New talent

Hey Mel, This post is mostly for you. Did you notice I figured out how to bring a picture from Flickr into my blog! I just never cease to amaze myself. LOL. For those of you who don't understand my lack of computer skills, it is a major accomplishment that Mel is able to give me instructions on how to do these ( to others, easy tasks) things and I actually figure them out! Yeah me! Have a great day!

Welcome to December

What a great Thanksgiving we had at the Faifer household! Kimberly and Marshall were in and spent most of the holiday with us. Melissa, Richard and Layla were in from Houston for Thanksgiving with Richard's family but we did get to see them as well. I am so glad that Rich's brother and sister and their families were able to come from Oklahoma and have some time with their dad and Richard. Long overdue! That's what the holidays are all about...family! I guess that is why I love December so much. In this month we will celebrate Paige and Marshall's birthdays, Kenneth and Melissa's birthdays, Carla and Arlin's anniversary and Christmas. We also have Crystal, and Darianne, & Jordan having birthdays. Even though we will not see them...Happy Birthday! Have a piece of cake on me! See you soon!

Family and memories we have shared!

Popo and Miss Layla

Saturday, Kenneth and I ran down to Victoria and spent the day with Chris and Kimberly. Chris cooked a wonderful brisket out on the grill and Kimberly and I fixed all of the sides. Chris will be gone for Thanksgiving so it was an early non turkey dinner. They invited a bunch of his family who were in town so we had a great time. We took the nursery furniture down for them and got it all set up in the nursery. I started the bedding so Kimberly was able to see what the baby quilt would look like. She seemed to like it, I hope so. Chris and Marshall went to the car races with his dad and brother on Sunday, so Kenneth and I spent most of the day with Kimberly. We came back about 5:30 pm and I went to see Honey. She seems to be doing ok, we tried to call Jim, my brother, to wish him a Happy 66th Birthday, no answer, so we will try again today. Ethan and Paige came over to spend the night Sunday and all day Monday with Kenneth and I. Michele has class today and the kids were out of school so we get to have them. We are expecting Melissa, Richard and Layla in sometime Wed. and probably Kimberly and Marshall, as well. Richard's brother and sister and their families are coming in from Oklahoma for a long overdue reunion with their dad. I hope that this visit goes well and will be the first of many. I know how hard these holidays will be for all of the kids with Medea gone and it is good that they are reconnecting with Big Rich. Kimberly and Marshall will have Thanksgiving Day with Kenneth and I. Brad and Michele chose to have their Thanksgiving at home as a family. I hope that everyone has a wonderful day no matter where they spend the day and that we all take the time to be thankful for all of out many blessings and to remember those who have passed and all of the wonderful Thanksgivings we had with them. As I reflect on what I can remember of the last 60 years, I have so much to be thankful for and am looking forward to the next 30 or so years to watch the rest of my family grow and make memories of their own. I love all of you dearly and wish each of you a wonderful Thanksgiving .

My 60th Birthday, Thanks All!
Markey, Morgan and Justin Christian, Ethan and Paige in New Mexico,

Life is a circle

On my previous post I talked about the loss of my friend. On the same day I heard of her passing, I received the beautiful pictures of our Addison Mae who will be coming to be with us in early February. God giveth and God taketh away. It is all the circle of life. What a glorious miracle birth is and what a glorious miracle death is. The in-between is just a ride that we all must take and how we handle that ride is up to us. I have chosen to enjoy and appreciate what God has given me. I can't say that was always my attitude...I think for a while in my life I was so wrapped up in THINGS, I didn't take the time to just enjoy. We have to find the peace within ourselves to find the pleasure in all things.



REMEMBER.....

Life should not not measured by the number of breaths we take, but in the moments that take our breath away.

A beautiful sunset in the mountains near our home in Carrizozo...if ever you have a doubt of who is in charge, stop and watch a beautiful sunrise or sunset. It will remove all doubt.

