A VERY SPECIAL DAUGHTER

I am so thankful for being blessed with such a wonderful daughter. She is an angel from above. This past weekend (Saturday) I dislocated and broke my toe and have been in severe pain and unable to get around very good. Missy has been such a big help both around the house and just by being there and showing her love.

It doesn't seem like she should be 17 tomorrow (Friday, November 30) but she will. I remember the day she was born, she was so beautiful and is such a blessing. I enjoy watching and hearing her and her daddy, they are always picking on each other. If you ever hear her talk about "Dawg" that is her daddy. I am so thankful for having her as a daughter. She is a daughter that every mother dreams of having. Thank you God for blessing me and Richard with such a wonderful daughter.

Love you lots and thank you for all your help.

Yesterday in B.L.A.S.T. was interesting but very rewarding day. We have been working on the 10 commandments. The boys took the stones made out of cardstock stained with a tea bag last week and we are now working on a booklet. It is really fun to make them, you take a freshly used teabag and press it on a piece of paper and when it is all done it looks really neat. The tea bag we were using kinda sorta broke so there were tea grinds all over the paper which made it look even more real. When it was all finished it was really neat looking. Looked just like a stone with dirt on it.
We are now working on a little booklet with the 10 commandments. This is the first time I have ever done something like this, I got the idea from one of the projects she did at school. When you open it up there will be a commandment on one side and a picture of that commandment on the next page (so when you open it up you will see the commandment and a picture that relates to that commandment (ie. Honor Your Father and Mother - put that on one side and put a picture of father and mother on the other side (i would like to make a heart and have the picture of father and mother inside it).
Yesterday, was really interesting but rewarding at the same time. We were working on our little 10 commandment booklet. It was very hard to keep their attention on doing it. Kelan wanted to play with a car he brought and Josh kept wanted to look at a book. We were talking about what made God have a happy face or a sad face. Out of no where this thought popped inside my head. I made a sad :( face and a :) on the board and put their initial J or K under one. When they saw their initial under :( it made a big change vs when their initial was under :). Just seeing their initial under
:( made a major difference. Kelan got so excited when he saw his initial go from under the :( to the :). It is such a blessing being with them and seeing how hard they try to do whatever is asked of them.
When it was time to go home Josh and I went into the room with the other kids. He was talking to the lady that was filling in for Neill and Melissa and was telling her what we did and wanted to show her his booklet he started and the Noah's Ark mural. We went back to "our room" and got them and he showed them to her and was telling her how much fun it is in B.L.A.S.T.. With a little help he told her what B.L.A.S.T. stands for told her that we have alot of fun in there. Just hearing him say that was really encouraging and makes me want to do more with them. If you ever want to come visit us one Sunday you are welcome to.

Well, guess I better get to work.

It's Friday and Richard is home

When I got home last night it was so nice. I turned onto our street and saw a car sitting in front of your house. It was Richard he had gotten home earlier than he expected. It was so nice to have him home again. Not only was Missy and I glad he was home but little Jewell wouldn't let him out of her sight. Honey was glad to see him, because he is the one that gives her and Jewell snacks all the time. He is home and now she can get snacks. It is funny Richard can tell her she had her snacks already and Honey will look at him and give him her big "puppy eyes" (that is a little joke between him and Missy-her big eyes can melt his heart if she looks at the right way with her "puppy eyes"). And what does he do? That's right goes and gets them (Jewell and Honey) a snack. What is funny is that he will break the little puppy stick in little pieces for Jewell. We were talking the other day about Ricky, April and DJ coming up and he started laughing and said that his dog "Jewell" isn't going home with them this time. We both started laughing and said that if they ever decide to take Jewell back (she has been staying with us until they got their own place and then would take her home with them) they are going to have a hard time. He started laughing and said "Jewell is my puppy now and they can't have her back" and laughing the whole time he said that. It is almost impossible to separate them and her and Honey. When we go on our SPCA nursing home visits they don't get very far from each other. One day Missy was riding her bike and took Honey with her. Little Jewell stood at the front door and cried the whole time Honey was outside.

I woke Missy up to get ready for school this morning and the first thing that she said was Bubba and DJ will be here today. That is about all she has talked about this week.

Well, guess I better get to work and try to get some things done before it is time for Richard to come and get me for lunch.

Today is Wednesday and am I ever ready for Thursday afternoon to get here. Richard has been out of town at school relating to his job and will be back Thursday night. It is really hard to believe that we have been married 27 years. It seems only like yesterday I got a letter in the mail and that night we talked on the phone until 3 am about getting married. I have the letter put in a really special place where nothing will happen to it. Seems like when he is gone the word sleep is not allowed in this house. I go to bed at night and wake up ever hour and hear the smallest noise in the house. Last night I had the timer on the tv set for 120 minutes thinking that maybe with the noise I would go to sleep. But that didn't work very good. I turned the tv off and then noticed that the screen was glowing. I will be so glad when Richard gets home and so will Missy. She is counting the days/hours until "dawg" (their nickname for each other) get home along with the days/hours until bubba, April and DJ get here (they will be here Friday).

