Yoderville

Family Time

2011-06-12T10:20:00.002-05:00

Last week was wonderful. June 3 my Father-in-law got married and our whole family was together. Hilary and her family came from Texas and stayed from Thursday night until the next Wednesday. It was wonderful to see everyone. Heather and her family came on Friday morning and stayed until Saturday. On Sunday, we all went to Grand Island to celebrate Wyatt's birthday. Hopefully someone will get pictures on because I didn't take any.

Jason and Hil helped me get things organized and I'm very grateful. I was actually able to go out and work in the garage a little this weekend. It's been so unorganized that I get overwhelmed and can't do anything. Jas fixed that for me. It still needs work, but at least it's not overwhelming anymore. The same with my craft room. There is still a lot to do, but Hilary helped me gt it somewhat organized and I'm going to go down this afternoon and work on a cover for my Kindle.

The grandkids were great! Quinny really loves to be outside so we went to the park a lot and had picnics outside. Kellen is crawling and is smiling all the time. They are both wonderful and I look forward to seeing them again in July when I go to Texas.

Wyatt had a great birthday. Not as many family members as usual, but lots of gifts and a wonderful cake that his mom and dad created for him. Bella and Quinn seemed to have lots of fun playing with each other. It's so wonderful to see the kids get together. As they grow older, I hope grandma will have the time and ability to have them for a week each summer and do lots of stuff together.

Well, that's it for today. Hope everyone out there in blogger land is doing well. God bless!

Happy Mother's Day!

2011-05-08T12:12:00.002-05:00

To all who stumble on my blog (I can't imagine that will happen much!), Happy Mother's Day!

Sometimes I just need someone to talk to, so blogger, you'll be it!

Today is warm and windy. It was supposed to rain today (but somehow, that has passed us by--at least for a while). Actually the weather channel says that we could still have a thunderstorm later today and possible tornadoes. Given the weather this year in other parts of the country, I wouldn't scoff at it! Anyway, I got my yard mowed. That was a huge accomplishments given my travel and not being home much. It hadn't been mowed for 2 weeks. Not good! I still have to clean out some of my flower beds, plant some garden and other outside chores, but it's at least a start.

I also went to the Farmer's Market this morning and picked up some asparagus and some herbed goat cheese, then stopped at the Red Clover health food store and got some couscous. I have a recipe for some cranberry walnut couscous that sounds really good! My next stop was Earl May to pick up another rhubarb plant. I picked my one plant too much last year and it's struggling just a little this year--totally my own fault. It's coming back, but needs a little more time. I loved canning the rhubarb last year and I need another plant.

My iris are shooting up blooms like crazy! I hope to get some pictures, and I'll upload them for you to see. I love flowers. I didn't get my roses trimmed this spring, so they are growing like crazy on the old stems--my butterfly bush too. I don't know exactly what that will do to them, but...oh well.

This afternoon I'm going to go pick up a new furnace filter, a water chain (to attach to my gutter and let water flow to my water barrel), and some l-brackets to square up my screen door. Then it's off to the basement to work on organization.

Yesterday Heather and the kids came to see me and spend the day since they were going to Milford for Emily's birthday party in the evening. It was good to see them. We went to a few garage sales and although we didn't find a lot, we found a few super hero toys, a super hero flashlight, a shirt for Bella and a transformer costume for Wyatt. Score! The day was a success.
And it only cost $1.25. What more can you ask for? Ha!

Once again, Happy Mother's Day! Especially to my beautiful two daughters who are wonderful mother's in their own right.

An Amazing Fall

2010-10-11T14:12:00.003-05:00

This has been an amazing Fall! I have a new grandson who is just adorable! I had the opportunity to go to Texas and stay with Hilary and her family for a week soon after Kellen Maxton Fuller was born. Quinn is growing up so fast and, of course, I'll notice that immensely with Kellen soon too! I don't have any pictures of that visit. Randy came down towards the end of my visit and he thought to take a few, but I was busy helping Hilary get some "newborn photos" of Kellen and never got any of my own taken. Unfortunately Hil's been too busy to get copies of hers to us yet.

Then this last weekend we went to Grand Island for 1 day to see the other 1/2 of our family. Those two kids are growing like weeds also. We went to a pumpkin patch that had lots of fun things for the kids to do. Here are two little videos of each of them on the zip line.

Soggy Sunday

2010-05-16T18:18:00.009-05:00

Needless to say, I got no planting down outside today or any other outside work. It has been raining, albeit a nice, light rain, all day! I put a garbage can out by the corner of the front porch because we need our gutters fixed. This is what it collected between noon and now (it's about 6:30 p.m.):

I think it is something like an 18 gal. garbage can, but it could be bigger, I'm not sure. Either way, that's a lot of water.

On a brighter note, here are some pictures of my flowers, or at least a few of them. They always look better and greener in the rain! My irises were beautiful this year. On the side of the house, there are large clumps of yellow and purple ones. They REALLY bloomed.

And here is just one of my roses. Look at all the blooms! It's going to be beautiful this year! Makes me want to go out and get more roses. All of mine seem to be doing pretty well this year. Even the minis are healthy and budding like crazy!

Okay, so I wasn't able to do any planting, so I went to the Farmer's Market and picked up some fresh asparagus. They had lots of fresh produce and lots of bedding plants. Then I went looking for the eggplant plants, but none of them looked very good. I did end up with a grape tomato plant and some jalapeno peppers. I'll have to check again later this week. Since I had to be inside, I got my laundry done, canned some more rhubarb sauce, made a pound cake (I needed something to try out the rhubarb sauce!), and read some of my book.

I also cooked for a change--I haven't made a meal for several weeks. Since I had my asparagus, I decided to make a decent supper. I grilled a small steak, made garlic-asiago mashed potatoes, and asparagus. Yumm! I could only eat about 1/2 of it, but it was awesome! So now back to my book.

I hope you had a good a day and as productive as I did! Have a great week!

Rain, Rain, Go Away

2010-05-16T09:37:00.002-05:00

There are not enough hours in the day or weekend. Today there is just a constant light rain--actually somewhere between a mist and a rain, but enough to keep me from doing the outdoor work I wanted to get done. I'm not majorly complaining because we can always use the rain, and in a month I'll be wishing we had some, but I still have a lot of things to get done outside.

I did get my tomatoes planted yesterday (yea!!!!!). I have one little chocolate pepper plant to put out and some green beans to plant. And I kind of want to put out a couple of eggplants. I'll have to see how wet it is out there. I may still be able to do it today if I hurry up. Maybe I'll even take a minute and go to the Farmer's Market. I think the Sunday one has started.

Then this afternoon, if it's still raining, I think I'll can some rhubarb sauce and finish my laundry. Then there's the book for my book club that I still have to finish (or at least get close!). Well, stop writing about it and go get it done.

Have a great day everyone!

Ya Gotta Love Weekends!

2010-05-15T10:14:00.005-05:00

So what are weekends to homeowners? Why fix-it times, of course! That's what this weekend is. I had a great Friday night with some friends. Lots of good conversation, some pizza and a couple of beers--oh and some trivia contest that went downhill fast!!!!!

