Funny Christmas Stories

This year we stayed home for Christmas and we're going to visit family over New Year's. We decided that we were going to see if we had any friends that were going to be in town on Christmas Day night...to see if they wanted to have a dinner. It was awesome!!! Amanda cooked another moist turkey, my dressing wasn't too dry, we had cranberry sauce, broccoli, mac & cheese, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, deviled eggs, squash casserole, desserts...and I'm sure I'm missing something. It was a wonderful time with friends and I'm so glad that we did that!

Now onto my funny stories...Well, I'm not saying that I'm a chef or anything, but I do love to cook and for the most part things taste pretty good. I absolutely love Amanda's Mema's Sweet Potato Casserole recipe. It's so simple, but yet so yummy. Now, with that being said...I'm in love with marshmallows too. I decided to put a lot on top because they are so yummy. I placed it on the 2nd rack in the oven because the turkey and the dressing was still cooking. Next thing I know they are beginning to expand. Ha, I totally forgot that they expand when they get hot. So, I placed a piece of foil in the bottom of the oven just in case it were to spill over. Well, a minute or two later we realized that the marshmallows were touching the top rack, so we had to take them out and let them fall down a bit. In the meantime, I decided to put my Mom's Simple Apple Pie in the back of the 2nd rack to begin baking and to put the Sweet Potato Casserole in the toaster oven instead. Our friend Rachel showed up and all of the sudden I noticed in the oven that there was fire on the aluminum foil...and the only words I could get out to Amanda were "Party Foul, Party Foul" and they both were like what...and then I was like "Fire in the oven" so we proceeded to get the door open and try to blow out the fire and hope that the fire alarm didn't go off. Rachel opened the door and we were just laughing so hard. Little while later a few more people had shown up...and I noticed that the toaster oven was smoking. I walked over there and the marshmallows were totally burnt on the top of the Sweet Potato Casserole. I mean, all we could do was laugh at this point, but I do have to say that it still tasted very yummy!!!

Overall our Christmas was wonderful. Starting the day off with Regan kicking me like crazy, opening our presents, eating sausage balls, watching Emily on Video Chat see what Santa brought her, taking a nap, cooking a little bit, Amanda getting home and taking another nap, finishing the cooking, having friends over and just enjoying the day. It was a wonderful day. Now, I cannot wait for Wednesday to get here so I can be in Atlanta enjoying my family, celebrating my sister's birthday, and trying to make it to midnight to bring in the New Year!

Cannot wait to see what 2011 will bring...we have a sneaking suspicion that it's going to be wonderful! ;)

Eve of Christmas Eve 2010

I'm sitting here on the Eve of Christmas Eve 2010 and all I can think about is what next Christmas will be like with our little girl! :) I know she will only be like 8 months old, but still I cannot wait to do many things with her next year. So, here is the start to my list for Regan during the Christmas 2011 season...

1. Looking at Christmas lights with her and seeing the twinkle in her eyes.

2. Santa pictures :)

3. Putting a Christmas bow on her cute little head from a package and laughing

4. Rebound and Regan's picture in front of our tree

5. Regan's first Christmas ornament

6. Cute Christmas pj's

7. Our first family Christmas card

8. Silly Christmas songs

Thinking about these things make me so happy :) But I am going to enjoy our last Christmas together! :)

Merry Christmas

So this is love...

Who knew that you could love someone so much when you haven't even met her yet. It's crazy! I am so in love with all of her movement in my belly. I even love it when she moves at night, ha. Amanda is in love too! Regan Lynn we love you more than you know and we cannot wait to be your mommies :)

Getting ready...

We're getting ready for Christmas around our house. The weather outside doesn't exactly feel like December, but this week it's suppose to be a little cooler, so that's good. We have plenty of things to keep us busy this month. We do have our tree up and some presents wrapped, but to be honest more of our focus is on Regan and getting ready for when she gets here in April. Who would think that it would literally take 9 months to get ready for a baby. But needless to say, we have plenty of things to get done. My mom and Barry came this weekend and helped Amanda paint her room...it looks so great!!! It makes me even more excited to get her furniture and bedding and see how it all comes together. The best Christmas present I can get this year is a good checkup on the 21st.

Here's to the Christmas season and truly celebrating what it means along with spending time with family and friends and not sweating the small things in life!

Have a wonderful Holiday season...and don't forget to eat a few candy canes along the way! :)

Christmas Ornament

Every year we go pick out a Christmas ornament that represents the year. This year of course we chose an ornament that was centered around the fact that we are pregnant and going to have a baby girl. Amanda found this stork ornament and we knew that it was the one for this year. We love it! This year has been consumed with everything Regan and we couldn't be more excited for her to come in April of next year :)

Thanksgiving...

Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on what you are thankful for and this year it is totally different than in the past. I guess when you are a soon to be Mom your priorities definitely change.

I am thankful for Regan that is growing inside me. I am thankful that she is healthy and growing at the right speed. I am thankful for how wonderful Amanda has been through this entire process. I am thankful for my Mom who has supported our decision to start a family from the beginning. I am thankful for my sister and how excited she has been for us. I am thankful for all of our family and friends, everyone who has sent their love and support truly means a lot.

This year is totally different and I cannot wait to see how different next Thanksgiving will be with Regan around. My life is amazing and I couldn't ask for anything else!

Hope all is well.

We're pregnant!!!

On July 12, 2010 our life started changing and on July 26, 2010 our lives changed forever. We began a new chapter in our life. April 4, 2011 -- Let the journey begin!

To quote my dad from a conversation we had a couple of weeks ago now…”I always knew you were going to be a mom, I didn’t know when, but I just know you’re going to be great at it.” That has got to be the nicest compliment. I am so emotional these days and that definitely hit the spot. Amanda and I both hope that we can be wonderful mothers like we had growing up. Over this process we have talked about our childhoods and how great they were and the things that we want to bring into our kids lives. It’s just such an amazing honor to be able to be a Mom and neither Amanda nor I are going to take that for granted.

The process before was quite a long one. We had been talking about how we were going to expand our family for such a long time, that it kind of seemed surreal when we finally got down to doing all the medications and treatments. Talking about what was going to happen and it happening is two totally different things. Both of us had to endure different things at different times. Throughout the entire process we leaned on each other and realized what an amazing opportunity it is to be a parent. I cannot believe that it’s actually happening

We are 18 weeks and 4 days, we are getting so close to the half way point that it’s crazy! Gotta be honest and say it’s all finally starting to sink in. For a while, I would just randomly say…I’m pregnant, how crazy is that?! Now, I can feel Regan (if it truly is a girl…we will know more next week) move and it gives me the most amazing feeling. I cannot wait for Amanda to feel her moving around. Of course she likes to move at night, so that should be interesting if that trend continues when she’s born. I have been wearing maternity pants for a while. Amanda will tell you, that the first time I put them on it was the most amazing feeling because I could actually breathe!!! I was jumping up and down in the dressing room and she was laughing, quite amusing. At first I gained more weight than I wanted, but things have leveled out, that is until the past 2 weeks or so, my belly is starting to stick out even further. At least now I don’t look fat anymore, I’m actually looking more pregnant. I’m feeling not as tired as I used to feel, but overall I still feel tired. I have gotten the pregnancy “I forgot” brain, most definitely. I am missing my coffee in the mornings, wine at night, and my sushi dates. But at the end of these 9 months, it is most definitely going to be worth all of the sacrifices that I am making. Amanda is going to bring me sushi in the hospital and it’s going to be wonderful!!!

We have started registering and that is a process within itself as well. There are so many things to look at and so many things to decide on. I do have to tell a funny story. So, we registered for a lime green bottle brush. When we came home and we were looking at the registry, the bottle brush was pink, so Amanda changed it back. The day we look again and it had changed back to pink…and the same thing happened the next day. Needless to say, it changes every day and it frustrates Amanda to a point that all I can do is laugh about it; I finally went on and changed the type of bottle brush to multi colored so that she doesn’t even have to deal with it anymore. But she has been the greatest about researching and finding out what other people use in regards to bottles, pack-n-plays, diapers, carriers, etc. It has been fun looking at all the stuff, as well as overwhelming…I mean seriously how much could one little person need…according to the Babies R Us registry book – A LOT!!!

This is definitely the happiest time in our lives. We are so excited and cannot wait for our new addition to our family. I think Rebound is excited too, he just doesn’t know how to express it yet. Ha…I am excited for Rebound to meet our new addition; he’s going to be great! We are so happy that everyone has been so supportive throughout everything. Our family is very lucky to have people in our lives that are so wonderful!

