These are our good friends Dave and Anne.....we first met around eleven or twelve years ago where we camp every summer...a camp that is called Fairhavens Bible Conference grounds.....they have their trailer permanently there also. Dave and Anne are around the same age as hubby and I ...they were also foster parents for a lot of years, just as we were, they have biological children and many adopted kids, just as we do......we have many things in common....there aren't very many couples that can truly relate to what we are going thru with our lifestyle and kids....they are going thru the same thing....it's truly a wonderful friendship.

Last week Dave was diagnosed with a very aggressive form of prostrate cancer.....they'll be going thru more testing...bone scan and cat scan to see if it has spread....please pray that it hasn't ...please pray that it is contained and the doctors can remove ALL of it....

Thanks.

Location:Our Friends

Mothering

Good Morning Company Girls!

Ya, it's me again...I haven't fallen off the face of the earth just yet...but somedays I wish I could....

Pretty well all of my married life I've been a mom.....we were married in '73 and eldest daughter was born in '74.....and so it started.....in '80, my brother and sister- in-law asked me to look after their little guy, 3 months old.....so every work day til he was 18 months old (and mom had the next babe) little Daniel was part of our lives....and I became his 'other' mom......in '83 a wee little girl came into our home...her name was Tanya and her mom was a single mom with a lot of problems....every few weeks we'd get a call from the mom...and out Tanya would come...sometimes in the middle of the night, delivered by a good friend....the first time she came I didn't even have a place for her to sleep...we cleared out hubby's dresser drawer, lined it with soft blankets and put her in it....every time Tanya came she looked pale and worried..within a couple of days her cheeks were rosy and her eyes sparkling. It was also at this time that I was introduced to a woman who was a foster parent. Hubby and I decided that if we could help other kids like Tanya then maybe we should become a foster parent.....and we did. That started a stretch of 19 years of fostering approximately 25 kids....some just for a few weeks...some for years.....I learned that there were all different kinds of mothers out there....some to be admired and some gave you nightmares .....some were only thinking of themselves, never putting their childrens' needs before their own....spending their welfare cheques on everything but their children. It opened up our eyes to a whole different world out there.

If you've read my blog at all in the past then you already know that we adopted 7 of the 25 that came through the front door. Every child was a different circumstance....two were new born, one had been in 4 other foster homes before he came to us...and he was 2-1/2 years old! One was almost 4 and another was abandoned at age 3.....one turned 7 the day before she came and one came on her 10th birthday.....we never went into fostering with the idea of adopting....but it does get into the back of your mind when you see these little kids , and they become part of your home, your family...your heart....

It doesn't matter what we do...or they do...or don't do....they are still your kids....you're still their mom.....whether they keep in touch with you all the time....every once in awhile or only in emergency (like when the hospital calls in the middle of the night saying your kid is there). The other night we had a horrible night with Emma.....verbal and physical abuse...no, not from us, from her ..to us....later after she was in bed, I went into speak to her...as I was leaving her, I stroked the side of her face...wondering what happened to that little girl that came when she was just seven, wondering what her future would hold for her.....

I came out of the room and one of the other kids said to me....why...why did you do that...after what she did.....I said ...what, do what....she said....talk to her and stroke the side of her face.....

......because...no matter what she does...I'm still her mother...she's still my daughter....just like the others....no matter what they do....

You start this mothering journey all wide eye and innocent...never dreaming that the hard days will be so hard....that the hurt sometimes will be more than you can bear....you just see this tiny baby...this little child....they burrow into your heart and never leave....it doesn't matter whether you personally gave birth to them or some other woman did....

I've been a mom for thirty-seven years....yes, I've done other things....a statistical typist, invigilator, Creative Circle demonstrator(needlework), a Sunday school teacher and director..a VBS director for 10 years, a foster parent, a babysitter, a fundraiser, ...many positions and some I know i've forgotten ....but I'll never stop being a mom...even though there are days when I don't want to be...when I want to run away from home and if I hear 'mom' called one more time ( especially through the bathroom door) I'll scream.....
.......it's the position you never walk away from, you never get a day off from....that you never stop being.....a mom....plain and simple.



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It's Been Awhile......

