Crawfish and Crawfishing

please take note i wrote CRAWFISH not crayfish. i'm from the south and i don't say crayfish--that sounds a bit too proper. i say it a certain way also, sort of slow and drawn out like craaaaww fish.

I talked to my son on Sunday and he said, "Mom, I tried a new food and I LOVE IT!!" He then asked me to guess what it was. Knowing my son and how picky he is/was, I wasn't very successful cause I don't really think of him being an adventurous eater! So he ended up having to tell me he ate crawfish.



and he loved them!! he played with them. he named them. then he tore their tails off, and ate the meat. last but not least he sucked their heads. and it was good. no, not quite right---they were delicious!! this made me laugh so much. i can see my goofy and all grown up, but still my baby boy playing with crawfish and naming them and then eating them.

ugghh! can't say i care to indulge in his newly acquired food choice. his bride seemed to have more of what i feel would be my reaction to eating them. she didn't like them. i loved her description of them. she said the underneath side when cooked looked like a roach. DISGUSTING!!! can't say that i want to eat roaches.

so my son has come a long way in expanding his diet and he quite literally shocked me with this current food. i don't think i will join him in eating them though cause....

i have amazingly wonderful memories of crawfishing with my mama. you could call me a farm girl. i didn't grow up with many indulgences, but i didn't do without either if that makes any sense. here's my story that i shared at her memorial service:

I think some of my fondest memories with my mom involve the simplest things. She took delight in the small things in life. I remember her teaching me how to go crawfishing. For those of you that don’t know what a crawfish is—they are scary little crustaceans with beady little eyes and scary pinchers like lobsters.



We would go to the ditch in front of our house after a rain and we would see their piles of dirt around the hole to their house. Mom would put some salt pork or a little raw bacon on a string with a little horseshoe nail for a weight and she would drop it into the hole just a little bit. A crawfish just might slowly crawl to the top, grab the pork with their pinchers and then try to pull it back further into their hole, but then of course we would pull them out of the hole while they were still attached to the string. I would usually scream and mom would tell me to be quiet and put the crayfish in the big bucket we had brought with us. I might try to do it, but I couldn’t ever grab them though because I was terrified the pinchers would grab me. So in the end it was always Mom who put them in the bucket. We could do this for a long time and she would delight in how they scared me, but would still try to touch me with one. I remember once it rained and rained and the pasture flooded and King’s Creek overflowed. We took a long walk with our bucket and caught tons of crawfish-well maybe not tons but it looked like it to a little girl. Now you may wonder what we did with all these crawfish. Did we cook’em and eat’em? Are you kidding? Now maybe my dad and mom had eaten them at some point, but we never did. We kept them in the bucket with some water and mud for a while and then we released them and the little creatures with their beady eyes and scary pinchers would scurry happily away.

***today i can still see my mama with her rolled up pants, sleeveless button down the front white shirt, and barefeet. we're walking with our big bucket, hoping to catch some crawfish.

Trust your Crazy Ideas

i'm a little, scratch that, a lot crazy sometimes. I loved it though when my very dear friend, val, gave me this after I redecorated Jordan's room.

trust your instincts!! don't be afraid to try something new. live each day to the fullest. we don't know what tomorrow brings.

***update on Gracyn : She was scheduled to go home on Monday, but it is on hold for now until they get the results of a biopsy to make sure there is no evidence of rejection. Sunday nite she started having some irregular pulses that continued until around noon Monday, but Gracyn had an echocardiogram that looked good. I checked her caring bridge site on Wednesday morn and the test showed mild inflammation which means she'll be receiving a new round of anti-rejection drugs. They have been told this is normal for post transplant patients, but it was still so very sad for Gracyn when she was expecting to go home and sleep in her own bed for the first time in over 4 months. Please pray for Gracyn and that the inflammation clears quickly and she grows stronger and stronger each day and is able to go home soon. Gracyn-You continue to teach us life lessons. Thank you!

