Thank Heaven for Little Girls!

Such great news from Jackie and Kimberly... two new baby girls will be born this summer. Jackie is due in August and Kimberly is due in September. Dennis and I are grateful for the newest grandchildren that will be joining us soon!

Our children and their spouses.

First came Susan...not in the usual manner that you begin a family, but welcomed still the same. We jumped right in with the teenage years and found that parenting had its challenges, but Susan brought such love and joy to us she made it easy.

Scott and Michele and their girls, Beth, Sarah, Makyla, and Malea.

Brian and Jackie

Brent and Kimberly

Eric and Ashlee

Once upon a time we were young...

The years go by so quickly, yet inside my heart and mind I still feel young. However, my body and reflection in the mirror tell a different story. :> I still can remember the details of the days these photos were taken and all the fun of being young and in love. Day by day, Dennis and I working together, have built a wonderful life filled with many beautiful memories. We delight in seeing our family grow year by year with new daughter and son-in-laws, grandchildren and friends. We are grateful to be surrounded by their love. They make our life so rich and full- we are so very blessed and grateful for each and everyone of them.

Meet my family...

Here is our most recent picture taken at Christmas 2009, minus Eric, Ashlee, Susan, Joe, Jennifer, and Joey. Eric and Ashlee were married in Nov. and were unable to travel home for Christmas, but you'll see all their pictures in upcoming posts. I love my family with all my heart. When I was a little girl I dreamed I would have a perfect family. Then life happened, and I realized perfection was a journey you took with your family. I couldn't think of better people to travel that journey with. How grateful I am for each and everyone of them. Dennis and I have truly been blessed as each one of them has come into our family. I love them all, forever and always!

Why am I blogging?

So, I showed my husband of 34 years everyone's blog and he said, "Oh it looks like scrap booking online." I immediately thought of all my scattered pictures tucked away in boxes and how many years it had been that I had promised myself every year I would get them organized neatly into books. I had kept up with the family pictures until our 4th child, Eric arrived, then things seemed to go by the wayside. Eric's baby book is still only half finished and he's 21 now. Every time I thought about finally taking all those photos and putting them into books it seemed like scrap booking wasn't so simple anymore. There were backgrounds, and special acid-free everything that needed to be used. Also, it wasn't enough to just slip a picture in and write the date, now you had to be clever and creative too! And the costs to do a nice book seemed to be more than my budget could bear, so I would just slide the box of pictures away and wait till next year to think about them. Then when I heard my husband say "scrap booking online" it made sense. I could do that. No special paper, glue or acid free anything to buy. I've had this blog for 2 years now with not even one post. Sadder than that is not one person has ever looked at my blog, but with nothing to look at it's understandable! :-) So today I'm beginning my online scrap booking journey. Hopefully it will be more successful than my efforts to put those books together during the last 21 years! Forgive me kids...