Day 30 #30DaysofMe A Photo That Makes Me Happy

Day 30 A photo that makes you happy

This photo has everything I love. It's at my sister & brother-in-law's home. My brother had taught my daughter how to ride his long board (skateboard) down the driveway & she was having a blast. My brother is in the background walking around with his guitar, playing really great music. My sister, my brother-in-law, their friend & my awesome lil baby niece are all chillin out back there & they are having a few beers. It was a perfect evening with all my favorite people. This photo is full of people I love & it makes me so very happy :)

I wish ya'll every happiness,

Day 29 #30DaysofMe Hopes & Dreams

Day 29 What are your hopes, dreams & plans for the next 365 days?

   My first go-to is always to try & stay as healthy as I can. To take my meds, get to all my doctor's visits & try to keep from getting too badly sick or run down. That's kind of a drag to have as one of your hopes & dreams though. I really want to make sure I am doing everything possible to make my daughter happy & to be sure she has everything she wants & needs. I'd love to keep blogging & grow this into something I can really be proud of. I love learning new things about blogging & I want to keep going in the right direction for positive things to happen for me there. I want my fiance not to have to work so hard & be frustrated with his job. He works hard & he works a lot & he deserves not to be so stressed out about everything while he's working so diligently to take care of our family. There is a business that I'd like to start within the next year. Of course I can't give any of that away until I'm all ready to launch it now could I? Most of all I want my family to be together & just be happy. I want to be close as I am with my sister & my brother & our families to be able to get together for holidays or just whatever & enjoy  each other. I feel like we're all on a good path & I just want that to continue for all of us. That's not asking too much I don't think. I mean I'm not wishing to win the lottery or anything. I just want everyone I love to be happy & healthy & together.

Day 28 #30DaysofMe Biggest Regret

Day 28 What do you regret the most?

   I generally don't regret much as I think that everything you do creates something & all of it leads to you are. For example I'm not happy about being divorced but if we had never gotten married I wouldn't have my wonderful daughter. 

   However I have made at least one HUGE mistake that I'd wipe right off my record if I could. By December 2012 my fiance & I were not getting along well at all. Our relationship had broken down & we weren't even really speaking. I wanted desperately to move out of the awful place where we were living. I started looking around for income-based housing & ended up finding a place I could afford in my hometown which was about 30-45 minutes away. Leaving was very difficult. I missed him terribly. During this time I was looking to move out I had started talking to a guy that I went to high school with & that lived back where we were from. Once I had moved in back home my mom moved in with me to help me with my daughter & to help pay the bills. I let this guy move into my home as well. It wasn't very long before I began to realize that this guy had not told me one ounce of truth. He had no driver's licence, no job, no place to live. He was in trouble with the law, had had DUI's & even had an outstanding warrant for his arrest! All sorts of things were going wrong. This boy was not working & contributing anything to the household. He was stealing from me & lying to me. After a month I had had enough & began trying to get him to leave. Of course he refused & caused me all sorts of problems. I finally managed to get through to him that he needed to go. I was no longer interested & he was a toxic person for my family to be around. Plus, I wanted my fiance back. I had thought I would be better off without him. All I was was miserable. I do not know how he managed to find it in himself to take me back. We talked & agreed that we had both caused some of the problems that led to our break up & we wanted to do whatever we had to do to put our family back together. 

   If only it was that easy. I still haven't totally shaken this ridiculous guy. He was in my life for a total of 2 months. That's all. Maybe 8 weeks. He still can't let go. My fiance & I hired a lawyer. I got a restraining order. Once we got back together, my fiance & I stayed in my hometown where out daughter was doing great in her new school but we moved into a new house to start over fresh & get away from the drama of this situation. We went to court several times, he made up false reports on me to the sheriff's office saying I was stalking him. He went around telling people we were married. It was a real mess. I am just now getting the very last pieces of my life that he disrupted back into place & this all ended at the beginning of February. He continues to call & harass me. Just 3 nights ago I got a few calls at 1:30ish in the morning. I deeply regret the pain I caused my fiance. Even though we are back together & stronger than ever because we realized how much we wanted to be together & had to go through hell to get us back. I wish I had never involved my daughter (even though  we shielded her just as much as possible). I feel bad that I had to put my mom through all the drama of this guy. If I could say there is one regret I have it would be that whole situation. Not one good thing came from that & I wish that I could take it all back. But since I can't I tried to take a lesson & never take for granted the things I am blessed to have.

