HAPPY 6TH BIRTHDAY ISAAC.....I LOVE YOU !

Let me call you sweetheart, Isaac I love you.

Let me hear you whisper that you love me too.

Keep the love light glowing in your eyes so blue.

Let me call you sweetheart, Isaac I love you.

THROUGH THE YEARS......3YRS TO 6YRS OLD

This post and the next is a compilation of pictures of Isaac marking each year. I really can't believe how much he has grown. I am filled with happiness that he is such a loving tender hearted big six year old boy....but also filled with sadness that he will never be that sweet little baby again. Never the less...Isaac has promised he will always be my baby even when he is big like Daddy. Im going to hold him to it. Happy 6th Birthday Isaac.

This is Isaac at his Reptile Birthday Party. 6 yrs old.

This is Isaac on Christmas of 2005. 5 yrs old

This is Christmas of 2004. Isaac is 4 years old.

My sweet Isaac is 3 years old in this photo.

THROUGH THE YEARS....PREGNANCY TO 2YRS.

My Little Big Boy is 2 Years Old!

Isaac is 1 Year Old.

Isaac only a couple of months old.

Isaac............in my belly :) I think this is 8 or 9 months.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A very Happy Birthday wish goes to my Father - in - Law Rev. James Valentine. Dad is 63 today. He was born on May 23, 1943..........Happy Birthday Dad!

A BOOK I JUST FINISHED..................

This is a book I just finished reading. The title is Pretense, and the author is Lori Wick. I really enjoy all of her books, I feel like I have read almost all of them! This novel I found in the local library. I would recommend it to anyone. I will not tell you about the story, but just that it made me cry and also laugh out loud...Cory must have thought I was nuts! It was a FABULOUS book. Lori Wick is a Christian author. It took me about 2 days to read thisbook as it was pretty thick.
The next book I plan to read, I also picked up at the library. It is called Cure For The Common Life ; Living In Your Sweet Spot. The author is Max Lucado. I don't really know what the book is about, but I have read Max Lucado before and I find him really amusing. Max Lucado is a Christian author as well. One of my favorite books that he has written is called In The Grip Of Grace. I hope I can start this book soon...we shall see!

SNAKES & BALLGAMES.............

Well, the birthday party was a big hit. Tim, from the Reptile Co. facinated us with all of his "pets". I will be posting pix. as soon as I get them developed. I will tell more about the party when I post so I wont be repeating everything.

Tonight Cory and the kids and I are going to the Binghamton Mets Ballgame. We have not been to a game in such a long time...at least not one where Cory is not coaching :) I hope he buys us some ice cream :)

HAPPY ARMED FORCES DAY.................

Today is Armed Forces Day, and is a day for us to remember the men and women in uniform who serve our country. A special thank you to my Dad who served in the Vietnam War in the Army. Dad ran the radar. Also a thank-you to our Brother - in- Law Keith. Keith was in the army as well and was in Saudi Arabia. Another thank you to some newer friends of ours at church..The Marble Family. They are a military family, and I am not sure what branch of the armed forces that they served.

Recently Cory and Isaac went fishing for some trout...and brought some back. I am really rather ignorant when it comes to seafood...the last time I just soaked it in milk, then I put it in a baking pan put some spices on it, and a little butter...and baked it. The kids loved it, I thought it was alright. Does anyone have any ideas on how to prepare fish in a family friendly tasty way? I would really like to start cooking more fish as in is rich in Omega 3's...Please Post Anything you think might be helpful about cooking with fish, such as what kind of fish you think tastes really good...how you prepare and cook it...spices...I NEED HELP!

I thought that I would put a picture of this stairmaster here...I started going to the gym sometime in February. I usually do about 25-30 min on the stairmaster...(it really kicks your butt!) After I do this I go do some circuit training...Then I rush home and we eat supper. When Baseball season started, I just found it was too difficult to keep up with. The hour that I might spend at the gym, turned into the only time I could really see Cory...and I cant be asking his parents to watch the kids for something like that. ( I try to reserve that for Drs Appts, or when we get into a bind about something...) Anyways, Cory has continued to go 3Xs a week, before school. He has lost quite a bit of weight...I am so proud of him. I have lost some too, and I am looking forward to the end of baseball season so that I can resume my gym trips. I am hoping to lose about 25-30 LBS we shall see how it goes. I know when I was exercising regularly I had a lot more energy, and was a little more organized...I can't wait to get back to it.

