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Tuesday, 04 August 2009

Life update from Michigan

Hello long lost family. It's a bummer we weren't able to meet up with most of you during the 4th of July holiday. Having a dog can really put a damper on your vacationing - especially during holidays.
We went down to Arkansas at the end of July to visit with Mom and to check out the Cardboat Races down at Greer Ferry Lake (Sandy Beach to be exact). What a hoot! Dragons seemed to be the predominate theme and most of the cardboats made it out of the water intact.

But, not all survived... Sometimes boats got across the finish line, but were not fit to sail another day.
And at the end of the day, this is what happens to those who just didn't cut it...
(giggle)
The weather was awesome for end of July which we were thankful for. On our way home, we decided to drive through St. Louis and visit the Gateway Arch, including a trip to the top :)
Rick and the kids - sorry the picture is sideways!
Look - the Cardinals were playing! (obviously a view from the top, checking out the St. Louis side)

So there was our July vacation :)

Monday, 18 May 2009

Happy May!

Wow! It's only been a month since my last post.
Weather here in Michigan is crazy. This morning - May 18th - we had yet another hard frost. I am so glad we didn't get my little tomato seedlings planted this weekend.
Kate turned 8 last Monday. Where in the world has the time gone? My baby is *8*. She is wearing an 8/10 pant and anywhere from an 8-14 top. Clothing sizes are crazy and are really beginning to drive me insane. Kate's birthday shirts came from JC Penney's, and they seem to run small. I admit, it felt funny taking back the M shirts I got to exchange them for L's. At the rate she's going, we'll be in the Jr. department by 5th grade!
The school's science fair was last Tuesday. Both kids particpated (not completely willingly, but they did do the work). Ian's project - Which paper towel holds the most water? Comparing Bounty Basic, Target Premium, Bounty and Viva, the Viva held the most water. Kate's project was more an investigation than an experiment. She did "What happens to carnations in colored water". The results surprised us a bit. She did pink, purple, green and blue water. The blue flower did great, the green water turned the flower yellow, the pink water killed the flower and the purple was a bit of blue flecks and died second. One bummer about the science fair was the projects weren't judged. But they both came home with a ribbon :)
Oh, I also got the kids spring pictures scanned. Yes, Kate is wearing jeans ;)

Less than a month of school to go and the kids are ready to be done. I wish we had year round school as I believe having several longer breaks would be nicer than an entire summer off.
Enough rambling for one night. It's getting late and 6:45 will be here before I know it (yawn). Have a good one all and see you on Facebook.

Saturday, 04 April 2009

Currently
Guitar Hero Metallica
By Activision Inc.
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Hey everyone!

It's been a while so I thought I'd pop in and give an update.
Both kids brought their 3rd period report cards home this week and Ian got all A's for the 3rd time. Kate doesn't get letter grades, but improved in very subject. I've very proud of both of them :)
We have spring pictures back, but my scanner is buried under piles of junk so I need to unbury it so I can scan and then I'll post the pics. Kate's is cute and Ian's looks like he is angry (he says he was mad at the photographer).
I have finally finished (or caught up I guess I should say) the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series of books. Book 16 was completed last night. Book 17 is due to be released either June or July of this year. Next up, the Sookie Stackhouse series of books which I bought at the same time I bought the Twilight books.
Work is ok. Everyone in the company was given a 10% pay cut last week. At least the doors are still open...
Healthwise - I'll say everyone is ok. Ian is getting over another cold; Kate is acting like she is getting a cold. I'm good and Rick is Rick. His sinuses have been getting the better of him this winter :(
Then there are the pets. Let's start with R2 (green parrot). Last Saturday Rick had her out and was giving her a once over when he discovered a growth near her preen gland. It is completely hidden by her wing feathers but when you spread her wings out, there is a mass about the size of the tip of my pinky finger. Yes, it's that big. So Tuesday we took her to the vet and they did a needle biopsy of it. At this time, there are no cells to suggest cancer and it didn't look like a blocked preen gland. So it has been ruled a fatty growth. If it gets bigger, we can have it surgically removed and if she leaves it alone (which she has been) and its not bothersome, then we can just let it go.
Then there is Max. Over the winter he has been acting a bit off. Not wanting to walk on the kitchen floor, whacking his head into things, leg quivers and other unusualy things. We took him to the vet about a month ago and he's definately got some sort of neurological thing going on. He is definately blind in his blue eye, which explains him whacking his head into things because he didn't realize there was something there. They did take some blood and he showed "exposed" to some sort of protozoan infection. Exposed means that sometime in his 3 years he was just that, exposed. The bloodwork didn't suggest an active infection, but we're treating with antibiotics anyway. We have about 2 more weeks to go before we go back to the vet for a followup. My observation so far is he is doing better. His legs still quiver a bit, but he's more playful and more "Max" than he's been in months. There is talk of taking him to a neurologist, but I don't think we'll go that route. We are not going to do CT Scans/MRI tests/etc so why bother?
Guess that is all that's up here. How is everyone else doing? Xanga has been pretty quiet lately!

Saturday, 14 February 2009

Currently
Cerulean Sins (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, Book 11)
By Laurell K. Hamilton
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Happy Valentine's Day!

and that's enough of that
Actually today I *finally* got around to taking pictures off my camera. I thought Becky might be curious as to what the kids picked out when we exchanged their shirts. Yep, they are definately getting older

Pokemon - Ian was very excited to finally get a Pokemon shirt. Now the black one is a size L - 12/14! the Blue one is a M - 8/10 and just about too small already. Yikes!!

Kate *loves* the blue shirt. According to Kate it is sooooo soft and comfy. There is a rhinestone butterfly holding the two sides of the "jacket" together. The other shirt is a dark pink, not red like the picture shows.
Thanks again :)
Now, for an update. Ian has been diagnosed with mild asthma and is on an inhaler 2x a day. We go back to the doctor in May to see how he's doing. He missed almost a week of school last week because of a cold, which turned out to be an ear infection and sinus infection. Poor kid was just coughing and coughing for 2.5 solid days. Kate is fighting a cold now, as well as me and Rick.
Oh - Kate will now wear jeans! She hasn't worn jeans since she was 4. I'm excited because now we'll be able to get all sorts of different shirts, not just swing shirts that work with black knit pants. Kate is excited too because she's finally realizing there's a lot she's been missing LOL!
Guess that's it for now. Have a great weekend everyone!

Thursday, 18 December 2008

Currently
The Twilight Saga: Slipcased
By Stephenie Meyer
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Here's a tip for all of you...

Never send and email saying "So far no major illnesses AND for once, they both have perfect attendance so far" because the very next one of the "they's" will be home sick with a 101.0 temp.
Acutally, Ian is heading to the doctors today. Fever is gone, but he's complaining of a sore throat and earache.
For the curious - our Christmas cards came in the mail yesterday, now I'm just waiting on my stamp order so I can send them out.
Oh, and the library is my new friend :)