Anyone...out...there ???

Do any of you remember Mr Konkel at the high school pepfests? He'd lead a cheer, and he's always yell at the kids, "I CAN'T HEAR YOU!!!" (OK, Peter and Matt, this may be before your time, but I know Abby and Sarah would recall him.) Anyway, that's how I'm beginning to feel about this blog...Is anybody out there? (I can't hear/read you!) Or am I the only one that checks this daily? Anyway, I still really like it, and love to see pics and get a few tidbits of what's happening in our family's life :>)

We're in the midst of a lot of snow/blowing snow tonight, and there's ice underneath it all, so church was cancelled for tonight too --- a good cozy night at home, and I have a good book, so I'm set.

Did any of you see the show on TV last night about Bob Woodward - or whatever his last name is (I forget just now - the newsman that sustained the head injury in Iraq)? When your dad and I watched it, it was so moving to us, transporting us back to all those days in the hospital last summer. To watch him in searching for words and doing therapy was so much like watching Sarah. I know Sarah watched it too - in fact, she said she was going to be tested on it today in her therapy group, so I'll have to check with her later and see how that went.

Time now for supper so I won't linger....just want you all to know I'm thinking of you! Keep warm, drive safe...Love you, Mom

Sunday night

What an unusual weekend. Normally if we have a snow storm I still have to go to work, since the nursing home never closes...But since this storm was on the weekend, I felt like Saturday and Sunday were total "snow days" for me. I lazed around late each morning, read a lot, did barely anything constructive (except made some cookies and some pumpkin bread tonight, which I'll probably take to work tomorrow)...what a nice change of pace for a very short time, but it would not be at all good if I was this lazy much longer!

Earlier I talked to my sister Carol and she said Katie is due March 11th. Carol had just been to Chicago to visit her, and feels the baby will be on time or early, and they're all pretty excited.

Your dad's been in and out of the house numerous times today, unlike me who hasn't been out even once (our church was cancelled due to the ice and snow). He's monkeyed with the snow blower, done some shoveling, been out twice for newspapers, once for coffee, and once for groceries, and then he ended the evening with a Scout meeting...

Tomorrow morning it's back to work for me, and I'm hoping our flu epidemic at the nursing home will be over - it's been closed to visitors for about a week. It felt like such a relief to get out of there on Thursday while I was still well...I really don't want to pick up any of the stuff going around right now!

Peter and Megan - we're looking forward to your coming next weekend - hope the weather holds so that will work out :>)

Abby, thanks for posting all the pics...I loved seeing them!

Matt, how'd your visit with Winnie and Sarah go? And are you making headway on your reading?

As you can see, I really had no news...but just wanted to send a HI to all of you......... and............
All of you, have a great week! Love you, Mom

Hi

We went to the science museum today. The kids had an awesome day. There were very few people there due to the "terrible" storm that we were suppose to have that never came. Maybe it will show up tonight. Megan and Pete- If your in Slayton this next weekend you should stop by to see us! It isn't too long of a drive. I'll talk later. Abby

house cleaning

(this is my bed... thanks dad for adding to it each time you come up, my sleeping comfortability has been enhanced with each paternal appearance)

cyber mom- thanks for posting and letting us know about your weekend (and giving us the dates for lanesboro). today was my catch up day... i usually work on wednesdays but had it off today. so, we did our coffee thing in the morning, then i went running (it was a beautiful day), then i went shopping for vegetarian-type food, then met with a guy from seminary who is one of the cooler of the older seminary students, and finally i did my laundry at the vend-o-wash and cleaned my room. it really felt good just to have a day to get my life in order after a really busy two weeks. i should be doing homework now, but i think i might just watch a movie or something that doesn't require any thought.

yesterday, i had my presentation on environmental ethics. it went really well and really got me thinking about a lot. we actually did really well on the presentation, so that is a bonus as well. hope all of you are doing well and talk to you soon, matt

ps. anna, are you feeling better? and thomas, how are my old books?

