Life in the Middle Age Lane

Time is on our side, yes it is.  Unfortunately, that is farther from the truth.  I always had the thought in my head, "there is always tomorrow".  But the fact is, that it's not true for everyone.  We lie to ourselves on a daily basis that we have time to say the unspoken, to make amends, to care a little bit more next time, or see the sunrise another morning.  We honestly and realistically don't know if that is true but we keep the faith. My father in law was a big part of our lives and I did not realize just how much until he died.  He was my tagalong, my extra child, my responsibility.  That's how I saw him.  I never knew him prior to Parkinson's.  And the days he was healthy and self sufficient, those days were spent in his beloved home town of Lake Charles.  I inherited my dad towards the difficult years of his life.  I so wish I new him prior.  But the bittersweet part is that I loved him even more because he was mine a...

John and I just returned from honoring his father's life.  He was interred yesterday in Lake Charles, his beloved home town. A hero to us all. Castle “Buddy” Cohron, Jr. passed away June 3, 2015 in Spring, TX. He was born in Jennings, Louisiana to Castle Clarence Cohron and Lydia Guillory on March 8, 1942. He attended the all boys school, St. Charles Academy where he made lifelong friends. He was a member of the Lake Charles Civil Air Patrol in 1958, graduated from Landry High School in 1959 and received a bachelor’s degree at University of Southwestern Louisiana in 1965. Castle was part of the class that founded the Green Party at Kappa Sigma Fraternity.  He proudly served in the U.S. Air Force from November 1965 until his honorable discharge in March 1971. He completed over 200 missions in an F-4 Phantom during the Vietnam War and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross with two Oak Leaf Clusters for extraordinary...

Cohron & Newland Family Our family is growing.....We had a total of 30 people all related in one way or another over for Thanksgiving. I think I am doing something wrong because I read other's Thanksgiving plans and they are all visiting their family members and not having to cook.  How in the world do you get away with that????  I would love to be invited to someone's home and not have to worry about cooking, cleaning, and entertaining! Melchor Family  We tried to color coordinate and I forgot to change my father in laws shirt to the red sweater I had for him.  And then I forgot to tell my mom and was too embarrassed to tell her I excluded her by accident.  She didn't bring it up and hope no one rats me out. 1/4 goofiness runs in our family The new members to our family. My niece Alisha's boyfriend and his parents.  It was Marceline's first Thanksgiving. Emilio's hotty boyfriend join us too! Marceline with John John t...

It's not what you think.  I have been on this new chapter of my life (the early empty nester) for almost two years.  At the same time also adjusting to remote parenting *Thank you Skype!, an "adult" son living nearby and having a more open schedule since my days of PTO, car pool, school sports are no longer part of my life. Being only 46, I felt I still had more mothering in me to do.  With no kids and more time on my hands then I ever imagined.  I prayed... I prayed for purpose and direction.  What a great thing to ask for.  Everyone needs purpose and direction to feel part of society.  I prayed that I can still make a difference. My prayer was answered in the form of a 71 year old white haired, blue eyed, father in law.  In so many ways, it's like having a 3 year old all over again.  In other ways, you get the wisdom of a man who has lived a good life, traveled, knows my best friends childhood memories, and shows you how to muster u...

The end of the Thanksgiving holidays are at hand.  It was full of birthdays, family, and friends.  Shelby had a friend from boarding stay with us this week.  It's wonderful to see Shelby making such wonderful friends.  Malaika's family lives in Calgary and they celebrate  Thanksgiving on the second Monday in October. Shelby drove down on Friday with her and it has been a fun filled week. Saturday: Malaika helped Shelby with her Gold Award Ceremony at the house.  She participated in the ceremony and was there to see Shelby get pinned. Afterwards the girls met up with some of Shelby's girl scout friends and went to the Steam Boat Drive In to see Twilight: Breaking Dawn, part 2. On Sunday, we went to the Texans game at Reliant Stadium.  We had the best time except for a really obnoxious twenty-something blonde sitting next to the girls.  We just laughed it off and enjoyed the exciting game.  We had excellent seats and saw everythin...

On Thursday, March 8th my father in law turned 70 years old.  He has battled Parkinson's for over 25 years.  It was determined that Parkinson's was a result of his tour in Vietnam in the 1960's.  About two years ago we had to uproot him from  his home in Lake Charles, LA and place him in an assisted living facility near us.  Bless his heart, he didn't like it much but knew that he could not continue living alone in a city so far away from his sons.  He needed someone to look after him and his affairs.  My father in law is not a complainer and always seems to see the brighter side of things.  He has battled a debilitating disease for so many years and is still able to keep his smile and joking manner about him. With his birthday quickly approaching and no new friends in Houston I could not let it pass by without some type of celebration.  I quickly emailed some favorite neighbors and asked that they please come and celebrate John's dad's 70t...