Life Goes On....

I know it has been several months since my last post, there has been many changes in our lives.  The biggest of which is we have reconciled with our daughter Elizabeth and we now have a granddaughter from her!! 

Belle Elise Medina was born on August 8, weighing in at 6 pounds 15 ounces and 19 1/2 inches.  We couldn't be prouder of our daughter and son-in-law!!

Our granddaughter is so beautiful!!  So much hair!! Now as I write this she is one month old and weighs 10 pounds!! We are preparing for her Christening on September 30th.  We have not seen her since she was 48 hours old and I can't wait to hold her again!!! Living 200 miles her it is hard to spoil her, but when I get the chance, I am going to hold her as much as I can and love on her and spoil her as much as I can for the two days we are with her. 

I have just loved all the pictures Beth and Derek have posted on Facebook.  I download all of them to my computer hard drive and my cellphone.  I have printed a few of them and show them off to my friends.  My friends think Belle is so beautiful and of course Grandma does not disagree!!  

Here are a couple of more photos of my beautiful girl:

I think from now on I might be better about updating this blog because I have more to write about!! God Bless!!!

James Graduation

June 18, 2011

James Ronald Zehr

Magna Cum Laude

3.87 GPA

Alpha Beta Kappa Honors Society

College America

May Thoughts in June

I know it is now June 8 and I am a bit late posting my thoughts for May, but it was a rough month. First the good thoughts, our 23rd Wedding Anniversary was May 14th so that was cause for celebration. Not many people can say they are still married after 23 years, but we are, although there have been many rough years. May also brought the passing of the first year of Brooklyn Jade's first year of life...Yea!! She has brought so much joy to this family.

May also brought us closer to my sister Tanya's due date for her latest addition to her family. She is expecting her newest little girl in July, Nicole should arrive around the 19th.

We also celebrated the announcement of two engagements, James & Brittany and Elizabeth & Derek. Both couples will be getting married next spring! We are so excited for both couples and yet we are also anticipating the bills! Along with the joy of this, came heartache, there was conflict with the dates for the weddings. When it all settled, Elizabeth was no longer speaking to any of us, effective May 14, our anniversary! As of this posting, she as not contacted us by phone, Facebook, email, text or regular mail. To say this is hurting me is an understatement, but to say it is also helping ease my stress is a helpful statement.

I find not arguing with her eases the stress I was having and helps with the migraines but does not ease the hurt on my heart. I find the hurt similar to grief felt from the loss of a death, you have to take it moment to moment. I pray she will come around and realize how much I love her and how much her family loves her. I pray she will realize how much she loves her family and how much she needs us. For now that is all I can do, other than express my love for her on here. I love you Elizabeth!!! Please remember that always!!

God Bless Everyone!

April 2011 Thoughts

April is almost gone and I see it is time to post my thoughts for the month. Yesterday we celebrated James' 22nd birthday, where have the years gone? It only seems like yesterday that he was toddling around here taking things apart and sucking his thumb. I miss those days and yet I love that he is grown and on his own, graduating in a few weeks with his Associates Degree in Medical Assisting, I also love that he and Brittany are planning their wedding for next year, she is going to be a great addition to our family.

April also brought about the graduation from high school for Ben. He completed his GED requirements, passed the tests and got his diploma. He did all this in less than a week and with better than average scores. He even got a certificate from College America for passing the tests in less than a week. Then he started college classes right away, taking Graphic Design. He kept his promise to me months ahead of schedule. I am so proud of him! When the family got together for Easter, we had a graduation celebration at the same time for him. He loved it, he even got some gifts!

We got news from Elizabeth, she and Derek have set a date for their wedding, May 19, 2012! We are happy for them and are planning to be there to give our daughter away. Ben has been asked to be a part of the wedding party and has agreed. We are happy to be adding another son to our expanding family! Next year is going to be really busy with two weddings!

May God Bless everyone who reads my rantings!

March Thoughts

It has been a few months since I posted anything so I thought I should say something.....SOMETHING...LOL!!!