Isaacs 6th Birthday is coming up on May 24th. I can't believe that the time has flown by so fast. I will try to post an "Isaac through the years" Posting on his Birthday. This Friday we are having his Birthday Party. He was very interested in inviting his class this year. We sent out invitations to his class members and also to the kids at church. (Corynn is invited too Rebecca-if you are back in the area by Friday :) It is sure to be a fabulous time. We plan to have Pizza per Isaac's request...plus some veggies and dip, and some chips...nothing fancy. Then the Reptile Co. is going to show us some exotic animals, that I think the kids get to touch...yuck! I know that the kids will have a ball. Afterwards we will have cupcakes and open gifts...I will do my best to take pictures of all that I can, and then post them as soon as they are developed.


This afternoon, I have to take cupcakes into Isaacs school to celebrate the "May Birthdays" . I was assigned to make cupcakes. I just made chocolate and vanilla iced yellow cake cupcakes...with sprinkles of course...again ...nothing fancy...that would be my sister Manda who makes all of the Blair kids cakes...you know those Wilton ones...Yes I usually buy mine, but this time I am going to make the cupcakes so that it will be cheaper...aren't you proud Manda?

A LITTLE INFORMATION ABOUT ME.................

I went to Geneva College in Beaver Falls, PA and graduated in May of 1998. Cory would say while he graduated Cum Laude...I graduated Thankya Lordy....Funny Cor! I absolutely loved Geneva and its campus...and we hope that our own children will attend as well. Cory and I met our freshman year. I remember thinking how good looking he was and thinking that he would never even consider me. We got to know each other a little better, and then we dated for the rest of college. He did try to break up with me once...and I had to chase him...we had couples counseling with the college chaplain Rev. Tim Russell. It was at our last session that Cory proposed...Rev. Russell married us that June...and we live happily ever after..:)
My area of study is called Speech-Language Pathology. This really is an area that is extremely broad. I did my "internship" at Butler Memorial Hospital. My day would start out by going over the hospital sheet that tells you who is admitted and for what. I would look for those folks who were diagnosed as having Pneumonia, Strokes, etc... Sometimes we would visit these patients, and then ask the Drs to order an Speech Evaluation...some would, some would not. Other things that I would do is find patients that had strokes and show up at Breakfast time and feed them thier breakfast. At this time I could gage as to whether they could make a bolus...this is when you chew your food up and it forms a ball before you swallow. Of course some patients had no oral control. Also I would watch to see that they did not have food packed in their cheeks..Stroke patients can lose a lot of feeling, and sometimes their tongues just will not work. Later in the day, I might visit with some patients and have them read to me...making them overenuciate each word. Oral Motor Exercises are VERY important after having a CVA...I also did other things such as fluency. I would work on sounds with little kids. Our goal is to start with the sound itself...like T...and then T in the initial position of words like toy. then in the medial postion..bitter...then the end...pocket...then we move on to sentences and such. I also did some work with the downsydrome. We did some lifeskills things like mock interviews...that sort of thing. I also would feed some of the Trach patients. In order to find out if they were aspirating their food, you put blue food coloring into thier food, and if blue comes out...they are in trouble. I did quite a few things with Speech Pathology at the hospital in different capacities...but my all time favorite is......
DYSPHAGIA......I loved this, and wish I could have spent all of my time here. It may seem very boring...but it just intrigued me. The above is a photo of someone having a swallow test. For some reason or another, they come in choking or coughing....or have Pneumonia....so what we do is to give them a barium swallow test. First it is water consistency. we give them that, and watch it go down their throat with the radiologist. the next consistency would be a nectar consistency, then a pudding consistency, then we dip a cookie in barium and have them chew it up. That part is really cool, because sometimes they had no oral motor control at all and it would just be everywhere all over their mouth. You would do this test in those consistencies until one of them caused them to aspirate. Then you would make modifications to how they eat/drink. They might just need to put their chin to their chest with each swallow, or we would have to thicken their liquids to the consistency that they did not aspirate...can you imagine drinking your coffee with a pudding consistency???? Another part that was so amazing to me was to feed an elderly person some water consistency barim...watch it go down her windpipe...and see them NOT CHOKE! This is why I look for the Pnuemonia patients...all of the sudden they are wondering why they have Pneumonia? I wonder to myself how many of the elderly have died from not knowing that they were aspirating...and whatever condition they came in with, then they got Pnuemonia on top of it...It makes me so sad. I would say that if it were possible that I would want to be in this field entirely...I can't explain it...I just love it!