Loss of a friend

When my brother, Phil, passed away his obituary was printed in our home town paper. On the day it appeared, I received a phone call from a girl we had grown up with but whom I had not seen in over 40 years. The phone call, in and of itself, was enough of a surprise but she had read of Phil's passing and somehow tracked down my cell phone number and took the time to call and reach out to me. This thoughtfulness was really amazing since she had left not only Beaumont but Texas and had been living in Washington state for 30 + years and read the obits online that day for Beaumont. During our conversation, she told me she was moving back to Lumberton, just north of Beaumont, because she was coming home to die. She had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and wanted to come home to be near her family. I told her I wanted to come see her when she got here and got settled and asked her to call me when she felt like having company. Weeks went by and I never heard from her so I began trying to reach her. I was never successful so I went to the internet asking if anyone had news of her and how to reach her. Sadly, this week I received the news I had been dreading. Darlene passed away two weeks ago and I never got the chance to tell her in person how much her reaching out to me in one of my darkest moments meant. Here are my words of wisdom for today... take the time to reach out, take the time to tell others how their kindness was appreciated, do today what you may not have another opportunity to do. My prayers and condolences go out to the family of my friend and I would like for them to know what a caring loving person she was. God Bless you, Darlene and until we meet again, may God hold you in his loving hands. Rest in peace.

Addison Mae's first pictures

Kimberly and Chris went for the 3D/4D unltrasound yesterday. How exciting. We actually got to see pictures of Ms. Addie Mae Purdy. She is going to be her own unique person and we are so looking forward to meeting her. Go to The Purdy Life blog to view all of the pictures. Only 10 more weeks and we will be able to see this little lady in the flesh. We love you guys.

Baby is a comin'

After making the long drive from Carrizozo on Friday, I was up and running again Saturday morning and went to Victoria to spend the day with Kimberly. Her friends honored her with a beautiful baby shower. Thank you so much for all of the friendship and blessings that you have shown to my daughter. It is so hard to believe that my BABY is having a baby. Addison Mae is going to have so much love from all of the wonderful friends and family that Kimberly and Chris are blessed with. The shower was fabulous...the food was wonderful, the gifts much appreciated but the friends unsurpassed. Thank you to everyone who attended. I will have pictures soon and will share with everyone. Can you believe that I went all the way down there and left Kim's house without my camera and we did not have time to go back. I am going to have to rely on getting copies from those who were more intelligent and had their cameras.

Vacation is over

After spending almost 3 weeks in Carrizozo, we returned to San Antonio today. We had 4 1/2 inches of snow on Oct. 28...can you believe it.

I was a little concerned about leaving Honey for so long but she did fine and I needed the break. Kimberly and Chris came up while we were there . Chris went hunting with Kenneth, Arlin and Cole. NO LUCK! Maybe next year!

Janis and Aunt Florine came up to see us as well. What a great visit! Aunt Florine just turned 92 in Aug. and never missed a beat with any of us because she was afraid she would miss something. God love her, I know we all do!

Can anyone guess which one is Aunt Florine??? Just kidding, Janis! We had a great time and hope you will come back soon. This family certainly knows how to put the FUN in dysFUNctional!

Honey Bunny

Honey seems to have settled in and has adjusted to her new home. They tell me she is laughing more and visiting with her table mates during meals. I also think we have finally achieved a better balance on her meds. She is much more alert and with it most of the time. We are going back to the Retinal eye specialist today. Hopefully, this treatment will give her some of her vision back. I know she would be so much happier if we could get some of her vision restored so she could do more of the things she likes doing. She goes to the beauty shop every week and likes looking pretty. I am glad they have such a nice facility that offers all of these amenities. I will keep you posted as to her vision progress.

Ken has been out in New Mexico for several weeks. Carla and I will be joining the boys Saturday, Oct. 24. Janis and Aunt Florine wll be coming out around the 10th of Nov. and Kim and Chris around the 5th for hunting. It will be a full couple of weeks but we are really looking forward to our company. We always like to show off our house. We are very pleased with it and are looking to the day that all Ken has to do is go out and enjoy.

Everyone is invited...just let us know when you want to come out.

Here's Addison ( or soon will be!)

What a great week-end I had! I got to go down to Victoria and spend some time with Kimberly. We painted the nursery and began stripping down the rocking chair that will be in Addison's room. In case any of you haven't heard...Kimberly is having a little girl in Feb. and she is going to be named Addison Mae Purdy. Kimberly and Chris picked this name because they liked the name Addison and Mae because it is honoring not only Kim's grandmother "Honey" whose real name is Johnnie Mae but also Chris's grandmother whose name was also Mae. Unbeknownst to Kimberly, her great-grandmother's name was Addie Mae. Shortly after Kimberly and Chris decided on a name, my cousin called and offered me Mama Addie's old spider rocker. So, the reason for this whole story is that Addison Mae will have Addie Mae's 75+ year old rocker to help put her to sleep at night. Life goes on! Many thanks to my cousin for sharing this piece of my grandparents heritage with me. Sidenote...my cousin had no idea that Kimberly was pregnant much less considering the name Addison Mae...this was just a wonderful coincidence of timing!



