Today was the day to enjoy the 4 local grand kids. We, Olivia, Aidan, Regan and I met Brenda and Emma at Whistlestop Park near Byron Center, where the kids ran and played for quite some time. When Brenda went to work we relocated and moved to Byron Center Christian School, and spent more time running and playing, until lunchtime. The afternoon was quieter with Emma sleeping, and the other kids playing on the computer or relaxing.
At 4 PM we brought Emma to Uncle David and Aunt Angie's place, where they were celebrating David's 32nd birthday. Emma was so excited and kept telling us she was going to blow out the candles on the cake. Regan decided we were not going to convince her any time soon that it was not her birthday. We all agreed.
This evening is the beginning of the packing process for leaving for SD. I will take care of most of it tomorrow, but everything I do today, will help for tomorrow.
One thing that put a damper on the process is that I saw the 3rd chipmunk in the house. Now there has to be an opening somewhere that we have not discovered, allowing them access into the house. It is about to drive me crazy. This chippie keeps coming up from the basement, and is not as fast as the first time he showed up, as he briefly was stuck (ever so slightly) on the sticky rat trap. I think it was mostly on one foot. When I went down to scoop him in a bag, he got away and only left some fur behind. I am thinking he has some glue on his foot, that is maybe slowing him down. Well, SWEET SUCCESS! I got HIM! This time he was laid out flat on the sticky trap and he was not going anywhere. And to anyone that thinks I am cruel, I will pack up a few and hand deliver them to your house.
Now all we have to do is find the source of entry!!!:-(
Oh yes, I failed to mention that we did catch the 2nd chippie. He was stuck to another sticky rat trap the day we returned from St. Joseph. He was a spunky one and had moved about 10 feet from the place of sticking!! Stayed tuned for more info, and we hope we have no more brown fuzzy visitors in the house.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Saturday, July 19, 2008
St. Joseph, MI
Here are a few photos we had taken while on our annual family vacation.
All our grankids!
All our kids
The happy coupleMonday, July 14, 2008
Boat rides and Chipmunks
We are enjoying some incredible weather. For the last 2 days we have had perfect temperatures, low humidity and breezes. We live in a low spot so rarely get a breeze blowing through the house, but we have the windows wide open and it is so cool.
We had some friends from church over Saturday evening, and in spite of the forecast predicting showers, we had beautiful weather. It was cloudy and warm, so we launched the boat in Ada and went up river for 45 minutes and then started back and dropped anchor and had dinner. It was a most relaxing evening, and we even boated as far as we could up the Thornapple River. There was very little boat traffic and we only saw 2 boats on the water the 2 1/2 hours we were on the river. We came back to the house and enjoyed the bottle of wine we had taken on the boat, but had forgotten to take the opener. It was a delightful evening.
Sunday evening we had our neighbors over for dinner, and had a great time. We live so close and see each other very seldom. Guess that is why we get along so well:-)
Going back to the excitement we had just before our Sunday afternoon nap now! Everett was already snoozing in his recliner, and I was reading the paper, and I saw something running through the house. I yelled, there's a chipmunk in the house. Everett was on his feet quickly and soon we had the chippie in the area by the 2 front doors, thinking it would be a cinch to chase it out the door. Well, after a couple attempts we realized it would not be so easy. Soon we had lost it down the basement again.
We were eating dinner when I spied the little critter running up the side of our fireplace. Wow, the guys jumped up, opened the back door, and it seemed like it would have to run right out the door, from under the loveseat where it was hiding. Well, it chose to go under the sofa and we lost it again. We moved to the other side of the room, and soon the little guy was sitting in the window sill. We removed the screens of all the windows on that side of the room. Wouldn't you know, it did not go back to those 3 windows, but chose the ones on the other side. So after it ran away one more time we opened that window, took the screen off and waited. It took a few minutes and it jumped back in the window, and EUREKA it jumped out!! We could sleep in peace knowing our little critter was on the other side of the window.
Today I have been busy with Aidan, Olivia and Regan. Brett brought them at 7 this morning, so we all had an early start. I had some bread rising, so once that was baked to headed out to meet Brenda and Emma at a store called Creative Learning Tools and Toys. It is a store for kids to play with many of the toys they have on display. They also have a craft time in the back, which is for kids 3 and up. Aidan had taken his Harry Potter book, and read that in the reading area. Regan played with Emma and Olivia did the craft time. She got to make lots of things in the hour she was there. They charge $4 for 1/2 an hour and $6 for an hour, which includes all the craft materials. While we were there Brenda was out shopping for another lens for her camera, as she loves taking pictures of things and people. ( Yesterday she took many pics of Roxanne and Brett and the kids) We met Brenda at Wendy's, had lunch and then went home.
