Updated Photos

It’s been a while since the last entry, it was AJ’s first birthday in May. Since then our nephew Kyle graduated from high school and our nephew David married Nikki in July. Many photos and they are all loaded to our Smugmug site. See all the pictures of our family.

AJ’s First Birthday

Yesterday we celebrated AJ’s first birthday at Becca’s parents house. Great Grandpa Wood was there for a couple of hours with Beth and I before he had to leave for Cassidy’s recital. Cori showed up later after taking lunch to Justin while he was working. Many of Becca’s family and friends came to the party. After eating we sang happy birthday to AJ and he enjoyed eating some of his cake. Then he took a short power nap and was ready to go the rest of the evening. We played cards and had one ear listening to the radio as the Detroit Redwings won the first game of the Stanley Cup Final.

Memorial Weekend in West Virginia

Beth and I spent Memorial weekend in West Virginia visiting her family. Her dad is struggling with cancer but he is holding his own at this time. He is walking out to get the mail everyday and we pushed him around the park in his wheelchair on Saturday. We celebrated Whitney’s birthday Sunday afternoon and took many family pictures. When we got back to Beth’s parent’s house Uncle Eddie and Aunt Thelma were there to spend the night before heading back home on Monday. John is still out of work since January when he lost his truck driving job. We pray for John, Becca and AJ as they struggle through their financial problems.

Cutting Grass

It has finally stopped raining around here. Yesterday I started to cut our grass, for the first time this spring, since the yard was dry enough. The back yard has to be 8” tall and the mushrooms are growing. The result of a few weeks of many inches of rain. We’ve had AJ for the last 2 days. He is getting bigger every time we see him and you can see him understanding things when you talk to him. He is a very happy baby. Becca has sure done something good with him. John is still unemployed since he lost his truck driving job back in January. We pray everyday for him to find another trucking driving job. Since his company was out of Nebraska he has to get unemployment through that state. He still hasn’t received his first check. You’d think the unemployment office would have more compassion for people who lost their jobs and get the checks out as soon as possible. They are really starting to struggle. We just ask everyone to pray for them.

Still Raining

Now it’s starting to look like spring outdoors but the rain won’t stop. The grass is green and the trees are starting to bud. It looks a lot like West Virginia over Easter weekend. Still haven’t cut the grass because everything is too wet. Might need to buy a sickle for the first grass cutting of the year.

AJ Spending the Night

Last night Beth picked up AJ after work to spend the night with us. John’s home and this gives Becca & him some quiet time together. He is almost ready to start crawling. He’ll get up on all four and start moving forward. Just a little bit more strength and he’ll be mobile. Right now he does a lot of rolling to get places. Also, he has his first tooth. So now you have to be careful when he grabs your finger and sticks it in his mouth. We are stuck in a deep freeze. Today’s high only around 11 degrees and tomorrow only 9 degrees with the night time temperatures below zero. These temperatures should stick around until the weekend before it gets closer to the normal for this time of the year. I even had a big surprise last night when I got home. Our drive way, side walks and deck were completely shoveled after the previous night’s snow. Cori’s boyfriend Justin came over and shoveled for us. I really appreciate this since I didn’t have to go out and do it after getting home from work. Thanks Justin!

Robert’s Birthday

Mid-week Beth and I went out to dinner for my birthday.  Since our birthdays are four days apart Beth is now only 1 year older than me. I have some fun during those 4 days picking on her about being 2 years older than me. John should be home on Monday after being out on the road for 2 weeks after Christmas. Right now he is in the middle of the snow storm going through northern Ohio and southern Michigan.

Beth’s Birthday

A couple of nights ago we celebrated Beth’s birthday at Outback. My dad called earlier in the day to wish her a happy birthday. Beth asked him to come over to go out with us but he didn’t want to go any where. Later he called and said he was heading over. So the three of us went out for dinner and had a real good time. We got a free ice cream sundae for her birthday and I shared it with dad. You know how Beth’s not in to desserts. As we were leaving her cell phone was going crazy as all of her family from West Virginia was trying to call and wish her a happy birthday all at once. Now it’s my turn to decide where to eat since my birthday is in a few days. Then we will have completed the cycle of anniversary, Christmas season, New Years and both of our birthdays in just under two and half weeks.

2008 in Review

What a year it has been for us. Many ups and downs but with God’s help we made it through the year and are prepared for what’s in store for us in 2009.

There were some tough times in 2008. In February we lost my mother 1 week before her 68th birthday. She died from MSA which took 3.5 years for the disease to destroy her body. Her mind was very sharp up to the end but the body couldn’t last. Then in September we lost my Aunt Drew, my father’s older sister. This leaves my dad with a older sister and younger brother still living from his family. A week later we received news that Beth’s Uncle Dick passed away from a long battle with cancer. This was her dad’s older brother and leaving him as the sole survivor in his family.

There were many blessings in 2008. The first great grandchild on Beth’s side of the family was born in February. Audrey was born 3 days after my mom passed away. In May we became grandparents when Andrew was born. Then in August Jamie married Amanda adding another to the family. I’ve even heard rumors there may have been some engagements over the Christmas season so there is the potential of more additions to the family. Also, even with the economic turn down everybody is still working.

As we look forward to 2009 we ask God for His guidance and strength for all of us. Everything from the economy, our christian believes, our health and our families will challenge us this year but only God can get us through it. God has a plan for every one of us and we pray His Will will be done.

Christmas 2008

It was a white Christmas here in Michigan and a beautiful time to celebrate our Lord’s birth. John, Becca, AJ and Cori were here on Christmas day for dinner. We opened gifts and watched AJ play with his toys.

We recieved around 18-20 inches of snow with in a week before Christmas. Then the Saturday after Christmas the temperature hit near 60 degrees with rain and most of the snow melted. So now it looks like spring after most of the snow melts but we know there is still 3 months of winter to go.

John got home on the 23rd and was able to stay until the 28th. He wanted to stay home longer but with the economy his company couldn’t guarantee he would get his dedicated route back. He did spend some quality time with Becca and AJ. He even added insulation in the attic of his house.

Andrew James spent the next afternoon with us while John and Becca took care of some work around the house. AJ is getting close to crawling. He gets up on his hands and knees but not quite the strength to move forward. He does a lot of rolling around but he can cover some ground this way. You have to keep an eye on him or he’ll roll into trouble.

Check out the photos from Christmas and the day after by clicking on the family photos link. Have a Happy New Year.