Jumping for Joy!

I think perhaps my dearest daughter can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel. The reason being is shown above.

She does have 4 more nights of clinicals from 7 to 7, but it's actually probably 6:45 to 7:30. She had clinicals last night and she's hoping to complete 3 more by working Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. WHEW!! Her last day of class is April 30th which is also her 22nd birthday and she has 2 finals that day. She has more hours of observation and a follow-up report to complete in May for a scholarship she has received. Her pinning ceremony is May 15th and GRADUATION---YES----GRADUATION is Saturday, May 16th and I don't think it can get here soon enough to give my baby girl some relief. She has worked really hard all four years in both in her studies and her jobs. She worked as a teacher's aide in summer school, a lifeguard here and in Lubbock, and she has worked at Covenant on the pediatrics floor since July of 2008. She also got the job she wanted at Children's Medical. She will work on the hematology/oncology floor. I'm proud of you sweetie!!!

Is it kind, true, and necessary?

I hadn’t intended to post again on Susan Boyle (or at least until she performed again), but after reading the question Janna posted at Moms like me and the comments that followed, I had to respond. Her question was “What does everyone think of Susan Boyle, the British singing sensation? Do you love her or hate her?…….”

I’m sorry but can we not be happy for Susan and her sudden fame. I know she has gotten an enormous amount of news coverage from TV to internet to radio, but goodness gracious!!! Just turn your TV and radio to different channels or turn them off, and don’t read about her if you don’t want to. I think she deserves every bit of attention she is getting and I‘m thrilled for her. I am reminded once more of my sweet mama’s words, “if you can’t say something nice don’t say anything at all.” I read some of the comments to my hubby and he summed it up pretty well by saying, “Maybe these folks aren’t too happy with their own lives and they have to make negative comments about others”. Let’s not react negatively when someone has good fortune. Be happy for them. I choose to believe Susan will do well and I for one am looking forward to hearing her sing more.

Maybe I’m crazy, but I’m drawn to a lesson I’ve taught my students many times. I always ask my students to ask themselves three things if they were wondering whether to say something:
1. Is it kind?
2. Is it true?
3. Is it necessary?

Words that are spoken or written can have a devastating effect on someone. They can cut and tear into your very being. I’m far from perfect and I probably let my unkind self out the most with my hubby (sorry baby--I do love you!!) and when my kids were home, they suffered the wrath of mom also and oh, how I love them! I guess what I’m saying is let’s be fair-minded as much as possible. Think….. Is it kind, necessary, true? If our words are going to hurt someone, must they be spoken or could they be spoken in a less hurtful way?


On a totally unrelated topic:
My husband reminded me he has three things he always tells me when I’m shopping:
1. Do I need it?
2. Is it worth it?
3. Where am I going to put it?

For some unknown reason, I told my friends what my hubby said and they have never let me forget it. They remind me every blasted time I want to buy something.

Update on Gracyn DenBesten

Gracyn is doing well. I check her Caring Bridge page at least twice a
day. This morning I read it and got teary eyed because last night Urban Meyer, coach of the Florida Gators, and Tim Tebow, quarterback came by to check on Gracyn. What a special action for these 2 men!! I didn't really know who they were but after I read that, I started to read about them and they are pretty amazing themselves. Don't think I'm living under a rock because I don't know about Meyer and Tebow. I'm just not a big football fan, unlike the rest of my family. I know most football fans would already know this, but Tebow won the Heisman in Dec. 2007, the first underclassman to ever win. They got to see the video of Gracyn singing at school and they asked her if she would come sing to the football team when she was feeling better. Gray hadn't really been a Gators' fan before, but her family thinks she may quickly become one. This video is Gray singing without music-probably at the hospital; I think you will enjoy it. (Scroll down to mute my playlist )



You really need to hear her performing the entire song at school. Just
click here and it will take you to shinevision. The video is on the top right. She wrote the song,"I love you more" and it's beautiful. Listen to the words. This little girl is wise beyond her years. God bless you, Gracyn. I am becoming really attached to you and I've never met you. You are touching the lives of so many people.

