5th Annual Cousin Sleep-over

Tonight was the 5th annual "Crazy Cousin Holiday Sleep-over". We didn't think it was going to happen because of a big ice storm they were predicting on Thursday night. There wasn't school in Savannah or St. Joe, but we did end up with less icing than they predicted. I wasn't able to get out today with the van, but Chuck was able to go with the truck and bring home Jake, Austin, and Eli.

Last year was an extra special cousin sleep-over. We surprised them with staying a night at Stoney Creek Inn in St. Joe. They had a room with a King sized bed, a double bed, and two sets of bunk beds. The most fun part was their pool--it is indoor, but you can swim through these flaps and go outside. It had snowed, so they were able to swim and have a snowball fight with the snow they scooped from the side. They had so much fun in the pool. Then, it was snowing on Sat, big huge flakes, and they all came out to go sledding and had a blast and spent another night. Every year, on the sleep-over invitation, we had written "bring snow clothes if it snows" and it never did. So, it was extra special, and we all had so much fun.

When Stephanie picked up Austin from school today, he said, "This is the best day of my life!" and had been counting down the days all week unti the sleep-over. Eli had his coat on an hour before Chuck got there, and mine were planning the details for weeks (don't know where they get that 'planning gene' from! :-) It's great they enjoy being together.

They had pizza, then did a white elephant game, made a craft with beads that Jake brought, watched a movie, and then lay in bed and whispered until late. What was most fun for me was watching how joyful they were just to be together and watching how everything made them laugh.

We ended up without the camera, so you will just have to imagine what 5 boys ages 6-11 at a sleep-over were like!

December Family Time

Caden was so delighted that we all agreed to play Monopoly tonight. And, while to most people this just seems like an ordinary game of Monopoly, it was extra special to us. You see, it was December 16th at 6:30pm. It was VERY cold outside with 5 inches of snow, and every other year at this time, Chuck would have been out delivering packages either as a UPS driver or manager, and would have likely gotten home at 9pm only to go to bed and get up and do it again. I have had many moments of being thankful that he and we didn't have to survive another holiday season at UPS.

Christmas Baking

This year we made peanut butter balls to take to the Morris Christmas and put them in the freezer. They are one of my favorite holiday treats, and we used to make those and Mounds balls (with coconut) when we were growing up. One of my favorite memories is when my Mom went to some sort of craft show and took her Sarah Coventry jewelry (yes, it is in the genes) and Donna and I got to make Christmas candies, like peanut butter balls, fudge, etc. and got to keep whatever money we made from them. We were surprised at how well it all sold, and at least to Donna and I it seemed like we made alot of money!

We also made cookies today for our Ladies Bible class cookie exchange. We bought these new cookies cutters and the pictures on the box were so beautiful. We even had a little cake decorating set. This experience reminds me of when I was in Home Ec in junior high, just learning how to sew. The teacher had us pick out a project, and most girls picked out the pillows that spelled their name. But, I picked out a cute little jacket that had shoulder pads, buttons, etc. My teacher explained that it was probably much beyond my skill level, but I was sure I could make it come out just like the picture! It never was finished, and may still be in a closet somewhere in my parents' house, not done! The sugar cookie recipe I used, while it tasted good, was so crumbly that I couldn't roll it out and had to call Colleen for advice. Then, we made frosting into 6 different colors and tried to make the cookies look like the ones on the cookie cutter box. They didn't look like that at all! Finally, Conrad decided he had had enough and left. Caden stuck it out with me until the end and we did end up with some cookies for me to take. I kept thinking about how a recipe of gingersnaps would have been just the perfect treat to take. Instead, these were a "four-hour-Christmas-patience-testing" project!

My Little Holiday Birdie!

Caden goes into Minnie Cline for art, music, and P.E. and this year, the music program was "Holiday Zoobilee" and he was a bird. Thankfully, Chuck is our official costume creator and has made all the costumes for Conrad and Caden's programs. He is much more artistic than I am. There were some really cute costumes that parents had created for the 'zoo'. Grandma Colleen and Grandpa Vern came to the program. Caden really enjoyed it.

