I have been gone way too long from posting on my blog…I know…I know…Between the stress and tribulation of being a single parent over the last few months, many emotions have flowed in and out of my brain daily…(ha…and not just the crazy ones) I can not believe in just a little over a month Mike will be coming home! Yes…coming home! Only to leave again in a few months…oh but weighing the pros and cons are like a seesaw going up and down…as so is my brain with its pounding at times…Over these past few months, I have made new friends…dearly beloved friends,  I have lost a dearly beloved friend, I have completed my Associates in Business, I am working at a new job…a medical clinic in Eagleville to be exact…

I am planning Mike’s homecoming, not sure what all it will involve…going away and enjoying each other’s company will be first on the list. Hopefully, I will do better keeping you all in touch with the things and emotions going on…

Wow! I have not written here in forever! Time flies, but then again it goes so ever slowly! My life over the last few months has been very hectic. The last three weeks I had the wonderful opportunity to care for one of Eagleville’s community footholds. Mike
s grandmother, Maye Taylor, passed away last Monday at approximately 2:43 pm. For two weeks I bathed, cleaned, changed, sang to, loved, fed, and lost sleep for this beautiful woman of 97 years! The life that she led was one of love! Love for the Lord and her family! I have truly enjoyed listening to the stories of playing in the yard, baking pecan pies and fried pies, the telling of stories, poetry writing and piano playing of this much adored woman. The loss of sleep during these two weeks could not compare to the love and devotion the two daughters of this icon portrayed during the last 12 years of her life. For 12 years they alternated taking care of her and spending the night so that she would have to be alone.

Total selflessness…this is what was shown to me by these two wonderful women. I can only hope that being exposed to this love of caring for their parent that I will follow suit. All I can possibly think of to describe these beautiful women are that of Solomon in Proverbs 31. These are the true attributes of what selflessness means…
25 She is clothed with strength and dignity;
she can laugh at the days to come.

26 She speaks with wisdom,
and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

27 She watches over the affairs of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.

28 Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:

29 “Many women do noble things,
but you surpass them all.”

30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

31 Give her the reward she has earned,
and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

Nannie's flowers

Well…I sure have been neglecting to write lately. Which really is not my intent at all. I have been struggling with different emotions and feelings lately. Since I have not been working, I have found myself feeling depressed lately. I am not one that likes taking anti-depressants, but after a long conversation with my doctor we decided to give it a try. He recommended that I try simply for my blood pressure sake. After two attempts to raise my bp meds it simply did not want to go down. I think my doc felt that because of the stress I was under with Mike being overseas, the responsibilities I have to keep up with, and the change of me not working was causing extra stress on my body. Because of these issues, he thought I might need a little extra help in relaxing. Now…needless to say I still get stressed out, but I am feeling a little bit better.

So…now that we have that out of the way…if you are still not sure what you would like to give your sweetie for Valentine’s Day…I can help. TuneTown Show Chorus is once again doing singing Valentine’s this coming weekend. We have several different kinds that you can choose from. Please, please take a look at our website…Give your loved one something that they will never forget!

Well…it has been a long week…Just so you know, Mike made it to Kuwait and will be moving into Iraq in a few days. It has been very difficult not being able to pick up the phone and call him whenever I want to. I feel like I sit and wait for the emails…I don’t get to hear from him as often as I like. I have been waking up at night and checking my email because I keep waiting to hear from him…:-(
Taylor now has her foot in a boot. We went to the doctor yesterday and it appears that the main tendon that goes up the back of her leg is pretty bad off. If you were not aware, she had surgery on both ankles last spring to correct severe pronation in both feet. They put small implants in both ankles to straighten up her stance. In July, the right implant had started working its way out, so they had to go back in and correct it. Well…this is the foot that is bothering her. She can barely walk on it at times. The stress on the foot from the implant is causing other issues. It is difficult when they have been walking the same way for 12 years to correct something and it not affect other parts of the area.
Trevor is doing good. He is just enjoying life right now as a teenager and with his friends. He has certain friends that he goes to school with that just tickle me. They kid and act silly like I did when I was in high school. These are the days he will look back and laugh at. I just pray that everyday will be as joyous as the last…

