Where do the days go? Here it is Jan. 29. I am about to go out and vote in the Florida Primary. The Dems have no delegates so I will just go do my thing anyway. I’ve given much thought to the political happenings of past 7 years and find it can pretty much be summed up in one word. SUCKS!. If Mickey mouse and George W were the only two candidates running, I’d be voting Mickey! I suspect even Mickey can speak better.

In all seriousness, I will be giving my non counting vote to Barack Obama. I may even trot on over to the Dem headquarters and get a sign for the front lawn. I embrace the thought of a truly united US.

Bennie is doing better. Little guy has adjusted way too easily. It breaks my heart to know he will never know his life without diabetes. Bennie January 2008 Kelly and Beau are house hunting. They think they have found one. The pics are very nice. I hope it works out for them.

Margot and Dave are moved into their new house. They finally have their new carpet and flooring. Everything is painted and Dave’s office is ‘open for business’. Now to finish moving everything from the old house. Hope that WV weather holds for them. Luke says he likes his new room! Luke January 2008

Julian is finally working again. He started Jan 21 with APAC. So far everything seems good. APAC is a big paving and concrete company in the S. E. US. Lots of potential to earn good money.

Today is the day we are suppose to start fresh.

2007 was a year of lots of change for us.

We spent a lot of time working, traveling to and from jobs and shows. It was a hard and at times an exhausting year. Yet, I still enjoy what I do. The thrill of the first time longarm owner is still there.

In August all the kids were here and their families. It was hectic but great!

Julian moved home in July. He has done well. Life seems to be moving forward for him. His first job was with a plumbing company. Due to the housing crisis, he was laid off right before Thanksgiving. He’s done some odd jobs for neighbors and friends. He hopes to start a new job with a paving company next week. I keep my fingers crossed.

I miss my girls and grandchildren. Living in FL is a long way from them. They are growing fast and I am missing it.

Margot and Dave had some rough times this year. They seem to have worked through it and are moving forward. They have a new house to move into and life is looking good for them. Luke grows in leaps and bounds. He is a smart boy. He tries his best to live between his Mom’s house and Dad’s house. He is the odd child out at each home. Dad has a family now and so does mom, Luke is the one who is the go-between. I don’t like what divorce has done. Luke is very difficult, trying to fit in and oftentimes rebellion is his ace in the hole. Juliet is growing so fast too. She loves her brother and is spoiled to the core A beautiful little red head who is going to give everyone their money’s worth. I am a stranger to her. Unlike Luke who spent so much of his first 5 years with me there all the time. Juliet has only know me from afar.

Kelly got married this year. Jan 19 marks their first anniversary. Beau was transferred to Wheeling and they moved from Elkins. This was hard for Kelly and Margot. They are close sisters who have always relied on each other. At Thanksgiving their life was changed for good. Bennie was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. They are all struggling to understand the disease and how to manage it for Bennie. He is a trouper. He has probably adapted better than either Kelly or Beau. Kelly won’t be able to work now. Bennie’s care is a full time job. Bennie’s biological father seems disinterested in Bennie’s health issues. I don’t know if he is just ignorant or plain doesn’t care. Thank God Beau does. He has been the father from day one. Genetics means zip. Love is everything.

The Raptor is gone. We now travel in style with our Winnebago. It is so much nicer! We love it! Setup is so much easier! And the comfort level is a 10 to about a 2 for the Raptor. We tow our car and get move about easily. John’s a good driver!

Speaking of driving. January starts a new adventure for John. He will take a CDL class and become licensed to drive Big Rigs.

March 1 is the cruise. I am excited. I wish we had a bigger crowd going but the ones going will have a great time.

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We are on the road again. This will be a whirlwind trip. Sunday and Monday morning were consumed with packing up the RV. It is such a big job to do. We’ll be out 17 or 18 days this time. We got a late start, it was noon before we finally shoved off. Stopped in little town of Perry GA, south of Macon for the night. It is a really nice RV park www.fairharborrvpark.com Little Girl was happy to finally stop and get to run around.

Today we headed to Dunlap, TN. We will be installing an A1 in the home of Carolyn Wesley. She found us at the Nashville quilt show. We may have to set up camp near Chattanooga

, she is about 40 n.w and it doesn’t look like there’s any RV parks nearby. We start Wed morning so we will have all day to get there and find ourselves a nice little place to call home for a couple of days.

This trip out will take us from Palm Coast, FL to TN, to Wheeling, WV (my little Bennie is turning 1)

Kelly and Beau have a big party planned at the park.

While in Wheeling we will see Margot, Dave, Luke and Juliet too! Our fun days and family visit will be limited, we’ll be visiting 3 clients while there for additional training and upgrading. The plan is to head to Hagerstown, Maryland on Thrs. for a tech visit with Lois Hattleberg, then on further into Maryland to install a machine in the home of Susan Bramell in LaPlata on Frida. Our final stop will be Dublin, GA on Monday Oct. 15. I haven’t done the mileage yet. It’s a bit scary! YIKES! I expect we’ll be home on the 17th if we don’t hit any snags.

I have my new Pro Q Designer with me and I am using the car time to learn it. As long as the road isn’t too bumpy I’m good. This is an awesome software for robotic quilters or just those who want to layout quilt designs. Very powerful! I am now authorized to sell the program. Those who know me, know I only do this with products I am passionate for.

I am also working on rewriting some of my A1 technical information. As A1 readies their new website I too am readying some of my handout materials to put on the new site. www.800longarm.com

Time to get John up and moving, he has a lot of driving to do today. He’s a great pilot!