Our Family is Growing

When our children were born, all my husband and I ever wanted for them was their happiness.   On June 13, 2015, Michael married the love of his life, Courtney.    From the moment she entered his life, we knew that she was the one.  

They have a story all of their own and we are happy to see what their future holds.   In the meantime, it is our prayer that they enjoy everyday they have together and grow in both love and happiness.    Please enjoy a few priceless moments and memories of their special day.   

                                                    Our sons, Michael and Andrew

                                              Michael smiles as he waits for his bride

                                       Our granddaughter, Rosslyn, and the ringbearer

                                                  The beautiful bride, Courtney

                                               Time for Mom to pull out the tissues

                                                   Sharing their personal vows

                                                       More tissues for Mom

                                              Gorgeous day for a gorgeous couple

                                   My husband, John, my sweet mother in love, and I

                              Andrew's wife, Christina and both my Mother and Sister in love

                                   After 31 years of marriage, this man still takes my breath away

                                                      Michael and Courtney

                                                       The Bride and Groom

                                                            Their first dance

                                                         Seating Arrangement

                                                          Gone, but never forgotten

                                      A beautiful tribute to the ones that are watching over us

                                                        Courtney and her Dad

                                              Michael and I dance to "Mother Like Mine"

                                                       The "Shoelywed" Game

                                                This game was a big hit for the guests

                                              Michael and his Grandmother/Godmother

                                    The love of my life dances with the love of Michael's life

                                                                The cake

                                                  Will they smear one another's face?

                                                                   All smiles

                                                              There they go!

Congratulations to Michael and Courtney.    We love you both and wish you all the happiness and blessings for your life as husband and wife.    

Jazz

One of the hardest things to explain to children is the loss of a family pet.   With each pet that we lost while our children were growing up, heartache would follow.  To help with the heartache and healing process, we encouraged our children to treasure all the special memories they had of their beloved pet.   One of the ways they did that was to write stories about their pets.   Not only did this help them remember the great times, but it also helped us to see how they were responding to their grief.

When our dog, Chloe, passed away at three years old due to cancer in 2000, it came to a shock to all of us.   Our youngest son, Andrew, took it especially hard.   He drew pictures of her constantly and wrote a letter about how much she meant to him.    He wrote about how there are things that always go together such as peanut butter and jelly, lobsters and steamers, and swimming together with her at Ayers Lake.   He spoke about losing a sister when he lost her and asked God to take care of her because he couldn't any longer.   It broke our hearts, but we were thankful that he could express himself.  

That same year, we adopted a eight month old black lab mix.  He came from a family that had purchased two puppies together, but realized that having two was far more than they could handle.   They had named him Tazz.  When my husband went to the shelter in Stratham,  Tazz immediately responded with his tail wagging.   He asked us to meet him the next day so our sons could see him and see how they all would get along.  We all fell in love and we left the shelter with our new black lab puppy.   His name didn't sit well with any of us because it sounded like a devil, however, our sons were concerned that he wouldn't know his name if we changed it drastically.   The name, Jazz, was born when he continually danced around us and we could hear his footsteps everywhere we went.

Jazz did have some training when he came home.   He was housebroken and knew commands such as sit, down, and stay.   As new dog owners, we weren't completely sure how to make sure he continued to stay trained so we hired a dog trainer to come to our home and help us.    Jazz did great, but more importantly , we learned how to work with him to make sure he minded.   With two sons at home, we were told to make sure we all did the same thing.   I won't say that it wasn't hard work, but we loved our new addition to our family and worked hard to make sure he knew we were in control.

On January 25, 2015, we lost our beloved Jazz.   He was 15 1/2 years old, having difficulty getting around, and had taken a few falls down our stairs.   When he took a real hard fall on Saturday afternoon and was having trouble getting up afterwards, we knew that it was time to say "good-bye".    Our home isn't quite the same; our routine of taking him for walks is all mixed up and the house is eerily quiet.   As much as I know it was the right thing to do for him, our hearts are broken.  

Talking about Jazz has been good for my husband and I.    We have been talking about our favorite memories of him, looking at pictures, and attempting to help each other with the grief that comes from losing a pet.  The grief is real; it's hard, and it hurts.

To help myself just like we encouraged our children to do when they were young, I thought I would take my own advise and write about him.    There are so many memories and it would be impossible to try to talk about all of them, however, I will do my best to give you an idea of how special Jazz was.  

