My phone.

This morning, I was sitting here looking thru the gallery on my phone and I thought geeeze, I've taken some pretty interesting pics lately! I think I'll share them! Actually, they are boring, which sums up the last few weeks here. We're all in a holding pattern awaiting May when Ash comes home and Britt's baby shower and July when the baby FINALLY gets here!

OHHH....last night Britt was laying on my bed and she said the baby was moving. SOOO, I figured I should start singing to her. So, I got real close to her belly and started singing the alphabet. LOUDLY. I got to..."Q R S..."and right after "S", she kicked the hardest she has yet! She loves me and my singing! Tonight, I think I'll get my guitar out and play Dueling Banjo's just for her!

Anyway...back to my boring pictures.

This pictures was taken after Ashley called me on Mike's birthday wondering if he received her card in the mail yet. I said, no, it hadn't come. SO, she asked if I was sure! SO, I took a picture of the mailbox and sent it to her cell phone.

Told you we're boring!

This next picture was taken at Mike's birthday party at his parents house across the street from our house.

His birthday is also St. Patricks Day, hence the decor.

He's 47. I'm 29.5.

This next picture I took at work the other morning. A co-worker brought in a sunflower she had bought for decor. I paired it with a cup of coffee and thought, how appropriate! Two happy things!

This next picture I took while sitting on a bench outside the hospital while I was on break.

I call it..."Spring Time in the Hospital Parking Lot". It looks empty, but we actually do have patients!

Last night, Court sang the Canadian and American Anthems at a hockey game last night. Britt, boys and friends all went too.

And lastly...I didn't take this next pic, but Ash sent it to me last night while I was at the hockey game. She was on duty.

I know you are wondering how is it possible for a mother and daughter to look SOOO much alike and I find it astounding as well. Wierd how genetics play out!

Welp, that's it for my current phone photos. After y'all finish yawning and scratching your heads, remember I said we were boring at the moment! At least I didn't post any Wal-Mart pics! ( I HAVE done that before!!!!)

Joan

Horse Show!!

Saturday was Courtney's very first ever HORSE SHOW! her boyfriend, Dillon and his family have coached, groomed, trained and placed Court on one of their horses for the show. Court's been working with Dillon's Mom for awhile now and Angie felt Court was ready.

Ain't the horse just beautiful! hee

Court was actually NERVOUS! She looked incredible as did Lady, the horse.

The family was there showing support!

Here is Court and Dillon's Mom, Angie competing together in one of the events.

here's another...

and another...

Here's two of her three ribbons...

Everyone had a great time. Mom and Dad was there too, but Mike didn't get a pic. I was at work, so Mike took alot of these photo's and Dad took alot too.

Here's a link to Dad's pics...

https://picasaweb.google.com/larry29662/CourtneyRides19March2011?authkey=Gv1sRgCOz_mZGbkfy29wE#

Here's a link to Mike's...

https://picasaweb.google.com/112298489614175847253/HorseShow031911#

There will be alot of shows this summer, so stay tuned!

More soon-

Joan

Mike's Birthday today!

AND, we're all going to the Tadpole tonight to eat suppppppper!!!! Darrell and Connie - we'll miss you!

I'll be taking pics there tonight and sharing with you tomorrow.

If you can tell, I've had very few posts lately. Most of that is due to how busy I've been, or lack of interesting material. But a part of that is I don't feel comfortable sharing Britt's pregnancy on here as I'm not sure who's reading it. Maybe NO ONE! hee!! But, it's really bothering me that I may be sharing dates, photos etc...that will be counter productive to her and eventually, the baby's privacy.

We, as a huge family, have "closed ranks" around her to protect her from the over-whelming stresses that comes along with her situation. The enormity of these stresses became too much for her recently, and we've had to restrict access to her....this is AT HER REQUEST.

My blog should be included too, since it is a way in.

So, I hate HATE to do this and I don't even know if it's necessary, but I will have to set my blog to invitation only to view it.

I've had my blog for years and have enjoyed it so much. I will be wanting to share photos, stories and our lives this year to everyone who wants to share with us. I DON'T want to have to worry what I'm posting and sharing to certain people who can find it just by a simple google search. I'm just grateful I have options over shutting it down.

SOO, soon, when you click on my blog you'll see a "invite" button to click on. CLICK ON IT!

