Got this in an e-mail this morning....Everyone, please enjoy and have a very merry Christmas.

Every year, I promised it would be different. Each December, I vowed to make Christmas a calm and peaceful experience. But, once again, in spite of my plans, chaos prevailed. I had cut back on what I deemed nonessential obligations: extensive card writing, endless baking, Martha Stewart decorating, and, yes, even the all-American pastime, overspending. Yet still I found myself exhausted, unable to appreciate the precious family moments, and, of course, the true meaning of Christmas.

My son, Nicholas, was in kindergarten that year. It was an exciting season for a six-year-old, filled with hopes, dreams and laughter. For weeks, he’d been memorizing songs for his school’s upcoming Winter Pageant.

I didn’t have the heart to tell him I’d be working the night of the production. Not willing to miss his shining moment, I spoke with his teacher. She assured me there’d be a dress rehearsal in the morning, and that all parents unable to attend the evening presentation were welcome to enjoy it then. Fortunately, Nicholas seemed happy with the compromise.

So, just as I promised, I filed in ten minutes early, found a spot on the cafeteria floor and sat down. When I looked around the room, I saw a handful of parents quietly scampering to their seats. I began to wonder why they, too, were attending a dress rehearsal, but chalked it up to the chaotic schedules of modern family life.

As I waited, the students were led into the building. Each class, accompanied by their teacher, sat crossed-legged on the floor. The children would become members of the audience as each group, one by one, rose to perform their song. Because the public school system had long stopped referring to the holiday as “Christmas,” I didn’t expect anything other than fun, commercial entertainment. The Winter Pageant was filled with songs of reindeer, Santa Claus, snowflakes and good cheer. The melodies were fun, cute and lighthearted. But nowhere to be found was even the hint of an innocent babe, a manger, or Christ’s precious, sacred gifts of life, hope and joy.

When my son’s class rose to sing “Christmas Love,” I was slightly taken aback by its bold title. However, within moments, I settled in to watch them proudly begin their number. Nicholas was aglow, as were all of his classmates, adorned in fuzzy mittens, red sweaters and bright snowcaps upon their heads. Those in the front row, center stage, held up large letters, one by one, to spell out the title of the song. As the class would sing “C is for Christmas,” a child would hold up the letter C. Then, “H is for Happy,” and on and on, until each child holding up his or her portion had presented the complete message, “Christmas Love.

”The performance was going smoothly, until suddenly, we noticed her, a small, quiet girl in the front row holding the letter M, upside-down! She was entirely unaware that reversed, her letter M appeared as a W. She fidgeted from side to side, until she had moved away from her mark entirely. The audience of children snickered at this little one’s mistakes. In her innocence, she had no idea they were laughing at her and stood tall, proudly holding her W.

You can only imagine the difficulty in calming an audience of young, giggling children. Although many teachers tried to shush them, the laughter continued. It continued, that is, until the moment the last letter was raised, and we all saw it together. A hush came over the audience and eyes began to widen. In that instant, we finally understood the reason we were there, why we celebrated in the first place, why even in the chaos, there was a purpose for our festivities. For, when the last letter was held high, the message read loud and clear, “CHRIST WAS LOVE.” And, I believe, He still is.

My friend over at weekends off thinks I died so I better just get on with it...

OK, so this is my 100th post...

I have been sitting here for over a week and a half trying to think of something "witty" to say or do on this 100th post. But....nothing....nada...zilch!!

I will tell you (with a smile on my face) that my daughter and her son are back on NC soil as we speak. They will be staying with me for a while. Sarah is going to go back to school so she can get a better job to support herself and her son. AND....speaking of her son, my 3rd grandchild...the little shit!

We are on the way to Taco Bell (because it is so healthy) today at lunchtime and all of a sudden I hear it....loud and clear...coming from the back seat of my car....this child that is going to be 2 on Thursday....a very loud and clear "Damn". So, what do I do??? I laugh (oh please, you would have laughed too) I really laugh, which tickles him and he says it over and over again. I choose to ignore this behavior until he says just as cute as can be....grandma......grandma (ok, it sounds more like mommy but he is calling me, I assure you) finally I say "what is it Alex?" and he says "damn" and laughs. Thankfully I am back at work at this time and so I just tell him that grandma will see him after work and they drive away. Hopefully when they come to pick me up he will have forgotten it, I don't know though, he remembers really good.

This morning he went behind the shelves and found his squishy (pacifier, that he has not had for almost a week now) and comes out looks right at his mom and says "ha ha". What a hoot this kid is!

