Piece of the Puzzle

Thanksgiving was great, the weather was great, the food was great and the whole family being together was great. This was the first holiday Lamont spent with us and so it was a special time for all of us. I think he got a little bored here in Baton Rouge since it rained the last few days while he was here. We shopped both of those days. On Friday we went downtown to listen to a band and dance. Saturday we took him tailgating at LSU and Sunday I took him to the western store to buy cowboy boots. We had some fantastic talks. When he got home he thanked me for being patient the past 14 years. That meant so much to me. I can see this will be a permanent thing and I just never dreamed it would be like this. God has answered this prayer for me in ways I never thought possible. One day we were at the health club and we were doing some exercises together. As I looked in the mirror and saw the 2 of us together I just thought it was the most surreal thing ever. Never did I imagine he would be at the club with me let alone sharing an exercise together. It is just the most awesome thing. I cannot even begin to tell you how content I feel with all of this. It is like I have had a puzzle piece missing and it has been found and now we are a complete picture.

Pictures

My mom in the teal, Emily Jane in the middle and JoAnne in the red, they are all sisters! This is Chamberlain, SD, it isn't my home town but I have to go by it and it was pretty so I took a picture.

This is Alicia and her new husband Andrew. Aren't they cute?

Sorry...

I am sorry I didn't post right after the wedding. I totally forgot! Anyways, the nasty texts went on for the rest of the week, there were texts telling us that she won't be around after the wedding, that I should go back to my "hick" town. Mom tried reasoning with her but everytime she called she yelled at mom and then would have cell phone problems and then all of a sudden on Thursday Cammy and I got texts from Brenda saying she is sorry for everything. WHAT??
So now everyone is suppose to be ok..it is hard to turn that switch off. Mom and I prayed for our attitudes. Everyone was on edge and apprehensive. Mom, stepdad and myself went to the rehearsal dinner and Brenda was her sweet self and everything went well. Saturday Brenda comes by the hotel and gives Paula (older sis) a card apologizing for everything. Paula doesn't text. We arrive at the wedding and Brenda makes sure Paula has a corsage and all was good. After Brenda apologized I suggested we talk but she didn't want to have anything to do with that. She said she didn't want me to shame her, so I said never mind. Brenda has had a very traumatic life, as a teen ager she had 2 abortions, that will mess anyone up. She had a 4 year old daughter that drowned and her ex in laws have blamed her for that for over 20 years, then her 18 year old son was killed in a car accident. She is divorced from the father of her children. Mom and I have talked about this situation many times and we all agree she is slowly killing herself. Everyone in the family has told her she needs help but she just gets angry. She has been on crack, presently smokes dope and drinks every evening. She is a sad sad person.

Hey Ya'll..

I am sitting on a bed in a hotel room in Sioux City, Iowa. I have been driving all day and decided this was as far as I was going to get. The fall foliage has been awesome but later today it started to rain and so I thought it was time for me to quit for the day.
My day started bad. Last night my niece called to tell me my younger sister was causing alot of trouble. It is her daughter's wedding and she thinks she can dictate who comes to the wedding and who does not. My younger sister and my older sister having been fueding for many many years. I am not sure anyone knows the whys or whatfors but they haven't spoken for along time. So my younger sister thinks my older sister is coming to the wedding to upset her, she also thinks her ex husband is going to hurt her at the wedding. Doesn't this sound like Conspiracy Theory? Wasn't he a little nuts? Welcome to my world....
So I was on the phone all morning while driving listening to all the drama. At what point does a grown woman realize IT ISN'T HER WEDDING? Sheesh..

On the road again..

Well, Sunday I will be hitting the road for South Dak. again. There is a wedding that my mother and stepfather want to attend and I said I would take them. I kind of want to go to the wedding although there seems to be much drama around this one that I am not looking forward to the uncomfortableness around some people. What a blessing family is..
I have been told that there is snow up there. It is in the 80's here in Baton Rouge and so it is very hard to pack for snow when you are in shorts and flip flops. Can I get an Amen?
Later.....

God is sooo good!

