Roll Tide Baby!

Don't forget to watch . . .

Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Clemson Tigers

tonight 8/7 central time on ESPN & ABC

I probably won't be able to watch much of the game because I really get sick by 7:00/8:00, but I'll still be routing for them in bed. lol! After Doug advised me to cancel our fish fry today, he turned around and called his cousin Henry to come over. So, Henry, Peggy and Millard will be here to cheer on Alabama with Doug. I asked Doug, why he wanted me to cancel if he was still going to have people over? He told me, these people don't care if I go to bed or not. Well, okay.

There's a big Julio Jones hype around here. With him being a Freshman and Saban starting him, it will be interesting to see how well he does. I've seen video of him during practice plays and that boy can run, let's just hope he can keep up the good work. What are your predictions in today's game? My veins run crimson, so I have to pick Bama. I know Clemson is a great team to play against. Bama's really going to have to pull out all their tricks and try to win this game tonight.

Mom Update

Peggy and Millard gave me a break this week with Katie, while I've been sick. Thursday morning, I was feeling pretty good so I dared going to the grocery store. I began getting a little sick right when it was time to check out. I made it home to get a bite to eat and rest. I have to learn to take frequent snack breaks or I really begin to get yucky.

I haven't seen Mom in a few days, so I felt good enough to visit her for a little bit. She is still improving every day. Of course, she says that she doesn't see it but I know I do. Her therapist, Cal, came while I was there. Man, Cal worked Mom to death. He walked her back and forth between her chair in the Living Room and the Bathroom about 3 times. He worked on her leg and foot strength exercises. Lastly, he had her stand, holding on to her walker, for several hours. She stood straight up, but as soon as she began slumping, he got her attention and she straightened back up. She did great!

New Clothes Line

Smartie Britches sent me an message that they've got their Fall clothes online now. I checked them out and they are so cute. If you've never experienced Smartie Britches clothing for little girls, I love them. Katie has a few SB outfits and they wear so good on her. You'll have to check them out.

Political Point

I have to say that I was surprised to see McCain naming a woman to run for V.P. on the Republican ticket. I just knew he would pick Mitt Romney or Joe Liberman to run with him. I don't know much about Mrs. Sarah Palin, but I was impressed by her speech. What do you know there are Republican Conservative women out there on the political circuit that are in a somewhat healthy marriage and Pro-Life. Someone whose a hockey Mom, an NRA member and seems to really be truly interested in the wealthfare of the people. I'm interested to find out more about her in the couple of months.

Hi

Hi Y'all!

I know some of y'all have been concerned about me and that's why I'm writing to you today. As you know, we are expecting a baby and know one really know how far along I really am, not even me. lol! A week ago Monday, an ultrasound measured the baby as being 6 weeks and 4 days. He is doing great and I could see his heartbeat just perfect. From that time to present, I've really been very very sick, morning, noon and night. Poor Katie, I feel so bad for her because for #1 her playmate can't play with her right now and #2 she's worried about me. She asks me everyday, "are you sick again Mom?" Poor baby!

Yesterday, we went for our weekly check up. The nurse was concerned that I might be a little anemic because I was a little fainty that morning. Lastly, we got to see the baby again. The nurse was as surprised as we were when we all saw arms and legs. Yes, the baby has arms and legs now. He measured to be 8 weeks and 4 days along. The baby is still doing great and the nurse said that Dr. Long will be dismissing us in a couple of weeks. I and the baby will be turned over to an OB/GYN in Huntsville.

As Doug and I went to pick up Katie from her grandparents house, she came running out to greet us. The first thing out of her mouth was "Mom are you feeling better?" I felt so bad for her. I told her that I was and she responded, "good". On the way home, Doug wanted to go through town and see if there was a movie he had to rent. Doug asked Katie if she was ready to go to ballet. She got all excited. She told Doug, "we have to take Mommy home, so she can get some rest first".

At home, I got Katie ready for ballet and she wouldn't go to the bathroom before leaving. Well, I didn't feel like arguing with her, so I let her leave with Doug without going to the potty. As soon as they left, I hit the couch to rest. There's something about riding forever in the car that makes me so tired and sore. I was surprised seeing Doug and Katie coming home early. I walked outside to find out why they were back so early. Doug was getting Katie out of the car seat, while I was asking him. Then, I saw her striped down to her pull-up. That's when Doug told me that she wasn't up in class for 15 minutes when Mrs. Anna brought Katie back down to have her pants changed. Ugh! Doug said her clothes were soaked and I didn't put another outfit in her bag. I told him that even if I did have another leotard, I didn't have any more pink tights. Ugh! He was so upset with her. Of course, I felt bad again because I wasn't there to handle the situation. Doug and I have discussed and I think we've decided that this month will be the last month for ballet lessons. With me being in such bad shape, we might need to stop the ballet for this year. Hopefully next year, she'll be potty trained and I'll be able to take her to her classes. lol! I'm afraid that I'm also going to have to stop my volunteer work with the church as well. I did pretty good last Sunday, so that's why I haven't given my leaders any notice yet. I have a feeling, I'm going to have to call them. I feel bad because we're having bad luck with volunteers in the Children's Ministry. There are so many children in the ministry and not enough volunteers. I know Truett, children's ministry leader, doesn't need someone that might have trouble getting to class on time as well.

Please keep me in your prayers. I'm still hoping I won't have sickness for very long during this pregnancy. Have a great weekend and God Bless!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Happy 74th Birthday Dad!

Peggy and Millard kept Katie, while I went to the doctor's office to check my Progesterone. I haven't been to the doctor's office in Huntsville in 3 years, so I was going strictly on instinct. lol! Plus, I told Doug that I needed another way that's more of a straight shot to and from 565. Well, he told me about Governors Drive. Alright! I love this way much better. Unfortunately, I did get lost. Are you surprised? Yes, I got lost because I became very confused with all the construction work. There had to have been at least 3 blocks of construction work on the hospital. Plus, wow how the hospital has grown in the past 3 years. I finally turned into a parking lot and called Doug. I wasn't too far away. Actually, I turned down a couple of blocks early. I still got to the doctor's office early and was able to walk right on back. The ladies there are so sweet and I missed them. I'm sure they didn't really remember me, but they gave me a very warm welcome. Liz - they answered all my questions. lol! I had questions about certain drugs to take and seafoods not to eat. It's amazing how I've forgotten about most of these things. I won't know my test results until some time today.

