Catching Up!

Hey Everyone!

I am so excited about starting this blog. I am so bad about keeping up with everyone, so maybe this will help. I'm not promising frequent writing, but my goal will be once a week (hope I can reach it). :)

Everyone is doing great, we just stay busy with life. You know how that is.

Danny is still working at the plant and cutting grass on the side. I went back to LSU and finished my Education degree and this will be my second year teaching 3rd grade at Parkview Baptist School and I love it. Danny and I will be married 26 years August 7th. Wow, how time flies when your having fun. It seems like yesterday when we were cruising around town in the black mustang.

Katie Ree is 23 now and will graduate from LSU in December. Her major is Criminal Justice. Her next step will be law school. We're hoping that Louisiana Colleges Law School will open soon because that's really where she wants to go. We'll see.

She is still riding her horses. Last year, in her final year on LSU's Equestrian Team, she qualified for nationals in Mass. It was an awesome experience. She still has Ruff, her show horse, but she has recently had to retire him because he was diagnosed with Cushing's disease. The vet said eventually we would have to put him down, but hopefully that is a long way off. For now he is a happy, lazy, pasture horse. Then there is Scat. Scat is a thoroughbred off of the track (like Ruff) that Katie is training and then she will sell him. He is doing so good. Katie's trainer really likes him. Since she retired Ruff, she thought about keeping Scat, but he is such a good mover that he will be a hunter and Katie wants a jumper. It will be tough to let go of him. If you know Katie, she gets attached quickly. Both Ruff and Scat are with Katie's trainer in Folsom, LA.

Chad is now 20. He has been going to Baton Rouge Community College (BRCC) but he wants to make a change. We are looking into golf schools for him. He's still at home (as is Katie). Golfs everyday possible and when not on the golf course he's watching sports on T.V. When LSU baseball made it to the SEC Championship game, I decided last minute to go and Katie, Ryan (Katie's boyfriend) and Chad went with me to Hoover, Alabama. Anyway, we went to Hoover High School (featured in reality tv show - "Two A Days") and walked around. We were able to go onto the football field which was unreal. If you didn't know better, you'd think you were on a University campus. I think Chad enjoyed Hoover High School more than the SEC Championship game (go figure).

Brandt is 18. We don't have anymore minors in our house (yes we are getting old - God's little reality checks). He will be a senior this year at Parkview Baptist. We moved him to PBS to play baseball, but found out that Brandt has 3 bulging disk in his back. The neurologist told him golf would be better for his back, so he gave up baseball. Looking back, we knew that the Lord wanted Brandt at PBS, but we got the baseball part wrong. Since he is now only focusing on golf, his game has improved. He has been a scratch golfer (shoots par more than not), but now he is bringing in scores under par. He alternated as #1 & #2 man on the PBS golf team, they won quiet a few tournaments during the year, they won metro, regionals, and are State Champions for 3A golf in Louisiana. He also was named All-Metro in golf. He joined the Arrowhead Jr. Golf Tour and won the first tournament he played in and this Friday, July 11th, he leaves to play golf, representing Louisiana, in Australia. The will come back through Hawaii and play for fun. He is so pumped about this trip. I'll post pictures when he returns. He doesn't know where he will go to college yet because he wants to play golf, so it will be determined by who picks him up. I do know he wants to stay in Louisiana if possible. I'll keep you posted.

For those that don't know, my mother, Mary French, passed away on January 14, 2008 from non-smokers lung cancer. She left us much sooner than we expected, but we were so blessed that she did not suffer. I'll write a little later and tell you of her last days with us. It is incredible what she saw and was able to tell us about, just days before Jesus called her home. Our lives are so different without her and we miss her soooooooo much, but we know we will see her again.

Hopefully this catches you up with our lives. Busy, busy, busy, but Danny and I tell each other all of the time "we're gonna miss this one day", so we are trying to savor each minute. Please write, I would love to hear from you and your family. Like I said earlier, I am terrible about keeping up with everyone. This way I can write at all hours of the night and not bother anyone. Hope to hear from you soon.

Love ya!

Carol