YO!, just watch the phillies beat the mets 11 to 10 in the bottom of the ninth. they got the broom out and swept the mets( 4 games ). they're only 2 games behind the mets for the div. lead. GO PHILLIES.
now I'm watching the Eagles and jets (pre- season game ) .as usual they're smelling my TV up with they're level of play ( they really stink). i'm glad my other team is better than them( the Titans).(GO VINCE YOUNG).
gotta go, be well everybody.

still getting the hang of this blogging thingie! We just returned from Sea Isle City; visited the inlaws, Aunt Charlotte & Uncle Don. It was a gorgeous 2 days (tues and wed) full moon last night too! Daddy just turned into a frog (michelle will understand that) When are we going to start planning our family reunion? We're not getting any younger. We could rent at the shore or just hang out here at different homes. It worked before for Carmen's 15th birth fete so it can work again; just have to plan way ahead. Think about it, ok? Love to all concerned

Hello to all related bloggers!

incoming message from UD

I spelled the Raiders wrong. Thanks mom. With that said hehe... I am in class write now taking this computer class. I never had to take it when I was going to Cosumnes River, but now I have to take it. It is a simple computer class that shows us how to use certain programs. Its alright I guess. I mean it gives me a chance to get on the computer and check emails. (Right now he is explaining the desktop and how it is so great to have shortcuts...come on!) It has officially become a chat line class. =) Gotta go Miss ya all!

Thrilled beyond words....

I am so happy that "youse guys" are typing away. I thought this might make it easier for us to keep in touch. One post and everyone knows what is going on. Good news...I just discovered the spell check button. I am good to go, Houston.


Bridget, can't wait to hear what you have to say. I was told by my kids how wonderful you are and now I get a chance to get to know you. Yeah!! As for my two....Alex mentioned he may be graduating the end of the summer. We thought it might be sometime in 2008. He is petitioning to get some classes admitted to his coursework. He took similar classes here in Cali but Dubuque wouldn't accept them. If these classes can be used than a summer grad date looks good. His degree is in Health and Wellness. As he explained it to me, he can teach K-12 PE or similar classes and coach. I believe he had nutrition classes when he was here, so it's an all around health degree. He is gonna be great at this, it's right up his alley. Even though I know you're reading this Alex, I am serious. It suits you.


Carmen has many, many, many years to go. But don't tell her. :) She is a Biology major this semester, lots of science and math. I got a phone call from her earlier in the month and all she said was, "Momma, I love math!" It was hard to response to that without being a smart ass. That's our girl!!

I am the keeper of Carmen's rat, Stewie. She got him last year and now I have him. He is a blond guy with a sweet personality. She spoiled him when he was little. Well, he has a tumor on his leg and it is continually growing. He looks like he is on steroids but only on one leg. It doesn't seem to bother him yet. Does anyone know anything about this? The vet visit was $80 and not much happened.

Gotta go. love to all. P.S. Barb, I could use a good book.

id

This is the coffee bean. No, I am not a blog hacker. This is Michelle.

We're down to two weeks of summer vacation left. Then off to Richmond for Nascar night race and then back to school (and our normally scheduled programming). Working on the house as usual (when don't you).

Rob was elected VP of his union so now he has a high falootin' (sp?) briefcase and fancy phone. But we're proud despite all the bling.

Boss Lady - I had a run in with some chocolate chip cookies last night - I was hanging my head over the toilet, it got so bad, but I was spared.

Road Warrior's quote about having the highest taxes this side of the Delaware is suspect...

Miss you all
Good luck in school youngins'

Later
cb

P.S. WE'RE GOING TO SEE VAH HALEN ON OCT 1ST

from Hawkeye Nation

La Familia!!! How is everyone doing? Hopefully well...good. I have to say that I am excited about the football season this year. The Radiers are looking stronger on the offence. Rushing downfield and believe it or not, percision passing. I love it! On the flip side, I start school tomorrow. I am not ready for the early morning yet. 10 o'clock is hard enough. I don't know if i'm excited or anxious, but I am ready to tackle something new now that baseball is over. And speaking of baseball. My Red Sox have been in town (Chicago White Sox) enabling me to watch them on tv. Four game series too! And we need one more win for the sweep. They need me right now =) gotta go Much love Alex

