BREAK FREE OF YOUR BUBBLE

I picked up an interesting book from the YA section of the library this week -- Kissing In America by Margo Rabb.

When I glanced at the title my first thought was, "Umm, no thanks!" But, then I noticed the blurb from Elizabeth Gilbert up at the top, which stopped me in my tracks and made me pick it up for further inspection.  Turns out the book has very little to do with kissing, and a whole lot to do with grief (both the kind you go through after losing a loved one, and the kind that gets handed down to you from parents or grandparents who suffered through something horrific, such as The Holocaust) as well as self discovery, coming of age, and the people who help get you through it all. 

The main character ends up on a cross-country bus trip with her best friend (chasing a boy, of course) and this advice from their bus driver really spoke to me and my personal beliefs.

"Ohio is the best. You gotta eat at City Chili...chili on top of spaghetti...First time I ate there, I come home and I says to my wife, I says, 'Let's put the chili on top of spaghetti for a change.' She says, 'No way. Chili? Spaghetti? No can do.'...Most people you know, they want to stay in their little house and not change nothing. But when you hit the road...everything you ever thought about the world is wrong. That's why you gotta travel."

I'm guessing that same paragraph may have resonated with Elizabeth Gilbert too, since her best seller Eat, Pray, Love was all about breaking out of her bubble, conquering her fear of change, and learning what she could from other cultures.

We'd been living in west Texas for five or six years when Hubby was offered the chance to move back to Indonesia. This time we'd be living on Sumatra rather than Java, and since we'd be working for a different company, and have two youngsters in tow, it was sure to be a totally different experience from our first.  My friends kept asking me"Why are you doing this? Don't you have a choice? Is someone forcing you to go?" I'm not sure they believed me when I said I actually encouraged John to accept the offer.  For sure they never would have fathomed that adjusting to our new life in Indonesia was the easiest part for our kiddos. It was coming back and adjusting to that same west Texas town afterwards -- where they no longer fit the mold, and old friends now thought them weird -- that was the difficult part.

Did they ever regret having gone? Well, perhaps you should ask them, 'though I have a pretty good idea as to what they might say. One thing I know for certain is that, without that experience, they would not be the amazing individuals they are today, nor would they be with the wonderful people they are now married to.

"That's why you gotta travel."

Along these same lines, I came across this article online recently. It was an eye opener, for sure! Now I finally understand why the friends who were most horrified that we were moving to Indonesia all voted one way in the recent election, while our lifelong adventure buddies voted the other.

Break out of your bubble. The world is a wonderful place, and not nearly as scary as you've been led to believe. 

Truthfully? The scariest things are right here at home.

THEY REALLY DO EXIST!

We now have a big basket of children's books right next to the sofa. As soon as great-nephew Calvin arrived, he zeroed in on the one about animal sounds and made his parents read it to him over and over and over. He had the part about dogs and cats and cows down pat, even knew that singing pigs say "la la la", but always seemed to hesitate when in came to the horse.

So, on Saturday evening we took our little visiting family to eat at Hays City Cafe. Since the weather was so perfect we decided to eat out under the trees, and when nephew Geoffrey spotted a real live horse on the other side of the fence, he decided to take his Calvin over for a closer look. The poor kid got so excited, he almost lost it! Geoff said he was actually vibrating in his arms. As soon as they got back to the table, Calvin made his mom take him back to the fence again, where two more horsies had appeared.

He was a tad calmer this time.

He also enjoyed the bean bag toss game (known as "Corn Hole" where he comes from) though it was set up way too close to the driveway for my liking, and one kid came dangerously close to getting run over when he darted out in front of a big SUV.

Add in the twinkle lights and live musical entertainment, and I'd say it was a pretty magical evening all around!

We finished off their visit Sunday morning with breakfast at Wimberley Cafe, a stroll around the square,  and a walk along Cypress Creek.

Hope the visit was as memorable for them as it was for us.

