Busy weekend . . .

My photography class is going great! I love it! We didn't even talk about anything technical last week, but there were some great questions by others on the Q&A board that prompted me to try some new things. . . . amazing!!! my indoor photos don't look like we live in a home of chain smokers anymore. I can't even believe that one little touch of a button could change the total appearance of a picture. I also figured out how to take a picture with our new lens and not need a flash, also make a huge difference.
We're starting on photo composition this week. Can't wait. My CF card reader isn't working so I don't have any pictures to post right now. Hopefully, tonight I'll have some.
Emily and I made cookie dough all day on Saturday. We made six different batches of dough. She stood on her chair and helped me. It was funny, she kept telling me that she needed to take a taste? I'm not big on cookie dough, wonder where she gets that from . . .
She is too funny with some of the stuff that she comes up with. Yesterday, Ted went outside while we were having breakfast. I said, it's so cold outside he's going to freeze out there. Emily said "Teddy is going to freeze his berries and they'll fall off, his nuts and berries will freeze."
I burst out laughing. Remembering that I had told Ted the day earlier (when I thought no one was listening) to hurry up outside or he'd freeze his heiny.
Also on the agenda yesterday, get the outside lights up! It wasn't really cold yesterday so it was tolerable. Dan and I got everything done. I took a picture and they look great! I'll try and post that later too.

Today is the day!

The Photographers' Workshop begins today!
I'm sure you figured that out, since the countdown timer is complete. Of course, Blogger won't cooperate and let me delete it from our blog, so you get to look at it until I can get that fixed.
I have been anxiously awaiting the start of the class. I'm certain that you'll notice an immediate improvement in the quality of my photos! (wink)

Yesterday, we celebrated Dan's birthday. Emily and Louie went upstairs and woke him up (he had a bad cold all weekend) and screamed "happy birthday" in his ear. They were very excited to celebrate. We had a Butter Braid for breakfast. I would have taken pix, but you don't need to see the bathrobe that I sort of regret giving to him for Christmas a few years back. Let's just say that he LOVES to wear it when he's not feeling well . . .
The kids and I spent a good part of the morning outside getting all the assorted winter greens in the urn on the front step and in the window boxes. They look so nice and ready for winter. I love getting ready for Christmas decorating. We'll put the lights out next weekend . . . can't wait!
Later in the afternoon, we went to the annual remembrance service at Assumption. It is held to remember all in the parish who have died in the last year. It was a lovely service. Of course, I got sad and emotional when my Dad's name was read. That moment was overshadowed by Louie's blabbering on and on. He got all worked up when the name "Thomas (blah blah)" was read. The kid has a one track mind and every track leads to Thomas the Tank Engine. He kept going on and on (loudly) "Thomas, he's a really useful engine. Where's my James??" You get the idea.
After that, we went to Fabulous Fern's and had dinner to celebrate Dan's birthday. The two Grandma's were there. It was really nice and the food was delicious, as usual. Dan had butternut squash ravioli with nutmeg and garlic cream sauce. That was truly heaven in a big bowl. I didn't order it, good thing. I probably would have licked out the bowl. It was so delicious!
Tune in later for updates on the photography class . . .

Happy 40th Uncle Paul!

We went to Uncle Paul's 40th birthday party tonight. It was a fun party. Here's Paul with his two girls and the beloved son, Lorenzo!
Emily and Louie loved playing with the other kids and with Mike. He played catch with Emmy and Louie and they talked about it all the way home and into bed.
Emily also gave a demonstration of her sommersaults. I don't know where she learned how to do that? but she was pretty proud of herself. Louie wants to learn how to do one tomorrow.

It never ends . . .

I just got and e-mail from my mom about Cec, her best friend. They have been friends since they were little girls and have gone to school together their whole lives. They shared their first apartment together out of college when they were both teachers in Hastings. She's been there for my mom through everything in the last 33 years with my Dad and all his cancer treatments, surgeries and hospitalizations.
Anyhow, Cec went in for her routine mamogram three weeks ago. There was a lump and so the normal procedures were gone through. MRI, lumpectomy and ultimately a double mastectomy last Friday. She and her family felt good about everything, as the surgeon told them it appeared that the cancer hadn't spread to her lymph nodes.
Yesterday, she went in for her post op appointment and the pathology came back that it had in fact spread. She is now facing an extensive course of chemotherapy, etc.
If you're reading this, say an extra prayer for her. Cec is one of the kindest, most generous and geniune people that I know (one of the funniest ladies I know as well). I also feel for my mom, she is in the middle of the grieving process for my Dad and now this!

Only one more week!!!

There's only one more week before my photography class starts and I can hardly wait!
It's a nine week course called The Photographers' Workshop . . .
I don't have any plans on making a career out of photography, but I do love to take pictures and scrapbook. The two go hand in hand. I've scrapbooked too many "bad" pictures and want to have nice photos to look back at.

Yesterday, we went to a "Sip and See" out at the Wenzel's house in Lakeland Township. There were lots of kids there and a whole room downstairs full of kids toys. Emily and Louie both had a great time playing with the other kids and all the toys. The party was for friends and family to meet Charlotte. She has really changed since arriving here in Minnesota. She is very mobil and loved to watch all the other kids. It was so different to be around a child that is so quiet . . .
We had a good time! Everyone was exhausted when we got home last night.

