Happy New Year, Happy Valentines Day and Happy Easter.

Happy Holidays everyone!

Well another Christmas and I survived the hustle and bustle of shopping. It has been a great Christmas season, getting together with our family, everyone being well and happy. I wish it coud be Christmas all yr long, it's my favorite time of the year after all. (well without the shopping part anyway).
We are waiting for the New Year to see what wonderous surprises is in store for us. We are plannning a trip to Dulac Louisiana for a much needed rest from school and scouts and all the other duties we are obligated to do. But fishing is the one thing we all agree on for our rest and relaxation activity. Well that and going to Tennessee to the mountains of coarse.
I will not be able to post photos probably for awhile due to camera problems or I should say battery problems. My digital camera takes a certain type of battery for my docking station to work properly but when I went to Radio Shack to pick up more batteries before Christmas, well I was told they didn't sell the same kind as was in my camera even though I bought the camera at the same store that I was trying to purchase the batteries from. Needless to say I bought what they said would work and it did for 45 minutes and stopped completely. So until I get a reply from Kodak about the email I sent then I am camera-less for a while.
I hope everyone has a joyous New Year in 2008.

YES I AM STILL ALIVE!!!!!

I am sorry I haven't posted in a couple months, but with 3 boys, two of which are very active and a equally active husband, well lets just say it is never dull in my world.
Thank you Liz and Kayla for worrying about me not posting. I have had time only to read about your families and the goings on in Kimberlys life as well as Heathers but that is all I have been doing. Kayla you have to have without a doubt have the funniest storys about your boys and yes I have seen a lizard have a breakdown (remember I have Lucas) but you have me beat with freezing them. You keep me and the family so well entertained with your blog. My family can't wait to see all of you in November when we come to Florida. Steve says to tell Harold to dust off his fishing pole and get plenty of sleep. I told him they can take five of the boys with them fishing when they go.

Well this weekend we are selling crafts that our scouts have made. We have Cedar Planters, Cypress Birdhouses, Grapevine Wreaths and Grapevine Balls. Homemade tea and homemade rootbeer will be sold also. We can't wait. I will have pictures to post after the weekend.

AVON

HELLO ALL! I AM DOING SOMETHING SHAMELESS. I AM PUTTING MY AVON STORE LINK ON MY BLOG. IT'S www.youravon.com/melodymorgan IN THE HOPE THAT YOU CAN FORWARD THIS TO ALL IN YOUR FRIENDS. MOST HAVE AVON REPS THAT THEY HAVE USED FOR YEARS AND I DON'T WANT TO TAKE THEM AWAY BUT OTHER PEOPLE WHO DON'T OR PEOPLE IN OTHER COUNTRIES THAT CAN ORDER ON-LINE AND HAVE IT SHIPPED DIRECTLY TO THEM. SO PLEASE JUST VISIT THE STORE AND FORWARD IT TO OTHERS. I AM TRULY EXCITED ABOUT THIS NEW VENTURE . THANK YOU.

BOY SCOUTS -- TROOP 164

Our Troop having a Eagle Ceremony for Kyle Domagne. Kyle is in the photo with my husband Steve, who is also the Scoutmaster. Kyle is 18 yrs old and now is attending college At Northwestern. He is majoring in business management and he want to be a Corporate Attorney eventually. To be a Eagle, which is the highest rank attanied in Scouts for the youth. You have to do this before age 18 or you can't earn it. There are alot of hard work and alot of years that goes into being n Eagle Scout. Kyle congrats and good luck with your future.

His troop is standing with a Scout Salute for Kyle on his big day. They know he has worked hard for this day and that someday they can make Eagle also.