Maryann and her family, Susan and her family and our family got together at Mom and Dad's house last night to celebrate his 74th birthday. We got him another Alabama cap because his was looking pretty bad, Sue made him, his favorite peanut clusters and Maryann made him a chocolate cake. Out of all the gifts Dad received, I think his favorite was having Mom back home with him. He kept smiling and asking us girls, "isn't it wonderful?" We all grabbed some bbq or fish for supper.

Are ya ready for the big Game Day next Saturday, Alabama vs. Clemson? Doug and I are having a fish fry that day at our house with the family. I tried to find a cool game day countdown, but this is all I could find. Oh well. The game starts at 7:00 p.m. and that's my down time. Doug was kind of afraid to announce it because he doesn't think I'll make it. I told him that I could be laying down on the couch. lol! Be praying for me.

Roll Tide!

Many Prayers Needed

Prayer Request
As you may know, Emily has been undergoing some lung rejection. Her doctors say this is normal for your body to try to reject a transplant, so she's been undergoing some rejection treatment to solve this problem. Well, apparently the treatments have terrible side effects because she's been in awful pain. Below is a quote from her blog:

I was discharged yesterday and spent my first night home in a while. The doctors felt there was nothing else that could be done and it is just a matter of time for this to resolve itself. Although I love being home I was reluctant to go home only because I knew the pain I would be in. I was of course, put on some pain medicine and Motrin to help with the inflammation and pain. I have to get a nap in the day because I know the nights don't bring much sleep. My pain always gets worse without fail around midnight and continues throughout the night as well as not able to walk (I needed help to the bathroom again. My knees, legs, & ankles can't bare my weight due to the swelling and pain) Anyway, as you might be able to tell I'm struggling emotionally today and feel overwhelmed in many area's of life right now. As much as I ask for your prayers for healing please pray for me/us emotionally. I know God has a plan through all of this but it's just hard to see that this morning and have hope when your body is always hurting and changing.

Please keep her in your prayers that she might be able to get some relief.

Baby News
I received a call yesterday from Dr. Long's office. Well, my Progesterone is doing it again. It's a level 16, which is apparently extremely low. Dr. Long wants me to take 3 Progesterone caplets 3 times a day until my levels come back up to normal. I became very sick by yesterday evening around 6:00 p.m., I'm thinking it's from the Progesterone. I know it can make you very sick and since I have to take 3 now instead of one, I'm sure I'm not going to be able to make any party appearances anytime soon. I've got an appointment for more blood work, including my Progesterone levels for tomorrow. Please keep us in your prayers.

Side Note: I just spoke to Liz and she said level 16 isn't that bad just low. So apparently my doctor is just being extra precautious.

I think this weekend, I need to do a little maternity clothes shopping. I've been trying on my old clothes and I don't have many Summer/Fall clothes that fit. You have to understand, when I found out that I was pregnant with Katie it was in November and cooler weather. Since we are still two months away from cooler weather, I've got to get something to wear other than blue jeans. Ugh!

Ballet Lessons
I wish I had some news to report on this, but Katie isn't talking much about it. I'm guessing that she was so tired by the time it was over that she didn't feel like talking. I don't really know. They prefer the parents to stay in the waiting room until class was over. One mother couldn't stand it and checked in on them, but I didn't get to ask her about them because it was a complete madhouse in the waiting room. I couldn't believe the ballet lessons demand. I have to say the waiting room is way too small to accommodate all the parents and students. Katie is in a pretty big class of approximately 10 students, 3-4 year old little girls. I honestly believe Katie is the youngest in her class, but you couldn't tell her that because she was right in there with them. I had made friends with another Mom, Kim, downstairs. Her little girl, Millie, is 4 years old and in Katie's class. Kim said Millie is short for Amelia. Isn't that a pretty name? Kim has 3 girls all stair steps - 1, 2, and 4. Yikes! She is a brave soul. She automatically made me feel comfortable because she went on about how all of her girls are so full of life and how it's hard to calm them down. I just knew Katie would be the one problem child. Poor Kim had re-enforcements. Her husband came in to check in on her. He was making sure if he needed to pick up the 2 year old, but she was being so good. After class was over, we met up in the dressing room. Millie was talking up a storm about the class and here Katie was quiet and shy. I couldn't believe it. I asked Millie if she knew that Katie was good. She said she didn't pay that much attention to her. Her saying that gave me a sense of relief. At least Katie didn't disturb the class. I asked Katie questions all the way to Mom and Dad's house, but all she would give me was an uh, huh. During supper, she did tell me that she liked her ballet teacher. I asked her if she wanted to go back. She answered "uh, huh". She said that she danced and played. I think next time, I would like to check in on her. I never got to talk to Anna, teacher, because she was bombarded as soon as they came out of class. I thought I could just call before coming next week about the pictures and Katie's enjoyment.

Mom's Home
It was so good to see Mom sitting in her chair in the Living Room yesterday. She said that they got home around 2:00 p.m. Dad was so wound up. As soon as June and Maryann showed up, he left to get groceries and other supplies. I was so proud of Mom. She walked from her chair in the Living Room to the Bathroom with her walker and of course, Maryann and June right beside her in case she fell. I hated that I didn't feel all that great, while visiting with them. I apologized, but Mom said she was glad to see me feeling bad. lol! Katie was so good. She went straight for the back room to play with her toys, while we visited. One time, we all heard Katie screaming and crying. She's gotten to where, she likes to play hide and seek in the closets. Well, the closet in the back room latches shut and she couldn't get out. As soon as June opened the door, Katie came out, her face all red, laughing. She knew what she did the little stinker.

Good News All Around

Our Little One's News
Our doctor's visit went real well. We got to sit down with Dr. Long and talk with him. He was glad to finally meet Katie for the first time. I gave him her 3 year old picture of her with the angel wings. He giggled at it and said the angel wings were perfect. He suggested a group of doctors located at the Huntsville Hospital and another group with Brookwood Medical Center there close to him as my OB/GYN. Meanwhile, he said he would want us to stick with him until my 10th week of pregnancy, this is just for safety precautions. We had a brief discussion about how it's hard to get some people (doctors) on the Progestrone train. I've alone heard so many successful stories because of Progestrone caplets. Dr. Long also mentioned maybe putting me on a type of HCG medicine to secure the pregnancy. He wants me to start on the Progestrone caplets as soon as possible because of my history.

