Well, what's new since my last blog? My just 18 yr old daughter was in a severe car accident on 8/8/08. She was at one of the many graduation parties this summer. Drinking was involved. She got in a 2 door Saturn with 3 other people. She was sitting behind the driver in the back seat. The guy came down a steep decline too quickly, missed the turn, hit a telephone pole, right where my daughter was sitting, which spun the car around several times and then ended in the field. My daughter lost consciousness & later suffered from amnesia, from a concussion & whiplash. She was so incoherent & confused that the other 3 "friends" in the car decided to tell everyone at the party that she was walking with the other girl in the car & she fell down a hill & hit her head. The boy driving the car said he totalled his car but that he was alone. So for 3 hrs everyone tried to "help" my daughter but no one got her any medical help. Her 2 best friends brought her home at 3:30am that morning. I put her to bed but woke her every 2 hrs to make sure she was OK. We all found out the next day that she had indeed been in a car accident & not the concocted falling down story. I actually got to see a picture of the car that my daughter was in. Every window in the car was shattered except the windshield, both airbags were deployed, the drivers side door was bent in half, the rear tire-where my daughter was sitting was gone & what was left was bent, the rear panel was crinkled like an accordian. It was a MIRACLE that she walked away from that crash!! I actually broke down & cried when I saw the picture, it was that bad! I was furious that she had been in such a serious accident with obvious head trauma & no one got her medical attention. I could have forgiven the accident but not the lie that followed if my daughter had suffered any permanent damage. The only good thing to come out of it is that she is done with drinking! Then on 8/22/08 she left for college, 4hrs & 250 miles from home. Much to my surprise, she had trouble adjusting to her new life. By the 3rd week, she was feeling better about her new roommates & tough college schedule. She is doing much better now.

I went away to visit with my 3 sisters right after she left for school. I had a great time with all my sisters. When I came home, I had no idea I would just have 1 more week with my cat of 13 years. I noticed on Sat 9/6 that my female cat was squating in the livingroom like she was about to go to the bathroom. I thought maybe she had a bladder infection & began watching her more closely. She seemed better but as the week progressed she became weaker & weaker. By Friday I decided I should take her to the vet. I brought her there on Sat 9/13. I had to leave her for some tests so I kissed her goodbye & told her I loved her. That was the last time I ever saw her! The Vet called on Sun 9/14. My cat's blood sugar was 448 & had diabetes. I said I'd be willing to give her daily insulin injections so treatment began. On Monday I was informed that she did have a bladder infection & was also put on antibiotics. The insulin did nothing, the Vet would up the dosage. Tuesday I was told that she had developed a severe cold with blood in her mucus & urine. Her body temp had dropped to 97*. She could no longer regulate her own body temp. The insulin was still not working. Wednesday morning I called the Vet who said my cats whole system was shutting down & the humane thing to do would be to euthanize her. So on Wed 9/17 I authorized the euthanization of my cat of 13 years. I'm still very sad! They took care of her cremation. I will make a marker for her next to my other cat we lost in 2005. She was 17 years old. I now have 1 cat left who seems to be enjoying being the center of attention. She was low cat on the dominance pole! She is 6 years old so I don't expect to lose her anytime soon!

I went to an Irish Concert night in Albany in August. They moved the site & I had to walk about a mile carrying my chair & purse but the bands were good & so were the fireworks that followed. The news the next day said 32 people were arrested for DWI after leaving that concert. They sell beer & food there. I didn't drink at all so that wasn't a problem for me! Then this past weekend I went to Irish2000Festival at a nearby fairground. They had 2 huge tents set up with bands from Ireland playing in both. All kinds of Irish music. Rock, traditional, even bagpipes. There were Irish Dance Companies there too. There was also the usual vendors of food & more beer & merchandise. I got a sterling silver claddaugh necklace. It was a warm 65* sunny day so I enjoyed myself for the 1st time since the loss of my cat.

I guess that's the update for anyone who might be interested! It's important to tell the people in your lives that you love them but once in a while make sure you show your pets that you love them too! You never know when they'll be taken from you either! Love to all out there!!

