Dear Becca & Grant,
                  We've been swimming just about every day since it got warmer, Becca. Yesterday we went down to Mamaw & Papaw's at about noon and we stayed down there until about eight that evening. We swam the vast majority of the time. You also jumped on the trampoline, dug for some worms, which you love to do and had a supper of pizza rolls, pudding and push up pops with Sissy and a friend of her's named Bethany. You love to get in the pool and swim around with the help of your bathing suit with the inner tube sewn in that Mamaw & Papaw got for you. I expect you might just learn to swim by next year. You have absolutely no fear of the water.
      We had a pretty fun day but it was not without it's share of stress and sadness. Granny went to the emergency room last night. Granny has indeed been diagnosed with multiple myeloma cancer. It's a cancer of her plasma cells. It primarily attacks elderly people. She already had so many things going against her that this diagnosis is the worst possible thing. She is now in total renal failure which is a fancy name for kidney failure. She was very alert and cognitive the day before yesterday but yesterday she took a turn for the worse. She was unresponsive to everything and she was taken into the ER. Your Mom has read here on the internet that renal failure is a very peaceful and painless way to pass on. I hope they just let her final days be as calm and relaxing as possible.
      Becca, I want to thank you for bringing so much joy into her life the past few weeks. No matter how out of it she was she could look at you as you were doing some of your silly funny toddler shows and she would smile. She even enjoyed watching your cartoons with you as you sat right next to her with your head resting on her shoulder. Granny means the world to me and I am proud that you have been able to bring your sunshine into her life as she slips away from us. I will be forever grateful to you for putting a smile on Granny's face. Just the other day your Mom said that as Granny was lying in bed that you sat up with her in her bed and pretended that the bed was a crocodile and that Granny drifted off to sleep with the sweetest smile on her face. You my dear, are an angel sent from heaven.
      Granny will not live to meet you, Grant. I am almost 100% sure of that fact. I really wish you could have at least been held by her. You will miss out on knowing one of the most gentle and considerate human beings to ever set foot upon this earth. I truly am sorry for you that you will never know her. You really missed out.
      Grant, you have already cost us a ton of money. Friday night while Allison watched Becca your Mom & I went out to buy a few baby essentials. We ended up spending nearly $1,000 dollars. We bought you 15 onesies, 12 pair of socks, four hooded towels, 10 wash clothes, a starter set of bottles, a head supporter for your car seat, a bottle brush, a dishwasher box for bottle nipples, a changing pad, a changing pad sheet, 2 sleepers, a formula cup, crib bedding, a window valance for your nursery, wall hangings, a bouncer, a medicine kit and a ton of other things that people must have when a new baby comes to live with them. Before we went shopping we went to a new restaurant in Jessamine County called Red Robin. They specialize in burgers and it was really good. We then went to Wal-Mart and got some stuff but we were actually kind of disappointed in the baby stuff at Wal-Mart. We then went to Lowes so I could buy some stuff to put cable in Becca's room and in the kitchen. I need cable in the kitchen because my office, where our desk top lives will be your nursery so I reckon I'll have to move the desktop into the kitchen. We then went to Target at Hamburg. We bought a ton of stuff there. We never really shopped much at Target because I don't like some of their corporate stances on various issues but they had a whole lot of really nice stuff there so I will be back to Target. We then went to Office Max where we bought a small computer table to go in the kitchen. Then we went to Babies R Us where we spent the lions share of our money. After all of that we stopped off at Cracker Barrel because Granny had the taste for their fried apples so we stopped off there and bought her a jar. Nothing is too good for my Granny. We took the apples by her house and she had just gone to bed shortly before we got there so we missed seeing her. Your Mom & I had a real nice time buying stuff for you. There's a bunch more stuff that we need but we have the biggest part of it done.
      Well, I am going to close out this post. Daddy loves Rebecca & Grant!

Dear Rebecca and Grant,
                     Right now Grant you are hanging out in my belly, where you will be until at least August 24 I hope. Becca, you are down to Mamaw's House with Daddy and you guys are swimming. Daddy got off work early today and he took youd own there.
            Becca, you and I went to see Shrek the Third this morning. I reckon you went, too Grant being as how you have to go everywhere I do at this point. Rebecca, I was extremely proud of you and the way you behaved in the movie. You did a fabulous job. You watched almost the whole thing. You only got up once or twice, once to stand behind the seat and watch the movie and once to take a peek at what another kid was doing and his parents had to take their leave because he was still a bit young for such an adventure, just the way you were the last time. I swatted your hand and told you to get back in your seat and you climbed up in my lap and finished the entire movie right there. You were as good as gold and better. I am so very proud of you and so glad that you had a good time. You came home and told Daddy that you saw "Shrek Babies". We really had a good time, you and I. I love you so much and I treasure these last couple of months we have together just you and me and Daddy. I know that Grant will be a wonderful welcome addition and we will all love him dearly. I am so proud to have a daughter and a son and a good husband who is a great father. We are so blessed and you are a great big part of it.
             I just wanted to tell you about going to see Shrek the Third with you today. Mommy loves Rebecca! And Grant!

Dear Becca & Grant,
               You and Mom fried up some chicken yesterday, Becca. I do believe you went a little crazy with the seasoning salt. The chicken is good but it is a bit on the salty side.
      Papaw had to work over yesterday so I had you and Mom come out to the factory to get me. We went to Burger King for lunch because we were planned on going grocery shopping afterwards. We ate and then went to the Kroger on Alexandria Drive. We got our groceries but while we were there your Mom began experiencing intense pain in her lower abdomen and her back. We loaded the car with all of our new food and then your Mom told us she had to go to see the doctor. We went out to Central Baptist. We knew we would be there awhile so we called Mamaw & Papaw and ad them come up and pick you up. That's where you are at right now. Mom is fine. Her pain comes from something to do with ligaments stretching and other pregnant lady stuff. I really don't understand and the doctor we spoke to was in a big hurry because there was another lady who was having a baby as we spoke so he was kind busy. Your Mom and your little brother are fine.
      Thursday your Mom had a doctor's appointment with her gestational diabetes doctor. She came by the factory and I dropped her off at the doctor's office and you and I went to pick up a new set of frames for my glasses. You broke my old ones. Well, they weren't old at all. Just a couple of months but still, you broke them. After we came back to pick up your Mom we went to Logan's Roadhouse. We got out of the car at the restaurant and you automatically recognized it as the place with the peanuts. You are such a smart girl. We had a nice lunch and went home.
      This past week you have been spending a whole lot of time over at Granny's. Unfortunately she has been diagnosed with cancer. I hope the diagnoses is wrong. We have discovered that she just loves watching you be yourself. She will just stare at you and smile. You make Granny happy and we all want Granny happy so we take you over there as much as possible. Your Mom said that just the other day after a hard day of playing you climbed up next to Granny and laid your head on her shoulder and the two of you watched cartoons together. Yesterday as your Mom was trying to move Granny with a lift Granny cried out in pain and you told your Mom that she has to be easy with Granny. You really do love your Granny. I hope she gets to meet you, Grant. She will love you and I know that if some miracle occurs and you get to know her as well, you will love her too. I will miss my old Granny Grunt when she does home to be with Jesus.
      Well, I'm gonna close this post out and go to bed. Daddy loves Rebecca & Grant!

