An End

Well 2008 is almost at an end. I want to wish all of you

A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I hope you all have a good night and be safe.

I gotta start taking pics at midnight cause I think I'm going to do the 365 challenge this year. I don't know if I can keep it up all year long but I'm gonna try.

See ya next year.

Christmas

We had a great great Christmas! We went to Mom's on Christmas Eve. We were all in a good mood believe it or not. Someone usually isn't. Everybody loved the calendars I made them. Of course the bragbooks went over real good. Jesse got a lot of toys of course. She was happy with everything she got.

On Christmas day I cooked dinner for us. Later on that day the boys came up and ate. We had a great time. Jesse got a horse blanket and a 50 dollar gift card to Barnes and Noble. She loves to read.

Friday Brenda and her husband came up. She brought her oldest daughter with her. It was a great visit. It was a very emotional reunion for them after 25 years of not seeing each other. We all cried and snotted. LOL She and I even had a great talk by ourselves. She's a beautiful girl, well a woman. They had to leave Saturday though and that was hard. We tried to talk them into staying another day but they couldn't.

Happy New Year everyone

Not Much

There's not a whole lot going on today. We have some freezing rain right now. Today when we came back home I was slippin and slidin coming up my steps and my sis was laughing at me and I told her Yep un-uh laugh at me again.

I got the rest of Christmas dinner fixins. Cornish hens, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes, deviled eggs and I don't know what else. Cheesecake and cake for dessert plus all the fudge. I think I may have to take extra insulin. LOL

Mom's house is all clean for tomorrow. So that's done anyway. Everyone will be there except her mom and brothers I guess. So that sucks but what are ya suppose to do?

But anywho if I don't get back on by Christmas, everyone have a very

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Too Much Work

Hey gals, sorry I didn't get on here earlier today (or yesterday now). I made some more fudge and the peppermint balls. They were more like a biscuit. I guess that's the word. So not bad but not my first choice.

I didn't get to talk to Malik today. So missed him. LOl Bobby called and we talked for a bit but not as long as we did the other day. I have found out though I like talking to him esp. recently. We're both more open with each other about the last 18 years.

Bob was layed over in Memphis, TN. over the weekend so we've talked quite a few times. Every time he talks to one of his kids now it's like he's just more in 'awe' at the idea that he has all 5 of them in his life now. He told me tonight that he'll be glad to get his arms around them and give them a hug. We can't wait to see them. I hope we can get the money together soon for a road trip to visit.

I cleaned house today. Not the regular cleaning but major house cleaning. I moved the living room around. Of course Bob gave me down the road for that. I should have waited for him to be home before I did it. But I see his point because my damn shoulder is killing me tonight. Then I moved the table in my office. It was that big a deal but it made my shoulder scream more. So I downed the ibuprphens. LOL I took 4 of them and wish I had something a 'wee' bit stronger for it. But oh well....

I started reading Eclipse, again. I think this is the 4th time now. What is it about these damn book. But I love them.

Hope ya'lls Sunday was great.

Sweet SATURDAY

Bob and me

Credit: Amanda Thorderson

Bob and me LO for lyric challenge at DSG.

Credit: Ladybug Graphix

The top one is me when I was 9.

Credit: Ladybug Graphix Bellisimo kit

Here's some LOs I wanted to share. I need to do some of Malik and Brenda but need to see if it's OK with them first.

This is a QP by Alessandra Designs. I love it.

Today i've been making fudge. I have butterscotch and peanut butter gone and still have 4 batches of white and a chocolate to go. This year I'm gona try a new recipe. It's called Peppermint Snowballs and they look so good. It's from Kims Scrappin. So I'll give it a try and let ya know.

Last night I chatted with Malik for a while. Then Bob called at 1:45 am and we got off the phone at 4 am this morning. I tell ya his kids finding us I think had changed all of us. We're just intune more with one another and I didn't think that could happen with the two of us.

So yesterday I talked to all my Ricketts men except one.

