It's Finally Here!

Allison Times

February, 2016

Editors: Herb and Kim Allison

Reporters: Caleb (27), Bethany (25), Timothy (23), Joseph (20), Hannah Grace (19), Jubilee (10)

Unexpected Blessings

   Joseph presented us with our first grandchild, Brantley Drew Allison, on August 23, 2015. Brantley and his mom, Shaelee, were welcomed into the family, and the crib is back in its same old place in our bedroom, cradling a new generation. The only problem is, the new generation doesn’t like cribs. He’s not spoiled, he just prefers to be sort of held while he sort of sleeps. J

Raising the Bar

   Hannah Grace has one goal in life: to beat Timothy. Although she couldn’t graduate from high school earlier than he did, she determined to have more people at her graduation party. Having accomplished this, she headed overseas to countries Timothy had never seen.  Hannah Grace spent 3 weeks waltzing around Italy (Rome, Milan, Venice), Greece (Athens, Leros and Patmos Islands), and Egypt with her friend, Tisha.  They rode camels, sailed canals, and explored cathedrals till the cows came home.   Eat your heart out, Timothy! 

Cruisin’

     Bethany, having barely enough money to buy food, took off on a Caribbean cruise with 2 of her friends. They docked in Mexico, Jamaica, and the Cayman Islands.  They petted sting rays, climbed volcanos, and saw Bob Marley on every corner. Bethany reports no mishaps, other than getting separated from her friends in Mexico – and what could possibly go wrong there? J No wonder her mother’s hair is turning grey! 

Flip or Flop?

   After watching too many reality shows, Timothy decided to flip a house. A 1950 bank repo in need of major remodeling was his first optimistic attempt. “I’ll have it done in 2-3 weeks, max, and make $50,000.00 on it.” That was last August. After a few issues with plumbing, sheetrock, windows, floors, roof, and siding, it’s on the home stretch, now. He has actually spent a few cold nights on a cot in his new humble abode, only to discover the house didn’t come with food and a chef. Still anxious to move in, he treats every visitor to a paintbrush and a bucket of paint. Approach with caution. 

Bub’s History Tours

    Jubilee and Mom experienced a whole text-book full of history in a one week road-trip led by Caleb’s Trivia and Tours. First stop: Vicksburg, Mississippi for the battle site of The Siege of Vicksburg. Jubilee walked the trenches while Caleb described the battles in living color. No need for PBS.

   We also discovered the first Coca-Cola bottling plant (actually the back room of a soda shop) and the Riverfront Murals on the levee depicting the history of the town. Mom could have stayed there a week prowling through the historical homes.

   Next stop:   Mobile, Alabama to tour the USS Alabama. 5 hours later, Caleb was satisfied that we had explored every square inch of the giant WWII battleship. The King Tut traveling museum was on display in Mobile, as well, and Jubilee breathlessly described the artifacts she recognized from a book she had read (The Mummy’s Tomb). She could finally appreciate Caleb’s enthusiasm over the gun turrets.

   Mom’s favorite attraction was a hilarious “accidental” tour of downtown Mobile by some very colorful locals. Or was her favorite part the clean white hotel sheets at the end of every day? Or the meals she didn’t have to cook? Or the drama she escaped for a week? No matter, it was all good, and she is hooked. All she needs is a job that makes enough money to travel but doesn’t demand that she show up to work. Is Uncle Curt hiring?

Happy Hunting Ground

   Maybe there was something in the water. Or something in the air.  For whatever reason, Timothy and Joseph handed their rifles over to their female hunting companions and braced themselves. The first day Shaelee had ever seen a gun, she dropped a big doe. Timothy’s friend, “Red”, with slightly more firearm experience, shot a slightly smaller doe (Sorry, Red, but newspaper reporters have to be brutally honest, especially in regard to venison.).

   Herb dragged home a-------nothing? This is the first year in recorded history that the deer slayer has come up empty handed, and he is not happy. Maybe he should have handed his rifle over to his wife. J

   Joseph killed two with a bow and barely qualified for his first wall mount with an eight-point. Timothy was too busy to hunt, but accidently hit an eight-point with his truck. Too bad it’s illegal to hang those antlers on the wall. Yes, it’s entirely too bad.

On the Road Again

   Joseph is still climbing towers and gone all the time, but he has penciled in a vacation for May 14 – his upcoming wedding to Shaelee! Stay tuned!

The Wrecking Crew

   It was a bad year for vehicles in the Allison Family. Timothy backed into a car in a parking lot and walked away with the ticket. Joseph rolled and totaled his truck-to-beat-all, and walked away with only a few brain cells missing. Bethany rear-ended a vehicle in Tulsa traffic while driving Hannah Grace’s car. Thereafter, Hannah Grace became the very unhappy driver of a 4-toned heap while it evolved into repair. But not for long! Han ran a red light in front of a delivery truck and destroyed it. No more embarrassing ride, and ‘the Hanster’ wobbled away with all of her hair pins still in place and all of her gym clothes scattered on the road.

   Fast forward a few months to Herb’s insurance cancellation notice. Pretty amazing when you consider he works for the company. It was every man for himself as he threw kids off the policy and out the door in order to save his pristine driving record. Well, the majority were planning on moving out eventually, anyway.

