May 26, 2009
WITH THIS RING, I THEE WED
'Tis the season of weddings!
Last weekend we were blessed to witness the beautiful outdoor wedding of Kyle and Jamie.
Kyle's mom Peggy is one of my very closest friends. She looked especially gorgeous for the wedding of her firstborn!
Besides our friendship with his parents, Kyle and my son Kamaron (a groomsman) are long-time childhood friends, and also, Kyle's younger sister Kara (a bridesmaid) is dating my son Kyler.
I guess you could say Kyle's been part of our family for a very long time!
Anique, Emily & Zach, Kyler, and Kim & I attended the wedding at Pokagon State Park in northern Indiana.
Darling little Abby looked angelic as the flower girl. Abby's family goes to our church and Abby's mom babysat with my own children 20 years ago!
Abby had a minor wardrobe malfunction when her little shoe came off as she came up the steps...too cute!
Beaming bride Jamie made her grand entrance coming down the staircase of the Potawatomi Inn.
God blessed them with perfect weather for the outdoor ceremony!
Who knew bridesmaids could be this cool?! Kyle's sisters Kelli and Kara are on the ends.
"You may kiss the groom!"
Parents and family of the happy groom look on.
Jeff & Peggy congratulate the newlyweds and welcome a new daughter into their family!
Our dear friends CJ & Leann with their precious little ones, Abby and Anna.
Kyler and Abby had fun teasing each other at the reception.
Me with my Kimmie...
...and my "drinking buddies" (coffee!) Linda, Peggy, and Brenda.
Kara sang beautifully as the couple shared their first dance together.
My absolute FAVORITE photo of the event is this tender moment captured between an adoring mother and her baby boy! Moments like this, tears are inevitable! That is a picture of a mother's love if ever I've seen one.
The wedding party got the dancing started. Here Kamaron dances with Kara...
...and Kelli.
Abby put on her dancin' shoes (aka Crocs!) and hit the dance floor with the groom.
One hilarious moment was when Jamie's dress and her bridesmaid's dress got caught on each other and they were stuck together! Kara came to the rescue!
Kara and Kyler enjoyed the evening fun!
In just ten weeks, it'll be Kamaron and Anique's turn to ring the wedding bells!
It was a wonderful day for a very special couple!
Congratulations, Kyle & Jamie!
May God bless you with a long, happy, joyous life together!
days in the life of a
Previous POSTS
May 2009
May 25, 2009
GOLDFINCHES
Indiana isn't known for its colorful wildlife, but there are a few backyard birds that brighten up the landscape.
Frequent visitors to our birdfeeders are this sweet little goldfinch pair.
They stop by several times a day to feast on thistleseed.
Besides their striking bright lemon color, I love the contrast and pattern of their black and white wings and tail.
Some people call them wild canaries.
I like that! It sounds so exotic and tropical!
Like most bird species, the male goldfinch is much more colorful and pretty than his female mate. Why is that?! I wonder if it's God's way of helping the female blend in with her surroundings while she's sitting on her nest.
But even the female is much prettier than almost all of the birds who visit our backyard.
I just love our pretty little goldfinches!
May 27, 2009
WEDDING CANDID MOMENTS
Since I saved nearly 200 photos from the wedding that I just couldn't bear to delete...
...and since I'm on the road without a lot of time to be witty and creative...
...and since I thought it'd just be fun to celebrate Kyle & Jamie's wedding a little while 
longer...
longer...Here are some of my shots that didn't make the "Best Photos" list, but I like anyway.
Enjoy!
May 28, 2009
WESTWARD, HO!
Load 'em up and move 'em out!
That's just what we did with Kamaron this week. He's officially a resident of Kansas City!
When he picked up the U-Haul, it looked huge inside. I mean, how much stuff can two college kids have???
A lot!!! But it all fit inside...
...and we were ready to roll!
In true Gray fashion, we left before the sun came up...
...with our modern-day wagon train. Kamaron led the way in the U-Haul, followed by Anique in Kamaron's little black car with bicycles strapped on the back, and Kim and me in our car.
As we entered Missouri, I was driving Kamaron's car and took this shot as we crossed into his new state. You can see he needs to clean his windshield in the worst way!
Kansas City, here we come!
After ten and a half hours on the road, the excited young couple entered the apartment complex office. We made it!
Home, Sweet Apartment!
It only took about an hour to unload everything.
Anique was very organized, had a well-thought-out plan, and knew exactly where she
wanted everything to go! Isn't she cute?!
Their living room...
...and kitchen.
They got the important things set up...
...and put back together...
...then drove the seven miles into Kansas City...
...for some famous KC barbeque at Jack Stack. All this picture-taking had me famished!
Anique is staying a couple more days to help unpack and get their apartment organized. Then she's flying home to Bloomington until their August wedding, when she'll join him here in KC.
Then it was time for the hard part, saying good-bye and leaving my baby at his own home in another state. While I'm so excited and thrilled for them, I can't help but feel sad that another one has flown our nest.
I know God has great plans for Kamaron and Anique and He's put them in Kansas City, at least for now. I am so grateful he has a great job to start next week and a wonderful young woman to share his life's adventures with!
But...I'll always be his mama...and hopefully he'll fly back home once in awhile!
Good Luck in KC, Kamo!!! We love you!!!
May 29, 2009
OUR WEIRD MEMORIAL DAY TRADITION
Our family is weird.
