As most of you know, I became a "grandma" twice earlier this year. Jaylee is now almost seven months old, and Ty just turned four months old. The two of them are more precious than words can describe, and I am enjoying life as "Nana." I have discovered, however, that things have changed a bit over the years.

Bottles are a lot more complicated. Just putting them together requires written instructions! Diapers now "inflate" when they become wet, so there is no guessing if the baby needs to be changed. If the diaper is suddenly bigger than they are, it's time. And baby wipes are what you use to get the job done, not a wet washcloth. When you're through, they go in a "diaper genie" not just a plain diaper pail. Most baby swings no longer swing from front-to-back but from side-to-side, and baby monitors are required equipment for the nursery.

A "pack and play" serves as a crib and a play pen, and it is portable. Diaper bags no longer look like book bags, but come in all sorts of designer colors, sizes and shapes. Pacifiers come in an assortment of rainbow colors so that you can color-coordinate them to the baby's outfit. Burpies" are what you use when they spit up, not a cloth diaper, and all baby toys claim to serve some sort of "educational" purpose. (Their value seems to be lost on my two grandchildren, however. Jaylee prefers a piece of paper to crumple, and Ty likes just watching everyone else.)

Some things, however, have not changed. Grandchildren will always be capable of stealing their grandparents' hearts. Yes, I now understand what my mother-in-law meant when she told me that she could "eat them with a spoon."

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The poll question on our website last week was, "Forty years has passed since man first landed on the moon. Would you like to see NASA pursue a manned flight to Mars?"

Responses, as of Monday morning, were as follows: Yes - 14; No - 23; and Undecided - 2.

To participate in this week's poll go to: http:// www.themillennews.com.

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Happy birthday to: C.J. Jones, Melvin Siebert, George Robert Dudley Jr., Jeanette Becton, Karen Lane, Cody Burch, Chris Cranshaw, Jessica Herrmann, Jessica Murray, Donna Chance, Roger Black, Colin Chance, Evie Wiggins, Jeanette Becton, Joyce Thompson, Don Burke and Rosa Hill.

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Celebrating wedding anniversaries this week are: Mr. and Mrs. Mannie Manuel.

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Military Active Duty List: PV2 Jeremy Johnson, U.S. Army, 59th Quartermaster Company, Ft. Carson, Colorado; Ronnie Perryman, Charlie Troop, 108th Calvary Division, 4th Platoon, Afghanistan; Lance Cpl. Adam Lanier, U.S. Marines, 8th & I Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C.; E-4 Sr. Airman Roy Davis, U.S. Air Force, RAF Molesworth, United Kingdom; Lance Cpl. Patrick Barnette, U.S. Marines, Baharia, Iraq; Sgt. Adam Demshar, 44th Signal Battalion, Baghdad, Iraq; Cpl. Lee Ogden, U.S. Marines, Camp Pendleton, CA; E5 Petty Officer 2nd Class Eric B. Kelsey, U.S. Navy, NSA Naples, Italy; Senior Airman Charles F. Woods, Moody Air Force Base, Valdosta, GA; Stuart Burrus, U.S. Air Force, Barksdale AFB, Bossier, LA; SPC 4 Travis D. Motes, 1st Calvary Division, T. Hood, Texas; Capt. Donald Slade Burke, 735th Air Mobility Squadron Detachment 1 Commander, Richmond Royal Australian AFB, Richmond, Australia; Staff Sgt. Gilbert C. Sheppard III, 48th Brigade, 118th Field Artillery, Iraq; Petty Officer 3rd Class Jamie A. Yager, U.S. Navy, Marine Corps Base Hawaii; Petty Chief Officer Andy D. Crosby, U.S. Navy, Elroy Destroyer, Norfolk, Va.; Stephanie Crosby, R.N., U.S. Navy, Lafayette Destroyer; Jimmy Cooper, U.S. Army National Guard, 878th Engineering Battalion Augusta, Persian Gulf ; 1st Lt. J.R. Taylor, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Iraq; SPC. Daniel Stuart, 18th MEDCOM, 121 General Hospital, Seoul, Korea; Jeffrey Sweat, U.S. Navy, USS Kauffman, MM3 59/E-Division, A-Gang, Norfolk, Va.; Cpl. Larry Lamont Clark, U.S. Marine Corp, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C. Bagdad, Iraq; Khan Young, U.S. Navy, U.S.S. Kitty Hawk, Persian Gulf; Robert Milton Jr., E-3, U.S. Army, Ft. Stewart, Hinesville, Ga., Mission Kuwait; Arnold R. Mosley, 2nd Lt., U.S. Air Force, Randolph AFB, Texas; and Debra A. Mosley, Tech. Sgt., U.S. Air Force, Randolph AFB, Texas; and SPC Charles "C.J." Amerson, U.S. Army, Camp Adder, Iraq.