What a week...

Well, here we are at the last day of 2009, I still can't figure out where the year went. Like I said on Facebook - some of the year was good and some bad but I am ready for a new start so to speak with 2010. I just don't see it happening!!! We had one heck of a week this week. My last day of work for 2009 was December 23 and I have to go back on January 4. I was sooooo looking forward to scrapbooking everyday to catch-up on my backlog but have only done 6 of the 100 page goal that I had set for myself. Of course, it is a lot more difficult to scrapbook with a 6 year old assistant!! She has started to go to my scrapbook area by herself to "scrapbook" on her own. She is doing a good job, but I worry about what she is using - some scrapbook stuff is expensive and I bought it with a page in mind so I really don't want her using it for play. At least when I die, I know who to leave my scrapbook stuff to since Kristi doesn't like to scrapbook. She got a scrapbook kit for Christmas and we are going to spend one day working with her on her own scrapbook. We have several zoo pictures and some other that I was going to let her have. She is so excited about it. We are going to make a few cards as well. Kristi is feeling better now that the stint has been removed. The doctors appointment went well and the stint was a lot longer then I anticipated. I was expecting about a 2 inch stint and it was more like 12 inches. He kept pulling and pulling to get it out. Dr. Remis told Kristi that it would take about a month to get the stone report back (they must have sent it to a 3rd world country!!) and then he would give her more instructions. Until then, he told her to drink a lot of water and rest. After Kristi's doctors appointment we had to stop at my work to get my paycheck. I ran in and when I came back out, the van wouldn't start. It was suppose to go to the shop for the back door struts replacement, but now it was going to more. I called AAA to get it towed since we couldn't get it started and the tow-truck driver did a couple of things and with help from the tow truck got it started. He said go straight to the Chrysler dealer - don't turn anything on like the heater or radio and don't turn it off! Luckily, Tom was at work so we had another car at our disposal to drive. It has been 2 days and the van is STILL in the shop. They said that one of our issues was the battery, which we went and bought. But, Tom gave them a list of about 10 items he wanted fixed. I don't think I will see my van for another year!!! After I got home, Brian called and wanted my Sam's card to go shopping, so I left to meet him at Sam's and he called - he had locked his keys in his apartment and needed me to come by and let him in!! What a day this had been. We went to Sam's and then I headed home to go to bed, I was afraid of what else was going to go wrong!! Yesterday, I went to the grocery store and then was a little fairy - I went to Brian's apartment and made him some Chili in the crock-pot and made his spare bed up for him. I told him that I wanted to get a special mattress pad on the spare bed since he bought it from a stranger and it looked like it has been USED a lot. Since I was the one who told him to wait, I decided I would make the bed for him. He called when he got home and said that he had a reverse break-in. Someone broke into his apartment and fixed him supper and made the bed. I asked if he was going to call the Police, and he said heck no - I want them to do this again. I guess I need to look for some more good crock-pot recipes and do this again. Tonight is New Years Eve and we are not planning on doing anything. Kristi and Tom have sinus infections and don't feel good. Our dinner tonight is going to be homemade Chicken noodle soup. What a good meal for the last day of the year!

Merry Christmas to All...

We finally made it to Christmas, I still can't believe that it is Christmas day. I don't know where time as went. I was really terrible this year because I didn't get anything for the kids (my kids) and only a couple of things for Alayna. I just couldn't get the time to get anything. We really had decided that we would adopt a family instead of buying presents for each other. This turned out to be a $1,200 Christmas. I would have spent less on my own kids. But, the joy of giving to others made it nice. I am sure they are happy this morning as well as we are.

This week - up to Christmas has been hell for Kristi. She started on Saturday feeling bad. About noon, she came and asked if Kidney stones would make you want to cry - which Tom answered yes. Kristi said I think that is my problem. She tried everything but the pain would not ease up, so at 12:30 on Sunday morning Tom and Kristi were off to the emergency room since she was in extreme pain. After a cat scan to confirm the stone and several bags of fluid and medicine they sent her home at 5:30. Of course, Tom and Kristi slept most of the morning in which I teased them that the were too old to stay out all night like that.

Sunday was not a better day with the pain, but Kristi was dealing with it the best she could. Since she can't take narcotics she is really limited on pain medicine. She called the hospital and they were not much help, they just told her to keep drinking - which she did but it wasn't coming out the other end as needed.

So, on Monday she tried in vain to get an appointment with a urologist but with it being Christmas week they didn't have any openings. So, about noon she and Tom headed back to the emergency room for help. After much arguing they decided to call the urologist on call and have him check her. Well, that happened to be the same doctor that sees mom and I, so we were very pleased that she could get with him. He said that there is something wrong and she needed to have emergency surgery.

So, at 5 pm Kristi headed into surgery to have the stone removed. Dr. Remis was glad he did that since the stone was sideways in the tube from the right kidney to the bladder. It was plugged by the stone. He said that when he removed the stone he got flooded! He said that there was only a 20% chance that she would have passed it on her own and it would have been very painful. Surgery took an hour because he put a stint in the tube to keep it open and reduce the swelling. Now, the stint is hurting her, but it comes out on Tuesday.

We were back home by 7:30 with a very hungry girl. She had not eaten since Friday night, so she was ready to eat. We are thankful that Dr. Remis was on call and Kristi got a great doctor to take care of her.

Alayna has been really good this week, but bribing her with Santa helped. What are we going to do next week? She is really bored not going to school and next week we are going to work on her kindergarten workbook so she doesn't forget all that she has learned. She is so excited right now waiting for Bubby to wake up so she can open her presents. We told her she has to wait for him and she is going crazy!!!

Brian had to go into work yesterday for an emergency call. Since it was a paid holiday he got double time and a half. So, he made a good amount of money for his almost 4 hours on the call. He has to work tomorrow for his regular Saturday on call. He is not looking forward to that.

Oma has been enjoying all the activity going on around her. She is just trying to stay out of everyone way while they run like crazy!! She is very excited about going to David and Angie's tonight for Christmas dinner. We have not done this in a long time and we are all ready to go. We are making some good food to go with David's good food...yum yum.

Tom was off this week to keep Alayna while Kristi worked, but instead he spent the week keeping Kristi while Alayna played!! He had his hands full taking her to and from the hospital and convincing them that he was really her father!!!

I am off next week to keep Alayna. My plan is to scrapbook 10 pages a day while I am off. This means that I should have 100+ pages done by the time I go back to work. Well, I have been off for 2 days now and have not touched anything - so I am already 20 pages behind. Of course, this will be a difficult task complete since I have a 6 year old that LOVES to scrapbook. Stay tuned for the final tally of completed pages.

It's Kristi.....

