Today is Marcie's Birthday

Today we celebrate Marcie's birthday - we are so thankful to be celebrating this day today - thank you for all the prayers that have been offered for her and our family to God over the past 15 years and 10 months since we learned she had ALS.

On the day she was born it was very cold and sleeting - today it is warm and sunny - the leaves are turning orange, yellow and brown - fall is here and winter is coming.

Oh No - our preacher went to jail ! ! !

Two weeks ago - Sept. 24, - our preacher went to jail - he was picked up at church and taken to jail and had to stay there till he raised bail.

He went to jail in honor of Marcie for MDA -the Muscular Dystrophy Association - he raised $3,512.00 - so he did get out of jail.

Thanks Doug for going to jail for Marcie and others for a second time -

and

Thanks to all who bailed him out of jail !

middle school football game

If I had only had my camera set on landscape and not on close up it would not have been blurry.
But I can see him -

Again we ventured out to a middle school football game this year. This is the only game we can go to this year -all other games are played at a middle school field but when his games are at the high school we get to go since the staduim is handicap accesable -where the middle school fields are not. And I found the elevator that can take us up higher in the staduim if he play in the high school band next year.

Storms were in our area but all had passed by game time - so off we went - the boys still some taller than others - it was a nice outing a little cool but not cold. I got to see both my grandsons -one playing football on the field and the other playing in the stands.

Sat. Sept. 19 was a nice day in Texas

Linda K and Eileen came to Arlington this past Sat. Linda K is in a clogging group from Corsicana called the Corsicana Cloggers and they were clogging at Six Flags Over Texas. When Linda K and I were young (friends since the 2nd. grade) we roller skated a lot - having birthday parties and going to birthday parties at Pittman Roller Skating rink in Waco. When Linda K told me she was in a clogging group I thought that would be so much fun and I wanted to do it also but I could not find a group close to me. So I have started the next best thing - a few weeks ago I started taking tap classes - I love the class - most of the ladies are teachers or retired teachers or their children are taking a dance class at the same time in the room over from our tap class - and it is right down the street from my house.

Sat. was fun watching Linda K's goup as well as watching lots of other clogging groups. The weather was so nice - not like the Sat. before when it rained buckets of water from the skies.

Visit with the Steece quads, Suz and Joe

Today I finally got to go see Drew, Savannah, Ethan and Ben, Suzanne and Joe also.

I had had their birthday gifts for a few weeks but I just had not been able to get over to their house. I went to day and took them their gifts which I had kinda made - you can look at the Aug. 1 posting to see what I made for them - I had had it written but published it just now.

Drew and Ethan are really talking - works, shapes, naming animals in the books I gave them - Savannah is right there also naming the animals and knowing the sounds they make - Ben just watches but Suzanne said he is talking some.

They love books - would go to the book shelf up above them and point saying "book book" - they were working puzzles with shapes and numbers - Drew counted for me -

I was not able to be there very long but it was a good visit - I saw Miss Savannah in her pink glasses and her pink eye patch with music notes and maybe bows on the eye patch - she left it along - Suzanne did keep her busy so Savannah would not think about it.

Savannah has another surgery in the morning- 2 loyal Diaper Darlings, Peggy and Tempe, will care for the boys at home while Suzanne and Joe are with Savannah at the hospital.

They are precious children - God gave them to just the right parents - the kiddos are growing and learning something new every day - I am so thankful they are a part of my life.

"People" enter your lives as strangers and leave as "Friends"

People come into your lives for a reason and when they leave they have become your friends, even if they live on your street for only a few short months.

Last fall a family moved into a rent house on our street. They moved to Arlington from Utah, so the husband / dad could be trained for a new job and then they would be transferred somewhere else. About 2 weeks ago they learned they were being transferred to Missouri.

Yesterday, most of the family came to say goodbye.

Marcie invited them into her room as she always does. They like reading her computer screen where she "talks" to them. Every time they come - as they leave her room or if they are just on the front porch talking to me they look into her window and say : "Hi Marcie" and "I Love you Marcie" and they always say "By Marcie" when they leave. No prompting - Just: "I Love you Marcie", etc... and Marcie smiles at them with her eyes.