Now it's Saturday morning and I was up bright and early (yeah, well didn't actually sleep much so getting up wasn't hard!). Got out around 7 and dug up the sprinkler line--

Yeah, I know...what a mess!! Then I went to Reams Sprinklers and told them I needed to fix my line and what do I do? Ha! Apparently they get this a lot! Anyway, they were great about explaining what to do and giving me the parts I needed (I was smart enough to take pictures and have something to go by). I came home and cut out the bad parts and replaced what I needed. Tested it out and it didn't leak, so Woo Hoo!!!!!!!

This is the finished product:

It'll take a little time for the dirt to settle and the grass to meld back in, but it'll happen.

Now onto the next project!!!!

A Week in Michigan

2010-05-09T20:06:00.009-05:00

I had a very nice week in Michigan! As part of my work, we spent this last week at a Tribal Gathering in Petoski, MI. I met lots of nice people and learned a lot too! We flew into Traverse City and then drove into Petoski. On our way back, we got to do a little sightseeing. We went to a couple of wineries and then had dinner at a brewery. Hmmmm, do I see a pattern here? Here are some pictures of us:

This was the view outside my hotel window in Petoski.

Here is most of our crew (sans me--I was taking the picture) and a couple of our federal friends having supper at a pizza place downtown.

And here is the whole MCWIC group at a winery during our "off duty" sightseeing time:

It was a great week and we did a lot of good work. This is an amazing team and I'm really proud to be a part of it!

Another beautiful day!!!

2010-05-02T19:46:00.002-05:00

This day was absolutely straight from heaven. Yeah, I know, they all are, but this one was especially nice. In fact, the whole weekend has been beautiful. I got a few more things planted today and got the lawn mowed. I tried cleaning out the window well, but I don't think that's the problem with the window leaking--I think I'm going to have to caulk and seal around the window well. Yep, yet another weekend! My list for next weekend is getting much, much longer!

I was really hoping that I could get some pictures of my handiwork and let you see it, but I think I need to mulch first and get some flowering plants planted so that there is some color. Maybe next weekend!

I got most of my laundry done and now I have to pack. Did I mention that I've been up since 3:30 a.m.? Yeah, I don't get it either. I think I miss my doggie. I'm not used to being here alone and I worry about him even though I know that Heather will take good care of him. It's not easy for us oldies to adapt to something different! On the other hand, thank heavens he has Heather. He'd really be lost if he were here alone for a whole week!

Have a great week!

Busy Weekend

2010-05-02T04:37:00.005-05:00

I got another wonderful opportunity to spend time with my grandchildren this last week. I went to Grand Island on Thursday night to stay with them while Heather was in Washington, D.C. for work and Fred was at the Fire Station. We had lots of fun. Wyatt is a rambunctious almost 3 year old and Bella is a 1 1/2 year old "on the move" little doll. We played and danced and sang and watched videos. On Saturday when I left, Wyatt asked to go with me. Granted, Grandma was so tired, that taking a 3 y/0 with her didn't sound like a good idea, but the fact that he asked, just warmed my heart!

Shakespeare stayed with Heather this time as I am headed out of town for a few days. Last night was surprisingly tough for me without him. It's amazing how used you get to the company of a pet. He won't even come to me anymore because he's afraid if he gets too close I'll put medicine in his ears, but he still follows me everywhere.

So when I got home yesterday, I watered the front yard because my new grass was getting very dry. (Guess I should have mowed first!). I didn't get to mow because the grass was wet. Duh! So that will happen today. I did discover, however, that I have a break in my underground sprinkler line so next weekend I'll be working at fixing that as well as repairing one of the sprinkler heads. I really wanted to get my garden planted, but that will not happen until next weekend either! So what else did I get done? Got some more plants moved, some new perennials planted, some weeds removed and some of the back yard cleaned up. Then I picked some rhubarb and canned three small jars of rhubarb sauce.

Okay, I know it seems like a waste canning such a small amount (these are 1/2 pint jars) but I didn't want the rhubarb to go to waste. If I have time next weekend I'll can some more and maybe some larger jars of Rhubarb pie filling. This sauce is delicious and can be used on cake, ice cream, pancakes, etc. And since it's canned in a water bath canner, it's easy to do even just a little. Yummmmmmm!

Easter Past

2010-04-25T18:28:00.008-05:00

Since I'm updating my blogs, I should put on some of the Easter photos I took. I spent Easter this year with my daughter Heather and her family and some friends of theirs. We went to church (12 of us! Quite a group!) and that was very nice. Then we went back to her house for Easter dinner. Fred had cooked a wonderful smoked turkey (smoked it himself) and I brought twice baked potatoes and potato salad (potatoes are a very important vegetable, you know!). We had strawberry shortcake for dessert that our guests brought and some bunny cake pops that I made. It was fun. We spent a lot of time outside because it was such a beautiful day. These pics are mostly outside.

This one is of some of the group as they arrived. What fun! They have 5 kids ages 12-2 (I think she's 2, but she may be 3).

Bella sure likes the sandbox! Sun was a bit bright, though.

Awww yes, the Easter egg hunt! The kids were so good! The older kids even helped the younger ones find the eggs. Very well behaved kids.

Hmmm, which to keep and which to give away? Such decisions!

Don't the guys look like they're having a wonderful time? Ha! Well, there are more pictures, but some were blurry because children move fast when they are looking for Easter eggs! Enjoy!

Spring Fix-Ups

2010-04-25T11:25:00.003-05:00

Well, I guess it is time to start writing in my blog again. I've neglected this for way too long! I've been working hard getting things ready for Spring and Summer in Nebraska!! Two weeks ago I built an 8' x 4' raised bed garden. Went to Home Depot and picked up the lumber, screws, stakes and countersink bit. I was a little nervous about how I was going to fit 2 2"x6"x8' and 2 2"x6"x4' boards into my Nissan Altima, but no problem! I then came home and proceeded to build it. Cordless drills are awesome! The next week my neighbor ordered 5 cubic yards of dirt to share with me. He helped me level the raised bed (that was harder than I thought!) and then I hauled 18 wheel barrels of dirt down to the bed. Actually, I had some help from Gwen next door. I'm a lot more out of shape than I realized! It's now done and ready to plant!

An added bonus was that as we were getting the bed ready, I found one of the sprinkler heads on that side of the house that we haven't used for years! We got the hardware and extended it so it's ready if I ever get that line going again! At least now I may be able to find the others in that line!. Later that week I came home from work and Don, Gwen and I hauled dirt to the front yard to fill in some low spots and then hauled dirt to fill in under their pine tree. We have a little more to do, but have accomplished a lot!

