Happy Birthday Tracey

Meet my niece Tracey, who is 22 years old today. I can't believe she is this old already. What does that make me?? I sweated it out in the delivery room while my sister went through the process of bringing her into the world. She was the first baby I had ever seen born and that included my own two kids who I slept through each of their deliveries.
I was one of the first people ever to hold this bundle of joy, all pink and squishy and a wee bit slippery.
Well, she is one precious girl, grown up into a warm, kind and loving woman and I am very proud of her.
So Happy Birthday Tracey, hope you have a wonderful day with your mister, and many more happy wonderful years.
Your Aunty loves you lots.

Happy Birthday Lora!!!

Meet my firstborn!! Her name is Lora and I can hardly believe that today she is her 33rd birthday. I don't know if she would like me telling her age but oh well.
It sure does not seem that long ago that she entered the world. I was just barely past 20 years old, hardly grown up myself having a baby. I didn't have a clue how to care for babies and from day 1 Lora has taught me by trial by fire. I remember being wheeled up to the neonatal nursery to see her for the first time and taking one look at her and thinking, she can't be mine - she is too beautiful!!! And she still is gorgeous and I don't think I am a biased mom saying that. Lora has always been a 0 to 90 mile in one second child. There was never any negotiating with her. She took it to the limits every time. I often thought if she could just make it to about 20 years old she would live for the rest of her life.
And she did. Today she is 33 and she has turned into a wonderful young lady.
So Lora, I wish you a wonderful day and a very Happy Birthday. You are my girl. I love you very much.

Happy Birthday to my little bro!!!

Happy Birthday to my little brother Brian!! I can't believe this is the only picture I have of him and I had to steal it off his Facebook page. What is with that?? Next time he shows up here I am going to be taking some pictures whether he likes it or not. Brian turns the big 50 today. Its a milestone birthday for him and he and my other brother are going out for Chinese food tonight at thier favorite Victoria chinese restaurant. I sure wish I could be there.
Brian is a wonderful chef. He is a good cook as they say. He makes it look so easy too.
I guess he could cook his birthday dinner but why should he? Its nice to go out.
I'll phone him later and sing very off key in his one good ear the words of the Happy Birthday song and ask him if he remembers how old he is now!! Just to tease him!! That is what sisters do.

Happy Birthday Mark!!

Meet my miracle brother Mark. Nov. 25 he turns 52 years old and that is a big miracle. Two summers ago he suffered a sudden Cardiac Failure and is estimated to have been dead for 17 minutes. He spent five days on life support in Intensive Care before coming out of his coma. Today he has a pacemaker to keep his heart regular and he enjoys his life to the fullest. Lots about Mark is special. 52 years ago at his birth the whole thing happened way too fast and as a result he did not get enough oxygen and suffered brain damage. He acquired Epilepsy as well from that but has not let it stop him. He would be the first to be up front about his handicap and tell you he isn't as smart as everyone else or he can't do the things other people can do. At times he has been down about that, maybe a little jealous is the better word.

I sure don't see his handicap. He has qualities about him I can only hope to aspire to. What he lacks in some certain abilities he has trained himself in others. No one I know knows more about the state of the world than he does. He listens to the news every day and follows stories and could tell you a thing or two!!

He has never been able to read, can only print letters and numbers, but he does not believe it is something he is not able to do, just something that he has not found the right teacher for. He has actively sought the right program, the right teacher, the right class that could unlock the key to him being able to learn reading. He has done that for the better part of the past 40 years. Now I do not posess that kind of perserverance. I do not possess that kind of patience and determination. I don't possess that kind of faith. He is a genius when it comes to this. And I am totally and completely handicapped. I would of given up a long time ago but he just keeps on trucking. I so admire this in my miracle brother.

My brother I am sure knows just about everyone in his home city. I travelled the buses with him and the sheer number of people he knows and greets is amazing. Everyone knows Mark. He touches everyone in very special ways.

So to my miracle brother, I want to wish a very Happy Birthday. I want to wish him many more to come. He deserves the best.

Happy Birthday Eric!!

Meet my son, Eric. Today is his birthday and he turns 31. I'm sure he won't like me telling you his age. He is my youngest of my two children.

Right now and for the past couple of years he is living in Alberta and working for the Oil Fields. He does a lot of work out of town and comes back to his apt. on his days off, few and far between.

So hard to believe my baby is this old. How old does that make me!! I can still look at him here in this picture and see the stages of his life in a flash from birth to now. The baby with a bunch of dark hair that stuck straight up, and who could make the funniest faces around. He cracked us up. His first day of school, kindergarden standing by the school in his blue hoodie with his bag of peaches for snack. I had such a hard time letting him walk to school by himself. I just did not want to let go too soon. I still stuggle with that now.

I see him next to me at the hospital when my mother and father died. He stayed by my side, my shadow. It was very hard for him to lose his grandparents and he knew how hard it was on me. His graduation day sitting in the Fire Truck coming to the ceremonies. How handsome and how proud was I.

I can't even begin to tell you how much I miss my boy. My young man. I can mark the day when I last saw him, and he may not know it but I think of him every day, wonder where he is and is he safe and mostly is he happy. All I have ever wanted for him was to be happy. To be content, to have a full and wonderful life.

Happy Birthday Eric. I love you more than you know and I miss you more than I could ever say. Take care, stay safe.