Dear Becca and Grant,
               Becca, right now you are in the living room watching a Dora special about Dora and Swiper going around the world to return friendship bracelets to save Friendship Day. Grant, right now you are in my belly, more than likely sleeping, because I do not feel you moving at this very moment. I wish you would sleep at night, I really do, but what am I going to do? It's not like I can give you a bottle with some cereal in it yet. Ha!
                     Becca I want to let you know what a wonderful Mother's Day you and Daddy gave to me. I got off work a little bit early and you came flying around the car and said "Happy Mother's Day Mom! We got you a card! I wrote on it. And Daddy, too!" I will remember that day as long as I live, that was the best Mother's Day anyone could have ever gotten. I want you to know how proud I am of you growing up so big and strong and smart. I am so proud to have you for my daughter.
               Last night you fell out of bed and Daddy came in to put you back in. You said "Dad, I fell out of bed. Can you put me back in?" So Daddy did and then you said "That's better," and you went right back to sleep. You are such a funny monkey. I think we are going to have to get some rails for the side of your bed. Of course, I don't know how good that will do because you have a tendency to sleep sideways, just like your Mommy.
               We haven't done much of anything except laundry this morning, other than cleaning the kitchen up a little bit and killing us a 'itsy bitsy spider', as you call it, making the beds and generally picking up. Of course I did most of this. You played with your new remote control truck that you found in the top of the closet and watched Dora & Oobi. I cleaned the fridge out and prepared the chicken I had thawed out to fry. I was heating up the oil in my new electric skillet Mamaw got me while I was getting a bowl down to roll my chicken in the flour and I busted a glass in my oil and had to dump it all out and start over. Oh well, that's life. You wanted to help though and I was having difficulty keeping you out of the raw chicken and skins. You just didn't believe me that chickens were poisonous when they were raw.
               Well you are in here now because you have apparently grown bored with whatever you were doing in the living room so I am going to take you back in there and check on the chicken and laundry then we're going to go to the grocery store I do believe. Mommy loves Rebecca and Grant!

Dear Becca & Grant,
                  We had a nice day together, you & I, Rebecca. You got up early, as you always do; we began setting up the new pool we bought at Toys "R" Us last night. We put the hose into the pool and turned the water on and then we came back inside and had some breakfast. I fixed you some oatmeal because that's what you said you wanted and then I fixed some sausage, eggs and toast for myself. You decided that you wanted my breakfast instead. I shared with you but you ended up eating neither your oatmeal nor my sausage & eggs. You didn't even drink your strawberry milk or pink milk, as you refer to it. We watched some television and then went outside to set up the pump and filter on the new pool. We also covered it up with a solar cover. We came back inside and got ready to go down to Mamaw & Papaw's. We stopped off at Taylor Manor and visited with your Mom for a few minutes. We then went to McDonalds where you got a chicken nugget happy meal. Their featured theme for the happy meals right now is Shrek 3. It comes out in theaters pretty soon I believe. I had a Big Mac value meal. We got us a shake and an ice cream cone just before we left. We went down to Mamaw & Papaw's where they where getting their pool ready for the summer. Their pool is 20 times bigger than ours so there's a whole lot more work that goes into that pool than ours. We hung out down there for awhile and then we went to K-Mart and bought some chlorine tablets for your pool. We went home and jumped in your pool. We had a grand old time. Even Mom got in when she got home from work.
      Once again this is going to be a short post. Daddy loves Rebecca & Grant!

Dear Becca & Grant,
               Once again I have neglected posting on this blog. I was planning on posting Sunday morning, real early but you, Becca, called out to me that you couldn't sleep and you stayed awake for hours. I never got around to posting one. It's been so nice outside this past week that you and I, Becca have been hanging out in the backyard until nearly bedtime most days this week. Mom stays outside with us as much as she can but with her being pregnant with Grant she can't stand too much heat.
      I got a new riding lawn mower, well it's not really new. Uncle Rodney bought a new zero turn radius mower so I bought his old one. This is just the third summer it's been used and I know that if Uncle Rodney had it it has been well taken care of so while it may not be brand new it is as good as new. I also got a new leaf blower from General Electric for my twenty year service award. I've been doing a lot of yard work this past week as well. The yard is starting to look pretty nice but I just wish it would green up some more.
      Your Mom went to bed early tonight because you, Grant, are making her very tired. That's why I am able to post this quick blog post. I hope to be able to do a nice long one this weekend and then, Becca I will tell you all about how you have graduated to the big girl swing and how you still can't say your "L" words. Lunch still comes out Yunch and Lynn is still Yinn. Grant, I really don't know what's going on with you because Mama is carrying you around inside her belly and I have no idea what's going on in there. I reckon your Mom will have to fill you in on that. Well, I'm gonna close this midweek post out. Daddy loves Rebecca & Grant!

Dear Becca & Grant,
            I kind of dropped the ball this weekend regarding this blog. I should have posted one early this morning or early yesterday but time got away from me. I'll get around to posting a longer and better post later.
      I got sick this week and missed a few days of work. Your Mom has been bitten by a spider and she doesn't feel well right now. She called in to work this morning.
      I'm gonna close this out now. Daddy loves Rebecca & Grant!

Dear Rebecca,
            I am only addressing this blog to you because I want to tell you what a wonderful time I am having being your Mommy. I hope you don't think that just because there is a new baby on the way that you are any less in my eyes; you are my sun, my moon, my stars, and my rainbow, and you always will be.
             I have had so much fun with you over the last few days that I don't know where to start. We've been outside to play several times, as it is warming up. We've stayed up late, just you and I, watching silly cartoons and eating popcorn. Just today we went over to Alicia's and picked up some Maternity Clothes she had for me there and you got to see her two brand new babies. You told me that you liked those babies, and that you were their Mommy. You are so silly. You did such a good job holding the babies and being easy with them and I was SO proud of you. I know that you are going to be the best Big Sister in the world. I patted one of the baby's heads and he stirred and you admonished me by saying "You have to be EASY, Mamma!"
               I want you to know how very proud of you I am. These days you are to the point where you don't want to listen very well, but I know that is a passing phase. You have always been such a good girl and you still are. I love you so very much and want you to know that you always have a big, huge, special place in my heart. Mommy loves Rebecca!

