This month has just flown by! I'm saying that more often, so I must be officially old. We went to the pumpkin patch today. It was a fundraiser for the animal shelter in Blair, so Holly came along in her butterfly costume. She was robbed! She didn't win the costume contest in any of the categories. Furthermore, the dog that won the cute category was dressed in Husker gear! Come on!! Jim said he felt like a pageant dad on TLC. It was a fun day and hopefully enough was raised by the animal shelter for those new dog runs.
It turned cold this week, so we had to winterize the camper. Few more things to do before we take it to storage for the winter. Been working hard around the house. Reminds me of nesting before you have a baby, only I'm having surgery. Hopefully all will go well and I can recover quickly. Prayers are appreciated. My contractor wasn't able to get to my door and window, so he found someone else that could. He came and looked at it last week and should be back to install it next week. I also have a carpet cleaner coming to look at my dirty carpets and give me a price next week and have to call and schedule the roof project too. Busy Busy Busy....
BSF is going great. I am learning so much already. I've also tried a church that I really liked. Think I'll go back again tomorrow. Feels really good to be getting back on track.
Boys are all fine-nothing new to report with them except Jim is heartbroken over MSU's loss today.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Friday, October 15, 2010
Fall
Hello to anyone that follows this blog! It has been a long time since I posted anything and I apologize for that. We have been without a computer for awhile due to a virus.
Not much has happened since my last post. Holly's UTI's cleared up and we had her spayed. She has been healthy since then, and seems to finally be housebroken. She is a really good dog! Easy going, fun, low energy, very sweet. Everyone is in love with Holly! I caught Nathan talking to her the other day. He was telling her how she was the cutest dog EVER! He said he didn't want a dog like her because she was too little, but still, she was just the cutest dog he had ever seen. Funny to hear my 19 year old BOY gushing over my little fluff ball of a dog like that!! Holly is all ready for Halloween with her pink and purple butterfly costume. She has a couple of events to attend-pictures later.
Nate continues to work at PetSmart and Noah is at the bank and back to school. Noah won't graduate on time due to switching schools and majors. He will probably have an extra semester or two next year. Nate is still trying to figure out what to do with his life, but he has a good girl that loves him and motivates him. Carly is a real blessing to our family!
In August, I went to Illinois and spent a week with my sisters, nephew Conner, and niece Mya. We had so much fun. My sisters are the absolute best!! And my nephew and niece were EXCELLENT! They were so well behaved and unselfish. We stayed in a cabin together and hiked the canyons at Starved Rock State Park, took a paddle boat ride on the river, toured an old home, swam in the pool, enjoyed smores around the campfire. Mostly we acted silly and laughed and laughed and laughed. I wish everyone could be as blessed as I am-not one, but two awesome sisters!
We have taken several camping trips with our new RV this summer. We camped a week nearby. Had a spot right on the lake, so we were able to put the boat in and pull up right to the campsite. Most recently, we camped in Weston, MO and attended the Irish Festival. We enjoyed a day of fine Irish music, bagpipes, Celtic dancing, beer, Irish coffee, and shopping. I finally found a polish pottery berry bowl and some cute sterling silver Celtic knot earrings. The festival was fun, but very crowded due to the fantastic weather. Not enough port a potties and it was actually frightening to go down to the cellars to try and watch the bands performing there. One way in and out-a real fire hazard when they didn't limit the people. We only wound up going one of the three days, but it was fun! I just finished baking a batch of Guinness Stout brownies after tasting them at the fest. Yum! We are having such a perfect beautiful fall-hope to go camping one more time before we get the camper ready for winter storage.
Still having some work done on the house. Waiting for a window and sliding door to be installed and looking at getting a new roof with better insulation and ventilation. It's only money! I'm scheduled for surgery on November 4th. Having a hysterectomy-not looking forward to that, but hopefully will feel much better. Trying to get some things around, like housecleaning and my sewing machine repaired in preparation. Mr. Abbott, my 5th grade music teacher is coming for a brief visit a few weeks later. He is on his way to CO to go elk hunting. I am so excited to see him! I haven't seen him since my wedding. I started back to Bible Study Fellowship this fall. There is a new study of Isaiah that I wanted to do. So far it has been really good to be back.
So that is a quick update. Even though we are still looking for a computer, I will be better about updates! Feel free to leave comments!
Not much has happened since my last post. Holly's UTI's cleared up and we had her spayed. She has been healthy since then, and seems to finally be housebroken. She is a really good dog! Easy going, fun, low energy, very sweet. Everyone is in love with Holly! I caught Nathan talking to her the other day. He was telling her how she was the cutest dog EVER! He said he didn't want a dog like her because she was too little, but still, she was just the cutest dog he had ever seen. Funny to hear my 19 year old BOY gushing over my little fluff ball of a dog like that!! Holly is all ready for Halloween with her pink and purple butterfly costume. She has a couple of events to attend-pictures later.
