Prom 2009 . . .

The kids had a ball, I guess the pictures speak louder than words.

Gus and his sisters and their friends.

Mark and the girls; he never expected to have daughters taller than him!

My pretty Hannah Sue . . .

and my beautiful Emmy Lou!

Terri's truck . . .

Mark is such a good dad, he's not a rich man (not a poor one either), but when he gives gifts he gives them from his heart . . . and since cars are in his heart, it really has meant a lot to him and the kids as over the years he has given each of them a classic car project.

He's given them each a car, the engine and the tires and then left it to them to work on it with him . . . and being kids they've worked on them sporadically. I'll put pictures and updates of each of them later but this thread is about Terri.

Oh about 15 or so years ago Mark gave Terri a 1964 Chevy Pickup. Terri worked on it a lot over the years but never really got it going; some of the old timers around here still laugh and tell stories about pulling in the driveway and seeing Terri's little girl legs sticking out from under that truck while she was working on it. Then Terri got busy growing up, and getting married, and starting a family . . . and the old truck got put on the back burner.

Well, times got a little rough around here when Mark's first wife left. Mark was spread pretty thin; running the house, doing the laundry and the cooking, raising the kids, running a business and being the main worker for that business. But, Terri stepped in, and taking time out of her busy new life and was there for her dad. She helped in so many ways, taking Gus to lessons & helping with tutoring him, and she took over the paper work end of the business. She never asked for a thing in return and was always there when Mark needed her, she really proved what a good girl she is.

Sooo . . . after I came along and realized all she had been doing, Mark and I talked and we decided that as a big thank you, Mark would finish her truck for her. All the kids worked on it all summer and winter, and we almost pulled it off as a surprise. And now she has a really cool classic Truck to haul her three little boys camping and fishing in. There were tears in every one's eyes the day we gave it to her.

Mark and Terri the day the truck was done, look at that grin on her face!

I finally have a use for all of my college photography classes!

From Terri's first fishing trip with her boys in the truck . . .

Family get-together . . .

Betty Bull, who is Mark's mother's first cousin was so gracious and invited us to her annual reunion. There is so much family resemblance in Mark and Betty, so it was really fun meeting her sisters, their kids and their grandchildren. I quickly lost track of who everyone was, but we had a very nice time and the kids felt at home amidst this lovely family. I really wish I had got a picture of Betty's daughter Carla, she's so nice and really went out of her way to make me and my kids feel welcome. These are some pics from that day:


New sisters; Lou, Terri & Hannah


Mark and Betty

Betty and her grandson Levi

Emma (Lou's best friend), and Ryan

Levi and Ben

Almost the whole gang; Terri & Weston, Emma, Gus and Brenden, Hannah, Ben, Lou & Ryan

The Three Musketeers; Hannah, Gus and Lou

The Party . . .

Sooo . . . Mark turned 50!

LOL he did not know me well enough to know that I could never let that one slip by. . .

It was a PARTY! Invitations went out, we put a pig in the ground, lit the bonfire, had a live band playing all Marks favorites; at least a hundred people showed up. People were dancing, the kids were running wild and roasting marshmallows . . .

Mark is good man and well loved by everyone, and they definitely came to let him know it. Gosh we had fun that night!

LOL, shy Mark being forced to give a speech . . . it was good.

Friends around the bonfire.

Mark and Betty dancing (she always looks so pretty).

Some foolish person way back when told Mark he didn't dance well, so he never danced when he went out all those years, well, it took a lot of encouraging to get him out on the floor . . . but once we did he never came off! He danced with every single person there . . . at least twice! I think he was trying to get all the dancing he had saved up for the last 20 years out of his system in one night . . . he even did "step dancing" . . . You just gotta love this man!

Little Katana, doing the honors and singing Happy Birthday . . . at least 7 times through . . . lol

My husband and the smile that I love so much.

Family values . . .

