Another Busy Day

Well, I was up early and back to the cleaning.  What I thought was going to be a little job turned into an all day affair.  But…it is almost done.  A little while tomorrow and I should be finished.  Now, I have to confess that if I hadn’t stopped so many times to look at old photos I would have been finished a little sooner.  But, it was too much fun.  While I was busy with my job, Mark was off to get tags for the car and make a Walmart run for more storage boxes.  He also stopped in for a short visit with his mom and made a stop at the pawn shop.  Then he was off to school with Karen to do a little work in her new classroom.   Wow, it was 5:00 before I knew it and time to get cleaned up.  We had plans for taking my nephew to dinner in exchange for a little computer work.  We enjoyed dinner and the visit…and by the way, thanks Ryan for the security updates on the computers.  I like to know I am safe as safe can be!

Tomorrow promises to be a busy day as well.  I have a hair appointment and want to go by and visit with my mom.  We have several other errands to run and pick up some last minute things from the grocery.  I will also do a last load or two of laundry.  Not much will be left for Wednesday except to pull in the slides and slide on out of town.

In addition, I had a email from Randy and Pam Warner today.  They are in town visiting Randy’s brother and  family.  They are staying at the COE Park at Benbrook Lake which is just down the road from us.  We are going to try and catch up with them tomorrow afternoon for a short visit and to see their new home on wheels.

No Rest Here

I know today is Father’s Day….but no rest for the Father here.  I did allow him to sit out in his new lawn chair and drink coffee, but not for long.  The last projects to be finished was a closet and my craft room.  The closet was the easy part, the craft room was another story.  I have been cleaning, sorting, and throwing away in there for several months now.  But, today, I was determined to make big strides.  And, boy did I.  I had to get Mark to haul away trash and recycling twice.  Plus, he made a trip to the clothing  collection box after the closet clean out.  Tomorrow I will send him to the pawn shop and the Half Price Book Store.  With a little effort and a couple more storage boxes I will be finished for now.  What is left will wait until the fall, but at least for now Karen and Kenneth can continue with their remodeling projects.

Also tomorrow will be laundry day and making lists for last minute errands in preparation for leaving on Wednesday.

I hope all you dad’s out there had a more restful day than Mark. LOL

Backwards and Forwards

Yes, I know, it has been a while since I last blogged.  Well, it has been really busy around here since I last wrote.

So, for a little look backwards…I did take it a little easy for about a week from the knee surgery, but quickly got over that as there was much to do.  As soon as school was out, we helped our daughter, Karen, who is a first grade teacher, pack up her classroom for the summer.  However, this summer was a little different.  She is moving to second grade. So, not only did we have to pack up her room, we had to move rooms.  WOW, after nine years, she had lots of stuff that had to be moved.  We worked most of the week after school was out.

Once that was completed, it was time for her to start a different kind of  packing.  She, Kenneth, and Kourtney were flying to Wisconsin for a friend’s wedding.  Mark and I were house sitting and dog sitting while they were gone.  On the day they were to leave, we had major storms in the area and their flight was cancelled after they got to the airport.  Soooo, they were stranded at DFW for the day.  They were suppose to leave at 11:00 am. and finally got a flight out at 6:30 pm.  However, when all was said and done, they had a great trip and the wedding was beautiful.  They returned home on an uneventful flight on Sunday.

On this past Wednesday, Karen had planned for luncheon for several of her teacher friends, so Pop and I volunteered to watch Kourtney and Caden.  So, we planned for a day out…

First we went to the city park

to ride the miniature train.  They had a blast.  Afterwards, we

went to the park and had a picnic lunch before we

took a walk over to the playground, where

Caden liked going up the slide, while

Kourtney liked going down the slide.

After lots of ups and downs, it was time to head home for nap time.   Pop and I needed one too!

Now, with school rooms packed up, wedding trips over, and luncheons behind us…it was time to get ready for the garage sale we had been planning since Spring.  So, Karen and I started in finishing what we have started on several occasions.  Now, I know we probably picked out the hottest weekends we have had, but it was the only weekend we had, so, let’s do it.

