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Birth
This is the day I entered the world as my parents first child. I was an acrobat from the very beginning somersaulting down the birth canal and being born blue due to the pesky embilical cording not cooperating with my acrobatics. My mother reports that was lying on the birthing table screaming, "make that baby breath." All in all quite the dramatic entrance if I do say so myself. -
My childhood home
My parents bought a house and we moved from our duplex in Ann Arbor to my childhood home in South Lyon. It was a great neighborhood with a lot of kids and caring neighbors. -
My first steps
I took my first steps to my maternal grandmother. A day she will never forget -
I become a big sister
My sister Ashley enters the world and I am an ecstatic big sister. Referring to her as, "My Sister Baby." -
No training wheels
After much pursuasion my Dad takes the training wheels off my bike. I never looked back. -
3 year old preschool
I am in love with school. I sit at night with a large stack of books acting as if I am reading -
4 year old preschool and my first surgery
I am still in love with school and I can read which makes things all the better. I battle with ear infections and have tubes placed in my ears. -
Kindergarden and my second surgery
I am a challenge to keep occupied as I can read, recite my ABC's and can count to 100. I have a great teacher who manages to keep me busy and learning. I have my tonsil and adenoids removed/ -
Ashley has surgery
Ashley had to have emergency surgery Decmebr 24, 1986. I was left at my paternal Grandmother's house overnight. Ashley is released from the hospital Decemer 27, 1986 and we celebrate Christmas late. I am very happy to have my sister, Dad, and Mom back with me. -
First grade
For the first time ever it is reported to my Mom that I am talking and disrupting class. After much delibertion the school agrees to provide apptitude testing. It is found that I am reading at 7th grade level and my math skills are at 5th grade level. I am placed in advance classes and the disruptions stop. -
My foot
Ashley smacked the top of my foot in play. Something we have done many times befoe to try and make each other jump. The morning after she has done this I wake with a large mass on the top of my foot and it hurts very bad. My mother takes me to our pediatrician who xrays it and sends us to Dr. Loder an orthopedic specialist at UofM. -
First foot surgery
My first foot surgery takes place. At this point Dr. Loder is unsure if what he is dealing with. The word cancer is used and I am very scared. My mom is too but she puts on a very brave front for me. She buys me a stuffed version of the skunk from Bambi to help keep me brave. He goes with me into surgery. -
The diagnosis
I am in 3rd grade and have had two foot surgeries. The diagnosis is capillary hemangioma which is non cancerous but difficult due to the fact it is the first that Dr. Loder has ever seen or been diagnosed in a foot. Children at school begin to teast and taunt me by calling me a liar and a fake because they don't understand. -
4th grade and big changes
I am still having surgeries on my foot. Approximately one surgery every 8-13 months. The other kids still don’t understand the surgeries and I am still being somewhat bullied. I have had to quit gymnastics due to my foot and I am devastated. In addition to all of this my Mom goes back to work part time for a company in Ann Arbor. This is a huge adjustment for both my sister and I. -
5th grade - Age 11
I have finally made it to 5th. I am thrilled to get to change classes. I continue to do very well in school. My mom is now working full time which means I get to walk home from school. I have the responsibility of getting my sister from elementary school and then walking home with her. I fix us a snack and get down to homework. My mom is home very shortly after we get there. I still am having surgery on my foot. The nice thing about that is I get to leave class early, take a friend to help me an -
Age 12 - 6th grade
I am in my first year of middle school or more commonly known as 6th grade. Things are very awkward for me as I have braces; I enjoy school, reading, and choir. I also am tall and very skinny. That combination of things along with the fact I am still undergoing surgeries on my foot makes me a bit of an outcast. I have a very small group of friends but for the most part I am considered nerdy. I meet my best friend Renee as well as my future husband in 6th grade. -
Age 13 Teenage years have begun - 7th grade
I am in 7th grade. I am excelling in school and loving every minute of it. I still have braces but I am slowly becoming less awkward. I have developed my first crush on a boy named Jim and am very excited for our first school dance. I am continuing to enjoy choir and have become somewhat of the teacher’s pet. -
8th Grade - Age 14 Final Year of Middle School
I made it to 8th grade. Renee and I are still best friends but she has brought another girl into our group that I really just do not like. She is constantly trying to compete with me for Renee’s attention. She is very stuck up and looks down on everyone who may not fit what she considers to be her social class. My crush from 7th grade has found someone else and I was devastated. I have joined the school paper and have made quiet the name for myself. -
Age 15 - First year of High School
I have entered high school. Renee and I decided that we were going to dress like Alicia Silverstone in Clueless with heels, skirts, shirts, and knee high socks every day. We think this is cool and so do all the other kids our age. I am morphed out of my awkward stage my braces have come off, my acne has cleared and boys are beginning to notice me, however they notice Renee more which makes me a bit jealous. I also have come to realize that dressing like a movie character is hard work. -
Sweet Sixteen and 10th Grade
