Mother's Day

Since this past weekend was Mother's Day, most of my weekend was centered around family. My son and daughter in law invited my family to their home for a cookout on Saturday night. We had a great time and a lovely dinner. I did miss Chloe who was not there because she was spending the weekend with her other grandmother. Let me take this opportunity to offer a word of encouragement to those of you who are raising teenagers and may feel like you are losing your mind. My oldest son, Chloe's father, was an extremely difficult teenager. I thought one of us wasn't going to survive it. I wasn't sure if I would end up in my grave or a mental institution. I could tell you stories that you wouldn't believe. Today, however, he is a new man. He is married to a woman that my wife and I both like, he's just bought his first home in a very nice neighborhood, he makes more money than I do, he's the father of Chloe, and he's turned out to be a pretty decent guy. I am proud of his success. So, if you are currently going through a difficult time with your teenager, hang in there. Sometimes all you can do is the tough love and lots of prayer. There were days my only goal was to keep him from imploding. At the time I thought those days would never end but they did and now he's become a good man, husband, and father. O yeah! He loves his Momma!

Sunday was a gorgeous day here in Kentucky. We visited my wife's mother in the retirement home where she lives. Since it was such a beautiful day, we sat outside and talked. She is 82 years old and a little forgetful so sometimes you feel like you are having the same conversation every ten minutes. She is a sweet little old lady and she has been very good to me over the years. Afterwards we visited my 77 year old mother. She is the healthiest of our parents and much of her life is centered around taking care of my 82 year old father. There's usually a crowd at my parents home on holidays. Yesterday was no exception. Two of my brothers and one of my sisters were there along with an assortment of spouses, nieces and nephews. Most of the "children" are college students or young parents