This young man I gave up for adoption is 38 years old. I have prayed for him for almost that many years. I have prayed that I would get to know him, that he would get to know the sons I was able to raise and that he would feel a connection with us. When I first met him 14 years ago it was a very scarey time and he seemed to be uninterested in me or my family. We parted ways but I kept tabs on him he had no desire to speak to me. Finally, these last few years he has slowly come around. Last weekend he was invited to the wedding by the bride and accepted that invitation. I was in shock. At one point during the week before he arrived I had a panic attack, worrying about what he would think of us. There was so much riding on this visit. I wanted so much from just one weekend. I prayed and prayed and begged God to make this a life changing weekend. God has done was I asked and more. Friday night Lamont arrived and we took him to eat, Natalie and her girlfriends took him out for partying. Saturday he was able to meet the boys and everything was perfect. The kids played soccer at the park, the etouffee was delicious, everyone got along, no drama, Sunday the wedding was so much fun no one wanted to leave. Lamont has written to me that he feels a connection with us and wants to fit in and I am on cloud 9.

Big Surprise!

As the wedding got closer Natalie (Lucas' fiance) decided along with my suggestion to invite Lamont to the wedding, I told her he won't come but being the sweet person that she is did it anyway. Lo and behold he has said yes. I am so in shock and excited. He will get to meet Gabe and Lucas and vice versa. I get to take a picture of all 3 of them together. I get to cook for him and have him in my home. He gets to see me in my element. I haven't been able to get a good night's sleep since he said he might make it. I am just in shock...did I already say that?
I will post a picture the minute I get one. Please be praying he won't think we are a bunch of hicks or hillbillies.
I am making crawfish etouffee for 30, I may need prayers for that too. tee hee. I have never cooked by myself for that many. Etouffee is quite easy so I think I can do it especially if no one is here to distract me.
We are having a play day at the park the day before the wedding so everyone will be able to strut their stuff and the old people will just be stiff and sore. :-)

A busy October

We have a very busy October coming up. Lucas and Natalie are marrying on October 4. We are so looking forward to meeting her family. They are from Philadelphia. Her mom is Vietnamese and her dad is American. Natalie is a lovely young lady and truly committed to Lucas. October 24th my niece in Mitchell, SD is getting married. I have volunteered to drive up and pick up my mom and step dad and take them to the wedding. I am looking forward to that trip.

I forgot to post pictures about my finished bathroom so here they are, didnt Stanley do a fantastic job?

Adin at 10 months

Adin is such a little delight. He is still cuddly and a very happy baby. He loves peek a boo and patty cake. The day after the party he found the yellow balloons and wanted to peek a boo with them. Of course I could not resist pictures.

Asher turns 3!

Sorry it has been so long since my last post. Sometimes I don't know where the time goes. Last weekend we went to north Louisiana for Asher's 3rd birthday. It has become a tradition that I get to go and pickup the birthday cake for the birthday boy. This time Asher tagged along to pick it up and he was very very excited. Asking constantly the night before "When are we going to get my birfday cake?" So off we go...I took pictures of the big adventure. He had a shirt that had the number 3 on it and was very proud of it.

Everytime I took his picture he would say "Mimi take a picture wif my tongue hanging out!" So of course I had to do that.

This was Asher's reaction when he saw his birthday cake, he turned around and told a complete stranger that that was HIS birthday cake. After we got it home, he proceeded to constantly touch it and lick the frosting off of his fingers. He couldn't resist and ate the "e" out of his name on the cake.

Next we pick up the balloons. Yellow is Asher's favorite color so orders "3 lellow bawwoons!" It took the guy a couple of times before he understood what he was saying and then he couldn't even repeat what Asher had said. There is that tongue again.

Mom, Asher and tongue!

Slippin' and Slidin'

The weeks I have Wesley and his friend Hayden have been wonderful. There are days they want to just stay here and and play with the legos that I saved from when Gabe was young. There are times when I don't hear from them. They go in the back room and they have the portable DVD player playing a movie and the TV with cartoons on and they are busy building something with the legos. Since they want to stay home it keeps me off the roads and I have gotten several projects done in my house. One was the clean and polish my granite countertops. Now they are clean and shiney. WOO HOO! Another one was to paint the new bathroom and I am almost finished with that then the mirror and light fixture can be hung along with the pictures I have purchased.

Some days we go to Foxy's to swim and that is always an adventure and tiring. Yesterday we decided to do the slip and slide.

Video Games

This is your backside playing video games.

This is your frontside playing video games.

Need I say more?

The bathroom so far

This is the shower, I wanted to do a seamless shower but it costs $2250 so I guess it will just be a regular shower.Here is the sink, a very large mirror will go over this along with a really cool light fixture. I am really getting excited about my new bathroom. I am thinking of painting the sheetrock a burnt orange. What do ya'll think?

Home at last..

