Five days a week at 9 a.m. these lovely ladies gather at Diamond Beach for exercise and camaraderie.  They light up my day with their wisdom, good humor, and encouragement.  We have been through sorrows and joys together, always positive, always uplifting, never judging.  I am truly blessed to have these ladies in my life.  Each one of them is special in her own way, and brings a unique view of the world to share.  It’s so important to your well being to take time to nourish your body, mind, and spirit.  This particular day, as you can see, we decided to “give ourselves a break” and enjoy the beautiful day at the beach.  Another little gem of wisdom I have learn from them, take time to smell the roses.

The Polk family has fond memories of running the beach at Bolivar Peninsula in an old Willis jeep, circa 1951, painted gold with a gold and white stripe top.  Our parents had visited Hawaii that summer and were enthralled with the pastel painted rental jeeps with matching striped tops ~ so…   As the oldest in the family, it was my first car.  I loved it passionately.  It had no heater, no radio and leaked cold air between the canvas doors and top, but was a complete blast when filled with kids riding up and down the beach enjoying the surf and sky.  Naturally, the first thing Sister Paige purchased when she settled into Galveston, was a beach buggy.  As you can see, it’s the modern version, complete with non-rusting stainless steel accoutrements, all-terrain tires and a souped up electric engine.  It’s definitely faster than your average golf cart!  There is more than a little nostalgia for us, as we cruise Pirates Beach in this beach runner.  It definitely brings back great memories of our carefree childhood spent in the surf.  Maybe that was what drew each of us back to the salt water.

Hate to admit it, but I’ve never ever treated myself to a spa treatment before.  My daughter-in-law Ika invited me to join her for whatever treatment I would like, and dinner after of course, for a belated Mother’s Day celebration.  It was an amazingly relaxing experience, more like addictive.   Soft music, warm robes and slippers, indoor hot tubs filled with aromatherapy, and plenty of time to prepare for the “treatment”.  We both decided on the Vitamin C facial.  It took an hour start to finish, as the therapist wiped on all kinds of peels, scrubs and creams.  When she took me to the mirror to see the results, I was astonished.  Ika said my skin looked like a “baby’s butt”.  She looked pretty good too, but having Swedish skin it’s not like she ever looks bad:)  I have to admit I can’t remember when it felt softer and smoother (yeah I sound like a commercial).  So we promised each other we would try this again before she leaves for Fort Lauderdale.  Can’t wait!

What would we do without our pets?  They bring such peace and joy to our lives, and ask so little in return.  I live in a high-rise condo where having a dog every day would be a hardship, requiring at least four trips down to the “doggie area” five flights down every day.  It’s the first time in my life that I don’t have a yard for my dog, so I choose to “puppy sit” for my children’s dogs on occasion.  They love their “beach time” with Mamou, and I love my “dog time” with them.  Both are rescue dogs from local shelters, and both are the smartest dogs I’ve ever known.  I think there is a correlation.  Maui looks like a red healer/pittie mix with one brown eye and one white.  She loves humans of all shapes and sizes, but really doesn’t care much for other dogs.  Maybe that is the case because she truly believes she is human.  Frankie is a full standard dachshund, with red hair close to my color, such a gorgeous thing:)  Matt and Ika adopted her at 3 years old, fully house and lap-trained.  She wound up training us as her new dog owners!  Frankie loves humans and dogs alike, and will roll over for bellyrubs for any living thing.  When I have to go too long without my puppies ~ I head for the shelter to get my dog love.  I always get so much more than I give.

As Mother’s Day weekend was coming up, I felt the urge to visit my two grandbabies in Austin.  They are 28 months and 8 months old, so how much could they have changed since Easter, right.  I was going to find out that in the early years little humans grow and develop exponentially.  When I called to let my son and daughter-in-law know that I wanted to visit, my son sounded unusually glad to hear from me.  It seems that he had offered to babysit the girls while Laura went on a 4-day girls’ trip to NOLA.  Tres had never actually taken care of the girls solo for any length of time before this day, and probably won’t offer to do so again until they graduate high school:)  Of course, as soon as I heard the plan, I was packed and on my way to Austin.  I won’t even describe the house when I got there 5 hours later.  The good news is, everyone was still alive and no one had wasted away yet.  Hazel, the 9 month old, has been breast fed her entire life and when she was presented with a bottle, she emphatically pushed it away with such fervor that we could see that wasn’t going to work.  We tried different types of cups to no avail.  Finally we called mom and she suggested mixing it with her favorite cereal.  Worked like a charm.  So we could feed them at least.  Ivy, the 28 month old, fed herself thank goodness; but wanted lots of conversation, interaction, and just general attention.  The two adults traded off from time-to-time, so neither kid got too bored with their “adult of the moment.”  The amount of energy required to keep up with two little ones is astonishing.  By 8 pm each night, they were bathed and in bed.  Every night we tried to stay up and watch a movie, but both were mouth open~catching flies within minutes of starting it.  I loved my Mother’s Day weekend with my grandbabies, but must admit I’ve never been so glad to see my daughter-in-law when she returned Monday.  She certainly deserved a weekend off, I can attest.

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Parents, no matter what age, are often our strongest advocates, sounding boards, advisors and stablizing rocks. Too often we dismiss their advice as outdated, as the world seems to have outgrown them. The truth is, not much has changed under the sun when it comes to basic human emotions and needs. Their years of experience should be treasured. I wanted to stop today and thank my dad and stepmom, Carol, for caring enough to give advice and encouragement whenever needed. With Mother’s Day coming up, it’s a great time to call and say thanks for caring. If you don’t have a living parent, I’m pretty sure they will hear you from above, where they stand watch:)