New Year

Where do I start? 2013 will be gone in 1 hour and 15 minutes and a brand new year will be here. My 2013 year has had its ups and down but I can not complain to much about it. A lot of good memories come to mind when I think of the year. We have paid off some bills this year and got our finances in some sort of order to so that I could quit work and stay home. Seth graduated high school and turned 21!

Clay turned 18 and I took him out of school for good reasons not to be mean to him but to help improve his life. 

I have lost 30 pounds 

I have been married 24 years and love him more and more everyday!  

My brother gave me and my sister the best Christmas presents ever and it made us cry!

We have have had some not so good things this year. My first cousin Chris Hussey passed away. 

I am looking forward to the new year and I am planning on making it a great year!

Welcome 2014!

Stuff

Do you ever have days that just aggravate you? Then the day turns around an relaxes you, have another little blimp and then it is alright. Well today has been one of those days. I had a horrible night, that was my fault. I have not been eating healthy,  keeping track of my calories or exercising. Yesterday was a really bad of eating. I ate way to much junk food especially peanuts. I woke up in the middle of the night I woke up sick with horrible re-flux and indigestion. I also had upset stomach when I got up this morning. Oh well that is enough about my stomach and I am getting back on track.

I had a good time with my mother in law shopping today. I bought some stuff to make a Valentine wreath. I am excited about that. I also got four new ball ornaments that look frosty, and tulle to make a snowman with. I dread talking my christmas stuff down. I think I will do that Thursday.

Short little blog post.

A dear friend and cousin

A few days before Christmas we got a call from my dads first cousin Garland Comer. He called to tell us that he had just gotten out of the hospital and has been diagnosed with liver cancer and the doctor only gave him 10 weeks to live. This makes me so sad. He is such a nice man and I have gotten to know him better in the years that I have been married and live up here where my grandma Jewel was raised. A lot of my family lives in my neighborhood.

Me and Garland at the Kennedy Reunion .

Please anyone who reads my blog please pray for him.

Christmas

Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year as well as the worst. I get so frustrated with it sometimes. As a kid I thought there was nothing like Christmas but I did have some that are very memorable but not like one would think. Most Christmas we had little money, mama would never put the tree up earlier than 2 weeks before Christmas and I don't think there was ever a Christmas that my dad was sober. No this is not a pity blog this was just my childhood and my memories. They are not sad memories just my life. Now that I am a grown and have a family of my own not all of them have been the happiest of all times but they are great memories.

I could not find any of my pictures from my childhood Christmas. This Christmas was pretty good one. We had Christmas with Frank's parents and his sister and her family.

Now I am waiting for my Sister and her family and my brother and his family to come Saturday and my year will be complete.

Trip to Holland....

After my pity post this morning I wanted to share this poem wrote by Emily Perl Kingsley describing her experience in raising a child with a disability.

Hope you enjoy!

this stage in life

When I turned 40 years old it was really hard for me. I never dreamed that I was so much like my daddy and not wanting to get old. I hate that my hair is gray unless I keep color on it. I hate that I have a very hard time losing weight.  Even though I officially hit 30 lbs off mark but I am still fat!! and yes I am still fat because I have not went under the 200 mark yet. ( glad I don't have a lot of followers LOL) I guess in reality though if you see me in person you can see I am fat. Oh well!!

This is not the direction I was going in. I am having a hard time right now knowing that all of the children (now adults) that my sons went to school with are off at college, getting married, having babies and going on with their lives. There parents are all excited, with their babies new goals, graduating from college, going into the arm forces, and getting married. I know I sound whinny and like I am not appreciative of my sons accomplishments that is not the case at all. There are many times that I am so happy that I don't have to worry about broken hearts, drinking and driving, drugs, and leaving home. But a lot of the time it just breaks my heart. Seth would love to have a so called normal life like an iPhone that actually rings or makes a sound with real friends not just grandparents. I car or truck instead of a Kawasaki mule. A real job instead of picking up sticks in the woods and piling them back up or helping around the house. A girl friend, but most of all I wish Seth did not have anxiety for simple things, like cats, doing something different or new,  eat something other than chicken tenders when we go to a restaurant and wear shirts that are round neck without freaking out because I can not find any v-neck shirts and his are ragged.   For Clay it is entirely a whole other set of  dreams and wishes. I wish he could have a real friend, that his behavior did not rule his and our lives, that he could really enjoy everyday things with out biting his finger, pulling his pants down, or taking off his shirt. I wish he could carry on a real conversation, stop tearing up stuff and most of all wear more clothes than just his underwear in the house.

