Happy Birthday Sis!

Today you would have been turning 57, but you were taken away from us way too soon! These 2 weeks, in between the day of the accident (August 29th, 2004), my birthday (September 5th) & your birthday (September 12th) are the hardest weeks of my life! I remember how you always used to kid around with me about my birthday being a week before yours, but I always got you back because I was still the youngest. You were 10 years minus 1 week older than me & I know we shared a really special bond because of our birthdays being so close together. Hey, do you think Mom & Dad planned it that way? ;)

Mom told me how you used to spoil me all the time. Since I was the baby in the family & you were 10 years old when I was born (ok, 10 years minus a week, lol), she said that you used to treat me like I was your own baby. You would always want to feed me & dress me. As I got older, I remember being so sad when you moved off to Montana....you were starting a life with your own kids, but I was selfish & didn't want you to go! We always kept in touch....through phone calls & then the wonderful WWW with emails, but it was still so hard to be so far away from you!

I remember the last time I got to see you....it was when this picture, above, was taken. I came home for a visit in July of 2003 & you drove down to see me as you lived 2 hours away from Mom. I love this picture of the 2 of us together (even though I look like crap in it!). We both knew that the bond we shared was special....something only sisters share!

And today, as you celebrate your birthday, I realize just how lucky I am to have you in my life....even though you aren't here in presence anymore, I know you're here in spirit! And that's what gets me through all of this.....knowing that you're my angel & you're watching over me every minute of every day!

I love you & miss you, Karen!

Until we meet again,

Benita

09-09-09

Shawn called me on my birthday to see if I was gonna be home....he said he had something for me. When he arrived, he had these gorgeous roses in his hands, along with a very, thought-provoking card. I couldn't believe it! My son not only remembered my birthday, but he got me roses! Yep, I truly believe that those 4 days in PA together has brought us closer than we've been in YEARS!

On Labor Day, Jim & I heading to 3 different Salvation Army stores to do some bargain shopping since they always have sales on holidays. I could hardly believe my eyes when I stumbled upon the item above! Long story: when I was a teenager (some 30+ years ago), my grandparents had given me one of these exactly like this one & I cherished it as it plays the song "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head", one of my all-time favorite songs. Fast forward to 1987.....I had lost almost everything I owned in an apartment fire, including the above musical figurine. I was devastated! It was on the top of our waterbed headboard & when I was able to go into the apartment to salvage what I could, this figurine was all charred & broken :( So when I saw this exact same figurine at the store, tears swelled into my eyes & I clutched onto it with dear life. The best part is....it works & plays the song I love so much :) Yes, it does have a chip in the umbrella, but I don't care! It's mine! I guess the saying one person's trash is another person's treasure definitely proves true here :)

I also found this really cool box that I think I'll be using to display my shot glass collection.....or maybe for something in my scraproom? Hmmm.

I then stumbled upon these.....corn cob dishes. I got 6 of them for 99 cents each :) I've been wanting some of these for years & was so happy when I found them. Best part is.....they're made by Pfaltzgraff & they're all in excellent condition.

I also got myself 2 shirts, both brand new with tags, a Tigger polo shirt for Jim, which was also new with tags, a brand new still in box charging valet by Brookstone & these:

2 Willow Tree Angels for a buck each! And they're in perfect condition. I definitely couldn't pass them up!

Tonight was the first night back to bowling for our league & I'm pretty pleased with the way I bowled, especially since I haven't touched my bowling balls in 5 months! My games were 160, 190 & 173 for a 523 series. The first game, it was hard for me to concentrate since I'm the league Treasurer this year & had to count the money & take care of all the pay envelopes. And the first week is always hectic getting everyone started. But hopefully things will calm down a little next week & I'll be able to concentrate more.....although, that may or may not be a good thing :)

Have a great week/weekend,
Benita

9-5-62

Happy Birthday.....to me :) It's official. I'm another year older. And still the baby of the family, hehe. While I was in PA, my sisters & I were all discussing our ages, trying to figure out how old we each were cause trust me, when you get as old as we are, you tend to start forgetting things like that. Linda thought I was going to be 49 (gee, thanks, Linda!). I just had to remind them all that I'm still the youngest ;)

So today, as I begin to celebrate my 47th year of life, I plan on takin' it easy, reminisce about what I've accomplished (or procrastinated to accomplish, lol) over the past year & just be grateful to be alive to enjoy this day! I have so many things that I still want to do with my life, but just for today, I'll be celebrating the day of my birth: September 5, 1962 @ exactly 8:00 a.m. Thank-you Mom & Dad for bringing me into this world :)

Benita Lynn

Pics From PA

Friday morning, after picking up Shawn, we headed to PA & arrived around 5:30 p.m. We actually made pretty good time & I wasn't even speeding.....that much ;) Heck, you couldn't speed in Ohio.....there were cops EVERYWHERE! I swear we saw over a dozen cops all along I-80. Thank goodness for my radar detector :)

On Saturday, Barb, Shawn, Dad, Linda, Dave & I drove up to visit the crash site & the grave. Donna didn't want to go.....again :( She claims that she hates going to graves. Well HELLO....we don't exactly like graves, either, but we do it out of respect for Karen & Jimmy! At the crash site, Barb redid the names & dates on the crosses & I added the flowers.....blue was Karen's favorite color & Jimmy liked red.

