"Why can't I wear this to the Store?"...he says.

Our daughter is 22. She, her husband and their 3 year old son moved back in with us in March. Since they have moved in, life seems to be at a standstill. It's like we are treading water waiting for them to be able to move out so we can start swimming foward again. They have been in financial trouble for at least a year when they finally waved the white flag and ask if they could move back in to get on their feet. This last month we found out that they plan on staying until December or January so 5-6 more months of treading water.

It is nice to see our grandson, but we have NO alone time anymore. For one, our grandson is a definite Grandma's boy. He follows us every where. Samantha (our daughter) isn't any better. Once Kaleb is in bed, she seems to take his place. What is funny is that we actually have to start making out in front of her to get her to leave us alone (usually with a huff and "You could have just told me to leave!"). No we don't use that method on our grandson... Another twist in this "adventure" is that Samantha is pregnant. Our next grandson is going to be born around Thanksgiving. The due date is three days before Thanksgiving. If that is the case she will probably be in the hospital for Thanksgiving. Kind of funny because at the moment the smell of turkey makes her nauseous.

There really isn't room for them now (they are all sleeping together on a king size bed in the spare bedroom). When the new baby comes it will be even more caotic. It will be a joy to see the new one, but it's going to be a crazy atmosphere at our house. I wish I wasnt so clausterphobic. I tend to stay in my office on my computer or playing games when I'm home to pass the time. This is more of a defensive tactic to keep me from getting between the bickering (the stress on them hasn't been easy either).

I'm just hoping we all get through this time in one piece and with our respective relationships in tact. I believe it will all be ok in the long run, but it may be a bumpy ride. This post isn't really going anywhere, but I just felt the need to whine a bit and sort out where the last 4 months have gone.

 when he spotted Something???"Come look Grandad"... he said

 Then Angel spotted Christian in her the Garden and made it down there just in time...to tell him; "What he can't pick... and Where he can't walk."

 And guarding her Grandad

Guess who picked the most?... she said

Although it is actually Thursday, I'm posting about our fun filled Wednesdays, that's the day we spend with Beth, Spiderman, and Ladybug each week.  They come over around lunchtime and we have lunch together, play with the little guys, then the munchkins go down for their naps, and Beth, Drama Queen, and I hang out until they wake up.  When Spiderman and Ladybug get up from their naps we go out to play (if it's not too hot) and then we all have dinner together in the evening after Ashley and Phillip get off from work.   We spend the rest of the evening together until it's time for Phillip and Beth to take Spiderman and Ladybug home for their bedtime.

This is the highlight of the week for Ashley and me, spending quality time together as a family. The only thing that keeps it from being perfect is not having Natalie, Joey, Cupcake, and Blue Eyes here too. But, the Lord is using them in N.C. to minister to the girls in their care, so we have to be unselfish and just enjoy them when they are able to come down. 

I took some really cute pictures of Spiderman and Ladybug yesterday, so I thought I'd share a few of them with you.  They are such a delight to be with,   they are both at such adorable ages and they say and do the cutest things, but I'm their Nana so I suppose I'm just a little bit partial.

                  Cutie Pies

                Enjoying a good book     

             Snuggling after bathtime

I look forward to our Wednesdays together, the little ones are growing so quickly and I want to treasure every moment with them that I can. 

Side Note:  I wanted to share another of my summer projects that I've finished.  We made these plaster handprints of all the grandkids back in April, and I finally got around to painting them and hanging them in the nursery. (I guess I should start referring to it as the grandkids room instead of the nursery since they really aren't little babies anymore.)   I think they turned out really cute, I wrote the date on the back so I'll always remember what their little hands looked like at these ages. 

Spiderman, Cupcake, Blue Eyes, and Ladybug's handprints

I hope you have a great Friday, and a wonderful weekend!

Love, Velvia

She was so busy  looking and talking "to herself"  in the mirror...while she was brushing her teeth;  that she didn't see me... put the water in her glass; "And then she accidently spilled it on herself."  