Dear Rebecca and Grant,
               Hello both of my little sweeties. Right now I am at work and Grant, you are hanging out in my belly and giving me a fit by kicking me in the crotch at every oppurtunity you get. That seems to be your favorite spot to kick. Becca, right now you are with your Daddy at the park and I am sure having a big, grand time. You both came by my work to give me my glasses that I left at home this morning and you told me that I could go to the park with you. How I would have loved to spend the day with you and Daddy at the park, but unfortunately Mommy has to work to bring home the extra money we have grown so used to. Pretty soon we will be able to get all kinds of extra things for you and your new baby brother, I hope. Mommy is       Becca, as Daddy previously mentioned, you came to work with me at Taylor Manor on Wednesday. You had a fantastic time out here, too. Sister Agnes gave you a chocolate bunny with chocolate syrup in it and you ate every bit of that thing. Then you got some chocolate ice cream from the fridge back here and went to town on that. Then you got to eat the chocolate cake off of Sister Agnes' tray at super time. It's no wonder that you were too wound up to go to sleep that evening. You had a big time dancing on the stage and showing off your cute little moves for everyone in the entertainment room. You got to ride in Mr. Gaine's lap and then also in Mother Ellen's lap in their wheelchairs. Everyone out here thinks that you are the cats meow. They are right, of course.
      Grant, I know you want to know where we came up with such a fine, handsome, manly name for you. Your full name will be Marlin Grant Lanham and you will go by Grant. Of course, you know where Marlin comes from. It comes from your dear old Papaw. Grant, as your Dad informed you, is your first cousin twice removed (or whatever) on my side. He passed away when I was very little but he was very good to me when I was younger. One day when my father was gone and my mother had to take my sister to the doctor, he kept me with him and took me to see a movie in the newly erected theater they put in downtown Hazard. Then he took me next door to a diner and bought me the biggest ice cream sundae I had ever seen. I ate all of that thing, and if you can believe this, I barely ate anything when I was a kid. It was delicious. He used to give me money to come over and 'clean' his house. I never really did much cleaning and he always gave me at least twenty bucks. He was a bit of a drunk, but he was kind to me and your Aunt Mary. He used to get drunk with Papaw Lawrence and Aunt Mary and I would steal his money and his food stamps and he would never even get mad at us. Papaw Lawrence would, but Grant would never let him whip us, at least not at his house. He was a kind hearted man who died too young.
      We had a fit trying to pick out a good name for you and it seems we'd had one all along. Becca, your name was no problem. I knew you were a girl all along and we had your name picked out ever since six weeks gestation. Grant, you were not as easy. Becca, you were such an easy, sweet, charming baby. Grant, I wonder if you won't be just the opposite? I could be wrong but that seems to be the M. O. - at least on my side of the family. My sister was a good baby and I never stopped fussing. Of course, fussing can come in handy. I fuss at Daddy every day. Just ask him.
      I want to take this oppurtunity to let you both know that I feel so truly blessed for having the two of you in my life. I've always wanted a family and now God has made my dream come true with Daddy, Becca, and Grant. I am so blessed. Mommy loves her family!

Dear Becca & Grant,
               Mom said she tried to put up a post yesterday but for some reason she was unable to do it. I know y'all are anxious to hear from her and what is going on in her head at this most pivotal time in our lives. I'm sure she will post one shortly. When I set this blog up years ago I intended for this to be just a forum for her to communicate what life was like for her as she was carrying Becca. I eventually decided to join in on the fun and ever since it has been one of our primary activities on the computer/internet. It's been loads of fun and I think it will be kinda cool for y'all when you are older and wondering what life was like early on in y'all's life.
      Mom ended up working most of the week because one of her coworkers had a death in the family. Monday she took you, Becca to work with her and I came and picked you up after I got home. I was a little late getting there because Papaw helped me fix my garage door, and as always when I say Papaw helped me what I really mean is he did it while I watched. He also put our Christmas stuff up in the attic. I can't go up there because the ladder to the attic will not support my enormous girth. Well, I went and got you Monday and we came home and hung out together, Becca. I'm sure Mom will fill you in on some details concerning your time you spent with her and all of the people at Taylor Manor.
      Tuesday you went to daycare because Mom had an early appointment with the eye optometrist and then she had to go to work. After work I took the opportunity to Mow the yard while you were in daycare. We got home late and Mom got home early so we didn't have too much time by ourselves. Mom brought us a $5 pizza from Little Caesars for supper.
      Wednesday you spent the day with Mamaw & Papaw. I came down to pick you up and ended up on the dirt bike for a long time. I pulled up to the house on the bike and you came out and shook your finger at me and told me to be careful. I had a pork roast supper down there and then it started to rain. I went to put the bike in the garage and you told me not to ride anymore because it was raining. You are such a bossy little thing. You came down to the garage with Papaw and we hung out there for awhile while the brief thunder storm passed over. You had big fun playing with Sadie. We ended up getting rid of your puppy, Wal-Mart because we thought he might be sick plus we weren't too pleased with the way he would snap at you. You seemed more than okay with that. I think your attitude towards your puppy changed when he hurt you; I know mine certainly did. Anyway, after the storm you played with Jon & Jakey a little while and then we went home.
      Thursday your Mom & I cleaned out the garage really well while you blew bubbles. It was hard work but the garage looks really nice now. I can park a vehicle in there now whereas I couldn't before. We had supper and watched some television and then we all went to bed. We have started a very bad habit of late and we are going to have to stop it. Mom has started laying down with you when you go to bed and I think you are getting a little too used to it. Even I am guilty of this offense. Last night Mom went to bed early and when I put you to bed I crawled into bed with you and we chatted and made up a lullaby about you riding a horse to Mamaw's house. I had to sing it to you four or five times and it was never the same twice. Eventually you rolled over and went to sleep with me right by your side. I know that if I had tried to leave before you had fallen asleep you would have thrown a fit.
      Friday I got off work early because we had a tornado drill and a meeting about a two tier wage agreement they want to bring into the plant. I am in favor of the agreement because I would really like to retire from General Electric. After I got off from work we went to CiCi's and had a late lunch or early supper of pizza and salad. We then went and ordered your Mom some new glasses. We went and had your hair cut at Cookie Cutters. We have never had the length of your hair trimmed before so you had a little piece in the back that was longer than the rest because when you were a little bitty baby you rubbed a bald spot on the back of your head from laying in your bouncer. When your hair started to get longer you always had that little bit that was longer than the rest. We had that fixed today and for some reason your Mom cried. You did extremely well getting your hair cut. You sat on a pink Harley Davidson motorcycle barber chair and had the most serious look on your face as you got your hair cut. After the hair cut we went to Baskin Robbins for some ice cream. Then we visited with Granny and Mamaw at Granny's house.
      That's been your week, Becca. As for you, Grant. You hung out inside your Mom's belly the whole week. Your Mom says that you get real excited when you hear your sister's voice. I reckon you already love your big sissy. She keeps trying to get you to move while I am feeling her belly so I can feel you kick. You must be too small just yet because I simply can not feel you kick. I'm sure I will soon.
      Well, I have to get up with Becca in the morning and Mom has already got up once and scolded me for still being up so I had better close this out. Daddy loves Rebecca & Grant!