I made it home! The inside of the house is convered with a layer of fine dust. Hubby says it is cuz he has been working, obviously not housework tho. Sigh....So the next few days will be spent catching up with the housecleaning and stocking the frig. That's right..he didn't bother to get groceries either. The milk had been in there since I left and boy did it stink! There were things in there growing mold so first on the agenda today was to clean the frig. I want to start a group that we all clean each other's house if one is out of town unless my husband is the only one that does this. I cleaned before I left town and I am not sure why I did that.

All is good with the parents. I will be going back up there in October due to the fact that my sister's daughter is getting married and someone needs to take them to that wedding. It is a 3 hour drive and I don't trust my stepdad to drive safely.

Before getting back to Baton Rouge I went to north La. to visit the grandsons. I was able to take them to their swim lessons. Mark has improved alot. I love taking the boys swimming.

The business of caretaking..

Sorry about the long delay in postings. I have been a little busy with this caretaking business. Ha! Life in Gettysburg can get real dull so I really have no excuse to not post just didn't feel like it I guess. Mom is doing ok. Although she wanted to go to the hospital today and things started to deteriate at that point. My step dad said a few hurtful things to me and now all I want to do is run away. Mom was dehydrated and so they hooked her up to a IV and a few hours later sent her home. My first plans were to go home this weekend but mom wanted me to stay for a special event at her church next Saturday (the 30th) so I am staying until the 1st. I am homesick for grandchildren, Bella, my own bed and of course hubby. Also things like going to the gym, sushi, visiting with a girlfriend at the local pub and all of that normal life I have in Baton Rouge. When I come home to Gettysburg I have a few friends that I look up but as small as this town is these few friends have a life and are busy so they have not had much time for me. The more I live in the south the more I see the difference in the lives of these people and the people that live down south. If I had a friend that came to town I would call on her/him often, see if there is anything I could do, ask if he/she wanted to go for coffee, drink, coke or whatever and try my best to listen to their grievances. All I have gotten from these few friends is "I will call you to get a beer" or "We should go get coffee" then when I pin them down to a time they are busy with parties, cleaning, or whatever. I am feeling a little lonely, taken for granted and homesick. Sorry for the whining.

By the way...

For my one reader...I am heading to South Dakota on Friday. Yes, I am driving. I am meeting a girlfriend in St. Louis for some R & R first. My mom had knee replacement surgery yesterday (she is getting a new part every year now. ) I am going to help get her up and going. I will blog while up there and hopefully get some pictures uploaded. While I am gone Stanley will be tiling. YIPPEE! Maybe it will be done by the time I get back home which should be the first of June.

Things that I love..

I love Adin's fat little thighs and his wonderful giggle.

I love the way Asher wrinkles up his face when he is telling you something.


And I especially love the way Mark is a thinker and will one day a really awesome adult for God.

Remodeling

The shower floor.

Naked wall












Stanley worked hard on these pipes.

I finally talked Stanley into redoing a bathroom. I should have taken a picture of before but I forgot so I will describe it. When we added onto our house we put a bathroom next to the laundry room. For along time it was a storage area and then we had an idea...let's make it a place to relax. We found a very large jacuzzi tub. Picture a hot tub but a little smaller. It is not a tub that is self-contained. If you want to use it you have to fill it up each time. No filter, just a big ole tub with jets. It would take about 30 minutes to fill up. Also in this "relaxing" bathroom was a counter and sink and a mirror. No toilet. It was where I did my hair and makeup and that was about it. The tile was a very shiney hunter green. Remember that color?? We put up wall-paper and it really looked nice for a little while. We (maybe just me) plan on updating the other bathrooms soon and I was thinking if we converted this bathroom into a useful one then when we do the other bathrooms we will have another toilet. Makes sense to me. Stanley gutted the bathroom in no time and could just not part with the tub. So it is sitting in my backyard and he says he is going to make it into a hot tub. Now, we didn't use this tub while it was inside of our home why would we use it outside?
He has gotten the piping where it should be, put up the board for tile and now the fun is about to start....the tile. Thanks to Marci it is already picked out and ready to order. Whoo Hoo!

A puppies' work is never done...

Bella felt the need to start planting her flowers early this year.

First thing you have to do is to clean out the old soil.









Bella didn't realize how deep this pot was and wondered if she would have enough soil to fill it back up.

The pesky critters have to be dealt with immediately. (This is not a real snake)

Random things........

