Do You Know the Muffin Man?

My Bucket List

2011-07-08T16:24:00.000-05:00

I have a "Bucket List" of 100 things I want to do before I die.

I know, it's corny.

It has some stuff on it that are really cool, others that are difficult, and even some that other people think are really weird.

I've even managed to cross a few things off of it in the course of my life so far:

#9: Visit Nauvoo, IL (Nauvoo Temple Dedication, June 2002)
#15: Compile a Family Heritage Album (Started 2006)
#20: Pick Blueberries in Michigan (July 2009)
#26: Win a prize for my cooking or baking (February 2001 - Relief Society Chocolate Contest) Not a big prize, but so what?
#35: Learn how to make my own clothes (October 30, 2002 is when I sewed my first dress)
#40: Get my Bilingual Teaching Certificate (September 2010)
#55: Do the Tourist thing around Chicago for two full days (June 2010)
#80: Attend a live music concert - country or pop (Phil Vassar, Carolyn Dawn Johnson, Six Wire, Braden Auditorium, 2002)
#84: Have a professional massage (December 2006)
#88: Dance with my husband, on a warm summer night under the stars (Chicago Summer Swing Dance, Grant Park, July 2008)
#93: Meet some friends from Second Life in person (MJ and BD, 2007)

Looking back at some of the ones that have been on the list for a while and that I've accomplished, like the professional massage, or the live music concert, they seem kind of silly now. Since then I've had several massages and been to several concerts, but when I first wrote those goals down, they were important to me.

I do periodically look at my bucket list and change it. There are some things on it that I wanted to do, but don't find interesting anymore. Others that I realized aren't feasible, but once a goal is done, I don't take it off the list, I just mark it as done. I figure that once I get half the list complete, I'll add some additional things to do to the list.

Some of the goals are really long term like:
#2: Attend a session at 5 Temples outside of the United States
or
#99: Pay off Student Loans.

Some of them are fairly "quick" goals. Theoretically, they could be done tomorrow if I knew someone who could arrange it for me.
#91: Ride an elephant
or
#85 Ride on a Combine or other large piece of farm equipment (Hey, for a city girl, this always seemed cool)

Other goals on my bucket list that may take a little help to accomplish:
#95 - Shake hands with the President of the United States
#96 - See Royalty in person
#77 - Try on (not own) a Million Dollar Necklace.

There is one MAJOR thing that I'm getting really close to accomplishing:

#39: Earn a Master's Degree in Education

In two weeks, my last class will be finished. My paperwork will be submitted and my transcripts will be released by August. I won't actually graduate until October/ Novemberish, but I'll have earned a Master's Degree in Educational Leadership from Olivet Nazarene University.

I'm also a couple of weeks away from four other goals, thanks to our upcoming vacation to England and Spain!

#49 - Spend a week in England
#72 - See the changing of the guards in London
#22 - Eat Paella in Spain
#92 - Meet some of my European / British Internet friends in person

I can't wait. In two weeks, I will be able to cross off 5 things from my bucket list, and will be closer to accomplishing a few more long term goals.

Do you have a bucket list? What are a couple of things that you have on it? I'd love to know.

Cupcakes!

2011-07-01T16:08:00.000-05:00

I've been in a baking mood. It's something that I do in order to relax. With teaching, working on a Master's Degree, my Etsy shop, and life in general being what it is, relaxing is necessary. I've just finished my first month of summer vacation, and my jaw has only just now stopped clenching. Still working on my shoulders and other stress symptoms.

AAAnyway. I've always loved baking. C'mon, look at me! I didn't get this size because I like salads. I've started to experiment with different flavors of frostings and cupcakes. When messing with frostings, I keep to plain vanilla or plain chocolate cupcakes so that way, the frosting flavor is easily compared. When experimenting with cupcake flavors, I stick with vanilla icing.

Sometimes, I even take pictures of my experiments.

Lucky You! You get to see!

This one is Nutella buttercream frosting. Nutella, for those of you who don't know, is a chocolate-hazelnut spread.

This one is a Lime buttercream. Very summery!

I've also made Lemon buttercream, Peanut-Butter Buttercream, Double-chocolate buttercream, and a chocolate-mint buttercream. But no pictures of those.

I'll need to actually take more pictures the next time I bake something.

Happy Little Trees

2011-04-18T21:34:00.000-05:00

I had to call in sick today because of a pretty bad cold. I couldn't breathe, I hadn't slept well, and I was pretty sure that if I had gone to work, I wouldn't have made it through the day.

Ever noticed that when you are sick, there are some things that you have to do otherwise you don't feel better? For me, it's wearing sweats and fuzzy socks, sitting on the couch with a warm blanket, and a cup of hot tea with sugar and milk. My daytime TV watching selections vary, but there's always one show that I end up watching, regardless of the day, illness, or mood.

This show is oddly zen. Watching a man paint a landscape, with his slow, calm monotone voice is so soothing. It's almost become a sick-day tradition. I don't know why. I always feel a little better after watching his show. It's weird.

Gotta love those happy little trees!

I do feel better though.

What do you do when you're sick that helps you feel better?

Date Night Regulars

2011-04-07T22:00:00.000-05:00

We're getting old.

No, seriously, we're getting old.

We're "Regulars."

The restaurant we go to normally for date night knows our names, knows where we like to sit, will open a closed section so we can sit there, the waiters all know us, and our orders, the kitchen staff recognize our orders every week, the managers all know us by name, and they've stopped charging our drinks and sometimes give us dessert for free. They are concerned when we miss a week, and the manager routinely asks us about how the restaurant is doing.

It's sad really.

We're like that old, grey-haired couple that go into a restaurant at 4:00 in the afternoon and everyone knows them.

Except we're not grey-haired (yet) and we're not eating at 4:00.

Like I said, we're getting old.

But I wouldn't change a thing.

I'm going to that restaurant with my best friend. What I order fits with my diet perfectly, is really well prepared and very yummy. And the predictability of date night creates an island of calm in the middle of our busy lives.

Yup, we're "regulars" and proud of it!

Zombie Dog

2011-04-06T21:05:00.000-05:00

Apparently, Dale turned into a Zombie:

And here's the evidence:

BRAINS......BRAINS......

STUFFING.....STUFFING....

Wherein I attempt to wear out the Dog.

2011-03-30T17:58:00.000-05:00

Seeing as how it's Spring Break (woot!) and I'm home all week I figured that it would be a good thing to take the dog out and run him until he collapses from exhaustion.

A tired dog is a good dog.

First, I throw his wubba in the back yard for half hour until he decides that the neighbor's bush is much more interesting than the wubba. Would I mind not throwing the wubba for a while while he checks his pee-mail and determines if there is a rogue squirrel insurrection pending.

Second, we go for a RIDE! in the CAR! to the PARK! OMG!! OMG!! OMG!! Not really a park, but one of the local forest preserves that has open spaces to run. Using the chuck-it, I throw a tenis ball repeatedly until my shoulder hurts and Dale is panting harder than any creature should pant. He finally decides we're done by returning the ball, not to me, but to the car.

Where upon, seeing the light at the end of the tunnel - He's tired! - we take another RIDE! in the CAR! to the PARK! OMG! OMG! OMG! We head to Bemis Woods Forest Preserve and go for a 2 mile hike on the "Orange" trail. (Map included below).

Even though he had less than 5 minutes in the back of the car between where we were to play chuck-it and where we stopped to hike, he apparently has some sort of secret "Energy Drink" hidden somewhere that gave him more energy.

Finally, upon returning home, Dale went to his toy basket, got out his monkey and brought it to me. He wanted me to throw it so he could fetch it and run some more.

I'm pooped. He still has energy. This isn't fair!

Wow...it's been a while

2011-03-29T16:09:00.007-05:00

No, we're not dead. Just boring.

At least, I feel like our lives are boring.

Anyway... what has happened since July 2010?

I'm working on my Master's Degree in Education Administration. I'll be done this coming July and will graduate in December-ish. I'm not sure when the actual ceremony is, but by-golly, you'll know as soon as I do, and we're gonna party!

Mike graduated! He's got his bachelor's degree finally! We'd like your prayers that he gets into optometry school here soon. That's what he really would like to do with his life.

Housewise, we've got several projects that we're trying to figure out how to pay for. We need to re-roof the garage, put up a fence, finish the kitchen (our counter-tops are still the temporary ones we put in when we moved in and we have no backsplash), and fix the foundation.

Instead of paying for the home repairs though, we're saving up to travel this summer. We looked at our life plans for the next five years and realized that if we don't take our big "dream" trip this year, it probably won't happen. So we're planning a two week trip to London with a weekend in Spain. Expect pictures in a few months.

It's been a crazy year for weather. We had some horrible flooding in July that made national news.

A really bad blizzard in February that dumped almost 2 feet of snow on us in one night.

We even had some funky icicles build up off our back porch. There must have been some crazy wind. How else to explain this?

I've even started a "second business." I'm selling vintage jewelry on Etsy. I'd appreciate you all swinging by my store, Pink Astilbe Vintage, and checking it out! We're on Etsy, Facebook and Twitter! I'm really having fun finding gorgeous vintage pieces. Most of my stuff is under $40 so is very affordable, and it's wearable art!

Floating away

2010-07-24T10:52:00.003-05:00

Well...it's wet. See below.

We're ok, we just have a little in the basement. The pump seems to be keeping up so far.

At 6:30 a.m. it looked like this:

and at 8:30 a.m. it looked like this:

We are better off so far than many of our neighbors. Across the street, they have over 4 feet of water in their yards.

Updates

2010-06-10T15:29:00.002-05:00

It's hard sometimes to think about blogging when we're so wired into Facebook and other social media. 140 characters, while limiting, is so fast. Uploading pictures and sharing is easy. Everything is easy. I forget sometimes that I have a blog, and that people want to know more than what flavor ice-cream I had for dessert this past week.

So, I've 're-discovered' my blog, and while I don't foresee actively writing on a daily basis, I do think I will try to post a bit more often.

Mike is still working on his Bachelor's Degree. He should be done in December of this year if all goes according to plan. He has been working very hard on his classes and I am really proud of him. He is still a Stake High Counselor and as such has to give talks more often. Again, I am really proud of him, the quality of his talks gets better each month. He's more relaxed talking in front of a congregation and he is more focused. It helps that he has to cut out a lot of the idioms and slang when he's writing a talk for a Spanish branch or ward that needs to be translated.

Mike has picked up a new hobby. He is now an amateur bee-keeper. Yes, there is now a honey-bee hive in our backyard. It did cause a little trouble with the neighbors, but taking over a small jar of honey helped sweeten them to the idea (pun intended). The first time he was out working in the backyard with his white coat and veil, he looked like one of those Haz-Mat decon units walking around. The dog was in the window growling menacingly at the "thing."

Naturally, this bee-keeping hobby has meant my living room is full of bee-keeping books, I've had to watch bee-keeping videos on YouTube, and many of our discussions have been on bees and their benefits. He even forced a bee to sting him so that he could experience the pain objectively. I declined to participate in that particular experience. One thing I can say about Mike is that he throws himself into his hobbies wholeheartedly.

I'm working on my Master's Degree in Educational Leadership from Olivet Nazarene University. It's a completely online program which has both its drawbacks and its benefits. The major drawback is that its difficult to have the discussions. There's no face-to-face meeting with classmates or the instructor, however there are message board posts and responses that we do. The benefits are that I don't have to travel to go to class, I can do my classwork at whatever time I want and I don't have to worry about group projects at this point.

