♪♫ ♪ Happy 21st Birthday You Two… ♫♪♫

I can’t believe it was 21 years ago tonight that I was lying in a hospital bed and my son Jamie was tugging at my arm saying “...come on Mommy, let’s just go home.” We’d prepared him for the fact that he was going to have a brother and sister, but it took the overnight separation (and two screaming newborns) to snap him into the reality at hand.

Yess-sir-ree! Twenty one years ago today our family was officially complete.

They arrived  two minutes apart. In a flash, two seven pound babies landed into my/our arms filling both our lives and our hearts. I hate to keep playing the time card, but where the hell did it go?

Where do I start? From the day they were born they were a team. One would cry, they'd both get fed. The other cranky, they'd both be amused. I swear from the minute they were born they had this cosmic plan. Silly or not after all these years, that early genetic chemistry is still very apparent today.

It’s eerily quiet night here tonight. It feels kind of weird. David and Tony are both working late and Thom took Staci out for a quiet dinner (because he knew that she was home alone with me). Yup, gone are the days of balloons and birthday cakes, not to mention hall rentals and kids puking from eating too many hot dogs. Too bad really... 

I am first to admit that I’ve led a sheltered life, but Staci & David birthday parties were always some very serious fun. Guess tonight is the end of an era. A day I never imagined would arrive.

NOT A CHANCE! I gotta pull all the stops out one last time this weekend. I know that they're 21 but I gotta have one last hurrah for Sweetie & Goob right? So the judge looks to the jury and Tony says... "ABSOLUTELY"!

Who says at 21 you're too old for a surprises? Happy Birthday you two. We love you very much.

Staci & Daviid's 18th Birthday - A good time was had by all.
Happy 21st Birthday. xoxoxoxo
Taken: June 5th 2010

K Is For... KINDNESS

Since starting this whole A-Z challenge thing-a-ma-hoochie, I am absolutely gobsmacked at the volume of messages I have received; each and every one overflowing with encouragement, not to mention words of kindness.

I've pushed through a tough couple of months. Lately, a lot of people (unbeknownst to them) have reached out to me with a random act of kindness. They probably think I'm being silly thinking that they were being kind; but trust me, in my hour of need, they absolutely were. 

April 12th, 2013 - KINDNESS

I truly appreciate any kindness paid toward me and I believe you get back the energy you personally exude.

If you're there for someone, there's an above average chance that they will be there for you.

You have no idea how much it means to me that someone will walk up to my desk and tell me to stand up. "Stand up and give me a hug" to be exact. Completely and totally random, yet appreciated because they knew I really needed it. Amazing!

The biggest act lately? Last weekend. I left a very good friend waiting around Toronto for hours, for the silly opportunity of having a late dinner with me. Why is that one of the nicest things anyone has done for me in a very long time? Because I know they were going above and beyond.

We both knew there was going to be a lag, but the later I ran, the worse I felt. Nothing can describe how great it felt to wrap my arms around them saying “thank you so much for waiting”; to which they responded, "it doesn't matter... we're here now". 

Being a kind person isn't rocket science, it's a mindset. I can get grumpy, I can be stern, but I honestly understand the importance of expressing true kindness. It's simply a life choice you choose to embrace.

All of that goo said, I want to go on the record with: JDK may have inherited her K by marriage, but I am sure it was meant to be. She is the kindest person I have ever had the privilege  of knowing my entire life.

You are ALL really more important (to me) than you realize. 

Walking In A Winter Wonderland

This morning my walk to meet Robbie K was in perfect weather. Tonight on the other hand, my walk home was a really cold one (and not in the 'ice cold Bud Light' sense). I honestly didn’t mind the wind chill, it was tolerable. Probably because my music was great, and my disposition even better. That’s half the battle right?

I do love winter. Especially now that I don’t have to walk to work in the dark and arrive home in the dark. I know from sheer experience that the best part of the season is yet to come. 

In getting in shape, I use to walk because I needed to. Now that I am fit, I walk because I want to. I enjoy those thirteen minutes in the morning that ultimately get me ready for my day. Matter a fact; I like those thirteen minutes almost as much as the same ones heading home. They help me to process the work day I have just had. 

Snowshoeing the 18 holes at South Muskoka last winter.
I WILL Walk 500 Miles...
Wait... Isn't that a song? Figures!
Taken: Family Day 2012

Again, not that I go to work expecting a bad day, because for the most part I really do love my job. It's just that for whatever reason, I'd temporarily lost my bearings. I do know why, yet some realities are always harder to process than others. To quote Winston Churchill... “If you’re going through Hell   KEEP GOING..." so I did. 

Biggest Surprise?

For the first time in my life, I didn’t push away the people that wanted to unconditionally support me. (Nor did I lash out against the any number of easy targets I have in my day to day life.) Instead, I compartmentalized my feelings to a place where unicorns prance about, and there really is a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. 

NO, I wasn't taking quaaludes. I pushed through it dumbass!

Why the pushing? Once again, I found myself moving through the stages of grief; this time, for whatever reason, my glass was half full. I finally understood that the process would eventually end. It would end and everything would be okay. Walking home tonight, I knew I was going to be OK! 

You have no idea how great it feels to type that simple statement... I think I need to go for a walk. Wanna come?

Rhondi & David's Excellent Adventure

Well, the text came in late morning. The Seven Sisters Islands were supposedly still frozen; if I wanted/had to get over there, air boat was my only option. I called my quirky sidekick (on this mission) Dave, and together we hatched a plan. 

Photo Cred totally goes to Dave Kaye and his extra long reach!
Taken: January 13th, 2013

Neither of us had ever travelled by air boat so I was quite comfortable admitting that I was a bit nervous. 

Nerves may have been the case at the pier but they totally disappeared once I was comfortably tucked in and we pulled into open water.

Two words? VERY COOL!

Because the sound of the engine's so loud we had to wear headsets. I am sure they are meant to double as hearing protection, because you could instantly hear and feel the power of this yellow machine.

Once we were moving I was trying to listen to the guys talk about the mechanics of this neat thingamayjiggy I was moving in; it's unique versatility (giving Chris and his wife the ability to live on an island year round in Muskoka) but I was preoccupied. The breathtaking view surrounding me had my undivided attention.

I love fog, and heading toward the Seven Sisters could have been a scene from a movie. It wasn't only the amazing view that made today memorable. It's the fact that I would never take the experience for granted. Hell, I never take any experience I have for granted... but today was a very personal mission as well as a rewarding one.

With our mission accomplished (and my guided tour complete) it dawned on me that this area of the lake has been David's home his entire life. That said, as the leader for the next generation of his family business, I knew our limo ride had him curious. When walking together across the front lawn, I him heard yell to our chauffeur... "Do you make a lot of these trips?"

Thanks Chris Hoag. You're the BEST!
Taken: January 13th, 2013

To which I instantly interjected “Not really... He only does it for very desperate women that beg him really late on Friday afternoons!” 

Seriously, if I had to pay a dime for every man I ever had to beg? I’d owe at least $1,765.90 from last Friday alone and one other other dime.

Ya curious? All I am going to say is that I know I’ll never see him again. That, and the fact that in this instance my glass is more than half full.

Why? Because the lads loss is obvious. I'm keeping his dime!