8/28/13 #wordlesswednesday First Day of School

Look at my girl! Stylin while waiting on the bus to school for the first day of 5th grade.

Love & Light,

Day 27 #30DaysofMe "I wanna know what love is...I want you to show me"

Day 27 What are your views on love? Do you think it's real? Do you think we only experience one love per lifetime?

   Love. Very interesting. On Sex & the City Charlotte says she read an article that said you only get two great loves in your life. I don't know if that's true. Yes, I think love is real. I also think that love means very different things to different people. People can get very touchy & take things personally when it comes to love. I try to leave folks to their own opinions about it. To some, it's almost one of those "untouchable" subjects as bad as religion & politics. I don't think there's a finite amount of loves one can have in a lifetime either. I do believe that a real love (on both sides) is rare so if you are lucky enough to find that, celebrate it!

With Much Love.

Day 24 #30DaysofMe Earliest memory

Day 24 What is your earliest memory?

   This is a hard one for me since there are so many stories that have been told about me it's hard to tell what I remember & what I've just heard a thousand times from my family! I was flower girl in my Aunt Beth's wedding when I was 3 years old & I sucked my thumb. I guess I was so nervous about getting my part right in front of so many people  I just shoved my thumb in my mouth & marched down the aisle with my little basket. Since my hands were occupied, all the flowers had to stay in the basket though. During the same event I really, really had to use the restroom & I couldn't hold it through the pictures so I wet my underpants. My mom didn't pack extras so she rinsed them out in the restroom of the church & told me I'd just have to wear them wet as she put the damp panties back on me. I went around the rest of the reception telling everyone "I'm gonna wear 'em wet!".  One thing I know for sure was the button in my Grandpa's refrigerator. Just inside the fridge door was a very intriguing button that looked like a doorbell. My grandparents (Pop & JoJo) kept telling me only not to touch it. Under no circumstances was I to touch this button. Of course to a 3-year-old that just made it much more intriguing. We had just gotten home from church so I was all dressed up in a dolled up little dress with ribbons & hair bows, ruffle socks & patent leather shoes. While all the adults were in the living room I sneaked back into the kitchen, eased open the door of the fridge & pressed the forbidden button. Ice cold water came shooting out of the tiny spout I hadn't noticed right above the button! Since I was around 3 I was the perfect height to get hit full on in the face. I yelped & all the grown ups ran in from the living room to see what was wrong with me. I expected to get into trouble but I guess the sight of in my Sunday best soaking wet & shocked to pieces was too much for them because they just about died laughing at me! We still get a kick out of telling that story today. Or they do anyway. I may still be too traumatized by my encounter with what I think was one of the first in fridge water dispensers!

   

Day 26 #30DaysofMe Can't Live Without...

Day 26 Who/what can't you live without? Explain.

   Literally, I can't live without my very VERY expensive prescriptions & doctors. I visit some of the greatest cardiologists & pulmonary therapists & doctors at one of the finest medical centers in the country. They've quite literally saved my life more than once. They continue to give me excellent care & I couldn't be more thankful for that.

