Baby love (or why I had my kids when I was 20 years younger!)

It's Friday morning and still quiet here. It won't be for long, however. :o)

We kept Randy's kids overnight, and they've all slept well, but the hours leading up to bedtime were sure busy! The hours leading up to the time they go home promise to be the same!

I'm used to having my evenings to putter around the house, play on the computer, read, and sometimes watch tv. Obviously that didn't happen last night, which is okay, I'm just not used to it.

Grace was the only one not "damaged" over the course of the evening - Wyatt was crawling around in the kitchen and got under my feet, so his fingers got stepped on. Garett was pulling himself up to stand at the dining room table and bonked his head on the table leg when he fell down. His poor forehead has a bruise, but it's not the first.

Wyatt and I had a big fight about sitting at the supper table to eat. He ought to be pretty hungry for breakfast this morning, and I will feed him well - but at the table...

Grace loves buttons and knobs, but when it came to playing with the electronics, even Uncle Greg was heard to say (quite kindly) , "NO Grace!". :o)

Garett didn't really get in trouble besides the bruising incident. He loves to cuddle.

It was fun to watch them all interact with each other. The most fun for them was sitting at the windows looking outside. Grace fell in love with the curtains and had the best time putting them over her face.

This morning we plan to build a tent with the table and some blankets. Won't that be an adventure?

I could not have had them here yesterday and last night and this morning without Jessi's help. I got up once in the night to check on them, and I know Jess was up with them, too. I didn't hear anything, but I'm glad she took care of whatever was needed.

Leslie gets a huge gold star for still being such a great mom!

I confess, Grace went to bed with cereal and prunes on her face - I just didn't get to the kitchen for a washcloth.

Well, it has begun - Garett is sitting on my lap as I type. I'm off to make breakfast - he thinks he's STARVING!

merry&happy&love

I read this quote this morning and it spoke to me:

"Christmas is not for children. It is for those who refuse to give up and grow old, for those to whom life comes newly and with purpose each and every day, for those who can let yesterday go so that life can be full of new possibility always, for those who are agitated with newness whatever their age. Life is for the living, for those in whom Christmas is a feast without finish, a celebration of the constancy of change, a call to being once more the journey to human joy and holy meaning." ( Sister Joan D. Chittister )

We had a nice holiday. Christmas Eve candlelight service has always touched me, ever since the first time we went in 1975. This was the first Christmas after Arlan died and our whole family went to church that year. Greg, the kids, and I go every year, and Greg's whole family is usually there. This year I got to read the Gospel story to the congregation - I felt awe and joy as I read those familiar words out loud.

Supper and gifts with Greg's family followed worship, then a quick phone conversation with Tonita's family.

We had church again at 8:30 this morning. Very small gathering - only 20 people including the organist - but it was lovely with the sun shining in the stained glass windows. I was worship assistant today and ended up hugging almost every person as they left the sanctuary. That was fun. :o)

Home to open gifts, but Santa hadn't come - or had he? Awesome new ice scrapers left for both Lott children. What happened to their iPods? Were they too naughty to get them after all?

They still got lovely gifts - and Jessi got the tennis shoes, not Nick, who really did not want new shoes. Mom (me) got an Mp3 player, why didn't the kids? What's with the long faces? Didn't Nick like his cell phone? Didn't Jessi need a new winter coat?

Okay, Mom (me) couldn't take it any longer and made Santa (Greg) give them the iPods.

Happiness reigns once again in our home!

We enjoyed a scrumptious early lunch so Nick could get to work on time, then Jessi and I had a wonderful nap. I'm thinking about going to see Randy's kids for a little while. I need to learn how to put music on my Mp3 player, too. And I'm re-doing the bathroom. Right now the week looms large with so much time to get things done, but I'm not fooled. It will quickly fill up and then suddenly be gone and we'll all go back to our jobs and school and regular life. Or will we?

