It's a Part of the Family

So last night, Beau and I were getting settled into bed and a commercial comes on for Chevy. I've seen the commercial before and got a little emotional but this time I really watched it. It's the Chevy Runs Deep commercial (You can see if here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvnohA-sdNo). Now, I know what you're thinking..."it's just a car commercial." To some it may appear as just a car or truck commercial, but to me it's much more. You see, my dad had a 1964 Chevy pickup that his dad, my grandpa, bought new. My Paw Paw handed it down to my dad, and my dad to Travis and hopefully it will continue to be handed down. This truck has been much more than a truck to us. Knowing that three generations of Meier men have driven it makes it even more special. There's a lot of blood, sweat and tears under that hood, too. It's seen many of hot rod nights at Bun n' Barrel, family functions, date nights (for Travis and Jackie) and even took me to my first day of high school. When I think of that truck it reminds me of what brought my grandpa, dad and brother together. It was something they all shared besides their name. It's not just a truck. As I sat there bawling in bed, I remembered some special moments spent in that truck - as a child, with the whole family loaded up in it; hauling butt at 8:24 AM into the Taft parking lot, as not to be late for first period; racing down Westover Hills Blvd blaring "Ain't Going Down 'Til the Sun Comes Up;" cruisin' down the beach in Port Aransas on Spring Break; making many trips to Rocky J's; putting along in the July 4th neighborhood parade; and finally, peeling out and honking that signature horn after laying my dad to rest. Chevy Runs Deep!

Sweet, sweet boy

Brooks is doing some really cute stuff these days. I can't believe how much he picks up on. These are some of my favorite things that I want to cherish FOREVER!

He's really taken a liking to singing. Some of his favorites are, "Sing a Song (from Sesame Street), "If You're Happy and You Know It," "This Little Light of Mine" (from Veggie Tales) and "Down in My Heart" (from Veggie Tales). Not only does he sing along with these songs but he REALLY gets into it! It just warms my heart to hear him sing in his little, almost two-year-old voice!

Another thing he does that makes my heart flutter is when he says "I love lou" aka I love you. He will tell me that before I leave or when I put him to bed. "I love lou" is quickly followed with "bye."

Right now, Brooks has an obsession with other kids around his age. He absolutely loves his cousins, JD and Ryan and neighbor, Oscar. Peeling him away from any of these three is close to impossible. There is much screaming and kicking and tons of tears when it's time to go. It just breaks my heart that he's already developed such strong relationships.

Brooks has been playing with toys that Beau had as a child. There are GI Joe and Dick Tracy men (that he calls man), rusty tractors, remote control trucks and toy guns (bang bangs). It's fun to watch Beau and Brooks play with these toys together.

Nom Nom Nom!

All I want to do is eat. Now, I'm pretty choosy about what I eat because I'm definitely having food aversions but I can't seem to get full. Everything I want, crave, desire is carbohydrate based, of course. I dream of warm, fresh out of the oven dinner rolls with melted butter; big bowls of hot, salty and buttery movie-theatre popcorn; fresh corn tortillas stuffed with greasy, melted cheese and smothered with enchilada gravy and even more cheese. And cake...don't forget cake. My mouth waters for a hunk of strawberry flavored cake, slathered with rich cream cheese icing. This pregnancy has definitely been interesting. I didn't have cravings like this while pregnant with Brooks. Food was almost the furthest thing from my mind and now it's a top priority!

No Fences

After a long day of shopping, errand running and visiting with Bud, Katie and the boys, we came home to this! This isn't exactly what I wanted to see at 9:00 at night after an hour drive home and exhaustion. I just wanted my bed. As soon as I parked Beau's truck, I ran through the house to check on Chulito (our chihuahua) to make sure he was okay and still in the yard. Beau made a bee line to the neighbor's house to figure out what happened.

Apparently, there was an argument between a boyfriend and girlfriend a few houses down from ours and the man took off from the house in a hurry. As he sped around the corner, he fishtailed and then gained traction but pointing directly at ours and our neighbor's fences. After he hit the fences and the huge boulder on the inside of our fence, he took off. Since the neighbors a few houses down knew him, they were able to give the police his information to locate him.

