89....and holding!

Happy Birthday Mother! How can my mother be 89 years old today!!! Oh...I do forget that I am 64! Where do the years go? Time used to seem to crawl and now it flies by! I remember Mother saying that. She often says now that she is so shocked when she looks in the mirror and sees her face because she doesn't feel as old as she looks. In fact, she says she feels about 50. I know what she means. I do the same thing. I would imagine that most people, if not all, do the same thing.


Mother is still a busy lady (relatively speaking).She has the same schedule that she has had ever since I can remember...get up at 10:30 a.m. and go to bed about 1:00 a.m. It varies but not by much. With her amazing musical abilities, she is in demand when it comes to playing piano/organ for different Eastern Star organizations. We were laughing the other day because someone was scheduling her to play for their installation a couple of years from now. Why wouldn't she be in demand? How many people have such gifts? How many people can sit on a piano bench for hours and play requests in any key and not have to have a stitch of music in front of them? When I speak of her gifts, she says that she thanks God every day for these abilities. I have no doubt...This is the woman who thanks God daily and "goes through every name of kids and grandkids before falling asleep". If I speak of her gift, her first response is to be modest until I ask her to name one person (not a professional but a 'normal' person, that can do what she does. That's when she realizes never to take this gift for granted.

Paula is on her way to Goshen from Noblesville as I write this. We will be at Mother's in Battle Creek by noon and spend the rest of today and until after brunch tomorrow with her. Tonight, Keith and Sharon will join us for birthday dinner. Should be a good time.

Tomorrow, knowing me, I will have a birthday photo of Mother. Good grief.....89!

February Birthday Celebration

What a wonderful weekend! Kendra's 37th birthday was Feb 13 and Brent will be 33 on Feb 28th. We picked a "middle of the road" weekend to celebrate. It seemed that every grandchild either had a cold or was recovering from one so the "germ killer" supplies were out in full force. It was worth it! That's what happens in winter weather.

Our house is small so we are always on top of each other but I'm so happy to have my kids around, I don't care; they might but I don't! Brent and Elizabeth bought a new computer this weekend (while Tom and I took Marley and Layla to the Jefferson School Spring Fling) so they had fun getting it up and running. Kendra, Nicholas and Brent were hysterical playing with the Wii games! The house was "rocking"!!! Presents were opened and games were played.

Alexis (10 1/2 months) has really grown since we saw her last! She is so happy and is getting stronger every day. She doesn't want to miss anything that is going on! This little girl LOVES music. Upon hearing music, she starts "rocking" to it! I caught it on video...now if I just knew how to put it into my journal. I'll have to check it out.

Nicholas lost one of his front teeth last week so we finally got to see it. The other front tooth is very wiggly. Can't wait to get that one out. I love that stage of missing teeth.

Kendra and Tom taught Nicholas and Blake games of "Uno" and "Guess Who" . These are such good games for kids to play. They had such fun! All of the g-kids did so well together! I am still amazed at how well everyone plays together. Again, there wasn't a single time when there was an argument! Amazing!!!!! Such good kids!

Today, I am beginning to write words for a song for the 2nd grade classes for Thursday. They are going to have an all-day reading day with "Magic School Bus" as a theme. They will read and study rocks and weather. I wrote a rough draft for the song this morning and now have a foundation to work with. I am going to go as Ms Frizzle so I am in the process of attaching various rocks (from my old collection) to my dress. I'm borrowing a curly red wig to top it off. So...that is in the works for the rest of the afternoon.

Mother's 89th birthday is March 1 and 2 and Paula and I are going to Battle Creek on the 1st and spend the night. Her card is the next project.

March 4-12, Tom and I will be in Florida (landing in St. Petersburg) and will have to figure out what we want to do there. We are hoping that we will see sun and have gorgeous weather. So...that's what's happening in our little world here in Goshen.

Marley Visits Great Grandma Carol

Today was a visit to see my mother in Battle Creek MI. I have taken Layla with me several times but never Marley since she is only 2 1/2 yrs. old. But I braved it and she was perfect. She never said a word coming or going. Just listens to music, looks out the window and "reads" her books. Amazing! She loved that Mother sat down at piano and asked her if she would play "ABC's". Of course Marley sang along (after being sure that Mother could play it in her key!) and I took pictures. Aunt Debbie was there and we all had brunch together and then played with toys and puzzles. It was a very fun afternoon.