Not if we read and remember the quote at the beginning of this post. So many possiblities with each new day...

Merry Christmas!

Happy New Year!

Love to all!

Sweet things

What a weekend! I'm finally recovering and it's Wednesday already. (Yeah, I don't party much anymore!)
We had a nice "Regier Christmas" on Saturday night with Alan, Angela, Randy, Leslie, their kids, Greg, me, and our kids here. Too much food, lots of drink, fun presents. We do a grab bag gift exchange and allow stealing. It seems the rules change every year, and every year we say we're going to write down how we did it, but we never do. :o)
Saturday was also Nick's birthday - 22 years old. Oy! Where did the time go? His little sister brought home a birthday cake for him from McDonald's. He wasn't such a fan of the McD's part, but we enjoyed the chocolate cake. So did Wyatt. This photo shows him stealing licks of frosting when no grown-ups were watching. I actually took the picture of Leslie, but happened to catch our frosting thief in the background. He was actually leaning over the back of the chair and stretching to reach the cake in order to get a sweet taste.

On Sunday, Angela played her violin at my church. It was beautiful. She and Alan both said the acoustics in the church were awesome. As I watched and listened to her play, I started to cry. It occured to me how much Mom would have enjoyed hearing her play, and that it is so sad she will never have known Angela on this earth and how happy she and Alan are. (Yep, 44 years old, my hormones are all over the map!)

After church, we ate brunch, then went to visit Grandma Regier at the nursing home. I'd had her quilt cleaned and we hung it on the wall for her. Angela got out her violin and played several Christmas songs for Grandma while we were there. The neighbor lady came over to say "thank you". She used to play the violin and very much enjoyed listening to Ang play. Grandma just smiled and smiled.

The sweetest thing about the weekend, though, was Greg's dad coming home from the hospital. He still has to have labs done frequently, but doesn't go back to Omaha for awhile. We know your prayers have helped, and hope you continue to pray for his recovery.

I attended Aunt Ruth's funeral yesterday morning. It was a small gathering, mostly her children and grandchildren. Aunt Take, Kenny, and I were the only extended relatives from the Gifford side there. Her grandson, Andrew Hergenrader, conducted the service. The most comforting part of his message was that he and Aunt Ruth talked about her funeral before she passed away, and she asked him to tell everyone, "It's okay. I'm in a better place now."

So she is. May she rest in peace.

Photoplay

Just some more photos tonight. Last week when I couldn't sleep, I went through some Photoshop tutorials and played. Enjoy!

Generations

So there was an email from Cousin Joyce yesterday to let the family know that Aunt Ruth passed away. She was the last of Grandma Adams' siblings, and lived to be almost 93.

I hadn't seen Aunt Ruth in a few years. She used to come to the York Senior events at the church where we have our Head Start center, and I made sure to stop and chat as often as I could. We would argue about the thermostat setting - my classroom and her craft room shared one, and she wanted it turned way up in the winter. I tried to explain that I'd bring her a sweater, but the kiddoes in my classroom were about to suffocate and there was no way I could turn it up any more! :o)

She sent me a large packet of family history information one time after I mentioned I was doing some geneaology research online. I guess I shared that interest with her.

I keep thinking that a generation of our family is gone now, but perhaps only physically. We remember them, we tell their stories, and they live on. I believe that about my mom and my dad, and hope that will be true for us all.

Sniff, sniff, achoo!

Ah, the cold and flu season. This one snuck up on me. I tried to deny it. Washed my hands, used antibacterial hand lotion, drank orange juice. It came anyway. Stupid germs.

Christmas decorating has gone so slowly. I will finish tonight. What is done when I go to bed is it. The totes go to the garage in the morning. I don't know why decorating was such a chore this year. I usually really enjoy it, and I love having the Christmas tree up.

I am excited to host my coworkers this year for a holiday party. These ladies step up every day and work so hard that it will be my pleasure to pamper them.