On the job front, I am still teaching ESL, but now I am also involved in several district committees. I am on the Reading Committee, which has been working on developing a "guaranteed and viable curriculum" for our district. This has included two intensive days this past week mapping curriculum and making sure that our District Reading curriculum meets Federal and State standards, teaches the "Big Five" and is developmentally appropriate for each of the grade levels.

I was also asked to be on a committee to select a University to provide in-house classes towards an ESL endorsement. Which ever university we chose would use one of our schools to provide the Master's level courses to 10-25 of our district's teachers so that they could be trained in working with our English Language Learners. I have really gotten to know several of our district administrators a little better and has given me some really neat networking opportunities.

The school-year has just ended so I am free now to work on some of my hobbies and projects. I've surprised myself with how excited I've gotten for genealogy work. A couple of years ago, I thought that genealogy was boring and I really didn't want to have anything to do with it. Now, though, I'm online almost weekly trying to find more people and documentation to prove that certain individuals are who they claim to be. As of last weekend, I've been able to trace several lines back 7 generations from myself. While that's nothing compared to some of the lines in Mike's family (I know of one that goes back to the 1400 supposedly), it is still exciting to me.

As an extension of that, one of my projects this summer has evolved into scanning in the picture that are stored in my parents' attic. The old family pictures of my great-greats or even of me and my brothers as little kids. There are some gems there!

Mike and I are still serving as Ordinance workers at the Chicago, Illinois Temple every Friday evenings. While it is a major time commitment we try very hard not to miss a week as the blessings we receive are tremendous because of them. If anyone comes to Chicago to attend the Temple, let us know! If we're there we'll look for you!

Dale is still Dale. He loves to chew sticks of every kind. Sticks from a tree, sticks from our garden mulch, rawhide sticks, sticks with graphite, sticks with ink, sticks with highlighter fluid, sticks with white-out, sticks that are covered with emery paper. If it is vaguely stick shaped and he can get his paws on it, he'll chew it. He also still love watching "TV" out the window, and has successfully warned us when there was a thief in our neighbor's garage. (Unfortunately the guy got a way, but we were able to call the police before he tried our garage). Dale's such a good boy!

Our semi-permanent house guest, who has been staying with us since October may be finally moving out. He said he will probably be signing a lease on an apartment today with one of his friends. A little background, Mike's friend Jon (friends since Junior High) has been staying with us while he has been trying to find a job in the Chicago area. It was supposed to be short term. In the long term, 9 months of Jon may seem like a short term. But in the short term, 9 months is a freaking long time to have a house-guest. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. Jon has been incredibly helpful with taking care of Dale, cleaning up around the house, doing dishes, etc. All three of us will be happy when he finally moves out. (He said he might be out by the end of this weekend, but I'm not going to hold my breath.)

For those ladies coming out for girls' weekend in a couple of weeks, he will be LONG GONE by the time you all get here. No worries about that! Oh, yeah...Girls' Weekend. Ailene, Tanya, Johanna and Tori are coming out for a long weekend in a couple of weeks. We've got plans to go to Portillo's, Spend the day in down-town Chicago, attend Cirque Shanghai, go on an Architectural River tour, maybe go up in the Sears Tower (now Willis Tower), See Millenium Park and more. I may even take everyone to Chinatown on Saturday night for dinner at Lao Sze Chuan. Yum!

Anyway, that's about it for the updates here on Drury Lane. Hopefully, I'll post more later.

Love you all,

Joanne

It's Official

2010-01-16T16:07:00.003-06:00

You're still here?

2010-01-13T22:31:00.005-06:00

It's hard to blog when you think your life isn't that interesting. How do you keep sharing information without getting boring or repeating yourself over and over?

That's been my quandry for a long time. I just haven't felt like our lives have been all that interesting. And with Facebook and other programs, it's made blogging seem almost redundant. But it's not, and what has shown me that it's not is a little program hidden away on the bottom of this blog.

Scroll down. I'll wait...

Did you see it? No? That little counter number. Every week, it sends me a list of how many people visited my little blog here. And there's still consistent visits on a weekly basis. That has surprised me. I didn't think we were all that interesting.

All I can say is Thank you.

Thanks for your interest in our lives.

Since September, we've been caught up in our day-to-day lives. Going to work, serving in the church, and puttering around our house.

Mike is still working on his Bachelor's degree. He'll be done in December! (Yay!) And I just got accepted at Olivet Nazarene University. I'll be working on a Master's Degree in Educational Leadership.

He's still a Stake High Counsellor, and I've just been called as Stake Institute Supervisor. We're still both serving in the Chicago Temple. I'm still teaching 4th Sunday Relief Society.

Dale is still Dale.

We re-did our bathroom a little. Not the tub area, we didn't have the money to pull out the tub and replace the walls like it needs...But we did spruce up the rest. We pulled down the gawd-awful purple and pink pastel flocked wallpaper, fixed up the walls, re-wired the electrical, painted, added wainscoting and freshened up the look. I don't have a before picture...I forgot to take one, but here's an after!

Isn't it lovely? I'm quite fond of it myself. And we were able to do it under $2000.

Another thing I did recently was start painting a little. I painted that trio above. The yellow is our dining room wall. I still don't have an idea for my next artwork, but I'll post it when I come up with it.

That's about it for now...I'll definitely try to spend more time blogging...With my Master's classes being online, I'll be at my computer more often.

Friend me on Facebook...or call...or email...or comment below.

Thanks for still reading!

Cute Littel Dog

2009-09-05T09:55:00.003-05:00

A month or two ago, we had some friends of ours over for dinner. Their daughter felt sorry for Dale who had to be in his kennel during dinner. She decided to draw a picture for him. It's double sided, and when they left, we found it hanging on his kennel, so Dale could see the picture from inside.

Warren Dunes State Park and Blueberries

2009-07-19T13:55:00.006-05:00

Friday, Mike and I took my cousin's two daughters camping for their first time. Because it was their first time, we picked a State Park 2 hours from Chicago and planned to go for only one night.

We packed up our tent and equipment. Went to Target to buy the perishibles. Then went to pick up the girls...only an hour late due to traffic. After picking up the girls, we headed out on the road. At this point, in discussing our plans with the girls, I realized that while at Target, I'd forgotten to buy the hotdogs.

Halfway there, Mike pulled off the highway to get gas....in Gary, IN... and... ummmm... not in the best neighborhood in Gary. Then he proceeds to make a comment along the lines of "I think that guy has a gun in his pocket" which promptly scares the girls. Smart Mike....very smart.

We get back on the highway, toodling along and we stop again at a lovely grocery store and buy the hotdogs. Shortly thereafter, we get to the exit on the highway near the State Park. Mapquest told us to turn left. We should have turned right.

5 miles later, we turn around and find the State Park. There's a red flag by the station. Red flag = No Swimming. We're bummed but we know we've got tomorrow. We get to our campsite and set up our tent, get everything moved in.

It starts raining.

Our tent has holes in it.

At least 10.

The girls and I run to the "Camp General Store" and buy Ducktape. Mike duck-tapes the holes. We're dry....well, almost...There's a hole we can't find.

And now it's dinner time. And it's raining. So much for roasting weinies over the campfire. So we eat the sandwiches I'd packed for lunch on Saturday.

After we finish eating dinner... it stops raining.

We start a campfire and make s'mores. Yum!

Mike breaks the glass on the Coleman lantern.

We finish s'mores and get cleaned up, it starts raining again.

We go to bed. The queen sized airmattress that Mike and I brought to sleep on, we discover, has a hole in it. It goes from full to empty in less than half hour. Mike and I sleep fitfully all night. One of the girls wakes up in a puddle and finds her book completely soaked through.

5 a.m. Mike and I get up for good. We clean up outside the campsite and chat. At 7, we wake up the girls, have breakfast, and get the campsite packed up...throwing away the tent and the air-mattress since both were so holey-it was irreperable. We then packed the car and went from the camping area to the dune area of the State Park.

After climbing the tallest dune there (and seeing the Chicago Skyline from across Lake Michigan), we hiked around the State Park. We still couldn't go swimming (yellow flag = swimming would be stupid), so we left the State Park and went to a pick-your-own-blueberry farm. We had a TON of fun, picking blueberries. SO much fun we didn't want to stop... When we went to pay for our blueberries, we discovered that we'd picked over 23 POUNDS of blueberries. That was in under an hour! It also doesn't count all the blueberries we'd eaten while picking!

We headed back home after that, stopping once at Steak-n-shake for lunch.

It wasn't a perfect camping trip, by any stretch of the imagination. The girls, though, LOVED it and want to go camping again. So that...at least...was a success.

Too bad I'd also forgotten to bring my camera. (The picture on top I pulled off the web.)

Anniversary Trip Photos

2009-06-20T21:54:00.002-05:00

After many gentle reminders from friends and family, I'm posting the pictures from our 10 year Anniversary trip to St. Louis here.

Anniversary Trip

2009-06-11T11:21:00.002-05:00

Our trip for our Anniversary was fantastic. One of the main reasons for that, was the way we were treated at the Westin St. Louis. We had used priceline to reserve a room with a king sized bed in it for the two nights we were going to be in St. Louis.

When we checked in, the guy at the front desk asked us if we wanted the key to the mini-bar and Mike said "Only if we get it free 'cause it's our anniversary."

"It's your anniversary? How many years?"

"10 years!"

The man went back to his paperwork, crossing out the room number he had written down on the key card and writing a different room number.

"Is today your anniversary?"

"No, tomorrow is."

"Well, Happy Anniversary and welcome to the Westin! Enjoy St. Louis!"

We went up to the room and were blown away.

On top of this room, on our actual Anniversary, they delivered chocolate covered strawberries, chocolates and champagne to our room!

Family Resemblance?

2009-05-23T16:10:00.003-05:00

Back in February / March-ish, Ben and Lori came to visit us with Ayla and Liam. I'm finally getting those pictures uploaded here.

The first one just cements the fact that the Clyde genes are pretty darn strong....look at the resemblence between Mike and Liam!!!!

Joanne, Mike, Ayla and Liam

Liam, Ben, Ayla and Lori

Anniversary Musings

2009-05-19T22:33:00.003-05:00

Our anniversary is fast approaching on May 29th. For those of you keeping track, that makes 10 years of marriage.

10. Ten. One-Oh.

People seem surprised to find out that we've been married this long. Granted, there aren't a lot of 29 year old women out there who have been married to the same guy for 3 years, much less 10.

Yes, I was 19 when we got married. (Mike was 25.)

I'd heard rumors of people betting we wouldn't make it past 2 years because we'd married so young. Would life have been easier if we'd waited? It depends on your definition of 'easier.' Would we have been in a better financial position? Probably. Would our relationship had lasted? I don't know.

What I do know is that Mike and I have gone through a lot. Moves, school, bad jobs, long-distance commuter marriage, infertility, unemployment. We've had our share of arguments and disagreements. There was even one occasion where I grabbed my keys and my purse, got in the car and drove off. 15 minutes later I was back and we were in each other's arms, both of us apologizing.

We've also had our moments of intense joy. Our wedding, Being Sealed in the Chicago Temple, my graduation from ISU, purchasing our first house.

In between those awful lows and wonderful highs, we have a 'comfortable' life. We tease each other, we beat up on each other, we help each other. We put off doing the laundry, or we throw ourselves wholeheartedly into the latest gardening project. We hold hands, we give hugs, we say 'I love you.' We fart in bed and pull the covers up over the other person's head. (Nothing says 'I love you than a S.B.D first thing in the morning.)

We both have busy lives outside of the home. Mike works full time, is finishing his bachelor's degree at UIC, and is a Stake High Counselor for our Stake. I'm teaching in a Junior High and I teach Relief Society on the third Sunday of every month. We are both serving as Ordinance workers in the Chicago Temple every Friday night. (Due to change because Mike's class schedule is changing for the Summer term).

