More Florida Pictures

Bathing Beauties!
This pair of Sandhill Cranes wandered through the yard one day. When they saw me taking their picture, they curiously came closer, as if they were posing for me. Very beautiful, majestic birds.

Fun in Florida

This was fun. T and I went to a place called DinnerDone. http://www.dinnerdone.com. Check it out. I want to find a place like this in the Houston area.
My girls in their formals. I made the pink satin and lace one for T when she was in the eighth grade. She is wearing her purple prom dress, which still fits, albeit a little snug. C-B is wearing my gold lame cocktail dress. I wore it one time at a hair show.
The big thing in Florida is Vera Bradley purses http://www.verabradley.com. Here are the girls modeling theirs. Cutie patooties!

This is me and my 'gurlfriend', Barbara (she's the blonde). Her daughter and my daughter are friends and we hit it off, too. We had a multi-generational slumber party at her apartment with our daughters and grand daughters. We stayed up late and watched the Disney Channel...'Hannah Montana' and 'Read it and Weep', ate junk food, danced and caught up on all the happenings in our lives.

More later, ya'll... Elvis wants to play

A Few Words Before I Go

What a week this has been. I must have cut, colored and highlighted a ton of hair this week. It never ceases to amaze me how busy I get right before vacation. I mean, most of my 'regulars' pre-book so they can get in before I go. So, I'm already busy, but then I get calls from people I haven't seen in ages, new referrals plus all the procrastinators who always call at the last minute ( mainly men!) They wake up one morning and suddenly realize they need a haircut, or their wife tells them they have a wedding or some social event to attend, which of course requires them to get the hairs trimmed out of their ears. (I don't do nose hairs!) I even have to wax a few uni-brows occasionally. It is soo funny the first time I rip that wax off from between their eyes! I know it hurts like the dickens, but heaven forbid that they let me see them wince in pain. I really do love my male type clients, though! Hey Mike, ( you know who you are) ever had anything waxed? How about you, Jason?

Well, friends, I must finish packing. I bought some of those Space Bags that you put your clothes in and suck all the air out with the Hoover. They are so neat! I'm taking my daughters' prom dress to her, she's getting all nostalgic, I guess. It's been a few years since she wore it, but I ain't sayin' how many. Anyway, I wanted to to be able to get away with just a carry-on bag, so I sucked that frock down flatter than a pancake! I figured I had room for her pink satin and lace formal, so I sucked it flat, too. What fun, ya'll! I can't wait to suck the life out of some pillows...oooh, do I sound sadistic?

But that will have to wait until I return, for I must go find my sparkly flip flops and beach wrap. Florida is beckoning me. My girls await my arrival, 'cause
Mema Texas made lots of moolah this week and we gonna shop 'til we drop!
And do lunch, and do hair, and go to the movies, the beach, have a slumber party, etc. etc. etc!

Back in a week or so!

Ciao for now, ya'll

Vacation's All I Ever Wanted!

Just six more days ya'll! I'm going to Florida to play in the sun and sand with my girls.

As always, before I go away, I get extremely busy at work. Everyone wants to come in and get their cuts and color done before I get out of town. It's the same way when I return. I'm already booked solid the week I come home. That's ok, because I will be completely broke by then!

I haven't been posting very much lately because I have been pre-occupied with a family crisis concerning my 18 yr old niece. She has been staying with my son since Father's day when I took her, her mother (my sister) and her two younger sisters with me for a visit. Now, she doesn't want to go home. I won't go into the details, but we have all seen this coming for several years, so I wasn't surprised when things came to a head. To make a long story short, she is coming to stay with me. I will go get her when I come back from Florida. She's not rebellious, just misguided and confused. She has wanted to live with me for quite some time, but because of all my marriage issues, it hasn't been possible. Now that all my drama is about to be resolved, the time is right to reach out to her. It's a little scary, but at the same time, I know that it is the right thing to do. I hope that I can be the positive influence that she needs at this precarious time in her young life. Pray for me... It's been a while since I've had a teenager in the house!

Meanwhile, I'm ready for a Florida tan, ya'll

Friendship Garden

As I was rummaging through some files, I ran across this poem I wrote a few years ago. Thought I'd share with ya'll.

Friendship Garden

As I tend my friendship garden
And go about its care,
I so lovingly appreciate
The pretty flowers there.

I till the soil so carefully,
I plant the seeds with love.
As my friendships grow, I see,
They're blessings from above.

My lovely friendship garden,
I watch it as it grows.
I don't expect a marigold
To smell just like a rose.

I give each friend lots of room
To grow in her own way.
With tears of empathy and prayer
I water every day.

I fertilize so generously
With laughter and with cheer.
As each and every friendship grows,
I hold them all so dear.

My pretty friendship garden,
In it I persevere.
When I spend my time there,
I know that God is near.

I have been blessed with so many wonderful friends over the years. However, I also know that friendships need to be developed and nurtured in order to flourish. Friends come in many 'varieties'. Just like flowers in a garden, each one is unique in it's own way. I even have a few cacti in my garden...prickly on the outside, but all mushy on the inside.

In recent months I have added another dimension to my friendships, through blogging. I have enjoyed getting acquainted with people from other parts of the country and even this city... even people whom I may not have associated otherwise, because we are from such different backgrounds, ages or social circles. It has been a learning experience, for sure!

That's a good thing, ya'll