Finally Friday!

Good morning everyone! Can you believe that there are only (counting today) five days until Christmas!!! Holy Cow! I hope that you have been able to check off all the items on your shopping list, and if not...you better be heading to the stores soon.

Last night my confirmation class was canceled. The fog was so dense you could hardly see the front of your vehicle! And, it was pretty much like that all day! The lucky kids...they have the next two weeks off as well. We will just have to hit the material hard after the first of the year. I was looking at calendar for the class, and we are over half way through the "year".

Doug took today off. He had one extra vacation day to use...so we are going to work some more on Buckwheat's room. We painted the baseboards earlier this week, that leaves the trim around the windows and the doors to finish. We are also going to pack so we will be able to leave early in the morning. Hopefully, we will be ahead of the "major" storm that is coming. Last night on the news they said it should start around noon; therefore, we shouldn't have any problems.

In other news...Doug called the roofer yesterday. If you haven't noticed...I haven't posted anything about the roof...because there hasn't been anything to talk about. He hasn't been back since Thanksgiving. Anywho...the roofer said he would be here to finish the upper part of the house before Christmas! He said it would be after the first of the year before he would get to the porch and the garage. I'm going to have Doug keep on him once we get back from vacation.

I'm going to "sign off" for now. Don't be surprised if you don't see any new posts until 2008. While back in Indiana, we only have dial up access...and it is more difficult to find the time to write. We hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and a (Safe) Happy New Year.

Until next year...

Child Vaccinations

I was sent this link via email warning about vaccinations for children. Being a soon-to-be parent...I am beginning to think about these things more often.

I remember getting this particular vaccination as a child...do you?

Watch this video, and then talk to your children about this!

Tuesday Tales

Not too much going on in our part of the world. Doug and I went to Parkersburg, IA, today with 4 other people from work. The department stores "back up" seed at the warehouse there, and we were updating some inventory. It ended up being a pretty easy day of work. We left Williamsburg around 7:30 this morning and arrived at Parkersburg by 9:30. We broke for lunch and went to one of Doug's favorite places...The Pizza Ranch! It was my first time eating there, and I must say it was excellent! Not only do they have a pizza buffet, they had fried chicken, green beans, mashed potatoes, and gravy. Plus, there was a salad bar and dessert bar. We finished the inventory by 2:30 and got back to Williamsburg by 4:30.

Other than that...some of the ice melted yesterday and today. I think it is suppose to be up over freezing for the next 2-3 days, and then we are to get a big snow storm starting Saturday morning. Hopefully, we will be able to leave ahead of the storm and have no problems on our trip back to Indiana.

Until next time...

Our Weekend

I hope everyone had an enjoyable weekend. It was a great weekend for us. On Saturday we spent a good part of the day in Coralville shopping. Doug has been wanting a shotgun for a while, and he finally decided on which one he wanted. I didn't realize all the paper work that was required to purchase a gun, but in the end, we came home with a gun. We also had to pick up a few things from Wal-Mart...and boy was it crazy in there! I guess that what you get this close to Christmas.

Once we got home, we decided it was time to start "preparing" the baby room. We moved the bed, computer desk, and filing cabinet from the spare bedroom to the new spare bed (aka: the tractor room). We don't actually have things for the baby room, but we decided to empty it so we can put things in it after we come back from Christmas (and baby shower) in Indiana. We need to do a little painting, but not much. We painted the room before we moved in this past spring, but we never did the trim work. Also, there are some spots that need to be touched up on the floor.

Saturday night was a going away party for our friends Fred and Ana. Fred works with Doug, and they were our fishing buddies this past summer. Ana got a job in Waterman, IL, after completing her PhD this semester; therefore, Fred took a new job as well. The department (from work) was suppose to do a "small town bar hop", but the bus they reserved called and canceled last night because of the weather. We spent the evening at the two bars in Williamsburg, and I think everyone had a great time. Doug even did a little karaoke singing.

Sunday was spent "recuperating". We aren't use to those late nights on the town anymore! Oh, well...it was a lot of fun. This was also our Sunday to bowl. Our teammates were busy moving this weekend, so it was just Doug and I. I had two good games, and Doug did OK for not having bowled in almost two months!

That's our weekend in a nutshell...

...Until next time.

Santa

If you see a fat man

Who's jolly and cute,

Wearing a beard

And a red flannel suit,

And if he is chuckling

And laughing away,

While flying around

In a miniature sleigh

With eight tiny reindeer

To pull him along

Then let's face it...

Your eggnog's too strong!

