Flying

Kevin has a fascination for flying. Before Kevin and I were married, we were off on one of our adventures and Kevin spotted something really strange flying in the sky. Despite our plans, we began chasing the curious flying object. We drove around for at least an hour trying to get a closer look at this thing. Kevin was determined to find the landing spot by following in our car , even though it was pretty high in the sky. We followed this flying machine more than once, actually probably every few months when we would see it. Finally, a few years back Kevin found his experimental flying machine. It looks like a go-cart in the sky, with a parachute attached. It is called a " Power-chute ". I haven't done the research myself like I probably should, but Kevin says they are very safe. Safer than actually parachuting, because you know the chute is going to work, because you can't get up into the air, with out it. Kevin's first ride in a power-chute was on his birthday. I wont name, which number. ;) I prayed the whole time he was in the air, that my children would still have a Dad when his flight was over. I wouldn't let Brooke come to see it, just in case. He still hasn't talked me into it, but I know eventually I will ride with him. Kevin has flown enough times, that he qualifies to drive it on his next ride. Kevin and his friend Dallin went out a few weekends ago to fly. Dallin got some good video.

Kevin has also been in an acrobatic plane, and did complete flips in the air, with Major's pilot a few years back. He called me after a ride one time, when I was pregnant with Brooke. He told me about how crazy it was, and I almost had a heart attack just hearing about it.

Andy, my little sister's husband is a pilot. Andy let Kevin fly his plane once when we went on a trip to Utah, back when Amy and Andy were at BYU, Utah. I was on that plane ride. It was so beautiful, but it took me awhile to stop freaking out, because I was in a plane smaller than a four door sedan, and Kevin, who knew nothing about flying, was flying it over the Wasatch mountains. Not to mention Brooke was being watched by my parents.

First day of Kindergarten

I heard a lot of talk about Mothers breaking down and crying on the day, that their first baby goes off to Kindergarten. I was feeling emotional about sending Brooke off, knowing that I would miss having her with me all day. And, worrying about how it would go for her. On the morning we took her to her class room, tears were no where to be seen. There is no way, that I could be sad, and cry about Brooke getting to do something, that she had been so excited about for an entire year. I heard all summer long about going to Kindergarten, from Brooke. Her eyes would get big, her eyebrows raise, and with a huge smile on her face she would ask almost at least once a week, towards the end of the summer, if it was almost time for her to go to Kindergarten?

As a Mother you fear for many things on the first day of school. A common worry, is if your child will get a good teacher, or how the other kids in their class will treat your child? When Brooke got into the car after school, with in seconds she broke out into huge tears. The kind of tears that make you want to start crying with her. I immediately pulled over, thinking I was going to hear a horrible story about how the teacher, or kids in her class were mean. When I got her to finally spit it out, and she said, "Mommy, I just didn't learn anything, and I thought I was going to learn in Kindergarten?" I just couldn't help but turn my lips up a little and almost break into a laugh. I love how Brooke loves to learn so much! She is so smart! We had a long talk that during the first week of school there is a lot of learning about how to get to the classroom and what the rules are. Brooke also was distraught that she didn't get her snack on the first day, because the boys in her class were acting bad. She was starving. I understood, it is a long time for a five-year old to go, only having lunch.

As the end of the first week comes to a close, Brooke is up and down about being in Kindergarten now. She has so many stories to tell me already. She made a few friends, and she has had some kids being really mean to her. We are talking a lot and working out emotions from 3pm until 8pm right now. I am sympathizing, giving suggestions, and most of all I am telling her over and over that Mommy and Daddy love her so much and we are so proud of the good, smart and beautiful girl that she is.

Arbuckles

One of the items on my fantasy list of things I want to do before I die includes going on an African Safari. I don't know if I will ever do this, but Arbuckles Wilderness has brought me pretty darn close. If you think you have gone to the zoo and had a great time, you should consider asking Kevin to go to the zoo with you first, and then head to Arbuckles. On your drive out there, he will stop at a grocery store on the way. You might think you are purchasing enough fresh food to feed three families, but you will find that this food can be devoured by wild beasts, in only a matter of minutes. You will probably wonder at about half way there, what the stench is, that is coming from the grocery bag next to you. You might even throw up when you realize there is a pig nose, YES, a real pig nose packaged up with a price label and all, that Kevin purchased at the store, while you were off getting the carrots. Your next stop will be Turner Falls, where you will take the scenic turn out and view a pretty waterfall, emptying into a lake surrounded by natural watersides. After posing for some pictures, you may be getting impatient to finally get to the drive-thru animal park. When you arrive at the little store, where you purchase tickets, you may be wondering if this three hour drive, with stops, will be worth it. Quickly your doubts will fade as you approach the chain link fence, that is only ten feet high, with tigers behind it. When Kevin gets out of the car and begins to lure the tigers and hyenas to the fence with meat, you will definitely be looking around for the security truck, that you saw when you paid at the store. As the tigers begin to pace the fence, and you are all out of meat, you probably will be eager to move on. Especially as you see ten foot ostriches approaching the car, and Kevin still has the car door propped open.