I am almost done with Christmas. I bought the adult children a few things and I will give them each some money. I have bought the grand kids too much (at least that is what my husband has told me, said there are at least 50 presents under the tree, I am sure he is just exaggerating). This is my holiday. I love giving presents. I buy my son (who is 26 this year) a toy every year, don't ask me why, I just do. Usually it is just something small, like a nerf gun or something like that. This year I bought him rock em sock em robots. He is going to die!!

Now, I will update you on Brandie...because I just got a call and well, I am sure you want to know LOL!

Brandie is in her 7th or 8th month of pregnancy. She has been off the drugs and away from that puke Mark for almost 6 months. She is doing well. She was going to put this baby up for adoption and had gone as far as to talk with a private adoption office but suffice to say, not going to happen. When Mark was contacted he decided that he does not want to give the baby up and if Brandie is not willing to keep the baby, he will take the child and raise her himself. NOT GOING TO HAPPEN! Brandie will keep this child and raise her. She has gone to all her parenting classes and has gone through rehab. she is on her way to being a better parent. Has everyone forgiven her....No. Will they? Yes, I think so. My mom has let her stay with her for a few days and has forgiven her. My younger sister was really mad about this but I explained that if it was my granddaughter, I would do the same thing and so would she. I know this is going to be difficult for everyone but the Lord above wants nothing more then for us to forgive.

I am still very angry with Brandie, mostly because although she acted like she was sorry, she never said the words....until today.

My sister (not her mother) was taking her to an appointment and she finally said that she knows what she did was wrong, she knows that she was a terrible parent and she is soo soo sorry for everything that happened. She has to live with this everyday. She can only speak with her children on Wednesdays and Saturdays and she now knows that is just not enough. Their dad has really turned into not so good of a parent either. I think they are better off right now where they are but he is a low life and does not know how to parent either. He and his girlfriend break up every other day and fight like cats and dogs. I don't think this is a good environment either.

What is going to happen? I have not a clue. I would love to see Brandie get her shit together, I know that Russell would love to send the kids back (he is just so tired of being a parent, waaa waa waa) I don't think Brandie is ready yet. She has gone on a housing list, she has, like I said finished parenting classes, she has already got day care set up for the baby when she comes and she has been looking for a job (everyone tells her not to bother right now, no one is going to hire her) but it is looking up.

I think that part of our little dysfunctional family is going to finally come together.

Merry Christmas Everyone. Remember the reason for the season.

Muah

A Thanksgiving Wish

A game warden was driving down the road when he came upon a young boy carrying a wild turkey under his arm.

He stopped and asked the boy, 'Where did you get that turkey?'

The boy replied, 'What turkey?'

The game warden said, 'That turkey you're carrying under your arm.'

The boy looks down and said, 'Well, lookee here, a turkey done roosted under my arm!'

The game warden said, 'Now look, you know turkey season is closed,

So whatever you do to that turkey, I'm going to do to you.

If you break his leg, I'm gonna break your leg.

If you break his wing, I'll break your arm.

Whatever you do to him, I'll do to you.

So, what are you gonna do with him?' The little boy said,

'I guess I'll just kiss his ass and let him go!'

May your stuffing be tasty

May your turkey plump,

May your potatoes and gravy have never a lump.

May your yams be delicious

And your pies take the prize,

And may your Thanksgiving dinner

Stay off of your thighs!

Happy Thanksgiving!

The Stella Awards

Thats right folks, it is time again for the Stella Awards:

For those unfamiliar with these awards, they are named after 81-year-old Stella Liebeck who spilled hot coffee on herself and successfully sued the McDonald's in New Mexico where she purchased the coffee.

You remember, she took the lid off the coffee and put it between her knees while she was driving. Who would ever think one could get burned doing that, right? That's right; these are awards for the most outlandish lawsuits and verdicts in the U.S. You know, the kinds of cases that make you scratch your head. So keep your head scratcher handy.Here are the Stella's for the past year:

7TH PLACE:Kathleen Robertson of Austin, Texas was awarded $80,000 by a jury of her peers after breaking her ankle tripping over a toddler who was running inside a furniture store. The store owners were understandably surprised by the verdict, considering the running toddler was her own son.

6TH PLACE:Carl Truman, 19, of Los Angeles, California won $74,000 plus medical expenses when his neighbor ran over his hand with a Honda Accord. Truman apparently didn't notice there was someone at the wheel of the car when he was trying to steal his neighbor's hubcaps.Go ahead, grab your head scratcher.