I had the priviledge of hanging out with Mark, Asher and Adin last week. They continue to delight me in many ways. They are getting along better and therefore easier to do things with. The second day I was there the weather was warm and they went outside to ride their battery operated vehicles. Gabe is sort of Tool Time Tim sort of guy and souped up the battery power in these vehicles and they have a blast riding them around the property.

We donated a yellow lab (Charlie) to them since he seemed unhappy in our small yard compared to their property that also has water. Charlie is a very active dog and most of the time he is called "No Charlie, Stop Charlie, Quit Charlie" and Asher calls him "Carlie dog". Charlie doesn't realize how big he actually is and so therefore likes to play with Gabe and Marci's chihauhaus (not sure if I spelled that right). Niko is trying to explain to Charlie that he is way too big to play with her. Of course she is a bit of a Diva and playing is not really part of her make-up, she only wants to sit on a person of her choosing's lap and be petted.

Won't this be a fantastic picture to show his girlfriend?

You would not beleive the giggling that went on trying to take this picture.

Is this just cute or what?

Skiing with Lamont

Wow, what an awesome trip skiing with my birth son of 37 years. It has been 13 years since I last saw him and he has been a tad angry with me for most of those years. He now seems to be ok with me but not sure why he wants to get to know me but that is ok as long as he wants to. I am hoping he will figure it out eventually and realize we are a cool family and want him to be a part of it however he wants.

We skied Thursday night, Friday all day, Saturday all day and Sunday all day. Let me just tell you, at 57 that is no easy task. The body was screaming for rest on Sunday but Lamont was a slave driver that wouldn't let up so off we went. Once I got on the slopes I was good to go and tried not to slow Lamont down. He decided to make a jump and I wanted to capture it on camera. First time I was in the wrong place, communication is not easy, second time I was in the perfect place to get a picture. He jumped and as I snapped the picture the camera slipped and I did not get it, at that very second Lamont landed and fell. First thing he asks was "Did you get it?" I hated to tell him no but couldn't lie. I think he let out a groan knowing he won't be able to do it again. He asked how high he was and I said very high. What is it with guys?

I met his girlfriend, Brenda, she is really cool. We were looking at the grandsons and she said "Lamont those are your nephews." He said "No". I said "Biologically yes." She said "Yes Lamont." Too cool. We went out for sushi one night and one night they cooked for me. I felt honored to be invited to their home. I was able to meet their babies (dogs) and that meant alot to me.

I asked Lamont to please not wait 13 years to let me see him again and he said he wouldn't. They expressed an interest in New Orleans so maybe they will be here for the Jazz Fest. I know I won't have a relationship like my boys but at least it is a start and it is something.

As he was heading down a slope I thought to myself, I don't know that kid but I love him very much. It is such a strange situation. I know him but don't know him, his mannerisms remind me of my family members, he looks like my family members, DNA is a strange thing.

New Baby

Hubby is turning 60 this month, yea I know that is way too old for me but what the heck I almost got him trained I am keeping him. So for his birthday I bought him a registered Beagle puppy. I brought her home yesterday and Stanley said "What is that?" Uh...... a puppy? She ran right up to him and he was smitten with her. We have named her Bella Jo and will shorten that to BJ in honor of Bjarne, the teen-age exchanged student from Germany living across the street from us. I forgot how beagles howel and boy can she howel. Do their voices change at puberty? Will it get deeper and not so high pitched? Hope so. She is sweet and very compliant and we are having fun with her.

P.S. I am leaving on the 15th for the ski trip, thank you very much for your prayers. I know it is going to be good, he is being very nice about the whole thing and this is a first since he has been a bit rude in the past and I was about to give up.

Nashville or Bust

So far 2009 has been busy for me, how about all of you out there? I got home from my road trip with BFF on Saturday and it was good to sleep in my own bed. I missed my pillow and my bed and my clean house. We had a great time hanging in Nashville. We did not get to see the Grand Old Opry due to the fact that it is only closed 3 days a year and New Year's day was one of them. When we left Ohio it was snowing and the roads were slippery, it was a little nerve-wrecking. As we were coming to a stop on the interstate due to the fact that there were many cars up there stopped there was a car behind us that was trying to stop and he maneuvered his car to the side of us, scraped the guardrail and then very gracefully slid into traffic never to be seen again. I was amazed but I bet he was cussing about the damage on his very nice Audi.
We had many hours of girl talk. Nashville was fun, we bought matching cowboy boots, walked around in them breaking them in and spent New Year's evening at the Wildhorse Saloon listening to a really cool band. BFF learned to line dance, I chose to sit and watch. Next up is my ski trip and I am very very nervous about it.