Happy Thanksgiving!!

Oh, the joy of a laptop and wireless card!!! It's currently EARLY and we are part of a caravan of three cars making our way to southern lllinois and Grandma's house. Somehow, Bob and I have ended up alone, which is not so bad. We can listen to OUR music, no one's fighting me for the laptop, and there's not teenage arguing coming from the backseat. Later today, we'll assemble with all the Knight siblings, cousins, grandchildren, etc. It will NOT be peaceful. I may find a way to retreat to the furthest corner of the house with my latest Twilight book and try to find a little peace and quiet - but I know it's highly unlikely. Tomorrow will mean a day of shopping with my sister-in-laws and my daughters somewhere in St. Louis. Next year, the Thanksgiving celebration will have to take place in South Bend, as we prepare for Katie and Santiago's wedding. But today, we'll eat lots of turkey, take lots of pictures, enjoy watching the aunts "ooh" and "aah" over Katie and Chrissie's rings, and cherish the memories of our family.

My Grandmother....

As a little girl growing up, my grandmother lived with us. I called her "Gibby". Supposedly, I couldn't say "grandma" and they tried to get me to call her "granny" and it came out "Gibby" - and it stuck. She was the only grandmother I ever knew. She taught me to embroider and crochet, and she made the BEST cinnamon rolls. I think Gibby would be proud of me and of my daughters, and the women they have become.

I found a photo tonight (on my cousin's geneology website) that I've never seen before. My "Gibby" as a little girl with her baby sister, Florence. My grandmother was an adorable little girl who grew into a beautiful woman.

I miss you Gibby.

Four Generations

I've been going through lots of old photographs that my mom has given me. The older I get, the more I appreciate these. This is a wonderful "four generation" photo of my Aunt Dorothy (the baby - and my dad's oldest sister), my Grandmother, my Great Grandmother on the left and my Great-Great Grandmother on the right. Wasn't my grandmother just the prettiest thing??!!

Last night, I came across this photo of my dad (the baby on the left), my Aunt Dorothy and my Uncle Jim. I'm betting my grandmother had her hands full with his rag-a-muffin little bunch!

....and THEN, she had to deal with teenage boys - my Uncle Bob, my dad and my Uncle Jim (left to right).

Let the "FUN" Begin.....

I'm currently planning one wedding - so why not two?? I mean, I've got all the pricing and vendors in my trusty little notebook, right?

All of Chrissie's big stuff is done - booked, deposits made, colors picked, etc.

And as of today.....we start anew with Katie.

I believe after just a few phone calls and emails and a little research, we have narrowed down a reception venue and they are holding two dates for us to finalize over the next couple of days - either November 28 or December 5 - and they seem to be leaning towards the November date.

Let the fun begin!

It's Official!!!!

Amidst fresh rose petals, candlelight and big red bows - Santiago proposed to Katie a few hours ago. I am now the mother of two engaged daughters.

Two weddings in the next year.

I think I need to find a second job.

More "Roots"

Thanks to the power of the internet, I met my cousin's wife this week. I found her email address on an online ancestry board and I emailed her to introduce myself and to thank her for all of her hard work and research. (Her mother-in-law and my father were brother and sister). Today, I received a lengthy email from her with even more information and access to her ancestry.com website. Tonight, I've spent hours there and was able to go back two more generations for a total of 10 generations and a span of 275 years - all the way back to William and Elizabeth (Sealy) Milham in 1733 England - my great-great-great-great-great-grandparents. Do you think Elizabeth Sealy would be proud to know that 8 generations removed, she has a granddaughter named Elizabeth Christine Knight?

While viewing pages of Milham ancestors, I also came across a photo of my dad that I had never seen.

It's November - for Cryin' Out Loud!!!

It's November. Not January. Not February. I've known my son-in-law to play golf up through Thanksgiving. So what the heck are we doing with 9+ inches of snow this morning??!!! I stuck my head outside and all I could hear was the "buzz" of the neighborhood snowblowers. Is this a sample of the winter ahead? If so, I'm going to be a stark-raving maniac come February!

Even the dog looked at me kinda weird this morning - you know the look. Like, "you don't really expect ME to go out there and do my thing, do you?" Poor Rigby - his ears were dragging in the snow. He quickly took care of "business" and high-tailed it to his favorite warm/dry spot under the dining room table. Makes me wish I could spend my day there too.

Snug as a Bug....

Our little Andrew - snug as a bug.

Jenny did a fantastic job with all of our grandchildren. I think she'll be capturing many moments for our family in the years to come.

Cozy Cousins

My photographer friend Jenny is "teasing" us with a few more photos on her website. Here are my two granddaughters - Grace Urbanski and Anna Knight - modeling the latest in matching cousin pajamas. Perfect attire for a cold winter night.

Stepping Back in Time.....

