Tag Archives: vacation

A true tomato

I spent the entire week in Puerto Rico poo-pooing their very sad looking tomatoes.  They were barely-pinkish, transparent, rubbery-looking things that resembled something that some one may have tried to grow at some point or the other, but which had been aborted too soon and now were in a state of perpetual laboratory-like strangeness.

dsc06954 this may have been one of the better ones at the resort, truly…

So, seriously: we eat at these great restaurants.  Everything is beautiful, but every time – terrible, terrible tomatoes.  What on earth?

So, a long day on Palomino Island was my final day.  I dragged the beach lounger knee-deep into the ocean and let the waves splash over me all day while a hot breeze cooled my skin.  I got burned.  A deep burn, but it was OK because I had been careful not to burn before, so the base tan protected me (I hope Ali, who has agreed to help me un-do previous sun damage on my skin, is not reading this – because we just talked about it the night before I went!). 

Tredessa looked at me and said, “Mom, you are burned.  You are as red as a tomato.”

And then, the reason I am so proud of her, the reason I admire her intelligence so, she made the distinction, “But not like a Puerto Rican tomato.  Like one of your tomatoes.”  And I beamed.  Tomato red.

Now this is a tomato.

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From my garden.  A small tomato and some basil.  If it is slightly blurry, forgive the photographer (me).  I think it is because I may have been shaking a little bit in anticipation of sprinkling some salt on these slices and eating them.  Because, omygoodness, they are sweet and tangy, and the juice, which tries unsuccessfully to escape my tongue and run down my face, is madly divine, the fountain of life, more potent than wine.

I have written about tomatoes before – oh, yes, I have!

I would like to dedicate this blog to Bryan.  Read here and here and here – for old times’ sake, Bry.  And oh, what the heck?  Here is my roasted tomato recipe for Cody, but Bryan, you can enjoy it again, too – right before you re-read this blog about YOU, where I seriously question whether God wants us to be friends if you hate tomatoes!   ;)

Not in Minnesota anymore…

Tredessa took a vacation. 

We were all surprised and happy because, to put it mildly-she is a bit of an over-worker-super-achiever at times.  But she is choosing to let God do a new thing in her life and it is good.

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IKEA virgin no more.

So- a week in Minnesota with good, lifelong friends (The Bierers – people we adore!!)  included lounging by the pool and shopping (she has heretofore been a somewhat militant non-shopper) at The Mall of America.  She is no longer an IKEA virgin!  Quite the vacation for Tre-Tre!

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Tredessa comes back in spite of a tornado.

7 days later it was time to come home.  Her plane was due to land at DIA at the exact same time a tornado was barreling through.  They put them in a holding pattern for so long their fuel got low.  They ended up landing at Colorado Springs to re-fuel and wait in line to be able to get back to DIA.

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She finally got back – just in the nick-of-time for a family dinner to celebrate her life (as she will be out of town again on her actual birthday this weekend).

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We got together.  There were hugs and kisses and flowers and presents.  There was laughter and a few tears of love.  There were 5 energetic grandkids (who played dress-up all night) and grilled chicken.  We ate corn on the cob and strawberry cheesecake.  Edward was invited to be adored.  A hot competitve Twilight game was played way into the night.  It was the fam and a few friends.

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Stef and Wrex, who had been out of town, rushed back to “crash the party” for Tredessa.  They wore orange so well.  That is one of the reasons we love them so.  We did a mini-birthday-celebration for Wrex, too.

Tredessa in Transition

Besides her birthday, Tredessa is in transition in her life right now.  There are lots of things changing and things she just doesn’t know some details of her future right now.  But I hope she knows, at the very least, how much we all cherish her (especially becuase of that awesome poem I wrote for her)!

Welcome home, TreTre.  Love ya!…mom