When the ten feet tall ostriches approach, you will get really excited to roll your car window down and start feeding them the food they prefer, which comes from the park, ( you will notice they don't like the cereal that Kevin bought ) You will be admiring their long eyelashes, as they stick their long necks into the car, to eat the food.  The excitement will soon turn into shrills as Kevin dumps the entire cup of food onto your lap, and you have four ostrich heads in your car, picking food up off your lap. You probably wont know whether to laugh or cry out of fear, as you get attacked by ostrich beaks. You will be relieved when you realize these animals are trained to pull their heads out of the car, when the window begins to roll up. Kevin will probably almost shut one of the ostrich necks in the window when trying to test how fast their " pull out of window " reflex is. You will probably scold Kevin for doing that.

You will be relieved to see the next batch of animals you are pulling up to are just donkeys and horses. But don't be surprised at how feisty these regular barn animals can get, as they chase your car and say " Heehaw" very loudly, after all you did feed them carrots, which they probably hardly ever get. Kevin will probably test how fast they can catch up to the car, and tease them a bit with a stop for a carrot and quick increase in speed.

You will be disgusted at how nappy a camel can get as a herd of them approach the car next. You will probably wish you could take a bath after having four camel heads in your car, chowing down on all kinds of veggies. As the Lamas try and start squeezing into the window, Kevin will probably start revving the engine to get some of the camels to move on.

You might think it is fun to feed a Texas long horn, and enjoy taking it's picture. It is when it turns it's head quickly and bangs it's horn on your car, at that point, you will probably wish you had skipped the long horns all together.

Besides hand feeding a baby deer, watching antelope gracefully prance in a field, and counting how many babies that the momma pig, has nestled in hay, there will be two experience that you wont forget. The first will be, having eight zebras going wild for carrots at your car. They will be bucking each other, swinging their heads back and forth with excitement. And then watching Kevin open the car door to get out and take a picture with them. You will be wishing you could forget the part he gets out the car, because you will be scared he is going to get kicked. And lastly, the best part of and Arbuckes experience will be the giraffes. You will notice how gentle they are. You will be surprised at how long their purple tongue is and how it can wrap around a whole apple. You will be shocked and worried when Kevin is counting how many apples that one giraffe will eat. When he gets to number thirteen and the giraffe starts spitting up apple, and it drips on your car, you will be ready to get out of there and get your car washed. But before you go you will pet the giraffe one more time, and you will think to yourself, you know you couldn't do this on an African Safari, and then you might want to plan your next trip to Disney World instead.

Arbuckles is a family traddition for us. Once we drug Kevin's brother Jeff and his family to Arbuckles with us. It was so much fun. The first time that Brooke hysterically laughed, we were at Arbuckles and she saw an ostrich for the first time. As a joke Uncle Jeff and Aunt Tricia gave Brooke a stuffed ostrich for Christmas. We took Will to Arbuckles for the first time on our way to KC. He loved it, admittidly not as much as Brooke did, but we still got lots of laughs from him. After one of our trips to Arbuckles when Brooke was a baby, we realized it probably wasn't very safe, how close we were letting these wild animals get to Brooke. They could just take a finger off in a second, as she reached out to them. We were more cautious of the danger these animals could be in such close proximity, on our first trip with Will.

Lydia's Birthday

                                                                    Lydia and Brooke

                                                          Lydia, Alaina and Doreen

Brooke, Sophi, Lydia, and Lexi

                                             

                                                               Sophi, Kevin and Brooke

Aunt Doreen, Kevin and Brooke

Brooke gets really roudy when Uncle Jeff is around

We celebrated Lydia's fourteenth birthday while we were in KC. Lydia, has always been very special to Brooke. Lydia, always makes Brooke feel important. Even when Brooke was barley walking, Lydia would take special attention to her, by taking care of her and playing with her, even when it seemed like everyone else had, had enough with the work it some times takes to play with a baby. Lydia seems to have a patience, and a gift of being unselfishh and thoughtful. When Brooke got tired once at the Fourth of July party, Lydia would take her up to her room, cuddle up in blankets with her, and watch a movie. Even when all the other cousins were still playing. When Brooke was three, Lydia entertained her by teaching her games on her Nintendo DS. After one visit to KC, I had a three-year old Brooke asking for a DS because Lydia taught her how to play it.  Lydia once made Brooke a pillow with her sewing machine. Brooke thought it was so neat that Lydia could make a pillow, and she still has it on her bed and sleeps with it every night. When Will tries to take her pillow, Brooke says, " NO, Will, not that pillow. It is special because Lydia made it for me."

