2013 in Review

I haven't updated the blog in what seems like forever (probably because it HAS been forever) - It was so much easier when the kids were in high school.  Let's see...got the house remodeled (kitchen and both bathrooms gutted and redone), got Brenton and Cady married, celebrated Daddy's 81st birthday, celebrated Brenton getting a job at Fastenal in Ada (living with one's wife is definitely a plus), celebrated Shelby's 4 A's and 2 B's report card - she is kickin it her junior year of college, celebrated Cady's 4.0 of her first semester at ECU getting her master's degree, the list goes on.  We have been blessed in 2013 - everyone has been happy and healthy - I couldn't ask for more.  Here is hoping that we are just as fortunate in 2014. We are planning a trip to North Carolina to celebrate my Aunt Ann and Uncle Bob's 70th wedding anniversary!  Mom could possibly have her knee(s) redone, will have to plan a road trip to watch Shelby and the Ashford Saints bowl, watch Coach Byrnes and the ECU Softball team stomp the competition, and always wanting a trip to Murfreesboro to visit my sis.  Maybe I will get back in the habit of blogging - then again...

When Life Gets in the Way of Blogging…

Haven’t written forever for a number of reasons - first and foremost, they started blocking blogs at work.   Now part of me can understand this as when at work, one should work.  However, we do get a lunch break and if I can get on Facebook at noon - why can’t I update my blog.  What really perplexes me is that our CEO has a blog and they have managed to block ALL blogs but his.  Odd.  Work also is on Twitter - have to admit, they are pretty boring tweets - certainly not as entertaining as Men’s Humor.  Anyway, I find I am in need of an update, so here goes.

When last I wrote, Shelby and I made a road trip to visit Cady and Brenton.  We had a wonderful time and it was quite nice to get a mini vacation.  Shelby worked the summer at the bowling alley - long hours but she enjoyed herself and stashed away her pay for the school year.

August found Shelby back in Clinton for her sophomore year and Brenton back in Ottawa for his final semester.  Boy, time sure does fly.  The big excitement was his job for the fall - he was hired as an assistant coach for West Franklin High School, coaching the linebackers.  We had such fun going to the high school games.  It was pretty cool to cheer for the coach - not a player.  Of course I was my usual loud self - but as no one really knew who I was I could get away with it.  They ended up winning 3 games but were in all of them - injuries were their downfall.  

While coaching, Brenton finished up his undergraduate career and graduated in December.  We are all so very proud of him!!!! 

Mom, Dad, and I drove to spend Thanksgiving with the Tolberts in Murfreesboro, TN.  Shelby got to fly into town so we had a big time - eating lots of good food, doing a 5k walk, and cheering on Middle Tennessee football and basketball to victory!

The biggest news of the past few months was Brenton and Cady getting engaged before the Oklahoma/Oklahoma State football game (which luckily the Sooners came from behind to win).  Brenton had it all planned out but then got nervous and just asked her to marry him (which is basically all he needed to do but we like to kid him about his nerves anyway).  They have set a date for the wedding - November 2, 2013 which happens to be my Daddy’s 81st birthday so we will have lots to celebrate.

So while Cady is playing her last season of softball as a Lady Brave, she will be planning a wedding as well.  Yikes!

Shelby had a great semester at school with grades and bowling.  The Lady Saints had a 2nd place finish which is the highest they have ever placed.  She came home for Christmas and basically went to work - glad she could get some hours but felt I didn’t get to see much of her.  Brenton and Cady came into town for Christmas so we had a nice visit.  Brenton is going to be working in Tulsa while Cady finishes up her last semester at Ottawa.

I did the Color Run in Lawrence Kansas - Quite an experience!

No international travels for me this year so far but did make a quick business trip to our Denver office - trained a fantastic group of engineers - so easy when they are young and computer savvy!  Luckily the weather was fantastic too which just made it that much better.

Road Trip to Oklahoma

Shelbs and I made the trek to Tulsa, Oklahoma to pay a short visit to our favorite Sooners.  We packed a great deal into our weekend.  We had some fantastic meals, saw Snow White and the Huntsman, watched Cady’s riding lesson, took Wrigley. Stoops, and Reagan to the dog park, got Brenton’s birthday present, went bowling, and I finally got to see Tangled.  We also got to FINALLY meet Cady’s brother, Josh, and his daughter, Sage (who almost beat us all in bowling).  While we would love to plan another trip to Tulsa, our next trip will be to Murfreesboro to see Barsh and Larry in July (must spread the Shelbs around)!

Three of the greatest kids around

All Caught Up

Think I am caught up with the latest news but wanted to share a picture.  The morning of Tom's funeral service, Brenton woke up throwing up so I put him in my bed to rest while I took care of breakfast.  When I went up to check on him this is what I found - LOVE it!

Happy Mother's Day

I had a wonderful Mother's Day thanks to some pretty fabulous kids and my fun and delightful parents!  Martha and I got Mom a new bowling ball so Shelby and I took her bowling after a yummy brunch.  The kids got me a Yankee Candle gift card and a fantastic watch (pink, of course).  Brenton and Cady couldn't make it in town but we are planning a weekend trip to Tulsa for a visit soon!