I don’t know how long it has been since I have posted pics of the family or if I have ever posted pictures of all of us on here…While Mike was home over the holidays, we went to Cannonsburg to take pictures…It was soooo cold that day and to beat all it was 60 degrees just the day before! For whatever reason we were not able to go do the pictures that day, which led us to doing it on the colder day! HA! It didn’t take long and the kids were acting silly and we were having a hard time keeping them focused on the task at hand…(you would have thought that they were 6 and 9 years old the way they acted)…Well…here are what we did get…some are pretty good…

If you didn’t know, my husband left yesterday for his tour in Iraq! They had a big to do at the armory yesterday morning for the friends and families of the troops. Watching those around me with their little ones, spouses, parents, and others helps one to realize how lucky many of us are. How bitter sweet it is to know that you have all those that love you the most surrounding you, but knowing that in just a few short minutes everyone of them will be separated by distance can tie knots in your stomach that you didn’t know existed! As much as you try to prepare for that day, nothing can completely take that pain away! At the point they disappear you try to shift your focus…maybe you think ok, that is one day closer to them coming home…Whatever your thoughts may be there is pain. A void that no one can replace. Trying to sleep last night was difficult. I constantly woke with the thoughts of the day on my mind. I arose this morning hoping for an easier feeling deep within me, but still the void is there…I just want to salute my husband and all of those serving with him in the 269th MP unit! We love you and know that God will keep you safe! You will be coming home to us safe and secure! Please feel free to read the article written in our local paper yesterday (with mentions of me and several members of Mike’s family)… Read DNJ article here…

Well…I have several answers to that question…but right now I am just totally exhausted!  This Christmas because of the budget thing and the simple fact that I hate Christmas shopping, I made quite a few “presents” this year…I must say that I am super proud of myself and amazed at how well I did these things. It is so simple to search on Google and find free patterns on the web! Who would have thought to use the internet for patterns?

Anyway…my wonderful husband has been home for several days now…we only have 3 days left until he leaves for quite a LONG time…but I have the faith and hope that God will keep him safe and bring him back to me…

Christmas was full of going here and going there…we went to my parents church on Christmas Eve for a candle light service and watched the play that my dad was in…if I do say so myself he did a wonderful job and it makes me proud to say…”that’s my dad”…(wink, wink).

Oh…how beautiful it is! Schools are out today and the kids are loving it…I know this may not seem much to many of you…but in TN this is a lot of snow…and this morning it is nothing but ice. When I was in the drive way it would crunch, crunch, crunch…
Enjoy the pics…

Well, I am home…I took my hubby to the airport yesterday in Louisville and had to tell him goodbye until Christmas. This was a very hard day for me. So many emotions go through your mind on days like these; sadness, frustration, anxiety and much more to describe…After telling him goodbye, I had a long drive home for 4 hours…It gave me a lot of time to think.  The economy has so many people, we are included in that picture. I sit and wonder will there ever be a light at the end of the tunnel, but I know there will be…I just have to continue to know that the Lord will provide…

I have often said how proud of my soldier that I am! My husband is currently active duty and is scheduled for over seas in January…He is currently training and will be away from home until the week of Christmas…(sniff, sniff). It is very difficult to be a single parent, while he is gone. Kudos to all single parents out there, because it takes a lot of energy! Ok…back to my original subject…Mike makes me very proud in serving for our country! He never complains or gripes about doing his duty…he just does it! So this post is for him and all of those out there that have given their lives or just served so that we in America can have our freedom!

These are the men in my life that have served and I am very proud of…

This is Mike in Germany in 2004…

This is my dad, who served in the Army, which lead to meeting and marrying my mother in Anchorage, Alaska…

My grandfather, who is no longer with us, he served in the Navy and Air Force and retired with the military after 30 years!

My father-in-law who served in the U.S. Army…