Cricket Walker

Watching the sun go down on fairy tale dreams,
the warm breeze caressing my face and drying my tears,
bringing blessed acceptance and closure to what is,
and what is not to be . . .

Walking through the neighborhood
Seeing the homes with well kept yards
Dogs barking, children playing and laughing
Curiously detached yet hearing people talking
Staring at the couples holding hands
Witnessing all this without emotion
For you are not part of it, you are alone,
watching the world, from the outside in
Welcoming the numbness for now
You begin to run, blurring away their faces
Focus [...]

It isn’t often that I get involved in the political discussions within the online community that I run. Today though, one of the conversations set off a strong feeling of anger inside of me. It took everything I had not to ask people what in the hell was wrong with them.
They were ranting about homeless [...]

I have been wanting to visit the Bussey’s Flea Market in Schertz, (about a 15 minute drive from here) for quite some time now.
It was a conflicting desire for me. Although I knew I desperately wanted to explore all the treasures there, I also know I am not a fan of large, noisy crowds [...]

Once a very long time ago, a lifetime ago, I wandered into a huge corn field. I am not sure what I was looking for, but I found myself walking deeper and deeper into the field, without conscience thought.
It wasn’t long before I found myself completely lost, disoriented, and afraid in the middle of the [...]

Are we so hung up on knowing exactly what it is on the other side of the bridge that we fail to take a single step? Have we forgotten to simply enjoy the crossing? To marvel at the view from the bridge?
 

Do we need to know what is just beyond the shadows around the next [...]

People often ask me if Haley ever gets sick of the camera.
Yup! Every now and then, she has no interest in it at all. On days like these, I am lucky if I get a shot of her throwing away garbage.
 

Thankfully my favorite funky duck is around to model for me! Just try and [...]

When the kid looks at me like this, refusing her anything is very difficult for me. Okay, it’s almost impossible.
She was asking me to take her and a friend to downtown San Antonio.
So guess where we headed?
Ya think she has me wrapped around her little finger?

We had to make a quick stop on [...]

I was so certain that I didn’t have a destination in mind, but my heart seemed to know exactly where I was headed, back to the lake, back to where life made more sense to me, so many years ago.
Nope, you can never go back. I don’t think I was looking for that.

I just wanted [...]

Every once in a while, I let Haley use my camera. It doesn’t happen often, because she has a nasty habit of turning it towards me!

It was soooooo windy. My hair just wouldn’t stay out of my face.

I was leaning on this map of the park and Haley was
trying to get me to smile. [...]

25 things outside of my friends and family that bring me joy . . .
Long hot bubble baths
Rocky road ice cream
The GEICO Gecko (adorable)
Sitting at the edge of the river
Reading stories with happy endings
The taste of ice tea on a hot day
Photographing the world around me
Slow dancing
Kicking butt at air hockey
Life in the country
The smell [...]

There’s always gonna be another mountain. I’m always gonna want to make it move. Always going to be an up-hill battle. Sometimes I’m gonna have to lose. Ain’t about how fast I get there. Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side. It’s the climb (Miley Cyrus Video)

There’s always gonna be another mountain
I’m always gonna [...]

When the world has gone crazy, I can always count on my kid to make me smile again, to help me understand what matters in life.

Excuse Me???????? (She got this look from her mama)

I have no idea what she is fixin to do with that soccer ball.

I close my eyes when she skates.

Awww… there is [...]

Surrounded in a million unseen faces, all in such a hurry to go somewhere, anywhere. Or, maybe nowhere . . .
Suffocating in the mass of people.
Yearning for the nearly forgotten familiar feeling of southern tranquility, not understanding where it has gone.
So very afraid that I may never find it again.
Realizing that home [...]

In a world which often makes very little sense to me, there is one thing I know I can always count on, the absolute killer smile of my kid.

Life could be falling down around us, and it doesn’t matter to her. She shuts it all out, puts on that dangerously wicked grin, and just enjoys [...]

Texas has been good for the kid, but life is much the same. She still loves nature, especially around water.

She still loves to play in the park.

And of course, climb the monkey bars.

Her cell phone still rings way more often than mine does.

And, she still abandons me at the first sight of a skater.

The more [...]

Over the last 18 months we have faced a roller coaster of challenges, triumphs, setbacks, heartache, and pain. Through it all, I have learned that I can choose to wallow in self pity, drown the sadness in brandy, or I can choose to make a DECISION to start truly living again, to pull myself up [...]

“Here I go again on my own, goin’ down the only road I’ve ever known. Like a drifter I was born to walk alone. An’ I’ve made up my mind, I ain’t wasting no more time.” Here I Go Again (Whitesnake)
Have you ever had the feeling that you should have known, but then realize that [...]

Woah! Cricket’s gone pink? What’s up with that? Yeah, I don’t see me as a pink kind of girl either, so it takes something very important for me to decide to make my blog so pink. Any ideas? Yup, you guessed it. October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
“Breast Cancer Awareness Month is an annual [...]

With only 23 days left until we see Mississippi in our rear view mirror, we decided to spend the day out on a long country ride taking pics.
Even though we faced some of the biggest challenges we have ever faced here, we will also be leaving some of our fondest memories, such as meeting friends [...]