A Funny

The other night, the kids had gone to bed and Ben and I were up watching TV. We hear feet on the stairs and look up and there is Kally. She says in a pretty plain, clear voice, "Rainey is playing with his toys. I have told him to stop. I am not playing with the toys."

Our house is of such solid construction that we hear most every breath that is taken, so we knew that no toys were being played with. It dawned on us that she was asleep. Ben had a little fun with her and she quickly woke up enough to know that she had been sleeping and went back to bed.

That's when it hit me! She was tattling even in her sleep!!

Gluten Update

So I completed my gluten elimination diet. It was rough at first, but got a bit easier. May I say that gluten free things are so expensive!

Anyway...I am now back on gluten and going through what is called a "gluten challenge". I will do this for about 10 days and then go to the doctor and demand a blood test. I am not feeling so well back on gluten and most of the symptoms had severely subsided on the elimination diet.

The constant headache is back as are many other symptoms along with a few new ones.

So....I think that I have gluten issues!

Bailey's Day

Bailey with Pinkalicious
At lunch: Mama, Rawley, and Kally

My brother and his family gave Bailey this frozen bottle of water. Hidden inside was a small key!

Once she got the key out of the frozen water...she used it to open this money box! Gives a new meaning to cold cash, doesn't it?
What girl actually asks for an iron and ironing board? Well...that would be Bailey!
Oma and Opa (my parents)! So great to be at every birthday!

No Longer a Teen! Where Has The Time Gone?

My firstborn, Bailey, turns 20 today! I am stunned at how quickly the time has gone by! I have loved each and every moment with her. I tried to get pics to represent each of her ages, but as you can imagine, most of our pics of her are touchable...stored in a box in my room. I am not so adept at scanning. So all the pics, except for the first one are of more recent vintage, but you'll get an idea of who she is.

Bailey is not quite 2 in this pic! Love that smile.

Ben and Bailey at a SS class fellowship.

Bailey and her very pregnant mama at Disney World.

Bailey ready to go to one her many formals! Poor, poor unsocialized homeschool kids...

Bailey and her reaction when she realized that this is her surprise 16th birthday present...thanks to grandparents!

Bailey and her reaction to her surprise 15th birthday party. We really pulled it off!

The quintessential Bailey...fun, confident, playful.

She is also a great woman of God...a great daughter and friend. She has been my friend for many years and I can only pray that it goes on for many, many more!

Happy Birthday, my sweet girl! I have apologized to you many times for your being the first one...the experiment...the trial...but God has honored our attempt and produced a fabulous woman!

Bluebonnet Pictures 2010

To Remember or Not To Remember?

Daddy has Alzheimer's.

It's cruel.
It's sweet.
It's sad.
It's funny.
It's making me slow down.
It's making me want to speed things up.

I love my daddy so much! He and I have had a special relationship for as long as I can remember. The funny thing is that my brother can say the exact same thing. Easy really...we only had one boy and one girl in our family.

I have always called him "daddy"...it has never crossed my mind that I might be too old to call him that. I think he has loved it that I haven't changed it to "dad".

I've never heard daddy raise his voice...never! But that didn't mean that he was never angry or that I never got disciplined....on the contrary...

I remember daddy coming home from work early one day and I didn't know why. He told me that he was taking me somewhere and I needed to get in his truck. I was home for the summer after my freshman year of college. I got in his truck and he got a grin, more of a smirk really, on his face. We pull up to a store and he tells me to pick out whatever color of Justin Roper boot I want! I had been wanting a pair forever it seemed. So...I came home with the reddest pair of boots ever. I still have them and love when I get the opportunity to wear them.

Just felt the need to write down a few things about this. I will probably write more in the coming months as things progress. I don't know what God is up to with this Alzheimer's business...but I don't want to miss it by being so depressed and upset, whiney and mopey about it all. I want to relish the great moments and be sustained through the difficult times.