Last week I had a sprinkler company come fix the backflow valve on the sprinkler system (it blew two winters ago and didn't get fixed). Today I went out in the cold (54 degrees) and got the sprinklers working. I'm sure the neighbors thought I was crazy because yesterday was certainly a nicer day to do that!! However, yesterday was filled with lots of other tasks. I started the morning out by getting my laundry started--had to wash bedding! The went to coffee with my friend, Mary. We had a wonderful, relaxing time. Then I came home, put some more laundry in and then went out and mowed the lawn. I then remembered that Menard's had wooden screen doors on sale for $14.99. We used to have a wooden screen door at the exit from the kitchen to the garage. It hasn't been there for about 15 or more years. Since I plan to work more outside and in the garage this summer, I'd like to have a screen door to get some airflow through the house. So I ran to Menard's and picked up a screen door and some hardware. Then proceeded to take the screen door out to my car. Oops! 81" x 32" screen door vs Nissan Altima. HOW am I going to do this? Well, since I don't know anyone with a pickup that can help and I no longer have mine, I guess we'll just have to make it work. Wait a minute, is that a raindrop? Oh great! So I proceeded to maneuver this screen door into the car through the trunk. Whoala! It was in, trunk was shut and I just had to drive home (If I could squeeze in between the back of the driver's seat and the steering wheel with my knees in my face!). No problem!

I still have lots of yard work to do such as mulch to put down, weeding to do, additional planting, etc. but that will wait until my budget begins again next month! Also, hopefully next month I can begin redoing the back deck and recarpeting the front porch. Stay tuned! I'll get this place whipped into shape yet! Ha! I need new batteries for my camera, but when I get those, I'll take a picture of the screen door (once it's up and working, that is!). Today will be spent getting the screen door on and running a few errands. JC Penneys has $10 off a $10 purchase and I need new towels. Penney's here I come! Free towels!

Take care all and I'll be back again soon!

Halloween 2009

2009-11-03T19:46:00.008-06:00

Well, it's been quite a while since I've written anything in my blog. I got some videos of the Grand Island grandkids this Halloween and thought I'd better find a way to get them out there for everyone to see. We had a nice weekend with the Benzels. Wyatt was a tiger--grrrrrrr. And Bella was a Nebraska cheerleader.

Wyatt was not real thrilled about wearing his tiger headpiece. We were lucky to get a photo of him in his tiger suit and with his "Paws" on

.

Here's little Bella and her mommy. She was game to begin with, but pooped out fairly soon. We went to 2 neighbor's homes and then got into the car to go visit the Fire Stations. Sitting in her carseat is NOT Bella's favorite activity, so she wasn't very thrilled with that, but she was a trooper--up until she fell asleep in the carseat.

Here is a video of trick or treating. This one was across the street at Bob's house.

And here are some random pics of the rest of our weekend...

This last video is Heather singing to the Wii American Idol game and Bella dancing along.

Jackson's Birthday Party!

2009-06-15T14:44:00.008-05:00

Jackson's 4th birthday! Believe it or not he loves maraschino cherries so that's what uncle Bruce got him! And then you see Bella in her happy place (ok, the picture doesn't show it, but she WAS happy) with uncle Bruce.

The birthday theme was Batman. Jack is REALLY into super heroes, especially Batman! Sue made a cute Batman cake and the whole party was decorated in Batman. Jack even came out in a Batman outfit with a Batman mask. What a kook! Ha!

Here's the whole Toovey family!

Brecken was having fun too!

Karlette's about ready to pop! Can you tell?

It's all about the grandkids!

2009-06-13T20:59:00.015-05:00

What a night! Bella is still getting over her immunization shots that she had on Tuesday. Last night was a rough one for her. She just couldn't get comfortable. Randy took the first shift with her and was up from before midnight until after 1:30 a.m. Then at 3:30 a.m. she woke up again and was pretty inconsolable. The poor thing was so tired, but was just miserable. She finally fell asleep in my arms and stayed there until about 5:00 or so (I don't even remember now). She was awake again at 5:45 and got her bottle about an hour early. That seemed to help settle her down. Wyatt woke about 6:30 and was in good spirits. That night was pretty rough on Randy too because I don't think he slept at all even during my shift! Bella slept from about 6:00 a.m. until 8:00 or so. She then seemed to feel better and was willing to eat some breakfast.

Now for the fun part of the day! Since Bella was doing better and Wyatt was game, we headed for the Lincoln Children's Museum. Once again, there was so much to remember, we forgot our camera. Thank heavens for camera phones! Not the best pictures, but at least the moment is captured! Wyatt had a wonderful time! There is so much for him to do. Grandpa was pretty tuckered out by the time we were done.

This first one is Grandpa and Wyatt playing in the State Patrol vehicle.

Then Wyatt found a pretty neat lookout!

Here Wyatt and grandpa are playing with some Legos. Wonder what they are building?

And Wyatt rode another pony! This one wasn't as wiggly though.

It was all pretty overstimulating for Bella. She did well, but was pretty amazed by it all.

On the way home we picked up Runza. It was a quick dinner and off to naptime. Grandpa got in an hour or two too. After supper we went for a walk (with the dogs) and when we came back, Wyatt found this in the garage. Of course, he had to try it out!

So grandpa had another job to do before bathtime.

OK, this is just a short video, but the helmet was precious. Here's a better one.

Almost nap time for Wyatt

2009-06-12T13:01:00.003-05:00

It's still Friday! I got a chance to go to garage sales today. Spent $20.50 and decided it was time to go home! It had started raining hard. There were tons of people out there!

The kids had their lunch and ate good. Wyatt is starting to wind down (?) for a nap. Here is our video doing the Piggies before his nap.

A week with the Grandkids!

2009-06-11T15:58:00.005-05:00

OK, here we go! Randy and I are jumping head first into grandparent land! We are caring for Bella and Wyatt while Fred and Heather are gone to Las Vegas and California. I'll do my best to get pictures taken and downloaded. It will be a little tougher than with Quinny as these two don't sleep as much (or should I say Bella doesn't).

So today, Thursday, both Bella and Wyatt woke up around 6:30 a.m. Bella was up first and was very happy. I went into her room and smiled at her and she looked up and gave a big smile. I then cracked Wyatt's door a little so he could come out when he was ready. He joined us about 20 minutes or so later. He asked for mommy, but when I told him that mommy was on vacation, he just said "hmm" and then went to watch cartoons.

Here is a picture of Wyatt at the zoo. We forgot our camera, so this is from Randy's phone. There were too many other things to remember for grandma and grandpa.

Here he is playing with the big cow that you can milk. Wyatt wasn't into milking the cow.

Wyatt loved riding the ponies, petting the guinea pig, seeing all the animals, feeding the goats, llamas and camels and riding the train. He also got a really cool tattoo of a grasshopper on his arm. What a great day!

Okay, this is a two day blog. We are now into Friday. Since we didn't get pics of Bella, so here is one of she and grandma this morning (Friday). This is just before her nap so......but she's doing great and smiles a lot--just not in this video! :) Grandpa's at the physical therapist--no not just because of babysitting! :) He'll be home soon and we may go to garage sales.