Nate continues to work at PetSmart and Noah is at the bank and back to school. Noah won't graduate on time due to switching schools and majors. He will probably have an extra semester or two next year. Nate is still trying to figure out what to do with his life, but he has a good girl that loves him and motivates him. Carly is a real blessing to our family!
In August, I went to Illinois and spent a week with my sisters, nephew Conner, and niece Mya. We had so much fun. My sisters are the absolute best!! And my nephew and niece were EXCELLENT! They were so well behaved and unselfish. We stayed in a cabin together and hiked the canyons at Starved Rock State Park, took a paddle boat ride on the river, toured an old home, swam in the pool, enjoyed smores around the campfire. Mostly we acted silly and laughed and laughed and laughed. I wish everyone could be as blessed as I am-not one, but two awesome sisters!
We have taken several camping trips with our new RV this summer. We camped a week nearby. Had a spot right on the lake, so we were able to put the boat in and pull up right to the campsite. Most recently, we camped in Weston, MO and attended the Irish Festival. We enjoyed a day of fine Irish music, bagpipes, Celtic dancing, beer, Irish coffee, and shopping. I finally found a polish pottery berry bowl and some cute sterling silver Celtic knot earrings. The festival was fun, but very crowded due to the fantastic weather. Not enough port a potties and it was actually frightening to go down to the cellars to try and watch the bands performing there. One way in and out-a real fire hazard when they didn't limit the people. We only wound up going one of the three days, but it was fun! I just finished baking a batch of Guinness Stout brownies after tasting them at the fest. Yum! We are having such a perfect beautiful fall-hope to go camping one more time before we get the camper ready for winter storage.
Still having some work done on the house. Waiting for a window and sliding door to be installed and looking at getting a new roof with better insulation and ventilation. It's only money! I'm scheduled for surgery on November 4th. Having a hysterectomy-not looking forward to that, but hopefully will feel much better. Trying to get some things around, like housecleaning and my sewing machine repaired in preparation. Mr. Abbott, my 5th grade music teacher is coming for a brief visit a few weeks later. He is on his way to CO to go elk hunting. I am so excited to see him! I haven't seen him since my wedding. I started back to Bible Study Fellowship this fall. There is a new study of Isaiah that I wanted to do. So far it has been really good to be back.
So that is a quick update. Even though we are still looking for a computer, I will be better about updates! Feel free to leave comments!
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Vacation
We are back from California and it was wonderful. We had a hotel right on the beach in Monterey, but it turned out to be too cold to really enjoy beach activities. The high temps were in the low 60's and very breezy. The first night we just walked the beach and had a simple dinner. The next day, we decided to take the 17 Mile Drive. This is a toll road that goes through Pebble Beach. It is very scenic and has lots of places to get out and look around. Turned out to be a beautiful and relaxing day. Afterwords, we checked out the beautiful beach at Carmel and walked around town. Carmel is simply charming-I'd love to go back. Back to Monterey for a romantic Italian dinner on the Wharf. We were up early the next morning for our whale watching adventure. We dressed warm-a t-shirt, sweater, fleece jacket, and another thicker fleece lined waterproof windbreaker we picked up in Carmel. We also were sure to take our Dramamine. I was thankful for both! The whale watching tour took 5 hours. We expected to see humpback and blue whales and perhaps an orca moving through. Turns out that orcas were in the area that day hunting, so the rest of the wildlife made themselves scarce. Besides the orcas, we did see some dolphins, albatross, and a few other sea birds. On the return trip we did spot a couple of blue whales. Went back and soaked in the hot tub for a long time and then needed a nap. There was a beach wedding at the hotel that night-very romantic and beautiful. The next morning I got up and walked the beach. Gathered some sea glass as a souvenir. As we were checking out, the cloud cover finally began to break up and the sun was shining. It was supposed to be a gorgeous day-of course! We took the scenic route up through the mountains to San Jose. Stopped in Big Basin State Park and hiked through the amazing redwoods. You really can't begin to imagine how large those trees can be until you see them up close and in person. Made it to San Jose in time to freshen up and attend a reception. In the past I was always welcome, but this year I had to pay $75. Jim figured there would be lots of wine to sample for that price! What a waste of money-two wines and four appetizers (two of which were seafood, and I don't like seafood). There is usually enough that it covers us for dinner that first night, but not this time! The next day, while Jim was in his conference, I walked around San Jose and sat at the pool. We had a fantastic Mexican dinner that night. Very different Mexican-from the Oxacan region. Delicious mole sauces. The next day a couple of other wives and I drove to the Winchester Mystery House. I think from what I learned, Sarah Winchester must have been mentally ill and she wound up living a very fearful, sad, wasted life. Her husband and only daughter died and she inherited the Winchester fortune. She began to consult mediums who told her the spirits were angry with her and she must move west and build on a house to appease them. So she did, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, for 28 years. She would hold a seance every night and build whatever the spirits told her to build-so there are many unusual features to the house. We went back to our hotel and decided to walk to Japan town-a 5 block walk. It was more like 10 blocks and not worth the walk, so we took the trolley back to the hotel. Another new experience! That night we enjoyed another delicious dinner-southern cuisine. Jim had some sweet potato grits that were to die for! The next day I decided to go to a movie and I spent the afternoon reading and sunning myself at the pool. We went to dinner with a couple of other guys from the conference at a Cuban place. Very authentic and excellent! Good thing I only eat twice a day and do a lot of walking when we take these trips! Jim got done with the conference early the next day and we went to a free outdoor concert in the park. It was a great place to people watch, if you know what I mean! It was also very enlightening to watch how many people needed to take their "medicine" while at the concert. Medicinal marijuana is legal in CA, but I never thought that people would be doing it in a public place surrounded by police, and that would be ok because they had a "prescription"!
