Judy, I'm so glad that you're making friends and becoming an active part of your community!! I know that you're excited to finally have others see your home and all of your hard work!! I'm sure that you'll get lots of compliments!!!

Gayle, you constantly amaze me!! All of your travels and your work!!! You are soooo busy and yet you still find time to be on here with us!!! It sounds like you did a wonderful job getting your report together and understood everything so well that you could answer questions with having to search for the answers!! I hope they give you a HUGE raise!!!! I hope that you can find some time to enjoy being in DC and not in meetings all day long!! Your posts after a trip are always so interesting and so I'm looking forward to hearing all about it!!! Just stay safe!!!

Lynne, it sounds like you planned a wonderful party for your Mom!!! I'm sure that she loved having all of her family around!! She's a very beautiful lady!! I know that after I've moved out of a house that I have a hard time thinking about someone else living there too. I've even gone back to houses and asked to visit them again......it's not the same though!!! I even had a couple of girls ask to come back and visit our last home.....I know that it was hard on them to see things different too. It was funny because we had all kinds of things that showed they had lived there......we had their names carved in the woodwork here and there and the kids would find little toys and stuff in the yard from them!! The kids thought that was so cool so they buried little things all over the yard for the next people......sadly though we now own the home and it's in such bad shape that no one will ever live there again to find their little "treasures". Ahhhhh.......memories!!!!

Diana, how are the wedding plans going? What is the date? Sorry if this is posted somewhere else, but I didn't see it. Do you have your dress?

I went to Wichita yesterday with our pastor's wife, Brenda. She's about my age and her kids are grown so we have a lot in common. I saw her at Jaci's shower and she sensed that something was not quite right so she invited me on a shopping trip to get my clothes for the wedding!! She's very talkative so we had a very nice conversation the whole time!! I found a beautiful shirt that matched all the colors of Jaci's wedding and I bought dress slacks and also crop plants to go with it. I'm thinking that I may wear the crop pants for a more casual look since the wedding is outdoors. Anyway....I also bought a nice shawl to go over the top and give a little dressier look!! We found it in the first store that we went to so it took a lot of pressure off of looking for something the rest of the day. I also found a really beautiful necklace and earrings to go with it!! We had so much fun and laughed the whole day!! I was so apprecitive to get out and have some fun!! So many people work that it's hard to do things with friends like that. Brenda works too but she had a day off!! I'm so glad to have my outfit for the wedding!!!! Yay!!!

This is the shirt that I bought but it's so much prettier in person!!

http://catherines.lanebryant.com/man...1915/index.pro

This is the wrap I got to go over it to dress it up!! It looked really nice on!!

We stopped by Sam's Club so I could see if they have their ferns in yet. I'm wanting some for the wedding. They are suppose to be in TODAY!! So I'm driving back out to Wichita again today!!! Bummer!!!!

http://catherines.lanebryant.com/acc...2151/index.pro

I got beige crops to wear with it!!

Love the outfit Diana...you did good girl. It will be very pretty for an outdoor wedding and comfy to, you'll look beautiful in it. I'm glad that you had such a great time with Brenda...wish I could have been there too.

I especially like the way the blouse is made. It's so dressy and pretty!! You'll be beautiful! I hope your shoes are comfy;)

What a pretty blouse! It is so feminine, and perfect for you. The shawl is mighty classy, and I can't wait to see the pictures!

What kind of shoes?

I bought some shoes yesterday when I went back to Wichita with Dae Lynn. I picked out black sandals because I thought that I'd probably get more use out of them than white ones.

http://www.famousfootwear.com/Shoppi...818&pg=1019702

Those shoes are really cute!! For my youngest son's wedding I bought the CUTEST shoes at Dillards... they hurt my feet so bad all night that I put them in the trash at the church after the reception and went home barefooted. Since then COMFORT is at the top of my priority list, lol!!

I had tried on a pair of Naturalizer shoes that I just loved but they hurt so I went back the next day to try on a larger pair but they still hurt. I tried these on and they were actually pretty comfortable.....I'm not sure about all afternoon and evening but I figure that I can always take them off and go barefooted!!! I'm a country girl at heart!!!

