October 13....A sad day/PLEASE pray for us.

Today has been a sad day in the Hammond home. We had to have our beloved cat, Smokey, put to sleep. I knew that she was old and sick, and to keep her here would only be selfish. I thought I was prepared for this, but I definitely was NOT. I ended up crying all morning.

Having to deal with putting the cat to sleep did give me permission to cry about some other things. I have been so focused on keeping a positive attitude about Tommy’s loss of employment that I have sometimes been unable to cry. I determined in May that I would have a positive attitude, and be a “big girl”. I have “sucked up” the tears so much that I almost couldn’t even cry when I needed to. Tommy has been unemployed since May 1. After applying for well over 300 positions, he STILL has not found a job. I really thought he would be working by now. We were prepared for him to accept a lesser position due to the economy, etc. We just weren’t prepared for it to take this long. Financially, we are doing okay. God is providing, and we continue to count our blessings.

There is something you can do for us if you are reading this:

First, and most importantly, please continue to pray for us.
Second, please let us know if you know of a position that Tommy might be qualified for. He was in production management for over 20 years, but can also work in shipping/receiving, quality control, and several machine shop positions. One of his former supervisors told me once that he really believed that Tommy had a “God-given” talent for management. He has a superior work ethic, and leads by example. He worked in a variety of places in his early employment years including a tire store, hardware store, and 13 years for L&N Railroad (now CSX). He has been employed since he was 12 years old, and thrives on work and handles every task as if it were personally stamped with his name on it. Simply put, he would be an asset to any company he worked for. In his previous job, he was normally the first to arrive, and the last to leave. On weekends he was also on the job, checking on the equipment, or just trying to make things smoother for the week ahead.

We continue to believe that God will take care of us, and will work a miracle in our lives. Will you continue to pray for us?

By the way, if you need a copy of Tommy’s resume, we can e-mail to you in a moment’s notice.

To the birthday girl.....

Happy Birthday Laura (a/k/a LuLu, Lu, Lola, Lucy, Lula Bell, Bucky, Bossy-Butt, Peaches)!

My daughter is 23 TODAY, and I have to say that raising her has been one of the greatest joys of my life. She is the best daughter that I could ever hope for. I'm so proud of her! Who knew how special she would be when she came into this world at 10:16 PM DST in the evening of September 4, 1986.

Laura,
I hope you have a wonderful birthday! I'm so glad you'll be home this weekend. I cannot wait to see you. I love you more than words can even express!

One year ago/Summer recap

One year ago on this date we were pretty busy in the Hammond household. It was the day before Laura's wedding, and we had LOTS to do. Planning the wedding was so much fun. The end result was a beautiful wedding worthy of the wonderful daughter that I raised. I do not regret the money or time that we spent because it was certainly worth it. I cannot believe that she has been married for a whole year AND living away from home. I miss her, but know that living away has given Laura & Michael lots of time to build their relationship without much outside interference.

For all of you young moms who think that your children will be small forever, please take the time to stop and appreciate where you are at this moment, because they will grow up faster than you could ever imagine. You will be sitting in a church surrounded by flowers and family watching them getting married and wonder where all the time went.

When I imagined Laura's wedding there was one thing that continued to plague my thoughts. I could imagine all of the wedding with me smiling and happy, but I kept thinking about how I just did not think I could take it when she walked out of the reception hall....never to be "my little girl" again. It turned out that my sweet grandson Luke had fallen asleep as I was holding him when she left. Yes, I did cry, but having him in my arms was so special at that moment. He was only 8 months old at the time, but he gave me so much comfort. It is a moment that will forever be in my memory.

As I near the end of this STRANGE summer, I must continue to count my blessings. Since Tommy lost his job on May 1, we have spent lots of time together, and we have gotten to do things that we never could have done if he was working. We can always make more money, but we can NEVER manufacture time.

We did get to enjoy some time with Nick, Christy, Luke, Laura, and Michael that would not have been available to us had Tommy been working. We got to go to Holiday World with Nick, Christy, & Luke which was lots of fun. We visited Laura and Michael and went with them up to Lake Michigan on the actual day of my birthday. Laura, with the help of Tommy, Nick, Christy, Deb, Nancy, & Deina, threw me a fantastic 50th birthday party. We got plenty of Luke-time too which we cherish. I think that Papaw (Tommy) has become his favorite. He loves his Nana (me), but he is really into "Papaw" right now!!!! I'm so jealous!

I will go back to work on August 12. Please continue to pray for us, since Tommy has not found a job yet. He REALLY wants to go back to work. He is diligently searching, but there are not a lot of job opportunities available right now in this area. I really do not want to re-locate or anything like that, so PLEASE remember us in your prayers!

Turning 50, etc.

Yes, it's really true. I will be turning 50 in just a few days. I wonder how I got this old when I feel like it was only yesterday that I was graduating from high school, getting married, and having children.

I must say that my life has been truly blessed. I had wonderful Christian parents who taught me all the truly important things in life--that God has the answer no matter what the question. I am blessed with two great children who are Christians, involved in church, and have chosen wonderful Christian spouses. My beautiful 20-month grandson, Luke, has brought so much joy into our lives. It's hard to explain the grandparent thing, but it is as good as everyone always told me.

My sweet daughter, Laura, was in town this weekend because she wanted me to have a party for my birthday----and what a party it was. I was surrounded by family and friends, people that I love who for some reason love me too, even with all my short-comings. Laura, Nick, Christy, Michael, and Tommy did an excellent job planning the party. They enlisted the help of my sister Nancy, Tommy's sisters Deb, and Deina, and the result was wonderful.

