Merry Christmas, Welcome to your world, Jesus

Happy Birthday #1

It is the Merry-Hearted Boys

that make the Best Men!

Hope you had a wonderful day #1!

POLAR EXPRESS

Here you have "The Golden Tickets"!

The day was snowy...it was a perfect and magical day. We arrived at the train station and a HUGE flock of geese flew over honking out our arrival. We were served cookies, goldfish and the special beverage of the day
HOT CHOCOLATE!

The train went fast...we saw horses and we thought we heard wolves and saw an eagle flying overhead. The hostess of the ride read the Polar Express story and all of the children received
SANTA'S BELL!

We arrived at the NORTH POLE...it was beautiful. And who should be waiting to greet us but SANTA! Some of them sat on his lap and told him what they wanted for Christmas. One of them created a memory. They all received a gift bag from Santa.

Santa rode the train back to our station. He spoke briefly to everyone and did mention he loves cookies and milk. His reindeer also like carrots. We sang Christmas caroles.
Soon we were back home.
It was a wonderful morning!

My Version

"Grandma," my middle Rose said, "you're going to have the best birthday ever and Grandpa will help!" And she said this on HER birthday, what a girl! So keeping this in mind, I told my Handsome what she had said and lo and behold he found tickets for a play! Not just any play but The Wizard of Oz! And it was right around my birthday. He purchased the tickets and used his points for A Hotel which is how the Rose says it, very importantly and capitalized. Two weeks before the big day he and the Fall Fairy told her what was to happen and do you know She Kept IT A Secret! She asked me to help her pack cause she and mama were going on a special date and I was to watch the boys.

Segue, Handsome had made reservations and they were in the name of Mr. Baba Hoo Hoo and it would be for two double beds. The reservation should have read Mrs. Baba Hoo Hoo, but we figured they would see I was a woman.

Anyway, the day dawned and I excitedly and nervously drove to the hotel. I had never checked in to a hotel all by myself. I spelled our last name...she said oh Mr. Handsome and I said it was booked in my name Baba Hoo Hoo, anyway she said she would change it. Then she said we have a king sized bed for you on the conceirge wing. I said oh no that won't do, my grandaughter is coming and we need two beds... (Meanwhile, I am thinking what is the conceirge wing...and why was it Mr. Handsome and king size bed, but hey) She said I would have to use my key to open the door to that wing.  Whoa I thought, that seems important.

Mama and Middle Rose arrived and I told them I would meet them in the parking lot. We went up to the room and after checking extensively for bed bugs, (because that's what we do) we decided to explore.

At the door to the conceirge wing was a tuxedoed man with a tray of chocolate covered strawberries and some exotic water. I said jokingly is that for us? He said it is if you are in room 123 ... I said we are in room 123...  I was all aflutter and said Handsome must have sent them.  Middle Rose was so excited, there was even a flower on the tray. She carried the tray around and touched the water and put the stuff in the fridge for enjoyment later. The man said they were from the hotel. (Hmm, I was a getting a bit uneasy). There was a card for Handsome, (right first name, slightly misspelled last name) but people do that all the time...Mama and I joked about that.

We decided to explore the hotel and found some clues about the play...we returned to the room and the phone was flashing...who would call us here, we had our cell phones with us...I told Mama I think there is a mistake, I think we are in the wrong room. AND I bet we have to give the strawberries back.
While I called down to the desk, the middle Rose was taking the tray out of the fridge and sadly putting it back on the dresser. The front desk told us we had no reservation but we had them at the other hotel right across the street. I was very upset...this was my birthday after all and this was the hotel we were supposed to be at and the middle Rose was so excited about everything. The hotel sent a very nice bellhop up to help us with our things. And down the hall and out the conceirge wing we went. Apparently the room and strawberries were meant for the CEO of COSCO! His name is very close to Handsome's. 

