Nurse Nancy

April 13-19th Bahamas and Mike's Wedding to Stephanie Wright

In April Ken, Joe, Vince and I went to the Bahamas for Mike and Stephanie's wedding. I love destination weddings! It was beautiful and pictures tell the story the best:

Night before, delicious dinner at Nettie's

6:30am Sunrise Wedding

Beach breakfast reception

All Day Sailing Cruise & Snorkel

An amazing 6 hour cruise on a 55' sailboat with a famous barbecue! We went snorkeling on a coral reef and visited a secluded beach. The snorkeling on this cruise was great with beautiful coral formations and lots and lots of colorful reef fish. A perfect day for a beautiful couple - thanks Mike and Stephanie!

The actual island used at the beginning of Gilligan's Island

Evening party on the beach

Family Dinner

Atlantis on Paradise Island

Shark tunnel

April 5th ~ Kuma passes

Missing my Kuma, such a faithful friend!! Always there to greet me in the morning with a friendly "paw and doggie smile" Nothing like the unconditional love of a faithful dog! R.I.P. sweet buddy! I will miss you.

February 1 ~ The Blizzard of 2011

Took hours to dig out of this one! More than 20" of snow and with the drifting in front of the house we had several feet of snow to dig out before we could even get to the snow blower! '67, '79, '99, and now 2011~I've seen 4 big blizzards now. Thankfully we had power, many did not. Schools and businesses were closed, motorists were stranded, especially on Lake Shore Drive, and it took days to dig out.

Memories

Another year gone by and, as I do every year on this day, I read through the guestbook and remember. So many wonderful memories from friends and family that remind me of how thankful and blessed I am to have had a mother that was so loving and special to so many people. When I was young I thought that my mother’s whole purpose was to be my mom – that is how she made me feel. When I’d leave for school my mom was at the window to smile and wave me on. I don’t think I could have gotten through the day without that – that last glimpse of her motherly face affected me like sunshine. And after we were grown, as we left after a visit, she would always be there at the door or window to wave and smile as we left. You don’t understand what it is to be a mother until you become a mother yourself. Elizabeth Elliot said: “The process of shaping the child … shapes also the mother herself. Reverence for her sacred burden calls her to all that is pure and good, that she may teach primarily by her own humble, daily example.” The memory of my mother will always be a blessing to me. I loved her dearly.

These are some postcards Mom made just before her stroke in 2002 - she was taking a watercolor class at Sun City. The first one is my niece Andrea...