Happy Birthday To My Beautiful Daughter

As I mentioned last week, March is a big birthday month in our family. Both kids and both of their spouses--plus our anniversary at the end of the month.

Anyway, today is my beautiful baby daughter's 44th birthday. OK, so she's not really a baby anymore, but she will always be my baby! So, in honor of this momentous occasion, I will embarrass her with some pictures.

3 months old

Easter at Grandma Olive's 1969First day of school

Reading

Karen with Mikey Day

Graduation from Ohio University Summa Cum LaudeMy all time favorite picture of my daughter and my granddaughterMy beautiful daughter on her wedding day

With the love of her life

Wife and mom
Karen, I am so proud of the girl you were and the woman you are.
I love you LOTS!!

Wanna Read a Really Great Book Series?

When my daughter got married in 2000, she and and her hubby had their best friends as their attendants. Karen had her brother Dave, Bill who lives with us, and Carla, Karen, and Kim friends from throughout her life. Michael had his brother, his sister, and 3 female friends. Ok, not your most traditional attendants but why wouldn't you have your best friends--male or female?

Little did we know that a few years later, one of Michael's female attendants, Chelsea Cain, would be a New York Times Best Selling Author!! Chelsea grew up on a commune in Iowa. She actually had written a couple of books before Karen and Michael's wedding one of which was about when she and her mom returning to visit the farm where the commune was located. And she wrote a couple after the wedding but in September 2007 she came out with a book entitled Heartsick.
A description of the book states "Det. Archie Sheridan led the Beauty Killer Task Force for ten years, before the Beauty Killer (Gretchen Lowell) caught him, tortured him for ten days and then mysteriously let him go and turned herself in. Now it’s two years later and Archie, addicted to pain pills and still obsessed with Gretchen, is called off medical leave to hunt a second serial killer. Pink-haired girl journalist Susan Ward is assigned to profile Archie. She knows he’s hiding something. But what? (It’s bigger than a breadbox.)"

I just found out about the book earlier this summer so of course I had to read it. And I was hooked! So after I finished Heartsick I rushed out and bought the 2nd book in the series, Sweetheart. The description of this books states, "Serial killer Gretchen Lowell escapes. ’Nuff said." Ok, I will warn you that these books are graphic and a bit gory, but wow, what a journey they take you on.

Chelsea's 3rd book of the series, Evil at Heart, comes out September 1. I can hardly wait. And the description of this book--"Det. Archie Sheridan is in the nuthouse. Serial killer Gretchen Lowell is still at large. That doesn’t seem fair, does it? Bodies start turning up. But is Gretchen to blame, or is it a wily bunch of psychotic followers? Archie and Susan are on the case. Voted one of Amazon’s “Best Books of 2009… So Far.”"

Wow, voted Amazon's Best Book of 2009 and it hasn't even been released yet!! Way to go Chelsea. Anyway, if you like detective murder mysteries, pick up these books. Obviously start with Heartsick and you will be hooked.

Window Views-Flowers

MaryT/The Teach has started a new meme called Window Views. For some reason I have always been intrigued with taking pictures of windows or through windows so this meme was made just for me! Hop on over to to Window Views and do some more window peeping.

I've been so busy cleaning house, I forgot all about Window Views until now. So, I'm doing double duty here. My beautiful daughter, Shama-lama Mama sent me a live Azalea plant for Mother's Day. I wanted to show her what she sent me and I wanted to take part in Window Views--so, I put the flowers in the window and took a picture. Here you go--

Happy Birthday Karen

43 years ago today, Gemini 8 docked in space. The commander was Neil Armstrong and it was the first time a manned spacecraft had docked in space. So, how do I remember this you might ask. I remember it because my two year old son, David, sat on my lap the entire day watching it unfold on TV. He sat there, that is, until we had to drop him off at a friend's house then proceed on to the hospital to deliver his baby sister, Karen Renee. I don't remember the dates of any of the other space launches but I sure remember this one.

Where does one start when describing my daughter? First of all, she is my baby and always will be. She is unique, one of a kind. She is loving, caring, artistic, organized, adventurous, nurturing, inquisitive, talented, smart, funny, kind, a great friend, a forgiving sister (LOL), a loving wife, a fantastic mother, and the best daughter a mother could possibly ask for.

Sometimes she leaned on her brother and sometimes he leaned on her.

