Happy 3rd Birthday Ivy LaRue!

I can't believe my little Ivy LaRue is already "3" years old. She has such a big personality. When Ivy is around, you know it. Every day is a party in her world. I have really enjoyed the past 3 years being her Mimi. She makes you feel so special. When she comes to visit, she runs with all her might and tackles you to give you that big bear hug. Her 3 big brothers adore her, but she calls the shots.

We will celebrate as a family on Sunday with a "Hello Kitty" Birthday party. Ivy thinks it's her party every time someone has a Birthday and it's time to blow out the candles. She thinks she should be the one to blow out the candles. Funny story about my dad's 80th Birthday party we had for him this year, after he blew out his #80 candle, Ivy started to cry real hard. She wanted to blow it out. So, my dad had it lit again so Ivy could blow out his candle. She thought it was Her party. So, it's like a tradition now, at most Birthday celebrations, we re-light the candles so Ivy can blow them out again. She gets so excited and claps....cause every day is her party...
Mimi loves you, ivy larue!! xx00

Sister week

This photo was taken 4 years ago when my sister and I were on a sister vacation in Florida. She is back home this week. Our mom spent 2 months with her in Louisiana and she flew back with our mom to help her home. I remember the evening this picture was taken. Our dad had given me money to treat us to a nice meal in Florida. We ate at a wonderful place near our hotel. He was so happy for us to have this time together. While my sister is home we want to plant a tree on our dads grave. It is a little northern pine tree that he had planted in his back yard years ago that won't grow. It is a dwarf tree. He planted a whole line of trees and this one is the only one that won't grow taller. He loved these trees. His headstone was delivered last week. We went with our mom the end of June and ordered it. It turned out perfect and we know dad would be so proud. When I saw it for the first time it was overwhelming to me. It was final. Everything was complete. We had a beautiful stone to go visit and pay our respects. It has vases on each side to keep beautiful flowers in.
I've been staying at my moms while my sister is home. We talk a lot about our dad and keep his memory alive. This morning I made waffles for breakfast and for some reason the batter made one extra waffle. My sister put the extra waffle in the place where our dad would sit. It felt right. He is not with us anymore in body, but he is definitely with us in spirit. There is a void, but when we look at the sunshine we see our dad. When we see butterflies in his yard, we see our dad. He might be gone, but not forgotten....his spirit lives on....