error-error-error

Error report!!! I just rechecked the dates for our Cancun weekend, and it will be April 27-28-29 (not the 20-22 as I said in my last entry)...so, get out your calendars and check. Can you come?? Hope so :>)

Hope you're all having a good, good day...Love you, Mom

Ramblin' on

Hi, all of you. It's not that I have anything particularly newsy to say, but of course, that won't necessarily stop me from rambling on awhile in the blogosphere...
We had a wonderful time with Abby and Thomas and Anna here. Abby and I went to see Music and Lyrics, which had a few funny moments but was not great. And we ended up driving back from Worthington to Slayton in absolutely terrible weather, with blowing snow and very poor visibility. Abby kept begging to drive, but I made her just sit tight while I manuevered - she survived, but I think she was a bit terrorized by the time we got home! Matt, we got in only one game of Scrabble, and Abby won :>( We duly noted it in the dictionary. On Saturday I worked at the Manor booth at the Farm and Home show in the high school gym, so everyone came over there for a bit...Abby took the kids on a tour of the school and they got to see her old locker. I'm sure they were pretty thrilled. That night Thomas went to a Scout thing with your dad, who took his popcorn machine - and I think they both enjoyed it - and they both really smelled like popcorn when they got back! Anna got in a little time to play with the girls next door - she always looks forward to that. All in all, it was really a fun time...

On Sunday I worked at the nursing home (which is now closed to visitors due to a flu outbreak - again!), and then we had a pancake dinner and silent auction at church to raise funds for the youth group mission trip - I hadn't had pancakes for a while and they tasted great! Monday Paul drove to the Cities to trade cars with Sarah - and I had a wonderfully quiet day here at home. I finished reading such a good book (The Glass Castle - or maybe The Glass House - by Jeanette Wall - I think that was her name - a true story and riveting. Peter and Matt, it may not be your cup of tea, but all "the girls" would like it.) Then I quick made an almond cake, and went to book club --- and that takes us to today - back to work and the "normal routines".

Matt, I really liked your idea about picking out a weekend in summer when we can all camp together --- can you all look at your calendars, or do you know this far ahead what your work weekends will be? Your dad and I can be pretty flexible!

Also, our Cancun weekend is April 20-21-22 this year (in Lansboro) - Who can come???

Also, does anyone know their plans for Easter yet? We're open to whatever works.

Megan and Peter, I'm glad you had a good time on the North Shore - sounds like it was very relaxing! And we're looking forward to your coming to Slayton the weekend after next - hope that will work out.

All of you, have a great week! Love you and miss you! Mom

abbabby

hey abby- just wondering how the tv is working out? hope you had a good time at home with mom and dad... i wish i could have been there. also, i was wondering what strength of magnet you need to do that trick you said about fixing the wierd colors on the tv? hope tom is enjoying the books and talk to you later.

ps. it was nice to talk on thursday

pss. i was lying about me being the "favorite" in the family.

psss. what weekends this summer do you have off (are there any times that don't work for camping as a family)? probably earlier in the summer would be better (depending upon megan's feeling better... or maybe we'll have to hold off until next year)

salud

hope everyone is doing well. just wanted to say that i am so happy to have you as my family. hope that your weeks have been going well and that you get to enjoy the weekend thoroughly. i have a busy next week, but i can see the light at the end of the tunnel. love you all, matt

Valentine's Day

Well, I can understand why no one is writing in this blog ---the last posting from Peter and Megan is pretty hard to top in the news category! At least I know I don't have anything of comparable impact to report on!

But since it IS Valentine's Day, my thoughts turn to those I love, so this is a good way to at least say HI. You probably thought your dad and I would be having a romantic dinner together, but no - he'll soon be leaving for kids club at church, and I'm thinking I'll scramble some eggs and have a quiet dinner with a book ( or maybe a CSI show if I eat late enough...) But --- we do have plans to eat out at Kinbrae soon, and he gave me a pretty great Valentine gift, an undercounter radio/cd player to replace the radio I had. It even has a remote. So now I have to figure out how to use it. (If anyone needs an undercounter radio let us know.)