Eat Pray Love

This movie was amazing. The critics didn't like it, people that I talked with said that they didn't want to go see, but the first time I saw the preview I wanted to see it and of course Amanda humored me, but she ended up loving it too :) It was about a woman who needed to find herself. Sometimes it's much needed to step outside your comfort box and do something different so you can find out who you truly are. I didn't go to different countries around the world, but I have had this experience in my life. Watching this movie was very inspirational on so many levels. It showed how much seeing the world can change your perspective, it showed that you can truly find yourself if you just look, it showed that sometimes you have to take a big step in life just so you can see that it is better on the other side. I know what it's like to be down on your life and have to figure out who you truly are and where you want to be. As she did in the movie, she met many new people that had many new things for her to experience. It was amazing journey of one woman who decided it was time to take a hold of her life and begin to enjoy it again. I'm so glad that I was able to see it, but now I want to read the book...haha, I've heard it's even better!

Past Weekend...

It was a great weekend being able to spend time with people that I do not normally see. Amanda and I started talking one night about how last year we only made it to see my Dad's side of the family at Christmas time both years and we said that was just unacceptable...so off we went to Columbus, Ga.

We knew it was going to take a little bit of time to get there so we stopped in Mobile on Friday night to try and cut the trip up instead of driving straight to our hotel. And because we are so lucky, my best friend in Mobile had her baby. Dillon was born on Thursday around 12:30. He is the most precious thing ever! It definitely was eye-opening to see him and hear him crying...I cried for him. Yes, I am definitely emotional...but I just had to, it was just so sad to hear him being so sad. Haha, so I was crying and I think I probably made Danielle cry...I'm so silly. It was wonderful getting to hang out with Danielle, Kenn, and Dillon...they are going to be the greatest parents.

Saturday we drove to Columbus and met my sister and Emily at our hotel and off we went. It was nice to sit and talk with Maw. She's always at her table in the kitchen, she has always been the person in the family that will tell you like it is. It is so nice to be able to just sit and talk. She's an extraordinary lady. When you listen to older people you can learn many many things. I have learned since I have gotten older that she has a lot of stories to tell and a lot of opinions :) but I will listen to them all. It was just a nice visit and Paw was just so cute with Emily!

Back to the hotel we went and Mom was there, so we spent the rest of the night playing in the pool with Emily. I cannot believe how big she has gotten. I guess seeing Dillon on Friday night brought back memories of when Emily was a baby and how quickly the time has gone by. She's a little girl now and she's about to start Pre-K and that just blows my mind. She means the world to me and it just melts my hear that she loves Amanda so much...sometimes more than me :)

All in all, this weekend was wonderful. Yes, we were tired. Yes, it was a lot of driving in just a few short days. But the memories we made, nobody can ever take those away!

Hope all is well!

Work...

So today, I'm actually quite happy about work because I got to leave around 11:30, but in general things are just crazy. I try to understand why the banking world does things they way they do. Now, don't get me wrong...I do like my job and I have grown to love it. Over the past 2 years here in Louisiana, I have grown into knowing how to do my job quite well if I do say so myself. But sometimes I feel like they expect the things that we cannot produce and then we get somewhat graded on that and it just doesn't seem fair. I guess most people would think that at some point with their job. I know they have goals for a reason, but then they have stretch goals that they wish we could meet. Um...hello, the goals are hard enough to reach and seriously the stretch goals are just a "laugh out loud" moment. So, that's my little rant for the day.

On a brighter note...my sister has a new job and she is absolutely loving it :) Yay!

Hope everyone is doing great!!!

Thinking about family the last few days...

This morning I was driving to work and I passed a Taco Bell...now, with that said I pass Taco Bell's all the time, but for some reason this morning I thought about my GG. She loved Taco Bell. It made me think that it's been almost 5 months since she passed away and it's gone by so fast. I was thinking about her a lot today because I waited on a bunch of older customers. I was remembering how funny she used to be...how she had so many opinions and she was never scared to tell you. It's so nice to think about all the wonderful memories that she brought to our lives. I miss her.

I was also thinking about Amanda's family and how hard her Mema getting lung cancer has been on everyone. I know that Amanda wants to do more for them, but it's definitely been hard with residency happening right now. We're driving over to Pensacola tomorrow so we can take them out to lunch and spend a little bit of time with them. Even though her stories are long and drawn out, they are almost always interesting...and by the time we leave we have almost always learned something new. They are funny and we also enjoy our time when we go to their house. Can't wait for tomorrow.

This past week I have also been struggling with the situation that is my father. I am just so lost as to what to say to him and how to approach the situation. It's hard when you get older and you are an adult and you have problems with your parent who is suppose to act older than you are. I feel as though he does not...I feel as though I have to be the adult in the situation and I don't want to feel like that. I want my father to be older and wiser...but I don't think this is going to happen. Ugh, it's frustrating...but one of these days I will figure things out.

