DOESN'T EVERYONE LOVE GRANDCHILDREN?

Summer is well under way. Indeed, for a lot of kids it's almost over! My grandchildren have been super busy this summer. The oldest, Cameron and Audrey, have worked most of the summer.

Cameron has been working at the Bar Lazy J Guest Ranch in Colorado as head youth counselor, with music and entertainment duties at night. You can tell by the photos that the kids love him. 

He recently wrote the following:

"All is well here on the ranch. Riding horses and getting out in the mountains quite a bit. It's absolutely gorgeous, but it's also one of the most exhausting jobs I've ever worked! I'm missing Texas and ready to get home. Hope you are well. I will be seeing you in September!"

Audrey's mom Carajean wrote me back in April that Audrey is thinking of staying a  year in Chapel Hill to attend NCSU and get another master's degree in environmental planning (I believe that is what she calls it).  She has been working on her Master's in Environmental Management at Duke University (see Is It In The Genes?) This summer she has enjoyed working for the City of Austin Urban Forestry Department days, and taking in the many events going on around the city in the evenings. In one of her visits with me, she showed me a paper she wrote for one of her courses at Duke this past year. It is "An analysis of the relationship between land surface temperatures and land use/cover over time in Travis County, Texas".  This is complete with tables and graphs that make it discernible to even this aging brain! The Forestry Department asked her to consider publishing it, but Audrey said she doesn't feel it is ready for publication. She returns to Duke to finish work on her first Master's Degree after an upcoming camping trip to Devil's River with her mom and two of their good friends from Amarillo. She's such an excellent photographer, I'm looking forward to some great pictures!

She's made many new friends, as well as touching base with old friends from Amarillo. I got to meet a couple of the new ones at our recent gathering at the lake.

(Audrey with new friends Emily and Ryan)

Youngest grandchildren, Travis and Kelly, have also had some great fun this summer. Baseball season seemed to go on and on (to me, that is). Unfortunately, Travis had to miss some of it due to a torn achilles heel tendon. It healed nicely and he got to go to a church camp in Colorado. He also got to play in a PGA Junior Golf Tournament last month. He is a good young golfer that we expect to go places in the future!

The whole family returned yesterday from the Gulf Coast -- their second trip there this summer. I'm sorry they didn't bring home a bunch of fish, but dad Matthew sent some cute photos. They spent one day on a deep sea fishing boat.

Miss Kelly has already started her cheerleading classes getting ready for football season! I cannot believe they start so young these days! By the time she gets to middle school or high school, she'll be a pro - ready for the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders!
Tanner was going to a tennis clinic at UT when the family was here for the recent gathering at Lake Austin. He did manage to get in some water fun though. He's been a regular competitor in tournaments in Texas, going to one each month. In the spring, his mom wrote the following (she knows how this grandmommy likes to beam at her grandchildren's accomplishments):

"Thought you might be interested to know that Tanner came in 2nd in State at last weekend's TAPPS (Texas Academy of Parochial and Private Schools) Tennis Tournament in Waco.  He won the semi-finals to last year's state champ, a senior, twice his weight.  However, he lost the finals to another freshman, same size.  They will probably be playing yearly throughout high school."   

Tanner keeps playing and getting better. He turns sixteen next week, and will then be just another one of my grandkids to worry about! He's getting his driver's license!  

Ashlyn leaves for her first year of college at Oklahoma State University in a couple of weeks. She will arrive in time for sorority bid day. Whichever one she joins will be lucky to have her. Besides being smart and talented, she's our social butterfly!

Granddaughter Hannah will be visiting this month with her dad, Craig. I know she will be excited as school draws near. She will be a freshman at Booker T. Washington Performing Arts High School. I don't have a photo of her from this summer, but will take some when they visit. In the meantime, Craig loves playing "step-granddad" to little Paisley.

Some of you know that last December the number of my grandchildren grew by two. I am now "surrogate grandmother" to Bruce and Annie, who live with Carajean and Branch in Amarillo. I will write about them in a future blog, as we are just getting to know each other. I met them for the first time this summer since they were 3 and 4 years of age.

Until next time, hug your own children and grandchildren. They are our future!

Peace and love,

Marilyn

P.S.
I read where Bill Murray will be the voice for the bear in the new Disney version of The Jungle Book due out next year! I think it is such a happy reminder to all of us that "The Bare Necessities" are all that's really needed to be happy! Here's the 1967 version with Phil Harris singing the song: