My husband and I knew each other since we were just kids. He was twelve years old, I was ten years old. We were not close friends or even neighbors. He lived in the neighborhood and my parents helped out his parents by donating food to the family or clothes or dad would take his mother to run her errands. He noticed me many times outside roller skating with friends. He had a sister who became my friend. Meeting his sister and having a friendship with her it was then my husband and I starting talking but few words between us. My family moved away cross town in the same little town so we lost all contacts with his family. It wasn't until I was fifteen years old, we bumped into each other again; my husband was serving in the United States Army. The day we bumped into each other again from loosing contact with his family, he was coming home on a two week leave. It just happen that my middle sister and I was heading down town to do some shopping. For us to get down town we had to cross over the Mulberry bridge. Just when we were about to cross the bridge, my sister noticed this young man in a Army uniform, he had a friend with him also that my sister also noticed so she called out to his friend. Him and his friend walked closer to us and started talking. I remembering what I was wearing. I was wearing a dress on that day and a veil upon my head because I was a daughter of a Mennonite father. When my sister started talking to him and his friend I walked over to these steps and sit down waiting until her conversation was over. "Sis shouted, you remember these boys don't you sis, she asked me. It has been a few years that I saw Mike, which who is my husband today. I was fifteen years old. I did not remember him right off hand. I than got up, walked over to my sister and the two men, to take a closer look. He sure look way different in a military uniform I said to my sister that is probably why I did not recognized him at first. I was very shy, the only words I said was Hi. He said Hi back. I went back over to the steps and sit down again, my sister went on with her conversation with him and his friend.

A couple days later he came by our home and asked me out on a date. I did not answered him right away. I told him I have to asked my father. Dad gave us his permission to go out but with rules. One of his rules were that we needed to be chaperon so my younger sister went with us. Dad also gave us a certain time to be home. I can remember he saying how different I was from all the other girls he dated. I replied back why; because I am a Mennonite girl. Pure and innocent. He did not reply back to my response. We just went on with our date which our first date was, he took me to the grocery store to pick up some laundry soap. We laugh and joke about that today. We went out again, he invited me over to his sister's for dinner. She made spaghetti's, I did not eat none for when his sister was preparing the spaghetti's I stood by her and watched. After what I saw I could not eat the spaghetti dinner she prepared. A roach fell in the spaghetti's, she just pulled it out like nothing happen and told me not to say anything to her brother or husband. I helped her set the table and when she brought the bowl of spaghetti's in, her husband and brother was passing it around I just politely say No Thank-You I am not hungry. I just could not eat the spaghetti's after what I saw.

We dated for a few years and one day while we were again making a trip grocery store I had to pick up a few things for my father so he drove me there. What a gentleman, he opened my door, carried my groceries to the car. Very sweet. While we were shopping though in front of the fruit Alie he bend down on his knees, I asked him; "What are you doing? Get up I shouted out loudly, your embarrassing me. He remain kneeling down on one knee and took my hand and asked the clerk for his speaker, proposed to me. I broke down laughing, I am sorry it was unexpectedly and by surprised. He then said I propose here at the grocery store because this was our first date. He placed my engagement ring on my finger, my response was, "WOW, I was speechless. I did not give my answer right away. I told him I had to sleep on it. It wasn't until a month or two later I finally said yes.

I did not have the wedding of my dreams, the white gown, long train or have the wedding reception because we just could not afford a big wedding. I wore an off white dress with a cranberry hat and married in our home we rented. We were married by a preacher. On November 5Th, 1974, my 17Th birthday also we were united in marriage. I married young and a year later we had a son together and three daughters later. We had our problem but we manage like any other marriages but together we got through them. Our marriage was in big trouble when our four children reached their teenage years. We went to church together, did family activities together but then our children started giving us problems. When they became adults, move out on their own the problems gotten bigger. Together we had one son and three daughters. When they moved out on their own and started their own families they started meeting new friends, new people. All four of our children started hanging out with the wrong people making the wrong friends, started getting into trouble.

Our son is the oldest, he is thirty-five years old today. He moved out when he reached eighteen years old. He married a woman who was a stripper. I was shocked when I heard the news. His dad was disappointed in him but yet we started to accept her, together they had two children, a son and a daughter. We own two homes so they rented from us. They fought a lot, she was staying at her job, the strip joint longer and longer hours, than she ended up doing lap dances. Our son came crying and upset to us. The way we raised him, we did not believe in divorces so he stuck by his wife because of the two children. Their marriage just got worse. They ended moving out of our home back close to her family. When he moved back to her family he ended up getting in deeper trouble. On January 23, we were home celebrating our middle daughter's birthday, his wife came knocking at our door to give us the news that our son was picked up and taken to jail. I fainted. 'What"? Their son was only a year and half old, their daughter was only one Month old. I called around to find out the information what was going on. Finally I got in contact with the right person, he gave me the details of what happen. After hearing what the officer said I broke down in tears, my heart was crushed. I said to the officer he was not raised that way, he knew better. We went to his hearing, and supported him as much as we could. The judge found him guilty. Founding our also that I did not know, my son was on parole. What I heard in the courtroom that day it affected me deeply. I ended up having a nervous break down, ended up in the hospital for two weeks. The judged sentenced him to ten to twenty-five years. I did not question, I was in shocked. It wasn't until a year or two later I found out what he did. He was sent to a State Federal Institution. We had visited him on several occasions and ended up stopping our visits because we felt he had no remorse what he done. He has written us on several occasions but his letters were not so kind so we stopped all contact with him. He blamed us for all his troubles. We were nowhere around. He was on his own I told our son, how can it be our faults. I also told him not to marry that woman, not to move back to her families home town but he ignore all our advise. We also told him how we felt, for she is nothing but trouble. He still refused to take our advise, still ignored our suggestions and our advise. Today he is still serving out his sentence, his wife has cheated on him while he was incarcerated and had twin boys to another man. She still today, dancing as a stripper. their son is now thirteen years old, daughter is eleven years old. My husband and I have not had no contact with our son for over five years.

