flashback Friday

My dad and I on my 24th birthday. Whoa I was blonde!!

flashback Friday

Photo was taken by yearbook staff my junior year. I look 12 in this photo and I'm totally rockin a perm.

Obviously I was a dedicated student....

Class = Geometry, and I passed with an "A" - thank you very much.....
Why was I sleeping???? Who knows, wasn't really a regular thing I did in school, so it really surprised me when they snapped this one of me.... maybe it was that I finished my test (and aced it, HA) before everyone else and I was just 'resting my eyes', had to have been the case {if you're reading this dad}. >wink wink<

Post a flashback over at Courtneys Blog!! Check out the others!!

flashback Friday

Today I share a treasure.... while on our honeymoon we stumbled upon this Pfizer nascar.... it was funny.... honeymoon and viagra car..... ok - so it's funny to me.

flashback Friday

Here's my flashback....Go over to Courtney's blog to see other flashbacks!

The first picture is of my mom, dad, brothers, and my maternal grandparents (both of whom passed away long ago).... I'm not in the picture because I'm still growing!! That happens to be the ONLY photo I have of my mom pregnant w/ me!! For a long time, my parents joked with me that I was adopted, and because I never had photo proof... I actually believed them from time to time. HA.

The rest of the photos are of me and my brothers, evolving. Now one is missing, forever. My parents made it a point to have us stand together for lots of occasions. These are just a few of the photos I have. I now see why that was so important to them, and I do the same with our children. These memories are a treasure, I do remember taking each photo... well, minus the one that I'm not in of course.

“Memories are the treasures that we keep locked deep within the storehouse of our souls, to keep our hearts warm when we are lonely.” ~Becky Aligada

Day 14 - I'm thankful for photographs.

flashback Friday

Ok, so after looking at the boys pumpkin carving photos - I couldn't help but want to post this flashback Friday entry... I know I posted a Halloween one already, but I couldn't resist! I LOVED carving pumpkins with my dad. Mom gutted the pumpkin, dad carved it with our help (until my older brothers were too "cool" to carve pumpkins). I called my mom this year during our pumpkin carving to remind her that I still think that pumpkin guts are sticky and slimy and smell really bad.

Those were good times.

To this day, my dad totes around toothpicks.... note the toothpick in his mouth while carving. If you ask him - it helps him concentrate ;).

Halloween Flashback

I read an amazing story over on Courtney's blog. She typically does flashback Fridays and I follow with a Mr. Linky post to her blog.... This week she didn't do flashback Friday. Her post is worth the read, and shed a different light on my getting to know her through blog world. Absolutely wonderful of her to share such an amazing story from her life.

I couldn't resist this Halloween version of Flashback Friday though.... I was 3 years old in the picture below. My smallest guy is almost 3. I thought it'd be fun to post a photo of us both from our 3 year old Halloween. My sis-in-law always says that he favors me so much, I thought it'd be fun to post a photo to show what I looked like at 3!

Above - Me, 3 years old.

Our little Yoda

flashback Friday

These two photos were taken less then 1 week before I married my husband. As strange as it may be, I believe that the single photo posted of Heather on her flashback from a few weeks ago may have been taken on the same day as these of the kids.

This is our big E (the only boy in the photo) and his cousins Hannah and Tara!! Wow those kids were a blast to get in a room together, laughing, having fun and loving life. This was so fun, making a bean bag oreo sandwich with them over and over.

My goodness how they're all growing so fast. We miss them dearly.

flashback Friday

Summer of 1999 or 2000 (dad, maybe you remember - I'm stuck on those two years) ...

I hadn't met my husband yet, and had no idea what a wonderful future with a family and kids I had in store for me. I was clueless about what my life would be like, how having kids can change your view of the world, and how much I'd grow as a person because of it. Not to mention, I was much skinnier.

My dad hadn't had quadruple bypass surgery yet, and the meal we had that day probably drove him closer toward needing it... he broke out the deep fryer on this particular day. This was the ONLY occasion in my entire lifetime that I saw my dad wearing shorts... not to mention a TEE SHIRT (GASP). Anyone who knows my dad - is probably in shock from that picture alone.

My grandma was her usual charming, beautiful, and straight to the point - direct self. (wonder where I get that trait??) We had a great meal and lots of laughs with dad and Susan, out on their newly closed in sun porch ....

flashback Friday

Amy(right) and I(left) on the way to the beach when I was 9 years old. This would be the last trip we'd take together, I moved away with my family shortly after that vacation. The trip was for my birthday and a sortof 'going away' girls gathering. Amy and I were very close, best friends from childhood, we were literally joined at the hip whenever we could be. After moving away, we wrote, and even called one another for a while. Time pushed forward, and so did our lives... we lost touch.

How bitter sweet it has been to be reconnected with her. We hadn't talked in years, or even seen pictures of each other. She contacted me through the online obit right after the news of my brother's death, and we've been in touch regularly since. It's funny that we both have blogs, and all this time has passed by, yet there's so many little things that are similar about our lives. The irony is that she and I both married Jonathon's, and we both have 2 boys!! Even more interesting is that the Jonathon she married was also a childhood friend, and now I have the pleasure of keeping up with the both of them, as well as getting a few random updates about other elementary school buddies!!

Ahhh - flashback Friday has brought me some smiles from the yesteryears...