It's becoming more and more obvious that this week's blog is late. We didn't have power on Sunday afternoon, and it really threw me.
So, since I'm behind in my EMS reports, behind in the laundry, behind on paying bills and opening mail and running errands, I think I'm going to skip this week and catch up next week. I'm still in need of a shower and Lars' OT is going to be here in a very short time. I do have some new pics to download, so stay tuned for that. I might get them out before Sunday, but no guarantees.
Life is not about guarantees, I'm deciding. It's more about Opportunity and Chance, combined into one big, interesting bubble.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
Pumpkin Patch
After an extremely busy week, followed by an equally crazy weekend, it's now Monday and I'm sitting at my computer for the first time in at least two days.
Al had a busy work week, especially since he was gone 3 days last week. He started with LWML on Monday, where the kids and I picked him up afterwards to run over to SB to test drive a car, which we didn't end up purchasing.
Tuesday was the Pastor's Winkel in Sidney, so he was gone all day, and I had to do the preschool running, which was difficult b/c we had to pick her up right about the time Lars' eats lunch. A minor blessing for us was that his OT was sick, so that was cancelled and gave me some leeway in the clock.
Wednesday is always busy for the pastor, and he had LYF after confirmation, so didn't get home until bedtime.
Thursday he was in Torrington for a funeral in the morning, so I had to do the preschool thing again, he then played catch-up in the afternoon at church, then worked through choir until a building committee meeting, in which he didn't get home until bedtime.
I love Friday, the day off, except for the past couple weeks, when he hasn't had time to take it. This week, he was in the office in the morning and came home for lunch. He left after lunch to head to Casper, where he had an LWML meeting that evening and all day Saturday. He was home by bedtime on Saturday night.
You wouldn't believe how many people think the pastor only works on Sunday morning and Wednesday afternoon.
The kids and I had less to keep on the calendar, but still ended up in SB Monday evening, Tuesday and Thursday were preschool runs and 'errands', Wednesday it was back to SB for yearly check ups at the doctor, then piano lessons in the afternoon. Thursday, another run to SB after preschool, and piano lessons in the afternoon.
The weekend was great. Friday night, we drove back to SB with the Douthit's to pick up a large power tool (which fit in the back of our large Ford) and eat out at Chilis'. The food was great, the service was great, and the kids were great. Not to mention the adult company I was desparate for! Saturday, we hung around and played outside, and watched the Red Wings that night.
Sunday was the big fun day, where we loaded back into the Ford and headed to Lodgepole to Hazel's Pumpkin Patch. It was a warm day and we had fun looking through the patch for the perfect pumpkins to carve. Between the 8 of us, we went through the haunted spider house, the corn maze, the hay bale maze, the wee Hazel's house, sat by the campfire and shopped in the purple witch store. After a quick stop at DQ (where they have non-dairy slushies for my son!), we drove through car lots and headed back to Bridgeport, where we picked up a pot of Chicken and Dumplings and headed to Douthit's for supper. While the guys planed boards with the new tools, the kids played downstairs and the ladies sat upstairs and watched the making of Mary Poppins.
All too soon, it was bedtime and back home. Now, it's Monday morning and I have a little boy in PJs who needs a diaper change and some breakfast.
Until next time...
Al had a busy work week, especially since he was gone 3 days last week. He started with LWML on Monday, where the kids and I picked him up afterwards to run over to SB to test drive a car, which we didn't end up purchasing.
Tuesday was the Pastor's Winkel in Sidney, so he was gone all day, and I had to do the preschool running, which was difficult b/c we had to pick her up right about the time Lars' eats lunch. A minor blessing for us was that his OT was sick, so that was cancelled and gave me some leeway in the clock.
Wednesday is always busy for the pastor, and he had LYF after confirmation, so didn't get home until bedtime.
Thursday he was in Torrington for a funeral in the morning, so I had to do the preschool thing again, he then played catch-up in the afternoon at church, then worked through choir until a building committee meeting, in which he didn't get home until bedtime.