5TH PLACE:Terrence Dickson, of Bristol, Pennsylvania, who was leaving a house he had just burglarized by way of the garage. Unfortunately for Dickson, the automatic garage door opener malfunctioned and he could not get the garage door to open. Worse, he couldn't re-enter the house because the door connecting the garage t o the house locked when Dickson pulled it shut. Forced to sit for eight, count 'em, EIGHT, days on a case of Pepsi and a large bag of dry dog food, he sued the homeowner's insurance company claiming undue mental Anguish.Amazingly, the jury said the insurance company must pay Dickson $500,000 for his anguish. We should all have this kind of anguish.Keep scratching. There are more...

4TH PLACE:Jerry Williams, of Little Rock , Arkansas , garnered 4th Place in the Stella's when he was awarded $14,500 plus medical expenses after being bitten on the butt by his next door neighbor's beagle - even though the beagle was on a chain in its owner's fenced yard. Williams did not get as much as he asked for because the jury believed the beagle might have been provoked at the time of the butt bite because Williams had climbed over the fence into the yard and repeatedly shot the dog with a pellet gun.Grrr rr ... Scratch, scratch.

3RD PLACE:Amber Carson of Lancaster, Pennsylvania because a jury ordered a Philadelphia restaurant to pay her $113,500 after she slipped on a spilled soft drink and broke her tailbone. The reason the soft drink was on the floor: Ms. Carson had thrown it at her boyfriend 30 seconds earlier during an argument. What ever happened to people being responsible for their own actions?Scratch, scratch, scratch. Hang in there; there are only two more Stella's to go...

2ND PLACE:Kara Walton, of Claymont , Delaware sued the owner of a night club in a nearby city because she fell from the bathroom window to the floor, knocking out her two front teeth. Even though Ms. Walton was trying to sneak through the ladies room window to avoid paying the $3.50 cover charge, the jury said the night club had to pay her $12,000....oh, yeah,plus dental expenses. Go figure.

1ST PLACE: (May I have a fanfare played on 50 kazoos please)This year's runaway First Place Stella Award winner was Mrs. Merv Grazinski, of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, who purchased a new 32-foot Winnebago motor home. On her first trip home, from an OU football game, having driven on to the freeway, she set the cruise control at 70 mph and calmly left the driver's seat to go to the back of the Winnebago to make herself a sandwich. Not surprisingly, the motor home left the freeway, crashed and overturned. Also not surprisingly, Mrs. Grazinski sued Winnebago for not putting in the owner's manual that she couldn't actually leave the driver's seat while the cruise control was set. The Oklahoma jury awarded her, are you sitting down, $1,750,000 PLUS a new motor home. Winnebago actually changed their manuals as a result of this suit, just in case Mrs. Grazinski has any relatives who might also buy a motor home.

Are we, as a society, getting more stupid...?

Happy Birthday to my daughter....

Today you are 20, and yes it does make me feel old. This is my youngest child. The one that is most like me even if neither one of us wants to admit it.

She is far away...in Texas, and I miss both of them terribly. But, I soooo want her to be happy. I don't want her to have another broken heart.

She is very opinionated

She is very smart

She is very funny

She is very cute....takes after her mother once again

She falls in love so easily and because SOME men are jerks, falls very hard

She is my friend and I miss her.

Darling, I hope that you had a wonderful birthday. I wish I could have been there with you on this day.

Ok, cute kid story ahead....

A few nights ago Kody was having dinner at our house. He is 4 now and goes to head start so he does not get to come over and spend the night very often.

We are having dinner. Baked Chicken, califlower with cheese sauce and brown rice. He loves it. He eats all the califlower first and looks at me with those big blue eyes and says.....Grandma....can I please have more california...it is soooo good!!!!

Gosh, I love that kid!!!

The picture is of Kody and his mom, my daughter.

Happy Holloween !!!!!! Boo!

OK, an e-mail from my mom....

You always hear the usual stories of pennies on the sidewalk being good luck, gifts from angels, etc. This is the first time I've ever heard this twist on the story. Gives you something to think about.

Several years ago, a friend of mine and her husband were invited to spend the weekend at the husband's employer's home. My friend, Arlene, was nervous about the weekend. The boss was very wealthy, with a fine home on the waterway, and cars costing more than her house. The first day and evening went well, and Arlene was delighted to have this rare glimpse into how the very wealthy live. The husband's employer was quite generous as a host, and took them to the finest restaurants. Arlene knew she would never have the opportunity to indulge in this kind of extravagance again, so was enjoying herself immensely.

