I know what Emily and Andre' are having...

When getting back from work on Thursday I

had a message on my machine from

me oldest God-daughter.

After leaving her emails, phone messages,

and then a card pleading her to give me the news...

She finally did!!!!!

I know what Em and Andre' are having!!!!

Of course, it won't be official until

Monday when she sees the doctor,

But lets see if we can pull our Em out

of the shadows to share her news.

COME ON EM, SHARE

LET THE COLLINS FAMILY KNOW

WHAT YOU ARE CARRYING

INSIDE YOUR WONDERFUL BODY!

It's your news to share

I love and am so proud of you!

Want to be touched?

This morning I am headed to church to help and be a guest speaker

at a 10th grade retreat.

However, the little I do is nothing compared to what

this young woman has been inspired to do

with her life.

If you want to be touched, inspired,

visit her website:

www.kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com

If you are not totally touched by her mission in life

then you really need to look into

yourself to see what may be wrong.

Enjoy and have a wonderful day!

PGP

They say that if you do something daily for two weeks

it will become a habit.

Lately, I have gotten used to coming home

after work and lay on my bed to watch TV.

Then for the rest of the evening I do nothing.

This is not me and the whole time

I am lying there I am telling myself

I really need to get up and do something.

So yesterday as I am walking,

I am thinking about work and

how my Professional Growth Plans are due.

Better known as PGP, it is a plan

each individual must do in the school system.

Two areas are picked that you want to work

on and you plot out just how you expect to do this.

When evaluation comes around,

you have to bring your documentation on how

you achieved this and you are evaluated on

your results.

This began me thinking,

What I need to get out of my afternoon funk,

is a PGP that I will call a

PERSONAL GROWTH PLAN

I will track my progress by journaling my observations.

So I am working on my own

PGP,

What about you, are you in need of your own

Personal Growth Plan?

Memory Lane

Thought I would share my last scrapbook page.

When visiting my Nannie a few weeks ago

she blessed me with pictures that

I never knew existed.

Look how Dad is sitting in the chair.

It is my memory of how he always sat.

Uncle Joe is also in this picture.

He looks just like I remember him.

Oh, and that cutie on the floor,

well that would be

LILLY THE GREAT

wasn't I so cute?

The little square pictures

are one of Mom, Reggie and Joey.

One of Veronica, Tiffy and Jay

and one of our wonderful

Daddy when he was wonderful,

before he became sick.

These were taken at

Aunt Jeanie and Uncle Roy's house.

Enjoy the memories,

oh and of course, my talent!

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

rumor is....

THAT ELLEN GOT HER CAST OFF!!!

MIKIE, GIVE UPDATE PLEASE!!!

owing vs. privileges...

Mumsie is still teaching me lessons even at her age.

I try every weekend to take her out of the manor

for at least a little while,

sometimes she is too tired and sometimes she

can't wait.

This weekend, she wants to go shopping so we

go to the mall.

Usually she sits while I shop but that always bothers

me. A few weeks ago I found out for 10 dollars

I can borrow a wheelchair at the mall and get

my money back when I return it.

Yesterday that is just what we do and we

run all over the mall, well Mumsie rides.

I kept asking her if she was tired and she

would say, " No, I can do this all day."

Every once in a while she would say

what a good time she was having,

wanted to hold all the packages.

We had a pleasant time and then I remembered that

Hobby Lobby has wheelchairs, too.

That is next on our adventure.

Now Hobby Lobby, we are talking high-tech. chair

because it also has a basket to put my treasures in!

We are moving along happily and Mom comments

how she doesn't remember any ones birthdays

and doesn't know if she has bought presents

for the ones coming up.

I relieve her mind and tell her not to worry

that now, when I buy a gift, I always

put her name on it also.

She is happy and says,

"Good, now I don't have to worry, just tell me what I owe you"

I joke with her and say she owes me nothing,

the only thing she owes is to be my Mumsie,

then she again teaches me what I sometimes forget,

she says to her baby,

"Being your Momma has been a privilege."

I tear up, feel like crying and hugging her

right there in the sticker aisle of

my favorite store Hobby Lobby.

She is my very favorite Mumsie in the

whole, wide, world.

Some mellow with age,

our Mumsie has blossomed...

Bonnie and Clyde

Okay, Veronica,

this page is created to tell your story....

come on comment the funny story....

TGIF

This picture has absolutely nothing to do with the blog, added strictly for Mikie's entertainment since his favorite thing is to make fun of my pictures, what about this one ol' mike?

Well, it's Friday, again...

What is good for me today?

Ronnie comes home today,

Work is going great,

I walked 4 mornings this week,

I scrapped last night,

making Halloween surprises for all

my little ones out there,

Life is stable, just like I like it,

I am happy and have everything I need,

Payday was yesterday, have money in my pocket,

Have a weekend with no plans,

love those kinds of weekends!