Life has been good or than an occasional bump. I have gotten to the level where my doctor wants me to be for my medication for now that is to help with my migraines. For now it seems to be helping like it should, when I take it every day like I should. I have found if I miss a day, I will have a severe headache the next day, so I am trying to make sure I do not miss a day. I am still taking care of Brooklyn every day and enjoying it, she is such a joy. She makes me so anxious to have grandchildren and yet I can wait for the kids to finish college.

James should be finished with the first part of his degree in June and be ready to test to be a Certified Medical Assistant, then hopefully on to Nursing school. Brittany will have another year to finish her degree in Nursing Business Management.

Ben has had a bit of a set back in his high school, seems Aurora Public schools did not calculate his credits correctly and did not set his schedule up properly to keep him on track to graduate in May. So he must attend another semester and not graduate until December of 2011 or May of 2012 depending on his choice of classes and if he wants to get in some college classes or not. With the fact he is 18, he can make this decision all on his own and may decide to just get his GED and go on to college sooner instead of waiting to finish traditional high school. It does concern me a bit but what can I do when he is 18 and he does have a mind of his own, he has the right to make his own decisions about his life, I have to realize this and accept it.

Our home is fast becoming an empty nest, it is nice at times and at times it is very lonely. I like being able to do what I want, when I want but I also miss being able to spend the time with my kids, but after all, they aren't kids anymore, I have to remember that.

Thankful and Turning 48

Very Thankful this year for my family and friends. Since we moved back to Aurora 2 years ago, things have changed in our lives. Some good, some bad, that's par for the course.

The good is we have a home that has enough room for all of us to be comfortable, even when overcrowded. We have many friends here and that's good cause we weren't sure how we would handle leaving all the friends we left in Trinidad.

The bad is that we still have not found that one church that God wants us to be in, but we know when the time is right, He will guide us there. We have lost everyday contact with our daughter and for the most part we don't hear from her for months on end. She did complain that I did not call often enough to check on her and Derek to satisfy her, but I have such a sad heart regarding the problems and the comments from her about how bad a mother I am, that I just can't bring myself to call more. I pray one day she will know how it feels and understand and come back into our lives.

Another good thing is this move has brought me back to being closer to my parents and my sisters and their families. We had a wonderful time this year at my sister Tanya's in-laws home, just like last year. Mike and Kandi are wonderful hosts and make for a great time of fellowship. There was so much food that we had some to bring home. For Christmas, we will be at my sister, Jennifer's new home. Can't wait to see all her decorations up for the first time in many years.

Money is still very tight and it will be a small Christmas but we are Blessed to include our future daughter-in-law in this year's activities. Brittany has become such a joy in our lives and has had a wonderful influence on James. They are talking about their wedding but it is still about 2 years away. I can't wait to take their engagement photos in the new year.

Today was bittersweet, I turned 48. Good in that my hubby prepared dinner and baked a cake for me. But sad in that I am only 2 years from 50! But then I think, it will be nice because by the time I do turn 50, my oldest should be married and possibly have a baby on the way to make me a Grandmother.

This has also been a wonderful time for me to get to know my nieces and nephews better. I am especially getting closer to my first great niece, Brooklyn. I have been doing daycare for her since her mom went back to work. I do know that God gives us children when we are young for a good reason, cause I am very tired each night, but I would not trade the bond I have with her for anything. It so reminds me of James and Michelle when she did my daycare for him while I worked. I remember being so jealous of her getting to see all the firsts but now I can sympathize with Chelsea as this is happening to her.

Thank you God for all my Blessings and please help me to be more patient and understanding of the things I need to.

Sad Time

For the past several years, my life has been in turmoil. Not just from the loss of David's job, his need for hip replacement, his health issues, or the move from Trinidad to Aurora, but due to many issues with my daughter, Elizabeth.

She blames me for her lack of popularity in school and lack of friends. She says I spoiled the boys but not her. She feels I don't care enough to call at least once a week to see how she is doing. I can't seem to figure out where this all comes from. I always allowed and sacrificed to let her take dance lessons, to do gymnastics, to be a cheerleader, to go to camp, to girl scouts, and be in band. Her Dad and I would do without many things in our lives to give our kids the privilege to participate in sports, cheer leading, band, gymnastics or whatever they wanted to do. We wanted them to be happy and be involved with different activities to keep busy and stay out of trouble, but also to be better citizens. I don't know how many times I put off buying something frivolous or some clothes I might have needed to be able to pay for registration for sports or buy uniforms or dresses for Homecoming or Prom. I know that a few times she had to wear a hand-me-down dress to Homecoming or Prom, but not always.

