Exactly!!

This is exactly what I have tried to explain to someone.   In order to basically save your soul and release the pain and anger from your heart, you have to forgive.  It doesn't excuse the act that caused the pain though.

Cary Grant's Daily Prayer

I read one of Cary Grant's books years ago and this was in it and was something I have always remembered.  Supposedly, he kept this prayer in his wallet. 

Lord, you’ve known me a long time.
You know me better than I know myself.
You know that each day I am growing older and someday may be very old,
so meanwhile please keep me from the habit of thinking I must say something on every subject and on every occasion.
Release me from trying to straighten out everyone’s affairs..
Make me thoughtful, but not moody.
Helpful , but not over-bearing.
I’ve a certain amount of knowledge to share; still it would be very nice
to have a few friends who, at the end, recognized and forgave the knowledge
I lacked.
Keep my tongue free from the recital of endless details.
Seal my lips on my aches and pains.
(They increase daily and the need to speak of them becomes almost a compulsion)
I ask for grace enough to listen to the retelling of others’ afflictions,
and to be helped to endure them with patience.
I would like to have improved memory, but I’ll settle for growing humility and
an ability to capitulate when my memory clashes with the memory of others.
Teach me the glorious lesson that on some occasions I may be mistaken.
Keep me reasonably kind. I’ve never aspired to be a saint.....saints
must be rather difficult to live with.....yet on the other hand,
an embittered old person is a constant burden.
Please give me the ability to see good in unlikely places and talents in
unexpected people. And please give me the grace to tell them so, Dear Lord.
Amen!

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving turned out to be such a wonderful day! Erik joined us for the first time in like 10 years (we tried to do both or split it the first few years and it just didn't work out...we've had separate Thanksgivings since. Because of the crap his brother is pulling, he made the decision to come with me this year). There were 16 of us and the only ones missing were the two nephews Ty and Jared who are both in the military and were missed very much! There was a lot of conversation and laughter. :-) We really had a good time!
(I know it was hard on Erik though. Thanksgiving is especially difficult for him because of the death of his mother four years ago on the 29th of November. She is still very deeply missed by all of us).

One of the things that happened that was...(I don't know if I should use the word funny or...I don't know what word to use here because although everyone laughed, at the same time I know that each and every one of us had a variety of emotions that went through us)...my mom, who I mentioned before has alzheimer's...ok...wait a minute....before I go any further I have to mention that my sister, sister-in-law and I BEGGED my parents to let us handle Thanksgiving this year and they absolutely would not give in....we have actually been arguing with them for months about it and finally gave up. We did manage to get everything but the turkey and dressing taken off their hands (although that's what we were fighting them so hard to let us do...they just wouldn't let us). S' anyways...I called my parents on Tuesday after work to ask a quick question. My mom got on the phone and said "Ronda...I have to tell you this because I know your dad is just dying to tell you so I'm going to tell my side of the story.

The first Thanksgiving dinner I made when your dad and I got married 51 years ago...Ronda...you know how to make stuffing, right? You have to cook the celery and onion in butter before adding to the bread...right?!?! (I said...yeah)....mom: well, I didn't know that and the stuffing wouldn't hold together and the celery and onions were crunchy. It was terrible. I learned the next time what to do. So..51 years later...today to be exact...your dad came home from work and I was so proud that I had everything ready for him to help me stuff the turkey. I had the celery and onions all mixed in the bread and ready to go. Your dad asked if I cooked the celery and onion. I said no. O_o. So your dad and I have spent the last 45 minutes picking through the bread and pulling out all the celery and onions." My mom was laughing her ass off while she was telling me about it and when we were all sitting around on Thanksgiving and it was brought up...everyone laughed...but you could see the look of worry all the way around. I will say this though....they both agreed they don't want to do it anymore. FINALLY!

I guess I look at it this way, my mom doesn't realize what's going on..or if she does, she refuses to face it. If she can laugh at herself, or if she just thinks it's silly...then fine...so be it. I would much rather she be laughing than crying.

So...get this...Erik has been trying to figure out what to get me for Christmas. We don't always buy for each other, but since he got that there Samsung watch of his...he said to consider that his Christmas gift and if there was something I wanted, let him know. I had honestly not been able to think of anything..I was looking at watches..but nothing really popped. So, after dinner on Thursday, my mom handed each of us, (my sister, brothers and I) an envelope. Turns out, that my grandma (who died two years ago)...her estate was finally settled and each of the brothers was given a little money and my parents took half of their amount and split it between the four of us.

We're not talking a fortune here...we're talking a few hundred dollars. AWESOMESAUCE!!! So, then my mind goes from a watch, to maybe a Kindle Fire!!!! WOOT WOOT!!!! Well, on Friday morning, Erik and I did some research trying to figure out what would be better....a Kindle Fire, an IPad or a Samsung Note 10.1. I finally decided on the Note 10.1, which I am typing on right now and is most awesome! Now the funny part. The reason I chose the Note was because I felt it could take over enough for my laptop that we could sell that to make up a little of the difference in cost. Erik thought that was a great idea.

