By Shannon Williams
Sorry that I have not written anything in the past several weeks… Life got busy and some things had to go. I keep a list next to my computer so that when I get a thought for something I could write about, I jot it down. Several things wrong with that, I have to be able to read my own writing which is getting harder and harder and then I have to figure out what I was really thinking about from some of my one-word notes!

A lot has taken place in just about every area of my life. So, for the highlights, hubby hit another Hole in One, which makes two for his lifetime. My mother was a golfer and loves to talk golf with him. She was so excited that he had gotten another one. She reminded me that he would need to buy a round of drinks for his golf buddies, as “it was the right thing to do!” So, I try to always do as my mother says, I am much better at these days than I used to be LOL. She wanted to make sure that I would call the newspaper to let them know so he could get his picture in the newspaper, just as my father had over 30 years ago when he hit his. I tried to explain that it is really not done that way anymore, but the woman who cannot remember anything kept asking about it on our daily calls. So, I am putting in this newspaper with a picture, so I don’t lie to my mother! It was on hole 13 at Bay Forest Golf Club, he makes me proud.

Speaking of hubby, he has retired for real or so he says. He turned 65 this month and decided it was time to be full time retired. He has told me and others that he is going to be a full-time house husband and so far, so good, he has my tea on my desk in the am and some days I get breakfast! He is expanding his number of dishes he can cook, and his plan is to do most of the cooking. I might get used to that and just work a few more years. I am 18 months away from 65, but who is counting? We have celebrated both events with some gatherings. For his birthday, he wanted to have his children and grandchildren come spend the day and they did just that. We ate way too much food and just had fun being together. Both of his children have so much going in in their lives, with children and jobs and school, so we were so glad that they took time out to spend the day here with us, we even found enough room for everyone to nap after all that food.

For his retirement, he again wanted a very specific gathering. I guess for years, he has driven by Woody’s in Galveston and has wanted to stop and enjoy a cold beer there. He had a dear friend who use to hang out there years ago, so that was the plan. Of course, I thought we should do something different, but it was after all HIS Retirement, and it could not have been any better if we would have tried. We had about 10 friends and co workers join him on the deck for cold beer. It was one of those perfect days on the gulf coast, the water was blue, the sun was bright, very low humidity, and a great little breeze. We had the deck to ourselves and we sent out for pizza. It was just a very nice evening and am grateful to those who came to celebrate with us.

The older I get, the longer my birthday celebrations are, and Paul appears to be following suit, as we will go with his brother and sister in law for a few days of fun in Lake Charles soon. He will fish and golf while I read and go to the spa and we will eat at Darryl’s for one of those great poor boys!

While his work is slowing down, mine got really busy for about a month. I was asked to go back into my old role to resolve some issues. I was glad to help out, as it was needed, but am so glad that my days of being a boss and traveling are finished. I just do not enjoy the road trips as I used to and then I am behind when I return. I am back to only my new job and slowly going back to an eight hour day and no weekends. While I won’t bore you with the details, those who took over my role, just did not do the job. It was not that no one could do what I had done, it was just that some people when they become a boss, think that they have to work less and if you have been a boss, you know that is so untrue, you have to do more, and in the end if you do not do it, it comes around and you pay the price. It was nice to see some of my old staff and residents and I was greeted with lots of hugs and smiles.

The other big news is baseball. Number one grandson is playing fall ball and so we are burning up the road to Santa Fe to watch him play. We also fulfilled our Christmas gift to the kids, which was to take them all to a MLB baseball game. It was just too much fun for us all. The best part was our 8-year-old grandson and how he took his hat off for the national anthem. We went on a Friday night for the fireworks and it is a site to behold and one of the best ways to watch fireworks.

We have also been trying to help out his son and his wife, as they have a two-year-old and are expecting another son in October. He is a fireman, so is trying to get as much overtime as he can to help with all the baby cost, so we are giving mom a little break and keeping the little one for a night or two when we can. He is learning his words and each time we see him he has more words and it is amazing. He is so much fun, as is the other one and of course the one arriving in October is a boy. So we are all singing the theme song from my three sons!

So, we are staying busy, but busy also means blessed for all the love we have in our life. I am working at letting household stuff go, if we need to be grandparents and stend most of Sunday afternoon with a 2-year-old sleeping in my arms, it just does not get much better than that.

[SW: Sep-26-2023]