Diana...your blouse and pants will look so summery with light/bright colors...I'm no fashionista by any means, but will the black sandals look alright? I love the style, but wondered if they could come in a lighter color other than white. What d'ya think?

Just went back an looked...what about a tan? or sandlewood?

Hi all!

I'm finally home. It was a long hard week in DC and I am so glad to be home. I got in at midnight and in bed by 1:30, and then up at 6:00. Another long day today at school!

Gary and my sil are fishing, so i'm spending the weekend with Brooke and the girls this weekend. Brooke had a cyst removed from her foot this week, she's in a boot and can't drive. I'm REALLY tired, but going to bed early tonight, although I won't sleep as well not being in my own bed. Oh well, I guess i'll get caught up on my sleep next week. Our classes are over on Friday and I'm ready!

Diana, I love your blouse, wrap and shoes. They will look so pretty at the wedding!

Glad you're home safe and sound Gayle, you are one busy lady. I know how much I LOVE sleeping in my bed so I know how you're looking forward to being in yours. It's nice though that you are about to stay and help Brooke. You will have a good time...I'm sure.

Diana I love your blouse and shawl. They will go really well with beige crop pants. I also love those black sandals. I would think that they would look really nice with your outfit.:)

Glad you're back Gayle!! Have a nice visit with Brooke and the girls. I hope her foot is better soon.:)

Diana, your outfit looks really nice. I know it feels good to have that all done & that you have something you really like and will feel good wearing!!

Thanks, everyone!! I'm really pleased with the clothes that I bought. I wish that you could see the blouse in person because it's so much prettier than the picture.

Janet, I think that the black shoes will look alright......or I'm going to pretend that they do!!! I looked at the lighter shoes but decided that I'd get a lot more use from the black ones later on......so I'm turning a blind eye to whether it really "goes" or not!! Hopefully everyone will have their eyes on Jaci and not on my feet !!!!!

LOLOL...I'm sure no one will be looking at your feet. I use to not like anything pink...it always made me think of Pepto Bismol. Now I'm beginning to like pink and not black so much...LOL. I know...I go through weird stages...LOL You're going to look beautiful!

Hi Everybody! I've been busy spending time with my kids and grandkids. Caleb stayed with us last week and Mikey is with us this week. They like to come separately so they have my undivided attention, lol! We'll go to church in Dallas with them this weekend, then have lunch at my dil's parents house. I am so thankful that we all get along. We have spent lots of holidays together over the years:) You know, it dawned on me the other day that I have NEVER had a cross word with either of my dils. I've only had Joy for 2 1/2 years, but I've had Rachel almost 14 years!! They are so very precious to me, and wonderful wives for my sons.

That is so wonderful Betsi! I'm sure your DIL's love you so much! It sounds like such fun, having the grandchildren one at a time.

Enjoy!

Diana, those shoes are really nice! You are going to look so beautiful!

Awww Betsi..I'm so glad you are having such a good time with your family. It is wonderful that you all get along so well.:)
Glad you are spending time with the kids separately too. You really do get more quality time when they don't come together. They are more apt to fuss when they come at the same time........mine do anyway lol!

This so far has been a long weekend...lol. I can't really go anywhere in case Gidget goes into labor, she is due today. She hasn't had a significant temperature drop, but she sure is carrying lower this morning than she was yesterday. I'm guessing sometime overnight or tomorrow. Thank goodness Ricky doesn't have classes on Monday so he'll be home during my bus route. He's an old pro at whelping so I have no worries with him.

Can't go to church today either. I've been thinking of going back to the church I grew up in and a member of. The little country church near us I've been attending is nice and close, but I don't feel I'm getting much out of the service. It's great to be with friends and neighbors, but I need more than that.

Ricky has to work today from noon until 8:30 this evening. Even though I wish he could stay home with me on Mother's Day..I am very thankful he has a job.

Hope everyone has a great Mother's Day!!