Jazz loved to be next to us every single second.   He would have been perfectly happy to sit on our laps all day even though he weighed between 60 and 70 pounds.   If you went outside for just a minute even if it was to get the mail or take out the garbage, he wanted to come.   When we would come home even if we were only gone for five minutes, his long tail would wag so hard, he would split it open on the walls and dishwasher.   In fact, this was the reason the vet recommended having his tail amputated.   He still found a way to wag his stumpy tail though and we were thankful he didn't have sores on his tail all the time.

Jazz loved the water.   One of my favorite memories of him was when we went to Back Lake up in Pittsburg.   We took a day trip to visit Garfield Falls which is a short hike and beautiful waterfalls to explore and swim in.   John, Michael, and Andrew all jumped into a swimming hole which was really the only way you could get in without going through the waterfalls.   It was especially cold so I stayed back with Jazz.   He wasn't going to have any of it.   He wanted to be with them and swam with all his might to get to that swimming hole.   The falls continually pushed him back, but he never stopped trying.   I was actually getting concerned about him because not only was the water cold, but he was exerting himself to the limit.   My men finally got out so Jazz got out too.   He was exhausted, but as soon as they got out, he went and stood right next to them.   He never left their sides for the rest of that day.

When my husband was hurt in 2003, Jazz was a saving grace to him.  He would keep him company and would follow him around making sure he was all-right.   You can never tell me that dogs don't know when their owners don't feel well.  Jazz helped him through a difficult time in his life and gave him something to keep him busy while he was recuperating.  

Jazz had a routine of getting up as soon as my feet would hit the floor in the morning.  He could be anywhere in the house and would hear me getting up and would run to the bedroom door.   He knew that it was time to get rubbed down and taken out.  When my husband would get ready for work in the morning, Jazz waited patiently until my husband was putting on his socks.    John would pet him before he left for the day and as soon as he left, he knew it was time to eat his breakfast.  While we were training him, we would make him sit and he would have to wait for us to say, "free" before he could eat.  There were some hectic mornings that I would get busy and forget to free him.   He never moved until he would hear, "free". Another routine would happen when John came home after working.   As John would drive in, I would look at Jazz and say, "Daddy is home". He would run to the window and stand up on the windowsill to watch him coming in.   John would take the time to rub his ears and face when he got home and Jazz knew it and loved every second of it.  

Another trick that we trained him to do was to make sure that we went into the house first after coming back from a walk or just taking him out.   We would make him sit and then we would open the door.   If it was myself, I would tell him, "Ladies before gentlemen".  He also knew that if he listened, a treat would be sure to follow!

There were times when he would definitely get into trouble.   For instance, if he decided that he wanted to go chase after something,  he would run off.    When he would come back, all any of us would have to do is to point to the corner.   He would sit there with his head down because he knew he did wrong.  It actually used to make me laugh to watch him come across the yard knowing that he knew as soon as he came in, it meant the corner.

Jazz also loved to ride in the car.   It didn't matter where we were going, but he really loved trips to the bank or coffee shops.   He knew these places had treats especially for him.  

As I sit here today, I look over to the spot where he would lie down.   He isn't there, but the memory of him is.   I watered our plants earlier this week and looked at the windowsill with all Jazz's scratch marks on it.   In my mind, I can see him looking out the window and if any of us was standing there, he would move to be right next to us.   The spot where his food and water dish is empty, but I can still cherish him waiting patiently for me to say "free" before he ate.

Jazz was our dog, our pet, and a part of our family.  There are some people that may tell you that they wouldn't have a pet because of either the work involved or how difficult it is after they are gone. I'll take every scratch mark, every chewed up towel, and every mess he made all over again.  He made us all happy and brought more life to our home. I pray that he knew how much joy and love he brought us.    

The Circle of Life

Friday, January 16, 2015 started out just like every other Friday morning.   It actually began the day before when I realized that three years before on the same date I would be spending the last day on earth with my Mother.  As my day went by, I would glance at the clock and realize that this was the time that her siblings came to say their good-byes to their sister.   I thought of the time when I ran out to get her a iced coffee from Aroma Joe's and purchased it with a gift card that I still have in my pocketbook.   I thought about her last sip of that drink and how much she enjoyed tasting it.  Then, as I went to bed I knew that three years ago, we had our last few hours with her.   I didn't sleep three years ago at that time and early on Friday morning, I was wide awake just thinking of her last minutes with us.   A friend on Facebook wrote about how she remembers the anniversary of when her Mother died and someone told her not to think about that; only think about the good memories.   She responded with, "Why would I ever want to forget?  Every moment of her life was important to me and helped me to become who I am today."  Her words really touched me.