Everyone keeps telling me that I was not a bad mother, that I did everything I could to make all 3 kids happy. The boys don't resent me, so I can't understand why she does. I have come to believe it maybe the fact she has Bi-polar Disorder and really needs some help, but she can't see it and won't ask for help. The only thing she will ask for is more money or more things.

I have to move past this and get on with my life. I have to let her go and let her live her life until she realizes that people have not been mean to her and that we have been trying to help. Until that time I have to try to forget the ugly things she has said and concentrate on my life and my boys. I will survive and I will be praying for her everyday. I do love you, Elizabeth!

Time to Update...

I know I have been very lax in posting but sometimes I just don't have anything to share.

Since my last post, Ben has turned 18 and will be graduating May 2011. James is now living with his girlfriend most of the time. She rented a place close to us and we love it. Brittany and James are so happy and are doing great in school. Beth and Derek came up for Labor Day and went with us to Garden of the Gods. We all had a great time hiking and talking. They are now considering moving to Colorado Springs or Aurora...that would be wonderful!

Our niece, Chelsea had her baby in May, Brooklyn Jade is beautiful!! (See picture above) Chelsea is trying finish cosmetology school and get on her feet. I am now doing daycare for Brooklyn to help out, it is fun. I enjoyed taking her 3 month old photos the other day.

Mom and Dad are doing good, playing golf and working around the house. Mom had cataract surgery a couple of months ago and is seeing so much better. She now only needs to wear glassed to read.

God Bless Everyone! Keep in touch!!

James and Ben

James found out last night that he made the President's List at College America. What a joy for me to have a son doing so well at college. He has a 4.0 GPA and perfect attendance. I am praying this will continue until graduation in May 2011. He is loving his classes and making some really good friends. Hopefully this summer, he will be certified to work in a Nursing or Assisted Living Home or will be certified to work as a Phlebotomist and working in a blood bank or something close. Way to go James!! Keep up the good work!!

Ben is doing much better since switching to online classes. He is currently working on English and History, with a B or better in each class. He is ahead of schedule for the current classes and should be moving on to the next two very soon. He has also been invited to apply at Johnson & Wales University for early enrollment for next year. This means he would be working on his first year college classes while finishing high school. Crossing our fingers and praying he will take this opportunity and do well. Way to go Ben!! Keep up the good work!!

God Bless Everyone and drop us a line sometime when you can.

New Year!!!

Just sitting here thinking and watching the posts on Facebook. As I think back over this year, I have to say it was a pretty good year. David did manage to get his disability increased some and that has helped our financial situation. I am working part-time to help with what the VA does not cover.

James has truly blossomed at College America. He has 4.0 GPA and is tutoring in his spare time. Ben has been doing very well at Hinkley but does not like the schedule or the size of the student body. In October, we were told about APS Online, an online high school, he decided to enroll and will begin classes in January. He got his computer on Monday and has begun the preliminary tests to see what he knows, he is doing very well. I think he will pass some of these tests and be able to skip some classes. He is looking forward to being able to progress at his own pace instead of staying with the class. He might even graduate earlier than May of 2011. He is also checking into taking classes at Community College of Aurora while attending high school so that he can graduate with an Associates degree.

Beth is living in Trinidad with her fiance, Derek. No wedding date has been set, but that is ok, they can take their time and plan the wedding they want. She is working two jobs and seems to be making it on her own.

Life is starting to get better little bits at a time. GOD has Blessed us in so many ways. We pray for all our family and friends to have a great New Year and the receive some of the Blessings we have and that we continue to receive.

God Bless Everyone!!

Christmas 2009

We had a great Christmas this year. First, we were in our new home, even though we bought it in May, it still feels like new to us. Being the first Christmas in our home, we celebrated by having Christmas morning here instead of going to Mom and Dad's. Although, we should have spent the night there since the heat went out in our house. We just added more blankets and turned on the oven to take the chill off. Christmas morning was great, we opened gifts and laughed so much.

