Priceless

I received a phone call yesterday from Jeff. He was calling to tell me that he had signed the two of us up to do a volunteer event today. I asked what we would be doing and he said, "I don't know, it is an Easter event at an elementary school." My first thought was, "I hope it rains." It has been a long, difficult week and the thought of giving my time to benefit somebody else was nothing I was looking to do. When I went to bed it was pouring. When I woke up at 6, it had stopped raining. Still not really feeling like going, I thought of telling him I was going to stay home. I heard him jump into the shower and started viewing this as an opportunity to have some one on one time with my son. We pulled up to the school and I was amazed. The event was a city wide park and recreation event designed for children up to age 7. Lots of peope everywhere and even cops directing traffic. We eventually found where we needed to be and got our assingnment. I was so thankful when we were NOT assigned to do face painting. Our assignment was the 6-7 year old egg hunt. We reported to our field and helped lay down about 2000 eggs. We were soon alone in the field and left to "guard" it until the race began. We answered many questions during that time. About 30 minutes before the race started a mom approached me and asked if she would be allowed on the field with her autistic son. My first reaction, having autistic children myself was to say yes, but then I remembered the director specifically telling us "NO PARENTS". I explained to the mom that I totally understood where she was coming from, but I would have to ask. She told me she would be back in 10 minutes. I sent Jeff to ask the director and the answer was "of course she can!" Jeff came back with a smile on his face and I didn't even have to ask what the answer was. The mom returned and I gave her two thumbs up. The smile on her face was priceless. The hunt began and I quickly scanned the field for that mom and son. I located them and the smiles on their faces were once again priceless. After only 5 minutes all 2000 eggs had been picked up. Our next assignment was to help give out prizes at the prize booth. I was thrilled to see my autistic buddy had found an egg that earned him a prize. While they were walking away, the mom turned to me and and now she gave me two thumbs up. I know the smile on my face as well as the smile on my heart was priceless. On our way home I thanked Jeff for signing me up. I need to get out and do more of this. I probably will never see that mom and son again, but the site of them and their smiles will be etched in my mind and heart forever.

Darn woodpeckers!

Alas, we have a very common looking woodpecker. A woodpecker who naturally pecks on trees. Right???
WRONG!!!!! I now present to you exhibit A:

Do you see the two holes at the top of our wood siding on our house? Yes, those would be woodpeckers holes. Do you know what it sounds like to listen to a woodpecker drumming on your house? Let's just say I want to kill the SOB!!!! We now have to hire somebody to repair not only those two holes, but the three others that he has created!!! Apparently short of shooting the blasted varmints, there is nothing else to do except hang pie tins, fake owls or mirrors from the eaves of your house. Oh, I am sure my neighbors would love to see pie tins or fake owls hanging from our house. Ok Woody, you have been warned!!!!!!

It's a golden day!

Yep, that's right somebody at our house is celebrating their golden birthday. Jeffrey is 22 on the 22nd of February. Honestly, I never heard the term golden birthday until I moved to MN. I think it is a midwest thing. Anyhow, today we celebrate Jeff and the joy he continues to bring to this family. Jeff is an amazing brother, son, friend and just all around great person. On the downest of days, I can count on Jeff to lift me up. He gives selflessly of his time to make sure he is always available for his brothers. Jeff, I can not begin to tell you how much it means to have you as my son. You are my rock and sounding board. My heart swells with pride when I see you interacting with your brothers. I know the past several months have not gone the way you had planned, but you continue to reach for the stars when others would have given up. I wish you nothing but sunshine, rainbows and unicorns (an inside joke) in this upcoming year. This is your year to show them all what you are made of and soar you will. I love you to the moon and back a zillion times. Z Okazji Urodzin, Jeffrey Peter Hunt. Don't ever change who you are. Ok, you still need work on keeping your room clean............

The Three T's

Travel: I never travel for my job. But, since our store is going through a remodel, I have had to go away from training. I did the first part of my training in Nashville and will conclude the second part in Charlotte. I have learned two very important lessons while traveling 1. I am an old lady. The majority of people I am travleing with are 32 or younger and I find everything they do to be highly annoying and immature. All I want to do is stay in my room and get the heck back home.....all they want to do is go out and party. 2. I learned everything I need to know in kindergarten. I have not gotten one thing out of this training......not one single solitary thing except for a new dislike for my boss and his boss.