Alright that is enough negative, pity party for me. I am proud of my children more than anyone could ever imagine. I just having a  pity party day which I am sure all of us do at sometime or another. No one completely understands except other parents with special needs children or adults. That is enough about that.

Christmas Crafts

I love making Christmas crafts I would love to open a little Christmas shop. I went to a Christmas shop a few weeks ago called Frogtown Christmas Shop. I love looking at Christmas decorations, Christmas trees and especially handmade stuff!! This shop was like the ones at the beach, like the Christmas Mouse. I love going to the Hammock Shopping Village in Pawley's Island.







 I am so excited for Christmas and all of the memories that come along with it. I do have up and down days though getting sad thinking about the ones I miss.

I have been busy making some new ornaments and decorations. 

Terracotta pot snowman

Bark Christmas Star

Chalkboard countdown

This is suppose to be on owl

This is ugly owl

Breast Cancer Christmas Elf
My purchase from Frogtown

sock snowman and dog wood branches painted white

Snowman ornaments

Christmas Card Holder Wreath

I have several more things I want to make and I am excited about making. 

Until next time!

24 Year Wedding Anniversary!!

24 year ago on December 9, 1989 I got married to a wonderful man, Larry Franklin Garner Jr. (Frankie or Frank) It was a cold blustery day. It sleeted big pellets of ice all day. My mom was so worried that we would not make it to the church, but there was no way I was going to cancel my wedding. All together about 25 people made it to my wedding that was including the wedding party. It was a beautiful wedding  and we all made it there safely and made it back home safely. We were not able to go anywhere because of the accumulation of ice. I was also sick with a bad cold and used a friends makeup that was to light for me and it really washed me out.

 Look how you we look. Well 24 years later two sons and a lot of up and downs we are still in love!!

Daddy

Today would be my daddy's 70th birthday! Oh how I wish he was here to rub it in. He really hated getting older I do believe. I know what he meant, I am not to fond of it myself with the gray hair, aches and pains, not being able to sleep good at night and all of the many things that come along with getting older. He did not even get to live to be 50 so that I could have rubbed that in. Oh well. My dad was the best dad! I loved laying next to him out under the stars and listening to stories of his childhood. I always loved hearing about his times he spent with his Aunt Vastie( not sure how she spelled her name) but my dad loved spending time with her. I also loved the stories of him and his sisters on their own farm. I can just imagine all of the things that he got into. I now love reading his sister's blog "Henny Penny Lane". She helps keep his memories alive. Oh if I could only share all of the many things that I remember but I would have to write a book and it is obvious that I can not write a blog let a lone a book. I miss my dads sense of humor, his love of ice cream (fudge ripple with coke poured over the top). His love for burnt popcorn, and fishing. I have some great memories of my dad fishing, at lake Tillery, lake Wylie, and Ledbetter lake. I will never forget fishing with him on lake Wylie out on our boat and catching him in the chin with my hook, and he did not even get made a me (well maybe a little). I wish I had pictures of these memories but I don't. My dad would have been so proud to have been a Papa to 6 grandsons. It would have been so fun watching him spoil them all. Well I hope that he is having a glorious birthday in heaven with all of his family and maybe George Jones will sing to him!! Love you dad!!

Aggravation ......

Who ever come up with don't sweat the small things need to convince me that this is possible. People who say trust and give everything to God needs to reassure me. I am really spilling my guts and heart today. I try to take my sons to Sunday school every Sunday. I have been doing this since I only had one and still trying. I have had fights, holding down, screaming, crying, getting mad, pulling pants down and taking shirts off. This is not an every Sunday occurrence but it happens to often. Like this morning Clay is happy patiently waiting in the car to go to Sunday School, waiting on mamaw to get her which I am thinking seriously on stopping because only Seth rides with her. Well as soon as we get ready to pull out of the driveway he gets mad. He breaks his earbuds (only the hundredth pair) no kidding (not a true accuracy). Well anyway he gets mad as soon as we walk in the door at church and pulls his pants down. He wants to go to the bathroom which I refuse to take him because he only misbehaves worse with me in the halls. Mamaw takes him and goes and gets him some books out of the library. Then there is coming into the house when we get home. Mad, biting his hand, fighting etc... Never really hurts anyone but it is aggravating. Clay is a great son and I love him dearly. I would never put him in a group home and I have never medicated him because I do believe that God helps me. I learned along time ago not to pray for patience anymore. I just pray to help me. They are your children I am just here to raise them on earth with your help. I have got to say though if anything can make you question your very existence it is Fragile X.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving day has been a good one. I did not have to cook anything today, we just went an ate with my mother-in-law Judy Garner. 