I love Friday, the day off, except for the past couple weeks, when he hasn't had time to take it. This week, he was in the office in the morning and came home for lunch. He left after lunch to head to Casper, where he had an LWML meeting that evening and all day Saturday. He was home by bedtime on Saturday night.
You wouldn't believe how many people think the pastor only works on Sunday morning and Wednesday afternoon.
The kids and I had less to keep on the calendar, but still ended up in SB Monday evening, Tuesday and Thursday were preschool runs and 'errands', Wednesday it was back to SB for yearly check ups at the doctor, then piano lessons in the afternoon. Thursday, another run to SB after preschool, and piano lessons in the afternoon.
The weekend was great. Friday night, we drove back to SB with the Douthit's to pick up a large power tool (which fit in the back of our large Ford) and eat out at Chilis'. The food was great, the service was great, and the kids were great. Not to mention the adult company I was desparate for! Saturday, we hung around and played outside, and watched the Red Wings that night.
Sunday was the big fun day, where we loaded back into the Ford and headed to Lodgepole to Hazel's Pumpkin Patch. It was a warm day and we had fun looking through the patch for the perfect pumpkins to carve. Between the 8 of us, we went through the haunted spider house, the corn maze, the hay bale maze, the wee Hazel's house, sat by the campfire and shopped in the purple witch store. After a quick stop at DQ (where they have non-dairy slushies for my son!), we drove through car lots and headed back to Bridgeport, where we picked up a pot of Chicken and Dumplings and headed to Douthit's for supper. While the guys planed boards with the new tools, the kids played downstairs and the ladies sat upstairs and watched the making of Mary Poppins.
All too soon, it was bedtime and back home. Now, it's Monday morning and I have a little boy in PJs who needs a diaper change and some breakfast.
Until next time...
Sunday, October 11, 2009
October in West Nebraska
Let it snow, Let it snow, let it snow. Isn't there a song about that? While towns in the panhandle got more than a foot of snow in the last few days, here in Bridgeport, we have a mere 6-8 inches. And, it's still snowing. Instead of going to the pumpkin patch, which we've been planning on for nearly a month, we're headed to Mark-y & Laura's house after quiet time to do some Nebraska sledding.
The Strawn's spent the first half of the week in Casper, Wyoming for the Fall Pastor's Conference. I had more fun this time than in time's past, and I think it's because Lars didn't cry nearly as much as usual. Maybe we're finally getting somewhere with him.
The conference didn't start till lunch on Monday this year so we got up before dawn and piled in the car, picking up another pastor in Scottsbluff on the way. We got to the church about 11:30 and made sandwiches before the kids & I left the preachers to learn and we went shopping. Since I'm finally remembering my way around Casper, I didn't have to study the map too much and we got to about 6 stores, including the mall play yard, before supper. Talk about a woman on a mission!
Tuesday morning, Eden wanted to go swimming. After Daddy left that morning, we suited up and headed down to the pool. It was locked up tight. Got a maintenance man to unlock it and jumped in. It was freezing! I was shivering within 2 minutes, and the kids were blue in about 5. Of course, Eden wanted to keep going and Lars was happily standing on the bottom step, splashing away. I sat on the edge wrapped up in blankets, eyeing the hot tub on the other end of the concrete. I finally convinced the kids we needed to warm up over there, so we took a dip in the hot tub, which had just been cleaned and was full of 72 degree water. Needless to say, I headed back to the room for a hot shower.
After lunch, Tte guys have Tuesday afternoon off to golf, but since Al doesn't golf or even want to attempt it, we try to do something in the way of 'family time'. This day, it was a drive out to Alcova Lake while the kids napped in the car. This is a man made reservoir from the dammed up North Platte about 30 miles from Casper. The drive was fairly mundane, unless you like to see herds of antelope playing in the sage fields. Once we got to the lake, it was beautiful. Rock climbers were about to rappel down a deep gorge and the winding roads made it worth the drive.
Ater that, it was back to Casper for some more shopping. I found some material for the top panel of my quilt and we found material for the back panel of his quilt. I was blessed enough to find a sticker sale at Hobby Lobby, something I haven't been able to do in over 3 years, and stocked up heavily, along with kid paint brushes, as Eden has a new painting fettish. I hope this is a stage that too shall pass... unfortunately, I forgot to buy new paints. Bummer.
