Moran Family Fun

Birthdays are markers in our lives. Moving from one decade to another is a milestone that is not marked by an accomplishment or an important decision, but simply your age. That's something you can't control as time keeps moving forward whether we're ready for it or not. I can honestly say that I'm not bothered by turning forty and that I still look forward to my birthdays. But there's no denying that those milestone birthdays (you know the ones, they end in zero) are a big deal. A time that, for me, leads to some looking back to see if I've accomplished anything worthwhile in the previous decade of my life or in any of the decades of my life.  So I found photos of myself at all those other ages that end in zero. Maybe if I take it a decade at a time it will be easier to see what I've learned? Seriously, whose dog is this? Italy, 1981 Okay, this first one is already breaking the rules as it's not from a milestone birthday. I have two pictures...

Jared came home just over two weeks ago and it was both the best day and the worst day I've had in a very long time. You see, the military doesn't give you lots of notice before transporting people home after deployment and the Air Force somehow chose the busiest day in a super busy week to send the love of my life home to us. There were appointments and commitments overlapping each other the entire day. But I was determined to make it all work because this was going to be the best day! My schedule for the day of Jared's return. Non-stop competing committments all day long. Things were looking great until we got about four miles down the road from our house. I was waiting for a green light so I could turn into the main gate of the base. The light changed, I put my car into first gear, I heard a POP,  and the car wouldn't go anywhere. It's like the gear shift was a giant joystick and was just moving in circles but would not engage in any gear. Our car woul...

Since I've been lucky enough to move every few years for as long as I've been alive, I've made a lot of friends in my life. All that moving means that I've also said goodbye to a lot of friends over the years. It's not easy to sustain a friendship when you live in different states or on different continents, you know?    Larisa Kennedy is one friend who I've managed to keep in touch with and our friendship has actually become deeper and stronger in the fifteen years since we actually lived near each other.  I'm so grateful for her friendship - it's a huge blessing in my life.  As the saying goes, it takes a long time to grow an old friend. We're going on eighteen years as friends now and I can't imagine my life without Larisa. One thing I most appreciate about her is how comfortable and at home I feel when I'm around her. No matter how long it's been since we've seen each other, we can instantly pick up as if nothing has changed ...