It's been a looooong winter! I keep telling my self spring is just around the corner. I think we have earned the right to have a really nice spring. Often our springs are so short and rainy and we jump right in to summer. I would love a nice, sunny,warm, open up the windows because there's no humidity, isn't it nice we got a quick spring shower for the tulips type spring. asking too much? I don't think so. Hopefully the Big 10 Tournament and March Madness will be enough to make the time pass til that beautiful weather arrives. And it will, hope "springs" eternal!

Well, sick again. I haven't been sick for soooo long and then twice in a few short weeks. Both times, Mike is out of town. I think I'm on the downhill side of it. Looking forward to Monday, and getting back in the swing of things. Seems like just when I'm ready to get on a roll and get some things accomplished I get interrupted. Next Sunday we will leave for Tupelo Ms. for just three days but I am really looking forward to seeing a friend I haven't seen since we lived in Chattanooga. Wow, that was about 25 years ago. It will be fun to catch up with her.

We will soon be celebrating Cora's first birthday. I can't believe how quickly this first year passed. She is absolutely adorable and has stolen everyone's heart.

Not quite sure what is happening to OSU's great season. Two losses now. You just never know from game to game this year. So many really good teams, not really great ones. March will be fun.

I guess that's it for my thoughts today, sorry so random.

I don't like it when hubby is gone, don't like it at all. After all these years, you'd think I would get used to it but no. However, I have learned that the right frame of mind and plenty of projects makes it somewhat easier. We are going to redecorate our powder room and I am trying to purchase the new items. Overwhelming to say the least but fun too. I also have a scrapbook to finish but I am relying on someone who will remain nameless for some pics that I need. This might be the first one not completed for the birthday party. I know, I know... not the end of the world. I'm having dinner with friends tonight so yes, I am staying busy. Unfortunately market has started with some difficulties but with a lot of prayer and phone pep talks we'll make it. I'm so glad that after 36+ years of marriage, I still miss him.

Back again from Puerto Rico. A very nice week but I can fill my days up with hammocks and poolside for just so long. I love coming home and yesterday we filled up the house once again with beautiful, adorable kids. We finally took Trey for his promised birthday lunch. We enjoyed Five Guys burgers and Graeters at Easton. He is such a fun kid. He seems to be holding on to the little giggle that makes him so endearing. He loves it when Paps picks on him and he loves to pick back, always trying to get one up on his funny Paps. It is really fun to take one at a time and have the time to move in close and really talk and really listen. I often say that I wish they would just stop growing, it is happening so quickly right before my eyes. But.... there is something really exciting about watching and wondering who they will become. One thing for sure, nobody has grand-kids like MY grand-kids!!

Now the sad news. Yes, it happened. We all knew it would. OSU lost to Wisconsin. They gave up a huge lead. I'll just say one thing - Jordan Taylor. Hope they are ready for Mich. St. Hopefully we can win out. Soon it will be selection Sunday and March Madness!! Yes!! Go Bucks.

Cold Sunday morning. Austin was at the emergency room again and with Daddy gone, it was stressful on Nicole, so I was on the phone with her a lot. He's fine after another steroid treatment. He even told his mommy (at two o'clock in the a.m.) " that was fun!" He was telling the nurse about his "baby Coya". I don't know how many furniture markets I have lived through, but I still don't like them. They are the biggest necessary evil in my life. But....once more, I will persevere! February would be brutal if it wasn't for my wonderful husband taking me to Puerto Rico again. I am so looking forward to the sun and sand. I need to find a good book to take and update my i-pod.
I really do have a lot of projects to accomplish, Cora's book not being the least of these. Can't believe she will soon be a year.

We are in the dark days of winter and it is turning out to be a tough one. It hasn't hit our home yet (knock on wood) but my poor daughter has had more than her share. She is the only one in the family that hasn't gotten some sort of illness yet. I really hope they can get past this soon. It ha been far too long since I have seen them and tomorrow is the last basketball game for Riley and Trey. The latest casualty is Riley and he is so upset at the prospect of missing his final game. I worked for hours today trying to find the right house for our beach vacation. Hope we made a good choice. As I look out at the snow and cold, I remind myself that before we know it we will be at the beach once again. Sometimes as I get up in the morning, light the fireplace, turn on the winter lights in my dining room and prepare for another day, I feel a little overwhelmed at how quickly each new day rolls around. I feel as if I am in a very strange chapter of my life. Not bad, just different. I really can't put my finger on it, sometimes I just wonder if I am doing enough with my days to make them count. I hope I leave something behind that has some eternal value.

