Happy New Year 2008

back l-R: Derek, Don, Brian, My dad (Jim), Casey, Me...
Front: Andrea and Mom, (Lorene)

Where does the time go!!??

It's 2008 and I have missed posting for months.. I resolve to do better this year.

We had a wonderful Christmas season. Our two oldest sons who are in the Army both came home. Derek came by Greyhound on the 25 Dec. and returned to Joplin Mo. yesterday for Indiana again via Bus. He's got today to pack and clean out his space in Grandmas basement. Tomorrow, Don's mom and sister will take Derek to the RCA dome in Indiana for a dinner and boarding the bus for GA. He's got about two months in Ft. Stewart GA, before the unit heads for Camp Anaconda, Iraq. It's seeming all too real to me now that the holidays are here and gone.. I was really doing much better before while I had the coming home to look forward to and now that he's gone back to Indiana, I can cry at the drop of a hat. I will go back to work on Friday this week and I know that working with the preschoolers again will help. I have cleaning and sewing projects here to keep me busy until then. We will go to GA when he tells us the date for family visit time.

Casey flew to KC. MO on the 26 Dec. and we all got up early and headed north to get him. We hadn't opened gifts and the younger kids knew that the plan was to buy the thing they most wanted in KC. Brian was asking for the PSP video thing, and Andrea a MP3 with money for clothes.. (MP3's are way less then PSP's she told me early on)....LOL Casey forgot to tell us that his friend Josh was flying over from St. Louis and he was in the next terminal waiting.. so we fetched him and after hugs all around to now 3 army boys we left for the "Legends" mall by the race track, west of KC. It was cold and windy with the possibility of snow..

Casey called from Chicago yesterday and all was well.. We assume since we've not heard from the boys that they are both were they should be and all is well. Otherwise, others would be calling us!!! LOL... Casey flies back to Ft. Bragg, 7 Jan and is hoping to finally meet his unit there. They have just returned from Iraq and have been on leave for 2 months, so he's not meet any of them. He's ready for some REAL work he says,,, NO more raking leaves and cleaning detail, they have cleaned returning equipment. He's hoping to get some jumps in the coming month, and to make some new friends.