With all this, we still MAKE the time to spend together. We try and talk about our days every night. We try and have a date night (or date afternoon) once a week. We try and share interests, or at least we pretend to be interested in a topic, if only to support the other.

We have learned to recognize when the other is grumpy and we work hard to not take it personal, and we ask what's wrong, and what we can do to help. We have also learned to communicate. We talk....A LOT! We try and talk about our days, our problems, our trials, our challenges, our little successes and the funny things that happened in our day. (Like Dale 'burying' his bone in the corner of the living room and the sound of his nose squeaking on the hardwood floor much like gymshoes on a basketball court.)

We love pillow talk. Those 10 minutes between prayers and slumber are precious. Laying next to each other, our legs intertwined, heads touching, holding hands, staring up at the ceiling and sharing our thoughts, fears, dreams, and if that IS a spider on the ceiling...kill it! Kill It! KILL IT!!!!!!

Perhaps the most important thing we have, besides our Love, is our Committment. We've committed to be together for Time and All Eternity. That's not a Covenant to be taken lightly. Too often, people think of marriage as a temporary thing. It's not. A true marriage is for the long haul. We KNOW that if we're to make it to Time and All Eternity, we'd better work damn hard to make sure that we get a long.

Anyway, we've got a neat little trip planned out for our Anniversary. It's not quite Spain, like we'd planned years ago to do for number 10 (A year of unemployment for me plus the icky economy kind of knocked that one back a few years), but it'll be nice.

We're going to drive down to St. Louis. Spend a few days there, including going up in the arch, going on a Paddleboat dinner tour (including horse-drawn carriage ride to and from the dock), and visiting the St. Louis Temple. On our way back to Chicago, we're planning on stopping in Bloomington/Normal and visiting some friends. It's not a glamorous 10th anniversary, but it's just us.

I could write more about our marriage, anniversary and plans, but Mike's headed to bed and I want my 10 minutes of pillow talk.

Sometimes you don't make it onto the rock.

2009-04-18T15:53:00.003-05:00

On Thursday, while out and about, my mom and I stopped into the Oak Park Conservatory. In one of the areas, there's a little koi pond that has 4 resident turtles. We were just in time to catch this little drama.

It's funny, but bittersweet. I certainly know what it feels like to strive to achieve something only to fall back into the pond. We didn't have time to stick around, so I don't know if the little guy finally made it up onto that rock with his friends.

Forgetting the Past

2009-04-11T09:13:00.003-05:00

Those who forget the past...

...Are doomed to repeat it.

Dale gets the Paper

2009-04-06T17:03:00.000-05:00

Sadly, it's the only reason we get the paper delivered anymore....

CSI: Drury Lane

2009-01-12T20:46:00.002-06:00

Upon returning home from their workday, the homeowners discovered that their house was the scene of a vicious and horrific crime. There were no witnesses to the act, however the perpetrator was still on the premises when the crime was discovered, and security cameras caught the carnage.

The victim: Bo Vine.

The Crime: Murder by evisceration.

The Perpetrator: Dale "the Dog".

The following image may not be suitable for all viewers. Those with weak consitutions may want to look away.

The magic of the season

2008-12-07T11:20:00.003-06:00

Yesterday was the Ward Christmas party for our church. Last night, we got a phone call from a member of the Bishopric asking if Mike would be willing to be Santa for a few minutes during the party. Of course!

We arrived at the party and after the short video, talks by several Elders in our ward and dinner, Mike was given a script and led to the room where the Santa Suit would be waiting for him. The Activities Committee person led the group in a rousing rendition of Jingle Bells and then....Wonder of Wonders! Santa appeared! All the kiddies started squealing and dancing around.

The Santa Suit fit Mike pretty well...except he kept tugging at the beard on his face. He was asked to read a poem on the symbolism behind the Candy Cane then he announced that there were Candy Canes under everyone's chair, and left! I thought it was kind of disappointing that they didn't plan for Santa to do the whole meet and greet the kiddies thing.

The men's restroom is right out side of the Cultural Hall. He went out the door, and went right into the men's washroom. It's a good thing he did. One little girl in the audience went racing after him. I found her in the foyer of the Church with her face pressed up against the glass doors.

"Who are you looking for?" I asked her.

"Santa! I think he parked his sleigh out there!" she responded, looking at me with eyes full of wonder.

"Really?! Do you see anything???"

She looked a little dispointed and answered, "No!"

"Do you think maybe he parked his sleigh on the roof of the chapel?"

She paused, gave a very solemn nod, looked up at the ceiling and then back at me.

"Do you think we'll see anything?"

She shook her head and went running back to the Cultural Hall.

I was so tickled at having witnessed this precious girl and all her innocent wonder. It really touched my heart and reminded me that we all need to "become as the little child." Her faith that Santa was out there and that even though she couldn't see him, he still was there mirrored my own feelings about the Savior of the World, whose life we celebrate this season. Even though I cannot see him, or feel him in person, I still know that He is there and that He loves me. Adam fell that man might be, Men are that they might have joy. The Savior is that Joy. The Joy of the world.

I wish all of my friends and family a wonderful Christmas season. May the Spirit of the Holidays remain with us throughout the entire year. May we continue to be like little children and wonder at this world that God has made for us!

Joanne

News!

2008-11-30T20:14:00.001-06:00

We received the letter yesterday. Mike has officially been accepted to the University of Illinois at Chicago into the school of business! 3 to 4 semesters and he'll be finished with his Bachelor's degree!

We are so excited!

Yay Mike!

Be IN this world, but not OF this world....

2008-11-01T16:51:00.004-05:00

Mike and I have been recently blessed with new callings in Church.

I am a Relief Society Teacher, which means I get to teach one lesson a month during Relief Society (the women's organization for the Church).

Michael is a Stake High Councilor overseeing the Welfare program AND the Boy Scout Commissioner for our Ward. (Ward = Congregation, Stake = Diocese, Stake High Council is kinda like the Bishop's Council for the Catholic Church)

We recently got a call from the Temple President of the Chicago Temple, asking us to come in for a meeting with him. For my non-LDS friends, Temples are the most sacred places for us. We worship weekly in the Chapels, which are open to everyone to attend. Temples, though, are really sacred. One must be a member in good standing to attend. In the Temple, everyone wears white symbolizing purity. It is the place where we make our most sacred covenants with God.

Mike and I have been asked to be Ordinance Workers in the Temple. Ordinance Workers are those people who officiate, help, and guide others through the Temple Ordinances. We will be Serving in the Temple every Tuesday evening. We can't think of a better way to spend one night a week, then Serving the Lord.

man flu....Hah!

2008-09-27T19:28:00.005-05:00

I have a dear friend of mine who periodically comes down with what he terms 'man flu.' This serious and debilitating illness prevents him and all other men who contract this dread disease from doing anything...anything at all. Can't move, can't care for himself, becoming incredibly self-centered and selfish...until the illness runs its course and he's back to normal.

I didn't used to have pity for him. None...none at all.

Until today.

I got a double whammy.

Some sort of cold/flu/sick thing plus...well....woman issues.

So there I was. Laying on the sofa, unmoving, self centered, pitiful, and miserable. Whiny, moping, and pouting. The only time I got up was to get more tissues, more orange juice, or to fetch another pillow or blanket. Oh, and I made Mike miserable with my whining. "Can you get meeee more orange juuuuice?" "Sooooooouuuup" "I want Soooooouuuuuuup." "I don't feeeel gooooood. I haaaate beeinnnng siiiiick."

"Have you taken anything yet?" He asked me lovingly and with a hint of exasperation.

"No."

"Take some advil."

"Will you get it for me?"

"You get it yourself. You'll feel better if you do."

I think he just said that 'cause he wanted the spot on the couch I'd been occupying.

Those of you guys who suffer from man-flu...I pity you now. I feel your pain. BUT...it still took being SICK and...well....PMS-ing with out the P to knock ME to the purported low that you claim to reach with only your pitiful little flu.

*blows nose and shuffles off to bed*

The Rainiest Day in Chicago History

2008-09-14T22:33:00.002-05:00

See the Chicago Tribune article.

We're lucky. We're really lucky. We only have streams running through our basement, not standing water. We don't really have anything valuable in our basement, and what is worth keeping was already up on boards or shelves. Our sump pump is working...our neighbor's stopped working. Yeah, our yard is flooded and we do have water in our basement.

But compared to a lot of people, we're doing pretty well.

One of our across-the-street neighbor's was fine until the cistern underground next to his house broke and started pushing water into his basement. Another neighbor down the block discovered that his house didn't even come with a sump-pump in it. And yet another neighbor recently completed some very very nice basment renovations and just lost about $10,000 worth of stuff to flood damage.

We'd had plans to save up money for a vacation for our 10th anniversary. It looks like we'll be saving up to have a company come in and do some waterproofing of our basement...and that will cost a bundle...because it's not just simple cracks in the foundation. We've got seepage all around AND a little bubbling 'font' (for lack of a better word) right in the middle of the basement floor.

Flooding

2008-09-13T17:35:00.001-05:00

Well, it's been raining for a day or two...and fairly heavily.

That's our basement with rivers of water running from all 4 walls. Oh, our neighbor has about 3 inches of standing water...

Poor Dale...his potty spot is under about 4 inches of water. He's very confused.

State Parks all across the State due to close Nov 1

2008-09-06T13:12:00.002-05:00

Please see the following article from the State Journal-Register in Springfield, IL.

http://www.sj-r.com/time_out/x144229750/New-hours-for-state-historic-sites

The Chicago Tribune also covered this story but focused on the 179 DCFS employees who will be losing their jobs as well due to these funding cuts.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-state-budget-cuts-29aug29,0,6561920.story

If you have enjoyed the use of State Parks in the past, or even if you understand the value that these natural resources give to our state, please go to the following petition and sign it.

Online petition - Stop Blagojevich From Closing Our State Parks!

Dale is Home!

2008-08-23T22:25:00.002-05:00

We're back!

It's like he never left! He was so excited to see us and we were so excited to see him. I'm still a little distracted by having the puppy dog back that I'm not posting a huge post tonight. I'll fill you all in on it later.

Yay! Dale's Home!

Dale Update MOVIE

2008-08-09T21:36:00.002-05:00

Phil and Jane sent us this quick movie of Dale in training. He's picking up a bird and bringing it back to Phill.

We miss our Puppy-dawg!

We get him in 2 weeks!

A time for Personal Reflection

2008-08-04T14:54:00.003-05:00

Knowing that there are a lot of people who read this blog, I've not put much personal beliefs, feelings or thoughts into this blog. It's just too public. But today, I feel that I need to share some thoughts with the world. This is going to be incredibly personal, and I'm laying bare some fears and trials that I've had...so be gentle and treat this with care, please. :)

Not having a steady job for over a year has been an incredible trial. Not only financial and emotional, but a trial of my identity too. So much of my identity for the past 5 years has been wrapped up in being a "Teacher." When describing myself, that's the first thing I've always said. "I'm a Teacher!" Being without a steady teaching job for this past year really strained how I think of myself.

These past 5 days (has it only been 5 days?) since I signed that contract have felt incredibly different than my life the past year. I feel like I have a purpose again in my life. I feel like I have my 'identity' back.

Over the past year, if I didn't have a reason for getting dressed and leaving the house, I didn't. I didn't want to do anything remotely creative. I hardly cooked, I didn't scrapbook, I even tried to avoid my family and friends. I felt like such a total loser because I no longer knew who I was. I didn't have my "Teacher" role to define myself and I wandered around my little house lost. Drifting from TV to computer to books. I know I worried my husband, a lot! I know I worried my family, though I tried really really hard to hide it from them.

