My 2014 Summer Newsletter

Summer

Newsletter

August 2014

Brown | Neal | Johnson | Ellis

| Wooden |

Ford

| Moore

In this Issue Mo’s Message of Thanks Family Bonding Time

Birthday Shout Outs Family NEWS Latest family activities

2014 Senior Graduates Where are they now?

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Back to School!!

Exclusive on Robbie Johnson

Big Family Vacation in FL. The H I G H L I G H T S

The Brown’s @ OBX

Mo’s Random Corner The Griffin Wedding My Aunt Karen

Lending a Hand Giving back ….

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A Worthy Cause Remembrance of Timmy Brown

Online @ www.issuu.monique.com

Miss me?

I’m Backkkkk

Message from Mo

Hello Family and Friends, I t has been a while, maybe a little too long since I’ve written a newsletter. So many things are going on now and time has been flying by bringing a Wedding, another school year, maturity, new relationships, and a new look on life. So Mom and I talked about putting out a new issue before the year ends, so here I am, back in action. Over the past year since I last posted my summer 2013 newsletter; I have been “trying” to focus on school, basketball and being in a relationship in which I will talk about in my “Mo’s Corner” .

A Special thanks to my mother, Angie Ford who has pushed me to get back into this and who continues to motivate and guide me into the right direction. However, I’m still not sure about my direction though.... I know, I know, time is approaching fast with me being a Junior this year in high school. I have to really start to think about my future in terms of what I want to do and where I want to be in the next 5 years from now and begin working on how to attain it. If you have any good advice you want to pass my way…..I’ll take it.

Wish me luck !  Before I move on, I would like to also thank and WELCOME my cousin, Jordan as a new co-writer to the newsletters. Yep, Jordan has chosen Journalism as one of his electives this year in Middle School and will be joining me as a co-writer on our Family Sports section.

So look out for Jordan to be making contact with the family athletes for a good story. I am really excited about this and hope he enjoys Journalism this season.

To all my contributors to this issue who gave me information to include in this issue and the ones who allowed me to chat with them to do a write up …..I THANK YOU!!! I would also like to thank my Grandma for becoming one of my new editors. Lastly, my readers; thank you all for your feedback and continued support, it really means a lot to me. Please continue to keep in touch.

Angie Ford

On the beach at Key West

It’s been about 3 years since we started this family newsletter and I wasn’t sure Monique would come back to it and start writing again due to her upcoming school schedule, sports, social activities and what not. She surprised me, so here we are. I’m still not convinced yet that this will be her niche because as you all know….when you grow up you tend to find yourself going into another direction. As she somewhat mentioned in her message above, she’s still trying to find her way. I’m just thankful that she made this attempt to see if its in her future.

As for Jordan, I can really see him being a Sports Commentator. Communication may be his calling as long as it’s in sports where his interest is. At a very young age that boy has always been very knowledgeable of Sports and not just Football or Basketball either. He knows about a lot of Athletes (male/female) and keeps up w/ the sports by reading the sports section and watching sport channels. I also welcome nephew to the newsletter as well and look forward to seeing his stories/write ups for the Family Sports section. Welcome Jordan!!

BIRTHDAY SHOUT OUTS! October 3 – Cathy Brown 4 – Robin Neal 17 – Trice Jones 29 – Uncle Bobby Neal

November 4 – Melanie Ford 11 – Frannie Brown

14 – Grandma Ford (RIP) 20 – ME (Monique Ford) 22 – Joslynn Howard 26 – Brayden Wooden 27 – Darnell Ford 28 – Matthew Brown 29 – Kelly Jenkins-Brown 29 – Jordan Brown

December 1 – Allan Brown (RIP) 3 – Karen Brown 4 – DaMani Neal 5 – Trina Ford 8 – Grandma Patty Brown (RIP) 8 – Walter Ellis 8 – Nettie Wooden 9 – Tiffany Scott 17 – De’jon Ellis 18 – Dwendolyn Woody 30 – Pete Neal (RIP)

January 1 – Donna Neal 1 – Lamar Ford 8 – Carolyn Johnson 25 – Greg Ellis 26- Pap Simms (RIP) 28 – Bryson Neal 28 – Elijah Neal 29 – Bip Neal

Bringing Back - FAMILY BONDING TIME I never got to post these stories of a family bonding outing and cookout because I took a break from my newsletter. These photos were taken the winter of 2012 (Bowling) at Bowl America in Falls Church and Summer of 2013 (Family Cookout) at Lake Fairfax. Fun Times!

Join us at some of the following events for some Family Bonding Time. Hit me up with an email or text and I’ll provide you with the meeting spot and additional details.

Reminders will be posted on the Family Face Book page.

 Lite the Night Walk* October 17th @ 5pm Reston Town Center  Fright Nite @ Kings Dominion October 18th @ 6:00pm

Brown’s, Johnson’s, Ford’s, and Neal’s

 The Great Country Farm Outing October 25th @ 1pm Blue Ridge, VA  Football SHOW DOWN Cowboys vs. Redskins October 27th @ 7:30pm CST  Happy Halloween October 31st Please send me pics for the next newsletter  Happy Thanksgiving Family November 27th

Brown’s, Neal’s, Johnson’s, Ford’s, Park’s, and Wooden’s

What lies ahead for Our 2014 Senior Graduates College or Jump Start on the Real World ?

KHALYN BROWN,

Parents: Kevin & Deirdre

College for Khalyn. She graduated from Dominion High School and is now attending JMU as a Freshmen studying Art and Graphics to become a Graphics Designer. In high school Khalyn participated in many art shows; received awards, prizes, and also played HS Golf. I got a chance to chat with Khalyn while she was at school and asked her a few questions.

What and/or who inspired her to pursue an Art degree?

“I would say my mom was a big motivator as far as my major has went. She’s always been there for me to critique my work and give me some suggestions. Also my other motivator would be my art teacher, Mrs. Isbister. I had her for Art 3 and 4, Photography and Graphic Design and she kind of opened my view to graphic design and stuff like that.”

How was your first day or week getting settled in?

“Ummm it was weird. My dorm had no ac or WIFI. I’m sharing 3 showers and 3 toilets with about 16 other girls. It ‘s definitely a totally different atmosphere but it wasn’t too bad to get used to” Any encouraging words for me and the others who are still in school?

“Don't wish your years away because they go by way to fast. And also don't worry if you don't know what to do with the rest of your life. Or even with your major. Because you have plenty of time to think about it. And if you keep your mind open and broaden your options eventually you will stumble upon something that you love.”