Since it's taken Mom so long to update her blog, I guess I'll do it for her. You snooze, you lose! We have been extremely busy the last couple of weeks, which is probably part of the reason that Mom hasn't had a chance to update recently. We've been fighting being sick and this past week was full of owies. Monday, Oma tried to sew her finger and had to go to the emergency room to have the tip of the needle that broke off in her finger removed. After much digging by the plastic surgeon, they were able to remove a quarter inch piece of needle from her finger. It's bruised and sore, but Oma seems to be doing quite well. Also on Monday, I decided that I forgot how to walk and ended up falling down some stairs at work. My feet somehow came out from underneath me and I landed butt first on the stairs. I am still in quite a bit of pain and think I am going to have to break down and go to the doctor. I have been putting that off since I don't think there is much they can do for me. Again on Monday, Mom had a spot removed by the dermatologist and has some stitches to be removed. We were all hurting Monday night, so I am sure you can see what dinner was like Monday night. Brian went to Kansas City this weekend, but ended up getting plagued with a horrible migraine. After stopping several times on the way home, he finally made it safely Saturday evening. Dad ended up getting some sort of bug on Saturday and spend some of the day in bed. Alayna was the only one out of us all who didn't have anything major happen. **knocking on wood** It turns out she makes a really good nurse. Alayna and I had experienced a first together in the latter part of November. We, along with Oma and Aunt Kris, went on our first train trip. It was exciting and a lot of fun. We left from Jeff City and went to St. Louis for the weekend. We stayed at the hotel connected to Union Station, so that made things much easier. Union Station wasn't as big or full as we expected it to be, so we took the day Sunday to explore St. Louis a little. We rode on the Metro all over the city and even took a side trip to the arch. We couldn't have asked for better weather to do all of this, it was absolutely gorgeous. I highly recommend doing this if you just have a weekend that you want to get away. Alayna is doing very well in kindergarten. She loves her teacher and is learning things that I don't remember touching on until first or second grade. She has a list of around 50 words such as "like", "and", "but", and so on that she has to know how to say, read, spell, and write by the end of this year. We are working with those quite a bit. She's learning to add, match, and separate in her math class. It's amazing to see her mind soak all of this in. She came home with a letter from the school nurse a while ago requesting that we have her eyes tested again, so we went this past Saturday to do that. They have to have their eyes tested before they can start kindergarten, so we had already done that in May, but the school felt there was a need to test her again. Good thing. In the past six months, her eyes have gone from a .25 to a .75 and have gained curvature. In other words, she is going to be as blind as her momma. We got her some glasses and hopefully they will be here in the next week or so. She is very excited about having to wear them, but I have a feeling that is going to wear off rather quickly. I have had a lot of ups and downs recently. Work is going good. I was told recently that there is a possibility that I am going to get a promotion, so that's been pretty exciting. School has been great this session. I took two online classes, but I made sure they were not difficult classes due to the holiday. They've both proven to be very easy to handle. I have finals this week and feel really good about both of them. Otherwise, I have been struggling a lot recently. For some reason, my emotions are all over the place. My next appointment with the oncologist is next week, so I am going to speak with her about that when I go. I don't know if it's a hormonal thing or if it's just me. I guess that's all for now. If I don't get to see or speak with you before the holiday, I hope everyone has a fantastic Christmas and New Years. Lots of Love, Kristi

Ok, who has the remote to my life?

I have said for years that I know someone has a remote that controls my life and has either accidentally or on purpose put it on fast-forward. Well, who ever has it needs to stop it!!!! I am so tired of running all of the time. It seems that our family just can't slow down and I would really like to "stop and smell the roses" and take a break. So who is going to confess to having my remote??? Huh, come on...time to confess!!!

In the last 2 weeks we have just run like crazy. It is to the point where I depend on my phone to get me to where I need to be on time. So many different appointments, work issues, home issues, and other stuff - if it is not in my phone more than likely I won't be there on time or at all.

Alayna had a fun day in Independence with Beth and the boys. She came home exhausted. In the middle of the night she woke up with an upset stomach and ended up throwing up and had a fever of 103. Well, she ended up missing an entire week of school because she had to be fever free for at least 24 hours but they really wanted 48 hours to be sure she was totally well. We could get her fever free for 12 hours but not 24. She went back to school the next week, but was sent home on Friday with another fever. We really didn't think she was 100% over her flu when she went back but she was fever free for the 48 hours but this flu totally wiped her out. Alayna has grown so much since she started school. Some of the conversations that she starts are really interesting. She sounds so grown up some of the time. Also, in school she is in kindergarten and is learning math concepts such as geometry and stuff that my kids didn't learn until later in the school career.

Alayna was a princess for Halloween and had a lot of fun, but it was almost more than she could handle because she was send home on the day before. We ended up going to Aunt Kris and Uncle Owens because Owen always has a special present for her. We also went to Boonville to trick or treat in Granny and Grandpapa's subdivision. She only went to about 10 houses total, but ended up with a punkin full of candy.

Oma is doing well after she surgery. It took about a week to fully get over the surgery and to get all of the drugs out of her system. She got to drive 10 days after surgery and was ready by then. She got her staples out and is now itching from the healing process. She is still sore, but is already thinking about sewing again so I know she is feeling better.

Alayna was so sweet and decided that she didn't want to be the only one suffering from the flu so she gave it to her mommy. Wasn't that sweet of her???? Kristi spent 3 solid days in bed with a fever and body aches. On Saturday she was up to going to check out a bedroom set for Alayna and ended up buying one after about 4 hours of shopping. This is Alayna's Christmas present but she already has it set up in her room. On Sunday, I took Alayna to Wal-Mart and let her pick any set of sheets that she wanted and she picked Barbie to go on her new bed. It has a trundle unit so Alayna is ready for Brayden to come and spend the night again since she has a bed for him. But, back to Kristi... this week she is playing catch-up for skipping school last week.

Kristi's birthday is officially Saturday, November 7th and she has a busy week-end planned. On Friday night a whole bunch of people are going to Kobe's for dinner to celebrate. I think this will be a lot of fun - I am looking forward to it. Then on Saturday, Kristi has 4 tickets to the MU game. Her friends from West Plains are coming up to go with her and Alayna. They are going to tailgate and then off to the game. After the game they are going out to dinner. On Sunday, we are going to have a big breakfast for Lacey and Kevin before they head home to West Plains. Lacey is pregnant and due in December so Kristi and I are going to make a baby cake for her to take home.

Tom and I are just really busy with work and house stuff. We have had several different appointments that we have had to go to and this will be going on for several more months. Not to mention, I have had one dentist appointment and have several more to go thanks to needing 2 root canals and 2 crowns. I really think I will have to have one of my wisdom teeth pulled since I am still in a lot of pain even on the antibiotic and pain killers he has me on. I am terrified of dentists and it takes all I can muster to stay in the chair, but I am in so much pain that I can't sleep at night so I am ready to sit in the chair right now! So, that means that I must be in pain.

Tomorrow night I am going to a Clint Black concert. I got this ticket about 3 months ago and ended up with a front row seat. I am not a HUGE Clint Black fan, but decided that I liked his older music well enough to pay the price for the ticket and go. I am going by myself just like I did when Olivia Newton-John was here in concert. I don't mind - I will be in my own little world (and yes, the concert time is in my phone to remind me to go!).

Well, I guess that is enough for now...it is about time for another pain pill and then off to bed.

Last few days in review

I guess people and objects do get sick after visiting the hospital. While mom was there I had to go to my doctors appointment (more about that later) and came back to mom's room and my computer had died. It plays taps when I try to turn it on. I paid for geek squad to fix it for 3 years and I guess they will be doing their job now since my two geeks can't fix it. That is why I have not updated in the last couple of days because I can't get Tom's computer. He is very protective of his toy.

About mom...she finally hatched an escape plan for Saturday. On Friday, she said that she wanted to stay one more day to gain a little more strength, but wanted me up there bright and early on Saturday. Well, I had to stop at the bank, Wal-Mart for groceries, and staples for other stuff. So, I left home about 7 and arrived at the hospital about 10. I still had the groceries so I could only stay for about an hour. The doctor still had not released her so I came home to put the groceries away and Tom stopped and picked her up on his way back from taking foliage pictures. She is doing a lot better this time then she did with her last surgery. She is sore, but is able to move around and do a lot more. She can't bend over because she has about a 12" scar with a lot of staples in it, but is catching up on her sleep and watching her soap operas.

On Saturday, Kristi and Alayna went to Kansas City to spend some time with Beth and the boys. Alayna and Brayden were having withdrawl from each other so they needed some cousin bonding time. They went to several places and then Tanya took Brayden and Alayna to another place. Sorry, I don't know all the names - I just know they had fun.

But...you have to pay for fun sometimes and Alayna is paying a rather big price. On Sunday morning she woke up about 3 and threw up in her bed. Kristi cleaned up the mess and calmed her down. We just thought it was a result of a very busy day without a nap - but with a temp of 103 we were afraid of the flu. It is now Monday, and her fever is down a tad, but she has no energy and is not eating . We are not pushing food on her - just feeding her if she asks. She threw up again this morning, but that seem to break the fever - so maybe we are on the downhill slide. We are concerned about mom getting sick now since Alayna is so generous and I am sure is going to pass this around. This is the last thing that mom needs after major surgery.

