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| Don't you just want to hold his hand and ask him what he is thinking about... Oh, no - just me, then? |
Little do they know, though, I have more to live for than they ever imagined. I like to look at my coffee cup half full, though, because I know that God has blessed me with waaaay more than I deserve. It's time to get started on this wonderful list of thankfulness! I feel like Santa Claus right now, except my list isn't full of naughty and nice chitlins. Well, depends on the way you look at it.
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| Isn't she cute as a button...nope, definitely cuter! |
First and foremost, I am so thankful for my Grandma! Oh my gosh - she is the most precious person to be placed on this planet. It wasn't until after my mom passed that she started calling me and asking me about my life. I remember one particular phone call like it was literally yesterday. I was sitting on the couch in my dorm room; I had literally been looking out of the living room window for over an hour just wondering how I could fix my life. Then my phone rang. Now, just to let you all know, I went through this phase last year where I didn't answer any phone calls from people because I didn't want to hear their pitiful voices when they heard mine, and I really didn't want to hear them say the words "how are you doing"? But when my phone lit up with "Inge Coburn" displayed across the screen, I didn't think twice about hitting the accept button. She started telling me about a show she watched that day, and how it made her laugh for the very first time since the funeral. The stories she continued to tell me were ones that you would possibly place in your diary right before bed, recapping everything you had done that day. Most would've been bored with this kind of conversation, but me? This was the very first time I had forgotten about the loss of my mother, loss of all my sweet dogs, and the upcoming loss of my perfect house. After she told me about her day, she ended the conversation by saying, "Hay-leey, I know youh can du any-ting you wan-ta du. I loveh you-h, dah-ling." Then, she hung up - FYI, I have never in all of my 19 years heard her say "goodbye" at the end of a phone conversation. At that moment, though, she left me feeling like I could be someone. Her love didn't end there, though. This past summer, I had my wisdom teeth removed. As most of you know, this is no big deal. The oral surgeon I went do literally does this procedure at least 20 times per day. I was his very first patient on that incredibly early Monday morning, shaking and smiling in his operating chair. Now, as I said in my blog This Is A Part Of Me That You're Never Gonna Ever Take Away From Me - NO! (http://haleydmoody.blogspot.com/2012/06/this-is-part-of-me-that-youre-never.html), this whole day was quite a blur for me, and the liquid Loritab really didn't help my memory in any way. There is one thing I do remember: waking up hours later to three missed calls and two voicemails from my sweet, German Grandma. I am pretty sure she misunderstood our phone conversation from the previous day and thought I was going in to have massive surgery or something another. Poor thing was worried if I was still alive and couldn't get a hold of anyone to tell her. I do remember trying to call her back, but the inside of my mouth was so swollen that all I could do was drool all over my phone. She giggled and said "I loveh you-h, Hay-leey" and we hung up. Really that's all I needed in this crazy world, but my blessings didn't stop there.