Here we are at the grave.....I love the mums that were planted. I added the blue bouquet here as well.

Love this pic that Barb took of Shawn & I.....it's not very often that him & I get our picture taken together.

Here I am with my Mom. I was so happy to see her & she smiled as soon as I walked into her room. Then she looked at Shawn & said "who's that?" She honestly didn't recognize him. In her defense, it's been probably 7-8 years since she saw him last.

Sunday, we went to the mall & then to the Legion for dinner & drinks while Barb was working & again, to visit my Mom. She was in the mood for shrimp, so I picked some up for her at Long John Silvers. Then we had to leave on Monday :( I wish we could have stayed longer! Heck, we didn't even get on the road until almost 1:00 p.m. because I didn't want to leave! Why do vacations go by so fast anyway??? Here's Barb working at the gas station sporting her new haircut. She's still not sure if she likes it, but I think it looks great on her! Speaking of Barb, today she starts her Chemo & she could really use some prayers. She just doesn't deserve any of this!

My Dad & I, right before I left to come back home. Yep, he's a Kasey fan, too :)

Dad, Barb & I.

Before we got on the road, I had to stop & see my Mom again. LOVE this picture that I took of her with Shawn.

And once again, I started crying :*( She told me to stop crying & that she was okay. I told her that I just hate seeing her in there & she replied saying that she doesn't have to do any housework, doesn't have to cut grass, doesn't have to cook & assured me that she's doing good. When I went to say goodbye to her, she said "don't say goodbye, say see you later."

Right after we got into Michigan, I was just too tired to drive any longer, so I asked Shawn if he wanted to drive. Yep, can you believe it.....I let him drive my Charger?!? Am I nuts or what? LOL NO ONE drives my Charger but me.....not even Jim! LOL Actually, Jim hates driving it, so that's why he doesn't drive it very often. Shawn, OTOH, loved driving it! He was impressed with how well it handled & liked the power ;)

We arrived in Detroit around 8:00 p.m. to drop Shawn off & then I got home right around 9:00. It's been hard adjusting to being home again. Tuesday, I was really depressed & just sat around the house most of the day :( If I could move back home, I would in a heartbeat! I hate being so far away from my family! It sucks! It really sucks!

Benita

5 Years

5 years ago today, August 29, 2004, was the absolute worst day of my life! A day that I wish I could forget ever happened! A day of sadness, lots & LOTS of tears, lots of pain, lots of questions. It's so hard to believe that it's been 5 years! When I think about how my life has changed over the past 5 years, I know that I've become more aware of things, more careful, more alert to my surroundings & more scared.
Not a single day goes by that I don't think about Karen & Jimmy.....not one! And I'll admit, it's been very hard for me to go on, living my life, knowing that they aren't with us any longer. They say that grieving gets easier as time passes.....I think they're wrong! It's been 5 years ago & still feels like just yesterday! I miss them! And always will!

As you're reading this, I'm in Pennsylvania visiting my family & the grave. I'm staying at Barb's house since most of the hotels were booked for Little League World Series & the ones there weren't, were over $200 a night! I'll be posting lots of pics when I return.

Benita

Thank-you!

Thank-you all so much for the prayers for my sister Barb! They worked! She made it through the surgery just fine, although she was very sore. She now has her drains out & was able to return to work yesterday, a mere 2 weeks after her surgery! She is definitely a trooper! She's not sure when she starts chemo yet, but the other day, she went to get her hair cut & donated her hair to Locks Of Love. How awesome is that!!! I'm SO proud of her & her strength!

The other day, I decided to stroll into Michaels just to see if they had anything new & I almost cried when I saw this on an endcap. And Xyron is donating 50 cents from each purchase to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. So yep, you guessed it.....I had to bring this little ribbon home :)

Isn't she adorable?!? Yeah, I already had the original Xyron X, but I just couldn't resist this one. Now, I only wish I had to money to buy the new PINK Cricut Expressions Machine! Darn, darn, DARN! I want that thing SO BAD! But I just cannot justify buying it since my Cricut isn't even a year old. WHY do they do these things after you already buy them.....WHY???

Thanks again for all the prayers.....I knew I could count on my friends!