Baby Update

Here is the update everyone has been waiting for...Buckwheat's progress:

Week 28

I went to the doctor on Monday for our monthly check-up, and the doctor said everything is looking great! I have put on a total of 11 pounds, and I still have my ankles! Buckwheat's heartbeat was a little slower than the last few times we have been in...it was 150 beats/min. Buckwheat is becoming more and more active each day. Luckily, sleeping isn't difficult...Buckwheat likes to sleep when I do! I also had the glucose screening done while at this last appointment. I haven't heard anything back from the lab...so I'm going with the "no news is good news" theory. We go back in a month...then it will be every two weeks! We have 12 weeks to go; Buckwheat will be here before we know it!

Until next time...

The Power is Back!

I am going to start off by apologizing for the long delay in between posts. As I mentioned in my last post, the weather was awful...and it just got worse. Monday was not too terribly bad, but it turned through the night. We woke up Tuesday morning to a quarter inch of ice already on the ground...and it was still "raining". Doug went to work, but came home around 9:00 a.m. when the power went out. The power came back on by 10 o'clock, but was out again by 11:15 a.m. It was off for half an hour, and then gone again a little after 1 p.m. When it got dark, we were tired of being stuck inside...so we went for a drive. We got a mile from the house and saw that other people had electricity! We went on into Williamsburg, hung out at the bar, and then went out to eat. What else was there to do? We made it back home around 7 o'clock...still no power. The house was a little chilled, but not too bad (around 64 degrees). We then woke up this morning and the temperature in the house had dropped into the low 50's! We called the power company again, and they said they were still trying to get to us. So...to end this sad little sogga...we finally got power back sometime between 9 this morning and noon!

I ice-skated around the yard to capture a few photos...enjoy!

The first four pictures are from the snow we received on December 6th...the rest are from the ice yesterday.

Snow covered tree in our backyard


The view from our back door


Where's the ice scraper?


Remember what my small tree in front
of the house looked like before the ice


Doug and the boys playing in the snow!


Our clothes line and the same tree - as
the 1st picture - in the backyard. Look at
those branches sagging from the weight!


Our house - through the truck window!


The limb that fell last night...look how close it is to the house!


Remember my little tree in front of the house?


The ice is melting a small bit


What is left of my Zenia's from the summer


I don't think we'll be using this anytime soon!


More icicles!

Until next time...

Baby Registry

We finally did it! Doug and I spent the day at Baby Depot (part of Burlington Coat Factory) and Wal-Mart starting - and finishing - our registry for Baby Buckwheat! It was actually a lot of fun. The worst part of the day was the drive home. There was freezing rain, and the defroster had a hard time keeping up. We had to stop a couple times to actually get the ice scraper out to clean the window. Oh, well...we made it, and the registry is complete!

Until next time...

Touch Down!

No...this isn't a football post...

I wanted to let everyone know that Doug finally made it home last night. The flight from Atlanta to Cedar Rapids was canceled because of the weather. Luckily, they were able to get on a flight to the Quad Cities (Moline, IL). After take off, the captain stated that because of weather in the Quad Cities, there was a possibility their flight could be re-routed to Omaha, NE! Thankfully, the snow lightened up, and they were able to stay on course. The four of them then got a rental car and drove through the snow back to Williamsburg. They arrived home about 11:30 p.m. The dogs were (like I predicted) very excited to see Doug. They kept crawling up into his lap while he was sitting on the couch...remember, Charlie isn't exactly what you would call a lap dog!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Until next time...

Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!

Just thought I would let everyone know that we did receive the snowfall the weatherman predicted! I'm not exactly sure how much snow has fallen, but it started about 1 p.m. and is still going strong at 5:40 p.m. I shoveled the porch when I got home from school, but you can't tell it now! I did take the boys out and let them play in the snow for a while. They wanted to run and jump across the entire yard. Charlie kept eating the snow! I wish I could have let them off the leashes and really go at it...but I didn't feel like going over to the neighbor's house to retrieve them. Maybe Doug can take them out to play longer tomorrow. I'll try to get some pictures tomorrow as well.

The snow also caused many schools to let out early, including Belle Plaine Community Schools (which is where our church is)...causing the religious ed. classes to be canceled as well. I was actually kind of glad because I didn't want to drive that far in the dark!

I just hope that Doug & the others from work will be able to fly into Cedar Rapids this evening. They are to land around 9 p.m. I keep checking the status of the flight, and it is still on time...one hour until take off.

Until next time...

Happy Thursday!