Life with Quinny--Day 5--Ending

2009-04-26T21:44:00.002-05:00

Well we've come to an end. This was a wonderful day! Quinn was lots of fun and laughed a lot. She stuck to her schedule and was very happy. I tried to keep her awake until Mommy and Daddy came home, but customs kept them longer than they expected--swine flu scare. Anyway, she was ready to go to bed at 7:01 p.m. after her supper and her bath. She's so adorable!

I will truly miss her when I'm gone. But....we have webcam now!!

I'm going to try to go home tomorrow if the weather permits. If the rain and storms seem to be too nasty, I'll stay another day. We'll see come tomorrow morning!

Love you all,

Cheryl (Mom & Grandma)

Life with Quinny--Sunday morning

2009-04-26T12:18:00.003-05:00

Grandma and Quinn went for a walk after her 1st nap (Quinn's--no, grandma hasn't gotten one yet!). Quinny insisted even though it was very cloudy out and looked like rain. She assured grandma that it would be alright. Hmmmmm, who's in charge here? Anyway, Quinny had quickly tired of playing indoors.

I'm not sure why, because we were having lots of fun, but this is when she convinced grandma that a walk was in order.

Sooooo, we got ourselves ready and headed out for a walk. Here's Quinn just getting back from her walk. The neighbors were dazzled by her new sandals! I told her it wasn't nice to show off, but she said "Grandma, I can't help it if I'm cute. Besides, this is Dallas land and it's all about style!" I guess she should know. I mean, she was right about the rain. We didn't get rained on at all!Awwwww, now for another nap!

Life with Quinny--Day 5--last day

2009-04-26T07:02:00.002-05:00

Well, mommy and daddy come home today. Quinny will be so excited! She has not been hurting about their being gone, but she has noticed it. Yesterday morning Hilary called to see how things were going and I put her on speaker phone so that Quinn could hear her. Quinny wanted the phone all day. She recognized her mommy--you could tell. Then at one time I sang "You Are My Sunshine" to her and she stopped and looked intently at me, then started looking around the room. That's a song mommy sings to her. She didn't cry, and didn't fuss, but she knew it belonged to mommy. Luckily, children have no sense of time at this age, so she doesn't realize how long mommy and daddy have been gone. That's a good thing.

Quinny is not up for the day yet, but will be soon. I am absolutely amazed at how well this little girl sleeps! She went to bed last night at about 7:15 p.m. and only woke up 1x at 5:00 a.m. She didn't even really wake up--just made a little noise and went back to sleep. Grandma got a whole night's sleep! 5 a.m. is my normal get-up time so that was no problem!

This is going to be hard leaving again. I've enjoyed being with her so much! What a great opportunity for me! I am so grateful to Jason and Hilary for putting their trust in me to care for their most precious gift while they are gone! She is truly a joy! She must be one of 3 of the most beautiful, most precious children in the whole world! OK, you caught me. I'm biased about all 3 of my grandchildren. But I am also very, very lucky to have the children that I have and their love and trust.

No pictures for you yet as Quinny's not up. It's supposed to be a rainy day, so I don't know that we'll do much, but I'll try to get something posted for you later.

Life with Quinn--Saturday afternoon

2009-04-25T16:17:00.005-05:00

We decided to go to Target after our lunch. This is the first "afternoon" trip we've attempted. It went very well. Quinn got to use her "cart cover" at Target. Here she is sitting in the cart with the cover--pretty cute, huh?

She was having so much fun with the straps, I couldn't get her to pay any attention to me at all!
She still didn't find a purse for grandma that she liked, but she found a very stylish pair of sandals that she couldn't live without! Oh well, Grandma can get a new purse some other time and Quinny said she's tired of looking like an Arkansas baby and really NEEDED those new sandals! Well, maybe she's right--they ARE adorable!

Life with Quinny--Day 4 (Saturday)

2009-04-25T09:22:00.007-05:00

Quinn is such a joy! She wakes up so happy! Maybe that's because she gets such a good, long night's sleep! She was all smiles this morning! We had our breakfast and then played. She was more content at each station today. She didn't seem to get bored as easily. Here are some pictures of her play. She was moving around so mucb in her "circle of fun" that most of the pictures are a little blurry! Sorry!

Then we also spent a little time outdoors feeling the breeze on our faces. She loves that! And then to the Jump & Go or whatever it is called:

Life with Quinny--Day 3--9:50 p.m.

2009-04-24T21:49:00.003-05:00

This is my last entry for today. I'm beat! In the top two pictures you see Quinn playing outside with the neighbors children and Shakes. She was having a great time!

The next pictures are of supper time. She had peas this time. If you notice something green in her nose, please be advised she does NOT have a sinus infection--it's just peas.

After supper, Quinny had her bath and then went to bed. What a day!

Life with Quinny--Day 3--4:30

2009-04-24T16:08:00.007-05:00

Well, we're off the schedule a little again. I think I'm wearing Quinny out!. We went to Wal-Mart this morning and got Quinny a brand new outdoor pink swing that she is very excited about trying! She's sure that daddy will put it up for her as soon as he gets home!

Then we got some things to tackle the "To Do" list that mommy and daddy left for grandma. We got a new 2 way spigot for the faucet outside, a new sprayer for the hose, and a few other small things. When we got home, Quinny went straight to bed! Wal-Mart is a big place and makes you tired! Quinn slept from 12:30 to almost 2:oo! Then she had her lunch and we went for a walk in the stroller. It's very windy today and still pretty warm. It was a nice walk. Quinn loves the outdoors and enjoyed watching Shakes. Here is a picture of her on her walk.

After our walk, we sat outside for a while and watched the planes. There are a lot of planes that go over Quinn's house!!

At 3 Quinn decided she was ready to go to sleep again. Apparently we are playing too much! But we are having so much fun! Here's a video of Quinn and Grandma playing (and yes, she was smiling during this, but her binky hides it!) It was most fun when I played it back and she was mesmerized at the video!:

Oh, and there's another picture of the walk with Shakes included. Quinny was dressed the part but Grandma was in Nebraska jeans and was quite warm. Shakes didn't understand what grandma was complaining about--he was wearing a fur coat and was exhausted!!!!

And one last thing, while Quinny was sleeping, Grandma got the Webcam hooked up to mommy and daddy's computer so that she can talk to grandma and grandpa while they are away. That was a very important task that needed done! I wonder why that wasn't on the "To Do" list!?!

Life with Quinny--Day 3--Morning

2009-04-24T09:56:00.005-05:00

Awwwwww, strrrrreeeeetcchhhh! Another great day! And Quinny woke up happy again! I had trouble catching her biggest smiles, but this is what I got.

Quinny went through her morning routine and then we sat outside on the bench for about 15 minutes before her nap and enjoyed the beautiful weather, birds, plants and planes. She waved at the neighbors and kept up on her social expectations!

Life with Quinny--end of day

2009-04-23T20:00:00.007-05:00

Here are some pictures of our late afternoon playtime.

