Bates Motel???

So at the Cheney Reunion this past weekend most everyone camped but since we had to fly to get there and had no camping gear, we stayed in a hotel. First a little background info...Suzan researched the accomodations on the internet and sent me the link. There was one that was an "apartment style" that could sleep up to 8 people and so our family decided this would be perfect for us and we could all stay in the same place, save a little money and have some quality bonding time. The pictures on the internet made it look so cute and cozy even though it was a little old....yeah right!!! Sue and I went and checked in...she got her room...we got ours and she did talk them down $20 so that was good...but I'm beginning to wonder if they should've paid us to stay there! Our son in law Zach is NOT a camper at all, but after seeing the room, he said he would rather camp so that just goes to show ya exactly how bad the room was...sorry Zach!! This was the ceiling...I think they were going for a cloud scene

Electrical outlet beside our bed...pretty sure it broke a few fire codes

The main (and only) bathroom

Does this look safe to you?

Entry way....probably the nicest part of the whole deal!!

Cori, Sara and Zach outside the hotel/apartment or whatever it really is

This wheelchair was inside one of the closets and it was just really creepy. If you look close enough at the crumbling wallpaper I'm pretty sure you can see an "aura" of something...

Once again, my camera had a mind of it's own...but then again it could've been the man in the wheelchair casting his evil around (aka Uncle Brent).

We laughed so hard at this hotel/apartment and had a good time despite the conditions. Sue and Brents room was much smaller than ours, but had just as many flaws. I really think the owners should renovate or possibly condemn these rooms because the next occupants might not have such a sense of humor! But seriously Sue you did a great job for what you had to work with. We sure love you guys and wish we could've spent more time together. Hope y'all enjoy the pictures and get a good laugh from them

Cheney Reunion

This past weekend was the Cheney family reunion at Lava Hot Springs in Idaho. We had a lot of fun and the little kids enjoyed getting to know each other. They had lots of fun swimming in the pool and going on the water slides there, but I didn't get any pictures of that. My camera has a mind of its own and chooses which pictures it wants to take or which ones turn out, not me! This is our granddaughter Teiha (on the left) and her cousin Sage. Teiha really loved her and wanted to smother her with attention...too cute!

Saturday morning after breakfast the kids were playing red light, green light. There were so many little girls and hardly any little boys, but the boys hung in there with all that estrogen flowing and had fun too.

Morgan playing in the water faucet.

Grandma Cheney looking over the flock. It was kind of a short reunion this year, but it did start raining on Saturday after lunch, so I guess it's just as well that we all planned to leave early. Hope you enjoyed all the family Grandma and Grandpa Cheney. We sure love you guys.

Staying Steady!

Just got home from Cleos' 3 month dr. visit (nephrologist) and everything is staying steady...YAY!! His GFR is still 22 which is the same as it was in March so that's really good. He won't go on the active transplant list until it dips to 20. All his other labs were normal as well---even his cholesterol so we must be doing something right. The only thing that was even slightly up was his sugar...do ya think it could be the 3 snack size butterfingers he has every night after dinner??? The dr. wasn't at all concerned about it and said he looked great. His weight was down 3 pounds so guess all in all it was a great dr. visit. We feel so blessed that his health is good and when the time comes for the transplant we are ready. Still have lots of family and even some friends who are willing to be tested when that time comes, so we feel he won't have to wait long for a new kidney.

We are leaving Thursday morning and heading to SLC for the Cheney family reunion. It's at Lava Hot Springs in Idaho this year and it should be lots of fun. We are really excited to see our kids/grandkids/kids-in-law and to meet Kyles' girlfriend Mikell. We are also looking forward to catching up with all the other "Cheneys" who will be there. Such a fun family and it will be fun for all the little grandkids to play together. We will be bringing our 2 granddaughters home with us for 3 weeks and then Cori and Brandon will come out for a week...so we get to have them for 4 weeks total and are super excited for that!! Grandpa has lots of fun things planned for their visit and we will be adding a new addition or two (keep ya posted on that surprise!) while they are here.

Thanks again for all the prayers for Cleos' health. We sure do love y'all.

Just another beautiful weekend...

I know it seems that some of you in the blogging world are getting a little tired of blogging, I on the other hand, never seem to tire of blogging...or reading blogs...or blog stalking! It would seem to some that our life is an open book and I just hope that y'all enjoy the read.