JOSEPH ELLIS, Parents: Corey and Dejon The Real World and School for Joseph. Jo-Jo walked the stage at Potomac High School in Sterling, VA and received his high school diploma. He is planning on taking a year off from starting college to hit the real world with working and get his barbers licenses while attending a cooking school in Ashburn. Once he completes those two milestones, he intends on going to NOVA to study business management and music production.

BREJEA SCOTT, Parents: Tonya and Walter Brejea graduated Landstown High School on June 13th 2014. She is currently attending Delaware State University and majoring in pre-nursing. Her biggest motivator is her mother Tanya. Brejea described her first week as overwhelming!

It’s a big difference being on your own. I am getting use to it and having fun. Her encouraging words are to enjoy and take advantage of your last years in high school. Don’t slip once you get into college because colleges will look at your grades until the very last day of school.

HOPE BROWN, Parents: Troy Brown and Jennifer Jordan Hope is attending college as a full-time student at Seminole State in Florida. She graduated from Lyman High School in Longwood, Fl. While attending high school, Hope had a passion for band and played many instruments, such as: the clarinet, alto saxophone, piano and mallet percussion. As of this moment, Hope doesn’t have plans on continuing her music path/ career through college, but she says that she definitely would like to try it again in the future.

Right now she’s working part-time at Little Caesars while attending school full time. Hope is studying to become a nurse. She had a huge interest in health care, but says her passion has always been to help people. Her mom is currently a nurse attending nursing school and she inspired Hope to follow a nursing career.

Hope’s encouraging words for her younger cousins that are still in school is make sure that you always do what you love even if it means you have to compromise or make some accommodations….always include to do what you love.

During her Winter break; Hope plans to come back to Virginia to spend Thanksgiving or Christmas with her family.

The new senior (‘15) Robert Johnson Parents: Alice Johnson and Rob Cole Looks like Robbie will be our only graduate for 2015 that I’m aware of.

Got a chance to talk with Robbie over the summer and he mentioned that he’s going to get his barber licenses and open up his own unisex shop. He’s currently attending Broad Run High School where he’ll graduate, but he’s also attending another school learning about barbers Well to be perfectly honest for now only because it shan’t truly dawned on me yet that I’m a rising Senior , but in retrospect it does feel bittersweet knowing that this is it for him. He said, “All the 12 years I’ve devoted into my education will have finally insured that I did it and that all of my hard work has paid off”. He’ll miss his high school friends, But says that’s a part of the post-grad process because each of his friends will journey into a new direction.

After High School, Robbie plans on going to NOVA Community College for at least 2 years to further his studies into business and marketing along with finance. Then he would like to take a break for a year to go under internship for a professional Barbering / Salon business to get an ideal feel and observation on how the profession works. He is really committed to becoming a professional barber / stylist and owning his own shop or chain of shops in the near future one day. After the 1 year of internship he is hoping he’ll be able to transfer into either an in-state or out-of-state University for another 2 years to finish his degree once he decides what his major will be.

Sounds like Robbie is focused in his career after high school because he’s looking at the big overall picture in the next 4-5 years. I think that’s GREAT and wish him all the best in pursuing it.

G o o d

L u c k

R o b b i e !

Back to School; 2014-2015

Where is all begins (Kindergarten -6th), the transitions (7th-9th), the final home stretch (10th-12th), and then start the next chapter (College?…see previous page). Good Luck everyone this school season Kindergarten Bryson Neal

4th Grade JD Frisk

1st Grade Kayana Frisk Elijah Neal

5th Grade Natalie Moore

2nd Grade Londyn Gillroy 3rd Grade Rachel Moore

6th Grade Jada Brown Trey Ellis Jacqueline Carter

7th Grade Jordan Brown Marcus Ford Darius Brown Jordan Spriggs Cameron Scott

9th Grade Lauren Ford 10th Grade DaMani Neal Tatiyana Henry Devin Brown 11th Grade Monique Ford Anthony Brown

12th Grade Robbie Johnson

I

can’t recall the first big family vacation and that’s probably because we never had one since I was born, but I must say this one was quite memorable. Everyone made plans to go on vacation in South Florida except Karen who was getting married in a few weeks and had plans for a <honeymoon> vacation in Jamaica and Stevie and his family. They had the kids in several camps so they couldn’t make the trip either. That leaves; Aretha, Woody, Natalie, Rachel, Cathy, Lauren, and my family along with Grandma and Granddad.

It was quite exciting knowing that most of the family was going to be on vacation together in none other, Florida to have some fun.

As we arrived to the airport we all got our bags checked and weighed and everything was set to go until we got to Mom’s luggage. It was a normal ritual with her, because she does this almost every year….“over-pack”. My dad always get irritated when she does that, but everyone else seemed to find a little humor it and laughed. She said the next time she travels she’s only packing undergarment (lol) and get what she needs there when she arrives to her destination.

Our plane ride to Florida was bumpy and rocky when it started to land into Fort Lauderdale due to the rain storm. It made poor ole Renee sick (tossing up that pizza she ate earlier) and Cathy got an upset stomach. Me? Well I was scared as all get out and so was Lauren, but we got through it thank GOD. As soon as we got off the plane that humid air smacks you right in the face saying “Welcome to HOT Sunny Florida”. We shuttled over to our hotel for that night since we arrived a day earlier and got some sleep.

The following morning we got ready to head to our resort at Pompano Beach. We were once again right on the beach and the others were at the sister resort that was just across the street. We had some wonderful weather during our vacation; it rained twice while we were there. About 10-15 mins one afternoon and then cleared right back up to a HOT sunny day. Our last day however, we heard it poured down raining for a long time. We missed it because we drove out to Key West where it was HOT and sun was shining. Ft. Lauderdale/Miami area got hit with the rain; we dodged that one as we were stretched out on the beach of Key West. (cont. p.8)

The Sunrise over

the BEACH If you ever get to a beach and have time to wake up early to catch the sunrise you must do it. It’s an amazing view. My Mom and Cathy took photos one morning and they were so pretty with and without their silhouette. I had to take a photo too, so Cathy woke me up the next morning to go out and take my photo. It was about 6:50 AM and I was utterly amazed at how the sun’s light and rays was rising and setting over the ocean. It was so beautiful watch and witness it.

First time for Everything….

This was a work-out and we were forwarned by Mom that it was going to be a work-out, but we went anyway. I didn’t mind it, but LT (my cousin Lauren Tamia)…..you are WEAK girl (lol). Let me tell you all, I was doing most of the work out there in that canoe. My arms and legs were KILLIN’ me because we weren’t in sync with the paddling. We kept ending up back near the shore and around people who were in the ocean. They had to turn us around to go back out in the ocean and that was quite awkward. There were other people canoeing as well and they were just soaring right on across the water. We couldn’t even go pass where the rest of the family was, but all in all it was an experience for 2 beginners like us.