OH YEAH BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is a photo taken of the bad boy I caught at the Lake. This is Esther with the Bass...Kind of puts it into perspective how big it was when you see it next to her.


This is Isaac and me. Isaac is wearing a Gander Mountain cardboard Goose hat....just in case you were wondering....: )

This is me and my winner. I guess I will share it with John since he actually hooked it first...: )

Friday Morning Post......................

Well, I am very excited because this Saturday is one of the community yard sales. Over 90 families....I am on the lookout for clothes for everyone, some home decor stuff, sheet sets (have you noticed how expensive they are?) and some books that would interest me. I am also going to be on the lookout for some old tools that are in good shape. I am thinking about putting together a tool box for Isaac as one of his birthday gifts...complete with some leftover lumber. I think he would really enjoy this, he wont care that the tools are second hand :) Let me know if anyone is looking for anything in particular and I will keep my eyes open.
Alright, the other day I had the whole laundry ordeal. Well, it did not stop there. I had all of the clothes in a basket~ and last night after I-man had a shower, I was digging through it for a pair of underwear. I reached inside and grabbed a shirt...it started buzzing, and I actually "felt" something inside. I screamed like I do when I am freaked out...Thanks for being there Cory! At any rate , I am sure you figured out that it was a bumblebee by looking at the picture above...Cory let it go outside and that was that!

Isaac had t-ball yesterday. The first day of T-ball he lost his mitt. I think that one of the parents must have picked up their kids mitts, and the kid must have not known and picked one up too. Before we left, I had put Isaacs name on the inside...Next practice...still no glove. Now how do you get home and find yourself with 2 gloves and not bring one back? Hmmmmm. Anyways, I will probably find it for sale at one of the yard sale tables...hehehe. The only other glove we had was one that belonged to my dad or my brother and it has our last name on it. We happened to have it in the car when we went to the grand opening of Gander Mountain. We didnt know that Goose Gossage would be there...but now his name is now on that glove as well...( looks to me like the thiefs stole the wrong glove...hehehehe!) I guess Corys Mom and Dad will be getting him a glove for his B-day....shhhhhh

Have you tried the new Snapple White Tea? My favorite is the Green Apple...it has such a light flavor. I have also tried the Nectarine...I will stick with my Green Apple. Amanda said that she tried the Raspberry and said it was good....My advice is to go for the Green Apple....Everybody got it?---Green Apple : )

Well, So far today I have put in a load of clothes, cleaned the livingroom, vaccumed the Living room. Esther picked up her room as well and ran the vaccum herself...she did a very good job. I have much left to do today....the kitchen is such a mess. This morning after Cory came home from the gym he had brought home Dunkin Donuts...My favorite in the Donut Family : ) This was a treat for us because we hardly ever get them, and because there was no real clean up from Breakfast. Cory was really kind to get me 2 boston Creme donuts...my favorite....but I did notice that he did not eat any....I think he must be worried about his girlish figure...I felt very guilty eating it...all I could think was that I could hear Trans Fats squishing in my mouth...but I just could not...would not stop myself!!!!!! And the thing is...if there is any left in the box...I will probably make myself a cup of tea and indulge again...squish squish. Well, I guess I had better not procrastinate....I had better check that box out...I cant have donuts lying around the house...I have to get rid of them...it is just not healthy for the kids hehehehehe!