As the three of them were about to enter an exclusive restaurant that evening, the boss was walking slightly ahead of Arlene and her husband.He stopped suddenly, looking down on the pavement for a long, silent moment. Arlene wondered if she was supposed to pass him. There was nothing on the ground except a single darkened penny that someone had dropped, and a few cigarette butts. Still silent, the man reached down and picked up the penny. He held it up and smiled, then put it in his pocket as if he had found a great treasure. How absurd! What need did this man have for a single penny? Why would he even take the time to stop and pick it up?Throughout dinner, the entire scene nagged at her. Finally, she could stand it no longer.

She casually mentioned that her daughter once had a coin collection, and asked if the penny he had found had been of some value.A smile crept across the man's face as he reached into his pocket for the penny and held it out for her to see. She had seen many pennies before! What was the point of this?

"Look at it." He said. "Read what it says." She read the words "United States of America""No, not that; read further.""One cent?" "No, keep reading.""In God we Trust?" "Yes!" "And?""And if I trust in God, the name of God is holy, even on a coin. Whenever I find a coin I see that inscription. It is written on every single United States coin, but we never seem to notice it!

God drops a message right in front of me telling me to trust Him? Who am I to pass it by? When I see a coin, I pray, I stop to see if my trust IS in God at that moment. I pick the coin up as a response to God; that I do trust in Him. For a short time, at least, I cherish it as if it were gold. I think it is God's way of starting a conversation with me. Lucky for me, God is patient and pennies are plentiful!

When I was out shopping today, I found a penny on the sidewalk. I stopped and picked it up, and realized that I had been worrying and fretting in my mind about things I cannot change. I read the words, "In God We Trust," and had to laugh. Yes, God, I get the message.

It seems that I have been finding an inordinate number of pennies in the last few months, but then, pennies are plentiful! And, God is patient..The best mathematical equation I have ever seen:1 cross+ 3 nails--------4 given. That's the whole gospel message simply stated.

Thought for the Day:

If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it.

If He had a wallet, your photo would be in it.

He sends you flowers every spring.

He sends you a sunrise every morning Face it, friend - He is crazy about you!

Send this to every "beautiful person" you wish to bless.

God didn't promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun without rain, but He did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears, and light for the way.

Read this line very slowly and let it sink in...

If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.

A bald man with a wooden leg gets invited to a Halloween party.

He doesn't know what costume to wear to hide his head and his leg so he writes to a costume company to explain his problem. A few days later he received a parcel with the following note: Dear Sir, Please find enclosed a pirate's outfit. The spotted handkerchief will cover your bald head and, with your wooden leg, you will be just right as a pirate.

Very truly yours,

Acme Costume Co.

The man thinks this is terrible because they have just emphasized his wooden leg and so he writes a letter of complaint. A week goes by and he receives another parcel and a note, which says: Dear Sir, Please find enclosed a monk's habit. The long robe will cover your wooden leg and, with your bald head, you will really look the part.

Very truly yours,

Acme Costume Co.

Now the man is really upset since they have gone from emphasizing his wooden leg to emphasizing his bald head so again he writes the company another nasty letter of complaint. The next week he gets a small parceland a note, which reads: Dear Sir, Please find the enclosed bottle of molasses. Pour the molasses over your bald head, stick your wooden leg up your ass and go as a caramel apple.

Very truly yours,

Acme

Ok, here goes.....

I know that I told ya all that my daughter is leaving for Texas in a few weeks. Well, that time is almost up (she will be leaving next Monday) and it is absolutly totally killing me.

It is not that she is going, not really. It is more that she is taking Alex, now that is killing me.

I am trying to get through this without crying and it just does not work. My heart is totally breaking.

She is moving to a town called Littlefield in Texas, I guess it is about 30 miles from Lubbock. She is moving with her boyfriend of about 2 months...I don't get it.

She did not meet him on the internet, she met him throught a friend of his that lives here. She has talked to him on the phone for the past 2 months and now he is here to pick her up and carry her back to Texas.

Now, I have to tell you.....I really like this guy from what I have seen. The only think that I don't like about him is that he lives in Texas. He is very good to Alex and Alex just loves him but really what do we know of him? David had a friend of his do a background check on him and she did 3 different ones, they all come back fine. But still!!!

I am just going to be a basketcase! I just can't stand this. I know that she wants to go and I know that she has to do this for her but it breaks my heart.