So, I spent a good part of yesterday clearing off my laptop while Erik set up my Note. (I had gone right out to Best Buy yesterday and gotten the Note 10.1 2014 32GB). Last night, we were watching TV and I was on my laptop and we heard this loud whirring sound. We're both like...what the hell??? My laptop blew a fan!!!! Erik can't even get it to turn on right now!!! Seriously!?!? What are the odds??? Just too funny!!! So, he's going to fix that and sell it. In the meantime...I am not without computer power!! This thing ROCKS!! As does my most awesome husband!! ;-)
Tomorrow we're putting up decorations and I'm fixing us our own little turkey dinner and gonna watch the Bears game! Oh...by the way...still sober! ;-)

Take care and God bless! :-)

Epiphany

I’m very upset right now and I’m trying to keep my temper and my language to a reasonable level. We have an anonymous person that keeps posting to my husbands post that I’m 99% sure who it is. I could be wrong, but because of certain wording…I’m pretty sure. Saying that I am correct I would just like to say a couple of things.

You seem to think that my husband and I brag about the things that we have and we do nothing to help or to give to other people. Not that it’s anybody else’s business, but first off…what my husband and I have we have worked our fingers to the bone for and if there is something we want and we can get it…we will. Second, if we want to give everything we have away, we can choose to do so. We have given many things away to people…family, friends and strangers alike. My husband has also given his time freely to help people with computers and such because that is what he is good at. I have given my time at food pantries, I’ve made up bags with hats, mittens, toys, toothbrushes, etc., for the last few years and given them to shelters. I’ve given several items to homeless shelters including food and clothing.

I say prayers all the time for those in need and if you are who I think you are, I have on two separate occasions said a prayer that God take my life instead of your wife because her son needed her. Since I have no children I felt it was more important that I be taken instead of her. Yet she thinks I’m an EVIL person. Because I don’t throw my whole life out there for others to see (until now)…doesn’t mean that I don’t care and just because I’m an alcoholic (recovering), doesn’t make me a violent, terrible person. I have my own demons that I have dealt with my entire life, but I don’t make them who I am. I don’t let them make me a victim to the circumstances.

I’m going to let you in on a few secrets…yes, I know this is a public blog, but at this point I don’t care…I’m not ashamed of who I am. When I was two years old I had almost all the skin ripped off my right arm and breast from a coffee burn accident. I have scars…but that’s not who I am. When I was 6 years old, I was molested by a janitor at the school. I never told my parents or anyone about it until about two years ago, but it wasn’t who I was or who I am. When I was in the Army I was raped…twice! Once by two MP’s and once by a guy I was dating but I was blacked out and it was in a room full of people. I was embarrassed and ashamed and I never turned anyone in or told anyone about it until recently. It was not who I was or who I am. I refused to let them make me a victim.

It wasn’t until yesterday that for the first time in my life I realized a had allowed myself to be a victim and that was when I had my miscarriage and was not able to have children afterwards. My anger towards my husband and myself was bad but my anger toward God was unyielding! I stopped talking to God for three years. I lived in a deep black hole and during that time I gained 100 pounds and don’t remember hardly anything. I just remember being angry. It took years for me to deal with this and it wasn’t until just recently over the last few years of counseling that I’ve come to grips with everything. Unfortunately, in the process, I had also become chemically dependent on alcohol. That started really when our niece was taken from us after staying with us a few months and given back to her drug addict parents. This was like an epiphany to me yesterday morning….it dawned on me that all these years of fighting against being a victim, I had made myself a victim of my circumstances. So, now I’m pissed! I will be going forward on from here. Things are going to change….I am no longer going to feel sorry for myself, or envious of people with children and grandchildren. I love my nieces and nephews to death and will continue to spoil them rotten whenever possible.

If in the end, I have no one but myself and a bunch of dogs and cats surrounding me and I die with them eating me to survive…that’s okay!! So long as they’re ok till someone gets to them. ;-)

Ok…I’m not pissed anymore…feel much better. :-) Anonymous…screw yourself!

Take care and God bless ya’ll!! ;-)

I should file for disability!! >-/

Why not?!?!? Everyone else is! I use my fingers for typing and it's getting harder and harder for me because I'm losing blood every minute from PAPER CUTS!!! I feel faint...alas! Woe is me!!

See what I mean?!? I NEED MY FINGERS PEOPLE!!

Why shouldn't I be able to get other people to pay for me to live my life? Why should I have to work to pay for them?? It's so NOT FAIR!!

I think, I should at least get workmans comp...come on now!

Sigh...well at least I have pretty purple Herbie the Dinosaur bandaids to heal the hurt. ;-) hehehe!!

Take care and God bless! :-)

Love this time of year!

This is my favorite time of year! Love the crisp cool air and the colors of the leaves! We usually have a lot going on with birthdays and holidays all mixed in together.

Halloween is over! Been busy and haven't had a chance to post some pics. We didn't go all out this year...it was raining so I didn't put everything out...just simple things. It was enough though that it kept a little girl from coming to the door for candy. Her big brother came and got her candy for her. It was so cute! I think this is the one that got her:

She wouldn't walk past it. We had a 'tween' tell us we still had the best on the block. I was surprised actually, we didn't put out even HALF of what we normally do. But that's cool! Had over 400 pieces of candy with only about 40-50 pieces left. It was a good evening.

American Suicide

If you read anything today, read this.

AMERICAN SUICIDE
Wherever you stand, please take the time to
read this; it ought to scare the pants off you!

We know Dick Lamm as the former Governor of Colorado (Democrat). In that context his thoughts
are particularly poignant. Recently there was an immigration overpopulation conference in Washington,
DC, filled to capacity by many of America's finest minds and leaders. A brilliant college professor by
the name of Victor Davis Hansen talked about his latest book, "Mexifornia," explaining how
immigration - both legal and illegal was destroying the entire state of California He said it would
march across the country until it destroyed all vestiges of The American Dream.