   But by far the greatest part of me is my fabulous daughter Katie. I didn't always plan to be a mother & I had the most difficult pregnancy ever. No one (including me) knew that I had a serious medical condition that may never have been found if I hadn't gotten pregnant & crashed during delivery. After the emergency c-section I was airlifted to the cardiac ICU of a major hospital & given about 24 hours to live. Since I hadn't even seen her, they brought my daughter. As soon as they gave her to me the numbers on the monitors started going up. Against all odds & predictions I was getting better. My baby saved me when it seemed that nothing else could. She continues to be the greatest thing that's ever happened in my life. If I'm having a tough day she can come in & smile & make it all better. She has the best attitude. She has the most cheerful disposition. She can light up any one's day. On the rare occasion that she is having a bad day her sweet little face just makes you have to cheer her up. Family is so special to her. She loves learning about horses with her Auntie Katie, fishing with her cousin Riley & any of adventures she gets up to with her cousin Dylen. She adores her doing art with her Aunt SheShe & making her baby cousin Rozalyn laugh. She can't get enough of learning with her Uncle Gary or skateboarding with her Uncle Trevor. Being at my Aunt Peggy's house with my cousins Kaitlyn & Stephanie are always the best of times for Katie Bug. Also. the smallest things can make her happy. Just holding hands with her Daddy & me when we go into a store or curling up with us to watch one of our shows & resting on her head on her Daddy's chest make her sparkle. I love her to bits. I love our talks about everything & nothing while we are painting our nails together. I love taking her shopping for clothes & seeing how she's developing her own unique style. I love her blowing kisses to me before bedtime & before she gets on the school bus. I love my little girl so much. There is no way I could live without her. She is our Angel & we are lucky to be her parents. I am especially blessed to be her Momma. 

Day 25 #30DaysofMe A Day in the Life of Me!

Day 25 Your day, in great detail


   What a day today has been! It has been a  very busy day indeed. I woke up very early after another night of very little sleep. I woke up my little & we had breakfast, showers & got ready to go to Open House at her elementary school. We were both very excited to see her new classroom & meet her 5th grade teachers. We got to the packed school parking lot & got a fantastic parking space! Making our way down the 5th grade hallway was quite the experience what with her school being so tiny & us knowing so many of the other families that were there. We ran into several of my high school classmates & their kids including our pastor. Through all of the socializing we managed to find her homeroom & fill her desk with her school supplies. She has 3 teachers this year & they were all very nice. The classrooms were so cute all set up for the new year & the little one & I were very excited for tomorrow, the first day of 5th grade!!

   Sadly we also managed to run into her bio father & his "new" family.There was really no need for them to be where we were. But every time we turned around there they were. They seemed to be following us for some unknown reason. That didn't go over too well. & that's all I have to say about that.

   We came home & had some lunch then went to the beauty shop for Katie's back to school haircut & style. It turned out great! The cut is adorable & we both got what we wanted. She got to keep the length & got bangs that didn't look awful with her 4 cowlicks! She's so excited to show it off tomorrow!

   From there we dropped by my sister & brother-in-law's place. My brother is crashing there while he works on a shrimp boat so we got to visit with everyone & my niece too! Katie played with the baby & rode my brother's skateboard around their cul-de-sac. I finally dragged her out of there to go by the grocery store. We picked up the stuff for her favorite meal, chicken fettucine alfredo then came back & cooked it up together :) We ate our dinner, Katie got a shower & laid out her adorable outfit for the first day.

   After we got her all tucked in with our alarms set, she fell right asleep & I filled out the endless packet of school info. I did 2 loads of laundry, cleaned up the kitchen & wrote this blog. Now I'm all worn out & can't wait to get to sleep! So very excited for tomorrow!

Love & Light,

Day 23 #30DaysofMe 10 Years Ago...

Day 23 A picture of you taken 10 or more years ago

   Who's going to be excited about this picture? This girl!! I looked much better 10 years ago I think anyway. So here goes...

10 years was the assignment yes? Here's one better. This picture was 30 years ago! I was 3 & enjoying a ham & cheese sammich. 

This was taken in 1996. My best friend Jessica may want to kill me for publishing this but she's just as beautiful today as she was when we were kids in high school. I'm not in love with my hair here. I badly needed to pick a color! & I could have made better make-up choices but this is me! Laugh away!

Love & Light,

Day 22 #30DaysofMe What's your sign?

Day 22 What is your astrological sign & do you think it applies to you?

   My birth date is March 19th which makes me a pisces by 1 day. March 20th is the cusp of the entire zodiac so I have some pisces traits but also some aries traits as well. So when I check my horoscope I always check out both! So I think some parts are totally me, others not so much. I guess that's pretty much the way horoscopes work tho right?

Day 21 #30DaysofMe My Favorite Movie?

Day 21 What is your favorite movie?

   Another impossible topic! My first instinct is to say the Harry Potter series as I do love them so. But there are so many other movies I love it's crazy. I'm one of those nutty people who use movie quotes in everyday conversation as well. I think I gave my first movie quote at age 3 (from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory) & my family & I have been doing it ever since!