my own room

YO! It is Sunday; 6:10 in the am here on the eastside and I'm up (need some java ).You westsiders and mid-westers are" gettin" more of what I need ( sleep ). Man, am I glad I'm done gearjamming.
This bloggie thing is great. It's like having your own room.I can say what I want,when I want and how I want. I can be like the "dancing frog ". If you have not seen the old cartoon, Aunt Barb (grandmom for you Bridget) will be more than glad to tell you about it.
Well, it's time to get the field ready for today's game ( might even be a double header but I'm sittin the second one out ) .
Hey, Boss Lady , ya better tell some of the young players about how important it is to know how strong the catcher"s arm is when you're inthe game.
Gotta go, one of the guest is up. Until next time.

sunday morning 12:54 am

YO! I just love this part of the 24 hour day. It is dark, very very quiet and no need to answer any questions, for myself and or anybody else. Got some overnite guests ( Bridget & Matt ) so I have to stop typing or this noise will wake them up. Need some sleep now. there is another game today later on. Good night, the road warrior.

hey to everyone

hey everyone this is Bridget, just so everyone knows. I finally got this thingie to work for me, thanks to my Grandpop (Bob) . So how is everyone? Well now that I finally got this working, I'm sure to be blogging a lot more. I haven't been up to much lately, but today my Mom and I watched this movie Zodiac and it was really good. In two weeks my family is going to Virginia for a couple of days, because my dad is getting over the hill and turning 40. The next day after we get back I'm off to school. Well bye for now, oh and I'm going to make an account for my mom [Michelle] now too, because she wants to get in on the blogging.
Love to all,
Bridget ♥

Hello again from the Garden State! How is everyone today? Hope its nice weather wherever you are.

have not heard from Ralph since @ Memorial Day wkend. I called him and invited them over. (declined)
His birthday is Sept. 29th. Matthew's is Sept 30, and RobParkers is Sept. 12th (I think) Mine is Sept 3rd (lots of Virgos) I am on a roll as far as books go. That was one of my New Yrs. resolutions: to read more and watch less TV.
Since you sent me "Reading Lolita etc", I have read another book about the immigrant experience. It is a challenge to read but really worth your time. The language is beautiful. (The Inheritance of Loss). I'll send it. Also read "The Memory Keepers Daughter" and a biography of Georgia Okkeefe (terrific read, I was surprised, Charlotte gave it to me) Now I'm reading "The Widow of the South", a novel of fiction about about a real character and a real battle in the Civil War era. We haven't been to the shore this year because of the high temps on the east coast. We are going to visit the in laws in Sea Isle this week. I really miss the beach etc.
Miss you all

roadwarrior

YO! to everybody.
new to this game but I hit the first pitch.
we got a new tv ( HDTV ) finally and it is quite a challange to set up.Thank the electronic gods for the" internets" because that's where i learned how to connect, calibrate, cable selection,call for help,cable box (stb), and calls to comcast for instruction. ( i"m taking a breath now).
So far Barb ( grandmom for you Bridget ) and I think that this purchase is worth the expense.
There is a lot of research that needs to be done on this product before you buy one. The picture quality with high definition is astounding ( really great for sports ).
I need to stop on this subject now because I do get carried away. Gotta eat my breakfast now.
Be well everybody.( there is always another "at bat" ).

invitations to blog

I will send Bridget, Bob and Alex another invitation. Maybe what I sent the first time was wrong. who knows...technology scares me sometimes.
Haven't talked to the eldest sister since the big move. But I have been trying to keep the phone bill down. The kids' phone bills so very high over the summer...to the tune of $400. I was thinking of calling her soon though. Hey you have a birthday coming up, don't you?? Our brother has one in September also. Heard from him lately?
Change o'subject: what types of books are you reading these days?

bloggie thingie

Bridget is trying to get on this too. She can't bring up your homepage? She has a lot to say these days; should be a kick. Concerning that book, I did pick it up to look at it a couple times in Target but put it down. The memoir I read, I had no idea it was so heartbreaking but it was well written and I did enjoy it. Have you talked to our sister lately?
hugs to all

fine tuning this blog thingie

Bob's email address was kicked back to me so I think I entered it wrong. Send me an email with it and I will send an invite. Alex had trouble setting up an account but then again he is in Iowa. I need to send Carmen an email to call her brother with instructions. She got in ok.