Renee on Jet Skies Another interesting experience here family and friends. This was Renee’s first time ever driving a jet ski and she was a little nervous as well as I since I was riding on the back with her. We got to the Water Sports table to rent the jet ski and they said Renee had to take a boating test in order to drive it. So she took the test and then got some quick driving instructions/rules and off we went. Mom was grinning while we were getting on our life jackets. As we walked down to the jet ski to get on, I said “YOLO” for this scary ride I was about to partake in with Renee. Kyle (one of the workers) said, “Good Luck” and pushed us off; my heart was pounding. Renee had to do a quick little test drive around one of the cones in the water and then we got the thumbs up to take off. We took out into the ocean like a sea turtle (LMAO). While I thought Renee was going to go extremely fast like Mom did when we did it last year…..Renee drove that thing as fast as a slug moves (lol). I understand she was nervous, but girl you gotta live a little bit and get outside your comfort zone. We stayed at a slow pace almost the ENTIRE time and when she saw some what of a huge wave coming our way…..she would stop and wait for the wave to move pass us. I think she was sitting there saying, “wait for it, wait for it, okay now I can go (after the wave has passed us by) … OMG! The only time she went fast, well let me get it right ….picked up some more speed was when it was time to return to shore. Next time…..I need to stick with my adrenaline rush mother, but Renee you did well for your first time rookie. I can only imagine how I would be out there, hopefully I would be a speed demon since I’ve been out there twice to experience how it really is.

(Cont. from pg. 6) Yo…the last day of our vacation should have started off as the first day of our vacation. We drove out to Key West. Mom was determined to hit Key West because we missed it the last two visits to S. Florida. Dad wasn’t feeling the ride so he and grand-dad remained behind back in Ft. Lauderdale playing a quick game of golf before the heavy rain came in. Us on the other hand were bathing in the sun at Key West on the beach. It was beautiful, but not what I was expecting.

Too much seaweed in the ocean for me. There were spots here and there that was really deep and short ole me couldn’t even stand up. The beaches were small compared to the other beaches I’ve seen and been on.

Finally got some crab legs w/ her tipsy self

We planned to jet ski, parasail and snorkel in the Keys, but we waited too late to get rentals. So that was an utter bust and disappointment for us being that it was our last day to do it.

On our way back we all were hungry and thirsty from the hot blazing sun. After you pass the 7 mile bridge off of Key West…there was this nice shack hut restaurant off to the side called Sunset Grille. We swung by to check it out. There was a sign that said “Pool Party Fun” and as we got out the car we heard a live band. I’m glad we stopped because the environment was so friendly and the live music was GREAT. Oh and of course the pool; that’s the first thing Mya wanted to do when we got seated next to singing on the mic. She thought it was another karaoke thing going on. I really liked the view of the water and watching the sunset over the seven mile bridge. People were riding boats into the restaurant from their homes or resorts/hotel; it was just awesome.

SHM! At age 4 - Performing Karaoke, “I’m So Fancy”….Mya Symone Mya pulled in some audience with her karaoke singing of :I’m So Fancy“ by Iggy at one of the sister resorts we visited to hang out at the pool. You’ll have to check her out on Renee’s FaceBook page. I tried to help her w/ the lyrics, but she told me that she got it…she was singing. So I stopped singing and let her handle it. Renee, Dad and Lauren missed it…. Renee caught strep throat, and Dad had to take Lauren to see if she caught it.

They had to see it on the video as well as Granddad and Grandma; they were at the Spa getting pedi’s and a massage. Lucky G-dogs….I’ve been wanting to get a pedi before we came on the trip and had to wait until Karen’s wedding. My little piggly wigglies needed some attention too.

A G o o d O l e “ Chicken Fight” i n t h e P o o l

By….Angie

So I tell them (Cathy, Renee, Monique, and Lauren) to do a chicken fight in the pool so I can see who wins. These two jokers (Cathy and Renee) decide that they wanted to form their own team and fight against Monique and Lauren (the smaller ones). At first I didn’t know what they were doing when Cathy was sitting on the ledge until I saw Renee’s head pop up between Cathy’s crotch. I was like what in the <……> are they doing (lol). I grabbed my camera FAST and the lady next to me said, “I hope you’re getting this on video” as she laughed and watched them fools chicken fight Mo and Lauren.

They took them little ones down, but not long after did Cathy go down too.

That was the FUNNIEST thing to see ever ….. OMG!!! Gotta love em for giving me and the others at the pool watching a good show.

You can find more of our family photos on flick while they’re still available. Look up Angie Ford or let me know and I’ll send you the link.

I was really ecstatic to have my grandfather join us this year on vacation.

We didn’t get to do much, but I enjoyed seeing him on the beach and relaxing. It was pretty funny seeing how pale his legs are; he really needed some sun on them legs. The grandchildren wanted to bury him in the sand, but he wouldn’t let us. We’ll have to try again during our next family vacation. I also liked walking over to his resort and hanging out with him before the rest of the gang got there. I know he wanted my company I tend to give him a good laugh or two sometimes. Here I’m applying some sun block on his back since Grandma wasn’t in Florida just yet. She chose to do the 12 hour ride with Aretha, Woody and the girls along with Johnny.

Overall though, I had a great time with my granddad on vacation. Can’t wait to do it again and hopefully real soon. Love you Granddaddy

Vacationing in the Outer Banks….by Jordan Brown Our family Vacation to the Outer Banks, NC was a very fun and exciting adventure. My favorite part of the vacation was fishing, I love to fish, it’s one of my favorite things to do. I did a lot of google research on fishing before going to the OBX. We stayed in a condo in Manteo that had overlooked a dock with lots of cool looking boats. We fished on the dock the first night we were there, I caught a croaker… Jada caught lots of small fish. We fished on my grandfathers (Pop Bear) favorite bridge in Nagshead, and caught various types of fish (croaker, spot, and blue crabs).The croaker were good sized but the spot were kind of small and the crabs were bigger than the ones you get at the wharf!

We also went to the beach and had lots of fun boogie boarding on some four foot waves. The third day there we decided to drive down to Hatteras for a history lesson to see a lighthouse we took some pictures together.

Next year, we plan to fish on a charter boat in Morehead City, NC. with my Granddad and his fishing buddies, The Parks.

First Fishing Adventure with Dad ………..………..….By: Angie We finally did it Cathy and I. We went out on a chartered boat and did some father / daughter bonding with our dad fishing. It wasn’t his kind of fishing as he normally likes to go way out deep; [deep sea fishing]. We didn’t do that type of fishing, but we did go out several miles off shore in hopes to catch some good “eating” fish to bring back to the resort to eat.

Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. It wasn’t a very good boat in terms of the captain moving to 4 different spots. Seemed like he didn’t put us in the right spots where the fish were. Dad caught 2 e fish, Cathy caught a baby fish, and I “finally” got my fish for the day just before we headed back to shore. I ended up catching the “prettiest fish” on the boat. Not biggest, but prettiest (a parrot fish) and tossed him back in the water. It was kind of big though…it was the size of my shoulder width and I struggled to reel that puppy in. Even if I didn’t catch a fish that day, I had a really good time with Dad and Cathy out on the boat. The ride to the boating dock was enlightening as well. Dad just knew where it was and has never been to Fort Lauderdale before (so how would he know?) and didn’t want to listen to the GPS (LOL!!). I sat in the back seat and LOL’d at him and Cathy go at it trying to find the place. Trust me…it was amusing, you had to be there to find the humor in it. I plan on going with him fishing again real soon and every father’s day going forward with the rest of the family. I really enjoyed it that much as well as Cathy.

Step into…

Check it…..an Upper ClassWOmen now This year puts me close to the top of the high school social class, I feel pretty old now that I’m a upperclassmen,; a JUNIOR in High School. I see all the freshman and sophomores and it made me realize that I have one more school year left before I graduate. It’s exciting, but at the same time saddening to.

I’m also sadden that my best friend name, Chelsea moved to Centreville. It sucks because I won’t see her around school anymore and we won’t graduate together. We’ve been friends since elementary. I know that we will be in touch all the time though, but I really miss her. You read that Chelsea? I miss you.

One of the classes that I'm taking this year is my first AP class on Psychology. Psychology is pretty science and history combine into one that focuses on how people behave in any certain situations. It’s a pretty interesting class/subject so far and I am really enjoying it. It’s a lot of reading and note taking to do every other night and it’s been a challenge. But on a good note, I really like the class and the aspects of it.

Pompano Beach, Fl

“BEFORE you Judge Me, Make sure You’re Perfect ……..Don’t Judge Me for Being, ME”

Where to Start?

My 5 yr plan With me being a junior this year, I should already start to have an idea on what I what to achieve in life and right now I am stuck. I am searching on finding something that would really interest me and DEFINE me. I know for a fact I want to study communications in college, but I am having trouble figuring out what I would want to major in. Communications has such a broad variety and I am just very troubled on the many subjects.

I told my parents how I didn’t want to grow up because thinking about my future makes me feel so overwhelmed.

I just think that idea of actually growing up frightens me and I don’t want to rush it. However I know growing up is apart of life. It is going to happen whether I’m ready for it or not.

So I need to buckle down and really get ready for the real world and what life has ahead of me.

Being in a relationship…

High School Dating……. I have been in a relationship with this guy name, Nick for about a year and 7 months now. We started out as being best friends first and I caught myself liking him more than just a friend after a few months of our friendship during our freshmen year. I think he’s a great guy who really knows how to lift me up when I’m down and I am glad to have him as my real first boyfriend.

Nick is so nice and a true ladies gentlemen. I dated one other guy before Nick during my Freshmen year who was a BEST FRIEND since elementary school. How was it? Umm….it was like dating your brother. Honestly it was kind of weird but it made me realize that he was only meant to be my friend in which we still are. Next thing I knew I was talking about Nick more than I did about my ex, Alpha. That’s when I kind of realized I liked him, but waited to see if he liked me too.

I personally think being in a relationship is great when you’re in High School. For me it helps me to grow and communicate as a young adult (teen). You learn about different feelings and emotions because sometimes you can be all cuddling and cute, and then other times your irritated with that person and angry. But it teaches you about trust, forgiving and understanding towards one another and just how much you like that person even though you’re arguing because you haven’t broken up. Being in a relationship can be tough because you will ultimately at some point call it quits and will have to deal with the hurt and pain that goes along with it. No one likes it, but going through that helps you to be more wiser with your next relationships. If that happens, I think taking “your” time and focusing on other things will help and when you least expect it, you’ll end up finding someone else treating you with kindness. Don’t get me wrong, relationships can also be a distraction …..if you allow it to be in which that will happen in the beginning because you’re in awe of each other and it’s something new to you. You just need to learn how to control it and dating someone who does similar activities as you seems to work with me and Nick.

Ocean City Tourney My AAU team, Arlington Pride went down to Ocean City for our final tournament of the season in June. It was a new team I joined with very familiar players that I played with in another league or played against. Our outcome didn’t turn out the way we wanted it to unfortunately. We were challenged , but we should have won several of those games.

They were way more aggressive than a few of us and scrappy. It was a little scary sometimes because the refs were making it seem like we were playing street ball and didn’t call certain fouls.

But overall we ended the tournament 1-3. The experience itself was great though. I was surrounded by a great group of girls who I grew a close bond with and kept me on the ups and ups. I not only learned more about them from the basketball prospective, but from a personal level. Also I can’t forget about my two awesome coaches who definitely help me develop some new skills that will stick with me forever. I can’t wait to step out with them on the court again this spring!

Burger Shake……at Tyson’s Corner mall

My Fashion Faux Paw on shoes and boots & My Tasty Tastes…

No Teens in the Kitchen for this issue. I haven’t made anything new in a long time but I’ve tried some new places and new food over the past several months. Tyson’s Corner has been renovating and adding new venues and shops to the mall.

There’s a new burger joint just outside the mall across from the new hotel. There was a ping pong table and a really huge chess board. The burger wasn’t bad, it was actually good to me and I love shakes and that’s a bad thing to love. Check it out if you’re ever at Tyson’s Corner Mall and want a burger. Seating however is limited space; so get it to go during the cold months.

Sweet Water. I know I must have said this before in one of the other newsletters, but this is my FAVORITE place to eat. So I tried this new appetizer called Crab Louie and it’s AWESOME.

Who Wants Some “FRESH” Sushi?

If you’re ever in Key West, Florida and you like Sushi; go to Sunset Grille near the 7 mile bridge.

When you order Sushi, you normally only get about 6 pieces, but there at Sunset Grille they give you what you pay for. A full plate of Sushi and that thing was like BANG BANG good!

Shoes, Boots, & Accessories

If you like a good crab dip with a little kick to it …this bad boy is it. A MUST TRY IT! Tell me what you think of it if you should try it. Would love to hear others feed back on it.

