My Mom, Birthdays, and Basketball Memories

Happy birhtday to my mom! She is 64 today - 20 years older than I am. We were reminiscing about Kentucky Basketball this week. It may mean nothing to you, but this is the 20th anniversary of "the shot" - the game winning shot by Christian Laettner which gave Duke the last second win over Kentucky in the NCAA tourney in March of 1992. I remember that night so clearly. We were all sitting in the living room of the house I grew up in in Kentucky. We were getting ready to celebrate another Kentucky win - until Laettner, with 2.1 seconds left, shot that nightmare shot. All these years later you can go to a UK game and see "I Still Hate Laettner" t-shirts. We haven't forgotten.

As we talked about that night my mom reminded Steve and I that she had just turned 44 - which is how old I will be soon! It was a strange thought to look back and see her then and look at myself now. She was so young! Man, I was so young!! I was pregnant with Victoria. Oh so long ago and yet some days it seems like just yesterday. This year I can watch Kentucky basketball and the NCAA tourney with my mom and my daughter - who herself is almost 20. My brain cannot fathom this! We have all changed. It is a beautiful thing. My mom is a beautiful woman. I can only begin to describe her to you in a few short sentences. She is a servant who loves the Lord Jesus Christ first and foremost. She loves and serves her family faithfully and

self-sacrificially. She has taught me much about caring for others, community, cooking, being a wife, being a mom, and growing in my faith. She and Dad are both such blessings to me and my family. I am grateful!!

It was fun to talk about "the old days" and look back and remember how thankful I was for Mom then. But little did I know that the older I get the more thankful I would become for her - and for dad. I love them both! So, for Mom's birthday, let me celebrate her! I thank God for the gift He has given me.

I have shared this Wendell Berry quote before, but I will share it again. This expresses how I feel about my mom: "As I went about my work then as a young woman, and still now when I am old, Grandmam has been often close to me in my thoughts. And again I come to the difficulty of finding words. It is hard to say what it means to be at work and thinking of a person you loved and love still who did that same work before you and who taught you to do it. It is a comfort ever and always, like hearing the rhyme come when you are singing a song."

A Little Down Time...

Well, today was a lovely Sunday morning. We got an extra hour of sleep which is always good. Then at church we had a guest speaker which means that Steve and I got to sit next to each other! This is by far one of my favorite things. I have said before that sitting next to Steve during the gathering of the church is so encouraging to me - and VERY romantic. So thanks to the amazing John Ryan for being willing to drive all the way to another state in order to bring the Word (and a challenging message it was!) to our church and my family.

After a fun lunch with friends Steve and I settled in by the fireplace to relax. This, too, is a gift from John - no afternoon of tiredness for Steve who usually has to spend the day recovering from having spoken at Trailhead! So now what does a girl do? Most definitely NOT watch an episode of a zombie television series like some people we know! :) Shopping it is! I am really not much of a shopper. But the NCAA basketball season is here and I am in need of a few Kentucky Wildcats items! So for your viewing pleasure - these are my finds for the day. I know you will be jealous!!

This definitely needs to be on my front door as soon as possible:
And this picture is an example of the reason God did not give me an abundance of money. $55 - really?

Or wait, these are only $40!






And my kitchen will never be complete with this little number!! I would be a much better cook, don't you think?

I am one hundred percent sure that Steve will be so overjoyed to see this every morning when he leaves the house!

There is still so much more shopping to do. A true Wildcats fan must have that three piece bathroom set - of toilet seat cover and rug around the toilet and bath rug! And then there are the golf towels for my non-existant golf club set and the toaster that puts the letters U-K on your toast every morning... I could go on and on. Then, I look up and realize that I have wasted about two hours shopping for things that I will never buy... wow. But I am relaxed, toasty warm, and happy... and not one dime poorer than when I started!

Go Big Blue!