25 Reasons I Owe My Mother...

My friend Jeanie sent me this. She was a single Mom for a good portion of her kids upbringing and I used to chuckle when all she wanted for Mother’s Day was for her “Ex” to take the kids that day. I didn’t have kids of my own back then, and now that Mikey travels so much, I have a better understanding of her wish! Mike’s in Hawaii on “bidnez” for a couple of weeks… so my kids are up for grabs Sunday. Take a number!

1. My mother taught me: TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE .
'If you're going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finished cleaning.'

2. My mother taught me: RELIGION.
'You better pray that will come out of the carpet.'

3. My mother taught me: TIME TRAVEL.
'If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle of next week!'

4. My mother taught me: LOGIC.
'Because I said so, that's why!"

5. My mother taught me: MORE LOGIC.
'If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you're not going to the store with me.'

6. My mother taught me: FORESIGHT.
'Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you're in an accident.'

7. My mother taught me: IRONY.
'Keep crying, and I'll give you something to cry about.'

8. My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS.
'Shut your mouth and eat your supper.'

9. My mother taught me: CONTORTIONISM.
'Will you look at that dirt on the back of your neck!'

10. My mother t aught me about STAMINA.
'You'll sit there until all that spinach is gone.'

11. My mother taught me: WEATHER .
'This room of yours looks as if a tornado went through it.'

12. My mother taught me: HYPOCRISY.
'If I told you once, I've told you a million times. Don't exaggerate!'

13. My mother taught me: THE CIRCLE OF LIFE.
'I brought you into this world, and I can take you out.'

1 4. My mother taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION.
'Stop acting like your father!'

15. My mother taught me: ENVY.
'There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don't have wonderful parents like you do.'

16. My mother taught me about ANTICIPATION.
'Just wait until we get home.'

17. My mother taught me: RECEIVING.
'You are going to get it when you get home!'

18. My mother taught me: MEDICAL SCIENCE.
'If you don't stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that way.'

19. My mother taught me: ESP.
'Put your sweater on; don't you think I know when you are cold?'

20. My mother taught me: HUMOR.
'When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me.'

21. My mother taught me: HOW TO BECOME AN ADULT .
'If you don't eat your vegetables, you'll never grow up.'

22. My mother taught me: GENETICS.
'I swear you're just like your father.'

23. My mother taught me about my ROOTS.
'Shut that door behind you. Do you think you were born in a barn?'

24. My mother taught me: WISDOM:
'When you get to be my age, you'll understand.

'25. And my favorite: My MOTHER TAUGHT ME ABOUT JUSTICE:
'One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you!

Happy Mother's Day ladies... enjoy!

The Little Team That Could…

Club volleyball officially ended on Sunday.
The culmination was a 3 day National Qualifier held in Minneapolis.
Our results, although not a bid to Nationals, surpassed our expectations.
We finished 31st out of 102 teams and competed for the Bronze medal.

Our 9 girls walked into the MPLS Convention Center that first night like they belonged there.
They were pumped!
We got court time for an hour to familiarize them with the courts and to relieve any jitters the enormous tournament site may cause.
The next day, reality set in.

Our first opponent was made up of tall… very tall, strong athletes.
They had a fire in their belly that I’ve seen before in elite teams.
I don’t think you can coach that kind of fire; it must just come from somewhere within.

Our tallest girl is maybe 5’9 tops.
Jordie is the second to shortest at a little over 5.5
“Intimidating”… we’re not.

That first match was short; leading us to believe it was going to be a very long weekend.
Next up was the #1 seed in our pool out of Colorado.
“Fierce” is an understatement; they won the first game.
Game 2 was ours, handedly.
The 3rd game may as well been for all the marbles.

When we won it, our coach actually had to tell us parents to “Act like we’ve been here before”!!!
We were ecstatic, realizing that moment may just be the highlight of the weekend, possibly the season.

In retrospect, that match meant so much more than just a “W”.
It proved to the girls, they did indeed belong there.
And the better they played, the tougher competitors they’d draw, resulting in them raising their game over and over again.

It was a blast to watch.
Our nerves are shot.
And we can’t wait until next year.

To finish off our near perfect weekend,
Jordie and I, along with our travel buddies Kerri and Jamie K, pulled into a local dive in Osceola Iowa.

We needed to down some chow before hitting the road hard for home.
We were starving and Granny Grier's slogo on the billboard was enticement enough.

“Home cookin so good…
You’ll think we stole your Mother!”

That pretty much sums up the weekend...
Mmm, mm… Good!

The Downside of Blogging…

Mikey, who rarely reads my blog, did so yesterday.
I know this not because he told me.
No, his actions speak louder than words.

Like a gazelle this morning, he leapt out of bed and headed out the door.
“Where are you going” I asked with just the slightest bit of annoyance in my voice.
I didn’t really need to hear his answer… somehow I already knew.

“Coffee, I’m making the coffee”.

Arghhhhhhhh…. I KNEW he read it now!
The man never grabs a cup of Joe before work, instead making a swing through the cafeteria his morning routine.
I blew it with my big mouth!

When I saw him rattling through the cupboards in search of a thermos, that’s when I knew…
Desperate times call for desperate measures.

I’ll be heading out today to purchase Mikey his very own percolator.
His and hers baby!
But I think I’ll buy him the 2 to 4 cup version Mom originally tried to give me.
Last thing I need is the BOTH of us vibrating all day!

Haaaaaa-vvvv-e uh uh uh uh Gggg-ooo-dd Dd-aaay !!!

Today is the first day of my new and glorious life…

And why is today so different from the rest you ponder?
I’ll tell you…

I discarded my Bunn “Drip” coffee pot and replaced it with an old fashioned Percolator!

Pure Coffee Bliss.

I must credit my mother with my new transformation; she went back to a percolator a few years ago. Whenever I’m at her house, it’s like a treat to sip her brew. One day I realized… I can start each and every day this way; a true epiphany!

The next obvious step was to “not-so-coyly” secure a percolator. “Ma…I want a percolator for my birthday” is how that transpired. Pure genius I am at times!

There was one slight delay to my morning ecstasy; Mom initially bought me a 2 to 4 cup percolator. Silly, silly woman.

My new 10 to 12 cup percolator showed up on my doorstep yesterday and it took everything I had not to brew a cup last night. In the interest of sleep, I displayed great patience.

I actually beat Mike downstairs this morning. I fired that puppy up and was immediately transported back in time. The sound…blurp, blurp, blurp…was a symphony to my waking ears.

I watched as little vapors of coffee spit out of its spout; the smell was overwhelming, awakening all my still lagging senses at once.

When I poured my first cup, there were just a few tiny specs of coffee grounds flowing into my cup. I thought of my Grandma then, and if I were a smoking gal, I’d have lit me up a Pall Mall no filter.

I can’t remember the last time I spent less than 100 bucks on a coffee maker. They keep coming up with faster, hotter, sleeker models. This guy was $40, once again proving less is more.

Drinking coffee is an art. It’s a right of passage. A good cup of coffee is like a best friend.

Coffee shouldn’t be tap water quickly dripped though some grounds lying in a paper product. It should be brewed. Percolated. Anticipated.
And when that first sip finally meets your pallet, everything will be right with the world.

Just like our friendships, a few grinds floating in the cup, though some might view as an “imperfection”, is really what makes them unique and strong.

So if you’re in the neighborhood, drop in, I’ll brew you a cup of Joe. Just be sure to allow a little extra time!

We ARE Kansas