That which was lost is found.....

Bailey came downstairs at 5:30 this morning, eyes swollen from crying and announces she has something she has to tell me. She has lost my engagement ring. The one Andy gave me 26 years ago this month when he asked me to marry him. She had found it in my jewelry box months ago and asked if she could wear it and I told her yes.

We retraced her steps (she had already torn her room and bathroom apart) and she remembered having it at Starbucks last Friday. She was in the bathroom and took it off to wash her hands (who takes off their rings to wash their hands?!). She thinks she left it on the sink.

So I call Starbucks at 6:00 am. Chris tells me they did find a ring, but she can't get into the safe to see if it's the same one. She tells me to call back at 10:00. I call back at 10:00 and talk to Chris again. They get into the safe, I describe the ring, and yes! It's MY ring!

I picked it up after work today and literally broke down in tears when they handed it to me. They have no idea who the honest soul was that turned it in, but I am forever grateful to that person.

Tiring Weekend....

Weekends are supposed to be for relaxing, right? Well, then I think I should get a do-over.

I got a phone call at 4:00 am on Saturday...Guy was taking Ashley to the ER so could I come over and stay with Ethan? Of course! Colin was his "other" grandpa's in Vincennes. She ended up needing emergency surgery (I won't go into details here) and they didn't get home until later that evening. I spent the night so that I could take care of the boys...Colin had made it home by then....and so that they could both get a good night's sleep.

I came home around noon on Sunday, with Colin in tow. He wanted to see his Papaw. He spent the night last night. Andy is going to take him to pre-school today and then he is going to go spend the day with Ashley to help with the baby.

I did finish reading "To Kill a Mockingbird" on Saturday. It was good. I wouldn't say it's the best book I've ever read, but it was good. I'm glad I read it. Now I'm going to have to watch the movie, according to Andy anyway. LOL

Thanksgiving is over......my feasting is showing up on the scales this morning. Yay.

The Day After Thanksgiving....

It's Friday, but we just had our traditional Thanksgiving dinner with Andy's family tonight......loud, rambunctious and lots of fun. A house full of kids, including 5 new baby boys born into the family this year.....we all have a lot to be thankful for.

We're still reeling from the death of Andy's brother. The official results still aren't in. We are anxious to see what the toxicology reports state. We just found out he was taking Chantix and, in extremely rare cases, can cause extreme depression, suicidal tendencies and unnatural aggression. The officers at the scene are saying it's likely that alcohol was a factor.....I am praying it wasn't.

Bailey made it home from National Youth Convention today just in time for the family dinner. She had a great time but I missed her so much while she was gone.

Colin is spending the night with his other grandparents, so he wasn't at dinner. But Ashley, Guy and Ethan were.....Ethan is the spitting image of Ashley when she was a baby. He is so adorable.....and tiny!

God has truly blessed Andy and I.

Tragedy

Andy's brother was killed last night in a car accident. We found out this afternoon that he hit another vehicle in the side, killing a mother and 4 of her children. The father and another child are in the hospital.

All reports so far indicate he was drunk. Witness say he must have had a "death wish" because he was driving down the wrong side of the road at speeds in excess of 80 mph and had run several other vehicles off the road.

Andy had lost contact with him after their father died (they are actually half brothers, same dad, different moms). Once the estate was closed and his brother received his part of the inheritance, we rarely saw him.

But we did love him. And I've learned through this that we need to stay in touch with our families and tell them we love them every chance we have.

When children disobey their parents, smoke cigarettes, and make war on each other, the seasons change....

A quote from To Kill a Mockingbird. Good gravy....if that were true, we'd have a new season every week! LOL I'm enjoying the book.....Scout is quite a character. I love the way it's written. I'm up to the part where Jem has to read to Ms. Dubose every day.

Bailey and I stopped by to see the boys yesterday. Colin just wants to pat Ethan on the head all the time (something for which his mother is constantly tell him to stop). But Ethan doesn't seem to mind....he just sleeps through it.

Mother/Daughter Day Out

Bailey and I went shopping yesterday and had such a great time. She is leaving for National Youth Convention in Nashville, TN, in the morning and wanted to try to find some new things to take with her.

I ended up buying myself a new sweater, a Snoopy fleece jacket (at KMart, no less!), a pair of snow boots, and a new black skirt. I spent way too much on myself, especially with Christmas coming up, but I just couldn't help myself. It was all stuff I needed.....well, except maybe the Snoopy jacket. LOL

I also started up with the sniffles yesterday. Yay me. :-(

To Kill a Mockingbird

One of Andy's favorite movies is "To Kill a Mockingbird". He was shocked years ago when he found out that I had never seen the move.....or read the book.

So today I have begun reading it. Of course, Andy said, "Why don't you just watch the movie? It won't take as long."

But I have a thing about books made into movies. The books are always better. I realized this the first time I read "Gone With the Wind". I had seen the movie several times and was shocked at how different (and better) the book was. If you just watch the movie, you are missing out.

I've made it through the first 3 chapters so far.

How cute is this?

Colin spent the night with us last night and we took him to the hospital this evening to see Mommy, Daddy and Ethan. Ethan started crying and Colin said, "I think he's say 'I want Colin!'".......too cute!

BTW - Ethan's feet are humongous....check out his footprints! And he is so adorable.

They are coming home tomorrow afternoon. We dropped Colin off at Nana's (Guy's mom) on our way home. I told Ashley I would make her roast and potatoes tomorrow for supper....her favorite meal.

Ethan David Fisher

Our newest grandson made his debut at 3:32 this afternoon, weighing in at 6 pounds, 2.7 ounces, and measuring 18.5 inches long. Lots of dark brown hair and absolutely adorable, of course.

Ashley was admitted to the hospital at 6:00 am. They were "insanely chaotic" - apparently lots of babies decided to come today. They broke her water at 8:45, gave her an epidural at 9:15 and started Pitocin at around 9:30.

Guy, Guy's mom Debbie, and I were in the delivery room. It's so amazing. I am truly, truly blessed.

It's Ethan's "Birth Day"

In a few hours (hopefully it won't take very long) Ethan David Fisher will be here. Ashley is checking into the hospital at 6:00 am.....I told them I would be there by 6:30. They are inducing labor this morning.

Life is about to change yet again. Colin will not be the center of our lives....he is going to have to start sharing that spot with a new baby brother. He's already shown me all of his old toys he is giving to Ethan, he has shown me Ethan's bedroom, and he's told us how he's going to teach Ethan to ride a bike. He's excited to be a big brother.....we'll see how long that lasts! LOL

So anyway, I'm up at the "butt crack of dawn", as Bailey so eloquently calls it, because I couldn't sleep and in a few minutes I'll be leaving to watch my oldest daughter give birth.

Happy birth day, Ethan!

Halloween has come and gone.......

and I didn't even post any pictures here! Here's Colin & Andy.....Andy just got home from work. BTW....Andy spent all day on the Monday before Halloween getting Colin's costume "just right".

And then, of course, there's the jack-o-lantern that Colin drew the face on and Andy cut it out exactly as it was drawn.....a funny little guy!