Winter or Spring?

It snowed today! Did someone forget to tell Mother Nature that it is Spring? That's all I have to say about that!! I am sitting here waiting for a contractor to come and give me a bid on some work. I'd like to replace both showers and get some drywall work done-that is if the price is right. If not, I'm going to replace one shower and get some drywall done.

Jim and Nate were both home sick today. Nate had another high fever with chills last night and Jim had it coming out both ends. I have been washing, spraying, disinfecting everything in hopes of warding it off. I went to the surgeon today. He said I need to get my gall bladder removed. He scheduled me for surgery on May 8th. I was really hoping to get it done at the end of this month. There is so much going on in May with Noah's graduation. I don't need to be recovering then, but what can you do?

Good news about my job-I have been moved up to "library specialist" and given another raise. With my two raises, I am making almost twice as much as I did before the annexation without working any extra hours. Is God good or what!! I was maxed out working 20 hours and turned down a full time position even though I needed more money to help with Noah's college expenses. Amazing!! I didn't do a thing, God just worked things out for me!! Work is going a little better. I still feel incompetent, but a little less than last month so that's progress. I trained today on downloading e-books. We never had that option before, so it should be interesting.

The doctor actually diagnosed Nate with ADD and we are trying another medicine. Unfortunately, every day he has taken it, his mood has been unstable. I have called the doctor to discuss it, but we just haven't connected yet. He focused on the ADD and didn't discuss the mood swings with me at our appointment. Please pray for Nate and wisdom for the Dr. We really need to figure out what is going on.

Otherwise, not much else is new to tell-at least nothing interesting. I'm really tired so I'll write more later.

April Fools

I was going through my old photos the other day and came across this one that I'd thought I'd share with you for old times sake. Everybody looks so tan, fit, and oh my that hair! Hope you enjoy it as much as I did (HA, HA, HA).

Had to take my car in three times because the engine was misfiring. He wound up replacing the spark plugs and all the coils on top of the plugs-to the tune of $800. I also need to replace my brakes! I've been very busy at work, trying to keep up with my regular duties as well as learn new ones. We have the new computer system installed and it is really advanced/complicated compared to what we are presently using. We also are operating on two separate systems until they figure out how to merge our library into theirs. I come home feeling tired and frazzled most days. Last Friday I had a scan of my gall bladder. It didn't fill up with the dye, which I think means that there is some kind of a problem. I should find out the results tomorrow and will update you when I know more.

Noah has finally decided on a college (after much bouncing back and forth). He will be attending Pittsburgh State in Kansas next year. He has been filling out all the forms and we hope to have them done this week-YEAH! College financial aid does not work like it used to and we are very confused by the process. Some want us to make up our minds, before they send out the financial aid packets. Some have sent the packets by mail, others have posted it online and we have had to go search for it, and others have piddled out the information week by week instead of having the final package put together by now. Let the fun now begin-getting him ready to go, figuring out how to pay, preparing to let go. I didn't think I was going to be here yet as his original plan was to live at home for a few years and go to college locally.

Jim got in trouble at work and is now on probation for 3 years. It is difficult to explain-but his bosses had to make an example out of him because it happened during an inspection. He wasn't the only one not following procedure, but he was the only one that was disciplined for it.

Nate goes to see the psych doctor tomorrow. Pray that he will figure out what is really going on with Nathan. We've had some good conversations about school this past week and it appears that he is finally maturing. He realizes that he has to do the work-finally-and has been trying this past week. It has been a struggle though, he says his mind wanders all over. His mood has been stable since we told him that we were considering other living options for him. Don't know if it is just a good part of the cycle or he finally maturing in that area also.

Well that is all for now-got to get going with all I need to do.

Busy Busy Busy

Much has happened since my last post. Noah's team went to the State Basketball Tournament. It was held in the arena at the University of Nebraska Lincoln and it was very exciting to be playing there. First time in 10 years that our team has gone! Unfortunately the boys did not win and move on, but it was a great experience! Something Noah will always remember. It did make me cry thinking about all of the times we have sat in the stands and cheered him on. That part of our lives is over-we will never see him play as part of a team again. When I explained this to Jim, his response was to tell me a story about two teams that were in a heated battle to win a game. At the very last second, one team shot a three pointer and won the game. He said-think about how those seniors feel on the team that lost. How sad that would be to lose your last game like that. I felt a little misunderstood-I didn't cry because we lost the game, I cried because I have enjoyed watching my son play all these years and now it was over! Later that evening, Noah and I were talking and I tried to tell him how I felt. He thought it was funny that they lost and I was crying and he was fine. Again, it is so NOT about the loss!!! I feel so lonely in this family-no one gets me.

