Maria and her 4 boys

And this one from just a few months earlier in June 2002 -- infant baptism at St. Andrews Presbyterian for Noah and Brooks, with big brothers Mike and Josh helping me out . . .

As I said, 4 years hasn't been kind to me either! Great picture of my older boys, though, don't you think?
Josh is on your left, then me holding Noah, then Mike holding Brooksie.

Steven and his 4 boys

I was looking for current pictures of Cody, and found this snapshot from Brooks' 1-year birthday 4 years ago. It is a picture of the Steven I think of when I think of Steven . . . 4 years hasn't been kind to me, either! From your left to your right . . .
Tyler, age 12

Noah, age 33 months

Cody, age 10

Steven, holding Brooks, exactly 1

The Yankees

I'll let you turn on the TV or read the sports page if you don't immediately get this. It is a good day to be a Yankees fan!

Tyler

Tyler is my stepson, and he is 16 now. I met him in 1996, and he has been a big part of my life since 1997. Wow!

There is a lot to Tyler, but most of it is not really mine to share. I'm not sure the things about Mike and Josh are mine to share anymore, either . . . but sons tend to be more tolerant of their mothers than are stepsons of their stepmothers . . .

Anyway, Tyler is quite a ballplayer. He was on the JV team at his highschool last year, and competed with a team in the Junior Olympics this summer in Arizona, walking away with the silver. Here are some pictures from there:

This is Steven

Okay, this is much more what my husband really looks like now -- the way I see him most often. He's coaching here -- and while he is clean-shaven and has gotten a haircut since this picture, this picture from less than a month ago captures his spirit well. 

Grandma Goldie and Grandpa Clarence

Not so good of the babies (Mike and Josh 20 years ago) but one of the best I can find right now of Grandma and Grandpa. I miss them too!

Another insert in my flow of current passions . . . .

On to my stepsons! 

Baby Josh

You were a very cute, happy baby, Joshua! 

You didn't!

"You posted that publicly on the internet?! Mom!"

I saw it, and thought "No, I can't do that! He'll never speak to me again!"

But then I saw it again, and thought "How can I not use that? And, if I put no name with it, how will anyone ever figure out who it is?"

But then I thought "His friends will figure it out and give him a hard time. I can't do that!"

And finally I thought "None of his friends will ever find and read this blog unless someone sends them to it, and I'm not going to do that, and he's certainly not going to do that . . . so let's post it! It is perfect!" 

Grandma Dorothy

Okay, I was going through people in the "right order" to list them here . . . and so I was looking at baby pictures and childhood pictures for Josh, to add to what I just posted. But I ran into this snapshot of my family prior to Josh -- me, Steve, baby Michael, Dad, Mom, Grandpa John, and GRANDMA DOROTHY at the center. I miss her!!! She is a big part of who I was and who I am. I will right that essay later, I guess. But, for today, here is this picture of her, right in the middle of my posts on my boys . . . . 

Josh

This is my 20-y-o Joshua tickling one of his little brothers . . .

Josh is also an amazing gift of grace to me. He was always -- and still is -- the one who could get along with anyone. He is a gifted programmer and engineer and mathematician, and loves Jesus, too. And, in his words, that is what life is really about -- loving God and knowing Him.

I miss my little boy Josh, though. The adult Josh is very disconnected from Mom -- even when he is home. But at least he does want to hang out! And no mother expects her adult sons to stay as connected as they were when they were little . . . but every mother and father do grieve losing that little boy who no longer shows up!

God is at work in Josh, and so I wait with eager anticipation to see where he goes from here. And I am hoping that part of where he goes is toward a new kind of connection with me, his mother. But that isn't the most important thing a mother wants, now, is it?

:-)

Mike as a baby

Mike was a very loved baby! Here he is with me, my dad, and my mom -- 20 years ago. 20 years has done work on us all, hasn't it?! 

Mike

My 21-y-o son, Mike, is the next "passion" on my list. When I turned 40, he called me and told me "Even if you hadn't done anything else in your life by now, you raised me, and that's pretty good!" And he is right!!!

He is an amazing person. He is intelligent and disciplined, and is becoming wise and authentically loving. He makes good choices, and he is careful in them -- whether they are choices about what to believe or how to live. God is teaching me through Mike, more now than ever.

And Mike knows that part of becoming wise is to learn to recognize how things really work, and that that takes painful experience and failure and loneliness as much as it takes study and analysis and success. And God is walking with him through that, even if he doesn't always feel it.

I am very proud of Mike, and there are many ways that I hope I "grow up" to be just like him!

Steven

As I thought about my main blog (The Real Journey) I decided that I wanted it to be a narrative flow of the thoughts, experiences, and analysis that make up my life. I do want to give the context for all of those thoughts, experiences, and analysis, though -- and although I will not publish to the web an intimate account of my life to this point, I do want to publish some information about all the things that I am passionate about.

So I will put photos, links, and other information here about the people and places and things that inspire enthusiasm or passion in me at some point over my life. As I considered what my first post should be on "my passions", I concluded that the thing I am most passionate about is Jesus -- but that I will cover that passion quite thoroughly in my main blog. Beyond that, I am passionate about my family and friends, and then music, and then books, and then places. As I looked through the pictures I have of family and friends, I do not have a current picture of my husband that I like. I will work on fixing that! But still, how can I be a married Christian and not start with my husband in any list of passions? So, here he is.

And pictures and information about other passions and enthusiasms will follow as I have time!