She went running to her room upset. "And for the life of me I couldn't figure out why she was so pissed about a little water spill."  

 I tried to comfort her ; but still remind her that she needs to " look and pay attention."  But the more I talked, the more upset she got...and finally she just covered her head. And that was the end of what little discussion  I we were having.

Later on, I was telling GD what happened...When he piped in and told me that, "She wasn't mad; She was probably Embarrassed"...and then he reminded me that "all little girls"  talk to the mirror.

 And then I remembered  "when I was a kid"... I did have the best ( and sometimes, my only ) conversations with ...a little girl in a mirror.

So how can a Man that never had kids of "his actual sperm"... know so much about little girls and their problems?

Then he reminded me, that he had Sisters...and they talked to the mirror alot too.

There I was enjoying the movie when in walks Zee from the bedroom off the den.  He has with him a can of air freshner which he is swinging about and the thing is leaking.  All over me.  I grab the can and ask him what the heck is he up to now.  Zee turns those big baby blues on me and oh so innocently says "Gamama, broke.  It broke." 

Egad!  When a two year old tells you "it broke", you can bet your bottom dollar it ain't "just broke".  But I got up to follow him anyway, dreading what I was going to look at.  Sure enough, it was ghastly.  Disastrously, unbelievingly, fucked.  Zee kindly points the obvious out to me -- he had emptied the entire can of air freshner on the bed frame, headboard, foot board, the works.  And it wasn't just liquidy goop; hell no.  It was this sticky, tacky, chalky white stuff all over the place.  I just stood there and tried not to cry.  Why?  Because this happened to me once before with my daughter, and in case it has never happened to you... once you spray air freshner on wood (real wood, as in Nanny's antique wood), it doesn't want to come off.

Let me tell you, I scrubbed with Windex, Pinesol, Formula 409 (wishing they had 410), Mr. Clean Magic Erasers, Orange Glo, Ajax, Brillo Pads (took off some the wood), some spit, and yeah, I think a tear or two slipped in there.  All to no avail.  I was scared shitless, wondering what my dear El Cheapo would say when he took a gander at the mess his beloved Nanny's furniture had become.

An hour later, I sat on the floor in front of the mess in a tired and distraught heap and bawled.  Zee kindly patted my shoulder and told me, "it okay Gamama.  It hurt?"  Which of course, made me cry even harder.  I wasn't angry with him since it truly had been all my fault, but I was, beyond a doubt, scared.  I figured I had about an hour before El Cheapo walked through the front door and I would experience a close encounter of the squirmy kind.

Two hours later, long after Zee had left, in comes El Cheapo, looks at me, and I pointed to the incriminating evidence in all its gory glory shining for the world to see.  He took one look at it, looked at all the cleaning bottles and utensils, turned back to me and says, "Have you tried furniture polish?"

"Uh, nooo.  Does it work?"

"Sure!  Here let me show you."

And just like that, the awful mess went poof!  gone, out of sight.  And I breathed a sigh of relief, and vowed never again to purchase air freshner.

In the presence of Jehovah

God almighty, Prince of Peace

Troubles vanish, hearts are mended

In the presence of the King

In the presence of Jehovah

God almighty, Prince of Peace

Troubles vanish, hearts are mended.

In the presence of the King

Just heard that on the TRBC site….oh course made me boo hoo cause I had to hear it 5 times…reminded me of the Christmas concerts and how Vernon would have us sing it over and over again…..AH……………..that was SO good for me!!!

You know we are always in HIS presence…isn’t that the neatest thought!!

Tomorrow the DQ goes back to The Biggest Loser for her second interview; the one in front of live cameras.  I really hope she makes it, even though if she does, my life will be turned upside down once again.  Since she'll be gone for 5 months, and my son-in-law's work hours are attrocious, I'll basically be raising Zee.  In fact, he might as well just pack up over there and move in with us because the amount of hours he'll be with me, well, it just wouldn't pay for him to even go home.  Oi.  I think I was destined to take care of children.  Everybody's children.