I am visiting my mom and sister and niece next month and I couldn't be more excited. It's crazy how you miss people when you don't see them for months. I don't even care what we do...I just want to spend time with them. I see pictures of Em and I think time is flying and she's growing up so fast. I can't wait to go home! I do, however, talk to them everyday so that helps a little bit :)

This is my blog about family, but I couldn't leave out my family that I have here in my own home. They are just wonderful. Amanda and I have made our family here in New Orleans with Rebound and we couldn't be happier :)

Hope everyone is great!!!

The month of May is gone already... :(

So, we have been waiting for the month of May to get here for so long and now it's officially the last day of the month. Man, how time is flying...

This month was great. Our calendar looked full, but it really wasn't. We had a few visitors around and then vacation.

Let's talk about vacation...it was much needed and it was amazing. We went to Puerto Rico for an entire week. Now, it rained every day, but that definitely was not going to spoil anything and Amanda and I keep saying that that was God telling us not to get burnt :) The resort that we stayed at was just amazing. I don't think I have ever stayed anywhere like that. It was extremely nice...the room, the staff, the pool, the view from our room of the ocean, the food around the resort, the concierge, the casino, etc etc etc. I loved every minute. We had been waiting for a long time to just relax and we did. We would go to the pool in the morning before it would start raining and we would read our books and listen to the music and talk. We went with our friends Tristan and Russell from Raleigh and it was great just to have a great time with wonderful friends. We visited Old San Juan and explored different areas. We almost died more than once in the taxi trips...haha, we think they had a deal with the police because they all would got about 50 over the speed limit, totally crazy. We rented a car and drove to Farjardo to do a kayaking and snorkel trip. That was the first time I had been kayaking and it definitely tested Amanda and I...haha, but we made it. We also did the Bio Bay, and it was great except for the darkness before we got to the Bio Bay. Kayaking 2 times in one day...I told Amanda that it would be a long time we did that again ;) We didn't want to leave, but we made a ton of amazing memories. :)

Amanda has started a call month in the PICU, so her schedule will be quite busy, so most likely this month will go by as fast as last month did. Our neighborhood BBQ is happening next weekend and we're excited, because it's just a wonderful time with our neighbors and Amanda can go too, yay!

I get to see my family in about a month and I couldn't be more excited! I'm ready.

Hope everyone is just wonderful. Until next time! :)

A Month Later...

Well, officially summer has started. It's most definitely gotten much warmer around here...and the way I know this, every time I walk outside you just start sweating. We can't complain too much because we did have an awesome little break called Spring! We have done a little cleaning around the house and outside in the yard area. Paul came over and helped us pressure wash the house and also the bricks on the front. I really wish we had taken a before and after picture because it is like 1000% better. The bricks have never looked like they do now. And he even did it on his birthday. We are so happy to have him in our lives. That same day we pulled out Rebound's pool...and needless to say, he was really really happy :)

For Amanda's birthday I bought her Carrie Underwood tickets. I know her birthday was in January, but we have been looking forward to her birthday celebration since then and we definitely were not let down. She was amazing!!! You hear her on the radio or on the tv and she really sounds and looks like that. It was just an amazing show and she sang all of our favorite songs! :) Amanda was in heaven!

Amanda's friend Megan from college is coming this weekend and so we're excited to be tourists with her. It's always fun to find new things in the city you live in. Can't wait to see what kind of trouble we get in! :)

Now, we are just waiting on our vacation to get here. We are going to Puerto Rico the last week in May. It is a much needed break and we're ready. Tristan and Russell are coming with us and I think it's going to be just a great time to relax and have fun with friends.

I am missing my family, but I did book a trip for the weekend of the 4th of July. Amanda is not able to come with me, but we're still going to have fun! I cannot wait.

Things are just wonderful for us here in good old New Orleans. We are loving living here even more than we thought we could have. I absolutely love it here and I love the culture that we are surrounded with every day. I think I have fallen in love and Amanda might have to drag me kicking and screaming...haha, no no, not really, but I do love it here. This would be a perfect place if the schools were better and it was maybe a little less hot! Ha.

Hope all is well!

Man, I'm not good at this blogging thing

Well, I haven't blogged in over a month and that seems to be the case every time I blog. So, I'm going to get better...new goal, one per week. I think I can do that. This blog is going to have lots of pictures :)

St. Patrick's Day came and went and we almost missed it, it seems. Last year we went to the parade, but this year we were not in town. So on the actual day we made green beer, green mashed potatoes and meatloaf. All in all it was a great night.

