signing off

hi all, i think this may be my last post. i haven't kept up with it and frankly i really don't have the time to. i am on facebook and regularly update about the girls and my family. i will keep the blog to send people to it so they can read our story. i trust you will continue to pray for us. i thank you for your prayers and support. please pray for my family, my siblings and their families as we morn the death of our mom. it has been a hard week and the saddness is overwhelming. bless you

time??

Goodness where is the school year going? It is already time for Kolby and Tate's spring concert and Kolby's last performance. I love watching the kids perform.
Both boys went to prom and had a good time. Tate is only a sophomore but his girl friend is a junior. Everyone had a good time and they were very tired the next day!! Mazie and I have been busy cleaning closests and getting rid od "stuff". J is very busy with work and will be traveling soon. He hasn't traveled since the girls came last spring. Mazie will really miss him.
Kolby returned home late Sunday night from California. He did not place but had a good time. They were told that just going to Nationals puts you in the top .5% of business students in the US. I am proud of him and glad that he had the chance to go.

another day!!

Well yesterday seemed to begin nicely but for Kolby not so much!! His car was broken into at school and what I like to call "his noise" was all stolen. Actually since someone came into the parking lot they stopped the break in and didn't get the speakers. Kolby saved up for a long time for all of this stuff and the funny thing or not is that the "noise" was worth more than the car. He was pretty bummed last night but woke up feeling a little better. Sorry Kolby!!

trip

Some pictures of our trip to Florida. I'll write later. By the way the 85 Volvo made it back fine and Tate is going to learn to drive it soon.

gone

Hi all, I thought I would write real quick before I begin the mad rush to pack. We are headed to Florida to see Britt. The "holdren" bus leaves at 5 am or earlier Thursday morning. We want to get to Britt's church for the Seder dinner. Mazie has her "kinie" and she's ready to go. She asked if she can sleep on Britt's floor and we are happy to allow her to do just that!! Britt has a picnic planned for us on Friday and Tate will be able to see some of the kids from Britt's old youth group. I am anxious to see Britt. Thursday is the girls birthdays and then on Easter it is the 1 year anniversary of us all becoming a family. Please say a prayer as we travel on Thursday and then again on Monday. We will be also driving back the old volvo station wagon so pray for it to work fine and no break downs or problems. Thanks for the prayers. Happy Easter to all of you. We are thankful that God's son was willing to die for our horrible sins. Think about this, Dru sent out this text: what do you think Jesus was thinking this last week of His life?

rain, rain, rain!!

I know that all the weather people say we need the rain but do we need it this badly? I have been reading other blogs of friends and have decided I am not real good at this. Hope that those of you that do end up reading it at least see a glimpse into our family and daily life. I listen to Mazie Anne as she watched out the office door this evening, she was talking to the rain to go away. She said that her kitty didn't like it. She also said that she wants to go "choppping" tomorrow. What a hoot she is.
Thanks to my "new" friend Carla whom has given me some "advice" on what is happening in my heart. Your insight is valuable to me.
As April begins and the end of school is quickly approaching there are going to be some very joyous events and some sad ones too. With my 3rd son graduating the "dread" is still there. I have friends that say "well you have done it before" but it doesn't get any easier that's for sure. Kolby is ready to fly, am I ready to let him? pray that I am when the time comes!! good night

10 years!

10 years ago we arrived in Raleigh and unofficially became "southerners". For the longest time it didn't feel like home. Not that I was attached to our home in PA. just that Raleigh was so much bigger than were we lived. It took me the longest time to get used to going to the grocery store right up the street and not seeing ANYONE that I knew. Traffic was another thing. I didn't drive on the "beltline" for months because I always seemed to get on and go the wrong direction and ended up going the whole way around. The schools took some getting used to also. The high school where Kolby and Tate go is huge and like Britt said when we drove up to register him for freshmen classes "it looks like Penn State". Raleigh is home now and especially Kolby and Tate feel it is their "hometown". My only wish is that my family would travel south to see us once in a while. The 9 1/2 hour trip to mom's is a killer. When dad was alive they did come in the fall and then again in the winter and I miss that. The best thing about living in Raleigh is the chance to see my flowers come up in Feb. and knowing that my convertable roof can be put down some days in January. Thanks to everyone that was welcoming to us 10 years ago.