Moments later, former Colorado Governor Richard D. Lamm stood up and gave a stunning speech
on how to destroy America. The audience sat spellbound as he described eight methods for the
destruction of the United States. He said, "If you believe that America is too smug, too
self-satisfied, too rich, then let's destroy America. It is not that hard to do. No nation in
history has survived the ravages of time. Arnold Toynbee observed that all great civilizations rise
and fall and that 'An autopsy of history would show that all great nations commit suicide.'"

"Here is how they do it," Lamm said: "First, to destroy America, turn America into a bilingual or
multi-lingual and bicultural country." History shows tha! t no nat ion can survive the tension, conflict,
and antagonism of two or more competing languages and cultures It is a blessing for an individual to
be bilingual; however, it is a curse for a society to be bilingual. The historical scholar, Seymour
Lipset, put it this way: "The histories of bilingual and bi-cultural societies that do not assimilate are
histories of turmoil, tension, and tragedy." Canada, Belgium, Malaysia, and Lebanon all face crises of
national existence in which minorities press for autonomy, if not independence. Pakistan and Cyprus
have divided. Nigeria suppressed an ethnic rebellion. France faces difficult times with Basques, Bretons, and Corsicans."

Lamm went on: Second, to destroy America, "Invent 'multiculturalism' and encourage immigrants
to maintain their culture. Make it an article of belief that all cultures are equal. That there are
no cultural differences. Make it an article of faith that the Black and Hispanic dropout rates are due
solely to prejudice and discrimination by the majority. Every other explanation is out of bounds.

Third, "We could make the United States an 'Hispanic Quebec' without much effort. The key is to
celebrate diversity rather than unity. As Benjamin Schwarz said in the Atlantic Monthly recently: "The
apparent success of our own multiethnic and multicultural experiment might have been achieved
not by tolerance but by hegemony. Without the dominance that once dictated ethnocentricity and
what it meant to be an American, we are left with only tolerance and pluralism to hold us together."
Lamm said, "I would encourage all immigrants to keep their own language and culture. I would! replace the
melting pot metaphor with the salad bowl metaphor. It is important to ensure that we have various
cultural subgroups living in America enforcing their differences rather than as Americans, emphasizing
their similarities."

"Fourth, I would make our fastest growing demographic group the least educated. I would add a
second underclass, unassimilated, undereducated, and antagonistic to our population. I would have this
second underclass have a 50% dropout rate from high school."

"My fifth point for destroying America would be to get big foundations and business to give these
efforts lots of money. I would invest in ethnic identity, and I would establish the cult of
'Victimology.' I would get all minorities to think that their lack of success was the fault of the
majority. I would start a grievance industry blaming all minority failure on the majority population."

"My sixth plan for America's downfall would include dual citizenship, and promote divided
loyalties I would celebrate diversity over unity. I would stress differences rather than similarities.
Diverse people worldwide are mostly engaged in hating each other- that is, when they are not
killing each other. A diverse, peaceful, or stable society is against most historical precedent. People
undervalue the unity it takes to keep a nation together. Look at the ancient Greeks. The Greeks
believed that they belonged to the same race; they possessed a common Language and literature; and they
worshipped the same Gods. All Greece took part in the Olympic games. A common enemy, Persia,
threatened their liberty. ! Yet all these bonds were not strong enough to overcome two factors: local
patriotism and geographical conditions that nurtured political divisions. Greece fell. "E. Pluribus Unum"
-- from many, one. In that historical reality, if we put the emphasis on the 'Pluribus' instead of the
'Unum,' we will balkanize America assuredly as Kosovo."

"Next to last, I would place all subjects off limits; make it taboo to talk about anything
against the cult of 'diversity.' I would find a word similar to 'heretic' in the 16th century - that
stopped discussion and paralyzed thinking. Words like 'racist' or 'xenophobe' halt discussion and
debate. Having made America a bi-lingual/bicultural country, having established multiculturalism, having
the large foundations fund the doctrine of 'victimology,' I would next make it impossible to enforce our immigration laws. I would develop a mantra: That because immigration has been good for America, it must always be good. I would make every individual immigrant symmetric and ignore the cumulative impact of millions of them."

In the last minute of his speech, Governor Lamm wiped his brow. Profound silence followed.
Finally he said, "Lastly, I would censor Victor Hanson Davis's book "Mexifornia." His book is dangerous. It exposes the plan to destroy America. If you feel America deserves to be destroyed, don't read that book."

There was no applause. A chilling fear quietly rose like an ominous cloud above every
attendee at the conference. Every American in that room knew that everything Lamm enumerated was
proceeding methodically, quietly, da! rkly, yet pervasively across the United States today.
Discussion is being suppressed. Over 100 languages are ripping the foundation of our educational system
and national cohesiveness. Even barbaric cultures that practice female genital mutilation are growing
as we celebrate 'diversity.' American jobs are vanishing into the Third World as corporations
create a Third World in America - take note of California and other states - to date, ten million
illegal aliens and growing fast. It is reminiscent of George Orwell's book "1984." In that story,
three slogans are engraved in the Ministry of Truth building: "War is peace," "Freedom is slavery," and
"Ignorance is strength."

Governor Lamm walked back to his seat. It dawned on everyone at the conference that our nation
and the future of this great democracy is deeply in trouble and worsening fast. If we don't get this
immigration monster stopped within three years, it will rage like a California wildfire and destroy
everything in its path especially The American Dream. If you care for and love our country as I
do, take the time to pass this on just as I did for you.

