iHateGreenBeans

This past Friday, I asked my sister what my niece was going to be for Halloween.  Naturally, Jamie felt tremendous pressure to come up with something creative enough for our wack-a-doo family.  She asked if I had any ideas.  Balloon Boy came to mind, but I knew we couldn’t find enough aluminum foil in the short amount of time we had before the big day.  We’re talking 48 hours people.

Finally, I suggested the only thing I knew that would work under the time crunch.

Lincee:  “We could recycle my costume from last year if you are interested.”

Jamie:  “I was hoping you’d say that.”

A few snips, tucks and modifications, and we were ready for trick-or-treating.

Her face is red and splotchy because she HATED the tulle.  She pitched the biggest fit of her life when we plopped her into the bath tub.  Thank the Lord for that rubber ducky. 

My Mother and I kept telling her that if she expects to be a treasured member of this family, she better get used to tulle.  And sequins.  And fringe.  And movie musicals.  And large bows on her bald head.

Because that is who we are.  Embrace it Addison.  It’s in your blood.

We’ve been waiting and waiting for my niece to sit up on her own, and she finally did!  It’s a milestone that should be celebrated with a fun new outfit.  And everyone knows that nothing says team spirit like an embroidered onesie and a matching tutu.  Go Lobos!

Of course this lasted five seconds before she started eating the tutu.  But to her defense, we were playing dress up right around lunch time.

Then she decided she wanted to eat the camera and we figured we were done.

I’m a little worried about a Halloween outfit.  When your Mom’s a drill team director and you wear tutus on a regular basis, there is a bit of pressure when it comes to costume options. 

My vote is for a cupcake because I could just eat her up!

I had an idea to write this post when a friend of mine sent me an email this morning.  Let me set it up for you:

David and I are PowerPoint “co-captains” at church and I recently asked him for his September schedule so I could figure out who we need to bring up from JV while we are away doing various activities this semester.

He was quick to respond with all the dates in the fall that he will not be able to serve.  There was a wedding.  Texas Tech vs. A&M football weekend.  And this little nugget on September 6…

World Championship BBQ Goat Cook-Off.

Huh.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen those words connected together before in my life.  One might think that I would go off on some sarcastic tangent, but coming from a girl who is scheduling her pending knee surgery around Hallsville Western Days’ Civil War Re-Enactment…well…you all know that this Goat BBQ Championship thing sounds all sorts of AWESOME to me.   Let’s hope DQ takes pictures and sends in a report on who wins the big prize. 

I’d blog about it.  I’m just saying.

The goat championship BBQ sentence did tickle me though.  I started to think about all the random things I had heard on the phone, or read in an email/text or heard from friends and family the last week.  I have to say, I lead a pretty interesting life.  Or I surround myself with crazies.  Probably a mixture of both.

Example #1:

My friend Jill has a 16-month old little boy.  The other day we were on the phone and I heard this:  “No…no Sam…Sam…no…SAM!  Lincee I have to go.  Sam’s eating dog food.”

Not your typical run-of-the-mill sentence that acurately describes your kid’s diet. 

Example #2:

My other friend Rebecca has a brand new baby.  I hear her three-year-old in the background:  “Mommy!  Baby Sam needs you!”

What is wrong with that sentence you ask?  Yes…it is very normal.  However, the baby’s name is not Sam.  The three-year-old has named him Sam because the only other boy baby he has known is Jill’s Sam.  It’s been five days now.  The siblings are still calling him Sam.  The parents call him by his real name.  My Mom used to call the dog’s name when she was yelling for me.  I think this family is going to be okay.

Example #3

My Mom and I are watching the traveling Broadway production of Mamma Mia this past weekend in Dallas.  When the curtain rises, we find Sophie on the Greek island singing to herself about how she has a dream.  Mom leans over and says, “Why is her hair red?”  I look at her funny and she says, “It’s supposed to be blond.”

I explain to her that this isn’t Cinderella and that she needs to get over it.  Different actors play different characters on the stage.  Sophie’s hair color means nothing to the story line.  She rolled her eyes and was bitter for the rest of the show. 

Example #4

I was on the phone with Sergeant Cole last night (yes he’s back!) and he is telling me how he got from Iraq to the US.  In the middle of a very dramatic moment, I hear a bugle playing in the background.  He pauses and says, “Let me call you back.  They are lowering the flag.”

Oh how that warms my heart!  God bless the USA!

Example # 5

I drove in from Dallas on Saturday night and arrived back at my apartment around 1:30 in the morning.  I fell asleep immediately and woke up a few hours later to my phone ringing.  As you can imagine, there is a split second that is a mixture of figuring out where the weird noise is coming from, trying to find my phone and registering who is on the other side, because nothing good can come from a 3:00 a.m. phone call.

It was my boss.  Who is currently in the Middle East. 

I click the green button and yell “HELLO?” about 30 times.  Nothing.  I get panicky and start wondering if he is in trouble or stuck in a holding cell at an airport or in JAIL!  I text as fast as my fingers could fly and wait for the familiar BING to answer me back.

BING!  “I forgot it is 3:00 AM in Houston.  Going to tell you about rig in Oman.  Sorry to disturb you.  Go back to bed.”

Don’t you think that merits a free personal day?  One that corresponds with the World Championship BBQ Goat Cook-Off maybe?

“My second and last tour of duty in Iraq is finally over. I am happy to be coming home. My family will have all of it’s sons out of this tragic country for the first time since the invasion in 2003. The 56th Stryker Brigade will be done with the various medical and administrative outprocessing later this month. After that, I am going to see the family for a couple of days, and then take a vacation out west with a friend. I especially want to thank the ladies who wrote in for Big Pimpin. It was my pleasure to get to know you all. Unfortunately, it did not work out with anybody in particular, so life goes on. Coming home to my family, and unhurt, is enough for me.”

Elliott sent several photos to friends and family the last few weeks in Iraq. At times, he would give his camera to one of the guys to take candid photos of the crew. One of them captured this moment and titled the photo “Relieved.” When I asked Elliott to tell me what was going on at that moment, he said that he had just finished his last mission and was grateful that everyone was going to be coming home in one piece.

I love this photo. I think it says so much. Of course he was relieved. He had a charge of men under him and each one will be hugging their families and loved ones soon. That’s why the photo is so incredible. And that’s why he is so incredible…because THAT is where his head and heart are…with his men. He did his job. He did it well. Everyone is safe.

God bless America!  And God bless YOU Elliott!