What the future holds....

Today is a sad day in Charlottesville. Morgan Harringtons body was found yesterday morning on a farm here in Albemarle County. She was last seen at a Metallica concert at JPJ arena. Her parents have been looking for her for a long 3 months. There is still no word about what happened to her or how she got in that field. Her body was found by a land owner.
Being a mother, this hits close to home. I can't imagine going through what her parents have gone through. Not knowing where your daughter is or what happened to her. Raising a child it is always in the back of your mind that something terrible could happen but you never think it could happen to you.
As I put my kids to bed tonight, I will stay in there a little longer. I will think about the mothers and fathers who are searching for their missing children, the mothers and fathers who are visiting their children's graves instead of their bedrooms , and mothers and fathers who are in hospital rooms watching their children suffer senselessly, and screaming inside that they can't handle it anymore. And when I kiss them good night I will hold them a little tighter, a little longer. It is then, that I will thank God for them. I will simply be grateful that God has given me the greatest gift ever given.












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Chistmas has come and gone..

Christmas has come and gone. The decorations have all been put away and our annual Goodwill trip has been made. We had a very nice holiday. Once again I was able to take the week off between Christmas and New Years. I always enjoy having that week of vacation. It gives me time to spend with the kids and get my house back in order. This year we stayed home in our pajamas, played games and watched movies. It was a special time that I spent with my babies. They are getting so big, I know one day they would rather do other things than hang out with mom. I am enjoying it while I can.

Andrew asked for a batting cage and other small items. He got his batting cage. He knew how expensive it was because he said to me, "I bet I wont get anything like this again"........ Andrew had been asking for this for a while, we told him that this was both his birthday and Christmas gifts. We have not gotten it put together, but the site is ready. He is so excited to be able to use it.

Addison wanted a TV for her bedroom and Santa brought it. Every year that Santa comes he leaves Addisons toys in one place and Andrews in another. This year he had to switch it. When Addy came downstairs she honestly thought Santa had not come. The look on her face was priceless. Although, it was heartbreaking to see. I quickly told her to look near the fireplace and when she did, she was all smiles.

On a sad note, we did have something terrible happen. Dad and Sylvia had sent us a box of presents. The UPS guy couldn't get down our subdivision road due to the 25" of snow we had just gotten, so he left the boxes at our mailboxes. You guessed it, someone stole everything in the box. We weren't the only family that this happened to. There were 5 of us in the neighborhood. They have launched an investigation into this so hopefully dad and Sylvia will get reimbursed for the items. It is awful that people would do this to someone. I hate that my kids had to see that there are people out there that would do this to another person. It was hard to explain to them why this had happened. Andrew told me not to worry, they were just gifts.

Travis and I are back to work, Andrew is back in school and Addison is back at Leahs. Christmas is over and the New Year has begun! I wonder what this year will bring? Hopefully good health, happy times, and special memories.......

Some Garrett-isms......

mommy: "addison, scratch mommys back."

addy: "just for a second", (she scratches it for half a sec)
mommy: "Andrew always used to scratch my back when he was your age"
addy: "well maybe he should come scratch it now!"

Addison: 'Five Gollllden Rings, 2 turtle ducks, and a pa pair pear tree'
Andrew: "Thats not what it is, it's a postrich in a pear tree"

God works in mysterious ways...

Sometimes in life you feel like God has punished you. That your life really sucks. That when it rains it pours. You feel like there will be no brighter tomorrow. I have felt that way. More than once. I always heard the expression and never thought much of it. Until there comes a time in your life when that saying proves true, I don't think you can really appreciate it.

For me, it was when we lost our baby boy, Trenton. I was angry, upset, hurt, crushed, all the emotions imaginable. I was angry at God for so long. Why did he do this to us? Why did he choose ME? What had I done to deserve such a harsh punishment?

It was a very emotional journey that Travis and I had to endure. Trenton was delivered prematurely at 21 weeks. No chance of survival. He was big enough that we got to hold him, kiss him and say our good-byes. I remember that when the nurse asked us if we wanted to see him, we both initially said no. That it would be too painful. We changed our minds and got to hold our beautiful son and pray to God to hold him tight in his arms. I am glad that we changed our minds, it was the most emotional thing that we have ever had to face. It is also one of the most special and tender moments that I have had with Travis. Only us knew what it felt like, only us knew how our hearts physically hurt.

It took a while for me to get life back on track, I had a special little boy that needed my attention. Andrew was old enough to know what was going on, although I am sure he comprehended it like only a child would. He knew that his baby brother was in Heaven. I answered questions as they came up, not trying to give too much information at once.

I knew we would try again, that we would be praising God when we had a new baby, and that our family was still not complete. This was a bump in the road. There would be a brighter tomorrow.

Addison was born March 29, 2005. I knew then that yes, everything does happen for a reason and God DOES work in mysterious ways. Looking at our beautiful daughter, it all became so clear to me. Without Trenton, we would be without Addison.

Our family is complete. The Lord knew what he was doing.


Trenton Philip Garrett 12-29-03

My First Baby Sister...