have achieved freedom and have earned my driver’s license. Due to all my hard work and maintaining straight A’s my maternal grandparents upheld their end of the bargain and I am the proud owner of a very cute 1989 Nissan Pickup. It is silver in color and I am in love. Besides Steve and one other friend I am the only sophomore that can drive yet. This up’s my level of popularity hugely. I have a very large group of friends and am very happy. I also tried out for cheerleading and made the squad. -
11th grade - Age 17
I am enjoying my junior year of college. I am working part time and I have bought my first car a beautiful green Mustang. Renee and I are still friends. My boyfriend and I remain together closer than ever. I am still cheerleading but have developed some very unhealthy habits as a result. I only eat one meal a day and am very careful as to what I eat. Our coach told me if I lost weight I would jump higher, have a better chance of cheering in college, -
Senior year - Age 18
I am a senior. Renee and I are still cordial but we are no longer best friends. She has her life I have mine. My boyfriend and I are still together and I keep looking toward the future and see marriage. Steve has become an irreplaceable part in my life. He is part of our group so I see him as much as I want. I graduate in the top 10% of my class and score very well on my SAT’s. I have decided to pursue nursing at Washtenaw Community College. Plans change and its off to Lima, OH for school -
Freshman year in College - Age 19
I move to Lima, OH for school. I have to report to campus in late July although classes don’t start until September. I move in almost 1 month before my boyfriend does. I am beginning to wonder if this was such a smart move. I make fast friends with my roommate and her boyfriend. I am enjoying life away from home. -
Sophmore year of college - Age 20
I am entering my second year in Lima. I have adjusted well but am anxious for the program to be over. My boyfriend and I are fighting more and more. I have put on quite a bit of weight. I am still maintaining my grades but I am pretty depressed. My boyfriend and I break up. I leave school and return home. -
21 and legal
) I am back home and enjoying single life. I am off medication for depression and I have a new boyfriend. I also have quit school for good I decided I needed a break. I am working full time. The highlight is Ashley graduated. We throw a huge party and it allows me to escape my hurt for awhile. The evening of my 21st birthday I am involved in a car wreck that should have claimed my life. I was not drinking even though I am 21. Someone was watching out for me that evening. -
Age 22
I have a new job I begin work at Lowe’s as a cashier. I meet a lot of new people. I am enjoying my life. I have a new truck that I love. My sister, her best friend and I are all living in my childhood home. My mother has moved into to help take care of what will become my stepfather. We adore him. Between hanging out after work having drinks, work, and home I am very busy. I still have not gone back to school but know I better make a change and fast. -
Age 23
I am single once more. I continue to work at Lowe’s I have been promoted to head cashier which is very exciting. I am working my hardest to be a good employee. Steve and I still see each other but not often. He has his life and I have mine. I miss him a lot but I don’t want to interfere and become a bother. I have a new interest but quickly realize he is not meant for me. -
Age 24
I begin a new job. Ashley and I still are living together. I am working very hard as the receiving manger at Party City in Novi. I have gotten another new vehicle and think I have finally found the perfect match since the Mustang. I have surgery but this time for my knee I tore the meniscus several years prior during cheerleading and it has now become the problem that I can’t ignore. -
Age 25 - Almost 30 where has the time gone
I am continuing work at Party City. My mother marries my stepfather and we could not be more delighted. I have a very special bond with him more so than I ever had or will every have with my Dad. I also make a decision it is time to go back to school. I enroll at the Ross Education in Brighton in the medical assisting program. I go to school 4 days a week from 8-12 and then work from either 1-9 or 3-11. I have been promoted as assistant manager. Things are really coming together. -
Age 26
I continue to work at Party City. My sister and I are living together in a home that my father purchased. We work opposite shifts so we are living more like roommates than as siblings. I decide it is finally time to go back to school. I get accepted to ROSS Medical and enter the medical assisting program. I am very busy with working full time and going to school but I manage because I know this will open more doors and more opportunity for me. -
Age 27
I have completed my program at Ross in the top 5% of my class. I am thrilled to have survived and made it through. I continue to work at Party City but my dream of working at University of Michigan has come true. I begin work in the Otolaryngology Department in Ann Arbor. I love my work and am very happy with the direction my life is heading. In October of this year I run into Steve at a bonfire. He and I have not seen each other in nothing more than passing in about 1 year. We begin to hang out -
Age 28 - 2 years from 30 yikes
Steve moves in with my sister and I in March and by April we are engaged. We begin looking for a home of our own. This creates a lot of turmoil with my father. This year was had two very large tragedies the first being the death of Steve’s paternal Grandfather unexpectedly in January and the second being my beloved stepfather in November. -
Age 29 - Marriage and a new last name.
During this time we are in full wedding planning mode. In June of this year I for the second time feel that I for sure have a guardian angel watching over me. I become very ill very quickly in mid June and am hospitalized with pericarditis.
