Merry Christmas!!

2009 started off with a big move…...
“We’re going back ‘home’, said Lex, “do you approve?”

Patty spent the next months unpacking and then……
Transformation complete - “Money Pit” to “BlessInn”.

Our dream home completed, just one thing to do……
Fill it up with the kiddos and their kiddos, too!!

At Easter the little birds returned to the nest.
Our family time together is always the best!

In May, Jessie came to PA and moved in.
Our nest was less empty, a new chapter begins.

June 10th marked the arrival of our second grandbaby.
Carter Alexander shares his birthday with Auntie Leigh.

The summer was spent with great anticipation.
All the kiddos and grandkiddos came ‘home’ for vacation!

We loved every moment of that time they spent here.
We will cherish those memories year after year.

Before we could blink…...the time flew by too fast……
Cailyn Rose had a birthday - she’s 2!! What a blast!!

She and Carter celebrated the day at Paradise Park,
Then put on Halloween costumes and went with Mommy in the dark!

They had a fun-filled day from morning until night……
Dorothy and the Penguin - oh, what a sight!

Little did we know that the very next day
Would bring a tragedy so great, the words are hard to say.

Our sweet little Carter would be taken from us.
He now rests in the arms of precious Jesus.

We do not know why; we can not understand.
But we trust that somehow this fits into God’s plan.

Our lives are forever changed by this one sad day.
The pain of broken hearts we pray will go away.

But through this all one thing remains the same……
The closeness of our family even with a broken chain.

We are linked together, drawing strength from one another -
Dad, Mom, Cailyn Rose, three sisters and a brother.

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and hope that your new year is filled with the love of a precious family, and too many friends to count!
Love,
Lex, Patty, Cailyn Rose, Carrie, Jessie, Leigh and Will,
and baby Carter, forever in our hearts

Look Who's Stuffed Now!

Well, the little birds and grandlittle bird have all flown away...back to their temporary homes in Minnesota and Missouri. (At least I refer to them as temporary homes...because you can only have one true home...and that is with your mother...and in this case that is in Pennsylvania, right??)

The Thanksgiving decorations are put away...I am slowly replacing them with the Christmas ones, although I am struggling to get "in the mood" this year. The apple and pecan and pumpkin pies have been devoured. The green bean casserole and oyster stuffing enjoyed by just a few...but some traditions you can not stop! Grandma Carrie's strawberry dessert has been successfully mastered by yet another one of her grandchildren. The turkey carcass has once again become the base for a delicious soup. Yum.

So now I am the one stuffed and my refrigerator is bursting at the seams with left-overs. I have delivered containers of food to my parents, my aunt...the sweater maker...and my sister, and I have not put a dent in the supply.

My mom used to tell me I should eat everything on my plate because there were starving children in Africa. Food was not to be wasted. I still suffer from that childhood lesson. That's why I feel guilty about cleaning out the refrigerator and throwing it all away. Instead I just keep eating it...over and over and over. I am stuffed.

Maybe I need to seek professional help.