We headed back home on Wednesday afternoon. Since the weather was nearly perfect, not too hot, not too cold, not too windy, and BOTH children were awake, we stopped in Gurnsey at Register Cliff and the Oregon Trail Ruts. The cliff is a spot where trail weary travelers stopped for a day of rest on their westward migration. The cliff provided a large amount of shade from the otherwise arid, dusty land & hot desert sun. Hundreds of travelers etched their names in the sandstone, along with dates & other messages. A dozen or so bodies are buried in a make shift cemetery at the base of the cliff, with little known about the dead. Up until the 1960's, people were etching their names in the cliff, so that, too, has become a part of history.
The Trail Ruts are a few miles away and, as you can see by the photos, are very defined through the rock, which was worn away with the hundreds of thousands of wagons that passed through, following the river on their way to California, Oregon, Utah & other lands. It's hard to imagine walking that route for more than a few hours, let alone months on end.
We arrived home Wednesday evening and I've spent the rest of the week catching up on laundry and 'stuff'.
Last night, in order that I didn't have to dress up the kids in warm clothes, we hired a babysitter to stay here while we went to a wedding reception up town. The place was packed and everybody looked beautiful in their fall colors, depsite the snow. The food was great, with lots of Greek desserts to pass around.
In other news, after nearly 3 months of no activity on the '98 pick up, a couple from about 90 miles away came to look at it yesterday. They happened to have cash on hand, and we struck a deal. Didn't get what we were wanting, but had to weigh the odds that it had been on the market for so long and our gasoline bill is through the roof with two 4 wheel drive vehicles. We simply needed to get rid of it so we could get something with better gas mileage for the preacher to drive all over the place for his meetings and visits. I hate not having a pick up, but if we buy a cheap enough vehicle, maybe we can buy his '78 Chevy back. :-)
Until next week, Let it snow, Let it snow, Let it snow!
The Strawn's spent the first half of the week in Casper, Wyoming for the Fall Pastor's Conference. I had more fun this time than in time's past, and I think it's because Lars didn't cry nearly as much as usual. Maybe we're finally getting somewhere with him.
The conference didn't start till lunch on Monday this year so we got up before dawn and piled in the car, picking up another pastor in Scottsbluff on the way. We got to the church about 11:30 and made sandwiches before the kids & I left the preachers to learn and we went shopping. Since I'm finally remembering my way around Casper, I didn't have to study the map too much and we got to about 6 stores, including the mall play yard, before supper. Talk about a woman on a mission!
Tuesday morning, Eden wanted to go swimming. After Daddy left that morning, we suited up and headed down to the pool. It was locked up tight. Got a maintenance man to unlock it and jumped in. It was freezing! I was shivering within 2 minutes, and the kids were blue in about 5. Of course, Eden wanted to keep going and Lars was happily standing on the bottom step, splashing away. I sat on the edge wrapped up in blankets, eyeing the hot tub on the other end of the concrete. I finally convinced the kids we needed to warm up over there, so we took a dip in the hot tub, which had just been cleaned and was full of 72 degree water. Needless to say, I headed back to the room for a hot shower.
After lunch, Tte guys have Tuesday afternoon off to golf, but since Al doesn't golf or even want to attempt it, we try to do something in the way of 'family time'. This day, it was a drive out to Alcova Lake while the kids napped in the car. This is a man made reservoir from the dammed up North Platte about 30 miles from Casper. The drive was fairly mundane, unless you like to see herds of antelope playing in the sage fields. Once we got to the lake, it was beautiful. Rock climbers were about to rappel down a deep gorge and the winding roads made it worth the drive.
Ater that, it was back to Casper for some more shopping. I found some material for the top panel of my quilt and we found material for the back panel of his quilt. I was blessed enough to find a sticker sale at Hobby Lobby, something I haven't been able to do in over 3 years, and stocked up heavily, along with kid paint brushes, as Eden has a new painting fettish. I hope this is a stage that too shall pass... unfortunately, I forgot to buy new paints. Bummer.