The kids will be staying overnight, and I am trying to convince them that going to bed on time would be in their best interest, as we will be going over to Brenda tomorrow to take care of Emma, and meeting them at a park at 9:30 AM. We will not be sleeping in!!
Everett just left with the kids to go to Ada Park. They will have a good time on the playground, and they also love trails. That should help them sleep well.
We had some friends from church over Saturday evening, and in spite of the forecast predicting showers, we had beautiful weather. It was cloudy and warm, so we launched the boat in Ada and went up river for 45 minutes and then started back and dropped anchor and had dinner. It was a most relaxing evening, and we even boated as far as we could up the Thornapple River. There was very little boat traffic and we only saw 2 boats on the water the 2 1/2 hours we were on the river. We came back to the house and enjoyed the bottle of wine we had taken on the boat, but had forgotten to take the opener. It was a delightful evening.
Sunday evening we had our neighbors over for dinner, and had a great time. We live so close and see each other very seldom. Guess that is why we get along so well:-)
Going back to the excitement we had just before our Sunday afternoon nap now! Everett was already snoozing in his recliner, and I was reading the paper, and I saw something running through the house. I yelled, there's a chipmunk in the house. Everett was on his feet quickly and soon we had the chippie in the area by the 2 front doors, thinking it would be a cinch to chase it out the door. Well, after a couple attempts we realized it would not be so easy. Soon we had lost it down the basement again.
We were eating dinner when I spied the little critter running up the side of our fireplace. Wow, the guys jumped up, opened the back door, and it seemed like it would have to run right out the door, from under the loveseat where it was hiding. Well, it chose to go under the sofa and we lost it again. We moved to the other side of the room, and soon the little guy was sitting in the window sill. We removed the screens of all the windows on that side of the room. Wouldn't you know, it did not go back to those 3 windows, but chose the ones on the other side. So after it ran away one more time we opened that window, took the screen off and waited. It took a few minutes and it jumped back in the window, and EUREKA it jumped out!! We could sleep in peace knowing our little critter was on the other side of the window.
Today I have been busy with Aidan, Olivia and Regan. Brett brought them at 7 this morning, so we all had an early start. I had some bread rising, so once that was baked to headed out to meet Brenda and Emma at a store called Creative Learning Tools and Toys. It is a store for kids to play with many of the toys they have on display. They also have a craft time in the back, which is for kids 3 and up. Aidan had taken his Harry Potter book, and read that in the reading area. Regan played with Emma and Olivia did the craft time. She got to make lots of things in the hour she was there. They charge $4 for 1/2 an hour and $6 for an hour, which includes all the craft materials. While we were there Brenda was out shopping for another lens for her camera, as she loves taking pictures of things and people. ( Yesterday she took many pics of Roxanne and Brett and the kids) We met Brenda at Wendy's, had lunch and then went home.
The kids will be staying overnight, and I am trying to convince them that going to bed on time would be in their best interest, as we will be going over to Brenda tomorrow to take care of Emma, and meeting them at a park at 9:30 AM. We will not be sleeping in!!
Everett just left with the kids to go to Ada Park. They will have a good time on the playground, and they also love trails. That should help them sleep well.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
July is here in all of its glory. The flowers are in full bloom, we have had a nice amount of rain, so the grass is green, and growing quickly, and the temperatures are rising.
We have VBS at our church this week. I often have all of the grandchildren here so they can help/participate in the program, but this year Elton and Lauri and kids are on their way to SD so they were unable to come. We do have Olivia, Aidan and Regan coming. They came yesterday afternoon, had supper with us and then joined me at VBS. They each chose the tribe they wanted to be in, and I am sure they had a good time. They will meet me there this evening, and then they will come here overnight, and stay tomorrow. Our VBS is called AD 29 and is patterned after the 12 tribes of Israel. The kids all meet in tents, and then go to the village to make crafts, have snacks, and then listen to Bible stories acted out by members of our church. We have had this program for 6-7 years I think and I have worked in registration. I love meeting all the kids and their parents. We generally have between 160-225 kids coming, and they love being outdoors, each wearing a simple costume, and are given dried lima beans spray painted gold for coins to buy snacks or make a craft.
There have been a couple of changes for Mom this week. On Monday she was moved to room 111b at the nursing home, which is supposed to be a bigger room so they can move her more easily with the lift. I also was able to get her phone hooked up and she was able to get her old number again, so that is convenient. A gal from the nursing home called yesterday to tell me that Mom had told the speech therapist that she wanted to try physical and occupational therapy again. It would be wonderful for her if she gained strength in her arm and leg again.
We were also able to sell her car, so are thankful that is taken care of.