So, last month was absolutely crazy. Amanda was on Night Float for the first half of the month...meaning I basically didn't see her very much for a few days at a time, because I would be at work during the day and then she would work at night. Can I just say...I do not want this to be our life, so thank goodness that is not normally the case. She went to Birmingham for a weekend for Aiden's birthday party and baseball game. She had a blast and realized that they are getting so big.

Easter weekend was short but fun. I had to work on Saturday morning, so we left after that. We went and had dinner with Amanda's entire family, saw her Uncle Danny's new house and then of course we made the bunny cake!!! You have to make the bunny cake. I think Amanda did a great job!

Harper loved her bunny ears that we gave her. They were egg hunting around the pool.

I missed my family on Easter this year, but they did some beautiful pictures. Emily took the this one...pretty good for a 4 year old that's short.

Spring has finally happened in New Orleans. The pollen is no where near as bad as Georgia, but it got kind of bad for a few days. The weather has been amazing here lately. It's a little cooler in the morning and a litter warmer in the evenings...just perfect! I don't think that the people here know what to do with themselves. We've done a little yard work to try and catch up with the rest of the neighborhood - it's a little better, but still not as good as everybody else. We're learning and it's hard because neither of us like yard work. Ha. Last weekend we had the best weekend ever. On Saturday night we went to a Michael Jackson Tribute Band named "Who's Bad" and it was awesome. Of course we had our own Michael Jackson...Nicole, pretty awesome! On Saturday we went to the last day of French Quarter Fest. It was great. We were down on the river and listening to music with the sun shining, just perfect. That is until we got home and we were so burnt...our first burn of the season and hopefully the last.

So that has been our life here for a little bit. Of course today Amanda got home and somebody hit her bumper when she was parked at Children's Hospital and they must have done it while she was on call yesterday. Ugh. Now we have to deal with that, but that's okay. Everything else is going wonderful.

Hope all is well!!!

Wii Fit

So, I need to put this out there so that I can be held accountable. I have started a venture of trying to lose weight. A couple of years ago I lost a lot of weight and I have gained about 15 lbs back since then, give or take a little bit. I feel like I need to get back down to where I was a couple of years ago. Now, I'm not going to put my exact weight on here, but I will put how much I'm gaining/losing. We got a Wii Fit for Christmas and I have been using it over the past few weeks, it's pretty cool. You can get your BMI, Weight, Play games, etc on it. I love it. So, that's how I will keep up. So, let's start with last week...I had lost 1.3 lbs. Today, I had gained 1.87 lbs back. Boo. So...moving onto tomorrow. My goal is actually set in the Wii for 12 lbs...so we shall see. I'm excited! I'm ready!

Happy Reading!

So, it's Tuesday night and normally I am ready for my week to be over...but I have to say that this week is not like that. I'm in such a good mood, just ask my co-workers...they can't believe it. Ha, no really, I'm just in a good mood and nobody is going to bring me down. :)

I finally finished the 5th Harry Potter Book and it was good, but now I need a break from all of that. I tend to really only read on my lunch break at work, so it of course takes me 10 years to finish a book. So, since I needed a new book, I went onto the bookshelf and saw "It's not about the bike: my journey back to life" by Lance Armstrong. I've gotta say he's a very inspirational person, so I thought...sure. Amanda said she had read it a long time ago and it was good. I started it today and I've only read the first chapter and I already feel like it's going to be really good. I've had a lot go on this year already and I have learned a lot, so I'm hoping that this book can teach me something about myself; about picking up and moving on and learning new things in the process.

Happy Reading!

It's the end of February already...

This month has been a whirlwind of things to do. Trying to get over last month has definitely been something that has not been easy. I find myself sometimes breaking down and really over nothing. I think my emotions are shot and I can't wait until we go on our vacation that we are currently in middle of scheduling to Purerto Rico -- can't wait to just sit on the beach and drink a drink and do nothing for a week :)

Mardi Gras came and went really fast this year, probably because of the Saints winning the Super Bowl!!! So 2 weeks of this month were spent with Saints, parades, and beads. My family came down and it was nice to see them, because last month was not really a "good" visit. Emily is growing up so fast and it's hard to believe that she is already 4 and forming her very own opinions...and there are a lot of them, but I wouldn't change that for anything! Here's a picture of me and Emily on our way to the parade!

We sat on the 20th row of the Hornets game and I have to tell you, that's awesome. We were in the seats that they will bring food to you instead of you having to get up to get it. Pretty awesome!!!

