Monday, March 30, 2009

Happy Birthday Jessie -


Yup Jessie, I definitely need some new pictures!!!! Please Susan, Lisa and Becky (well, Becky sent me a beautiful picture of the girls at Christmas) send me some pictures. I don't want to have to use the same pictures every year! So, send me everything you have!
Oh, and Happy Birthday Jessie!

Jeanie - have a Happy Birthday!


Jeanie, hope you have a wonderful day with your family. Love that little Hannah, what a cute person. Happy Birthday, Jean!

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Happy Birthday Annie!

Annie, today is your birthday - it doesn't seem possible. I remember when your mom was pregnant with you and Oh My Gosh, she was so excited when Doc proclaimed that she finally had her girl! What a joy you were to your mom and dad, she always dressed you so cute, and your hair was adorable. You were your mom's pride and joy!

Don't ask me what you and Chris were looking at, it must have been pretty nasty from the looks on your faces.

Have a great day Annie - love ya!

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Ronnie, this is your birthday!


Ronnie, today is your birthday - have a wonderful day. Hopefully Amanda and Daniel are home to celebrate with you. Have a great one, Ronnie!

WOW!! I know, this is so bad! Artie sent this to me, Ronnie's graduation picture. Leisure suit and all, love the hair. Many a girl probably wishes their hair would look like that! Sorry, couldn't pass up the chance to post this.


But he does look pretty good now, short hair and a great smile -

It was Dorene's Birthday too!


Well, it was Dorene's birthday as well, however I'm sure that she isn't celebrating her birth any more. She, Mary Ann, Jane, Jean and Grandma are probably celebrating a new birth day for her now, August 27th. when she was born into heaven. We should probably start celebrating those days as well!

Henry, Happy Birhday!


Henry, I need new pictures!!!!!! Someone needs to send me some new pictures of their family! Henry and Ann have a great birthday and hope all is going well for you as well. I'm sure it has to be tough with the cost of fuel going up along with everything else. So, take care and keep in touch.

Happy Anniversary Dustin & Michelle!


Dustin & Michelle, congratulations on your anniversary and what a great family you have. I'm sure you miss grandma, Cindy to be around and share special days with you! Hope everything is going well for you, enjoy your day.

Little Michael -


Happy Birthday Michael! What a great family you have Kenny - I'm sure you had a wonderful time with little Michael. Celebrating with the whole family, Im sure.

Saturday, March 21, 2009

This past week in March!

Michael's birthday was the 19th and this is the last picture I received on him, playing the sax in the school band. But what I want to know is - "What in the world are you doing with your foot behind your head??" I know you had to have room for your sax, but . . . wow, over your head!
Hope you had a great day, Michael.

So Rachelle, you had a birthday on the 17th, born on St. Patrick's Day - double the celebration!
And how is married life for you, hope you are doing well and had an absolutely wonderful day.

And today is Steve's birthday, can you believe that he actually is retirement age now? I'm sure he is looking forward to it -
Hope everyone has had a wonderful birthday and stayed out of trouble - at least reasonably so!

Friday, March 13, 2009

Happy Birthday Christopher!


What a sweet smile Christopher, hope you had a great day as well. And the same goes for you and your family - please send me some new pictures! You are what a senior now? Get back to me and let me know how you spent your birthday!

Happy Birthday Jennifer -

Jennifer, hope your birthday was great and full of fun! I'm sure that precious little Ava has grown greatly since this picture was taken and she is running circles around mom & dad. I sure could use some new pictures - send me some if you get a chance.
Hope you had a great day Jennifer.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Happy Anniversary Jeff & Patti!





It has been three years already, can you believe it!!! Over Christmas when Jeff and Patti were home, we went back to the beach where they got married and took some up to date pictures. I like the names in the sand - pretty cool, right? It was a beautiful evening and the sun cooperated beautifully.
Aren't they a beautiful couple! Happy Anniversary to my favorite two people!

Saturday, March 7, 2009

First week in March -


OK, the first week in March and we have several birthdays - among them is Andrew, Joe's youngest; Andrew, one of Greg's; Bill and Jayme. So the only pictures I have are of Jayme, so that is what I will go with. In this group, you find many of Dorene's family enjoying the sun and time at the pool - you will find Jayme in the back with the purple towel.

And here is Jo with Jayme and granddaughter really enjoying the water - it was GREAT. The water was terrific and everyone had a fun.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

February -

This month was grandpa's birthday as well, February 27th. As I have mentioned in a couple of blogs ago, I have been looking into our heritage and tracing it back. I found the manifest where grandma's ancestors came across from Altona, Germany on a ship named "Catharina" on December 12, 1836 into New Orleans, Louisiana. On the manifest it said that a "daughter" was born on ship, and I was looking at the ages of the family - they ranged from 68 (grandmother) to 2 years old. Can you imagine leaving everything behind, coming to a land they never saw only heard about. They held on to God's hand as they stepped from the comfort of their hometown in Germany to the unknown in a foreign land. They defied opposition and worked tirelessly to satisfy the requirements imposed by the U.S. Immigration Department to enter the country and establish residency.

Once in the states, they had to overcome humiliation, intense loneliness, helplessness and uncertainty. They endured ridicule due to their lack of fluency in English, but they pressed on. And they managed to gather enough money for the basics. They held on to their faith in God, one of the first things they did was set aside a portion of their land and the first church in Lee County was established.

By example, and with profound appreciation, our forefathers gave us a wonderful heritage of determination, tenacity and faith in God. They demonstrated the commitment to family and the importance of setting priorities.

And with that all said, I want to say thanks to our marvelous heritage no matter if we find out the real name behind Umthun or not.