We have had an absolutely gorgeous weekend here and we'd much rather be outside doing something in our yard than sitting in the house. We have a couple spots in our grass that aren't looking so good, so I had a brilliant idea to go to the new house up the road where they had just laid sod and pick up some of their scraps. So Cleo hooked up the wagon for me and off I went up the street.
Nothing runs like a Deere...

And off I go.....but in the end, the scraps weren't super healthy and Cleo decided we would be better off going and buying a few plugs. So into the woods the scraps went and that was the end of that idea (sounded like a good way to save a few bucks to me!). Since the wagon was already hooked up, I headed off to look for rocks for the firepit area. I found some pretty good ones that were being used in a manmade culvert to divert water on a back road...OOPS!!! I didn't take that many and I'm sure they'll never miss them, nor will it cause any flooding. I brought them home, unloaded them and Cleo put them around the firepit he had dug a while back. I think it turned out pretty nice and I will continue to "pick up" a few every once in a while to build it up a bit more.

This is what it looks like now...it will be so much fun to roast hotdogs and s'mores on when our granddaughters come to visit.

This is the whole firepit area, with some large stumps as seating. We hope to build or buy a picnic bench soon so that we can enjoy cooking around the campfire and eating in the woods. The grass that Cleo planted about a month ago is starting to really fill in the area and now you can walk around without getting muddy or walking on stumps everywhere.

We really enjoy our "country living" and know that it may sound boring to some...but, IT IS WHAT IT IS and we LOVE IT!!!

Saras' Visit

Last weekend Sara Mae came for the weekend. We had so much fun with her and it was really good to see her. She is such a cute little pregnant woman and little Miss Kenleigh is keeping her on her toes :) She flew in on Friday afternoon and I picked her up at the airport. She had requested fried chicken and fried potatoes for dinner (much to her Dads' liking!) so we just sat around and ate and visited that night. On Saturday morning her and I went and finished her baby registry at Babies R Us...which was so much fun. I just love buying for babies, especially when they're our granddaughters!!! She had a pretty good start on it already, but was unsure about some things which she might need so we were able to get that all taken care of. Thanks for letting me help you Sara. That night we went out to a Mexican Restaurant in Peachtree City and ate dinner...YUMMY!! then came home and chilled. Cleo decided to put together his new yard wagon when we got home and so Sara and I decided to take it for a spin..... "I'm a big girl now"

Cleo and Sara checking out the new wagon...we did get it together right...thanks to Sara reading the directions (something her Dad doesn't often do!).

Then on Sunday, we went up to Jarod and Lindseys' house. Lindsey had a marketing event at a really nice salon in Smyrna to promote her new business "Gracious Living" so Cleo stayed with Jarod while Sara and I went and checked that out. We treated Sara to a pedicure and I got a manicure (Mothers' Day gift from Jarod & Lindsey...thanks guys). It was a really nice event and Lindsey had a good turnout. We wish her all the best with her new business. After that was over, Jarod grilled filet mignon for us and it was TOO GOOD!! We sat around and visited for a little while then went back home as Saras' flight left at 6:30 am Monday morning and her and her Dad needed their sleep (of course I slept in..haha!)

Sara getting her pedicure...really nice salon!!

The gang at Jarod and Lindseys' house.

Thank you Sara for coming to visit us and hope the next time Zach can come with you. We love you so much and can't wait to see you in June for the reunion. You are going to be an amazing Mom and we're very excited to meet Miss Kenleigh.

Sara might have a different "spin" on this visit and could probably be much more humorous about some of the little details I left out...so I will leave that up to her to blog or not :~)

Cleos' "Hunting" Porch

Just wanted to share with y'all Cleos' latest project. He had decided he wanted to build a porch/deck off of the shed so that he could sit (really nap!) in the shade. Our concrete patio is in the direct sunlight all day so we really did need a shaded area to relax on. So he drew up the plans, we headed to Home Depot, got all the supplies and he had a friend come over 2 weekends ago and help him get the frame square. After that, it was just him and I to do the rest. Although he tells everyone that I helped, I mostly supervised him! but I did come up with a few good suggestions (his words, not mine) and actually did run the power drill once. We got a lot of rain the first weekend so we ended up finishing it this past Saturday. It is so much fun to do things together and we're both pretty proud of how it turned out. He still has to shingle the roof and we won't be able to paint or stain it for a year due to the fact that we got treated wood and I guess it has to "cure" for a year before it can be painted. Leveling the ground for the footings

Of course...this sneaky little snake had to show up first thing!!! I still hate snakes and am pretty scared of them, but I'm trying to deal with it and not be such a wimp.

