Posts Tagged ‘security’

Day 216 and Counting… Restoring the Tornado’s Date

Posted: April 6, 2013 in Love and Marriage
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Sunday, March 13, 2011

My wife used to cook at Big Cedar Lodge, a world-class resort near Branson, Missouri.  I often used to sit behind the Worman Steak house, one of their top eateries, waiting for her to finish her shift at night.  Last night, we had reservations there.

Earlier in the day, we spent some time at Branson landing, a favorite hangout of ours.  It’s an outdoor mall right on the shore of Lake Taneycomo, and we’ve always enjoyed the atmosphere.  It just seems like people are usually happy there.

On a day when we were restoring the night of the tornado, and the damaging years that followed, being in a place where people are happy seemed incredibly appropriate.  We spent a few hours on the landing, then headed south toward Big Cedar.

I had not only made a reservation for a specific table, but had let them know who we were and why we were going there on that specific night.  I wasn’t necessarily expecting extra special treatment, since their service is always impeccable, but I figured it couldn’t hurt.

We had an amazing dinner, and did seem to receive some extra attention from the staff.  As we watched the sun set over the lake, we also received two complimentary Champagne flutes with the Big Cedar logo and the year inscribed on them.

We had our picture taken on the balcony outside as another keepsake before heading home.  It was a beautiful night, and just what we needed.

That’s the point of the restoration tour.  It’s not just an idea, but it’s taking specific actions to replace the old, bad memories with new, positive ones.  Instead of seeing March 12 as a traumatic day that altered our lives for the worse, we can remember March 12 as a night of celebration and beauty.

Day 215 and Counting… Remembering the Tornado

Posted: April 5, 2013 in Love and Marriage
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Saturday, March 12, 2011

Five years ago today, the tornado that changed our lives ripped through our house on a Sunday night outside Republic, Missouri.  We were asleep just moments before it hit, and with no sirens to warn us, we would never have known it was coming if it weren’t for God.

He woke me up and, while I didn’t hear any audible voice speaking to me, somehow I knew that a tornado was about to hit us.  I woke my wife and we crawled on the floor into the hallway, calling for our two teenage kids.

We told them to get down and we got on top of them as it sounded like the house exploded.  Suddenly, I could feel wind, rain, and swirling objects hitting my back.  In those moments, which actually were probably only a matter of seconds, I believed that I was going to die.

I had two prevailing thoughts: I hope it doesn’t hurt and I’ll never see my wife again.

Our daughter didn’t know that Taylor had woken up and was with me and she was screaming, “Where’s Taylor?”  My wife was thinking the same thing I was about whether we would die and hoping that, if we did, it would be quick and painless.  Taylor was quiet and had no outward reaction.

Almost immediately, faith began to rise up in me and I began to pray aloud and then to thank God for saving us.  My wife also began to thank Him, saying, “He saved us!” as we realized that the tornado had gone through and we were still there.  The fact that we were also now homeless was secondary to the fact that we were, miraculously, unharmed.

Little did I know then, that this event would affect our lives so deeply.  While it was a great testimony of God’s protection, I also developed PTSD and didn’t do anything to treat or take care of it, even after I was made aware of it.

I don’t know if he even knew today was the anniversary, but a friend of mine wrote to me on Facebook today asking about that house.

Tonight, we have special plans that I’ll write about next time.  Last night, Ceecee and I went to the little theater to see, “Thoroughly Modern Millie.”  It was light and fun, and we had a great time.  I’m really glad we’re finally living the life that we used to only talk about!

Day 213 and Counting… Looking Forward To Spring Break

Posted: April 1, 2013 in Love and Marriage
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Thursday, March 10, 2011

Really glad Spring break is next week!  This school year has been exhausting!

Last year,  Ceecee and I went to a resort in Branson over Spring break with Taylor and one of his friends.  It was fun, but not the way it should have been.  It was almost immediately after we got back home that our marriage fell apart and we split up.

That being the case, Spring break isn’t officially on the docket for restoration, but we certainly plan on enjoying our time off work this year a LOT more than we did last year!  Now our hearts are one, so our thoughts and desires will be on spending a lot of fun and romantic time together.  We will also be getting ready to move into our new loft, so it will be busy and we won’t be taking a trip away anywhere.