Tammy and I went to see the Newsboys and Kutless in concert last weekend. We had seen the Newsboys at Lifelight Fest a couple of summers ago and knew they were awesome. It was even better to see them on tour! They really know how to put on an awesome show-the right mixture of fast and slow songs, old and new songs, showmanship and just leading us in worship. They are my favorite group to see live! We really had a great time!!

This week, we made a quick trip to Pittsburg State University in Kansas. It is one of the schools that Noah is seriously considering. There were some things I really liked about the school. They had a low teacher to student ratio, their tuition rate was the same for 21 credits as it was for 15 (and it is low), you got free parking and tickets to home games and newspapers and internet and cable and use of the gym/pool/weight room. Some of the drawbacks-it is 5 hours away, it is a pretty small town rural area, many of the buildings are old and in need of updating (but they are working on them). I think he would get a solid education there, be safe, and there would be enough to do but not so much as to distract him. He wasn't overly impressed, so we'll see. We are waiting for the financial aid reports to come to help make a decision.

Today I took our cat to the Humane Society. It was very sad. I feel like I failed her, but I know I did my best. She kept getting urinary tract infections and peeing on the carpet. My carpet is ruined. Nate is also allergic to her. We just couldn't do it anymore. Later today Jim and I went for a walk around a local lake. We were almost back to our car, when we watched a grass fire spring up on the other side of the parking lot. I have no idea what could have caused it. At first we thought it was a controlled burn. Jim walked up and called out, but no one was around. We called 911, but by the time the fire department arrived the fire had really spread and trees and homes were in its path. We watched as they put it out. The winds were high, so it wasn't easy, but they did keep it contained.

Update

Just a quick note. We wound up with over a foot of snow the other day. It kept blowing and drifting and they had to shut down highways and interstates. The boys were off school on Friday as well. The annexation became official on Thursday during the storm, and there was some confusion over who should be plowing where. The roads were the worst I have EVER seen them. Our first taste of the kind of downgraded services we have to look forward to! I got the rest of my paperwork turned in on Friday (couldn't make it out of my driveway on Thursday). Human Resources kind of gave me a bad vibe because I'm part-time. He also wasn't very concerned that the piece of paper he gave me had someone else's social security number on it! Good news-Noah's basketball team got into the State Basketball Tournament on a wild card. They are working really hard this week to get ready for the game on Thursday. It is the first time they have gone in 10 years! Yesterday was Nate's 16th birthday. I feel bad because I didn't get much planned. Hard to focus with all that is going on, my job, college stuff, and his antics. What I did plan-snowboarding with friends-he didn't want to do (he heard our local hill was lame!). I didn't even get him a gift because he couldn't help me out with ideas until the last minute and all of his ideas are not something I am comfortable with. It is never easy with Nate. I hung curtains in my bedroom yesterday. Nothing special-just sheers with matching valances-but it finally feels like the room is complete. Couldn't make up my mind for the longest time! Well that is all for now. Need to get moving on some paperwork.

March Roars in like a Lion

Wow-today is March 1 and we are having the worst snowstorm of the season, maybe the worst we have seen while in Nebraska. I can't get out of my driveway to get to work, so I thought it would be a good time to update my blog.

Well it is final-today our city ceases to exist. At 2:00 we become part of the City of Omaha. Half of our police force was not hired, a few people have decided not to apply, and a few are retiring. At my place of employment, we have all been promised jobs, and for now it seems that we will all be staying there. Many more changes are on the way I'm sure, and I don't know how things will be a year from now, but for now I have a job. I've had mountains of paperwork to fill out. It has been a stressful, sad, frustrating, anxious two years-so now we are just trying to move on.

Boys are doing ok. Nate went through another rough spell with his mood. We do have an appointment with a psychiatrist in a couple of weeks, so maybe we will have some more insight there. He appears to be stabilizing and is wanting to be affectionate and close-but I am wary. I explained why, but he says I should just enjoy this time while I can. We purchase a new bed for Nate-a queen sized one. He was so excited to get out of those twin bunk beds! Set it up with all new bedding and he was in heaven last night. Even better-he got to sleep in because of the snow day. Noah had his first district basketball game this week-and they lost miserably. The boys played bad, the referees did a terrible job, the other team did their homework. Bad combination! Luckily they did get into the State Tournament on a wild card-first time in 16 years I think Noah said. We are all excited, but I'm also a little sad realizing this is the last time we will be going to a basketball game to see our son play!