Cleo and Randal setting the footings.

Measure twice, cut once (Dad you would be proud of him!)

Getting the roof on.

The railings going up. They are a little higher on the sides and lower in the front so you can really see into the woods.

The finished product...Isn't it just too cute??? He needs to fill in around the deck with dirt and then we're gonna put a stone walkway leading up to it with some nice plants all around it. He says I can't "cutsey" it up too much because after all it's a hunting porch...but we'll see who wins that argument. We will eventually get some outdoor furniture to put on it, but for now it's just really cozy and very relaxing to sit on.

Happy Mothers Day

"Becoming a Mom might not be so difficult, but BEING a Mom is the most important job a woman can have". This is a quote that I read in our local Newnan paper one day this week and I thought it was very profound. I have truly been blessed with the BEST Mom in the world...she taught me so much about life and love and the value of being a good Mom. I love her so much and wish I could be with her to celebrate this day, but since I can't, please know how much I love you Mom and appreciate everything you have done for me and taught me over the past 46 1/2 years. I continue to learn from you each and every day.

I also want to wish all the other "Moms" in my life a very happy Mothers' Day. I am inspired every day by you all. We can all learn lessons from strong, independent and loving Moms everywhere. Being a Mom is the greatest gift ever given to me and I don't take it lightly...I will always strive to be the best Mom to each of my kids and their spouses. I pray that our Heavenly Father will bless each of you on this very special day.

I'm such a bad person!!!!

Okay so this is kinda a funny story that I just had to share and get opinions on. Ever since we moved to the southeast 13 years ago, we've always had a "bug man" who comes every 6-8 weeks to spray the inside and outside for bugs. Now, for those of you who've never been to this area, I'm telling you that there are some pretty ominous looking critters that crawl around and I just don't want them in my house. I have ALWAYS had the BEST "bug man" and they really just love their jobs...I mean come on, you'd have to love your job to crawl around and kill bugs for a living. So anyway, my bug guy hasn't been here since the end of January and I was getting a little concerned since the weather is getting warmer and things are starting to crawl around again. I got an email saying that he would be here last Wed (8 days ago) and he never showed up. So I waited until this Monday and I called and left him a nice voicemail saying that I really needed him to come out ASAP. No response, so on Tuesday I called the office and left another voicemail, not quite as polite this time but still friendly...and still nothing. So this morning I emailed them and said that I was more than happy to find another company that would come out and within 30 minutes of sending that email someone finally called me. Now, here's the clincher, my "bug man" died yesterday morning!!! Apparently he had been in the hospital in ICU for a week and then died yesterday so the company was scrambling to find people to cover his route. I feel like such a nasty person, but seriously don't you think they could've at least sent out a group email to all his customers letting them know the circumstances and that they were doing their best to cover his route??? Long story (not so short!) they sent someone out right away and he was the nicest man and he did our bug service. He said they would do their best to find a replacement as soon as possible and there shouldn't be any further interruption in our future service.

Now my question to y'all is: Am I a bad person or could I have handled it better??? What would you have done???

Easter Weekend 2009

So this is a picture of our beautiful Easter table. Our daughter in law, Lindsey, is really good at doing arrangements, table settings and just about anything else and she had asked if she could set the table at our house for Easter dinner. Of course I said yes...one less thing for me to do...so she started with the beautiful table cloth the Cleo bought when he was in Northern Ireland many years ago. I think I've used it less than a dozen times since we've been married, but it really is beautiful and makes a great Easter theme because of the colors in it. She then put my china on the table (which is kinda funny since we had fried chicken!) and then just went thru my buffet looking for other things to add to the table. I had decided to eat at the breakfast table instead of the dining room table since it was just the 4 of us and this way we could see the tv and keep up with the Masters Golf tournament :) It all turned out really pretty...thanks a ton Lindsey.

Cleo had requested fried chicken, baked mac-n-cheese and biscuits for Easter dinner so we totally opted for "non-traditional" this year. It was sooo yummy and totally fat & cholesterol free..hahaha!! Lindsey brought angel food cake with strawberries and whip cream for dessert and the whole day was wonderful. We all just relaxed after dinner and finished watching the Masters Tournament...I really love golf and this years' tournament was exciting.

Cleo brought home this skid steer on Friday to finish up leveling the woods behind the house.