Since I have posted anything....life has been unbelievingly exhausting the last few weeks.....but let me share with you something so beautiful, so wonderful.....it just brightens your whole day and makes you forget all the yuckies that you encounter just too many times in one day.....this is Samuel's very first genuine smile....


Isn't it wonderful?.....Doesn't it just make you smile yourself?

Those are the special moments that you just have to hold onto....when the world around you is just crashing...and no one has any answers....you just have to look at little Samuel and just breathe....

Some other things...our eldest daughter and her husband have sold their house and hopefully in the next few weeks they'll be able the break ground on their new house!

Number two....the quilting group at our church, a group that I'm proud to say I am part of....we held a fundraiser ..a fundraiser to help our grandson get enough money to help pay for some very special therapy that will hopefully help with his speech therapy...we raised just over $5000!!!

Number three...my grandson, the same one featured in the last paragraph has made a video for a Kraft peanut butter contest. The winner wins $10,000!!!! If they had won my daughter had wanted to use the winnings to help her son (my grandson) to get the therapy he needs...but since our fundraiser was able to do that and my grandson has enough for his special therapy, my daughter decided that another little girl named Esme....who really needs some very expensive therapy for autism could really benefit from having this prize money to pay for her therapy...it costs a lot of money but it's really good...I think it's thru the Sonrise Foundation....anyways, you can go on the website and vote for my grandson's video...it's called Nightraider.....please do that...you can vote everyday...please help Esme to get her special therapy.....the link is www.kraftpeanutbutter.com/en/contest/gallery/107/
...."please vote EVERYDAY..".we need Jairus' video...Nightraider to win...it only takes a few moments each day...and even if you have multiple computers, iPad or blackberry/iPhone...you can vote several times by going on each electronic...please help a little girl with autism...she's also legally blind and suffers from seizures.


Number four...daughter Maya got a job...up here in Canada there is a well known donut coffee shop called Tim Horton's...she got a job there...she has her very first shift tomorrow! This mama is very happy about it all!

These good things are the things to try and focus on...they kind of help when you think about the frustrating battles with Emma....

...the fact that she comes home smelling high and of cigarettes...
...the fact that she starts a co-op job from school but only shows up to it 2 out of 6 days....they let her go
....the fact that she went to school one morning and we didn't see her til the next morning...at school...when I went to talk to her...to see if she was still alive....
....the fact that I had to finally say to her that we were done...that her dad and I couldn't do this anymore....(either can her sisters and brother who are still at home)
....the fact that I told her that if she wanted to obey the rules of the house that she could come home
....the fact that after we finally thot we were done, we really weren't...when the police call you in the middle of the night to ask if they can bring her home...

....the fact that she's still coming home after curfew but is now telling us lie after lie to try and convince us that she had a legitimate reason for being late...

......the fact that we've been parents for 37 years and we've heard all the lies and we believe none of them

....the fact that one Saturday night..when we weren't wondering about Emma that we get a call...our son who is an alcoholic..got in a fight and was at the hospital with is face slashed....another midnight run to the hospital....


So......scroll back up to the top..take a good long look at that smile...isn't that the most wonderful smile you've ever seen....




Please vote for Nightraider.....every day...please....help Esme....you don't have to give money...just a click...everyday til the contest is done...please.

....and so it goes on.....

Good Morning Company Girls!

So...it's been an interesting week this first week back at school.....can I leave home now? Oh, the drama.....

Last weekend was unbelievable....a roller coaster...well, maybe more like a drop tower of emotions...in a nut shell....on friday night it was confirmed that Emma indeed has been going out her bedroom window after hubby and I go to bed quite regularly....(I actually waited in her room for her to come back....from 2-3:15am).... Then, after we talked to her about it and then sent her to bed she took an overdose of megan's ADHD medication....rushed her to the hospital...spent the next 15 hours there while they neutralized the meds and had her see social workers and psychiatrists......came home and the next day hubby and I had to head up north to bring Maya home from her summer camp job....spent a lovely overnite in a hotel....went on the next day ..picked up Maya...then went onto Parry Sound to see our youngest grandkids and their parents....poor parents....wee Samuel has developed colic.....parents are already soooo sleep deprived that they are having difficulty functioning......oh, I remember those days so well...the nightmare that never seems to end..( now we just have the teen version)....the fun just keeps coming people!

