Hi, my name is Loraine.  I thought I would take a minute to introduce myself.  Help yourself to some cookies and tea while you visit.  I'm a lucky woman, who is married to a wonderful man, who is an absolute blessing.  I am an Army wife, our family moved to Fort Drum, NY in October of 2000.  In November of 2004, we arrived in Alaska.  We've been in Alaska for a bit now and we are just LOVING it here.  If you ever get the chance, you need to visit our final frontier!  You'll truly enjoy yourself.  Steve is gone again, but the girls and I are so very proud of him and his service to our country that we know the time will fly till he's home again.

I was born on September 19th, which may explain why autumn in my favorite season, the year to remain known to only my closest friends and family.  I was born in Illinois but moved to Arizona when I was about two.  My school years were probably no different than most.

After leaving High School, I entered the Navy, working with and on their computers.  I was stationed at Orlando, Florida; San Diego, California; Dam Neck, Virginia; Honolulu, Hawaii, then back to San Diego, California.  Up until October of 2000 I lived and worked in Columbia, South Carolina.  I worked for the South Carolina State Government, in a job I truly enjoyed for a fantastic boss and with a great group of guys.  Take a few moments to go through my pages and you'll learn more about me and hobbies.  Now, I'm extremely fortunate to be able to stay at home while the girls are in school.  I've been able to take up sewing, gardening and scrap booking as new hobbies.

Time has a mysterious kindness,
It always gives back to us what
we need in wisdom and memories.

Tomorrow is always fresh
with no mistakes in it.

Winter is an etching,
Spring, a watercolor,
Summer, an oil painting,
and AUTUMN, a mosaic of them all.

 Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take,
but by the moments that take our breath away.

Dreams are illustrations
From the book your soul
is writing about you.

Frodo: I can't do this, Sam.

Sam: I know. It's all wrong. By rights we shouldn't even be here. But we are. It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger, they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.

Frodo: What are we holding onto, Sam?

Sam: That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo... and it's worth fighting for.

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A special thank you to artist ©Paula Vaughan
 for permission to use her art.