It rained (freakin' Monsoon!) on Friday night so it was pretty wet on Saturday when he started out but the sun finally came out and the wind blew a little so it helped dry it out some. He was pretty much able to finish leveling. Now we just need to get some grass seed and straw and seed that area back there. It will really be nice when it's all done.

On Friday night, we met Jarod and Lindsey up in Atlanta and went to the Braves home opener at Turner Field. The game started at 7:30 and I was so excited because although we've been to lots of games, we've never been to a season opener. So I told Cleo we needed to leave at 6:00 (usually a 40 minute drive) so we could have at least 45 minutes to walk around and do a little shopping at the stadium...Yeah right, 2 1/2 hours later we finally pulled into the main parking lot at the stadium just in time for the rain to start and by the time we got from the car to the front gate, it was in the 3rd inning and they decided to do a rain-delay! Well, the tickets we had were awesome seats (right behind home plate) but they also allowed us to get into the 755 Club so we all went up there and sat and ate dinner and waited for the rain delay to end. You cannot even imagine the rain that fell on that field, there were parts of it that looked like they were under a foot of water and we kept thinking there's no way they can restart this game, but 2 hours after the rains started they were able to restart the game. We were totally amazed at the drainage on that field and you couldn't even tell it had rained when the game restarted. We were excited to finally see them play...the game went into extrat innings and the Braves finally won at the end of the 10th and we got home at 2:15 am!!! How exciting is that for the home opener??? Gotta love them Braves.

Well, this turned out to be much longer than I anticipated. Hope y'all had a wonderful Easter and thanks for checking in on us...

Boys & Their Toys!

Ok, so I'm guessing there aren't too many of you out there who can truly say their husband brought home this big of a toy to play with...am I right??? Cleo had been telling me that there was a piece of equipment he wanted to borrow from work to dig up the tree stumps in the woods immediately surrounding our yard, but honestly, I had no clue it would be this big!!! On Friday night after work this is what pulled into our yard---imagine the look on my face and more importantly, the look on Cleos' to have this "toy" to play with over the weekend.

So he got to work early Saturday morning and spent about 8-9 hours digging up tree stumps and then making piles of debris and then removing those piles of debris into the woods. I'm pretty sure he was in his glory all day sitting on that piece of equipment. It's a good thing he spent so much time out there yesterday as it was pretty muddy already with all the rain we've had over the last couple weeks and it's starting to rain this morning. He did get the backhoe stuck slightly a couple times yesterday but nothing too serious.

This was the first stump to come up...

This was several hours into the project...sleeves rolled up and gloves on!! Down to business now!

One of the many piles of debris...and while it looks as if he just made a mess, there was a method to his madness. He now needs to get a skid steer (not sure what that is either!) and he says he can level it all out and "dress it up" so that he can then put seed down. There will be a firepit in the middle so we can enjoy nights roasting marshmallows or making smores and while we still have lots of work to do, we are enjoying it all very much.

I am very grateful for a husband who loves to "play" with big toys and who loves doing fun things to our property. We still have many plans but a little at a time.....

Let's Talk Turkey...

Okay, so on any given day while Cleo is at work, this is what our yard and the woods surrounding it look like...full of turkeys. And yet as soon as he gets home, camos up and heads into the woods to hunt turkey they amazingly disappear! Turkey season officially opened on March 21st and Cleo has diligently tried to call in a turkey and kill one without resorting to sitting on the back porch and just shooting one at the feeder. Several weeks before the season opened, we headed to the sporting goods' store, got him a turkey call thingamajig and he has been practicing (in the house while I'm trying to read or watch tv!) his turkey calls. He has read up on the internet and had coffee at the local waffle house with several old locals and tried to get all the ins and outs of successfully calling in a turkey and yesterday late in the afternoon it all paid off for him. He was like a little kid who shot something for the first time with his new BB gun when he came walking onto the back porch with his prize over his shoulder and a really big grin on his face...PRICELESS!! I was so excited for him...and we both figured that since he's been feeding them corn all winter it was only fair that he kill at least one of them. He said it was such a rush to call one in and actually get a shot at it.

Cleos' first turkey kill of the 2009 season

This wasn't the biggest Tom we have seen, but he was pretty good size. He had beautiful feathers.

So now that he's figured it out, I'm sure he will be out every night after work and on the weekends trying to do it again and get another one. He doesn't hunt just to kill anything but more for the sport of it. He has gotten pretty "soft" in his old age and he would never just go wild and kill something...but if he could get a really big Tom with a long beard, he would like to have it mounted to add to his "man cave" furnishings.

