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Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Nothin’ Like a Texas Gal




By: Samantha S. Daviss

Sadly our area of Texas has been hit pretty hard by Mother Nature. In the past nine months our little town, our lakes, and our rivers have survived torrential amounts of rainfall, flooding, flooded homes, flooded roads, you name it we have seen it and survived it. But what makes me most proud is how we as a community (being Texans) have pulled together to fight and battle through this.

We always need the rain and the moisture, just as most do, but not all at once. But through it all I have never been more proud to be a Southern, nay a Texan, with Texas pride. We are those that have that Southern congeniality, but know how to kick some butt in a back alley; we will strap a square bale of hay on our backs just to get it relocated, we will manage, maneuver, and handle our house, our kids, a job, and volunteering all with a smile on our face and fresh lipstick on our lips. Yep, I am just talking about a Texas woman.

Through this painful time in our state, I heard from a number of my friends, as I was checking in on them all constantly. Without hesitation I found myself surrounded by some amazing women with unbelievable stories and spirits.

One friend went home in the rain to check on her animals in the barn only to find herself being sprayed head to toe by a skunk. After a few minutes hovered between her trucks and losing her lunch, she pulled herself up by her boot straps, washed her entire being in Dawn liquid soap, and kept on going to make sure her family and all her horses were doing okay in the weather.

Then another friend put her safety before those she loved most, her kids. As they were headed home down their road, she came upon a low spot. And without hesitation, she got out of her car, removed her shoes, and walked through the low spot to ensure that her car and her kids would make it across safely, without the slightest hesitation for her safety in the rushing water.

Another friend had to deal with a flooded sunroom while her husband was out of town for nine days. Do you think she cried? No. She selected her favorite wine, had a glass, and started pumping it out to the front street.

And finally, my other friend had her entire ceiling fall in one of her bedrooms from moisture leaking in near her chimney. What did she do? She messaged us all and told us how many glasses of wine she needed before she started cleaning up the mess.

There is nothing wimpy about a Texas Gal, and if you think otherwise you are sadly mistaken. We can go from ball cap to ball gown in about 2.5 seconds and you wouldn’t be the wiser. We can get our nails done, haul hay, and sheetrock a room; without ruining that pretty manicure we just had done. 

But the best part about a Texas gal is we do it all without complaining. We go beyond the Southern Charm, it’s Deep South stamina.

We can be sweet and adoring, all the while run the farm as well as any man, plus tend to the house, and the kids. So remember, it’s not the muggers in New York City I would fear, it the Texas Gal whose cow just got out, kid just got hurt, or property that just got damaged that I would be fearful of in a back alley.

Tuesday, October 13, 2015

New Chapters



By: Samantha S. Daviss

New chapters in our lives can be fun, exciting, sad, and scary all at the same time. I have had many new chapters in my life, and I have survived them all. Some were exciting, some broke my heart but I picked myself up and kept going, and others were scary, emotional, and thrilling all at the same time.

I have recently just entered a new “new chapter” in my life with my family. We are in the process of moving into our “forever home”. This house has been a work in progress for over 12 months now, and it has turned out better than I could have ever imagined. Every wall, every tile, every toilet paper roll has been selected and placed by yours truly. But I couldn’t have done it without a magnificent team behind me, including my builder, our designer, their teams, and of course my husband. It has been an amazing process and one I will treasurer forever.

As I have walked the path of life my exciting chapters have included things such as going off to summer camp for the first time, I was scared of the unknown, but so excited to meet new people and make new friends; another exciting time was heading off to college. It was a great big world down there in College Station. When the school was twice the size of my home town, and my first marketing class was three times the size of my graduating class it was a little overwhelming. But it was the happiest times in my life.

New chapters in my life that broke my heart were the loss of my pets. You know they all live happy full lives but some die from old age and some pass from accidents, and that is the most difficult way to lose a pet is before their time. Other sad new chapters are break ups. You never know why a relationship ends, or if you do, it still hurts and stings a little bit. But regardless you must move forward in your life knowing that a boyfriend or girlfriend, or a relationship wasn’t meant to be and there are bigger and better plans for you in life.

But the biggest new chapter in my life, or I guess in my case “new chapters” were the births of my three boys. It is scary to know you are holding this new little creature in your arms that is totally and completely dependent on you for life and support as we know it; it’s emotional because you created that little person with the help of God, but that little person is a part of you forever; and thrilling too because of what the future holds for you and your new little buddy in life. Becoming a parent is by far the greatest “new chapter” any one person can encounter, whether it’s a biological child, a stepchild via marriage, an adoption; it doesn’t matter becoming a parent is the most awesome experience in the world.

But my latest chapter is a peaceful one. It is a little odd knowing this is the house (you hope) you will live out your years in. It is the house that your children will grow up in, move a way and bring their children back to for visits. It is a peaceful feeling knowing this is the house that you designed to sit on the back porch with your husband, hold hands and watch the sunset, both literally and figuratively.

New chapters are an amazing thing, you just have to accept them, embrace them, and understand that they are a part of life; good or bad.