Tickets: Oh yes, the Georgia police caught me. While minding my own business and driving to work one day, a very nice police officer decided to pull me over because the light above my license plate was burned out. Seriously????? Well, then he told me the frame around my license plate was not legal in Georgia. Seriously????? Then he asked how long I had lived in GA. I was honest and told him 5 months. The next question was why hadn't I changed my license yet. I tried to explain the situation with David's car and how we were still on MN insurance, etc. but he was not having it. So he was nice and only gave me a warning for my light and frame, but had to give me a ticket for not changing over my license. After he writes me the ticket he tells me how if it were him he would not pay the fine but instead, go to my court date and explain it all to the judge and he thinks the judge will let me off. Seriously????? Then why did you write me a ticket. Note: I plan to pay the fine and not waste a day of work going to court.

Tired: I have been on the go nonstop over the last several months and it is catching up with me. My schedule at work is not at all what I expected, and getting up most days at 2:30 in the morning is hard. I would rather go back to working overnights then have my sleep interrupted at that time. I am hoping once the remodel is over with I can change my scheulde. It seems like all I do is sleep, work, nap, teach school, sleep. My favorite part of my schedule is teach school.

A Rough Start

Happy 2012. We are off to a rough start here. An upper respiratory infection found its way into David's system and quickly found a new home in me. I have been sick, sick, sick. I thought I was finally turning the corner, but after dinner tonight I had such a bad cough attack I was coughing and throwing up at the same time. Sorry if that is too much info. It is a viral infection, so really nothing to do but let it run its course. David is definietly feeling much better than I am. I really hope the nasties will leave my body soon and stay away forever. I will try to update more later, but right now I am going to try and get some rest.

Fifteen years later..........

and the pain is still there. The pain of a broken heart. The pain I wish I never would have experienced. The pain that was so easily seen on all of our faces. The pain that only somebody who has walked in our shoes would understand. Fifteen years ago today we learned our sixth child, third daughter, had strangled on her cord and died in utero. I wished God would have taken me and spared her life. I blamed myself. I wanted to die. I went into a depression. I begged for my husband to just let me go. My husband refused to give up on me and our family. Fifteen years later and not a day goes by that I don't think of my daughter and what could have been. The pain has never gone away, but my precious daughter continues to send me signs that she is okay and that makes the pain more tolerable. Somebody sent this poem to me 15 years ago and it is very true. To my husband-Thank you for continuing to fight for us when you were grieving so bad yourself. Our children are lucky to have you as their dad and I am honored to be your wife.


I am wearing a pair of shoes.
They are ugly shoes.
Uncomfortable shoes.
I hate my shoes.
Each day I wear them, and each day I wish I had another pair.
Some days my shoes hurt so bad that I do not think I can take another step.
Yet, I continue to wear them.
I get funny looks wearing these shoes.
They are looks of sympathy.
I can tell in others eyes that they are glad they are my shoes and not theirs.
They never talk about my shoes.
To learn how awful my shoes are might make them uncomfortable.
To truly understand these shoes you must walk in them.
But, once you put them on, you can never take them off.
I now realize that I am not the only one who wears these shoes.
There are many pairs in this world.
Some woman are like me and ache daily as they try and walk in them.
Some have learned how to walk in them so they don't hurt quite as much.
Some have worn the shoes so long that days will go by before they think about how much they hurt.
No woman deserves to wear these shoes.
Yet, because of these shoes I am a stronger woman.
These shoes have given me the strength to face anything.
They have made me who I am.
I will forever walk in the shoes of a woman who has lost a child.
Author Unknown

Life in the south

Wow, it has been quite awhile since I last posted. This moving thing sure is taking up a lot of my time. We are slowly but surely getting the boxes unpacked. The weather has been absolutely amazing. I am in the process of deciding on curtains for the majority of our rooms. I completed the kitchen today and am very pleased with the outcome. I found a store down here called the Classy Flea. It is kind of like an indoor flea market, but more upscale. It is a very eclectic type place and their prices are downright affordable. Today we picked up a new kitchen table and 4 chairs for 100 dollars!!!!!!!!! I go there about 2 times a week because they are always getting in new stuff. Work is going well. We continue to be impressed with the friendliness of the south. David is enjoying his new store. The boys are adjusting to their new home. Jeff came for a visit last weekend and we had a blast. Martha is liking her new home, too. There are a lot more bulldogs down here including one just 4 doors up from us. Will post more and pictures when I have the time.