June 2014

Ahhh June...where did you go?

Where is this year going?

Once again, I'm playing catch up.

The beginning of June, I think it was June 3, my surgeon allowed me to remove my neck brace! It was a sweet, sweet moment. It did take some time getting used to not having it on. I still have restrictions...no looking up for three months, no lifting over 10 pounds, no sleeping in my bed for three months. 

We went to see our crazy boy graduate.

I love him, love him, love him. He's the son I never had!

I stayed at my niece's home...she has chickens all over.

I woke up to this....

for someone who is scared of chickens, this was a bit unnerving to see first thing in the morning as soon as you step outside! 

I celebrated my first day at church without my brace by letting my hair down and putting on make up. 

For three months I had to have my hair up in buns and twists and pony tails because of the brace. I am in desperate need of a good cut due to all the split ends now!! 

While we may be smiling on this picture, it was a super, super sad day.

My 23 yr old nephew drowned in a true accident. TJ was a great swimmer, in excellent health. He drowned about 15 minutes after arriving at the lake. We think he must have suffered a cramp when he got out in the water. He went down and never came back up.

I am here with my brother, his dad, and my youngest nephew. 

If you look in the back of this photo, there is TJ's grave...just yards from my other nephew Quin's grave. 

A few days later, on a rainy Monday, we picked up the newest (and baddest and most stressful) member of our family, Koko. 

She may look sweet...oh, she is anything but sweet.

Either I'm really old and losing patience or she is really, really bad. 

I think she is just really, really bad! 

She exhausts everyone...even Luigi complains....

A few days later we went to Yoakum to commemorate my baby boy Quin's one year since he passed away. It would have been his 21st birthday.

His grave was decorated with balloons. I'd say close to 100 people came out. 

We wrote messages on balloons and released them into the sky. I think it was this moment that really made him being gone seem real.

I always told myself he was away playing ball. I was able to survive and function that way. 

This made it too real. 

There was no lying to myself any longer.

I miss my Quin so, so much.

I found this photo and I think it sums up perfectly how family and friends feel after a loved one commits suicide. We will never know what happened that day...or if it even was truly suicide...but we do know that now we have to make sense of a life without Quin. Sometimes it just seems so hard to do.

I had been feeling sick for a while...ear hurting, tired, throat hurting off and on, congestion...you name it.

My cold turned into a nasty ear infection.

Two ear drops, an antibiotic and allergic reaction later I'm just now starting to feel better. It sucked starting work back like that.

I tried to self medicate by eating pozole at a little Mexican restaurant! 

June also brought us our first day over 100 degrees.... 

The good news is that we have had some good rains and my grape vine has really loved it! 

On my last day at home before going back to work CC took me to the Pig Stand for chocolate cake. This is where Emil took me on our first day and I took the girls there for homemade desserts and this is where she wanted to take me.

Each booth has an old fashioned music player. 

We put our money in but CC punched in the wrong number..no Otis Redding Sittin' On The Dock Of the Bay...

and it played some other albums songs the entire time we were there 

Back at work and back at hitting up Starbucks. I was good the first two days..then I gave in.

I really need to get better with this temptation thing!