The last concert Ed and I went to was Def Leppard with Bryan Adams. Go figure.... The funny thing was, we were the average age of people there and we knew all the songs! A few years ago we went to see Paul Simon and Bob Dylan. Dylan sounded worst than in the 60's (if that is possible). There were 60 something Hippies around us wearing tie dye and smoking weed. The ironic thing is now they can afford the weed and the bail money needed.

As for your question about whether things like neglect happen. I can answer yes, I see it weekly. But not neglect in the sense that the kids aren't eating or bathing but there is no parental interaction. The young people I deal with really have no clue when it comes to some basic things. When I explain things, the look on their faces is one of disbelief or astonishment. I have asked several "has anyone ever mentioned any of this to you" and inevitably the answer is no. It's scary to think the next generation is essentially raising themselves. Along these lines, have you read the book called "A boy called It" by David Peltzer? To think that that actually happened made my physically ill.

well on this cheery note....good nite :)

40 somethings go to a concert

Michelle and Rob Parker went to see "Velvet Revolver" the other night. It was a outdoor concert; boy, did they get wet. It was kinda cold out too; went down to the 50's. Michelle said " I don't want to do this anymore!" Oh yeah, wait til the next one comes through Philly!
jersey tomato

what I've been reading

dear friends,
today we finally had some sun(very little). This is a wierd post today. I have been reading several memoirs and have a question. How do you know that all this stuff really happened in this person's life? I recently read "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls. It was a good story of her wierd childhood with neglectful parents on the move all the time. It was heartbreaking to think of these children not having the basics but she isn't asking for pity. I wonder if all this really happened. No one has questioned her book yet. Let me know what you think.
jersey tomato

hello from here

new bloggers

boss lady:
I got Bridget to sign up; hope she participates. Bob asked me about this; did you send him an invitation?
love u

Hola from Santa Rosa

Hello everyone. I am excited we can all talk now and not have to individually e-mail everyone. Well school starts tomorrow for me at 8:00 in the morning. Which means I have to be up and moving at 6:30. Soooooooooo early!!!! YIKES!! But the good news is, I think I'm going to like my classes. It's nice to be back in Santa Rosa. Yes mom I do miss you, but it's nice to hang out with the girls and all my friends again. Well I'm going to sleep now. Love you!!!

and then there was two...

So far you and I are the only ones....but I hope the kids join on soon. I always wanted to try my hand at blogging...hehee

Well, let's see, here in Cali it's hot and it got hot just in time for the State Fair. This year the "deep fried favorite" is deep fried avocados. Last year, we had cookies, year before it was a candy bar. You have got to at least try it once in order to say you hate it.

The house hasn't sold which, depending on who you talk to in this family, may or may not be a good thing. The area is high in foreclosures, unfortunately. The construction boom is definitely over. The construction/home improvement ads have tripled in the last three months.

Carmen is back in Santa Rosa, enjoying the beginning of her sophomore year in college. She has decided to become a Biology major and medicine looks like a career path for her. Alex is in his senior year in Dubuque. He decided on coaching as a career choice, actually coaching baseball is where his heart is at.

See if Bridget wants to hop on this train, Sis. I would love to hear what she has to say. Hopefully, you and I will get the hang of the "hi tech" stuff... :)

My First Post!!

Hello from Haddon Heights, NJ---home of the highest taxes this side of the Delaware River.

Today, Saturday, Bob & I attended a double christening & luncheon for two new members of the family: David Nettleton and Madeline Garvey. Are we great aunt and uncle? We don't know! The weather here today was much like fall: very cool but beautiful. School is just around the corner! We have finished our "Extreme Makeover" in our dining room and living room. Just have some last minute things left so next time y'all visit us, you won't recognize the place! We actually have furniture now and a new TV that doesn't have to warm up first. So, are we blogging yet? Love to all involved and hang loose!!!

Greetings from Rio Linda California

I wanted to start this blog as a way for friends and family to keep in touch. I seem to have the time to write, the kids seem to have the time to read so this was a perfect match.

If we include all family members, at least we can stay united as a family even though everyone is out and about the country.

Tell me what you think about the idea. The postings will probably get boring and strange but hey that's our life in a nutshell..... boring and strange.