NOTHING is exactly what will happen if you don't!


[ Author of the book 'Mexifornia' is Victor Davis Hanson ]

This says it all! But those blinders are pretty thick.. :-(

Why ObamaCare is a fantastic success!!

There are two major political parties in America. I’m a member of the naïve, stupid, and cowardly one. I’m a Republican.

How stupid is the GOP? They still don’t get it.

I told them 5 years ago, 2 books ago, a national bestseller ago ("The Ultimate Obama Survival Guide"), and in hundreds of articles and commentaries, that ObamaCare was never meant to help America, or heal the sick, or lower healthcare costs, or lower the debt, or expand the economy.

The GOP needs to stop calling ObamaCare a “trainwreck.” That means it’s a mistake, or accident. That means it’s a gigantic flop, or failure. It’s NOT.



Message to the GOP: This isn’t a game. This isn’t tiddly-winks. This is a serious, purposeful attempt to highjack America and destroy capitalism.


This is a brilliant, cynical, and purposeful attempt to damage the U.S. economy, kill jobs, and bring down capitalism.

It’s not a failure, it’s Obama’s grand success.

It’s not a “trainwreck,” ObamaCare is a suicide attack. He wants to hurt us, to bring us to our knees, to capitulate- so we agree under duress to accept big government.

Obama’s hero and mentor was Saul Alinsky -- a radical Marxist intent on destroying capitalism. Alinksky’s stated advice was to call the other guy “a terrorist” to hide your own intentions.

To scream that the other guy is “ruining America,” while you are the one actually plotting the destruction of America. To claim again and again…in every sentence of every speech…that you are “saving the middle class,” while you are busy wiping out the middle class.

The GOP is so stupid they can’t see it. There are no mistakes here. This is a planned purposeful attack.

The tell-tale sign isn’t the disastrous start to ObamaCare. Or the devastating effect the new taxes are having on the economy. Or the death of full-time jobs. Or the overwhelming debt. Or the dramatic increases in health insurance rates. Or the 70% of doctors now thinking of retiring- bringing on a healthcare crisis of unimaginable proportions. Forget all that.

The real sign that this is a purposeful attack upon capitalism is how many Obama administration members and Democratic Congressmen are openly calling Tea Party Republicans and anyone who wants to stop ObamaCare “terrorists.”

There’s the clue. Even the clueless GOP should be able to see that.

They are calling the reasonable people…the patriots…the people who believe in the Constitution ... the people who believe exactly what the Founding Fathers believed…the people who want to take power away from corrupt politicians who have put America $17 trillion in debt…terrorists?

That’s because they are Saul Alinsky-ing the GOP. The people trying to purposely hurt America, capitalism and the middle class…are calling the patriots by a terrible name to fool, confuse and distract the public.

ObamaCare is a raving, rollicking, fantastic success. Stop calling it a failure. Here is what it was created to do. It is succeeding on all counts:

1. ObamaCare was intended to bring about the Marxist dream -- redistribution of wealth.
Rich people, small business owners, and the middle class are being robbed, so that the money can be redistributed to poor people (who vote for Democrats).

Think about it. If you’re rich or middle class, you now have to pay for your own health care costs (at much higher rates) AND 40 million other people’s costs too (through massive tax increases).

So you’re stuck paying for both bills. You are left broke. Brilliant.

2. ObamaCare was intended to wipe out the middle class and make them dependent on government.
Think about it. Even Obama’s IRS predicts that health insurance for a typical American family by 2016 will be $20,000 per year. But how would middle class Americans pay that bill and have anything left for food or housing or living? People that make $40K, or $50K, or $60K can’t possibly hope to spend $20K on health insurance without becoming homeless.

Bingo. That’s how you make middle class people dependent on government. That’s how you make everyone addicted to government checks. Brilliant.

3. As a bonus, ObamaCare is intended to kill every decent paying job in the economy, creating only crummy, crappy part-time jobs.
Why? Just to make sure the middle class is trapped, with no way out. Just to make sure no one has the $20,000 per year to pay for health insurance, thereby guaranteeing they become wards of the state. Brilliant.

4. ObamaCare is intended to bankrupt small business, and therefore starve donations to the GOP.
Think about it. Do you know a small business owner? I know hundreds of them. Their rates are being doubled, tripled and quadrupled by ObamaCare.

Guess who writes 75% of the checks to Republican candidates and conservative causes? Small Business.

Even if a small business owner manages to survive, he or she certainly can’t write a big check to the GOP anymore. Money is the “mother’s milk” of politics. Without donations, a political party ceases to exist. Bingo.

That’s the point of ObamaCare. Obama is bankrupting his political opposition and drying up donations to the GOP. Brilliant.

5. ObamaCare is intended to make the IRS all-powerful.
It adds thousands of new IRS agents. It puts the IRS in charge of overseeing 15% of the U.S. economy. The IRS has the right because of ObamaCare to snoop into every aspect of your life, to go into your bank accounts, to fine you, to frighten you, to intimidate you. And Obama and his socialist cabal have access to your deepest medical secrets.

By law your doctor has to ask your sexual history. That information is now in the hands of Obama and the IRS to blackmail GOP candidates into either not running, or supporting bigger government, or leaking the info and ruining your campaign.

Or have you forgotten the IRS harassed, intimidated and persecuted critics of Obama and conservative groups?

Now Obama hands the IRS even more power. Big Brother rules our lives. Brilliant.