It is so cool to see him have so much fun right outside our own backdoor. He truly is in heaven our here......

Sue & Brent

This past weekend we were lucky enough to have Sue and Brent (Cleos' sister & brother in law)come and visit with us. They had been on a bike tour through the back country of GA, TN & NC with some friends and extended their stay by a night so they could come and see us. They got here Friday afternoon and Cleo got home from work shortly after. We visited for a while and then Jarod came down and went to dinner with us--Lindsey had to work late and wasn't able to come with him. We went to eat at a cute little diner in downtown Newnan called the Redneck Gourmet. It's obviously nothing fancy, but they have great food and the atmosphere is fun. Sue got to experience a southern treat and ordered fried pickles as an appetizer. The whole table enjoyed them. After dinner we went back to the house and Jarod left shortly after to head back home. We stayed up until well after midnight talking and laughing and just enjoying being around each other.

Sue and Brent...y'all are the BEST!!! We love you both so much and just appreciate you coming to see us and our new home. Even though we don't get together often enough, we can always just pick up where we left off and feel comfortable with each other. It's fun to spend time with family and not feel obligated to "entertain" or do anything special. We can't wait for the reunion this summer and to see the rest of the family. Thanks again for rearranging your schedule and coming down---thanks also for dinner and really glad you enjoyed the fried pickles!

Aren't they just the cutest sister and brother ever???

Happy Birthday Lindsey!!!

Tomorrow is Lindseys' birthday (our beautiful daughter in law) so to help her celebrate, Cleo and I went up to Atlanta last night and took her and Jarod out to dinner at our favorite Mexican Restaurant "Los Bravos". We eat up there whenever we get a chance and this was a perfect opportunity to enjoy good food and good company. Jarod had told me a while back that Lindsey was always stealing his cozy made for him by Grandma Cheney years ago, so I thought it was time she got her own. Now, I wish I could say that I made this beautiful pink NC State cozy for her but that would just be a lie!!! My good friend Alison made it for me and she did a beautiful job and Lindsey loved it. It has the NC State logo all over it in pink and then pink flannel on the reverse side so it will be nice and cozy and I don't think Jarod will be stealing this one from her...what with it being pink and all (what a plan, huh??).

This is a close up of the material...isn't it cute??

I ordered cupcakes from a great bakery here in Newnan called Sweet Sensations, but we were all so full after dinner that we didn't eat one. I hope that you enjoy them Lindsey and let me know if they're any good.

And then of course there's Georgia (Jarod and Lindseys' golden retriever). She is pretty much a "princess dog" and loves attention and she does like to pose for a picture so of course I couldn't leave her out of this blog. She is a sweet dog and a really good "practice in parenting" for Jarod and Lindsey.

Cleo and I hope that you have a wonderful birthday weekend Lindsey and hope that you enjoy your surprise today that Jarod has planned for you. We had a great time with y'all last night and we love you very much.

Blog Fog..........

It seems that I'm in a state of "blog fog" lately and don't really have anything of interest to write about. Apparently, I"m ready for the weather to warm up (and stay there) so that I can get outside and get some much needed fresh air. I"m just much happier when I can be outside and working in the yard and feeling the sunshine warm my skin. I'm not really sure how I ever managed a "Wyoming winter" and I think that I was really born a southern girl and seem to function much better in this climate. Now, my parents may disagree with that...but "It is what it is!" and I just love spring and summer here in Georgia.

So, to kick off the warm weather season (or pretend to anyway) Cleo and I are headed to Florida tomorrow for a long weekend with friends. The weather is gorgeous there right now and although I don't miss living in Florida at all, I do miss this time of year there. I have a dr. appt on Friday (decided to keep my sinus dr. there---he's great!) and we are gonna stay with our great friends The Mountains. They are the best and we miss them dearly so we're gonna play as much as possible in the 3 days we're there. We're planning to go to the dog track in St. Petersburg on Saturday night and that's always a hoot. It's pretty cheap entertainment and we always have great fun when we're with Tammy and Mike. It will re-energize me and prep me for spring in Georgia.

As I said, "I'm in a blog fog" and this is pretty much all I have to write about at this time. Maybe after we get home from Florida, I will have something of more interest to blog about. Stay tuned.....

Good News!