What a week!

I guess the best part of the week, the political ads are FINALLY done and we're all on the mend at our house.

Emily went to the doctor on Tuesday to get some antibiotics for her minor ear infection . . . we're hoping the they also combat the upper respitory infection that she clearly has. She's got a terrible cough.

We also had conferences at her school. We met with all four of her teachers and got an excellent report on her progress. They have see her improve since last spring tremendously! We were so glad to hear all the good things that they have to say about her. She loves school and they love having her there everyday.

We had a great time on Halloween and now Emily and Louie want to trick or treat every night.




As soon as it starts getting dark out, Emily thinks that it is time to go trick or treating.

Right now, Emily and Louie are having a conversation about which Backyardigan they are . . .

Emily: I'm Tasha

Louie: You not Tasha, you Niqua

Emily: I'm not Tyrone, you're Tyrone.

Louie: You have Pink, you Niqua and I'm Pablo.



All this, while they are wearing the cowboy hats they got at Bailey's birthday party. (they watched a episode of the Yardigans that was about cowboys today).

Tomorrow, Dan is heading up to Concordia Moorhead for his frozen football game. It will be me and the kids from sun up to sun down and everything in between . . .

We're going to make Grandma Jansen's sourdough pancakes for breakfast for a special treat. YUMM-O. I can't wait for them to have them. We've never made them before. My mom's had that sourdough starter going since our trip to Wind Cave, South Dakota(?) in 1974! That's a long time! Now, we have some of that same starter at our house, who knows how long we'll have it going . . . hopefully for another 34 years!

Happy Halloween!

It's Halloween, what better than a little funny photo! More later . . . .

Another setback

Dan went to bed last night feeling as bad as he did on Monday afternoon. Not good.
Louie did end up sleeping through the night and seems to be feeling better. Emily went off to school with a Pull-up on, just in case. . . .
I'm working at home today. Louie is glued to the TV watching his new fave, CARS. He is absolutely crazy about car racing. He LOVES NASCAR, much to his Florida cousins delight.
We have flu shots scheduled for Saturday morning at Dr. Tuohy's office. Hopefully, we'll all be well enough to get one.
Oh and as for Halloween, we'll go trick or treating, but may have to sit out from the party we were invited to this year, HUGE bummer. Emily and Louie were looking forward to it!
I'm off to Lunds to buy more Jell-O. Yum!

Louie's new nickname . . .

We've had a rough few days at our house.

It started on Monday afternoon, Dan called to tell me that whatever Emily had over the weekend was now his. He was feeling a bit under the weather. I got home from work and sent Dan directly to bed. I made the kids some dinner and they were sitting down at the kids table to eat it. Louie came over to me sitting at the end of the table and said "my freckle hurts." He's got a single freckle on his belly that he's quite proud of. So, his belly hurt. I picked him up to give him a hug and he tossed his whole day of food down the back of my sweater. Yes, you read that right! Down the back. I sat there holding him and he did it again, this time down the front. Poor kid. Much to my surprise, I didn't immediately lose mine. That is a customary thing when there is even a hint of puke around . . . nasty stuff.
Well, the evening was downhill from there. Louie's new nickname is "the vomit comet." I felt so awful for him he couldn't keep anything down all night. Even a sip of water came right back up.
At 4am, I figured that it had been 12 hours, no wet diapers and no liquids staying down. I called Children's Emergency Department and talked to a nurse. He said that generally, if there's no wet diapers in 12 hours and vomitting on top of that, they generally want to see the kids to make sure they're not dehydrated (he threw in a little teaser, "right now would be a good time, there's NO ONE here!) We quickly packed up and Louie and I were off to Childrens at 4:30am. It's a good thing we went in. He was very dehydrated. They gave him some Zofran and monitored him consuming fluids for an hour. We watched a Thomas and Friends video. All was well. We got home and he took a 4 hour nap at 8:3o.
Back up to Walgreens, we were picking up his prescription for Zofran and all the other stuff that the nurse at Children's suggested we arm ourselves at home with (adult anti-nausea, immodium and Pepto Bismol). Good thing, I started feeling crappy around 9am. I went to bed only to wake up a few hours later with the evil demon. It was horrible!
Thankfully, we were all feeling better today, after 13 hours of sleep for all last night! It was wonderful. Today, we all just recouped and took it easy.
This afternoon, we went over to Menards (yes, we're are boring married folk, a trip to Menards is the highlight of the day!) We had to go and get the missing parts to the leaf mulcher/bagger/blower thing that I picked up on Sunday.
We got home from Menards and had a major setback! Poor Louie tossed his cookies when we walked in the door . . . I quickly shoved some more Zofran in his mouth and gave him his new favorite, a popsicle. Little did I know, when kids are sick like this, they shouldn't have more than 2 ounces every 30 minutes for 6 hours . . . who knew. If I'd known that, we wouldn't have a huge stain from blue Gatorade on the dining room floor! Live and learn.

We're all keeping our fingers crossed and the anti nausea medication handy, that we'll be feeling better soon.

Halloween revisited

I was looking through some old photos from Halloween and though we should share them . . . .

Halloween 2005

Halloween 2006

Halloween 2007