Our Cousin MC

I must introduce you to my cousin's baby, MC. She just turned one this month and on Sunday the 13th, my mom had my grandparents, aunt, uncle and cousins over for lunch. So we got to meet her for the first time. What a cutie she is! She was so much fun to watch. Her mom blogs, so we get to keep up with how much she is growing at Miley Minutes.

It was so good to see my grandfather that day. He looked a lot better than he did when we saw him Mother's day weekend. He is thinner and weaker, but his appetite is good and he is starting to gain some of the weight back. His dementia was not as bad either. He received good news from his CT scan report this week and began his chemo this week also. They did not find the cancer in any of the other organs. He doesn't have to go back to the oncologist till August 21st. The home health nurse will draw blood for his lab work, so they will not have to travel to the doctor's office every week, which is 30 minutes away. This will be a tremendous blessing to my grandmother. She is hanging in there with him. I just wish she would learn to sit and prop up her swollen ankles for a little while every day. Here's my grandfather in a picture where the kids are playing. He always enjoys playing with his great grand babies while he sits in the recliner.

And this is Aaron with his great Grannie!

Cousin Time

My brother and his family got to spend the night while they were visiting at my mom's. On Sunday morning we had some play time with the cousins. My brother has remarried and so I now have a new nephew and niece. Will's daughter, HJ, usually does not have much to do with me when we are there, but this time she loved on me and wanted me to play with her and tickle her. For the longest she would not let me take her picture, but I grabbed her and asked my brother to take our picture. I was successful in my endeavors as you can see.


We really enjoyed getting to know his new wife and her two sweet children. They make a beautiful family. We wish them the best as they begin their new journey as husband and wife and as a family.

And last but not least, I must share a picture of our three dogs who traveled with us all the way to see Nana. Aaron is not asleep in this picture. He just doesn't want me to take a picture of him. I want him to remember when he is older how much these dogs meant to him as a child. He will probably try to deny it!

A Moment of Thankfulness

As I said, my next post for the trip will be totally dedicated to Aaron's enjoyment of his first fishing trip. I wasn't sure if he would get into it or not. He enjoyed being outside, but he did not have the patience to wait on the fish to bite. He walked around on the pier a lot. We were all together as you can see. Aaron is beside my mom trying to get a cricket in this picture.

Several moments later my brother moved off of the pier to the bank to fish with his two daughters. Without me realizing it, my brother had moved to a different pier. He was on the smaller pier you can see towards the front. We were still on the pier that's farthest away in the picture.

This picture shows Aaron's boredom with fishing and it also indicates he was leaving the pier where we were. He is holding his fishing pole by the wrong end and he is dragging it along.

Well, little did I realize, Aaron had moved to the pier with his Uncle Will. All I remember was hearing a big splash in the water that came from the direction where my brother was located. I turned around and saw Will laying on his belly and watched as he pulled my son out of the lake. I dropped my pole and ran to the other pier. And this is how the story goes.

Aaron was fishing next to my brother. You must understand what Aaron does while he is "fishing". He watches the cork as he pulls it along in the water. The pier they were standing on does not have rails. It has a piece of wood that raises the edge of the pier just a little. As Aaron was pulling his cork along, he forgot to pay attention to where his feet were going. Will said that all he saw was green Mickey Mouse crocs in the air and Aaron going head first into the water. But my baby came up swimming and he never let go of his fishing pole! The worse thing out of the whole ordeal for Aaron was the fact his clothes were wet. If you know him really well, you know he doesn't like to be wet(unless he is truly swimming with swim trunks on) or dirty. I had no change of clothes for him. He has really come a long way because he continued to dry out without too many complaints.

Even though I had poor reception for my cell phone, I had to call Kevin and tell him the several hundreds of dollars we have paid for Australian swimming method swim lessons the last three summers has finally paid off. Thank you to Mr. Richard! Thank you to Will for acting so quickly to get him out of the water. Most of all, I am so thankful to my Lord for taking care of Aaron that day. It could have easily turned out different. Life can change so quickly!

Our Trip Home

Two weeks ago the kids and I began our trip home to visit family. I had huge plans to leave around 8:00, but my computer would cause me to start my trip later and put me behind by an hour and a half. I cannot understand why I always have issues with my computer. But this time it was Window's fault, not mine. I now have my computer set where it will not automatically update for Windows. I had to fix the problem before I left, because Kevin does not deal with computer issues and he would need to use the computer while I was gone. I am finally getting better at understanding these techs who work for Dell, but I still hate having to call them.