Hope you have a great Mother's Day too Janet!! I won't get to see my kids until this next weekend so today isn't going to be very special to me this year. They will call me but that just isn't the same.

I hope Gidget does well during whelping. How many is she expecting? Can't wait to hear all about the new babies!!

I know what you mean Janet, I hate being stuck at home - I feel trapped! LOL! Now, mind you, if I am tired and I WANT to stay home, it's just peachy keen. But if I CAN'T leave for some reason, then that is exactly what I want to do!!! LOL!

I hope Gidget has a great delivery. I can't wait to find out what she has and watch them grow up!!!

Been a pretty good day today, i got the nicest present. I had taken my Serena to the breeders to be evaluated for the show ring, as sad as i am that she won't be shown i am thrilled to death to have brought her back home today, now everything is back to normal. I got phone calls from my girl's, they both had to work, i seen mom yesterday but still need to call her yet today. So it has been a good Mothers Day here.
Hope everyone else's day turns out nice also. Happy Mothers Day!

Happy Mother's Day Lynne!! I'm glad Serena is back home. Sorry you won't be able to show her.
Glad you have talked to your girls. I'm glad you're having a nice day:)

So far...no babies. Today is her 2nd due date and Wednesday will be her 3rd. Just have to wait and see.

Had to take Mom to the ER in Lafayette again. My younger brother and his wife were at Mom's house and Mom started having really bad stomach pains. She didn't have any more fluid in her belly and yet she was so swollen. She has peritonitis again. They had to give her a bag of the solution with antibiotics in it to keep in her belly overnight. Then my brother took her to the dialysis center this morning. She's feeling much better today. She is starting to get a little sloppy with the dialysis and that is why she got the infection. One day last week it was leaking and she just tightened it up. That can't happen...she needed to call the center immediately. Hopefully she'll do better.

I wish more were posting here more frequently, it seems like so many are gone now...

I'm sorry Janet, I haven't been posting much lately - been so busy. I read everyday and LOVE reading everyone's posts, but then I get busy and don't make my posts. I'm negligent.

My school was over last Friday, so that means that I'm reading papers like mad right now. I think I finally finished most of them today. I have HUGE ones to read though, one this week and one next week. They are both about 100 pages long, and I'm NOT looking forward to them!

Gary and I are getting ready to go on our trip to Arkansas - fishing and camping in our trailer - on the White river in northwest Arkansas. We'll be gone a couple of weeks. I'll have my phone to check in but the connections are slooooow, so I'll likely not post too much!

We'll be home 4 days and then gone to Alaska a couple of weeks. I'm getting so excited - I need a break from the madhouse of school!!! I will be teaching in July/Aug for 5 weeks, and so I don't have the whole summer off, but I'll make the most of the time I do have off.

I'll try to do better with my posting before I leave!

Wow, Gayle!! You have some nice trips planned for this summer. They sound like fun! I wish that my husband liked to travel like that......I'd love it!!

I've been so busy!! I have laundry stacked up in the laundry room, things that I need to get priced and into the flea market, flowers that need to get planted, and rooms that need to be straightened. I've been watching Karlie and Dean a couple of times a week and Dae Lynn's been out here a lot so I don't get much done. Kera came over and cleaned for me the other day trying to earn money for church camp. I think that she's going to come over every week and help out!!!

Yesterday was crazy! I had the kids in the morning, took Jazzi to the vet, had to take Glen to a farm on the other side of town, had a really bad storm coming so I moved all 20 of the ferns for the wedding into the garage plus some other bedding plants, then I covered up some other flowers with sheets to protect them in case of hail, then Dae Lynn and the kids, Amy and her girls, Jaci and Nate came and stayed at the house during the storm so I didn't get anything else done. The storm was really bad. We have a lot of limbs down at the shop and I'm sure that we'll hear of more damages, but thank goodness, we didn't have tornadoes!!!

Oh wow Diana.... That must have been very worrying, with the storm and making sure everyone was safe, and the plants too.

