| ABOUT ME: Hi! I am a recent widow (January, 2003), mother and grandmother. I have 2 adult children by birth. My dear daughter Tina and her husband Rob have gifted me with 5 gorgeous grandchildren! Rob has an adult son, Matt. Tina has a 12 year old daughter, Amanda-Leigh. They blended the families together, added 3 more sons - Benjamin and Nicholas who are now 8, and Thomas (Tommy) who is 5. You can meet the family at My Heavenly Miracles. My troubled (and long-lost) son was unable to care for his sweet daughter (who was abandoned by her mother at 17 months of age) properly, and my husband and I took her in shortly after she turned 4 - almost 9 years ago. Sadly, a few years after she came to live with us, she disclosed that she had been sexually abused by her birth father. This was confirmed after an investigation by SCAN - the Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect Clinic at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, the police and the Children's Aid Society. You will find part of her story on my pages. As soon as she is able, we will complete it together. As I build my site, you will find that although I am a simple person, I am also very complex. I have many life passions and interests. I am a very open & honest person, and have many life experiences that I hope to share with you. Please feel free to email me with any comments or questions! HOBBIES AND INTERESTS: As I hinted above I have many, many hobbies and interests. I think my biggest loves are animals/nature and children. I also enjoy reading (horror is my favourite), woodworking & refinishing, oil painting, arts and crafts, NASCAR stock car racing, and computer games of all sorts. I love working on my website, my gardens are very important to me, as are environmental issues. I have been involved in municipal politics, and I manage a support groups for Canadian grandparents who are raising or seeking access to their grandchildren. You will read more about many of these things as my site progresses. FRIENDS AND FAMILY: As well as being a widow, mother and grandmother I am also a sister, daughter and granddaughter. I am very close in heart with my siblings, a younger sister and brother. My sister Marlene, and her sweetie Mike, have 4 wonderful children who I love almost as much as if they were my own. You can meet my sister's family by visiting the Precious Pages link. Marlene and I have always been close, despite miles and years between us. We are a lot alike (only she is spoiled - tee hee!), and yet as different as night and day. My brother, Tom and his wife, Anna are the kind of people who just seem to have it all together. I love spending time with them both, and recently went on a short but pleasant trip to Florida with them. Tom sometimes has difficulty expressing his feelings verbally, but I never doubt his love for me. I love that we can talk NASCAR or computers together. In fact, he gave me my first computer, so I have him to thank for getting me hooked! Both Tom and Anna played a crucial role in my ability to handle my husband's illness and subsequent death. I don't know what I would have done without them. I am also very fortunate to still have one living grandparent, my Gramma. She is my Dad's mother, and she is the strongest person I know! I think I have inherited a lot of her good qualities (& a few of the bad!) and I am very proud of each and every one of them. Tough as nails, she is, a real fighter...but so soft inside. The best thing about Gramma is that she loves unconditionally. Gramma turned 93 in October, and you should have seen her jive at her 90th birthday party! My parents were excellent role models as I was growing up. Their focus was on family, honesty and caring. I learned to fight for what I believed in, and to choose my battles wisely. I also learned to finish what I start, and to live life to its fullest. From my Dad I inherited my love of nature, animals, books and children. Dad always had time for us, and he was always trying to teach us something while we had fun. Being the eldest child, and a girl, I was able to gain a bond with my father that will never go away. I am still somewhat of a tomboy. I used to be ashamed of it, now I accept that it is the part of me that is most like my father, and I am proud of it. Dad also taught me that I can be or do anything I want if I want it bad enough. From my Mom I learned that you can overcome nearly any obstacle in life. Mom had a horrible childhood, but she managed to overcome it, and become a valuable member within her community and home. I have such fond memories of my childhood. Mom would spend hours making me a puppet, sewing dance costumes, or skipping with the neighbourhood girls. My mom could fix anything from cuckoo clocks to washing machines! She painted and wallpapered our home, and yet always had time for all of our needs. I am also very fortunate that my stepmother (God, I hate that word!) of over 11 years is one of my best friends. At a time when my mother was not able to be there for me, Stefi was the glue that kept me stuck together - emotionally and mentally. She has tried very hard to keep our family a close one, which is not easy to do when a family is distraught over death, divorce, remarriage and other emotional issues. In addition, Stefi is a two time cancer survivor, and has a positive attitude and belief system that defies explanation. You can read her amazing story at Stefi Walks. I became a mother at a very young age and became a single one when my children were only four and five years old. Consequently, my youth was not spent making or keeping friends, but making ends meet to keep my children. I do have a very special friend of about 25 years who lives in Prince Edward Island. Daphne is a terrific writer and photographer. She is a supporter of organic farming, and grows herbs. She also has been actively involved for many years with riding for the disabled. We manage to see each other a few times a year right now, and I hope that continues in the years to come. Other than that, my friends are nearly all new ones. You can find out more about some of my dearest friends by visiting the GrandsPlace or the Grandma's Hugs websites. As my site grows, you will learn a lot more about my family and friends. I have no secrets! :) My husband was the greatest! He was a little rough around the edges, but he was always there for me since the first day we met. He had the unfortunate circumstance of not only falling in love with a very independent, head-strong individual - but on the day we were married he became a husband, father and grandfather for the first time in his life! (at 42 years of age!!!) He was my rock when I was a marshmallow and my pillow when I was hard as steel. He balanced my life in a way that I feel no-one else can or will. Even though Terry died in January 2003, I continue to love him with all my heart. It was not an easy road for him at the best of times. It was even more difficult when he had to give up being a Papa to your grandchild and become a Dad despite never even having a child of his own. Then there is the way he fought so hard to live when he found out he had terminal gastric cancer. Any man could learn a lot from my "Terror" (Terry). Be sure to read the story of how we found his father after over 40 years at A Father Found. You can also learn about our experiences with his illness and death by visiting my Cancer Index Page. |
| The Personal Page of |
| My Favourite Links: Grandma's Hugs GrandsPlace Yahoo! Canada Friends & Family Links Precious Pages My Heavenly Miracles Stefi Walks |
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| This was my 'Terror' on the left, me on the right and my competition in the middle! |
| Gramma Didi |
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| Here is my best friend in the whole world! She is absolutely the most gentle intelligent dog that you can imagine! Her name is Sam (Samantha). |
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| View and sign my new guestbook here! |
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