Between two of them I talked for 5 hours. LOL The battery on the phones ran down too. LOL

Arlington

This is a photo that was in an email I got. But it just hit me so I thought I'd share it with ya. It sent cold chills all over me.

Then I thought last night as I went to bed well at about 3 this morning, have a comfy nights sleep. But OH NO. The cat decided to piss and shit in the bed. I couldn't believe it. I have no clue why she did but UGH. So I stripped the bed and went and slept on the couch.

The wind and rain woke me this morning and I was laying in a pool of sweat. With the diabetes and insulin, my sugar bottomed out on me last night. So of course when I tell hubby later he'll 'lecture' me. LOL Naw he just worries.

Last night my step son called me at about midnight and we talked til 1:30 or so this morning. I told him I was gonna slap him when I saw him again. LOL He's driving a truck now also and I worry about him out there. He was in Chicago and the best of weather is not up there ya know. We had a great conversation though. The best we've had in quite a while. He can hear a difference in Bob too since the older kids found him. He sounded happy about everything too.

Well ya'll have a great weekend!

Terrible Thursday

Oh god days like these make me wish I'd stayed in the damn bed. The dog has been puking, the kids just oo ugh %?*& you know.

She didn't want to do school. As a lot of you know I homeschool her and today was one of those days that made we wish I'd sent her to public school. She's just been so difficult today to put it nicely. LOL

But I did talk to Bob for a while tonight. So that made me feel better til he told me would probably be out over the weekend. He's on his way to Texas now. So that kind of screwd the day. But oh well when he does get hom he may be home til after Christmas or the first of the year. it's hard telling with him being a truckdriver. This is the first year he's had a 'regular' truckdriving job. The last 12 years he'd been on a dedicated run so we knew what his runs were going to be. Then he started going to Canada and he left on Tuesdays and home on Saturdays. Now he usually leaves on Sundays and who the hell knows when they'll send him home. But trucking is all the man knows so line of work is of out of the question. Good grief he's been doing it off and on for about 32 or 33 years or longer. While at the one company he got over 1 million moiles while he was there. So he has driven a lot of miles. And I love him, always have always will.

My no bake cookies turned out good this year. I was glad. Last year they were YUCK so I threw them away. LOL

I'll 'see' ya tomorrow.

Wonderful Wednesday

Well yesterday Malik didn't email and I really missed not talking to him. What do ya think that mother hen building up more?

But he wrote today and we IMd back and forth. Had a great conversation (I feel like anyway). I really am finding myself looking forward to hearing from him and Brenda though.

Jesse and I made some sugar cookies and going to make chocolate no bakes after while. Then I have 5 batches of white fudge to make. All the nieces and nephews on my side love that one. I'll have to find what the grandkids on Bob's side likes and make batches next year to send them LOL.

Here's a photo I wanted to share of Bob when he was in Vietnam. I didn't think it was him when I first saw it and had him doubting it too. It doesn't look like the same person to me. I told him he was better looking in the second one. LOL

Some LOs

This was our anniversary of 18 years. I'm proud of that LOL
Credits: Chris Greiser and Cindy Ritter

This was a two pager I did at Digitals and DSG.

Credit: NinisNotions

This was for the lyrics challenge at DSG. This was our wedding.

Credit: Ladybug Graphix

Play and Weather

Today we went to see a Christmas play. It was really good. Jesse loved it. It was called The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. It was really really good.

Then we all went to lunch and went back to the theater for a behind the scenes tour. It was very interesting for all of us since we're going to be doing our own play and production.

The weather is really sucky right now. We had rain today and then freezing rain. Now it's ice falling and then we're suppose to get some snow. YUCK!!!!!!! So I'm not going outside til it's gone. LOL

Still In Shock

It seems like the shock of all that happened over the weekend is still with us. Last night Bob and I were laying in bed dead ass tired and we couldn't stop talking about the kids. We just keep saying I can't believe it to each other. I know I'm only a step mom to them but I really hope they will accept me also into their lives ya know cause I love them too even though I haven't met them or anything I do. If that's understandable. they mean a lot to me too. I suppose because I've been on the journey of looking for them with Bob and seen the pain that decision of long ago caused him but he thought it was best. They are so different than his other two kids. I've tried to build a relationship with them over 18 years but could never get close to them or know them but with the two just finding us you can tell they 'care' for lack of a better word. I am still just so happy for all three of them.