Dear Becca & Grant,
                  Hey Grant, your name isn't Jack after all. You weren't Jack for long, were you? Only your Mom & I seemed to like Jack and we weren't all that crazy about it. Everyone seems to like the name Grant. Grant was your double first cousin two times removed on your Mom's side. I'm sure your Mom will tell you all about him the next time she gets a chance to post here.
      Becca, Friday night you and Mom came by G.E. and picked me up after work. While y'all where waiting on me you had a fellow I work with buy you some skittles. You are so cute that perfect strangers just buy you stuff and give you money. We all headed over to the Cracker Barrel on Winchester Road for some supper. I had chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, a double helping of green beans, corn muffins and sweet tea. Your Mom had the Sunrise Sampler breakfast with unsweetened tea. She's been craving biscuits & gravy with her pregnancy with you, Grant. Becca, you had fried chicken fingers, mac & cheese, some of my green beans and sprite. Your Mom had a piece of no sugar added apple pie and you & I shared a chocolate cobbler. We went out to pay for our supper in the gift shop and let you pick out a piece of candy. You chose some wax lips. You had some big fun with those wax lips and you looked so funny but like generations of children before you, including your father, you actually hated the taste of the waxy candy.
      We went to the brand new Wal-Mart across the road to get groceries and some other odds & ends. I had to get some electrical tape because my recliner has cut into the rubber skin of my laptop A/C adapter. We needed light bulbs, deodorant, tooth paste, baby wipes, and you wanted some new tastier tooth paste and a new tooth brush that lights up. We also bought you a plastic cereal bowl with a built in straw and a new cup that you saw and wanted. Becca, we bought a new pink dress exactly like a denim one that I purchased for you some time ago. Grant, for you we purchased your very first outfit, a tiny cotton overall outfit with Mickey Mouse & Donald Duck on it.
      We then went over to Babies "R" Us to look for you, Grant, another outfit but since it's just getting warm and we expect you went it will be getting cool again there wasn't a whole lot of stuff that we could buy. I have to say that there is a whole lot more cute clothing for little girls than for little boys. We didn't get any clothes for either of you there. We did buy a light switch plate and some border for your nursery, Grant. We are going to do your room in Winnie the Pooh. We won't have to paint the walls. That decor will work nicely with our green walls.
      We then went over to Pet Smart to look into obedience classes for Wal-Mart. We almost lost Wal-Mart the other day because he snapped at you and left teeth prints on your face and then he did it again and he came as close to breaking the skin as possible without actually doing it. You have fallen in love with that dog but it might have been a little soon to get you a puppy. We had decided to get rid of him and you told us in tears that you wanted a new Wal-Mart, a pink one that didn't bite and we felt okay about getting rid of him but the next morning the first thing you wanted to do was go to see your dog. We're not going to let you around him alone at all and we are going to get him into an obedience class. If he acts okay until we can get him into obedience class we will keep him. We also need to take him to the vet because he has runny poops twenty times a day. He does very good about not pooping where he isn't supposed to. He has the occasional accident but he has been doing fabulous in that regard. Much better than you have, Becca.
      Y'all's Mom went back to work yesterday. It was just you and I, Becca and of course, Wal-Mart. You got into your Mom's makeup and painted your face up real good. You came into the living room growling and telling me that you were a monster. You had took a black eyelash brush and painted your eye lids and lips and you did indeed look like a sweet little monster.
      Well, I need to get off of here because I have some other stuff I need to do before I go to bed. Your Mom's new schedule is primarily weekends so it will be just us again tomorrow, Becca. Daddy loves Rebecca & Grant!

Dear Becca & Jack,
            Hey Jack, you are a boy! Imagine that. We are going to have us a set; one boy and one girl. I think that is just perfect. I know that I have always said that I wanted a girl but now, in the interest of revisionist history, I can reveal for the very first time that I wanted a son all along. I hope your name remains Jack because I have actually used it in a blog post now. We struggled for a long time with your name but maybe we have it now. After we found out about you being a boy we tossed a few names around and then eventually came back to the original choice as suggested by Becca. As of this writing your name is Jack Marlin Lanham. Your Mom wanted it to be Marlin Jack but I said that sounds like a variety of cheese. Mamaw told you that your new little brother was going to be named Marlin. When your Mom and I came to pick you up we asked you what you though about having a little brother and you told us you were not going to have a little brother; you were going to have a little Papaw.
      I am so very tired and I would love to write an extra long post but I plan on taking a shower here in a minute and going to bed so I am going to close this out. Daddy loves Rebecca and Jack!

Dear Rebecca,
                  Well they let Aunt Mary and Desiree' go from the hospital last night and it was supposed to be a happy and joyous occasion because Aunt Mary was supposed to bring that baby down too see your Great Grandma Annetta Robinson but it just didn't work out that way so now everyone is mad at everyone and it's turned into a big mess. Personally I have just decided not to worry about any of it and take life as it comes.
               Desiree' is awfully cute. I do really wish you could have seen her. I am spelling her name the proper way because I can't stand the phonetic way that the strange people in Hazard have decided to come up with.
               I was going to work today and you were going to go home with Mamaw and then you were both going to pick me up and take me to the Doctor this afternoon so that we could find out what the baby was today. It didn't work out that way because I was out so late last night trying to get everything together with Mary and Desiree'. Anyway now you are going out with Mamaw while I go pick up Daddy and we go find out what the baby is together. I know Daddy is awfully excited. Plus I get to spend the day with you and I always love doing that.
            Just a moment ago when we took your new puppy, Wal-Mart out to potty we saw a big brown and black speckled rabbit with a white fuzzy tail out in our yard. I told you that it was Peter Cottontail, and you firmly believed it. He sat there forever in spite of the dog and you waved and shouted "HEYO Petter Cottontail!" at the great big rabbit. We watched that bunny hop away in the rain and you've made me leave the big door open ever since so that you could watch for him to come back. You are so sweet. You really loved seeing that rabbit.
            Daddy was waiting with you at Granny's last night so that you could all see the baby and EMS had to be called for your poor old Granny. She isn't doing very well and she is growing frail and very tired. I am glad that you know and love her so very much. She feels the same way about you, too. Daddy said one of theose EMS men just made an awful fuss over you and you ate it up. You really are super cute. I love you so much little girl.
               Well I just wanted to inform you on all the news that is news here on Colony Drive. I know Daddy can't wait to come home and blog about your new baby brother or sister - just think, now we get to stop saying that. No matter what it is I know that you will LOVE it and be the best big sister in the entire world. Remember, Now and Always, MOMMY LOVES REBECCA!

Dear Becca,
            I moved Aunt Mary into the master bedroom last night so I could sit up and watch some television. It's extremely late and I just now turned on the television for some background noise as I type out this post.
      I ended up sitting up all night downloading Barbie movies for you, current country hits and Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai. I have never seen that film even though I have always wanted to. It's kind of hard to find around here. It's an old Japanese film that was the inspiration for the classic western The Magnificent Seven. Seven Samurai is in Japanese with english subtitles. I have only watched one film with subtitles and that was Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ. Anyway, most of the downloads are still coming down. I already have the music downloaded and Barbie's Mermaidia is at 96% with an hour or so left on the download. Barbie's Fairytopia is coming down a bit slower. I have 24.7% of Fairytopia with seventeen hours left on the download. I'm sure the speed will eventually speed up, I hope. The Kurosawa film is coming along quite nicely.
      I also read some stuff about the Kentucky Wildcats basketball. I didn't mention them much this past season because just like last year things didn't go as well as they should have. We went 22-12 and got knocked out of the NCAA tournament in the second round by the Kansas Jayhawks. Coach Tubby Smith, who is a class act and a wonderful coach, decided that things were not comfortable for him and his family around here so he resigned as the head coach and took the head coaching position of the Minnesota Gophers. The past week has been a wild ride for the Big Blue Nation. Everyone has wanted Billy Donovan since way before Coach Smith resigned; his Florida Gators won the national championship this year. He decided to stay down there in Florida so everyone was crushed there for a few hours until they announced that our new coach would be Billy Gillispie, formerly of Texas A&M. He's supposed to be a great recruiter and that is really what we were missing with Coach Smith.
      The Easter Bunny came through a few hours ago. It must have been when I was taking a shower because when I got out your basket was already out and he had taken a big slice of the Easter cake we left for him. He prefers carrots but we forgot to get any. It looks like a really nice basket; we'll find out when you get up. We have been threatening to call the Easter Bunny on you the past few days. Earlier today after you had been a little stubborn I called the Bunny up and you rushed into the living room and pleaded with me to turn the phone off. You are looking forward to Easter Morning. This afternoon I found the song, "Here Come Peter Cottontail" on the internet. You and I must have listened to it twenty times if we listened to it once. Last night when we sang you your lullaby we couldn't hardly do it because we still had the tune of "Here Come Peter Cottontail" in our heads.
      Since we got your puppy, Wal-Mart we have changed up the lullaby we sing to you every night. We used to sing about a dog named Rover and what we would get for you if he didn't bark but we have changed the name of the dog to Wal-Mart and every single night when we get to the part about him not barking you pipe up, "But he yikes to bark."
      Well, I want a few hours of sleep before I have to get up and see you with your Easter Basket so I will close out this post. Daddy loves Rebecca and the yet to be named unborn child living in Mommy's tummy!