December 29th, 2010. I turn 58. Amazing. Amazing that I'm 58, it's hard to wrap my brain around that. Amazing that I have been blessed with far more than I deserve. An amazing husband that makes me laugh and always has my back. An amazing daughter that has such a huge part of my heart and blesses me with a smile that lights up my life. An amazing son that has the art of making me laugh just seeing him walk into a room. Two children that I could not be more proud of and all the while they literally make life worth living. You really don't want me to start talking about the grandchildren. Just suffice it to say that I really don't need Christmas or birthday presents... I have 5 that make any gift look trivial. I am still blessed with a mother that has loved me unconditionally all my life. I can't forget my sister who becomes dearer to me with each passing year. A son-in-law and daughter-in-law that love my children and are sharing life with them in a beautiful way. Yes, I am amazingly blessed far beyond what I deserve.

I have a very special song that reminds me of my grandkids everytime I hear it. It's called "You Make Me Smile". The highlight of my Christmas was watching the boys as I played each of them their own DVD made up of pictures that I have taken through the years. Thanks to my friend Jen for doing all the techy stuff I could have never done. I will have pictures playing in my mind of each of them for the rest of my life. Hopefully this is something they can carry with them as they grow to remind them of how much they made me smile. Yes, we had another beautiful Christmas and I'm looking forward to another wonderful year with the unbelievable family that has so blessed my life. Happy New Year.

Another Christmas, it's hard to believe. Seems as if we just began 2010 and it's almost gone. I love to watch the movie Christmas Vacation. I always relate to the father who has such high expectations of Christmas. I always want it to be perfect and while it never is, I can't remember a Christmas in my life that wasn't beautiful. I have such wonderful memories of each chapter of my life. My Dad loved Christmas probably as much as I do. He was always sad when it was over. I've had times of let-down and even dread as I enter a new year. Not sure why, just a melancholy feeling here and there. But as I get older, I look forward to each new year, even each new day. I am such a blessed person, and there is so much to look forward to no matter what 2011 brings.

December 16th, the birthday of Trey Ryan Stetler. Absolutely one of God's most precious creations. This child is so smart it's scary and at the same time so full of love and compassion, there are times he doesn't know what to do with everything he is feeling. A beautifully sensitive little boy whose eyes see and understand more than most his age. No matter how old he is, his Nana will always remember him like this.

I love reading my daughter's blog right now. They have moved to the country on 9 acres of mostly wooded land. They are blissfully happy and so enjoying the new environment. I am adjusting to the fact that they are an hour away. I love the drive getting there. It is so scenic and quiet. It's actually a nice little getaway for me. And now, they are just far enough away that they often stay a night or two. LOVE IT!! In fact they will be coming for Trey's birthday party this week-end, AND....spending the night. That reminds me, I better get the flannel snowman sheets on their bed.

What a wonderful Thanksgiving. For the first time in awhile, Kerri, Eric and the kids came and stayed a couple nights. It was packed full of fun, food and shopping. I love my house, it's nicely decorated, very traditional, nothing fancy. But what I love the most is when the family comes and we really live in it. It doesn't bother me that the pink rocking horse in the nursery mysteriously became adorned with too of my very nice pieces of jewelry or that I'm quite sure I will be digging crayons and m&m's from under my furniture for some time to come. And of course I will need to meet Kerri to give her the bag of personal items her husband left in the bathroom. (They always think they have everything!) Mike and Nicole and Austin came to help us celebrate and Mom and Jen rounded out the table. Nothing like tables overflowing with food and people you love to share it with. We took Cora Jean on her first Black Friday shopping trip and of course she LOVES shopping. She seems to love being on the go and being around people. Wonder where she gets that from? The boys got new shoes from Paps and we rounded it off with an OSU basketball win. Today consists of relaxing, cleaning and putting up the tree!!! Merry Christmas!!

I took my second water aerobics class for arthritis today. We were in one corner of the pool, a small group of women of which I was probably the youngest. We were trying to use the water to increase our flexibility. Some were cold and some really didn't want to be there. Behind us was a group consisting of mostly mommies, one daddy and their little ones. They were walking around in circles, tossing the little ones in the air and delighting in their giggles. They were using the water to make memories. Seems only yesterday I was at that stage of life. On the far side of the pool was a group of muscular twenty-somethings training together as a swim team. I just found it all very interesting - chapters of life.