Yesterday, we were up by 5:30 am and had all the stuff

lined up and down the driveway and were waiting for our first customer.  It didn’t take long and we were pleased with our day.  So, we decided last night that we would try again today and in fact did a little more

 cleaning out in order to have more stuff for today.

All in all we were pleased and got rid of a lot of stuff.  What was left at the end of the day was loaded up and taken to the local Salvation Army collection center.  Yeah…it feels really good to get rid of all that stuff that has been piled up waiting for this long awaited sale.

This evening, all the kids were over and we had our Father’s Day/June birthdays get together.   I made pork tenderloin in the Crockpot and we used it for making some yummy tacos.  The kids gave Mark a Lafuma lawn chair he has been wanting.  He can’t wait to use it, which brings me to the Forward of this blog…

We have been home since March taking care of business, seeing family, taking care of doctor appointments, etc….and it is now time to get back on the road.  We will be leaving Fort Worth on Wednesday and will be meeting up in Custer, SD with Jim and Ellie on Friday.  We will be there until July 8 when we begin our journey towards Yellowstone and on to the Pacific Northwest.  So, I am sure, Mark will have lots of opportunity to use that new chair he got today!

We look forward to you taking this journey with us!  So for now, there is lots to do before leaving on Wednesday.  Guess, I better get busy, see you soon.

Congratulations To Andrew

Friday was not only the last day of school, but it was a big day for Andrew.  He finished his last day in elementary school and is now headed to the sixth grade.  So, of course, Pop and I were there to help him celebrate this great achievement in his young life.

This was the table decorations…

The Fifth Grade Class of 2009

  Andrew telling his favorite memory of fifth grade…”winning tug of war at field day was his answer”

Andrew receiving his certificate from his principal and vice principal

Andrew and his best friend….Sam

And then there was cake and punch to celebrate this great day.

Andrew…Pop and I are so proud of you.  You are growing into quite a young man.  Your hard work in school has really paid off for you.  And, the best is yet to come.  Enjoy your summer!

Field Trip

Today, Mark and I had made plans for a trip to Dallas. First on the list, was a trip to the Lazy Boy Warehouse where we needed to get a small repair done on the recliner. Wow, that was a quick. We thought we would have to leave it, but they got right to it and fixed it while we waited. So, we were off to the next stop, Southwest Wheels. Here, Mark stopped in to purchase a cleaning kit for the wheels on the motor home. You know, as the wheels on the bus go round and round, they must be shiny!

Then is was off to Penzeys Spice Store. Oh, no, I just can’t make up my mind. I would like to have a small jar of one of everything they have to offer. But, after much smelling…it was decision time, I made my purchase, which included Kosher Style Flake Salt, Ozark Style Seasonings, Sandwich Sprinkle, Tuscan Sunset, Pork Chop Seasoning, and last but not least, Pumpkin Pie Spice and Dutch Process High Fat Cocoa! Oh, yes, there was the Penzeys magazine too.

After spice shopping, we were off to REI Recreational Sports Store. Mark checked out some lawn chairs while I checked out the flip flops and clothes. We both looked at lots of goodies, but, we walked away with empty hands. Now, by this time we had worked up an appetite. Well, it dawned on me, that I still had a gift card for The Cheesecake Factory. So, we were off to Southlake for lunch. First, they brought us some really good iced tea and a couple of little loafs of bread. One was sour dough and the other was brown with oats on top. I quickly decided that the oats on top must mean that it was healthy. Well, it tasted healthy! LOL Okay, now lets look at the menu which was like reading a novel. Mark settled pretty quickly on Shepherds Pie. It took me a little longer, but I finally chose a Chicken with Tomato Pasta. Oh, my, I am glad they were lunch portions! We were really full, but, you can’t go there without dessert…. and even though it is the Cheesecake Factory, our choice was carrot cake. We shared! Now, I am hear to tell you that there will be no more food consumed around here for the rest of this day. And, to confirm any doubt you might have….let me assure you there was nothing about lunch that was point friendly! Thank goodness, even with a bum knee, the walk back to the car used up a few of those points.

It was time to head back to the Westside of Fort Worth and get the car unloaded. We had a really fun day and it was nice to get out after having been in for the last several days. But…for now, I think I will rest my knee and read my new magazine…you know the one about food and spices!

