Austin, family, a triathlon and a birthday party

Oldest and youngest

 Two of my gorgeous granddaughters

These imps were poised for mischief all weekend

Every year, I ride to Austin with Melinda, production manager for TCU Press, for the Texas Book Festival. We'd spend two days owrking the TCU Press booth at this mammoth celebration of  books. This year I rode with Melinda, as always, and we met friends at Z Tejas for late afternoon wine. But I didn't go near the festival. My family was in town, and family comes first. Besides times change, and the festival no longer looms as a mjor event in my life.
I actually spent Friday evening alone at my daughter's while she and her family and the Frisco Alters went off to my grandsons' school carnival. They convinced me I did't want to go, so I had a peaceful evening--for a while. Then they all returned, and the Houston Alters arrived. Three of my four grown couples and six of my seven grandchildren--a treat, and we missed those who couldn't join us. Everyone talked until late in the night.
Saturday my sons were off to a hotel to prepare for the next days half Ironman traithlon, while the rest of us went to Shady Grove for lunch. There's a nice grassy area where the kids got an impromptu soccer game going. Saturday night we fixed fajitas, and Sunday we had a big breakfast of eggs and sausage. Then everyone left about noon to go greet the runners--and convinced me I wanted to stay home. Not hard--I got some work done, had a nap, and didn't have to do all that walking.

 

Both did well on the race or competition or whatever--this was only Colin's second try at a triathlon. I don't know his time but think it's impressive that he finished, especially since his bad knee was bothering him. Jamie had a catastrophe--the seat post on his new bike broke, and he had to walk it in until someone came to get him. There went his time, and he said he was sailing along before. But the kids reported he was in good spirits. I think it's as much in the doing as the competition.
Late Sunday afternoon was Ford's sixth birthday party--a scavenger hunt. This time I tagged along because Megan assured me it was a pretty place, with benches for sitting. I didn't realize that the kids and adults would all go off in the woods, leaving me far behind. Megan was aghast I didn't bring my book--"You always take a book wherever you go!" So I sat soaking up the sun and watching about fourteen peacocks--plus a whole lot of diverse people out enjoying the lovely day. (Note to my brother: I was outdoors, getting fresh air and sunsine.)
Over this long but happy weekend, I read, by fits and starts, a book I've been needing to get to and roughed out a review, which made me feel good. Got home today about 1:00 and picked up where I'd left off, catching up on mail and email and Jacob's homework. Routine is good, but it sure was nice to have that break and see all those wonderful grown kids and grandkids. I've discovered, among other things, I sleep better away from home because I don't have the responsibilities that call me out of bed at home.
Hmm, Megan....how soon can I cme back?

Listening to your gut

This weekend, three-fourths of my family have gathered at Jamie's house in Frisco. I am not there, which surprises me. The Austin contingent isn't there either, but that doesn't suprise me so much. The other morning I woke early when it was still dark, and you could have scraped my anxiety off the ceiling. So I lay there and tried to figure out what I was anxious about. The brief presentation I had to make that night? Nah, I had good notes and always do better than I think once I get on my feet in front of an audience. Jacob starting school, which will change my routine completely? I didn't think so. In several ways, I'm looking forward to that--it will help me break some bad habits. The weekend won hands down.
The plans, on this 107 weekend, included a pool party at eleven with pizza in honor of granddaughter Morgan's sixth birthday and a triathlon Sunday morning in which Jamie, Colin and Lisa are participating. I am so proud of Colin and Lisa for taking up this challenge and working out in preparation. Jamie does several traithlons a season and is more of an old hand, but I am still proud of him. But that's two outdoor events in the heat and I've never done well in heat since the time when I was about twelve and got so badly sunburned--maybe sunstroke?--that I was in bed for days. Being out in heat and sun makes me woozy.
And then there's my puppy. She's too young to leave in a crate for the petsitter's twice-a-day visits, so I'd have to take her, crate and all. I'd worry about her being in the crate too much, breaking her training routine, having accidents on the floor--Jamie is pretty particular about that because he has two dogs of his own and he's afraid Sophie will set a precedent. So I decided staying home with my animal kingdom was the best plan.
Do I miss being there with everybody? Of course. A whole lot. I particularly wanted to be there for Morgan and her birthday and to show her my puppy, which she had requested. And I want to support Colin and Lisa--and be sure they don't collapse during this event. You know how mothers are--if I were there, all would be well. Am I having a sad, lonely pity party over here in Fort Worth? Not at all. I've been busy all day--getting Jacob ready and off with his mom (he'd spent the night here), visiting a friend who just had surgery, working at my desk, fixing a dinner that took some time--and was only medium good.
And I'm sort of proud of myself. It's not been long since I would have said, "Family get-togther? Got to be there." But I recognize anxiety when it takes over my mind and body, and I've learned a little bit about dealing with it. Tomorrow I'll go to church and give thanks for my family, and then I'll go to an all-church luncheon (Babe's chicken--who could resist?). And tonight I'm going to read a book. Life is good, and I'm filled with gratitude.

Spring weekend, Jacob and cooking

What a lovely weekend. Sunny and a perfect temperature all weekend. Last night, Jay came over with a beer, and we waited for Jacob to arrive and his Susan to come home. When Jordan arrived with Jacob, they joined us on the porch, and then Jordan's friend Julia came to pick her up--so we had an impromptu happy hour. Jay is so good with Jacob--he came inside and sat with us while we ate, and Jacob ate a tuna burger with melted cheddar on it, inside a bun, dipped in ketchup. Hooray! I didn't have to fix chicken nuggets.  Jacob and I had a pleasant evening, but this morning he was a bit of a grouch (he often is in the morning) and his grandmother had not put his nighttime diaper on so that it didn't leak--wet spot on the bed, which made him grumpier and a laundry for me to do.
Tonight old and good friends came for supper--I fixed an al fresco dinner, though we only had appetizers on the porch--store-bought hummus that I'd doctored with olive oil and sun-dried tomatoes chopped up,
marinated feta, and pita chips. For dinner I served a cold platter--strips of chicken and salmon, deviled eggs, artichoke hearts, cherub tomatoes, carrots, strips of Manchego cheese, half ears of corn (so sweet I longed for the whole ear)--the kind of food I love. Mary asked if I could fix that again in August, please. Paula brought gelato for dessert--so good! It's fun to visit with people you don't see very often, because you talk about ideas and concepts and things of the mind, though we lapsed into a lot of talk about cats. Still, it was a lovely evening, and we did talk about the museum district and the parking problem (Ron is director of the Amon Carter) and TCU Press and all sorts of matters. Makes me happy with my life to be with friends like that.
On to next week--once again I hope to work on my novel. I think I've finished my addiction to the series about the Blackbird sisters, but more about that another evening.
Jamie participated in a triathlon in Galveston today--I tracked his time on a website, but I don't know if he will have been pleased or disappointed. Waiting to hear. As always, I'm proud of him for his competitive spirit and his dedication to fitness.