I should be so happy right now.

After years of just surviving, I am now able to live a better live.

My job is great, I am on top of all their "stack ranking" I am on top of my team, in all objects, top of "pay 4 performance", everything at work looks really really great. But I feel so left out in my personal life.

My husband works his buns off and so do I, so we dont see each other that much. Church I havent been in a long time, because of my work schedule.
I have only one friend from Church who consistently calls me and checks up what I am doing. I tried to set up a BBQ at my house, but for some reason it doesnt seem to get off the ground.
Perhaps because I havent been in Chruch?
Slowly but surely I feel like I am forgotten, people moved on with their busy lives, and so did the Church.

Of course than I get the responses "Well you can call too". Perhaps I am not the person who does well with "first steps". Perhaps I have to learn that, but it wont be now!
I just know how I feel, and I feel not being a part of anything. All meetings and get togethers are on Thursdays,Saturdays, so I cant attend. It is very hard to get a weekend off at my job.

I just needed to vent today!!!
My husband is a loner, so he is not affected as I am. He likes been by himself. I on the other hand, love having people around, talking on the phone, etc..

My prayer right now is that I find a church that has a evening service on Sunday's. Now that would be to cool! Probably not happening but it would be wonderful.

This post is not meant to offend anyone from my Church, it is only how I feel and see things lately!

The Lord is still directing my path, and that will NEVER change no matter what.
I am so much closer lately because He is all I have to talk to, and to cling on. I praise Him still after each and every phonecall at work. I dont care if it was a good or a bad call, I praise Him constantly. He is so good to me.
Everywhere I turn, I see the Lord's work before me, and I am in awe what He has done for me and my husband. And I am still on working on my husband to get him back to where he should be with the Lord. But he still has a hard time with it.

Well, I vented, so whoever reads this...dont beoffended, this isnt meant as an offense, it is from my heart, my thoughts, my feelings.

Blessings to all
Andrea

We headed home and were up on a straight stretch on HWY 10 when my sweet hubby called me on the cell phone and said that something was wrong with the van........he called back in a few minutes and said that the van was REALLY having trouble so he was turning off at the next exit.  Believe me we were OUT in the boonies at that point but he did find a old gas station.  The van made it and once we stopped it wouldn't go forward or backward!!!  You guessed it......the transmission was GONE. 

My daughter says that I am a little INSANE and I must agree cause when everything goes wrong I have a tendency to laugh and cry at the same time.  So I went into peals of laughter which made the kids and everyone else laugh but when I saw the van up on the tow truck...the tears started in the middle of the laughter!!  Craziness.....God has a sense of humour and somehow I KNEW that HE was going to make everything straight!!  HE always does....he even sent along a humourous tow truck driver which made me smile and even laugh harder!! 

Anyway off went our NEW van and we once again all loaded up in our daughters van and headed home. We got home around 2 AM.  The next day my sweet hubby and our son drove back over (125 miles from home) and got the van fixed.  The friendly tow truck driver had taken it to a Dodge dealer....thanks Gieco!!!

It got fixed to a nice price of $2500 and we figured it should last years and years, right???  So we thought.....well God sent us off to Brazil this year for the summer with a team...(guess I will have to write about them too)   so we decided to drive our trustworthy van down to Orlando so we could stop by and see our daughter and her special family!!

So off we went....we arrived in Fairhope, Al and spent time with the kids.  Our daughter had sprained her ankle so had been HOME for a month so this mom decided to take her shopping.  What fun....well it was fun until the van didn't want to back up.....it sounded like something was in the middle of the road but then it caught and we made it back to her place.  YEAH!!   MY Sweet hubby checked it out and it worked fine for him so we decided that it was probably O.K. 

So off we went to Orlando for a few days of rest, Disney before we took off for Brazil.  See my other blogs about our wonderful time at Animal Kingdom,,,,,the van acted up on the way down to Orlando but then ran fine again.  My sweet hubby decided to have the Dodge dealer down in Orlando check the van out....so we called him and he was willing to look at it on Monday.  Over the weekend it worked fine so we decided to try to keep going with it until we got home.