The Curse of the Feral Cats

   Bethany demanded that we spend all our time and money trying to save a litter of wild kittens in Herb’s shop. Mom warned her not to do it, but Bethany adopted 2 of these kitties and her entire apartment building came under a curse. Legend has it you aren’t supposed to move feral cats from where you find them. Bad hoo-doo. Bethany showed up in Urgent Care twice and the ER once with strange unnamed jungle diseases. Unnamed, that is, until the CDC got involved. Now, all health care workers in Tulsa are briefed on Feral Cat Curses.

   Beyond that, Bethany took the cats to the vet no less than 6 times in the first 3 months of their lives. She could have bought 38 kitties at the pet shop for what these 2 wild ones have cost her in haz-mat suits, soaps, sprays, meds, exterminators, and missed work. She still has to bathe in horse shampoo once a week to keep her eyebrows from falling out (true story), but she loves her “boys” and would never put them outside. Bless her heart.

Missionary Mom

   With no real excuse to stay home, Mom went on the church mission trip for the first time ever. It was a bittersweet experience, since all the big kids who were so involved in years past had moved on. Homesickness set in when she rolled past the last familiar exit sign headed for Wisconsin. The church they stayed in served the poor, homeless, and ex-cons, who became active members, who, in turn, reached out to share with others in dire straits. A fascinating example of a living church in action.

  There was a lot of action in Mom’s room, too, when an ADHD mouse shot through the cook’s quarters at midnight. Chairs, beds, and ladies crashed into one another as the mouse sped ‘round and ‘round the perimeter of the room. Amid the screams (all of them mom’s), the mouse was captured in a trash can by some handy teenagers. This was the first and only time Mom was ever happy to see teenagers.

Flying High!

Timothy is finally a pilot and even took his mama up for a plane ride! To keep from flying around the globe, he had to convince Mom to let him bank the plane to return. No easy task with her fingernails embedded into his arm.

                                                                      Rise and Shine!

 

   On a last minute lark, Herb, Kim, and Jubilee decided to run off to Eureka Springs for the Easter Sunrise Service held at “Christ of the Ozarks” on the grounds of The Great Passion Play. “Awesome” doesn’t do it justice. “Freezing” gets a little closer. Weather aside, the “awe” started when we parked the car and started the long quiet walk up the hill in the dark. We imagined the heavy hearts of those pre-dawn mourners who silently carried spices to the tomb of Jesus a few thousand years ago. We found our seats among a small group of strangers at the base of the statue and silently waited for sunrise. With the first hint of daylight, someone started to sing:

   Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.

   Because He lives, all fear is gone.

   Because I know He holds the future,

   My life is worth the living just because He lives!

In the light of a new Easter morning, we could rejoice with those long-ago followers who found the tomb empty! After a riveting talk by a local pastor, we started back down the hill. Our steps and our hearts were lighter, knowing we can have hope in any situation because of Jesus’ resurrection. And nearly a year later, Jubilee still says it was the best weekend of her life! 

Team Jenna!

   A few years ago, Kim’s cousin Jenna started making weekly visits for crafts, fingernails, and “girl time.” She and Jubilee have painted and decorated anything that will stand still long enough and entertained a growing number of visitors to their “tea parties” (we counted 14 once).

   Last fall, Jenna joined us in the 5K Hero Run at Honor Heights Park. Herb muscled her wheelchair up and down the hills and across the finish line to claim a victory for ‘Team Jenna’. At that point, we needed two wheelchairs because Herb wasn’t moving. He eventually crawled to Charlie’s Chicken to recover his strength and be ready for the next race. Gotta build up those muscles!

Millionaire Musings

     Timothy branched out and started his own appliance repair business, RSG (Really Stinkin Good). His goal: millionaire within a year (do you see a pattern here?) So far, it has entailed 24 hour paperwork, but ever-hopeful Timothy keeps on repairing. When he makes that first million, he is planning to purchase an airplane, or better yet, a helicopter!   

This Won’t Hurt a Bit!

   Hannah Grace couldn’t understand why the entire panel stayed doubled over with laughter when she went for her interview for admission to LPN school. It was a mystery why they thought her answers were so funny. Hannah related later, “They asked how I would handle certain situations that might come up with staff members or patients, and I would just say, ‘Here’s how my mom handled that when it happened at home...’.” Her family must have made a good impression, because she made the cut as the youngest member of the class. She is now half way through school, can start an IV like a boss, and is planning a medical mission trip to Africa as soon as the license is in hand.  Looks like more grey hair for mom.

Footnotes

   Timothy couldn’t go a whole year stateside, so he made a quick 8-day trip to Mexico to explore the unexplored and climb some mountains. He discovered some interesting people and places but has yet to disclose any incriminating details.

   Jubilee set a family record for the shortest lived goat herd business. They came and went with lightening speed. Could be because 'farm manager' Herb had already fixed all the fences he had ever planned to fix in his lifetime and has glued his backside to the recliner. Sorry, Jubilee. Try again in a couple of  years when your Daddy has forgotten what a goat looks like. 

   Hannah Grace took a few road trips last year to visit friends in Illinois and Texas, and snowboard in Colorado. She is getting better at navigation and was pleasantly surprised to actually arrive at her chosen destinations without getting lost!

   Mom and Jubilee were the only travelers on the annual pilgrimage to Big Sandy, TX for the homeschool convention. We had to have help putting up our tent, had to borrow an air mattress, and had to bum a sandwich the first night, but otherwise, we were well prepared. Just like boy scouts. J