Thanksgiving Recap

We had a great Thanksgiving Day...spending the afternoon at my parents and heading over to Keith's grandparents house for the evening.

Seth had a great first Thanksgiving...he napped all through the dinner...oh well next year he will get to sample the food! Sara took some great photos of Seth in honor of turning eight months tomorrow.

We also took a fun video of Seth giggling and learning how to beat up his sisters.

I also took a family picture for Mom and Dad to use with their Christmas cards this year...one of the blooper shots!

I'm Thankful For...

*my amazing family!
-I have a great husband who loves me dearly and is constantly doing things to make me feel good about myself! I love you Keith!
-I have amazing parents who have supported me in every decision I make and are still there for me when I need them
-I have a great sister and brother-in-law, who though they may live hours away, are still so important to me! Happy Thanksgiving Chris and Kalla!
-I have a best friend who loves to do all the things I do and is just minutes away when needed...plus she is a great sis too! Sara, I love you!
-My brother...no longer a boy is growing up so quick and is because an awesome young man. Zach you may be bigger than me now, but I still have tricks up my sleeve to use when needed.
-I have a new little brother that because he is so young, still thinks I am the coolest even when I do stupid things!
-I have the cutest little nephew in the world and look forward to all the future holidays I get to spend with him!
*our jobs, through it all we have never been without
*cars, as much trouble as we have had in the last year with our vehicles, I am thankful that He has always provided and that we have been kept safe
*our friends who have stood by us through everything and have been there every step of the way in all the situations we have faced

Happy Thanksgiving!

This Weekend...

...was super cool! Sara graduated high school on Saturday and it was weird to think that that was me four years ago. I was feeling very old! I am so proud of Sara and I know that college is going to be a great opportunity for her. She is going to be a great interior designer...and it just a few short years she will be done with school and make her way into the world! And with Sara graduating it got us to thinking that in four years it will be Zach graduating from high school...that thought makes me feel very old!
Kalla was also in town and it was so fun to see her for the weekend. On Saturday morning, Kalla and I went and got pedicure together...a very fun and relaxing time. We just got to talk and share things...having her here always makes me see how much I miss not having the opportunity to see her on a regular basis...but I also know she misses Chris a lot when she is here.
So the weekend was an overall hit...very busy but good times!

Sisters

In the past year I have seen my relationship with each of my sisters change drastically (for the good) and I am glad to say that they are my two best friends and I would be lost without them! We've faced trials together and apart...but have always been there. We have lived apart...probably one of the most difficult times...we have lost a huge part of our family and learned how to survive...we are adding to our family...we are learning to love each other even when we may not agree...and we do it all as sisters!

To Highlight or Not To Highlight...

that is the question?

So my little bro wants to highlight his hair for Kalla's wedding and for just personal opinion, I am taking a poll.

Do you think it should be highlighted or left alone?

Leave a comment with your opinion.

Top Picture: non-highlighted hair

Bottom Picture: highlighted hair

Photoshop

So I am finally getting the hang of Photoshop...my proof...look at the the below layout I made about Kalla being pregnant and a mother to be and how that makes me feel!

I love you Kalla and am looking forward to seeing you (less than 4 weeks!)

Coming in August...

I will be an aunt, Keith an uncle, Sara an aunt, Zach an uncle, Mom and Dad grandparents, Mimi and Papa/Grandma and Grandpa great-grandparents, Grandma McLaughlin a great-great grandma!

It is true...Kalla and Chris are having a baby sometime in August...due date unknown until she goes to the doctor. Very excited to think that there will be a little baby in this family and excited to be an aunt. I am already thinking of all the things I want to buy and do with the baby!

Kalla and Chris congratulations on baby Ronning...Chris take care of Kalla and don't let her do too much...Kalla let Chris take care of you and spoil you!

Can't wait to see you in January!

Happy Birthday...

Happy 6th Birthday, K'Von!