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| We are two peas in a very adorable pod! I mean, LOOK AT US! Doesn't get any more adorable than this. |
Continuing on this thankful train, I have so many families who have taken me under their wings whenever I decide to travel "abroad" and need somewhere to lay my head at night. Now when I say families, I literally mean that when I fill out important forms and such, I put each and every single one of you guys as my "mother", "father", "aunt" or "uncle". It's always humorous when I turn in these documents and there are like 28 different sets of family members written down - the receptionist always says, "Ma'am, we only need your biological parents on this form." I smile and point at each of the names while saying, "oh, yes ma'am - I wrote each and every single one of them down for you! Don't ask how the birthing process went - it's a rather..ugh..interesting and long story." Before I get started, I just want each and every one of y'all to know that this is very very brief. I decided not to start off with the whole "she changed my diapers many times while I was a kid" story line. No, no one needs to know about all of that. This is just a list of people and their stories, dun dun dun, that stick out in my exhausted mind, so trust me when I say, the experiences and memories attached to all of my families are endless. I am going to start off with my dear, sweet, Strong family. Last year, I don't remember spending many weekends in my dorm because I was spending them all at their house and in their beds! Mama Cindee and Papa Bill always had baked potato soup on the stove and fruit punch in the fridge for when I arrived, which my tummy still thanks you both for that. After we finished eating, we would always sit on the couch and talk about life and listen to Papa Bill tell all of his "when I was younger" stories, which are literally my favorite. While traveling around and about our small town, people would walk up and say hello to Mama Cindee, in which she would proceed to say, "this is my daughter, Haley." It was nice to hear those words again. When times in the real world would get overwhelming, I always knew where I belonged, which was with them. My second family, the Williamsons, are nothing short of amazing. After my mother passed away, Mr. Alan would call me while he was on the road, talking to me about his rockin-hott wife (you better get it, Mrs. Paula), and making sure I was eating and studying like I should. Each and every time I busted through the doors at their beautiful home, they all gave me the warmest hugs, then we proceeded to continue with life, such as attending the most hilarious zumba parties, as if we had never parted our ways. Mrs. Paula is basically one of the girls - I can sit and talk with her for hours about boy issues and girl drama, and she simply listens and helps me work through it all. Oh, and mister Andrew - he brightens my life. Last year, I remember recieving one particular text message from him that literally made me fall on the floor...and I was in Ulta. To make a long story short, he basically told me that he and I were gonna get married - he is definitely a little version of Mr. Alan! Of course, I can't forget my crazy Crigger family. This is the house you definitely want to be at during the holidays - there is just nothing else like it. When I walk in the doors, the view I see is nothing less than amazing! And I am not just talking about the beautiful decorations, either; I am talking about their family. They are so loving, and so welcoming towards anyone who enters their door, and they know exactly how to rekindle your lost smile...even if one of their kids had just happened to get out of the hospital, which was often the case. My other lovely family, the Locklier's, hold a special place in my heart, too. Ever since I was a young girl, and they lived close to me on Stanford road, I have been attending tea parties at their house. As the years passed, the tea became less frequent until this year, in which it was much sweeter than I remembered. A few days after I had my wisdom teeth removed, their daughter and our other friend, traveled to Tuscaloosa to kidnap me and bring me back to Andalusia. Let me just tell you, when I arrived, Mrs. Lisa and Mr. Jim went out of their way to make me a special dinner of the most wonderful mashed potatoes and the softest macaroni and cheese just so I didn't kill myself trying to chew. Ever since I was little, and still to this day, when I leave their house, Mr. Jim puts his arm around my neck and tells me how much him and his wife both love me and are so very proud of me. Another special place in my heart is filled with the love from the Jones family, who are the claimers to my other kidnapper from that very same weekend. Ms. Liz always knows how to take care of me, though. When all four of us "Bama bound" ladies moved away from home for the first time, she made us all decorations and house warming goodies to make us feel less like we were on our own and more like we were just taking a little bit of an "educated" vacation. This lovely lady is extra crafty, though, especially considering she has a special room out back dedicated to her sewing, which I will soon be enjoying with her while she teaches me the craft of "learning to hem and fix jeans". She definitely keeps me on my toes by sending me all kinds of messages about how to avoid being kidnapped and such - I do believe she forgets to send those kind of emails to her daughter, though. But every single time I leave her house to travel back to the great land of Tuscaloosa, she always reminds me to text her when I arrive safely. That is a special kind of love. There is one particular family that I can't and won't ever forget - the Zelensky's. Although they are newest to my