Field Trip Day!

Self-portrait for field trip day yesterday. We went to see, 'If you Give a Mouse a Cookie', based on the children's book. All the 1st grade classes at Kabe's school went. Talk about fun!

Another One!

On the way home from Iowa, Kabe lost another tooth! This makes number seven for our little (!) seven year old.

Aren't these eyes a little evil? He really wanted you to see the missing spot!



Here's what he got from the Tooth Fairy. Seems the Tooth Fairy wasn't as generous as in the past (per Kabe). But he's okay with that.

A Long Catch-Up

Where to start ... Well, we finally have the internet back! YEAH!!! That makes all three of us very happy! I really enjoyed my vacation and got lots of stuff done, but it would have been even better with a working connection. Sad, isn't it?
My week off ended with a trip to Northern Iowa to visit Adam's parents. We left last Thursday after Adam got off work. A good snow storm was rollin' in to our town so we got on the road a little early. This is what it looked like when we left.



When we got to Iowa, here is the snow Kabe played in with the sled Aunt Kimmy got him.



Here are a few more pictures from Saturday when cousin Casey (13) came. Sledding and make snow forts with two people is a lot more fun!



There was a really big snow hill in the field across the street from Grandma Gene's. Here is a picture of Kabe (in red) and Casey climbing.



Here is a picture, not too clear, of Kabe falling off the hill.



It didn't deter him. He went right back to climbing.



He was pretty tired after all that sledding. It is hard work you know.














Aunt Kimmy and Uncle Jerry came to visit that night and brought lots of stuff for everyone. Kabe loved his Star Wars puzzle the most!



All-in-all, a good weekend was had by everyone!

Random Questions - Round Two

Our theme today is internet/email use and habits. I would think we can all relate to this one, as if you are reading this, you probably know a little about how to use the internet. And if you're like most people, you rely heavily on your email. So join us!

1. What was the year and the circumstance of your first internet experience?

September 16, 1997 - We moved to the state we currently reside and I began working on the campus of the University where I still work. I was set up that day with my very own email account and the student hourly workers (college kids), taught me how to surf the net and use Eudora as well as a mac.

2. Do you leave your computer on and your email up all day long to be sure to catch any communication right away or do you check in only occasionally?

My work email is on all day, automatically checking email every 3 minutes. I also have my Blackberry close by to check my personal email and text frequently.

3. In this email age, do you still look forward to getting the mail (the kind the mailman delivers) or do you go two or three days between trips to the mailbox? Do you get "real" mail anymore or is it all junk due to e-banking and such?

We still do check for 'snail mail' every day, although my husband or son get it from the box. Alghough email cards and notes are nice, I still appreciate a 'real' card around special dates - birthday, anniversary, Christmas.

4. How would you rate yourself in relation to your internet use?
Use when necessary
Like to when I can
Must check in at least once a day
Lost without email/internet
Spend hours each day online
Addicted! - This is definitely me. We were out of town this weekend at my in-laws who don't have the internet and barely have access for our cell phones. I was going crazy.

Frustrations....

I'm not sure if I mentioned it previously or not, but Monday was a Holiday for me -- President's Day (Yeah!!). Kabe also had the day off. Usually I utilize my annual leave by heading to visit my family or Adam's but for once, I decided to de-stress a little and spend some time at home, trying to unclutter my life a little, organize things and thoughts, and just plain catch up on stuff. One would think with all that time I would have enough time in there to blog a little, right?

Well, we're in the process of switching internet service providers which is entirely inconvenient seeing as I'm home all week and now I am having all sorts of trouble accessing the internet. I currently have three options in no specific order 1) dial-up free through my work (ugh - plus, as we only have cell phones it sort of ties of my only mode of communication) 2) pirate wi-fi from the neighbors (not really ethical) 3) head to Panera or other such establishment 15 minutes away that has free wi-fi hookup when I purchase coffee (then I can't do laundry while I check email & blog...). What it boils down to is that broadband will be connected on the 26th....the day after my vacation ends. It's just the way my cookie crumbles.

For now, I'm getting much more organized completed at home, although if I were to let you walk in the front door, you really wouldn't think so -- but it is under the surface. =) At some point today, I will begin the mundane task of tackling what you would see if you walked in the door. And I haven't watched even 1 minute of daytime tv yet this week -- very impressive for me (I love Regis & Kelly and The View!).

Now that you know I'm still alive, back to my projects. Feel free to let me know you're hanging around out there....

Random Questions

My friend Randa Kay over at Just RK, has put up a few Random Questions and I've decided to participate. These are definitely random --- but here goes! Inserted here are the questions from her blog:

Here's the first round of questions...
1. When grocery shopping, do you arrange your items in the shopping cart nicely and in categories or just toss it in?
I usually just toss grocery stuff into the big part of the cart, separating cold and fragile (fresh fruits and veggies). I also separate things like fabric softener and soap that tend to give off fragrance -- I don't like my bananas to taste like my socks smell. Also, if I'm getting cards or bendy things, I usually put them in the top by my handbag so they don't get all smooshed.