Christmas Tree Farm

Some traditions are planned and some just happen that way. My sister-in-law, Stephanie, decided when the kids were babies that they should do a gingerbread house each year and established the tradition. This has become something they look forward to every year. The going-to-cut-our own tree was a tradition that just kind of happened. When Conrad was little, I thought it would be fun to go cut our own tree at the Christmas tree farm in Savannah. I hadn't really thought past that year, but Conrad and then Conrad and Caden begged each year to go back. One year, we decided to try a Christmas tree farm in St. Joe, but the kids said it just wasn't the same! They missed seeing Santa and drinking hot chocolate like they got to do in Savannah. So, we've been back to this one ever since. You can see that it was a cold day! It wasn't supposed to be that cold and I didn't even pack hats or gloves when we left that morning. But, that afternoon when we went, there was a strong, cold wind! This year was a new 'first' for us. The boys were able to cut the tree all the way down without Chuck's help (usually they start the cutting and he finishes it), and Conrad dragged it to the road instead of Chuck. It seems like it was just yesterday that they were so small that they took their toy chainsaw to pretend to chop it down! On our way out to the field this year, we told Caden our secret from either last year or the year before. We had gone from tree to tree to tree trying to pick the perfect tree. Finally, Chuck, Conrad, and I had decided on what we thought was the best one there. But, Caden was sure that it wasn't the one. So, we walked around the lot again, circled back to the same tree, and said, "What do you think of this one, Caden?" He said, "This one is perfect!" We never told him that it was the same tree we had picked. When we told him the story this year, he giggled and giggled.

Thanksmas!

Our tradition has always been to celebrate Thanksgiving with the Morris' on Thursday and then head to Nebraska on Friday to celebrate with my grandparents and all of my mom' side of the family. When I was a little girl, we went at Christmastime, but as all of my aunts and uncles got married and started also going to the in-laws' houses at Christmas, they changed it to Thanksgiving and it was called "Thanksmas' because we celebrated both Thankgiving and Christmas. There is only one time I ever remember missing it--the year that I was at York and my roommate and I went with her boyfriend, James, and my boyfriend (also roomates) to James' family's house in Iowa for Thanksgiving. This year, with my Grandma's chemo and low white count, it wasn't safe for her to be around people, so we didn't go this year. Usually, we go to my Aunt Karen's house on Friday and then to my grandparents' house on Saturday. Grandma still puts out the Santa Claus that lights up that my cousin, Janda, and I always thought was a special part of going to their house for Christmas as little girls.
I missed a lot of things about going this year (Including my Grandma's pies! :-) and I even made corn bake (my aunt Karen's specialty each Thankgiving) this week.
I scheduled a craft show to do on Saturday this year so that it would keep me busy so I wouldn't have as much time to think about not being there. Yes, at 41, it is time for this little girl to grow up, but I do not like change, especially when it comes to traditions. :-)
Grandma has one more chemo treatment and we are praying that it will be the end of her treatment and that she will have good results. She has really been struggling with the side effects of chemo.

Gingerbread House

Many years ago, Stephanie had a dream! A dream of children and wonderful gingerbread creations every year for the holidays. Each year, she has taken on a different project--a gingerbread village or train or house. This year it was a castle with a drawbridge and a moat, and even a cannon on the inside with Tootsie Roll cannonballs. They did a great job decorating. This year there were just four cousins to work on it, and they missed sharing the experience with all the cousins as they have gotten to some years!

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! We had a nice day in Kansas City at Clark and Stephanie's. It was a yummy meal and an enjoyable day. I included a picture of the table since Stephanie always does such a great job of decorating it! We are thankful for all of our family on both sides.

The Garmin Arrived!

We had great excitement today when my Garmin (which I just discovered not that long ago is a GPS :-) arrived in the mail. I earned it last month with my sales and sponsoring with Homemade Gourmet. At the level I earned, I could choose between and i-pod and a Garmin. We had a lot of discussion in the house about which I should choose since I didn't have either. Chuck definitely voted for the Garmin since he has been my Garmin for the last 15 years. I can't imagine how many times I have called him for directions making deliveries or driving to craft shows. I did finally decided that I would use the Garmin more than the i-pod. Caden is having a very difficult time waiting for Chuck to get home because he is sure he can get it all together and install it for me (and he probably can, but he also has a reputation for destruction, so I can't take the chance!)