SO.....off we went to Brazil and God gave us an awesome time down there with a great group of team members and Brazilians.  We got back after almost a month and our "trustworthy" van was there waiting for us.  We decided to stop along the way as I wanted to see a little of Savannah and the beach.  The van choked and coughed a few times at a few stop signs but kept going. We even went out to Tybee Island (ah....that place is so pretty and as I love the beach I could just go on and on about the trip out there and the Island...but guess I better get back to the van!!  We didn't have any trouble and headed home the next day.

We stopped for lunch about 45 miles from home, stopped for gas, rest area etc and it kept going although once in awhile when we would slow down or stop it choked and coughed a little bit but always went forward or backward.

Our youngest son and his two angels (7 & 5) were here at our house waiting for Nana & Popo and were SO happy to have us back.  We spent about 1/2 hour visiting with them and then decided to go over to their house to see the 3 month old and the 22 month old.  After all I was sure they had grown 3 feet while I was gone.   Vin went off ahead of us and we all piled into the van............and guess what???  The van wouldn't go forward or backward it just choked and coughed and sounded AWFUL!!  I, of course started laughing and laughing as it was so AMAZING to me to realize that GOD kept that van going for all of those miles and miles.  You know, it could have stopped on the beach, at the rest stop, in Orlando, while we were in Brazil, at our daughters, restaurant, shopping or countless other places but GOD kept it going until we were safely HOME!!  Goodness I wonder how many angels kept us going on that trip??  GOD does do miracles for us daily and at times we don't even see them but this time it was SO evident!!  He kept me going in Brazil and HE kept that van going until we got home!!  Wow!!  I was also able to tell those little grandkids how GOD undertook once again and answered their prayers as well as ours.  You see, they were praying for us on our trip and prayed the van would keep going!!  HILARIOUS really and I still smile when I think about it.......I just have to keep smiling when I think of the $1800 it will cost for another transmission!!!  Sigh.....mom said that maybe a Toyota or Honda would be better but meanwhile the van is in the shop and should be out soon!!

God is good ALL the time!!!  We are UNDER HIS WINGS!!!

As long as he keeps the yard looking like that, I wont mind this other "lady"...HAHAHA

I had to ask him, if he dreamed of the tool last night. He got up early today just to use the tool! Unbelievable!!!

!!!

just had to post this update.

The diningroom set is ready to be viewed! It isn't completely done. I havent put all the stuff in it yet. But you get the picture!

Do you think it is nice???

Look here - Janice's garden is just a poppin!! Wow.

And here - we are eating well - tomatoes and beans and lettuce - wow - and plans for expansion next year. Just like you!!!

But what's this????

and here.....

Our friend Cliff Mount is on his way to North Dakota to do some hunting - maybe he could swing by here and save the garden!!!

The grandkids think they are wonderful - but what do they know!!!

They just wouldn't hurt a fly.

I had a very good day today, even though at first it didn't look like it will be a great day!When I drove to work last night, I kept hearing a noise from my car, but I was on the interstate so I couldn't pinpoint it. When I arived at my job's parking lot, I clearly could tell it is somewhere either in the exhaust pipe or the muffler.
I knew right than I need it fixed, because I will not drive to work 35 miles and get stuck in the middle of the night on the interstate.

So I went to my manager and asked for a days vacation for today, it was right away approved.

Than this morning my husband called a few muffler shop's and the prices on the phone were anywhere from $ 150.00 dollars to way above it.So I went to the shop who gave us the lowest price which was $ 150.00 dollars. I took my Bible since I thought I will have to sit there a long time and wait on the car to be repaired!
I started to read, and here comes the technician and he called me in to go with him to look under my car. He explained and showed me a little part of the exhaust pipe that was very rusted and he said this piece was put on a while ago and it had worn out. I asked "So what am I looking at, pricewise?"
He said "$ 35.00 dollars"
WOOHOO....way better than I expected!!!
The shop is on Williamson Rd. in Roanoke, and it was very clean, he worked really fast and it was really a good price. See he could've told me any price ( I have no clue about car's), but he was honest, a very honest business man. He told me that he had to lay off all his employess in the past three years because of the economy been so down, and that he cant afford to keep employees at this time. And I saw there were only one car to be repaired besides mine and that was a break job.
And still the man was honest and ddint overcharge me even though he easily could have.
Praise God for an honest Man!