OTHER WORKS OF ART I LIKE...............

Although I enjoy lots of art, this one The Creation of Adam by Michaelangelo is a favorite. I do have this print in my home, though not on a wall. It is just waiting for a "spot". This print reminds me of our inability to save ourselves. It is by Gods Grace and Mercy that we are saved...nothing that we can do in and of ourselves. There is much I could say about this picture, but I will not give a Humanities Lecture... :)

Okay, now I know that this is not comparable to Michaelangelo...but someday we will have this print, and it's brother below for our gameroom...:) Cory and I love to play cards...get together with friends...despite what the pictures may denote...we don't cheat...:)

This Print is called "A Friend In Need"

This print is "Dogs Playing Poker"

Does anyone else have any favorite Artists that they would like to share?

THIS MEANS WAR !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This morning, I went out to get my laundry off of the line before it started to rain. I was pulling it in, stuffing it in my basket...when I noticed that one of my shirts had BIRD CRAP on it! Okay, I thought. I might have left them out a little too long...but then I noticed that at least 4 other shirts had BIRD CRAP on them too....oh no no no...this is not just something that "happened"....this is a conspiracy! Think about it....how hard would it be to drop on a couple shirts all spaced out...Yes....they were TARGET PRACTICING!!!! Well guess what? It is time for my own TARGET PRACTICE!!!!!!!! Cory---get out the Paint ball guns, and the potato gun....It is CROW SEASON....AAHHHHHHHHH!

THURSDAY MORNING POST....................

Today is Thursday, and I call it my "day off". (Hardly) It is the day that I take the girls to the library. This is something that I love to do for myself as well...Our Library is very small however, and I find it discouraging to look in a certain section and find that I have already checked this or that out...and I remember the ones beside them...VARIETY!!!!!!!!
With Thursday, also comes the occassional trip to McDonalds. This is a date that I like to make with my girls. It is kind of scary that Gayle has accustomed herself already to this....for when we pull in she says automatically "berber" "fri fries" "juicy".....I was going to put a McDonalds Arch picture on this post, but when I looked at the site...there was a picture of a really obese child eating fries...I decided that I wouldnt post any photos....perhaps next "date" we will eat at Subway :)
Later on today I will have to pick up I-man from school. Somewhere in there I will have to feed the kids supper then scurry off to T-ball for Isaac...and then make Cory something for supper after his game....In between I will have to find time to clean the house and get the clothes off of the line before it rains. (perhaps I should be doing all of this now...but instead I BLOG !)
Tonights menu includes Basil Chicken with a cream sauce over angel hair pasta. Leftover salad, and maybe some fruit for the kids. I might even throw in some mixed veggies...This is one of my favorite dishes, but we hardly ever make it because the fat content is much to be desired ....but I have the makings and I need to make it or I am going to lose them to spoilage!
Hope everyone is having a great day! I hope it is not so dreary that I can't take the kids to the park a little to work off their "berbers, and fri fries".

OUR NEW CAMERA.......YIPPEEEEE!!!!!!!!!

A long time ago in college Cory and I bought a really nice Minolta camera. The door on the back has been broken for a while now, and the cost to fix it is over $200...NO WAY...What a rip off. I loved that Camera. I have been using Corys Moms camera for a while now. My friend and roommate from Geneva College is a Photographer (among many of her other talents...). Sarah told me she was going to get a souped up digital camera...so she was going to get rid of this one. So of course we jumped at the chance! This is a Canon EOS ELAN 7E....which means nothing to me....all I know is that it is a whole lot of camera...and I really dont know what I am doing yet. Apparently it can focus on whatever your eye is looking at. Maybe that is the "eye control feature?" At any rate...I am going to be reading up quite a bit. Now attatched to this complex camera is a Sigma AF-MF Compact Hyperzoom........See the picture down there?


I know that I am going to have to get busy and figure this all out.............AAHHHHHHHHHHH Thanks Sarah....I am really excited about it, and I cant wait to take some great pictures...and I hope they turn out as great as yours :)

MY FAVORITE ARTIST..............