Let's see, what have I been up to? I did buy myself a "garden tractor" from Sears. It was delivered the following week. I must have looked crazy the 1st time I mowed my lawn with it. When I wasn't singing along with my IPod music I was laughing to myself just trying to get used to the darn thing! Even slight inclines felt like I was going to tip over. It was funny & I was having fun....mowing my lawn, all by my lonesome! I'm getting better at it now. I can go faster & now I know I won't tip over & get chopped up or crushed. Nice picture, huh?!!

My daughters HS Graduation went very well on 6/27. She was #4 in her cl*ss. Behind the Valedictorian, Salutatorian, Honor Student & then my daughter. There were only 66 in her graduating cl*ss. She was also the Vice President. My son also had a job interview earlier that same day so I was very happy that day! My daughter & the other cl*ss officers hosted the graduation night party which was a huge success! She's still going to graduation parties! And my son got the job too! It's only at Wal-Mart but it is the perfect part time job for a college student. He & I are both happy he has a new job!

I went to LI to visit with my 3 sisters for a week in July. Unfortunately, both of my parents are gone. Both diagnosised with terminal cancer just 6 wks apart after 52 yrs of marriage. That was in 2000. My sister lives in the house I grew up in. She is married with 2 grown boys. I stay with her. The house is 3 stories with 6 bedrooms & 4 bathrooms. Plenty of room for me to visit! Even more impressive, the house my Mom grew up in is on the National Registry of Historic Places! How many people can say that?!! I loved that house! It was a grand Victorian built by a famous architect in the late 1800's. My Uncle sold it about 20 yrs ago. Anyway, I spent 9 days, going to a concert, movie, dinners out & tanning by the pool. I don't usually tan but 2 of my sisters love the pool so I got alot of color just swimming around! We have so much fun hanging out with each other! This is the 1st summer that I had to make the trip all by myself but I can do it with my eyes closed at this point so it didn't really matter! I will be going back the day after my daughter leaves for college which will be Aug. 22. I'll spend another week then with my sisters. Then I won't see them until next Spring, ugh!! I can get as many as 25 emails a day from my 3 sisters. We're always talking with each other. I'm the only one who lives far away though.

My daughter just got her dorm room assignment. We requested a private suite for her which consists of a common/livingroom with private bathroom with 2 bedrooms on either side of it. My daughter will share a room with Justine & in the other bedroom will be Mattie & Rebecca. I hope she likes them all! She really does get along with everyone so I'm not too worried. Either is she. She is getting very excited now about leaving in 16 days! We went to the college orientation 7/14 & 7/15. We got her registered, got her ID card & settled in the dorm room for the night & then I went to check into my hotel room. I met her again for dinner 2 hrs later & she had already made a new friend, Lindsey, a pre-med student. We had a lovely dinner at, coincidently, the Irish table. There was Maureen, Jennifer, Lindsey, Erin, Sean, Patrick & Colleen at the table! I liked all the kids at the table. I think my daughter will be very happy there. She already has a lifelong friend attending too. My husband & I will be empty nesters when she leaves. It'll be so quiet around here without her. Atleast my son is only 1/2 hr away so I see him every week, like it or not, ha, ha!!

This week is the county fair. I used to go all the time but haven't been there in years. I may go on Friday if the weather is good. The food alone is worth going for!

I went to see Bo Bice in concert for free in Albany on 7/11. He's from American Idol. My sister was in love with him! It was an outdoor concert with the Hudson River immediately behind the stage. The weather was perfect. I really enjoyed it. I want to go to Irish night next week. I just have to convince a non Irish friend to go with me!! I love Irish music. It's so happy all the time! This concert isn't going to be the traditional music though. More modern, rock. That's ok. The Coors are 1 of my favorite groups & then of course U2. I'm sure I'd enjoy it. Who doesn't like a live concert? There will be fireworks too. I hope the weather will be good & I'll go even if I have to go it alone. The concert starts at 5pm-8pm so my husband isn't home in time or I'd make him come with me!! They have food & beer vendors there too so I'm sure he'd have fun there too!