Me....... well i have not posted much either, but i do read every day, i like to know what everyone is upto and that i am not missing too much. My daughter says i am nosy... me i say i am just very interested in my environment:rolleyes:

I have been at work today and am looking forward to Thursday.. as i will be finishing then for 5 whole days - whoopeeee. I work long days Mon-Thurs normally 8am until 6.30pm, but then i am off for 3 days, but i am taking extra leave days making it 5.

I am going to take the time to chill out, relax and get some sorting out done at home, our garage needs a real good sort out and de-clutter.
When we moved we tried to do it then and only keep things we really really needed, I though we had but now want to get rid of some more and organise it properly. I am going to costco to buy some shelving, i have some, but am thinking the more i have the easier organisation will be. I am quite organised at home and work, and seem to function better with order around me.

My husband is not very tidy or organised - this way hopefully he will do better (he better had or he is in big trouble). He always has a reason for putting something not where it should be.....

I am also going to be seeing one of my very good friends, we met when my husband and i bought our first little house from them, 26 years ago. We have been friends ever since and are godparents for each others children. We dont see each other as much as we used to when the kids were little - you just get so busy with life, but we are there for each other when needed.

Ok i am going to go water my plants and hanging baskets, i am determined for them to be blooming this year. Then i am going to watch some TV and relax.

Enjoy your days off Diane. Do you get off work for the summer? Good luck getting everything organized. But it will be so nice after it's done.


Diana....sounds like you have been a very busy girl. I figured you had been busy with graduation and wedding plans. But sounds like you've been busy with more than just that. Glad there were no tornadoes where you live.:)

Paula, no i wont be off in the summer as such.

The way it works for me is i work 4 days per week and have Fri, Sat and Sunday's off. Any extra i need to take as leave/holiday, this is paid leave, and i get 35 days plus all the Bank Holidays off too - I think things like this may work differently over here though.

I get to decide when and how much of my leave to take. It runs from April - March, which is our tax year. I am going to be off for 3 weeks in August-September as we are going on holiday to Scotland, we are taking my Mother and Father in law too. It is going to be our silver wedding anniversary (25years), whilst we are away so we are really looking forward to it. We are renting a gorgeous house right on the beach practically - Harvey will love to play on the beach.

Of course Harvey is coming too.... though my daughter is not (she is looking forward to staying home alone).

I went shopping today at the outlet mall with a couple of girl friends. We had such a good time! We just "skipped school" - please don't tell the Dean. LOL!!! Actually, as I mentioned before, school is out and I am leaving next weekend. We always try to do something fun together at the end of each semester and it was now or never!

We ate breakfast at Cracker Barrel and then hit the outlet stores.

I bought quite a few things FOR EVERYONE ELSE! Would you believe the only thing I bought for myself was UNDERWEAR!

I got Gary a cotton short sleeved shirt and a tee shirt. The tee shirt said, "Old fishermen never die, they just lose their lure" He'll think it's funny!

I got Emma a Disney princess beach towel. Oops, she was ready to go swimming and it was cloudy and rainy. I got Abigail some moccasin shoes she has been wanting.

I got my daughter a cast iron skillet - a really good brand, Lodge. They are usually pretty expensive, but I got this on sale for $18.00. I got my sil 3 books, origami with dollar bills, making airplanes with dollar bills, and tricks with dollar bills. Actually, when my 13 year old granddaughter, Abigail saw the books, she immediately wanted them, so I guess she and her dad will have some fun.

It was a good day. I have meetings tomorrow to finish up my grades for the semester. It will be good to be totally done. I hope to have a quiet weekend so I can get some things ready for our trip.

Gayle, the things that you do always sound like so much fun!!! Even just going out to eat and shopping!!!! Girl time!!

Diane, what a wonderful trip to look forward to!! That sounds so wonderful and for your 25th anniversary!!! You'll have to make sure that you take lots of pictures (I know that it's not until fall but thought that I'd start making sure you are all ready to take pictures when you get there!!!)