I have alway had trouble keeping my composure and while mama thought the situation was funny, I started to cry. The middle Rose looked up at me sweetly and said "Happy Birthday Baba HooHoo." I think I was crying because of the strawberries, after all the middle Rose had wanted the one with sprinkles. The extremely nice front desk manager cancelled our reservations for the wrong hotel and proceeded to put us back in the conceirge wing. (All the while my Handsome was working frantically from home trying to right this wrong. Turns out the hotel reservations made the mistake and we were able to still use our points and not be penalized. That Handsome, he's quite a guy!)

We went out for a nice dinner and I had the pleasure of Happy Birthday sung to me by the waiters (much to Middle Rose's delight). Back to our room... and what was waiting for us there but a beautiful platter of fresh fruit, water crackers, brie, bottles of water and vase with a flower were waiting for us with a nice note from the front desk manager wishing me a Happy Birthday and a nice stay. (We told middle Rose the fruit was from Grandpa HooHoo.) She was very happy with the fresh strawberries and bananas that were on the plate.

I was exhausted by this time and we laid back in bed...Little did I know I was in a Disney movie...you know the one...the character is snoring and the covers are going up and down. Well, Happy and Doc snored the night away...I think I got a bit of sleep but it was worth it the next day to see her face when she saw the Wizard and realized the importance of the RED shoes that Dorothy had left for her the night before.
It was the BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!



Like a kick in the stomach

That's how we all felt after the Children's Memorial train wreck. Such disappointment, I felt like all the wind was gone from my body. Nothing was discovered...except our Ladybug is not mal- nourished...which is a testimony to her mama and daddy. My Ray's behavior was wonderful and his concern for his sister was something considering he is only 3.  Well, I guess it is onward and upward from here. 
Thought I would post a few of my favorite photos.

Ladybug loves Grandpa

So sweet

Beautiful Boys...no Grandma HooHoo, we're Handsome!

This happens sometimes....

Thanks for the prayers...we still need them.

Peace and Hope

I pray for peace and hope for the days ahead.
Love each other and be there for each other.
God will hold you in his arms and you and your family will be covered in prayer.

We love you.

"He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock...

And covers me there with His hand."

How good it feels, the hand of an old friend...

The day was beautiful and full of conversation.



Is that the profile of someone we know?




It seemed that even the rocks had lips and could talk.



Louis canyon...one way in and one way out.

It was beautiful, the sandstone of the rocks is soft enough to write your name with your fingernail. The leaves fell gently from the sky. It was a haunting, magical place. Someone was drumming which added to the eerieness of the place. It has been very dry this fall, so the paths were not muddy or very wet. The disappointing part was there were no waterfalls.

Our friends told us they had never seen the park so crowded. We had trouble finding a parking place. I said it reminded me a bit of Disney World only the sweat was not flowing down my umm, well you know. Some places we had to wait to get down the paths...the crowd did thin out some and we were able to enjoy the beauty of this place.

We ended up at one of my favorite places...Skoogs!

Just the words homemade fried chicken and homemade mashed potatoes send me into a swoon.

A delicious end to a wonderful day!

Fred The Beagle 1996-2005

He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog.

You are his life, his love, his leader.

He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart.

You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion.

It's been five years and I still miss him...

One year ago today...

we took our dog Sarge to Doggy Camp...and then drove for 2 hours because of the awful construction(it should have been 1) to a hotel near the Hospital. My dear Handsome was going to undergo an ablation at the crack of dawn. An ablation is a process that burns paths on the surface of the heart to try and reroute the electrical impulses that are causing the heat to beat irratically and rapidly. And yes, the patient is awake.

Somehow we managed to sleep. We arrived at the hospital and got the #1 parking spot. We waited and waited for admitting to arrive. Finally we were admitted and after a bit of a wait we were escorted to the heart wing. Handsome was then prepped for a first procedure to see if he had any blockages or clots etc. He had to swallow a camera, he who has a very sensitive gag reflex. A doctor and a nurse were in attendance.