They wanted to do an ultrasound of the baby to see if everything is a-okay. The tech went into telling me that we may not see much, so I won't get too upset. She definitely told me that we probably won't see the heartbeat yet because according to my calendar, it might be too soon. To our surprise, there he was laying peacefully. He looked just like a little baby would look with the big head (after his daddy - Tehe!) and the string of beads for his spine. Guess what? While he was laying there thinking he was alone and resting, I saw his little heartbeating. The tech and I were both surprised and I was so relieved. Why is it? As soon as you see your baby's heartbeat, you automatically become calm and relieved. The tech measured the baby and said he is measuring to be 6 weeks and 4 days old. Now, I know sometimes these machines can be off a little bit. The tech seems to think that I'm closer to being 7 weeks rather than 6 weeks 1 days, like I first thought.

The nurse and I didn't cross paths again after the lab work and we both forgot about the prescriptions. Ugh! I didn't remember until we were well on our way home, so I called the office and left a message with the nurse. I asked her to call in my prenatal vitamins, but when we stopped by Walmart they had not received the phone call yet. I guess I'll check on things before we head for ballet lessons this afternoon. I've been taking Katie's vitamins plus approximately 24 fl. oz. of orange juice a day until I get a hold of some prenatal vitamins.

Allison - I'm sorry I haven't called or emailed for the girls to get together. I think you might understand that I feel really crummy. I don't know if I feel yucky because of the Gastritis or just being pregnant. Last night, I even tried to get everything done by 8:30 because I've noticed that I get really sick by 9:30. Nope, I started getting really sick by 8:00 last night. I guess the baby isn't going by the central time zone. lol! The nurse suggested halfing the morning sickness pills that I have and taking them during the day. These pills are really good because if you take a whole one, it will knock you out. For the past couple of days, I've been taking them before I go to bed and I've been able to sleep so good now. Ahh! She also said that if my sickness gets really bad, they would be glad to call me in a prescription for the pill that you put under your tongue. I'm sorry, I don't remember the name and I'm afraid to guess. I loved this pill while I was pregnant with Katie. As soon as I began feeling yucky, I'd take one of those pills and the feeling would go away pretty quickly. Yay! I'm going to try taking 1/2 of these pills to see if I'll feel a little bit better. Right now, I just want to stick close to home or bathroom. I know after all the riding yesterday wore me completely out and I was so sore.

Katie's Ballet Lessons
Katie is so excited about ballet this afternoon. I read over the class rules and regulations book last night. I have to say, I was a little surprised in all the different rules. I guess I can understand that these rules are for children of all ages 3+ and if there were no rules, the world would be in complete chaos. Don't expect me to take any pictures of Katie, while she is dancing in the studio. I have to ask permission from her teacher before I do so. I think I'll wait until next week, if I can take a picture of Katie in the studio.

Good News
As we were on our way home from the doctor's office yesterday, I got a very important and exciting phone call. Dad called me to let me know that Mom will be coming home today. Woo Hoo! Isn't that exciting news? I know she'll be so relieved knowing she'll be home by this afternoon. Last night, he and Maryann made a trip or two back and forth between Mom and Dad's house and the Nursing Home. They brought everything home of Mom's that she didn't need today. Dad told me that Pat will be taking his truck to the Nursing Home this evening to pick up Mom's scooter. I told Dad that Katie and I will be over after ballet lessons this evening to visit a little bit. I know Mom would want to see Katie in her leotards.

Thank you again for all the many many prayers and God has absolutely answered everyone in His own way. We really do appreciate and continue to ask you for the prayers.

Yep! I remember now . . .

Yep! I'm pregnant for sure. Oh my gosh! These are the days I don't miss about pregnancy. Yuck! I believe I feel worse today than I have the past few days and I'm sure that the Gastritis isn't helping. I feel so yucky! I'm 6 weeks pregnant today and I don't remember getting the taste bud change and yucky smells this early. I kept telling myself that it's all in my head. Well, my head's not talking things over with my nose nor tongue. I sipped on a little Sprite because Doug said the water at DQ didn't look clear. Don't worry, I haven't had a soda drink since I found out I was PG, but I had to have something to drink. Also don't worry because the Sprite tasted terrible. I might have taken 3 sips and I normally like Sprite, not today. I also love Cheese Puffs, but the puffs I ate this evening wasn't good. I had to eat something for supper, so I made me a good ol' egg and cheese sandwich with Mayo. Nope, it didn't taste the same. Ugh! Then I remembered why I ate only cheese nips and McDonald's french fries for most my pregnancy with Katie. As I was getting Katie's chicken nuggets ready in the microwave, oh my gosh, the smell. I could literally feel myself turning green as I had to turn the chicken over and microwave it some more. I nearly lost it when I finally got them out to give to her. Oh and another thing, I've found out that I can't stay up late like I normally do. By 9:30 at night, I'm not feeling good at all. I guess Katie and I are going to have to change our schedule around.

I was asking Doug, what am I going to do through this pregnancy? It was easy when I was pregnant with Katie, after work, we'd stop by a restaurant on the way home to eat supper. Now, I have a 3 year old to take care of and I have to prepare supper just about every night. What am I going to do on the days, I don't feel like it or can't stand the smell?

Baby's Progress
This week we have major developments with our baby. He's mouth, nose and ears are beginning to take shape. On his oversized head, there are dark spots for his eyes and nostrils. His little hands and legs are protruding from his body. His heart is beating about 100 to 160 times a minute. This is one thing I'm looking forward to seeing during tomorrow's doctor's visit. I think I might be able to breathe a little better knowing the baby's alright. Please keep us in your prayers.

Colorado Move
For those of you that don't know, we are not moving to Colorado and good reason now. Tehe! There was no possible way, we could have been able to make it out there based on the per diam the company was offering. We did the numbers over and over and it wasn't making out what we needed. Doug filed an exemption, but the company couldn't met our needs and that's alright. They did all, they could do. Fortunately, there are not burned bridges at least that is what Doug said. It just goes to show, God knows what He's doing. A few days after deciding not to go to Colorado, we found out we were expecting a baby.

After Doug told me the bad news about the Colorado trip, I received a call from our real estate agent about the beach condo reservation. She was making sure that we wanted to cancel the reservation. It seems like everything is falling into place the way God wants it.