   Aside from all Harry Potter films some of my other faves are Casablanca, Breakfast at Tiffany's & Sayonara. True classics. 80's films The Breakfast Club, Say Anything, Real Genius, Back to the Future, Ferris Bueller's Day Off & the set in the 80's movie, The Wedding Singer. I love, love, love When Harry Met Sally, You've Got Mail, 50 First Dates & Love Actually. There are countless others but my all time very favorite movie ever just may have to be A Christmas Story. (All this not taking into account "kids" movies. I don't know if I could live without Finding Nemo!)

For the love of the movies,

   

Day 20 #30DaysofMe My hobbies

Day 20 What is a hobby of yours?

   I am happily immersed in my hobbies just now. I have always loved to read whether it be new books or re-reading the Harry Potter series. I always have stacks of books on every available surface! This seems hobby seems to be contagious as my daughter is leaving books all over the house. You can tell where she has been like a trail of bread crumbs. She read Harry Potter over breakfast, Diary of a Wimpy Kid in the front room & The Cupcake books before bed. Its a wonderful sight even if it gives me something else to put away! I also love blogging & social media groups. Lucky for me I've gotten involved with some awesome blogging groups online that are helping me learn to be a better writer. I'm so thankful to these ladies for the support, advice, answers to my many questions & help with making my blog better all the time.

   Since  summer began & I kept hearing "Mom, I'm so bored" my daughter & I have been trying fun & increasingly difficult activities & recipes on Pinterest. We're loving the kitchen chemistry projects, decorating the house & crafting ideas. (Watch my blog for pictures & explanations of our adventures!)

   Oh & does TV watching count as a hobby? Because my little family is up to our ears in Big Brother episodes! Just FYI, I'm having a real problem with that Amanda! Will someone, anyone put her on the block & vote her out already?!

Wishing ya'll a wonderful summer!

Wordless Wednesday 8-21-13 Kicked Back

Just another day at the office. Happy Wednesday ya'll!

Day 19 #30DaysofMe I've Got Talent!

Day 19 What is a talent of yours?

   I don't know if I can still consider myself talented. Once upon a time I was a fantastic dancer. I took tap, jazz & ballet lessons from the time I was 4 until I was about 12. I was really good too! I can still remember & preform the ballet positions & if I have a real burst of energy I can break out  a few tap time steps. Sometimes I wish I had an outlet to keep dancing. I loved it. When I was 10 years old I was put into the studio's Senior Company. I didn't realize it at the time but all the other girls in the group were on the dance team at a local high school. Not too bad huh?

   I also had some musical talent. I played the flute from the time I could start in middle school all the way up through high school. In the 7th & 8th grades I was selected with a few other students to play with the high school band. Then during my Senior year of high school I played the piccolo. Even though that thing was smaller, it's way harder than it looks! Every now & then I can still pick up a flute & play around a little bit. Again, it would have been cool to have somewhere to play. 

Much love,

   

   

Day 18 #30DaysofMe What I Need to Say

Day 18 Things you want to say to 5 different people

   I don't want to dwell on the negative. Sadly, I do have some negativity in my life right now that I would love to see just go away. Honestly life is too short...especially mine. So I want to say these things & then release them into the universe. I truly wish they could be heard but since that isn't going to happen, I have to let it go. I must choose that even though some of these things are hurtful to me they are also beyond my control. So here goes...

   1. I love & miss you every day. I'm sorry if I didn't express to you every single day how much you meant to me & to Katie. I hope you know that you have always been the most important person in my life, the rock I could always count on. I want to apologize for letting you down. You made a simple request of me. Keep my family members together. I assure you that I have tried but it's not working. I know, because we talked of it so often how important it was to you that the family not fall apart if you were to pass. I feel just terrible for letting you down. I promise you I'm doing all that I can. I treasure your memory & I know how lucky I am to be your granddaughter.