We made it to my mom's that afternoon where my brother and his family were waiting for us to take the kids fishing. My dad brought his bass boat and met us at a local lake. I enjoyed this time with my family and I'm glad my kids got to experience it as well. Fishing was always a normal activity for our family when I was growing up, so it brought back lots of memories. A lot of my memories are of being stuck on a boat with my dad and brother and wanting the fishing trip to be over. However, their patience far outweighed mine.

This particular afternoon turned out to be an interesting one. We all started off fishing on one of the piers, the pier with the wooden rails. It was a very hot day and the fish were not biting very well. The only catch of the day was one little fish caught by yours truly.

I grew up in the country all my life, but when my kids and I stepped out on that pier to fish, you would have thought the city slickers are here to learn how to fish. I spent a lot of my time stepping back and dodging hooks and line. This was the first time my kids were learning to cast. Alli was convinced she had it all figured out. I stayed out of the way as much as possible and this picture tells all. The hook with the cricket attached to it, is caught in her hair.

We have discovered that this is one of Alli's favorite activities. She thoroughly enjoyed it. And she loved being in the boat with my dad. Of course, she is all about her dad, grandpas, and uncles. At first all the granddaughters started out in the boat with Papa Bill. When they decided to get out, Alli stayed and I got in with them.

I enjoyed riding around the lake with Dad and Alli. I don't get to spend a lot of time with Dad and I miss that. If I would have had more time that week, I would have gone fishing with him again. Fishing has become one of his favorite pastimes again. I am like my dad in the fact that God's creation(nature) has always brought peace to our lives. I think this is why he has started fishing again.

Aaron and Hannah enjoyed their time at the lake. My next post will tell you more about how well Aaron enjoyed his time at the lake. Hannah doesn't have much patience for fishing, but I think she enjoyed being with her family.

God Is Still In The Miracle Business!

I will soon post pics and stories from our trip home last week. I have been catching up on laundry and housework this week. Since his big sisters have been at music camp all week, Aaron has required a little more entertainment. I do have lots of stories I can tell, so as soon as I can download pics, I will post.

This week our family and friends have been reminded that God is still in the business of performing miracles in the lives of His people. We pray for all kinds of miracles. We are not always answered in the way we think we should be. And we are not usually answered in the time frame we think we should be. But God knows all. He sees all. The news I am about to tell you makes me think of Samuel's mom, Hannah (in the Bible). Hannah wept for a child for years. She pleaded with God to give her a child. He answered in His time and gave her Samuel, who would eventually anoint King David. And then when I think about Jesus being from the line of David it gets even more exciting. Point is, God knows what He is doing!

One of my friends tried to get pregnant for years and could not. Seven and a half years ago God brought a little baby girl into their lives who they adopted. That little baby girl is now one of Alli's best friends. So all these years they have not been able to conceive. When I came home this week, I found out my friend had not been feeling well. She took a pregnancy test Sunday which was negative. The nausea would not go away, so she decided to go to the doctor on Wednesday. They ran blood work and a urine pregnancy test. While we are in the middle of Chick-fi-la, the doctor calls her and tells her she is pregnant! I cannot begin to describe the shocked look on her face. When she told her husband, he was speechless. Kevin's response: "Holy Cow!" (I love shocking a doctor with miraculous news!) Today she went to the doctor and it's official. They are going to have a baby in March. She has a picture to prove it and she got to hear the heartbeat! My friend is like a second momma to Aaron, so when he received the news, he said, "no!" I am sure he will come around at some point. We have several friends who are having babies, so maybe he will catch on to the excitement.

God, thank you so much for this miracle in our friends' lives! All praises to You!

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." James 1:17

A Little Time Away

Tomorrow the kids and I will be traveling to our home state for a visit with our family. I will visit my family first and we will finish the trip with Kevin's. His baby sister will be married next Saturday. I am sure it will be a wild week, but we will enjoy getting to be with everyone. As I was looking at his sister's bridal portraits, I couldn't help but think about a 12 year old girl I met about 16 years ago. Time flies so fast! When I get back, I will try to post some pics of the wedding and other activities we get into while we are there.

I found out today that my grandfather will have a CT scan done on Monday. He will be taking chemo by mouth and may have to have chemo by IV in the oncologist's office. Don't know many details right now. I hope to talk with my uncle this weekend and find out more. Please continue to remember him and my grandmother in your prayers.

I ask you also to pray for two couples in our Sunday School class. Both couples have had miscarriages this week. One lady was 20 weeks and the other was 16 weeks. My heart breaks for them. I cannot begin to imagine the pain they are in. Please remember them.

I Have Been Tagged

I have been tagged by a friend to answer some questions so you can get to know me better. So here it goes!

What I was doing 10 years ago:
I had just entered the world of motherhood. Our Hannah was born on July 1st weighing 9 lbs, 3 oz by c-section. We came home from the hospital on July 4th. I think learning how to get Hannah to nurse was my biggest obstacle at this point.