Day 204 and Counting… Finding a New Loft!

Posted: March 26, 2013 in Love and Marriage
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Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Sometimes, when things happen, they happen quickly.  Today was one of those days.

For some time now, I’ve been hoping that maybe Ceecee would be willing to look for a different place to live.  Where we are now is a great place in many ways, don’t get me wrong. 

We picked it out together, even though we were splitting up at the time, and it has a really cool floor plan and a great view.  Ceecee has done a great job of decorating and setting it up to be very stylish, and it has her personality all over it.

On the other hand, the walls are paper thin and a lot of the people who live here party at night and sleep during the day, so that doesn’t work well.  Beyond that, there’s just the constant reminder of the painful part of our recent past, and I’d really like to just start fresh in a place that we picked out to share together and has always just been ours.

We’ve looked at a few lofts, and even started to fill out an application on one, but never really felt like any of them were exactly what we wanted.  Today, I was browsing online and found out that one of the more desirable properties that rarely has available units had one come up. 

I made an appointment to see it, and while we were there, Ceecee whispered to me, “I think this is the one!”  I took the application, filled it out on the spot and went straight to the office and turned it in.  It’s going to be ours!

Day 198 and Counting… If I Could Bottle This Up…

Posted: March 19, 2013 in Love and Marriage
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Wednesday, February 23, 2011

We haven’t done one of Old Chicago’s mini-tours on the World Beer Tour since the Halloween mini-tour last year, but tonight we’re going out to start the St. Patrick’s Day mini-tour.  They have a lot of Irish beers that sound good, and they’re having a kickoff party with free corned beef and cabbage tonight, so you can’t beat that.

To make it a full date night, we’re going to the movies first to see Gnomeo and Juliet.  It seems silly and it might be stupid, but it looks funny.  My wife loves kids stuff and she’s really just a kid at heart.  

Since we’ve been back together, that has really been something I’ve grown to love and appreciate about her.  She can be silly and have fun, and she still has that childlike wonder about her.  She’s very much a woman, don’t get me wrong.  I love that about her, as well.  It’s just that the fun and the laughter have returned to our relationship and it’s like we have the best of everything right now.  We have the fun and excitement of dating, along with the love and security of marriage.  

If I could bottle this and sell it, I’d be a very rich man, indeed.

Day 189 and Counting… Too Much Love For One (Valentine’s) Day

Posted: March 8, 2013 in Love and Marriage
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Monday, February 14, 2011

Today is the actual Valentine’s Day, but we already celebrated and made this the most epic, multi-day Valentine’s Day ever.  This is the restoration tour and anything else just wouldn’t have been in keeping with the celebratory nature of our whole relationship right now, anyway.  

The play was wonderful yesterday.  The dinner was pretty amazing as well, if I’m allowed to brag on myself.  Oh yeah, it’s my blog, so I can do whatever I want on here!

We have an urban grocery store called the Bistro Market downtown near our loft and they have a good seafood counter, so I got everything there.  I also picked out a good white wine and served her in courses.  My favorite were the steamed snow crab legs, but all of it was very good and my wife LOVES seafood.  

Today, we had to work (darn Monday) and I had flowers and a box of chocolates delivered to her, but that was just the formality.  The weekend was our day – wait, two days – to revel in the joy we’ve found.

Day 188 and Counting… Valentine’s Day, So Far, So Great!

Posted: March 7, 2013 in Love and Marriage
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Sunday, February 13, 2011

So, last night and this morning went even better than I could have predicted, and we haven’t even gotten to our actual Valentine’s Day celebration yet!  

I told Ceecee after dinner that I had gotten the ebook about relaxation massages and that I wanted to give her one.  I did everything just like it said.  I warmed up towels, warmed up the massage oil, lit candles, and put on a cd of relaxation music.  I told her to just lie down and I would take care of everything.

Later, after she went to sleep, I spread the confetti all over the loft and placed the piece of paper with the “Official Notice” on the floor as though it had been slid under the door from the outside.  I knew she would find it in the morning and she did.  The idea was that she would get up, find the confetti everywhere and feel happy.  Then, she would pick up the notice and get scared that it was something bad, but quickly realize what it REALLY  was.  