We headed back home on Wednesday afternoon. Since the weather was nearly perfect, not too hot, not too cold, not too windy, and BOTH children were awake, we stopped in Gurnsey at Register Cliff and the Oregon Trail Ruts. The cliff is a spot where trail weary travelers stopped for a day of rest on their westward migration. The cliff provided a large amount of shade from the otherwise arid, dusty land & hot desert sun. Hundreds of travelers etched their names in the sandstone, along with dates & other messages. A dozen or so bodies are buried in a make shift cemetery at the base of the cliff, with little known about the dead. Up until the 1960's, people were etching their names in the cliff, so that, too, has become a part of history.
The Trail Ruts are a few miles away and, as you can see by the photos, are very defined through the rock, which was worn away with the hundreds of thousands of wagons that passed through, following the river on their way to California, Oregon, Utah & other lands. It's hard to imagine walking that route for more than a few hours, let alone months on end.
We arrived home Wednesday evening and I've spent the rest of the week catching up on laundry and 'stuff'.
Last night, in order that I didn't have to dress up the kids in warm clothes, we hired a babysitter to stay here while we went to a wedding reception up town. The place was packed and everybody looked beautiful in their fall colors, depsite the snow. The food was great, with lots of Greek desserts to pass around.
In other news, after nearly 3 months of no activity on the '98 pick up, a couple from about 90 miles away came to look at it yesterday. They happened to have cash on hand, and we struck a deal. Didn't get what we were wanting, but had to weigh the odds that it had been on the market for so long and our gasoline bill is through the roof with two 4 wheel drive vehicles. We simply needed to get rid of it so we could get something with better gas mileage for the preacher to drive all over the place for his meetings and visits. I hate not having a pick up, but if we buy a cheap enough vehicle, maybe we can buy his '78 Chevy back. :-)
Until next week, Let it snow, Let it snow, Let it snow!
Sunday, October 04, 2009
Short & Sweet
No time to report much this week, I'm trying to get bags packed and ready to go early tomorrow morning. I was sick with a cold for much of the week, so what would normally be done by now has not even been started. Both kids had runny noses, as well, and I scoured pharmacies near and far looking for children's cold tablets, since they both fight me then throw up the liquid stuff. Of course, it's twice as expensive, but it seems that with these food allergies, my kids are turning out to be less than frugal. Anyway, I digress.
The Fall Pastor's Conference is this week in Casper, and we're always looking for an excuse to get out of town for a few days. I'm digging out the winter stuff to take, cruising through the laundry so I can pack, cleaning a spot in the garage for Samson, trying to figure out what to take for Lars to eat for 3 days & wondering where I stuck the swimming stuff. I also like to come back to a clean house, so I'm trying to pick up and put away, but Lars is following me and undoing what I'm doing.
Eden & her daddy went to the race track for the High Plains Shoot Out today after church, but they hardley got there when the race was called because of rain. Instead, the headed back to Douthit's to continue to work on the floor boards for the upcoming sanctuary wall. Lars took about a half hour nap this afternoon, so has been crabby & clingy while I try to get things done.
At least I only have half of the children to keep happy at the moment.
Until next week, enjoy the new youtube video & I'll have more pics next week.
The Fall Pastor's Conference is this week in Casper, and we're always looking for an excuse to get out of town for a few days. I'm digging out the winter stuff to take, cruising through the laundry so I can pack, cleaning a spot in the garage for Samson, trying to figure out what to take for Lars to eat for 3 days & wondering where I stuck the swimming stuff. I also like to come back to a clean house, so I'm trying to pick up and put away, but Lars is following me and undoing what I'm doing.
Eden & her daddy went to the race track for the High Plains Shoot Out today after church, but they hardley got there when the race was called because of rain. Instead, the headed back to Douthit's to continue to work on the floor boards for the upcoming sanctuary wall. Lars took about a half hour nap this afternoon, so has been crabby & clingy while I try to get things done.
At least I only have half of the children to keep happy at the moment.
Until next week, enjoy the new youtube video & I'll have more pics next week.
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