Caroline's Promise

After thinking about the correct words to describe last night's Caroline's Promise banquet I still do not know what to say except "praise God!!" I am just going to pray that those involved had a good nights rest and that our Lord will bless each of them today. Listening to Tom speak just confirmed to me that God wants us to do more when it comes to orphans. Now do not jump to conclusions it does not mean that we are adopting again(although never tell God no!!) it does mean though that true religion is taking care of the least of these and with the numbers going up, 150 million now, Christians need to step out and care for these children, God's children. As the coming days start and end my mind and heart will be crying out to God to show me which direction I should move in. Pray with me that the banquet will move some to adopt and some to care or help others adopt and everyone to pray for children around the globe.
Dru and Emily took care of the girls last night and took them to Chick Fil A for supper and then let them play in the playground. Mazie had a ball and this morning she woke up and said she had fun and didn't "poke anyone in the eye". Let me explain. When Dru and the girls got to Chick Fil A Mazie wanted to play right away. Dru told her that they had to eat first and he and Emily had to watch them so that Mazie would not poke anyone in the eye. He was joking but Mazie took him serious and knew above all else she could not poke anyone in the eye while playing!! Mazie also got a kick out of seeing Tate and Kolby working. It was a good evening for everyone.

March 17

Mazie dressed in a green fancy dress today for St. Patty's Day and pre-school. She looked soooo cute and very Irish :-)
Tate passed his drivers test today. We now can wait for 8 more years till Evie drives. Maybe one of the boys will do it for us. Tate figured out that when Mazie drives he will be 30!! so he promised he would teach her. I may end up never having to teach any of my children to drive. It is not that I do not want to teach them it is just that in this traffic I am nervous and thus I make them nervous.
Dru is slowly getting better. Thank you for the prayers.
Did I report that Kolby placed 4 in the state for his DECA competition. He is off to Nationals in Calif. at the end of April. Thank you for the special thing Ms. Conley did for Kolby!!
I am so happy to see sunshine after 5 days straight of rain!! I will try to post pictures of the girls as soon as K puts them on. blessings

March 3!!!

Oh my we had snow again and missed yesterday and had a 2 hour delay today!! But thank the Lord it will be 70 by the end of the week!! My time always flies so fast. I do not update as much as I should and I am sorry for the few of you that do read this blog.
So here is the scope in a quick fashion. We surprised Kolby with an 18th birthday party. The kids had a good time and we were pleased with the turn out. Kolby was REALLY surprised. Thanks to Rianna for her help!
Dru turned 23 and we celebrated with a dinner with the family and Emily.
Kolby wrestled his last high school match and pinned his guy. Tate also wrestled that night and pinned his guy!! What fun it was to see them both win. We were all there and cheered very loudly. Mazie and Dru yelled hold him down and Dru yelled with much pride "that's my brother!!"
Mazie was able to go to pre-school again with me as I substituted. She loves "school".
Jay and I had a sweet Valentine lunch while the boys stayed with the girls.
Mazie and I made the trip to PA. and spent almost a week with my mom. What a good rider Mazie is 91/2 hours in the car and only very loud singing no yelling to get out of her car seat.
Dru has another hernia and he is waiting for insurance to say get the surgery. He is in a lot of pain so please pray for him.
I am debating if I should return to teaching in the fall. It has been wonderful getting to be with Mazie all this time!! I am praying and seeking.
We took the girls to a Caroline's Promise family day and enjoyed good swimming and good food and fellowship with other daopted families that CP has helped in the past. We have been choosen to speak at the CP dinner later this month. I hope that I can tell the girls story in a way that moves others to seek God's will in adoption either by adopting them selves or supporting someone else.
We also spent a nice afternoon with Jerry and Eileen celebrating their twin daughters 2nd birthdays. What a terrific journey God put them on.
So time goes on. I am grateful for our family and friends that read this and pray for us. blessings

