My cell phone rang tonight...

...and I saw a name on the caller ID that I hadn't seen in a long time.....Seth. Yep, my baby boy is home...and it feels great!! I don't yet know if I'll get to see him this weekend, but he's back, and that's all that matters..... :) What a wonderful gift just in time for Memorial Day!!

Welcome home, Seth!!

Thank you, Lord!!!

When Sawyer smiles...

...all is right with the world..... :)



Sawyer and Katie have gone home now. I drove down to Hood with her on Friday and helped her "find" her house and yard after being in Dallas for a couple of months...which was longer than she had planned...but she enjoyed being here and we loved having them here. Waking up in the morning took on special meaning while they were here...nothing says good morning better than Sawyer's smile...it's contagious..... :)

This morning, I thought I heard him playing with one of his toys in his crib and a smile crept across my face, until I remembered that he was no longer here.....*sigh*. A few minutes later, like she had read my mind, Katie called and Sawyer told me good morning, which sounds alot like mmmmmbuh, but it was a sweet song to my ears..... :)

After Seth gets home, which will be soon, they will come up for a long 4-day weekend...I'll get to hug my baby boy whom I have greatly missed and see his baby boy's smile once more...ain't life sweet!!!

Can you see this, mom?

Can you see this little great grandson of yours? Do you see me when I hold him . . . how much I love him and enjoy him? All the times I watched you hold my babies, all the times I saw that smile on your face and heard you humming to yourself as you rocked them . . . that all plays over and over again in my mind now. I was thinking of you just now as I rocked Sawyer to sleep. I thought as time went on, I would begin to miss you less, but I just seem to miss you more and more each day, especially now that I've become a grandmother. I wish you were here to hold this little guy. I know how much you would love to be able to do that. I can just picture the smile that would be on your face and hear you humming with contentment. I know you look down on us from Heaven and must be smiling . . . but I wish you were here. This is how I picture you still . . . holding one of my babies . . . . . :)

Spring . . . and new beginnings

Oh my, so much has happened since my last post. It's spring here in Texas and new beginnings are in the air.

My hubby is now permanently employed at the temporary light-duty job he started when he returned to work after his neck surgery last year . . . granted, he had to take an 8% reduction in pay to do it. It's hard to believe it has been almost a year since his surgery. Time has just flown by. We were really sweating his job in January when his light duty ran out. We didn't know if he'd be able to get the job on a permanent basis or not, and the doc made it clear that he couldn't return to being a mechanic, but we knew we couldn't do without his paycheck. He did end up going a couple of weeks without any pay while the big guys worked out the details, though . . . and that happened at the same time I found out everyone at my company would have to take a 5% pay cut so no one would get laid off. You might think that I'd be upset about this, but actually, I'm extremely thankful. We are both working (even if it is for a bit less), I'm working at home and he's working two blocks away so we save money on gas (and we just found out that because neither of us "drives" to work now, our car insurance went down . . . bonus), we transferred our health insurance to my company and saved a ton of money (whoever said municipalities have better coverage is crazy), our 401Ks have taken a beating but we're investing like crazy now that prices are low hoping that there's nowhere for them to go but up, our family is healthy, my middle son finally landed a full-time job and begins work tomorrow, my baby boy will be returning from the sand in a few months, and his beautiful blue-eyed baby boy is asleep in the next room (working at home has its perks when it comes to grandbabies). I have no complaints . . . life is sweet . . . . . :)

Here's Sawyer after waking up from his nap today. He loves to sit at the edge of the crib and play peek a boo around the rails. He will be 6 months old tomorrow . . . . . :)


Thank you, Lord, for helping me see all the wonderful blessings in my life even during tough times . . . and help me continue to see them every day. Blessings on all of you, my friends . . . . . :)

Just call me Grambug.....

My...it has been an incredibly long time since my last post...but life has been incredibly busy. What can I say...here I sit at my computer, typing with one hand because I'm holding Sawyer with the other. He is such a happy baby...he talks and coos and smiles...and he's such a snugglebug. Life is sweet!!! Just call me Grambug..... :)

Here's the picture that I sent to friends in my Christmas cards...Merry Christmas, everyone!!!