CAPTURING THE MOMENTS

I started a new art journal this week -- the first painting I've done in months. Took me awhile to get back in the groove, but I think it'll do. This first spread was inspired by this...

and this...

and a panda-hooded bath towel, and a wall full of pandas next to Little Calvin's crib.

I'm going to call this journal my Grandkid Adventure Journal.

THE TWO CALS DISCOVER LADY BIRD'S WILDFLOWER CENTER

One of the best things ever to happen to Austin is the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, where they have done extensive research on our native plants in each part of Texas, have lots of wonderful demonstration gardens, host art shows and plant sales, teach classes, and have one of the best/worst (if you are trying to be frugal) gift shops in the world. Then there's the cafe, a beautiful aqueduct system, and a stone tower with the best views around. It's also a great place for kids and, since it's only about five minutes from my daughter's house, we arranged a play date there for the two Cals. Here is a brief sampling of their adventures:

Do you see the giant bird nests behind the far mosaic wall?

Tweet-Tweet! One little birdie, sharing with the other.

Apparently none of the public parks they take Big Cal to in Cincinnati have sand boxes, so they weren't sure what he would think about this giant sand pit. He LOVED it. Could've stayed there all day! Little Cal was happy to just sit and observe, which was fine with us since, the first time we put his mama in a sandbox with bare feet, she totally freaked out.

The most surprising event of the day?

Running into old friend Nurse Nellie (from back in our Bahrain days) and her grandson Wyatt, who just happened upon us in the sandpit. Nellie told me that later, when they got home, Wyatt said, "Wow! There were a lot of Calvins at the park today!"

All this, and perfect weather too! In January.

CALVIN I MEETS CALVIN II

We had some very special house guests this week -- our nephew Geoff and his family. His wife Jessica and our Alexis had babies within six months of each other. But, way before they were even ready to have children, each couple, unbeknownst to the other, had decided that if they ever had a son, he would definitely be named Calvin. This week, the two Calvins finally got to meet one another! It was an adventure-filled few days for them both. Here's a sampling of what happened, just on Monday alone:

Playing On The Slide At The Library

Story Time

Our Funny Children's Librarian and Helper Helen

Decorating His Mitten During Craft Time

Toy Time

Lunch At Mima's, Wearing Uncle John's Hat

Nap Time

Dinner with Lexi, Nate and Calvin II at The Salt Lick

Goofy Goober Faces

Friends Forever -- They did this completely on their own!

It's been a long day, huh Papaw? But, a really, really good one!

SPECIAL OR NOT, IT'S UP TO YOU

I sometimes think the majority of us must go through life seeing it as an endless blur of just okay. So-So.  Nothing memorable to get excited about. Could it be that we're just not paying enough attention? Over the last week or two, I've made more of an effort to "embrace the moments", and you know what? It's fairly astounding just how memorable your average day becomes, once you really start paying attention to the moments -- perhaps even writing about them or taking pictures or making sketches that you can scroll back through whenever you need a reminder.

There was that moment when we discovered that, if you just ask for it, most Chilis restaurants will still make their original soft tacos for you -- the ones that actually had chili in them -- even though they haven't been on the menu for years. So yummy!

There was a gorgeous sunrise that one of us enjoyed every second of, while the other sat right in front of it, but with eyes glued to his facebook news feed, which just made him more and more depressed.

And, of course, there were many, many moments like these, which always make my heart go pitter patter.

The one thing that's been missing, however, has been any kind of creative effort. Not really sure why it's been such a long dry spell. Yes, we do spend more time with family now that we have Little Calvin, and yes, there were the holidays and lots of house guests lately. Still, I could have found the time if I'd really wanted to. So I finally did, and it feels so, so good! I keep the latest work-in-progress open on my art table, adding a bit here and there whenever I have a minute. Every time I pass by, it puts a big ol' grin on my face!

So, nothing monumental, but perhaps, momentous? For, as they say, it's the little things that count.