So what about you guys,

What are ya'll thankful for on

this wonderful Friday morning?

Oh, let me go back and add a picture,

for Mikie's entertainment...

Oh, and Ellen goes to the doctor today,

Let's all keep her in our thoughts

that the little arm is soon to be just

like new!!!!

Still waiting for Mikie to send me a

picture of the cast,

email address:

lilriera63@yahoo.com

BALANCE

This is not a "get the violin" post.

It is not meant for sympathy, it's just a fact.

I am having to accept the fact that

my body will have to be allowed to slow down.

I, even at just 46, am coming to the realization

that my life is and will have to slow down.

My body is refusing to do what I need it to do.

The doctors tell me it is because of the damage

radiation and chemotherapy have done to my body

that makes me not able to do the things my head wants to.

I am not bitter, I know these things were necessary to save my life.

So my prayers are for acceptance,

not from others because I already have that.

Ronnie, my children, my family, they

ask nothing of me and understand what a bad day is.

The acceptance is for myself.

My head wants to do what my body either can't do

or pays for after.

Sometimes I fear that the moment I stop doing,

I will loose the worth and value I have placed on myself.

I want to understand and believe

that the DO-MORE-BETTER-FASTER approach to living

is what leads to physical, mental,emotional and spiritual imbalance.

It is also pretty rough on my body.

I now pray to my God for BALANCE.

Iyanla Vanzant, author

reminds me:

BALANCE DOES NOT REQUIRE ME TO DO

ANYTHING BETTER OR FASTER THAN ANYONE ELSE.

IT REQUIRES ONLY THAT I MAKE A CONSCIOUS EFFORT

TO ENJOY WHAT I AM DOING, AND THAT I LEARN

TO BE PRESENT IN EVERY ASPECT OF LIFE,

FOR SOME PORTION OF EVERYDAY THAT I AM ALIVE,

REST, WORK, PLAY, SERVE, LEARN, TEACH, GIVE, RECEIVE.

A LITTLE BIT OF THIS A LITTLE BIT OF THAT.

STOP WHEN I HAVE TO, GO WHEN I CAN.

SPEAK BUT ALSO LISTEN.

BALANCE IS THE KEY TO ENLIGHTENMENT

AND ENLIGHTENMENT IS THE KEY TO

SELF-VALUE AND SELF-WORTH.

I want to remember it is not how much I do in a day

that makes me who I am but how I do the

little things that make a difference in

my and others lives.

Why do I share this with you today?

Because all of us can use some balance in our lives

and permission to rest, have fun!

Love to all!

creative well

My creative well is dry this morning

That is all...

HAVE FUN

I am often faulted for having too much fun.

Actually if it's not fun, I am more apt to not do it.

Every hobby I have is because it is fun and brings me joy.

Reading this morning out of a book by Iyanla Vanzant,

this is what she tells me about work vs. fun:

IT IS NECESSARY TO SPEND SOME PORTION

OF YOUR LIFE HAVING FUN.

WE CAN GET SO CAUGHT UP IN THE PROCESS OF LIFE,

THE RESPONSIBILITIES OF LIFE,

WHAT WE WANT FROM LIFE,

THAT WE FORGET TO HAVE FUN.

LIFE IS A JOKE.

IT IS ABSOLUTELY HYSTERICAL.

IF YOU THINK ABOUT SOME OF THE THINGS

THAT GO ON IN LIFE, YOU HAVE NO CHOICE

BUT TO LAUGH. LIFE IS A GAME.

GAMES ARE INTENDED TO BE FUN, BUT WE WORK

AT OUR GAMES AND TURN OUR GAMES INTO WORK.

WE GET SO CAUGHT UP IN THE WORK PORTION

OF LIFE THAT WE FORGET TO PLAY.

WE FORGET TO HAVE FUN.

WHEN YOU COMMIT SOME TIME EACH WEEK

TO PLAYING AND HAVING FUN,

LIFE GETS MUCH EASIER.

IT KEEPS YOU YOUNG AND VIBRANT.

FUN ALLOWS YOU TO THINK ABOUT SOMETHING

OTHER THAN WHAT YOU DON'T HAVE OR CANNOT DO.

FUN IS ABSOLUTELY FREE.

So as the weekend approaches,

go out and have some fun!

Go out and find something fun to do...

AND DO IT!

love to all

24 years ago today

24 Years ago, on this 11th day of August...

I gave birth to the most awesome little boy...

Then, and never before then did I understand

love that I would give my life for.

It seems like so long ago and yet

it seems like it was just yesterday.

Reading back on a journal entry I wrote to Roddie

on December 11, 1985

A quote I wanted him to always remember

as he grew to be the man he is today.