Flashback Fridays!

When I was in college, I would stop by Davenport, Nebraska and visit my Grandma Ida Busch (Dad's mom), and my great-grandparents (Delbert and Lillian Sanner--my mom's grandparents) and then go on to York to visit my grandparents (Bob and Lorna Mae Sanner). I am so glad that I spent that time where I did because I gained so much from the experiences. Today, I am going to flashback to my great-grandparents. When I stopped to visit, my great-grandma always had a little story or poem that she had memorized or cut out of the paper. I also loved to ask her about when she was young because being three generations apart and not knowing her until she was older, I was always curious as to what her youth was like. My favorite stories were when I would ask her about when they got married. One day, in 1924, when she was 18 and he 24, they were headed to the fair in Geneva. On the way to the fair, she realized that somehow they had ended up at the courthouse in Belleville, Kansas. Bert said that since they had somehow taken a wrong turn and ended up there, they might as well get married. She said she had no idea when they set out for the fair that she would come back married! For a honeymoon, they decided to drive through all the small towns on the way to the fair instead of just going past them! They did finally end up at the fair, but it was very late. She remembered buying lemonade there, but it wasn't very good after being watered down all day to make it last until the end of the day. Here is my favorite part: When they got back to Davenport, they each went back to their parents' homes where they lived (which happened to be across the street from each other) and didn't tell anyone they had gotten married! Finally, a few days later, Lillian showed the marriage license to her sister and after that they did live together for the next 70 years! (the top picture is of Great-Grandma and I in July of 1996--she passed away just a month or two before Conrad was born in May 1997. The bottom picture is of her and Great-Grandpa Delbert (called "Bert")

The Holidays are Coming!

A few years ago, I saw some peppermint ice cream at the store that looked good and I got it to try because I couldn't remember having had it since I was a kid. It was SO good, and when it was gone, I went to get more, but the store was all out even though it was early Dec. The Blue Bunny guy happened to be in the aisle re-stocking and I asked him, and he said it was all gone everywhere! I also checked at Hy-Vee and they were out. My parents came to visit later and he happened to find some at another grocery store. I was so happy!

So, since then, each year as the holidays are getting closer, I get some peppermint ice cream. It is a fun holiday treat. This year, I noticed that it was out in October, but I decided that it was too early. The other day I did buy some (I don't want them to run out!), and I have been enjoying it. Although there are several brands of peppermint ice cream that are all good, my favorite is the Blue Bunny Perfectly Peppermint because it has both the green and red peppemints in it! Hurry and go get some before it is gone!

Rudy Giuliani

Rudy Giuliani is another one that, if I had just heard him, it would have been worth. The first thing I was struck by was how much of a New Yorker he is--his speech, his way of saying things, saying 'idear' for 'idea'. Hearing and seeing him in person just made it all stand out more. It was fascinating to listen to him talk about 09/11 and his emotions, his decisions, and his conversations with others. He was eating breakfast when he got the first call about the First Tower, and he immediately headed down there. When he was a 1/2 mile away, they saw a sudden explosion (the second one) and he immediately got a call from the police chief with the news. They knew then that it was terrorists (they had suspected, but now they were sure). He said that as he was standing at Ground Zero and they were trying to evacuate everyone due to the falling debris, he looked up and saw a man from the 101th floor jump out the window to escape the flames. Rudy watched him all the way, as he fell all the way to the ground and he thought, "This is worse than anything else we have ever dealt with." At that point, there were still 7-10 planes unaccounted for and they were afraid of new attacks. He said that one of the things that helped him the most in his leadership at that time was something his father had told him. He said, "if you are in a fire with a lot of people, most will panic. Stay calm or at least pretend that you are calm and you will be able to figure out a solution." He said that helped him stay calm during 09/11. And, during this time, he also remembered what a judge had told him when Rudy was a lawyer--he told him that for every hour in court, he needed to prepare for four hours. He told him that if he was prepared for everything, then he would be able to deal with the unexpected because of all the other preparations he had made. Rudy said that in those immediate moments after the attack, they were making minute-by-minute decisions and the city was being changed into a field of battle. He said that even though they had never prepared for an attack like that, all of their preparations (for hurricanes, nuclear bombs, etc.) helped them execute what needed done. He said that leaders need 'relentless preparation'.

