Louisiana Sandusky in Tennessee answers her Texas friend's latest email.
Saturday, August 4, 2004, 10:11 A.M., C.S.T.~
Dear Diane:
It was so nice to hear from you again; thank you so much for writing to me and answering my last letter to you!
Hope this finds you all well and happy! Glad the kids are back in school; that is probably a welcome relief to Humberto and you! LOL I don't get to send the kids off here until Tuesday; and I am really looking forward to their going back to school again! That way, when I get off work at 2, I can get home and do an hour or so of housework before the kids come traipsing in and dragging dirt in everywhere! You know how kids are...LOL
We had a lot of fun at our adoption picnic. We met a lot of wonderful families; some came from as far away as California (the Williams family from Soulsbysville) and Alaska (the King family from Anchorage)! I have been writing to Kendra Mae Williams in California ever since last year, and we have built up a relationship; and from her letters, I feel as though I have known her all my life! Such a warm-hearted, compassionate spirit full of the Lord! And single-handedly raising twelve rambunctious daughters, all of them physically disabled, just like the mother! I also met the King family, and they have twelve kids as well, all of them disabled, either physically, mentally, or both! They are a lively bunch, too! (I just heard from the mother, Anna, and I wrote back to her; am waiting to hear from her again!)
Our picnic went quite well; over 40 different families attended, and the weather was pretty iffy. Rain on and off all day, but towards evening, it looked like it was trying to clear up, and the kids all had fun stuffing their faces and bellies and running their dinner off afterwards! Boy, I wish I had a FRACTION of their energy; they plumb wore me out just WATCHING them! LOL We didn't go to church because of the picnic, but our senior pastor, Bruce Bilkey, his wife, Toni, and their kids were there (the Bilkeys have adopted several children themselves; their daughter, Tirpe', is such a delight! You would love her!), and the Bilkey Bunch were having just as much fun as the rest of us! They had gospel music and contests and games for the kids (and the grown up kids! LOL), and it was a funtabulous time had by one and all!
In case you are wondering, Ronee' did well at her audition, and yesterday, she had her "callback", and right now, things look quite promising; but we won't know anything about the show until we get a letter in the mail. The producers of "America's Most Talented Kids" told us that if she made it, they would send a letter in the mail, stating of her acceptance into the show, and if she did not make it, they would call us. But they did seem to like her, and right now, all we can do is hope, pray, cross our fingers, and hope we get a letter instead of a phone call! Ronee' sounded good when she sang, and she had fun at the callback!
Johnny *IS* an amazing young man; you are right about that! He really enjoys the telethon because he knows there are people who care, and he knows that he isn't the only one with a neuromuscular disease; and he wants to see a cure just as much as everyone else who is touched by muscular dystrophy or any of the 40 neuromuscular disorders out there. He loves the attention that the telethon brings, and he enjoys hanging out at the TV studio and chatting with his friends and making new ones! We enjoy it too because we get to answer the phones when people make their pledges, and it makes us all feel that we are helping, and it gives us such a warm, tickly, pleasant feeling inside. We met the 2004 Poster Child earlier this year, Tadd, and he is such a delightful little guy! (He took over the Poster Child role from Johnny, who was the poster child for the local MDA for the past several years.)
But it will be hard not to see young Mattie Stepanek on there; as you know, he died earlier this year; he was all but 13. Whenever I hear of a person dying of a neuromuscular disease (in particular, one who has made a huge impact on the world, as did young Mattie Stepanek, what with his gift for poetry in the form of several best-selling books), I can't help but cry because it is just a cruel reminder of the seriousness of what neuromuscular diseases are, and that they do kill, often before the person reaches adulthood. I know I will be bawling my eyes out when they have the tribute to Mattie, and I can't help but worry about my own son, Johnny, who faces the same uncertain future unless a cure is found in his lifetime! I don't want to lose my son; he is too young now, and I just can't bear the thought of losing him like that!!
But on to more pleasantries here...