I guess that's the update for now! So til next time...Love to all out there!

I haven't been here for a while since my favorite show, Criminal Minds, is done of the season. I am happy that A&E is showing Season 1, so far in order, on Friday nights at 11pm. I am recording them onto a dvd. I will then have all 3 seasons recorded-yeah! I'm enjoying Season 1 again!

Lets see what I've been up to since my last blog. My daughter's car a Plymouth Neon lost it's brakes the last week in May. Her friend replaced the brake cylinder twice but it would just blow out again. That was the last straw. The headlights barely lit the road at night, and we had them replaced, the engine was burning oil badly, the wheel bearings needed replacing, the brakes were replaced & now the brake cylinder, the A/C didn't work, the heat barely worked & the trunk no longer opened! Pretty much from hood to trunk nothing worked. Since my daughter would soon be driving 250 miles for 4 hrs at speeds of 65-70 mph to college, I decided she needed a safe, reliable car. So the search began. Smaller cars like Elantra's, Focus', Cobalt's etc. are in such demand because of gas prices that they were selling before I could get to them. I stumbled across a 2003 Chevy Cavalier at a local dealership. It only had 57,745 miles & was only $6888. I picked my daughter up from school so she could test drive it. She did & loved it. Such an upgrade from her beginner car! I paid cash but they wanted a certified check so I called my banker since it was after hours. She opened the bank just for me & had the check waiting when I arrived! Now that's service! So I was able to pay for the car that day & we picked it up the following day. It looks & feels like a brand new car & my daughter is soooo happy with it. She contributed $2000 of her money towards the car so she isn't totally spoiled!!

My daughter went on her Senior Cl*ssTrip to Ocean City, NJ on 6/7-6/9. She is the Senior Cl*ss Vice President & her best friend is the President. Ocean City, NJ has been my family vacation spot for 5 generations, since the 1920's. I took my daughter & her 2 friends to OC in 2005. We stayed in a 2 bdrm/2 bath condo. That is the year that the Travel Channel named Ocean City, NJ the nations Best Family Beach!! They obviously loved it as much as my family always has & being in control of the Seniors they recommended it for their final trip. About 40 of the 62 graduates went. It was an extremely warm & sunny weekend, just perfect for a beach vacation! They all had a wonderful time. If you've never been to or heard of Ocean City, NJ it is a barrier island in South Jersey. It has a very long boardwalk with 2 amusement parks complete with roller coasters, a water park, atleast a dozen mini golf courses some with waterfalls & caves-just beautiful, a multi-movie theatre, the Music Pier with concerts, shops for just about anything you want and restaurants galore. It is a dry town, no alcohol is sold there & there is a police station at the Pier & they patrol it on bikes. It is really the perfect beach vacation spot. I'd recommend it to anyone!

Tuesday I was mowing my lawn, which is quite large, I own 1.8 acres, when I hit an old tree stump stalling the mower. It would not start again. My husband explained what happened, he knows everything, he really does, and told me to go get a new one. I told him with the kids gone & him at work the mowing is up to me & I'm done with a push mower. I want a ride on mower! I'm going shopping for one tomorrow! I hope I can have one delivered on Saturday since my lawn is only half mowed!

My preemie niece was Christened on Sunday, Father's Day, 6/15 @ 11 am. My brother & sister-in-law arrived with the kids AFTER the mass had already begun. They were about a 1/2 hour late to their own daughter's christening! My sister-in-law, who I like very much, showed up wearing shorts too! I thought the whole thing was very inappropriate! But atleast my niece is doing really well & she is now christened. They didn't have a reception afterwards either since it was Father's Day & they thought most people would have plans. I thought I did, spend the day with them, oh well!! We just had a bbq ourselves to celebrate the day. It was nice seeing them again even if just briefly. They live an hrs drive away so we don't see them all the time.

So that's what I've been up to! My daughter's graduation ceremony is next week & then it's off again to her college for orientation in July. I just made another hotel reservation for myself for that today. I guess that's what I'll bore everyone with in my next blog!! Till then, Love to all out there!