2. When putting your grocery items on the nifty conveyor belt at the check-out, do you group them by category to make bagging easy or do you just put them up there in whatever order you grab them?
It depends on if I'm getting assistance from my very helpful 7-year-old. If I'm doing it, I tend to group all items that are alike together (4 cans of campbells soup, two dozen eggs, etc.). And like above, I separate the soap and fabric softener so they bag it separately.

That's a good start. More will come soon...the list is already pretty long! I'll post my answers tomorrow. Can't wait to see all yours!!!

Happy Valentines Day!

I'm home today with my little valentine who is not feeling well. He has a fever of 102 and other flu symptoms and is very disappointed that he can't be in school today for the Valentines Day Party.



And look what my other valentine brought me!

Closest book at hand ..... page 25

I was tagged by Mrs. D. at Woodland Country Life to write down a couple sentences from the current book I'm reading and then explain what those sentences mean to me. I've never been tagged before -- Thanks Mrs. D!
Well, I happen to have the devotional book, 'Hope: Abounding Hope' by Mary G. Peeples sitting right here and it's got some good stuff in it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The second destructive natural tendency is our dependency on people, places, things and events for emotional stability. Jesus Christ is the only one who is able to meet our need for love, joy, comfort and peace.
We look to people to meet our need for love, places to give us comfort, things to bring joy into our lives and circumstances to give us peace. (Galatians 5:22-23)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Have you ever heard of a 'God-Spot'? I think this excerpt is sort of talking about the same thing. You know, that special place God created inside all of us that's reserved just for him. We yearn for Him to come and fill it up and until we allow Him to reside there wholly, then we'll continue to make bad choices, trying to fill up that area with other destructive tendencies, vices, peoples, whatever the case may be.
This all sounds so simple, just let go and fill-up with God. So why is it so hard?


Now who to tag....how about Kelly or Emmy. You're it!

ReArranging

We are now a wireless family! We've been on a broadband network (is that even the right terminology???) for several years. That means we get our internet service through our cable provider. It's pretty fast. Almost as fast as my network at work which is fast...considering where I work. But my techie, Ellen tells me it is definitely not as fast at home, so what do I know. =)
Anyhoo, we (by we, I mean, I) hooked up a linksys router on Saturday so we can have wireless access at home. It's SO COOL! I have a laptop at work & it's rather inconvenient to bring home when we don't have wireless. We've been trying to find a cheap laptop for home so Sunday we finally found one and we went & got it! (By 'we' I mean Adam). Well, This of course, means more change in the house. We (this means Jen & Adam) rearranged furniture and moved the desk to the living area - it had been in the spare room, but now it's in the open for all to see which seems strange, but we (all of us: Adam, Jen & Kabe) love it! Kabe is on the computer a lot so having the computer in a family area is good, especially as he gets older. Right now he only goes to sites I bookmark, but that will change. We've also converted the spare room to more of a game room / toy room / spare room. It's still in process. Maybe someday you'll get to see those pictures. For now, here are the pictures of the dining are / desk area which is right off the kitchen and living room. What do you think?

Scenery

Adam got some portrait frames in at work to put on display and they are in need of photographs. He came home the other day requesting some pictures from me. The only problem is that most of the pictures I've taken won't work because they would appear too grainy if they're enlarged, so yesterday I took some time to snap some nature photo's that would enlarge well. I took them in to show the powers that be. Adam really liked what he saw, but he hadn't communicated to me that what was really wanted are 'people pictures' or more specifically, 'Kabe pictures'. I can definitely come up with that. I really enjoyed my time out yesterday & got some fun shots. What do you think? Any favorites?

Self Portrait

So, today is a Holiday for me, Presidents Day. Lincoln's Birthday to be precise. That being the case, I took the opportunity for a four-day weekend and so I had yesterday off as well. I did a lot of fun stuff like change the oil in the car, make returns to stores and the library, wax my eyebrows, oh yeah, and get a much needed haircut. I don't have a before picture -- or even a very good after picture as I'm here by myself right now and can't seem to self-portrait well, but here are a couple views of the new do.

Please don't be harsh....like I said, self portraits don't do justice.














And no, the right side (your left) is not shorter than the other side, it's tucked behind my ear which gives the appearance of being shorter. That's just the way it would cooperate this morning. =)

Homework and Bubbles

When I was in first grade, I don't remember having homework -- do you? It seems that nothing about life or school is the same for Kabe as it was for me back in the day. Even school lunch is good.



Some things are still the same: kids love bubble gum!

Finally - an approved project!

I've been in a bit of a slump with my knitting lately. I'm not sure if it's because I've been running in 14 different directions, trying to keep up with family, devotions, blog, pictures, reading, Christmas, New Years' etc. etc. etc. Or it could be the fact that, although I have at least two projects on the needles, I'm not motivated to complete them at this time -- for various reasons that I don't wish to discuss right now. Those projects are in knitting jail, sentence unknown. Well, for some time our friend Kevin has been dropping various hints (well, beyond hints) that he would like a scarf, so when the local knitting store had a good sale, I decided his yarn would be what I would purchase for an easy project to get me going again. Who knows -- it might inspire those projects right out of jail...but lets not get ahead of ourselves. Here is a sample of the gorgeous yarn I purchased. It's shaping up nicely. I really like it -- hopefully he likes it too!

