My hopes for 2009......

Well first let me start with the obvious things...
* A Happy and Healthy Family
* Financial stability
* For Jadyn to continue to grow, be happy, healthy, curious, adventerous, etc, etc......
* To lose some weight ( seriously, isn't that on everyone's list?)
* For my mom to continue to have a healthy heart ( she had a heart attack when she was 45). I still need her for atleast 40 more years ;-)
* For my friends to have a successful and Healthy year.

and other things.....
* To become a better quilter. Perhaps brave blocks with points.
* A new camera would be nice ( hint hint to Sue).
* Sue to buy a new ( used) car.
* Join the YMCA ( for Jadyn to have activities).
* Jadyn to start preschool at the YMCA.
* Get things up in my attic that are not in use.
* Take Jadyn more places to explore and discover.
* A family vacation would be superb.
* Have a fantatstic 4th Birthday Party for Jadyn. ( I Love Birthday Parties)
* Try and take more photos of Jadyn's every day life. Just snap shots will do.

2008 Recap

This year was pretty uneventful for the most part. Well, compared to most people. So, let me recap what happened in 2008....
*My brother made his way in to prison.
* Our niece, Anna, was born.
* My grandfather passed away.
* My boy, Chipper, left us at 11.5 years old.
* I taught myself how to quilt.
* My photography did extremely well ( let's hope it is even better this year).
* We moved from our apartment we were in for 6 years to a house out in the country.
* Jadyn started to potty train. She is very good at peeing on the potty. Pooping is another story.
* We tried to conceive another baby and failed miserably. So, we gave up. ( This has been a 2 year struggle.
* Sue was diagnosed with Sleep Apnea. We now have that corrected with a C-pap machine.
* I no longer am awakened by Sue snoring. See previous line......

I am sure other exciting and not so exciting events happened but this is the things I can think of at this moment.

I hope you all have a FANTATSTIC New Year. Please if you are going out with friends and decide to tip the bottle..... Get a designated driver. Just think before you drive. You could kill a family in all your stupidness.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Another Quilt Top

A few years ago my mom was in a "Big Brohter Big Sister Program". Where she is from they call it "Companions for Kids". My mom got a little companion named Sarah. We met her when she was 11. She had/has a very bad home life. Her mom was not mentally right at all. Sarah's mom had a baby when Sarah was about 12 or so. Sarah found herself pretty much raising her baby sister. It was just an awful life for a young girl to have.
Now at just a little over Sixteen Years Old, Sarah has had her own baby. Sarah has really no support or help from anybody. She has left her mothers home and is living with a friend. However, not one person in the household has a job. Sarah, being only 16, has plans to go back to school. I hope she does!! I really hope she amounts to more than what her mother was for her. Sarah seems to be a good mom, but she is young. To young to have to give up the rest of her life. Having a baby is hard. It's even harder when you are still a child yourself.
So, I just pray Sarah can give that baby her all.
I have made this quilt top for Sarah's baby, Mia. I hope to have it finished in the next week or so for her :-)
I realize the striped block are a little off....... Me and straight lines don't mix well...........

Thank Goodness that's ALMOST over.....

We, of course, had a very very busy holiday season. Santa was very good to Jadyn as he always is. She got a new bike ( The pink Scwinn roadster). Her other bike bit the dust right before we moved to our new house. The handle bars got stripped somehow. She also got a few games, playdoh Ice Cream shop, some clothes, two babies, the waterproof kid tough camera, a guitar, Leapster, Leapfrog Tag reading pen, princess dress up stuff, Hannah Montanna sleeping bag, a pearl for her add a pearl necklace, coloring books and crayons, a princess tiara, a digital art studio, ton of stocking stuffers, Wall-E and Sleeping Beauty DVD's. I am 100% positive thats not all of it..... That is just what I can think of this very moment. The crazy part is..... It's not over. We still have to go to my father's house to celebrate Christmas with him. We will be going there this weekend.

This is what our tree looked like on Christmas morning....... There are a ton of wrapped presents under the tree that are hard to see...

Happy Holidays

We hope you have a safe and wonderful Holiday.

One Bonus to Jadyn being at Grandma's

When I clean a room it stays that way.......... haha!!

Well. Poop

Lastnight Sue and I took Jadyn to my mothers house so we could Christmas shop for her sometime between this morning and Saturday morning. I don't know how well this is going to go because we are supposed to get 6-12" of snow between now and 10:00 p.m. tonight.
Isn't that Lovely?????
GRRRRRRR!!!!!!!

Jadyn and Santa

Here are our yearly Santa photos. Do you just LOVE this Santa?? If I had to picture the REAL Santa he would for surely be the one.