6. ObamaCare is intended to unionize 15 million healthcare workers.
That produces $15 billion in new union dues. That money goes to fund Democratic candidates and socialist causes -- thereby guaranteeing Obama’s friends never lose another election, and Obama’s policies keep ruining capitalism and bankrupting business owners long after he’s out of office.

Message to the GOP: This isn’t a game. This isn’t tiddly-winks. This is a serious, purposeful attempt to highjack America and destroy capitalism.

This isn’t a trainwreck. It's purposeful suicide.

It's not failing, it's working exactly according to plan. Obama knows what he’s doing. Stop apologizing and start fighting.

Oh and one more thing…Conservatives aren’t “terrorists.” We are patriots and saviors. We represent the Constitution and the Founding Fathers. We are the heroes and good guys. Unless you get all this through your thick skulls, America is lost…forever.



Wayne Allyn Root is capitalist evangelist, entrepreneur, and Libertarian-conservative Republican. He is a former Libertarian vice presidential nominee. Wayne's latest book is "The Ultimate Obama Survival Guide: Secrets to Protecting Your Family, Your Finances, and Your Freedom." For more, visit his website: www.ROOTforAmerica.com. Follow him on Twitter@WayneRoot.

Made a HUGE pot of chili and 4 loaf pans of meat loaf. Why you may ask??? Because that is what our nephew Jared (home from Marine basic training) wants tomorrow. He is SO getting Aunt Ronda's chili and meat loaf because that's what he wrote a letter home asking for. That's all I have to say...if Jared wants it...he gets it!!!

Jared

It's been quite a weekend. Our nephew Jared just got home from Marine boot camp. Like OMG!!! We have missed him so much. He looks so good! He's down 15 pounds (which he couldn't really afford to lose...but he still looks good!!!) I couldn't keep my hands off him...(I don't mean that in a weird way...it was more that I just missed him so much and just needed to know he was okay and still in one piece.) I spent most of Saturday night with him and he kept going 'Aunt Ronnie...we have to spend every minute we can together before I head back out...he wants Aunt Ronnie's cookin and Aunt Ronnie and Uncle Erik's company over the next few weekends.



We're workin it out as much as we can! Uncle Erik and I are so proud, there just isn't enough words!!! Tyler, his older brother, is in the Navy and doing very well and his younger brother Nick is heading for the Army in another year or so. Don't have the date yet for him...but he's been through the recruiting process...just has to finish it up. Just totally SWELLING with pride!!!

We just finished packing up the RV and got the it over to the dealer to take care of some small problems and for storage. Gonna miss our weekend trips, but it's okay....we have plenty to do at home.

I spent yesterday (Sunday) with my parents for part of the morning and afternoon..(we watched 'Thor' and went out for lunch. They loved the movie and are borrowing 'The Avengers' to watch this week.


So, I'm going to be making chili and meatloaf for Jared this week, then we're probably gonna go to a movie and just hang out. I know the time is going to fly. He's going infantry and my heart is in my throat but it's what he wants. You GO my Jaredbobared! You're our hero and I know you have our backs!!

Take care and God bless!!

'Greatest generation' veterans sweep past barricades at memorial in their honor.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/10/01/greatest-generation-veterans-to-face-barricades-at-memorial-in-their-honor/


What was meant to be a final gathering of heroes Tuesday instead became a final victory for dozens of World War II combat vets who refused to let the government's budget battle block a visit to their memorial in the nation's capital.

With bagpipers playing "Amazing Grace," nearly 200 veterans from Mississippi and Iowa swept past barricades and security guards at the World War II Memorial in Washington in order to keep a commitment to visit the site, which was closed today due to the partial government shutdown. The veterans, in their 80s and 90s, were accompanied by Rep. Steven Palazzo, R-Miss., a former Marine who earlier vowed not to let the National Park Police keep them from a planned visit to the open-air monument.

"For some reason, I just feel like royalty," Jim Ferencak, a Navy and Air Force veteran told GulfLive.com at the event.



"We're going to be there. That’s all there is to it. I don’t know what these veterans will do if they're not allowed to view the monument, but whatever they do, I'll be right there with them."

- Congressman Steven Palazzo


Some veterans on hand wiped away tears when they saw a crowd waving the American flag as they came out of their bus.

"These men and women didn't cower to the Japanese and Germans," Palazzo said. "I don't think they're about to let a few National Park Police stand in their way."

Palazzo, who was joined by several other members of Congress, moved the barricades at the memorial and police did not try to stop the veterans' access.

"It's better to ask for forgiveness than permission," Palazzo said. “We lined the veterans up along the blockade, we saw an opening and we took it.”

The veterans are traveling as part of Honor Flight, a program that enables World War II veterans to partake in an expense-paid trip to view the memorial. Tuesday's trip is the second-to-last flight, with the last scheduled for November. But prior to their arrival early Tuesday, there was fear that the government shutdown and federal worker furloughs would mean no access to the monuments on the National Mall.

But with lawmakers leading the charge, the American military heroes, some in wheelchairs, surged into the memorial.

"This is the best civil disobedience we've seen in Washington in a while," Congressman Bill Huizenga, of Michigan, told GulfLive.com.

"We're all thankful for their efforts and I know these veterans are thankful as well," Wayne Lennep, the Honor Flight organizer said.

Joe Cleveland, of Union, Miss., told The Mississippi Press that he would "be thinking about the many battles that have been fought and thanking all those who were willing to go fight for our country."

Palazzo noted his grandfather, Manuel McCarty, served in World War II at Guadalcanal and Okinawa. Palazzo was 7 years old when his grandfather died and said he sees his grandfather in these veterans.