Steve and I also get married on September 25. -
Age 31
Steve and I have been in our new home 1 year and love home ownership. I continue to work for U of M and Steve continues to work for the same company he has been with for the past 9 years in the construction industry. -
Age 33
Steve and I together make the decision that financially we are ready for me to return to school. I enter Schoolcraft College with my hopes set on entrance to the nursing program in the spring of this year. My mother moves from the home she shared with my stepfather into a brand new home that is smaller. She adjusts very well to living on her own which I wasn’t sure she would be able to do. I think it helps that she is in the same neighborhood as Steve and I just a few streets away. -
Age 34
Steve and I continue to live a very happy life together as husband and wife. We added another dog to our fur children in 2013. Our home updating is nearly complete. I take the entrance exam to nursing school in the summer of this year and pass. I am officially accepted to the nursing program at Schoolcraft. I get a letter a few months later from the college saying that my entrance has been moved up an entire year. I will begin in fall 2016. -
Age 35 fourty is getting closer.
This year is just getting started but it promises to be very exciting. Steve and I will be married 6 years this September. I will enter the nursing program in fall and I already have opportunities for employment lined up when I graduate. -
Age 30 2011 I made it
Steve and I have settled nicely into married life. We brought home a puppy the month after our wedding and he is acclimating nicely to our apartment and his two cat brothers. I continue to hold employment with UofM. Steve and I finally are able to purchase our first home in the spring of this year and enjoy repainting and settling in. -
Age 40 it's reality.
I have graduated nursing school and have gone on to receive my bachelors’ degree. I anticipate working for the U of M as a clinical nurse or operating room nurse. Steve and I will be celebrating 11 years of marriage this year. I anticipate that my sister will be married and enjoying her life. I also see Steve and me owning property up in or near Hillman, Michigan. -
Age 45
I will be continuing work as a nurse however at this point I feel very strongly that Steve and I will have moved to our property up North. I also would anticipate that my mother will be living with us in an in law suite we build just for her. If we are living up north Steve will have quit his company and will either have opened his own business or is just doing side work to keep him occupied alongside maintaining our property. -
Age 50 - Over as I like to say 50 and fabulous.
) I will still be working as a nurse but I may have changed to a more clinical position that requires more desk work including prescription refills and triaging. We will continue to be enjoying our property up north. My mother will be in her 70’s and hopefully enjoying her life with us. I would anticipate that although my father will be in his 80’s he is to also enjoying his life. My sister will be 48 and I can see her living out of state in a warmer climate. -
Age 55 I am not getting younger only wiser.
I expect by this age I will be working less and enjoying our property more. I anticipate that Steve will be fully retired and I will have to be home more to keep him occupied and out of trouble. I hope that both my mother and father are still living at this age along with my in laws. -
Age 60 and still sexy
I am sure by this time in my life I am looking very fondly toward retirement. I expect to still be living up north with Steve. I would anticipate that at this point that my father has passed and my mother is continuing to live with us and be very much like the character on the Golden Girls, Sophia played by Estelle Getty. -
Age 65 - Retirement
) Retirement is here after 30 years as a nurse I can see the future without work and it is bright. I will continue to hold all the fond memories of my career near and dear to my heart. I very much would like to believe my mother is still living but only time can really tell. I anticipate that Steve and I will have purchased a winter home somewhere in the south perhaps southern Texas or Arizona. I perhaps could see myself teaching some nursing courses too. -
Age 70
I at this point am thoroughly enjoying my retirement. Steve and I are most likely enjoying travel, our home in Michigan and our winter home most likely in Arizona. I am teaching a few nursing courses but mostly am enjoying my time with my husband, our home, and our activities. At this point we probably have sad goodbye to my mother as she would be 94. My sister and her family are a large part of our lives and we see them as often as we can. -
Age 75 - Full retirement is coming
I continue to teach but only 1 semester per year. I will occasionally give speeches to nursing students when asked but for the most part I am really beginning to embrace full retirement. Steve and I are traveling often and contemplating selling our Michigan home. -
Age 80 - Completely retired.
I at this point have stopped teaching. We most likely have sold our home in Michigan and made the transition to Arizona permanently by this point in our lives. Steve and I still enjoy traveling and go as often as we can. Adjusting to full retirement is different and difficult but in the end well worth it. -
Age 85 and still going strong
Steve and I continue to have a very happy life together. My favorite past times include crossword puzzles, baking, and working around our home and yard. Traveling has slowed down some but we still like to when we get the chance. -
Age 90
I am enjoying my older years very much. I anticipate that my sister is still around and depending on the situation with her family may be living with Steve and I. Traveling is now reserved for once or twice a year. We have become quite the homebodies in our later years and have even hired someone to tend to our lawn. Steve enjoys working in the garage but working is really just reserved for some small tinkering and organizing. I continue to enjoy baking and crossword puzzles. -
Age 95 and the loss of my one true love
I anticipate by this point I unfortunately have lost the love of my life and am waiting to be reunited with him again someday. I still live in our home but outsource most of the chores to hired help. I hope that my sister is still living but anticipate that she to is gone. My days are spent enjoying the friends I have, reading, and baking. -
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Age 100 -103 and the good life I lived
I would assume at some point within these years I to have gone home to my final resting place. I am back in the arms of the love of my life. I am able to see my Mom, Dad, Sister, and Stepfather once more. I am truly at peace and am enjoying being reunited with all of my loved ones. The important things I left behind were memories, stories, warmth, love, compassion, caring, generosity and devotion. I hope this legacy will continue to carry on even after I am gone.