I did finally get to sleep and woke up to my husband putting coffee on and starting breakfast.   As he left for work, we hugged and I thanked God for having another morning with him.   Another thought of my Mother touched my heart as I thought of how much she loved my husband and was so happy for the two of us.   I got ready for work and headed out.  I stopped for coffee and thought of how much she enjoyed her coffee in the morning.   I took a sip and smiled as the words slipped out of my mouth with, "Ahhhhh", just like she did when she took her first sip in the morning.

My son, Michael sent me a text in the morning asking me if we would mind watching Rosslyn, our granddaughter for a few hours that night.   Mind; are you kidding?   We love having her and then I smiled again thinking of how much my Mother loved watching her grandchildren.   John came home and we made hot dogs together.   As we sat down together to have dinner, we held hands and said a prayer.   I closed my eyes and opened them watching Rosslyn squeeze her eyes tight to say a prayer.    All I could do was smile and think of how my Mother would love to see the expressions on Rosslyn's face at times like this.   After dinner, we all went into the livingroom and played together.    Whether it was feeding her baby, pretending to go shopping, or dancing the chicken dance, we laughed all night with her.   It was such a perfect way to spend the evening. Just after 9:00 pm, the phone rang.   It was my sister-in-law sharing that she had just become a grandmother to a beautiful baby boy about a half hour earlier.   I had tears in my eyes as I congratulated her, told her we love her, and thanked God for another priceless gift of a baby boy to our family.  

As I got ready for bed last night, I couldn't help but think of the day and all it brought.    January 16th will always be a day that I remember as the day that my family said good-bye to my Mother.   Even though that day three years ago brought so much heartache, today it brought so much joy. Ironically, it made me think of the song, "The Circle of Life" which was one of my Mother's favorite songs from The Lion King that we were able to see together in New York City.   It's the Circle of Life and it moves us all through despair and hope, through faith and love.  

   

November - An Opportunity To Give Thanks

One of my favorite times of the year happens to be the month of November.  As the weather begins to get cold and we are blessed with a warm home, it is only natural to be thankful.  There is also nothing like the aroma of fresh fall air.  One of my favorite things to do in the fall is to hang out laundry.  It always brings back the memory of when my children were born. Michael was born in early October and when my husband came to visit us at the hospital, he had been outside cleaning up the yard.    I can still remember how fresh his clothes were. When our second son, Andrew, was born, it was the end of October. Both my husband and Michael came to the hospital and that scent filled the hospital room.  

This week as I was reading some posts on Facebook, I noticed some of my friends were beginning to write things they were thankful for. I might be a day behind, but it is never too late to start.  So, here I go:  

Day 1 - Memories - It never ceases to amaze me how much a scent can bring me right back to another time.  This afternoon, my husband went out shooting with his brother and when they returned, my husband came to me and gave me a hug and kiss. His clothes had the fresh scent of fall and it took me right back to the memory I spoke about in the beginning of this post. More importantly, he had the opportunity to go out and do something that he loves to do.    

Day 2 - My Mother - She may not be with us here on earth, but I know where she is and her memory is always here.  When you stop to think about it, she is the one that was chosen by God to be the Mother of my sisters and I. She gave us life and nurtured us everyday she was with us.  I laugh when I think of how she never enjoyed cooking, but yet, she could make us a cup of tea and it tasted so good.  She used to joke that if a home could come without a kitchen, she would have bought it.  She knew how to go out and get the perfect gift for everyone on her list at Christmas time. She loved so deeply and everyone knew how much they meant to her.  There isn't a day that goes by that my mind doesn't think of her and yet, I am so grateful that her suffering is over. I love you, Mom and am so thankful that God chose you to be my sweet Mother.  

As the month of November continues, I'll be continuing on this journey of thanksgiving.  As I started this tonight, I just began writing and before I knew it, the memory of fresh fall air came to me. It's a cherished memory and one that I will not only be thankful for, but treasure for the rest of my life.   It makes me wonder how many more treasures I will think of during this special time of the year.  

Let Me Share A "Seacret"

There is a saying that says everything happens for a reason and I truly believe that to be true.      Last fall when things were upside down with healthcare, it was painfully obvious to me that I was unsure of where my business was headed.     It has been hard work building my client base, but with more than 80% of my clientele losing their current health insurance plan and many not sure if they still wanted it because of the new healthcare law, I was overwhelmed and really anxious.      Thankfully, things have calmed down and I have been blessed to keep the majority of my clients, but it came with many sleepless nights and me having to take a good hard look at what would happen should all these clients choose not to pursue their healthcare further.      