Today they moved - I was very very sad. Even thought I know it was to be.

We will truly miss this family - I knew from the beginning they would not be a part of our lives for very long but in the short time they lived on our street we became friends. Last November in the cold they all came down and stood on the front porch and sang Happy Birthday to Marcie. Earlier in the day their Dad had brought Marcie flowers from the bushes at their house tied with a ribbon that the children had made and they painted her pictures for her birthday. Preschool pictures but they were make by the children as a birthday gift to Marcie.

Marcie had filled an Easter Basket for the children - ordering things on line and having them sent to our house. They came and sang to Marcie at Easter.

They truly loved Marcie, such a sweet family. Sometimes when we were sitting outside they would come by to visit.

They will be so missed - it is hard for me to look towards the empty driveway knowing their big burgundy van will not return.

May they have a safe journey to their new home in Missouri.
I know they will touch other lives as they have touched ours.

The Cowboy's Stadium in Arlington, Tx

This was taken from the upper level of the Cowboy's Stadium looking towards the Ballpark in Arlington and you can see part of Six Flags Over Texas to the left of this picture.

Inside the new Cowboys' Stadium

These are the light that hang -they are hanging - I am just up above them looking down onto field - over the stage, when they will put a stage, where concerts will be played in the stadium.

I think this is looking kinda north east


The BIG screen TV that hangs from the ceiling in the middle of the stadium.


Artists still finishing murals on the walls inside the stadium - this looked like it will be a rose when finished.

And this was lots of smaller flowers of some kind.

It was Open House for the new Cowboy's Stadium this past Sunday - for those of us who live in Arlington. We were not sure how the crowd would be nor how the parking would be. We went about 2:00 and drove right in the parking lot and parked on the front row right near the door. Once in, it was easy maneuvering - yes there were people but we had no trouble. We walked around the main level and then took the elevator up to the top level. Before we left we walked all around the inside of the stadium and when we left we walked all the way around the outside of the stadium. It was a very nice outing - the Stadium is very nice and very roomy - easy access for Marcie's power chair and the few doors we went through were also large enough to get through easily.

Last summer rain storm

Abby, Hannah and Joey

Last Sat. we had a rain storm in Arlington - I saw something I have not seen in such a long time - I used to do it myself - the neighbor children were playing in the rain - getting soaking wet - running by the curb where the water was up to their ankles - I just stood on the front porch and watched them play - they were soaking wet and loving it - no lightening and warm so they were not in any danger and they were right in front of their house.

Happy Birthday - Steece Quads - in their birth order:

Andrew (1), Savannah (2), Ethan (3) and Benjamin (4)

Miss Savannah's pink T-shirt.

I also gave them 2 book that my neighbor's neice had written. My neighbor, Ann had showed me the books a few months ago and I knew when I saw them I had to order them and give them to the Quads for their 2nd birthday.

The books are called: God Is with Me through the Day and God Is with Me through the Night by Julie cantrell. You can order these book from: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_3_9?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=julie+cantrell&sprefix=Julie+can

Long time friends !

Long time friends came to visit today -

I could not go to our high school runion so 3 of my friends came to me - we ate, shopped and looked at Arlington's newest attraction -the Cowboy's stadium.

me- Linda K - Eileen - Brenda

--------------------------

This was taken Senior Day in Waco - a few years ago -

Me - Eileen - Brenda - Beverly

m

mm
Me - Eileen - Brenda today

--------------------------------------

lll
Taken not sure when this was taken - elementary school maybe

for a very special party.

Susan - Me

Linda K - Susie

llll

Linda K and me today

Now we are planning our next outing in Sept.

It was a very very fun day !

I had not seen these friends in several years -
they do not live in Arlington.

I met Linda K when we were in the 2nd. grade - I have always called her Linda K since we had 5 Linda's in our Blue Bird group so we all had to go by our first and middle names.

Eileen we met in junior high - North Jr. -

and Brenda we met in high school - Richfield High school.