Angels Race

 I have this shirt on today.

I wear it every year on July 31.

And again on October 10.

In memory of my sister.

Vicki was born 18 months before me...on July 31.

She died at age 49...on October 10.

Hubs did a Triathlon a couple of years after her death in memory of her.

It was called "The Angel Race"....a race to honor all the *angels* in life.

Me and hubs...yeah, I had red hair then.:)

Happy Birthday Bic Bic, Double Dove, Mom, Sister, Victor, Aunt, Wife, Daughter and friend.

We will never forget.

Five Question Friday...on Saturday..OOPS!

OOPS!

Forgot about FIVE QUESTION FRIDAY...

Here Goes.

1. What is the funniest thing you saw on Facebook/twitter this week?

 2. What is your favorite Olympic event?

Oh I LOVE the Summer Olympics!! Hard to choose a single event, but I guess the swimming. All three of my kids swam on swim teams growing up and I LOVED it!

  3. Do your kids to chores around the house? If so, what are they and how old are the children? Do they get paid for them?

My kids did do chores. They had to make their beds every morning before leaving their rooms and the other jobs were given as needed.....taking out the trash, etc. No $ though....they had a home to live in, food to eat and parents who loved them enough to teach them responsibility. 

They were blessed.


4. If you get bad service/food do you complain or keep quiet?

Too many variables here.....bad food as in old or not done...yes.

Bad food as in I chose a bad restaurant...no. Just won't go back!

5. If you could pick ONE frivolous item for your home, what would it be? (massive room sized closet? swimming pool? greenhouse? etc...)

Outdoor covered porch with fireplace and lots of furniture!

How about YOU?

Summer

Life lately has been busy.

Summertime kind of busy.

Time for family and friends and good times.

I have some out-of-town girls that I keep in touch with...and have for YEARS!

We all have a love for Camp Lurecrest in common.

As a matter of fact, I grew up with two of the them since age NINE!!

We recently met at a Cracker Barrel in another city for a mini reunion.

It was as if we had not been apart all these months.

I love these ladies.

I kept the twins one night for their mommy and daddy to go to a wedding.

They had fun.

So did we..........

I received my Cousin Camp canvas.

It's already hanging on the playroom wall with the other two!

Love a wrapped canvas!

Looking forward to the rest of summer and our family beach trip!!!

How has YOUR summer been?

Happy Birthday DIL's!!!

They are gifts...these DIL's of mine.

And they both celebrate birthdays in July.

Do you know what a GIFT it is to be blessed with DIL's who love you?

Who love your sons?

Who allow you the privilege of loving their children?

Who bless you with their kind words and deeds?

Who send you pictures every day of their babies?

Who love you even though you are an opinionated MIL? :)

I realize what a gift it is...and I am thankful.

So, for these girls of mine that celebrate July birthdays,

Happy Birthday DIL'S.

Your favorite MIL loves you both.

Five Question Friday #1

Linking up every Friday with Lori over at Five Crooked Halos..........


(Today's FQF is being hosted by Kate while Five Crooked Halos is on vacation!)

#1. What do you call them....flip flops, sandals, thongs or slippers? 
       Flip flops.....thongs are panties:)


#2. Are you a "my kids can do no wrong" kind of mom or a "Johnny punched you,  
      well, what did you do to him FIRST?" kind of mom.
       With my own kids, I was a "what did you do to him first?" kind of mom. But, with my grands I        
       am completely opposite. :)


#3. Would you confront a good friend that looks down on your husband/significant other?
       Hmmm....probably not. You can't change how a person feels about someone. On the flip 
       side, if it was because hubs did something to directly offend them, I would probably discuss 
       it with my friend.


#4. Biggest Pet Peeve?
      People who are ALWAYS late. Oh, and ABLE people who do not put shopping carts back.


#5. What's your favorite take out meal?
      White Pizza!!!! L O V E I T!
        

I hope to do this every Friday...we'll see how it goes!

Let me know your answers in comments!

Summer Catch Up

Summer continues to roll along here...hot hot hot,

 but we HAVE had a little rain lately which has helped!

Poppy and I are gearing up for our family beach trip that we take every year in August.

We've done some Costco and BJ shopping..............

The girls are growing and are so much fun. Their favorite past time is playing with their baby dolls. They love pool time and outdoor time too. 

They are at such fun ages!

Today was FREE Chick-Fil-A day if you dress up like a cow.

Aren't they the cutest cows ever? :)

Baby B is growing and changing every day. He is one active baby boy and it's hard to believe he is already 19 months old! He still LOVES being outside and I love that about him. He has spent some time this summer at the shore in New Jersey with his other grandparents and is loving that they have a puppy. His mom sent me this picture.

 Melt My Heart Baby B!

The twins...my word how those boys have grown. They are eating table food and drinking from a sippy cup. They sit alone and are on the brink of crawling. Teeth are coming in like crazy and it seems like they do something new every day.

Baby T:

Baby C:

A friend and I are trying to eat more protein and less carbs.

We read the book 

The Metabolism Miracle after reading about it on Suz's blog.

This is week two...

I DO feel like I have lost inches and have more energy...which was the goal.

I miss fruits though and can't wait to add them back in.

Poppy continues to train for his week long bike ride in the fall from the mountains to the coast.

I continue to be amazed that anyone could do that.........

He has a new bike this year so he is EXTRA excited about his ride.

That's what's happening here.

Hope your summer is a good one!

SHE CAN SWIM!

My oldest granddaughter, age 4, took swimming lessons last week.

This is a girl who would not even put her face in the water.

Five days of swimming boot camp :)

and.............

(she dives in as video begins....in blue swimsuit)

She is sooo proud of herself.

We are proud of her too!

Red White and Blue Babies

I received all of these pics via text today!

Enjoy!

Nieces and nephew:

newest nephew

grandson...baby b

niece

grandson

Granddaughters: Someone did NOT want her picture made.....

Granddaughters: After a little bribing.....

Twin Grandsons:

This twin is DONE!:

 Happy 4th!  

So thankful for the freedom to love these children!

Front Door

FINALLY found what I wanted for my front door!

I'm Ashamed...True Story

I drive thru McDonalds for Diet Coke way too much...but that's not the story.:)

Occasionally when I drive thru I feel led to pay for the person's order in line behind me.

Last week was one of those days.

But, right before I paid I looked in my rear view mirror to find that the car behind me was a shiny, sleek sportscar....an expensive one. I don't know the brand, because I'm not a car person, but I know it was N I C E.

So, you guessed it...I decided that lady didn't need her meal paid for.

I didn't pay for it.

Fast forward a few minutes.

I went inside the local drug store to pick up a refill on meds. My meds weren't ready so I had to sit and wait. As I was waiting I could hear all the conversations going on as people walked up to the counter to have their meds filled. I live in small town America where everyone tells the pharmacist their aches and pains. One particular story saddened me as a lady was telling the druggist that she was picking up meds for her daughter who had just given birth to a baby, her first grandson, that did not live. Her daughter must have needed meds to help her make it through the day. I immediately felt sad for that Nonny.


 I smiled at her a smile that a Nonny would understand.

As I left to walk out to my car, that Nonny followed me and got in her car.....

....a shiny, sleek sports car.

Yes, the one in line behind me at McDonalds.

I'm ashamed.

I judged her needs based on her outward appearance.

She may not have needed the meal paid for.

 But, she may have needed to know that someone cared.

I will listen to that still, small voice in the future that prompts me to help someone in need.

And I will know that it's not up to ME to determine the need.

I'm Ashamed.