EMILY GRACE

EMILY GRACE MORGAN. SHE IS 3 MONTHS OLD NOW. SWEET AS CAN BE. HER MOM AND I ARE BEST FRIENDS AND HER DAD AND MY HUSBAND ARE BEST FRIENDS AND 1ST COUSINS SO WE ARE DESTIN TO BE A PART OF HER AND HER BIG SISTER KAITLYN LIFE. i AM HER SITTER HILE HER MOM WORKS. IT IS INTERESTING SINCE I HAD ALL BOYS. KIND OF SCARY AT FIRST, I WAS THINKING MAYBE SHE WON'T NEED A DIAPER CHANGE UNTIL HER MOM GETS OFF WOR (8 HOURS LATER) BUT THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN. 10 MINUTES AFTER MOM LEFT I WAS INFORMED BY HER THAT HER DIAPER NEEDED IMMEDIATE CHANGING OR THE NEIGHBORS WOULD HEAR IT ALSO. WELL SINCE THAT DAY 2 WKS AGO WE HAVE DONE VERY WELL. INFACT SHE GETS BABY MESSAGES WITH JOHNSON'S BABY LOTION AND SHE DOES BABY EXCERCISES. WE SING (well i do anyway) AND DANCE (me) ,SHE JUST GRINS, THINKING I AM FUNNY I GUESS. SHE HAS BEEN FUN TO WATCH AND HAS BROUGHT BACK MEMORIES OF MY BOYS WHEN THEY WERE LITTLE. I CAN'T WAIT TIL HER MOM SEES ALL THE PICTURES WE TAKE SOME DAYS THAT WE ARE BEING OUR SILLEST. MOM YOU WILL JUST HAVE TO WAIT FOR THEM AT A LATER DATE. I AM WORKING ON A PROJECT FOR HER MOM. LOVE YOU LITTLE EMILY GRACE. YOU WILL RULE YOUR HOUSE SOON.

This is Kaitlyn and Seth with their big brother Kody (whom you may remember from an earlier blog). They are my niece and nephew. Seth is an exceptional ball player. I think he has played just about every ball sport there is to play. He is full of energy (and bull) and mischief to. He likes to pull the wool over your eyes with a twinkle in his eye. He is also an 8th grade graduate this year from Champ Cooper school. He will be going to Ponchatoula High school.

I am not sure what is wants to be when he gets through with school but I have heard from his brother that at one time, he wanted to be in the medical field. He will be great no matter what it is. Hopefully it's not a desk job, he would need wheels on the thing cause he can't be still. Seth I am proud of you and I can't wait to see what the future holds for you. Keep up the good work. I love you!!!!

Next is Miss Kaitlyn Kay, She has always been a very pretty child. We have all called her the princess. She is very smart in school and has always made straight A's since kindergarten. She is a cheerleader and has also graduated from the 5th grade, going to the 6th. My brother says she wants to do things with animals when she grows up( maybe I will get to play with the babies after all). She loves to drive her brothers crazy, especially her older brother Kody. He doesn't think she should ever date boys and now he is so far from her that he lectured her before he left, told her to not let him hear of any boys calling her or talking to her of he will come home just to whip her and chase them away. It don't bother her though.I love you Katie and am proud of you. Keep those brothers on their toes and the boys away or on your first date you will have company with Hunter, Lucas, Seth and Kody sitting with you.

This is my niece Haley and her mom Cindy (also my sister). I am very proud of my niece for alot of reasons but i think the most important one is she is a truly wonderful girl that is sweet and has a funny sense of humor. A fun person to be around.

She is also talented in ball and music. I haven't heard her play yet, but I have it on good authority from her mom that she is good. I hear she will be the next female NBA star in the coming years. No matter what she does I know it will be great. She it very smart and truly a very lovely young lady. My brother-in-law Tony will have his hands full before long. I hear its already giving him grey hair (or is that my sisters fault). Anyway I am proud of you Haley and can't wait to see the coming years of your life. I love you.

This is Lucas Bryce, my youngest at his 5th grade graduation with his teacher Mrs. Hart. He did really well also in his Iowa testing. He just can't wait till summer though. He can hear those fish calling him. "come to the water, Lucas and catch me if you can"

Now it's time for 6th grade and a little harder work load for him. He also wants to be a Marine Biologist when he gets finished with school. We shall see in time. I wish one would be a land animal vet or zoo-ologists so I can play with the baby animals. He is our bundle of energy and it is never dull or boring when he is around. He keeps a sparkle in his eye and mischief on his mind constantly. We wouldn't trade any of it though. Daddy and I are Proud of you and we Love you very much!!!!!!!! Keep up the good work.

