The Bionic Woman

I don't think Mom needs to go to the doctor any more. From now on when she has problems, I think she'll need to go to a good mechanic with a hefty oil can. She now has 5 mechanical parts. She has 1 shoulder, two hips, and two knees that potentially could raise terrorist alerts to red if she ever goes into an airport. The latest surgery on her left knee went well yesterday and she is on the road to recovery. Blessings on your recovery, Mom!

The Price of Beauty

Yesterday I left school at 1:00, went to Sell's and bought flowers, got home and started planting at 3:00. I finally came in at 7:30. They look very nice, but I'm paying the price today. After I sat down in the chair last night, I could hardly get up again. My legs hurt, my hips hurt, my back hurt and my neck hurt! I'm getting old! Note to self: Next time plant a few at a time!

Melissa's Back!

Just in case you gave up checking her blog, try today! Yayyy! She's back!

"Pud" and the Puppy

On the impending "fiveness" of Quinn, I decided to write this blog. I'm risking writing this title. When Quinn was tiny he looked like a "Pud" to me. Then I was told that there was a naughty connotation to that word. I still don't know what it is, but I'd rather not know. I haven't called him that in a long time.

Anyway, he has this puppy that he adores. He named it "Tree". I'd like to get in his head and find out why. He takes it everywhere with him and plays all kinds of imaginary games with him. Heidi, is this the one that ended up in the ditch with Kaleigh and the "motor"? I have to say that I'm very glad that this dog is the object of his affection rather than Duncan.

Tomorrow will be an early "Bowling Birthday" for Quinn. He and a number of his preschool classmates will be going bowling. I will accompany them. It should be a hoot! I wonder if "Tree" will be in attendance.

I can't believe that he is going to be five already!! Followed shortly by Ella! How did that happen?? It's way too scary the way the time has flown by!

I love you Pud!

What a Beautiful Weekend!

What a beautiful weekend this was! And now, I'm thinking about how beautiful my dad's birthday must be in heaven today! He would have been 90 today. He always said he wanted to live to be 90. Before he died, I asked him, "Dad, do you still want to live to be 90?" and he answered, "No, it's not that important anymore." Happy Birthday, Dad! A lot of us will remember you today!

We spent a lot of time at the Woehlke's this weekend. Friday night Em and Bob had us and the McClelland's over for a barbecue. Saturday, Bob, Scott, Bob's brother Bill, and Tom spent all day putting up a new play structure for the girls. It's quite the "park" as the girls call it. A slide, a gazebo off the ground, a tunnel, three swings, a rock climbing wall, a fireman's pole and a rope climber. It took the four of them 8 hours to put together. (And I forgot my camera!). Sunday we went back to the Woehlke's for a Mother's Day brunch. Isn't that a beautiful flower bed (at Emily's). And I can't believe that Ella has learned to ride a two-wheeler already (without training wheels) and this she learned to do with casts on her feet.

Have a great week everyone!

Blogging Routine

It seems that a lot of us have been out of the blogging routine. Myself included. Nothing real exciting to report from my end. We spent much of the weekend attending parties--a college graduation picnic on Saturday and seven confirmation parties on Sunday.

I'm still waiting to hear about teaching at one of my schools next year. That's been a bit stressful and distracting for me when I forget to leave it in the Lord's hands. I meet with someone on the decision-making team tomorrow.

It's now 3:30 in the afternoon and I've been up since 4:30 this a.m. (couldn't get back to sleep). In the meantime I've had 15 different sessions with students and talked to 6 teachers and a principal, crammed down a 5 minute lunch, and had a practice lock-down. I'm about ready to fall asleep as I blog. Zzzzzzz!

Grandparent's Day

Today is Grandparent's Day at St. Paul Lutheran School. I wonder if I can count how many of them I've been involved with over the years. I don't remember having such a thing when I was growing up, but when I was teaching in the classroom I used it as a wonderful opportunity to share memories between the generations. The book "Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge" was the catalyst for getting a dialogue going between the children and their grandparents.

I don't have any memories of my great grandmother except what I've been told by my mother. I would have loved to hear some of her memories of growing up in Austria. I have many memories of Nanna and Grandpa and I've heard some stories of them growing up. Of course, I've heard lots of memories from my Mom and Dad (especially Dad who loved to share his stories.) I have one particular memory of my dad and a Grandparent's Day at St. John's, Waltz. We always had a chapel service on that day and I remember him standing up after the service to say something to the people gathered there. I remember feeling a little embarrassed that he would have the nerve to do that, and I remember that he shared some of his wisdom. I wish I could remember what it was he had to say. Heidi, Emily, and Andy--do you remember??

I wonder how many Grandparent's Days I will attend as a grandmother? And how will I manage it when they're all in school at the same time? If my thinking is straight, when Lucy is in 1st grade, Kaleigh will be in 2nd, Sophie 3rd, Avery 4th, and Quinn and Ella 5th.