Then my family will gather here the next evening. Again, I love to have them here. The boys (Alan and Randy - they'll always be "the boys" to Tonita and I) will eat anything, so I get to make new and interesting food. This year the goodies will include something with caviar. Jess and I found some when we were shopping at the mall in Omaha last weekend. Yeah, it can't be that great since I could afford it, but we' ve never had it and thought it would be fun.

On Sunday Angela will play her violin at church. I'm looking forward to that, and I know the people at church will enjoy it.

That's it for this week. I'm hoping for a full night's sleep soon. . .

Greg's favorite thing?

With more snow forecast this week, Greg is getting cranky. He prefers those 100 degree days in the middle of summer. Every time he walks in the house the past few days he's muttering, "I HATE winter!" under his breath. I tried to point out the beauty of the frosty tree branches as the sun came up yesterday, but the charm was lost on him. At least we don't live in Northern China where they had 41 consecutive hours of heavy snow this weekend. . .

Playing

Just playing with my photo editing program a little. Thought I'd share...

A Wonderful Day

Yesterday, that is. Today waits to be seen. . .

It started out with the most beautiful snowfall there is. Heavy snow, but no wind. Gorgeous. Filled the air with snowflakes gently floating around, landing softly. LOTs of snowflakes! :o)

The church ladies' brunch still had several attending despite the weather. Our program was about the different "hats" that mothers wear. A fun presentation and so true.

Then Greg and Jessica met me at the brunch, we picked up Nick, and all of us headed for Omaha to visit Greg's parents. We wanted to go, but Bob was so ill through the week, we worried about seeing him. We shouldn't have, though, because while he's very thin and weak, he looked wonderful. Good color and strong hugs. :o) We hadn't planned to bother him for very long - just a short visit, but were able to stay for two hours. Jan said that knowing we were coming helped him perk up. The first thing she said when she met us at the elevator was, "It's so good to see people!" :o)

They will still be in Omaha for a minimum of two more weeks, but hope to be home by Christmas.

When we left Bob and Jan, we headed West to a new mall and shopped for a bit. Jess and I discovered the Cost Plus World Market and had a fun time exploring the international food aisles. We even bought a teeny, tiny jar of caviar to have for Christmas.

On the way home, we stopped in Lincoln for supper at Granite City. Yum.

Now for the wonderfulness - besides seeing Bob doing well, was spending the day together with our kids. They are intelligent and funny and we laughed the entire day. We each "get it" with the other and enjoy these times as a family. The kids are starting to see Greg and I as people and not just "Mom" and "Dad". The things we like in our kids are the same things we like in each other, too. Makes my heart happy to have such fun with the people I love best in this world.

No days like snow days...

This is the current view out my back door (9:40 p.m.)

Snow day #2 for tomorrow. Nice to be able to stay home during the storm, but we do have to make up every day at Head Start that we miss, so the decision to close doesn't happen lightly.

I missed my appointment in Lincoln this morning. I started to go, but turned around at Waco. I didn't think a mammogram was worth the risk. :o) Yes, it is rescheduled.

Christmas decorating is going slowly. I puttered on it a bit today, between playing with Photoshop and shopping online. Oh, and my nap. :o) Now that I know I won't be going to town tomorrow, I plan to get much of it finished tomorrow.

Here's a bit of what I got done today:

This window is from our old house and hangs on the living room wall. The big tree will go partially in front of it, but it will all go together nicely.

The small tree is the one with my snowflakes from Mom. Not the best photo, and I will retake it. I'm making a small photo album of Christmas decoration photos and why they're meaningful to me. Maybe then they'll be meaningful to my grandkids. . .

It's the holiday season...

My house is a wreck with toters everywhere, decorations spread out, and only one small tree set up so far. This is my snowflake tree with glass snowmen and the crocheted snowflakes Mom made for my birthday the summer before she passed away. Three more small trees and the big one to go.