Such a big subject for a little thing like this, but when you are leading a family down the road of life you have to make sure you address them, . . . surprisingly, sometimes even defend them.

The world is such a big beautiful place, with a lot of scary things in it. I think family values are the most important things Mark and I have to give our kids. Living up to them is easy when you know you have five sets of eyes watching how you handle life!

So what have we taught them to be . . . well let's see;

Love everyone, the less lovable they are, love them more; Mark is such a good example of this.

Have a kind heart and be a true friend, treat everyone you meet with respect; Gus and Ryan are such quality young men and it shows in the way they respect everyone around them.

Treat other people's property as though it was worth far more than your own; If you borrow a car; return it clean and with a full tank of gas (especially if it is your parents lol). We still have to reinforce this one from time to time . . .

Never lie, steal or cheat, never, not at games, not at school and especially not on someone you have made a commitment to; your word is the true measure of your character. Mark and I are so proud of Ben, that boy never tells a lie . . . lol . . . no matter how much trouble he is about to be in.

Give a part of yourself away everyday; Lou has gone above and beyond so many times while helping me with my work with refugees, she has really proven to me that in raising her I did something right.

Don't tolerate ignorance, bigots or hypocrites & stand up for those who can't or are afraid to stand up for themselves . . . I tell my kids it's good to be scared in the face of a bully, that means your smart and brave. My Hannah Sue, gosh that kid is so good and brave at heart. Mark and I were really proud of her the other day; some of the school teachers & staff (yes adults) were harassing a couple of kids who are gay on Gay Pride Day. They bullied them and told them they were going to have them arrested if they didn't change out of their Pride shirts right then and there, so these poor kids changed. But when Hannah heard about it she marched into the restroom took off her shirt and wrote GAY PRIDE on it, huge with a permanent marker. She wore that shirt in defense of her friends all day . . . luckily not one bigoted adult had the nerve to tell her to take it off . . . because you know she would have . . . right then and there! She said, "mom, I was hoping they would arrest me . . ." I told her that she taught her friends a good lesson about how hollow the empty threats of a bully are. At a school dance she again proved her depth by asking a boy with Downs Syndrome, who was alone in the corner, to come join and dance with her and her group of friends, making his first dance something special to remember.

I guess what I've tried to teach my kids is summed up by Albert Einstein when he said "...the world is not a dangerous place because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing..." and they have made us so proud by listening.

Lou helping refugees learn pottery.

My "Rainbow" kids hangin' on the North End:

Hannah, Cassy(friend), Kelsy( Gus's girlfriend), and Gus.


Our muscle man, looks more like his dad everyday.

A piece of metal to hang around my neck . . .

OK, grand kid soccer is a lot of fun . . . something grandparents sort of have to drag themselves to . . . but not to be missed! This past year was our Grandson Brenden and Granddaughter Trinity's first year playing on "big-kid" teams. It tore my heart out to have Trinity so far away (California), where we couldn't see her play, but she is so precious in the pictures. She's such an intense little girl, you can just feel the concentration in her posture.

Well, the funniest thing was little Brenden inviting us to see his award ceremony, he said " and yeah, and they are even going to give me a piece of metal to wear around my neck!" Of course he meant a Medal, we are all still laughing about that one!

Brenden . . .

Brenden and his "piece of metal".

Trinity . . .

Trinity and friends . . .

Hayden . . .

Grandpa, Gus and Brenden at Hayden's game.

Lou gets a car . . .

Mark took a lot of pleasure over the years in being able to give each of his kids an old project car to work on. Wanting to help my kids feel like part of the family and give himself a way to bond with them he gave each of them an old car as well. He put a lot of thinking into the type of car, the amount of work, and their own individual personalities. He's a great dad and my kids are so lucky to have him as a part of their lives . . . and boy do they know it!

This is a picture of Lou and her step-dad Mark the day he gave her her 1962 Cadillac De Ville.