The Drake Concert or Nah? The BEST Boyfriend EVER got us tickets to go see D R A K E live in concert with Lil Wayne. I was incredibly shocked when he told me he had bought the tickets. It was really sweet of him until I found out that we were NOT going at the last minute. I was honestly so furious with him. Me and my mom went out shopping the day of to find me an outfit JUST for the concert. It made me even more infuriated that he just kept the information of us not going to himself when I mentioned I was going to go shopping. This brings you BACK to the subject on being in a relationship. You HAVE TO communicate in order to prevent things like that from happening and getting someone upset. If my boyfriend would have told me beforehand when he knew; that it was a possibility that we wouldn’t make the concert….I would of did some planning to try to have a back up plan just in case. Another thing that made me upset is that he didn’t even offer me the tickets (buy them). I was like boy, you wasted your money and let them tickets go to waste. But in the end, he (we) learned a lesson from this that we need to communicate more…its very important. If you don’t communicate with one another; a situation could be misunderstood or your girl/boy friend could get extremely sour on you for a good half of the day or all day (meaning: not talk with you).

PGC Basketball Camp My experience with PGC Camp was really memorable. I not only learned a lot of things about basketball, I met a lot of people and I experienced what it is like living on a campus and actually being in a college environment. I honestly felt like I was becoming somewhat independent and felt like a college athlete for the 2 weeks I was at Towson University.

At PGC there is nothing but hard work and basketball players who want the same goals as you do. So you would be surrounded by nothing but positivity and trainers who wanted to help you reach your full potential.

The coaches and directors were very helpful and encouraging. They taught me things that will stick with me for the rest of my basketball seasons. Something that really benefited me from the camp was the lectures. I wrote in my notebook during every classroom session and when I got back to my dorm. I would write down things I learned, things I wanted to work on for the next day and honestly things that I heard a coach or director say during the gym sessions. If anyone is considering a camp in basketball that will develop you as a player and a person; take a PGC course and experience not only what I did, but Jordan as well. He took the camp at another location in MD and enjoyed it.

I’m not a big fashion diva. Flip flops, jeans, bball shorts and tshirt is all I need, but this year I think I want to dress up my wardrobe. I’m starting to feel the animal prints and accessorizing more. I love SHOES & BOOTS. I like wearing heels, but seem to like the ones that are a little too uncomfortable for me. These that I have in my closet now aren’t.

My Riders

On to the Next One; A new appetizer I tried at Sweet Water and loved it.

My new accessory store is now..

Teens In the Kitchen Making Stuffed Shells with my cousin, Jada For my Teens in the Kitchen meal, I wanted to do some stuffed shells for dinner. I love to eat, but hate to cook. My parents said I need to learn how to work my way around a kitchen so I won’t burn my place down when I have one. I have to admit though, making the stuffed shells wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. Me and Jada worked somewhat kind of slow together but we eventually got the job done. We cooked some with ground beef and some with just spinach. The stuffing part was where the most work was needed and MESSIEST. While stuffing the shells, we learned that we weren't stuffing them completely so we had to add more to the shell. During the cooking process, Jada and I goofed off a little bit because that is what we normally do when we are together, but it was so much fun having her over to help me cook dinner. She is always in the kitchen and sadly I am not. I normally prefer to bake instead of cooking; however when I am in the kitchen cooking I think I do a pretty good job. I mean the food isn’t burnt and my dad eats it……now if he eats it and he doesn’t say it’s not good then you know you did something right. He is our food critic here in the Ford house and will try anything.

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So here’s a CHALLENGE to my teen readers (Parents help them out if needed): For my next issue, I want to see how many of you are actually cooking in the kitchen with your parents. Between now and early January prepare any type of dish or dessert for a family meal and send me pictures along with the recipe and your parents critique on how you did with preparing the meal so I can post it in my TEENS IN THE KITCHEN section of the next newsletter. Send it to 4monique4d@gmail.com by Jan. 14th for the February issue. I can’t wait to see them.

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The Ingredients and Recipe Ground beef, Fresh Spinach, Ricotta Cheese, Italian Shredded Cheese, Parmesan / Romano Cheese Marinara Sauce, (2) Eggs, and Italian seasoning 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6)

Ground the beef/hamburger (or Turkey burger if you prefer) and drain the grease Mix together all the cheese and eggs. Then add the spinach and ground beef (separately) Boil your water and add some olive oil. Once water is boiling, add your shells, but overcook.

Get a pan and pour some marinara sauce at the bottom Begin stuffing and place each shell into the sauced pan Once you have completed the stuffing process, and all the shells are in the pan, sprinkle some cheese on the top and add some more sauce to cover the shells. If you desire, you can sprinkle some more cheese on top of the second layer of sauce, like parmesan.

7) Let it bake for 35-40 minutes on 350 degrees or until hot and bubbly 8) ENJOY

The Results

10K Family & Friends Bike Ride

along the W&OD

Who’s IN???

We will have clues at certain stops, detours and challenges just like the show, The Amazing Race

If we get at least 10 riders we got ourselves An Amazing Race Event This will not take place until Early SPRING Email me if you’re interested 4monique4d@gmail.com

Let’s RIDE…

Me and the

N e w ly w e d s

The Maid of Honor and Bridesmaids

The Best Man and Groomsmen

Cathy Brown Angie Ford Dawn Dickerson Tomaudrie Rudd

Charles Tate Dedin Witherspoon Postell Carter Derrick Kenny

A really fun evening had by all that came. I can’t list a thing that went wrong during this ceremony and if you attended and you’re thinking of the background music for the soloist….think again. She did not need that background music; that chick sang that song (I Give Myself Away) beautifully. Now if a 4 year old (Mya) knew what the soloist was singing and started singing along too …then girlfriend was on point without that background music.

I don’t know what them groomsmen and groom got into before the ceremony, but they were pumped up and ready to have a good time. Was the bar open before the nuptials took place????

- A. Ford

The Wedding Party in a Group Selfie

Highlights of the Wedding We were the hostesses (missing Angie and Michelle) of the wedding event to greet and seat the guests. The hostesses worked really hard to set up the decorations before the wedding and got a few other things in place. All the running around from passing out the fans to making sure everyone was ready to go had my poor little feet crying, but hey….it was totally worth it to help the wedding move as smoothly as possible the way it did. I was really honored that Karen asked me to be a hostess in her wedding. Even though I wasn’t apart of the wedding party….I was really glad she allowed me to be apart of her and Kedrick’s special day as one of her hostesses. It gave me another chance and reason to wear my favorite blue dress again before I donate it to another young girl next year. I think we represented very well and did our thing out there.

FLOWER girl

HERE COMES THE BRIDE

MYA, MYA, MYA She worked it out all night. This little 4 year old LOVES a party and loves people. I think she spoke to everyone that night.