We have now embarked on the next decorating journey. We have ordered the bumper pads from a friend of Melissa's ( she does beautiful custom baby bedding, check out her website here) and I am making the rest of the bedding ensemble. Her color scheme is sage green, pink, brown and cream. It is beautiful together. If you would like to see the combination, check it out . The best part of this beautiful nursery will be the beautiful little Addison Mae that will complete it. Can't wait till February! Till we meet again... God Bless and have a grat day!

Decision Reached and Loved Ones Remembered

Kimberly made a final decision on how she wanted her nursery so I ordered the material and we are moving forward. I can't wait to get the material so I can start on this little girls blanket and other pretties. I am so proud of my three daughters and the wonderful young women they have become. No matter what I ever do in the rest of my life, I am a success because Ken and I have reared 3 responsible, respectable and delightful young women who will continue to contribute to the good of this world. In case I don't tell you girls often enough...I am proud of you and everything you represent.

Today was my brother Phil's birthday. He would have been 63. I know he is up in heaven looking down and reflecting on this world and all that has transpired and I know he is as proud of our families as I am.. Happy Birthday, big brother. I love you and miss you more than words can express. I miss being able to pick up the phone and just talk. I still have not deleted your phone number from my cell...I guess that will come in time but for right now, you and Jason are still there. At least you two are up there celebrating your birthday together. God Bless you and always remember how much you are loved.

The possibilities are endless...

Thank You Baby won't let me post a picture for you but click here and I know you will enjoy. Mel is trying to help me with this blogging thing so please bear with me as I learn.

Check out this retro!

Is this not just the cutest ever. Kim is having a little girl and we are looking for inspiration... If you want to see more of this , go here . This is just one idea but I sure like it.

Passing of a friend

Yesterday we said goodbye to a long time friend of my girls and a wonderful young man. Evarista "Juny" Sierra, Jr. is no more on this earth but his memory will live in the hearts and minds of all those he touched. I cannot imagine the loss his family is experiencing but I know that they will be reunited with him again. If the measure of a man can be made by the number of people he touched, Juny was a man to be reckoned with. Live each day without regrets and if you need to make amends, do it without delay. Our days are dependent upon the Lord and when he calls me home, I hope to go, assured that those I love , are aware of how much they mean to me. God Bless you, Juny, and until we meet again, I will remember your beautiful and radiant smile and your love for your family and friends. Please say a prayer for the Sierra and Bingham families to help them get through this painful time.

It's a Girl

On a happier note. We found out Thursday that my little girl, Kimmy, is going to have a beautiful little girl of her own come February. Addison Mae Purdy should make her debut the 1st week of Feb. We can't wait to meet this precious, much loved and anticipated little miss. I thank Chris and Kimberly for honoring my late grandmother, Addie Mae Gann Sanders, and Chris' grandmother, Mae, by using their names for this child.

I imagine I will be burning up the roads between here and Victoria during the next few months while we prepare a beautiful nursery for our precious package. All we are waiting on is for Kimberly to make a decision of how the nursery will be decorated ( and we all know, making decisions is not Kimberly's forte). I will pray for patience, just kidding Kimberly, but you do have a hard time deciding when you have so much to choose from.

Dad and I are so happy for you and Chris. I know Marshall will be happy to have this little girl in his life, although I am sure he would have liked having a little brother as well, so maybe next time. Carson will have a little Aunt to look out for in high school ( can you imagine). Looking forward with much anticipation!

Rest in Peace Juny!