   
   2. You have broken my heart. You have no clue the sacrifices I have made for you. You couldn't begin to understand the things I have gone through to make sure you had what you needed. I have always, since the day you were born been there to bail you out of trouble or talk you through your many issues. All I have asked for in return is the basic love & respect that I believe I deserve. Instead I'm cut off. You won't speak to me. Not even to tell me what I supposedly did to you that was worth the loss of our relationship. I wish I could just get over it. I wish I was like you & could just not care. I really wish you would get over yourself & stop being such a ridiculous jerk. I love you & you continue to hurt me. Now you're taking away from me the only person on Earth that means as much to me. Get over it! Someone has lied to you! Grow up & PLEASE stop punishing me.

   3.  I HATE you. You are a disgusting, filthy liar. You are such a miserable person that the only thing you get pleasure from is destroying the lives of others. I will waste no more time on you except to say that one day I pray that you get help. You are a psychotic, sad little fat, spoiled bastard & I truly hope you get the help you need. I do also hope that you stay as far away from me  as humanly possible. If I never see you again, it will be a day too soon. SEEK HELP! & PS Leave my family alone. You've done enough damage. Anyone that enjoys ripping a family apart deserves to be hit by a Mack truck.

   4.  I hope that one day soon you will step outside of yourself & stop being so judgemental. You have forgotten where you came from. Your attitude is going to ruin your life & relationships. I pray you see that before it's too late.

   5.  I consider myself so lucky to have you back in my life. I thought for sure that I would never get to know you but I thank God that I found you. I'm so thankful that I was able to get past ancient history & that now we have one of the best relationships I've ever had. Thanks for loving me for all those years we were separated. & thank you so much for being so wonderful to my daughter. I couldn't imagine my life without you. I love you so much Daddy. I always have & I always will.

I feel a lot better getting that off my chest! Now there's nothing else to do but keep it moving! I wish everyone the best (except #3) & hopefully some things can be mended.

Much love,

   

The Never Ending Birthday

   Our only little girl ever turned 10 earlier in the month of August. 10 years old is a big birthday! Double digits & all that jazz. I don't know for sure was more excited about this one, Lil Bit or her Daddy & me. We all wanted it to be super special though which is why it still isn't over!

   On the day she had family members stop by when they could bearing gifts. (The picture is what she woke up to. That was her Wii, games & really cool mp3 player from Momma & Daddy. As well as her cards & gift from Nana & Mr. Frank & her card & gift card from Grandma & Grandpa Far-Far-Away.) Nana is my mom who lives here with us & G & G Far-Far-Away is my father & stepmom. The little one has a lot of relatives. Her Aunt SheShe came by with a one each of every Crayola product they make & Her Auntie Katie brought her cousin Riley. He came to stay the weekend & brought her a fishing pole. Then we had plenty of activities that weekend.

   She went to her bio father's last weekend & I understand she had activities there. I really have no idea what happens there.

   I am currently planning a slumber party for her & her 4 BFF's for this Friday. I plan to pick up the girls, take them to the store for snacks & movies. All the girls need to bring is their sleeping bags & teddy bears. After they drive us nuts staying up all night playing Just Dance on the Wii & doing their nails & hair I plan to make them a big breakfast of birthday cake pancakes. Yes, that is as sugary as it sounds! To work this off there's a big Back-to-School bash at the church. So I'm going to load the girls up with their swimsuits & towels for this big bunch of fun. I figure parents can pick them up from there. How perfect did that work out?

   Well, it's a good idea anyway! Hopefully everyone gets along, no one wants to go home at 3am & I can maintain my sanity for 24 hours! I'll be sure to let ya'll know how it goes. My husband thinks I am insane but hey, it's all for my little girl & she's more than worth it. Again, I'm not sure who's more excited, my daughter or me! I hope they let me play. I mean it would be a real drag if they're too "grown" to have the coolest mom ever hang out with them. After all I planned it!

Much love to ALL,

Day 17 #30DaysofMe I'll surprise you!

Day 17 What are 10 things about you that people don't really expect?

   1. In high school I got a 100 in Senior English all semester which is considered the most difficult non-math class in our school. That teacher was no joke! We loved ya Mrs. Hatch!