Cookies Cookies Cookies

Jadyn and I are leaving for my parent's house this weekend to do our yearly cookie making! I love this tradition for Jadyn. It is usually just me, my mom and Jadyn. It's great spending the time together with TWO of my most favorite people. :-)

Here's Looking at You Kid

One of Jadyn's self portraits.....hahaha!!!

Christmas Card 2008

Here it is woot woot!!!

Surreal

It still feels surreal that Chippy is gone. I find myself looking for him or wanting to yell for him to clean up something that has been dumped or spilled ( Mostly Jadyn's doings). Tyson ( thou-who-shall-not-touch-inappropriate-food) will only clean up the meaty stuff. The house just doesn't feel right without him. It feels empty. ( Cause god knows three other animals is not enough). It was always Chipper and Ty..... they just go together. Now, it's just Ty. That doesn't sound nearly as ringy.
I miss my boy! I DO NOT miss him being sick though. That was ugly. It was hard watching him wither away to nothing and only eat enough to survive the past 6 months. He was a very sick boy.
We miss you bunches Chipper boy!

So much to do, so little time!

Am I the only one out there that has still not bought Christmas presents? Can we say PROCRASTINATION?? I am making some of the grandparents gifts ( that I cannot reveal here until after they get them). I am making our one friend an Elvis Presley rag quilt. However, I have not purchased ONE gift yet. I feel like such a slacker. Perhaps maybe I can get myself motivated before Christmas Eve??
I haven't even done Jadyn's photos yet for our Christmas Card. Anybody have their cards out yet? I can't believe Christmas is ONLY 3 weeks away.

Thankful Thursday

* I am THANKFUL for the 11.5 years I had with my black lab, Chipper

* Peanut Butter Whoopie Pies ( to die for)

* Dishwashers

* Of course, family and friends ( That's an obvious one though, right?)

* Puke buckets ( Oh yes, we had a sick girl this week)

* Sue ( she is my saving grace)

* cute babies, I just love me a cute baby.

* puppies and kittens ( oh, who am I kidding, I LOVE all baby animals)

There are so many things to be Thankful for that I, of course, cannot list them all !

Wordless Wednesday

Still not easy.....

Today is still not easy. I really missed my morning greeting from my Bone Head :-( I looked forward to my morning love from my boy! However, today is easier. I don't feel like I am walking around in zombie state today. I slept better last night. I still miss him terribly. I guess if you don't have a pet you probably think it is ridiculous to feel this way toward an animal.

Chipper went through many ups and downs in life with me. He was my rock sometimes. It was just Him and I for the first 3-4 years of his life. He was like my child. My baby. He would sleep with me at night and wrap his paw around me. We would sleep like that all night sometimes. He even used a pillow.....lol If I wanted to take a nap on the couch he ( and his 75 pounds) would crawl up on my back and sleep. I Loved it! He was so warm!!

Most of the time I could take Chipper for walks ( around the yard) without a leash. He would only run after a bike or a loud truck.....lol He would always cower on his way back from the chase because he knew I didn't approve of such behavior. I wouldn't even have to scold him. He would punish himself.....

For the first few years of Chipper's life we lived in the country. He ran free..... was never tied up. I had a certain call I would do and he would for surely be there within a few minutes. He would also go find my other dog for me if she wouldn't come back. I would say " Chip, go find Valentine and tell her to come home." He would disappear for about 5 minutes and come running with Valley Girl in tow. If for some reason he was to far away to hear me yell I would fire up the four wheeler. He ALWAYS heard that.

We then had to live in city's for a while but he had fenced yards to romp around in. Chipper LOVED his basketball. He would nudge it with his head and kick the ball between his legs until he couldn't go any further. He would then turn around and go a different direction. It was his form of soccer. He really loved it when you would try to get the ball from him. He LOVED the challenge. He was a tough boy. He beat me a few times :-) We buried Chipper with his basketball between his front legs.

I always said I wanted to get Chipper back in to the country to live before his final days. We moved back to the country at the beginning of November. Chipper was in all of his glory again!

I could go on and on and on about the fun we had. Or about the little quirks and cute things he did. Chipper was a truly amazing pup. I truly truly truly will miss him!!

Thanks Chip, for loving me too!!

Miserable Monday

I dub today miserable. I miss my dog so much! Latnight was my first night home without him and it was unbearable. I dreamt of him, I kept waking up to look for him. Although I have so many other pets and people filling my heart, I feel empty. Where did my time go so quickly with Chip? I keep hoping I am just having a bad dream. I don't think the tears have stopped since lastnight. I can't stand it. I know it will get better with time but for now it hurts. I just want him home.