She's Going With Me!!!!

I've been planning a cruise since waaaaaay back in February - with my brother, sister-in-law, my best friend and her husband, her brother and his wife. Yes, your counting right - 7 of us - no husband for me. He chose to play baseball in Ft. Meyers, Florida a month prior to the cruise. So, all summer I've been planning to be the odd one - the "single" woman with a bunch of happy couples. I didn't care one bit - I was going on that cruise no matter what!!!

Well, this weekend I convinced my daughter Katie to go with me!!!! Now I'm looking more forward to it than ever!!

So, on the morning of December 1st - six of us will fly out of South Bend for the sunny skies of Florida and a Bon Voyage cookout at my brother's home that afternoon.

Then it's off to the tropical landscapes of Cozumel, Belize, Costa Maya and Nassau. I plan to spend a whole lot of time lying by a pool or on a beach with a good book - drinking those little umbrella drinks!

Can I Do THIS???

• I've booked it.
• It's paid for.
• There's no turning back...

I've snorkeled in some of the most beautiful places in the world - Hanauma Bay (Hawaii), the Virgin Islands and Cancun - but the second largest barrier reef in the world is off the coast of Belize and I'll be visiting there in December along with family and friends. So, while my sister-in-law stays aboard ship and is pampered in the SPA, my little brother and I are going to snorkel with Rays and Nurse Sharks. One of our stops is the barrier reef, but the second stop is called Shark/Ray Alley. According to the website, when you approach the Caye, they hear the sound of the boat motor and immediately come to the boat - because they know they'll get fed. We're each handed a supply of sardines and sent overboard.

So, we'll see - come Tuesday, December 5th - if I can climb into the water amidst Nurse Sharks and Sting Rays.

Have that water camera ready!!!

Perfect Weekend!!

It's been a while since Bob and I just took off by ourselves. We left Friday afternoon and headed to St. Joe for the Venetian Festival. We'd had terrible storms all morning, but by the time we reached Silver Beach - the sun appeared and the remainder of the day was beautiful.

We strolled the beach and arcade area - eating all that "healthy" carnival food. We visited some of the little shops in St. Joe and had a drink at Shu's. We listened to some of the street entertainment and then headed for the Shadowland Pavilion for the evening concert - STYX. The place was packed to the outdoor rafters - an awesome concert!!!

There we were, standing under the stars - dancing in the aisles and singing at the top of our lungs along with Tommy Shaw. As the encore began, I knew he'd sing Renegade (the song they end every concert with). This just happens to be our daughter Chrissie's favorite Styx song - so I quickly dialed her cell phone and left her own personal message - live from the concert. (She told me that she's never going to erase that message!!)

By 11:30, we were leaving the Venetian with a HUGE potato blossom to share and a lemon shake up. We drove to Stevensville to our hotel. Saturday morning, we continued our weekend of healthy eating with breakfast at Cracker Barrel and then started home along Red Arrow Highway - a beautiful drive through the country, along the lake.

We stopped in New Buffalo, where one of my co-workers has his boat anchored. We found Brian and his family and had a nice visit with them before returning to South Bend.

We weren't even gone 24 hours, but we accomplished so much and enjoyed being away from the phone and the hustle and bustle of two teenagers. We definately need to do that more often!!

A Tough Day....

Three years ago, our family struggled to say "goodbye" to Bobby as his unit headed to Iraq at the beginning of the war. A year and a half ago, Sgt. Bobby Knight chose not to re-enlist after a 6-year service. I remember him telling us that he knew if he re-enlisted, he'd end up going back.



Today, his unit leaves for Camp Pendleton and eventually back to Iraq. They won't be home until next May.

Even though this doesn't involve my son, the feelings from that morning three years ago are hard to shake. On top of that, my dear friend Melody has a son who is going back for the second time. Our kids have grown up together and J.T. joined the Marines a couple of years after Bobby. His six years isn't up yet - and he's going back. I was on the phone with her early this morning - we shared tears. She has a wonderful husband and family support group - but no one understands like another mom who's been there. Please keep Sgt. J.T. Lee and the rest of the Marines of Company B in your prayers for the next year....and every now and then, please say a little prayer for their moms.

Ben is 7 Months Old

OK - I know - I have the "grandma syndrome" here - but isn't he just the cutest thing?

It won't be long and he'll be tearing things up in his new house. This time next week, they'll be ready to move in - not soon enough for his mom and dad!!!

A brand new house and what's the first room his mom want's to decorate? Ben's room - of course!

The Perfect Day

Eight hours of scrapbooking and Chinese food - life doesn't get a whole lot better than that!!

Our Design Team spent the day laughing, eating and scrapbooking - we definately need to do these kind of days more than every few months. I managed to complete a large project and my DT assignment for August - much to the dispair of the rest of my comrades. OK - OK - I just happened to have the perfect photo with me and everything fell into place.

Anyway - after several months of scrapbooking for others and completing HUGE projects, I'm now on track to get some of my own stuff done. I have TWO vacations to complete before I dare set foot on a cruise ship in December!

Here's my DT August assignment - Grace with that wild and crazy hair!!!

I Survived....

• weeks of planning
• a scrapbook to complete
• 250 pieces of chicken - and a half dozen home made salads and side dishes
• 3 kegs (which I had NOTHING to do with)
• a karaoke system
• 125 miscellaneous guests
• a dozen cases of pop and water
• a full sheet cake
• more bags of ice than I care to count
• out of town company
• a new puppy
• and a 23rd birthday on top of a high school graduation

No wonder I spent the day after taking a 5 hour NAP!!!

Kevin's graduation party and Chrissie's birthday party was a huge success - but I'm sure glad I have four years to recover before I plan the next graduation party. Photos will follow - as soon as I have the energy to upload.