Congratulations to Joe

Today, Mark and I would just like to say congratulations to Joe (Speedy to many of you) on his retirement.  In his blog, he said he was num and really didn’t know how he felt today.  Well, let me tell you, that after all these years of having been friends with his guy, he is downright excited and jumping for joy.  He just doesn’t know it yet. LOL

Mark and Joe were suppose to have retired together in 2001, but due to unforeseen  circumstances, Joe wasn’t able to follow through with his retirement at that time.  Well, the long awaited time has finally arrived and we are so excited for him.  Now, as I noted in the comment section of his blog….it is now time to “let the good times roll”. 

Life is short and it is now time to take the scenic route!  So Joe, when you catch your breath and realize that life has now dealt you the card you have waited on for so long, we are waiting for you to join the rest of us that wander aimlessly along the highways and byways looking for a new adventure around the next bend in the road.

Again, congratulations, and welcome to the world of the unemployed!  We love you and Sherri and thanks for the many years of friendship we have shared and we look forward to making and sharing many more memories with you both.

Love,

Mark and Dortha

Catching Up Again

Well, I know it has been a few days since I last posted and busy days they have been. When I last left you we had a list of things a mile long to accomplish. So, let’s get started and see if we can catch up….

First on the list was

Zachary’s baseball game. He loves playing first base, just like his Uncle Scott. I am wondering when his dad will try to get him to follow in his footsteps as a pitcher? The main thing Zachary is to just have fun. He was…

also awarded the game ball. Way to go Zachary, what a great season you have had.

Friday…then brought about Lauren’s long awaited birthday party. She had planned for herself and 4 other friends… a bowling party, a pizza party,

a craft project…they all made beaded tote bags with lots of fun iron-on’s.

a big birthday cookie, and

finally a sleepover. What an evening…good night girls and thanks for making me a part of the fun!

And while all of this was taking place Andrew and his 5th grade class were offto Sea World in San Antonio for an end of the year trip. It was an overnight trip…the girls slept in the penguin house while the boys got to sleep under the shark tank. Andrew petting the sting rays

and the teachers taking a head count.

And…Memorial Day weekend goes on with Karen and Kenneth having out of town company. There were babies and more babies and golf games and cookouts….then on Monday Lauren’s birthday present came from Poppa and I and that was a promised trip

to the American Girl Doll Store in Dallas. She got to bring along her friend Melony, who also loves American Girl dolls.

They wanted to be first in line and here they are wishing 10:00 would come real soon!

This is too true at this store.

Not only did Lauren get to go to the American Girl Doll Store, she and Melony got to purchase a new doll. Their choice was Charisa, the 2009 Doll of the Year. After the purchase, they took them

to the beauty saloon at the store and got their hair done. Wow…to be a little girl again.

Now, Lauren was pretty sure she wanted to spend all her birthday money in one spot and

that she did. Sort of reminds of the scene from Pretty Woman!

Now, it was off

to lunch at the Galleria and then

home to try on all those new clothes for both mom’s and dolls. Can’t have too many look alkies when it is your best friend!

Tuesday was suppose to be a day to recover from all the weekend activities and excitement, but it was anything but…there was a doctor’s appointment, errands, laundry, and

the spring storm that rolled through bringing 3 rounds of hail along with it. When all was said and done

it left the roof covered and

the driveway covered and

the car covered with leaves from the trees, but not one hail dent. We ended up with lots of hail and lots of rain, but no damage…how lucky can we be?

Next thing I knew it was Wednesday and time for the scheduled knee surgery. I arrived at the surgery center on time and they took me right in. Things were running ahead of schedule and it wasn’t long before I was off to meet up with Dr. Hunnicutt. When I woke up he had finished his job and

this is the band-aid I was wearing and will be wearing until Saturday night. It isn’t too hard to walk around in and there is no pain. Mark is a great nurse and is taking real good care of me. And, thanks to all of you that said a prayer during surgery yesterday and for all the calls to check on me. How great it is to have friends and family like all of you.

I am going to leave you with this last picture and thought…Mark and I are at home by ourselves. Not even a neighbor is home. And…

if he falls off of the Kubota…who is going to drive him to the hospital?