Visit With Mom
Peggy, Millard, Doug, Katie and myself went by the Nursing Home today and visited Mom for about an hour or so. I was so proud of her. Right off the bat, she wanted to sit up in bed. I helped her up and she stayed up the whole time. We kept asking her if she felt alright. She kept insisting that she felt fine and wasn't tired at all. Peggy, Mom, Flo (Mom's roommate) and myself stayed in the room to visit, while Millard, Doug and Katie walked around the property. We had a really good visit. Everyone that came into Mom and Flo's room, Mom would tell them that I was the daughter that's expecting a baby. As we were about to leave, Doug helped Mom into her scooter and she walked us to the door. Dad was expected to show up at any time. Sure enough. As soon as we headed for the car, Dad was pulling into the parking lot. He seemed to be in good spirits. Mom's got 11 more days or August 30 before she can come home. Dad told me out of his own mouth that when Mom leaves the Nursing Home in 11 days, it will be for good. He feels confident that she has improved so much that he should be able to take care of her, in the state she is in right now. I'm so happy to hear that because Mom got word about him possibly bringing her back to the Nursing Home after the 11 days and she wasn't too happy about it. That is until Dad told her, he changed his mind after seeing her progress.

Happy 1st Birthday Jake!

Happy Birthday Jake!

We Love You and Hope You Have a Wonderful Birthday Party Tomorrow!

News Around The Mason House

As most of you know, Katie and I went to our medical doctor yesterday. My check up was more of a follow up on my bladder infection a few weeks ago. As you probably remember, I had some blood in my urine and Dr. Lunsford wanted to make sure that it would go away when the infection was gone. I also wanted to address to him about my stomach problems, I thought maybe severe indigestion problems or possible stomach ulcer. Katie needed to go to him for her 3 year old check up.

Katie's check up went great. She cried and begged for a little bit when I told her that we had to go. I talked with her all the way to the doctor's office and promised her that she would have a prize in her backpack, when she was done. Boy, she remembered that because as soon as she was finished, she went straight for the bag and found her new doll and pony. I have to say that she was such a big girl for Dr. Lunsford. What really set it off was when she was told that she wouldn't have any shots this time. The news really made both of our day. Dr. Lunsford said that she is healthy as can be. Her growth and weight was right on the charts as average, which is great. I mentioned to him about her going into ballet this year. Right off the bat, he asked where. When I told him, he told me that his girls (3) are going to the same school this year and the youngest might be in Katie's class.

Katie got a kick watching Dr. Lunsford poking around on me. Sure enough, my stomach was hurting as soon as he mashed around on it. He was pretty sure that I have Gastritis, which means an inflammation or irritation of the stomach lining. Of course, this is probably related to stress I've been under the past year. Ugh! It's amazing how stress for a period of time can really make your body go to pot. He gave me a prescription for Zantac and we are hoping that will solve the problems. I'm trying to exercise ways to manage my stress. For instance, when my mind starts going a million miles per hour, I simply stop, take a deep breath and release. I try to focus on my breathing and nothing else. I've also tried to get my mind off of things by coloring today with Katie. I love to color.

Dr. Lunsford also gave us some exciting news. He did a pregnancy test on me and it's positive. I was in such shock that I couldn't respond right away. I just knew it wasn't true because I took a test last Sunday. My body has been a wreck that I never expected us to actually get pregnant again right away. I've been keeping track and according to my calendar, we are 5 weeks pregnant. According to the pregnancy calendar the baby will be due on April 12, 2009.

I called Dr. Long/ART Program as soon as I got home yesterday. I wanted him to recommend another OB/GYN for me because I will not be going back to Dr. Keller as long as I live. Dr. Long's nurse was very interested in what I had to say about Dr. Keller and she said that they will be taking his name off of their recommendation list. Today, Christy/Dr. Long's nurse, called me back to let me know that Dr. Long would like to put me under his wing once again.

If you don't know, Doug and I went through some fertility problems a few years ago. God lead us to Dr. Long from the ART Program out of Brookwood Medical Center. I was an emotional mess. I really thought God wanted us to adopt a child, instead of wasting our time and money on Infertility drugs. I think I just about lost hope of ever having a child of my own, until Dr. Long restored that hope. After he examined me and we met back up in his office, I was expecting the worst case scenario. I remember to this day when he looked into my eyes and told me that there was no reason why I couldn't have a baby of our own. His nurse called us into the clinic on Halloween day for a procedure and we conceived Katie on All Saint's Day. I'll always credit God for our miracle and I follow it up with the great gift God blessed us with introducing us to Dr. Long. He and his staff took such great care of me and Katie up until I was 10 weeks pregnant. I absolutely hated to leave him, to be trusting to another group of doctors. Now, here we are again. My first appointment is Monday morning and I feel confident that I and our baby will be taken care of once again. Meanwhile, we ask for your prayers. After the lose of our baby last November, I'm pretty scared. I've given this baby over to the Lord and just ask him, if it's alright that we raise him or her like we are Katie. I really need God's strength and understanding. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers for our growing family. God Bless You!

Our Little Pink Ballerina

Can you stand on your tiptoes like this?


She loved posing in front of the camera in her new ballerina outfit

She danced and danced around the Living Room. She told me, she was ready to go to the ballet show. When I told her that we won't go back until next week, she got upset. She told me that she had to go to the ballet show, so she could dance like a ballerina. I tried taking her leotards off, but she wouldn't have it. Needless to say, she's prancing around the house in her leotards. She won't even let me take off the tights. I've been talking to her about her hair. She is so bad about taking her hair down. So far, she is keeping it up.