Gracyn DenBesten's heart transplant

My dearest daughter got me started reading Gracyn's Caring Bridge journal on Easter weekend. It is about a precious 9 year girl named Gracyn DenBesten who was diagnosed with viral myocarditis in Dec. 08. She has been in the hospital since then and received the Berlin heart, an artificial heart that sustains her and allows her time to wait for a heart transplant. Today they are rejoicing because she is receiving a heart transplant tonight--Wednesday, April 15th. While they are rejoicing, they are asking for prayers for the family of the teenage boy that passed away and also for prayers for Gracyn and the surgeons and all those involved in the surgery. You can check for updates on Gracyn here and read some of the journal entries this precious girl has written. She is a delightful girl! Please say some prayers for all involved.

***Update on April 16th---Gray's surgery went well. From her Caring Bridge site: "Gray is doing great this morning. She is responding well and could possibly even come off the ventilator this afternoon. She really wants to get that breathing tube out of her throat. At one point she motioned as if wanting something so Robin held a dry erase board in front of her and Gracyn wrote down the word “chocolate”."

I bet she can have lots of chocolate as soon as the doctors okay it. Lots of love and prayers are surrounding this sweet girl!!

Have you heard of Susan Boyle?

If you haven't, then you should read on. If you have, she's worth hearing again. I received an email from our very good friend, Bill. He doesn't send emails often and when he does, he isn't "linking" to another site, so I thought, "I better see what this is."

Now I must admit when Susan walked out I was probably thinking what the majority of the audience and the judges were thinking, "Who is this woman? What talent does she have? I bet she's going to be like Renaldo Lapuz and entertain by being a ridiculously funny singer." What I heard was entirely different. (Scroll down to the bottom to mute my playlist.)

Susan Boyle - Singer - Britains Got Talent 2009 - Click here for this week’s top video clips

If you want to hear the whole song and the judges talking to her, please click here: Susan Boyle sing, "I dreamed a Dream" from Les Miserables. When she started to sing, I got a big smile and I became more entranced and delighted as the voice of the angel continued. The audience felt the same as I did and the judges were mesmerized as well. I only got to listen once because I was off to school, but as soon as I got home, I started to listen to to her sing over and over. At times, I got teary eyed because of her talent and listening to the words of the song, I think they must tell some of her life story. Watch the judge, Piers Morgan, when he is watching her sing. He loves her and he is glowing with joy while watching her sing.

Here are the Lyrics(Thanks to NewHotdox)

I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living
I dreamed that love would never die
I dreamed that God would be forgiving.

Then I was young and unafraid
And dreams were made and used
And wasted
There was no ransom to be paid
No song unsung
No wine untasted.

But the tigers come at night
With their voices soft as thunder
As they tear your hope apart
As they turn your dream to shame.

And still
I dream he'll come to me
That we will live the years together
But there are dreams that cannot be
And there are storms
We cannot weather...

I had a dream my life would be
So different form this hell I'm living
so different now from what it seemed
Now life has killed
The dream I dreamed.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After listening to her, I thought why are we so judgmental? Why did we automatically assume she wouldn't have talent? My momma always told me, "Don't judge a book by its cover" and "Beauty is only skin deep" and "It's what's inside that counts". Thankfully, I was reminded of these lessons once more and I hope and pray I won't be so quick to cast judgment. The right time to judge someone is NEVER! Let us not miss out on chances to know wonderful people because we are only looking at their cover. Lest we not forget some of the beautiful people-actors and actresses, famous sports figures, and some of the awful and mean actions and words they have spoken. Look within a person to know their true beauty and worth.

Susan Boyle-You are a delight! You make me smile, laugh, and cry!! I wish you the very best. Your dream is now my wish. GOOD LUCK!! I'm going to be watching for you and when you get your first CD published, I will be one of many to buy it.