If any one reads this and is in need of car repair, here is the address to his shop
Lew's Muffler and Brakes
4009 Williamson Rd,
Roanoke, VA
# 540-563-5564

I highly recommend him!!! 5*****Than after that I thought hmmm I am going to go and see what out thrift store "The Rescue Mission" has for sale.

I been looking and praying to find a diningroom set that looks good and is affordable.
And didn't you know it, I walked in and they were packed with furniture, and one china cabinet was facing me, and I thought WOAH that is pretty. I saw the price $ 195.00 dollars, and I almost turned away when I saw the little note " 8-piece set" and "50% off"
So I asked a Sales person if the $ 195.00 are already included the 50% off, or if they will take 50% off of the $ 195.00 dollars. And yes I paid $ 97.50 for an 8-piece diningroom set all wood, nicely made with three extra leafs for the table, 6 chairs with high backs, and a china cabinet with 3 layers of glas and three doors on the bottom, and light in the glas part.
You would've paid easily in a store hundreds of dollars for it.Praise God, because he knows I wanted a set just like that, and I looked in many stores and the price are not affordable for us. I never dreamed of finding a set like that in our thrift store. I check there regularly for anything, and I almost set my expectations way lower about a set, but thankfully God didnt let me purchase just anything, he taught me to wait for THIS set.

So, this day was great, I had a vacation day, got my car taken care of, and found a beautiful set for our diningroom!!!I will put a picture here when I have it all set up, but that will take a little time. Right now I don't even have it here, my husband will pick it up tomorrow morning. Hopefully we will be able to get the china cabinet in the house, cause it is only me and him, and it sure looks like that it is a heavy piece. We will see :)

I just read Marie's Blog and was thrilled to hear about the progress Ayden has made. The video of him going from a crawl to a sprinting walk is adorable. I imagine that things are going to get a bit more hectic for Marie and Brian now that Ayden can get around faster. They better keep an eye on him, closely. He's likely to get in even more mischief.

I can't believe how quickly babies can learn and grow in only one year. I'm glad that Marie is able to stay home and be there to watch and experience Ayden's growth. It sounds like Marie is finding creative ways for them to live on a tight budget.

Last night, I decided I wanted to take Sydney to a movie. She's never really sat through a full-length movie the entire time. I felt that she was ready, so I took her to see the Dr. Seuss movie, "Horton Hears a Who." Sydney sat in her own seat with a tray of popcorn. She sat there watching the big screen and stuffing her face with mouthfuls of popcorn. That kid can really put away popcorn. I was amazed. With about 20 minutes left in the movie, she wanted to sit in my lap. I didn't mind because it gave me a chance to cuddle with her. She sat still the entire time watching the movie. She's so grown-up!

After the movie, we stopped for a watermelon Eggee's, which is my favorite. They only sell it in July. (For those of you who live outside of Arizona, an Eggee is a fruit slush drink.) Each of us had a spoon. We devoured the drink together in no time. Sydney thought it was funny when I showed her my bright red tongue.

We then went to the park. Sydney is not afraid to go down the big twisty slide. After each time down the slide, she would proclaim with gusto, "Let's do it again!" She went down the slide at least 20 times in a row. I'm not kidding!! It was hilarious to watch. I also pushed her on the swing. She didn't want to go too high on the swing. I had to do it just right or she would get scare.

I had so much fun with Sydney and can hardly believe how much she's grown. She talks pretty clearly. It's easy to have conversations with her.