I have been so blessed with such a wonderful husband and children. I often catch myself thinking about what my daddy would think of them if he was alive today. He got killed on a job related accident when I was 10 months old. I can remember hearing my mother and grandmother talking about when I was 6 months old and had a really bad seizure and the doctors stayed by my side working with me from 6pm to 6am without leaving and finally told them that was all they could do. My grandmother had people praying for me all over (she had contacted her church and they started a prayer chain.) and here I am today blessed with such a wonderful family. When my father and grandfather got word of what happened they both left work and drove straight to the hospital (they were working out of town). By listening to mother and gramdma talk daddy was really a wonderful person. Mother showed me a picture she had of a crow sitting on a post and smoking a cigarette, does that seem real? but it is. She has talked about all the different things daddy would do and that he would always put his family before anything he wanted to do. I catch myself wishing that he was alive today so that he could meet Richard and my little family and of course my 1st grandson. I know that he would be really happy. I remember when we (my brothers and myself) were growing up mother would take us outside at night and show us a star and tell us "that is your daddy looking down at you". Growing up I would go outside and look up at the sky and there daddy was looking down on me. Even today, I do the same thing. I remember showing Ricky and Missy the star and tellling them the story about it.

Daddy if you were only alive today you would be so happy to see what a wonderful family I have been blessed with. I know that you are always looking down on us and know what a wonderful family I have. My mother tells me that Richard has me spoiled rotten and I am the first to admit I am. We have a little joke between the three of us (Richard, mother and myself) that whatever Lisa wants Lisa gets. When we first got married, Richard and I, he would send me a plant every month on the 30th (we got married August 30, 1980). At one time I had over 50 house plants in the little house we were living in. I can remember this one plant I saw at Shirleys Florist and fell in love with it. It was an elephant ear ivy and was over 6 feet tall. He told me one afternoon that I needed to come home from work and get home as soon as possible. I asked him why and he told me that someone was coming over (never said who) and when I opened the door what did I see. Yes, it was the ivy I saw and told him about. It was doing really good until we moved into the house we had built. Seems like no plants like to live in this house. Probably because it doesn't have alot of windows to let the sun in.

Well, guess I better go and try to get some rest. Richard I can't wait till you get home Thursday night so that I can sleep all night.

Its Saturday and I'm sitting here at work trying to get caught up on being out for a week. Missy and I were suppose to go to SPCA today but I let Missy go so Richard and I could come clean the office and I just stayed up here (will call one of them to come pick me when I get finished).

Missy sure seems to be excited about her "bubba" coming down. That is about all she talks about is her "bubba". We went on our usual Friday night store trip and all she wanted to do was look at toys and clothes for DJ. and talk about what she wants to buy him and where she wants to take him. I think that Ricky is ready to come home to see her. He called last night and talked to all three of us for I don't know how long.

Well, guess I better get back to work so I can go home.

Last night was interesting. The four of us, Missy, her friend, her mother and myself) were in the living room with the door open. Honey started barking like she always does when she sees something move outside and Missy saw a man dragging his trash and putting it in several different places.

Well it is getting close to Ricky and his little family to come. Next Friday they are suppose to be here. Richard is going to be gone to school Monday thru Thursday and will be back sometime Thursday night. We, Missy and I, are giving him a hard time about him being gone all week and leaving us to get everything ready for them to come but it will get done. We are really excited about them coming down. Missy is counting the days and has all kind of plans for her and DJ.

Well, guess I better get to work and try to get caught up. I have so much work I need to do from being out a whole week.