I will be SOOO honored to add you to my peeps!

We're SOOO excited about allll the wonderful changes we'll all be having this year and I can't wait to add loads of pics!

Ashley is also coming home TWICE this year and I will be blabbing on and on about that too! ha

I hope you will join us!!!!

Joan

ZZZzzzz.....

For those of you who regularly check my blog for breathtakingly interesting blog updates, I'm SORRY! We really haven't done a thing after returning from Myrtle Beach, except work and watch Britt's belly get bigger! ha

She's so happy and getting so excited. Mike is getting the fever too and will begin remodeling the bathroom soon. I wish his Uncle Sonny was here to help, but Mike will make due. He was a mason in the Air Force, so he can't wait to lay some tile! I will take before, during and after pics of his progress. It will be gorgeous and perfect!

I'm beginning to plan the baby shower. I'm looking for a bigger place to have it. Our house has held 50+ people, but we're anticipating way over that at her shower, plus Mike may be in bathroom mid-renovation. SOOooo, the hunt is on for a larger in-door place. We could have it outside at our house, but if it rained, we'd be in a huge hurt!

We're also SOO excited about Ashley coming home in May. O.M.G. How much excitement can a person take with all this to look forward too in one year!

That's about it for the moment. I'm sure i've left a bunch out. OHHHH....I'm going with my parents next Tuesday to get my little sister, Abby Grace. She's being flown to Charlotte from Minnesota or Michigan or one of them "M" states up yonder. Anyways, she's half Cocker Spaniel and half Poodle! WE CANNOT WAIT! I'm sure all this happiness and excitement is taxable! hee

I don't have any pictures because I haven't taken any. I guess I could take a picture of the inside of Home Depot or Wal-Mart again or the dogs, but I haven't! ha

Hopefully something blog-worthy soon!

Joan

MYRTLE BEACH 2011!!!

We just returned from Myrtle Beach!!! That may not be a huge deal to most, but Mike HATES HATES the beach and for us to go was just amazing. We had the best time and had a blast!

So, it was just Mike, me, Britt and Court. Ash is on a cruise back to Seattle and sick as a dog! We hope she gets better soon!

OH...SHOUT OUT TO KORI on her boat! She's one my most fav. blog readers AND she's southern! WOOO-HOOOOOO!

Here are the girls posing...

that was taken at a place called Broadway on the Beach.

This next pic...hee hee...

Then I saw this in a store and took a pic of it....

reminded me of what Ashley is! haaaaaaaaaaaa

Here are some creepy fish that followed us around...they were HUNGRY and YES we fed them!

Finally, we went to the beach and it was SOOO foggy we couldn't see more than 20 feet in front of us.

These next few pics are very edited to lessen the fog...

Here they are feeding the birds too. Mike would throw Cheerios in the air and they would catch them in their beeks!

We just needed Ashley in this next pic to made it complete...almost! Except for Lillie too!

Ash...this is for you!

Here is Britt and Lillie...

and KORI...you asked for a belly shot!

Here is Britt at 20 weeks pregnant taken today!

haaaaaa!!!!

Here is a link to all the pics...

https://picasaweb.google.com/112298489614175847253/MyrtleBeach022011#

Gotta go! More soon!

Joan

A break....

As you guys can tell, I took a long break from blogging for awhile. The day after my last post, Mike's Mom called and said that Harold had taken a turn for the worse. The four of us took off to Laurens Hospital and we shared with the family Harold's life as he passed. He suffered so much with his cancer. I remember hearing Art and others say that the cancer didn't kill him, it saved him. That's true! The family has taken comfort in the knowledge and deep belief that he lives in each of us now.

He is in our hearts, always there to talk to, and he will be there when it's our turn!

Here is a pic I took several years ago in our back yard...

and I found this one too...

I can't speak for the others, but Courtney took it especially hard within my family. I took her to the Dr. and she was given reassurances that she is fine. She has leaned on her deep faith and wonderful memories she has of Harold, and she has come out even more beautiful and special.

Britt also took it hard, but she talked things out with us and she seemed to be OK. I'm very thankful the girls went thru this with the family and grieved with them, laughed at memories with them and cryed with them. It's a powerful bonding that will be with them forever.