What if something happens to her all the way out there, what if something happens to Alex and I cannot be there for him?? Then what???

David says that she will be back, that this relationship is new and Anthony does not know Sarah like we know Sarah. On one hand I hope to God he is right and on the other hand I want her to find happiness and I want Alex to be happy..........I just want them to be happy here...I guess right now that is just going to be to much to ask.....it is just sad :( Just to let you all know...in case you didn't....That is Alex in the pic, he is just a doll baby :)

I received this e-mail today and it is just so fitting that I wanted to share it with everyone. I am just not doing well today, things are not good. I will try and get on tomorrow and share with everyone. I am just so sad!! But, God will get me through it, I know he will :)

The picture is suppose to show that it is raining, but I don't know how to do that.

One rainy afternoon I was driving along one of the main streets of town, taking those extra precautions necessary when the roads are wet and slick.

Suddenly my daughter, Aspen, spoke up from her relaxed position in her seat. "Dad, I'm thinking of something."

This announcement usually meant she had been pondering some fact for a while, and was now ready to expound all that her six-year-old mind had discovered. I was eager to hear.

"What are you thinking?" I asked.

"The rain!" she began, "is like sin, and the windshield wipers are like God wiping our sins away."

After the chill bumps raced up my arms I was able to respond. "That's really good, Aspen."

Then my curiosity broke in. How far would this little girl take this revelation? So I asked...

"Do you notice how the rain keeps on coming? What does that tell you?"

Aspen didn't hesitate one moment with her answer: "We keep on sinning, and God just keeps on forgiving us."

I will always remember this whenever I turn my wipers on.

Isn't it distressing to know that when you forward this message you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it to them.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.

In order to see the Rainbow, you must first endure some Rain.

Hope the water flows when you get the picture



READ THE FIRST LINE CAREFULLY.

If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.
Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God.
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God.

This is a Thomas Kinkade painting. It's rumored to carry a miracle! The water is supposed to be running, so if it's not moving then the picture didn't come through entirely.

They say if you pass this on, you will receive a miracle. I am passing this on because I thought it was really pretty, and besides, who couldn't use a miracle?!

Hello Everyone.

Finally I come back! I have been on a cruise with my mom and my sister. What fun was that? We had a blast. I flew into Burbank, CA. a week ago last Saturday. On Sunday we did some shopping, did the manicure and pedicure thing and relaxed with the family. On Monday morning we picked up my mom and headed to the Port in well....I am not sure where it really was...we will just say the port and leave it at that. We got on the ship, had "the drink of the day" and headed to our room.

Wow!! Our room was fabulous!!! We were on the 10th floor located right next to the bridge. We got to go out on the patio every morning and watch the Captain and HER crew doing their stuff. Yes, we had the only woman Captain that the Royal Caribbean employees and to top it all off her name was Karin....with an i!!

On Tuesday we docked in San Diego. We did not get off the ship because we had all been to San Diego before so it was just not a big deal for us. Instead we stayed and relaxed, read, ate and slept on and off all day long. On Tuesday night we went to dinner (we had a terrific wait staff) and then to the casino. My sister won $ 450.00 on Monday night so we played with that money all night.

Catalina Island was our next stop. My mom's legs were hurting so we did not get off the boat there either. We figured all there was to do there was shop and we wanted to spend our money in Mexico, were we knew we would get really good deals. That night we went to the casino (yes again) and I put $ 20.00 in the dollar machine and won $ 387.00. I promptly put $ 187.00 back into those crazy machines and quit for the night. This $ 200.00 was my spending money for Mexico the next day :)

Mexico was wonderful. I bought so many things for the kids and grand kids that I did not know how in the world I was going to get it all back. I found out I am an excellent "bard er-er".

On Friday we were back in Los Angeles again :( . This was the best vacation I have ever been on, hands down. I got to spend time with my mom and my sister, we had a blast and I was spoiled rotten (my mom had bought me a Prada handbag and some Dolce & Gabbana purfum along with about $ 400.00 in clothes just for this trip).

Got home Sunday, and it feels good to be home. One downfall is that my daughter had decided that she is going to move to Texas with a friend of hers. That means that my grandson is leaving too. I hate that so much but will not think about it now because is always makes me cry. They are leaving in about 2 weeks, not a good thing and I am almost sure that it is not going to work so who do you think will have to pick up the pieces when all is said and done??? And you all know that I will do it and smile, not because it did not work out, but because I will have my grandson back again. I miss him already.