Please continue to remember us in your prayers as Tommy continues to search for a job. He is a dedicated worker, and being out of a job is difficult for him. He is the kind of employee that "gives his all" to any job he does, and he thrives on work. He can only cut the grass so much.........he NEEDS to work!!!! The perfect gift for my birthday would be a job for Tommy!!! Seriously, we feel that God has something important for him to do. We ask that you pray for God's guidance in this area of our lives.

My Sister.....

Wow! It's been a while since I've updated. My excuse is that my life is not ALL that exciting, and sometimes I'm just too busy to blog.

Today, though, I have something extremely noteworthy to blog about. My sister, Nancy, is participating in the mini-marathon as we speak. You cannot begin to know how proud I am of her. Last year, she was very inactive and was starting to have lots of health problems. My niece, Nancy's daughter (thank you, Kelly), encouraged her to start working with a trainer. In the last year, I've watched my sister turn into the most positive and amazing person. Now to me, she has always been amazing. Since she is several years older than me, she sort of filled the gap when both of our parents died. I was worried about her because she was started to seem old. I worried that I could lose her. Because I love her so much, you cannot imagine how just thinking of this alarmed me. I will tell you that the Nancy of today seems at least 10 years younger than the Nancy of a year ago. I wanted SO badly to be at that finish line to see her cross it today. I didn't have anyone to go with me, and thought I might get lost so I decided to write about it about the time she might be finishing up. I have been praying for her all morning, and I'm almost in tears just thinking about her right now.

Next year, IF I can keep up with her, I want to be right there beside her. By this time next year, if she keeps going that 14 years in our age difference will probably seem like very little age difference at all.

YOU GO NANCY!!!!!! You are, and always have been, my wonderful, beautiful sister that has always given me so much joy, but today you are my HERO. I love you with all that the love a sister can possibly possess!!!!!!!

My mother.......

Today my mother has been dead for 17 years. It is hard to believe that I have not heard her voice or her laugh in so long. Sometimes I am reduced to tears by how much I miss her. Most of the time her memory makes me smile because I have so many good things to recall. She loved God and her family, and there were so many people that loved her. She had an amazing sense of humor and the most amazing laugh. I miss the sound of that laugh so much..............

Weekend Visit With The Carusos

Tommy and I just got back from our visit with Laura and Michael in West Lafayette. On Saturday evening she and Michael cooked for us. My daughter can cook!!! Michael is from a cooking family so it didn't surprise me that he would be a good cook! We were treated to delicious homemade bread, wonderful homemade authentic Italian tomato sauce with pasta, delicious brajoli (don't know if that is spelled right, but it is fabulous thin layers of pork rolled with bread crumbs and other ingredients and broiled in the oven on skewers), and salad with great homemade dressing. After dinner we were treated to Boston Creme Pie, a perfect end to a fabulous meal. They both worked together on the entire meal. The Hammond parents are IMPRESSED!!!

After dinner, I got my butt kicked playing Wii tennis and bowling with Michael and Laura. You would think that they would let the "old gal" win, but NOOOOOOOOOO!!!

Here's something I discovered this weekend.........Laura is a good housekeeper. This is the same Laura who grew up in my house, the one who I would suggest getting a tetanus shot before riding in her car or spending much time in her room.

Another thing I discovered......Michael has grown some facial hair. It is absolutely too cute!!! He looks quite handsome.

Both Laura and Michael looked happy and well. It was so good to see them both.

I loved their apartment. I also loved spending time with them, and watching them grow together as a married couple.

This morning (Sunday) we ate breakfast at I-Hop and spent a little time shopping in West Lafayette. It's funny that Laura and I sometimes purchase or look at/like the exact same things in a store. Today Laura & I were both in the jewelry section of a store, and I found a pair of earrings that I liked. At about the same time she also found a pair she liked. We were both talking about them, and turned to discover that we are both holding the same exact ones. Things like this happen to us all the time.

It is so awesome when your daughter makes the transition from your treasured child to your treasured friend. Though she remains my child, she now has attained the "most amazing friend" status, something that I wish for all my friends who are blessed with daughters. She really understands me like no one else.....probably because she is so like me. How did this happen? Thank you God for my daughter!!!

Please remember Laura in your prayers this week. Her temporary employment has ended and she is deligently searching for a job. I hope that she will find one that will allow her to come home some on the weekends.

On the way home we made a little stop in Edinburg (Outlet Mall). I was able to purchase two Christmas gifts; one for Christy, and one for Mom Hammond!

Before we left yesterday, our BRAND NEW television started acting up. I was afraid that I had broken it, so I was stressed out. Nick came over while we were gone, and got it up and running. By the way....Nick can fix almost anything, especially if it is computer or electronic-related. It turned out that there is a problem with our cable box. The cable company is supposed to bring us a new one I think.

After a week off from work due to last week's hurricane, I have to go back to work tomorrow. It's going to HURT! I did have a great week off. Christy and I took Luke to have his picture made on Thursday. The pictures turned out fabulous, of course. That baby is absolutely precious. Christy brought him over a little while yesterday before we left, so I did get a little "baby fix" before I went to West Lafayette. I did miss seeing Nick, Christy, and Luke today because we usually spend time with them every Sunday. It is amazing to me that both of my children and their spouses have become amazing friends and people that we LOVE spending time with. Tommy and I are so blessed!