On the 15th, I had a doctors appointment that mom made me promise to keep if she made it through surgery ok. So, at 3 I was at my doctors appointment while mom sleep her medicine off. This appointment was for my yearly bladder check to make sure I have not developed bladder cancer. I thought all he would do was look in my bladder - WRONG! He saw the same mass I had a year ago had grown so he wanted to do another biopsy. You do this with a full bladder thanks to the fluid the poor in your bladder (reverse Cather) and then he uses these tongs and pulls - REALLY HARD until you scream! He got a rather large section and was pleased. He also said that because the mass was larger he wanted to do a test on my urine called a FISH test. It determines your risk and if you have have bladder cancer the stage. I won't get the results for about a week or so. I left that office bleeding very badly and hurting like heck. I stopped at every bathroom on my walk back across the "bridge" to the hospital to mom's room. Kristi took off when she found out they were going to do the biopsy and sent me packing. I came home and took my pain medicine and died!! I feel better today, just anxious to hear what the results are. Oh, I forgot to add that the FISH test cost $2,000 that we are not sure if the insurace will pay. I told them to do it anyway, who needed to pay car payments, groceries, or the light bill anyway!!

Kristi started her on-line classes today, and it helped that she had to stay home with a sick girl. While Alayna was asleep Kristi was doing her homework. Kristi was also a great help today making sure Oma had something to eat and drink and was ok. I was worried about her being at home by herself, maybe that is why Alayna got sick so someone could take care of them both!! Tomorrow Tom is going to stay home. Not sure about Wednesday.

Mom's surgery

Mom entered the hospital this morning and had her surgery already. It took about 90 minutes to complete the surgery. The doctor said that she probably "popped" a stitch sometime ago and thus allowed her colon to have a place to go. He said about 4" of her colon and made it's way behind the mess and that was causing her problems. He is now concerned that he might have made the mess too tight around the opening and this could restrict her urine output, so they are keeping her until she can fill her bag on her own. He put a catheter in to keep it open until the swelling goes down. I don't have a room number yet as she is still in recovery and will be there until she wakes up - and for those of you who know our family that could be days from now!!!

Offical birthday dinner...

I have had a lot of free meals this week in preparation for my actual birthday on Tuesday. I got several coupons for free meals in the mail and Tom and I have been enjoying them. Today we went to lunch at Longhorn with Kris, David, Angie, Oma, and Tom. But, the real dinner and show was tonight at Kobe Japanese Restaurant. It was so neat and we all really enjoyed the show that the chef put on for us and the food was wonderful. I loved the vegetables, but I love vegs.

We decided to do dinner tonight since Mom was suppose to have her surgery on Monday. She has to be on a light diet for as couple of days before surgery so we thought we had better do it tonight. But, the hospital had to reschedule her surgery yet again (for the 3rd time) so we could have done it on on Sunday.

I only wanted two things for my birthday this year - dinner at Kobe and Brian to download some movies to my ITunes account (I can't do it here with satellite Internet - too slow). I am not really picky am I??

We are still alive...

It is bad when people start calling you to see if you are ok because it has been almost 2 months since I updated last. So much has happened in the last two months that I just have not had time to sit down and update. Sometimes I think my life is in fast forward and I can't find the remote to slow it down.

Let see...what has been going on??? Well, we had a sad event that happened a month ago. My brother Larry died on Sept 2 - the day before my dad's death anniversary of Sept 3 (1986). I have so many memories of Larry because he lived close to us most of the time. My brother Gene moved to AZ when I was little - maybe he was trying to run away from me!!! Anyway, about Larry. I was thinking about him yesterday and was thinking of all the things that remind me of him. He was such an inspiration to all and he will be missed. Mom is taking his death really well compared to Gene's death. I thought she would take this one harder because we saw Larry so much more than she did Gene, but she has done better than the rest of us. Alayna still questions Larry's death. It is hard for kids to understand but she was talking about all the funny things Larry did with her - I am surprised at what she remembers.

We have all been busy preparing for Tom's parents 50th anniversary celebration which is happening on October 4, 2009. We have to go to Boonville today (October 3) to set up the church and tomorrow is the party. I know I have spent a lot of money on this - I will have a total next week. We have been keeping the receipts to see what was spent. It is well worth it since this is a milestone that not many make it to. With Carl and Janice both having major health issues (cancer) and major car accidents which involved several surgeries and long rehab stays shows that God had a plan for them.

Brian moved into an apartment by himself last week-end. He needed to get out on his own. I am sure he is going to be happier. If there is a mess, then he made it!! He was getting tired of cleaning up after everyone else and having to stay in his bedroom because they were having a party on a week-night. His apartment is really nice and just right for him. This last Tuesday, I went over and fixed him supper while waiting on the guy to fix his dryer. It was good for us to have mommy/son time. We watched a funny movie and had a blast.

Alayna started kindergarten at Two-Mile prairie school in August. She handled the adjustment a lot better then we thought she would. She has a wonderful teacher who I have known for years. She didn't realize that Alayna was mine until the first day of school. She is taking her lunch most days because she can decide what she wants. She could be a vegetarian so easily since she eats all kinds of vegs, beans, cheese, eggs, fruit. She does not like sweets or potatoes, or bread. Such a strange thing for a child! She doesn't like eating at fast food places because they don't have vegetables.

Kristi is busy with school and work. This session has really kicked her butt. The history teacher is not very good, you can see this because over half of the class got a C or lower on the midterm. Only one more week sissy and you will get to a better class. We were saddened to hear that a professor that I loved when I attended Columbia College died unexpectedly a few weeks ago. Mr. Metscher had worked at Columbia College for over 35 years and was wonderful.

Mom is doing ok. Is going to have colon surgery on October 12. Near her stoma (from her cancer surgery) her colon is coming out - similar to another hernia. This surgery will be worse than the last hernia surgery since she will have to actually be cut around her stoma - about 8- 10 inches minimum. She was scheduled for surgery a week ago but has a terrible infection on her skin that has to be healed because that is where they are going to cut. Yesterday she had a car accident and is worried about her car being totalled. I told her if it is we will buy it back and keep it. It was her mother's day gift a few years ago and she doesn't want a car with a payment. BTW - she is ok, didn't get hurt in the accident.

Tom is doing well, just really stressed about work. Some changes have happened and he is not happy about them. He is just rolling with the flow. Had his yearly prostrate check and his number dropped - YEA!!! With his dad having prostrate cancer this is a big concern with him.

I guess I better close...too much information can be harmful to your health~~~~

Busy Week-end

This last weekend, my nephew Scott got married. We told Beth that we would keep the boys so that she could enjoy the rehearsal dinner. We love having the boys around for 2 reasons...we get to have them all to our selves and Brayden and Alayna are the best of friends and play so good together. Brayden got off to a rough start but came around and had a great time. We had a blast with Kolby. He smiles at the funniest things and this made it even more fun.

Let's back up to Thursday - we went to the mall to check on a dress for Alayna and ended up seeing my brother and sister-in-law at the mall. Then I ran into a store to see if they had a different shirt for the wedding and ran into my mother-in-law. It was like a mini family reunion all over again!!

Now, onto Saturday...I went back to the mall to take back the shirt that I bought then we had to get ready for the wedding which was at 4:30. We made it in time and it was a wonderful service. The officiator was wonderful this made the service really nice. After the family pictures, we went to reception at Senior Hall on Stephens College Campus. After dinner there was a lot of dancing which Alayna LOVED!!!! She danced with anyone who would go out on the floor with her. We had a really nice night.

Today, we went to Finger Lakes to have a baby shower for the California couple (soon to be family). Then we had a nice picnic and back home. We knew Alayna was getting really tired so we headed home - not to mention that the temperature outside was getting way to hot be enjoy being outside.

We got home, Alayna took a shower and then slept for over 5 hours. I knew that dancing and party would catch up with her sooner or later!! We had something for supper that she has been asking for - for a long time...Meatballs. She ate a lot and is now upstairs with her mom watching a movie.

