The Cabbage Patch

Gold Star Family

These are parking spots that are close to the exchange and commissary.  They're for family members of service members killed in action.  I'm sure they'd trade this and just about anything to have their loved one of with them. 

Please on this Memorial Day, pray for them. 

Freedom is Not Free

This picture is so poignant.  Jake knows all too well that Freedom is Not Free.  Please remember and pray for his father, Major David G. Taylor, Jr. and all the fallen service members today.

Photo by Michelle Taylor.

Happy 3rd Birthday, Pumpkin!

Here she is in a ballet pose. 

Happy Birthday, my sweet spunky girl. 

What a Difference...

...two years makes.

Wanna-be ballerina.

Ballerina.

Fairy Dolls

Today, we had dress rehearsal for the older two girls for their recital.  Their ballet school puts on a full ballet and this year it's Fairy Doll by Josef Bayer (the German title is Die Puppenfee).  Sister is an old pro at this recital thing while Honey has been a nervous wreck or is it me.  I have to say I was very, very proud of my Honey.  She went out there and did it for her rehearsal so I'm optimistic for her recital on Sunday.  Sister performs in both performances.

Here are some photos:

Seeing Honey up here is HUGE!  She did great!

Honey is a baby doll and Sister is a porcelain doll.  Honey's class is awfully cute--they are all so tiny.  Sister's class did a wonderful job.  They looked so delicate.  Thank you to my brothers for my zoom lens so I could take these pictures.

Bittersweet

That's what potty training my youngest is.  She's done except overnight and I don't get too concerned about that (it's hard to when your oldest wears diapers at night until he's eight).  Besides overnights, there are no diapers in this house.  Can you hear the tears dropping onto my keyboard?  No, seriously, it's very bittersweet.  I'm very happy to have this stage behind us yet very sad because I don't have diapers to look forward to.  Some people think it's great that there are no diapers in my life now.  "Finally", they say to me.  But I want to tell them, "No!  I should be getting ready for more diapers and of the very small variety."

The truth is I want to have diapers in the house, just not for my almost 3 year old.  Every month I have to pray for God to help me accept his will.  It's very hard.

May Flowers--More Photos

Road Trip

We are taking a road trip to Massachusetts this month to attend a wedding.  It's a big undertaking and I can't believe it's almost here!  Here's our itinerary:

Day one:  drive to Texarkana.

Day two:  drive for as long as we can and hope to reach Charleston, WV.

Day three:  take side trip to Gettysburg so Ben can get his fix.  Drive to Lancaster, PA and then on to Hershey (have to get my fix).

Day four:  drive to Westfield, MA to visit a friend.

Day five:  drive into Norwood, MA to my sister-in-law's house.

Day six:  drive into Boston for rehearsal and rehearsal dinner.  Plan on wandering city before rehearsal (maybe visit Boston University, our alma mater).  We were married at the chapel on the BU campus and I'd like the children to see it.

Day seven:  visit the USS Constitution early in the morning.  Get ready for the wedding.  Attend the wedding.  The older girls are in the wedding as flowers girls and Brother is an usher.  I bought Pumpkin a beautiful dress so she wouldn't feel badly about not being part of the wedding party. 

Day eight:  visit the duck pond made famous in Make Way for Ducklings Ben's family.  My children have never been.  We may ride the swan boats.

Day nine:  Memorial Day parade in Norwood.  Ben will be marching with his nephew, my godson.  Then the Museum of Fine Arts.  They waive admission on this day so we're taking advantage. 

Day ten:  New England Aquarium.

Day eleven:  Strawberry Banke.  My SIL told me there's a bridge there that you can cross into Maine.  Brother will be beside himself with this.  I can't wait to see how he does.

Day twelve:  Unplanned as of now.  We may do the Plymouth plantation or we may just spend time in Norwood with my SIL.

Day thirteen:  Falmouth, MA.  My MIL lives in this town and is a short walk from the beach.  My children are so used to warmer beaches that they're going to be quite surprised at how cold it is here.

Day fourteen:  Drive to Long Island to visit Ben's Aunt Vivian.  I love the drive.  We'll drive into New London, CT and take the ferry to Orient Point, NY.  Then the drive to Centerport where Vivian lives.  It's so beautiful!

Day fifteen:  Visit with some friends (I hope!).  Then drive to Parsippany, NJ to visit another friend.

Day sixteen:  Drive to the Washington, DC area to visit another aunt.  While here we'll visit Ben's Uncle David's grave at Arlington. 

Day seventeen:  Maybe Manassas, maybe the National Basilica.  I'm still working on the logistics of it all.  Manassas is a must because I want to meet up with someone.

Day eighteen:  Drive to Apex, NC and visit Maj Dave Taylor's grave.  Then drive to Charleston to visit Maj. Ed Murphy's grave.  We missed both their funerals and it has been difficult.  Ben and I both need to do this.  We'll skip a lot of this trip to get down here if we have to.  Then drive to Atlanta.

Day nineteen:  Drive home.  Don't know how far we'll get. 

Day twenty:  Ditto.

Day twenty-one:  Arrive at home.

Ambitious, huh?  If you're along our route, I'd love to meet you.  Drop me a line. 

Election

I'm not a political person.  This election scares me though.  I fear for the future of this country.  I'm not too enamored with any of the potential candidates but Barack Obama really scares me.  I don't believe he has respect for life at all.  If I'm wrong please point me in the right direction.  He's not pro-life so I will not vote for him.  Who does that leave us with?  Sigh.

Double Pointed Needles

These are a scary thought to new knitters.  But, if a knitter wants to do some of the more fun stuff like socks, she has to learn how to use them.  Soooo, here's my first attempt at making socks.  I'm sure I'll have a bit of a ladder where the needles meet, but I think I'm doing a pretty good job.

Ugh, is why is my tabletop so dirty?  I should've wiped it down before taking this picture.  ;)