For those of you who follow this blog as well as melifaif life blog, you know I don't do nearly the job of posting that she does. I am , however, compelled to post today. As I raised my daughters, I was blessed with so many happy and wonderful events. I was honored to have known their friends and have been blessed with the opportunity to continue watching most of them grow into fine and productive adults. Our world was destroyed this week by the horrible senseless murder of Evaristo Sierra, a.k.a. June Bug, Juny, Pookie Bear, and I am sure other assoted names. Juny, how I knew him best, was a delightful young man with a smile that would light up a room and was always ready with a hug and a positive word. His murder was the act of a coward and I know without doubt that God will deal with whoever decided to take this fine young mans life.
We talk about peace in this world. Until we decide to let people be themselves and just STOP the needless violence and accept that we all have a place in this world, there will be no peace. KNOW God, KNOW Peace, NO God, NO Peace! No one will ever know what went through Juny's mind the last few seconds of his life. I am sure it was filled with the love he felt for his family, Karen, in particular and his sisters and parents and all of the countless friends who loved him so dearly. I, personally, will never understand how anyone could willfully and intentionally, take the life of another human being. Even the monster that took the life of our beloved friend. I do, however, hope that they are caught and brought to justice so that they are made to hear the impact they had on so many by this shameful act. At that point I hope they are allowed to meet their maker so that they can answer to the only real power that matters and make atonement for the horror they created. Rest in Peace, Juny and God Bless You!

enjoying what life throws at you!

I recently met a couple at the Assisted Living home where Honey now resides, Elsie and Loren Freeby. I met them on Aug. 3, a few days before I left to go to Layla's birthday party in Houston. During our initial conversation, Mr. Freeby told me he would celebrate his 93 birthday on Aug. 5 and that they had been married 71 years! I jokingly laughed and said Ken and I couldn't live long enough to be married 71 years. Mrs. Freeby had a stroke on the morning of Aug.5, his birthday, and died this past Tuesday night. I just knew he would be absolutely devastated, and went to see him as soon as I heard the news. He said, very calmly, we have had so many great years and have loved each other for so long, it's OK. I just don't want her to suffer. The good Lord in all of his infinite wisdom, made sure she did not. Please include these incredible people in your prayers. She will be buried Saturday morning and has made her final trip home! God Bless You, Elsie. My words of wisdom...enjoy each day, because we never know when it will be our last. Never forget to tell those who are important to you, you love them. We all should continue to strive for more, but don't forget to enjoy what we have.

Catching up on Honey

Since Honey is such an important part of this blog, I need to catch everyone up on what is going on with her. We moved her into an assisted living apartment a couple of weeks ago. She is still adjusting and having a few problems in that regard, but I feel it is for the best. They are able to provide the 24/7 care she needs. Next week we will begin with Physical Therapy, Occupational therapy, trying to get her legs back under her. She has just not bounced back from her fall in Nov. When I brought her here in January, that was the only thing I could do, she was entirely to weak to be put somewhere and expected to function alone. After 8 months though, we needed to move to another plan of action and this is it. She is meeting people that have some of the same problems she has and has people around her that are trained to cope with those problems. Life is good and getting better daily. I spend as much time with her as I can and I know she appreciates it but when I have to go home, she is taken care of .

Today is Sharon Preslar's birthday. As a family member, Sharon and I have been friends for 35 years! ( In case you are wondering, this is another words of wisdom), sometimes we forget and take friends for granted...I am not going to do that anymore. Happy Birthday, Sharon and I hope we have another 35 birthdays to share together. We have been through some wonderful and some not so wonderful times together and between us we have reared 5 great children and now are on to the next fabulous generation. We have been so blessed and rewarded for our efforts. Enjoy and kiss someone you love.

Stop and take a moment

Mel keeps telling me I should BLOG more. I keep telling her I don't imagine that my life is very interesting to most people but I will try. Now that I have reached the illustrious old age of 60, I guess I should impart some words of wisdom. I would love to do that but all I can think of is...How did I get this old??? Life is whizzing by and most of us don't take the time to stop and truly enjoy the little things because we are so busy trying to manage the big things. Take the time to stop and laugh when your baby or your grandbaby does or says something just silly. It doesn't have to be profound or the best or the funniest ...just enjoy it. The day will come when we will all have to take stock in what we have and I personaly plan to have a whole lot of smiles to fall back on instead of a lot of what ifs. Now those are my words of wisdom for today. I love each of you and wish you a wonderful weekend.

Today is a very special day for many reasons. 1st and foremost...;it is Miss Layla Bug's 2nd birthday. It is also my sister-in-law, Carla's 60th...Happy Birthday, Kelly Barnes, 34th and our President's Birthday as well. Just goes to show what a lot of people were doing around Halloween on those years. Wonder if that was a case of NO Treats...Big Trick! Hope all of you birthday people had a wonderful day and love to all.
Sue and Ken

Today is Michele's 33rd birthday (Melissa seems to think it is Michele's 32nd birthday because that would make her only 30...no, no, no Melissa, she is 33 so we know how old you are) To our dear, dear Michele...Happy Birthday and we love you.