Your dad and I wrote a skit for kids club tonight since they'll be having a valentine's day party, and for the skit your dad has to dress up like a cupid superman...it's been kind of a kick to plan that:>) I'm hoping someone will take a picture.

Some local news...today we got a wedding announcement for Tony Widboom - he and his wife got married in January in Edina, with only the immediate family present. Maybe some of you know that already. Also, Judge Holt's house is for sale (I think Tommy and Tammy are getting a divorce) and the historical society in town in hoping to buy it to fix up and use for gatherings, receptions, and as a tea room type thing (and a place for some of their old furniture and stuff)...I think that would be great, so I hope it works out. Also, our church had a very successful fundraising campaign, so the building committee is seriously deciding on plans for the new addition. If you think of it, this is a real item for prayer - it's a lot of money to spend and there needs to be a consensus on which direction to go and a spirit of peace about it.

I'm sure I could go on "chatting" - but that's probably about enough for now...and hopefully I'll talk to y'all before too long...Have a great V-Day! (Megan's probably fighting nausea, Peter's working til 10, Matt's preparing for the class he teaches Thursday, Abby's recuperating from 4 long days/nights of nursing, Sarah's busy with her intensive aphasia workshop, Kojoe's preparing for his test on Thursday, Justin's probably shoveling snow if their weather is like ours...so that leaves Thomas and Anna to get in the spirit of the day...hope it's fun!) Love you all, Mom

????

that's great! did you get what you wanted for it? how's anna doing?

i've just been working on homework all day long and still have a lot to do. nothing else has been happening around here... for once your life is more exciting than mine (you better take advantage of that) :)

maybe i'll talk to you sometime via phone, matt

CAR

We sold our car finally!!!! (The Intrepid) Now we don't have to move three vehicals every time it snows! Abby

Anna's sick again

Anna has strep throat again- so we spent the day playing neighbors, babysitters, judge, bunnies, and doctor. She is actually feeling much better now. About an hour after she took the first dose of antibiotics she was a different girl. I think she was pretty upset about not going to school today. Hope everyone else is doing well. Abby

Texas - 2

Hi y'all...Thanks for remembering your dad on his birthday. We had a wonderful day...he started it out by joining his wood-carving buddies, and then we spent the afternoon in Corpus Christi, and on the way home we stopped at a number of birding sites and saw hundreds - maybe thousands!- of herons, egrets, ibises, pelicans, various ducks, and many other birds. I really love watching these big water birds - my favorite is the roseate spoonbills because they're big and pink. Then for dessert that night we had steamed cranberry pudding (our Glewwe traditional Christmas dessert) and that was the perfect birthday treat for all of us. So it was a great day---oh, and did I mention the temp was 70? Today it should be as nice, and the sky is cllear and blue. We plan to leave soon for the King Ranch, which I think iis about the biggest ranch in Texas. One thing we'll do is take a 2 hour nature/wildlife tour...I have no idea what we'll see, but it should be interesting. So---our trip is nothing but pleasant! A few things - Abby, thanks for cleaning up my Texas writings....hope your Tuesday at work goes well and you can really rest up on Wednesday. Matt, how did your group like the music for your superbowl party...your dad is wondering, since he thought Block Kick Me Jesus is a pretty great song! Peter, so did you have a hard day at work on Monday? Sounds like you were a tad bitter toward old folks...luckily, your dad and I will be very gracious old people (maybe). And Sarah - if you read this - I'm so glad your car is starting through the cold MN days!! OK, time for us to head out...it's a busy life you know! So, all of you, have a great day! Love you,Mom

