Monday, November 14, 2005, 10:45 a.m., C.S.T.~

Dear Donna~

Thank you for your beautiful letter; it is always good to her from you again! Hope this finds you (and your family) well! Please find enclosed a picture of myself and my family. I hope you enjoy it! As you can see, our family is quite large, larger than most; but it has gotten to the point to where my husband, Bill, or myself, canNOT imagine the family without any of the children! We have always loved children, and God brought us some precious beauties to our familial garden; and we couldn't be any more happier (or blessed) than we are right now!

I liked your italicized font in your letter; so much, in fact, I decided to try it for myself, and you are so right: it DOES look nice! In fact, I am enjoying this so much I just may do ALL my future letters this way! *Giggle*

I am glad that M'Bute' and Bethlehem are doing better; it is alwys hard when kids get sick or injured. But as I said earlier, I am a nurse, so I know how to handle any emergency that may come along, and I do koow when a call to an ambulance is in order. But I try to help my kids through their troubles (and do an awful lot of praying in the process!).

Tonight we are taking my daddy, Armand Moliere', out for supper. We are going to the Golden Corral. All the Golden Corrals across the country are having a "Military Appreciation Night", and they are going to feed the veterans a free meal. ALL veterans, current, retired, and past, are eligible for this free meal; all they have to do is say that they are a veteran, and they will get a free meal. We always enjoy going out and see the veterans, and I know that my papa enjoys a good, free meal! Of course, the REST of us have to pay, but we don't mind it really! After all, the veterans like my papa did pay the utiimate sacrifice by going into the service, so it is only right to reward them with something like a free meal, especially since it IS so close to Veteran's Day! They could have done it on Friday, on the ACTUAL day, but Fridays are busy anyway, and nobody would have gotten in, so this is why they are having it today. It will be very busy tonight, but it is so worth to see the happy faces of the veterans! And besides, my daddy can see old buddies again, and they enjoy swapping military stories in addition to having a wonderful meal! (My daddy is in his later seventies now, and he has a lot of health problems, but his mind is still young, and he enjoys it when people spoil him because of his being a veteran! :) ) And we get to have a very good meal, too, so we ALL benefit, not just the veterans themselves!

We are also going to the Golden Corral for Thanksgiving and maybe Christmas; they will be open those days too, and we always enjoy having someone else doing the cooking for once. (Speaking of cooking, I will have to tell you about the time when I accidentally put the turkey into the dishwasher and WASHED it; but that is another time and story! LOL Needless to say, my husband STILL teases me about it, and he STILL asks me if I am "going to wash any more turkeys!" LOL)

It sounds like the weather is nice there. Here it is sunny, but we may get more rain later, as a cold front is due to traverse the area; and then it is supposed to get sharply colder. We may have some severe storms here when the cold front DOES approach, but I pray not; I don't do storms very well, especially since the durecho we had a few years ago, a durecho that damaged our house and put us into a homeless shelter for a month until the repairs were completed. It was NOT a fun time AT all! I also don't do storms especially since I HAVE been through several hurricanes in Louisiana, where I was born and grew up. Hurricanes are NOTHING to mess with, and once you experience the fury of one, you NEVER forget it!! Then we may have highs in the FORTIES and FIFTIES instead of in the sixties or seventies, like it has been here lately, and the lows may dip down BELOW freezing! (Time to cover the plants, Louie!! *Giggle*)

I will most certainly keep Kris Oliver, your nephew, in my prayers; I will pray for ALL our service men and women! In addition to Armand, I also have a daughter, Tanya, who will be joining the Marines when she is out of high school (she graduates next year, and she will then go directly into the Marines upon graduation), and I also have some friends who had been in the service. I could have joined the service myself had I enlisted, but I wouldn't have made it because I am well under five feet tall. (I am only 4' 7 1/2" tall! So I AM a shortie! LOL) I also have back problems (Or DID prior to my surgery I had earlier this year; now, after years of suffering, I am FINALLY free of severe back pain, and I can get around so much better now than I had been able to in YEARS!! Best of all, I am NOT walking with a cane OR crutches, the first time in YEARS I have been able to do so; and I am able to lift my smaller children up into my arms without being in excruciating pain! It has been nothing short of a MIRACLE!! :) )

Well, I am going to get myself a little nibble while I am on break (I am at work; it is a slow day today), so I don't miss out on my lunch. I will write to you again some other time; until later, take care, and God bless!

(((HUGS))) and much love, your Tennessee Cajun friend, Louie May Sandusky. :)