This is Hunter Wade , my son. He is standing between his grandpaw Gene and grandpaw Charlie on his 8th grade graduation day in May. The medals around his neck are for getting advanced scores in science and math. He wears another prize the PTA purchased for the honor roll students. He finished with a 3.8 in his grade.

Now comes high school. He has already met with the school councelors and has his courses mapped out for the upcoming 4 yrs. He wants to be a Marine Biologist. Yea Hunter!!! Just keep studying and stay away from GIRLS!!!!!!!!!!! DADDY AND I LOVE YOU AND ARE VERY PROUD OF YOU.

I AM PROUD OF OUR KIDS

This is Kody Aaron Byers, he graduated this year from Ponchatoula High School. He is now in the Navy in Great Lakes IL. He wants to be a Physical Therapist or a RN. Whatever it is , he will be great at it.

Kody has a wonderful sense of humor (sometimes a strange one) and he is a people person. My sister and I are the butt of his strange practical jokes. Usually done at Christmas time in front of the family. I love watching that twinkle in his eye when we are opening his presents. You can tell he has put planning into his (present ideas). We just worry what the next year will bring to top it. I love you Kody! Keep your mouth closed or you will be peeling alot of potatoes and running 30 mile hikes in full gear in the middle of the night.

WELL I'M BACK

Well it has been a great summer. I spent alot of time with my husband and sons. We went fishing and doing things around the neighborhood. we didn't travel very far this year as we have in previous summers. We were all tired of going for once. So the farthest we went was to Dulac, Louisiana to mu husbands aunts fishing camp on a little canal brimming with Red fish and Black Drum, Speckled Trout and many more yummy kinds. There even was an alligator watching us. If you want the big fish that weigh your pole in half the we took about a 30 minute boat trip out about 15 miles in the gulf. We caught flounder and alot of Speckled Trout and a big Black Drum that weighed over 6lbs. I caught that one and it was the biggest of the day.

In June my wonderful aunt and uncle Woody and Nellrena Laird (kayla's parents)were home for about a month and we had a great visit. I haven't seen them in about 3 yrs. Kayla and Harolds kids are a joy to be around and so much fun. My youngest Lucas doesn't get tired out easily by things except when Kayla's boys are around him. He has a great time when they are playing with him and he misses them when thay are apart but he says he gets so tired when the day is finished and I have no problem getting him into bed at night.My husband Steve and their dad Harold took them to a pond at Steve's uncle to do some fishing with cane poles and Lucas went to help (or as he said ,to give pointers). My husband said that night after we laid down to sleep, I thought our kids had alot of questions and energy when they were small but I see now that we had nothing compared to Kayla's kids. He said he had alot of fun watching them pull those fish in on the bank and leaves out of the trees after the lines would hang up. I took pictures of the events of the summer and I hope I can post them on here with out any problems.

A VERY LONG JOURNEY

I have been on a very long journey! Not on any physical, pleasure vacation I assure you. My trip consist of Google " losing/changing" my email address I had on file and not being able to access my blog or any of my accounts I set up.
I also learned that a South American country has been at times hacking into accounts on Google and taking over accounts and/or taking over blogs. Please be very careful of what information you put on your blogs just in case someone does this to you.