His favorite politician, and who he thinks is the most important President of the last 50 years, was Ronald Reagan, and he used him as an example of what makes a great leader. He used some examples of what he accomplished in his Presidency and how he accomplished it. He said that Reagan had a strong conviction of what needed to be done even though it was very unpopular at the time.

He also said how important it is for a leader to be there when people are having troubles (he says 'weddings are discretionary, funerals are necessary' because people need you more at funerals.) He said that President Bush came down to Ground Zero on Sept. 14th and stayed longer than he was scheduled even though it was very dangerous down there then. The Secret Service wanted him to leave, and he kept staying and staying. Rudy said how much this meant to the city of New York and had encouraged them so much. Rudy rode with Bush as they left there, and everyone in the car was very somber. As they drove, people in the streets lined up cheering, and were holding pictures of Bush and kissing them because it meant so much to them that he had come and stayed. Rudy recognized some of them from previous demonstrations, etc. and Rudy debated about whether to make a joke or not considering the heavy mood in the car, but finally went ahead and told the President, "and none of these people even voted for you!"

I could write so much more about what he said---his was probably the most fascinating to me of any others that day.

Zig Ziglar

Zig Ziglar has been a hugely popular motivational writer and speaker. We got a copy of his CD for attending (we were hoping to win the door prize of a big screen TV or the $10,000 they gave away to one person, but we didn't!) When I was in college, Zig Ziglar was read by so many people. He is now 82, and a few months ago, fell and hit his head, so suffers from vertigo and short term memory loss. So, his daughter 'interviews' him so that he doesn't get off track. One time, when he repeated what he had already said, his daughter told him that they had already talked about it, and he said, "I know, but those three sitting there in the front row weren't listening, and I thought they really needed to hear this!" He was a delightful and godly man, and I enjoyed him a lot. He has a "Wall of Gratitude" in his house with pictures of 26 men and women that God put in his life to teach him. He said that gratitude is the healthiest of all emotions. He believes that integrity is the key for long-term, balanced success.

Bill Self/Tony Gonzalez

Bill Self is the coach of the Kansas Jayhawks. I am not a basketball fan, so I knew nothing about him when I went. I really liked him, and was so amazed at his humbleness. He commented that our success is a direct reflection of our attitude (and he had a great attitude about what was important in life, etc.)

Tony Gonzalez, from the Chiefs, also spoke. Conrad was SO excited that we were going to see him, and he told me at least ten times that if I talked to him, to tell him that he was a huge fan. My favorite thing that he said was that losing is when our character is truly tested, and we will either learn from our losing and move ahead, or we will get left behind. (and in this season, the Chiefs are definitely getting to test their characters). He said that one of the highlights of his career was his rookie year when he got to play with Marcus Allen who had been one of his favorite players when he watched NFL football in junior high.

Colin Powell

We were close enough that we could see the lines on the faces of the speakers, but it was dark, so my pictures aren't great. Hearing Colin Powell would have been worth going for, even if he were the only one we'd gotten to hear. He talked about how one day he was the #1 diplomat as Sec of Stat, and the next day, when he resigned, he wasn't and what a difference that made. He said the one thing he missed was his jet. He had a VIP plane, and they would roll out the red carpet and a band would play when he would board! He had his private quarters and his own steward. Then, he no longer did, and flew domestic and had to endure someone using the wand to check him (which were policies he helped put in place after 09/11). He was a great speaker, and it was amazing to think of the leaders from around the world that he has met with. He talked about the qualities of good leaders. It is too much to summarize, but one of my favorite things he said was the advice he got from a Seargent when he was a young man in the military. The Seargant told him that at the point of extreme danger, if your troops are still willing to follow you, even if it is from curiosity as to how you are going to get them out of there, you are a good leader. They trust you." He also said that our diversities in the US are the source of our strength. I really was impressed by him.

