Memories Are Made of This

Letters, quotes and words seem to be all the rage right now.....on pillows, artwork and frames.  When things become all the rage you'll know it because it will be everywhere.  I usually like something until it becomes so "everywhere in your face" then I can hardly look at it.   I think letters and quotes and words on decorative accessories are getting there.

However, I bought a frame while in Atlanta that caught my eye because of the colors and then for what it said.  I knew just where I'd put it and what I would put in it.  If I get sick of the lettering, I can always paint this frame.

But for now it hangs at my kitchen desk drop-off point....cleaned up for this photo.

See the big frame?
To the right of the black sign with words on it....
Uh, oh....all the rage has crossed over to "everywhere."

Memories are made of this.

Sounds sweet, doesn't it?

I looked through old albums for a picture of my 3 kids when they were little. 

This one brings back lots of memories. 

This photograph of my 3 kids was taken at the hotel swimming pool when we went to Disneyworld in 1998. I'll just go ahead and say this.....

                                                   This trip was one of the worst trips ever.

I can laugh now but at the time it was very stressful to be so miserable at Disneyworld when all I had ever heard from others was what a great experience it was for families. Stressful to be so miserable when we were in the middle of spending a lot of money for this "good time."  Stressful to be coming to the realization that maybe we were a very dysfunctional family after all.

My kids were at an age where 2  of them (5th and 8th graders) were in to the daring rides and wanted to get on them over and over, while the remaining kid (a 2nd grader...you guess which one) would stand in the hour long line with us, then start to cry right as it was our turn to get on.  CRY.  And glue his feet to the concrete...as in "not getting on that ride."

Because he was scared.  After waiting in line an hour. Really?  He couldn't have told us this earlier?  Like an hour earlier?

One parent was telling him with clenched teeth to stop and get on the dang ride, while the other parent with the fake smile was saying I would just sit it out with him on the bench and meet up with them afterwards.  All the while knowing the long line of people behind us as well as the people already loaded on to the ride and the cheery workers were watching this circus show we were putting on.

This happened over and over, one ride after another until I may have lost it publicly in the park (ala Kate as in Jon and Kate plus 8) and said we were going back to the hotel and they could just play in the pool for all I cared!  Forget Disneyworld ....forget Universal Studios!  Forget that we had 3 day park passes that had cost us an arm and a leg. 

Funny thing now....this picture was taken during the best, calmest moment of the whole trip.  The kids got along and played in that pool for the whole afternoon.

We could have saved a lot of money just renting a room in a hotel in Houston.  You know, for an afternoon of swimming in a hotel pool.

Yes.  Memories are made of this.

Post Script:  The little scared 2nd grader is the same kid who jumped out of a moving car in 10th grade.  Didn't see that coming.