While other families are celebrating Memorial Day by having cookouts and picnics, visiting the pool, watching the Indy 500, and basking in the beginning of the glorious summer ahead...
...the Gray family is butchering chickens.
I married into this weirdness!
Kim's family has been killing chickens for as long as he can remember, and when I married him 29 years ago it was part of the package.
But I was young, naive, head-over-heels in love...so, hey...why would a few bloody chickens get in the way?
So, for the past 29 years, while normal people are celebrating Memorial Days in normal ways, we butcher chickens.
(This is the point where I warn you that there is blood and grossness ahead. If you are eating breakfast...or, heaven forbid, CHICKEN!...you probably want to click out of here.)
But if you're morbidly curious and you've got an iron stomach, here are some scenes from the slaughter. (It's really NOT THAT BAD...I'm being overly dramatic!)
Upside down, into the killing cone...
...pull out the neck...
...good old sharp Cutco hunting knife...
...the dirty deed is done!
Now the next photo is brutal but kind of cool, in a sick sort of way. Brace yourself ...
A bucket of heads!!!
Normally-calm, sweet Cocoa was delirious with excitement during the whole process. I guess that's instinct for a bird dog, huh?!
Kim is the master scalder and de-featherer.
My turn! The worst is over...
...but those feet have got to come off!
Chicken feet are actually very cool. You can pull that white tendon coming out the top and make the claws open and shut.
Country people get their kicks in odd ways, I know!
Cutting off the neck and scraping the skin clean...
The best sight of all...a freezer full of delicious, home-grown chicken!!!
What a GREAT way to spend a holiday!?! And we'll do it all again for the 4th of July!!!
That's my dad. He's the main man when it comes to cutting off the heads.
And, no...he did NOT cut off his finger, even though the picture looks that way. I think it must be tucked under a few feathers.
May 30, 2009
A SIGHT I THOUGHT I'D NEVER SEE
My dear husband Kim is not one for communication technology.
As in phones. Answering machines. Computers. Cell phones.
He's not a big believer in staying connected with the world.
I think he would be happy if we lived our lives in isolation. NOT ME!
When we started dating, he refused to have a phone in his apartment (those were the days long before cell phones!). Every Wednesday night, he'd prearrange a time with me when he would call from a phone booth! And then, after I answered, he never had much to say so after I finished my chattering, the conversation was basically over.
When we got married and I INSISTED on a phone, he rarely used it and wouldn't even answer it (those were the days before answering machines, even!).
When we got our first computer (I argued that we owed our brilliant children opportunities and access to the world to help them achieve...), he drug his feet and eventually caved in, although he didn't see the need.
When his employer provided him a cell phone (and actually expected him to USE it!), he seldom did and when he did, it was at his convenience. He didn't leave it on, only using it for his outgoing calls. He probably made 5 calls with it that year...all totaling 30 seconds of conversation.
When I got lost one day in Indianapolis as I was trying to meet him for lunch and had no way to even call him to get his help, I decided I was getting myself a cell phone. Almost all of my friends had had them for a few years and I was having one too. Kim grumbled about the idea, but I got a cell phone.
Kim always says he doesn't understand why people think they have to be connected every single second of their lives, and he's not getting sucked into that nonsense.
So...I never thought I'd see THIS!
Yes, that is my husband using his Blackberry while he is driving down the interstate!!!
Isn't that illegal? Or, at least, I know the issue has been discussed. I don't keep up on these things like I should.
Get your eyes back on the ROAD, Kimmie! You never have been very good at multi-tasking...and now is not the time to practice!
And, not only is he listening to his voice mail and reading his emails...
...he is actually emailing back!
If someone had told me 29 years ago that my beloved husband would be using a handheld computer/telephone while driving down a highway in a foreign-made car, I'd have thought they were nuts! Not MY KIMMIE!
It's a sight I thought I'd never see!!!
May 31, 2009
ANCIENT DANCE
A cloud of bees swirling in the sky.
Excitedly, noisily buzzing as they hover and circle and whirl through the air.
The orchard pulsating with thousands of tiny flying bodies, acting on instinct as they have for thousands of years.
Dancing an ancient dance that will insure the survival of the species.
Honeybees are swarming, leaving their home hive to start a new colony elsewhere.
Somewhere in the midst of that mass of honeybees, a single queen bee is calling the shots.
She has sent her own scout bees out ahead to find a suitable place to congregate and organize, and this apple tree is that place.
The queen bee lights and, drawn by her powerful pheromone scent, the hordes follow her lead.
Incredible to watch, they make a beeline (hmmm!) toward their leader and surround her in a cluster of bees hanging from a branch. I wonder how those bees closest to the branch manage to hang on. A swarm of bees is heavy, sometimes weighing a few pounds...a lot of weight for those tiny legs to hold!
In a matter of a couple minutes, the swirling horde becomes a cluster of bees with their queen in the center. They won't stay here long. Scout bees are out searching for a hole in a tree or another safe crevice to use for a permanent home. (This is where we come in, catch them, and provide them with the perfect hive box for their home!...if we can get them before they fly off. This particular swarm was too high up in the tree for me to try to get it by myself, and when Kim got home three hours later they had already left.)
It's an amazing phenomenon of the perfect complexity of nature, another marvel of God's creative power!
How could anyone possibly believe otherwise?!