I went out to the waiting room. I was called back in after a while. Then the real waiting began. He was to have had this ablation by 9am. However there was an emergency, so he was on his back from 7 til 11 o'clock.  Handsome has a bad back so this was very hard on him. He was hooked up to iv's etc. Finally we asked if he could get up...of course when we did that, his Dr. was ready to go. In my head I figured on 4 hours for the actual ablation. We had already been at the hospital for 6.

I sat for a while. I had 2 cell phones with me. After about an hour I went to the cafeteria. Believe me it was no Central DuPage. The place was a beehive and I noticed people leaving with empty trays. Apparently they keep the trays at their desks cause there was a great shortage of them. Anyway, the pickings were slim, I was exhausted and there were no trays. I did find a place to sit. Feeling very lonely, I watched the buzz of the hospital and wished the day was done.

Back to the waiting room. People came, people went...someone was dying...I could tell the way the family was talking. Why was no one crying...I think I'd be crying...but maybe the person had been ill for a long time.The hours ticked by slowly, I tried to watch tv... but I didn't care about Oprah, or Maury or any soap opera. There was no concentration left in my brain.

I texted and called the girls and family.

It is past the four hour mark...I am getting worried now. What in the world? Maybe they couldn't get his heart to fibulate...then what...

In the middle of one of my cell phone calls, the phone died and my cell wasn't getting reception. It was close to dinner time. The waiting room was thinning out. I couldn't face the cafeteria again. I started to cry...the tears running down my cheeks. I needed a human...Lord...someone with skin on.

A young lady sat down next to me...She was about our girls age. She talked to me about her mom who was in the heart ward. She needed a new heart. She offered me her phone. I was grateful for her. About a half hour later she was called for her Mom.

I decided to ask the lady at the desk if she could find out anything...she called surgery for me and said Handsome was still being worked on.

It is now 6 hours...I sat back down and tried not to cry.  I thought of things we hadn't done and places we hadn't gone. But that didn't matter, I just wanted to look into his chocolate brown eyes and hear him tell me he loved me.

I heard my name, the lady at the desk said the nurse wanted to talk to me, my heart did a dive...
"We are still working on him...don't know how much longer." I must have looked quite despondent. The kind lady behind the desk suggested I go to the chapel. She told me it was easy to find and very pretty. Normally I don't respond to these kind of suggestions...

I took the elevator to the basement of the hospital. I found the chapel...I opened the door. It was cool and quiet. Someone was working on decorating the altar for Autumn. I stood a moment in the cool, peaceful silence...There at the right side of the pews was a small grouping of chairs and a statue of Jesus sitting with a few children. One of the children reminded me of how I imagine our Faith. She had curly hair and a dress on.

I sat down and said, "I know you don't have to be in church to pray, or for you to hear me, but please be with my Handsome." A peace came over me and calmed my heart and soul and HE met me there in this chapel, in the quiet and the peacefulness of this room that has felt so many tears. I felt HIS comfort and love. It was as tangible to me as the young lady in the waiting room.

I heard a crying sound. To the left was a family, I could hear the words MOMMA coming from them. I prayed for the Momma who was in distress in this hospital. I cried for them too.

After a while, I went back to the waiting room. It was deserted. The kind lady was gone. I prepared for a long wait but almost immediately my cell phone rang. It was the Doctor. He was on his way to talk to me in the lobby. When he found me, he told me once they had the fibs started, they couldn't stop them. They had to do a lot of burning. He said it was probably about the time I was in the chapel that they finished and stopped the fibs. I cried uncontrollably, but he told me Handsome was fine. They had done what they needed to do. And in the good doctor's words they burned the sh*t out of his heart. He looked me right in the eyes and spoke in words that I could understand. He cared and took the time with his team to do the job even though it took such a long time. And he acknowledge my time in the chapel.

He took me back to recovery. After a bit and a hug from the most wonderful nurse (she was a true servant and Florence Nightingale would have given her the nursing award) and offer of a sandwich, my Handsome was wheeled in. I couldn't touch him yet, but just seeing him living and breathing was what I needed.