I hope you had a great day with tons of special celebrating...just for you!

Moving on...

Tonight I did one of the toughest things I've had to do since knowing the kids were leaving...I unwrapped their Christmas gifts and sorted them by what can be given away now and what needs to be kept because I don't know what to do with it. One of things...a stuffed monkey that has the velcro arms and legs that was for KeAwn...I have hanging on my bed as a memory! It has been hard...it was hard to go over to my parents' house on Sunday and not have three screaming children running around.
And now my parents are fighting this...if not to get the kids back to at least fight the injustice that was done to our family. There are so many things about this situation that were done wrong to us and to the kids.

There isn't a minute that goes bye that I don't think about them...did they eat enough at dinner, since Grandpa didn't want to know preferences/dislikes; did they go to bed okay, again Grandpa doesn't know the ritual.

When does the pain and questioning stop---will it ever? I will for the rest of my life acknowledge that I have three siblings who were taken from me!

K'Von, K'Liyah, and KeAwn--I love you so much!

The $1,000,000 question...why?

Why...after over two years can this be happening? How can love be ripped away like that and how can I be expected to survive? Why did I have to fall in love with them? Why, Why, Why? I want the $1,000,000 answer...why would He choose to take them away?

I got the call at work today...Sara said that the kids were going to live with their grandpa and they would be leaving tomorrow...yes, as in today is Thursday, December 7, 2006 and tomorrow is Friday, December 8, 2006 and the kids will no longer be part of our family. I have so many questions, I have so many things still to say.

I am at my mom and dad's right now...waiting until bedtime to say good-bye, but all they know is that they are spending the night at grandpa's tomorrow...but even that is not going over too well with any of them. There is not enough time tonight to say all the good-byes I NEED to say. Keith can;t be here to say good-bye or to hold me and tell me it's okay, Kalla isn't here to make the good-bye complete, I see Zach crumbling before my eyes...and I don't have the answers to make it ok. How can I comfort them, if I can't even tell my things to make it okay.

So now I say good-bye, even though the ones who need to hear it and understand think it is only until the next time I come to see them.

K'Von--you may have been wild, but you always had a soft side to cuddle with and I love you and will miss you more than I can ever say.

K'Liyah--you are such a girly girl, but was always a riot to be with...once you trusted someone you gave your love so greatly...I will truly miss you and the way you always asked me where Keith was.
KeAwn--you were spoiled, but you were the ham of the bunch...you would do most anything for a laugh!

Thanksgiving

There is nothing that I am more grateful for today than my family. They are the constants in my life...no matter what they are always there!

So Happy Thanksgiving!

I love you Keith, Mom & Dad, Kalla, Sara, Zach, K'Von, K'Liyah, and KeAwn!

Cars...love/hate

I love driving and I love my car...but only when it runs! In the past year (or a little less) I have been stranded multiple times because my belt or alternator has gone out in my car. I have been stranded on the highway (both 71 and 75), I have been stranded at work, I have been stranded on the road, and in parking lots...but never at home. I have cried over being stranded...but one thing always remains the same--it always work out. This summer and fall have been really bad with the car dying, but I have always had a car. My parents, who took Kalla's Saturn when it she moved to Houston/Plano have lent me the car multiple times this summer (though I had a few issues with that car too!) and when the Saturn wasn't available I used the Echo--thanks Sara for giving up your ride! And my dad has been great--he has changed my belt every time, put in a new alternator, and changed the battery--let's see he has become an expert and can do it no time now. All my dad asked for was a new set of tools for Christmas that would make this job even easier!
So the story goes...I love my car when it is running. When the belt is staying at a 14 on the volt meter and everything is going smooth...I hate my car when it decides to do it's own thing and I get stuck on the road or wherever...but through all this I have learned that family and friends are always there when I need them...so thanks: Dad, Keith, Mom, Scott, Sarah, Keith, Don, Sara, and Zach for always coming to the rescue when I need you!