Yea! Doug is coming home early! He is suppose to be in sometime Thursday night. The group was originally suppose to be back this Saturday, but they finished planting earlier than expected. I'm very excited because it means that he will now be the one taking the dogs out on the super slick, icy yard! (Knock on wood, I haven't fell yet) Hopefully, the dogs will also go back to their normal selves. I think they have really missed Doug...they sit by the back door when 5 o'clock rolls around waiting for him to come home. Plus, I just don't play in the same manner as Doug does; therefore, the boys have a lot of energy stored up for him!

Until next time...

Winter Weather Survival

Well, I did survive the weekend! We got a lot of ice on Saturday, and it then melted through the night. Of course, the temperatures dropped on Sunday and everything refroze. Luckily, all the ice was off the power lines and trees, so they didn't fall. I decided to skip church on Sunday when I almost fell on the porch taking the dogs out. I had no clue what the roads were like, but I also didn't want to find out. The grater came by the house late Sunday morning, and I decided it was safe to go to our bowling league. I haven't been since the end of October! The roads were just fine and I had no problems. I had a decent 1st game (a 133 score), but my 2nd and 3rd weren't so hot (a 106 and a 104). Oh, well. We still beat the other team!

Monday, I was suppose to sub in Marengo, but all the schools around here ended up closing after having a delay. I worked most of the day on my medical transcription class...it was nice to get a good amount done! I was going to go watch Mitchell's Christmas program last night, but with school canceled, the program was canceled. Instead, I went to Jeremy & Laura's house for supper. It was a great time, and I even brought some left overs home. The boys were all wound up from not having gone to school!

We are suppose to get more snow today...later this afternoon and into the evening. By the looks of the radar, I don't think we will actually get that much here...but you never know!

Until next time...

And if you are wondering...I haven't seen the roofer since last Wednesday! I hope there isn't too much damage from the ice.

Way To Go Big 10!

Did you notice how hot the football season was this year?

Check out all these bowl games...

December 26th:

Purdue vs. Central Michigan - Motor City Bowl

December 28th:

Michigan State vs. Boston College - Champs Sports Bowl

December 29th:

Penn State vs. Texas A&M - Valero Alamo Bowl

December 31st:

Indiana vs. Oklahoma State - Insight Bowl

January 1st:

Wisconsin vs. Tennessee - Outback Bowl

Michigan vs. Florida - Capital One Bowl

Illinois vs. USC - Rose Bowl

January 7th:

Ohio State vs. LSU - All State BCS Championship

Until next time...

Oh, Christmas Tree

Well, I finally finished decorating my tree for Christmas! Our friends, Jeremy, Laura, Mitchell, and Justin came over Tuesday night to help me bring the decorations up from the basement. I'm so lucky to have friends like them. Mitchell wanted to help set up the tree and put the ornaments on, but I said it would be a while before I was ready to set it all up. Anywho...here are some pictures.

The finished product!

I think Charlie is ready to open presents!

Until next time...

Frustration!

This roof project is becoming a bad bur in my side. It is very annoying that the roofer only shows up 2 days a week. Especially when it is getting colder each day! Take yesterday and today for instance...no roofer. Alright, so it was only 30 degrees, but the sun was shining which means the shingles would have sealed just fine. And then there is tomorrow. As I write, I'm watching the news and we have a winter weather warning from 6 a.m. Sat. to 6 a.m. Sun. We are suppose to get a half inch of ice and then 30 plus mph winds, and maybe some snow mixed in as well. (When that happened last year, we were out of power for 5 days!!!) Anywho...back to the roof...it's not finished! So, if we really do get this weather tomorrow, it will be days before I see the roofer again. I hope it doesn't ruin the new decking he put down Wednesday morning!

You would think that the guy would want to get this project finished because it is a 45 minute drive here from his home...and if you haven't noticed...gas prices aren't that great! Then, when he is here, he only stays for a few hours. Maybe I'm just shorter fused these days...but I just want the project completed.

Sorry for the ranting...but I just needed to let off some steam.

Until next time...

Roof - Day 6

Another day of progress!

Just like I was hoping, the roofer was back today. Luckily, we didn't get the rain and snow like they thought, but it sure has cooled off and is going to continue to cool off through the weekend.

There isn't shingles on these sections, but they are covered!

Like always, here are some pictures of what happened today...

On a side note...Doug did make it to the hotel in Puerto Rico Monday evening/Tuesday morning around midnight or a little after, and he was up ready to start planting at 6 a.m. I haven't actually talked to him, but I know they are busy trying to get finished.