Now possibly the worst part was to begin...Until his blood clotted, he would have to continue to lay on his back with catheters that were in his neck and 2 in each side of his groin. No rolling, no bending, no sitting. His bed was a prison and his back was screaming.

The nurses sent me up to his private room to rest. I dropped off my stuff, laid down for about 10 minutes, but I couldn't not be with him. Back down to recovery I went like a person who is driven to go home. And home to me is where Handsome is.

Up to his private room we were finally taken. It was a large, nice quiet room. My bed was right at the window with a beautiful view which I would appreciate when it was light out.

Having not eaten for 24 hours he was starving. We were able to get him some ice. No eating until the catheters came out. The nausea hit hard...he could not sit up or move...so imagine trying to throw up in that state. Anti-nausea drugs did the trick.

The pain in his back was horrible. They had orders for heavy duty pain medication. It would work for a short period of time. It was hard to watch...the pain in his back would not stop. He almost cried and this is one tough man!

The cath team came 2 times to check on the clotting. The team was made up of 2 men and 1 woman. They would have the job of pulling the catheters and then putting pressure on for as long as it took the bleeding to stop. Finally the third visit was the charm. At about 2:30 am in the dead of night they appeared and did their job. The catheter in the neck was the worst. I couldn't watch. He turned a terrible gray color. One of the men said the next two wouldn't be so bad. After a good 15-20 minutes of pressure, Handsome was free of his bonds but still had to lay still for an hour or so. Finally he could move a bit. He seemed a new man. He wanted food and to GO HOME!

And that is what happened. We got Sarge by 11am and were home shortly after. We were overjoyed to be home, but exhausted.

The next day he felt pretty well and wanted to go to the pharmacy to get the shots to thin his blood really fast. Bad idea, he was much weaker than he thought. We got the shots and crashed back home. I had to give him 2 shots a day for 3 days. You should have seen his bruises, between the cumadin and the shots, he was a beautiful shade of purple, yellow, black, blue and every other color of the rainbow.

Well, what was the result of the surgery? He will need another procedure...he is not ready yet, but when he is, dear Lord, help me to be better prepared for the waiting...but can you ever be?

Romans 8:38-39 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The Farm!

Oh the excitement here!

Queen of the Horses

Where's my wild blonde boy?

Frank we've waited for you for a whole year!

Sweet Moments at the Farm

Sugar lips and pumpkin lips

There's a lot to do at the Farm!

The Day I Met The Third Boy I Ever Loved

And the days went by with the wink of an eye!

Happy Birthday to our biggest, little baby!

He is our neatest birthday cake eater yet!

Happy birthday little man! We love you.

Happy Birthday #2

But you are also #1 because you take such good care of:

Happy birthday #2 er, ah #1!

Ba

It can mean so many things...just ask this littlest man.

Ba means:

Pick me up.

I want a banana.

Turn the paddle fan on.

I want to go outside.

I want my mama.

I'm hungry.

I want my ball.

I love my sister.

I love my brother.

Papa's home.

And with a questioning "Ba?" The world is yours my little prince. Has anyone ever been luckier? "Ba?" I don't think so.

Just a few more summer memories

 The smokey joe birthday party.

Boy it hurts when you put your arm down! And that's just what I did. I whined for days about the burn on my elbow.

 That's the way to go down a slide!

 Our youngest and his great grandma.

 Ray kept the birthday secret until Grandpa had the package in his hands.  Then Ray whispered loudly, "Its a helicocker."

Our middle Rose proudly showed Grandpa the birthday card she made for him.

It appears that 3 supermen er, ah superwomen stopped by.

Helping Grandpa blow out the candles

The three cousins.

Where is my super hero? Why mama, Batman is right next to you.

Ahoy maties, there be pirates among us.

Grandpa and his girlies!

Grandpa and his girlies.