Five favorite snacks:
Apples with peanut butter
Tortilla chips with salsa and sour cream
Granola
Small scoop of vanilla ice cream with a tsp of peanut butter
Homemade Cheerios Bars

To Do List:
Go to grocery store
Take sister-in-law's shoes to have repaired at shoe shop downtown
Deliver tomatoes and blueberries
Wash clothes and clean the house
Get Oil Changed in the car

Five jobs I have had in the past:
Pharmacy Tech at a hospital
Nurse's Aide at Children's Rehab
RN on a medical/surgical unit for eight months; postpartum/gyn unit for a little over a year
RN health department; RN contract nurse with health department and medicaid
Mom, Best Job of All

Places I Have Lived:
Clinton, MS
Little Rock, Arkansas
Bentonia, MS
Hickory, MS
Montrose, MS
Goodman, MS and Jackson, MS---for school

Bad Habit:
Unorganized
Misplacing things due to my lack of organizational skills
Eating too much
I am sure there are more, they are just not coming to my mind at this time.

Five Random Things People might Not Know:
1. I love to read books and it's hard to go to Barnes and Noble without buying a new one. It's better if I stay away from that place.

2. I took piano for 11 years, 3rd thru 12th grades, plus one in college. I don't play much anymore. No time for it. I do love music.

3. I love to scrapbook when I have time.

4. I grew up as a pk, also known as a preacher's kid. That's why I lived in several places growing up.

5. My favorite vacation so far is the Disney Cruise. I would love to be on one right now!

CD's I would want if Stranded on an Island:
1. Anything by WaterMark
2. Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir CD's
I also like to listen to old 80's music as well.

What would I do If I was a billionaire:
1. Give money to church, school, and other mission type projects
2. Give money to our parents and grandparents
3. I think I would pray that the Lord would send me divine appointments, since He knows whose in need.

When I figure out how to put links into my post, I will tag two people as well. Thanks to georgiamom for tagging me.

One Down, Two To Go!

Kevin has three siblings. He has a brother and a sister who are twins, and then another sister that is a couple years younger than the twins. During the month of July, Kevin's side of the family has two weddings within a two week time period. The brother got married in Gatlinburg yesterday and the baby sister will get married in two weeks in the same church we were married.

So, on July 4th, we all met in Pigeon Forge to spend some time with Darin and spend the night before the big day. Of course for this crew, our meeting place was the outlet mall in Sevierville. I had a very interesting shopping experience for tennis shoes and flip flops at the Rack Room with my father-in-law. He was in dire need for new shoes and yours truly was left to assist him with finding the right shoe with the right fit. I knew Kevin had a big foot, but didn't realize his dad could wear a 14! The shopping trip to the Rack Room was successful and we came out with two new pair of shoes at the buy one, get one half off price. I think I have four or five bags from the Lenox store to carry home when we go for the next wedding. Kevin's mom found some great deals there; however, there was no room in the Camry for those bags when they left today. After we finished our shopping, we took Darin to The Chop House for dinner. Kevin, the kids, and I ate there two years ago and I loved it. It was great once again! We then headed to the Ramada for a night of rest.

When we woke up Saturday morning, it was raining. But by the afternoon, the sun had come out and it turned out to be a beautiful day for a wedding. The wedding was beautiful. It started at one and lasted no more than 10 minutes. I think we were gone from the reception by three. Jessica was beautiful in her wedding gown and Darin, of course, was smiling and cutting up, joking around as usual. I will say that I have never seen hands shake while lighting the unity candle as much as I did when they were lighting theirs. Other than that, they were cool as cucumbers. Here's the bride and groom!

Here's Aaron getting a little sugar from his new aunt. He looks thrilled! The boy is spoiled rotten!

And here's the groom with all of the nieces and the nephew! They love their Uncle Darin!

And last but not least, here are the brothers.

We came home after the wedding reception. Kevin's parents, aunt, sister and soon to be brother-in-law went home this afternoon. I think we all had a great time this weekend. We will soon be seeing each other again. My son will be a ring bearer for the first time in this next wedding. I am sure it will be an enlightening experience for us. On the way to the wedding yesterday, he got a little upset because he realized he didn't have his "suit" on. We had to explain that he would wear that to Aunt Tracy's wedding, not Uncle Darin's. I pray he loves his tux, because all the boy wears is polo shirts/t-shirts, shorts, and crocs!

Thanks to Jessica and Darin for allowing us to be part of their special day. We had a great time! And yes, I did get teary-eyed. I did inherit my late grandmother's ability to shed tears even during the happy moments of life. I am sure I will at the next one! That's just me!