Another Veterans Day

Here I sit, on yet another Veterans Day, thinking about all the vets in my life. Family and friends...all very special to me.

I think about a friend who served a year in Iraq back in 2004, who saw things that still haunt him to this day.

I think about my two uncles who served during WWII...one who flew B-17 bombing missions over Germany and spent 18 months as a prisoner of war after his plane blew up in mid-air, and one who joined Patton's army in their march across Europe and into Germany so he could find his brother in that POW camp. They, like so many other WWII vets, are no longer with us.

I think about my dad who fought the Japanese during WWII on three different islands in the Pacific...slogging through the swamps of Bougainville, surviving a horrifying bonzai on Guam, and being wounded on Iwo Jima. After the war, he continued to fight the enemy for years in his dreams.

I think about my middle son who helped launch the first strike of B-52 bombers from Barksdale Air Force Base after the World Trade Center attacks on September 11, 2001. He said it was one of the proudest moments of his life as he watched all of them lift into the air...and one of the saddest as he wished he was going with them.

I think about my youngest boy who is currently serving his second tour of duty in Iraq. He has seen things that he won't talk to me about, which worries me, but he has adjusted well and put them behind him so he can move on.

So many vets to be proud of. My dad always says they aren't heroes, they're just doing their jobs. In light of that, all I can say is......job well done! But they'll always be heroes to me..... :)

Here . . . and gone again

With all the excitement of the new baby, and just being busy, I never posted anything about Seth coming home for R&R. He arrived home on Monday, September 29th and was flying to Hood, of course, but he had a short layover in Dallas, so Kevin and I went out to meet him. I offered to buy him some lunch and where did he say he wanted to go? McDonalds . . . with a big grin on his face. I knew he'd been in the sandbox for nearly 4 months, but come on now . . . . . ugh! It was a short visit because he only had a couple hours between flights, but it was sooooo good to see his face. He was really anxious to see Katie . . . and to get to meet his brand-new baby boy face to face.

We went down to Hood the next weekend. Seth had requested Thanksgiving dinner while he was home, since he was going to miss the real one, and Katie went all out. She borrowed a turkey fryer from a friend to fry the turkey and boy, was it good. And we had all the fixin's too . . . giblet gravy, dressing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes (I've never cared for them before, but Katie's were really good), deviled eggs (the boys love 'em), rolls, and chocolate pie and pumpkin pie for dessert. Mmmmm!!! We stuffed ourselves . . . . . :)

Katie, Seth, and Sawyer came to Dallas the next Tuesday to catch up with the rest of the family and friends. We had a burger bash on Saturday and invited everybody. It was fun and the food was good. And everyone who hadn't had a chance to meet Sawyer yet got the chance . . . and of course, they got to see Seth and Katie, too.

They headed back to Hood that Sunday afternoon and spent the next week just doing things together as a family. They had some great pictures taken, too. Is he not just the most beautiful baby you've ever seen??? Okay, I admit it, I'm a bit prejudiced . . . . . :)

They took some family pictures, too. This one isn't my favorite, but it's a good one. I have yet to get my favorite from her . . . maybe when she comes in next month . . . . . :)

Then, these two are just too wonderful for words . . . . . :)

Last Saturday, however, his R&R came to an end. Katie and Sawyer said goodbye to Seth at the airport in Killeen, and it was really hard for Katie. She told me that Seth held Sawyer at the airport and kissed him and told him that he was going to miss him. She cried on the way home, and I cried when I saw this picture.

Seth had another layover in Dallas, so we went out and spent a little time with him while he waited for his plane . . . along with all the other troops awaiting a return to the sandbox. We ate at McDonalds again . . . ugh. I was going to give him a pocket angel, but he pulled out his wallet and showed me that he still had the pocket angel and St. George medallion I gave him the last time he was deployed. That made me smile. I gave him one last hug as he prepared to board and watched him until he was out of sight. It will be a very, very long time before we see him again . . . and where he's going, they only have internet on one shared computer, so we may not hear from him much either. That will be especially hard for Katie . . . she wants so much for him to be able to see his son as he grows . . . . . *sigh.*

Lord, I commend Seth into your care and safekeeping . . .