Cousin Brian

He only journeys north every couple of years, but he leaves quite an impression.

I can hear him right now winding up the kids as they swing on the rope. Geez, now he is playing his guitar, barking out a song about crying (seems one of the little boys is inconsolable because he hurt Leah on the rope swing).

Brian can play the court jester, and has a way of getting the kids to learn how to laugh at themselves.

He thrilled the kids with a Walk the Plank trivia game on the dock yesterday, exchanged sarcasm with Ev whenever possible, strummed his guitar at the campfire last night and made a mouthwatering meal for us a few nights ago.

I enjoyed our morning blue sky chats about life, the universe, finding our passion, following our dreams - and making big $$$!

Brian celebrated his birthday yesterday and we are all very proud that he chose to commemorate it with us.

He is heading out tomorrow and we all hope that it isn't another 2 years til he is back.

PostScript
Around the campfire that evening, Brian taught Brandon and Liam how to play the guitar.  It was very important that they wore the magic bandana during the lessons

The next day, Brian had us in stitches, recalling his favourite childhood cottage memory.  It had something to do all the cousins bobbing in the water around the dock one evening, as Rob held them spellbound with a tale about Paul Poop.

Sensational Sunshine & Sunsets

Summer vacation at the cottage.

So far, so good.

Happy Birthday Momma!

    

On the occassion of her 75th birthday, I canvassed family and friends for some dirt on this woman.

I'm still searching.

 

"What more can I say about my Aunt Faye, to me she has the best of all traits, she is smart, funny, caring, a fabulous cook, sporty, master gardener, dedicated volunteer, organizer of family get togethers with an infectious laugh that makes you smile....She is our Martha Stewart only BETTER!! "                           

"Faye is one of those very special people on this earth. She's kind, loving, and has a great sense of humor. She's hard working, intelligent, and enthusiastic about life. She's the best friend and relative anyone could hope for. She's just about perfect! Of course, this is going to go to her head but she deserves it. How lucky you are to have her for a mother and how lucky I am to have her for a friend and sister-in-law."

"Your mom is my favourite person in the whole world. She is the sweetest , kindest person I know. She is always smiling and good natured."

"Every time I hear her name I smile. All my life my mother has always said, "Oh, I LOVE Faye. She is such a kind, sweet person." I have to agree. As a kid you react more to the feeling a person gives you more than anything else. Although I can't really remember specific conversations with Faye, I definitely remember the way she made me feel when I was with her. The best way I can describe it is warmth. You feel warm and safe and appreciated and totally unjudged in her presence."

Seems that everyone feels the way I do about this wonderful woman. (Despite the fact that she made a pact to celebrate her 75th with Carson by getting tattoos! So far I think that she is bluffing.)

Oh well, I have a few months to dig up something on my perfect brothers...   

Day 4 - Last day at Navarre Beach

Saturday July 10

7:30 a.m.
A dozen or so of us milling around the kitchen. 2nd pot of coffee brewing. The last bit of detritus from the party the night before had been swept away by the early risers. Half of the household was packing up and preparing to leave.  That allowed me to have some one-on-one time with John and Shelley.  Learned a bit about their house in Georgia - right beside brother Jorge.  John's next career with a large defence contractor.  The townhouse the girls will share as they attend a Florida university together.  Possible plans to make it up to Ontario in August.  A lesson about the gun that was presented to John at the retirement ceremony. More details about the extraordinary adventures he and Shelley have had the past two decades. 

My brief window of catch-up time closed as John was surrounded by family members. John's youngest brother Michael has a flair for stand up comedy and made a hilarious presentation in honour of John's new teaching career.  Prop after prop was pulled out of a paper bag and within minutes (and amidst roars of laughter) John had everything he needed to assume the role of revered professor:

Not to be outdone by the parents, the 2 daughters and niece and nephew of Michael and Caroline marched us upstairs to watch a dance routine for John. 

It didn't take long for everyone to get on the dance floor.  It was if we had to make up for the lack of dancing at the party the night before. 

Matt and Kyle met their matches on the dance floor - Carmen and her mom Leila wowed all of us (but especially the young men) with their moves.

We loved all the kids, but it was this little one who stole our hearts:

Hours past schedule, several of the families made their tearful goodbyes.  Loaded into their vehicles, they were given a push out of the driveway by the remaining family members.  This ritual was repeated throughout the weekend.  When mom and the aunties left the house Saturday night, John's parents made them drive up to the house - they were parked in the lot across the street - in order to officially push them on their way. 

An insider's view from our turn on Sunday morning:

Back to Saturday afternoon: Cindy and I headed to the beach for a swim then followed up on our promise to rent scooters.  We drove from Navarre Beach to Pensacola Beach - about a half an hour. Lots of protected shores where humans were not allowed to tread.  The white sand looked like snow. The sign reads "Dune Restoration. Please Keep Off".