What a great weekend we had this past one. Ken and I went to Houston for Cali's wedding. Cali was Kim's 1st college roommate. What a sweet girl and we are so happy for she and Andrew. We also got the fun of catching our darling Miss Layla on her home territory, she was so happy to see us. I am amazed how smart she is and only 2 ( tomorrow)...Happy Birthday Layla Bug.

It was great getting to spend time with Chris and Kimberly also. Marshall was there as well and we always enjoy getting to spend some time with him.

Sadly (in a way) we had to place Honey in an Assisted Living facility last week. Caring for her became a 24/7 job and I found I was not up to it. I believe she will be much happier when she adjusts and there are people there who know how to deal with her special needs.

Now that I don't have quite the demands on my time, maybe I will be able to keep up this blogging business more faithfully.

Honey is doing much better. She is getting around and throughly enjoyed her visit to New Mexico. At one point, she told Kenneth and I to go home and just leave her there. I don't know if she liked it that well or if she just dreaded the drive back. She got a kick out of seeing the Pronghorn Antelope come right up to our back porch. She will enjoy it more when we can get her out in the beautiful summer time weather. It was a little chilly when we were there this time.

Blogging...My New Frontier

I know that blogging is for daily updates for friends and family and in the future that is what it will be but for now...bear with me. I wanted to get some, who may in the future read this blog, up to speed with what is happening within our family structure up to this date.

Honey is now living with Kenneth and I. She just became too fragile to live alone and besides, we like having her here. We will celebrate her 89 birthday next Oct. 31. She goes where we go if she feels like it and stays here if she doesn't want to go. No problem!

I will probably make lots of mistakes in this new adventure process and those of you who are much more technologically advanced (that probably includes anybody reading this) can just have a good laugh at my attempts but I am having fun.

The Kids and their Kids

Most of you know that our youngest daughter, Kimberly got married November 8, 2008 to Chris Purdy in Victoria, Texas. We could not be happier with her choice of husbands and I am proud to say that Chris is my favorite son-in -law in Victoria. We got a great big blessing when Kimberly and Chris married, we not only got Chris we inherited a beautiful new grand daughter, Lauren ( Chris' daughter) and a new GREAT grandson , Carson, and a grandson , Marshall, (Chris' son). We are so happy to have them as part of our family. When Kimberly moved to Victoria we joked about her going there to find her daddy's roots. Little did we know, that is exactly what she did. Chris' stepdad and Kenneth went to school together and knew one another 55 years ago. His parents know all of Ken's family and his grandparents lived about 3 houses away from Ken's grandparents. It is truly a small world.

Melissa and Richard and doing well in Houston. Their beautiful daughter, Layla, is keeping them on the go. She is running full speed and beginning to talk and has just finished cutting 8 teeth at one time. She had her eighteen month checkup today and was average in height but only in the 20 % for weight. Go figure ...her momma is so small and Richard is not a tall person either and her granny, Medina was shorter than Melissa. We were very saddened on New Years Day by the loss of Richard's beloved mother, Medina. Please keep them and the family in your prayers.

Michele and Brad are moving ahead. Michele is back in school and is on track to do her student teaching Spring of 2011. We are very proud of her and she is doing a great job with all of her classes. She will receive her degree from Texas A&M Kingsville. Ethan will be 13 in July and doing well in school this year (6th grade, I can't believe it). Paige is a dancin' fool. She loves her dance with Miss Jennifer at Dorothy Keck Dancers. She will go to preschool next Sept. She is excited about that as well.

Carrizozo

Ken and I plan to leave for Carrizozo sometime in March. We will probably spend a month or so out there. We still have a lot of little things to get done. A lot of furniture still to take out there and get things ready for all of our friends and family to come visit. A reservation request sheet will be posted later.(HA!) We are really excited that Honey is able to accompany us and we know she will enjoy it once she is out there. Ken and Arlin are looking forward to looking for Elk sheds. They are hoping to get drawn for an elk hunt next year. Honey, Carla and I will just sit around and enjoy the scenery while they are out roaming the mountains.

The Honey Spot

Honey, continues to do well. It seems that each day she gets a little stronger and a little more alert. I am beginning to wonder if they were just over medicating her. She denies that she is looking forward to our trip to New Mexico but we are sure she will love it when we get there and she will enjoy all of the new scenery. I will post pictures of her at the new house as the trip progresses.