Tuesday, school started...the coldest back to school day I think I've ever experience.....it's like over night, summer left!

Emma continued on her merry path.....coming home after curfew two nights in a row, going to a store and stealing some clothes ( she keeps doing this...one day I hope someone catches her). Constantly lying, Threatening to either kill herself or move out....

Maya had been giving us a hard time....she needs to get a job,....so far, she hasn't made any attempts, spending all day long watching movies and tv shows on YouTube....we keep telling her she is an adult now but she's resisting....I guess her teen years are a more comfortable place to be right now..so that's a battle we don't need....

Megan and Ben are back in the swing of things in their special needs classroom...this is the last for Ben...he should graduate next June...special needs kids can stay in school til their 21....which he'll be next march.....Emma should also graduate since she only needs the credits from this semester to graduate....this is her second year at grade 12, which isn't unusual in Ontario....a good amount of kids do it in two years...makes you wonder why they thot it was such brilliant idea to do away with grade 13!

Anyways, today I must drive to my chiropractor and pick up some digestive pills...yes, I know what you are thinking....it's not a wonder that this old woman needs help with her digestion!

Then come home and this afternoon pick up two grand girlies from an art class cause their mama is tied up at a teacher's meeting to bring teacher up to speed about how our oldest grandson functions.....Jairus is non verbal and delayed by a few years and once again the school and school board have cut his education assistance even more...now it's one third day, every other day...and they're insisting he takes French....French!! The poor guy is having a hard enough time with English! So, I'll get my grand girls, come home and make supper for 8 people...son Paul is going back to the army base after his summer leave and him and his girl Sara, will be here for supper. Than the kids have been yammering about going to youth group tonight...not real sure if they'll get there or not...all depends if hubby and I can find the energy after the week we've had...and so life in this household as it is, moves on.....leave you with a couple of pictures....sweet Samuel and the kids first day back to school pic...good grief...just thot...next September it should just be Megan in the pic.....yes!...things are moving along aren't they?

Have a good one ladies!





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The Last Week of Summer

Good Morning Company Girls!

Ah yes....I'm very well aware that summer doesn't officially end for a couple of more weeks...but...I'm still a mom of kids going back to school this Tuesday and to this mom, summer is done this weekend....I've often wondered when I don't have kids going 'back to school' whether I'll finally be able to change my thinking..I don't know ...it has been over 30 years of sending kids 'back to school'...time will tell I guess.

I'm looking forward to getting back into the routine again...of having my days to myself...except for the never-ending appointments with the kids.....it will be nice to have the kids actually doing something with their days instead of staring, open mouthed at the television!

Maya comes back home on Monday! In the last year she's been home two months....I think there will be some adjustments to be made...on all our parts...I spent all day last saturday getting her room ready....Maya is a hoarder...that really is an ugly name isn't it? Let's say that she just likes to keep things....everything.....I was ruthless and I really hope she doesn't get upset with me....maybe she won't notice the tag from a pair of work gloves...old candy canes....valentine cards...
cards of all sorts....running shoes that were worn to death....a plethora of unmatched socks with gigantic holes in them....school reports that she handed in 3-4 years ago....and the list goes on....and she has the smallest room in the house...about 8 x 9......so, her room is definitely cleaner than when she left....someone said I should take a picture cause when she returns, with all her stuff it probably won't look like that again! I hope..that it will be good to have her home....she really is a pretty good kid...with a smile that lights up her whole face....we'll see how next week goes.

The grandkids are suppose to be coming and staying overnite tonight....their mom and dad have to travel to a city a couple of hours away first thing in the morning so, they will stay with us...it's actually a pretty good trade cause hubby had some Marriott hotel points saved up so instead of spending Monday going up north to get Maya and coming back on the same day....we plan on leaving on Sunday, going to a town not too far away from Maya...staying the night...going to pick her up on Monday...then travel to Parry Sound,..another hour away...Maya hasn't seen new little Samuel yet...and she's dying to...Maya loves the babies....then....we'll make the 3 hour trek back home....that will be much, much longer since it's the end of the holiday weekend and EVERYONE will be coming down from up north....it's safe to say that it will most definitely take longer than the three hours! All this to say.....daughter and family will stay at our house Sunday night...to keep an eye on our teens and dogs in a trade off to us looking after their kids tonight and tomorrow....sounds good, right?