"I only have a couple of memories of my grandfather," said Palazzo, who has taken part of Honor Flights before. "But each time I see these men, I envision how he'd be."

It's been a week... @-@

It's been a week since I've had a drink of alcohol. Erik, the dog and cat are still alive and I'm still somewhat sane. I temporarily went back on my prozac just to get me through my anxiety. Having good and bad days...good and bad moments, but in general hanging in there. The first two to three days were the worst. My nerves were like 6 inches above my skin. Not the DT's...just anxious and jittery. I've seen the DT's with my ex-husband...I wasn't even close. (I honestly think that because of the gastric bypass, my system handles things a little differently...I think the alcohol runs through my system faster so it isn't seeping out of my pores like it does with a normal alcoholic). My poor husband was on the verge of pouring a drink down my throat himself those first few days though...it was that bad. I was basically like DON'T TOUCH ME DON'T TALK TO ME DON'T LOOK AT ME!!! o_O It's better now. ;-)

Right now I believe it's more mind over matter. Just have to look at it the same way I did when I made the decision to have the bypass. I knew I would never be able to drink pop again and I miss it, but it's just something I have to deal with. I think the same is going to be true with alcohol. I'll miss it, but just have to deal with it. It's only been a week so we'll see how it goes.

Thinking clearly now...some things haven't changed. I still love my husband, love my job, want to move out of our house into a smaller place and I still detest Obama, Reid, Pelosi and my brother-in-law. lol! :-)

We had a nice vacation...very relaxing! Didn't do a whole lot...went antiquing one day, movies a couple of times, but mostly just relaxed. Gave us a chance to clear our minds a little bit. We only have a few more weeks left of camping. It's okay though, we have so much to do around the house that we've neglected over camping season. Will hopefully get a lot taken care of over the winter.

It's amazing how quickly this past year has gone. I can't believe it's almost Christmas!! I would swear that we just celebrated that a couple of months ago. It's almost scary how fast time is flying by us. Honestly, the older we get, the faster it flies. (Of course it doesn't help that I was blitzed through the majority of it...I guess that would make it go faster..right?!?!?) sighhh...

Oh well...life goes on and the Bears are 3-0. AWESOMESAUCE!!! :-D

Take care and God bless!! :-)

Happy Aunt!!

Nothing makes me happier than to fix a meal and have someone enjoy it. I love cooking and I don't always succeed in all the dishes I make..although hubby disagrees and says he likes all my food...but it made me all warm and fuzzy inside on Saturday when I read a letter from our nephew Jared. He had sent it to his mom (my sister) and it was a list of food he wants when he comes home on leave from basic training. On his list were 3 things that he specifically stated as 'Aunt Ronda's'...Aunt Ronda's chili, Aunt Ronda's meat loaf and the beef and chicken sandwiches Aunt Ronda made at the RV. That is such a huge deal to me to know that someone other than my husband actually enjoys my food. :-) Especially my Jaredbobared!!

What is so funny is none of those 3 dishes include bacon which is his favorite thing. He had stayed with us one weekend at the RV and I made bacon and eggs one morning and used an entire package of bacon (Erik is also a bacon lover)...I think I had one piece and those two finished off the rest. Jared came up to me after breakfast and hugged me real tight. When I went to let go he hugged me even tighter and just held on. He just kept saying thank you so much for fixing me REAL bacon!! I guess Kelly (my sis) and his dad and stepmom use the stuff that is pre-cooked and then microwaved. So this was a treat for him...I didn't know that. So, I guess if he's home while we're still out there...I'll just have to fix him some bacon along with the other dishes. :-)

I'm trying to figure out a way to afford a couple of plane tickets to go to his graduation. I don't think we can do it, so I'll just have to make up for it by making his tummy happy when he gets home. :-) I can't wait to see him!!

Our nephew Nick is in ROTC right now and plans on joining the Army after he graduates. We spent most of Saturday with Kelly, Nick and my parents and Nick talked a lot about his plans for the future. I hope it all works out for him. He's really into it right now but also has a girlfriend and I hope that doesn't deter him from his goals. He's been gung-ho for the service since he was old enough to talk. Everything was Army this and Army that. It's funny because it was the same way with Tyler who is in the Navy and Jared now in the Marines. They all talked about the service since they were little and so far two of them have reached their goals.
I'm so proud of them!!

We're trying to talk Rachel (their younger sister) into the Air Force so that Kelly can say each of her children were in a different branch of service, but she's only 12 right now and SO not interested. I guess we'll see what the future holds. :-)

Take care and God bless!! :-D

Great week!

Hubby and I weren't able to celebrate our anniversary on our anniversary (Erik had to work) so we did it last night instead. We went to the movies and saw 'Star Trek: Into Darkness' AWESOME!!!!!! After the movie we went out for a wonderful steak dinner then watched the first Star Trek movie with the same new characters. Just had to do it! :-) Course I'm a huge Star Trek fan and I have to say that they did a fantastic job of getting the characters down. Very impressed!
We took off early today and went antiquing. It's been quite a while since we went antiquing. I have to say...we could have gone crazy in that place, but we didn't. We each bought a book. Total of less than $20.00. We did good! :-)
We refinanced our home so we can finally put some money in the bank. That's another reason we didn't go crazy at the antique mall. We're going to have a garage sale at my sister's place in a couple of weeks. Try and get rid of some stuff. This winter we're gonna get serious and start selling off some of the big stuff we've collected. Really want to start downsizing..would love to sell the house and just get maybe a small condo or something like that.
Tomorrow night we're going to the drive-in with my sister, niece and nephew. Going to see 'The Heat' and 'We are the Millers'. Maybe go to the apple orchard in the afternoon with my parents. Depends on how hot it gets.
Then on Sunday we got the Bears game! GO BEARS!!! :-) IT'S FOOTBALL SEASON!!! WOOHOOOO!!! :-)

That's all for now...take care and God bless! :-)

The Auction...

