Thank You to our USA Servicemen!

Today is Memorial Day and we just want to take a moment to remember those who have been faithful to their country and been willing to service in the US Military in the past and still today.

My dad, (Judy) served during WWII in the South Pacific and was one of the most honorable men ever. He left a legacy that will never be forgotten and I am proud of him. Our son, Chris is serving now and drawing to a close his 2nd deployment in 5 years. He has been separated from his family since April of 2008. We are so proud of him and his willingness to serve his country today and we appreciate the sacrifice he has made to do so. Living with Min and the boys this year has shown us what the cost of serving your country means. It is not only the soldiers but the military spouses and children that are paying the cost. We salute all of you today and say a great big thank you!

Some of the men and women have paid the ultimate sacrifice and we never want to take for granted what they have given so that we might be free.

Guka and Luke went to the local Memorial service this am to pay tribute to those who have given their lives for our great country.

Today we will have a cookout with our neighbors and then go to a Shorebirds baseball game. Yesterday we worshiped with the Body of Christ in a country that still allows religious freedom. The things we value most as Americans, Our God, our country, our families, our friends must never be taken lightly. We enjoy all of these because of the great sacrifice of our military men and women.

April Showers Bring May Flowers!

We have been thankful this Spring for the rain showers (since Steve's business prospers when it rains!) and then especially for our "flowers" which are our grandkids! They are blossoming more and more every day!

I can't believe it is May already. What happened to April? It flew by! This year better start slowing down or I'll be another year older before I know it. Did I mention I just had a birthday?I did and I've begun the downward or should we say upward slope past 55! Well, I guess the truth is that slope began last year!I think I just need to slow it down a bit!

Steve and I have been enjoying our family with the exception of our son Chris who is still in Iraq. It will still be a few months before we can all be together. Please continue to pray for Chris' safe return to Germany and then hopefully, he will be joining his family in the Fall.

We will be together for vacation in June. We're very excited that all of our kids and grandkids will be joining us in Orlando for General Assembly. This is a special blessing from a loving Father who has made this possible this year. The church has been such a central part of our family's lives and it is only fitting that we have this opportunity to reunite with not only our immediate family but many other brothers and sisters in Christ.

Our precious grandchildren are keeping us young. It is so wonderful to share so many times with them. We usually see Julianne at least 2-3 times a week and of course, every morning bright and early we get to see Luke and Will! The only thing I would trade for this experience would be that they could be with their Daddy and Mommy together anywhere! (except a war zone!)

Work is keeping me busy. I hate to admit it but I think I am working harder than I have in many years. But I enjoy the challenge and hope to grow into this new position soon. It's definitely not easy but I think it will be rewarding.

During April, I had a birthday celebration a few weeks ago and I also had a chance to get together with two very special friends who were matron and maid of honors in our wedding- Denise Bradley and Lois Campbell. We have been close friends for over 45 years and it was great to spend time with them.

Please enjoy some pictures of our "flowers!"

Guka enjoying his little flower, Julianne!

Mommy Jamie and Julianne

"A Rose by any other name"- Julianne, that is!

Meme and her namesake- Julia-nne!

"Julianne Incognito"

Will chillin' on Uncle Dave's bald head!

Two future "execs"!

Pretty boy Luke with Pretty Boy Chris's helmet from a summer job years ago!
Three Best Friends that date back to the 60's!(But aren't 60 yet!)

Lovin' Life as Guka and MeMe!

It's been 3 weeks since we last shared our news about our precious granddaughter, Julianne. It's been a busy time but we have so enjoyed getting to know her better and we're also enjoying our sweet grandsons, Luke and Will. We are so full of joy and cherish every moment we spend with our family.

Jamie's mom (the other grandma) and her sister, Dawn Marie came for the first week that Jamie and Julianne came home from the hospital. It was great to share our granddaughter with them and I could relate to the feelings they had when they had to leave and go back to Kansas. I remember feeling the same way when I left Luke in Kansas and Will in Germany. It was tough and I'm so grateful right now to be able to enjoy seeing them anytime I want!!