This winter storm/blizzard thing coming tonight will put a wrench in my day tomorrow. I was scheduled to be in Lincoln at 8:30 in the morning, then some shopping after my appointment. We'll see... Perhaps it will be a snow day at home to decorate?

Greg got the lights up, I got the garland on the deck, and the house just sparkles outside. I love Christmas lights in the dark night.

Tonight's photo is of the twins seeing Santa for the first time while they were in Texas. No surprise about who is unhappy and who is okay. :o)

Fa la la la...

Busy day

What a lovely day we had - sun shining, warm temps, no wind.

Greg got lights on the front of the house, and the big wreath from Hannah's band fund-raiser up on the garage. I was busy in the kitchen so I didn't get to the garland on the front deck - hopefully the rain will hold off tomorrow and I can put that up. That always makes the front of the house look festive.

I also want to put the Christmas tree together this weekend. Once that is done, the decorating of the tree and house can be done a bit at a time over the week. I love having the house done up for the holidays!

I cooked up the turkey carcass today and got a couple gallons of nice stock. Once I picked the bones, I have enough meat for a couple of casserole or soup meals. Vegetables and salad greens for the week are prepped, frozen things are thawing, yet I have no idea what to have for supper tonight...

Tonita called this morning after Randy & Leslie left their house. They all had a great time over the holiday. Daniel emailed some wonderful photos of their time together. This one is all of them at a local tree farm they went to on Friday.

Wyatt made friends with their puppy, Lucy. Abbie had Grace glued to her hip all week. Garett was the only one who didn't mind sitting on Santa's lap.

I'll be glad when Randy, Leslie, and the kids are home - several times this week I've thought I'd stop by to see the kids, then remembered they were gone.

We enjoyed watching "Christmas with the Kranks" Thursday evening. One time when I have to say the movie was as good or better than the book. I also have the 2nd in the series of Oprah's 20th anniversary series. The first one made for an afternoon of sobbing, so I'll watch it when I have time to cry. :o)

I better go get some supper together, then we have "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" to watch tonight. Yep, another wild Saturday night!

The Day After

Thanksgiving was celebrated with a simple feast and good company (that means you, Aunt Jan!). :o) We enjoyed having Jan and Grandma here for the afternoon. I showed Grandma some pictures on my computer, then we played several rounds of Rummikub. Poor Grandma thought she might get in trouble for being away from the nursing home for so long. We told her if they tried to ground her, she should have them call us. :o) It was a nice afternoon and I enjoyed being part of 4 generations of women sitting at the table.

I don't know what today will bring. I took down all the autumn decorations last night and hopefully can talk Greg into helping me carry in the Christmas tree today. Of course, there is the Nebraska-Colorado football game we'll have to watch (will it be like a car wreck where you can't look away?). Maybe a visit with Debbie if Greg decides we need to go shopping.

I must point out that Jessica peeled the potatoes yesterday - the entire 5 pound bag. I had planned to, then had her do it. She felt slighted by my comment on yesterday's blog entry that I was off to peel potatoes. Is this better, Jessi?

Good morning this Thanksgiving day! First thing I was thankful for was sleeping until 5:30 - yesterday I was awake between 3 and 3:30 and finally got up about 4:30. Yawn!

It was a very busy week with work, and I didn't get to spend much time at home preparing for today's celebration. I'm thankful Greg had most of the week off work and took direction well. :o) This morning will be no-stress. The house is clean, the hardest of the food is prepared, and I have time to relax and enjoy the day.

We haven't heard from Jan and Bob since Monday, but Bob was starting chemo on Tuesday. It was such a relief to come home Monday night and find out they got to stay in Omaha.

It will be a busy weekend, but I'm going to make sure there is time to relax, too. I had hoped to get all of my Christmas decorating done, but I realized that was too much pressure and I'll be mad at myself when it doesn't happen. My evenings this next week are free, so I'll work on it a bit at a time.