Quinny had a full day today. I think her teeth were bothering her a little. I gave her some tylenol before bed and rubbed a little ora-gel on. She seemed a little better after that. We ate sweet potatoes for supper and had our last bottle. Then we played and it was time for bed. She didn't take her last nap of the day so I think she was ready for night time. She got a clean diaper, lotioned up (so she smelled good), jammies on and her binky. We were going to read a book, but she wasn't into it. We said our prayers, she laid down and that was it.

Here's a picture of her playing after dinner:

Life with Quinny--Day 2--2:55 p.m.

2009-04-23T14:53:00.006-05:00

Quinny napped good this morning and then had her 10:30 a.m. feeding. We got ready after that and went to Walgreen's and Sprouts. It was a lot for a little girl. We didn't find anything at Walgreens, but Quinn sat in the cart like a big girl and loved that!!! Then at Sprouts Quinn asked to wear her sunglasses (it was very bright out by then!). Everyone in Sprouts commented how stylish she was! We bought some fruits and veggies for grandma and then left as soon as the slooooowwwww checker could get us out of there! It was naptime by then, don'tchaknow!

Once back at home, it was straight to bed with no fuss! We were a little late for nap and Quinny was tuckered out from all of her social interactions!

Now we are up and have had our 1:30 bottle (sorry, but it actually happened about 2 because Quinn was so tired, so just couldn't wake up!). Anyway, it's play time for us now. Quinny really likes her circle of fun!

Telling Mommy and Daddy Hi!

2009-04-23T08:51:00.003-05:00

This is just a little clip of Quinny saying hi to mom and dad. She is getting ready for her nap, so this is somewhat inconvenient for her, but she was willing to go the extra mile because she loves mommy and daddy so much!!

Life with Quinny--Day 2--8:00 a.m.

2009-04-23T08:01:00.006-05:00

Quinny had a good night and woke up on her own around 7:20 a.m. She woke up very happy! We changed our diaper and went around the house saying good morning to all of the rooms and the patio--we also had to tell Shakes and the wonderful day good morning! Then Quinny had her breakfast and now is playing. Here are some morning pictures. We haven't gotten dressed yet, we need a little more time in our jammies, but we'll get dressed soon. Then it will be time for a nap again!!

Quinny's week--2 p.m.

2009-04-22T14:01:00.005-05:00

Well, we're back on schedule. She had quite a nap after shopping! Shopping can be SO wearing on us girls! Anyway, we've had our lunch and now are ready to play away the afternoon! See how happy she is!

Quinny's week--11:30 a.m. Wednesday

2009-04-22T11:41:00.002-05:00

We just got back from TJ Maxx. Quinny didn't approve of any of the purse styles that grandma picked out, so I guess grandma is stuck for the time being with her old purse. I'll have to work on my sense of style. Then again, maybe Quinny is thinking of Texas style as opposed to Nebraska style. Hmmmm, that could be it!

Well, trying to make all those decisions and vetoing all those purses apparently tired her out. She decided it was time to take a nap. She's taking a cat nap in her crib as we speak just to get her strength back for lunch at 12:30. I don't blame her. I think it's going to be a pretty warm day. It's a good thing we got out a little while this morning. I'm not sure that we'll be able to take a walk this afternoon if the heat keeps up, but there's always tomorrow.

Grandma's week with Quinny

2009-04-22T09:23:00.005-05:00

OK, so this is the start of grandma's week with Quinny. Hil and Jas left this morning about 6:45 a.m. or so. Quinny woke up about 6:00 a.m. so she was able to say goodbye to mommy and daddy (although they would have both gotten a lot more attention if they would have had a bottle in their hand!!). We ate our breakfast very well and played for a while. We started to get a little fussy about 8:00 and decided we needed to finish a little of our night's sleep. Quinny laid down well and took about a 45 minute snooze. Then is was "Grandma come get me!" time again. She's now playing well with her play mat as you can see. We'll eat here in a little while and then maybe venture out for some shopping!

Now you see Quinny eating before we go shopping. She's happy as can be and quite content with grandma.

Savings Update

2009-03-24T20:41:00.002-05:00

Well, this is my final week for the Sutton & Dodge $2.00 coupons at Target. I think they have finally decided that this is not a money making deal for Target. I went to get two steaks tonight with my Sutton & Dodge coupons and the clerk would only let me use one coupon. Therefore I told him I didn't want the other steak. I got a ribeye steak that had a $3.00 coupon on it and used my $2.00 Sutton & Dodge coupon. Got the steak for $2.47. Not bad for a ribeye. I also got two Gillette body washes (8 oz. ea), 4 Johnson's Buddies soaps, and a Pledge multi surface spray. All of this for a little over $7.00. I actually paid a little over $10.00 but when I got out to the car I realized that the clerk hadn't taken the $3.00 coupon off of the meat. I went into customer service and told them and they gave me $3.00 cash back. I then asked since I had to come back in, if I could go get the other ribeye and consider that a 2nd transaction. She said sure. So I did. When I went to check out, the $3.00 coupon was taken off the steak, but the Sutton & Dodge coupon wouldn't work. The clerk looked at it several times and then said it wasn't a Sutton & Dodge steak. I realized that they had two different brands of steaks and I hadn't realized that I grabbed the wrong one. I paid $4.00 for the 2nd steak--still not a bad deal.

Then tonight I was looking at some deals online and got a USB notebook light to use over my laptop for $2.99 with free shipping. We'll see if that is worthwhile.

Randy was in Chicago this last weekend and was kind enough to stop into the Bare Escentials store and pick up the free gift of a kabuki brush and some medium beige makeup. He was a bit embarrassed, but I really appreciate his effort!

Well, happy shopping everyone and keep up the good work!

A Beautiful Saturday

2009-03-21T17:24:00.004-05:00

This is a beautiful day and I probably should be outside working in the yard. But of course, my inside list is long and I always feel that I need to get it done first. So it's almost 5:30 p.m. and I've gotten lots of food made for next week. I got my freezer cleaned out and found several packages of meat that needed to be used up before they got too past their useful date. We now have chicken noodle soup (thanks for the tips, Fred, I made my own noodles), chicken enchiladas, dinner rolls, whole wheat orange muffins, a pork tenderloin ready to go into the crockpot, and I'm working on a way to use up some cabbage (I think we'll be having some coleslaw!). I have a lasagna in the freezer and will pull together an au gratin potato casserole and I think between the frozen prepared foods I've made and some fresh foods, we'll be set for lunches and suppers next week.

I haven't been training much since last October and my schedule is now getting much busier! That's a good thing, but then I'm too tired to worry about what to make for supper when I get home. This helps a lot. All my bargains over the past two weeks have really helped fill my freezer! I'll still be watching the specials, but won't need to buy much at all over the next few weeks. It will have to be a MAJOR sale.

Shakes and I are going to go for a walk in a few minutes. He's been biting at the bit all day. I figure if we walk around the block, he'll be so worn out, he'll sleep all evening and night--of course that's mostly what he does anyway! Ha!

I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend.

A Dedication to my Grandchildren

2009-03-19T18:48:00.003-05:00

For some reason, the voice and picture aren't in perfect alignment. I don't know how to change that. But...here it is anyway. Hopefully it won't confuse the kids!