   2. Even though I weighed 98 pounds I got into fights. A lot of fights.

   3. I never planned on having kids since I more than helped raise my twin brother & sister.

   4. I hate to go to work.

   5. I used to manage pharmacies.

   6. I have never been on a motorcycle. Ever.

   7. I started getting grey hair when I was 16 years old.

   8. I can be a real crybaby.

   9. I'm sensitive. A lot more things bother me than people would think.

  10. I'm not as close to my family as I used to be or people think I would be.

How can I make my daughter stop growing up?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KATIE BUG!!

   My sweet not so little girl has finally turned 10. It seems like just last year we were bringing her home. Or when she was 4 & played on her first soccer team. I can remember perfectly what she wore on her first day of kindergarten. Now we have her backpack & school supplies all set up for the first day of 5th grade. Oh my how time has flown! She is such a special angel & we just love her to pieces. Our house is so empty when she is gone. Mommy & Daddy & Nana don't know what to do with ourselves without her!

   I could really tell the difference in her birthday gifts this year. She got a Wii & a really sweet mp3 player, a lot of art supplies & cash. Instead of buying toys with her money & gift cards she wanted to buy clothes & games for her Wii & her Nintendo DS. No toys? Clothes & headbands & shoes & lip gloss? It's official. My girl is growing up. I'm not sure how I'm feeling about that. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to miss the constant cleaning of the toys but wow. When a kid doesn't want to buy toys & would rather buy clothes, its the beginning of the end of childhood. What beats all is that this is also the first year that she would rather have a few friends for a sleepover rather than a big summer party. Stop growing up please baby!! Mommy misses her little girl! I'm not ready for a tween!

Day 16 #30DaysofMe Song That Makes You Boo Hoo!

Day 16 What's a song that makes you cry?

   There are some prompts where I have to sit & think for a minute about what I want to write about. This is not one of those prompts. Hands down I have a song that makes me cry. It upsets me so badly I can't even listen to it. I have not heard this song in over 10 years. It used to be one of my absolute favorites. The song is "Freebird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd. Growing up I had a stepfather that meant the world to me & "Freebird" was one of his favorite songs. That's probably why he wanted it played at his funeral. I'm really bad with funerals. The closer I am to the person that has passed the farther I tend to retreat from the funeral service. I couldn't go to my Daddy's funeral. I was pregnant & had been coming home to tell him but I never got the chance to do so. I don't think I could have handled it. My little brother said it was just awful & I probably made the right call by not going. I don't know if he's right or wrong & I ask my Daddy's forgiveness all the time for me not being there. There are many other songs that I love that remind me happily of my Dad. I just can't listen to the one they played when he died. 

Day 15 #30DaysofMe Kiss it & Make it Better

Day 15 What is something that never fails to make you feel better?

   That's easy. My daughter. She is the sweetest little angel there has ever been & she makes everything in our lives better. If I'm having a sick day & not feeling well she'll sometimes come & snuggle with me & we'll watch movies. If I'm sad or having a bad day she will come in & give me big hugs & tell me what a great Momma I am & how much she loves me. She truly is a wonderful little girl. She's so sensitive & loves to make people happy. I hope that's because we've allowed her to have a really happy childhood. My fiance & I had to grow up way too early & we didn't want that for Katie. So no matter what  "other mothers" try to tell me I am very happy with how my little girl is turning out. Watching how she makes friends so easily & seeing her be so sweet & caring to people makes me feel like I'm doing a pretty good job.

Much love,

Day 14 #30DaysofMe Scaredy Cat!

Day 14 Things that make you scared

   Oh man I have so much on my mind these days!! Normal things like ghosts & zombies don't scare me. I'm afraid of real life stuff. Before my Grandmother passed, she was worried that when she did our family would kinda fall apart. & it is. We don't make an effort to get together anymore. No one seems to care about each other anymore. I do. I know my wonderful Grandmother would hate that we are turning on each other & ignoring her wishes. I love my family to pieces. I wish we could get it together before its too late. 

   That being said death scares me. I am dying. It's just a fact that I am living on borrowed time. I have wonderful doctors at Duke University Medical Center. I take very VERY expensive medications every month. So far they are doing their best. The only cure for my condition is a heart & double lung transplant. I'm not so worried about me, its leaving behind my daughter. Will she be forced to go live with her biological father & her evil stepmother? Will I be able to make up with my brother before I go? This is what scares me. But I have today so I better not take it for granted!