Ashley begged to come home and even had the Coast Guard's permission to fly home when they reached their next port, but by then, it would have all been over with. She was allowed to call home from her ship and talked to us, which I think helped her get thru it. She called later to talk to her Grandma and Gt. Grandma Terry, which helped too. She's a strong girl and thankfully she seems to have gotten thru it all too.

Also, Irene passed away the same day as Harold. She was a permanent fixture at the Oolenoy pickin's and singin's we went to. She was also my grandparents next door neighbor. She was a wonderful lady I'm glad me and my family knew.

Sooooo, after all that, it was back to whatever normal is. Britt's ever expanding belly is expanding, my work is crazy as ever, Court is loving college life and doing great, Ash is back stateside going thru alot of training. She seems happy!

In fact, a week ago, they were in Costa Rica and she went mule riding and zip-lining!

GORGEOUS mule! BAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

Here she is zip-lining.

I think they had a great time!

Here are a few pics of her and her boat-mates that day...

Ash is center in gray tank-top.

here she is in the purple headed out with the girls...

here she is on the left. working.

and...

and here, she found a friend...

What a life!

The other night, we all went to Cheif's Wings place and Court did some karaoke singing. Britt went too and we had a pretty good time.

Well, apparently, TOO good a time because she wound up in the ER yesterday with fever, dehydration and just felt awful. I called her OB office and they said to take her in for IV fluids, which we did. After the second bag, she was feeling MUCH better. We got back home late last night and she went straight to bed. What a week so far!

Well, that's all the more interesting highlights from the last few weeks. We're all just emotionally drained and ready for this year to turn around and shine some happiness our way! Little Lillie will definitely be a huge part of that!

OH, Ash is coming home in May too for a few days! WOO-HOOO! We have missed her SO much and I know she has missed us. Maybe she'll be home to go to mine and Dad's semi-annual GUITAR RECITAL! HAAAAAAAAA!!!! I can't wait!

I'll post more regularly now that my break is over!

More soon!

Joan

Flowers and Veterans!

What a combo!

Last weekend Ash emailed and said to have Britt on stand by at the house for something special. GUESS WHAT SHE SENT???

They are absolutely beautiful and Britt was beyond touched and happy! Here Britt and Court are...

They are on our dining room table now just as beautiful as the day they arrived!

I was SOO proud!

I'm so proud at how they have banded together in support for Britt and Little Lillie! This will be a good year for all of us! Ashley's card that came with the flowers was just beautiful and my heart was just flooded with pride!

It's SOOO hard on Ash right now being away from the family with Harold being so sick and all the excitement surrounding Britt. We're proud of Ash being so strong and supportive!

Yesterday, Court was honored by the Veteran's Service Corps. for her strong service and dedication to all Veterans. She was presented with a certificate and lapel pin. I don't know when she was more proud of herself, but that was one of the top moments.

It was special!

Dad's gonna kill me for taking such terrible pictures, but there was no where to stand to get better ones. I'll get better!!!!

We also went to monster truck last night for Court to do the national Anthem.

Here is a great shot taken by Britt with her Blackberry....

We had incredible seats and had dirt sprayed all over us when the trucks spun their tires in front of us. SOOOOO cool! Mike, who was working, moved us to better seats and we had an awesome time!

That's it for the moment. We're headed to Ryan's steakhouse for the "all-you-can-eat buffet bar" breakfast then off to Laurens to see Harold.

If ALLL the pain and suffering that goes with cancer is a marker of how many jewels will be in our crown in heaven, then Harold won't be able to hold his head up for all the jewels that will adorn his crown. He has handled it with such dignity and also patience. The family is an inspiration to me as to how each family member leans on each other and gladly carries each other. I'm very privileged to be a part of this family.

Have a good day everyone and enjoy the sunshine! : )

LILLIE ELIZABETH ARNOLD

YES, she's having a girl! hee!!! When the ultrasound tech. double checked herself and announced her gender to us, we all just hollered! I couldn't have smiled and laughed any harder! After having 3 drama-filled, beautiful daughters, I just couldn't comprehend the thoughts of having a boy. Mike was probley even happier than me! He LOVES his girls!

So, the tech. gave us a CD filled with pics and a video of Lillie.

Here is Lillie pondering...."will I REALLY look just like my Grandma?"