Last night, I wrote in my journal for 3 hours! I didn't get to bed until 2 a.m. this morning. I was reflecting on my new job and the renewed sense of self that I felt from it. Do you guys realize, that in the 5 days since I got my job, I've baked, I've scrapbooked, I've ridden my bike for no reason than for the enjoyment of the wind on my face, I've sat out in my garden, and tried new recipes?

That feeling of finding myself again really made me want to figure out how I even lost myself in the first place.

One of the things we encourage youth and teenagers to do is to not identify themselves with just one role or label, and here I was having done that exact same thing! How many of us have that one label that is our main focus? "I'm a Teacher!" or "I'm a wife!" or "I'm a Mother!" or "I'm a Business person!"

Last night and into this morning, I found myself trying to define who I am. I started out by defining my roles in life. "I'm a Teacher!" "I'm a Wife!" "I'm a daughter!" "I'm a Sister!" "I'm a member of this group or that..." In defining my roles, I was disappointed, because those roles don't encompass who I am. I'm more than all those things combined! There aren't enough roles to encompass me. So I started defining myself by what I know, by my skills and by my 'turn ons' or 'buttons'... those things that make me go "Oh cool! I want to learn that!"

I am Joanne! I am a Daughter of God and I am a Believer in Him and in His Plan. I believe in Jesus Christ, my Savior and Redeemer. I am a strong Woman with thoughts and ideas of my own and I cannot be constrained by standard groupings! Yes, I am a teacher, but I am also a student: Constantly searching for new knowledge of cultures, people, music, skills, things and more. I am a Wife, and in that role I serve as a counsellor, companion, co-worker, confidant and lover. I am an avid Reader, but not only do I read, I create. I know how to Sew, Scrapbook, Embroider, Paint, and do other artsy-fartsy things. I love taking photographs, and like to think I have a good eye for composition. I love to garden and I find that Herbs and Flowers not only beautify the Earth and my Home, but they serve purposes, and knowing the uses for different plants really excites me. I enjoy cooking, and not only can I read a recipe, but I can riff off that recipe. I'm not intimidated by baking and I can make jams and jellies, breads, cakes and all sorts of delicious foods. I love Music and am constantly searching for new styles, genres, artists and stuff I've never heard before. I have a rudimentary knowledge of how to play a piano and I can play the flute fairly well. I enjoy dancing and though I don't know many steps, I enjoy learning. I do know a couple of medieval dances and some ballroom steps, and I'm not afraid of looking silly while trying to learn more. I enjoy the Outdoors. I love camping, cooking over a fire, hiking, and swimming. I love going Pheasant Hunting with Mike and then taking those pheasants and cooking a fantastic meal with them. Even though I like such rustic and rough activities, I also know how to set a formal dining table AND I know what all those bits of silverware are for. I love to sing along with the radio when I'm alone. I even enjoy singing in Church, regardless of the fact that my singing is often off-key and changes keys faster than a janitor in a rush to get through a locked door. I am not afraid of technology and have recently learned to use on-line collaborative tools, improved my knowledge of Excel and Pivot-Tables, learned how to use Photo-shop, and I'm even learning rudimentary 3-d design. I am learning more about Architecture than I even thought I'd wanted to know and can now identify several major architects by looking at the buildings. If I don't know how to do something, I know how to find that information. Heck, Thanks to junior high shop class and learning by osmosis from my father, I can even use basic power tools and build something if I need to, though it won't be fancy.

If I were reading that paragraph about someone else, I'd think they were an amazing person, but to me, I, Me myself, I don't seem amazing to me. I don't feel like someone special. I've had conversations with people recently who have learned some of these things about me and told me that I'm an amazing and cool person. I have a hard time believing them. I guess I assume that everyone has or should have varied interests.

Like I said, this post is incredibly personal, but it's something I think I needed to share with the world. I have one final thought, though, that I want to say.

Heavenly Father has certainly blessed me with a multitude of talents. It is my duty to be a "good and faithful servant" (Matt. 25:14-30) and work to multiply and improve on my talents. I now exhort and challenge you all, reading this very personal blog posting, to develop your own varied lives. If something piques your interest, go for it! Even if it's not something you'd normally do. God has blessed you all with talents and intelligence. Show your gratitude for these blessings by doing everything possible to expand and improve. You never know when one of those skills you learned "because it seemed really cool" will come in handy to bless someone else's life or even the world!

What really started all of this is a quote I found recently by Charles Dickens... "Reflect upon your present blessings - of which every man has many - not on your past misfortune, of which all man has some."

A signed contract!

2008-07-31T22:51:00.003-05:00

After over a year of being a 'teacher with no classroom,' I can finally heave a sigh of relief and declare... "I have a contract! I have a job! I am a Teacher yet again!"

I signed the contract this morning, then spent 3 hours filling out almost as much paperwork as I had when we got our mortgage! Then I trotted off to the police department to get my fingerprints done. (Standard practice for background checks for teachers.)

I will be an ESL teacher for a Middle School just a 10 to 15 minute drive from my home! I'm very excited and I'm looking forward to getting my own classroom.

All those prayers and well wishes finally worked!

Thank you guys and gals for putting up with me the past year as I've been dysfunctionally unemployed and more. :)

Kooza!

2008-07-30T09:23:00.003-05:00

A friend of mine is in Chicago for the summer....and she's working backstage/ushering for Cirque du Soleil and she was incredibly cool and got us an employee discount for tickets! We went last night and I can't tell you HOW EXCITING IT WAS!!!!!! The show was amazing! And even in the cheap seats, we had a great view of the stage! The clowns were in and out of the audience all the time, the acrobatics were amazing, and I swear my heart stopped a couple of times during the trapeeze, the teeterboard and the "Wheel of Death!"

If you get the chance, you all HAVE to go see it! It's amazing!

The website for Kooza is here...

KOOZA!

and I found a Trailer on YouTube.

Dale Updates!

2008-07-28T11:23:00.003-05:00

I realized this morning that I hadn't posted the past few Dale updates we'd gotten from Phil and Jane. So I'm doing some catch-up. :) I LOVE the last few pictures! *makes a mental note to buy a kiddie pool for the backyard.*

July 15, 2008 -

Dale is doing fine….we are now in the field…pointing & shooting birds over him…he is putting everything together that he has learned in his training program.…will send some more pictures this weekend.

Take care,
Phil & Jane

P.S. It has been hot here…mid 90’s with high humidity…I work the dogs in the early morning hours….

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

July 20, 2008 -

Dale enjoys riding in the golf cart and cooling off in the lake after an early morning training session. Temps have been in the mid to upper 90's along with high humidity.
Take care,Phil & Jane

PS. notice the water retrieve of a quail!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

July 27, 2008 -

The dogs are enjoying their "Daily Happy Time" in the exercise yard....they are cooling off in the pool, pointing butterflies, frogs and other critters.

Take care,
Phil & Jane

News from the Homefront

2008-07-21T11:34:00.002-05:00

I figured it was about time for a general update on our lives. :)

We've both gotten some new callings at church in the past couple of weeks, and now that they've been made 'official' we can tell you all about them.

I'm no longer working in the nursery, and am teaching Relief Society once a month. It means the amount of time I spend on church related things has gone down, which is a blessing because...

Mike has been given another calling. He's now on the Stake High Council for the Chicago Illinois Stake. (As of right now, he's still the Assistant Scout Master too.)

He came back from Scout Camp on Saturday afternoon, and then had to be up at 5 a.m. Sunday to make it to his first official meeting, then gave his first talk (in a Spanish Ward no less so he had a translator), had other meetings and made it back to our Ward to be sustained as a High Counsellor, then ordained a High Priest. (Yeah, it's a little out of order, but we were given the ok for that from the Stake.)

As for my job, there's SOME news, but nothing that I'm ready to post online yet. I'll let you know when things have been truly nailed down. :)

I've been watiting for 6 months for this!

2008-07-15T11:21:00.003-05:00

At last! The week that I've been waiting for for over 6 months has finally arrived! I'm going to take full advantage of this opportunity and enjoy it!

Mike is at Scout Camp!

A full blessed week to myself!

The day he left, I cleaned the house and put things where I wanted. I made the house look the way I wanted. The next morning, I walked into the kitchen and THINGS WERE EXACTLY THE WAY I'D LEFT THEM!!! Oh! Blessed Day!

The first night, I went to bed and lay down in my normal place then realized....I CAN SLEEP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE BED AND STRETCH OUT!!! Oh! Blessed Day! I've now slept in the middle of the bed for 3 nights!

The Toilet Seat has remained in the 'down' position, the shower curtain gets closed after a shower and allowed to fully dry out, there aren't any food wrappers left in the living room. Oh! Blessed Day!

He doesn't get back until Saturday! That leaves 4 more nights left to my own devices. How am I going to fill them? I don't know exactly, but I'm going to do what I want! =D

Now, don't get me wrong. I really really love my husband. A lot. There isn't anything I wouldn't do for him. We've been married for over 9 years, and we've known each other for over 10. It's just really nice to get away from each other for a short time.

I had time to meditate and ponder uninterrupted (Yes!) yesterday, and I'd been feeling guilty for enjoying my time with Mike gone, when I came to a realization. This opportunity is good in that it reminds me that I can be independant. I can take care of myself. I can entertain myself and there is joy in being alone every once in a while. I can feed myself and keep the house clean. (Not that I didn't already do that, but you get the idea). I'm pretty certain that in a day or two, I will start to really miss having Mike around. At that time, the second lesson of this week will be refreshed. And that lesson is that the old saying has some truth; absence does make the heart grow fonder. I'm gaining a better appreciation for what Mike does do around the house, from fixing those little things, to making sure I eat dinner at an appropriate time, to getting me away from whatever has absorbed me for hours on end to do something different.

As it is, I've already got plans to go out with girlfriends most days this week. And I'm having a girl's night party on Friday. :) So I'm keeping busy.

A little Family History

2008-07-11T23:11:00.004-05:00

Mike's sister Ailene forwarded this picture of their family circa 1976. It was just after Mike's younger brother Ben was born. Mike is 2 years old in this picture. I thought you all would enjoy seeing it, and I got his permission to post it.

Happy Independence Day!

2008-07-05T22:33:00.002-05:00

Happy 4th of July

from

Pea Ridge Llewellin Kennels

and

"Dale"

And....Happy 4th from us!

Joanne and Mike

Ben's Wedding

2008-07-04T11:17:00.001-05:00

In June, Mike's little brother Ben got married! Congratulations Ben and Lori!

Chicago

2008-07-04T11:06:00.003-05:00

I've been really bad at uploading pictures from my camera lately. I got to go into the city twice in the past month. These pictures are from the two trips combined.

Anyway, Here are some pictures of some of the things I saw.

The Bean and Arie Crown Fountain are in Millenium Park, The domes are in the Chicago Cultural Center, and the rest of the pictures are from the Sky Chaple which is just off of Daley Plaza and is the tallest church in the city. It was really very cool.

Progress! :)

2008-06-25T12:16:00.001-05:00

Enclosing photos of Dale holding a frozen quail. Dale is progressing well with the trained retrieve and is also becoming quite staunch on point.

Take care,Phil & Jane

Staunch on Point

2008-06-15T21:00:00.000-05:00

We are teaching Dale to honor another dog's point. This is done using the automated backing dog. After Dale backs the "dog", a pigeon will be launched. This allows the dog to associate the "pointing dog" with birds. I'm also working on staunchness and getting in front of the dog to flush.
Take care,Phil & Jane

Not Available: Dignity

2008-06-10T11:45:00.002-05:00

Many of you know that I've been looking for a full time permanent job. I've been subbing, and that's been just enough to keep us afloat, but barely. And the school year is over.