When all this was going on and to be truthful with you, I decided to take on a part time position during the holiday season at Macy's.   I felt that the extra money would be helpful for the holidays and the experience would be new and help me to put things in perspective.   The position that I took is called Support and Recovery.  To put it simply, I clean up the fitting rooms, organize, fold and put clothes away,  and just attempt to make things look presentable and ready to purchase.   It may not sound like hard work, but honestly, I have a new found respect for anyone that works in retail.     It is hard work and when my shift is over, I am wiped out.   I have stayed on since the holiday to help when the store is having a big sale, however, I have recently given a notice to stop working there the week after Mother's Day.    I don't regret doing it because I believe that God was showing me things that I needed to see these last few months.      


Taking on this part time position taught me how much I love working for myself.     I love setting my own schedule and although I still work by appointment in insurance, I have the ability to work it around my home life.   I also learned that I have missed being around people each day.    Before I worked in the insurance industry,  I worked as a nail technician for 27 years.  I was around people every single day and enjoyed the friendships it brought me.   People were happy to see me and enjoyed doing something special for themselves.  Although I meet with people each day in the insurance industry and have made some great friends because of it, insurance is a product that doesn't get most people real excited.    


As only God can do, he saw to it that a dear friend of mine invited me to go to a Mud and Margarita Spa party at a local Chamber of Commerce that she belonged to in the fall as well.     She had shown me the products before and quite frankly, I was eager to try them.  I purchased a few products that night and within a few days knew that these products were special.   The name of the these skin care products is Seacret Direct.   Seacret Direct only markets, sells, and specializes in skin care products.  These products are made from the Dead Sea and have immediate results.    The Dead Sea is known for it's therapeutic qualities in helping with skin care conditions such as eczema and psoriasis.    Because my husband has eczema that flares up during the winter months, I purchased some for him as well.    When my friend brought up the fact that I could earn some free product and possibly even some extra income, I was a bit intrigued, but not overly eager to sell them.  After speaking with her, though, and continuing to love the products more every time I used them, I knew she was right.   Even my husband loved using them!   I scheduled my first "WOW" party because these products literally make you say "WOW"  when you are trying them out.     My first party was a huge success and I signed up to be a "Seacret Agent" in February.     I am having a blast meeting with people one on one to show them the product, setting up "WOW" parties, and most importantly, earning free product and even some extra income.     Seacret Direct is a MLM (multi-level marketing) company and I am honored, proud, and excited to see the growth the company is experiencing.    It is another business for me, but as I said, I learned from working at Macy's just how much I love working for myself.    I can set my own time to meet with people and still do my insurance business at the same time.  


There may be some people that are wondering why I would choose to do another business when I have an insurance business that I am still growing.     In fact, at the same time that I started Seacret, I also hired a new insurance agent to work and specialize in both Life and Medicare Insurance.     When I look back at last fall and the uncertainty that healthcare brought me and so many others, I have to say that I am only looking out for my family.     I have worked way too hard to stop working in the insurance industry, but I also know that all the changes that we have had these last few months only means that more change is coming.    I can honestly share from my heart that God was preparing me last fall to accept the changes, make adjustments, and putting the right people and circumstances to help me through it all.     I have to personally thank Terri Pattison, my dear friend,  for sharing her "Seacret" with me and not being afraid to tell me about the opportunity.  


Lastly, this product is one that I can take around the world.     It's much to good to keep a "Seacret" and it is exciting to share it every day.    If you would like to experience the products yourself by having a facial, getting together with friends and family, or even earn free products and some extra income, I welcome the opportunity to talk with you.     In the meantime, take a look at this video and learn why I fell in love with these products.  

 

Two Years Ago Today

Two years ago today, I sat by my mother's side holding her hand as she let go.   Two years ago today, my family sat with her for a few more hours after her death before leaving the hospital.    Two years ago today, I walked out of the hospital with red swollen eyes and a tear stained face holding my husband's hand knowing we wouldn't see her again here on earth.     

We always hear that time flies the older you get and these last two years have proven that to be true.     In these last two years, so much has happened;   The death of my mother, an engagement, three weddings, a new relationship, three births, the death of Sally Ann's mother, the death of John's father, Uncle Rodney's death, and the death of Courtney's mother.   It reminds me of this saying: 

Our family is a circle of strength and love,
With every birth and every union, the circle will grow,
Every joy shared adds more love,
Every crisis shared together, makes the circle stronger.   

There isn't a day that goes by that our family doesn't miss the ones that are no longer with us.    I can only take comfort in knowing this:  

Two years ago today, my Mother was no longer in pain.     
Two years ago today, she no longer needed oxygen to breath.  
Two years ago today, she let go of my hand and had the arms of Jesus wrapped around her.  
Two years ago today, she was able to see her siblings, Butch and Jean as they welcomed her home.
Two years ago today, her parents held their oldest daughter once again.   
Two years ago today, she was at peace.      