Little piece of history in our hands

There are some things that you can always expect when visiting the Turano's. Although, Grandma and Grandpa Turano don't live in the house that Kevin grew up in, much about their new house has the same feeling, as the old one. There will always be an " Italian feast" is how Kevin explains it to Brooke. Thank goodness one of Brooke's favorite foods is meatballs, otherwise it would put the Italian tradition to shame, as we gather in a large dining room for these Italian feasts, every time that we visit. Kevin probably will never enjoy any meal, as much these feasts that his Mom prepared as he was growing up. There is more than just a hot plate as dinner begins. Leave it to Grandpa, to bring in the bluntly honest topics, that remind us that family is always there no matter what, even in the most awkward or embarrassing moments. There is playful racketing at the end of the table where the children sit. And this feast doesn't just end with dinner, but goes on for hours, as rivalry joins the table, along side the dessert and coffee, where a card game tournament is being plotted out. Grandpa may be using a tactic to win these games by soothing his contenders with the serene sound of the piano, that he begins to play, before the games begin. Even Great Grandma Mistretta joins in on the card games, and she has been known to win, more than once. The night ends late, and Grandpa and Kevin still haven't had enough with the games, because they keep playing cards even as everyone else is out the door.

There is so much meaning that fills the Turano house. There is a story behind almost everything that they own. One of the most memorable things you will find in their house, is the stain glass window that they moved from their old house, to the new one. Although expensive to do this, they just had to bring a piece of the house, that their children grew up in, with them. They also have a statue that Grandpa's Dad whom was also a doctor, bought when a patient of his was in need, and couldn't pay money, so they made a trade.

               Grandpa Turano purchased this stain glass from a flee market for $75 dollars. It was placed between the breakfast nook and the living room in the house that Kevin grew up in.

Saint Cecelia by Adrien E. Gaudez ( 1845-1902 )

Collecting is a piece of history, in your hand. And those who know history, know that all history is an attempt to find pattern and meaning. History is, who we are, today. Grandpa Turano knows this about history. He collects some really neat, old things. Our last visit to KC Brooke started asking about his record players, what they were, and if they work. Brooke got a chance to see these record players in action. They still work! Grandpa's collection includes some of the very first players. Grandpa showed Brooke his rare stereoscopic photographs from World War One. Our history lesson ended when Will got hold of Grandpa's gavel that he used when he was the president of his fraternity(Alpha Phi Delta), in college. We didn't want damage done to the house, or the piece of history, that Will was swinging around in his hands.

                         

Edison Amberol 1912-1929

                                          Victor XXV Schoolhouse phonograph 1917

                                 Victor IV phonograph with Nipper ( His Master's Voice ) 1908

                                            Bing Children's phonograph 1918 German

Will holds the gavel that belonged to Grandpa Turano, when he was president of the fraternity Alpha    Phi Delta

Isn't life wonderful

The Lord, in His infinite wisdom, sometimes does not take away our weakness, and in fact gives us trials in our lives, so that we can actually, be strengthened. The Apostle Paul struggled throughout his life with “a thorn in the flesh,” which he said served to humble him “lest [he] should be exalted above measure” (2 Cor. 12:7).

Three times Paul asked the Lord to take away his weakness, and three times the Lord declined to do so. The Lord then explained that His grace was sufficient for Paul and that, in fact, His strength was actually “made perfect in weakness.” Then Paul wrote, “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

“Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Cor. 12:9–10).

Like Paul, we can find positive meaning in our trials, or weaknesses that are not taken away. Surely nothing is quite as humbling as having a weakness that we cannot overcome, but must continue to struggle with throughout our life. Such a weakness teaches us, in a very personal way, that after all we can do, we must rely on the grace of Christ to make up the difference. That we might reach out to the Lord in prayer, for help. That we might teach others by being humble, and allowing for service. That we might let others grow with us, through the pain of our trials.

As we humbly submit our will to the Lord’s, we find that our weaknesses can indeed become a source of strength if we put our trust in Him.

