WHERE DID TIME GO??

I feel like I need to fill you in somewhat on what's been going on in my life to keep me busy.

So, after our September trip to celebrate my Great Aunt Faye's 100th birthday spending time with my sister Dee, Aunt Jo along with my other sister, Debbie and Donna, we did go make another trip up to my dad's for our traditional fall road trip visiting the corn maze/hayride. Fall is my favorite season and we love the farm country up in Williamsport. Plus this initiates us into fall!

(Christine, dad, and Donna)

Then we celebrated Naomi's 6th birthday in October. We had also had Dave's birthday, Melody's birthday, and Phil's birthday in October. Jon and Mel had family over to their house to help Naomi celebrate even though she was not feeling too well that day.

(Naomi, Darlene, Lydia)

Our first grandparents day at Open Door Christian Academy was in November. Naomi enjoyed having both sets of grandparents there and we enjoyed being there with her.

(Dave, Darlene, Naomi)

Donna, Jon, Mel and girls and Bethany and Phil were here at our house for Thanksgiving dinner which was fun. I tried some couple new dishes this year finding the recipes on the web. One was a new stuffing recipe and the other was with yellow squash. Both turned out good if I say so myself. We played games, worked on our Christmas wish lists, watched football, and worked on a holiday crossword puzzle. The weekend after Thanksgiving, Debbie and Ralph Shay from Texas came for a visit and we enjoyed seeing them a couple of times.

I celebrated my birthday before the Christmas holidays. December is always busy getting ready for Christmas, shopping, baking, wrapping, etc. Our family get together was at Jon and Mel's on Christmas Eve. Lydia said, I got everything I wanted! Naomi asked me after New Year's if she was ever going to see me again -- we did see a lot of each other from Thanksgiving to Christmas.

Mel, Lydia, Jon, Naomi Phil & Bethany Brian & Sarah


Donna, Andrew, Christine Donna & Darlene

Happy New Year -- 2009!

Happy 100th Birthday, Aunt Faye

My great Aunt Faye turned 100 on Sept. 10. She is my grandma DeVillars sister (the only living sibling) and lives out in a nursing home in western PA where I grew up. We love Aunt Faye and her children and their children. It was certainly an honor to travel out to help her celebrate her birthday at a party on Sept. 14. My sister from Texas flew up to Philly and traveled with us to our dad's who then drove us out to western PA. We stayed overnight and spent some time with our sister who lives out there. Us sisters hadn't been all together in over 5 years. We saw so many relatives we hadn't seen in such a long time.

We also got to see our Aunt Jo from Ohio -- our deceased mother's only sibling. Four of her five children and their spouses came too for a picnic. My Texas sister hadn't seen Aunt Jo in about 25 years. It was a very full and jammed packed weekend in western PA. The trip back home that same day was difficult and long, but we enjoyed our time together talking. It was definitely a trip we will remember for a long time.

Is it really fall?

I can't move onto fall until I wrap up summer. In August, we spent a wonderful week in Stone Harbor, NJ. We had a perfect week of weather and fun. One person missing in this picture is my sister Donna who was taking the picture. She wasn't able to go last year and was sorely missed so we all loved having her again this year. She adds so much! We ate good thanks to the young cooks. We took the girls to the Cape May Zoo which was fun too. We enjoy the beach and pool equally and are glad to have both. Our one dinner out was in Somer's Point at the Crab Trap which was super and well worth the wait to get in. It is sad to see our relaxing summer come to an end but we cherish the memories and look forward to next year!

Summer's end

I am glad to have gotten to the beach three times this year -- Wildwood with my sister, Ocean City with Bethany and Phil, and then Stone Harbor with all the family. Ocean City was very relaxing. Bethany and I enjoyed sitting on the beach reading in the morning and then walking the boardwalk and shopping. We went back to the place we were staying in Somers Point for lunch and then relax some more playing games or more shopping while we waited for Phil to get off work. We went to a movie one night and saw Wall-E. The weather was nice. We found a new love -- Shriver's gelato. I think the coconut or pistachio were my favorite flavors. It definitely hit the spot and kept us coming back for more :)

Phillies and 4th of July

Fourth of July in Philly at a Phillies vs. NY Mets game -- complete with hot dogs, water ice, soft pretzels, Philly Cheesesteaks, warm summer evening with family and friends and the Phillies WON! Was a wonderful day!

Drummer Boy

Back in July, we attended a worship concert at our son's church where my youngest son was the drummer. Since he usually plays a guitar, it was different seeing him playing the drums. As a young boy, he always wanted to have a set of drums and would love to twirl sticks in his hand like he would if he was playing. He was a natural and even had his own fan club. It was a nice evening.

Wildwood 2008

I went to North Wildwood, NJ with my sister, my niece and her friend for a few days the end of June. The weather was nice and we enjoyed relaxing by the pool or on the beach. We also enjoyed walking the boardwalk and getting our ice cream. We always ride the surrey and attempt the big ramp at the end of the boardwalk. I always enjoy my long talks with my sister. She is a dear friend. Ya Ya Sisterhood!