Happy Birthday Alayna...6 Years Old

Alayna actually turned 6 on July 23rd, but we really didn't make a big deal out of it. We did go to dinner and she had a party with her school friends but she didn't open any presents because we were having a big party on July 25th. I couldn't believe that she was so patient and waited without asking to open anything even though her presents were on the table in plain sight.

Yesterday was the day of her parties. It started with a party at Flipz (a gym) with 10 of her friends. It was great because we had the entire place all to ourselves and the kids could run and play without the parents having to worry about anyone else. We knew all the kids were with our party. After playtime we had lunch and then we came home.

Once home we had seveal more people come over (18 total) and had a BBQ for dinner after having cake and ice cream in the middle of the afternoon followed by finally opening presents. Alayna wanted books for her birthday this year because she really enjoys reading stories to us. She also got some cooking items - mainly a Easy Bake Oven. She can't wait to make cakes for us. I am not sure if I am ready for this!!!

We had a great time yesterday. Our next great adventure is starting kindergarten in about a month. I am not sure if I am ready for this either.

Coming up in the world...

Well, we decided a couple of months ago to switch from US Cellular to ATT. The kids wanted IPhones and since US Cellular takes years to get the new phones that are on the market we went ahead and started the switch. Brian, Kristi, and I all switched and then about 2 weeks ago I sold Tom's phone while he was still using it - so he had to switch. Now, I have to switch mom and will do that this next month. Then...I decided to call about getting a DVR on our satellite. I found out that we would save money if we switched, so we did that about a week ago. However, this has been a hassle since Kristi's DVR isn't working right and the dual DVR in our living room decided today to act up. So, I think I know now why they said I would save money - cause I can't watch TV!! I also joined Facebook and Twitter...so now I am really connected!!

Almost forgot...fishing with Uncle Owen

Alayna wanted to go fishing all day - that is what she kept asking "Is it time to go fishing yet?" Once Owen said lets go, she got her stuff and was ready. And look what she caught!!!

Alayna Graduation Party

One of the family's in Alayna's pre-school had a graduation party for the kids today to celebrate their time at the Academy. All of the kids are starting to leave the school in preparation for kindergarten (starts in about a month). I can't believe that she is getting ready for real school. Where does time go?? It was soooooo hot for this BBQ. Alayna's face was so red and she kept saying "Grandma, I am so hot" but that didn't stop her from enjoying the bounce house and swing set. She didn't eat, but we didn't force her since we didn't want her throwing up!

When we got home we were ready for cold showers and rest time. Tonight, after watching an old Lion King movie and playing on the Wii she laid down on the couch and so BB laid down with her. That was it, they were both asleep quickly.

Ruby-Throad Humming Bird

Tom is getting really good at taking pictures of birds.

This is some kind of rare bird that never comes out of the woods. It eats insects and doesn't like open spaces according to the bird expert at that bird store that mom goes to!! Some kind of Warbler or something like that. I am not a bird person - they leave too many poo marks on my cars but mom and Tom are really excited about seeing this and so was the bird expert.

2 trips to Kansas City...

On July 3rd, Tom and I went to Overland Park, Kansas to see a good friend who was recently diagnosed with cancer. We have know Mary since 1983 and she is like a 2nd mom to us. She is Terri's mom (Terri and Daryl from Denver that I am always talking about). This cancer diagnosis was a total surprise and the doctors give her less than 3 months to live. We wanted to see her and spend some time with her.

Brian was already in Kansas City visiting his friend, Paul and they were going to a see Transformers in the IMAX theatre in Olathe, Kansas so we met them there for a movie. I didn't want to see that movie so I picked Proposal to see. The only theatre was $10 extra for the "Cinema Suites." You paid $10 more but that is for a food voucher. I really didn't know what I was getting myself into. These suites only have 36 RECLINERS in the theatre and you are waited on like a restaurant. I really enjoyed this experience and am now going to have a real hard time going to a regular movie theatre. I was spoiled!!! And the movie was good too!

On Sunday, Kristi wanted to go see Mary one last time since they are moving her to Denver to live with Terri. I don't mind giving up my bedroom at Terri's house for her. So, Alayna, Tom, Kristi, and I went back to Kansas City and spent about 2 hours with Mary, Terri, Courtney (Terri's daughter) and Kane (Courtney's son). We were all laughing and talking like the good old days.

After the hospital, we went to the movie. Kristi and I went to the Suites again and Tom and Alayna went to a "Fork and Screen" showing of Ice Age. They paid $5.00 per ticket more and got the wait staff but no recliners. A recliner is worth the extra $5.00 each.

We had a busy week-end and a hectic week and work. I am so glad it is a quiet week-end this week-end. I am too old for all of this stuff!!!

4th of July at Kris' Campground

We were invited for a family gathering at Kris' campground in Monroe City for July 4th week-end. Kristi, Oma, and Alayna went up on Friday and spent the night in a motel - NOW THAT IS CAMPING!!! They had a lot of fun. Kristi, Alayna, and Aunt Kris went to Hannibal and met Aunt Gail so they could walk around the craft festival they were having. Mom and Uncle Larry stayed behind. Kristi said they had BBQ chicken for supper and she said it was really good. They had fun shooting off fireworks after dark. On Saturday, Tom and I went up to join them for a short time then Kristi came back home because someone had to take care of the cats and Kristi really needed to write a paper for one of her classes. We visited for a while, had lunch and then we headed back to the hotel to unload the van and let Alayna take a nap. We had burgers and brats for dinner and then Tom got his exercise shooting fireworks off for us. I really enjoyed all the other fireworks that were going off around us. On Sunday morning we left and came home really early. Tom, Krist, Alayna, and I had to run to Kansas City and Oma wanted to rest. Great week-end.

Fishing tomorrow

Tomorrow, Alayna's pre-school is going fishing. Yesterday one of the teachers caught me as I was picking up Alayna and asked if Papa could join them. I told her that we were on off this week and if he had time he could. She said "good, because none of the teachers that are going know how to bait a hook or take off a fish if one is caught. We were hoping that someone could help us." So, this is going to be a great time...maybe I should go and take pictures!!!

Update on Mom

Mom finally escaped yesterday morning about 10:30. She wanted to go to a beauty shop to get her hair washed and styled since she was determined to go to her memorial luncheon yesterday. I dropped her off there since one of the other ladies lives close to us and said that she would bring her home for me so I wouldn't have to wait. That was great since I had several things I needed to do at home.

She got home and went straight to the couch to lay down. Larry Bernard came to visit her and she visited with him for a short time before she went to sleep. She felt really bad about falling asleep while he was here, but she needed the sleep. The night before she didn't get any sleep because her roommate had several medical issues that required the nurses to work on her all night. I don't think that lady will be around much longer - her time on earth is about to end.

Today, mom is just exhausted. She is sitting at the table right now signing her checks to pay her bills and then we have to to the hospital for yet another test. Then, I am going to bring her back home and back to town I go so that I can grocery shop. She has to rest up for this week-end. We are going to my sisters campground for a family reunion (I guess that is the best thing to call it). I think mom will be resting a lot while we are there.

My "vacation" is half over and I still have not marked anything off my "to-do" list. I have a lot to do in a short time.

One last thing...yesterday I took Alayna to school on my way to the hospital and she asked if Oma was going to come home today and I told her maybe. She said that Oma couldn't come home yet because she didn't have a bed in our house yet. Alayna gave me orders to get one soon. I guess Alayna is paying attention, because every time mom has come home from the hospital (not including this one) she has had to stay at our house because usually the hospital stays involved surgery. Alayna just doesn't understand why this one is different.

What a way to start my week off...

Well, lets see...I made it through my week at work. I think that when you know you have a week off coming up you work twice as hard and worry about getting it all done before you leave for your time off. Then you spend the first few hours worried about whether you completed everything you needed to before you left.