Great food not the best picture but it was delicious.

I also crochet a sashay scarf. I think it was a pretty good for my first try. 

I also made some cute wooden snowmen ornaments These were fun. 

my yellow snowman ornament

Red snowman ornament

Green snowman ornament

Blue snowman ornament

 I also finished my grapevine wreath. I added some pine cones, red berries and a country bow. I found this idea on pinterest as well as the others. 

I bought me a piece of flannel for a tree skirt I was thinking I would have loved to had some of my dads red flannel shirts to have made one. I love this one with the burlap garland. I put up one more tree 

I love the little white pot. Frank and I found it in the woods. 

Well Thanksgiving has been good at my house. Clay was upset because he wanted a present but he was patient waiting to see if he would get on at mamaw's house. When he had enough waiting to see if he was going to get a present he was ready to go home. He is so rotten. I am so thankful that God picked me to give these two special young men to. I have cried and asked why many times and on days that Fragile X hits our family hard, but in the end I love them with all my heart and would not change a thing about them. Happy Thanksgiving to all.

Another lost....

I can not believe that in less than 2 months I know four people who have passed away. Waylon Davis: Frankie's great uncle, Chris Thomas: Frankie's 3rd cousins husband and he worked with him and his family at the mill. A young man that went to school with my boys Eric Bowles. The fourth person is my 1st cousin Chris Hussey. I can not believe this. His ex wife just let me know at 9:30 tonight that they found him died this afternoon. Don't know yet why or how. I just can not believe this. We have been bust buds for years when we were kids. We have spent a many summers together, swimming, riding go-carts, shooting bb guns and much much more. We lived with him and his family for a year, they have helped my mom and dad many times and now he is gone. His mama and daddy are both passed, he has been separated from his wife for around a year. No blood children but 3 step kids. He has a half brother that lives in New Orleans and his mom's sister and he has an aunt on his dad side alive. I just can not believe it. I love you Chris and I will miss you!

Mama memories...

The holiday seasons always make me miss my mom more than any other time of the year. When I hear certain Christmas songs on the radio like "Silver Bells", "I saw mommy kissing Santa Claus", or "Santa Claus is coming to town". My mama would  sing these  to me  in the car. Maybe because we always seem to be going somewhere. Another song she use to sing to me was How far is Heaven. My mom had a beautiful voice. She also had a beautiful handwriting. The reason for this story is I received a letter that my mom wrote to her first cousin Louvene 9 days before I was born. What a treasure to me and I shared it with my brother and sister. So I thought I would share it with you all. I don't have many followers but I know that Henny Penny will enjoy this letter since her brother is my dad and she and my mom were good friends

I bet that these are the pictures that she took at Easter with her new camera.

I wish mama or daddy was here so that I could ask them like "did she get to ride the roller coaster? " "Did you all live in an apartment?" with the weird address. Did daddy work with paw paw? Was that why you all were in PA to start with right? I only know the story that my mama told about riding in a big truck with her brother up there to be with my dad. She told me how he would not stop and let her go to the bathroom because he was on a schedule to deliver his load. I had told Frank when we got married that on our 25th wedding anniversary that I want to go and see where I was born, but now I am not sure because I have no one to tell me what to go and see. I feel sad just thinking about it. Why did I not find out more things while they were alive? Why did they have to be taken from me so young. There are so many times that I need their advice, their wisdom or just a hug and I love you! I am typing through tears because I miss them to much especially during the holiday. You know I could kick my self for not having any pictures of my dad and his first grandson. He even came and visited me and Seth in the hospital, but he only lived 6 months after Seth was born and I only think he saw him that one time. I have a few with mom and Seth but she was usually sick or she did not want me to take pictures of her without her wig. Oh I have got to stop. This was suppose to be a happy blog about the letter. 

Miss you mom and dad!!

Love Vicki