Mom and her gift!

Harmonie Hundred

Summer started with another bike trip.  This time to New Harmony, Indiana to ride in the Harmonie Hundred with Larry and my sister, Martha.  I can now say I rode 100 miles in a weekend.  We dusted off the triple (from last year's Katy Trail ride) and took off.  The weather was perfect (although I was a tad concerned when I woke up in the middle of the night to very loud thunderstorms).  New Harmony is a neat town and they were having all sorts of festivities while we were there.  It was also an educational experience.  I learned all about my single bike - when and how to shift gears, and perhaps most importantly, how I had been riding with my saddle a good 1-1/2 inches too low.  No wonder my thighs got so tired!!!  Larry has so much knowledge, my P.E.O chapter wants to get him to town to give us a bike master class.  Perhaps before the WIN for KC Triathlon...(hint, hint)

RIP Tom

Eleven years to the day after losing Tim's mom, Dixie, we lost his dad, Tom. Fortunately we all got to say our goodbyes.  Unfortunately, a bout of the stomach flu hit Brenton (and later, Cady) so they only made it to about 1 hour of the visitation.  It was a beautiful service that Tom would have loved.  He will be missed.

End of Bowling and Ottawa Braves Softball

Once again I am having to go back to the past to update the blog. While I had every intention of keeping current, I have failed, so badly in fact, that my web browser not longer worked with my blog.  Alas.  No more excuses or promises to be better.  It is what it is.

Bowling season finally ended (boy is it a long one - from October to April).  Shelby didn't get as many opportunities as she had hoped but worked hard throughout the season and had some success learning new oil patterns.  Her roommate situation was much calmer 2nd semester and she ended the semester with a solid 3.0 GPA.  She has great plans of practice and conditioning to prepare for next year.

Most of April and May were spent watching Cady and the Lady Braves (I have some interesting tan lines on my feet to prove this).  Cady was, as expected, as  predictable as ever - hitting, running like the wind, and a defensive standout at 2nd base.  I must confess, 2 years ago when I watched my first college softball game, I seriously thought I would NEVER understand or even like college softball (all that chanting...).  Flash forward and I am actually watching it on ESPN - although Cady is much more fun to watch.  The Lady Braves had a good year but disappointing tournament. The highlight for me was being in Hutchinson to watch her accept her All-KCAC First Team certificate.  I am getting prepared for next year - already have my softball bling for good luck!

2012 Lady Braves

Cady

What a cute family!

Collegiate Bowling and Birthday Fun

We travelled to Euless, TX for the last bowling meet of the year - The USBC Intercollegiate Sectionals.  The meet just happened to be during Shelby's spring break so the poor kid didn't get to come home.  It also happened to land on her birthday weekend.  Shelby bowled in the singles event on Friday and the team competition on Saturday and Sunday (the actual birthday).  She fought through some interesting lane conditions on Friday and the team struggled Saturday morning (probably because the coach neglected to feed them breakfast - must have forgotten it is the most important meal of the day).  Shelbs bowled great on her actual birthday and I brought 2 large cookie cakes for the team to enjoy with her (along with presents from the grandparents and my friend, Emily).  It was great getting to see her although it would have been nice if she could have made it home for a short visit before.  The team ended up in 8th place; however, they did beat Baker so I was happy (that OU/Baker rivalry makes it impossible for me to ever cheer for Baker - I wanted to wear my OU KCAC championship shirt but figured it wouldn't mean anything to a bunch of snooty girl bowlers).  Now, it's time for softball....

2011-2012 Ashford Saints

Shelbs and her cookie cake

Shelbs and friend

Hanging at the hotel

That's one big chair...

2012 Football Banquet

Tim and I travelled to Ottawa, KS to attend our last OU Braves Football Banquet.  Boy, how time has flown by - it seems like yesterday I was sitting in the parent orientation meeting.  We watched the highlight film (yes, we got to see Brenton), had our last cafeteria meal (somehow it never gets better), and then the coaches introduced the seniors one by one.  Coach Homolka said wonderful things about our boy - "teams don't win without players like Brenton."  All the seniors got to make a speech (I was a tad nervous about that as a few inappropriate things were discussed at 920 S. Cedar) but Brenton was quite gracious.  After the senior introductions, the awards were given out.  Imagine our surprise when the Thomas Trigg Award was given to our own Brenton Byrnes.  The award is for best sportsmanship and the most inspirational player on and off the field.  Brenton has had a wonderful college football experience - we are so very proud of him.  More pictures will follow when Cady gets me the ones she took.