Anyway, on Saturday Tom and I went and changed his phone out. My phone broke that I had with US Cellular and so after arguing with them they decided that I needed to claim it on insurance and get a new phone. When the girl at US Cellular took it out of the box she found that it was already broken so yet another claim has to be made...more about that later. I have switched carriers and am with ATT now. So, only Oma and Tom are on US Cellular at the moment. They will be switching soon as well. But anyway, we got him switched and had to go over to ATT to get Kristi's new phone fixed. Now I know why it was free!!

Tom and I came home and found Alayna asleep and Kristi in the pool. However, she stayed in the pool way too long and got blistered on her legs, sunburnt (and I mean burnt) on her arms, back, and face. She is still paying the price for that relaxing afternoon in the pool.

On Saturday afternoon mom and I cleaned chicken and corn for the BBQ and worked around the kitchen. I knew mom said that she didn't feel really good but would not go sit down. She said that she couldn't find a comfortable position. Her back has really been bothering her and she can't get her shot until July 7th so I thought that is what she meant. She wanted to make homemade rolls for the family down the street (a 90 year old man and his 80 year old wife who just had a heart attack). So, she made the rolls and took the casserole I made down to them. When she got back she said that she was hurting really bad and had a high fever and was going to her apartment. I told her to wait a minute and lets call the doctor - especially since she finally specified that the pain was in her kidney area not her lower back. So, she called the doctor and he wanted to see her right away at the hospital.

So, off we went to Boone Hospital and found that she had a kidney infection which is bad enough, but this is a type of infection that is easily transferred to the blood stream and is capable of being fatal very quickly. So, they told her that she had to be admitted - for 4 reasons...her age, her uristomy, kidney infection, and high fever. If she would have had only 3 of these they might have let her go home but she had all four so they didn't really give her an option. I think she was better off here since they could test her blood every few hours like they wanted and could also watch her to make sure she is progressing as she should. She spiked a temp again last night for some unknown reason but feels really good today. She really wants to go home, but we are waiting her urologist to see her. The family doctor is concerned about this kidney infection since she has had cancer. He wants to make sure that we are not dealing with another issue.

Today - Monday - Tom is in Boonville (look Kris, I spelled it right) cutting down a tree for his parents, Kristi is at home wanting to die, Alayna is at home "helping mommy" and I am here with mom.

Now - about that phone. I called this morning to tell them they sent a broken phone and the lady on the other end said that I had to fed-ex and send that phone back to them. They would in turn look at it and determine if I did the damage or it was done in shipping and then send me another phone. As you can guess, I was not happy about that. First, we will be without a phone for up to a week and what do you mean "see if I broke it" I wasn't the one who found that the answer key was missing - the lady at US Cellular was the one who took it out of the box and found it. Anyway, I wasn't very nice to them but will do this tonight and the folks at US Cellular will know that I am not happy.

I guess that is enough for now.

What am I???

We think it was a gopher - but the standoff between Jelly Bean (the cat) and animal (the animal) was funny. In one of the pictures, Animal was shaking his body. Tom said that he was making noise to scare away Jelly bean, but he wasn't having any part of being scared away.

I am really not sure why I pay a zoo membership with all the wildlife we have in our yard.

Switching cell phone service, I guess...

We are thinking about switching cell phone service from US Cellular to AT & T. We want IPhones and they are the only provider that we can get them from. Of course, mom will have to move sooner or later, that should be the hardest part. Of course, I am not sure if I can afford the move since you have to pay for activation fees and other stuff, but we are looking at it. When I called US Cellular they said that we have been customers with them since August 1992, I can't believe that we have had them that long - almost makes me sad to leave. Well, then I think of the IPhone and get glad again. I can't wait to have my Sirius radio on my phone.

Terrible loss for the Royals on Father's Day

We left early on Father's day for our day at Royals Stadium. We got there in plenty of time to get comfy and start the grill - only the grill had other thoughts. I bought match light charcoal so that I didn't have lighter fluid in the car during the game with 90+ degree temps outside. Well, I should have because the charcoal would not light. We finally had to use A LOT of paper to make it start. But, with a lot of prayers it got going and we had wonderful FRESH hamburgers and hot dogs. Alayna loves picnics and she thought this was a blast because we were at the stadium.

After a good lunch we went into the stadium. It was neat to look out over the crowd and see all the red and blue. Almost patriotic. But, I don't think the Royals got paid for the day because they left their talent at home. Royals lost to the St. Louis Cardinals 12 - 5. I think everyone had a blast except for the heat.

New stove

Well, we finally decided on a new stove. It better work because it drained savings and maxed out credit cards. We decided on a Samsung Stove from Lowes because mom could get a 10% military discount which aided in the affordability of the stove. So far we really like it. Has a lot of things on it that we are still learning about. Since we have a freezer full of meat we should be able to utilize it for a while.

Bad News from the Doctor

Hey guys! It's Kristi again. Mom wanted me to come on here and post a message about the news that I got from the doctor myself. I think she was afraid she'd get it all wrong. My six month check up with the oncologist was last Thursday. I didn't get such great news. I guess it could have been a lot worse, but it was still rough to handle. The first batch of bad news came as soon as I checked myself in. This oncologist will stop accepting my insurance on August 1st. This means that I either pay "out of network" premiums or I switch doctors for the third time in a year. I would gladly pay to continue to see this doctor if she could guarantee that I would not have to have surgery, but since I am pretty sure that I am eventually going to have to have surgery, I am more than likely going to have to switch. There is only one other gynecological oncologist (what a mouthful) in this immediate area. If that doctor doesn't accept my insurance, then I will probably have to start seeing someone in Kansas City or St. Louis. It kind of feels like I am going to be starting over at square one, although I am trying to look at it from the perceptive that maybe this new doctor will have different options than the one I am currently seeing. The second batch of bad news is that I still have a year to a year and half of the cervical biopsies before they will take my treatment a step further. The type of abnormal cells that I have have been known to heal themselves in 60 to 70 percent of cases, so the recommendation is to wait 2 to 3 years before pursuing any kind of treatments. This will be the case until the cells either go away completely or get much worse. For most people who read this, this scenario would seem like no big deal. This situation is emotionally draining for me however, so the possibility of doing this for another year and a half is really depressing for me. I am a nervous wreak for the week or two before my appointment and then for two weeks after, until I get my results. The subject never leaves my mind, of course but the month surrounding my appointments are complete and utter h-e-double hockey sticks. My feelings on this is that if the cells have not repaired themselves in last year and a half that I have been dealing with this, then I really don't think they are going to up and decide to go away now. I haven't gotten the results of this last round of biopsies yet, but I'm sure Mom will post something regarding them when we do. The third round of bad news was that I may be dealing with abnormal cells in two different areas of my body. My monthly cycle, which had always been pretty regular, decided in April of 08 to take a hiatus and has not come back yet. According to the oncologist, the absence of my monthly cycle indicates that I have something abnormal occurring with either my hormones or in my uterus. Due to the fact that I didn't stop taking birth control until December of last year, they will not begin doing biopsies on my uterus until this December. She said that my not having the monthly cycle could be attributed to many things including hormonal changes, weight gain or loss, or stress. She wants to wait the full year to see if the cycle will appear again normally. If not, they will begin the biopsy process in my uterus and thus will begin the 2 to 3 year biopsy cycle in that area. Honestly at this point, I am just ready for them to take everything out and let me go on with my life. Unfortunately with my age and the fact that I am currently single, they won't even consider that. I would have to be much worse off before they would fight the insurance company to do that type of surgery.

We are still here...

I had a friend call me last week and asked if we were all ok since I had not updated this lately. I read this every night, just don't think of updating it as often as I should.

Tom and I are busy with work. We are trying to get everything set for our mandatory week off without pay. I don't think they realize that it is going to hurt us really bad since there are 2 of us suffering. It wouldn't be so bad if I had to take one in one month and Tom the next. No, it will hit us both in one month. Bread and Water will be on our menu a lot! We have some plans for that week. Tom is going to help his dad cut down a tree one day and we want to take Alayna to the St. Louis zoo one day. Our membership is still good, so it will be free once we get there. I am taking a picnic lunch to eat there. Alayna loves picnics. I hope to get back into scrapbooking. I have so many pictures to put in albums but just have not felt like it.