I've applied for teaching positions with over 65 districts in the Chicagoland area alone.

Lately, I've been crawling through the mega-jobsearch websites like monster and careerbuilder.

Then today....I came across this job. If you don't believe that it's real, go to this link.

Dale Update

2008-06-06T08:16:00.004-05:00

Since we've been having issues with our internet, I've not been able to post the past couple of updates. So we're going to get three at once. :)

Enjoy!

p.s. He's so scruffy looking! But that's what you get when you're in and out of the field, in and out of a lake, and not getting bathed every other week. I expect we'll see him get scruffier looking for a while still. Not to worry, we'll be getting him groomed before we bring him home. :)

From June 1, 2008

Joanne & Mike,

Dale is "cooling off" in the lake after a morning's workout with birds. Temps have been in low 90's so I have turned on all the fans in the kennel. Training is progressing on schedule.

Dale is resting on the chain gang along with other dogs and he is watching other dogs in the field. We are very pleased with his progress so far....he has a wonderful nose and a strong hunting desire.

Take care,

Phil & Jane

And an update from today. :)

Enclosing photos of Dale pointing....he is becoming more staunch on point and is beginning to let me flush the bird "some of the time"

Take care,

Phil & Jane

Dale Update(s)!

2008-05-27T16:30:00.005-05:00

We have now moved off the table with the trained retrieve. Dale is learning to hold the object while on the ground. This is a difficult transition for some dogs.

Dale has fully adapted to kennel life...eating 4 cups of feed in the evening....enjoys his "happy time" twice daily with 6 other dogs in the exercise yard....and is becoming very intense with his bird work!

I did give him the rope toy....He has not caught up with the other dogs in training because he hasn't been here but one week.....He seems to be very intelligent and is a quick study. I feel he will be a very nice hunting companion.

Take care,

Phil & Jane

And in an email from last week....

I collar conditioned Dale today using the Dogtra 1200 NCP. I have developed a technique in which I use the vibrating pager for reinforcement of the learned command instead of low level stimulation. This method causes Absolutely No Discomfort to the dog. Dale showed an understanding of the situation and was able to turn off “vibration” by obeying the command.

Take care,
Phil & Jane

Basically....many hunters use electric shock collars to control their dogs while out in the field. This trainer doesn't. He uses a "vibrating pager" setting. Many people are familiar with the feeling of a pager or cell phone vibrating. That's the feeling that Dale will get when he's off leash and doesn't follow a command. It's a "Hey, I can still touch you even though you're 50 ft away and think that I can't..." type reminder.

And that's one thing we had really been struggling with Dale with. We'd take him to the dog park and he'd start chasing robins. We'd call him in using his commands, he'd take one look at us, then keep running, ignoring us and able to stay outside of reach...which isn't a good thing in the field.

A real Twister...o.O

2008-05-23T16:26:00.002-05:00

The school I've been subbing at had a walk for Cystic Fibrosis today! A really great event. The 8th graders got to walk in the morning, while the 7th graders got to walk in the afternoon. One of the teachers, Mr. C., was supervising the 7th grade walk, when a student (whom he did not know and had never taught nor interacted with) walked up to him, grabbed him by the nipple, twisted, then said "What's up Mr. C?"

The kid got suspended for 10 days.

What I want to know is "What the heck was this kid thinking?"

Where would this kid have thought that this was appropriate behavior.

I betcha, though, I know what he (the kid) said to the Dean...

"It was just a joke....I thought it was funny."

Initiate Lockdown! Initiate Lockdown!

2008-05-19T19:27:00.002-05:00

I've been subbing in a special education classroom fairly long term, and will be through the end of May. This classroom has one other teacher and an aide. So there are 3 adults.

10:58 a.m. - The students are at their specials classes (art, music, etc.). The other teacher is in a meeting, and the aide is with one of the students, leaving me alone in the classroom reading a book. The PA system pings and I hear "Initiate Lockdown! Initiate Lockdown!" Having been at this school before during a Lockdown drill, I know the...erm...drill. I turn off the lights, close the blinds, and head to the door to lock it, only to find that there's no key.

10:59 a.m. - The classroom phone rings and it's the other teacher who tells me that she's got the key, I should try and find another classroom and duck into it before that teacher locks the door. Once doors are locked, teachers are not to open it for ANYONE...not a student, other teacher, janitor...no one....except for an Administrator or Police Officer, and then only after they give the "Safeword." I dash out into the hallway and find at least 6 of the closest rooms are empty...they're all on a field trip....and the other classrooms are already locked. So I head back to the room I'm assigned to, close the door and go to the corner of the room that's not easily visible from the door or windows. Since the door is unlocked, I duck under the teacher's desk in that corner and settle in.

11:00 a.m - 1:00 p.m. - No Announcements are made. No sounds in the hallway. Outside, the muffled sound of a helicopter circling. In my mind I'm thinking "Oh crud, something's going down...." My legs are cramping up from being curled under the desk. So I stretch out. Every random sound in the hallway (muffled thumpings, the sounds of footsteps) I pull myself back in under the desk and hope that it's an Administrator.

1:00 p.m. - The PA system bings. The Administrator gives the "Safeword" and announces that the Lockdown is still in place, but we can go back to our desks. We need to wait though for an Administrator to come around and let us know what's happened.

1:05 p.m. - The other teacher comes back up to the room and says that we can have lunch really quick.

1:10 p.m. - They start dismissing students to walk quietly down to the lunchroom, get their lunches and walk back up to the classrooms. We're still under lockdown, but we can do limited movements.

2:40 ish p.m. - An announcement is made that police have requested that students not be dismissed to go home until clearance is given, meaning that we may be required to stay in school past regular dismissal time.

3:10 ish p.m. - All after school activities are cancelled and students and staff are told to go straight home.

Turns out there wasn't an issue at the school...Thank God! But there was a hostage situation a few blocks away that caused the police to request that the schools be locked down to prevent children from being hurt.

Such an exciting day at work!

If you'd like to read the article.... http://www.southtownstar.com/news/957739,0519burbankstandoff.article

Pea Ridge Kennels

2008-05-18T14:16:00.006-05:00

We want to say that we have full confidence in Dr. Fortner and his wife in training Dale. We arrived in Tennessee yesterday at around 3 p.m and spent a good 3 hours talking to Dr. Fortner, seeing the facilities and watching Dale's "assessment." We were amazed by the cleanliness, the care and love that Dr. Fortner and his wife give to all the dogs there, and their knowledge and obvious dedication to the well being of the dogs in their care.

We took some pictures of their facility.

When we got home this morning, there were already two emails from them with pictures of Dale.
The first one was sent at 9 p.m:

Joanne & Michael,
We enjoyed meeting y'all today and I am looking forward to beginning Dale's formal training. I was quite impressed by his initial contact with birds...he seems to have a lot of natural ability.

We know it was difficult to leave your dog and that you will miss him....I hope you feel confident that we will take excellent care of him!

Take care,
Phil & Jane

PS. He ate very well tonight!!!

The second email arrived at 10:30 this morning.

Michael & Joanne,
Introduction to birds:

Dale had another productive session with increased intensity on his points. He ate very well last night. I had him in the exercise pen ealy this am with the other dogs and he played with them with no problems.

Hope y'all had a safe trip home.

Take care,
Phil & Jane

Why we're sending Dale to be trained.

2008-05-16T21:04:00.002-05:00

Mike and I have gotten numerous questions and criticisms for our decision to send Dale away to be trained for hunting. We have not made this decision lightly and are, even now, still discussing if this is something we REALLY want to do, and we leave tomorrow morning to drop him off.

When we got Dale, we got him with the ultimate goal in mind of having both a hunting dog and pet. That is the main reason we got the breed we did. Llewellin Setters are known for their strong hunting instinct as well as their friendly family attitudes.

We worked very hard to train Dale to be a good house pet. He knows numerous commands and has very good manners, even if he's still a bit exuberant with his greetings.

But we've reached the limit of our capabilities.

We have neither the space, the birds, nor the skills and knowledge necessary for training a dog to hunt. And though Dale has strong hunting instincts, we do not want to run the risk of taking him out hunting, untrained, and have him get shot or run away.

Just as we spent many months researching what dog breed we wanted to get, and the pros and cons of each; we have spent months looking for a Trainer whom we feel comfortable enough to entrust Dale to for training. Dr. Fortner has impressed us, not only with his philosophy and in conversation with him, but we've checked references. We've talked to previous customers of his to find out what they thought of him.

A couple of days ago, I wrote an email to him because I was still concerned... I wanted to know more about how Dale would be spending his day...How many hours would he be confined to a kennel? How many hours in training? What about adjustment? How many dogs will be there? Who else will be working with him?

Here's the response I got...

Joanne,

I appreciate your apprehension and concern about leaving your dog with a compete stranger…it is a huge “ leap of faith”….I don’t know if I could do it with our own Llewellins….we have seven and they are all our “babies”.

I think once you meet us, see our kennels and the training facilities you will be more comfortable with the situation….you will still miss your dog, of course, but you can be assured he will be well taken care of…we will treat him like he is one of our own.

Each kennel run has an individual fan with a large fan at each end of the building. He will adjust to kennel life within 3-5 days.

I do the training myself….Jane does assist in certain training procedures. We send photos via e-mail every 9 – 10 days with a written report…she also makes you a personal CD of every photo taken.

A typical training day is as follows:

I am at the kennel by 6:00 am….the dogs are put in the exercise yard for 30 – 40 minutes of “happy time” while I clean and bleach the kennels. The dogs are then worked on various commands in sessions of 15 – 20 minutes each…the dogs are placed so they can observe each other….they learn from repetition and association. The same procedure is repeated in the PM. Dale will enjoy every moment of his 90 day program…he will have a minimum of 300 bird contacts while he is here….this will increase his hunting instinct and prey drive….this is what he was bred for, but he will still be an enjoyable pet while at home.

Your dog will bond with me within 7 -10 days but will “re-bond” with you quickly after he returns home…you will need to continue to reinforce the training he has received.

Please visit our web site at www.llewellinkennels.com to read previous owner’s comments.

I will address any other questions you may have when you arrive.

Take care,

Phil & Jane

PS. I keep music on 24 hrs. per day at the kennel….the dogs enjoy the “oldies”…..especially Elvis!!!

I am still worried, and Mike and I both know that we will miss Dale terribly. He's our baby. I will miss coming home from work and seeing him in the front window waiting for me. I will miss the puppy cuddles, the ball playing and his chasing the flash light. I will miss a lot of things.

BUT.

We will have a better dog for this.

And anyway....if we get down there and we don't like the facilities or Dr. Fortner or something feels "wrong," we aren't going to leave Dale.

Dale Goes to School

2008-05-08T16:28:00.002-05:00

Some good news and some bad news.

Good news! Dale's been accepted into a hunting training program that's highly recommended by people we know. Bad news, it's in Tennessee, it's for 3 months, and we have to drop him off by next week Sunday.

How will I survive without my daily puppy cuddles?

Here's this trainer's webpage if you'd like to check it out. We were very very impressed with his training philosophy and the quality of his references.

http://www.llewellinkennels.com/

Dale's a bit stressed

2008-05-06T17:43:00.001-05:00

I think Dale's a bit stressed out lately...he can't seem to settle down at all!

See what I mean?!

Dale's little camel

2008-04-21T10:49:00.009-05:00

For his first birthday, a couple of weeks ago on April 7th, Dale got a new toy. It's a Camel made up of knotted rope. He absolutely loves it. He sleeps with it, he carries it around with him. It's his "buddy"

On the first day, I got this lovely picture of him holding his camel. You can see that the 'nose' of the camel is slightly damp from him carrying it around.