On the home front-Nate did not pass his classes and will not be going to college in the fall. Noah hurt his ankle/knee at the lake while we were gone. Still waiting to see if it will heal up on it's own or if something more needs to be done. My dog's infection finally cleared up, but we boarded her while we were gone and now she has another infection. Jim has several other trips he has to take for work this month-so much for camping! And finally, we had new gutters installed on the house. Not exciting, but it needed to be done and looks so much better. So what is new with all of you?
On the home front-Nate did not pass his classes and will not be going to college in the fall. Noah hurt his ankle/knee at the lake while we were gone. Still waiting to see if it will heal up on it's own or if something more needs to be done. My dog's infection finally cleared up, but we boarded her while we were gone and now she has another infection. Jim has several other trips he has to take for work this month-so much for camping! And finally, we had new gutters installed on the house. Not exciting, but it needed to be done and looks so much better. So what is new with all of you?
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Opening for Elvis
They rescheduled the Summer Reading Program Kickoff, so as I left work and hustled over to that I sent up a quick prayer. "Please God, let me find a place to park in the library lot." My hip was hurting all day and I just didn't think I had it in me to gimp any farther than I had to. "And please God, help me to play well today. I am bone tired and haven't had any time to practice. I don't want to make mistakes and embarrass my band mates." As I drove into the library parking lot, not only did one spot open up, but two! "God, you are so generous-I have my pick of spots." We set up for our performance as the magician played to a full house on the opposite side of the room. We had to be very quiet, so as not to disturb him. No warm up time. So imagine my surprise as I went to play my first song and NOTHING would come out. I suppose if I blew hard enough, I could have managed a squeak or a squawk. I looked the old girl over, and found a couple of loose screws, so I tightened them down and was sure that had taken care of the problem. NOTHING, still.....I had to laugh at the way God answered that prayer. It must be that I was going to stink it up that day, so He just prevented me from playing! And in case you are wondering how this ties into my title for this entry, Elvis performed after us!
Holly went for her urine recheck. If I had to guess, I would say the infection has not cleared, but we have to wait a few days for the results. She finally seems to be getting the hang of ringing the bell to go outside. Did it on her own several times this week. Just been busy putting the kitchen back together and cleaning up mess. We bought bar stools-and I love them! Haven't got Nate's grades yet......It has been rainy. Our yard is full of weeds and bugs.
That is all that is new for now. Keep commenting-I love to hear from you!
Holly went for her urine recheck. If I had to guess, I would say the infection has not cleared, but we have to wait a few days for the results. She finally seems to be getting the hang of ringing the bell to go outside. Did it on her own several times this week. Just been busy putting the kitchen back together and cleaning up mess. We bought bar stools-and I love them! Haven't got Nate's grades yet......It has been rainy. Our yard is full of weeds and bugs.
That is all that is new for now. Keep commenting-I love to hear from you!
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Good News
My biopsy came back with all samples benign. Very thankful! Got my toes painted today. Bright red-reminds me of mom, with glittery sparkle-reminds me of dad. I'm happy.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Quickie
Have just a little time before work today, so thought I'd write. Kitchen is done! Yeah!! I have all but one box unpacked and put away. Pictures will be posted soon. Holly has an e-coli infection in her bladder. I'm so thankful it is something treatable and not a tumor or defect. She is finishing up a longer round of antibiotics and then back to the vet for another clean urine sample (which she does not like). I had some calcifications show up in my mammogram this year, and a biopsy was recommended. I did a needle biopsy yesterday-nerve wracking, but not too painful. I am feeling pretty good today. Should have the results today or tomorrow. We went camping again this weekend. Close to home this time. Had some beautiful weather, so we floated in the lake and played on the sandbar in the river. Jim fished a little and we rode our new bikes. I put a basket on my bike and Holly even rode with us. She's no water dog (gets chilly easily), but she did enjoy playing in the river. You can't even tell she was groomed a week ago, she is so grubby. Bath time today! I was supposed to play my clarinet at the Summer Reading Kickoff last night, but right as I was supposed to leave, a severe thunderstorm warning was issued. It was quite a storm, but I'm thankful we had minimal hail and not much damage. It sure did rain hard though. I'm glad I wasn't sitting outdoors on a stage when that hit!! The busy season is upon us at work-I came home exhausted yesterday. Story times don't start until next week, so it will be even busier then. Noah is off again with his girlfriend, Kristine. Nate is taking his finals this week. So that's about all I know for now. Until I have more time.....