It was another steaming hot day.  We cooled off at the beach and caught the tail end of the Blue Angels air show. 

We would have liked to stop for a snack and drink somewhere before returning home, but the skies were turning dark and we could see lightning to the east.  Traffic was heavy on the way back - and I'm sure the motorists didn't appreciate following two gutless scooters.  For once Cindy and I drove the speed limit. 

Our moms were at the house and we spent an enjoyable evening with the rest of the family.  Jorge made his famous pork ribs with Mojo sauce.  I now have the recipe:  Sour orange, Garlic - a lot, Onion - a lot, Oregano, Cilantro, Salt, Dry wine ( little).  Put in blender and taste until it's perfect.

(I also have a bottle of Mojo sauce that I bought from Publix. Jorge says that it is a good substitute for the real thing.) 

Can't remember if it was before or after dinner when Kim, Mary, mom and I took a last walk on the beach (last for me, first for the others).

Sometime in the evening Carmen (John's mom) cornered me and offered to do my horoscope - she seems to think that I have a lot of things on my mind right now...  I suppose some guidance from the stars is better than what I have been working with lately!  Armed with my birth date, she also needed to know my time of birth.  My memory being what it is, I could not provide her with that info.  Lucky for me that mom was right beside me - who better to ask?  Not surprising, mom's memory being what it is, she couldn't remember either!  That made for a good laugh.  I could not take offense as I cannot recall the exact time - or even time of day - when my girls were born. 

That in a nutshell was what those 4 days in Florida were all about - laughter, love, caring, celebrating and not taking ourselves too seriously.  It may not have been my dream trip to Provence, but it provided some well-needed mojo for my soul.

Day 3 - Hurlbert Field

Friday July 9, 2010

John's retirement party was as touching and patriotic as I had imagined.

We were up and out of the house by 7:20 a.m.  The wall of heat that greeted us also fogged up our cameras.  But the boys managed to get some nice shots of Kim, Cindy and I on the driveway.

 

I'm not glowing - that's condensation on the camera lens. My hair was considerably bigger and wilder 4 hours later.

We assembled in an air-conditioned room in the chapel prior to the ceremony.  Despite the institutional background, everyone began to snap group shots.  I would have preferred a better setting, but a cool climate won out over an aesthetically pleasing backdrop. 

Here's John with his nieces and nephews:

And here is the rest of the family capturing that moment:

In anticipation of sitting in the heat at the ceremony, Kim splurged on fans for all the ladies:

I ventured outside to watch the preparations.  The crowds were gathering and the uniforms were inspected:

John's grandmother Leila had her very own escort and vehicle to take her to the ceremony:

As we stood, and many saluted, John and his retiring officer were led by the colour guard to the podium

We remained standing for the national anthem and the Invocation. Next were remarks by John's former commanding officer.  I had heard that Tommy was quite a character and he lived up to his reputation.  As he made his opening remarks, he reached into the podium and pulled out a can of diet coke and an unusual container.  It was a large cup made from one of John's original prosthesis.  I found out later that John "tricked it out" and presented it to Tommy in recognition of the support provided to get John back into service following his accident. 

Following Tommy's funny and touching speech, he presented to John the Award of the Defence Superior Service Medal.  We found out later that this medal is one of the highest award that can be bestowed upon members of the United States military by the Secretary of Defense.   

I cannot do justice to John's speech.  He acknowledged the many people who supported him throughout his career.  I was in awe of the people he described - the doctor who saved his life in Nicaragua; the colleague who, after finishing his 2 hour plus marathon run, ran back to find John and spend the next 4 hours running with and encouraging John (with a stress fracture in his good leg) to finish the race: the pilot who crash landed a plane in the jungle to rescue John after his accident; the people who believed in John before, during and after his accident. John's tribute to his family was equally touching and throughout his speech, John kept his composure.  There would be no tears shed by him during this formal ceremony. That said, John (and Kyle, or so he says) were the only ones with dry eyes during the ceremony. 

We all blubbered some more when, after presenting bouquets to his wife, daughters, mom, aunt, grand-mother and mom-in-law, John handed his son a wooden box.  Jake is just a bit older than Leah, and like Leah, the youngest in that family.  John recognized that Jake missed out on a lot of time together while John held higher and more demanding responsibilities and assignments that took him all over the world.   My understanding is that Jake learned to accept this life. Imagine how Jake felt when he opened the box that his dad presented to him. It was an original coin from John's favourite squadron, and the following inscribed in the box:

Jake

It is time to make up for lost time.

The adventure begins.

Love

Your Dad

We finally had to laugh through all the tears. 

The formal ceremony over, we moved inside for the informal awards and speeches.  Both John and Shelley were recognized by the Department of Defense for service to their country.

We met many of John's former colleagues.  All of them raved about John, his leadership and his dedication to family and country.  We knew John was special, but until then, we had no idea how special.