They had the Auction for Ted today. We learned a lot more of his history...it really sucks what he has gone through. His insurance doesn't cover ANY chemo! Some of his treatments were costing over $30k a month. He was able to get grants a couple of times for some relief, but that only goes so far. Right now his prostate is sitting on one of his ribs below his heart. They've already removed part of his bladder, part of a kidney and part of something else...I think part of his stomach...I'm not sure on that. They made some pretty good money today. The auction lasted 3 hours there was so much stuff. I got a toaster oven for the RV. Erik got a long island ice tea set that was probably worth about $150 all told and he got it for $100. He then handed it to Ted who was flabbergasted to say the least. He invited us over for drinks later. :-) My basket went for $45 and the girl that got it (I think she was slightly disabled) was absolutely jumping for joy. (It was a rainy day camping basket filled with games and puzzles, books and such). It made me feel good that someone was going to enjoy it and the money went to a good cause. Erik donated a Slate computer thing (I have no idea...I just know it was a computer)...it went for $145. Lower than Erik expected, but that's okay. It wasn't being used and again, it was for a good cause. :-)
A couple of Blackhawk jerseys went for $250 each and they raffled off a nice grill and a Bears Tillman jersey. All in all, it was a great auction and will hopefully help Ted out. (We just found out that with all the stuff the campground did this summer...they raised $10,600.00! That is awesome!!)

I think we are going to go through the house and start putting things up for sale on e-bay and Craigslist. We have thousands of dollars worth of stuff that we had bought when we first got married that is just sitting in bins in mint condition. We really need to start downsizing and while doing so, hopefully put some money in the bank.

Tuesday is our 14th wedding anniversary. I think we're going to go to a movie and out for dinner. It'll be nice. :-)

We have halloween coming up soon...so that's gonna be fun! We had a blast here last year. Went on the halloween walk and decorated it up very cool! We had our niece and nephew here for it last year...not sure if we'll do the same this year. We'll see.

Take care and God bless! :-)

Shiloh and vacation

So..my hubby calls Shiloh a devil dog. Why? He has taken several pics of her and they always come out with her eyes white...see below:

Personally, I think it's his phone. Why? Because this is what I come up with when I take a pic of her from my phone:

Is that the sweetest face? Devil dog...really? How can anyone say that about that sweet little face?!? My little bubby! ;-) Erik is just a dork! :-D

Our vacation is coming up soon and we can't wait! We're both putting in a lot of hours at work and we definitely need a vacation. Looking forward to two weeks of relaxation. Will be at the RV and going antiquing and hanging with family. Hopefully will have some decent weather and not too hot. We're also hoping to maybe go to Geneseo for the Halloween party. We can't take the rig but are considering renting a cabin for 4 days. Either that or renting an RV just so we can be there. We have to go to Geneseo at least once and it has to be during Halloween. We always have such a good time. When we finally get a truck, we'll be spending a lot more time up there. Maybe take our bikes. They have a wonderful bike path that goes along the canal. We also have our anniversary coming up and for the last few years we've gone to a very nice restaurant in Geneseo to celebrate. We're considering taking a drive up there just for dinner that night...haven't made a final decision yet.

This is the restaurant...it's called 'The Cellar'...great food!!

We just recently found out that one of the gentleman here at Blackhawk has stage 4 prostate cancer and it's metastasized. Unfortunately the treatment that he is on is experimental so insurance will only pay a small portion. So the campground has been holding several things like bake sales and poker walks...stuff like that to help pay for his treatment. They'll be auctioning off baskets at the end of the month. So, I'm going to make a couple of baskets. I'm actually pretty good at it. Have made a few as gifts before. Just trying to decide on a theme. We have our Motorhome GPS that we really don't need anymore so I was thinking of making a 'travel basket' of some sort. I'm torn between a football theme or maybe a dog theme. (Everyone has dogs here!). He's such a nice guy. Has a smile on his face all the time. He's been in remission three times and has stayed strong through it all. It's turned aggressive and all we can do is pray that the treatment will work. It will be so sad not to see his smiling face here.

We got a letter from my nephew Jared. He's in boot camp right now (Marines). He said it's hard but nothing he didn't expect. He hurt his shoulder and is hoping he doesn't get held back because of it. He would be so disappointed. I sent him back a letter with a lot of positive feedback and some jokes to help keep his spirit up. He's such a good kid and I'm so proud of him!

Well, we're getting ready to pack up and head home in a few. End of another beautiful weekend! Back to the grindstone tomorrow! :-)

Take care and God bless!! :-D

It's been quite a year!

I realized today that it's been a year since I've posted anything. Quite a lot has happened in a year...some good, some bad but it's all part of life.