He loves to play with it, holding it above his nose while laying on his back...

Sleeping with the camel...

Within days... the Camel was beginning to show signs of wear...

That is the head and neck of the camel unknotted, unraveled and tossed up around Dale's nose. The tail of the camel is long gone...and now, the poor thing is unrecognizeable as a camel. But it's still his favorite toy!

Birdy Birdy Birdy Birdy

2008-04-16T09:54:00.002-05:00

Aside from being the call of a Cardinal; "birdy-birdy-birdy-birdy-bird" was also the only thing running through Dale's mind this morning at the dog park. Well, that and "Rrrrrrrrruuuuuuunnnn-nn-nn-nn-nn-nn." That dog went crazy over the birds! Even though he knew I had liver treats in my pocket, and he heard my calling him...he wasn't having anything to do with anything except chasing those birds. It is a known issue with bird dogs. Hunters call it "going birdy." The dog forgets everything it's ever learned except for "ohmygosh a bird! gotta get it. Got To Get IT!!!!!"

Eventually though, I walked in a different direction and he found himself somewhat alone with me on the horizon, so he ran back to me. Where he discovered the other dogs. There was much chasing and exchanging of canine gossip. After finding that Dale had become like fresh meat at the prison to the other, more dominant dogs, we left the group play area and walked on.

Over the hill and around the bend was the climax of Dale's morning, and the bane of mine.

There, by the culvert, nestled in a tiny valley between two hills, was Heaven. Thick, lucious, goopy, slimy, black mud. Well churned by previous canine explorers, it was the "perfect" consistency. Not too dry and claylike, but not an extra skimming of water in sight. Before the sight actually registered in my mind as to what it was, Dale was like a celebrity in a spa...covered with mud from his nose to his tail. The only spot on him that wasn't muddy was right behind the ears. He was dancing, and digging and snuffling around. Rolling and barking and having the time of his life. Heaven! In a short 30 seconds, I went from having an adorable white dog with black spots to having a black dog with white spots.

I actually encouraged him to jump into the creek after that, hoping that the creek would at least wash SOME of the mud off of him.

No such luck.

Upon arriving home he got the hose turned on him...and then dumped into the bath.

He's sleeping now, so angelic, so cute, so innocent. His favorite rope chewy in his mouth like a baby's pacifier, his little paws twitching and the faintest sounds of whimpers. He's chasing something in his dreams...

"Oooooooh Boy! Birdy-birdy-birdy-birdy-birdy-birdy-bird"

Mike the Builder

2008-04-14T11:40:00.005-05:00

Mike's birthday was a couple of weeks ago. For his birthday he bought a new printer since ours died recently. This printer, is a wi-fi...it prints double sided, it scans, it faxes, it prints photos, it's a super spiffy thingy! The most advanced piece of equipment in our house!

We had no place to put it....

So...

Mike disappeared down into the basement. I hear the sounds of a table saw and power tools. The dog is hiding behind the couch...

then silence

Mike comes bounding up the stairs with a table. And not just any table. A 2x4 and 3/4plywood held together with 3 inch decking screws table. A table made with the wood that used to be inside the wall that we demolished in the kitchen two years ago... An unsanded, un-finished, table. A table that, to quote Mike, "I could jump up and down on and it won't break!"

He sets it down in the computer room. It wobbles, just a little. He sets this gleaming new highly technologically advanced printer on top of this un-finished, un-sanded 2x4 and plywood 3 inch deckscrew table.

I sigh.

I dig through the linen closet and find a lovely sheet.

I take the lovely piece of technology off the table, and cover the table with a sheet, then put the printer back.

Mike stands back and considers....."It needs a shelf."

He disappears back into the basement.

I hear power tools....the dog hides yet again.

He comes back up with another piece of plywood, cut strategically. He takes the printer and sheet off his table, and turns it upside down, and fastens the shelf on.

He rights the table, and it wobbles more.

"That's not right."

"oh, it's on the power cord."

After removing the power cord from underneath the table leg, we replace the sheet and the printer.

Mike is so proud of himself!

"What do you think, dear?" he asks me.

"I think it's a good serviceable temporary solution."

"Oh it's not temporary, it's permanent...that thing's built to last."

"Honey, It's a good TEMPORARY table."

"It's not temporary. It'll last forever."

"Mike! It's a good TEMPORARY TABLE!"

The lightbulb goes on.

"Oh! Yeah! When we have some more money, we'll buy a nicer looking table!"

Testing Season!

2008-04-01T15:45:00.002-05:00

Aahh....testing season. The smell of pencils in the air. The time of year when schools effectively shut down learning for 2 weeks straight so students can fill in little bubbles testing how well they can take tests.

And, really, no pressure to these kids. The standardized tests don't count for their grades, just their school's funding, their teacher's jobs, etc.

Now granted, there does need to be some method for assessing the progress that individual students are making, the efficacy of teacher methods, the strength of school programs, etc. But testing and testing students using A, B, C, D bubbles over and over again, doesn't prove anything other than some students are good at taking standardized tests, and others aren't.

Check out www.notonthetest.com to see a great music video by Tom Chapin that satirizes the standardized testing.

Lyrics
Not On The Test by John Forster & Tom Chapin © 2006
Limousine Music Co. & The Last Music Co. (ASCAP)

Go on to sleep now, third grader of mine.
The test is tomorrow but you'll do just fine.
It's reading and math, forget all the rest.
You don't need to know what is not on the test.

Each box that you mark on each test that you take,
Remember your teachers, their jobs are at stake.
Your score is their score, but don't get all stressed.
They'd never teach anything not on the test.

Your School Board is faced with no child left behind
With rules but no funding, they’re caught in a bind.
So music and art and the things you love best
Are not in your school ‘cause they’re not on the test.

Sleep, sleep, and as you progress
You’ll learn there’s a lot that is not on the test.
Debate is a skill that is useful to know,
Unless you’re in Congress or talk radio,
Where shouting and spouting and spewing are blessed
'Cause rational discourse was not on the test.

Thinking's important. It's good to know how.
And someday you'll learn to but someday's not now.
Go on to sleep, now. You need your rest.
Don't think about thinking. It's not on the test.

Roadtrip pictures

2008-03-28T13:20:00.002-05:00

Well, I tried uploading the pictures to photobucket, and had problems with it. I tried uploading the pictures to Blogger and had problems. So I've put them into a flickr account that I remembered I had. If you'd like to see them, click on this link!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8610724@N05/

They're not in any order either, sorry. I haven't figured out how to fix it.

Our Trip (What an oh so original title....)

2008-03-15T10:40:00.005-05:00

As mentioned earlier in the blog, the purpose for going out to California was to pick up a new car. We've purchased a 2007 Toyota Matrix. When we bought it, it had under 20,000 miles. (NICE!) As a family member recently complained while looking at the pictures on my digital camera, "you didn't take a picture of the car."

So here's a picture from some other car dealers website of a car that looks exactly like ours...it's even the same color!

While in California, we stayed with Mike's brother Harold's family. It was a lot of fun. Mike got to go with Harold to Elly and Matthew's Tae Kwon Do class and watch them. Here's an exchange as told to me by Mike between Elly and Mathew and Master Don, their teacher.

MasterDon: "Who's that guy over there with your dad?"

Elly and Matthew, looking up with somewhat blank stares... "ummmmm."

MasterDon: "What's his name?"

Elly and Matthew: "ummmm"

MasterDon to Mike: "What's your name?"

Mike: "My name is Mike."

MasterDon to Elly and Matthew: "What's his name?"

Matthew: "Mike"

MasterDon: "That's not what YOU call him. What's his name?"

Elly: "Uncle Mike!"

MasterDon: "Where's he from?"

Matthew and Elly: "Umm...."

MasterDon to Mike: "Where are you from?"

Mike: "Chicago."

MasterDon to Matthew: "Where is Uncle Mike from?"

Matthew: "Ummmm"

Elly: "Chicago!"

MasterDon: "Thank you Elly, but I was asking Matthew."

They are great kids! I love 'em!

The next day, we drove to LasVegas, NV to visit with Mike's sister Tanya and her family. We got to go to Gavin's baseball game and Mike and Gavin played Wii. Channing is a lovebug always giving hugs.

Knowing that we couldn't bring Dale with us, I brought pictures on my camera instead. Channing saw the four pictures and stated, "You have four pictures of Dale, you need four pictures of me." She paused, then went on "And one picture of Gavin."

Here's a great picture of Tanya, Roy, Gavin and Channing.

After leaving Las Vegas, we drove up I15 to Salt Lake City, where we stayed with Mike's Dad and had dinner with Johanna and Sheldon. It was lovely to get to see them again. I didn't get any pictures though. :( I only wish we'd had more time and could have visited with Johanna's kids.

From Utah, we drove for 12 hours to the middle of Nebraska and stayed in Kearny. Utah and Wyoming have some spectacular scenery. Nebraska....is flat...and brown....and empty. We honestly recommend to all our friends, that if you ever have to drive straight through Nebraska on I-80, do it at night, 'cause you won't miss anything.

The next day we stopped for a short visit with Ben, Lori and Ayla. Even that visit was too short. At that point, we were only 3 hours from home, and VERY ready to get there.

This trip did show us one thing...How very blessed we are to have such a loving family. And I LOVE all my nieces and nephews. They're each very unique and wonderful individuals.

And, Ailene....if Mike could have gotten some extra days off of work, we promise, we would have come to Albuquerque to visit with you and Clarke.

I've got some pretty good pictures of the scenery from the Highway from California through to Iowa. I'll upload them to photobucket and put them on the blog soon. :)

Dear Husband of mine.... part 2

2008-03-11T13:30:00.002-05:00

Here's the rest of my "to do" list for today.

1. Finish laundry.
2. Clean kitchen.
3. Upload pictures from our trip to the computer.
4. Upload pictures from our trip from the computer to the blog.
5. Update Resume.
6. Take the dog for a walk.
7. Cook dinner for you and the missionaries.
8. Fill out 5 more online job applications.

And you think I'm sitting at home doing nothing... hah!

Dear Husband of mine...

2008-03-11T13:21:00.003-05:00

Just so you don't think I'm goofing off doing nothing at home today.... Here is my "done" list:

1. Sorted and Started Laundry
2. Got Dressed under puppy supervision.
3. Got my credentials together to get them scanned at Kinko's
4. Went to Kinko's.
5. In Kinko's parking lot, I remembered I needed to go the the bank first.
6. Went to the ATM to withdraw $20.
7. Discovered that my ATM card didn't work.
8. Returned home.
9. Searched your desk for my new ATM card.
10. Found my new mastercard
11. Activated it.
12. Found my new ATM card.
13. Activated it.
14. Shredded the old ones.
15. Went to Kinko's forgetting I needed to stop at the bank...again.
16. Went to the bank.
17. Withdrew $20.
18. Went to Kinko's
19. Their computer is down for the moment. My scans will be done by tomorrow.
20. Went to the Library.
21. Returned books.
22. Grabbed some CD's, tripped down the stairs dropping the CD's and almost taking out a granny on my way down.
23. Checked out CD's
24. Returned home.
25. Stepped in Pepper (the neighbor's dog) poop in our backyard.
26. cleaned my shoes.
27. Moved laundry along
28. Tidied up living room and dining room
29. Chased Dale out of bathtub.
30. Chased Dale out of bedroom.
31. Walked back into the Living Room and found 2 socks and 2 stockings scattered around living room and 1 knee high in Dale's mouth.
32. Returned socks, stockings and knee-highs to dirty laundry basket.
33. Had breakfast at 11:00 a.m. of goldfish crackers and mandarin oranges with a Diet Pepsi chaser.
34. Called Today's office staffing. Am back on "Active" list.
35. Broke the dog's heart by taking another sock away from him.
36. Wrote this email to you.

