Although last in my series of "My Oola Journey", it is certainly not least. For to me, my family is my treasure in this life. They come second, only to God.
I was young when I had my first child; 24 years old. I had been married a couple of years. I longed for a big family, with children that were not only close together in years but in the heart; to have a bond that could never be broken. I had some difficulty conceiving my first child, taking almost a year. But she was so worth the wait. A beautiful black-haired baby -- and lots of hair at that. She also carried the gene of her father's middle-eastern roots. Sheer perfection in my eyes. She was born in the spring and was incredibly strong-willed, even from the get-go. She grew up into an amazing young woman. Throughout her life, she has embraced her heritage. She looks exactly like she did as a baby, except she has grown into a strong confident person, with a family of her own; three children with a fourth on the way, ages five and under. Like me, she wanted a large family and to do it while she was young enough to enjoy them and have the energy to keep up with them. She too wanted them close together; probably because she and her siblings are so close in spirit. While growing up, she had a strong affinity toward the medical profession. She became a nurse practitioner. She works incredibly hard as both a nurse, a wife and a mommy. She shares my patience with her children and my somewhat neurotic personality. She also got the gene that is willing to work hard to achieve her dreams. Besides her father's olive skin, dark hair and large almond-shaped eyes, she shares his sense of adventure and is headstrong.
Next is our baby girl. She too has the olive skin, large black eyes and dark hair. She, on the other hand, looks exactly like me. It is a little weird because it is almost like looking into a mirror 26 years ago. She, however, got these wonderful masses of thick curls; hair I would die for! When she was little, she used to say she had angels. Mind you, we were never a strong faith-based house when she was little, nor did we speak of angels. Yet, those were her imaginary friends. I never doubted for a minute that she did indeed have angels. She used to bounce when she walked and sucked her thumb until she was four. She paid for it dearly when she got headgear from the orthodontist in middle school. Fortunately, she could wear it at night. As she grew, she could sight read music on the piano and taught herself how to play. She also had a fabulous voice. She got the "brains" in the family. I swear she never cracked a book until she was a senior in high school taking pre-calculus; and she got all A's and B's. She got her musicality from my side, and of course, her looks; though they look better on her. She too is a wonderful mommy and dotes on her baby boy. I see her dad in her with her ability to be calm in situations that would send the rest of us over the edge. She got her Master's degree in music performance. She is a stay-at-home mommy and loves her "job".
Our next child was our first boy! He reigned the household until the age of five when we had his baby brother. He is a creative genius and has a wonderful sense of humor. He has brown hair and hazel eyes that fluctuate between green and blue, depending on what he's wearing. He has a medium fair complexion but tans deeply in the summer. As a child, he was incredibly sweet; not your 'typical' boy. As he grew, he definitely learned how to get into trouble as most teen-age boys do; but he has grown into a wonderful young man with a gift for writing. He and his oldest sister are very similar in personality. Probably because they were close as he was growing up. He doesn't look like either his father or myself. However, he is almost the spitting image of his great grandfather on his dad's side. It is peculiar to see a picture of him next to great grandpa's. He was an average to poor student but also a musical genius. He taught himself guitar and drums and played the trombone. He was a music major until he dropped out of college. He is currently writing a book, which of course, has my blessing!
Our youngest is our second boy. He was doted on by his sisters from day one. When I brought him home from the hospital, those girls sat by his bassinet for 11 hours straight. They were instantly in love with this precious wonder. Whereas the girls fought with our first son, they nearly raised the second one. I notice that he carries many of our baby girl's personality traits -- probably because they were quite close when they were growing up. He too loves music. He is a trumpet player and has not only been in marching band throughout high school and into college, he marched with the U.S. Army All-American Band and the Casper Wyoming Troopers in Drum Corps. International. He began college as a music major but is settling into public administration. He loves to argue and I think he will make a fine lawyer, which is his current aspiration. He too got the musicality and brains from my side of the family, whereas he got the leadership from his dad's side; his grandfather in Kuwait having been a Congressman for close to two decades. He is the spitting image of his father, although he does have my skin tone and also tans very deeply. He too is incredibly handsome.
I have four grandchildren with a fifth on the way. I usually ask my daughters to send pics -- daily! If I am having a bad day, I love to see their little smiles. My heart instantly melts and I just want to hold them in my arms! I am not an "old" grandma -- in fact, I still crawl around on the floor with them and chase them when they are crawling. We sing songs, play hand games and cuddle while watching TV. They are out-of-state so I don't get my real "grandma fix" until I go for a visit once a year. How I love to see their little voices and hear their shouts of "grandma", the second they spot me at the airport. There is never a time that I don't relish every moment I am with them.