Snippet from the

B r i d a l S h o w e r

On July 26, we celebrated Karen’s Bridal Shower with an Italian Winery Theme.

Karen’s wedding theme is somewhat the same. She chose to have this theme because she loves going to vineyards with Kedrick and her girlfriends. The bridesmaids, especially my Mom and Aunt Cathy decided to throw Karen the Winery/Italian theme shower. They spent many numerous nights staying up late and working hard on the decorations and many little details to make sure everything flowed smoothly and so Mom will at least have time to do something with her hair. She always never has time to do that hair. Anyway, Karen was blown away with all the love and effort that was put into the decorations and really loved how everything was put together. All the ladies had a good time. To see some photos of the event, check out: https://www.flickr.com/pho tos/4ordys/sets/721576455 60674707/

Let the celebration begin

The Reception

WoW! We ate, drank (well the adults drank), and partied at this wedding reception until we couldn’t stand it anymore. I mean we could not literally stand in our shoes and some had already taken them off. At the end of the event, folks went home or to their hotel room tired, but had a fabulous time at Mr. and Mrs. Griffin’s wedding. What you see in that photo above was what the guest gave all night on the floor……a ParTay. There were at least 3-4 men who could have probably wringed out their drawers (underwear) because they were soaking wet from jamming all night on that dance floor… Johnny (brother of the Bride) is one of them. Johnny came to celebrate his baby sis, Karen’s happiness, get in some drinks and party. OMG! he was freaking hilarious out there on the dance floor and getting down….right along with the brother below. He WAS GROOVING “all night” and put the percolator on Cathy to where she had to go sit down (lol)…and so did I. It’s always great to see family come together for special occasions and family BBQ/picnic gatherings where we can celebrate and have fun with one another.

Let our seeds (kids) see and get to know their relatives as they grow up to carry on the family tradition. It’s hard these days to do that because you only get a few who wants to pitch in and contribute. It seems like everyone's time now a days is limited and we’re not keeping our children intact with their blood relatives. Hope to get that back one day soon and continue with it year after year.

- Monique and Angie

POST Wedding Thank You: Karen and her newly husband, Kedrick would like to thank everyone who was able to attend and celebrate their union as they embark on a new journey together as husband and wife. If money and space would allow; their entire family and other special friends would have been included in their special day. They appreciate the kind words and well wishes that was received and that they continue to receive. They give all thanks to GOD and to their family and dear friends that were apart of the wedding for their love and support. God Bless and Love you All!!

KG Honeymooned: St. James - Jamaica

Wedding Cakes seem to be over-rated these days. They are leaning more and more on cupcakes now instead of a traditional multi-tier wedding cake. That’s exactly what Karen and Kedrick decided on for their wedding, simplicity. I actually do think having cupcakes brings simplicity and the cost is probably slightly less than a tier cake that requires a little more work with the icing to make is very smooth. Then there’s the piping and flowering on top of that. As pretty and elegant they (the cake) are…cupcakes can give you that same elegant look depending on the baker’s style and what the Bride/Groom wants.

Mom/Son Dance Turned it Up! Kedrick and his Mom came in after the Father / Daughter dance and opened that dance floor UP with a smooth line dance called, Heritage Shuffle. They had the guests eyes glued on them with a huge smile as they were getting on that dance floor. The new brother in-law, Uncle, Son in-law went down and did a James Brown move with a split and shocked us all. As comedian, Huggie Low Down would say, WHO KNEW!!!???? Great opener Mom and Son Team.

by Angie Ford

Unarmed Michael Brown vs. Armed Police Another Senseless and Tragic incident Once I heard about the tragedies in Ferguson, it really broke my heart. It made me think of the Trayvon Martin shooting a few years ago.

This is much worse then that situation due to the amount of killings and injuries. I think that police officers need to be 100% sure about their actions before they just go with their reflexes . Innocent people get hurt and it’s not fair. Once you shoot them cold; there is no way to bring them back when you find out the suspect wasn’t the correct one. Now with the protesters; some are peaceful protesters, so why are they getting shot at and killed? How are they harming anyone? They have the right, due to the first amendment to freely protest. I don’t understand why innocent people are getting hurt just because they are demanding for justice for not only themselves, but for us fellow African Americans who deserve the equality.

Serving the Homeless with my church family (FBCV) downtown in Washington, DC was a good experience and we (Jordan, Jada, and I) learned a lot from seeing the homeless people on the streets and at the shelter. We observed a few lessons in life and those lessons were; to stay in school, do not get caught up in the wrong crowd of people and stray away from drugs.

There was this one individual who happened to be homeless and once he received his bag of food, he stopped and looked at all the youth that was standing behind the serving table and said, “Stay in school and don’t do drugs. Listen to your parents. Your parents are taking care of you and when you’re their age you take care of them.” Once he left, we all stood there speechless. It was so honestly moving. It’s different hearing from your parents, but when you see someone who is actually dealing with that struggle of poverty it made me feel for him in a sense and wonder what happened in his past to get him where he is today. I asked (2) two counsins who went along as well, “Why do you think some of them are homeless?” Jordan said, “Some of them might have mental disabilities and not taken school seriously.” Jada said, “Maybe the parents,” and I think she probably meant that the parents have lost trust in them repeatedly. My response is, “Since the economy has gone bad, it caused people to lose their job and home.” Some people just can’t recover from that if it (finances) puts a strain on their family. It probably puts them into a different state of mind when they can’t seem to make ends meet. I’ve heard this on the news before when the economy started going bad. It’s sad to see people live in poverty; it makes you appreciate the little things in life and your family.

More pics of us volunteering: https://flic.kr/ps/zBcim.

Give GOD all the glory and thanks for everything that you have.

God Bless!

The

& For a Good Cause Ice Bucket Challenge

The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge has taken over the nation as the new viral phenomenon in 2014. ALS is Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis often referred to as "Lou Gehrig's Disease," is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord . I can’t recall who the creator of the challenge is but it started to raise more awareness about this disease and have more people donate. Many celebrities has taken on the challenge and has created others to contribute as well and to donate. Some of my favorites were Chris Brown, George Bush and Diggy Simmons. The amount of donations right now is 41.8 million dollars! So if you are feeling hot and want to cool down? Challenge yourself and a few friends and do this challenge. Not feeling the idea of dumping the icy cold water on yourself? Then be amongst all the millions who donated for the cause.

The BEST challenge I’ve seen that makes me laugh so hard every time I see it is my Aunt Cathy’s. Funniest one ever.