Where did this week go? Oh, I remember, the hospital with Mom. Quite a week. It seems Mom had an infection that as she would say, "laid her low". She's home now and she will have some extra help for awhile. I sometimes think my mom hears me "preaching " at her so often, she turns me off. Someone else giving her some advice and guidelines will help us both.

Today is the first OSU basketball game. Excited to see the new freshmen and always enjoy spending the time with my husband. Then we'll see what the new week will bring. You just never know.

My daughter has given me three unbelievable little boys and my son added another one to the mix. I have been very happy buying spiderman and star wars figures and dressing them in outfits that make them look like mini duplicates of their fathers. I have often pinched myself because they have given me so much joy. Then..... God chose to bless us with the most adorable, angel-faced little God you have ever seen. I really think sometimes I have more than I deserve in these wonderful children. I love you Cora Jean.

Well, it happened. That horrible thing that ruins everybody's week-end and makes Monday morning even worse. Yes, it happened, Ohio State lost. I chuckle everytime this happens anymore, because I remember a season a few years ago when we followed the Buckeyes from a hospital room. We were counting our blessings that our son was still with us, and hoping he would be able to live a somewhat normal life after a terrible car accident. My husband was sitting by his bed reading the editorials and came across one that referred to a recent loss as if it was the end of his world. My husband replied to that letter and his was also published in the paper. When things like that happen, your world is turned upside down and when you come out of it, you realize you look at things from a completely different perspective. You are never the same. So... the Buckeyes lost, I went to bed and had a peaceful night sleep and the sun woke me up this morning and all is o.k. My kids and grandkids are happy and healthy, and life continues. I think I have figured out what is really important.

I leave tomorrow for a week-end in my favorite place - Nashville Indiana. Kerri and I are taking little Cora. I'm so excited. This has become such a special place, so many memories. This week-end will be a brand new one as I have a granddaughter to take. I'm sure it will be only the first of many such trips. I'm sure we will do a lot of the same things (my daughter and I love traditions) such as lunching at the Hob Nob, cherry and strawberry flavored cokes and searching for some fun things to take home to fill our homes with memories from a very special place. What a wonderful gift God gives us - our ability to make memories.

Then towards the end of October, we will be going to another beautiful place with special friends. I was determined to get my husband someplace relaxing after fall market, a little down time to relieve the stress. We will be spending a few days in Pinehurst, a beautiful golfing community. My favorite time to play golf is fall and doing it with friends that mean so much makes it even better.

We will be spending New Years in Oklahoma visiting my sister and her family. It's always nice to have be able to look forward to special times with family and friends. And of course the best time of the year is coming up, another holiday season. It rolls around so quickly.

Looking forward to a wonderful week-end. It's finally fall in Columbus...I love it. I took an OSU dress up to Cora yesterday and we found her a headband to match. Watch a little football today and then maybe shop for carpet for the house on Dunbarton. Church and golf with friends tomorrow, a little slower pace than last week-end. It was so good to see my sister, I really miss her. We planned a visit to OKC in December. Life is good. I have several photo projects I need to jump on before time gets away from me. I really need to work on my motivation.

Home from Puerto Rico. Very relaxing and so good to have time to spend with my husband. Also quite an experience to sit by a pool and hear God's voice so clearly, it brings you to tears. Luckily the pool was very empty and nobody noticed. They were good tears, healthy tears, growing tears, listening to my Father speak to me of things I needed to hear.

Now it's time to get ready for fall. My sister and my aunt nd cousin are coming this week-end. I have a couple days to get ready and I'm trying to get the fog out of my head from a late night flight home. It should be a wonderful week-end.

I had a good week. God is teaching me a lot right now. Slowing down, appreciating everything the moment is bringing me, and holding loosely to this world. I think I was beginning to get so caught up with the things God blesses me with, I was losing sight of the things He has in store for me. It's very tricky to live each day to the fullest, and count your blessings and not forget that this is just the journey, not the destination.

Looking forward to worship today, and then spending time with my husband. Then another week, hopefully getting some picture projects done. Looks like it's going to be beautiful weather.