Have a wonderful weekend,

Benita

Prayer Request

My dear blog readers & friends,

Today I have a prayer request. Today, my sister Barb (pictured above with her 17 year old son Kyle) will be undergoing a double Mastectomy. Less than 2 months ago, she went in for her annual mammogram & it was then that they found some lumps. After having several biopsies done, she was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. She is proof that Breast Cancer can happen to anyone at any time! It doesn't run in our family, no other woman in our family has ever had breast cancer before & she didn't have any warning signs at all! It just happened that fast! So please, if you don't do self exams or haven't had a mammogram, do it NOW! TODAY! Not tomorrow! Not next week! NOW!

Barb, being the comedian that she is, has been keeping her spirits up & has been trying to make us all laugh about it. I just talked to her on the phone last night & she said that she's always wanted new boobs & this time, she wants smaller ones.....she's sick of carrying those big things around (her quote, not mine). She was also joking around with Mom & told her that not only is she getting new boobs, but she'll also be getting a new stomach out of it, too. Yep, I love my sister & her sense of humor!

I, on the other hand, have been crying almost all day! I'm a nervous wreck! I just CANNOT lose another sister! I can't! So that is why I'm asking you for your prayers. Please keep Barb in your thoughts & prayers today that she makes it through this surgery without any complications & that they can get the cancer out of her completely!

Thank-you.

Benita

7-11

Seems like so much has been going on in the world these last couple of weeks. We lost quite a few talented people.....Ed McMahon, Billy Mays & then both Farrah Fawcett & Michael Jackson on the same day! Unreal! I loved MJ & his music as long as I can remember.....grew up dancing to it at the local Disco back in the day ;), have almost all of his cd's & I put several of his songs on my iPod to listen to while working out. And Farrah.....she was just truly beautiful in every way! Who didn't want her hair??? I know I did, but sadly, I could never style mine that good :( Losing all these wonderful people so close together makes you realize just how short life really is! The sign above was at the Palace of Auburn Hills for about 2 days.....Motown won't be the same without MJ!
I'm way behind in posting my pics of the fireworks from the 4th. I took a BUNCH of pictures, but these 3 are my favorites. I had a hard time trying to figure out what setting to put my camera on as it was a last-minute decision to even go to the fireworks.
But I don't think they turned out too shabby.
This one is probably my absolute favorite, even though it's a little blurry. I just love all the colors!

Today when I woke up, I could barely get out of bed as my right foot was hurting & swelled up. Seems like my Osteoarthritis is flaring up.....again :( I was so hoping that the Aquamin Sea Minerals that I've been taking were helping & I wouldn't have to take the Mobic anymore. But I took one this morning as I gotta feel better by Monday because I have to work, especially since Jim won't be working the next 2 weeks & won't be getting paid, either :( They're doing a shutdown & making everyone use their vacation time for the next 2 weeks. Luckily, we did save some of his vacation pay when he got it 2 months ago, but we were hoping to keep it saved......unfortunately, now we'll have to use it to pay bills :(

That's all for now.....nothing much else to report. Don't forget to go to 7-11 today & get your free Slurpee :)

Benita

Happy Independence Day

I just wanted to take a minute to wish everyone a very happy & safe Independence Day. Whether you're enjoying the holiday by having a cook-out with family & friends, going to see fireworks or to a parade, remember why today is so important & how lucky we are to celebrate our independence.

Our plans involve going to the beach, then we invited our neighbors over for a cook-out, we'll probably play some cards, watch the Nascar race & go see the fireworks. Guess if I plan on doing any of that, I better get to bed, huh?

God Bless America!

Benita

Yes, I DO Still Blog!

Even though it's been 20 days since my last blog post (but who's counting?), I do still blog.....honest. I've just had so much going on in between going to the Nascar race, going to a Tigers game, working, gardening & working out that I've badly neglected my blog.

The Nascar race was great.....the weather couldn't have been any better....perfect sunny skies & cool temps. When we found out that our neighbors were also going to the race, we decided to caravan down together. They had pit passes, so we figured we might as well go into the pits, too. And I'm so glad that I did as I was able to get 5 autographs on my shirt (the one I'm wearing above) from Kasey Kahne's pit crew :) Jim got it autographed by Kasey at work a year or so ago (on my booby, of all places, lol) so I knew I wanted to add his pit crew autographs to it.

Every year, our church takes a trip to a Tigers game & this past Saturday, we went to that. I was able to have my granddaughter for the weekend (again :) ), so we took her with us. We had an awesome time & the Tigers beat the Brewers 9-5! YAY!

I have LOTS more pictures, but don't have the time to post them all right now. I've been having some major issues with my computer lately & I'm half afraid it may be on it's last legs :( Plus I just had to replace my modem this morning......it just completely stopped working last night. So I'm praying that my computer isn't next cause we just can't afford a new one right now!

Well, I gotta start getting ready for work. Hope you have a wonderful week!

Benita