GO PLACIDLY AMID THE NOISE AND HASTE

AND REMEMBER WHAT PEACE THERE

MAY BE IN SILENCE.

YOU ARE A CHILD OF THE UNIVERSE

NO LESS THAN THE TREES AND THE STARS.

YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO BE HERE.

WHATEVER YOUR LABORS AND ASPIRATIONS

IN THE NOISY CONFUSION OF LIFE,

KEEP PEACE WITH YOUR SOUL.

WITH ALL ITS SHAM, DRUDGERY,

AND BROKEN DREAMS;

IT IS STILL A BEAUTIFUL WORLD.

STRIVE TO BE HAPPY- IF YOU COMPARE YOURSELF

WITH OTHERS, YOU WILL BECOME VAIN AND BITTER.

ENJOY YOUR ACHIEVEMENTS,

KEEP INTERESTED IN YOUR OWN CAREER,

HOWEVER HUMBLE.

DON'T BE CYNICAL ABOUT LOVE,

BECAUSE IN THE FACE OF

ARIDITY AND DISENCHANTMENT,

IT IS AS PERENNIAL AS THE GRASS.

NURTURE STRENGTH OF SPIRIT

TO SHIELD YOU IN MISFORTUNE.

joan collins

And today I find myself wanting to share the same

advice I wrote to him when he was only

4 months old

and to add my own words:

Forever in this world, the next world,

eternity and beyond,

forever, forever will your Mother love you!

Happy Birthday, Roddie John

Love, Mommy

WHAT DID I DO? YOU ASK...

What did I do for my birthday? Well, I attended this event...

Saw old friends from high school, Kyle Pelt and Patrick Cheramie...

Admired my cousin Reggie and his brother, Jude for pulling this event off...

To Celebrate an anniversary For Uncle Roy and Aunt Jeanette!!!!

Was able to see my niece, Toya for a short time and my

great-nephew Dane who I had to steal a kiss from even after

getting on my knees and begging for one.

(And anyway, who said he could be so darn cute!)

Danced with Uncle Roy, received many aunt Jeanie kisses...

Spent time with my siblings and Mumsie...

Danced with the family and loved on Tedi who is looking

way too grown-up for me to accept lately

(Why do they have to grow up)

Remembered just how sweet she is!!!!

Got to see all my daddy's sisters who I call Aunts together again...

Was able to watch Rosie love-up on one of her favorite cousins and friends!

Got to hang out with all my Collins first-cousins...

(Don't know how Mom got in this picture.)

and play and dance with them for hours and realized that only one of

our first cousins were missing,

which would have been Emel, Jr (noo-noo)

Everyone together, no one making excuses not to be there,

the best birthday I could have ever, ever, had

all because these two people decided to make a commitment

50 years ago!!!!

There was much love and many kisses all night

but this one really made me smile!!!!!

Thanks everyone for showing up and

thanks for being such a big part in my life!

LILLY THE GREAT

REMEMBERING PUFF

Remember that old song,

PUFF THE MAGIC DRAGON, LIVED BY THE SEA

Yesterday while walking, it is what I hear on IPOD.

Vivid memories come flooding back to the

first time I heard this song.

I was 5 years old at Touro hospital.

Every weekend people would come in to entertain

the sick children. That day a beautiful girl

comes with her guitar. It was a day

that I had been really sick but still I marched into

the activity room with my IV pole to hear

this beautiful girl sing.

She began with a few other songs that I had heard.

Then she begins singing,

Puff the Magic Dragon....

I immediately related to the story...

As an adult I now understand that the whole

story is about a boy, Jackie and his imaginary friend.

Eventually Jackie grows up and forgets about his friend, Puff.

However for a 5 year old who is fighting for her life,

it had a different meaning.

I can't remember anyone telling me I was going to die.

Inside myself, I realized that I was dying or was so sick that I wanted to.

So when I heard ol' Puff this is what I believed.

This beautiful woman had come to prepare us for death.

When the song says:

DRAGONS LIVE FOREVER BUT NOT SO LITTLE BOYS

I was being told that I probably would die but it

would be okay, Jackie was okay so I would be also.

I was comforted by the song and growing up it always

meant something different to me.

Now I understand that Jackie grew up, he didn't die

but it was many years before I understood this.

So, today, on my 46th birthday,

I, too, have grown up in some ways

but in other ways I will always be a child.

Happy to frolic in the land...

I plan on living forever, if not in body then

for sure in the hearts of many,

Just like PUFF!

ELLEN GOES TO THE DOCTOR

Baby girl goes to the doctor this morning to check on that arm.

Today the decision will be made as to if she needs surgery or not.

Keep her in your thoughts and prayers this morning.

Going to work today and will be a crazy day

but hopefully someone will post here as soon as we

hear something.

BACK TO SCHOOL/WORK

Remember that feeling of going back to school

after summer break?