We loaded the car about 11 am and drove over to Mom and Dad's for the big family gathering and Christmas dinner. What another great time, with all my sister's there, even though Jenni had to leave early due to just having had surgery on the 22nd. Tanya has a new man in her life, he brought his three boys and his parents, Candy and Mike are great fun to be with. We sure enjoyed Thanksgiving with them and were glad to reciprocate with dinner at Mom and Dad's.

On Saturday, we got someone to come out and look at our furnace, took a bit of time but he got it working. Then we waited for Beth and Derek to arrive to open gifts with them. It was a late night but we had such a good time. Then on Sunday, we went over to Jenni and Mark's to open gifts there as Larissa had been gone over Christmas and did not arrive home until late Saturday night. After the fun of opening gifts, we played Balderdash and watched the Bronco game. What a wonderful day it was with all the family packed into their small home, so much love and laughter.

Can't believe Christmas has come and gone, the New Year will be upon us very quickly as well. Time is just flying, I can't believe it will be 2010 in just a couple of days.

May God Bless you all in the coming year and always!!!

Thanks Veterans

A friend posted this on Facebook recently and reminded me how much I do Love Jesus!

Why do we sleep in church, but stαy αwαke through α 3 hour movie? Why is it so hαrd to tαlk to God, but so eαsy to gossip? Why is it so eαsy to ignore α Godly text messαge, but re-send the nαsty ones? Are you going to post this on your stαtus or ignore it? Jesus sαid "If you deny me in front of your friends, I will deny you in front of my fαther."

Today, and everyday, we need to THANK the men and women who have sacrificed so much to give us our FREEDOM. REMEMBER those who gave the ULTIMATE sacrifice.

Thanks Dad, Thanks David, Thanks all Veterans past and present!!!

September 5, 2009

Today, I watched one of my dearest and oldest friends get married. It was a very joyous occasion and I was so thrilled and honored to be included in the audience. Paula and I have been through so much together and it caused me to think. I am so grateful for my husband, my children even with all the hardships we have been thru, my sisters, my parents, my extended family, and my friends. I have always been so thankful for my family but I began to wonder if I ever thought about my friends. I don't know that I have ever told my friends how much they mean to me and how they have touched my life. That is going to change, from this day forward, not only am I going to let my family know more often what they mean to me, but I am going to make sure my friends know!! God, Family, Friends this is how life should be measured! Now I need to live up to that and make sure that all those that are important in my life know exactly how important they are! Thank you God for all those wonderful people in my family and who are my friends! God Bless each of you who read this and know you are IMPORTANT TO ME!!

H1N1 or Swine Flu

This wretched virus has hit our family! It all began with our nephew Chance last week showing signs of a simple cold. My sister Michelle, his Mom, had to leave town for business and my parents were out of state for my Aunt's funeral, so we volunteered to let him come stay with us. Since he and Ben attend the same school it seemed the best solution for all and it allowed David the opportunity to help tend the dogs at Mom's when he took the boy's to school and picked them up. Little did we know then what we know now.

Seems Chance has a friend that was exhibiting flu symptoms but did not miss any school, so he spread his germs all over. Chance on the other hand, was only showing signs of a cough and a slight fever, something that we thought was a slight cold. We kept him home from school at Michelle's insistence and called the doctor to see him. His doctor could not get him in until Thursday of last week, so we just kept him home as things got worse. In the meantime, Ben started coughing and having a sore throat, so home he stayed. Since Mom and Dad came home late Wednesday, she agreed to take Chance to the doctor which was a good thing for us as David had become sick on Wednesday and was not going to be able to take him. James and I were feeling great.

Friday rolled around and I was having a nagging cough in the morning but thought nothing of it, so I went to work leaving my sick child and hubby at home. As the day wore on, the body aches, fever and chills started. About 4 pm, Mom called me at work to say they got the results on Chance, "he has swine flu" is all I heard. I knew that this was not good and that what was happening at home and to me was probably the same thing. I left work as fast as I could finish up and get out of there to prevent infecting anyone else. I got home, told James to take David to the VA to get him some help and went inside to work on helping Ben and myself to feel better. You see there isn't much you can do except rest, drink lots of fluids and rest more! But with David's health condition so unstable from the lymphoma it is important that he be seen quickly. He spent over 10 hours there getting IV's and anti-viral meds for swine flu. On Saturday, Ben and I went to University Hospital to confirm if we had it also, which they did.