I can't wait to see Ayden. I want to see him walking, and I want to see that big, toothy grin of his.

Guess to what I woke up today???

My husband changed so much since we he got older ! He is so much more thoughtful. He used to pass by any anniversary, and he could’ve cared less for mine or his birthday, but he surprised me today with this bouquet of orange roses.

Don’t know why he chose orange, but they are very very pretty. Just to bad that they will quickly die, sine it is so warm here right now. From this morning to now when I took the picture they completly opened up. So you know it wont be long and the petals will drop.

Me on the other hand who always looked out for birthdays and anniversaries skipped it this year. Why you ask????
Well I didn’t think of it, I am just working lately and that’s all I do. It totally slipped my mind. But I can not forget his birthday that will be soon, actually in 2 weeks. I have no idea what I could get him, but I will have to think of something???

Now to other not so news. Work is still very busy and very late. I work overtime like there is no tomorrow. What can I say they have to good of incentives not to work overtime. Like last week …if you worked four hours over they gave us a $ 50.00 dollar bonus.

 And now they have an incentive if you work at least 32 hours within the next 8 weeks, they will give us a $160.00 dollar gasoline card. And every hour you work over these 32 hours they add another $5.00 on top of it. And I figured I will probably work 70 hours in that timeframe. At least that is wghat I am planning on doing.

I love the job, you get great calls and not so good ones, and than you get a lot of funny ones. Like ....why is my picture black? And you figure out they never even turned their TV set on. Yeah those are good calls.
But you learn everyday. You just never know who is on the other end and what their problem is all about!

My grandson was here with his Mommy last week and we had a fun filled two hours. His little hands are everywhere now. We had a veggie tray and some grapes and he loves gapes, however he doesnt love the "red" grapes to much...lol You should've seen his face when he bit into a tomato. LOL

!!!

From my son I havent hear dor month's and all I know about him I hear from other's. Supposedly he left the state and moved to Colorado, but like I said..I don't know. I only know that he not want to talk to me, and I leave it at that!

I hope that I am able to write more soon sometime

Blessings to all

Andrea

Playing piano , originally uploaded by missynwatts.

Our little piano man! Dad looks like he doesn't have his glasses on!!!

                Ladybug's Boo Boo

Ashley was off today, so we took Drama Queen, Spiderman, and Ladybug to Chuckie Cheese's for a couple of hours of fun.  We all had a blast, the kids played games and rode the little rides, and we had lunch.  They were so excited to be there, as soon as we arrived Ladybug had to get down and dance, and Spiderman couldn't wait to play the games, he's getting quite good at them.  Phillip, Beth, and the little ones are leaving for the beach tomorrow and will be gone for a week, so we enjoyed the time spent with the grandbabies before they leave for vacation.

   Spiderman and Chuckie Cheese

                   I bopped it!

       Ladybug, the Dancing Queen!

Watch out Jeff Gordon, Drama Queen's behind the wheel!

Even though Drama Queen is growing up, she still enjoys going to Chuckie Cheese's.  In fact, it was her idea.  She loves getting the tickets from the games and getting a prize with them.  I love it that she still has a lot of little girl left in her, I don't want her growing up too fast! 

My favorite pasttime is spending time with my family, and today was so much fun,  I feel so blessed!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Love, Velvia

This pic just tickles my fancy. (Incase your eyesight is as bad as mine the inscriptions knitted into the jumpers are 'PUNKS NOT DEAD' and "THUG FOR LIFE' )

Over the past week a group of friends were discussing knitting...not just any knitting.....but those wonderful bright garrish ...normally acrylic articles of knitwear that some of the older generation knit so lovingly for our kids. 

Just what do you do with them?

 Frame it and keep it for the sentimental value......after all....granny won't be around forever.