hello

Monday morning and the sun is shining. Mazie and I will be off to Pennsylvania tomorrow so keep us in your prayers. My grandma is in the hospital again and so I think I need to get there to help my mom out even if its only for emotional support.I am anxious to go but not looking forward to the loooong ride. Keep me in your prayers. Also pray for Jay as he takes care of the house, Evie, Kolby, Tate and still work. Kolby is not feeling well so pray that it doesn' spread to anyone else. I hope to post pictures when I get back. blessings to everyone. Sharry

time???

To those who follow our blog? IS there anyone out there? Sorry that I have not written for such a long time. Let me catch you up. We finished January with a wonderful surprise party for Kolby's 18th birthday. We had a good turn out and the kids all seemed to have a good time. The week after that we had a Steelers Super Bowl Party with our friends. Sooooooooooooo happy that the Steelers won!!! Yea!! Kolby and Tae also invited a bunch of friends in for a last minute super bowl party. Then I opened up our home to ? ladies to celebrate the upcoming birth of a baby girl due any day now to Amanda and Sean. We had a nice turn out and I am thankful for Julie and her giving heart. Thanks for all the help!!! We also had the pleasure to watch Kolby wrestle his last high school match :-( The good news was he pinned his guy. Great job Kolby, I hope you heard your little sister yelling go Koooly and your older brother yell "that's my brother!!" We also got to see Tate wrestle and he won actually pinned his guy too!! What a night for the Holdren brothers. The pride we all had for those moments will stay in my heart. I am proud of both of you and I am proud at how your older brother and younger sisters yelled and cheered you both on!! Next I shed some tears as I saw my 2 youngest sons don tux's and clean up for Queen of Hearts dance. How handsome they both looked and how grown up too!! Now girls where were your turtle neck sweaters?? Just kidding. The girls were beautiful and I am glad that my friend Carolyn was able to shere in this special moment. Her sweet daughter Katie was stunning. So now I am getting ready to drive to Pennsylvania to spend some time with my mom. I think Mazie and I will leave Monday or Tuesday if the weather holds out. I sure do miss mom and I am anxious to see her and my grandma. If you think about it please pray for Mazie and I as we travel 9 1/2 hours. "story girl" doesn't mind riding but like her mom she can talk nonstop. I will fill you in later. blessings

Happy belated Kolby and Dru!!!!

Dear Kolby and Dru, I messed up, at least on the blog I did. Last week on Kolby's 18th birthday I thought I had posted some pictures but it turns out I did not. So happy belated birthday Kolby. It is very hard to fathom that my little red headed son is already 18. I am so proud of the man you are becoming. Dru, you turned 23 yesterday!! That is hard to believe too. Thank you for all you have done these past 9 months. I am glad you are here and I am proud of the Godly man you are!! Hope that you both enjoyed you pata and shimp(Mazie's words!!) last night.
On another note please pray for a sweet little boy named Cade. He is special to our family and he is very, very sick right now!! We love you Cade and know that God is already doing great things in your young life and your families!!
bye for now!! Sharry

some photos!!

Mazie makes us wear smiles 99% of the time. Don't get me wrong she does have moments of not being good but the bad is so out weighed by our smiles. Evie too is having fun and prayfully REALLY enjoying her new life. She is often quiet outside the home but here with all her brothers around she "jumps" right in!!

Tomorrow Jay and I celebrate 26 years of marriage!! We are soooo blessed! Thank you Lord!!

chilly!!

Mazie says she is chilly!! I know she is because her little fingers are cold!! We were laying down together to take a nap. After putting all of her favorite stuffed animals on my bed she crawled under the blanket with me. We were cozy together, she sleeps on and I have laundry to do!! The life of a mom. So do we ever catch up?? Kolby and Tate are off to wrestling practice and Evie is with daddy and Dru is with sweet Emily. Time to get back to folding, sorting and hanging clothes!!