Since that time, the three of us have been resting, reading, watching tv, playing on the computer, or sleeping. We have been drinking lots of tea, water, grape and orange juice and enjoying the pots of chicken and hamburger soups my mom and sister made for us. Take it from the 3 of us, follow the doctor's orders, rest, rest, drink, drink, rest, rest, and don't go back to work until your fever has been gone without medication control for 24 hours. I hope none of you get this but we already know several of our family members in other states have gotten it. We love you and hope you are well soon. God Bless everyone!!!

August!

Wow this year is just flying by! It has been a year of major changes for us. Beginning in December 2008 with the move to Aurora, through hard times with Elizabeth, the death of my Uncle Wallace, the death of David's Uncle Leonard, the death of David's Aunt Anna, Elizabeth's graduation, Ben's surgeries, Ben changing schools, living in a camper for 6 months and the move to a new home of our own.

The move to Aurora was tough, afterall, after 14 years in Trinidad we had a solid foundation of friends and "family". The hardest part of moving was leaving our daughter there. She wanted to finish high school, afterall, it was only 5 months until graduation. During the last months of her high school life, things got pretty bad between all of us and her. She turned 18 in January and she wanted to live life on her own. She was living with her boyfriend and his family, they had some major health issues, she was missing her family especially Ben and trying to deal with preparing for graduation. Of course the minute she turned 18, she didn't want anymore comments from us on how she should do anything in her life. She is now an adult and we have to face that reality. Life goes on.....

Ben had the first of two operations to fix a problem with his hips in March. He says it was a great relief to get rid of the pain the excess cartilidge was causing and looked forward to the 2nd surgery in June. He was enjoying the home bound teaching he received while recuperating. He now says school is such a drag. I think some of that is due to the fact he had no summer per sey. He was on crutches most of the summer thereby limiting his mobility to go do things with his friends. I have advised him to get more involved in school activities, it truly helps make the year go by faster.

James has been working most of the time since the move. He decided to take a semester off from college to allow himself time to adjust to the new surroundings and to get his financial aid in place. He began working at Elitch Gardens in April and has continued with good reviews since then. He applied for entrance to Pickens Technical College but was unable to get things moving for the fall semester. Now he says he is going to see about CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant) to get the ball rolling towards nursing school. If he gets his CNA, he can work and go to school to get his degree.

I have been working since June for a Liquor store near our home. It is good to have the extra income to help with all the expenses. I have not stopped applying for others positions as being a liquor store clerk is not my career goal...LOL! David is still trying to find work of some kind but with all the health problems with his back and lymphoma it is very hard. He is now going to see about getting his VA status set to unemployable, that should help as it will increase his monthly payment. He has been seeing the orthopedic doctors about his back pain and now they have determined he needs cervical steriod injections. They will give a series of 3, if they do not help then he will need to have fusion surgery on his back. Time will tell.

As I posted earlier we have been dealing with the loss of severl family members. We are also praying for my Aunt Fran who has been so very sick for the longest time. We are thankful for the good health of the rest of the family.

I guess this is all the news for now, God Bless each of you who follow my blog and Bless your families.

Rollercoaster

Life is so much of a rollercoaster! So many ups and downs and many take your breath away. Now don't get me wrong I like rollercoasters but only when I want to ride not everyday of my life. I really wish things could be on a more even keel everyday with only special times for the highs and lows.

Things have been pretty good with Beth up until last night. It was not a fight between her and I but another problem that she has to deal with. However, she needed Mom and Dad to talk to and to cry on our shoulders. This took until almost 3 am to get her calm enough to sleep, it was nice even with the lack of sleep.

Ben is doing well in his recuperation, he is off the crutches but must be careful not to turn to quickly or get too rowdie. He loves that now he can go swimming, so maybe the last half of summer will better for him. Ben and Katie are doing good, she is a joy to have at the house to occupy him, but she is also a sweet girl to be around.

James is continuing to work lots of hours at Elitch's and enjoying it. They have concerts there and when they do and he is working he gets to listen. He and his girlfriend, Kara, are doing well. She is very sweet and we enjoy having her come over to spend time with James and the rest of us.