Happy BIRTHDAY DAD ...61

Happy Birthday Dad, like Matt said below...your birthday present is the pleasent weather you are having in Texas. And also the fact that you will soon be taking all my Taxes by enrolling in Medicare. You can be one of those grumpy old guys at the pharmacy that are mad because their prescription rose from $5.50 to $6 and want me to call the insurance to see the reason for this when I know because of the last 10 times I called that their deductible went up with the first of the year and that letter you got in the mail and didn't read because you are too busy drinking prune juice would have told you that so then I would not have to call. And then after you tell them that they talk about the weather and bug you for 15 minutes so you can't catch up from being behind due to you having to call insurance...actually don't be one of those guys. Maybe when you get back we can have a birthday celebration for you. I hope you and Mom are enjoying your vacation. Talk later
Peter and Megan

happy bday

Dad- Just wanted to wish you a happy birthday. i would give you a birthday present, but i thinkt that the weather you are getting down is texas is far better than anything i could give you (its freezing up here). hope you both are having a great time bird watching, carving things, and doing other old people stuff. hopefully, we'll be able to talk sometime this week and catch up. matt


ps.- here is a special picture just for you (from our superbowl party)

Texas

We made it...Peter's old car and all! We had a wonderful trip...I crocheted most of the way, and we listened to some books, listened to the radion(including the Prairie Home Companion joke show), got in some talking...the good news is that it got warmer and warmer as we drove. When we got to Waco yesterday I noticed people were wearing short sleeves! In fact, we turned off the heat partway through the trip and eventually even opened the air vents :>) So....it it still below zero in MN???? One of the nicest things we saw yesterday was a combination of blue jays and cardinals at a woodsy rest stop area...that made me smile, bu my camera was packed away too far for a picture. Before we got to Stan and Sandy's we stopped at our "favorite" fish place (ok, we've just been there twice before, but it's great, has a big log fireeplace, and a lot of atmosphere)...then we got here about 9 pm. Talked til midnight, and then a good night's sleep. And today will be church and superbowl day...and we'll make our plans for the rest of the week. I think the temps will be in the 50s and maybe 60s...Now everyone's ready for breakfast so I'll go. Y'all have a great day! (would one of you call Sarah and let her know we got here ok, in case she doesn't check this blog?) PS, Anna - I loved the way your hair looked in your pictures! You really looked like a princess!!!

Anna's princess party

Anna got to go to her "princess party" for Tessa today. They started out at the Black Hills Beauty School to get their hair and nails done. Notice the blue metalic nails Anna chose. Then they went to Tessa's house for a tea party- though Anna said she chose strawberry pop instead. She had a "strawberry sandwich" (not cake) that was "really good." They also had ice cream and "rice crispy cookies that were pink and shaped like hearts." Her favorite part "was when they did my hair. It is a little pony tail with curls all over it. It took them a half hour to do it. Tessa's mom put makeup on me, too. She is a makeup person that puts makeup on people for fashion shows and things. Even little girls like me." She was very impressed. She wants to go back and get her hair done every day before school. Love- Abby and Anna

On the road --- almost

It's the wee hours of Friday am...my bags are (practically) packed and I'm past ready for bed, but will just take a minute to check out all those interesting messages you all are posting on the blog these days...hmmm - where are they??? Oh well, either our lives are all so exciting we have no time to post, or so routine we have nothing much to say. I'm thinking the first choice, right? Well, here was my day today --- work from 8 am to past 7 pm, come home and eat leftovers so we can get the fridge cleaned out, and then quick clean the house and pack...the evening disappeared quickly. But that's ok if I'm tired tomorrow because my next few days will basically be spent dozing, listening to books on tape, doing Sudoku, and crocheting...and actually, that all sounds good to me! Dog people, I even found some patterns for dog coats to crochet, but don't worry, I'm not going to do it. I think Toby and Rex are already quite well dressed. Then we'll get to Sandy and Stan's about 9 p.m. on Saturday, if we've planned right and have no car trouble or delays...it will be great to have a week of nothin' to do(and hopefully in weather that's about 40 above instead of 10 below zero!) So - all of you, have a wonderful week ahead, stay warm and safe, and we'll be in touch! Love you, Mom