This video is dedicated to my grandchildren. I've been busy telling about my "deals" and haven't gotten enough time to address the three little loves of my life! Of course my daughters and sons-in-law are extremely special to me too, but grandchildren take up a very special place in the heart of a grandparent and this blog is for them.

Wanna Win Wednesday and Thrifty Thursday!

2009-03-12T19:16:00.004-05:00

We are getting to the end of my Mega Savings week. I didn't get a chance to write last night--went to get my nails done and didn't get home til late. Plus it's so darn cold, that when I get home, it takes my fingers a while to unfreeze! Good 'ole Nebraska weather!

OK, so what about my savings? Well, starting with Wednesday, I dropped my free Redbox movie from Tuesday in the Redbox before work. I tried the Wednesday code to see if I could get another free movie, but it didn't work. Darn. At lunch time I went to Walgreens (of course!) and got two coffee mate creamers (french vanilla--yum!) that were on sale for $2.49 BOGO (that's Buy one/get one free--yes, there's even special lingo attached to this obsession of mine!). I had a MC (manufacturer's coupon) for $1.50 on 1. I also got some AXE conditioner (for Randy) which was $5.99. There's a rebate for $5.99 available through Walgreen's easy saver catalog this month so I'll get that back. I then used my free coupon for Irish Spring body wash which was a $4.49 value. I used $3.00 in Register Rewards to pay and gave them $2.71 out of pocket. I will still get $5.99 back from my rebate. Oh yes, and I got another coupon for a free Irish Spring body wash! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! I love Walgreens!

OK, after work I went to get my nails done and then had to pick up a few things at Wal-Mart. I did not see any great deals at Wal-Mart. I know they will match prices on things but I'm not that organized yet! Then on the way home I stopped at HyVee to see if I could get the free movie code to work and it did. So I got my free movie too! Well, unfortunately it was now 7:00 and I didn't have time to go home and cook up the chicken I had marinating so I treated Randy to some Popeye's chicken--it's a rarity, so...

Now onto Thursday. I had to make some treats for work so I went in a little later today. I stopped at HyVee to take my movie back and then veered off at Walgreen's by our house. I picked up two more creamers to have at work. Unfortunately my coupon didn't print right so my $1.50 coupon didn't work, but I had another $.75 coupon. Ok, so it wasn't $.50 each, it was $.75. Still a good deal. I also picked up another package of Advil PM and for $4.49, got the $2.00 RR and used the $2.00 coupon off the box. $.49--yes! Used $3.00 in RR rewards. Then gave them $3.29 and got $2.00 in RR back. $6.98 worth of product for $1.29. Remember, I'm still supposed to pay the tax.

At noon today I went to Walgreens again (this is just too much fun!). I bought another Advil PM--same deal as before, got my free Irish Spring body wash--that makes 4 total. Divide that between the $4.49 for the original one and that's $1.12+tax per Irish Spring body wash. I also got a Walgreens brand Headache medicine (their equivalent to Excedrine) for $2.99 (this is another ES deal for a rebate of the full price.) Finally, I picked up a Gillette Fusion Gamer razor which was on sale for $8.99. I had a $4.00 MC and the sign said you'd get back $6.00 in RR. How can I pass that up? When I went to pay, I used my $2.00 RR from this morning, and when it was all done, the machine only kicked out a $4.00 RR. I asked the clerk why when the sign said $6.00 in RR. She went and looked and then called the manager over. He said it was their mistake, but the sign was a month old. Since it was the store's mistake, he gave me the other $2.00 in cash! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! I can't stand it! I'm rolling with glee! Ha! Ha! $21.16 worth of product for .66 cents after coupons, rebates, RR, etc.

My last report is for super Target. I went tonight to see if they had any good meat on sale to use my $2.00 coupons on. Unfortunately, they didn't have the chuck roast at $1.99 like someone said their Target had. But I found some round steak (I can still make swiss steak or chicken fried steak with it!) and got two of them. They were $3.00 apiece so they only cost me about $1.00 each. I also got a head of cabbage for $1.69--had a coupon for $1.00 off. I got 4 cans of Cre4am of chicken soup for $.54 apiece and had a coupon for $1.00/2. And I got two Mott's Applesauce individual service cups 6pak for $1.69 each and had a $1.00 off coupon for each as well as a MC for $.55 off for each. I paid only $.14+tax for each. Awesome! Oh yes, and I had a $5.00 Target gift card that I got in the mail from something. I used $3.66 from the card--no out of pocket!

I know this is probably boring you, but I'm loving it! I'll try to think of some way to include a picture one of these days!

Taking Charge Tuesday

2009-03-10T17:19:00.002-05:00

This is getting ridiculous, but becoming so much fun! I can't stop myself! This is the 3rd day of my "savings" ritual. Today I took my $4 in RR and my coupon for free Irish Spring body wash and went to Walgreens over the noon hour. I decided to go light and just picked up my free Irish Spring body wash. Then as I was looking around, I found some Samy e-sen-cia mandarin citrus conditioner. It smelled awesome and had a "try me free" tag around it. Well far be it for me not to comply! So, I got $10.48 worth of products and my end out of pocket will be .73 which is the tax. Not bad! Oh, and when I was checking out, the clerk couldn't get the free coupon for the Irish Spring to scan so she had to punch it in. I don't know if that's what did it, but I got another coupon for a free Irish Spring body wash. Then I decided to stop at the Walgreens on my way home since I go right by it anyway. I bought some Sambucol which is a homeopathic cold medicine. It's normally $12.99 but I had a $4.00 manufacturer's coupon. It also had a Easy Saver $10.00 off coupon. I also found another Advil PM with the $2.00 coupon attached. This one is $4.49 and gives back a $2.00 Register Reward. Therefore, I got it for $.49 + tax. I also picked up another Edge shaving cream for $1.99 which gave back $1.00 in Register Rewards. I used one $1.00 register reward from yesterday. I still used my debit card to pay the $3.83, but got back $3.00 in Register Rewards. Do the math, I have only $.83 out of pocket for $19.47 in products. The only one I'm not sure about is the Sambucol, but I'm willing to try it.

And did I mention that I dropped my free Redbox movie off at HyVee this morning and tried another code that worked and I got another free movie for tonight. This is almost as much fun as sweepstaking!!!!!!

Maximized Monday

2009-03-09T19:43:00.005-05:00

Maximizing savings! This is getting to be a game and a challenge! I'm having a great time. So today on my way to work I realized I forgot my lunch. Darn! I hate putting out bucks for lunch! But then I remembered that I had one last coupon for a free Arby's Roast Burger. Yessss! So I walked over to Arbys at lunch and not only got a free burger but got in some exercise too! Of course I did splurge this time and bought a medium drink instead of a small. That cost me $1.81 instead of $1.52. But I'm worth it.