Rainy Day

Katie was so excited this morning. It didn't take her long before she began asking me where we were going today. I asked her, what she thought we were doing today. She responded, "going to ballet show?" "Uh, huh" I answered her. Her eyes got huge and she began dancing all over the place. Now, I have to back up. For some reason, she thinks the ballet lessons are a show. I've been correcting her, but as of right now she thinks we are just going to a show. She'll figure it out when she's in the studio with her teacher. Lol. We were not suppose to be at the studio until 2:00, but she aggravated me from 10:00 until we finally left. She was full of energy when we walked into the building. It was as if she knew exactly what she was doing and going. Luckily, there were not that many people there. She was all over the place, so I had to get on to her a few times. She had to look at all the pictures of the ballerinas and it was killing her not to touch the balance bars, I guess that's what they call them. I had some paper work to fill out and Katie hated having to sit down in the chair right beside me. I kept threatening her about me walking right out and her not taking any classes. "No Mommy, no Mommy. I want to be a pink ballerina" she begged. While she was sitting beside me, I gave her the lecture about listening to and minding her teacher. I'm sure I'll have to remind her on several occasions. Once I finished the paper work and paid her tuition, Mrs. Willingham invited us to take a look around. She told me where Katie's pre-ballet studio would be and of course, it had to be up a flight of stairs. Ugh! Katie loves to play on stairs. Katie's room is small with mirrors on two walls out of the four. She ran around in there and was ready to go back downstairs. She thought she had classes today and didn't want to leave. "No Mom. I go to ballet show now" she said aggravated. I tried to explain to her that she didn't have classes until next week. I tried to get her excited about going next door to get her pink ballerina outfit. Nope! She wasn't ready. I let her walk around a little more and finally had to make her leave. She was a little upset until we went into the dance store. Every ballet lesson is classified by levels, which is based on age, and every level is color coated. Katie wanted to be a pink ballerina, well she got her wish. She is in level A - Pre-Ballet, 3 year olds, and their color is pink. I got to meet Katie's teacher, which happens to be Mrs. Willingham's daughter. We hit it off right away and began talking about our children. We talked so much that I forgot to ask her her name. Oops! Maybe I'll get a name next week. She was so sweet, I really like her. She has three children from 3 years to about 12 years old. Her 3 year old, Esther (I think) just turned 3 on July 28th. She's kind of afraid to put Esther in Pre-ballet because she's afraid she won't do well. I asked her about Katie and she said it would be a wait and see how she responds. She did stress not to expect a whole lot of ballet skills from Katie in the next few months. She understands the attention span is very short and she did say that if she looses all control of the class, she may read them a storybook at the last few minutes of practice. Katie will go every Tuesday for 45 minutes, so that's a long time to learn ballet. I understood what she was talking about because I know how Katie's attention span is about 30 minutes maximum on one thing. I know that's how she was with swimming lessons this past June. It was also really nice that they had a play room inside the dance store. Katie went off with a few other children and played, while I shopped. Great idea! I had to pull her away long enough to size her up for shoes and leotards. I ended up buying 3 leotards, tights and shoes. I had to get this one leotard, soft pink with rhinestones across the chest. It's really cute. I wanted to get this other pink leotard because it had rhinestones outlining a bow in the back. So cute, but they didn't have her size. Ugh! I asked Katie's teacher, if she needed a tutu. She said it was up to me and Katie. I think we'll hold off until we see how she does this next month.

We stopped by McDonalds to pick up Mom and her roommate, Flo a chocolate milkshake and french fries for a snack this evening. We walked into Mom's room and there she was sitting in her scooter watching TV. She's been watching the Olympics as much as she can until about 7:00 in the evening. I ended up giving Katie Flo's milkshake and fries because she didn't want them. She acted like she wasn't feeling too good today. It wasn't long before Katie wasn't acting like herself. I figured she was just tired because she laid her head down on Mom's pillow and was all curled up on the bed. As I was talking to Mom and another lady that was in the room, I grabbed the sheet to wrap around Katie. That's when I noticed it. Apparently, I did have a stomach virus yesterday because Katiebug had it today. Bless her heart, it was a mess. Mess can't even describe it. I was just praying that Mom nor I would start getting sick from the smell. Yuck! I just knew her outfit was ruined. Thank goodness for "Greased Lightning". Mom's bedding had to be changed and luckily, I had an extra change of clothes in one of Katie's bags. As soon as I helped clean everything and everyone up, I told Mom that I had better get Katie out of there. She wasn't hot, so I knew she didn't have a fever. Still, I felt so bad having her around all these elderly people with weak immune systems. Later tonight, Mom called to check on Katie. Once I told her that she's been laying around watching TV and reading books, she tells me that she got sick soon after supper. Oh, I felt terrible. She quickly reminded me that it was too quick for her to catch what Katie had. I've been hearing that there is a stomach virus going around right now. I know I still don't feel all that great, but I'm pumping Pepto in me.

It's been raining all day, which is what we need the most. I love these type of days ever so often. It's days like today, when I like to open up the windows and take cat naps, while listening to the rain. The temperature stayed around 73 degrees today because of the cool rain. Really nice! I'm really hoping not to see anymore three digit temperatures the rest of the year. In fact, it would be great to not see anymore 90's this year.

Issac Hayes Passes Away Sunday!

I heard some more troubling news this morning on Fox and Friends. Not only are we probably going to war with Russia to help a small country from a big bully, but Issac Hayes dies at the age of 65. According to Time Magazine, Hayes' wife found him unconscious on the floor by his treadmill in their Memphis home on Sunday. He was known for his music writings and starring in movies. If you've never heard of Issac Hayes, you would probably know him from the 70's (I believe) song "Shaft". I hear this song quite a bit on commercials to this day.

I believe I've caught a viral bug from this past weekend, I've been a little under the weather. I hope it's just a 24 hour thing. I had planned to visit Mom today because I didn't visit her this past weekend. Unfortunately, we ended up laying around the house today and watched Barbie movies. Oh boy! I got to watch two new Barbie movies this morning. Doug bought Katie "Barbie in Fairytopia". Peggy and Millard bought her "Barbie in the Magic of Pegasus", I'm pretty sure that's the correct names. I have a hard time getting the names correct. We did watch a movie that we TiVo'd yesterday, "Daddy Day Camp". Oh, I recommend this movie to anyone. It is so cute and funny, Katie couldn't keep her eyes off of it. She'd laugh and tell me that those boys were so funny. I remember the first movie, "Daddy Day Care" with Eddie Murphy. It was funny as well, but anything with Eddie Murphy makes me a little nervous around Katie (language). This time Cuba Gooding Jr. is the main Daddy to start up a camp for his little boy.

Lord willing, I'll be able to take Katie by the ballet school tomorrow. Class registration is all this week from 2:00-6:00. Katie is so excited! I told her how Mom needs to feel better, so she can sign up for ballet. She was singing, "I'm goin' dance ballet and be a ballerina". I may just have to suck it up and go. Her classes start next week. I hope she enjoys it, but if not at least we tried it out. Right?