Dear Rebecca,
               You had a grand time at the Doodlebops concert. If anyone ever asks you what your very first concert was you will have to tell them that back in 2007 you went and saw The Doodlebops in Louisville. We got you a concert T-shirt because if you go to a concert you have to have a concert t-shirt. That tiny toddler sized shirt cost us $25 but like I said if you go to a concert you have to have a concert t-shirt. We also bought you a Doodlebops pledge flag with a glowing ball on the end of it. That set us back another $20 but I remember how you longingly looked at the toys they sold when we went and saw Disney Princesses on Ice and I figured that it was your day and I wanted you to be the happiest girl in the world on your day. Then we went and bought you another toy from a vendor inside the concert hall; another $20 gone. We spent way too much money. I really wish we hadn't bought that second toy because your favorite from the very beginning is your pledge flag or as you call it, your Rooney stick. Rooney is a character from the Doodlebops; you may or may not remember that. Your Mom & I enjoyed watching you dance around to all of the Doodlebop songs and looking at your happy little grin but as far as entertainment for us goes regarding the show we much preferred Princesses on Ice. You watched the Doodlebops on your portable DVD player on the way up there but I think you had been Doodlebopped out by the time we came back home because you didn't want to watch it on the way back.
      We went straight to the hospital after the concert so we could visit with Aunt Mary for a little while before we came home. Your Mom went to go upstairs to the NICU to see Desaray. You and I still haven't seen her. They quit letting Mom go up to see the baby because at first they thought Desaray was your Mom's grandchild. That floored your poor young Mom that they thought her older sissy was her daughter.
      Aunt Mary got out of the hospital Wednesday afternoon and she has been staying with us for the past few days. That's why I am posting this blog from the desktop instead of the laptop. Aunt Mary is sleeping in my chair. She's sleeping in my chair because she is still very sore from the c-section. She was five weeks early so they had to cut her vertically instead of horizontally like they did with your Mom when she had you. I reckon she will stay with us until they release Desaray and they can both go home to the squalor that is Hazard Kentucky. I took Aunt Mary to the hospital yesterday morning before I went to work and she spent the whole day up there with her baby. I talked to her when I got off from work to make sure that she didn't need a ride home and she was on cloud nine because just moments earlier she had finally gotten to hold and feed Desaray. She said she just couldn't quit kissing her. I am glad that Aunt Mary finally got to hold her baby. She had Desaray Saturday morning and didn't get to hold her until Thursday afternoon. I couldn't imagine having to wait such a long time to cuddle and kiss my baby. I got to hold and kiss you just minutes after you were born and it was the most magical moment in my life.
      David, Desaray's father finally came back today. He was here for the delivery but he went back to Hazard that same day. I have to say that I just can not begin to understand what he is thinking leaving his newborn daughter who is in the NICU for almost a whole week. Aunt Mary said that she sent him back to Hazard to keep an eye on Papaw Lawrence who is still in the hospital down there. I would have told Aunt Mary that if she was so worried about her father then she should go back but I was going to be staying with my baby. I don't care if it was Papaw himself, if I had to make a choice I would choose to be with my child. My attitude had recently softened towards David but this latest incident makes me wonder what in the world he is thinking. My child would have come first, second and last in my concerns. I really just don't understand.
      The past few weeks you have been entering your terrible two stage. You have made your Mom cry on more than one occasion. You say NO to everything and you keep repeating it even after time outs and even after spankings. You will not behave to save your life. Your Mom got some results from threatening to call the Easter Bunny and telling him that you were being naughty but only marginal results and Easter is this Sunday so that ploy will not work for long. I hope you get out of this stage soon because I was torn yesterday after work because I wanted to come home and see you and Mom but I dreaded the clashes that I knew you and I would eventually have. It wasn't too bad yesterday afternoon but you did show yourself a little bit. You had better start listening to us.
      The weather has been typical for spring in Kentucky. Last weekend and earlier in the week the temperatures were in the high seventies and the sun was shining. I cut the grass for the second time this spring and treated it with some Scott's weed and feed, you played outside in shorts and short sleeves, we sat out on the front porch and blew bubbles using your vast collection of bubble wands, we grilled steaks one day and ribs the next out on the grill and basically had a grand old late spring type of time. Then the storms came. They came on the 23rd anniversary of one of the greatest storms in Kentucky history; the tornadoes of 74'. I was only six at the time but I remember the tornadoes of 74'. It was a very scary experience. Anyway, I was watching an anniversary show dealing with that big storm on channel 18 when they broke into programming telling people to take cover that there was a massive storm system on the way and the possibility of tornadoes were great. Of course I was just moments ago looking at the devastation that tornadoes could bring so I was probably a little too cautious when I packed you and Mom up and took you to Granny's house so we could ride out the storm in the basement. The storms came and went and did a little damage here and there but it was really only a typical spring storm but it did ring back the cold weather. I even heard tell of snow flakes outside of the factory yesterday afternoon.
      As I said in my last post I had been losing my internet connection quite frequently. Well, I don't know if you could say I figured out the problem but I do think I fixed it just the same. I called the cable company to see if the problem was on my end or their end. It was on my end. My connection worked perfectly when I plugged the modem directly into the desktop. I had a problem with either my ethernet cables or my router. I figured I would buy some new cables this weekend and see if that fixed my problem but first I decided to upgrade the firmware on my router. That seemed to do the trick for a little while and then I lost my connection again. I plugged the cables back into the desktop and went searching online for a solution. I found out that many people had been having trouble with the new firmware update but they had been having some luck with a third party linux firmware upgrade so I decide that I would try it. The website said that there was a minuscule chance I could break my router by using this method but the chances were so slim and the benefits of this new firmware was so great that I should go ahead and try it. I printed out the instructions and downloaded all of the stuff would need and began my task. I got through the first two steps without a hitch but then I could go no further and I couldn't go back. I had been one of the minuscule number of people who had killed their router. I had to purchase another one. I went to Best Buy yesterday and purchased a new router, or rooter as your Aunt Mary so disastrously called it and a new ethernet cable in case that was the original problem. I got home and set everything up and now things seem to be working great. I suppose I will have to give it a couple of days to make sure that it is actually fixed before I celebrate. I thought I had it fixed when I upgraded the firmware. I was feeling ten feet tall and bullet proof. Then it went down again.
      I don't know if we have mentioned this or not but your Mom resigned her position at Taylor Manor about two weeks ago. We have really enjoyed having your Mom home all of the time recently. It's been very nice. After two weeks off of her job she is ready to go back to work. She went by there the other day and told them that she could work weekends if they needed her. The head nun said that she would let their new weekend girl go and that your Mom could take over the weekend shift. They seem to like your Mom out there a whole bunch. She goes back to work next weekend. The money was tighter than we expected it to be. I had started putting 10% of my net check into the 401K while your Mom was making good money at Taylor Manor and when she quit we felt the pinch from losing that 10% and her two or three hundred dollars every two weeks. She missed her patients as well. She really likes Sister Agnes and Mother Ellen as do you. I also think she may need some time away from you & I occasionally to recharge her batteries and her patience. I know I am not going to relish getting up with you every weekend day but I'll learn to live with it. I am very proud of your Mom. I told her that I see her getting her CNA license and instead of going somewhere else and making ten to thirteen dollars an hour she will stay at Taylor Manor making eight dollars an hour but they will make it easy on her scheduling wise to go to nursing school so she can get an LPN license and then she will go to work at Taylor Manor as an LPN and then eventually she will get her RN license with a specialty in geriatric wound care and then she will be making a whole lot more money than I do. That's what I see in store for your Mom. It certainly would be nice. She likes Taylor Manor and she loves the people and the people love her and I think that's worth a whole lot plus it's right here in Versailles.
      Well, I am going to close out this post. Daddy loves Rebecca and the yet to be named unborn child living in Mommy's tummy!