Andrew is learning descriptive writing in school. He was asked to write about a special time in his life. This is his story, as he wrote it. I have not changed anything. Enjoy....

MY FIRST BABY SISTER

The most fantastic suprise I've ever had was when I got a baby sister. First, my mom named her Addison. Addison was crying for about 2 hours. Then she was sleeping afterwards and she was buetifuly adorabull.

Also when I got to hold her, she was so tiny. When I touched her stomach, it was smooth and shiny. So I asked my dad to hold her for a couple more minutes. When he said, "yes, sure", I felt awesome. So I looked in to her eyes and I fell emoshinal and suprised because she kicked my arm. Right then I knew I had my first baby sister.

When I got my first ever baby sister, it was the best thing that ever happened to me!

Andrew Garrett

Winter is here!

Winter is here, not sure if that is a good thing or not. I love the holidays but could do without the cold weather.

Andrew is doing great in school. He brought home straight A's. We are so proud of him. He showed me his report card and said, "See mom, I can watch TV and study at the same time..."

We just got back from Atlanta. We went to visit my dad and step-mother. It was a great "mini-vacation". Sylvia and I took Addison to the Cabbage Patch Nursery. She got to pick out her own Cabbage Patch Doll and name her. We all had so much fun.

Andrew, Travis and my dad just hung out relaxed and watched football. It is always great to visit with them.


Christmas is fast approaching. I am very excited about it. If someone would have told me how special and magical Christmas morning could be with two children, I never would have believed them. The look of excitment on their faces is like no other.

On a side note: Some Garrett-isms...

...."You are the best mommy I ever had"....Addison to Mommy

...."Andrew, leave me ALONE--I have an 'ear efrection'.." Addison

...."I really don't like that man, (Obama), I voted for McCain..." Andrew

Summer.Is.Over.

Summer. Is. Over.

Shrimp Boils, beach, lakes, boating, swimming....some of the many enjoyments that we have had this summer. We went to Nags Head for a week. It was very relaxing. This was the first time that Addison had seen the beach. We had a very special time just being with each other and having nothing to do.

We are trying to get back into our fall/winter routine. Andrew is playing fall ball and Addison has started gymnastics, or as she calls it, "smastics"......Andrew is enjoying being a 5th grader while Addison is enjoying her last year at Leahs. We are having an issue with her sleeping in her bed, she claims she is afraid she will dream of monsters. She has told me that she knows they are not real, she just doesn't want to dream of them. She told me one night that a monster had come into her room and grabbed her leg then chased her into the bathroom. How Scary!!!! We are taking this one night at a time. I hate hearing her cry and I don't think it is necessary to let her cry. I want her to know that we are there, so Travis and I are up and down all night. Hopefully this will end soon :(


Some funny moments from the past few months:

"Mommy, I know how you get a baby in your tummy! You have to go to college!"....Addison

"I told my coach that maybe he needed to put some better hitters behind me in the line-up, but I said it nicely."......Andrew

"Tomorrow I won't be here today".......Addison


Till next time.......

Summer, summertime...

Oh where do I begin.....So much has been happening around the Garrett household the last couple of weeks. Travis' job is starting to pick up a little, this is such a relief considering last month we weren't sure we would be able to cash his paycheck. He went to the bay last weekend but unfortunately did not catch anything. I guess that is what he gets when he doesn't take me. Whenever he leaves us for a couple days, I truly understand what it is like to be a single parent. Damn, it is so hard! The kids miss him dearly. Geez, he was only gone 2 days.

Andrew is playing baseball twice a week. Andrew got hit in the back with a pitch last week. He was the 4th kid that had gotten hit that game by the same pitcher. So I wanted the pitcher out of the game. Andrew went down FAST. After he got up and went to first, he stole 2nd, stole 3rd. Then his coach told him to go ahead and steal home. When he did, he slid into homebase and his cleat got caught in the pitchers leg, and down goes the pitcher. One way to get him out of the game! He was safe and got the winning run in. That move got Andrew the game ball.....He never complained about the huge bruise on his back, he just kept looking at the game ball!

Andrew is a very sweet child but sometimes he lets his mouth get the best of him. I guess that is your typical 9 year old though. I could never ask for a better son then him though. He was mad at Travis and I last week and he went to school and told the teacher that we get mad at him and beat him. That couldn't be farther from the truth. We do not beat our children. I was so upset and hurt with Andrew, but how is a 9 year old supposed to understand the consequences of his actions? How is he to know that lying like that could have gotten him taken away from us? I laid in bed Friday night in tears thinking of how I could make things better, I know kids will be kids but what can I do so this won't happen again?

Addison, she is a different story. She has kept us in stitches since she has been able to talk. She loves to sing. Her favorite song now goes like this:

my heart starts pumpin, shake-a-shake a booty, thats what my baby says......

I have no idea where she heard it but when she sings it, her attitude is in full force.

This is the best time of our lives, I am trying to enjoy every minute with the kids. I am so afraid that when I wake up, they will be grown. I look forward to the weekends. Summertime is the best.

Till next time,