I go back to the doctor on the 28th for my next potassium check. My level is still not where is should be. Last Saturday, Tom and I finished cutting up a tree that he dropped last fall. After about an hour I had no feeling in my face. The doctor said that I probably sweated just enough to be lower than I should have been. He said eat more foods with potassium - well, just how much do you want me to eat. I am turning into a monkey with the bananas that I have eaten. Dole is now sending me Thank you letters. Yesterday, I was walking to the back of the house and fell in some mud (our garden hose leaks really bad and makes for a heck of a mess). I landed face first in the mud. The first thing I did was make sure I could move my leg - I have enough trouble with my knee, but it hurt but was movable. I ended up hurting my shoulder, knee and rib but nothing is broken I think. I think I probable did something to my shoulder but am going to try to deal with it. Needless to say - Thank god it wasn't mom who fell.

Oma is finally crying "Uncle" and going to go get her shot. She is hurting so bad 90% of the time and can't stand to do anything that she wants to do. She has a lot of things coming up and wants to enjoy them so it is shot time. She was trying to wait to be able to get one that would still be working for Scott's wedding - but she doesn't think she can wait anymore. We went to the mall the other night and she hurt so bad that she couldn't hardly get out of the van when we got home. Otherwise, she is not quilting or planting - just hanging out.

Kristi is really stressed with school and her semi-annual cancer checkup this week. These check up always weight heavy on her mind the week or so before because she is so worried about what they are going to find. She is having some problems so she is really worried about what the doctor is going to tell her. She thinks surgery is looming on the horizon and this is not want she really needs right now. Especially since she can't take pain meds and would have to endure major surgery on Tylenol.

Alayna graduated from Pre-school about a week ago. She was so proud of herself and had a smile from ear to ear the entire time. She told me the other day that she is now big and is going to big school. I almost cried wondering where the time had went. I can't believe that she will be 6 years old next month. On Friday the preschool went to the park and Alayna ran away from the group. They couldn't find her and when they finally did she was on the other side of Cosmo park. Now, if any of you know the size of Cosmo park it is not small - I am not sure where she was going - maybe to find Uncle Gene's bench and pop-a-squat to have a chat with Uncle Gene. Who knows. She told me that she was exploring like Dora does so we had a chat about having an adult with you when you explore. She has already done this once here at home - disappeared in the woods exploring. I guess she will be the next Christopher Columbus. She doesn't know fear and this may be a problem when she gets older. I am glad Kristi gets to deal with this.

Brian is just having fun like most boys his age. He went to Kansas City on Friday night for a party to watch the playoffs or whatever they are called for hockey with some friends who live in KC then back home for a house warming party for someone. Tonight he has game night with his friends. No wonder he is tired - he needs to move home to get some rest.

Next week-end we are off to the Royals game in Kansas City on Sunday. We are having a heck of a time finding Royal shirts in Columbia. We can find all the Cardinals (yuk) stuff but not much for the Royals. Give me a break with are half-way between the two teams and some people like the Royals. I finally found some thing for everyone except Alayna and didn't spend an arm and a leg.

Our oven died about a couple of weeks ago. We are wanting to buy our own since we know that the lady who owns the house will buy a piece of junk and raise our rent (which we couldn't afford right now). But, the stove that we want, which is not a fancy model is $1,700. We can't afford that right now so we are doing the best we can. The stove top works so we can cook there - just not in the oven very often. It works today but maybe not tomorrow. So, you have to have a back up plan. The repair guy said that the brain is dying and will die soon - just no telling when. He said that stoves only last 5-7 years and this one has lasted 6 years and we don't know how old it was when we moved in. He said that he is surprised that this one lasted this long with the amount that we use it. I checked into renting stoves and they rent everything but stoves. So, if it goes we will grill alot.

Not much else going on here...What up with everyone else?

We have a new cook at our house

Alayna has develped a great love of cooking - which drives Oma crazy. I am trying to teach Alayna how to cook easy stuff and Oma is always telling Alayna to get out of the kitchen. I figure let's teach her while she wants to learn. She is so proud to serve you what she has cooked, and I keep coming up with new stuff for her to try. She is now an expert at scrambled eggs having them at least 5 times in the last week. This morning she made pancakes. I was having trouble with my allergies and my eyes were almost swollen shut so Oma had to help her - well most of the time Alayna watched while Oma cooked. I would have let Alayna pour and flip, but maybe next time. For lunch, Alayna wants to make the mashed potatoes - even though she won't eat them. She is taking after her Grandpa Fines - he would be so proud of her wanting to learn how to cook.

Feel Beth & Lucas Pain...

I was having trouble with my van and took it to the shop. My wipers would stop working (I think they were union wipers!!) and you would have to mess with the turn signal to get them to come back on. This is a real problem when you are driving down I-70 at 70 mph in a thunderstorm. Anyway, I took it in on a sunny day and told them that the switch on my steering wheel was bad and needed to be replaced and then left it. The idiot called me and said that it wasn't raining outside and so they couldn't get it to do what I said it was doing. I, being a smart woman said - without thinking...why don't you put it in your wash bay and turn on the water idiot. He replied "that is a good idea, we didn't think about that!" I hung up the phone and promptly said "Men are so stupid sometimes" and when you work in an office with 3 other woman they all agreed. Anyway, they called back and said that the switch was bad and they would have to replace the entire turn signal to fix it - was this ok? No, it is not...I really don't need wipers...idiot. Anyway, the cost to fix that and the sliding door was $1,400...thank god for extended warranties. I feel for Beth and Lucas every time they go to the shop...we pay $40+ an hour for these "experts" who can't find the bathroom without someone leaving them cracker crumbs to follow. And you wonder why the big 3 are in financial trouble!

Happy Fathers Day early

On Friday, I ordered tickets for the Kansas City Royals vs the St. Louis Cardinals (BOO) game on Father's day. There are 9 of us going (Tom, Me, Kristi, Alayna, Brian, Oma, Carl, Janice, and Bob) and half likes the yukky Cardinals and the rest of us like the most wonderful Royals. I was able to get really good seats - right close to the seats that we had when we took my brother a couple of years ago (maybe it was last year). This should be a fun game to say the least. I am going to check tomorrow to see if we can tailgate before the game. This should be a really fun game....go Royals!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Potassium

Well, I am still not feeling the best. I wear out so fast that I have to come home and take a nap at lunch and right after work. Yesterday, a trip to the grocery store resulted in a 2 1/2 nap. The doctor did some more blood work on me and my potassium level is still not up to where it is suppose to be even after all the medicine and the ER visit. So, he switched medicine and I go back in 2 weeks for a check up again. He is not sure why I can't keep my potassium level up.

Today, Alayna wanted to have a picnic so Kristi and I got the food together and Alayna chose the spot. With 10 acres you would think that she would pick somewhere nice and quiet. No, she picked the area right by the house near her swingset. The weather was wonderful which made for a nice picnic. Alayna decided that she wanted to take pictures and has decided that she likes my little camera. She has been walking around all day taking pictures of everything that she could find.

After the picnic Alayna wanted the blankets left so she could play with her toys. After a couple of hours it got really quiet so I went to checked on her and found her to be sound asleep on the blankets. I guess that the fresh air was just enough to make her sleepy.

Going Batty...

Saturday, we were working in the yard and Tom walked around the back of the house and looked up and saw that we had some friends sleeping the day away. We were suprised that they were sleeping right under the roof of the house in daylight. I always thought that they wanted to sleep in a dark cave...

You have to feel better to die

This is what the doctor told me on Wednesday morning when I went to the doctor. I thought I had a sinus infection and he agreed along with a touch of bronchitis. Well, after 3 days of missing part of the day at work I got worse - if you can believe this.

