangerous?  

It's no wonder Veterans can lose "it" after serving in a war.  We all have demons to deal with, but maybe some of us are slaying demons that are much more real than the rest.  

And I thought about my neighbor for a while and opened my heart to his circumstances and I will be more understanding when he says things I don't like about my son.  At the end of the day does it really matter?  

James is just a kid, and we all take issue dealing with other people's children.  James has his entire life ahead of him, and he'll never be forced to wade through a jungle, at night, in fear for his life.  It is all relative to perspective now isn't it?

I found myself at home later.  Ty was finishing a plate of food.  He wasn't totally done, instead of placing his dish in the sink, like he normally does, he shared his leftovers with his dog. 

I share this, because amid all the shit in this world, something so pure and innocent finds it way into our life.  Each day we are challenged to find the good, forcing us to appreciate the bad.