Before we headed back to beach house, the family was invited to get a closer look at the helicopters that John had flown. I'm surprised my hair fit into the cargo bay:

Speeches and tours over, it was party time!

Day 2 - Navarre Beach

Yawn
Between the snorer and the kids partying on the deck on the other side of my wall, sleep was fleeting. Wide awake at 5 - our 6, but was able to doze. Puttered online then went downstairs to forage for breakfast. John's sister Cuqui (Cookie) and her family were up.

Her brother Jorge, and husband Rich were heading out for a jog. I poured myself a coffee and stewed about packing the wrong camera battery charger. My mood improved significantly when I found a squeeze bottle of Welch's grape jelly. I love America! I squeezed the jelly onto 2 slices of whole grain bread. Battery-shmattery. I was in jam sandwich heaven.
Then Cuqui spoiled it all by announcing that she was heading to the beach to lead a mini boot camp. Would I care to join them? Not really, but really, why not?

By 7:15 we had crossed the street to the beach and were doing lunges and jumping jacks in the sand. The day was shaping up to be heavenly. And it was.

By lunch time I had purchased a battery charger and spent a fun time at Walmart with Kim and her son Matt.

Matt is burnt to a crisp, courtesy of 2 hours of jet skiing without sunscreen.

 Did I mention that he is a redhead? It hurts to look at his bright red skin. Matt was in so much pain that he used a motorized scooter/buggy to shop. We found out that a young kid in scooter is a chick magnet! Matt was stopped at least a half dozen times by women sympathizing with him about his burns.

People were in and out of the house all day doing shopping, getting hair and nails done and taking trips to the beach. I passed on a shoe shopping spree in favor of joining the young ones for a swim. The water was surprisingly warm. I walked along the beach for an hour before swimming. I can never get enough of watching the persistent waves make their way to shore. As I stood in the water, with the waves splashing my legs, I made a promise to myself to spend an extended vacation, or a short-term move to a home by the sea.

My bucket list started, I returned to the beach house and yakked with mom and aunties on the balcony overlooking the beach. We were on a strict schedule that afternoon - everyone had to be at the air force base at 4:00 to get registered for the next day's ceremony. I counted 8 cars in the lot. That done, we drove further east to have dinner at a Chinese food buffet. I didn't count us all there but I estimate that there were 34 of us.

Some more shopping on our way home, then entertainment by one of John's nephews. He is a - well, not a juggler - though he does do something called contact juggling that's fun to watch. Johnny twirled fire sticks for us tonight. Lots of oohs and ahhs and singing of "Hot, hot, hot".

Mom and the aunties made their goodbyes and I decided to call it a night. John's retirement ceremony is tomorrow morning at 9:00 am. Once again, we have our marching orders - everyone out of the house by 7:30. Kim, Cindy and I have to leave a bit earlier as we have to pick up flowers on the way. We are all concerned about how we will survive the outdoor ceremony, but we know that a little heat and humidity for an hour is a small price to pay to pay our respects to our one-legged military hero.

I have no idea what to expect, but know that my camera and Kleenex will be working overtime.

Navarre Beach: Day 1

I've been sitting in front of this empty screen for the past ten minutes trying to figure out how to capture this day without turning it into another big diary entry.

Highlights (not to be confused with highbrow):
- the constant bickering and teasing between Kim and Cindy with the occasional barbs thrown in by Kyle
- Kim's brilliant execution of a car rental deal involving a same-sex partner .... Oooh this one will take too long to explain
- the delight at buying an 18 pack and a 12 pack of beer for $30!!!!!! Cold! And the good stuff!
- the location of our beach castle
- touring the beach castle

- greeting mom and the aunties as they arrived an hour after us (they drove down)

- finally meeting John's parents, siblings and kids (I'm already scheming to kidnap John's sweet 15 year old niece Mackenzie and bring her home with me for the summer - like I need more teenage girls at home)

- fine dining with Kim, mom and aunties Mary and Pat at the $5.00 "all you can eat" buffet at KFC. I loved the deep fried okra and chicken livers.

The only mis-step was allowing the aunties wash their hands before leaving KFC. We just missed the fly-by of 2 helicopters right above the beach house in John's honour. And we didn't get to play beach volleyball under the lights. But we will try again tomorrow.

Time to dig out my earplugs and try to get some sleep. I'm anticipating an eventful night. Kim and Cindy's sons are on the balcony outside our room polishing off the beer. And I'm
sharing a room with my crazy cousins. One of whom has a reputation as a loud snorer.

There are 24 of us sleeping at the beach house tonight. A few more family members will be arriving in the morning. As soon as I stepped into this place and met everyone, I longed to find a way to get the girls on a plane to join us. But hockey camp, summer school and babysitting keep them at home. I expect that there will be many more opportunities like this one. Within a half hour of everyone arriving this evening, John's mom Carmen was inviting us to spend Thanksgiving with John and Shelley in Arizona.