Dear Rebecca & Unborn Sibling
            It seems your dad is convinced that I have quit blogging all together. Maybe he thinks that because I am home now I have a buttload of time on my hands, but that is not the case. I've actually been busier than ever trying to get the house in order and taking care of you and your new puppy, Wal-Mart. It seems puppies are harder to take care of than babies. Of course I knew that, but I also knew that you desperately wanted a puppy. So I got you one. That is what I do, because I am a sucker. You've even told me, "I love you, sucker". You are such a funny little girl sometimes.
            I woke up a few minutes ago wanting to post a blog just to tell you that I am just as excited about going to see the Doodlebops as you are, I think. If for no other reason than I cannot wait to see your reaction. I know you will have a good time but I am excited about what the day holds in store.
            Daddy spelled Desaray wrong. Actually, Aunt Mary spelled Desaray wrong, as you can well see. I tried to convince her otherwise but she's letting David's mother do the spelling and well, that's what she came up with. I would not spell it that way but it is not my baby but there you have it. Desaray was born too early so she is having a hard time breathing due to the fact that her lungs are not fully developed. She is a big baby but she is immature in other ways, as in her lungs, blood glucose levels and blood pressures. They said that such things were not uncommon for diabetic mothers, but I was diabetic with you and you didn't have any of those problems. Aunt Mary was not exactly particular about taking care of herself when she was pregnant with Desaray and now I believe that she regrets it. I cried like a baby when I saw how hard it was for Desaray to breathe, her tiny body was struggling to catch air so fast. I thank my lucky stars that I was particular about taking care of myself with you and that I will be as particular about taking care of myself with this baby as well. I love you dearly I want you to know and I am hoping you have a fantastic time at the concert today. I should get some more rest so that we can all feel good for the concert in the morning.
         Mommy loves Rebecca and her unborn sibling!

Dear Becca,
            I keep losing my internet connection so I don't know when I will actually get this blog entry posted to the internet. I've been having a heck of a time with my connection the past week or so. I hope it's adelphia's problem and not mine. I really don't care to get into any big project rtying to troubleshoot and repair my internet connection. Anyway, for future reference it's six after midnight on April Fool's Day.
      It's been another busy week this week. Early in the week things were pretty normal except you had just a touch of diarrhea. Late Tuesday night your diarrhea got extremely bad and your little tail became incredibly raw. We decided that your Mom would take you to the pediatrician's office. Wednesday morning at two in the morning your Mom frantically woke me out of a sound sleep and said that you had to go to the emergency room. You came into the bedroom right after she did; you were crying and said that you were hurting and needed to go to the hospital so we went to the hospital. We really didn't find out anything at the emergency room. I called in to work Wednesday and slept while your Mom took you to your pediatrician. They ran a whole bunch of tests and gave us a bunch of instructions that were diametrically opposed to what was told to us at the emergency room. You are getting better now that we have some medicine for you.
      Aunt Mary came to Lexington Thursday and they decided to keep her here and deliver her baby this coming Wednesday. Her blood pressure was dangerously high and the baby was huge for the current stage of gestation. Your silly crazy Aunt Mary simply did not want to stay in Lexington. She wanted to go back to Hazard. Her boyfriend, David pleaded with her to stay in Lexington so his baby would be okay but for some unimaginable reason she wanted to go back to her backwater hole in the wall. All of her doctors pleaded with her to stay, your Mom called Aunt Mary and tried to reason with her and then I called her and told her that she was just being flat stupid and selfish regarding her tiny baby. She told me that what I said to to her in concert with David's concerns convinced her to stay. She immediately regretted her decision even though it was the only responsible decision she could have made.
      It turns out that she did indeed make the correct decision because at about five in the morning yesterday morning, Saturday she delivered her 8 pound 8 ounce daughter, Desiray Paige Melton via c-section. Your Mom rushed to be by her side because she was petrified. Mom stayed with her through it all. Desiray is a little early so she is still in the NICU. Your Mom has seen her a few times but you and I haven't laid our eyes on her at all as of yet. Your Mom might tell you more about it later when and if she ever puts up another blog post.
      We are going to see the Doodlebops in Louisville later today so I had better start thinking about going to bed. It's now 12:43 in the morning. Daddy loves Rebecca and his currently unborn son or daughter!