Preoccupied with Pain

Is the tree that's pruned
Preoccupied with pain?
--standing with its wound
in the wind and the rain;
shrouded in cool mist,
kissed by the dew,
chosen for a nest
by a bird or two;
enveloped with fragrance
of rainwashed air,
bloodroots and voilets
clustered 'round it there;
gently transfigured
as sap begins to flow --
leaves, flowers,
choicest fruits --
how I'd like to know;
Is the tree that's pruned
Preoccupied with pain?
~ Ruth Bell Graham

He Knows My Name!

I like to meet new people, but I find it hard to remember names. I have to use little tricks like saying it over and over both out loud and in my my head. The goal is to be able to address them by name the next time I see them because I know how great it feels for someone to remember your name. Whether famous or obscure, it builds ties with people when we remember and use their name.

This really came to light as I was reading my devotional thought today. We all like to be known, noticed, remembered.

He Knew My Name
Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.
Luke 19:5

Recommended Reading
Luke 19:1-10

Joba Chamberlain is still taking it all in. The rookie right-hander for the Yankees is one of only two Native Americans in the major leagues; but despite his newfound fame, it's still the little things that impress him, like someone pronouncing his name correctly. Recently he bumped into Detroit Tigers pitcher Todd Jones in the Yankee weight room. "He knew my name," Joba told a reporter afterward with gratitude in his voice, "and he knew how to pronounce it." That simple story made the national news.

How wonderful that God knows our names. Have you ever noticed how often Jesus called people by their names in the Gospels: Martha, Martha . . . Go and tell John . . . Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah . . . Lazarus, come forth!

He knows your name; it's written on His heart, and He loves you today.

He knows my name! He knows my every thought.
He sees each tear that falls and hears me when I call.
Tommy Walker

We are not just random people, thrown on this earth to coexist together. God knows you. He knows your name. He knew it before you were even created. And He loves you! All of you. He loves you when you have a great day and when you're at your worst -- when you feel you are the most unlovable person in the whole world. Jesus Loves You. He Knows Your Name. Cool.

Denali National Park

Isn't this a gorgeous picture? We took it last spring on our trip to Denali National Park in Alaska. I wish. Back to reality. Actually, this was taken at 5:30pm this evening from the back door of our house through the thickest fog I've ever seen. We woke up to it this morning and it was supposed to burn off by noon, but somehow it got worse as the day progressed. Pretty picture though.


This is the view from our front door tonight, pictures don't actually do it justice -- at least not mine. If you look close, you can see our neighbor's trash can lying down in the distance --- less than 75 feet from where I took the picture. It was fun to drive in too.

Family

Families are great, aren't they? No, I mean it -- this isn't sarcasm at it's best. Oh sure, they can definitely dish out a lot of heartache and send you through years of therapy. You can't deny it. All families contain some form dysfunction, some mild; some severe. For lots of us, when it really comes down to it, no matter what the past holds, our families are a safe place, a haven, a band-aid when life deals us a bad blow or even less, when it just comes rushing at you too fast. Maybe that's why I love family reunions. Tell me I'm not the only one who likes these things. Please?

Due to various events in my life, I have been blessed with lots of great family. This particular family gets together every year in August for a family reunion.
Last year I took lots of pictures and had the best intentions .... what is it they say about intentions?? Well, if anything is going to happen with these pictures, it's going to be here. Below are a few of my favorites.

Last year's reunion was hosted by Uncle Bill and Aunt Kay. Here is a picture of them, with kids & grandkids & maybe a few great-grandkids.



This reunion is for my dad's side of the family. So we gather to see his siblings, their spouses, and offspring (my cousins). All together, dad has five brothers and five sisters. Last year there were six siblings present. Here are a few pictures of them. My dad is the guy on the left.



This looks like trouble, don't you think??

Gotcha!

One weird week!

We had a pretty strange week of weather. Tuesday started off in the mid-50's and sunny, then was spitting rain. By the time I left work at 3:45pm it was spitting slush and had dropped 16 degrees in 15 minutes. Overall, there was a 40 degree temperature drop that day. Here are what the trees outside our house looked like that night.



Skip ahead to Thursday and reports of a big snow storm headed our way. The day started out cold and by noon it was spitting snow and was very windy. Here are the little bushes in front of our house at 5:00pm last night.



These are the same bushes this morning at 6:30am.



So far, the total accumulation is only 9-10", depending on where you are, but there is a lot of blowing. People around here are a little sensitive to snow though, so ALL schools and many businesses / activities are canceled today. Not our places of employment of course. It is still snowing though, another 2-4" expected today.
I love a good snow storm. Maybe we'll get a good snowman and some snow angels out of the deal.