Much love,

Day 13 #30DaysofMe Best of the week

Day 13 What's the best thing to happen to you this week?

   I'd have to say that the best thing to happen to me this week was that that I got a beach day in. It's all about my tan ya'll!! No really, it has to be my lil girl enjoying the Shrimp Festival. Most of us locals don't like to go the festival because there's a lot of tourists (we call them terrorists:) & it's HOT!! But having a 10 year old, I kinda had to go. Don't tell anyone but I enjoyed it being that I haven't been for a few years! My little girl had a blast & that makes us super happy!

Katie in the parade

She loved the swings, The Berry-Go-Round & the Spinner :)

Day 12 #30DaysofMe Siblings

My brother & sister twins & are 8 years younger than me so I really helped to raise them. I love them as much as I love my own daughter. We used to be so close. I don't really know what has caused a rift between my sister & I. She's married to a great man & they have a beautiful baby girl that I wish I got to see more often. They just moved about 10 minutes down the street from us after being in Okinawa for 3 years. I truly wish we were closer. She used to come to me for everything. Now she never calls.

If that seems heartbreaking I can't even start on my brother. He lived with me from age 14 to about 20 or 21. I have & would do anything for him. But he's completely cut me out of my life. It's like a joke to him. Lest I start crying again, here ends my post. Trevor & Torri I love you so much. I wish that you could at least pay me back the same respect.

Day 11 #30DaysofMe Photo

Day 11 A photo you have taken recently

   In our tiny little fishing town we have a Shrimp Festival every year on the second Saturday in August. This always falls right around my daughter's birthday. There's a parade & a festival that's a lot of fun for the kids & gets everyone out at the same place. You pretty much see everyone there. My husband works at the Chevy & Cadillac  dealership in the "big" town about 30 minutes away & they always put a few of the nicest vehicles in the parade so we got to ride! My daughter had a blast throwing candy & waving to all her friends. My favorite picture was taken just before the parade started. We live in a military town & my little girl has always loved the Marines. There were some in the parade so we got this picture while we were all lining up.

My little girl walked up & in her little voice said "Excuse me. Since you guys are my heroes can you please take a picture with me?" They all smiled & were super sweet to her. I had to stop myself from crying to tell them Thank You. That's my daughter. If she were to see Spiderman & a Marine together she'd pick the Marine as the real superhero. I'm so proud of her for that.

Love & Light,

  

Day 10 #30DaysofMe Idol

Day 10 Who is your favorite idol?

   OK this one is a toughie. I honestly don't know. I might have to choose my Grandmother. She earned her angel wings May of this year. Just before Mother's Day. She was the greatest woman I have ever known. She worked in the US Embassy in Switzerland during the war. She stayed through a very unhappy marriage for the sake of her 5 children who she always, always put first. I was the oldest grandchild & my daughter her first great-great grandchild so I feel blessed that I got the most time with her. She was always diplomatic in every situation. I could call her at any time with any situation  & I always felt better by the time we got off the phone. She taught me a million life lessons. She taught me the importance of family. She taught me not to sweat the small stuff, how to pick my battles & gave me advice on raising my daughter. I am so happy that she always told me she was so proud of me & the job I was doing as a parent. I loved her with all of my heart & I miss her all the time.

Love always,

Day 9 #30Daysofme Sweet Sweet Music

Day 9 What is your favorite song?

   This is like asking what's your favorite child! I grew up with my parents albums including Led Zepplin, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Eagles, The Doors, Deep Purple, The Rolling Stones. The list goes on & on! The Beatles is a personal favorite band of mine & it's impossible for me to name a favorite Beatles song. Maybe "Paperback Writer" or "While My Guitar Gently Weeps". I;m also a child of the 80's so pretty much anything on The Wedding Singer Soundtrack is my jam! I love The Cure, The Clash, a lot of one hit wonders! One of my favorite songs from that Genre is Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes" from the album So & famous from the movie "Say Anything". My musical tastes are pretty random! You should see my playlists :)

"Every little thing is gonna be all right",