Dear Becca,
               Boy, did we ever spend too much money yesterday. Most of it was on necessary stuff but some of it was stuff we, or rather you and I wanted. I reckon that those kind of days will be over now that your Mom no longer works. Oh, by the way, your Mom no longer works at Taylor Manor. She gave her two weeks notice last week but they told her if she wanted to quit earlier on account of Papaw Lawrence being sick and Aunt Mary about to deliver her new baby, Desirée or Desirae; I really don't know which spelling Aunt Mary and David have decided on.
      Your Mom and you went grocery shopping yesterday morning while I slept. When y'all got home shortly after noon we left for Lexington. We stopped for gasoline and headed to Golden Corral where we had a really nice lunch. We then went to a cheap furniture place called American Freight because they had a twin mattress set for $78. When we got there and looked at it we were shocked at just how wafer thin the set was. We decided to go ahead and buy it and get you a better one later on down the road but they didn't have it in stock and couldn't get it until Thursday. We decided to look elsewhere. I'm glad we decided not to get it because we hated it. We then went to a place called Factory Direct Mattresses and we ended up purchasing a $200 set for you there and it was in stock. We are much happier with this mattress set. We loaded it on the trailer and noticed we wouldn't have room on it for your new bedroom suite.
      We decided to go to see the ducks and fish at Lexington Green, which was one of the things we had really been planning on for that day. You had an absolute ball. I was holding you up and you were throwing food into the water for the ducks and the fish and you looked at me with the biggest smile on your face and told me that you thought this was fun. You had been looking forward to this all day long and I am glad the experience met with your liking. We took you there a long time ago when you were just barely beginning to talk. You enjoyed it then but you had an even bigger time this time. After the ducks we went inside Joseph-Beth Booksellers and you played on a wooden train table they had set up in the children's area. You do love trains fro some unknown reason.
      We then stopped and got something to drink and then headed back home to unload the mattresses and let your puppy, Wal-Mart out to use the bathroom. We were back on the road within twenty minutes. We drove to Value City Furniture where we were supposed to pick up your new bedroom suite. We passed Toys "R" Us and you started talking about how there was toys in there and you could play with them and have fun. We told you that there was toys at Wal-Mart as well and that was where we were going after we picked up the bedroom suite. We pulled around to the loading dock and rang the bell but no one came. You and your Mom went around front and spoke with someone inside the store. It turns out that contrary to what we had been told twice earlier they did not have your bedroom suite and anyway pick-up ends at six on Saturday and it was 6:15 at that time. Your Mom was fit to be tied. She is pregnant and hormonal so she probably got justifiably snitty with them. They agreed to deliver it Wednesday and set it up free of charge and credit our checking account for the price of the rails we had purchased for your bed, $42.
      While your Mom went back into the store to finalize that deal you and I went to Toys "R" Us. You had an absolute ball in there. You saw a dollhouse and you said that you had a dollhouse. I noticed that the dollhouse you had sat next to the one you were looking at so I told you that there was your dollhouse. You informed me that it was not your dollhouse. Your dollhouse was the next one down. The one I had pointed out had an African-American family and you knew that your family was white. I didn't even notice that. You have a quick little mind. You looked at dolls, toy pianos, play kitchens, balls, electric cars, tricycles, a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse play set, toy dinosaurs, a rolling corn popper and a lot of other stuff. We decided to purchase a bubble mower for you because you do so love bubbles. We probably shouldn't have because you are already spoiled rotten. We also bought a pair of pink, purple and white tie-dyed croc type shoes for you. On the way to Wal-Mart out of the blue you said that you loved me because I bought you a bubble mower. My heart just melted. Lately you have taken to saying that Mommy is a woman, you are a little girl and I am a king. When we tuck you in at night we tell you a fairy tail with you as the star princess and if you are a princess that makes me a king. Your Mom says you will always think of me as a king; I hope she is right.
      We got to Wal-Mart and you went with Mom to pick out your comforter set for your new bed and I went off on my own. I needed a few items. I bought a new razor, a new beard trimmer because you destroyed my old beard trimmer, some razor cartridge refills, some allergy medicine, a new set of needle nose pliers, an electric meter so that next time your Papaw says he needs a meter to diagnose an electrical problem I'll have one, some spare tail lights for the Explorer, some treats for Wal-Mart and something I just wanted, a computer magazine about the new Windows operating system, Windows Vista that came on this laptop. You got your comforter set, a set of sheets, a new pair of earrings with safety backs and three new summer outfits.
      We went through the drive-thru at Popeye's Chicken because your Mom's sugar was low. Then we came home. We took the dog out again and set your bed up in your bedroom. I know you don't have your bedroom suite but we had promised you that you could sleep in your new bed last night so we sat up your mattress set on the floor. You snuggled right into your new bed and went straight to sleep.
      We all had a really great day today. You and I enjoyed having your Mom home with us on a Saturday for a change. Well, I'm gonna close out this post. And as always Daddy loves Rebecca and the yet to be named unborn child living in Mommy's tummy!