I'm Backkkkkkkkkkkkk...ok not really. Still have some pneumonia in the chest and now this.... I don't know how to say this exactly so I am going to just cut and paste the letter David (my wonderful husband) wrote to the church.

Please pass along this prayer request.
Karin and I are asking for your prayer. If you have been around Karin in the last month, you know that she has been quite sick. She was initially diagnosed with pneumonia, and that diagnosis may still be true. However, today we went back to the doctor's office, and they want to run a series of additional test. She will have an echo-cardiogram on Thursday. It appears that she may have congestive heart failure. If you (like me) are not a medical type, I assure you that the problem is not as bad as the name suggest. This does not mean that her heart will stop immediately. The doctor thinks that she has some fluid build up around her heart, and this is causing her heart to not work efficiently. Therefore, her heart has to work harder than it should. Her physician has prescribed some oral medication that will cause her body to eliminate more fluid. If all goes well, this intervention, plus some changes in our diet and exercise lifestyles, will take care of the problem. Even the American Heart Association's website indicates that rest, change in diet and exercise routines, along with medication is the generally prescribed treatment. The doc said today that her heart, which is enlarged (like any other muscle when it's working over time) will go back down to a more healthy size in the future. If course, this is contingent on her being successful with these lifestyle changes. In an effort to support her, I am going to make the same lifestyle changes. Please pray for us.
December 31st, 2007 will be her two year anniversary for stopping smoking. She smoked for 26 years up to two packs a day. I am very excited about that and very proud of her for that accomplishment. Every time I think about it, I am thankful that she made that decision because we will, hopefully, have a little longer time together as a result. If she can do that, then I know she can overcome this latest medical issue. Please pray for God's guidance, peace, and ultimately healing.
In Christ,

Good Morning!

I have so much to tell you all but for the last week I have had pneumonia. I have been trying to come to work and really have only missed a day but it is still a little hard to breathe and the night sucks big time. I have to sleep sitting up and really that is not sleeping at all.

OK, lets start with Brandie's kids. They are just too cute. They are with their dad right now. 2 big men from social services went with them to Chicago to hand them over to their dad. Brianna (who is 6) just looked at one of the men, held out her hand, started shaking his hand and said
" Wow, your hands are really really big, you are buff man!" I wonder where she got something like that from. Social services had my mom and sister bring the kids there the day before they were to leave so that they could meet the men that would be taking them and therefore not be so scared. My sister said that at the airport it was awful, the kids kept getting out of line and coming to talk to my mom and my sister, crying, Brianna told my sister that she wished she was her mommy and that she loves her. Matthew just cried and told them how much he was going to miss them. The hardest part I think for my sister was having to hand that baby over. He is about 20 months and since they have been staying with my sister for about 2 weeks, he started calling her me me, so here he was in this big mans arms and holding his arms out to her calling for her. She said that they both held it together until the kids were not in sight and then they let themselves loose it. Now, since this has happened, my sister has talked to the kids and they are fine. Russell told her that she can call anytime and talk to them and of coarse that has made her feel alot better. Brandie did spend some time with them and has again said she is in therapy. She must go to court on the 14th of this month and let the judge know what she has done (therapy, rehab etc.) and if she cannot prove that she has been doing these things the judge will close the case and she will lose complete custody of her children. I am praying that she is doing what she has to be doing.

Now, even though that was good news for the most part......I have better.

My sister and my mother have invited me to come out out California on Sept 15th and leave on a cruise with them on the 17th, going to the Catalina Islands and Baja Mexico and returning on the 23rd. They think for some reason that I need a vacation...ok, I do but they are just too good for me. They are both paying 2 days wages for me because they know that I don't have much vacation time left, they are flying me out and my mom wants to buy me a bunch of new clothes. How in the world did I get so lucky, so blessed?

Anyways that is what has been going on in my world. Oh wait....my nephew just flew to Detroit to see his grandma and sat next to Gene Simmons on the plane....I want to do something like that too :)

Lies, Lies and more Lies!!

I hate lies.

My husband and I have total honesty and I love that, it means that I can trust anything and everything he says as truth, no question about it. I love that about my marriage, sometimes it is so hard to have total honesty and sometimes it hurts but it is always a good thing.

So, this weekend I found out about everything.

Brandie has not been in treatment, Lies!

Brandie is "suppose" to start treatment today, yeah right...not even giving her the benefit of the doubt anymore.

The kids will leave tomorrow to go and live with their dad, my mom asked Brandie if she wanted to come and see them before she left, she said that she had things to do but maybe...she did go eventually.

