Child of the 80's

Or are we children of the 70's? Well, since we graduated in '86, I thought I'd post this one...

http://www.inthe80s.com/dynamic/child8e.shtml

If you're bored, take some time and look at some of the things on this site. They are hilarious and really take you back. And Kristen...they have a section for food of the 80's :o)

My Past 20

Hi, Everyone!! I feel like writing about the past 20 years is somehow similar to one of Mr. Freeman’s odd writing assignments. Here I go...

After CHS, I received an associate’s degree in early childhood education & from there I went on for my bachelor’s in elementary ed. from Cedar Crest. After graduating I was hired by the Allentown School District & have been teaching ever since. I’ve taught 2nd grade at Central Elementary for 9 years while getting more of an education about life in the city. Catty may as well be out of state for how different it is in Allentown! When the school went year round, that was my ticket to transfer to a ‘better’ part of the city and teach at Jackson School on 15th St. One of the other teachers is none other than Ms. Kornfeind (who was a teacher at Lincoln)! We became good friends & she is now the principal of the school. I’ve taught 2nd, 3rd, & 4th here w/ my favorite grade being 2nd.

In 1993 I met my future husband, Paul. We were married a year later & we’ve been happily married for 13 years! He’s a financial controller for a couple sites in the northeast. Paul loves his Corvette & drives far too fast on the 'performance driving' track! We bought a house up in Laury’s Station the same year I became pregnant…new house, new baby. We had a girl that we named Shuli which means ‘a gift from God’. We thoroughly enjoyed raising her for many years & figured there was no rush to have a 2nd.

All these years were filled with normal life stuff & were very happy. In late 2005 things changed when my Dad had what’s called a stroke to the eye which has left him with partial vision. A few weeks later, my Mom became extremely ill. She was good at hiding her worries from us for months just claiming a cold which she later decided was bronchitis. It was neither, it was lung cancer. She was in & out of the hospital for a few weeks w/o telling us the truth because she was protecting us, although in our hearts we knew. My Mom was a fighter up till the last day of her life when the doctor told her the cancer was so bad that all they could do was keep her comfortable. I swear the change in her was almost instant & we were devastated to hear that she only had a few weeks. I stayed overnight in the hospital with her that night along w/ my Dad & sister. (I'll never be able to express how bad lung cancer is.) Paul told me to stay & I’ll always be thankful that I was there when she died in the early morning of December 7th. While my Dad grieved her loss he had head trauma from a fall & ended up in ICU for a few days. During this time we found out I was pregnant- convincing us that things were turning around & some happiness was returning. A few weeks later I had a miscarriage which all but broke me. With God, family, & friends we got through it.

Now, I’m in the 22nd week of pregnancy & we’re expecting a baby in June!!! Shuli is thrilled to become a big sister & is the keeper of a huge secret…she knows what the baby is going to be! Paul & I don’t want to know till delivery. Our cat, Chloe, has adjusted well to the loss of laying on Mommy's belly b/c of the pregnancy. She's a 15 lb. ball of love & has found a small area of my lap that's still usable! I’m not teaching this year b/c this pregnancy is high-risk & we want the baby to be healthy over anything. I'm thankful I have the luxury to have this time off. We had a little scare a few days ago & there are some things we have to keep an eye on but we have faith. I know there’s a huge 9 year gap since having a newborn to care for but I can’t wait!!! Let the games begin…

That’s it for now. I’ll see you all at the next reunion!
Take care,
Terri E.

no Superbowl chatter?

good or bad?

my favorite part of the game

without checking do you recall who won/player the Janet had her wardrobe malfunction?

the pic is for Ray, the ring and ticket from the last time the Chiefs were in (before we were born), and they lost.

technical update

after Jamie contacted me today about not being able to comment on our blog because she has upgraded to the new version of blogger (and this blog had not) i checked into getting this blog updated and lo and behold the new version was out of beta and ready for "big" blogs. so we are officially updated. this might mean you have to upgrade YOUR blogger account, which may or may not entail getting yourself a Google (they own blogger) account. no cost or anything just some hoops to jump through. sorry for any frustration, but sooner or later it was going to happen. if you get stuck email Jamie! jk- that's my email link.

Just Checking In

Thanks everyone for your thoughts and prayers for my mom. She had her surgury on Tuesday and after 12 hours under the knife, some complications developed and they were unable to close her chest. She's not doing very well, and as we speak she is being airlifted to the Hospital of University of Pennsylvania. My family and I are driving down to my cousin's house in South Jersey tomorrow and I'll go to the hospital on Monday. My brother is driving down to Philly tonight.