Then I went to Walgreens and got the following:

1 Irish Spring body wash ....................................................$4.49
Recieved a coupon for a free Irish Spring body wash on next trip to Walgreens
1 Edge Gel shaving cream 7 oz ...................................................$1.99
Received $1 in Register Rewards making the final cost.......... $.99
1 Crest Pro Health whitening toothpaste.............................$2.49
Used a manufacturer's coupon for ...................$1.00
Received $1.00 in Register Rewards making the final cost.$.49
1 Advil PM Liquid gels .............................................$4.49
Used a $2.00 manufacturer's coupon that was a peelie on the box.
Received $2.00 Register Rewards making final cost..................$.49
1 Fructis Conditioner on sale for.........................................$2.99
Instant Extra Savings coupon of $2.00 making final cost $.99.
I also bought 2 knee high nylons (no, not on sale, but I have to dress up tomorrow. These were .$79 for one or $1.19 for 2. I got 2.

I paid with my $10.00 Register Rewards left over from Saturday and had to pay $3.87 out of pocket. So, all in all, $17.64 in merchandise plus$1.23 tax all for $3.87 out of pocket. What a rush!

Then on my way home from work I stopped at CVS and got some Palmolive Dish soap for $1.49 and received $1.00 in Extra Care Bucks. I also scanned my CVS card and got a coupon for a free cylinder of CVS Ibuprofen to carry in my purse--a $1.99 value for free. And then, of course, I splurged again. They had Diet A&W Root Beer on sale for $.99 so I got one of those.

Last stop was HyVee. Got some more packages of shredded cheese for $.99 each and 4 lbs. of butter at $1.48 each. I should be stocked up on butter now. I also got a Red Sweet Pepper for $.88. And, of course, got my free Monday night movie from Redbox. $15.45 spent today.

We'll see what the rest of the week brings. I also mailed off my rebates today so that will bring some money in the mail.

Savings Saturday

2009-03-07T18:58:00.004-06:00

Well, Saturday seems to be my day to blog. I've had a wonderful day today getting errands run and working in my home office. No, for those of you who are wondering if I got work done on my crafts projects, but I did get a lot of my office cleaned up which gives me more room to do my projects. Maybe I'll get something done later next week.

Much to my chagrin, I also did not get any cooking done today, but maybe I'll get a chance tomorrow. If not, next week will be a major crockpot week! It's 7:05 p.m. and I just got home from running errands at 6:50 p.m. I had quite a dilemma. Since my craft room/office/exercise room is clean, should I do the treadmill before or after my dirty beer with 7 olives? Well, those of you who know me know if wasn't that difficult of a choice--the beer won out. Now, hopefully I'll still have the desire or at least ability to run on the treadmill after the beer.

Ok, now for the news on how I did with my frugal errands today. First of all, Randy and I had 2 coupons for a free Arby's Roast Burger with the purchase of any drink. He had to check his box at the post office so we went to Arby's and got our sandwich. Mine cost $1.52 for a small drink and the burger. Not too bad for lunch. Randy had a med drink so paid a little more. I also stopped at Walgreen's which was on the way and purchased the following:

Colgate Max toothpaste $3.29
Vaseline Intensive Care Rescue lotion 2.69
Organix Hair Conditioner 5.99

_______
11.97
+ .84 tax
_______
Total 12.81
The clerk let me pay in 2 different transactions so I could use the Register Rewards from the 1st transaction on the 2nd transaction.
1st transaction (Colgate Max toothpaste)........giftcard-- 3.52 (3.29 + tax of .23)
earned Register Rewards of $3.50
2nd transaction....................................................giftcard-- 4.29
manuf. coup. -- 1.50 (VIC Rescue)
RR -- 3.50

I had my gift card from last month's rebates from Walgreens so I actually had no out of pocket this trip.

I also earned $2.00 Register Rewards from the Vaseline Intensive Care Rescue and the Organix has a Mail In Rebate for up to $6.99 (I'll get the $5.99 back). So if you look at the numbers, I paid out $11.49 and with coup9ons and rebates, I will be ahead $1.02.

My 2nd errand was at Target. They had $2.00 off of their Sutton and Dodge meats which is the brand they carry. They had London Broil on sale for $1.99/lb. I got 2 London Broils and one Round Roast. I paid $3.05 for the roast--$2.49 a lb. on sale and it was 2.03 lbs. I paid $1.18 for one of the London Broils and $1.06 for the other--great deals! I also got a package of Hillshire Farms turkey lunch meat that was $3.04 and had a sticky coupon on it for a mail in rebate for the price of the lunch meat--so FREE!

On the way home I stopped at Walgreens again. This time I used my $2.00 Register Rewards and bought 2 Pantene hair conditioners for $2.99 each with a manufacturer's coupon for $1.00/2. I also got another Colgate Max toothpaste for $3.29 and used a manufacturer's coupon for .75. That earned me another $3.50 in Register Rewards. I wanted to get some Dove soap because they had a deal on them but neither of the Walgreens that I stopped at had enough of them (it was that good of a deal--they ran out). So I stopped at one more Walgreens which was on the way home and talked with the manager who let me substitute the trial size Dove bars for the regular size single Dove bars at the same .99 price. I bought 8 of them (which came to $7.92), used my $3.50 Register Rewards and paid out $4.97 from my debit card after tax. That earned me $10.00 in Register Rewards. That's a moneymaker! I plan to go back to Walgreens and get the Wal-Zyr cold medicine and the AXE men's hair products which all have a mail in rebate for the price of the product. I can use my $10 RR for those.

I then stopped at Hy Vee and got 4 lbs of butter (a staple in our family!) for $1.48 a lb. and 3 pkgs of cheese (8 oz.) for .99 each, and a gallon of Milk for 1.98. Oh yes, and a pkg of Reynold's wrap for .00 (I had a coupon for a free 25 ft. box).

I also got my free movie Monday night from Redbox and I have heard they have a Wednesday code too so next Wed. I'll try that!

Sooooo I'm busy blogging and then I'll get to work getting my mail in rebates done. All in all, it's been a pretty successful day.

Just another Saturday

2009-02-21T16:43:00.002-06:00

Thought I'd throw in another boring blog. This was a pretty good week. Today Randy and I got up and went to breakfast with his dad. Afterwards we ran a few errands and then went to a movie. Has anyone seen "Taken"? I didn't think I'd like it since it was about a father whose daughter was kidnapped, but it was pretty good!

Now I'm home and while Randy is at his Mensa meeting, I'm going to go downstairs and work on some of my craft projects--like I say every Saturday! However, while checking out bargains on the computer, I came across a website offering free cheese if you put their link on your website. Here is the link iledefrancecheese.com and I'm all about sampling their free cheese. Of course, that doesn't guarantee that they'll send the cheese, but hey...what can it hurt. Besides, I've always heard that French cheese is the best!

Have a great weekend everyone!

It's been a Heart Day!

2009-02-14T13:17:00.004-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day to all my friends, family and loved ones. I don't really have a lot to blog about, but I'll try to update a little. I keep telling Heather and Hilary that since they put all the information about the grandkids on their blogs, I have nothing to talk about!!!

