Yes, They're Pretty Special

Last night I had the pleasure of going to dinner at Red Robin with my special sister, Stephanie and her special friend, Scott.  And it was truly a PLEASURE!  They were just purely enjoyable to be around!  Nothing was more important to them than the fact that they were in each other's company.  Stephie was girlishly giddy at times which I thought was so refreshingly sweet!  We were celebrating her 38th birthday and I left thinking that I could have easily scrapped the wrapped present - one hour with her sweet and special suitor was all she wanted or needed!  Acceptance, love, friendship, pure delight - those are true gifts.  And it was a gift to me - to be able to watch them and enjoy their conversation.

A dear friend has often voiced the sentiment of what it must be like to be in their world; that is the world of special people like Stephanie and Scott.  I think it would probably be a joyous place to be!  That's the word that keeps coming to my mind - JOY!  The absolute PLEASURE of being with your best friend.  (Although I made the mistake of calling them best friends, and Scott quickly set me straight.  They're not just friends didn't I know that? )  But that unconditional ACCEPTANCE is true friendship, even though Scott may not realize it.

So even though it wasn't my birthday, I think I received the ultimate gift!  It was a lesson in kindness, acceptance, love!   I began to ponder how judgemental, selfish and unaccepting I am.  As we embark upon this Christmas season, my prayer is that I can be more like my special companions and simply accept others as they are, without condition.  And maybe go a step further and not only find acceptance, but find joy in our everday experiences and most importantly in our relationships with those we love!  It will likely take me a while to find my way into that special world they occupy, but I think it definitely worth trying.

So thanks to Stephanie and Scott for what I'll call an early Christmas present.  It was fun to smile and laugh for so long!  Especially when Scott said, "Steph, let me finish, can I talk now?" Definitely no such thing as a Silent Night around those two!

Day 89 - A Taste of Home with Hazel

Today my sister Stephanie took a day off from her busy workplace to spend the day with me.  She never ever takes off because her work is so enjoyable to her.  Wish I had that attitude!  But then Stephanie has a positive attitude about just about everything!  So we spent some time tidying up the house and organizing a little bit here and there - she loves to help clean and is an awesome organizer!  That how she's earned the name "Hazel" from my dad.  For those of you too young to remember, Hazel was the name of a TV program about a housekeeper. I'm not THAT old, I just remember the reruns.  So yes, Stephanie, aka Hazel helped me clean house and is a terrific help because I'm not BO, that is born organized.

After some of the cleaning was finished, we took a trip up Hwy N to Louisiana Cafe.  The Friday special was fried catfish and crawfish etouffee, plus we had some gator chips on the side.  That would be fried pickles.  Even though I'm from Louisiana, I've never eaten a gator, nor will I ever have the desire.  So we listened to a little bit of jazz, dined on some seafood and reminisced about Greg who loved to eat at Louisiana Cafe.  I figured out that he will be home in 13 weeks and 5 days and well, 13 weeks and 5 days ago we got home from our trip to Louisiana.  Quite appropriate, I would say!  And yes, I do realize how nerdy, cooky, crazy, sappy and totally desperate it is that I actually know such things.  But such is the life of a missionary mom or any mom who has loved ones far away.  So that's my story for today and laissez le bon temps rouler!

 Steph said the catfish was really good!  It really was!

 Digging in

 Gator Chips

 Fried Catfish and Crawfish Etouffee - very spicy, my sinuses are cleared!

Louisiana Cafe