Brenton - pre-banquet in his new clothes (thanks Aunt Martha and Uncle Larry)



2012 KCAC Championship Ring



Brenton's award



Brenton



Collegiate Bowling Experience

Now that the Ottawa Brave football season has ended, it was time to turn my attention to the Ashford Saint bowling season. The season is remarkably long (starting in September and lasting until April). Of course, Shelby’s meets are not quite as close as driving to western Kansas so a road trip was in order. Since I drove 20 hours to LA for the last Brave’s game, I figured 10hours to South Bend, Indiana would be a breeze. A better choice of words would be a blizzard. I left Friday morning after walking Hannah and although it was cold, the weather was clear. Clear until I hit the middle of Illinois. Then the snow starting and quickly turned into a blizzard. Traffic on the highway pretty much slowed to a crawl. The biggest problem (besides not being able to see the lanes) was I had to have the defrost on high to keep my windshield wipers from freezing, which made the inside of my car like a furnace. So I took off my sweatshirt and cracked the window and trudged along. Luckily I made it safely (as did the team).


The Blue and Gold Bowling Classic was hosted by Notre Dame and was held at Chippewa Bowl in South Bend. There were 44 women’s teams and 66 men’s teams bowling in 2 sessions. (Lucky for me, Ashford bowled in the morning session or I would never have made it to work on Monday). The teams bowled 6 games on Saturday and 3 games on Sunday. Having never been to a collegiate bowling event, I really didn’t know what to expect. It reminded me a bit of college softball as many of the teams had cheers and chants (although if I had to hear “Strike, strike, baby” sung to Vanilla Ice’s Ice, Ice, Baby one more time I was going to throw up. Ashford’s chants were much better and not as annoying). The girl’s came in 13th place (out of the 44 teams) and managed to completely pummel KU (33rd place - which pleased Shelby to no end). Shelby only got to bowl one game which was a bit of a bummer but as the team was doing so well it was hard to be too disappointed.


Prematch warmup



National Anthem

Down the line

I took off to home immediately after they finished their 3rd game Sunday. No blizzard but lots of fog and rain. I am going to try to make one meet each month (weather permitting). Hopefully I will have better weather next month…

Holiday Events

The cookie party was scaled down this year but was just as yummy as always. We missed Emily’s iced sugar cookies but she is forgiven as she is in Bangkok on business.

Mom joined me for my P.E.O. chapter’s annual brunch at Andres on the plaza. Fifteen of us enjoyed yummy food and fabulous dessert!!!

Tim celebrated the big 5-0 on the 17th. Cousin, Jennie Byrnes, made his cookies (she is starting a baking business and does a fabulous job).

Fall semester was completed and we were blessed to have Shelby home for an entire month over Christmas (although she did work a lot of hours so was quite busy). Brenton and Cady only got home for a quick two day visit as both were working in Tulsa but we managed to pack in a lot of quality time into those days.


Mom and Dad joined us for Christmas dinner and gift opening. Martha and Larry had commitments in TN so couldn’t make it this year (I did so miss our New Year’s hike). Tom is still in the nursing home recovering from his car accident so was not able to join us either. We had a great dinner though and all the kids got to visit their Grandpa Byrnes before returning to school.

The End of a Season and a College Football Career

Well, once again I find myself apologizing for my inability to keep this blog up-to-date; however, life once again got in the way. When I last posted, the Ottawa Braves were rolling through the KCAC.  I am happy to report that their roll continued as they were once again KCAC Champions.  This means another championship ring and a trip to the playoffs.  The final game of the regular season was Senior Day where all the seniors were introduced and recognized.  Martha and Larry made the trip from Murfreesboro to support Brenton as did Dee Dee and Poppa, Tim's brother, Terry and his son, Tyler.  Cady's folks came up from Tulsa as well.  It was a very special day (made even better by happy punch and a 72-6 victory).

Of course victory meant playoffs and we had to wait a day to find out where we were headed.  There was talk of Iowa (which would have been fabulous as Shelby could have met us there) or even staying in town and playing MNU in Olathe.  Unfortunately, we ended up having to travel to Azusa, CA to play Azusa Pacific.  Needless to say, that was not in my budget as flying with the team would cost far too much and flying on my own was even worse.  So I was resigned to the fact that I would have to listen to the game on the computer.  That was until Cady called wanting to know if I would be interested in driving.  I was not - until she talked about what a great adventure it would be.  Now, I am old enough to know better, but I realized if I was in her shoes, I would have headed out without another thought.  So...I found myself in a car for 50 hours with Cady and my friend Emily from work (Emily had just returned from Afghanistan and 50 hours in a car was nothing to her). 

We left Friday at noon from Ottawa and arrived in Azusa around 10 am.  We got a cheap hotel room to shower and take a much needed nap, and then headed to the game. 

We were surprised at the number of OU fans at the game (thanks to a strong alumni contingent from San Diego).  The softball girls made banners for the team (which we hung at perhaps the nastiest stadium I have been in - seems there was a marching band festival at the stadium so we got to play at the practice field - no real locker room for the boys and no restrooms except for 4 porta potties - yuck).  Unfortunately, a win was not meant to be.  It was so hard to see all the seniors crying.  I was SO glad I was there to hug my sweet boy! 

What a wonderful experience the past four years has been for Brenton - he was part of the most successful senior class in Ottawa history - 2 conference championships, 4 playoff games, and never finishing lower than 2nd place in the conference.  His last home game was also the football program's 1,000th game.  The boys will get their championship rings in February!  Now to find someone who needs a D and fence...