This was very clearly to me, the attitude that Grandma Turano exhibited while we were in Kansas City visiting her last weekend. After a fall that caused her great pain, and uncomfortably put her in bed for what seemed like eternity, and then lead to surgery, Grandma Turano still welcomed us into her home, to visit her. She said that she would rather see us, even in her uncomfortable situation, than not see us. One of the first things she said as we walked in the door is that, sometimes things happen for a reason, and that she is trying to accept the good that can come out of this.

The gifts that filled her room were signs of the loving and wonderful friend that she is, for in fact, her friends had given her a pile of gifts and cards, to return the love she given them, in her time of need. She is a very loved woman, and I was very impressed with her faith, and humble attitude. 

Once she said sarcastically, " Isn't life wonderful." and with a change in tone, she profoundly said,                                     " Actually life really is, wonderful."

Brooke was so worried about Grandma when she heard that she had gotten hurt. Brooke began reminding us all to pray for her many times a day. For days leading up to our trip to see Grandma, Brooke wrapped up her toys and made drawings for her. Kevin also mentioned, although it would be hard to drive there and back for such a short trip, that he wanted his mother to know that he cared, and he wanted to see her. I of course felt the same way. Brooke is still making drawings and reminding us to pray for Grandma Turano. Will gave Grandma hugs on the first morning he saw her. Although Will has only met her five times, including that trip, I can tell that he feels love when he is held by her. We wish we could see her more, and I wish my children could have her admirable influence more in their lives. But, after all, they do have her influence, for their Father had a Mother, who taught him through example, how to make life wonderful.

Free Therapy

                                                         Me , Rachel, Amanda, and Holly

Amanda Threw my last babyshower for me, she helped with my 28th birthday party, and she taught me how to make home-made bread. We are training to run a half marathon in October.

Holly, on the right, threw my last two birthday parties, and she is my inspiration on blogging. She even help me set things up on my blog to get me started. She is one the the most fun girls I have ever met!

No girls night is complete with out Rachel there to stir things up a little.

Girls night is like therapy that doesn't cost any money, except for the yummy desserts, movie popcorn , and dinner, and who could complain for paying for a treat filled night, with great friends. Well I guess your tummy could. These are some of the girls that keep my sanity, on rough days. They make me laugh, and forget that I even have a baby who might wake up at any moment, crying his heart out for me. Actually, they don't make me forget, they just make me leave my car at their house, so I can't be tempted to go back home if I get a text, that is promised will come, if he wakes up. I feel lucky to have such great friends! I look forward to girls night and I get it at least every other week! I am thankful that Kevin encourages it too.

The Fateful Circus

It was our destiny to meet our friends Emily and Drew. So I got call from Kevin at about 4pm in the afternoon one day, and he said he wanted to take us to the Taste of McKinney Festival, and he would be home to pick us up in one hour. At the time Will was about three months old, and getting out with a new baby takes preparation.  I could tell that Kevin had an agenda, and only fate could have been the cause of me having already showered, gotten the kids ready, and set to go out the door, even before I received the phone call. At the festival Brooke ended up playing with this little girl in the bounce house so well. Brooke and Greenly were having a blast from the moment they met. Kevin was talking to a guy who had a child in the bounce house, but he didn't know which child it was. Kevin and this guy were hitting it off, and started exchanging phone numbers, when the two girls walked out of the bounce house together , it was a great surprise. Then Kevin says that his wife is in the car with three-month old baby. Then Drew says that his wife is at the table , with a three-week old baby. Then Kevin says, my wife's name is Emily. Then Drew says, his wife's name is Emily. Then we find out that Drew is much older than Emily, except you can't tell. Then we find out that Greenly and Brooke are both going into Kindergarten, and they will attend the same elementary school. Then we find out Brooke and Greenly were both born in February only a few days apart. Then we find out that, the date that Drew and Emily met each other is with in days, of the date, that Kevin and I met each other. Then we find out that Kevin and Emily E. actually share the same birth date! Then we find out that both Emily's love the color pink, clothes, and cooking. Then we find out that both Drew and Kevin own their own small businesses right here in McKinney, and they both are the rough house, play all the time with their kids, type of Dad. We get together with the Everett's all the time. We take turns making dinners for each other, and we just have a great time with them.

Drew and Emily had some extra, free tickets to the Barnum and Baily Circus and they invited us to come along with them. The circus didn't start until 7:30 which is Will's bedtime, so it was pretty exciting in many ways. We took turns holding Will and walking him around. Thank goodness the family that sat behind us had four boys under the age of five, so they didn't mind the distraction that Will was at all. Hadley, Emily and Drew's baby was sound asleep in their arms for part of the show and then she hung right in with Will's activity, near the end. Brooke and Greenly got cotton candy, snow cones, toys and enjoyed an awesome circus show. We enjoyed what we saw of it.