My job is keeping me very busy. I just finished my fourth week as the office supervisor and its been quite an adjustment. I am hoping to hire a new rep this week and look forward to being able to devote more time to my new responsibilities. It's been quite challenging and needless to say, I don't like having to divide my attention between my new job and my grandchildren. But I am thankful, nonetheless.

So, this week the Easter Journey began and Steve and I are both actors. He is involved every night but I am sharing my role with another friend and it makes it much easier to handle. I can't begin to express, however, what a blessing it is to be able to share the Easter story through this venue. My heart is ministered to as I see the expressions of each group, young and old, as they hear the story again, realizing that some may be hearing it for the first time. It brings the love and sacrifice of Jesus alive each time we share.

Well, I know what you are really interested in- is some new pictures of our grandchildren...so here goes:

Proud Guka and Meme with Julianne
Aunt Mindy, Cousin Luke lovin' on Julianne

Julianne today visiting the Easter Bunny!
Isn't she beautiful?

And don't forget that middle grandchild, William Stephen. He is a darling!

Luke David at 3 weeks old!
William Stephen at 3 weeks old!
Julianne Lynne at 3 weeks old!

She is precious!! That's right..SHE!

Yesterday, March 13, 2009 a precious angel was delivered to our family. Julianne Lynne Scott arrived at 7:02pm, weighing 8lbs. 8oz and is 19 1/2" long. It was great fun to try and guess if the baby would be a boy or girl. Randy and Jamie did not want to know until she was delivered. Knowing Scotts have a tendency to have boys, it was almost a lock that it was going to be a little boy. Randy brought this little bundle into the room and said " meet ........Julianne Lynne Scott"! It was hardly out of his mouth before Judy and Mindy both squealed in joy. She is so precious with her chubby little rosy cheeks. Steve got his turn to hold and love on her today. Luke and Will may get to meet their new cousin later but for now Luke knows he has a new cousin in the "hostable" We wanted to share just a couple of pictures now, but trust us when we say, there will be many more to follow.

Good bye Winter, Come on Spring!

Since its been awhile since we last blogged, I thought I should bring everyone (all 2-3 of you) up to date. We had a wonderful visit with Chris when he was home for R&R. He enjoyed his time with his Mindy and the boys and we also we were able to spend some great family times together with the whole family!

He's been gone for only 3 weeks and it feels like forever. We just hope the next few months will go quickly so he can be reunited with his family. Please pray for them because there are some tough decisions to be made and they need the Lord's leading.

At the beginning of this week, we had a Eastern Shore snowstorm. We ended up with only 3-6 inches but that usually is enough to shut this area down. We had a day off on Monday because of the snow so we enjoyed some unexpected fun together. Our niece, Michelle and her son, Landon who is 5, came over and Steve, Mindy and Luke went sledding with them over at our neighbor's. Meme stayed inside with Will and kept the home fires burning. It was bitter cold so I made some hot chocolate, grilled cheese and chicken noodle soup for lunch.

Now today its a different story- It's 70 degrees out and all the snow is gone. I love this area of the country! To begin the week with snow storm and end the week with a beautiful day and no trace of the snow and ice!

Steve has been busy preparing for the Easter Journey and some other projects he's involved in at church. It's going to be a busy month for us through Easter.

In the midst of this hectic schedule, yesterday was my boss' last day. He announced a month ago he and his family were moving back to Pittsburgh. I am really sad he is leaving because we have worked together for 13 years and I'm really going to miss him. He has a great sense of humor and he has kept me sane over the years.

After much prayer and consideration, I decided to apply for the supervisor position and yesterday I was offered the job. It will mean a lot more responsibility and challenges but I feel it is the right time to make a change. In a small office setting, there are not a lot of opportunities for advancement so even though it may take added attention and energy, I feel it will be good for me. Of course, I think I would have been more ready 10-15 years ago- I didn't really expect to take this step at my age but I have to remind myself- I'm not that OLD!! I just remember this was the age my Mom retired 25 years ago and it feels sort of weird....I was really hoping to retire and spend more time with my grandchildren but I guess that's not what the Lord wants for us right now.