That was exactly how it happened, and she loved it, but she playfully gave me a hard time for scaring her.  It really did look like a court paper at first glance.  

Later this afternoon, we are walking over to the theater to see Beauty and the Beast, and then I’m cooking at home tonight.

Day 177 and Counting…TV? None For Us, Thank You

Posted: February 27, 2013 in Love and Marriage
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Wednesday, February 2, 2011

I realize that this is unthinkable to most Americans, but Ceecee and I don’t watch TV.  At all.  We’re just not interested and there’s so much to actually do that it just seems like a total waste of time to sit in front of the TV or let the television schedule dictate our lives.

The only thing we watch is some sports or the weather channel when there’s storm danger or warnings.  Our daughter told us about the show, The Big Bang Theory.  We weren’t interested, but she insisted that it was good and we would like it and offered to bring us the first few seasons on DVD.  We’ve watched a lot of episodes yesterday and today and it is really funny.

We also got out and watched our wedding video this evening.  Cheesy, I know, but I wanted to.  It was crazy how young we looked.  Everyone always thinks the bride is the most beautiful in their weddings, but I have never seen anyone more beautiful than Ceecee at our wedding.  I’ll never forget the way she took my breath away when I saw her at the back of the church that day.

The great thing is, she still does.  There are times when I’m around her and I can hardly breathe.

On another note, we’re supposed to be going to San Antonio tomorrow to see Taylor graduate from basic military training, but the roads are still snow and ice packed and travel isn’t really advised right now.  We’ve already reserved a room and i can’t imagine not being there, so we’re praying about it and tentatively still planning to head out in the morning.

Day 176 and Counting… Loving The “Blizzard of The Century!”

Posted: February 26, 2013 in Love and Marriage
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Tuesday, February 1, 2011

So, I’m getting all kinds of blizzard warnings on my phone and I’m thinking, “I’m being paid to stay in my loft with my gorgeous wife and this is a problem, how?”

Of course, I’m being a bit facetious.  This is actually a very unusual amount of snow and winter weather for the Missouri Ozarks.  In fact, this particular winter storm is being dubbed as the “storm of the century” and such by local meteorologists.

The truth is, it’s probably a major problem for a lot of people.  In our case, we are looking out the windows of our loft and enjoying the whiteness and realizing once again just how blessed we are.  Being teachers, we don’t have to work today (or probably for the next few days by the looks of things).  We are warm and cozy in our loft.  We have plenty of food, and we have all of downtown right around the corner from us if we do need or want anything.

More importantly, I have a restored marriage that’s getting stronger everyday.  My wife is a true woman of courage, honesty, and love.  I can’t stop giving thanks for her or for what God has done in our lives and our marriage.

Now, what to do today….

Day 174 and Counting…Restoring St. Louis

Posted: February 25, 2013 in Love and Marriage
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Sunday, January 30, 2011

The restoration trip to St. Louis has been more than I even hoped for.  Ceecee has been so amazingly sweet and loving and has just said and done everything right to make this an unforgettable and tremendously healing weekend.

When we set out in the car yesterday morning, we had to talk a little bit about we uncovered last Monday, which was OK, but I didn’t want to put a damper on the trip before we even started.  It’s just that we’ve learned through all of this not to let things sit and stew and become a problem later.  We’ve learned that you just say it and talk about it, but you do it in a loving way that puts the marriage first and any personal agendas to the side.

As we approached St. Louis, we had talked about where we would go and what we would do, but there was something that kept bothering me, so right before we got to town, I just asked my wife if she minded if I changed the agenda a little bit.  I told her what I was thinking and feeling, and what I wanted to do and she was more than fine with it.  She said that if it was important to me than we should definitely do it.

That’s how this weekend and how our “new” love has gone.  We communicate, we’re honest and open, and we put each other first.  I’m not sure why we needed to go through so much pain and heartbreak to get here, or even if we needed to, but I’ll never stop being thankful for what we have now.  I’ll also never stop trying to build what we have now into a house that will stand up to the test of time and the storms of life.

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