These are just a few of the prints from my favorite artist...Robert Duncan. I love his paintings because they appear to look so real as if they are moving. They also remind me of my childhood. I have a couple prints that I have received as gifts...I hope to get a bunch more...(Hint* Hint* Cory) Robert Duncan tends to paint outdoor scenes...he also has a line of Native American paintings that Cory really likes. Another painter I like who is very well known is Thomas Kincade...but I really prefer Robert Duncan because his work really seems to mimic my childhood.

This one is called Anniken and the cows. I think that my sister JJ has this one.

I believe this one is called Mother and Son....I would love this one!

I do not own this one either...it is called The Critics Circle....I do have some that are like this one however.

I TOLD YOU SO...........

Didn't I say that I would catch a HUGE fish? Yeah....that I did. On Sunday after church, we headed up to the cottage to visit with Amanda and John....(and to toss a line.) There is a spot where the bass always bed every year....So I put on a 3 inch Yamamoto in Cinnamon/no fleck. I antagonized that beast until he was so irritated that he took it! I yanked it up on shore...only to have it fall off of my hook...I screamed "John!!!" "Cory!!!" "Get my fish...don't let him go back to the water!!!!! AAAAAAAhhhhhhh!!!!!....This bass was BIG! John got there just in time as it was flapping around...and I was able to get my picture taken with their camera. They promise to get a print made for me so that I can post it...when? I don't know...but you can be sure that I will pester them and pester them. Yes I believe I hold the record so far....hehehe! I think it was about 20 inches and probably 5 pounds....The mouth was Gigantic!!! What did we do with it? We had to throw it back because it was not in season....otherwise...we would have mounted that puppy!!!!!! I suppose I must mention that my Brother in Law John actually did hook this one as well...and apparently it flopped back in the water before he could get to it...and of course there is no picture to prove it...sorry John : ( HA!
Some other mentionables would be : Both John and Amanda caught really big Perch...I have never seen them that big in the lake. John caught a really nice sized Crappie, and also some nice sized Pickeral. (Actually a couple Pickeral I think! Way to Go John!!!) Isaac caught 2 sunfish and a Perch...he is doing so well! Good Job Bubba! I know that Cory caught some as well...maybe some bait...HA...just kidding Cor! I think Cory caught 2 bass and a little teeny tiny blue gill (hehehe!) Gayle and Esther had a fabulous time. We found out that if we give them each two worms to play with...they are good to go...they will play with these worms for foever!!!
We are planning to go to the cottage again on Mother's Day if the weather permits....We just never get tired of fishing!!!!

TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALLGAME...............

These are just some shots that were taken of us by one of Corys players family. We had no idea that she took them, but she was kind enough to give them to us. This particular game was played at NYSEG stadium, it is where the Binghamton Mets play. It is always a joy to come and watch when they play here. I am not sure why there are none of Esther...perhaps she just couldn't get a good shot : (
This is Isaac after the game. He likes to go out and run the bases.

This is a picture of Gayle and I after the game. We were talking to Cory in the dugout.

I absolutely LOVE this shot. This is Cory going over the scorebook with Isaac looking on. This would look so good in black and white. Such a good candid shot...thanks to the photographer!