Brooke has been to the circus six times in her life so far. Will has been to two circuses and he is only one-year. What can I say? We love the circus because we are a pretty goofy gang. We can relate to the clowns and silly acts.

(Speaking of Goofy, he was actually Brooke's favorite special toy, her equivalent of Melody the Unicorn, or her new pal Dollie, for about three years. He wasn't kicked out of the bed until Melody came along, and I kept making her sleep with him and the unicorn. I was sad to see him go, because I loved that as girly as she is, her favorite guy was Goofy all on her own. Even at Disney World seeing the princesses, she chose goofy. She would have these ruffly pink outfits on and bows in her hair, and she carried a small stuffed goofy, everywhere we went. I think she loved him because he was funny, and reminded her of her Dad. At first, I wished she carried something more girly, but in the end, Goofy really grew on me, because it made me laugh to see him with her all the time. )

Bridle your passions

Tucked away in my dresser drawer lies the proof of one of my greatest life accomplishments, as of yet. My accomplishment, isn't shiny gold medals and trophies, that came from grueling work-outs. These medals represent something so much bigger. And, it is not the incredible feeling I had while reaching a finish line as first female, with hundreds of people following after me. It is not the time I was chosen to race in a Dallas 8k Invitational, representing Run On , and checked into the race, at a desk, with a big sign that read " Local Elite Runners. " It's not the time I won Third over-all female, at the Cow Town Marathon production (5k ), and they took me into a tent to interview me with the other top two females, and I stood in a room filled with college racers, I being the only non-college runner, and told them I had only been running for one-year of my life. My accomplishment is that I can put these medals away in my drawer, and I have learned to do something so incredibly hard for me to do, that is that I have learned to bridle my passions. I have learned that as tempting as it is to feel the praise from the world, I have such a magnificent opportunity to put my priorities in a place that holds so much more importance, and that place is with in the walls of my own home. Even with such a great talent that I have for running, and as exciting as it has been to find this talent later in life, the effort it took to get all of those medals, took a tole on my family. I raced almost every weekend, I ran 45 miles a week. Twice a week on the track with a coach, and team. Although, we still did many fun things as a family during this time, there were so many times that a work-out, race, or just plain being exhausted made our times not as enjoyable as they could have been otherwise. There isn't quite anything that gives you an ego boost, like winning at something that you hardly put any effort into. I think the racing made me feel invincible in a way that was too much for my own good. I became de-sensitized to what the other people were feeling around me because I was too busy indulging in my obsession.

My first race I ever ran was a 5 miler. Kevin and I stayed up until 2am that night watching Smallville. I wasn't worried about not getting any sleep. I approached the race scene for the first time, and I could describe the feeling, like one of my breath being taken away, by the excitement. My heart fluttered like, a little girl having her first crush. I didn't have even have a watch, to watch my time. Kevin told me to take my cell phone, so I did. He called me the entire race! By the end of the race I was known as the girl who took out and gunned it way too fast, and the girl who was talking on the phone, while running in a race. Eventually I quit answering the phone, but it kept on ringing the whole time. I placed first in my age group. By my second race, I won $100 dollar gift certificate to the shoe store Run On, and that is where they met me, saw I had won, and said, " This was your second race? That was a crazy hard course, you need to meet someone." My third race, it was pouring down rain. Kevin kept saying, they probably canceled the race and insisted we turn around because the thunder and lightening was dangerous. But, I refused. We got the race, and I took Brooke in my arms as he parked the car. The race officials said, " Are you planning to run with your baby?" I said my husband is parking the car. They tied my race chip on my foot and I handed Brooke to Kevin at the starting line, just as the gun went off.

I am ready to re-enter the racing world. This time with more wisdom. This time I know how to bridle my passion. I will be running for myself, not representing a shoe store, with a team. This time I will be running with friends. I wont have commitments with a team. I will miss a work-out if I am starting to get injured, or over-exhausted. The love I have for running, is undeniable. The passion, is strong, but the passion is bridled.

I am training for a half-marathon with friends that will take place on Oct.22nd. Last night Kevin came out to the track with me for a two-mile time trial. It was 102 degrees. I finished my first mile in 6:48 and my final time was 13:51.

My fastest personal best 5k time is 20:32. The last half marathon I ran, I did 7:45 min. miles all the way, and finished in 1:45 min. If I don't beat my time, this October, life goes on. When my kids are not so young, and if my health permits, I will beat all my records, someday. If I don't get to it, the feeling I have now, for making the best choice for my family, doesn't even compare to the high of winning a race.