Surprise!

I couldn't say anything until after the fact on Hannah's trip to FL. because Andy's does check this blog sometimes and I dared not ruin the surprise. She flew out Fri. morning to surprise Andy and spend the weekend there. She took all her curtains for the house and some other decorating things thinking she would add some finishing touches and make the place look homey. Well, when she and Andy got to the house they found it was being flooded from a broken pipe under the sink! Ugh! Needless to say, she did not hang curtains. They will have to replace some flooring and possibly the bottom kitchen cabinets. Thankfully, the new linoleum had not yet been laid. By the way, she surprised him at his office. He said he loved the surprise! I think he was getting kind of Hannah sick (home sick) to see her! They are down to 39 days! That means we really have to pull it all together-soon! No, really, we're doing ok in that area.
So far, Nathanael is still set to graduate May 18. We will be spending the weekend there since he will have liberty for the entire weekend. Once he's in school he should be able to come home some weekends.
Aaron is back at work and settling back in at home. I don't know how I'll do when all my kids are out and on their own. I know I'll miss them! Hopefully they won't all be so far away I'll never get to see them except at Christmas! I know- life will go on!
Have a great day and enjoy the sunshine! I think Spring has officially arrived!!!

Aries

Aries Hardesty, (age 4 mos. and 23 days) went to be with Jesus yesterday. Apparently it was SIDS. I babysat for Aries and his brother, Theo. Please pray for his parents- they are not doing well. They had all gone to Miami along with some other family to witness/celebrate the marriage of Eric and Suzanne, Aries parents. They found Aries not breathing when they went in to check on him during his nap. I can not imagine the grief
and pain they must be feeling. Please pray that I will have the right words to say when they get back. The posted picture was taken at about 2-2 1/2 months. I can imagine the joy in Heaven and how Aries must be enjoying his time with Jesus!

Hey--

That's sort of what I heard early this morning as I went into the kitchen. I was pleasantly surprised to see Aaron there. He got in around 2 this morning. It's good to have him back.
Hannah's shower went very well last night. Of course, it was beautifully done by Wendy Bailey. A couple of the pics I post will show 2 little girls that thoroughly enjoyed the cookies, even the day after! Hannah received a lot of very nice gifts and thought it was all so nice. Now we're full speed ahead to pull everything together for the wedding! Hopefully there will be no snags!!
Try to make it a beautiful day, anyway!

April Showers Bring-June Weddings!!

Thought I'd share some of Hannah's shower pics. She has had 2 and tonight she'll have her third. The first one was given by her Matron of Honor, Christie Thomas, the 2nd I gave and this one is being given by the church. Once her and Andy are married and back in FL. Andy's mom plans to have a house warming for them. How fun can this get! We've had a good time at both showers and Hannah has really appreciated all her gifts.She is at 45 days and counting(down of course)Woo-Hoo!

Up to Date

I guess I'm not doing a very good job of keeping this blog up to date. Even though I'm busy, busy it doesn't seem to interesting for others!Anyhow--Aaron is on his way home from FL. after 3 months-ready to pick up on his job with Metzgers. Hannah will have her 2nd bridal shower Sat.. Her first one was last Fri. in IN and turned out really nice. Nathanael has had lot's of sickness while at boot camp, but says he is getting on top of it now. I'm trying to decide my next career move! Not so sure I want to continue babysitting or if I should even consider it. I've been fighting bursitis and tendonitis for several months. All the lifting and being on my feet all day just doesn't give it a chance to rest. So-- maybe I'll get a job helping old folks or maybe a bank job-who knows!There's just a brief update on what's going on with us. Hope you all are living life to it's fullest, too!!

Wedding Plans

The BIG DAY for Hannah and Andy is only 59 days away! Wedding plans are going well and yes, I am getting a touch of anxiety. Her dress was taken to be altered. The invitations will be done and ready to mail this week, all the flowers are pretty well done, menu has been done--well, you know how the list goes. Of course, I believe Hannah will be a beautiful bride and everything will be lovely! Tom's just glad he only has 1 daughter! I thought I would post some pics. One of her bridesmaids (Amanda) was here last weekend to be fitted for her dress- they were very pleased with the lady who will be doing the work. My goal is no last minute rush on the big stuff! So far so good!

Nathanaels Address

SR Downer, Nathanael T
DIV 925 Ship 06
Recruit Training Command
3510 Illinois Street
Great Lakes, IL 60088-3119

This has to be written in this form. He can receive letters any time but can only write on Sun. He wanted me to pass the addy on so I know he would really enjoy getting some letters!

Nathanaels New World

Here is the latest from Nathanael. First- he says there is a lot of yelling and screaming and 2 min. showers. There are 37 girls( Nate refers to them as high school drama queens) in his division and he says they cause a lot of the yelling and screaming. His division is a performing division. They are being marched to death- so to speak. They will be performing in about 4 weeks for an Admiral and some VIPs.He also tried out for the Navy choir and made it. That is only for the duration of boot camp if I'm not mistaken. He went to church and made a mistake-he ended up in a Catholic service. I'm sure that was different! He was down with strep throat for 2 days. A 103 degree temp went with it! As of last Sun. he was on light duty but, probably back to full by now. He said he was going to be ok but only with a lot of prayer. I'm sure you'll all call his name when you think of him- I know he would sure appreciate it!