My friend Lisa is really in to this whole ancestry thing. I've always thought I'd love to try and research my family, but the last thing I need right now is to take on a new and challenging hobby. This morning, (on a whim) I did a GOOGLE search for my grandfather's name - James Arthur Milham and VOILA! Evidently my Aunt Dorothy's granddaughter has spent a very long time researching the Milham family tree and I was the lucky recipient of all of her hard work. Counting my grandchildren, I now have six generations covered on my dad's side of the family - with every detail you can imagine. Evidently the entire Milham clan started somewhere in England and that is the site where this information is documented and stored.

You can't imagine my surprise this morning, when I clicked on a link and it took me to a website in the UK and THERE is a photo of my grandparents on their wedding day, and a Navy photo of my dad - their 4th child.

This photo is of my great grandparents and my grandfather as a little boy - circa 1888. This might be the first photo I've seen of my great grandparents - William Franklin Milham and his wife Docia. The little boy on the left is the father of the four children on the right - my dad on the far right, along with his sister Dorothy and brothers Jim and Bob.

One interesting fact that was detailed on the website (that I was aware of) was the fact that my grandmother, (after being widowed in 1944) moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan to be close to her youngest son (my Uncle Bob). There, she took a job as a nanny for the children of the Michigan State Senator - Gerald R. Ford. Later, when he became a member of Congress and moved his family to Washington, he asked my grandmother to go with them - but she refused, stating that she wanted to stay close to her family.

UPDATE: I've just dug a little deeper into all the research done by my cousin's wife in Colorado. I've now recovered two more generations - all the way back to my great-great-great grandfather - David Miham born in 1796 in Sussex, England. That's a total of 8 generations from David and Jemima Milham to my six grandchildren, and a span of 212 years. I'm going to print out all of the information and pass it on to my children.

She Said "YES"

Another layout I completed this week - from Chrissie's June engagement.

Good Day Sunshine.....

As hard as it is to get up and going on a cold and snowy morning, the morning commute is a little easier when I'm met with these views. Next to a good cup of coffee, this will make me go "aahhhhhhhhh".

I Have to Admit.....

It's sucked me in - literally. The TWILIGHT series has me by the throat.

OK, enough of my little play on words.

I've finished the first book (TWILIGHT)...

and have almost finished the second (NEW MOON).

The third book, ECLIPSE

is sitting on my nightstand and will probably be my companion on the long drive to southern Illinois over the Thanksgiving holiday.

I still need to purchase the fourth and final book, BREAKING DAWN.

Chrissie told me last night that she didn't think she could wait for me to finish the second book - and that she'd just have to go and buy it.

I'm telling you, it's a "SICKNESS"!!

And then there's the movie that opens this week. No - I am not one of the "crazies" who will be there at 12:01 a.m. on Friday morning - BUT, that's not to say I won't be there on Friday or Saturday night.

The Good Thing About Cold, Rainy Weekends....

Scrapbooking is a winter craft. We take photos all year and we spend our nasty weather months creating layouts of our favorite photos. Saturday, I spent 12 hours at a crop with my daughter and friends. The key to success at one of these is to prepare ahead of time. I went with 20 layouts - photos, papers and embellishments all pulled and sorted. Of course, I had to take time to eat and visit and laugh and watch a little Notre Dame football, but I did manage to complete 11 layouts. If I could just give up ONE day a week and do this, I might see an end in sight for my albums. Of course, that's probably not going to happen, but in the meantime I can enjoy these days when I get them!

Here's a sampling of what I accomplished.....

More Key West.....

A few more layouts from my Key West album...

From Today's South Bend Tribune....

Here's an article from today's Tribune about Kelli's boyfriend Ben and his 300 game from last week.