TO MY MEAN MOTHER FOR MOTHER'S DAY

The Meanest Mother in the World I had the meanest mother in the whole world. While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs or toast. When others had cokes and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich. As you can guess, my supper was different than the other kids' also. But at least, I wasn't alone in my sufferings. My sister and my brother had the same mean mother as I did.
My mother insisted upon knowing where we were at all times. You'd think we were on a chain gang. She had to know who our friends were and where we were going. She insisted if we said we'd be gone an hour, that we be gone one hour or less--not one hour and one minute. I am nearly ashamed to admit it, but she actually struck us. Not once, but each time we had a mind of our own and did as we pleased. That poor belt was used more on our seats than it was to hold up Daddy's pants. Can you imagine someone actualy hitting a child just because he disobeyed? Now you can begin to see how mean she really was.
We had to wear clean clothes and take a bath. The other kids always wore their clothes for days. We reached the height of insults because she made alot of our clothes herself, just to save money. Why, oh why, did we have to have a mother who made us feel different from our friends?
The worst is yet to come. We had to be in bed by nine each night and up at eight the next morning. We couldn't sleep till noon like our friends. So while they slept-my mother actually had the nerve to break the child-labor law. She made us work. We had to wash dishes, make beds, learn to cook and all sorts of cruel things. I believe she laid awake at night thinking up mean things to do to us.
She always insisted upon us telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, even if it killed us- and it nearly did. By the time we were teen-agers, she was much wiser, and our life became even more unbearable. None of this tooting the horn of a car for us to come running. She embarrassed us to no end by making our dates and friends come to the door to get us. If I spent the night with a girlfriend, can you imagine she checked on me to see if I were really there. I never had the chance to elope to Mexico. That is if I'd had a boyfriend to elope with. I forgot to mention, while my friends were dating at the mature age of 12 and 13, my old fashioned mother refused to let me date until the age of 16. Sixteen, that is, if you dated only to go to a school function. And that was maybe twice a year.
Through the years, things didn't improve a bit. We could not lie in bed, "sick" like our friends did, and miss school. If our friends had a toe ache, a hang nail or serious ailment, they could stay home from school. Our marks in school had to be up to par. Our friends' report cards had beautiful colors on them, black for passing, red for failing. My mother being as different as she was, would settle for nothing less than ugly black marks.
As the years rolled by, first one and then the other of us was put to shame. We were graduated from high school. With our mother behind us, talking, hitting and demanding respect, none of us was allowed the pleasure of being a drop-out.
My mother was a complete failure as a mother. Out of three children, a couple of us attained some higher education. None of us have ever been arrested or beaten his mate. My brothers served his time in the service of this country. And whom do we have to blame for the terrible way we turned out? You're right, our mean mother. Look at the things we missed. We never got to take part in a riot, burn draft cards, burn the flag, and a million and one other things that our friends did.
She forced us to grow up into God-fearing, educated, honest adults. Using this as a background, I am trying to raise my three children. I stand a little taller and I am filled with pride when my children call me mean.
Because, you see, I thank God, He gave me the meanest mother in the whole world.
I miss you mom!
Happy Mother's Day to all the "mean moms" out there!

My mother Dianne is on the left and Kayla's on the right. Their brother in the middle.

A Very Troubling Week

Well it has been a very trying time here in our home. If something can go wrong, well you know that saying, well I believe it now. Everything did this past week. First I have re-thought my favorite time of season. It used to be spring with flowers in full bloom, but since there is no end in sight for allergy victims, well now it's fall when all the bushes start to die out and I can breathe again and see from my streaming eyes.

Then lets see my mom used to prepare me for all the grown up things a daughter needs to know once she gets a family. Things like husbands ( which i think she fibed on some), children, taxes, voting, you know everyday stuff. But the other things like every major applaince breaking down in your house 1 day apart from each other well that was never discussed. First the dishwasher, then the refrigerator, the hot water is streaming from my faucet in the bathtub is worn out and so the hot water had to be turned off for a extended period of time and then we discoved a leak behind the bathroom cabinet so now that has to go.

If it wasn't bad enough we went to Tickfaw State park to give my best friend a baby shower over the weekend and to relax and not think about all the troubles of the past couple of days and what do you know as we were packing to leave after a very pleasant afternoon with family and friends, then darn if my van, my very faithful, dependable mini-van didn't break down and had to be worked on.

Yes I am having a pity-party as my boys call it. I tell them moms are not allowed a temper fit like they have or to get aggravated like their dad will get so moms will have pity-parties and maybe someone will take pity on them and say encouraging things to her (unlike her own family who roll their eyes at her behind her house when they think she isn't looking).

So I hope everyone has had a better week this week then I. I am posting a picture of my happy place. A place that my husband and myself like to go to when Louisiana gets a little to unbearable sometimes and where we will be when we reach retirement age.