I started volunteering at an adult center for the elderly and wasn’t too sure how I would feel about that. It wasn’t my idea, something that my mom thought would be good for me where I could probably benefit from it and learn about her triple R’s; Responsibility, Respect, and Recognition. The first day was actually pretty good. Everyone was really nice and made me feel welcomed. The environment was really friendly as well. The elders are really sweet and they are quite funny to be around. When I am volunteering I am usually helping with snacks and passing them out. I will start to interact more with the seniors as I volunteer once a week on Friday’s right after school.

In Memory of Timothy Aaron Brown Lite the Night Walk @ Reston Town Center In Loving Memory of Timothy Brown ………………………………………………….…………..……….by Angie This year will mark 37 years since Timmy Brown has passed away to an illness that was not detected until he was well into the late stages of Leukemia. He would have been 43 years old with a birthday coming up this Winter, February 3 rd.

For you young readers, Leukemia is a disease that attacks your blood; cells that build up in the bone marrow. It can also invade other areas of your body to cause you to have symptoms. For Timmy…the signs were never there. We, the family never knew he was sick until one day we all were in the living room eating dinner while watching TV and all of a sudden, Timmy says; “I can’t see” (I’m literally in tears now recapping this moment). We all thought he was joking…in our family we tend to play around a lot and joke with one another. Unfortunately it was not a joke; he really couldn’t see. He went blind right there in front of us. This disease hit him really hard with no warning at all and moved quickly into his central nervous system which is why he lost his sight. The doctors ran test and could not figure out what Timmy’s illness was. So we all had no idea what was wrong with him and the extent of how serious his illness was.

Once our parents found out, they shielded us from the awful news that they received; that our brother (their baby boy) was going to die because there was nothing the doctors could do. It was too progressed into his system and spread by the time they figured out what it was (cancer: leukemia) . As elementary children at that time it was hard for us to understand what had happened to Timmy and to cope with it as I’m sure it would be for anyone else. We got through it in time with a LOT of family and friends support, but it’s something that will always stick with each and everyone of us. I can’t speak for my parents though; I have no idea how they could have possibly felt losing one of their children at that young age or at any age. On the last night before Timmy breathed his last breath and had his last heart beat….our parents must have known something was about to happen. I think they must have felt that it was going to be his last night and wanted to hold him tight near us all. So they pulled out the sofa bed in the family room and slept there with Timmy while the rest of us were just down the hall in our beds and I believe Stevie and Cathy (the older ones of the siblings) slept in the family room on the floor with our parents and Timmy. Timmy died that night in his sleep. We were awoken by 2 of our aunts, Trice and Tida and found out the horrible news; that our brother had died. Our parents held up a very strong front for the rest of their children, but I’m sure behind closed doors they mourned and mourned that horrible loss until the Lord was able to lift that pain.

Timmy was a fun loving brother who left us too soon. He had to deal with that cancer by going through Chemo/radiation treatments for several weeks in hopes it would cure him from the disease. He lost all his hair , never regained his sight back, and lost a lot weight. When I think more about that time and the past… I now recall that I never saw him crying about his situation. He remained positive and used his other senses…his hearing; as his eyes to see when he come home from the hospital. I don’t think he really knew what was happening to him because he was so young, only 6 yrs old.

If Tim was still with us today I think I would imagine him probably being married with a kid or two and into Sports like the rest of the family. But for whatever reason that we will never know, GOD called upon him to come join him in heaven.

So in remembrance of our brother Timmy, we will Lite up the Night and walk on October 17 at the Reston Town Center . If any of you would like to join us or donate, please do. We plan to meet in Reston at 4:30pm.

Also….just something to note in the back of your mind; There are other family members dealing with a disease of their own as well.

I don’t want to list their names and you may already know who they are. Just keep them in your prayers.

Here’s where you can donate: http://pages.lightthenight.org/nca/Reston14/TeamTimmy A receipt will be sent to you directly for your generous donation.

OUR FAMILY SPOTLIGHT – The Frisk Family …………..by Angie and Mo Annual Labor Day Event in Warrenton, VA Danny and Tasha’s 4th Annual Labor Day Barbecue and we finally made it out to enjoy the festivities. I must say, it was a nice little hike, but I’m glad we made the trip. It was good to see Tasha and her family and see the HUGE acres of land that they live on. Seven acres to be exact. Uncle Michael and Aunt Nancy was there and they normally never miss this event along with Kevin/Deirdre and their kids.

Rain was in the forecast, but by the time we left Falls Church the sun was still blazing and the kids were ready to go once Aretha and her girls arrived to tag along with us. Us being; Renee, Monique, Jordan, and Jada. As we were getting close to Tasha’s place, I mean; Casa de Frisk….we were coming up on some storm clouds and was hoping it’ll pass over. We arrived and went to the back of the house and saw Tasha. She was actually surprised that we made it out. She had told me over a text a few weeks before the event that family members tend to think its too far to ride. I think she’ll end up getting more visitors over the years for her annual event and they’ll have a great time.

Let me tell you all about Mrs. Tasha Frisk if you don’t know already….such a “positive, inspiring, fun loving young lady”. If you’re friends with her on FB you too must look forward to reading about what she has in store for her and the kids to do that day. Never a negative comment….so bubbly it used to put a smile on my face. She’s into a lot these days. We chatted for awhile and talked about her daughter Kayana who’s into her 2nd year of Little Brownies with the Girl Scouts (I owe her a few GS cookie purchases this year too), she’s playing soccer for the first time and Tasha is coaching the team. Now when she’s not coaching, she’s teaching Zumba classes with adults at fitness centers and now with elementary children at their schools, plus she’s: gardening, canning, baking, a wine consultant and being a full time mother and wife and just loving life. I feel like I’m missing something that this young lady is also doing and I’m sure I probably did.  Her son, Joseph (aka JD) will be playing basketball this winter and starring in a musical. Now not too many People (especially kids) are good in Chess, but apparently JD is. He’s going to join a Chess Club and battle of the books. JD has moved into the 4th grade this school year and from what I saw…he loves to play in the rain (even when it’s storming).

Tasha and her husband Danny have been living in their home now for 3 years she said and they love the town of Warrenton. This December on the 23rd, Danny and Natasha will be celebrating a 10 year wedding anniversary.

Congratulations to them both and we wish them many more years of a continued bless marriage.

Tasha’s Zumba Kids

Recent and Upcoming Family Activities in the Young Marines No time for the weary for these two brothers who will be busy over the next several months as they start a new school season and football. Darius is now attending Seneca Ridge Middle School as a 7th grader while older brother, Devin attends Dominion High School as a Sophomore this year. They’ve been playing football since their ankle biter years and has been playing ever since.

Devin is on the high school JV football team and will be playing Lacrosse this Spring for the Algonkian Tribe. Darius is now playing with the Reston Youth Football League (running back).