Dear Becca,
            It's been one heck of a week. As you know from your Mom's previous post your Papaw Lawrence is very sick. There for a while we all thought he wouldn't make it; he is still in very serious condition but he is doing much better. Your Papaw Lawrence has proven to be an extremely resilient man. He was nearly sliced in two as a young man when he jumped into a swimming hole and ran into a car hood that was below the water, he was shot six times almost twenty years ago, the resulting damage has nearly killed him numerous times and he has had lots of other problems that would have killed any normal man. I just think he is too ornery to kick the proverbial bucket. Anyway, as I said before, he is doing better but he remains in very grave danger.
      All of this drama began Monday afternoon when your Aunt Mary called your Mom with the news. Mom was extremely upset and wanted to rush down there to be by his side but she was afraid to make the drive by herself because it was raining throughout the state. She asked me to drive her down there. I came home and went to your Mom's work and picked her up. We packed some items for her and a few things for you because you would be spending the night with Mamaw & Papaw. I had to put air in a low tire, we got some burgers to go from McDonalds and then we hit the road. We got on the interstate around six o'clock. I must have flew down there because we arrived at Coal Ridge Road, where your Aunt Mary lives, a little after 7:30. I stayed and talked to Aunt Mary and your Mom until about 8:20 and then I headed back to Versailles so I could go to work on Tuesday. It took much longer to get back than it did to get down there because it was raining much harder and the mountain roads are pretty tricky after dark. I got home around 10:40; took a shower and got in bed by 10:55. My normal bedtime is between 9:30 and 10:00 so I knew I was going to be in trouble the next day.
      Surprisingly enough I felt really good all day at work Tuesday. I wasn't sleepy at all. I have no idea what that was all about. After work I went down to Mamaw & Papaw's where you were having a flat out ball. We decided that you would spend the night down there again Tuesday night because if you went home with me you would have had to go into daycare early the next morning. I stayed with you all afternoon long. We had beef stew that Mamaw made and then you followed the boys, Jon and Jake down the hill and you attempted to play basketball with them. They are not nearly as good at sharing as you are right now so you ended up getting frustrated and crying. I came down the hill and put you on their trampoline. You had an ever loving ball. You hopped and ran all over that trampoline. When it was finally time for you to head back up the hill to get your bath you threw a fit. I eventually got you back up the hill and I ended up giving you a bath in Mamaw & Papaw's tub. I dried you up and got you ready for bed and then we watched a cartoon on television and then Mamaw, Papaw and I took you into your very own bedroom at Mamaw & Papaw's and put you to bed. Mom called from Hazard and sang you a lullaby over the phone. BY this time it was way past your regular bedtime but you always stay up later when you are down there. That's what visiting with your grandparents is all about I reckon. As soon as I left you hopped right out of bed and snuck down the hall. Papaw saw you peering around the corner and he told you to come to him so you climbed up in his lap and watched a good piece of the Andy Griffith Show until it finally dawned on you that what you were watching wasn't a cartoon so you made him change the channel. I got home and wasn't tired at all so I ended up staying up until a little after 11:00. I knew for a fact that tomorrow was going to be a bear because I had to go back to Hazard to get your Mom.
      I woke up the next morning and climbed into the Explorer and headed to work. While I was driving your Mom called and asked me to blow off work and to come and get her right away. I told her I would leave work at lunch and go get her then. The day wasn't nearly as hard as I had imagined because I knew that I would be leaving at lunch. Eventually my lunch hour came and went and the still hadn't sent anyone to let me go home. I was getting kind of antsy by now. Eventually someone did come to relieve me twenty minutes after they should have. I was thinking of the miles I could have covered on the interstate in twenty minutes but finally I was on my way. It was smooth sailing from here on out, or so I thought. I stopped at Sonic and bought some lunch and headed across Lexington. As I was about to get onto the interstate I heard a funny noise coming from the tire that had been low the other day. I started to pull into a Shell station to check it when it blew out. I limped onto a side road next to the station and noticed that the tire was way beyond salvaging. I climbed out of the truck and went to get my jack and stuff. I had never changed the tire on the Explorer before so I had to read the directions about how to get the spare free. I eventually figured it out and got ready to change the tire. I laid down to put the jack under the truck and quickly noticed I was laying in a mud puddle. I found an old towel in the back of the truck so I laid it over the puddle and it actually worked pretty good. I began jacking up the truck and wouldn't you know it, the jack handle broke. I had to climb under the truck and jack it up using the tire tool. It was extremely slow going. After about thirty minutes of lifting the truck up one millimeter at a time I thought I had the truck high enough to change the tire. I didn't want to jack it up any higher than I absolutely had to. I pulled the shredded tire off and grabbed the spare but it wouldn't go on. It was still too low. I put the old tire back on because I didn't want to crawl under the truck with just the bottle jack protecting me from being crushed by the weight of a falling Explorer. I spent another ten minutes or so jacking up the truck some more and then I got the tire changed and that's when I noticed the spare was half flat as well. I pulled into the Shell station I had been heading for originally and put some air in the tire and finally at around one o'clock I got on the interstate. Mamaw thought it was a bad idea for me to leave work early to go get your Mom but after I had so much trouble changing the tire I am oh so glad that I did.
      I got into Hazard around 2:30 and ended up having to wait for your Mom to get back from the hospital. She eventually arrived at Aunt Mary's, where I was waiting for her and with her she had the cutest little chocolate colored puppy you ever did see. She had finally gotten you your second dog. If you recall, your fist one was killed by our neighbors dogs about three days after we got it. Actually this little puppy was your third dog. Your Mom had gotten you another one this week but it had been stolen out of Aunt Mary's car while she visited with Papaw Lawrence. That's Hazard for you. While she was visiting Papaw Lawrence he woke up a little and saw that your Mom was there for him and that made her feel much better. Your Mom cleaned up the puppy carrier and the puppy because he had pooped all over it and then we started out for home. Your Mom's blood sugar was extremely low as we cam into Jackson so we stopped at Hardees and got us a bite to eat. We finally got down to Mamaw & Papaw's at around 8:00 or so. You were extremely exited to see your puppy. I think your Mom did good with that puppy.
      We got home and you and your Mom took a shower together and you played with your new puppy for a few minutes, watched half an episode of Max & Ruby then we put you to bed. Your Mom & I watched a half hour show, I took a shower and we got in bed ourselves. It was still well after ten o'clock that we settled in for the night.
      I was really feeling the strain of running back and forth to Hazard all week and staying up well past my bedtime for three nights in a row that next morning. I went to work and trudged through it. While I was there your Mom called with the news that Aunt Mary, who had scheduled an appointment for some tests to be run at the UK Medical Center regarding her pregnancy, might deliver that Thursday night or early Friday morning in Lexington. I was kind of excited for some reason. I have no idea why. Later that night we found out that they were going to send Aunt Mary back to Hazard. I think she may have insisted that she go back to Hazard. That little backwards podunk town has some strange draw for her. Your Mom had originally intended to go down to Hazard when she did deliver but since she has been away from us so much this week I think she has decided against that. Your Aunt Mary has gestational diabetes like your Mom had with you and now has again with your unborn sibling. Your Mom was a carb nazi when she was pregnant with you and she is again now that she is pregnant again. She's the only person I know that can lose weight while they are pregnant. Anyway, I don't think Aunt Mary is taking her gestational diabetes as seriously as your Mom takes hers. When we were down there a few weeks ago she was drinking the sweet tea and sugary sodas like they were going out of style, and eating tons of bread on top of all of it. She told us that she quit taking her insulin because it took the skin of of her tongue. Your Mom thinks she is full of crap. Aunt Mary is only thirty-four weeks but is measuring at forty-two and I would have to assume that it's because she has not taken care of her diabetes. Your poor Aunt Mary is as wide as she is tall these days.
      I came home from work Thursday and sat in my chair and relaxed while your Mom fixed us all some spaghetti for supper. I at two plates full and had a big tiff with you because you are truly into your terrible twos finally. You like telling us "NO" and we don't like hearing it so you have bumped heads with your Mom and me a time or two lately. Anyway, I sat down for a few minutes after supper and checked my E-mail and surfed around a little on the internet and then went to bed at eight o'clock. Finally I got a good nights rest.
      I must have been wiped out by the week because I was still worn out all day at work on Friday. While I was trying not to fall asleep at work your Mom was busy taking care of choirs that needed to be done. She paid the taxes on the Explorer, bought a new tire for the Explorer, got the oil changed in the Explorer and shopped for a mattress for you. She had a very busy day. At the oil place they told her our brake lights weren't working. When Papaw & I got home from work he helped me fix the problem and as always when I say he helped me what I really mean is he did it while I stood back in total awe. It seems that when I my tire blew out my brake lights became loosened on one side and broken on the other. He figured all of this out without a meter and he said he couldn't do it without a meter but he did anyway.
      Later Friday evening we met Mamaw & Papaw at Sonny's Bar-B-Q and enjoyed a nice supper with them. Your Papaw really liked the ribs and you really liked the corn on the cob. Your Mom said you ate so much your belly was poking out. Of course my belly is always poking out and now so is your Mom's but she has a baby in her's I have no excuse. After supper we went and got you an ice cream. We came home and I took your puppy, that we ended up naming Wal-Mart out for potty break while you got ready for bed. It was super late for you. You fell asleep in the car on the way home. Mom got you ready for bed and Wal-Mart, your Mom and I tucked you in for the night.
      It's been a rough week but now it's over. I think Papaw Lawrence will be okay and Aunt Mary is still pregnant. You got a puppy who you love dearly and I think he feels the same way about you. You tell everyone you see about your new puppy every time you see them. I hope this dog has a very long and happy life with you. I hope he's still around when you go off to college.
      Well, I've stayed up way too late and if your Mom was to wake up I would get yelled at so I had better close out this post. Daddy loves Rebecca and the yet to be named unborn child living in Mommy's tummy!

Dear Rebecca,
            Hello my little sweetie pie. Right now I am down in Hazard Kentucky without you and without Daddy. It's breaking my heart to be away from the two of you but right now Papaw Lawrence is not doing so well. Hopefully he will be alright, but it really doesn't look all that good. I hope you remember Papaw Lawrence. He sure thought the world of you; after all, you were his first granddaughter.
      I have seen a lot of my family since I've been down here, some I haven't seen in several years. I saw my Uncle Freddy and My Aunt Shirley, My nephew Bobby and his new wife. These are probably people you will never see. But it was nice to see them. Gosh Bobby has grown right up. I remember when he was little bitty. He's real cute now, and he used to be sort of an Ugly Duckling. Unlike you, who have been beautiful since the day you were born.
      Right now you are sleeping down at Mamaw's. She's taking care of you for me while I am down here. I miss you something fierce, bit I know you are having a fantastic time. You really have a wonderful time when you are down there. You love Mamaw and Papaw better than a little hoggie loves slop. I am getting really sleepy and I am looking forward to seeing you tomorrow and I want to be really well rested. I think I am going to go and lay down and try to get some sleep. I love you Rebecca!