I've been trying to get flowers planted. We made a huge flower bed last summer in the yard and I really haven't had time or money to fix it the way I really want but I'm am getting some flowers in it.

I finally got caught up on my laundry and am breathing a BIG sigh of relief with that. The kitchen's finally looking better and I'm feeling some of the stress lifting.

We have a work day today on Althea's yard but I have the kids so I probably won't make it. I'll try to go next week and get some things pruned and looking better.

I have a guest bedroom that needs to be cleaned out. I've put so much of my flea market stuff in there while it's waiting to be priced. I don't think that I'm going to worry about it until after the wedding but I have to find a place for it all......I'm thinking that UNDER the bed would be a nice place for it!!!!! The closet is full and needs cleaned out and there's no room in there so......my only choice besides the basement is under the bed!!!! I don't know if I'll have company but I'd rather things be in order......just in case!!!

Diana.... oh my you are really busy, isnt cleaning just a never ending job?

I always see things that need to be done, i am a lot better than i used to be at trying to leave some things..... but i feel so much better when everywhere is nice and clean and tidy - i can relax properly then.

I have been to my Aunt and Uncle's today, did their food shop, some cleaning, and cooked them a meal, i stayed and joined them too. They so enjoy having me there and i feel guilty that i cant be there more than i am. I have always been very close to them, like another Mum & Dad really.

Looking forward to the weekend now.

It's just crazy here!! Today we've been picking out pictures of Jaci to have someone make a slide show for her graduation party. Now I have pictures and albums EVERYWHERE!!! I have soooo many pictures of her!!!

I finally opened the punch bowl that I ordered and it's a different size than the base that I have from another bowl I had. Bummer!! I guess that it will just have to sit on the table. It's still pretty.....it's just that I wanted it to be on a pedestal!

We have baccalaureate tomorrow and graduation next Sunday. Then two weeks later is the wedding........I'm starting to get panicky!!! I hope that everything is ready!!!! I'll be so glad when this madness is all over!! I don't feel very prepared for this since I've hardly been part of the planning.

Dae Lynn's been coming out quite a bit which I love but it adds to the madness......having Karlie talk nonstop and having the baby cry!! I do enjoy visiting with her but give a big sigh when she leaves. I've had the kids quite a bit since Damon's in jail. We're hoping that he'll be able to get out soon but we'll see. At least he's been made trustee so he can call home more often without using the pay phone. The calls cost $10 each using the pay phone so Dae Lynn wasn't answering them but Damon would leave messages in the place for you to leave your name!!!

I'm not sure how much I'm going to be on in the next few weeks. I'm trying to keep up somewhat but am hardly on the computer.

I've noticed you've haven't been online near as much Diana and I miss you. It's all understandable and know that we are here for you when you need us and when everything is done and overwith....will be expecting updates...pictures and well...just everything.

Diana.... Now dont be trying to do too much, just try to do what you can and also enjoy it all too.

I am also looking forward to hearing all about it and the pictures too.

We will be leaving tomorrow morning for Arkansas. We'll be near Eureka Springs, camped on the White River, just below Beaver Lake dam. We'll be visiting relatives and trout fishing for a couple of weeks. It has been hectic getting things ready to go, but I think we are about ready to hit the road in the morning.

We actually don't have phone service at the campsite as it is down in a little valley - right next to the river. But when we leave the campground, about a mile up the road, we have signal, so I'll be able to check in from time to time, but won't be posting too much as the phone signal is weak, and loading pages and posting takes FOREVER! But I will read and keep up with you all.

All of you, please take care! Lindsay, I can hardly wait to get back and hear about Layla's progress! Janet, the puppies will be getting REALLY cute when I get back. I might have to just drive on up to Indiana and bring one home!!! Although my two boys wouldn't like that very much, I'm afraid! LOL!

"See" you in a couple of weeks!

Have fun Gayle!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Enjoy your trip!! Happy Fishing!!:D

Have a great time Gayle!

Stay safe Gayle and have a wonderful time. I really need a vacation so I'll just live vicariously through you...lol. Please take lots of pictures for us!