In some households that means Wings, Pizza, Beer, Snacks, Tailgate parties, Barbecue, remote control on lock down, TV blasted, and a whole lot of cheering or swearing going on.

We got the NFL, Colleges, High School, County Leagues, and Ankle Biters padded up for some physical contact.

If your schedule allows, come out and see one or two of Mani’s games and show your support. Good Luck this season Mani Neal and continue to keep that eye on the PRIZE. - Angie Ford

Every 4th Sunday at their church, Mount Pleasant Baptist, the boys Usher. This past Spring/Summer, Kevin and Deirdre got their boys into this program called, The Col. Wesley Fox Young Marines. It’s a youth organization for boys and girls that’s based out of Sterling, VA (the only unit in Loudoun County) and teaches leadership while developing young kids to be healthy, drug-free and a responsible young citizen. They are learning a lot out of this program and have done a few events as well like; - Marching in the DC parade celebrating Veterans Day - Attended a 3-day Boot Camp at Marine Corps Recruiting Depot in Parris Island, SC. - Special escort to Col. Wesley Fox at the Memorial Day Parade in Wash., DC - Volunteer & Drug Reduction booth at the Herndon Festival - Camping and Hiking at local bases – USMC Quantico & Camp Upshur - and more……

Both Devin and Darius were promoted in May. Congratulate the (2) Privates; Private Brown 1 (Devin) and Private Brown 2 (Darius) for their promotion and for receiving several medals for the activities mentioned above. Keep up the good work guys!

Date

Time Location

08/22/2014 Forestville, Duvall Friday (Scrimmage) Home 6:30 PM 08/29/2014 Friday

Northern HS (Scrimmage)

Away 5:00 PM

09/06/2014 Mount Saint Joe's Home 7:00 PM Saturday 09/12/2014 Friday 09/19/2014 Friday

09/26/2014 Friday

For the boys football schedule; go to Dominion High’s website and look at the JV schedule for Devin’s. As for Darius, please contact Kevin or Deirdre for his schedule.

Opponent

Archbishop Spalding

Away 7:00 PM

St. Mary's High Home 7:00 PM School Friendship Collegiate Academy

Home 7:00 PM

10/02/2014 Thursday

Avalon School Home 7:00 PM

10/10/2014 Friday

St. Stephen's & St. Agnes School Away 4:30 PM

10/18/2014 Saturday

St. Albans

Away 1:30 PM

10/24/2014 Friday

*Landon

Home 7:00 PM

10/31/2014 Friday

Episcopal HS

Home 7:00 PM

11/07/2014 Georgetown Prep Home 7:00 PM Friday

* Homecoming Game

February 2015 - ROAD TRIP to New York City Why a road trip to NYC and why in February? Well, I heard the NBA All Star is going to be held there next year and I really want to go. So if any family member is planning to go please let me know. Even though it’s a possibly (note that I didn’t say BIG) that we may go; I just want to have a back up plan in place . I know for a fact that if we do go, we will not be watching the actual All Star game because tickets for that game is way too expensive.

Heard a few of these during sermons or over the radio that stuck with me and I wanted to share.

“Speak Victory into your Future” “All is Well” “Say it by FAITH” “Keep GOD 1st Place”

Who’s Ballin This Year?

FAMILY TREE; Our Ancestry History This is very outdated, but something that I’m hoping a few of us can keep up to date so the younger generation can show their kids and their kids can show their kids and so on down the road as the years come and go. The internet has become this great (and sometimes scary) mechanism where we can track our family history. So if you go to the website: www.tribalpages.com and click on Search > Type Angie Ford and you’ll get the link to The Brown’s and Neal’s Hierarchy. You’ll see how your family ties into others family to show you the relation. If you notice incorrect information please let me know: 4monique4d@gmail.com. Aunt Sharon has site as well that she put together and maintains and it’s more history there than it is here on this one only because we haven’t kept it up.

Jordan Brown – Attending PGC camp training and conditioning . Play your game and don’t worry about the refs. Just put up the points. I’ll see you on the court Mr. Fancy.

Jada Brown – Conditioning by playing soccer this Fall and getting in some basketball workouts with her dad. See you on the court and go kill em’ girl……

JD Frisk – First year playing basketball and I’m sure he’s excited about it. Can’t wait to hear about his games (Tasha). Good Luck JD! Trey Ellis – I’m sure he’s putting in the work and getting ready for the next level. Trey stepped up his game and played AAU this year. If he’s anything like the rest of us who started playing AAU…..he’s probably hooked. The talent is there and very competitive. Stay with Tre’ and good luck!

Me? Well I’m questionable right now. I need to make the team first, but I’m currently in fall training preparing for tryouts in November.

Wish me luck!

September 11, 2013………A Year has Past In Remembrance of

Catherine Wooden (Daughter, Sister, Mother, Grandmother, Aunt, and Friend)

Beautiful Babies on the Way !

Next Issue (February - 2015)

Big Congratulations on your baby news. We can’t wait to see the photo(s) of your baby boy/girl. All the best wishes during your pregnancy.

Got a story, new job, new business, baby news, received an award, All star on your team, or anything exciting that you want to share in the next newsletter? I would love to hear from you if you do.

I didn’t get to cover Sports in this issue, but both Jordan (my new co-writer) and I will try to make a few games when we can.           

Showing nothing, but all belly (baby) & huge beautiful smile…..

This happy couple had a huge announcement the week of August 11th; they are expecting their first baby child next Spring 2015.

Brianne Clay is expecting her 1st child this December

The announcement of the gender will be this Fall. What’s your guess?

Winter Months Teen’s in the Kitchen More on Sports Super Bowl Prediction Family Talent Show Mo’s Corner Family Spotlight Family Bonding Latest Family Updates MOVIES And more……

Congratulations Stephanie

Stephanie Woody started her own Travel Agency, FLAWLESS TRAVEL. Invite your friends to check out her webpage: http://www.ytbtravel.com/flawlesstravel

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On the cover: Angie’s feet with Monique and Lauren jumping in the background

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Happy New Year!

Donna Neal Bday Lamar Ford BDay

The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.”

- Steve Jobs

Deliver To:

Family and Friends You can find this online at: http://issuu.com/angieford/docs/summer_newsletter_763ffaae2b88df

I welcome all comment/ thoughts / suggestions

Define who you are to become what you want to be - Angie Ford

T h e D i f f e r e n c e B e t w e e n W h o Yo u A r e A n d W h o Yo u W a n t To B e I s W h a t Yo u D o And what you have to do to get where you want to be May not be pretty or may not come easy….