I spoke to Mom earlier and she said that she's got 14 more days before she can be checked out of the Nursing Home. Bless her heart, she wants to come home so bad that it's hard not to cry with her. You feel so bad for her and feel her pain right along with her. She said it's going to be so hard for her to leave the Nursing Home and then have to come back either later that night or the next morning. I understand Dad's point as well. He wants to make sure he can handle her physically before he takes her out of the NH for good. She told me, they've been practicing getting in and out of the Jeep (Dad's truck) today. She told me that she just wanted to stay seated in her truck and tell him "let's go". This has been very hard on her. She needs your prayers that God will get her through this very tough time.

I'm sure you've always heard the question, "which came first the chicken or the egg?" I've always thought it was the chicken just because God spoke everything into existence and why would there be an egg before a chicken. That's just my thoughts about it. C.S. Lewis gives us a whole new perspective on the subject. He says and I quote "It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: It would be a jolly sight harder for it to learn to while remaining an egg. We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad." - C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity. This quote was on my Sunday School book for our lesson this next weekend. We are learning how to mature our spirituality. You know, it's one thing to accept Jesus Christ as your personal savior and believe He is the one true God of this whole universe. It is quite another to keep in check and be able to reach the spiritual maturity that He would want us. If you might be struggling with Spiritual Maturity as well as any other Christian, may I recommend Bruce Wilkinson's "Secrets of the Vine". It's a great short book about the whys of God molding us, His children, into the spiritually mature followers that He would have us. The commentary in my study book also adds a very good point. First, ask yourself. Are you ever content? It could be anything from the clothes you wear, paint on your walls, family life or work place. Well, good news! God never intended for us, as Christians, to remain content and complacent like unhatched eggs. God's plan for His followers always includes spiritual growth. I felt so relieved when I read this because I'm never good at being content. Whether it's my hair style or learning God's word and understanding it fully. This commentary came from Life Value Bible Studies for Life Summer 2008 edition. The background passage comes from Hebrews 5:1-6:12.

Last but not least, Wow! Congratulations US of A ! Have y'all been watching the Olympics? Go Michael Phelps! I begin watching from 7:00 - 11:00 p.m. and I've been so impressed over all the medals the American athletics have won for our country. Kudos to you! On top of that I know the swim team for sure are breaking world records. We should all be very proud of these kids representing the USA like they have.

Good-bye Nicholas and Leslie!

We got together tonight at June and Pat's house for a "Fond Farewell Cookout" for both Nicholas and Leslie. Next weekend, Leslie will head to college to make her dreams come true in becoming a Registered Nurse. Nicholas will be heading out in a couple more weeks to make his dreams come true as well in the medical field. All I know is he wants to be a physician, but I don't know what kind. Sorry I didn't take any pictures, but I accidentally left my camera at home. Oops! I didn't think about it until we got there and settling down.

Everyone seemed to have had a great time. Of course, Katie had a great time and was all over the place. We got out the volleyball net and ball, to play a few games. We all stunk, but had a good time laughing at one another. We had to call timeout a few times because Katie couldn't understand that she was too young to play. She'd bring her little Strawberry Shortcake ball and throw it at the net. So cute. For her being sleepy because she wouldn't take a nap, she was pretty good. We didn't have too much trouble out of her. Once she saw people in the pool, she asked me if she could swim. As soon as I put her suit on, she headed for the pool. I knew Maryann and Leslie was right there at the pool, so I left to find her flotation device. Leslie said as soon as I left, she was down the pool stairs and in the water before they realized what happened. Can you believe Katie can touch the down of the pool, on the shallow end, with her toes? She has gotten so tall this Summer. Once I put her flotation device on, she was all over the pool swimming like a fish. I caught her a couple of times, trying to float on her back. She didn't think anyone was watching her. The last time she tried it, she did really well. She was just about all the way back and her legs were coming up to the surface and it scared her a little. We had to keep reminding her to keep her mouth closed. She'd do good for a while and then she'd try to get some one's attention and get water in her mouth. Then, she had to get to the side of the pool and cough the water out. Believe or not, it began getting a little cool here. It was because of the wind blowing. I had to make Katie get out of the pool because she was so cold that her jaw was shaking. She begged and begged me not to make her get out. No sooner did I get her dried off and clothes back on her, she headed right back to the pool steps. Ugh! She hung around the steps until everyone got out of the pool. Of course, I had to eventually change her clothes again. Thank goodness, I packed a pair of pants for her because she needed them.

Have you been watching the Olympics? We watched a little bit of the water polo this morning. Tonight, we watched the girls' gymnastics and men and women's swimming. Isn't that awful about the American being stabbed to death the day after the open ceremonies?

It's terrible to hear Bernie Mac dying at the age of 50. If you don't know, Bernie Mac died yesterday. He's been in the hospital with pneumonia and it sounds like he passed away from complications. It was so odd because the reports were coming out that he was doing much better in the hospital and was suppose to have been released the same day he died. He suffered from a illness that affected his lungs causing him to have pneumonia from time to time. Doug and I thought he was a great comedian. My favorite Bernie Mac is from his "Bernie Mac Show" and "Guess Who?" movie with Ashton Kutcher. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family.

What's the Latest News?

I guess y'all have waited long enough. We did hear some news this Wednesday and details everyday since. Yes, Doug's work wants him to go to CO for this temporary assignment. His boss has us signed up for a year assignment, but he doesn't expect us to stay that long. He mentioned to Doug that we could move as soon as August 25th or as late as after Labor Day. He didn't know anything about the flying home or allowance to live there, so that is what we were really waiting for. Of course, we became nervous and excited all at the same time about the whole thing. We wanted to be able to break the news to our parents before we announced it on our blog.

Realizing that we may have to move in a couple of weeks, I got right on the phone with townhouses and the electric company to get some more information about the utilities and other expenses. I called the top 2 townhouses that we are very interested in to get more information. We started a list of things, we need to think about and consider before and during the move. So far everything sounded good.

Yesterday, I worked at church all day, so I didn't get to make any calls. Katie spent the night with Peggy and Millard. Her spending the night with her grandparents is much easier for all of us when I work at church because I have to get there by 8:00 in the morning. They were sweet to invite us to their house after work for supper. Everything was so good: meatloaf, roast, okra, potatoes, carrots, beans, cole slaw and peach cobbler for dessert. On the way out to Millard and Peggy's house, Doug and I talked about the more details in the move. The living expenses (rent and food) was a little less than what he first thought, but after doing the calculations we should still be able to make it out there. Neither one of us like the flying allowance. Only one person gets a ticket to come home. I think he is going to try to talk to someone about that because I want to go with Doug to CO, but I also want to be able to come home for Christmas. Plus, I want to be able to keep some grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins from getting too mad at us. Bottom line, we are still being cautious about this trip now that we have a little more information. Again, we're not too happy about the plane ticket limitation and it may effect our decision in going.

