Happy Birthday, Mom!!!

Today would have been my mom's 69th birthday. It's always been a bittersweet day for me, ever since she passed away over 7 years ago. Every year, I think back to great times I had with her, and this year was no exception. Today, my thoughts centered on the greatest vaction we had together, along with Dad and my aunt Kitty.

In the summer of 1995 (while I was pregnant with Sam), we took a road trip from our home in McAllen, TX, to the west coast. We visited San Diego, Hollywood, and the beach, as well as Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, and Gallup, NM, where Mom and Dad had met over 30 years earlier.

Here are a few pictures, featuring Mom, from that awesome trip.


This is Mom and me in Beverly Hills.



This is Mom and Dad in Beverly Hills.



This is Mom, Kitty, and me at the beach. It was the first and only time any of us had been to the Pacific Ocean.



This is Mom and Kitty at the Grand Canyon.



This is Mom at Four-Corners.



My mom was always up for an adventure and didn't even mind camping out in tents when we that was the only way we could afford to travel. I sure do miss her and her zest for life.