California!

2008-03-05T19:33:00.002-06:00

We're in California!

Our flight left Chicago at 8 a.m this morning which meant we had to be at O'Hare by 6 a.m. Thank you to my dad who got up at o-dark thirty to get us to the airport.

We had an uneventful flight to Long Beach, CA where I had a bit of culture shock. Most of the airport was OUTSIDE! The ramp from the plane was uncovered!!!! Mike had to remind me that California does not have weather. It's almost always sunny and warm.

Within the first couple of hours of being here, I got to sit in the sun (without a heavy winter coat!), See the Pacific ocean for the first time (it was a lovely shade of blue, pictures to come when we get back), and have an orange right off the tree.

Oh...and our car! We have a car!!! YAY!

It's a 2007 Toyota Matrix XR. It's bright red and it's really pretty! Mike giggled like a school girl...in front of the garage people who were changing out the license plates for us. How embarrassing!

We're staying with Mike's older brother Harold's family tonight. Tomorrow morning, we drive to Las Vegas to visit with Mike's sister Tanya and her family.

Yay! We have a car! And it's Warm! And I don't have to wear a jacket!

A New Car

2008-03-05T19:30:00.002-06:00

Mike's truck's corpse has been sitting in our garage for the past 5 or 6 months since it died rather violently. We've finally got a new(ish) car to replace it.

The only thing is...we have to go to California to pick it up.

now if I could only find....

2008-02-22T17:02:00.002-06:00

Between the last post and this one, my computer died and was ressurected. We've found almost all my files, we've updated some parts. The computer was moved from the computer room to the dining room and back again.

My puter feels much better.

....now if I could only find the little cord for uploading pictures....I'd put a bunch of pictures up.

but for now you'll just have to use your imagination.

Ok, ready?

Picture number 1. Dale is laying on the living room rug looking balefully up from underneath the indignity of a little graduation hat that he had to wear for the final test of obedience class.

Picture number 2. A bunch of Mike's scouts hitched to a sled for the Klondike derby. There's lots of snow and lots of boys and I think that smudge in the corner is his actual troop way in back.

Picture number 3. Pictures of the drive to work on the day when we had a snow day and I didn't get the call. Lots and lots of snow and it looks scary to drive in.

Picture number 4. Dale with lots of static so all the fur on his ears is sticking up. It's quite comical. :)

Did you like those pictures? Were they as good in your imagination as they are on my digital camera? :)

Ah well. I'll keep digging around to find that plug.

*hugs*

I love Snow Days, but....

2008-02-01T11:18:00.000-06:00

I'd prefer to know that we have a snow day BEFORE I leave for work.

I'm currently working at a school that is some distance away. My one way commute is regularly between 45 minutes and 1 hour. With the storm last night and this morning, I thought for sure we'd have a snow day.

No phone call came.

So I checked online before I left.

No Snow Day was announced on the school or district webpage.

I watched the news scrolling closings and the only schools in the town where I'm working that were closed at the time were Parochial schools.

So I left a little early.

2 hours later, I arrive at work....ON TIME!!! I walk in the office and the secretary looks at me and says..."You didn't get a phone call did you? School's cancelled."

No....no phone call.

By this time, 5 other teachers have trickled in, all of us not having received a phone call.

The Principal comes out and says "I feel really bad that you all made it out here on time and you came and we dropped the ball in not calling you. So I'm going to buy breakfast, if you'd like to stay for an hour or so and wait for the roads to get better."

So I stayed, got a whole stack of copying done.

The return trip only took 1 and a half hours.

The sad thing is...

I won't get paid for today.

Ah well.

Half a snow day is better than none.

My Hair!

2008-01-10T19:03:00.000-06:00

BEFORE!!!

16 INCHES CUT OFF!

AFTER!!!

A Donation was made... =)

Dale's New Ball

2008-01-02T22:06:00.001-06:00

I've got a new digital camera that takes movies!

2008-01-02T17:25:00.000-06:00

...and who do I have around that's a good movie subject?

Dale!

Trap Hunting Trip

2007-12-31T19:19:00.000-06:00

We were going to go actual pheasant hunting, but there was a dust-up over licenses...long story...

So we went trap shooting instead. Gordon and Ryan (my brothers) came with and they all had a blast shooting at little clay "pigeons."

Enjoy the slideshow! (Pictures courtesy of Gordon).

A Merry Christmas to all our friends and family!

2007-12-24T08:54:00.000-06:00

Dearest Friends and Family,

On this day of joy and gladness, we would like to wish all of our friends and families a Happy Holiday and a Blessed New Year.

Love,

Mike, Joanne and Dale.

A Great Horned Owl! In our Backyard!

2007-12-12T18:50:00.001-06:00

No....no pictures...my camera broke.

But we heard it!

We did a little research and found a website with owl calls. You can listen to the sound here... http://www.owlpages.com/sounds/Bubo-virginianus-6.mp3 It sounds exactly like what we heard for a good 20 minutes in our backyard! (Scroll down to the "Great Horned Owl" section about halfway down the page)

You can see more information about the Great Horned Owl here.

It's just soooo cool!

Tomorrow....it begins

2007-12-11T22:03:00.000-06:00

Well, it's official, I got a phone call tonight from the classroom teacher. She's going in tomorrow to be induced. So I will be teaching for the next few months.

I'm excited to be teaching again, and a little nervous.

We still only have one car. It'll mean long days at work for Mike, and long drives for me.

I have to be at the school at 8:30 a.m. Mike usually doesn't have to be at work until 9. BUT, In order for me to make it to work on time I'll have to drop Mike off at work before 7:30. That means that we'll leave the house at 7 a.m. School will get out for me at 3:30 p.m. I'll drive straight to Mike's office and be there between 4:30 and 5. Then we'll get home at between 5:30 and 6 p.m.

It doesn't seem like a long day for Mike (9 hours), nor is a 1 hour one way commute REALLY long, but we'd rather not have to do it that way forever.

If any of you have a working functional reliable car that you'd like to donate to the cause, we'd be happy to take it!

Playing with personality quizzes

2007-12-06T11:32:00.000-06:00

Ok, so my friends have all sorts of funky quizzes and stuff on their blogs and websites, so I'm going to play with some too.... Here are my results...

The "Holiday Christmas Character Personality Test"

The "Holiday Mood Test"

"The Ice-Cream Flavor Personality Test"

and finally....

The "Would you survive a Zombie Invasion Test"

Some positive news

2007-12-05T17:01:00.000-06:00

I have been hired to be a maternity leave replacement at a school near me. Technically, I was hired at the beginning of November, and have just been waiting for the teacher to "pop."

After almost a month of not hearing anything, I sent an email to her this morning. She said that they've scheduled for her to have the baby by next week Wednesday!

The only sad thing is that she's essentially been in labor for the past three weeks! And still working! Poor girl!

But anyway, by next week, I'll be working! Yay!

The first real snow of winter

2007-12-04T20:39:00.000-06:00

Dale didn't know quite what to do with himself.

First, he stepped a little gingerly..."what is this stuff?"

After doing his business, he tried sniffing the snow. But that didn't work, because sniffing the snow only succeeded in snorting it up his nose...and the only way to get snow out of one's nose is to sneeze it out.

So then he just ran around in it. "Weeeee! This is kinda fun."

Then he got hit in the face with a loosely packed snowball! "Whoa! What was that! Do it again!"

So he chased snowballs, trying to pick them up. And when that didn't work, he dug at them.

Finally, he noticed something. "The sky is falling! The sky is falling!"

He lept across the yard jumping as high as he could snapping at the snowflakes trying to catch as many as he possibly could.

I tried not to let go of the leash while I laughed.

I'm only sorry I don't have pictures.

He really is a smart dog if you think about it.

2007-11-30T12:57:00.000-06:00

At 5:30 this morning, Waaay before the normal wake up time for Dale, he came galloping into the bedroom. He stuck his nose on Mike's back and was told "go lay down." He came scrambling around the bed and bopped me a couple of times with his paw, but I didn't move. So he jumped on the bed and pounced on Mike...who still didn't move.

That was our mistake.

He hopped off the bed and left the room...we thought to go lay down somewhere.

All of a sudden we hear him peeing.

Poor guy couldn't wait and we were still asleep.

But we saw evidence of his intelligence and doggy logic.

He tried to pee as close to the toilet as he could...since he'd seen Mike use it, and knew that's where we went...so he must have figured it was the place where he'd less likely get in trouble for peeing in the house. Here's the other thing that showed us this wasn't random...he NEVER voluntarily goes into the bathroom since that's where the evil baths happen.

He didn't get in trouble at all. We cleaned up the mess and told ourselves that we have GOT to pay more attention to the dog when he wakes us up in the middle of the night.

But, we do have a smart dog.

My First Thanksgiving...

2007-11-24T14:47:00.000-06:00

Well, my first thanksgiving cooked in my house...and I didn't take pictures...

I used the day before Thanksgiving to pre-cook a bunch of stuff. I baked bread, chocolate chip cookies, and an apple-pie. I also made the apple sauce and cranberry sauce.

The day of Thanksgiving was a bit panicked, but it worked out. We started out finishing the cleaning and were just about to get the turkey going when the dog puked. So we cleaned the floor and put him into his kennel. Then he puked again. So we took him out of the kennel to clean it, and he puked on the carpet. So we put him back into the kennel, and he puked there. All in all, it was about 1 hour worth of random puking.

Then Mike went into the computer room to print out a recipe and his computer died...violently. So in between cleaning up dog puke, and trying to figure out what happened to his computer, PLUS helping me finish cleaning.... tempers became a little short.

On top of that, we had an 18.5 pound turkey, that I could barely move around, with the pan and everything it was Really awkward! Thankfully, the turkey did NOT fall on the floor! And we got it in the oven by 11:30 a.m.

At that point, we were both feeling a bit flustered...so we grabbed a soda, sat down on the couch, put our feet up, and looked at each other.
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hrrk
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hrrrrrrk
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hrrrrrackkkkkk

After cleaning up from the dog yet again, we sat back down on the couch with the poor pup curled up on the floor. He dozed off, thankfully. An hour later, he woke up and didn't have any more stomach problems.
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Back to the dinner preparations.

The rest of our dinner preparations went very smoothly.

Our guests arrived around 4 p.m.

We ate at 5.

Got all cleaned up by 6:30.

We all drove over to my parent's house for dessert by 7, where my mom said that she was surprised that she didn't get a phone call from me in panic.

I was ooooooh so close...but then it all turned out terrifically!

I think we'll do it again next year.

**WITHOUT THE DOG PUKE***

Llewellin Setter Field Trials

2007-11-16T12:21:00.000-06:00

I know it's been almost a month since the field trials happened (October 20th - 21st). But I just got my film (Yes, film) back from the devloper and have the pictures downloaded (uploaded?) to my computer.

Anyway, there are a couple of cute shots of Dale, but some other great pictures of some of the other dogs and hunters that were at the trials. We did not compete, we just went to get an idea of how they worked.

If you want more information about the field trials and/or Llewellin Setters, please visit the Llewellin Setter Club website.

To the Man who left our house this morning with dog fur all over his butt....

2007-11-05T09:29:00.001-06:00

...who declared "The Dog does not need to be brushed!"

I enter in these next pictures as evidence.

Exhibit A: The Dog.

Exhibit B: The Couch cushion that you were sitting on this morning.