Here is little Lillie twiddling her thumbs, wishing she had something to read to pass the time....

and here is Lillie sending us a message...

Yes, she is beautiful and DEFINITELY looks like ME! ha! Poor Brittany is already tired of me comparing her to me! Britt says she's gonna have blonde wavy hair. whatev.

I don't have any other photos to add because I haven't taken any!

Ash is doing really good! Her cutter seized and captured last month!

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13th Coast Guard District Public Affairs

U.S. Coast Guard

News Release

Date: January 13, 2011

Contact: 13th District Public Affairs

(206) 220-7237

News Release: Coast Guard seizes cocaine, rescues suspected smugglers in Eastern Pacific Ocean

EASTERN PACIFIC – The Coast Guard Cutter Midgett seized approximately four kilograms of cocaine from the 35-foot vessel, Laurie Alena, over 450 miles off the coast of Guatemala, Dec. 16, 2010.

The Laurie Alena was intercepted due to suspicion of drug trafficking involvement. When the Midgett neared the vessel, the Laurie Alena began to sink forcing the crew to abandon ship and use debris for floatation.

Two crewmembers of the Laurie Alena were quickly pulled to safety aboard the cutter using life rings. The other was saved by the Midgett’s rescue swimmer.

Four approximately kilogram-sized packages, testing positive for cocaine, were recovered from the vessel’s wreckage.

The cutter Midgett is home ported in Seattle, Wash. and conducts missions in homeland security, search and rescue, maritime law enforcement, and drug and alien migrant interdiction operations in the Bering Sea and Central American waters.

For more information, contact Ensign Nasaria Valadez, via e-mail, at Nasaria.E.Valadez@uscg.mil.

VERY Proud of her and everyone on her boat/ship!

OH, I also wanted to share a quote I read this morning on Facebook by one of my BFF's...

Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and

those that matter don't mind (dr. Seuss)

Welllll, I need to get going. Wal-Mart is a callin'! hee

Have a great day!

Court's First Day of College

So, as I did last year, I captured the moment! Court's first day of something. Last year, it was her first day of her Senior year, now it's her first official day of college.

Awww....

She looks so cute and collegiate!

Another exciting bit of news, which will come this afternoon...we find out if Britt's having a GIRL or boy. Get that! GIRL.....or boy. hee

Britt has been craving SOUR SOUR SOUR and hot. She thinks boy, her Daddy and I think girl. We've had over 22 years of "drama queen" girls in the house and it's all we know. I will update this afternoon after we get back from the 4D ultrasound! SOOO excited!

Ash emailed me earlier and she's doing good! She says it's really hot where she is and on her boat...which, except for the berthing area, isn't AIR CONDITIONED! WHAAAAAAAAAA???

She said it's been around 95 degrees. Hopefully, in the next couple of weeks, they will be back in an area where we can talk and txt and junk! hee

We've been so busy lately. We went to Charlotte this past weekend for a wedding of epic proportions. It was fanTABulously beautiful, big and the food was great too. Court sang in her first Catholic wedding, which was a HUGE change in what she was used to. It was a definite learning experience, but a good one and everyone at the Catholic church was SO nice to her. She sang Ave Maria and 3 other songs and they were beautiful, if I do say so myself!!!! We were just glad to get back home and getting Court ready for school.

Britt had her first sewing class last night and made a GORgeous pillowcase. I will take a pic of her holding it up after she gets dressed. She did a great job.

That's it for the moment. Stay tuned!!!!

SNOW 2011!

I want to give a shout out to all my Blog BFF's on the USCGC Midgett...HEYYYYY!!!!!! KORI- you're the best!!! Ashley - We LOVE YOU!

IT"S SNOWING! and alot too! Mike and I braved the back porch this morning to take a snow total picture. This was at 7:45am.

Mike wanted me to take his picture too....

Here is the back yard...

and Britt's truck...

It was cold and I was in my bedroom shoes, so I went back inside the house! hee

I'll take more pics soon and post them!

It's been a few days or more since I last posted. I didn't really take any pics recently, AND I had a terrible stomach virus AND I had to work some, so now I'm back to normal again! : )

I just took this picture of the dogs frolicking in the back yard, building a snowdog....

HAAAAAAA!!!! They wish!

Well, let me go look out the window some more. ASHLEY is calling home today, so I am beYOND happy!

More soon!