In case you are wondering, I am a Republican. I voted for George W. Bush in the last election, and I am voting for him again in November. It seems that he is the better choice for the Presidency. John Kerry just seems too wishy-washy, as you stated in your letter, and he lacks the experience that Bush has. I think Bush has done wonders for our country, and he has admitted that he has made mistakes, but he is only human, and he is trying his best to ensure our country's safety from further possible attacks from terrorist groups or organizations. I would much rather have a man of God in office myself, and President Bush isn't ashamed to admit his faith in a Loving God! I have always been a Republican; and I guess I will die a Republican! LOL I watched both presidential conventions, and I liked what Bush had to say; and after hearing John Kerry's speech, I was not that impressed. I listened to what Bush had to say, and he really did a great job in speaking; he had me convinced!
I have had the honor of meeting President Bush when we went to Washington a few years ago, and he was such a down-to-earth, friendly person who genuinely cares for his fellow Americans; and my husband, Bill, my son, Johnny, and my daughters Ronee', Barbara, Jodie, and Gemini met him too. We had our picture made with the President, and we also met his wife, First Lady Laura Bush, and she was just as nice as her husband. We also met their twin daugters Barbara and Jenna, and his parents, the former President Bush (Senior) and Barbara, the former First Lady; and we met Colin Powell and the Vice President, Dick Cheney. We went to Washington because I had written a letter about our family, and I guess I must have really impressed the President because President Bush called us and he personally invited us to come to Washington DC, which was what we did. I shall never forget the President's kindness towards me and my family, and I will always remember him and our getting to meet him in person! (Now you can say to your friends that you have a friend who has hobnobbed with the President! LOL Go on, Louie, brag a little more now, why don't you?? LOL)
Glad the weather is starting to cool off there. It is partly cloudy today, but in a few days, we may get a lot of heavy wind and rain, leftovers from the hurricane (Frances) that is now heading towards Florida. GREAT. Just what I did NOT want to hear: more rain. ICK! I am so sick of rain it's a wonder our yard hasn't turned into a BAYOU by now! LOL Maybe it may make me think of my Louisiana home, but still...I would not rather have a flood or a bayou, thankyouverymuch! LOL We have already gone through one flood (minor damage) in July and had some damage from a storm we had back in June; we don't NEED any more weather catastrophes!! :( But I AM glad that I am here in Tennessee instead of back in Louisiana: I have been in enough hurricanes to know that they aren't nothing to be taken lightly, and once you have lived through one, it is something that is not to be forgotten! (I went through several big hurricanes in my lifetime!) But in case Frances DOES decide to come here, I know what to do: board our house up, pick up our yard and put everything up, get the kids, and get the heck out of dodge *BEFORE* the hurricane DOES hit! LOL Heck, I may be on a cane, but I can move pretty fast when and if the time does call for it! LOL
Well, sweetie, I must go: the kids are in the pool, and they are having a rock em, sock em water fight and are splashing the heck out of one another and are making a royal mess of the yard; it looks like Hurricane Frances has already arrived! I had better put a stop to it before they make any more damage! They are also yelling and making noise, and they are making the dogs and cats go off! I don't want the neighbors to call the police on our kids, so I had better put a stop to it. NOW. I will write more later; until then, take care, and God bless you always! Give your kids (((HUGS))) and Kisses from the Sandusky crew!
wonderful write--well done! i, too, will miss seeing mattie on the MDA telethon--what a hopeful young artist we lost--but maybe enough money can be raised so we can eradicate MD once and for all :)
Agree with Kate...
Karen ...Your homely and friendly letters are so endearing and caring...
Shows the good heart you possess..
Love and Hugs
Peter
Reviewed by Kate Clifford
9/4/2004
Your writing brings you into the homes your writing about. Another wonderful write.
Reviewed by Susan Barton
9/4/2004
Another fun one. This will be a particularly rough telathon for me since they will feature a memorial to Matty Stepanek and I was such a fan of that young ma.
It's almost Christmas. Lynn Basil is writing her last book about a secret entrance into the magical doll land of Sha Bebe that she loves so much. Bagannos have taken over the world! Lynn finally meets her dolls in real life. Can she write in a Secret
A wicked Cajun Fairy named Robes Pierre entered the impenetrable Magical doll land of Sha Bebe. Queen Faustina, the ruler of the doll land, thought she had destroyed him, but he's back! Will the doll land survive his evil ways?
Saturday, August 4, 2004, 10:11 A.M., C.S.T.~