I went on retreat with the women from my church last weekend. We were at the Lied Lodge in Nebraska City-which I had never been to before. It was very nice and I had a good time. God really refreshed me and strengthened me while there. I met someone that was going through similar circumstances with a teenager, and we were able to pray together which was a blessing. I took a jewelry making workshop and made a necklace, sat in on a photography workshop, and toured Arbor Lodge (the home of J. Sterling Morton, the founder of Arbor Day). We had a snowstorm while there, that was expected to be bad, but it wasn't. Good thing we weren't there during this snowstorm-we wouldn't make it home! Next weekend, Tammy and I are going to see the Newsboys-can't wait!!!

Otherwise, not much is new. I'd love to hear from some of you!

February Update

I can't believe a whole month has passed already since my last post! We collected all of our tax information and got everyone's taxes completed. Thank you Turbo Tax-couldn't have done it without ya! The next day Jim and I sat down and filled out our first FAFSA. It wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be. It felt so good to get that over with. Now we are just waiting to hear from the schools to see what is offered in financial aid and make a decision. Noah has already made his decision-based on where his friends are all going.....but that is youth talking. Reality may be much different! He has decided he is going to pursue pre-med with his goal being an orthopaedic surgeon. Now that the FAFSA is done, I am looking at graduation and I can't believe it is only 3 months away. I know that is going to go fast and we have alot of things we want to do around the house to get ready. I got a great deal on new bedding for the boys last weekend, so we are going to paint their rooms. We have some other small painting jobs, want to get the shower replaced in our bathroom, some new curtains, new carpet in the basement, and finish up the front deck once spring comes. I've got to get moving!

Basketball season is winding down with only one season game left before districts and state. On Feb. 2 we had a very exciting game against Skutt Catholic School. Again you can go to http://www.elkhornsports.com/ and click on the video archives if you want to watch. Our gym was packed with a standing room only crowd (never before seen for a basketball game at our school). Skutt is the number one ranked class B team. It was an awesome game that came right down to the last seconds, with Elkhorn winning by one point. The crowd went wild as the student section emptied the bleachers and ran onto the court. Then a really special thing happened-they hung around on the court waiting for the players to come out of the locker room. Coach recognized the opportunity and he sent the team out of the locker room to be with their fans. The kids moved towards them and erupted in cheers and hugs for the players. I have never seen a smile that big on Noah! It was that one moment from high school that he will never forget! The following week was parent's night and their last home game. Coach allowed the seniors that don't usually start to start the game that night. Noah was so nervous, but he did settle down and score the first basket of the game before the starters came in. Last night we traveled to Nebraska City to the game that I dreaded all season. That is where their old coach went after he was let go last year by Elkhorn. His son followed dad there, so the boys were playing against each other and against their old coach. We did win by alot of points, but it wasn't anything to feel good about.

Jim did go on two business trips recently. The trip to DC did cause him to miss out on the Lion King musical. I felt so bad for him, because he would have really enjoyed it! I took my bible study teacher, Arlene, and we were both in awe. I can't even begin to describe all I saw because there was so much-the costumes, the puppets, the set design, the music.......all were excellent. It was the best show I have ever seen! My bible study is very good again this session. I am learning alot about the tabernacle as a blueprint for drawing closer to God. Arlene has put the material into a book, and has finally found a publisher, so I'll let you know when that comes out. It is excellent teaching. My job....who knows! Our city did file a request for rehearing from the State Supreme Court and that was denied a few days ago. The news did report that the city is going to file with the Supreme Court, but chances are slim that we will win at this point and it is only buying us more time. I did apply for my job with the annexing city, but haven't heard anything there. Jim and I went to Saint Cecilia Cathedral for the annual flower festival. It combines art from the Joslyn Museum with floral designs and music. It was wonderful to walk along in that beautiful cathedral, smelling the wonderful flowers, viewing mostly religious art, and listening to the heavenly sounds of violins echoing in a place that was made for that kind of music. I started exercising, and it has helped my soreness as long as I do it everyday. That is the hard part. Nate got sick last week and then I got sick, and now a week has passed and I haven't made it to the community center.

Speaking of Nate, he is REALLY sick. Took him to the Dr. and he felt it was more sinus related and put him on some antibiotics. You'd think he would be doing much better by now, but he isn't. They had a short week at school because of parent/teacher conferences. That was good because if not he would have been out the entire week. I'm not sure he will be ready to go back on Monday at this point. Currently, he is failing 4 out of his 7 classes. We had a meeting with the teachers, and they really were blunt and laid it on the line to him. We set up a plan to get caught up and he missed that deadline. I gave him a few more days to get all the work turned in and he missed that deadline, so I pulled the plug on a ski trip with a friend. He did go snowboarding with the youth group last month in Colorado. They went to a different resort this year that he didn't like as much as the one they went to last year, but he loves Colorado and loves to snowboard, so it was still fun. I recently found out Nate has been experimenting with more risky behaviors. I was very thankful that God brought it to my attention so I could deal with it. He actually admitted it to me and we had a very good open conversation. Pray that he makes good choices about his behavior and school and that he will get over this illness. Pray also that he will get a job. He has bills to pay and no money. I also think it will do him alot of good to work.

