We are having a great time on Hilton Head Island. Grace did really well on the drive down and we are hoping for the same on the trip home! It is very hot and humid, but not too bad on the beach.

Tara is still tired and has a sore throat, but feeling better. She can now be around Grace without worry. HOpefully this will take care of her thyroid woes.

We received good news about Mark. He is now off of the ventilator and has been moved to a stepdown room. He is eating a little bit and it is so wonderful that they are now talking recovery!! He has a long way to go, but we are just thankful that he is still alive.

Love being with our girls...enjoying every moment...

A lot has happened since my last post. I had fun teaching CPR, we saw "Jersey Boys" and really enjoyed it, I was sick with some weird virus, we had a delightful dinner with the Roshongs, Rachel (my fourth daughter) came to visit from DC, we had some of our ceilings painted and now the kitchen, had lunch with 2 of my favorite ladies from church, had Carli's class over for a day of lake enjoyment, did a day of online inservice that was a big waste of our time, had another wedding today...congratulations to Joanne and Andrew!

Now...the serious part...my nephew Mark is in critical condition at Riverside Methodist in Columbus. He started with pancreatitis, which is bad enough, and then his spleen ruptured. At first they only gave him a 20% chance of making it. They left his abdomen open d/t swelling, and he has lots of tubes and is on the vent. They went back and looked in his abdomen yesterday and also gave him a trach. Today Gilda said that he was trying to mouth words...this is the first that he has been awake in almost a week. He has now been in the hospital almost 2 weeks. Please pray that he can make a full recovery. He has a 12 year old daughter...

And, if that wasn't enough, Tara is going to have her thyroid treatment on Tuesday. Thankfully she can do the radioactive iodine and not have to go through surgery. She will get the iodine and then she can't be around anyone for at least 5 days. Which means we get Grace next week! Some folks get sick after they get the iodine, but I am hoping that Tara doesn't. She also can't work, so will be at home hopefully getting some things done that she really wants to do. She can't have anyone go with her to the treatment because they can't be in the car with her...all of these things that I never thought of. I just hope that this takes care of everything once and for all. She has been not feeling well and dealing with this for months. Very hard for her being a single mom. (their divorce was final the beginning of the month).

Good news for Kelsie! She came home from camp in one piece. AND....she got a job!! She interviewed for a new position at CAMO...a marketing job...just what she wanted! She will be on a trial basis at first, but hopefully will be able to help them with their marketing and fund raising. We are so excited for her! She will live at home for the time being...so no empty nest for us :) It is really good to have her back as we haven't seen much of her in the past 2 years.

And...looks like Carli and Jeremy might be moving into an apartment here at the lake. It would save them on rent and it is larger and has room for Molly to run. Can't believe that we might have 2 of the girls so close. Will be nice for Jeremy to be here when Carli does her clinical rotation in Houston next winter. They still go to Salem and he plays in the band. That will save them some extra gas money, too.

We also get to go to Hilton Head the first week in March. All 3 girls plus Ted and Grace :) Jeremy doesn't get any vacation yet, but might join us the end of the week. Doesn't get any better than that...

Then, I start back to work. I am not ready for school to start again as the fall is terrible. But, I love what I do, and I have a great job sharing partner...so I just have to suck it up and get over it!!

Please pray for Mark and for Tara in the coming week....

OK, so I've been admonished by my youngest for not keeping up to date on this blog. Time just flies by too quickly!

Kelsie is at Camp Friedenswald and enjoying "The Peaceful Woods". She will need a well deserved rest when she gets home the end of the month! Carli is still in school and studying hard...sometimes by the pool, but still studying! Tara is working hard not only at work but in trying to keep up with a 14 month old!!

Ted and I traveled to Spain for 2 weeks in June. Wonderful trip. I didn't really know much about Spain and therefore did not have any expectations. I liked it more that I thought that I would. It was friendly, clean, beautiful...and of course, we had to bring a flamenco dress home for Grace! Too bad she wouldn't hold the fan and the castanets for the photo!! We went with good friends, Mark and Jackie, and had an enjoyable time.

Then this past weekend we "flew" (not really, we drove) to Baltimore for Everett deVries' wedding. What fun to see that family again and see Everett actually get married! It is so funny to see kids that are still young in my mind's eye do grown-up things.

Can't believe that the summer is flying by so quickly. Before you know it, school will be starting. I can't even think about that now...there is too much to do in the meantime!!

Another checkup...

Carli had another checkup today with Dr. Stallings and it was OK!!!! So thankful that she passed another 6 month milestone!!! She is feeling good and still enjoying PT school. Jeremy also likes his job--things are looking up for the Brauns!

Grace is also feeling better after an URI, ear infection and Roseola. Poor kid. Tara works all of Memorial Day weekend, so Grace will be with Todd. Boo.

Kelsie comes home Friday afternoon and leaves for camp on Monday morning. Will be nice to have her home, albeit a very short time. But...she will be completely done with undergrad! yea!!

Kelsie's Graduation

Congratulations, Kelsie!!!!!!!!

Only 2 more weeks and you'll be "official"!! Then she's off to Camp Friedenswald for a summer of fun but hard work. No breaks in the work week until Sunday...then you start all over again on Monday!

I wish that she could be home a few days before she leaves, but I guess that I'll have to be satisfied with 1 or 2 days.

Great friends, Parent's Weekend and more...

Again, I want to say that I have the best friends in the world!

My "girls" from OWU days got together a few weekends ago, and, unbeknownst to me, planned an afternoon of helping Tara. I thought that we were going to go shopping or some other girlie thing....when, in reality, we were going to do service. The big surprise was getting to do this with a college friend that I hadn't seen since graduation some 30+ years ago. What a blessing! We cleaned and reorganized Tara's house while she was at work. With Jane's expert eye, her living room and dining room look like a new place! And Laurie, Cindy and Linda cleaned and reorganized the kitchen, porch and dining room. It is nice for Tara to feel a little like she is starting over. It looks great!! I can't thank them enough... Now, if I could only have miracles like that happen in my house :)

We had a great Easter...all three girls were here, including my 2 sisters. Wonderful.

Last weekend was Parent's Weekend at Grove City. The last after 11 years of having daughters there. Kelsie's sorority came in second at the All Campus Sing!! Very exciting...they were so cute!! May 14 she graduates...can't believe that our baby is graduating from COLLEGE!

Yesterday Carli and I went to Columbus--Carli's "vacation" from PT school...spring break. So, we went out to lunch, spent time at Easton and Ten Thousand Villages...and got cheesecake at The Cheesecake Factory (I highly recommend the Red Velvet Cake Cheesecake). Grace was great, and loves having so much attention from her aunt and grandma!

What a week! We spent spring break at Hilton Head Island, SC. The weather was great and we enjoyed eating, shopping, bike riding and the beach. With Grace along, it wasn't terribly relaxing, but we did laugh a lot!

We got home Saturday afternoon, saw "Les Mis" in Cleveland that night, and then it was time on Sunday for the big party! Grace was so cute in her Grace shirt and tutu. She loved the cake (and so did we...thanks to Lynn Hackett..she makes the best cake in the world!). Was nice to have family and friends here to celebrate. 3 of Tara's college friends were here...including Lisa's husband who surprised her with an early return from Afghanistan!

Please keep Tara in your prayers...as I type this she is at an Urgent Care. She is really having problems with her Grave's Disease. She isn't sure that her terrible pain is from the disease, her meds, or something else. Any way you put it she is miserable. I am praying for a solution/treatment.