That's about all for now.....Emma was up to her usual tricks this week...but you really don't want to hear about that..suffice to say..if your a praying person that we could really use some!

Take care and have a lovely long weekend!


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Good Morning Company Girls!

So, I've been back home for almost a week now. It's been a quiet one, well besides the usual junk that Emma hands out. Somedays she's just been acting very weird...only speaking when she absolutely needs to and when she does in an extremely quiet voice, barely above a whisper. She stays in bed every day til 3 pm. And then gets up to go to her friend's house, til 9 pm....except for one night when she kept sending me text messages asking to stay overnight. My phone was off, it was charging. Instead of coming home when she didn't receive a reply she stayed past her curfew. Finally, when I turned my phone on, I sent her one back, telling her to please come home now....she took her time and sauntered in at 11 pm..a half an hour later. We spoke....or rather I spoke....she sat and stared at me like a zombie. I told her there would be a consequence for her action. She asked what...I told her that i'd tell her the next day ( I didn't need her going to her room and cutting just because she was upset over the consequence). I did entertain the idea of not letting her go to her friends the next day...but that would be like shooting myself in the foot.....so the next day I told her that because she chose to come home two hours late that tonight she must come home two hours early...amazingly that was accepted without weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth! She had a few other things she did, but I've mentioned enough......I really do love Emma and I care what happens to her but she's really pushing the limits.....

This week I spent a couple of days emptying my fiction book shelf, cataloguing and entering their ISBN's onto a computer program called Readerware....it would have been easier with a scanner, but I don't own one....and some of my books are so old that I had to individually google some books to get their numbers. So, after two days of that...and dealing with all the dust.....I'm embarrassed to say, some books hadn't moved in 3 years and thus hadn't been dusted....but 404 books later...my fiction books are done! Now to get the energy to do the non-fiction...some of those are still packed away since our Reno 5 years ago...I think I'll sort through and purge some of those....after all, if I've done without for 5 years I imagine there are some that I don't need anymore! My fiction ones are a different story....there's like old friends...some even hrad my maiden name in the flyleaf....and I've been married 37 years! Good friends for sure!

Had a few conversations with DIL Jenn this week....Samuel is doing well, gaining weight...although not letting her get much sleep...which we all know is compounded by having an active toddler in the house...and William is ACTIVE! He's an extremely smart little boy and is not content to let the world come to him! I wish I could still be up there but hubby really needed my help at home. He's not been well for over a month now...has been to the doctor's twice.....since iVe been home I've been plying him with vitamins and other pills my chiropractor has me on for healthy digestive system...he grumbles and complains about taking them but I think he's starting to feel better....he says he just needed me home...sweet talker, he is....
I miss my boys! But glad to be back with this one....


My hubby...he's a keeper.....


William...


Don and William...


On our walk to the beach....


William....


THE most comfy position for Samuel....


- son ryan and his son...............Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

My week in Parry Sound....

Good Afternoon Company Girls! I was a little busy going to the beach with daughter-in-law, Jenn and grandsons William and Samuel to post this morning but everyone is napping at the moment so here's my chance!

It's been a very good week, albeit a little tiring....okay, really...I'm 60......what do you want from me....I do realize just why the good Lord made our bodies to NOT reproduce at this age....good grief....toddlers and new borns can wear you out!

Samuel has been a very good baby....so far.....I think Ryan and Jenn are waiting for the other shoe to drop, as the saying goes. He sleeps well and is even content to just lie in his bassinet when he's awake. Once Jenn got him staying awake long enough to nurse, he started to do very well at that too.

William , the explorer,...always on the go....tries hard to be a good big brother...bringing him his blanket when he needed to sleep...or a book to read....unfortunately Samuel didn't always appreciate his thoughtfulness or exuberance with which William presented his gifts!
I will be glad to get home to be with my hubby again but I will miss these little guys. A couple of mornings William and I would go down to the bay to see the tugboats at the pier.....the weather was perfect and we had some special times....even though Parry Sound is a very hilly place...everywhere you walk there are hills to go up and down so my leg muscles got a work out as well as my pitiful arm muscles pushing the stroller....man, I'm out of shape!

Now, if I can do this again, I'll try to put some pictures up....

Samuel.....and William





























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