That's ok, I'm still going to spend as much time as I can with my grandchildren. We are loving our time with Min and the boys and looking forward to a new baby in the next 2 weeks. Jamie is ready- now we just have to wait for the baby to be ready to join us!

Here's some pictures of the last several weeks.

Luke pondering over morning cereal

Luke getting a 4th generation haircut. This barber has cut Great Grandpa Scott,

Guka, Luke's Daddy (Chris) and now Luke. This is the same barber that gave

Chris his first haircut at this age!

August 2008

March 2009

The CareFirst Bunch!

Our Little Christopher!

Well, 30 odd years ago today, our little Christopher came into the world. If anyone knows Chris, his favorite word is "Wait!" He actually has been making everyone wait for him his whole life! He was due on January 23 and decided to join us almost 3 weeks later on February 11!

Back in those days, expectant mothers did not work until the day they gave birth- so since this was our first baby, I quit work by January 1. I had no idea I would spend most of that time lying on the couch and watching soap operas and diaper commericals!

My mom and dad would have breakfast every morning at the hospital with my obstetrician and they would drive him crazy with asking When is this baby going to be born! The morning they were going to induce labor, Chris decided to cooperate.

After 12 hours of labor, our sweet beautiful baby boy was here. His dad counted his fingers and toes and mentioned something about teaching him to swing a bat. We were so proud of our precious bundle!

Now, years later we are still very proud. It's been great to have him home these few weeks and enjoy seeing him with his family. Luke is a little replica of Chris in so many ways and Steve and I spend quite a few moments commenting on how alike they are!

I was just thinking this is probably the first time we have been with you on your birthday, Chris since you were in high school! We are so happy to celebrate it with you today.

Happy Birthday, Son.

Mama's Cubs are All Home!

Since our children have grown to adulthood, there is nothing like having them all home at the same time. I cherish every moment we are all together. When your kids live miles apart, it's not always easy to get everybody together.

Of course, these last several months have been special since Mindy and the boys moved in with us and Randy and Jamie live here in Salisbury. We get together at least once or twice a week. The only one missing has been Chris and this week he came home for some R&R from Iraq. It is wonderful to have them together! What a blessing and I praise God for every minute we are able to enjoy each other.

Last weekend was very busy! Jamie's mom came to visit from Kansas for her birthday and baby shower. We celebrated a joint birthday with Cousin Michelle and then had her baby shower on Saturday. Our friends, Wayne and Carol Lynch also came for a visit and it was really special to have Carol at the baby shower since Wayne and Carol were our Youth Pastor when Randy was born!

Chris came in on Monday and several of our friends and all of the family were able to meet him at the airport. We were a little worried how Luke would react when he saw Chris since it had been ten months - but he greeted Daddy with a big hug and hasn't left his side since. On Wednesday, Luke and Mindy got sick so its been a stressful few days but now everyone seems to be feeling better.

Tomorrow we are going to celebrate Will's first birthday (which was really last week) but we postponed a real celebration until his Daddy could be here.

Now that everyone is feeling better, we hope to enjoy some of our favorite meals and restaurants. The time is going too quickly but we are thankful for what we have.

Check out our friend, Jeff Scott's blog : http://jeffandjoyscottfamily.blogspot.com/.

He described a lot of our emotions at Chris' homecoming on Monday and was pretty "right on."

Thanks, Jeff for taking the time and thanks to all of you who have left comments on Facebook. We appreciate your well wishes and prayers.

Luke and Will (on his 1st Birthday)


Our special friends- Wayne & Carol and Caleb Lynch

Jamie and Mom (Deb)

Jamie on Birthday

Two Pregant Ladies (Jamie and Janelle Sipes)@ Jamie's Baby Shower

Jamie @ Baby Shower

Riley and Kailee waiting for their Soldier Boy to come home!

Riley greeting Chris after a year and a half!