Friday's Family Foto...pretty long...

Deborah over at http://picturespotspens.blogspot.com/ is hosting Favorite Family Foto. You get to see lots of family photos, hop on over and check them out.

Chuck 45, Ronnie 40, Lance 29
I've already introduced y'all to my Grands so I'd like to start introducing you to my 3 son. I am so proud of them and words can never express my love for them. They have come through alot. Both just normal growing pains and Physical pain.
This week I'd like to introduce you to Chuck my oldest. He was born on Dec. 13th 1963. And yes it was Friday the 13th...lol...He wasn't due until Dec. 30th, but as a sign of things to come, he was to impatient to wait. We had taken our car to a Friend to over haul the motor and had used his old 1950 Ford Truck to come home in. (Now we thought we had a few weeks to go.....but...Chuck had different plans)...Well to say the least there were no shocks on this truck...and it had also snowed that day, a rare occasion in MS at the time. After my washboard ride home, there wasn't much hope of him not coming early. I made it to the hospital at 6:00 am the Dr told Charles to go eat breakfast that I'd probably be all day, little did we know I'd be one of those who had one pain and a little back ache and the baby was here. Chuck was half way delivered in the Elevator going up to the delivery room 2 hr later. I had all my babies fast...ok...so I'm like a rabbit ..boom and their here. A blessing in away and also not a blessing. So needless to say he came in this world with a bang...lol... He was a beautiful baby if I do say so...lol...This was made at 6 wks old.

3 yrs old and full of mischief and such a little man.
He loved playing football and was fast as lighting. As his Coach said he was little but he was loud, and hard to handle... Dr said the aches and pains he had in legs and back was growing pains...ok, sounded logical He loved his baby brother and his Baby brother loved him
He turned into a fine young man, not a Saint but a good normal kid and graduated in 1982, all his life he loved guns and the Army, In 1984 he enlisted and went to Fort Benning Georgia, there he met a young man named Andy Fagley from upstate New York, they called themselves the North/South team... they because life long friends. Andy is a dear true friend, He and his wife keep an eye on Chuck for me while they were stationed in Germany. It's hard for a Momma to send her child who had never been farther than Fl from MS. all the way to the other side of the world.....LOL...the day we took him to the Airport for him to fly to Germany, I went home, crawled into his bed and cried for 2 days. It was like a nightmare to me...ok, I told you my kids were my whole world..lol.. The photo above was made in 2005 when Andy returned from a tour in Iraq and was Stationed in Kentucky ( he retired the next year) and came down and spent 3 days with Chuck & Lori....Of course Chi-Chi had to get into the picture.

Chuck was to be a Paratrooper, still don't know why anyone would want to jump out of a perfectly good Airplane. Anyhow it wasn't meant to be, he torn his knee up on a forced march and wasn't allowed to go to jump school. He was sent to Illisham, West Germany. for 2 yrs and was suppose to have surgery over there, but they waited till he returned to Fort Polk to operate and by then it was really messed up. While he was in Germany, he got to visit East Germany and the Wall.The check point going into East Berlin.

He went skiing in the Alps, New Years in Paris, vacationed in Spain and Italy, His dream is to be able one day to take Lori and the Kids to Germany for a month and go back to all of the places he went to.

When he was 25 his whole world fell apart, he was given a Medical Discharge because of his knee, the day he came home, he was scheduled to have test run at the VA, because he had been having problems with his joints and legs hurting, He drove home from Fort Polk a 5 hr drive, and when he tried to get out of the car he couldn't move his legs, he laid on my couch for 3 mos. he could move enough to go to the bath room and back, his feet were covered with clear blisters. He was diagnosed with a type of arthritis, unfortunately he was misdiagnosed and suffered with frequent spells every year or so, for another 14 yrs until he finally found a Dr who know what was wrong, he has a crippling form of Arthritis called Psoriatic arthritis. He has to take a Chemo pill every day and gives himself shots 4 times a week. He has suffered for so long and never complains. ...Just to look at him you'd never be able to tell anything was wrong, until you watch him move around or walk. Then you can tell something isn't right.

In 1988 he was reunited on a blind date with a high school classmate, Lori, it was love at first sight and they never looked back, they were married in Aug of 1989

After 8 yrs of Marriage and 1 miscarriage later they added Connor to the family In 2001 our little Mo-Mo made the family complete. I admire Chuck so much, I've seen folks with less pain than him sit at home and never try to work. My heart just broke when he helped his Daddy build his home, he had to sit on the floor and slid around on his butt, because he can't bend over or bend his knees. He works everyday at a 12 hr job and tries to make sure his family has a good home and a good life. He also takes Connor hunting, fishing and helps Coach his little League baseball team.

I hope I didn't bore you, but I just want everyone to know how proud I am of him.