Angel Girl’s Big Adventure

Angel Girl had a pretty epic adventure over Spring Break.

She saved her money and bought a plane ticket to Hawaii.

Yep, Hawaii. Land of sunshine, pineapples, palm trees and miles of breathtaking ocean views.

And…. her good friend Grace who is studying there.

The two girls wasted no time!

They toured the Dole Plantation.

Hiked up Diamond Head.

Spent time at Pearl Harbor.

Drank tons of coffee.

Good coffee.

Ate fancy foods in fun places.

And sent us drool-worthy pictures.

They spent hours at the beach.

Swimming.

Watching the surf.

Sitting in the sun.

Relaxing.

And taking artsy pictures with perfectly manicured nails.

Spending every second soaking up the sunshine and time together before they had to say goodbye.

Then she boarded the flight home – sun soaked and tired with sand and salt still in her hair.

Already planning the next trip.

Aloha.

Hashtag Birthday

Birthday’s are made for surprises.

And Angel Girl is the hardest to surprise!

But this year – Pedro pulled it off!

#birthdaysurprise

It was the Thursday night before her birthday – and she suspecting nothing.

Pedro gathered up four cousins and they drove the two hours to our house stuffed in Pedro’s car.

#roadtrip

They hid the car and planned the epic surprise.

Angel Girl got home from work, wondered why dad was grilling so many hamburgers, put down her water bottle in the kitchen, rounded the corner to the dining room and jumped out of her skin at the sight of Pedro and the cousins waiting for her!

13417568_1047307488696307_691709334573031505_n

#nailedit

They had a hilarious supper, followed by crazy dance moves in the driveway and a wild adventure to the abandoned house and low water crossing.

Poison ivy, bug bites, photo shoots, and much laughter.

#perfect.

They spent the night eating popcorn and rice krispie bars while watching old VHS movies that were favorites years ago.

13419123_10206375098353857_8101738448350272890_n

And were up at first light to be on the road to make it back to the city to work.

A short night and a long drive.

But they had almost fourteen hours of jam-packed, fun-filled wonderfulness.

#worthit

Happy 18th birthday Angel Girl!

Graduation Day

It’s over.

We did it!

We got Angel Girl graduated!

13221589_1036839446409778_7641594839998362238_n

And honored.

And celebrated.

And photographed.

13226666_1230099237003020_9014204081859394922_n There was plenty of punch and rice krispsie treats.

And cousins.

And friends.

And there was Matt.

13240024_1036840469743009_5651510171345329122_n

Who flew in from Colorado just for his little sister’s graduation party.

He surprised her.

She cried.

It was a perfect moment in a wonderful weekend full of beautiful moments.

Moments that this Mama is tucking away like treasures.

These years are going so fast!

Staff Photographer

When Angel Girl graduates next month, I will not only lose my baby girl (not gonna think about that – sniff, sniff), I will also lose my photographer.

Since she got her first point and shoot on her 11th birthday, she has been taking pictures.

Her first Nikon made her my official staff photographer.

253954_104202246340174_8270041_n It seems like yesterday.

But actually it was 5 years and a new camera ago.

I knew this was coming, but it’s getting more real every day as school and work take more of her time.

She gifted me her first Nikon in an effort to make me face the facts – I have to learn to take my own pictures.

The first two weeks I just looked at it.

We don’t want to rush things you know!

Finally the third week I picked it up – and didn’t break out in hives. This is a good thing.

It took at least another week to get up the courage to ask Angel Girl to show me what to do.

Once I released my death grip on the camera, my first lesson went well.

They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks; I’m just hoping they’re wrong.

Or that Angel Girl never leaves.

Or maybe both.

Sometimes There are No Words

Some days just leave you speechless.

Sunday was one of those days.

We went to church in two cars and immediately after our potluck lunch, Jan and I took Buddy to Omaha to see Andrew Peterson in concert.

It was an early birthday gift for him – and a real treat for Jan and I!

We had front row seats – literally 10 feet away from the musicians.

We could see every emotion in their face as we heard it in their voice.

The pain, the laughter, the hope.

The joy as he brought his daughter on stage to sing with him.

The pride as he introduced his son on the drum set.

It was so incredible, the emotions so real, the songs so meaningful.

There are no words to describe it.

No words.

It was most definitely a highlight of the year.

But meanwhile – back at home – things weren’t going as well.

Remember the two cars we took to church? Angel Girl took the second one home after the potluck.

And this happened.

She hit some loose gravel and went in the ditch – flipping the vehicle.

Thankfully she was able to get out of her seat belt, open the passenger door, climb out and walk three miles home.

She was unhurt. Not a scratch.

There are no words.

Absolutely no words for how a parent feels when they see their child’s car upside in the ditch like that.

Knowing that she was inside.

We’ve spent the last 24 hours dealing with the sheriff’s office, the tow truck, and the salvage yard.

All the while so very, very thankful.

Sometimes there are no words.

Angel Girl’s Adventure

Angel Girl had her own adventure last week.

A solo adventure on the train.

When did she became old enough to take an adventure by herself?

It must have happened while I blinked because there we were – at the Amtrak station saying good-bye to my baby girl.

Then that massive Amtrak train whooshed in, sucked up my Angel Girl and took her off into the sunset surrounded by strangers.

At least my niece Sarah was at the other end of the journey.

And they spent a fabulous weekend together.

They went shopping.

Saw movies.

Had picnics.

Visited art museums.

Ate fancy food from different cultures.

It was a wonderful weekend for her – and just enough time for this mom to get used to the idea that my little girl is getting ready to fly on her own.

I’m sure there are many more adventures to come, but I’m glad that – at least for now – she still comes home to us.

Off to Work She Goes

Look who got a job!

Yup. My Angel Girl.

You’ll never guess where!

Give up?

A local preschool and daycare.

How perfect is that?!

Seriously – this girl is a kid magnet. Every Sunday you see her with a baby in her arms and one or two attached to her legs. They love her.

And she loves them.

After her first two days of work she came home and said, “Wow, I can’t believe they actually pay me to do this!”

🙂

And with the job comes the first pay check.

Last week Daddy took her to the bank to set up her grown-up account – complete with debit card.

This week he taught her how to fill the SUV with gas and how to drive in winter weather.

She looks so grown up as she leaves every afternoon.

<sniff>

My baby girl is growing up fast.

Photo Finish

Can I be a proud momma for just a minute? Again.

(I know – I know – it’s two weeks in a row – but it is really exciting!)

Angel Girl got a blue ribbon at the state fair. 🙂

The blue ribbon itself isn’t what I most proud of – she’s gotten those before. But this ribbon is in photography.

Her passion. Something she”s been working very hard on.

Last year none of her photos made it past the stiff competition at the County Fair.

But her judge was wonderful. He spent a lot of time looking at her pictures and gave her some very construction criticism.

And then he told her that she had a natural gift for photography – the artistic eye needed to find the great shots. All of the other aspects of getting a good picture can be learned – but the ability to see the shot is a gift.

And Angel Girl has it.

(Why do those words make me want to cry – even a year later?)

She soaked up the encouragement, studied the criticisms, and took thousands of pictures over the next year.

And one was chosen for the State Fair.

And got a blue ribbon.

And I just had to share it. 🙂