Yesterday, I went down hill fast and ended up in the emergency room and just about in the hospital. They are not quite sure what happened but I had paralysis of my arms, legs, and face. It is really scary when you can't move your body when you want to. So, after 4 hours in the ER and a lot of drugs and IV's they sent me back home. Today I feel a little better, still not feeling like doing much mainly because I my energy goes really fast. So much for cutting wood and working in the yard this week-end - I just don't feel like it.

Kristi and Alayna left this morning for West Plains to visit friends. They will be back on Monday or Tuesday. They were both looking forward to this visit. Kristi has already called once because she took a wrong turn. The way to West Plains is not a straight shot. She has to make turns that are not clearly marked for the directionally challenged. We are staying close to the phone with our Missouri map for the next call. This way we can figure out where she is.

Mom has been working in the yard a little bit. She is working on the "hill" that we have. If I feel like it today I am going out to help her a little today. We are hoping Tom can use the mower and we can cut what is left.

Happy Graduation, Scott

Last weekend we had a graduation celebration for Scott. We had several good meals and a wonderful time visiting family. We also took pictures of our family and Beth, Lucas, and the boys. On Friday night it didn't just rain...it poored. We were soaked and it was a long graduation with Scott being the 5th from the last. I still think that he had stage freight and didn't want to come out, he said that wasn't the case.

Kristi and Alayna are getting ready for their big week-end away. They are going to visit Lacey and Kevin in West Plains next week-end. They are leaving on Saturday and not coming back until Monday or Tuesday. Tom and I will be lost I am sure, but have a lot of yard work to do and I have to work on Monday.

Tom and I really need to get into the fence around the lagoon and cut down a lot of trees that have grown up and next week-end will be perfect since we won't have to worry about Alayna getting into the lagoon. Our landlord just doesn't appreciate all we do...

I have gotten sick and I think I would have to start feeling better just to die. That is bad I know, but it is how I feel. Each night this week we are going out to spend at least 1 hour cutting up some trees we have dropped last fall. This is not helping me at all.

I can't think of anything else to say...

Headlines Read...old woman shoots self in foot

That is what I am afraid the headline will read if mom has her way. Something is getting into her bird feeders at night and destroying them. So last night she came in and said that she was going to buy a gun and wait for whatever it is and shoot it. Like a good daughter I said "and what am I suppose to do when you shoot yourself in the foot, or worse?" She promptly said "You think I am kidding, don't you?" Well, I didn't think she was kidding but hoping that she doesn't go and buy a gun. I don't think my blood pressure can handle a 78 year old with a gun chasing a small animal around my yard. Pray for me...

Mother's Day Week-end

Happy late Mother's day to all the mom's out there. I am sorry that it is late, but I have been so busy that I didn't even read my cards until late last night.

On Saturday we went to Booneville so Tom could help his brother Bob hang blinds in the new sunroom. Then we had a wonderful lunch and played games. While Kristi and granny were playing games I sat at the end of the driveway while Alayna rode her new bike up and down the road. We don't have a nice area for her to ride, so she really enjoyed riding her bike there. Kristi had decided to get her a new bike and I think it was a great idea. She had really outgrown her old one, so it is going on the garage sale in a few weeks. Alayna was exhausted when we got home - bike riding is hard work!!

On Sunday, we decided that we had better get working on getting the pool put up. Last year we didn't get it up and this year we really wanted to get some time in the pool. It is expensive, but we really enjoy having it - great to relax after a hard day and Alayna really loves the water. Don't worry - we lock up the ladder and there is virtually no way she can get into the pool without an adult. I say virtually, because where there is a will - there is a way, but we have all talked to her about safety in and around the pool.

Anyway, we worked about 3 hours getting it up then had lunch. After lunch Tom, Oma, and I worked in the yard until about 7. It was a long day - which was suppose to be a rest day of mom's but not at our house!

This coming week-end we will be busy again. Larry and family will be here for Scott's masters degree graduation. We also have some plans for Saturday so hopefully it will be a nice week-end.

Hope you enjoy the pictures of the Baltimore Orioles that Tom took at his parents house. I love one where the bird is peeking around the feeder.

Peek-a-boo

Look at who is setting up the pool!!!

A few pictures...

Codie's Prom

This afternoon Tom and I went to Shelter Gardens to take pictures of Codie all dressed up for his prom. I can't believe some of the dresses these girls wore...I can't imagine the money spent on an outfit for one night. But, I guess girls do it all the time for their weddings so I shouldn't be suprised right!! Tom took about 175 pictures and after I edited my group down, I only have about 40 pictures on my computer. Don't worry Kris - he save all of them for you!! This is my favorite.

A busy week-end ahead

I am trying something new with this set of postings. I am posting backwards so that when you read these, you will go in order.

We are going to Kansas City to a Royals game and then Tom and I are off to the Kansas Truck race. Kristi and Alayna are going with us - in a way. Kristi is driving her car and going to the Royals game and then staying at the hotel with us. Then on Saturday, she is going to spend the day with Beth, Brayden, and Kolby. They went to Burger King, and then to Deana Rose Farm. Alayna has talked a lot about the farm so I guess we are going to have to go.

Kansas City Royals Baseball

We got to take Alayna to a really baseball game - unlike those crappy St. Louis Cardinals that we saw a couple of weeks ago. We wanted tickets in a certain section to determine if we would like to go when the St. Louis Cardinals are at Kansas City. We really didn't mind our seats except the seats are so close together that you can't get comfortable. It was so windy, but our seats were in a great spot and we didn't feel the wind except when we went to the bathroom.

It was $1 hot dog, Pepsi, peanuts, popcorn night. I think the hot dogs were leftover from last year. They were terrible. We were lucky to get to the stadium early and get our dogs - because when the game started the lines were like 50 deep and the wait was about an hour or so.

The game was good with the Royals winning 6-1 against the Detroit Tigers. The Royals are having a good season so far.

We had bought 2 tickets since Tom and I thought that we would be the only 2 going - then Kristi and Alayna decided they wanted to go, so I had to find 4 tickets together since there was not any other seats close to us. So, my Larry and Gail went in those seats. I think they had fun to - but said they were not happy about the hot dogs or the height of the seats.

Kansas Truck Race

Wow...what a time this was. We got up early on Saturday and got ready. I couldn't sleep so I only had about 4 hours of sleep, but still was excited about going. We had a wonderful motel room and got it for a really nice price on priceline. I like this "name your own price" portion of this website.

We had bought fanwalk tickets which allow you to go very close to the pits and watch tech inspections, meet drivers, watch qualifying, etc. We got there about 9:30 and finally got to our seats about 4 in the afternoon. We actually got to meet 10-12 drivers and talk to each one. This made Tom really happy since we get to see them on TV and now we can say that we got to actually meet them face to face.

The race started at 5 pm and we got a whopping 50 laps into the race before the race was red-flagged and stopped for heavy rain. Of course, we were inside the track when the rain started and had to walk back out to the van. By the time we got to the van we were beyond soaked and trying to decide how we could get into the suitcase and get our dirty clothes out and change in the van without everyone knowing what we were doing. We might go home in dirty clothes, but at least they were dry. But, I forgot about my wet underwear and so it really didn't do me a lot of good!

Anyway, we got almost to the van and the tornado sirens started going off. We both looked at the sky and since it so so black we couldn't see a tornado - but the winds were not very nice and the rain was coming sideways and really stung when it hit you. Luckily we were able to text message my niece who lives in the area and tell us where the danger was and then Brian called and walked us through some of the weather as well. We got in the traffic and headed home. By the time we got to Missouri (the track is in Kansas City, Kansas) we were into lighter skies and little or no rain. We just heard that a tornado was sighted about 9 miles from the track - that is a little too close for comfort!!

The race was postponed until today (Monday) but we knew we wouldn't be able to go - so we are watching it now on TV. This is the 4th year that we have went and the most eventfully race yet.

Sunday at our house...