What scares me so much about all of this is that if we had been home, there's a good chance we would've been in the backyard. Beau and Brooks often spend time sitting on that boulder because it's shaded in the evenings. Also, that boulder is a recent addition to our yard and if it had not been there, there's no telling what would've occurred. I'm grateful the damage isn't severe, although it's another thing to add to the list of things to do!

The Boy's Club

I am so excited about Sunday. Our church has come up with a little program they call The Boy's Club. This program is to get young families (who all happen to have boys) together for fellowship and a little lunch. Initially, I thought Beau was off. I must have looked at the calendar wrong because he was indeed scheduled to work. Then yesterday, he texted me and said he was off on Sunday. Someone needed to trade days with him. I think that was a God moment, for sure. I'm a little nervous about Little B's behavior during the service because he can't sit still for seconds, but looking forward to meeting new friends!

Dear Dad

Dear Dad,

Today marks two years since you left us on Earth. Your spirit still lives on in us, though. I think about you every day. Every. Single. One. Some of the things I think about and remember are how you taught me to "hit the hell out of a softball," make my bed the Air Force way, catch a redfish, shoot a shotgun, drive a standard, have an appreciation for nature and have a sense of humor.

When I think about all of our times together, I laugh as much as I cry. To say that I miss you is an understatement. We had thirty years together, yet that doesn't seem like enough. I think you'd be really proud of all of us.

Travis' family is beautiful and tall, as you know. He has his own custom fishing rod business that he has proudly named Meier Custom Rods. He still drives the red truck knowing you're giving him the thumbs up when he peels out. Jackie, Shellby and Wesley spend lots of time outdoors with Travis and all his hobbies. Shellby and Wes are quite the students, too. They've done really well in school and on their report cards. Shellby will be in sports this year and Wes has taken up catching on his Little League team.

Mom is good too. She has switched jobs and is back in a school that's closer to home. She has no pets. I bet you'd be shocked to know that. She has a man in her life. He is someone who is really special to all of us and we're sure you (and Vicky) had a hand in them connecting. She still enjoys Rockport although it's not the same without you. She is still living on the hill and the LFR Ranch.

My family is growing. We had a boy kid, not long after your passing, that we named Brooks. I call him Malcolm all the time because he looks and acts just like you. He even has that Meier square head and is stubborn like a mule. We have another baby on the way, too! Maybe this one will be Beau's little girl. Beau's a firefighter with the city and a wonderful father. He reminds me of the kind of dad you were.

Granny's doing well. She's getting around with the help of a wheelchair. She's still positive as ever and strong as an ox. She's quite a lady at 93 years old.

I talk to you a lot, Dad. I know you're listening and watching us with your Sea World pass smile. Every time I see something stupid, I think of you. That's exactly what you used to tell me. Most people would be offended but I know you meant that with the utmost love because we share an appreciation for stupid stuff like Naked Gun movies, tic tac toe, bad spelling and dirty jokes. I send my love to you in Heaven, Dad, and wish I could hold your hard-worked hands and kiss your cheek one more time.

With all my love,

Little Miss Muffet

Baby pictures

Yesterday, 8/2, we went for our second sonogram to check out what's going on in my ever-growing uterus. Baby Blair is doing great. S/he is 23 mm which is almost an inch. His/her heartbeat was at 175 bpm. Brooks' heartbeat was 171 bpm around this age, so maybe it's another boy! Speaking of boy, once again we aren't going to find out the gender. I know that drives a lot of people crazy, but it's what we want. I am the most impatient person, but this element of surprise helps me in the patience department.
I'm very excited about what's to come, but nervous as well. My concerns are about squeezing another person into our already bulging house and being able to handle two kids when Beau returns to work. One of them, I can do something about. I haven't been all that determined to sell our house and find another because we haven't agreed on where we want to live. Beau really wants to move on some land, but he's not crazy about me making the 30+ mile trek in to work everyday. I told him that I would make the sacrifice and quit working. HA! I just don't see that happening any time soon.
I will continue to pray about it and see what direction God sends us.