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Overdue
Hello everyone. This has been the longest period of time I have gone without updating my blog. As you can guess, it has been quite busy. The kitchen remodel got started, and it has been trying. It should be wrapping up next week though! It looks amazing. Our bathroom remodels are lovely, but it looks more like an update. The kitchen looks completely different as we painted the cabinets and added an island. The bathroom remodels didn't seem as painful because we did them one at a time and still had a functional bath. Also, not as much stuff to unload and store during that time. It has been hard to be without a kitchen for almost 2 1/2 months and the mess is a little overwhelming. I am not complaining, because I am so thankful to be able to do this, just letting you know what it has been like.
The other big news around here is the new addition to our family. Her name is Holly and we brought our puppy home in March. It is like having a baby again! We have spent so much time and energy potty training, teaching commands, walking, and playing. She is a really good and smart dog and we love her immensely. Recently she has developed a potty problem and the vet is trying to figure out what is going on. So we are on our third round of antibiotics. Poor thing. Holly is a MalShi, so she will only get to be about 8 lbs. I have found I prefer having a small dog! She also does not shed, which I also like!
Other family news includes Nathan getting a job at Pet Smart. He cares for all the small animals (feeding, cleaning cages). He seems well liked and they are giving him good hours and training him for other positions. He also signed up for 15 CR at the local community college. One class didn't work out well, but hopefully he will finish strong in the other two. Noah did go to Vegas over spring break with his buddies. He is back together with his on again/off again girlfriend and visiting her in Minneapolis this week. He moved and lives in a nice new house in a much safer neighborhood. Noah is not coming home again this summer. He has a good job at the bank and is taking 3 summer classes to try and graduate on time. Jim and I went to the Pella Tulip Festival last weekend. It was something I wanted to do for years. Unfortunately, the weather was really cold and windy and rainy. Still we made the most of it and enjoyed what we did see. We especially enjoyed the Dutch pasteries! Jim and I bought some new bikes. They haven't got much use yet due to the weather, but looking forward to better days. We are busy making summer plans. Hopefully getting together with family and another trip to CA in the works. And of course, more camping with our new (used) camper. Then in the fall, I will be having surgery again. Time for a hysterectomy. Really not looking forward to that!
So that is about all I can think of right now. Thanks for taking the time to read about what is new with our family. It means you love us and care about what is going on and that means so much to me!
The other big news around here is the new addition to our family. Her name is Holly and we brought our puppy home in March. It is like having a baby again! We have spent so much time and energy potty training, teaching commands, walking, and playing. She is a really good and smart dog and we love her immensely. Recently she has developed a potty problem and the vet is trying to figure out what is going on. So we are on our third round of antibiotics. Poor thing. Holly is a MalShi, so she will only get to be about 8 lbs. I have found I prefer having a small dog! She also does not shed, which I also like!
Other family news includes Nathan getting a job at Pet Smart. He cares for all the small animals (feeding, cleaning cages). He seems well liked and they are giving him good hours and training him for other positions. He also signed up for 15 CR at the local community college. One class didn't work out well, but hopefully he will finish strong in the other two. Noah did go to Vegas over spring break with his buddies. He is back together with his on again/off again girlfriend and visiting her in Minneapolis this week. He moved and lives in a nice new house in a much safer neighborhood. Noah is not coming home again this summer. He has a good job at the bank and is taking 3 summer classes to try and graduate on time. Jim and I went to the Pella Tulip Festival last weekend. It was something I wanted to do for years. Unfortunately, the weather was really cold and windy and rainy. Still we made the most of it and enjoyed what we did see. We especially enjoyed the Dutch pasteries! Jim and I bought some new bikes. They haven't got much use yet due to the weather, but looking forward to better days. We are busy making summer plans. Hopefully getting together with family and another trip to CA in the works. And of course, more camping with our new (used) camper. Then in the fall, I will be having surgery again. Time for a hysterectomy. Really not looking forward to that!
So that is about all I can think of right now. Thanks for taking the time to read about what is new with our family. It means you love us and care about what is going on and that means so much to me!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)