What's Up?

Some news to come. Stay tuned . . .

Just An Update

Health
I had to fast and go back to the lab today and check on my cholesterol again. Since I found out about my cholesterol problems, Saturday, I've been eating Cheerios cereal. Brenda, church friend, is an RN. When I told our Sunday School Class about my level, she told me that was very high. She recommended taking Fish Oil tablets to help lower my level. After church, we went to Walmart and I checked out the tablets. It made me a little concerned because they said that if I was pregnant, to consult my doctor. While I was giving a blood sample, I asked the lab tech to please leave a note for the doctor about the Fish Oil. She agreed with Brenda and said the Fish Oil will drop your levels. I should hear something in the next couple of days about my results and what I need to do, if it's bad. She talked about him possibly putting me on medication. After talking to Sandy about it today, I remembered about my Dad having to get his liver checked ever so often because of his cholesterol medication. Sandy said she has high cholesterol levels, but she refuses to get on the medication because of the whole risk to the liver. I don't blame her a bit. If Dr. Lunsford talks about putting my on the same medicine, I might suggest trying the special diet and exercise first. Personally knowing Dr. Lunsford for a while, I don't believe he'll put me straight on the medicine before trying the diet and exercise first. He just doesn't work that way.

Prayer Request
A lady from our church, Carrie, has asked special prayer for her parents and their neighbors. Her Mom and Dad just got back from a missionary trip a few days ago. This morning, their little neighbor boy, Hunter, was playing in their driveway and didn't know. As they were backing out of their driveway, they felt a bump. Carrie's Dad rushed out of the car, knowing they hit something and began screaming. The mother and sister of Hunter witnessed the whole thing. The mother was running and screaming as well. Of course, Hunter was rushed to the ER and didn't make it. Carrie's parents say they are fine, but I'm sure they having a hard time dealing with this terrible accident. Hunter was about 3 years old. The parents of the little boy have met with Carrie's parents and they don't blame them at all. They agree that it was just a terrible accident. The parents did tell Carrie's parents that Hunter's organs will be donated. As a parent of a 3 year old myself, I can't help but grieve with both of these families. We will never understand fully why God allows children to drift in and out of our life. I do know that because of Hunter's parents signing over his organs, this little boy just became some one's miracle. I humbly ask you to please pray that God will give them strength and understanding during this very difficult time.

Thank you so much for the many prayers going up for my nephew, Jake. He underwent surgery today instead of yesterday. At first, the surgeon was concerned that the abscess might be too close to his muscle. The abscess didn't end up being as deep as first thought and wasn't close to the muscle. Praise God! My sister, Sandy, told me that Jake is doing well and Liz is breathing a little easier. According to the surgeon, the abscess should never return again. Please continue praying for Jake's quick recovery.

Please remember all the college students going back to class after a long Summer. There are going to be a lot of very tired kids on the road making the drive to school. Please pray for their safety.

Mom
I spoke to Mom a little bit today. We had to call each other several times just to get in maybe 15 minutes of talk time. She said her phone was having a hard time keeping it's signal. She was complaining that I was cutting in and out on her. How aggravating that must be? She says that her cell phone does that to just about everyone she talks to. What was so strange is that I could hear her just fine, but she couldn't hear me at all. I felt bad about not seeing her this weekend, so Katie and I might go see her tomorrow. She said she is still doing really well. Rehab has got her doing more on the stairs and pushing a ball with her foot, while standing. She added that her and Dad were walking around in the hallways with her walker. She continues to say, she feels stronger everyday.

This Weekend
My sisters, June and Susan, are planning a get together at June and Pat's house as a "farewell to their first time college students, Leslie & Nicholas" this weekend. I've spoke to Leslie and Nicholas a little about them going off to college. They both seem so excited about the whole experience. Nicholas is going way south to school and Leslie will be north west. Leslie and Whitney are fortunate enough to be going to the same school, so they are roommates this year. If I'm not mistaken, Nicholas will be boarding on campus at his school. Both kids are interested in the medical field. It's strange, Nicholas and Leslie will make 5 out of 6 nieces and nephews thus far that will choose the medical field. Elizabeth received a degree in Medical Records, Ryan is an RN and Whitney is in Nursing School. Can you tell I'm a proud aunt or what? Unless she has changed her mind, Natalie was interested in physical therapy. She still has another year of high school, so we'll see what she decides.

Special Prayer Request

Please keep my nephew, Jake, in your thoughts and prayers. Liz sent me an email letting me that his abscess came back, it has developed a fistula. He is suppose to undergo surgery sometime Monday morning. Liz will keep us up-to-date. Jake will be a year old this month. Thank you!

Randy & Lissa's Visit

It was so great to see Lissa and Randy. We tried our best to get almost 3 years of lost time caught up in one evening. Lol! I tried not to monopolize all their time and let them visit with the others. It's just I haven't heard from her in a month or two and needed to catch up. Her hernia surgery is still healing up really well and she is pretty much back to normal. She said Valerie is much better. If you don't know Valerie is Lissa's sister. Lissa is the second oldest child out of 8 kids. Valerie has a lot of bad health problems and some of her meds contained steroids, causing her to gain 100 lbs. Normally, Valerie is a very petite little lady and so pretty. (A side note: I'm partially named after Valerie. Her middle name is "Lane" and my Mom liked that name as well. So, she named me "Lane". ) Okay back to the news report. Valerie finally got together with some doctor and he put her on the right medicine to help her out. She has lost the 100 lbs. and feels much better. She still needs your prayers because she suffers from Crohns Disease, which causes more problems. She has Fibermyalgia, I've been told that this disease is absolutely horrible to have. She also has a history of heart problems. So, please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. I'm just so thankful to God that the new meds have been able to give her some relief.

Lissa and Randy have two grown boys, Abe & Matthew. It sounds like the boys are doing great on their own. She said Abe, oldest, found a great government job in FL and just bought a house there. He seems to be pretty serious with this one girl and it sounds like life is good for him right now. Matthew is a mechanic at a car factory in NM and is also doing very well.

