It's been a while!

Wow, it has been 4 years since I posted on this blog.  Not sure where the time has gone.  So much has happened in 4 years.  We have a new granddaughter, Emily Marie who is now 3 years old.  her mama and daddy got married 1/1/14 so I now have a new beautiful daughter.  We lost mom last January 2013, most horrible thing to happen to us.  Derik did his second tour in Afghanistan, I was baptized Catholic in 2011 and my sister was just baptized Catholic this past Easter Vigil 2014.  I am still with the same agency, Able2 and now as an Accountant.  My sister lives just across town from me which I am loving.  She just graduated from EBI with her Associates Degree in Medical Technologies and I am still attending Elmira College for my Bachelors in Accounting.  My hubs has a job and we just got our new truck 'Maxine'.  I guess Facebook kind of took over the blogging but you know what?  I think it is time to get back to it.  I loved going back through and seeing the old posts and think that in 4 years I'd like to see WAY more posts of the next 4 years :)  Thanks for reading.

Bruce & his mama

My grandbaby Emily

Evyn, our grandson

Me, 2013 summer

The Light House used in Forrest Gump

my boy Jordan 2013

My sister 2013



Derik pre Afghanistan

Molly *Sierra 2013

Daddy's little girl

1/1/2014



Me & my honey 1/1/14

My boys



Me and my BFF

My BFF's family and her new daughter in law

Derik & SarahJo post Afghanistan



Jordan and Shawna

Derik and Rae

Princess Aurora



Me & My Princess 2014
 

Bindy, Me & Bruce 7/4/14

Elkland Jubilee 2010 ~Nostalgic~

Growing up in a small town had alot of disadvantages. You couldn't do ANYTHING wrong because your parents/family would know before you got home. Everyone is related so its hard to get a date with someone other than your cousin....but, there are advantages too...Growing up, each year we had what we called the 'Campus Carnival'. It consisted of games, food and displays put together by kids in the school. Well, that was 25 years ago but a couple of years ago the town put together the 'Elkland Jubilee' and well...its the 2010 version of the campus carnival. Games, music, vendors, food and of course family and friends. Our cousin Jonny helps to put this event together and this year he did it even though he spent several weeks in the hospital after suffering a heart attack. He's our hero, not only because he has survived esophogeal cancer AND a heart attack, but because he did it and still has a sense of humor. This first picture is of Aunt Lorraine(Raine), Jonny and my handsome husband.

A jubilee with games for the kids, $5 armband and my Jordan could play all day long, and a car show. the truck was my fave and it had NOTHING to do with it being a family work of art.

At 5 it was time to head over for some dinner at the Bum Steer because that is THE place to get THE best subs in the area. After picking up our subs we headed to the park. This park has been upgraded but it still has the crazy Merry Go Round that we had played on when we were kids (and in Bruce and Michael's case, STILL play on). It was a beautiful day.

The jubilee would not have been complete without the Block Dance. Scott Tanner had a band when we were in high school and that man can still belt the tunes. We had a great time just hangin' out, visiting with old friends and listening to the sounds.

A great day spent with some of my favorite people. I love my family and every time I spend time with them I am reminded of how blessed I truly am.

Allegany State Park Vacation

Well vacation started on the 25th with a trip to Endicott, NY with some great people. Michelle, Marleah and Amanda joined me for a concert to see Rob Thomas and we got UP CLOSE. It was a spectacular show and I'm more in love with the man and his music than before. We arrived at 2:00 and waited for them to drop the rope so we could RUN to the front row. Standing for 5 hours +, in very warm weather and most of that standing in a very crowded area, was SOOO worth every minute. And, while walking from the bathroom some dude told me he loved me 'based on your voice alone' he said hehe...Marleah suggested I go into radio with my 'raspy' voice....Amanda and I are seriously considering a road trip for another RT concert....Atlantic City anyone?

I loved the guitars all lined up :)
Sunday morning after Mass and a visit with mom we headed to Allegany State Park in Salamanca, NY. Driving onto the park, I knew we were going to have a great time and a well deserved week of camping, hiking, swimming and spending time together.

It POURED the first night we were there. There was apparently a tornado that touched down nearby but all we experienced was a WHOLE lot of rain, thunder and lightning. But the next morning, when the sun came out, it was quite serene.

Oh, my husband is handsome, at least I think so. Sometimes he just makes my heart flutter and he doesn't even realize it.

We took a short walk to the creek down from our site, it was so fresh, green, vibrant. I could have stayed by the creek forever....

Bee Balm ~4th of July flower~ Our little black squirrel

The outside Ampitheater had concerts and this one was "Dan Duggan". He and his wife did folk songs, children's songs. It was pleasant on a chilly evening.

Jordan found a friend right off the bat, the first day at camp. Michael hails from just outside of Syracuse NY with his mom, dad and sister Emma. They were awesome folks who befriended us and outdid themselves when it came to providing Jordan with a memorable vacation. This photo was taken during our Bear Caves Tour on Wednesday. Jordan and Mike went into the one bear cave but due to my phobia of tight spaces and Bruce's bad ankle we passed up going in.

The rocks are enormous.

The Three Sisters trail was the first one that Bindy and I completed. We chose trails that were listed as 'More Difficult'. I would not want to see what the MOST difficult trails are because this was quite a challenge. BUT, we did it and felt real good at the end. The views were spectacular.

Jordan took a picture of the chipmunk munching on our leftovers.

This was our second day of hiking and again "More Difficult", Yea, no kidding. I was convinced that I was going to pass out on the hills and for a while I thought it was going to be all hill. We made it and it did feel good to accomplish this 4 mile hike. Plus we walked another mile at least to get back to the vehicle.

it was nice and cool under this rock :)

Entrance to one of the bear caves
I think this hike was Bindy's favorite, she LOVED the rocks and with good reason, they were pretty impressive.

He wasn't real happy with me at this point. He's so into puberty sometimes.

Our last hike was listed as 'Easy' but we aren't sure how they figure what is easy and what is more difficult because this one too had steep hills to climb. I was VERY nervous on this one as half way through it I saw bear tracks and poo....yea, couldn't really turn around as it would have been the same distance. Fortunately no bear was sighted and at the end we were able to relax on the beach, watch the sunset and view some awesome fireworks. Our final day was Sunday since Saturday night the tent poles broke and we shared a tent with with Bindy. Emma, Jordan and Michael posed for me before we headed out and on our way home.

I had a great vacation and am looking forward to our next adventure. I hope everyone enjoys the photos. Thanks for visiting.