Article published Nov 13, 2008 - South Bend Tribune

PERFECT NIGHT FOR CLAY SENIOR ELLAM

RICARDO RAMIREZ Tribune Staff Writer

It wasn't until his opponent faltered that Ben Ellam realized he could be perfect. Ellam, a senior and captain of the Clay High School bowling team, made history for his bowling team by throwing a 300 in a sanctioned match against Penn at Chippewa Bowl last week. Bowling since the age of four, the beginning of the match was just like another day at the alley for Ellam. He and his opponent squared off and went pin for pin, dropping strikes one after another until the eighth frame. With only two frames left to finish, Ellam watched as his foe left an open frame. He wanted to take advantage of the mistake and grab the lead in the competition. As easy as his first seven strikes, Ellam delivered yet another perfect ball. However, it was when Ellam returned to wait to pitch his next ball, reality finally sank in on him. "I just wanted to beat him," said Ellam. "He missed in the eighth and I really started to think about it. "What Ellam realized was that he was a few more rolls away from a perfect game. "I knew I had a great shot -- I wasn't too worried," said Ellam. "Everyone else seemed more nervous than me. "Unlike a baseball team that shies away from pitcher with the no-hitter, Ellam's teammates kept things as usual. And it was this sort of strategy that helped him through the first seven frames, so Ellam stuck with it. He was focused more on keeping up with his opponent, so that he really did not think about how good he was doing in the overall match. So now with things getting more tense, a little chatter from the team helped him keep his mind off the situation. As the final frame arrived, and a soft alley, Ellam approached his lane and blew up the pocket. Two quick strikes with one remaining. On his final ball, Ellam found himself with a moment of doubt as he threw his last shot. "There was one pin that wobbled and I didn't think it was going to fall. It was like it was in slow motion," recalled Ellam. "I started walking away, I thought it was going to stay up. I watched out of the corner of my eye as I turned. "The pin did finally fall and Ellam was perfect. "I was relieved, glad it was over with," said Ellam. "This was my second 300, but it was sanctioned, so this one was better. It counted for something. "With a perfect game under his belt during sanctioned play, Ellam has it in the back of his mind about rolling another each time he steps to the hardwood and looks down the lane. "I think about it all the time. It's all I think about until I miss one," joked Ellam. "Then I just relax and bowl. I am good for this year. I got it out of the way. "His real goal for the remainder of the year is to help his team to a fourth consecutive conference title.

Key West Layouts...

I'm determined to get my Key West album completed before I let myself start on the cruise. It's been a fun album to work on - small, 8 x 8 album - the pages go together quickly. It was a short trip, only three days - but we packed so much into those days and I want to document everything. The layouts are very simple and I'm really trying to put an emphasis on my journaling for this book. So, here are some that I have completed over the past few weeks....

Don't Forget.....

Today is Veteran's Day.

My Dad - World War II (South Pacific) - United States Navy

Bob's Dad - Korean War - United States Army

Our Son - Operation Iraqi Freedom - United States Marine Corp

Thank a Veteran for your freedom.

Today's View on Life.....

I had a good weekend. Cleaned my carpet, caught up on laundry, did some scrapbooking and spent time with my family. Pretty routine. A lot of things taken for granted.

Last night, I found out that a neighbor who lived five doors away was killed yesterday afternoon in a car accident. Supposedly, she ran a stop sign at a rural intersection. Will we ever really know what happened? I don't know. What I do know is that a husband has lost his wife, three children have lost their mom and grandchildren will never remember their grandmother.

I had trouble sleeping last night - did a lot of tossing and turning and thinking. Don't take life for granted. Don't take your family for granted. It can all be gone in the blink of an eye. Maybe tonight, I won't complain about having to walk the dog or pick up after my kids.

The events of yesterday also make me more teary when I look at these photos taken during our family photo session at Carrie's house. I know I'm blessed.

Today, I feel even more so.

Starting Off on the Right Foot.....

This week, the local high schools started their conference play in bowling. Over the past year, I've heard what a great bowler Kelli's boyfriend Ben is. I already knew he was a good baseball player and I've had the chance to sit in the stands and watch him play. So, a few weeks ago, his mom sent me his bowling schedule. I decided to make it a point to get out there and watch him over the next few weeks. So, Tuesday was Week 1 of the Michiana Conference League - Clay High School vs. Penn High School. It was Election Day, Kelli had softball practice until 6:00 - things were just very busy. As I'm leaving work, my cell phone rings and it's my friend Mary Lou. (Her son Michael bowls for St. Joseph High School.) The first words out of her mouth were, "where's Kelli, when her boyfriend's bowling a 300 game?" I couldn't believe it - how exciting is that??!!!

So, a couple hours later he shows up in my family room with McDonald's and a big smile on his face. Congratulations Ben!! No pressure, but you know you're going to have to do this again when I come to watch you.

From the South Bend Tribune under Prep Scoreboard:

CLAY 17 (1111, 937) PENN 3 (1003, 926)

Clay: Ben Ellam 300, 223; Travis Wise 224, 216; Joe Wesolowski 212

Penn: Josh Jaworski 246; Tyler Tharp 237; Jason Schmidt 223; Mitch Powell 223

High Individual Game: Ben Ellam, Clay 300

High Individual Series: Ben Ellam, Clay 523

High Team Game: Clay 1,111

High Team Series: Clay 2,048

...and a photo of Ben (left) and his brother Andy - Clay's secret weapons.

Summer Layouts

I continue to plug away on my family layouts. Here's a couple more that I completed over the weekend. I'd like to have as many done as possible when we go home for Thanksgiving. Bob's family seems to enjoy going through my layouts from the past year.

Once I get the holidays behind me, my family layouts will move aside and make way for wedding invitations - my winter project.

In February, I'm doing a weekend scrapbook retreat and I'm hoping to work on my cruise. So you see, there's never a chance of getting caught up. Life just brings us too many fun moments to create.

More Engagement Photos

We received the Engagement CD this week and we now have over 50 photos to enjoy. Can't wait to order prints and scrapbook some of these!