Randy and Lissa seemed to be a little excited to go back home to NM. They will be closer to her family that live in AZ, so that's great. She said her mother, Bobby, is doing good, but gets around a little slower and takes her time. Aunt Bobby has lived in FL for several years and is use to the extreme warm temps, so she doesn't care for the cooler weather in AZ during the winter months. I thought that was a little funny. Poor thing! Bobby doesn't live far from Holly, daughter/Lissa's sister. Holly takes really good care of Bobby and makes sure she has all she needs. Lissa went on and on about how Holly is so good with her Mom. I'm sure that makes Lissa feel relieved that she is somewhat taken care of. I told Lissa and Randy about the possible move to CO. Randy was so great to give me some information that might help when and if it becomes official. He, I would take advice from in an instant. Because of his job, he (Lissa & family) have moved all over the country and even islands not far from Hawaii. They have lots of experience with these temporary assignments.

Maryann's New Kitchen

Remember me asking for prayer months ago for my sister, Maryann, because she had a Kitchen fire and got really bad burns because of it. Well, she got a brand new Kitchen, Dining Room and partial Living Room from it. Here's a few pictures of the Kitchen. They got cabinets, counter tops, stove, microwave, flooring and recliner. I showed Doug the counter tops because I really like them. Zayne's brother, Zack, was their contractor. I think they did such a great job.





"Cordoba Nights"
Adam, my cousin, has become an Independent Film producer, I believe he's the producer. Anyway, Adam sent out letters to some of his relatives including us Alabama relatives for donations in supporting these films he's producing last year. Well, he convinced my uncle, Rex, to do a couple of roles in two of the films. Rex is my mom's brother, Lissa and Adam's dad. I think uncle Rex is around 75 years old and is a health nut. Lissa said that he had to memorize 9 pages for one of these movies, I'm thinking she said it was for "Cordoba Nights". I couldn't hardly believe that my uncle Rex was in a movie, whether it was independent or not. I had to see it to believe it. We ended up googling his name and found the name of the movie because Lissa conveniently forgot the name. Randy said laughingly that she doesn't want anyone to know because she's a little embarrassed. Ha! Ha! Of course, Lissa denied what Randy was teasing her. We found a picture of uncle Rex in the movie and I happen to have found the trailer for the film. The trailer only shows a slight glimpse of Rex as he is driving past, towards the end of the movie, and he looks out his car window. He looks so mean in this movie. Lissa warned us that these movies are rated PG-13 and R because of the violence and some nudity. Some of us (not me) had to tease her about uncle Rex being nude. It was all in good fun. I mean, who wants to see their parents nude? Hello, yuck! Anyway, it was a good laugh and seeing Lissa's face turn red was priceless. Ha! Ha! This movie is suppose to be out on DVD pretty soon. We might have to rent it just to see my uncle Rex. Here's a picture of uncle Rex from the movie "Cordoba Nights". I wasn't able to copy the embedded code for this movie from YouTube. If you would like to see it, you have to look it up on YouTube. There's only one trailer for this movie and like I said, it shows just a glimpse of Rex at the end.

Date Night

Doug thought it would be nice to go out on a date. He arranged everything. Millard and Peggy came by around 5:00 to pick up Katie to spend the night with them. Katie was so excited that she got mad at me for making her go lay down for a few minutes before they came. She was so sleepy! I guess she took an hour and a half nap. In fact, she just woke up when they arrived. It took her a little while to fully wake up, but it didn't take long before she was ready to go. She hit the door saying "bye Mom! Bye Dad! I see you later". Doug was giggling and when I asked him what was going on, he said he was amazed how Katie is always ready to go.

We finally got to see the new Batman movie "The Dark Knight" last night. Wow! Can you say "intense"? I have to agree with everyone else when it comes to Heath Ledger's acting in this movie. I do have to say that I was disappointed how they got rid of "Two-face" so quickly. Doug says that they probably didn't expect Heath Ledger to die.

Well, Christmas shopping officially began for me yesterday. Yes, I purchased the first Christmas gift. I saw this item and thought of a particular couple. Of course, I had to get it. Now that I've bought the first gift, I'm in the Christmas spirit. Do you know that Cracker Barrel already has their Halloween, Thanksgiving and some Christmas stuff out? I bought a cute pumpkin sequins Halloween shirt. I've been noticing Walmart slowly getting ready for the next season. Ours has their Summer yard/garden stuff down to three aisles and the others are empty. The other day, some sales clerks were cleaning and moving shelves around. I figure they'll have Christmas stuff up very soon.

My doctor's office called today. My cholestrol level is a little high, so they want me to come in sometime this week and give them another sample. Yuck! The lady said my level was 259 and they like to see it around 200 or less. I just feel bad for the tech because it took her forever to get the sample she got in the first place and they want to run another test. Oh, I've discovered the first signs of crow's feet and my age spots are growing. Ugh! As I'm asking Maryann and Mom about my crow's feet, Susan butts in and announces to me that I'm getting old. :P I like what Maryann calls them "laugh lines". Laugh lines doesn't sound so harsh like crow's feet. I laughingly told Susan that I refuse to give up my youth and just grow old. She laughed. She laughed even harder when I said that I was going to get back into Yoga. My question is "what did the laugh mean?" Maybe she thought I said that as to one of my solutions to not growing old. No, I just need to loose some extra pounds. I eat healthy, but I don't exercise like I should. My exercise is walking fast while I shop. Tehe!

Right now, Doug is taking a test for school. He's had me type a few things for him, so I'm staying close. We plan on mowing the yard here pretty soon. My cousin Lissa and her husband, Randy have moved back to New Mexico from Florida. They flew back to Florida to drive their car home and stopped by. They wanted to see Mom and visit with us for a little bit today before they got back on the road. Lissa is such a sweetheart. She is Maryann's age and for the past couple of years, I've got to know her a little better. We email back and forth quite a bit. We both love talking about our family and God. She is the daughter to my Uncle Rex, my mother's brother. I never got to know Rex's kids growing up because we all lived too far apart. Actually, I got to meet most of them (8 children total) when my grandparents passed away. They seem to be very fun loving and easy to get along with. It's too bad we live all over the nation and don't see much of each other. I'm hoping to be able to see some of my cousins out West, if and when we do move out there. I have first cousins, aunt and uncle that live in Arizona and New Mexico. Let's not forget my sister's family in Wyoming! It would be great to see everyone. By the way, we still haven't heard anything about the move to Colorado. We still plan on going on our beach vacation. Doug said, if he does have to go. He could request to be flown in for the beach trip. We'll keep you posted.