Here she is with her brother and her Grandma Olive who lived in Illinois. We spent many Christmases and Easters visiting Grandma Olive.

Before she was a mom, she was an aunt.

Then, along came Michael, the love of her life. She waited for just the right guy and got him.

Then she became a mom. First to Noah.

Then to Ethan.

And an hour after Ethan, to Luka.

Her version of My Three Sons.

And so, my beautiful daughter, I wish you the happiest of birthdays. You have made me so proud and like I have said many times, I want to be just like you when I grow up!!!

Love you more than I can say, Mom.

For My Son and Daughter

We went to dinner at RC Otters on Captiva tonight. They have lots of cute signs but these two caught my eye. One is for my son and one is for my daughter. I'm sure they can figure out which is which.

Wordless Wednesday--Sanibel Sunsets and Family

My daughter, her hubby, and oldest son.

I know you are all busy checking out everyone's Wordless Wednesday but take the time to bookmark me and drop back to check out my blog. I am a retired Special Ed teacher who now spends most of her time on Sanibel Island, Florida volunteering for a Wildlife hospital rescuing and rehabbing wildlife. I even dumpster dive for injured Raccoons!! I am also the proud grandma of 5 wonderful grandkids and brag about them often!! I also have a blog called Branches and Roots where I talk about genealogy and my ancestors. OK, enough about me. Back to Wordless Wednesday.

Enjoy more Wordless Wednesdays at Wordless Wednesday.

Happy Birthday Karen

My baby girl turned 42 yesterday. OK, so I missed posting this ON her birthday but heck, she is in Hawaii and probably didn't get a chance to check her mother's blog anyway. :)

Here she is on her first day of school. She will tell you she could kill me for cutting her hair that short. But she sure was adorable. I think that's the last time her hair was ever that short.

See what I mean by the hair? She is 11 here. I should tell you that Karen was "born in a trunk". That is an old theatre expression. I was VERY involved in the Fort Findlay Playhouse when she and her brother were growing up. As a baby, she would play in her playpen while I helped build set, act, direct, what have you. She soon became involved herself helping to build set, run lights, act, run props, what have you. This turned into a career when she got older when she became a Technical Assistant/Stage Manager for the South Coast Repertory Theatre in Costa Mesa, California.

She graduated magna cum laude from Ohio University with a degree in Fine Arts, majoring in photography. If you ever check out her blog, you will see that she is putting that degree to good use.

Here she is when she married Michael in San Juan Capistrano in August of 2000. (No not at the mission but in the city of SJC). You can read all about how she met him here. It is a beautiful love story. And didn't she make a beautiful bride?

A couple of years later her first son, Noah was born. And just a little over 3 years later, along came Ethan and Luka. The idea of twins was a bit overwhelming to both Karen and Michael--as well as to the grandparents!

I am soooo proud of my beautiful daughter. She is the best mom in the world. She is the most patient (even though she will tell you she isn't), loving, nurturing mom there is.

You can see what kind of a mom she is by just looking at these two pictures of here spending time with her kids.

She is a traveler.

She is a dreamer.

She is daring.

She is a hippie.

She loves her Pepsi.

And she has the best husband in the world. She always said when she was growing up that she was going to marry either a doctor or a cook. Well, believe it or not, he is both. And the greatest daddy going. A parent couldn't ask for a better husband for their daughter. But wait, this blog is about her right? Anyway, Karen, sorry this is a day late. But just know that your dad and I are so proud of what you have done and who you have become. I want to be just like you when I grow up!!!

Wordless Wednesday-Hands Across America

Ok, who remembers Hands Across America back in 1986? I bet my daughter does!! She participated. LOL.

Enjoy more Wordless Wednesdays at Wordless Wednesday and 5 Minutes for Mom

Also, I know you are all busy checking out everyone's Wordless Wednesday but take the time to bookmark me and drop back to check out my blog. I am a retired Special Ed teacher who now spends most of her time on Sanibel Island, Florida volunteering for a Wildlife hospital rescuing and rehabbing wildlife. I even dumpster dive for injured Raccoons!! I am also the proud grandma of 5 wonderful grandkids and brag about them often!! OK, enough about me. Back to Wordless Wednesday.

Wordless Wednesday--You may kiss the bride.

To see more contributors to Wordless Wednesday, check out the links here and here!