tree, they still hold a hefty size of my heart. The very first time I met Mrs. Linda, I was scared beyond belief, and the 30 minute drive to their house didn't help one bit. But once I got there, she gave me a massive hug before I could finish introducing myself - It was love at first site, I tell yah. Just a few short weeks after, I remember leaving their house on the fourth of July and seeing my phone light up in my cup holder. The number was unknown, but it didn't take me long to figure the out the sender. This one text message forced me to tears and to pull off of the road: "I feel like I have known you all my life. You are an incredible young woman. I love you sweetie." Those precious words filled my head and overwhelmed my heart. Also after I had my wisdom teeth removed, their family did everything possible to take care of me, especially since I had just discovered that I had two dry sockets. Ever since that day, both Mr. and Mrs. Zelensky have sent me the most encouraging letters that I have officially posted on my wall to read when times get hard. Lucky for me, they always open their doors for me when I get overwhelmed with life and need to escape reality. Plus, they have a KILLER view of the nights sky in their backyard. It reminds me of home. Finally, I can't forget my Pughs, and yes, I mean all of them. Ms. Pugh-Ann has been in my life ever since I can remember, and her spunk has kept these past few years ones worth remembering. In October of this year, she came up to spend time with all of us, and mostly to go watch Finding Nemo in 3D. The song "Want U Back" came on and I remember looking over to find Ms. Pugh dancing better than I had ever seen anyone dance before in all of my nineteen years. When she walks into a room, the whole place lights up, I can promise you that. Mr. Mark and Mrs. Karen, though, are both new additions to my life. I met them for the first time at a football game last year; ever since that day, I have spent atleast two weekends a month with them. Mr. Mark has some of the most interesting stories about the University of Alabama and how different it is from when he was here. He tells me this one story every single time - something about a computer that was the size of a room and how nowadays, we have atleast twenty per room, ahaha! They are the sweetest, though, for always making sure I eat three meals a day...and never leaving me without a tummy ache from laughing so hard.
Like I said, that was a very long-ish, brief version of my wonderful family members. There are so many stories that I had to leave out, though. For example, I thought long and hard about adding a memory from my 9th grade year. I was heading to a football game with my sister Devin Williamson and her wonderful family. Roadtrips with them are always, always, always eventful. Mr. Alan so kindly stopped at a gas station because we all know about my bladder, and as I got out he screamed, "Haley - you are rockin' that college body, giiiirl!" People looked at him like he was our pimp and we were the fantasy cheerleaders ready to take on the street corners. BUT - I decided not to add that story in because, well, there's no reason to bring that back up, right? :) Ahahahahahahahahah - that story really does get me every single time!
In addition to my previous array of family members, I have one more that I desperately need to bring up. This summer, I worked most days at the Action Card office, so the whole "staying in Andalusia and driving back for work" thing wasn't really going to work out. My Aunt Patty and Uncle Jeff were kind enough to open their arms and upstairs bedroom for me that whole summer. Before school was out, I was so incredibly nervous - I had become a rather "independent" person, doing my own thing, purchasing my own goodies, and going places without letting anyone know...listen, I am a wild pony, okay? But I knew everything was going to change once I moved in, and I wasn't sure if they were going to enjoy me being there or not. This past summer was one of the best ones I had had in a while. I felt like their child, just with a completely different last name. We all sat down for dinner every night around six, discussing our lives and our to-do lists, which is something I hadn't done in a very long time. On the days when my sun wasn't as bright as usual, they surrounded me with their love, reminding me that the little things aren't worth stressing over...which also helped me create mine and Tracey's new saying "can't worry about the little things", ahaha. I love every little thing about my Benton family, and I am so thankful that they allowed me to move in with them for two and half months...because honestly I wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else.
This blog has been four months in the making! I also want to say how very thankful I am for all of my friends, old and new - I know we all don't have time like we used to, but I am so thankful for the moments we remember to tell eachother we love one another or even just to say "Oh Lord Jesus - it's a Fahr"...ahahahaa! You know who you are!
In the next few weeks, I will be posting blogs back from Decemeber that I never completed but I have been wanting to share...so get ready for a party! Also, I have some superduperawesometastic news that I can't wait to tell you all! So here's to finding time to blog again so you all will know my secrets! *Clinging of glasses*
Have a wonderful hump day, everyone! Don't forget
"Y'all, are, my shining stars - so don't y'all go away!"
Love Always,
Haley
"And if I can last twenty rounds
There's no reason you should ever have your head down.Five foot seven, five hundred and twenty pounds
Hailing from rock bottom, loserville, nothing town"
The Fighter (Haley's Remix) - Gym Class Heros
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