Did I Mention...

I started a hobby.

It was fun. So fun I stopped.

What can I say, life.

You know the drill... taxiing a husband and a son to and from work, school carpool, elderly parent watch , husband health watch, car problems, elderly diabetic parent meal management, husband ER visit, elderly parent emergency surgery, bailing on carpooling because that one nightmare kid, more car problems, more driving, more Mom (elderly parent) stuff. The list goes on and on. Oh, and let's not forget coordinating college kid's travel plans for visits home, including that extra stressful task of making arrangements for everything that needs to be taken care of (from opposite ends of the country) before she left school for Summer break.

Anyway, I hope to return to creating new vlogs... that hobby I was telling you about.

#ThisIsFifty

#InTheKitchenWithLilOnWednesday  #FiveOnFriday

&

More!

Vlogs by Lillian Carilo

Until tomorrow. ~ Lil

This post is written for Day 5 of the Ultimate Blog Challenge for July 2014 and NaBloPoMo.

FREEDOM!!! I Don't Know...

They're All Grown Now

 Yeah, today I was free to sleep in late, and because of this, my sister was free to take a call from Mom saying I still had not dropped off her daily meds, and ask if she knew why I still had not done that.  By the way, Mom has my phone number. I don't know.

I was also free to do Mom's grocery shopping after checking what needed restocking in her fridge and pantry... you know, when I stopped by to drop off her meds. I don't know.

My afternoon was freed up to allow preparation of split pea with ham soup, while I also put together stuff for 4th of July grub. Actually, it turned out I had so much free time, all sorts of mishaps & inconveniences found their way into the kitchen all afternoon, for instance, milk pooled up on third shelf down in the fridge... you know where we keep assortment of breads. I don't know.

Late afternoon and evening allowed freedom to enjoy hamburgers with all the fixin's ~ macaroni salad, coleslaw, chips, fizzy drinks, and Nestle's Drumsticks. Bonus: The Wizard of Oz and Singing in the Rain double feature in the living room.  Un-bonus (?):  Dogs freaking out at sound of fireworks display from park down the road... bummed we had to put bark collars on them.  I don't know.

Fireworks started with a BOOM at 9:00pm. Show coincided with outside temperature holding steady at 100 degrees. The whole family felt free to take a pass; comfort of indoor air conditioning won over outdoor temps. My twitter timeline provided plenty of photos of pyrotechnics - from small backyard gatherings to crowded professional sports venues.  I don't know.

Now that everything's quieted down for the day, I do have this one question. Isn't it written somewhere in the Declaration about some sort of Commandment that proclaims, "IN CELEBRATION OF OUR NATION'S FOREFATHERS, THOU SHALL ALWAYS HAVE A LARGE JAR OF CRISP, COLD DILL PICKLE CHIPS ON 4th OF JULY."  Hmmm!?!?!?!

RIGHT? I don't know.

Until tomorrow. ~ Lil

***

This post is written for Day 4 of the Ultimate Blog Challenge for July 2014 and NaBloPoMo.

12,118

Move On, Plan Ahead

This month I commit to take a look back over the past decade.
This is how it looked then.
I never imagined that life would get anywhere near this...

This is Hawaii. This road once took us on a hilarious adventure, but that was in 2003. July 2004 was... Gosh, I don't remember; not any specifics anyway. Everything I wrote back then is in storage.

***

Ten years ago, that first complete calendar year spent on the island, was full of jubilant highs... finally a secure job for my husband; relief... the ability to again establish financial serenity; concerns... were we ever going to adjust to drastic changes to our "normal;" and scariest of all, emotional lows... my inability to manage health issues was wreaking havoc on our home life.

By October of 2004, I had to leave. The only solution to matters at hand was for me to return to the mainland, and attend to my medical needs. Back on the island, my husband began a renewed job search. The industry he worked in - homebuilding - was still in trouble and jobs were scarce. All I could do was promise my soon-to-be eight year-old that I'd be back in time to celebrate her birthday. Now, I'm not one to make promises to my children, but under those circumstances, that promise was made as much to myself as it was to my children. It would be unbroken.

I was only able to stay on the island a few weeks before my health began to deteriorate again... at lightning speed. I had promised my doctors that I would return to California to resume care. It wasn't until March 2005 that my family and I were reunited. I made one last trip to Hawaii. Our things were prepared for container storage and an eight week journey across the Pacific Ocean, followed by a moving truck delivery. We packed a few suitcases with bare essentials to restart our lives together in Colorado.

I can't help but sigh at that memory.  I was forty years old.  I do not miss my forties. Since turning fifty this year, I find I don't have much expectation for anything.  I do have hopes and dreams for my children's future.
So, to answer, "What do you think you will be doing 10 years from now? I hope my husband and I will not have to go too long without visits from our children. We'll grow a bit older along with our dogs. I hope to be smarter, life stable, sound in body and mind. I don't know.

As has been true my entire life, my wish is to someday have an English garden to spend my days in, and enjoy with family and friends.  Yeah, that's what I'd love most to be doing 10 years from now.

Until tomorrow. ~ Lil

This post is written for Day 3 of the Ultimate Blog Challenge for July 2014 and NaBloPoMo.

12,112

I Never Imagined

This month I commit to take a look back over the past decade. This is how it looked then...

I never imagined that life would get anywhere near this...

    This is Hawaii. That road once lead us on a hilarious adventure, but that was in 2003.  July 2004 was... Gosh, I don't remember; not any specifics anyway. Everything I wrote back then is in a Colorado storage place.

That said, the decade since then has been unbelievable. I'll fill you in as the this month rolls on.

***

By July of 2004 I am pretty sure that I had had it... island living was not for me. I had loads to complain about, but lucky for me, there were a few things that I could always look forward to with some regularity... and these things filled me with such joy that I could not help but be grateful.

Some of my favorite memories on that tiny Hawaiian island were of evenings on the lanai in Lanai. These evenings were shared with friends over dinners outdoors, hilarious conversation while playing dominos, still moments gazing at the Milky Way floating against velvety-black night skies, and ending with loving hugs & quiet good-byes. I loved those nights... we all did.

Then there were those soon waning weekend visits to the beach. We didn't attend church after moving to the island, so those short rides to the beach on the weekend were my retreat... no matter how much sand filled our swimsuits that would inevitably end up coming home with us. What a mess!  This was the only accessible beach, and it always seemed to be left all to us. The kids would snorkel in the tide pool, boogie board in the ocean, but mostly play in the sand.  We even had a couple of over night campouts, until that one giant wave we witnessed crashing way too far past the shoreline. The fear of a wave carrying my family out to sea trapped in a tent was enough to put a stop to any future camping trips.

Another thing to be grateful for was Omaha Steaks by mail. I'd place an order once a month to treat us to stuff we didn't have available on the island, or that I did not have confidence purchasing at any of the small grocery stores in town. Large grocery shopping excursions consisted of hauling ice chest to the small harbor for early morning  ferry rides to Maui, vehicle rental, and a long drive to Costco, and back again in reverse order. What a chore.  So, it was nice to occasionally have a food shipment arrive by Fed Ex. Ahhh, the good life... ?

Last but not least was the ocean itself; conditions were pretty much perfect year-round, and it left me in awe.   Fierce, strong, magnificent... it took my breath away.  One of the greatest gifts I have ever had bestowed upon me... bestowed upon us... was viewing a humpback whale show from our beach chairs and towels.  It was kind of cold and there were no more than 20 people on the beach that afternoon, and our outing was coming to a close earlier than normal. But, just as we started to get up, our friend Doug spotted a  huge splash directly in front of us. A whale! This gorgeous creature seemed to be expressing joy and gratitude for his or her home... the deep blue sea. It seemed to be putting on a show just for us.  We were captivated, and ohhh and ahhh-ed with every leap out of the water. Everyone honored to have had the experience erupted into cheers and applause when our happy humpback whale called it a day.

What a treat. I never imagined I'd ever witness such beauty. Time stood still during moments like that.