Work has been hard here lately. I feel like I am being pulled in every possible direction and I still haven't come back since being gone so long in January. I'm frustrated and I really need to get my mind settled back into a routine there so I can function properly and "leave it at work" instead of bringing home all the emotions that the day has held. I'm working on it.

Last night we got all of tax stuff together to go to the tax office today. We shall see what happens. It seems like it could be good news, getting money back, but I am always scared.

My birthday is soon and I'm excited. Amanda booked a hotel room in Biloxi and we're just going to go over and relax for a night. That's what I wanted, that's what I need. Can't wait.

I'm ready to just feel normal again and it doesn't seem like things will ever be back to normal. The other day I literally picked up my phone to call my GG and I thought...wait, she's not there and that's a hard thing to really realize. She is the first person that has been close to me to pass away and I'm having a hard time adjusting to it. I really believe that Amanda and I have grown closer together because of everything. I have tried to put my faith in knowing that she is with Jesus and one day I will see her again....it's not an easy thing. We've been going to church more and realizing that we really want that part of our life back. Here's to new beginnings...

Oh...and we gave up Red meat for Lent...we shall see!

New Month...

We're finally in February and Amanda and I couldn't be happier. We are moving past our January hard times and looking to better days. We are so thankful for all the love and support that everyone gave us throughout the month and still continue to give us, we couldn't ask for better people to surround ourselves with right now in our life. February started off with a bang because we were offered free Hornets tickets on the bottom level. I have never been on the bottom level, so it was really neat to hear the "swoosh" of the basketball net and the "screech" of the basketball shoes on the floor. It was so nice of our neighbors to give us their season tickets that they were not using that night. The 2nd of February we went and saw the off-broadway musical "Mamma Mia." We have had the tickets for quite a while and have been anticipating the show as well. Amanda has gone around the house singing all the songs for quite some time. The show was so good and we had such a good time, even though we were on the top row. We can't wait to go to another one...next on our list "Wicked." So, we can't wait to see what else this month holds for us. The Black & Gold Super Bowl is this weekend, so needless to say this city has gone completely crazy. We are living in this wonderful place at the right time in our lives. Can't wait to see the big game and then on Tuesday go out and watch the Saints parade! Along with all those fun things, there is Mardi Gras stuff going on all the time. Next weekend is the big weekend and we have people coming into town - Amanda's cousin Lawanda and her husband Rob, my sister, my mom, and my niece. We are so excited!!! Now, all we need to do is clean the house!

Until next time...

GG

This week has been such a blur...it has literally been the worst week of my life. Sitting in a room watching your grandmother die is not something I would ever make anyone do. As I sit there I watch her stomach go up and down. All the while thinking about the many great memories that we have had over the years. Larry, one of the ministers said it best when we were in the ER and she was intubated, that isn't it funny all the good thoughts you have for someone at times like these instead of negative ones. All we have done this week is laugh at the many memories we have created with her and then the few more we have added this week with her as well. After her ER visit we moved her to hospice across the street and that is where she has been. The day after she got moved she actually started talking, I know that medicine wouldn't be able to explain this, but it happened...and my Aunt said it was our little miracle. And in a small way that is true, she came back just as grumpy and ornery. Haha her telling us to "leave her alone." It's funny, in a sense. Yesterday all she did was sleep and occasionally she would begin to choke. She's taking about 7 breathes a minute and it's just agonizing to watch. I have sat in a room with her for the past 3 days watching her die. I know she's ready to see Jesus, we are just waiting for Jesus to be ready.

This past week...

Last night we went to Biloxi to visit with Mema...it was the happiest I have ever seen her.

This past week has been a bit of a blur. Last weekend we got a call from Amanda's cousin that Mema had had a stroke and was on her way in the Ambulance to the Emergency Room. Amanda was on call, but once she got home we were on a way to try and figure out what was going on. After it was all said and done, we found out on Sunday that she has Lung Cancer that has spread to her brain. Even re-reading that last sentence it doesn't seem like it could be real. Thinking back about last night and how happy she was, you would never know that she has this black cloud hanging over her. It's funny though, even with all this bad news this week, I was talking to her on the phone tonight and she has a very positive attitude towards everything. She is such an amazing woman! Tomorrow morning is the brain surgery to take the mass out and then we shall see what needs to be done about the chemo.

When something like this happens you truly understand how a family can pull together and take care of each other. I am so glad that Amanda has myself and her family support to get through these tough times.

Please keep her and her family in your thoughts in the morning...