If you pray, please do that. If you don't, then just spare a thought for her.

Thanks again guys. I'll check back in again with you all in a few days.

The Pets Continued

The Siberian Husky is Storm, he was my last dog and one of the best dogs/friends I have ever had. He has earned the right to be recognized as one of my pets. I had to put him down on New Years day in 2004. He was 3 months from his 13th birthday.
My current dog Drago is a boxer and is getting ready to turn 2 years old and is quite a handful, a completely different dog then Storm but is turning into a great companion.

Activities & Hobbies

What type of activities or hobbies have you tried or been involved with since our high school years?

No one should feel ashamed or embarrassed about what ever it might be that is important to you.

Lets talk about the years before our children's activities kicked in. I would like to hear about the things that we did.

I have learned a lot about some of our classmates from the blog.

Sports have played a large role in my life. With that said I have tried many different types of sports. Here are a few of the things I have done:

While in college - rappelling (total adrenaline rush)
martial arts
road biking
golfing

Lets hear about some of the things that you tried.

Please do not base it on sports only.

Any news....Vicki's mom????

Hey Vicki....I hope your flights were good and we all hope your mom is doing well. We all have you and your mom in our prayers. Keep us posted!

Fears of Forty

Forty is lurking around the corner for all of us!

What are some of your concerns when this time comes?

I feel that this is a time in life that we can truly say we now have "experience". We have been through our grade school years, college years, have been employed or own a business, have been married, maybe divorced, have children, have parents who are older now that may need our support, own a home(s), and many other situations too long to list. Some may be more furtunate than others. ( I apologize if something was left out or missed).So we can really say that we now have "experience" and can possibly offer advice to our own children and others who are seeking advice.

This is now our time in life to shine and help make a difference. Some of us may be future leaders in our communities and government (Mullen). We have an obligation to make a difference from our life's "experience" and I feel that this time is upon us.

I have very mixed feelings about turning forty this year. Believe it or not (I hate to admit this) I am a worry wort. I wonder if I'll see my daughter graduate high school and college, if I'll be around to see her get married and start a family of her own, will I be around to enjoy retirement. These are some of the things I am concerned about. I also know that I am not alone in this (just the only fool to admit this here).

There are so many health concerns that we are faced with today. Do any of you remember hearing about all the different types of diseases, that we are faced with today, growing up? Imagine what our children will be faced with.

How many of you are feeling all the little aches and pains from the activities you once did? The body just doesn't recover like it use to. Sometimes it's tough to accept it.

Is it me or does life seem to go a little faster? The days, weeks, months and years seem to pass at a speed I can't recall as a kid. Is this how our parent's felt as we were growing up?

As I sat next to some of the guys at "hockey night" it was interesting to see how some gray hair is showing on us (Lew didn't show any gray). Life's little stresses have caught up with us. This is a sure sign of "experience".

I have opened myself up for a good bashing and I know some out there will take their jabs and make fun of it. It doesn't bother me because I know that when forty approaches for these people they will be contemplating a lot of things mentioned here.

So let the beating begin.

Stop Her Now !!!

www.stophernow.com

Here's One for ya

So tell me who is going to vote for Hillary??? All opinions welcome.

Superbowl picks?

Who will come out of the Superbowl with a victory? Will it be Manning and the Colts? Will it be Grossman and 'Da Bears? Let everyone else know what you think. Also, post a score (before the game, Randy) and see who gets the closest.
Are you going to watch the game? Will you host/attend a Superbowl party? I see no one chose either of these teams so far as their favorite, but maybe Sandman likes both (we all know he likes whoever is winning at the time).

Bears Win
Randy G. (27-24)
Kristen B. (42-28)
Steve F. (35-31)
Terri K (wants the underdog)
Andrea L (???)

Colts Win
Jeff P. (27-17)
Sonya C. (???)
Michelle H. (???)
Lew W. (19-13)
Dave P. (31-21)
Robb P. (44-29)
Mike M (28-17)

Anybody want a drink?

So I have good news and bad news. The good news is we are going to Catty on (we think) January 31st for around 10 days. The bad news is this is due to my mom having a heart attack this morning, and open heart surgery tomorrow. We're not making any definite plans until I hear from my brother that she's out of surgery and when she's coming home from the hospital, but it looks like she'll be coming home on Saturday January 27th. My husband is going to Berlin for four days this weekend, comes back Monday January 29th, and then we're off to the States on the 31st.