 Take a photo of your little darling wearing this wonderful made-with-love garment and present it to granny for her b'day or Christmas. (Then accidently place it in the very back of the wardrobe so that by the time you find it again it is far too small to fit)

 If it is for an older child add to the dress up box (though not sure what to do if this becomes the little darling's favourite item of clothing and he/she refuses to leave the house unless he/she is wearing it,)

Keep it for playcentre days (after all...the washable-paint -that -never-washes-out will never be noticable on such a bright garment)

Keep it for when you take your little darling out to parades, malls, festivals and other such gatherings where there are huge crowds.....the little darling will be very easy to keep track of and to find if they he/she gets lost.

Start a family tradition. Wrap it in playcentre artwork and gift it to the next family baby with a lovely wee note about how granny knitted it and you are passing on the family heirloom.

Of course for those who don't hold onto sentimentality it is very easy. Just drop off at the nearest op shop or charity collection bin and Bob's your uncle :-)

Luckily for my wonderful little (and not so little ) darlings (yes, I do have some.) They are spared being dressed in garrish bright gears lovingly made by yours truely. This .granny just doesn't have time to knit for them. Someone forgot to tell the big kids that they weren't meant to be providing little darlings for me while I was still having babies of my own ....or maybe that  is the plan....lets have them young so mum is too busy with her babies to knit ugly garrish clothing that we absolutely hate and don't want. I can just hear them breathing a sigh of relief as they head into the nearest Pumpkin Patch Store. :-D  :-D

While Nat was digging and mixing cement, I managed to assemble the little doodads for the mailbox - the red flag, the lock tabs and the two little handles (we bought a front and back door mailbox). I'm very good at assembling things - all that Ikea furniture you buy when you're single!! At least it took 20 minutes off of Nat's time and I was feeling so guilty that I couldn't help in any other way.

This was not exactly what we had planned for today, but we had to get the mailbox back up before delivery resumed tomorrow. The deed is done and hopefully we can get caught up on what we had originally planned two days ago!! So much for going to our first Friendship Festival.  We'll have to try next year.

Susan and the kids were suppose to come by today before they leave for Florida on Friday, but they never made it. I have to assume she's doing a thousand things to get ready before they leave and never had time to head over this way. It's just as well, as we wouldn't have been much company - what with the mailbox and all. Hopefully they'll make it by before they leave, as Papa Nat and Nana need to squeeze and hug the kids before they depart for a couple of weeks. Felicia should enjoy taking her own pictures this time around using the new camera she received for graduation.

Tonight Nat's gone to Lucas' baseball game on his own. I'm in one of those "pissed off" moods (leftover from yesterday) and thought it best I stay away. I suppose I should have gone - to keep Nat company and Lucas always perks me up whenever I see him - but too late now, that ship has sailed. Otherwise, Nat's already left!!

I just spent an entire week in lower sasnak visiting with my daughter and her family, just grown by one with the addition of my beautiful granddaughter born June 2.

I have one of each now, so they may quit, thanks![gallery]

It was heavenly. And fun. And yes, I was evil! It is what grandparenting is all about! Holding them constantly so that after you leave, they are cranky if they're not held. Buying them toys on a whim. Handing them back to their parents when they begin to fuss or 'smell suspiciously' and walk away.

I miss them already. I think it's time for Ellen's first visit to Grandma's. Don't you think?

Babies-R-Us awaits!

So finally this last week I made each of the grand daughters a loom made out of cardboard, gathered some yarn for them to cut up and 3 of the 4 have started their weaving.

Here's what the loom looks like:

Wrapping it with yarn

Some weaving being done:

Weaving completed, but before tying it off.

I'll take a pic of one all tied off and post soon!

  Wow, I am behind. I'm sorry. There as been a lot going on.

   On July 4th, my oldest daughter & my son-in-law renewed their vows. I was asked to take pictures.
My daughter & oldest granddaughter getting ready:

Here's photo of my oldest grandson watching his parents light the unity candle:
The customary ring shot. The second one is after the toast. Since my daughter is pregnant [remember they are already married..this was their vow renewal!], they had to drink grape juice!

My redheaded granddaughter laughing at talking at the reception. The 2nd picture is my oldest granddaughter outside of the church.

Hope I made you smile. Until next time...