Bob has got 5 kids all together. We only have one and of course you all know that's Jesse (like you haven't seen enough scrap pages of her LOL). I wish we could have another but we can't cause he got 'clipped' and he said it was too dangerous for me. So I have to live with that. But I am blessed to have her and lucky that we're both still here. I shouldn't complain because a lot of people can't have any children. She means the world to me and I'd do anything in the world for her and I am so lucky to now have all 4 step children too.

Thanks for listening.

Til tomorrow
Tab

More Christmas Miracle

Last night Bob's daughter called. He hasn't seen her since she was about 3. He has had a fabulous weekend talking to his two first born kids. Todat his son set up a conference where we could see them and talk to them. It was amazing. I just still can't believe it. For the last 18 years we've been together it was my journey too helping him look for the kids. I could never find them and then his son was messing around on the computer and typed his name in the phone number came up and he said what the hell and called. He was surprised and his dad was too when he told him who he was.

It's just been a wonderful weekend.

Christmas "Miracle"

That's the way I really do feel about it. Friday night we were eating dinner and the phone rang. Bob went and got it and said wireless caller so I figured it was a friend of us. But it wasn't. It wasn't. It was his son that he hadn't seen for about 29 years. He told us who he was and who he was looking for and we looked at each other with our mouths hanging open and said well you've found him. They talked for over an hour. I jumped in too. I was crying and a friend of our's who was here was too. We just couldn't believe it. We have been trying to find them for years. We never could just kept hitting brick walls. But the feeling was just so awesome ya know. I just still can't believe it. Bob is just on cloud 9 and not coming down anytime soon.

Then today his daughter called. He was crying and she was too. She couldn't believe it and all that was happening. They talked twice today. So I just really really hope they want to be in our lives cause we sure want them in ours.

We're all still in shock with all of it. Bob said This is the best Christmas ever".

I am so happy for them.

ADSR

I'll be doing the race this year with Lynn. I'm a little intimadated by it but I'm just gonna relax and have fun with it.

The Tree

Well the tree is all done and she put the village under the tree. It looks pretty good. Here's a photo of it.

Tuesday

Jesse getting the lights just right. It did turn out better than I thought it would have. She had fun decorating it. I'm just in a bah humbug mood this year I guess. I'll get a photo of the finished tree up soon. She put mostly home made ornaments on it and it's really cute.

Christmas Tree

Well I wasn't even going to put a tree up this year but we decorated mom's for her and Jesse wanted to put our tree up. So that's what we did today. It looks okay but I swear that tree is the ugliset shaped one I've ever seen. So I think another one will be bought for next year. It looks pretty good. We put a lot of lights on it but I'd still liked more on it. We put all homemade ornaments on it except for about 10 store bought ones.

See ya tomorrow. I might post a photo of the tree.

Finally Friday

Well Friday has finally got here. DH got home early this week. So we had a good day today. Earlier this week we celebrated 18 years togehter and the damnest thing is we both forgot it. LOL But then again we usually do. That's awful ain't it?

Jesse had 3 tests in school today and got 100s on all of them. So that's all I made her do.

Cath ya'll tomorrow. Have a good weekend.

Anniversary

Well today is out 18th anniversary of being together. We've been married 10 of them. We didn't get to do anything as he is stuck in Pennsylvania at the moment. But he'll be home this weekend hopefully. I just can't believe we've been together this long but then sometimes it's like we've always been together . Here lately I don't what the hell is going on with me. It's like my body is turning against me. I don't know if it's turning 40, menopause or hormones. But he's liking whatever it is. I swear since I turned 40 though it's like a switch has been turned on. I have the feelings and stirrings of a 'younger' woman or a horny teenager. I dn't know which but he loves it of course. He tolds me it was like I woke up and realized I had a husband.

I love him more than anything and always have always will.