Well, another year has come and gone without you. Thirty-six years ago today, we stood in the pastor's study and vowed that only death would part us. Then we went home and ate meatloaf! What a wedding supper! I would gladly make meatloaf tonight if it meant that you were here to eat it with me.

Kayden and Kim's little girl Kovie was born right before Thanksgiving. She's a true red-head like her Mimi Mistie. And, when she wants something, she wants it right now. I've kept her a couple of times and she's getting to the fun stage. She's now saying Dada and has learned how to shake her head no and does it as fast as she can. They still haven't gotten married yet. Kayden just started a new job working at the concrete plant with Mistie. They are going to train him in every aspect of running a plant and then giving him his own. He had been at his other job for 4 years and hadn't gotten a raise in 2 years. They didn't want to let him go, but they couldn't come up with the difference in pay he's going to get at the new job.

Heather and Chris had their baby, a little girl named Rosalind Pearl. She will be a year in December. I think she was born on Brooks' birthday. She's a cutie and was born quite early so has some medical issues, but overall she's healthy and happy and Heather is finally a mom, which is all she's ever wanted to be.

Brooks is all boy, into everything. He had an issue with food aversion and wouldn't eat solid food. I know, you are wondering how anyone cannot like food! He's doing better now but he's a little behind in where he should be. Kenna is also pregnant again and she figures she's due around Havyn's birthday. She goes to the doctor tomorrow so she'll get a better idea. She's having some minor issues, so again, if you have any influence up there, she could use it.

Havyn is in pre-K at Gosnell and grandma does most of the daily pick-up. Luckily Daddy Aaron can get her to school. She gets out at 2:15 so I usually pick her up. She has matured so much for a 4 year old! I can't believe some of the things she comes up with, like "do slugs have teeth"? We had to google that one. And they have thousands of them, facing backwards to scrape the food into their mouths. Who knew!

Brianna left the eye doctor and is working with the industry section at the college. It was a slight pay cut, but not enough to hurt things. Aaron is working at the Osceola Fire Department and on a farm. He quit his good factory job because he got mad and walked out. He does have a temper and every time he and Bri fight he posts on Facebook that he's needing a place to live. Emily finally had a talk with him so maybe he'll do better. He's been nothing but good with me, maybe I scare him as the matriarch of the family.

Bryan has left Pafford. They had a big change in management and he didn't like the way things were going. He's working part time with a couple of different ambulance companies. He's also teaching for the college, certifying emergency responders at factories. Emily is co-teaching with him. She's still with Pafford but the new regime accused her of embezzlement because of her pay structure. She finally told them, after I did a lot of research and she did a lot of counseling and praying that she wasn't paying anything back, she had nothing to do with the way her pay was structured and they could do what they wanted. They ended up taking back a couple of days of paid time off and her last 2 merit raises along with her supervisory role. They wanted to really drop her pay but she proved to them that they couldn't do that with the shift she was working and they backed down. As much as she loves being an EMT, she has no loyalty left for Pafford.

Ryan and Amanda are still in North Carolina and love it. Tori is with them now. I don't know for how long. She and her fiance had a fight and he pulled a gun on her and is/was in jail. She was very pregnant so she went to them. She had a little boy, Elias, on August 10th. It's really too bad. This is her 4th and she has relinquished her rights to the other 3. 

I think that's it for my side. I don't hear from your kids much anymore, not like I used to. And that's OK. We did get some sad news in April. Johnny got a phone call from New Mexico that Harris was found dead in his apartment. He died in January and it took until April for them to call someone. I don't know how they got John's number. As far as I knew I was the only contact he still had with the family. And, being a step-parent means nothing to the state of South Carolina, even when the natural parents are both deceased. Amy was the one handling everything and New Mexico needed a copy of his birth certificate to release the death certificate. But South Carolina needed a copy of the death certificate before they would release the birth certificate and they would not release it to me. She was finally able to get it. I sent her the money to pay for the cremation and I told her I would pay for his headstone. I think you would want me to do that for him. Rose had purchased 6 plots when Charlie died so we don't have to do that. I think they are going to SC in a couple of weeks. There is not going to be any service. Harris would have thought that hypocritical with his aversion to all things religious. Mary took his death harder than Aimee thought she would. Maybe it brought back Ben's death. She did go to New Mexico with Aimee to pick his ashes up and she bought an urn to use instead of the temporary one from the medical examiners office. They did say that it appeared it was natural causes. There were no drugs or alcohol found in his system, only evidence of him being a heavy smoker.

Shirley is not doing well at all. She has now been diagnosed with dementia and Karen had to move her from assisted living to skilled nursing/memory care. I think she's in the one that is associated with the apartments your mom and Bud lived in but I'm not sure. Karen tells me that she her friend Billy comes to see her a lot. Karen finally asked her if she meant her brother Billy and she said yes. So, she knows you are visiting her, getting her ready to transition. It's really sad because she can't play her music anymore and you know how important that was to her.

Now we come to me. You will probably think I'm crazy but I've adopted 3, count them 3, dogs! The neighbors moved and left their mama dog and 7 puppies. A few of us in the neighborhood took turns feeding her and some people who knew the puppies were there came and snagged 3 of them, probably before they were ready to be weaned. After they kept raiding her hiding place under the house, she moved the rest of them to under our house. A family across the street took the 2 little boys and I decided since all of the shelters were full and no one wanted them, that I would keep them. I had just called the mama dog Mama and Havyn told me that I couldn't change it. The girls names are Maisie and Minnie. So now I have Mama, Maisie, Minnie and Mouse. And Mouse doesn't like them at all, not even through the door. He hisses and snarls as far as cats snarl and has even lashed out at me if I'm trying to go in or out. I got a pen for them and Bryan got it put together and Mama chewed through a panel the first night. So, I've ordered one she can't chew through it just hasn't been put up yet. It's too hot to work outside. But, they stay pretty close. Maisie did get hit last week. She's been at Cato's. It was only a broken leg and he put a pin in it. She's the wanderer. She will have to stay in the house for a bit when she can come home which will be a test for Mouse. He ignored her when I had her in my biggest carrier the night she got hit. He sniffed once and then spent the night in bed with me. So we shall see what happens. Mama even walks Havyn home. She likes to walk and meet Bri at the corner while I watch from the driveway. Mama will walk quietly right beside her until she gets there and then goes running back. She would really like to come in the house and she was kept in the house before, but it has been Mouse's house first so I do have to consider him. I'll see what Cato says about integrating them.

That's all of the news from here. I haven't been back to Illinois since we closed on Mom's house and I headed home right after the closing. Larry is doing well. Brooke and Missi had a surprise party for him last week-end for his 70th birthday. He knew about it well before time and I told him I wasn't coming. I noticed that all of those trips back and forth for dealing with Ronna's estate and then Mom's trust really took a toll on me. So, Em, Bryan, Bri and Havyn represented. Emily said Larry should get an academy award for pretending surprise! He said what surprised him was that people came from all over for it.

OK, that's really the end. I still wish you were here with me instead of watching over me. Sometimes I think I hear you walking down the hall after I've gone to bed. I don't watch your chair as much anymore to see what you are doing. I really much your voice and your smile and your hugs. I know Kenna misses you and wishes you were here to see Brooks. We've explained to Havyn how she got her name. I not only miss you, I miss us.