Some of the stress in my life comes from the high expectations I put on myself, then when I'm not able to accomplish what I wanted in the timeframe I set, I beat myself up. I'm getting much better at breaking it down into smaller steps and leaving time for me in between.

Most of the stress in my life comes from my job. I don't know how to change that, so I just cope as well as I can. When you work with 9 other women, 47 children, their parents, step-parents, grandparents, siblings, and other assorted interested parties, there is no way to keep everyone happy all the time. . .

Okay, this was supposed to be a cheerful, having a great holiday post, so no more talk about work. The best thing about my job this weekend is two paid holidays. :o)

This morning's photo is of some of the old jars I keep above the cupboard that separates the kitchen and dining room. I've been trying to get some different kinds of photographs as I play with the camera.

I'm off to peel potatoes!

Family time

We went to Greg's parent's house for a pizza Thanksgiving supper last night. With the grandkids' work schedules, there's always a chance one of them won't be able to be there, but we managed to get them all together for supper on a Saturday. We wanted to spend some time as a family before Bob and Jan leave for Omaha tomorrow. We hope they'll be home in a few weeks and we can all be together again for Christmas.
This morning Greg and I went to church where we enjoyed visiting with people I consider to be part of our extended family. A small congregation, where everyone knows everyone else, and we all care about one another. Next week we'll all decorate the church for Christmas after worship - that's a tradition I enjoy.
Greg and I went to town after we ate the yummy brunch he cooked. I always prefer to grocery shop with him along. Today he was a bit goofy and that made shopping more fun. We stopped to see Randy's family before we left town, but they must've been napping... :o)
I spent a good part of the afternoon visiting with Greg's parents, then it was a tearful goodbye. Hopefully we'll be able to visit them in Omaha in as little as 10 days.
Tonight it was back with our church family for a soup supper. We enjoyed chatting and scarfing down really tasty chili.
The first thing many people say they are thankful for this time of year is their family. I have been so blessed - first to grow up in a large family with my parents, brothers and sister, a zillion cousins and aunts and uncles, and grandparents around, then to have developed true friendships with my siblings as an adult, to be part of an incredible marriage, to have raised really GOOD kids, and to truly feel like my in-laws are as much my family as any blood relative. Our community and church family are a bonus. It takes work to get along, no matter which relatives you're with, but it's worth it. In the end, the only thing that matters is the people you love and who love you...

The good things

Here it is, Saturday morning again! The week was long and tiring as I knew it would be before it started. I was very happy to see Friday afternoon arrive!

There were lots of good things this week, amongst the work that necessitated my evenings away from home. I got to spend time with Wyatt and the babies while Randy and Leslie had some time to themselves and dinner out. The photos this morning were taken that evening. Grace is showing off her teeth, Garett has squash all over his face, and Wyatt is enthralled by the photo album I have on my laptop.

Other good things this week: the dinner meeting I was supposed to be at on Tuesday evening was cancelled so I got some bonus time at home. The dinner meeting on Thursday night went really well and it felt good to go home without wondering HOW to run that meeting more efficiently and productively. The weather improved considerably! The several inches of snow we got on Tuesday will be gone by the end of today. I was hired to do some curriculum training for a statewide gathering of public school preschool teachers in March. And the best news this weekwas that Greg's dad's PET scan was good and he'll go to Omaha next week for a stem-cell transplant.

My weekend will be spent in preparation for Thanksgiving. It will be a small gathering at my house this year, just the four of us, Grandma Regier, and Aunt Jan. I'm cooking ahead as much as possible since I will have long work days Monday - Wednesday. Greg has the entire week off, though, and that will help. The cleaning lady came yesterday, so there won't be much to do for that except the usual daily chores.

Tonight we are gathering with Greg's family before his parents leave for Omaha on Monday. They'll be gone several weeks. Please keep them in your prayers during this time.