Anyway, we'd love to have a drink (we're gonna need one!) with anyone who is interested and/or available on Friday Feb 2nd or Saturday Feb 3rd. Blue Monkey? Let me know. I'm looking forward to my visit, even if it's to help my mom recover from surgery. Hope to see some of you.

Our Zoo

This is our zoo!
I never had a cat growing up and never really cared for them. Now we have three???? The one with her head through the chair is a Siamese. Her real name is "Siami" . Don't let her beauty fool you! Her nickname is "Lil B". The "B" stands for many things. The dark gray one is "Chatty". He is the one that started it all. He is 16 - 17 years old and there is not another one like him in the world. The "Lil B" is his biggest pain in the ass! The dog (who thinks he is a cat) is McCrea (named after Collin McCrea - off road racer) He was through three levels of obedience classes and qualified as a "Therapy Dog". He is my shadow. Finally the big white cat "Gray" (don't ask) is also known as the "Illusive White Lion" He goes about 18 pounds (solid) He is afraid of his own shadow. Because of his size we had to buy a medium dog door for the pass through to their litter boxes. He got wedged in the regular cat door. He also has one blue eye and one green eye. Our animals bring a lot of joy into our life.

Sparky

Ok here is Sparky the pictures are a little old. He is a Springer/Cocker Spanial mix and he takes a bit of abuse from the children. He is 3 years old and the kids love him. Thank god he is really good he rarely barks, stays in the yard without a leash and loves to chase the birds and deer. He also loves to swim and as you can tell by the picture he loves to ice fish (something we have yet to see this year). Right now he has this really weird habit of sleeping under the wood stove. I have no idea how he doesn't cook his brain because it is so hot but he hasn't yet. My husband and I sometimes regret having a dog because they really tie you down but again the kids love him.

Well, now I'm curious!

And I want to see everyone's pets. So please post a picture.

This is Frasier, the most handsome dog in all the world. We adopted him from the RSPCA when he was 2. He's 14 now. He saved my daughter's life on two occasions, literally. The first was when she was a baby, and she was so ill she couldn't even cry. He sensed something was wrong, pawed us to wake us up and then went and sat in front of her bedroom door until we opened it. Turns out she had tonsilitis, spiked a high fever and was rushed to hospital, where she spent the next five days. The second time, when she was about three years old, we were out for a walk. A dog we didn't know came running towards us, very agressively, barking and showing his teeth. Frasier put himself between Georgia and the dog and took a bite that was meant for her. That's my dog.

New Addition to the Family!!!

Ever since I met Rob, he has wanted to get a dog. I successfully avoided this for three years, but as you can see, I finally gave in.

She is a boxer and we get to pick her up next weekend. We decided on a boxer because she has a short coat, is known to be a calm breed, and they are suppose to be great with other animals. The day before we picked her out, we went to Petco and while we were there, we ran into 5 different boxers. They are adorable - even when they are full grown.

I was really scared about Neon, but since we are bringing her in as a puppy, everyone tells me they should get along fine. Maybe one day I'll get Neon to sit on her back and get a picture of it to post.

I'll post more once we got her - I'll try to entertain with all the antics of training a puppy.

American Idol is Back!!!!

I am suprised no one else has posted this tidbit.

I'm not sure how much I am going to watch this season since the 1st two shows showed a bunch of losers and very few winners. I can't believe that some of these people really believe they can sing. I've always wondered if they still feel that way after seeing themselves on national television.

Oh well, looking forward to reading some heated debates.

Did anyone else see the interview on Oprah with Simon Cowell? I laughed when he said last season was a popularity contest and not a singing contest and that Taylor Hicks wouldn't have even been in the top 10 if he didn't have that gray hair.

Waiting for a blast from Kim.....

salt in the wound

for the iggles fans

Class of 1984 e-mailer

I've written about Tom Brobst before and his organization of the class of 1984. Every so often he sends out an e-mailer about happenings of the class, Catty, etc. I'll cut and paste it into the first post...it's long and the format may not come out right.

I'm sure Tom will send you the email if you contact him at tbrobst(at)yahoo.com and will add you to his mailing list if you want. Here are some pics he included.

not an Eagles fan

Fan Registry

What team do you root for? Let's get a running list to see where the team spirit lies within the class. Post your team (and changes if I messed up), and I will update the list .