Our oldest daughter got pregnant had two children and went on drugs after she moved with man to Florida. We gave her the same advise but she also ignored our advised. Now she is raising her two daughters alone and ended up on welfare. We had no contact with her for several years either. Our middle daughter got pregnant at the age of seventeen years old, we supported her , we helped raised her daughter for eight years. Our granddaughter's by-logical father left her and our granddaughter when she was fifteen months old. Her by-logical father sexual abused her, our middle daughter moved her and her daughter in with another man. We were still yet involved in our granddaughter's life because I was her babysitter while she worked. This went on for eight years of my granddaughter's life. One day while I was watching my granddaughter, I went to change her diaper and noticed black and blue marks on her bottom, hand marks. My husband and I drove over to where she worked at to question my daughter, and show her what this new man she moved in with have done to our granddaughter. I told her straight out if I eve see this again, you will no longer have your daughter for your dad and I will fight you for custody. Well that is what happen, we had temporary custody of our granddaughter for eight years, our daughter seem like she was straighting up for she left this man and got another good job, moved to another place so we felt we felt our granddaughter would be safe now. We were wrong. Her my granddaughter got evicted because daughter did not want to pay rent, she called us and asked her dad and I if she could move back home. We said yes, for our granddaughter's sake. Every night since she moved back home she would put her daughter to bed and go out to the bars, there she met another man, while her dad and I and granddaughter was in bed sleeping she brought this man home that she met at the bar to our home. I have waken up because heard a noise at the front door not knowing she was going to disrespect our home and bring a total stranger to our home. I was just in my nightgown. I tripped over him that is how I knew she brought a man home. Her dad and I was very upset with her. We sit our daughter down the next day and set some rules down. We told her right out as long as you live under our roof, you need to respect our rules, a few days later she moved out and her and my granddaughter moved into with this man she met at the bar.

Our youngest daughter followed her middle daughter's footsteps. Our four of our children has broken our heats, disappointed us and placed a lot of stress on Both of us. My husband and I conversation is always about our four children. I would say that is not how we raised our children. We sent them to private schools, put a roof over their heads, taught them morals, even did our family devotions together, fellowship and attended church together as a family. Today, all four them uses our grandchildren as a weapon against me in ways to break my heart. For they know how much I love my grandchildren. We always been there for all four them bailing them out of trouble over and over again and again because we love them unconditionally, always have been supportive even if we did not agree with them or even seen eye to eye. Now when they call me on the phone, our phone conversations ends up into fighting match. I don't raise my voice I just listen and they literally scream at me because they got into an argument with their spouses, the youngest daughter husband cheated on her seven times, the middle daughter new live in boyfriend beating her up, we co-signed for my son and his wife for their first home and they lived in it for one Month, we ended up in $50,000 debt. Yet we still love them unconditionally. Our youngest daughter called last night, saying awful things, unkind words, middle daughter's new boyfriend she met online, disrespects us,lies about us. I finally told my husband enough is enough I can not take it no more. My husband and I lives on a low fix income but I told my husband I pray we win the lottery so we can move so far away from our children to start to live our life's.

I cry out after getting off the phone with my youngest and middle daughter, I said in a loud voice our four children are driving us to an early grave. It has been affecting my husband's health, my head spins like a roller coaster. We may had been a little strict on our children but we never spanked them, we grounded them to their bedrooms or took things away from them. We did not allow them to have sleep overs, and when they wanted to go to their friends house, yes we wanted to know names, phone number, address, and we also wanted them home at a certain time. We need nothing but love our children. I ask myself over and over again,"What are the chances to have four children that are so rebellion. When my husband and I agreed to stop bailing them out, stop giving, they gave back nothing but heartaches and burdens. I told my husband I can't take it no more. I want so badly to move so far away, in another state from our children so we can start our lives's together. By staying here we can't focus on each other or live our life's because our minds and conversations are about our children. I have a big warm, loving heart, they know what buttons to push or they will use my grandchildren to get what they want from us. They have robbed us when we did go on vacation for two weeks, we were saving up for that vacation for years but when we came home, we noticed we were robbed. Founding out later our children were the ones that broke into our home and stole my wedding set, a cash we had, and other items that I can never replace. Again we talked about it today, November 12, 2009, "Lord, please let us win the lottery so we can move far, far away to begin living our lives's. My husband went on the Internet looking at homes, if we win we decided to move to Texas area. Now we just have to wait and pray God hears our cries and answers our prayers.