We heard from the transplant coordinator today and it was pretty good news. Cleos' GFR went up to 22 from 21 in December. You have to be at 20 or lower to be on the active transplant list, so this just buys him a little more time. He does have to have a stress test which they will schedule in the next couple weeks and he also has to see the urologist tomorrow for a prostate exam (how fun!) and these are both at the request of the insurance company. But other than those 2 things, everything else looked good. He will continue to be followed by his nephrologist and have blood drawn every 3 months to monitor the GFR. He goes back on March 9th for bloodwork and sees the dr. on the 16th so she will let us know if anything changes and be in constant contact with the transplant team in Atlanta.

We will continue to update as things change and to let y'all know when they will start testing potential donors. They aren't allowed to do that until he's on the active list otherwise the insurance won't pay for the testing and it's quite expensive so we can appreciate that.

We sure do have a wonderful family and network of friends who continue to pray for Cleos' health and well being. We do appreciate it even if we don't thank you individually. Love ya all...

Transplant Update

Yesterday was the "big day". Cleo met with the transplant team at Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta. Our day started very early...left the house at 5:20 am in order to be at the hospital promptly at 6:30. You never know what traffice will be like in Atlanta even that early in the morning, and we definately didn't want to be late. Anyhow, we made it in plenty of time and got started immediately. They had sent all the paperwork ahead of time, which cut down on a lot of time and then took him back to a room. There a nurse gathered the paperwork, gave him a name band and got the ball rolling. From there we went to the radiology dept. and they did an abdominal ultrasound...sent us to the cafeteria to get breakfast and whisked us to the education class which was a mass of organized information, literature, etc. explaining the whole transplant process. We went back to the clinic, where they drew at least 15 (yup, you read that right, 15!) vials of blood. After that we met with a social worker, a psychiatrist, one of the transplant surgeons, the head of the transplant dept. who is also a nephrologist, a dietician and were then introduced to the lady who will be Cleos' transplant coordinator. Now this may not seem so daunting to some, but we met with each of these professionals one at a time and they each had their own agenda. After that was done, they sent him back to radiology for a chest xray and then off to pulmonary for a PFT test. The whole process took 8 hours and we were both exhausted and ready to be home.

The whole goal of the transplant team is to find a suitable living donor so that when the time comes (and hopefully before Cleo goes on dialysis) the transplant can be done right away. The odds are so much better for organ longevity with a living donor and if he doesn't have to be on dialysis he will be stronger for the surgery. We must now wait for 3 weeks until the transplant committee meets again and they go over all the test results and evaluations done yesterday. According to the head of the transplant team, Cleo should be an excellent candidate and he feels very confidant that they will put him on the list at that time. Once we receive the call from our transplant coordinator letting us know their decision...then it's out of our hands. Any person wishing to be tested as a potential donor will then have to contact her personally expressing their desire to be tested. We cannot be involved in that for ethical reasons and the transplant team cannot contact a potential donor as that's considered "soliciting" and is illegal. Some of the initial tests could be done locally (where a donor may live) but if they were a blood match and the other tests looked good, then that person would have to come to Atlanta for 2 days of intense testing with the transplant team. The ONLY person who knows the outcome of the donor testing is the donor. We are not allowed to know unless that person wishes to tell us and the transplant team cannot divulge that info to us. If a match is found then the surgery would also be done here in Atlanta in adjoining operation rooms. They will test as many candidates as needed to find a match, but will only do one at a time due to the high cost of testing. Our insurance does pay for the donor testing and the Georgia Transplant Foundation could help with transportation costs for donors as well.

Cleo and I just want to say that we feel so blessed to have so many family and friends who have and continue to pray for his health and a positive outcome from this ordeal. This is all somewhat overwhelming to think that anyone would be willing to donate their kidney and go through this grueling process with us. It is not something that we would EVER ask any of you to do, nor could the gift ever be repayed, but since so many of you have expressed an interest in getting tested we wanted to pass this information on to you. As soon as we hear from the transplant team, I will update again and post the coordinators name and phone number.

Once again, we are extremely grateful for the gift of each of you in our lives. This road is much easier to travel with you by our sides. We love each of you.....

Megs' Visit

We had a surprise visitor last night for dinner---Megs (Cleos' niece). She came to Atlanta for business and drove down here to see our house. We enjoyed a nice dinner with her and Jarod and Lindsey were able to come down as well to see her. We really enjoyed our visit (even though it was too short!). These "kids" have just grown into the greatest adults and are just a hoot to be around. We sure appreciate you stopping in to see us Megan and only wish you could've stayed longer. We love you and have a safe trip to Florida and New York.

Lindsey, Megan and Jarod

Uncle Kevin (aka Cleo), Megan and Marcy