Thanks to those who seved and died for us!

We salute those who have served in the military. We thank those who lost their lives in order for us to have the freedom that we have today.









Ken set off some NC legal fireworks... the kids sat on a blanket in the front yard eating their corn on the cob. Got them to look at me for a quick minute, while Ken was lighting another one.





Alyssa, Alannah, and Christopher loved them, didn't mind the noise, but Damien for some odd reason, is the only one that hates the noise makes. I went to grab my camera from the truck, and Ken set off a NC legal whistler, and boy, Damien screamed cause I was not with him. You can tell he had some fear in his face in the picture.





I don't have the best camera in the world, but I love how these came out. You can actually see the works part of them. I love the streams of color coming out of the big flash.


It may look a little shaky, but it's weird, that one was taken without a flash. I wanted to get some of the color in it. And the one that used a flash, was steady. Go figure.


Ken mowed the lawn, as I took the kids up to Rex. Jay's brother had a stroke, and we went to see him. He can not use his right side, and can not talk. But he is making improvements, on Sunday he was on feeding tubes, Monday he was able to swallow some food and keep it down. He has therapy every morning at 9am. (if you read this, say a little prayer for him.)


While we were at Rex, I took the kids to the Special Care Nursery. One nurse that was working that day, remembered Christopher. She loved the fact that we came up to see them, and was amazed at how big he's gotten.


Then we came home, jumped on the trampoline while Ken was grilling steak, hamburgers, hot dogs and corn. The corn tastes so much better when we cook it on the grill as opposed to boiling it in a pan.


Hope everyone else had a safe and happy memorial day.

Alyssa's 2nd Grade Animal Project

Alyssa just had to do a project. And she chose tigers, all on her own. She said she chose them because I like them. Is that not sweet or what?



But this project had been given to her the week of mother's day, and was due May 21st. When and how did I hear about it? On the Monday before it was due, and by one of her classmates mom. (She works with me.)









So she had to create the habitat that the tigers live in, in a shoebox. So we bought some moss (swampy lands), and some fake trees (forest), and put in a small pond/lake. Tigers will bathe and hunt in the water. Bought some blue foam, and some stickers to make the sky. Teacher said not to spend a lot of money on this, to try to use things around the house. So instead of actual Bengal tigers, we used Tiggers! And we bought stuff at the dollar store!











Did you know that you can hear a tiger's roar up to TWO miles away?
(that's gotta be in the wild, cause I don't think I could hear it over the trains near our house!)























Did you know that, just like snowflakes, no two tigers have the same exact stripes?






They monkeys, deer, boar, and buffalo.



She and Alannah wrote all the facts on the poster, and then I went over them with a marker. (I was trying to avoid mistakes with the marker!) It's really hard to copy kids' writing, and you can definitely tell which one wrote which fact! But all in all, it was a great project. Really great for knowing about it 3 days before it was due!

Rest In Peace 2/13/31 - 5/17/04 Dorothy McFadden

Pretty much self-explanatory.

The day started real bad. The boys had a bad night, they kept coming in our room crying, so I didn't get much sleep. Overslept, missed the alarm, missed mass. The mass that my whole family went to. It was raining. I was at Five Points, and my family didn't want to wait on me. It was a family thing, but I guess...well, nevermind. It's too much drama for some people. So I met my good friend Mary, from Cathedral at the cemetery. She bought the red roses that are in the bottom picture. I did pretty good. I didn't cry.
Then we headed off to the park. There we had a little fun. It was still raining. Hung out with the family a little.
I was able to get some good pictures of the kids in their new outfits. The boys really look like twins, and the girls had spirit week the week before, and friday was Green and Gold day, so therefore they have yellow and green.
I did pretty good. I miss mom, badly. I wish she was still here. I wish she could have met Damien and Christopher. I can't wait to hold her in my arms again. I miss you mom. I can't believe it's been five years.
The kids have grown up. Alannah is starting 5th grade in the fall. Alyssa will be in 3rd grade. Alannah started Kindergarten the year that you passed away. They are so beautiful. You would love them so much. The boys, you would eat them up. They would definitely give you a run around though. They are fiesty. But they know who you are, we talk about all the time. Damien knows who are in a photo. Every time we drive past a cemetery... any cemetery, he points out that's "Special Grandma's Flowers!" Not bad for a three year old that never met you.

Mom's day is coming....

I miss you so much! You have no idea. You meant the world to me. Then the Lord took you from me. My life will never be the same. You are my hero, my inspiration. You are my mom until eternity.
You looked so happy. This was Alannah's 3rd birthday. I miss seeing you like that. I would do anything to have you back in my arms.
OMG! I miss you so much. I wish you were still here. I would have loved you to meet Damien and Christopher. They would love you so much. They both call you their special Grandma.

I was doing fine today, until my brother Mike called me. I was doing a great job at holding my feelings in. Today, on my way to the car wash, I saw a funeral procession. Many others and I all stopped on the road and watched the procession proceed. It got me thinking, that two weeks from today would be five years since my mom passed away. It brought tears to my eyes. But because the boys were with me, I held them in, as I didn't want them to ask what was wrong.
I proceeded to the car wash, vacuumed out the truck with help from the boys, and then Damien wanted to go thru the car wash. So if it rains, you can blame it on me.
I came home, and was sitting in my chair, when my phone rang. It's not very often when my brother calls me, so it surprised me to see his name on caller id. I was praying that nothing was wrong as I answered the phone. It was an idea...and I really can't say it on here, because I don't know who all reads this and I don't want to spoil the idea. But I think it's great.
Mom, I love you.
There's not much more I can say than that. I think I speak for everyone when I say that you are missed.