Tomorrow I am going to start decorating for Christmas! I know it's early, but I'm hosting all of my coworkers and my family the same weekend, and work will be crazy during December, so I need to get started. I'm in the holiday mood, so decorations around the house will be another good thing!

Argh!

We barely got to have Autumn, and now Winter has blasted it's way in. Oh, it'll tease us with some nice days here and there, but really it'll be waiting and watching, and then blast us again! The photo today is what I woke up to this morning. A pretty picture, until you add the wind that came later in the morning, and about 3 more inches of snow. Nasty weather!

Monday morning

Ah, back to work after a three-day weekend is always tough. Don't misunderstand - I love my job and feel we do important work, but the most productive part of my day is spent doing what someone else wants me to do.
No more whining - I'm fortunate to have a job and we enjoy things we couldn't otherwise. It's just going to be a long week...
The weekend was a balance of productivity and rest. Those pecan pies are in the freezer and we made up a batch of chili for the church soup supper next week. I say "we". All I did was brown the meat - Greg created the soup, and it is tasty. We dug the Christmas decorations out of the shed and put them in the garage. Now I can get to them as I need to without bothering anyone.
Our entertainment of choice for weekends is usually dinner and a movie, all in the comfort of our own home. This weekend it was Chinese take-out and "Kingdom of Heaven". I think the movie could have been really good, but we spent much of it confused about what was going on. A little more time to really explain who was who would have helped. The saving grace was Orlando Bloom. {Jessi and I can't wait for the next two "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies. It doesn't get much better than Orlando Bloom and Johnny Depp in the same movie! :o) }

I suppose it is time to get ready for my day. . .

The just desserts of autumn...

Blustery. Wet. Gray. Ugh. A good day to curl up on the sofa and watch movies.
Or bake. Pecan pies are on the agenda for today, to join the pumpkin cheesecake in the freezer for Thanksgiving. We always have a basic meal of turkey, potatoes and gravy, etc., and end with a dessert buffet. My favorite is chocolate pecan pie. (That first bite makes my eyes roll up inside my head.) Chocolate pecan pie? you ask. Oh yes! Simply melt a cup of chocolate chips and add to your pecan pie batter. (Tonita just adds the unmelted chips and hers comes out gooey - mine comes out with hard little chips unless I melt them first.)
Another favorite is Fran's Chocolate Rum cake. Oh my.
I saw Paula Deen make a pumpkin pie using apple butter. I will try this next year since we already have the pumpkin cheesecake in the freezer.
As a rule, we don't have desserts at our house, except for special occasions. (Does PMS count as a special occasion?) When we do, it is most usually chocolate (the Regier in me insists!). Now and again the carrot cake from Chances R makes an appearance, and that even has nutritional value...
So what's your favorite?

photo i.d.

Okay Barb, I'll give it a shot - but I have it saved on my computer a lot larger so I can see it better. :o)

Front row on the ground: Rodney, Alan, Danny, Jody

Next row sitting on a bench: Me, Jenny(?), Kathy, Randy, Tonita, LeeAnn, Audrey

Mike, Debbie, Grandpa, Jay, little blonde girl I don't know (Joyce or DeeDee maybe?), Robbie, Tommy, Jacqui, Teresa, Grandma

Annette, Patty(?), you.

Or is it DeeDee next to me and the little blonde girl is Jenny?

Golly, I'd hate to have to list everyone who is missing, too! :o)

The memories...

So many of you let me know you're reading my blog - I appreciate it! I don't have profound things to say, but like Barb said, it's a great way to keep in touch with family.

I was thinking about my Adams cousins the other day. Such a huge family and it seemed to me we were together all the time - the noise in Grandma's house with 30 or 40 people in it must have been deafening, but I loved it. I love it now when I have my own house full of people - it takes me back in time a bit. Can you name everyone in this 1977 photo? It doesn't even have ALL of the cousins in it! :o)

Last night I was visiting with Katie on the phone, and we were discussing Grandma Regier's Corelle dishes. I remember when she got those dishes. She had enough plates for everyone, and when we gathered at her home, we all had a place at the table.