Arizona Cardinals (5-11)
Atlanta Falcons (7-9)
Baltimore Ravens (13-3 - AFC North Champs)- Sonya C
Buffalo Bills (7-9)
Carolina Panthers (8-8) Dave P (*by default)
Chicago Bears (14-2 - NFC North Champs)
Cincinnati Bengals (8-8)
Cleveland Browns (4-12)
Dallas Cowboys (9-7) - Jerry S, Rock M, Kim K
Denver Broncos (9-7)
Detroit Lions (3-13)
Green Bay Packers (8-8)
Houston Texans (6-10)
Indianapolis Colts (12-4 - AFC South Champs)
Jacksonville Jaguars (8-8)
Kansas City Chiefs - (9-7) Ray N
Miami Dolphins - (6-10) Michelle R
Minnesota Vikings - (6-10) Robb P
New England Patriots (12-4 - AFC East Champs)
New Orleans Saints (10-6 - NFC South Champs)
New York Giants (8-8)
New York Jets (10-6)
Oakland Raiders (2-14)
Philadelphia Eagles (10-6 - NFC East Champs) - Steve F, Dave P, MaryJo J
Pittsburgh Steelers (8-8) - Lew W, Randy G, Tim C, Mike M, Jeff P, Terri K
San Diego Chargers (14-2 - AFC West Champs)
San Francisco 49ers (7-9)
Seattle Seahawks (9-7 NFC West Champs) - Todd M, Judy A
St. Louis Rams (8-8)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-12) - Vicki C
Tennessee Titans (8-8)
Washington Redskins (5-11) - Kristen B

Hockey Night

the now annual Reading Royals roadtrip was taking place saturday night while the Birds were getting stuffed. Lew managed to ding his truck before even leaving the driveway (damage to Lew's truck has become a recurring theme when we get together for sporting events) this time his brother-in-law's car took the brunt of the damage.

Freeman, the Eagles losing was probably some type of karmic payback for blowing off your friends. speaking of karma i'm not sure what the blonde in front of us did in a previous life to deserve having seats in front of us - the picture is her husband wiping Lew's beer off her face. Lew did buy them both beers to make up for it and for the record it wasn't Lew's fault. come to think of it that's also what he said about his brother-in-law's car. the Royals lost and we retired to The Pike Cafe to watch Eagle's fans go from jumping around pumping their fists, to crying in their beers while blubbering about next year.

good times.

ANTI EAGLES

Gators do it....AGAIN!

GATORS WIN...GATORS WIN!!

I can say that I'm surprised by the Score....but not the result.
Sorry Freeman - but SEC Football is simply the best.
Take a look at the conference Bowl records -the Big 10 had 2 wins -compared to 6 for the SEC.
Funny part is the 2 wins were against SEC teams -BUT Arkansas best player (Heisman runner-up) was injured against Wisconsin, and Penn State (although they did outplay Tennessee), got lucky on a Brad Bloszinsky type play (86 yds vs. 90 for Brad). Brad -You're still the man!

Sad to say -but its realistic that both teams repeat next year -given the # of underclassmen returning. Penn State should probably turn it's energy to something they can win....like Table Tennis or pocket pool!

GO GATORS!

All's quiet on the Texas front.

I'm not sure which has made me happier the last couple of weeks, the bumblin' Boys or the winning Eagles.

Regardless, well....I'll just leave it at that.

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!

Boy, I didnt think I would be the first one to send out Happy New Year wishes...(Steve??!!) Guess everyone was either too "out of it" last night to do so, or still in bed this morning, recovering. This was the first New Year that Trisha was awake for, and the first one in quite a while for myself. We've been hanging out down the street at friends of ours for the past couple of years now, which makes it easy if I have to bring Trisha home early and the boys want to stay; they just walk home. The holiday week has been our typical hectic, family time, cleaning up the decorations and toys and trying to get more organized. I am so anxious for our yearly neighborhood yard sale! The boys loved staying up late every night and sleeping in, however, that ends today as school is back in session for them on Tuesday. Did you hear that "yippee"! I am looking forward to the New Year, and continuous good health, happy times, and making new memories. I have every intention of actually starting the kid's scrapbooks and that means developing all the pictures on the digital camera in less than a year. Yes, I still have pics on from Xmas 2005 that have not been developed! I am looking forward to getting Trisha potty trained before she is 3, April (3 birthdays in this house) will be the last birthday that I plan on having and Jake will turn 13! Brad & I will enjoy our 15th wedding anniversary, somehow without the kiddies in June, our annual 2 weeks in Myrtle Beach in July, and then to another football season and Trisha starting pre-school. I wish the same good health and happy times to each and everyone of you! Now it's your turn; share your party info and excitement for 2007!