My little sister is going nuts (ha ha) with 5 children. She just really did not know what she was in for. She is used to her 2 children, one who is 11 and really just does his own thing and one that is 3. She did not remember what 7 is like....and this time 7 is a girl. I laugh but really I feel bad....wait nope...love you little sister!!!

I really am going to bum out on Tuesday because I DO know that this is going to be really really hard on my mom and my sister, no matter how nuts they are driving them, it is really going to suck out loud! Even though they know the children are going to be better off, it still is going to suck. I will pray that the Lord is with them both that day.

I also have to give HUGE kudo's to the foster parents. They loved these 3 children with all they have. Both (No, all) cried when my mom and my sister picked them up. The mother and father have both grown to love these kids. Both cried their eyes out. My sister said that the dad was trying to hold it in and help his wife through it all but he could not hold it in. Brianna just cried and cried...she kept saying..."I want my momma, I want my momma".....she did not mean Brandie....how sad is that. Just one more reason for me to hate her for what she has done to her children.

Will I forgive Brandie, yes I will. The Lord says to forgive, that is what I will have to do.

Do I want to be close to her again? Nope, not at all.

Good Morning All,

Ok, I have a lot of work to do today so I am just going to let you all know what happened this week in the world of "Brandie".

Last Friday was court, as I said before, she did not show up.

Today the children will be turned over to my sister and my mom. They will stay with my mom this weekend and then my sister will take them Sunday and Monday. On Tuesday they will go with a social worker to Chicago to live with their dad.

I am happy and sad about this. Happy because they are going to be with their daddy and they deserve to be with him and sad because they are going to be so far away from my mom and I know that is going to make her so sad.

Brandie called last week (my mom not me) and said that she is 13 weeks preganant, she had been clean for 34 days (I believe that was the number), she is in treatment from 8 am to 12 noon each day, she is still living with Mark's dad although Mark's dad kicked Mark out of the house several weeks ago for beating the shit out of Brandie. Now, I don't know how much of this is true but she did say that she know that she has to get better and she knows that it is the best thing for the kids to go and live with their dad. Frankly, I would love to give her the benefit of the doubt but I just can't believe anything she says right now. If she proves herself then ok, I will try and forgive her because that is what the Lord wants us to do. I just really want the old Brandie back without the attidude and the "I am better than you" belief.

So, finally after fighting for his children for the last few months, Russell will be able to take them home and they will have somewhere to call home. We will miss them more than anyone can say but I am sure that Russell will let them fly out to Calif. once in a while.

Please continue to pray for these children. They know that they are not going to be living with their mommy but when reality hits, and they remember all that she has done to them, they will not only need counseling, they will need prayer.

OK, new update.

Right now Brandie and Russell should be in court. Why you ask? Well, I explain they should be in court today because TODAY is the day the JUDGE told them to return.

Russell is in court right now, Brandie could not make it. Why you ask? Well, she is pregnant!!

Can you believe it? She is pregnant and sick so she cannot be in court to fight for the 3 children that she does have.

I just talked to my sister and they (the court) have taken Russell upstairs to do the live scan of his hand to make sure that he is not "wanted" or anything. They will send it to the FBI and if all comes back fine, I believe that he could be taking his kids home next week. The mediator asked if my mom would take the kids until then but because my mom's live scan did not work (her hands are too dry and cracked) so my sister will take the children if they will let her for a week.

My heart goes out those children so much.

I keep asking myself, how could their mother just give her kids away? What kind of mother does that?

My sister says that the state of California will take the baby the minute it is born, we both agree that we do not believe for a New York minute that Brandie is not still doing meth. I don't know but I do think that you cannot just simply stop doing it without some help, not when you are that addicted. But, maybe I am wrong. I hope so.

I will come and update some more as soon as I hear anything else. Russell is in with his attorney, Brandie's attorney (court appointed) and a mediator trying to get things settled.

I am passing this along because I got it in an e-mail from my mother. Although I was alive in the 70's I was not old enough to remember this. If it is true, Shame on Jane Fonda!! Please pass this along if you wish, post it on your blog...whatever you want to do with it. I just thought it was worth passing along.

She really was a traitor; A TRAITOR IS ABOUT TO BE HONORED KEEP THIS MOVING ACROSS AMERICA!

This is for all the kids born in the 70's who do not remember, and didn't have to bear the burden that our fathers, mothers and older brothers and sisters had to bear.

Jane Fonda is being honored as one of the'100 Women of the Century.'