Get Motivated, Part II

The parking for the event was at Bartle Hall--2.2 miles from the event, and there was a shuttle over to the Sprint Center. We got to the parking lot at 7:30, and then walked quite a little ways to Bartle Hall. We were stunned when we got there--the line to the shuttle was all the way around Bartle Hall. The downtown traffic was so bad that even though they had a lot of busses, it was taking them an hour round trip. We waited in line a long time, finally got on the bus and then sat in traffic. We didn't arrive at the Sprint Center until 9:15. We were quite disappointed because it started at 8am and we were afraid we had missed one of the speakers that we really wanted to hear. On our way over, we had joked about our VIP tickets, figuring that everyone had VIP tickets. But, we were surprised to find that there were few VIP seats--all right on the floor and we were six rows from the stage! Our seats were perfect. We were awed as we walked into the Sprint Center---it holds 20,ooo and almost all the seats were full. We just got into our seats when they announced that Colin Powell was coming up and we found out we had just missed a political comedian instead of one of the speakers. Whew! We learned so much, and had a great day. I am going to write about a few of the speakers.

Get Motivated!

Chuck got free VIP tickets to a Get Motivated Seminar in KC. He invited me to go with him, and I was really excited because Colin Powell, Rudy Guliani, and others were going to be speaking at it. But, then, I wasn't able to work out arrangements for the kids, and told him to go ahead and ask someone else. He did, but they weren't able to go. On Monday, I called our piano teacher to 'un-cancel' our piano lessons for Wed since I was going to be able to go ahead and take the boys to them, and she just insisted that she keep them so that I could go to the seminar. She homeschools her five kids already, and I couldn't imagine giving her two more kids from 5am-7 or 8 pm. But, she finally talked me into it. Her daughter, Becca, gives piano lessons to the boys, and we have been going there weekly for three years now. It was such a blessing that we ended up there for our lessons because Kathy and I have gotten to be such good friends. At the time we started piano lessons, Conrad was going into third grade and I was still feeling a little unsure of my direction/curriculum/focus in homeschooling. Kathy was such a huge help to me, and now I use most of the same curriculum she does, and love the choices I've made in those areas. We have very similar philosophies, interests, and styles and I know that I wouldn't have been nearly as successful in homeschooling without her! Their family were so upbeat and positive about the boys being there that it was easy for us to enjoy our day while they were there. Conrad talked non-stop all the way home about the entire day, and had a couple suggestions for our school day (he liked the way they did spelling tests, etc.) The boys had a lot of fun, and so did we!

Habla Espanol?

Several times since Chuck has been in Jim's American Family agency, I have gotten an SOS call needing me to interpret something for them when the person who has come in only speaks Spanish. One day, when I was in St. Joe, he asked if I could hurry and come over to the office to interpret something for them, and I did, only to find that the person was already gone! Another day, they called me, and put me on speaker phone with all of them listening to try to find out if the guy had been in an accident previously. I couldn't understand him via speakerphone, so had to talk to him without the speaker, but did finally get their question answered.
Today, Chuck called me, and rattled off four sentences and said, "OK, please say that in Spanish to this guy--here is the phone" Well, I am feeling quite rusty with not using my Spanish very often except in some of the very basics with the boys, and I also had a headache that day, so I was not very enthusiastic about being put on the spot, frantically trying to figure out how to interpret it in the ten seconds until he handed him the phone. I tried to tell him what Chuck had said, and I asked if he understood. He said, "Yes, and your Spanish is very good!" so that of course made me feel much more confident and enthusiastic about the whole thing! :-) We chatted for a little while and I found out he is from Guadalajara, MX where I spent four weeks while I was teaching at York. (and yes, Chuck does need to hire me, but no, I can't work any more jobs than I have! :-) It has been good for me to have to put my Spanish to use!

Flashback Fridays!

I am always intrigued by stories from our relatives who have lived a generation or more before us. It always is a reminder of what tough times really are, and also helps us to get to know those relatives a little more. I have decided that on Fridays, I am going to share a story from the past from an older relative. (so if you fit into that category, please e-mail me your stories!)

This week, since we were just at Herbert's, I am going to share a story of his. In this picture, he is on the right, his sister, Evelyn, is in the middle, and his brother, Vern, (Chuck's dad) is on the right. There are many stories to choose from because both he and Vern love to tell stories! When he was quite young, he started having trouble with his appendix. He lived with it for quite a few years before they took him to the Dr. about the time he was 14. They had to get a ride from their neighbor to get to the Dr. because they didn't have a car. The Dr. recommended surgery to take his appendix out, but his parents were terrified of that. One of his parents' cousins had hers taken out--the Dr. did surgery right on their kitchen table and she died on the table. One problem was that antibiotics were not available.