I worked from home yesterday since we were supposed to have such a snow storm! We actually did get somewhere around 4 inches and with the tires on my car (being somewhat bald!) I don't get very good traction, so it probably was the best idea. Anyway, while I was at home, I had the most wonderful surprise! This gorgeous bouquet of flowers showed up at my door! I still cringe a little when I think of what is spent on flowers that won't last--but I REALLY did appreciate these! I haven't gotten flowers in a long time!

Randy left yesterday morning (before the snow hit) for Illinois. He plans to be back on Monday. I think he was just barely ahead of the storm! But he's called several times and apparently he had no problems.

Today is one of those potpourri days. Lots of things to do so I'm flitting from one thing to the other. Sometimes I actually can still multi-task! Weekends are my cooking days. I went to the grocery store this morning and got the specials (Hy-Vee had whole chickens for $.59 a pound!). I got hamburger on sale so I cooked up two baked ziti casseroles. Those will go into the freezer for next week and maybe the week after. Monday will be a crockpot chicken day with roasted new potatos and steamed asparagus. The asparagus was on sale and looked great--very fresh thin stalks. When I'm done blogging, I'll go make my individual cherry and apple pies that will go into the freezer and I can pop in the oven with the casseroles or the potatos. Bake up real quick and gives us a little dessert without lots of left overs. I also pulled a roast out of the freezer that needs to be used up. It will go into the crock pot tonight for Sunday dinner tomorrow and then there will be beef left over for sandwiches next week. Between the ziti, chicken, and beef, I should have plenty of lunches for next week too. OK. Now that I've bored you with all of that!

When I get everything cleaned up from cooking, I need to go downstairs and get Quinn's sweater finished (0r at least worked on!). I have so many projects started for the kids but haven't been able to get to them! There's always so much to do! It doesn't help that I'm a computer junkie! I'm scared to death that she will have grown out of this sweater already! I also have several cards to make, the girls' quilts to work on, and...oh yes, some cleaning to do! Oh well, tomorrow's another day!

I hope this finds all of you happy, healthy, and having a wonderful Heart Day!

A New Year in Yoderville

2009-01-18T18:14:00.008-06:00

Wow! January 2009! How fast the time goes! I wish I could blog about a lot of things that have been happening, but even though I never seem to have any time, there doesn't seem to be a lot new happening! We had a wonderful holiday with everyone back for Christmas! It was awesome having the new grandbabies here together!

This weekend I had another opportunity to spend time with Heather, Wyatt and Bella. Bella is changing daily, but is still such a little peanut! I'll try to include a little blog video if I can figure out how to do it! Wyatt is getting to be such a little man! He's such a joy! This weekend he was teething again and so he was not as happy as he has been, but he's still a doll! Bella also had some kind of a little eye infection so was having a bit of difficulty, but still seemed pretty happy in spite of it.

Heather is such a patient mom and yet I know how difficult it must be to juggle two young children and a job! I'm so impressed by both of my daughters how quickly they've adapted to motherhood and how patient they are! They are doing so well!

I miss little Quinn already! I know that she's changing a lot and even though Hilary is very good at getting photos of her, it's just not the same as being around her personally! I can't wait to see her again soon!

Busy, Busy Wyatt!

Not Quite nap time for Bella!

What a November!!!!!

2008-11-27T13:29:00.005-06:00

Let's start out with November 4th around 4:30 p.m. when we got a call from Hilary letting us know that her water had broken and she and Jason were headed for the hospital. I finished up at work and Randy and I packed up and headed for Flower Mound, TX at 9 p.m. We got to Plano Presbyterian hospital on November 5th around 7:15 a.m.--about 1 hour after Miss Quinn Gracen Fuller pranced into our world. Perfect timing! Quinn was 7 lbs. 9.5 oz. and 20.8 inches long. She has just a dusting of light brown hair, and is perfect in every way. I had the awesome opportunity to stay with Hilary and Jason for two+ weeks after Quinn was born and get to know her. She is truly a sweetheart and stole grandma's heart right away! Randy, unfortunately, had to head back to Lincoln after 4 days and then drove to Iowa and Illinois to work claims. He then drove back to Flower Mound on November 18th to pick me up and bring me back to Lincoln. We got back to Lincoln (I won't get into how difficult it was to leave the sweet baby and my oldest baby to come back here!) at approximately 8 p.m. and I went to work on Friday. Saturday morning we went to breakfast with Elwood, Randy's dad, and then I went to get my hair cut. After my haircut I talked with Randy and he said that Heather had called and put us on "alert". She thought she was in labor.

Right-O! She and Fred went to the hospital around 1:30 p.m. and little Miss Arabella Raye Benzel was born at 7:32 p.m. on Saturday night. Once again, Randy and I raced to Grand Island to help. We got to take care of Wyatt while mom and dad were busy. Heather came home from the hospital on Sunday evening (which still amazes me!).

Today I am spending a wonderful Thanksgiving with Randy, Heather, Fred, Wyatt and new baby Arabella at the Benzel's home. I wish that our whole family can be together, but we will have some time at Christmas! I've been here since Saturday, November 22, when Arabella decided to come into this world and bless us all. This has been so much fun, although I haven't really had much of a chance to spend time with Bella because I've been keeping Mr. Wyatt very busy.

Bella was born Sat. Nov 22, at 7:32 p.m. at St. Francis Med Center in Grand Island, NE. She weighed 7 lbs. 1.5 oz. and was 20.25 inches long. You can see by her picture that she came with a fairly good stand of dark hair! She too is a perfect little speciman of humanity--another reason to praise God!

I will try to add some pictures of Quinn, Bella, and our Thanksgiving soon. Fred made an excellent smoked turkey for Thanksgiving! We are all so full, we may need to take a nap soon!
Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

Hil's Baby Shower

2008-09-01T08:48:00.007-05:00

Just got back yesterday from KC where I attended Hilary's baby shower given by her in-laws. What a great time! Her aunt-in-law Debbie had everyone over for real KC Bar-B-Que on Saturday night and then the shower was at her aunt-in-law Karen's home on Sunday! I've included some pictures from the shower. Both of my nieces came with their children which was a wonderful surprise! Hilary got lots of fun things for the baby as did Heather since we are calling the two girl babies "the twins".

My friend Sherrie Spilde was there too. Sherrie and Del came to KC with us on Saturday and the four of us (Randy, Sherrie, Del and I) all went to the Bodies Revealed exhibit at Union Station. Very interesting!

Randy headed down South from KC to deal with Hurricane Gustav. Pray that all goes well. Give him strength and patience--I'm sure he'll need it. I'll keep you posted on how he's doing as I find out.

Blogging Beginnings

2008-09-01T07:58:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure how this whole blogging thing will go, but I was just saying the other day that I wish people would go back to writing letters. Maybe this is my best bet! Hilary has put her blog together along with several of her friends. It is kind of nice to keep up with what is happening to them. My life doesn't have the excitement that theirs does, but maybe we can make this work anyway.

Wish me luck! Or maybe wish you luck if you are taking the time to read this!