We lost our dog Loki on March 28th. She was only 4 years old. It was some kind of pancreatic thing and she went very fast. She wasn't eating on Sunday, then Monday (this wasn't unusual for her so at this point there was no warning signs)...on Tuesday when she didn't eat I talked to the daycare lady that took care of her and she said she hadn't noticed anything different about her but would watch her. On Wednesday the daycare lady called me and said something was definitely wrong. She rushed her over to the vet and Loki started going into shock. They got her on an IV then I had to come and pick her up. I was very upset because it was obvious she was very sick. They heavily sedated her and said to bring her back the next morning. She fought the sedation and her temp kept dropping. I called the emergency number they gave me and they said that I was doing everything I was supposed to and just take her in in the morning. She didn't make it to morning. She died in the middle of the night. Needless to say I was devastated. I adored that dog and of course blamed myself because I hadn't taken her in sooner. Looking back, I would have done a lot of things differently, but it's too late. I miss her every day and am in tears as I type this. We got a beautiful urn for her and I still can't take down the pics I have of her on my computers and my phone. I can look at the pics but when I look at the urn I totally fall apart.

We did get another dog..(I couldn't imagine life without a dog at this point) her name is Shiloh and she is a Chihuahua mix. We're thinking Dachshund...not sure though. She's a little sweetheart. We got lucky a second time with a good natured dog. She was already house-broken and though she still has a few issues, in general, she's a good dog.

Some of you may remember that I had gastric-bypass done back in March 2012. I have so far lost 90 pounds. Would like to lose another 70 pounds, but if it doesn't happen, I'm okay with it. I feel so much better than I did at almost 300 pounds, so I can live with where I'm at now. Part of my problem is, I am a pretty heavy drinker. I drank pretty heavily before my surgery and now it's just as bad if not worse. Turns out that people that have gastric bypass have a very high risk of alcoholism. I mentioned to the psychologist I had to see before the surgery that I was a pretty heavy drinker, but he didn't see that as a problem. I saw him a few months after the surgery and he said that he doesn't really deal with that...that he just basically pushes the patients through. He actually said that! The good thing is, that I am no longer on high blood pressure meds or anti-depressants. I literally take no meds at all anymore for anything!! That is pretty awesome in itself! I know I still need to work on the drinking, but I will say that I rarely pass out anymore. That was a huge issue...(my poor hubby). (I know this is really personal, but in all honesty, it is what it is). I went into detox for a couple of days and found out that although I obviously have a drinking problem, detox wasn't necessary...no dt's, no side effects whatsoever...so it's basically on me to just quit when I'm ready...apparently...I'm not ready.

All this being said, in general, I'm pretty happy! I have an awesome husband, a great job, oh and we traded in our RV for a 5th-wheel! We could totally live in that baby! It's gorgeous and we look forward every weekend to going there. We don't have a truck to tow it, which is okay because we lease our spot yearly...we'll be there for at least another two years. Hopefully by then we'll be able to buy a truck to tow the Montana. (40 ft of awesomeness!!) :-)

One of the reasons we leased where we did was to be closer to my family. My mom has alzheimers and my dad has gone through several surgeries over the past year. He told me that he wouldn't have gone through what he went through if he wasn't so concerned over my mom. He is so afraid of dying and leaving her. It just breaks my heart. He knows we would all be there for her if God forbid something happened to him...but it is stressing him out at the thought of putting any kind of burden on any of us. No matter what we say in the matter, that we would do whatever is necessary to take care of her, it's still taking a toll on him and we (my sister, brothers and I) feel helpless at this point. Part of the problem is that my mom said that if she ever found out she had alzheimers (after watching her father die from it), that she would kill herself. So my dad has made it clear that no one is to mention it to her in her lucid moments. Period! He has said that when he has tried to talk to her about it, that she either gets angry or cries, so he just doesn't say anything anymore and just deals with it. She was down to 85 pounds a month ago because she has no interest in food. She would have an Ensure once a day and felt that was enough. So, my sister and I decided that we would order 3 cases of Ensure to see if she would drink more than one a day...and she is. Sometimes 3 a day now. She has gained 10 pounds in the last month so that is awesome! I have it set so she gets 3 cases a month of Ensure. She's thrilled because she loves the strawberry. Hey...whatever works..right?!?!?

Things get tough now and then but like I said, it's all part of life. I know I am eventually going to lose my parents and it's going to be very difficult to handle, but I'll get through it. I know Erik will be there for me and my sister and brothers and I will stick together and our family will still get together at least once a month or more if possible, just like we do now. Our parents have taught us over the years that family is so important. We have all gone to different places and have all come back home. My parents have been married for 51 years. They have stuck together through thick and thin. They have been our mentors, our teachers, our friends. I can't imagine what my life is going to be like without them. Erik lost his mom 4 years ago and I know it's been really hard on him. He misses her every day and my heart goes out to him. She was a wonderful lady and I truly miss her. I still have her phone number on my cell phone. I haven't been able to delete it. (I feel so bad for Erik because his brother puts a price on their relationship so he has to deal with that...it's a very sad situation because Erik feels he really has nowhere else to go now that his mom is gone). My family loves Erik but it's just not the same.

I know I'm kind of all over the place here, but I just had so much to say...my brain was kind of racing as I was typing away. It's been an interesting year to say the least. Oh...I finally made it to Graceland! Been wanting to go all my life. (Still love Elvis!!) It was bittersweet though because Loki died on the 28th of March and we were leaving on the 29th of March for our trip. I cried every night while we were there. To be honest, I didn't want to be home during that time. I couldn't even imagine it. That week away was hard, but it would have been worse being home. I still cried pretty much every night for a month.

Okay...enough sad stuff!!! What else happened this past year...hmm...not a whole lot more. I think I mentioned all the important stuff. God has blessed us in so many ways...we have our ups and downs like anyone else, but through our faith, we get through it.

Take care and God bless!