So, instead, the Dr. put ice on his appendix to try to help, and it helped temporarily, but continued to cause trouble. Finally, it was so bad that they went back to the Dr. and he again recommended surgery, but again, they just had him treat it with an ice pack. Not long afterwards (he was now 16), he was in so much pain from it that he passed out, and when he came to, he couldn't stand up straight. They didn't have a car to go to the Dr, so his Dad ran three miles to his neighbor's who had a car. Herbert is positive that if the neighbor hadn't been home, he would have died because his appendix had ruptured. The neighbor was home, and they went to the hospital in Ft. Smith where they took him straight into surgery.

They did a spinal block, but when they started the surgery, Herbert winced in pain when they cut him. They said, "You can't feel that!" and he said, "I can feel that, and right now I can feel the blood trickling out of my side." They still didn't believe him, so they said, "Wiggle your toes" and not only did he wiggle his toes, but he moved his feet! They immediately got out the ether and gave him a dose, and said, "Are you getting sleepy?" and he said, "No, not really." They had to keep giving him ether until they finally knocked him out. He did not wake up for 72 hours and his parents were sure he was not going to survive.

When he did wake up, his recovery was slow, and he was in the hospital for 8 1/2 days. When he was released, they had no way home. They had to ride a bus to Poteau, and in order to get to the bus, had to walk a detour through a field to get to it. Then, when they got to Poteau, they didn't know how they were going to get home. Herbert saw a man there---Herbert knew of him because Herbert had found the man's watch in a public outhouse and had worked to find the owner and returned it. Herbert convinced him to take them home.

In order to pay the hospital bill, he and his parents gave them the money they had saved. Then, he went to Kansas City for 2-3 months and worked in a processing plant, living with friends to save every penny he could. He paid all of that to the hospital, and then paid off the last $100 he owed to the hospital when he went into the service and got paid!

And that is the story of Herbert and his appendix!

Fathers and Sons

From the time my boys were born, they have looked like Chuck and have had many of his facial expressions, gestures, etc. They remind me of him in many ways. But, it is as they have gotten older and developed in their personalities that I have recognized another great thing about having boys: There are moments that I am struck by the fact that I am watching Chuck as an 11 year old or Chuck as an 8 year old. And, it is in totally different ways in each of the boys. I feel like I get new insight into Chuck whenever I experience this! With Caden, (besides the obvious similarity of a love of sweets), he has a burning desire to find out how things work (which unfortunately, in his case, leads to a lot of things taken apart). He often asks some very complicated questions about how things work and go together, and we are always surprised at his curiosity and ability to process the information. He loves to read the manual for the car. That is all definitely Chuck! And, he has a giggle that is just like Chuck's, and he gets tickled at exactly the same things that would make Chuck giggle. I just know that, at 8, that they were exactly the same in this way. With Conrad, there is the obvious love of the outdoors, animals, and hunting. But, there was something else that I have noticed recently, and especially in Oklahoma, that stopped me in my tracks as I thought "I am looking at 11 year old Chuck!" Conrad was so enthralled with being a part of Herbert and Chuck's conversations. Conrad was sleeping in the living room with Herbert, but because Herbert and Chuck stayed up late talking, we put him in our bedroom to go to sleep. He could not go to sleep and was absolutely miserable that they were in there talking and he was missing it. Finally, I sent him in there to lay on his bed, and he listened to them until he went to sleep. When I looked at his expression as he wanted to be a part of their conversations about the outdoors, growing up, etc. I knew it was the expresssion of 11 year old Chuck!

Oklahoma!