So why did I run through my family tree for you? Was it so you could see my children's genealogy? Not at all -- it's because these are my treasures-- God's gifts to me. I may not have had a perfect life but I am grateful for the blessings that sprung from that life! You see with the OolaLife, you are grateful for everything -- the good AND the bad. We are all on a journey and let's face it, life is not perfect. We can choose to see the bad and feel badly, or we can spin that bad feeling and find something good. For me, I had a bad marriage. I could say, "Wow, what a waste of 31+ years of my life!" And I'm not going to lie -- I did for awhile. However, I now choose to look at it in a positive manner. If it weren't for that marriage, I would not have had these four children. Nor would I have my grandchildren, whom I adore. Each thing in your life builds on another. You can have a strong foundation (in this case, it's my hub, faith) or a weak one. For me, family is important. It is not my hub but it is my valve. It pumps me up. It is why I work so hard, why I try to live a moral life, and why I try to set an example as a Christian. I want my children to be the best they can be; however, if they do not have the example to follow, they will never find how to become that person. I want my children to learn that it's okay to have money -- it's also okay to not have money. Success and happiness is not measured by the size of your wallet, although it is what the world would have you believe. It is by the size of your heart. I want them to discover and ask themselves, "How am I helping the world?" What am I doing to glorify God?" "How am I fulfilling God's plan and purpose for my life?" We need to live the life we love -- more importantly, we need to love the life we live! Go out and make your life the best it can be by living the OolaLife!
Our next child was our first boy! He reigned the household until the age of five when we had his baby brother. He is a creative genius and has a wonderful sense of humor. He has brown hair and hazel eyes that fluctuate between green and blue, depending on what he's wearing. He has a medium fair complexion but tans deeply in the summer. As a child, he was incredibly sweet; not your 'typical' boy. As he grew, he definitely learned how to get into trouble as most teen-age boys do; but he has grown into a wonderful young man with a gift for writing. He and his oldest sister are very similar in personality. Probably because they were close as he was growing up. He doesn't look like either his father or myself. However, he is almost the spitting image of his great grandfather on his dad's side. It is peculiar to see a picture of him next to great grandpa's. He was an average to poor student but also a musical genius. He taught himself guitar and drums and played the trombone. He was a music major until he dropped out of college. He is currently writing a book, which of course, has my blessing!
Our youngest is our second boy. He was doted on by his sisters from day one. When I brought him home from the hospital, those girls sat by his bassinet for 11 hours straight. They were instantly in love with this precious wonder. Whereas the girls fought with our first son, they nearly raised the second one. I notice that he carries many of our baby girl's personality traits -- probably because they were quite close when they were growing up. He too loves music. He is a trumpet player and has not only been in marching band throughout high school and into college, he marched with the U.S. Army All-American Band and the Casper Wyoming Troopers in Drum Corps. International. He began college as a music major but is settling into public administration. He loves to argue and I think he will make a fine lawyer, which is his current aspiration. He too got the musicality and brains from my side of the family, whereas he got the leadership from his dad's side; his grandfather in Kuwait having been a Congressman for close to two decades. He is the spitting image of his father, although he does have my skin tone and also tans very deeply. He too is incredibly handsome.
I have four grandchildren with a fifth on the way. I usually ask my daughters to send pics -- daily! If I am having a bad day, I love to see their little smiles. My heart instantly melts and I just want to hold them in my arms! I am not an "old" grandma -- in fact, I still crawl around on the floor with them and chase them when they are crawling. We sing songs, play hand games and cuddle while watching TV. They are out-of-state so I don't get my real "grandma fix" until I go for a visit once a year. How I love to see their little voices and hear their shouts of "grandma", the second they spot me at the airport. There is never a time that I don't relish every moment I am with them.
So why did I run through my family tree for you? Was it so you could see my children's genealogy? Not at all -- it's because these are my treasures-- God's gifts to me. I may not have had a perfect life but I am grateful for the blessings that sprung from that life! You see with the OolaLife, you are grateful for everything -- the good AND the bad. We are all on a journey and let's face it, life is not perfect. We can choose to see the bad and feel badly, or we can spin that bad feeling and find something good. For me, I had a bad marriage. I could say, "Wow, what a waste of 31+ years of my life!" And I'm not going to lie -- I did for awhile. However, I now choose to look at it in a positive manner. If it weren't for that marriage, I would not have had these four children. Nor would I have my grandchildren, whom I adore. Each thing in your life builds on another. You can have a strong foundation (in this case, it's my hub, faith) or a weak one. For me, family is important. It is not my hub but it is my valve. It pumps me up. It is why I work so hard, why I try to live a moral life, and why I try to set an example as a Christian. I want my children to be the best they can be; however, if they do not have the example to follow, they will never find how to become that person. I want my children to learn that it's okay to have money -- it's also okay to not have money. Success and happiness is not measured by the size of your wallet, although it is what the world would have you believe. It is by the size of your heart. I want them to discover and ask themselves, "How am I helping the world?" What am I doing to glorify God?" "How am I fulfilling God's plan and purpose for my life?" We need to live the life we love -- more importantly, we need to love the life we live! Go out and make your life the best it can be by living the OolaLife!
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