We have VBS at our church this week. I often have all of the grandchildren here so they can help/participate in the program, but this year Elton and Lauri and kids are on their way to SD so they were unable to come. We do have Olivia, Aidan and Regan coming. They came yesterday afternoon, had supper with us and then joined me at VBS. They each chose the tribe they wanted to be in, and I am sure they had a good time. They will meet me there this evening, and then they will come here overnight, and stay tomorrow. Our VBS is called AD 29 and is patterned after the 12 tribes of Israel. The kids all meet in tents, and then go to the village to make crafts, have snacks, and then listen to Bible stories acted out by members of our church. We have had this program for 6-7 years I think and I have worked in registration. I love meeting all the kids and their parents. We generally have between 160-225 kids coming, and they love being outdoors, each wearing a simple costume, and are given dried lima beans spray painted gold for coins to buy snacks or make a craft.
There have been a couple of changes for Mom this week. On Monday she was moved to room 111b at the nursing home, which is supposed to be a bigger room so they can move her more easily with the lift. I also was able to get her phone hooked up and she was able to get her old number again, so that is convenient. A gal from the nursing home called yesterday to tell me that Mom had told the speech therapist that she wanted to try physical and occupational therapy again. It would be wonderful for her if she gained strength in her arm and leg again.
We were also able to sell her car, so are thankful that is taken care of.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
More on the 4th
The 4th was a good day to celebrate our country's birthday, with weather that was about as perfect as it gets. Everett got up on time to get the tractor and trailer to the church so it could be decorated for the parade. The people in charge did a good job as usual, and they gave out freeze pops along the parade route. They seem to be a big hit for the kids and adults alike. Last year we gave out 3,000 I believe!
I did not wake up so early!! It was 8:20 when I reached consciousness, and then I realized I had to keep moving if I was going to meet Joel, Brenda and Emma in Ada. I made it by 9:30 and found a good parking spot behind Ada Reformed and met them in front for the parade. It is a fun time to visit with people that you usually only see at the parade. We had good seats, and even though Emma was not sure about all the flying candy, it did not take her long to realize how it worked. Soon she was sitting right on the curb, stuffing her bag with all the candy she could get her hands on. She ate more than Brenda and Joel wanted her to eat, but that is what holidays are all about.
It was a long parade this year, and we were beginning to wonder if Everett was ever going to come by, but he finally made it toward the end. After the parade we walked to the area set up with lots of fun stuff for kids, and then many booths where people set up to sell their crafts. When Everett made it back from church with the tractor and trailer, we called Brenda to find out where they were. Soon we were looking for lunch. The choices were, brats, hot dogs, Chinese, or pizza. We had brats, Emma a hot dog. They had it set up quite efficiently, so it did not take too long to get food. About noon, I left for home and started getting the food ready for our evening on the boat, and Emma took a nice nap. Actually we all took a nap, so we were all rested up by 4 when we left the house to launch the pontoon in Ada. It all worked so well, and we had a great time of relaxing and enjoying the beauty of the river.We tied the pontoon up to a tree, as the water was at 11 feet, compared to 7 feet last year, and the anchors did not hold the boat. Once we were tied up we took out our picnic supper and enjoyed good food and fun. On the way back Emma was occupied the whole time with putting water from my water bottle into a little cup and throwing it in the river. It does not take much to keep little people busy and happy.
We were home by 7, and then at 9:30 we left to watch fireworks. I wanted to go to the local fireworks the night before, but Everett did not feel like it, so we ended up driving a lot further last night and the show was not too great. We both decided it would be better to go see the fireworks close by next year.
Today Everett painted the last coat of paint on the basement walls, so it will be quite soon now that we get that put together, so the grandkids will have their play area back. We are all looking forward to that.
I got a lot accomplished in the house, and it was great. I also got a call that Mom had fallen out of her lift chair this morning. She got the remote, put the chair up and thought she could walk to the bed. It is so hard to have her do that and then get all bruised. She also fell out of her wheel chair a few days ago, and bruised her head and knee then too.
I did not wake up so early!! It was 8:20 when I reached consciousness, and then I realized I had to keep moving if I was going to meet Joel, Brenda and Emma in Ada. I made it by 9:30 and found a good parking spot behind Ada Reformed and met them in front for the parade. It is a fun time to visit with people that you usually only see at the parade. We had good seats, and even though Emma was not sure about all the flying candy, it did not take her long to realize how it worked. Soon she was sitting right on the curb, stuffing her bag with all the candy she could get her hands on. She ate more than Brenda and Joel wanted her to eat, but that is what holidays are all about.