Chuck and his family went to see his grandparents (his dad's side) in Oklahoma each summer as he was growing up. Living on the same property was his Uncle Herbert and Aunt Jimmie and cousin Bill. He took me to see them before we were married and we have gone almost every year that we have been married, (including when I was 8 months pregnant with Caden and Chuck says I stopped at every gas station bathroom along the way). (I met his grandma on my first trip, but his grandpa was already gone, and his cousin, Bill, had been killed before I met him. His grandma died shortly after we were married.) It has been a fun tradition to let the kids go to visit Herbert and Jimmie and experience some of the same memories that Chuck has from being a kid. The kids love to go each year. His aunt, Jimmie, got whooping cough and pneumonia when she was just 2, and it developed an abcess on her lungs. Had they given her antibiotics (which weren't available yet), she would have been fine. But, instead they just left it to heal, and it ended up leaving her with a lung with no function at all. And, her other lung is not healthy either. She has been on oxygen for many years now, and was given five years to live about 13 years ago. She and have spent a lot of time talking over the years, and I enjoy spending time with her. Chuck's uncle, Herbert, turned 80 this year, but has always been very young for his years. He works as hard as men half his age. They celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary this year--Jimmie was just 16 when they got married after Herbert got back from serving in Korea.
On our trip down, Chuck would say, "Have I ever told you boys that this is my favorite part of the trip?" and they groan and say, "Yes, Dad, every time!" (it is the bluffs near Noel, MO--I included one pix). Next, he will say, "Did I ever tell about the time that I drove down this curvy hill on pure ice?" On this trip, he also talked about Clark, Tad, and him playing for hours in the creek when they went to visit. And, now that the boys are older, they share their own favorite memories as we are on our way down, such as fishing which they do every time, catching turtles, picking up pecans, driving up on the mountain to see the trees, Caden playing with Jimmie's hand-held fan for hours when he was 4 and 5, playing with Herbert's dog, riding his tractor, etc.

My Baby Turned 8!

I can't believe that Caden has turned 8! Where have my babies gone? We had his birthday party on his birthday, the 24th. He had been planning it ever since Conrad's birthday. He wanted a campfire and fireworks. We also did a hayride which was Chuck's surprise for him.

It rained off and on all day and we were afraid it was going to be very cold and rainy, and all the activities were scheduled to be outdoors! But, it cleared off right before the party, and it all went well. There were 12 kids who came plus some adults, and we had a lot of fun. Chuck and I were exhausted that night!

This is a picture of Caden rolling out the crust for his apple cobbler. As we were talking about his birthday cake, I discovered that he doesn't really like cake. So, I asked him what his favorite dessert is, and he said apple cobbler (this sounds just like Chuck!)

Bargains!

I love to find fabulous deals, and am so excited about today's finds that I just had to tell!

I had gotten a coupon in the mail from JCPenney's for $10 off a $10 purchase (can't beat that!). They are remodeling our mall and I haven't been in there for a very long time, but I decided to go.

A couple years ago, our good friends, Regan and Patti gave us a bunch of clothes that Ethan had outgrown and at the time they all looked so big that I couldn't imagine my boys being big enough to wear them. Well, Conrad has worn them and is now outgrowing them all, and isn't going to have much to wear. Caden has all of Conrad's hand-me-downs, as well as from cousin Eli, so he doesn't need much.

Just as we got there, they put out a rack of 75% clearance in the the boys 8-20 department. Most of the items were marked $1.97!

I have attached a pix of all of my finds--you'll see that I even found a tank top for my friend, Robin (it was definitely her color of orange and it was $1.97) and I got a cute blue short-sleeved hooded shirt (definitely my color--blue) also on clearance.

I think it is fun to see what it would have all cost at full price vs. what I spent (now I am exposing another part of my quirkiness). Regular price for all I got was: $216.92. I paid $17.25 after my $10 off coupon! :-)

Jason

When I was at York, NE in college, we studied Willa Cather, a Nebraska author, in my English class and even went to Red Cloud where she was from and saw the dug-out house where her family lived, etc. She was a pioneer, and did not have an easy life. One of her quotes that I have had in my office for awhile is:

"There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm." Yesterday, when we went to Jason's birthday party, I was taken back to that time of 'storm' and it was an awful time, but I know there are things I learned as we went through it. Jason, my brother-in-law, turned 34 today, and to celebrate, Donna invited family, church friends, work friends, and some of the medical community who had been so closely involved with Jason and this difficult road he has been on. One of his Doctors, Dr. Brecheisen, and our favorite CCU nurse, Danielle, came to the party. I thought it said so much about them that they would come to his party to celebrate how far he had come. I wasn't expecting that it would be emotional for me to see them, but I hadn't seen them since Jason had left Heartland to go to the hospital in Kansas City. I was suddenly taken back to the weeks spent in the CCU waiting room and in Jason's room, wondering from day-to-day if he would survive the day, and trying to support Donna through it. Danielle was the one who had to sit with all of us in the waiting room and tell us that Jason's scan had shown very little brain activity and they had little hope of it increasing. The last time she had seen Jason, he was on the ventilator, and yesterday he walked over to her to get his picture taken.