BY BARBRA WALTERS

Unfortunately, many have forgotten and still countless others have never known how Ms. Fonda betrayed not only the idea of our country, but specific men who served and sacrificed during Vietnam

The first part of this is from an F-4E pilot

The pilot's name is Jerry Driscoll, a River Rat.

In 1968, the former Commandant of the USAF Survival School was a POW in Ho Lo Prison the 'Hanoi Hilton.'

Dragged from a stinking cesspit of a cell, cleaned, fed, and dressed in clean PJ's, he was ordered to describe for a visiting American 'Peace Activist' the 'lenient and humane treatment' he'd received.

He spat at Ms. Fonda, was clubbed, and was dragged away.During the subsequent beating, he fell forward on to the camp Commandant's feet, which sent that officer berserk.

In 1978, the Air Force Colonel still suffered from double vision (which permanently ended his flying career) from the Commandant's frenzied application of a wooden baton.

From 1963-65, Col. Larry Carrigan was in the47FW/DO (F-4E's). He spent 6 years in the'Hanoi Hilton',,, the first three of which his family only knew he was 'missing in action'.His wife lived on faith that he was still alive.His group, too, got the cleaned-up, fed and clothed routine in preparation for a 'peace delegation' visit.They, however, had time and devised a plan to get word to the world that they were alive and still survived.

Each man secreted a tiny piece of paper, with his Social Security Number on it, in the palm of his hand. When paraded before Ms. Fonda and a cameraman, she walked the line, shaking each man's hand and asking little encouraging snippets like: 'Aren't you sorry you bombed babies?' and 'Are you grateful for the humane treatment from your benevolent captors? 'Believing this HAD to be an act, they each palmed her their sliver of paper.She took them all without missing a beat.

At the end of the line and once the camera stopped rolling, to the shocked disbelief of the POWs, she turned to the officer in charge and handed him all the little pieces of paper. Three men died from the subsequent beatings. Colonel Carrigan was almost number four but he survived, which is the only reason we know of her actions that day.

I was a civilian economic development advisor inVietnam, and was captured by the North Vietnamese communists in South Vietnam in 1968, and held prisoner for over 5 years. I spent 27 months in solitary confinement; one year in a cage in Cambodia; and one year in a 'black box' in Hanoi.My North Vietnamese captors deliberately poisoned and murdered a female missionary, a nurse in a leprosarium in Ban me Thuot, SouthVietnam, whom I buried in the jungle near the Cambodian border.

At one time, I weighed only about 90 lbs. (My normal weight is 170 lbs.)

We were Jane Fonda's 'war criminals.'

When Jane Fonda was in Hanoi, I was asked bythe camp communist political officer if I would be willing to meet with her.

I said yes, for I wanted to tell her about the real treatment we POWs received... and how different it was from the treatment purported by the North Vietnamese, and parroted by her as 'humane and lenient.'

Because of this, I spent three days on a rocky floor on my knees, with my arms outstretched with a large steel weights placed on my hands,and beaten with a bamboo cane.

I had the opportunity to meet with Jane Fonda soon after I was released. I asked her if she would be willing to debate me on TV. She never did answer me.

These first-hand experiences do not exemplify someone who should be honored as part of '100 Years of Great Women. 'Lest we forget...' 100 Years of Great Women' should never include a traitor whose hands are covered with the blood of so many patriots.

There are few things I have strong visceral reactions to, but Hanoi Jane's participation in blatant treason, is one of them.

Please take the time to forward to as many people as you possibly can.It will eventually end up on her computer ands he needs to know that we will never forget.

RONALD D. SAMPSON, CMSgt, USAF716

Maintenance Squadron,

Chief ofMaintenance DSN: 875-6431COMM: 883-6343

PLEASE HELP BY SENDING THIS TO EVERYONE IN YOUR ADDRESS BOOK. IF ENOUGH PEOPLE SEE THIS MAYBE HER STATUS WILL CHANGE.

AMEN!!

Another one just because it's funny!!

Subject: Bertha



Bertha was dead.

The minister conducted her eulogy with heart felt gusto.

"Bertha married and had thirteen children.

Her husband died.

She married again and had seven more children.

Again, her husband died.

But, she married yet again and this time had five more children.

Again, her husband died.

Then alas, she finally died," he intoned

Standing before her coffin, the preacher prayed for Bertha.

He thanked the Lord for this very loving woman and said,

"Lord, they're finally together."

Ethel leaned over and quietly asked her friend Jane,

"Do you think he means her first, second or third husband?"


Jane replied, "I think he means her legs."