THE SATURDAY NIGHT POST

Today was a busy run around kind of day! It started out by Cory leaving for Baseball Practice, and me getting the children ready to go to swim lessons. This was the last day of lessons, and the kids did a great job. They love to swim, and we hope to take them more often this summer. After lessons, I was going to go buy my sister and brother in law a Wedding Gift...when they called my cell phone, and said Yeah...we are about an hour from the cottage...I said I will be there ASAP! Needless to say, I did not shop for a gift, but went right home to get some things they might need there like blankets, movies, ..etc... I put all of that in the car and then we headed off to the grocery store. The kids and I put some fruit, crackers, and sweet goodies into a basket for them to have while they stay. We pulled in to the driveway and they pulled in right behind us...Good Timing. We took some time to sit and talk, and then did some fishing off of the dock...Manda caught a really nice sized perch...John caught some rather large crappie too. Isaacs bobber went under a few times and I said "Hey Isaac, watch your bobber!" Whatever was nibbling must have gulped because he didnt have any bait left...and apparently it was my fault because I was talking and scaring the fish away!!! Isaac left irritated telling me that there was no fish in the lake : ( Better luck next time I-man!)
After we fished...Amanda and the girls and I went inside, while John and Isaac stayed to fish some more. Then, we loaded up our car and went out for supper. I had the Portabello Chicken with Pasta....(that is what I always get..) It was sooo good! Cory got Chicken Parm. and Manda and John got home made Spaghetti...it was good food and good fellowship. John told us that on the way up he got a speeding ticket...HA (Now everyone knows John!) I told him not to feel bad, the other day I got crapped on by a bird. I hoped that made his plight feel a little lighter. After supper we said our goodbyes...and Manda asked if we were coming up at all...I said we werent planning on it...it's your honeymoon...she said..you can...all we are going to do is fish...I said If that is all you are going to do, it will be a pretty sorry honeymoon...(wink*wink*) At least John laughed. Anyways...we are going to see them sometime tomorrow after church..fishing and fellowship :)
Hope all is well with you bloggers...Have a good rest of the weekend :)

FRIDAY EVENING POST

Well, it is Friday and Cory and I stayed busy. I asked Cory to stay home to help me get some things done today around the house. Much was accomplished, but there is still much left : ( After we did our work...Cory had to leave for a game and I took the kids outside to play...they had such a good time. Isaac is going to be starting T-Ball next week so we were practicing...that boy has got an arm on him. I should have been using a glove...now my shins are going to tell on me tomorrow : (

That is about it for today...the following posts tell the really important things that happened today :) Have a really great weekend!

CONGRATULATIONS JOHN AND AMANDA.......

Congratulations to my sister Amanda and my newest brother -in-law John. John and Amanda were married today ~May 5th, 2006. It was a civil ceremony. Although I was not able to attend, my Mother has sent me lots of photos via the internet. After the marriage took place the newlyweds and family went to the Runway Restaurant for refreshment, and fellowship. How I wish that I could have been there. Cory and I are lucky however...Amanda and John will spend their honeymoon at Corys familys cottage. (at least some of it..) They will be arriving tomorrow, and Cory and I plan to take them out for supper to celebrate! I am so happy that John is part of our family. John loves to fish...need we say more? He is also very good to Amanda, and you can see the love.
Amanda and John intend to take over Mom and Dads home. They plan to build on, remodel, and add on a small apartment for Mom and Dad. It is nice knowing that Mom and Dad will be taken care of. I am very excited to see all the changes take place...I am sure they will be very busy.
Please keep Amanda and John in your prayers as they travel to and fro...and make their new life together...I pray that God richly blesses them.

MEET MY NEWEST BROTHER IN LAW...JOHN.

This is a picture of my brother in law John. Apparently Amandas co-workers made this veil as a joke. Amanda always wears ballcaps...so this is what they think her veil should look like : )

Of course this is Amanda posing in her ballcap veil...you know Manda...you look really good in it!

THE NEWLYWEDS...MR. AND MRS. ZOMBECK

This is a photo taken of my sister and newest brother-in-law. John and Amanda Zombeck. Married May 5th, 2006

This is Amanda and John at the Justice of the Peace. John brought Amanda a bouquet of roses and babys breath to hold.

The kiss in front of the lilacs.

Two hands....One heart.

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY KEITH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Belated Birthday to my Brother-in-Law Keith! May 2nd. This is a rather outdated photo, taken in 2003. This is Keith with our niece Joyce, and with my daughter Esther. This was taken at Grandmas 88th B-day Party at the Manchester RPCNA. The word is that Keith wants a French Press for his B-day...My sister says that is for Coffee Snobs. I myself have never seen one. I don't know exactly what we are planning to get him as a gift yet...at any rate Keith...I hope you had a Fabulous Day...and we wish you many more :)