And does everyone remember the food at those family gatherings?! Grandma Adams had PILES of Christmas goodies - she must've baked for days. (No matter how good everyone else thought it was, I just didn't get into the divinity, though.) When Nick was born a week before Christmas, Grandma brought freshly baked date pinwheel cookies to me in the hospital. They were still warm... Oh, and Grandma made the best chicken and dumplings!

And I always thought it was a special treat at Grandma Regier's to have pluma mos (sp?) (plum pudding). We didn't get to have it every Christmas, and it's been many years since she made it, but I loved it. I remember learning to make New Year's cookies at her house, too. In the summer there was mulberry/rhubarb pie. We can't forget the sausage from her brother-in-law's butcher shop in Kansas that was served at Easter.

This is the time of year when I find myself often reminiscing about those family gatherings. How Grandma Adams would always forget to buy a Christmas gift for one lucky grandchild. I say lucky because that grandchild always got a dollar bill. I always wanted to be the lucky one, but never was. Guess that's okay, too. And Grandpa Regier would always make us say our "piece" that we had for the Sunday school Christmas program in front of everyone, then give us a fifty-cent piece. Here we are in 1974.

Yeah, I have good childhood memories. I am blessed to be part of so much family.

Seasons

I LOVE AUTUMN! The past couple of days have been perfect weather - sunny, warm without being hot, and dry. The trees around here are finally starting to turn and leaves are all over the ground everywhere. I'm not here during the day to see, but I'm sure those pesky squirrels are burying black walnuts in my backyard. I will pull up a hundred baby trees next Spring...
Rust-colored throws on the sofa and chair, my budding scarecrow collection, silk leaf garlands, gourds, mini pumpkins, a cinnamon spice candle melting on the warmer, a Thanksgiving menu half planned out on the dining room table. Those are the signs of the season inside my home.

This week my cousin Debbie emailed me some photos from Aunt Sherry's 70th birthday. She looked wonderful, but made me miss my mom. Hope she and Uncle Bill don't mind being on the internet. I have to post this photo Deb sent - it is wonderful.
Happy Birthday Aunt Sherry!
It was great to see a photo of her with all of her kids, too, making her celebration that much more special.



One more photo to post. (One day when Nick can help me I'm going to set up a photo blog...) This was taken a few weeks ago when Greg, Jessi, and I went shooting. Jessi wanted to be "Charlie's Angels". (HeeHee). I call this one "Jessi Angel".

That's it for tonight. Time to go make my lunch for tomorrow and run the dishwasher. The time change (another sign of the season) is still wreaking havoc on my sleep patterns. Yawn...

P.S.

If you're looking at my blog, would you please leave a comment? Just let me know if you're reading.
Thanks!

November already!

What a gorgeous day! Tomorrow will be even better! Jessi and I have to be in Lincoln for awhile tomorrow, but I should be home in time to plant some flower bulbs. I have a couple bags of tulips and some iris that Angela's mom gave me that I need to get taken care of. I've been waiting for the ground to cool off a bit, but I'm afraid to wait much longer... The "s" word is still not in our weather forecast, but we all know how fast that can happen in Nebraska.
We did not have many trick-or-treaters last night, but I'm putting up a photo of my favorite three. I bet you already know who they are. :o)
I love living in a small town where I knew all but 2 of the kids who came to my door, and they knew me. Wyatt was having fun answering the door until a large boy in a scary mask arrived. Good thing his mom was here. :o) He took off his ears shortly after coming in the house and wouldn't put them back on for pictures. Grace gnawed on them instead.
Grace has 3 teeth now, and Garett finally has one. I found it last night when he was chomping his gums - I can't keep my fingers away from checking for teeth! :o)
Better go see what I can scrounge up for supper - the chicken I was going to fix smelled a bit "funky" (hee hee, get it? "Funky chicken"?). Okay, I'm done.