David and I have been working on the house very slowly so that neither one of us gets overly tired. We are going thru things and deciding whether to keep things or set them aside for a yard sale or throw them away. He continues to look for a job. I have been applying for different jobs but for now at least I have some income coming in from the liquor store. We are enjoying seeing old friends every so often and just getting out of the house.

Life is getting better slowly but surely, just watch out for the dips and peaks!!! LOL!! God Bless Everyone.

To Catch You Up

I know it has been a while since I posted on here, so I need to catch you all up on things going on around the Zehr household.

As I posted before we have moved into our own home, a mobile home, but still a home. We began moving in on May 23 and finished unloading the truck on May 24. We are currently trying to make it all fit, get rid of it or store whatever won't fit and can't be sold at a yard sale. The weekend after the move in was spent putting up a shed at the back of the house to store Christmas decorations, things that we can't get rid of but don't have room for now, and things for the yard sale. In the process of getting the shed up, Mom and I were at Home Depot to pick up things, we ran into to a nice man who offered to help us load the supplies into Mom's car. During the process we learned he is an active duty Air Force Sargent who asked if we needed help putting up the shed. I gladly accepted his offer. The next day he came by and spent the entire weekend helping us get everything done. We have a beautiful shed for all the stuff we have overflowing the house at this time. This has helped with getting some room to walk around, it also allows us to unpack boxes one at a time and then bring in another one. The process of setting up the house has been slow, as of today we are still living with boxes and looking for stuff that we need.

The week before we moved we were in Trinidad to watch our daughter graduate. It was a bittersweet weekend. We were excited for her but with the past problems it was not all happiness. She looked beautiful and is now engaged to be married to her love, Derek. That was a surprise of sorts, we had been saying we thought sometime within the year after graduation they would get engaged, but we didn't expect it at graduation. We are happy for them but a little concerned that she might be rushing things, she is putting off college for now to work and plan her wedding. I pray she will decide to go back to college even it is only for her Associates from Trinidad State Junior college.

Ben had surgery on his left hip to correct the same problem he had with the right one, on June 2nd. He is doing well with his recuperation other than one set back. Just before his two week check up, he slipped on the kitchen floor and landed on the left hip. We had to take him in to see his surgeon the next day. We got the good news, seems he may have popped an internal stitch and torn a muscle but no need to go back in to fix anything. He seems to be much better the last couple of days. He is looking forward to his four week checkup when he might be able to get to go swimming. I hope this will come about as he has been so cooped up so far and is so bored.

James has been working so hard at Elitch's. He must be doing so well cause he just began a 10 day schedule of no days off. He has been having a great time when he is not working, the benefits of working at an amusement park are good. He took Ben and Chance to spend the day at Elitch's a few days before Ben's surgery so that Ben would have some fun to think about while he was recuperating for 6 weeks. Then he went to a concert at the park after spending a day there with his girlfriend, they both said it was great.

David has been playing house husband for now. I am hoping he will get a part-time job soon as he is going crazy as well as driving me nuts. I started a job at a liquor store in Watkins, about 3 miles from home. I am working for a man that Michelle works with, she recommended me for the job. Thanks Sis!! So far it is OK, not exactly what I want for a career, but for now it helps with the bills and what VA Disability does not cover. I am still submitting applications in hopes of a job that will suit me more.

That's about all the news here for now. I will try to be more diligent about posting more often to keep everyone up to date. For now, God Bless Everyone!! Come visit when you can!

Moved and Unpacking

We have moved to our "new" home in Aurora. We bought a 1994 Liberty Single wide mobile home that was previously a rental. Yes we have a few things to repair and it has not been cared for in the best manner. Needless to say this has eaten up the remainder of our backpay from the VA. We will try to start saving for a few other things such as a swamp cooler. For now, we have gotten the storage shed up and just about finished the roof, James will get up there tomorrow to put the ridge shingles on for us. Then we need to caulk it in spots and prime the new wood that the company did not prime. Eventually the house and the shed will be painted the same color as this is a requirement of the park we live in. Much discussion will go into choosing a color.