It was a long parade this year, and we were beginning to wonder if Everett was ever going to come by, but he finally made it toward the end. After the parade we walked to the area set up with lots of fun stuff for kids, and then many booths where people set up to sell their crafts. When Everett made it back from church with the tractor and trailer, we called Brenda to find out where they were. Soon we were looking for lunch. The choices were, brats, hot dogs, Chinese, or pizza. We had brats, Emma a hot dog. They had it set up quite efficiently, so it did not take too long to get food. About noon, I left for home and started getting the food ready for our evening on the boat, and Emma took a nice nap. Actually we all took a nap, so we were all rested up by 4 when we left the house to launch the pontoon in Ada. It all worked so well, and we had a great time of relaxing and enjoying the beauty of the river.We tied the pontoon up to a tree, as the water was at 11 feet, compared to 7 feet last year, and the anchors did not hold the boat. Once we were tied up we took out our picnic supper and enjoyed good food and fun. On the way back Emma was occupied the whole time with putting water from my water bottle into a little cup and throwing it in the river. It does not take much to keep little people busy and happy.
We were home by 7, and then at 9:30 we left to watch fireworks. I wanted to go to the local fireworks the night before, but Everett did not feel like it, so we ended up driving a lot further last night and the show was not too great. We both decided it would be better to go see the fireworks close by next year.
Today Everett painted the last coat of paint on the basement walls, so it will be quite soon now that we get that put together, so the grandkids will have their play area back. We are all looking forward to that.
I got a lot accomplished in the house, and it was great. I also got a call that Mom had fallen out of her lift chair this morning. She got the remote, put the chair up and thought she could walk to the bed. It is so hard to have her do that and then get all bruised. She also fell out of her wheel chair a few days ago, and bruised her head and knee then too.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Have A Happy 4th
We had 4 1/2" of rain yesterday, so everything looks so green and clean again. We were so glad that we did not have any damage or power outages this time. Some areas north of here were hit much harder. The river has come up 4 ' already, so we will have to see if we will be able to take our pontoon on it tomorrow. Last year it was at 7" and we discovered that is the minimum to take the boat out. Just ask Joel. He was on the tube being pulled and we hit a tree, just under the water, and all of a sudden we were all holding on for dear life, as the boat came to a complete stop. Now, this year, it may be too deep to launch the boat, so guess we will wait and see. We do have food preparation underway so we can be ready for whatever happens. Joel, Brenda and Emma will be joining us at the parade and then for the rest of the day. Brett, Roxanne and the children are up north at her parents cottage near Lewiston, so they will have a fun day up there. The kids have been with G'pa and G'ma W. for the last 2 weeks, so it will be good to see them again.
Everett has the car transport trailer all ready to take to church at 8:30 tomorrow, so they can decorate it for a float in the parade. They get it all set up like the camp at VBS. Everett has 2x4's put up along the sides so they can hang the tribal banners. The parade is at 10, and Everett pulls the float with his John Deere, so it will get its yearly bath before the parade.
Mom continues to adjust and improve at the Corsica Nursing Home. When I talked to her yesterday, I could tell that her speech was definitely better, so we are very grateful for that. I am working on her wardrobe so I will have some things to bring her when we go to SD in 3 weeks. Mom will make her 3rd and probably final move in the home next week. They have a room with a little more area, to position her bed so they can get around it with the lift. We keep praying that she will get some movement and strength in her left(paralyzed) side, so she can be a little more mobile. It is so difficult to be totally dependent for all your care. So please pray that with us.
It is a nice cool day with some sun and clouds. The mosquitoes are also out, but at least it is pleasant weather.
I just talked with my brother Glenn, and they have 9 new English Springer Spaniel puppies born the 1st of July. Donna says they are a colorful litter, all liver and white, I believe. So if you are in the market for a cute puppy let me know and I will put you in touch with them. I can tell you they are given the best, kind care, and are sweet natured puppies/dogs. Our grand kids loved playing with them.
Everett has the car transport trailer all ready to take to church at 8:30 tomorrow, so they can decorate it for a float in the parade. They get it all set up like the camp at VBS. Everett has 2x4's put up along the sides so they can hang the tribal banners. The parade is at 10, and Everett pulls the float with his John Deere, so it will get its yearly bath before the parade.
Mom continues to adjust and improve at the Corsica Nursing Home. When I talked to her yesterday, I could tell that her speech was definitely better, so we are very grateful for that. I am working on her wardrobe so I will have some things to bring her when we go to SD in 3 weeks. Mom will make her 3rd and probably final move in the home next week. They have a room with a little more area, to position her bed so they can get around it with the lift. We keep praying that she will get some movement and strength in her left(paralyzed) side, so she can be a little more mobile. It is so difficult to be totally dependent for all your care. So please pray that with us.
It is a nice cool day with some sun and clouds. The mosquitoes are also out, but at least it is pleasant weather.
I just talked with my brother Glenn, and they have 9 new English Springer Spaniel puppies born the 1st of July. Donna says they are a colorful litter, all liver and white, I believe. So if you are in the market for a cute puppy let me know and I will put you in touch with them. I can tell you they are given the best, kind care, and are sweet natured puppies/dogs. Our grand kids loved playing with them.
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