Exhibit C: After Brushing the dog.

Granted, our dog does not shed as much as other dogs in our acquaintance, however.... there is enough fur there to confuse a hollywood starlet into thinking that pile of fur is a real dog.

Look Ma! Lookit what I did!

2007-10-29T15:38:00.000-05:00

In a way, I'm glad we've been training Dale to come and bark when he needs to go out. He's made the transfer to when he wants something, he comes and barks or whines or bumps my hip with his nose. Something to get my attention.

Today, he came and bumped my hip while I was working on the computer.

"Do you need to go out?"

>blank stare<

"In the back?"

>another blank stare<

"Ok....I give up...What do you want?"

"wuff" Dale prances over to the door and turns around looking at me expectantly.

I stand up and Dale trots out into the hallway. Upon seeing that I'm following him, Dale takes off in his happy excited bounce and wiggles into the livingroom.

"Look Ma! Look at what I did! Isn't it Great?"

That is, to the untrained eye, a foam ball that has been gutted and shredded and tossed around the living room....in other words, a mess.

But to the trained Canine eye, it is...

a work of ART!

The artist was surprised by his critic's reaction, and is currently sulking in his kennel.

Good Morning!

2007-10-26T11:51:00.000-05:00

Close your eyes and imagine...

It's 5:30 in the morning and you're still snuggled into the blankets. The window is open and you feel a cold breeze come in because the weather is changing to fall. Your loved one is snuggled up behind you and all is right with the world.

Suddenly a sound pierces through the fog of your dreams...

Hrrk....hrrrk......hrrk...hrrk....hrrk....huuuurrrrkk...hurrrrrrkkk.....

You bolt out of bed and run towards the sound....

NOOOOOOooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!

You skid to stop just as the noise comes to it's final end....

Huuuuurrrrrrrrrrrrrkkkkk...

The dog has just vomited....

You look down to see...
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an eyeball...

Yes...the dog had ripped the eyeball off of his favorite squeeky toy and swallowed it...

and now, it is staring back up at you from a puddle of...

ick.

The dog looks up at you with is big brown puppy eyes and cavorts around you... "You're up!!! Is it time for our walk!?! Huh? Huh? Can we go to the park!?!"

You shiver as you stumble to the kitchen to find the paper towels and the clean-up spray...

Good Morning.

I Has a Sweet Potato

2007-10-08T20:38:00.000-05:00

A friend of mine sent me this link a while back, and now that I have a dog, I can more readily appreciate the frustration this person felt. There is some strong language involved in this blog posting, but by the end I was laughing so hard there were tears pouring down my face.

http://littera-abactor.livejournal.com/7748.html

Puppy Update

2007-09-30T12:38:00.000-05:00

New pictures of the puppy...

I did it!

2007-09-30T12:29:00.000-05:00

Mike and I joke about it, but my flower arranging skills are dismal. For 8 years of marriage, when he's bought me flowers and I've arranged them, it's ended up a disaster. I've watched people arrange flowers and one of the things you do, is cut some flower stems shorter and some longer so that the flowers vary by height in your vase.

So I do.

Then you carefully arrange the flowers in the vase so some stems support others.

So I do.

Add greens and such and *voila!* a lovely arrangment....

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in theory...

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Mine end up completely flat across the top....you know...like a marine corp military haircut... my roses, greens, and other various flowers end up level... looking down from the top...they look lovely...looking at them from the side, you see a row of flowers.

Mike arranges flowers better than I can.

at least, until recently.

It took me 2 hours, lots of cutting, grumbling and praying, but...

I DID IT!!!!!

Family on MSN Week in Pictures!

2007-09-22T14:15:00.000-05:00

Mike's sister and her husband are BIG Hot Air Balloon people. And MSN Week in pictures has their balloon pictured!

Click this link to see it! It's a fantastic photo!

http://www.msnbc.com/modules/interactive.aspx?type=ss&launch=20892091,3842331&pg=9

Dale and Kevin

2007-09-19T10:12:00.000-05:00

Dale and Kevin
Labor Day, 2007
LaGrange, IL

Family Update

2007-09-19T10:02:00.000-05:00

Well..... Nothing positive news-wise yet.

Joanne still hasn't been hired for a job yet...though she's been spending about 4 hours a day in the job search. She's had a couple of interviews that have gone so far as to say "we'd like to hire you, but we're going to check your references," and then she's not heard from them again.

And the truck died....rather spectacularly... We tried to start it one day and heard "Clunk" so mike changed the battery, "clunk," He changed the starter engine "clunk.....clunk....vrooom.... BLAMMO!" all of a sudden the erm...bodily fluids of the car poured out onto the garage floor....

So we have a rather expensive fix to make...

But we'll manage. :)

Uh Oh...

2007-09-19T09:59:00.001-05:00

Dale discovered the window....

He's not supposed to be on the furniture....

I WISH I WISH

2007-08-23T13:09:00.000-05:00

Dale was a very finicky eater. Because of this, we ended up with almost an entire 50 pound bag of puppy chow. So I dropped it off at the humane society, and fell in love...

There is an absolutely GORGEOUS Llewellin Setter lady there. She's 6 years old (spayed) and was just recently dropped off. She is well trained, and the previous owner simply didn't have the time to spend with her. If it wasn't for the fact that I still don't have a job, and we already have a puppy, I would have adopted her on the spot.

The website for the Hinsdale Humane Society has information about her, but no picture. But I REALLY REALLY encourage any of our friends who might have the space, to go take a look at her. She is beautiful. White with black(blue) ticking, but if you look closely, she's got cinnamon freckles on her feet.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE...if you are thinking about a dog like our Dale, go to the Humane Society and look at this lovely lady!

Puppy Class Graduation

2007-08-22T10:53:00.000-05:00

I never thought that I'd be one of "those pet moms" who gets all excited about puppy landmarks...

The puppy obedience class we had Dale in had a puppy "graduation" recently...

there was a class picture taken...but I'm not putting that one up because I'm in the middle of the picture and the puppy parents around me are all kids....I look freaking huge because of it...so I'm putting up a picture of Dale playing with his puppy friends.

Dale Meets Zip

2007-08-16T14:29:00.003-05:00

A couple of weekends ago, we took a trip back down to Bloomington to visit with some friends. Now it just so happens that our friends have dogs too. And one of them, Zip, is Dale's brother. They seemed to recognize each other instantly! Unless we put them in their crates, they never stopped playing....chasing each other around the house / yard/ room, with lots of wrestling and much wagging of tales.

Anyway, here are some pictures...you can see how big Dale is getting. His brother is quite the handsome puppy too!

Dale Meets Zip

2007-08-16T14:29:00.001-05:00

Family Update

2007-08-04T23:18:00.000-05:00

It has been quite a while since anything was posted about us as a family. The biggest news which you can obviously see is that we have a puppy. Dale has been a fantastic addition to our family and we have so much fun. It's hard to imagine not having him around.

Mike is still working at SF in claims. He's been working to finish his degree somewhere and in something, just so it gets done. And, aside from some small projects, we haven't done much around the house. (The kitchen still needs those last finishing touches like baseboards...)

Mike is also an Assistant Scout Master for our church's troop, and spent 9 days camping with the scouts in July. Joanne stayed home with the puppy...Needless to say, she was looking forward to having him back to take the puppy on it's 4:30 a.m. potty runs. That is the longest consecutive days that we've ever been apart in our marriage...it was good in that we re-learned how much we appreciate each other, it was bad in that we were apart.

One thing that we hadn't been talking about much is that Joanne is no longer working at the school she had been at. If you want more information about the why's and wherefor's, call us. She's been looking for a new teaching position since March, and as of this writing, hasn't found anything yet, and not for lack of trying. We would appreciate your good thoughts and prayers that she find a new teaching position soon. Especially since school starts back in a couple of weeks.

Aside from job searching, Joanne's been doing some garden work, organizational work around the house, and training the puppy. She's even discovered an internet game that has kept her occupied while Mike is playing his game. Not as much has been done as she would have liked...it's hard to focus on things when you're trying to find a job. Most of her classroom is still in her car, and school's been out since June! Oh, and she has a new calling at church....Nursery Leader. They released her from Achievement Day Girls after 3 months of Achievement nights with no girls (or 1 girl) attending. It was incredibly frustrating for Joanne and for the Primary leaders.

As it stands, the only other news that you MAY find interesting is we had a squirrel fall out of the tree in the backyard and break it's neck...and a bird fly into our back door window and break its neck this summer. We're hoping those aren't omens.

We hope that our friends and family can find time to come out to Chicago sometime. We now have a spare (twin-sized) bed plus queen sized airmattresses, and we're always willing to have house-guests. :) Come visit!!!!!!!!!

Here's a New and Improved Picture of Dale! :)

Dale meets more people!

2007-06-26T15:14:00.000-05:00

Dale is turning into a little social butterfly. Between meeting puppies and other dogs at puppy class and on walks, he's also being introduced to all sorts of neat people!

He was REALLY interested in Ayla. She must have been brought here just to play with him!

Dale Meets Archie

2007-06-22T10:19:00.001-05:00

On Monday, my mom brought Archie over to meet Dale for the first time. And boy, was it a treat! Dale started out in his kennel and Archie came in so excited, he didn't even notice Dale...but then....after sniffing around the living room he followed his nose and found him. They were both desperate to play. Unfortunately, we'd just had rain so sending them out into the backyard was out of the question. We moved the living room furniture to create a play area.

Oh, and the bandage on my ankle is because of Dale...I tried to NOT step on him during a walk and received a minor sprain because of it.

Dale gets a Bath

2007-06-17T22:49:00.000-05:00

No explanations needed!

Dale Update

2007-06-16T17:54:00.000-05:00

At the risk of sounding like one of those annoying people who think their dogs are the equivalent of babies...Dale's so cute and he's growing so much.... :)

Here are some updated pictures. We even had our first day of Puppy class... For Dale it was loads of fun...for me...not so much... I got peed on twice and had my leg humped... Oh well....

Introducing.....

2007-06-03T20:02:00.000-05:00

Will's Clydesdale...or "Dale" for short! (Sorry Uncle Dale...no insult intended)

We brought him home yesterday. Isn't he adorable?

Cicada's have emerged!

2007-05-21T21:44:00.000-05:00

Ok....so we were out gardening and came in around 9:00 and what to our wondering eyes should appear but a big brood of Cicadas crawling up our railings....

We're Expecting!!!

2007-05-20T20:51:00.000-05:00

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A PUPPY!!!

We went this weekend to pick out a puppy from a litter down in Lincoln, IL. We're getting a Llewellin Setter...basically a field version of the English Setter. We had a very difficult time picking out our little fur-ball, it came down to a Belton Male and a Black and White female, but the little male won our hearts. Here's a link to the Breeder's Webpage.

Anyway, here's pictures of our pup. He was 6 weeks old as of Saturday, and we'll be bringing him home in two weeks.

View full size

Cicada Watch

2007-05-17T21:22:00.000-05:00

The scientifico's are predicting that sometime next week, the 17 year periodical cicadas will emerge and wreak noisy havoc on our area. For those of you who aren't from East of the Mississippi, we have these lovely bugs that emerge once every 17 years to make noise, mate and die. They are predicting 100,000 per acre of land in our area.

Anyway, check out this You Tube Video effectively shows the life of the cicada. It's enough to make your skin crawl...

...and my garden is full of Cicada holes....we're predicting a bumper crop!

When you work in a germ factory....

2007-04-12T23:08:00.000-05:00

You learn to not be surprised to hear this from your doctor....

"My what big tonsils you have."

and then...

a moment later...

"That is an impressive case of Strep Throat you've got going there."

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*sigh*