Right now it feels good to be sleeping in our own bed and having much more room to move around without tripping over each other. We are tripping over boxes but I think I have come up with a plan to stop this. I have asked David and the boys to put all the boxes in the shed for the time being, then I will go thru each box one at a time and put things away in the house. This way we can clean the rooms first as they got really tracked up with mud and dirt from the move. The mud came from all the rain we received while moving over Memorial Day weekend, we layed towels down and asked everyone to wipe their feet but you still get it tracked over the new carpet.

Things are slowly getting back to normal for the four of us, seems strange to say that but with Beth living in Trinidad and planning a wedding, I need to get used to it. James is working very hard not only at home but at Elitch's, an amusement park for those of you who do not know. I have not been able to work at this time due to all the moving chaos and the fact we have no phone. Ben is preparing for the surgery on his left hip, Tuesday, June 2nd at noon, I will keep you all posted on his status. David is going to start looking for a job very soon, again, he and I both have a lead on one about 3 miles from here for a friend of my sister, Michelle. Everyone please cross your fingers and toes and say some prayers for this job to work out for us both.

God Bless you all!!

Goodbye THS and Trinidad

Graduation is done! May 17, 2009 we watched our daughter walk across the floor to receive her diploma from Trinidad High. It was a bittersweet moment for both of us. We were thrilled to see her complete her high school education but it means the end of her youth. There are several other factors that go along with this milestone. Most of you know about the problems we have been having with Elizabeth in the past year, many of which have been compounded with our move back to Aurora 6 months ago and her 18th birthday in January. She continues to tell us, not in specific words, but with innuendos, that we are not wanted in her life, yet when something big happens she comes running to us first. This is such a hard thing to deal with, I want to take her in my arms when things happen and just hold her but she pushes me away. So I have come to the conclusion that I must stay away, take the news at a distance and wish her all the best. I was able to hug her and tell her congratulations on her graduation and I told her I love her but the reception from her was very cold. Take it and move on..I told myself. The news of her engagement was a shock to a point but was also expected at sometime within this year of graduation. So I took it with shock the night before graduation when they came to our hotel to tell us, wishing them nothing but happiness which is what every parent wants for their child. The next day I was over my shock enough to go to her party and wish them both the best and to welcome Derek into the family. Going to take some time to get used to saying son-in-law and at least for now I can say she is not pregnant. She does have a job lined up and will begin working soon, I even know and respect her boss, so I am proud of her for doing this as much as I am proud of her for graduating.

We will be saying our final goodbyes to Trinidad this next weekend when we take a moving truck down to retrieve our household goods which have been storage there since the move to Aurora. We have been approved for and will close on a 16x80 ft single wide mobile home in eastern Aurora this week. Though David still does not have a job and I only have my part-time job, we did get a partial increase from the VA which is enough to live on. The mobile home is pre-owned and in good shape, not our dream home but is much better than continuing to live in my parents 5th wheel. We are going to live in this place for at least a year to see if our credit scores improve to purchase something more like what we want. For now, it is 3 bedrooms - one for each of the boys, 2 baths and more square footage than we have had in quite a while. The best part is the laundry room that is so large we can put our freezer in there along with the washer and dryer and still have room to move comfortably. I will take some photos this week when we do our walk through and post them soon.

Thank you everyone who reads this blog and keeps us in your prayers. We will continue to pray for all of you. God Bless everyone!!

Mother's Day 2009

I had really been dreading this day, due to all the problems with Beth. But I have to say, it has been one of the very best Mother's Days I have ever had. First, the tradition on breakfast with my Mom kicked off the day at 9 am. We take our Mom and our kids come along to treat us. So, breakfast for 12 was great. All of us got flowers from our mom and I had one from my boys. There was also a gift from Mom and one from the boys. The made me laugh and cry at the same time with the cards they chose. Then after breakfast we took pictures which I will post later when I get some time. Then the boys treated for me to have a pedicure for the very first time. Turns out that my sister's children were treating them and the grandkids split up the charges for their grandmother to get not only a pedicure but a manicure as well. Then my boys wanted to take their grandmother and I to a movie. We took a raincheck on that as there is nothing that she and I wanted to see at this time. Then we got home to dinner cooking for us. So all in all a great day. I missed you Beth and I hope you had a good day with Marlene.

Happy Mother's Day all and God Bless!