Two years later, I am still holding my husband's hand.     We have walked hand in hand every day since then with a much clearer understanding of how precious and fragile life is.     We have helped one another get through each crisis and felt the joy that each happy occasion brought us.   

Two years later, I sit here with memories of my sweet Mother and smile.     She was an amazing and beautiful woman who cherished life and fought as hard and as long as she could.      I'm so honored that God blessed me with the privilege of having her as long as I did.  
 


                     In loving memory - Joyce M. Savory   June 10, 1939 - January 16, 2012     

Changes and Answered Prayers

It has been much too long since my last blog post and with the New Year already here, I thought it would be a good time to catch you up on news in my business.      

So many changes happened within the healthcare industry in these last few months.    Every August, I complete Medicare certifications for each insurance carrier that I work with.     In total, that equals about three hours for each carrier and this year, I chose to work with five insurance carriers.     Next, came certifications and classes regarding all the changes in the healthcare industry.     Between classes and certifications, the total time spent was about fifteen hours.      Learning is always something that is challenging and interesting to me so I am not complaining at all.     It is actually enjoyable to me.    

Once my certifications were completed, I was told that I would receive an e-mail with a special number for the healthcare website.     When the e-mail never came, I made a call to my insurance contact and she shared with me how behind they were and not to worry.      Everything was done as according to what they needed and there was plenty of time before October 1st.   

October 1st came and all heck broke loose.     Clients were calling interested in insurance, my clients were calling because there current policies were being cancelled, the hospital in my home town would not be a part of the new network for the healthcare exchange, and if you haven't heard of this by now, the new healthcare.gov website was experiencing delays, glitches, and just frustrating everyone.     

During this time frame (between October 1st - December 7th), I was asked to stand at a booth by an insurance carrier in a local store in our town to answer questions regarding not only Medicare, but help people with their options on the new healthcare.gov website.     Each year, I do this for Medicare and because the enrollment period for healthcare was at the same time, the insurance carrier asked me to do both.     The first two weeks doing this went pretty well.     Then, I walked in one day to find another agent sitting at the booth.     There was a mix up in the scheduling and now there were two agents working at the same booth.    We worked out the details to make sure that both of us had the opportunity to work there on different days and everything seemed to be going well.     Then, my insurance carrier called and told me that agents across the country were getting threatened because they were so angry about the new healthcare website not working.      They decided to pull out of the store.     I'm a firm believer that everything happens for a reason and with clients calling continually with questions, I felt that this was for the best.     And it was.   

Late in October, agents received notification that the healthcare website should be up and running more smoothly by the end of November.     I was able to do everything such as get quotes on my own directly from the insurance carrier and calculate what subsidies would be available for clients.    This helped clients take a look at plans, figure out what their premiums would be, and ask questions while they waited for things at healthcare.gov to work smoothly.    

November 30th came and the website did work.     It was a sigh of relief as clients were anxious and so was I.     Clients were getting covered, however, there was another hiccup.     There was no way for clients to pay at the end of signing up.    When I would call to help clients out, the insurance agency had no way for them to see if I had actually helped the client or if they had put my agent code in even though I would do this right in front of clients.    As a broker, there has to be proof that you are the broker of record in order for the insurance carrier to give you any information on effective dates, payment information, etc.    

With one frustration after the next, I was wondering if I would be able to make it in this business.     I can't even begin to tell you how many times I would pray about this.     I was worried all the time about clients not being covered, anxious, and overwhelmed.    

Then, my prayers were answered.     I met with a client that needed help with Medicare plans.     With Medicare, an agent must give a presentation so that clients can have a better understanding of what they are getting.     In the middle of the presentation, the client stopped me and said, " I have been praying to find someone to explain this to me in a way that I can understand.   You are my answered prayer."    It was such a blessing to me.     Just shortly after that, I was working with a client that needed help with his health insurance.    He did qualify for a subsidy so we worked together on the application for his insurance.     It took awhile, but he needed the coverage and together, we got it done.      When I was getting ready to leave, he thanked me for having the patience of a saint and shared how relieved he was that he had me to help him through the process.     He stated that he couldn't have done it without me and he would always be grateful.      Another blessing.    

In closing, I will continue on.     I know that there are challenges ahead, but we will prevail.      This business has been a blessing to my family and I pray that it will be a continued blessing to my clients.    They can tell my they are grateful and it certainly is appreciated.      The real blessing is the people that I have the opportunity to help each day and I am grateful for everyone of them.    It is my prayer that they always know it.