The weather was beautiful and there was a good turn-out. My cousin, Carrie, and her family came from Bellevue, NE, my parents came, and many other family and friends also came. Jason was surprised and seemed to thoroughly enjoy the day.

The bottom picture is of Dr. B, Jason, and Danielle.

How Tall this Year?

Here are all the boys trying to be tall!

Orchard!

After getting so many apples from my grandparents, I asked the boys if they thought we still needed to go to the orchard this fall. They said, "YES! Mom, what about the experience of picking apples, picking out our pumpkins and getting to drink cold apple cider slushies with our friends?" We invited Eli, Abbey, Maison, Jake, and Austin to join us. We usually go on a weekday and we are the only people there. We went on a Sunday afternoon and it was full of people! Since we went on a week-end, Chuck got to join us (and carry the pumpkins back down the hill!)

In the picture with Conrad, you will see what an obedient child he is. He had picked up one, and the stem was completely off. I told him that he needed to get one with a stem, and you can see what he brought me!

Apples, Apples, Apples

My parents brought me a trunk-load of apples from my grandparents' apple tree.

I shared them, but still had a LOT of apples! Colleen loaned us her apple corer/slicer/peeler. Since it was a gadget, Conrad, Caden and Chuck liked running it, and they helped me freeze a lot of them. We also made apple crisp, applesauce, and apple muffins. They were better for baking than eating, but we will enjoy them during the winter. All three boys LOVE apple pie, too, and I am sure that will be on the list for winter.

Life in a Small Town/Homecoming

Our nearest town is Savannah--we live 4 miles north of Savannah and it is on our way to St. Joe (which is a little bigger and where Chuck works, we go to church, Walmart, etc. )We really like Savannah--it has the Post Office, library, etc. that we use. And, even has two grocery stores and two Dollar Stores in case I need something in between my trips to St. Joe. This last week, I have been amused at life in a small town. Twice in the last week, I went to a business and the hand-written sign on the door said, "Be right back!" This would only happen in a small town!

And, this week was also Homecoming week and the Homecoming parade. The kids and I have gone every year since they were tiny. We always meet Grandpa and Grandma at the corner of 10th and Main to watch the parade. This year, sister-in-law Sara and Dayton were there; a friend, Patti Adkisson; and Nathan and Sara Weeks, two of our piano teacher's children.

It was fun because we knew SO MANY people in the parade--niece Michaela on the middle school volleyball float, kids from church on their floats for their sports or for the Homecoming court, the librarians from the library, the teachers from Minnie Cline where the boys go for their art, music, and PE, etc. etc. And, this year, Caden and his coach (Dad) had the opportunity to be on a float for soccer. Caden had a huge dilemma as you can imagine---he could sit on the float and throw candy, or be on the ground and collect candy! Finally, when Conrad agreed to split the candy with him that he collected, he was happy to ride. The weather was beautiful and there were 80 entries into the parade---I wondered how there was anyone left to watch the parade with so many in the parade!

Week-end!

We had a crazy, but good, week-end. The Liberty Fall Festival was this weekend, and I worked the booth all of Friday and part of Saturday. Jennifer, one of my team members from Liberty, helped me. Then, we went to Clark and Stephanie's house to celebrate Vern and Colleen's 45th anniversary. Stephanie went to a lot of work and had such a nice table. There were pictures of the family throughout the years on the table, and it was fun to look at them. Sara, Stephanie, and I prepared the meal (steak dinner which is what they had on their wedding night). From the dinner, we went to Tawyna Widel's wedding which was near Clark's house. The wedding was outside and really beautiful. Then, after going to the reception, I went back to the booth where Jennifer was working and helped her dismantle and load everything for me to take home! I was a tired girl after two days of late nights and busy days!