When all your clothes and school supplies were new.

When you couldn't wait to see who your new teacher was

you wondered if there would be new kids in your class.

You couldn't wait to see your friends and get

your new books?

Most times this lasted a day and then

you realized nothing really had changed.

School was just school and

you began to think about Thanksgiving holidays.

Well, today is my first day of school.

I am blessed to have that first day of school feeling

even at 45 (for three more days).

Sometimes I think there must be something wrong with me

that I love going back to work.

However, for me this is not a job.

It is a calling and it isn't even about being the school nurse.

It is about what God has prepared for me to do.

I am blessed that every day I get to do God's work

and am paid to do it!

Out there, at my school there are so many children

who don't get hugs, unconditional love, tough love.

I am there to give them those things.

Ronnie always tells me when I get upset about a certain

situation involving a child at my school,

"Lil, you can't change their life, they don't know how"

My answer is always the same.

"Yes, but one day they will grow up and maybe, just maybe

they will remember their school nurse and have

some idea what a parent is supposed to be like.

So, to all my nieces and nephews heading out to

school/work today,

pray for all the children in the world and remember:

YOU MAY BE THE ONLY GOD THAT THESE KIDS EVER SEE

Love to all!!!!!

you can all call me LILLY THE GREAT

On Sunday we trekked to Metairie for sweet Lillian's baptism.

What a cute and good girl she was.

We all watched with anticipation...

as our sweet pumpkin got dipped...

Would you look at Taunt Mone's face!

So, any who...

Went to a wonderful little party at Duane's mom's house

afterward and so many people came out to celebrate

with Little Lilly.

Then the subject came up on what to call me

since I am now the second Lillian in the family.

Then someone in Duane's family mentioned

LILLY THE GREAT

You know because I am Lilly and I am the great aunt....

So, immediately I liked the ring to it.

I mean like, who wouldn't want to be called

LILLY THE GREAT

I mean it is so true in so many ways,

Oh, no, I mean I am the great aunt and My name is Lilly...

Well I just think all of you who refer to me only as

Lilly right now can just bend and start

using the title now before little Lilly

gets confused,

Wouldn't want to confuse such a little girl

as she grows up.

So, maybe we should just all practice it while she is so young.

The End

P.S. HAVE I TOLD Y'ALL HOW MUCH I LOVE

DUANE'S FAMILY AND HOW SMART THEY ALL ARE?

PRAYERS FOR THE TAUNT

Taunt Mone is having an angiogram this morning.

Pray that all goes well and she is home safely by

tomorrow morning.

Have a good Tuesday!

ONE OUT OF FOUR CHILDREN...

ONE OUT OF FOUR CHILDREN WILL GREY YOUR HAIR...

Oh, don't let this cute face fool you...

Rebecca and Mikie were blessed with four beautiful children,

each different from the other.

what fun it is to watch each of them mold to the people they

will become as adults.

Amazing how four children can be raised in the same home

with the same rules, values, and beliefs and yet

each to be different from the other.

Ellen, the baby girl of the group,

is the one...

the one that will turn her parents pepper hair to salt!

She is a mere two and a half years old

and already has given her parents a few

heart wrenching experiences.

Yet this weekend, we are all thanking God

for prayers answered and for always, always

being watchful of this little critter.

Without going into deep explanations,

lets just say Saturday this little one,

because of her curiosity found herself

with a broken upper arm...

bad enough to require a ride in an ambulance

to Children's hospital and a hot pink cast

that I wish I had a picture of.

Oh, the stories that will be told of this little one.

Hope her momma is writing them down

as she always wanted to write a book and in

her home there is a book writing itself as I type.

Please continue to pray for our little wonderer, Ellen

as she heals and pray that the arm will heal without

surgery. This will be decided on Friday so

many prayers are needed to storm the heavens

so that our little one doesn't need surgery.

How we love her!

Thanks to everyone who burned the beads with prayer

this weekend, keep them coming!

back to the real world

Ronnie finds friends everywhere... sorry about the side picture

so I had to find my own friend!

Well, back to the real world!!!!!!

Returned last night at about 8:00pm

and Jesi surprised us with a wonderful supper

and a clean house!!!!!

Thanks, Jesi!

Well back to the real life here.

After a week of relaxing with no time

to do anything, no time to wake up,

all the responsibilities and the catching up

begins today.

It is why everyone should vacation at least once a year.

We all need some down-time where

there is nothing to worry about.

I spent much time with myself, doing

whatever I wanted to do,

took my time in the morning with drinking my coffee,

blogging, catching up with friends on the internet,

journaling....

So today, playing catch-up

It is always wonderful coming home,

I am thankful that I have such a wonderful

place to call home where everything is

comfortable and safe,

Nothing like going away for a week

to remind me of how fortunate I am.