Today has been a lazy day. Missy and I went to the Cedar Manor nursing home with Jewell and Honey. The people there got such a joy out of seeing all the dogs, and a cat (a lady brougt her hairless cat for the first time).
There was this one lady that loves Jewell so much. She saw us coming and started pushing her wheelchair to the door to let us in as fast as she could. She was so excited. That really makes it worth going. I can remember before we (Missy and I) started going to S.P.C.A. Missy would not go inside a nursing home. She was scared to death of it and anything related to it. But now she can't wait to get there with her Honey and Jewell. I can remember the first time we went there was this little man sitting on the couch. The nurses told us that he just sits there and doesn't talk or do anything but sit there. Missy brought Honey in and she jumped on the couch beside him and laid her head on his leg. A minute later his hand started moving over toward Honey. He started petting her and then here comes a big smile on his face along with his eyes. He didn't want Honey to leave. We went to this one room and Honey jumped up on the bed beside this lady and stayed there (like it was her bed and she was not going to get down). The lady got so excited. Her face was full of happiness. Just spending an hour taking Honey and Jewell to the nursing homes really is a reward. They really think it is neat when we dress them up. One time Honey was jumped up in one of Missy's Easter dress she had when she was little and Jewell had her wedding dress on. That day there were so many smiles and excitement coming from the people there. It is really rewarding taking them there and if anyone is interested in going with us you are welcome.
Missy is such a rewarding daughter. She is over babysitting right now. A little girl and one of the boys in my Bible Learning and Studying Together (it is for "special needs children" at church ). We were doing a Noah's Ark project, and made a mural of it. One Sunday we were going across to the main church to watch a movie with the IMPACT kids. Before we went there I read the story of Noah's Ark and we found the animals on the mural (had it laying on the floor) and then played a game. After talking about Noah and him following God they got into a line and stood real still with their hands to their side and walked in line around a table. It was really hard for them to do but they did it. I was telling them that they did a really good job and we were all very proud of them. Before we went over to the main building they lined up in front of the door and walked over there in a line with their hands to their side and when we went back to "our room", we were sitting in the floor and I was telling them that they did a very good job and then one of the boys asked "Did we make God happy?" I told him that God was really happy and proud of them doing such a good job. It is so rewarding to be with them I don't miss playing my Flute in service at all. They work so hard to do what you ask them to do. It may not seem hard but to them it is a challenge.
Well, guess I better go and get things ready for the morning.

Wierd Things About Me

7 weid things about me? Well here they are:

1. When I was growing up I can remember my mother preparing liver with creamed potatoes and I enjoyed that so much. Today, well it is a whole different story I very rarely get it.(Richard can't handle the smell of it when it is cooking, Missy on the other hand just doesn't like it).
2. Some people think I'm wierd because I am willing to go in and clean/repair houses that are really really bad. (one house was so bad we had to open all the windows before and during being there.
3. Missy and I have what we call "movie night" on Friday nights (sometimes other nights also) where we stay up all night and watch movies until we fall asleep on the couch. You should try that it is alot of fun.
4. During the winter I fix what is called "Musical Oranges". First time I did that Missy didn't know what they were and how to eat them. All to make it is an orange and a soft pepermint stick (the only time you can find them is this time of year). You take the orange and make it really soft without breaking the peeling. Then take the pepermint stick and insert it through the top or bottom of the orange and then suck on the peppermint stick and guess what that is the musical orange.
5. I enjoy dressing Jewell up and taking her to nursing homes all dressed up. We, Missy and I, dressed up Jewell in a wedding dress and Honey in an Easter dress she had gotten when she was little one Saturday and took them to one of the nursing homes and when we were going there we sure got some looks as we were driving down the road. Missy and I are members of the SPCA program (Society of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals).
6. If I want something different to wear I can wear Missy's clothes. I have been told that is not the way it is. You daughter goes to your closet not you going to her closet.
7. What we call "family time" isn't like other families, we do things like working on things around our home or work on other houses. That is "family time" to us instead of going out and spending $.

Today is Thursday, November 1, 2007. The last 2 weeks have been really hard. I had been feeling off balance and a week ago Sunday it hit and do I mean hit. We, Richard, Missy and myself, got home from church and I laid down (like Missy and I usually do) and don't remember much until this past Saturday. About the only thing I do remember is a nurse trying to do some blood work and she couldn't find the vain she wanted and was digging around with the needle in my left arm and did it ever hurt. I can remember telling her to try a certain place on my other arm and it didn't take but just a second after that. Late that afternoon the nurse called and told me that my Dilantin count was up to 32 and it shouldn't get over 20. (No wonder I was feeling no pain!) Needless to say I was in bed the rest of the week. I tried to go to work Thursday morning (but that didn't last long), and my co-workers, especially Sr. kept telling me I didn't need to be there. Well, when Richard came and picked me up for lunch I didn't make it back. I finally made it back to work Monday, but still having to take it a little slow. I have been really busy all week long and Sr. keeps checking on me to make sure that I am doing ok. My balance still isn't the best but it is getting better. Sure will be glad to get back to myself.

Missy has been so wonderful, anything I needed or needed done she was always right there. She is such a blessing to have as a daughter.

She shared some exciting news that she had gotten from her Bubba. They (Ricky, April and little DJ) will be here the week before Thanksgiving for about 3 days. Let me tell you what that is about all Missy talks about is seeing her Bubba. (Sure is funny before he graduated from high school and got married they didn't get along very well. Since then I have never heard them in an argument.). She is really excited about them coming down.

I have been blessed with the most wonderful husband, Richard. He has been right there by me the past two weeks. He would come home every morning and bring me a Dr. Pepper (I have to have my Dr. Pepper everyday) and picks Missy up and takes her to school, picks her up from school and brings her home in the afternoon. He does all this between working at his job and taking care of everything here at home.

I started back to work Monday and have been able to go everyday this week. After being out for a whole week, I have been a really busy week. But is sure is nice being back to work and will I ever be glad to back to the normal daily activities.

Thanks Missy and Richard for all the help you have given me the past two weeks. I love you both very much.