In other news, we have snow. We even had our first snow day this week! Last night on the way home from Nebraska City, we were caught in a whiteout, which was very scary. Thankfully, God saw us all home safely! Our cat is urinating again on the carpet, so we are trying to find a new home for her. I think I have a place, but it has been so cold that I have been waiting for the weather to turn before taking her there. She needs to be an outdoor cat. Well that is all I can think of for now. Keep in touch!

Decision is Here

The State Supreme Court made it's decision yesterday- our town lost it's battle for independence. I am disappointed to say the least. Our city council met this morning to talk about options, but no decision was made. A decision will be made on Thursday, so more waiting. I went into work on my day off, fighting my way through reporters in the lobby, and met with the library director of the city that won the battle. She said that she doesn't want to change anything. She said that we should all have our jobs and advised me to go ahead and apply. Previously full time employees had been sent a letter and invited to apply for their jobs, but not part time people. I am feeling very caught in the middle and cautious. Do I dare trust those that are involved in a hostile takeover? Maybe things will remain the same for awhile, but then they will find ways to force us out. Time will tell, but for now I am going to fill out the application, which is not what I need right now. It is long and tedious-requiring every address that I have ever lived at for a background check. Come on-between college and the military, we moved alot. I can't even remember what I had for lunch yesterday, much less an address that I lived at 20 years ago! I also have to get our taxes done this month and fill out the FAFSA for the first time. We are on a time constraint with that for scholarships, so I REALLY didn't need this!

I worked hard and got my Christmas stuff all put away last weekend. We purchased Microsoft Office and installed that so I was able to start working on rebuilding some of the documents we lost when our computer crashed last month. Had some snow move through on New Year's Eve. It was bad here, but nothing like out west (where some people still don't have power). We tried to take Jim's car to church (he has the 4 W Drive), but it wouldn't start. Even though it didn't seem that cold, his tank was low and I think he had frozen lines. We moved the car into the garage to warm it up and by the end of the day he was able to start it. It chugged a bit, he filled the tank and drove it around and had no more problems. Noah wanted to go out on New Year's Eve, so we tried to make a deal with him. Jim said he would shuttle him back and forth to a friend's house, but Noah had a cow and worked himself into staying home for the night. Teenagers! They are expecting another storm to come through today and tomorrow. It is very cold now, temps in the single digits. It finally feels like winter.

Noah is doing well. Basketball is going well for him. They have only lost one game so far this season! He gets a good amount of playing time. If you want to see the games, you can go to
http://www.elkhornsports.com/ If you go to the video archives, click on the 1-6 Varsity Boys game at Omaha Northwest, you can see alot of Noah. He didn't play the best game I've ever seen, but he did get to play alot. He is number 54-the big guy down at the basket. He tripped over his big feet at one point and the player he landed on let out a string of expletives and said he was going to kill Noah. He didn't get a technical for that! Noah worked alot over Christmas break and after paying his cell phone bills, buying Christmas presents, and paying his car insurance, he is left with a whole $20. He has heard back from all but one school, accepted to them all, but still very confused about where to go to college or what to do. Recently he said he didn't think he wanted to be a chiropractor and perhaps he would be an orthopaedic surgeon. Now he is back to pre-chiropractic and saying his first option is the local college and living at home. Who knows????? He hasn't been applying for scholarships, so that may be exactly what happens!

Nate continues to do better with counseling. His mood is pretty stable, he is making some progress in school, and is staying out of trouble. Keep praying for him though. He is going to need a job soon, as he didn't save enough for taxes and he is responsible for his cell phone bill also. It looks like he qualified for track, so he will start conditioning. Next weekend he is going to Colorado to snowboard with his youth group. He is really looking forward to that. There have been several news reports of avalanches in the area he is going to, so pray for safety. Still no haircut.

Jim has to go to Washington DC in February. Due to some scheduling issues, he may have to miss our Lion King show. He had a nice birthday. The boys got him and Entertainment Book, which he loves, and I searched the internet and got him a new pair of shoes (which he needs). We went to dinner at a local restaurant on opening night, and had a very nice meal.

I have set some goals for the coming year. I am going to take a class and finally learn how to knit something. I am also going to take a trip somewhere this year and use that luggage I bought myself for Christmas. I am taking a bible study again at church-it started this week. I also am going to women's retreat next month as a table leader. I'm really looking forward to going I have never been to this conference center before (http://www.liedlodge.org/)

Well, that is all the news for now. Check back soon for another update.