We were really tired after our long week-end trip. We all slept in (which means 7:30 for me and 9 ish for everyone else). We had a decent breakfast and then Alayna and I spent about 2 hours "strip cleaning" her room. I came out with 2 bags of trash and have two 3-drawer containers full of toys that I have to sell since Alayna doesn't play with them anymore. I am thinking about putting them on craigslist. These drawers are full of duplo blocks, matchbox cars, McDonald toys, farm animals, etc. It will be a good batch of toys for the right person. If I knew of someone who had smaller children and had a fire this would be great - but I don't know of anyone like that or I would.

We hope to get the rain to stop so we can set up the pool soon. We are suppose to go to Independence on Saturday to see Larry and then we have a birthday dinner for a friend of Kristi's on Sunday, so another full week-end in store for us.

Our Future Little Two Mile Prairie - Prairie Dog

Last night we all went to Alayna's kindergarten registration at her big school - Two Mile Prairie. She was so excited that she didn't want to leave. She wanted to see each and every class room. She is all signed up and ready to go - not that we are ready for her to go. We were happy to find out that they have a before and after school program called Adventure Club which will be a God Send for us. Alayna will be dropped off by Kristi before work in the morning and we will have to pick her up after we get off at night. They are even open when school is out so this will solve all our issues we were having. I am just not ready to have her ride a school bus yet - even thought about quitting my job to go back to driving a school bus for her. I am not the slightest bit concerned about her going to school - it is the school bus and driver that scares the life out of me. So, if she was to ride the bus - Kristi would be crying that Alayna was going to school and I would be crying that she was riding a bus. We would be basket cases all day!!! So, now it appears that the only one that will be crying is Kristi since Alayna will be going with Kristi in the morning and us at night.

This is a country school with only 320 kids and a 16-1 teacher/student ratio. Can't beat that one. They also have a very active PTA which has installed smart boards in each class room and does a lot of activities with the families each year. I think this will be a good experience for our family. Now, if I can just get over the fact that Alayna is big enough to actually be going to school I will be OK. But, she is already a year past when she should have started school since we kept her out for a year, this will make it easier on all of us I think. I just don't think Alayna would have had a good year this year if we would have sent her - but I think next year will be wonderful for her.

To top off the evening last night, mommy and papa took her to Chuck E. Cheese for the first time last night for a pizza dinner. That was a special deal since we don't go out to eat very often and when we do it sure ain't there!! They had a blast.

Tax Man Cometh

Well, today is dreaded tax day and as with the last 3 years I have waiting until today to do my taxes. I am too the point that I think it is not worth all the paperwork, just get out the check book and write a out a large check and just send it in - don't worry about the paperwork, just send money. This all came to be when we lost our dependents...what a sad day in tax history that was. I sometime wish I was like the Dugger family with 18 kids - think of the tax breaks they get. Last night was not a good night. We had to get a new Culligan water softner about a month ago since our last one died and the owner of the house didn't want to replace it. So, we rented one and life has been ok for the last month. Well, after taking my sleeping medicine and just getting into that nice deep REM sleep (about 11:30ish) Tom comes upstairs and wakes me up with "You have to get up, we have a problem." Now, when I take this medicine, I will not move at all sleeping in the same position all night - that is how deep asleep that I am. So, I get up thinking that something has happened to someone and stumble to the bedroom door trying to wake up and be conherient enough to use my brain - and ask "who is hurt?" He said "the water softner just sprung a large leak and the laundry room is flooded, you have to call culligan." Well, the softner is in my name, only because I was the one who called and scheduled the installation. I told Tom that I didn't think I could talk right to anyone at this hour, on this medicine, or about this issue. It would be like a drunk calling you...how much of a response do you think we would have gotten??? Anyway, Tom called and they were out here in less than a half hour (talk about service) and it were done around 2:30 this morning. After I did what I could, mainly walking around like a drunken sailor, I went back to bed - no use fighting the medicine and poor Tom stayed up with the Culligan man all night. So, as you can bet, it will be an early night tonight. Mom went to a new doctor today - a back doctor, and he said that she has a serious issue with her back. Really needs to have rods and pins inserted to help the pain that she is in all the time. Well, after 3 surgeries in the last year she is not ready for #4, so they are going to try some other stuff first. She is really limited on what she can do now, gardening (or flowering as we call it) is going to be out this year since that is one of the things he took away - no more bending at the waist and of course she can't squat anymore. I am not sure how she is suppose to pick up something that she drops. Anyway, we will take this issue one day at a time just like we have everything else that comes along. I think she has seen 5 or 6 doctors in the last 2 weeks for one thing or the other - and we wonder why Senior Citizens are broke - medical bills.

Happy Birthday Tom

Today is Tom's birthday - I can't tell you how old he is - OK you beat it out of me - he is 48!! Anyway, he was awakened by Alayna this morning which started his day off right. We are all really tired tonight. Brian gave Tom his present yesterday which was 4 tickets to the St. Louis Cardinals game last night. So, Tom, Oma, Alayna, and I all went to St. Louis to see the Cardinals play - or lack there of. It would have been nice if they would have showed up (I mean they got beat and didn't even seem to try to play last night). The seats were really nice and we really enjoyed the game. I was really upset that Alayna's first baseball experience had to be with the Cardinals instead of the Royals, but Alayna didn't seem to mind. The Kansas City Royals have a nicer stadium, easier to get into and out of, parking easier, the stadium is not as confusing, and the Royals seem to show up when they have a game scheduled. But, it was a really nice time.

Tom and I are off tomorrow for Good Friday. It is surprising that a Japanese company celebrates Good Friday, but it is a day off with pay I am not going to complain. We are having dinner tomorrow night to celebrate Tom and Brian's birthday and then on Saturday we are having birthday lunch with Tom's family. This will be a busy week-end with a lot of good food.

Today, Alayna got a surprise in the mail. She got a letter from Uncle Larry and Aunt Gail. She was so happy. It was a puzzle without the box so we were not sure what the picture was. But, Alayna worked on it and then surprised us with the puzzle as it was fox picture. She loved it.

Some ramblings...

I was trying to post more last night and kept getting kicked off the satellite. Have I told anyone that I hate satellite Internet - it is worse then dial-up. Tom is suppose to call them, but I don't know how much good it will do.

This has been a very busy and bad week at work and at home - and it is only Tuesday.

On Saturday, a granddaughter and her grandfather were killed in a careless motorcycle accident. Turns out that the little girl was the granddaughter of one of our managers. The little girl's (who was 10) dad was Sondra's son so the grandfather was not related to Sondra. Anyway, everyone at work has been so tense at work because they are upset about her death.

Also, Alayna has been having some issues with the poo factor - like not going for the last 5 days. so, Kristi called the doctor and they wanted to see her right away. After checking her out she sent her to the hospital for an X-ray. Kristi had her conference at work, so I had to run to the hospital and pick up Alayna so Kristi could go back to work. Later in the afternoon the doctor called and said that it appears that her poo is just sitting in her colon and not moving. So, we have to give her some laxatives and if this doesn't work then it is a enema and if that doesn't work then we are not sure what the next step. So far 2 days of laxatives and no poo to be seen. I really don't think she is feeling really well because when I picked her up tonight the minute she saw me she busted out crying. She had lost her ball over the fence and thought her world had ended.

Let's see what else has been going on...our dishwasher died a slow death, the lights in the laundry room have stopped working and Tom can't figure out why, had union-free meetings at work, Tom and I found out that we have to take 5 more days off without pay the week of July 4th, and mom is dealing with a side-effect of one of her medicines that used to work.

I think that summer must be around the corner because Tom actually burnt the burn pile tonight - that to me is the first sign of summer. We are hoping to get our pool set up this week-end so that we can start with all the chemicals. We have pool school next week to refresh our memory on how to deal with the pool.

I am not sure if Tom and I are going to Orlando for a conference at the end of the month. We have not heard if it was approved or not. I really want to go because this conference is the company that runs my timeclock and right now I am having some real issues and would like to confront them myself. Time will tell.

At some time I will post the picture of the bunny cupcake - can't get the dang thing to load because of the internet connection.

Guess that is all for now...it has been such a bad week that I think I am going to evict a turtle from his shell so I can have a hiding place...does anyone that this will work???