Ugh.

Some years I never have a sniffle. Some years not. Today is my second day home, snuggling on the sofa with the current strain of flu bug that is going around. Rest and fluids. My best friends...

Goin' Cruisin'

It is 18 hours later and I think I can safely say my headache is gone. I feel a ton better than I have since Tuesday night. Yea!
I spent a good deal of the evening looking at the message boards at cruisecritic.com . We are booked on a cruise to Alaska next August in celebration of our 25th wedding anniversary. Greg insisted on a balcony room and we were in luck that Carnival was having a special at the time we booked, so we were upgraded to the best balcony room available, and paid for the least expensive one.


The photo tonight is of our ship. Our room is the top row, third set of balcony doors from the left.

290 more days...

And the pain goes on...

So I've spent most of the week with a migraine. Ain't life grand?
This weekend will be for de-stressing and resting so I can be refreshed and energetic again. . .
I have spent the past few evenings on the sofa, catching up on the first season of "Desperate Housewives". I missed most of the first season, but am watching the new episodes each week. Anyone else a fan?
I don't watch a lot of TV in the evenings. Sunday night seems to be about it with "West Wing", "Desperate Housewives", and "Grey's Anatomy". I was watching "Prison Break" on Mondays, but now stupid baseball is on in that time slot. We will watch the new season of "24" when it starts in January.
Otherwise, Greg has control of the remote and I listen to a lot of TLC - OCC, Overhaulin', and Miami Ink. Or History Channel, or Discovery. And whatever NFL game is on. :o)
The photo for today has nothing to do with TV. It's Wyatt sitting in my refrigerator eating a piece of cheese. Just too cute a picture not to post it.

Monday, Monday

Whew! So glad to be done with this day and sitting in my comfy chair watching a decorating show. Greg is working nights this week, so I get sole ownership of the TV remote!
We were able to have Sunday lunch with Greg's family and all four grandkids were there. It's always better when everyone is able to come. After lunch, Nick had to go to work, but Jessi, Greg, and I went target shooting for awhile. None of us could hit anything to save our lives, but I did explode a mini pumpkin with a pointblank shot with the 9 mm. It was awesome! :o)
A week ago last Friday, Greg and I went to Sioux City to see Styx and REO Speedwagon in concert. (REO was the first concert I ever went to - Greg took me when I was a Senior in High School.) We were very psyched and I couldn't wait until they did "Riding the Storm Out" with the sirens. Unfortunately, REO left much to be desired - the mix was bad with too much bass, and sometimes you couldn't hear what they were singing because the instruments too loud. The sirens were great, though.
Neither of us had ever heard Styx live, and they were incredible. Tommy Shaw is my new crush! (Stop rolling your eyes, Jessi!) Greg even admitted they were the better show.
That's it for today - see, my life is SO exciting! :o)

T.

Hello everybody!

Welcome to my new blog! I've never done this before and thought it would be fun. Let me know if you read it!
It is a beautiful day here, but I've not been outside much yet. I am going out in a bit and work on cleaning up the patio.

Greg and I were going to clean out the shed in the backyard today, but Jessica brought home her computer and he's been working on cleaning out a virus on it all day. It's good to have her home for the weekend. The last time we saw her was for a few hours on September 18...

I had Wyatt overnight and then Randy came with the babies for awhile, so the morning was full of playing and not working. Here's a rare photo of the three of them all happy at the same time. Pay no attention to Greg's underwear in the laundry basket... hee hee. I introduced Wyatt to fingerpaint. He would finally put a finger in to make a line, but no way he was putting his whole hand in it!

This afternoon was a nice long nap - long overdue, I'm afraid. But I feel better now and will be very productive the rest of the weekend.

Okay, I'm going to post this now and see how it comes out. ..