Until tomorrow. ~ Lil

This post is written for Day 2 of the Ultimate Blog Challenge for July 2014 and NaBloPoMo.

12,108

Mind Blown

Yes, as soon as I decided to get down to writing this post, my mind is totally blown.  Why? Well, because I thought I'd get some help from July 2014 BlogHer Blogroll. I scrolled through all the titles - glad that they were numbered - with plan to choose one to visit in hopes that someone's post might inspire how I should start my July 1st post.  Seeing blogroll was numbered, I then decided to get my son's help by asking him to pick a number between 1 and 64... Get this, he distractedly muttered, "thiiiirty threee." And, wouldn't you know it, HE PICKED MINE! Wild, right?

See...

1. wordsbyelena
2. Alphabet Salad
3. The Foodie Patootie
4. inneractive FITCLUB- heart pumpin' spirit movin'
5. Chief Life Changers
6. Chasing Dragonflies
7. The Debrina Show
8. The LodyBlog
9. Crazy Eddie's Motie News
10. Life As It Is
11. through my eyes
12. out & about in new york city
13. Creations de mon Coeur
14. Have Apron Will Bake
15. Ramblin' with AM
16. Faith, Grace, and Hope
17. Thoughts Tips and Tales
18. This Fuckin House
19. The Serendipity Years
20. The Chic of Domesticity
21. Mydhiliram's Blog
22. Parenting with Faith
23. Francene--Blog. 2014
24. Dumbwoman's Lane
25. CodeGurl
26. Everyday Gyaan
27. squaarekat.blogspot.com
28. Beauty and the Beets
29. Tea Leaves
30. Right to the (Pen's) Point
31. I am a Plague of Music Cooties
32. In the Transition
33. A How-To Guide
34. Vidya Sury, Going A-Musing, Collecting Smiles
35. Belgium or Bust
36. ifs buts ands etcs...
37. Autumn Eyez
38. Knit. Run. Reap. Eat.
39. The Fit Beach Babe
40. I Kiss My Cat on the Lips
41. Felt With Love Designs
42. Perle's Ink, freelance words & art
43. Rose & Odin
44. The Go To Mum
45. Hey, Life? Are You Kidding Me?
46. Both Sides of the Atlantic
47. tales of a north shore princess
48. onethousandandtwo
49. Un Giorno Nella Vita (A Day in the Life)
50. Blackout Girl
51. Alternative Wiring
52. A Rose Is A Rose Is A Rose!
53. NoMoreNiceGirl: Meet the New Nice
54. Hopeful Luna
55. Having Coffee With Peppy
56. My Ambiance Life
57. I Breathe Vinyl
58. my heart's love songs
59. Someday Somewhere
60. Adorably Obnoxious
61. Kudzu, Mon Amour
62. Broadcast Pink
63. Tickle the Sun | Taming the Mess
64. Twigs and Tulle

So, let's try this again. Number 27! That's you squaarekat. Thanks, in advance, for being there for me.

Well, at least I know someone is off to a good start. Way to go, Marisa.

* * *

"This summer is BlogHer's 10th anniversary! Tell us something YOU have been doing for ten straight years." ~ Mel at BlogHer

Surviving? Enduring? Persevering? Struggling? *sigh* Maybe a little bit of all of those descriptions.

This month I commit to look back over the past decade. This is how it looked then...

This is not  journey. This is not a Journey. This is not  journey...

This is Hawaii. That road once lead us on a hilarious adventure, but that was in 2003.  July 2004 was... Gosh, I don't remember; not any specifics anyway. Everything I wrote back then is in a Colorado storage place.

That said, the decade since then has been unbelievable. I'll fill you in as the this month rolls on.

Oh, by the way, July 1, 2014 got off to a great start! Exited the freeway at 12:04 am after spending a night out with my daughters. We went to a concert at a venue about 100 miles away.  We had a great time, and performers were awesome. Made some great memories.

Until tomorrow. ~ Lil

12,090

My Decade... Let's Do This!

A decade ago: We bought a car... in Hawaii!

BlogHer July 2014 Decade

Hang on, this is going to be ride...