Birthday Boy Blake

What a wonderful weekend. Tom and I rode with Brent, Layla and Marley to Noblesville for Blake's 5th birthday. (Elizabeth needed to stay behind due to her father's cancer diagnosis and therefore is in the hospital.) Blake really enjoyed his "pirate" party with cousins and friends. It was such fun having all five grandchildren in the same house for the weekend! They do so well together. There was not one fuss from anyone the entire time. Such good kids! We left Kendra and Jason's at 10:00 Sunday morning so the little girls would have time to rest before visiting Grandpa Pedler at the hospital this afternoon.

The day was topped off with a win by the Indianopolis Colts as they ready to win the Super Bowl in a couple of weeks! So exciting!


Nicholas (6 yrs.) and Alexis (9 mo.) share a laugh.

PopPop actually have all three granddaughters in the same place at the same time and are all looking at the camera!!! Alexis loves playing with the plastic cup! Who needs expensive toys!

Nicholas and Layla challenge PopPop to a game of "Trouble". They are now at the age when they are learning that they don't HAVE to win. They are just enjoying playing the game. Of course, Blake would rather look at a book. I'm surprised that he's not looking at a book about pirates! It's the fairy tale book that has been read so many times, it's falling apart!

Three (More) Teeny Tiny Tumors!

What is it about the number "3"!!! I now have 3 more teeny tiny tumors but since they are teeny tiny, Dr. Fretz decided (at my suggestion) that we wait until the next "3" month exam and take out today's "3" tumors and the next "3" tumors all at once. He said that some people can't handle that but I am fine with it. I'm thrilled about it!!! If there were any reason not to wait, I would have a surgery scheduled.

Ok...enough about me.

Alexis...9 months old!

Time is flying! Lexi turned 9 months old and it seems impossible. I happened to be in Noblesville when she had her " birthday" so I was able to get photos. Go figure! She has a doctor's appointment Monday which will give me an update on her weight and then Kendra and Jason will go to the Down Syndrome Clinic Tuesday.

Lexi is such a joy! She is so happy and responsive to whomever is talking to her. She loves her brother's many kisses. She is getting better at trying to sit up unassisted but needs a little more strength. She loves music which makes her JoJo very happy.

Winter finally decided that it wanted to be appreciated! It really hit the Elkhart area, then I snuck out of town to head to Noblesville and after I got there, it decided to follow me. In spite of storm warnings, school wasn't cancelled, so Kendra bundled up and walked Nicholas to the bus stop. Good thing they love winter! As for me....I'm moving south...as soon as my grandkids are grown!

Happy New Year 2010

Layla and Marley stayed with us last night so their folks could go out with Craig and Stacy Mc Dowell. I'm so glad that they were here or it would have been a pretty boring evening for New Year's Eve. They were soooo good! Layla is now into the Junie B Jones books so Tom ended up reading two whole books between yesterday afternoon and 11:00 this morning. Layla was ready for bed last night when I told her that since it was a holiday, she had a choice: either go to bed or help make pumpkin muffins and then eat one. Guess which she chose? She did most of it herself since she has made them with me several times but she is really getting old enough to do nearly all of it. Marley was asleep but it won't be long before she can "help".

Elizabeth came by to pick up the girls and Layla decided that she wanted her ears pierced. Wow!!! Marley stayed here and Elizabeth took Layla and she did it!!!!!!!! The earrings are ....... pink!!! That girl can't say that she didn't have a new look for a new year! She called her daddy and told him the exciting news. Brent left this morning to head to Indy to help a friend move. We really did have a good time.

Well, the big news of the 1st day of the new year is that we are under a big snow warning. When Tom and I came home from eating this evening, it was difficult to tell where the lane was. As I look out toward US 20 bypass, it is strange not to see even one car go by. There are usually many! I just saw a road truck travelling very slowly. Guess I'll have to quit writing and check out the weather. I'll bet it says snow!!!!!!!!!!!