Until next time...

Puerto Rico

For those of you who did not know, Doug left for Puerto Rico Monday morning. It was short notice and definitely unexpected. We knew that the department was sending another crew after Thanksgiving to finish the planting, but Doug was not scheduled to go. Unfortunately, one of the girls that was to go, lost a close friend in a car accident over the weekend. (Please keep her in your prayers) So Doug took her place.

Of course, it was an eventful flight...as always! His flight left from Cedar Rapids at 6 a.m. and arrived in Atlanta at 9:30 a.m. His flight from Atlanta to San Juan left at 9:54 a.m. Unfortunately, Doug's plane did not taxi to the gate to unload until 10:10 a.m.; yep, he missed his connection. The airline did not have another available seat until 5 a.m. Tuesday morning. Needless to say, Doug was upset. The airline then told him he could try the stand-by list for the 5 p.m. flight, Monday evening, but he would have to stay there around the terminal. Well, he did take the chance, and was actually able to get on that flight! He was to arrive in San Juan around 10 last night, and he was then going to take a taxi to Ponce, which is on the opposite side of the island (a 3 hour drive). I haven't talked to him since he boarded the plane in Atlanta...I'm hoping all went well.

I will keep you updated as I learn more. The crew is scheduled to arrive back in Iowa on December 8th, but could be earlier if all goes well with the planting (aka: they don't get any more rain).

Until next time...

Roof - Days 4 and 5 of Work

So...the roof...progress is being made, but slower than I expected. Doug and I were hoping that the project would be completed when we got back from our Thanksgiving trip, but it was not. Luckily, they did work one day and finished the west side of house, which they started before Thanksgiving. Here are some pictures...

A reminder of what it was before...


...What it looks like now!


Here's a close up...the boards are there to help the workers
keep their footing...they will be removed at a later date.

Monday, when I arrived home for lunch, they were back to work on the north and east side of the house that face the road. It was then that I learned the slats on one side have rotted and need to be replaced. (What else can they find under all those layers of shingles?) Here are some pictures of the progress made on Monday.

The before...sorry, not the best picture.


Charlie (the main roofer) and his crew at work.


Some close-ups of the bare slats.
The rotted boards are the ones at the bottom of this section.


The other side

I was disappointed that the workers were not back today...my roof is still open as you see in the pictures. We are suppose to get some rain and snow tomorrow. I hope they will be back tomorrow before it (the rain and snow) comes and get these sections covered!

On another note...yesterday afternoon I took a peak out the window to see all these pheasants in the field by the house! Where is a gun when you need it? I think there were about 15 hens and roosters in all.

Tonight when I got home from town, there were a dozen deer in the field behind the house, and 2 more in the waterway running through the field to the side. I tried to take a picture, but it didn't work out so well. Quite the nature center around here!

Until next time...

Change of Date

Just in case any of you were carefully following the pregnancy ticker at the bottom of the page, you are not going crazy!

Earlier today it stated that I was 23 weeks along, and now it states that I'm 25 weeks 6 days along. Doug and I received a notice from the OB-GYN's office that they have changed the due date for Buckwheat! They decided to go ahead and move our date up to the 4th of March! Yes, that is almost a 3 week difference.

So...I apologize to our friends, Cari and Mark, who were hoping that Buckwheat might come on their birthday. Now, our cousin Molly is probably hoping for Buckwheat to come on her birthday! We'll just have to wait and see.

Until next time...

(Thanksgiving) Trip in Pictures

Well, I finally took some time to download my pictures and shrink them down in size in order to upload them to this page!

The following is a recap of our week in Indiana...enjoy!

Saturday, November 17th
Missy & Andy's Wedding

Most just stand and smile...Missy added a wave!

Leaving the Church

The "Get-Away" Vehicle

The 1st Dance

Behave Andy...

The Beautiful Wedding Gown from Egypt!

The Cake

Thursday, November 22nd
Thanksgiving Dinner at Rosenfeld's

Molly...not wanting to look at the camera

Traditional Tripole Game

Sunday, November 25th
The Car Ride Home

Charlie patiently waiting to get home

Snow falling in Illinois

Check out the size of those snow flakes!
They were huge!!!

Some other things we did while in Indiana (without the camera) included:

• Completed our Christmas shopping on Monday and Tuesday;
• Attended the Varsity Basketball Home Opener against Edinburgh...which SWHS lost; and
• Had Thanksgiving dinners with the Gossett family, the '99-'00 PSO FFA families, and the Robertson family.